A Big Day for Dex

To Lakes Entrance, Victoria, Australia

Today was a big day indeed: Dexter’s eleventh birthday!  He’s getting to be a big boy, though, he did tell us about a boy on the playground this morning that asked how old he was. When Dex said to guess, the boy started at seven!

Beach at Yanakie Caravan Park

Fortunately, Dex was not expecting much for his birthday, so his expectations were easily met. When he went to the bathroom after waking up, we frantically blew up as many balloons as we could. When he returned, he seemed genuinely pleased with the balloons and the gifts: a new watch, a pack of Hot Wheels, and a new pair of dark grey zip off pants -- only a little bit too big.

Having skipped the hike yesterday at the Wilson's Promontory (the Prom), and with Dex’s approval, we headed back into the park to the trail head. The weather was much nicer now -- cooler with sunny, blue skies and a light breeze -- so we were all happy we had postponed from yesterday. Luckily, with its towering Eucalyptus, dark swamp wallabies, and tall ferns, the six kilometers loop did not disappoint.

A skink

Swamp wallaby

Once back on the road, we set our sights on Lakes Entrance, which would put us with in a few hours of Canberra and Helen and Shane's house. We found a small campground right off the main road. Unfortunately, the Mexican food restaurant we saw driving in, also on the main drag, was closed, so we settled on the next best thing: Mac & Cheese and a store bought apple pie! Dex was a good sport about the low key nature of the day. As a special treat for the evening, though, we crowded into the van and huddled around the laptop to watch the remaining film of three we had down loaded in Hong Kong -- It’s A Wonderful Life. This is Meg's all time favorite movie. Starring Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed, its timeless message is about the importance of honesty, hard work, and love of family and friends -- "Strange, isn't it? Each person's life touches so many other lives. When they aren't around they leave an awful hole." A true Christmas classic. Happy Birthday, Dexter.