End of the salmon season...

Tuesday 31st March: A gloomy,chilly day until the sun came out after lunch. We schooled in the morning, as usual. In the afternoon the boys wanted to do some cooking so they made puddings for today and tomorrow - chocolate slice and toffee tart.
Our neighbour called us round to see a salmon he had caught. Today is the last day of the salmon season so the fish was unlucky to have been caught today! He cut it up and gave us a piece, which I have cooked and we can have cold for lunch tomorrow.
The boys are in the bath as I write this.
The photo is of our neighbour Allan and the boys with the salmon. About 9lbs, apparently.

Cold and drizzly

Monday 30th March: What a difference a day makes.... Today was grey and cold and even drizzly at times, not much above 15 degrees and the Hunter Hills and Mount Studholme that we look out on to from the front of the house were shrouded in mist all day.
We schooled in the morning - this week our topic is fish. We had a cooked lunch and then the boys read a Dennis the Menace annual together. We went to gymnastics and then had a picnic tea in Victoria Park, just in time for Cubs to start. Tonight was our week to be parent helpers at Cubs and they wanted the leaders and parent helpers to talk about their hobbies. I spent 5 minutes talking about taekwon-do and getting them to have a go, then brought Peter and Jonathan home. Steve stayed on at Cubs and showed his indoor helicopter flying and then the Cubs made paper aeroplanes and a melee of flying paper ensued! Meanwhile our neighbour Jeanette came in to babysit the younger two boys while I went to TKD training.
Monday evening is our favourite tv night - Desperate Housewives followed by (an old series of) Spooks.

Founder's Day

Sunday 29th March: One year since we arrived in Waimate. A very hot day, clear blue skies, still 24 degrees at tea-time, and 30 degrees in our lounge at 5pm! First thing we all drove to Attwill Park, the Scout camp on the outskirts of Waimate, surrounded by hills and silence (until a bunch of Cubs and Keas turned up!)
Today was Founder's Day and every year this day to celebrate Lord Baden-Powell is recognised in Waimate with an event. First the Cubs (plus Jonathan and Peter as Steve and I were helping out) went round the "confidence course" - a wooden assault course built in the woods 21 years ago. Then we walked round part of the park and learnt the history of the site and the people associated with it.
Lunch was a sausage sizzle - this is a pre-boiled sausage burnt slightly on a bbq and served with tomato sauce in a slice of cheap white bread. The sausage sizzle is a Kiwi icon and rarely a week goes by without us experiencing one for charity.
After lunch there was a service in the outdoor chapel for the Scouts, Cubs and Keas, followed by a mudslide. This actually involves a sheet of black polythene laid down a slope and a hose and bucket of washing-up-liquidy-water are poured down it while children side down on it for over an hour!
After ice-cream and cakes all was finished and we went to Gordon's house (one of the Cub leaders and a flying buddy of Steve) for tea. This is the family we have met up with at Lake Aviemore to go kayaking and sailing with.
A photo of each of the boys today, in three of the adventures they experienced.

The Queen of Hearts

Saturday 28th March: A hot sunny day again. We went to look round a house for sale first thing. A 90 year old villa with high ceilings and ornate ceiling roses but very chilly. Steve and Peter went to fly aeroplanes at Waimate Aerodrome until lunchtime. Edward, Jonathan and I gave the chickens a box of dust and watched them flapping and digging around in it.
After lunch two other flying converts called round with a daughter each and stayed the afternoon. We made cakes, tarts and muffins for an event we are going to tomorrow.
Tea was smoked fish (one of the trout from Lake Aviemore the other weekend).
The photo is of Jonathan and Sarah making jam tarts. It was Sarah's father that took us out in the combine harvester last month.

