While my Maltese family is basking in temperatures in the mid 30s, We, down under, are grasping for double figures and if the water shortage is not appeased there is something seriously wrong with the way we capture the sky’s tears!

Two weeks have passed since the long weekend adventures….and in two days time, we have the shortest day and begin the up hill climb into fairer weather!

A midweek trip to the not so sunny Bay of Plenty for a not so happy event, another funeral. The upside was catching up with dear friends and once again escaping the rat race of Auckland.

Or did I… it seems roadworks and traffic jams are nationwide (or at least they follow me). Hours of car sitting, followed by desk sitting upon my return has set in the hips and a good walk today is in order!

Floyd has donned his wet weather gear to help my builder create garden space and ploughed around in the mud!

In between the raindrops, the local pub was pumping out some Friday night sounds and beckoned the girls for a dance and…

Of course Trudi joined the band! After all open Mike night is a free for all! And we only live once!

It seems Dad has settled into his new home in Panmure and his new “girls” are looking after him well.

The boys are all trucking along working, playing and looking after babies! Tonight however is “Blues” night…the transtasman rugby final and Rain or Hail we’ll be there. Time to gather the ski gear!

So Thelma and Louise left sleepy little wet Waiwera at 8.30am this morning…..heading south for the long awaited retreat! The rest of the city had either left or given up on a long weekend getaway.

Putting on their blonde hats thinking a bit of R &R shopping on a Saturday morning would be fun before the final destination!

Only to realise it was actually Sunday and in the sleepy little town of Pukekohe, most shops were closed! But not all – barbers and cafes and 2 dollar shops were open all hours!

Meeting up with a couple of friends (Jill and June) for a late morning brunch!

Then it was on the road again, heading west to the wild coast. Arriving at destination at designated 2pm, only to be told the luxury villa was not ready and we could walk to the lookout! Not particularly appealing in the drizzle and low cloud, but off we went!

Thelma amused herself with the local flora while Louise took a comfort stop in the bush. Needless to say the nasty weather meant we did not have to watch out for other trampers!

Thelma braved the cliftops while Louise nervously took photographer duties…. The dampness was increasing but not before a glimpse of the castaways resort, where we were destined (at some point)

Needless to say we were not going to get any sunset pictures tonight! Having worked up a little thirst, the gals decided a sojourn in the bar might be in order to fill in time! Nothing like a cheeky little Rum and coke to warm the bones.

Then the call came, the villa was ready….and the real business began. Thelma had a small rest with a tabloid magazine while Louise soaked up the view and a glass of wine!

Next it was time for some personal maintenance….

A collagen plumbing mask (purchased from the $2 shop and instructions in Chinese) As they say, you get what you pay for and it fell off in 2 minutes ($1 per minute obviously)

Next job was hair and eyebrows!

Followed by baths and showers in our own personal ensuite! Yes we are going all out – a room each!

Thelma and Louise rocking their new hairstyles…Thelma wondering if she overdid the “Perm” and Louise wondering if the colour is quite what she envisaged. Oh well it will grow out!

Now it’s time to relax with a few refreshments until we truck down the hill(40degree incline) to the A la Carte Cliftop restaurant! (Rocking their curls and bangs). Just to let all our followers know we will not respond to any comments as you may or may not be aware….there is no internet at Luxury Retreats!

The bubble is about to burst, not talking about any travel bubble…the travel bubble catchphrase is becoming old! One minute it’s all go (to Australia), next minute you are stuck here or there or somewhere you didn’t plan to be!

Ok so the suspense is too much! With a long weekend ahead…Thelma and Louise are about to hit the road again! The weather promises to be wet, like 100% chance of rain, but this will not dampen the spirits! And possibly will deter the faint hearted (other humans) from travelling too far from home on this last holiday weekend before spring!

Where are the gals off to you ask? All I will share right now is for a “much deserved break” …… there will be laughter (and probably tears), fine dining and adventures!

