Another week has sailed away….in lockdown, out of lockdown… with work, Dad care, legal battles, more tragedy and yacht spotting!

Out of lockdown 3 to a looser lockdown 2 on Thursday, meant a road trip to wiri for work duties. A long day of interviewing for a warehouse person, and subsequent related HR tasks, meant a loaded end to my work week.

Legal battles with a litigious property vendor has also added weight to a hectic week. Dad doctor visits (maintenance trip) followed by a Saturday spent in, yes my 2nd residence, North Shore hospital with dad under covid restrictions and another 12 hour day of sitting on a vinyl chair (not ideal for a now healing back or mental wellness) Saturday culminating in the very sad news we have lost another close family friend in a tragic accident.

Sunday broke with clear sunny skies and an on again trip out on a 57 foot yacht to watch the America’s cup racing was planned for the afternoon. A little much needed time out! Dad sorted, home from hospital and other family members and his carer taking over to spend the day with him, meant George and I could get our sea legs on, picnic lunch and hit the seas at midday

Sails up and sunglasses overboard! Yes early into the adventure my $2 sunglasses fell off my face and floated away in the wake! Not so easy to flick around a large yacht in full sail to scoop them up with the fishing net…

Squinting the afternoon away (at least I’d taken a hat) we picniced by Tiri(island) and sailed to a position on at the edge of the race course!

The Italians taking charge and producing a clean swept to secure a spot of challenger to NZ in the finals of the America Cup in a couple of weeks!

The closest we got to these massive sailboats was when a training Team NZ flew past our moored boat – looking large and fast!

George learning the ropes(and on a boat this size there is a lot of them) and he got to play the main man as we motored back to the marina at the end of the day!

Helmsman for a moment! They journey back on calm seas, boat cleanup and home for leftovers before crashing into bed! A wonderful afternoon thanks to the kindness of Russell’s boss’s Richard and Isabel.

So a Southside (this time) family is covid positive, and spent most of their infectious time in another north island city, New Plymouth, but Auckland is in lockdown?

What a great day to be in lockdown just as torrential rain hit Auckland – this lockdown has probably saved lives on our slippery roads! Nothing to do with covid but inevitably there are crashes in this weather!

And lucky I have a pile of bricks to scrub with a wire brush! Plenty of mindless jobs to fill in my time! That is outside of working remotely which is just the new norm.

Dan got a lot of work done on his house over the weekend, dad came to stay and tripped up and down my steps (bit of a danger zone for dad) but he’s home for the lockdown with his carer, which is a lot safer.

Had a cuddle with my grand baby yesterday before the lockdown loomed, spent all day with dad, watching very loud TV (tennis and yachting and more tennis) and bought Pizza for dinner….

So my little house is seeing lots of action – Dan and Floyd move out, dad moves in, dad moves out and George moves in! Never a dull moment. Forever a cook and bottle washer!

Now for the lockdown!

Another long weekend gone, and back not screaming at me so much – I managed to paint a bed frame, go fishing and visit with my new grand baby!

Sooo Friday began early 4am as I raced to the hospital to say hello to Tyler Russell Bonnici! Who in great bonnici voice yelled the minute he joined our world! I could hear him through the wall. The tired and proud parents (Jax and Steph) soon retired to the birthing centre for a couple of days a bit further north.

It was a long day for Gran’ma Sue too with an early start.

It was all action around the building site on Saturday, with diggers, drains, boys (George too) on barrows and Lexi and I painting and feeding the troupes!

Then the visit to the new addition, after a quick shower….

First cuddle and Tyler slept right through it!

Sunday dawned a little windy, but that didn’t deter the girls planned fishing trip… although the trip was slow we settled in behind an island and Trudi Lexi and I had a great day! Lots of bites, lots of small fish, a bird or two and Trudi caught the winners for dinner!

Somewhat pinker faces and big smiles brought us back to earth and a cool drink dinner (of fresh fish) set us up for a great sleep!

Monday off (another public holiday) and the anniversary of mums passing was a bit of a lost day, and we were all ready for a short four day week!

And here we are with one day of the working week left…and my friendly beachfront neighbour sent me a picture of today’s visitors..

Not the usual motor boat or jet ski – a Maori Waka! Calling in to say hello before paddling off towards Orewa! Life is always full of surprises in our sleepy little village!

One year ago I was lying beside Mum, listening to her breathing, and not knowing I was spending the last three hours with her….

Today is about Mum ‘Mary’ I will spend the day doing things she and I liked to do!

Unfortunately that doesn’t include: exploring Paris, hanging out in cafes in Senglea ‘Malta’, taking the ferry to Gozo, or going to charity shops. (Public holiday they are closed)

I will go get a coffee, from wild bean, and stroll to the Beach, sit on the bench and relax for five minutes as we did most weekend days!

Little did we know what was ahead of us after Mum left us, with lockdowns and limitations left, right and centre! So glad she didn’t have to go through all that!

There has been little time for reflection or mourning the loss of my beautiful mum, one of my best friends throughout my life and my support and sounding board when times got tough!

