Christine Knight, Author at Adventure, baby!

Christine Knight

Christine is the editor of Adventure, Baby!

Tips for Bushwalking with Preschoolers

January 9, 2016 / Bush, Outdoor Play, Sydney Life / 0 comment

I recently took Cheese, aged four, on her first proper bush walk in Katoomba. We had an amazing walk to the Minni Ha Ha Falls (you can read about it here). It got me thinking about how different it is bushwalking with little kids – not better or worse, but different.

Tips for bushwalking with small kids:

Over estimate the time it will take
The walk we did was 1.3km and should have taken an adult 15 minutes, it took us over an hour. Make sure you have plenty of time when you set out so there isn’t any rushing involved on either end of the walk.

Go slow and enjoy the journey
When I do bush walks on my own, I tend to rush through the bush to get to the waterfall at the end. When walking with Cheese, however, the walk is about the leaves and skinks and butterflies we encounter along the way. She enjoyed all the elements of the bush just as much as she did the waterfall at the end. Don’t set a time limit, just enjoy the journey.

Pack extra clothes
Particularly pack extra shoes and socks in the car (or backpack if you travelled by public transport) and shorts/dress if your child is like mine and won’t wear anything else. Even on days when it hasn’t rained in weeks, we often find mud on the trails, and are always glad to have spare shoes to change into.

Prepare for swimming
If there is the potential for a dip, bring swimmers and a small quick-dry towel, plus a wet bag. Waterfall pools can be incredibly cold, even in the middle of summer, so there is a high chance of swimmers being worn and no actual dips happening. Do be aware of slippery rocks when there is water involved.

Stock up on food
Bush walks make for hungry kids. We stopped at the base of the waterfall for a picnic so Cheese had energy for the return trip. We packed a sandwich, rice crackers, banana, apple and many bottles of water.

Get ready for the elements
Don’t get caught out – the bush is a dangerous place. Wear closed-toe shoes, a hat and a short that covers your shoulders to prevent sunburn. take plenty of water even if it’s only a short hike. Also take wipes or tissues incase a bush wee presents itself!

Conserve strength for the end
There is always carrying involved for us. Our daughter was a champ on this walk and did most of it on her own, but still needed to be carried for the last three-quarters of a kilometer. We often bring a baby backpack carrier that takes kids of bigger weight for this exact reason.

Have you been bushwalking with your kids? I’d love to hear your favourite walks.

Kid-Friendly Cafes of out Sydney: Cafe Madeleine, Leura, Blue Mountains

January 9, 2016 / Blue Mountains, Leura, NSW, Travel / 0 comment

Leura is filled with cute little cafes, such as Cafe Madeleine, the place to go for your sugar fix in the Blue Mountains. The cafe is the sister site of Josophans – makers of fine chocolate.

At Cafe Madeleine, you can enjoy a Fair Trade-certified chocolate-focused menu of desserts, brownies, waffles and hot chocolates, alongside modern Australian-style breakfast, lunch and High Tea menus.

We dropped by the cafe after a bush walk and really enjoyed our casual lunch of Vegetarian Ricotta Tart & Salad (house baked ricotta tart with sage and sweet potato, served with a dressed side salad and local Hominy bakery sourdough bread, $16.90), Toasted Sandwich (Leg Ham, off the bone with tasty cheese & housemade chutney, on local Hominy Bread sourdough served with a dressed side salad $16.90), a Kids Sandwich (cheese toastie on wholemeal bread $5.50), Grannies Garden Berry Fruit Infusion Iced Tea, $4.50, Babycino, $1.50, Flat White, $3.60, Scones (two freshly baked scones filled with sweetened dried cranberries and Belgian chocolate chips, with double cream & jam, $10.50), and the Fresh Strawberries (served with a pot of melted Belgian dipping chocolate & freshly whipped cream, $10.90.

We enjoyed the savoury food particularly, although I felt like it was a bit pricey. The tart was tasty, the bread soft and fluffy, the salad fresh and light.

My iced tea was delicious – strong but without being sweet (I can’t stand sweetened drinks).

Cheese loved her cheese toastie and babycino, which came with a chocolate rim inside, making it the most popular of babycinos of all time.

