Xmas Parade Mount Maunganui

We headed off to Mount Maunganui today, with the Millard family, to watch  the Xmas Parade . It's the first time we have been to see the parade, as every year, we end up doing the "duck race", but we decided to give that a miss this year .

It was a beautiful day, the sky was blue and the sun was shining, the sea was very inviting, but we had a date with Santa and not the surf board! 

When we arrived, we parked next to the beach. We then headed off down the boardwalk  for our morning coffee.  The kids ran along the sand playing ball and having a good time. 

After we had our caffeine fix we headed off to the Farmers Market. No, this is not somewhere you can buy farmers, but a place full of lovely fresh produce and tasty treats. All the stuff is either, homegrown or homemade. So you know there isnt any "nasty stuff" in it. We picked up a HUGE punnet of strawberries and some home made Hot Chilli sauce mmmmmmm.

We headed back to the beach and got the picnic blankets out.  Under the shade of the Pohutukawa tree, we had some early lunch. Callie was fast asleep in her pram and the kids were playing in the sand.  Once we were all full to the brim, we headed back to the parade area.

It was jam packed with people waiting for the parade, all lined up along Maunganui Road.  It reminded me of Disney World, but not on the same scale, found myself singing the Mickey Mouse song.. hehe.

The parade was great, lots of different floats and cars, motorbikes, suped up ride on mowers and even a motorised toilet! People put a lot of effort into decorating their floats, they are all given a number and you can vote for which is your favourite one.  The winner gets over $3000 in prize money, so its all taken very seriously.

Callie liked the bagpipes and the Chinese dragons, she got a bit of a shock when the fire engine put on its siren, but she soon got over it. Sam got his hand shook, by the "Cement Rider", he mush have been so hot in that suit.

The Salsa group were great, they were dressed up as a deck of cards, and we all had a jig to the music. And even Santa made an appearance, which is always a great hit with the kids!

They put on lots of entertainment after the parade.  They had a Zumba Display, which got me shaking my bits and having a little jig...think I'm addicted (Sam disowned me)!  The boys sat and watched a juggler, playing with fire, there was a kid beatboxing, who was amazing, I tried it and again Sam was not impressed. 

On the way back to the car we stopped off at the reserve so the kids could go play in the playground, then we headed back to the car and back home.  Callie was shattered. We managed to get her in the bath before she fell fast asleep.  But I must admit, no matter what mood she is in, she always manages to smile......! xxx











Days Out

DAY ONE

MOUNT MAUNGANUI 

So, when Scott works the weekend, he then gets Monday and Tuesday off.  We decided to make the most of the beautiful summer weather and head out.

On Monday we ended up going to Mount Maunganui.  We haven't been there for ages and love going back for a visit.  It changes every time we head to the Mount, more businesses and shops and there are always loads of tourists, especially when the cruise ships are docked. We walked round the base of the Mount, which usually takes about 40 minutes, in total.  It's a great walk and you feel like you are in paradise.  We are so lucky to live in such a beautiful place.

After we had a walk round the base track, we headed off to the local ice cream shop,called the Chateaux. You can usually smell the place before you get to it.  They make their own Waffle Cones and they are amazing.  Ice cream in hand, we headed off to Pilot Bay. The quieter side of the Mount, the other side is the large beach, with BIG waves. 

Scott, took Callie for her first paddle in the sea.  She wasn't sure about it at first, and kept on lifting her feet up as high as she could.  But, with a little patience, on Scott's, behalf, she finally stood up properly.

 DAY TWO

KATIKATI BIRD GARDENS 



So, today, we headed out to Katikati Bird Gardens.  Callie is absolutely crazy about birds, if there is more that one at a time, she usually cant speak, because she is soooo excited!.

Katikati, is basically on our doorstep, only took about 15mins to get to the Bird Gardens.  We weren't sure about what to expect, because we hadn't been before, but, we had been told that we would see quite a few birds there.

When we arrived, there wasn't anyone else there, but there was, a big huge peacock,  who came out to meet us in the car park.  Callie was in total shock!

Once we got into the reception area, Callie was greeted by some type of LOUD parrot. When it squawked, it sounded like a telephone....Callie was not impressed! In fact she started crying, lots. After the initial scare, we paid our entrance fee, bought a bag of bird feed and set off.  Callie soon forgot her nasty beginning, when we were greeted by a flock of birds, from ducks, to doves, to peacocks to geese....she didn't know where to look, or what to say.

