Wednesday morning we got up and I started to organise all our stuff for the trip home. We'd kept it pretty organised so I was able to gather it all together, then take everything out of the car and repack it fairly leisurely over the course of the morning. The girls made cupcakes, then all the kids played a 'Capture the Flag' type game outside for ages. We were ready to go by midday, by which time it was pouring rain with strong winds, so we decided to wait until the storm had passed (luckily there was no rain when I had all our stuff on the ground next to the car!)
After the storm we sadly said goodbye to our friends and the kittens. After 8 days in a small house, the 7 kids were still keen to be together for longer, and L and I felt the same way, so great to find a family we gel so well with.
We left a bit after 1pm and headed south. The rain came and went, and when we stopped for lunch in Sutton Forest it was windy and freezing cold. We hung out at McDonalds for an hour or so, then made it to Yass where I needed to get petrol - there was sleet being blown sideways in under the roof of the petrol station and I got saturated, I have never been so cold putting petrol in the car! I got the big kids an orange juice, and Millie a soft serve cone and myself a chai latte and we continued on in the rain. Everyone was feeling a bit sick by now - we'd all had sore throats and sniffly noses for a few days, and we kind of crashed once our holiday was over.
At Gundagai everyone had had enough of driving, so we checked into a cabin at the caravan park near the freeway. It was a much more deluxe cabin than the one we'd had on the way up, with 3 bunks, and everyone was very excited. We headed down to Woolworths to get food for dinner - and when I went to pay I realised I'd left my wallet in the cabin, so zipped back to get it and paid - the kids coped quite well with having to do the extra trip, and I had a moment where I thought I would get upset - then figured it didn't really matter, and I was fine.
The TV worked in this cabin so we watched TV while I cooked dinner, then headed to bed fairly easily and I read Eldest to everyone until I was too tired. I started the night with a bed to myself which was pretty exciting!
Millie came in part way through the night, and neither of us slept well. We were all up fairly early and none of us felt very well. We ate breakfast and packed up and the kids had a play in the playground, and we were on our way again by just after 9.30.
Listening to 'Toby Alone' on audio CD helped everyone pass the time easily, especially with our colds getting worse. Caitlin in particular had a high fever and felt quite miserable. We stopped at Glenrowan for petrol and got some fries and ice-cream from McDonalds. Millie chatted to some army ladies when we were at the toilet, and discovered that girls can join the army, which she liked the idea of.
On the way through Yea we stopped in at Mum and Dad's and spent a lovely few hours hanging out there - showing Grandad LiAM's coins, playing lego and animals, sharing stories about our holiday and what Grandma and Grandad had been up to, looking at changes to their furniture, eating some food. We left around 5pm and were finally home just before 6 - Tony was very happy to see us and everyone was very pleased to be back in our own house and looking forward to our own beds.
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