Merry Christmas...and move

Merry Christmas to all!!!

The last two challenges were to post some Christmas photos and to answer the question of what I would give if money were no object.

The latter is easier for me than the former (just lack of access more than anything). If money were no object I would take my family on an around the world trip (preferably over the course of a year or so) and have our friends join us at their favorite places. I would also get my dad a nice sail boat for his retirement and my mom would get the fun travel books for the planning part of our trip (something she loves to do). For my lil brother I would get him a trip to the wine sommelier school and a small wine case filled for his delight. I think the first stop would have to be Maccu Picchu since its been on our list for years. There are probably lots of other little things too, but I could go on with those for too long.

Here are some photos from Christmas day. One with me and my granny and then one with me and my pawpaw :)


Other than that, now that Christmas has come and gone, the best present I have is the present. And I'm heading back to the beautiful PNW where there are many friends and good times to be had :)

Christmas Recipes

At Christmas we always make pecan sandies...the most amazing buttery pecany goodness you'll ever put in your mouth :) The key, is to use fresh pecans (we even shell them at home) and to use real butter.

Pecan Sandies

1 cup butter or margarine
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons water
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups sifted all purpose flour
1 cup chopped pecans

cream butter and sugar; add 2 teaspoons water and vanilla; mix well. Blend in flour and nuts; chill 4 hours. Shape in balls or fingers. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 325 degrees for about 20 minutes. Remove from pan; cool slightly; roll in confectioners sugar. Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

Then there is my granny's pecan pie. It comes out for lots of special occasions, but always always Christmas and Thanksgiving. We even have the recipe framed in our kitchen.

DIY Christmas

Only for this very fun blog challenge would I risk my friends and family seeing their gifts online ( I just wont say who gets what)

First is my favorite new pair of earrings that I made myself.

Second is some of the other fun pairs I made.

And necklace and earring combo.

Then another necklace.

You can see that I'm having fun with the jewelry this winter.

Merry Christmas!!

A christmas collage

swiftly put together before i head off to dream of sugar plum fairies

I'm not sure how well it showed up but i thought it would be fun to have christmas carol lyrics on the sides and some of my favorite holiday things and pictures.

cheers!

crazy christmas pic

hmmm, a crazy christmas picture...

i took this one while we were putting up the tree and i was hugging the tree while my dad was sawing off the bottom to even it up

now the tree looks like this

work is crazy in the retail biz... I can't wait for Christmas day (my day off).

My wish list

Its so hard for me to put together what I want after having such an amazing year.

I guess I would love....

1) A million dollars and a good looking man ;-)
(no really, that would be grand! hehehe)
2) I could spend New Years in Sydney with a few of my favorite people
(or just go back to Oz in general)

3) A pair of cute brown boots like these
4) iPad because they're sooo darn cool
5) Running shoes
(with inserts that would actually let me run without my knees hurting)

Happy Holidays!!!!

PS- I've been bored at Ann Taylor Loft, come visit us for some great gifts :)

Random Christmas Gifts

Today's challenge is a tough one, what is the most random or odd gift you have ever received?

Now I'm not a huge gift person but the white elephant / dirty santa parties are always a blast! This year I put together a mini travel kit to take to the party I went to. It contained a dining kit (that could turn into chopsticks, spoon, fork or knife), a neon luggage tag and a collapsible cup. The other gifts included a crazy big old lamp (the classic white elephant gift), finger lights (amazing little LEDs to put on a finger to help you read in the dark), a Santa hat with mistletoe (came with Altoids and gum for your breath), a craft picture frame kit and a few other lovely random gifts. I went home that night with two new shot glasses and a small bottle of rather suspect tequila (would you drink something called white tiger??? me either).

I also remember a year when the gift that got stolen the most was a bright blue Snuggie! Another year I think there were some cookies and cocoa that were a big hit :)
There are some fun gifts out there, and its always a blast to watch people to open gifts and see the surprise on their faces!

Happy Holidays! I hope that all of your gifts light up your eyes and make you happy!

Favorite Holiday Movie

My number one favorite holiday movie is definitely The Polar Express! This probably comes from memories of reading the story when I was younger and how much I love the music in the movie, Josh Groban's Believe is probably another favorite song of mine :) It also reminds me of being an RA at Purdue and anxiously awaiting the movie to come out with one of the girls on my floor. I still think of her every time I see the movie or hear the song.

if you just believe.... (from the song)

Another holiday favorite is Love Actually, not sure its totally a holiday movie but I love it anytime of year and it takes place during Christmas. Come on, how can you not a love a movie where Hugh Grant dances and sings around his house?!

Nine days left til Christmas!!! I still have some holiday shopping/crafting to do...

Hugs & love!

A Christmas Limerick

Today's challenge, a Christmas Limerick...boy was it tough!

The Christmas tree is glowing,
The sky starts snowing,Carols being sung,
And stockings are hung.
Oh how we love that Christmas is coming!

Christmas Traditions

I can't believe I missed day one of the Hello Ladies Christmas challenge, so I may just do a two in one....but first today. Today's challenge is to talk about our family traditions.

My family has a wonderful tradition of celebrating Christmas Eve with a Norwegian cold table. We put out lots of cheeses, meats, crackers and much more then celebrate being together by passing it all around the table for a nice light dinner. After dinner we go to a late night Christmas Eve church service. My favorite part is singing Silent Night and lighting candles at the very end knowing that its now 'technically' Christmas day :) After we get home, we're allowed to open our Christmas Eve gift, specially labeled by mom and containing new Christmas pjs! It may not be a surprise, but its always fun :)

Christmas day is a whole other story and isn't as much about tradition, but about visiting with family and loving on each other :) My bother and I take turns being the 'elf' )which sometimes involves a hat) and passing out rounds of Christmas gifts to the whole family. Its always loads of fun!!!

Yesterdays challenge was to list our top five Christmas songs...so mine are (in no particular order)
#1 - Grandma got run over by a reindeer (always listen to it when putting up our tree)
#2 - the whole Nutcracker suite (when I was younger my dad and I would go see it, just the two of us)
#3 - Silent Night (my favorite is singing it a capella in church on Christmas Eve)
#4 - Rockin Around the Christmas Tree (don't know why, but I love it and it makes me think of Home Alone and being a kid)
#5 - Sleigh Ride (the one with a whip that sounds like your on a horse drawn sleigh through a snow covered forest, I played it with the band in high school and have always loved it!)

I hope everyone is having a very Merry Christmas season!!

Love & Hugs!

Christmas Season and a Challenge!

