The end of the year and the end of this blog

Thursday 31st December: Hooray, I managed to keep this going for the whole year! I've decided I will print it out and keep as a "diary" for the boys to look back on, but I might need some new ink cartridges before I do that!
Today was sunny and mild, but I was feeling chilly with a yucky cold so I lit a fire in the logburner. Steve went off to work and the boys emerged later than usual and we all had a slow start to the day. Late morning we headed into town to the recycling park then the cycling park!! We also dropped into the library and helped make more space on their shelves and less space in our house, and popped into the supermarket for some bits and bobs.
In the afternoon we all got on with jobs around the garden. Jonathan and I scooped up sheep, goat and chicken poop and started a new compost bin with that, some hay and the solid mass from the pee tea bin. Hopefully there will be some fabulous compost in there to use over the winter. Next we cleared some sticky weeds called cleavers (or Galium aparine - you can tell I'm taking my plant science course seriously when I know the Latin names of the weeds!!) from some flower beds. They had formed a matted blanket over some shrubs like something alien from a horror movie. Still, a few days to dry out and then a trip to the bonfire should slow down their spread. I'm almost tempted to use chemicals on them, but actually hand-weeding them is quite satisfying. Peter and Edward were busy with the wheelbarrow collecting more wood from the land and moving it to the wood shed. Steve was busy building something for his workshop. The chickens were trying to help him, we think, and weren't the least bit perturbed by a circular saw whirring round very near to their necks!!
I took photos of some of the flowers in the garden. They are really beautiful and there are so many of them in different areas. While I had the camera out a fat hedgehog ran across the driveway, but it was under the bushes before I caught up with it to photograph it.
For tea we had homemade sausages and tooth-pulling chocolate pudding and ice-cream.
After the boys went to bed I completed my online plant science module - just need to complete the assessment now (76 pages long!) and Steve watched the film "Gladiator".
A Happy New Year to anyone reading this, and I hoped you have enjoyed our year with us.

BMX Park

Wednesday 30th December: Today was warm and sunny in the morning so I put a summer skirt and sleeveless shirt on, but later it got cold and windy and even rained so I ended up in warm clothes and put the heat pump on!
We had a quiet morning at home and the boys played some computer games. Late in the morning we headed into town and the boys put their bikes in the back of the car to try out the new BMX Park, next to the swimming pool. At the moment it is just a few piles of sand but there are bigger and better plans for its future. While we were there the nice weather left and a wintry shower arrived, so we threw the bikes back in the truck and headed home.
We had a quiet afternoon home but it was windy outside. The boys read books or played with their toys and I did some knitting and some of my plant science module that I haven't been near for a couple of weeks and really want to get finished before the end of the year.
The wind continued to gust strongly all evening - at one point we couldn't hear the tv over the noise of the wind rattling down the logburner chimney the other end of the room!

Baby blackbirds

Tuesday 29th December: In the morning Mum and Dad and packed the car for their latest trip away, this time to the West Coast of the South Island, Land of the Sandfly!!
Steve was back at work and the boys and I stayed home. They were kept occupied with their new toys, books and games from Christmas, and tried out the computer CD-ROM games Father Christmas brought them.
I spent some time in the garden. I'm trying very hard to be as organic as possible in approach, and don't want to use chemicals at all in the vegetable garden and would rather avoid them where possible elsewhere. I have been making some pee tea and this was ready to be spread around and watered in, so that kept me busy for a while. I also transplanted the courgette plants that have suddenly grown, and weeded around the other crops.
In the rose bush outside the spare bedroom window there is a nest with three baby blackbirds. Today we saw they had started to grow feathers, but still have their eyes shut. And beaks open! (see photo).

Race Day

Monday 28th December: When we had arrived yesterday our usual spot we camp at was already taken, so we parked right by the end of the harbour, near the boat ramp. We were woken early today by so many trucks and trailers coming to launch their motorboats, presumably to catch something for breakfast (other than duck itch!).
We had a quiet morning, the boys enjoying taking their bikes to the bike jumps at the camp. Steve prepared the boat to go sailing and we went out on the lake for a sail later in the morning. It was a pretty successful outing compared to some we had last year, and were out for more than 2 hours. It was quite calm and hot and sunny when we went out, but the wind got brisker while we were out.
We got back and had lunch then Steve went to find someone to crew with him in the 3 o'clock race. His boat was the smallest by far, but it's all about taking part, and people complimented him on how much his sailing has improved since last year. The boys and I sat/played on the headland while he was racing. The wind was really brisk by now and Steve got back tired and sunburnt after a couple of hours.
While Steve was derigging the boat I cooked tea, which we ate and then drove back to Waimate, arriving home about 8pm. Mum and Dad had had no trouble withe the animals this time.
We unpacked the motorhome and parked the boat in the top paddock and then enjoyed a quiet evening home.

