last days in Maleny.

These last few days have been wonderful.

Due to the floods, all transit in Queensland is free until the 30th of this month. That's a total bonus as Chris and I had been planning to get out and play some disc golf at a near by course. We got on the free train and were there at about 2 in the afternoon. We played all 18 holes and saw some beautiful nature including a water dragon. After the game we walked over to the "coles" for some snacks but it was closed (at like 5:30 wtf?) We went on to the train station. About a block away I guess I heard the train way off in the distance so I took off running. We caught the train by the "skin of our teeth" after running as fast as we could. When we got to our connecting station, we learned the train we needed to catch had stopped running quite a while ago. We decided to try to hitchhike before it got too dark but it quickly became apparent we wouldn't be getting picked up. Chris was very hungary so we walked through the tall grass between the highways to go to McDonalds, afraid the whole time we'd come across snakes or huge mud pits. We found neither. After making a few phone calls and finding out my super ghetto phone can go on the internet, we'd learned a motel room would cost $90 and a taxi would cost $110 and I'd sent a facebook message to Katherin the nanny asking her to call me. About three hours after learning we'd missed our last train, Chris and I found ourselves sitting outside a casino telling stories and watching a gecko catch flies. Then Katherin called and said she's be on her way. We rejoiced and decided to go back to the 24 hr McDonalds to celebrate with some french fries. Unfortunately the floods have made it so very few food deliveries can go through and they'd run out of most stuff so they closed. MAN.

Yesterday was very pleasant. We poked around town and went for a walk at Mary Cairnes Cross park for our third try. We were so excited to see 4 or 5 wallabies. Then we made a Mexican dinner for the family and it was a major hit.

Today we went into town and I got small gifts for Ella and Fia. Then I mailed them along with a bunch of stuff I wish I hadn't brought to Aus for a total of fifty something dollars. It will take 2-3 months to get home.

We had planned to go on this big walk but due to those damned floods, the roads were blocked off so we couldn't get there. It turned out great though because we got to see soooo much of the area just driving around and taking pictures here and there. At one point we were about to go over a bridge and I looked ahead and said "watch for that bird." After a moment I realized it was, in fact, a turtle. I took a few photos from a distance then got closer and closer. I was worried he'd get run over so I nudged him off the road with a stick. It seemed to take him a minute to realize what was going on because he went from a saunter to a sprint in no time and then fell about two feet off the side of the bridge and hit something and then rolled a bit before hitting a pebble and sliding into the water. I'm sure he was okay... sad and funny.

We've spent this evening playing tennis, swimming in the pool with the whole family, and playing games around the table. I'm sad to be leaving this place behind but I know very well that it's time.

Our plan now is to head to Melb on Wednesday after one night in Bris (and dinner with Andrea and Steven) and then stay there and around there for two weeks and then go to New Zealand for a month. Then we'll fly into Adelaide and go up the east coast for 2-4 weeks then *finger crossed* meet Adam and Lindsay in Thailand and then maybe even Carli after that if we can time it right. Then home? In mid May? I dunno.

Rain rain go away.

Sorry I haven't been blogging, Mom. 

I guess it has been several days. Where did I leave off?

Chris and I were happily living in the family room inside the laurels main office building when one morning we were told there was an accidental double booking. We had an hour to move into the family home. So, we moved from our lovely, quiet, beautiful room into Conrad (the three year old) 's room. Their house is beautiful as I've mentioned before. It feels like a real home... in that it isn't full of bugs and there aren't bars on the window. Those were some very loud days. It was really nice to be loving with a young family over Christmas, though. The three little ones were so excited and Amanda organized a beautiful dinner on Christmas Eve which Chris and I put together. There were alternating red and gold decorative plates under each dinner plate and candles in large silver candelabras atop square mirrors. I took a picture, which I'll post... some time. We also hung these beautiful purple flowers all over the tent (which was up due to the insane weather) They have very long stalks and then purple flowers that come out like fireworks from the top. So we hung those at differing lengths all over the canopy. There was much food and drink to be had that evening. We also got to meet tons of really nice and interesting people. I spent quite a while talking with a man who is about 70 and has Parkinson's disease. He was telling me about living and working in South East Asia for years and about his hobby farm "up the road" where he and his wife raise, get this, miniature angus cattle. 

On Christmas morning Chris and I opened a few presents from each other and then had breakfast with the family. We had eggs benny which made me quite homesick. And also sick... as I don't like to partake in that tradition. After breakfast the kids were starting to freak real bad so it was present time. I really like the way we've always opened presents in my family. One at a time. They don't do that and it was a crazy scene. Every minute or two one of the adults (including myself) would run into the chaos and collect all the wrapping paper and try to move the presents out of the way. I was reminded of the ball boys in tennis. Running in and out as fast as possible. After present opening Chris and I went to get some much needed quite and opened the rest of our presents. 

