Summer

Summer has long been here in Auckland! We are heading towards needing rain fast and soon.

Last summer was a massive drought - I think it may be forecast to rain on Christmas Day. Oh well.

I plan on spending a few hours with extended family and then back home with just the 5 of us.

My great friend April came up from Auckland last weekend - we had a blast running around town.

We went to Newmarket to visit "Little and Friday" cafe - i had no idea it closed at 3.30pm on weekdays.

And I was so surprised to see loads of shops shutting at 5 pm too - in Newmarket??!!! And 12 days out from Christmas???? 

We went back on the Saturday and loved it. 

Since i survived another year in the NZ education system, i went on a wee shopping spree for myself! bought some gorgeous fabric from Marthas fabric to make a cushion these hols (and a NZ made cushion inner - yay!); soap from Lush (never see Lush very often); Bensimon sneakers from Father Rabbit (gorgeous shop!); and a nightie, serviettes , a duvet cover for Kieran, citronella candles and a toilet bag from Citta ( inspired by the gorgeous serviettes Elaina sent me as part of the Advent Swap. Citta is so close to home but I have jut never gotten there!!). Quite the spread for moi.

We had a fab brekkie at Petit Bocal on Sandringham Road and April was stoked to see Liam and Elroy Finn (Neil Finn's sons) at the next table. Stephen and I would have had no idea who they were....

And a visit to Martha's Backyard - the USA food shop - April being North American stocked up well!

I bought a few items.

Sunday morning was spent freaking out at not being able to find my memory stick with essay on it (learnt the lesson in that you save in more than one place....) - ran out to school and there it was in my computer ... Sigh.

Then a drive over to Devonport to have a lovely picnic. Gorgeous view of the city.

We are making this an annual get together - this year I have been to Christchurch and her to Auckland - maybe we will go elsewhere in NZ next year! It's fab catching up with great friends from out of town!

A place for everything.....: Christmas cracker swap

What I sent Patricia n England for our Christmas Cracker swap. Glad it is a hit!

A place for everything.....: Christmas cracker swap: A couple of months ago I entered into a Christmas Cracker swap organised by  Tracy at Mad about Bags  and my partner was  Kimberley at A Cre...

Cracker Swap

I took part, once agin, in Tracey's (www.madaboutbags.blogspot.co.uk) Christmas cracker swap.

Such a great idea trying to fit wee things inside a cardboard tube!

This year I was paired with the lovely Patricia from www.aplacefor-everything.blogspot.co.uk.

Her cracker arrived last Friday (perfect being last day of school year!).

Gorgeous wrapping with a golden starry wine bag .( I need a good bottle of Pinot noir in that for me now!)

I adore the fabric wrapped around the tube too - might be part of a planned cushion this summer.

Cinnamon sticks are something I rarely see here - one was used in a cold jug of water last week with mint - gorgeous pair together!

Patricia made the gorgeous toppers ; I have little cute triangles and hearts - perfect for scrapbooking;

a piece of lovely stripe fabric (love stripes!) ; a golden candle which is now on my dining room table with my other tiny Christmas candles ; sticky notes (perfect for uni work) and cute stars which I can see sprinkled all over a scrapbook page too!

Thank you so much Patricia - love it all! I hope my cracker has arrived at her house - I will show you the goodies I sent to her when she has blogged about it.

Beginning to get the feeling

As much as I have adored opening an advent gift every day, that has been the sum total of my Christmas love this year.

I am quite over spending money just because and on stuff that nobody really needs. Everyone I know needs not one thing... Even my children!

I have so struggled with buying even one thing... Ryan has 3 books and a big box of Lego; Kieran a running shirt, donut maker (yay for K- mart and $15 appliances) and headphones and the 16 year old so far as zilch... And I have not one idea what to get him. He is anti stuff (just like his Dad) and a tight wade a the kid who has saved a lot of money in is account to spend one day!

And we have decided not to do Santa. And my kids get very little from anyone else (family overseas no longer send anything)... Should I be feeling sad about this??

And nothing for me neither as I don't know what I want.... I don't really need a thing apart from TIME - to do university work and time to knit.. (haha for that last thing!)

Anyway the lounge mantle piece looks festive - adore my little birdy bunting from Tracey in Australia.

And our advent calendars from Phoenix stationery - ALL their items are gorgeous !

Strung up our cards - not looking too bad for a country that seems to be not  really be into sending cards... Finally posted my bundle on Monday - am sure that the European ones will not get there in time...

I made the Winnie the Pooh cross stitch while living in England in 1996/7 and also the Santa was made while living in Melbourne in 2002. Love both!

We will pick up a pine tree on the way home from school pick up today - Ryan finally finishes today at 1pm. Oh the trials of getting him out of the house this last week "school is useless. We aren't doing any school work. It's boring. I'm not going." Today's words... He went with no school bag or lunch or anything - totally disgusted with me for making him go. Sigh....

Library love

Here is my beloved school library on the last day of the school year last Friday.

Packed to the rafters - been told many a time it looks just like a bookshop with the latest and greatest in it. (and I still have a couple of thousand to spend from this year.....)

Love it when most things are back .... Still lots out by both students and teachers.... Oh well.

It absolutely guts me when school libraries  are not funded (many schools in NZ get zilch funding for their libraries) and when libraries are full of garbage. I have spent a bit of time this year working with several schools on improving their libraries , weeding for them (throwing out books that are 10 plus years old - no non- fiction in a school should be older than that - ) and helping school principals buy books for their schools. Quite often I think the importance of a library and the job it plays in raising literacy levels of students can be seriously over looked. As for schools that do not even have a library, to me that says a lot about the importance of literacy in a school. National Library books can not do it all. Badger your Board of Trustees in providing a librarian (one that is trained and qualified is even better), providing them with a half decent wage and best of all a decent book budget!

Yellow

My gorgeous new birthday bag from Stephen

Birthday flowers still going strong

New Bensimon sneakers bought over the weekend

Ryan's art work just found in bottom of school bag!

A gorgeous letterpress birthday card

School is out for the summer!

Hooray! Another school year for me down! Two of the boys have finished too (a week ago for them) and another still has a week to go - the crazy New Zealand system where every school decides its own start and finish dates!

And running around town with my dear friend April who is up from Christchurch for the weekend - a fab way to finish a school year having a friend around. We are cafe- ing (with Liam and Elroy Finn at same cafe but I would not have known that if April had not been here - Neil Finn's sons) and doing a spot of shopping - Christmas shopping to myself so far and a lot of it impulse ! We have been places I would not normally go to which is neat!

Sitting on the deck enjoying my glorious backyard and garden - it is HOT!!! A real scorcher!!!