Insprired by Nature

Nga mihi o te tau hau! Happy new year! So I have been on a tiki tour around Northland with my lovely whanau, catching up with aunties and cousins and soaking up our great outdoors. I have been collecting inspiration from Papatuanuku (Mother Earth) for my Oversew Fashion Awards project.
Unfortunately I have managed to put my back out again so I am hoping I can still get an outfit done. Ongoing issues with it which is very frustrating!

So here is some of my inspiration. Green features very strongly so once I am back, I think I will do some opshopping and see what greenery I can come up with 🌿

Have some sketches done too which I will share soon. Isn't Aotearoa Tino ataahua!

Hamner holiday

It was about time we had a bit of a break from New Brighton - as much as we love it here, the roadworks are edging ever closer to our house....so off we went.  Andy's lovely work gave him a holiday bonus, so we were even able to take the kids skiing.....Lots of fun!

the view from our road as we were leaving New Brighton

the view of the cute wee batch when we arrived in Hamner

family fun round the brazier toasting marshmallows

sparkler fun!

time to celebrate birthdays with a cake the kids decorated

my wee man is growing up!

gracie wanted to take the bunnies home!

isn't he adorable!

some of Paul's handiwork with a gas cutter on the brazier

Jack's Pass looking beautiful

T and G found a snow cave to play in...

It was just what we needed - so blessed to have such generous and loving whanau to holiday with!

Easter Getaway to Okains Bay

The glorious weather continues, and camping with friends this Easter was the best way to enjoy it...

taking Gracie for a paddle around the estuary

heading out for a tiki tour in our sea kayak

my favourite thing to do this Easter!

hey! Where's my food?!?!

 The horse over the fence from our campsite got used to lots of lovely children feeding him...

Tarn helping decorate

balloons and streamers amongst the trees

Nia's 4th birthday celebrations

party picnic time!

 A gorgeous Easter holiday... :) J

Aotearoa Outdoors

I love camping.  And so does my little whanau - we love to discover new places, explore beaches, climb hills, find rivers to build dams in - all those lovely things childhood memories are made of...

my little whanau 2010 at Kaikoura

campfire and marshmallows graveyards surfbreak

sunset over kaikoura range

fireworks at graveyards beach, Kaikoura

Pohutukawa in flower at Gore Bay

Taylors Mistake beach

andy carving it up at Kaiks

Staying at Onuku Marae in Akaroa, Banks Peninsula

the first Anglican church in the south is, Onuku Marae

Island on Lake Kaniere on a beautiful still day

hut building at Gore Bay

sun sets on Mt Seddon - view from our campsite

gracie at Church of the Good Shephard, Lake Tekapo

Walking up to view Aoraki Mt Cook, with Mt Seddon in the background

the mudslides are awesome at Little River Campground

Little River - Camping at Manaia by the river

free camping at Meatworks, Kaikoura surf break

Dorothy Falls, lake Kaniere, West Coast

tarn building a damn at Sunny Bite, lake Kaniere

So I thought that i would share some of the places we have found on our journies around this beautiful island in the South Pacific....