Happy New Year

Hi everybody, and new year greetings to you all. 2009 already and January is nearly over. Four weeks since Xmas - can it really be so? We had a lovely day, all together at Katherine and Roy's. Roy's parents were here from the UK to visit, so, together with the Ralph family, there were 18 of us at lunch. The plan WAS to eat outside but, having had a sprinkle of rain earlier, we chickened out and the picnic table was lugged into the dining room and we all squeezed around that and the dining tables. Great fun and then we all went down to the beach and GOT WET!!!



Great excitement when all the presents were opened of course (and that was only the parents so you can imagine the noise level when the children were added in!) The Jacob family went off touring in the South Island on the 27th and saw some wonderful sights. Awesome!!!! as they always say here. At present the Simmerson family are away touring too and if you check their blog you can read their first instalment, with plenty of photos.



I feel for you all in the UK knowing that the weather has been pretty chilly so won't go on too much about the lovely summer weather here. Wall to wall sunshine most days with the temperature heading into the 30sC some days. That is a little too warm for me but at least I don't have to do much. Probably, if I am honest, not enough rain but the veggies are growing well. Potatoes to be dug up this weekend and the tomatoes ripening nicely. Yum!

I went, this week, with Katherine, Ash and India to see the children's film 'Bolt'. WOW!! It was in 3D and incredible. The technology sure has changed since the days of the cardboard glasses with red and ?green lenses. I sat on the edge of my seat (or I would have done if the seats hadn't been quite so comfortable). If you can borrow a kid or two (or just brazen it out on your own) it is worth a look.

The photos this time. Still trying to get all the family into one photo! And then the difficulty is getting them all to smile (don't want too many funny faces).


The Locke family . We were at Mount Somers for a "walk" on one of those very hot days I mentioned earlier. Up and down we went but at least there were trees to give some shade. A lovely day.

Olive having fun - she was sitting in a small paddling pool on my deck keeping cool.

A rather nice sunset a couple of weeks ago - the cloud formations were lenticular, I believe. Taken from the deck so I didn't have to go far!

The Christmas lily - flowers around Xmas, hence the name. It has quite a powerful perfume. I only cut one to come into the house as I rather enjoyed seeing them flowering in the garden.



I hope that you all had a lovely Christmas and that you are surviving the winter up there in the Northeren hemisphere. Of course, if you are down here, then enjoy the summer. Take care and keep up corresponding. With love Carol xxx