Family Vacation to Australia, Day 2 - Paradise Country and Harbour Town Outlet Shopping

Rise and Shine to the lovely climate and scenery!

Good morning Gold Coast!

We spotted a pretty lorikeet at the balcony and happened to take a snapshot of it taking flight

All ready for Day 2. It was cold and sunny. We could hardly open our eyes and the floor tiles was icy.

We decided to have our breakfast at the cafe in Bel Air before we head to our first destination. The prices for the food are pretty steep. The servings seem pretty big hence we ordered 2 meals to share along with drinks.

Both of them chilling out at the sofa in the cafe

The kids with their latte

She really looks like she need a latte. Haha

After breakfast, it is time to visit the farm animals and the koalas and kangaroos that the kids have been anticipating. However, the GPS directed us to MovieWorld instead. Luckily we saw the directional sign to Paradise Country when we exit from the motorway and we went with our instinct. It was a pretty long drive in to the car park and we had to walk for another approximately 10 minutes before we finally arrive.

We have purchased the tickets online back in Singapore along as we prefer not to spend time queuing for the tickets and there are usually good rates for online purchases.
 

This is the entrance from the car park

Our first family shot

We walked for another 10 minutes before we reach. The cool climate helped to keep us cool.

We missed the billy tea presentation but we were in time for another show. I didn't even realised that I was carrying my boy's bag. Such a glam mummy!

While waiting for the whip-crackling show

 

A group shot with the cow after the cow-milking presentation

The dog was busy sniffing Jayven. Spot how glum his face was

Free to roam. And the little boy want to feel the sheep.

They were trying to feel the sheeps along with other kids. Yes, they managed to feel them eventually

Next, we proceeded to the sheep shearing show. The kids had a good time watching the show.
After which, we had our lunch before we explored the place farther. We did some shopping at the visitors center and proceeded to the farmyard and the koala and kangaroo enclosure to get up close and personal with the animals.

The kangaroos are free to roam and we can buy food to feed them at AUD1 per pack. But the kangaroos were not interested in the food. Guess all were very well fed for the day so we returned the food pack to the vendor when we left. The kids loved the animals. I liked their little courage to touch and feel the different animals.

Guess who he spotted?

The kids love the cuddly koala bears in the enclosure.

The kids enjoyed feeding the lambs at the farmyard

The farmyard is a very interesting place for the kids to learn more about the farm animals especially on their youngs. Piglets, chicks and lambs can be found in the farmyard and the kids got to feed the lambs which they thoroughly enjoyed seeing them nibbling on the food from their hands.

The little ones had a great time in Paradise Country and kept telling us that they loved the animals there. The place closes at 1pm and we left for our second destination, Harbour Town Outlet Shopping.

I did research earlier and I knew that the place is huge. However, we only had a few hours left to shop as the place closes at 5.30pm. First thing to do when we reach there was to visit the Tourism Lounge as they will give tourists a free club card for further discounts from participating outlets. The lounge also offer complimentary refreshments for the tourists. However, we realised that there are not many participating outlets for the further discount with the club card.

In fact, we didn't get anything much from the outlet shopping at all. The prices in most stores ain't exactly that attractive considering that it is an outlet shopping centre.

Spot the different shoes on Janelle? She was whining that it was too cold for her as the jeans were too short to keep her feet warm. That shows how fast she is growing, She wore the same jeans in last September in Japan and it kept her warm. Anyway, we had to buy a pair of boots to keep her feet warm and there was sale going on at Pumpkin Patch. That pair of boots only cost AUD10. But anyway the boots came apart on the last day of our trip. So much for good value huh.

Most stores started closing at 5pm and soon the skies turned dark at 5.30pm. We decided to have our dinner at one of the restaurants as my hubs spotted fish & chips which he has been craving since he reached Australia.

