New Zealand: Volcanoes, Sharks, and Cyclones...Oh My!

On Wednesday morning (which was actually Tuesday around lunchtime for most of you), we woke up to this lovely sunrise over Auckland.    We oohed and ahed over it and marveled at the sun's daily journey around the world.  

Shortly after that bit of gorgeousness to start the day,  we split off into two groups--the boys on an exciting ocean fishing voyage and the girls  volcano hiking adventure.  

Glen and the boys took the car and only got a little lost (arriving over an hour late to their charter), while us girls walked to the harbor and caught a ferry to Rangitoto Island! 

Auckland sits over a geologic hot spot and is dotted with over 50 volcanic cones within a few miles.   Most of them only ever erupt once and geologists anticipate that any future volcanic activity in the area will likely not originate from an existing volcano, but will be a new one that just pops up wherever the next hot spot happens to be.   

Last erupting about 600-years ago, Rangitoto Volcano is the newest of all the volcanoes near Auckland.  The entire island was formed when a crack in the seabed opened up and lava started flowing upward, and eventually erupting into a full blown volcano.  

Hardened lava is  the bedrock here and every plant that grows is popping out of solid rock.  

It was a challenging uphill hike that took us over an hour...

but it was well worth the view we got from the top when we did arrive! 

We had a lot of complaining going on during the upwards part of the hike, but everyone was all smiles once we got to the top.  

We enjoyed the views from every angle...

…then hiked on a little further to walk through a lava cave.


Lava caves (aka lava tubes) are formed when the lava flows and part of it cools and forms a hard crust as it is exposed to the air, while lava still flows freely underneath.  The cave here on Rangitoto are almost like a tunnel and we decided to walk all the way through one of them.    It was dark and very rough going, but there was a little natural "skylight" that let in just enough light to make it through without getting injured.

 Afterwards, we slipped and slid our way down the volcano and back to the ferry.   It was definitely a New Zealand adventure we won't soon forget! 

Meanwhile out on the ocean, the boys were having a heyday!   They caught loads of fish between them!

...including this albacore tuna that Adam caught ...

and this 6-1/2 foot mako shark that Spencer reeled in!   

Yes, that's real.  And yes, these pictures completely freak me out.    

And I'm trying not to freak out yet, but there is potentially very large cyclone heading this way this weekend.  Cyclone Pam is expected to become a category 5 storm tomorrow and if it hits New Zealand, will be the largest storm in recorded history to ever hit NZ.   But if the track changes it may stay east and miss us completely.    

We can do sharks and volcanoes, but gigantic cyclones are one New Zealand adventure we could do without! 

  

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New Zealand: Day 1

Day 1 of Spencer's Make-a-Wish trip to New Zealand:

Sunday afternoon we were picked up IN A LIMO to take us to the airport!!!!   

This completely delighted every member of our family and they couldn't wait to get in, press all the buttons, and try out the drink bar!   

It was so exciting, in fact, that Glen left his computer bag on the limo.    The computer bag that contained all the details of our trip, including the phone number for the limo company.    After a good deal of scrambling and making desperate phone calls to people who might be able to help us, we finally  got his bag back…about 45-minutes later.  Good thing we had arrived to the airport nice and early!   

Eventually we made it to the gate and  got settled in for the long haul ride to NZ.  

First a 6-hour flight to Los Angeles, then a 13-hour flight from Los Angeles to Auckland!   

We arrived about 6:00am on Tuesday local time and couldn't wait to get out and explore, but first we had to make it through customs and baggage claim.   Good thing the Auckland airport has plenty of island flair that kept us excited while we waited in the long lines.    Here was some Maori decor...

And of course there were some Lord of the Rings teasers as well.   This statue of Gimli  even had a sign in front of it that declared that it was on loan from Middle Earth!

We drove straight from the airport to Piha Beach, which in our estimation is a little slice of heaven right on earth!  

We hiked to the top of the Sleeping Lion Rock, which had originally been a Maori fishing settlement.  There wasn't a lot to see there...

except some of the most stunning views in the universe! 

The waves and rocks make the beach too rough for swimming, but the soft black sands were perfect for taking off our shoes and wading just a bit!  

