Last weekend

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Well, I just noticed that my last post was on the 2nd of December. I apologize for the delay...I'm sure some of you have been anxious to hear from us!
The weekend before last, Ray and I did not do much, hence there not being a post. But last weekend we headed down to the south beaches and visited Jervis Bay. This place was as beautiful as it was described to us, if not more so. Everywhere you looked there was the clear, aqua-color water, and new wildlife to been seen.
We left Friday after work, and arrived at Bewong River Retreat around 9:30pm. Our cabin was nestled away in the woods, not far off of a river. The place was very nice, with an Elegant Roman Empire theme to the room. We had a kitchen, large bathroom, and the best part was the jacuzzi hot tub situated in the corner of the living area.
The next morning we rolled out of bed, and took a drive through Booderee National park, getting out at various lookout points. The day was warm, and sunny but extremely windy. It was not a good day to sit on the beach because the sand really hurt when it smacked into your face. Each location seemed a little bit different than the next. We viewed St. Georges Basin-a freshwater lake, Murray's beach, Booderee beach, and at St. George's lighthouse we saw a young man who had just broken his leg before we got there. We found it strange to hear an ambulance coming out in the middle of nowhere, but they were coming for him. He had been body surfing amongst a bunch of rocks, and hit his leg on a rock and broke his leg. He was lucky to be alive. Eventually, they were going to have to airlift him out of there because he was not going to be able to make it back up the cliff that he originally had to climb down to get to the place he was at. We did not stay to see the rescue.
At the end of the day we headed back to our cabin (with no cockroaches!), where there was a field of Kangaroos to greet us. How fun it was to see them up close, and personal, hopping around, scratching and licking themselves. It was great!
That evening we enjoyed a T-Bone steak, mashed potatoes, and broccoli. Dinner was delicious!
After dinner we headed down to the river to do some fishing. We did end up catching a few, so it made it worthwhile and fun. I of course, had to show Ray how it was done...once again.

The next morning we took our time getting ready, had some lunch and took the canoe out on the river again for a little while and fished. The wind was still blowing pretty hard which made it hard for Ray to steer the canoe. We eventually came in, and took off for home, heading down the Pacific Coastal Drive. The highway took us north up the coast line, giving us fantastic views of the ocean. We drove over the Sea Breeze Bridge, which was created along side a cliff. The journey took two more hours than the drive there, but it was all worth it. We made some stops along the way home as well, checking out some scenic look-outs and visiting the Kiama blow hole. We took lots of pictures again, which some of you have already seen on my facebook account.
So, that was our weekend away and we were quickly interrupted by another work week. Ray has continued his excitement as he has ventured to South Africa on Tuesday of this week. He will be coming back to Australia late Sunday night. Ray has been involved with the Strategic planning meetings for Australia, South Africa and New Zealand. Amway is definitely keeping him busy, but continues to use his gifts and talents to shine amongst others.
This week has been the first week I have had time to myself in over four months. It's been strange not having someone to wake up to, sleep next to, and talk with in the evenings, but I sure have gotten some shopping done! Haha! I of course look forward to Ray's return on Sunday. Ray and I are both anticipating Ray's parents coming out here on the 23rd of December. I cannot believe how quickly this time has come! We have a week and a half with them, that is full of new adventures to be had together! I am greatly looking forward to our New Year's Eve in the Sydney Harbor, watching the fireworks! Well, that all for now! I hope everyone is doing well!

Happy Birthday to Luke Dejonge, Mitch Dejonge, Kristin Dejonge and Grandpa Beelen!

Below is a video we shot of a field full of Kangaroos at our resort...thought we would share! :)

Weekend

Well, after a very busy week of writing up extended contracts and cancellations, the weekend arrived! Ray was grateful for the weekend as well, after he became involved with the strategic planning of Amway Australia. On Friday night was our Amway Christmas party at the Crown Plaza hotel. The food was very good, and they had a really good live band. Ray listened, while I danced the night away with my coworkers, and the CEO (Maric).

On Saturday we slept in, and caught up with family since we missed Thanksgiving with them. We then had dinner plans at Stewart and Beth's home. Stewart is a coworker of Ray's. We have now gone to Hunter Valley with Stewart, and hiked in the blue mountains with him and his wife. We had a very nice evening of food and Settlers. Ray of course won again. I tried to warn Stewart and Beth ahead of time that Ray always wins, but no such luck.

Sunday we attended the Baptist church again, ate McDs for lunch since our oven was broken, and then headed out for the Parklea markets again with our coworker and friend from Denmark-Dorthe (pronounced Daughter).

We had another busy, but enjoyable weekend, but Monday came too quickly! We have been hearing that Michigan has been getting hit with some snow storms lately, while here it has been in the 80s the last three days. I definitely do not complain about the weather here! Ray's parents will be here in three weeks already! We are both looking forward to seeing some family again! It will also be so nice to have Christmas with his parents as well, otherwise I think I would be a bit homesick. It's hard to get in the Christmas spirit this year, since everything is so different from other years...our schedules our wide open and we rather be in our swimming pool than in front of the fire place! But I'm sure it will come.

I hope everyone continues to do well! Hugs and Kisses!

Happy day!

