It’s been at least 20 years since I’ve been back in Melbourne – maybe it’s time to pop down from Sydney to visit? As a mum to a little science nerd (and a wife to a big one), the Planetarium alone will certainly me a memorable experience for the family!

From the website –
Scienceworks makes learning about science and technology a fun, interactive adventure.

Scienceworks is a great place to challenge curious minds and keep active bodies busy.

The Summer School Holiday Program is packed with great exhibits and show for the kids – for dinosaur lovers there’s Explor-a-saurus, there’s Plantearium shows for star gazers and collections of Melbourne’s historic past.

For those out-of-towners like me, Scienceworks is easy to get to by public transport and free limited onsite parking is available.

Children between 3-16 years are FREE to Scienceworks and there are seperate charges for the various exhibits.

For more information about Scienceworks, please visit their website
museumvictoria.com.au/scienceworks/

All images are the property of Museum Victoria

Sydneysiders! If you’ve just spent a day in the city and need a place to chill out with the kids, or you’ve got nothing planned for dinner and feel like doing something different – keep this in mid!

The Night Owls Kids Film Fest is running now until the 23rd January on the Community Green. Featuring a different kids movie each night for free, you can bring a picnic (or buy some dinner at one of the many new restaurants and cafes in the Darling Quarter precinct) and enjoy a night out under the stars.

The film starts at 6:45pm each night and best in pj’s wins a free Night Owls tshirt.

Films coming up next week include classics such as Sound of Music, Sleeping Beauty and the Wizard of Oz. It’s a great opportunity to spend some family time together AND show the kids a movie they may never have seen before.

Check out the cute promo for the Night Owls Kids Fest

Little Darlings NIGHT OWLS KIDS FILM FEST from Darling Quarter on Vimeo.

Park at Darling Quarter after 5pm weekdays or all day weekends for only $5!

To find out more about the Night Owls Kids Film Fest, please visit the Darling Quarter website or check them out on Facebook.

All Images belong to Darling Quarter.

The Little Mermaid
A mermaid princess longing to find out more about the unknown, a handsome prince and a soundtrack that stands the test of time! The Little Mermaid was released back in 1989 but still remains one of the most beloved of Disney films. The Little Mermaid in 3D is scheduled for September 13, 2013.

The kids will like it because who doesn’t love singing underwater creatures?

Aladdin
A fun movie about a boy and a Genie and the chaos that ensues – the movie was based on a Middle Eastern folk tale. Again it has some memorable songs in the soundtrack, but who can forget the karaoke favourite, Oscar winning A Whole New World?

The kids will like it because good always wins over evil. Yeah!

And finally, The Lion King.
Did you know it is the the highest-grossing hand drawn film in history? Released in 1994, The Lion King is about a young lion cub named Simba and the battle for his future kingdom. It spawned one of the most loved songs of all time – Hakuna Matata. It means no worries, for the rest of your days.

The kids will love this because the lesson of not giving up and family is the most important part of our lives.

You can find The Lion King in 3D on dvd now. Aladdin and The Little Mermaid on dvd is hard to come by because it has been put into moratorium, but I was able to find Aladdin at JB HiFi and The Little Mermaid at Amazon.com.

Russell from Free Things To Do Melbourne emailed me about his website, and I’m glad that he did because there is a tonne of great info listed.

My favourite sections include a list of Melbourne Festivals, museums in Melbourne and Free Kids Activities in Melbourne. He’s even written a great section called 48 Hours in Melbourne, which is perfect for families that are only in town for a short stay.

I haven’t been back to Melbourne in over 15 years, but looks like I have a great online guide to get inspired by!

Check out more great free things to do in Melbourne today
www.free-things-to-do-melbourne.com

The Wiggles have literally taken over the world, and a special exhibition has started showing at the Powerhouse Museum in Ultimo, Sydney. Inside you’ll find heaps of interactive Wiggle-themed games (including a Fruit Salad game, fix the Wiggle car, play guitar along with Murray and ride the Big Red Cart) and lots of activities dotted along the way. There was a crazy amount of Wiggles memorobilia to browse through too.

