I Don't Give a Hoot

Welcome back! I've officially been living here in New Zealand for three months. A fourth of my time here is already over...hard to believe right? In other news, I survived the two weeks of school holidays with the girls. This past week, Term 2 of classes started so we were able to get back to our normal schedule of school and kindy. In addition to the holidays, I found some owls and "mastered" the bus system of Auckland! What's that? You think I'm lying? Sorry to break it to you, but I truly did find owls! 🤣 No, you're right. Mastered is a strong word. More like I am somewhat more familiar with the bus system here...we'll get to that! But first - what do you do when there's no school for two weeks?!?!

FRIDAY, APRIL 13th
Emily and I celebrated the last day of school (before school holidays began) by taking a little trip to Penguino's - another gelato place near Gingersnap (my go-to gelato place). Since this wasn't Gingersnap, I'm not counting it as part of my, "have to try a different flavor each time I go there" goal.  I went all out and got chocolate and stracciatella - yes TWO scoops! Trust me, I enjoyed each one. While we sat and ate our gelato, Emily and I watched as a few birds were also eating gelato from a melted pool on the sidewalk. It was quite cute!

Over the weekend, I basically read and hung around the house. It wasn't the best of weather, so I didn't take my normal walk down into Browns Bay to spend time at the beach. I did get a cute note from Emily and Ava visited me Sunday night with a little "present". I also decided to begin my Marvel review before the Avengers: Infinity War premiere on April 25th. For those of you who aren't Marvel fans and have no idea what I'm even talking about, there are 18 films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (think Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, Hulk, etc.). Now, I've seen all 18 of these movies at least once before, but I've never watched them in order (based on HOW they should be watched, NOT based on their release date). 18 films in 10 days? Challenge accepted! 
**Disclaimer: I only had to watch 16 as I wasn't planning on watching The Incredible Hulk and the most recent film, Black Panther, wasn't out on DVD yet.

Turn up the volume! I cut it off a little early, but I was trying to nicely suggest she put them back into her container so they weren't making a mess on my bed! :) If you're wondering what the white things are, they are the soft beads from a bean bag.

MONDAY, APRIL 16th

First day of school holidays...ahhh! We had a relaxing morning and then Emily had a play date at a friend's house from 9:30-1:30. This was fantastic because by the time I picked Emily up, I had already dropped Ava off at kindy. I had a Skype date with my parents and they showed me all the snow they still had out in the yard...what a crazy spring for Minnesota! It was an easy first day as Emily just wanted to play around the house after I picked her up from her play date. The best thing about this day was I got a package from my amazing cousin! Ava helped me open it up - she was as excited as me! :) THANKS COUSIN!

TUESDAY, APRIL 17th

Today's schedule was a little different as Ava had morning kindy and Emily had morning gymnastics. This way, I got a morning break! In the afternoon, Emily had a play date with a friend at our house so Ava and I did some art and played together. It was another easy day since I didn't have to entertain both girls at the same time.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 18th

Emily had not one, but two play dates today! The first play date was at our house and the second was at her friend's place. Because of this, I got a little extra break time in the afternoon (woohoo!). I Skyped my parents again since we only had a short visit on Monday. We always have a grand time chatting, sharing stories, and laughing. I watched movie #6 (technically #7 in the line-up since I skipped The Incredible Hulk) in my Marvel review - one week until the premiere!

THURSDAY, APRIL 19th

Another day of morning kindy and gymnastics for the girls. And today was the first day where Emily didn't have a play date - so I had both girls all afternoon...for 5 hours! I honestly don't remember what we did all afternoon, but we did do some art and games. Actually, Emily played Monopoly by herself since I didn't want to play. Before you think I'm a terrible nanny, we had just played the day before for almost 2 hours! It's not my favorite game and I couldn't bring myself to play again so soon. :)

FRIDAY, APRIL 20th

This was the first day where we literally had nothing scheduled except Ava's normal kindy time in the afternoon. I decided we needed to get out of the house, so I took the girls to a movie! They chose Peter Rabbit (and I secretly wanted to see it too). Over school holidays, the theater had a promotion where kids movies were only $10, which is almost half of what the tickets usually cost! The movie was cute, and the girls enjoyed taking a few pictures with the cardboard cutouts as we were leaving. If you notice Ava's outfit and think it's a little unique, just know she chooses her own clothes in the morning. However, I think she has a pretty great sense of style! After the movie, we had lunch at the house and then Ava went to kindy. Emily and I hung out at the house for a bit and then we went shopping at the Salvation Army, Barryman's (toy shop), and Countdown (grocery store) before picking up Ava. Back at the house, Ava helped me make chocolate chip cookies with the pudding mix from my cousin. Emily decided she wanted to play Monopoly again (I know!) but was willing to taste the dough when it was finished! I had only baked with Ava once before, but let me emphasize how on top of things you need to be when you're baking with an almost 4 year old child. She stuck her finger in everything in order to taste it (even the baking soda!)...so there was the constant hand/measuring cup washing occurring. Despite the busyness of Ms. Ava, we had a fun time baking and the dough and cookies turned out MUCH better than the last batch I had made...all thanks to having the correct pudding mix!

 Emily

Ava

Still a little different than when I make them back home, but pretty darn close!

On Saturday, I went shopping at K-Mart for the first time here in NZ...and for the first time in awhile! Since K-Mart is located in the mall, I decided to hit up a movie afterwards because all movies were $10! Sunday, the weather was beautiful so I went to the beach and got my 11th gelato cone - apple cinnamon yogurt. It was a little taste of fall. :) Due to the busy upcoming week, my parents and I decided to Skype Sunday, and my brother even got in on the action. I would show you all the picture I captured of their beautiful faces...but I think I might get in trouble with them if I did that. ;) But! If you are friends with me on Snapchat, then you probably were able to see it. :) Naturally, I knocked a few more movies off of my Marvel review list too. Overall, a very successful weekend!

Cone #11!

MONDAY, APRIL 23rd
Emily had a play date with a friend at our place from 8:30-2:30. Ava and I were left to play together and I also spent part of the morning cutting up vegetables to roast in the oven - this is usually a Monday chore for me as long as there are vegetables in the fridge! Once Emily's friend left for the day, we only had a couple hours before we had to go pick up Ava again. We relaxed at the house and I was able to finish the rest of my "to-do" list...a.k.a. laundry and working out.

TUESDAY, APRIL 24th
You know the schedule...kindy and gymnastics! By this time, I didn't even need to use my phone for directions to the gym - improvement! We spent part of the afternoon at the house painting pictures. I had Ava practice writing her name and then let her have some artistic freedom. To give the girls a different art experience, we used Q-tips and mixed paints to create additional colors. We also went to the library to peruse the books. While we were there, Emily discovered a scavenger hunt the library was putting on for the kids. We searched all over the library for different numbered pictures and wrote the number next to their corresponding picture on the recording sheet. The girls were really into the search and got quite excited when they spotted a new picture! :) Once they completed their hunt, they each checked out two books and we headed home. Where was I in my Marvel review you ask? Why I checked off movie #15 & #16!

Ava tracing her name!

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25th - ANZAC DAY

Today was a public holiday which means I had the day off! :) I slept in, watched movie #17, worked out, went for a walk, and then got ready for Avengers: Infinity War! Anzac Day is the New Zealand/Australia equivalent of our Memorial Day back in the states. Emily made me a cake...made entirely of fondant icing (no I haven't eaten it, nor do I plan on it!). The great thing about New Zealand is that they are one of the first places where movies are released. In the USA, for example, Avengers wasn't going to be released until the 27th of April...so I was seeing this a few days before my family and friends back home! Jane and I went early in order to grab dinner beforehand. I finally tried Pita Pit - first time ever! Then, we got our popcorn and drinks, took some cheesy pictures with the Hulk and Thor, and found our seats in the theater. It was an awesome night!

 My Anzac Day "cake" from Ms. Emily. The top has the NZ flag and a poppy while my name goes around the side. :)

When you see the Hulk and Thor, you have to stop and take a picture...or two...or three...or four! :)

Shout-out to my After School family who gave me this shirt...love it so much! :)

THURSDAY, APRIL 26th

This morning was a little rough getting up because we didn't get back until late last night. However, after drinking my morning coffee, I was ready to go! It was the last day of morning kindy and gymnastics for the girls. Today's afternoon activity was a trip to Paint the Earth - a nearby pottery painting place for kids (and adults!). Ava chose to paint a unicorn while Emily chose a horse and foal sculpture. The girls had fun deciding which colors to use and naming their animals - Ava named her unicorn Rapunzel and Emily named her horse Sparky and the foal Lilly. Since it took 6 days to fire and glaze the painted creations, the girls couldn't take home their work. That means we will have to go back next week!

 The girls hard at work painting their sculptures!

FRIDAY, APRIL 27th

Chad, the girls' dad, took today off to spend with Emily and Ava, which meant I got the day off! Today was the day I planned on braving the bus system to go into Auckland and spend the day sight-seeing. My morning started a little slow, but by 10:00ish I was at the bus stop catching the bus into the city. An hour later, we were entering Auckland. Thankfully a few other people had to get off at the same stop as me, so I knew when to get off. My first order of business? Converting my MN driver's license to a NZ one! This was pretty simple to do, but of course I went in the wrong building...and up the elevator to the 16th floor before a nice gentleman told me the building I wanted to go to was outside next door! Oh classic Krista! :) I got everything sorted out and soon I was off exploring the city. (**My license came a week later...check it out! It's valid for 10 years!)

Notice the green color of my license? This is because I have a full license - I'm not a learner nor do I have limitations in driving a Class 1 vehicle.

Bus schedule!

Remember how we had found 4 painted owls around the city a month ago? Maybe? Well I decided to go and find as many as I could before the end of the day...and I was pretty successful. As a reminder, there are 47 owls placed around the city for people to find, take pictures with, and share online in order to unlock rewards from sponsors. Afterwards, the owls will be auctioned off with the proceeds going towards the Child Cancer Foundation. Anyways, I set out and ended up walking quite a lot in pursuit of the owls! I turned on a tracking app on my phone to see how far and where I walked. Did I get lost, even with a map? Of course! Was it still a fun day? Absolutely! I saw a lot of Auckland and found a couple of quiet parks to take a break from the busy city life. While I was at one of the parks, I checked to see if a geocache was nearby...and one was! It's been awhile since I've gone searching for one, so it was fun to sneak around and find the cache without other people noticing. After successfully finding and signing the log, I re-hid the cache and continued on my Auckland adventure.

Sky Tower - still have to go up one day!

 View from the wharf (one of the places I had to go to find a couple of owls!)

A funky sculpture. The circles rotated when the wind blew!

Nothing spectacular, but I found Fargo in New Zealand! :)

 Oh where, oh where could the geocache be?

There it is! (It was hidden under all of the twigs and leaves in the tree from the first picture!)

Some pretty flowers I found in another park.

So how many owls did I find, you ask? 23! Not bad for walking the entire time! Enjoy the collage below of each owl. Which one's your favorite? It's hard to see, but I wore my owl shirt my cousin sent me...how could I not? :)

One of the highlights of my day was when a lady asked me for directions...ME! Guys, this is a huge deal! :) To even be considered a local is such a compliment. I admitted I was a visitor to the area as well but with my trusty phone map, I got her to her street without either of us getting lost!

Because I ate a late breakfast and got invested in finding the owls, I ended up skipping lunch and was STARVING by dinner. My host mom recommended Burgerfuel to me when we went to the movie on Wednesday, so I ended up eating there since it was also close to the bus stop. It kind of reminded me of a Smashburger-esque type of restaurant, but I have to say it was delicious and very filling!

I got the "Ford Freakout" burger - a beef patty with avocado, tomato, onion, lettuce, and sauce on top. I was only sad it was missing pickles.

Heading back to the Sky Tower (on the right side of the picture). Remember I started near there earlier in the day? Yeah. :)

I loved seeing all of the pretty autumn leaves on the sidewalks during the day! :)

Here's the map of where I walked. I didn't have it turned on right away, but by the time I got on the bus, I had walked about 9.5 miles!

I caught the bus back to Browns Bay and had a quiet hour ride since it wasn't very busy. Partway home, I realized I caught the wrong bus! Don't worry. It was the right bus to bring me back to Browns Bay, it just wasn't the right bus because it wasn't going to stop at the bus stop I got on at in the morning...it was going to stop further away. Again, classic Krista! I was the last one off the bus and then began my mile walk to the house - as if I hadn't walked enough already! 😀 Needless to say, by the time I arrived home, my feet were sore and I was ready to relax. It was a perfect day off!

