Sunday - Children's Farm

On one of Devon's many running routes around the city, he found the cutest little Children's farm.  This thing is right in the city!  We got off the train, and we were in sort of a dingy part of town, but all the sudden we came to a leafy green area that was transformed into a fabulous little farm.  There were goats, sheep, donkey rides, tractor rides, cows to milk, and Guinea pigs to cuddle.  A kids dream come true!

I told them to say "Milk the Cow!"

Drew is barely touching the thing

Isla got right down and dirty!

Ian on his donkey.  He named him Ferdinand

Drew on his donkey - he named him Bullseye

Isla feeding the horse

Look!  It's ME!

Cutest and most lovable goat ever!

She loved to get pet and kissed

SHEEP!

Drew fell from a tree and landed on his face.  Poor guy.

Coming back from the farm and getting SLURPEES from 7-eleven.  Yeah, we're the best parents ever.

Red tongue Isla

We had such a great morning at the farm, but our afternoon consisted of packing up toys and straightening up the apartment for our move in EIGHT DAYS.  Not that I'm counting or anything.  We then went for a family swim in the pool.  I opted for the hot tub, it is way too freezing to go swimming in my opinion, but I was persuaded that I must come as well.  It's our last week, so I needed to comply.

Tomorrow I get another 'ME' day.  I will be shopping for gifts and things to bring back home as well as hitting a museum or doing things I wouldn't be able to do if I had kids with me.  I'm super excited to get into the city by myself while the stores are still open.  YAY!  Unfortunately Ian was starting to feel under the weather today, so I'm praying that he kicks it over night and wakes up happy and healthy.  Fingers crossed!

Oh, and green drink today was broccoli, cucumber, carrot, kale, apple, pear and lemon.  It was delicious!  And I am about to do 4 push ups.  Blogs are good for keeping me accountable.

Love yas!

Saturday - 12 Apostles

Despite a 104 degree temperature on Friday, Drew pulled through and was able to make the long trek to see the infamous Twelve Apostles on our last free weekend in Melbourne.  I am very proud of him for 'letting' mommy do the very last thing on my list of things to see and do before we leave.  It was cold, and it was cloudy but it was lovely.

Isla posing so nicely, and look at that smile!

Finding feathers and sea shells

This family photo depicts us so entirely.  We have so much fun together, do so many things and enjoy the beauty around us... but we're not perfect.  No matter how hard we try, there will always be a grumpy kid or a lack of focus.  We have learned that no matter how hard the road, we are doing it together.  We love our kids and want to capture every single moment.  Even the not so perfect ones!

Let's join some challenges!

Since the week days get pretty boring around here with the cold weather and lack of activities, I have decided to partake in a couple of challenges.. both of which are Facebook inspired.

Challenge #1: The 7 day green juice challenge.  This one is fairly simple really, just drink one fresh green juice every day.  I can eat whatever else I want, BUT at least I get all my green goodness in one concentrated juice-tastic vitamin fortified form.  YAY JUICE!

broccoli, alfalfa sprouts, kale, cucumber, apple

Challenge #2: The 100 day push-up Challenge.  Another pretty simple challenge, 1 push-up day 1, 2 on day 2, 3 on 4 and etc.  Push up #1 was today and I just BREEZED through that one.  Ha!  We'll see how I do on day 4.  I should do the same with sit-ups, and squats, and... we'll just start with push-ups and see how she goes.  YAY PUSH UPS!

Sorry, no pictures of me straining to do push-ups today.  However, Isla took a pic of me holding her tinkerbell.  Please also note the very long multi-colored hair (grey, brown, blonde etc.).  This will be getting cut and colored TODAY.  See keep an eye out for an after picture!

Wineries make the zoo FUN!

Saturday we decided to meet our friends, Kurt and Briana Solarte, and their kids Bella and Hayden at the Werribee open range zoo, just outside of Melbourne.  The zoo is well known for it's wide open spaces for animals to roam freely.  We've heard a lot of good things about this zoo, so were excited to check it out!

