Bubbletastic

It has been a hectic past few months here, and as a result I haven't had, ahem made, any time to blog. Finding some motivation to get typing again was the easy part, finding something to write about, has proved to be harder... So to ease myself back into it, here are a few photo's of our fun afternoon with bubbles. We had been cooped up inside for days, dealing with a bout of mild bronchitis, mixed with miserable weather. Ebony was over the moon to be running wildly outside again, tapping into her inner crazy, toddler self (which is never buried to deep). Running around the yard squealing & trying to catch all the bubbles, turned out to be more fun than we had bargained for.

 

 Once again, no more photo's mummy!

 

Simpsons Park - Graceville

This little gem is different to any other park I have visited in the area. Lovely and peaceful for the parents to enjoy. You can sit on one of the many benches provided, taking in the beautiful Brissy river, while the little ones go on a wild adventure, fighting pirates (or saving the whales - aka the Sea Shepherd), in the deep sea.

Enjoy it for free
Age groups:
A park for the more mobile toddler. Lots of climbing & balancing to be had by pre-school & primary aged kids.

Address:
You will find Simpson's Park towards the end of Graceville Avenue,
Graceville, Brisbane.

Facilities:
Public toilets (a short walk away)
Wood-fired barbecues
water
undercover area for picnic tables
wheelchair access

Shade rating:
Playground area is shaded

Playground features:
Bike way/walkway
Swings
Seesaw
Large ship structure well equipped with;
- a steering wheel, ready for your little one to take the helm!
- a spyglass telescope, to watch out for pirates (although they will need to be a lot taller than my toddler to reach it)
- a life boat, in the event little imaginations require an emergency evacuation, off their ship (or as my toddler found it, a very useful bucket for all the chipboard flooring she decided to fill it with...)
- lots of stairs & climbing frames
- tandem slides (great for racing, as we soon discovered with a friend, Ebony met that day)

 

Food:
no cafes. bring a picnic & or use the BBQ facilities

Edenbrooke Dr, Park - Sinnamon Park

Ebony and I came across this park by sheer luck, that is, a couple of wrong turns on our way to an appointment (even while following the Navman's directions)... There is a beautiful atmosphere about the park. Paintings, wildlife & lot's of climbing equipment (it did help that Ebony and I went on a week day, early afternoon & had the whole park to ourselves). As Ebony is only 18mths old she couldn't use all of the facilities climbing frames & sliding poles, she did however, love climbing the steps, using the slide & bridges (even with mummy swinging them), & talking to the turtles & ducks. We will definitely be back to this little gem. A great spot to turn on little imaginations.
 
Enjoy it for free
Age groups:
A park for the more mobile toddler, lots of climbing & balancing to be had by pre-school & primary aged kids.

Address:
Edenbrooke Dr
Sinnamon Park, QLD

Facilities:
electric barbecues
water
undercover area
wheelchair access

Shade rating:
We visited this park in the afternoon & by then it was well shaded. Stay tuned for an early morning visit for more accurate feedback.

Playground features:
Bikeway/walkway
Swings
Pond with ducks & turtles (unfortunately a big sign reads no feeding the wildlife) aside from the water being a bit mucky when we visited last, it was still a lovely area for bird & turtle spotting
Slides
Climbing Frames
Bridges

Food:
no cafes. bring a picnic & or use the bbq facilities

18mths old

 

 

 

 

Yippy-ay our little girl is 18 months today (okay technically yesterday, but whats a day between friends?) We decided to upgrade some of her outdoor play equipment & found a second hand Hills swing set on Gumtree. What a beauty! A marshy back yard (due to the crazy amount of rain over the last few weeks its-raining-its-pouring) didn't deter this monkey from trialling out her new swings. I can see this pre-loved play set, will bring many hours of play, learning & fun.

 

Enjoy little Rose x

It's raining, it's pouring...

It has been raining here non-stop for over a week (which is a long, long time, by Queensland, otherwise known as the "Sunshine State" standards) and my 'indoor activity' ideas for toddlers, are quickly running out.

