G’day all!

And the travels continue….as we drove further west, we enjoyed seeing vineyard after vineyard.  The people in South Australia know how to grow some grapes!  We actually found vineyards all over this state as well as in Kangaroo Island.  We’ve also learned a couple more tricks about Bea and Teddy.  One being how to keep Teddy happy during a meal (when he hasn’t gotten full yet)…a balloon.  We stopped at Macca’s on our drive to South Australia and he was given a balloon (on a stick).  He LOVED it!  He ate every chicken nugget bite with his right hand while holding the balloon in his left hand.  Second, we learned that Bea can spot a playground a mile away and she let’s you know!  Who knew there were so many playgrounds in Australia!  And we’ve stopped at most of them!

I finally took a turn and drove the campervan and man was it different.  It’s not much longer than my vehicle at home but definitely taller and it doesn’t turn very easily.  I didn’t last long behind the wheel and let Cory drive the rest of our travels.  Bless him, that was a lot of driving!

We took a stay in Hahndorf, the oldest German village in Australia, where we enjoyed a smorgasbord of sausages.  They were delicious!  They have a farm barn where the kids got to feed and pet baby goats, chicks, lamb and calves.  Teddy wanted to pet a chick but didn’t realize him strength.  Luckily, Cory got the chick’s head out of Teddy’s hand before anything bad happened!  They also had kangaroo and Bea is becoming a natural at feeding them.

A couple fun side notes, we learned the black and white bird we see everywhere and hear (they have an amazingly different sound) is called a Magpie.  Funny enough, our favorite band sings a song about Magpies.  Another is that instead of butter they put yogurt or ice cream on pancakes for breakfast!  Bea is loving eating ice cream for breakfast!

On to Kangaroo Island via ferry….we sat right up front so we could watch during the 45 min ferry ride.  Our first stop was Seal Bay for Ranger Conrad to lead us on a small tour to see seals up close.  We heard a pup calling out for his mom and when she didn’t answer he went to the edge of he water to wait for her!  Vivonne Bay came next with
lunch in campervan and playing in the sand on the beach.  There was hardly anyone else there and the sand felt like you were walking on kinetic sand.  We also took advantage of our campervan and took turns enjoying the beach while the kids took their afternoon naps in the van!  Our campervan park in Western KI was full of wildlife where we watched two momma kangaroos and their joeys (one in the pouch and one newly outside the pouch) have supper as well as a hurd of rock wallabys bound around.

The next day was quite different, mainly because of the temperature drop!  We drove to Flinders Chase Park to see the rock formations: Admiral’s Arch (amazing rock formations where New Zealand fur seals live on the rocks; the waves here were also unbelievably wild!) and Remarkable Rocks (you can walk on).  We were waiting though to see wildlife just on our drive and we got it!  A kangaroo jumped in front of our car (luckily we were watching for wildlife) and an echidna (looks like a porcupine) and an eagle.  This place is magical!  And it didn’t stop there when we went to the KI Wildlife Park.  This park is the most raw animal viewing place I’ve ever been to.  Upon walking up a cockatoo named Stanley greeted us; he talks, cries and coughs!  Bea thought he was awesome!  Again, we got to pet and feed kangaroos and wallabys….one wallaby being a momma with her Joey in her pouch while we hand fed her!  Teddy doesn’t love the bigger animals.  He cried and put his head in my chest when I bent down to get him closer to the kangaroos and wallabys.  He did however LOVE the koalas and oohed over them!  Cory and I both got to hold Chloe which I forgot how awesome this was!  Teddy and Bea both got to pet her while we held her.  Then Teddy went too far and grabbed her ear!  The zookeeper quickly tried to help as he didn’t want me to get scratched or bit.   This park also had peacocks (a white one too), pelicans, penguins, owls, etc.  We were truly blown away at this place!

Our time in KI ended and we headed back to Adelaide for an evening to let the kids stretch their legs at the holiday park playground and in our cabin.  We ended up getting a cabin our final night in our campervan as we were all tired of sleeping in such tight quarters as well as showering in dorm settings.  I also did lots of laundry again at the park.

We ended our time in South Australia at the National Railway Museum on a train ride.  We’re excited for a few days on the beach before seeing our Aussie family in Brisbane!

Love,
Cory, Millie, Bea & Teddy

Teddy holding balloon in Macca’s

Campervan pics: downstairs and kids’ bunk

Hahndorf Farm Barn: petting a calf

Seal Bay Conservatory

Admiral’s Arch

Remarkable Rocks
Koala with joey

Holding “Chloe”

Hi friends!

And so another portion of our trip is in the books….the Great Ocean Road!

On our way to pick up our campervan, we grabbed breakfast at McDonalds, or Macca’s as they call it.  Our first stop in our campervan was to get supplies.  But more importantly we had to find a parking spot that would fit our newly acquired oversized vehicle.  After going around the block and much searching, we found a spot in
the back of the car park (as they call it).  All stops take much longer than allotted for with little kids.  Then onto the Great Ocean Road and to see Bell’s Beach.  This is a huge surfing spot and there were tons of surfers.  We were wearing light jackets so brrr in the
water!

