Catching the Magic

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

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Life in action – Videos

4 Seasons: Riding the first wave of summer

November 29, 2010November 30, 2010 BritMumInNZ 10 Comments Alice, Charlotte, Garden, Life in action - Videos, Sarah

Officially the first day of summer in New Zealand is 1 December. This past week summer has come early. Normally we have a fair bit of unsettled spring weather all the way up to Christmas, but not this year. Calm, sunny skies have made for some primo beach visits. For the first time ever Charlotte […]

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4 Seasons – Sharing the Love

November 16, 2010November 16, 2010 BritMumInNZ 8 Comments Life in action - Videos, Random Musings

I just have to share some love here! Firstly, Lou at Seaside Siblings, has started a weekly linky to celebrate the ‘4 Seasons‘. Wellington is the home of four seasons in one day, with its ever changing weather. Today I came across the following music video, ‘Wellington Love Letter‘, which was a parting gift from […]

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The Rules – just so you know!

September 24, 2010September 24, 2010 BritMumInNZ 5 Comments Charlotte, Life in action - Videos, Sophie

Charlotte has posted up some rules on her bedroom door… Her door is adorned with crafty goodness begging to be tugged and chewed at as soon as Alice is mobile! She asked me to video her spelling them out so she could share them. And Sophie wanted to share her bedtime white-board art with you, […]

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Alice: Miss 7 months

September 20, 2010 BritMumInNZ 7 Comments Alice, Life in action - Videos

Alice, you are 7 months old already and so desperate to MOVE! You get onto your tummy, after unhooking your leg, and then grunt in frustration as the toy you so eagerly wish to mouth gets further and further away as you move… backwards! You are working so hard to get that lovely, tummy off […]

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Vlog Bake with Sophie

August 29, 2010August 30, 2010 BritMumInNZ 17 Comments Baking, Life in action - Videos, Sophie

She’s the girl with the wooden spoon, forever thumbing the recipe books for something new to stir up. The biggest obstacle to her cooking success is a kitchen sized for an adult. She drags a chair around the kitchen floor from cooker to cupboard, from fridge to microwave, from the sink to the pantry. What […]

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One Day in August: Hoping for change

August 29, 2010September 22, 2010 BritMumInNZ 6 Comments Life in action - Videos, Random Musings

In a room on one side of the world a mother plays on the piano, whilst her baby daughter sits smiling and shaking a rattle. She listens to the rain beating down on the metal roof of her warm home and thinks of the synchronicity of the piece she is playing, ‘Kiss the Rain’, with […]

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Mama!

August 28, 2010 BritMumInNZ 7 Comments Alice, Life in action - Videos

What a perfect age our Little Miss Alice is at. She is happy to sit where placed and play with some well chosen, safe toys within her grasp. She observes family life with a keen twinkle in her eye and the occasional chuckle. She cannot yet move, but occasionally lurches from sitting onto her tummy […]

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Wanted: The New Milkybar Kid

August 22, 2010 BritMumInNZ 9 Comments Charlotte, Life in action - Videos

The search is on for the next New Zealand Milkybar Kid. We had a hilarious time filming this morning – using the audition script on the Nestle Milky Bar website. Here’s Charlotte’s 60 second audition piece… I’ll post the ‘bloopers’ and Sophie having a go another time (only 7 to 9 year olds can enter).

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Tooth Fairy where did you get to?

August 16, 2010October 25, 2011 BritMumInNZ 5 Comments Charlotte, Life in action - Videos

‘Mummy! That tiny tooth has finally come out!’ It was just before bedtime. Dan was reading Sophie a story. I was lying down nursing Alice to sleep. Charlotte had read a chapter of ‘Harry Potter and the Dealthy Hallows‘ with Dan and was now playing a game on the iPad before switching on her favourite […]

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Sunshine Sunday Surprise

August 8, 2010August 8, 2010 BritMumInNZ 3 Comments Alice, Charlotte, Life in action - Videos, Sophie

Sunday morning and Charlotte had a mock jazz exam. By the time it had finished there was an unexpected colour in the sky – BLUE! Sophie hadn’t been pony riding for a while so we piled in the car to the wonderful Country Club Riding Academy in Ohariu Valley. Sophie ran in to greet the […]

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Food, food, glorious food!

August 4, 2010August 4, 2010 Alice 4 Comments Alice, Life in action - Videos

I’m sitting up well, have two pearly whites ready for action and have been reaching out for everyone’s food for a few weeks now. Breast-milk is no longer enough (though I’m still having plenty – especially at night, tee hee). So, at nearly 6 month’s of age I have joined the rest of the family […]

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What is it about swinging?

August 3, 2010August 3, 2010 BritMumInNZ 4 Comments Alice, Dan, Life in action - Videos, Random Musings, Sophie

No, not swinging as in the mix it up with different partners (this is a family blog after all), but the sit your bum on a piece of wood, rubber or some other platform hanging by a rope or chain and fly through the air kind of swinging. One of my strongest memories of childhood […]

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Daddy & Sophie cycle to Kindergarten

July 29, 2010July 29, 2010 BritMumInNZ 11 Comments Dan, Life in action - Videos, Sophie

‘Please can I cycle to Kindi, pleeeease?!’ Sophie pleaded, jumping up and down with her boundless energy. With her Daddy all geared up to cycle into work Sophie decided she’d like to take the green route to Kindergarten and leave the car in the garage. Well, the conditions looked good for it – no mean […]

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Super Saturday & ‘Toy Story 3’ Review!

July 5, 2010July 5, 2010 BritMumInNZ 1 Comment Life in action - Videos, School hols

Sophie and Dan headed out to watch Toy Story 3 at the fabulous Empire Cinema in Island Bay on Saturday morning. Sophie was super excited to be meeting up with her best buddy, Alicia, to watch the movie. It was a special Dad and daughter morning, kicking off with ice-cream at 9.45 am! We are […]

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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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