Party in the Hotel room!

Our kids love hotels! They seriously check out every button, chair, bed, TV and bathroom in every room we stay in. It's like kids in a candy store. Speaking of candy, they are always so disappointed when they can't have anything from the giant mini bar staring them in the face. They think it's just part of the deal and someone knew they were coming and that they loved candy and treat drinks! Mean hotel people.

Thanks to an amazing deal on Priceline we scored this super swanky Hilton hotel room in Queenstown. The kids were so impressed...especially by the giant barn door that separated their area from ours. Todd and I were super stoked too! Despite its uber swankiness the sofa bed turned out to not be a bed, but rather the good ole fashioned sofa. Needless to say we had to improvise. It was probably there most favorite hotel room of the trip. We threw the couch cushions on the floor and made them some pretty cool beds. John was so disappointed he couldn't be a part of the party!

Oh, and holy smokes its hard to get your kids to sleep at a decent hour in a hotel room. Needless to say, by the end of our month long vacation we had it down to a fine art.

Mount Cook - Day 3

Mount Cook

Wow! What an amazing area. I couldn't get over how much this still reminded me of the states, but at the same time it was so crazy to think the beach was just a few hours away. The extremes of New Zealand really are amazing.

We took this really cool hike to get closer to Mount Cook. The kids were loving the swinging bridges, my mother not so much. I couldn't believe what a great hiker my dad was. I'm always a little worried about him because of his heart and I was especially nervous just because here we were in this foreign country in the middle of nowhere. But, he did amazing. It seems his last surgery really has made him like a new man. Sometimes I seriously forget he's 71. He still seems like such a spring chick to me!

The kids did pretty well too. Joe hiked the entire way up and then hitched a ride in the backpack on the way back. And, Katie was our little hiking machine. That girl is like a gazelle! John, did fine until he had to give up his spot in the backpack and be carried. He is definitely developing more of an opinion these days! We did have one minor episode that could have been so much worse, but apparently our prayers worked that day. Joey and Katie were checking out the sundial on top of a rock at a resting point. Todd and I were sitting just a few feet away giving John a snack and letting him stretch his legs. We knew Katie and Joey were playing on the rock, but what we didn't know was there was a 6 foot drop from the backside of the rock to the ground. The next thing we heard was a big thump and Katie screaming. We ran over and saw Joey laying in the grass with people fussing over him. He seemed fine other than being scared to death and having the wind knocked out of him. As I looked around I was absolutely amazed that he had not hit his head on a rock or any other part of his body. Our prayers for safety that morning most certainly were heard and kept our boy safe. We really were so thankful. Definitely not our most shining moment as parents.

Lake Tekapo - Day 2

Lake Tekapo

This lake was the most beautiful color of turquoise. And the church just made it all the more beautiful. Apparently, it's the oldest church in New Zealand. The kids loved throwing rocks in the water and the weather was such a nice change from all the rain we had been having at the Mount.

I was so surprised by how much this part of the south island looked like Wyoming and Montana. It was like driving through parts of Yellowstone, but no animals. It was such a strange feeling to be expecting to see a moose, elk or bear and then remembering they didn't have them there. However, they do have some deer which are almost impossible to see in the wild. There are plenty that are domesticated though.

We stayed just a little south of this lake in a little town called Twizel. Dinner there was AMAZING! I had the best salmon and risotto I have probably ever had. Did I mention that one of my most favorite things about traveling is picking out the restaurant for the evening. It was always something we loved to do as kids on our family trips and it still hasn't changed for me as an adult. Something about being in a new place and sampling their food just makes it more memorable for me. Or, maybe it just means I love food, especially tasty food I don't have to cook!

Day 1 of 1st South Island Trip

Auckland

Holy Smokes!!! My dad made it to New Zealand. We weren't sure it was going to happen due to some paperwork passport issues, but he did!!!!

