Wendesday was our first Australia Day for six years where we’ve actually been in the country to celebrate – not to mention Oscar’s first ever Australia Day! Ben, Michelle and Ted have all been up at Golden Beach enjoying a week off, so we headed up at sparrow’s to join them and Team Dahl in an overnight mid-week getaway.

The Priebes were staying in a lovely three bedroom apartment at Gemini Resort, which had amazing views over Golden Beach and Caloundra on one side, and out to the Glass House Mountains on the other side.

We had a very lazy Australia Day, with some swimming at the beach and in the pool, loads of eating, and listening to the Triple J Hottest 100 – I think we were all pleased with Angus and Julia Stone taking out the number one spot. We lost count of the number of Australian flags that we saw around the place, and there were literally thousands of people out celebrating the birth of our nation.

Thursday was much quieter at the coast. Kristy decided that we should take a leisurely stroll down to Bullcock Beach, but when we got there, we decided to keep on going around to Kings Beach. That’s the first time we’ve walked along the new boardwalk that they’ve built there, and I was most impressed with it!

Boy were we exhausted when we got there – and it suddenly became clear that thongs were a poor choice for footwear! We rewarded ourselves with a well deserved coffee and cake at the little cafe under Rolling Surf resort, which may or may not be called Tanja’s Beach Pavilion. The Hummingbird Cake was delicious, but I regret not having a lamington (which I didn’t see on the menu until we were leaving!).

After a long walk back, we tidied off the afternoon with lunch with Ben’s Mum, a quick cache, and a few games of Boules. Ben was particularly on form!

We farewelled the Priebes and had a very uneventful drive home, but arrived feeling like we had been away for a lot longer than two days. What a great way to spend a Wednesday and Thursday – I wish we could do that every week!

View more photos in the Australia Day 2011 album on Picasa.

Kristy and I have booked in to Palace Dahl to undertake a Sydney shopping spree right before Christmas this year. We’ll be down there from the 3rd to the 5th of December, shopping up a storm for all the good boys and girls back home. (Note: no presents for the people on the naughty list). With any luck, Team BAM will also be joining us on our adventure too!

If you’re feeling inspired to take a trip somewhere around Australia, make sure you take advantage of the Million Seat Sale that Qantas are currently offering. But be quick – the sale is only on for a week!

Kristy and I had an appointment with another photographer last night after work, so we trundled on down to his studio after enjoying some dinner at Garden City. I made the mistake of not looking too closely at the photographer’s website – and as such I was rather surprised to walk in and see giant photos of Louisa and Steve! Turns out it was the same photographer that they used for their wedding, and old-mate Ross is using quite a number of their photos for advertising. I can see why Lou & Steve went with these people; their photos were excellent, they use all digital photography, have a great eye for shots, and their albums are fantastic. We have an appointment to see another bird on the weekend, so we can’t make a decision just yet.

Saturday morning started early, with a very unhappy gerrod.com waking up at 4:10am as usual.

Anyway, being the first day of the weekend, Saturday’s are usually jam packed with excitement, and yesterday was no exception. Following gym in the morning, Kristy and I headed out to Parkinson to check out a photographer what was so cheap, it was too good to be true. Well, turns out there’s a reason she was so cheap, she was like totally amateur, man. So we have politely declined to use her services – but not to let the time be wasted, we caught up with Matt & Lauren whilst we were in their neighbourhood.

Last night we headed to The Regatta hotel with a whole bunch of larrikins, to farewell Lou & Steve as they head for Sydney. (Check the photos.) I was pleased to discover they knew what a 50/50 was (a schooner containing 50% Toohey’s Old, 50% Toohey’s New), as I thought it was strictly a Sydney thing. May I recommend though, that if you’re heading to The Regatta, don’t take your car. There’s no-where to park, and even the slightly daring spaces will land you with a $60 parking fine. *Curses Brisbane City Council*

Though I slept very heartily last night, I still managed to wake up in the normal 4am – 4:30am range. Though admittedly, I was quickly back asleep. Hopefully things have started looking up.

Another day, another birthday! This time, it was for Steve’s 30th. And I know for a fact that Steve really is turning 30. (Actually his birthday is on Tuesday, but there’s no reason not to celebrate a little early). Being the eager-beavers that we are, Kristy and I turned up at The Normanby Hotel a little early (like an hour-and-a-half before anyone else), to enjoy a few pre-dinner beverages. However, it wasn’t long before we were joined by Ben and Michelle (BaM!), and together we all headed downstairs to meet the rest of the troops.

After Lou & Steve arrived, it was time for food. May I recommend the rump steak, medium rare, with creamy garlic sauce and garlic prawns? It was fantastic. Some post dinner drinks upstairs on the balcony tied up another fantastic evening. Hope you had an awesome time, Steve!