Monday, March 25, 2019

The Nettings Do NZ - Week 34 & 35


Week 34 seems like a bit of a blur due to the tragic mass shooting that occurred in Christchurch on Friday, March 15th.   I feel nothing but thankful that we left the city just as the events were unfolding and that had no idea what was occurring until we were about an hour out of town and my cousin Kim texted to check if we were ok.  We picked Kensley up 5 minutes (literally) prior to her daycare going into lock down.  It seems pretty surreal that such a horrendous act could happen in such a gentle and welcoming city.  A city that is still rebuilding (literally) from the tragic earthquake of 2011.  It’s made me realize that these this can happen anywhere – along our daily running route, in an area that I play with Kensley most afternoons.  I won’t over dramatize this because we are safe and I don’t at all think we would’ve been in danger had we been in the city.  However, my heart breaks when I think of the absolute nightmare that these poor people experienced when they were hoping to be in a very peaceful state.  The outpouring of love since this shooting has been non-stop.  A beautiful tribute outside of the gardens with handwritten notes, pictures, flowers, candles, stuffed animals; donations for the families; home baking and meals being delivered to the hospital staff and first responders; the community has really come together.

Onto the happy stuff from that week because there was happiness.  Kensley had her two last settling days at daycare and did well.  She’s having short naps there but it makes sense because the sleep environment is way different: a bunch of other babies with music playing – I think of it as her trying to sleep at a club.  Kensley’s highlight was also more visitors:  her granny and grandpa arrived late Thursday night so she woke up to them Friday morning.  She is happy to have people around and of course, wanted to show them all of her tricks.  They seem to love all of her tricks but I think it was very clear that grandpa’s favorite thing to do is watch her eat;  he’s pretty impressed that she is willing to eat almost everything and quite a bit for a little girl.

We made our way to Kaikoura with granny and grandpa on the weekend, hence why we missed the action on Friday.   Kensley continues to be car sick which really stresses me out.  Anyways, we rented a beautiful AirBnB with ocean views. Caleb took his parents on a costal walk Saturday morning while K napped.  They enjoyed the walk and Caleb’s dad identified at least 12 different birds.    In the afternoon I did a nice costal run and we all went out for a  yummy Indian meal.  Sunday morning we started back to Christchurch early.  Caleb felt like he should help out at the hospital so he made his way in for the afternoon.  Mary was also working on Sunday so she came for dinner and wine that evening.

Onto week 35.  Kensley enjoyed more time with granny and grandpa and her Auntie Autumn arrived.   We had a play date with Lucy and Julia this week and for the first time, Lucy and Kensley played together.  They chased each other around the grass, which was super cute.   Granny and grandpa and Auntie Autumn took off for a road trip so we had a nice weekend at home just Caleb, Kenz and I.  We did our typical boatshed Saturday and had a family day around the city.  Saturday night we had homemade pizza and wine and booked our flights home to Canada for the end of July!  I had mixed emotions in this booking, our experience here has been amazing so it makes me sad to leave but overall, it’s excitement for our next adventure.

On Sunday, Caleb and I ran, City to Surf  - a 14k run in Christchurch.  Caleb tucked away his competitive side and agreed to pace me for the run.  My goal was a 5min/km and Caleb helped me get that!  We finished in 1:08:34 and I couldn’t have done it without my awesome pacer!  I felt myself crashing the last 3-4 km and he kept me going.  I felt much better during this run than the Queenstown half-marathon – it helps that I’m 5 months further post partum and that Kensley wasn’t up 4 times the night before (she slept the whole night).  I wouldn’t say I feel like I’m back to my pre-pregnancy and baby state, but I’m getting there, or I’m getting used to my new normal.   In the afternoon, we had a little early birthday party for Kensley (just Caleb, Kenz and I) by playing in the gardens and having some blueberry muffins with blueberry icing (K’s fave foods). 

This was Kensley’s last week as our baby as she turns the BIG ONE this upcoming week.  She got her 6th tooth this week and LOVES walking with her trolley or the stroller.  She is learning more words: orange, banana, blueberry (ALL OF THE TIME – “BLUEEEEE”), raisins, cheese, Bruce.  She says “night night” when she goes to bed.  She loves being chased and climbing the stairs.   We’ve let her watch a song on youtube called “Five Little Ducks” and she laughs and dances the whole time; I think it’s more entertaining for us than her.  She becomes wild at bedtime and we can barely get her dressed because she’s jumping off of the walls and then as soon as she lies in her crib – she’s out.

Eating a cookie in Kaikoura



Morning sunrise



Checking out the view



Grandpa and Granny



Granny and Grandpa along Kaikoura walk



Memorial wall



Kenz and I trying to spread some LOVE



<3



Christchurch Police also spreading some LOVE - they were giving out donuts on the streets



What raspberries?



