Work party and Stake Conference

Two weekends ago we went to a coworker's house for a project get together. They live a bit out in the country. Lots of land in exchange for a longer commute. I'll take Mike's 15 minute commute, thank you. But it really was beautiful! The kids got to swim and play ball in the tennis court. And we loved their two Rhodesian Ridgebacks! Gorgeous dogs! And so sweet! Here's a picture of one. See if you can spot anything strange...



He's missing a front leg! But it doesn't slow him down.


I love this picture of Evelyn rubbing her cheek with his ear. So soft!


Here's a picture of Mike comforting Isaac after he got hit in the ribs with a softball. He survived. And look how big Bridget is getting!


The next day we had Stake Conference downtown in the City Hall. I was sure to bring the camera this year!





What a beautiful building! There's even an organ inside!





Afterwards everyone was invited to bring a picnic to a park a short walk away.


There was a pond with ducks and really big fish!


No, I didn't take pictures of this, but I was so grateful for nice bathrooms just around the corner! With sinks and soap! What a great park! I am so lucky to live in this beautiful city!
I'll top off this post with a couple cute photos of Bridget. She is getting so big and loves to crawl all over now.





And Evelyn loves her little sister!

Happy birthday, Spartan!

Mike's birthday was on Sat and he chose to participate in the Spartan Run, a mud/obstacle course race. We came out to cheer him on! Here he is before the run. Notice the shade of this light grey shirt.





The kids and I had a good time running around and watching some of the obstacles close by. It was a lovely overcast day with a few light sprinkles. And the location was gorgeous!





We were able to see Mike at the half way point. The kids surprised him with posters.





Doesn't he look excited? Beat, is more like it. But he carried on!





He was all smiles when the course was conquered. Hooray for Daddy! And notice his shirt is pretty much not light grey anymore. The kids kept their distance (so did I). That was some pretty smelly mud.





Luckily they had a big communal shower area where he could feel slightly more human again. Here he is, hosed off and wearing his well earned t-shirt. I awarded my Spartan with a victor's kiss.





And we awarded everyone with ice cream cones! We all win!





I love this photo! I made a small chocolate cake for Mike's birthday and here he is making ghost story faces in the flames. Happy birthday, my Love! What a fun day for us all!

At the beach

First of all, we hit our two year mark of living in Australia! Yay! AND they're not kicking us out yet! Yippee!
On Saturday we took a day trip to King's Beach in Caloundra. It's a good hour's drive north and is the first beach we went to. We were happy to get back! Here I'm carrying Bridget around in our baby back pack (I think the last time we used it was for a little Lydia in New Orleans).








The back pack was perfect because you can take it off your back and set it on the ground, fully supported. See, here she is supervising a sand excavation project.


And sitting with me in the shade. Mike found this nifty beach shade at Aldi's. I love that store!




We also found $4 boogie boards for the kids at Kmart! Sweet! They had great fun riding the waves.




Lydia would have been in the deep water with the big boys if we'd have let her.





Evelyn was happy to dig in the sand.




I couldn't really tell what Bridget thought of the water.




I love the beach for of all the exotic critters you can find! I found this rock that had been washed up on shore covered in goose barnacles. Too cool! It was amazing to watch them stick out their short feathery legs (which they use to filter food out of the water) and pull them back in really quickly.




And there were rock pools nearby. Funny because when we went 2 years ago the kids couldn't have cared less about looking for little animals, but this time they loved it!















Nothing terribly exciting. Just lots of limpets, chitons, and snails. Occasionally we'd find a tiny hermit crab. This one is in a little cowl shell, which was unique.





Hermit crabs are fun because they actually move. One can only stare at a chiton for so long.
But back on the beach we got a neat surprise! There was a sea turtle!




It had been washed up on shore and wasn't doing well. A lifeguard (check out the hat) was staying with it until the RSPCA (government run animal aid) got there. Amazing! A real live sea turtle!! From the ocean!!
What a great day! And at the end of a day on the beach you can play in the splash pad up near the parking lot and get all de-sanded! Yay, we all win!