tang.net.nz << latest entries

August ski weekend

Mon, 19 Aug 2019 03:00:00 +1200

The weather up on Mt Ruapehu was just coming to the end of a 3 week epic storm with a 2.4m base to show for it. We hoped we would get a little snow action over a weekend.

Leaving on a Thursday after school (trying to pick the best time that suits 3 different ages is never easy!) we arrived around 8pm and bedtime didn't come until 10.30pm so let's not do that again! (as we had 3 sleeping in the last hour to Ohakune).

We clearly liked punishing ourselves because we booked a private lesson at 9am for the 3 girls (Olive, Iris and cousin Milla). While kids running wild way past their bedtime, Graham and Tom were trying to figure out car chains (just incase they were needed) and wishing we had watched Dad all those times growing up, I have a new appreciation for all these things now I'm a parent.

We were out of the house at 7.30am (that doesn't even happen on a school day "“ oh wait it was a school day) and in the top carpark by 8am "“ Doesn't that make you proud Dad?!

This was our first experience of 'skiing with kids' it went pretty smoothly getting boots and skis, Milla and Olive were super keen to get going with the instructor "“ Iris was not. So I went along for encouragement and basically helped her while the other 2 got a lesson. But at the end of the 2 hours, they had gone up the pommas a number of times, Milla managing to stay on well, Olive falling most times but laughing so a win win. Iris and I just practiced together and she caught the pomma a few times before finishing with 'floppy leg syndrome. It gave me the confidence to give teaching them a go next time, but Olive is a lot stronger physically than Iris and that has a lot to do with it too. All in all, I think it went really well. Olive is keen for more!

We had some lunch, everyone enjoyed some sledging and we finished the kids day with each of them going up on the Parklane chairlift. (I wear I was never going to let my babies on one of those things) They loved it.

Juni's nap approached so Tom took one for the team and took the kids back to Ohakune for a lazy afternoon, while Graham taught Milla for a little bit longer, Archie played in the snow. Lisa managed 2 lessons, so by 1.30 Lisa was off on a lesson and I was skiing alone for the first time "“ ever?! It was very cold, windy but sunny and with no queues, I quickly warmed up after the first run, it was great. 2.5 hours of skiing for mummy.

The next day, the mountain was a white out so we didn't bother, but instead hit the carrot park and Cypress tree cafe. There was a 'bacon buttie' incident which will go down in history (and possibly has scarred the owner) with the wrong bacon sandwich arriving for Iris and then Olive followed suit. All was sorted by the lovely owner, but the tired, hangry kids were starting to show their cracks.

We had a lovely 3 nights, 2 days with the Turner whanau with great cousin action. Archie and Juni's friendship is adorable. Next year maybe for those two!

Weekend in Wairarapa

Tue, 05 Mar 2019 08:00:00 +1200

A surprise 70th Birthday weekend away for the Peck Grandparents - Granny and Poppa.

Sunny Nelson Camping

Fri, 04 Jan 2019 05:00:00 +1200

It sure was sunny...

There was a clown.

Waterslide.

Berry picking.

Bumper boats.

Drive to a nearby beach.

Fancy lunches.

4 families.

Hill sliding.

Turere Tramp

Thu, 06 Dec 2018 06:00:00 +1200

Olive is Five

Sun, 19 Feb 2017 05:00:00 +1200

The day has finally come. Our baby is five. She has seen a lot of ‘happy last days’ at kindy so she knew what to expect but the concept of not going back to kindy was still a little strange.

We celebrated her birthday with a few presents in the morning, followed by her happy last day at kindy, where she made her crown, sorted her ‘gifts’ for the other children and chose her besties (Hazel and Sabine) to partake in her little leaving ceremony. After all her farewells to kindy (and for mum) we headed home for lego with Dad. Followed by a simple family dinner of pizza! with Nan and Grandad (giant size pizza) and purple cake with dripping pink icing (a first for mum) a trial run for the big day. We even managed a game of Monopoly, which Iris join in too (got a bit upset when grandad tried to take her last dollars so took more from the bank).

Leading up to this day we have been doing a few school visits per week (as school only started on the 1st of February) a few with mummy and few without for an hour or so. The first time I left her we had tears but they quickly subsided and the following time no tears! There is a first time for everything! It was great from a parents perspective to see what the kids day is made up of and how they teach. I was surprised by how similar the classroom was to kindy, with all the familiar resources on offer to play with. It had a great atmosphere. Winona is Olive’s teacher in Ako 9 which open plan with Ako 10 and they join together for a lot of activities which is a nice way for the children to meet each other.

Friday was a day of baking and icing ‘the cake’, who knows why there is so much pressure involved in the ‘cake’ but this time I was quite pleased with myself. Go fondant! It was Rapunzel themed with yellow and purple. It was great to have Olive as my helper with a lot of the party preparations which was really fun like wrapping the ‘pass the parcel’, bagging the party bags and winding and plaiting the ‘great Rapunzel hair of wool’ which turned out to be a three person job which daddy proved most effective all the way down the hallway. I discovered Kmart has the cheapest and a huge range of party stuff that you didn’t even know you needed and Ali express had ivy vines to set the scene.

So Saturday rolled around, after a week of prep work. We hired Sunshine kindy which was the best thing we did, as once we saw a table for 19 kids – we needed the room! The weather held off and most of the kids got into decorating masks as a welcome activity before the pass the parcel, playing on the playground, dancing with balloons, lunch followed by make your own ice cream sundaes (which was a hit). 1pm rolled around and they all left sugar full with takeaway cake and their party bag. Olive looked and felt like a princess. I was so proud of the way she greeted all her friends and enjoyed her special day her way.

Camping Greytown

Wed, 11 Jan 2017 05:00:00 +1200

Three nights camping in Greytown with six families (12 adults and 12 kids), what could go wrong?!

