Charlotte really enjoys Kindi. She’s grown in confidence and independence. She’s making friends. She’s learning how to get along in a group environment. She would have done all of this, I strongly believe, with or without Kindi. She isn’t actually learning anything substantial at Kindi. Often she’s left to ‘play’ without enough adults to guide […]
Author: BritMumInNZ
Scorching Bay: Still as Magic as Ever
It’s been months since we visited Scorching Bay. The Chocolate Fish is no more, but Scorching Bay still holds its own special magic. Thankfully, there’s a little operation selling the essentials: ice-cream and coffee – what more could a parent wish for! The bay has also been given a smarten up by the City Council, […]
From Chinese NY to a Pasifika Festiva and Te Papa is 10!
Wellington Rocks! We’ve had a blast over the past couple of weekends. We dressed up in red with Grandma and Grandad to join in the Chinese NY celebrations last weekend. This weekend we rocked into town to dance to the beat of the Pasifika Festival on Saturday and join thousands of people to celebration Te […]
Queen Victoria Gets a Royal Welcome in Wellington
Wellington City put on a great show on Sunday to welcome The Queen Victoria on its maiden world-cruise. The city buzzed with the sound of helicopter rescue displays, tug-boat rides up to the cruise liner and a warm feeling of welcome. We enjoyed a fabulous day on the waterfront. Charlotte experienced a new first: dinghy […]
A Week of Celebration
I’m feeling great and I’ve got my ‘mojo’ back (uh oh, best be careful now!). I always find the first year after having a baby my sex drive takes a total dive; what with all the extensive breastfeeding, sleep deprivation and recovery time (I don’t have easy births!). But, thankfully my hubbie is the loving, […]
Tongariro Crossing: Grandma and Grandad had an ‘awesome’ time!
Last week we left Grandma and Grandad in the Central Plateau to walk the Tongariro Crossing. It is a spectacular one-day walk (taking around seven hours). Dan and I have walked it twice and on one occasion took the extra side-walk up Mt Ngauruhoe. It took us about an hour and a half to reach […]
Garden Tranquility in Taupo
We spent a wonderful hour (or so!) getting lost in the Taupo Botanical Gardens whilst on holiday. The gardens consist of winding pathways; twisting and turning in such rapidity that orientation skills are seriously put to the test! Fortunately, the road which winds through the gardens is never too far from the tracks; so that […]
All in a morning at Taupo…
From experiencing a simulation of the Edgecumbe Earthquake at the Volcanic Activity Centre … and watching the awesome power of water flooding through the Aratiatia Rapids… to learning how honey is made at ‘The Honey Hive’ and sampling locally farmed prawns at the Huka Prawn Park for lunch. Our holiday in Taupo was over a […]
Orakei Korako Geyserland
Seventy year’s ago people crossed the waters of the Waikato River to the thermal wonderland of Orakei Korako on a narrow-wooden canoe – otherwise known as a ‘waka’. We were relieved to be crossing in a small-motorised, river boat! We’d visited this wonderland many years ago and it was brilliant to return with the children […]
Sailing on Lake Taupo
There are numerous ways to enjoy Lake Taupo. When the girls are older we’ll look forward to taking our own vessel out on the water; but in the meantime we enjoyed a sail on a yacht named ‘Barbary‘, once owned by Errol Flynn. It was an extremely peaceful way to enjoy the lake. The girls […]
A Wild Way to Get a Fix!
After an afternoon’s walk around ‘Crater’s of the Moon‘ we thought we’d fit in a visit to Huka Falls. The gates to the carpark close at 6pm and with 10-minutes to spare we raced to the viewpoint. On our way we spotted some adrenaline pumped kayakers and couldn’t believe our luck! Dan and Grandad promptly […]
A Special First in Taupo
Our first day in Taupo was pretty special. The girls were so excited to see their Grandma and Grandad and gave beautiful, heart-warming, unprompted hugs. We spent a lovely morning at the delightfully quaint Lilliput Fun and Animal Park. It was here that Grandma and Grandad enjoyed a rare treat to experience a first for […]
Wellington to Taupo: An Amazing Scenic Flight!
The girls and I took the easy route to Taupo last week; travelling in a 19 seater plane! We were blessed with stunning views on both the outward and return flight. Dan enjoyed a 5-hour drive – pumping up his favourite music on the stereo with no ‘back-chat’! The girls were so excited to see […]
Having a blast – long may the summer roll!
It’s been a crazy few days of sunshine. We had a blast at ‘The Teddy Bear’s Picnic’ in the Botanical Gardens on Sunday (got some great video-clips, but no time to string it together tonight!). Charlotte loved singing along to the music and Sophie enjoyed wandering around the rose garden and riding on the ‘rocket’! […]