October 21: Sculpture by the Sea

This weekend saw the start of the annual sculpture by the sea exhibition with over 100 sculptures lining the coastal walk between Bondi and Bronte.  For some unknown reason we decided it would be a good idea to visit on the first Sunday and the walk was packed!  The good weather seemed to bring everyone out to see what was going on.  There were some really interesting sculptures this year but Our favourites were the forrest of bamboo windmills and the little people living in the cracks between the rocks!

October 13: Santi's Birthday Party

Santiago (Buzz Lightyear) is Daisy's best friend in day-care, and today was his 3rd birthday party.  Gabriel and Cecilia invited all of their friends to a party in the park, and as they are from Mexico the centre piece was a proper pinata (football of course).  Daisy hadn't seen a pinata before but she had a good go at clobbering it with the broom handle, and seemed to know exactly what to do when all the sweets fell out!  The party carried on well into the evening but Daisy had to head off before the end as she was exhausted!

October 07: Peas in a pod!

October 01: Foam party?

We went for a walk into the city today and discovered another artwork from the 'art & about' event.  This one seemed to involve emptying a bottle of washing-up-liquid into the main water feature on Martin Place.  The kids all loved it but the Artist obviously hadn't thought about all the pro's and con's and Nick had to pull a little lad out of the foam after he'd taken one step too far and fallen into the fountain!  Luckily it was only about 4 inches deep but he could have been in there all day!!
Daisy was also showing off her new shoes....which now look like she's been wearing them for a year!

September 29: Manly Lantern Parade

This weekend saw the annual Manly Lantern Parade.  The weather wasn't great and when we arrived there were very few people around.  We thought that the event may have been cancelled but actually the start of the parade had moved to the other side of town!  By the time the parade arrived at the art gallery there were so many people around that it was almost impossible to get a decent photo - never mind Daisy had a go at capturing a few 'atmospheric' shots for the blog.  Surprisingly they were better than our efforts!

September 23: Jack's party

Todays was Jack's 4th birthday party at North Harbour Reserve.  The kids all had a great time tearing around the playground and filling their faces with loads of yummy party food.  There were even bacon & egg rolls for the grown-ups (thanks Matt & Tess!).  As you can see from the photos the weather was fantastic for a party.  Lets hope the rest of the summer will be like today!

September 15: 4 Little monkeys

Daisy, Dylan, Kiera and Gem watching Polar Express on 3DTV at Dylan's House!

We're getting one!

September 08: Art & About

During September the annual Art & About  Festival is on around Sydney (there are some photos of last years festival on the blog).  This year there didn't seem to be as much work on view but we did like this exhibit in one of the wharf buildings in Walsh Bay 

September 07: Too cool for school

The ramp for the ferry was broken this morning so we had to access the boat on the top level.  As we always have the pram this was a new experience for Daisy, but as you can see she made herself feel at home in the front seat...next to the captain!

August 19: Cornetto the Clown

August 19: Cockatoo Island Art Festival

Cockatoo Island is an old ship-building yard in the inner harbour which is now used to host a variety of arts events throughout the year.  During the winter it was home to the Sydney Biennale, a mix of art forms but with some amazing sculptures woven into the existing industrial fabric.  We spent the day wandering around the island getting lost in the old buildings and taking loads of photos.  Daisy even tried her hand at creating her own artwork!  One of our favourites was the boat in the bottom photo.  The sign reads 'Bookings here 2:30-3:00pm. Animals only.  Pairs preferred'!!!

August 11: That red hat again!

August 9: Home from Hamilton

Last day on the island and after a walk around the harbour we boarded the flight back to Sydney.  Daisy managed to stay awake most of the way home but the last taxi ride back to Manly was just too much.  We're off to do some research for our next trip.......

August 8: Great Barrier Reef

  

 

We couldn't visit the Whitsundays without a trip to the Barrier Reef so we took the 2 hour cruise out to 'Reefworld' on the edge of Hardy Reef.  The crossing was pretty rough and it was interesting watching the group of British school lads who had all been quite loud on the way out of Hamilton, hanging green-faced over the edge of the boat as the ocean became more and more choppy!  We weren't at Reefworld for very long but we had enough time for Nick to go Scuba diving, some snorkelling and a trip on the glass bottom sub.  Daisy especially enjoyed watching the divers cleaning the outside of the underwater viewing room. It's hard work all this holidaying lark!

August 7: Where's Daisy?

August 7: More beach time

After yesterday's boat trip we spent today chilling out on the beach and taking advantage of some of the toys that the hotel provided for us to use on the water.  Daisy was really excited about her first trip in a kayak and spent to whole time giving Nick directions and shouting at other people in boats.  She's such a bossy-boots!
You can always tell how much fun you've had at the beach by how much sand you find stuck to you when you get home.....Daisy was coated!

August 6: Whitehaven Beach

Day 3 and we took a boat trip out to Whitehaven Beach right out on the Eastern side of the Whitsundays.  The beach was amazing, pristine fine white sand, clear blue water and we were the only people there....apart from the pirates.....