Welcome home Grandad

Today "Grandad " arrives from Dubai.
He has been left behind to do all the sorting and packing, makes a change I have done it at least 12 times in 32 years. Finally every thing is on the high seas and it should arrive here in NZ on 9th November.
He has sorted his employment out, well it's a hobby really as he does not want to retire completely yet awhile, but happy to just work a few hours a week from home and the occasional trips to places far flung every now and then to feed his travelling bug.

The Grand kids have been continuously asking " When does Grandad arrive " and finally I can now say "Today"

Time has been found

After my last blog, no time on the computer, I now have a few minutes to spend on a posting.

I spent the day on Sunday with my Quilting group "Rainbow Quilters" here in Rotorua, where we finished Charity Quilts for the hospital, mainly for long stay children.

Each year we have managed approximately 20 to 25, this year it is 22 with a couple unfinished.

15 of us gathered and stitched and pinned and generally gossiped and ate and drank tea and coffee for the best part of the day, but a lot was achieved. The photo's do not show all the quilts or even show them at their best.

But the "Teddy Quilt" is he not the cutest you have seen, I just love the one in the sunshades.

Time for Blogging is difficult

Since returning to New Zealand time for blogging is difficult to fit in, My computer is a laptop at present and I don't have a constant internet connection....I have to rely on visiting my son's to connect to his wireless.
I have been on the move a lot and this does not help the situation.

I can pick up my emails on anyones computer but blogging takes a while so do not have this advantage at present.
As soon as we get back into our own house this will all sort itself out ...so please be patient...we should be "Home" mid November.

A lot of talking and things done.

So here in NZ things are getting back to normal after all the excitement of returning home.

I am still sort of homeless and staying in a neighbours house off and on with little stays with another neighbour. I have to move out of the house this weekend as Shirley's relatives have already booked it for four nights away by the lake and a break away from the city, but no problem there, I am just ultra grateful for the use of it.

A quick flit along the street to Lynne and Keith's and back into the spare room, Lynne and I have decided we must walk more and Saturday evening when there was "nothing " worth seeing on the TV, off we went we did not go far just looked around the neighbourhood at who had done what to their section, I learnt about the new people moved in, and the new houses that have been built and are up for sale before the owners have had chance to move in, guess this is a sign of the not so good economic situation at present. So we may not have walked far but we did a fair amount of talking.

I have caught up with the group who meet on a Friday and "stitch" lots of talking was done last Friday and not to much stitching.

I went along to Embroiders Guild and did some more talking there.

I have been to the Aquatic centre to check on the Aqua- Robics and the Aqua jogging, then went off to the shops for a new swim suit, my suit from Dubai has taken quite a hammering one way and another extremely well used and when I tried it on here it was a disgrace, faded and rotted with the chemicals in the pool.... I actually managed to get two ... a wonder really as I always struggle to get just one. So I am all fitted out and will be at the Aquatic Centre tomorrow morning, bright eyed and bushy tailed.


I then went to Skyline Skyrides to book my yearly pass, now that we are silver haired we get a great deal for just $18 a year you get to ride the Gondolas as many times as you wish and then you get 30% off all food and drink while at the top. Skyline Rides is worth a look if you have never seen them. They are situated just above our house on the Mount Ngongotaha, we live under this mountain and it saves our house from a lot of rain at times, but puts us into a frost area as it drops off the montain.



So a busy day in the sunshine.

An Offical Photo

Kathryn and Steve today recieved a picture from the photographer along with a message to say the photographs are now ready and will be sent to her this coming week, so here is an offical photograph of the wedding.

There was 2 photographers at the wedding Alex and his assistant and they were taking the same picture from different angles all the while, I think this could make for some great shots. If this one is a taste of things to come I think they are going to be well pleased with their pictures..

The joys of being home again

There are all sorts of feelings about being home again some good and a few regrets ( they can wait for another time)

One of the great things is I now have up to date Photo's of family...here are some of my "Boys"

Ben 5 at the wedding venue

Alex aged 3 dressed ready for the wedding

Ellis 7 and Harvey 4 looking so grown up

Does someone want a grandson

My Daughter Kathryn put the following on her blog, I thought it would amuse you all so have put it on mine. I am sure all the parents reading this will say

" remember that well"

I was just in the study posting about Alex's swimming lesson while I had 2 minutes prior to us going for Ben's swimming lesson.

I thought the boys were again watching Funky Monkeys on DVD, but how wrong I was.
Alex was apparently playing with the kitchen scissors....Ok I know as a mother you can now imagine exactly what I am going to say or even show you.