Ok, so I may not be traveling at the moment, but one of my favorite groups is doing a Christmas challenge so for the next 12 days I'll be posting in response to their challenge :)

The group is called Hello Ladies and they make the most adorable onesies and other goodies! If you want to join in on the challenge their blog is http://thehelloladies.blogspot.com/

yay for Christmas!

back into travel blogging

Ok, so its been awhile, and I've been in the USA but I have been busy. Nothing had truly inspired me to blog until this last week when I went to Cape Cod, MA with one of my bestest friends, Melissa. We met up there to visit with some of her family and had a wonderful time!

So my best picture of Cape Cod comes from the movie Summer Catch, a cheesy flick about the summer baseball league in the Cape. And I would be lying if I said I wasn't hoping to meet my personal baseball boyfriend, but alas the season was over. But this was even better, we were actually able to see the Cape and have a great time visiting her family too.

Our highlight was a whale watching trip out of Hyannis, near where we were staying in S. Dennis. The Whale Watcher, our boat, took up up and out of the Cape past Provincetown. About 10 miles off the coast we found dozens of beautiful and amazing humpback whales. The crew on our boat was able to name a dozen of them including three mothers with their calves. The youngins would swim right up to the boat and check us out too. The elders were busy feeding in preparation for their trip to the Caribbean where they fast during mating season. While I took loads of pictures here is my absolute favorite as a group of them dove for some fishes.


We also took time to see Provincetown, where the Pilgrims landed and the very tip of the Cape. It was a great time with a fun atmosphere! We visited the Pirate Museum dedicated mostly to the discovery of a ship said to have tons of Spanish gold on board. We also spent some time shopping in the 'hippie' shops and I even had a delicious lobster roll (local favorite).

Another day we visited a few of the lighthouses and beaches too! It was all beautiful and I would love to go back in full summer to see the crowds and warmer weather.

Now its back to my part time jobs and job searching. For those who may or may not know...I've had a few promising interviews for recruiting jobs but have yet to find the right one. I'm hoping that God has something amazing for me and I'm trying to be patient.

Hugs & Love!

a quick seattle visit

I flew out to Seattle on Wednesday for an interview. While the interview didn't go entirely as I had hoped, I was hugely happy to visit. It was wonderful to see all of my friends!! Thanks to those who were able to make it out to dinner tonight, it was fabulous to see you and catch up with you :)

It is interesting where life takes you. Right now, I am literally looking for jobs all over the world but my network and job search led me to an interview here. And maybe it didn't go to plan, but then when catching up with friends someone mentioned a possible option for me, also in Seattle. So who knows where I will end up but things do like to point towards here ;)

Now I am headed back to Little Rock and I am looking forward to seeing some of my cousins and celebrating ones bachelorette night! I must say, while its not something I am used to, it is fabulous to be able to participate in family occasions such as this. My family and friends are amazing and I love them all (and everywhere they are)!

Recently I have been very inspired by Lee Safar and her Dream Angel posts. She was an amazing singer that I met in Sydney and I would love for those of you still reading to check out her inspirational posts. You can find them on both her artist website http://www.leesafar.com/ or her Dream Angel website http://www.dreamangelnetwork.com/.

Hugs and Love!

on the job hunt

So I've been back in the states for a bit now and my time has been mostly dedicated to job hunting, which can be most boring. However, I have also been able to spend some time with dear friends. First, I had the pleasure of staying with my friend Jamie and her fiancee Alec at their new home. It was wonderful to catch up with Jamie and get to know the love of her life a little bit better. While there I also helped set up and clean up around the house. This included increasing my knowledge of dryers and wireless internet systems :) And to top it off, Jamie and I ran in the Indy 500 mini-marathon. We ran on a blustery and cold Saturday morning but we did it, we finished 13.1 miles :)

Before - Friends through and through :)

After - brrrrr all that energy running and I can't stay warm

Now I've mentioned the job hunt...so not my most favorite topic, but it has been moving along. I had an interview with a boarding high school in Arkansas that I am still waiting to hear back from, and recently I had a phone discussion with a recruiting agency in Seattle. I'm now planning a trip to Seattle so that I can meet with them in person and hopefully wow the socks off them. In the meantime though I have secured a part time sales job that would start after my trip at one of my favorite shopping locals :) But if you know of any great jobs for me, please let me know as I would be happy to look into them. I'm currently hoping to move my career into recruiting for the engineering industry, but I am also considering test engineering jobs as well.

Other than that, I am adjusting to the approaching summer in the south (aka warmer here already than it will probably get in Seattle for months!). And I'm helping out with the political season since I have a very politically involved family :) Its fun to be able to support those that you love dearly and see them (hopefully) succeed!

Hugs & Love!

Back in the USA

Wow...I'm back in the good ol' US of A and not sure if it really is worth keeping up the blog. Any requests on topics? Maybe I'll just let you know about dream trips or next trips or you let me know what you want to do next and I'll look into it like your very own travel agent. What do you think? I need input to keep going.

Your Travel Addict :)

Bay of Islands, my last NZ stop

While on this trip I have read a lot of books, its something I love to do and have really enjoyed getting the time to do so again. At a store in Nelson I found two sequential books by a Kiwi author about a girl from England being sent to NZ with her missionary aunt and uncle. The stories are titled Kitty and Amber, and they mainly take place in the newly settled Paihia in the Bay of Islands. During the first book the Maori chiefs come together to sign the Treaty of Waitangi which is a founding document between the Maori and England establishing land rights. And this morning I visited the Treaty grounds where the chiefs met with the English and Missionary (they served as translators) leaders to discuss the treaty. For me it was a book come to life and I greatly enjoyed seeing this little town on a beautiful sunny day.

Its a small town but we had a good time. Yesterday after arriving, myself and some of the guys from the bus went down to the beach and played a bit of football/soccer which was quite fun, but also challenging on a slope going into the water. Then it was just a laid back evening getting to know one another.

Today I went for a walk to the Treaty grounds then further on to the mangroves and Haruru Falls. It was a long walk, but it was a beautiful area and home to kiwi (although I didn't see any). Then after getting on the bus back to Auckland we stopped at a bird sanctuary where we got to see Woof Woof, a talking Tui as well as a live kiwi bird!!! We were even able to touch the sweet six week old kiwi, quite a treat! They are in the care of the sanctuary until the drought is over so that they will have the best survival rate possible. Robert also had Herrier Hawk that was in for an injured wing but was a very impressive creature as well. In the past they have even had Albatross. If you are interested they have website with photos, videos and even webcams http://www.whangareinativebirdrecovery.org.nz.

