It’s a THREE POST TUESDAY!
Today, I have PART THREE of our trip to Australia below + I have A WELLNESS POST for you (yup, on a Tuesday!) + a MY PLATE.
Three posts + One Tuesday = something for everyone (I hope!).
Don’t forget, if you missed recaps PART ONE (Arrival, Sydney, Bondi) or PART TWO (Manly Beach) of this trip to Australia, hop on over there and take a look. If you want to go to Australia yourself, hop on over HERE and complete an easy little inquiry with our travel agency for more info. (You can complete the inquiry for Walt Disney World, Universal, Europe, Mexico, Hawaii, the Caribbean, cruises and more too!).
This day here that I’m about to recap was extra special for so many reasons including it was NEW YEAR’S EVE!
Not only was it NYE, but when the trip was all said and done, this day here ranked as everyone’s favorite or second favorite day of the entire vacation. We LOVED this day!
Okay, here we go…
…we were up and out of our hotel around 8:00 AM. We had a private driver pick us up for a full day exploring the Blue Mountains. We had lots of room, plenty of snacks, and beautiful views as we made our way out of Sydney for the day.
Already gorgeous, right?
Our first stop was to visit Calmsley Hill Farm and check out some Australian animals. We had morning tea (tea and coffee plus two delicious Australian pastries), and then a guide at the farm took us around to meet the animals.
I’m not sure I can remember a time when my family of six was this excited and enamored by the same thing. We were OBSESSED with these precious animals.
We learned all about this guy here. I knew nothing about wombats before, but now, I want one to come live inside my house. He was so cute!
Just a bunch of girls loving the farm!
I mean, look at them…
…what was holding their attention?
This guy…
…this is Jasper, and we wanted to bring him home. We could NOT get enough of him!
LOOK AT THAT FACE!
Don’t you want one too?!
Jasper, you are so cute!
Everyyyyyyone was obsessed with him.
How many pictures can 8 people take with one koala? Based on the camera roll on my iPhone, the answer is around 350…
…Jasper smelling my feet made me happy. Weird? Yes. Am I sad he can’t do it again? Yes.
He loved us, and we loved him.
We loved some other farm animals too…
…Mades said “this is what my hair looks like in the morning”. Bahahaha! Kind of true some days 😉 .
Okay, wait for it.
Are you ready?
I mean seriously…JUST WAIT FOR IT…
…I KNOWWWWWWWWW!
Oh my heart. There were so many kangaroos at this farm with babies, and truly, we could have stayed all day just to look at them.
Our driver/guide told us that it was time to get moving, and we were sad to leave. Our first stop was an excellent stop.
We climbed in the van and headed back down the road…
…we made it to our next stop with lots of enthusiasm!
We arrived to the outlook area for the amazing views of the Jamison Valley and the “Three Sisters” that it’s known for.
We could not wait to see these views…
…bahahahaha! God had other plans because he parked a whole bunch of clouds right smack in the way of our view 😉 .
Please pretend that you’re seeing some epic Australian views behind us. If I were techy, I would photoshop some back there.
We loaded back up and headed back down the road…
…and found us a view 🙂 .
This should clearly be our next Christmas card photo. #sigh
Our guide had made us a lunch reservation in advance as we made our way from spot to spot…
…and truly, this was one of our FAVORITE meals!
A beef and ale pie? Yes, please!
We fueled up on delicious food and headed off…
How sweet is this?!
Next stop…
…STUNNING!
Now, this is a “view”…
…see the waterfall?
We hopped in the car and drove to the backside of where we started and guess what we saw?
The Three Sisters 🙂 . The clouds had lifted, and we could see it on this side.
We saw the Three Sisters with…
…our own version of Three Sisters 🙂
Those babies don’t keep, y’all.
We headed back down the road and stopped…
…at the cutest town! This is Leura, Australia, and we were big fans!
You know how much we love a charming little town…
…it was the perfect final stop before we headed back to Sydney.
