a little accident

 

yesterday morning i went for a run down the path. the path goes through a bunch of cattle/sheep pastures. when i left there were a bunch of cattle standing right by the gate. so i thought i would just hop over the fence because i dont really like cows. that went fine and i went for a nice run. When i got back the cows were still there so i thought i would go over the fence again. As i was lifting my second leg over the fence, i touched an electric wire. i didnt know they were electric. it zapped me really good on the leg and so i jumped backwards and landed on my wrist. ya...not so good. i immediatly felt another electric current shoot through my wrist. I knew it was broken. 

At the hospital i had many xrays, a cat scan and a meeting with an orthopedic surgen. it looks like it is a really complicated break and they know already that it is not in the correct position, but have to wait for the swelling to go down vbefore they can opperate.
 my wrist is broken in 4 places. The one bone is broken in 3 places and was shoved up into my wrist and there is a chip off the other bone.  I will need surgery in 9 days once the swelling goes down and they will put some metal in to hold it together.
thankfully we are in nz for another 5 1/2 weeks which should give me time to heal before we leave for Balli

not the greatest news and i still cant really believe it has happened, but thankfully we are in nz and the care here is excellent.

south island north end

We had a great time on the south island. We drove so many amazing highways. Most through the mountains. Every turn just as beautiful as the next. We spent our last 3 nights in a small city call Blenheim. We couch surfed with a woman with 2 daughters still living at home. One was 15 and reminded us all of our neice Zoe. It was so amazing how she not only looked like Zoe but her actions were similar as well. It was a nice reminder of home.
We went on a nice senic drive through the mountains (of course) and we also went on an afternoon wine tour with our CS host driving us from winery to winery. It was very fun.
To see the pictures, you will have to take a look on facebook. I've tried to upload pictures again today to this site, but it jst won't work.
Here is a link
https://www.facebook.com/messages/#!/OurFamilyTravels

The quest

We wanted it. We wanted it bad. We knew it might be tough. We knew it might be impossible. But if we found what we were looking for, we would be in heaven. 

We started our quest driving out into the hills. I drove, while Dean searched. Every once in a while, I'd hear him say in an excited voice. Slow down! I think I see some! I would stop and we'd get out and search the roadside. Only 1 or 2 were to be found. So disappointing. We knew that we had to find them. We weren't going back till we had enough. Eventually, we came upon a better spot. Our bowl wasn't empty anymore. But this was not good enough. The search continued. Again and again we'd stop and take a look. Our bowl started to fill up. But still the search continued. One more stop, then two and three. The hours went by. But if we found the mother load. If only we found the spot we were looking for. We would leave happy. Then it happened! We found the perfect spot. Perfect, except for the most difficult of situations. What we were looking for was smack dab in the middle. In the middle of the most painful hard to reach spots. But it would be worth it! 

So in we went. Every step we took more painful than the next. Why hasn't we worn jeans and runners. What were we thinking leaving on this quest so ill prepared? This was not gonna be pretty in the end. But still it was worth it. All the pain and agony was going to pay off. If only there was enough. But it looked good. If only we could push through the pain and just concentrate on the goal. 

Which is what we did. Every inch forward was easier as our bowl became fuller. All that could be heard was the moaning and groaning and cheering. 

Finally it was done! We could tare our bodies out and return to the car. Battered and bloodied but satisfied with the results. We didn't look to good.  Our legs were dripping  blood. Our arms were full of scratches and my hair was full of broken pieces of bush.  

But we did it. Two bowls of juicy perfect wild.........

Guess what we picked!

Hiking

We went on a 4 hour hike up into the mountains with our new Irish friends. We had a picnic along a creek and hiked back down having to cross over the creek multiple times. It was a great day! To see all the pictures go to our Facebook page. It should work even if you don't have Facebook.
www.facebook/ourfamilytravels.com

Driving in NZ

All of the highways we have traveled on so far in NZ are quite narrow. They are two lane highways without a shoulder. On the South Island it is mostly mountainous with a bit of driving through valleys and foothills. We have driven through lots of rainforest and also past a lot of sheep farms. The part that is so interesting is along these major highways there are many many one lane bridges. So when you get to the bridge, there will be a sign that tells you who has the right of way. Sometimes highway bridges also share the road with trains. The train always has the right of way! 

