Catch-up time « The Brown family moves to New Zealand

Wow, things have been so busy we’ve really been neglecting this blog. I’ll try and bring things up to date, then we’ll hopefully find it easier to stay on top of things

Carl, Cindi and Kei came to stay. They had a great time, we hired a bach up at Waitarere Beach and stayed a few days. Carl, Cindi and Candi took part in a run and got certificates and photos to prove it! As with all family visits, time went by too quickly and in no time at all they had to fly back. Hopefully we’ll see them again soon.
Sophie is nearly 2! It’s amazing how quickly time has gone and when we look at photos taken when we arrived in NZ (just over a year ago) we’re struck by how young she looks. She’s not a baby anymore! All her friends in coffee group are having their second Birthday parties at the moment, our weekends are fully booked!
Work is still good and busy for me. Our friend Graham (a Canterburian from Pru days) was looking for work in Christchurch but ended up looking further afield – I managed to get him an interview at Trade Me and he accepted – he’s now living and working in Wellington. Sophie likes playing with “Jim”, as she calls him
DIY around the house continues. We’ve sanded and varnished the front door, painted the lounge, utility room and en-suite bathroom. An incident with an overflowing basin resulted in an insurance claim for the vanity in the upstairs bathroom. Luckily the carpet + floor aren’t badly damaged, we managed to catch it before too much damage was done. Honestly, who makes a basin without an overflow outlet?
The weather is getting colder… We still get nice days – Friday and yesterday were fantastic for instance – but when it gets cold, it feels freezing. Looks like we’ve got more bad weather ahead.
My parents have booked their flights for a visit in Feb next year. Hopefully they’ll get good weather!
Norman and Shirley arrive soon – I think it’s less than six weeks now. Hard to believe it’s twelve months since they were here last. Looking forward to seeing them again and I know Candi can’t wait.
Our residency plans are continuing. I re-visited the immigration process and it seems that 12 months’ NZ work experience gives us a big boost in points. We’re now comfortably in the ‘automatic selection’ zone and to be honest it looks like acceptance is just a formality at this point. Police and medical checks notwithstanding of course.