We returned to the hotel, cleaned up and headed to…
…our New Year’s Eve dinner. Sydney was C-R-A-Z-Y as everyone was waiting for the fireworks at midnight. Sydney is one of the first major cities to ring in the new year and looooooots of people show up early, line up and wait all day to see them. From our hotel room, we saw THOUSANDS of people lined up as early as 5:00 AM that day.
You guys…
…we had the most special dinner at Hubert.
We were in their private wine cellar, so it was really special and intimate and just flat out FUN to be inside. They had live music by the bar that was being piped in (like big band music), and the whole experience was probably the most special of our trip.
We have a tradition in our family where we go around at NYE dinner and say something we love/appreciate about everyone at the table from the year. This time though, we had my mom and dad with us, and they were able to share/participate too which made it all the sweeter. Cue the tears, we were all eight sobbing by the end. It was just really special. My dad retired from a 45 year career as a State Farm agent at the beginning of December, so needless to say, there were many tears around that huge accomplishment too. My dad’s job provided for me in so many ways that I never really understood or appreciated until I got married and had kids myself. I am so thankful for how hard he worked so that Sean and I could have the upbringing we did. I am also so very thankful that he introduced me to State Farm (where I found my own passion for it!) and thus, we both introduced it to my college boyfriend turned hubby who now has a career he loves. State Farm is very very special to our family (my mom’s dad was a SF agent for 44 years!), and this dinner was a celebration of so many things including my dad’s retirement.
We LOVED the food at Hubert. It was really just so special.
After dinner, we headed back to the hotel to watch the amazing Sydney fireworks (I took many many videos to share!), but this last pic I ended up taking in 2024 is maybe my favorite of the entire year…
…those are my favorite five humans. They’re all ornery enough to have moved had they known I was taking their pic (ha!), but geez, I love them so much. I have no idea what’s in store for our family in 2025, but I am very blessed by our very last day in 2024. When we went around and voted on the best day of our trip, this was hands down my favorite.
And that’s PART THREE.
Don’t forget my other two posts today! I have A WELLNESS POST for you + a MY PLATE too.
I’ll see you tomorrow, friends. xx
Elspeth says
Seems like an incredible day and great way to end the year! Thanks for sharing!
http://www.elspethsdaybyday.com
Laura says
Wonderful!!
We need the link to the tan/white striped top Lovie wore to NYE!
Dawn Timmons says
Great recap! Congratulations to your Dad on his career and his retirement! 🎉❤️
Alysa says
What an amazing day! Your NYE tradition brought tears to my eyes. I thank God every day for this providing me the career he did so I can provide for my young, growing family, and this really hit home hearing you look back on your family careers and all that they’ve brought you. Thanks for sharing 🤍
Katrina Goodman says
Thanks for sharing your trip. It looks like a great day. Happy retirement to your dad!
Paula Hobbs says
What a oh so special ending to an amazing day! So happy for your dad’s retirement. I can’t wait to see the places he and Lovie will go now that he’s officially retired! How fun! PS the animals are precious!!
Erika Slaughter says
Awwww…what a GREAT way to end the year!
SS says
Shay,
I have always loved Koalas. We saw them at San Diego Zoo (many yrs ago). I would have so many of them.
I love the walking away pix. I take them all the time. I used to take them of my Dad and our kids. He always said “She is taking a picture of our butts, isn’t she?” But they are some of my favorites. Now with him gone they are priceless!!!
Thanks for sharing all the pix!!!
Kacy M says
What a special vacation!! Wombats are the cutest round animals omg
Jess Wade says
Love your NYE tradition, that’s so special. And sounds like just the best way to end 2024 with your parents there to join in. And in Australia!!! Also loved the animal pictures, they’re all just so cute!
Natasha says
Two of my favourite pictures from Australia are of me holding a koala bear, and it is snuggled right in, and of me feeding a kangaroo where it is holding my hand in place with its paws. That was almost 35 years ago and I still remember those two experiences vividly!
