Where and how long have you lived in Sydney’s east:
I’ve lived in the Eastern Suburbs for nearly 10 years – the whole time I’ve been in Australia. My husband and I moved over from London in 2009, originally settling in Bondi and now living in Coogee.
How many children:
I have one daughter, Didi. She is 16 months old and was the inspiration for Good Bubs.
Favourite Park:
We’re very fortunate to live by Grant Reserve in Coogee. It’s a great spot, perfect for BBQs, picnics and throwing a ball around.
Favourite Beach:
I love the harbour beaches. Redleaf is a favourite. It’s great for kids and has gorgeous harbour views.
Favourite kid friendly cafe:
We just discovered the North End Cafe in Maroubra. It has a cute little courtyard out the back with a big selection of old toys for the kids to play
with.
Favourite Coffee Spot:
Coogee Courtyard early in the morning, not so much for the coffee but to watch the early risers coming in from their daily ocean swim.
Favourite date night place:
My husband and I like to go for tapas at Del Punto in the Spot. We went there for our last date night while I was pregnant and our first after Didi was born. It’s cosy, does great cocktails, and is perfect for the rare time we get just the two of us!
Favourite Local Day Out Activity:
I love the McIver ladies baths in Coogee. It is such a beautiful spot, particularly when the sun is shining down and the water is a vivid turquoise. I used to swim there regularly when I was pregnant and now I love taking Didi there on our days together.
Favourite Local Shop:
San Sebastián on Coogee Beach Road is a great all rounder. It has a good selection of clothes for men and women, baby gear, as well as toys and nicknacks – perfect for any last minute birthday presents or baby showers!
Favourite wet weather location:
Rugged up at home with a good movie.
Describe an ideal day in Sydney’s eastern suburbs for you?
Friends and family are really important to me so an ideal day would be getting together at a beach or park, having a BBQ with all our friends and family around. It doesn’t really matter where but in the Eastern Suburbs we are spoiled for choice – Redleaf and Grant Reserve, as I mentioned, or Centennial Park, Marks Park, Neilson Park, Coogee, Bondi, Bronte, Tamarama, so many to choose from!
What area of the east have you yet to explore much but would like to?
I’ve still never been snorkelling around Gordons Bay, which feels like a crime as it’s so close to home!
Work or SAHM:
I work three days for Redkite, a not for profit supporting children with cancer, and the other days I look after my daughter and work on Good Bubs during her naps and in the evenings. It’s a juggle but I love the variety and I feel passionately about all three so I feel very fortunate!
Motherly advice:
Don’t be too hard on yourself. I think we put so much pressure on ourselves to be the perfect parents. As long as your children are safe, fed and loved, you are doing a good job! Which brings me to our social enterprise, Good Bubs…
What is Good Bubs?
When Didi was born, it really hit home how lucky we were to be able to give her everything she needed for a healthy, happy start in life and we knew that millions of babies around the world weren’t that fortunate. That’s why we set up Good Bubs, a social enterprise selling baby gifts, with 50% of profits donated to charities helping bubs in need.
We’ve spent the last 8 months developing our products and business model and now need to raise $15,000 to place our first bulk order. So we’ve launched a crowdfunding campaign (startsomegood.com/goodbubs) where people can pre-order our products or support us with a donation. You may have seen us wearing giant baby costumes around Coogee, Maroubra or Bondi, or even in the city on our commute to work! This is all part of the campaign – we’ll be wearing these costumes until we hit our target (or four weeks is up)!
We’ve been blown away by the support so far but we’ve still got a lot further to go! You can help us by pre-ordering or donating, you can follow us on facebook (/goodbubs) or Instagram (@goodbubsau), and if you see us us around, please say hello!
Check out our first week as big babies here!
