We’ve really had very up and down weather over the past few weeks.  1st December traditionally marks the beginning of Summer here and yet in the latter half of October and beginning of November we saw above normal temperatures and extreme heat.  Summer seemed to hit with a vengeance and in fact in some parts of our country there are bushfires already burning.

And then this past week we’ve had lots of rain - in one day we got what we would normally get in a month for this time of year and I’m sure we probably did again yesterday and today too. In fact perfect weather for ducks.  Must explain why my husband and I had ducks in the yard of our new home yesterday.

Melbourne has been hosting the “Around the Bay in a Day” bike ride for 17 years. It’s a great fundraiser while promoting fitness.  Those participating in the race can choose from 50km to 250km and distances in between.

My husband did this ride a few years ago.  It’s always held in October each year and always gets a lot of participants.  Below is a small selection of the photos I took this morning but you can see more at my photo gallery.

With my impending shift to the foot of the Dandenong Ranges I’ve begun looking to see ‘what’s on’ to explore and see - and take my camera to!  I discovered the beautiful Tulip Festival in Silvan, not 5 mins away from my daughter’s home in Monbulk, so I picked her up on Friday morning and we went for an explore.  It didn’t disappoint and I got some great pics.

Whet your appetite?  You can see more here.

The Royal Melbourne Show has been running for the past week. It’s currently school holidays here in Victoria so the show is always a popular place to go.

As my own children have grown we don’t go to the show very often but I decided it would be a good place for some photo opportunities - anything to take my camera out!

So here’s a few shots from my time at the show which is at the Showgrounds, Flemington.

My husband and I were exploring Selby which is where our new home will be and we discovered only 5 mins drive away a lake park we didn’t know existed. It’s at the top of Cardinia Reservoir and is called Aura Vale Lake Park.  It’s apparently the run off water from nearby areas which is prevented from entering into the reservoir. So it was quite full, and really lovely to visit.  You can go canoeing, kayaking, walking, have picnics and just enjoy the scenery.

Approx 54kms from Melbourne itself, it can be easily reached via Wellington Road for a lovely outing.

While it was a cool afternoon it was certainly pleasant and there were few people around as we visited it.  A couple of pics below but if you want to see more then visit my blog at KathiesPhotos.com.