Kiwi Plantation

A few weeks ago we thought we would stop for a break on our long journey and take a tour of a Kiwi Plantation. That’s if it didn’t cost too much which it didn’t $18 each. That’s roughly £9 each.  We travelled around the plantation in a little Kiwikart while our driver commented on lots of interesting facts about Kiwi fruit. I didn’t realise that you could eat the skins in fact that is the most nutritional part. I thought they would be hard and yucky but no it was soft and I enjoyed it. Not to everyone’s taste though. Kiwi fruit itself is the most nutritional fruit and most of the worlds fruit comes from New Zealand.

 

 I was fascinated by the fact that this huge fan is used when there is a frost around. It blows the cold air away.

 

Tauranga - Rotorua - Taranaki

We had a very busy two days planned for Friday and Saturday. Friday to Tauranga to change a Dryer and fit the new smoke Alarms in all the flats in the Zone. Then we had to make a unexpected trip to Rotorua. We were too tired to drive back to Hamilton so stayed the night at the Midway Motel where we have stayed previously with Marc, Shauna and Sue when they came to visit. It is very pleasant there and has a plunge pool. Which I am sure we mentioned before when I went in the pool with Shauna, Sophia and Lilly, such fun! So Elder Saunders and I took a dip this time also. Bit like a warm bath only no soap allowed. Luxury as we haven’t had a bath in over 18 months!!!
The next morning we headed for Taranaki just a two hour trip we thought, 4 HOURS LATER! The road and scenery was good and pretty but just longer than we expected. We first decided that we would just deliver the washing machine then go right back to Hamilton but changed our minds. Again we were tired and the thought of a three hour drive was daunting. Also we had told the missionary sisters in New Plymouth that we would not be staying then felt that this may be the last time we will ever see them again. So again we changed our mind and visited with them. Which was lucky for them because they only had a simple smoke alarm and not even the old carbon monoxide  so Elder Saunders fitted one of the new ones.
Just for a change we had a few hours of relaxation at the Motel. Luxury!

Four of our beautiful Sisters

 

 Taranaki Zone Leaders

Another Busy Week

What busy week Elder Saunders has had. He closed out three  flats and what a mess they were. Some of the furniture is now stored in the lockup. Settees, rusty microwave, rusty pots and pans were only fit for the dump. Then he had to organise the cleaning of the flat and all the carpets. Two of the flats were in the Hamilton and another in Auckland. Now he has to finalize the paper work on them. He is also looking for another flat in Auckland as well as a flat in Ruatoria, Gisborne but I think those will have to be left to his replacement.  

 

Whale Island

On our way home from Gisborne we stopped over-night in Whakatane with the Clarks. The next morning, on the Monday we all went on a boat trip to Whale Island. Now that was a disappointment. We were expecting a tour of the island showing many different animal/birds/creatures.  What we saw was a dead baby penguin, the skin from dead lizards, I was the only one to see two flying parrots. Foot steps of a Kiwi. We heard one Tui and saw lots and lots of Sadlebacks, which actually was the highlight of the tour for me.
I think everyone else was a bit bored.

A

 A Saddleback

 

A few Seals

The boat ride was fun.

 

Smoke Alarms - Gisborne

The Church has brought out an additional policy on smoke alarms. We have always made sure that all our flats have working smoke alarms but it has been found worldwide that some missionaries take out the batteries and don’t replace them. So now they are all having tamperproof carbon monoxide  smoke alarms. We already have 30 and another 200 have been ordered.
We had a few things to do in Gisborne so we decided to make a weekend of it. I had to prepare one of the sisters for her language test in a few weeks. Which went very well.
Elder Saunders and I visited 5 flats in Gisborne on the Friday to fit the alarms. We also took the opportunity to check out a few concerns we have with the flats.
On the Saturday we went down the coast to Nuhaka and Wairoa and fitted their alarms. What made the trip even more special was the fact that Elder & Sister Belliston came with us. We spent really nice quality time with them on this, our last, trip.
On the Sunday we attended Mangapapa Ward because Sister Boligor was speaking and what a treat that was.

 

 

Up Up and away!

Last February/March 2015 as we were driving to work, we noticed in the park that is beside Hamilton Lakes, different shape air balloons and thought that it would be fun to go see them. When I did go back later in the day they had all disappeared. :( So this year, just a few weeks ago, we were a little late getting up one morning and as we went out of our front door can you imagine our  delight as we saw in the air, funny shape air balloons. I took many photos. The next day we were a little earlier but had an even better view of them as we were driving towards the Lake. What do you think?