Chris and I had been planning to work for a few days in between Christmas and New years but the weather was so bad that the pavilion (main reception area, which we were painting) was partly flooded so we couldn't go in there. We spent a lot of time playing cards and, one we were moved into badger's woods, watching movies. Sadie and Caleb were on a trip on the sunshine coast so they came up and stayed with us on the 30th and 31st once we'd moved into Peacock Meadow. New Years was mostly quite uneventful. I put on my purple american apparel dress (as it's the fanciest I've got with me) and my black shiny tights and my new purple NARS eyeshadow and some silver sparkle liner and went down to the house and was BY FAR the most dressed up. I had two free pour vodka waters with lime and two (maybe three) jello shots and then went home for a nap. Chris called me at 11:40 and told me to come back down. I was pretty annoyed but decided to go anyway. At this point Caleb and Sadie were sleeping. Chris and I rang in the new year with 15 of our closest strangers and then watched the 12 minute long firework show that had happened an hour earlier in Sydney. 12 minutes is actually a really really long time to watch fireworks. I had lost all of my pizzaz by that time and sat quietly on the couch watching the show and thinking about New Years past spent with Grandma and Grandpa Gogo on the porch. We would always fight for the big yellow fireworks that resembled french fries (Grandpa's idea)

We've gotten a lot of painting done since then and have even had 4 or 5 super hot and sunny days. 

One night in Peacocks after dinner, I noticed a tiny little huntsman (about the size of those "huge" black spiders at home) on the curtain. I calmly asked Chris to catch it and then went on with my computing. A minute or two later I looked up and saw that Chris was having half a meltdown. He had taken several dishes of all shapes and sizes out of the kitchen and was trying each one out by making practice capturing motions with a magazine in the other hand. I began ridiculing him and making "better" suggestions. We eventually decided on a two man method which involved him placing a bowl over the spider and a book on the other side of the curtain at which time I would move in and slide a magazine between the spider (then inside the bowl) and the curtain. Then Chris would take magazine from me and bring the contained spider out the door which I would have by then opened. The entire plan went flawlessly until the release. Chris placed the magazine on the ground and lifted the bowl. The distraught and confused spider took off running.... toward Chris' bare feet. Chris lost his cool and began screaming and hopping wildly toward the door at which time I spotted a fair size cane toad which was also hopping toward the door. I began screaming as well. I went to slam the door as Chris was attempting to get through it. I opened it again as Chris jumped over the jumping toad. Then to add to the chaos, Chris felt something on his foot. I think we both assumed it was the spider... but it was really a freaky grasshopper type insect. We both screamed and jumped around as it jumped around the living room. When we figured out what it was we both calmed down and Chris trapped it under one of the many bowls already in the living room. 

We've now been working and living in the biggest of the cottages called "wattle lane". It has three bedrooms down stairs (one is Catherine the nanny's room) and the upstairs is a big open space with couches and chairs and a dining area and a kitchen. It has a great set up with pretty much all of the cooking supplies we require.

The rain here comes in cycles, it seems. It will drizzle for a while and then someone turns on the hose and it fricken buckets down. Yesterday we took a day off after working for 6 days in a row. It had been sunny and hot but unfortunately, the weather turned and it poured. We wanted to wait out the down pour before going on our nature walk so we puttered around for a while in the Maleny shops and did our grocery shopping. The rain let up so we drove to the park. When we got there the rain got very heavy again so we opened the curtain thing on the sun roof and watched the rain fall for a while. When it let up again, we got out of the car and scoped the scene. The trail was one massive puddle so I promised Chris we'd come back another day. On our way out we happened upon a wild wallaby!! Sooo cute..

When we got home, there was an ankle deep puddle in the way of the front door. Chris powered through it and got very wet feet but I didn't want to get my runners wet so I took my shoes and socks off and walked through in bare feet. That's the great thing about Aus. It may be a storm, but it's still quite warm out. Minutes after getting inside, I sat down to clean some mud off my ankle. Nope, not mud. Leech. I grabbed a tissue and pulled it off with out thinking about it... I don't know if that's bad as I know I've heard you're supposed to salt them or burn them off... my ankle was bleeding a little. I handed the wad to Chris who had by that time come to check out why I was freaking out. He put it in the toilet. It tried to climb out. So Chris flushed. It didn't go down. So Chris attacked it with the toilet brush. It climbed deep into the bristles. So we left it. Later, Chris went down to check on it and found it was climbing out of the toilet. I wasn't there, but I imagine at this point he lost his mind. He told me he took the can of air freshener and smacked it. It didn't die. He continued to smack it. He guesses he must have hit it 30 times before it finally stopped squirming.     Cold. Blooded. Killer.        He said there was blood all over the toilet bowl, I told him not to worry as it was probably mine. 

So far today Chris has made a wonderful breakfast and we've watched dumb and dumber on vhs. We'll call today a write off. OH! but when we were walking over here (to the office) to use the internet, there was a super bright flash of lighting followed by the. loudest. clap of thunder I've ever heard. I am not kidding it sounded like a metal garbage dumpster was dropped 10 feet right beside us. My left ear drum hurt for a while after. Yipres. 

I'm not going to proof read this... lack of movement has turned my brain to mush and I want to take a nap.