Tractors, sheep, spuds and one heck of a wedding - this trip to Australia was unlike anything I’ve done before.
This was not an explorative trip of Melbourne full of museums and historical landmarks. Instead, this was truly a trip to the Australian countryside and the land of potatoes. 
We came to Australia for my sister-in-law’s wedding. Amanda’s sister, Melissa, married Jamie, who grew up about two hours outside of Melbourne in a town called Trafalgar. Melissa had told us how the home was really out in the middle of farmland, but until we really saw it, it was hard to imagine.
Back to the beginning, the kids did very well through more than 30 hours of traveling to get to Australia, which included a missed flight and a long layover (I’m not going to drag down this blog with a whole ordeal about missing luggage, but that was also a factor on the trip). When we finally got in to Melbourne, we met up with Amanda’s parents, Steve and Marilyn. Amanda’s sister, Ally, was a real trooper, flying to Australia with us. That night, we crashed at a hotel in the central business district. After a nice breakfast the next day, we took a walk through the city before heading to the countryside.
Wednesday morning, we went for a wonderful stroll through a wooded fern gully area. It was great to be out in nature and take it all in. We’d just about fully built up an appetite when we stopped in one more area to see a strong waterfall nearby. From there, it was back to the house to have sandwiches on bread rolls. I loved the shaved carrot, along with beetroot, to go with shredded chicken. It was very simple, but very good.
Later that day, I enjoyed getting a tour of Jamie’s dad’s workshop. He has so much metal machinery in there, which makes sense because he’s building these impressive structures. It just a totally different world to see, and I was gobsmacked. It was just a reminder of how everything gets where it’s going. Jamie’s family makes machinery to help potato farmers do their jobs, which helps get the spuds sold, and then they land them in the super market for us to buy. We ended the day with a dinner at the local pub/hotel. Sophie especially enjoyed meeting Jamie’s niece who was the same age.
On Friday, we started our journey to the wedding venue location in Dandenong. But first, we stopped at a mall near Melbourne. Shockingly, their malls smell and look just like our malls ;) The girls got their nails done, the kids went to a play place, we got a few items for the wedding, and then we left with a bag of burgers from Hungry Jack’s (aka Burger King. It was very underwhelming). From there, we went to the Healsville Sanctuary, which was awesome!
We got to see some native, Australian wildlife including koalas, kangaroos, reptiles, birds, and even dingos. The kids really enjoyed it. While I’d seen kangaroos on our trip to Sydney in 2013, these were the first I’d seen up close like that. From the zoo, we got to the wedding town and had a lovely rehearsal dinner with the families. The pizza was great, but the company was even better. The kids especially liked playing in the random parking area (hard to describe it) behind the restaurant.
Saturday was wedding day! Now, the morning was pretty unique for me. The ladies were getting their hair and makeup done in the apartment where we were staying. So, I was on kid-watching duty in the same room, which meant I kind of got to be part of my first bridal party! Of course, I tried not to intrude and had fun being a go between of the bridal party and groom’s party, carrying over gifts back and forth.
As for the wedding, it was stunning. It was set in this beautiful garden, and it really was great. I was so nervous that the kids would struggle walking down the aisle as flower girl and ring bearer, but when the moment finally came, they turned on the charm and made it happen. During the ceremony, I did my absolute best to keep Emmett from screaming (snacks and a surprise toy helped). Melissa and Jamie delivered (pun intended for the family reading this) beautiful vows and the whole ceremony was really great. Right after, the photographer pulled off something cool. He got a wide angle shot of the entire group in attendance with the bride and groom. I’ve never seen that before!
The reception was held at this restaurant called Sky High, and we could see Melbourne way off in the distance. The party was excellent. The whole wedding crew gave great speeches and the dancing, my goodness. Not only did the newlyweds have a nice first dance, but Melissa and Steve stole the show with their father-daughter dance. Steve’s got some moves away from the golf course, too!
On Sunday, we made our attempt at doing some of the 1000 Steps Kokoda Walk. This is a cool nature walk that’s supposed to simulate what Australian soldiers had to do during World War II. I’ve gotta hand it to those fellas, just the very beginning was hard! And while I wasn’t carrying a rucksack, I did have an Emmett who didn’t want to walk. That night, we went back to the family home in Trafalgar, and this night was really special. Both families came together to make dinner, with homemade gnocchi, a beautiful salad, meatballs and dessert. I know this is the type of thing that means a lot to my mother-in-law, and I think we could all feel how special it was. I felt bad for Ally, my-sister in-law, as she got a virus that she just couldn’t kick and she mostly had to rest up in her room.
Then came Monday and a special trip to Jamie’s uncle’s potato farm. After a wonderful spot of cookies and cakes made by his aunt, his uncle gave us a tour of the farm. Again, just seeing the process and the machinery of how this all gets to the market was really special. He also has a ton of sheep, and that was cool to see. The kids didn’t want to waste the opportunity to ride on some cool stuff, and they were in heaven. After, we went to a local bakery to pick up a variety of pies for lunch. That was our last family meal together before we headed off to the airport hotel. There’s not much to say about the rest of the night, EXCEPT that we got to see kangaroos in the wild from our hotel window. Sophie really liked that!
Tuesday morning, we went to the airport and started our journey back.
It was a short trip, but a really great one. I’m very glad that it wasn’t just Amanda that could go, as it looked like it might be at one point. It meant a lot to be there, and I really do feel like I got to add members to our family by meeting Jamie’s in Australia.
With that, I’ll say, “How you going? G’day!” And I’ll be on my way. Cheers!
