I decided to follow in the footsteps of my friend Michelle. I have been tagged on facebook several times to do this...so here it goes.


1. My hair is naturally curly (went that way after Carissa was born)

2. I grew up in a small town of 5000 people

3. I hate to fly

4. Ben and I got married in Las Vegas

5. I love to watch "Chick Flicks"

6. I don't like balloons

7. I don't like chocolate

8. I LOVE baseball

9. My favorite color is blue

10. I ate mud as a kid

11. I ran away from home once (to my friends up the street)

12. I like talking on the phone

13. I hate texting or smsing (it takes tooo long)

14. I am a shoe-a-holic

15. I don't like milk

16. I am a very emotional person

17. I am of Native American descent

18. I like to plan/organize parties

19. I have only 1 sister

20. I am a facebook junkie

21. I like the taste of tequilla

22. I am a control freak

23. I used to hunt/fish with my dad

24. Played sports in high school

25. I still have my childhood stuffed dog....HENRY!

There it is...Now I tag all of you who read this to do the same!!!!!!

Sorry for the late post, but I had to wait for the photographer to give me the pictures.
Carissa's birthday was a blast. We decided to have a Indian style party. All the kids came in Indian attire. We painted pots, rode on a horse, dandiya danced, ate, had mehendi done...and much more. Enjoy the pictures.

We saw and did much more in Australia than play with kangaroos and koalas.

In Cairnes, we boarded a train for a scenic tour to Kuranda. The train went through 15 different tunnels and through the Barron Gorge and Barron Falls. It was so nice to take in the crisp clean air. This was the first time the kids had ever been on a train ride. Ryan thought it was pretty cool.
Once we reached Kuranda we went to an aboriginie village to see a show, Carissa decided she was join them on stage to bust a move. She really got into it (This is why her Uncle Peach has nicknamed her "Happy Feet". She hears music and her little toes start a tapping) They also showed us how to throw a boomerang and a spear. Ben was really good with the boomerang, but Carissa was awesome at throwing the spear. She actually hit one of the targets. On the way back to Cairnes we took the skyrail. It was a little scary (for me), but the viewe was beautiful.


From Cairnes we made our way to Brisbane/Gold Coast and went to Sea World. It is similar to the Sea World's in the US, but they did not have Shamu. They only had dolphins. The show was good, but we love Shamu. The main reason we went there was for Ryan. They have a Seasme Street park there with shows and rides. Ryan was excited to see Elmo up close and personal.

Oh CRIKEY! the Australia Zoo "Home of the Crocodile Hunter" was next on our agenda.


Next stop was Timbertown. This is a small heritage village, it was like being on Little House on the Prarie. They had various shows on how life was 100 years ago.
We had a bullock demonstration, the kids were able to take a picture with Albert.
We also had a demonstration on whip cracking. It has the coolest sound when done right. Now this I was good at....I can crack a mean whip. Ben was pretty impressed and scared. The kids took a ride on a steam engine. Ryan got to shout " All Aboard", was he ever the big boy after that. Carissa got into trouble and was put in time out, just kidding she thought it would be a funny picture.


From here it was off to Sydney. There is not much to say except the Opera House and Harbor Bridge are Incredible. We stayed at the Marriott in circular quay and our room faced the harbor so we had a nice view.
We took a trip to the Blue Mountains to see the Three Sister Rock and take a ride on the world's steepest incline railway.
Santa knew where we were and came to visit us....there is nothing like having Christmas in a hotel room.


It was on to our final destination, Melbourne, but first we stopped at the Snowy Mountains/River. This was the highlight of my trip. I don't know how many of you have seen the movie " A Man from Snowny River", but it is one of my favorites.
This is the most beautiful place I have ever seen. The whole time we were there I wished I had my Dad with me. He would just love this place. We had fun hiking in the mountains and playing in the river. We enjoyed it so much, we talked about coming back here just to do some camping.
At last we reach Melbourne, by this time (our 3rd week) we were getting a little tired of being in a hotel. We did go to Phillip Island to see the little penguins. At around 9pm these little guys call it a day and return to their nests. It is so cute to see them waddle up the beach. Unfortunately, we were not allowed to take photos because the flash would disrupt the penguins. Luckily, I was able to catch a couple of little fellows before it got too dark.

I think Ben enjoyed Melbourne the most. Our hotel was right next to a casino so that was the hightlight of his trip. He was a happy little camper!

All in all it was an amazing trip. I reccommend it to everyone!

We finally made it back home after a three week holiday. It was a great vacation, but to be honest I am glad to be back in my own home.

We started our trip out in Cairnes to swim in Great Barrier Reef. The weather was great, the water was clear blue and it was truely AMAZING. We started by getting on a boat for an hour trip out to the reef. Ryan thought that was a blast. It was nice just to rest and relax.

Once we got there, Carissa could not wait to get in the water. She was so excited to look for Nemo. We spent about 2 hours snorkling the reef. We saw beautiful coral, huge clams and plenty of sea life and then went back to the boat for lunch. After lunch, Ryan fell asleep so Carissa and Ben went out and did some more snorkling. I decided to take a nap with Ryan.

Before we knew it our time was up and it was back to shore, but the memories will last forever.

Enjoy the photos.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

This is Ryan and Carissa playing on the beach in Bali.

Ok, Donna, Lynn tag you are it!