Bali with Kids Part 2

Our first glimpse of the main pool at our next port of call. We booked into the Paradise Plaza Suites in Sanur. I had never stayed in Sanur before so was not sure what to expect and we were very happy. A lot of families and Europeans which was nice. I specifically chose this place as we got a 3 bedroom apartment for a great price and there was a Kids Club. Can I even begin to explain how much we all loved Kids Club????? It operated from 9 - 12 and 2 -5 everyday and was included in the room rate. The next two photos are from the kids area. They loved that slide. The staff were gorgeous and looked after the kids so well. There were activities everyday including traditional dress up day. I so love the photo of the kids. They do have a parents escape that runs from 12 - 2 and includes lunch. It cost me $18.00 for the 3 kids and Mum and I went shopping to the fabulous Seminyak for the day. The hotel has a free shuttle every hour to the supermarket and the beach. I know my holiday would have been vastly different (i.e stressful) if we had of stayed in a regular hotel. This place ticked all my boxes.

the living area

While they were in Kids Club I was doing this.

Soon after arrival the girls absolutely had to have their hair braided. Now I have to confess I have never been a fan BUT how easy does it make hair maintenance? Didn't have to do a thing to their hair for a week. Everyone was happy. They also indulged in some nail painting.


If you are going to Sanur, go see Nency and the girls at Star Beauty near the Bonsai Cafe and tell them Janina sent you. They do a great massage, manicure and pedicure.

Very bravely I decided to take the kids to Waterbom Park as a treat for being such awesome amazing children and we had sooooooooooooo much fun. We hired a private Kabana or the day for $20 which was well worth it. We were there for 7 hours so kept going back for a rest and had our lunch delivered there also. We started on the very lazy river below but very quickly graduated to big, fast rides. Exhausting but well worth the effort. The grounds are so clean and beautiful, no cash is used, everything is scanned on to your wristband, it even unlocks your locker. Very impressive. Our favorite was the Superbowl and the Jungle Ride.

Restaurant Run Down

Little Bird Warung - Teensy, Tiny little restaurant run by some very cool and funky Balinese boys. The kids and I just loved this place. It did take a long time to come but we were happy people watching, drawing, laughing etc. Super cheap traditional food. A gado Gado for 20,000 rp (2.20 AUD) and a Nasi Goreng for 30,000 (3.20 AUD) Great Banana smoothie and nice cold beer for me.

Jalan Danau Tamblingan 34

Bonsai Beach Cafe - This is the drop off point for the hotel shuttle and taxi's etc. It is right on the beach and has a great outlook. The kids and I had a dinner at sunset and they ran themselves ragged up and down the beach which was nice. I did find it overpriced and the food average. You are definitely paying for the view. Still very cheap in AUD. We had the pizza and sate.

Poppies 1 in Kuta - I have been coming to this little gem for 23 years and I love it just as much each time. Set in beautiful gardens in the heart of Kuta it is well worth a visit day or night. My parents and I shared the Rijstaffel (Rice Table) which is a sampling of lots of amazing Indonesian goodies. TIP you could feed 3 people with a serve for 2. It was sooooo good. The kids rated their Jaffles, Hamburger and Milkshakes very highly. Worth the long drive in traffic.

Casa Luna Restaurant - Back in Sanur this was recommended to us but we were not huge fans. Servings were small and food average. I was the only one really happy with my fish but it could have twice the size. They do have live entertainment each night which is a draw card for some. Service was slow and forgetful.

JL Tamblingan, Sanur

Apa Kabar - We all really enjoyed this place, it is set up in the not so busy part of Sanur and positioned across the road from an empty block so has a nice view of palm trees. There is an amazing courtyard out back that was being used for a private function. They had Aussie Rules on at the bar which would make a few people I know happy. Great Sate, Nasi Campur and Nachos all very reasonably priced and excellent service including a free taxi ride home.

Jl. Danau Tamblingan 195, Sanur

Seaside @ Jimbaran Bay - All the restaurants here are crazily overpriced BUT you really must do a dinner while watching the sunset. It is spectacular and the beach is clean and lovely. Our driver chose this place for us and I don't think it differs much from the others. You get to go up and choose your fresh seafood and how it is cooked. We got there a little earlier and left our shoes at the table and went for a walk and bought the best corn ever from one of the beach sellers. Took the obligatory sunset shots and then had a meal.

love this fairy floss seller

As we had a kitchen we ate all our lunches in. The shuttle takes you to Hardys, a great supermarket that has everything you could want. A lot of Australian products like vegemite and vita wheats. Make sure you pop upstairs for some great shopping with no need for haggling and bargaining. They have everything you can possibly think of.

This next pic is what I work so hard for...having my nails done by one girl and my feet by another with a gentle sea breeze. Love it!!!!! We are already planning the next trip in 2 years.

Hope you enjoyed my travel tips.

Bali with Kids Part 1

My wonderful 3 children and I have just returned from the best 12 day holiday in Bali. Whilst away I have had a lot of people ask me questions about travelling with kids which of course has prompted this post.

First of all...

Did I feel safe? Absolutely!!!!!
Did we get sick? Nope, not one of us.
Did the kids love it? More than I thought possible.

