The Bryans

We were blessed Friday and Saturday by the arrival of our friends, Blair and Karen Bryan. They have been travelling to Australia and New Zealand with their four children: Austin, Elizabeth, Alexandra, and Coleton. Austin and Elizabeth are in college at Harding, Alexandra is 17, and Coleton is 13. They were stopping through Auckland for 2 days, and we had the opportunity to show them around a little bit and spend some time with them. They are a wonderful family and we love them dearly. They are one of the things we miss most about Charlotte. It has been a highlight for us to see them again.

Christmas Day

Christmas Day was a beautiful day. After opening presents in the morning, we had a nice lunch with Pam and Kevin's friends Kevin and Karen Woolcott. Then we went over to the school grounds and played basketball, soccer, and had obstacle course races. Buster creamed us all at the obstacle course, even Mark.

Santa meets the Tooth Fairy

I know this is getting to be a bit of a theme, but every time I turn around, Hannah loses another tooth. She lost the latest one Christmas Eve, which meant the Tooth Fairy and Santa both visited our house last night. It actually was a reunion for them because they both visited our house last year, too, in honor of one of Emma's lost teeth.

Traditions here are slightly different. Santa usually brings the children's toys in a Santa Sack and leaves them at the foot of each child's bed. We use a less official version in the form of a pillowcase. They are given strict instructions to not look in their bags until everyone is awake and they all bring them in to Mom and Dad's bed and open them all together. Esther arrived in our room this morning around 3 AM. Fortunately she was coaxed back to sleep until her sisters came in around 6:30.

Later in the day we will all open our gifts from each other and have a picnic if the weather cooperates.

Pam and Kevin's 50th Wedding Anniversary

December 20th was the 50th wedding anniversary for Mark's parents. This was the primary reason for our family coming to New Zealand this year. We celebrated it at Remuera Golf Club with about 70 of his parents' closest friends and family. Mark's brother, Greg, was the emcee. It is really nice to have a brother that is comfortable speaking in front of a crowd. Mark's sister, Julie, put together a slide show and also performed an eye and head dance. I've never seen anything like it before, but it was pretty cool. The girls were really good...in the beginning. They took it upon themselves to greet everyone as they came in and give them a little curtsey. Once the music started, they got a little out of control with their dancing. I wasn't sure whether I should have been embarrassed or entertained by them. It was a pretty late night and I know they were exhausted by the end of it all. At one point, they were all introduced one by one and when they got to Esther, no one could find her (which isn't unusual for Esther). It turns out, she had worn herself out dancing and curled up under a table and gone to sleep. It was a very memorable event and we are very glad we could be here for it.

Julie and Buzz and the Tooth Fairy Strikes Back

Julie and Buster arrived late last night. It's been great to see them. Buzzy is just a bigger version of what he was the last time we saw him. He has been smothered with little girls since he got here.

The tooth fairy also came last night. We had a double tooth fairy delivery with Emma and Hannah both losing a tooth on the same day.

North Head

After going to Devonport, we went to North Head. On the way there, we stopped at a park and watched a little cricket. North Head was beautiful and it was a beautiful day. We found a steep hill on North Head and had some cardboard rides down it. Our shorts will never be the same.

Devonport

We spent Saturday exploring Devonport and North Head. These are two dormant volcanoes on the North Shore of Auckland at the entrance to the Auckland Harbour. You can see them in the distance in the first picture. You get fantastic panoramas of the Auckland Harbour and city of Auckland from these points. The two mountains have old military fortifications loaded with tunnels and cannons to protect the city. They are no longer used for this purpose and it is open to the public to explore the fortresses. The island in the background is Rangitoto. It is a dormant volcano that dominates the landscape of the Auckland Harbour. The middle beach in the picture with the girls is Kohimarama, where we live. The city of Auckland has 1.3 million people. Sky Tower, the tallest building in the Southern Hemisphere is in the center of the city. You can bungee jump off the top of it or take a Sky Walk, which is a walk on a little sidewalk around the top of it. It is completely open and you are harnessed in so you don't fall. There once was a day that these things would have intersted me, but I am a mother now.