Rottnest Island

G'Day family and friends!
Trying to play catch up here on the blog. I had promised to blog while on my mid year break... but that didn't exactly happen. Unfortunately uni started back up last week. I am taking my last 3 units this semester and then graduation here I come! I finish classes the second week of October and finish up my last prac second week in December. Then I am officially a certified speech pathologist (in Australia that is). Then after filling out some paper work and doing some ASHA (American speech and hearing association) requirements I will also be a certified speech pathologist in the US as well. I couldn't be more excited to (1) be done with uni FOREVER and (2) to start working doing something I absolutely love. Which reminds me of some exciting news I thought I would share. My previous prac, Next Challenge, hired me as a therapy assistant. Then once I graduate I will hopefully transition into a speech pathologist for them. Next Challenge is a private clinic for kids. I work on a team with OT's, Physical Therapists (or as they like to call them here- Physios) and other speech pathologists (or as they like to call us-Speechies). I love the Next Challenge team and am so excited to be a part of it. I officially start seeing clients tomorrow. :) Yay! Brandon is busy as always. He was promoted as a Regional Industrial Hygiene Superintendent and is traveling up a storm. He just got back from Papua New Guinea and is getting ready to fly to Africa next week. Then after that he is heading to Saudi Arabia (which freaks me out a little). So proud of my hard working hubby. That's enough updates for now...

Brandon and I decided that we would take turns planning our anniversary. Last year Brandon did all the planning, so this year it was up to me. I decided to take Brandon on a surprise trip to Rottnest Island, which is a 20-30 minute boat trip from Perth. We have been wanting to go there ever since we moved here, but could never find the time to make it happen. I didn't finish exams until the June 13th, and our anniversary was June 11th... Also, Brandon was traveling at the time so I had to postpone the trip until the following weekend. It was a perfect getaway and I loved getting to spend some quality time with my man.

Unfortunately it is the middle of winter here... also known as the 'wet season', for good reason. You never know when rain will strike. We were praying for good weather, but weren't going to let bad weather rain on our parade.... It was pretty overcast in the morning, but we were told that it is usually clearer on the island, so we tried to stay optimistic. Guess our positive thinking back fired because just as we got into Rottnest it started pouring rain.... and I mean literally pouring bucket loads of rain. We were absolutely drenched (that's what we get for forgetting an umbrella, silly us) and it wouldn't be the last time!!! It was pretty funny. Within 20 minutes it cleared up and the rest of the day was beautiful!

Our little villa for the weekend (the last one on the right)

Sunrise from our balcony

I love lighthouses

Rotto
Brandon was originally planning on becoming a pilot and did a years worth of study as a flight major. Although he transitioned into a completely different field he still has a love for flying, and eventually wants to get his pilots license. We decided to take a short plane ride around rottnest so Brandon could relive his flying days. I had never been in a small plane before and what was even cooler was I got to ride co-pilot. The view was absolutely amazing! I loved looking down at the ocean and seeing all the different shades of blue.

I got to sit co-pilot

Plane ride around rottnest

View from the plane

Bike ride
My Favorite part of the rottnest trip was bike riding around the island. We hired bikes on the island and spent all of Sunday riding around and exploring the island. I loved going and exploring all the hidden beaches and visiting the lighthouses. The island is massive... and by the end we were both completely exhausted and sore.

And yet again.... we got caught in a huge rain storm and were drenched

Last but not least we got to see 'quokkas' which are only found on Rottnest island. When people first came to rottnest they thought the island was infested with rats, hence the name rottnest. But they were actually, cute little quokkas. They remind me of a mix between a wallaby and a guinea pig. They are adorable... I'm try to convince Brandon to let me have one as a pet, if it's even possible.

Happy 3 Year Anniversary babe!
I love you xoxox