Cheers to the Simple Things & Happy Easter

The Easter bunny has been quite busy between the states and Australia. We woke up today to birds chirping, a sunny day and great coffee.

But, what about the bunny himself? Well, in Australia the bunny that the US knows, is not a popular one because of the damage they do to the land.

The prefered celebrant is the bilby. In 1991 a campaign was started by the Anti-Rabbit Research Foundation to replace the Easter Bunny with the Easter bilby (an endangered species by the way).

Other traditions? Hot cross buns (sweet spiced bun), pancake day (or shrove tuesday, last day before lent), Sydney Royal Easter Show (little Matthew had a really fun time), and the best of all, a 4 day weekend!

The holiday time here is really something the US could learn from! Kids go to school year round but have 4 big breaks. Anyway, Nick's uncle and his 2 little girls flew in last night so we are enjoying the last few days with them.

The simple pleasures? We did some great shopping yesterday and I witnessed the best exchange of happiness that I wanted to share. We were in a department store that had a wonderful pianist playing so we took a minute to sit down and listen.

As we are listening and looking at all our purchase options, an elderly lady walking with a cane scoots herself up to the pianist. She puts her arm around the pianist, smiles, and starts digging in her pocket for what we assumed would be money.

As we were "assuming", out comes 2 chocolate lady bugs which get sat on the top of the piano and are followed with a hug and kiss by the elderly lady. She tells the pianist how good her music was and they both smiled. Out of all the fabulous things you could buy in this store that was something that no amount of money could have bought!

I have also discovered one other simple thing. The addresses here are so easy. If you have 6 houses on a street, your number will be 1, 2, 3, etc. Ever wonder why the US houses are 4 numbers and aren't really relevant? I'm sure there is a logical reason but it's not simple or obvious. :)

Well, more later! Enjoy your bunnies, bilby's and chocolate today. We are on the road to the US tomorrow (mid-day monday or sunday US time). So, lots more stories to follow! All the best to you & yours today.

Love,
Jen

Back to Syndey We Go

G'day all. We are at the airport heading back to Sydney for the weekend. I have to say this is about the quickest security ever. They had more questions about Fred & Ginger themselves vs. whether or not I was carrying anything. :)

Hanging out in Kingscliff has been such a great time and met fun people. Walking on the beach has been a bit interesting.

If you ever need a really hard workout, grab prosthetics and start walking.

It feels like your in quicksand but you soon get your strategy. It has made me focus on everything around me as my surroundings have changed so much.

The overall experience with my challenges hasn't been bad at all. The only situation I can say was tough was trying to give a "peace" sign in a photo. I just had to smile and think it in my head.

One interesting bit though, is that most of the disabled bathrooms have been more difficult to access than the non-disabled. The locks are much easier in the non. Strange, huh?

While I'm comparing things, what about the coffee? It's a whole different concept with different terminology here. I have yet to find creamer besides milk! And what about just a "drip", is that a long black or a short/long white? It's been fun. Nick and I are going broke just on coffee, ha!

Well, more comparisons later. Just realized we are starting to board. Have a great day!

Love,
Jen