Lamb Island is the second smallest of the four Southern Moreton Bay Islands (SMBI). Located not much more than a stone's throw from the much larger Macleay Island, Lamb Island is only 2km long and 1km wide. Akin to the other SMBI it is accessible only by passenger ferry or vehicular barge. Access to a convenience store is therefore vital to the residents and visitors to Lamb Island.

The Lamb Island Convenience Store very much reminds me of the kiosks one finds at the larger caravan parks. There's a little bit of everything for sale, but nothing in large quantities. You can pick up the band aids you need for your cut knee, the mossie coils to keep the biters away, and the sauce to quickly make up your curry dinner. The daily newspapers and ice-creams are available and you can quickly snack on a meat pie from the oven. Other take-away meals can be bought and eaten in the beautifully shaded area in front of the store.

In the lush grounds of the store is a flower shop which was not open at the time of my visit but appears to operate on weekday mornings and on weekends. It looks very inviting and will certainly warrant another visit to the island. What I found incredibly community minded was the table outside of the flower shop. On the table was a large selection of very good quality second-hand clothes with a sign saying "FREE". Community spirit appears very much alive on Lamb Island.

As the only hardware shop on a rapidly developing island, Mac's Timber and Hardware is a fairly essential business for Macleay Island. Conveniently located only a few hundred metres from the ferry jetty, Mac's offers an extensive range of hardware and timber products.

In the large and well organized yard customers will find gardening needs such as fertilizers and potting mixes. Sand, gravel and dirt is available for purchase, together with an extensive variety of timber and fencing wire.

Inside the store a variety of kitchen utensils are sold together with a small selection of kitchen appliances, such as toasters and electric jugs. All manner of tools are available such as hammers, saws, allen keys, rulers, paint rollers, wire cutters, scrappers etc. There is a good selection of plumbing and electricial requirements together with bathroom components such as taps. A reasonable quantity of gardening tools, hoses and fertilizers are also available. Excellent photos of Mac's Timber and its stock can be found on the moretonbay.biz website at http://moretonbay.biz/mac%E2%80%99s-timber-hardware

Mac's Timber and Hardware is certainly worth visiting if you need building materials on Macleay Island. It's amazing what you can find. I picked up an old fashioned can opener for $1.90. I hadn't seen one for years and have been constantly frustrated by my new-fangled ones not working properly. It was worth the visit just for that!

If you're a visitor to Macleay island then it's a long walk from the ferry jetty to the Naked Fisherman, way up along High Central Road. It's worth the trek, however, and you're sure to be delighted by the range of seafood offered.

The Naked Fisherman has a large range of frozen and fresh fish, together with an extensive menu of delicious meals which can be eaten in at the delightfully shaded alfresco dining area. Poverty prevented me from partaking in anything other than a $3.00 carton of chips cooked to perfection, however I couldn't help but drool over the constant stream of meals passing me by. All served with a delightfully presented salad, the large number of customers at this lunch time sitting all appeared very favourably disposed to the fare.

Truly Scrumptious Foods is a surprising culinary delight on Macleay Island. Sure to stun local and visitors alike, Truly Scrumptious Foods is the perfect location for a relaxing and delicious breakfast or lunch. TSF's new spring menu includes fresh fruit salads, breakfast youghurt, fruit and cereal, savoury and berry muffins, gluten free cheesecake, Asian salads and soy milk coffee and teas. There's an amazing range of glorious looking quiches.

For a between meals treat you could check out their $6.00 Coffee and Cake deal. The variety of cakes are astounding and include Macadamia Cake, Chocolate Mousse Cake, Carrot Cake, Caramel Slice, Lemon Cheesecake, and Apple Crumble Cheesecake. Not forgetting the children, they have a range of Peter's Ice Cream in tubs, available for serving in cones. Seating is available both inside and outside the shop. Catch up with TSF's Facebook page where you'll find a large selection of mouth watering photos of their culinary masterpieces.

Situated in the same shopping complex as Foodworks, Le Bon Bakery fills a very necessary place in Macleay Island's take-away food market. The island, being bereft (thankfully) of fast food conglomerates, relies upon locally owned and operated small businesses to satisfy its residents' and visitors' taste buds.

