Queensland - Part 1

Here we embark on our 10 day trip to Queensland. In tow were Grandma and Nan.

Sandy & I were lucky enough to be able to drive to Queensland on our own as the Grandmothers were gracious enough to escort C and E on the aeroplane !! Thank you to you both.

Our first adventure after the rain cleared was the Aquaduck. It is an amphibious vehicle that takes tourist sightseeing around Surfers Paradise then enters the water at the Spit and travels back down the river past Sea World and the Marina.

Waiting for the DUCK to arrive

My happy little family. Love you guys !!

The Super Duck has arrived

Nan and Grandma were there to !!!

Both kids were lucky enough to "drive" the Super Duck.

Now E's turn !! They both had a great time.

After the Duck ride we headed back into the mall for some lunch and a picture on the famous seat. The girls also scored their own Superduck cape and mask so when we got home they pretended to the Superduck all night !!

My Superducks to the rescue !!

Another great highlight for us all were the 3 swimming pools and spa at our accommodation. If the kids had their way they would have been there the whole holiday. We had 3 pools, an indoor heated pool, outdoor heated pool and outdoor heated wadding pool. Unfortunately we didn't get to spend to much time in the outdoor pool due to the weather but the indoor pool was fantastic.

Enjoying the indoor pool. Thank goodness we had this one.

The kids in the wadding pool. Behind them is a big drop into the main pool.

Grandma waving for the camera from the spa.

Our apartments, The Mantra Bel Air at Broadbeach.

  There is much more to come in the following posts and heaps more pictures !! Stay tuned.

And so it begins .....

We are gearing up for our big trip to Queensland in the next few weeks and it was time for the girls to count the money they have been saving in their moneyboxes.

C had a great tin that can only be opened with a can opener and before opening it mum decided to weigh it. It tipped the scales at 2kg !! How much will be inside ???

Excited about what will be inside !!

Breaking out the heavy machinery !!

The Loot !!

Everyone got in on the fun of counting !!

In the end C ended up with $58.80 and E with $16.25 !! So now we will change the coins into cash and the kids will be able to spend the money on what they want. Who knows what they will come home with !!! 

Things I am loving right now !!

Lately I have been thinking about all the things that are making my life really happy so I thought that I had better post if before it all goes away and will also give me something to look back on should I not be so happy down the track !!

They are all pretty simple but I think sometimes the simple things are the best !!

*     My Jobs - I absolutely love both my jobs, this has been one of the most wonderful things that has happened to me for a very long time. Obviously the time was right for me to change career direction and I could not be happier.

*     You Tube - We can not get enough of You Tube lately. We can sit for hours watching music videos and remembering what we were doing when they were popular. Great entertainment but takes up way to much time !!

*     Wii - The kids were given a Wii for Christmas, which I wasn't to happy about in the beginning. But I have slowly warmed to the idea and love watching both kids use the "Just Dance" game. They love dancing and doing the "moves". Again this is another time waster but great for the kids. They get to stay in shape and I get to chill out watching them although I do like to get in there and have a go myself !!

*     Blogger - I just love the fact that we can all record what we have been up to and it's great to know that everyone can keep up with what is happening. It's a great way to preserve our lives and watch everyone changing and growing. It feels like no one is really that far away !!

*     Warm Weather - We have recently been blessed with a warm burst of winter weather and I just love it. The cold is not one of my favourite things and hate nothing more than having to try and keep warm.

*    Holidays - I don't think there is much to add to this one only that the next 12 days can't come quick enough !!

*     E's Dancing - E has been coming out of her shell a lot lately and the latest thing for her to do is "Dance" whenever she hears music that she loves. It doesn't matter where she is, the middle of the shopping centre, my bedroom it doesn't matter. I just love watching E being her true happy self !!

*    C's school achievements - I recently had half yearly parent teacher meetings for C. I am so very proud of what she has achieved at school this year. Firstly she is a model student (why can't that be the same at home !!) gets along with everyone and is a delight to teach. Second she has come along leaps and bounds in her literacy and is now in the top band for the year and thirdly C is the Number 1 student for Year 3 maths !!  We are all so very proud of what you are achieving and keep up the great work.

*     E's manners and "I Love Yous" - E is quite a quirky little girl and is very caring and loving. She has exceptional manners and 9 out of 10 times will always use them with out prompting which I think is a big thing for a 5 year old. Her other trait at the moment is she will just come up to you and tell you "I love you mum" combined with a big kiss and cuddle. She melts my heart every time !! Love you to E !!


*     My Marriage - Last but not least is my marriage. This is by far and away the best decision that I have and ever will make. I am totally devoted to my husband and can not bear the thought of living any of my life without him. He is my rock, my best friend, my lover and my life partner. Life would not be same without you honey. I love you with everything that I am and everything that I have. You help make my life truly happy.

So there you have it my current list from the top of my head that really stick out for me right now. I would love to hear what others have on their lists.  

Manly Oceanworld

On Sunday we headed out for a Magical Mystery Tour !! We love to take the kids out when they don't know where they are going. My own mother did this for me when I was little so I have continued the fun !

Sundays are a great day to travel. All train and ferry trips are only $2.50 per person !! So we decided to head to Manly Oceanworld with our annual passes that we picked up earlier in the year.

