The Weehoo is Here

 The Tandem is now Complete

 At last the Weehoo is here ... there is a lot of excitement! Mike was so excited when it arrived, he picked up lars & Roxcy from preschool to take them home in it and they live 5 minutes away. Lars loves it ... he sits on the front seat of the Weehoo and pedals ... he is the man, he reminds me so much of Mike, Mike was such a tough little boy, he could really push himself physically from an early age. I took him on his first 5 day tramp when he was about 8 and he did it all, carrying a pack as big as he was, he looked so cute ... all I could see was his legs ... he did not complain ... once. Roxcy sits on the back ... moving around and enjoying all the sights to see, in her own world. Roxcy reminds me soooo much of lucy. Who knows what goes on in Roxcy's world or where it is, but it is full of love, laughter, happiness and I belong here ... you are here for me!

We have all done some test runs on the Weehoo. Pete and I biked home from the Lyall's family barbecue, 8 miles, with lars & Roxcy in the Weehoo. It was a beautiful night, perfect light ... a perfect night. The road was up and down ... with the odd steady incline ... towing the Weehoo the inclines felt like hard work. While riding up one of these inclines lars was in the back saying 'you can do it ... you can do it'.  Our own little cheer team. On the downhill we must have been going nearly 35-40 MPH at some points, with lars cheering loudly from the back. At one point we registered 23 MPH on the flat.

As you can see by the photos the Weehoo is a tandem trailer. The heaviest of the children sits in the front ... that is lars and he pedals, Roxcy is a tourist in the back seat. lars is an awesome pedaler and loves having a position of responsibility. There is a small basket on either side of the seats for drink bottles or rations, a small pannier bag on the back and on the back of lars' seat is a net holder for books or toys or any other important piece of travel equipment Roxcy might see fit to take on a road tour. To make us even more visible on the road there is an orange flag attached to the back of the Weehoo.

We took lars & Roxcy to church on Sunday in the Weehoo ... it was looking a little dark and had that 'it's going to rain' look, but we thought we had plenty of time. As we took of there was a little bit of thunder, but you know ... the weather does not determine the activity ... so we carried on. Here in VT when it rains, it really rains ... like a torrential downpour and it is very rare to have rain without thunder and lightening. We can hear thunder rumbling miles away before it actually reaches us here in Windsor, so we kept on going, thinking we had plenty of time. We were too far to turn back and down comes the rain, thunder and lightening! The children were great ... not a squeak ... well not a moaning squeak. I sang a Queen song to lars 'We are the Champions' ... and he started chanting ... 'we are the champions' over and over ... he was so cute. We arrived at the Chapel absolutely drenched! Roxcy was really upset that her dolly got wet. Chris brought a change of clothes for the children ... so all was good.

I am terrified most of the time ... I am scared that something awful might happen. Changing the gears is a little unreliable ... sometimes they go in to their proper place and sometimes they fight all the way. While we are peddling like crazy uphill and wanting to change down or up, is not a good time to be deciding if they will do what they are told. As the gears struggle to go in and we are working hard I start to have images of the bike coming to a slow halt and we fall of with our feet still stuck in the pedals. Now with the Weehoo in tow every movement from the back triggers images of the children lying on the road in a mangled heap of tandem bike and trailer. Pete still rides a little too close to parked cars for my liking and I get a bit of a start ... but now the children are on the back I am more anxious about them getting hurt or something. I am working on it though and my fear has not stopped me from getting on the bike.

For Carly

Enjoy these videos of our Weehoo rides...

Taking off from the Lyalls

Coming Home from the Lyalls

Arriving Back @ 18 Pine Street

FYI ... I love my new bike helmet. 

Red Rock Country

Red Rock ... Stunning

Pete and I spent a long weekend with our friends in Arizona ... Penny & larry Blomquist, Jenny & Marlin Addison and Jeff McIntyre joined in from time to time. We had a blast with them. They treated us like VIPs ... we came away feeling so spoilt and so well looked after. They had something planned for us every day. We ate out, spent a couple of hours on the Salt River kayaking ... we had to get up at 5am to do it ... a baseball game ... dinner ... a day trip to Sedona, finishing with a trip to the Temple on Tuesday morning ... amazing ice cream, yes it is true the US has amazing ice cream, almost better than NZ and a new pair of glasses from Target, US's best kept secret (who does not love Target??!!)