Sausage sizzle

Sunday 27th December: This morning we were up and getting sorted early (well, earlier than usual on a day off!) and getting the motorhome ready. We drove off to Lake Aviemore. I drove the motorhome with the boys, Steve drove the truck towing the boat, and Mum and Dad drove their hire car. We stopped off at the toilets at Kurow as usual, and the boys had a few minutes playing in the playground here. Just across the road was the Hay Family, who appeared in the blog back at the very beginning of the year (see photo).
We continued on to our usual camping area near the boat ramp at Waitangi, on the east side of Lake Aviemore. Our plan today was to have a sausage sizzle to raise money for the Keas and Cubs activities. We had arranged to borrow a bbq, and were busy immediately, selling sausages, burgers, ice-creams, cold drinks, and muffins. It went really well and people were really encouraging about what we were doing and some gave extra as donations to support us. Many were really keen we go back and do the same thing another day. (see photo)
Mum and Dad left about 6 o'clock and we packed up the bbq and went for a walk around the harbour area. (see photo from the boat ramp).
After the boys went to bed Steve went off fishing. However there was some excitement during the evening when he was called off to a very poorly woman, and was busy trying to help her with the emergency services until very late. He returned to his fishing and has been telling a great tale since about 'the one that got away' - an enormous eel, apparently!

Boxing Day

Saturday 26th December: Hot, muggy and overcast, changing to chilly after lunch. Today we were delighted to find the lambs still in their paddock! They were delighted to get a bottle of warm milk to start the day.
The boys spent the day playing with their toys and reading their new books, especially a new set of Geronimo Stilton ones.
In the morning I watered the vegetables and used the shears to clear the long grass growing in and around the fruit trees on the road side of the garden. After lunch Steve and I went into town to do some shopping for the next couple of days. When we got back it was time to cook another roast turkey dinner. We finished off the turkey, chipolatas, Christmas pudding and cheesecake so there's plenty more room in the fridge now!
After tea Mum and I started baking some muffins for the next few days, punctuated by reading the next two chapters of a very funny book "Ivan the Terrible" to the boys before their bedtime. Later in the evening we watched the film 'Sentinel' and in the commercial breaks packed more stuff into the motorhome.
The photos are of Edward. First he is puzzling over the Rubik's Cube Zoe and Paul bought him for Christmas - he's determined to crack it, but says the clues in the instruction book are very confusing. The second is of Edward taking some of his stuff across to the motorhome. I told him he had three things to take - his bicycle, his helmet, and his car seat from the truck. He obviously decided one trip would work better than three, but then had so much fun balancing the seat on his head he went round and round several times anyway!!

Christmas Day

Friday 25th December: Christmas Day! The boys appeared at 7.01am and checked in with us as agreed, so we could all enjoy them discovering their filled stockings. They were delighted with their gifts from Father Christmas, particularly Jonathan who got the car he made a late request for yesterday. The boys got a lovely note from Father Christmas, and went out the front door, faced north and shouted out thank you to Father Christmas as loudly as they could (our usual routine).
The boys spent the next couple of hours playing with their new cars while we showered, fed the lambs, collected the eggs and let the hens out, chatted to Shirley and Felicity on skype, and had a cup of tea. Then we unwrapped our new game for this year - the Great Moa Hunt - and everyone played it for the hour it took me to get lunch ready.
Christmas lunch was ready at 12 noon. We had a traditional English meal, even though it was now 30 degrees outside and very humid. We had roast turkey, roast potatoes, roasted vegetables, stuffing, chipolatas, cabbage, carrots and sweetcorn, and gravy. Pudding was a mixed English-Kiwi affair - a choice of Christmas pudding or Pavlova!
After lunch, Steve and I "impressed" our guests with some musical arrangements appropriate to the time of the year. I tried playing the piano, accompanied by Steve on the trombone, and we dragged ourselves through a few carols, with my Dad howling with laughter in the background and threatening to put the video of it on you-tube! Before too long we were distracted with a cup of tea and then the boys got busy being parcel delivery boys as we worked our way through the presents.
There was plenty of time to put together and play with toys before tea, which was sardines on toast followed by a choice (or a succession) of mince pies, cheesecake and chocolate mud cake.
After tea we put the air-conditioning on to cool down the boys rooms. It was still uncomfortably hot and humid.
Next we worked together to secure the lambs' enclosure and catch them to move back into the paddock, where they settled down quickly to eat as much grass as they could find. The boys played with their trucks and remote-controlled cars, doing donuts on the gravel drive.
Before long it was time for stories and bed for the boys, and opening a bottle of cool white wine and a box of chocolates for us.
I think the photos are self-explanatory - mostly because my wine is warming up while I type this!!!

