Jaxon Dropped me to the airport around 11am for the first leg of my journey from Auckland to Singapore!
I shouted myself a Mother’s Day pressie…a possum beanie and this knockoff necklace (just felt I needed to keep telling myself these words!)…. the Beanie has been well worn in on freezing flights! The easy flight first…10.5 hours, two dinners and a great full leg length emergency row seat! So far so good…,
Three and a half hours in Singapore…one of which was used up navigating the geography to the departure gate! By the time we boarded it was 3am NZ time – definitely ready for a nap!
You can’t win them all, window seat but jammed in cattle class rows with the person in front reclining onto my knee! A 13 hour flight , five hours of sleep, missing the first round of refreshments, I realised how thirsty I was after 10 hours in the air! My neighbours weren’t budging, so I rang the bell and asked for both water and coffee! Both a token gesture in little paper cups!
From one extreme to another…however I did get an aeroplane breakky before landing at 7.40am Saturday (evening 6.40pm NZ time)
The next challenge was to wait for a bag and find a taxi from the airport who did not rip me off….a few thousand steps in the airport and finally arrived at my home for the next couple of days…..
Clichy Paris, and a beautiful sunny 25 degrees…. Perfect for a wander around the market, fresh strawberries and apricots! And a salad for lunch at a local cafe!
Sally’s terrace garden looking very spring like and colourful!
And Bert the resident pet doing his very best to ignore this stranger in his home!
After a couple of beers, cheese, baguette and pate for supper, a refreshing shower – I have hit a wall….time to lie flat and catch up on the last two lost days of my life!!!
Jaxon sold my house so it was all go for the packing and cleaning….certainly five weeks of “one day at a time”
While trying to maintain my yoga and walking training for my big adventure ahead!!!
A few hikes over the hill…
Beach walks before Yoga classes…
Babysitting! this exercise didn’t end well as I stepped in a hole, rolled my ankle and sent the gran baby flying!!
Family time….cousins enjoying some Gran’ma house time before there was nothing to sit on!
Packing container, which is now full to the roof and doors with all my worldly possessions – far too many but no time to cull, just all packed up and ready to sort when I return to my new abode at the end of September!
Another couple of storms – that brought this tree and a slip down over the road, closing it for two days….making our journey south a little limited!
The final push a week ago, when I hired a truck and my two youngest offspring emptied the house! Leaving behind a plethora of wildlife hiding behind the heavy furniture – and an clear space ready for its exit clean!
Pots and plants all deposited in their respective homes for the winter…. Mary Rose (with mums ashes) planted in a wine barrel was the last to leave! The bottom of the pot came off the barrel and Mary(ashes) decided to stay in the garden! Was she telling me something? She didn’t really want to leave Waiwera? Well after a couple of days I decided she is coming with me and dug her into a snaplock bag ready to replant with her Rose at the new house!
The babies turn 2 next week, and I will be somewhere in the Pyrenees in the south of France, so we celebrated last night with fish and chips …..
And star wars cupcakes! With some very aggressive food colouring!
So as I prepare for my last yoga class this morning…do a final clear at my house (no longer mine), and pack my bag for my 6 week walking adventure on the Camino trail in France and Spain…I say a final goodbye to my home in the sleepy little village of Waiwera…
Taking in a quiet drink (a few days ago) with friends as the sun sets over the Riverhaven wharf and the chill factor of winter starts to seep into our bones!
A week after I leave (tomorrow) the new owner takes possession of my house and Dan and I move into our new one’s (well my cortina will move in, followed by my container “stuff” when the boys get a chance) and I will spend the kiwi winter in Europe returning via Texas!
February and March have flown by, with many milestones and changes in our southern hemisphere kiwi hometown of Waiwera.
Dane, my nephew (and the boys cousin) got married at Piha, so we all donned our gladrags!
And the girls brightened up the summer day with floral frocks and expresso martini’s!
Hot on the tail of this event, number one grandson turned 5!
With cake and chaos! Embarking on his school life at the beginning of February!
Mid February, Trudi and I set off on a roadie to Wanganui to visit with Brenda and Graeme (Russell’s brother) for a week, they had had a few health challenges and we spent a week of walking, shopping and eating!
Taking in an afternoon concert with “The Hogsnort Rupert bulldogs” iconic kiwi band from the early seventies! Belting out our childhood tunes!
At the end of February, Dan and I made a life changing decision to sell our two homes and invest in a lifestyle block with more garages to house our plethora of vehicles!