We have known Penny & Jenny for over 35 years ... I met Penny on my first day at 25 Fendalton Road ... my first visit to Church in years ... I was very nervous! I was introduced to Penny ... what stood out to me aside from her red hair was her confidence ... she was very friendly and welcoming, whereas I can be and am quite shy/standoffish and I really have to force myself to come forward. We have been friends ever since. Of course being friends with Penny means being friends with her whole family ... Jenny, Debbie, Susan and Beth. I spent lots of time at The McLeod's in my young adult days ... I have lots of good memories. Thelma always had home baking, tan square a favourite of everyones ... I still use her chocolate sauce recipe. Penny's place felt like a home ... a family. Quite a contrast to my home life. 

There was quite a vibrant group of YSA in ChCh at that time ... headed by Rob Cammock, Pete's older brother. We had some very exciting adventures when he was in charge. I lived in a mixed flat with other YSA from ChCh ... SuZie Dallas, Darlene Joyce, Catriena Vant'wout, Richard Stephens, Mike Lim and me. I shared a room with Catriena ... who would clean until all hours of the morning ... she was the 'queen of clean'. Mike & Richard would do lots of karate and play with their nunchucks, I remember Mike having his shirt of a lot during those karate spa days, Richard in his white ghi. We were a very eclectic group of people but we seemed to make it work ... I remember our flat being a lot of fun.  

Penny & I went on our missions at the same time ... Penny to the Philippines and I went to Auckland NZ. We were part of a group of missionaries that went through the first NZ MTC in Hamilton ... the first MTC outside of the US. We had so much fun together ... Penny's motto is to have fun and laugh lots well at least that is how I remember her and she has not changed. Jenny went on her mission to Thailand ... a health mission and she left before Penny & I. I remember writing to her when she was on her mission. When we got back from our missions Penny went to teachers college and I married Pete. That was 35 years ago. 

Penny has been a good friend ... we come from very different backgrounds and life experiences ... I have never felt 'less than' with Penny and she has always made an effort to keep our friendship alive even though distance has been a major factor over the last 30 years. Whenever Jenny or Penny come to town they have always made a point of making contact and seeing us. Now it looks like 'we are family' ... related on my Father's side through the Cleverley's. How weird is that?!

Penny & Jenny moved to the US and the rest is history really ... Jenny married Marlin and Penny married Larry. We have enjoyed our association with both of these men and getting to know them over the years ... they have always been very generous with us and welcoming and interested in what is happening with us. Penny & Jenny have children now and that is so much fun getting to know them as well. We have met them over the years at different ages and stages and I have loved seeing Penny & Jenny as Mothers. We have always really enjoyed their children. 

Friends are important ... good friendships have the potential for so much good in our lives. I am not sure I have been a good friend, awkward is what comes to my mind ... friendship is something that I have had to learn, it has not come naturally or easily for me. Keeping people at a distance has been a lot easier  ... I have felt scared of letting people in ... scared of what they might discover about me, or they might not like me. I have found it hard to accept that people want to be my friend and felt self conscious. I have felt very humbled by our experience with Penny, Jenny, Larry and Marlin ... they treated us with such high regard and I could see by their actions that we are valued by them ... it has only taken me 30+ years to figure that out. They have always been generous and welcoming to us ... even excited and pleased to see us. Marlin and Jenny took a day of work to go with us to Sedona, I will always remember a very passionate conversation with Marlin as he drove trying to focus on the road and where we were going while keeping on his topic. Larry & Penny opened up their home, made us feel like part of their family ... fed us like Kings & Queens and would not let us pay for anything! I feel blessed to have such good people as my/our friends. Thank you for a wonderful stay ... thank you for the years of friendship that we have shared. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

What you have been waiting for ... photos ...

Arizona

Frank Lloyd Wright Architect

Frank's Lobby of the Hotel he Designed and Built

Kayaking on Salt River @ 6 am in the Morning ... too hot otherwise.

I had to put this photo of Penny taking a photo ... this is how it goes ... hang on a minute ... just one more shot ... nearly done ... this could take some time before Penny had completed her photo, please note that the temperature could be and possibly will be over 100F while she is doing all this ... but she does take good photos.

