Climbing to New Heights in Sydney, Australia!

Coming off the high of watching the Diamondbacks open the season in Australia was tough, but we were certain we could find SOMETHING to take our minds off it. We were in Sydney, Australia after all. Our next stop was the Sydney Harbour Bridge Climb. D-Man wasn't old enough to participate yet (something silly about safety standards I guess, we don't encounter much of that thing in Indonesia), so he and I set off exploring a little of the Bridge itself while everyone else prepared to climb! D and I happened to time it just right and were the bridge pylon just as everyone was starting their climb.  We managed to get some pictures of them heading up the bridge!

After the Bridge Climb, it was time for lunch at the Harbour View Hotel. We enjoyed listening to the rain (perfect timing since the weather waited until we were all off the top of the bridge!). It was nice to sit and relax.  This is also where we learned that baby kangaroos (Joeys) can fly!

Our next stop was the Sydney Oprah House.  Although they won't admit it, everyone agreed to the Oprah House tour just to humor me. It was well worth it. If you don't know the story behind the building of the Oprah House, it's amazing. We all had fun learning a little more about the history and struggles behind the building as well as getting to see the amazing venues inside.

From the Sydney Oprah House we headed to McMahon's Point. This is more of a local area and it was so much fun. The views of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Oprah house were amazing. We had a great time walking along the quiet street, admiring the homes, and window shopping. We stopped for dinner, hang-man, and the biggest ice cream brownie sundae you've ever seen (good thing we got two!).

The perfect end to another wonderful day in Sydney!

A Tough Lesson in Expat Life

We just finished up our 2nd school year in Jakarta and I'm sad. I'm still learning so much about Expat life and my newest lesson is that June sucks. Although, we are so excited to head to America this summer (and we have some super fun things planned during that time), we leave here knowing that some of the best friends we have made, won't be here when we get back. Most Expats typically stay in one place for 2-3 years before moving on to another grand adventure. New people are always coming into our little Expat community, but this means people are always leaving too. Friendships are forged quickly; And we rely heavily on these friendships. We are all in this adventure together and bond quickly over shared frustrations and triumphs. Text messages to let everyone know that milk is back at the grocery store become the norm. We've had friends move away over the past two years, but this June we are being hit particularly hard. Our "first" friends are moving back to the states; And several other great families are off on new adventures as well. It will be hard to come back in August. We will be excited to meet the new families coming in, but several families that hold a special place in our hearts will no longer be in Jakarta. We wish them all the best and look forward to meeting up with them again (Plus, we now have an excuse to visit places like Jay, Florida and Kobe, Japan). But in the meantime, we need to find someone new to text when milk is back at the grocery store!