Cute Koalas

We went to visit some good friends in Newcastle last week and nearby they have a wildlife park where you could get up close and personal with koalas, too exciting!

Evie and Mattias had fun playing with Hamish and Thea, and the dress up outfits were great!

Not 50c but very worthwhile!

A trip to Taronga Zoo was definitely a special treat this last week. Seeing as Loja's exotic animal died, the giraffe, it was great to spot elephants, lions, gorillas, seals, sea lions, red belly black snakes, turtles, and all sorts of birds as we made our way through the beautiful surrounds of the zoo. I did get tired legs though as we had to wander through so much garden between animals and exhibits!

The larger animals were the favourite as they were much easier to spot. Mattias cried when he had to move on from whatever it was that caught his attention.

Re-entry...

It has now been 3 weeks since we left Quito and I sit here from our sunroom in Kingsford with the seabreeze coming in, thinking that it all feels quite surreal.

Our week in Nashville with my brother and his family was great, and a good stepping stone between 2 worlds - still driving on the right hand side but mostly english spoken around us. We celebrated Thanksgiving, raked up lots of autumn leaves which the kids then jumped in and promptly disappeared, and even saw a puppet show in downtown Nashville library.

We arrived in Sydney on the 5th Dec and spent the next week helping with all my sister's wedding preparations for the following Saturday, although we did sneak in a quick 2 trips to the beach! Now we are getting our head around living here for the next 8 months. Our church family has been so fantastic at helping us get settled, to the point that we were able to sleep in the house they had organised the first night we arrived, and had breakfast waiting for us in the cupboard for the following morning! So thank you Lord for the way you care for us in such a myriad of ways and thank you RPC.

Some things that have struck us as we get out and about...

Less high heels; lots more leg showing with guys in shorts and girls in dresses and skirts (naturally as we are in the heat of summer but after seeing people mostly in jeans for 3 years it does stand out); lots more green spaces and trees visible within the city; tiled roofs and finished buildings; smooth roads; some things cheaper such as fast and reliable internet, some things more expensive like fruit and veg; wondering how to greet and farewell people appropriately (do I wave aimlessly in the air, merely say goodbye, shake hands or kiss on the cheek???); telemarketers ringing up...and so it goes on.

Feeling a little whelmed but enjoying being here too. Let's see how the next few months pan out, by God's grace we will have some rest, some re-energising, re-connecting and fun, plus all the other responsibilities fitted in too!