Getting Settled....

When we first landed in Sydney it was cloudy and raining.  I honestly didn't think much about it because it of course rains sometimes, but we were going up to Brisbane, Queensland which is known as the "Sunshine State".  I, of course, had been before and I knew that it lived up to it's name.  So when we got to Brisbane and it was cloudy, I still didn't think much about it.  I was incredibly tired, I was incredibly happy and I was ready to enjoy my family, my surroundings and hopefully take a nap. 

I had wondered how Emmaline was going to get along with my cousin's three girls.  I didn't need to worry at all!!!  Our plane came end at the far end of the terminal and by the time we arrived in baggage claim, Emmaline and Sophia were holding hands and had pronounced that they were going to be "Best Friends Forever!".  I didn't get a picture of them holding hands, but I did manage to snap this one of them while we were waiting for our bags with my cell phone.

I really wish I had thought to have my camera out when we first got to the airport.  I expected my Aunt Elaine to be there, I expected my cousin Caroline to be there.  I didn't expect to be greeted by two of her girls, Abbey and Sophia and I certainly didn't expect my cousin Daniel to be there with his fiance Elizabeth.  It was wonderful to see everyone!!!  We sent Emmaline with Elaine, Caroline and the girls....Steven and I along with our bags rode with Daniel and Elizabeth and my parents went to pick up the rental car.  I remembered Daniel's driving from the last time we were there.  I sure am glad he has grown up and slowed down :-)

We got to my aunts house, unpacked and settled in.  Finally, Emmaline just couldn't take it anymore and had to take a little nap.....I took it with her.  We got up, ate some dinner with the entire family and we all crashed!  That is until Emma decided to get up at 3:30 in the morning.  But it was all good!!!  We were in Austrailia and we were on vacation.

We got up the next morning.........and it was raining......and forcasted to rain all day.  C'est la vie!!  We finally got ourselves motivated and out of the house.  I love to shop, Caroline loves to shop, so we headed over to a local shopping center to eat some lunch and of course....do some shopping.  I started off with a beautiful iced coffee.....

and then we headed off to do some exploring and find some lunch.  They did have a "Macca's" (Aussie for McDonald's), so Emmaline was happy.  Steven and I had  mixed grill Kebab...YUM!!

Caroline introduced me to The Pumkin Patch.  I loved it!!!  We got Emmaline and Sophia coordinating outfits to wear to church on Sunday.  We don't have a store near us, but I will definately be ordering online :-) Of course, since their seasons are opposite ours, the US website doesn't have the same things that the OZ store has.

Here is Emma and Sophie in their cute outfits.

This is Daniel and Elizabeth.  They look pretty calm and relaxed for two people about to get married in a few days, don't they?  Trust me, it was an illusion :-)

The girls spent a lot of time playing games indoors.  Since it rained so much our first few days, along with some of us getting sick with the "Crud", we spent a lot of time inside.  This gave us a chance to visit and the girls really got close.  Elise (on the right of Emmaline) had to go to school each day, but she looked forward to coming and getting into plenty of mischief with the rest of them each afternoon.

Stay tuned....there is more to come.....