Just a shout out to my sister- HAPPY BIRTHDAY JACKIE!

And also a HAPPY THANKSGIVING to everyone! We miss you all!

Week of the 16th-23rd-Amanda's here!

Well, I cannot believe this past week has come and gone already. It was in mid-August that Amanda, my best friend from Chicago, booked her ticket to Australia to visit Ray and I while we were living here. She has now boarded a plane, stopping in San Francisco, before heading back to her new condo back home.
On Sunday we picked Amanda up early in the morning from the airport. Once she showered and dropped off her bags, we headed to the Blue Mountains. There we road the steepest railway in the world down the side of a mountain, and explored the valley. When we decided to head back up, we took the cable car back up to the top. We showed her the three sisters, and viewed Govette's Leap. Govette's Leap scenic look-out has been compared to the "next best thing" to the Grand Canyon. It was an amazing view! We then headed to a national park where we saw three Kangaroos eating some dinner. Ray was sure to obey all the laws in the mountains. :)
Monday and Tuesday Ray and I both had to work so Amanda ventured off by her brave self. She rode public transportation to Featherdale Wildlife Park, and then to downtown Sydney to do the bridge climb. She enjoyed both activities and made it home safely.
On Wednesday, Amanda and I had a tour of the Opera House, and walked around Sydney, souvenir shopping. We were approached by a gentleman giving us a good offer on a hair cut and color, so we randomly got our hair done. The hair turned out great, I just wish I could get it to look like it day after the salon finished with it!
Thursday was a day full of animals. We went to Tarongo zoo, which was very enjoyable! They did an excellent job on the monkey exhibits, and the views of the animals with the city in the background were spectacular! After the zoo we took a break, and road the ferry to Manly and back again. We then went to Darling Harbor and visited the Sydney Aquarium. I appreciated the aquarium because there were many fish on display that Ray and I saw on our trip to the Great Barrier Reef. Afterwards, we enjoyed dinner at "I'm Angus" at Darling Harbor.
Friday was finally the day that we saw some sun! The rest of the days were cloudy and sometimes rainy. It was finally the perfect day to take Amanda to the coastline. We took a bus to Coogee and then did the coastal walk to Bondi Beach. This walk ended up being almost four miles long. Once in Bondi we took some pictures, had some lunch, and shopped around a little. We took a bus back to the main city, where our Ghost Tour of the rocks awaited.
The ghost tours were full of stories of hangings, murders, and deaths of people who roamed the streets many years ago. Amanda and I were entertained by the event, and tried to humor the idea of taking pictures of trees and windows to see if we saw any "strange things" or "orbes" (the tiny circles that showed up in our pictures). Of course, our mind sees what we want it to see, and in one of my pictures I decided I saw a face and Amanda decided she saw a shadow of a woman. Then we laugh.
Saturday, Ray joined us. We took it easy in the morning, but then went to the markets in the rocks and walked around visiting Lord Nelson's and souvenir shops. We walked through the botanical gardens, and listened and watched the nearby Rave party taking place. On our way back towards the Opera House from the gardens we had the entertaining opportunity to see the finalists of Australian Idol practicing for their deciding performance of the next "Australian Idol" on Sunday night (tonight actually). I was even able to get a picture with Mark Spano, the third finalist, who made the Kings of Leon, "Sex on Fire" song famous here in Australia.
We had dinner that night at an Italian restaurant in the rocks. Afterwards, we went to minus 5, a bar where the inside temperature was 10 degrees fahrenheit. They gave us jackets, and gloves before we went inside and we could only be in there for 30 minutes. Inside, the place had ice sculptures everywhere, and even our cups were made out of ice. It was an experience that made us feel at home.
We headed home afterwards, and woke up early today to go to Hillsong and head to the Parklea Markets before we had to bring Amanda to the airport.
Overall, we had a great week but I am now left almost to the point of exhaustion with a large blister on my pinkie toe from all the walking. I am finally getting into shape though. 10 mile walks will do that to you!

The Great Barrier Reef

I know there have been a few of you patiently waiting for me to post a blog about our trip to the Great Barrier Reef...I apologize that it has taken me a few days to write. We left early last Sunday morning, landing in Cairns just after 9am. We then took a 50 minute ferry ride out to the Green Island where we were staying for the four days we were up that way. Our room was very nice and cozy, and the staff were very friendly and helpful. We had beautiful weather our entire stay.

Sunday we explored the island. We were able to walk around the entire island in about 20 minutes. We then grabbed our snorkeling geer to practice for our big day on the reef. We could snorkel right off the island and see a variety of fish. The idea of snorkeling where the possibility of seeing a shark was high, I was quite nervous with the whole idea. I also have this fear of seeing the bottom of lakes, let alone the ocean! So, after several attempts to relax, I was able to enjoy myself. That evening we did a guided nature walk using our 'torch' to identify fish in the water. We saw sea turtles, and a shovelnose ray.

On monday we took another 50 minute boat ride out to the barrier reef. We were a bit disappointed with the clouds, and hoped the sky would clear up so that we could have the sunlight to take better pictures so we could see the color of the reef and the fish much better. Eventually, the sun did show itself and we had a wonderful time.

