Gas, Petrol, and Vegemite

As far as winters go, it is not viciously cold here. The highs are usually around 50-54 degrees (10-13C). The deception is that you expect to just be cold OUTSIDE, not inside. I keep my house at 72 degrees (about 22C). When the Aussies come in they immediately say, "Oh! It's warm in here!" I mean, some people might keep their thermostats cooler, say 68, but I found it interesting that they immediately recognize there is a warmth here that is unexpected for them. I got nervous that I was going to have an astronomical heat bill so I tried turning the heat down to where the locals keep it, which is between 61-64 (16-18C). Freezing. And if you refer back to the top you'll notice it isn't much different than outdoor temps.

Uh, I decided that I can't sit huddled on the couch in a coat and blanket. I have things to do, and sitting motionless like a cold-blooded reptile is not what I came here to do. So I guess my first splurge in Australia is indoor heat. Sheesh. I have turned the heat down a bit and bought a hooded sweatshirt with a pocket. I think I'll be wearing it for 6 weeks straight. Not sure what to do about church. I brought one pair of gray flats, and the rest were lightweight sandals that I could wear with all the pretty floral short sleeve dresses I brought. All of that was meant to be versatile and lightweight since we were traveling light. But I wear the one cardigan I have with a long sleeve t-shirt under it and wrap my coat around my legs. No sandals. I look very drab.

Cold weather + no school = Christmas to the kids. They just hit some weird time warp going straight from summer to winter and starting breaking out into Christmas tunes. Whatever makes them happy.

Speaking of gas, I had to fill up the van the other day. It was the kind where you pull up to the octane selection you want, pump your gas, and then walk inside to pay. They do have some stations with the pay-at-the-pump option but it seems to be about an equal mix. The price is in liters, and it isn't called gas, it's called petrol.

And while we are talking about things with fumes, I will leave you with a video of the kids trying vegemite. Did they like it? They heard how to do it right from Hugh Jackman so they felt confident enough to try it. Karly gained enough confidence to seek out this candy bar for Allen's birthday. It tasted like salted caramel. 

Revelations of Scarcity

I want to start by saying we are doing just fine. We have what we need. If we don't, we have a car and we go to the store and get it. But there is still a level of scarcity in the way we are living. I think more carefully about making a purchase because I know I'll be giving it away in 11 months so I consider how much I'll REALLY need it in the meantime. We can usually get by with what we have. I don't have a crockpot, so I'll put a pot on low heat in the oven. We don't have drawers, but we don't have many clothes. We don't have a recycling container, but the microwave box is doing a fine job.

You know how you learn a lot about a person's character by the way they react to a computer malfunction? In the same way, this scarcity brings out some interesting aspects to a person that you might otherwise not see.

RAGE
"What happened to the rubberband that came on that package of clothes hangers? I swear, there was a rubberband. WHO THREW AWAY THAT RUBBERBAND?!" And the biggest loss--on our overnight flight to Sydney, Delta supplied each of us with simple red blankets. Only three of us saved them. I still wish I had the other four. I could have covered one of the sofas with them. And they are just the right thickness to add a little warmth for moments like right now when it's nighttime and I'm sitting here typing. I'm still not over the loss.

UNDERSTANDING
I found myself scouring through the kitchen trash for the lid of a frosting container that someone had thrown away. I knew that container would be super useful for leftovers in the the coming months so I really wanted it! Allen saw me digging in the garbage (Aussie = "rubbish"). And here's the thing: he knew exactly what I was looking for and didn't think I was weird. Didn't find the lid but we bonded a little more that day.

HOARDING
I bought a pack of 6 pineapple cans at Costco. I made pizza tonight and I knew the kids would want pineapple to go with the ham I was putting on it. But I had wanted to save it for things like sweet and sour chicken, or pineapple chicken, so I didn't want to put pineapple on the pizza. I knew the kids would groan and beg me to do it. And I was having this stupid battle inside my head about it. I realized pineapple is what they wanted on the pizza, and I have it, so just USE IT.

STUPIDITY
I bought a big bag of chocolate chips at Costco because I always have done that and it was a decent price. But guess what? I've decided not to do that anymore because it has this easy open top and then you can just zip it shut again. So, like, no one will know that you reached in and grabbed a handful of chocolate chips and popped them all in your mouth at once. Ya know. I found that the store brand of chocolate chips tastes pretty good, costs about the same, and I can buy them as I need them and not have excessive amounts of something I'm always trying to resist eating. I don't regret the big bag of frozen raspberries, or the salsa, or the Mexican blend cheese. Which is the SAME BAG I buy in Utah. It is made in America. Imported cheese. It is pricey but this stuff they call "Tasty Cheese" here is not that good. And we don't use lots of it anyway.

PITY
In my house in Utah I have a drawer full of kitchen gizmos. Spatulas, spoons, ice cream scoops, pasta servers, ladles, pizza cutter, biscuit cutters, garlic press, lemon zester. It's a big drawer. The item from that drawer I use THE MOST is the medium sized black spoon from the cheap threesome set you can find at IKEA for 69 cents. For some reason the black spoon always turns up missing so I buy another few sets every time I'm there so I now have 3 black spoons and about 29 of the matching forks and spatulas. So when we arrived here and I went to IKEA on day 5, the one item I knew I was going to get was a few of was those black spoons. Guess what item was out of stock! Still no black spoon for me.

