Christmas in Australia

Christmas Holidays to Australia

We were so excited to be spending our three week Christmas holidays in Australia.  When booking our flights, Paul is always sure to make the most of our holiday, so we left Friday night after the last day of school and came back the Sunday before school started.  I always think it's crazy, but after all is said and done, I think "why not?"  We make the most of what we've been given.

Please enjoy a glimpse into our amazing visit Down Under through our photos.

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We had the privilege of visiting with two of my cousins and their families while in Australia.  We experienced a lot of things over the three weeks, but visiting with family remained one of our favourite memories of the entire trip.  We began our trip with them and enjoyed Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with family.  What a blessing!

Enjoying a Day in King's Park, Perth

Driving to Bussleton

While staying with one cousin at their house, my other cousin and their family set up camp nearby, making it easy to visit with each other.

Beach Day

Wine Tour

Paul and I were gifted with a Wine Tour in the Margaret River area by my cousins.  Such a beautiful area and a really amazing day, especially with no kids in tow.

Boys Hike

Christmas Eve

Working in the kitchen together, although, I can't take credit for the amazing food these girls prepared.

Christmas Day at the Beach

Brotherly Love

Special father-daughter beach hike.

Family Fun

Last evening all together before we left for our road trip.

What a gift it was to be able to spend time with these two families; to laugh with them, to celebrate with them, to get to know them better and create special memories with them.  I want to say a special thank you to Sara and Brendon and their beautiful children, and to Krista and Will and their adorable girls, for hosting us and treating us so well during our stay with them.  You guys went over and above to make our time with you very special indeed.

Road Trip
On our way to Northcliffe, our first campsite:

 Hamelin Bay

RedGate Beach

First Day in Northcliffe:
Bicentennial Tree (75m climb)

Big Brook Dam

Northcliffe Campsite: Roundtuit 

The Dunes
One of our most favourite days.  What beauty!

Our fearless leader!  

It was awesome to be able to borrow camping supplies for our trip.  Unfortunately a fly was not packed in with the tent so we improvised with a small tarp on our first rainy day.  It did the job for this day!

Windy Harbour and Salmon Beach

On to Walpole

Knoll Hill Drive Picnic Area and Hilltop Giant Tingle Trees

 Circular Pool

New Years Eve in Walpole

  

Fish and Chips for New Years Eve Dinner at the Hostel

Conspicuous Cliffs and Peaceful Bay
On Day 2 in Walpole we drove to a couple of beautiful beaches.  It was much too windy and cool to be swimming, but it did not stop us from enjoying this part of the world.

More Tingle Trees

Instead of trying to shove all our pictures into one blog, I decided it would be best to do this trip in two parts.  Please enjoy these, but don't miss out on the last part of our experience in beautiful Australia in the next blog.