My favourite? Having a tea party inside Dorothy the Dinosaurs house – Daddy did the honours while I took a photo!

The exhibition runs now until 2012 (I’ll try to find the exact date…) so put it on your list of things to do while in Sydney with the kids!

Powerhouse Museum
powerhousemuseum.com/wiggles
500 Harris Street, Ultimo NSW
10:00am – 5:00pm

Tip – We parked at the Entertainment Centre (then popped over to the Darling Quarter for some lunch and a play!) for $28 for 4 hours +.

Little Melbourne is the ultimate guide for things to do with babies, toddlers & kids in Melbourne – so you’ll always have something to do!

From the city sights to library & storytime, you can also find a music class or great things to do on a rainy day.

Run by Jo & David (and little Ruby & Henry!), Little Melbourne is bursting with information – which makes it one of the best family websites to visit time and time again.

Little Melbourne
www.littlemelbourne.com.au

The Baby On Holiday is seperated into 3 parts – Destinations, Tips and a Store. Everything all in one place!

Kid Friendly Holiday Destinations that have been tried and tested are posted to their website – they have stories from parents and parents to be that have travelled within Australia and also outside of Australia (including Hawaii, Bali and Vietnam).

Travel Tips offers up advice to travellers to be before they start on their adventure – definately look at their article about travelling on a plane with a baby and keeping baby safe in the sun.

The Baby On Holiday shop offers some great products for you to take on your trip – including baby sunglasses, Zoggs trainer swim seat (we love this!) and the Throwover Mosquito Net.

For more info about taking your baby on holiday, check out the website today.

Baby On Holiday
www.babyonholiday.com.au

So how was your weekend?

I’ve been writing for The Australian Baby Blog for over 3 years now, and it’s about time we get to know each other better The Monday Mash Up gives us the opportunity to share a bit about our weekend or whatever is going on in our lives. Whether you have a photo or just a quick comment or question – please feel free to jump on into the Mash Up!

My weekend was great as usual, with the sun shining and the wind gone, it was the perfect opportunity to take the Fisher Price Kid Tough Camera out on our walk. The pictures above are all taken by my 3 year old Jasper, he loves that he’s able to take a photo of anything he likes. (And I also love that I don’t have to worry about him dropping the camera along the way).

I think next week we’ll head into the city for a big walk – my daughter Jovie loves to see new things and Jasper won’t say no to a train ride!

Leave your Monday Mash Up comments below, or ‘Click here to enter’ to upload your photo if you have one!

The awesome team at ettitude have organised a Baby & Kids Goodie Swap in Melbourne on the 16th of July 2011!

Swap what your bubs have outgrown for what they need. Not only will you have a great afternoon swapping baby & kids items with others – but you’ll also be raising fund for the Oncology Children’s Foundation (OCF) which helps kids with cancer.

Tickets are $20 online or $25 at the door. Group Ticket discount available.
ettitude are kindly giving ABB readers $5 off their ticket – just enter in the code babyblog in the checkout!

For more information about this fantastic event and how the swap works, please click here.

If you can’t make it, then make sure to check out the range of bamboo sheets, and other eco friendly products & organic baby clothing at ettitude today

Over this long weekend, the Sydney Great Train Expo was held in Sydney and judging by the hundreds of excited kids, it was a great success.

Climb aboard a heritage train hauled by famous steam locos 3642 and 3526 for a 75-minute round trip through the suburbs from Central Station to Clyde. Take a great-value family adventure in Standard Class 1930s-era carriages.

If you have a little kid (or even a big one!) that loves trains, riding in the steam train is something that you should plan to do. Their list of upcoming events is listed on their website here.

It was a real treat to ride in the 1930s era carriages – we shared a seat compartment with another family and had a great time waving at people along the way. There were alot of enthuiasts waiting for the train to pass along the whole route!

For more info, visit and bookmark www.heritageexpress.com.au