JOY
Another manifestation of the scarcity situation: I get so excited shopping in the clearance section for food. Yes, food. Fresh produce and meat are the two items that are more expensive here. The rest is affordable, especially with the exchange rate being in our favor. I've found one of the stores here that has a spot where they bag up random produce that is getting old, and they sell the whole bag for $4. And then each day it gets marked down another dollar. It's like a game for me every time. A couple of days ago I found a bag that had 3 Asian pears, 3 limes, 2 avocados, 4 lemons, an eggplant, and 3 oranges all for $2 (US$1.42!) The limes alone are worth $3 each, and the avocados about $2 each, and Asian pears! I was so excited, you'd have thought it was Christmas! And the fun part is the extra items I find that I wouldn't normally buy, like the eggplant. Another time a bag had several blood oranges. All of us had a great time that night sitting around sharing them. A couple of weeks ago I got a huge bag of fresh green beans. I was super excited to bring them home and blanch them all and put them in the freezer. It was a great find. I was giddy.

Tomorrow is my first potluck dinner. I am having a super hard time deciding what to take. Stay tuned. 

Slo-mo (no-mo) Wifi

I grow weary trying to keep a log of the day-to-day life without a wifi connection. So as occasion has permitted, I've uploaded a picture or two at a time while shopping in a location with wifi. So here is a collection of random pictures that give you a little glimpse of some moments we've had. There is a bonus video at the end to make you really appreciate the life you have. 

I've said many times that cottage cheese is a magic food. You can have it with fruit. You can have it with vegetables. You can put it in smoothies, bake with it, put it in pasta. Breakfast, lunch, dinner AND dessert! The list is endless! But cottage cheese in Australia is sharp and chalky and pasty and not creamy. It is not magic. 

I'm mostly done with our living room. Not sure I'd pick this if it was permanent but our rental house is pretty brown and boring so we decided to go fun and funky. The ribbons on the wall are still waiting for something good to hang from them. I saved them from the packaging around a couple of blankets I bought. The color was perfect so I'm hanging on to them.

Karly said, "Mom...no." 

It was their first day in Australian school. They are now halfway through the year they just finished in the States (grades 8 and 5), but the curriculum seems a little more behind than that. We're working it all out. Hopefully they'll still learn something. Indonesian is part of the curriculum and since we are planning a trip there while on this side of the globe, that should be enriching. 

The uniforms are so expensive no one expects you to have multiple items. You just rewear. I'm wondering where the logic is. I spend over $550 outfitting the three of them with the bare basics. I also had to buy an iPad for Karly. They are required. And they don't have any sort of group buy in, or discount or anything. At least I get to keep that when we come back. Cha-CHING. 

Scenes I see more frequently. We have one living room as part of the kitchen area. Everyone is always together and they are having fun. No one has wifi or much of anything else to do so we spend more time talking. It's great. 

Don't let this fool you. There is also something called LiquorLand, which is directly across the street from a very lovely church. 

I see these trees everywhere. They are in their off season covered with golden berries. They are so adorable. And below is a 3 second video because a still shot just didn't do them justice. 

Someone knocked on my door with a free bed and sofa. While he was out moving them from his house to mine, he asked if we would watch his puppy. Uh...YES! Henry had a blast chasing him around our house. And by around I mean AROUND. We have about 4 feet alley ways on the east and west of our house with a small courtyard in the back. So they would run up one side, across the back, and then down the west alleyway until they couldn't go anymore. Then repeat the process in reverse. 

I don't know what this is. But's it's on a street corner. 

Naked children with shopping bags, and mother playing a disproportionately large accordion. 

Also not sure about this.

Millie, on the day she met her teacher and classmates. They were very friendly and are enamored by her "sophisticated" accent. One of Karly's classmates wanted to know if she had ever seen a squirrel. And the rest were pretty curious about her peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Only one said they were going to try it at home. The rest didn't want to consider the thought. 

Got a fireman costume at Costco and it was a hit. He's been rescuing all of us from real and imagined dangers. 

Part of the resourcefulness that comes from necessity. We decorated with paint chips and Henry and Millie put them to use in another way. 

Those are about the size of soccer balls. 

There isn't much frame of reference here. These are HUGE. Probably 36" long. 

Adorable succulents I found at the hardware store. I haven't bought any plants yet but I will soon be starting some seeds and getting some herbs and vegetables growing. And succulents. Yes. 

Leo, showing the patio furniture we have. We found a flat basketball in the shrubs. I'm sure when the weather warms a little more I will find something better to sit on out there.

I'm at the library and I got these:

You can be sure there will be more to come about this later. 

And if you have felt impatient getting to the bottom of this post, let me just put things in perspective for you. THIS is how fast the wifi is. And I had to leave my house and go to the library to get it. 

Kindness of strangers--who aren't really strangers. They are instant friends

There is a scripture in our Book of Mormon that says "I would that ye should impart of your substance to the poor, every man according to that which he hath, such as feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and administering to their relief, both spiritually and temporally, according to their wants" (Mosiah 4:26). That last part "according to their WANTS" is often overlooked. We usually think of just taking care of their basic necessities, no more. Tonight, a couple from our church came over to give us a head start in this new country. They brought about 10 grocery bags of food! Some of it was basic necessities like flour and shampoo and spaghetti and a large cooking pot, but a good portion of it was fun things like chocolate milk mix, pizza, ice cream bars, chocolate candy, cookies, chips, and many other goodies that put a smile on the face of my children. They didn't come to just give us some things we need, they came to show us love. They did it with a smile and a hug. I learned so much from them. I want to be that kind of person.

In addition to this, from the same group of church friends, we've received a refrigerator, a bed, a crib for Henry, a sofa, end tables, a large shelf, a blender, tea kettle, and the keys to a truck for a WEEK so we could go around town and pick up things we needed. Everything they've given is in excellent condition. They saw we had a need and just offered us things. We're so grateful. And humbled. We need to be more like that.

