Each Monday we profile a local eastern suburb mum to hear about her life in Sydney’s east and her tips for other local mums.
This week meet Erin Smith from Randwick.
Where and how long have you lived in Sydney’s east?
My husband and I moved back to Australia (we met in London and had been living abroad for 8 years in London and China) three years ago when we found out I was pregnant with my daughter. I’m originally from Brisbane, and had never lived in Sydney before. Since we’ve been here, we’ve fallen in love with the city, bought a gorgeous old terrace and started our own business (www.mercuryduck.com.au), selling trendy industrial style pendant lights – its been a busy 3 years!
How many children?
One beautiful girl Persephone (2.5) who goes by Percy, and a little boy, due to arrive in the next few weeks!
Favourite Park:
For socialising I love Queens Park – great coffee and muffins to sustain Mum and lots of great toddler sized equipment for the little person! It’s also enclosed which is great if you have an explorer or runner!
For everyday playing, I love Alison Park in Randwick, it’s close enough to the shops to pop in regularly, and it’s always full of lovely down to earth mums and kids who play nicely together.
Favourite Beach:
Definitely Coogee, you can find my daughter and I down here at least a couple of days a week. She’s a real fish, and loves the shallow kids play area and the public baths. But the real hidden treasure is McIver’s Baths, the women and children’s only baths, located next to the Grant Reserve Playground on Beach St, Coogee. It’s also a great place to spy whales swimming past in season. Absolutely incredible – you certainly don’t see whales in Brisbane!
Favourite Kid Friendly Cafe:
I love Rell’s Kitchen in Randwick on Frenchman’s Rd. Apart from lots of kid friendly healthy food option (and treats), they have a blackboard, colouring pencils and papers and a toy box to keep the littlies entertained! They also have a really nice bathroom, set up for bottom changes (it’s the little things that appeal to us Mums!). Mums also don’t miss out, with great coffee and food on the menu.
Favourite Coffee Spot:
Down the road from Rell’s is the Bake Bar which has the Gusto cafe attached. I always detour here before heading to the Randwick Playgroup (www.randwickplaygroup.org), to stock up on easily the best sourdough I’ve ever eaten, and meet my girlfriends for a pre-play coffee and pastry.
The coffee is divine and the pastries are melt in your mouth amazing. A loaf of sourdough is usually consumed between the cafe and playgroup – it’s just too good to last long (especially when 9/10 it’s still warm).
Favourite Local Date Night:
My go to option is The Little Kitchen in Coogee (Arden St). Amazing seasonal food, including the best breakfast in Sydney (a big call!) and in the evening, the food is superb and the ambiance great for being able to reconnect with your other half without interruption! It’s also quite easy on the wallet – main meals are all around the $30 mark.
Favourite wet weather location:
My daughter has always loved the cinema. In a downpour, we head to the Randwick Ritz cinema for some old school cinema watching. It’s never too packed, and if the rain stops in time, we can run across the road and choose a cheesecake to share at Kurtosh at the Spot.
Work or SAHM:
I’m lucky enough to have the best of both worlds – I run my busy business Mercury Duck, 2 days a week while my daughter socialises at Family Daycare and the rest of the week we spend exploring new parks and activities across the East.
Motherly Advice
If it doesn’t kill them (or hurt them) and you’ve got an eye on them, let them do it without interference!
It seems like we spend an awful lot of time these days wondering about the ‘what ifs’ – but I’m a true believer that by giving children the space to make their own decisions (and their own successes and failures) that they are significantly more likely to become more self sufficient and well rounded individuals in the future. Certainly putting this into practice is likely to cause mess and require the occasional band-aid, but it also has it’s own benefits.
My daughter for instance, has been able to open the fridge by herself since she was 18 months. Now at 2.5 she’s capable of getting her own glass and pouring her milk from a 3L bottle, as well as getting her own fruit to snack on. The downside of course, is that occasionally the milk gets spilt, or I find she’s eaten an apple right before dinner….. BUT, I also feel I’m setting her on her own path to be able to care for herself and make good choices about what food goes into her body. And I’m sure most Mums will agree, but any chance to avoid the inevitable ‘Muuuuuuuummmmmmm can you get me a……’ is something to celebrate! When I master how to get her to wipe her own spills up, I’ll be sure to share it!
Mercury Duck www.mercuryduck.com.au is pleased to offer Eastern Suburbs Mums 10% off our gorgeous pendant lights and bulbs until 15 April using the code MUM16.
