Christmas Greetings

All packed up and ready to go

“We’re all going on a Summer holiday”, that’s how the song goes.  Muffy wasn’t very impressed when we put her in the carry cage to take her around to the cattery  for her own two week holiday.

Muffy in her carry cage

It was a short drive to Follyfoot Cattery to drop Muffy off.  We had to wait our turn while the young couple ahead of us bid a tearful farewell to their two cats who were staying in the cattery for their first time.  Muffy wasn’t the least upset about  her own visit.  Once in her new home for the next two weeks, she had a sniff around, then sat down patiently waiting for us to say goodbye.

 

Follyfoot Cattery is home to rescue ponies, a goat or two, and several dogs, all living happily in a rural environment.They were such pretty ponies looking perfectly happy in their paddock.

Then it was home to hook up the caravan and head off on our holiday.  Let’s hope we haven’t forgotten anything.  It was a 189km drive to our stop at the “Lozell Ranch” over Christmas.  Robin backed the caravan into place beside the garage and we were soon settled in.  Robin had the difficult job of adjusting the Sky Satellite dish, just a little bit this way, then that way, until he was satisfied with the picture.

Our home for the next few days.

The welcoming committee was there to meet us.  Poor old Babe is getting quite elderly now, and her formerly loud bark is now no more that a throaty whisper.  She spends a lot of her time sleeping now, we were told.

Babe the Border Collie

Fanta the cat was keeping up a running commentary of meows at us.  I think she wanted us to take some notice of her and  give her some attention.

Fanta the cat

The family have lots of horses on the property and no doubt we will be be taken on a walk tomorrow to admire them.

Summer Solstice

While the lives of our friends in UK and Europe are at a standstill  and in the grip of a mini ice-age, on the other side of the world down here in New Zealand we are celebrating the Summer Solstice.  The Carter Observatory, the National Observatory of New Zealand reports, “The Summer Solstice is at 13:22 (1:22pm) on December 22. This is when the sun is at its most southerly point in the sky and therefore reaches its maximum altitude for the year at the middle of the day”. 

The sun is hiding this morning under all the grey clouds but the temperatures are still very warm and humid.   The pohutakawa trees are coming into full flower, and this usually heralds a long hot summer. 

 

.We will be taking part in a family “Summer Solstice Barbeque” tomorrow night, at our daughter’s home on the farm in Kiwitea.  Yes, she admits it will be one day late, but who is counting?   Happy Summer Solstice, everyone.

Two Sisters come calling

Dot and her sister Mary called around in the late afternoon after a busy day visiting their elderly Dad in hospital.  Dot had flown over from the ice bound UK last week, and Mary was visiting from Auckland.  We thought they might welcome a bit of R & R after a hectic week of hospital visits.  “Come for tea”, we invited them.  (Tea in the New Zealand language does not mean afternoon tea, or high tea as in UK, but refers to the evening meal).

Dot and Mary

The local temperatures were still running at hot and humid so the cook of the household decided to prepare cold potato salad, and mixed green salad.  Robin cooked up the pork steaks, while the cook sautéed mushrooms and cream sauce.  This was followed with strawberries, jelly and ice-cream.  (We should invite guests more often as we don’t usually have dessert much these days).

Dot was quite keen to get her internet fix and check up on a few things, so we sat her down in front of our lap-top.  She was pleasantly surprised to see the photo on our screensaver.  It was a view of Dot, Derek and myself travelling over the Llangollen Viaduct aboard their former narrow boat Gypsy Rover.

I recognise that boat!

87 not out

Bonnie is the matriarch of the family and has just turned 87.  We all met at a restaurant  for a celebration birthday lunch, organised by second son Gary, and Debbie who live locally. Bonnie asked who the spare seats at the table were for, and the reply was, “We have some friends coming”.  Mmmm, the plot thickens. 

The birthday girl with her  flowers

We were the next to arrive – no big surprise here as we often drive up from the Hutt Valley..