Here is a picture of Millie meeting her amazingly friendly classmates. She's so excited to go to school now!

Cookies and cardboard

We've entertained ourselves with trying out the goodies here. Here the kids give their assessment of the cookie varieties. We found "Choc Chip Cookies," "Tic Tocs," and "Little Families." All for the same price of $2 ($1.48 US)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dsp_CF03FQ

And, yes, we've been "making do" plenty around here. I'm very impressed with Leo's tie rack. I could be saving so much money in the states. The difference here is that no one expects us to have everything. Everyone understands we are only here for a year and there is no need to have a lot of possessions. So we happily make do. Why don't we do that in the States? The kids would think having a cardboard tie rack made from your little brother's fireman costume would be embarrassing. But here he's proud of it. This materialism is clearly self-imposed by the perceived need to be cool or impressive or at least "as cool" or "as impressive" as what people expect. We should forget about that and just live simple. It's kinda fun.

Henry was playing with his cars tonight and came to tell me he needed a road to play on. He has a large carpet roadmap at home. So I thought for a minute about what I could use to make him a road for his cars. We had saved the straps that came wrapped around the mattresses from IKEA. They velcro together so I made some channels on the floor for his cars. He seemed pleased enough.

Here is how I was making do in our closet. I bought a plastic bin, but used some boxes of things I purchased to organize other things. I made a little pyramid with the boxes and stuffed my shoes in the void. I know I'm not going to keep my shoes all neat and tidy in pairs on the floor so why bother. And yes, can you believe how down-sized my collection is? Only what I'll need, not more. I have a little collapsable makeup bag that I used to throw Henry's socks in. Notice only one sandal for Henry there.  He does have another one somewhere. It will turn up. I know it will because there just isn't a lot of stuff here which makes it easier to find things. See, it's all so great!

I have a few more boxes on the closet shelf above to hold things. I'm gonna get my exercise clothes more organized and use the space on top of that red box, too. We also didn't buy any dressers because coat hangers are cheaper. And since we typically hang most of our clothes to dry anyway, it makes putting the clothes away faster. We just hang it from the washer right on to the coat hanger to dry, then put it in the closet. We could even hang it in the closet to dry because it gets plenty of air flow since we don't have a ton of clothes hanging in it. Works great.

Here is the bed made for TWO. I guess you could call it a double bed. We make this every night using the cushions from the two chairs I bought. We sleep at opposite ends and our legs and feet overlap in the middle. It's not so great for cuddling but it's a lot better than the two nights we tried to sleep directly on the floor, because basically we didn't sleep at all. And truthfully it's very comfortable. Tomorrow we hope to get our bed from the kind people who are giving it to us. Another benefit of living simple: some people feel sorry for you and give you things.

I bought plastic dinner plates at the grocery store. I have found ceramic and glass sets other places but they were pricey and I thought they were a little heavy. I finally found plastic stuff (not melamine) at the grocery store. They were around $3 for a set of four. BaddaBING. Got some plates and large tumbler cups. They go well with the small bowls and cups I got at IKEA for $2 a set. We have a tile floor so I won't even care if the kids drop them. And after one year, I will not cringe when I have to get rid of them. AND, I could afford to throw in an extra set of cups and plates for when company comes. Company. On plastic plates. Well, that does kinda make me cringe, but they will understand. 

I have just one large cooking pot and two skillets which are not large at all. I made soup tonight. I fried the chicken in the bottom of the pot, then added the vegetables to saute, and then added the broth and potatoes. One pot. The high sides of the pot kept the splatters from getting all over. Works great. And everyone was hungry so they ate it without complaining. 

I was less hungry because of those stupid "Choc Chip Cookies" that were only $2. They were so hard that they scratched up my tongue. But I still ate them. So when I tried to have a piece of cinnamon gum later (I was trying to keep my mouth busy with something else) my tongue was screaming at me. I'm so stupid. The cucumbers tasted better, felt better, and have way fewer calories. Why do we do these things? I'm not buying Choc Chip Cookies just because they are cheap anymore. 

But THIS. This would be good. 

Millie saw this at the fruit and vegetable market. It was labeled $3.95 so we totally were gonna buy it. But it rang up as $10.99. I said, oh, we don't want it that bad. Apparently the little bitty containers that are only about 5 bites worth of ice cream were the $3.95 ones. They were out of stock on those. So, no Ben and Jerry's for a year. It's okay.

A report on Costco, and my OTHER new favorite place.

[Warning: This post, and most other recent posts, is typed entirely on my phone with two thumbs. And blogger doesn't make all edit functions active via the phone so it takes forever and I'm less inclined to edit properly. This post is published AS-IS and is non-refundable.]

I feel like I can actually function now.

Today we picked up our van. Our OWN van. When we had the rentals (first a van, then a compact car that was cheaper) I didn't know when or if I'd have my own car again, so I was feverishly trying to get everything we needed while I could. Knowing I now have my own transportation that is bought and paid for feels so relaxing. And guess what? I don't have to go to the DMV and stand in a long line to register it. It turns out that the government here is perfectly capable of tracking the new owner with the existing plates on the car. The dealer just turns in who the new owner is, and since the registration has already been paid, I don't have to do that either. Well, until it expires. What a logical system. I even like the license plate.

And Allen had filled out insurance information online the night before and paid for the entire year with a credit card. Heck, I even paid for the CAR with my credit card. It's the only way we pay for anything here. I'm racking up some SERIOUS points on that thing.

