Ratty, Toad and Mole are so excited...

G'day. Oh, those lovable Willow boys can hardly contain their excitement. I have promised them a trip on a steam train next Sunday. Hubby has long been a steam train buff and a month or so ago we went on a day long trip on one of these mighty locomotives and like the big kids that we are, we were kneeling on the seats with our heads out the window. Doesn't matter about all the soot that gets in your hair and eyes, it's such fun.

So, this time Ratty, Toad and Mole are coming along for the ride also. I have warned them that it will be a very early start and a really late night, but that they can sleep in on the Monday morning, while poor hubby and I have to go to work. They didn't seem to think that would be a problem.They keep talking about what they will see and all the new friends they might meet and of course, will there be nice food to eat!! They are starting to count the days.

They are of course, still very interested in the adventures of Hoppy the Kangaroo and love looking through the fabric book and commenting on some of the native animals we have here in Australia. Next on Hoppy's travels he met Clarence the Kookaburra and I explained that Kookaburra's make a sound that sounds like a laugh and that they are really lovely birds, though Ratty was very afraid when I told them that these birds feed on mice, rats and lizards. Poor Ratty,he ran and hid under the bed and it took quite a while to coax him out. Once Ratty regained his composure, he was very intrigued with the picture of Kathy the Koala, who had her baby on her back. Please can we meet her? said Toad. She looks so soft and cuddly said Mole. I am sure she would like to get to know us!!. I told them that yes, Koala's are soft and cuddly, but they have very sharp claws and would not think twice about giving you a good scratch if they were in the mood. Ratty asked me why she was eating leaves and I told them that Koala's eat the leaves from  Eucalyptus trees, it's their main food. I told the boys a story that some years ago, hubby found an injured Koala on the side of the road near where our farm was and that I rang a local wildlife sanctuary and they said someone would be there to meet us soon. By the time this lady  got to us, the Koala had managed to climb up a tree and was about twenty feet or so from the ground. Hubby and I watched in awe as the woman climbed the tree,with a blanket and a syringe, this was to sedate the hapless animal. She asked us to take up a position at the base of the tree in case the Koala fell. This is exactly what happened. Much to hubby's alarm the animal, now very groggy lost it's grip and fell right into his outstretched arms. Luckily it was soon sound asleep, those claws are dangerous, plus Koala's have good teeth and they can give a nasty bite. This was a great opportunity to have a nurse of such a beautiful creature and when she handed him to me, I didn't want to let him go. I rang some days later to see how he was getting on and was told the good news that he was ok and would be brought back to the area and released. Ratty, Toad and Mole all cheered when the heard.

The adventures of Hoppy will continue another day. The boys are wanting to go outside into the glorious sunshine and romp around the backyard with Lucky the wonder dog.
Take care. Hooroo from Ratty, Toad, Mole and Liz...