The days between 26th January and 13th February flew past. From the overcast, slightly windier than expected day my mum and dad arrived in Melbourne to the scorching 30C sun they left behind, we had an action packed 3 weeks as a family. Eva recognised mum and dad immediately as they walked through the front door, giving them a big grin albeit with reservations. She soon warmed up. In fact, she took to having 'lodgers' in her house like a duck to water. More people to play with in the sandpit!
The first week was pretty chilled out, we stayed around Warragul and showed Granny and Papa the parks and coffee shops in town. It wasn't quite BBQ weather unfortunately but good enough to enjoy Australia Day in Civic Park, a couple of rounds of golf and of course the Raffle at the golf club. And no, of course we didn't win anything! Eva and Granny had their little morning ritual of walking round the garden, saying hello to the (wilting) flower and picking tomatoes from the veggie patch. Papa was responsible for throwing and catching and building towers to be knocked down.
The second week we set off on our journey to Echuca, 4 hours northwest of Warragul. We decided to break up the journey with stops in Healesville and a lovely little spot called Nagambie with a stunning lake. Unfortunately our 21 year old Jeep decided to pack up the air conditioning for the final leg of the journey so we were all cooking somewhat for the last half hour!! Eva did surprisingly well considering. Not quite as bad as I had expected - we survived!
Our accommodation was amazing. A lovely 3 bedroom apartment within walking distance to the Murray River, complete with deck and BBQ. The weather was superb. We enjoyed a trip on the old fashioned paddle steamer Pevensey, Eva got her First Mate certificate for steering the boat and was mesmerised by the workings of the machinery. Papa was of course delighted with this, maybe Eva wasn't quite as girly as he had first thought! The next few days we toddled around town, ate ice-cream, had BBQ's and got out in a small tin boat on the Murray again. Once Eva had gotten rid of her ridiculously oversized life jacket, everyone had a good time! Nobody drowned. Bonus. And Bob and I enjoyed our night off, dinner at Antonio's Italian and a few drinks in the Gypsy Bar. Fabulous.
The way home, we stopped off in a rather unexciting Bendigo (well, the botanical gardens were nice!) before driving into Melbourne for an overnight stay. We caught the tram into St Kilda beach and had a paddle in the water. Lovely! After smearing tomato pasta sauce everywhere, we took Eva back to the hotel and enjoyed a relaxing cosy night in, while my mum and dad partied on. Role reversal! Next morning, we took Eva to the Aquarium for a spot of stingray feeding, shark watching and turtle poking before heading back to Warragul. A successful trip to a fabulous location. Hurrah.
Mum and dad headed off for a few days in Mornington Peninsula, enjoying the Hot Springs and the beach. Then back to us for a lovely dinner out in Big Spoon Little Spoon. We failed miserably to get a game on the round pool table. Maybe next time?? A few more visits to the park, rhyme time at the library and some more playing in the sandpit/paddling pool before saying goodbye on the Friday. Eva very cutely waved and waved and waved at Granny before she went through the door at daycare. Clearly she will miss having her grandparents around. A sad day for all!
What can I say - I hope Mum and Dad enjoyed their holiday as much as we did. Next time, make sure we collect the King Prawn curry from the Chinese and Mum, you really need to see a podiatrist!!!!! Let the next Canasta championships commence in October. xxxxxx
Photos to follow
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