Winter has started with its usual mixed bag in Wellington – calm, sunshine days that are moderately mild lull us into a sense of ease, before a sudden southerly change hurls us into an abrupt awareness that it is actually the season of winter. Gale force winds, heavy rain, and snow on the distant Kaikoura […]
beaches
My Sunday Photos | Winter sunshine & fun at the beach
Oh my, what a day of weather! In Wellington, today, it was almost possible to forget it was winter altogether. The sun shone gloriously and the calm air let the warmth shine through, without the usual wind chill factor bringing it down. The tide was super high and the waves rolling in, from far out […]
Sunshine weekend | Santa Barbara to Santa Monica
We’ve driven south from Santa Barbara to Los Angeles several times in the past year. One of our favourite routes is along the Southbound California State Route 1, on the Pacific Coast Highway. We always make a pit-stop at the giant sand dunes to admire the scenery and burn off some pent up energy with […]
The Photo Gallery | A Favourite Place – South Coast, Wellington, New Zealand
Less than fifteen minutes walk from our home in Wellington, New Zealand, lies the stunning South Coast, encompassing Lyall Bay, Princess Bay, Houghton Bay, Island Bay and Owhiro Bay. The bays are met by the shoreline, which gradually rises up into the hills of Wellington. The hills are dotted with houses, balanced out with lush […]
⤠Paper towel art, birds, snails, ice-cream, wine-tasting & running!
A few things I’m loving from the past week… ⤠Colourful paper-towel art – dipped with fascination, in food coloured water; observed in awe, as the paper towel absorbed the colours; unravelled with surprise, as the pattern was revealed; put out to dry with love and a toy animal, to stop the breeze blowing away the […]
Gems of family life in Santa Barbara
Two weeks into staying in the house we have leased for a year we are beginning to feel a little more settled. We are finding our way, had friends round for drinks (all be it friends from New Zealand that are also setting out on this new journey with children in tow), been out for […]
Legend, history, remarkable rocks & sandy beaches…
all come together at Castlepoint, where we spent the second day of our weekend away in the Wairarapa. Only a 12 minute drive from our holiday cottage on Tinui Station we packed up the car and set off. We’ve lived in Wellington for over ten year’s but have never made it to Castlepoint. We’ve heard […]
Peapods and strawberries to lazy dayzs on the beach
Shortly after breakfast, with Sophie in her PJ’s, the girls teamed up and started moving their painting equipment out onto the driveway. When I asked what they were doing, they simply said, ‘Painting pea-pods!’. Here they are in action… I just love the way they are so creative and work so well together to come […]
A little slice of paradise on Earth….
We are so fortunate to have this on our doorstep in a world that’s full of chaos. Today, was perfect in every way. Walking to Island Bay along the south coast we stopped at Houghton Bay to watch this surfer enjoying his moment of escapism… The view from Island Bay across the Cook Strait to […]