Away from home

USA 2015 – Part 1

May 15, 2016 by Shelley Leave a Comment

Arriving, LA, Chicago & Pittsburgh

After completing our most recent trip, I thought I had better attempt to manage the mess of photos from our second trip to the states. 6 months on and I haven’t even touched the photo files – it’s all in the too hard basket. As the trip was over a couple of weeks, but we ran around from state to state, I thought I’d attempt to break up the trip. This entry will look at arriving into LA, surviving our first day, departing LA for Chicago and our adventures around Chicago.

October 25
Travelled from Melbourne to Brisbane first thing in the morning. We left home at 5am, arrived in Brisbane just after 8am which left us to have an hour or so in the lounge, prior to boarding. We departed from Brisbane around 10:50am (which I think was the same time as our second trip back to the states, recently).
We stopped off for (more) breakfast at iHop in LA, after we had pulled our hair out installing the car seat. Word of warning for those travelling overseas, esp to the states – they will not install a carseat for you. Most of their cars are fitted with different mechanisms to ours (somewhat easier once you know how!) but to a complete newbie, we struggled for a good 40 minutes. Someone eventually walked past and told us where to put the straps, how to tighten, but he wasn’t allowed to do it for us! We then ventured onto Santa Monica. We stopped off for some lunch (In-N-Out Burger) in Marina Del Ray, and also wandered over to Costco for a look. As soon as we checked into our accommodation for the night (Hilton Gardens Inn LAX) James had to head into the city to attend the WWE event. I headed to the Toyota Sports Center (training center for the LA Kings) which was right next door, and then headed up to the shops. I ate dinner in the hotel, where Jack was charming the pants off some fellow hotel guests.

Leaving Melbourne

Waiting in the Brissy lounge

Jack staring out the window at the lounge

iHop pancakes!

Santa Monica Beach

Santa Monica Pier

Jack having a swing on musclle beach

In-N-Out for lunch

the Toyota Center

Dinner at the hotel

October 26
Another early start as we are flying to Chicago from LAX, with a stopover in Detroit. We had some Popeye’s chicken for lunch between flights and got talking to a lady that worked for Delta – she gave Jack his first Delta airline pin. We were on a pretty tight schedule once we arrived in Chicago, so we walked to Shake Shack and had a burger and a frozen custard, before heading to our first NHL game where the Chicago Blackhawks were playing. We chose to stay at the ACME Hotel, one great hotel, in a great location! It’s a bit funky with interesting artwork, and a lovely set of neon lips that light up the bathroom mirror. James normally always takes photos of the rooms that we stay in, but I can’t seem to find them anywhere. They leave you a hot thermos of coffee, freshly made every morning and even offered hire of Google Glasses.

Popeyes

Frozen custard – Shake Shack

October 27
Our first full day in Chicago! We wandered the streets, braved the misty rain, and took in a few tourist sites – Navy Pier, Millennium Park and the ‘bean,’ We had subway for lunch, and traditional Chicago deep dish pizza for dinner. Truly delicious!

First morning

Checking out the shops

Lunch!

The train station in Chicago

Millennium Park

on the way to Buckingham Fountain

Navy Pier

The McDonald’s

October 28
Checked out of Chicago – had so much more to see and definitely will be needing to come back here! Chicago felt very much like home. I bet it gets very cold in winter, as the wind that whipped off Lake Michigan was freezing. We found the local doughnut van and had some highly recommended doughnuts
We flew into Pittsburgh, hired a car and drove to our accommodation. We are only staying briefly in Pittsburgh to attend another NHL game, so we chose accommodation close to the venue. We arrived in time for dinner and headed over to a sports diner.

Dinner in Pittsburgh

Doughnut Vault

October 29
James was kept busy all day playing with the big boys, which left Jack and myself to explore. Now, Pittsburgh looks beautiful – the fall colours as we were flying in was something I’ve never seen before. However, when I was chatting to the lovely shuttle driver, she warned me about certain neighbourhoods. Her house is not in the best part of town, and gets shot at, at least once a summer.
So we headed to South Side to stretch our legs, do some shopping and have some lunch at the Cheesecake Factory! Later that night Jack and I had front row, ice-side seats to the Penguins home game. It was beyond awesome, however Jack was more fascinated with all the people behind, staring at him, as he watched everything except the game!