Autumn fun

Friday 27th March: A strange heavy cloud hung over Waimate all morning, with a band of blue sky over the Hunter Hills in front of us. It was only about 17 degrees by lunchtime, but then at 3pm the sun came out and it got very hot very quickly.
The day started with piano lessons which went well. Then we called into Waimate Childcare (the children's nursery) and brought Sunshine the canary home for the weekend (you met him here a couple of months ago). Then we did some more schoolwork - reading, spelling test and making card alligators.
After lunch the boys had their computer time they had earned during the week then we walked to the library and came home with the usual 40 new books! Meatballs for tea - a favourite for us all, and then a pudding the boys liked so much they want me to teach them how to make it tomorrow.
Steve has gone out flying his new plane this evening, after working on it during his lunch break to repair the damage from a poor landing last evening!
The photo is of the boys playing in the dried leaves in Boland Park (another park in Waimate) on the way to the library.

"ay is for horses"

Thursday 26th March: Yet another sunny and warm day. We went down to horse-riding in Oamaru and, as usual, got some shopping and had lunch at Subway. When we got home we did our schooling. Jonathan finished his maths workbook. It is an American programme we are using for maths at the moment, and each workbook is one year's work. Jonathan has just finished his in 6 weeks! Our bible story today was the Raising of Lazarus and we learnt a little more about reptiles too.
From that we rushed off to Waimate Athletics club at Victoria Park (where else!) and the boys did sprints, relay races and long jump and then ended wth once round the outside of the track as always.
Now we are home and dinner is cooking and the kettle is on for a relaxing cup of tea.
The photo is of more harvesting taking place in the fields around Waimate. Those who had not finished before the heavy rain in February are still trying to catch up. The overnight dew means the harvest cannot take place until the afternoons when the humidity levels of the grain have dropped. These fields are owned by Edward's Cub leader.

Acorns, acorns everywhere

Wednesday 25th March: A bright sunny day again, about 20 degrees at lunchtime then clouds rolled in and the wind picked up so it cooled down.
We schooled in the morning and then went to Victoria Park after lunch to play some sports. We rode there on our bikes and enjoyed whizzing round the 400m velodrome.
At 4 o'clock it was Keas and it was my week to be parent helper so we all went along. The pack is very small, only 6 children there today. Then we cycled home and made our own pizzas for tea.
The photo is taken from under one of the oak trees in Victoria Park. During the 1920s depression unmarried unemployed men in Waimate were used to build new roads, and married unemployed men were used to "beautify" the town. This included planting many english native trees in what is now Victoria Park. When we first arrived in Waimate at the end of March last year we noticed that the ground in the park was thickly covered in acorns. After a bit of investigation we found out that there are no squirrels in NZ so there is nothing to bury the acorns and so they stay and gather on the ground.

A busy Tuesday

Tuesday 24th March: Happy birthday Eric. Another sunny day but chilly in the shade. We schooled in the morning as usual and it was a successful and productive session.
After lunch we needed to go to the post shop and the supermarket and then met friends to play. The High School has two playgrounds. The photo is of part of the wooden assault course one which the boys are just about big enough to be able play on now. Then we met with Rosie the gymnast and I coached her for an hour while the boys were superbly behaved and read books and drew pictures.
This evening Steve was driving to Waimate Aerodrome for the maiden flight of his Breitling that featured in the blog over the weekend. Hopefully it is still in one piece!

Harvest continues

Monday 23rd March: A chilly day after our first overnight frost. But it was very sunny and so the house warmed up and the washing got dry. Steve doesn't usually work Mondays but needed to work today as the other doctor is on leave and so there would otherwise be no doctor working at all.
We schooled in the morning. This week we are looking at reptiles amongst other things. We had a roast dinner at lunchtime. The boys went to gym and I helped out with 'crowd control' of the boys group. We rushed home and had a quick tea then took Edward to Cubs. When we got back Steve was home from work and I walked to TKD training. I had forgotten it would be dark when I finished at 8pm (the nights are drawing in fast) and I hadn't taken a photo today. So the photo is of a jug of tomatoes our neighbour brought round today that she had picked from her garden.

