Three days before we head back to New Zealand and I’ve timed my reading perfectly! I’m on my final book of three that I packed and I’ve loved them all. To be honest, I probably haven’t spent as much time on a lounger reading as …
Earlier this month I was stoked to have been invited to compete in the first-ever Choice Hotels #ChoiceNZTravelgrammer2017 competition against 10 other NZ based Instagram Influencers. We were despatched to 10 stunning and varied locations around NZ with the goal to ‘do the regions proud’ …
This weekend away in March was amazing! We ditched Auckland and had an epic three-day family adventure in Hamilton. Our itinerary was co-ordinated by Hamilton & Waikato tourism and was so good I’ve decided to share it step by step in case anyone wants full details on how to max out three days with your kids, in a super-fun city just 127km from Auckland, NZ.
We left Auckland around midday on Friday and had a great drive south to arrive in Hamilton at 2 pm.
After check-in at the Sudima Hotel, we walked across the street to the Waikato Museum. Let me tell you, Friday afternoon is the time to visit if you want a really peaceful, quiet experience. We spent almost a full hour just in the Exscite exhibit. Every activity is a kid magnet. The boys ran around in a frenzy at first, touching on every station within the first 15 minutes. They calmed down a little after that, took their time and really took it all in.
After visiting Milk Matters, For Us They Fell, Te Winika, Beyond the Cordon and the Bob Marley exhibit (all awesome), we left the museum and headed a couple of blocks along Victoria St to Bowl & Social. Situated in Sky City, we were totally unprepared for how cool a bowling alley could be!
We bowled one game with the boys (Even Nix loved it at 3.5yo) and enjoyed a really great meal overlooking the river. This is hipster heaven, but equally perfect for a family fun date or birthday party – there were three parties in action while we were there!
Part of the Balloons over Waikato calendar is the City Burn and Markets. The boys were a bit shattered so I left them with Dave and walked the single block to Garden Place in the city. What a fun family event! There were food vendors, market stalls, live music and of course the choreographed basket burn set to a really cool soundtrack. I loved this, it was quick and awesome and makes a fairly early night for the kids.
We enjoyed breakfast at the hotel and loaded up for the drive south (54min) to Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari. We had no idea what to expect, but if you LOVE getting your family out in the New Zealand native forest like we do, then this is a must-do on your next visit to the Waikato.
Surrounded by the world’s longest pest-proof fence, Sanctuary Mountain’s ancient forest offers a sanctuary for populations of many of our most endangered species – from birds to bats, frogs to reptiles, tuatara to giant weta.
We spent the morning on an amazing tour along one of the many trails and just soaked in the abundant native wildlife that is being so well protected here. Major highlights were seeing many Kaka plus Ethan and I did a solo mission to a freshwater pool and were wowed by the biggest Kura we have ever seen!
Tip: Don’t be off-put by less-than-perfect weather. We visited on a rainy, gloomy morning but the thick forest canopy did an excellent job of keeping us dry and happy.
Next on the itinerary was a trip to the famed Waitomo Glowworm caves. After an easy 47-minute drive south-west of Sanctuary Mountain, we were sitting down for lunch at Waitomo Homestead. Delicious cafe food, well-priced and a convenient spot to refuel before you begin your cave adventure.
The Waitomo Glowworm Caves are an NZ institution. I first remember visiting with my parents when I was a little girl and loved bringing my own boys back here to experience the beauty of the underground caves and magical, twinkling glowworms. This is a beautifully run operation and something special but, as a kiwi, I couldn’t put my finger on what was missing and have only just figured it out as I sit here in Ubud completely surrounded by Balinese culture. It is a completely sterile operation, almost devoid of any Maori/NZ culture or history – it could conceivably be picked up and plonked anywhere in the world. I’m not sure international visitors would pick up on this but it seemed really odd to me.
The rain began to fall as we headed back to Hamilton and we were fading a little. We were seriously considering skipping the weekend’s main event, the Balloons Over Waikato Zuru Night Glow. Instead, we hardened up, charged it and were rewarded by the rain clearing and the most fabulous family night out in a long time. Held at the University of Waikato, this is an event worth travelling for. The food vendors provided ample choice (we chose some fab burritos), the music from The Jordan Luck Band was incredible, the hot air balloon light show set to an awesome soundtrack kept even Nixon in raptures and the fireworks finale was simply outstanding.
Put the Night Glow Event on your family calendar for 2018. It’s a seriously good night that I expect to become an annual tradition in our family.
We delayed the inevitable drive back to Auckland for as long as possible with our first visit to the famed Hamilton Gardens. Over the past few years I’ve been coveting pictures of the many varied landscapes within the gardens so was super keen to explore with the kids.
The space here is incredible, there are tourist buses aplenty (and rightly so) but you can easily find a spot to yourself and lay out a blanket and wile away an hour or two with a picnic.
Which is exactly what we did – after 2 separate plays at the beautiful Hamilton Gardens Destination Playground. Both boys, big and small, had such a wicked time here. Just like the wider gardens I feel like you may spot something new to do here every time you visit.
Phone ahead and let the professionals at The Hamilton Garden Cafe take care of lunch. We picked up our laden basket and blankets and settled down to the most delicious lunch under a tree in the Rose Garden. The food was ah-mazing, not exaggerating one bit. I dream of another picnic like this one lol
What a weekend Hamilton/Waikato! We enjoyed some incredible activities and visited some beautiful spots but we also saw twice as many things that are now on our to-do list for our next long weekend.
We stayed the weekend at Sudima Hotel in Hamilton City. We had a huge 2 bedroom suite with, pretty much a full kitchen, 2 large bedrooms and a balcony – a perfect, kid-friendly hotel right on ‘the strip’ in Hamilton and surrounded by amazing restaurants and things to do.
