leaving on a jet plane....

A quick cuppa in Auckland with Nev's folks before the overnight flight to Los Angeles. Nevs mum, sister Christine and Christines daughter Lisa.

Saturday afternoon and the rugby is on....Manawatu playing ??? Didnt write it down. Nevs Dad and nephew Ryan enjoying the game.


Friends, Dan and Kay Jones.....Kay was the driver on our wet afternoon in Napier taking artdeco pictures. Dan and Matt were at the rugby. They are great family friends that go way back. Kay looked after Matt when he was just a few weeks old and I was finishing college. Nev and I did a canal trip in France with them in 2002

See you next time....a farewell as you walk through departure at Auckland airport. It was great to hang out with Shirley Peachey over lunch on my last day. We never did take that picture Shirley. Shirley and John were our homegroup leaders in NZ. Shirley will also be on the team to assist with Toni and Marcus's baby when he is born. She works in the neo natal unit, and will help stablize Ethan for surgery and then with recovery..... couldnt ask for a better person.

Thanks for coming on this trip with me.....a little history and insight into life in NZ. See you next time.......

more art deco....

even MacDonalds. oh and talking about franchises. In Nelson (top of the south island where most of my pix were taken) there is about 43,000 people in the greater area, with only one Starbucks....fabulous. There are so many great cafes with awesome coffee, and thats how they want it. Cafes are often attached to gift shops, garden centers, potterys and even a travel agent.

1931

this is a little out of order, but I wanted you to see it. Napier is in the Nth Island and about 30 mins from Matt and Megan. In 1931 an earthquake destroyed the city, so it was rebuilt in what we now know as art deco style. They have an art deco festival each year, and the whole place is quite the tourist attraction.

family...

My sister Dawn, with her husband Sana and son Michael

my nephew Ryan with his wife Janine and daughter Alyssa 5mths

my brother Michael and his wife Jan

Dawn and her great niece Alyssa Higgins

and more...

Wai-iti river runs through the farm. It was our swimming place in the summer. After the winter floods we never knew where our new swimming place would be, but it was basically the same place. Once or twice Dad took us eeling. It was dark, but we used spotlights, and a sheeps head dripping with blood. The head was put in the water and attracted the eels. We got some beauties. Well I am sure I was standing back....they were big.

sunrise on the farm

my parents, Ross and Edna

they live in Richmond in this lovely retirement villa.

more roots.

this is the house my parents were living in when I was born. It was cream with a red roof. They built the house when they were married in 1950.

Next door was a petrol station which they owned. This and farming paid the bills. I wanted desperately to pump petrol as I got older (10yrs), but my mum said it wasn't a job for a lady, so I was assigned to pulling weeds and planting flowers around the station. !!

rural letterboxes

black lambs....too cute. My sister had a black pet lamb she called Leticia.

distances in kilometres....

whanau

tonight the whanau are meeting for family dinner.....then you will be able to put faces to names.

roots...

wakefield library....always smelt so musty and the librarian had white hair in a bun, and she REALLY wouldnt let you talk in the library.

This is the main street of the village I grew up in. My sister and brothers family lives near here, and until recently my mum and dad. There is a butcher, baker, supermarket, hairdresser, pub, cafe, chemist, vet, primary school, fish and chips shop, petrol station, dairy, police station and fire station. What else would you need....there are several churches. Catholic, Methodist, Anglican, Church of Christ....
So when I get grumpy about LA freeways, traffic and crowds, remember my heart belongs in a very quiet place in the country.

this is the post office, which is just used as a storage building now. It is an historic building, so cant be torn down.....needs someone with tons of money to turn it into a restaurant. We know a good painter.....oooh what a job.

my brother in law Sana

Sana paints houses and I'm bragging about him here.....look at the fabulous job he did on this place in Nelson. I need to find out how long it took him

more babies....

my great niece precious Alyssa Kate Higgins. She is my brother, Michaels first grandchild, and has won everyones hearts.


Wakefield Primary School where I attended 1959-1964

This is a school dental clinic, which we called the murder house...

Local papers in the supermarket. Nelson Mail, Christchurch Press and Wellinton Dominion

My sister Dawn and I had the morning out.....

This is where my sister Dawn, her husband Sana and their son Michael live in Pigeon Valley Wakefield

Lord Rutherfords birthplace....one of those places you drive past a million times as kids and then suddenly it becomes a tourist attraction, with a fancy sculpture. Rutherford was born here in 1871. He grew up to be a scientist and win a noble peace prize for his splitting of the atom.


this is how our mail is delivered....posties on bikes.

I found a great little quilt store in Upper Moutere

Called 'My Back Porch' and only open Wed-Saturday. The tide was out, but what a fabulous view

Owner Maureen with one of her creations....

the workshop room.... would you get any work done? or daydream out the window

My Back Porch entrance.

lots of folkart things in the store..

morning on the farm.....

Michael was heading into Richmond for a Council meetin, when the truck arrived to take cattle to the freezing works/slaughter house. It was too slippery to get up to the ramp, so Michael gets his digger and pushes it up.

Lucas would be having a field day.....he loves diggers.

...end of the line for these guys...

Michael, dressed in Sunday best

NZ number plate..