Wassup wit Bush Walks?

When I was young my sister and I would roam the local bush between Otaika and Morningside in Whangarei. Making huts (albeit badly), tying grass across tracks (mantraps) to trip people up, and generally having adventures. Good times.

Today while Mum and bubba were out I packed my backpack and the kids (6 and 4) and I went for an adventure in my old stomping ground.

Backpack...check! Teddies...check!

On our way...

Brief history lesson...

...then off into the bush.

I had brought 3 plastic shopping bags to collect pine cones as we roamed through the bush. As we filled each one we would stash it beside the track cunningly camouflaged under brush and leaves. Miss 6 came up with the idea of leaving a sign in the middle of the track so we would know where to find them on the way back...so smart...so proud :)

The first of many...

We left the safety of the path and went bush! "Come on kids, follow me!" Sure...Dad must know where he is going :)

Look Dad we found a hut!

We may have been scratched and tired but on our adventure we found huts, nests and learned all about 'cutty grass'. We ate our snacks of homemade cookies (thanks Grandma and Miss 6 for making them), apples, almonds, chippies and carrots.

Are we lost Dad?

Never fear faithful children Daddy has a sense of direction honed over many years of...yeah we're lost :(

Oh well...charge! If in doubt straight line it to the sound of traffic. Yay! Back on the path and off to pick up our shash of pine cones.

3 bags full! One for the...nah all 3 for next years fire starters :)

With myself loaded up like a pack mule we walked the long way back home, via the 'lolly shop' and had nice cool ice-blocks.

Very proud of my brave, strong and very fit kids! Looking forward to our next adventure!

Wassup wit skills?

It's been a while since I blogged. Not that I have any astounding revelations after my period of absence or anything. I guess I am and will always be...random.

So launching in with a random statement... It's funny what people are good at.

At school, I was never the fastest, the strongest or the best at any sport. I was average to above average at most things...but never the best. Most of us remember the fastest runners at our schools or the brainiest dux types.

Napoleon Dynamite tells us that girls only like guys with skills...bow hunting, computer hacking etc. So with a little encouragement from his mate Pedro, Napoleon decides to draw the girl of his dreams a portrait (his best skill).




I especially like the shading. Apparently he spent 3 hours shading one of the eyes...skills!

So on a vaguely related topic, I was at Oceans Beach, Whangarei, a wee while back and was snapping away on my camera. Despite the cold the kids enjoyed playing in the water.





Then my Mum who is cultivating her artistic skills decided to paint them...





It's not finished yet but... mean skills ma! Bags putting on our wall when it's done :)

Wassup wit Prayer?

George Muller( September 27, 1805 – March 10, 1898) was a man who made a great positive difference to the lives of many. He is well-known for providing an education to the many children that were blessed to be under his care. He was actually accused of raising the poor above their natural station in life. How dare he :)

He established 117 schools which offered Christian education to over 120,000 children, many of them being orphans. He housed these children and fed them at considerable expense, but never went into debt. He never asked anyone for money, except God that is...how? He prayed.

Good on ya George. He probably came from well to do parents and had a trust fund which furnished his philanthropic activities I hear you say. Not quite. George was quite a wayward youth. A thief, a liar and a gambler. So what turned this rogue into a faith filled evangelist and director of many orphanages? An invitation.

"Hey George, you wanna come to a prayer meeting with me?"
"Ok"

As a consequence George made the decision to ask God to forgive him of his sins and bless him wherever he went . The rest as they say is history. A faith born in a prayer meeting was filled with...Prayer. George prayed and fully expected an answer.

• No food - pray - knock on door - baskets of left over baked goods from a baker.
• No money - pray - knock on door - cha ching $$$
• Heavy fog hindering boat journey - pray - fog lifts, captain of boat becomes a Christian.

George kept a ledger with dates the prayer was prayed, and dates the prayer was answered. The story is that on his death he had a huge list of prayers with everyone of them answered! Wow!

My 6 year old daughter came home and excitedly said,"God answered my prayer!"