• We have exhausted all the local libraries for Rhyme time and reading time 
• We have visited our local indoor play centre, Rowdy Rascals
• We have gone to our local Museum & Art Gallery
• We have visited Grandma & Nana & Poppa (numerous amount of times...)
• We have played on every merry go round & motorised car in our local shopping centre
• We have coloured in, build with blocks, nursed "babies" (her dolly's), played with all the pots & pans & Tupperware, played with the measuring cups & spoons with rice, helped mummy bake, played hide & seek
• We have read & read & read every book in the house

What I hadn't considered, was to simply let Ebony play outside in the puddles, in the rain. Day in, day out our little toddlers face has been squashed up against the glass sliding door, watching this stuff fall from the sky. Some days she would yell across the room "rain" (just in case you had forgotten it was raining), other days saying it quietly to herself, as she stood their staring. Unbeknown to us, this little girl, with big ideas, was planning an escape, biding her time to play in the puddles... It happened within seconds, one moment I was carrying boxes to our garage, the next, Ebony (all clean & dressed, ready to go to Grandmas' mind you) had scooted out the back door & found the biggest puddle in the garden to walk, jump, sit & finally, belly flop in. Fully clothed, shoes and all... In true Ebony style, this girl loved it. I ended up letting her play in this single puddle, then eventually the whole back yard, in the rain, fully clothed.

Now i'm waiting for the rain to let up, so I can wash all of her clothes :o)

Ken Fletcher park - Tennyson

Enjoy it for free
Age groups:
something for all ages

Address:
Ken Fletcher Park at Tennyson
located on King Arthur Terrace

Facilities:
toilets with disabled access
water
undercover area with picnic table
wheelchair access
ampitheatre
bike paths
a public pontoon for non-motorised water activities
open-air ampitheatre
public plaza
shade, seating and picnic facilities including barbecues
an internal car park with 35 spaces, including nine disabled spaces
10 on-street car parks

Shade rating:
The toddler playground area is shaded with large sails. The large climbing frame area (for bigger kids) is yet to be covered, so avoid the middle of the day.

Playground features:
bikeway/walkway
swings
liberty swing
climbing frames
slides
sand & water play area (can get a bit messy, bring an extra set of clothes)
seesaws

Food:
 bring a picnic & or use the bbq facilities

 

Extra info:

Tamborine Rainforest Skywalk

 

 

 

The start of this year has been suprisingly busy & as a result, it had been a while since we last used our baby carrier. We decided to get motivated & take a day trip to Mt. Tamborine & 'piggyback' Ebony, on the Tamborine Rainforest Skywalk. We didn't however, time it all that well & ended up arriving in the middle of a typical, hot Aussie summers day... I'm talking a thirty-six degree day at least, with humidity. It was bloody hot. Fortunately, little sunlight could penetrate the thick canopy of trees inside the rainforest & we were suprisingly very comfortable, throughout the 40 minute walk. Ebony loved being snuggled into her daddy's back as she pointed eagerly to all the 'teeees' (aka trees) & 'tweet tweets' (birds). Fourty minutes of 'woOOow, teeees' & 'tweet tweets', challenges you to come up with different responses other than "oh yes Ebony a tree", or 'that is a beautiful tree", "what a great big tree" or "yes I can hear/see a bird". The lovely old couple that were following us & cooing at the cute little girl in the baby carrier, soon found their 'second gear', after Ebony's first five unrelentless minutes of excitment, over how many trees & birds there were & soon overtook us... Ebony was completley thrilled over natures' fauna & flora & was out to it by the time we got to the car. Overall, mission accomplished! This is definitely a beautiful part of Australia & should not be missed. I love sharing moments like these with my family, I can hardly believe myself, how much beauty there is to be seen. Can you imagine a toddler taking it all in for the first time? Ebony was blown away.

 

Tamborine Rainforest Skywalk;

Over 300 meters of stable steel structured bridge through the higher rainforest canopy, combined with the 40 meter long Skywalk Cantilever soaring 30 meters over the creek below. It is the longest canopy walk in South East Queensland.

Admission Prices:

Adults (17 Years & over) $19.50

Children (6-16 Years) $9.50

Family (2 Adults + 1 Child) $44.00

Family (2 Adults + 2 Children) $49.00

Extra Children in Family $5.00 per child
Seniors Card Holders $16.50

Full-time Students (I.D required) $16.50
YHA Cardholders (I.D required)  $16.50

Age groups:
something for all ages

Address:
Tamborine Rainforest Skywalk
333 Geissmann Drive,
North Tamborine, Queensland

Facilities:
toilets
water
undercover area
First 300mts of Skywalk wheelchair accessable
Pram friendly – approx 10 steps along the way

Food:
The Birdwing Café serves delicious light refreshments inside or on the deck beside the rainforest

Shade rating:
Majority of the walk is shaded by Rainforest