This year we’re running formal playgroups on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday mornings and then welcoming families to pop into our garden on Wednesday mornings from 10am-12pm for an informal play.

Grab a coffee from Alphington Foodstore next door or an icy pole from the milkbar, and enjoy our mud kitchen or our sand pit, our ride on toys etc.

There are tables and bench seats scattered around to relax and enjoy conversations with other parents or just sit and take a breather for 5 minutes. Come along with your kids, arrange to meet another family here … our house is your house!

We hope to see you at ACC when we return for Term 1. Our programming recommences in the first week of February.

This Friday the 18th of December Santa will be paying a visit to the Alphington Bowls Club!

Take your children along to put in their last minute present requests.

The bar is open from 4pm and the kitchen from 6pm.

Santa’s visit will be around 7:30pm.

Now in it’s 12th year this annual event is fun for all the family. Free sweets and ice creams for the kids.

This week our letter starting ‘Dear neighbour’ has been written by a year 12 student. Find out what the student is planning now, how year 12 has been amidst a global pandemic … and more.

Another super interesting take on a year like no other!

These letters went up Sunday on the butcher shop window, so there should be some left Monday. Note we also have some in the foyer at ACC if you find you keep missing out …

Our fruit trees are full of fruit and we’ve got lots of herbs growing in our garden this year. We are hoping that with your help we can keep them alive and thriving through the summer holidays when we are closed.

If you live close by, will be home in January, and wouldn’t mind popping past once or twice please let us know, and we’ll add you to our watering roster.

We are so fortunate to have so many lovely volunteers involved in Alphington Community Centre. Thanks in advance!

The weather held off for our annual Christmas Makers Market, and we had a wonderful community morning on Saturday. We were thrilled to have some lovely community minded folk from Rotary helping out on the BBQ. Thanks Kevin (you may know him for his lovely bonsai trees that he has sold at our markets in the past) for suggesting that your Rotary friends might be able to get involved.

We’d also like to thank Nelson Alexander for helping us get the word out about the market with 2 signboards and some coreflutes. We really appreciate having an ongoing relationship with a local real estate agent. We couldn’t possibly do any large and flashy advertising without their help.

Thanks to all the makers that participated on the day including our local CWA. There was a super variety of things to purchase. Lots of jewellery, jam, plants, gorgeous craft and some super recycled bags … just to name a few.

Lots of kids got into our crafty Christmas project that recycled a jar lid into a nature based Christmas decoration. And we had all our community art projects out on display. It was nice for everyone attending to see what Blind Date with a Book is about, and to be able to collect an Honestly letter (sometimes it is hard to make it down to the shops in time to grab one before they all go!).

Thanks again shoppers, seller and crafty kids. Aren’t we lucky to live in such a great local neighbourhood!