Mario's Big Race

King Boo was flying to his house, but Mario was guarding it.

King Boo challenged Mario and Bowser to a race at Grumble Volcano.

King Boo shot right over a hole. Mario was impressed! He flipped over the hole - but Bowser was still in front. They crashed into Bowser and Bowser accidentally fell into Lava - but he survived.

The End.

Next : The Battle of Bowser, in a school near you.

Good morning on Tues, Aug 10

Hi,

Keas went so well last night.  It's amazing what making paper darts does for a 6 year old boy.  We had our usual ten keas there and it was good fun.  Towards the end they played hockey with paper batons and some light plastic balls and it was a hoot.  Great.

I played squash afterwards and was very pleased to have Mike and Toby show up for the last 20 minutes or so.  I think it has got Mike enthusiastic again about playing.  So we might get some quality squash time on the courts.  Toby liked watching too.  He was very appreciative of my shots that went out of bounds.  Big = better in Toby's eyes.

Straight home and straight to bed for Toby.  And he slept so well.  Monday was a no computers, no TV day as he had woken many times on Sunday night calling out for us about being scared.  So it was on the cards for another day straight with no TV if he called out.  Slept like a log, he did.  And he told me so when he woke at 6.30 and came into bed for a cuddle.  So we'll see if it keeps working tonight.

I think we might instigate the No TV Tuesday policy again soon.  I like not being a slave to television.  A walk after tea is a much better prospect.  I just have to convince Toby.

Back to work now.  And a cup of tea I think.
The weather is marvellous here today.  Truly lovely.  No wind, dry roads, lots of sunshine.  I think Mike will ride into work too (for the first time in ages).  Encourage him!

Love,
Angela

Good morning on Mon, Aug 9

Hi,

After a glorious Sunday (until about 3pm at any rate) we have a dour Monday here in Wellington.  The radio forecast said cold, gale southerlies and snow to 500m.  So I took the bus.  Soft, eh?

The weekend was good fun.  Toby swam well and then we popped in for a quick lunch to Sally and Andrew's place.  Then off to see End Game - a play aimed at 8 - 14 year olds.  We met Duncan and Emerson there (and their mother) and we all went in to see the play.  It was quite good.  I think as far as a play goes, it was a good idea for keeping someone like Toby's attention.  A boy and his mother get pulled into a computer game and the mother has to learn to accept her son knows more about their situation than she does.

Then off to Sweet Mother's Kitchen to meet Mike and Josh and have a coffee and some beignets (sweet pastries from southern USA).  We took Duncan and Emerson back home for a quick play date and then Ryan came to play as well.

Sunday was spent lazing around tidying and planning stuff.  Toby went to play with Jack and that was about the extent of the weekend.

Tonight is Keas and I have a squash session after that.  Phew!

Hope your weekend was great fun too!
Love,
Angela

Good morning on Fri, Aug 6

Hi,

Friday - hooray!  And it was a short week for us too after our long weekend to Sydney.  But the last half dragged a bit.  I was sure it was Friday yesterday.

I had Toby drop off duty this morning as Mike needed to get in early.  But last night I went to a fund raising event for Toby's school at the Children's Bookshop in Kilbirnie and I was in paradise.  Never been there before and it is superb!  I must take Toby.  Toby has bought a book for the school library and will get his name on it.  Skullduggery.  The shop assistant thought it'd be good for Toby in a year or so.

This weekend is looking good.  We have swimming tomorrow and then (possibly) a play for 8-14 year olds in the early afternoon.  I think it is on.  Then nothing strictly scheduled for the rest of the weekend.

Have a marvellous weekend.

Love,
Angela

Good morning on Thurs, Aug 5

Hi,

What a weird Wednesday.  Mike got a migraine at work and only stayed till mid-afternoon when he went home to bed.  But he felt ok after taking migraine-strength Neurophen and collected Toby for karate.  Yes - tennis was cancelled.  The rain has been more like a deluge.  This morning was the first ride where I didn't get soaked for the last two days.  Yesterday I got wet coming in (my desk has struts underneath it and my biking gear was strung out over it drying - it did quite well), and soaked going home. 

I stayed working late and walked to the tramping club meeting in Mt Vic.  It was a talk and slide show on Everest.  This chap in the club climbed it - and made it.  The photos were spectacular.

Then I hopped on my bike and rode through the cold rain, over unfamiliar streets, back home.  I was glad to hop in the shower when I got in.

