Day 1 (Friday, July 1, 2011)

It was a beautiful afternoon for a walk, in contrast to the many days of gray and drizzle lately. Cory rode his bike and I walked, and we found ripe salmon berries along the way! He enjoyed eating them too, somewhat to my surprise. He's not big on berries, but does like blackberries when they're in season. Little by little with this boy.

It was especially nice to get outside after spending most of the day catching up at work (from home), calling dentists, and taking Mom to an oral surgeon to get advice on her aching jaw. She's got an appointment to have a tooth pulled next week. Finally following advice her dentist gave her back in February but she ignored because she didn't want to spend the money and it didn't hurt - then.

fri, 12/31...day 365

The last day of 2010, and the last day of my Project 365 posts. I'll be doing another project of some sort to capture everyday memories in 2011 - probably a weekly or biweekly summary on my other blog. It's hard to believe I've been doing the daily photo thing for two whole years now! :-)

We spent a quiet day at the holiday park, catching up on laundry, resting, swimming, and taking it easy. The boys and I walked into town to do some shopping, and Joanna picked us and our groceries up to spare us carrying everything all the way back.

In the evening, we celebrated New Year's Eve by going to a real, sit-down restaurant, The Gothic, which used to be a church. Niall and I both ordered meals where you cook the meat at your table on a (very) hot stone. He thought that was the coolest thing! And the food was delicious.

Wonderful to ring in the new year here in New Zealand with our friends!

thu, 12/30...day 364

Today featured an incredible trip to the Abel Tasman coastline, taking a boat from Kaiteriteri Beach all the way up the coast, and then getting off at a beach partway back to hike through the bush to Tasman Bay where the boat picked us up again in the afternoon.

The beaches and bays are just gorgeous. The water is an incredible color of green, and clear, with beautiful craggy rocks and little islands sprinkled about. Stunning.

On the walk, we had to cross a long suspension bridge that would only support "five people maximum." It was quite an experience!

The walk was up and down, in places quite steep, so I was happy that Cory handled it pretty well, though he did keep asking if we were there yet. Two hours of hiking is a lot when you're not used to doing any at all and you really don't care much about the scenery. He had a great time playing at the beach when we got there, though, so not a total loss. :P

wed, 12/29...day 363

Today's outing was to Kina Beach, located between Motueka and Nelson, the town we went to yesterday.

It was very windy, so Joanna and I set up our towels in a sheltered spot on the grass just back of the driftwood line.

The boys found a driftwood fort and enjoyed adding onto it and playing sparring games.

We also found really big shells on this beach - mussels and other kinds. Adding to our collection...not sure how we'll get them home without breaking!

tue, 12/28...day 362

The Holiday Park where we're staying has great kid-friendly features, like this jumping pillow (wish we had them back in the States), giant chess board, playgrounds, and (our favorite) swimming pool.

Today was cool and a little drizzly, so we headed off to explore the town of Nelson, about 30 minutes from Motueka.

We started at the cathedral, above the main street of town, and then walked down to stroll around looking at the shops. Cory got a silver ring he loved from a street vendor, and Niall got a necklace with a carved bone pendant from the same place.

We stopped for tea at a sweets shop, and then headed back up the hill to the cathedral.

mon, 12/27...day 361

Our first full day in Motueka!

We drove about ten minutes to Kaiteriteri Beach, which is a beautiful orangey beach full of shells. Niall, Cory and I enjoyed collecting a number of them.

Later Niall and I went swimming in the ocean (Alice had already been in for a swim first thing). It was COLD. Took me forever to get used to it, and even then, I didn't last long.

Niall stuck it out much longer. He's not nearly as sensitive to cold as I am, and was thrilled to swimming in the actual ocean.

sun, 12/26...day 360

We got up early this morning to finish packing, load the car, and get to the Interislander ferry in time for 7:20 boarding. The ferry didn't leave until an hour later, but cars had to be there early. We managed to fit all six of us and all our gear into Joanna's little minivan, which is nearly identical to the small Odyssey I had before the newer big one. Remarkable!

On the ferry, a magician performed part of the time in the "family lounge" where we were. Cory got called on to come "help" for one of the parts! He was delighted. Unfortunately, I missed that part because I was up on deck getting some fresh air to help with a bit of queasiness, but Joanna took pictures and Cory got this special balloon six-legged, red-backed spider as a prize.

Niall came out on deck with me several times and enjoyed the view despite the wind.