HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!!!!!!!!!!!

It is almost 2009 (well it is in Australia already!) and I am just sitting here reflecting on how blessed we are! We have had such a wonderful time with our families over the past couple of weeks and have realized once again how grateful we are for the families that we have. We have 2 sons that continually amaze us and make us proud, brothers and sisters and in laws and nieces and nephews who are a source of love and pride for us and parents who have loved us and supported us through it all. Not everyone can boast of such a family and we don't ever take ours for granted. If it were not for them we would not be who we are today or be able to be doing the things that we do.

2008 has got to be one of our "biggest" years yet and if I had to sum up my feelings about the year in one word it would be "grateful". Grateful for people who believe in us, in Chris' abilities and for allowing us to experience this adventure of a lifetime. Grateful for family who have stood by us and loved us and told us to go where we need to go. Grateful for our children who are a constant source of joy and pride for us. Grateful for friends who have stayed in touch through all our moves and been the anchors that we needed when we relocated to a new area. Grateful for our faith in a God who is so much bigger than any of us can even imagine.

And above all I am grateful for my husband who has always challenged me and believed in me when I did not believe in myself. He always sees the best in me when I can't see it and encourages me to become the best that I can be. Thank you, Chris, for loving me and being the best friend that anyone could possibly have. I am going to miss you when you go back to Oz and I am still here "playing".

As the new year rolls in remember to love those close to you and be kind to everyone you meet----2009 will prove to be yet another year of blessings!

Sunday in Lima!

We are back in Lima with Chris' dad and brother--made the trip yesterday from Freeport and the gathering of the "Brown" side of the family. It was wonderful! We had 16 there and that included everyone. We got a good family picture and that is important since it is so hard to get us all together in the same place anymore. With some of the family in Ohio, some in New Mexico and Arizona and Florida and New York and North Carolina it is getting more and more difficult to coordinate. We had a great time---had our big meal in the church basement across the street from the parsonage which worked out great so we could all be together and talk without sitting on each other's laps!! All in all a great time and very calm!!! Even with a dog, a cat and a visiting kitten things were rather tranquil which seemed a little unusual!!!

Today we are headed to Ada to have lunch at Colleen and Bryan's and that will be nice. Micah is chilling out in bed still so I guess i am going to have to get him motivated pretty soon. We still haven't even given him his presents or his stocking so I think we are going to have to do that pretty soon or he will think we do not love him! It just has been kind of a weird Christmas----Chris and I really did not do much for each other this year as this trip is kind of our present! And Aaron got his stuff early so it is a really sllllooooowwwwww Christmas this year I guess!

Well this is boring and I am needing to get some other emails written so will post more if something exciting happens!!!

Not the best of pictures of us but it was a fun day with my side of the family!!!!

Meredith and me at The Inn at Ohio Northern University

Micah and Aaron clowning around with me!

My "mommy"!!! I love her!!!

The Fam!

Carl Archdeacon, Shari Brown, Rebekah Brown, Chris Chiles, Christopher Morris
Paula Archdeacon, Chris Brown, Helen Brown, Mark Brown, Beth Ann Chiles, Carla Jo Morris
Rachael Brown, Micah Chiles, Thomas Archdeacon, Aaron Chiles

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We are all fed and stuffed, took the annual family picture with EVERYONE here!!! Will post a picture once I get it off of Chris's camera!! It has been a wonderful day and I am loving being with my family!!! Great day with lots of laughs and love!!! Hope everyone else has as special of a day as we are having!!!

The Day Before The Day Before Christmas

The coffee is brewing, the house is quiet except for the chatter of the coffee dripping and I am trying to get motivated to make a list of things to do today! We have had such a wonderful time in Lima despite the miserably cold and dreary weather. We have had sun out 2 days in a row and though my Aussie tan is fading I still have hope that the sun will continue to shine through the cold!!!

We celebrated Chris' 49th birthday again yesterday with a lunch at The Inn at Ohio Northern with Bryan and Colleen and Meredith and had a really nice time. Took a tour of the facility which is really nice, by the way--(makes me want to move in there! )and then walked over to MacIntosh to check out the bookstore. Merry Christmas to us!!! Stocked up on ONU merchandise and had a great time. Chris went back to Dad's and then I went with Colleen and Meredith shopping. Aaron came in from North Carolina in his purty car and he went with us to the mall to look for a coat and some sweaters. He is such a skinny thing it is hard to find stuff but since he shipped most of his cold weather clothing by sea mail from Melbourne and has no idea when it will get here he decided he needed some warmer stuff. So all is good---we are spending today doing who knows what and just being together. Tomorrow we drive to Columbus to pick Micah up at the airport before driving down to Freeport, OH to be with my sister and the rest of my fam for a few days. Should be a great time with a lot of confusion, noise, animals and fun!!! Can't wait!

Hope all have a very merry Christmas!!!

Ice Storm in Ohio

Ice Storm in Ohio

Buddy hanging out under the Christmas Tree after we set it up and decorated it.

Froggie collection bin in the Sydney airport.

Chris hanging out in the Qantas lounge in the Brisbane airport before we flew to Sydney.

I think we are almost back to normal after our long flight---we finally slept fairly normal last night and got up at a reasonable time so hopefully it means that we are on the way to a normal schedule. It just takes a while for the body to get with it after that flight and changing so many time zones.

It snowed here a bit in Lima and there is just a little bit of snow on the ground but it is pretty and not too big of a hassle at this point! Hopefully it will not get too nasty out especially on the days when we have to travel a bit.

We are having such a great visit with Chris' dad and brother and today is Chris's birthday so we are going to go out to Applebee's to celebrate the big number 49!!! Poor Colleen (Chris' sister) is still in school this week as well as Meredith so they have not been over and we are dying to see their new house so hopefully this weekend we will make it to Ada to see that! It is so nice to be back and seeing family. I have been calling all my friends and catching up and that has been great also!

So now that I have gotten my Panera fix, my trip to the mall and Bath and Body Works (haven't hit Christopher and Banks yet tho) life is good!!! Had a couple of good mochas and some good food and great time with family so life is so good right now!!! Funny how the things I missed the most other than people is food...hmmm..wonder what that means!!!

We're Here! We're Here!

We are so excited because we are back in the USA! I don't think I realized until we got here how much I had missed "home" and although I love our life in Australia there is nothing like coming home!!! From Townsville to actually arriving in Lima our trip took 34 hours and we are happy to be here! We had fairly good flights though once again we hate the LA airport! Have never had a good experience there and we are still waiting for one! Chris' luggage did not make it on the flight from Sydney to LA for some reason though my identical duffle made it so don't quite know what is up with that. It is supposedly coming by Fed Ex today but we have yet to see it. Fortunately we both had left stuff in Lima and a quick trip out today ensured that Chris had what he needs in case it doesn't show up. Customs was a BREEZE!!! Chris said it must have been because I look so honest. He kept telling me not to declare stuff and I have seen too many Border Patrol shows so I was determined to declare stuff and knew that they would go through my suitcase since I claimed food and some other items that probably would flag it. The guy looked at my declaration form, asked me what food I had (vegemite) and stamped it and said to go through. So there,Chris!!! Haha. I had a feeling they would confiscate the rainstick I brought for Carlton since it probably has seeds in it but they didn't even look. Now going back into Australia will be a far different story---they are really vigilant about not letting anything come in!