The place that we had our dinner at Harbour Town. At least dining places are still open at 5.30pm

The restaurant is kid-friendly as they have kids menu and colouring to occupy the kids while waiting for food to be served

Yummy clam chowder with lots of seafood

One of their recommended dishes. Cannot remember the dish name though but it was yums

Fish & Chips from the kids menu. Quite a big serving for kids

The fish & chips for adult portion. It tastes different from the kids' version though. I prefer the fish from the kids menu.

As expected, the bill came up to almost AUD100 for the dinner. Food was not bad though could be better. Their service was commendable as the staff were friendly and patient.

It was another early night back to our apartment as most places closes early. We showered the kids and gotten them ready for bed. My hubs and I then decided to check out the convenience shop near Bel Air, only to realise that they are also closing soon at 11pm, which left us with 10mins to shop.

It was freezing cold by then but it felt good to be enjoying the cold breeze which we could never experience in Singapore.

Family Vacation to Australia - Day 1, arrival at Gold Coast

In end June, my family embarked on a journey to Australia for our vacation. I was so glad that I had the itinerary worked out before I started work in late March. We decided on a F&E trip as we planned to meet up with my friends who are studying and working in Brisbane. And we pretty much prefer to travel at our own pace with 2 kids on tow.

Though I was still suffering from jet lag as I have just returned from LA on 29 June noon and I had to check in again that evening, I was looking forward to the much-anticipated vacation. I was praying hard that the kids could sleep through the flight journey as that was one of the reasons why we prefer night flights.

The kids getting all excited about the holidays

There was a zoomoo ride area at T3 basement and I had the last token left from the previous session. It was closed when we reached but the staff were kind to let the kids go on the ride when they saw us. Thumbs up for good service!

Roaming about the airport before we entered the departure gates. It was 10plus in the evening and they still looked so energetic.

All ready on board for the 8 hours flight to our holiday destination. Now they both need to get a seat of their own. Gone are the days of bassinet and infant seat belts.

The flight journey started out fine as there is Frozen in the in-flight entertainment. So I thought we are saved as Frozen will be good enough to entertain them. Soon after, both of them dozed off and I wanted to get a wink too. But I was unable too. Arghhh! Jet-lagging!

1.5 hours later, the kids seems to get uncomfortable and Jayven snuggled up to me to sleep. Janelle woke up at this time and saw me hugging didi and she wanted me to carry her in my arms too. I was unable to and asked her to sleep near to me. Then both of them started to shift about and kicked and whacked each other which led to them crying out loud. Gosh! Totally unexpected. They have been travelling quite a bit and this was the first time that they were unable to sleep well. Nonetheless, we managed to distract them with in-flight entertainment and food. But I was not able to catch any wink at all.

Arrival at Brisbane Airport. Milk for breakfast!

The kiddos with their grandma while waiting for me to freshen up at the ladies

We picked up our car at the car rental counter in the airport and loaded all our stuff before we start on the one-hour journey to Gold Coast. The first stop was to check in at our accommodation, Bel Air on BroadBeach. We booked a 2-bedroom apartment as there are 5 of us in total. The apartment is spacious with living room, kitchenette and balconies.

The living room in Bel Air

The scenery from our apartment

We freshen up after checking in and time to explore the surroundings

Opposite the apartment is one of Australia's largest shopping complexes, Pacific Fair Shopping Centre (the building behind us). Needless to say, the climate was cool yet sunny judging from our dressing with the shades. Perfect weather!

Oh! it was my birthday then! So I'm getting a birthday kiss from my boy!

And one from my firstborn

We planned to get a pocket wifi when we arrived at airport but Vodafone was the only counter and they were not able to activate the pocket wifi. I cannot remember if the network was down or what was the reason hence they cannot activate the sim card.

When we reached Pacific Fair, we tried to get the pocket wifi again at Vodafone but they were facing the same problem. Eventually we gotten the pocket wifi from Optus.

