The Kimmies Are Down Under!

              

   

This week has been amazing with the Kims here from New Mexico!  They're here for 2 weeks!   On Monday we moved some elders out of their flat.  So thankful Lar and Dave were there to help or it would have taken all day!  We loaded a trailer up with trash including furniture and we filled up our van with things to donate!  

Tuesday we went to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary which was magical as usual. They loved the koalas and kangaroos.  We also fed the lorakeets and watched the raptor bird show.  We put in a lot of steps that day!  We ate lunch there and kept going.  Lar and Dave got their pictures taken with koalas!

                                                                                                                                                                                           

              

Wednesday we put some bedding bags together and then we rode the train to Queen Street Mall which is a whole block of shopping downtown.  It was all decked out for Christmas.  It is closed to traffic so it's fun to walk around three levels of stores and restaurants.  Lar and Dave tried meat pies for the first time and gave them a yummy thumbs up.

Thursday we drove north to Mooloolaba to the aquarium!  Lar and I were mesmerized by the sea horses--3 different kinds!  The walk-through tunnels were amazing and the stingrays were enormous!  We also saw little penguins and a seal show.  We went to the beach afterwards and I got into the ocean for the first time in Australia!

                

   

On Friday, Tim and I had our shift for the Giving Machine at the Loganholme Hyperdome--a mall.  All in all we had about 15 people donate in our 3-hour shift.  A lot of people turned us down but those that donated were amazing.  One female senior citizen came up to me and said, "What can I do to help?"  That really made it worth standing for 3 hours.  I had to sit on and off after standing for a solid hour.

    

That night we took the Kims to Eat Street which is only open on the weekends.  It's a really fun place to eat, shop and be entertained on the docks of the Brisbane River.  The entire place is made out of shipping containers--even the restrooms!

Saturday we took the City Cat (water taxi) to South Bank Parklands which a man-made beach and marketplace shops on the weekend!  The Kims got into the water but Tim and I just watched.  The parklands are opposite of the city's skyscrapers and are really beautiful.  

Sunday we attended Chermside Ward and showed off the Kims.  :D  It was fun to show them our ward and visa versa.  As you can imagine, we were pretty tired by Sunday!