Kiwi bird in Roberts arms

It's very strange to think that I am leaving New Zealand tomorrow. And stranger even to think that I will be back in the USA in a few short days (and one very long one). If you haven't heard yet, I will not be able to make it to South Africa on this trip mostly because of my finances, but I fully intend to make a trip there at another time not too far away. On my hike this morning I was trying to think if there are any lessons learned or major takeaways from this trip (wow that sounded depressingly corporate) but it was hard to come up with any that I can write down. What I can say is that I love traveling, more than anything this trip has reinforced that love of going places, seeing and doing things and most importantly meeting new people. I love the global culture and hope to never stop exploring the world.

Tomorrow I go to Sydney for one last hurrah with my wonderful friend Kristin and then I will spend a long day heading towards Indianapolis where I will soon be running a half marathon (May 8th). I'll try to keep blogging if you're interested in what is going on in my life and where I'm going...because right now I'm not even sure where my feet will fall next.

Much Love!!!

Beautiful Cultural Rotorua

I have spent the last two days in beautiful Rotorua and have enjoyed every minute of it. I am staying at the fabulous Funky Green Voyager hostel which has attracted a fun group of people to hang out with in the evenings.

My travels brought me from Waitomo to Rotorua about the same time my wonderful brother Josh proposed to his awesome girlfriend Courtney, so I bragged about that to the complete strangers I shared the shuttle with. I'm so very happy for them both!!!

Then yesterday started with a nice run and then I ventured to Te Puia a Maori center with all kinds of stuff to explore. I started with the 'cultural experience' where we were invited into the centers meeting house and treated to a magnificent show of dance including a haka. Then I took a guided tour around the major features. First up was the geysers which were going off quite nicely (and for over two hours)! Then we checked out a mud pool, which was very goopy looking. Next was the kiwi house...they were quite amazing! Through the village we went towards the weavers and carvers. Both were awesome! If you want to go to weaving school you can make a skirt in 6 weeks :) After all of that I did some further exploring on my own to see more geothermal fun stuff. When I got back to the hostel I figured it was time to go check out the geothermal hot pools for myself, so I went to the Polynesian Spa for a very relaxing time in the pools. Maybe the water, known for healing, even helped my knees in preparation for my half marathon in Indianapolis.

Today was a bit shorter, but I went out for a run by the lake this time and even checked out the Maori village too :) Now I'm getting ready for a bus trip to Taupo.

North Island Update

Wow, sorry to not write sooner, but at first there wasn't much to write, now it seems almost too much. I arrived on the North Island in Wellington on the 11th to warm hugs from the Smiths, friends from Colorado. They graciously welcomed me to their home in Lower Hutt and it was wonderful to catch up with them. We did a great day hike just outside Wellington and also visited the Te Paupa Museum which had beautiful displays of Maori green stone carvings and other ways of life. There was also a really neat exhibit on the different perspectives that immigrants have brought with them, especially those from the Pacific Islands.

Then I got back on the Stray bus to head up to Auckland...and boy was that a long day! Twelve hours on the bus from the south to the north of the island. From Auckland we headed to Haiei on the east coast for a chance to check out the Hot Water Beach (we were on the high end of tide so we didn't have much luck). I also took the opportunity to do another kayaking trip to visit Cathedral Cove. It was a fantastic day to be on the water and the islands and coves were wonderful! We went through a tunnel on one island then to Cathedral Cove where our awesome guides made us hot coffee drinks and gave us cookies too! After our break there we went into Lovers Cave and Sting Ray cove, where there were TONS of sting rays much to our delight. Then as the sun set and turned the sky beautiful colors of pink and orange, we had to make our way back to camp. We had a great time getting to know each other over BBQ and beers.
Our next stop was Raglan, home to the worlds largest left hand break - aka a great place for surfers. Now I probably should have practiced my wicked surf skills, but opted for a viewpoint hike with some of the girls instead. The backpackers where we stayed is nestled at the bottom of the mountain so we tredged our ways up (not kidding, there were definitely some points where we were on all fours and scrambling away). We had quite a few laughs together even though we never were sure where the viewpoint was supposed to be. When we got back to the bottom we tried out the flying fox (also known as a zip line) and had even more fun doing that! Then I ran into some of my mates from the south island, what a treat :)

Yesterday we drove to Waitomo, Wai meaning water and tomo meaning hole in the ground (I think) together meaning water carved caves and now known as home of the glowworm caves. Its a beautiful area with over 300 caves networked over probably hundreds of kilometers. After checking in at the hostel, I took a short walk up to a Pa site which used to be a fortified place for the Maoris. It provided a lovely lookout for lunch. Then it was off to a caving adventure. We had a nice small group and a great time exploring some of the most amazing glowworm caves in the region. We absailed (repelled) down 40 meters into the cave, then took a flying fox even further down in the Black Abyss. It was an awesome feeling to fly into a cave speckled with glowworms like stars in the sky. Then after some hot cocoa and caramel bars we jumped into the icy fresh waters of the cave with our intertubes which we used to go to the very end of the cave. There were probably millions of glowworms and they were everywhere you looked. It was simply fantastic! We then went to the other end, five kilometers, and climbed out through two waterfalls using the limestone walls for excellent grips. Then, because we were special (aka a small group) we had enough time to adventure through the Black Labyrinth which started by going over a few waterfalls in our tubes then floating through even more glowworms and tramping through the stream for an amazing exit view that looked like something out of a movie...and no it wasn't in Lord of the Rings because some farmer thought the movie scouts were just a bunch of rowdy students.

Now the next stop will be Rotorua...a geothermal hot spot with lots of Maori culture to go with it :)

Kayaks on Milford Sound

So I took a trip to the highly recommended Milford Sound and LOVED it. Although I must say, I took a basic tour bus there and our driver DID NOT stop talking for the entire four hour trip! It was impressive/annoying. I mean while it was interesting to learn about the history of deer and elk farming in New Zealand, I can't say I needed to know about that one school in Five Mile Creek that is no longer a school and so far off the road that I couldn't see it. But nonetheless, it was a beautiful trip through the mountains especially after going through Hobart Tunnel that starts at 970 meters and goes down to 790, oh and its one way. We stopped at a place called the Chasm and it was a huge waterfall that had eaten through the rocks, quite spectacular how water can make its way through rock like that. The day we arrived was less than spectacular however, lots of clouds but at least no rain. Instead of taking the boat cruise I went off towards the Milford Sound Lodge just down the water.

