Thanksgiving, Australia update, and the final days

It seems like time is both stopped and flying by. Not sure how that makes sense, but we'll go with it

2 weeks ago, Dan, Jackson and I were in Phoenix for thanksgiving and spending time with my family before we move.

It was a great week and a nice time to share with everyone.

Heidi's 30th birthday was on November 26th so in honor of thanksgiving and her birthday, Uncle Guy introduced a new holiday tradition of Jell-O shots. Even Grandma Phyllis took part in it! However she has no idea it had alcohol in it and the only way I can share that on here is because she is yet to get a computer :)

Also in honor of Heidi's birthday, my mom took Heidi and I to a BYO painting class. We brought in a bottle of win and were guided step by step to paint a park scene picture. It went a little fast at parts and was pretty frustrating at times but overall a really fun experience!

Now that thanksgiving is over we are working in getting all the final details sorted for the move which has become a bit daunting. I think I like it better when you rent a truck one day, load your things into it, then drive it to your new place and unpack the truck. That is NOT the case for this move. I feel like ever since we decided to move in March we've been slowly preparing and now we're ready to just settle!

Things are really falling into place over in Australia and we're getting really excited for the move. Just to update you all, Dan and I both have gotten jobs in the Loganholme/Beenleigh area. Dan got a full year contract at a high school and I got a brand management job with Absolute Distributors who have Penny Skateboards and Z-Flex Skateboards. I'll be working specifically on Z-Flex. They are an American skateboard company started in Venice, CA in the 1960's and they're looking to relaunch and keep their American roots, so what's better than hiring an American? :) I start on the 17th of December and Dan starts at the end of January. We both feel very blessed to have gotten jobs so quickly and really feel like everything is working out to make our transition a really good one.

We have also rented a house in Redland Bay. We were originally looking at the Gold Coast but since we both got jobs north of there, Redland Bay seemed like a good option. For those of you unfamiliar with the area (like me), its a bay town that is separated from the ocean by a bunch of little islands. We will be living less than a mile from the bay and there are a lot of nice walking trails to take Jackson to as well as a little beach area at the bay. The town itself is small, but where Dan and I will be working there are plenty of shopping places (including IKEA) so we don't really need much in walking distance from the house. We also have 2 spare bedrooms for all the visitors we'll have... Hint hint.

One final update, thanks to the wonders of Michael Kennet- Dan and I will have a car when we arrive so we can actually get to our new home and jobs :) see what I mean.... All falling into place.

So it's official. We leave in less than a week. Arrive in Australia on the 13th and then head to Redland bay the next day. We will be in Bundy for Christmas and New Years and are looking forward to catching up with everyone there.

So that's it. Next time I update we'll be on the other side :)

Until then, here's some photos of thanksgiving in Arizona (a little out of order, sorry, trying to update this on the go) ...