Tuesday 4 - On Holiday

 On Holiday

 Welcome to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4...

Summertime means travel time for many people.

Let's talk about travel and holidays.

1. Will you be traveling this summer at all?

We rarely go away in summer now the kids are grown up and have their own families. Christmas happens in summer here and the grandkids tend to go to their parents homes and so that's where we go. And they mostly live in Dunedin just a few minutes away. In the past we did tenting and then caravan holidays at camping grounds with the kids. They were a lot of fun.

2. Will there be day trips in store for you? visits to the beach, evenings out:?

Maybe, who knows, it's still a wee way off. I'm hoping we might head north for a few days about the end of July or beginning of August though but that's still to be decided. And it will still be quite cool but lately their temperatures have been averaging 7 or 8 degrees warmer than us so we'd enjoy that.

3. Do you eat out more in summer... do you go for ice cream or treats more?

We go for day trips occasionally, often go out for an ice cream, Outram is a favourite place for that as it is only about 10 to 15 minute's drive away. We sit there and eat it and then take a leisurely trip home around the plain. We don't eat out a lot, we sometimes go to a cafe for lunch and probably yes, more so in summer.

4. What is your favorite place to visit and what is the most exotic place you've been to?

My favourite place to visit is wherever the kids are, big ones and little ones. Even my brothers and sisters are kids, they're all younger than me :) I love visiting family. We've been to Australia, which is like us but not the same :) I've been to Fiji when I was a teenager and loved it. Bob and I thought we might go over several years ago only to wake up the day after we'd decided to discover there had been a military coup! And we went to Japan for Aaron's wedding. That was probably the most exotic place we've been. The culture was so totally different to anything we were used to, the cities were so clean, no graffiti, the people were very friendly and we felt very welcome wherever we went.

But it's winter here so summer holidays are just a dream at the moment. Instead we're eating stodgy comfort food and hunkering down and keeping warm. 

And here's the link if you'd like to join in. Tuesday 4

Keep well until next time,

blessings,

Diana

A mixed bag

It was time to vote in the local body elections this past weekend. So we filled out our forms and got them in the orange bin by Friday afternoon. I've just checked the provisional results and not one of my preferred candidates got through. Disappointing but we have a new look council and I've done my civic duty. 

(And I'm pleased to say that the 200 hundred year old vampire from Florida never made it either. Yes, someone did promote themself this way and probably received votes. Florida, would you care to take him back? We have enough idiots of our own.)

Last week I had a visit to the optometrist in their rooms in the city. If I'd waited to get an appointment out here it would have meant another month or so. I'm pleased to say not much has changed and all I have to do is wait for word from the hospital for a cataract op. I won't be holding my breath with the current state of our health system though. Oh the joys of getting older :)

It was a really lovely day, a teaser for summer, with temps in the mid 20's. It almost felt like we were back in Aussie. We decided to go to the Village Green for lunch but when we got there everyone seemed to have had the same idea and it was full. We were almost home by then, the Village Green is only one suburb over, so we just went home anyway and made tomato and cheese sandwiches. We enjoyed them. Then I sat outside with a book for a while - in the sun with just a slight warm breeze.

Jacqui and Steve were on their way through to Central Otago on Thursday and stopped off at Lake Waihola for a break. Jacqui took this photo of a black swan with her three cygnets. You can see it wasn't the brightest of days and the water was choppy. A lot of black swans make their home there and are considered a pest. They're quite lovely to look at though, well I think so anyway.

The shops are starting to put their Christmas decorations out and I saw these outside a gift shop one day, guarding the doorway. They're not little Santa's but the Nordic gnome or goblin which I think is cute. Depending on which country you're in they have a different name - in Norway I believe it is Nisse. But don't quote me :)

And just because I can, here's a sign I saw one day whilst I was out and about. It made me grin, cos that's me down to a 't' :)

And that's all from me today.

Until next time, 

blessings,

 Diana 

A family barbie

We've had some high temperatures this past week, 

touching on 40 C. Just a little bit hot for us southerners. 

It has cooled down somewhat today with a bit of rain

 but not enough to do much for the ground or gardens.

But before that sort of heat set in we managed to have 

a barbecue over at our son's home last weekend. 

Getting the fire started, one to light and several supervisors. 

Son in law hadn't arrived yet so couldn't stand there with 

the others giving helpful, or not, advice :)

The pohutokawa (red flowering tree) in the

 background was beautiful, in full bloom.

Daughter in law and visitors from Japan - they haven't 

cottoned on yet that the blokes do the cooking 

and the girls leave them to it. I can see there is some 

educating to be done. But never mind, 

the food was delicious.

Relaxing on the deck. Youngest daughter and her 

 hubby came over too. Our eldest daughter was away  

for the weekend so couldn't make it, and as it is school 

holidays the kids were away doing what kids do with 

their mates during the summer.

