Time flys.

Richard and Robyn, Katherine and Sarah have just left after coming for a roast pork supper and I HAVE to blog. I know I won't have any time for the next week.

Where to start. It seems like aeons ago that Bridget left and I last put finger to keyboard. The children went back to school after a 2 week break today. Eric was off from uni. so went back to working mornings only. He also put the Mistral back together in the first week after we got a new head and head gasket. Finally assembled he started the engine and - it worked - then....smoke started bellowing out the exhaust. He thought it was the tappets (whatever they are) and we towed it to the garage for Bryce to reset or do, or whatever the term is for fixing them. That was on Friday, Bryce said he'd try and do it on Sat. No call so we phoned on Monday, not done yet. Well this is NZ! We were then busy all week and I phoned again at 4.50pm last Friday, expecting Bryce to say, Yeah, it's been done for days. 'We're having some problems and I think it's internal Michelle'!!!! 'Stop there Bryce, I'll get Eric'. Anyway, the long and the short of it is that a piston has gone and we need a new piston and an engine rebore, oh, and the head gasket (half a weeks salary) will need replacing again. I could have cried. Poor Eric. So it will come back here to be striped down-again, go to the garage to have the engine removed (needs dropping as opposed to lifting and we don't have a pit), engine will go away, be done, come back, be put back in the Mistral then Eric will put it all back together again. The bill is currently sitting at 3 weeks of my salary and will probably double that by the time we've finished. Oh and there's the minor issue of time, none of which Eric has to spare.

On a VERY much happier note, Kevin has a job. Yes I know I've already reported that, but this time it's a real growed up job with lots of international travel and twice the salary of the other job he had been offered. Actually within a day or 2 he got offered 3 growed up jobs. Needless to say we are thrilled for him and so relieved for them that they can all put this last few months well and truely behind them. Well done guys.

Trying to recall 2 weeks of news is really hard. I know the girls have had 2 trips to the pools and 2 to the movies. They also went and stayed with Juliet and Kev for a couple of nights. Eric and I went to see Seducing Dr Lewis while we were childless. It had had a fabulous write up in the paper, but the article failed to mention that it was in French, well Canadian French! Now subtitles I can do but I like a bit of warning beforehand. The movie was OK, pleasant enough but not memorable (apart from the fact it was in French!!). The same evening I also obtained a CD copy of Joni Mitchells 'Blue'. I've been looking for it since before Stan was here and obviously had not looked in the right places as the guy in the shop said it was very popular, they sell 2 a week (this is a 70's album don't forget). I was thrilled and popped into the CD player in the car on the way back. Eric was so insulting about it that I was glad I was only giving him a lift to Hillcrest and could do the rest of the journey home alone (he had driven into Hamilton to meet me after work and left his car on the edge of town). I sang loudly all the way back and was thrilled to see I remembered ALL the words. It must be 15 years since I last listened to it.

On Sunday we took H and A to see Robot's, another amusing, average kids movie. Met R+R, K+S in Gengy's afterwards, which is why we had them for supper tonight. We are in our 'must get the freezer cleared out before anything else is slotted' phase and I told Eric to defrost a large joint. Managed to pursuade the Scott's last night to come and help us eat this huge rolled leg of pork this evening. There's anough left to feed an army! Pork sandwiches all week guys! During the holidays Eric pulled out our video's from when the girls were 2-3 years old, trips to South Africa etc. We have looked at a couple of them and I was so taken aback at a)how cute Alice was, b)Harriette's vocabulary and clarity of speech (contrast with the Kevin-like mumblings that emit from her these days), c) how nice they were to each other, d) how thin I was (!!!!!post serious illness) and did I mention how thoroughly scrummy and gorgeous Alice was? I have laughed and cried so much watching them, and yelled at the girls who laugh so much you can't hear a thing. So much of what we watched I had forgotten and I am so pleased we have these precious moments for posterity.

The next week will fly by in a haze. Today Waahi Beach (1 hr 30 min drive) to do assessments on nurses giving MeNZB in schools, Wednesday and Thursday teaching in Tauranga (long days) Fri-Sun in Hamilton for the Practice Nurses Conference. Marilyn and I are delegates and are manning a stand for IMAC. And Sunday is Mother's Day and I won't be back 'til about 5pm! Monday I hope to have a day off! Busy, busy, busy!!