Third son Neil then arrived with Michelle, who had driven down from Palmerston North.  The table was filling up nicely.  The big surprise of the day for Bonnie was when daughter Kaye walked in the door, with her daughter Hannah.  Kaye had flown up from Nelson to surprise her Mum.  So it wasn’t friends who were invited, it was the four children and spouses.    We were dining at the Mediterranean Food Warehouse, and most chose the house speciality of pizza.  The smell of pizzas baking in the wood fired pizza oven was delightful, and the huge pizzas were soon delivered to the table.  Any uneaten pizza is put in a doggie bag to be taken home, to be enjoyed later.  We finished our meal with another of the specialities, gelato ice-cream, which is made on the premises each day.  With choices ranging from chocolate, several fruit flavours, and cream brulee, there was something for all tastes. 

Bonnie and her family

It is not often that all four siblings can get together, and Bonnie was delighted to have her brood gathered around her to celebrate her special day.

Scouting Memories

Robin was a boy scout many years ago at the Westown Scout Group when he was growing up in New Plymouth, and rekindled some of those memories yesterday, thanks to his scouting buddy Gary.  The post man delivered a BIG parcel from Gary yesterday and inside was the book “100 years of Scouting Memories – Scouting New Plymouth and North Taranaki”.

He spent a happy afternoon on the back deck engrossed in the book.  Robin, Gary and another friend John attended the scouting movement from cubs right through to Scouts.  He smiled over photos showing the three of them in their Scout Troop all dressed up in their uniforms with the scarf and woggle around their necks. 

The three friends  travelled to many Troup Camps and District Camps together, including one memorable 10 day Otago Jamboree right down in Waiora, Dunedin in 1962. This involved a train ride from New Plymouth to Wellington, going across on the Inter Island Ferry to Christchurch, and boarding another train to travel down to Waiora.  Imagine this trip with 1100 excited, mischievous and noisy youngsters.  He tells of a legendary pillow fight taking place on the way home on the last stage of the journey when there were only Taranaki boys remaining on the train which left the carriage looking like a snow storm had hit!  

That was the life – childhood friends together all having fun.  And learning valuable life skills along the way.  It’s good to have these happy childhood memories.

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Nappy Valley – can we have a rally without caravans?

 

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Wainuiomata was known as “Nappy Valley” as young families settled in this affordable housing development which escalated due to the spectacular growth of the Valley post-World War II.  In the 1950’s the air rang all day every day with the sound of hammering and sawing, and facilities in the Valley at the time were stretched to cope with the influx.

View of Wainuiomata from the top of the hill

From the single primary school which had served for nearly 100 years, this grew to 10, two colleges and two intermediates to cater for the population explosion.  These days the growth has now settled and four primary schools, a college and an intermediate have been amalgamated to serve the needs of the students.

Sign at base of Wainuiomata

We were visiting Wainuiomata to catch up with fellow caravan club members Bill and Barbara for afternoon tea.  We had a surprise in store with them, as our overseas member Dot from Gypsy Rover fame had just flown in from UK to catch up with her Dad, so we took her along too.

  Dot and Jenny

There was plenty of chatter as we caught up with everyone’s news.  Then two more cars arrived, and out stepped Peter and Elaine, and Don and Pamela.  Goodness me, the gangs just about all here in Wainuiomata, it’s almost a rally.  Can we have a rally without the caravans, we wondered.  Perhaps not, we will just settle for a good old chin wag instead.  Dot told us of all the news from UK, and about the Auto Trail motor home her and Derek have ordered.  Peter was in good form and kept us laughing with his seemingly endless supply of jokes.  There was plenty of hilarity as the cameras were set up and both Robin and Peter rushed to join the group before the little lights stopped flashing. 

Here we all are

We all stopped to admire Bill’s lovely goldfish pond.  This work of art was all painstakingly dug out by hand, and looks great with the little foot bridge and the shrubs planted around the edge.  Then it was time to say our goodbyes and head off to our respective homes.

Bill’s fish pond

Flashing lights stopped us at  Silverstream for breath testing.  Not surprising as it’s the silly season time of year with lots of festive drinking going on, and the police are out to catch the drink-drivers.  Not us though, with a non-alcoholic afternoon tea under his belt, Robin passed with flying colours.