The last two weeks have stretched us to the limits. The shifting day is finally here….today Dad moves to the house on the brothers estate. Dads new carer has been staying at his house and most evenings after work, I have spent obeying orders and helping the new lady settle in.

Last night I was there wrapping and packing and Dad suggested I take “Sandy” (ashes) with me to mine! I replied I have more than enough of my own – she can go to Panmure with him as she knows that place.

So this morning at 9am the shift begins, George and I representing our Family until they leave the coast….then “Freedom” comes to mind as belted out by Aretha Franklin (song title Think) in the Blues Brothers classic!

Last weekend was a busy one of birthday parties..

Auntie (great) Sue celebrating Esmes fourth birthday in style with Fraser (dad) and Trey (brother).

Then some lifting and shifting (beds and fridges) on the home front, more work for the building crew at my flats and Dads new abode and the rest of the week flew by in a flash of work busyness as May rolled into June, 2021 flying by!

Time to get this day started – my services are required at 8am for the final wrap, pack and Despatch!

Sometimes nothing going on would be good! After a week of unplanned events, I am praying Sunday goes to plan!

The week started with an early wake as I headed to work at 5am to assist in a much needed stocktake! Which opened a can of worms, with neither the accounting or warehouse team members being able to shed any light on the discrepancies! This became my project for the rest of the week – still not sorted, yay roll on next week!

I spent my after work time visiting dad, Jaxon and Tyler Russell and crashing early as our weather see-sawed from tropical to Icelandic!

A moment with my grandbaby on the way home from work.

Until Thursday…when Dad decided he had not had enough attention! His carer took him to the doctor in the morning to have a couple of his skin lesions surgically removed! At 87, enough is enough. The carer leaves at 2pm and at 3.30 I missed a call from Dad…he then phoned Jaxon as, in his words, he was “bleeding like a stuck pig” (no offence to pigs intended). I got the call, to race over and get him back to the doctor before closing!

I race in and this woman “Cherry” is there waving an agreement under Dads nose to sign so she can rent his house out! Chatting away while Dad is wrapped in Bloody towels around his arm! A little push for me to sign on his behalf and actually no “Cherry” leave it there, leave, and deal with it another day. Heaving Dad into car and off to the doctor… more stitches new dressing…. kind of felt there was more to come… so raced home and grabbed my Jammies and toothbrush to stay the night with Dad and Trudi!

I managed to get all the bloody towels soaking, clean up the lounge where the event had started, soaked carpet, collect all the soiled handitowels, emptied rubbish bags, made salad and set table before Trudi arrived home from work to relative normality!

Tea eaten, jammies on, and about to get Dad to bed and noticed the arm bandage was red again and pumping more – towels, frozen peas, pressure and ambulance! The two blokes managed to stem the flow after about an hour more and decided that “their” bandage was invincible, helping us get dad to bed around 11pm! I still felt this wasn’t over and I was right!

I was just dozing off around midnight, dad gently snoring, I crept in and felt his arm….wet! Light on and blood everywhere! I did all the things the experts told me for twenty minutes and no let up! Ambulance again, this time some more experienced operators who pumped something into the wound to stem the flow, loaded Dad in Ambo and left me to follow at 1.30am! I left behind what looked like a murder site! Oh and navigating a half closed motorway due to roadworks, at 2am for most of the drive, was just another event needing my full attention.

Safe in the hands of the Hospital doctors! Or Not! The ED was so busy that no beds were available, Dad spent 2 hours in the ambulance bay and me in the waiting room! 4.30am we were moved to the clinical area, alone, no nurses or doctors, but at least a cubical and a chair(for me) to wait out until the morning staff was on and a doctor could see Dad! A half hour of much needed chair nap for me and Dad snoozed for a bit. I phoned the brother to see if he could relieve me but no! Wife gone to Queenstown and he had to drop kid to school. So instead of the carer wasting her morning getting through the traffic (she was needed at the house to clean up the last round of blood spatter) l stayed while the clinical nurse dressed yet again the wounds this time having not misbehaved for around 6 hours! Maybe we were winning! I got home to his gals and back to mine to work for the day by 10am! Lasting til around 3.30, opening a beer, an early tea and sleep for 12 hours!

