[Balwyngirl]

Christmas was my favourite time of the year for sure! About 2 weeks before Christmas, my dad’s garage was out of bounds to myself and 4 older siblings. This was because it became “Santa’s workshop!” For those 2 weeks, dad would re- paint and repair old bikes, dolls prams etc so that we felt like we were getting new ones for Christmas. Mum was also busy sewing dolls dresses and also pillows and covers for the prams. Christmas morning was just magical! We didn’t need brand-new toys etc from a shop. Our presents were made and given with love.

 

[featherfour]

Living nice and close to a milk bar meant that we had an easy way to spend 6d. We would stand at the lolly counter and choose so carefully, I'm sure it must have driven the poor lady nuts. "I'll have three sherbets, two buddies, four milk bottles," all the while carefully adding up those tuppences in my head, until I got lost trying to figure out how many sets of pretend teeth I wanted, and if I had enough left for a Whizz Fizz. You always had to ask: "How much is left?" because you knew you were going to spend every last bit of that sixpence.

 

[featherfour]

At Easter, we would go camping at Flowerdale. Dad packed our trailer with the tent and all the kitchen stuff and we left of Thursday night. We would meet my Uncle, Aunty and cousin and the two dads would set up the tents in the dark, and then go off and dig us a dunny, complete with canvas walls and a bit of string to hold the toilet paper.

Friday morning, my sister and I were in our camp bunks, me on the top bunk with her feet in my back. She was annoyed by the way I hung over her. But then we were out and searching, because the Easter bunny had been and there were chocolate eggs in colourful wrappers, and he always brought us a large egg full of "chocolate buttons" (because I guess they couldn't admit they were just off-label Smarties).

After that, it was time to go rabbiting. The first year I was so excited, we had a pet rabbit at home. I wondered what colour the rabbits would be. Where would we put them, and could I get to keep one, if it was really cute? My uncle carried a mysterious box with mesh over the front and warned me that I would lose a finger if I put it anywhere near the ferrets inside.

Little did I realise the fate of the rabbits we were catching. My uncle was a butcher, and he had to work on Saturday morning, the rabbits would be worth a few bob.

I was devastated when the rather plain grey rabbits were despatched and strung up over a stick, their legs threaded together. I walked back to camp, angry and upset.

My auntie asked, "Did you get any rabbits?"
"Yes," I said, "but stupid Uncle Bob killed them."

I didn't feel so bad later, and we gathered mushrooms in a nearby paddock, found frogs hiding beneath cow pats, and sat by the creek in the afternoon. Those holidays are some of my favourite memories.

 

[AngeNav]

I miss the big Christmas parties with all the family Grandparents to Grandchildren, the cricket game in the backyard, finding the sixpence in Xmas pudding, singing around the piano. Making a mess with all wrapping off presents. It doesn't get anymore Australian than that

I could talk about going rabbit hunting with grand pa in the same spot where Myer Highpoint is today, cranking his car to start or mum working 3 months just to but blankets for her 2 kids

 

[pymmie]

Hi guys... As the SDC veterans are no doubt well aware, we tend to run a competition once a month or so with a $100 Coles or Woolies voucher. Previous competitions have included things like submitting your funniest joke, the photo you're most proud of taking, and even your best tips for keeping tidy and organised around the house.

This one is a little different. We want to hear about your most poignant memories from the Australia you grew up in.

Some of the ways you could frame your answer might be by answering a question like:

"What has Australia lost to time that you want to bring back?"
"What do you miss most about the Australia you grew up in?"
"How do you think your childhood was different to your kids/grandkids?"

Alternatively you could simply tell us what your most cherished childhood memory is!

The winner (we know this is a bit of a subjective thing, but we can only pick one person sadly) will receive a gift voucher for $100 to the supermarket of their choice (Coles, Woolies, Aldi, etc.). We plan to run the competition from today until the end of July.

View attachment 3852

 

[pymmie]

In the 50's & 60's the Salvation Army Band used to march up our street and other streets, to raise money. All the Kids in the neighborhood would run onto the street in excitement and start singing and dancing their way up the street with them, having the time of our lives. ;-)

 

[Suzanne rose]

Hi guys... As the SDC veterans are no doubt well aware, we tend to run a competition once a month or so with a $100 Coles or Woolies voucher. Previous competitions have included things like submitting your funniest joke, the photo you're most proud of taking, and even your best tips for keeping tidy and organised around the house.

