Family Holiday At Last

Well Dh finally managed to get some time off work so we packed up and went off to Rotorua which is in the countries main Thermally active region, for a much anticipated family holiday.


At first I was a little disappointed upon arrival as last time we were there we stayed in a fairly fancy hotel but this time the only available hotel with a family room big enough for our brood was a little on the tired and shabby side.

Anyway once I put that aside we had a really marvelous time.

On the first day the kids had a swim in the hotel pool while Bub's and I ran across the road to Pak'n'Save to get a few essentials for lunch. We met back at the room and had lunch and then spent the rest of the afternoon resting while bubs was napping as dh and I were pretty pooped too. That night we went to Lone Star restaurant for dinner which is always a highlight of a Rotorua holiday for us. bubs slept surprisingly well that night.

The next day we went for a drive to Lake Rotoiti and then explored in a large 3D wooden maze. We had a competition to see who could make their way to all four corners and out again first. Ds9 typically took off at full speed racing ahead of the rest of us declaring he knew where to go, Ds11 was a little more restrained and initially chose to tag along with dd7. bubs in the sling and I. Dh followed along behind ds9 but they eventually got separated somwhere a long the way as did Ds11 and I. Dd7 and I took our time and were quite strategic in our approach which like in the story of the tortoise and the Hare ended up seeing us win the race while the boys were all running around like mad hares lol! We relaxed in the sun afterwards with a cool drink and then headed back to the hotel for lunch and for Bubs to take a nap. At 2pm we all headed off again for another outing, this time to Paradise Springs Wildlife park where we were just in to to watch the lions being fed. Then the kids got to help the keeper feed all the farm animals and pet an opossum. We then walked our way through the park. Bubs was very excited by all the new sights and sounds and had to keep getting out of his stroller to have a look at things with his Dad.

That night we went out for dinner again and then we all went for a swim in the hotel pool I am still surprised we didn't all sink after our enourmous meal. It was very exciting for the kids to be swimming at night when they would usually have been in bed. Bubs loved it too as he alsways loves swimming. He splashed and kicked and laughed so much it was just adorable. And boy did he sleep well that night he only briefly woke once between 8:30pm and 6am and without the need for a feed at all.

On day 3 we went first for a drive to see the Blue and Green lakes and discovered a lovely little camping ground that we though would make a nice future holiday location. We then went to the Waikite thermal pools which was a great discovery on our part as theyr were off the beaten track a bit and out of the main tourist eye so the cost was much loower than other tourist attractions near by. We all had a blast trying out the 10 different pools and seeing which ones were hottest and relaxing in the hot tubs as well as swimming in the cooler large pool with Bubs.

After about an hour of swimming dh suggested Bubs and I get out and have some lunch and a coffee(for me) at the cafe and he would supervise the older kids so that I could nurse bubs in peace before we all got in the car to travel back to the hotel again. It was a lovely treat, I ordered a moccachino and a piece of quiche which turned out to be a monstrosity that I somehow managed to poilish off anyway. Bubs is going through a funny stage of only wanting to eat finget food so it is a bit of a challenge to get food into him these days but he enjoyed some chopped up peaches, crackers, raisins and I did manage to spoon a little bit of baby food into him.

Back at the hotel the older kids thought they needed another swim but we managed to convince them otherwise so we rested until Bubs woke up and then we went for a walk around the lake, watched the ducks, geese and swans swimming with their babies and then had a play on the playground. Bubs slept through the latter part of this outing in his buggy. Then it was out for our last evening meal of the holiday and then back to the hotel where dh and the older 3 kids went for a last swim before bed while I nursed Bubs and put him down for the evening.

The next day we headed back home.

It was a truly lovely time and I so loved being with my wonderful family and have my beloved dh with us.