What we did on our Christmas holidays

Well, what DIDN'T we do over the Christmas holidays??

I feel like the song "I've been everywhere" by Lucky Starr was our theme song this summer.

You see, when Mr3P plans a road trip...well he doesn't like to leave anything out.

This road trip was no exception.

Killing the serenity in Bonnie Doon's Lake Eildon.

The destination for Christmas was the Gold Coast, where my family live. I haven't seen any of them in over a year, so I was itchin' to get there. 

It's a long, long way in a car with 3 little ones, so Mr3P likes to do lots of short trips to kill the boredom and to stay awake and fresh....(he did all of the driving up & back, while I do all of the driving on the Gold Coast). 

So, before we went away, he spent days researching on the Internet for interesting things to do along the way. He even made a bit of an itinerary. He's so cute like that.

The sign says it all.

This was an interesting stop. I've never seen a submarine, inland rural NSW and in the middle of a park. It's the HMAS Otway's final resting spot. We were too early to go into the museum, but the kids had fun playing on the sub. 

Holbrook Submarine Museum, Holbrook

Now Mr3P thinks I'm a stresser....and he's right. Especially when we drove the circuit at Mt Panorama in Bathurst. He was like a big kid (like every other man who has driven the circuit, I imagine).
I don't know how the pros do it...it was scary at 60km/hr and they go a heck of a lot faster than that.
By the way, I don't think I've seen a prettier or tidier town than Bathurst. Just lovely.

Now, if you've driven along the Hume Highway, you've probably stopped here at The Dog on the Tuckerbox.

Well, now we have too.

Of course, a stop over in Tamworth wouldn't be right without a picture taken in front of The Big Golden Guitar. And some Hungry Jack's....thanks for the free Wi-Fi, HJs!! Thank you Great Architect of the Universe for somehow not letting me put on any weight these holidays (in fact, when I got home, I'd realised that I had lost 500g....woo hooo)

We did what we usually do when it comes to somewhere to lay our heads for the night. That is, we start looking for suitable accommodation before it gets dark...we shop around the town rather than book anything in advance. It doesn't have to be the Hilton for us (plus the fact that there IS no Hilton on the Hume), as long as it's clean and not creepy. We only stay for sleep and a shower...then off we go.
We're just wild and crazy like that.

Sometimes Mr3P took us 2 hours off the beaten track.

Just so I could photograph a waterfall.

and stress at my pickles being too close to the edge.

I have a fear of heights by proxy.

Can anyone say "control freak"?

Do you have those type of fears for your kids? Even though the heights don't bother me too much, I can't stand my kids being near the edge...even though my logic tells me it's safe.

The loo paper went where we went.....you just never know.

It's the little things................

We helped save Thundebolt's Hideout in Tenterfield 
Thank goodness another family came to take over our shift......................

It took us almost 4 days to get to the Gold Coast, but it was a lot of fun and the kids will have some great memories of our trip...isn't that what a family holiday is all about?

If you want to see some pics and tid bits about the rest of our trip, then please drop back later in the week. I have my blogging hat on again.
Hope to see you soon.