Dans house sold within a week! And mine is only a month on and generating some warm interest now! The month of March has been an exercise of investigating our next move! We have secured one to settle on the same day as Dans …. So it’s all go with packing and planning as I will be out of the country on settlement date!
Which brings me to the next adventure!
I have been hitting the hills (on foot), though not enough I’m sure, to prepare myself for my first adventure in Europe this year. Locked and loaded for the Camino Frances hiking trail, 800kms over 35 days! Watch this space… I’m hoping my hours in the hot yoga studio have strengthened this old girl enough to avoid any major injuries!
Meanwhile I have been enjoying my younger granbabies who will turn 2 a week after I leave NZ on the 8th of May!
So as daylight saving ends, jeans and sweaters come out, Easter bunny hops into our lives, and I prepare to vacate my Waiwera home for good, life is busy as usual !
After a whirlwind 4 days of sunshine, Tennis, friend time and lots of wandering, I sit at the Melbourne airport with a moment to catch my breath before heading home to NZ! Hopefully the storm there is passing and the sun will come out!
After a long day of out of town adventures on the Mornington Peninsula on Tuesday, I was ready to hit the crowds again at the AO Tennis yesterday …… especially when I realised who I could watch!
Finally found the AO banner for a quick snap!
And Corienne and I headed to the John Cain arena…. Getting in on my ground pass ….
And snapping up padded seats….four rows from the court!
A real opportunity to watch my favourite women’s player up close and almost personal!
Yes Elina Svitlina – the winner of the Auckland ASB tournament this year!
She is a very focused player…and saves her smiles for her wins…which she did and is now into the 3rd round…and of course just behind her coaches box…
Was her tennis legend Hubby always in support – the Frenchman Gael Monfils! Always an entertainment to watch!
The 2nd game of the day featured Daniel Medvedev …. Another player I have followed with interest over the last few years….
He provided a good show….dropping first set and winning the next three…
To also progress to the 3rd round! I then met Corienne, who took the evening off work…and we wandered in search of a cool drink…on another very warm afternoon!
The first stop in Federation Square…near Flinders station, with everything tennis, a big screen….and a nice cold Pina Colada!
We then wandered alone the riverside to the huge bar houseboat….found a comfy chair in front of a big screen, poolside (yes on a boat) for a regular drink…as the sun went down and the (patrons) noise levels went up!
As it was impossible to have a conversation (surrounded by exuberant patrons) we carried on along the river towards our quiet abode…
Spying another (tennis ball adorned) riverboat restaurant on the other side…. It certainly is all about Tennis in Melbourne at this time of the year…and lots of people having fun!
So the mini break ends….as I fly home this morning….to see if my house and garden have survived the storm!
Literally – today we were booked into a tour from Melbourne city to Mornington Peninsula and everything in between! A new experience for me . as tours are not usually my thing! But we had the best day in our small group of 6..,two from Belgium, two Romanians, a kiwi and an Australian (English) with our Aussie driver(guide) Jenny!
The day began with a walk along the Yarra river..,
Watching rowing action and strolling with the early risers heading towards the tennis! We, however, were heading towards our rendezvous at the Melbourne arts centre!
Enjoying a coffee while waiting for our tour!
After a little confusion as to the actual meeting point and a bit of pacing up and down St kilda road, our little bus arrived and we joined our fellow tour buddies (total 6 including us) for the day.. first leg an hour and a half of highway driving to arrive at ….
Arthur’s seat… elevated views over Port Phillip Bay…
We could have taken the cable car, but as Jenny was driving to the top there was no need!
We then loaded back into the van and headed towards the next stop – cape Schanck lighthouse built in 1859…
Which guided ships around cape schanck for over 100 years….
The gals soaking up the sunshine at the lookout point! From here, on the way to Sorrento, Jenny dropped us off on a coastal bush walk along the edge of White beach …
Where the knarled branches met in overhead arches…
And foreshore (privately owned) beach huts in bright colours dotted along the coast
The beach sparkling in the midday sunshine! We then headed towards Portsea for lunch and the first refreshments of the day!
A group photo of the tour group and Jenny ( our team leader!)
The Portsea Hotel…providing good food, cold drinks and a sea view from our terrace dining area!
One more hot spot to visit …. The final stop at point Nepean national park …the furtherest peninsula point on our tour, with glorious white sandy beaches…,
Blue blue seas…
Driftwood sculptures
And remnants of the old wharf …. Of course with glamorous models enhancing the relics!