After satisfying our tummies, we decided to explore the huge complex. But we were not able to cover much as they close at 5.30pm and it was already 4pm when we reached there. We went to Toys R Us in search for Frozen merchandise but no luck. Eventually we went to Coles to get some snacks, dairy products and drinks for our one week stay in Bel Air.

By the time we were done and stepped out of the supermarket, the skies was dark. Time checked. 5.30pm! It was like 9pm back in Singapore. Well, it was winter in Gold Coast so we expected short day and long night but still it took us a while to get used as the skies turn dark before we even had our dinner when we were there.

With all shops closed at 5.30pm, we head back to our apartment to have an early night as everyone did not slept well earlier and we expected the next few days to be tiring with lots of activities planned.

Proud moment

Work has been busy (guess I must have said it a million times!) and I have been feeling bad for not having enough time for the kids.

Janelle's school has started Mandarin spelling from this semester onwards and she always seem to have trouble remembering the characters. Last Wednesday, I knew I had to revise the characters with her and on Thursday morning before she head off to school, I tested her on the characters again and she gotten all correct. Feeling hopeful that she will score full points.

And yes! She called me when I was at work, announcing proudly that she has scored 3 stars for her spelling. Only 3 characters are tested each Thursday so 3 stars mean full score.

My happy proud girl waiting for us to reach home to show us her achievements.

I am definitely proud of my little girl. And of myself! I give myself a good pat for being a dutiful mother. Yeah!

Overwhelmed!

Here I am on my way to work at 5.30am now.

Sure, I am totally aware that this month will be very tough as I have lots of events happening and it's a month with literally almost no weekend (except NDP). But still, I am feeling overwhelmed! Messy house, kids demanding my time and attention, having little time for the little ones and having to rely on my parents to look after them throughout, feeling the guilt towards my parents as I know that these 2 kids ain't exactly the easiest ones to manage, trying to rush my work and meet tight deadlines. I am just feeling so so so overwhelmed with exhaustion, guilt and fatigue!

I am in desperate need of sleep. But I need to dedicate time for my family too. Being exhausted, there are a few times that I have raised my voice at the kids because of their naughty behavior. But I know they are just seeking my attention. Boy! I really feel so so so bad!

I know the situation will become better. Just a difficult passing phase now. Okay, enough ranting for now. Time to work!

Hope I can see the rainbow soon!

Weekend fun @ Cool de sac

This month and next month are tough period for me as I have to work on almost every weekend (except National Day). Having little time for my precious ones, I decided to bring my girl along with me to work last Saturday as it was a pretty straightforward task for 2 hours. Furthermore, the boy have been demanding alot of my attention and I wanted to have some time alone with my girl so that she do not feel neglected.

Since we were already in town, my colleagues and I decided on a playdate for our girls in the vicinity. So after we had our lunch, we were deciding between Hokey Pokey, Polliwogs or Cool de sac and we settled for Cool de sac. It was a great decision that we have made. The playground is indeed very cool!

That was me and my girl while preparing for the participants to arrive. Simply love that Me & mini Me card!

Her favourite Japanese food for lunch

The 3 little princesses at lunch. They were very happy to see one another.

The place is huge but I did not take alot of photos as I was busy running about with my excited girl

The slide! I guess slide is one of the must-haves in all playgrounds. And I love the slide too! Too bad my girl is grown up and do not require my companion to take the slide with her. But I did find a few opportunities to take the slide and it was swooshing fun!

The 3 princesses waiting for their turns. Guess what are they waiting patiently for?

Tadaa! There is a hand painting corner in the playground and the kids simply love to have their hand painted with lovely characters. Isn't that cool?

The ga-rang girl playing the monkey bars, swinging from one end to another end.

Well, I guess this was meant for younger kids but they sure did have lots of fun.

There is also an Art N craft corner for the kids to display their creativity. The corner is well-equipped with papers, scissors, glue, crayons, markers and many more. And they have staff clearing and replenishing the table from time to time. Thumbs Up for service!