We flew Jetstar who are totally fine but do remember that you get nothing, zip, zero on the flight. Everything is an extra. Pack lots of snacks. The flight over left at 6.30pm so we had dinner at the airport and they were fine with that. I hired 2 video players for 3 kids and had one headphone splitter so 2 of them could share one unit.

I had arranged my regular driver to collect us on arrival, very happy to pass on his details. He is awesome, English is great and very trustworthy. Means no negotiations with taxis when you are tired.

We head straight to Ubud where I have been going for 23 years. There is something unique and wonderful about this town. You can see an old post here I do think the Eat, Pray, Love book and film has made it a lot busier sadly.

I stay at Honeymoon Guesthouse which I adore as it is so traditionally Balinese. No glass windows, everything is open air with shutters....love! love! love! I reserved interconnecting rooms number 15 and 16 which were on the 2nd level with a huge private balcony where we spent most of our down time. The beds are all 4 poster with mosquito nets, the girls felt like Princesses.

A word of warning is due to the open air it is very noisy from about 6am with roosters. We went to bed earlier to compensate. I didn't mind as I love the experience of staying here. We had a fan cooled room which was fine at this time of year but would be hard between Sep - Apr.

I paid about $120 a night for 2 room including breakfast.




From here we walked to the Monkey Forest through the rice fields. well worth a visit but keep all valuables hidden and take off sunglasses. We bought bunches of bananas and had fun feeding the hundreds of monkeys.

There are loads and loads of fish spa places where hundreds of fish suck all the yucky stuff off your feet. Lola and I were a bit freaked about it and stayed clear but these 3 loved it.

We took a day trip to the Elephant Safari and Marine Park and had some amazing interactions with the Elephants. The kids got to feed them and we got to touch and cuddle some after the show they have. The whole park is incredibly well run and a beautiful oasis. When we arrived we were bombarded with pricing options and I found it overwhelming. We chose the $45 option (per person inc kids) which included lunch. NOT worth it. Go the $35 and get your own lunch, it is cheaper and way more food options. The kids had photos with a giant yellow snake around them...very brave. Don't forget bathers as there is a fantastic Water Fun Area to play in. Tip is to do it after the Safari as I could not get my kids away from there to do the safari.

My restaurant recommendations are:

Cafe Wayan located on monkey Forest Road. It has been around since 1986 and I have been numerous times. It is set amongst beautiful gardens that keep going and going. Children are welcome. The Chicken Sate was hands down the best we had in the 12 days and they also served a pretty good Nasi Campur, my all time fave Balinese dish.

Indus is an absolute must at sunset and for awesome food. It is owner by the same people that own Honeymoon Guesthouse and is about 5 minutes out of town overlooking the rice terraces. I have also been here many times over the years and have never been disappointed. Great Nasi Campur and the Signature Paella is very good. We celebrated the girls 6th birthday here, I pre ordered an enormous cake which has happy Birthday to me on it instead of the girls which we had a giggle over.

Clear Cafe is a brand new restaurant in town and we all loved it. Super funky decor. My son Jonah and I found it when we were out shopping one day and booked the floating pontoon table where you sit on floor cushions. Very fun and quirky for the kids. The menu is all organic and very yummy. I had the chilli prawn burrito and my Mum had the Red Fish Curry. The kids menu was good and cheap and the kids loved their macaroni cheese and hamburgers.

Bintang Beer has got to be the best in the world, a few cold ones with lunch and dinner is a must.

Next we went to Sanur which will be my next post

Please feel free to make comments and if anyone has their own recommendations it would be welcomed.

Alice in Wonderland 6th Birthday Party

My baby girls have turned 6....where on earth did those years go.
In the midst of my manic life I promised them a fancy pants Alice in Wonderland party and fancy pants is what they got.

With 2 markets Piccadilly and Geelong Baby Marklet 6 days apart, Be Socially Savvy work and packing for a holiday I buckled and called in the professionals and that was the amazing Jane from Coco by Miss Jane. Between us we pulled it off.

This was the result...














Cake - Made by me and proud of it
Cake Bunting - Made by me with free printables from TomKat Studio
Cupcake Toppers - Sunnyprints
Cupcake Liner and Doily Garland (seen in link below)- Made by Me

All the girls took home an "eat me" chocolate bar which are Aldi Mini Blocks re wrapped.....clever hey!

Everything else made and supplied by the fabulous Jane.

You can Also see Coco By Miss Janes blog post here

Two very happy 6 year olds who would not stop making faces long enough for a proper photo

Post Winter Market Mayhem

luciaandjoe bookbinding
Wow!!!! What a Market. As usual it exceeded my expectations which is always a great thing. Our guesstimate is that we had 4500-5000 shoppers through so that is a big Thank You to everyone who comes out to support this Geelong event. Thanks to all the people that travel from Melbourne and other parts of the State.

So many amazing things to buy and again I found it hard to restrain from spoiling the kids and I. I see it as supporting the local economy.

One of my Besties took some snaps on the day which you can view here.



A big thank you to my team of workers who swoop in and out and get me set up and broken down so efficiently.

The next Market is pre Christmas and is on November 20th so pop that in your diaries.

I am offline till the end of August taking a well deserved vacation.