Visit with Grandma and Granddad Batchelor!

My mom and John arrived Tuesday the 23rd – which is also my wonderful husband’s birthday. After a lot of pre-trip stress (my mom is not a fan of flying, especially over water – sorry for moving to Australia Mom!) the actual trip was relatively stress free. Reportedly, the worst part of the voyage was the hour long wait for their luggage in Melbourne. After this delay, they were quickly whisked through the quarantine area and shoved out a back door while Wyatt and I waited patiently (as patiently as any 3-yr old can wait in a stroller at the airport) at the normal exit point for international arrivals. Close to two hours after our arrival, my mom came sprinting towards us and gave Wyatt the craziest hug he has ever received! We were all thrilled to see one another.

Their arrival dinner coincided with Jeff’s birthday dinner so at his request, we prepared our standard “Welcome to Australia” shrimp and steak on the barbie and our new favorite Mud Cake, which is absolutely to die for. The kids are quite fond of chocolate cake. "Piece. Piece. More Piece. " being a popular refrain.

My mom has been crazy helpful! She has been doing laundry, cleaning and taking care of the kids in between reading, sightseeing and enjoying some time away from the chaos of her own home. I think that her favorite part of each day is the morning when she gets a snuggle from all three grandkids in their early morning daze! On this particular morning, Wyatt was in RTC mode (REFUSING TO COOPERATE).

Wednesday we hit the aquarium and a bit of Southbank Melbourne. Thursday we trekked off to Healesville for our second visit to the Healesville Animal Sanctuary. This time round, the kangaroos were much more sociable and we were able to feed them and pet them. Friday I took a day of rest with the kids and sent the folks off to explore. They hit some galleries and enjoyed a cursory tour of the CBD.

Then Saturday we ventured off to the Mornington Peninsula, Jeff stayed behind to watch the AFL finals and enjoy some quiet time, which meant that the rest of us could all fit in the van. This is a stretch of beach that stretches South from the eastern outskirts of Melbourne, and curls up around the Port Phillip Bay. We drove to Sorrento, enjoyed the adventure playground there then had a picnic lunch. Wyatt and Cooper were absolutely hysterical in this double swing, they were laughing and screaming for a good 10 minutes, entertaining everyone nearby.

Then we ventured back to Rye where the beach seemed to be more accessible and child-friendly. We enjoyed a beautiful spring day (sunny and 25) and the kids loved making sandcastles and particularly enjoyed the ice cream cones that Granddad bought them after the beach.

The beach was very quiet (as was the rest of Melbourne) since all of the Aussies were either attending the AFL Grand Finals that afternoon, or they were having a Grand Final Party. As such, it was the perfect day to drive on the highways and visit some of the most popular beaches around. We returned to find Jeff in the throws of the Grand Finals, with the last quarter about to start. It was a close game between the Hawthorn Hawks and the Geelong Wildcats with the lead shifting equally between the two for the first 3 quarters, then the Hawks pulled away and won with a final score of 51 to 38??? The kids were so zonked after their day outside that they were quite content to let Jeff watch the end of the game with little disruption.

On Sunday, we thought we would go visit the St. Kilda Adventure Playground so Mom and John could check out the Esplanade market and the St. Kilda Foreshore. We arrived only to find out that the park (which is staffed by a member of the community) was on school holiday hours, meaning we had to wait 40 minutes for the gates to open. After a good play at the park, Jeff and I decided to take the kids to Mackers (McDonalds). I asked Wyatt if he would like to go to Old Mcdonalds for lunch (this is what he calls McDs). His response “I would love to go there Mom.” Dramatic pause. “Mom, you are so kind.” He is MADE to star in commercials. Such gratitude for getting him hooked on food that may eventually kill him…