.: Great Barrier Island

Saturday, February 18, 2012

Great Barrier Island

Last weekend we spent a few days on Great Barrier Island.

Each time I visit the Island I come home feeling very blessed to live in such a beautiful country. When Tony and I were engaged in 1998 and Tony came to NZ for the first time, this is one of the places I took him.

Is there a more beautiful beach in the world than this one???

It normally costs around $500 to take your car and a large family like ours onto the ferry. We feel very fortunate that we got to go for free. Although I still look forward to Tony working at the church offices again, I have to say the perks/benefits of working for Sealink are very exciting. The ferry ride is 4 1/2 hrs each way. The boys enjoyed watching movies below deck and eating. A few pictures taken on the way over;

Leaving Auckland city at 7am;

Our car to the far right;

Tony and the boys chatting to the skipper;

Passengers relaxing and enjoying the beautiful scenery;

Approaching the Island;

Tony with Juliet (10 months);

Me and Juliet;

We stayed at Shoal Bay Estate and the owners names were Val and Francis. Tony try's to get them as much business as possible (encourages visitors to the Island to stay at their lodge) so in return they kindly said we could stay for free (meals included!) Once again this would've cost us $500. They were awesome hosts, cooked beautiful meals for us and Francis was really good with the kids. They even insisted on babysitting Juliet one night;

Shoal Bay Estate;

Our room. The whole house was made of this beautiful wood. We had the whole 2nd level of the house to ourselves...3 large bedrooms, a living area & bathroom.

Francis lets the boys pat the chickens and collect the eggs;

Noah (5 in a few days) holding a chicken;

After dinner Francis got out the kayaks and off went Tony and the boys across the road. This was the view right outside our bedroom window. It was sooo lovely to sleep with the balcony doors open and wake up to such a pretty view. We lay in bed for ages just staring at the water! It was stunning.

Tony and Noah in the left kayak and Hayden and Ashton in the right kayak;

Our balcony;

A couple of pictures taken around the Island;

Val & Francis organized a BBQ on the beach one evening. They invited some friends and neighbours and everyone played a game of cricket after we'd eaten. Hayden and Ashton both got turns at batting;

Noah wasn't too interested in the cricket game, but he loved the swing;

The sun was setting and Noah was still on the swing;

And lastly;

At Medlands Beach Dad and the boys spent all afternoon swimming in tide pools (the sea was a bit too cold). The boys had fun jumping off the rocks into the water. Juliet and I played in the sand, napped by the rocks and made friends with some other people on the beach;

Tony and Hayden's feet (look how beautiful the water is);

Noah had fun running along the beach;

What a wonderful trip we had!
Thank you Sealink.
And thank you Heavenly Father for creating such a beautiful land for us to enjoy.

1 comment:

Jen said...: Wow Wow Wow! I'm retiring to New Zealand. I just have to convince Heathcliffe to choose the North Island rather than the South Island. :); February 19, 2012 at 5:08 PM

Funny Comments

Ashton walking into the supermarket quietly whispers to himself: "Please can I have macaroni and cheese, in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen."

Ashton: "I want to live with Jesus." Mummy: "Why?" Ashton: "Because he be nice to me and he gives me bread and water!"

Mummy, examining Ashton's legs, and thinking: My goodness, what hairy legs. Ashton, unimpressed with Mummy's examination, pulls away: "Don't touch them. I'm growing Daddy legs!"

Hayden gets upset at Ashton: "Right Ashton, that's it! I'm telling Jesus on you!"

Ashton with a cold: "I'm snotty as a piggy."

Hayden: "The sun is burning my eyeballs."

Hayden: "Mummy, how come your penis is missing?"

Hayden: "I get the bigger piece of cake because my skeleton is bigger."

Hayden (3yrs old) sees me get dressed in the morning and stares at my breasts with a confused look..."What thooooose be for???"

Hayden: "I don't want to finish my pizza, it's got blood all over it."

Hayden: "Ashton hit me in the heart."

Hayden learns the planets at Preschool: Mercury, Earth, Mars, Jupiter and Penus!

Hayden (shopping with me and whining): "My brain hurts forever because you haven't buyed me anything."

QUOTES

Like the changing leaves of fall...My little boy is now a man.
--Author Unknown

Boys are God's way of telling you that your house is too neat!
--Author Unknown

There never has been, nor will there ever be, anything quite so special as the love between a mother and a son.
--Author Unknown

Boys are found everywhere - on top of, underneath, inside of, climbing on, swinging from, running around or jumping to. Mothers love them, little girls hate them, older sisters and brothers tolerate them, adults ignore them and Heaven protects them. A boy is Truth with dirt on its face, Beauty with a cut on its finger, Wisdom with bubble gum in its hair and the Hope of the future with a frog in its pocket.
--Alan Marshall Beck

Something For A Giggle....

I Owe My Mother ....

My mother taught me TO APPRECIATE A JOB WELL DONE. "If you're going to kill each other, do it outside. I just finished cleaning."

My mother taught me RELIGION. "You better pray that will come out of the carpet."

My mother taught me about TIME TRAVEL. "If you don't straighten up, I'm going to knock you into the middle of next week!"

My mother taught me LOGIC. " Because I said so, that's why."

My mother taught me MORE LOGIC. "If you fall out of that swing and break your neck, you're not going to the store with me."

My mother taught me FORESIGHT. "Make sure you wear clean underwear, in case you're in an accident."

My mother taught me IRONY. "Keep crying, and I'll give you something to cry about."

My mother taught me about the science of OSMOSIS. "Shut your mouth and eat your supper."

My mother taught me about CONTORTIONISM. "Will you look at that dirt on the back of your neck!"

My mother taught me about STAMINA. "You'll sit there until all that spinach is gone."

My mother taught me about WEATHER. "This room of yours looks as if a tornado went through it."

My mother taught me about HYPOCRISY. "If I told you once, I've told you a million times. Don't exaggerate!"

My mother taught me the CIRCLE OF LIFE. "I brought you into this world, and I can take you out."

My mother taught me about BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION. "Stop acting like your father!"

My mother taught me about ENVY. "There are millions of less fortunate children in this world who don't have wonderful parents like you do."

My mother taught me about ANTICIPATION. "Just wait until we get home."

My mother taught me about RECEIVING. "You are going to get it when you get home!"

My mother taught me MEDICAL SCIENCE. "If you don't stop crossing your eyes, they are going to get stuck that way."

My mother taught me ESP. "Put your sweater on; don't you think I know when you are cold?"

My mother taught me HUMOR. "When that lawn mower cuts off your toes, don't come running to me."

My mother taught me HOW TO BECOME AN ADULT. "If you don't eat your vegetables, you'll never grow up."

My mother taught me GENETICS. "You're just like your father."

My mother taught me about my ROOTS. "Shut that door behind you. Do you think you were born in a barn?"

My mother taught me WISDOM. "When you get to be my age, you'll understand."

My mother taught me about JUSTICE. "One day you'll have kids, and I hope they turn out just like you!