Unfortunately, my necklace broke when I was in the shower.  Luckily I noticed it edging towards the plug and saved it from oblivion.  I never knew how much I touched it during the day, but I reach up to play with it often.  And it's not there!  I'll be out of sorts all day.

Tonight is table tennis night but I am going to miss it.  Toby's school has a fundraising event on at a very good children's bookshop in Kilbirnie.  We can buy books and 10% goes towards the school library fund.  And we can buy to donate too.  So I think we might do just that!  Someone want to come with me and drink the wine they said they'll provide?  :-)  I'll ride home, cook tea and drive over.  The owner will speak as well, and apparently he is good at what he does.

Roll on Friday!  Hooray!

Love,
Angela

Good morning on Wed, Aug 4

Hi,

What a wet morning this morning.  The rain is proper rain and not drizzly rain.  So I got quite wet walking Toby to school this morning and then continuing my ride into work.  The people that usually walk or bus to work drive on days like this and that is only too apparent.  They stop where they shouldn't, don't indicate and sometimes don't even look.  But apart from that, I really enjoyed the ride in.  I feel so much better when I get to work.

Last night we went out to Makara Beach after dinner to look for the aurora.  We saw nothing but high cloud.  But it was nice on a beach in the dark!

Tennis today (not likely) and karate.  Cool!

Have lots of fun!
Love,
Angela

Good morning on Tues, Aug 3

Hi,

What a surreal, but wonderful, weekend to Sydney we had.  It's hard to imagine we were ever away as I sit here at work as if it was a normal weekend.  It certainly didn't feel like 3.5 days as we only had two full days in Sydney. 

Karen's party was wonderful - as any party they host is always wonderful.  They had 10 extra people in their house and Karen and Scott coped marvellously.  They had the party catered and it was yummy and unobtrusive. 

We arrived Friday evening and debated getting a rental car out to Quakers from the airport for me, Toby, Mike, Mum and Dad.  It was a close thing.  If we didn't need to drop the car off in town the next day, but somewhere out near Karen and Scott's place, I would have been in!  But we decided on the train and hopped onto the next train from International to Central (where we had to change to the yellow line out to Blacktown).  As we were two stops out from Central, Karen rang Mike.  I heard him say he was two stops out from Central and Karen excitedly told him Michelle and Tim must be on the same train.  Then Gramps yells out "Michelle" in a booming voice.  We saw Michelle and Tim at the other end of our carriage.  So we rode with them all the way to Blacktown.

Karen and Noush collected us so we all got home at about 8.30pm.  It was perfect.  We ate spaghetti bolognese (although Toby was far too excited to eat) and then Mike and I took the GPS unit into the airport to collect Kylie then Sharon and Jamie.  It worked well and we even managed to show Jamie the Opera House and Harbour Bridge on the way home.

Crashed into bed and slept like a log.  Toby was in Abby's bed and Mike and I were on her trundler bed that pulls out from under her bed.  Toby woke at 5.30am (I guess 7.30am Wellington time), whispering"Abby, Abby!".  I told him it was just Mum and Dad and to go back to sleep.  Which he might have done.  I certainly did.

We got up early and got ready for swimming.  Abby and Tyler had their lessons while Jamie and Toby swam around waiting impatiently for the lessons to finish so they could all play together.  Toby loves Jamie - as do Tyler and Abby!  Especially Abby!  When the girls finished their lesson, Karen took me to Castle Towers for some shopping and then big boys took the little boys and girls home.

Then it was preparation for the party and at 3pm it all started!  Woo hoo!  There must have been 60 people easily there - including about 15 or 20 children!  Scott's family come as a massive unit: hire-a-crowd really.  And they always treat us like family too.

I managed to get some rugby watching in as well that evening.  I think I made it to midnight and crashed.  Noush and I sang karaoke for a while before that.  We figured no one would remember us too well.  As I slept in a coma, I did get woken up to the dulcet (???!!!) tones of La Bamba from Scott and Chad, but I fell back to sleep immediately.

Next day saw quite a few bleary eyes.  We took it easy with a little shopping and not a lot of much else.  The day disappeared really.  And we were to bed early for the early dash to the train station to catch the 5.57am train into town.  Dad dropped us off and we made it!  One hour later we were walking into the International terminal for our trip home.

Wonderful stuff.  I am sad though as it was such a little visit.

Mike went to Keas last night and Toby and I stayed home.  At 6pm Toby wished he had gone to Keas though.  I was pleased to have the night off as I had a headache for a lot of the day.  Much better to stay home and cook.

Back to work and into it all already!
Have a great week!
Love,
Angela