Nambucca Heads and the best ever NRL grand final.

Well after being so tight with making sure we limited running the water pump the day before I was quite proud when we woke up and had a fair amount of battery power spare, so turned on the TV for the kids so we could sit down and enjoy our coffee.  I don’t even think I had finished my cup of coffee when we again lost all power in the caravan!  Just fantastic, so it is obviously not the pump that is causing it and we are now back to square one with wondering what on earth is wrong.  At least this is our last night on an unpowered site so at least we don’t have to put up with it for much longer.

Though we vowed we would call the Coromal Dealer in Brisbane as soon as it opens to book the van in and get it looked at.  This just isn’t good enough.  Mind you when we did call of course the lady in charge was not there and even though we left three messages throughout the day she did not return our call.  Another prime example of shocking customer service which we weren’t really in the mood for. 

Still it was time to trudge all the way down to the shower blocks so we could have showers.  Jason and Kayla went first and then when Hamish and I went of course there was a massive sign saying it was closed for cleaning.  Who on earth cleans the shower blocks right on peak morning shower time!  Anyway I tried to find the cleaner to ask how long it is closed for and of course I couldn’t find them so I thought stuff it and we had our shower!  When there are only six showers for a packed out campground I think closing them when you aren’t actually cleaning them probably isn’t a wise thing.

Check out at the campground isn’t until midday which works as we can’t check in at the caravan park in Nambucca Heads until after then away.  Still we were all over the place and just wanted to get out of there.  So as soon as the caravan park reception was open we called them up and luckily no one was in our site so we could come early!  Finally some good news!  So we packed up and got out of there as soon as we could.  We definitely won’t be recommending that campground to anyone.  The drive to Nambucca Heads was only about 65km so nice and simple which is a good thing at the start of a long weekend as all the “stupid in a rush and take unnecessary risk driver” are out.  Most of it was slow though as there were a lot of roadworks going on with the upgrade to the Bruce Highway and the police were out in force.

Getting to our chosen caravan park was interesting as our navigator is set to easiest route, which might be great in a car but with a caravan going up some big hills it did have us questioning it.  As I found out on check in we should have followed their signs as that avoided all that and less tight turns!  Now the people that run the Nambucca Heads Big4 Park know how to do customer service.  On check in I mentioned how we might want to stay longer so he just blocks out two days for us so there is no risk of someone coming on the site.  Then the easiest way to our site was to go in the exit gate. 

We couldn’t do this straight away as another car had pulled up and was checking in.  Did I care?  No.  Why not?  Because we were getting treated so well that having to wait 5-10 minutes was not a big deal.  Amazing what a difference it makes.  Eventually we could reverse back and enter through the exit gate.  The park manager was there the whole time guiding Jason and getting other traffic to divert or just wait.  Then he helped Jason reverse in, so to make it easier for Jason I took the kids to the jumping pillow and playground.  Now just to show the difference in what you get for the price.  This only is $2 a night cheaper, but we have power, water, pool, jumping pillow, playground but best of all, awesome customer service.  We are also backing onto a big grass area that has a path straight to the beach.  So in regards to value for money this place is awesome.  It is also not a huge Big4 Park so whilst it is full it doesn’t give you that crowded feel.

As we were setting up our neighbour told us they were doing free piklets for morning tea so Kayla and I walked down there and bought some back.  You could honestly tell Jason and I were all of a sudden so much more relaxed and the kids so much happier.  Not to mention Nambucca Heads looks beautiful and we are definitely tempted to extend our stay.  However first we needed to do some school and catch up on all the washing.  After finishing that lesson we went for a swim in the pool.  It was heated, not that it needed to be as the day was quite warm but it was so nice and relaxing.  After lunch we headed up to replenish our very low food supplies before returning to the park and just hanging out for the afternoon. 

Hamish even hired one of the pedal bikes and at only $5 for half an hour it would have to be one of the best rates we have seen going.  So Jason was over at the playground watching Kayla whilst I was watching Hamish to make sure he was being sensible and getting off the road when necessary.  I think Hamish is really relishing having other kids to play with.  Eventually I did have to drag him back inside to do a montage of his favourite place for school and then the whole dinner, bath and bed routine.  Tomorrow we will have to get out more and see Nambucca Heads and check out the beach since we can hear it when we are sitting outside relaxing under the awning.