A real Vulture ... possibly waiting for us to die ... 

 Heron ... Good Shot Pete

Baseball Game ... Indoor ... Phoenix Playing Chicago ... Phoenix Won ... Of Course

Speed of the Bowler ... oops I mean Pitcher ... too much cricket!

Here we all are ... less Larry ... Sedona

Plant Life in Arizona

Goodbye Old Friends ... We Miss You! 

Here they are again ... what you have been waiting for ... are these 2 cute or what??

Movie Time Again

Begin Again

We have just got home from a night at the movies ... we went to see Begin Again with Mark Ruffalo and Keira Knightley. We loved it. I found myself completely engrossed. I am a Mark Ruffalo fan for a long time. Keira I could take or leave ... I find her irritating, particularly when she tries to be serious or dramatic ... sometimes she can look absolutely stunning and other times plain ... not that that really matters ... but I enjoyed her in this film and did not get irritated at all. My attraction to Mark was what got me interested in the film and wanting to see it. 

I loved the shots of NYC ... there are some really good ones ... the subway, the city, places that we recognised and had been too, recently, brought the film alive for us. I enjoyed the music, especially the last song.  Keira is no singer, but that gave the film some vulnerability. I loved the energy of the film and the sense of possibility and creative energy. Mark Ruffalo is great as a washed up loser! I loved watching him jump up and down with the music. I loved his Jag ... a bit like him run down and needing some attention. For those who are cautious about content in movies ... there is no sex, but there is swearing.

It is a simple story ... a common theme ... lost and found! I think the director and the script writer really captured the energy of NYC, which is the backdrop to the story. I really liked some of Keira's outfits ... particularly the pants. A good resolution in the ending ... not too overstated and not manipulative or too sentimental.

We recommend this film and give it 8/10 ... maybe 9. I am curious about what the reviewers think of it. If any of you have seen it let me know what you think. 

We leave in 2 weeks and I am not sure if we will get to see many movies from here on in ... sad!  

A Eulogy for Ben ...

Our Friend Ben

We learnt yesterday that our friend Ben was on the MH17 flight that was shot down over the Ukraine. We were flying from Boston to Phoenix and our plane had TV and internet. Pete was watching the news on the flight when Ashley's FB message came through to let us know that Ben was on the flight.  It felt surreal that he could have been on that flight and we feel an incredible sense of loss. We have loved our friendship with Ben. He's always been such a warm, welcoming, humorous and fun part of our lives. I am at a loss for words! We find it hard to believe that Ben is no longer with us. 

We met Ben when Sasha Giles came to live with us ... he came with the Giles. I remember it as being an instant love affair. He was so friendly and so generous with himself. If there was a way to describe Ben it would have to be 'big heart'! Through the years we got to know Ben well ... his home was our go to place when ever we went to Queenstown which was quite a lot while Sash lived with us ... Ben's B&B. All of our children have spent some time staying or living with Ben, along with many other people that we met over the years. Ben provided employment for Sash and Ashley and in turn our children ... they have all worked for him, in some way or other. 

I remember Ben as smart, funny, charismatic, quick, generous, adventurous, enquiring, honest, flamboyant... he gave of himself selflessly to others, he was courageous ... he moved from Belgium to Queenstown ... then to Bali, which he loved and became home to him and of course where he met Puput, I think he was his happiest in Bali. He was always encouraging of people reaching their dreams and their potential and he loved to see those he loved and cared about do well. He loved Sash and Ashley Giles! He gave the best of himself to everything he did and to everyone he cared about. He loved Abba and Queen ... he loved to dance. I remember him loving action movies and returning from trips overseas with many pirated DVDs he had picked up. He was a spiritually sensitive man and talked often about his Jesuit education that had a profound effect on his life. He accepted everyone that came into his life ... with love and generosity. 

I remember many interesting conversations with Ben ... when we visited Queenstown and when he would come to Christchurch and visit with us. A rapid drive in his Landrover through Skippers Canyon, a tramp where we had gourmet food ... not freeze dried. Ben was there when Mike & Chris got engaged. Yachting trips he was planning for groups of people ... Mike & Chris being on one of those trips. Ben always brought a sense of adventure and possibility. In his mind anything was possible and that's how he lived. 

