Bon Voyage

This will be the last post from me for a week or so, as the girls and I are off tomorrow. I can't believe it's almost moving day already. It's been a crazy few weeks but everything has fallen into place nicely so I can't help but think we are meant to be back in the mainland. Wish me luck travelling alone with 3 kiddies!! We're spending the week with family, hanging out with friends and hopefully all our wordly possessions (and DH) will be arriving this time next week at our new place. See you then!



Note bag packed with essentials....Mummy made wool jumpers, wool hats and the little snaplock bag on the right is my knitting project ;)



In the meantime I just thought I would share this little story describing our trip up here , a little over a year ago ( I was 3mth pregnant at the time and travelling on my own again with the kids, then 4y and 15mth, despite it being summer the weather was atrocious and the 2nd biggest airport in NZ was closed due to the weather ). I posted this on a Random Act of Kindness thread on a parenting forum I belong to. Lets hope I don't have a repeat experience this time round !!


See you soon xx






I just have to share my airport disaster story. If you read my post about moving house you will know we've just moved from the south island to the far north of NZ. DH came up on Wed and was here when the movers arrived on Fri with all our gear. Me and the kids were booked on late flights later that day.
So.......... it all started swimmingly. The airport was quiet as, no crowds at all. I had TONS of luggage - a 30kg suitcase, toddler carseat,2 smaller bags and carryon right at the max allowed weight but since I wouldnt have to deal with it at any stage it wasnt too much of a bother. There was so much stuff because we were moving and there was stuff the movers wouldnt take - impt documents, jewellery plus I had packed tons of clothes to deal with the changeable weather (everything from sundresses and sunhats to polar fleeces and raincoats - all of which got worn the week we stayed with my auntie while our gear was in transit). Anyway the flight to Akld was fine, no dramas at all and the kids were great. Get to Akld and have some tea and a short wait till our connecting flight. REALLY looking forward to (FINALLY) being in our new home and seeing DH again. Hurry down to the lounge to find the planes been delayed by an hour...sigh. Its now leaving at 7.30 (instead of arriving at 7.30). The kids are getting tired but we are coping. Fill in an hour....get to lounge again and M notices our luggage going around the carousel. Im thinking WTF - isnt that supposed to be on a plane???? Next minute "...we regret to inform passengers..." I think I swore outloud as they announced our flight had been cancelled!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Next I have to get 50kg of luggage off the carousel by myself holding a squirmy 15mth who is trying to hop on it or pull other bits off. I get to the desk and they say they can put me on a shuttle (NO WAY JOSE I think, not at this time of night with 2 tired kids....probably a 4hr+ drive in torrential rain) or rebook for the next day. I choose the latter and get to the rebooking counter to discover the first 2 flights of the day are full. So we get on the 1.05pm flight. And of course the last flight to the next nearest town(which was going) had just closed a minute ago.....
They don't have to put passengers up in a hotel if its weather related so I am thinking what on earth am I going to do for the night......I am txting DH at this stage but he cant get hold of the one friend we know who lives in Akld....gahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Its taking ages, M is whining about why cant we go to our new house, N is wayyyyyyyyyyy past her bedtime and crying and I am just standing there thinking I want to cry too.
Then I did.... when the absolute darling of a lady at the AirNZ Booking Counter said she would put us up in a hotel for the night and include dinner and breakfast plus a shuttle there and back.
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU You really made my day. I am sooooooooooo appreciative and realise you didnt have to do this, I am so grateful you did!!! So this post is all about thanking you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And I also want to thank my Australian Angel. A lovely lovely guy whose flight to Rotorua had also been cancelled and who was put up in the same hotel,who helped me put my 50kg of luggage onto the airport shuttle to the hotel (I was hoping for a shuttle with luggage trailer but no this was one where you have to take your bags ONTO the bus and LIFT them into a luggage rack
... Yes entirely possible while you hold your baby and are 3 mths pregnant ). If it wasnt for you putting my bags on and off the bus I dont know how i would have managed. Thank you for talking to M all the way on the bus, for entertaining her when I was checking in, for getting us a trolley and loading it all on, for holding N so she could see the fish................you rock! Thank you thank you thank you. I didnt even get your name but will be eternally thankful for your help.

Thank you to the kind couple again the next mornigng who loaded my stuff on and off the bus and found me a trolley. Also eternally grateful for your help.

Thank you to the people who were behind us in the queue to check in the next morning for holding our place in the line and pushing our stuff along when we had to take M to the toilet.

So a day late to our new home but here at last. Quite an adventure really. We also survived the longest queue in the world to check in (this was the day Wgtn airport had been closed for 2 days so the airport was manic, the busiest I have ever seen any airport full of p*ssed off travellers who just had to sit and wait and hope Wgtn reopened, plus tons of people like me who were trying to get places they should have got to the day before).

I have decided that any form of air travel is off the agenda for quite some time now

Thank you to everyone who took pity on me and helped me out. I really do appreciate it.

Thank god for the kindness of strangers