I don’t think I appreciated my parents until I was one, then life is so busy that the next thirty years just seems to disappear!

However filled with some wonderful memories of the adventures Mum shared with us….family holidays (when the boys were young) in Rarotonga, Fiji, Samoa, Gold Coast, Cairns… and later, with Russ and I, several excursions to Europe; France and Malta!

Mum spend the last 13 years living with Russ and I and our Boys…before moving to Maygrove for a couple…and we were blessed to have her support and mediation skills as the boys were growing up into young men.

She shared the good times, the not so good times, and we all came out the other side, one big happy family!

Mum, since you’ve been gone, the world is a different place, the boys have moved in different directions to get on with their lives, and family gatherings are a non event! But most of all I just miss your kindness!

Finally a long weekend and it feels like the holidays when they are nearly over for most….not soon enough for some school mums I hear!

It was do or die for the old back this week – but I told her I had had enough…it was time to turn the corner! Lots of wandering around and a little bit of drug help(to induce sleep) minimal driving and a weekend of laughter with some of my BFFs has all contributed to a better me!

Out for brunch with Trudi and Carolyn! The fun started after we all manoeuvred our way through various saturdays and all met up at the cottage at 5.30pm! BBQ time, Dan cooked, didn’t eat and left my friends and I to wrap our jaws around a mountain of food! Needless to say no cooking the next night and another delicious dinner.

I zoomed off on my bike back to my house and left my friends to enjoy the cottage! Back next morning and (on foot) we walked up the valley and took a tour of the almost finished building sites Dan and I call home – we are nearly at the one each stage!

Then it was off to Brunch! Carolyn’s man, Brian shouted the girls, as we chatted our way through the morning.

A stroll around the streets(shops) of Orewa diligently scanning in and out of every place we set foot in! We spotted a few hangovers from the hot rod show from the day before!Trying on frocks/shoes…finding nothing we wanted to pay over 100 for, and collecting Brian and Trudi, who had abandoned Carolyn and I in favour of a cool drink at the corner pub…we headed back over the hills gasping for a swim!

By the time we (the girls) were bathing suit and beach wrap ready, the sea was half way out to the island and a knee deep belly flop surficed to quench the desired cool off! Which for me, at least, I can claim as the first sea swim of 2021….

A couple of cold beers while drying off in the afternoon sunshine, Carolyn and Brian had to leave…and a little social event to remember another special person who left Riverhaven and a lot of empty hearts this time last year!

Lots of laughs, a few tears, lots of leg work and a fun weekend with some wonderful friends…Trud and I devoured our left overs and hit the sack!

I know this is getting old…waiting for a back to heal. Just an ongoing issue in yours trulys world.

Waiting for tradies to arrive and finish the job next door…another ongoing issue in our world.

Waiting for a baby to come…and a new world to begin.

Waiting for some good news on the covid front, this weeks hiccup with a poor lady, having done her isolation and enjoying a few days of freedom, then getting sick(!) has put us complacent kiwis back on high alert, ramping up the hand washing and tracer scanning, while the govt scrambles to identify community cases that may now be out there.

A few grey days have provided a welcome break from the severe kiwi sunshine, heralding the workers back to workplaces (after the holiday break), preparing the children for school for another year and clogging up our motorways! Another week or so will see the usual traffic jams return to normal (stationery) as we try to get from A to B.

Vehicles are not my friends at the moment, my car now failing a WOF due to the spare tyre I uploaded a couple of months ago, while the perfectly good (repaired) tyre is housed in the boot as a spare. At least the old Peugeot (push bike) is holding its own and a relatively comfortable mode of transport for a sore back!

The next week should see big changes – Dan should be in his house (and Floyd). I am determined to walk through my back injury, before I need to buy a new wardrobe as the inches pile on! And we might have a new baby. (Well in 2-3 weeks)

I might be able to tidy up my house and get on with all the jobs that are waiting patiently for me!

We celebrated Sandys (in heaven) birthday with dad last night, and raised a glass or two as she would have, a week after I sat without mum (on her birthday) for the first time…firsts without our loved ones are a bit of a mountain to climb.

On a brighter note we have two long (3 day) weekends ahead and it’s still summer!

Another week of work and hot sunny skies finds week two of 2021 gone in a heartbeat.

The back is still limiting activities, sitting at computer and cooking tea about the extent of productivity. In saying that falling out of bed earlier in the week did not help the cause.

George turned 25, and a lamb roast was enjoyed by all. The old Fiat Punto (George’s transport mode) was due for registration, and upon attempting to do this we realised it had been out of warrant since September last year! My car maintenance skills are failing..as this car has been roaring around the upper north island all summer. Being such a nanna car may be the reason it has avoided detection! Two days at the car doctor and she is back up and (legally) running.

Dan has been ticking away at the finishing touches on his house….a couple of weeks and he will not be my roomie!

Floyd has been in Jail half the week (on my deck) as tradies come and go….one eye on Daniel at all times.

I have enlisted the help of a couple of Dans mates to get the fences done….a feed and a beer at the end of the day and the boys come back! This is really helpful, as my body is stopping my from getting all these finishing jobs done!

