Coffee

Oh how I love (and require that caffeine hit) a good coffee. We (well I especially) have become partial to a take-away coffee most mornings on my way to school class time, swimming, the beach, the park.

What was I going to do next year? And really I should be reducing our spending now too. We looked at coffee machines, but so expensive. I didn't want to take our pod machine, while so convenient and fast - there is no ritual in it and the taste isn't there. I also loved the idea of purchasing different beans on our way around - I love forming memories about places not just from my vision. To remember a place from the coffee I had each morning, sounded beautiful.

Dave put us onto the Aeropress. I LOVE it. I love the process. Measuring the beans, hand grinding them, boiling the kettle, frothing the milk, plunging. And we can try all sorts of beans. Currently we have the café round the corner favourite - Toby's Estate.

Home

We have purchased our caravan - hip hip hooray! A 1994 Jayco Songbird. With the perfect 3 bunk, fold up (into wall) double bed and dinner.

I am so relieved we got the ideal layout. We were thinking, as there are so few about, that we would have to compromise for a smaller living area - with 2 bunks and the third child taking the fold down dinner bed.

We will make it our own.

Caravan and Camping Supershow

We decided to go the Supershow on Sunday, leaving the smalls with their beloved Gaggle. It was a big disappointment. Perfect if you want to buy a vegetable peeler or a $100,000 van with a built in washing machine and lots of flashing lights. But the good was it made us realise this is just not us. And our first choice the 1980s van is us. I was hoping for more information about doing the 'lap', lots of family before us have done this, but there seems so little out there about it. My favourite resource is Fox's Lane Blog and Book - Vantastic, and have re-read it many times, and devour the beautiful images and information.

This trip is about slow and simplicity. Two things I crave daily. For my mind too not be so busy. I am a born organiser and planner. So there is an element of this, but releasing apart of this for me is liberating. I would plan month by month. Nick wants to get to a fork in the road and then decide which way to travel. He says if we only make it to Broome, so be it.

Change of Plan

I thought about deleting my last post, but I am keeping it because it is part of the journey. Our trip isn't just about being on the road for 12 months, it is about the preparation too.

We got our change over price back from Jayco, and were very disappointed. But more so not happy with the lines we were being feed about what they would put our Hawk on the yard for.

It made us consider other possibilities. Could we do the trip in the Hawk? Yes it would be possible. Just some alterations and clever storage ideas. A nights sleep and Nick was unsure about all the children sharing a bed. I was in perfect world mode, where we would wear them all out and then they would happily go to bed and sleep all night long. Hmm...

So now we are back on the sell the Hawk and buy a older 1980's caravan and do it up a little. Make it homely and safe. Use the extra dollars to enjoy ourselves on the road, take-away coffee and ice-creams.

So now the adventure beings again. Can we get away with a double & 2 bunk & fold down third bed situation or will we be lucky enough to find a 3 bunk situation in NSW?

Caravan

Comfort, Safety and Reliability. The 3 things I really want from our car and caravan combination.

After much thinking and talking - do we buy new, second hand, 'do up a'? We have settled on buying a new Jayco Starcraft 17.58-1.

Nick & I are so not mechanically minded AT all, so a 12 month warranty and 3 years roadside assistance are BIG attractions. Also the option of resale at the end of our trip.

Finding a caravan that would sleep all 5 of us was also a challenge. The Expanda range or buying an old retro caravan were our other choices. The Expanda range has a bigger price tag and with such a young family 'doing up' a retro caravan was not something we could do in the time frame we have (although we both would have LOVED this option).

I plan on adding homely features, without taking too much. As this trip is about spending time together and outside seeing our beautiful country. Simplicity is a word I am embracing, both for the pack up for our house and for our 12 months living in our caravan.

Must ask James what we should name her?

The Start

In 2015, the trip of Australia's beaches, cafes and playgrounds. The FIVE of us. A caravan. One loop of Australia. One BIG adventure.