Santa will soon be here!!

Thursday 24th December: Today was warm and sunny. I was busy in the morning finishing off presents and preparing food, and the boys were happy to play with their cars and car tracks and read books. At lunchtime I popped into town to make some final deliveries and pick up final supplies, then was home all afternoon.
For tea we had roast rammy lamby which was scrummy, and soon it was time to get the stockings ready and prepare for Father Christmas. As we had finished tea Jonathan had suddenly announced that he hadn't yet written a letter to Father Christmas, and that he wanted to and there was only one thing he wanted to put in it - a remote-controlled mini car he had seen in Hammer Hardware in town. We pointed out that Father Christmas would be making final preparations to leave the North Pole and there wouldn't be time to get a letter to him BUT he could stand on the front steps and shout out and hope one of the elves might hear and be able to do something about it, but that it was unlikely at such short notice...
The photos are of the boys with their stockings, and a close-up of the table of provisions for Santa and his sleigh-crew. Being a warmer climate here the traditional glass of sherry for the jolly chap was replaced with a more thirst-quenching diet coke!

It's nearly Christmas!

Wednesday 23rd December: Today started cool but soon turned into a beautiful day. Mum and Dad headed off to Elephant Rocks for the day, about an hour from us, where the final battle scene from 'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe' was filmed.
We got the washing on the line and collected our friend and neighbour Maddie and drove the pool. Maddie gave the boys a swimming lesson for the next hour so it was lunchtime by the time we got home.
After lunch we rushed back into town to visit Jeanette and Allan and they gave us a lovely basket with goodies in for Christmas. The boys played on their scooters while I enjoyed a cup of tea and a chat. From there we dropped Jeanette at the physio clinic and went to the library and borrowed another wheelbarrow full of books! The boys sat and read books on the bench in the supermarket while I did the big shop. Before returning home we visited the town's pharmacy which has a fabulous advent display in its window. The boys were fascinated.
Home for rammy-lamby sausages and then time for vegetable-garden-watering and present-wrapping once the boys were in bed. I also made a large chocolate-mud cake and the smell through the house as it cooked was yummy!
The photos are of Edward and Jonathan enjoying being at the pool, and Peter and Steve with the hens.

Off to the pool

Tuesday 22nd December: Warm and sunny. We had a slow start to the day, other than getting Steve off to work on time. Mum and Dad went out to do local trips and we got ready to go out.
We went to the town's outdoor swimming pool to meet up with other homeschoolers before they head off to their baches for the holidays. There were 6 families there altogether with 15 children altogether. The kids had great fun in the pool while we mums enjoyed a good chat and got to know two new families recently moved to the area.
We had lunch at the pool and then people drifted away and we went off to the library to take back a bag of books and get some new ones out. We also collected Sunshine the canary from Childcare who are shut down for the next month, and headed back to the house.
The boys played in their digging area and I sorted out clothes and Jonathan's new chest of drawers Dad has been painting over the weekend.
Our friend Gael called round to clip the hens' wings to stop them flying over the farm gate and restyling our house garden and vegetable seedlings.
The photos are from the trip to the pool.

Mount (S)Hutt and home

Monday 21st December: Today dawned bright with blue skies but chilly. There was fresh snow on the Southern Alps that made up our backdrop. Well, even in the sunshine the campsite was miserable! It was a small back yard behind a large old warehouse-type building. The standings were gravel around a central bbq area on a grassy patch. The site is for 17 motorhomes, but for them the shared facilities have 2 toilets and 3 showers only, and the building they were in was cold. The lounge and kitchen facilities were basic too.
Still, we had left before 10am and headed towards Mount (S)Hutt the skifield (because it usually is!), and then south-ish along the back road to Geraldine and home to Waimate, stopping in Timaru to get some shopping.
We were home in time for lunch. Mum and Dad seem to have had a busy weekend recapturing our lambs several times, and recovering the hens from the house garden and vegetable plot.
We spent the afternoon cutting the lawns, putting down newspaper and grass clipping weed barriers in the vegetable garden, and weeding.
The photos are of Mount Hutt, a delay on the way home, and the campsite with our motorhome (we were the only ones staying there).

