Christmas with the Gerards

This year we had some very dear friends come all the way from DC to Sydney to share Christmas with us...THE GERARD'S. The Gerard's have 8 kids and life is a party when they come to town. I missed them so much! While Stan was in law school I used to babysit the Gerard's on a weekly basis. I drove them to their lessons, stayed overnight with them, took them shopping, decorated for their birthdays, watched their soccer games, taught one how to drive, took another one to buy her first point shoes for ballet etc.... I have some pretty good stories but to sum it all up I had two ladies who saved me through all the hard times. (Stan was in law school and I was writing my thesis and also had two little babies while living with my in-laws). The first lady/ family were the Gerard's (because I had the opportunity to bbs them Stan and I kept our school debt pretty low compared to most our peers), and it was like getting paid to hang out with friends!

The next lady was Jill Fitzgerald (who lived across the street from the Gerard's) and who brought me and my little family over to her house during Stan's last year of law school. She also visited me in England after I had Thomas and took Olivia to Paris. Seriously cannot think of Jill without getting emotional.

Anyway, this year all 10 Gerard's came out to Sydney for Christmas. We had them over for Christmas dinner (BBQ ed a sea food spread which is the Aussie way). Ben and Sam (the twins they adopted at 8 months) were so big and Sam ate a raw oyster on the half shell. Go Sam! We opened crackers, talked for hours and then took everyone swimming in our pool at the end.

Sarah eating the bbqed octopus!

Opening our crackers and displaying the gifts inside

The Gerard's were the same way I remembered them; when they came to Sydney they told me Santa had already come to see them before their trip and they wanted to know if there was anyone they could help. We sent them to a Phillipino family Christmas morning to secret Santa. The family was speechless and told me the next day they had never been given that much stuff. Which is the same way Stan and I felt after they paid us for the first time when we babysat their kids, they are extremely generous.

Anyway, the next day Jack (who is a member of the 70 in our church) spoke at church and Claudette taught a primary class for me (I am the primary president and I do not have a single teacher). We had them over for Sunday dinner after church and hung out some more! The next day we went to the aquarium with them and then they treated us to dinner.

Pancake house on The Rocks

Sarah and Lizzie inside the aquarium tunnel

The clan

Wednesday we met them at manly beach while the boys took a surfing lesson. We stayed the afternoon/evening and then grabbed dinner at a little cafe near the sand while the sun set it was a perfect end to their time in Sydney!

Olivia, Ben & Mary...trying to jump for the camera

the 15 seater bus we went around in...called the party van!

Manly beach

Thomas putting sand on David

Jack Sr. & Stan

David playing with the kids....he is so good with them

Mary & Ben... inseparable!

Good thing Olivia took to Sam and they didn't have to fight over the boys!

The Gerard's left the next day for Melbourne and I was so sad to see them go! On the bright side we will be coming over to DC for a family reunion in August at Deep Creek and the Gerard's (who own a cabin there) have already invited us over--SO excited!!