Happy Monday! 

I hope you had a great weekend.

Tj and I had the most perfect Saturday. We went to the gym, then went for brunch and explored a new neighbourhood in Melbourne. The weather was just right and it was one of the best days of our summer so far.

Sunday was very productive and I'm mostly all set for the week ahead. We have a busy one. One Wednesday Tj and I are going to the Australian Open.

And guess what?!

On Friday my Mom arrives in Melbourne!! I am getting so excited. I can't wait to show her and Pete around. We have a fun trip planned with them as well so it'll be nice to have some time off.

When Tj and I went out for dinner on New Year’s Eve, we had a really nice time reflecting on 2019 and all the highs and lows. It was really nice to think back over some fun times and think about areas we want to improve for 2020. As we head into 2020, we know we want to squeeze in lots of travel, focus on living active, healthy lifestyles, get out of our weekday rut and make an effort to explore more of Melbourne. We also really want to meet all these babies that our friends and family are popping out all over the world LOL. 

Today I wanted to share some of the highlights from 2019 (because who wants to dwell on the lows).

Visit from our friends - Christmas 2018 was in Bali, but our friends Dave and Lauryn from Ottawa made it to Melbourne just in time to ring in the new year with us. We had so much fun and I am still bugging them to come back and visit us again! 

Australian Open - For the Second year in a row, we went to the Australian Open. And for the first time in my life, I got sunburnt through my pants! That sun is no joke. We had amazing seats but it was way too hot and the bar ran out of ice. 

Day Trip to Dandenong Ranges - Tj and I rented a car and went on a little day trip and mini-hike. The trees were gorgeous and we didn't see any snakes!

Punta Cana - In March I got to see one of my best friend's get married in Punta Cana. It was the best few days away with my girlfriends.  

Canada - In March I also had a trip to Canada where I got to meet lots of new little babies and spend time with my family and friends. We even had a baking day. It was too short but hopefully I will be going back again this summer. 

Tj's family visit* - While I was back in Canada, Tj's family came to Australia, and he even took them to Bali. Even Lisa came from London! 

*pictures coming soon hahaha

Easter road trip - Over the Easter break, Tj and I did an epic road trip. You can read my road trip round up here. It was awesome to see more of Australia - we went to Seal Rocks, Port Macquarie, Surfers Paradise, Byron Bay, and Bondi Beach in Sydney. The highlight was all the awesome beaches and the low was the dead kangaroos we saw on the side of the road :(.

New apartment - In June we moved down the street. We have a great view of the city skyline now (this picture doesn't do it justice) and Tj has his own walk-in closet. We've never lived anywhere with two closets before - so much more space! 

Vietnam - In August we went to Vietnam (see the Vietnam round-up here). It was one of my favourite trips ever, even if I had a wicked head cold. Tj had one of the best eating trips in his life! We are still trying to figure out when we can go back.

Japan - Tj was gone for most of October and he started out in Japan! He loved this trip and said the eating rivaled Vietnam. This is another place I really want to try and visit soon. Olympics anyone?

Cousins visit - We had some more visitors in November/December when my cousin and cousin-in-law (is that a thing?) came to visit. We loved showing them around and introducing them to the crazy Melbourne weather. Hopefully we didn't scare them off and they can convince others to come to visit :) 

Christmas with Koalas - I wrote about this already, but it was definitely a highlight. We also went back to our favourite Byron Bay which I will write about next week! 

What a year! I can't wait to see what 2020 has in store for us. 

Have a great week :)