Giddy Up

Ok, they don't really say giddy up here . . .

Today the big girls and I had a riding lesson together. They've been riding for a year, and I rode for a year back in 1995 so I figured we were about even. And we were, sort of, except that I was terrified a lot of the time and they were having a "review" so mommy could catch up! I'm not sure which thought was more frightening to me, the thought of me falling off the horse or the thought of watching them fall off. I know that makes me sound selfish and an absolutely horrible mother, but in my defense I just have to say that I've seen them fall, they fall all the time(not off of the horses, but you know, around), and they kind of bounce. . . I don't bounce. It would be ugly. The instructor we had today doesn't seem to have a problem with people falling, that's what the helmets are for presumably.

After about an hour of trotting, which isn't very comfy, the instructor decided to get us to canter on a lead. I really didn't love the idea of cantering but the girls were jazzed and I couldn't look like a wimp in front of them, especially Meggie, as I am always pushing her to try new things. So we took it in turns and I was last. The whole time Meggie and I were watching Katie Meggie was correcting me - telling me to get my heels down, how to hold the reins, she actually said to me "You have to let him know you're the boss, just like you should do with Ellie". All this while just sitting on the horse watching Katie!

The cantering was actually far more comfortable than the trotting until our instructor told me next week we'd do it with legs out of the stirrups and hands out. Hello? The saddle doesn't have a seat belt so I'm not quite sure how she thinks I'm going to stay on and I find it all a bit disconcerting.

I didn't get photos today, but I know the photos are the best part of the blog and I promise to get some more up soon!

Big Sigh

I am breathing a big sigh of relief now that we've made the move . . . two moves in two years is exhausting. I honestly don't know how military families can do it so often!

We have all of our boxes and personal belongings in our new house and have officially handed back the keys to the Campbell Street home. We had a wonderful year there - the location was perfect, the garden beautiful and our "cottage" adorable - but it is good to be somewhere slightly bigger and to live amongst our own things again. And it's even better that the garden will be looked after as a part of our rent!!

The girls have been great and handled the transition well, we were worried about Ellie in particular but she seems to be fine. They have a little more breathing space now that they are split up in two bedrooms rather than all together in one.

I haven't taken photos yet, the unpacking is still a work in progress, but I will post some as soon as it looks relatively settled inside. I am so grateful for the friends and family that have helped us in this transition, I am always humbled by how much people are willing to give of themselves.

Several of you have asked for an update on Lloyd and we so appreciate your care and concern! He has finished his first, and possibly only, round of chemo and is awaiting the results of that to determine his next steps. He is still in the hospital but feeling pretty good considering what his body has been through for the past weeks. Here is a link to an article about his company and how they are coping in his absence for those who are interested.

I hope to get back blogging on a more regular basis soon. . . thank you to you faithful friends who keep up with us this way!!

Quick Hello

It's been a crazy busy time around here, thus the lack of posts. We went on a church retreat for the long weekend and now we are busy moving house. . . I'm not sure how long it will take us to get the desktop set up again, but our Vonage number will stay the same for those in the states who call. . . here in New Zealand we'll be using our cell phones and we aren't getting a land line.

While we were away we got some bad news regarding Dugald's brother - you can read about him by clicking here and here.

We'd appreciate your prayers on his behalf, Dugald will be tested soon to see if he is a match for a bone marrow transplant.

Hopefully we'll be back soon with some regular posts!!

More New Year's Photos

Just a few more random photos from New Year's Eve:

This is a classic Wills look . . .

Hamish, Kate, Hugh and Dugald . . . I should have tracked down Margaret for this one!

Happy LOTS of things!

December 31st is not just New Year's Eve at the Howard home. . . it is also Kate's birthday, Ben's birthday and Kate and Ant's anniversary. There was much to celebrate and celebrate we did!

Kim and Annette and Bobs drove up from Queenstown to join us for the evening. Kim and Bobs are brother and sister (and Kim is the man and Bobs is the woman, just to keep it interesting for the Americans). They are the children of Hugh's sister, Elisabeth Ellis. So, they are Dugald and Kate's cousins. I think I got all of that right. Oh yes, sweet Annette is Kim's wife. Ok, that's them. 