I checked in to a lovely dorm room there and I must say they're other rooms looked spectacular as well with windows facing the river. I was going to eat lunch enjoying that view but the sandflys kept eating me so lunch was taken inside instead. Then I headed to see what tramping could be done in the area since I only had the end of my book to read and wanted to save some for the long drive back to Queenstown. There unfortunately aren't many tramps there that aren't completely rain forest and muddy. But I did find a few short walks to take around the water and up a hill to a lookout (not much more to be seen than from the ground unfortunately). I also checked out a short trail at the lodge that has glow worms (couldn't see them in the light, but it was something to do). I also at some point decided that maybe I should write a novel (short story perhaps?) based on my adventures here....thoughts? Not sure how great of a novelist I'll make but it sounds like fun. I even wrote a couple of chapters.

Then came the big morning...Kayaking in the Sound. The night cleared up and allowed for great star viewing and glow worm viewing and it stayed clear for us in the morning. We were picked up by the crew at Rosco's and taken to our launch point where they outfitted us in the utmost of style....stripey polypro long underwear, fleece, water skirts and life vests. I paired up with a great gal from London for our adventure, and it was definitely great to have two of us paddling out on the windy waters. We went out in two groups of four kayaks and one guide. We worked hard and got fairly wet from spray off the water and off our paddles, but we had a great time. My partner and I joked about being too strong and too beautiful beacuase we were constantly being asked by our guide to slow down and wait for the others in our group. We had great views of Mitre Peak (quite famous and in all the pictures) and all the other mountains around the sound. The final stop was next two a waterfall three times the height of Niagra, but with less water. It was a great day to be on the water and a great way to see the Sound. And a great day to think about my wonderful dad and think positive thoughts for his birthday! (Happy Birthday Daddy!!)

Me in my kayaking loveliness with Mitre Peak in the back left.

The trip back to Queenstown was lovely as the sun set, but rather uneventful over all. I did finish my most recent book, Yes Man, now a movie with Jim Carrey. I would definitely recommend it to everyone, it was a fabulous read :) For dinner I had Hell's Pizza, supposidly one of the best in Queenstown and I did quite enjoy it! It was a creation all my own which probably made it even better.

Today I started with a long run (which my knee wasn't quite up for apparently) but was still refreshing nonetheless. Then I finally went to Fergburger, famous burger joint for a 25 minute wait chicken burger. I got the Bombay Chicken burger...but enjoyed talking with the greeter more than eating the $12 burger. Anyways, I heard at the hostel that Burger Fuel on the North Island is even better.

Tomorrow I head up to Christchurch and then up the coast before crossing to the North Island.

Bungyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

WHOA!!! What a rush! I just did one of the biggest bungy jumps in the world and it was amazing!!!!!

AJ Hacket and Henry can Asch re-invented bungy here in New Zealand and just outside Queenstown is the first commercial jump from the Kawarau Bridge. I didn't do that jump (although its cool and you can actually get partially dunked in the water below) because its just a mere 43 meters (141 feet) and I have the opportunity here to jump from 134 meters (440 feet) at a place called the Nevis that is also near Queenstown. There's a lot of history to bungy that you can find on the web, but these guys got the idea from a group of natives on the island of Vanuau in the Pacific who do it as a fertility ritual.

Anyways, I went today and it was fantastic and I came out completely unscathed, but maybe slightly addicted to that rush, anyone want to join me and start a sight in Seattle?

Step 1 : Dive off the ledge

Step 2: Freefall towards the water for 8 seconds

Step 4: Bounce :)

Step 5: SMILE and ask for more

wow, so much to do so little time

So I'm currently in the small lakeside town of Wanaka where I stopped to enjoy some of the amazing views and hikes. This afternoon I even went for a run along the lake (its 30 miles long so I barely saw any of it) but I am still hoping to run a half marathon when I get back :)

Since Queenstown I have jumped on the Stray tour bus which has taken me north to Makarora (meal of crayfish in Maori) where we enjoyed a bit of the east coast and saw seals and dolphins (in the distance). Then it was over to Nelson on the north coast where I hopped off for a night to enjoy a sweet little town with great views and also known as the geographic center of New Zealand. From Nelson we headed to Abel Tasman National Park for two nights. During my one day there I went for a water taxi ride quite a ways along the coastline and past two seal colonies before getting off with Steve and Sara for a nice day hike. We enjoyed great views of the coast and even had lunch on the beach where we were joined by the most curious black ducks. Steve and I even went for a bit of a swim in the cold water! At the end of our hike we were picked up by the water taxi again. Oh, and get this, they use tractors to put the taxi boats into the water...and you get on the boat while its hitched to a tractor! So strange...

From Abel Tasman we headed south to a small town of Barrytown, going past a seal colony and pancake rocks on the way. Now Barrytown is a place where the livestock definitely outnumber people and we just stop there to break up our drive...but the coast was beautiful and I was able to fit in a nice run along the beach :) The next stop was the town of Franz Joseph, home to the Franz Joseph Glacier....so guess what our big activity was there??? Hiking the glacier! They provided the gear and guides and we hauled our butts up through the rocks then ice to experience one the fastest glaciers in the world. It was a blast and I continually thought of Kim who would have loved it, even if it's not Rainer ;-) It was a long and exhausting day but it felt like such a great accomplishment! The next stop was a small town called Kaikoura where we took a nice nature walk and rested our bus weary souls.

Here I am in a crooked squeeze...the picture really was taken vertically to the ground :)

Today I hopped off the bus in Wanaka and while I was sad to leave a great group behind it is a beautiful place to stay for a night. It's a little like Lake Chelan but the mountains are even more extreme and the water even more blue :)

Tomorrow I will head to Queenstown and can't wait for more fun there!

New Zealand!

Holy Poo! I'm in New Zealand :) I had to go through customs and everything. It's strange how used to Australia I was and now a new country....

Anyways, I'm in Christchurch on the South Island and about to start my adventure around the island. Christchurch is a beautiful city with an amazing cathedral in the center and a beautiful park to the west. I arrived late Saturday night and Sunday I took most of my day to explore their weekend market and the Art Center along with the Botanic Gardens. While the market can't compare with the ones in Seattle, the Art Center had a lot to offer in the form of galleries to browse and even a piano concert. It was quite a cool day so it was nice to just relax and enjoy the city. The Art Gallery was also on my agenda and it was really nice. There was an exhibit of a New Zealand artist who did a trip through Italy painting water colors of the architecture and it reminded me of all the great things that Josh and I saw on our trip years ago. Then there was an exhibit called Blue Planet, it was all blue pieces with a focus on environment and teaching children about the planet...very fun!

