23rd June 2011

I am back on track organising our Wednesday outings and only one week of the school term left!!  Today we went on a train ride to Milson's Point.  We walked down to Luna park and unfortunately/fortunately it was closed.  We then had our lunch under the bridge because of the wind chill factor it was the most sheltered spot.  Then off to play in the park near by.  We really need to take more train rides.  When the train started Henry and Freya both commented on how the land was moving - bless xo   Freya also retold us the story of Goldilocks and the 3 Bears after Henry complained about the seat being uncomfortable.  I told him he wasn't Goldilocks so not to worry.

Sunday 22nd May

Deekay took Henry and Freya to the Pennant Hills Primary fete and both scored some good toys.  Henry picked up a scuba diver and a sword.  Freya bought a doll and dolls bed.  Freya is running a dolls orphanage and it is great to see these dolls have a second home.  I think I have seen Toy Story too many times!  Later today we headed to Balmoral Beach and it is a lovely part of Sydney.  We took our own lunch and a beautiful easy to make chocolate cake from Flo Bjelke-Petersen's cook book.  I had a cold so Deekay did lots of running and playing.  It was nice to get out in the fresh air.

15th May 2011

Today's outing was to the shops as Henry needed some new shoes.  I bought Freya some new shoes on Monday, purple reebok joggers size 10, the girl has big feet!  Freya loves to run so she is looking pretty sporty at the moment.  I took Henry to the same store as I wanted to have his feet meausured.  Henry wanted shoes that lit up and the only pair were a really horrible black pair, which would not have gone with any of his clothes and were not cheap.  So I said we would go to Target if he wanted to lighting up shoes - this was said in quite a frustrated voice.  He found a police pair, just his luck as he loves police.   Target had 20% off children's clothes and shoes so stocked up on a few basics for winter.  Is it just me, the only sizes they didn't have were the ones I was after!!!  

Also a trip into Target means stopping at the toys, wow it felt like a long shopping trip.  I was also on the verge of getting a cold so I will admit to not having much patience.

We went to our local park in the afternoon as it is surprisingly warm again in Sydney and I felt bad that our Wednesday outing was shoes and clothes shopping.

Sunday 11th May

Today we went the aquarium at Darling Harbour with our entertainment book voucher, we used the voucher for a free admission of the same value.  This is why we did this outing on the weekend because we can get 2 adults for the price of 1 so it seems a shame to waste it during the week.   The weather was beautiful and like our last visit to Darling Harbour it feels like a holiday.   We went to the aquarium to see the Lego exhibition as well as some sea creatures.  I could sit and look at the fish all day.  It was a fun day out and enjoyed by all.  Henry is planning on talking about it for his news in a weeks time.

4th May 2011

I have decided our Wednesday adventures are for the school term and so this week is our first week back.  We went to a new park, for us,  in our local area.  Henry and Freya had a ball swinging on the bar and played gaols.  Their idea of a gaol is more like a hotel.  Freya had her own room and Henry was brining her breakfast.   I am aiming to be more imaginitive for next week.    We have the entertainment book now so a few of my ideas I will keep for weekend outings when we can use the free tickets.

1st May 2011

Today is a Sunday and one of the first nice days in a week so we decided to go to the Museum!!!  It was a lovely day so we enjoyed our time outside before venturing in.  Henry just wanted to see the dinosaur bones but there was plenty of other things to see and do.  It is a beautiful building, I love where the skeletons are displayed.  Another favourite place was the Australian wildlife display.   We had a fun time with lots of laughter and learning.

19th April 2011 - Happy Birthday Henry

Today is Henry's 5th birthday.   To celebrate we headed to the Easter Show at Homebush.  We do not have to get home for sleeps anymore, well not for a long time really, but this meant we could avoid the morning rush of strollers.  We arrived about 1pm and headed to the animals first, followed by a long walk to the showbags and finally I got to check out the Woolworths food pavillion.   Henry fed some animals in the petting area and Freya was being pretty brave until the sheep unexpectedly came by her and she did 3 little screams, of ahh, ahhh and ahhh, she didn't cry but it was the beginning of me having to carry her.  Henry chose the Ben10 showbag and Freya the Dora showbag and they were both pleased with the contents.

