Returning to my original blog.....

If you don't have that address, email me (if I invited you to this blog, you have my email addy) and I will get you that url.

I will this blog to post about the New Zealand branch of the family.....Ta ta!

Back home

I have more pictures, but I am busy settling in. I will post again soon. I am glad to be home but I miss Tanisha and her crew......

Who is this very handsome young man??

The answer is: it's Anthony, my oldest grandchild, at homecoming. Isn't he a good looking young man?? No bias here.

When did I get old enough to have such a mature grandson? Don't answer that!!

Dinner at the Sky Tower the tallest building in the Southern Hemisphere!

We were at a very posh restaurant close to the top of the Sky Tower. It is a buffet style, but with amazing food. Because we were with Phillip's sister, Eliza, we got VIP treatment--our food was brought to us! This is a view from the window next to our table. It was almost sunset, so I missed some photo opportunities while I was eating.

more "old" photos

The top photo is of Richard cleverly getting on the computer while Mom & Grandma were celebrating his going potty. The arm of the chair is modestly covering his bare bum.

The next photo is of Adia in mid September. Yes,I know, I know, I am way behind. I have about 48 hours left in this beautiful country, and I am trying to get myself current.

Adia's newborn foot

Yes, it was large. I meant to post this with the other newborn pictures, but didn't. Please forgive me for posting pictures out of order.

One afternoon a few weeks ago

This photo is of our Richard, who decided that he wanted to eat the remainder of his packed school lunch--right where he was. So he sat down and had his snack. There in the driveway.

oh well

I have been informed that, despite a very warm shower at the sulphur pools, and a long, hot bath with antibacterial soap here at home, I retain a faint aroma of essence of (stinky)sulphur from my adventure yesterday.

I am off to torment the citizens of the greater Aukland area. Ta ta.

Long day & lots of fun

I am very tired all of a sudden, but wanted to post this pic of the two of us. More later. Good night. (It is 10:12 pm here)

Just so you know

Going out for a mud bath.....be back soon!

A day in the park

Here's a few pictures taken when we went to the park. It was a fun afternoon.

Coroner's report

The Henderson coroner released the cause of death of the murdered basketball. "Judging by these punture wounds, I am reasonably certain the basketball was stabbed viciously numerous times with a large kitchen knife."

Some people are questioning where the kitchen knife came from. Well, obviously it came from a kitchen, but how did it get to the van? Was this a crime of passion or a premeditated attack?

The investigation continues. If you have any information about this crime, please leave a commenty at the end of this news story.

This just in

Sources who asked to have their identities protected have informed this journalist that the murder occurred during an attempted break-in. It seems that the basketball (who evidently was not so innocent as first reported) was caught by the owner of a certain Toyota van. Apparently the grand theft auto (van) was interrupted by the van owner when said van owner approached the van to load children inside and take them to school. When the vehicle was started, and put into reverse, it became evident that something was lodged in the wheel well. Despite numerous attempts on the part of the van owner to persuade the basketball to leave the scene of the attempted theft, the basketball refused to budge. The van owner was overheard declaring "I have got to get these kids to school and I really don't have time for this!" Shortly thereafter, the deflated carcass of the basketball was found tossed in the yard like yesterday's rubbish.

It is unknown at this time whether charges will be brought against the van owner. Neighbors seemed to feel the basketball "got what was coming to him! He had no business being where he was in the first place."

We interrupt this blog to bring you a special report

There has been what appears to be a senseless murder in the neighborhood. Residents are shocked and dismayed at the untimely demise of this innocent basketball. "Everyone loved him," said a grieving bystander. "Who could do such a thing?"

The Museum

A couple of weeks ago, I spent a peaceful and informative morning at the Auckland Museum. Tanisha dropped me off and turned me loose. I think there was something else that she had to do, but there might have been some thought that waiting for me to meander through 3 floors of this museum would be not very much fun for anyone except for me. Whatever the reason, I really enjoyed my time there and saw and learned a lot.

A brief description:

1. Beautiful stained glass window. (Aren't you glad I told you that?)
2. Beautiful statue from the Asian collection
3. Beautiful Maori building with amazing intricate carving
4. The beautiful inside of an amazing building that has this incredible carving inside and out. I believe this particular building was created elsewhere, and was transported and given to the museum for display. It has some history of spiritual significance, that I am not well informed about, and I can attest to the sense of spirit in this building. Everyone is asked to remove their shoes before entering as a sign of respect.
5. A closer look at the (of course) beautiful carving inside. Each beam and each plank of wood has been carved so painstakingly, it seems that the carvings may be an expression of worship.

Back in business!!

So, we are back online with broadband. Whew!!

Before I go back and post photos of recent adventures, I will share my recent near-miss of a harbour cruise in Auckland Harbour. On Wednesday (which was yesterday in New Zealand, but today in the U.S.) Tanisha and I had planned to take a nice harbour cruise (sans children!) and were dressed and ready to leave as soon as Phillip got back after running the boys to their respective schools. When Phillip did come in, he announced that it would not be a good idea to try to get on a boat and go anywhere, or even go the coast, as we were under a tsunami warning after a significant earthquake. At first we didn't believe him, because this would be just the kind of joke he would try to pull off. I quickly brought up the website for the New Zealand Herald (a branch of the Tri-cities Herald???) and there was a report of the devastating earthquake in Samoa, as well as the tsunami warning. I would complain about my disappointment, but when I think of the poor people in Samoa, somehow a missed opportunity to go cruising around the harbor doesn't seem so important.