 

 

 

Bremworth Park Activities

We had a Luau on the Saturday night. Which was a lot of fun. If only I was more prepared I had a colourful flower Lei at the office that would have been perfect to wear but we made use of these small thins ones.

The entertainment was fun. One of the male members hosted the evening and sang a few songs I tried to record them but it didn’t work. I thought that he had broken my camera as it wouldn’t take any more photos. It didn’t occure to me that the memory card was full. Duh!
But at least I records the quite girls dancing earlier.

On the Sunday evening we had a musical fireside. Our two new Missionary sisters to our Ward spoke. That was their second talk of the day because they introduced themselves at Sacrament meeting earlier in the day. They are such special Sisters and gave such sweet messages.
We also heard from the Primary and the Ward choir. My favourite though was the Elders singing Armies of Helaman. That song always makes me want to join in with the Chorus.

Quilt Drop off & Farewell

The week after transfers all the Missionaries have Zone meetings so we planned to visit the Auckland Zones to deliver the last of the quilts. As usual we went to the office first to collect any mail. We arrived at Redoubt Zone at 9.30. We were very impressed with the Zone Leaders as they had already collected all the old blankets from the missionaries and they were in the back of their car. Within half an hour we were finished giving out the quilts and had all our photos taken.

Next was Manurewa. They only informed us while we were travelling up to Auckland that morning that they needed supplies. So we popped into a local shop to find what they needed. By the time we arrived they were just finishing their meetings. So that actually worked out well. Another quick photo session and issuing out of the quilts.

 

Papakura Zone was last and they had to wait around about 20 minutes for us but they didn’t complain when we arrived. Again another photo session.

All three of these visits were very emotional as this will be the last time that we get to talk to each of the missionaries. Yes there will be another chance to see some of them at the upcoming Temple trip but as yet those missionaries do not know about the trip. So this is the start of our farewell visits.

Otorohanga

We arose quite early Saturday morning and had breakfast in the community room. That too was fun as we were joined by a line dancing group who were going to perform later that morning a few miles away. I would have like to have watched them but we had already planned to go to Otorohanga, a Kiwi house. We had seen one Kiwi before and that was quite a disappointment as it just moved slowly for just a few minutes and it was so so dark. We arrived at the Kiwi house about 10.15 just before feeding time and the Great Spotted Kiwi was running around looking for food. In fact` when we first arrive it was so dark in the room that I thought I saw 2 or 3 Kiwi’s running around the small enclosure. But when my eyes became more adjusted to the dark I saw that it was only one who was very active and looking for worms. That was so fun. In the enclosure next to it was a small brown male Kiwi who was also looking for worms and he came up very close to the glass. We were not allowed to take any photos but I did get a post card of the Female Great Spotted Kiwi. Anything else we saw that day was just an added bonus because the Kiwis were so great to watch. So what did we see. Two very clever Keas, apparently they are the most intelligent of birds. We had to distract the birds as the keeper was going into their enclosure because they would have tried to escape. We watched as she placed food around their home. They followed her and one kept jumping on her shoulder in preference to being fed. The keeper even managed to get one of the birds to squawk on command, very funny and clever. We went to see the Parakeets being feed in the aviary and had no idea that it would be us feeding them.  We saw many other birds and lizards. Overall we spend a very enjoyable visit there.

 

Mania Close Down!

On the Friday we travelled down with the trailer to Mania, Taranaki about 4 hours away. We were expecting to have a big clean up with the missionaries but there were only 4 there. We were not looking forward to spending 4-5 hrs cleaning and still probably not have it all done. . The owner popped in so we had a clear up with him and then he said he would finish it off. So we departed a little earlier than expected.

Instead of staying in New Plymouth as planned we carried on driving homeward. After an hour or so we were getting quite tired so started looking for a place to stay. We found this older looking motel by the side of the road and they had vacancies. So booked in for the night but they didn’t have any phone signal which I said didn’t really matter. After taking one look at the room, the dirty floor the bumpy bed I decided that having a phone signal was essential. So out we booked ourselves. Poor guy he was very polite and said that was no problem. Probably because people say that all the time. We thought that maybe we would be travelling all the way home but as we were going through Pio Pio they had a motel there and very nice it was too. They had a nice restaurant next to it so after eating there we had a short walk around the block. My highlight of the walk was the cows in the field! They were playing together and I thought it was fun to watch. Elder Saunders was not so amused as I was.

Buried Village

Early next morning we headed home to Hamilton but because it was still quite early we thought we would take the opportunity to go visit the buried village in Rotorua. That was such an interesting place. The events that took place were quite tragic and it’s worth a look up on the internet.

 

What was a bit of a surprise for us was that at the end of the walk around the village there was a very pretty waterfall.