6th April 2011

Today we had a quiet Wednesday and only ventured as far as the gym and the park.  We are heading to Canberra for the weekend to celebrate our nephew/cousin's birthday and meet our new nephew/cousin.

30th March 2011

Today we ventured back to the Sydney Acquatic Centre, the weather was a bit miserable and Henry asked if we could go swimming so we headed to the indoor pool.  It was really busy when we went the first time in February and so it was surprising today how empty it was.   We had a fun time although we are still not brave enough to go near the big bucket or the slides.   Henry did want to give it a go but Freya had a mini scream and would not wait on the side for us - that was high expectations really!!!

I like that I know the way now to Homebush and have started to get my bearings around the roads there.  Looking forward to going to the Easter show soon.

23rd March 2011

Today we went for a drive to a new park in North Ryde.  The weather was lovely and we had a picnic lunch.  Henry and Freya had a really fun play in the sand area.  Freya is afraid of birds at the moment and had  a bit of freak out when one flew near her.

Sunday 20th March

Today we went to North Head, surprising given how long we have been in Sydney over the years we have never visited this spot.  It was really beautiful despite the rain.  We seemed to pick the only time in the day when the rain held off.  Henry and Freya really enjoyed the walk and looking over the cliff edges, yes they were behind a fence.  Below are some photos of the changing day.

17th March 2011

After our enjoyable train ride on Sunday we decided on Wednesday to take the bus into the city.  I did suggest the train again but we just missed the train on Sunday coming back and Henry said he didn't want to miss another train!  I did tell him there was another train and we didn't wait that long.  So we caught the bus into the city and they are both pretty good sitting on the bus.   Henry was impressed by how many boys were getting on, the bus goes via Macquarie University so quite a few students getting on.  I must admit I like public transport as long as it is on time.  I feel part of the world seeing lots of different people and as long as you have a book or ipod the ride goes quickly.  Here is Henry and Freya waiting for the bus.

We went down to Darling Harbour today expecting to see the park opened, it isn't yet.  Wow that is taking a long time to build it has been over 12 months since we were last went down there.  We sat and ate our lunch first while watching a school group running around.  The boys were all chasing each other and I think that is what Henry is looking forward to the most when he goes to school.  We were also joined by some seagulls, fair enough it is near the water and people had food.  Freya on the other hand is a bit afraid of birds and pulls a face and won't move (see post below like the movies).  I told her it sounded like they were saying 'Hello Freya' in a seagull voice.  Freya then kept saying hello to the birds also in a seagull voice.

We then had a ride on the train that goes around the harbour.  Freya kept saying 'Hello birds, we are on the train', it was pretty cute.  Henry was pretending to be the train driver.

We finished off our trip to Darling Harbour with ice-creams before riding the bus back home.

Sunday 13th March

Today we had an extra outing this week because Deekay was at a conference all day.  Also we haven't really done much over the past couple of weeks.  Our plan was to catch the train to the shops, have some lunch and watch the Handy Manny movie.  Well we got the train okay, bought our tickets and then had some lunch.  When we went to go into the cinema Freya had a mule moment and tears because she said the cinema smelled and she didn't want to go inside.  Anyone who knows me knows what I can be like with bad smells so I wasn't going to push her.  We were lucky the movie had not started so we were able to receive a refund.  Henry was a bit upset and disappointed, and had every right to be, so I compensated him with a bit of lego.  Henry loves lego at the moment.

We caught the train back and had a play in the park.  Henry and Freya both loved the train ride and enjoyed the outing despite not seeing a movie.  The next day Henry said he thought the cinema did smell a bit and I had to agree with him.  The air was very stale so maybe Freya had done us a favour.

9th March 2011

We didn't venture very far today because Freya is experiencing a bit of bowel troubles and is taking some laxative, sorry too much information.

We went to Ruddock park with the pirate ship, today was quite overcast so the park was not as busy as it gets on a sunny day.  Like last week Henry and Freya had a really good play and were both able to climb everywhere.  This has been a noticeable milestone for me as they can now really play a game and want to stay longer.....and I am happy to stay longer because I am not chasing them around the whole time! 

