All things brown......

Well this update has been a long time coming!!  It is not that we have been doing anything exciting just enjoying life with friends and family and not getting as much time on here to do things like update everyone.  January was a big month for us; we had friends over, Jasmine turned 6, driftwood and sand sculptures adorned our beach (first brown thing), 2 wobbly teeth began, I actually finished a knitted vest that looks like a vest (second brown thing) and we got a dog all of our very own (third brown thing that produces additional brown presents daily - sorry couldn't resist). 



Kids having lunch by one of the amazing driftwood sculptures.

After a whole year of waiting and asking Jasmine finally enjoyed her 6th birthday.  Not sure who was more excited in the end as Daniel got to stay up a bit later on the eve of said birthday to wrap presents.  Since then he keeps asking if he can stay up and wrap Jasmine's number 7 birthday present.  I mean I'm organized but not that much??!!  At the beginning of her birthday week Jasmine began talking about sore teeth but having had a friend here who did actually have wobbly teeth we thought it may be just the contagious kind of wobbly teeth. How wrong we were as the morning of her birthday she showed just how much her teeth can wobble now (barely visible be the human eye it has to be said but wobbly all the same).  Birthdays and wobbly teeth in one week - what more can you ask for ;)


Guess who is finally 6!

Rex is our latest addition to our family and we just love him.  The kids and I have begun volunteering at the local SPCA and as we had been talking about getting a dog for a while we plunged in.  My initial love was a very jumpy little lady with a love of birds (not in the good sense) who would of needed a lot of time which we don't always have.  Rex was Liam's first choice and a very fine choice it is ;)  We have had him on a 2 week trial and have just officially adopted him into our family.  He already has lots of manners - more than the kids at the moment - and is lovely to go for a run with.  He is almost a year old so a good mixture of pup with maturity.  I was a little nervous a first about getting a dog after our Lady incident, luckily the SPCA told me about a great site http://www.theonlinedogtrainer.com/ which gave me loads of confidence to owning and maintaining a good dog.  Lots of good tips on there for sorting our dog problems which strangely enough work quite well on children too! So glad I found it and Rex.

Our Rexy boy

Last thing that I just have to mention is my completed vest for Daniel.  It has taken the best part of 6 months to knit up and finish as I mainly did it when at Mum's - help on hand to explain where I had mucked up, lack of my household jobs and a mother that still wants to cook for me all helpped ;)  I am very proud that it actually looks like an article of clothing and fits him nicely.  My last attempt at knitting clothing ended in a jersey with two different lengths and sized sleeves due to changing tension and a front and back that were wondering what they were meant to do with each other!!  Needless to say it put me off even looking at a set of needles for the following 24 years.  Now with some confidence under my belt, keyhole winter scarves for the kids are the next knitting mission.

Daniel modelling his new vest,  briefly due to heat. 

Hope this finds you all happy, healthy and in a bit of shade.

Arohanui
Y
www.becominghealthy.co.nz




Merry Christmas Ya'll

Well it has been a while, yet again, since I have posted!!  Great news that the world continues to live on - in whatever state it is in ;)  It has mostly been a busy and enjoyable month though as we have been working around the house and preparing in the least (me more than Liam) possible way for Christmas.  So thought I'd fill in a few gaps, post a few photos and wish you all Happy Holiday / Merry Christmas before it is the New Year.

Themselves at the Santa parade in town, in which  Liam drove a float.

Liam has been working hard on the house again, in between a fishing trip up north which has given us a yummy supply of Christmas fish, and we are getting through the list of jobs.  Funny though as we stand and revel in our work and the improvements made if someone came around who hadn't seen the place before they would probably be thinking "Man this house is in bits and needs heaps of work!!".  Hei aha.  We can see the improvements, and feel them through lack of 'giraffes and leeks', so we are all happy.


