Mary Poppins Festival – for great family fun!

May 26, 2010 By 1 Comment

Mary Poppins statue MaryboroughWe have just discovered this fantastic festival, the Mary Poppins Festival taking place from the 28th June – 4th July in Maryborough, Queensland. For all those parents out there who grew up with and loved Mary Poppins, here is your chance to share in the excitement and fun of her with your children. As Mary Poppins would say ‘Supercalifragilistic Family Fun!’

The author of Mary Poppins, Pamela Travers, was born in the Queensland city of Maryborough and each year they celebrate her by holding the world’s only Mary Poppins festival – a week long explosion of colour, art, culture and fun for everyone.

From what we hear it is loads of fun for all ages, with a lot of visitors getting dressed up to really get into the spirit of the event!

During the week activities on offer include:

  • An art festival and workshops
  • Library fun including a Mary Poppins tea party, umbrella decorating, cap decorating and a creative session on making ‘altered books’,
  • Mary Poppins market day on Thursday 1st July includes Mary Poppins characters, street theatre, children’s shows, music and giveaways. Market stalls include farm fresh produce, art, craft, fashion and gift stalls.
  • On this market day you can also discover Maryborough’s fascinating history on a free guided walking tour, ride the Mary Anne – a working replica of Queensland’s first steam engine and watch the firing of the historic time cannon at 1pm.

The highlight of the week however is the Mary Poppins Festival in the Park on  Sunday 4 July. This day is sure to offer a magical day of entertainment including the essential nanny races and chimney sweep challenge!

Things to do on festival day include:

  • Meet the Mary Poppins characters
  • Street theatre, brass bands, magicians and puppets
  • Pavement art and workshops
  • Nanny Races and and Chimney Sweep Challenge
  • Steam trains, penny farthings, vintage cars and bikes

And the most amazing part of this festival is it is all free!

Information:

  • Date – 28th June – 4th July (main festival day is Sunday 4th July)
  • Location – Maryborough, Queensland (3 hours drive from Brisbane)
  • Cost – this is a free event
  • Suitable for – all ages
  • More information – visit www.marypoppinsfestival.com.au

Please visit the Haggus and Stookles E-Store. We sell lovely Luggage Tags and some other high quality products for your kid’s luggages.

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For a great family getaway head to Main Beach, Gold Coast

Filed Under: Queensland, Reviews, What's New? Tagged With:

For a great family getaway head to Main Beach, Gold Coast

March 12, 2010 By 3 Comments

boys as fishes at parkWe have recently discovered this great little spot at Main Beach, Gold Coast for a great family getaway. We just had a weekend away with the kids (Ollie 6, Harry 3) at  Xanadu Main Beach.

It fronts onto Main Beach Parade so the beach is just across the road (most rooms have full ocean views). The life saving flags are not directly in front of the apartments but there are flags only 200-250 metres away in either direction. The road is a little noisy but you only notice it when you are at the outdoor pool.

Xanadu from beach

Xanadu from beach

View from apartment

View from apartment

The resort has excellent facilities. There are two tennis courts, an indoor pool which is fabulous, an outdoor pool, bbq area, games room and gymnasium.

The best thing about Xanadu Apartments is you don’t have to get in your car once you arrive if you don’t want to. There is a great kids park about 150 metres up the road, with swings, slides and rope games. It’s an easy 5 minute stroll to Tedder Avenue which has great cafes, restaurants, a convenience store/newsagent (open from 5.30am – 10.30pm daily), a hair dresser, bakery, beauty and massage as well. Things seem to start around 6am so the early morning coffee and croissants kicked off our day nicely.

Indoor Pool at Xanadu

Indoor Pool at Xanadu

We had a great dinner with the kids at La Roma, a family friendly Italian restaurant. The best thing was we had a lovely night out with the kids and we both enjoyed a bottle of Chianti as we could walk home easily. The kids also loved the flashing fairy lights at the restaurant.

There is also a Seven 11, Subway and a great cafe open for breakfast to around 4pm daily about 150 metres down Main Beach Parade heading towards Surfers.

