Auckland Marathon

Kieran and his friends took part in the Auckland Marathon yesterday.
They run 40km in the weeks leading up to the marathon and then do the final 2'km on the day.
Over 16,000 ran yesterday and 1200 of these in the kid's marathon.
Kieran came 107th out of 1200 kids in 9 minutes 34. Last year he raced it in 11 minutes and came in the mid 300s!

It is a very picturesque course around Auckland City/ Wynyard Quarter area.
Silly me left the camera in the car, so missed the chance of getting some decent photos of him running! Grrrhhh

He is so fit and leaves me for dead! Hopefully he will take part next year, either as an individual or as part of his new school! He wants to keep on running at home too!

Travelling kiwis

Just having a great on- line conversation with an American friend tonight. We were chatting about how we travel. She asked when was I arriving for Thanksgiving and I asked where the bed was. She said a tent in the yard but was joking! Seriously though , guests there go to hotel rooms.
That is fine but made me think about the differences between how kiwis
(and Australians) travel. We go and stay with friends and family worldwide and will sleep on the floor, a couch , backyard etc etc
Heck - we have even slept in the luggage room at the York Youth Hostel once due to a muck up in bookings!

Do we really travel that differently? Are we more easy going? More laid back and will just accept having people drop into our house and sleep where ever we can plonk them? Not so fussed about so many star accomodation?

It does seem we just up and go and travel a lot more simpler and basic - am I right?

I do love 5 star hotels with the husband but am equally at home at a camping ground (although usually in a cabin with an ensuite )...

Thoughts?

Picnic Pies

I made these cute little picnic pies today - trying to add some variety to lunches.

Oven 200 degrees Celsius
Using muffin tins -
Spray canola spray into tins

You need flaky pastry - 2 sheets was enough for 10 muffin pies

Cut pastry into rounds to fit inside muffin tins

In a bowl combine :

Finely chopped onion ( I lightly fried)
Bacon(fry) or ham
Fresh tomato
Parsley/coriander/ basil - whatever you have to hand
Asparagus (lightly steamed)
Salt and pepper

Mix all together and place into pastry rounds. Add 2 beaten eggs over the top of mixture.

Bake until puffed up and egg cooked.

Of course you can add any variety of ingredients!

Wet Sunday

Absolutely appalling weather here in Auckland! We have managed to dodge the heavy rain to find 2 geo-caches on the North Shore - picture us by a busy round-a-bout next to a busy petrol station and in the banana bushes looking for it. The petrol station attendants came over to ask what we were doing - hee hee.

When I cook, I make a mess in the kitchen! This week has seen 2 double batches of both chocolate chip biscuits and crunchy lemon muffins and home made pizza. I am thrilled with the organic flour I am using. Usually the husband does the dishes, but he has been away....

I have finished a sock in 2 weeks and already cast on the 2 bs one this afternoon! My favourite so far and a really good fit!!!

Yesterday I went to the monthly Crafternoon Tea in Kingsland. A fantastic place with lots of crafty goodness. I love my new pencil case - isn't it gorgeous and am using it to store my sock knitting ( see www.people-puppies.com).
The bird decoration is divine (www.thelittlewhitebox.co.nz) and I always love a new door stop! (must learn to make my own! No business card with this one but try googling "Charlie Jane."

I have decided to make some summer hats for Christmas gifts - had better get a move on! 2 years ago my craft intention for the year was sock knitting; this year it is hat making. Mastered the knitted hat- now to do a summer hat!

Things I am liking

*Knitting socks again (fast!)
*Cups of tea using tea leaves
*Crunchy lemon muffins
*Amish choc chip biscuits
*Clean bedrooms
*Summer wardrobes sorted
*A booming vege garden
*Slow movement into new school term
*Less after school activities
*Big sort out of school Resource Room
*Cheap hardback kid's fiction
*New clothing for me
*Dusting getting up to date
*Works in progress pile decreasing
*Longer lighter days
*Christmas shopping started
*Christmas cards 3/4 written! (yes !! )
Postcard and letter writing
*Children calm and busy
*Ryan making Auckland City using
paper shapes he is constructing

And husband back from yet another work trip overseas (3 weeks in a row that is!!!)
Plus Kieran back from school camp tomorrow !

