The Fruit of our Labor

For the past month or so, Andy and I have been able to do a bit of landscaping work around our campsite for free “rent.” This worked out well because it allowed us to save some money while job hunting, as well as help out the camp director who has been busily preparing for the upcoming youth festival! From planting and weeding to painting and spreading bark, there has been no shortage of things to do in preparation for the big event.

So when we started working, the very first task we were given was to pick up rocks in a central grassy area of the campground to prepare it for mowing. Here is the finished product:

They added the giant screen for late night movie showings for the campers. It is difficult to see in the picture below, but there are a few dozen campers in lawn chairs watching the movie: "2012". On previous nights, they have shown "The Brothers Grimm" and "Cowboys vs. Aliens".

I am very proud of Andy, who has been doing the bulk of the harder tasks around camp and working very hard. Check out his planting skills in the picture below!

Thoughts on Thanksgiving

This post comes late, so I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Andy and I had a very quiet Thanksgiving this year (considering this was the first time either of us had ever spent this holiday outside the states).  It was strange for it to pass by like any other day here without all the hullabaloo that we're used to.  It made me miss home and wish I was stuffing myself full of food with the rest of you (miss you guys!).  I kept staring at Andy with a look in my eye, mumbling "turkey... mashed potatoes... pumpkin pie... waahhh!"  When I finally came back to my senses, I spent a good portion of the day reading, thinking, and reflecting.  Ironically, I came across this verse in my bible:

1 Thessalonians 5:18 ESV "Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."

I meditated on all the things in life we have to be thankful for.  I am thankful for a wonderful husband who fills my days with love, happiness, and fun!  I am thankful for all of you, our family and friends.  And of course, I am thankful for this opportunity that Andy and I have been given to come here to New Zealand.

I am also thankful that all our physical needs are met: we have a place to live, food to eat, and clothes to wear.  We are blessed.  But this year, I dug a bit deeper... because even if we didn't have these things, we would have something far greater to be thankful for, and that which cannot be taken from us: God himself and the ability to know Him.  So this year, instead of focusing on the blessing, I decided to focus on the giver.  Because that, to me, is life in abundance.  With that in mind, everyday should be a day of thanksgiving!

But just for the sake of tradition, this is the closest thing we could get to a Thanksgiving dinner:

Picture of the Day: HEDGEHOG

Have you met Sonic the Hedgehog? He isn't as quick as you think:

This little guy let us walk right up to him.

Apparently this is a European hedgehog that got imported to eat garden pests. The only problem is they have proven themselves to be a threat to ground dwelling birds.

We let this one go but the next one might not be so lucky...

Waka Races and Cricket

Last weekend was full of unexpected “firsts.”  Andy and I headed to Tahunanui beach on Saturday with no plans except to relax and soak up some sun (one of our favorite things to do here in Nelson).  When we got there, we noticed food stands and horse rides in the parking lot:

We soon realized we had stumbled upon the Waka races!

Before then I didn't even know what a waka race was.  Turns out they are a pretty big deal here and are televised on NZ TV.

Fun on the beach:

After watching a few races, we decided to escape the crowds and find a quiet place for lunch.  Andy suggested the Botanical Reserve so we headed that way and discovered another event going on: a cricket game!

I had never seen a game of cricket before so that was a pleasant surprise.  Not a bad way to spend a Saturday afternoon!

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Just to give you all an update on what we've been up to lately (other then lying around on the beach and having picnics), Andy and I have been able to do some landscaping work around our campsite for free "rent". We have also signed up to work at this year's youth festival at the camp, which had been described to us as a week-long 16 and over BYOB New Years Eve party with food and entertainment (including a live band and laser show).  A couple thousand people are expected to arrive.  Our job will be to check them in and set them up with wrist bands, etc.  The hours are long but the pay is good :)  We are looking forward to it!

Picture of the Day: The Perfect Perch

I present you with Nelson's tribute to Abel Tasman, the 'Christopher Columbus' of New Zealand.

 (Kind of... Wikipedia Link)

This reminded me of Sim City's Mayor Statue with it's 'pigeons perched' stat. 

Picture(s) of the Day: This Parking Space...

...is reserved for people with strollers:

This was at one of the larger grocery stores here in town.

(There were no spaces for handicapped people.)

Nelson Arts Festival 2012

So last month happened to be the month of the annual Arts Festival here in Nelson which means 17 days of theater, dance, comedy, music, and cabaret.  Most of the events that were in store were a bit pricey but a couple of them were free, which brought Andy and I (and seemingly all of Nelson) downtown one Friday night for the Masked Parade!

Many of the main streets in the centre of town were blocked off for this event, which included live music, a rock climbing wall, basketball, a few rides, street performances, and a ton of tempting food stands:

Then after all the festival events took place, we discovered last week that they were winding up and holding one last carnival finale at Founders Heritage Park!  If you remember from a few posts back, Andy and I had wanted to go there, and just for the day of the finale, we were able to go in for free!

So we ended up spending an hour or two, browsing the old historic buildings and taking in the carnival atmosphere.  They had a mini ferris wheel, pony and train rides, and as always, live music and a variety of food stands all around:

I love the community feel that these events provide in Nelson.  There's more and more we're discovering all the time in this small city.