The smile says it all.

So of course first thing Saturday morning I wanted to make the most of our full day here and get to the beach, so as soon as we had finished breakfast we headed down for a walk along the beach.  The beach was literally just through the bush, not even a two minute walk which was so easy.  It was nice having a walk along the beachfront, watching the surfers who were out braving it and then checking out a few of the rock pools.  Kayla had her bucket and collected a million shells and a pile of sand which she happily came back and dumped right under our awning area.

The beach right out the front.  Shortest walk ever.

After that we came back and did a session of school.  We are trying to not normally do it on the weekend but as we will be driving back from Sydney on Monday we didn’t want to have to do any school that day so moved it to today.  Once that lesson was over we drove down to near the RSL which is where the tackle show also was and headed along the walkway to take in some of the beautiful surrounds.  We saw heaps of fish and the water was so blue but of course my photos would not show that up well at all.  Before the kids got over it we turned around and headed back.  Just in time really as Kayla decided she didn’t want to wear her helmet anymore and we then wouldn’t let her ride her scooter without her helmet on. 

The walkway alongside the river/inlet.

This photo doesn't do justice to the blue of the water.

 

Before we knew it we headed back to the van for some morning tea.  I was wrecked so decided to lie down and Kayla was out of sorts due to a way too early wake up so Jason took her for a drive to get her to sleep.  This is where I miss having the house so I could go to a room and shut the door, instead I was woken up by Hamish constantly coming and going so you can imagine the mood I woke up in.  The rest of the afternoon we spent around the van.  I tried to do some reading with Hamish but that was hopeless as he wasn’t in the mood to try and was just guessing without looking and I was tired and cranky.  I also get so stressed out over this and know we need some help here but as we are travelling and we can’t really get it.  I will have to find someone who will be able to help and pay for the tutoring when we get back to Brisbane.  Until then we can only keep trying.  I do think he has the ability to do it but just won’t try for us so he might respond better to a teacher figure.

Trying to savour the day we headed back down to the beach to do some fishing but the wind had picked up a bit so the waves were dumping down and I felt like as soon as I cast out that my bait would wash straight back up to the beach.  So I gave up and decided to help the kids build a fort instead.  It was actually quite addictive and we had heaps of fun doing it.  Jason gave up not long after me and returned to the caravan and started dinner.  He had also started packing for our trip to Sydney the next day.  Hopefully we all get a good night sleep so we can tackle the long drive to Sydney.

The view from a lookout.

A nicely restored old car we saw on our morning walk.

Well we were up at a reasonable time but had already lost an hour due to the start of daylight savings.  Yes, joy oh joy, daylight savings has started again but we really only have two on-air school lessons that it will effect before we head back into Queensland and stop travelling.  The drive down to Parramatta was long and slow, especially at the start when I was driving as it was a lot of road works which meant traveling at mainly 80km/hr and sometimes even slower.  We arrived with plenty of time and even managed to book a bus from the motel to the stadium to save us having to get taxis and work out what to do.

Then the preparations started and we all had to get dressed and prepared for the night.  Of course the kids were hungry too so we ordered some room service and just chilled for a bit before the big night.  Once we were all dressed in our Broncos supporter gear it started to feel real and watching everyone else slowly make their way out of the motel in either Broncos or Cowboys gear made it pretty cool.  That is half the reason you go to games as it is the atmosphere that truly makes it.  I don’t think Kayla really understood what was going on but Hamish was so excited.

All dressed up and ready to go.

When we arrived we had to walk a little distance to the stadium from where the bus dropped us, but for $70 return for all of us to our hotel door I was certainly not going to complain.  That is when it really hit home.  We were here and it was going to be a truly great night, though I still don’t think we could have imagined just how awesome of a game it was really going to be.  We made our way all the way up to our seats right up the top, and just when you thought you couldn’t go any higher there were more steps.  I can’t believe when I was packing I was worried that the kids might get cold.  It was quite warm up there, even a bit hot.  Not that we cared.  There was so much to watch and take in.

