Monday, August 15, 2011

Fun in the Sun...

Believe it or not we took these pics just a few days before we had snow. Crazy weather. It was so beautiful on Saturday it hardly felt like winter. Anna-Maria has "Ralfie" a special soft toy they can take home from Kindy for a day or two.

We put Ella-Rose on the grass for the first time and she had a fun time feeling and tasting it.








It's snowing!!

We've lived here for 4 years now and today was the first time it has snowed in Blenheim. The kids were really excited but Tane and I are really nervous as we are supposed to be driving to Mum and Dad's on Friday and the 2 main routes there are closed.

We are hoping that maybe it will melt by then or at least enough to open the roads... otherwise we might be stranded with no home and nowhere to go...

Here is Anna-Maria excited about the snow. Not enough to settle, but the forecast is snow for another day or so... you never know...

And a few pics of her trying to catch the snow.

You can't even see the snow on the photos but believe me it was there... and it was cold.... still is... outside. We are all toasty warm inside with the heat-pump cranking... The kids are ready for school in their T-shirts and I have to remind them although it's 24 degrees inside, it's 2 degrees outside.

Now just for fun... our hot water is not working... we have no idea why...but on the coldest day... it decides to pack up. Great. The kids will just be having a wash in front of the heat-pump tomorrow. We'd better get that sorted as we're moving in 4 days.

Funny stuff our kids say

Anna-Maria: What is that smell?
Me: Someone is smoking.
Anna-Maria: We don't smoke do we
Mum: No
Anna-Maria: It makes your lungs black
Mum: Thats right.
Anna-Maria:: We have pink lungs don't we mum.
Mum: Yes
Anna-Maria:: What colour lungs do boys have?

Mum: "Oh no do not look in the margarine container!"
Joseph: "Come on let me look. I'm a man."
- so he looks.
Joseph to mum: "You're so in trouble!..."
That's the tub of margarine after sitting on the stove while the roast was cooking.

I was singing a church song which goes like this: "and so my needs are great"
Anna-Maria said "Our knees aren't grey are they?"
I cracked up then asked her "who has grey knees?"
Anna-Maria: "Nobody!" (as if that was such a silly question).

There she goes again.

I managed to catch a pic of Ella-Rose sleeping in her sitting up position. Poor thing.



There she is again once she's been tucked back in.
She has been sick the past few days so not sleeping well at night due to coughing, snotting and snorkling. Then she has big catch up sleeps during the day... which means I am making the most of packing.

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Don't tempt fate!

Today I remarked to Tane how 'amazing it is that Ella-Rose hasn't figured out how to climb out of her bassinet'. I mean, its pretty good because we have sold her cot, and even though she is almost 8 months old, we have no other alternative.

I watched her on the floor when I laid her on her back. She simply rolled herself onto her front and pushes herself into sitting position. She is also pretty good at climbing up things now... so I was pretty surprised she hadn't done it in her bassinet. She just lies there and cries if she doesn't want to go to sleep. That is, she did... until now.

SO when she started getting tired after lunch I did the usual sleep-time routine: wrapped her up, gave her her dummy and teddy, gave her a kiss and and said goodnight. She made a few of the usual grizzles... I could hear her as I was re-packing boxes (re-packing!... that's right... re-packing!... because it is an almighty sin to post things to Australia in fruit boxes!... especially banana boxes!... apparently!).

Anyway... all went quiet for a few minutes so I ASSUMED she was asleep. Then I heard a loud thud which I expected would be followed by an even louder cry... but that didn't eventuate. So I opened the door and had a peek and this is what I saw.

Then she saw me... and was not happy.

I re-settled her down again and when I went to check on her... she had fallen asleep. But she was sitting up. This time I didn't rush for the camera... I thought she had stopped breathing or something... I laid her down and she started to cry again... So I got her up and fed her some spaghetti.

Later that evening when I put her to bed she just went out like a light, as though she had forgotten her new-found discovery. Long may that last... or at least for the next 2 weeks.

