Wow Welcome 2022

Oh goodness! So much has happened since my last up date.

We moved out of our cabin in a rush. We had earthmoving equipment moving round us daily and it was getting really dangerous.

The trust that now owns our property offered up the old farm house for us...so a mad dash.

We made it into this huge house 5 bedrooms.

Then we had to move the cabins...Oh my god I don't think I've felt so much stress in my life. We had to get cabin 2 sold and away as the ground under it needed to be 'developed'. But it worked out.

Just in time for.....

 

LOCKDOWN

The pandemic found its way to NZ

So we were lucky to be in a semi good place. It was not home but at least we had space to move. Our building site was shut down...we were 1 day away from getting our roof. So everything just had to sit.

At the farm house we didn't have a freezer so I had to go shopping OFTEN argh!

Also I was worried about the kids getting hurt or sick as we had no idea if this Covid19 was going to be in the hospitals or what.

The farm house was SO HOT!!! It did not have any insulation and the heat just pumped in. The water was bad so we had tummy grumbles till Dave hooked up the UV filter. We didn't think we were going to be there long...... 

My DS managed to fall off his scooter and skin a lot and bruise a lot. So he had to lay on the couch for a while to make sure he stopped bleeding (DS has a bleeding disorder) Mr Griff kept him company.

During lockdown we were able to go for walks in our park as it was pretty much next door. We found this bird which must of been a pet. It totally loved the kids.

We carried on life with homeschool and I changed to teaching using Unit Studies which is sooo much better.

DD woke in a panic one morning thinking we had left behind on of our chickens. Hen Solo. We were all very sad that in our mad rush we might of left our pet behind. But...she came out the next day with a batch of chicks.

ANZAC day... we had an idea we could make poppy and give them to all our neighbours....sigh....didn't happen as we couldn't share anything. But anyway Ara and I got dressed before dawn and went and stood down the end of the drive with the rest of the neighbours to listen to the broadcast, say some prayers and generally feel sad. 

A round of birthdays in lockdown. We made cakes or what ever the child who's birthday was wanted. We shared photos or zoom calls with said friends. But really it was all a bit sad

Then sadness really came with my best friend Mr Griffin becoming very ill. Before lockdown we took him to the vet but there was not much hope. He had too many things wrong.

I was soooo sad that we would not be able to have him at home.

Lockdown was over. But everyone was very worried. It was interesting trying to keep a 2m rule on a building site. The builders dance is funny enough as it is let alone even more exaggerated.

We had light and it was wonderful.

Builders finishing off the last bits of the woodwork

DD skills came in very handy

We went back to our cabin/property to see how everything was going. We had just gone through a 1 in 500 year flood. (Eyebrow raised...again) and the lower part of the property was pretty trashed.

DD and I worked hard on the painting. Our builder was worried we would hold up the works but we were on time.

The great day when Smoky 2 arrived. What a wonderful thing.

Mr Griffin sadly couldn't make it. We tried everything that he might of liked....all the nice bits of food. But no. He just wanted to be with us. On his last night I held him in my arms, Helped him to the bathroom and lay down beside him in front of the fire. He was the best little buddy I could ever want. He was there for me through morning sickness (he even covered my vomit when we were walking in the garden together). He lay with the kids and helped them with their naps times. He was never angry with them when they grabbed his tail. He sat with them during their homeschool lessons. He walked with us around the property every day. He lay in my arms every night.

Building carried on...and we found little bits of quiet. Mr Griff did make it to our new home. We buried him in a spot we thought he might like outside the kids bedroom under the Puriri tree.

The kids started making our new property a home. They built swings pretty fast and the chickens settled in. We even brought Mushroom our pheasant. Mushroom was an egg when he left the building site and was slipped under our chickens with his brothers and sisters. The other chicks left home at the cabin site and made it off into the bush but Mushroom stayed with be with DD's rooster Happy.

All hands still on painting and oiling.

Things really coming together....and we are living in the garage. 

Good bye farm house! Oh what a place that was. Super hot in summer and freezing in winter. Carpet that had 30 years worth of yuck and felt damp every morning my feet touched it. The roof leaked to the point it came through the light fitting and DD had to rig up their slide to shoot the water out the door. The kitchen drove us all mad with the oven that didn't shut and the elements that didn't work and the water that made us sick.

Homeschool life continues and everyone is having fun. Some friends made a 'movie' and had a showing with formal attire. It was heaps of fun.

DD and Dave looking very swish.

Homeschool trips on the go once again. We were off to Ruapekapeka pa site. It was totally fascinating and was featured in many art and story lines along with minecraft designs.

The beach was really enjoyable and the finding of this lovely little bay was just amazing. We've had a few catch ups there now and I think its great...and I don't like the beach.

There is never a time that we don't need a digger and Dave is more than happy to spend his weekends just finishing up a few things. 

DD loves visiting old houses. Te waimati has been a feature of DD's school work on history. We've been there a few times now both with Homeschool and my parents.

Christmas cookies is a bit of a tradition for the Homeschool group. It involves a lot of sugar and how high you can make your cookie with how many sweets you can stick to it.

Waipu Christmas. We pulled out all the stops this year and had 4 stilt walkers and ball-gowns. My girlfriend and I scoured the opp-shops for months getting the right colour combinations. We really rocked...of course.

Boxing Day at mum and dad's was lovely. We really enjoy having all the family together.

Technohackers or as its now known as Questionable research labs sparked off many projects. We have been involved with Kevin and the team since DS was 8. We have many lessons which seem to continue on at home and often for weeks which is great. 

I've dreamed of having a nature table for years and now I have one. I love it. I really want to have a garden where I can display seasonal changes. It might be a few more years before I can really dive into the craft I want to display but I'll get there.

Making cushions for the new couch. Dave was desperate to get our new lounge up and running and drove to West Harbour in Auckland to bring back the perfect sized couch. As part of a Homeschool project we made some cushions.

Homeschool cooking class. Learning how to make Thai food. Ohhh DS was in heaven as this is his fav. he even learnt how to make spring rolls.

Nanma came up to help DS learn a bit more about the sewing machine and all the 'discs' that change the stitch pattern. Nanma's wrist is only just getting better from her fall and break.  

We finally head off on a holiday. We were really wanting to go north with the kids since we moved into our new home. The kids and I went to playcentre camp at Coopers beach but we wanted to go all the way north with Dave.

It was strange to drive up the pretty much empty roads with no tourists. We shared the lighthouse with 4 other family groups and that was it. We told stories from our own childhoods and retold some of the Maori Myths we had learnt in homeschool. The story I had from my childhood was how the grass could be knotted on the bank going down from the lighthouse and it is believed that this is peoples spirits tying these knots before they dive into the sea.