This one is a little different. We want to hear about your most poignant memories from the Australia you grew up in.

Some of the ways you could frame your answer might be by answering a question like:

"What has Australia lost to time that you want to bring back?"
"What do you miss most about the Australia you grew up in?"
"How do you think your childhood was different to your kids/grandkids?"

Alternatively you could simply tell us what your most cherished childhood memory is!

The winner (we know this is a bit of a subjective thing, but we can only pick one person sadly) will receive a gift voucher for $100 to the supermarket of their choice (Coles, Woolies, Aldi, etc.). We plan to run the competition from today until the end of July.

View attachment 3852

I remember the milk always being warm

 

[Suzanne rose]

Do you remember what school bag you had growing up in Australia?These are three of my school bags . The brown case from kindergarten to year 3 , then a yellow canvas bag through primary and thinking also another one . The high school started of with this white addidas bag then a blue canvas bag .

 

[SusieQ1]

The 8th of November 1965 was the day I, my sister, and my Mum and Dad (Gran came later), arrived in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. We were known as "Ten Pound Poms" by the Aussies. What an adventure!! I was 11 years old, and my sister was sixteen months younger. We just slipped right into the Aussie way of life (the dunny out the back was a shocker to us all, especially Mum).

My favourite memory, from that particular time, was that our new chums at school didn't make us feel 'different'. We talked funny; school subjects were different to what we knew but our mates helped us out .........We were accepted!!

 

[leanneh]

My childhood Sundays consisted of a wonferful trip to the football with my whole family including my grandparents. We always went before lunch so we could watch all the lead up games. Blankets were laid out "on the hill" and we all had lunch. There was a family charge to get in and it can't have been much because my family were coping on a very small income of my Dad's whilst trying to build a house etc etc.
Today a trip to the football costs a fortune and more often than not it involves so many drunken lunatics you wouldn't want your children there in case they became involved in an all in brawl.
Back to the good old days of family footie outings for me.

 

[Joy Rush]

Loved Boxing Day for our get together with mum and dad ,we all bought goodies and had an amazing BBQ ,there were at least 80 of us ,long gone but never forgotten.

 

[Pammyg]

The kids today spend way too much time inside with a iPad. I would love to see the kids kicking a footy or playing cricket out on the street or a local park like we did back then. We would get on our bikes and ride for hours, find a spot down by the river to eat our vegemite sandwiches. So much fun, lots of laughing, fresh air and lots of friends (I don’t remember any bullying)

 

[Marj53]

I remember growing up in the 50's. We didn't have much. At one stage while my pop was alive and living with us us 4 kids all slept in a double bed. 2 boys down 1 end and 2 girls up the other end. Pop loved gardening with flowers out the front of the house and the back yard filled with fruit and vegetables. Fondly remember raiding his peas and raspberries. Don't know if he ever knew though. I think we should all try and get back to growing our own veggies.

 

[OperaticZeus]

Christmas holidays in the 50’s and 60’s were in a small town called Sofala and on New Year’s Day the owner of the only store would collect all the kids in a cattle truck, parents came too in the truck or followed in their cars and we would all go to a spot on the river and the day was spent playing cricket, swimming, eating, snoozing and just being kids. He had great big canvas sacks with dry ice and the best treat was ice cream in the afternoon. It was the best of times.

 

[Caroleboxsell]

My most remembered moment growing up was when we would go to the beach at Redcliffe and spend the day there till the tram came late in the day to take us back home. This was lots of fun to go on the tram all the way there and back as we didnt have a car. It was a great family experience.....

 

[Snowy121518]

When my dearest Mum said ‘Go outside and play and don’t come back for ages’, she’d pack us a bottle of cordial, some biscuits and fruit and tell us to go ‘up the bush’ - woohoo! We (seven of us) always thought we had the absolute BEST EVER BACKYARD IN ALL THE WORLD, being a mountainside all to ourselves. Never bored, too much to do and never wanted to come inside for a bath and bed.