Today, I must admit, I started with a run followed by the Purdue game at Holy Grail (a HUGE sports bar here) where I almost had a heart attack while cheering on my Boilermakers to their overtime win! I followed that up with a visit to the Canterbury Museum which is a history & culture museum for the region. It had beautiful Maori artifacts as well as interesting bits from throughout history. There was also an exhibit on the Antarctic since this is where many people stop on their way down to the outposts there. In fact, while I was in Australia I met a number of Americans on their way home from the Antarctic! I went back to the gardens since my camera died and I wanted to grab a few more pictures, especially of the Begonia display...they were amazing and HUGE! The rose garden and darhlias were also some of my favorites. I could smell the roses for hours :) There's so much to see and enjoy there, I highly recommend it for anyone who comes this way. I then proceeded to wander around the city shopping and browsing to end my afternoon.

Me with the pretty begonias :)

Tomorrow I start making my way around the island going north to Kaikoura on the west coast then continuing to Nelson on the north coast.

Hugs & Kisses to all!

Rainy Whitsunday Islands

Well its the wet season in the Whitsundays and to make life even better there is a cyclone headed towards Australia to help the winds. I say this all as a statement of fact, in reality we still had a fair share of sunshine and beautiful times.

While I was at the Whitsundays I took a three day sailboat trip out to the islands. Due to the winds we weren't able to make it to the outer reef, but we did have a beautiful sunny day at Whitehaven beach :) Our three days included snorkeling, diving and sunning when it was out. I was on the Pacific Star a 65 foot catamaran with about 20 passengers and a crew of four. We had a great time getting to know each other, playing cards, braving the waves, drinking and enjoying the Whitsundays! I taught a couple of British girls Speed the card game and we had a blast playing that with four players at one point. They in turn taught us Strips (no not strip poker) but another card game. And then Greg, our host, taught us Golf to round out our card game knowledge :) On Betty's Beach (north part of Whitehaven) myself, Amanda and Leon had a digging contest in the white silica sand...we tried to dig ourselves down into the sand up to our knees, but never quite got there. At night we had some excellent viewings of the southern stars out away from all the lights :) The downside was some rough waves in the mornings as we moved to our daily destinations. But there were even some amusing sides to that as Judy braved the very bow of the boat and ended up completely soaked!

Here's the surviving crew as we returned back to Airlie Beach :)

Now I'm making one last quick stop in Melbourne before heading to New Zealand!! I can't wait to see what awaits me there!

Brisbane fun

Hey y'all!

So while it hasn't been super crazy, I have had an excellent time here in Brisbane. I have been hanging out with my sorority sister and relaxing at her apartment.

Yesterday I got some sun at Streets Beach, did some shopping at Queen Street Mall and even went to the cruise ship terminal (happens to be close to where I'm staying). Seeing the Dawn Princess (Princess Cruiselines) reminded me of when Nicole and I would keep track of the ships coming in and out of Seattle from our apartment. Last night, Maggie & I went to see Precious with a friend of hers, wow what a movie...I understand why it was nominated for so many awards.

Today I visited the XXXX Brewery (yep 4 Xs not 3 like at Purdue) for a tour, but I was late so I just sampled the beer (best part anyways, right :) ). Then I made my way back to the South Bank to visit the Gallery of Modern Art. Right now the exhibition is focused on Asian art and it was amazing! There were some amazing Buddahs that were decorated with stickers, remember the puffy ones we used to play with when we were young, and you could add one to it, so fun! There was also an installation that had mushrooms of all shapes and sizes, but when you looked closer the artist had so carefully drawn Chinese characters all of each mushrooms! Another favorite was a drawing of Buddah standing but it was actually only standing out from a background of Chinese characters. There were too many other great pieces to write about here... And then I went to the Queensland Art Museum to find more classic forms of art, and some not so classic. An amazing dresser handcrafted from Australian woods with fantastic geometric patterns was one of my favorites. Oh, and in the same complex (Cultural Center) was their state library and while I didn't go in, I was fascinated by the bookshop inside and found some great titles including This is Not a Book, Can Kissing Make You Live Longer (man, I hope it can!) and The Art of Travel (now why didn't I come up with that).

Tomorrow I am heading to the Whitsunday Islands to take a three day, three night sailing trip to part of the Great Barrier Reef. I can't wait to tell you all about that!

Hugs & Kisses!

Surf Camp

I can stand up on a surf board!!!! It took a lot of work and I still fall off more than I stand up but I can stand up :) And I did stand up every day at surf camp, most days even more than once.

At first it was a shock to leave the Pink House and all my friends in Sydney, but it has been good to change up things a bit and get back into travel mode.

I had an excellent group for the four day camp, there were seven of us with four girls (two Germans, a Swiss and myself) and three guys (all the boys from Sweden). On our first day we drove up the coast a bit to surf camp where we were outfitted with wet suits and surf boards and hit the water after lunch. It was a quick lesson but with the help of Steve we all stood up on at least one wave :) Then it was back to camp for 'party night'...ok every night at surf camp was party night for some of the crew, but we had a delicious dinner and a good time with the whole surf camp crew. The next three days were a blur of surfing both at surf camp the second day then at a few other spots up the coast on our way to Byron Bay. The last day we had a surfing competition for all us new surfers. It was a lot of fun to test out our skills in the water and compete with each other. In the end Barbara, our favorite Swisse, won!!! She rocked out a number of waves doing turns, a few jumps and other craziness! Here's a picture of her on the left doing a fabulous move!

Once we got settled in at our Byron Bay homes we met up again for one last party night at Cheeky Monkeys. We definitely had the most awesome group at the bar (and probably the biggest as well) and we had a great night of dancing and all around fun! Then the next day I spent the morning recovering with extra sleep and a relaxing breaky before meeting up with Barbara and the girls to hit up the beach. Of course, that didn't last long as Mother Nature decided it was time for some rain :( but we did enjoy each others company throughout the afternoon.

Now I have moved myself a little bit further up the coast to Brisbane where I am very happy to be visiting my sorority sister Maggie!

The last few days

Lets see, the last few days have been fun as I try to make sure I've done all that I want to do before I leave.

I checked out the Powerhouse Museum which was amazing! Its basically a museum of engineering and innovations soooo up my alley...Daddy, you'd spend days there! They even had a special exhibit on the 80s which was a blast from the past...fashion, games, music all very cool! Then we hit up the Paddy's Market for some cheap souvenirs and fruit.