Into Orewa early Saturday morning to meet Jaxon and family for a birthday breakfast and a moment on the beach!

George joined us for breakfast with the birthday boy(Jaxon) grocery shopping, dog sitting (Dan working on my flats) and general life jobs! A beer and tea with Dan and Lex and another early night!

Rolling into winter in the Southern Hemisphere, we welcome Aussies to our shores, wrap up warm and swelter in the weekend heat!

Yes May is throwing the four seasons at us….it’s bringing out our layering skills from singlets to puffer jackets.

This weekend, predicted to be a wet one has been one of sunshine and gardening!

With the wasps thinking it is winter, our swan plant is harbouring some big fat monarch butterflies in the making….we are watching these grow until they curl up into chrysalis’s and emerge as butterflies.

The last week has produced a multitude of busyness…work life….dad cares…local board meetings…a little socialising….gardening and preparing for the next working week.

My new gate has drawn a line in the sand, when I am babysitting the canine grandbaby, while Dan is working six days a week (and I am working from home) to get Dads house on the brothers property ready!

George has put his big boys pants on and gone flatting – but hangs out with me (and Floyd) on Sunday’s!

Life is about good food, good friends and family….in between our working days….the team have enjoyed a Sunday roast, ready for an early night and early morning start to our working week!

So for all us mums out here who have survived the process and roll into our twilight years with Adult offspring, we can take a moment to soak up the solitude!

Little boys to grown men and everything else in between…

We have built go carts, sandcastles, new houses and bridges…

We have old friends, new friends, true friends and lost friends….

We have memories, good times, sad times, tough times and more time…

When you look into the eyes of your first born, you feel an overwhelming pride and protectiveness! Then you hug your 2nd, and 3rd and spend the next 25 years as a superwoman! Judge and jury, cook and bottle washer, provider, protector, adviser, nurse, taxi driver…until one day you look in the mirror and notice each year is etched in your face, and you have time to smell the roses!

Russ used to say to me, what do you want to do for Mother’s Day? As he handed me the bottle of wine and chocolate scorched Almonds (yes every year) . My answer was always the same….A few hours of peace! So off he plus three(boys) would go to the flying fox park for an hour or two!

However….when the peace finally comes, it starts all over again….Mother’s Day for me will begin with Dad duties…dressing, feeding etc…moving stuff. Some of us mums are just blessed with being needed.

And the character lines on my face continue to smile at me!

It’s Friday 17th April, day 23 of lockdown, somewhere this week we lost the 15th April…so yesterday and today are the 17th! (Previous dates now corrected)

I was going to get up early and catch this mornings sunrise, but rain splashing on the concrete outside the bathroom window changed my plans…found this last picture on my phone (accidental snap) that sums up the morning – if you remove the impressive artwork! Yes it’s a grey morning as predicted…yesterday was quite busy, off and on, with work communications, therefore my exercise was closer to home – a street and beach (at low tide) circuit

A gap in the gates of what used to be the very popular Waiwera Thermal Resort displays a sad ending to a long running tourist and fun destination for many NZers and tourists…two (ish) years ago it closed its doors for renovations and never reopened due to questionable management culminating in liquidation and a very long court case. So in the middle of Waiwera stands (or crumbles) a derelict waterpark surrounded by high walls with faded and peeling paint!

At the far end of the beach lies the deserted caravan park – barbed and boarded and closed, another large plot of unused privately owned (ironically by the same conglomerate as the pools) prime land. One day, maybe not in my lifetime, these will become usable areas again…

However…after making sure nothing had changed in the hood, police passed by doing their rounds I continued a solo, peaceful stroll towards the island at low tide and around the point, devoid of humans and full of bird life again! When the world stands still we realise how noisy our feathered friends are!