We got to enjoy the Cold Chisel concert beforehand but probably if I had my time over I might have come a little later so that the kids didn’t have to sit there for so long before the game even started.  At one stage I thought that Kayla was going to fall asleep before the kick off, but at least the kids beside us were looking tired too.  Hamish did point out to me that they were Cowboys supporters but I assured him that it was perfectly okay to talk to them.  Now I don’t need to retell you the game, I am pretty sure you all watched it but wow, it was just mind blowing.  We did get a good laugh out of Hamish as at one stage when the Cowboys were in the lead and he turned to Jason and said ‘But dad you said the Broncos were going to win’. 

Cold Chisel in action.

Getting closer to the start.

 

You had your heart in your throat the entire game and Jason said with around 15 minutes to go that he thought the Cowboys would score and take it off us last minute, how right he was.  What a fantastic game and even though the Broncos lost, I couldn’t  think of a better team to lose to and I don’t think anyone really went away overly upset.  Most Queenslanders, if they don’t support the Broncos, their second pick would be the Cowboys and it was a very good, close game.  Who could ask for a better NRL Grand Final.  We of course didn’t stick around long after the game as both kids were asleep by then so we opted to get them back to the hotel and to bed.  It’s hard to believe that they slept through all that cheering and screaming in the last few minutes.

An action shot from the game.

It really was hard to watch at some stages.

 

We all slept so well that night and the next morning the kids slept in for a bit and then Kayla woke and after a while we convinced her to wake up Hamish.  He wasn’t too happy at first but when I mentioned that we had hash browns and bacon for breakfast he was suddenly wide awake.  It was nice having a huge cooked breakfast waiting for us and whilst there seemed to be a sober mood at breakfast we were quite happy and in good spirits.  Then we started the long drive back to Nambucca heads where we had left the caravan.  It wasn’t actually as long as the day before but still it isn’t exactly a short drive, especially when there was so much traffic on the road being the last day of school holidays and the end of a long weekend.

On arriving back at the caravan park we expected the place to be empty and no kids, but how mistaken we were.  There were heaps of caravans that had left and a new lot that had arrived and most of them had kids.  Obviously not everyone is starting back at school on Tuesday.  Our plan was just to unpack the car and chill for the afternoon.  The kids loved the jumping pillow and riding around on the bikes, really just anything to be out of the car and having fun.  We even took them to the pool to burn off some more energy before we headed back for dinner and bed.  What a fast but fantastic trip down to the finals and certainly worth all the money for that once in a lifetime experience of such an awesome game.

Tuesday was really a lazy day and we didn’t do much at all.  The last two big days had just worn us out and we have to move on Wednesday so we just thought we would lay low and rejuvenate.  It was also the first day back for school so the on-air lessons and reading lessons started up again.  It was nice being in such a good spot where the kids could easily go out and play without having to get in the car and go for a drive.  We met a few other families and got talking to them, and then in the middle of the day we put on a movie and just chilled in the air-conditioning.

Later in the day we did venture out to catch up with my cousin Amy and her daughter Paige.  They moved here at the start of the year and we are so envious of this lovely location that they live at.  The kids’ paddled whilst Amy and I chatted and Jason got out the fishing rod and had a go at fishing.  He managed to pull in quite a few small fish but unfortunately nothing that we could keep.  Well Hamish wanted to keep them as pets but we told him we couldn’t. 

Kayla enjoying some of Paige's food (and freedom from her clothes for a while).

After we had said goodbye to Amy and Paige we went and fuelled up the car in preparation for the next day.  Then we received a call from Amy asking if we wanted to come over for dinner and of course we jumped at the opportunity.  Mind you we needed to go home first and all have showers before I was even willing to let the kids into Amy’s home.  We also needed to start to pack up a few things around the caravan and put the kayak back on top of the car and a few things like that.  By the time we were all ready we were running a bit late, especially when you looked at the NSW time.

The place they live in is just beautiful and in such a nice and quiet street.  I think we were quite envious really of their new lifestyle as it is just the sort of change we are after and the coastline of NSW is just stunning.  Amy cooked us a delicious meal and the kids, well they certainly made themselves at home with all of Paige’s toys.  You should have seen their eyes light up when they just walked in the room.  My poor deprived children with one tub of toys. I think that is what they will enjoy the most when we get everything out of storage.  Eventually we dragged ourselves home and put the kids straight to bed.  We couldn’t be bothered packing anything more away and just crashed ourselves.  Thankyou Amy, Bobby and Paige for the delicious meal and having us over.