Colleen and Bryan (Chris' sister and brother in law) picked us up at the airport in Detroit and we actually got in about 1/2 an hour early which was nice. We stopped at Cracker Barrel on the way home (hello iced tea and fried okra!!!) and then got to Dad's and settled in. It is wonderful to be here!!! We went to bed around 11, got up around 8 this morning and I have not even taken a nap today so I think I am doing well. I plan to go to bed early and hopefully I will be okay by tomorrow with no jet lag! Chris and I went out to Walmart and Kohl's today to pick up some stuff and it was WEIRD to drive on the other side of the road!!!

Aaron made it back to Raleigh, we are still trying to get the paperwork for his car, get the check to them, etc. so it may be a couple of days before he gets it but he is just going to have to live with that. He was picking up furniture today for his apt and getting that all settled in. I know he is glad to be back too.

So we are just planning on having a wonderful time, seeing as many people as we can and just enjoying being together for awhile. Probably won't blog as much and it will be more about snow instead of beaches.

Oh and good news---my kitties still love me!!! Buddy curled up with me on the couch this afternoon and let me snuggle him, Holly is still a little licky and aloof ! It is good to see that they are doing a good job of looking after Chris' dad while we are gone!!!

All packed and ready to fly!

Yep, can you believe it?? I am all packed and ready to go!!! Just have to throw the last minute ziplock bag in and I am ready!!! A whole 17 hours before we have to leave!!! Now what do I do?? Chris is working on his last mill report of the year and then we plan to take a nice walk on the beach, mow the yard, clean out the fridge and clean the house. Sounds pretty exciting, doesn't it? But if we are going to be gone for 3 weeks from the house it needs to be done.

Aaron and Thom made it to Sydney safe and sound and it is supposed to rain for 2 days but he just posted a picture of the Opera House so at least they are out and about and it just looked cloudy so maybe they won't get all the rain that is predicted.

My suitcase if stuffed but it really isn't a lot of "my" stuff!!! Chris asked me why I had so much stuff and I told him that you never know who you might want to give a little Australian gift to!!! The kangaroos are the hard things because they keep hopping out.

We had a great dinner last night at the Australian Hotel in the CBD in Townsville. It was one of our favorite places when we lived at The Quest and I picked Chris up after work and we walked over. I had a hankering (now there is a term I bet the Aussies don't know!) for some coral trout and they always prepare it really well. I was thrilled to find the special of the night was grilled coral trout with prawns and a sweet chili sauce over it. Three of my favorite things!! It was delish!!! YUM!

But enough about my culinary pleasures---------we will be back soon and hope to catch as many of you as we can!!!

It's going to be hard to get those legs and tails tucked into the suitcase!

Well I am thinking about packing.....and how am I going to fit all the koalas and kangaroos in??

I am concentrating on getting Aaron packed up and ready to go tomorrow and hopefully their flights will all stay the same. We got an email today saying that our flight changed and what happened was they added a leg to it so now we have to fly to Sydney also instead of being able to fly out of Brisbane directly to LA. That would have been fine but they put us on this early flight and it was before we even flew out of Townsville so after a lonnnnngggg time on the phone with the Qantas chick I think we have it all ironed out. We aren't going to have a lot of time in Sydney to get to our plane and she assured me that we could check our luggage all the way through to LA at Townsville so hopefully she was right! We will see!!!

We are celebrating Chris' birthday tonight---all that means is that I made a chocolate cake and am going to give him a couple presents!!! Nothing big and major but at least maybe it will help make his birthday seem more like a birthday!!!

The landlord came today and helped us out by taking all our cardboard to the tip (dump) that we had in the garage since we moved in., Everything came in cardboard and they just leave it all when they drop all your stuff off so we had quite a bit. Actually Rodney had already taken one load for us so this was load number 2 which I am very grateful he took. He has a big car/truck and a trailer so it was no big deal for him but he surely did not have to do that for us. We never would have gotten it all done . Anyway, that is one less thing to worry about.

It is pretty hot today and I had to do some ironing so I turned on the AC in the office and got it all done. Whewie. I won't be hot once we hit Ohio, though,, will I???
Can't wait!!!

Just another day in Paradise!

Saunders Beach

Snake on the beach yet to be identified !

A blob of jellyfish???

it has been a couple of days since I blogged so thought I would take a quick break from watching Austar (I know, I know--lame lame lame life!) and write a few lines. Life at the beach continues and we are down to 5 days till USA. The boys are trying to get their acts together and start the packing process and I am trying to make sure laundry is done up and that they are ready to go on Friday. I think they will have a good time in Sydney for a couple of days and it will be fun for them to be there exploring. i think Chris and i may go to Sydney in January when i get back so the boys can scope it out for us.

I was thinking today when i read my sister's email how unstressed about Christmas I am this year and i guess it is because it really does not seem like Christmas here. Sure there are decorations up and carols being played everywhere you go but it is kind of like when we lived in Florida-----not really in the mood when it is in the 80's and 90's outside! And let's face it----I am not doing the usual Christmas preparation here at all. No tree, no cookie baking, not much gift buying going on but you know--that is all fine!!! I do want to do some baking when we get to Ohio at Dad's so hopefully I will get my fill of it then. I think the rest of my family must be taking my share of the Christmas stress---especially my sister who is going to have the whole gang there on Christmas Eve when she has 2 church services to prepare for and lead!!!

One of my friends commented to me that she would make me a box of things that I miss and you know---I really do miss some of that stuff but I have some things in Australia that I have found that I really like!

1. Coral Trout--my new favorite fish
2. Kleenex---they make them big and lovely here!
3. Sweet Chili Sauce---very very yummy and when served with potato wedges it is delish!
4. The sunshine 300 days of the year
5. Living on the BEACH! Absolutely wonderful aside from the creepy crawlies!
6. Birds --there are so many awesome kinds and their songs are unbelievable
   
7. Outdoor markets where you can get the best fruit and veg
8. Morning tea!

So those are a few things that I really like and instead of whinging about what I miss I will try to focus on the things that are great here!!! Tonight we are taking the boys out for a nice dinner and I am going to hopefully get a cake made to celebrate Chris' birthday a little bit early since he always gets gypped on the Dec. 18th birthday!!! Hopefully that will happen!!!

Joke of the Day!

Joke for the day

The pharmacist walks into the store to find a man leaning heavily against a
wall.

He asks the assistant "What's with that man over there by the wall?"

The assistant responds: "Well, he came in here this morning to get something
for his cough. I couldn't find the cough syrup, so I gave him an entire
bottle of laxative."

