Childhood Memories Onboard

So ...one of my husbands lovely toys is a boat.  He had always wanted one, but we never had the space to be able to store it, so when we arrived at the Ponderosa it became a reality for him - 9 acres is big enough I think.

I have wonderful childhood memories of holidays, weekends and even daily outings on our boat - particularly to water ski.  Mum would pack the chilly bins with lots of different snacks and off we would go to Lake Karapiro, or to Horotiu or Ngaruawahia.  Having a river at your finger tips is another bonus of why I love who I am.

My sister and brother were always the first to jump in the water and ski for kilometers at a time.  As the younger sibling I would sit and watch them as they crossed from one side of the wake to the other, try different tricks and most importantly try to out do each other.  If we were bored on the boat, my dad would simply drop us off at the nearest ski ramp.  We would bomb and dive all day long, with dad and the boat returning every now and then to collect us for our turn to ski, or to have something to eat at the nearest vacant shore line.

During the xmas break, my childhood memories on the boat turn to daily trips out in the glassy waters of the Bay of Islands, where we would travel to Rawhiti and spend our entire break camping with some of my Snowden whanau.  Fishing, diving or just travelling to Russell every so often to visit and/or collect some essential supplies.

Later in life, my fishing and diving experiences on the boat turned to Raglan when my grandparents moved there, and then to the Coromandel where we travel more often now.

I'm extremely grateful for all the hard work my parents put into ensuring they provided the best they could for myself and my siblings and in doing so have created some loving, positive memories and lessons in return. Lessons and values we can take and pass on to our own children.

We have our own boat now, and although it's only been a year, I know my daughters are enjoying it.  I know I am!! This wonderful weather we are experiencing sure is helping us make some easy choices of spending quality time together with my whanau and friends on the boat.

Have a great day people!!

Just Add Potted Colour

This summer is extremely dry. Given there isn't rain and I'm saving the water in our tank for the necessities, my gardens are looking dull and life-less. Time to add some drama and colour to the mix.  Potted colour.  

When my cousin moved back to Australia, I inherited quite a few of her pots, so I decided to grab some potted annuals and a few test pots from the local mitre 10 (which were on sale) and start painting.

The results, I think look awesome!!

This is not bad for a lazy days work, and the results around the ponderosa is fabulous!!

Happy living peeps!!

An Old Bench Gets a Revamp

I can't believe February is nearly over and I'm thoroughly enjoying this beautiful weather we are having.

My husband is busy trying to build a new shed on the ponderosa, so I thought I'd get to revamping an old bench seat that I acquired on trademe over a year ago for less than $100.

The benchseat was looking a little worn, and it should because it has a few years on it.  I thought about sanding it right back and exposing the wood, but decided to go with a vintage green.  It's only paint and my motto is when or if I get sick of the look, then I can simply change it.

Before the make over

Revamped and Revived

With the new bench seat now in place there are a few changes to the porch that are needed until I'm happy with it, so will post the finished result soon.

Happy living people!!

Importance of Water

This weather is absolutely wonderful.  High 20's, sunshine all day long means an opportunity to swim, outdoor living, inviting friends over for drinks and BBQ's .. the list goes on.  It really is lovely, however the down side is more sun means less water and living on the ponderosa has provided a new prespective on how important water is to us.

This is the first house where I've had to considerably watch our water consumption because once our water tank is empty, we have to buy a truck load of water for anything from $200 to $300.

In the past, I've thought in some respect that our water consumption has always been pretty good, however in reality I could always turn on the tap and know that water was going to come out of it.  Washing the car to watering the grass were things I considered pretty important to me when I lived the lifestyle of suburbia.  Now reflecting, I've realised those things are not as important as I thought.  What is, is just having enough for the necessities such as drinking.

Having two teenage girls is a challenge when it comes to water, but we are all learning as we go.  The grass is VERY dry, and in some cases, there isn't any grass at all.  The gardens are looking dry and next summer I need to consider more mulch in the winter/spring time to keep the moisture in the ground.

Yes, this year has been a very good learning curve for me and my whanau in regard to our water consumption and we definitely need to look at better ways of preserving water and not wasting it.

Have a great day peeps!!

Time Of Reflection

I love to travel to the east coast to Matarangi to spend some R&R either relaxing on the beach or on the boat fishing or water skiing or simply chilling with a magazine at the beach house.  That's exactly what we did this past weekend and it was fabulous!!!

I have to admit that the roads are a challenge and really aren't for those who are prone to motion sickness but the drive itself has the most spectacular views in the world.  

I personally enjoy the drive over as it allows me an opportunity of taking in everything I love about this wonderful country and makes me appreciate just how fortunate we are to have such beauty literally on our doorstep.

I often ask "where else would you be able to see and experience such beauty", and my answer is generally, all over Aotearoa.

Have a great day people.

Cakes, Cakes, Cakes

I'm really enjoying experimenting with cake designs at the moment.  Some people have requested that I share some of my cakes online so I thought - why not.  These are just a few that I have done over the past couple of months.

Happy living people