Well nothing! it was a success! the weather played ball with it only getting cold during the nights. Must remember that for next time. Camping in NZ is camping for all seasons. We didn't see Olive but for dinners and bedtime as she was having a blast with Anthony and Ben. Iris tailed along with a few interactions with Orsen and of course her favourite Anthony.

The tent went up without a hitch and we splashed out on an airbed which was amazing. Tom only got to sleep on it once as it was easier if Olive slept next to me for uninterrupted sleep for all. Iris didn't really nap and managed to climb in and out of her portacot no problems (so hoping it sn't repeated at home!) Iris got a little use of her bike and enjoyed trying to keep up with the big boys, Olive's training wheels put her off but hopefully next year it will be a different matter. The playground, which was right next door was a success and a daily visit. They also had an outdoor unheated pool next door which we visited, Olive enjoyed fishing (without getting her head under) for Zac's sinkers. I think the kids just enjoyed checking out each others tents and hanging which made it more relaxing for us. I felt like I didn't see much of Olive during the day as she was happy with the other kids or adults which was so nice to see. Iris at times was frustrating as she would state she needed to toilet but when faced with the toilet changed her mind about 50% of the time.

We fish and chipped the first night, tent made burgers the next and takeaway curry for the last so we weren't really roughing it, so if we stayed longer another time we would have to smarten up! memo to self we need a pantry shelf from Kathmandu!

Not sure about camping with a 6 month yet!

Sunshine Brisbane

Wed, 28 Sep 2016 04:00:00 +1200

It was an early start arriving in Brisbane to visit the Turners and their new addition baby Archie! The kids did really well on the plane, Olive enjoyed the iPad and Iris enjoyed doing everything she could. We put toilet training on hold until our return even though she was really interested, not the best time while traveling!

Once we arrived we headed to Sunshine Coast for a three night stay in a nice beach front apartment with lots of space and a garden on the first level?! The kids really enjoyed Sea Life aquarium with the seal show, Nemo fish and a sting ray sea tunnel. We also visited an aviary with a stunning view for a picnic. I wasn’t so sure about having a blue macaw parrot land on my head and the girls walked around the aviary with fluffy dusters to keep the birds away but it was fantastic to see so many up close. Milla enjoyed having a bird on her and iris was really keen until it bite her! Archie nearly lost his hat to one too.

The kids weren’t really interested in swimming at the beach but loved being buried in the sand in the shape of mermaids. The water was really warm and managed a swim.

Back in Brisbane we visited the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary which had a not so kid friendly koala talk but the kids loved feeding the wallabies, watching the dog show, holding baby chicks and checking out the different Australian birds.

The next day we heading down to Southbank for sun, an ice cream and a swim in the awesome free manmade beach and waterpark for the kids.

On our last day, it rained so the kids went to the movies while I did a spot of shopping! H&M has so many kids clothes at a bargain!

It was a lovely trip, great to see more of where Graham and Lisa live and the surrounding suburbs and the beautiful queenslander houses. Lovely to see the girls all playing together and how gentle they were with baby Archie. We must go again!

Childless in Queenstown

Sat, 13 Aug 2016 01:00:00 +1200

A childless weekend in Queenstown with friends, enough said.

Queen Elizabeth Park Camping

Sun, 17 Jan 2016 08:00:00 +1200

We made it camping! After delaying it a day due to rubbish weather, we had two beautiful days of sunshine. 12 adults and 11.5 children and everyone keen to make it an annual outing.

Queen Elizabeth Park is great - very spacious, a fun playground for the kids including a massive inflatable pillow all the kids absolutely loved. Olive loved hanging out with her boys (Anthony, Ben and Harry) including some river walks, a trip to the beach (too cold for swimming, however) and toasting marshmallows on the coal bbq.

We decided to have Mum and Olive up one end, and Daddy with Iris up the other end. It worked out quite well except for Iris' early morning starts - 3.30am on the second morning which was a killer, especially as she didn't transfer successfully after an hour buggy walk...

We hope to make this an annual tradition with friends and this second taster of camping with our new tent has definitely given us the camping bug!

Olive & Iris's Ohakune Ice Experience

Tue, 15 Sep 2015 04:00:00 +1200

We finally got around to going up to Ohakune to catch the last of the spring snow and hang with the oldies. With only two bedrooms we braved sleeping all in the same room which worked well if Iris went to bed first followed by Olive (and me waiting until she was asleep). But it did spark new ideas of bunkbeds….. for a later date.

With only gumboots and one waterproof jumpsuit, tom managed to get hold of another suit for iris and we tired to make her wear goggles with no success. Next year we will have to hire snowboots if we want to stay longer on the snow. It was lovely and warm so no coats were needed.

Olive really enjoyed the sledging, with both mum and dad and Nan and Granddad gave a whirl too. Granddad helped Olive build a snowman with facial features we had to steal from another melted one and mummy sacrificed her beret for the wet little chap and wore a sock for a hat instead. Fashion error.

We just enjoyed hanging with family and going for nice bush walks. It was lovely to share the snow experience with our girls, with many more to come!

On route home we stopped and had a lovely time at Peka Peka beach with a few pastries. Iris was really unsure of the sand texture but warmed up after a while, they both had an awesome time and Mummy collected yet more driftwood for who knows what!

We really should go up more often….

G

Olive Turns Three

Sun, 15 Feb 2015 23:00:00 +1200

With the new year done and dusted and the summer months upon us, we decided to plan Olives birthday party. This year, we teamed up with Lana and Nige to create a special joint birthday party for Olive and Anthony at Staglands.

Staglands has this great barn you can hire out - Alex had his 2nd birthday party here, and it seemed perfect to host Olive and Anthony's 3rd birthday party.