The staff at Xanadu were extremely helpful. My hubby and I always treat ourselves to a massage when we go on holidays and we usually go to Calmer Therapies at Mantra Crown Towers Resort . I booked myself in and got the last appointment available, I went down to reception to ask about other places my hubby could go and they went out of their way to help me. They rang a few places and came up trumps with an appointment at The Golden Door at the Mirage Resort. Before or after your treatments you can relax in the relaxation lounge and take advantage of the complimentary steam room and spa bath. Brad really enjoyed it.

There is nothing better than ocean views, sounds of the waves on the beach, having breakfast on the balcony overlooking the view and loads of family time swimming and having fun together.  This is the second time we’ve stayed here and it is definitely not be the last.

Park near Xanadu

Park near Xanadu

Main Beach

Main Beach

Please visit Haggus and Stookles E-store. We sell Swimming Bag and other high quality products for your kids there. Visit now,  you can find variety of products to choose from!

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Review – Rolling Surf Resort, Caloundra, Queensland

February 10, 2010 By 2 Comments
Ben having a ball on the pool

Ben having a ball in the pool

Over the school holidays this Christmas/New Year we had a week at the Rolling Surf Resort, at Kings Beach, Caloundra. It was without a doubt one of the best holidays we have had with the kids (Ben 5 and Brooke 2), mainly because the resort and the location was fantastic for families.

The location is second to none, right on Kings Beach at Caloundra, there is no road between you and the beach, so great for access with little ones. Kings Beach is a fully patrolled beach, the main strip in front of the beach also has several playgrounds, ground based water fountains for kids to run in and Kings Beach Pool – a fully shaded sea water children’s swimming pool.

You can also easily walk on the boardwalk to Happy Valley (10 min walk) which is an inlet which has no waves at low tide and a sand bar – so good for kids who are scared of the waves and just want to splash around in the ocean. Happy Valley also has a great playground area.

Brooke having a splash at Happy Valley

Brooke having a splash at Happy Valley

At the base of Rolling Surf Resort there are 2 good coffee shops, perfect for breakfast, lunch, dinner or a quick coffee, and a fantastic fish and chip shop. We did not need to get in the car all week – it was bliss!

The resort is only 1 hours drive from Brisbane and is close to local attractions like Australia Zoo, Aussie World and Underwater World – all within 15-20 mins drive.

The accommodation in the resort is great – we had a 2 bedroom balcony unit (there are 1, 2 and 3 bedroom units available) which had a good size living, dining and kitchen area – fully self contained with kitchen facilities and a washing machine/dryer. The bedrooms consisted of 1 room with a queen bed with ensuite and 1 with 3 single beds (1 bunk bed plus 1 single). There was also a spa bath in the centre of the unit which the kids loved having their nightly bath in – they loved the bubbles and could also look out into the lounge room whilst in there!

Inside an apartment

Inside an apartment

Our unit had a good balcony which overlooked the pool area and had full views of Kings Beach – nearly all of the units at Rolling Surf overlook the pool and beach. The ground floor units have direct access from their balcony into the pool (via a pool gate so safe for kids). These units may be a bit noisier than the others as you would get more pool noise, but direct access to the pool is great and saves you having to use the lift.

facilities_r4_c3

The pool area

The pool area was fantastic, running the full length of the resort (60 metre heated pool), it has a great shallow area for little kids to play, plus a good area for older people to do laps and kids/adults to play.

The resort also has barbecues on the ground floor (the roof tops units have their own sauna and barbecue area), there is also a games/arcade room near the pool containing some racing car and other action games, table hockey and more.

I would highly recommend Rolling Surf Resort to anyone, in particular young families. It was so good we booked for Easter and next Christmas as we left – next trip we will have an extra addition, Emma who is now 2 weeks old – her first holiday to the beach!

Details
Website – http://www.rollingsurfresort.com.au/
Accommodation – 1, 2 and 3 bedroom units available
Location – only 1 hours drive from Brisbane, located right on Kings Beach, Caloundra

After an icecream!

After an icecream!