And a reminder of the first European inhabitants of the area…still relatively untouched!
A final stop on our homeward journey at the Sorrento waterfront pub…with our free beverage at the end of the tour! Before a 90 minute drive (with a quick loo stop) back to the city! And….
An expresso Martini…to finish the day before heading back to relax into some TV Tennis!
Once again leaving New Zealand to its stormy week, I leapt on a plane at 7am on Sunday to head to Melbourne to join my friends at the Melbourne open!
Arriving around mid morning to a sunny day…my friend Corienne met me at the train station and we had a bit of time before she had to head to work at the Tennis for the evening session… I took the trams with her and walked back through the Sunday tennis festivities!
Along the Yarra River…
The city bathed in sunshine…
Old pub… full of handovers … not ideal if one needs a drink!
Flinders station, I could have caught a tram here, but decided to walk through the town to fill in the afternoon. I got back to the hotel late afternoon and settled in to watch TV tennis… popping out briefly to grab a kebab for dinner..we are in an area littered with kebab and Korean BBQ eating places! So spoiled for choice if you like Turkish or Korean food!
Yesterday was tennis day, I had purchased a ground pass for the day, Corienne was starting work in the afternoon and with the knowledge of the experts (Corienne) you can get into some of the stadiums…
But first the gate…the day promised to be full of people with a 30 minute queue to get in …. Then it was off to surprise another Brisbane friend who was also visiting the tennis yesterday!
It was a great reunion …Corienne, Kim and my kids all grew up together in their early school years!
We got a pass into the John Cain Arena…and spent the day session there watching a men’s and women’s singles first round game…Kim and her Hubby had to leave at 3pm to head for their flight home and Corienne was off to work for the evening session… I managed to get a wristband to return for the evening session … but in the interim took a stroll around the outside courts…
Leaving the comfort of my stadium seat..
I joined the throngs of people all going somewhere! I managed to find a seat in an outside court with some unknown players and thousands of others!!! My claustrophobia kicked in … was getting a bit hungry and thirsty so headed back to the arena, with a full water bottle at least!
Two night games were scheduled a women’s open and a men’s open!
It got to a third set in the women’s game and I hit the wall…crowded out …,
Headed home to hotel by foot and tram collecting some food and TV Tennis for the evening! Slept well, now for another day of adventures, non tennis as Corienne has day off!
Yesterday, what would have been Mums 91st birthday, I appropriately celebrated with a day of Tennis…. tennis was a Mum and me thing! George, Jess and I went to the ATP men’s Tennis in Auckland …
Booked for the Semifinals, we were treated to a much longer day of quarter and semifinals, due to the previous day rain suspensions! Good for us, hard work for the players who had two matches on the same day!
I went early, walking from George’s house to the stadium… through the busy streets of Newmarket and the peaceful bush of the Auckland domain, only to be thwarted by the temporary fencing for the tennis at my exit which meant another hill climb and circuit to get to the entrance gate! A few extra steps for the day!
And now to recap The end of 2025 and start of 2026…. Christmas was the usual whirlwind of family, food and festivities.
Grandson number one helped me put up my modest decorations, and the weather gave us a glorious day (one out of the bag) !
I had a family day with the cousins at Orewa, and caught up with extended family and friends….
The not so babies, enjoyed their new outdoor furniture..and then between Christmas and new year the wild kiwi summer weather kicked in, with lots of rain and mini tornado rearranging the outdoor furniture…
Lots of rain and wind… New year brought more settled weather and a huge party at Daniel and lexi’s next door …. Although I was in bed by 10.30pm and left the young ones to it! I spent a few days in town cat sitting George and Jess’s cat who was noticeable by his absence….deciding he didn’t like a stranger in his house! But it did give me the chance to catch up with my city friends!
Just after new year I caught up with mums best friend, Barb at her daughter’s house in Kohi!
It was then the holiday week for the sons and grand sons!
Wenderholm hill walk with Tyler…who led the way…up hill and down hill
Testing Gran’ma’s agility with rolling down the grassy slopes!
An afternoon out to the reptile park in Leigh both of Auckland, culminating in the ice cream extravaganza!
A morning at Wenderholm park with Jaxon and the boys…Henry copying every move of his big brother…
Tyler joined in the sandcastle contest producing his 4 year old version of a lion…Gran’ma, the apprentice, providing the buckets of sand for his creation!
With the hot, cold, wet and sunny days of early January my garden burst forth with summer veges….