Gini and Lana begun discussing ideas for food, decorations and most importantly, the cakes! A month or so ago, we asked Olive what she wanted for her birthday party cake and it was always the same answer "a purple bunny rabbit!". She was so adamant that this is what she was getting that it's what she told everyone who asked her what she wanted for her birthday. "I want a purple bunny rabbit cake with M&M's!". No pressure Mummy! Always up to the cake challenge, and with a tiny little bit of help from yours truly (chief finishing icier and purple white chocolate ganash maker!), the bunny was ready to go in the fridge by 9pm! The earliest night before cakeathon yet.

Anthony had decided on a digger cake. How PC our kids are! Of course Lana couldn't just do any old digger cake, it had to be angle striped yellow and black on the inside with a pop in your mouth chocolate topping! Amazing.

We all divvied out the food responsibilities and had the grandparents to each bring a plate or two to help feed the littlies and the biggies. We had three different types of sausage on the BBQ (thanks for cooking Poppa!), mini quiches and ginger nut animal cookies (thanks Nan!), sammies and cheese poofs (thanks Granny!), mini meatballs (thanks Anthony's Gran, Lyn!) and a host of other goodies by Lana, Nige, Gini and myself.

Iris, being Iris, was just happy being Iris. Either sitting in the highchair and watching everyone, or sitting in the buggy, or being passed from grandparent to grandparent. Not a single cry the whole day.

All in all, it was a great day. We had a good mix of family, friends, anti-natal friends and playcenter friends all making the journey out. Olive was initially overwhelmed by everyone arriving and getting all these presents given to her (which we decided to leave most of the present opening till after we got home and over the coming days). Once she warmed up, she had a blast. Running round with the kids, showing off her purple bunny rabbit cake to everyone and lighting up with pure joy as we sung happy birthday to her and Anthony.

After the festivities we all took a stroll to see all the animals. We had quite a troupe going! Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and the weather managed to stay mostly dry, albeit a little chilly.

We won't talk about the accident at the cafe after holding on all day, as apart from this, it was such a perfect day.

Happy birthday to our beautiful Olive! Let the planning begin for your 5th!

T

Mt Maunganui Beach & Sun

Sun, 21 Dec 2014 20:00:00 +1200

It was the Turners year for Christmas so the Mt Maunganui timeshares were booked. This time there would be five cousins and eight adults with four bedrooms. A recipe for a full on week of family. We decided to break up the journey with a few days in Taupo before reaching the Bay of Plenty. Paul, Lauren & the Turner boys joined us. We managed a few recreational adventures like the AC baths which are fantastic for all kids and a few train rides in town before Lisa, Graham & Milla and the Grandparents joined us for lunch. It was lovely to see Olive & Ali picking up where they left off in August - Olive being Ali’s number one fan (apart from Lachie of course!) before we knew it we had all made it to Fairway lodge, beach and the sun.

Over the course of the week the kids opened a present a day or sometimes more! so they weren’t overwhelmed and to keep them occupied but the main source of fun was 1# the trampoline 2# sand & water at the beach and 3# cousins. If the kids were happy playing the grown ups were too.

Mum & Dad amazingly bought the Nespresso machine, which was brilliant as we all battled bad night sleeps throughout the week, apart from the grandparents! I never thought I needed caffeine but yes, yes I do in the morning, it just helped kick start the day. Tom and I alternated early morning buggy walks with Iris, as she was an early riser and night waker - cheeky monkey! but on the up side we enjoyed the quiet sunrises along the beach. We also managed the annual walk around the Mount and the boys ran up the Mount as part of the ‘King of the Mount’ race too- madness!

Most days consisted of Trampoline fun, putting on sun cream, chasing kids with hats, reading books and lots of eating. The best part of the holiday was seeing all the cousins having fun together. Milla loved Olive’s sparkly Elsa dress and always wanted to give Iris cuddles. Lachie was keen on cuddles with Iris too. Olive and Ali got on really well playing all sorts of games, the bird puppets comes to mind where they were flying around eating worms and then nesting and sleeping. Olive at times didn’t quite understand when Ali wanted ‘alone time’ as she would request ‘alone time with Ali’ and she got quite exhausted with 12 hours of cousin time pretty much everyday. It was wonderful to catch them having little conversations and often dinners for two.

The beach experience wasn’t what we thought it would be, we envisaged swimming with both kids (a little naive) but none of the kids went swimming apart from Milla was happy paddling, all that exposure at home I guess. Instead the kids were happy finding a really big hole (that someone else had dug) and setting in to build castles or playing with water. There were moments where three kids would be playing happily on one castle which was wonderful.

We managed to drive over to catchup with my cousins at Aunty Margaret & Uncle Kevin’s place in Matamata and I had a strange thought that this could be our kids and us in a few decades! As a kid we always holidayed with them but living in different cities meant as the years went by it was hard to keep up a strong relationship. I hope this doesn’t happen to our kids.

Christmas day arrived far too early but brought the adults secret Santa gifts and lots of lovely gifts for the kids. Olive and Ali got scooters which they loved using on the nearby carpark and we all had a go on Ali’s scooter which can take Adults! - Both Tom and I want one now.

After a fantastic and sunny week it was time to depart and go to a wedding! Lucie & Rory were getting married in Otaki on the 27th so we combined it with travelling back, which was lucky as the traffic the other way was terrible. Olive (for the first time) travelled with Nan & Grandad all the way back to Wellington and was suppose to stay the night there. It took her until 11pm to fall asleep on their bed and then later waking at 4am to be driven home to Karori quite upset. It was a big day, a big ask for our little Olive - Hopefully there will be a next time if the grandparents aren’t too scarred!

