I've heard a new one!

"He was up at sparrow's fart"

This means that someone was up at the crack of dawn. 

We walked around the crater lake near Pihanga with Quinn's class. The first picture is a Koru spiral. The second is Pihanga and the green crater lake. 

Trump is the butt of every joke. Even here. 

Kiwis love their coffee - and I love their coffee too. Flat whites at a cafe are my go-to favorite. It's funny because there are true espresso machines for espresso based drinks at tons of shops - including Mitre 10 (like Home Depot) and even gas stations. 

At home, Kiwis drink their coffee in many forms - espresso, "plunger coffee" (French press), instant is very common, and even coffee bags like this one!

On Quinn's school camping trip tonight. We are staying at Memorial Hut on Mount Ruapehu. 

The kids are having a blast. While they were playing hide and seek I found out something! Kids here count "1 Mississippi 2 Mississippi..." just like in the states! Mississippi! You're world famous!

And then this giant spider was in our house. 

I saw this at Mitre 10. Don't show Chris, I think this might unlock a new fear. 

Christmas is weird in NZ. Decorations are mostly your typical items/ themes (snow, reindeer, evergreens, etc) despite it being in the middle of summer. The Christmas decor at Mitre 10 was right next to the chilly bins (coolers) and jandals (sandals). 

The kids and I started a Couch-to-5k program 2 weeks ago. I haven't run regularly since college! It's been really nice. It's beautiful in the evening after dinner and the kids keep me in good company. 

Clark rode his bike to the grocery store down the street to get a few peppers for dinner last night. It was nice to know that this was safe and that this is so common here, even Quinn wouldn't have been stopped running an errand like.

 We drove to Rotorua today (about an hour away) to do some clothes shopping as options in Taupo can be a bit limited. We managed to get most of what we needed at Kmart - which is a weirdly big thing here. It’s like a Walmart and a Target had a baby…

Of course, we also stopped at Taco Bell since that’s the closest one and we all miss Mexican food. Yes, Taco Bell seems to be the best Mexican food in NZ and I realize how incredibly sad that statement is.

When we come home for Madison’s wedding next year, I am planning to eat nothing but queso and salsa the entire time I’m there.

 

Chris scared me when he asked me if I’d heard the news (while I was off-grid at Bekah’s camp). I assumed there’d been another mass shooting, another person murdered by ICE in the streets, or another military strike in Iran. Then he said, “I wasn’t sure if you remembered that it’s Election Day.” I checked my phone and couldn’t believe my eyes. I can’t believe that Americans are saying “no more.” I haven’t felt this hopeful about the state of my country in a very, very long time. We have a long way to go, but this feels like balm for my broken heart.

 We went to the lake to relax in the nice weather and the girls started showing off their incredible handstand skills.

Bekah’s friends made their group flag. It says “Weird and Wonderful”

There are 2 gray planes headed to Taupo in a green heart to represent Bekah and another friend from the US. The other girls were represented by a banana, a golden dumpling, and a wave.

I tried beans on toast for the first time. It wasn’t bad, but it was a bit strange for breakfast. But I like beans, so… I’d do it again.

 Bekah’s class (year 6) went on their 2 night class camping trip and I was fortunate enough to be a volunteer parent. We slept in tents in beautiful Whakaipo Bay at the Girl Guides camp. It was a lot of fun. We went on a long tramp, swam in the lake, kayaked, practiced archery, built “Flintstone cars” from barrels and bamboo, did orienteering, and more. It was a really good time.