First step of the trip was a drive to Wollongong Railway station for a train ride to Sydney. From there we hopped on another train to Circular Quay then a ferry trip over to Manly. All this for $10.00 !!! What a bargain !! On any other day one child alone couldn't get to Manly for $10.00.

Pretending to be "asleep" on the train. Although we were up pretty early.

Welcome to "warm, sunny" Sydney. The weather wasn't great but no real rain.

Can you see Sydney in the background ???

The kids loved the ferry ride over to Manly. Even though the weather wasn't great the water was calm so it was great to stand outside and watch the world go by.

So off we headed to Oceanworld Manly. Sandy & I have not been there for many, many years and wondered if anything had changed. The answer is NO.

It is still very much the same and a much smaller version than Sydney Aquarium but still ok for the little ones. We really did like their underwater tunnel, it seemed to have alot more fish than Sydney and the Sting Rays are HUGE.

The Stingers are HUGE.

One of my favourite sea creatures.

We loved watching this Star Fish as it crawled all over the glass. 

  The kids had a great time watching the star fish as it crawled around and it was great for them to see how it all works. They did also have a chance to get their hands wet in the touch pool and have their pics taken in the jaws of a shark.

Someone help me. PLEASE !!

E's face is a classic. I asked for scared but not sure what I got !!

The girls "swimming" in the deep blue sea. I love the imagination.

 Next to the shark teeth was a mermaid statue. I wanted a picture with this statue so asked C to take a picture of me. E also wanted to get in on the action so she jumped into my picture. Thank goodness for digital pics cause I think we ended up taking about a dozen pictures cause C just couldn't seem to get it right. Even E had a go and didn't do to much better. Finally after we went through the fish tunnel Sandy ended up taking one so here it is !!!

I was determined to get a half decent pic !! What do you think ??

So after the aquarium Sandy wanted to head to Manly beach to check out the surf and grab something for lunch.

Manly beach in the rain.

While we were waiting for our hot chips the kids were playing around on the statues and seating in the area. C was jumping from one circle to the other and E was dancing around. Both kids are far from shy !!

Strike a pose !! Vogue !!

Every bodies Shufflin' !!!

I just love this one. xx

Hooray lunch. Beautiful hot chips by the beach. What could be more Aussie !!

After lunch we headed back to the ferry terminal. Out the front there were a couple of rides including a carousel. Of course the kids wanted to have a go and I wanted a go to so we bought 3 tickets which ended up costing $10.00 !! Unbelievable !! A 7 minute ride for 3 people cost the same as the 3 hour journey to get there and back !! Lucky we got such a bargain getting there !!

Thought I'd better include these pics since it cost so much !!

These horses had seat belts. Never seen that before.

After our "cheap" ride -NOT we could only afford 50 cent ice creams at McDonalds  :(

We did have a really good day and not to much money was spent !! We ended up getting an earlier ferry back to the Quay and had a quick walk around the Opera House. E wanted to do this and wanted to go inside. I thought that this would end up being a little nightmare, with her wanting to have a really good look around. But she was so happy to just walk in the foyer have a quick look and back out the door. Thanks E !!

So we headed back to the station and hopped on our train home. Lets see where we go next school holidays but for now we are gearing up for our trip to the Gold Coast in 5 weeks. Can not wait for that one !!

A Perfect Winters Day.

Today was just a great day to get out of the house and explore our beautiful coastline.

The weather was great and the views were spectacular !!

Our first stop was an apple farm near Helensburgh for some great farm fresh apples. Unfortunately we were just a little late for harvest but we will be back for the harvest of the stone fruit ready for the summer and we can't wait.

As we were leaving the farm we noticed there was a walkway across the road for a waterfall that we never knew about so off we went on a walk to goodness knows where but what a great little place when we arrived.

Madden Falls

What a pretty view !!

E brought her binoculars along so she was checking out all the plants and surrounds.

The next stop on our journey of adventure was to Stanwell Tops where we were hoping to catch some hang gliders, but not to be as the wind wasn't right but of course the view is outstanding !!

We also had a chance to sit down and enjoy our wonderfully fresh, crunchy apples. And they were yum !!

I just love this pic of the girls enjoying their apples and just chilling.

Next stop was something that I have been wanting to do for quite a while. We walked along Sea Cliff Bridge. The bridge was constructed to provide coastal access to the northern suburbs after the old road was constantly being blocked by dangerous rock falls which were destroying the road. The new bridge is fantastic and is now being used by numerous advertising agencies around the world.

On the way to the bridge we were lucky enough to see some Dolphins playing not far off shore. Another highlight to my day !! And thanks E for bringing the binoculars as I got to see the dolphins even closer !!
 

Sea Cliff Bridge. I love how it winds around the cliffs.

Stunning views all the way !!

Right along the bridge people have started to put padlocks engraved with notes of love and other special occasions, both good and bad on the fences. They usually lock the padlocks onto the bridge then throw the keys into the water so that the locks can never be removed. It is a great tradition and I think one day Sandy and I may do the same thing.

The locks go on for what seems like forever !!

Stopping to read some of the engraved messages.

RIP Merv but what a great lock. Definately my favorite.

After our walk we headed back down the coast and stopped at Thirroul for a very late lunch and a quick run at the park. Then poor Sandy was left to drive all the way home while all the girls (me included) fell asleep. Thanks honey !!

It was a great day and the winter weather was perfect. Hopefully the rest of the school holidays will be just as great.