Pittsburgh

Jack’s lunch at the Cheesecake Factory

Cobb Salad

Jack rocking his aussie made shirt at the NHL

Hockey is plain exhausting

It’s Iceburgh!

USA 2016 – Las Vegas

May 12, 2016 by Shelley Leave a Comment

Hubby came bursting into the bedroom late one night, I’d probably been asleep for the most part of an hour, and loudly proclaimed that we should go to Vegas. I’m sure at that point, when my head was buried into my pillow, I mumbled something unintelligible and promptly rolled over and went back to sleep. I didn’t remember this conversation until hubby excitedly started telling me that he had booked tickets – Never mind the fact that I hadn’t had leave approved at work, or the other minor fact that he had invited 2 other guys, on what I had wrongly assumed, was a family trip back over o the states – our second trip in 6 months. Hubby had timed it so that he could attend the NAB convention in Vegas, a dream that had been spoken about for probably the last 3 years.

James and I were fortunate enough to spend nearly a week in Vegas, during our extensive honeymoon tour in 2012. While for James that week could’ve kept going on, I, on the other hand, was glad to be moving on and away from Vegas. Although extremely easy to navigate, has a huge range of food choices, the weather is mostly fantastic, numerous tourist sites and shows to see, guns to shoot and the expectation for you to have your gigantic novelty drinking (insert guitar, boot etc etc) vessel filled to the brim with tasty, alcoholic frozen concoctions, it can all become a little too much. Team that with the constant hassle of the guys (and girls) on each corner attempting to push a certain calibre of cards into your hands, and I was ever so slightly worried about taking a 17 month old into this heady mix. But to be fair, Vegas was totally amusing for Jack. He loved the traffic, whether it was the near constant planes flying over (insert an ‘oooo’ sound here), the buses running minutes apart (picture a little boy atop my back, constantly whacking me on the shoulder and over my head EVERY time a bus went past), the monorail from our window in the apartment elicited Jack beating his chest, or the trucks rolling past – complete with nudey pics. Thankfully at Jack’s age, I don’t have to explain the ‘why’.

I think that travelling with a baby or a toddler is exactly what you make of it. Jack’s been on more flights in his life, than I had by the time I was 25. Maybe we are lucky that he can be easily entertained, that he loves cuddles, and just adapts so damn well. Or maybe, because we just go with the flow, and only loosely follow his routine from home, he settles in really well? I think that kids are resilient and pick up and just do things, so much easier than we, as adults, can do. We always try and stretch him on that first day into the USA. I don’t mind if he has an extra nap, but I always try and get his bedtime to as close to a normal time as possible. It seems to have worked both times with Jack.
I found, after our last trip, that using a baby carrier was just so much easier, especially navigating public transport (you can’t leave the kids in the prams on the buses in USA), airports, walkways, especially with stairs and escalators (this is basically every street corner in Vegas). So I packed the trusty Tula, and the Mountain Buggy Nano (in case the weather got way too hot). Needless to say, I didn’t unpack the pram once. Jack is also incredibly used to being worn, and will quite happily have a sleep on my back, or front.

We mostly used the buses to get around Vegas, I don’t think that there is really much need to hire a car. We did have to rely on taxis though, as we did not travel with a car seat, and thankfully Nevada law allows children to be seated on your lap. Unfortunately, there were 4 adults and 1 child, and this, regardless of the fact that Jack can’t have his own seat or seatbelt, counted us as being over the limit for maximum passengers. The other 2 that traveled with us, were able to use Uber for their trips, but Jack isn’t allowed without a car seat. As easy as Vegas is to navigate, and no matter how many times you look for a casino, they are always further away than you originally anticipated. We were, according to fitbit, clocking up 25000 steps for most days we were there.

I’ll give an extremely brief run down of what we did below:
13th April
Flew to Brisbane in the evening, stayed close to the airport which saved us getting up exceptionally early the following morning.