Selfie time for the mummies! While the kids were busy at the toddlers' area. There are many places for parents to take a seat and order drinks and snacks while watching their kids from far.

Cool de sac is indeed a very interesting playground for the kids. They have many sections for the different age groups and for different interest such as hand painting, dressing up, Arts N Craft, lego corner and more.

I felt bad that my boy is missing out on the fun in this cool playground. Definitely will be visiting this place again with my 2 kids. Am considering to hold my girl's birthday party there too. Shall see how it works out.

Selfie with my happy girl who insisted to take a train home after the fun. Isn't she lovely? Simply love her sweet smile!

Expected! KO during the train ride home. Sleeping soundly like a little baby.

Feeling blissful!

It's a long weekend! But I had to work on Saturday and Sunday. Thanks goodness that today is a PH! I have been feeling exhausted, almost to the point of fatigue.

But it has been a while since I last cooked for the family and I would like them to have home-cooked food today. So I suggested to go market to get the ingredients for dinner. We gotten the ingredients and I started to prepare the all-time favourite ABC soup in the noon.

After getting the kids to take their nap, I had to continue to clear my work as there are tons of work waiting for me. At this point (when I was stressed between clearing as much work as I can and to start preparing dinner), my hubs offered to cook the dinner. Imagine how relieved and grateful I was then! I mean I felt bad that my hubs had to cook as I was the one who initiated home cooked food but I feel so blissful that I have a hubby that loves and supports me!

Regardless of SAHM or FTWM, it is so so so important to have a supportive partner. And I am so glad that I found my Mr Right! Hmmm... I must have done something good to deserve him :)

Simple home-cooked food with love!!!

Travel madness

MIA for a period! Been so so so swarmed with work and trying to compensate with quality time with my family.

When I was offered the new job, I was informed that I have to travel to LA for a global conference in June. And I have booked my family vacation in June before I went on a job search. Coincidentally, the dates overlap. LA work trip was supposed to be from 24 June to 1 July but I have to depart for my family vacation on 30 June. Lucky the management allowed me to be excused for the next few days and I came back earlier to prepare for the vacation.

That's my 2 babies who offered to help to pack my luggage the night before I head off to LA. Apparently they were packing their stuff in more than mine.

So I traveled to LA on 24 June. First time on such a long flight with transit at Taoyuan Airport. I thought I could sleep during the flight as I was alone since the kids were not with me, only to realise that it is a fact that I am not able to sleep well on board the plane regardless with kids or no kids. Ended up with bad jet lag. Took 2 days to tune back the human clock. Oh! And I have to travel back to SG on the late evening on the 3rd night.

Fresh air. Cool climate. It felt great to be in LA. It was exciting for me as it was my first trip to USA afterall.

Finally! Craving of egg benedict satisfied. Yums!

One of the footwear that I have gotten during the visit to the Distribution Centre. Loving them!

It was a pleasant surprise that the return flight was Hello Kitty themed plane. But I guess I was really too tired as I didn't recall the plane taking off. I must have doze off soon after boarding the plane.

Hello Kitty themed boarding passes. Ain't they cute?

Even the toiletries were in Hello Kitty containers

I reached SG at noon on 29 June and despite the lack of rest from the flight, it was so pleasing to hear my kids screaming "Mummyyyyy" at the arrival gate. We settled our lunch at T3 before we head home so I could unpack and pack our stuff for our Aussie trip. Yes, I have to be back at airport that evening at 11pm. After packing all the stuff into the luggage (luckily I have packed the kids stuff before I head to LA), I managed to steal 2 hours of sleep on my comfy bed before we depart to airport.

We were in Gold Coast from 30 June to 7 July. It was a great trip with lots of fun, happiness, discovery but very tiring too. I shall share more about the family vacation soon. Keeping my fingers crossed (noting that I have to work for the next 4 consecutive Saturdays).

Till the next blog.