End of 2012 for the Christchurch Pettys

We had a particularly nice flower garden in our lawn this year!

We spend most of our Sundays visiting different units in the Stake in my role of Stake Relief Society President. They made me feel very welcome, and I enjoy the visiting. It is fascinating the different styles the different Relief Societies have. They all have strengths and weaknesses.

There were some farewells and a Christmas luncheon for the Department of Management. I’m really happy not to be working there anymore, though it was nice to catch up with some of them.

Our Ward put on a dinner for Seniors for Christmas, and I got to help out, which was fun.

I took each of the Brown children, Sariah (7), Anna (5), Nate (4) and Micah (8) individually to buy presents for their siblings. We had a fun time. Sariah and I also went to a playground, and put up the Christmas tree and made a bead star. All of them took home fruit as a treat, that we bought at the supermarket.  Anna cracked me up, as she kept asking for things, but it wasn’t annoying because when I said no, she just said Ok.

Jonathan played a five minute Christmas medley at a Christmas Fireside. It was breathtaking, and you could feel the silence afterwards, and it was really weird not to have clapping.

I have made a friend at Weightwatchers, Nicola Piper, and we go for walks sometimes. I got to within 2kg of my goal weight before Christmas, but have moved a bit further from the goal as the result of Christmas excess.  Because I am a lifetime member, I don’t have to pay once I am within 2kg of my goal weight.

We discovered that the YouTube videos have started to earn a little money, which has provided an incentive to make some more. It went quiet over Christmas though. For some reason only 200 people wanted to watch our statistics videos on the 25^th.   

Mark and I went to the end of-the-year parents’ assembly at Mairehau School, as two of the Brown children won awards. Micah got a Principal’s award for his report. He is a very serious, diligent little boy.      

Nicola and Sariah making decorations

We went to an engagement party for Necia Stanford and Mark Billinghurst. I think Mark Billinghurst knows Nathan.  I find it so romantic and lovely, as they are both in their 40s and haven’t been married before. Necia is from Boston, I think, but they got married in LA temple, so maybe not. Anyway she is great fun. We spent a bit of time chatting at the A and P show, and at the party.

Mark brought the caravan in from storage for a few weeks in our front yard. We get to have little holidays in it. It feels like a home away from home at home! Mark slept in it a few nights too, enjoying a bed to himself.

Mark lost his iPhone 4, and Shane got a new iPhone 5 with the insurance, so Mark got his old iPhone 3G. We needed a 5 anyway for the business, so that saved us a bit of money. Poor Mark has had to come down in the world though.

William, Sariah, Rachel, Enoch, Nate and Micah Christmas afternoon

We had a lovely Christmas. Breakfast with just Mark and Jonathan and me, then my mother, Jessica and William joined us for lunch. We had a baked ham, that was way too big. Linda and Des popped in for about an hour. The Browns came after lunch and opened their presents for each other that we had bought and wrapped. We also had Marion Kerr for dinner, as she doesn’t have any family here. She is from Melbourne and knows the Pettys. One thing I love about Christmas is how still it is. Jonathan loved his present, which was a DVD of Letters and Numbers that we got him in Australia. He got us a board game called “Agricola”. Mark and I got LEGO. I made a pavlova for the first time, and it was pretty yummy.

William, Jessica and Anna
(The sunglasses have seldom been off her head since.)

I took off the statutory holidays, but otherwise worked on my videos. Mark took three weeks off work. We went to the McCluskeys’ for a New Year’s Eve party.

And that was our rather quiet December.

We have exciting news in January, but you will have to wait a month for that!

Best wishes to you all for 2013

Love Nicola, Mark, Jonathan, William and Jessica.

                                                                                                






Our LEGO collections: