We're here!

I'm writing this sitting at the dining table in our new house in Taranaki.  The morning sun is shining on my back.  There's a log smouldering in the wood burner.  

Looking out the window to my left I can see the sunshine catching the leaves in our huge ginkgo tree which is just starting to turn its brilliant autumn yellow.  There are blackbirds digging in the dirt and (less thrilling) bunnies living in the hedge.

WE ARE HERE.  We live here!

I took the below photo of the Perth sky on our last day before we flew out that evening.  But it turns out that, so far, the sun has shone here every day.  It has rained too, but for now the weather is being kind.

I haven't been able to get the photos off my camera yet for various boring technical reasons, and may not be able to get them until our computer arrives in a month's time which is torture considering how many photos I have already taken.  But we all may have to put up with iPhone photos on here for a few weeks yet.

So just to catch you up...

We flew out of Perth the evening of Good Friday, and arrived in New Plymouth about 12 hours later feeling pretty depleted, to say the least.  The travel was hard with the girls, as we'd expected it to be, but I also found myself in a very low mood, questioning the whole move, which I struggled to shake for a couple of days.  Combine that with a raging cold for me and the girls (I'm only just getting my voice back now) and those first few days were rough.

We stayed with B's dad and stepmother who were amazing hosts considering that we brought our germs and screaming chaos into their beautiful home.  They've also filled our freezer here so I have about a year's worth of delicious meat at my fingertips.

New front yard

Our first night in the new house was Tuesday.  The house is fantastic - better than the photos - and now that we've got the fire going it's cosy and homely and perfect for our little family.

Licheny!

The cat arrived on Wednesday and although he is seriously peeved about not being allowed to go outside yet, he's pretty happy basking in front of the fire and watching the birds out the window.  There's a very busy 100kph road out the front which gives me the horrors so I hope he just heads out the back where there's lots of grass and trees and never addresses the road.

J is in her element in her brand new gumboots and her raincoat (not really required at the moment but try telling her that) following Daddy and Poppa around.  She's got doting grandparents coming out of her ears and lots of things to point at.  We have had some tantrums which is totally unheard of for her usually... but then I think she is two, and there's a good chance she would have been throwing tantrums in Perth anyway.  But there's a lot more "Mummy cawwy [carry]!" as well, which is what makes me think that my little muffin is a bit thrown by all this change.

Baby A is doing well - still sleeping poorly but that's nothing new.  Still grizzling/screaming a lot of the time but that's nothing new either.  She's able to sit up fairly reliably now (just turned 7 months) which has seen a slight improvement in her mood.  At least she's willing to be on the floor for short periods of time now.

I'm sure the novelty will wear off eventually but I am LOVING the fire.  The girls come straight from the shower each night and lie in front of it to get their pyjamas on.  The cat stretches himself out as flat as he can get and if it weren't for J terrorising him (any tips on how to get a two year old to LEAVE. THE. CAT. ALONE??) I'm sure he'd spent his whole life there.

Massive ginkgo.  I'm especially thrilled with this one as it was actually on my list of trees that I wanted to plant

Very angry about not being allowed outside

Mount Taranaki as seen from our driveway.  I will never tire of this view

That camellia on the right is covered in buds and I can't wait to see them all burst open.  Another plant that was on my list which is already here!

New post and rail fence. Perfect for ponies! As I keep telling B

Just out my kitchen window.  The view I have always dreamed of!

Last night, for the first time in six months, B and I got to go out to dinner just the two of us.  B's mum came to sit with the girls who were in bed.  Last time we went out for dinner was our wedding anniversary last October when A was about two weeks old and my mum came to stay with us in Perth.

It was so nice to finally get that time to have an uninterrupted adult conversation, a glass of wine, just be ourselves again.  Hopefully it might even become a regular thing in the future.  Imagine that!