The pharmacist yells: "You idiot! You can't treat a cough with a laxative!"

The assistant responds, "Of course you can! Look at him, he's afraid to
cough.

Ramblings!

Chris and I had a CSR Christmas party last night at the Casino in Townsville so I made Aaron snap a couple of pictures of us before we left. I really need him to do some photoshopping-----we didn't have a good place to take the picture so had to just do it in front of a wall in the kitchen so maybe he can put some background in to make us look prettier!!! We spent the day hanging out at home and actually finally went to see the James Bond movie. We have tried to do that for weeks! We all enjoyed it but I have made a realization that movie theater popcorn here is horrid!!! Aaron agrees with me that they don't do it fresh---it is all prepopped, prebagged and prestale!!! Ick. Didn't even see the popper machine at this theater so I am not sure where they pop it. Aaron tried to tell me but I didn't listen and went ahead and bought some. Lesson learned. Another thing to look forward in the good old US of A!

We made it to the party and were happy to find a parking spot relatively close by. We had been warned that there was a game at the event center right next to the casino and the tip off was at the exact starting time of our party soooooo we figured no parking but we found something and parked without having to walk a million miles which was very nice. The party was poolside and they served drinks (of course it is Australia after all) and finger foods and it was nice and it actually cooled off a bit so I wasn't sweating up a storm. Chris was a little warm I think but we survived. I caught up with several friends I had not seen for awhile, met some new folks and had an enjoyable time until we had to do organized party games. I understood the purpose was to get everyone mingled but I just am not the party game person and especially after some of these folks had downed one too many drinks!!! But we lived through it and left around 10:30 to come home and even gave someone a lift back to their car because they had to park a zillion miles away. Got home and the boys were in bed asleep!!! They have a big day today as they are going to the Great Barrier Reef which hopefully is still on. It looks pretty choppy out there so hopefully they will be okay. They are going on a smaller boat with only 28 people so it won't be quite like what we had origninally planned but at least they will get the experience.

Chris and I plan to spend a quiet day---him doing his mill report and me doing who knows what. I really need to start thinking about packing stuff up to bring back. I am going to have a suitcase full of STUFF and not clothes tho from the sounds of the weather in Ohio I think I need to bring every stitch of clothing that I own! Brrrrr..... it is going to be a shocker. I have decided to go minimal in packing and use what I left in Lima and just buy a few outfits there (Christopher and Banks here I come!) and then just leave stuff in Ohio when I leave.

Talked to Micah a long time yesterday--he still does not know where he is going or when so things are all up in the air. We are waiting to do my airline tickets till he knows more because if I can help with his move I want to be able to do that. Plus I am going to help Aaron as much as I can too. Should be a great trip!!! I can not wait. Chris has one more long week of budgets and stuff to get through and he will be ready to roll!!!

Will let you know how the reef trip turns out for the boys!!!!

What $15.10 looks like in Australia!

10 Days and Counting Down!!!

Isn't it BEAUTIFUL?????????????????

Yep---we are down to 10 days till we fly back to the US for Christmas! I simply cannot wait but I have a lot to get done here before we go!!! Or so I think I have a lot to get done! In actuality I have very little to do compared to most of you!!!

Good news---Aaron's new (used) car is in Raleigh so hopefully if we can get all the paperwork done and check delivered he will be able to pick it up as soon as he and Thom fly in. He is madly trying to locate furniture to furnish their apartment on line and that is proving to be a little difficult. It will all come together for him but it sure would have been nice if we could have given him some of our stuff from the house in Iowa to get started with. He is basically starting out with nothing furniture wise so that means bed, living room stuff, lamps, desk, table, chairs, etc. I have full confidence he will bring it all together and he certainly has done all of this on his own so all we have to do is sit back and transfer the money!! It has been so great to have him here.

I must admit I did pretty much nothing of substance yesterday but watched tv!!! Found all these cool shows to watch now and even found Rachael Ray (tho it was a show from February I don't care!). We are now going to totally veg out!!! Well maybe not! I still have to figure out how to work the Mystar thing which is the dvr thingy but I can conquer that today!!! It was just so nice to be able to see more than 5 channels of stuff. We get CNN and ESPN too so we hope we will be able to watch some Carolina basketball if we can figure out the programming schedule!!! Life is good.

Today we are going to chill out at home again--probably will head into Townsville tomorrow to load up on the last of the souvenirs to take back and maybe hit The Strand for some swimming in the stinger enclosures. When i walked this morning there was a couple on the beach who struck up a conversation with me---they wanted to know if it was safe to swim and I told them that the locals did not so I wouldn't. They are from New Zealand and were camping out in their car in the little camping area and they really wanted to swim but were scared of the jellyfish. I figure if the locals don't swim there now there is good reason. No way I would risk it!!! We talked for about 10 minutes--nice couple and I hope they find a safe place to swim today!!!

Not much else to report as of this moment---oh I got a lovely letter from my friend Mary from Epworth! And how come it only costs you guys 94 cents to send me a letter and it costs me 2.05???? The exchange rate isn't THAT bad yet! LOL

It is TRULY Thanksgiving!

The long, long road has been traveled and today, after a mere 4 months, we celebrate Thanksgiving with the installation of --dare I say it---Austar satellite tv!!!!!!!!!!! The technician arrived at 7:50 am, left twice during the day to go get parts and left for good at 7:15 pm. A long day for the Charles Manson look alike (no joke) but we are up and running and watching Jon Stewart and the Colbert Report at the moment!!! Ah---we are truly thankful for the small wonder of satellite television!!!!!!!! LIfe as we know it has been restored!!!!!!!!!!

Happy First Day of Summer!

I forgot to wish you a Happy First Day of Summer yesterday---December 1st is the official first day of summer here so enjoy all of your warm wonderful sunny weather!!!

And TODAY we celebrate THANKSGIVING!

So what if it is a few days late? You guys are all probably still eating leftovers anyway!!!!
Got the pumpkin ready to cook up this morning, the turkey breast roll in the freezer ready to pop in the oven,and all of the other goodies ready to go later today!!! But most importantly---I have gas in the tank again! Woohoo!!! We may be sweating while I have the oven going but we will eat well tonight!!!

One thing that I forgot to blog about yesterday was our fascination with the cane toads which are a HUGE pest here. They virtually have no predator and so they just multiply and are everywhere all of the time. They are huge and disgusting and about the only thing that the locals say kills them is freezing them. Now I don't think I really want a bunch of toads in my freezer (I am not my brother Mark after all!!) but it is interesting at what lengths people will go to to eradicate this plague on Australia!!! The funny thing is at night when they come out on the roads---the past couple of weekends we have been driving a lot at night in the sugar cane areas which of course are thick with toads. Well, Chris has a new game----Toad Time---which he declares loudly and swerves to hit them!! some make a huge popping sound and others just quietly meet their maker. This may upset some of the environmentalists out there but I have not found one Australian yet that wants to protect them. Anyway, I am very bad at Toad Time---I think I only hit one. I did find an article in the Daily Telegraph which I will paste below that talks about this lovely creature!!!

