A Pumpkin Growing Competition

We spent the day today with our old neighbours and great friends, the Watson Family. We went with them to a pumpkin growing competition. Caleb Watson had grown an American pumpkin which he had entered. We had a great day. This is Joel and Caleb in front of his pumpkin.

No Jack'O'Lanterns here in New Zealand just a whole lot of smashing.

Joel's turn with the axe.

Picking out the seeds to roast

More Catching Up with Friends

Having the famous New Zealand take away, Fish'n'Chips, with friends Wayne and Bernice Leyser and their lovely children.

A barbecue with friends, Nigel and Sereena Shailer. Nigel and Sereena are New Zealanders who are graduates from The Master's Seminary and are now ministering back in New Zealand.

Hastings, New Zealand

We are back at our old home, Hastings. We drove up here from Wellington yesterday and have enjoyed our first day catching up with friends. This is the view from Te Mata Peak, a popular look out point. (a borrowed photo, we haven't got up there yet)

Catching Up With Family

On Sunday we were able to spend time with Mark's sister and her family. It was lovely to fellowship with them on Easter Sunday and then join them for lunch.

A Blog for Dad

Back in Louisville, Mark had been teaching Matthew how to swim. It has been a long process as Matthew is a little afraid of going out of his depth. We went to H2O in Upper Hutt and Matthew did really well. Here is a video.

More Bush Walking

The weather continues to be beautiful and we have continued to enjoy it. On Easter Friday we went to Kaitoke Regional Park where Rivendell (The Lord of the Rings) was filmed. All that remains as evidence of this is a sign. It is a beautiful area just minutes from Mum and Dad's home.

This is what happens to Matthew when he gets tired.

Fishing

Anna-Marie is the only one who has been giving fly fishing a go. It is quite an art but she is learning from one of the best, her Grandad. This is her first trout caught on a fly rod.

Rachel and Grandad with the big catch of the day, a three pound rainbow trout, caught with a spinning rod.

Joel's first fish. A two pound rainbow trout that he also caught with a spinning rod.

Easter in New Zealand

These are some of the things we missed last year. Hot cross buns and marshmallow easter eggs. We have been eating enough to get us through another few years without them.

Matthew and Amy

Amy was a little overwhelmed by us all and a little shy but Matthew could always make her smile. Matthew loves helping with little ones and spent every spare moment trying to put a smile on her face.

The Wedding

For those of you who don't know, we have travelled back to New Zealand for my sisters wedding. Unfortunately Mark could not make it back so early but will be joining us in May when his semester finishes. This is Matthew and I with one of my other sisters, Nicola, who travelled from Switzerland with her daughter Amy for the wedding. We had never met Amy so it was a real treat for us. She is very cute!

The children and I dressed ready to go.

Matthew taking his page boy (ring bearer) responsibilities really seriously! He actually did really well.

The bride and groom. Leanne, my sister and her new husband Chris. Leanne made a beautiful bride. It was a wonderful day and we are very happy for her.

Bush Walking in New Zealand

We have enjoyed being able to go for bush walks again. Upper Hutt, where we are staying at my Mum and Dads, has a lot of walks just a few minutes drive away. The weather has been beautiful, nice a warm and sunny so we have been making the most of it.

We Made It!

We arrived in New Zealand on Saturday and have been enjoying the wonderful summer weather. This is the view from my sisters place in Wellington. We are still recovering from the flights but they all went well. Thank you for your prayers.