After yesterday’s announcement about what our life would look like if we came out of full lockdown…general consensus it would be like having a small hole in your sock and your little toe could poke out now and again! Time get my 23rd day moving…first stop kitchen and morning coffee…

Another week of 2021 has flown by and still no sign that this virus will go away any time soon!

Last weekend was the last long weekend of summer and George and I sharing Dad duties meant Sunday night in Silverdale amidst boxes and orders to pack and sort! The brother away for the third holiday of 2021 and the Bonnici-Carter’s still the number one carers! Oh well the Bonnici-Campbells will shortly have that pleasure, as Dad moves to Panmure (and their estate) in a couple of weeks!

I did get the privilege of a visit from the middle son and family, and a hold of the grand baby. I guess I’m just another pair of hands at this time in his life! With me working full time and their weekends being full of other visitors, it is lovely to get the odd squeeze of this delicious child!

The rest of the week flew by with work days, Dad Visits and some much needed personal housekeeping! Ordering new glasses, watch batteries, and a little shopping R & R for George’s big leap into adulting (again) today as he moves into his flat! To be fair, he has been keeping his old, lonely mum company, since we lost Russ, and busy with his hectic social life (friends coming and going) and eating habits!

Dan and I alternate the babysitting (Canine version) duties, as Dan is often out and about at work these days, Floyd is settling into is routine…..front house….back house?

Yesterday was a big Saturday, seems Dad has now managed to lock his car so it won’t even start(another dash to his house) with either key or the garage door remote! Then shopping, housework, dog sitting (Dan out building a fence)….culminating in a much needed outing to watch our beloved Blues play live….first time for me this season, 2nd for George.

Using up four of my tickets, three takers, Lexi a rugby Gal, George and I…hit the town. The forth ticket I donated to a lucky punter who was lining up to buy! (Hope he enjoyed of couple of refreshments with his ticket money).

As our team is out of the playoff running, a slightly sparser crowd came out to watch our boys hammer the somewhat 2nd string Chiefs 38- 19. Chiefs resting a few of their top boys as they have scraped into the top two for Kiwi playoffs! Still even with their best on field they would have found it hard to beat the Blues last night on their home turf! A evening with all the usual “Eden Park” hype, Doug Howlett (a kiwi rugby legend) arriving over our heads (like if George stood up he could have shook hands) in a black helicopter landing on the park before the game! The statutory box of mini donuts, hot chips, bucket hats, our favourite seats and happy faces!

Wrapped up for the clear evening chill, pink blanket certainly needed in the 2nd half, a great result and we were back and bathed by 10pm….early night ready for the shift!

This time last year we shared a lockdown Anzac service on our Waiwera waterfront….today a party of eight relived the experience…

As the sun came up and Russell’s boom box competed with the lap of the sea against the Seawall, we stood once more and thought our own thoughts…listening to the live broadcast of our Capitals (Wellington) ANZAC service.

We are blessed to live in our covid under control country, sharing a coffee with our waterfront buddies and watching the sunrise.

While we might be lonely and sad(that’s a big word) sometimes we are grateful for the friends and family we have in our lives!

My small rock garden is still blooming and holding strong with the autumn sunshine and rain!

The container and skip have gone and my front lawn is rejuvenating.

The sunshade on my deck finally gave up when a mini twister swept up from the estuary and threw it against my house…no windows in the line of fire!

My house is slowly finding its personality with some of the long locked away treasures finding their place on my new (2nd hand) boat shelf!

And my doors are open to share my whole new world!

This gorgeous baby (my nephews daughter) finding joy in Russell’s childhood trucks! (Made with love by his dad more than 50 years ago!)

As we face the next few months of what will probably be a wet winter, we find our joy in the small things, a night out here and there, Super Rugby games to watch, a canine cuddle and a drink(or two) with close friends!

