We spent two weeks with our grandchildren and their parents in Sydney, then took our time on the journey home, visiting a small rain forest and waterfall south of Sydney that we last saw in 1963 and then spending time watching whales migrate north to calve.
A spate of birthdays and the galley proofs of "The First Born" greeted us on our return and the number of occupants in our home trebled when our younger daughter, her husband and two very lively girls (4 & 2) moved in to escape the dust and noise of house renovations.
It's great having them here.