 

We also stopped and looked at the famous Blue and Green Lakes. Next we stopped for lunch beside Lake Rotorua and watched the black swans and sea planes come and go.  

 

Transfer Day Departures

I had hoped to be able to go to the bus station and help supervise the comings and goings but that didn’t happened. We left early afternoon for our trip down through Whakatane towards the north of Gisborne district. Two missionaries were also going to Whakatane that day so we arranged to take them with us. We needed to drop a bed off at their flat anyway. That was a fun trip with Elder O.

Elder Saunders drove the minibus and towed the blue trailer. After we had dropped them off we headed up the coast hoping to get as close as we could to Ruatoria. We had hoped to have found somewhere before it got dark but all the motels had no vacancy. We did stop at a motel/camp site which claimed to have vacancies but it took them ages to answer their phone only to be told they were full. We did eventually find a motel in Hicks Bay but it was very dark. In the morning we could appreciate the beauty of the area but that was only for a few minutes as we had an early start to arrive in Ruatoria by 10am.

Hicks Bay

 

 

Our first encounter was that the keys did not fit the locks. So, SHHHHHH, Elder Saunders climbed in through an open window. Well it was better than smashing it. I forgot to mention before but we had been asked to vacate the property because the college who own it have a teacher that needs to rent it.

We noticed a few cockroaches on the ceiling. Then a few behind the couch, then a few behind the boxes, then a few climbing the walls, then a few under the chairs, then a few in the cupboards, then a few in the bathroom.  Shall I go on? Elder Saunders claimed he has never seen so many cockroaches in his entire life. I must admit that I did scream when I was sorting out a box of books and there were a few under the books. I think we did a very good job cleaning and clearing out the flat. I even found myself a new toy to take home.

 Elder Ollie who has found a nice spot in my office.

We treated the hardworking missionaries to dinner from the local chippie van. Then we all sat and ate and unwound before our long trips back to Gisborne for the Elders and Whakatane for us. Actually we first stopped at  Kawera for a fireside given by  Hiriwini Jones, a well-known presenter of Maori culture and how it relates to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Before we headed back to the Clark’s home we delivered a washing machine to the Elders. So quite a long day for us.

 

Our Final Intake Day

We had 16 new missionaries arrive today and 1 returning missionary. As always was a lovely group of people. The sisters were particularly lively and so bubbly. After Elder Saunders presenting his induction on flats we had a few hours to catch up on our work. Then it was off to President’s home for our final testimony meeting with the new Missionaries. Everything is so final but that’s the way it goes when you are coming to the end of your missionary. You remember that this will be the last time you do this or that. It was quite an emotional evening for me but also filled with peace.

Monday 22nd February

Happy birthday Elder Saunders. It was a Monday and that’s the day that the missionaries going home come into to office to get their bags weighed or to have their release interview with President. So for the first few that came in I told them it was Elder Saunders birthday. Then he got annoyed with me and said “Stop telling people It’s my birthday.” Okay so I did. How obedient am I? Not very I wrote on a piece of paper Happy Birthday Elder Saunders and put it on the counter in the reception area. I never said another word. 
Early in the morning there was a special delivery for Elder P Saunders. Hmm

 

Lucky ME!

 I’m not posting the photo of him nearly in tears but that was special.

Another thing that happened that was really special was that all of the missionaries, there were at least 12, sang happy birthday to him. That brought more tears to his eyes.

We finished in the office quite late so we decided to first go home and then go out for dinner somewhere special which is what happened but not quite as he expected.

I persuaded him to walk into Dinsdale to the restaurant. Walking into Dinsdale is something we never do so why he didn’t suspect anything I do not know. As we were leaving our house I noticed a container on the side which belonged to Sister Sayce.

"I just want to drop this off on our way."

"Hmm" grunted Elder Saunders and as we were approaching her door he said.

“Your going to be here over an hour.”

“No” said I.

“Yes, and more.” Thought I.

Anyway when Ann came to the door I told her we were going out to eat. Then Sandy came to the door as well and sang Happy Birthday. When they moved out of the door way we could see that the table was laid up for a party. HIS!

That wasn’t the end of his surprises. Ann had bought him a lovely Kiwi tie and Sandy a box of Maltesers. Both very thoughtful gifts.

 

Thanks for all the birthday wishes for him, I think he had a very happy birthday.

Sunday Surprises

We went to church at 9 am as normal but after the sacrament meeting we had a live skype call from England so missed most of our Sunday School lesson. We waited for the results of our Roadshow back in Reading Stake, England was due to be announced soon. Bethanie and Rebecca shared the best actress in the Ward. Newbury Ward’s roadshow photos looked very impressive and I think that some people thought it may win. Sadly it didn’t, congrats to Reading Ward. But it was fun waving to Chelle and Beth also Mark and Debbie. 