14th April
Flew to LAX, departing Brisbane at 10:50am, arrived bright and early at 06:50am. We drove to 6 Flags Magic Mountain, went on as many rides as we could fit in and then flew to Las Vegas from LAX later that night.
Breakfast at iHop before the park opened.

15th April
We caught the SDX to Downtown LA (Fremont Street, Container Park). We had lunch at HeartAttack Grill, dinner at the Wynn Buffet before attending Le Reve later that night.

16th April
We walked through the Bellagio, their gardens and the Miracle Mile shops. We ate at the Cheesecake Factory for lunch in Caesars before walking through the remaining shops in the Caesars precinct.
We went to the Linq promenade and the Yard House for dinner (hello delicious cider). We wandered the strip and watched the Mirage volcano show and the Bellagio Fountains.

17th April
We walked down to New York, New York, via M & M world and Coke World. We also walked through the new precinct/ Park at MGM Grand and past the new T-Mobile Arena. Stopped at Shake Shack to sample their frozen custard of the week (which was caramel pretzel). Definitely a favourite with Jack, who quickly decided he needed “Mooorrrreeeee”. We headed back through the Aria casino via the tram, and played with the whirling water funnels, and the frozen ice cores. Later that day we caught a taxi out to the Pinball Hall of Fame where the boys lost themselves for what felt like a few hours, when Jack was truly at his best behaviour (NOT!).
-Lunch was a club sandwich from the New York Deli, served with pickles, of course. I grabbed Maccas for dinner when the boys headed off to an opening night event.

18th April
With the boys at the Convention for the full day, I jumped on the bus with Jack and headed to the North Premium Outlets. I’d been before on my honeymoon and grabbed a few good bargains. It’s now slightly larger with the Cheesecake Factory there now. It’s always an interesting bus ride, once you are off the strip, you really do realise that you are!
We all caught back up for dinner when we went to the Carnival World & Seafood Buffet. Definitely not as good as the Wynn, but still a decent selection.

19th April
The boys had another full day at the convention so this time I headed to Fashion Show Mall for the morning. Jack and I had a Wendy’s burger for lunch. Later that day I decided to head over to the South Premium Outlet. to see the difference between the 2 outlets. I really didn’t buy all that much to be honest. We headed back and went for dinner at the Rainforest Cafe, the first time the animals roared and moved, Jack startled. But he seemed to love it after that!

20th April
On our last day in Vegas, the boys decided we just had to go and get a photo at the ‘Welcome to Last Vegas’ sign. We headed onto Town Square after that. Jack had a ball at the playground, complete with water feature. They even had a kids show on but we didn’t stay, and a little train that rode around the area. We ended up at a local hangout (off the strip) for lunch – a BBQ place called Rollin Smoke BBQ..
We flew out from Vegas to LAX late in the evening, and then hung out in the Air New Zealand lounge waiting for our midnight flight home. The benefit to having a frequent flying husband, is his access to all the lounges as a platinum member. We didn’t stay in the first class lounge too long, and chose to head out to the main lounge part, where it was slightly more acceptable to have a 17 month old wandering the floor, with dummy in mouth and one shoe off, nearing midnight.

Jack’s bag of toys

Jack’s nappy bag packed with food and other essentials

Packed to the brim

Poor duck

Melbourne Lounge

Brisbane Air New Zealand lounge

On the tarmac

Morning light

Jack’s 1st ride at 6 Flags

Jack and Dad on a plane at 6 Flags

Mum and Jack waiting for Tatsu

Don’t wear white shirts all day, when flying

Vegas arrival

Fremont St

Always the button

Container Park, Downtown Vegas

Bellagio gardens

Caesars

Fashion Show Mall, playing fruit ninja

Pinball Hall of Fame

Elandra – Accommodation

Elandra – Accommodation View

Linq Promenade

Linq Wheel

Mirage volcano

Park at MGM Grand

T-Mobile Arena

Park at MGM Grand

Aria water funnels

Night view from the bedroom

Shopping

Under the Eiffel Tower

Fashion Show Mall

Jack loved this view

Town Square Park

Peekaboo!