Iris came with us to the wedding, which as it turned out had lots of babies and kids running a muck. It was at Jenny’s farm which was stunning, with wisteria vines creating the aisle in which Luce walked down. The food was scrummy, beer selection great and a fairy tale setup inside a marquee. I was able to catchup with old friends from school, which was lovely to see how so many are still the same lovely people and we laughed at the best man’s speech and got to enjoy a little of Rory’s speech before the call came that we were needed back in Wellington. Iris hadn’t been very happy sleeping in the buggy so we called it a night at 9pm. With clear skies, the dew had settled on the grass and as we drove out of the orchard, we had a bit of trouble getting up a small hill. The waiters came to our aid and we were off!

The next few days we enjoyed BBQs with family and friends and enjoyed having the greater Turner families all in one place. The cousins had a ball, as if they knew that family is so special. We can see that every year it will get better and better seeing our kids have more fun with each other. Christmas is booked for 2016!

G

Ohakune Snow Getaway

Tue, 09 Sep 2014 02:00:00 +1200

We decided to head up to Ohakune for a long weekend - our yearly pilgrimage to the snow gods. This time it was just us and Myah who was still staying with us.

It was our first road trip with both the girls, so it we were a little unsure how it would go. We decided the best approach was to pick Olive up from daycare at 12.30 and head off straight from there and make a day of it. Unfortunately it didn't quite work out that way, as I had a mission of a time trying to get the roof box to attach to our new roof rack. It turned out I needed new bolts to fit over our wider than usual roof rack. I also had to drill new holes in the roof box to fit on our more spaced out than average roof rack! After that crises was averted, we managed to hit the road around 2.30pm.

Travelling with a 2 1/2 month old is like travelling with a time bomb. You don't really know when or where she was going to go off, requiring a one hour stop for refreshments. We also had Olive, who can be a ticking time bomb of her own - luckily one that can usually be reasoned with. First stop - Levin!

The playgrounds at Levin are fantastic. There are different sets of equipment for different ages. There is even a little dog run around area. Olive loved it, so much so that getting her back into the car took some persuasion. We were only an hour out of Wellington, and by now it was after 4.30pm. So we hit the road again, not sure really where to set our sights on. Soon enough it was past dinner time, and near to when Iris has her nightly unsettled time, so we decided to stop again at Taihape Mc'ds around 6.30 for a quick dinner. Olive was tired, Iris was unsettled and didn't really want to feed and we wondered what the heck we were doing, but we managed to get both kids back in the car and back on the road - reaching Ohakune after 8pm. Phew!

With the fire lit, Olive happily off to bed in her new pink portacot, we contemplated how we could do it better on the return journey.

First day in Ohakune we decided to take the long walking route into town. It was lovely to get out and get some exercise in the fresh Ohakune air. We wandered passed the horses and cows, and ended up having a well deserved lunch at the local Utopia cafe. Both girls were well behaved and the promise of seeing the giant carrot kept Olive moving on the walk home. She loved the giant carrot - telling everyone at KCC (daycare) about it the following week.

We took a chance on the local popup pizzeria for dinner. Olive and I ventured down to place our order and watch the pizzas be expertly made. She loved seeing them flipping the dough in the air and pulling them in and out of the woodfire oven. Unfortunately she had a meltdown when I said we had to then take the pizzas home so Mum could have some too - she was determined to eat them there and then. Fantastic pizzas, despite the meltdown. Would eat again.

Our second day in Ohakune and the weather was looking promising for a trip to the snow. So we all donned our snow gear and headed up the mountain! The clouds all cleared and we were left with a beautiful blue sky day. We snuck up into the second row of the top carpark (after saying we were just dropping off). We then hired a sled and took it to the beginner slopes. We had a blast. Olive loved making a snow man, then repeatedly wanted to go on rides down the hill on the sled with both of us. It really worked out well. Iris was happy to snooze in the front back. We finished the snow experience with a picnic in the boot of the car - just relaxing in the hot sun. We couldn't have asked for a better day. Olive was pooped - and had a snooze on the way back to the house.

With a successful day at the snow, we decided to head back home the following day - leaving at a much more respectable 10am. The drive home was much better planned. We stopped at Flat Hills for a bite to eat and to stretch our legs. This is a great place to take kids as they have lots of animals to look at. Bunnies, chickens, ducks, lambs and Olive's favourite - pigs. It was a good place to break up the journey. After this stop, we managed to make it all the way back to Andy and Nicky's place in Paekakariki before Iris had had enough. Olive got to play with Ben for an hour and we got to relax with a drink on their new patio.

Another short ride, and we were home, sweet home. A lovely weekend away. Next time we will just plan the voyage there a little better!

T

Iris our new flower

Fri, 20 Jun 2014 22:00:00 +1200

We had gone past the due date of the 16th of June 2014, 4 days to be exact. On the evening of the 19th we had dinner and I started to have mild contractions, we popped Olive off to bed at the usual time. From 8.30pm the contractions got a lot stronger until about 11pm, we called in Nan to babysit and she arrived in record time with her duvet in tow. So we made our way to the hospital. Upon arrival we got the bath filled and I jumped straight in (it wasn’t a huge birthing bath like with Olive) which was a lot better. It was all relaxing so much so Tom decided he should have a coffee by the bath. The gas was great as it took the edge off, we also had a trainee midwife who was fantastic as it was nice to have another person in the room. She asked me if I wanted a waterbirth (me thinking that was a bit hippy like) but also not wanting to get out decided to stay put. By 12.40am Iris Ann was born in the water. It was a lot faster the second time around and not so traumatic for all. Iris weighted in at 8 pounds & 6 ounces. After honey toast and a hot drink we said goodbye to Daddy (as he had to get back to Olive and Nan) knowing Nan wouldn’t be able to sleep a wink. So it was just Iris and I for the rest of the night. She feed well from the get go and slept pretty well that night but I was too excited! Tom and Olive joined us in the morning to meet her little sister! She was quite interested and very gentle. She was also a terror running around all the corridors and playing under the curtains. Needless to say they didn’t stay too long. Both sets of grandparents visited over the course of the day and by the end of the day I was ready to go home. However with the antibiotics Iris had she needed to stay in one more night. She didn’t sleep very well that night, so we ended up co sleeping the rest of the night and I was anxious to get home first thing. After a lot of waiting on the nursing staff we signed out and headed home a family of four.

