Camping with Little M

I am well-known for my love of spontaneous adventures and last-minute trips, but Steve normally does not share my love of these things. So when, in the middle of our relaxing Saturday morning this past weekend, I threw out the idea of going camping that night, and Steve agreed, I was both surprised and thrilled! We drove to Cape Palliser, about 2.5 hours away, home of the lighthouse below, and of the Pinnacles - unique rock formations that made it into The Lord of the Rings movies. 

Although we arrived close to sunset, and set up and ate dinner in the dark, Madeleine loved every minute of it. She followed us around, watched us intently as we set up the tent, and had fun with the headlamps we were using.

She slept between us in our zipped-together sleeping bags, and thanks to her cozy fleece suit she stayed warm even when she squirmed her way out of the bag during the night. She woke at the pitch dark hour of 5:30am (remember that it is the middle of winter here!) and within seconds was saying "Da?" and pulling on Steve's toque and shirt. Thankfully, she fell back asleep after an hour or so of squirming and "Da"ing and we were able to get up in the daylight.

She loved these chairs, and was completely absorbed as Daddy told her all about how gas camping stoves work.

On Sunday we walked up the 200+ steps to the lighthouse and took in the views from the top. We had some chips for a snack, and Madeleine's treat was a yummy store-bought fruit yogurt sachet. As soon as she got it, she climbed onto Daddy's lap and leaned back to enjoy the moment and the treat. She doesn't often get that cuddly, or at least not for very long, so this was especially cute.

We did a short hike up the valley to see the Pinnacles, which were quite impressive up close.  We had been here in October of 2009, but hadn't been back since, and it was fun to share it all with Madeleine.

This is my last full week here before Madeleine and I fly to Canada for 5 weeks. We'll be spending 3 weeks in BC, and then flying to Ontario where Steve will meet us for a week, and then we'll all fly back to BC for another week before returning to New Zealand together. I'm really looking forward to the trip, and really hoping little M manages to sleep on the long flight!

Mini-Break in Nelson

This past weekend, Madeleine and I went to sunny Nelson with our friends Emily and Jac. Emily and her partner (who is a Kiwi) moved to NZ from Wales almost a year ago, and their little boy Jac is just a couple of months older than M. We've become good friends, and when I said I was thinking of going somewhere for the weekend, Emily suggested that we all go to Nelson for a little "mini-break"! Jac's grandparents live in Nelson, so we were able to stay with them. They were so welcoming and made Madeleine feel like another grandchild as she sat on their laps for stories and cuddles. 

Having lived in Nelson for five wonderful months, I was excited to go back and see the beach, visit the market, and soak up some sun.  It's hard to believe it was over three years ago that Steve and I lived there; it brought back some wonderful memories to be there again and it was fun to share it all with Madeleine.

Jac has about twice the energy and speed as Madeleine, so Emily spent a lot of time chasing him, and keeping him from falling into trouble (see below!). Madeleine tried to keep up with him, following him around, running away from him (he has a tendency to bowl her over), and constantly calling out "Jaaa!"

Of course a good picture of the two of them together was impossible to get, but here they are taking a quick snack break on a bench in Queen's Park.

It was such a lovely weekend away, and the ferry ride back was beautiful and calm. Part of the time Madeleine and I explored the boat with her in the backpack, and the rest of the time she walked around, exploring everything within reach, and occasionally toppling over with the rocking of the boat. Often while walking where people were reading, sleeping, or listening to music in chairs, she would stop next to them, and stare up at them with a big smile, just waiting for them to look at her. The people who were asleep seemed to intrigue her in particular, and I often had to pull her away before she tugged on their pant leg or called out to them. It's really cute to see her be so interactive with people. The trip away helped pass these last few days without Steve, and we get to pick him up from the airport tomorrow morning!

Walking Girl

Madeleine loves going for walks along the footpath by the water, but she is easily distracted and speed is not her top concern.

 Taking a break on a bench...

These cute little pink shoes from Grandma Georgia finally fit Madeleine, and she didn't want me to take them off, even after putting her pj's on.

Steve and Madeleine usually spend the mornings together while I have a little extra sleep, and this is what she often gets up to... if she can't quite reach the container she needs, she climbs right in! She'll be missing her daddy-filled mornings for the next little while though, since Steve left yesterday to go to a conference in Amsterdam until July 9th. We are holding down the fort here, but already missing him, and dreaming up some adventures of our own (that don't involve the tupperware drawer).

Catching Up

It feels like it's been awhile since the last post, but not too much has been going on here. Madeleine has had several colds, which means we've been going out less. But I couldn't resist a beautiful sunny day in Wellington last Friday - we dropped some neighbours off at the airport, and enjoyed the beautiful views from a nearby park.

Madeleine is walking all over the place now, but once we got outside, she was too busy picking up every little pebble to go very far by foot.

