Flying the Meyers

One bright Thursday afternoon, I was able to share my love of flying with Laura's supervisor and his family. We went for a couple of spins around the city in the club's 172. I was a little confused at Riegardt lurking around the left side door until I realized he was in right-drive mode expecting the left side to be his seat. After that bit of confusion was cleared up, we were off to see Taranaki from the air.

Family shot

Messing with the finicky fuel trailer

And we're off

Jack and Abbey in the back

At first, Abbey didn't want to go

Mt Taranaki at sunset

School Daze

The kids headed back to school for term two after Mom and Dad's departure. One of the big NZ history topics for the month of April is ANZAC day. ANZAC day commemorates Australia and New Zealand's participation in the failed Gallipoli Campaign during WWI. Steven's class spent a good bit of time on the subject and his class was decorated as a simulated trench for the entire school to visit.

Steven's classroom as a makeshift trench

Guns in the classroom, a sight you'll never see in the US

Basketball continued for Steven as school resumed. At the risk of repeating myself, I think New Zealand has a more reasonable view of kid sports than does the US. Practices were at school, during lunch. Games were played on Monday immediately after school at the city gym. The parents were much more laid back and the kids seemed to really enjoy playing. Everything is more laid back in New Zealand. The school doesn't have a cafeteria so most days, the kids eat their lunch on the porch of their classroom.

Basketball practice at lunch

Lunch on the porch

Mom and Dad Part 2

I've been flying for over twenty years and in all that time, Mom had never flown with me. I finally convinced her to go with me one day during their visit. It was a lovely day in Taranaki and I showed her our town, the coast and the green fields. She seemed to enjoy it.

About to crank

Airborne at last

The Taranaki coast

Laura and I took another night on the town in Stratford for a play put on by a local theatre club. The playhouse was tiny with about 50 seats and the play was fun to watch. Mom and Dad got to sit at home and watch the boys watch youtube. Fun.

The play

Dad's favorite part of NZ is the small town feel. They say NZ is like the US in the 50s and Dad had the same impression. Big box chain stores have made some inroads, but most small towns still have an active downtown area. We went into town one Saturday for shopping and later we visited the local museum.

A good shot of Mom and Dad with the kids

Out shopping for souveniers

Feeding the ducks in the park

Tawhiti museum

To give Mom and Dad the full Taranaki experience, we took a quick drive up to the Stratford plateau on the southeast flank of Mt Taranaki for a view of the surrounding countryside. Nothing says New Zealand like tramping on a muddy trail. We completed our mountain to sea journey with a drive to Ohawe beach.

Tramping around with Dad

Looking east across the Taranaki plain. New Plymouth is to the left.

On the mountain

At the shore

Mom and the kids on the beach

All too soon, Mom and Dad's visit drew to an end. We had a great time and it was sad to see them go.

Saying goodbye

Mom and Dad Visit Part 1

The big event for April was a visit from my parents. When we left the US, Mom was determined not to make the trip down. It was too far for her, she thought. Six months without seeing your grandkids will make you do crazy things and we eventually talked her and Dad into making the trip.

We timed Mom and Dad's trip to coincide with a school break to maximize grandkid time, so the boys and I drove up to meet them in New Plymouth. It was really great to see them step off that plane.

Patiently waiting (with ipods)

Here at last!

Our first major activity during their visit was Jack's birthday. Jack and Steven have been wanting to take a crack at paintball, so we hired a range north of Hawera. The boys were all ready to make a name for themselves in paintball history, but after taking a few rounds, they all made peace and resorted to target shooting. I for one, wasn't that interested in getting shot and busied myself with fetching pizza for the party.

Happy belly

Safety briefing

Tough guys ready for the fight

Armed and ready

Post-combat

A little splattered and sweaty

One annoying feature of the Taranaki summer was the flies. Lots of cattle equates to lots of flies and eating outside requires a fair amount of shoo-fly.

Pizza will take the sting out

Paintball cupcakes

Wrapping up the party

One Sunday afternoon, Laura and I took advantage of the free kid-sitters and went to Wanganui. Laura had heard about the Wanganui Country Music club from a patient, so we drove an hour south to have a listen. There were 60 some odd acts on the play bill and we stayed long enough to listen to Laura's patient play (about 2 hours). A few of the performers were good. Some were okay. I guess it beats sitting around the farm all day.

Both kinds of music, country and western

Monday the 15th of April Steven, Dad and I drove a few hours south to the NZ Army museum in Waiouru. It was great to spend some quality time with Dad and Dad got to see some of the NZ countryside. The museum is great and is larger and more detailed than the NZAF museum in Christchurch. Steven had fun climbing on the tanks out front and looking at the gun displays. We grabbed a quick bite at Subways before heading home.

Makohine Viaduct

It's ok to climb on stuff in NZ

Lots of guns on display

Dad in front of a Sherman

Taking aim

Me and Dad

"Don't fall off..."

Easter weekend

Easter weekend was a pleasant time. The kids were out of school and we were missing having a dog around, so we fostered a dog from the pound. He was a tough little critter.

Our foster dog

The boys also had their pals, Isaac and Ethan over for some gaming. Actually, they had Ethan's XBox over for gaming and Isaac and Ethan just happened to come with it.

Halo 'til you drop

Sunday, we went to church at the Salvation Army. Most of the folks at the Army church are elderly and are really nice folks. We've made a number of friends there. Laura and I get a kick from listening to their music group, the Songsters. After church, we took our foster dog down to the beach to get him and the kids some outside time.

Jack ate the bunny head first

Easter photo by the sea

Snap the photo before they punch each other

Easter with the Sallies (Salvation Army)

Our foster dog at the beach

Black, volcanic sand

Monday was a day off from work and school. I had the great idea of heading up the slopes of Mt Taranaki for a hike, however the weather at 3000 ft was cold and rainy, so we shuffled back down and drove to Lake Rotorangi. I'd seen the lake from the air during my flight training and wanted to see it from ground level. There wasn't much to see, but we had a picnic and Jack took a turn on the rope swing.

Studying a trail map

Jack on the rope swing

Lake Rotorangi