Happy Australia Day!!

It is January 26th here in Australia, which makes it Australia Day!

On this day, in 1788 the First Fleet sailed into Sydney Cove. The First Fleet were the 11 ships which sailed all the way from Great Britain containing the Convicts who would later become the first white Australians.

Most Aussie's are pretty proud to find a convict in their family tree, even better if they came over in the First Fleet. She has two... but neither came over on the First Fleet.

To celebrate today we thought that, together with our pawsome guest, Ranger, we'd throw a bit of an Australia Day Pawty!

You're all invited! So grab a plate we're gonna have some truly iconic Aussie foods up for grabs... Might have to be game to try some of them!

We'll start off with the Aussie BBQ staple... And no, it's not "shrimp" (we actually call them prawns here) and you're far more likely to find SNAG on an Aussie BBQ than a prawn. Yup, sausages, sausages you can turn into a "sausage sizzle". That's were you take a nice BBQed sausage wrap it in a slice of bread and squirt some "dead horse" on top... (You remember for yesterday, "dead horse" means tomato sauce!)

Yummo! Wrap your laughing gear around one of those before they're all gone mate, they're pretty tasty!

Now, while you've got the dead horse out, do you remember what Floyd ate it with yesterday? Yup, that's right, a "dog's eye"... A piping hot meat pie!

Before we put the bread away from the sausage sizzle, you have all got to try Vegemite! Don't be put off by its colour, you're not a true Aussie if you don't like this stuff!

Now, my peep always says that when people try Vegemite for the first time, they tend to over apply. It's strong stuff it's not like jam (jelly) or peanut butter, so as beginners, follow the guide below... We recommend you avoid the last method of application... You might actually die!

What does it taste like you say? Well, it's... Salty... (Dogs tend to love the stuff... So tuck in!) 

Hope you're still hungry, 'cos we thought we might try some Bush Tucker next. Bush Tucker is was we call native foods, some of them sound pretty out there but they are all super healthy! (and, even pretty tasty!)

Now you can't go past Bush Tucker without trying a witchetty grub...

They are eaten raw and taste sort of nutty... If you're not game enough to try the real thing, there is always the lolly (candy) version...

If you have a sweet tooth, you might like to give the honey ant a try...

Look at all that sweet, sticky honey stored in him! Yum?

Okay, okay... That's enough Bush Tucker... Time for some... Less "buggy" desserts...

How about a lamington.

No, that cake doesn't have dandruff! It's sponge cake covered in chocolate icing and coconut! 

What about some Pavlova next...

Now, this tasty treats is one of my peep's favourites, you better grab some before she drools all over it! It's a giant meringue, covered in whipped cream and sliced fruit. The perfect Pav is crunchy on the outside with a soft chewie middle... Mmmm.... Yum...

Now... I don't know about you... But we're all pretty full! Time to wash all that food down with a drink. And, being Australia day, the drink of choice is... Of course...

Beer!!

A true Aussie drop mind you, none of that Fosters stuff... I don't think me, or my peep have EVER seen an Aussie drink that stuff!!

We hope you all had a great time at our Australia Day pawty! There is still plenty of food left (go on... Try a witchetty grub, tuck in!) You can take a doggy bag home if you like!

Floyd and I have had a great time hanging out with our good mate Ranger for the last couple of days. We hope he's enjoyed his time with us. The three of us are gonna have a quick afternoon nap and then we'll say good bye to Ranger...

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Now, Australia Day can be a tricky day, especially for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people... For them it marks the day when their lands were invaded...

So before we go we would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the little bit of Australia that we live on, the Wiradjuri People, to acknowledge Elders, past and present, to remember our shared past (even the shameful chapters) and to look forward to Australia's future, to a fairer, more inclusive Australia, where we all learn from and help each other.

This map shows all the different Aboriginal Nations and their lands. Each on of those groups has their own language and laws, that have existed for thousands of years. Aboriginal culture is the oldest continuing culture in the whole world. We live in Wiradjuri Country... Can you find it?

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Remember, you have until midnight tonight to submit your Barkday Competition photos... If you haven't done so yet, you really need to HOP TO IT!!!