Happy Christmas to all

It's hard to believe that two double oh seven is nearly over! Christmas has come and gone, the evidence of the big day still sits in our fridge in the form of a now well attacked leg of ham.


Are those antlers coming out of Stephens head??!

Yay - Hair product!!


Heck - just how hard is it to get a photo of the great grandchildren?!!




Don't let the angelic looks put you off - these two are nothing but trouble!!

Christmas Eve with Connor and Alex


Waiting patiently for the opening to begin!!

We did Christmas on a smaller scale (well - the tree was anyway!)

as Boxing Day bought Graham and Ian together in a special bond known as carpet lifting. New carpet has been laid downstairs and up to the bedrooms ....

We also managed to pitch the new tent in the back yard this morning and it looks like something from an episode of Doctor Who - talk about 5 star comfort!! The only concern now is if a standard camp site is big enough for this monstrosity!

We are off to Taranaki for the New Year (not camping, as the bookings for a cabin were made in August - before the idea of the tent crossed our minds). Ian, Stephen and J,B, K are then heading to Papa Aroha http://www.papaaroha.co.nz/ for a two night tenting trip in January before Steve goes back to Wellington.

Our cousins Alex and Connor are heading to Queensland to live, so we have caught up a couple of times over the past week before they leave. We are sure James will be happy to babysit if Andrew and Greta need one - he does have a passport!

We also decided it was time to take a few photos of J, B and K.

Update September 07

After reading Brendan's blog I have been momentarily inspired to add to ours. Hopefully this feeling will pass soon as I haven't got much to say!

Rugby and netball is all over for the year. The Under 50kg team came a respectable 2nd, Bri and Kendall had a mixed season, and the Marist Pressies had a lot more wins than losses.

The girls have been busy all term preparing for their annual production, held a couple of weeks ago at the Uni Performing Arts Centre, and it was a great show. It showed why the school did so well in 'J-Rock' (the junior version of Stage Challenge) in Hamilton earlier in the year.

School is over for another term, and the weather is definitely starting to warm up.

We are in the (slow) throes of getting our ensuite sorted. Have bought the new vanity etc, just gotta get flooring sorted and we may even have it done by the time the family invades in March '08. (has only take 4 years!)

Geez- not a lot else to say. I might get inspired another day (in a month or three!).

Take care!!

Restaurant de Mangakoea

On Thursday night we dined in style for Kendall's birthday. The restaurant had only been open a matter hours and we were the VIP guests.

I have since heard the place has been closed down as MAF had not approved all menu items. I managed to get a copy of the menu and must admit there were some strange items, but what I ordered was fabulous so couldn't complain. James was the only one daring to walk a little on the 'wild side', it was unfortunate that some dishes were seasonal so he was unable to experience the Mashed Horse head brains with fresh straw and raw carrots, or the raw turnips, poisonous toadstools and daisies that accompanied the main course. He did have a rather interesting soup, however after one or two mouthfuls, sent it back to the kitchen. He is rather fussy.

Dessert was the 'piece de resistance', homemade chocolate squares with whipped cream and marshmallow, garnished with caramel creme and Chocolate icec ream. No complaints on that one!

We decided to kepp it a low key (but competitive) affair for James' birthday this year. A bit of bowling ... pizza and a video - nothing to difficult!

James was keen to make his own birthday cake, but we ended up settling on a 'soccer' theme from the supermarket (the alternative was cakes covered in pink icing!). Not exactly the top choice for a rugby fan like James, but sporty enough to do the job!

Next year he'll be sitting his car learners licence - where have the years gone??

Winter @ the Beach

We spent a night at Lisa's @ the Mount - the forecast was great (on Saturday) , however someone forgot to tell the weather what it should've been doing so it was wet, cold and windy by Monday! We still managed a pretty good time, and it was nice to have a break - thanks to Lisa for putting up with us!

K Babe doing a song and dance!!!

Cambridge 0 - St Johns 0

But they had fun (James' rugby jersey still sits in a muddy heap on the garage floor).

Kendall's Confirmation and First Communion

Kendall has been preparing for this over the past few weeks, going to lessons with Ian. The night went well. Mike sponsored K for her confirmation. She chose St Maria Goretti as her saint's name.

Time has once again flown by and we haven't updated the blog. This is not because we haven't done anything of interest, more that we have been too busy to sit and put it on the computer!
With winter comes sports, and there has been plenty going on. James is playing No8 in the St Johns Under 50 kg. They have had a couple of losses, but are a pretty strong team, and round two should see them turning those losses around. Brianna is playing in a Year 7 and 8 netball team, not many wins, but all the girls are enjoying it. Brianna has found her place in the goal attack/goal shoot position ... not quite Irene van Dyk, but getting there. Kendall is still playing on a Thurs night, and has also had a pretty tough season so far, but they are regraded next term, and should come out bit better! Ian has also had a few hit outs for the Marist Pressies. For a guy who never played rugby as a kid, he's doing pretty well, and enjoys getting stuck in! We go down to watch for a laugh now and then.
The girls have had a busy month or so with two performances they are involved in. They had a concert with Suzanne Prentice a week or so ago, and this week are involved in the Stage Challenge, a performace based on dance/music mainly entered by High Schools. SPC and one other primary/intermediate are the only two 'juniors' to take part. SPC were asked to participate by the university after blowing them away in a performance last year.
Ian is slotting into his 'new' job nicely, doing well with sales, and generally enjoying being out of the 'warehouse/factory' environment.

We caught up with Jack also - and James and Kendall went to the zoo with him (and Mike and Claire) while Bri was out and about socialising with friends.

Stephen arrived on Easter Sunday just in time for a lovely Roast Lamb dinner. On Monday we decided to head to Raglan, the kids optimistically packed their togs and the blow up dinghy .... they were onto a good thing as the water wasn't too bad, and Raglan turned on a great day. If you click on the last photo you'll see the kids (and Steve). Photo taken from Manu Bay.

Video shows Brianna in the dinghy and James and Kendall in the water nearby. Unfortunately the batteries died soon after, so its only a short clip!