Again, after I overcame my fear of the bottom of the sea, I was able to relax and enjoy the view. The drop-offs were still a bit scary, and looking to the side and having a large fish swim in my path nearly made me leap out of the water, but I did well. Ray was proud of what I accomplished that day.

I have been trying to think of a way to describe what we saw, but words really can not describe it. There were fish of all kinds every where, big and small, dull and full of color. We saw soft reef that looked like hair blowing in the wind, and coral that looked like large bushes that lost all their leaves. Those were beige and blue in color. We saw coral that looked like yellow califlower, and huge clam shells! The water in color was absolutely amazing! The best part was when we were coming in from snorkeling and a massive fish shown at this link: http://www.johnnyjet.com/images/picforwebsiteMarch142003GreatBarrierReef245.JPG
swam underneath us. It freightened me at first, but it was so big, and green it was intriguing. They say these fish are very friendly, and that you can touch it. I saw some people trying, and I got out of the water!

Tuesday we had a relaxing day on the beach. Ray attempted to get some color, and ended up red, with blisters, and I had random people that I did not know stop me at work and wondered how I got so tan. We went snorkeling again around the island, and had the opportunity to swim with a sea turtle and watch it feed. This was one of Ray's highlights of the trip. Fish feeding was at 5pm, so we got showered and then went to watch the fish eat. We saw large Travelli waiting at the end of the dock, knowing full well what was to come. They raced each other to each raw piece of fish that was thrown into the water. This time also attracted a shark, and many reef fish, large and small. I was happy to be out of the water at this point in time.

Our tuesday evening we had an amazing dinner on the beach over candlelight, payed for with our birthday money. We had Emu steaks, and smoked Emu, smoked crocodile, beef, kangaroo, lamb, crab meat (bugs), salmon (that I swear was raw!), and octopus. There was so much food, and all we had left was a piece of beef. Everything was delicious (accept the octopus and salmon in my opinion). The evening was lovely.

Wednesday brought about the end. Each morning we enjoyed a free breakfast, so we went and took advantage of this once again on our last day. Neither of us were very hungry though after the evening prior to. Good thing too because the birds were hungry that morning, and had no problem stealing our hashbrowns and cinnamon rolls, as we sat there at the table. We headed back on the ferry at noon, and had a few hours to enjoy the city of Cairns. We bought some gifts for family and friends, and got a taxi to the airport. On the way to the airport is when it was annouced to us that Obama was our new president.

Our flight home was pleasant, except for the people behind me who had really bad body odor! I was able to take some really cool photos of Green Island from the plane as well.

Overall, we had four days of amazing adventures in which we will never forget!

The pictures

I figured something out just now that I did not realize before...if you double-click on our pictures, you will be able to see a larger view of them. I noticed there was one picture that was not showing up, but you can double click on that one too, and if will show up. Check them out! :)

Birthday Weekend

Ray and I had a wonderful weekend together, celebrating both of our 26th birthdays. Friday night we had a typical night at home, heading to bed on-time since we were getting up at 8:30am to go into Sydney all day.
We caught the city bus to Paramatta, where we took the 12 o'clock ferry to Sydney harbor. We arrived in Paramatta around 11am, so we had time to grab some lunch at a local cafe. Ray enjoyed an enormous hamburger, and I had a salad with banana bread. Everything was very tasty. The ferry ride itself, was not very scenic until we arrived closer to the harbor. It was the perfect day to be out on the water, sunny and blue skies, 77 degrees. The day became interesting when a man decided to urinate on the deck of the ferry in front of everyone. Everyone around him watched in astonishment, and were thankful they were missed in the process!

On a different note, we had originally planned to go to Cockatoo Island, but the man in Paramatta who worked the ferry said it was not worth it, but that the ferry up to Manly was very beautiful. We decided to do that instead. We were glad we did, because we passed the Island, and the gentleman was right, there was not much there.

Ray has been greatly intrigued by the opera house since we've been here, so as we headed into the harbor it gave him a new perspective to take pictures. Once we arrived we figured out the time for the next ferry, and hopped aboard heading north to Manly. The ride was so relaxing. There were sailboats everywhere, and a different coastline wherever you looked-whether it was a coastline of houses, rock cliffs, or tall buildings. Once we arrived in Manly, we stayed on board, and headed back. We loved being on the water.

When we got back to the Wharfs at the harbor, we walked around and looked into taking a tour of the opera house. From there we took another ferry to Darling Harbor. I was a bit hesitant to get on this ferry, since the gentleman who urinated earlier, was going on board this ferry as well. I had to double check the water that hit my face as the ferry began moving!

Once to Darling Harbor we walked around, and watched a man do a live comedy show. He did a nice job making the audience laugh by picking on those who walked by, as well as doing tricks to capture our attention. Once all this was complete, dinner was calling our name.

We went to the Summit for dinner. The restaurant was on the 47th floor of the building, and revolved 360 degrees in one hour and forty-five minutes. We arrived in daylight, experienced the sunset, and then were amazed by Sydney at night. We spent three and half hours here, enjoying each other's company as well as the food! I would highly recommend this restaurant in case anyone is heading to Sydney. :) Ray ate a pepper steak, and I had the twice-baked pork belly. I even ate the crackle that came with it (pork skin), all those who know me well, should be proud!

