Children's City

Not loving the glowing molar.

Clip clop.

Daisy and Sanna, different day, different horse.

It's red!

We've had a couple of trips to Children's City at Creek Park recently. The kids love it and it's run by the municipality (that's the council here) so is much better than the usual mall soft play.

The beautiful weather has begun so we've been spending lots of time at the pool and outside. Which is a good thing because the shopping has gone rubbish. It may be autumn but it's still in the 30's and all you can buy at the moment are winter clothes. Woollen coat and scarf anyone? Boo.

Bx

Eid al-Fitr

Enjoying the cooler weather.

Princess Daisy.

Zack has learnt to stand on his own...

....and feed himself (ish).

Oh my god, it's..........

Barney! And BJ and Baby Bop.

It was Eid al-Fitr last week which is a celebration of the end of the holy month of Ramadan. For us it meant 3 days off work for Andy and being able to eat and drink in public again, woohoo! We had a lovely relaxed time which got off to a brilliant start when Zack, for the first time ever, slept through the night. Heaven. Daisy got an Eid treat when Andy took her to see a Barney show. The real live right in front of your eyes Barney. She couldn't believe it and had a great time.

Bx

Sharjah Aquarium

Dajon leads the way in to the tunnel.

Watch out Steve.

A very pretty fish.

Outside in the bright hot sun.

We recently did a trip to Sharjah Aquarium. It was really well done and well worth a visit. It didn't have the 'wow factor' of sharks or anything but instead choose to focus on local marine life and natural habitats. Which was actually quite refreshing given that we're not exactly short of wow factor living here.

Bx

Dubai

Zack makes a grab for the camera and reveals his tooth.

The party season is upon us!

Zack gets grubby in the garden.

Then washes off with a quick splash.

Daisy and Molly ready to slide.

It was great to get home after our holiday. Daisy was very happy to see her Daddy and Zack seemed to remember him, phew! Andy was also very happy to see us and not having to live on ready meals anymore was a bonus for him. We were soon happily settled back in and I got some much needed lie ins, hurrah! Zack didn't sleep too well in NZ, sharing a room with me (the walking buffet) and sleeping in his travel cot wasn't a winning combination so I was feeling pretty sleep deprived by the time we returned. He seemed relieved to be back in his own cot and Daisy had a joyous time rediscovering all her toys. It was still pretty hot but had cooled down enough to get outside later in the day.

Bx

Changi Airport

Checking out the airport Koi Carp pond.

Eagle eyes on our plane.

It was with some trepidation that we waved Oli goodbye at Christchurch airport. Two children, 60kgs of luggage, and me, yikes. My nerves weren't helped by an immigration officer raising his eyebrows and remarking that I must be a tough mummy to be doing it alone. Double yikes. As it turns out, it certainly wasn't easy but both kids, particulary Daisy, were absolute stars, the ground and airline staff were really helpful and stopping overnight at the transit hotel in Singapore was a godsend. Hurrah! The only major incident was Daisy having a monumental breakdown at Changi airport which had people running out of shops to see who was being skinned alive and ended with me dragging her backwards by her ankles out from under someone's table in a cafe.

Bx

Christchurch (again).

Oli and Daisy terrorise the Cathedral Square seagulls.

Talking about the morning cartoons.

Hello mummy!

She's been asking for a real one...

Ollie 'Daredevil' Browning shows Daisy his moves.

Cosying up for a DVD.

Reflecting on the day.

The final leg of our holiday was Christchurch for a five night stay after a leisurely drive via Kekerengu and Kaikoura. We were soon happily enconsed in a nice motel just down the road from Oli and Rosie. We had a really good time catching up with lots of friends before we headed to the airport for the long journey home.

Bx

Anakiwa

Splashing in the rain.

Pram with a view.

The Bugaboo hits 4 wheel drive as Daisy and Zack negotiate the Queen Charlotte Track.

Luckily, there was plenty of time between walks to lounge.

Here kitty kitty. Zack shows Milo some love.

Gotcha! Milo takes it pretty well, champion kitty.

After an excellent stay, we bid farewell to Nelson and drove to Dave and Bev's lovely new house at Anakiwa which is on Queen Charlotte Sound. The weather was awful which was actually rather nice as we got to spend a couple of days lounging by the fire with the odd sojurn for Daisy to splash in puddles. Lovely!

Bx