Hitting a Few Milestones as 2014 Rolls In!

 Well after Grandma and Grandpa left we had to do something QUICK to cure the doldrums!  Luckily a bunch of families in our ward, mostly maories (New Zealanders or Kiwis as they call themselves), have a tradition of going to Bribie Island on New Year's Day.

We felt so fortunate to get invited!  It was just what we needed to ring in the New Year!!!  The kids slid their boogie boards down the beach dunes.  It was so fun to watch all the kids up there having so much fun.  Our ward has some really fun families. I guess it's Aussie's version of snow sledding in January!


Bribie is a beautiful island not far off the mainland.  You can take a big bridge to get out there.  The beaches there are awesome.  And it has heaps of fun little fish and chips shops and surf rentals etc.  It's a great little place to spend the day.  We pretty much stayed on the beach, had races, played frisbe, and spent the day boogie boarding and just talking with friends.

This group of friends are very well-prepared for beach days.  And whenever we hang with the kiwis there IS NEVER A SHORTAGE OF FOOD!  There is always more than enough and you eat til you're sick!  They are amazing cooks and grillers.  Parker is always in heaven when we eat with the kiwis, because they insist on fattening people up.  They believe in making "big strong boys".  It's funny to watch the moms fill Parker's plate and then ask him continuously if he's ready for more.  They are always mindful of empty plates!  Parker thinks it's the greatest thing ever.  He's a bit of a bottomless pit, so these functions always suit him :)  Oh...the complexities of raising boys!!!  Lex told me once he never really felt that "so full I'm going to throw up feeling" until after his misison.  He said growing up he really always just felt like he could eat at any given moment!  Wow-- really?  That frightens me! I'm picturing large groups of teenage boys hanging at my house after a game or something...better be hittin Costco to prepare for nights like that!

 Here is Oaks, getting buried by one of our faves, Brother Leo!  He has taught us all so much about fellowshipping and friendshiping.  He has made sure we always felt welcome and taken such a sweet interest in our family.  Love this guy so much!

Nearly buried...

...And Mission Accomplished!  Good work Oaks and Brother Leo!
Our New Year's was awesome.  

We had a couple students who got great grades and awards at the closing ceremonies of year 2 and year 4.  We celebrated at...where else?  Chompers baby!

Well, we cannot believe we reached our half way mark.  That's a bit of milestone, I suppose. We were hankerin to celebrate at Chompers, our fave fish and chips, but since we had just eaten there for grade celebration, we had to hold ourselves off!  (We find ourselves up there far more often than we should!)  We ended up talking Lex and Park into grilling shish- ka-bobs.  And may I just say...it was worth it!

 The food was awesome, but the celebration is bittersweet.  Our time is going by too fast!  Half way means we are on the downhill side of our year long adventure.  And to be honest, I'm not ready to go back!  Brissie has been so good to us, and so good for us!


Next milestone was Oaks ditchin the training wheels!  She left them on for a couple weeks, but then realized they were holding her back.  And off she went!  Always keeping up with the kiddos!  Never to be left behind!  Proud of you, Oaks!  Not bad for a 4 year old!

Basketball season ended for Oaks, Birdy and Park.  It was an awesome season.  Birdy earned a name for herself as the defender/stealer of the team.  And Oaklee's team called her "The Pocket Rocket"-- because she could fit into your pocket but she was like a stick of dynamite on the court (hilarious)


A loose ball was a moving target for her.  She'd dive on anything...or anyone for that matter.  When you're half the size of everyone else...the refs are generous to you!  They call that kind of playing "cute" at that stage instead of "dirty".  I think she'll ride that wave as far as it'll take her!

Oaklee's team, the Carina Cobras.

Park wrapped up his AFL season.  So much fun.  He had a blast.  And met some really fun friends.  He's brave.  It was something he'd never tried, never seen played, never even heard of for that matter-- and he jumped right in as the youngest guy and did a great job.  Now he loves AFL and wishes he could start a league in Utah. But umm, can we use pads and helmets at least??? sigh....

Go Yeronga!

 Great kid!  Love his stinkin guts!

