10 weeks already??

Hey all!

It's already time for me to wrap up everything in my lab down under! Last week I went on a home visit for the NICU study and was able to observe a 6-month-old infant and mother pair perform the still face procedure, a free play session, and an interview to measure maternal reflective functioning. It was really great to observe the procedures and finally meet all the people whose voices I've heard on every recording. They only have two or three more participants to run before the study is complete, so I'm busily trying to get through as many still face procedures as possible before Friday (my last day!). Tomorrow morning the lab is having a goodbye tea for me - while I can't believe I have fewer than five days left, I am truthfully very excited about the array of Aussie delicacies that will be served (e.g. Tim Tams and Lamingtons, delicious).

I spent my last weekend in Brisvegas entirely completing my sight-seeing to do list! I spent all day Saturday at the Australia Zoo - a must see sight if you're anywhere near Brisbane or the Sunshine Coast. Even more so than seeing heaps of crocodile shows and hearing more "crickey"s than I'd ever dreamed, my favorite part of the zoo was the elephant feeding - how often do you get to opportunity to hand a kiwi or carrot over to an elephant's trunk? Enough said.

My new lunch pal

Not sure I'd want to see this in the wild.

Sunday morning I ran a race benefitting research at the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital and spent the rest of the gorgeous day wandering markets, restaurants, and the Brisbane Powerhouse. The day culminated in an entertaining (and free!) comedy show at the Powerhouse and a very early bedtime (sightseeing's a lot of work!).

Another Australian race to add to the list :)

In all it was a fantastic way to spend my final weekend in this great city. My parents arrive in Brisbane tomorrow and on Saturday we head up to Cairns and eventually down to Sydney before making our way back to the States. I'm so glad I've saved these exciting trips for the end of my Aussie adventure - otherwise it would have been impossible to get me away from Brisbane. And of course, once I'm with my parents I don't think any citizenship alterations will be in my future, so I suppose I'll be back at Emory before I know it!

Cheers!