Highlights from Huia: Week 1

Huia Pad

We moved into our new pad in Huia this week (May 20th 2011). We have been really lucky in that we have let this place from Andrew and Jeannie Van Der Putten for four months while they are in Bali. Andrew and Jeannie are both professional potters who spend 4 months a year in Bali where they work in ceramics and textile design. The great part for us is that we have been able to get their house fully furnished - which is perfect as none of our stuff has arrived from the UK yet. Andrew and Jeannie are very friendly and generous - they have left us with a fully stocked pantry and even lent us their bath robes so that we can fully enjoy the bath house (more about that later).

First meal of our new life

This is the first meal that we cooked in our Huia pad on Friday 20th May. We are really enjoying the asian supermarkets in NZ and are taking full advantage. We washed it down with a bottle of Greylands Ridge Pinot Noir 2007 - a gift for our wedding from my friends The Medlicotts vineyard in Central Otago. Nice.

Eating hands in Huia

We've been taking it easy just enjoying the area and settling Elsie into a routine. She is already so much more settled and becoming a very happy contented little girl again.

Huia Bay

The area and house are so beautiful - we still can't believe that we get to live here. It certainly doesn't feel like Auckland - well probably because it isn't. We don't have any cell phone coverage out here and that makes it feel like we really are away from it all. There is a really cute general store here that does good fish and chips and great coffee. What more could you ask for?

We have been going for big walks everyday - I'm still super unfit so this is about all I am up for. The area is very hilly so I am gearing myself up to go running but I'm not quite ready for punishment yet!

Jo at Huia Bay

Elsie has been developing a lot this week. She is definitely grabbing anything and everything that she can. Its all starting to go straight into the mouth. There is much dribbling and poking out of the tongue like a lizard! She has twice rolled over from her tummy to her back but not the other way yet. It is amazing just how much time you can pass trying to get laughs out of Elsie. She has a mean mean chuckle that we are taking much delight in.

Laughing Girl

The Huia house has an amazing outdoor bath house that Joel and I just love. Unfortunately Elsie doesn't feel the same way. We think it might be a bit dim and scary for her out there. So today she was back in a bucket for her bath!

Upstairs mezzanine - note the big girl's cot  - there's a great view from  that window!

Huia House

The house comes with a lovely little cat called Storm. Elsie has so far diligently ignored the cat (as with all previous cats), however, Storm has been a but curious about her.

Storm and Elsie acting nonchalent

Storm on the front deck

Nup - totally disinterested in each other

Yesterday Storm jumped up to where I was changing Elsie and starting heading towards Elsie. Elsie clocked the cat and the cat clocked Elsie. I got a bit excited thinking 'here we go, Elsie is finally going to notice the cat'. Well she did, and she got a little startled and did that spazzy thing with her arms (called the startle reflex strangely enough) and accidentally managed to bash the cat smack on the nose. The cat hasn't really come near her since....

Taranaki 2

View from Coastal Walkway, 'The Links', Taranaki

After our week in Auckland we have come down to Taranaki in order to celebrate my 35th birthday with the family. Elsie has become quite unsettled and Joel and I think that need to just stay in one place for a while. So we are going to be here until we headed back to Auckland to move into our new flat in Huia. It's been great to spend some more time in Taranaki after our initial flying visit. We made the most of the coastal walkway where we took these pictures

During the rainy days (and there are a few!) we've been hanging out at the Kawaroa Baths. Costing a grand total of $5.50 for all three of us it's the perfect way to pass a miserable day. Lovely and warm inside with a nice big spa pool.

Big Eyes in the Pool

We took Elsie for her first ever swim. It was a bit exciting for me - also because I got to finally dress her in the pink swimming nappy that I bought for her when she was, oh, 5 days old or something! She seemed to really enjoyit! I think it was the entire experience as much as the water itself - the other children, the noise, the bright colours everywhere. There was a ceiling mounted bubble blowing machine above the infant pool which the lifeguard kindly switched on for us. Elsie had never seen bubbles before and there were some very BIG EYES going on. No smiles initially - she was just taking it all in. When we went to leave the receptionists stopped us to say that Elsie's eyes were so big that had noticed her all the way out in reception. The second time we headed to the pool it was all smiles and giggles. Especially for the bubble machine!