Birdy's team was also the Cobras.  She had a blast and can't wait to play again.  I can't believe how much she improved in the season.  Mostly just confidence...she decided she wanted the ball and it wasn't worth being quiet about it.  :)  Go Birdy!

Syd has lost a couple teeth...Aussie teeth...since being here.  She is really becoming a toothless Tilly.  But it's cool to lose teeth in Brissie, because the tooth fairy leaves you a gold coin.  In Aus, it's $2.  Pretty cool!!!

One Last Beach Run with Grams and Gramps and...it Stinks to Say G'bye!

We had so much fun with Grams and Gramps.  Seriously every day we just couldn't get enough of them!

No one was allowed to have some "alone" time.  There was a little person everywhere my parents went.  It was the best month.

We saw so many amazing things but some of the best times were just lounging around the pool, around the house, on the patio-- doing crossword puzzles or playing our favorite card game, "Pounce" (Oaklee is now the youngest known person to ever learn the game...for generations in our family!)

Here's a great shot of the salmon we "caught"...at the fish market.  It was purchased at the Saturday markets but it did make a great fish story to tell the brother in laws.

Everyone wanted a go at the filleting.  Well, not everyone.  I was fine to stay in the air conditioned house and watch "Call the Midwife" with Grandma.  Gotta love Netflicks!

We loved all our adventures.  This is us dancing with the cockies (cockatoos) at Lone Pine.

This one was worth putting on the blog twice!!!

Gram and the girls.

Check out this massive tree in Laminton Rainforest!!!  Park and Lex looked like dwarves next to it.  We loved our hikes over the holidays.

Before they flew home we took one last beach run.  This time to the famous Gold Coast.  We ate kebabs on the boulevard and saw all the famous high rises on the beach.
We stopped at Hard Rock Cafe --Surfer's Paradise and did a little souvenir shopping on the boulevard too!

Surfer's Paradise is a fun beach.  I loved how they put the Christmas gifts up as decor for the holidays.  Christmas on the beach!

We all went boogie boarding, of course.  We never miss a chance to boogie board.

Me and Oaks building sand castles and burrying our feet.

This is pretty fuzzy, but I wanted to get Lex catching a wave.  He rode tons that day.  It was a good day for waves.

Grams and Gramps got in on the fun.  Riding the boogie board and jumping the waves.

Syd caught a solid wave and rode it all the way in to the shore.  Way to go Birdy!

We love our kid-sized boards.  Thanks Tinkerbell for joining us at Surfer's Paradise.

Lounging!

That night we showed Grandma and Grandpa how to eat Australia's favorite cookie, The Tim Tam.  You can't just eat them, you have to slam them.  You bite off 2 corners, suck the milk up through it like a straw and when it begins to crumble and cave in, you "Slam It" into your mouth before it completely falls apart.  It's called a Tim Tam Slam.  YUMMMY!!!!!

This really was the best Christmas for us.  We couldn't have picked anyone we would've rather spent it with.  I know everyone thinks their parents are wonderful, but mine are truly amazing.  I hope I can have the kind of relationship with my kids that I enjoy with my parents.  They've always respected me and my decisions, and they've always made me want to do a little better. They have encouraged me to be myself and given me a lot of support while doing it.  And they are 2 of my dearest friends.  Each of them has so many qualities I want attain.  When I grow up I want to be just like...both of them!  I miss them.  I begged and begged for them to stay longer.  The visitation visa they had for this trip, allowed them 3 months here.  I couldn't figure out why they didn't want to get their moneys worth off it!  We would've gladly kept them on.  But alas, we have to share them.  As I said goodbye and tears ran down my face, and I saw my kids' sad faces with tear streaks of their own, I realized the only good thing that came of them leaving, was that for the first time I had a reason to really want to go home.  It reminded me that there are a lot of people I love and miss waiting for us back in the states.  I suppose that was a good reminder.  I've been feeling very sad about how fast time is going by here in Brisbane, but when I said good bye to my parents it was  a little silver lining to know it would be just another 7 short months til we could play pounce, sit and visit (not on facetime) and just hang out together again!  I'm not anxious to leave Brisbane, but I can't wait to see these 2 again!  I love you guys, so much.  Thanks for making this year just a little brighter.  And for being a part of our memories in Australia!