Summer Wonderland

Sleigh bells ring

Are you listening?

On the beach

Sand is glistening

Beautiful rays

We’re happy today

Basking in a summer wonderland

Towels laid out, sun cream gleaming

Togs are bright, smiles are beaming

We squeal in the sun

Splashing up fun

Basking in a summer wonderland

In the morning we can build a castle

And pretend a dragon lives inside

He’ll say “Roar!”, fire blasting from his nostrils

We’ll scream “Aagh!” and run like we can fly

Later on

While the ham bakes

We’ll share slices of mum’s fruit cake

Eat a mince pie

A satisfied sigh

Basking in a summer wonderland

In the morning we can build a castle

And pretend we’re princesses so fine

We’ll have lots of fun with our big castle

Placing all our shells in one long line

When the sun

Finally goes down

We can see

Lights around town

We’ll frolic and play – the great Aussie way

Basking in a summer wonderland

A beautiful sight – we’re happy tonight

Basking in a summer wonderland

What do I see?

Hiking on a dirt track, what do I see?

Black cockatoos are squawking in trees

Hiking on a dirt track, what do I see?

Weedy bunny tails are growing so free

Hiking on a dirt track, what do I see?

Giant seed pods – eyes looking at me

Hiking on a dirt track, what do I see?

Thick, roughened bark like scales on a tree

Hiking on a dirt track, what do I see?

Spiky desert flowers, a prickle or three

Hiking on a dirt track, what do you see?

Winter Haikus

Winter here is up and down.

Sun shining in clear blue skies one day.

Showers bucketing down the next.

Smiles beaming as we run on the beach.

Hope glimmering through rain-beaten windows.

An unsteady season.

Blankets wrap the sun

Earth’s coldness in grey shadow

Warmth swelling within.

Sunrays find a crack

Light exploding like diamonds

Summer in charade.

Leaves fall dry and brown

Naked branches withered, cold

We huddle closer.

Storm clouds roll slowly

Over choppy ocean waves

Awash with the new.

At the Park

Great sticks in hand

we marched along

in lines as straight as roads

heading to the forest

where trees stand tall in rows

A sudden halt

I ground my stick

look back way o’er my shoulder

he follows,  s l o w

stick trailing now

behind my little brother

“Come on!” I cry

to speed him up

one last green stretch to cover

not knowing what the forest holds

it’s best we stayed together

He caught up fast

stick raised up now

and pointed like a sword

quietly we crept along

eyes peeled as we moved forward

tip-toe

tip-toe

tip-toe

tip -

We stop again

feet poised and still

and listen to the breeze

it brings the sounds of something

that lives within these trees

We feel it getting closer

hot breath and heavy steps

sniffing those who trespass

growling

then he leapt!

The fury of the dragon

was felt in flames of red

firing from his toothy mouth

smoke swirling round his head

We squeal as terror finds us

deep in this tree-lined forest

swords waving ‘round

as high-pitched cries

and beating wings surround us

Running hard

we stumble t’wards

the lit end of the path

an exit from the danger

a dragon’s angry wrath

Feet flying now

we cross the grass

and flop onto the mat

relieved, and breathing hard

we laugh … should we go back?

*This poem was featured as "Poem of the Day" on the Australian Children's Poetry site here.

Classification

Whether we go to the beach or the park, 

we always seem to come home 

with a bag (and pockets) 

full of treasures. 

Sorting them is just as much fun as finding them...

one, two

this one is blue

three, four

it’s shaped like a claw

five, six

long, pointy sticks

seven, eight

lay them out straight

nine, ten

a mangled old pen

eleven, twelve

shiny rocks on the shelf

thirteen, fourteen

these leaves are green

fifteen, sixteen

white shells washed clean

seventeen, eighteen

seeds shaped like a bean

nineteen, twenty

treasures a plenty!

The Whale Shark

Swimming with a whale shark is just one amazing adventure 

that can be had at the Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia.
We did this as a family on our recent trip to Exmouth, far north WA,
and it's an experience that my kids will always remember!

Deep out in the ocean

in waters clear and warm

swims a gentle giant

large and grey in form

Bigger than a bus

w i d e r  than a whale

three ridges on his side

lead to a pointed tail

Moving oh so smoothly

mouth open wide to feed

he swims about the water

gathering plankton that he needs

Rows and rows of tiny teeth

fill up his gaping smile

but they’re not used for eating-

just elements of style

Filter feeding on small things-

krill and red crab larvae

tummy full, he turns and winks

Would you like to play now?

I’ll lead you through the water

Swim with me in the sea

The vast blue of the ocean

is where I love to be!

I smile because I’m happy

I swim because I’m free

People come a long, long way

to snorkel next to me

And so I swim beside him

admiring all his spots

arranged in special patterns-

a giant dot-to-dot

His size makes me feel tiny

His girth makes me feel small

This friendly gentle giant

The most magnificent fish of all!

PS. While on our whale shark dive, we were lucky enough to meet Jana, 
one of the founders of the Hearts for Sharks foundation 
that aims to raise awareness of the true nature of sharks and their conservation. 
Click here to read all about this awesome cause.

The Water Cycle

Some dances last forever

cycling through the moves

it’s how Earth keeps a constant

a nature-driven groove.

Hip-hopping on the surface

water droplets bounce

jiving to the Sun’s beat

‘til suddenly they jounce-

evaporation.

Water vapour waltzes

swirling in the air

carried on the current

over here to over there.

Colliding with each other

the molecules take hands

a cloudy cabaret

cool atmospheric bands-

condensation.

Left feet are taking over

clouds clash with gentle bumps

the molecules a mosh pit

unlucky ones are dumped-

precipitation.

Rain can fall in buckets

snow can fall in heaps

runoff into rivers,

through valleys,

into seas-

Dancing on forever

waving to the skies

sun sparkling like a disco ball
drawing them up high.

Nature Journal

This is for my daughter.

Who records everything.

I have a little journal

with pages smooth and white

where I can draw some pictures

and underneath them write

words that can describe

the creatures that we see

while walking through the bush land

and weaving through the trees

words that list the colours

of flowers we discover

(including all the weedy ones

picked by my little brother)

words that tell a story

of wriggly things we find-

like the squirmy, wiggling earthworm

(we left him safe behind)

I like to do some sketches

showing different kinds of leaves-

I trace around their edges

then tuck them in the sleeve

One time I found a millipede

curled in a spiral shape

but my pencil must have tickled him-

he was suddenly awake!

My favourite things to draw

are pictures of the sky-

rainbows  r e a c h i n g  outwards

and clouds that float on by

And when each entry’s finished

I put my book away

safely in the cupboard

‘til we next go out and play