WHERE'S BEST TO LIVE IN NZ AND WHAT DO WE NEED TO KNOW: PART4!!!

[AngryBeaver]

Arrgh,had to start a new thread!

Yes,you can get more land in Tauranga. Well,somewhere like Omokoroa or somewhere.Wouldn't want to live much closer than that. And I woulkdn't want to live at he Mount. Lovely as it is. Too touristy,imo.
We would like enough land for a pool (eventually) maybe a sleepout and still enough for a veggie patch and garden for kids. Don't neeed acres +. Wouldn't say no though,if we could afford it! Be nice to have a few sheep or something/

I think Mum would have to fly to Tauranga. So that would be
Manchester-London,London-Singapore, Singapore-Aukland,Aukland- Tauranga
Bad.

justa howws the back? Hope physio was a help,we may have driven past you!
Your house sounds great.
My mums friend lives in Silverdale.She has about an acre with some sheep etc
Wasn't overly impressed at but didn't give it a proper look I suppose,just stopped to buy flowers for Mums friend! Always worth another look

hello justa i am here and sending you a big hug from rain-lashed england sorry you are having shittissimo time and really hope things pick up for you and DS VERY SOON. just been depressing myself reading about the female bishop no vote ...

How did it go on Monday Justa?

Trying to decide what to do today, seems a bit overcast to be taking boys to Browns Bay which is our default place. Thinking chipmunks?

Ds1 had his 3rd swimming lesson yesterday. The first 2 did not go well, he screamed the place down (yet he's more than happy in our pool ) so the owner transferred him to a different teacher and the difference was amazing. The only noise he made was "roaring like a lion" to swim to the other side of pool with just a bubble bum inflatable thing on. Also swimming under water to have a photo taken and jumping off the side. Well proud of himself he was.

Today I am celebrating

A+ in my statistics course
Finding an icecream place in the Albany mall that has dairy and egg free sorbet
My parents have just started their journey over here (via my brother & SIL in Oz).

How am I celebrating? Takeaway coffee and watching DD2 in the play area. Something wrong there I think

Congrats vvviola!

I'm celebrating getting DD's first proper bed which arrives on Friday. I now need to sell her cot but she has chewed it quite a lot. I wonder if I will get anything for it on TM. Contemplating advertising it as 'cot, slightly chewed'.

My kiwi BF is visiting for NY. I'm so excited and suddenly trying to sort out all our house stuff before they arrive!

It's farmers sale day tomorrow btw. I'm working. Grrr.

Farmers should be open till 9pm tomorrow though littlest. I think they have 50% off all kids clothes. As I have just stocked up from Tesco and M and S I prob won't get anything this time. You prob will get something for dd's cot on Trade Me - just be honest about the condition but people love a bargain. Put it on at a low start price. My friend got $80 for an old cot. I got $70 for a very second hand Baby Bjorn! ( that I think I bought for less than $70)

Sorry to hear about ds1 justabout. Is he in the wheelchair every day at the moment? A difficult thing for him to have to get.

Well done on the stats mark viola

I think they are open till midnight tomorrow. But I've got a lecture I'm supposed to attend tomorrow evening. Very tempted to blow it off and go shopping instead! They have 20% off toys so I was thinking about starting my Xmas shopping.

I want to get some lego for DD- anyone know a good place? Or internet shop?

I'm here too, just been snowed under with work having taken time off when I went back to the UK. Definitely sell on trade me, we have just sold carpet, kitchen, appliances for ridiculous sums (IMO) that I certainly wasn't going to turn down. I'm always honest in the text and put photos on. Nobody has ever complained.

On another note anybody seen this:www.civildefence.govt.nz/

Hopefully it settles down quickly!

Or this:

www.stuff.co.nz/national/7979461/School-children-safe-after-Tongariro-erupts?

We got caught by the Icelandic ash cloud so badly (although not quite so badly as a colleague who had to drive from Madrid to Brussels!), that I hear eruption and think "flights" before anything else. Especially as my parents are currently en route from Dubai to Perth.

Probably a good thing. I think Mum might have cancelled if she'd heard any more about volcanoes and/or earthquakes!

Meant to say earlier - hope the physio appt goes well tomorrow justa and that it's another step on the way to sorting things out. I always knew you had a pretty remarkable boy there, but the way he's handling all this is really incredible. You must be very proud of him.

Minerva my bad weather fall-backs are chipmunks, or Albany mall. Or the library if it coincides with one of the rhymetime/story time sessions. Or we just stay home and I get progressively shoutier.

