Catching the Magic

Two Brits in Aotearoa bringing up three little 'Kiwis'. Our children: Our future. Haere Mai!

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Month: May 2011

A celebration to share…

May 30, 2011May 30, 2011 BritMumInNZ 11 Comments Blasts from the past, Dan, Sarah, Special Days

We could have slipped away for a romantic moment, but there was no one to look after the girls and little Alice is too young for us to leave at night. We didn’t want to spend money on cards and frivolities just for the sake of it, but we did want to do something a […]

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Lyrical Sunday, Week 20: A Haiku

May 29, 2011June 8, 2011 BritMumInNZ 3 Comments Charlotte, Lyrical Sunday, Sarah

And a Haiku from Grandma… The love of dear ones Our hearts are always in touch Memories forever ___________________________________________________________ Now it’s your turn! Link up below with your ‘Haiku’ poems for week 20 of Lyrical Sunday (or send me an e-mail to sarah (at) catchingthemagic (dot) com and I’ll post up your poem). If you’re […]

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Shadows of our lives

May 27, 2011May 27, 2011 BritMumInNZ 21 Comments Sarah

The week has ended and it’s been one of trails and challenges. A week I am glad to see the end of. A week where Dan has had customers shout at him, products copied and systems crash. A week where I’ve had a child reluctant to go to school, a meeting with her teacher, a […]

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The Gallery – My Backyard

May 25, 2011May 25, 2011 BritMumInNZ 16 Comments Dan, Garden, Sarah

It’s overgrown and wet; my backyard. I look at the grass in despair – much like I look at the smeared, dirty windows. ‘I’ll get round to it…’ I am forever saying, but there’s always something else. Dan summed up my existence perfectly, ‘It’s like you have two tornados in the house – whilst you […]

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No Child Born to Die Campaign

May 24, 2011May 24, 2011 BritMumInNZ 3 Comments Sarah, Sophie

In January, Save the Children UK launched its most ambitious campaign to date, No Child Born to Die. Every year 8 million children under five die from illnesses we know how to treat or prevent, such as diarrhoea, pneumonia and measles. Save The Children is focusing on the provision of vaccinations and healthcare workers. In […]

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Lyrical Sunday (Week 19): Full Moon

May 22, 2011May 29, 2011 BritMumInNZ 2 Comments Lyrical Sunday

I shivered as my bare feet touched the grass, The dampness of the night air chilled my bones. The full moon’s light cast its glow on the glass, Reflecting my figure as I walked to the dunes. My robe billowed about my naked legs, Teased by the sea breeze, whispering its call. Alone, I scanned […]

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Silent Sunday

May 22, 2011May 22, 2011 BritMumInNZ 9 Comments Charlotte, Silent Sunday

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Things I’m Loving: Art Attack!

May 21, 2011 BritMumInNZ 5 Comments Art, Loving & Not Loving

We’ve had ups and down with school this week, but the week has thankfully ended positively and there’s been so much wonderful creativity happening. Loving this artwork that Charlotte has done this week… Letter writing from Charlotte and Sophie to their pen-friends and to our sponsored child, Tracy, in Africa… Sisters hanging out together and […]

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10 things I love about Alice at 15 months old

May 19, 2011 BritMumInNZ 9 Comments Alice, Sarah

A limited vocabulary of key words can get results. I admire Alice, at 15 months of age, for choosing her words carefully for optimum service from the bigger people around her; ‘More!’ – used whilst pointing at what it is she requires; music, favorite nursery rhymes on DVD, water, food. ‘Nah!’ – used with a […]

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Mustachioed for The Gallery

May 18, 2011May 18, 2011 BritMumInNZ 14 Comments Dan, Sarah

We took Daddy to Wellington Zoo on Sunday afternoon and look what we saw… Mummy wishing she could be an Emperor tamarin! Because… Did you know?  When Mummy Emperor tamarin’s have had enough, they stick out their tongue – and Daddy takes the load! ________________________________________________ Go check out some more mustaches on ‘The Gallery’ at […]

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The ebb and flow of the tides…

May 17, 2011May 17, 2011 BritMumInNZ 9 Comments Charlotte, Sarah, Sophie

I feel on my heart, like the gravitational pull of a full moon. Those early years with our children, side by side, are like two hearts knotted in a binding beat. Night and day our breath is shared. Learning, growing, getting to know the spirit that drives every conscious and unconscious thought. As our children […]

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Theme for Week 19 Lyrical Sunday: FULL MOON

May 16, 2011 BritMumInNZ 2 Comments Lyrical Sunday

Tuesday 17 May marks the full moon and in the southern hemisphere it is called the ‘Snow Moon’. The Snow Moon is associated with the astrological sign of Scorpio. This is a good time for transformation, preparation and for strengthening communication. In the UK the full moon in May is often known as ‘Milk Moon’ […]

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Balmy May gives way to thunder & showers

May 15, 2011May 15, 2011 BritMumInNZ 6 Comments Alice, Charlotte, Dan, Our pets, Sarah, Sophie

Nature has been very kind this month. It’s been so warm that even the bulbs have been confused. Our daffodils decided to pop their heads out the ground thinking it was spring come again. But winter isn’t to be kept at bay for ever. Dark clouds have rolled in this weekend, bringing heavy rainfall, floods, […]

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Loving our little Zoo, Zoo, Zoo!

May 13, 2011May 14, 2011 BritMumInNZ 11 Comments Alice, Life in action - Videos, Loving & Not Loving, Sophie

This morning Sophie, Alice and I had a very special visit to our wonderful little Zoo in Wellington. Frances, who is happily living at our place, didn’t have any work on this morning and chose to join us – which was wonderful. She took heaps of photographs (normally I get to hide behind the camera […]

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Welcome to the ramblings & photographs of a British expat Mum living mostly in Wellington (aka *coffee capital of the world*), New Zealand, since 1997.

This blog is a way to preserve sanity whilst raising children, capture the magic in the chaos, and share tales with family, friends, fellow parents and expats.

Along with my British born husband we have been bringing up our three Kiwi born daughters in the land of sheep, kiwi fruit and fine wine, since 2003 (with a brief 16 months living in Santa Barbara, California - where we home educated our daughters). We both first landed on New Zealand soil in 1996 (hubby) and 1997 (myself) - as fresh graduates from the UK wanting to live and work overseas... our 'OE' turned into something a lot longer and more life changing than we could ever have first anticipated!

Thank you for stopping by (if you would like to know more visit the 'About' page!).
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Recent Posts

  • Walking the Paekākāriki Escarpment Track February 1, 2021
  • Patuna Chasm | A river walk like no other! January 24, 2021
  • One week into 2021 January 10, 2021
  • Festive greetings from Aotearoa! December 23, 2020
  • Term 4 and winding down to the last days of school for 2020 December 1, 2020
  • ‘HELLO’ November 24, 2020
  • A spring holiday in Wanaka and Queenstown’s outdoor playgrounds! November 1, 2020
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  • Before the pandemic! ‘Six’ the musical in Sydney September 26, 2020
  • I miss her, Mum, even though she’s not gone. July 23, 2020
  • Our ‘bubble’ of 5 million has done it! June 9, 2020
  • Reflections on coming out of seven weeks of lockdown in New Zealand May 13, 2020

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