This car is NICE. It has a working cassette player! For real.

We had turned in our rental the day before, so we decided to figure out the train system around here to get to the car lot. We each had to buy a MYKI transit card. The card is reusable and you load it, or "top up", with the amount of money you want. For us we loaded only enough for our trip today which was $4. We were moving from one zone of origin to another so we could go anywhere within that zone for the same price. We had to transfer to a different train once. The train station was very near the car lot so it was only a five minute walk till we got our own wheels. The train will be Allen's main transportation into the university so it was good to figure it out together. 

So since we were all street legal and could go anywhere we wanted, we headed straight to Costco. It's about 25 minutes from our house but we were almost there with the car lot already. I was really excited to go. But it looked even more exciting. 

A Ferris wheel! It's actually some tourist thing across the street but it will help me find costco from anywhere nearby! I'll be sure to take the kids next time we go. 

Costco had some things I was hoping for, but not all. There was some familiar foods like pizza and rotissierre chicken and shredded cheese and snack foods, but the fresh produce was all different. I missed large bags of broccoli and carrots I can steam. There wasn't a large bag of frozen strawberries for my smoothies. No large tub of cottage cheese. But I'll live. 

It did have this:

 

So...no. I didn't buy it. I told Allen we have to meet one first. Still haven't seen one. 

I found chips and salsa but it wasn't the amazing deal it is at home. They only had one kind of tortilla chip and it was a smaller bag than normal. I don't love these tortilla chips as much. And the salsa was smaller. Oh well, with the fresh markets here I will just make it more often. I brought my own chipotle. :)

As soon as we got home from spending another fortune at Costco, we loaded the family in the new family car and went to see the beach. It was so beautiful! It was windy and cold, but I was so excited for the many days I know we'll come here and relax. It's just so pretty. And the water is so clear. And I just feel so happy today. We LIVE HERE. 

Tomorrow I'm taking the kids to the library to get some books and wifi. And in the afternoon I'm going on a run. I may run right to the beach and make the pier my turn around point. Yes. Okay, just kidding that would be 16 miles round trip and I haven't exercised in two weeks. Let's be real.

I can't even explain this level of fatigue

I'm a person who does not enjoy shopping. But buying has been pretty much the only thing I've done for the past week. I walk into a store with a task list and pretty much just buy the least expensive item I can find. I don't comparison shop much. I just need it to last a year.

I've noticed that there are wide price variations between stores. It's as if no one is trying to keep tabs on the competition. This makes the price game harder for unsuspecting foreigners like myself. I have no idea what a normal price is, so I just do the best I can at the store I'm in. Then I find myself at another store the next day and see one item at half the price of the store the day before. Half. Not on sale, just regular price. You really just have to know which store to get which things. It will take some learning.

Point Cook is a pretty small suburb. But no matter where you live, there is bound to be a grocery store nearby. I have three different grocery stores all within a mile. One is just half a mile a way. It's super convenient. And all stores have sort of a mini-mall surrounding them so when you walk in there are a number of small shops all around. Maybe a deli or bakery, dollar store, salon, bank, etc. most of the places have wifi so in the coming weeks I'll probably be hanging out there more as my buying frenzy comes to a close (More on the continuing saga of no wifi later.) The first store I tried to shop at was Target. I had trouble locating the front door. And when I walked in I found myself in a mall. I had to walk past about 20 store front and turn a couple of corners before I actually got to Target. It was a little disappointing compared to Target at home. It wasn't "Super Target" with groceries. It was smallish and had mostly clothing (about 20% of that was lingerie). There is a small electronics area, small health and beauty section, and decently sized home linen section. And some candy and toys.

After a week of living in a bed and breakfast, we were ready to set up our own house. It was overwhelming the things we didn't have. I was trying to stick to just the basics because we are only here for a year and I don't want to have more than we will really need. But still, we need an iron, and ironing board. We need a microwave and a few pots, pans, and bakeware. We need a vacuum to care for the carpets. And a mop. And a broom. And cleaning rags. And mixing bowls. And shampoo and lotion and cups and plates and dish soap. We have luggage but it's not super useful for storing clothes day-to-day. So we need coat hangers and some plastic bins to hold our socks and underwear. We haven't bought dressers because coat hangers are cheaper. And then there is the need for food. And stuff to store the food in so it doesn't get bugs.

I mean. This quickly became crazy. The kids have gotten bored while I spend my days canvassing the town for the cheapest solutions.

All of the stores here have carts ("trolleys") with what I call four wheel drive. All four wheels rotate so you can slide them forward and side to side easily. But turning around to the next aisle is kind of a funny looking dance as you have to get behind the cart so it doesn't keep sliding sideways.

We also need to buy a washing machine. Dryers are optional since a lot of people hang their clothing out to dry. (We found these of an online site called Gumtree!). Fortunately someone from church gave us a refrigerator. Really a huge blessing! We couldn't get it until Saturday night and then...I made ANOTHER trip to the store for all the food basics. I was So. Extremely. Exhausted after the past week. Signing the house lease. Buying a car. Furniture. Home basics. Cleaning the new house. Moving from bed and breakfast to new house. Spending a day in the city at Ikea. Getting refrigerator. And now I was buying all the little things like butter, oil, flour, spices, rice, baking soda, and such. My cart was so loaded. It was really hard to turn those aisles! But in all of this, I was delighted to find whole wheat flour at a good price, black beans, and even black-eyed peas! I got a few fun things for the kids to make them smile: chocolate chips and a brownie mix. It worked.

