Catching the Magic

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

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Month: May 2013

Things I’m Loving & Grateful for this Friday

May 31, 2013May 31, 2013 BritMumInNZ 3 Comments Loving & Not Loving, Sarah

Loving this week… ❤ Sunshine after a cold snap, with a sprinkling of snow on distant hills. ❤ Books to escape into, that I can carry around in my back pocket for opportune moments via my iPhone. I’m hooked on Jayde Scott’s ‘Ancient Legends’ and onto book six in as many days! ❤ A kind […]

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Remember when… | Prose for Thought

May 30, 2013May 30, 2013 BritMumInNZ 7 Comments Sarah, Writing

This poem talks of the importance of remembering the way a couple, in the early stages of a relationship connect – and how, as the years roll by, on the roller-coaster of life, it is becomes ever more important to hold on tight and not forget that connectedness. ____________________________________ Linking up with…

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Barbie and Ken (aka Sarah and Dan) escape for dinner on their Wedding Anniversary.

May 30, 2013 BritMumInNZ 4 Comments Dan, Sarah, Special Days

Over twenty years ago they met. The past fourteen years they have spent wed, living in New Zealand. The past ten years they have been busy – with building a couple of businesses, selling them, making three babies and embarking on the never ending road of parenting responsibilities. Time together has been hard to find, […]

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Snapshots from a late Autumn weekend of sunshine in Wellington

May 27, 2013May 27, 2013 BritMumInNZ 5 Comments Sarah

The days are shorter, but they’ve still been sun-filled and autumn has been easy on us so far (though winter is forecast to arrive a week before the official start – with snow expected on high ground tomorrow). Our weekends have still been filled with lots of outdoor time – soccer for hubbie, runs by […]

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Silent Sunday

May 26, 2013 BritMumInNZ 19 Comments Alice, Silent Sunday

~≈~≈~≈~≈~≈~≈~≈~ What is Silent Sunday?

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Country Child in Country City – Wellington

May 25, 2013May 25, 2013 BritMumInNZ 10 Comments Alice, Country Kids, Sarah

Wellington never feels like a city – unless you’re stuck in the depths of the CBD or visiting the cathedral. It’s a city sandwiched in hills on a harbour. There is greenery aplenty and a whole harbour to sail away on. This week my youngest daughter, Miss 3 – Alice, made the most of this […]

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Silent Sunday

May 19, 2013May 19, 2013 BritMumInNZ 10 Comments Sarah, Silent Sunday

~≈~≈~≈~≈~≈~≈~≈~ What is Silent Sunday?

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Things I’m Loving

May 18, 2013May 18, 2013 BritMumInNZ 4 Comments Alice, Charlotte, Dan, Life in action - Videos, Loving & Not Loving, Sarah, Sophie

Always a pleasure to end a week by reflecting on the ‘loves’ from the week (especially whilst sipping a delightful Pinot Noir from dear hubbie!). The little things are often what make a good week, such as finishing a good book. This week I’ve been consumed with, ‘The Sisterhood‘, by Helen Bryan. It holds a […]

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Thank you, my daughters, for a perfect Mothers Day x

May 15, 2013May 16, 2013 BritMumInNZ 13 Comments Sarah, Special Days, Writing

It was Mothers Day here in New Zealand on Sunday. My daughters, without knowing it, gave me one of the best Mothers Day I’ve had. More than anything, a mother wishes for happy, content children and no major scuffles to break up! Miraculously, the whole day was one of peace, sunshine, blue sky and even […]

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Silent Sunday

May 12, 2013May 12, 2013 BritMumInNZ 15 Comments Sarah, Silent Sunday, Special Days

~≈~≈~≈~≈~≈~≈~≈~

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LOVED… Luge riding, in Queenstown, New Zealand

May 11, 2013May 11, 2013 BritMumInNZ 4 Comments Holidays, Sarah

Before we even got our helmets on for luging, we had the thrill of a ride in the Skyline Gondola to the top of the hill overlooking picturesque Queenstown, in the South Island of New Zealand. The views from the gondola ride were beautiful – but we were in for a lot more excitement. The […]

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The colourful side of the wind in Wellington

May 10, 2013May 16, 2013 BritMumInNZ 2 Comments Sarah, Writing

When the wind whistles through dear Wellington there’s a place to be, where the wind is God. it turns wind to song, when birds don’t feel strong, and planes fly with daring, nose to the wind. Wind lights rainbows of engineering the stronger it blows, brighter the colours glow. The forests that strain, under windswept […]

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Prose for Thought | Invisible

May 9, 2013May 9, 2013 BritMumInNZ 8 Comments Sarah, Writing

My poem this week sums up the feelings that many of us, especially parents, feel in any week. Life is a roller-coaster and some weeks there seems to be a little more fluctuation than others on the way. I’ve had so much on my mind and sometimes I find reading the news doesn’t help to […]

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The Photo Gallery | The Weekend

May 8, 2013May 8, 2013 BritMumInNZ 10 Comments photography

I was delighted to hear my friends and family in the UK enjoyed a much deserved May Bank Holiday weekend of sunshine. Here in Wellington we enjoyed amazing Autumn sunshine too and when I read that Tara, at Sticky Fingers blog, had set the theme of ‘The Weekend’ for this week’s ‘Photo Gallery‘ I knew […]

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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
  • End of Term 3! October 2, 2020
  • 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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Sarah Lee's books

The Toll
it was amazing
The Toll
by Neal Shusterman
Dear Evan Hansen
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Dear Evan Hansen
by Val Emmich
A Map of Days
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A Map of Days
by Ransom Riggs
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The Absolute Book
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The Furthest Station
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