WHAT do you do if you see a cane toad? Here's some handy advice for dealing with this dreaded Qld critter.

Freezing has been suggested as the most humane form of killing cane toads. When put into a freezer, a cane toad will become dormant as a reaction to the cold. And don't worry, they won't make Alfie Langer-like comebacks when you take them out to make room for ice cream.

The NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service recently warned Sydneysiders to be on the lookout for cane toads after one was discovered at Quakers Hill.

The cane toad can be identified by its size (up to 15 centimetres long), warty appearance, a large gland behind the ear and pointed, bony ridges between the nose and eyes. A bit like Russ Hinze, really.

More information to help tell frog from toad can be found at www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au

Earlier this month Sydney scientists said that they believed they may have found a chink in the armour of one of Australia's biggest environmental pests.

Sydney University's John Llewelyn and Crystal Kelehear are part of a group known as Team Bufo, named after the cane toad, Bufo marinus.

The team has identified a parasitic worm that attacks the toad's lungs, stunting their growth and, in most, cases killing them. Perhaps they should nickname the worm Willie Mason.

"It's a pretty exciting set of results'', team leader Professor Rick Shine said.

"They kill a large number of the small toads that we infected.''

According to Professor Shine, if toads in Northern Territory and northern NSW were infected by the parasite, it may be possible to slow their advance quite dramatically.

It's also important to check for cane toad eggs. They are black and laid in water in long necklaces.

The necklaces are clear jelly - a bit like the defence of the Maroons' backline.

Most frogs lay their eggs as a mass of foam or clumps of jelly in water or land nests, or in holes in moist areas. An individual cane toad can attach up to 35,000 eggs to water plants or debris in slow-moving or still water. Cane toad tadpoles are very dark, their tails are short compared with their body size and they gather in pub beer gardens. When native tadpoles hatch, they feed on decaying plant material and gradually develop legs before changing into frogs.

A Long and Loverly Weekend!!!

Wongaling Beach (more crab sand art--my favorite)

The Kuranda Scenic Railway

SkyRail over the Rainforest

A view over the rainforest

Looking at Cairns from the Sky Ride

Aaron and his friend the Cassowary

We are back in Saunders Beach after quite a long and eventful weekend. We had a great time and ended up changing plans a bit but it all worked out!!! We met Chris in Ingham on Friday afternoon at the mill there-----I had never been to that mill before so Aaron called and he guided us in and we met him in the parking lot before heading north. We stopped at a little fish and chips place which was pretty much a hole in the wall and had the authentic fish and chips (barramundi) in the foil and wrapped in paper. It was a little hard to drive and eat so since I had the first driving shift Chris fed me little pieces at a time---isn't that sweet??? And yes, I am driving a lot now---especially when we are going places long distance because Chris is always on the phone so it is just easier for me to drive and then he doesn't have to worry about it at all!!!

It took what seemed like forever on a really windy narrow road after we got through Cairns to get to Port Douglas where we were staying at the Rydges Sabaya resort. We had a great little 2 bedroom apt but found out when we got up in the morning that the air con in the boys' room did not work and it was pretty sweltering in there so later in the day they ended up moving us to a different place because they could not get it working. Ah well. It was okay. We got up and got all ready to go catch our ride to go out to the Great Barrier Reef and as we got in line I looked at Aaron who had gotten very pale, he left and went and threw up in a bush....so we decided to ditch the trip for the day and see if we could do it on Sunday. There is no way I would want to go out on a boat when I was sick !!! Poor Aaron felt really badly about it but the rest of us were okay---we tucked him into our bed since we had the room with the AC and then Thom and Chris and I hung out together at the pool. It was a hot hot day but nice in the pool. Aaron pretty much laid around and slept all day and that was what he needed. We tried the next morning to go on the trip again but this time Aaron was having different problems and it just wasn't going to work. I know he was upset but we were not out any money and we are going to try to get them out to the reef from Townsville this week if we can work it all out. But sometimes you just can't do something and you go with the flow. And I could not imagine being sick on a ship out in the middle of the ocean!!! Ugh.

Sunday Chris and Thom and i went to breakfast and then Chris and I ran into Port Douglas to find some medicine to help Aaron's symptoms and found out that they have a nice market on Sundays. We gave Aaron all morning to recoup and get to feeling better and then we headed to the market and walked around. I found a couple things (of course!) and Chris and I will definitely go back there sometime. It has a great beach called Four Mile Beach and lots of neat shops and resorts to go to so there is not a lack of anything to do. The road in the daylight was much better than it was coming after dark!!!

We headed towards Cairns and Aaron was feeling well enough that we thought we would venture into the rainforest a bit. There is a Sky Rail ride that you can take over the rain forest to the town of Kuranda which is a neat little place with a lot of neat touristy shops but a fun place to walk around. There were some hiking trails that we did not get to explore but let me tell you one thing----it was humid and hot. I usually don't really sweat that much but the sweat was just pouring off my face!!! Whew!!! We ate lunch and did a bit of shopping, talked it up with several of the shop owners of course. They all seem intrigued by us for some reason. One couple had a nice little souvenir shop that I bought a bunch of stuff at and we got into quite a conversation with them. He was a trucker so he was telling us all about some of his jobs and all and they really were very nice. I find that most people are if you just treat them with a bit of kindness instead of being all business like!!! And like I said--I think we intrigue them or something!

We took the train back to where we parked our car---an hour and half trek through the rainforest and rocks and we saw some great things including some beautiful waterfalls along the way. I think there were 15 tunnels to go through so that was kind of neat! I can't imagine building that railway!!! It used to be used for transportation but now it is just the scenic train that uses it if I understood correctly. It was fun and the best part---they brought us nice cool towels to wash up with on the way!!! Much appreciated!!!

We headed out and were to spend the night at a place in Mission Beach---or so we thought. I was driving (again!) and I had printed out the webpage with a little map on it. Chris had made the reservations so I didn't really know what the place was. Well, let me tell you---I turned around in some pretty weird places and by the end of it there was just a teeny tiny bit of tension in the car. We were all hungry and tired and it was late and very dark and we just couldn't find the place. Then Chris tried calling, got the owner and found out the key was at reception but then he lost the connection and couldn't get directions. We stopped to ask directions, the guy gave us totally wrong directions and finally Aaron came to the rescue with his IPhone as it finally got service!!! Found the street and realized that it was not Mission Beach but another little beach down the way a bit! Still took a bit of driving around to find it but we did and got all our stuff unloaded. Whew. Walked down the street a bit to a bar where a band was playing (pretty bad music, too) but it had food and that was what we wanted. Of course the girl who took our order was a flake and totally ignored Thom's order so he had to reorder and eat his after the rest of us were done!!! I stayed up with the boys a bit and talked and watched tv and Chris crashed! We both slept well and then he got up and did a few hours of work before we took a walk on the beach. The boys were going to hit the beach but opted to sleep, Aaron is still not back up to 100% but he is getting there.