Monday, August 8, 2011

Picton pirate ship



During the school holidays, the kids got to go to Picton for the last time. It has been one of their favourite places to go while we have been living here in the South Island. There is lots to do there for kids at the foreshore... sail model boats, have a train ride and play in a variety of playgrounds... the best one being a large pirate ship. The kids were happy they got to have a turn on the new pirate ship that was recently built before we left. Here are some pics of their fun times. 




















Sunday, August 7, 2011

The joys of moving...

The countdown for leaving Blenheim is fast upon us. We haven't figured out yet which day we are leaving... but we know we sell out house the 22nd August, so it will be that weekend. We have had a garage sale, and tried to sell our biggest stuff on trademe. We have given a car-load of stuff to the salvation army store, and there is still a lot more packing and sorting to go....oh no... only 2 weeks.

It is crazy that we have so much stuff. It's the first time since we have been married that we have had a really ruthless 'spring clean'... We can't believe some of the stuff we are finding. Some curtains that came from England... Some of the old wallpaper from my old bedroom... in England! - into the bin. Clothes I had from before Tane and I were married... I was glad to see they still fit, but had holes in so... into the bin they went.

We sold our bed yesterday... so last night Tane and I slept in the lounge on the inflatable camping mattress... We had spent the whole day packing and sorting... so when it got to 9 o'clock I was tired... it then took us another hour or something to pump up the bed while we listed to the All Black vs Wallabies game on the radio. Mission accomplished - we had a surprisingly good sleep.
 Camping in the lounge :)

We have no kitchen table or couches in the lounge. Our computer sits on the floor with the screen on top of the hard-drive. The kids beds have also been sold... but their mattresses are not being picked up until the day we leave.

We have boxes for chest of drawers. Initially there was a semblance of order... the boys had a box for their undies and pjs, a box for T-shirts and jumpers and a box for pants... but now whey just have a whole bunch of boxes and clothes everywhere... and that is when I have packed some of their clothes and given away a whole lot more.

Since we are now sleeping in the lounge, our bedroom has become mission control and storage for all our packed stuff. It was all orderly and neat until late Sunday afternoon when the kids got in there and started climbing all over the boxes, several have since fallen over and will need re-packing...(great).

Our bedroom. :( Sad to be missing our bed.

This evening the kids decided to dispose of our dilapidated washing basket once and for all. They took turn bashing it to smithereens with a wrench. They had such a fun time.









Destruction is fun...

"It feels like camping" Tane says. The kids think its exciting... but I am sure the novelty of living out of suitcases and sleeping on mattresses on the floor will long have lost their novelty by the time we depart for Australia in October.

The kids are finding new and novel things to do with their time as most of their things have been sold, given away or packed. Today as we were getting ready for church I shushed  Tane so I  could listen to the boys conversation which went something like this.
Josh:... and we can be spys"
Joseph: "I don't want to be a spy"
Josh: "But we can be spys and figure out what people are doing" When Josh and Joseph are scheming they remind me of Angela and I when we were little.

We are sad to be leaving Blenheim... We have made some really good friends here, both from work and from church. We are really glad that we departed from the comforts of familiarity , family and friends to venture out on our own. We would never have made such good friends and Tane and I have had to rely on each other a lot. We may not have been to as many movies as Tane would have liked... but it has meant we had to choose just the best ones (which is fine by me).

We are getting excited to see Grandma and Grandpa. in 2 weeks and Aunty Hoana & Uncle Rob in 5 weeks, and also catching up with the rest of our family and friends before we head off on our next adventure.

Monday, August 1, 2011

Ella-Rose is growing up fast

 It's not fair she is growing up so fast. When I see newer babies of my friends I wonder where has the time gone, she was only born 7.5 months ago, yet it feels she has never not been a part of our family.

Ella-Rose is now crawling and can get anywhere she wants to in the house. We keep the bathroom door closed but every time she can't see me she seems to think I must be in there and crawls to the closed door and cries.