NZ Day 8

Day 8 was a slow one. The only pictures I have from this day are going out for supper and dessert with our friends Nick and Rozy. I can't remember what we didi the rest of the day, perhaps that was the shopping day? We met them at 'round the corner park', named for it's proximity to Nick's childhood home. We got some takeaway fish and chips and had a picnic. The kids found a flying fox (zip line?) and played on that. After that we walked down the street and got a late night coffee and dessert. It was a great outing but much more subdued than out get together 10 years ago where we met up at their beach house in Omaha and played around in the surf.

Carly on the Flying Fox at the 'Round the Corner Park'

Carly and Andrew wer a little scared of this at first but it's just like the zip lines we build at home. Once they tried it it was hard to get then leave!

Coffee and dessert

This is a terrible picture but it's the only one I have of this get together so it will have to do. It was great to Nick and Rozy and catch up.

CT Results

The results from my CT scan were not what I was hoping for. It turns out most of the metastases in my lungs grew (the largest is 2x2 cm) and the cancer has spread back to my liver (one visible nodule 5x7 mm). I guess this means more treatment of some kind but I will discuss that with Dr. Lupichuck next week (I actually got the results today from another Dr. who was filling in). Shite news but not entirely unexpected I guess.

On the plus side, Penny and I found time to go for a nice walk this evening and went out for an early supper at Koi sans enfants. This was written on the bathroom wall and seemed appropriate given the days events.

 

Sentencing For A Crime I Didn't Commit

One hour until I find out about my CT scan results from last week. It feels like I'm waiting to find out my sentence for a crime I didn't commit. 4 months? 4 years? Life? Will the ground hog see his shadow or will this winter of shite be over. I actually don't get too nervous about results days but now that it is the day of, I really just want to find out and get it over with. I'll post something else here when I hear the news.

NZ Day 7

This was our final day at Matarangi. We had our best day on the beach and left late in the afternoon for the three hour drive back to Auckland. IT was three fun-filled days at Matarangi. Can't wait to go back!

Harry and Carly

I would like to say they are reading a book but they are probably watching a movie on the ipad.

H man in b&w

Just playing. Photo by Nicky.

Andrew. So Sick.

He wanted to come to the beach on our last day even though he was sick. He just lay on the towel and played in the sand with one hand. So cute.

Andy off into the surf

 

Andy and Harry

Harry is supervising his dad's entry into the ocean.

Paddling out

 

Andy on the surf

 

"Just keep paddling and lean back and you'll be fine!"

 

Me in the surf. Success on the first go!

 

Andy putting on a clinic

 

Free ride home

 

The whole group on the beach at Matarangi before we head out

 

barf stop on the way home

Andrew puked again on the way home to Auckland. Luckily it was a very picturesque place to clean up.

Andy driving. On the wrong side of the road!

 

Here are a couple of videos I shot in the past few days. Bike riding and monkeying around. Both are short and sweet.

No Time...

Didn't get around to putting together NZ Day 7 (it was 26 degrees here today!) so this will have to do. It's a picture from our trip to NZ 31 years ago when I was 4. I think this is us swimming in a river near Napier. Not a bad looking kid.

 

NZ Day 6

Here is the update for NZ Day 6. This was a really fun day except for the fact that Andrew got a stomach bug! He was a trooper though and made the rounds with us.

matarangi to hot water beach

On our 6th day we drove from Matarangi (B) to Hot Water beach (C). We stopped along the way at a small form with lots of animals for the kids to see and pet.

Tired and Sick

Andrew got some sort of bug this day. He fell asleep on the the drive and I got the job of holding his head up. I'm just resting my eyes in this picture. 

At the Farm with a Llama

The goat in the background was also pretty keen to eat. They would practically crawl through the fence to get at the food.

Keen Goat

This goat really wanted that food.

Mini Horses

 

Goats have FREAKY eyes

Cute is not a word I would use to describe this guy!

Pig

He looked friendly but was prety rammy. Those teeth remind me of Mater from the Cars movies.

Feeding an Emu

These guys were not that delicate at taking the food. It was like having your hand attacked by a puppet.

Ostrich

"Uh you got something stuck in your beak buddy". This guy pecked at my camera and left a nice smudge on the lens.

Rammy deer

This guy sort of butted Harry over right after I took this shot.

Famous New Zealand Silver Fern

 

Carly and Harry walking to the secret garden.

 

Carly and Harry holding some little bunnies

 

Hot Water Beach!

As the name implies, this beach has hot spring that bubbles hot water up out of the ground at low tide. At the place where everyone is sitting in this photo, all you have to do is dig a hole and let it fill with hot water and you have your own hot tub on the beach! When we arrived in the parking lot, Andrew was looking green. I asked him if he felt sick and he replied no. Not 10 seconds later he was throwing up in the back seat of the truck. I caught some in my hands but the rest sprayed everywhere (It was bright pink from the plum he had just eaten). Right after that he got a big smile on his face and exclaimed "That feels better!". He hopped out of the truck and went off down the beach feeling grand. How resilient are kids!?

Nicky: Hydro Engineer

Getting the right mix of hot and cold water is somewhat of an art. Nicky is wielding the shovel in this picture and is opening the hot water gate to warm up our pool. Some pools were far too hot to sit in and others were too cool. We lucked out and had one that was just about perfect.

Sitting in a hole on the beach

 

That Aint Fog!

That's steam rising up off the sand. In some places we had to run along the beach for fear of burning our feet!

 Hobbit Feet

After more than an hour in the water our feet were totally pruny.

Group Shot

This is everyone together in the hole (except Nicky who is taking the picture).

Holiday on our Holiday

After a few days in Auckland all the craziness was getting to us so we decided to get away from it all and go on a holiday on our holiday. We went to Matarangi on the Coromandel Peninsula. We had a great time on day one, as you can see below...

map auckland matarangi

We spent 3 nights at Matarangi on the Coromandel peninsula. It's not far from Auckland but the drive takes 3 hours on really windy roads.

On the Road to Matarangi

At the top of one little pass between two bays.

Bach, Outdoor shower

This is the place we stayed in at Matarangi. They call this a 'bach'. I guess we would call it a cabin? It was a fantastic little place. The perfect getaway by the beach. Again, Andy and Nicky were responsible for settign this up. Thanks guys!

Massages

Getting a head massage and foot massage while eating lunch. Good service Carly and Harry!

Andy, digging on the beach

Great picture by Nicky

One Two Three JUMP!

We spent a lot of time jumping over the waves.

Buried Treasure!

 

Following a trail on the Beach

Terrible weather that day as you can see...

Andrew atop his sand hill

Thumbs up.

Playing on the beach

Just doing a little excavation in this unspoiled paradise.

Dan and Penny

 

Dan and Nicky

 

Dan and Andy

Playing our own version of baseball cricket.

Diva

 

Matarangi Sunset

 

Matarangi Twilight