After chicken bits completed



Behind the garage when we arrived

   One of the best improvements to our wee cottage on the hill is tidying up the back of the garage and building a chicken run that connects to our compost so that the girls can do our work for us.  Only 2 this time and Daniel has named his 'Boney' again while Jasmine has called hers 'Rose'.  They are currently giving us 2 eggs each day and letting the kids pat and pick them up so it is great.  So nice to have animals again to tend to that is aside from our beloved 'Golda' the goldfish who survived a ferry ride, a weeks holiday in Canterbury and then a trip over the alps before moving here.  There is something very rewarding about getting a wee present, the eggy kind that is, for all the love and attention given to the chickens.

 

 The kids are very excited about Christmas!  They have been counting down to when Nan and Aunty Christine arrive with Yuri dog (Daniel is very put out the Nan's cat isn't coming too) on Christmas Eve and then another count down till Christmas Day.  We are yet to decorate as we have begun a bit of a family tradition of waiting till Christmas Eve to put everything up.  It creates lots of anticipation and then a very festival feeling for 2 days.  Though this year we already have presents under the tree, thank you everyone, as Liam went and chopped one down from a workmates place and brought it home in the absence of our own in the garden.

Anyway enough waffle and I hope this finds you all happy, healthy, warm and ready for a lovely break - in whatever capacity you can.

Arohanui
Y
www.becominghealthy.co.nz

Nearly December again!!

Well I haven't been on here for a couple of weeks so thought that I'd better get another update in before the final month of the year is upon us and Christmas mania sets in - maybe life as we know it too if the Mayans have anything to say about it.  I do hope they are wrong though as Jasmine has just be inspired (through the lure of winning a prize it has to be said) to try a local library book challenge which starts on the 21st Dec.  Would be a bit of shame if the world ended on the same day, then again maybe that is the transformative event - children everywhere actually wanting to read more real paper books that can be held in their hot little hands ;)

Anyway all jokes aside we did agree to engage in the aforementioned challenge after going to a presentation of 'Reading Rocks', with the home school group here.  It was held at a local school which was exciting for the kids and made me remember just how horribly hot and sticky classrooms get in warm weather with lots of bodies in them.  The guy was funny and entertaining as he juggled and joked along however while he made his point that books and reading were cool it became very evident to me that my kids were a world away from most of the school kids in the room.  There were so many references to movies, DVD's and television programmes that many of the 'jokes' were lost on two little ones without TV and who don't watch DVD's or movies.  I did notice that there was one other girl who sat as quite as my two during certain parts and guessed that she too was TVless (confirmed shortly after by her friends making comments).  It was somehow comforting though to know that I wasn't the only one who didn't put much importance on such things.

Jasmine making her Flat Traveller

Even when we went to send off a 'Flat Traveller' (a glorified pen pal system for homeschoolers based on a book Flat Stanley) I was asked if we could email journals and photos rather than posting so that the kids could practise keyboard skills.  What about writing skills and going down the post office to send it!!  So often I think I may be depriving our kids of important media and technology knowledge then I remember that all the big players in the IT world certainly didn't grow up with the technology that is around today, if any.  Instead they used other life skills such as problem solving, communication and thinking skills to create, design and engineer the world surrounding us today.  I'm not against technology - obviously otherwise you would be getting a handwritten letter each month ;)  It is just I don't see that the benefits of being computer savvy at 6, 7 or even 10 out weigh all those other skills that can be had through playing, reading, making, talking, writing and good old imagination. 

So that's my unintended rant ;) Goodness who knew!!

Hope this finds you happy, well read and prepared.

Arohanui
Y
www.becominghealthy.co.nz

Our quarterly outing

Yes it was that time of the year again, where I was allowed out of the house after dark with himself.  Not that I'm kept hidden and captive of course, or hiding - though that is a more tempting thought - just that with everything going on we haven't been out together, minus children, since the end of June. 

The said event? A friend's 40th,  which my Mum luckily lives close enough to that we could venture over the hill, and was willing enough that we could have a babysitter we know and trust.  The excitement was obviously too much for me though as I got a bout of vertigo half way over to Canterbury and had to spend the rest of the day looking straight ahead, walking slowly and performing mini plie (been told by himself I have to clarify this as a squat) anytime something was dropped.  Fortunately as the day wore on the giddy bits subsided so that we left in fine form as soon as themselves were hustled into bed and asleep.  It was a great night and for once I wore just the right outfit so that I was one of the few not freezing my bits of in the evening 'breeze' - must be all that wisdom of turning 40 I reckon.  So good to catch up with and talk to people that you've known for years and can have a good laugh with.  Well worth the 6 hours of driving there and back I say.

