Christchurch Pettys in October 2014 (somewhat belatedly)

A classic calendar/postcard view of the gardens at Pollard Park in Blenheim

Oh boy – this is going to take a while. (And it obviously has taken a fair bit of procrastination, as can be seen by the fact that I am writing in January.)

My aunt Ann was visiting from the UK and went out to listen to Jonathan’s piano teacher, Darren, playing at Gustav’s wine bar. It was lovely, and Jonathan enjoyed it too.

Jonathan has got us watching a new game-show, from the UK, called “The Chase”. The presenter and the chasers are so funny and clever, and we all enjoy watching it together. It has a whole heap of general knowledge questions, so we are all learning things. There is also a ten question general knowledge quiz in the Listener each week, and I started asking the questions at dinner time on a Monday. Jonathan protested at first, but has got used to it, to the extent that he asked me what had happened to it this week. (There is no Listener over the Christmas break.)

Jonathan had a day outing with his friend, Charlotte, and her boyfriend, Alex. Jonathan had recently listened to a podcast about a blind jazz pianist who liked to take photos, so Charlotte got Jonathan to take a photo of her. It came out very nicely. Charlotte is such a blessing in our lives.

Jonathan's first ever photo. Charlotte Crone on Quail Island
with Lyttelton Harbour in the background.

Jonathan’s performance grades were getting a bit low, so I encouraged him to do some practice so he could do well on his final performance. He really worked hard and made great progress so that his final performance assessment earned him 80%.

One Sunday (19th October) was one for the record books! As we arrived at the chapel, workers were laying ready-lawn, which was rather surreal on the Sabbath. Then the second talk was a bizarre one about Jeremiah. (Our bishopric likes to work through the scriptures sequentially when assigning talks.) Nathan was just getting going, when suddenly there was an ear-splitting and unpleasant siren. Someone had let off the fire alarm. Jonathan looked distressed so I leapt up to the front and started helping him out. We all piled out and stood in the assembly point in front of the building. Then the alarm wouldn’t stop, so we all went home.

I’ve started crocheting, and really enjoy it. YouTube videos are really good for learning off, as they are infinitely patient. It is a bit confusing that there are two different names for the stitches – US and UK.

As a trip to the North Island was in the works, I spent much of October booking appointments and writing presentations. I also froze quite a few meals for Mark and Jonathan.

Seth contemplating a big decision!

My mother started to find life too difficult on her own, and insisted I take her to the doctor. He suggested that she needed to move to a higher level of care, and we looked into the home next door to where her independent unit was – in the same complex.

We had a lovely baptism for five children in our ward, and realised that out of the five, only one was living with his own parents – the others were all fostered into extended family. It turned out that the other one was only seven, not eight as we had been told! Might have to do a rerun next year!

Mark has signed us up for Sky Movies. In the first week I set up the T-box to record 20 movies! Now we just have to watch them!

Suzy texted me one morning on the way to church to see if I could fill in for her in Primary. She had just read the new essay on Joseph Smith and polygamy on the church website, and was pretty angry at the deceptions at so many levels. I had a nice time in Primary, despite the fact that it was pretty unruly. After dinner Gina, Suzy and I went for a walk and talk. Suzy was having trouble knowing how to stay, whereas I was wondering why to stay. Suzy still has children at home, and her husband is devout. We jokingly said the three of us should run Primary together. We would be unconventional and innovative, and have a great time. We are all teachers. (This did come to pass in late November, and we are unconventional and innovative and are having a great time, as are the children. But more about that later.)

Some road sheep in the central city

Jonathan played for another funeral. Ann knew she was dying, and had requested earlier that Jonathan would play. It was the same day that my mother insisted I take her to the doctor. She was rather confused. Then I went to the annual OR barbecue at Don McNickle’s house, and Mark joined me there. Don and Jan are such good hosts, and it is wonderful to see my old colleagues again. Then from there I went to my book group at Necia’s place. All eight of us regulars were there, and we had a blast.

Then on the 31st October, Mark and I headed north to Nelson on the first leg of my month of visits. The timing was rather tight between Kaikoura High School and Marlborough Girls’ College so we ordered seafood chowder at the Store in Kekerengu and told them when we expected to arrive, and it was ready for us. So good! After the Blenheim visit, the pressure was off, and we had a nice explore around some gardens, and then drove via Picton to Nelson. We stopped at some place in the Sounds for a little look around.

New Zealand is such a beautiful country. That drive up to Kaikoura is just amazing. The way the mountains and the bush run to the sea is fantastic.

And that is it for October 2014
Love Nicola, Mark and Jonathan.