Christmas Eve finished with one of the best bits of the whole Australian Christmas build-up: the traditional light drive.
We followed a local Christmas lights map and headed out after dark, cruising through the suburbs in search of the biggest, brightest and most over-the-top houses we could find. Some of them were absolutely epic. Whole gardens were covered in flashing lights, giant decorations, glowing baubles, inflatable characters and enough electricity to probably power a small village.
One house had gone properly all-in, with lights across the roof, signs, trees, arches and a huge glowing “Merry Christmas” display out the front. Georgia stood there in front of it all, half silhouetted by the colours, looking like she’d just walked into a Christmas film that had accidentally been set in Queensland.
It still feels strange seeing palm trees, warm nights and Christmas lights all together. Back home, a Christmas Eve lights walk usually means coats, cold noses and maybe a flask of hot chocolate. Here it was shorts, sandals, car windows down and warm air rolling in while the girls shouted out every time they spotted another glowing Santa.
When we got back, it was time for the most important job of the night: putting out treats for Santa and the reindeer. The girls left milk, a biscuit and a carrot, with Christmas books lined up behind them and their Santa photo proudly on display. Georgia and Dotty were full of that fizzy Christmas Eve energy, pointing at everything, giggling and making sure Santa had exactly what he needed.
Then came stockings, final whispers, and the impossible task of getting two excited children to sleep when Christmas morning was only a few hours away.
It was a very different Christmas Eve to the ones we know from the UK, but a magical one all the same. Warm air, fairy lights, carrots for reindeer and two little girls absolutely buzzing for Santa. Hard to beat that.