Oh yes, we are also driving on the other side of the road and car than what we are used to! 

With all the beauty around us, we have to be very careful to remember to pay attention to driving and less on the view. So we take lots of turns with driving and lots of breaks to see the view. 

We also spend lots of money on gas! We complain about the price of fuel on Mb. It's around $2.20-$2.40/liter here!! 

To see pictures we have posted on Facebook. I think you can view them even if you are not a Facebook member. Go to www.facebook/ourfamilytravels.com

The amazing beauty of NZ

We drove from invercargill in the south Island to Queenstown today. It was an amazing curvy drive through the mountains. We left flat country and very quickly hit the foothills and the more north we drove, the hillier it became. The highways are always only two lane and don't have a shoulder. The edges are either mountainous on one side or a straight drop on the other. Everywhere you look, there are sheep, red deer or cattle.
For more pictures visit our Facebook Page.

www.facebook/ourfamilytravels.com

Lovin where we are

We are in an amazing country. As we travel the road south of Christchurch  NZ. I am in awe. 

I feel so insignificant, yet so grateful to be standing in the middle of the type of beauty that draws you into its depths.  

It is such a blessing to be standing here.  I feel like we are a part of something that I know few people may never get to experience.  I know that when we return home, I will always be able to close my eyes and remember this moment. I want to remember the look in Colton's eyes when he sees something that he has only read about and thought possibly he may never see. I want to remember his face as he looks up at his dad with respect and love or puts his arm through mine to climb a steep hill. 

I want to look at Miranda and know that she will grow up to be a woman that we will be proud of just like we are now. I want to see her learn things about herself and the world that will help her grow to be confident and strong even when things are sometimes hard. 

I want them to know that dreams are worth working towards. 

It feels amazing to be achieving our dreams for us and our kids. We are where we are meant be. I know that from the depths of my being. 

This country is lush and green. When we stop by the side of the road the smell of flowers almost overpowers us. Flowers that grow in bushes and hedges taller than we are. 

The trees are massive with trunks that are meters and meters around. Their roots sometimes come out of the ground on the sides of the road where they have dug away at the earth. In other places the thick trees grow right up beside the road on each side creating a canopy over the cars that drive down the road. The road is right up to the edge of the forest. It's like they didn't want to cut down one to many trees to make the road. It is amazing to drive for hours down the curvy canopy covered road. The journey is absolutely as important as the destination in this case. We rarely hear the kids ask when will we be there. We seem to mostly drive without the radio on. Taking in the beauty in silence. Or we talk about what we are seeing or wonder what might be around the corner. We try to be carful to stop whenever we can. If we pass by something that looks interesting. We stop. There is no time limit. Time is our friend. Its a huge learning curve for this getter done kinda family. Slow down.....

Right now many of our friends/family are rolling around on the floor laughing in disbelief! 

Christchurch

Christchurch

I feel like we've been gone a long time. actually, I'm not even sure how many days its been or even what day it is. What I know is that we are here together. Meeting new friends and learning new things. 

Yesterday we bought our first international car. It was a fairly easy thing to do. We started out looking on the Internet for backpackers wanting to sell their vehicles. We went to look at one car. It was really run down and didn't look to safe. 

Our New Zealand car

On our way back, we stopped at a car dealership and inquired about the type of car we wanted. One with lots of storage for our bags and could fit us all in. They had one car in our price range ($2000) and it was exactly what we had been looking for. A station wagon type with lots of room. It is perfect! 

In a couple of days we will start our journey south along the coast. We can't wait to be out of the city. Though we will really miss our friends Darren, Hellen and Maddi. They welcomed us back into their home. After spending some time couch surfing with them  3 years ago. It felt like home when we pulled up. Colton made the comment that it didn't really feel like we had started the trip yet. Because it felt like we were just visiting friends at home. With cool accents of course!! 

The weather has been amazing. Other than a rain shower last night and this morning. The temp has been around +24 and sunny! It stays light in the evening till 9:30 or so. We are feeling really cozy in our little sleep out in the back yard while our kids sleep in the house.