But first...

We arrived a bit early to meet the Solartes, so we drove around the area to kill some time.  First we hit a cute little trail by the river and did some hiking.  The dirt was this beautiful bright red.  Very pretty, but also extremely dirty.

Ian already had his walking stick picked out.  These kids know how to hike!

Tried to get a good kid picture.  Fail.

Very red dirt = very dirty clothes

Hi Drewy

 After playing a bit, we discovered a cute little winery just down the road from the zoo.  It served lunch,
and had a really nice outdoor area complete with a garden and goats.  PERFECT!

While the guys hung out with the kids before lunch, Briana and I did some taste testing of their local wine.  The wine guy was exceptional and very excited about his wine.  He gave us a ton of great restaurant ideas and kept our glasses full.  It was fabulous!  The woodfired pizza was great too and the kids were able to keep themselves busy and having fun the whole time.  SCORE!

The whole group right before Isla had a little meltdown

Next, on to the zoo!!  We arrived just before the next Safari was to leave, so we jumped on the big bus looking thing and off we went.  Great way to see a zoo after lots of wine and pizza.  Sit back and relax and get driven around.  We saw Giraffes, Zebras, lions, Rhinos, and Hippos.  Drew ended up falling asleep and Ian was very close to it.  Devon snapped lots of pictures and I was in my happy place.

Real croc?  Based on all the birds nearby, I'm gonna say no.

Giraffes have very long tongues

Hello hippo

We were all worn out by the end of our zoo adventure, but kept the party going and had the Solartes come over for dinner.  We had a great time and are planning on going on an adult only date night for mother's day.  YAY!!

Today (Sunday) was a bit low key.  It was cold and a little rainy but we ventured out anyway.  I took the kids to a playground near Albert Park.  It's a bit of a walk, but I thought I could use the exercise and fresh air.  I packed a lunch for all of us and we had a nice time.  We saw huge geese, sailboats and lots of runners.  We got home, and Ian and I took a little nap while Devon and the kids did some art work.  Wish I got some pictures!  They decided it would be fun to draw on themselves.  Isla made herself a tiger.  Drew just colored blue and black all over his body.  And Devon drew a mustache and eyebrows on Ian while he was sleeping.  THANK GOODNESS he didn't draw on me or I would have chased him around the apartment with the reminder spoon.

After all that nonsense, we went down to the pool for another swim.  We go down almost daily, no matter what the temperature is outside.  The kids love it and it's been a really fun family thing for us to do together.

We have only 2 more full weeks left here.  We have gotten rid of a ton of food from the pantry - still no junk food if you were wondering!  I need to start organizing toys and clothes again.  Just did all that last week but it's gotten out of control again.  Oh, and I scrubbed the kitchen floor WITH A TOOTHBRUSH last week.  This floor is such a pain to clean.  I will not miss it, not one bit!  Other than that, we will make the most of our last days here.  Hoping to get outside a bunch if weather permits.  It's typically in the mid to upper 60s here, but it gets very cool at night.  It's still pleasant enough to be enjoyable.

Until next time!

Date Night!

A spur of the moment urge to get a babysitter on this Wednesday night has led to one of the most fabulous date nights here in Melbourne!

Had a great day all around!  I have been craving other adult interaction for WEEKS and finally my Chicago friend Briana (the one I met while in Sydney) was in the area, so we decided to meet up for coffee and a catch up.  We ended up going to the Botanical Gardens to let the kids run around while we talked about life and soak up the beautiful autumn weather.  It was just what I needed.  What's more, I was able to go out and spend some quality time with Devon tonight.  We didn't have any destination in mind.  Decided to walk up and down the popular Chapel Street - which reminded me a lot of the trendy uptown in Mpls.  We were carrying around a bottle of wine that Erin Dockter bought us while she was here to see if we could find a BYO restaurant that would let us drink it.  Devon found a fantastic little French restaurant on a side street tucked away in a quiet corner.  It was absolute perfection. Great food, great conversation, great wine.  Life is good!

