December- first month of Summer!?!

When we first came here I will admit- I was lonely. I was used to having so many wonderful people around me all of the time. I came here and had to hang out with my self- BORING! Kevin and I had both prayed that I would find some  friends to help lift my spirits- and as always- it worked! I have met some really wonderful people since we have been here. One of them is this beautiful girl- Megan. She made it her mission to show me fun new places to explore and introduce me to all things Melbourne. Most importantly introducing me to my new love: Dumplings! Because of her efforts I have really grown to love and appreciate Australia! This is us after she showed me how to make a Pavlova- a great Aussie dessert!

This is Megan and her cute baby girl Andie! I just love this baby- she is so adorable and I love to kiss her. 

The sad part of this story is that Megan and her family moved in December- to the opposite end of AUS. I was feeling bad for my self one night and said to Kevin "I feel like when I finally get this great friend and feel happy and more at home here that Heavenly Father says 'Oh no- we can't have her comfortable- better send her away!'" Kev just replied "Maybe you should just be grateful that he sent her in the first place- he didn't have to do that." OK. Point taken. After that I tried to just be grateful that our paths crossed and that I made a forever friend. If I could I would honestly pack her and her cute family and take them home with us when we go! It's still comforting to have her in the country and know that I can text her at 10pm and that it's not the middle of the night. She is also my great source for understanding all things Australian!

On a happier note- we have done some fun exploring the past few months. Our first trip was a quick one to Sydney! It was awesome and very surreal. And if your wondering- the address 42 Wallaby Way doesn't exist. We checked. Anyway- seeing the Opera House was really great- it's the Australian icon! However- it wasn't quite as mind blowing as I had expected. Probably because we climbed the Sydney Harbour Bridge the night before and that....was mind blowing! Did you know that the Opera House roof is made of triangle white tiles? Me neither. Makes sense though with about a million seagulls flying over it a day- hides the droppings. Also looks nice and shiny in the sun!

We started the bridge climb just before dusk so we started in the daylight and ended in the dark- it was amazing and a memory that will probably go on my Top 10!

 

That little flag on top of the bridge is where the previous picture was taken. Largest bridge in AUS.

December 1st was a long awaited day in our house. We got our first and possibly only visitors that day and we were in heaven. We are still so grateful for Mom and Todd to have taken 2 weeks off and paid a lot to come see us! It was so fun to show them where we have been living and let them experience some of the great things we love about Australia. The day after they got here we took a drive on the Great Ocean Road- along Victoria's (the state we live in) coast line. It was beautiful and we saw some awesome wildlife. We fed various birds, saw an Echidna (sortof like a porcupine) and about 5 wild Koalas!
    This is a cockatoo- we love them. They will sometimes imitate you- Carson likes to have a yelling match with them. He was showing off his mohawk.

These rocks sticking out of the water are the 12 Apostles- there used to be 12 but some have fallen. Windy much? The waves were so huge that day. Thanks to Grandpa Todd for saving Andrew just in the nick to time before one wave took him out to sea. It was close- and scary. I'm glad I didn't witness it.

We went into downtown Melbourne to do some exploring. This is in front of the Christmas tree and maze they have for the kids. It was so beautiful and green out!

 

We got to see this cute little Penguin off the pier in St. Kilda- downtown Melbourne. He came in as the sun went down from a day of fishing :) 

 

On our list of top Australian must dos is the Great Barrier Reef.  We decided the four of us would head up to Airlie Beach in Queensland and take a 3 day sailing adventure on the inner reef and islands. This was our boat- Pacific Sunrise. It was a rustic boat with lots of character- only 16 passengers and 4 crew. It was awesome- taking a boat like this has been a dream of Kevins for a long time and it ended up being cheaper than staying on the mainland and booking tours so it was great. My mom and I felt like we were still on the boat for 3 days after and I had a killer seasick headache but it was worth it. 

This is Whitehaven Beach- part of the Whitsunday Islands. It is incredible and I still can't believe we were there. The water looks like that because of the different tides- the sand was so white and perfect! I also can't believe that the handsome guy in the picture is mine!

 

Kevin was one happy guy that week- I haven't seen him that happy in a long time. On a sail boat- diving on the Great Barrier Reef- gourmet food (that was already paid for so he didn't have to get annoyed with the cost)- and jumping off the top deck of the boat. Priceless! I'm just glad he took me along for the ride.

                           

In the past year we have had some pretty amazing experiences and learned some valuable lessons that I hope to never forget. Some of them have been more difficult - like realizing that I could have reached out more to my friends and family when I was closer- but was often caught up in the rush of life.  Life is simple here- I don't have a lot going on. It's an extremely helpless feeling to know that and all I want to do is go hold some babies, take family members dinner after surgery or losing a loved one or just drive the 30 minutes to see my grandparents. But  now I am on another continent. I actually hope to never forget this feeling of helplessness. It has caused me to reach out to people I don't even know- to step out of my comfort zone. It has caused me to realize that when 'life' gets in the way of me giving love and service to those important to me- that 'life' gets to slow down. That helpless feeling has increased my testimony of the power of prayer. It's made me realize that I truly am a child of God- and by being that WE will never be helpless!