The latest flying machine

Sunday 22nd March: We all had a lazy start to the day and the boys played with their toys. I had a lovely chat on Skype with my friend Sara who I haven't seen for about 10 years and I really enjoyed it. She tried the chocolate mousse recipe and says it was excellent.
For lunch we drove about 15 minutes out of Waimate on the SH82 towards Kurow to have lunch with Paul and Bridget. Bridget is a physio who Steve refers patients to, and her practice is out in the wop wops so she treats rural families rather than Waimo townies. They own 1200 acres and have dry cows, which apparently means they have not had a calf this last year and so are not being milked. Even Bridget's physio practice 5 minutes away comes with its own 10 acres!
For lunch we had a sheep that had been nibbling in their paddock a couple of weeks ago, and veggies from the garden. After lunch the boys helped them light a huge bonfire of the small bits left when they cut down a couple of trees last week for firewood. Then we all went for a drive around their land to check on the various herds of cows.
Back home I cooked a quiche for tea (6 eggs!) then the boys had a bath and off to bed.
The photo is of Steve's latest plane which he finished building this morning. This is Plane No. 9 since we arrived in NZ. He went out while I was bathing the boys but I don't know if the plane is having its maiden flight or if he's been called out to see a patient.

Praying for rain

Saturday 21st March: When the weather girl said last night it would rain today I was delighted. We were due to do a TKD demonstration at a school fete and I'd rather not have to do it. But the day dawned warm and sunny. In the morning we had a BIG clear-up in the playroom and rediscovered the carpet underneath. By lunchtime it was cooling fast, the wind was blustery and clouds were building up. But they blew over and it remained a sunny but chilly day. We popped round to friends after lunch and then walked to the school fete. The TKD demo went well and at the end of it I broke my board on second attempt. The boys had fun watching a joint fire and ambulance service (both are voluntary in NZ) demonstration of cutting a car up to rescue someone. Then we queued up to have hot dogs for tea. A year ago we had some hot dogs and were surprised by what we were served. We were surprised a second time today. In NZ a hot dog is a small meat-flavoured sausage covered in batter, on a lolly stick. Most odd, but there was nothing else on offer so that's what we had.
The photo is from the TKD demo. I'm on the left with the green belt. I obviously surprised Steve by jumping higher than he expected as he seems to have missed my head!

Quack quack!

Friday 20th March: A warm sunny day today (about 23 degrees) but dark clouds are rushing over as I write this (5.30pm). All three boys had piano lessons to start the day and all did well. While one is having a lesson I do some work with the others. Last week we did some worksheets on completing patterns. This week we did some work in workbooks called "Being Me" - all about them, their family, home, likes and dislikes etc. Each page needs them to draw something too, like the family car, or their pet.
Once back at home we got loads of work done - spelling test, reading out loud, maths, completed our duck project, times tables AND were finished at 12 noon. After lunch they did some more work on a typing tutorial and played some CBeebies computer games on-line.
Then we walked to the High School (about 15 minutes) to meet the gymnast and coaches I have choreographed the floor routine for. In only half an hour she picked up the first third of it, which was excellent and the coaches were pleased with what I had done.
Now the boys are watching some Pink Panther episodes on DVD while I type this, and dinner is minutes away.
The photo is of two of the ducks we made yesterday.

"Show us your crack!"

Thursday 19th March: Today was warm and sunny, but was raining down in Oamaru so there was no horse-riding. Instead I had plenty of schoolwork to keep the boys busy! Today we made paper plate ducks - I'll try to get a photo tomorrow to show you. The boys loved making them.
After lunch the Novus man came to change the windscreens on the motorhome and the truck. At the last moment our neighbour mentioned you can get one windscreen a year covered by your car insurance, so we made two phone calls and it was free. We are all amused by the catch-phrase on the tv advert for the Novus windscreen company - it has some burly men saying "Show us your crack!"
When they had finished we walked down to town and the boys paid some money into their bank accounts and we got some more milk and fresh fruit. Edward made a coconut sandwich cake without any help - he's really enjoying baking yummy cakes recently.
After tea our neighbour Jeanette came round to babysit while I went to TKD training and Steve is on-call.
The photo is of the boys playing in the big magnolia tree in our front garden.

