A Koala and 3 Birthdays!

Well, Australia has been our home now for about 11 weeks. Crazy. The newness is starting to wear off a little bit but oddly enough that makes the home sickness come on. We are losing the vacation feel of things and reality is....we are here, for a while. That isn't bad at all....just different. It's odd- we miss home but we are very aware of the fact that we are really going to miss living here as well. It's really great- so much to offer and discover. I doubt we will see it all but we will try! Also- I will mention that the people I meet here are all so kind and generous to offer their favorite spots to shop, eat and play. They are genuinely hopeful that we will love it and enjoy our time here. As I am writing this very blog post my elderly neighbor just showed up with fresh cut flowers for me- he said he was getting some for his wife and thought of me too. Kev said guys like that make him look bad....we didn't even have a vase so he provided that too. :)

Some new Vocab and Phrases for the week.....

* Heaps- lots, tons..."We had heaps of fun."
*Keen- interested, want to..."Are you still keen to go with us on Saturday?"
*Nappys- Diapers
*Go have a play. Have a bath...or have a nap." -People don't TAKE things here, they HAVE them. I've  already picked up the term "Go have a play!" It's like I am giving something to my kids not telling them to do something.
*A bit- I know I used this in U.S. too but Brooke has really picked it up. She will say "I'm a bit tired" or if I asked if she had fun she would say "Yes- I had a bit of fun."
*Op Shop- is like a D.I. or second hand store.
*Pizzer and Paster-  if it ends in an 'A', people (from what I can tell) switch it to an 'er' at the end.

Did I ever mention the eggs are ALL BROWN here. Yep....not a big deal right? The thing that still gets me is....most of the stores keep them on the shelf- not refrigerated. There are usually some that are kept cold so of course- I usually go for those. Just because the thought of shelf eggs seems wrong, even if harmless. Until this week I only purchased cold ones but the store was out...I considered protesting or boycotting ....but instead I bought warm ones on the shelf. So if we contract Salmonella .....you all know why.

Brown eggs = no Easter egg dying. However- we choose not to abandon our holiday traditions and we found a way to color eggs.....with paint.  Kev and I thought we were supper funny painting our eggs white.

Our Bunny Brownie....my mom used to make me bunny cakes for birthdays so I thought I would give it a try! The kids thoroughly enjoyed decorating him.

Also...night before Easter Kev looked out our bedroom window...second story and this little guy was peering in on us. We were expecting the Easter Bunny, instead we got a Ring Tailed Possum.

So- we were able to take a trip up to the Sunshine Coast and the Gold Coast- beautiful places! It kindof feels like these coasts are to Australia what California and Florida are to the U.S. Beautiful and sunny....tourist spots. The Gold Coast is where all of the theme parks are. These places are by the big city of Brisbane and on the East Coast, above Sidney. Anyway- we were there for most of Birthday week so Andrew and Carson celebrated theirs while we were gone and Brooklyns was the day after we got home.

This is a man-made beach in the middle of Brisbane, they are inland just a bit so they made this for the community- super fun with fountains and all.

 

This was on our hike along the some of the Sun Shine Coast- right side jungle looking the whole way and left side staring down and the beach.

We stopped for lunch on this cliff where we watched surfers and spotted some dolphins!

 

At the beginning of our hike we spotted a Koala way up in the tree- he was still there when we finished. That was a highlight for all of us. Hard to see because he was soooo high up. Can you spot him? 

 

Some friends and Melaleuca marketing executives took us to this amazing water fall tucked right inside their town. We went from a parking lot to rain forest in less than 5 min.

 I love this picture. They are so cute.

  

Andrew's 8th birthday! He had a gourmet hotel breakfast of poptarts and soda, and he loved it.

Happy 4th Bir-day Carson....as he would say it. We spent the day playing at an arcade.

Happy 7th! Brooke saw this bear in Costco and was begging for weeks for him. We told her no way...but then we gave in and had him waiting in the kitchen holding a pack of American pre-cooked bacon that Kev smuggled into Australia just for her birthday. She was beyond excited! She carries the bear all over- even though it is way bigger than her. Don't ask how we will get him home!

So- sometimes I have a vision of what perfection would be. For example- for Andrews baptism I had imagined it with our family and friends there- a day full of people and celebration. I couldn't imagine it any other way because honestly- that saying "It takes a village to raise a child,"- rings true for me. We have had so much support over the past 8 years raising our kids. Grandparents, Aunts and Uncles- who love my kids as if they were their own. Friends who are always there for us. So, as you can imagine It was difficult for me but he was anxious and ready to be baptized....

We had the baptism right after church on April 22. He had a joint baptism with another boy, Antone,  from his primary class. The ward was invited to attend- the room was clear full of ward members and several sets of missionaries. As I stood up to give my talk I mentioned that we were a half a world away from home. I thanked them for their support and for being their in lou of our families. At that moment I had an overwhelming feeling of peace. This vision was so different from my original vision of perfection.  However this too......was perfect.