Here is a picture of Annette, Bobs and Kate:

And then Kim, Jay (Abi's father. Abi is Tom's girlfriend remember? And Tom is Kate and Ant's oldest. . . ok, are we still tracking?) and Ant.
Speaking of Abi, here she is with some of my girls and her mom Alice. Jay and Alice were visiting from Oregon, I may have said that in an earlier post, if so I'm sorry. 
So we all gathered to celebrate all the things we had to celebrate that evening. We munched and visited for awhile before dinner, then it was time for the main meal and some toasts. Here is Annette toasting Ben who turned 21. In New Zealand, at least in the Morrison family tradition, 21 is THE big birthday to celebrate. It's not because it's the legal drinking age, because that is 18 here and pretty much everyone ignores it anyway, I think it's just the final "childhood" birthday or something. . . I don't really know though, I'm kind of just making it up.
Proud papa Ant gave a toast too and it made me a little teary. . . they grow so fast! Sniff. Ben is also Dugald's godson so although we have a special place in our hearts for all of our nephews, he is definitely our favorite. (Just kidding Hamish! I need to be nice to Hamish, I need his help with our move.)
Ben and Kate listening to Ant's toast. Not sure what Tom is doing behind Kate, perhaps all the kudos to his baby brother are making him ill??

This year was our first year to have Christmas crackers, only we forgot them on Christmas so we did them on New Years. I forgot to take a picture of them but if you look at the picture of Abi and her mom up above there is one on the table in front of Abi. You take them and pull on each end and out pops a paper crown and small toy with a cracking sound, thus the name I suppose. Here are the girls with Delaney in their crowns:
Ok this next picture I took mainly for Kate because it is kind of like spotting a very rare bird. . . Hamish Howard had invited three of his friends from Wellington to come stay with us between Christmas and New Years. They camped on the lawn and in the garage and partied and we didn't see a whole lot of them between meals, but here they are and they are CLEANING UP of all things!
Cute couple Tom and Abi.
Kate and her boys.
Grandma and her namesake granddaughter.
Daddy and Katie having a dance.
Hamish and Mike who came all the way from Germany to party with this crew.
That's all for now, the party raged on and so Dugald and I actually stayed awake to ring in 2009 which I can't say is something that happens EVERY year, but it did this one and we had lots of fun! I pray this is a blessed year for all of us.

What we did between Christmas and New Year

The days between holidays and birthdays were also filled with fun. Auntie Kate gave Ellie a puzzle for Christmas, but even better, she did it with Ellie about 100 times.

The girls all got DS games from their grandparents so there was a lot of that going on - Emily was the expert though so they watched her for tips.
Katie got a hair kit - it had a wig along with some colors to paint on your hair, or face. She decided to try it out on her cousin Hamish.

The adults worked on a puzzle of their own - here are Margaret and Andrew having a go. We worked on it intermittently the entire time and it still wasn't done when we left, although I think the remnant may have finished it after we left!
Sam on his laptop - not too unusual. Sam's my hero though, he helped me recover my ipod music. THANK YOU!! It's great to have techno-savvy people in the family. 
There was a LOT of this going on (watching cricket on t.v. in case you Americans aren't sure what's happening).
Followed by a lot of this (playing cricket in the back yard).

Back at the t.v. Josie cuddles up while Daddy watches another match.
Some of our group went fishing and brought home these, making for a yummy dinner.
Emily caught the biggest one, I think. Oh the stories. . . fishermen always come home with stories!

With her catch. It's terrible taking a picture right into the sun, you can barely see the fish, but it's there. Way to go Em!!
Not to be outdone, Wills caught two fish.
Another day we took the girls to Dublin Bay for a swim and a ride in the boat. We'd been told it was warmer there because the water was shallower. Ahem. 

It wasn't all that warm, but it was fun! I pled illness and stayed on the beach with Hamish while Dugald handled the water sports. Daddy rocks.

Other spare time pursuits included reading with Grandma.
And kicking a ball around with all the "big kids".
Finally cabin fever set in a little bit, and I was feeling a teensy bit more energetic, so we piled in the car and headed down to Queenstown. We boarded the TSS Earnslaw (a steamship built in the 1910's, in the 1920's Dugald's father Hugh would take it to go on holiday across the lake) and sailed over to a sheep farm.
There were also deer at this sheep farm.
And of course sheepdogs, this one is Meg. We actually met this dog when we visited 4 years ago.


Our Meg and I went on a horse trek while the others were petting animals and watching sheep be shorn. It was really fun and we got to see a lot of the station and hear about how it is run, we also saw some amazing views. I didn't have a camera though, it was all I could do to hold on.

Here's our host with the most. Truly, Kate and Ant were so generous. I do feel a tad sorry for Ant though- while we were there his riding mower, boat and car broke but I had nothing to do with any of it!! Those of you who know me from my high school days might immediately think I was involved, but I was not. 

Delaney taught the girls about crossword puzzles.
And while the boys tried to relax on the lawn, the girls were having none of it.
Finally, Meggie channels her inner Hannah Montana.
Next post - our wild and raucous New Year's Eve.