Sometimes it takes a visitor to remind you just how lucky we are.
They’ll stop to photograph the view you’ve driven past hundreds of times. They’ll get excited about seeing a kookaburra in the park, stare at the ocean from the Coastal Walk and ask, almost incredulously, “Do you actually come here all the time?”
And the answer is… yes.
When you’re juggling school lunches, swimming lessons, missing hats, weekend sport, grocery shopping and the seemingly impossible task of getting everyone out the door on time, it’s easy to forget that our children’s ordinary childhood is actually pretty extraordinary.
So today, we’re forgetting about traffic, parking and the price of coffee for a few minutes.
Here are 10 little things that make us feel incredibly lucky to be raising kids in Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs.
1. The beach can be an ordinary Tuesday afternoon
For much of the world, going to the beach means packing suitcases, booking accommodation and travelling for hours.
Here, it can mean throwing a towel in the car after school.
A quick swim at Clovelly. Digging holes at Maroubra. Jumping waves at Bronte. An afternoon at Coogee that wasn’t planned until someone said, “Can we go to the beach?”
There’s something wonderful about the fact that our kids don’t necessarily see the ocean as a holiday destination.
It’s simply part of home.
And perhaps one day, when they’re living somewhere else, they’ll realise just how special that was.
2. They’re growing up with sandy feet
Sand in the car.
Sand in school bags.
Sand somehow appearing in beds despite everyone supposedly having showered.
There are certainly moments when we could happily live without it.
But sandy feet are also a pretty lovely sign of childhood.
They’re evidence of afternoons spent running between the water and the towel, collecting shells, building castles, climbing rocks and staying at the beach for “five more minutes” that inevitably becomes another half hour.
One day we’ll have clean cars.
We might even miss the sand.
3. Ocean pools are just… normal
Ask an Eastern Suburbs child whether they’d like to swim in a spectacular ocean pool overlooking the Pacific and you’ll probably get:
“Can I have a snack first?”
From Bondi and Bronte to Clovelly, Coogee and Maroubra, our coastline gives children some incredible places to learn to swim and become confident around the ocean.
Morning swimming lessons with waves crashing nearby might feel completely ordinary when you’re five.
Looking back at 25, it may feel very different.
4. Centennial Park is basically our enormous backyard
There aren’t many cities where families can escape into 189 hectares of parkland without actually leaving the city.
Bike rides. Duck spotting. Picnics. Horse riding. Birthday parties. Scooters. Footy. Learning to ride without training wheels.
And, of course, the inevitable moment when someone cycles confidently away before realising they haven’t quite mastered stopping.
Centennial Park has quietly appeared in thousands of Eastern Suburbs childhoods.
Sometimes the best family days aren’t elaborate.
They’re simply bikes, snacks and nowhere particularly important to be.
5. Whale spotting can interrupt your walk
There aren’t many places where someone can casually say:
“Look! A whale!”
…and everyone stops.
Between May and November, migrating humpbacks can turn an ordinary coastal walk into something magical.
Parents point.
Kids squint towards the horizon.
Someone confidently identifies a rock as a whale.
Then suddenly there really is a splash, a tail or — if you’re particularly lucky — a whale launching itself from the water.
No matter how many times you’ve seen it, people still stop.
We love that.
6. Weekend sport feels like its own little village
Saturday mornings across the Eastern Suburbs have a familiar rhythm.
Parents clutching takeaway coffees.
Kids wearing jerseys several sizes too big.
Someone asking which field we’re supposed to be on.
Someone else discovering their child has brought one soccer boot.
There are netball courts at Heffron Park, football grounds, rugby fields, cricket pitches, swimming pools, surf clubs and basketball courts filled with families every weekend.
But somewhere between the oranges, muddy uniforms and early alarms, something else happens.
Kids make friends.
Parents make friends.
Coaches remember names.
Families start recognising each other at the shops.
Sport creates little communities within our larger one.
7. Our kids get some pretty spectacular classrooms
Libraries, beaches, parks, rock pools and nature reserves become extensions of the classroom.
A walk along the rocks can turn into a lesson about sea creatures.
A trip to the library becomes an afternoon discovering dinosaurs.
A visit to Centennial Park can involve bats, birds, ponds and insects.
Even watching a storm roll across the ocean can prompt approximately 47 questions from the back seat.
Children are naturally curious.
We’re fortunate to live somewhere that gives them an enormous amount to be curious about.
8. Fish and chips tastes better near the ocean
This isn’t scientifically proven.
But we’re prepared to stand by it.
There’s something about opening a paper-wrapped dinner while still slightly salty from the beach that instantly feels like summer — even when it isn’t.
Everyone reaches for the chips.
Someone guards dinner from the seagulls.
Someone ignores the warning about the seagulls.
A seagull proves the parents correct.
These aren’t expensive experiences or carefully organised family outings.
They’re just simple moments.
And often those are the ones children remember.
9. There’s still a wonderful sense of local community
Sydney is a huge city, but the Eastern Suburbs can occasionally feel surprisingly small.
You recognise another parent at the supermarket.
Your child spots three classmates while you’re trying to have a quiet coffee.
Someone knows someone who knows the owner of the lost school jumper posted in a local Facebook group.
Parents pass on bikes, cots, uniforms and bags of children’s clothes.
Neighbours collect parcels.
People recommend teachers, plumbers, doctors, babysitters, swimming instructors and the best place to find a birthday cake at very short notice.
Community doesn’t always arrive in grand gestures.
Often it’s simply people helping each other make everyday life a little easier.
10. Our kids are creating memories without even knowing it
This might be the loveliest part.
Right now, they probably don’t appreciate any of it.
They’re not standing at Bronte thinking, “What a privilege to experience this magnificent coastal environment during my formative years.”
They’re asking for an ice cream.
They’re arguing with their sibling.
They’re complaining that the water is cold.
They’re refusing to leave the playground.
They’re wondering why they can’t have another babycino.
And that’s exactly how childhood should be.
Because somewhere along the way, all these ordinary moments are becoming memories.
The smell of sunscreen.
The walk home from school.
The sound of waves at night.
Saturday sport.
Bare feet on hot pavement.
Birthday parties in the park.
The first time they swam across the ocean pool.
The café where Mum always stopped for coffee.
The beach their family always went to.
One day, our kids may move across Sydney, interstate or to the other side of the world.
And perhaps someone will ask them where they grew up.
They’ll say Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs.
And suddenly they’ll remember all of it.
The beaches.
The parks.
The friends.
The sand.
The ocean.
Home.
What would you add to the list?
We know we’ve only scratched the surface.
What’s one little thing about raising kids in Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs that makes you stop and think, “We’re pretty lucky to live here”?
Tell us — we’d love to hear yours.