This past week I haven't slept much that I know of. First it was jetlag. Then I was sick with a cold. Then I had no bed because someone said they are giving us one but we can't get it for a week. Sleeping on the floor is not comfy at all. It wasn't working at all. So when I hut that grocery store Saturday night I was beyond tired. And I still had no dinner for the kids. It took over an hour to find everything. The last item was eggs. I didn't think they'd be so hard. But here "cage free" eggs are the main egg. If you are a heartless, animal-hating person (or you are like me and just can't standing to spend $6/dozen) then you buy "cage eggs." There are a million varieties of cage free eggs. I had to ask for cage eggs. The guys couldn't find them. Finally I followed another woman and found the only kind they had for $2.79. Really, the cage-free stuff was 95% of the egg offerings. I took my loot home and made a potato dinner. Cleaned up. Went to bed.

I took a Sunday afternoon nap on Maddie's mattress and it felt so good. That night Allen took the cushions off our chairs and made a little "bed" for me. It felt great except that he was still on the floor. After a few minutes, I figured out that we could lay all the cushions in a big long line and we could slept at opposite ends, letting our feet, which don't take up much space, share the same middle section. It seemed to work great for me. Allen, sorta. He said he couldn't sleep because of weird dreams. But dreams means sleep happened so I'm gonna count it as an improvement.

I have never been more glad for the Sabbath day. I really didn't have to go buy anything. I really could rest from all that labor and be with the kids for awhile. I made black beans. I made homemade tortillas. We made cookies. Which means cookie dough. It was just right!

Now here's some real fun. In all my running around, I stopped by the hardware store whenever I was nearby and raided their paint chips. Then I let Maddie arrange a design and install it on the wall of our living room. Here is the finished product:



Super cool, huh? It will look even better when I get the chairs covered. And we need a lamp. But I won't rush it. I will relish the time to sit still and work with a needle and thread for a change.

Now that our shopping is mostly done, we get to pick up OUR car tomorrow. So we can shop in our own car. Except I never want to shop again. And now I'm finding out about all these free and trade Facebook groups around Point Cook where I could have gotten some of these things. Oh well. I still need a baking pan, a large pot, bikes for the kids, and dressers. Maybe dressers. We have a living room and low tables so we can sit on the floor to eat. We're good. I'm not buying anything else!!

Our Cottage

When we first arrived we weren't able to move into our house yet because some other people were still living in it. I know. Rude. But until then, we stayed in the most adorable cottage. It wasn't cheap, but it was one of the few places big enough for all of us and it had a kitchen which saved us money so we didn't have to eat all of our meals out.

Here's a quick video I was able to upload while at the grocery store snagging some wifi:

I'm unable to embed the video at the moment so I'll just have to share the link.

http://youtu.be/x3GDFETH8t8

It is run by a very kind couple who brought us fresh lemons and grapefruit from their own trees right on the property. She also helped me locate a few resources in town and taught me a little about the train system here. Very nice people. I loved her immediately because her name is Mim. I just HAD to get a picture with Mam.

New Words

We're picking up some new vocabulary.

Here's a quick run-down for the first few days.

AMERICAN      :        AUSSIE
elevator                        lift
cart                               trolley
stroller                         pram
Minivan                       people mover
Truck                           ute
diapers                         nappies
huggies pull-ups          nappy pants (I couldn't stop laughing when I saw this)
drinking fountain         water machine (actually, this was odd, it was my first time at church and someone else asked where it was. I didn't get a chance to tell them I didn't know my way around either and certainly had never heard of a water machine. They found it quickly on their own.)

And when there is a lot of something there are "heaps" of them.

But my favorite new word was this. All over the airport, instead of telling you where the exits are, they just have large signs that say this:

I don't have to tell anyone to go to bed

Melbourne time is 16 hours ahead of Utah time. I find it easier to count 8 hours behind and add a day. After that LOOOOONG travel time, I thought no one would care that it was off schedule. We got in later in the evening and went to bed. I figured that would help everyone reset. But it's still takes some adjusting. Everyone here is usually in bed by 8:30. Last night about 8:30 Henry said, "I tired. Wanna lay down." So he did.

Henry finally slept all the way through the night last night. If I weren't sick I might sleep too. The other night when I went to the store the clerk noticed my accent and asked how long I had been here. I said 2 days and she said, "Oh! You look tired." Lovely honesty. But it's true. I am.

I got to explore the grocery store a little on my own. Which means I DROVE there. By myself. On the left side of the road, from the right side of the car. I just pretended I was teaching a Zumba class and flipped my left and right directions in my head. But I think the Aussie's have a hard time with it too, because they have lots of little "KEEP LEFT" signs near the medians. It looks like they need some reminding too. I realized after a while that part of the problem is that they don't have any yellow dividing lines in the road. They are all white. The only yellow line I saw was at the airport and it was a one way road. Not helpful at all.

I have to keep reminding myself to KEEP LEFT, but also to LOOK RIGHT for traffic. I almost had an accident today. Gah. It's so unnerving.

Karly said I was pretty good at it. The thing I need to work on is keeping the speed limit. Apparently here when they say "limit" they really do mean it. They have speed cameras everywhere and if you go .1km over the limit you will get a speeding ticket mailed to your house. In the states we see open road and we rush to fill it, but here you see open road and you just have to chill out and stay slow. It feels different. You have to relax and remind yourself, I'm not getting somewhere, I'm driving. It's a good idea that they are so serious about their driving speed, but I already have so many things I'm concentrating on with driving here. I wish there was a cruise control I could set that would stop you from going over speed. I don't want any tickets.