 After exploring there for a while we drove a couple of miles and took a hike to Kitekite Waterfall.   Between the exotic foliage, the loudness of the insects, and the swooping birds, we felt like we were walking through a tropical jungle to get there.     The walk was slightly challenging (especially for our jet-lagged bodies), but the waterfall was stunning and provided a perfect backdrop for some New Zealand family photos! 

By the time we left there everyone was STARVING, like only a teenager who is late eating their lunch, but who's body thinks it's already dinnertime can feel.  We stopped at first place that we saw, which happened to be this little hole-in-the-wall,  Piha Cafe.   We gobbled down the hearty, but healthy fare and hoped that the rest of New Zealand food will prove as delicious as this!

Afterward we checked into our hotel, which was absolutely amazing.   We have a corner suite, with a kitchen, three bedrooms….

... and a stunning view of Auckland!  

It was an amazing first day of our dream journey and we can't wait to keep exploring this beautiful land! 

Spencer's Make-A-Wish Trip!

In case you haven't figured it out by now, Spencer's wish was to go to New Zealand!!!! 

At the time they asked what his wish was (when he was cooped up in the hospital room for months on end), I think that his train of thought was "How far away can I possibly get from this hospital room?" and he picked the furthest place in the world that his brain could think of.   Sitting down with the volunteers and perusing New Zealand websites was something that brought Spencer so much hope and excitement in those dark days, but it seemed totally surreal to us that it  would ever happen.  We had the leukemia to get through first, then waiting on pins and needles praying he wouldn't be among the 50% of patients with his type of leukemia that relapsed in that first year, then the patience waiting for the Make-a-Wish volunteers to coordinate a HUGE trip for a family of seven.  As such, we didn't hear a word from them for about 2-1/2 years and we honestly had begun to believe that this trip would ever happen.

Now it's almost three years later and it's finally happening.  We picked up Spencer from JMU last night, who is now officially on spring break, and tomorrow we are taking off for the trip-of-a-lifetime!!!!  

We have a busy day packing and getting ready to go, so for your enjoyment here are some random facts about Make-A-Wish and about New Zealand:

• New Zealand is nearly 9000 miles away from home, 18-hours ahead on the clock (which will feel like 6), and is Spencer's dream destination!  

• Lying at over 1000 miles away from Australia, NZ is considered the most isolated of major land masses of the world and is not considered a part of any continent.  Technically it is considered part of Oceania, which also includes many of the other islands of the Pacific.  

• It was the last of the major land masses to be inhabited by humans.  Scientists believe that even the Maori arrived less than 1000 years ago.   

• There are NO native mammals on NZ, except bats….not even rats and mice.  There are plenty of mammals now, but none that were native when humans arrived.   

• Without the mammals as enemies, the birds in NZ thrived and created a vibrant and varied population of birds that cannot be found anywhere else in the world.  

• Lying at about 41º South, Wellington, NZ is the southernmost capital in the entire world.   

• Timezone wise New Zealand and Hawaii are 23-hours apart, but it only feels like 1-hour.  For instance, if it's 2:00pm on Saturday in Wellington, New Zealand, it's 3:00pm on Friday in Honolulu.  So it only feels like it's an hour difference, but in actuality it's on two different days. 

• Make-a-Wish grants thousands of wishes each year to children between the ages of 2-1/2 - 18 who have faced life-threatening illnesses.   It is NOT a requirement that the child be terminally ill, rather it is meant to be a way to give them hope and something to look forward to while they are facing the darkness and uncertainty of their lives being turned upside-down during their sickness.   

• As of 8:00am on Saturday, we still have ZERO idea what we'll be doing on this trip, other than we are leaving tomorrow.  Make-a-Wish has kept all the details a total surprise from us and will only be revealed to us later today (about 24-hours before we leave)!  

We are SO excited!   

Ice, Ice, Baby…and a Frog!

We walked out of church yesterday, the first time we've had church in 3 weeks, and found our car completely encased in ice.   I rolled down the window in an effort to start getting rid of some of the ice and had to laugh when this happened….

Thankfully the roads weren't actually all that bad and we arrived home safe and sound.   The sidewalks and driveways, however, were another story and proved to be the most precipitous part of our trip.    School was cancelled yet again, and it was easy to see why when we woke to this sight in front of our house….

Even the snow was encased in a shimmery layer of ice...