Lynn Gilbert-Smith, Elsie and I - Piccolo Morso Cafe, New Plymouth

I was lucky enough to catch up with Lynn Gilbert-Smith who taught me Ballet from when I was 4 years old until I was 17. Lynn looked great and I was so happy to hear that she was still teaching and the Ballet School was busier than ever. We had a little inspection of Elsie's feet - perhaps she will have dancers feet....

Lots more interaction and eye contact from our precious girl

There have been lots of big milestones for Elsie while we we've been in New Plymouth. She's started sleeping a proper big girl's cot (kindly made for us by, Dave, the Woodwork teacher at my Father's school). She has also started responding when we read her stories, properly listening, smiling and chuckling with delight. I am loving reading to her - it makes me so happy. Her favourite story is 'Schnitzel Von Krumm' followed closely by 'The Snail and the Whale'.  Otherwise these were the weeks of grabbing and batting things. She also rolled over once (from her front to her back) - well she sort of tipped over - but we're counting it!

Return to Auckland

Completing the 'Grandparent Tour of New Zealand' we shot back up to Auckland to welcome Jenni home from Canada.

Elsie with her Oma

Elsie finally gets to meet her adoring Oma Jenni and Maggie

Maggie and Elsie

We were lucky to be able to spend such good quality time in with Jenni and Maggie over the Easter break. These are some shots from a nice walk we all took down to the Point. 

Maggie and Jenni , Point Chevalier Beach

Maggie and Jenni , Point Chevalier Beach 

Seeking shelter under a tree as the weather changes abruptly

Max and Marjan were also in Auckland over Easter fishing (again) with my Uncle Bill and Aunty Ineke. I headed over to their place one afternoon where Elsie got to spend some time with her 92 year old Great Grandmother.

Elsie and Great Grandma Roest

Grandma, Elsie and I

Elsie Bear

My beautiful Grandmother

Uncle Bill sent me away with a large supply of fresh snapper for Jenni and Maggie. Here are some of the results...

Joel's Thai snapper with soup

Snapper Sashimi

After my afternoon visit I headed out to West Auckland to meet up with Joel at Sam and Nik's place in Glen Eden.  They put on a great spread and we were all surprised by an impromptu visit by Kit, Liss and their only days old daughter, beautiful Maia. I couldn't believe how small and delicate she seemed. I literally can't believe that Elsie was ever that small (and Elsie was two pounds lighter!). Nyoooom! It's already going so fast.

Kit with the lovely Maia

Jenni spoilt us with her hospitality all week long. One particularly memorable meal was these Vietnamese Prawn cakes that Jenni made for us. Great food, great company.

Taranaki 1

After stopping for the night in Auckland we continued our 'Grandparent Tour of New Zealand' heading down to Taranaki on Saturday morning.


The drive didn't quite go as planned. We planned to visit Jonty and Rachel on the way down in Pirongia - our approximate halfway point. This was planned with Joanne-style military planning to fit in with naps and feeds and everything else. Well we left Devonport at 11am on schedule, hit Auckland traffic (yes it really is as bad as everyone makes out) and didn't even make it to the end of the motorway before we needed to stop for our first feed. Breastfeeding in a petrol station. The glamour.


When we finally got to Pirongia we had a great visit with Jonty and Rachel - it was awesome to meet their two gorgeous kids, Cowan and Frankie, and to admire another MASSIVE house as everyone seems to have in New Zealand.


Driving down to Taranaki was a bit of an emotional affair for me. There are a lot of familiar milestones along the way, one of which is the Awakino Gorge.  We had a strange experience when we hit The Gorge. The Gorge isn't really anything more than a moderately windy road these days but back when I was a kid it was a notorious stretch of road often becoming unpassable after the ubiquitous 'falling debris'. Whenever, I drive through The Gorge, even today, it carries an element of foreboding for me. On this trip as soon as we entered The Gorge all the following things happened simulaneously:

• The skies darkened (seriously)
• It started raining torrentially
• Elsie started screaming her head off
• We got stuck behind a truck (this is very bad news when you have perpetual 45 km/hr corners ahead of your for the next 15km..)