What did she pray for you ask?

A wiggly tooth.

And God being God, gave her exceedingly abundantly above all she could ever hope for or dream of...3 wiggly teeth all at once!

I pulled the first, and the second followed the next morning whilst biting into an apple. The third is still hanging in there.

"Look Dad I've got a window"

"Here's my toof"

Thanks for encouraging my daughter to pray God. Has anyone else had any answered prayers lately?

Wassup wit old sayings?

I've been learning a few things of late. I thought I would use a couple of old sayings to illustrate:

• It never rains but it pours - When troubles come they come together.
• A stitch in time saves nine - A timely effort will prevent more work later.

Recently we decided to install underfloor insulation ourselves (see here). This led to discovering a leak around our shower (that had been installed incorrectly). Resealing will do the trick - DONE.

With the paint literally falling off the exterior of the house, it was high time to paint. This was done quite quickly but highlighted the need to sought out our tight sticky windows. Enter Linbide Scraper, my new favourite tool.

Sticky tight windows - smooth! Garage doors - clean, painted inside and out and gliding sweetly together. Paint splatters on windows - just disappear.


So I was feeling the wall above the fire place the other day and it felt a bit damp to touch. Hmmm...a bit soft here - oops! I made a little hole.



We called on our expert tradesman mate Dave who Builds Integrity and he made a bigger hole. Not before climbing on the roof and noting the lead flashing that surrounds the chimney was had it. After 50 or so years the lead had gone brittle and cracked up! A temporary seal around this and it was back to the inside.




An even bigger hole eventuated but at least it was nice and symmetrical. We had to employ the use of child labour for the clean up. After all our expenses we are on a really tight budget.




After a couple of 4 by 2's were replaced on went the GIB (aqualine) can't be to careful :)


This was stopped and left to dry. See ya tomorrow Dave!




Did I mention when the power went down a few weeks ago the power guy noticed some perishing wires that happen to be our responsibility .

"That''ll need to be replaced"

Enter Mr Electrician $500 please.

In summary...

• Underfloor insulation
• Shower repairs
• House exterior painted
• Tight sticky windows soughted
  
• Rotting wall replaced
• New flashing around Chimney and hot water cylinder outlet pipe
• New power line from mains box to outside house
  

A couple of extra things that added to the shenanigans:

1. A heavily pregnant wife (4 weeks to go!)
2. I'm recovering from a bilateral hernia repair

You should see us lifting the wood basket up from under the house - classic!

Let's have look what God's Word says about the matter:

• Ecclesiastes 10:18 If a man is lazy, the rafters sag; if his hands are idle, the house leaks.

Hmm, not sure if I like that one...let's back it up a bit

• Ecclesiastes 3...
  

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven:

a time to tear down and a time to build...a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance.

There's been a bit of mourning going on over this time. But I feel a dance coming on and plenty of laughter! Stay tuned.

Wassup wit Museums?

The Auckland War Memorial Museum is a truly grand old building. Modeled after the Greco-Roman temples of old this imposing site is well worth a visit. Enter:

Boucher family road trip!

Plan:

1. Cruise from Whangarei to Auckland - 2 Adults, 2.5 kids.
2. Pick up Brother-in-law and go to Easter Show!
3. Stay night in Motel - nice dinner.
4. Next day go for a 4D ultrasound scan(USS) of newest baby Boucher.
5. Go to Auckland Museum.
6. Get home again.
   

Cruise to Aucks - no worries - CHECK!
Pick up Davo and arrive at Easter Show - CHECK!

Freak out family with awesome Dodgem driving skills - CHECK!

Encourage kids to ride the adrenalin filled rides - Hmmm?

Check into Motel - CHECK!

We stayed at a nice motel and had a very nice dinner at Cobb & Co (ah memories)

The next day after killing time at a local park we went for the 4D USS! We have a DVD of this, will have to show ya some time :)

Then it was off to the Museum - WooHoo! It was quite a journey.