I also noticed at the park today a homeschool group.  I can see the attraction of homeschooling where you can set your own agenda and it seems to be quite a relaxed approach to the day, without all the stress of getting to school on time and no homework. 

2nd March 2011

This week I have been having a catchup week at home so the morning was spent doing some housework and then off to the gym.  Henry and Freya went to the creche and despite Henry not wanting to go because it is boring he did enjoy himself.

To make sure we had an outing we went to a park in Beecroft in the afternoon.  It was good because Henry and Freya could both play on the equipment and I could just watch but I was also close enough for the constant questions/statements about what they are doing. 

I had to laugh when a police car stopped by.  I thought I was parked in the wrong spot and Henry thought he was there for a picnic, we were both wrong he stopped for the toilet.

Sorry no photos as the battery needs recharging.

23rd February 2011

Over the weekend a woman from my sewing class gave me 5 bags of toys her grandson was throwing out and while some were broken there were many that were in good condition.  So a trip to Ikea was needed to purchase some new tubs to help sort out the new toys.  We needed tubs for Superheroes, transformers, toy guns, dinosaurs and teenage mutant ninja turtles.   Henry's main goal at Ikea is to get to the end where the hotdogs are and kept telling me to look out for the hotdog sign. 

After Ikea we stopped for a play at the park at Bray Bay Reserve.  Again we went after lunch and the park was pretty empty so Henry and Freya had the freedom to go on everything.  However they kept going on this spinning piece of equipment which after hotdogs and icecream I was sure someone was going to vomit! 

We then headed to the library to find a book to read at playgroup and pick up a book for my bookgroup 'The Finkler Question'.

16th February 2011

Today I had to go to Parramatta to register a new business name, Paperwork Friend.  We went about 11am and then  had a wander around the shopping centre, well we checked out the toy store so not much looking on my part.  We then had some lunch, cheese & bacon rolls & a gingerbread man for Henry and Freya and 2 sushi rolls for me (I have lost weight this week so I tried not to ruin a good thing with a greasy lunch).  

After lunch we headed to Parramatta Park, which is between Westmead Hospital and Parramatta Football stadium.  I wasn't really sure what we would find but it is a very pretty park and we found a playground with parking very close,  Strangely though there were loads of pigeons.  Henry made me laugh at everything he said in the first five minutes :

• While looking through a telescope - "Mum, look at me, I am sailing the 7 seas"
• "Look at that beautiful stream" - A pretty stagnet part of the river
• "I didn't know pigeons could fly"  - Yes Henry they are birds
• "There are lots of flying things here today"  - Again yes there were a variety of birds, pigeons, crows, ducks, big beak birds.

I think the movie 'The Birds' was written by someone with a child like Henry.  The photo on the swing is him making sure a pigeon doesn't attack him.  Do pigeons attack people???
Freya looks like she has grown again and the photo of her climbing the spiderweb shows how much bigger she is; looking more like a preschooler.

9th February 2011

Today we went to Lollipops playland.  We had planned to do an outdoor activity but the weather turned quite dark and overcast.

http://www.lollipopsplayland.com.au/

Again we went after lunch after doing some jobs in the morning plus fitting in some exercise for Mummy (I am really sore today!).  There were only 4 other families there so we pretty much had the run of the place.  Henry and Freya ran, climbed and jumped for the next 2 hours in the ball pits, jumping castles, climbing frames.  Also a milestone day because I was able to read and watch them play.  I am reading Eat, Pray, Love which has lots of short chapters so easy to read without being too distracting.

2nd February 2011

Today was our first Wednesday outing and we went to Sydney Olympic International Aquatic Centre.

http://www.aquaticcentre.com.au/

We went after lunch to avoid the crowds as it was a 35 degree day.  It was still pretty busy and a little hard sometimes having to hold Freya with her flotation backpack and Henry who only wants to wear goggles but is still learning to swim.  We had a fun time going through the rapids.  The water playground was a bit frightening for Henry and Freya because of all the water splashing down.  We did make it down one slide and thankfully missed the huge bucket tipping over which I didn't know about!  Freya enjoyed watching the bucket tip over but didn't want to be anywhere near it.

The centre is huge and driving around the Olympic park is really beautiful.  When the weather cools down we might head to one of the parks.