The weather was absolutely stunning, Noah was in fantastic spirits and we have had a ball. Mark went off to do a multi-sport challenge bright and early at 6.30am on Saturday morning, and he did an awesome job of his 7.5km off-road hill run completing it in 37 minutes, beating his other work team's runner (who has run marathons) by 3 minutes and was also only 3 minutes behind the race leaders.
Noah and I took advantage of the beautiful morning leaving the house at 8am, enjoying a 3-hr excursion to the botanical gardens to feed the ducks, glory in the beauty of the spring tulips, and then it was up to the play park to let off some mega steam. I could NOT believe that we had the park completely to ourselves for the first 20 minutes, we had great fun driving the fire engine and pretending that a shark was coming to bite our feet so we had to keep jumping back onto the fire engine to stay safe. Then we had fun running up and down a steep hill, Noah was very concerned for my safety and kept saying 'careful Mummy - slow down'. Bless him. Sadly I didn't check the camera batteries before leaving the house and only managed a few rushed shots before the camera died completely, and I was pretty annoyed at myself given how lovely the tulips were looking!
Just as I was thinking it was about time to head home, Noah discovered some newfound courage and decided we should go down the big slides - and they are big - I was actually a little nervous as I hadn't been down them before, that's usually Daddy's job! But if Noah was game who was I to chicken out? It was a lot of fun, apart from the electric shocks I kept getting through my jeans every time I went over a ridge in the plastic! I went through a stage in my twenties where I was completely paranoid about getting electric shocks off car doors in the summer and it got to the stage where I would do anything possible not to have to shut a car door, usually I got around it by pushing the door closed using the window instead. Thankfully, I'm over that now but it still wasn't the nicest of sensations getting an electric shock in one's bottom half a dozen times in a few short seconds... the things we do for our kids! Then it was home for a fluffy and a coffee which we enjoyed sitting out in the brilliant sunshine.
What do you look like Noah! Various hilarious get ups we found him in on Saturday, the hat/necklace/gumboot and plunger combination is my favourite though!
Later in the afternoon, we took a trip back to the plant centre to pick up a lemon tree (thanks for the early Christmas present Nana and Poppa), some wood stain so we can redo the outdoor furniture and more potting mix to finish off potting the last of the plants we bought. Then we picked up my friend Jackie from the train station as she came to stay the night and babysit Noah so we could enjoy an adults only daycare catchup with the parents from daycare. Noah loved having Jackie over to visit and was a right little show off running around the house dancing to Wiggles songs, playing football and generally enjoying her company. It was not only nice to have a meal out together, but also to get to know the parents of the kids that Noah has become really good friends with of late. Sadly his current 'best' little friend Maya is turning 3 at the end of the month and is transitioning over to the 'big kids' side of daycare. Two of his other friends Phoebe and Beck who are both 2 1/2 (so six months older than him) will be around for a bit longer, so we are hoping that Noah might go over at the same time as them.
Hopefully we can manage to keep this one alive, I am positive more TLC early in the piece will have the desired effect. I made sure I gave it pep talk today once it was in position and it is bound to be the most loved lemon tree in Wellington, knowing how keen we are to get some home grown lemons on the go again. We still desperately miss the tree in Norway Street, and it is positively galling to walk past and look down and see the tree literally dripping in lemons that go unwanted....grrr.
Today we went to church in the morning, then Marissa, Keryn and their boys Magnus (18 months) and Bronson (3 months) came over for afternoon tea. We were able to sit outside the whole time as it was warm and incredibly there was not a breath of wind. Magnus and Noah had a great time playing happily together in the sandpit, watching snails in the garden and building towers, and even had a lovely kiss for each other when it was time for Magnus to go.
How bout a kiss boys!
Tonight we broke out the BBQ (aka babatoo in Noah language) for the first time this summer. It was surreal, and almost too delicious to speak of to be able to sit out together enjoying good food and good company. This is especially so when you consider that the weather on Tuesday was one of the most dire days we've had in Wellington yet, with the winds reaching over 130 km/hr in town. The wind was so strong in fact that although we count ourselves as stalwarts of the walk into work every morning, we actually drove on Tuesday because it was ludicrous to have been out in the wind, particularly with a stroller.
In other cute moments this week, Noah has been telling us 'that was fun' when he's enjoyed something, as we left the park yesterday he said 'that was fun Mummy' and we got it again tonight after the BBQ. Tonight after we put him to bed, we had a sneaky listen to him on the baby monitor and he was saying 'My Daddy's Mark, my Mummy's Mee-gin' which has been a conversation we've been having on the way home in the evenings this week...too cute.
This week is hopefully just a fairly normal one, it is my last week of work before the exam. I'll be on study/annual leave from Monday 20th till the exam on Thursday 30th, so my focus this week is trying to get through two Board reports and ensuring our annual insurance policy documents are completed, and that way I can forget about work after Friday and fully focus on the exam. Amongst the many things I am looking forward to, being able to read for pleasure (including the chance to re-read a book as moving as Cry The Beloved Country) is high on my wishlist. And less than 3 weeks to go now till freedom!
This week is hopefully just a fairly normal one, it is my last week of work before the exam. I'll be on study/annual leave from Monday 20th till the exam on Thursday 30th, so my focus this week is trying to get through two Board reports and ensuring our annual insurance policy documents are completed, and that way I can forget about work after Friday and fully focus on the exam. Amongst the many things I am looking forward to, being able to read for pleasure (including the chance to re-read a book as moving as Cry The Beloved Country) is high on my wishlist. And less than 3 weeks to go now till freedom!
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