What a crazy holiday time it was. I must admit I wasn't in the best spirits this season. I tend to get home sick every now and then, and especially over the Christmas holidays. It's all the memories of family Christmas', big Christmas Eve get togethers, Christmas day brunch at my mom's, spending time with the family and of course leading up to Christmas was the annual week of celebrations with friends (my birthday, end of exams, friends back in town, 12 bars of Christmas........I don't think I ever made all 12 bars tho).
But I have amazing family over here who obviously try to make me feel at home and special over the holiday season. Plus I have the boys, and that's really what the season is all about: the kids.
This year we spent Christmas in Sydney with the Lovell gang down there. We left on the afternoon of the 23 and drove down, stopping only for food, bathroom breaks, and run around breaks for the kids. We arrived in Sydney at 5 am on the 24.
I have to say a huge THANK YOU to Brett, Jodie and the girls, for putting up with a live in patient over the break. In total I think we had 5 hospital visits, 3 of those mine!! It was nothing serious, just some good old bladder retention, caused by my lovely tilted uterus. Fun times. Catheter, pee bag, I need not say anymore.
On the few days we did get to go out, and my body was functioning normally, we made a trip to the Blue Mountains and saw the Three Sisters range, spent a day at Cronulla beach, went down to Sydney harbour and enjoyed an insanely good pancake dinner at the aptly named The Pancake House.
The kids had a blast. The girls got this amazing blow up bouncy thing with a water slide and they all had a blast. Travis was enthralled with the trampoline, and our nieces taught him that there are fun games on mommy's iPhone, and if there aren't you can just download them. Thank you Chloe and Tay, seriously we use the phone as bribery now :) Pretty sure I can credit you and the iPhone for making my son eat vegetables willingly.
You've already seen my Chrsitmas post, so this is a post with everything else. On the way home, we broke up the trip, in fear of prolonged car sitting may bring back the bladder issues, (fear not we were fine, it waited to return until we got home). The drive home honestly was one of my highlights, I did not know the NSW coast had so many beautiful spots, obviously I'm biased to Byron Bay, (there is nowhere else right???). We spent one night camping in our new tent (thanks Wendy and Bill) with our new camping gear (thanks Sarah and Shane), and it was amazing. I have zillions of amazing memories from camping with my mom and sisters when I was younger, and some interesting and fun ones from camping with my friends back in the day, lol. I feel really lucky that my mom did all these things with us and it's exciting to start and pass these memories on to my kids. Weird thing tho, with heat waves and fire warnings, we couldn't have a campfire and apparently in lots of places you can't anyways. It was weird, what do you sit around at nigh? What do you burn your cardboard garbage in? Where do you roast the marshmallows What do you have contests jumping over?
Anyways, here are the photos.
Keeping close tabs on the ice
Travis and Goliath?
Cousins, Chloe, Jett, Travis, Tay
The Three Sisters. Travis said it's Emma, mommy and Ashley. He may have been prompted by Wayne.
The Life of a one year old.
Our own little koala.
View of Sydney from a mall we were at.
Happy New Years! Or is it? Jett resembles grumpy cat here.
Crashed out back home, a great way to ring in the new year.
Sydney Harbor Bridge
iPhone time
"the man are building the bridge" looking at the bridge climbers.
never closed. good. I did ask the waitress where their maple syrup came from, she said they make it in house......this Canadian was slightly let down. But it was amazing food!
Sydney Harbour
Ha ha, milk in a beer cozy.
His smiley face pancake dinner, he picked it off the menu himself, was quite pleased with it, ate the eyes, the chocolate sauce, some of the ice cream and called it a day.
A first for me, ordered Mexican at a pancake house. Craving. Couldn't be helped.
That's crayon on his head
Out for Tanya's birthday lunch, at the most amazing restaurant ever, just ask Wayne, lol, he was seriously in love with the place. Me too, I could have just ordered drinks all day, coconut chocolate milk, pink lemonade, nutella milkshakes, the way to my heart.
Isn't it odd how north of Sydney can look very similar to Muskoka/northern Ontario. LOVE IT!
Fire helicopter we saw, headed for the river to pick up water. Lots of bush fires in the area.
Highway rest stop for lunch
Setting up in Kempsey.
Dinner at the cooler.
We love our beds!
When your camping, Dad lets you steer the wheel, this was a highlight for Travis, he now asks to drive tho.....uh oh.
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