Making the Most of Tuesdays #2

Spring in Canberra is wonderful…especially with Floriade. Embrace Passion is the theme for 2014. The garden bed designs include hearts (passion for romance), the four seasons (passion for nature), pencils (passion for art), music (passion for sounds), houndstooth and argyle patterns (passion for fashion), cookbook (passion for food), sports balls (passion for sport), people (passion for family), cupids arrow (passion for mythology), tyre wheel (passion for hobbies), pac man (passion for games), teddy bears (children's passions) and the large garden bed best seen from the ferris wheel..the globe (passion for culture).

Heading for the kids corner we pass dinosaurs, huge colourful snails, oversized floating flowers as well as noticing many bats roosting in the trees! Arriving just in time for the opening of Matilda's Farmyard. While patiently waiting for their turn to enter the farm, Mira and Katy nurse a duckling which provides a perfect distraction and great photo opportunity. Once inside the girls wander around looking, patting and brushing many of the baby animals. Both girls like the rabbit the best.

In the tent next to the farmyard is the ACT Health Dental Pavilion and inside is a tooth fairy! The girls line up to have their teeth checked by the said fairy and receive a toothbrush for doing so. Next the girls have special goop wiped onto their teeth before venturing inside the plaque cave armed with a torch to see how clean their teeth really are. They didn't do too badly :) The last activity is to make a sparkly tooth wand.

Before we know it everyone is hungry so we stop for a picnic lunch sheltering in one of the rotundas overlooking Nerang Pond. Again it is not very long before the three girls are moving again. They spend some time exploring the tracks through the rhododendrons.

We meander along the edge of the pond admiring the flowers and chatting away. The girls are eager to get to the ferris wheel and have ice creams! We head towards a section with cubby houses and soon the girls are off discovering what each one has to offer. The mushroom cubby house wins the girls votes as the favourite - post box, swinging front doors, a slide, an internal ladder leading up to the loft with small windows in the roof to observe the happenings of the outside world. All of these cubby houses are to be auctioned off with proceeds given to Boundless Canberra and The Centenary Hospital for Women and Children. A fantastic idea.

As we begin to make our way towards the ferris wheel we are greeted by two bubble blowing stilt walkers dressed as magical preying mantis. The girls are fascinated and yet petrified! They slowly relax a little, chasing the bubbles although always at a safe distance!

Finally the highlight of the day has arrived - a ride on the ferris wheel. We go around numerous times loving the views of floriade, lake burley grifting and Canberra. Quite windy at the top, the girls giggle with excitement. Of course our wonderful day ends eating ice creams as we walk back to the car perfect timing to pick up the bigger siblings (who understandably were both grumpy to miss out on the fun!)