Later we adjourned to the garage to play pool and darts 

and as our new Japanese friend had just celebrated

a birthday we had a birthday cake for her

 much to her surprise and pleasure.

Brother and sister facing off. He has just knocked her

 off the table, up until then she had taken on all comers

 and won. Oh dear :) I didn't realise I'd caught them like this 

until I saw the photo and it just looks so funny.

Well that's it for this week.

See you next time.

Diana

joining Debbie over at
Breathing in Grace for 
friday foto friends

Summer, but not quite Christmassing.

 Hello there. I would like to say I am back to regular blogging but to be honest I don't know. After the past year with little mother being so ill and having to travel from one end of the country to the other with her for her treatment, (more than once) I found at the end of it all I was quite emotionally and mentally exhausted. I don't think I'm quite back to normal yet, but getting there. So...working on it and will post when I can. I have been visiting but just haven't had the energy to comment.

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So...Summer came in beautifully at the beginning of the month and so far it has been very hot for our part of the world. Temps in the mid to high 20's and nights in the mid  teens - too hot for comfort and not a lot of sleep happening. But the upside of that is that I have managed to get most of my spare blankets washed and back inside and put away. You can see that the grass is already burning off and I believe we are in for more of the same.

Number one son came and removed all of his gear at the weekend. They have just moved house again as where they had gone to was only a temporary house sit. They hadn't realised it would be quite so temporary or they may not have taken it. But this has proved a blessing in disguise because the new house is closer to the family, only a block away from his younger sister and her family. And it is in a bush setting while still being part of the city.

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I haven't really got much Christmas stuff done yet but have made a start. Below is my Advent calendar, a New Zealand holiday scene. As you open each door it tells a little of the Nativity story with photos of children playing the parts. Iconic and cute.

I also manage to play some Christmas music occasionally - when my GKB isn't watching darts...or cricket or snooker. So not very often at present :)

And I have managed to get my overseas Christmas cards written and posted away. Now to get started on the local ones.

Then it is a Christmas cake or two, but I'm not stressing about that. If they have to be store bought this year they have to be store bought.

Happy Advent.

Diana

A photo scavenger hunt

I am joining in a photo scavenger hunt this week with Hawthorn and friends over at I live, I love, I craft, I am me. Some of the photo's are from the archives, some I have used recently and some of you will have seen them before but I hope you still enjoy them.

1:  The setting sun

We had been up the coast to visit the blowholes and the pancake rocks. At the end of the day we headed back to daughters holiday accommodation for a pizza tea. This is the view we had of the sunset over the Tasman Sea from the upstairs sitting room :)

2:  My local wild place

This is a garden in the town where my GKB grew up, so although it is local it is not local local. It is on a hill on the other side of the city. It was established by the artist Ralph Hotere and overlooks the Otago Harbour. All of the plantings are native trees and bushes and those legs you see belong to a sculpture by Shona Rapira Davies titled They do cut down the poles that hold up the sky. A lovely peaceful place to sit and relax and enjoy the native bush without leaving the city.

3:  Mug of favourite drink in the garden

Christmas Day 2016. The family had gathered at youngest daughter's home to celebrate. Dinner was over, the dishes were all cleaned up and put away and it was time to take a cup, or glass, of our favourite drink and relax somewhere and chat. The photo below is me, my daughter and grandaughter sharing a quiet moment together in the backyard. The other two possibly had a glass of wine but my drink of choice was instant coffee, made the way I like it :) Goodness knows where everyone else was, there were at least 20 of us there for the day.

4:  My kind of beautiful

Isn't she beautiful? Well I'm guessing this is a she, cos she looks pregnant to me. Anyway I love these big draught horses and you don't see them around much these days. Don't ask me the breed, I couldn't tell you, I took the photo from the car while we were doing some sightseeing last time we were up Middlemarch way .

5:  Look to the skies

On the same trip up to Middlemarch this was early evening sky at the camping ground we stayed at. My GKB took this photo and some people have said the cloud formation looks like a giant hand in the sky. Anyway I think it is quite dramatic.

6:  Mini beasts

Well you can't see the mini beasts as they are inside the nest. 

This is the nursery web of a nursery web spider and the babies stay inside for couple of weeks. I guess if you don't mind spiders you won't think of them as beasts but if you see them magnified they are very definitely little monsters.

7:  Rain

One evening late last winter we had a shower of rain. Or maybe it was early in spring as I see new buds on these branches. Overnight we had a good old frost. In the morning my GKB took a sequence of photos. The raindrops had frozen on the bare branches of this bush and it looked rather pretty with the early morning sun shining on them. A little like the spindly little bush had been draped with a string of diamonds :)

8:  Something summery

Flowers always say summer but this is 
a photo I love, taken one hot day last summer.

