Little Miss Flossy and the Sunshine Trip

you know Those Scary Fairy Bloggeur Meet Ups?
*wink*
we just had another one - this time, Floss and her fab fam came to stay for two nights during their Great Big NZ Road Trip - and got a free ride in an ambulance truck.
*ahem*
those Tim The Tool Man Taylor's genes lol...

yep - the dads had this fabulous plan for recreating The Amazing Race - two vehicles, two teams, loads of clues and photographic evidence of arrivals at destinations.
so we started out - destination photo#1
but one of Floss's kiddos had a crash and a whole day waiting with Tim at the Emergency Room with Pluto and Goofy. so the rest of us had to continue the fun without them - uh - too easy -

Charlie, Sam, Jono and Floss - and Humpty!!

Mick and Henry - fabulous little lads
with a sunshine connection.

@ the water fountain in town -
Woozie, Henry, Flossy, Sophie, Charlie.

Tim The Tool Man Taylor and the incredibly brave James (and Mick who sprinted to get in the photo lol) after the return ride home in the ambulance the next morning, with a newly-surgeried arm and glass specimens in the jar.
*wowsers*
we loved travelling all over The Sunny Bay with you guys and we promise to toast you when we open the bottle of boysenberry vino!!!
bon voyage et au revoir
happy tripping and we'll see yas again soon!
(how about next Tuesday?)
mwah X

something wild and crazy and SUPERGROOVEy happened late last night...

as i was settling down with my lentil lasagne and a third glass of ngatarawa stables merlot at about half past eight o'clock last night, my pink pxt phone rang. it was my *Rocker Up The Whaka* friend nik, who roared instructions down the phone that she'd scored me'n'Bulldog FREE tickets to hear elemenop and supergroove playing,
a wee way up the road at the YEE-YAH WAIHI beach!!!!!
*blink* three and a half minutes later, BD and i screeched out of our driveway, and headed north.
WHAT A BLAST!!!!! (turn up your sound)
just as we were pulling up (BD found a park directly across the road - he must've been channeling the gorgeous deb!)
we heard elemenop saying goodnight - but that was ohk - there was still two hours of partying the night away.
there were eleventy billion drunk teens there - i felt right at home - and nik did her crowd-jostling-manoeuvre AND... we were RIGHT UP THE FRONT by the stage -
if she'd held my leg, i'm sure i could've done a flying jump and grabbed john frusciante's the guitarist's foot!!!!!
(we were pretending he's anthony kiedis, but on the way home BD insisted that he's more john frusciante).
and there was che fu singing lead vocals - and plenty of stage antics by napoleon dynamite's brother - jeez he was hilarious!!!
but OUCH! my calves are sore today - that could be the 5km run that BD dragged me out on yesterday - or all the hysterical jumping up and down at the concert...
i think i need to go ice down my knees (guess the movie line)

Christmas Day in The Sunny Bay

On the Night Before Christmas

'tis the night before Christmas and all through the house - peeps are so excited! lights are twinkling and babes are finally sleeping!!

Granny and GD headed for the hills this morning and Nanma and Nandad arrived tonight - we lit candles and ate speshal food and gave thanks for our year - lots of wonderful things were mentioned - dinner every night, doctors saving lives, beautiful grandchildren, friends, lovely brothers and the sister, our togetherness...

now the littles have been tucked into bed with stockings awaiting "imbuldgement" and the biggies are snuggled up on the couch with a movie and the twinkle lights.

thus endeth our endless Days of Christmas
and we're wishing our world
- that's *you* -
a hippie Happy Christmas
with LOVE, JOY and PEACE
from our hearts to yours,
mwah X

On the Twenty Third Day of Christmas

today we made mince pies
or as i prefer to call them
*Christmas Fruit Mince Tartes*
(otherwise i get maketu pie visions)
qu'est-ce que c'est cette vision?
(guess the movie line - my fave Rupert Everett says it)

we used my mum's secret fruit mince recipe
(which i *would* post here,
'cept it's in an unfindable place on my bench -
i've even offered a reward for it -
it's as yet unfound)

and *bought* pasty EGADS!
cos i am not a pastry chef.
i know someone who is though -
these little cutesy pies tartes are so easy peasy -
it's just like playing with playdoh -
ya circle it
ya squish it
ya fill it
ya prick it
ya bake it
ya sprinkle it
AND THE BEST THING OF ALL IS
they're *so* teeny tiny,
that the goodness from the *fruit* mince
CANCELS OUT any calories from the pastry
so they're COMPLETELY GUILT FREE!