Our first holiday park was also a learning experience.  Cory was going to fix supper only to realize we didn’t have any propane in the tank (even though they said it was 3/4 full).  So we punted with sandwiches and microwaved beans…good camp food. 😉  Then he proceeded to get the van ready for bed while I corralled the kids at the playground.  In order to go to bed, he had to take out both car seats and basically unload all our luggage outside.  Then you set up the top bunk (which I got up there only once to put Teddy to bed and was so incredibly claustrophobic) by pulling out boards and putting cushions on top.  Then he put Teddy’s mini tent up there and Bea sleeps beside him in a sleeping bag.  Ok, so they’re settled and now for us.  We also had to pull out boards and cushions to make our bed.  Then Cory had to figure out where all our luggage would fit….mostly in the cab and under our bed.  It’s like a jigsaw puzzle.  As it turns out, it’s quite a system to set up both for night and day time in the campervan but we’re getting more efficient each day.  Even though it’s a tight space and lots of unloading and loading, we think it was still a good idea for the kids to have consistent sleeping arrangements for this part of our trip.

We took a couple serene rainforest walks.  The fern branches/leaves are the biggest we’ve ever seen!  On down the road, we stopped to see koalas in the wild.  As it turns out, it’s the same stop I took with my friend Katelyn (on our day trip down the Great Ocean Road from Melbourne) 11 years ago!  We did in fact see a couple koalas and cockatoos along with a kookaburra (bird native and only found in Australia) and other radiantly colored birds.

Next up was viewing the magnificent Twelve Apostles….and they were magnificent!  We got supper from a pub and had a picnic while we enjoyed the beautiful scenery!  We wanted to stay and see the penguins return from their fishing for the day but decided to get the kids to bed instead.  So we proceeded to take our first ‘campervan’ shower experience.  Teddy proceeded to scream (Bea and I could hear him from our showers) the entire time.  Poor Cory!  This was a mom and pop park like the previous one we had stayed in.

The next day was what we called our best food day to date.  It started at the Do Duck Inn Cafe in Princetown where we had toast covered in two fried eggs, spinach, ham and tomato and sausage….delicious!  Then we enjoyed the rest of the Great Ocean Road highlights: Loch Ard Gorge, London Bridge and Bay of Martyrs.  In 1990 a part of the London Bridge fell into the ocean and I can see why.  The waves here were unbelievably strong!  I cannot imagine how fish stay alive with those waves!  Continuing our yummy meals was lunch at Simon’s on the water in Warrnambool (the names of these cities are starting to get hard to pronounce). ha  We sat looking at the ocean while Cory had the best fish and chips (thus far in Australia) and I enjoyed a salmon and mango salsa meal.  Wow!

We ended our official Great Ocean Road travels in Port Fairy where we thought we’d hit the jackpot for two reasons.  One was The Stag; a restaurant clearly not intended for children but amazing!  We first had a purple carrot (didn’t know they existed) for an entree (as they call an appetizer here), cheesy cauliflower and wallaby.  It tastes
like cow. 😉  Two is we finally stayed at a Big4 holiday park.  They had a ‘jumping pillow’ and both kids loved it!  Check out Cory’s Instagram for a video of Bea jumping.  The park also had a playground and indoor bounce/play area.  I mean, it was the jackpot for these children who had been living in a campervan.

We were amazed at the beauty of the Great Ocean Road!  Here are some photo highlights of our trip!

Love,
Cory, Millie, Bea & Teddy

Bell’s Beach (see the surfer’s behind them)

Rainforest walk

Twelve Apostles

Campervan fun

London Bridge

Hello again!

So I’ll finally get to share the rest of last week’s time in Melbourne; as it turns out, wifi hasn’t been readily available for the past few days.

I found out jet lag is real for everyone as it definitely took 4-6 days to get the kids on the right time zone.  They were taking 3-4 hour naps….and even then I had to wake them!  I was also napping 1-2 hours each day.  shh!  But now we’re back on our normal schedule.

We had some really fun adventures last week while Cory was at work.  One day, we took the free tram to the Aquarium.  Bea thought she was big stuff getting to hold on to the pole by herself.  The schools in the state of Victoria (where Melbourne is located) were on holidays last week so we weren’t the only ones with the idea to go to the aquarium.    Bea and Teddy were so amazing though to stand patiently in line for 30 min to get inside.  I was so thankful!  Once we got in through, we had a blast seeing huge stingrays, a gigantic crocodile (I was so glad he was behind the glass), penguins and more.  Another day we went to Federation Square (where there were lots of girls auditioning for Australia’s Next Top Model) and found the “Art Play” area for kids.  Bea enjoyed a few short films until an emcee invited kids onstage.  Bea didn’t give it a second thought and hopped right on stage (with Teddy and me in the audience).  They danced and acted like different animals.  To date, I think this was Bea’s favorite activity in Australia. ha

I’ve also done our laundry once in what they call it a ‘launderette.’  Regardless, I haven’t had to wash laundry outside my own home in probably 11 years…since I was in Australia before. 🙂

On Cory’s last work day, EMC hosted Kids@Work day and it gave the wrong impression to Bea and Teddy as to what Cory actually does at work.  ha  Bea had her nails painted, of course.  They both had their faces painted for the first time.  Bea had Minnie Mouse and Teddy had Batman; they both sat spellbound while the artist painted their faces.  Another first for Bea was trying cotton candy.