We are currently in the process for buying a car. I feel like I'm a target to being taken advantage of because I'm a foreigner. I don't know what the market is like and I don't know anything about the registration process or what is customary haggling with dealers. We have a few options we are happy about, and the current exchange rate makes it much better to swallow the price. We are trying to calculate what it will cost for one year of driving since we will be able to sell it in a year. So maybe a more expensive car upfront that has a higher resell value would end up costing the same as a less-expensive car with lower resell value. That's what we are leaning toward. After the entire process is complete I'll post the details in one post so it can be a little primer for foreigners in the future.

After leaving the last car lot, I was stopped in my tracks with this tree that was just on the side of the road. Check out the blossoms!

It wasn't in a highly manicured area or part of some beautifully intentional landscaping. Notice the ugly piece of astroturf in the background. It just, grows there. Amazing. I am going to be taking a LOT of pictures of plant life here. They are all very pretty. There seems to be an underlying yellowish electricity to the green leaves. And it's WINTER here. Basically it's the equivalent to February in the Northern Hemisphere. It's only going to get more amazing. 

We move into our house on Friday. I haven't even SEEN it yet. I get to see it for the first time on Thursday morning at 9am. It will be a quick look and then I'll head off to IKEA to pick out some beds and basic furnishings. Why there? Well, I don't have the luxury of a car yet to transport used furniture from random places in the city and IKEA delivers. I had a really hard time finding a secondhand store (took three trips to a neighboring city to finally find one). The first attempt was Salvos (Salvation Army). It turns out they are just an outlet store for random goods, kind of like Big Lots in Utah. So that was a waste. Then I looked up another store online and headed to the address. They didn't exist there but I did find a used car dealership at the address and a possible car. The last time I just had to ask local people where one was. It's called Vinnie's, and it's run by St. Vincent de Paul Society. I found a couple of chairs that are rather gaudy, but in good condition and comfortable.

I also found some stretchy fabric that I hope to use to throw over them. I got a couple of coffee tables, one for inside and one to use as a sturdy bench for the patio. And they had a cool little bar stool that swivels for only $10. I always can calculate 25% off in my head because of the exchange rate. Nice. They had some kitchenware but not as much as DI. I wasn't able to get much more than a silverware organizer and a couple of serving spoons. I bought the furniture and talked them into holding it for me until Saturday when I can borrow a truck (called a "ute").

Day Three, In which I had salsa on my eggs

Yay, today we got our phones to work. I mean OUR phones from the States. We were able to buy some pay-as-you go SIM cars at 7-Eleven, register them online, and pop them into our phones. Viola. Phone service. And the price is great. For $44.90 we get unlimited talk and text and 5GB of data per month. With the current exchange rate that works out to be $32.77 per month. And no contracts. Wonderful. I just have to be careful not to message US phone numbers because that is not covered in the unlimited text! I'll be using Facebook Messenger or email to stay in touch with friends and family.

At the grocery store, you only get a shopping car (trolley) with a coin deposit. When you return the cart, you get your coin back. So there aren't carts lost in the parking lot and employees driving long trains of them back into the store. People use a trolley and then actually bring it back. It's a great system.

I wandered through the grocery store last night just trying to get my bearings a bit, looking for what was familiar and what was different. And trying to gauge costs. As I wandered I heard "Video Killed the Radio Star" playing over the speakers. Huh.

Here there are lots of different cultures represented so there is quite a bit of variety found in the grocery stores. I had been warned there wasn't much Mexican food, but I found a little section of it at the store and I was thrilled! I bought some Old El Paso Thick and Chunky Chipotle Salsa. I don't even remember how much it cost because there was no way I wasn't buying it. I also found tortillas and tortilla chips. In the Indian cooking section I found lots of the spices I was worried I wouldn't be able to buy here, and they were good prices, and they were large bags. No problem there. I didn't find whole wheat flour in the baking aisle, but I did find it in the Indian cooking section in a large bag for a good price. We're set.

I didn't find coconut milk at the first two stores I went to and I surprised because I thought that was a staple food in asian cooking. I did find oat milk, and since it's the only milk alternative I haven't tried yet, I thought I'd give it a go. All the others mess with my digestive system. So far so good.

Other goodies I found were cheap Ramen noodles, pasta sauce, and oats at a good low price. Actually I think they are cheaper than in the States. And the Nutella is cheaper here! There are also a variety of world sugars. They have different sugars from our the world with different underlying flavors. I got Coconut Blossom Sugar from Indonesia. It says it has tones of caramel and butterscotch. Yum! Across from the milk was pine bark chips. Like the kind you put on your flowerbeds. Of course, pine bark can be found in the dairy section.

What I have noticed at each store is that they don't seem to heat the building at all. I am not that cold walking about outside as I mentally am prepared for the cold and I keep moving briskly, but inside I expect to be warm. After shopping slowly for 30 minutes I realize my fingers and nose are cold and I'm shivering a bit. I wonder why they don't take action to make me want to stay in their store longer. The homes also seem a bit cold and drafty. I'm not sure they are aware of the advances in technology that can make the indoors more comfortable.

My assessment is that I'll be okay with the assortment of food there is here. The basic food staples are not much more expensive and in some cases are less expensive. When you get into prepared and processed foods it gets crazy expensive, but that's not how I cook anyway.

Sunday, day of rest

It felt good to go to church. It was different but familiar, and full of friendly faces. I loved that the organ player played faster than normal, and that the prayers were said slower, with more thought.

It's winter here. The weather is breezy and chilly, but not at all frigid. I think the high was 56 degrees (13°C). Not warm but not that cold. One man felt we had come at the wrong time because it was winter. He was apologizing for the cold temperatures. Other people familiar with Utah weather had warned me that it got quite cold here. I asked if this weather typical. He said, "eh...it gets warmer." Rock and roll! I think I can handle it!