The scones were the only disappointment of the meal. They were very sweet and more like cake than scones. We would have preferred more traditional scones that weren’t flavoured.

The strawberries were the highlight of the meal – they were so fresh and sweet, and dipped in chocolate … mmmmm! So good!

Highchairs: Yes.
Stroller storage: Yes.
Easy access: Yes.
Change tables: No.
Kids’ menu: Yes.

Cafe Madeleine
187a The Mall
Leura NSW
Phone: (02) 4784 3833
Prices: $$
Hours: Daily 9am-5pm

Sydney Day Trips With Kids: Minni Ha Ha Falls, Katoomba

January 9, 2016 / Bush, Outdoor Play, Sydney Life / 0 comment

The Blue Mountains are full of insanely beautiful waterfalls, many of which are well known and full of tourists, like the Katoomba and Wentworth Falls. We like to get off the beaten path a bit and avoid selfie sticks, so took a stroll one fine summer’s day out to the adorably named Minni Ha Ha Falls in North Katoomba (and yes, I wanted to visit them just so I could say over and over again “Minni Ha Ha”!).

The Minni Ha Ha Falls (also known as Minniehaha Falls and Minnihaha Falls) are just past the main Katoomba city centre turn off, on the opposite side of the road. From the Great Western Highway turn onto Civic Plaza, then turn left to the Station Street and follow Victoria Street until South Street, where you need to turn right. Turn left onto Minni Ha Ha Road and drive until you reach the small car park at the end of the road. This is Minni Ha Ha Reserve – a large park with a small playground and a few picnic tables.

The 1.3km trail to the Minni Ha Ha Falls begins in the reserve. There is only one trail to follow until right before the falls come into view, so it’s very easy to find, although the path is very steep in the second part, very rocky, and, if it’s been raining, like it had been just before we visited, very slippery and filled with muddy puddles. Right before the waterfall are several sections with steep stairs and handrails. Cheese was a bit scared to do down them but, with a bit of encouragement, she descended them successfully.

Don’t be put off by this description. While the walk was hard with a preschooler, it was absolutely do-able and Cheese had an amazing time. We helped her over the hardest bits, or where the path was flooded, but she otherwise walked the entire route there and back again on her own.

The trail leads right to the base of the falls, which are a pretty impressive 20-metres tall. If you’re brave enough (and don’t feel the cold!) you can swim in the pool at the bottom, right underneath the waterfall.

Be warned: there are no bathrooms nearby, so go at the service station on the highway or be prepared for bush wees.

More things to do in Sydney

Find a list of the best things to do in Sydney with kids here.

Find things to do in Sydney for free here.

Get a list of the best kid-friendly beaches in Sydney.

Find the best animal experiences in Sydney here.

Visit the best kid-friendly restaurants in Sydney here.

Find the best high teas in Sydney here.

Head to one of the best museums in Sydney here.

Check out things to do in Sydney on a rainy day here.

Enjoy one of the best ocean pools in Sydney here.

First time visiting Sydney? Get tips for first time visitors to Sydney here.

Summer at the Sydney Opera House

January 8, 2016 / Indoor Play, Outdoor Play, Sydney, Sydney Life / 0 comment

This January, the Sydney Opera House is jam packed with free fun for kids. Drop by the House to enjoy this free fun (you don’t need to be seeing a show to play – just pop on in!).

Creative Play: The Unbroken Line
January 2016, 10am-4pm
Kids can try to break un unbreakable digital line on a massive interactive digital wall. The line twists into patterns as it is pulled and pushed by participants, turning into a glorious array of colour and light. I visited with other kids aged from 4-6 and it was torture removing kids from this play area to take them home. This play space is a wonderful respite from the heat on hot days, so take advantage of it!

‘Salsedine’ Summer Playground
January 2016
This month, the Western Broadwalk and Foyers at Sydney Opera House have been transformed into an Italian Riviera. Enjoy alfresco dining and family-friendly entertainment by the Hot Potato Band, Kiki and Pascal and The Jitter Bugs, set against, stunning Sydney Harbour views.

Food choices included fruit cups $7 and pastries from $5, or Italian dishes like antipasto, panini and pizza cooked in a coal oven from 12pm till late.

