July School Holidays

Hockey games, walks on the beach, adventures with mom.
Kip has really begun to love hockey. He's pretty darn good, too!

Spectators bundled up at the hockey game.


Walking the boys on the beach.

Kip at the top of the Sky Tower (the tallest building in the Southern Hemisphere).


Quinn at Kelly Tarlton's-an underground aquarium.

It's Officially Winter Here

We've had really heavy frosts the past few mornings. Before school today, we broke out the sled and gave our hill a try. What a blast!!! Check out Kal-he's totally airborne.

Yet Another Day at the Beach

Today was a beautiful, but cold, day at the beach. We found some cool shells and starfish. Kal was admired by many-both people and dogs. Everyone comments about the size of his paws...

Kip 'n Kal

Kal is growing up!  His paws are enormous and he has a big muscular chest.  We're not really sure what to expect when he's full grown, but we think he's going to be massive.  I had hoped to get a horse when we moved to New Zealand, but I wasn't thinking of the canine kind.

Watch Out for the Cow Patties!

We took Reid and Quinn hiking the other day. At first they were a bit nervous about the cows, but then so was I! They are really big animals when you are eye ball to eye ball with them, no fence in between. We all survived, however and came away with nothing worse then poop in our shoes. Of course, we ended the adventure with the obligatory swim in the ocean.

A Winter's Day at the Beach

Last weekend, we went exploring out to the West Coast, down a road called Journey's End to a place called Tapora. It's on the Kaipara Harbour, which is supposedly one of the largest harbours in the world and has an huge estuary which is great for windsurfing. Anyway......it was a reasonably warm day and the water turned out to be really warm. So warm, that one by one, Reid and Quinn shed their layers until they were exposed for the little nudists that they really are. We spend so much time and energy helping Reid and Quinn to behave in socially acceptable ways, that once in a while, we just let them go for it. The smiles and giggles were so worth it. And the photos....Well, I won't share with you all of the wonderful photos. We'll just archive them until the boys are older and can truly appreciate them.

Hockey, Soccer and Squash. Oh My!

Back in February when we told Kip he had to choose a sport to participate in, we didn't know he'd choose three! He has joined the local squash and tennis club and plays there every Wednesday after school. He joined the school hockey team (we'd call if field hockey in the States to differentiate from ice hockey, but there is only one hockey in New Zealand). His hockey team plays at 8:30 on Saturday mornings. Then Kip joined the local soccer league and his soccer games start 10 minutes after his hockey game ends. This morning (Saturday), it's a balmy 40 degrees Fahrenheit out there and I'm just glad that Richard is the "soccer dad". He's actually helping to coach the team. I think that one of Kip's favorite parts about his hockey/soccer Saturdays is the sausage sizzle afterward. Yum. (Photos of squash to come)

I Throw Really Lousey Parties (Just Ask My Sons)

I remember back when I was about 12, there was a head lice "scare" at school and the nurse went through our heads one by one searching for the culprits. Here, in New Zealand, nits are a way of lice. I mean life. Working in the school office means that I get to send out the "nit notices" to the classrooms when yet another case of lice is exposed. This happens at least weekly. It was only a matter of time before my boys fell victim. They don't mind because every week we get to have a "Hair Party" or, as I like to call it, a "lousey party". Haha. Here they are enjoying the experience! You can't tell in the photo, but they are actually sitting in the dark bathroom, watching a movie while the Electric Blue lice lotion does it job.

Kal comes home

We picked up a puppy today!!! (April 10th)We are so happy. And guess what he's already settling in! I named him Kal (with a K). -from Kip

Knockout!

Reid and Quinn have begun staging boxing matches lately. They like to play Wii Sports and I think most of their ideas on this come from that. Apparently it's very important to be bare chested for these events. Appropriate shoe wear is, obviously, not as critical. As you can see from Quinn's smile, being "knocked out" is usually as much fun as the fight itself.

Sunrise Sunset

Sunrise

Sunset

For the past week or so, we have been having spectacular displays each morning and night. Luckily for us, we can see both sunrise and sunset from our great room.

Queenstown Escape

Jet Boating the Dart River. Absolutely Awesome!!!
http://www.dartriver.co.nz/dartriver/WildernessSafari/

T.S.S. Earnslaw: We took a night time cruise over to Walter Peak Station (in the background) where we had dinner and a "sheep show".
http://www.realjourneys.co.nz/Main/TSSEarnslaw_WP/

Richard with Lake Wakatipu in the background.
http://www.queenstown.nz.com/lake-wakatipu.aspx

Karen with Queenstown in the distance.
www.karensimpson.com
(ha ha, made you look)

Jet boat on the Shotover River
http://www.shotoverjet.co.nz/


View from Coronet Peak
(you can see Sam Neill's house in the distance if you look really hard and Shania Twain's sheep station is out there somewhere.)
http://www.experiencequeenstown.co.nz/the-experience/snow/skifields/coronet-peak/

Sappy picture of me in front of some more amazing mountains that I
can't name for the life of me.

Cuddly Valentines freezing their asses off just before getting
on the Dart River jet boat.

Richard and I celebrated our 10th anniversary (can it really be 10 years already?!) by taking four days off and going to Queenstown. Queenstown is the most amazing tourist mecca that I think I have ever been to. It's not only set in a beautiful place, it's a tourist machine as far as the number and variety of activities that you can participate in. I've been complaining for the past 11 years that Richard never took me there when we lived in New Zealand before so I think he took me as much to shut me up as to celebrate our 10 years of marriage. No matter the reason, we had a blast. I think we did all of the "must do" things in Queenstown (all of the must do things if you are not an adrenaline junkie that is-which I am to some degree but never mind). We even managed to have the best meal that I have had since we moved back to New Zealand. I'll let the photos do the rest of the talking.