Foggy all day

Wednesday 18th March: Today dawned foggy and stayed the same until it started drizzling about 4pm. But it was still quite warm so we were still out and about. At 9am we went into the Council offices to get NZ driving licences, which we have to do now we've been here a year. The licensing people come to Waimate on the 3rd Wednesday of every other month! We were finished about 10am and popped into the library next door, then home to get some schooling done. After lunch we went to Victoria Park for homeschool sports/games. We did running and throwing and hitting games plus a few silly games. We waited in the park for the Keas to meet up and then drove to Attwill Park. This is a den and grounds owned by the Scouts about 7km out of town, right near the end of a road into the Hunter Hills. The Keas were busy moving soil and putting daffodil bulbs around their trees and thoroughly having fun. The photo shows some of the action. Peter is in the pale blue with white sleeves (not a good choice with all the soil to move and then rain making it muddy!) and Jonathan is in the red with blue sleeves. Edward is in the back in red, getting new instructions.
I dropped the boys home to Steve for tea and went to the High School to meet up with the gymnastic squad in training. Two of the girls need new routines for the floor and I had offered to choreograph the dance bits so I met the gymnasts and heard their music. I spent the rest of the evening working on the first routine.

Splat the Bing Bong Bo

Tuesday 17th March: A warm sunny day. We trudged through our school work this morning so there was some to finish off after lunch. This week we are learning about ducks. For Jonathan's birthday he had a 'duck egg' that you submerge and a duck emerges from the egg in the next day or so. His went in the water today and he keeps checking it every few minutes and announcing another crack has appeared, etc etc.
After school we walked to one of the local schools and the boys played on their fabulous playground for an hour. Now we're home and the trout is in the oven. Our neighbour Jeanette is joining us for tea tonight, then I have a gymnastics club committee meeting later.
The photo is of some berries on a tree near our house. Many of the trees, birds and plants in NZ are not familiar to us. The boys spotted the berries of this one soon after we arrived in Waimate at the end of March last year. They enjoyed picking up the berries and throwing them. We have no idea what the tree is called, so the boys named it the "Splat-the-Bing-Bong-Bo Tree" and that's what we still call it.

Just another Manic Monday

Monday 16th March: After a dull start the sun burnt through and it was soon hot and sunny. There was no wind at all in the morning. We went out in the boat under engine power and dropped the anchor to do some fishing. It was very peaceful and warm and although we didn't catch anything, it didn't seem to matter.
After lunch I drove the boys back to Waimate in the motorhome and Steve followed in the truck towing the boat. It was cool and gloomy when we got back, and has been all the time we have been away. As soon as we arrived home it was time to walk to gymnastics. We rushed home, hurried our dinner and delivered Edward to Cubs. It seems he needed to take a granny with him this evening, so I ran home and rushed round to our neighbour who was delighted at being asked. Minutes later I delivered her to the Cubs den and then I dashed off for taekwon-do training. Tonight I got to break a plank of wood for the first time, using a hammer kick. Very exciting. By the time I got home all were in bed so I will tell the boys tomorrow.
The photo is of Peter and Jonathan fishing from the boat.

Out on the waters

Sunday 15th March: We started the day with some fishing, but still nothing was caught. Then we went out for an hour's sail in gentle conditions which was fabulous in the hot sunshine. After lunch the boys played in the shallow waters and then the wind picked up so we went out for a more exciting sail. Even with the storm jib up and the main sail reefed we were going fast. The spray was splashing over us at times and the boys found it all a little too much so we turned and whizzed back into harbour.
After tea Steve went fishing again and caught three good-size trout.
The photo is from the boat as we left the pontoon on our first trip out.

Off to Lake Aviemore (again)

Saturday 14th March: We spent all morning getting ready and then drove to Lake Aviemore for a few days. It had been cool and cloudy in Waimate but was hot and sunny by the lake. The wind picked up later so it was too windy to go sailing. Instead the boys were happy riding their bikes round the camp and over the bike jumps.
After tea Steve went out fishing until very late, but caught nothing.
The photo is from the side of the road about 10 minutes before where we were camped. I forgot to mention the first snows fell on Wednesday night and we had seen them the mountains when we drove down to Oamaru on Thursday, but the lighting and visibility wasn't good to show it then.

