A late update!

You may have been wondering where I got to after the last you heard of me was packing my bags and heading to Auckland!
Well - I did get there and back in one piece but life seems to be carrying me away from my blog with every blink of the eye.
I keep being reminded of Christmas too and yet, because our family are so far from our home, I do not feel much incentive to shop and bake and decorate!
Still - my Santa collection must soon be due for their annual airing so I may just get to that before the weekend.
Where is life leading me I hear you ask?
Well -certainly not up the garden path I can tell you - altho it did lead me out onto the driveway yesterday where I manged to get rid of most of the rest of the weeds and sweep and tidy and make everything just lovely again. Then the heavens were allowed to send some cleansing raindrops to take away the last of the bits I had missed - so all looks nice and pristine again, if not rather wet!
I am thinking on my feet to try and explain my absence from here - but can't seem to recall any really good reason. There have been people come and go, yoga classes, walks along the beach, making up notes and working on the latest newsletter for the NZ BodyTalk association - but that does not account for all the weeks that have intervened.
Oh well - obviously not important!
We did go out a couple of Thursdays ago and become NZ citizens! We duly swore our allegiance to the Queen and were presented with a certificate and are now able to apply for a NZ passport - so all is good! This does not mean that we have to reliquish our UK citizenship, but cannot now be tossed out of New Zealand for any reason.
Alan has been busy organising our next trip away and we are due to leave here at the beginning of March and return about 20 April. Bella will be looked after as we are having home exchangers in our house for all that time - so that is a relief.
We are planning to spend our Christmas with neighbours and were discussing and planning over the last weekend. Today I did make a start on some of the necessary purchases - like Turkish Delight and chocolates - so we are alright now!
The Turkey has been ordered and I do not need to collect it until Christmas week so that will save some space in the freezer!

That will do again for this time - maybe I will be back sooner so do watch this space. I seem to be unable to move the photos around so just to let you know - one is of Bella on the back of my chair and the other is the pair of us on our way to our Citizenship ceremony - complete with our stuffed kiwi (a gift from friends!)

See you all again soon!