We have decided to forgo the cruise and tomorrow (Friday) we are going to drive south to Rotorua to the hot springs and tour the park that boasts several naturally occurring hot mineral springs. We are going to have mud baths (Tanisha & I) and then come back home. This will be fun and interesting. And hopefully safe **smile**

Stay tuned for further reports..........

technical difficulties

I have not been writing lately because we are having issues with the broadband status and we are only operating on dial-up speed. That really impedes my ability to post pictures. Hopefully we will get this issue resolved soon and I can resume my fascinating travelog.

Adia

This is one of my most recent pics of our Adia. Isn't she more beautiful every time you see her?

time is flying by

I just realized that I will be flying out of New Zealand and going home two weeks from this Thursday........

We interrupt this New Zealand travelogue to peek into the Dewberry bathroom during their remodeling project. Stay tuned for progress reports.

Adia's Big Day

Adia was blessed on Sunday, September 13th, 2009. She looked lovely, and was quiet and cooperative during the ceremony.

I just realized that I forgot to get a pic of the sign at Kelly Tarlton's place. So, when you come to Auckland, if you just say "I want to go to Kelly Tarlton's" they will know what you mean.

OK, now, about the above photos:

1. Richard posing with a very large tortoise. (Richie loves turtles. Alot)
2. Adia chillin like a villain.
3. Tanisha in animated conversation, probably with Phillip, but we will never know for sure, unless Kelly Tarlton does the surveillance video thing.
4. Josiah looks like he's not too sure he trusts who or what he is looking at. (I love this picture of Josiah)
   

PENGUINS!!!!

need I say more?

closer to current events

I think I am getting caught up, or at least close to it. Who knows? All I know is I have lots of of pictures to share. Which sometimes is a good thing, because then I don't have to compose a witty blog entry. Heaven knows (so do other bloggers, I'm sure) how challenging that can be. Anyway, the next series of pictures were taken on our family field trip to Kelly Tartlton's Underwater Adventure. Or was it Undersea Adventure? No, that was Jacque Coustou. Underground? Undercover? Well, I will post a picture of big sign outside Kelly Tarlton's establishment where we saw LOTS of fish, and sharks, and tortoises and seahorses (did you know the daddy seahorse carries the unborn seahorses in a special pouch?) and crabs and lobsters and stingrays, but my favorites were the PENGUINS!!

Here's a short description of the above photos:

1. Phillip holding Josiah while observing a nice lady in a big tank feeding stingrays.
2. A large poster with disturbing information about the hole in the Antarctic Ozone. (This is a public service announcement; if we want our children and grandchildren to have a nice planet earth to call home, we need to buck up and make some substantial changes to the way we treat our home)
3. Richard peeking out of a mock arctic all-terrain vehicle.
4. Tanisha ahead of me following a scampering Richard to the van.
   

taking a break

The boys have LOTS of energy and their mother has wisely suggested we all go to the park.... more later....

I almost left these guys out of my report

I think they're guys.....when they are accused of having hearts made of stone, it's probably true....

one more time

Tanisha likes these fluffy white chickens, so this is for her.......

a few more from Western Springs

Check out these awesome black swans! And their babies, who are not black yet.....and the lovely path.......

more from Western Springs

I took lots of pictures so you get to see them. I hope you like park pictures.......the first is of a round plaque placed in the ground in a tribute to a "Circle of Friends" who had something to do with the creation of a lovely path through the park named--get this--"Circle of Friends Path" , then the next two are of trees and bodies of water and then a candid shot of an innocent passerby.

continuing......

So, one day last week (was it last week? The days are running together to me) we asked Adia what she wanted to do that day, and she said she didn't care, we should decide. So we stopped for a late breakfast at one of the local bakeries (surprise) where I was amused by the sign that advertised "Mexican Nachos" and instructed people to ask inside for details. What details? Would the staff confess that they really weren't genuine Mexican nachos? Would they hand out recipes? Once again I was tempted to ask impertinent questions, but Tanisha made me behave, with the reminder that she has to live here and I get to go back to the States, leaving her to deal with irate cafe owners......

Our next stop was the beautiful Western Springs Lakeside Park, (hence the sign) and I had a one woman picture-taking extravaganza. The picture is of a bird that apparently is very common in New Zealand called a "pukeko" but don't hold me to an exact spelling. Then I took a picture of this wonderful weeping willow tree, merely because I love weeping willow trees. It is all about me, you know.

bad blogger, bad blogger!!

I have fallen behind in my efforts to keep everyone abreast of current events. Where to start now?

1. Phillip sporting his fabulous Father's Day tie, a handmade gift from Richard. Father's Day is celebrated in August in New Zealand.
2. The Hamilton Temple--I was there the day before Father's Day with Phillip's mother Rachel.
3. The boys playing with the stroller meant for dolls.......

scenes from visit to Auckland

The above photos were taken when Tanisha, Adia & I visited downtown Auckland. The second photo was of the inside of the bakery/cafe where we ate lunch. These bakeries are all over and they are different from bakeries in the US. While there are sweets, there are more non-sweet items, like quiches and savouries and meat pies. I tried what they said was an individual pizza and it was not what I expected. It wasn't bad--just different. But I had my favorite (or favourite, as we say over here*smile*) beverage, Lift, and all was well!