Trying out her new birthday boots from Nana and Poppa



Having a horse ride with Grandpa



Hanging out with Lucy



"Look what Dad taught me, Mom"



Kisses for Daddy



<3



Date morning!


Tuesday, March 12, 2019

The Nettings Do NZ - Week 33


I went into this week with a full heart and with a lot of excitement as Nikki and Nicole were spending the week with us and Kensley was starting her “settling” at daycare.  On Monday, Kensley spent two hours at daycare and did very well.  I almost cried when I picked her up and saw her sitting at the table with her friends having a snack; it was so darn cute and she looked so grown up.  Nikki and Nicole arrived in the late afternoon.  Once Kenz woke up from her nap we made our way for a latte and to the gardens to give them a little tour and let Kenz play on the grass.  They weren’t long spotting the Lime Scooters around town and quickly jumped on them and did a scoot around town to check things out.  No surprise, Nikki was instantly obsessed and quickly became a Lime Scooter Junkie; grabbing one every opportunity that she could and having absolutely no fear on those things.   She even got me out on one for the first time and my forearms and hands hurt from gripping so hard.  They go up to 30km/hr and Caleb has seen more than a few ortho cases as a result of injury from them! On Tuesday, the girls took off to Akoroa for the day and Kenz and I had a chill day, seeing Jacqui, Hugh and Walt.  Wednesday was Nikki’s birthday so Nik, Nicole, Kensley and I went to Waipara wine region so they could do some wine tasting and we could have a nice lunch.  We had a really nice day, although I did wish that I was partaking in the drinking and that didn’t have to drag Kensley along…..but this is mom life!  The girls went out for dinner that night and came back to enjoy some yummy carrot cake and dessert wine.  Thursday, the girls took off to Hanmer Springs for the night to enjoy the hot springs.  They returned Friday morning, and I dropped K at another “settling” session and we went to Godley Head, a beautiful costal trail.  On Friday night, the girls took Caleb and I out for an awesome dinner at Valentino while Sarah watched (sleeping) Kensley.   Caleb worked a lot this week so it was really nice for all of us to get out

It was soooo nice to have Nikki and Nicole, best guests ever.  Nikki is my oldest childhood best friend and truly the kindest, bestest, most sincere person you’ll ever meet.  I want to say that I was the happiest with them here, but I suspect the award for happiest goes to Kensley.  She LOVES having people around and it doesn’t get much better than Aunt Cole.  Aunt Cole could and did sit and play with Kensley non-stop: songs, books, games, and just chatting.   She even taught her to walk with her little trolly within like 2 minutes! We’ve dubbed Aunt Cole as the fun auntie and Aunt Nikki as the stylish auntie :P; but Auntie Nikki gives the BEST back rubs.  I loved having my people here, to share our New Zealand life with them and to share Kensley with them!  It makes me emotional thinking about it.   Unfortunately, their time here flew by and they were off to Fiji on Saturday.  Caleb was on call on Saturday so it was a pretty low-key day for us.  On Sunday, we felt like we needed to get out of town so we took a day trip 2 hours south to Timaru.  The drive there was easy peasy but Kensley wasn’t as keen about the trip home which made it seem a lot longer than two hours.  We actually stopped and bought her fries to entertain her for part of the drive.  Kensley loves most foods but she definitely is a fry lover….but really, who isn’t!?

Kensley is proudly walking around with a trolly now.  She surprises us with trying to say more and more words: orange, banana, Bruce (for her kangaroo), nonstop “blue” for blueberries, raisins, Ella (our favorite barista), cheese, momma and dada (obviously).  She tries to dress herself now and will sit for up to 15 mins trying to put them on.  She also sits patiently and will play with zippers, and if its started she can close it.   She is transitioning to daycare like a little gem but I suspect some hiccups with napping are in our future!   She is looking forward to our next visitors: granny and grandpa arrive this week!



I can't wait until Kensley and I are truly wine touring together!



Just snackin' with her friends!



Loving Auntie Cole


Auntie Cole can teach K anything "Let's take Kiwi for a walk" Boom! Walking!



"More" Auntie Cole



Getting fancy for the birthday day!



Lime Scooter Races....



Waipara Wineries girls day



Godley Head....I wonder why I'm not taking the picture (Where's Waldo)


Doing her favorite thing...


Wednesday, March 6, 2019

The Nettings Do NZ - Week 32 - Momma's Weekend Away!


