Finally--Australia!

Okay all, I am really sorry that I haven't kept up very well on this. Well, as most of you know, I went to Australia for three weeks during March. As you can imagine, it was absolutely amazing! The weather was perfect. It was so nice to be able to wear shorts every day! It was also so great to be able to see Miriam, Judd, and the kids--I can't even tell you how much fun it was to spend so much time with family.

So, as it is almost impossible to give you a complete rundown of everything that happened, here are some highlights:

- Camping on Fraser Island--we were only there two days, but it was amazing. I had the opportunity to drive on the beach, which was a totally awesome experience. We did a little bit of hiking, and spent most of our time just enjoying the scenery. The whole inner area of the island is rainforest, with amazing lakes and sand dunes mixed in throughout. It was stunningly beautiful and an overall excellent time.

- Visiting the beaches--Miriam and Judd live about a three minute walk from the beach. As such, all of the surrounding areas also have lots of surf and sand. We had the opportunity to visit quite a few. Looking back, one of my favorite things was the names of the different places: Mudjimba (which is where Miriam and the fam lives), Mooloolaba, Coollum, Maroochydore, and Noosa. Overall, the sand was amazing and the water was perfect. It was so much fun hanging out in the sun.

- Hanging out with fam--it had almost been a year since we had seen Judd, Miriam, Jayden, Josh, Zoey, and Elle. While Miriam and Judd had not changed too much, the kids had grown a ton. For the first two weeks, the twins wanted nothing to do with us (they would usually grunt, cry, and shake their fists if we got too near). Jayden and Josh responded much better, as they could actually remember who we were. By the end of the three weeks, we were all getting along so well, which made it that much harder when it was time to leave. It really was great, being able to hang out and see the changes that have occurred over the last year.

- Learning to surf--three days before I was supposed to return home, Judd took the time to take me out in the waves to let me try my hand at surfing. First off, it looks a lot easier than it really is. Second off, it is absolutely exhausting. Trying to get out to where the waves break was really a challenge for me (trying to stand up on the board was no cake walk either). Anyways, when all is said and done, I absolutely loved it. Overall, I was in the water for just over two hours (over a two day period). On the last run before it was time to head in, I actually did manage to stand up for a split second--it was amazing! I can't wait to try again next time I head down under.

Well, there is a quick run down. Other things that I really enjoyed were feeding the kangaroos and seeing koalas, early morning walks on the beach, getting the best tan of my life (which has now totally faded), going to Brisbane (especially seeing South Bank), and just getting away from life for awhile (it was so nice to miss that much school). It was truly a great experience--I would go back in a heart beat. I definitely had the time of my life.

*Pictures to come the next time I am in Cache Valley!