After my friend's dog stole my three year old's sandwich (out of her mouth!) I don't have dogs, cats are cleaner to have in a house as long as you provide kitty litter. A house with a dog smells so bad to us. My neighbour used her dog to clean up after her toddlers - licking the floor, the high chair tray, etc. and that was the wash they got. But I must say I do love dogs too - in the right environment.

We haven't see the king parrots yet this year, but the almond trees have nuts on them now, so I suspect the king parrots will arrive any time now! We had a flock of red-tailed black cockatoos arrive temporarily , once. They were big birds, and very handsome. We get the white cockatoos and the galahs. We also have grass parrots, in their shades of green, who land on the grass and almost disappear from view, until they move .

Tell me about it, the ones across the road were going all day and night in the front yard, including revving up a motor bike they're not allowed to ride! my hubby wears flannie shirts when he's not in work gear. He likes ripping them, that's a trend that should end. of course, all Australian flag thongs (flip flops) are made in China!

Thank you everyone for your tips. I am feeling more confident now, I can start to picture what has been recommended by everyone. I am curious to learn more about some of your comments: GDP Interior Design - you mentioned a repeating pattern on the balcony, could you please further explain what you meant by this? The floor tiles or railing or wall? I am intrigued as we really want to add a little something there. Also, great tip with the eave colours, to be honest, I would have just gone plain flat white but I guess this would be too contrasting with the other colours if we did right? Sammy Elder - I LOVE your idea of the cantilevered/suspended roof. Thank you so much! That gives us something extra to work on! LesleyH - Plantation shutters is/was right up there on the to do list. They are very expensive for what they are but they certainly are popular. Could you please help further describe what you mean with your comment about cladding? I was looking at cladding options and initially was thinking I could clad the top half but there were many comments about how it often looks like you're trying to cover/hide something (bad walls, cracks etc). Thanks so much everyone, what a great community this is! Dan.