The Vanderbilts Walkabout Australia: August 2010

I had such a wonderful birthday, it's taken me about a month to recover and finally post pictures from the amazing day my family and friends (local and afar) provided for me. THANK YOU to everyone for making my day so special.

The day started with breakfast in bed. Jeff made breakfast tacos and wrote me a very thoughtful card that also included details on the wine tour he has planned for our anniversary in October (hence the wine featured below)! The fun doesn't stop here folks... he also bought me a lovely dress and made dinner reservations at the most amazing French restaurant in Brisbane called Anise. Jeff deserves some extra recognition and appreciation as he did an outstanding job planning a wonderful day for me. Thanks Jeff ;)

I arrived to work and had more surprises in store... my team had decorated my desk and treated me to morning tea and a delicious birthday cake! Another friend from work had flowers delivered. I am really lucky to have met such wonderful people here in such a short amount of time. My friends and co-workers made the day one to remember.

I did my best and tried to wait until my actual birthday to open all the birthday cards that arrived in the mail. Again, thank you so much to everyone for remembering my birthday and sending me a card. I love cards... so I appreciate each and every one. Pictured below are a collection of some of the cards that arrived for my special day.

Special thanks to my sisters, Sara and Kate, and Catherine Wilson for not only sending a card, but an entire birthday spread! Pictured below are some of the wonderful gifts they sent from home. THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH! It's no small task shipping stuff to Australia, so I sincerely appreciate all that you did to make me feel so loved. Again, thank you!

Temporary tattoos, check. Card making supplies, check. Two copies of Heart of the Matter, check. Anthro cardigan, check. Trader Joe's fruit bars, check. You gals know me and love me. Thank you!

After opening all my birthday cards and gifts, I quickly got dressed and ready for our night out. Jeff met me at home and we shared a glass of wine then headed out for the most amazing dinner ever!

Birthday dress from Jeff!

Anise is a very small restaurant with only 16 seats around the bar. We thought we were in the wrong place when we first got there. We were definitely in the RIGHT place... this restaurant is amazing!

We began with baked oysters. I was a bit hesitant to order oysters, as there were so many delicious options on the menu... but my hesitancy didn't last long, as we ordered a dozen more immediately following our first round. Wow. Wow.

Like I said, Wow.

Onto the entrees. I ordered the sea bass and Jeff got lamb with a side of duck fat truffle roasted chips (potatoes) and vegetables. Wow. Wow. Wow.

For those of you who know me well, I'm not one to pass up dessert. In fact, I'm not sure I've ever said no to dessert. I was so extremely satisfied with my amazing meal, I passed on dessert! Hold on, calm down. I quickly came-to and clearly changed my mind and made Jeff stop at Baskin Robbins for some birthday ice cream! Appropriate conclusion to the most wonderful birthday evening!

One last thank you to everyone for making me feel so loved and special on my birthday! Love and miss everyone.

One of the many new adventures that we've enjoyed since being here is hiking. Australia has heaps of terrain waiting to be discovered by hikers. And while Jeff and I aren't clearing walking paths, we have endured some challenging hikes, that I'm still sore from, 4 weeks later. Our first hike was through Springbrook National Park. We went with our friends Craig and Nick.

Springbrook was a walk in the park (no pun intended) in comparison to our next hike... Mt. Warning, which should be called, Mt. Impossible/ Mt. You're Going to be Sore for 4 Weeks after this. Mt. Warning was quite possibly the most challenging thing I've ever done (me, dramatic... never). It was a 10k hike in total, with the last 850 meters a vertical climb, pulling yourself up by a rope. Thankfully I have extreme upper body strength (to be read with sarcasm and drama), so these 850 meters were nothing but fun. Who doesn't love rope climbing? This girl. Either way, we were successful and made it to the top! Got a couple pictures before the cloud cover moved in.

The hiking crew