Building sandcastles at the beach

Building sandcastles at the beach




































Please visit the Haggus and Stookles E-Store. A lovely Swimming Bag is available there. Visit our E-Store now and feel free to browse our high quality products for visiting a resort with your kids.

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Filed Under: Queensland, Reviews Tagged With: , , ,

John Scott Park and playground at Samford – Review

October 29, 2009 By 3 Comments
Samford Village Park and Playground

Samford Village Park and Playground

If you and the kids are ever in the mood for a drive to the country – Samford Village is a great place to go.

Only a 30 minute drive from Brisbane, the village has a lovely atmosphere, and last year John Scott Park and playground on Main Street were spruced up.

The play equipment caters for toddlers and older children alike.  There are big grassy areas on both sides of the playground – perfect for kicking a ball around or spreading out a picnic blanket.  Even some scootering wouldn’t go amiss.

The park has a couple of shaded tables and BBQs, and there are also coffee shops, the Samford Pub and a fish and chip shop all just a short walk away if you need a feed after a big play.

The park also has the mandatory swings, toilets and water fountains.

You could even drop into the IGA and pick up a few groceries before the journey home.  All up, worth the drive for a great day out.

This blog post is courtesy of  Sharon, Highvale.

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Great play equipment

Please visit the Haggus and Stookles E-Store. We sell great Sleeping Mats and some other high quality products for your outdoor activities with your kids.

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Filed Under: Queensland, Reviews Tagged With: ,

Capricorn Resort, Yeppoon Review

September 23, 2009 By 6 Comments
Brooke having a ball at Capricorn Resort

Brooke having a ball at Capricorn Resort

We recently spent a week at the Capricorn Resort in Yeppoon, Queensland. It was a fantastic resort for a family holiday, right on the beach, with a very relaxing, kid friendly
environment, with no need for a car at all!

You can either spend your time here relaxing by the pool or beach or take in some of the many activities they have on offer.

Our kids Ben (5) and Brooke (2) could not go past the enormous pool. Once the largest pool in the Southern Hemisphere, it was the highlight of our week and where many hours were spent.

The pool area included:

  • Man made beach going into the pool – great for little ones to wade in

    Slippery slide at Capricorn Resort

    Slippery slide at Capricorn Resort

  • Huge water slide great for kids and adults (even Poppy had a few rides down!), open twice a day for an hour
  • Huge waterfall
  • Kids wading pool
  • Man-made volcano for kids to swim under
  • Free noodles and beach towels, hire available for pool tubes
  • Hot spa
  • Plenty of sun loungers and umbrellas
  • Great pool bar with drinks and cocktails/mocktails
  • Cafe/takeaway with snacks like sandwiches, burgers, chips, coffee and milkshakes, great for mid morning coffee or lunch  around the pool

The pool area was certainly a fantastic feature of this resort. When we weren’t relaxing by the pool there was so much more we managed to fit in, including:

Ben playing mini golf at Capricorn Resort

Ben playing mini golf at Capricorn Resort

  • 9 hole mini golf course – free use of the mini golf course and golf clubs/balls  – it is an easy course and great fun even for the little kids
  • Bushwalking tracks
  • The resort has direct access to beach – which is bordered by fantastic sand dunes which our kids loved running down
  • Kids playground
  • Camel rides – we took our eldest boy on a camel ride – you can choose to either ride around the resort ($10 pp) or head down to the beach for a longer ride ($30) – it was very memorable especially when our camel kept pulling us off the track to eat the trees! The lift up and down was scary though!
  • Day Spa – great for parents time out – extremely relaxing environment and full day spa menu available
  • Kids Club
  • 2 x 18 hole premier resort golf courses

There isn’t a huge selection of restaurants at the resort, we headed out one night to Tsuruya the Japanese Restaurant. It was great with kids, amazing food and service – not cheap food but good quality. The other restaurants to choose from are the Billabong Restaurant and Lagoon Restaurant – we did not try these and instead opted to either cook in our unit or had dinner in Yeppoon.