Ray would also like me to include what a "classy" lady that I am. I was enjoying a margarita, and the lime fell in my face, and salt went all over my lap, Ray replied, "classy." Then I was trying to explain a drink to the waiter that I had seen earlier, that I wanted to know the name of...again Ray thought "classy." There were these tiny shavings left on the table that Ray and I were guessing what they were...I spilled them all over the table, and wandered if they were candle shavings. Apparently, it was high quality salt. Again, Ray thought "She's full of class!"

After a fabulous evening of the "dos and don'ts" of being in a fancy restaurant, we rolled home on the bus, arriving home at 11:30pm, completing an amazing day!

On Sunday, we had plans to ride on a promotional bus with a kid I work with. We waited at a bus stop downtown Sydney for almost three hours. If we were not waiting, we would have missed the man who was bleeding profusely from his arm, leaving a blood trail. Ray was so excited to finally see something he could 'track,' which he did, right back to the scene of the crime! The bus finally came two hours later, and we rode around Sydney and Bondi Beach. This was our first sighting of the most famous beach on the east coast. We were in a double-decker bus, listening to really loud music, watching people gawk at us as we rode by. The scenery was great at times, and the beach was insanely busy! We had a fun day, meeting new people, and getting to know others better.

Thank you to those who sent us birthday cards! We really enjoyed getting mail...at least I did! I was very excited to hear from home in our mailbox. :) Also, thank you for the birthday wishes on Skype, and facebook! :) We love you all!

Happy Birthday Erica!!!!

Weekend

Good morning! Good Evening! Ray and I continue to do well down under. Ray's work stays busy, and I continue to enjoy the people I work with. On days where people are not thinking I am a spy, they spend their time instead trying to convert me to the aussie language. There are times where we will sit around the office, while people yell out different words that they want me to say, and then they correct. The times can be quite humorous.

Friday night Ray and I actually ventured out of our apartment, and headed to Luna Park for the evening with my co-workers. About 10 of us took the train downtown to Sydney's permanent carnival. We were big kids for the evening. I had a blast clogging up the bumper cars, ending the ride early, and taking a leap of faith down the Conney Island Slides. Ray stood by and watched us all laugh and giggle on the rides, too afraid to disturb his stomach on the spinney rides, that rose high in the air. He was a trooper though, and was happy to see my having a good time. The weather was great on Friday, very comfortable and a clear evening.

Saturday we were going to try and get to the Taronga zoo, but after a late start and getting lost on the way, we turned around and went home. I spent the afternoon reading a book in the sun on our deck, and Ray stayed in and played on the computer. In the evening we went for Chinese food. It was delicious.

Sunday we tried a Baptist Church. The service was fine, and the size of the church was much more to Ray's liking. I witnessed a woman and her husband have a little dispute over the attendance booklet that is passed within the pews. I'm not sure exactly what got her so upset, but she was chucking the book, her husband was grabbing it from her and glaring at her, (probably because she was acting like a child), and I watched in amazement, with a large smile on my face (because it was quite funny, and I was in shock). The sermon that day was on love and resentment, and that the hardest thing that one can do is love those we dislike, and they we need to rid ourselves of our resentment now. I realized we are not supposed to point fingers, but all I could think about was the woman sitting next to me, with her legs crossed, and her arms folded across her chest, and attendance books flying through the pew. Hmm...who/what is she so angry about?

After church, Ray and I grabbed a little lunch at home and caught a bus into Sydney. Once again it was a beautiful day, and we walked through the rocks again enjoying a drink at Lord Nelson's, and then headed through the markets picking up a few more souvenirs. At the markets we had an entertaining cartoon created of Ray and I. People walked by and smiled at me as the man drew, but when Ray was drawn a little girl stated, "he's chubby." When Ray looked up at her, she quickly corrected herself, "in the picture." Some of you have had the joy of seeing this picture, but others will enjoy a fun treat when we return.

Now it is almost wednesday. Tomorrow is another day of work. The people I work with enjoy making a mess of the birthday girl/guy's desk to show their appreciation and I'm beginning to worry about what my desk will look like on Monday morning! I made sure Ray's boss knew about Ray's bday on Thursday, so hopefully they will do something special for him as well.

Happy Birthday Ray!!!

Well, I think that's all for now. Hope everyone else is doing well! Love and miss you all!