It's all warmed up again!

Friday 13th March: Despite it being Friday the 13th, all went okay today. Edward and Peter had their first piano lesson of the year, and it was Jonathan's very first lesson. We walked home in beautiful sunshine and finished off our homeschooling for the week. We've been learning about frogs this week, amongst other things, and enjoyed making origami frogs and hopping them round the table to end the week.
After lunch the boys did some computer learning and then played some games. The sun shone strongly all afternoon so the lounge warmed to 27 degrees (it was about 21 outside).
The first photo is of the view at the back door at 7.15 this morning as I went out to feed the chickens. I grabbed the camera before the light changed.
The second photo is of Jonathan with his origami frog.

Battered by a nor'wester

Thursday 12th March: Wow, doesn't a week go by quickly. This morning we were back down to Oamaru for horse-riding. We were the only family there so the boys got a whole 45 minutes riding and they rode different horses than last week. We got some shopping and had lunch in Subway.
The photos were taken on the journey home. The rock and sign are self-explanatory.
In the afternoon a nor'wester wind came in which lifted the temperature to 18 degrees. Inspite of being in the protection of the Hunter Hills ou can hear the gusts of wind coming like a train. Then there are lulls of stillness and another bluster roars through for a couple fo minutes. Twigs and acorns are being beaten off the trees and flying up the road. We sent to Junior Athletics anyway and there were some new long-jump records with the wind behind them!

Autumn is here...

Wednesday 11th March: Last night was very stormy and there were times when we wondered if our shed-like house might blow away, but we were all here this morning! Today was chilly and we started to remember just how cold the house got last winter. It was 12 degrees in the lounge, and with the help of baking bread rolls and heat from the fridge, the kitchen (where we homeschool) rose to a sweltering 17 degrees!
Home schooling went well. However it was too windy, cold and showery to meet the other homeschoolers for sports, so we got together to play board games instead. They were thrilled with the games we took along - Rat-a-tat-cat and Doodle dice being favourites (thanks David and Sue, these always wow the children).
From there we dashed to Keas where Peter needed to take a skateboard. We borrowed one from our neighbour's grandson. The mums all had images of collecting their 6 year old sons minus a few teeth, but in fact they were 'rowing' them in the hall using rolled up newspaper as oars!
Now tea is cooking and the boys are busy playing and I'm going to sort out the winter duvets for their beds for tonight.

Edward's creation

Tuesday 10th March: A chilly start, warm sunny lunchtime and now gusty and heavy rain at 4pm! Schooling went well this morning and we whizzed through what we needed to do. The chickens are still laying 3 eggs per day but as the days get shorter they will soon reduce and even stop for a while. I weeded the veggie plot after lunch. I put some new seeds in before we went on holiday and they need transplanting but there isn't any space yet until we get our first frost and then I can harvest the yams.
The photo is of today's creation by Edward. It is a motorised windmill made of K'Nex. It works superbly, with interlinked rubber bands in a geared mechanism down the side, and a crank handle too.
Recipe for chocolate mousse to use up eggs! Melt 200g dark chocolate. Whisk 300ml cream until thickened. Whisk 1/3 cup caster sugar and 3 eggs until thickened. Mix all together. Divide amongst serving dishes or small tumblers. Chill in fridge. Eat! You can add extra cream and grated chocolate on top to decorate, but really there are enough calories in it already!

Is it a Tetley???