Everyone took care to put their arms around my children and help them find the right classes. What really impressed me is that not only did the parents introduce their children, but their children also took the opportunity to reach out and be truly friendly and kind. My kids felt loved and completely comfortable.

Just towards the end of church a little girl snuck into the adult women's meeting and found her mum. She had sweet blond hair and a sophisticated accent. She went to her mother and with the most cheerful expression said, "The savior loves me! The savior loves AWL of us!" It felt like a scene from A Christmas Carol. She was a darling.

Later that night we had dinner with someone from church who had also invited another family. There were kids the same age and gender for all of the kids (except Henry, but Henry is loved by all ages) and they all (awl) had a blast. There was a ton of food and no rush to get the evening over. We talked like old friends and they helped give us headstarts on some of the tasks we have before us, like finding a car, getting the kids registered in school, getting phones set up. These are big deals and we're so glad to have help. These people will be my family for the next year and I love them already. We actually all knelt in prayer together before we parted ways and it felt so good. (If you don't know about my church you should look into it. I have instant friends and supporters no matter where I am.)

The wifi in the bed and breakfast we are staying is abysmal. We thought maybe it was just the place we were staying but we hear it's slow and unreliable everywhere. Macdonalds (Maccas) is just a short walk away, so for the small price of warm french fries we can have good reliable wifi for a bit. We needed it especially when we had no phones (we do now!) and need to search for a car to buy and where local shops are. We also were very happy to sit for a few minutes after church and absorb some wifi in the building. Our entire church has the same wifi password worldwide, so we can always have access no matter where we are. (There's an analogy in there somewhere. I'll work on it.)

I've begged the rental agency to let us move in two days early. I only managed to get one day early. It is SO unpleasant still living out of 21 suitcases. I wish so badly we could hang things up in the closets and put things away in the kitchen. Just a few more days.

What we really need next is a car. But We feel like we can make it without a car except for the need to get to church each Sunday. So maybe we won't rush it. Our family will help us get there for now.

Leaving the house, Flying with a toddler, Driving with 28 pieces of luggage

Moving day! We packed up early and spent the morning cleaning the last minute details: mopping the floor, vacuuming, washing the sinks. I had remembered a few things I hadn't told the renters so I actually went around filming short videos I can send them later. I'm crazy like that. Friends stopped by to say goodbye. I melted to tears when I saw this, knowing it would be the last time for these two for quite a while.

Karly snapped a picture of me saying goodbye to my window well for a year. It really is my favorite spot and I will miss it.

Left the house about 1pm Utah time. Arrived and checked in and none of our bags were overweight. Woo hoo! We were able to drive our own car up to the airport with my brother bringing the luggage in his truck. Then my sister-in-law drove the van back to our friends who will sell it for us. That worked out so well.

We moved our flight out of Salt Lake up so we could have more time in LA to make the connecting flight to Sydney. We only had 40 minutes originally and felt it was risky to switch terminals in such a short time. Turned out we only were one gate over from our arrival gate, so it would have been fine. We had about 3+ hours in LAX. I had some thank you notes I wanted to mail and wrote them during the layover. Tried to find a post box with no luck. So I had to stand near the security exit and beg a stranger to take them to the outside and mail them for me. I felt like a panhandler because so many people wouldn't even look me in the eye worried they'd get asked for their loose change. One kind woman was willing to listen to me and realized it was no big deal at all. We'll see if they make it to their recipients.

Henry loved the plane flights. He is all about every kind of moving vehicle and truck. But I wasn't sure how he'd respond to the sensation of actually being on a plane moving so fast and lifting off the ground. He seemed to be an old pro. During the landing when his ears started to feel the pressure he just grimaced and said, "my ears feel weird." As soon as we landed in LA he shouted, "We did it!" and asked if we could do it again. "Go up high!" He entertained himself quite happily in the terminal and made some friends.

We boarded the flight to Sydney late because of some mechanical issues. Then we didn't leave until over an hour late because they were waiting on some people with connecting flights. (Why don't flights ever wait for ME?) Each seat on the plane had pillows, blankets, eyeshades, earplugs, and a TV screen with free movies, music, and games. Henry had fun with a game and watched Sesame Street and Happy Feet. Everyone else was happy with a movie but I knew Henry would never let me pay attention to a movie for the entire time. And if he slept I tried to sleep. At some point when I couldn't fall asleep (I also didn't feel I could take the ZZZQuil because I didn't want to be so zonked that I didn't hear Henry if he needed something) I watched a couple of TEDTalks. I'll share more about one of them on another post.

The flight was long but not unbearable. Henry only got sick of it in the last hour. My ankles actually got swollen. I looked like I was pregnant. I tried to walk around occasionally. It didn't really make a difference.

Maximum speed I noticed during the trip was 578mph!

Here are our first views of Aussie land. It looks like a movie!

So we arrived in Sydney late. We only had 40 minutes to make our connecting flight to Melbourne. We thought this would be fine until we realized we had to go through customs here and not at our final destination. That was a big hassle because we had to retrieve ALL of our checked bags from baggage claim, and then cart them through customs. Allen and I were frantically filling out the customs forms as we were landing, which is probably the real reason why Henry was less happy because I couldn't pay attention to his needs. They also didn't bring the stroller I had gate-checked to the gate, so I had to carry Henry along with some carry-on luggage that doesn't roll. I wasn't so happy about that.

