Where and how long have you lived in Sydney’s east:
I moved to Randwick when I graduated from Newcastle University about 20 years ago. When I met my husband we moved a couple of times in Hillsdale and then Maroubra. When the time was right, we bought our family home in the Eastern Suburbs and the rest is history. We love where we live and can’t imagine being anywhere else!
How many children:
Three children – Marley 8, Lily 5 and Ruby 2 years old. They are the absolute love of our lives. It’s amazing how much joy your kids continue to give you.
Favourite Park:
I’d have to say Heffron Park because it contains a huge open space for my kids to burn off energy, and has a Pedal Park filled with miniature road networks for our kids to ride their bicycles and scooters.
Favourite Beach:
We spend most of our time at Maroubra Beach during the summer months. The South end is great for kids because it has a rock pool for swimming and a playground close by when they are tired of the water. Parking is also a breeze there!
Favourite kid friendly cafe:
Zeebra’s Cafe Maroubra. It’s only a small Café in Maroubra but the service is always friendly and the food is always reliably good. My husband and I discovered this place well before the kids came along, and since the café is stocked with toys and high chairs, it continues to be our favourite go-to spot on the weekends. The staff are lovely and have literally watched our family grow over time.
Favourite Coffee Spot:
I don’t drink coffee but I enjoy my hot chocolate at Jack’s Café in Kensington near my work. The chocolate froth is always thick and deliciously good.
Favourite date night place:
With three kids under the age of 8 and a huge focus on our new business, date nights can sometimes fall off the radar. Every now and then (this may stretch out to months) we like to reconnect at Hurricanes in Bondi. You can’t beat their pork ribs followed by a stroll down the road for ice cream.
Favourite Local Day Out Activity:
With so many great beaches around the eastern suburbs it’s hard to write anything else. A morning walk along the beach (probably Maroubra), then lunch at Zeebra café or take away calamari and chips (from Barnacles next door) on the beach. The children play happily on the beach or in the playground while we chill out and take in the beauty of our surroundings.
Favourite Local Shop:
I love my food and for anyone that knows me, know that I can put away a fair a bit (despite my size!) Campbell’s Southpoint Tender Meats is the best. Their meat selection is always fresh and awesome. They also have the best sausages in Sydney. Ask for the Mexican sausage! Yum…. Hill’s Butchery on Moverly Road is also a favourite, their chicken schnitzel are so tasty and their home made lasagna and pies are to die for!
Favourite wet weather location:
Kids are happy to stay at home to play with their toys, watch a good movie or play on the Nintendo and Wii, rain, hail or shine. But on wet weather days we do like to take the kids to Skyzone so they can burn off some energy.
Describe an ideal day in Sydney’s eastern suburbs just for you?
Having time to exercise first thing in the morning followed by a big hot breakfast at a café. On this ideal day I would find time to sit on the beach by myself and relax or read a book peacefully with no interruptions.
This would be followed by a relaxing facial and then home to a prepared lunch made by my husband. A satisfying dinner at Kokoroyo Japanese restaurant would end my ideal day just perfectly!
What area of the east have you yet to explore much but would like to?
I would like to explore more of the north like Vaucluse, Dover Heights and Watson’s Bay. It would be nice to spend more time there and check out what they have to offer. I’m sure the cafés parks, playgrounds and surrounding bays would be equally as beautiful.
Work or Stay at home parent?
I’m juggling both with 3 kids. I am very fortunate to have parents who genuinely love looking after my children while I work part time. I guess with all that they do, I don’t ask for extra babysitting which explains the lack of ‘date’ nights!
I’ve always loved teaching and after 20 years of primary teaching in the classroom I recently decided to follow my dreams and start up my own tutoring business. I am the owner and director of Successful Learners Tutoring now. It’s been an absolute privilege to work so closely with individual students and watch them grow in confidence and ability. My work is truly rewarding, to be able to help children improve in their learning and know that you’ve made a huge difference in their education is priceless.
At Successful Learners Tutoring we provide individual and small group tutoring for preschool, primary and high school students. Our business model is simple – have qualified and experienced teachers motivate, educate and accelerate students successfully in a comfortable and stimulating learning environment.
SPECIAL OFFERS for Eastern Suburbs Mums
For this term only, we are offering our ESM 5% off your child’s term 2 fees.
Contact me for a free learning assessment and see what we can do to help support your child. https://www.sltutoring.com.au/ (offer expires April 30th 2019)
High School Students – book now and they will get their first lesson free!
Motherly advice?
Whether you have 1, 2, 3 or more children juggling work and home life is definitely hard work and everything always seems to be rushed.
Prioritize, because not everything will get done and that is ok. Organized households are a thing of the past after having children, and that’s ok too.
Don’t forget though, amongst the chaos of everyday living, it’s important to take a moment and reflect on how precious and special each one of them are. Tell them how wonderful and unique they are and your children will grow in self-confidence every day. You are your children’s biggest role model, display self-acceptance and resilience in this hectic world, show them courage and to always follow your dreams and they will admire and do the same.