The sign

Home time for duck

Happy awake boy

Sleepy boy

Watching the airport train at Brisbane

Almost home – Bris to Mel flight

The food:

Emerald Lake Park

March 28, 2016 by Shelley Leave a Comment

Location:

Just a bit over an hour away, this park has it all! Ducks, water pedal bikes, BBQ’s, heaps of walking tracks, playground equipment, oh, and Puffing Billy! During the summer months there is even a lifeguard patrolled wading pool.

Equipment:

the lake, plenty of bird life, and there are always people fishing here as well. Also the water pedal boats are a bit of fun too.
there’s several play zones
walking tracks around the lake, to Puffing Billy and the kiosk
Plenty of shade for the hotter days

Jack liked:

the ducks! He is always happy to point and exclaim loudly whenever he’s around the ducks. The day we visited was boiling hot, and I think Jack wasn’t quite walking, so we didn’t stay for a play on the equipment. There’s heaps of shaded areas though and extremely family friendly. We saw Puffing Billy but didn’t go on it – figured we’d wait for Jack to be a little older and appreciate it more. He wasn’t a fan of the noise from the train though.

Cherry Lake Altona

March 14, 2016 by Shelley Leave a Comment

Slide time

See saw

Climbing the ramps

Playing with the balls

Standing up like a big boy!

Location:
Off Millers Road, set at Cherry Lake. The lake itself provides a 3.5km walking track, with heaps of bird life to keep Jack entertained. Great paths for those that have little ones also going on bikes.

Equipment:

Several sets of swings, both baby ones and bigger kid ones
soft fall walking path
ramps
slides
seesaw
balls to push back and forth (as pictured – have no idea what they are actually called)
disabled swing
lots to climb
another playground section for the older kids (which I didn’t really look at)
beginners skate park
huge grassed areas
toilets, BBQ’s – always popular with large gatherings for catch ups and parties

Jack liked:
the soft fall surface. At this point in time, Jack had only been taking steps, so we hadn’t been putting shoes on him. The surface enabled him to wander around, without getting tanbark all over his feet. The surface was under several pieces of equipment, up the ramps, and around the park. The ramps had rails so he could hold onto them and walk along them. He was also happy to see the birds.

Travelling overseas – what to pack

March 13, 2016 by Shelley Leave a Comment

With the chance of another upcoming trip overseas very soon, I thought I had better get around to writing those tips. You know, those tips that were meant to be really helpful, just in case anyome else was planning on travelling, or for myself, to remember, just in case I needed them again? Well, a few months have now passed, we’ve had Christmas, New Years and I’ve been back at work. For the life of me, I can’t remember what I packed. but I guess I better start thinking about it!

I remember that travelling long hours on a plane is not exactly a picnic in the park, but the end result makes it all worth while. Jack was 11 months last time when we flew to the states. He wasn’t walking, but was still an active and inquisitive little guy. This time we fly, I have a funny feeling that both James and I will be walking the aisles, to not only attempt to wear him out, but to also keep our sanity. Having an energetic (will be) 17 month old could be fun, bouncing on our knees for 14 hours. Last time I packed so many toys, puppets, books and I think Jack got most of his enjoyment from the seat belt, my headphone cables, the empty plastic cups that the air hostesses gave us, and the safety card. This time, I know I’ll still pack way too much. Stacking cups were a must, the soft ball was useful, and as Jack always likes books,, a small book was great to take. I’ll have to try and find some new things to pack, to entertain Jack for all of those 10 minute blocks. Maybe a new book, a puzzle, or even some colouring things. Guess I’ll never be able to sit and watch movies after movies, to make the time fly!

I’ll have to remember to pack an overabundance of nappies and wipes. A few changes of clothes, are worthwhile, and will definitely include a spare top for me. Panadol/nurofen are other essentials to include in the nappy bag. Oh and a dummy, or 2 or 3! Last time it was easier on take off and landing as I was still breastfeeding, so hopefully Jack’s ears cause him no pain this time.