The flight attendants seemed unaware of what the procedure for customs was. They felt there was a minor process we had to go through here and then a more stringent one in Melbourne. Still I was nervous about it because I had several items I was unsure about. And they were in multiple pieces of luggage. I had spices I had mixed myself, spices I had dehydrated myself, some peppers I had dehydrated myself, peanut butter, and trail mix (with nuts and dried fruit). Everyone was telling me they would reject everything. I was pretty sure they were going to reject all but the peanut butter. And I was worried about forgetting to declare something and getting fined $300. Turns out we wait through long lines, pushing carts with our luggage that are nearly impossible to steer, and then we stand patiently while a dog sniffs our luggage. Then she says, "you're good." And that was it. They didn't like the fresh grapes and snow peas THAT I DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT in Millie's bag. Thankfully, we had declared enough already because of the trail mix so we didn't get fined. And seriously, they had just served us things on the plane that would have been against the rules. You'd think they might say something like, "This is your flight attendant, please don't try to smuggle any leftovers out of the plane or you'll get a whopping fine that will take the fun out of your stay."

But, we were "good."

Then we realized, we were DONE with customs because we were directed to the domestic transfer to Virgin Airlines. I was so happy I got to bring my spices!

But we only had 12 minutes to make our connecting flight. Didn't happen.

We found a nice woman at the check-in at Virgin Airlines that realized we couldn't all get on the next flight together so we had to wait until 4pm for the next flight. It was 8am. So, we thought we'd rent a car and go see the sights in Sydney. But she told us to take the train up to the Opera House. Allen really wanted to see it so I was thrilled to get it checked off the list right away. She gave us $300 in meal vouches for the day. AND she knew we didn't want to haul all our carry-on luggage around the city so she offered to check ALL of our carry-ons, including the two guitars, for no charge. She was an angel! The kids were pretty happy to sit calmly and order anything they wanted.

We headed down to the train to buy tickets. The guy at the ticket counter rang me up and asked for $92.80. I swallowed hard, thought about getting this checked off the list and not having to spend a load of money to come back to Sydney and paid the fare. Then he said he accidentally only gave me one-way tickets so he corrected it and asked for another $78.20. I was in shock. Shock. This was not a long train ride. It took about 15 minutes and was probably not more than 5-10 miles away.

Welcome to Australia.

I had a pleasant conversation ("convo") the entire trip with a woman on the train who helped me get off on the right stop. We felt like friends in no time.

I've been warned that the ozone is very thin over Australia and we need to be sure to wear sunscreen and hats. It was a very nice warm day, considering they are in winter, and it was lunch hour. Here I was on my first day in Australia and I have no sunscreen on my face except for what I put on in moisturizer and makeup over 24 hours ago.

Also, Karly realized at some point that we were walking on the wrong side of the sidewalk. We defaulted to walking on the right side, but we had to switch to the left to keep the flow. Silly me. I didn't even think of that.

We got to see the Opera House! We also so the hugest cruise ship I've ever seen. There were several planes flying over the bay and helicopters about every 90 seconds. Henry was loving it.

But were were all tired so we didn't spend long on our $150 train excursion. We headed back to finish off those $300 meal vouchers and just rest for a bit.

We had to go through security again. But it's more relaxed than the States. You don't need a boarding pass to go through. And the security people were actually nice. They saw me with a stroller and right away took me to the front of the line. When they could see I had a family in other parts of the line they retrieved the rest of them and brought them up too. They helped us get bins for our carryons and laptops and weren't in a rush at all. And all the other people whom we zipped ahead of didn't get upset either.

There are some ways the Aussies are different in their demeanor. I think so far I would sum it up as "conscientious." They pay attention and treat you like a person, not a job or a chore or someone to pretend to be nice to because they are supposed to. They see your need and willingly fill it. They couldn't be more kind and I love them.

Our last flight from Sydney to Melbourne was a smaller plane. We boarded it from the tarmac. Henry got to walk on the tarmac and actually SEE the plane we would be flying on! I was so thrilled for him! He was SO excited. And it was only 71 minutes flight. He again told me his ears felt weird but we soon survived it. Again they didn't return my stroller to the gate so I had to carry Henry. Which made me slower than the rest. Allen walked with us and our kids, who have never flown before and have never been to Australia before, just zoomed ahead and followed the signs to find baggage claim. Allen and I were impressed with their courage! I'm always nervous about going the wrong way! By the time we got there they had already retrieved several pieces of luggage. GO KIDS!

Allen headed off to get the rental van. We sat patiently knowing it was going to take a couple of trips to get all the luggage to our hotel. But the van is amazing. It has so much space. It was tight but we actually got it all in ONE TRIP. Which is such a blessing because driving on the left side of the road is very unnerving. Allen hated it. It's a good thing it was at night and there was less traffic. Leo was helping in navigate in the front. Allen told him to remind him every now and then what the speed limit was and to "stay left." It really is hard.

Girls were giggly in the back for awhile. I had to tell them not to talk so Allen could hear GPS. It was hard to understand the pronunciation. And he didn't need any distraction. After about 5 minutes I noticed there were very quiet. I checked to make sure they weren't too stressed. They were completely asleep. I couldn't even see their heads.

We finally arrived at this adorable cottage. We tried to find shampoo so we could wash up. Tomorrow was Sunday so we had to head to a grocery store to get some basics. Again, nerve-wracking and very unpleasant. Many stores we were led to by the GPS were closed. Finally found one. I had been wearing shoes for 43 hours in a row. It was terrible.

Retired to bed at about 11pm local time, 7am Orem time. I was up at 4am unable to sleep. So I typed this!