We went for a fabulous walk through some beautiful gardens, some of which had lovey ponds filled with fish.  The scenery was amazing and the array of birds was fantastic.  Callie had a fantastic time looking at all the birds, I have never seen her stuck for words, but for once she was speechless.

At the end of the walk, we ended up back at the beginning, with all our little feathered friends waiting for us (or was is it our food?).. Mr Peacock was in full display and making sure everyone heard him.  The birds took a fancy to Scott and Callie was, once again, left gobsmacked! A great day out and I am sure we will be back again..soon! xx

SPEEDWAY NIGHT

Scott and Sam headed off for their annual trip to the Speedway Opening Night @ Baypark Stadium.  Its between Mount Maunganui and Papamoa and is about 27km away from Omokoroa.  This has become a bit of a ritual since we arrived in New Zealand, and it gets better every year.

They usually  go to Baypark Stadium, to watch The Bay of Plenty Steamers (Rugby) when they are playing at home, but this is their other passion, a night of crashes and big bangs.

The night starts off with racing and there are 3 different types of cars on the night,  Super Saloons, Stockcars and Sprint Cars.

 As you can imagine, there is always some kind of mayhem, and the night didn't disappoint.  There were plenty of crashes and at one point someone went into the wire fencing and damaged it, so the race was abandoned, while they put the fence back together. There were all kinds of pile ups, but luckily nobody was hurt.

There is one driver that the boys always look out for, his name is "Skinny Colson",  and he is a bit of a celebrity on the race track. Everyone loves him, especially when he wins.  His nickname is Spiderman, because he climbs the wire fence to get the checkered  flag. They play the theme tune when he does his climbing act.  

So after plenty of crashes and all the races complete, it was the big finale of the night. The Fireworks.  This is something Sam really, really enjoys.  They spend an absolute fortune on these things and I am not too sure how long the display lasts, but you can usually hear it from Omokoroa!.  When we lived on the other side of the peninsular, you could actually see it from our living room window, which looked out right across the bay, over to Mount Maungaui and across to Baypark.

Obviously the photos don't do the fireworks any justice, but, here is a little video clip and according to the boys, it was BRILLIANT! I will let you decide...it was definitely loud enough.

So after a long night of "Boy Stuff", Sam is still dead to the world  @ 9:20 am on a Sunday morning and poor Scott has gone off to work. I am sure next years display will be even better and who knows, Callie and I might even go????



Sam & Scott @ Speedway Baypark





BONFIRE NIGHT 2010

Bonfire Night Omokoroa Style!

Well, the night did start off with a bang. That would be Scott giving the adults loads of grief about setting off fireworks with the kids only meters away. They probably couldn't understand a word he was saying (hehe), we all know that when scousers get mad, they talk very high and very very quickly....maybe that's why everyone was just standing there and staring at him!

Needless to say, after leaving one party on the beach and with, Scott, Sam and  friends in tow, everyone (well the sensible ones anyway) headed down to the other side of the peninsula. A little placed, by the sea front,  called Precious Reserve, just over the road from where we live, at Victoria Key.

With camera in hand and all the children at a safe distance, the fireworks went down well, or should that be up well?? Never mind. Here are some fantastic pictures of the night...we have only had this camera for 2 years and Scott actually looked at the manual tonight and read about how to take night-time photos...mmmm not a bad job Scotty.

The guys are off to the Speedway tomorrow, for Stock car racing and the firework display. It has become a bit of a ritual for Scott and Sam, every year.  The display is supposed to be fantastic.

School Photos 2010

Well that time of year has come round again. Mug shots at the school! I remember really hating having my school photographs done, especially in the early years, when you used to have to dodge the older kids, because they wanted to "mess you up" for your photos. Aaaah those were (not) the days.  Does that still happen, or have we moved on?

In Sam's school, the photographer is a good laugh, he can always get a smile out of the kids. This years photo was taken inside, due to bad weather, but, he usually has them out in the open, hanging off trees or sitting on old tyres, making sure that they have a bit of fun.  So anyway here is the result of this years photo:-



Cant believe how old he looks!



Something to look back on in the years to come.

I am sure he will not appreciate me sticking these photos on our Blog page, but isnt that what parents are supposed to do, embarrass their kids? Enjoy...........xx