The Monday with Dad arriving - although technically it was today

Hi,

Happy birthday, John!

After a crazy day at work, it was nice to hop on a bus with Mike and do nothing on the way home.  Mum had already fed Toby so we just ate leftovers from that - yummy.

After helping Mum tidy up a bit I went to bed and read and then fell asleep.  Mainly because I was getting up at 2300 to drive to the airport to collect Dad.  Mum, Toby and I went, while Mike stayed up to get taxes done and then go to bed.  I think I may have had the better deal there, Mike!

Dad was fast out of customs so we were back home by 12.45am and I was probably asleep by 1am.  It was good to see him and Mum is happy too.

My bikes are all getting a service so I caught the bus in yet again this morning.  Mind you, with little sleep it is probably for the best.

Time to kick start the day.

Have a great day!

Love,
Angela

The weekend back in Wellington

Hi,

After a week down south with Mum (blog post coming soon), I had a great weekend in Wellington.  Mum and I got back into Wellington at around 5.30pm on Friday.  We had to go directly to a car wash, as the car was covered in salt spray and dust.  After that fun, I popped in to drop off a bottle of wine for Aidan from Wairau River winery.  I gave her a huge fright apparently, merely knocking on her door.  Turns out I am the first person to visit her without saying I was coming.  Oops.

Mike and Toby looked happy to see me after my week away.  They didn't seem too worse for my absence.

Off to bed early after my long driving holiday - and up early for the Dragon boating fun race day.  What a great day!  Sunny.  No wind.  Mike dropped me off and I found our tent and we settled in to our first two races (10 and 10.40am).  A bit of a break before another race.  Then we were in a combined womens team with MPI.  Had fun in that race.  Then a break before another race.  Aidan turned up for that one.  Woot!  She got some photos.

Then we had a break for lunch.  Aidan and I enjoyed a sausage sizzle and a chat under the trees.  Then off to the next race.  Mum and Mike turned up for the last one up to the fountain and back.  Oooo - that was hard work.

I also copped sunburn on my shoulders where my sunscreen didn't quite cover it.  Ouch!

Back home for a yummy bbq.  Mmmmm.

Mike cooks a mean bbq

I'm eyeing up the cheese from my vantage point

We watched a movie with Toby downstairs.  Real Steel.  I quite enjoyed it - almost as much as the first time.

Brunch with Ange

Off to bed and up early (ish) for a run and then off to archery with Ange in the wee green car to tackle the weedy bank and try and make a dent in the look of the place.  Then off to a cafe for brunch.  And back home to iron and do grocery shopping.  Mike and Toby went to see Zoolander 2.

Back home and then off for dinner at Boulcott St Bistro with Mum, Aidan and Christine.  It was so nice.  Yummy food as usual.  Nice to catch up with Christine and Aidan.

Home and off to bed.  So busy!

And it's birthday week.  Dad arrives tonight.  Toby is off to school camp on my birthday!  Yep - crazy busy.  More dragon boat training.

And my party on Saturday!  Woot!

Have fun!

Love,
Angela

The Thursday with dragon boat training

Hi,

I had a long overdue iced coffee catch up with Rex and Jo.  Good to chat to them and find out what they have been up to.

Mixed Business iced coffee

I'm smiling now!

Also had the good fortune to get lunch with Sally, Andrew, Aidan and Janne - Mike managed to join us as well.  So we sat outside and enjoyed our lunch in the sun.

In fact, yesterday was another scorcher!  I was boiling all day!  The huge fan next to my desk was pumping along, creating a hurricane in my headset microphone whenever I talked to anyone.

After work Mike had drinks - which I went to before anyone else (I chatted to Bharat).  Then I headed back to work to get changed for dragon boating.  Ian gave me a lift down there and we had a lovely session on the water.  I came back and got my gear and bike and drove home.

Right.  I am away all next week.  Going down south.  Mike and Andrew are biking the Queen Charlotte track.  Sally and Toby are assessing the cafes in the upper South Island.  Ok - maybe just in Picton.  And Mum and I are heading further south to sample the delights of the South Island.

And when we get back - the Saturday (13th) is our first race for dragon boating.  Wow!  It will be an interesting day.

Love,
Angela

The Wednesday with Mum here

Hi,

What fantastic weather we're having.  Yesterday was easily the nicest day.  No wind.  Blue skies.  Mum thought she was back on the Sunshine coast.  Hahah.

Bryan (at work) took me for a coffee and a chat early on and I had an iced coffee because I thought the lack of sleep might mean I needed a jolt.  Apart from tasting nice, I'm not sure it did anything.

Mike and I were treated to lunch by Laura (at work here) and we went to a Vietnamese place on Featherston St.  Very nice.  I had the duck salad.  Mmmmm.

Iced coffee at Mixed Business

I popped into DIA with Celia to sigh the passport application - the witness page I used had chopped off the bottom where you sign it.  Shucks!  We were the only ones in the office.  So weird.

Sun starting to set on a glorious day

Looking mighty fine!

 I rode home and enjoyed the hot evening ride.  At home, I lounged around chatting to Mum before Mike got home not long after me.  We had Indian takeaways.  So I had no need to cook and I read a lot.  Then we ate and I pretty much went to bed.

It was so hot and sticky.  Tried sleeping with the doors open in the spare room, but mozzies liked that too much.