I've also made it up to Manly Beach which was an awesome ferry ride with great views :) The beach was absolutely lovely (as most beaches are). We headed over to a smaller beach that looked at Manly but the water was calmer and very refreshing!

Yesterday I headed to the Sydney Observatory to check out their exhibits on the history of the observatory as well as to check out their telescope. Unfortunately it was a cloudy day so we couldn't pick out any planets or look at sun flares but we did look at the people climbing the bridge which was neat. Afterward, I went for a walk across the big bridge. Its a free walk and still a great view :)
Last night I went to see a play that is showing as a part of Mardi Gras and it was great fun. A short play about two gay boys meeting online and all the funny stories that they have. Then we went out for drinks and dancing which was quite fun as well!

Tonight is the big Mardi Gras parade so I can't wait for that!!!

Hugs & Kisses

Mardi Gras Fair Day

Yesterday's highlight was the Mardi Gras Fair Day! It's a big gay party with two stages of music and lots of fun stands to explore. I headed down there with a few friends from the hostel and we started by enjoying some of the music & sun. Once the sun got us warmed up and ready to move we did just that starting with yummo ice cream to cool down. We found our way to the other stange and then through the stands. Below is Kristin and myself at the fair...just check out the view of the city from here :)

Then last night was the Chinese New Year Parade (yes a bit late, but they've been celebrating for a week), so a huge group of us from the hostel made our way there. It was a huge turnout! But aside from the first few groups, not an amazing parade. Finally we made our way to Stonewall bar to celebrate Skeeters birhtday with drinks and the drag show. Again another great night!!!

Lee Safar and the Museum of Sydney

Last night I went to an excellent concert featuring Lee Safar and it was mind-blowing! Lee is a local Sydney girl who works at a nearby coffee shop and this was her last concert in Australia before she heads up to the States to further her career. She is going to be in the LA area so any of you living there or visiting keep an eye out for her :) She's even going to be headlining an after party for a benefit baseball game that the Twilight crew is holding!

Other than that I also visited the Museum of Sydney to check out a really cool exhibit featuring Martin Sharp a Sydney artist who did a lot of awesome posters for Luna Park. unfortunately I couldn't take pictures to share with you, but here's the museum page for a peak into it :) The other featured exhibit featured Kings Cross (the area where I am staying) and its fabulous and scandalous lifestyle from the 70s. There were some great shots and fun music! It was very interesting to see where it all came from :)

Hugs & kisses! and GO USA! (I've been catching my fair share of crap while we've been watching the Olympics here)

Sydney explorations

So I've now been in Sydney for a while and sorry I haven't written about it yet...but its been tough to just sit down and write.

I'm staying at a great hostel called the Pink House and love it because I've met some awesome people here :) But I've also been lucky enough to have people share their friends here as well. My second day in Sydney I met up with a friend of a friend at the Opera Bar (yep right on the water by the opera house) for drinks and then went out to dinner with her and her friends. It was a great night and it showed me parts of Sydney I may not have discovered on my own. The following day we had a great new girl come into our room from Canada and she and I hung out in the rain on Valentines day (we treated ourselves to a hot fudge sunday from Lindt in Darling Harbour). Then that night I went out with some of the fabulous people from the hostel for an entertaining drag show :)

I have also recently taken a tour of the Blue Mountains. That was fabulous!! After three days of rainy weather in Sydney I was starting to wonder if I was in Seattle again...but then as we drove towards the mountains the weather cleared and the sun came out, perfect viewing weather for the Blue Mountains which got their name from the blue haze that hovers in the valleys from the eucalyptus trees that populate the mountains. We went to a great look out that showed us how drastic the cliffs and valleys :) Then we saw falls and the Three Sisters. At the park for the Three Sisters we took a cable car down to the valley floor to explore the growth down there as well as the left over mining equipment. To get back to the top we took the worlds steepest railcar back to the top...it goes up at a 52% grade!!!

Yesterday I planned out the rest of my time in Australia with great help from our amazing hostel receptionist. He recommended that I stay in Sydney for Mardi Gras, which starts this weekend and goes for two weeks...think Seattle's Gay Pride...but longer and amazing :) So I'm going to be exploring Sydney for a few more weeks before taking a Surf Camp trip up to Byron Bay and then moving up to Brisbane to see one of my sorority sisters and then moving to the Whitsunday islands for a diving trip on the Great Barrier Reef. Then I'll head over to New Zealand...I can't believe that I'm already starting to think about that! So after we got that figured out I decided I didn't need to rush about so much so I took it easy and went to a beautiful park called Rushcutters Bay. I soaked up the sun and read my book for a bit then walked around to Darling Point where you could see the city skyline and harbor bridge.

All in all, things are going great! Check facebook and http://annemariemills.shutterfly.com/ to see my pictures :)

hugs & kisses to all!

Tas End

It should have been easy...a flight out at 730p arrive into Sydney at 915p go to hostel.

But Tassie decided to keep me around for another night. Basically we got on the plane, started the taxi, then found a problem in the communication system so we headed back to the gate for the engineers to have a look. They couldn't fix it so we got off the plane. Next chapter, the plane from Melbourne was delayed but enabled it them to carry our needed part. But then the next problem...Sydney has a curfew for the flights coming in and going out and no one can land after midnight so our delay stuck us past that and we were tucked into local hotels for the night before our rescheduled flight in the morning. The local Tassie news, the Mercury, even wrote an article to cover the situation...yes its that slow of a news place http://www.themercury.com.au/article/2010/02/12/127335_tasmania-news.html

But I was greeted in Sydney with wonderful heat...I'd guess close to 90 but not for sure...and plenty of humidity. I say this because it kept me inside the hostel for a few hours (posted pictures on facebook and my photo site http://annemariemills.shutterfly.com/) before heading out so that I could avoid the complete midday sun. I headed out on 'Miranda's famous walk', well its our receptionists recommended walking tour of Sydney. I walked by the Navy boats then up to Mrs Macquaries chair which sits on the point just opposite of the Opera House. It provided a spectacular view!! really amazing :) So I hung out there for a bit (in the shade) and then took a meander through the Royal Botanical Gardens before approaching the Opera House itself. Again quite awe inspiring.


The rest of the day has been rather plain and has included late lunch of pumpkin and feta risotto, grocery shopping, watching tv and havin a bit of dinner off the barbie at the hostel.

Hugs & Kisses!

Leaving friends and a touch of home

Well yesterday was the last day of my Tassie roadtrip with two great new friends. It was sad to see them go but I'm glad to have a few more days here.