My parents have arrived in Oz, and DD2 has chosen now for her sleep to get even worse. I didn't think it was possible . And I now foresee a stand-up row with my mum on the issue of controlled crying & why I won't do it.

littlestkiwi I meant to say about your Lego query - it doesn't seem to be discounted by very much very often so 20% off at Farmers is probably quite a good deal. I think Warehouse and K Mart are usually about the cheapest for toys though so always worth checking them out, especially if they have a sale on.

Thanks WSS. My work finished at 12.30 today so I made it to Farmers grand sale which was rather disappointing. They had about 1 Duplo set and the rest was for ages 5-7. DD is 3.5 so I wondered if this would be a stretch?

Vvviola- We also did CC but have you had a look at the Sleepstore website for other hints/approaches? I'm a bit of a fanatic about it so may have recommended it before. sleepstore We also did a course at the parenting place run by the owner Louise. She was fab and it helped us massively.

This is the course we did: course

You can take your DC.

justa thanks - that seems like a good way to approach it. I've already gone down the route of "if you want to go down the route of making her cry herself to sleep, then someone will have to be here to put her to bed for the next however many years, because I won't do it." Which is a little confrontational (and honestly, I don't have anything against CC in theory - it's just that it doesn't work for me or my kids. I sometimes wish it did)

Thanks for the recommendation of thesleepstore WSS - I had looked there before, but I'll look again.

Of course, she has settled really quickly tonight (combination of a busy day, a darker room, and Nina Simone on the iPod ) but, being the overthinker that I am, I'm wondering if she has heat stroke as a result of being out in the sun this afternoon (with hat & sun cream) yes I know, blame it on having extra brain space now that my lectures are finished

Hello - I'm here - just been working flat out last few weeks with new job.

I'm here too, all connected and catching up!
justa how are things with ds?
vvviola yay! Congrats on the a+....ace!?
meerkate how did dh do?!x
Hope I haven't missed anyone out?
My Dm is arriving on Fri. She text me to say "We need to have a long talk"

I replied" Ohhh deep JOY, I DO so enjoy our looooong talks" nothing since

ok AB - I've had a drink so I'll speak frankly - you need to remember that you are an adult and your mum is not always right. She has an opinion but it is just that. If you don't like them ask them to keep them to herself.

sorry - her, them, opinions you know what I mean..it's the wine typing not me!

takes notes on what lollystix is saying even if it wasn't directed at her

How's the new house AB?

Ok - raging now...is it the wine talking? So I have oragnised night out next Friday. DH has known about this for 3 weeks and encouraged me to do it. Lots of people coming and I oragnised it. DH casually mentions this am that he has work do next Friday (another one - I never get to go to mine as it's my 'job' to get back for nanny - he seems excuse from this task despite us both working full time). I say tough -I have night out organised and you know this. And he says we need to find a sitter. this means I have to find sitter along with everything else I have to do - he knows no-one as he's made very little effort to find friends so of course he can't find sitter. So tonight he announces that if we can't find sitter I can't go to my night out as mine is friends and his is work. Apparently that trumps me as we are here on his visa!

Ooohhhh lollystix that would induce the rage that would.

Second what you say about the parents, it's hard to remember though when they are winding you up!

Good to have you back AB :-)

Have had bad news about one of my oldest friends, she has cancer, but has just been told there is nothing more they can do except manage her pain am making arrangements now to fly to see her for the last time. She hasn't told anyone else, about the latest news I mean, so am traveling a bit incognito as otherwise everyone will ask what I am doing there. It's very difficult. Sorry, to be a downer. But obviously I can't talk to anyone in RL about it.

I always find myself stressing about the details at times like this. All that keeps going through my head is that I have to organize and fit in 3 overseasa trips, my in laws arriving for a month, packing a house up and moving to NZ all in the next 8 weeks.

But none of that really matters does it

Frik- So sorry to hear your news. It is a bloody awful situation and I hope your pal has some well time to spend with you and her loved ones.

Lolly- I'd be in a rage too. Sometimes I think maternity leave sets us women up as primary carers and that is a hard psychological barrier to break down. But your DH should be sorting out a sitter. Could you ask wonderful nanny to do some overtime? I've got a pal visiting next Friday or would offer.

AB - I'll hope your mum has good suggestions to make. But otherwise she really doesn't have any/final say in any of your decisions. Be strong.

I just went to by some wood paint for a bit of furniture I bought at an op shop last week. $57 for 1 litre! Maybe I should use gold leaf instead. FFS.