Another reason for going to Wellington that day was to see the Esmerelda - a Chilean navy ship that was in port for a few days, and open to the public for a few hours.

Madeleine loves putting things around her neck and over her head. Grammie Jean sent a package a few weeks ago and used a bunch of pieces of yarn to tie it - Madeleine has held onto those strands of yarn and drapes them around her neck, on and off, on and off.

She finds our hats that are within reach...

and our scarves...

and my stethoscope!

Steve was busy the last few weeks, building a new little telescope just in time for the transit of Venus last Wednesday. Unfortunately, that was the one really rainy and cloudy day in weeks and he didn't get to see the transit.

And here is a shot of M and me cuddling on the couch... she didn't stay there long though!

Ready for Winter

This week I dug out some of Madeleine's winter wear since it is definitely getting colder, both inside and out. Every year, around the month of May, I find myself amazed at how cold I feel here in NZ, and I ask myself how many more months of winter are left? Winter here means wiping condensation from the windows every morning, wearing at least three layers (indoors and out), and always having slippers on. The lack of good housing is such a widespread problem here that Steve's work was actually advertising a seminar for new migrants, entitled "How to Keep Your House Warm in Winter".  

Madeleine is getting a lot of use out of her new sweater, knitted by Grammie Jean. The toque was a gift from some of our Ottawa friends, Wendy and Lenke, and it fits her perfectly.

The buttons on her new sweater are a sheep, a cow, and a horse - very cute - but I'm having a hard time convincing Madeleine that they are not edible.

These stacking rings are one of the toys we got from the local Toy Library, where you can borrow toys for two week periods. She loves these rings, and is so proud of herself for getting them on that she stops to clap for herself after each one.

She spends a good part of each day reading her books - she can even read them upside down. She points to the words and babbles away with great animation. She's not as interested in having us read them to her though and she won't sit on our lap or even sit still next to us. Instead, she crawls away but keeps an eye on us, and looks back at the pages every now and then, clearly still listening.

This is how Madeleine feels when I don't let her play with the camera.

And finally, who do you think the following three pictures are of?!

People often tell me that they don't really see either Steve or me in Madeleine, so I was curious and had my parents send me some pictures from when I was around Madeleine's age. I think there is a definite resemblance! It will be interesting to do the same with some of Steve's baby pictures.

Happy Mother's Day

This was actually my second Mother's Day, but last year Madeleine was just one day old, and motherhood felt very different than it does this year. I had hoped to get a cute picture of the two of us, but Madeleine was feeling particularly squirmy and not very smiley, despite various songs and funny faces from Daddy.

It was a lovely day - church in the morning, then a local market, big afternoon naps for all of us, and some reading on the couch for me while Steve and Madeleine braved the supermarket.  They had a great time apparently, despite M dropping a bag of pasta in an aisle and then screaming (briefly, Steve assures me) at the checkout.

Madeleine loves to pull out whatever I leave in the bottom of the stroller - this day it was the apples from the market. 

Happy Birthday, Madeleine!

From Day 1...

... to now!

We celebrated Madeleine's birthday on the weekend with a skype party with Grandma and Grandpa Gibson and Great Grammy Inez. She got to show them her new highchair, her first balloons, and her first taste of chocolate, which she loved. We skyped with Grammie Jean later in the day and again with Grandpa Mark the next day. Madeleine is certainly an experienced skyper! It's hard to imagine living so far away from family without getting to see and talk with them every week.

On Monday, her actual birthday, I took her to the zoo to show her all the creatures big and small. We spent the most time watching the chimpanzees and giraffes, but I have to admit that I think she was most taken with the iguana that simply stared at her.

Her new highchair arrived a couple of weeks ago and the box has been lots of fun for Madeleine to play in. She loves crawling inside to peek out the window, and when we crawl inside to look out, she comes over and gives us a big slobbery kiss. 

Now that she's one, she thinks she's ready to start some more technical reading, such as the Fundamentals of Optical Design - one of daddy's favourites.

Needless to say, she has brought so much joy to us this past year. We are so thankful that she has been healthy and happy, and every day she makes us smile and laugh. We don't have any more Plunket follow ups until she is 18 months, but I did sneak a weigh-in for her when I went to visit the Children's Ward last month, and she was 24lb. Part of my reason for visiting my old work, was to hand in my resignation letter. As much as I love being a nurse, I am so happy to be able to stay home with Madeleine.

She has only taken a few more steps on her own since the famous "first steps" but she loves walking around the furniture, walking from room to room with her walker, and walking with just one of our hands. She is very chatty these days with lots of stories to tell, but none of them have any real words yet.  She is a busy girl, good at playing on her own (until she gets hungry or tired), and still a fabulous eater. So far the only foods I have found she really doesn't like are carrots and kiwifruit. I don't tell many people here that she doesn't like kiwis!