Family vacation to Exmouth

Last week Brandon, Ella and I had our first family vacation together.  We rented a house in Exmouth with two other couples (one couple also has an 8 month old baby). Our friends drove 14 hours to Exmouth.  Considering what a terror Ella is in the car we decided it wasn't worth our sanity to drive, so we decided to fly and meet them there instead.  We were able to get flights for free with Brandon's frequent flier points. Score! We flew out Sunday morning. Since Brandon is a platinum Quantas member, we got to sit in the business class lounge, and eat a complimentary breakfast before our flight took off.   Ella was a gem on the plane as usual.  She is quite the little traveler now.  This was her 9th flight, and she is only 5 months old!

The house we rented for the week 

Exmouth was a lot smaller than I expected.  It is a tiny town, and in the middle of no where.  You are literally surrounded by outback.  There is one grocery store, one bakery, around 5 restaurants, a couple gift shops etc.   October is the end of their peak season so it wasn't very busy, which was nice.

Overall it was a really nice relaxing vacation.  We went on walks in the morning, spent the afternoon at the beach, and then had BBQ's and hung out in the evening.

Yardie gorge

Exmouth is known for it's beautiful beaches, and for the Ningaloo Reef... Some parts of the Ningaloo Reef have been rated the best snorkeling/scuba diving in the world (even better than The Great Barrier Reef).  Turquoise Bay was beautiful.  The reef is right off the shore. There is a nice currant that runs across it, so you can float down the currant and admire all the beautiful coral and fish.

Turquoise Bay

Ella and Luke best friends 

 Ella had her first experience dipping her toes into the ocean.  The water at Turquoise Bay was a little cold, so she wasn't too excited about it initially.

First time in the ocean

 Ella was such an easy baby to travel with.  She loved being out and about, and looking at all the different things.  She is a very curious baby.  We brought a little beach tent for her, so she would hang out in the shade while we were at the beach, and when she was tired I'd lay her down on a towel for a nap.

Coral Bay

Coral Bay was my favorite.  The water was SO warm.  The snorkeling was good, but wasn't as impressive as Turquoise Bay.

Love my little beach bum

Ella loved the warm water

The girls :)
Mel, Lisa, Lissette

 October is the beginning month of the turtle egg laying season, which goes from October to April.  One night while use ladies were at home with the babies the boys went out turtle watching, and got to watch a turtle dig a hole and lay it's eggs.  How cool is that?!?!  I was a little jealous.  The price we pay for babies.  ;)  Brandon took me to the beach during the day, and showed me some of the turtle tracks and nests.  When we looked out into the ocean we saw at least 5 turtles waiting near the shore to come in and lay their eggs.  They wait in the water until it is dark, so they are safe from predators, and then come onto the beach to lay their eggs.  

Ella loves her baby Bjorn

Turtle tracks (they look really similar to tire tracks)

 It was such an amazing trip, and went by WAY too fast.  This was our last Australian holiday before we move back to the US in December   It was a great way to end our adventure here in OZ.  Love this beautiful country! I'm going to be very sad to leave.

Brandon bought Ella a turtle from the Exmouth airport