Monday, December 29, 2014

Thunderbird Park and Diamond Beach Resort



 We travelled up to Mount Tambourine today. John & Stu decided to visit the distillery while Jules and I took the boys to find some Thunderbird eggs at Thunderbird Park. The thundereggs were plenty full when we walked up the hill only 10 minutes away from the cark park. The boys loved the mud and the pick axes and fossicked for rocks for over an hour.









It worked out to be a rather pricey activity as we were charged $20 to cut open 2 of our thundereggs but they are very cool and come with quite a story to tell. 

The Diamond Beach resort is such a pleasure to come home to every afternoon. William has newfound confidence wearing his Wahu vest and we really needed the swim after getting covered in mud while mining half the day. 





Broadwater Park and Movie World


William and I met Sam's cousins at Broadwater Park which is opposite Australia Fair shopping Centre. There is a fantastic little water park right next to a cafe and a beautiful little beach area for swimming. There was some heavy rain in the morning which turned into drizzle but we took our umbrellas and by the time we got there it was all clear and beautiful. What luck!



It rained and it poured on the morning we had passes organised for Movie World but we donned some sexy ponchos and got on with the day. The 4D movie was a big highlight. When characters onscreen dived into the ocean the chairs sprayed up with water and it was a great surprise.



The car show was a big hit with the boys and Jack plucked up some courage to go on the Scooby Doo ride. The wait for the Scooby ride was INCREDIBLE (1hour) and at least 1000 people in the line.


The driving school and kids rides had no longer than a 10 minute wait. William was really excited about the Road Runner Roller Coaster and both boys loved the parade at the end. Batman looked William in the eye and gave him a nod and he was absolutely amazed.





Friday, December 26, 2014

Sea World

Jack was (sort of) only just old enough to take on the shark swim at Sea World. He was really confident until he looked into the depth of the Shark tank through his mask and then he realised just how big the fish were and how deep the tank really is. He did a great job of trusting the diving instructor who took him out on a buoy around the tank. It was an incredible experience.






William took a ride on the glass bottom boat and we all went on the Viking Revenge ride. It was a hot and humid day but the boys did great. It was a relief to eventually get a cold ice cream back at the resort.




Thursday, December 25, 2014

Christmas Day


It was an absolutely beautiful day on the Gold Coast for Christmas. The boys didn't wake until 7 but they William woke up at 4am and had some trouble getting back to sleep. 


All Jack wanted for Christmas was this Snow Leopard so he was very happy when he opened it. He still loves his stuffed animals.


Will loves Bob Graham so he was really surprised when he opened up the hard cover 'Silver Buttons' story.


Stu was happy with his collector's edition of Eve and I have a gift voucher for some family portraits.


All William wanted for Christmas was '5 golden rings.' He was so, so excited when he opened these. 


The remote control cars were very fast and very dangerous! 




Claire and Vin welcomed us into their home like we were family. Stu helped to cook up a feast while the kids played in the pool. What a brilliant day!



Wednesday, December 24, 2014

Canberra to Coffs Harbour to the Gold Coast


Puss found the new suitcases quite cozy. It seemed like she wanted to come with us. 


Jack and Will travelled brilliantly on the 10 hour journey from Canberra to Coffs Harbour. They watched plenty of movies, played I-Spy and chatted along the way.


We were relieved to eventually get to "our destination" as William says. The accommodation was comfortable and the pool was refreshing. 







The boys were excited to find the resort and the apartment is bigger than our house. We are living up the luxury and today has consisted of pool/ couch/ pool/ food/ pool/ couch. 


The boys tested out their new snorkels and I was amazed by how quickly William took to the snorkel.  Jack is preparing to snorkel with the sharks at Sea World and he is very confident with diving and breathing. He is a great swimmer too!


Stu spent half the day at the trawlers and prepping Christmas lunch with Jules. He is right in his element here and totally relaxed. "Nothing has gone wrong...yet" he says.







The stockings and the tree are ready, just have to wait for Santa.