The accommodation was a good layout for the kids. We had a 1 bedroom unit which had 2 single beds for the kids in the bedroom and a queen bed in the lounge room, as well as a kitchenette with fridge, microwave and 2 stove burner.

We had to watch our 2 year old on the balcony as she likes to climb, but we get this anywhere we stay. There was also access to a laundry on each level with washing machines and dryers which was great. There are several accommodation options at the resort to suit any requirement.

The Resort was built in the 80’s, it has been refurbished since but is looking a little tired in parts, but perfect for a family holiday.

Overall we had a great week at the Resort, perfect for a family with kids of all ages, only 10 minutes drive to Yeppoon and 1 hour from Rockhampton so it is easily accessible.

And great weather all year around – we were there in September, 30-32 degrees every day!

Poppy and Brooke at the beach

Poppy and Brooke at the beach

Mum and Ben having a Camel Ride

Mum and Ben having a Camel Ride










































Please visit Haggus and Stookles E-store. We sell Swimming Bag and other high quality products for your kids there. Visit now,  you can find variety of products to choose from!

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Filed Under: Queensland, Reviews Tagged With: ,

Sunday Drive to Suttons Beach, Redcliffe – a great family day out

September 23, 2009 By 1 Comment
Suttons Beach, Redcliffe

Suttons Beach, Redcliffe

After spending a day at Suttons Beach, Redcliffe for my brother in law’s 40th birthday, I simply had to write a quick review on this fantastic location for a great family day out.

Only a 30-40 minute drive from Brisbane, Suttons Beach is a hidden secret and an amazing place to go as a family for a sunday drive on a sunny day.

Suttons Beach is a long stretch of beautiful, white sandy beach, with virtually no waves (perfect for small kids), the beach is bordered by a cement walkway great for kids on bikes/scooters, as a place to push a pram or go for a run (if you are feeling energetic!). This pathway is bordered by a grassed area full of picnic tables (a lot of which are shaded) and barbeques.

There are two playgrounds here, one at either end – they are fully fenced and have great equipment suitable for little and bigger kids.

Brooke at Suttons beach

Brooke at Suttons beach

Suttons Beach also has good toilet facilities and great parking.

Personally we will be making Suttons Beach a regular place to visit from Brisbane – perfect as a family day out!

Although we love the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast – being so close to Brisbane certainly makes it more attractive and it is just as beautiful and fun for the kids and us!

Suttons Beach is on Marine Parade, Redcliffe.












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Parents weekend getaway – Mount Tambourine Review

September 14, 2009 By 3 Comments
Camelot Bed and Breakfast

Camelot Bed and Breakfast

My husband and I have just celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary and what better way to do it than a weekend getaway (with no children) to Mount Tamborine in the Gold Coast Hinterland.

As a parents weekend getaway Mount Tamborine is superb with a fantastic range of relaxing and romantic bed & breakfasts, great restaurants, parks, shops, wineries and loads more.

I cannot speak highly enough of the place we stayed. Camelot Luxurious Cottages and Bed and Breakfast was superb. The Bed and Breakfast was only built 8 years ago but it reminded me of a beautifully restored Queenslander with wide verandas, overlooking gorgeous gardens and a vineyard. Mick and I could not help but relax in these beautiful surrounds.

We stayed in the bed and breakfast part of Camelot, the rooms were very comfortable, old fashion style with all the mod cons (the flat screen TV was a plus for my husband who simply could not miss all the footy finals on over the weekend!) We also took a peek at the cottages which are a fairly recent addition to Camelot. These are absolute luxury and include a huge double spa bath, double shower, log burner, leather lounge and mini kitchen.

Guest bedroom at Camelot

Guest bedroom at Camelot

Children are not really welcome here; I guess they are trying to create a relaxing escape for couples and parents. The resident St Bernard, Portia is also not child friendly and at 85kg’s is probably not the weight to have around toddlers!