Kids in the 'train' playground at Leeston

The kids loved being at Mum's again so soon and wasted no time in hunting for eggs and clambering up trees.  Once trees were conquered and eggs practically caught as the chicken lay them (can't say she's not eager) the kids got more than a little stir crazy - 3 hours in a car does that sometimes - so we headed into Leeston to the playgrounds (believe folks - 2 whole playgrounds to choose from in Leeston).  Themselves had a grand time see-sawing, swinging and sliding.  It was lovely to watch them however at the same time I kept my eye roving for any passers-by.  There's nothing like visiting a small town that you lived in as a kid to put you slightly, ever so slightly mind, on edge. I had a morbid curiosity of seeing someone I knew but at the same time not having them recognise me.  Then I found myself walk just that little bit taller (stomach in, bottom tucked and chin out) in the event that someone may happen upon us, and god forbid, recognize me and want to speak.  Silly I know but first impressions and all that........ plus I bet at least half of you know exactly what I'm talking about ;)

Anyway on that note I'll sign off.
Hope this finds you all standing tall, happy and healthy in the sun.

Arohanui
Y
www.becominghealthy.co.nz

That's not on Mummy's list.....

As we sat around the table on the weekend discussing jobs to do, a request was put forward by herself (the younger, blonde one that is) for Daddy to build her and himself (the younger, blonde male one that is) a little play hut.  'Noooooo.  That's not on Mummy's list' replied Daniel with all the wisdom of the world.

Nice to see that I have support but really I didn't think that I was that bad!!!???  So that said I thought I would sing the praises of Himself senior for getting through some of 'Mummy's list' with a picture gallery of work completed to make our home a little nicer ;)

Pantry in the making. This is my favourite addition!

Newly made fire guard so we can be 'Firesafe'.

Adding more storage into the bathroom and stopping the shower dripping.

New door on the toilet to replace our concertina joy.

Door seal to stop the wind whistling through the house

Manky fish ponds turning into sandpit for the kids (weeding and path courtesy of Emma)

And just one to sign my praises as this is the first time I have ever prepared and planted a garden .... Fingers crossed.

Hopefully where we can harvest a few veg.

Hope this finds you all warm, dry, healthy and happy.

Arohanui

Y

www.becominghealthy.co.nz

We're in

Well quite a lot has happened since I last wrote; we have been to Wanaka to visit family, Daniel turned 4, we got the keys to Sale St, the kids helped the neighbour docking tails (and roundy bits - I'll leave that one to your imagination) and finally we are in our new place in town after battling with the elements on a stormy West Coast weekend. 

The side of the road snowman which himself and themselves made.



We spent Daniel's number 4 birthday (as he likes to call it) at Shantytown which is a Heritage Park/Living Museum near us . After many weeks of talking and waiting to go it was a relief to wake to a lovely sunny day. The kids, and us, had a great time wandering around all the 'older days' buildings, walking through the bush and catching the steam engine for a ride. It was interesting too to look at the Chinese miner's village there after being in Arrowtown. The kids suddenly became very interested in China for the next week or so - thank goodness for the library!  They loved trying to play horse shoes and catching the ball on a string along with giving the stilts a go (with their mother's heart in her mouth that is) in the school yard too.  The best thing is that being local we were able to get a year long pass for the price of our entry so guess where we will be returning to frequently.





Outside the school yard.  Hmmmm.....