Compared to Friday, my weekend was pretty boring. So boring in fact, I don't remember what I did! I'm sure I read, worked out, and I went to church Sunday. Actually, I realize I haven't shared anything about the church I'm attending! It's called City Impact Church and there are multiple locations around the world (even one in Texas!). After I got settled back in February, I found this church online and started going whenever I stayed in Browns Bay for the weekend (which has been often as of late). The vibe of the church is similar to Prairie Heights church in Fargo (if you've been), so very contemporary. It's quite large, but I have my set spot to sit (in the back of course...I'm Lutheran after all! 😉). Here's a LINK to the church's website if you want to take a look. I really like that it's close by - not even 10 minutes away from my house here. It took a couple of weeks for me to get used to the pastor and the New Zealand jokes he usually makes during his message. There are still times where everyone around me is laughing and I'm just sitting there pretending to laugh because I don't understand the humor! :) One Sunday, a guest pastor from the USA was speaking (Jim Hart), and I definitely understood his jokes! I met a lovely older couple - think grandparent age - who plan on inviting me over for lunch one Sunday when they aren't so busy. :) 

Outside of City Impact Church.

This past week, school started up again (thank goodness!) and Ava and I were able to enjoy a couple of days at the beach because the weather was fantastic! I'm still sporting shorts whenever I can, but it is cooling down more and more. Whenever I am able to walk down to the beach in the afternoon, I always bring a jacket now because by the time I walk back to the house, it's quite cool out. Perfect autumn weather...so I can't complain! Just know you all back in Minnesota are having warmer weather than I am now!

We fed the ducks and pigeons one day.

Yes, those are wings on her shirt. So cute! And as you can see below, Ms. Ava really gets into her sand play. Later on, she even rolled down a sand hill a couple of times! A quick shower and change of clothes were necessary before going to kindy. :)

Enjoying the sun, sand, and ocean.

Over the weekend, I celebrated Cinco de Mayo by trying Mad Mex, a fast food restaurant in the mall. I went towards the end of the day so they were out of rice and guacamole (sad!). But, I still enjoyed the food and would say it's comparable to Chipotle or Qdoba - just not quite as good. Since I really wanted some chips and guac, I went to another Mexican restaurant close by and found some there! It lacked a bit in flavor...honestly I think they just mashed an avocado up...but at least it was guac! :)

It was a beautiful weekend which means I was able to go down to the beach both Saturday and Sunday. And what do I do when I go to the beach? Get gelato of course! I had my 12th and 13th cones over the weekend...banana and vanilla bean flavored! Both were delicious. My host mom, Jane, informed me with winter coming Gingersnap will be putting out different flavors. I had thought I was getting close to trying all of the flavors, but looks like I have awhile to go yet! :)

As I already mentioned, I've been living here for 3 months and my mentality about the area has changed. I no longer feel like I'm a tourist - at least in Browns Bay. Yes, I still eat gelato whenever I can, but I don't have that desire to try different restaurants in the area each weekend. Now, I think about how I can eat a healthy meal at home. I also know my way around the area pretty well and have my "go-to" stores and places to hang out. Even when I visited Auckland I didn't really feel like a tourist, but I know if I go to other locations in New Zealand, I'll have that tourist mindset again. Another reason I feel less like a tourist is I have a "Krista seat" at my church and I was able to make a couple of casual acquaintances there. Having a drivers license and a bus pass (I bought one this week) have also helped me feel more settled and connected to the area. As a side benefit of having a NZ license, I can now get into the art gallery in Auckland for free since I have proof I'm a "local" now! 

This coming weekend, I have plans with one of the girls I went hiking with way back in February...I can't wait! Sunday will be the first Mother's Day I haven't spent with my mom (I think). I'll be there in spirit...or maybe even on video chat! <3 I found a free sewing event at a nearby library where I can learn to make my own reusable shopping bag. As of now, that's how I plan to spend Mother's Day afternoon! We will see if it works out. :)

Not an overly exciting blog I know, but an update nonetheless on what's been happening down here in New Zealand! 

Well, I'm "OWL" out of things to say...thanks for reading!