Easter Holidays 2018

On Thursday, tomorrow, the first school term of the year will be finished, and the holidays will start. YAY!

If you know me, you will know that I love the school holidays. I’m a homeschooling mum so it does make sense that I love the school holidays, but, if you have known me for some time, you will know that I have always been one of those mums who loves school holidays!

I like to find that nice balance between lots of activities, getting a few things done at home, and relaxing. It’s not always easy to find that balance, but its always good to write a few ideas down before we find ourselves halfway through the holiday period.

I always like to hear what other people get up to over the school holiday period? So if you like to share what you do with your kids, let me know!
Here’s a few things that we can do on the Sunshine Coast over the next couple of weeks.

This weekend is Easter Weekend!
The Easter weekend is a big deal for Christian churches globally.
If you are interested, Calvary Christian Church in Tanawha is putting on a Good Friday production, starting at 9am on Friday morning. They have both a 8am and 10 am service on Sunday morning, and then on Sunday evening, 6 pm they are showing a movie called ‘The Case for Christ’ It’s a true story about an Investigative Journalist, who’s wife becomes a Christian. He decides to investigate and prove to his wife that the whole Christian faith is a lie. The service starts at 6pm if you are interested?

No pressure!

We are planning an Easter Lunch celebration with hubby’s side of the family on Sunday. I got some fun Easter table decorations at Kmart this week, and I am looking forward to putting it all together on Saturday evening with the kids. The kids have decided to make chocolates, that is, melting chocolate and putting it in chocolate mounds. They also want to make some Marshmallow bunnies. I remember making marshmallow bunnies when I was a kid with somebody very special to me. I made marshmallow bunnies with the kids a couple of years ago, so it will be fun to make some more happy memories with them.

The Beach. It is a beautiful time of the year. So the plan is to get out doors as often as we possibly can. I love going to the beach so I want to go as often as I can on the holidays. We are fortunate to live 3 minutes away from our local beach (by car), so we need to make sure we don’t take it for granted. Any beach from Noosa down to Caloundra is a good beach. My favourite is Shelly beach in Caloundra, but I love Noosa main beach, and Mooloolaba.

Playground crawl. The older girls don’t particularly like this activity these days, but the younger two love playgrounds still. To appease the older girls I always put a basketball in the boot. There are a number of playgrounds in the Caloundra area that have a proper basketball hoop. Obviously the two older ones would prefer to stay at home and hang out on their gadgets but they use their iPads enough.

Board games. A family favourite is Rummikans. The children’s Grandma introduced this game to us a few years ago, and now that the kids are older, we all can play together. We like boards games, but due to time constraints, we don’t play as often as we would like. Holidays are a great time to play board games.

Movies. There are a number of interesting looking movies coming out over the next week or two. The story of Apostle Paul, and Mary Magdalene movie look good. We saw and loved ‘I Can Only Imagine’ last week. If you refuse to pay the crazy cinema prices at the plaza ($19.50 for one adult), you can grab a DVD from hoyts box for $4 each over night and have a movie marathon at home.

Mooloolaba Wharf. I hear the Mooloolaba Wharf has been done up. We thought we would go and have a wonder around. I took Beps a couple of years ago on a cruise around the canals for her birthday. It was a lot of fun, its wonderful to be out on the water on a beautiful day. It is also possible to hire stand up paddle boards and kayaks at the wharf. I hear there are some great spots to have lunch or dinner. I am looking forward to checking it out.

JJ wants to learn to ride his bike without training wheels. It’s exciting times when your baby decides to learn to ride without training wheels. He is so excited! We have lots of pathways along our beach ways – Golden Beach is a fantastic place to learn how to ride bikes.

Bushwalking and Beach pathways. The Sunshine Coast is a beautiful place to live and holiday. As a local it’s fun to look for ways to experience the Coast as though we are tourists. People spend a fortune to holiday on the Coast, so we shouldn’t take it for granted.

I love the beach walkways, but if you like bushwalking, the hinterland, is a wonderful place to go to go too. Mary Cairncross Reserve, Ewen Maddock Dam, Mt Beerburrum Lookout and Mt Tinbeerwah are just some of the region’s highlights. (My Beerburrum Lookout and Mt Tinbeerwah are on my list to check out).

Bowling. The kids love Ten Pin Bowling. I’m not sure where they get it from, but they do. There are a number of Tenpin Bowling Centres on the Sunshine Coast – Suncity Tenpin at Alexandra Headland, Spinners Bar and Bowl in Caloundra, and Noosa Tenpin and Laser Tag.

Picnics. Pack the food and drink into your esky, grab the picnic rug, frisby and cricket set, and get out of the house. Find a spot and enjoy the outdoors. Happy Valley in Caloundra is a great spot for some relaxing and a game of cricket.

Beach. The water may be chilly but there’s still plenty to love about the Sunshine Coast’s beaches. Long walks, sandcastles and beach volleyball are just some of the possibilities.

