Catching the Magic

Travels in New Zealand and beyond, going back to 2003!

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Alice

Togetherness

February 15, 2011February 16, 2011 BritMumInNZ 14 Comments Alice, Charlotte, Dan, Sarah, Sophie

After six weeks of togetherness we farewelled Chinese Grandma & Granddad on Valentine’s Day. They dropped off Charlotte & Sophie at school and said a brave good-bye. In the afternoon, Dan, Alice and I took them to the airport and had one last coffee together. We don’t know when we’ll meet next, but hopefully it […]

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Things we’re loving…

February 13, 2011February 13, 2011 BritMumInNZ 4 Comments Alice, Charlotte, Loving & Not Loving, Sophie

It’s been a busy week getting used to school being back, Alice walking and enjoying the last week of Chinese Grandma & Granddad being with us (they fly home on Valentine’s Day). Thankfully Charlotte & Sophie have LOVED school this week (makes for a very happy Mama!) and we celebrated the end of the week […]

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Love Poem this Lyrical Sunday (Week 7)

February 13, 2011February 27, 2011 BritMumInNZ 7 Comments Alice, Lyrical Sunday, Sarah

It’s Lyrical Sunday time! With Valentine’s Day tomorrow the theme had to be ‘LOVE‘! Come and share the lurve with some prose. I was up at 6am this morning, with my little Alice Rose (she turns 1 on Wednesday!), and whilst the rest of the house slept in we took a gorgeous sunrise walk.  She […]

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Being outmaneuvered by an 11 month old

February 9, 2011February 9, 2011 BritMumInNZ 8 Comments Alice

Blogging is taking a back seat whilst I formulate a strategy to cope with my suddenly very mobile 11 month old. Just when I thought my life would get a little easier – with Sophie joining Charlotte at school – Alice has stepped up to a new level. This week she has gone from taking […]

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Things we are loving…

February 5, 2011February 5, 2011 BritMumInNZ 17 Comments Alice, Charlotte, Sophie

This week has been one of immense change. On Thursday the long, summer holidays came to an end. Charlotte and Sophie walked up to school (for Sophie the first day of her school life!) with school bags in hand. They were both full of first day excitement and both happy to be there. Sophie was […]

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Alice takes her first steps in the world!

January 30, 2011 BritMumInNZ 11 Comments Alice, Life in action - Videos

Our little bouncing, happy bubba is on her way to be a fully fledged toddler! She took her first few steps on holiday, having just turned 11 months. She’s adding a few more each day, reverting to bounce and crawl when she wants to get somewhere in a hurry! It won’t be long before she’s […]

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Our baby turtle & a shark sighting

January 5, 2011January 5, 2011 BritMumInNZ 12 Comments Alice, Charlotte, Dan, Life in action - Videos, Sophie

It was a surreal day at Lyall Bay. The fog rolling in banked up on the horizon and engulfed the hills around the bay. News of a shark sighting only hours before added to the erie feeling. A fin had been spotted for a few seconds. The beach was closed for swimming, as a precaution, […]

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Here’s to a New Year (a little premature)!

December 30, 2010December 30, 2010 BritMumInNZ 15 Comments Alice, Dan, Sarah

Dan and I enjoyed a very rare and impromptu dinner out together this evening. Our friend Frances gifted us some ‘time’ for a Christmas present and our big girls decided tonight was ‘the night’! They excitedly packed their bags, favourite books, teddy and duvet for a sleep-over at Frances house! Alice was too little to […]

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Having my girls home is gonna add inches to the waist line!