I and my plus one (Jill this time) headed out of Auckland on Thursday afternoon for a long awaited break over the last long weekend of Summer! Not the smartest move, as we sat in queues of traffic from the minute we hit the highway with the other several hundred thousand humans heading south! (All of us getting ahead of the expected traffic jams)

Finally breaching the Auckland borders and enjoying a half hour of cruising….just to hit the next City, Hamilton, in time for their mid afternoon early exodus, and another bumper to bumper, patience testing, 45 minutes before some blue sky, open road on our way to the first bathroom stop and lunch at 3.30pm!

So far the weather had been kind, the promised thunderstorms hovering around the horizons….until just after halfway point the skies opened up, giving the car a much needed water blast and once again reducing speed capacity on winding mountain gorges!

The middle of the North Island (NZ) closed in on us with only an hour and a half left of our journey to go with clear skies and crisp air. A quick comfort and refreshment stop at the pub, soaking in the mountain (enshrouded in cloud) views saw us hit the road one last time for our final destination. Our goal to get through the mountain range before darkness hit…

With very few vehicles heading our way, mission accomplished, we cruised along the side of the Wanganui River as darkness rolled in to a kitchen of smiling faces, homemade bread and pumpkin soup! Aah family!

Brenda and Graeme (Russ’s brother) welcoming me and whoever I bring with open arms and kindness as usual!

Friday brought a cool overcast autumn day as Fraser (nephew) headed to Auckland and the Wanganui weekend crew caught up on the last six months over hot cross buns, leftover pumpkin soup, a beautiful fresh snapper for dinner!

Saturday was market day, and Wanganui provided sunshine, crowds, music food and all the crafts of the area! It was also the day I learned some new skills! Graeme and I had swapped vehicles, he headed to a show in my car and I had the new van to drive the gals around….custom built for Brenda’s wheelchair! A five minute lesson, on the ins and outs, ups and downs(the back kneels to the ground), locks and unlocks and we were away! My practice run circling city streets in search of a car park…as it appeared everyone had the same idea to enjoy the local culture.

A jazz band blasting out tunes from a 100 (almost) year old balcony filling the streets with a Deep South Louisiana vibe. After all Wanganui is renowned for its riverboats.

City wall art added to the Art Deco feel of inner city streets, many of the original 1900’s buildings still alive and well, not having succumbed to modern day high rises of concrete and glass. Main Street shopping concluded our market morning, taking us on an adventure of bespoke local shops, antiques, new, shoes, crafts, books….both Jill and I bringing home some treasures!

The afternoon promised another outing for the girls, including Brenda’s friend Lindsay, who declined the morning adventure, ready for an evening at the Speights Bar in Palmerston North. Jill didn’t quite make it, having ingested some market food that suddenly came back to bite her just before we left. So it was a team of three who headed off (in the spaceship van) to meet Graeme and more family for Thomas’s birthday dinner (oldest nephew). Speights Bar…perfect destination for a Speights Gal! But limitations are on when one is driving, one half pint before dinner and cake, then heading back in my car this time, the hours drive in darkness, to check up on my travel buddy….still horizontal and sleeping it off!

Daylight saving wind back, gave us the leeway we needed to accomplish our early morning start for the journey back on Sunday, before the rest of Auckland on Monday we hopped!

A brief stop before we exited the Paraparas, and headed to the first coffee bar destination…National Park. That is Us and all the other punters who chose an early start. The mountains still under cloud but otherwise it looked like a clear travel day ahead. Very cool, single digit temperatures.

The Macrocarpa Cafe produced an excellent Flat white and bagel for Jill’s very empty tummy!

A six hour journey (including a couple of pit stops) meant we had made the right call to travel on Easter Sunday. After depositing Jill at her house I arrived back at mine around 4pm…unloaded, not unpacked poached eggs for Dinner and an early night!

Feeling relaxed and refreshed, and a little bit of me creeping back in after being around family who love me for who I am…