I finally admit defeat!

I'm not very good at admitting defeat but these curtains have beaten me I'm afraid to say! I had 7 curtains of various sizes and conditions and I thought it would be more than enough to fit the windows in one of the rooms in the house. I thought, I measured, I thought some more and I finally thought I had it. The scissors got to work and I was happy. It was always going to be a jigsaw to get them done (they were too short for our windows and even a simple border top and bottom wasn't going to suffice) but I reckoned I'd done it. I even sewed one side. I assumed that both sides would be made the same (that's how I make curtains) but of course they weren't. The border they had put on was all out of pattern match. I could have carried on and I could now have something at our window BUT I stopped. I realised that no matter what I did I wouldn't be happy with them - they would always look like a botch job - and that although they only cost me $7 they were going to take a lot of time and energy. So back to the drawing board on that one and still very cold rooms without curtains!

In fact I was so fed up with them I have folded it all up and put it up in a high cupboard - I don't even want to look at the fabric at the moment! The only good use I can think of at the moment is if a local production of The Sound of Music is performed and I could make the von Trapp children's outifts to run on the hills!

New Beginnings ...

Finally we have broadband back in our lives and I can delve further into blogland and be extremely inspired by all you lovely people out there!

What a journey we've had so far - lots to say and lots to show but for now a quick hello.

Wednesday was Moving Day - yes yet again I have had to pack up a house and move! On Wednesday night we all had a home cooked tea and had a bed to sleep in so I thought things had gone quite well!

Thursday was the Day after Moving Day - I had lots of plans and ideas but in reality we all chilled out and just relaxed in our new home. A couple of beers in the sun surrounded by boxes and life seemed alright!

Today is Waitangi Day, which is a public holiday in New Zealand to celebrate the anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi. In the spirit of new beginnings we decided that it was too nice a day to just stay home unpacking so we headed for a festival being held in our nearest city and took in the festivities - great acts on stage of drumming, dancing and singing, I tried my first hangi, which was absolutely delicious, along with rewena bread, a traditional Maori bread made from potatoes.

So that's it for now - we're all alive and well and looking forward to catching up with the blogs again and of course finding new ones. I couldn't post without at least one photo so here's one of the beach where we've been hiding out the past three months!!!

My first tag and meme

So I got my first tag the other day and a meme - didn't know what one was until I checked out Julie's blog!

THINGS TO DO IN MY TOWN FOR (ALMOST) FREE MEME from the lovely Julie. Here are the rules (because it wouldn't be a meme without rules):

1. List (at least) five things to do for free in your city or town, not just well publicised touristy things, but things YOU might do too!

2. Write it with a visitor in mind.

3. Tag three people* - extra fun if they live somewhere you'd like to know better or you're going to sometime soon.

4. If you're anonymous/coy about where you live, choose another town or city that you know.

Well it's not my current town but it was once my town so I'm doing Wellington, NZ:

1 Te Papa - now I know this is right up there on the tourist trail but it is one of the best museums I have ever been too. Great for adults and really good interactive parts for the children. We spent a lot of time in front of the wild boar with Maia!

2 Cuba Street - this is just great for people watching, with a small playground for the children and an awesome 'bucket fountain' which captivates you whatever age. Full of lovely boutique shops, cafes and bars so it's only free if you show some restraint!

3 Cycling round the bays - this can be as little or as much as you like - you can start at Island Bay and head left or right. Right takes you to Owhiro Bay and then onto Red Rocks, left can take you round the whole peninsula bringing you back into the city at Oriental Bay. It's an awesome cycle and you have the chance of seeing dolphins and penguins amongst other wildlife. On a good day you can also see the snow capped top of the Kaikouras - great view!

4 Walking - there are so many walks in Wellington it's hard to know which to say. A great one starts at the harbour right in the city and then head around the water at the back of Te Papa along towards Oriental Bay. There's now a children's playground with a cool skateboard type frame in, you can see the old boat sheds, the fountain in the harbour and finish at the beach at Oriental Bay.

5 Swimming/surfing - yes, you do need to be hardy and wait for one of those Wellington days that wow everyone but there are good swimming and surf spots around Wellington. I learnt to surf at Lyall Bay (well learnt is a bit of an exaggeration - I got wet whilst holding a board might be closer to the truth!).

Of course if you like coffee then any trip out in Wellington won't be free because there are so many awesome cafes to choose from and the coffee is amazing - I'm hanging out for the flat whites!

So time to tag 3 others:

mama4 at A smile a day

Jem at Where there's a wills ....

Becks at different-choices