Oh My….

We blinked, and Luca went from starting school to finishing it!

Here he is beginning his school journey in Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia, to ending it at Logan Park High School, Dunedin, Otago ❤️

It was graduation last night, the kids are all looking forward to their next adventure, we are excited for them! This generation gives me much hope!!! We will watch from a distance now, as Luca follows his own path, cheering him on, always providing a base if/when he needs it, but know it is time for him to fly, we are so proud of the young man he has become ❤️

I am taking a moment to feel so much gratitude for what Otago has given us. Honestly, if you had told me 10 years ago that we would spend 8 years living here, I would have laughed out loud! This is not because of anything negative, but because it would have never crossed my mind! Life has led us in surprising directions!

I took the below photos on our regular walk; I want to remember the bush and just how wonderful it has been to have this right out our back door. NZ bush is so thick and lush, and the smell is divine, whenever I need a reset, a walk through this does this for me like nothing else.

Below is where we break though the overgrowth to our property. We keep the path a little overgrown to limit the traffic that comes through over the summer months. We often look over to see surprised faces looking over our fence, this little piece of paradise is nicely hidden, even some locals do not know it is here.

Rich, Pica and I did the Chain Hills Tunnel and Outram hikes recently, in perfect weather!

Pica and Rich swam; I did not! Rich said it was “like an ice-cream headache for your body, but very refreshing” 😂

At almost 12 Pica still loves this as much as we do, and now we have her on regular anti-inflammatory medication she can manage it well without feeling it too much the next day. Pica will be fine with the move; she is always fine as long as we are around, and her bed is positioned where she wants it 🙂

Here she is with her with one of her chooks, hanging out enjoying the sunshine, they are so funny together.

Someone who is going to miss here very much is Vida. She has really blossomed after a very traumatic start to life. The scared little kitty we picked up from the SPCA has bloomed. She will adjust, as knows we are her people, but it will take a minute. Here she is in her favourite position on the sun lounger, going to have to find a place for that 🙂

As we head into November and the festive season, I am making an effort to slow down and savour everything. I started yoga again this year, a friend has been so good at motivating me with this. I did it years ago, then life got in the way and I stopped, very happy to have started again as it forces me to prioritise what is important. Speaking of which, I am meeting up with some of the Mums of kids Luca went to Port Chamers school with tonight. We used to see each other a lot, then as the kids became more independent and other things, (mostly work for me), took over, not so much, but we all like each other’s company, so this year we have been carving out more time to get together.

I am so grateful for all that Otago has given me and us, it will always hold a special place in my heart.