A vist from Brad

Hello all. Christmas is closing in. 4 people emailed Amie to show her the snow that you all recently had. I am jealous. It is not the same getting excited about Christmas when the weather is getting warmer and the days longer. It is 20 minutes of 9 and the sun is still out. Our spirits were just lifted as a trailer with a brass band just stopped outside our house. They played 3 holiday tunes for us, very nice. Our town is very cute and New Zealand definitely gets in the spirit. Just hard for us northerners.

Amie and I had a great week. We had our first house guests. Steve Elgert and his daughter Cate stayed with us on Wednessday. Steve was my professor in residency and then a colleague. He and Cate were in the midst of exploring New Zealand and stopped in for a visit. It was great to have folks to entertain. I hope their trip went well. They were dealing with a lot of rain. Yes, the rain was back for a week, but has now cleared.

The weekend was more laid back this week. We had our first Mountain bike ride together. Amie's bike was finally ready, so Saturday we went for a great ride. Unfortunately the ride caused us to get side tracked and we missed the opportunity to head up for a concert in Waitomo Caves. The choral group that our friend, Martha, is in was being taped singing carols in the caves. Would likely have been a very interesting experience, but, no luck.

The pics do not do justice to some of the terrain we rode. We actually ran into the trail builders. They were getting the area ready for a 6hr ride that is coming up. They did great work. Steep runs with varied options. However, their idea of an easy run is debatable. The pictures of Amie sitting in the woods will testify to that.

Sunday, Amie had her prayers answered. The wind was right and the waves were about 2feet, or waist high. She had a great day on her new board. It is amazing how well she can surf when not fearing for her life.

Ok, fairly boring, but everything is new for us and feels like it is blog worthy. Uncle Jim and Aunty will appreciate that Brad was in town Saturday night. NO harm done, but an experience as always. As for the the rest of you, we wish you an early Merry Christmas.

Thanks to my parents who sent over a load of goods including my watch. Also, a great picture of Babs. You look great lady.

Have a great week.

Chris and Amie.