Nothing much exciting yesterday just shopping around Salamanca then back to the hostel for laundry (whoot whoot). However in the evening some of the other girls put on Grey's Anatomy and there were a few scenes that made me a touch homesick from Seattle. But don't you worry, I'm not headed home.

Today I have explored some of the local art galleries, had fish & chips served fresh from a boat, and tasted some of the local beverages produced at Lark Distillery. Now I'm heading up to Mt Wellington for some hopefully spectacular views of Hobart.

Tommorrows plan includes a trip to Cascade Brewery and then a flight to Sydney.

Hugs & Kisses to all y'all!

Tassie, Beautiful Tassie

Well, sorry its been a while, but the one thing about Tassie is that there haven't been many opportunities to sit down and in a place with internet.

I've been traveling around Tassie for the last week with my two new friends from Isreal. We started in Hobart then continued up the eastern coast. We have seen beautiful beaches, mountains and farm land.

We started with a visit to Something Wild, an animal sanctuary that had three precious tassie devils as well as a viewing point to spot platypus in the wild (we saw one!). Next was Freycinet national park to see Russel Falls. They were amazing, something like 7 teirs of falls through beautiful lush rainforest. Then the trail took us to Horseshoe Falls which were also quite nice, but not quite as impressive. Along the trail we think we spotted an eagles nest too!! Not positive, but it was amazing if it was. Then we continued on and hit the hugest staircase... I counted 236 steps....and we'd already gone up quite a few earlier on the trek. That night we stayed at the Swansea backpackers (I don't recommend it) where we were greated very rudely...but I guess at least the beds were decent.

The next morning we headed to Wineglass Bay. Which is a very picturesque bay literally shapped like a wine glass. Unfortunately, it was a bit of a grey day so it wasnt exactly the post card, but we did enjoy it :) In the carpark there were two quite friendly wallabies that were very cute! Then we headed to the quaint town of Bichenot for the night. We had a great walk along the waterfront that allowed amazing views of the waves and rocks. We didnt spy any penguins, but it is one of their spots. We had an amazing dinner at the restaurant above our hostel. Highly highly recommend Seaside in Bichenot and the restaurant is Granite. The food is fabulous (at least one item has been reviewd and given a star by Michelin) and the staff are amazing! We even hung out with them for drinks afterwards.

Sadly leaving Bichenot, we headed to Bay of Fires which is a region with amazing beaches...and its too true! We enjoyed some sun and water (frigid) and had ourselves a nice exfoliating trip (sunscreen + white sand = soft skin). Then we followed that up with quite a bit of driving to get to Laucheston. That evening we enjoyed a walk up Cateract Gorge and a dip in the lake there (no worries, its free of crocs).

From here (still in Laucheston) we went to Cradle Mountain yesterday which was quite beautiful especially from Dove Lake where we were walking. But it was also another day with a lot of driving.

Since we are staying above an Irish Pub we have had the opportunity to enjoy a number of live bands there as well :)

And thats about it for now....hopefully I'll get another chance to update soon!

Hugs & Kisses!

a better update

so lets start with yesterday since I havent written much lately...

It started in honest when I headed out for my tour to Phillip Island. We started our tour with a stop at an animal conservatory where we were able to feed wallabies and kangaroos :) We also saw tassie devils, kookaburras, and an emu. From there we went to Churchill Island where they have an old homestead with sheep shearing, working horses, and beautiful flowers. There were even cows, like big steers...I'd be happy to have their life...ok maybe not the end. From there we went out to the koala park. We saw probably half a dozen koalas hanging out in the trees, but not as close as the ones I saw along the great ocean road.

Our next stop was for a dip in the ocean...ok just the toes because the current at Anzacs beach is quite incredible. Throughout this adventure I hung out with (and trading pictures with) a girl from Holland which was delightful. I hope that maybe one day I will be able to go visit all my new friends in their home countries, that would make for quite another adventure.

Finally, after dinner, as the sun was starting to set we headed out to the Nobbies where the penguins come up in the evenings to find their home hole for the night. Since no one is allowed to take photos at the penguin parade (you can blind them with your flash) we found a few hiding under the boardwalks to take careful photos of. Oh and the sun setting over the Nobbies was absolutely amazing. Then it was finally finally time to go see the 'Little Penguins' (formally known as Fairy Penguins) in their nightly parade to land. It seemed a bit touristy, but we stay out of their way and simply watch them...its quite amazing. They'll huddle together as they come ashore then take their well worn paths home. They have to take pause quite often so that they don't overheat on the way and they'll also preen each other and clean up for their homecoming.

Then it was just a long bus ride home.

Other things, I've done lately...on Monday I took a trip down the Great Ocean road...a day of beautiful vistas and great beaches ending with sunset at the 12 apostles (actually 11 since one fell a few years back). It was great to dip my toes in the ocean and to lay out and enjoy the sunshine when there was time. Along the way we stopped to see koalas in the wild (and soooo close, but don't touch or they could get very angry!) and we also made a stop in the rain forest. Its amazing how diverse the terrain can be here :) below is me and the koala followed by the sunset view :)


Now I am on my way to Tasmania where I am going to tour the island with two of the women from Israel that I met on my tours in Melbourne :)

Wallabies, kangaroos and penguins oh my!

Well I only have a few minutes, but its been an exciting few days since I last posted.

Yesterday I went on a tour along the Great Ocean Road and saw sooooo many beautiful vistas it was amazing (I promise I'll put up pictures when I get a chance). We saw koalas in the wild and watched sunset at the 12 apostles.

Today I went on a tour of the peninsula which went by way of an animal sanctuary. And we ended the day at the Penguin Parade...the little penguins come in from their fishing and waddle their way home.... SOOOOO CUTE!!!

hugs & kisses!

My first day in Melbourne

Ok, my first day exploring Oz... I started with a non-impressive breakfast (as usual for hostels) then went on a search for a phone and a non-instant coffee. While I didnt find a vodaphone, I did find a bagel and coffee shop. Where I ordered a 'tall black' or large americano. It was delightful :) Which reminds me that I had an amazing mocha at the airport from gloria jeans. Yay for a country that isn't screwing up my basic need of caffeine...oh I even saw a place that called themselves a 'caffeine distributor', Brillant! I might try that tomorrow. Since I couldn't find a phone place, I came back to the hostel to look it up online.