Surfing adventure

Sunday 20th December: The morning was hot with blue skies. We headed to east of Christchurch to New Brighton (it even has a pier!) and Steve left us at a playground while he went to collect something he had bought on trade-me. While I was waiting with the boys I noticed a board advertising surfing lessons at 11am, and invited Steve to have a go as a Christmas present from me. He rose to the challenge, and Peter asked if he could have a go too. Their lesson lasted 2 hours and both boys were tired and cold by the end of it, but got on really well for a first time. Edward, Jonathan and I sat on the sandy beach and watched, and made car tracks in the hot sand.
Just as their lesson finished the wind turned round to a southerly, picked up strength, and it turned very cold as the thick grey clouds blew in. followed by rain. We ate lunch in the motorhome and then headed across to the west of Christchurch and carried on west through Darfield and on to Methven. It rained all the way, and was cold by now. We arrived at Methven about 5.30pm and booked into a campsite. I know it was cold and wet, but it was the most miserable campsite I have ever been on - maybe it will look better when the sun shines? We walked along to a pub for dinner and got back to the motorhome about 8.30pm.

Orana Park

Saturday 19th December: Happy birthday Katie. Today was sunny and a little cloudy and just the right temperature for shorts and t-shirts. We spent all day at Orana Park, the Wildlife Park in Christchurch. We had enjoyed a day here back in February for Jonathan's birthday, and all three boys had requested a repeat visit once they knew we were going to Christchurch for this weekend. We had a lovely day there - the weather was perfect for being out and about, and we refuelled ourselves with burgers in the motorhome at lunchtime. We especially liked the lion cubs, about 6 months old. They were sheltering in the shade of a tree but came over to the wire fence when we stood there. Two of them stretched out and cuddled each other, while another rolled over on its back like a domestic cat would do, asking for you to tickle its tummy! One came over to its mum and wanted to play, but she was clearly wanting a rest from them.
We headed back to the campsite and Steve and the boys had a swim in the site pool while I cooked tea. After tea the boys had some more time playing in the playground before bed.
The photos are of a giraffe, a lion cub and mum, a lion cub playing hide-and-seek, ans a car number plate we saw in the car park.

Airforce Museum

Friday 18th December: A hot hot day. We packed up the motorhome and were ready to leave at 10am. We headed north on the SH1 (very blustery journey with the hot nor'wester bumping into the side of the motorhome) and arrived in Christchurch just before 1pm. We had hot dogs for lunch and then headed into the Airforce Museum. New Zealand no longer has an armed air response, but this museum traces the history of flight and air combat. We have been here twice before and love it. We love it even more now because it is free! The displays are great, there are flight simulators to have a go on, a large hangar with several aircraft in it, and restoration hangars you can look around. We spent a couple of hours looking at different displays than on previous visits and then headed across the city to our campsite in the north of Christchurch. The boys were keen to play in the playground and on the jumping pillow, and I walked up the road to get pizzas for tea. We ate our pizzas while watching "Monsters v Aliens" in the campsite movie room, then the boys played a little more until it had cooled down enough to get them off to bed. Steve returned to the movie room to watch "Star Trek".
Two of the photos are from the large hangar at the museum, and the other is of a "note" sent home from a Kiwi in a Japanese Prisoner or War camp - clearly he was a man of few words! I do like the options available, though!

Summer's here

Thursday 17th December: A warm sunny day. Perfect, except for all the flies that appeared and decided my kitchen was a nice place to hang out!
We did an hour's schooling to start the day, and that was the end of our schooling for this year. Mum and Dad went into town for the morning.
The boys played in the garden until lunch, while I made some gingernut cookies.
After lunch we were all busy outdoors. Dad put together another wooden frame for the vegetable patch, and I positioned it and planted the pumpkin seedlings, plus transplanted salad leaf plants. Then I weeded around the strawberries and put some bark chippings in around them to cut down on weed growth (I hope). Mum was busy clearing the other strawberry patch we have discovered, and the boys were enjoying themselves playing with their Hot Wheels track on the deck. They added a bowl full of water to the set-up for the cars to zoom down the slope and fly into the water with a big splash! (see photo).
For tea I cooked a bacon quiche and then dashed off to the supermarket to get food for the weekend, and got back in time to read to the boys before bedtime. Steve went out flying while the weather was so beautiful.