We have had the keys for a few weeks now which has enabled us to clean - every wall bleached along with ceilings and floors cleaned due to the amount of dirt and mould left from previous tenants- and move bits in a little at a time.  So despite waking at 2am to a storm and wondering if we had a house to move into, Saturday's part of the shift was fairly painless.  Liam begun on the 'fix-it' jobs last weekend by re-instating the old pantry although now that we are in the house his list grows ever longer.  We are finding leaks and gaps all sorts of places depending on which way the wind blows so he'll be ever so busy a fixing things - as Christopher Robin would say.  That said when the sun shines I fall back in love with our wee cottage on the hill so bring on Summer I say!!

Liam bang-whacking things into shape

The kids have been very good putting up with a grumpy Mamma while I clean and try to sort things out.  They are looking forward to normality returning next week though and keep asking about baking and story-teller time.  Fingers crossed they still have that eagerness in a few years.

Hope this finds you all happy and healthy.  See e-mail for our new address and phone.  Congrats to all the baby mamas that have had their bundles of joy!!

Arohanui
Y
www.becominghealthy.co.nz

The sun has got his hat on......

Well for one day anyway!! 

Yesterday (Actually Tuesday a week ago as I didn't have Internet at Mum's and unable to post) we finally had a lovely day in Hokitika after 10 days of rain.  Now I know this is nothing compared to what some of the Coasters have endured in the past but it was enough for us to rejoice a little at being able to get outside for more than 10 dry mins at a time.  The highlight of the day though (aside from actually getting a load of washing dry on the line!) was the sunset on the mountains behind us.  Having been hidden for over a week they majestically farewelled the sun as the light turned to dusky pink and coloured the snow.  Honestly I'd make a useless chef as I keep taking photos each minute as the light changed and in between just standing and staring, memorized, by the scenery out the window instead of cooking tea! 

The view from our back deck as the sunset.

The exemption is still a work in progress and is turning into a thesis now as I go over board with detail and then change it all when I think of new ideas to do ;) Everywhere I look at the moment there is information and articles about how it is beneficial to leaving 'schooling' till after 6 so I am trying to find that balance and then trying to explain how the learning will still be occurring without us sitting down to do 'book work' so that the MoE (Ministry of Education) will happily grant us the certificate.  Having said that Jasmine saw some resource that I was looking at for Maths and wanted to do a page.  Thinking that once she begun she wouldn't want to continue I agreed........ well guess who was wrong and guess who now asks for maths worksheets daily!!  So much for the best laid plans ;)  Hopefully over the next few days I can finish it off and then get someone to check it over.  Good thing is that I can just cut and paste a few details for Daniel and won't have write everything anew. 

View looking back over Waimakariri River - not bad for on the go!

We ventured over the pass early last Wednesday morning, tagging along with Liam who had to go over for a course.  It was so beautiful, no cars and enjoying the relaxed journey of a passenger.  Poor Mum waited for an hour for us at Darfield as we slowed the pace but it was worth it because then she got a full three days of us :)  Well we enjoyed it - the sun was out every day and the kids loved climbing trees (and getting suspended by them), hunting for chicken nests of eggs and finding metal.  Mum's used to be an old Blacksmith's house so the ground is laden with treasures. Jasmine thinks we are on holiday all the time now that we live in Hokitika.  Hopefully she doesn't come out with that one if any education officers appear.

The kids up the trees at Mum's

Liam joined us on Friday night for the journey back home, through the snow again and back to rain.  Thankfully the last few days have been sunshine so we have got out and about down the river to get our dose of vitamin D on this side of the hill too. Holidays and visits are great but there is nothing like home even in the rain and the kids always seem happy to find their new, old toys again. Once home we finally got on the Internet to receive exciting news that we can collect the keys for our new place early so we are now eagerly waiting for the weekend to get started on all the jobs - well Liam anyway.  I've started dreaming about where I can put things and designing things for Liam to make so it will be good to actually get there and get things started.  Will sign off now as we are headed down to Wanaka to visit Liam's family for a few days (Hmmm..... maybe Jasmine has a point!!) then back for the weekend to collect the keys - Yay!

In Arthur's Pass, preparing to ambush me!

Hope this finds you happy, healthy and warm.
For those just about due - the whole gaggle of you - thinking of you all and best wishes. ;)

Arohanui
Y
www.becominghealthy.co.nz