December 21, 2010December 21, 2010 BritMumInNZ 5 Comments Alice, Baking, Charlotte, Sophie

Can we bake please? Can we make cupcakes? Can we make doughnuts? Today we made both, but added a dose of berries for good measure and balance on the side 🙂 Charlotte made cupcakes. And Sophie made doughnuts. Whilst Alice played with her toy cooker. I am so impressed with their baking skills these days […]

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Alice at 10 months: Party Planner in the Making

December 16, 2010December 16, 2010 BritMumInNZ 7 Comments Alice

Alice is revving up for her big sister’s party! There are balloons bouncing of the walls, streamers and bunting hanging across the ceiling, a liberal dusting of flour a frequent sight on the kitchen floor and the furniture has all been moved to create lots of space. It’s party time! Alice, at 10 months today, […]

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You know you’re a Mum when…

December 6, 2010December 6, 2010 BritMumInNZ 9 Comments Alice, Life in action - Videos, Random Musings, Sarah

you turn up at the doctor’s surgery covered in glitter and don’t blink an eye when both the receptionist and the doctor make a very obvious statement about it.  ‘No,’ I replied (in a very matter of fact, this is perfectly normal tone), ‘I am not heading out for an extravagant night on the tiles […]

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Christmas in the garden & at the beach

December 3, 2010December 3, 2010 BritMumInNZ 12 Comments Alice, Charlotte, Dan, Garden, Sophie

National Jandal Day couldn’t have asked for better weather. Wellington was bathed in sunshine with collectors reaping the rewards for Surf Life Saving NZ. Charlotte spent most of the day with her entire school at the fabulous Wainui Summer Pools, whilst Sophie, Alice and I had a quiet morning at home and in the garden. […]

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Christmas Carols & Writing Workshop: Let’s Get Lyrical

December 2, 2010December 3, 2010 BritMumInNZ 8 Comments Alice, Sarah, Sophie, Writing

In the boxes of decorations that we unearthed from under the stairs we discovered our wonderful collection of Christmas books and Christmas music.  We have books that tell the story of the birth of Jesus and the journey Mary and Joseph had to make to Bethlehem; board books for Alice to discover the joys of […]

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1 December and up she goes!

December 1, 2010December 3, 2010 BritMumInNZ 12 Comments Alice, Charlotte, Sophie

With all three of my lovely cherubs at home with snuffly summer colds today we  took the opportunity to dig out the Christmas decorations from under the stairs. It was fun, messy and a little bit tiring… The big boxes made for some fun dens and helped to keep Alice distracted long enough for me […]

