Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas!!!!


We spend the holiday with my Mom & Dad. As usual the girls got way too much stuff. Santa was really good to them this year. He brought Allie a Powerwing scooter, Emily a Rip Stick and Amanda a Lomography Camera.

Instead of giving each other a lot of small stuff David and I got the family an Ocean Kayak. It was really hard to keep it hidden from the girls but we did it. It will be great to use at the beach or just camping around here. We spent the morning opening gifts and playing outside.

Having Christmas "poppers" complete with paper hats has become a tradition with us.

Even Grandpa gave the new Powerwing a try.

Amanda made a drawing of David and Ashley as a gift for David. It took her about a week to do it and it turned out really good. She is quite an artist.

We left Mom & Dad's the day after Christmas and went to Lake Georgetown for a few days of camping. The weather was a bit cold but we had a good time.

Allie & David took the new Kayak for a trial run on Lake Georgetown

Hope you and yours had a wonderful holiday!!

Who is watching us????

We seem to have a few followers of our blog from around the globe. David and I thought it would be fun for everyone to "meet"....

We would like to post photos of our friends and family who view the blog.

If you would like to send a photo to place on the blog please do so. I will only use your first name(s) and general location....

Please send your photos to me at Sharonanderson1969@gmail.com

Crazy Days....

I have been frantic since returning home from Australia. I realized on Friday, Dec 12th, when my “vacation fog” cleared, that I had done literally NO Christmas shopping. So since then I have been a woman on a mission… I have used ever spare minute between meetings, picking up the kids & swim practice to purchase gifts. As of today I am just about completely done – Thank goodness!!!!!!! Now I just need to get it all wrapped and hidden before Tuesday when we head to my parents house.

Allie had her Christmas party on Thursday and David & I both got to go celebrate with her. She was very excited that I was there on my birthday.

They had a book exchange, made gingerbread houses and ate lots of snacks. Way too much candy for one day!

Our trip home

We spent a few hours in LA on our way home. We rented a car and drove around to see a few sights. David took me to see the famous Venice Beach. It was nothing like I expected. There were guys working out which I expected, but it was very dirty and a little scary. I did not feel very safe walking down the street. There were a lot of panhandlers and homeless people sleeping all over the place. It was definitely and experience!

We drove up to Santa Monica and watched the sun set from the famous boardwalk. The carrousel and roller coaster were closed for the winter but the farris wheel was running. After a lot of begging I got David on for one ride with me! He is a big chicken ya know. I don’t think it was too bad for him though.

The next morning we headed to the airport for the final leg of our journey home. My Mom and the girls met us at the airport with flowers and the biggest hugs you have ever seen. They definitely missed us as much as we missed them!

Goodbye to Fish-N'-Chips

Ok I am a little late with this one... Our last day in Australia was the 10th.


David wanted fish-n-chips for his last meal in Australia so we all went to Sampson Fish-N-Chips at Raby Bay for dinner. After stuffing ourselves with tons of fish we took one last "family photo".

David & I eating "fish & Chips"


Mark holding Abby, Jannene, Ashley taking a nap, David, Dawn & Sam

Last few days in OZ

After getting back from Noosa we only had a few days left before heading back to the old US of A. We spent a lot of time just hanging out with David's family and doing the last bit of souvenir shopping.

Here are some random photos of our trip.








David at Caloundra beach - A very beautiful place.







A rare shot of Georjia as she is actually smiling. She is such a cutie pie.

We ran into "Puff the Magic Dragon" on the beach in Noosa. After we got past the robbery Noosa was actually not such a bad place. The sand sculpture was really good and the man completed it only about 2 1/2 hours.

The wildlife has been very cooperative for David. He had been able to get some great shots while we have been here.









Sam & Dawn pic-nic-ing at Wellington Point.



Tony & Renee at "Breaky Creek" Restaurant & Pub.

Jannene and two "Ruddy" little girls! :)

Ashley being her true self... David wanted to take her home...She is so adorable!

A "true" family photo of Mark, Jannene, Abby & Ashley.... I don't miss those days!

A real Australian surfer..... I am sure he would love to have this photo but he would not come out of the water so David could get his e-mail address!

Rude awakening in Noosa

When we woke our first day in Noosa it looked like it was going to be a beautiful, hot day. That was until David shouted “Sharon, we’ve been robbed!” Of course I did not believe him until I saw the sliding door standing wide open.

We had in fact been robbed!

Evidentially there is someone breaking into apartments up and down the street we were staying on. A small detail that would have been nice to know when we checked in!

The little creep went right for David’s wallet and took off with all the cash. He tossed our credit cards & ID’s out the backdoor on his way out. Both the camera and computers were there along with a TV, VCR etc… and all that was taken was cash. The police said they only take cash for drugs and have not had anything else reported missing.

The scary bit is that David & I were upstairs sleeping at the time!!!! Needless to say, our three days in Noosa were not the relaxing getaway that we were hoping for.

Dusting for prints

Soak in the sun

Finally the sun came out!!!!!!

We were quick to take advantage of it - Yesterday we grabbed a "chicken and chips" from Red Rooster and headed to Bribie Island Beach to catch some rays. The sun felt wonderful and we actually got a little red.... I was beginning to think I was going to come home whiter than when I arrived!

Me pretending to be a model

Today was another beautiful day. After a quick trip to the gym it was off to Wellington Point for a BBQ and some playing in the water.

Abby, Da (Sam), Ashlee & Jannene

After the BBQ David and I headed downtown Brisbane to take some skyline photos of the city. We found Mt Coot-thra, a nice overlook of the city. After sunset we hit a few spots around the Story Bridge for some night shots. We had a nice dinner at the Pig & Whistle English Pub and then headed to Kangaroo Point for a few more photos.

Even the animals took advantage of the great weather. We saw a kangaroo yesterday & a koala today. Both in the wild - which you don't see that often unless you are lucky.

Big Bertha

Most of the noise-reduction cement walls that run between the highways and residential areas here are painted with scenery or decorative art. The wall along Old Cleaveland Rd has photos of children painted on it. When the girls were here they found a humorous photo and nick-named it "Big Bertha".... They wanted us to take photo for a good laugh....Here it is.........

Big Bertha

Ashlee's day

Last Sunday was Ashlee's Christening.

Jannene & Mark had a celebration lunch afterwards for family & friends. I made spinach dip & strawberry spinach salad for everyone to try. At first people were a little leery but soon both were a HUGE hit. I had about 5 requests for recipes and there was nothing left of either dish.