Two nights in Taupo

We stayed 2 nights in the Beech Tree Motel (free broadband!). The trip down on Friday was for Doug to run the Orchid Special in the Capri Car Club sprints on the Saturday. Unfortunately it was a wet day and not a lot of fun was had, being wet and cold. No damage done.



Sunday we took a walk after breakfast down to the lakefront where there were sleepy ducks. There had been a fall of snow on Mt Ruapehu.



This duck had a very long shadow for a bird with duck's disease!



Main St, Taupo, on a Sunday morning. You could shoot a rifle up the main street! The only bad thing was that I found was a shop that I'd missed on my Saturday 'in town' with Miriam. :-(

T-Car Trip to Mangawhai

We nearly didn't go. We left home in light rain. It began raining heavily as we passed through the city and on towards Albany. It was very tempting to turn around and go back home. We're so glad that we didn't.
We met up with the others north of Albany and things began to look a lot brighter.

Our first stop was at Kaiwaka to visit the Dutch cheese shop. There was a very interesting cafe next door.




The weather had cleared and was beautiful by the time we got to Mangawhai. We had a lovely picnic on the beach. Lots of people were in swimming. What a beautiful place!



Here is a Powerpoint show of our trip earlier this month to Helensville and the West Coast.

Clan Gathering 2007

It was great to see so many at our family get together last week- end. We were blessed with a beautiful day so were able to sit outside. Here are Chris, Debbie, Noel, Audrey, Jenny, Caleb and
Robert; (left photo) and Steve, Charlotte and Alison (right photo).

Uncle Ken struck up a great rapport with young Alex.





Peter and Cathy brought little Sam who took a great liking to the Orchid Special.






Sam tried out all modes of transport.



He wasn't really keen on the pedal car- he preferred the 'this car' - the little seatless pushchair, and fair zoomed around.

Kristina, Wayne and the Grandies Depart for Oz

Kristina, Wayne and family left this morning to begin a new stage of their lives in Australia. We
caught up with them at 7:00 a.m. to say good-bye.





The play area was a good place to wait and let the children have a bit of exercise before boarding the 747.



Their 747 taxing out to the end of the runway.



The rain swept in as they were taking off.

Their temporary address until they find a house is,

W & K Milburn
Dunolly Caravan Park
46 Desmond St
Dunolly Vic 3472
Australia

Christmas Family Get-together 2006

"If you added 500Mb to the dyamic cache that would make your SQL queries run in a matrix structure." - "Thanks Caleb, good tip".


"Hi there, 'Tash; come with me and I'll show you something you won't see if you are standing up."





Would you like me to give you a tattoo?" "Hold still 'Tasha, this won't hurt a bit."







"There are fairies at the bottom of the garden!"






Fairy wings let you fly!

Kath's funeral & Napier Trip

Doug & I went to Napier for Kath's funeral, (sister of Bill) and caught up with some of my cousins.


Here's Alison, Kath's daughter (saying 'I don't like my picture taken'). Her brother, Lyndsay, died a few years ago.


This is Kersten, Alison's daughter, wearing Ruby Ma's fur. Kersten is a physicist, at Otago. Her brother, Dane, was also there, he is Inventory Manager at Borders Bookshop, Auckland.



We also ran into a friend of Alison's, Linda St George. She is not related to our St Georges, she is from the St Georges descended from George Durant. She told us where to find the grave of Captain John Chapman St George, killed on the 4th October 1869, from a bullet in the brain at Te Porere Redoubt, near National Park. He was buried on the shores of Lake Taupo, then dug up and moved to this Napier Cemetery, probably something to do with his stepfather, Alfred Domett, one of NZ's first Prime Ministers. John Chapman St George was the son of a Mrs George, and not related to either the Durant or Jater St Georges.



We also visited Jenny and Ian Turbitt, daughter of Josie, who live near the house that my Jenkins grand parents lived in at 11 Coleman Tce (in the picture). They have two daughters.

A Walk in the Gardens

A nice Saturday for a walk in the Gardens.



My lovely duck with the white front is looking very bedraggled.



Here's a starling that thinks he's a tui.



And a Pukeko that thinks he's a duck - not a bad bow wave with no webbed feet!



The wild flowers left over from the Flower Show are very pretty.