We are so glad  that we made the trip to NYC to see Ben and meet Puput. In pure Ben style their honeymoon was meticulously planned and included business class seats, the best hotels and some of the best places in the US to visit. All for Puput. Ben had 'style'. Our last words to Ben were 'We love you Ben' as we hugged him goodbye on the streets of NYC and we watched Ben & Puput continue on their honeymoon and life together. He looked so happy ... it felt like no time had passed at all between us. There is a warm comfort that comes from meeting with old friends. The world seems a duller place without him in it. We will miss him.

New York with Ben & Puput 

A wonderful Time with Old Friends and New

This is for you Ben ... 

Alice Mary Cammock ... Our Baby

Today is Alice's birthday ... she is 23. It feels like yesterday that she was a baby and my life was full and busy with being the Mother of 4 very busy young children ... who have changed our lives forever.

We tried, very hard and for a long time to get pregnant with Alice ... 14 months to be exact! Nothing was happening.  I remember getting really discouraged and thinking that I did not want to go through this kind of anticipation and let down each month, so I told Pete no more! I was done and we would have to settle with 3 ... where upon Pete replied "I feel like we have gone shopping lizzie and left one of the children behind." I replied ..."well someone else can collect it from the lost and found, we're not!" Then ... along came Alice.

Alice is our baby! She was a beautiful baby ... curly hair that hung round her shoulders, beautiful pale skin ... she looked like a Pears Print baby. She was a pleasure and a joy to have in our family. I had Alice at home ... 131 Somerfield Street, Christchurch, at about 8am in the morning ... Mike, lucy and Mack were there to watch her come into the world. My labour was longer than I expected and pushing her into the world was hard work ... she was our biggest baby. I will always remember those moments of pushing life into the world and the anticipation of waiting to hear is it a boy or a girl and then holding that new little person for the first time ... words cannot describe the exquisiteness of those moments ... holding each one of our children for the first time ... I have found each one of those moments incredibly moving, powerful and so full of love, there is no other feeling that can match it!

Alice was named after both of my Grandmothers ... Alice, my father's mother ... Mary, my mother's mother. These women were incredibly significant and powerful women in my life. Mary taught me to bake, clean and cook. I remember her as a little woman with white hair but she was tough and a hard worker. Alice was a lady ... she talked with a plum in her mouth ... she took me to ballet, opera, paid for my Scottish Dancing and swimming lessons and was always very kind and loving to me. Before Alice was born I knew I wanted to name her after these 2 women ... it felt so right to me ... and I wanted Alice to have a name that meant something significant, something that she could carry with pride ... I hope that is the case.

Alice has always been quite a big personality ... the youngest of 4 ... trailing behind the others trying to keep up and never wanting to be left behind. When she was little and would get sick, she would lie down on the couch with a stool beside her set with a tablecloth, water /juice, tissues and any other medicinal things that she might need to look after herself. She insisted on learning to play the piano at 5! I was a little concerned she might be too young and tried to talk her out of it ... to no avail ... she has been playing since she was 6. I remember when she got 'Student of the Year' at Addington Primary School ... a great school for Alice ... she was so proud of herself. She was dreadful at maths, she hated it and just did not get it! We had an interview with her year 10 maths teacher ... I walked in and introduced myself as Alice's Mother, her maths teacher said "... yes Alice ... well what can I say!" I knew things were really bad in that moment ... I think we must have spent 1,000s of dollars on Maths tuition for Alice ... she passed all her NCEA maths papers ... thank goodness and has never spent another year of her life with maths, it was a bad relationship from the start!