Wouldn't you have thought it would be easier to just get under the table instead of clambering up on top of it to find the little bit of shade afforded by the sun umbrella? This puppy is a real character :)

9:  Urban wilderness

What can I say? An urban area in the wilderness. 

Queenstown, New Zealand.

10: My own choice

Parked up for the winter, caravans on a
 bleak winter's evening in Central Otago.

I hope I haven't been too wordy

See you next week.

Diana

I wasn't going to...

...post again until after New Year 

but couldn't resist the pull, haha.

So that's my willpower down the drain

 before we even get to the resolutions bit, 

so I don't think I'll bother.

Four of my six grandchildren were at youngest 

daughter's home for Christmas dinner, 

along with parents and grandparents and one great grandparent,

 so it was quite a crowd. Later in the day 

another cousin arrived from up the street 

where he had been celebrating with his grandparents 

and all the kids had a good time together.

Youngest grand daughter is modelling the scarf/stole

she received from her aunty and uncle in Japan.

All the girls of all ages received one in different colours,

mine was in neutral colours with a rose pattern. Lovely.

It was a lovely day with just a bit of a breeze. 

We had been planning on a barbecue 

but the long term weather forecast was a bit iffy

 so we decided against it. 

We still had hot weather desserts though, 

because that's what we do in New Zealand.

I can't begin to imagine what to make 

for a cold weather dessert at Christmas.

I ate far too much of everything 

and will be taking myself out for a walk

 after tea tonight when it cools down a little.

Mackie, youngest daughter's old cat (about 12 or 13) guarding 

his Christmas chow from the kittens (about 4 months).

And of course the Boxing Day sales were all on today. 

We don't usually indulge because it is such a mad house, 

but guess what? We found ourselves at the Warehouse, 

quite accidentally of course, but didn't spend too much. 

We just bought stuff we needed - like the new cushions 

we had been planning on getting for the swing seat.

 Half price, a bargain ! Now we just have to get a coat 

of paint on that swing and she'll look as good as new.

And of course I really I needed wanted this blingy top. 

I have been looking at it for a couple of months

 and as it was also half price I thought it was

 too good an opportunity to let pass :)

We had actually only gone up to the local shops

 to buy vacuum cleaner bags but ended up in the city 

because our shops didn't have the ones I needed.  

That's my excuse anyway and I'm sticking to it. :) 

And just because I can here is a windmill I grabbed from the 

Good as Gold $2 shop because I liked the colours!

Sometimes you just have to let your inner child loose.

joining in with the party at:

Wake Up Wednesday

Hoping your Christmas

was truly blessed

and that 2016 brings

all you hope for.

Diana

...so why isn't it March yet?

The Christmas tree is down and packed away and everything is beginning to return to normal. 

So why isn't it March yet? It feels like it should be.

 So much has happened this past two weeks I can't believe it is only a fortnight since Christmas.

What on earth is she on about? you may well be asking yourself. 

Well here's a wee look into my past two weeks.... 

at the beach

As you know before Christmas  I was involved

in the church 's Christmas outreach to the community

 and it was a lot of fun. 

Then it was straight into preparations for Christmas day

 as everyone was gathering at our place.

Eldest Grandson arrived on Christmas Eve and we went

 to the evening church service with his sister and my little mother.

One of the ladies there wanted to get a photo of us all together., 

so here it is below.

Caitlin, Andrew, me , little mother

We had a lovely time over Christmas, the weather behaved and the kids,

 big and little,  played outside in the sun. 

We all ate too much and drank just enough and generally had a convivial time.

Christmas puddings

Two days after Christmas my grandson and his partner departed

and I was rushing around getting beds changed and remade 

for my Aunty and her daughter who were arriving to stay the following day.

You see, just two days before Christmas my little mother's sister had died

and we now had a funeral to look forward to. 

This leaves just three sisters out of a family of six siblings.

So as well as getting ready for Christmas 

I was also trying to find another aunty in Australia 

who was in the middle of shifting cities. 

Well not literally, she was the one moving, not the cities.

Old phone disconnected, new one not yet on. 

But when you've got Facebook it's amazing what you can do.

Mission accomplished eventually, thank goodness for technology.

my little mother and her little sister - a bit blurred, sorry

The funeral was a nice gathering of extended family

with a group of cousins all round about the same age. 

So nice in fact that it was decided that maybe we should have a family reunion - 

and because I was the oldest cousin there I could organise it. 

I'm letting that sit for a while and will check back after things have settled down a bit. 

Am I up to it, I think so but with help, otherwise forget it.

a group of cousins

While Aunty was here we went shopping for a 'grandmother of the groom' outfit,

and found a pretty one for her, then after a couple of days they went away back home.

And New year hadn't arrived yet and I have to admit 

I was in bed by about 9:30pm New Years Eve.

No seeing the clock strike midnight for me.