The pōhutukawa trees on the Waiwera waterfront sadly lost their foothold in the eart and some tumbled into the sea…as the easterly winds sent waves battering the the sea wall!
Mary rose, did her best….radiant as always through summer, but lost her battle with this week’s thunderstorms snapping her highest branch of blooms!
And with that….its almost the end of January, and while the school holidays continue, the bigger humans are all back at work…as yours truly plans for 2026 adventures!
At the end of October we were saying goodbye to Fiji, our family holiday to celebrate my retirement birthday!
Then it was back to work and kindy for the younger members of the family! Yours truly put on her yoga pants and walking shoes and sweated it out in the yoga studio…wobbling my way through 4-5 classes a week and taking to the hills, beaches and parks to get in some steps….
View from the top of the wenderholm hill…
A couple of weeks later, my BFF hit her golden birthday….and we celebrated in style…as we do with bubbles of course!
A few days after this, she zoomed off to be with her family in Australia! So my party buddy has been absent since the middle of November and things have been quiet on the social front!
I took a trip to Waiheke Island with Daniel… to measure up a job there, for friends, that he is now doing!
Not a bad workplace….with views to die for! It was about this time that I managed to get a spring Flu!
As the sun came out and we had unseasonal spring weather with a two week run of bright sunshine and very warm days!
My sunflowers grew to 7foot and bloomed golden in the sunshine with heads the size of dinner plates…
While sofa bound (yoga and walking on hold) I scrolled the marketplace sites and found this fabulous addition to the family collection – inspired by my Brother in law (Roland) who has an extensive collection on the other side of the world!
Interspersed with my exercise plan I have had lots of grandbaby time …. When they have off days and cannot go to kindy!
Henry playing with Russell’s trucks (his dad made them for him when he was a little boy!) they don’t make them like they used to….standing the test of time!
Luka and his dog….a boys best friend! Floyd is now 9 and would prefer not to have a playful toddler…but enjoys the snacks he can share (or sneak) from his brother!
Tyler…who is 5 in February and off to school, helped me decorate the Christmas vase….he found the Texas Christmas train (what was left of it) and we managed to add this to the creation this year!!
I joined Jax and Steph and their boys for the Orewa Santa parade on yet another summers day…the super hero’s and the grinch featuring largely in the event!
We also took a family outing to Sheepworld in Warkworth….
Feeding the (already) fat sheep, goats, alpacas and ponies – ducks and rabbits also getting in on the act!!
Due to the early summer my sunflowers have been and gone, however my green fingers grandson Luka still insists they need a water when he returns from kindy every day!
And finally Tyler graduated from Kindy this week, in true Tyler Fashion with his back to the crowd…and hanging onto his mother…
He looks like a big owl sitting on Steph’s knee!
And that’s about a wrap as we countdown the 6 sleeps to Christmas Day, December rain and wind returning for the festive week, and for my offspring a much looked forward to holiday! Dan returns from Waiheke today for a couple of weeks break with his Fanily, Jax and Steph have two weeks of coming and going from the cottage, and George and Jess are taking a mini break up north between Christmas and New Year….while Gran’ma babysits the cat!!
Today was a big day for yours truly…after last nights thunderstorm…
Which Luka really enjoyed, dancing in the rain!
After breakfast today, I joined Jax, Steph and the kids for an excursion to Nadi….the others had already experienced this town, we had not! So our $30 taxi ride dropped us at 8.30am at the markets….
Open air undercover fruit and veges for miles…
Volcanic soil and spring time producing abundant growth!
We wandered the Main Street ( diving in and out of airconditioned stores) as we were waiting for the Fijian craft market to open, and trying to locate it….finally a local (Fijian) sent us in the right direction!
After last evenings rain, the humidity was through the roof, and having bought a couple of trinkets for Tyler…we were wet from head to toe! And more than ready for a dip in the pool! We hailed the nearest taxi and for half the price $15 came back to the hotel…to cool off, re dress and get ready for the afternoons excursion to the botanical gardens at the foot of the Sleeping giant (mountain) on the other side of Nadi…
Steph opted out, as she had thrown her back and kept hot and bothered Henry for a long afternoon nap in the air conditioning.
The rest of the team including George, who is now recovered from his Fiji belly episode, gathered at reception at midday for our afternoon tour with Dans new Taxi driver mate, who was ready and waiting!
Tyler looking exceptionally unimpressed … but that was all an act as he was having the time of his life with his favorite Auntie Jess!