Lounge in the sun (or, like us, under a shady patch) and enjoy free family-friendly performances, or take a breather while kids build castles in the sand pit. We caught Kiki and Pascal’s performances and were very entertained. Suitable for kids and adults, their comedy/magic/acro act was light and uplifting.

Kids can also get close to nature with Nature Play at the House. The nature corner lets kids use all their senses in play, from smelling plants in the garden, building with wood and decorating garden-themed colouring pages.

Stick Man: Sydney’s Best Shows For Kids

January 8, 2016 / Sydney, Sydney Life, Theatre / 0 comment

This January, the Sydney Opera House has a cracker of a program for kids. Today we saw Stick Man, a musical stage show based on the best-selling book of the same name.

Stick Man the stage show has been adapted from the rhyming picture book created Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler, and has arrived in Sydney fresh from its successful UK tour.

The show is aimed at kid aged three and over, so my four-year-old was the prime target market. We haven’t read the book (what?!?!) so came to the show with no idea of the storyline or themes the show would present. Sometimes it’s a good way to see a show adapted from a book – it’s nice to view a performance as its own unique entity rather than comparing it to the text it originated from.

In this case, we found Stick Man to be a delightful romp about the titular character, who “lives in the family tree with his Stick Lady Love and their stick children three” (can we talk about how adorable it is that Stick Man lives with his lady love and not a “wife”, by the way? I want to be referred to as my husband’s lady love!).

Brought to life by innovative puppetry and bubbly songs, we followed Stick Man on his rollicking adventure as he gets dognapped and taken far from home. We can all relate to his discovery that the world is a big and scary place when leave our comfort zone. Stick Man’s bravery and determination to return to his family is a beautiful message to sow in your minds who are just starting to adventure beyond the known safety of their own homes.

STICK MAN
Dates: 6 – 17 January 2016
Venue: Playhouse, Sydney Opera House
Ages: 3+
Website: http://www.sydneyoperahouse.com/whatson/kath_2016_stick_man.aspx
Bookings: 02 9250 7777

Additional photography thanks to Jacquie Manning

More things to do in Sydney

Find a list of the best things to do in Sydney with kids here.

Find things to do in Sydney for free here.

Get a list of the best kid-friendly beaches in Sydney.

Find the best animal experiences in Sydney here.

Visit the best kid-friendly restaurants in Sydney here.

Find the best high teas in Sydney here.

Head to one of the best museums in Sydney here.

Check out things to do in Sydney on a rainy day here.

Enjoy one of the best ocean pools in Sydney here.

First time visiting Sydney? Get tips for first time visitors to Sydney here.

2016 – A Year of Focus

January 8, 2016 / Writing / 4 Comments

I want to focus in 2016 on what really means the most to me, an what will help me build the life I want to live in the future. This will mean a few changes ahead for me and the blog:

Blog content:
I am going to leave the parenting content for the time being as it’s making me feel burnt out. I plan to focus on travel content, both with and without kids, local and international, as well as content on my other interest right now, which is the freelance life. I am by no means an expert in this field, but I hope that by exploring this, and the concerns surrounding it more, that perhaps I will become one!
Freelance writing direction:
This has been how I’ve made a living in 2015. I’ve had some amazing successes such as being published in the WSJ, that has inspired me to write up a goal sheet of where I want to be published in 2016. I would love to see my writing on The New York Times (hey, gotta dream big!), inflight magazines like Jetstar and Qantas, The Atlantic and Washington Post, to name a few.
Focusing upwards:
This means saying no to projects that won’t further my goals. I plan to assess each opportunity for the value it will add to me beyond immediate financial compensation. Sometimes turning an opportunity that isn’t quite right down will leave the space for an opportunity that is right to present itself instead. Ideally I would love to secure on-going clients as pitching constantly is very time consuming.
Experimenting in my niche:
I have a tendency to spread myself too thin, so I will need to assess this as time goes. I would love to do more video, regular periscopes etc on the freelancing business, and grow my profile in this area. I want to find better ways to reach people with hopefully useful content. I’m re-evaluating the current platforms I’m using and am planning to scrap a lot and start from a smaller base of people who actually want exactly what I do, rather than trying to build giant numbers of faceless people who don’t engage and probably don’t even read what I’m writing
End goal:
What do I really want? I want to be recognised in my field as a successful writer, and a successful business woman. I’ve realised over the past year that even though I keep thinking I haven’t “found” my business yet, that my business is actually writing. Now is the year to embrace it.

