Tumbarumba
Tumba-bloody-Rumba shootin’ kanga-bloody-roos is a line from a well known Australian poem, The Integrated Adjective. It always makes me smile and think of our youngest daughter Eliza.
Why you ask??
Picture this…she’s just three years old, as cute as cute can be with her white blonde hair and cheeky smile, twinkling, laughing eyes, sunny, happy personality and she has charm oozing out of her every pore!!
Then she opens her mouth….
We had just moved from Australia to the UK with our three little girls, for a year long teacher exchange and were meeting people, making new friends and getting settled in. Except that whenever anyone asked where we came from Eliza would jump up and say “we’re from Tumba-bloody-Rumba shootin’ kanga-bloody-roos” while dancing around charming everyone with her cuteness.
I knew it didn’t sound right coming out of her little mouth but you just couldn’t help but laugh with her, so she just continued doing it for most of the year we were away. Where she learnt this from we have no idea!!
We did try to tell her that it wasn’t appropriate but she was only three years old and didn’t understand and she was getting laughs and attention, so she was happy!! I now feel very guilty and such a bad mother for encouraging her but Eliza always had her own way of doing things… and still does 🙂
This is just one of the hundreds of happy stories I have about Eliza our youngest daughter. For some reason I told this story to people just this week when asked where I came from, and as today is Eliza’s birthday I thought I’d re-tell it to you. I’m sure she’ll appreciate it on her special day!
Happy Birthday Eliza!!!
For those interested the poem is by John O’Grady and is called The Integrated Adjective, it’s well worth a read!
Have you heard of this poem before?
Deb 🙂
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Deb is a young-at-heart & active 60+ blogger/retiree, after being made redundant from her 22-year career managing education programs in a men’s correctional centre (jail). She now spends her time reading, blogging, riding her ebike and travelling. Deb was awarded a Bravery Award from the Queen when she was 17 after a tragic accident – a definite life changing moment! She is married with 3 grown-up daughters & has 4 grandchildren. You can read more of Deb’s story here
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Deb's World 
Aww, I hope she has a lovely birthday this year! I think all of us had moments like this as kids 😀
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Blardy funny Aussies 🙂 😉
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Kids definitely have their own way of things. While sometimes, they understand and comply, its not always so! I’m sure you will cherish this incident throughout your life!
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Your Eliza sounds like my Isla now!
Lorna x
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I found it Deb … it’s from long before I started following you. Out of the mouths of babes, right? 😉
In my travels through your blog trying to find this post, I found another one with a sign for Wagga Wagga. God, I love Australia! Too funny 😀
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Glad you found my post! Wagga Wagga is our closest city! Only 110kms away along a windy road littered with kangaroos and wombats. It’s a great country 😊
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“Littered with kangaroos and wombats” … so jealous now!!
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Funnily enough Deb, when I told someone last week that I was going to Tumbarumba for a few days, their reply was the usual where is that? So I said have you never read the poem by John O’Grady about Tumba bloody Rumba etc etc!! Usually makes people smile. Eliza sure was a cutie little girl and still has a lovely nature. Happy birthday Eliza.
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