On our last night in Melbourne, I decided it would be a good idea to have a snack in the executive lounge before supper to help with Teddy being so hungry when we got to a restaurant.  Oh did this turn out to be a bad idea!  We had to go to our second restaurant option (first option obviously wasn’t interested in children at their establishment) and by the time we got there, he was in a big way!  So much so that he poured the baby food packet we gave him ALL OVER HIS HEAD AND OUTFIT which made him even angrier.  The waitress (who may or may not have been tired of Teddy’s screaming) gave both Bea and Teddy lollipops before we even ordered…if a spoonful of sugar helps, why not a stick covered in it!

Side note, you have to put your key into a slot to turn on the lights in your hotel room…seriously, when you walk in the room, you put your room key in a slot that turns on some sort of master electrical switch making the room come to life.  Very strange, but Cory reminded me this was how hotels in Europe do as well…maybe we are the weird ones.

As it turns out, Friday was a holiday in Victoria for the “Australian Football League Finals” so we decided to head out of town to the Yarra Valley.  Our first stop was a Tulip Festival where there were colors I’ve never seen before…breathtaking!  Then we drove on to our hotel, De’vine Escape, right beside the family owned vineyard, Fergusson Winery.  The kids played on the playground while we drank some wine that we had just tasted in the tasting room and enjoyed some delicious locally crafted cheeses.

Healesville Sanctuary was our next stop where we saw koalas and got to hear a male’s growl/grunting sound.  Like an Aussie told us, they don’t sound as cute as they look!  Bea and Cory got to pet and feed some kangaroos (one in particular named “Krystal” who Bea got to hug)…huge highlight of the trip so far!  We also saw platypus, played with a wombat and saw a baby kangaroo they were nursing back to health…Mommy Bea was super interested in the bottle feeding of a baby kangaroo.

All in all our Melbourne area week was amazing!  We cannot even believe a week is already over but we sure have soaked it in and had a blast!

Thanks again for your prayers.  Next up, the Great Ocean Road!

Love,
Cory, Millie, Bea and Teddy

Kids@Work face painting 

Tulip Festival

Bea’s dinner in Yarra Valley came with an Australian flag in it!

Feeding “Krystal” the kangaroo

Healesville Sanctuary

Petting “Shadow” the wombat

Hello from Down Under!

We made it to Melbourne….with only a slight flight delay.  We had to stop in Brisbane (after 14 hours in the air) to refuel.  There was fog in Melbourne and we didn’t have enough fuel to circle in Melbourne.  So that added another hour on the ground and two hours in the air to our flight.  Thankfully, the kids were brilliant!  Let me interject that we also had to take sweet Teddy to the pediatrician while we were in Las Vegas due to wheezing.  So we got to bring a nebulizer and antibiotics on our trip and pray he did ok on the flight.  Thank goodness he did!  I believe he slept almost 13 of the 16 hours in the air and Bea wasn’t far behind him.  Teddy however did not like the bassinet that was attached to the wall in front of our seats so we proceeded to hold him the entire flight instead!  It was definitely a long day and half of travel but it was easier than we anticipated.

We’ve had a good time in our short time here so far.  First we got a rental car and Cory drove us to the hotel.  Obviously we’re driving on the other side of the road and car but things on the dash are also in different places….even in our Ford!  He put on the windshield wipers five times when trying to change lanes…each time followed by “oops, not again!”

Our hotel is right next to Melbourne’s Chinatown so we found a great dumplings restaurant last night where we got to watch the ladies making them.  They loved that Bea and Teddy wanted to watch and were waving!  Teddy loved them; Bea, not so much!

Today Cory had to go to work so the kids and I headed out for an adventure….after Teddy proceeded to eat the entire buffet in the Marriott club lounge.  He cried for every bite.  He’s definitely got his appetite back after not feeling well but I’m not sure the other patrons appreciated his zeal for food!  We went to Fitzroy Gardens to run around, see flowers and fountains and play on he playground, of course.  Then we had lunch before taking a detour to the Big W for diapers.  We found out last night that Target doesn’t carry Target brand or Pampers diapers.  What?  So we got Huggies….they’ve got the market cornered.  It’s based on weight in kgs so fingers crossed they work! Ha

We will try to send an email with fun pictures once or twice a week aside from Instagram.  We will be putting lots of pictures on Instagram so feel free to follow us if you don’t already.  Our Instagram names are:

mdminton
coryminton

Here are a few we didn’t post on Instagram.

Good night,
Millie, Cory, Bea and Teddy

Bea wanted to show our backpacks

Ready for a long plane ride!

Chinatown