Restful weekend

Well, Australia continues to treat us well. The weather has been gorgeous this past week, and Ray and I were not complaining about only having four days of work last week. As normal, Ray and I hung out and watched a movie on Friday night. We wanted to go into Sydney on Saturday, but they kept talking about rain, so we slept in, and relaxed on Saturday. I went to the mall for a little while, and got my hair cut. Nothing crazy, just needed a trim. Only one person noticed my hair cut, so it was not very noticeable. Anyway, in the evening we tried a new restaurant called "Savannah's." It was very good. The food presentation was eloquent, and the staff was very friendly. Our waitress even asked for my facebook name! Ray enjoyed chicken, with a white creamy sweet sauce and I of course had steak. :)
Sunday afternoon we were invited to an aussie bbq with Julieanne and Eric (the couple we went to the hunter valley with). It was at their friends house. We sat outside all afternoon and soaked in the sun, and then once again had steak! What a great weekend! Lots of sleep and steak! We all then watched 'Australian Idol' and headed home. Once again, Julieanne told me I was being called a "spy" at work. She will not tell me who calls me that, but then again I will not tell her who said that she misses a day of work a week. :)
Ray continues to enjoy work, and has been very busy lately. My job continues to go the same-stuffing envelopes, writing up cancellations, charging people for patrols, checking on returned mail, handing out the mail, scanning, and filing. It's all VERY exciting! Haha!
Ray is currently missing hunting. He should be in a tree right now, but instead he is sitting in the living room, drinking a glass of wine, and watching T.V. He's pretty bummed out about it, but we are both looking forward to our "Green Island Resort" trip to the Great Barrier Reef on November 2! That is our birthday present to each other. Later in November my best friend comes to see us, and then Ray's parents come out at Christmas. We have a number of things to look forward to, which makes things like missing out on hunting, and missing our dog and family a little easier!
This next weekend we hope the weather will be more promising and we can go in the city. On Sunday afternoon we are going out for a dinner with another couple on the harbor of Sydney. I'm looking forward to that. It will be nice to hang out with another couple our age.
Good to talk to you most you again this weekend!

Northern beaches

This week Ray and I had the opportunity to drive up north about an hour and a half to the northern beaches. We were located near Lake Munmorah, near New Castle and Swansea. We had plans to visit Jervis Bay this weekend, but was told to go there a different weekend, when the weather was nicer. We were glad we changed our minds, because it rained all day Saturday, and was very cloudy on Sunday.
A woman at Amway offered us her friends cabin for the weekend, so we were thankful for somewhere to stay. We left Friday night, and made our way up north. We arrived around 9pm, to a dark house. I was a little nervous about the way the house looked from the outside, but I tried to keep an open mind. We went inside, and the woman was right, "It was nothing fancy." We just needed a place to stay for a few nights right? Well, we were checking out the bedrooms, and I sat on a bed that looked like it was about to collapse, and Ray yelled out, "Don't look now, cockroach!" Two cockroaches ran across the floor. We then decided we needed to turn all the lights on in the house to keep the cockroaches in the walls. I tried real hard to relax, but it was difficult. I'm not used to bugs crawling around in my living space.
Saturday we took a drive up the coast. It was hard to see anything since it was raining so hard. Ray and I were both disappointed by the weather. We headed back to the cabin, hoping that maybe the rain had broken up so that we could go fishing. Thankfully it did, and we could go beach fishing for a few hours before dark. Unfortunately, we did not catch anything but it was nice to be out. We were hoping not to have to spend any money on dinner that night, and had packed some chicken nuggets and fries to eat. But opening up the oven and having a cockroach crawl out of it, ended that meal real quick, and we headed out for pizza at the local restaurant. Over dinner, Ray and I decided we would go home on Sunday.
On Sunday, the woman from Denmark, came up to join us in our site seeing. It was still very cloudy outside, but the rain had stopped, so we were able to get a lot of pictures in, and see a lot of beautiful coast! We drove through a nature preserve, and walked a long some cliffs. We drove up to Swansea, and took pictures that Ray and I wanted to take on Saturday but could not because it was raining too hard. We had lunch at a motel, and did some more walking and driving. We then headed back to the cabin to pack up our things, and headed south to visit The Entrance and Terrigal. We were not able to spend much time here because it was beginning to get dark, but they were both places we could go back to and explore.
Monday this week, was NSW Labor day, so we had off of work. We were hoping to have had better weather, and stayed up north till now, but due to the weather and the bugs we relaxed at home today. We slept in, and caught up with family. It was so nice to talk to everyone again. Our time went ahead an hour this week, so we are now 15 hours behind MI and 16 hours behind Illinois. In a few weeks it will be 16 hours and 17 hours behind.
We visited Parklea Market today. It reminded me of Shipshewanna, but smaller. They had a few stores where we could buy cheap souvenirs. They also had clothing stores, paintings, jewelry, and fruits and vegetables. We did not have much time to spend there, so we will go back another time.
Nothing else is planned for this week ahead. We hope to go back into Sydney on Saturday, seeing that we have not been there since the second day we were here.
P.S I just read my blog entry to Ray and he chuckled and stated, "You were quite kind about the place we stayed at this weekend."