What a great day.  I spent time with the kids, with a good friend and with my hubby.  Just enough to give me the rejuvenation I need to get through the week!

Weekend Adventures!

Sorry about missing a couple days!  It's just been too exciting around here!

On Saturday we had a family movie day - first movie theater experience for the boys.  It was super fun, and the kids did great!  The Croods was very entertaining and a perfect first movie for Ian and Drew.

Getting ready for the movie to start

 We brought our own movie theater snacks - fruit and nuts however, we couldn't resist it and bought a bag of popcorn as well.  What's a movie without popcorn!?

We got home, had dinner and decided it would be a great idea to go swimming!  It was probably about 50 degrees outside.  But our pool is very warm so it was quite comfortable.  I can't believe how much progress the kids have made with their swimming skills since we've been here.  Isla can swim by herself, float on her back, and dive down to the bottom to retrieve things.  She was hardly able to put her head under when we first came to Australia!  Ian and Drew have also become extremely confident in the water.  We have saved hundreds of dollars worth of swimming lessons!  :)

Sunday, we took the ferry to Science works.  It was a gorgeous fall sunny day, perfect for a short boat ride down the Yarra River.

About to board the ferry

We were DEFINITELY the youngest on the ferry.

A huge container ship heading to port Melbourne.  I was in my hay day.

At Science works.  Very cool place!

 We first went to the planetarium and sat gazing up at the big dome ceiling covered in stars.  We got to see the evening sky as it was in Melbourne that night.  They pointed out many constellations including the Southern Cross (Kristen, you would appreciate that.) Scorpio, Orion and many others.  I wonder, can Australians see the dippers?

We then went on to see many of the fun exhibits.

He's a champ!

Drew holding on for dear life

Devon and some giant tinker toys

This exhibit showed the secret behind magic and illusions.  All smoke and mirrors, literally!!

Head on a platter

Ian having fun

On the way home, while waiting for the ferry, we found hundreds of mussels on the dock.  Devon took one off and opened it up for the kids to investigate.

Randomly, Isla found a star fish floating in the river.  Perhaps it caught a ride from one of the container vessels.  In any case, it was a really cool find!!

Isla's starfish

Another fun weekend - only 3 more to go before we head home!

Monday morning turned out cold and rainy so we decided to stay inside and not go to the gym.  It's ok, I had a great 6 mile run along the river on Sunday morning.  :)  But, I NEEDED my coffee, so we decided to venture across the street to get my flat white.

The kids and I got into the elevator (or lift as they call them here) and pressed the 'G' for the ground floor.  At about floor 12, there was a large BOOM, crash, jolt and dust that came into the lift.  I screamed and held onto the kids, like a good mother hen would.  I wish I could see the video surveillance of my reaction!  We were all pretty shaken up after that.  I pressed the emergency button that I have so often told the kids to STAY AWAY FROM, and a nice operator said that she would send over help.  Luckily the 'lift' dude was in the area and came very promptly.  The door to the elevator was open just slightly so we could sort of see the outside world.  I have no idea how long we were in there.. could have been 15 minutes, could have been an hour.  I didn't have my phone, so time was no object.  However, I did have my camera!  I had to make the most of the situation so we told stories, sang songs AND took lots of fun pictures.  The kids were scared, but they were VERY brave for the most part.  Only once did Isla ask if we were going to die and see Jesus.  I assured her we would not die in an elevator, and she was happy with that answer.  Finally, after a while, the doors were pried open and we were free.  The apartment manager (who I don't think likes us very much) asked if the kids had pressed any buttons or forced the door open.  Seriously, blame the kids why don't you!  Geesh.

I was able to get my flat white after all and I FINALLY have an interesting blog post for all of you!  Here are some pictures from our fun elevator adventure.

A little freaked out after the blast

mangled elevator door

Drew snuggling up with mommy

My boys

The trap door we almost had to use on the top of the elevator. 

Isla had too much fun with the camera

Getting bored now!

And there you have it!  We survived it and are determined NOT to be afraid of elevators.