Alice is honest, what you see is what you get! She is very organised and tidy, even when she tries to be messy. She loves cars and she loves driving Pete's Fraser. She loves road trips ... one of our best was when Alice and I went down the West Coast together ... 2011 ... I loved that trip together. She is loyal ... like her sister ... if you tell Alice something it goes into a vault full of confidences. She is a good friend. She loves music and loves going to concerts. She loves the written word ... The Hours is one of her favourite books and films. She has strong opinions about things and is not afraid to speak out/up about something. She has a good sense of humour and a funny laugh. She is kind to people ... her employers really like her. She is great with children. She is a really good cook! She is disciplined ...  she perseveres ... she will keep at something until she gets it right. I remember watching her at swimming lessons one day and she was getting ready to dive of the block and I heard her saying ... 'I can do this' over and over to herself ... and she did it! She has courage to face hard things even when she is scared ... like her trip to the States ... solo. She is passionate about things she feels strongly about ... she has dreams and a vision for her life and knows what she wants to do and where she is going ... most of the time. She loves poetry, the arts, playing the piano and singing. I remember going to listen to Alice sing, with lucy, Rosie, Josh and Pete ... she sang a Cowboy Junkies song and we all cried ... then she sang Carol King ... what I remember most about her concert was her ease in being in her body ... she seemed so different, so alive, so relaxed, her body moved so freely and relaxed ... Pete would call that flow! Alice loves singing. Alice is a thinker. She loves home and being near home.

I love hugging Alice ... I love feeling her in my arms and holding her close to me. I love having her cuddle up to me on the couch. I love how she is so willing to cook for me. After Feb 2011 Alice was the person that kept our family together ... she would make sure we went grocery shopping ... she would cook meals ... she would take me to the to the Riccarton Market each Saturday ... she looked after us ... at some cost to herself. Such a selfless act of love ... Alice had lost her home ... Pete was away all the time with Uni work and did not get home until late at night ... I was in a constant state of PTSD! I don't know what we would have done without you, thank you! I love going to concerts with Alice ... I love her passion and I am inspired by her courage to do things that seem so hard and overwhelming. I love how she tries so hard to make people happy particularly her family. I love her vulnerability, there is strength in vulnerability. I love how her eyes go big and wide when she is scared or upset about something. We miss you.

 Classy Lady

 Alice in Chicago...Cool Chick

Alice loves lillie ... these are for you!

Happy Birthday Alice ... We love you!

For lucy

"The more photos the better ... " lucy says ... so this is for you lucy ...

Covered Bridge over The Connecticut River ... the Border between VT & NH

A garden on State Street ... beautiful

Growing wild round Lake Runnemede

Fireworks display 4th of July

Watching Fireworks 4th of July

Cousins 4th of July

Roxcy ... Natural History Museum

Mini Sasha

Travelling into NYC on the Subway

This maybe a repeat ... beautiful ...

The merc Building Windsor

Local Pizza Parlour

Responsible Dog Owners ...

Spot the Difference

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

Caesar

Pete & I took some time out last night and went to see Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. I am a Planet of the Apes fan ... I remember Charleton Heston stepping out of his crashed space ship, after being lost in space for a number of years, onto the beach and being met by Apes/Chimpanzees ... or have I got that confused with another movie. I loved that movie! I loved Rise of the Planet of the Apes with James Franco ... I thought it was excellent ... 9/10. A really good interpretation and I love how they focussed on the relationship between Caesar and Will, I found it very convincing.

Here are my thoughts on Dawn of the Planet of the Apes ... Caesar is the star of the movie ... he does all his acting with his eyes. I love Caesar! The opening scene is amazing ... really captivating, I loved watching the monkeys swinging through the trees, great cinematography. Of course most of it is digital ... I am assuming. The storyline links quite well with the Planet of the Apes ... but if you are going in cold you might find it a little confusing, maybe not. I thought it was about 30 minutes too long ... I did not like the end ... monkey bonding family ending ... too much for me, a bit too sentimental and manipulative. The monkey fighting scenes were good ... now I know how they kill each other or predators. I hated the scenes where the computer generated figures did not fit with the eye contact of the actors ... bugged me! There was a good amount of tension in the film and enough character involvement to keep me interested. I give this movie a 7/10.

I realise I come out of a generation of character driven movies ... Clint Eastwood in Dirty Harry and The Good, The Bad and The Ugly ... little dialogue, a look instead of dialogue ... Yul Brynner another actor who said little, but had a menacing look ... a film was carried by the storyline and the characters. I do like a good action movie with well done computer graphics ... Batman I have enjoyed ... Star Trek ... The Matrix I loved!! But for real satisfaction I find myself going back to something that is slower and character driven. Which brings me to my next movie ... TV series ... Rectify.