Favourite bits:

Les (The Dad) - I really enjoyed learning more about the history of New Zealand's involvement in the World War 2 - I only got 33% in 7th form History :( A crazy sacrifice that seems like a whole world away. Indebted to these brave men and women who served.



Ella (6) - The Maori exhibitions and climbing in a tree-house. Her younger brother seems to have the Pukana down! "BLEH!"




Joe (4) - The Volcano Exhibition. We heard about this for days after. He poured over his little Volcano leaflet and Iceland confirmed his love for Volcano's by erupting and disrupting the world's travel industry.



Jackie (The Mum) - She just liked seeing her family enjoying themselves!

War veterans would talk on the phones about their experiences

Trays and trays of interesting critters!

Lot's more photos but for now...

Wassup!

Wassup wit insulation?

For 3 winters we have lived in a house with no insulation. No carpet, just bare polished wooden floors - COLD! This is not uncommon in New Zealand. We have the great Kiwi attitude of:

"Just put another Jersey on Man!"

"Are you lighting a fire already?...Soft!"

However, there comes a time when the extra Jersey just won't do. The government are assisting many families to get their homes insulated and reap the many benefits of a warmer and healthier home. To be honest though, for our family it worked out cheaper if we did it ourselves without the government subsidy. That is not always the case though, so check out if you're entitled, especially if you have a community services card.

Last year we had ceiling insulation installed ($$$) and so this year I decided to have a go at installing Underfloor Insulation as cheap as possible.

So we awoke one morning to a mate dropping off a giant stack of 1200 mm by 2400 mm by 40 mm sheets of polystyrene. I was very apprehensive so enrolled the help of a mate to lead the way. Armed with measuring tape and Stanley knives we attacked the massive pile...and attacked...and attacked!

3 full days of measuring, cutting, gluing on spacers, fitting and crawling around under the house saw it DONE!





Things I learned whilst on the job:

1. Find someone who knows what to do to demonstrate / help you to do the job right.
2. I can do these type of things despite many doubts and misgivings about my D.I.Y skills.
3. Always wear protective gear (mask, earplugs, protective eye-wear)
4. Shift power cords so they are not touching the polystyrene (a fire hazard after a time)
5. If you can afford it...pay someone else to do it :)
   

I must admit the kiwi attitude still reigns supreme. Despite some cold weather (almost winter here in NZ) I walk around bare footed on my newly insulated floor boards, in shorts and a t-shirt. A fire? ...pshh! It's warm as man!

Mind you, the lure of toasted marshmallows may lead to a fire tonight - that's my excuse anyway!

Wassup wit Fish Cakes

For those who know me, they will know that I don't cook very often. I believe this is for the most part caused by my lovely wife (who besides being a great cook) has a strange aversion to my creations.

• Kahawai surprise
• Mac'n'cheese
• Spaghetti with an egg mixed in (delightful orange colour)
  

I believe a starving man would be glad to eat my creations. I know my kids chomp them back when my wife is at work and i'm on cooking duty. In saying this, I haven't busted out the Spag / Egg combo on the kids yet :)

Changing the subject slightly. I went out on a mates boat for a days fishing and relaxing recently. Such a great day. Big work ups of Kahawai bubbling up the sea greeted us as we motored right around the point from Tutukaka Mariner. Hooking into one of these monsters on light gear is like playing a game fish. Line peeling off as you slowly tighten the drag. Leaping out of the water, and finally when you have him next to the boat one last zoom staight down. Good fun.

Me and the kids ate a feast of pan fried Kahawai perfectly cooked (my wife declined). It was a big fish and we had a heap left over. So I decided to try my hand at making fish cakes the next night. Mashed spud was quickly cooked and put in the fridge to use in my upcoming masterpiece.

The next night after yet another day at the beach, Whananaki South (beautiful, uncrowded) it was out with the Edmonds Cookbook and into it. Check it out.

I would show you the plate afterwards but it looked cleaner than when I started...a Boucher trait :)

Check it out.