My ride in this morning was so warm.  I have a huge fan behind me at work now.  No air conditioning here.

Dragon boating training after work today.  Ooossshhh!

Have a great day!

Love,
Angela

The Tuesday with lunch with Aidan and my mother arriving - technically Wednesday morning

Hi,

We're having a bit of warm to hot weather.  Yay!  It is summer after all.

I caught up with Aidan for lunch, which was good fun.  We chatted away to each other around being starving and gobbling down our respective lunches.  Lucky we both eat breakfast so early that we're both equally starving by the time 11.30am rolls around.

We sat in the sunshine on a park bench and I was melting.  In the end, Aidan had to go back to work or suffer from sunstroke.

But the good weather meant a warm office.  Ok.  A hot office.  But Celia had a brainwave to make iced coffees at work.  She had a can of cream in the fridge.  Mmmmmm.  Good.

Home made iced coffee - at work

And the good weather also meant the dragon boat training was a pleasure.  We were out on the harbour for an hour, trying to get our timing sorted.  We seem to be improving.

From there, Mike collected me and took me home and Toby had cooked tea.  So we ate butter chicken and it was very good.  He is going to cook one meal a week for us now.  He wants to practise mac cheese as he believes this is what he'll eat when he's flatting for university.

I went to bed at 9pm and fell asleep immediately and woke at 11pm.  Got dressed and found Toby scampering around the house, fully dressed.  So he came with me to the airport and we collected Mum.

Airport feet

Airport feet photo bomb - from Toby's giant foot

She must have got out of the customs area around 12.40am I guess.  We were home just before 1am and I was in bed in about 5 minutes time.  Hahah.

Up this morning after not enough sleep and today might be a bit tough.  It is going to be the hottest work day of the summer today.  All our other hot days have fallen on the weekend or holiday time.  The fans will be running hot today!

Have a great day!

Love,
Angela

The Monday with Toby's first day at school

Hi,

Well, Toby's first day at high school went really well.  He was buzzing with excitement still when I caught up with him.

He walked to Manners St from school (?) and caught a 22.  And I left work and caught the same 22 outside my work.  So we bussed home together.  He had PE and met some teachers.  Sounded like fun.  I hope it continues for quite some time!

Mike got some sushi on the way home and I went grocery shopping and met Mike at the supermarket.  We got home and had dinner and then relaxed for the evening.

I had a good run this morning.  And a great ride into work.  It is so warm and humid - I was hot and sweaty when I got to work.  And my hair is all boofy.  Hahah.

Dragon boating training after work today.  Woot!  And then the big news is that Mum is coming to visit and she gets in just after midnight.  I think somewhere in my day I'd better squeeze in a sleep.  Or I'll be pants tomorrow.

Have a wonderful day.

Love,
Angela

The weekend with great company and adventures

Hi,

Wish all my weekends were that much fun.  I guess, actually, they often are.  Makes the week days crawl by.  Maybe I need more weekend boredom in my life to even out the week days?  Hahahah!

Friday after work, Mike and Monica (and their kids, Jessica (10) and Daniel (is he 6?)) arrived to stay for a few nights on their road trip around Wellington.

We found beds for them and introduced them to Burger Wisconsin.  Hahah.  After chatting on the couch for a bit, I started to get sleepy.  I left Mike talking to Mike and went to bed.  I barely noticed when Mike came to bed, apart from Toby dropping something on my head.

Next morning we went into Te Papa after some cereal and toast.  Went to the Dreamworks exhibition - it was quite good.  Loved the cartoonists table when they projects cartoons onto the paper like they were being done as you wanted.

Toby at Dreamworks

Toby and I found the art desks with software to make cartoons.  I totally loved it.  I want to do this on my tablet now.

We made a cartoon of a dragon snorting smoke from its nostrils

Our hands on the ball

Toby's first squid - Clive

From there we had Yum Cha and then wandered back home.  Mike and Mike went to get BBQ stuff and we waited for their arrival (I did spray Round Up while I waited).

Mike and Karen also came to visit (with Adam, Rebecca and Jacob) and we all chatted away, catching up on news.

BBQ stand

Eventually it was late and we collapsed into bed.  Next day we got up early and drove Toby to Aidan's place and us to Paekakariki to have a breakfast with Mike and Monica.  Andrew joined us.  Then we said goodbye as they headed home to Auckland and Andrew, Mike and I went to Queen Elizabeth Park to start our bike ride.

Kapiti Island behind my bike

Selfie riding

Andrew and Mike discussing the awesome trail

We had such fun!  Saw the US Marines memorial.  The tram lines.  Had an iced coffee at Raumati before taking the coastal path back.  Mike tried to cycle on the sand and fell over, still clipped in and pedalling.  The family 2 m from him were entertained.

Back home and we got ready for Toby's big day today.  His first day at high school.  He was very excited.  Nervous and excited.  Normal.

We got up at 5.45am on Monday morning and heard Toby already walking around.  He was dressed, fed himself breakfast and brushed his teeth all before 6am!

We all caught the 13 bus to his school.  Took nearly an hour!  He'll have to catch the 7.30am bus.

We had a powhiri and we left him sitting in the crowd, waiting to be sorted into his class room.

Wow!  I am also very excited.  He is so big now.

First day at high school

Toby waits to be sorted into his year group

Right.  The day is glorious.  Hello birthday month!

Have a wonderful week.

Love,
Angela