I cannot believe we haven’t blogged for so long – 10 days – so sorry chaps. So we have had a jolly frantic 10 days.
The second week of the holidays was spent cramming in some beach time with friends, and I took the girls to the theatre in Takapuna to watch Puss in Boots. They loved it – it is becoming a regular thing every holiday now. Emily went on strike for a day in the holidays – couldn’t be bothered to do anything. In fact she was almost a teenager and in the end I just left her in her PJs and did some housework. She did quite a bit of swimming over the holidays and we all went to a very exciting swimming pool in Mt Albert. The kids nearly exploded with excitement at the wave machine, slides, spa pool etc. It was a gorgeous family afternoon and whilst we can’t afford the time nor the money to do it every day after school as per Em’s request, I should think we’ll go back once a month or so. It was particularly good for Lucy because the kids spa pool was hotter than a bath so she never went blue like she normally does in pools!!!!
I have been experiencing the NZ public health system which is a combination of paid for at the point of use and the NHS. It took 11 months to get a hospital appointment but once I finally got there last Wednesday /Thursday the care was great. Looks like all the tests I had are normal which is good although it doesn’t really help make it all better – sometimes you just want an answer and then a remedy. Anyway, I have a consultant appointment in early November to go through everything as there are still a few tests they are running. I won’t go into the details on the blog in case you are eating but will just say one thing….don’t panic!
Steve and I went to a 1990’s party for a friend’s 35th birthday at the weekend. It became apparent that fashion in the 1990’s in NZ was pretty much that of the 1980’s in the UK. In the end we just decided to go with UK 1990’s and dressed up in clothes from our wardrobes – in fact it was quite shocking just how much stuff I own than dates back to then, even my make-up! So we didn’t really look any different! The birthday boy had pulled together a band and they were playing 90’s Kiwi rock classics. It was hilarious. Steve and I didn’t recognise any songs at all meanwhile the natives were bouncing around in a state of utter euphoria! It occurred to us that we really are in a cultural bubble here – I’m not sure if we will ever truly fit in as a result.
Stevie has had an amazing ten days. He swam a whole 2.8km without stopping in the pool. He did it in just a few seconds over 1 hour. I am unbelievably proud of him 🙂 And he is pretty pleased with himself too. He has also purchased a motorbike – a Kawasaki 750. We have discussed this for a very long time. Basically at the moment he spends 2 hrs on buses getting to work and back each day – we only have the one car – and we’d like to spend more time together enjoying the summer evenings. It is purely a vehicle for commuting and it will give him the freedom to travel at times that suit him. I’m really looking forward to having him around for an extra 45-60mins a day 🙂
This week Emily has returned to school after two weeks off on holiday. She’s utterly shattered. We have enrolled in Torbay Athletics Club which will happen every Tuesday night. She wants to run like me and was over-joyed when she was given a Torbay Athletics running top to wear at club nights 🙂 In fact I have been taking her running. A couple of weekends ago she  did 560m without stopping and with a sprint finish! Last weekend was a full 1km but she did stop in the middle for a grump so I ended up doing some very serious cajoling / bribery involving daddy’s home made chocolate truffles! She’s very proud of herself though which is splendid.
Lucy is therefore back at creche and other pre-school activities. She’s also very tired but that is probably because she can’t sit still!
Stevie has been away with work this week in Brisbane. He is back tonight – in about 2 hours and 23 minutes hopefully. Crumbs we’ve missed each other. We haven’t had an overseas separation since I was in the early stages of pregnancy with Lucy, so over 2 and a half years. And of course the massive upheaval of moving over here has meant we have really become quite inseparable as we have relied so much on coping together. I just cannot wait to see him. And he sounded so miserable on the phone – the three hour time difference, plus his very busy work schedule – have made it really tricky for him to talk with the girls so he is desperate for a family cuddle.
So that is us – busy but happy. Oh and I have been glued to the internet watching the miners rescue in Chile. Amazing. I did though wish we had a TV aerial for such incredible moments. I’d also would have liked to have seen some of the Commonwealth Games. But generally the TV in NZ is so rubbish there is no need to consider getting it sorted. Besides, it will ruin our lovely new roof!!
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