Te Ngaere Bay was a base for exploring and learning and fishing and laughing and eating. There was a kooky tame shag, the funkiest fish smoker ever and a nonagenarian who had no idea how to drive Beatrice the mussel grinder. It was hard to leave. Day trip to Ahipara on the west coast with … Continue reading Living the beachside dream

Part of being away is about being in nature and watching what goes on with the wildlife and their surrounds over an hour or day or week(s). We were all keen as mustard to visit the biggest tree in NZ, Tane Mahuta Lord of the Forest. The magic of being in the beautiful native bush … Continue reading Treemendous and Flightastic

Over our 8 weeks in NZ we spent about 3 of them all up in Takapuna, Auckland - a beachside suburb in Aotearoa's big smoke. Ally grew up around there so the kids got bored of the number of times she said "Look - there's my old primary school!" It provided a marvellous city base … Continue reading Thanks TackyPooPoo – top place to hang…

Dad / Billy / Grandpa turned 90 on 3rd Feb so family and friends gathered from far and wide to celebrate in Devonport where he was born. Most notably, Barry and Colleen from Canada - Barry, Billy's nephew turned 70 on the same day so the festivities were double happy. Birthday activities continued all week … Continue reading Billy’s Birthday Bash

9 It was a rainy misty summer's day and we found ourselves heading out to Kerikeri for the job run. A suggestion for a morning tea down the road turned into a history tour of the Maori settlement at the bottom of the Kerikeri inlet. We learned of its importance as a meeting place for … Continue reading The Stone Store & Waitangi Treaty House – first day back at school

A fair chunk of our time away was destined to be spent in this magical spot. I have come here for breaks away from the city and routine all my life. It is a family heartground, especially since Jude, my Mum, died. Roger and the kids are at very at ease and at home here … Continue reading Te Ngaere Bay, Northland: a home away from home

A NYE's warmup at The Wizard of Oz production at The Capitol with Collins/Mills clan: wonderfully camp in fabulous glittery technicolour. The Don's Sydney apartment floats very near the Harbour Bridge so he, we and friends gathered for a progressive lux dinner of champagne, caviar and scallops and watched the spectacle of the NYE fireworks … Continue reading Sydney – Auckland – Mahia: Fireworks & Friends

So it's been a solid month or so now and The Big Trip is well underway for GardenofBeeden. 24 December 2017: After blowing up the vacuum cleaner 20min before the taxi arrived to take us to the airport, Ally was looking a lot like this: And when we got to the airport and the flight … Continue reading Summer holiday morphs to beach lifestyle;