We will also take the Mountain Buggy nano stroller as it folds up to nothing. We’ll check it through to LAX, as I have my Tula baby carrier for use in the airports and on the plane. I don’t know how parents with little ones can do airport transfers without a carrier. It’s so easy to throw Jack up on my back, and then at least I have my arms and shoulders free for all the other luggage that will need to be carried.

The list so far:
Nappy bag:

panadol, nurofen, bonjela
10 nappies (travel day) More spares in luggage
sudocrem
stacking cups, musical toy, soft cuddle toy
book, flash cards, sticker book/ colouring in book
playdough?
2 x tshirts, 2 x soft comfy pants, 1x jumper (Jack)
change of top for me
change mat (nappy clutch)
wipes, nappy bags
spill cloth, sticky finger wipes
Snacks – Jam sandwich, banana, pre-packaged biscuits, yoghurt drops, muesli bars, anything that will fit in the trap-a-snack.

Handbag:

headphones, headphone jack
pen
phone charger, mobile, fitbit charger, pebble charger
wallet
passport
jacks water bottle
dummy & chain
band aids, lip balm
sunglasses

General luggage
The average temperature in Vegas is around 21-24 degrees when we are there, so it should be quite pleasant for all the walking that will be done. Clothes wise, I aim to pack light, hopefully I’ll end up visiting the outlets and shopping centres and picking up a few bits and pieces. The overnight temperature drops to around 10 degrees so will still need a jacket to take the chill off the air.

spare nappies and wipes (in case I don’t get the chance to go shopping on the first day)
swimming bathers
Jack’s sleeping bag
comfy shoes, nicer pair of shoes
1 x nice outfit to head out
jeans
jumper, cardi
Jack’s hat
sunscreen
shorts, crops
singlets
oh and repeat for hubby, except he won’t need the nappies 😉

I’ll edit and update this with photos when the time gets closer…

Week in the life of…

November 8, 2015 by Shelley Leave a Comment

2nd – 8th November

Week in the life of…

November 2, 2015 by Shelley Leave a Comment

26th October – 1st November

Week in the life of…

October 25, 2015 by Shelley Leave a Comment

19th – 25th October

One week to go!

October 20, 2015 by Shelley Leave a Comment

Getting super excited and slightly stressed at the same time! This time next week the family, minus poor Benny, will be in the air and on the way to LAX.

Itinerary

25th October – fly to Brisbane, to connect with a flight to LAX.
Hilton Garden Inn LAX/El Segundo
I’m hoping this flight will go smoothly, and we all get a few hours sleep to tide us through for the rest of the day in Los Angeles. It’s looking like a beautiful day, currently predicted at 76F (24°c) and partly cloudy. Our aim is to keep busy and to stay awake by being outside and keeping on moving. The plan is to drive to Santa Monica for breakfast, pick up phone SIM’s and wander along the beach. James is heading to ‘Hell in a cell’ WWE event later that night, while I’ll stay local to the hotel.

26th October – fly to Chicago (via Detroit)
ACME Hotel Company Chicago
Another early morning flight (7am EDT) and we don’t get in to Chicago until just before 4pm (CDT). Once we check in at ACME Hotel, we’re basically running to grab dinner (thinking Shake Shack) and head to the United Center to finally see our first NHL game! We’ll be seeing the Anaheim Ducks play against Chicago Blackhawks . If anyone can remember back to our honeymoon, the NHL had a lockout, which left both of us very disappointed that we were unable to attend a game. But, the great news is, we have managed to squeeze in seeing 3 whole games! Super, super excited!

27th October
Thinking of seeing the sights of Chicago today on the Hop On, Hop Off bus. We figure it’s probably the easiest way to get around with Jack.

28th October – fly to Pittsburgh
Cambria hotel & suites Pittsburgh
We leave Chicago at 2:15pm (CDT) and arrive in Pittsburgh 4:46pm (EDT). Travelling through multiple time zones through the trip will be interesting. Or damn right confusing by the end! Thank god for smartphones that should automatically correct themselves! Our aim for tonight is to find a bar, to enjoy watching another NHL game (Pittsburgh at Capitals).