Camping Kaitoke

Sun, 06 Apr 2014 00:00:00 +1200

In a flash of inspiration, both Jen, Dave and us decided we needed to get a tent for Christmas. Alan and Trish helped out, and on Christmas day, both families were now proud owners of massive tents! Jen and Dave's - four room, ours a more modest (but still bigger than we could ever need) three room.

After the end of summer, and rolling through Autumn, and neither of us having used our new tents, we thought we should just book in a weekend and just go for it. I did a bit of a google and decided on Kaitoke, basic camping in a nice setting. I'd been here before with mates back in school

Finally the weekend was approaching when we were having our first family camping expedition. The weather was looking a little up and down, but not too bad, so it was all on. We managed to rummage through our tramping gear, and with a trip to Kathmandu, we were set to go. With the boot fully chocker, Lyon shared the back seat with Olive (his first time on the back seat in the new car).

The drive to Kaitoke was only about 45 minutes. The great thing about the Kaitoke camping ground is that it is very minimal. It is just a large area of trees and grass alongside a stream, with a basic toilet block in the middle. It is also dog friendly, so Lyon could come and join in on the fun. We arrived mid morning and found a lovely spot under some trees and started on the tent. Once we realised we followed the instructions wrong, it was actually pretty easy to put up - with colour coded poles making it all the easier.

Jen and Dave arrived and had their tent up in no time (having practiced before, up in Taupo). The kids played around in the tents and in the van while we sat around drinking coffee and relaxing in the sun. The campsite sits alongside a stream, where we decided to take a walk so the kids could paddle and sail stick boats. It was such a lovely tranquil setting. Lyon was on his best behaviour. We didn’t need to cable him, and he was quite happy to stay near us, and have a run around with a couple of other dogs who were also camping.

The afternoon came along and Nige, Lana and Anthony turned up for a drink. It was also time to stoke up the coal BBQ. This was a bit of trial and error, and we never got it roaring hot, but it was hot enough for the sausages, and some tasty smoky steak. Unfortunately not hot enough for Nigel’s lamb, which he ended up taking home with him. Next time we will be better equipped.

By night time, it was getting cool, so we donned our warm gears and stood round the BBQ toasting some marshmallows on sticks. The kids thought this was great fun. Now, though, came the hard bit - getting the kids to bed! Olive has been sleeping very well for the last week or two, so we had our fingers crossed on this night. Luckily she was quickly out like a light. With the kids all asleep, we sat around drinking coffees and trying to keep warm until about 10.30 when Olive decided to wake up. Her having no nap can lead to her waking in an hour or two - and on this occasion we think waking to a pitch black room upset her a bit, so we got her up, looked at the stars and the moon for a bit - which was amazingly clear, then all went to bed in our room sharing our double air mattress. A rather restless night sleep for all, but we made it to 7am.

With morning here, we had cereal and porridge followed by bacon and egg butties for breakfast. Yum! We managed to pack up and squeeze everything back into the new Pitz and head home, a little weary, but happy to have finally made it camping.

We look forward to summer when we can venture out again for maybe three nights of camping Kaitoke!

T

Turner Melbourne Wedding

Sun, 05 Jan 2014 09:00:00 +1200

After 14 years or so, my brother Paul and Lauren finally decided to tie the knot! With a lovely inner city apartment booked, we left the day after boxing day for a week in Melbourne with the Turners. The flight wasn’t too bad since Olive was still traveling for free (and no seat) she was pretty content with drinking from pump bottles, pulling sick bags out of the pockets and replacing them and the odd glance at the kids TV playing. She did however fall asleep about 20 minutes before landing after finding it impossible to get comfortable (don’t we all?). We successfully caught the AirBus into town which Olive thought was fantastic and was on repeat stating in a loud voice “Bus” “bus” as it was her first experience on a bus after all. We walked from the Southern Cross railway station to the apartment with two large suitcases and a buggy and we had a moment of nostalgia that we were once again roughing it in Europe with backpacks. It could be done with kids is all I’m saying.

We finally got to meet Olive’s little cousin Milla (5 months old) for the first time, which was interesting for Olive! a baby! and Tom soon skipped out on us ladies to join the Stag do in a pub somewhere. The next day we took a stroll to the Botanical Gardens to check out where the ceremony was to be before it got too hot. We stopped for refreshments and Olive took a real liking to Mama’s banana milkshake. Olive enjoyed kicking a ball around and walking small parts of the 20min stroll.

Before we knew it, the wedding day had arrived. Thank god it wasn’t us! Oh the stress! ;-) The Turners (and Pecks) managed to get out for a yummy brunch along the riverfront before the boys (Paul & Graham) left to get ready at the hotel. Olive went down for her nap (2 good sleeping days so far!) and we even had to wake her to get to the hotel on time. We were running a little late (the norm) and just when you don’t need a zip to break it did. The zip completely derailed! on her flower girl dress I had made for Olive. We left with a half naked toddler to taxi it over to the hotel with a needle and thread in tow. After checking in I managed to sew Olive into her dress not as easy as one would think with a moving target and needle but Olive survived without a scratch.

