Australia

We are almost officially "back into the swing of things" after being back for a week and a half from our 2 month vacation down under. After asking if we had a good time on the trip, it seems most people add, "were you able to do/see a lot of things?" Our answer to the first half? Absolutely! We had a wonderful tme. But no, we didn't do or see a lot of things...in fact that was the beauty of the vacation. Honestly, most days we were still in our pj's, playing games or watching the 42" tv, until after lunch. It was so wonderful not to have to get around for anything, other than an occational evening barby (that's bbq, for our American friends, and no, shrimp were not involved :)). Not only was it great for me not to have any demands for 2 months, but it was so relaxing not to feel stressed about having to come back to a draining school schedule. So for me this trip provided more of a relaxing, refreshing time than I've had since summers in middle school.
All that said, we still did/visited some fun places, and seeing as how that might be more exciting to you than pictures of me laying around the house in my pajamas, here are a few photos that highlight some of our unforgettable trip memories.

Christmas was interesting for me with the 90-100 degree weather and the Australian traditions. Notice the party hats that everyone wears for Christmas dinner.


We really enjoyed the beach (a 3 min. drive away). This particular evening we went down there with family and friends and Bran did some off-shore fishing. He caught a stingray (not that that's what he was after)!


One evening the family all went to a park overlooking Perth city for a picnic. From left to right is Lisa, Wuss (our affectionate name for Bran's dad), then Ma, Charlene, and her husband Rich.


We went camping "down south" over the new years weekend with friends. Although we didn't have to worry about any visits from what I would consider the usual camping pests (like racoons) we were visited one night by a kangaroo who broke into our food.


Bran and I went down south to visit his relatives on the family farm for a couple days. We stopped at Hamilin Bay on the way and I took some photos of the beautiful beach.


This was our last day in Austraila. Bran and his sisters and brother in law took surfing lessons. My oversized belly and I just watched and swam.