Featherdale Wildlife Park and the beach

Ray and I had another eventful weekend. On Saturday we went to the Featherdale Wildlife park in Blacktown, NSW. We were able to view just about every animal that inhabits Australia. Ray and I enjoyed looking at a variety of birds-big and small, multi-colored and plain brown. It's amazing still, the time God spent with each and every detail on one individual bird. And each bird had their own song to sing. I welcomed the noise yesterday because I was not trying to sleep! Ray loved watching the Tasmanian devil. No zoo in the U.S houses a Tasmanian Devil. What a funny creature. He knew exactly when feeding time was. He was running around, standing on its haunches, and looking around for who had the food.
There were a variety of Wallabies wondering around the park. You had the opportunity to pet and feed them. There were also a few smaller kangaroos that we also had the opportunity to pet. In the back of the park, were the larger Kangaroos that Ray and I saw when we were in the Hunter Valley. They also had Kangaroos from Kangaroo island.
Dingos were also a favorite of Ray's. For those who don't know, Dingos are basically like dogs, accept they do not bark and they only breed one time a year. But they are really friendly, and love to play, at least the domesticated ones do. :)
And we can't forgot the adorable Koala bears. Koala bears sleep anywhere between 18-20 hours a day and only get up to eat! We were able to pet a Koala, and hear their unique way of communication. It sounds like a mix between a snore and an asthma attack. Unfortunately, I know what both of those sound like, you are fortunate if you don't have a clue!
At the end of the day we spent some time in the souvenir shop buying more fun stuff for family and friends.
In the evening Ray and I enjoyed a new resturant, again down by Castle Towers. We sat outside, and enjoyed the pleasant evening. I of course had a beef steak and Creme brulee for dessert. Ray had a Chicken and Bacon pizza, and a beer for dessert. :)

Today-Sunday, Ray and I decided that we would head to the beach again since it was going to be quite warm out. On our way we tried a new church. It was actually a Christian Reformed Church of mainly South African's. The church was very small, and every knew we were visiting. The service was not anything to get excited about, but Ray enjoyed it much more than Hillsong. After church we headed to Manly Beach. The coast again was gorgeous, and the beach was crawling with surfers! We ate some lunch, then went and laid on the beach. The water was freezing, but eventually felt refreshing once we got used to it. After we took a nice walk along the beach, the wind really picked up and sand was blowing all over. We decided to pack up our things and head home.

We are home now, and Ray just finished getting dinner ready-rice and dumplings. So, I'm going to go eat! I hope everyone had a great weekend and a great week ahead!

Today at work

The very first day Ray and I arrived in Australia, we went on a tour of Amway Australia. While we were walking down the Watch 24 hallway Ray asked the HR representative to confirm that Watch 24 was going away. The HR person turned around in shock and put his finger to his mouth for Ray to hush up. No one knew that Amway was looking to sell Watch 24. The only thing that the employers knew was that W24 was under review. When I got hired in I signed a contract for 3 months, with the idea that no one knew what was going to happen in the future. I was told that I needed to keep it a secret till September 23.
On Saturday when we were at our friends for dinner, I thought it was funny to find out that people within the W24 business thought I was hired in as a spy. I was even called "the spy"- behind my back of course. Obviously, I was no such thing, I just had inside sources-Ray.
Well, today the annoucement was made that W24 is going away. It was a sad day for many. The office was quiet, and many contemplated where their life was heading now. I know this was a difficult choice for Amway as well because they do not like to be put in this position where employees no longer have jobs. They are going to their best though to find other work within the Amway community, so hopefully not too many people will be left jobless. W24 was not producing the figures that they had hoped, and so they needed to make a business decision.
The good news for Ray and I is that my contract has been extended to the end of January, so I will have work up until the time that I go. I will be busy scanning and filing for the next months to come!!!! Brainless work...
Ray continues to stay busy with work. The other day we were driving home from work and he states, "Janell, I love my job!" He has definitely found his nitch here in Australia. I think he dreads (may be too strong of a word, but) the idea of going back to Ada where he is no longer the manager of things, but merely the "data analyst." He enjoys being at the core of things, and meeting with the big kahunas...like the CEO, and the head man of the Atlas project (Huge global project) to name a couple. Ray seems to have the respect of many around the office, and seems to be doing a good job at easing people into the change that is taking place.
Just wanted to make a special "Shout-out" to the September birthdays!!!
Happy Birthday Grandma and Grandpa Prins, Cole DeJonge, Mom Frens, and Eric!!! We love and miss you guys, and hope you had wonderful birthdays!

Dictionary of Australian words translated to U.S.A:

"There are some really great bush walks!" Australian
"There are some really great forest walks!" U.S.A

"I love fairy floss!" Australian
"I love cotton candy!" U.S.A

"Do you have a texter?" Australian
"Do you have a marker? U.S.A

"Would you like some lollies?" Australian
"Would you like some candy?" U.S.A

"If you drive west a few hours, you will find many wheat paddocks." Australian
"If you drive west a few hours, you will find many wheat fields." U.S.A

"Call the fire brigade!!!" Australian
"Call the fire department!!!" U.S.A

"I put an order in for a smokie to be installed." Australian
"I put an order in for a smoke alarm to be installed." U.S.A

A few phrases heard often:
"No worries!"
"Not a drama."

