Assembly

We are safely in Christchurch, and on line at Assembly! Yay.
Katarina is on a bus heading for Dunedin. The children are having a blob day at my sister's place in Lincoln. I've had a coffee. All is well.

We are not in Timaru...

Today is the second day of Zach's tournament - a better day today, yesterday the team lost both games, although small losses to very good teams, in fact both made it to semi finals today. Today we won two and lost one. The boys are tired and sore, so a couple of hours in the pool was welcomed.
We're not long back from tea out with some of the other families. We are enjoying the warmer weather here, today was a corker up and down the country, just as well we remembered the sun block.
The boys have two games tomorrow, playing for 9 - 10- 11 - 12th places.

Football madness

Our local club put prizegiving on Sunday morning, which meant that Chris and I couldn't go, being a working day for us. Being the meanist parents in the world, we said the kids couldn't go either, which Hannah was OK about as she had other friends coming to church, and Zach was a bit cross about.
So, after church, Chris grabs Hannah and goes looking for Zach - who can't be found. He leaves. I find Zach - in the toilet, and drop him off as well. Fortunately, the venue is not far from where we live.
The kids and Chris come home with grins from ear to ear. Hannah has a certificate for Most Improved Player, and Zach has a trophy, "Player of the Year" for Grade 12. It's a new trophy, his is the first name on it. Zach is playing up a grade. As Katarina said yesterday, if his team plays Grade 12 next year, he could win it again! So, for a family that couldn't make the prizegiving, we certainly made an impact this year!!!
The deal this week is getting ready for Nelson, naming clothes, sorting gear, and getting the girls far enough ahead in their study that they can take a week off!!!

Life in Timaru

It is no longer frosty in the morning in Timaru, which is nice on the fingers and toes. I even biked without a jacket today! The daffodils are blooming, the tulips are about to burst into colour and the weeping cherry is covered in blossom. White and crimson magnolias light up our views in all directions, and the rhododendron drips a vibrant red at the bottom of the garden. Outside my kitchen window two pink camellias add to the palette.
Zach and Janine both went to a local school production of "The Sound of Music" with their respective schools today. There is also a local production of "Joseph and the Technicolour Dreamcoat" which Janine is going to on Saturday.
Busy week this week catching up on all the things that haven't happened for a couple of weeks and we are away for the first week of the holidays (and two Sundays!!!) so there is plenty of work to get things organized. The shop shelves have plenty of gaps as the supply lines are disrupted with the earthquake. Bread is available, but only if you get there early in the morning. It's not consistent - one Countdown didn't have Marmite, and another did. (Don't ask why I went to both!)
And the dog has been rolling in blood and bone somewhere, so while I have washed her, she still smells funny.
Katarina has exams this week and even did some swot!n

No aftershocks for a week!

I am in Dunedin tonight, and will sleep well tonight. We are still feeling aftershocks in Timaru after the Saturday morning wake up call. We were all awoken, and pretty shaken up - but nowhere near as bad as Christchurch obviously.
The family coped well without me for a week and I am pleased I was at home when the earthquake struck. It isn't much fun worrying about other people and how they are coping, and the girls and I enjoyed looking up geonet, making a report, and watching the reports pour in. We did get back to sleep about an hour later, much to Chris' relief, but the aftershocks kept waking me up...
Hannah has finished soccer, but Zach played 2 games on Saturday and had a rep practice on Sunday.