Found one and headed downtown. I walked by the Melbourne Museum which is next to the beautiful Royal Exhibition Building. I found my phone at the post office of all places...then again it was at this point that I learned my natural compass is still set to the northern hemisphere which meant when I felt like I needed to turn right I probably needed to turn left. I am just getting used to it, that and the fact I need to look the 'other' way before crossing the street. After getting some yummy lunch I figured that I could go check out the Aus Open grounds. So I enjoyed a jaunt through town (even found a Harry's Bar as every good town does) and found my way along batman expressway (seriously) to the grounds. It was definitely a great day to be outside :)

After deciding to not buy anything for today I took a walk through the kings and queens gardens enjoying all the beauty and then into the National Gallery of Victoria. The art that I saw was amazing, but I didnt have enough time to see it all. Then I went next door to the Arts Center where I took a self guided tour of all the art there, oh and there was a special exhibit for AC/DC as they are Melbourne boys :)

A BBQ later and I'm watching some tennis and relaxin for now :)

I made it...finally...to Oz

Now its not like I've seen a kangaroo or anything quite that exciting, but I did experience the commute from Sydney to Melbourne with all the businessmen (and women, but mostly men in pinstripes). And I'm here...finally.

So nothing interesting to report, other than I have officially crossed the international dateline. Although, it wasn't very dramatic...at one point it was the 27th (when I left Hawaii at least) then It was the 28th when I landed, and not midnight or anything like that. Thanks to a canceled flight yesterday our flight was quite crowded, but they offered us free food and drinks (not JetStars norm) for both meals. And then on the Quantas flight from Sydney I got free food again. I think I had like four meals on this long day.

I did make some amusing notes on human behaviors while traveling.... 1) everyone wants to be first on and first off, but the funny thing is, it doesn't really change the time when you get to your final destination...seriously! 2) Baggage claim is even worse. Everyone thinks that obviously their bags were the first off so they crowd around the carousel so that when your bag does show up you have to push and shove your way through the crowd to get to it (if you're lucky and don't miss it). 3) This may just be me, but I love candies in foreign countries the wrappers, the names, it just makes me want to try them all...oh and the same goes for books except that its more the titles and what books they emphasize that interests me. Ok, these are major break throughs its just yet another thing that stands out on a trip like this where I have no time constraints or stresses.

Oh and I'd just like to add that I think its mildly boring to be sitting in my hostel watching the Oz Open when its mere miles away...but the seats are darn expensive so I don't blame us.

Well hugs & kisses from Down Under!

dive certified and ready to go

Well, it has been quite an interesting few days here in Hawaii. For starters I am now PADI dive certified :) I also have more than just plain white to my skin tone :) And I'm getting used to living out of a backpack.

Yesterday was all diving... Roger, at Cool Blue Scuba, taught me all the skill and stuff that I need to know for diving. Then we went out on his sailboat into the harbor for some quality time at the Turtle carwash... We saw our first turtle while we were looking for the buoy to hook to before deciding to just drop anchor. Then when we went down to the bottom we saw lots of fish, coral, more turtles and even an eagle ray. The rest of the day was consumed with doing my homework for the certification...oh and a nice run :)

Today was not a very nice weather day for diving, but Roger took me to a lagoon where we could finish practicing the skills needed to complete my certification. After the two short dives to do that I was on my own, so I set off doing some random activities including getting some stuff out of my bag and sending it home, going to BWWs for lunch (can you believe they have it here, but we don't have one in Seattle?!?!), then hangin at the beach and reading. When the wind got to be too much to handle I came back to the hostel to change and then I went for another delightful run (about 5 miles this time) and now its raining so there's not much more fun to be had.

Tomorrow its off to OZ, yay!!!
Here's a link to my pictures so far :) (ok, I had problems with the pics hence the late posting, but they are at http://annemariemills.shutterfly.com/ and when I get to post more they will be added there as well)

80 & sunny

Ahhhhh, finally somewhere warm :) it was a little questionable looking when I landed in Honolulu but the sun came out and it was beautiful!


I'm here in Hawaii for 3 days before I head to Oz, finally, on a paid ticket. Tomorrow I'm starting my dive classes so that I can get my certification before going to the Great Barrier Reef. Today I didn't do much but I spent some time on the beach, watched the end of the Saints game, Go Drew!! Then the best thing happened, as I was watching the sunset I realized they had set up for a hula show. It was awesome! They had the cutest girl dancing the hula and then they taught us how to do it too!


Nothing else too crazy, just enjoying my time away from work (its been over a month now!).

Hugs & Kisses:)

To Oz via Hawai

Ok, so I have spent my day trying to figure out my best bet to get to down to Australia and I think I've found it.

I'm going to Honolulu :) 80 degrees, sunny and on the beach. I think I'm going to head out on Wednesday and my flight to Melbourne is on the 27th. Anyone want to join me? Mom said I could use some buddy passes and the flights are wide open if you want to come...even just for the weekend...you know you want to ;)

and that's really all I've got for now!

Grrrrrrr

Ok, so I was supposed to be in Oz by now.... but the flight gods are not working with me at this point. I spent last night in an airport because there were not enough seats for me to go to Sydney. This is the downside of flying standby though. Tonight looked even worse so I flew back home to figure out what I'm going to do because the flights to Sydney aren't looking good anywhere down the road.

So Seattle, I need some coffee and a flight plan. Any recommendations for Sao Paulo, Key West, Amsterdam, Lima, Tokyo or heck, anywhere else that Delta can take me? I'm really only prepared for warm weather though....I'll keep you posted.

a little more time in the states

so today's flight to Sydney was looking a little on edge and I wasn't able to get rid of my car yesterday or a few other things that need to get done before I left .... which means I'm going to wait a few more days before leaving the country.

this all is going to allow me to get my ducks properly in a row (instead of just in the same pond) before leaving and also allows me to leave without anything hanging over my head :)

but today I made good steps, I gave my car to someone who really needs it and that felt good. much better than selling it to some doof that really just wants to make money off of it. I'm happy that I was able to help my neighbor out in a very real way.

I also think I figured out my tax extension form...you'd think its not hard, but without my W2 its just not easy to guess if I'm going to owe taxes or get money back... so anyways, enough about my little dramas.

And finally its final packing time. I'm pretty ready just the final narrowing down and walkabouts to check weight.

YAY!!! thanks for those who have sent good wishes I'm holding on to them as I continue to prepare to leave :)

tired...so tired of packing

It's been a while, so here's what I've been up to...PACKING!!!!

I have been packing for days...and I'm so very tired of it, but its almost done. Movers are coming on Sunday to move the big stuff. And then very shortly I will be on my way :)

This weekend I get to celebrate with my friends and I'm super excited to see everyone! And then I get to finish up the packing....whoo hooo :-P

Nothing terribly interesting I'm afraid, but just you wait...one week and I'll be talking to you from Australia :-D