We loaded up and headed back to Ingham where we dropped Chris off to work for a few hours while the boys and I went "to town". I took them to the cemetary which is really a neat place----it is a very strong Italian town so there is a huge Catholic Italian population. The cemetaries are very ornate and the mausoleums are huge and beautiful. I am going to post some pictures later of them because they are just beautiful. We headed into town where the boys were so happy to find the thing that they have both wanted-----short shorts. The older men here in Australia quite often wear these really short shorts and we found them. Both of the boys got a pair so they can go back to the US with the "look". I had to laugh---they were having so much fun trying them on! Kids.

We picked Chris up after some shopping and headed home----the house was still here and not as hot as I thought it would be so we unloaded (once again!!!) and settled in for the night. I made a special dish for dinner tonight----tacos with kangaroo mince......I just couldn't bring myself to eat it but everyone else did and said it was good.

Tomorrow is going to be our Thanksgiving finally! I have gas in the stove and bought another pumpkin so I am ready to go!!! Hope all of you had a great Thanksgiving!!!!
Oh--and add my friend Rhonda 's husband Peter to your prayer list ---he had 2 heart attacks and is doing okay I guess (don't know any of the details) but I am sure that a few prayers from my friends would not hurt in the least!!!

More tomorrow!!!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL!!!

i do hope that everyone has a wonderful blessed Thanksgiving!!! We miss not being with our family today, that is for sure!!! I went into town in Ayr today and got my hair done and was trying to explain to the girls in the shop what Thanksgiving was. One of the girls said "oh that is the day when they show it on tv with the big feast and the big parade!" and I agreed that that was part of it!!! But the best part is just being with family and friends and being thankful for all that God has blessed us with. And we have been blessed. Beyond belief. I have had my share of negativity lately and I am realizing today that there is just no place for that and I had better shape up and be grateful for all that I have!!! So I am!!!

Chris and I came back home tonight and since there was still no gas---(-I may have to call and talk to a real person tomorrow-)---we thawed some steaks out and did some veggies in the microwave and steaks on the bbq and we ate just fine!!! It was a long day for Chris---he is doing budgets (again) and I know that it gets tiring looking at numbers all day so he is going to hit the hay early I think. I am trying to get the boys organized for our trip tomorrow to Port Douglas so I am collecting laundry and trying to get it started so I can get it all run through and dried before we leave tomorrow afternoon. It has been raining the past day so it is kind of sticky and wet out right now and I seem to be the only one in the house that is hot!!! Hormones perhaps???? Nahhh!

I tried to load a picture of my new friends down by the house in Ayr----don't tell anyone but I have been spoiliing them a bit when I drive by them with carrots and apples!!! They see the car and come on over now so I think I have made friends for life!

Oh and I got the sweetest letter from a sweet lady who used to go to Epworth---Edith Arthur. I had sent her a note because I found a bookmark that she had made me in one of my Bibles and wrote her a quick note to tell her that it had made it all the way to Australia. I guess she was so happy to get my letter and wrote right back along with her wonderful daughter, Nancy, who included a note. It made my day to hear from her and know that my letter had made her smile!!! So that was something else to be thankful for today----letters from friends who come into our lives at different points and make us smile!!!

So as the families all gather-----the Chiles side in Ada with Colleen and Bryan and Meredith in their new home and the Brown side in Reynoldsburg with Carla and Christopher ---we think of you all and are thankful for what you mean to us!!!!! See you soon!

Sad Face

This is a pretty good example of how I looked yesterday after finding out AFTER making my pumpkin pie and NOT smelling the yummy smells coming from the oven after 45 minutes......
You guessed it----opened the door and no baking was going on----out of gas. I was very upset. I guess i just thought we had an endless supply----never really gave it much thought!!! I figured we were on a schedule and they came and refilled it but guess I was wrong!!! I have so much to learn!!!

So, after a few tears (yes---I will admit to that!) I dumped the pie in the rubbish bin and got some chicken breasts out to thaw to cook on the bbq. Fortunately the stove/oven is the only thing that uses the bottled gas so we are fine otherwise and I ordered a refill but have no idea when that will happen. As I have seen on the website now there is a service that they offer that makes sure this does not happen but did they tell me about that when I got the service started....NOOOOOOO! Aaron was so sweet---told me "No worries-Mama Bear---we can just do it next week!" so that is when we will do it! Thanksgiving a bit late.

And to top it off last night the garage door broke and we cannot close it. And of course Chris' keys are in it. All in all--not the best of days. No word from anyone on that issue and when that will get fixed. CALGON take me away. Oh wait---I don't have a tub..................

But through it all I am so thankful!!! Thankful that I have a family (both sides of it) that love us and support us from afar and that I have a husband who allows me to have the adventure of a lifetime!!! Hope you all have a blessed Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving a few days early!!!

Waterfall at Paluma

I think the sun was in our eyes.......we weren't smiling!!!

So what should I write about today?? Hmmm....we decided to celebrate Thanksgiving a few days early this week----of course Chris has to work and Thursday night was getting a little bit difficult to make the dinner as we will be in Ayr Wednesday and Thursday and I didn't want to have to ask Aaron and Thom to do the cooking!!! Plus we will be getting ready on Thursday night to leave for Port Douglas on Friday morning so........we will celebrate turkey day on Tuesday instead of Thursday!! Works for me!!!

I was so excited yesterday when the postie brought me a CARE package from my sister!!! Yippee!!! My first real package here and it was filled with lots of goodies. Of course it was opened and "rifled" through by quarantine---there are a lot of things on the "do not send list" such as any kind of fruit, nuts, seeds, soil, plants, medicine, etc. Australia is pretty strict about letting things get into their country so you do have to make sure before you send that you don't have anything that would break the rules. Paula sent me REAL Q-tips (not the wimpy ones you find here), cocoa peeps!!!, coffee creamer (yum), and some "girl" stuff which I am sure quarantine had a great time looking at wondering why THAT was being sent! Hey, you get used to what you are used to and there are just some things that I miss!!! So anyway--THANK YOU, PAULA!!!

It is pretty hot and steamy here but we are surviving. I am trying to not use the oven (though today it will be going for the old turkey breast and pumpkin pie!) and the dryer and we have all the fans on high so we will make it. We are all trying to store up the heat so that when we come back to the US we will be warm!! Ha! It is just a fact of life here that it is hot and we have enjoyed the really nice warm weather so now we will just get used to the hotter stuff!!! No big deal!

