Boys will be boys

Zach found a patch of muddy sand to play in while walking on the beach. Mud affinity must be genetically encoded on the Y chromosome.

Beach Time

While in Port Douglas we spent plenty of time walking along beautiful Four Mile Beach. It is a long (as it's name implies), wide, flat beach perfect for strolling.



Zach grabbed a shoulder ride from our friend Lisanne who joined us for one of our walks.

But most of the time Zach preferred to walk and followed Dad all over the beach.



He took a moment to wave at the camera. The small round dots on the beach are balls of sand made by hundreds of tiny crabs.



We couldn't pass up the opportunity for a family beach vacation photo.

Aunt Laura paused from searching for seashells long enough to pose for this picture.

Mom and Zach in their beach hats.

Zach found a baby coconut in the sand.

Dad found a bigger coconut on the beach. Dad and Zach debated about which coconut was better. Eventually they decided to bring the bigger coconut home with them.



Dad then spent half an hour peeling the husk and cracking the shell so we could eat fresh coconut. In Zach's own words: yum, yum.

Sail Away

We spent most of last week at Port Douglas in Far North Queensland near the Great Barrier Reef. We had been there 3 1/2 years ago and were eager to return with Zach. We were also lucky enough to have Zach's Auntie Laura fly in from Seattle and join us there. To take advantage of the warm tropical weather and the Great Barrier Reef, we took a sailboat trip to a small coral cay to do some snorkeling.

The sailboat was beautiful and the trip out to the island was a wonderful way to start the day.

Perched in a prime location near the front of the boat, we watched the gentle waves and turquoise blue waters while Zach charmed the other passengers.

The fresh tropical breezes were the perfect antidote to jet lag after Laura's long flight Down Under.

We were all smiles when we arrived at the island.

The grown-ups took turns snorkeling and playing with Zach on the beach. He had the most fun with Auntie Laura who let him eat coral!! (He's working on cutting a few new molars.)



We were there at the very end of the season for stinging jelly fish. They don't show pictures of these very unattractive blue Lycra suits on the glossy brochures, but they are a necessary evil since the stingers can be lethal. Fortunately we didn't see any jellyfish. We did, however, see bright blue parrot fish, all varieties of butterfly fish, shy little clown fish nestled in their sea anemone homes, and giant angel fish.

Zach thought the suits were hilarious!!



After an exciting day filled with an incredible diversity of tropical fish and a spectacular undersea garden of soft coral in every color of the rainbow, Dad and Laura decided to relax with a can of VB (Victoria Bitter).

Ten minutes into our return trip, Zach was in a deep slumber. The excitement of the day was no match for the calming waves, gentle sea breeze, and warm sun. It was a marvelous day for all of us.

New Trick

Auntie Laura arrived Down Under ten days ago and we have already had some wonderful adventures with her at the Great Barrier Reef and Central Australia. But before we get to pictures from the last week and a half, we wanted to show you one of Zach's new tricks. We're not sure he actually knows what this means but he's pretty pleased with himself and has been doing it on command for the last five days. Enjoy.

The Kiss

Dad taught Zach how to kiss.

Splish Splash

Bath time has become more interesting (and wet) lately.

May Shots

Two pictures from the week:



Our little bloke in his Blunnies and onesie with his new favorite stuffed animal, Camel.

Fresh from the garden.