Dogs, Koalas and the cost of food

We visited the dogs in quarantine again this morning - I sorted it a bit better logistically and we all had a lovely time. The dogs are due out in just over a weeks' time - woohoo!

As you can see from these, pics they were pretty happy to see us.

We then visited the koala park that's right next door to the quarantine place. Lots of sleepy koala bears, looking unbelievably cute, and kangaroos that you could feed with popcorn - how cool is that?

Ruben was like a little zookeeper, feeding and stroking the kangaroos, very cute indeed.

There were also a couple of shetland ponies roaming loose and a donkey who followed us round hoping for a snack or two.

All in all, it was a lovely day, the kids were nicely behaved - apart from in the car when they attempted to kill each other as usual.

We've had some good news today, in that the people who own the house in Greenwood have accepted our application, and we will be moving into "the house with the pool right by the park" in the middle of July. Woohoo!

My blog has been all really positive, but I have one major gripe about like in Perth - the cost of food! It really is shockingly expensive. I haven't found one item that's cheaper than the UK. Supermarkets are limited to Woolworths and Coles, and it has become clear pretty quickly that they are certainly not the best way to do your shopping. For example, a sliced wholemeal loaf is around $4 which is about £3. At the local (lovely) bakers, an unsliced wholemeal, freshly cooked loaf is $3 - go figure? Chemists are cheaper for all toiletries and cleaning essentials, and there's a range of Wilkinson type shops that are cheaper still.

Nappies are eye wateringly expensive and baby wipes are the equivalent of £2.50 a packet, and that's the shops own brand.

So, it appears that the best and cheapest way to shop is to go back 30 years before we were all brainwashed by supermarkets and start shopping in the grocers, the butchers and the bakers.

I think I'm going to have my work cut out feeding a family of 5 for even a generous weekly budget - the kids go through fruit like it's going out of fashion. Today they've eaten 6 apples, 5 satsumas and 3 bananas between them. All good for their 5 a day, but probably around $10 in cost.

Any tips on shopping on a budget will be much appreciated!