Milton, NSW

Shortly after our Easter long long weekend away, we had another one!  We did our annual pilgrimage to the South Coast (Milton), NSW.  We left from work which meant MrH was responsible for packing the car.  He did a good job minus the not giving the kids their books to read on the drive down which meant by the time we stopped for a toilet and donut break (they go hand-in-hand!) they were ready to throttle each other. 

Hello!

Friday

Good morning!  We had an earlier than normal start (by about 2.5 hours - the B boys are early risers!)  The kids were excited to see the alpacas grazing the field (there was a 4 week old baby), the new dog (Rosie) and the chickens (part 2; shh!  Don’t tell MissE). 

Leia is 4 months old!

After my much needed caffeine hit at a local café, we tried our luck at fishing at Lake Conjola.  Within 5 minutes of casting, MissE started screaming.  I came to help her reel in her first fish!  Next was MrE!

In the afternoon, it was beach time.  MissE got to try out her surfboard.

That night we had a small bonfire as we waited for The McP’s to arrive.  Then it got real: 6 adults and 7 kids.

Alpaca cuddles

Saturday

Today we started at the beach!

After fish and chips for lunch, we took the E’s for a drive.  After two very early mornings for them, we could see that look in their eyes – half crazed.  They slept for nearly an hour!

We headed back in the afternoon for alpaca kisses then roasted marshmallows over the biggest bonfire I had ever seen!

Adding fuel to the bonfire

More amores please!

Sunday

The weather turned overnight on us.  It was overcast and cold so we headed to a local cafe for coffee/ milkshake and treats.

Milkhaus

Then the kids had a blast at Funland!

Bumper cars!

The big kid on the left had the most fun.

We finished the weekend with a tractor ride.

Who let her drive?

Whee!

Thank you again for letting us invade your house… we had a blast!  Is it too early to lock in 2017 dates?

Easter Getaway

Hoppy Easter goodies for our teachers

Since last Easter was (what felt like) the year  long weekend of painting, we decided to go on a road trip!  Destination: Port Macquarie, NSW

Port Macquarie, NSW

Thursday

We had hoped to beat the holiday traffic but so did everyone else! We arrived later than we wanted but at least we still had some daylight!  First thing is first, the pool!

While Conor took the kids for a bike ride along the break wall, I picked up some supplies as the grocery stores were shut on Good Friday.  That night, we had dinner at the hotel restaurant.

Friday (Good Friday)

True to form, I was up as the sun was rising so I laced up my shoes and went for a jog.  It was fantastic being in the centre of the town – I even found a coffee shop that had great coffee and was open all weekend including Easter. 

We moved to our apartment which I was pleasantly surprised with!  We visiting the Koala Hospital and then headed to have a BBQ (and lake swim) with friends

Koala Hospital

We love Lake Cathie!  I went for a relaxing paddle near the bird sanctuary while the dad’s watched the kids.

Saturday

This morning we attempted and failed yet again to go on a camel safari (they don’t operate on Saturdays).  We did another of our favourites, and went to Ricardo’s Tomatoes and Strawberry Farm to pick some strawberries.  It was slim pickings as all their best quality went to the Royal Easter Show.  What we did pick was very sweet!

Strawberry picking

We grabbed brunch at now our favourite coffee spot in Port Macquarie then spent the rest of the afternoon in the pool.

At night, I had a girl’s night out – whoop, whoop!

Sunday (Easter)

We did something different this Easter and went minimal chocolate.  They each got a chocolate Bilby and I found large plastic eggs and filled them with some smallish toys instead.  Mama tip: they are the perfect size for Hot Wheels, mini-Lego figurines and Shopkins.    We had a big Easter breakfast and then went to see a man about a camel.

Dolphins!

At Lighthouse Beach, we signed up for our camel ride (it’s happening!) and watched a pod of black dolphins just off the shore!  The camel safari was fun… for most of us.  (For the record, the camels name were Obama and Morgan… not Bob Marley 1 and 2.  Long story short, every camel we met in Egypt was named Bob Marley).

In the afternoon, we met our friends at Bago Winery to get lost in a maze (it’s harder than it looks), drinks some wine and stuff our face with cheese.

The Maze

We went in with 7 kids...

Got genuinely lost

And came out with 5...

In the evening, we used the apartment’s BBQ facilities for a casual Easter dinner and of course another pool swim,

Monday (Easter Monday)

Before fighting traffic, we spent the morning at Lake Cathie.  I caught a fish!

Overall, we had a fun Easter break!  I am sold on staying in an apartment too.  We usually snub them for hotels but this one was fantastic – wonderful facilities including a full kitchen and the main thing was the amount of space we had!  Definitely a convert!

Lake Tahoe

On the top of our ‘must do’ list was take the kids to Lake Tahoe to show them what real snow looks like.  I’ve been to the snow once in Australia and I was far from impressed.  I couldn’t find the snow!  Now here’s the thing, before I get jumped all over, we are not snow people.  I can only do cold in small doses.  It’s also not something we are going to do regularly during our winters here (we usually escape to the US during our winter).  Given that, we were recommended Planet Kids at Soda Springs for some snow play fun. We booked last-minute accommodation in Truckee, borrowed snow clothes (I didn’t keep any of DC wardrobe), and … ROAD TRIP!   

Prerequisite pitstop at In'n'Out

We were lucky and there was a dump of snow the weekend prior so it was still natural snow.  Yay!  The kids were excited by the scenery as we drove into the area!  But before hitting the snow, we checked into our hotel.  I have to say I was quite impressed by it; fresh baked cookies, mulled apple cider and hot chocolate in the lobby.  Yes, please!

We went for a drive to Donner Summit and a lookout was the perfect place to have a snowball fight.  We also found a discarded sled so Eloise spent the rest of the afternoon going up and down a small hill.

That evening, we had dinner at Smokey’s Kitchen in Truckee.  It was just what I felt like in the cold.  The problem was too much BBQ on the menu, we couldn’t decide.  It was all delicious!  After dinner, we played board games in the lobby (as you do) before turning in for the night.

Soda Springs

Yay!  It’s snow day.  We arrived at Soda Springs, picked up our “lift” tickets, and hopped on the Jeep to take us to Planet Kids.  Only breaking for lunch in Truckee, we spent 6 hours on the tube carousel, mini-tubes, building Olaf (we brought a carrot and buttons especially for this), throwing snowballs at each other and climbing snow volcanos (Eden) and learning to ski (Eloise).

On the "sled" (Jeep)

More snowballs were thrown …er, pitched (good form, buddy!)

This "Magic Carpet" took Eden up the sledding hill all day

Again!

Do you want to build a snowman?  YES!  I do!

Olaf

Tube carousel

King of the (snow) mountain

We were so proud of Eloise.  It was her first time on skis and this video is of her after just 2 runs down the bunny slope.

We had an awesome day at Soda Springs!  It was a great experience for the kids and one they still talk about today (it's Winter here).

Here's some parting knowledge for you:  Don't eat yellow snow.  Note: the snow was not yellow below.