It was a lovely short stroll over to the gardens and refreshing drinks to greet us. Thankfully the weather had played ball and it was stunning and not too hot. It was a lovely ceremony with baby birds running around by the pond in the backdrop. Olive managed her role as flower girl and was very keen to hold cousin Ali’s hand to walk down the aisle but alas kids will be kids and Alex didn’t want to. So Olive being so brave (so proud) she walked down by herself with bunny (of course) and her flowers with Sarah & Ali not far behind. She almost didn’t stop before the pond. Lauren looked stunning full stop. It was interesting being at a wedding with kids. Since it was outside the noise wasn’t a problem but running around and climbing on everyones’ chairs was a bit stressful! She soon found a bunch of balloons which she loved and then she was happy. The family photos were interesting with Lachie having slept through the ceremony was a bit dazed and sat beautifully for the photos, Ali being the oldest held baby Milla and Olive being Olive wanted to climb the photographers ladder. So that is how the photo was taken.

The reception went really well for the kids, Ali and Olive survived really well, Olive had some food and then went off to bed around 8pm with a paid babysitter to look after her. It was a little strange as we put her down and left the room into the hallway and had to wait about 10 minutes with the babysitter before checking she was asleep so the babysitter could sit inside the room. We managed to have a cold dinner and some dancing before the clock striked midnight. Tom decided it was a great plan to continue drinking the night away with Graham, Paul & a friend Snowie and didn’t arrive back at the hotel room until 5am. Olive decided that 6am was the best time to wakeup so we managed to get up and ready and were invited to the honeymoon suite all while Tom slept.

We enjoyed our breakfast with the wedding guests masses and took a stroll to the kids garden inside the Botanicals for some ice cream and water play and ended the day with a nice swim in the rooftop pool back at the apartment. A walk the next day to Myer the department store (us Wellingtonians don’t get out enough) had something for the whole family, Tom managed to get his ‘much needed’ laptop …cough and Olive enjoyed the window displays and Mama got some Benefit makeup too (been missing that since London!). This was the beginning of Olive's decline in sleeping habits as Olive skipped her nap time and the night time sleeping had a few interruptions with Olive joining us a few nights there after. It was interesting to see how Olive played with Milla. She was quite gentle and really liked her ‘baby’ toes and fingers. She would often go and get ‘kiwi’ toy for her to play with as well. We managed one bath without any tears and Olive was a giant! My little baby is growing up.

Olive finally got to see a real ‘etde’ elephant and a bonus baby one too at the Melbourne zoo on our last day. Lots of lovely monkeys and the butterfly house was lovely for Olive to spot them on us. But all Olive wanted to do was follow big cousin Ali around, all we heard was ‘Aila’ and an Olive blur running after big cousin Ali. It was fun to see the relationships growing and how much fun the cousins will have in the years to come.

G

A Week in Wanaka

Sat, 19 Oct 2013 22:00:00 +1200

After laying low for a few months (except for Gini and Olive venturing to Melbourne), we decided it was time for another family holiday.

Robin and Helen were keen on Wanaka and managed to book two neighbouring timeshare units. We jumped on board and Lauren, Paul, Ali and Lachlan also decided to make the trip over from Melbourne.

The timeshare was situated in a beautiful spot, 50 meters from Lake Wanaka, with stunning views all around. After settling in (after Tang negotiated taking the top master bedroom!), we awaited the arrival of the Turner/Pant clan.

I had not seen them since Christmas - and I had not even met 8 month old Lachlan.

It was a fantastic week, we managed a few walks - the first of which was the most strenuous, up to the top of Mount Iron to view the 360 degree views. It wasn’t overly taxing and Ali managed to nearly walk to the top by himself. The views from the top were lovely, but it was a little on the windy side. We hurried back down as Olive was getting very sleepy and tried to nod off in the back pack. That’s early mornings for you!

Another day we walked along the foreshore of Lake Wanaka. It was a beautiful day and the lake was very glassy. We found a nice spot for some stone skimming and Olive and Ali spent an age trying to fill up the lake with drift wood. The scenery was spectacular with the snow capped mountains behind the shimmering lake.

I managed two rounds of golf with Paul and Robin - and Ali came along for a ride too. The views from the golf course were beautiful. I actually played quite well on the first round - I think the squash I’ve been playing has been strengthening my golf swing. Or something.

While we golfed, the girls (and Lachie) found a pretty duck pond and watched as a mummy and daddy duck cared for their 12 ducklings.

With bad weather supposedly on it’s way, we decided to make the most of a nice evening and had fish and chips in a nearby park. The kids played with bubbles, swung on swings, kicked a ball around and Lachie showed off his new found crawling moves, taking his commando crawl to a new level (literally), while we waited for the arrival of a very tasty pile of Wanaka's best fish and chips. Yum.

We also managed a night out at the hotel's restaurant - where perhaps bangers and mash wasn’t the best thing to feed a messy eating toddler at a fancy restaurant. Olive has been spoilt with two dinners out now.

We planned a day trip out one day - with an hour drive to Arrowtown for pies, coffee and a spot of shopping. Unfortunately Ali’s breakfast didn’t like the windy Crown Range Road to get there. Luckily Robin had an emergency blueberry and yoghurt cleaning kit in his car. Prepared for anything! We had super tasty pies and coffee in the pretty Arrowtown square, where a female version of Lyon started to round us up! Cute dog, and made us wish Lyon was with us.

Afterwards, we ventured near Cromwell and up to the Mt Difficulty vineyard where Gini and I had been two years prior. Beautiful views and tasty wines to boot. Not a bad spot if I do say so myself.

It was really fun seeing the cousins interacting. Olive reaching an age where she is copycatting others and had a fantastic time copying Ali. There were both moments of joy and moments of steal the toy from the younger kid. I can already envisage a time in a few years where the kids can run amuck unsupervised while the adults kick back with a book and a glass of wine. We are not there yet though. As it is, holidays with kids are pretty exhausting but still very rewarding. Olives sleeping was pretty good all week, which definitely made it more enjoyable for Gini and I!