29th October
Exploring Pittsburgh by day, and by night, yep, you guessed it, another NHL game! This one I’m excited about – James gets to see his beloved Pittsburgh Penguins, and we’re gonna be nice and close to the ice. Penguins are playing the Buffalo Sabres.

30th October – drive to Niagara Falls
Embassy Suites Niagara Falls
Leaving Pittsburgh early and driving out to Niagara Falls for just the night. We’re staying on the Canadian side and hopefully have a great view of the falls. I’m sure you’ll be seeing some photos appear either on here or on Facebook. We’re hoping that the Maid of the Mist (or similar) will be running, and the weather is kind. The long range forecast is predicting a cloudy day, with a top of 16°C and a low of 5°C.

31st October – fly from Buffalo to Orlando (via Atlanta)
Bluegreen Vacations Fountains
This is going to be a fairly long day. First we have to drive over the border, and head to Buffalo. Our flight leaves Buffalo around 11am (EDT) and arrives in Atlanta around 1pm (EDT). The connecting flight leaves before 2pm (EDT) and arrives in Orlando around 3:30pm (EDT). All things going well, we will be in the air for just over 3 hours and 40 minutes.
It is Halloween so we will most likely head out and see how Orlando celebrates this holiday.

1st, 2nd, 3rd November
Our plans for Orlando are a bit lacklustre at the minute. We’re definitely planning a trip to the Kennedy Space Center and we’ve been looking at which Disney Park we could get the most out of. I’m hoping for fantastic photo opportunities with Jack that we will cherish for a long time. Our accommodation is close to the Orlando Vineland Premium Outlet, and James had mentioned looking after Jack while I go shopping! This could be dangerous! I think after the busy start to our holiday, and with hopefully warmer weather, this could be our relaxing stage to our holiday!

4th November – drive to Miami
Bentley Hotel South Beach
We figured a night further down the coast wouldn’t go astray and James is keen to use his knowledge of Grand Theft Auto Vice City to prove that he can navigate around Miami!

5th November – fly to LAX
Magic Castle Hotel
We drive from Miami back to Orlando, for a late flight (7pm EST) to LAX, which will arrive after 9:30pm (PST).

6th November
We have plans to head to The Grove and Farmers Market during the day – if we haven’t managed to visit The Cheesecake Factory along our trip, we will be definitely going here for lunch. Oh and this time, I’ll be having one of those candy apples from the stall! My mouth is actually salivating thinking about it! We also have to squeeze in a visit to the LA Live precinct and the Yard House. There is a Woodchuck Raspberry Cider with my name on it! Hopefully it lives up to my memories from 3 years ago.

7th November – fly home, via Sydney
Our last day, and our last ice hockey game. This time we’re heading to the Staples Center to see the Florida Panthers take on the LA Kings. Our flight is just before 10pm. Last time we flew out around this time, I think I had a few drinks before leaving, and a few more on the plane, and strangely enough, I slept like a baby. I don’t think I’ll have the luxury of a few alcoholic beverages this time.

9th November – fly to Melbourne
We land in Sydney just before 8am, and our connecting flight will get us back to Melbourne around 11am.

September 14th

September 14, 2015 by Shelley Leave a Comment

September 14 is a day filled with many memories. This year marks our 3rd wedding anniversary and also, my step-fathers birthday. This is the first since his passing earlier on this year. To mark this day, Jeff decided we should venture down to Queenscliff – a spot not too far from home, but where we spent numerous weekends and holidays camping. The day was unseasonably warm, and windy, which was perfect for the trip down to the coast. We strolled the main street in town, picking up a coffee and muffin and attempted to remember what shop used to be in each. We eventually wandered down to the bakery and ate a pie from the Rolling Pin Bakery (Best Pie 2013/2014). We battled the wind, and walked down to the boat ramp, before turning around and heading up the hill back to the car. We drove onto Point Lonsdale and also surprised Jack’s great-grandmother with a quick visit before heading the hour and a bit drive home.

To my husband,
I love you, I’m so proud of you, and I look forward to each and every year that I can stand by your side<3
~ to infinity and beyond~