Rock climbing. The Rockit Climbing Gym at Warana offers a range of walls for most climbing abilities. Children under 13 years old can climb, but cannot operate the belaying equipment. A slightly cheaper option is the state-owned indoor rock climbing area at the Sunshine Coast Recreation Centre in Currimundi, Check out the website for opening times.

Kayaking. Hire a kayak (or a canoe) and hit the water for an expedition of Sunshine Coast waters. With plenty of options including the Mooloolah River, Maroochy River, Currimundi Lake, Ewen Maddock Dam, Baroon Pocket Dam, Lake Weyba and Noosa River, the kids have plenty of opportunities for adventure.

Stand-up paddle Boarding. If you’re a little more coordinated, stand-up paddling is an even more scenic option than kayaking. The standing position allows paddlers to see far more underwater, and can also be a solid workout..

River cruise. For a more relaxing scenic river trip, book a river cruise in the Noosa, Maroochy, Mooloolah Rivers or Pumicestone Passage.

Australia Zoo. Everyone wants to visit Australia Zoo when they come to Australia. We went a few years ago, and would love to go back. Holiday times are busy at the zoo, but it is a much loved experience.

Op shopping. If you are like me, and you dislike huge shopping centres, a day of op shopping is a fun alternative. There are so many op shops on the Sunshine Coast. I would love to tell you where my favourites are but I can’t let you in on that one. The kids love finding treasures when we go op shopping.

Fun at the markets.  If you’re looking for the biggest and best range of stalls, head to the Caloundra Street Fair on Sunday mornings, the Original Eumundi Markets on Wednesdays and Saturdays, and the Yandina Markets on Saturday mornings.

Hire a boat. This is one of my favourite things to do. You don’t need a marine licence for any boat with engine power under 4.5kW. Grab the family and take a barbecue boat out on the river. Great places to hire a boat is Golden Beach and the Maroochy River.

Rollerdrome. Who doesn’t love the skating rink? My kids love the skating rink. Saturday mornings are a great opportunity for a class before the rink opens for the morning. If you’d rather stay a spectator, food and drinks are available at the kiosk. You can either bring your own skates or hire a pair.

Camp-out at Home. Set up the tent in your own backyard and enjoy camping fun without the hassle of leaving home. Light a fire in the brazier for a more authentic camping experience, toast marshmallows and read a story or chat. Camping in the back yard is a lot of fun with the kids.

Walk the beach track. Some of the region’s most iconic coastal stretches include the paths at Noosa National Park, Point Cartwright, Moffat Headland, the Maroochy River foreshore and the boardwalk between Kings Beach and Happy Valley.

Maroochy Bushland Botanic Garden. Explore the magnificent 82ha garden with native plants and wildlife. Bring a packed lunch for one of the picnic areas and enjoy the tranquillity. Entry is free.

Take a scenic drive. In my opinion, the Blackall Range Tourist Drive is the Sunshine Coast’s most beautiful route. Maleny, Montville and Mapleton, are wonderful places to explore, there’s plenty of landscape to see and things to do along the way.

Art galleries. The Caloundra Regional Art Gallery offers art classes over the holidays. Also check out the numerous Art Galleries across the coast. There are quite a few. There are a number in Montville and Maleny, Mooloolaba, Noosa and Caloundra.

Check out the Library. One of my favourite places to go is the library. I am an avid reader and visiting the library is fun. We love to fill a bag of books, or check the holiday activities list for libraries across the Sunshine Coast. Remember to book in advance as some of the classes fill up fast.

Bake up a storm. This is a great idea for the start of the holidays. It’s always great to have food on hand when you want to go on adventures. Baking is a great way to teach the kids valuable life skills. Home baking always tastes better than store bought food!

Find a waterfall. The Sunshine Coast has quite a few waterfall experiences – The Kondalilla Falls, Gardners Falls, Mapleton Falls and Buderim Falls are the Coast’s most famous waterfall destinations, with all offering quality bushwalks as part of the journey.

Explore rock pools. Rock pools form some of the most interesting ecosystems on the Sunshine Coast. See how many different kinds of fish, crustaceans, molluscs and other incredible tiny creatures you can find. Shelley beach is a great spot to do this!

Have a creative day. Learn a new skill. YouTube is a fantastic resource for learning new skills. Whether you want to become a better cook, artist, jewellery maker, photographer, writer or just a better person – there is something for everyone. There is so much information on line its overwhelming. If your kids are interested in doing some drawing tutorials, check out a channel on YouTube called ‘kids art hub’. Here they can learn how to draw a variety of characters. For example, LOL surprise dolls, smurfs, transformers etc. You will be amazed at what you will find.

There is literally something for everyone on the Sunshine Coast. Whether you go out or stay home.  The great thing is that for most of these activities you can include friends and extended family.

I’d love to hear how your holidays go! Let me know if I have forgotten to put something on the list!