After a week of mostly sunshine and a little wind, the day we were to pack up and leave was wet. It non stop rained the whole morning. It was easily the day with the worst weather and luckily all we had to do was get to the airport and fly out. We made it in plenty of time - and even had a stop for McD’s breakfast and to buy Gini some shoes from Queenstown on the way!

We said our goodbyes to Paul at the airport, as he was heading home, while Lauren, Ali and Lachlan were joining us in Wellington. The flight was fine - Olive happily sitting in the spare seat between us for the majority of the journey. The landing, however, was nasty. It was the bumpiest approach I have ever felt - and we were all relieved when we were finally nearly touching down on the runway. Unfortunately, the pilot couldn’t get the plane low enough to land on the first approach, so we had to do it all over again! We all felt rather queasy by the time we collected our suitcases and journeyed home.

Lauren, Ali and Lachlan were staying with us for two nights, which was great. The first time we’ve had visitors staying over (except for the odd occasion where people have crashed for the night after a party). It was lots of fun - with Lauren and Lachie fitting nicely in the shrunk down spare room, and Ali sleeping on the floor of Olives room.

After a week away and two nights with the cousins, it felt sad when the house was returning to normal again. With post holiday depression kicking in, Lyon returned home after 10 days with Alan and Trish - so that was a perk up all round! We missed you buddy!

We get to do it all again in a couple of months when we venture to Melbourne for the wedding of the year! Can't wait!

T

Family Fijian Resort Getaway

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 02:00:00 +1200

Back in March an email went round to see who was keen on an island getaway. We decided to put house renovations on hold for a bit and take the plunge into family resort style extravagance!

Fiji was agreed upon, and the Thompson's, Harris's and us were booked! Six nights at the 5 star Radisson Blu on Denarau Island. This was our first time staying at a resort - and it certainly won't be our last!

We arrived late on the Tuesday night after a day of travel. Short flight to Auckland followed by a three hour flight to Fiji. Luckily for us, there was a spare seat between us where Olive could stretch her legs and pinball between us for the majority of the journey. She was surprisingly well behaved, with only a few grumbles when she had to be put back on mums lap and seat belted in for takeoff and landing. She also loved looking out the window and pointing out all the other "play"'s before we took off.

We arrived at Nadi airport and had a short mini van ride to the resort. The whole time was spent trying to keep Olive awake as by this point it was about 9pm and she was very droopy. We finally made it, checked in, had our welcome song sung, and were taken to our rooms only to find that there was no portacot for our sleepy one. It didn't take long to get one sorted and after very little fuss, Olive was sound asleep. Once the other couples had settled their little ones (two each - suckers!) we adjourned to our balcony for a few night caps and to soak in the warmth.

Our mornings consisted of a buffet breakfast feast with everything you could imagine for buffet breakfast - including deep fried donuts, pizza and salted fish. We made a habit of pinching a few snacks for Olives lunch (old backpacking tricks die hard).

Then - it was off to relax by the incredible pool. The main pool where we hung out had a slope leading into the water, which was great for the kids as they could paddle about while the adults kicked back on the loungers. The resort as a whole was definitely very kid friendly and the number of parents with a wide range of kids made that apparent.

Each day, by lunchtime Olive was ready to crash, and crash she did! She had two hour naps everyday! Which is remarkable considering she rarely napped for two hours at home.

The afternoons usually consisted of more of the same. Resort relaxation with a few drinks thrown in for good measure.

Four of the nights away we took advantage of the babysitting service. We would put Olive to sleep, then the babysitter would arrive to enjoy a few hours of TV while we got to enjoy some adult time with the others, dining at one of the four restaurants and finishing off with a few night caps back in one of the rooms. We felt a little indulgent, but that's what resorts are all about!

The one night we decided to take the kids out to dinner with us was a little chaotic to say the least. The kids were all going a little crazy waiting for their meals to arrive and all Olive wanted to eat was chips once they finally did.

There were two outings out of the comfort of our resort - the first, Josh and I took a walk along the waterfront through the neighbouring resorts to the Port at the entrance to the Island to find the elusive "supermarket". After an hour of walking (with a few wrong turns) we finally made it. A "supermarket" it was not, but it did have a few supplies the resort did not provide, so not a wasted trip, plus, some exercise in the heat and a ride on the bulla bus back to the resort.

The second outing, on our last day in Fiji, was a half-day cruise "finding memo" where a 30 minute boat ride took us to a close island where we had two hours to do some snorkelling, ride in a "submarine" (which the Harris's did) and to drink unlimited Fiji Gold (which we certainly took advantage of). It was a fun half day out and Olive seemed to enjoy the boat ride and the coral that littered the beach on the island. The snorkelling in the beautiful clear, warm water was fun too, but it was mostly just dead coral with the odd tang or bright blue fish. Not much more can be expected from a half-day trip aimed at keeping little ones happy.

The weather was amazing - we had perhaps a 15 minute shower one lunchtime, and the occasional warm breeze while the rest of the time it was sunny and warm, and not too hot. We were actually pretty lucky to leave Wellington when we did as shortly after leaving, a storm hit and the airport had to cancel all remaining flights.

All in all, it was an amazing experience, made all the more amazing by Olive's sleeping and her thoroughly enjoying herself. The first holiday with Olive we have not felt battered and disheartened by lack of sleep and a grumpy baby.

T

Wine, Sun and an IronDan

Tue, 05 Mar 2013 09:00:00 +1200

That time again - holiday time!

This time we decided to head up north to spend 3 nights in Havelock North with Andy, Nicky and their two little ones, Ben and Liam. Then the 8 of us (including Lyon) ventured further north to Taupo where Derek, Helen and little Harry joined us for another few nights.

