So long 2013...

We are about 7 hours away from 2014 here. We've moved out of the water park craziness (I mean holiday retreat for kids) and into a quiet, peaceful hotel on a golf course for our final two nights. With Adam at the driving range and the boys napping, I've found myself reading on the balcony, taking in the quiet. It's blissful.

As I think back on our 2013, I find myself reflecting on 7 key things (of which I recently read)...

1. Gratitude. I am so grateful for the journey I'm on with my family. To see part of the world and do it with three people I love more than anything is more than I ever could have imagined. Ever.

2. Simplicity and Order. I have Adam to thank for this. He makes life simple. He listens, questions, gives advice and loves us unconditionally. As for the order, I'm giving that up to Maricel. Honestly, she is such a blessing to our family and keeps our house running smoothly. Living in Singapore is easier because of her.

3. Harmony. This moment right now. I have a healthy family and we're together.

4. Cultivating Contentment. This is a hard one. I am constantly reminding myself (or being reminded) to live in the present. While we have a lot to look forward to this year, I also find myself very content with where life has us now.

5. Noticing Beauty. I find myself doing this a lot with our travels. Finding beauty in faces, places, unexpected areas and moments.
With the beauty, I often find gratitude & joy.


6. Finding Joy. The word that changed my outlook about 14 months ago. I think of them as my "stop and smile" moments. In the stress of our late morning with tired kids and hotel switches, this moment made me stop and smile.
Brothers quietly enjoying lunch together.


7. Connection. I am so thankful for my family & friends. Their connection makes me feel at home no matter where I'm at in the world. The thoughtfulness of so many makes me feel like we're never too far away.

Happy New Year to our loved ones near & far! Cheers to 2014 (and in breaking rule number 4) the year we move HOME!

xo

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Relaxing!

The last few days have been nice...just enjoying the water areas at our pool and spending time at the beach. The boys even spent two hours at the Kids Club at our hotel, which meant Adam and I got away for a walk on the beach and lunch in peace and quiet! Last night my friend Tanya (Ms. V) flew in to spend two days with us! We looove having her here. It's too quick of a trip, but given that she's sharing our room with us, probably plenty long for her. :)



Robin made another appearance!


Dessert & coffee...so good! And wonderful to have a few hours of girl time.








We learned how to play cricket (sort of) and loved it!





The beach here is beautiful!


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Meeting their Heroes

Turns out, all you need is an action packed day with some Superheroes to fix an ear infection! The boys loved Movie World and most importantly, got to meet some of their favorite heroes.






The Bat Mobile - from Val
Kilmer's movie. Drew asked for one for his birthday.


We rode the Merry-Go-Round for Nanny


Luke's standing in front of The Daily Planet where Lois Lane & Clark Kent work-


Drew made sure to keep his distance :)





Someone crept up on Drew...





Batman!!


Some of the Justice League


We loved the 4D Ice Age movie!


After spending the entire day at Movie World, you'd think they'd be exhausted. Not yet...out to the water slides!





9pm and they are OUT! Goodnight Queensland, what a day!




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Queensland

If I tried to loosely compare the two Australian cities we've visited this trip, I'd say Sydney resembles San
Francisco (minus all the homeless people) and Queensland reminds me of San Diego.

I can't say we've thoroughly enjoyed our time here so far, but it's getting better. I took Luke to the doctor this morning after two days of fever, whining and awful coughing. He has a "massive ear infection" and a bronchial infection, as diagnosed by an Australian doctor who might love America more than anyone I've ever met. Now on meds, Luke is already improving. What is it with these boys and their traveling illnesses??

The place we are staying at is a kids paradise and the worst nightmare of anyone with out kids. There are two water park-like areas, a swimming pool, and indoor play structure, outdoor playground and much more. While I want to rip my hair out at times from all the kids, I am 98% loving the fact that our boys can BE BOYS here an no one cares! Today they took part in a costume parade...a perfect time to show off their Santa gifts!

The weather hasn't been ideal, but I refuse to complain because it's not humid! We've spent time on the water slides, playing in our room, walking near the beach and trying to soak in happy moments wherever we can. With Luke on the mend, the next six days look much brighter.

My morning walk with Drew...heaven!


I'm loving all of this great Australian coffee!


Our hotel is in Surfers Paradise. There are many beach areas within Queensland/Brisbane. This is probably the most touristy, well-known spot, but surprisingly quite quiet this week.




Exploring with part Drew/part Robin


The smaller water park area





After the costume parade




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We made it, but the jury is still out on Santa

The boys awoke this morning (4am for Luke, 5am for Drew) to find a note from Santa on the patio chair, along with an empty plate.



Drew had a brief meltdown, but when he realized it would be waiting in Australia for him, he pulled it together.

Here was our Santa set up last night...






And our not so traditional Mexican, Christmas Eve dinner.


I've already cried a few times today. It's been hard not waking up, digging through our stockings, opening gifts and playing with our new toys. Also, not seeing our family is really difficult. Knowing everyone is together and we're not there is tough.

I know it's hard to feel sorry for us, considering where we're at, but it's a real part of our journey and by far the hardest part of it.

With two little boys now snoring away in the taxi, we are off to find those stockings!


*Since I wrote this entry, we managed to find our stockings and the boys enjoyed a few hours of just playing.

Drew was ecstatic to finally get his Robin costume! Yay Santa!





If Robin goes missing, he's over sneaking chocolate out of the refrigerator. (He would rival Ma in a chocolate eating contest!)


Lunch with Superheroes...


We have been VERY lazy today in our room, which included a three hour nap. Three time zone changes, two countries and three plane rides in 9 days have worn us out! Luke and I have shared more tears and snuggles as we talked about our family back home. Still missing you all.

While our Christmas is ending, yours at home is just beginning. Wishing you a day full of love, laughter, joy, and togetherness.

xo

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Last Day in NZ

Most people try to spend a week to a month seeing NZ. Not us, we go for three days. It's been fast, but honestly I don't think we could do another day in Christchurch. This town has seen so much devastation with their earthquakes (there were actually three within a six month period back in 2010/2011) and they are slow to recover. The heart of their town is all but gone. You can hear the sadness when talking to any local. This has forever changed their home.

Today we did a double decker bus tour (Another one!) and saw different parts of the city, along with Sumner Beach. There was more "life" to these parts as they had either seen more rebuilding or escaped with less loss.

After the beach, we rode up into the hills only to see some of the most spectacular views I have ever seen...of natural, untouched land. Simply breathtaking. I mentioned to Adam that it's so hard to believe this is all the same place. A city marked with devastation at every block, only to be surrounded by nature in its most beautiful state. I know the pictures won't do it justice.

Before the double decker was the trolley. We are the ultimate tourists. I like to blame it on the boys.








I love this one...wonder & sorrow combined. This was a beautiful church, hundreds of years old.


The city is full of buildings like this. Old world charm, met with plaster, sheetrock, wall supports and condemned signs.





This was a 4 million dollar home on the way to the beach. Half of it is now at the bottom of the mountain.


Sumner Beach - very much reminded us of the Oregon Coast. Had there been blue skies, I'm sure the water would have been more blue.

















This was my view at lunch. HELL. I jumped out of my chair more times than I could count. In my head, there were thousands of seagulls. In looking at the picture, I may have overreacted a bit.


Headed up the hill...














While this was certainly not the trip to New Zealand we had imagined, we have had fun, learned a lot about this city and have seen some of the untouched beauty that exists in this country. Our RV trip remains on our bucket list for another time. We are excited to get back to Australia tomorrow and are very ready for 8 days in one place. :)