A weekend with Cathy & Jeff

We have had a fantastic weekend. On Friday night we welcomed my sister Cathy and her boyfriend Jeff. They arrived in New Zealand February 5th and are leaving on March 3rd. We were thrilled to have family with us for the weekend. After two very full-on weeks of holidaying, Cathy and Jeff were ready for a slightly slower pace. We willingly obliged. They didn't arrive until after ten on Friday night and before we knew it it was one in the morning. We were all looking forward to a nice sleepin on Saturday, but Doreen, my dear, sweet mother-in-law had other plans. She woke us with a phone call well before our waking hour. It was a good phone call though. Doreen and Sam are about to book their flights to visit in June. Samantha can't wait to see them!

After a lazy Saturday morning with a big breakfast of bacon, fruit-filled pancakes and eggs we loaded up and headed to Porpoise Bay. Porpoise Bay is our favourite spot in New Zealand. It is a great place to spend the day at the beach. The kids love playing in the waves on their boogie boards. Jeff and Cathy had a great time in the waves too. The dophins were out and swimming nearby but no one touched one. Afterwards we headed over to see if there were any penguins at Curio Bay and sure enough there were. We ended up having a very close encounter with one that was coming in from sea. Cathy loved it as you will see from the pictures. We finished the day with some fish and chips and seafood chowder at a roadside stand before heading for home.
Gore and Porpoise Bay

Penguins


Sunday started with church for some of us and then we planned to head to Dolamore Park in the Hokonui Hills for a hike and to look for a geo-cache. Samantha has been fighting a cold for the last week and didn't feel up to a hike so she stayed home and slept. It was a really nice afternoon for a hike and the kids were excited to search for a cache. The hike wasn't as leisurely as we had thought it might be, it was a very steady uphill climb and after we found the cache the kids, especially Abby, were ready to head back down to the car. But there was a sign that pointed us towards a lookout, only 15 minutes further up the trail, so off we went. The steady uphill climb became steeper and Abby just about didn't make it. With some encouragement, lots of tough love and several short rests, Abby managed to get to the lookout. She wasn't sure that the view was worth the effort but since the return trip was all downhill, her mood improved significantly. We returned home to find Samantha rested and feeling better, enjoyed a final dinner with our guests and then headed to the flying fox and the concrete slide here at camp for a little adventure to finish Jeff and Cathy's stay with us.
Hokonui Hike


We will be sad to see our guests leave in the morning. I think that Abby will be especially sad to see her Aunt Cathy leaving. Abby and her Aunt seem to share many similar characteristics. It has been interesting to watch them together this weekend. We are looking forward to more guests again next weekend. Susie and Gord Schlegel, former colleagues of Samantha's, are in Rotorua on the North Island right now and are planning to be here in Gore by Friday in time for the Hokonui Moonshine Festival. You will have to check back next week to hear all about that.