"... the most reluctant innocent man ..."

We are really enjoying this series and are in to Season 2. Daniel Holden is compelling and I fluctuate between feeling empathy for him and afraid for him  to being afraid of him. His adjustment from Death Row to freedom is very moving ... what is freedom anyway? The filming is excellent ... the pace is slow and deliberate much like Daniel. The characters have got me engaged and interested in their story. There is a lot happening in each episode ... but not on screen ... the sense that something is going to happen ... where is this going to end. There is the odd scene that I found hard to take, but not enough to stop watching. I love the opening soundtrack. There are a couple of actors that irritate me ... but over all the acting is very good ... if you get a chance to see this, do. I give this series 10/10. Let me know what you think.

Peter Larson Cammock ... Super Hero

lars ... Super Hero

Our eldest granchild was born in New Hampshire, USA. His parents are Christina larson Cammock & Michael Ashley Cammock. He has his Mother's luminous blue eyes, his Dad's thick dark eye lashes and sticky out ears. He is a cross between Ninja and vulnerable, cheeky and pouty, shy and bold. He is a sweet little boy and there is something gentle about him ... sensitive.

He loves to play ... he loves riding his bike ... he loves watching movie trailers with his Dad and Rokenbok trailers ... he loves watching Top Gear with Pete ... he loves running under the hose ... he loves playing with his Hot Shots track and he and Pete have a lot of fun together. He loves Super Heroes ... Transformers. He loves Cheese Pizza and Salami Pizza ... he loves Mac and Cheese ... he loves ice cream ... he loves peanut butter and honey sandwiches ... he loves strawberries. He loves coming up and punching my butt ... his way of saying I like you Grandma. He loves playing with his cousins ... he loves hanging out with his Dad ... he is really interested in things ... like museums, he loved NYC and sat in his buggy with Roxcy for hours, captured by all that was happening! When something grabs his interest he becomes very absorbed and serious. He loves Star Wars books and he loves Tin Tin comics and reading them with Pete & his Dad. Water pistols are a dangerous hazard in his hands ... as are swords, bows and arrows and any other weapon of mass destruction. lars has a love/hate relationship with Karate ... he hates going, but when he gets there he warms up to it. He is good at it as well, he has good blocks, good stance and some power behind his punches and kicks. He likes to dance. He is a wonderful little boy with the most amazing eyes that really are the window to his world.

When he is upset or angry he says ... 'don't look at me' ... or 'I hate you!' He wants to be one of the big boys ... I am pretty sure that he will never be a big/tall boy. I love the way he moves into Super Hero play/mode ... out come his Karate kicks and his weaponry. I love the way he will sometimes be sitting next to me on the couch and will unconsciously start to lean on me ... I love how he holds my hand when he crosses the road ... I love how he calls me Grandma and Pete ... Pete. I love watching lars and Pete together. I love watching him run ... he has the craziest run and is the fastest moving boy in any group of children. I love how his face looks when he becomes interested in something and wants to know more. I love how he sneaks out of bed in the mornings and goes downstairs and turns on the TV to watch a 'show'. I love how polite he is and how grown up he sounds when he is saying thank you to cars that stop to let us cross the road. There is an earnestness and honesty about lars that I find so lovable.

We love this little boy ... he is handsome, curious, interested and fun ... today he is 5! He is one of the four reasons we come to Windsor VT.

Hanging out on the Hood

Playing is Serious Work

Storing Energy

A S'mores Moment

Independence

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PETER LARSON CAMMOCK

NYC The Empire State

New York City is art, splendour, creativity, vibrant, spectacular, stunning and a must see before you die! The people who designed and built this city had a vision of what they wanted and how they saw NY in the grand scheme of things, they have created something absolutely magnificent, beautiful and artistic!  Many great movies have been filmed here ... Day After Tomorrow filmed in the NYC library, When Harry Met Sally, You've Got Mail, King Kong ... the opening scene of Last of the Mohicans was filmed in Upper NY State. There are stage shows and performances for all tastes. People from all over the world come to see NYC and why not!? NYC has plenty to boast about. I would love, love, love the redesign of ChCh to be filled with this kind of artistic thinking and vision ... something that excites people.