actually, seriously talking skiting about GUILT FREE now -
i've spent the last month sloggin' it out
on the machines at the gym
and trading in minutes/calories burned
towards food items -
so this is what i can eat
GUILT FREE on Christmas day lol
(under all that food is
a big fat Christmas Tree)

that's one turkey dinner,
5 glasses of vino,
2 muffins and 2 coffees,
64 strawberries and 2 candy canes
GUILT FREE!!!!!

so i think that'll be a very
Hippie Happy Christmas.
(as long as i don't eat all the pies tartes)

On the Twenty Second Day of Christmas

it really is The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year.

well, firstly it's SUMMER - my favourite season - every day there's endless sunshine - long, hot days and everyone is so HAPPY. Bulldog and the kiddos are home and there's no frantic dashing to daily events - time slows to its Should-Be pace and there's a sort of instant permission for a siesta instead.

family gathers and disperses and and gathers again - the advent chocolate eating ritual takes on a kind of hysteria as the realisation of santa's imminent arrival makes instant mathematicians of the least mathsy kinda kid.

(i do chuckle about Santa-hysteria at our place though - cos he leaves things like an orange, a banana, a new toothbrush and a chocolate Santa - no Nintendo Wiis arrive overnight here lol. i think it's just the wonderful surprise factor of That Stocking Was Empty And Now *magically* It's Bulging!!! sorta thang.)

everyone winds right down and spends time singing and gazing at fairy lights, and wonderful things like strawberries and bubbles and exotic drinks appear, borne by muscly cocktail waiters who also load the dishwasher and wipe the bench after themselves...
ohk, hallucination is over... maybe not the dishwasher and kitchen bench then, but it's beer o'clock as soon as siesta is over.

little plans begin to be hatched for long summer days, for friends arriving, places to go camping over the summer, and weather-patterns are being watched like a hawk. wonderful childhood Christmas Story books are re-produced and pored over, and pressies are smuggled into the house and ceremoniously wrapped and hidden underneath unsuspecting other pressies.

and there is this Magical Wonder All Around - at our place, for sure.
how's it going at yours??
mwah X

On the Twenty First Day of Christmas

we have two ecstatic announcements!!!

ANNOUNCEMENT #1
today Bulldawg ran TEN in FORTY by FORTY
oh yes!!!!!!!!
*loudest clapping and cheering in the whole of The Sunny Bay*
that's ten kilometres in forty minutes in his fortieth year forties!!!
another life goal ticked off!!!!!
= one very sweaty and oh! so happy man.

ANNOUNCEMENT #2
Mousey has nailed the *forward flip* on the trampoline
(loading video now...)

= one incredibly happy lad... and loads of *loudly clapping* onlookers
cos it's the rendezvous with Mum and Dad week -

yusssssssss!!
they're back from three absy fabsy
months in europe

and we're Christmassing!!!!!!

but no one was very photogenic lol X

On the Twentieth Day of Christmas

oh how i wish everyone could've won the *Christmas wreath* bracelet but alas! 'tis not to be - this year. with Dan The Policeman breathing down my neck (to check i didn't win it myself lol) i used this online random number generator:

and lookit! my beautiful niece abby who said this -
aunty!!!!! i want it!!!!! i want it SOOO BADLY!!! the only *Christmas* jewellry I have are a pair of grotty snowflake earrings that I need to shine up a little because they are made of crappy metal. and i have a tartan ribbon, but whatever.
it's MINE!!!

and this -
is it cheating to enter lots of comments to increase one's chances of winning the bracelets?
it DOES make your blog look evah-so-popular and your gorgeous work look evah-so-desired when peeps scroll down and see that SO many people have commented, heehee...

now has something christmassy to wear -
hippie happy christmas, abbs!!!

BUT - if any of ya luffly peeps really desperately fancy your very own *Christmas wreath* bracelet - i'm oh so happy to arrange a global swap in the new year - email me - kate DOT kiwi AT hotmail DOT com.
mwah X