Today, Jake and I made the most of the rainy day with a trip to the Evans Head Aviation Museum. Jake was surprised to know, given that before I was a midwife I actually studied history and literature at University with the hopes of becoming a museum curator, or (more realistically) a teacher, that I had never been to the aviation museum. I told him quite honestly that this was because, being in Evans Head, I had just assumed that it would be a bit crap. I was very happily proven wrong!

Evans Head has a long standing relationship with the Air Force, and was home to one of Australia's largest RAAF bases during WWII. Apparently this puts a town in good stead for receiving ex-air force aircraft to display in beautifully restored condition in an original WWII aircraft hangar. While the main attraction of the museum is the F1-11, I actually didn't take a single photo of it! Oops. I was much more interested in the shiny, red Canberra and the Caribou light cargo carrier, which we were able to actually go inside on a guided tour by the extremely knowledgeable volunteer, Shane.

Not really dressed to impress, but this is one of my most comfortable outfits. I LOVE my Nobody jeans so much. 

I'm so glad that Jake convinced me to go to the museum. It was absolutely amazing walking in and around, and even under the wings of the amazing planes and other aircraft on display. Seeing where the gunners had to lie in the older, WWII planes was pretty amazing, and we are very lucky to have such a great museum in our tiny, seaside town. Every year, the Museum hosts The Great Eastern Fly In, which we usually watch for free from the beach like the cheapskates we are, but after visiting the museum and seeing all that it has to offer, I'd definitely consider paying to go to the fly in some time (haha). 

If you're ever in the Northern Rivers, this museum is well worth checking out. For $5, it's worth every dollar if you're into history, engineering, or just want to see some cool planes. Kids would absolutely love it! There was a little boy there today with his parents and his wowed exclamations as he looked up at the big wings of the F1-11 were the cutest thing!

A day at the beach in my new, sustainable swimwear

Recently, I've sparked renewed interest in learning to surf (maybe this time I'll stick it out?), and I've also started learning how to kite surf, which is my partner, Jake's passion. Now, I'm not sure if you've ever kite surfed before, but one of the key steps when you're learning is body dragging through the water, which essentially is like jigging for bait, but your body is the jig and you're praying to god almighty that nothing big enough to swallow you wants to play the part of bait (there are videos of me doing this on Instagram if you want the visual and have never been fishing before). Now, as you can imagine, this is not an ideal thing to be doing in a bikini, as the water often catches on your swimmers and pulls as your body lifts out of the water, resulting in a little bit more flesh baring than is desirable. Surfing is also not something I particularly enjoy doing in a bikini, because it tends to result in both sunburn and board rash - ouch! 

So when these new interests surfaced, or resurfaced, I decided to invest in some new, more appropriate swimmers. I wanted something full piece with sleeves to protect my arms from the sun (they get quite enough), that was feminine, still sexy and sustainable. Cue a long internet search over a period of about a week, and an instagram poll to help me choose between two different suits, and I finally settled on the Soulti Surf La Mar Onezie. I loved that Soulti is a local to me small business run by a woman who surfs, because I knew the swimmers would be appropriate for my climate and the activities I wanted to do in them. They're 75% recycled nylon, made from nylon spun from discarded fishing nets fabric offcuts. I love our ocean so much, and so it's incredibly important to me that my actions in it and outside of it contribute to it's health, which is why I have decided to only buy sustainable clothing this year. I also love that even though I'm far more covered than I typically am at the beach, especially once a kite surfing harness covers my lower back, I still feel super sexy in them.

Yesterday the wind was blowing hard and Jake was keen to get out in it for a kite surf. I originally intended on having a session too, but when we got to the beach it was actually too windy to be safe for a beginner on the size of kite that I had with me, so I ended up just taking photos and videos of Jake instead. We drove onto the beach at Evans Head and went down to Salty Lake, which is a tidal tea tree lake that joins up with the ocean on the high tide. Jake loves flat water kiting and was up for the challenge of the narrow lake, and the wind was perfect to try it. We went between the lake and the ocean to swim in the morning, and then when the afternoon wind picked up, Jake hit the lake on his kite. Lou had a ball chasing him through the shallows, and I had fun watching, playing with my camera and swimming and playing with Lou in the lake and the surf. Considering that we were on the beach all day, I'm so glad I had the foresight to put my new swimmers on, or I'm sure I'd be in a world of pain, burnt to a crisp right now. The long sleeves also provided a buffer from the wind while I sat on the shore and Jake kite surfed. My only regret about the day is that we left the beach for lunch. I wish we had packed a picnic to enjoy in the shade by the lake. I can already guess that we will be spending a lot more time down there before the end of summer though, so there is always next time for that!

Why is it that I'm always getting brilliant, candid shots of Jake and he never gets any of me? I'm starting a pact with him - I'll only sit in the wind to take kitesurfing pictures for hours on end if he takes cute candid shots of me when we are hanging around and out and about. 

Starting Fresh and Outfit of the Day

Hello! How are we all? It's been a long time since I blogged, although starting up again has been on my mind for a while. A long, long while! Ever since I got back from my trip to Europe in 2016, after catching up with Amy, Ella, Kirsty, Erica, Magdalena, Libby and Sophie, blogger pals I met through Little Foal about 5 or 6 years ago? I ummed and ahhed about whether I should continue with Little Foal, which provided me such an warm and fuzzy blog community for quite a few years, but a lot has changed since my days at Little Foal, and it didn't really feel like it reflected my personality anymore. I'm hoping that this little space will give me a new creative outlet, and grow with me for years to come.

Welcome to The Saltwater Blog!

Turning a new leaf feels nice. My goal with this space is to fill it with pieces of my life as I venture out as a Registered Midwife, and enjoy my afternoons and weekends with my boyfriend, Jake and our pup, Lou, in our little seaside home in Lennox Head near Byron Bay in Australia. Jake and I have big travel goals for the next few years and some life goals, too, and I want to bring this blog along for the ride to document our lives together. You will also find me sharing my interests - my love of skating, fashion, cooking, crafting and reading.

These photos were taken today at the sand spit in Ballina. The ocean was a bit rough for a swim today, so we headed for the flat water at the spit with Lou for a play. Lou is 5 months old now, and he's growing so fast! He's incredibly playful, and getting more and more adventurous as the days go on. Over the past couple of weeks, he's slowly started venturing into the water and today for the first time, he actually came in deep with Jake and I while we swam! He looked like he was having a ball paddling around and chasing after Jake and I, and he looked so cute bobbing under the water to fetch his ball. We are so relieved that Lou loves the water, because the beach is where we spend about 98% of our free time.

Don't let the long sleeves fool you - today was HOT! This dress from H&M is actually super cool in the heat though. It's so billowy and made from a light material that keeps the sun off your arms in the sun. It's probably the only reason I'm not burnt to a crisp today. We try to take Lou to the beach at least once a day, and even though it's only the start of October, I'm already starting to tan. The bag is from Mexico,  and was brought back for me by my little sister after her recent trip to South America, the belt is from Bali, the sunnies are D&G with prescription lenses and the hat is a $12 K-mart jobby that I picked up on the way to the spit today.

If you're reading this, I'm incredibly glad you are giving my  new little corner of the internet a chance. I'm hoping to post a couple of times a week, and I have a few post ideas lined up ready to go. I'm so glad to be back in the world of blogging, and I look forward to sharing more of my life here on this blog. I hope you will be back again soon!