We were fortunate enough to travel in style this time, in the Turner Peugeot - with a roof box to boot. Everything you need for a week with a little one and a dog was piled into the car, no sweat. Aircon, oh, sweet, aircon.

Upon reaching Havelock North, we dropped Lyon off at his concrete retreat, wished him well, and hoped there wouldn't be any permanent mental scarring before continuing on to the Woolshed Apartments where Andy and Nicky had just arrived. It was a lovely 3 room apartment with a private deck. We were sharing a bedroom with Olive, which we hadn't done for a while, and caused a few late night sleeping issues which we blame the molars for. Damn molars! Olive always seems to be teething when we head away on holiday.

We spent the days in Havelock North mostly at the various vineyards. We had a delicious lunch at Craggy Range one day, then hired bikes to bike between a few more the next. Olive's first time in a bicycle seat went well - she enjoyed the morning - but the afternoon was a little much for her and she ended up falling asleep against Gini's back! Luckily Andy wasn't far away in the car and we managed to transport sleepy into Ben's carseat and continued on our way!

The evenings were spent putting feeding the kids, then slowly, one by one, getting them to bed and to sleep. After this was adult time! Dinner, followed by drinks and a couple of games of Seven Wonders - our board game of the moment. Bedtime was usually around midnight, which is quite an achievement given we rarely last past 10pm back home.

On our way to Taupo, we picked up Lyon from his 3 night stay at the kennels, and apart from a little twitchy around the edges and a croaky voice, he seemed ok.

Taupo, as per usual, was a relaxing, sun filled stay. Andy and Nicky stayed in the new "Guest House" with their little ones, which worked out well, giving them some space to spread out, and leaving enough bedrooms in the house so Olive could have her own room. Not that it helped her sleeping so much .. With a mixture of molar pain and a nasty cold just set in, poor little thing didn't have a lot of fun at night (which meant we were a little shattered by the end of the week).

Derek, Helen and Harry joined us for the weekend - and after quickly teaching them Seven Wonders, Derek reigned as champion the games we played. Beginners luck or something else? Not sure. Have to read up on some strategy guides.

Saturday came, and was one of the main reasons for the trip to Taupo - the Ironman was on! We were IronDan's official supporters. Dan's girlfriend Kat (KatRox) was also competing. The atmosphere in town was amazing. Gini and Nicky managed an early start to walk to the start of the swim by 7am. Andy and I walked in with the kids to meet them shortly afterwards. We managed to have brunch before seeing Dan fly through on leg 2 of the bike stage before walking home again for a relax and some lunch. In the afternoon we ventured out again and made camp at the bottom of the hill to watch the running leg (a full marathon) in which they passed by several times on a three loop run.

Finally, Nicky, Derek and I drove back into town to watch the finish - and only just made it in time to run a few hundred meters to catch Dan finish, in an incredible time of 12hrs 15mins. To think that we had a tiring day just trying to follow the race. A pitstop at KFC to get dinner for the troops and the day had come to a close.

Sunday was leaving day. Derek cooked us a tasty breakfast then both families said their adieu's before hitting the road. We were left with peace and quiet. Which felt odd, so we to decided to get packed up and hit the road after lunch. Leaving sunny, hot Taupo behind us, until next time.

All in all, a great but exhausting week away - now we just need some time to recover!

T

Olive's First Birthday Bash

Sun, 17 Feb 2013 02:00:00 +1200

We've made it! Olive turned the big o-n-e on Friday the 15th so on Saturday we held a bit of a birthday bash for her.

All of her family and friends were there except for those overseas who sent lovely messages, there was an amazing cake (Little Bug Blue) created by Mummy, a slide, a sandpit and a swing which were all put to great use - especially by the older friends. The grandparents came with tasty treats and nibbles to keep the guests happy and Wellington put on a hot sunny day to help with the celebrations, yet again. Lyon managed to eat half the first chocolate cake Gini made and left cooling on the back of the kitchen bench. He also managed to steal a couple of the cupcakes Granny had made (and lick the icing off a few more). He's never one to miss out!

It's hard to imagine we've had Olive with us for a year now. It has gone so quick! But she has certainly changed so much in such a short time. Especially in the last couple of weeks, when she has found mobility, a greater understanding of what we are saying (she loves defying "no") and the occasional word (woof! being a favourite, although "dada" seems to be her word for most things). She is such a happy wee thing, a joy to watch as she plays with her toys, toddles around, clambering over anything in her path - including Lyon, who she loves to climb up on and pull his hair (and occasionally give some "nice patting" to). She beelines to any open door leading to the deck (has used the dog flap once), and heads straight for the steps up to the grass (or reverse traversing the slide). She still needs to work on coming back down, however!

Sleeping is still a bit of a trial and error, with periods of great sleep (we managed to get her sleeping through the night at 11 months, which lasted a good couple of weeks), followed by very inconsistent periods (such as at the moment), more than likely due to more teeth coming through (there are at least two molars that have breached the gums).

She has gone from crawling to standing holding onto something to walking with the trolly to kamakaze standing unaided for a few seconds at a time in a couple of weeks. She has started using a spoon if we pile the food on, then after licking clean, either throws the spoon to the floor or starts stabbing the rest of the food in her bowl with it. Mealtimes are a mixed bag. Some things get scoffed down in minutes such as risotto, macaroni cheese, mushroom soup, couscous, broccoli, eggplant, rice bubbles (in yoghurt), bananas, raspberries, blueberries and most things that are coated in yoghurt. She usually throws other things on the floor without it even touching her lips - which can be a little embarrassing when we are out and don't have Lyon to clean up after her.

She wiggles to music, claps, waves, points, cuddles, rolls balls to you, sorts stuff, posts stuff and makes it an impossible mission every nappy change.

Happy Birthday Olive! We are so enjoying the little person you have become and can't wait to see what delights await us around the corner.

T