The day Jen died a colleague gave me this rose, I put it on our deck and it has just started to flower, I went outside this morning first thing, and the smell from it is divine, another lovely way to remember her. Yesterday was Luca’s 14th birthday, Jen would have so loved to have …

Looking out the kitchen window these days is so different to when we first arrived…. We are having days and days of wonderful weather. This is unusual for spring here, and while it is lovely, we are always thinking about our water tank, it will need to be topped up a few times this summer, …

The next school term has started, it is a short one and Luca is counting down the days until his 14th birthday!!! Over the holidays I generally give a couple of extra chores on top of his usual, for Luca to complete. I am a big believer in chores. I think kids need to know …

Well we have had an interesting start to the school holidays. There was a polar blast that hit NZ and went up the entire country. It meant the largest snowfall we have had since living here. Our road was closed, as were all the main roads, but we managed to get out and Rich drove …

Fathers day at Carey’s Bay Pub was lovely, we don’t go there often but always have a good time when we do. Note the shirts, Luca thought it was time for a new matching pair, the last one Luca has well grown out of 🙂 It is just as popular today as it was back …

The rest of July and August disappeared in a bit of a blur and here we are into September already! On the 6th of September we have been in Tui Cottage 3 years, it is hard to believe! The fruit trees are beginning to blossom, so pretty and there is such an optimistic feel in …

The reason that Rich went to Canada in July was that Jen, his sister, had chosen to have a medically assisted death after a long, painful and traumatic illness. Luca and I got to say goodbye to her virtually, it wasn’t the same as being there, it is at times like this that makes us …

School holidays officially started today and along with them the winter weather has set in, it is truly horrible out there! Luca , Rich, Pica and Vida make the most of weather like this! These are common scenes in this house on days when the outside is not so appealing, very cozy! 🙂 Luca has …

Yesterday was Matariki. We have had some amazingly clear nights of late and the stars have been clearly visible. Matariki is the Māori name for a cluster of stars known elsewhere as the Pleiades. The constellation is visible from New Zealand for eleven months of the year, but disappears from the skies for a month …

Here we are in June and it has been the longest time since my last post! May seemed to go by in a flash! Luca is well into the second term, only 5 weeks now until the school holidays again! It is Queens Birthday weekend here, tomorrow a holiday, we are all happy about this! …