The tropical gardens after the rain…
A lot of green and Red…
A snapshot of the orchids- which obviously grow well here too..,
At this point the path turned to gravel and a few steps…so Lexi ditched the pushchair and Luka took off on foot!
Fish ponds and lily pads….and green everywhere… we continued to follow the track to the lookout, which our driver had informed me was a few minutes….he lied….
Luka tackled the uphill steps like a little mountain goat…
I tackled the steps….and more steps until we opened out to the final uphill climb…in the open sunshine, as the sweat pores opened up once again….for the final climb! Gran’ma bearing up the rear!
The look out, thankfully had a roof and a couple of wooden benches….. where we swallowed the last of our water supplies…
George and Jess leading the charge and still looking remarkably refreshed…
Dan, Lexi and Luka framed by the sleeping giant….thank goodness the track ended here…as the energy levels had run out for the arvo!
Gran’ma catching her breath but still managing a smile!
Luka determined to walk until it got too steep
Taking it easy so as not to slip…
There’s always the bunch of tree huggers
Green spaces…
And lily pads…. Back to base camp where we were rewarded with a fresh (sweet) mango and pineapple juice!
Back into the air conditioned van and the next stop was a Fijian village….where we were charged $10 each to enter and dragged around the village from souvenir table to souvenir table….rather a stitch up..,, but resisting the temptations of tacky momentoes we once again sweated our way around the village showing due respect!
Chickens and babies, Fijian toddlers shouting bula (hello) run down shacks, apart from the chiefs house…. Where George and Jess were jumping for joy!
Then a quick visit to the Methodist church – seems this is one of the main religions of choice….
Evidently it is ok to show shoulders but not legs, Lexi, Jess and I were wrapped in lava lavas as we all had shorts on….another reason to escape – this extra wrap was extremely hot!
By now it was around 3.30pm and our driver suggested the boat shed at Vula Marina for lunch( on the north side of Nadi..
The view from the garden restaurant…
Which also looks back at the marina!
And the dining Bures…. We all had lunch/Snacks and decided with two very hot little humans and 6 hot big humans it was time to head back for a swim! The girls had planned a sparkly dress night but with sore backs and tired legs, a couple of cold beers, kids to bed and booking reading were the order of the night!
We have one more glorious day of summer to soak up before all head back to reality!
As I mentioned in my last story, we had endured a high powered sales pitch to earn our (cheap) afternoon trip to Southseas island!
A small white coral sand island about 35 minutes ride by catamaran…
It was a very warm steamy midday when we arrived at port Denarau to check in and board the air conditioned Cat!
Leaving the port, we enjoyed the half hour of coolness, before landing on the Island, which was to be our home for the afternoon…I’ll just say here one of the team (George) had had a night of Fiji belly and needed a quiet day to rehydrate and recuperate!
Upon hitting the sandy atoll, Henry made a beeline for the first ball he could see! While we were introduced to the afternoons, bbq plan, and activities available…we all enjoyed a great BBQ with lots of salad! And the complimentary beer and wine started flowing! However for yours truly….there was not a lot of time to sit and relax…
Tyler and I circumnavigated the island, barefoot, which in hindsight was possibly a mistake as the sand was full of crunchy coral…
However…between rock hopping and the sandy patches, we completed our walk in about 30 minutes…just in time for Jess, Lex and I to jump on the snorkelling boat and Steph and Tyler to catch the fish feeding boat!
While the boys looked after the sleeping babies…
Evidently there were no fish to feed on that expedition, but the snorkelling was a success…lots of bright coloured fish clinging to the coral formations….until I spied a bullnose (or reef) shark mooching along the bottom below me! I decided I had seen enough and (quietly) hightailed it back to the boat! The Fijians were unfazed by this guy, but they were in the boat!!!
We returned to our patch on the Island…
Travelling with babies is always fun and messy! We allowed half an hour gathering time before the Catamaran was due to pick us up at 5pm… the last trip off the islands for the day, and as first boat was full…we waited a bit longer for the second less crowded one…arriving back at Port Denarau at 6pm…
As the sun was setting on the harbour…
Orange skies and live bands…
So what could we do, a cool drink, food for the kids…a taxi home, babysitter organised while the adults (minus George and Jess) headed to the adults only cocktail bar….
Peace and quiet and good cocktails to complete the evening…
Then room service burgers and sleep time….a few tired kiwis today!
All who wander are not Lost girls 