Jax and Steph celebrated their first wedding anniversary and it would be mums birthday tomorrow. This always meant an outing to a local cafe for coffee and cake…..I might just do this anyway and spend some time thinking about this wonderful woman.

Playing water games with Floyd and the hose (keeping us cool) means the flower pots are surviving the summer heat and blooming despite their sunburn.

Off to a chiropractor appointment soon, back to work then a doctor later in the day before visiting dad, completes the activities!

And the weekend will be upon us!

Yesterday was the camp fishing contest day, a day the Bonnici Carter’s always come home empty handed – and 2021 did not exceed any expectations!

The stage was set, Dan spent Friday getting the boat ready: fuelled, rods sorted and bait in abundance. Louise was on lunch duties and excelled in her efforts, bacon and egg pie and 24 ham rolls (of which only 5 were left). George on the boat meant food was a high priority – I think the final count was 12-George 7-Trudi, Sue & Dan!

7.30am and the day promised a hot one, sun blocking first activity for the day!

As the year has been filled with building, shifting, renovating and sore backs – it is 12 months since Thelma has been on her boat. Determined to make this happen and ignoring sore back – the crew set out bright and early with a smile on their faces!

Out into the middle of the ocean – drifting around for a while and not much action, apart from opening the lunch bag, we moved into the islands in hunt for Kingfish and some excitement.

First strike for Thelma, but not without a fight – this guy decided to dive for the weeds and rocks on the ocean floor! Patience prevailed and Thelma won the battle, saved the tackle, and hauled the kingi and a basketball of seaweed onto the boat.

A quick measure, 69cm meant he went back (75 is a keeper). Meanwhile on the other side of the boat Louise continued to provide the snapper kindergarten with play lunch.

As we ploughed through our day, our bait, our burley and our lunch, the afternoon was a hive of activity. Kingis teasing us with their games, Diving to the bottom to break off our tackle, baby snappers in and out of the boat, George having a nap, Dan chasing the big one around the boat and finally hooking up a 2 metre Bronze whaler shark! Who came as far as the side of the boat, looked at us, then showed us how sharp those teeth were by biting through the line and diving back down into the ocean.

With the 4.30pm deadline looming, and four hot and tired crew, it was time to head back in with the other 40 boats waiting to use two tractors!

Thelma and Louise relaxed in the breeze on the trip back – a great day had by all! As expected we were not first in line (story of our lives), and it was a frantic hive of activity back at camp. Dan secured a tractor, dumped the bonnici-Carter crew at the boat port (who scrubbed and cleaned the boat), while he proceeded to tow in the other(more successful) punters from the water. A thirty minute working bee and boat was clean and tucked away, and back to the cottage for a cold beer! Jaxon and Steph went out with our mate Aaron, and were somewhat more successful in the fishing stakes…bringing in some nice fish for their dinner.

But for the Thelma and Louise crew, it was sausages(as usual) on the bbq, left over bacon and egg pie, and salad back at the homestead! To be honest, by this time, Thelma nursing a now very sore back, dived in the bath, ate some dinner and slept like the baby snappers(who probably did the same).

So the boat still purrs like a kitten, the fish are still there to play with us and four happy campers felt alive!

Stumbling into 2021 we take the holiday period with a grain of salt! Holiday period for some, work for some, and ongoing trials for some.

UK is battling another lockdown, Australia is keeping its head above water, Malta is waiting for the vaccine, and the US continues its covid pathway! Kiwis are keeping it at the border, filling our hotels with any new arrivals and isolation holidays are the new norm for anyone heading our way! Meanwhile on the home front, kiwis are relishing in the summer backyards with water activities and sunny days! (Unless you chose to explore the wet cold South Island over the holiday period!)

The building project is having a small hiatus as all tradies seem to have disappeared – and I still have Daniel and Floyd as roommates. Hopefully next week will see some action!

Floyd has been spending a fair bit of time with Gran’ma Sue, inside out of the heat, and often in a horizontal position. All the pre Christmas activity catching up with me, and nursing an injured back since new year, has meant 2021 activities have been limited to sitting at computer(working) and lying flat…in a medicated state! While the boat thinks we have abandoned her, visitors to the beach are enjoying the unseasonably warm waters, my week has been littered with trips to the chiropractor and the odd cruise down the road on my bike (the only mode of transport that is bearable with a sore back) Tis gods way of telling me to have a rest!

George has returned from a couple of weeks galavanting around the country with a raft of friends….Jaxon and Steph are back at work (for a short time until their new addition arrives) and Dan is throwing in the odd post and collecting supplies in readiness to get his house finished (making the most of an enforced break)

Dad is settling into his new routine with his favourite carers and popping back and forwards to visit us over the hill! 2020 saw big changes and everyone is becoming resigned to what the world has thrown us! There is still hope…as humans we always have a plan! Trudi will get to Australia, Dan will get his house finished, Sue will get her house finished, and we will take mini road trips to ease the itchy feet!

But for now…it’s time to take some painkillers and get on with work for the day!