Monday 9th March: A cool day but sunny and breezy. When we got up it was only 8 degrees outside so autumn is definitely with us now. Steve went fishing all day with our neighbour but they caught nothing.
We schooled in the morning. Today we read the story of the wise man and the foolish man and where they built their houses, and the boys drew some excellent illustrations for this.
Later in the day we went to the library and the boys then all went to gymnastics, then dashed home for a quick tea before delivering Edward to Cubs. I then went to Taekwon-do - the first training I have been to since I graded 3 months ago. I'm typing this while I can still move, but my shoulders are slowly seizing up after too many press-ups!
The photo is, of course, of a tea bag! Some of you will know that the tea bags here are poor. No, actually they're appalling! I get through several cups of tea a day and it makes me a much nicer mummy and teacher. If you use a Kiwi tea bag it takes about 2 weeks for the water to colour any deeper than golden syrup colour! In the week since we returned from holiday three different friends have sent some english tea bags in the post for me to enjoy. Thank you so much. This blog entry is dedicated to you!!!

Bike, fly and swim - a new triathalon?

Sunday 8th March: A hot sunny morning. We asked the boys what they wanted to do. Edward wanted to play with Lego so we started with that. Peter wanted to rubber-band propelled plane and Jonathan wanted to "roide moi boike". So we all rode to Victoria Park and Steve and Peter flew their planes in the centre of the bike track while the rest of us went round and round. The photo is of one of the beautiful flower beds in the park, leading to the War Memorial gate.
After lunch some clouds appeared and it cooled a little to 24 degrees and Steve and the boys went to the town pool for a swim while I tackled the ironing mountain.
At 5pm the wind swung round to a southerly and the temperature dropped to 14 degrees and it rained. Steve smoked the two cod he caught last night and we ate them for tea.

Edwardian Day, or something

Saturday 7th March: A sunny day with highs of 26 degrees and very intense sunshine. There are two things happening in Waimate this weekend. First there is the March Hare Motorcycle Rally at the A&P Showground on the outskirts of town. Thousands of motorcyclists from all over the country come and stay in tents in the Showground's fields with portaloos and burger vans but no showers. Lovely! They come into town to visit the bars and get fed so there is a lot of throaty engine noise about the main street.
And today was also Promenade in the Park, an annual event run by the Edwardian heritage group where people dress up, drive old cars, have maxed moustache competitions and have a mock battle with an 'invading army' from Oamaru (the next town south). A red double decker bus turned up. We didn't realise this was odd as we have ridden many times in one, but people rushed over to see it and begged their parents for a ride in it so I guess it isn't the norm here.
One photo is a gent riding a pennyfarthing down the main street. The other is of mid-battle between the Waimate Bushtown Militia (in various old clothing) and the invading lot (the ones in the uniforms) from Oamaru. A strange event, in many ways. First, the Waimate side seemed to have a Knight from the Crusades in their midst. Second, their weapons included foam swords, buckets, water bombs and flour. And at one point, pink slippers. I think I must have missed that week of history at school.....
After all that excitement (and confusion) we went fishing at Waihao Box and each of us caught some mullet but they were small so we threw them back again. As I type this, Steve has returned to the beach side of the Box and is making his first attempt at catching sharks. Apparently you can catch 8 foot ones there, but if he does I'm wondering how he's going to strap it on the top of the car to get it home!

The view as I type this...

Friday 6th March: Didn't turn out as expected. We schooled this morning and after lunch popped out to pick some more blackberries (sshh!) before the boys get to swap their "buttons" (for kind behaviour, good effort in school work, going to bed without nonsense etc) for computer time. However, whilst picking blackberries I got stung by two wasps and got nasty reactions so I ended up at the doctors while our neighbours kindly watched the boys... playing their computer time. The boys 'forgot' to mention that their time on the computer is related to the number of buttons in each jar and merrily took full advantage of the situation and played for over an hour!! Still, a good dose of antihistamines and steroids and an hour of ice packs and I was feeling much better, then a quick tea from the freezer (fish and chips) and the boys are off to sleep.
It's nearly 8.30pm as I type this. Didn't know what photo to put in but then looked up and out the window in front of me, and I thought I send you the view.... But then in the seconds it took to upload it, etc, the colours changed so I took another one.