Weekend-dinner w/ friends/fishing

Well, Ray and I had another great weekend, along with great company. On Friday night we did not do much, but stay at home and relax on the couch watching Showtime movies. On Saturday during the day it was really hot again. It reached 93 degrees. There was a nice breeze which helped a lot. Ray and I were invited to Julie-Anne's and Eric's house for dinner, and I was to bring dessert. So, Ray and I got up on-time, and I ran to the mall a couple of times to buy stuff to make dessert for after dinner. I made cream puffs from a mix. They were actually really good. I think I will be buying more cream puffs from a box! (Not as good as Jackie's homemade Cream puffs though!) The rest of the day I sat outside and read a book, and Ray hung around and chilled. We then headed out for dinner. We had such a fun time. We stayed out too late though, for our 5:30am wake-up call on Sunday.
Today we got up on time, despite feeling exhausted, and a man from work-Rino, came and picked us up to go fishing for the morning. Ray and I throughly enjoyed ourselves. We had blue skies, sun, and about 75 degrees out. We began on a river, that opened up to the ocean. We began reef fishing, catching a variety of fish. Ray was not feeling too well out at sea, and so we tried to move inland a bit where the swells would be smaller, but even that did not help much. But there we caught another species of fish called a flathead. We mainly caught those and leatherjackets. We then moved again, and took a nice long boat ride up and down the river.
The views around the ocean were spectacular. Ray and I were both so bummed that we forgot our camera!!! (Our minds don't function as well at 5:30am).
We arrived home around 2:30pm and took a nap. :) Now, I am going to go get ready for bed and get to bed on-time so that tomorrow will be a little easier for me!

Work at Amway

Well, I am again apart of the working world after three weeks of doing nothing but grochery shopping, cooking dinner, making muffins, and playing on the internet.
I have five days under my belt. I work with Watch 24 security system, which is owned by Amway. I have spent the week learning about Watch 24, and what everyone's job roles entail to keep the system going. My role there is going to be writing up cancellations, filing, some data entry, billing patrol calls, sorting and delivering the mail to people within the department, sorting faxes that come in, and the fun role of scanning documents into the computer.
This is a nice job to have for now, it is definitely something I do not want to do forever, but it works for now. The people that I work with are very kind. They made me feel welcomed right away. The people who answer the phones for customer service help are all around my age, a few years older maybe, so that has been fun getting to know them. Then there seems to be a large gap in age, and the others are much older in their 50s maybe (just kidding, 50 is so young). :)I
Sometimes I feel like I am being talked to as if I were a child, and that I do not understand the computer system, but Ray keeps reminding me that they are not used to having masters level people work for them, and that it is probably not personal. Overall, the job is going fine and the day seems to go by fast-a lot faster than it did anyway.

Hunter Valley

Yesterday, bright and early, we headed up to Hunter Valley Wineries with a few people from work. We took the scenic route there, crossing the Hawthrone river on a car ferry. The ride there took about three hours, but it was really nice. On the way home it only took about and hour and half, since we took the highway home. We had a random hot day of 90 degrees, but there was blue sky, sun, and a slight breeze.

We had an enjoyable time sipping on different types of wine, and joking around with friends. There are over a hundred wineries available to visit, overlooking fields of bare grapevines at the moment. Don't worry we did not even come close to visiting 100 wineries! :) One of the couples are members of three different wineries, which allowed us to buy wine at member prices, and at one place (Peppertree) we were able to have a private tasting in a setting that was all to ourselves. This time was very relaxing, with great company.

In the midst of the wine tasting, we also visited the BlueTongue Brewery and tried a taste of six different types of beer. Ray really enjoyed this part of the day.

Each winery was a bit different than the next, all claiming that they do something different with their wine. At the Gartelmann's, there was a gentleman there named York, who walked us through each type of wine available, and explained how each one was made. He was a talker, and caused us to be late for our last appointment at Blueberry Hill. All of the wineries close at 5pm, and we past the man on the road who owned Blueberry Hill. This man (John) was kind enough to come back, and share his wine with us. Throughout the day Ray and I picked up a few of our favorites, and we headed off to a nice dinner at "Shakey Tables."

Ray and I were excited to see our first live kangeroo! We actually saw at least a dozen of them. It was pretty neat seeing them in the wild. We really felt like tourists then! Unfortunely, our camera went dead so we did not get any good pictures! Maybe next time.

Australia rules football-AFL

HAPPY FATHER's DAY!!! (in Australia)

On Saturday night, Ray and I had a treat. We enjoyed an Australian Rules football game at Olympic Park, where they held the 2000 Olympics. Amway has season box tickets, so we had free drinks and food all evening, with great company. We were actually hanging out with the "big guys" from Amway. The new CEO of Australia/New Zealand was there, as well as the gentleman right below the CEO. The Sydney Swans played against the Malbourne Kangaroos in a single elimination match towards the finals. This game was a mix between hot potatoe and American football. Once Ray and I caught onto the rules of the game, it was very entertaining to watch. The men were out there tackling each other with no padding. According to the fans the injuries can get quite bloody at times. We watched "Big, Bad Barry" literally take people out to win his chances at a "mark" (when the player catches the ball after it has been kicked by their teammate, they have a free kick to try and score between the four posts). If a player kicks the ball between the middle two posts, the team gets 6 points. If the ball misses and goes through the side posts, the team scrores 1 point. The Swans started out slow, but gave us some great entertainment in the 3rd and 4th quarters. The Sydney Swans won, 110-75.

Today was Father's Day here in Australia. Ray and I were invited to a delicious BBQ at a woman's house who works for Amway's human resource department. There were five small dogs there, so Ray and I got our dog fix for awhile. The food was delicious! We had lamb, chicken, and sausage grilled on skewers, and some side salads. For dessert we had homemade cheesecake and an apple dessert, along with a fruit salad. The fruit here is very tasty! The green grapes are very sweet!