Happy days!

Crafty holidays

I have loved these holidays! A wee side trip with the family, movies, MOTAT visit, hanging out with friends, baking, gardening - my fav things (week children's movies I am not too keen on ). I have also finished my year long course which will give me a
National Certificate in Maori. Yippee - no more study!

It has been a very crafty holiday too - today I was thrilled to finish some bunting for a girlfriend's daughter for her upcoming birthday. I am so thrilled at how it has come out and really want to make some for myself now! I love it draped around my backyard.

I also have started a Miffy cross stitch bought last year at the Dick Bruna House in Utrecht, The Netherlands. (oh! I bought so much in that little shop - a mug, postcards , bag, pencil case, books etc!). I chose this chose this one, as it will remind me of my Dutch holiday and all the bikes in the Netherlands!

I have also started another pair of socks - I love the diagonal pattern which did take me a while to see, my last sock took me over a year to finish - I hope this one is a lot quicker.
No more study! No more study!

Yippee!!!

Simpler living

I have spent some of these school hols cleaning and clearing out my house. This does seem to happen every hols, as we fluff our way through each term full on with work , study, outside commitments and half asleep and over worked!
I measured the family yesterday and was stunned that 2 of them have grown 10 cm in 9 months! It is not surprising then that I continually seem to be clothes buying for them every few
months.
All the cleared out clothes end up at my school going to several families that can use them. Actually lots goes into school - classrooms can always use more books, toys, games etc.
I am trying my hardest to shop consciously and not buy un- necessary items! Books and writing paper and wool still seem to find their way into the house though.,,
Yesterday I discovered the wonders of using baking soda and white vinegar to clean!
White vinegar on a rag and then wiped onto windows and then cleaned with newspaper gives sparkly clean windows!
Baking soda and vinegar in the toilet bowl works wonders too plus in the shower! Never again will money be wasted on commercial window cleaners, shower cleaners or janola! Two so very cheap items! And cleaner for the environment too!

Any helpful hints for me re cleaning? House organization ??

Dunedin Farmer's Market

We spent a few days down in Dunedin these holidays. It has a population of 126,000 - 26,000 being students! A gorgeous city which has kept a
Lot of historical buildings as well.
We had very bad sudden turbulence on the plane - in the many flights I have taken over the years , nothing could beat this. I spent the rest of the
flight with my head in the barf bag!

We went to the Saturday morning Farmers Market just behind the railway station. I really must make more of an effort to do these markets up here in Auckland! We loved it - top quality fruit, vege, bread, meat, poultry, bacon
butties, crepes, pastries etc! A great start to our wee holiday! Had some wonderful breakfasts and dinners for a couple of days.
I love how Dunedin-ites dress to the cold weather - they do it a lot better than us Aucklanders!

Down South

It is always lovely to leave the big little
smoke behind. ( we call it that as my children think Auckland is a tiny tin pot town after visiting big overseas cities!).

These hols we went down south to Dunedin. We did a day trip an hour and a half north to a gorgeous little town called Oamaru. It has kept all its old buildings , unlike Auckland. My children thought they were in a movie set! Especially after seeing the train out of the side of a building. Oamaru has a Steam Punk festival later in the year.
It was gorgeous all over - Victorian buildings, people dressed in Victorian dress, riding penny farthing bikes, good old fashioned service in shops, items wrapped up with brown paper and string, a textile shop, a fab second hand book shop, a lolly shop and generally deserted! It was wonderful!

Now if I could get a job down there, I would move! :). Cold winters, but that is okay because I would just knit, knit, knit!

Ryan learnt how to weave on a loom and now wants a loom for his birthday....