Before I do I can honestly say that I didn't even notice this until he started having a hissy fit in front of me because I took the scissors away from him and then I noticed the problem.
Ok, I can hear you all say, we are all sat down now waiting for this horror story, we are prepared for the worst........here goes
This picture shows you exactly what Alex just got up to, very quietly like all things are when children are being sneaky, playing with the kitchen scissors...

Now am I allowed to SELL him???

The conclusion of the "Mystery Suitcase"

The continuing Saga of the Suitcase

I called Jeanie and she had no idea who owned it, But Shirley's sister and her husband had been in Rotorua from Auckland over the weekend so may be they stayed at the house, she would call them and check.
So Monday afternoon she called me with the final installment of the saga.
Yes! The sister had been to see her elderly mother who is in a residential home here in Rotorua bought her out to the house for an hour and she packed her bag and put it in the car before taking Mother back to the home and low and behold her husband forgot to do his, thus it got left in Rotorua as they drove straight back to Auckland from the home.
They asked for me to put the stuff in the wardrobe and they will pick it up next time they pass through.

So quite a tame ending to the mystery after all. But gave us something to talk about for a few hours.

Mystery of the suitcase

This a bit of a saga, and is still continuing.

As mentioned in previous post Shirley has given me use of her house, this is just great and I spent my first night there on Friday, Saturday I took off to Athernree on the coast where Kathryn and Steve have a holiday home to meet up with them for the weekend.

On my return Sunday in the late afternoon I let myself into the house and realised there was articles of clothing around that were not mine. I looked into the spare bedroom and there was a suitcase opened and more gents clothing around, I was a little disturbed by this, wondered what I should do.

So I left and went across the street to my house to ask the family if they had seen anyone around over the weekend, they had not, but they had received a phone call from Jeanie a friend of Shirley's who I also know and is keeping an eye on the house, she was asking why I was in the house, she did not know I had permission to use the house and I rang her putting her in the picture and all was well and would you believe she also has no idea who this suitcase belongs to either, she also had no idea anyone else was to use the house.

I had an invite out in the evening, so went off and returned around 10pm, very warily I opened the door and although there was no one there the suitcase still was and it looked as though no one had been back.

The mind boggles, can you imagine the scene as someone comes into the house late at night frightening the life out of me and them getting a shock at seeing a not so young woman in the spare bed, it would have been awful if one of us had had a heart attack from fright. So I decided it would be better to stay across the street with Iain and Claire.

So far this morning no one has come to the house and no car has been there overnight, so where is this person ? who are they ?and why have they left their processions and not returned. The mystery of the suitcase at No.1 Preston Road continues.......

Home in Rotorua

I am now back in Rotorua, of course not in my own house yet.

So I have been staying with Keith and Lynne ( our neighbours and good friends)who have spare rooms .

Today I have moved on just two houses along the street to another neighbours house, Shirley has gone off to Nigeria on a Mission, and has given me the use of her house which is so kind of her, so here I am sat in her house looking across the street to my own house.

It is wonderful to have neighbours like Keith and Lynne and Shirley, and I would like to say a big Thank you to them.

Grandma in Charge .. A Copy Cat saga.

My duties have finished in Hamilton we all survived, me and the boys, we had our differences of opinion but worked it out, I really stuck out on the things I knew they were not supposed to do, but they were very good I never saw a tantrum, we never cried if we needed/ wanted something if we did we were asked to go away and stop crying then come back and tell Grandma what it was you wanted so she can understand...it worked.

The amazing bit of the week was the "copy cat syndrome" Alex 3 being the smaller copies everything Ben 5 does, even to what he says. Some times this really makes you want to laugh but of course you have to be serious on ocassions, one such was at dinner one evening

Ben didn't like the way the chicken had been cut up, I cut it into strips for Sweet and sour Chicken, seems Mummy cuts it into cubes, so the discussion continued and Ben decided he didn't like chicken like this and put down his fork....Yeap, you guessed at the other end of the table down went the fork " I don't like Chicken any more" Ben then discussed the rice he told me he didn't like "bitty rice" now I can only guess after asking him what he meant that he means fried rice, so after ensuring him that this was boiled rice he decided this also was not to his taste... yeap at the other end Alex pipes up" I don't like rice any more"

So after more discussions and decisions they leave the table, "nothing else" Grandma reminds them, about an hour later "what about some cereal "Ben requests..."Cereal " requests Alex "no! sorry no can do" was the reply, next came " How about some fruit" negitive answer is the reply. " But, if you are hungry I can warm the chicken and rice" I guess the hunger had reached Ben for he said "Okay" two seconds later "Okay " say Alex and they both cleared their plates.