Athletics, Housie and firemen

Wednesday 16th December: Warm and sunny early on, then cooler and grey clouds later. We schooled for the first hour of the morning while Mum and Dad went out on a walk to the White Horse Monument on one of the hills overlooking our house.
After lunch the boys played with their Hot Wheels tracks on the deck while I transplanted the sweetcorn seedlings and the tomato plants.
At 3pm we headed into town and posted some parcels to England and bought some buttons. We popped into the library to return two bags of books and went along to Junior Athletics in Victoria Park. The boys did some races over hurdles, egg and spoon, shot put and 'once round the track'. As it was the last session of the year there was a sausage sizzle afterwards so we didn't get home until after 6pm. And when we got home we discovered all three chickens scratching around the front drive, and the two lambs had both escaped from their paddock but into different places! It took a lot of chasing and arm flapping to move the lambs in the right direction but then they kept rushing off again. My final tactic was to get the two milk bottles - that got their attention and they followed me all the way back to their paddock, and then shouted very loudly when I went off without feeding them (they only have morning feeds since the weekend!).
At 6.30pm I was out to the Town and Country Club with another couple of mums from the gymnastics club to help out with their weekly Housie night. For reading back the winning numbers and delivering the winnings after each card we earn $100 for our club. However, it's not an amazing evening unless you have the right company with you. And I did. Lee (a woman) from Pompey. She's great fun. In fact the evening was improved further by the fire alarms going off 10 minutes into the 2.5 hour session, so we all had to go outside, listen to the siren on the fire station 200m down the same road, wait for the firemen to arrive there and drive their engines to where we were, declare it all safe and we got back into the warm after about 10 minutes in the car park.

The decorations are up

Tuesday 15th December: A bright sunny, mild day. The slight warmth, combined with recent rain, means you could see everything in the garden grow in front of your eyes!
We schooled in the morning and the boys just kept on going until lunchtime. Mum and Dad went to get their hair cut, and then I followed to get mine done at lunchtime. While I was in town I collected the lamb from the butcher - nearly 20kg of meat for only $43, all nicely cut and wrapped as we had wanted.
In the afternoon we found the Christmas tree and decoration boxes in the tackroom and set about decorating the house. Most of the tinsel was sneaked out to the boys' bedrooms and was tied on to anything that didn't move.
There was a sprinkling of rain in the evening.

Christmas Extravaganza

Monday 14th December: Today was yucky weather. Cold and wet. A high of 10 degrees and it rained near enough all day.
Steve was working today. In the morning we did a little schooling. The boys were keen to do their Advent study and a little maths and some reading, then some computer learning time.
We had an early lunch and went with Mum and dad to Timaru. On the drive thre we saw dollops of snow on the side of the road!!
We looked at the Christmas displays in the shop windows and did some browsing in Whitcoulls, a bit like WHSmith. We also went to the Christmas Extravaganza. This is a series of themed rooms decorated with hundreds of Christmas things, many of which move, light up and/or play music. One room was a Workshop theme, a Christmas Banquet room, a nativity scene etc. We went twice last year to see it, and it was a fabulous way to get into the Christmas spirit. There are pictures of three of the rooms shown here, plus one of the street decorations at the top end of Timaru's main street, Stafford Street.
From there we went to collect the car Steve and I have bought, a 1992 Volvo 850. It drives well and has plenty of space in it and in its boot, and hopefully it will be reliable for us. Pictures will follow another day.
When we got home we lit a fire and watched some tv, while I struggled with my sewing machine which was not letting me get on with some Christmas projects.

Nativity play

Sunday 13th December: Warm and sunny. Today was finally the day of the nativity play. We made sure all the costumes, sheep (soft toys!) and gifts were packed and got to the church well in time for the 10am start. Edward was chosen to light the Advent candles and after a couple of songs and a prayer it was time for the play. There was a narrator, Mary, Joseph, Chief Angel and two little "trainee" angels, a horse (?) and 4 shepherds, three of whom miraculously became wise men in the time of one verse of a hymn!! They were all brilliant and it went really well. All the children remembered their lines and spoke them loud and clear and, importantly, sat still and quiet when they weren't "on". After their play we went out to the hall for a little party.
At 12 noon we were out to lunch. Caroline, the Sunday School teacher invited us to lunch at her farm, about 10 minutes from us. We all had a lovely time, and the boys were superb so we all relaxed and enjoyed ourselves. After lunch they played outside with their foam aeroplanes.
We returned home about 3.45pm and spent the rest of the afternoon around the garden, weeding, putting in potatoes, making a gate and all sorts of other tasks that have accrued over time.
Once the boys were in bed I took the camera out into the garden and photographed some of the flowers out there at the moment, in the late evening sun (see photos).