Horsey-horsey

Thursday 5th March: Another hot, sunny day. We did a quick bit of RE and maths and left home at 9.45 to drive south to Oamaru. The boys went horse-riding from 10.45-11.30am and then we got some shopping while we were there (prices are cheaper in the bigger town). Home for lunch and then a bit more schooling before rushing off to Victoria Park for athletics club from 4-5pm. I finally got the last of the holiday washing done and dried today - rain due tomorrow, they say. Pictures are Edward on Brownie, Peter on Bill and Jonathan on little Jane.

Hazel goes to bingo!

Wed 4th March: A hot sunny day, about 26 degrees compared with yesterday's 16! We schooled in the morning and then another homeschool family called by and stayed the afternoon. At 4 o'clock we were in Victoria Park ready for Peter's Keas. The photo is of the boys in the middle of the velodrome. There's no-one else there, again, but look at how green the grass is compared with the shots one month ago at the Caledonian Games.
In the evening I went to Housie! Hazel going to Bingo?? What's come over her?! In fact if a club provides four people to call back numbers on winning cards and deliver the money to the winners, the Housie club pays $100 to that club. So every club has a night every year or so, and tonight was for funds to the gymnastics club. There was a St John's ambuance woman there, in uniform. Maybe with all the excitement one of the oldies might croak???

These are illegal!

Tuesday 3rd March: Yes, it's a pot of blackberries. Nothing strange there, you might think. Our family adores blackberry crumble and always pick as many as we can from the edges of parks and fields and freeze them to enjoy all year round. Now we are in NZ where there is little concern for Health and Safety and few rules about anything, it seems. EXCEPT the blackberry. Apparently the propogation, sale and distribution of blackberries is banned in NZ! Our neighbours told us of a plant that hasn't read the rules, on the side of a back road on the edges of town. We went out there today and picked 3lb.
Steve returned to work this morning and we returned to schooling. The day was grey and cool but the washing seems to have finally got itself dry. This afternoon we went out in the truck to see all the fords which are flooded. Many of the roads around the edges of the town have fords which cover the road after heavy rain. This is the first time we have seen them flooded. One of them had even shut the road as it had been over head level! The waters are receding but the flow still strong and much of the gravel road has probably washed away.
Off now to do something yummy with the blackberries - let's hope they taste as good as the ones back home.

Heading home

Monday 2nd March: Our long journey home. We left the site in Christchurch at 10am and headed west round the outskirts of the city and then south. We stopped briefly to empty the shelves of a supermarket in Rolleston of its supply of Ready Brek. We usually get a delivery from an importer in Auckland every couple of months but he had run out. However he had supplied this supermarket last week so we headed that way, and now Edward's breakfast needs are covered for the next few weeks. We continued south and stopped briefly in Timaru for lunch and then on to Waimate, arriving at 3pm. We've driven over 2100km. We noticed how much greener it was here and then were told it has rained pretty much the whole time we were away, someone said 8 inches had fallen here. So we chose a good time to get away it seems.
By 3.30pm the boys were at gymnastics, then Edward went on to Cubs. By the time I walked to collect him it was raining again.
The photo shows a small portion of the washing pile. Yes, it's our machine from England. New Zealand machines are all toploaders! Two loads done, one more just finished in the machine and the next load waiting. There's still more not yet out of the motorhome. As I type this I'm waiting to find out what tomorrow's weather forecast is.....

Orana Wildlife Park

Sunday 1st March: After a rainy night the campsite was very soggy and the washing we had left on the line had had an extra rinse! The skies cleared and it was a warm and sunny day. Last year we arrived in NZ on 29th February so we have been here one year now.
Today we went to Orana Wildlife Park, as Jonathan’s birthday treat. The park has 400 animals of 70 different species and exists for the conservation and breeding of endangered species from NZ and Africa. So we saw lions, tigers, lemurs, cheetah, tuatara (a reptile), giraffes and two kiwi birds. We spent all day walking around, taking photographs and joining the information/feeding sessions to learn more. In a previous entry I pointed out the lack of Health and Safety concerns here. The next photo is a great illustration......
At Orana Park you can ride in a metal cage into the lion enclosure and the keeper feeds them while you are there. it's an extra $30 for the pleasure and the ride is always full! The photo is actually of the advertising poster for the experience.
In the shop at the end of our day we finally found a toy giraffe for Jonathan. Last year, in Christchurch, on 1st March we lost his “mummy giraffe” and has talked about it nearly every day since. We’ve been looking for a replacement but found nothing suitable until today. There is a photo of them, and they have settled off to sleep very happily together this evening. The photo of the eggs shows the comparison in size between a chicken egg and a kiwi egg. The latter is the equivalent of us giving birth to a 30lb child! The male incubates them for 80 days, then just as the chick hatches the female lays another egg for him to sit on!! I like the idea!
Back at the campsite we had a swim in the camp pool and then walked about 800m to a Pizza Hut for a treat dinner out as the last evening of our holiday.