We made a cubby house in the gnarled apple tree that was a ship, a tardis a house, a plane, the moon…We clawed our way to the Monster rock, climbed up waterfalls, caught frogs and crawchies, climbed up the middle of the Hollow Tree, and stood under the waterfall getting soaked to cool down on hot summer days. When older we went on mountaineering expeditions up to Initial Rock to carve our names next to our father’s name, walked along the mountain and took the Sublime Point track to climb back down again always with wobbly legs.
We picked buckets of blackberries in February so than Grandma and mum could make blackberry jelly, pies and biscuits, and nabbed fruit from the abandoned orchards half way up the mountain. We made tracks through dreaded lantana - bashing it down and tramping on it. We swung on vines and made foxhole cubbies. We got ticks and leeches galore! We got stung with stinging nettles countless times. We picked Stinking Rogers and made them into bows and arrows, spears and horses. We got paspalum sores and scraped up knees and arms. We knew how to deal with such things. It was all normality for us.

How things have changed.

Being a Nanna to two little girls aged two and four is a lovely blessing. Miss four started to use the ‘B’ word one day when I was babysitting.

BORING!? WHAT?! They have so many toys to play with, lovely rooms, a great big garden set out like a Childrens play/activity park, but it was all just ‘boring?’ They have an amazing dollhouse… the kind I dreamed of having as a child…they have a fabulous cubby house in the garden. It even has its own verandah!

I told th little misses that I had an amazing doll house when I was little. I made it with a wooden crate and scrap wood from my Dad’s workshop, wood glue and hammer and nails. I loved my dollhouse. I played so many wonderful hours of pretend with my Dollies made of pegs and material scraps.

Miss Four thought that was very funny but it got her imagination working and ever since we have played long and often complicated games, using anything we can find around the house, yard and in their stuffed toy boxes, to add to the fun.

When they jump on the trampoline it’s not so boring if you play counting and singing games to make it interesting, We play schools with the Dollies and camping or ‘going to the farm’. We made a zoo for all the little animals using lots of different building toys and bits of cardboard and sticky-tape to make a house for the dinosaurs. The swings outside become trains and buses to catch and go on an adventure. There is a teepee in their room but we made a cubby house with blankets and sheets over the climbing frame. We have dolly birthday parties with all the bells and whistles.
So many games to play when I turn the televisions off, hide their tablets and devices…and it’s not even boring. When I hear that ‘B’ word I shake my head and tap my noggin to remind the little sweeties that ‘boring’ is their problem to fix.

They still love their Disney channel and YouTube and ABC kids shows and having a rest after lunch glued to their tablets. It’s all good.

So what if their Nanna Lisie is slightly weird, goofy, crazy, silly, just a big kid at heart! At least it’s not boring when Nanna comes to play lol

 

[magss61]

My nostalgic memories revolve around my growing up in Coventry street South Melbourne. A time when bullying was non existent compared to today. The local children walked to and from school together, played in the little streets together or headed down to the local ymca which was only a few houses down from mine for some free activities in the gym. No electronics or mobile phones back in those days just yo-yos, hoopla hoops, basketballs and scooters or bikes if you were lucky to have one. Happy days!!!! I was a short tubby child yet I was nominated captain of my sports team, the green coloured St Patricks. So proud of that and such a confidence booster I actually won a couple of ribbons at the annual school athletics meetings which I still cherish today. My parents no longer with us we’re decent, honest, hard working people who struggled having seven children me being the last, but I must thank them for the happiest childhood memories. My father always attended the Anzac Day march proudly wearing his medals which I now cherish and as proud South Melbourne bloods supporters now Sydney swans of course never missed a lakeside oval match as family and friends gathered to cheer them on. Such wonderful memories I will always hold close to my heart.

 

[Rhondi]

I was born and lived in a small country town. It was safe as everyone looked out for each other. No one locked their doors. We used to spend heaps of time in the bush and playing sports. We called adults auntie or uncle as respect was how we were bought up. If someone in your family was sick neighbours would help with meals if it was my mum.

 

[Mars]

Something we loved doing when we were kids was making mud pies and we had an old Stove in the back yard so we would then cook them. Kids came from other houses to join us and they would take their mud pies home . Another thing was that we were able to go anywhere and not worry about the dangers that the kids these days have to be careful of. At night time we had to go home when the street lights came on.

 

[marysenior]

We lived on a small property, the best memory was playing with children from adjoining properties in the reserve and creek, hearing our parents calling us for meals, having gatherings in the evenings with the neighbours and playing games where we all included with the adults.