The bakery offers a variety of hot pies and sausage rolls, together with pastries and cakes. Ice cold drinks are also sold. Outside is a pleasant shaded area for alfresco dining.

This spotlessly clean and well presented pet supplies store is located in the Emerald Isle shopping plaza on High Central Road, a couple of kilometres from the ferry jetty. Outside the store is a good selection of cat scratching posts, dog kennels, dog beds, collars and leads. Inside is an excellent selection of bird seed, chook food, and guinea pig and rabbit feeds. I picked up a 4kg bag of shell grit for my chooks at the bargain price of $3.00.

Aquariums resplendent with live fish cover one wall of the store. Species available from time to time include Gold Fish, Mini Molly's, Nymphs, Black Moors, Guppies, Electric Yellows, Blue Dolphins and African Peacocks. Dog food is sold fresh from the fridge including roo mince, beef mince, beef and roo mince, and chicken mince. A variety of dry dog biscuits, singularly and in bags, are available.

Gem Pet Supplies also sell flea and tick preventative medications, something that is essential for the unfortunately highly parasitic tick prone Southern Moreton Bay Islands (SMBI). A Hydro Bath for dogs operates each Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.

The Bay Islands Community Services Inc. Op Shop on Macleay Island is a small, very traditional opportunity shop. Staffed entirely by volunteers, the op shop has a nice selection of men's, women's and children's clothing. Women's tops are generally $3.00 each, and there is a large quantity of women's jeans for $4.00 each. Outside of the store is a table of items from which you can fill a bag for $1.00. The store stocks second hand books ranging in price from 20c to $1.00 and has a sizeable collection of LP records to suit the tastes of those favouring country and western and 1960's easy listening genres. Ornamental household trinkets, crockery and cutlery are also offered for sale.

It's a great day when you discover a gem of a shop right on your doorstep! Island Sass at Macleay Island has been open for less than 12 months and was inspired by a trip to Thailand by the proprietors, Toni and Lisa. As they say on their Facebook page, they're now "living the dream".

Don't be deterred by the size of Island Sass. Although small, the store is packed with fashion, jewellery, beauty, homewares and gifts. Liberal use is made of the verandah outside on which are displayed a variety of beautiful women's clothing, shawls and scarves. There's a $5.00 bin full of kids' board shorts and women's tops. I picked up an appropriately loud orange and purple floral t-shirt for that bargain price. I was stoked!

Inside are tables resplendent with oils, miniature nail polish bottles, incense and burners, rings, necklaces and all manner of small gifts. I particularly liked the $3.00 brightly coloured spinning tops for children. Racks of women's tops, skirts and dresses are displayed at extraordinarily reasonable prices.

The proprietors are currently in Thailand again and have posted sneak peak photos on Facebook of their new stock procured there. It looks fantastic and has inspired me to visit Island Sass again upon their return.

Crustaceans is a good little family owned fish and chip shop. Located on busy Wynnum Road, parking is available off road in front of Crustaceans or underneath the large Pine & Bamboo Restaurant which is in the same complex.

Although the shop is small, a good variety of quality, fresh fish is sold. Deals are offered on a variety of different fish and chip packs. In the evenings Crustaceans can be reasonably busy and you can expect a delay of maybe 10 or 15 minutes in receiving your order. A good supply of magazines and newspapers are provided, however, to help while away the wait. The food, when received, is always fantastic and worth the wait.

Approximate cost: $8.00

Social & Emotional Wellbeing For Children & Adolescents provides a child focussed clinic staffed by professional psychiatrists, psychologists and counsellors. Conveniently located near Park Road Train Station and Boggo Road Bus Station, the clinic also has off-street parking at the rear of the premises.

A wide variety of treatments, training and therapies are available specifically geared at the mental health needs of children and young people. The staff are highly professional and interact extraordinarily well with their young patients. The clinic is light, airy and non-intimidating to children. I highly recommend the services of Social & Emotional Wellbeing For Children & Adolescents.