Sorrento Beach

During our week at Blairgowrie, Liza and Matthew took us to beach after beach full of postcard majestic views such as this one.

Sorrento Beach

Melbourne Aquarium

We spent an awesome afternoon with cousins at the Melbourne Aquarium. There are numerous cool exhibits there, our two favorites are the ray feeding show and the Penguins Exhibit. Here are the rays being fed with a guest appearance from Leo the Leopard Shark (who sleeps 22 hours a day!)

Feeding time for the Rays

Dandenong Mountains Overlooking Melbourne

On our first day up and about, our cousin Scott took us up into the Dandenong Mountains for an incredible view of Melbourne from above. On the way up we enjoyed flat whites, hot chocolates made by melting a Lindt chocolate ball in hot milk, and dessert. After our hike in the mountains we headed back into the town of Sassafras to a restaurant called Pie in the Sky. They advertise 12 gold medal award winning meat pies and wow, what a meal it was!

View of Melbourne from the Dandenongs

Blairgowrie

Blairgowrie Back Beach with Cousins
The weather may have been cold and rainy, but that didn't stop Oscar from taking a jump into the rock pool! Of course the best swimming time in Blairgowrie is Christmas when the weather is hot and the family is all together.

Koalas and Eagles

Welcome to the Koala Conservation Center on Phillip Island! After some good views of koalas sleeping cozily in trees, we stumbled across a real treat: a baby koala munching on Eucalyptus while the Mother slept nearby. After a while, the Mom woke up too and they fed and climbed together. It was awesome to see, especially considering koalas sleep 20 hour a day and only forage and frolic for 4! Enjoy the kids' blogs, they each offer a different style and angle on the spectacle!

Mommy and Baby Koala


Logan's Koala Blog


Travis' Koala Blog


Pauline's Koala Blog


At Healesville Sanctuary we enjoyed the Wild Birds of Australia Show. Things turned unexpectedly exciting, however, when a wild wedge tailed eagle showed up and added to the entertainment. Apparently, it occasionally happens that a wild wedge tailed eagle will try to claim territory there, but the sight of this wild eagle circling ever lower and finally swooping down, talons first at the captive eagle was pretty suspenseful and spectacular! Fortunately Jess, the captive eagle, was not afraid to show his talons either and apparently maintained claim of his territory, a good thing since he's 40 years old and has lived there for quite some time! I was thrilled to capture the swoop on video. It happens pretty fast, but is rather dramatic nonetheless.

Wild Wedge Table Eagle Joining in Healesville Bird Show

Reptile Show at Healesville Sanctuary

We saw a wide array of Australia's fabulous animals at Healesville Sanctuary. Here is a video of the Reptile Show featuring some gorgeous snakes and lizards. Enjoy!

Healesville Reptile Show

Weekend blogs from Pauline, Travis and Logan

On Saturday we barracked for cousin Scott's Aussie Rules Footie team. He played well, but Kew lost rather decisively. Saturday evening we enjoyed a fantastic family reunion with 40 aunts uncles cousins and so on. The cousins all played together for hours and the food spread was remarkable including a passion fruit pavlova and a chocolate torte with a birthday sparkler for me!

Sunday we enjoyed church with Gran. They had an interesting presentation about Frontier Services, the medical and social services branch of the church who drives across the scarcely populated part of the outback offering medical care, social work and religious support. After that we had a great brunch with Uncle Neil, Aunt Glenda, Chris, Jill and of course Gran. Following the brunch, we headed in to Melbourne to tour the Fitzroy Gardens. The highlight of those gardens was Captain Cook's Cottage. Cook discovered Australia for England. Here are the kid's thoughts and tours from the weekend.

Pauline's Saturday Blog


Travis' Sunday Blog


Logan's Sunday Blog

First few days in Australia

We're having a great time with family here in Australia. But don't take my word for it, here's what the kids have to say about the first few days of their visit....

Pauline's First Days in Melbourne


Travis' First Days in Melbourne


Logan's First Days in Melbourne