Movies with Mum

Saturday 1st: Ruth had an overnight Guide camp that started at 10am this morning. It was a Mystery Box camp and so she had to bring a big box with to sleep in. We have been praying that it would not be a very wet camp, and thankfully they did keep dry.
I wish I had taken my camera with once we went to check in. It was a big camp compared to the last couple she has been to, with 140 girls here overnight. All sleeping in boxes. They had smaller groups of 16 and within that they had a group of 4 who then had their boxes together. They had names for their "villages" and it sounds like they had loads of fun.

Brendon was working this morning, so the teenager that has watched Asher before (with Ruth or Rachel here) had her first time of watching Asher without their first aid backup. We went through things a few days before and again in the morning before we left. Thankfully none of it was needed.

Once we had dropped Ruth off we picked Daniel up, just a couple of minutes away, from his grandmother's place. It was lovely meeting her.
Today was part 1 of Rachel's 16th Birthday celebrations = Movies with Mum.
Her birthday is only on Thursday, but it was a nice opportunity with us coming into town for Ruth, to make the most of the trip. We got a bit of shopping done and had lunch before going to watch Beauty and the Beast. Rachel has been looking forward to seeing it every since she saw the first article about it. So it was great to be able to enjoy it together.

I had invited Daniel to join us for the day and I was especially glad to have him with during the movie. It meant I could enjoy the movie in peace and Daniel got to listen to all Rachel's comments. ;-) When we got home Brendon actually asked if Rachel had commented through the movie again. :-) Thankfully Daniel didn't seem to mind. And Rachel and I got to chat about a lot on the way home. We both especially enjoyed the "extra" parts that they added in with backstories for both Belle and the Beast. Rachel had also read a lot of articles about it - so could tell me that it was Emma Watson's idea to make Belle the inventive one in her family (her farther was the artist).
Rachel did struggle having Luke Evens as Gaston as she really likes him as Bard in The Hobbit. He does an excellent job of being disliked in this movie. So we got to enjoy the movie on many levels.

Rachel knew that Daniel had brought her birthday present with. He had said we needed to bring a cooler bag with. He explained that it would just be needed if we were parked in the sun. Rachel was longing to know what it was, but had to wait till after the movies to find out.
He had shown her a piece of wood shaving before and told her it was a part of her present. He made those beautiful roses! What a thoughtful and special gift.
Daniel then headed off to get a buss back to his grandmother and Rachel and I went boot shopping before heading home. The last winter boots I bought lasted me many years but are starting to really look scruffy. So I was pleased there were excellent specials again. Rachel and I ended up buying the same style of long boots, mine just a size smaller than hers.

With daylight savings changing overnight, Brendon had to head to the farm this evening to change all the clocks. So Hezekiah went with and they had a nice outing together - stopping at the park on the way home.
Apparently the sky behind them was absolutely magnificent. It just didn't come out on the photo.

Sunday 2nd: It was too busy yesterday morning, so we got the monthly children photo this afternoon, once Ruth was back.

Ruth did some artwork this evening. They didn't get much sleep last night at camp, so she was rather tired this afternoon.

Monday 3rd: Asher was going to be home from preschool this week as Lynda is overseas. Unfortunately she vomited an hour after breakfast this morning. I checked with the dietitian as I wondered if it was her just having her food too quickly today. Apparently there is a bug going around where the children vomit intermittently for up to 3 weeks. So this and the vomit she had after breakfast last Thursday may be related. So to be safe, she has to stay home. So she would have missed preschool today anyway. It is just a pity she will miss Champion Center tomorrow too.
Thankfully she doesn't look sick at all. She had a very busy morning. Here she is playing with Anakin.

Rachel was very patient this morning and helped me get things done. Only after lunch and doing as many of her jobs as she could, did she sit down to do some painting. The paint supplies were the main thing on the shopping list for Saturday. She is painting a hawk for Daniel's birthday later this month. I have adjusted the photos so that the work is mostly hidden. The finished result can only be published on here once he has received it on the 22nd. :-)

Tuesday 4th: A very busy Asher this morning, playing with her balls, some puzzles and the dominoes - all at the same time.
Wed 5th: I only heard about the Parent to Parent craft night on Monday, but there was still space for me, so I got to have a nice evening out today.

I knew it was "cup cake decorating" and Rachel had a bit of a laugh at that. Many ladies hadn't done much work with fondant before, so they enjoyed following step by step directions to create the Easter toppers shown above (bad photo from my phone - sorry). I asked if it would be ok for me to just "do my own thing" as I wanted to do something specifically for Rachel for her birthday in the morning. So I used the colours available and created some rose toppers for her.
I had a lovely evening chatting to the ladies and again came away really encouraged. It's always so good to have that reminder that we are not alone and there are many other families who understand very well some of the struggles we have.

Thursday 6th: I'm so glad Rachel got to get her cupcakes in the morning. She left for work before the rest of the family was up. As soon as she was home from work it was a quick shower and then we were off to Rangiora to book her learners licence test. We were hoping she would be able to write it that afternoon, and that's exactly what happened. It was good that we got there before schools had closed, so the computer was open and she could write the test straight away.
Wonderfully she past, so it was a great way to celebrate her 16th birthday. We also treated the family to pizza for dinner. Thankfully almost all pizza places do gluten free bases now, so that was a nice extra for her birthday too. And made it much easier with me having no time to do any food prep today.
Ruth was at production rehearsal, so Brendon brought Hannah and Hezekiah and we met at the dance hall. We had a quick visit with friends who live close while Hannah danced.

Then I headed home with the younger 3 while Brendon stayed for Rachel to finish her dancing. He is preaching on Sunday, so it gave him some time to do some prep.
As it was dark he didn't get her to drive the whole way home, but she did drive from Waikari.

Ruth has been working on a present for Rachel during her wood work time at school. She wasn't sure if it would be done by today, but was thrilled when she did get it finished in time. She does so love giving presents, and was glad she could give it to Rachel on her birthday.

It's a clever "game" with a lovely message burnt into the wood for her. So special.