We have had one weekend now where Ray and I have sat back and relaxed, otherwise our weekends have been full of adventure and we are enjoying the people and the activities. Everyone is so kind and very welcoming.

I start my new job tomorrow. I am ready to see what I will be doing exactly, and will be anxious to have every day tasks that I can come in and just do without having to ask too many questions. In a few days I will be sure to write again and let you know how it is going, and what I'm doing!

Next weekend we have plans to go to Hunter Valley all day on Saturday. We are hoping to see some wild, Kangaroo, that are actually alive, finally.

A little change in plans...

On Tuesday, I wrote to you all thinking I was going to have a babysitting job during the duration of my stay here in Australia. Well, on Wednesday Ray came home for lunch, and told me I needed to "get ready, because I had an interview at 1:30pm." I was a bit confused, but Amway is extremely busy right now, and has a lot of extra work laying around for someone to do, and they offered me a full-time job there. I decided to take this opportunity and run with it, because the logistics of it all makes sense. I will be able to ride to and from work with Ray, and there will be no long commute or tolls to pay. I felt terrible yesterday afternoon having to call Nina, the mother, and tell her that I have changed my mind. She understood, but was really disappointed. I am sure she will be able to find someone new, seeing that she still has three more weeks before she returns to work. The Amway job just made sense to Ray and I, so I took it. I start on Monday doing administration work, and other odds and ends. That is what's new with us. Hope all is well in the states! Miss you all!

August 31, 2008-The coastal walk-way

It's Tuesday right now, at 2:30pm in the afternoon. I have found baking to be a nice past-time-having made chocolate chip cookies and fresh blueberry muffins. I'm sitting on the couch enjoying a cup of coffee and a blueberry muffin that just came out of the oven.

On Sunday, I had an appointment to meet with another woman about babysitting. She lives on the coast in Malabar, and has a beautiful view of the ocean from her living room. Her baby is 15 weeks old, and was very cute. This woman was interviewing one other girl either on Monday or today (Tuesday), and said she would let me know after that. We are both concerned about the long drive (about 40 minutes). I think if this other girl will accept less money, and lives closer she will get the job. Otherwise, I think the woman likes me, and apparently I have some wonderful references out there (thank you so much!!!). So, today I am once again home by myself, talking to myself (which began last week), and waiting to hear back from either one of the women who interviewed me.

Ray and I just booked a short vacation to the Great Barrier Reef for November 2-5th. We are both excited, and we seem to have gotten a pretty good deal. We are staying on Green Island, with breakfast every morning, and a snorkeling tour of the Reef itself. I may enjoy the beauty from inside the boat, while Ray swims about and encourages me to come in, as his leg is being eaten by a shark. :) We shall see if I am feeling brave that day. It's crazy to think that while you guys will be wearing your winter coats by then, I will be in a bathing suit on the other side of the world, and not JUST for that weekend either. I have a nice pool right outside my balcony to lay out by. :) It's only getting warmer here.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed hearing from my better half. He has taken on quite the responsibility down here, and I'm very proud of him. I think he will do an excellent job, but not too good of a job so they don't keep tacking on more months to stay down here. I was warned actually, once I arrived here, that no one has ever left Amway Australia, that once here, your here for a VERY long, long time. Hmm...

Well, Ray told you about our day in the mountains, and since we were near the coast on Sunday, Nina (the woman with the child) suggested we head to Coogee, a small upbeat town on the coast about 10 minutes from her house. Along the way we stopped at Maroubra Beach where many people like to go surfing. We made it to Coogee, and decided to eat brunch. There were little restaurants everywhere. We picked the busiest one, thinking they probably had really good food. And they did. I enjoyed blueberry pancakes and Ray had an "open sandwich," with avocado, lettuce, tomato, ham, bacon, and some other goodies on it.

We walked up and down the streets there for awhile, excited to find a cheap souvenir shop. We were going to start trying to find our way back to Castle Hill, so we stopped a bus driver to ask for directions. The bus driver recommended the coastal walk to Bondi Beach (the most popular beach in Sydney), said it was only a 30 minute walk. After Ray practiced his non-existent Australian accent with the bus driver, and I laughed hysterically at him, we decided to go on the walk, thinking it would be a nice, relaxing thing to do on a Sunday afternoon. What we did not realize was that the walk went up and down hills and there were more steps. The walk was much longer than 30 minutes as well. We felt like we were sent on a wild goose chase. In this picture you see Bondi beach off in the distance-we didn't make it. Despite not making it, the walk was beautiful, with crystal clear water. Ray and I definitely got our exercise this weekend.

No plans yet for this coming weekend. But we will write again soon. I am going to see about uploading more pictures to the site, so you can view all of our pictures that we are taking, not just these select few. I'll let you know so enough.

Also, Nina, the woman I interviewed with on Sunday, just called me a few minutes ago and offered me the babysitting job. So, I have something to do for two-three days a week and a little extra cash coming in. I will probably still keep looking for maybe one other babysitting job as well, or hope Amway needs some extra help, but I am thankful for this job, and thank you for your thoughts and prayers on this matter.