Noosa Take II

If you're following this blog at all, you might remember my post from last October, when we had a washout of a weekend in Noosa, a great little beach town just north of Brisbane on the Sunshine Coast.  We were supposed to stay for a week with my parents, but the weather was so bad that it forced us to check out early and take a rain check for the remaining nights.  Luckily, the real estate company was gracious about it and allowed us to book again in December for a quick weekend getaway before Christmas.

On our way into Noosa we stopped at Yandina, which is right off the Bruce Highway, where there is a rather large Ginger Factory. Ginger arrived in this area of Queensland before WWI, but it wasn't until WWII interrupted the importation of ginger from China that the crop was able to expand and make a name for itself here in Australia. They have a special "secret" workshop of Santa's, and while it was fun to stop and see the actual factory and everything they have on any normal day, the hub-ub about Santa's workshop was a little over-inflated. Interesting point...this is the first, and only Santa we have seen here in Australia with a real beard...kinda made the side-trip worth it.

Posing with a giant ginger man.

On the exciting All Aboard Ride.

Our 2010 Santa Photo.

Don't you love the fake white trees?  Almost as much as I love Hallie's "get-this-over-with" expression.

Afterwards, we drove straight into Noosa, picked up our keys and headed back to Sunshine Beach. The afternoon was beautiful and it was so nice to get a different view off the front balcony.

That's our little beach house right in the middle.

Then not an hour after we arrived the storm clouds came rolling in and we watched as our sunny day turned into a repeat of our first trip to Noosa. The winds were crazy and we actually started looking for a safe spot, should some sort of cyclone develop.  Our electricity was knocked out, and stayed out even after the storm had passed, forcing us to head into town for a bite to eat for dinner.  When we returned, power was still out so it was candle-lit bedtime routine and early bedtime for all.

The squall line.

Side patio furniture after the storm.

We awoke to the most peaceful, amazing morning out our bedroom window. The sun was shining, and the usually rough shoreline at Sunshine beach was tranquil and calm.  I wish I had taken some photos, but I didn't want to ruin the moment.  The longer we gazed, the more we saw...several pods of dolphins were out frolicking in the sound.  It was exactly what a beach holiday is all about.

We hurried and got our beach gear out and headed to the sand.  We spent all morning enjoying the beautiful waters, boogie-boarding, and even doing a little fishing.

 Sweet kids go from this...

...to this.  Always ready to goof off.  I love my silly family!

Caden the pro boogie boarder.

Boy time.

First Aussie catch.

Ain't she a beaut!

Unfortunately this is where the photos end for our second trip to Noosa.  I think I was too busy relaxing and soaking up the holiday to worry about snapping photos.  This was not, however, the end of the fun.  The weekend also held my first stand-up paddle or SUP lesson on the Noosa River, which was incredible.  It was too much of a balancing act to take along a camera, and the instructor swore she'd send me some photos she took, but never did (boo!), but just so you get the idea, in case you're not familiar with it, the photo below will give you the general idea.

We also met up with some of our Texas/Brisbane friends the Curtis' for a visit and evening walk on the beach and hung out at the surf club on Sunday before doing a little Hastings Street shopping and heading home.

We really love this little beach area north of Brisbane.  It has everything, a nice National Park (next visit, I swear), beautiful beaches, a great little main drag with awesome shopping and cafes, a surf club, a river, the list goes on and on.  And, if you get tired of being on the water, you can head inland (what they call the hinterland in Australia) and in less than an hour be in the breathtaking Glasshouse Mountains or the Blackall Range. We hope to make it back to Noosa for at least one maybe two more long weekends before we leave Oz.