 What a musical treat we had in store for us Sunday evening. We asked our neighbour Allen to come with us but we had no idea what this singing group was about. Elder Saunders and I both thought it would be YSA singers so when we saw older people going on stage we thought to ourselves, O dear. Not that older singers can’t sing but I do get a bit bored of some choirs after a while. Like I said before, what a treat was instore for us. Sister Starr has been conducting this choir for many, many years and a lot of the music and songs where her own and it was so pretty. We both just loved it and also Allen was impressed.

Let The Countdown Begin

It has been a roller coaster ride these last few months not knowing if we going home in April as originally planned or staying an extra few months. Our replacements had not been found and we were asked to stay longer. We thought that that would be impossible as we would need to extent our health/travel insurance. The company that we are with could not do that for us but I did contact a NZ company that would. So that was that problem sorted. We also fasted and prayed to ask for help to decide what the Lord wanted us to do. Elder Saunders felt that it did not matter either way which way we decided and if that was my answer too, then we were coming home as planned in April. But I certainly got my answer as I was talking to Chelle. I expressed that I thought that maybe this was another test to see how obedient we would be to our Heavenly Father’s wishes if he wanted us to stay. That’s when I received my answer to stay longer. This was heart breaking news to tell our family but most of them were very supportive in fact all of them were supportive just not very happy with the news. But we knew it was the right decision to make.

So can you imagine our delight when President called on Sunday to say he had asked a local couple to serve in the mission office and they had said yes. We thought that maybe now we may have a chance to go home as planned.

We called the couple up on Tuesday and they offered to come into the office on Thursday morning to introduce themselves. That turned out to be a very pleasant morning.

And as you can see from the countdown clock we are on our way home – in April that is.

Clever Cows!

These photos were taken in Morrinsville and are just a few of the 42 Sculptured Cows that will be throughout the town showcasing the history and heritage of Morrinsville.

Tests in Taupo

Friday morning was an early start as I was meeting with the Elders in Taupo to help Elder T with his listening and speaking language test scheduled for next month. I like to give the missionaries as much help as they need for them to successfully take the test. I was pleased with how the meeting went and am very hopeful that he will do well in the text.

We next travelled to Turangi to check out the missionaries flat there. Elder Saunders has not been to this flat before so as we were so close he felt it was a good opportunity to do so.

We then spent another lovely day looking around the area before leaving Sue & Malcolm to continue their holiday in New Zealand while we went back to Hamilton to continue our Mission.

 

 

Thursdays Thrills!

Thursday morning after first popping into the office we headed down south towards Rotorua. On our way we went into a café at Tirau and had a cuppa. We also had a quick look around the shops. Our next stop was Rotorua, we had decided to stay the night so booked into our motel first before exploring the shops. Well one shop actually but we had a smashing time in there, didn’t we Sue? Actually it’s not fair of me to post only half a story and as Sue will probably not read this post anyway I’ll spill the beans. We went into a shop called Spotlight. It’s a bit like Dunelm in England only they had lots of really nice fabric as well. On our way out they had a nice display of candles, had being the important word here. Malcolm and I were reading the signs, outloud, that were placed on each shelf stating not to pick the jars up by the neck of the jar. We watch as Sue very carefully picked the jar up just underneath the neck only that didn’t quite work out as planned. CRASH-SMASH Opps!

The two shop assistants were very kind and pleasant and cleared up all the smashed glass. I didn’t realise that glass could spread so far. We were very apologetic as we left the shop but when we were outside we saw the funny side and were in fits of laughter. Next stop a cuppa to calm the nerves. Sadly during all of this Elder Saunders was back at the motel resting/preparing for rnight out. Actually it was a very good night out. We went with Sue & Malcolm to a Maori cultural show which was very enjoyable.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Maori Village On Stage

 

The Chief

 

Wednesdays Wanderings

I spent the whole day at the office on Wednesday because I had a lot to catch up on. Elder Saunders spent a lot of time driving around. He cleared out the lock-up of all the rubbish and took it to the tip. He also took the good used blankets to the laundrette to be properly cleaned before picking up the new bedding from Te Rapa Warehouse. During this time he dropped Sue and Malcolm off at Hamilton Garden and later collected them. They then came into the office for a while waiting for me to finished off my day’s work. On our way home we popped into Tuhikaramea Camp to drop something off to the Witts. Then we stopped by the Temple visitors centre to drop off the mail. For dinner we ate the left over curry from Monday which was still very nice. So a day filled with business.