Oh and Austar was to come yesterday. I know you guys all want to know the latest!! The technician called me on Friday and said that he would come on Monday to install it as he had all the parts of the mount that he needed and had lined up someone to help him with it. He had another house in Bushland Beach (the next little burb down the road) that he was doing---a 3 story that they had been waiting for 2 years to do!!! So they were going to knock them both out in one day. Yesterday I get a call at 9:30 from Daryl saying that the mount disappeared from the warehouse and no one knows where it is. He was a little mad to put it mildly as he had spent all weekend moving and had left Cairns at 4 am to come do these jobs. He expected me to yell about it and I was very nice to him---it isn't his fault the company is incompetent!!! So he ordered yet another mount from Brisbane and hopes to get back this week but I am not going to hold my breath. We will be gone on Friday and next Monday so those days won't work. I did not even tell Chris they were coming because I just knew it wasn't going to happen! This poor guy was really upset ----he talked to me for about 10 minutes and just kept apologizing and all and it is not his fault! But trust me--if we ever DO manage to get it installed I will be contacting the main office to tell them my feelings about my "welcome to Australia" by them!!! LOL In the big scheme of things it is not a biggie but they need to work on their logistics or something!

The tide is messing up my walking schedule this week! I need to walk first thing in the morning and it is too high of tide right now. Thom ran later in the day yesterday and felt sick afterwards----I guess I am not being a good enough mom and telling him to not go in the heat of the day! I just figured the boys were smart enough to figure out that it is really hot then!!!

I have the pumpkin cooked (my first made from scratch pumpkin pie...) and will do that this morning. I am a little worried about the oven though as it is less than reliable when it comes to baking. I can't wait to come use Dad's oven at Christmas to make some decent cookies and to be able to have CRISCO!!!! I bought what I think is pie crust so I will keep you posted on how this whole Thanksgiving thing goes. No french fried onions either so no yummy green beans.....they just don't know what they are missing!!!

Well enough ramblings for one morning!!! Will fill you in on the festivities later!

Great Weekend!!!

Looking out from Flagstaff Hill near Bowen

Horseshoe Bay Beach

Horseshoe Bay

Waves crashing on the window of the boat on the way back from the Whitsundays!

Aaron and Thomas trying to dry out after the first boat ride to the islands!

We are back from a fantastic weekend!!! I am kind of tired so I hope that this makes sense!!! Friday we were supposed to pick Chris up from the airport around 6 pm and leave from there for Airlie Beach but......the flight kept getting delayed so the plans changed!!! Chris' boss and another CSR person and Chris ended up using the rental car they had in Mackay and driving back to Townsville. So the boys and I loaded up the car and started driving with the plan to meet them on the road someplace! It took forever to get through Townsville since we were hitting it right around 5 on a Friday afternoon but we did and finally met Chris at a servo 2 hours or so down the road. From there we drove to Airlie Beach, checked into our cute little bed and breakfast and then walked downtown to Hogs Breath Cafe for a bite to eat.

Saturday morning I got up early and headed to the shower to get ready for our big adventure to the Whitsundays Islands and was greeted with a trickle of water and then no water!!! I gave it some time but it didn't get better so Chris went up to call the owner at 6:30 am to find out what the deal was. Evidentially some "hooligan" had turned her water off during the night---the bed and breakfast is on the waterfront and there is a big park right below it so there is a lot of "activity" there and someone was just messing around. I am VERY glad it was easily fixed or we would have not had such a great start to the day ! After we all got ready we headed to the harbor to catch the boat to the first island. We had gotten an island hopper pass so we could do whatever we wanted on our own timetable and it did turn out to be the best way for us to do it. We got on the boat and decided to sit on the top deck. BIG MISTAKE!!!!! Can I say that again?? BIG MASSIVE MISTAKE! Once we started the captain told us we might want to sit on the right side of the boat to avoid getting splashed as it was really rough out. We scooted over as far as we could but alas-----it was not far enough. NO ONE was safe on the top deck. We got totally drenched and it was combination of salt water and suntan lotion dripping in our eyes!!! I was not even dry by the end of the day and my big complaint was that my hair was a total wreck the rest of the day---so don't expect to see any cute "couple pictures"!!! We managed to make our way down to the bottom of the boat and stood down there but still got sprayed !! but it was fun but not quite the way I thought the day would start.

We visited South Molle Island first, walked around a bit, sat by the pool and had a coffee while the boys went to the beach for a bit. This cruise really just took you to the different resorts on the islands and you could just use the pools, the beaches, whatever for as long as you wanted to. There were some hiking trails but we never were really able to find where we were supposed to go for that and we decided that we wanted to catch the boat to the next place. This time we went downstairs......

The next stop was Daydream Island and it was really more developed and a beatiful resort. Our tour guide for the day, Aaron, led the way and we found our way around the island, grabbed some lunch, looked at the living reef lagoons that they had,walked around, took pictures of the pretty things----including the 3 bigger than life mermaids that welcomed you to the island. Great photo opportunity---I was thinking that there must be millions of pictures of those mermaids with various people. I took pictures of the boys but Chris was pretty laid back by then so he wasn't into being photographed!

We really had fun but the boys were getting a little sunburned despite the sunscreen being applied all the time----and we were all getting a little tired so we decided to forego the next island and just head home. Whew---the ride back was REALLY choppy and we got seats in the enclosed part below and the water was just crashing over the windows the whole trip so we were very glad to be below.

We got back to the bed and breakfast, showered and headed out for dinner at a nice little place that Chris and i had eaten before. The boys were going to go out later and check out the town but everyone was a little lethargic from the day in the sun so they decided to skip it and just stay in. I found the bed and breakfast cat to play with and enticed it to come in for awhile (think I miss my kitties??) and then we all crashed.

Slept in a bit this morning and then headed into town to walk around but it was so crazy hot we were all just melting away so instead of shopping like I wanted to we headed out of town. I did find a shop that had aboriginal art that seemed pretty authentic so i bought a couple small pictures that I will have to get stretched someplace but they will be a great memento of Australia when we leave. We drove to Bowen, found some great beaches and waded a bit before heading back home. We did stop in Ayr at the house so the boys could see where we go a couple days a week, showed them the mills and even stopped for cane trains! The horsies were in the mango grove by the house so I stopped and gave them apples (shhhh--don't tell their owners!) and gave them a pat! They saw the car and came right over----last week I gave them carrots so maybe we have something going now.!!!!

We stopped and got Kentucky Fried Chicken on the way home----sent Aaron and Thom in to order and they came out and said "don't ever ask us to do that again". I guess is was a redneck place and pretty confusing and once we got the food home we decided that it was not the KFC that we know!!! Oh well---it was kind of like something from home!!!

We are trying to cool the house down--it is going to be in the 90's all week it looks like and humid so we will be sweating it but hopefully we can get it cooled down a bit. We are watching the Australian Idol finals tonight and going to crash after that I am sure!!! I will try to post more pictures tomorrow!!!

Whew boy---It is getting WARM!

Whewie---it is getting hot and steamy here. Supposed to be a high of 33 today which translates to 91 or so...all I know is that this was the worst day for the power company to do some work today and have our power off for 4 1/2 hours!!! We had all the ceiling fans cranked up on high overnight and when the power went off it was pretty stifling. But we survived and everyone seems to be napping now (except me!) but I might be headed that way.

