Any which way but out!

This weekend our little family went on an adventure to Melbourne to celebrate the birthday of Mr A. We held high hopes for the first 'mini holiday' for our family of four as it gave us an opportunity to visit a city we love and create memories as a family.

Being the organiser I felt some pressure (self enforced) to create the "perfect mini break". In reflection the idea of "perfect" is pretty ridiculous as life is unpredictable and often you can be thrown a curve ball out of your control which you can either let hit you and get disappointed by  or instead become adaptable to and laugh about. I think it is these such occasions or imperfections that make family holidays great and what will be remembered for years to come.

Yes we did have a few epic fails;
- Thinking we were off to the Carlton Football Club Family Day (anyone who knows my husband will know the importance of this occasion) only to find out the day before that the event had been rescheduled for the following weekend
-  Surely a single room would provide ample space for our little family, right?!? Wrong!  Being under house arrest due to a clever 2 year old who decided she wanted to make the most of the experience and in fact didn't feel that sleep was necessary
- A tram ride at peak time into the city resembling how sardines must feel in a can.

However it would be remise of me not to list our wonderful successes;

- Melbourne Zoo was a major HIT even with the drizzle and impending thunder storms. Adella was quite taken with her new pink umbrella and oversized rain coat. Who knew it is very difficult to find wet weather gear in January- Melbourne four seasons in one day?
- Drinking cold ciders and people watching on valentine's day
- Adella wishing Mr A 'Happy Birthday' and breaking out into song with gusto at the drop of a hat. got to love her enthusiasm
- Taking a detour off the beaten track on the way home and visiting Brookfield Maze. http://brookfieldmaze.com.au/

Brookfield Maze is located at Myrrhee, North East Victoria, nestled in the foothills of the King Valley gourmet food and wine region uniquely situated alongside the picturesque Fifteen Mile creek.            

The Brookfield Maze is a traditional puzzle hedge maze with the object being to find the centre and reach the viewing platform.

To be honest we hadn't really thought it threw. How difficult could a maze be with two small children? (one in a pram and one who is notorious for running off) Surely there will be a map or a cheat sheet.

I was reminded that a cheat sheet would defeat the purpose of the whole experience and I needed to take the feeling of complete disorientation in my stride. We pressed on through rows and rows of perfectly manicured hedges, many dead ends, a toilet stop and finally after what seemed like an eternity we reached the viewing platform! What an achievement!  Mr A later recalled his humour as he could see my blood boiling, believing that I would throw the towel in at any minute. "Just tell people we made it" he thought I would say. But thankfully we did. What was the best accomplishment was not the view from the platform, but the smile on sweaty miss Adella's face as she skipped to the car and fell asleep shortly after for the rest of the journey home.

Definitely a birthday Mr A will not forget in a hurry....


X Grace