The hosts, Peter and Janice were delightful, even at 9.30pm at night when we finally got out of Brisbane and arrived. They had the log fire burning and tea/coffee and biscuits ready to welcome us. Peter and Janice can give you as little or as much information you need on places to visit and things to do while at Mount Tamborine including making bookings at the local day spa and restaurant. Although we have been fairly regular visitors to the area over the years they gave us a few new tips on what to do whilst visiting.

Tips for things we loved at Mount Tambourine

  • A walk down gallery walk for great art shops/galleries, antique shops and gift shops. One of our favourite shops is L’Arte, which has amazing photographs on canvases. We bought a couple last time we visited and could not help heading back to add to our collection. (and extremely reasonable)
  • The Witches Chase Cheese Company has recently moved to a sensational new facility at the end of Gallery Walk. This new modern design building includes the cheese factory, Mt Tamborine Brewery, a great bar and restaurant, Liquid Amber. Although being 5 months pregnant I soon realised it was not a good place to visit, way too many soft cheeses and beers to tempt – hubby enjoyed it though!
  • We celebrated our anniversary at Songbirds Rainforest Retreat Restaurant, which was great. Set in the rainforest, the atmosphere was amazing, superb service and food. I can see why they have won so many awards!
  • The Sunday Country Markets too were on when we visited, full of local fresh produce, local art and crafts and plants. They are on the second Sunday of the month at the Showgrounds on Main Western Road.

    Country Markets

    Country Markets

  • There are also loads of bushwalks and waterfall walks in the National Park at Mount Tambourine – our weekend did not extend to these this time but one that looks great is the Rainforest Discovery Skywalk, a new walk through the rainforest canopies – definitely on the list for our next visit!

For anyone looking for a weekend getaway Mount Tambourine comes highly recommended, leave the kids with the grandparents and have some purely adult time – you deserve it!

Please visit Haggus and Stookles E-store. We sell Kids Suitcase and other high quality products for your kids there. Visit now,  you can find variety of products to choose from!

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Alma Park Zoo – Review

September 7, 2009 By 1 Comment
Kangaroos Alma Park Zoo

Kangaroos Alma Park Zoo

My 2 boys have their birthdays 2 weeks apart and it seems that we have fallen into a nice habit of doing something special as a family every year to celebrate. This year we decided to go and see some animals.

We have been to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary a couple of times, so really the toss up was between Australia Zoo and Alma Park Zoo.
The costs involved : – Australia Zoo admission     $161.00 (family of 4)
: – Alma Park Zoo admission   $75.00   (family of 5)

Food:    Australia Zoo has a wide variety of food court / diner and Kiosk options.
Alma Park Zoo has a café but also extensive lawns and free BBQ facilities.
So it wasn’t hard to decide to try out Alma Park Zoo and to take a BBQ picnic with us.

We really had a lovely time. Arriving at about 11:30am we were first impressed that getting in simply involved driving in. Yes, you pay at the gate while everyone is sitting in the car. I loved that… no annoying standing in a cue behind bus loads of others :)

Then we found the beautiful sun bear, and various groups of monkeys. Friendship farm was a hit with the kids. Mostly you are walking around in a rainforest setting and you come to various groupings of habitats. After a while we chose our picnic spot and cooked our sausages. The boys were fascinated with the peacocks that wanted to steal our bread.

We fed donkeys, lama, a cow, and ducks. The kids enjoyed a cuddle and their 1st photo with a Koala. We spent a good amount of time talking with kangaroos. I have no idea what my youngest was telling them but they seemed to understand.
As for my favorite moment of the day.. Wide eyed Ethan ran back to me..”Mummy come and look!!!.A GIANT Turkey!!!” It was an emu.. I love innocent, learning moments like that.

We all shared loads of laughs, had lots to look at and discuss, filled our bellies with healthy (ish) food from home, and did so at a very relaxing pace.

I still find going out with young kids mostly more stressful than not, but not here. I highly recommend Alma Park Zoo as a great spot for a family outing.

Red Panda Alma Park Zoo

Red Panda Alma Park Zoo

Please visit Haggus and Stookles E-store. We sell In Car Accesories and other high quality products for your kids there. Visit now,  you can find variety of products to choose from!

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