I went with Chris to the Burdekin on Wednesday and we left the boys home alone. They did just fine and dandy and the house was in good shape when we got back home on Thursday so I didn't need to worry! Chris had a meeting in Townsville on Thursday afternoon so I dropped him off on our way home, picked Aaron up and went back into town to get his hair cut before picking Chris back up after work. Today I dropped him at the airport so he could fly to Mackay for the day and then the boys and I will pick him up at 6ish and head on down to Airlie Beach for our funfilled island hopping weekend!!! I told Chris I am going to be exhausted in a couple of weeks with all that we have going on!!!

The boys have been working on a sand castle but the going is slow . The picture above is from a couple days ago and it has expanded and gotten more defined but Thomas thinks they need a book on sand castle building or something because it is harder than they thought! I wanted them to make a mermaid...

So things are busy here as I am sure they are for all of you reading! Just trying to stay cool and have some adventures worth writing about! I am sure I will be able to get some good pictures the next couple of days so I will post them when I can!!!

No Shadow Tuesday!!!!

Are you ready for it???? I AM!!! Today is officially No Shadow Tuesday in our little area!!! That means that the sun will be directly overheard today and hence---no shadow!!! The problem is that this morning as I am looking outside it is very cloudy and blowy and actually looks a bit like rain so maybe I will have to keep the festivities down to a minimum!

One more thing we miss----decent thermal coffee cups!!!! Chris and I have gotten probably 4 since we have been here and they are all disabled in some way---either they leak, the bottom becomes sticky and won't move on the counter, the lids don't fit right even though I have been diligent to not put them in the dishwasher or they just plain fall apart! And I haven't bought cheapo ones either! So add that to the list of things to get in the US at Christmas to bring back!!! it is those little things that make the difference to me, you know???

I just found a blog that gives you a prompt each day to write about something for a minute which is a kind of neat idea !. Today's prompt was "what fashion should never come back?" I was thinking about that and there are several but I think I would have to go with leisure suits---how did anyone ever think that those were nice looking??? Let me know what you think should never come back as a fashion trend---I am sure there are some strong opinions out there on this!!!!

A trip to the Rainforest

Aaron and Thomas trying to get the perfect picture.

Looking out from Paluma

An example of a buttress

Beautiful View from the top of Paluma

These pictures don't really do it justice but it was a beautiful trek to Paluma today. Paluma is a little place at the top of a very steep and windy road----really wide enough for 1 1/2 cars so you have to really be careful when you drive! I left the driving to Chris. The funny thing is that we had tried to make this trip the first weekend after we had moved here and Chris only had 3 days of driving on the left hand side of the road under his belt. I felt MUCH better this time!!!

We did a nice long hike into the rainforest----did not see too many animals but then we weren't the quietest hikers either!!! What I did discover is that there is a HUGE difference between hiking when you are 48 and hiking when you are 20!!!!! Aaron and Thomas were quite considerate of us "old agers" but they were definitely more spry than we were. It was a fun hike, we all worked up a sweat and we saw some beautiful things. After we hiked a bit we headed to the Rainforest Inn for a bit of lunch which was delicious!!! Aaron and I both had panini and Chris had an avocado salad which which looked yummy. Thomas had some huge chicken sandwich and we all shared some potato wedges with sweet chili sauce----one of our Australian favorites now. YUM!

After lunch we headed to a pottery place which was really in the back of the potter's house. He was a really nice guy, explained the difference to me between gas fired and woodfired and showed me a lot of neat pictures of things he had done. I found a little teapot (you KNOW I couldn't turn that down) and a couple small things to bring back for gifts and happily left with a nice souvenior. The potter---Len Cook----was a nice guy---very talented and quite personable. www.lencookpottery.com

So we are all settled in for the evening and planning on watching Australian Idol---our lame Sunday night activity---down to 3 now so it is getting intense. The boys were amazed that it was still going on since we had watched it with them when they were here in September on their spring break. Will blog more tomorrow!!!

Sunny days!!!

Here we are on Castle Hill!!! It was a blazing hot day and we drove up the hill (only saw a couple walkers today) and it was breezy and cool at the top so we cooled off a bit while we showed the boys Townsville and surrounding area from up high. We had a great day---did a little bit of hiking here and there and just enjoyed being together. Thomas was nice enough to take a 3/4 family picture for us-----maybe we can photoshop Micah in later.

We came back home and I took a long nap----for some reason i was beat today and had a headache and just needed to take a little rest. Felt some better afterwards and by supper time (Chris did steaks and potatoes on the bbq) I was feeling much better. It is so nice to have the boys here. I am doing laundry (I think every single thing that Aaron brought with him was dirty) and trying to get them some clean clothes.

Tomorrow we are going to go to Paluma---Chris and I had gone there way back the first weekend when we were here but could not go all that way up the mountain as there was an accident so hopefully this time we will make it to the top. It is a very steep, narrow and windy road....yikes!!! I will keep my eyes closed!!! But it should be a fun day and a chance to see some rain forest!!! More pictures coming I am sure!

Saturday from the veranda!

I think I have told you about the Wicked rental vans that are everywhere---this is one that we saw when we were hiking someplace. some of them are just plain funny and some border on raunchy---this one kind of is borderline. I saw one on the ferry on Magnetic island that is my favorite one so far----had a huge picture of Darth Vader on the side and on the back it said "Come to the Dark Side-----we have cookies!" They have some pretty funny ones that is for sure and it is a cheap way to get around Australia I guess.

Chris and i are sitting on the veranda with our laptops and coffee this morning trying to be quiet. I picked the boys up yesterday at the airport and we stopped on the way home to get some toiletries for Aaron since he left everything behind in order to keep his luggage weight down. I have spent more than I can reveal on groceries in the past 2 days in preparation for 2 growing boys though they both said they have been eating like one meal a day. I need to get them back to eating right!!! There are roadworks everywhere and the grocery store we stopped at on the way home had the exit shut since they are working on the Bruce highway there so of course it was not clearly marked where to go. Now if I KNEW what the streets were it would have been a piece of cake but I finally figured it out after a couple of dead ends and we made it home to find Chris had beaten us home. They scarfed down some sloppy joes i had made and it was 3:30 by then so of course they did not feel like eating dinner at 6:30 but Aaron did eat some later.

It is so nice to have them here. Aaron has really long hair and new dark glasses and he just does not look like himself!!! Today we are going to go into Townsville and go to Castle Hill and then another park or something to hike around a bit. The air is just dead still right now so I think it is going to be hot hot hot today. We usually have a breeze out here and at 8:30 am it is pretty darn steamy already.

So the adventures have begun and I will let you know how our visit goes!!! 30 days till our trip back to the US---am i excited??? YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Waiting for Baby Bear to Arrive!

