Peak Pursuits : Facing fear as climbing becomes a talent

Peak Pursuits : Facing fear as climbing becomes a talent

Miss N is obsessed with climbing. It’s a marvel really. This is a girl who falls over standing up. Put her in a climbing harness and she soars to great heights. She squashes her own fears and overcomes them as she climbs higher and higher. I stand, feet firmly on the ground, attempting to overcome …

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Activities at Home : Tactile Illusion – Pushing our arms through the floorboards

Activities at Home : Tactile Illusion - Pushing our arms through the floorboards

I know you have heard of illusion before. Usually we think of optical illusions. This weekend I explored Tactile Illusions with the kids. They found this fascinating and I have found them carrying out the activity I showed them again and again just for fun. Tactile Illusions exploit the sense of touch. They make you …

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Rouse Hill House & Farm – From Six Generations of Occupancy to a Living Museum

Rouse Hill House & Farm - From Six Generations of Occupancy to a Living Museum

As the July school holidays progressed we became more and more curious about the historic sites around Sydney. I think Vaucluse House was the catalyst for this small obsession so we just went with it and sourced lots of opportunities for exploration in the remain days we had off.  Using the Sydney Living Museums site as …

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Boranup Forest – A Trip into the Woods of Margaret River

Boranup Forest - A Trip into the Woods of Margaret River

My children’s godmother, in a moment of spontaneity, booked a trip for all of us to head down to Margaret River on our recent holiday to Western Australia.  It was a magical trip with so many different places to see and food to sample. Oh my gosh the food…..we sampled so many yummy things! Something that …

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Luna Park Sydney : Amusement For Everyone in the Family!

Winter in Sydney this year has been unusually dry. The sky has remained blue day after day which for a family who  loves to travel and explore has been fantastic.  Over breakfast we discussed places in Sydney that we would love to visit that are yet to be crossed off our Kid Bucket List. With …

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Museum of Contemporary Art Australia – Developing an Appreciation for Creativity

Museum of Contemporary Art Australia - Developing an Appreciation for Creativity

“Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.” ~Pablo Picasso Children are natural artists. Whilst not born with a brush or pencil in hand, children do possess an innate sense of curiosity and a need to put their hands on everything and explore from almost the moment they arrive earthside. …

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The Rocks Discovery Museum – A FREE Trip From Pre-European Days to the Present

The Rocks Discovery Museum - A FREE Trip From Pre-European Days to the Present

One of the wonderful things about taking the unbeaten track on a travel adventure is finding treasures along the way. I learned that back in Assisi almost a decade ago.  The Rocks – www.therocks.com has been one of my favourite destinations in Sydney since I first traveled here in the mid-90s. It is steeped in history and full of …

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Travelling with Kids : Top Tips – Eating Out With Kids

Travelling with Kids : Top Tips - Eating Out With Kids

Eating out with your kids does not need to be difficult. With a little preparation it can be exciting adventure. Below you will find our Top Tips to Make Eating Out a Thrilling and Happy Adventure for Everyone. 1. Make eating a regular occurrence. I was one of those parents that took my baby to the restaurant or …

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Travelling with Kids : Top Tips to Make Travel a Thrilling and Happy Adventure for Everyone

I’m often asked how we manage to do so much travel, both locally and further, with our two kids. How do we manage to take them to restaurants with ease and how is it that car travel seems to be a fairly breezy experience. My overarching tip is to slow down. It took me some …

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19th Century Schooling in the Holidays : Visiting the Original Rouse Hill School

The original Rouse Hill Public School lies just off Windsor Road on what is now the grounds of the Rouse Hill House – Sydney Living Museum.  Designed by the architect William Kemp, the school was constructed by Cranney and Greenway in 1888 directly across from Rouse Hill House’s carriage way. Positioned between the Catholic and …

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Counting Cows – A Road Trip Game Sure to Keep the Kids Occupied

Counting Cows - A Road Trip Game Sure to Keep the Kids Occupied

We’ve taken a number of road trips with our kids that have been full of adventure and free from whining. When they were smaller I utilised Play School CDs to sing along to, colouring books and stickers in an effort to keep them busy. They worked well. As they’re getting older I’m finding that they …

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A Stitch in Time: A Sunday Adventure to Vaucluse House, Sydney

A Stitch in Time: A Sunday Adventure to Vaucluse House, Sydney

Earlier this week I did a post detailing our trip to Macquarie Lighthouse, Australia’s oldest lighthouse. You may remember our disappointment in discovering that we couldn’t climb it as we hadn’t booked a few months in advance. Of course there’s always a silver lining when it comes to our travels and our smart phone quickly …

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Learning to Ice Skate – A Kid Bucket List Wish Fulfilled

Learning to Ice Skate - A Kid Bucket List Wish Fulfilled

Down here in the Southern Hemisphere ice-skating is not something that every kid is exposed to growing up. It’s not cold enough for our lakes to freeze over and ice-skating rinks are not that common. Miss N is a Peppa Pig fan. On watching the Ice-Skating episode (see below) she has made it her top …

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