Mix and Match Mama says
I love this so much!!
Kay says
This was such a fun post! I can’t beat waking up in the morning and seeing photos of koalas and kangaroos! They are adorable. And thank you for sharing your special NYE tradition, It’s a good reminder that a life well lived is about the family around you! Congrats to your dad on this milestone.
Katie says
Wow – looks like an amazing time! Thank u for sharing the animal pics. I just wanted to note that your Mom always looks effortlessly put together. Where does she shop for clothes?
Mix and Match Mama says
Isn’t she so cute? She shops at Nordstrom, Anthro and Evereve quite a bit. I would say those are her go to spots.
Audrey Winter says
Hi. Thanks for sharing your vacation with us. I also love your mom’s clothes. Would you happen to know (or if you would please find out) where she bought the blue shirt she’s wearing in the pics or even just the brand? Thanks so much. Can’t wait for the next Australia chapter!
Mix and Match Mama says
She said it’s not recent, but it was Anthropologie.
Kristen says
Great pics! How were the fireworks? You watched from your hotel room?
Mix and Match Mama says
Amazing! Yes, we were able to watch them from our hotel. It was the perfect way to enjoy them.
Marie says
What an amazing trip!! What a true blessing to make memories with the ones you love.
Side note. What brand were your thermal leggings from, in yesterday’s live w/ Shay post?
Mix and Match Mama says
Athleta 🙂
Karen says
Ok now I must book a trip to Australia! I’ve seen you mention several times that you devoted an entire post to reviewing the book ‘Outlive” but when I search for the post I pull up mentions of it but no post. How can I find it?
Mix and Match Mama says
Of course! It’s right here: https://mixandmatchmama.com/2024/01/outlive/
Ramona Puckett says
Wow! What a incredible trip for your family! First, congratulations on your dad’s accomplishments, your animal pictures are amazing, I loved the kangaroo baby peeking out from its mama! Your family pictures are so beautiful. Your pictures of Australia is not what I thought Australia would look like. Much more beautiful with the mountain scenery. Have a great week!
K.K. says
You are RIGHT. I want to take Jasper home too!!
And by the way, random note: If your family comes back to San Antonio on a trip, the SA Zoo has a kangaroo exhibit area, and you can PET THEM. Yes, you read that right. It’s in a secured area and with all females with lots of babies, and the kangaroos have an area that they can hop to if they don’t want to be petted, but most will let you!
Also, side note: It’s one of the cheaper animal interactives they offer, and I’m not sure why. I think it is the best, since I always want to touch the animals. ha ha!
Mix and Match Mama says
That is so fun to know! Thank YOU!
Haley says
This looks like such a fun day! Random question: can you hold the koalas?? I know when I was younger and traveled around SE Asia I did some questionable things involving animals. Once I sat on a swing holding hands with an orangutan 🥴 and it truly made me so happy, but now I realize how unethical that was. I’m trying to do better but gosh I would love to snuggle a little koala!
Mix and Match Mama says
We didn’t hold them at this particular farm. The farm worker who took us on our tour there (the lady pictured) held them. We were able to pet them though.
Caitlin Davies says
Do you know where your mom’s striped white and tan top is from? It’s so so cute!
Mix and Match Mama says
She thinks Anthro!
Jeanette says
Wow! Congratulations on your dad’s accomplishments! State Farm is my insurance company also 😉. What a fantastic Day 3 and NYE celebration! I would want to take all the animals home, too.
Detroit Duchess says
Your travel posts make me want to travel! I need to go way back and reread your posts about traveling with toddlers. It seems so daunting now! I love how well-traveled your kids are.
Mix and Match Mama says
Awwww! I have so many posts on the subject. Here is one in particular: https://mixandmatchmama.com/2013/04/fifty-two-shades-of-shay-traveling-with/
If you ever have specific questions, please don’t hesitate to email me. I’m always happy to encourage family travel 🙂 . xx