Aaron is on his way---he called and is delayed in Sydney but should be here by 2ish so I will leave in a bit to go pick him up. I made sloppy joes this morning as the boys requested that for lunch--it will be a late one by the time we get them all loaded and stop at the store to pick up a few items but they will be happy to eat whenever I am sure! I am so excited!!! I have to store up this next month in my memory banks as I won't have this kind of time with him again!

Am cleaning madly and getting ready for their arrival so not much to post right now but I will leave you with a joke...
A PRIEST and a rabbi were sitting next to each other in an aeroplane. After a while, the priest turned to the rabbi and asked, "Is it still a requirement of your faith that you not eat pork?" The rabbi responded, "Yes, that is still one of our laws." The priest then asked, "Have you ever eaten pork?" "Yes, on one occasion I did succumb to temptation and tasted a ham sandwich." The priest nodded in understanding and went on with his reading. The rabbi asked the priest, "Father, is it still a requirement of your church that you remain celibate?" The priest replied, "Yes, that is still very much a part of our faith." The rabbi asked, "Father, have you ever fallen to the temptations of the flesh?" The priest replied, "Yes, rabbi, on one occasion I was weak." The rabbi nodded understandingly and said, "Beats the hell out of a ham sandwich, doesn't it?"

I am tired of being "escalated"....

Pictures from Magnetic Island

After a fantastic 2 1/2 days at Magnetic Island we are home. I had such a great time! Janette and I spent Tuesday walking a bit, shopping a bit, had coffee at The Fat Possum (don't you love it) and lunch back at the Peppers Resort. We decided we were just happy to sit on the balcony chatting in the afternoon and did until it was time to leave---they were nice enough to extend my check out time till 4 so we checked out and then waited for the guys to finish up. Took the ferry back to Townsville, made it home by 6;30 pm and had a quick supper before crashing!!!

Today I decided to try to call the satellite tv people again since I had not heard back from them in almost 2 weeks. Every time I call they have to review the whole file, go through all the notes, try to understand what is going on and it is rather frustrating. Well today I once again got "escalated". I guess that is their term for priority or something but I told the girl on the phone today that I was getting tired of being escalated...she laughed and said she understood and said that they would have us enjoying Austar soon......later in the afternoon I got a call from the last guy who was here doing the install and he said that one piece of the special mount came in but not the other so he was coming back into Townsville and was going to check and see if it was in. He promised he would call me to tell me if they could come tomorrow---no call so I assume that means no. but at least he has my mobile number and if I am gone he can leave a message on that if I can't get it. This whole thing has been pretty ridiculous.

Aaron and Thom will be coming on Friday!!! I can not wait!! Poor Aaron was having problems with his eyes being all gunky and irritated, went to the eye doctor in Melbourne and found out he has giant papillary conjunctivitus which is common in long term contact lens wearers. His brother says it is because he did not change them often enough, etc. (and he is the eye expert of the family) but who knows. I guess the eye doctor says it happens a lot and the usual treatment (other than the obvious of not wearing contacts) is steroid drops. Since she couldnt' monitor him she would not give them to him but he got some other kind and got new glasses. So he is back to glasses for several months but at least it is not something super major that means he will lose his eyesight!!!

Have not seen any wild critters today---I know you guys are all loving all my critters that I have been seeing here !!! I did see a rock wallaby when we were on Magnetic Island but it moved too quick for a photo op!!! The lorakeets were very noisy today outside ---not sure what had them all riled up but they were going at it when I was hanging laundry.

Will most likely go with Chris for the day to Ayr tomorrow so I can do some shopping and then Friday I get to go to the airport to pick the boys up! Yippee!!!

Island Fun

Gotta love that top picture!!!! We are on Magnetic Island---came over from Townsville on the ferry yesterday and will be here through tomorrow. Chris has meetings all the rest of today and tomorrow so he will be tied up but I am having a great time. Last night there was a really nice dinner for the CSR folks and partners so I met a few more wives and we shared a great meal. Today they had 2 groups that went on jet skis around some of the bays and the other wife who is still here (the rest went home to jobs and children) and I went over on the bus with them, walked the beach and cheered them on. The group our husbands were on looked like they had a great time. I think it is going to be difficult for them to sit in meetings the rest of the day!

So i am going to chill out this afternoon and probably just hang out in the room and read until dinner time when Jeanette and I are going to meet another woman who is coming in for the sessions tomorrow and go to dinner with her which will be nice. Not sure what we will do tomorrow---we will have to check out of the room way before the guys are done so we will probalby just hang out around the pool or something. I don't know!! We will see!

The resort is beautiful and the island is small and pretty uncommercial (is that a word?) compared to what some are and it is just a really pretty place with nice beaches and great places to hike. The "team" can go on a hike at 5:30 am tomorrow but I am thinking that that is not going to happen with Chris as it is optional!!! I tihnk he will choose sleep over the hike!!

Before I forget today is my mom's birthday so Happy Birthday Mother!!! Next year is the big one!!! Chris' mom would have celebrated her 71st birthday yesterday and my nephew Thomas will celebrate his birthday tomorrow so happy birthday to him too! Of course all my days are 15 hours ahead of you....so it isn't really her birthday quite yet!!!

Will try to take more pics to share of the island before we go.

A Little Welcome Home Visitor!

Yep, there he was--just waiting for us in the driveway when we got home from Ayr this afternoon. A beautiful guy as long as he stays outside where he belongs!!! I suspect he lives in the foliage in the front yard and was out sunning himself when we got home. I stalked him with the camera.....probably traumatized him but wanted to record yet another creature of Australia!

Now you may think this is silly but today I washed the car. No, that is not the silly part. The silly part is that when I washed the car I felt like I was "home" again. Let me explain.....I drove up to the car wash and decided to do the self wash thingy since I am still relatively young and able. Plus there was a lady in the automatic one saying it was not working so that was not an option. When I got my change and went to put in the coins imagine my surprise when I saw that the selection dial was an exact replica of the one I used to use in Mooresville, NC!!!! I was so excited!!! Complete with foamy brush!!! Now I know that that seems like a very small and insignificant thing but when you are surrounded by things that are not quite what you are used to it was a nice feeling to know that I actually knew how to operate this car wash thingy and could do it successfully without having to ask anyone anything!!! As I said---a little bit of home in Ayr, Queensland.

Chris is sacked out in the recliner and I don't blame him. He has had a very long 3 days and deserves some nappage. Tomorrow we will probably putter around the house and do some yardwork (provided Gianni Goanna is not in the yard...) since we have negledted it badly. Sunday we will take the ferry over to Magnetic Island where Chris has a working retreat thing-not sure what it is called exactlly. They are doing some team building (a canoe trip) and some meetings Monday and Tuesday. the great thing is that partners get to go so Sunday night we all have dinner together and then Monday night the spouses will eat together and the CSR folks will have their little dealio. Sounds like fun and hopefully some of the other women will be staying till Tuesday too. If not, I will find the beach, the pool, whatever and read!!! I am working my way through Jodi Picoult and Dean Koontz among others. What a life!!! I LOVE it!!!