Week 32 was all about momma as I prepped for my weekend away to Sydney!   Months ago Nikki, my best friend since 1995, had said I should meet her in Sydney, and I knew that as soon as I agreed, there was no backing out, no matter how anxious I became.  Once I mentioned it to Mary, it was even more of a done deal as she kept nudging me to book the flight.  I spent some of the week preparing food for Caleb and Kensley’s weekend together.  I was trying to make the weekend as easy as possible on them, so I prepared them enough food for an army (and they finished it all!).  Kensley’s teeth cut through and she was back to her cute perfect self this week!  At 11 months she now has three top teeth and two bottom teeth, with a forth top tooth very near.  We had a lot of beautiful weather and that meant lots of playtime outside for Kens!   We went to Kensley’s daycare on Monday to meet her primary provider, Sylvia (each child is assigned a primary).  We went over Kensley’s routine and she asked a lot of questions about her eating and sleeping in preparation for her start up.  She starts with four settling in sessions (2hr, 4hr, 6hr, 8hr) prior to starting 1 full day once a week on March 18th.  Kensley seemed to have a lot of fun there, exploring and waving to the other kids and teachers.   We also had a visit with my friend Lucy, and interesting, her youngest is starting daycare as well and will be going on the same day as Kensley so we look forward to some child-free visits! 

Needless to say, the week flew by and before I knew it Friday was here and I was in an uber on my way to get Mary for the airport!  We arrived to the airport by 230ish, and things go pretty smoothly at Christchurch, so we had plenty of time to grab a glass of wine before our 3.5 hour flight to Sydney.   I was definitely more relaxed than anticipated.  I was looking forward to the entire weekend, but to start, the 3.5 hrs alone on a plane seemed pretty damn sweet.  The flight went smoothly and we arrived to our AirB&B in Bondi with very little hiccups (although finding the place didn’t seem as straightforward as it was).  Nikki and Nicole were getting in a few hours after us so Mary and I went for a little walk and grabbed a few bottles of bubbly to celebrate!  Nikki had grand plans of going for Tequila but by the time they arrived (a little after 9) we settled for two bottles of bubbly and ordered some Mexican.   I felt great after a few glasses and a text from Caleb saying that Kensley was perfect for him that night.

Saturday morning was AMAZING – I feel like one of the best mornings of my life.  I woke up on my own schedule (which was 6am Sydney time but 8am Christchurch time so a good sleep in).  We went for amazing coffees and I was out for my run by 8am.  I ran 11km along the Bondi-Coogee coastal trail and it might have been the most enjoyable run I’ve been on – I had this remarkable sense of calmness.  Lara had recommended this trail to us and it was soooooooo worthwhile.  Beautiful beach after beautiful beach on an amazing walkway and thinking to myself: I can do whatever I want after this!  Nikki, Nicole and Mary walked some of the trail and I finished my run by meeting up with them and walking back to Bondi Beach.  I have never been sooooo eager to get into a body of water as I was after that darn Australian sun and heat (and it was still the morning).  We then went for lunch and drinks, Nikki got her tequila, and headed home for a little afternoon siesta.  Late afternoon we made our way down to Sydney Harbour where we checked out the very impressive Opera House and had a drink at the Opera Bar.  We then made our way to The Glenmore Hotel, another hit that was recommended by Lara, with their rooftop bar.  We consumed 3 to 6 bottles of wine depending on who you ask, and it sure felt like it, but we looked pretty classy in our red lipstick so it doesn’t matter!  The next morning it was an early flight home but thank god it was 3.5 hours, which gave me some extra time to recover!  I got home to Caleb and Kenz around 3 but K was sleeping so it gave Caleb and I good time to catch up on our weekends.  Caleb said the weekend couldn’t have gone any better which made a perfect weekend even that much sweeter.   He said that Kensley was very nice to him and that she didn’t seem to miss me too much!  He ran with her both days and had Sarah for a few hours on Saturday afternoon so he could get out for a surf.  I did worry at times, hoping they were doing ok, but I was really surprised with how relaxed I ended up feeling as I reminded myself: “well, there is nothing I can do for them from here, so they’ll have to figure it out” and they did!  I feel soooooo freakin’ lucky to have had this amazing weekend away in Sydney with some awesome girls and my bestie #prankphonecallingsince1995!  I am proud of Caleb and Kensley for rocking the weekend...things went so well that I might even start planning my next weekend away :P. 

Kensley had an amazing time playing in the mud with her daddy, no socks or shoes or hair clips all weekend long, and has a destroyed romper to show for it all!  She is able to communicate with us more and more each day; her favorite word is definitely “blue” for blueberries and she can say her own version of raisins and cheese and raspberry.  She loves to bark at dogs when they walk by and she loves crawling over us and anything else.

I'm not at all sad about this weekend ending because we get to spend week 33 with Nikki and Nicole; Christchurch is their next stop!  Bring on the tequila, wine and red lipstick!

I LOVE THIS GIRL <3



Pop the bubbly!  I'm in Sydney with my best friend and no baby!


Amazing run!



Actual picture of the run



Hey girls!


HER <3


A little red lipstick....



A little more red lipstick...



My little love <3 <3 <3


Weekends with dad are so much fun!

Kensley meets a 9 week old puppy