What about you? What is 2016 going to be?

Qantas Joey Playbox App Makes Flying More Fun

January 7, 2016 / Travel / 0 comment

Qantas has just made family travel easier with the launch of Qantas Joey Playbox,”the airline’s first iPad app for young travellers.

With over 250,000 kids in Qantas “The Joey Club,” (Qantas’ Frequent Flyer program for children), kids are the fastest growing segment of the Qantas Frequent Flyer membership base. Little Cheese is one of these members, with around 20 international flights already racked up in her 4 short years so far.

The new Joey Playbox app is designed for kids aged 4 – 8 years, and is free to download. It includes four games, each encouraging kids to play freely and creatively. When you open the app to take a look at the features, it becomes obvious that it was created to help kids understand what goes on at an airport in a fun and entertaining way.

Children can design their own airport, help prepare the runway for planes to take off, collect baggage, and decorate digital paper planes, postcards and bags. They can also scan their Qantas boarding pass to unlock additional features for the planes and postcards, which they can then share with friends and family.

Other ways Qantas is catering to its youngest flyers include:

Qantas Entertainment features additional children’s films and Christmas specials, such as National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation as well as Christmas-themed boarding music.
Dedicated children’s movie channel with 21 hours of content and a dedicated TV channel with 28 hours of TV shows
Kids menu in the Sydney and Melbourne First Lounges
Dedicated Kids Zones across the Qantas domestic and international lounge network complete with iMac computers, children’s furniture, toys and books.
Infant meals (up to 2 years of age) providing a range of top brand baby food, milk, baby bottles, cereals and rusks
Kids meals in-flight (over 2 years of age)
Priority family boarding (staff on hand at the boarding gate ready to collect the stroller and to further assist with pre-boarding the aircraft)
Additional Baggage Allowance (include a collapsible stroller or push-chair, collapsible cot or bassinet; or car seat or baby capsule.

If your child isn’t already a member of the Qantas Joey Club Frequent Flyers Program, Qantas is waiving the normal join fee of $89.50 at http://www.qantas.com/kids for a limited time for new members between the age of three and ten years old. Kids will receive a special Joey Club kit when they join the program.

The Qantas Joey Playbox app can be downloaded for free on the App Store.

Quay Restaurant: 6th Anniversary Dinner

January 4, 2016 / CBD, Circular Quay, Family, Love, Sydney, Sydney Food / 5 Comments

For our 6th wedding anniversary, Alec and I dined at Quay Restaurant – Australia’s most awarded restaurant, and one of two Australian restaurants on the prestigious S. Pellegrino World’s Top 50 List. The menu, created by chef Peter Gilmore, is modern Australian with Japanese and Chinese influence.

Starters (same for both menus)

Goats curd with frozen sorrel and green tea.

Salad of summer squash, sheep’s milk feta, lemon jam, young almonds

Regular Tasting Menu

Raw smoked Blackmore wagyu,
horseradish soured cream,
fermented rye crisps,
raw funghi

Southern uni, koshihikari rice,
salted yolk, maw, sweet prawn,
caterpillar mushrooms, umami broth

Slow cooked abalone,
smoked confit pig jowl,
fermented shiitake chawanmushi,
bamboo, koji cultured grains

Crayfish, XO sauce, organic radishes

Roast masterstock duck,
scorched pickled cucumber,
sorrel, iceplant, agretti, karkalla

Vegetarian Tasting Menu

Eggplant tartare, horseradish soured cream,
fermented rye crisps, raw funghi

Green asparagus congee, egg yolk emulsion

Fermented shiitake chawanmushi,
hen of the woods mushrooms, bamboo,
koji cultured grains

Silken tofu, XO sauce, organic radishes

Stone pot organic green rice, mountain spinach,
spring cabbage stems, seaweed

Optional cheese course $25
Ours was an amazing swiss cheese cut into a flower shape, on top of a bed of grains and quince.