Cami had fun demonstrating the slipperiness of conditions for all you dear readers.  

So we decided to hunker down and do what any crazy homeschooling family does on a snow day...

Dissect earthworms and frogs.   

The kids have been literally BEGGING me (especially Cami) to do it for weeks, and I finally relented today.  I was happy to have kids old enough to be independent about it, so I could just be the supervisor printing off diagrams and showing them videos about how to do it.  

They still have some more school work to get done, then we are all going to sit down and do a little "homework" getting ready for Spencer's Make-a-Wish trip that is only one week away!!!!!!

Any more guesses?   

We are so excited!   

Link to join our team

She's a Cougar!

…and I mean that in the best way possible!   

Late last night, Cami got the exciting news that she was accepted to Brigham Young University  in Provo, Utah for this fall!   

Although it makes us sad to think of her living so far away, we couldn't be more proud of her and the hard work she has put forth to get her where she's at today!    We are especially proud knowing that BYU received a record number of applicants this year, which means it's all the more of an honor for her to be admitted!  

Her "tweet" from today explains best about how she feels about it.      

Way to go,  Cami!

What We Do For Fun

So what do we do for fun around our house?    

Here's a little glimpse:   

As a family, we love reenacting cooking shows from the Food Network.    My kids (all of them) beg for us to do these on a regular basis.  Glen and I find them a little draining, and especially dread the massive kitchen mess that always ensues, but we try to humor them about once a month or so.  Most of my kids are now better cooks than I am and it's been fun to see even Ellie and Adam stretch themselves to create really tasty (and even beautiful) food without recipes.   I like to think that their future spouses will thank me profusely someday.

Adam, Emma, and AnnaLisa were the judges this time.  Mommy was the first one out and Daddy was the winner.  

Ellie plays dress-up with her friends.  Dress-ups lately have gotten a lot more sophisticated than the fancy princess outfits of her younger days and now they usually involve some elaborate role playing in a historical time period.   This day it was a princess and Little House on the Prairie mash-up where Ellie was  "poor Rapunzel"  and Hannah the faithful servant girl who tried to help Rapunzel.  There was no electricity and they had to use candles and cook over a fire.     

Adam plays strategic board games.   Give him any strategy game and with practice, it won't take long until he will be the new family champion! This day he was playing 10 Days In Europe Game , but "7 Wonders" is his current favorite.  We play games together as a family at least a few times a week and for sure whenever we get together with the "S" family!   Adam also just started an every other week chess club with some local homeschoolers, since he can't talk any of his sisters (or mother) into playing that with him.  

Emma makes fancy breakfasts.   The breakfasts shown below are not for a special occasion of any sort. She just really seems to enjoy that quiet early morning time in the kitchen to create beautiful and delicious food.  

 I tote kids around to their doctor's visits, classes, etc., and try to take advantage of moments to spend special time with a kid whenever I can.    Yesterday Ellie had her appointment with a seizure specialist (also known as an epileptologist) downtown, so when her appointment was finished and I realized we were only about 2.5 miles from the National Zoo and still had a couple hours before the next kid had somewhere to be, it was a no-brainer.   The zoo was empty, the animals were active, and there were zoo keepers everywhere eager to share information about the animals to anyone who would listen.  We learned all about how they track pandas in the wild and best of all got to watch the very cute baby panda playing for a while!    

Cami makes cupcakes.  This clearly isn't a surprise, but perhaps the fact that after 3-years of being in business that she still regularly fills big orders for people and that she's still willing to make special orders for mom, may be a bit more of a surprise.  She recently held a big sale for her entrepreneurship class and sold 11-dozen cupcakes (on left) and  a week later was still willing to make these "brainy" cupcakes for me to share with friends celebrating another friend's anniversary of overcoming brain cancer.

Glen makes chocolate covered strawberries!    Okay, so this was just for Valentine's Day, but it was such a sweet gesture and so much more interesting than showing a picture of him watching BYU sports, that I had to throw it in.  

I had to laugh to see how many of our family's past-times involve food.   What can I say?  I think I'm raising a family of foodies!    Even Spencer sends me pictures of meals he's proudly prepared for himself….complete with the  budget friendly ingredients of beans and rice!  

One of Spence's culinary creations

So what do YOU do for fun in your house?