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  • WAI2K 50km trail adventure, November 2024!February 20, 2025
    In November 2024 I took on the epic endurance event of the 50km WAI2K Ultra, from Woodside Train Station in Greytown, through the hills of the Wairarapa and Kaitoke Regional Park, to Tunnel Gully Upper Picnic Area in Upper Hutt. This mixed terrain course involves around 2,500m of elevation gain through dense scrub, beautiful native… Read more: WAI2K 50km trail adventure, November 2024!
  • Visits back to the UK aren’t always a holiday – when those you love aren’t well.February 6, 2025
    Life is never all sunshine and roses. When we have had the good fortunate of having people in our lives that we’ve loved deeply, and have felt their love in return, it is painful to see that person suffering. Life is all about beginnings and endings, hellos and goodbyes, first moments and celebrations, and also… Read more: Visits back to the UK aren’t always a holiday – when those you love aren’t well.
  • Celebrating our 25th Wedding Anniversary with a long weekend on the Gold Coast – June 2024January 6, 2025
    At the end of May 2024 my husband and I celebrated our 25th Wedding Anniversary and took the opportunity to grab a fix of winter sunshine, over the ‘King’s Birthday’ weekend public holiday (beginning of June), with a trip to the Gold Coast – on Australia’s East Coast. We were joined by our children, Sophie… Read more: Celebrating our 25th Wedding Anniversary with a long weekend on the Gold Coast – June 2024
  • ‘Last time’ moments on a spring visit to the UK, May 2024January 2, 2025
    After over twenty five years of living thousands of miles away from my birth country, and many flights back and forth, I am still in awe of the fact I can be on the other side of the world in 24 hours. I remind myself that jet passenger services didn’t start until the late 1950s… Read more: ‘Last time’ moments on a spring visit to the UK, May 2024
  • Race Tekapo 50kmSeptember 29, 2024
    Race registration on Friday night, by the shore of Lake Tekapo, was a ‘hold on tight to your bib’ or you won’t be going anywhere tomorrow affair. The bitingly cold air was a shock to the system, after my husband, daughter and I had driven from a sunny, spring like day in Christchurch. Our flight… Read more: Race Tekapo 50km
  • Running the stunning Motatapu Trail MarathonMay 30, 2024
    This was one of the most beautiful trail marathons I’ve ran and was a great way to celebrate a summer of running and see in the beginning of autumn (though the weather was still very much throwing the heat of summer on event day – which fell on the first Saturday in March). The 42km… Read more: Running the stunning Motatapu Trail Marathon
  • 50km for 50 years! How I saw in the first day of my fifties running the 50km Faultline Ultra!May 21, 2024
    I’ve been on a good running streak for over a year now (meaning no injuries, illness or troublesome hormones to slow me down – thanks to a mix of strength work, good luck and hormone replacement therapy!). When I saw that a new event was going to be held in the city where I live… Read more: 50km for 50 years! How I saw in the first day of my fifties running the 50km Faultline Ultra!
  • Six month catch up!March 9, 2024
    Time is literally flying away on me and blog writing is very neglected these days, but we are all well here and can’t believe our lovely Christmas and New Year festivities were three months ago! Spring and summer has raced by and now we are on the cusp of autumn here in New Zealand. Since… Read more: Six month catch up!
  • Ten blissful days in Rarotonga, Cook Islands.August 8, 2023
    With the days dark and short here in New Zealand we jetted off for some warmth and sunshine in the Cook Islands, just a three to four hour flight from Auckland. We have never visited any of the Pacific Islands and it was with great delight that we touched down on the runway in Rarotonga,… Read more: Ten blissful days in Rarotonga, Cook Islands.
  • Marlborough Food & Wine Festival Birthday CelebrationAugust 7, 2023
    Turning 50 is definitely a milestone birthday, but hubby Dan didn’t want a party so in February we decided to head away for the weekend to celebrate at the Marlborough Food and Wine Festival. Dan’s Birthday fell on the same weekend as the festival, in the sunshine summer month of February here in New Zealand,… Read more: Marlborough Food & Wine Festival Birthday Celebration
  • A few running events to kick off the year & a sub-4 PB at the Rotorua Marathon!May 10, 2023
    Round the Bays Wellington, held in February every year, is always an iconic event, generally bestowed with sunshine and an amazing turn out of people of all ages. The atmosphere for this event is like a festival, with entertainment lining the route of the first 6km, between Waitangi Park and Kilbirnie Park (where all the… Read more: A few running events to kick off the year & a sub-4 PB at the Rotorua Marathon!
  • Auckland mid-week break away for Harry Styles!April 4, 2023
    On Census night in New Zealand we were away from home, up in Auckland (along with thousands of other people from all over the country) to enjoy an epic night of entertainment at Mt Smart Stadium. We flew up first thing on Tuesday morning, giving us plenty of time to enjoy some sight seeing before… Read more: Auckland mid-week break away for Harry Styles!
  • Celebrating a Birthday with a Meerkat Encounter!March 30, 2023
    Our youngest turned 13 in February, joining her older two siblings in ‘teen hood’ (though our oldest will turn 20 in June this year!). Having started high school a couple of weeks before her birthday there was, certainly for me, a moment of nostalgia as I reflected on how grown up my ‘baby’ has become… Read more: Celebrating a Birthday with a Meerkat Encounter!
  • Summer holiday in Rotorua & TaupoMarch 29, 2023
    The last week of January, before the start of a new school year, we drove up from Wellington to the central region of the North Island for a week’s holiday. We’ve holidayed in this area many times over the years and never tire of the endless outdoor activities on offer in the most beautiful natural… Read more: Summer holiday in Rotorua & Taupo
  • Christmas and a Birthday in WellingtonJanuary 12, 2023
    Sunshine was gifted to us on Christmas Day this year in Wellington and we had the most wonderfully relaxed day together (well, almost all together, as our oldest currently lives in Melbourne and so we video chatted and were delighted to see them having an awesome time with a friend and their friend’s family). We… Read more: Christmas and a Birthday in Wellington

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