My parents have a bach at Snell's Beach. It is a wonderful thing. We love going up, and this is becoming an annual trek (all 7-8 hours on the road is worth it) for our family, beginning with our honeymoon 10 years ago. I love that our kids are growing up with a beach holiday, and get to enjoy these gorgeous safe and warm beaches that Snell's Beach offers.
We started our holiday by heading off at 5am, keeping the kids in a nice dozy state until we stopped for breakfast in Tokoroa. We were in Auckland by 11am, and headed to Dad & Anneke's place to see my family. I miss my siblings - now that they are growing up (my stepbrother turned 21 just after Christmas!!!) they don't come down with the parents to see us and so we only get to see them once or twice a year when we get the energy and funds up to take our troop up. I didn't even see my stepsister this trip as she doesn't live at home any more. Growing up is tough! The kids were excited to see their Aunty Steph, Uncle Josh and Poppa and Oma again though, and it wasn't long before they were running up and down the stairs (what a novelty).
After lunch, we headed off for the last 45 minute journey up to Snell's Beach, stopping off at Warkworth for supplies. We dumped everything and went straight to the beach! The girls had a great time, although Luke has decided he is not that excited by sand or water this trip round. We found a good solution though - grassy banks and playgrounds right next to the sand and water! Marty is not a beach bunny either, so the boys stayed clean while us girls frolicked on the beach every morning, afternoon and evening of our stay.
Poppa and Oma joined us on Saturday for a day of Kayaking. We Kayaked right over to the far shore, and then weaved our way between the Pohutakawa branches, pretending we were in a swamp with crocodiles in the water. The girls love sitting on the front of the Kayaks, dangling their feet in the water and splashing to "help" the boat along! On our journey, we found a concrete stand in the middle of the ocean with a trampoline perched on top and a ladder to get up. I encouraged Jaimee to climb up and jump into the water. She did manage to get off Poppa's Kayak and up the ladder before chickening out. I decided I would have to have a go at this....looked way too fun! As I got to the top of the ladder, I realised why Jaimee had chickened out though - its a LONG way up! I did it though, with the kids and parents cheering me on, what a rush!
We had a really cool time. Kites were flown (and one was lost when Jaimee let go) , sandcastles were made, swimming was practiced, boogy boards were floated on (no surf here!), and we walked along the boardwalk after tea, with Luke cheerfully waving at everyone he passed. One elderly man stopped with his wife to comment on our cute little man, and Luke promptly put his hands out to be picked up! The man gave him a cuddle with our blessing as we all laughed, and Luke looked happy to go home with this stranger, cuddling up with his thumb in.
Back at the bach, we played lots of card games together - Phase 10 became quite the competitive game, with a girl pairing up with each parent and some very narrow wins. I enjoyed reading short stories to the girls in the sun and cuddling up with Marty each evening to watch movies.
On Sunday morning we decided on a change of scene from the beach and headed to Matakana Country Farm, for more playground fun and to pet the animals. While there, we discovered they were doing pony rides, and the man very kindly told my girls they could have a ride each (before we had made the decision as parents to pay the $5 each - cheeky!). We did let them have a ride, and it was lots of fun - even Luke hopped on a pony for a wee sit.
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| about as far as Luke got in! |
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| practicing those lesson skills |
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| See Saw fun |
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| warming up after a swim |
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| Let's go fly a kite.... |
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| Jockey girl! |
On Tuesday, it was time to clean up, pack up and head home. But not before we visited Auckland Zoo, something we had tried TWICE to do on previous visits but had been rained out. We did it this time, along with half of Auckland - it was packed! We did get a great Zoo visit though, stopping at the seals just in time to see them practice their tricks with the trainers, seeing the elephant go for a walk through the zoo and stopping at the tortoise just in time to see 6 keepers lift the giant onto a container so they could take blood samples from its tail. Pretty cool! And our cunning plan paid off, the kids were exhausted - sleeping soundly until Huntly and then again after dinner in Taupo all the way home. Another great holiday - thanks Poppa and Oma for sharing the bach with us, we all love our time there and seeing you. xxx
Oh, and here is a couple of shots of my beautiful 18yr old sister Stephanie at the zoo with us......
We started our holiday by heading off at 5am, keeping the kids in a nice dozy state until we stopped for breakfast in Tokoroa. We were in Auckland by 11am, and headed to Dad & Anneke's place to see my family. I miss my siblings - now that they are growing up (my stepbrother turned 21 just after Christmas!!!) they don't come down with the parents to see us and so we only get to see them once or twice a year when we get the energy and funds up to take our troop up. I didn't even see my stepsister this trip as she doesn't live at home any more. Growing up is tough! The kids were excited to see their Aunty Steph, Uncle Josh and Poppa and Oma again though, and it wasn't long before they were running up and down the stairs (what a novelty).
After lunch, we headed off for the last 45 minute journey up to Snell's Beach, stopping off at Warkworth for supplies. We dumped everything and went straight to the beach! The girls had a great time, although Luke has decided he is not that excited by sand or water this trip round. We found a good solution though - grassy banks and playgrounds right next to the sand and water! Marty is not a beach bunny either, so the boys stayed clean while us girls frolicked on the beach every morning, afternoon and evening of our stay. 
Poppa and Oma joined us on Saturday for a day of Kayaking. We Kayaked right over to the far shore, and then weaved our way between the Pohutakawa branches, pretending we were in a swamp with crocodiles in the water. The girls love sitting on the front of the Kayaks, dangling their feet in the water and splashing to "help" the boat along! On our journey, we found a concrete stand in the middle of the ocean with a trampoline perched on top and a ladder to get up. I encouraged Jaimee to climb up and jump into the water. She did manage to get off Poppa's Kayak and up the ladder before chickening out. I decided I would have to have a go at this....looked way too fun! As I got to the top of the ladder, I realised why Jaimee had chickened out though - its a LONG way up! I did it though, with the kids and parents cheering me on, what a rush! 
Back at the bach, we played lots of card games together - Phase 10 became quite the competitive game, with a girl pairing up with each parent and some very narrow wins. I enjoyed reading short stories to the girls in the sun and cuddling up with Marty each evening to watch movies. 
On Sunday morning we decided on a change of scene from the beach and headed to Matakana Country Farm, for more playground fun and to pet the animals. While there, we discovered they were doing pony rides, and the man very kindly told my girls they could have a ride each (before we had made the decision as parents to pay the $5 each - cheeky!). We did let them have a ride, and it was lots of fun - even Luke hopped on a pony for a wee sit. 
On Tuesday, it was time to clean up, pack up and head home. But not before we visited Auckland Zoo, something we had tried TWICE to do on previous visits but had been rained out. We did it this time, along with half of Auckland - it was packed! We did get a great Zoo visit though, stopping at the seals just in time to see them practice their tricks with the trainers, seeing the elephant go for a walk through the zoo and stopping at the tortoise just in time to see 6 keepers lift the giant onto a container so they could take blood samples from its tail. Pretty cool! And our cunning plan paid off, the kids were exhausted - sleeping soundly until Huntly and then again after dinner in Taupo all the way home. Another great holiday - thanks Poppa and Oma for sharing the bach with us, we all love our time there and seeing you. xxx
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