It felt like we were in a scene from a B grade thriller movie. Very strange.


Once we were through The Gorge the rain passed, it got a bit lighter (even though it was dusk) and Elsie stopped crying. Once you are out of The Gorge the road comes out on the coast. At this stage not only can you see the ocean (obviously) but you can see all the way down the coast to Mt Taranaki. It's an amazing view the point on the journey when you feel like you are going to make it home. I must admit to getting a bit choked up. I was so pleased that we got to see the coast just before the last light faded. We stopped in the nearby beach settlement of Mokau to feed Elsie, parking right down by the sea. There was a massive swell and in the dark it was really cool to hear the waves crashing in the stormy weather. We took Elsie outside as we were moving her into the front of the car to have her dinner. I wonder if she noticed the smell of the sea and the sound of big west coast waves? Her first time for both.


It was great to see Marjan, Max and Uncle Bones again in New Plymouth. We rushed down to Taranaki to catch the last few days of the school holidays so that Joel could get in some fishing time with Max. There were good times had and a ready supply of gurnard, snapper and kahawai was enjoyed equally but differntly by all. Bones demonstrated his fried snapper scrambled egg one pan wonder (damn tasty), Max and Marjan went with pan fried snapper fillets in a classic butter sauce, Joel and I enjoyed the kahawai sashimi style (much to everyone's disgust), and I made fish pie with the kahawai that dad smoked in his re-purposed ex-dishwasher fish smoker. Much to our horror all the lovely fresh kahawai was either smoked or chopped up as bait before we got to eat any more Sashimi.


Taranaki cemented our notion that New Zealand houses are bl**dey cold. This was helped along by a decent dump of snow on the mountain. Very pretty but freezing!

Mount Taranaki

However it didn't stop Mum and I from getting out and about on some good walks. Not that Elsie was having such a great time right at this moment. We were walking her along the coastal walkway in order to help her get some much needed sleep...it wasn't working.

Elsie definitely not sleeping on the New Plymouth Coastal Walkway

On Thursday the 21st of April we left New Plymouth to head back to Auckland for Easter to meet Jenni who was returning from Canada. While we were packing the car Uncle Bones was walking around the property looking after Elsie. She fell asleep in his arms and I love this shot of them sitting in the wheel barrow together. 

Elsie safe and sound with Uncle Bones

Devonport

Carl with Otis and little Lottie

We stopped in Auckland for one night to break up the drive from Northland to New Plymouth. In the morning we headed over to Devonport to catch up with Carl and Ana for morning tea. It's a far cry from meeting down at the pub!


It was great to meet their delightful new daughter, Lottie and to reacquaint ourselves with charming Otis. Otis is a master at the guided tour and proudly showed us all around their home. Otis was very professional with his tours but demonstrated a great work life balance by kicking back with some wrestling and rolley pollies in his down time.

Lovely Lottie

Northland

Once we had spent a few days adjusting to the new time zone we plonked Elsie into her jaunty new car seat and headed off the Northland to commence the "Grandparent Tour of New Zealand".


We are loving the gingham and stripes combo (thanks to Plunkett NZ who rented us this carseat)

Who needs a baby sensory class?

We've had a wonderful time in Northland with John and Carroll. Their home is beautiful and we've found it such a calm and relaxing place to spend time. Furthermore Elsie was an angel! Day time naps, check. Sleeping through the night, check. Feeding, check. You wouldn't guess that she had just been dragged halfway round the world.

Feeding Elsie in Northland

John produced some mutton and the boys spent one afternoon in the kitchen conjuring up this wee delight. Delicious.

This is the sunset from John and Carroll's place. So far so good on our Perpetual Winter World Tour

Sunset at John and Carroll's Lifestyle Block

Just before we left John and Joel picked all the olives from John's trees. Last year John had these pressed into home grown olive oil but the yield wasn't very big this year so to the preserving jar it may have to be. Elsie wasn't overly impressed with the spoils...