In the meantime my sister had also arrived  

from Australia for a few weeks holiday with our little mother.

She likes a busy holiday, doing stuff

so we went to beach a couple of times with her 

and I went shopping when she bought presents to take back for her grandchildren.

And that is just my side of the family.

Aramoana beach

A nephew and his wife on my GKB's side were also down from the North Island on holiday

and wanted to catch up, so off we went for an afternoon at the Botanic Gardens.

We really did enjoy our day out with them and the kids, 

and my GKB's sister and her husband. 

A fun time all around.

fun riding the train at the gardens

It really has been a busy time and I haven't even mentioned

 that in amongst all that we have also fitted in two hospital appointments.

Which is probably the reason I was sitting in an empty coffee bar 

a couple of days ago looking a bit like a stunned mullet.

So with all that has been happening my question is,

 "Why isn't it March yet?"

Blessings to one and all,

Diana

joining in with:

roses of inspiration #2

Heading to the caravan

Well, we are back from our break up at the caravan.

The sun shone.

It was extremely hot, for us.

The wind didn't blow.

We ate salads every night for tea and drank lots of cold drinks.

We ate ice cream every day.

No-one caught any fish, but it didn't matter.

I have a bit of a suntan, and it isn't peeling. Wow!

We had a lovely relaxing few days away.

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The road to the caravan takes us more or less 

the same route as the goldminers and pioneers of old took.

Our first stop is at a little place called Lawrence, not  far from where Gabriel Read first discovered gold and started one of the biggest gold rushes in the southern hemisphere in the early 1860's. 

It lured men from all over the Australian and Californian goldfields.

Helen Munro,  Gabriel Read and Edward Peters (Black Peter)

 Helen Munro first discovered gold at 'Munro's Gully' and Edward Peters was credited with indicating where gold might be found 

but never found enough to become rich himself.

Unfortunately the town is now just a small place, 

mainly used for a comfort stop but it has a lot of lovely little cafes, b&b's and some nice wee boutique style shops.

Heading up the road we come to the apple and pear country. 

Just the right climate, hot summers, cold winters.

Ettrick (in a&p country) has a nice wee tearooms 

where we sometimes stop for devonshire coffee. 

Coffee just the way we like it and lovely scones,

raspberry jam  and cream. Yum.

It doesn't look much but is world famous in New Zealand, 

being the star of a humorous TV ad for ice cream.

It's also used as a pit stop for trucks and for farm and orchard workers to have lunch, the only place around for several miles.

And a little further up the road we are into the stone fruit area.

I love stone fruit. We always buy enough on the way home 

to share with all the family and we know it is fresh off the trees.

So although there is not much gold around

 it is great fruit growing country. 

A different type of gold, maybe.

And there I think I will finish 

so you don't get too bored with my ramblings.

We haven't had lunch yet and there are 

a couple of other places I'd like to give

you a glimpse of so I'll do 

another post later sometime.

Hoping you're all well,

and the weather isn't 

treating you too badly.

Have a good week,

Diana

one, two, three - thanks

Like Kim at nannykim's place I have

been following Ann Voskamp's1000 gifts principles,

that is to give thanks for 3 things each day for a year.

I meet a friend for lunch every Monday and

 we share our three things for each day of the previous week

with each other, that way we are accountable.

It is fun.

It is quite surprising to see what our separate

interpretations of each days three things is.

Sometimes we are coming at it from a totally different

perspective, but that makes it all the more interesting.

It is a great place to kick off our prayer time together.

Today the first thing to give thanks for was something in the sky and although this photo was

not taken today it is fairly typical of a Taieri sky

 at this time of the year - summer believe it or not.

As our summer sun is really vicious because of the hole in the ozone layer over us, it is great to sometimes have

some cloud cover. And this year our southern farmers are experiencing drought conditions so if the clouds

are a precursor of rain that is even better.

(As long as it falls at night time :)

Secondly we are to give thanks for one thing from my memory.

Well what can I say, I give thanks for my

childhood memories a wonderful time 

spent in the outdoors with cousins and friends

and in an atmosphere of utter well being. (The 50's)

The photo above is one we took when we were back in

 the ol' hometown last year.

These are the memorial gates from outside my

old primary school. The school buildings are long gone

 but the gates were saved and are now at the entrance to  Dixon Park which has a children's playground and

a creek running through it. A real symbol of my childhood.

The picture above is a representation of the third thanks -

one thing that is ugly-beautiful. This is one of the steam punk sculptures we saw in Oamaru near the end of last year.

 I'm not sure about the beautiful part of it but they sure

were ugly. I think they probably emphasised the beauty of the lovely white Oamaru stone on the buildings round about them.

Well that's it. I'm keen to meet up with my friend on

 Monday so we can share God's gifts with each other

 and have a bit of a giggle.

Goodnight all, and have a good week.