Tip – the street side room can be a bit noisy at night so pop the kids in the interior room and bring some earplugs if you’re a light sleeper like me.
I’m not exaggerating here, my kids’ dental hygiene is the bane of my LIFE. The big one just doesn’t care/can’t be bothered/isn’t interested and the little one thoroughly enjoys it but would be only slightly less effective if he was using his toothbrush to scrub the floor instead …
I’ve noticed over the years that people generally fall into two very distinct camps when it comes to sunglass purchasing. The first crew use and abuse their glasses, preferring quantity over quality as they just can’t seem to hold on to a pair (or keep …
Here in New Zealand, the first school holidays of 2017 are very quickly approaching and if the recent unsettled weather is anything to go by, we better get prepared for some rainy days inside!
Nixon is our hurricane child, whom we often struggle to settle down into focused, prolonged play. He tires quickly of traditional toys but, give him creative options and he’s good to go and engaged for at least half an hour – that’s amazing for our little guy!
Despite having to be carried out in the football hold under my arm during the show last year (epic, most public meltdown either one of my kids has ever experienced!), Nix LOVES Mister Maker and often asks for time with his ‘Making Box’ full of art supplies. His other favourite form of creative play is sitting down with some play dough and letting his imagination take over – I’m pretty sure I’ve never seen him play the same way twice when he’s working and squishing with dough.
Over the past couple of years, it’s pretty apparent that as Kiwi parents, we are changing the way we choose and shop for products for our kids. When we have the option to purchase great quality, natural products it’s a no-brainer, especially when it’s going to be a guaranteed hit with the kids!
Fellow Kiwi Mum Claire Shannon has taken this movement to market with her Dough Queen range of natural New Zealand made play dough.
Dough Queen’s NZ-made natural non-toxic play dough is produced with food grade ingredients you can find in your own kitchen. That means if someone takes a nibble there’s no need to panic. We like our little customers to have a good amount to play with so each resealable pouch has 500g of dough. DQ dough will last around 5 months, as long as it is returned to its pouch or stored in a sealed container after play time.
We’ve been playing pretty hard out with Claire’s lovely dough since before Christmas and I’m totally hooked – as is Nixie. I’ve made my own dough before, and whilst it’s not a particularly difficult thing to do, it is time-consuming and messy. Let’s face it, the beauty of tactile play with play dough IS that it’s messy and you can smush it into a million little pieces (that get into every fibre of every fibrous thing in your entire house lol), so mess is good. But avoiding a pre-mess before the Main Mess Event is much more my style.
In short, I’d rather buy natural play dough then make it myself – #LazyMum, maybe. Time poor? Definitely.
Dough Queen Natural Play Dough retails at $9 per single pack, with bundle pricing available as well as lab-tested, gluten free options, making beautiful handmade dough safe and healthy for everyone.
There are two new colours in the Dough Queen range, DQ Colour #10 and DQ Colour #11. Both come in the super generous 500gm resealable pouch, both are bright, fun colours, they last for ages, and they both need names!
Help Dough Queen name the two latest colours!Come up with the winning name for either #10 (teal) or #11 (purple) or both, and a twin pack containing each of the new colours could be all yours! There are two prizes to win so comment below with your name suggestions and Dough Queen will choose 2 winners 3/4/17.
NZ residents only.
5.40am Subconsciously doing backflips because at the very least I won’t be waking up in the death hour of any time beginning with 4. 5.41am Little hands slapping on my face. “Mummay what’s inside woodlice?”. Inward groan and realisation that I’m going to have …
After a pretty manic end to 2016, Dave and I had absolutely no inclination to plan an extended, extravagant summer holiday with the kids. There was to be nothing involving chilly-bins or tents, no road trips, no car/boat combo packed to the hilt….. Some years …
Ok girlfriends, I’m rocking my Mum-Bun so you know it’s business time.
Getting changed this many times in ONE hour (let alone one WEEK lol) was hard work, plus filming myself trying to model clothes in my lounge is excruciating – so you better love this video okay?
Seriously though, The Warehouse has put together another really easy-to-wear and accessible range this season which makes me excited about throwing some layers together and getting a bit of texture going on!
I went out on a limb and picked some items I usually wouldn’t look twice at – like that blush cami?! Amaze, will go with everything, plus the Midi dress and Longline shirt – super easy to see how these will slip into my mum-wardrobe over the coming months.
Check out the vlog to see these pieces in action, I’ve popped full shopping links below as well as details on how you can win a $50 gift card to get your shop on at The Warehouse!
Garage Lace Up Back Jumper $25.00 (Awesome stuff sells fast and this is moving quickly! Still available online though)
Garage Lace-Trim Cami $15.00
Amco Women’s Curvy Skinny Jeans $29.00
Garage Lace Trim Midi Dress $25.00
Maya 3/4 Sleeve Check Shirt $25.00
Maya Lace Up Back Jumper $29.00 (This is another super popular style selling out! Still available online though)
Basics Brand Women’s Wide Strap Singlet $7.00
Maya Sleeveless Longline Shirt $25.00
Maya Mesh Panel Tunic $20.00
I know there’s something in that stellar line-up that’s calling your name. Tell me below what your wardrobe needs as we head into the cooler months and you’re in the draw to win a $50 gift card to spend at The Warehouse!
Make sure you’ve commented on the first New Season Fashion post as well for a second entry!
Entries close 19/3/17, NZ residents only.
The golden days of summer are over and if the thought of hitting the streets in the cold and dark this winter just doesn’t fill your #Fitspo tank, then I’ve got something for you! Thanks to Gym and Fitness we have an awesome prize that will allow …