Mike, Chris, lars, Roxcy, Pete and I headed of to New York City to catch up with Ben Chardome and his husband Puput, who were on their honeymoon in the US. I was so excited ... I love New York City!  I love the architecture, the buildings are amazing, the energy, the streets, the food, the art galleries. I love Grand Central Station, there is an amazing food court there and a great deli ... buskers ... people galore! The design of Grand Central Station is amazing! I feel like I am in a movie every time I have been there. The New York library is beautiful ... just so many amazing buildings. I love Grand Central park ... which is so big and has so much happening around it and in it. The Art Gallery, The Met, on the Park is amazing and really needs a good few days of visiting ... Museum of Natural History ... also amazing and where A Night at the Museum was filmed! The Peggy Guggenheim Gallery is over the road, The International was filmed there, starring Clive Owen and Naomi Watts.

We have visited NYC 3 times. Our first visit was in 1996. We visited as a family as part of our trip through the States. We camped on Long Island ... where Mike had a near death experience ... I tried to kill him! Caught the subway into Grand Central Station and spent a couple of days walking round the city ... Wall Street ... Statue of Liberty ... Empire State Building ... come to mind ... one of the children vomiting on the boat on the way back from the Statue of Liberty ... Alice I think ... it was soooo hot that day.

Pete & I did a return visit in 2008 when we came out to visit Mike & Chris. We spent 5 days in the city, that was the best time for me. We stayed in a very dodgy motel in Connecticut, with a plastic sheet on the mattress and a sheet of thick plastic over the office window ... I think it might have had multiple uses as a motel. We caught the train into Grand Central Station every day and bought breakfast at the food hall there. We had a great time and saw so much of NY city every day ... Soho ... Blecker Street ... Rockefeller building ... AT & T building. I did not want to leave.

Another visit last week ... we drove to Long Island ... via ferry and stayed with Sasha, Jordan and Pena for a couple of nights and we ventured in together on the subway on Wednesday to meet up with Ben and Puput, his husband. We had a fun visit with them. We have not seen Ben in years, I so loved seeing him again and I am so glad we made the effort to meet up with him and to meet Puput. We had lunch with them, then Mike, Chris, lars, Roxcy, Pete & I went to the Natural History Museum ... Jordan, Sash and Pena went up the Rockefeller building. We spent about 2 hours in the museum and could have spent longer. lars and Roxcy loved the museum, the animals, so much going on there for them and so did we ... so much to see. We then caught up with Sash, Jordan and Pena and walked across Brooklyn Bridge in the rain ... fun! The rain turned into a thunder storm ... very exciting and very heavy. We finished our day of with ice creams in Brooklyn and then drove back to Jordan & Sash's place to stay another night, catching another ferry on Thursday and back home to VT. Here are some photos.

Our New Friend Pena ... Isn't she gorgeous!

Making Friends

I love the Subway ... get a load of the steel pillars!!

The Other Side of the Tracks

These Guys were Troopers

Meeting up with Old Friends and New

Lunching Together in NYC ... Yummy

Fashion ...

Design ...

Beautiful ... reminds me of Marg

Light ..

Decor

Sitting in the rain ... Grand Central Park

We found The Book of Mormon...I love this photo of Pete!

Brooklyn Bridge ... note the Sandals.

Chris ... capturing every moment ...

Roxcy & Pete on Brooklyn Bridge

Ice Creams in Brooklyn

I love this Girl ... I loved having her in our home ... I love seeing her happy ... I love seeing her as a Mum

I tried ... NYC night lights ...

Joined at the hip ...

Chris is a wonderful Mother to lars and Roxcy ... she is kind, patient, loving, plays lots with them, is very creative with them, enjoys them, laughs with them, enjoys their company. I find myself being moved by her. Roxcy loves her Mum ... Chris is her 'go to' person ... her person of choice ... the one who answers all her questions, soothes all of her concerns, loves away her hurts. Whenever Roxcy sees Chris her whole face lights up ... she is so happy to see her MUM. I have not had someone feel like that about me in a long, long time ... I really miss being someone's number 1 Mum. I miss those moments of being the person that lights up someone's face ... where did those years go? I loved those years!

 Have to finish with these 2 awesome travellers.