Rain rain rain

Sat 28th Feb: Last year we didn’t have a 28th February because we crossed the International Date Line whilst flying from LA to NZ and jumped from 27th to the 29th. That’s something I haven’t yet managed to explain to the boys!
Today it rained and poured all day and was chilly. We got up and out early and drove across Christchurch to Science Alive. This is a hands-on science centre for kids (and big kids!) to come along and try different science concepts. In the morning Edward and Peter were at a study session using K’Nex to rescue a Lego woman stuck at the top of a K’Nex tower. Jonathan and I explored the centre, which has changed many of its exhibits since we were here a year ago. After lunch we all continued enjoying the different sections and all had a 30 minute session on a climbing wall. The boys took some photos of flowers and plants earlier in the month for a competition at Science Alive and the display here includes some of each of them.
Back at the campsite the boys went for a swim in the camp pool while I prepared tea. We ate quickly and went to the camp movie room to watch Simpsons The Movie. Then Steve put the kids off to bed and I returned to the movie room to watch one of the Indiana Jones films. Not my thing, but nice to be out of the motorhome for the evening.

In to Christchurch

Friday 27th Feb: Today began drizzly and never really improved. We left Hanmer Springs and drove east and south to Christchurch. For the first time in exactly one year we were back into the world of traffic lights, roundabouts and queues. We certainly don’t miss them. We headed round to the south-west of the city to Wigram Airfield where the National Aviation Museum is. We visited this last year and really enjoyed it. When we arrived we found that as of last weekend they had introduced free admission, which was even better. Steve and Peter went on an hour-long tour of renovation projects while Edward and Jonathan and I looked at the finished ones. Being beside an active landing strip there were light aircraft and helicopters taking off and landing all the time we were there.
We drove to the north of the city to a campsite we stayed in last year that has lots of extras compared to the others we have stayed on so far. As a result it gets completely full and the slots are close to each other, but the discipline is so good that even here everyone is very considerate. Many people have just arrived in NZ or are right at the end and going back to the airport which is only 10 minutes away.
The boys played on all the playgrounds while Steve walked up the road to get some take-away food for tea. We ate quickly and then went to the camp movie room to watch the kids movie Speed Racer. If you have young sons this is such fun to watch (other than one scary bit with some piranhas). I put the boys to bed while Steve returned for the grown-ups’ film, Ghost Rider.

Hot pools!

Thur 26th Feb: Today dawned (well, 8 o’clocked) cool and grey. From Murchison we drove south then east for 2 hours to Hanmer Springs. This is a tourist town that exists simply because of the hot water springs that the public come to bathe in. By the time we arrived it was warm and sunny and we enjoyed a couple of hours in the hot pools, which varied from 33 to 41 degrees. A year ago I guess we would have been wowed by the place, but in that year we have soaked in hot pools in far prettier surroundings with far fewer people to share them. It was very commercial, although nothing like how it would be developed and presented in the UK. The boys enjoyed playing in the kids’ pool and we enjoyed soaking in the warm ones.
Rather than the busy in-town campsites we stayed in one at the end of a dead-end road in the hills. It was peaceful and restful and had a great adventure playground.
We smoked Peter’s salmon for tea and baked a loaf of bread for tomorrow, then went off to bed early as the hot water had tired us.