Desserts – same for both menus.

Snow Egg

Cream, honey, almonds,
muscovado, oloroso caramel, prune

Coffee, Tea and Quay Petits Fours

The staff surprised us with an adorable bonus cupcake to celebrate our anniversary.

The view! Doesn’t get any better than this.

Gorgeous cocktails with a stunning outlook.

Even my bag was well taken care of with a Quay branded purse holder.

We had such a wonderful evening at Quay. From the kind, thoughtful and efficient staff, to the amazingly created food and the snow egg dessert that was well and truly the best dessert either of us has ever tasted, Quay went above and beyond to deliver a dining experience that we will never forget. What a wonderful way to celebrate our anniversary.

Quay Tasting Menu is $235 pp 8 course degustation

Quay Restaurant
3, Overseas Passenger Terminal, George St & Argyle Street, The Rocks NSW 2000
Reservations
Get Directions

Sydney by Sea: All Aboard the Sydney Ferry

January 3, 2016 / Outdoor Play, Sydney, Sydney Life / 0 comment

The best way to see Sydney is by sea. I love to hop aboard an iconic Sydney ferry and enjoy the sea breeze in my face as we sail through the iconic harbour. Circular Quay is the hub of the ferry network (right next to the train station). Take your pick from 37 other wharves to sail to, ranging from Manly at the northern end of Sydney Harbour, through to Eastern and Lower North Shore suburbs, suburbs adjacent to the Parramatta River, the Balmain peninsula and Darling Harbour.

A few destinations the Sydney Ferries can take you to: Balmain, Double Bay, Manly, Parramatta, Taronga Zoo, Darling Harbour and Cockatoo Island. Honestly though, with a view like this, the journey can be even more beautiful than the destination.

A note about accessibility:
Stroller and wheelchair accessible wharves:
Circular Quay* wharves 2, 3, 4 and 5, Abbotsford, Balmain (Thames St), Cabarita, Chiswick, Cremorne Point*, Darling Harbour Terminal, Garden Island, Kissing Point, Manly, Meadowbank, Milsons Point / Luna Park, Mosman Bay, Neutral Bay*, Parramatta, Rose Bay, Rydalmere, Sydney Olympic Park, Taronga Zoo and Woolwich.

Wheelchair accessible wharves are also indicated on the Sydney Ferries network map.

* Assisted access may be required at low tide.

Get more info on Sydney Ferries.

The Best of London with Kids: Kensington Palace

January 2, 2016 / London, Travel, UK / 2 Comments

We weren’t planning to visit Kensington but the concierge at our hotel mentioned they’d just had a big renovation and we thought we’d check it out. It turned out to be the perfect way to squeeze in a bit of history with a preschooler as the palace is a very manageable size, possible to squeeze in all four areas in about an hour (which, co-incidently, is my preschooler’s tolerance level for any activity that isn’t a playground). As part of the refurbishment, several of the exhibits were also interactive and a hit with our junior traveler.

My particular favorite part was the Victoria Revealed exhibit, where I was about to learn about Queen Victoria’s extraordinary life in her own words. Of particular interest to me was her clothes – I couldn’t believe how tiny they were. I also enjoyed that the exhibit was within the very rooms that Queen Victoria lived.

Cheese loved the royal dresses on display in the Fashion Rules exhibit, where beautiful clothes worn by HM The Queen, Princess Margaret and Diana, Princess of Wales are on display. (PLEASE NOTE: Fashion Rules will be closed from 4 January 2016 until 11 February 2016,)

Kensington Palace has great programs for kids of all ages (even this for 0-4). Older kids can pick up a family trail and explore the palace Palace.

Baby-changing facilities are available and strollers can be easily taken around the palace as there is a lift to all floors. You can also check your stroller in the cloakroom.

For lunch, we visited The Orangery, a little cafe attached to the palace. The cafe offers a fantastic kids’ meal that is probably the best we’ve seen anywhere.

http://www.hrp.org.uk/kensington-palace/families/

Kensington Palace
Kensington Gardens, London W8 4PX
Prices: £16.50 adults (kids under 15 free). Online price £15.40.

Looking for more cool things to do in London with kids?

Find lots more things to do in London here.