Brennan Loves His Aussie Cousins....

I got this video yesterday while we were waiting for Julie to fill the car with gas. You can hear at the beginning how he says Maddy, then he says Sam and Ella. So CUTE!

Bondi to Bronte Walk

On Sunday we were up and out of the house by 10:45am (for 4 adults and 4 kids that is quite an accomplishment) to go pick up Sam from his sleepover so we could head to the beach. We met the Pullman's there. After we staked out a spot on the beach, Steve, Julie, Sean, Brennan, and the Pullman's daughter Keely headed out to do the Bondi to Bronte Beach walk. It turned out to be perfect day for the walk, and it was just gorgeous! Brennan fell asleep for a much needed nap along the way so instead of bussing it back to Bondi, we just walked back. Julie had packed up PB&J, chips, watermelon, etc... We didn't leave the beach until about 4:30pm, when we headed out for some shopping and dinner. When we got home everyone needed a bath from playing in the sand. The water was a bit chilly, so Brennan did not enjoy his venture to the water. We had a great day playing on the beach! I hope are remaining days are as nice - weather-wise.

Bondi to Bronte Walk

Sunday at Bondi

Sunday at Bondi

Sunday at Bondi

Luna Park

On Saturday, we raced out of the house at 7:30am to go to Sam's big baseball game - the undefeated teams going head-to-head. Unfortunately, half way there we found out that the game had been cancelled due to rain. Bummer! We went to McDonald's with the team, and then headed to Sam's basketball game. When we got home, Brennan was exhausted so we let him have his nap. At about 2:30, we left the house with the girls and Steve to go pick up Maddy from a birthday party at Luna Park. Julie was headed in another direction to drop Sam off at a birthday party/sleep over. We decided to check out some rides at Luna Park and had a great time. There were rides for all ages, but Brennan could only really do the Ferris Wheel, the Carousel, and the slide. We had great views from the top of the Ferris Wheel. After that we came home for dinner. I had brought some recipes so I made chicken souvlaki on the grill with pitas, brocollini & rice. The kiddos gobbled it up again, so I was very pleased with that.

Babysitting in Australia

Brennan looks so sad in this picture, but he really had just gotten done belly laughing at Sam.....

Aussie Meat Pies

Before....



After - he had gravy from head to toe, and behind his knees!

Friday in Australia

We spent the day in Darling Harbour on Friday. Steve drove us into the Harborside Mall, and then we took a cab home. Unfortunately, it was raining again - on and off again. We wandered around though, and had a great lunch of Aussie Meat Pies right along the water front. The pictures I will post are from the before and after....Brennan really liked his pie. Then, he promptly fell asleep so we had to wander around while trying to keep him asleep. Once he woke up we had fun playing in some fountains, but the most fun Brennan had was walking up and down these little ramps in the sidewalk. When you have a toddler you have to take time out for them to do whatever they think is fun.....and that's what it was for us today. When we got back to the house we were on babysitting duty as Steve & Julie had his company Christmas party. I made fish, potatoes and beans, and the kids gobbled it up. The girls and I then painted toenails, and Brennan and Sam had a blast playing bowling. Sam can really get B belly-laughing. Its awesome! He will surely miss his cousins!

Thursday in Australia

Thursday was a full day. Ella's speach day play was in the morning at 10:30am. It was a little musical to The Greedy Bee - it was very cute, and Ella did great as a Funky Fish. Then, we went with Steve to a pretty beach and The Gap. In the evening we went to downtown Sydney for the Welcome to Christmas and Santa. It was crowded, and the kids were all a bit tired, but it was fun and we all had a good time. Kind of funny to be singing Christams Carols in sunny summery weather! We were disappointed that Santa was not wearing shorts!

Thursday in Australia

Wednesday in Australia

On Wednesday, Steve dropped us off at the Train station at 7:30am so we could catch the train to the Blue Mountains. Of course, we thought Brennan would sleep on the way there, and after much struggle, we finally got him to fall asleep about 30min from Katoomba. It was drizzly, rainy, and quite cold. We boarded a bus that had 29 stops at different sights, and took a spin around - everything was clouded in, and Brennan was tired and not riding in the bus well, so we went back to the beginning for lunch. After lunch we got back on the bus and got off to do the tram ride across the valley, and the steepest railroad car ride to the bottom. At the bottom, we walked around the boardwalk paths until Brennan fell asleep. Luckily we had the stroller with us, so he could get a little snooze while we walked around. Then, we took another tram up to the top, and took the tram back across the valley. Things cleared off a little bit and we could see some of the scenery. The best part of our day was when we "hiked" to Echo Point and the three sisters with Brennan in the stroller. Thankfully we purchased a rugged stroller that could handle the terrain. He thought it was great fun. We got back on the train at 5:30pm and after getting on the wrong train in Sydney and getting turned back around, Steve picked us back up again at 8:30pm. It was a very long day, but we had fun.

Blue Mountains Trip