We spent New Year's Eve in Auckland, New Zealand. We started the day off with a great New Zealand style breakfast of eggs and bacon at a local cafe. Then we did some exploring of the city. I was super impressed with my parents seeing that they had just arrived from a 13+ hour red eye flight. They were so spunky and ready to explore. We checked out an art museum, Albert Park, and a few random streets downtown. Then we headed back to the hotel for a afternoon siesta to gear up for the evening festivities.

We decided to head out early for dinner since we didn't make any reservations because where does one make dinner reservation with three small children in the biggest city in New Zealand on New Years?! So our dinner adventure began. And, it was quite the adventure. It seems everyone in Auckland decided to pick the same restaurants we did at 6 pm in the evening. We ended up at some random Chinese restaurant that was kind enough to make space for us despite our lack of reservation. It was just in time too. After an hour plus of walking around to restaurants and being ignored or rejected we were all about to lose it.

After dinner we headed back to the hotel with great intentions of staying awake to watch the fireworks launched from the space needle thing, especially since it was just above our hotel room window. Of course, we were all asleep by 10:30 pm and missed them. Lucky for us the weather was so terrible that night they never even launched them. What a relief or we would have had some very angry children whose parents slept right through the "party" we had promised to wake them for.

**As it turns out most of the entire North Island had to cancel New Years festivities due to the crazy amounts of rain. The rivers were HUGE!!!

Coromandel Peninsula

The Coromandel Peninsula was amazing. Just gorgeous. People have asked me so many times what my favorite spot in New Zealand was, but I just can't commit to any one place. They were all so unique and impressive. This was definitely one of my favorites on the North Island though. So untouched.

Hot Water Beach

So this beach sits on top of an underground hot springs. It looks like any other beach during high tide, but when it's low tide it is packed with people, shovels and random hot pools created in the sand. When the tide goes out you walk along the sand and find a "hot spot" then you dig your little hot pool and relax....sort of. Like I said it's super crowded.

We were super skeptical at first and told the kids not to get their hopes up because it might not actually be hot, but it totally was. In fact, in some places the water was so hot it burned my feet. The kids loved it and still talk about going back there. Definitely a unique to New Zealand thing. (Such a cool place. I didn't take my camera for the actual "hot water" experience. I'm super bummed, but it wasn't worth the risk of it getting damaged.) If you want to see some images of what the pools look like go here. The really are interesting.

Katie's "New Zealand Snowman"...loved it!!

The Pōhutukawa Tree

Also known as the New Zealand "Christmas tree" because they bloom right around Christmas time. These trees are breathtaking and smell wonderful. The contrast of the red against the blue ocean is just amazing. This peninsula is famous for them. We lucked out to be there when they were in full bloom just a week and a half before Christmas.




Cathedral Cove

So Beautiful!! This whole area reminded us of the Oregon Coast. It was so untouched. We kept commenting on how different it would have been had it been in the states.That's one thing I love about New Zealand is how much land is still accessible to anyone. All the breathtaking coastline isn't bought up by people and hotels. It is so refreshing.

Whirinaki Forest

Hands down one of my most favorite places in New Zealand. A total fluke that we found it as well. I happened to be perusing Pinterest one evening and found a picture of the canyon just below and about died. I decided I had to see it! After some serious research we figured out where it was and set a date to go.

It is one of the few native forests left in New Zealand. The trees were huge and beautiful. Kind of like the redwoods meet the rain forest. It was pure eye candy. And, it actually turned out to be a fabulous fishing river for Todd as well. I also learned that one should never grab a New Zealand palm tree for stability when going down a hill. Seriously, it pulls out of the ground like a blade of grass. Hello tumbling down the hillside!

Getting a picture of this canyon was a real trick. My first attempt involved straddling a wet mossy tree way out into the middle of a big rushing river. (Didn't really love the angle on that one.) My second attempt went much better and was probably less precarious. It involved walking out into the middle of the cold river (thigh deep) with John strapped to my back. In hind site I probably should have left him with Todd just in case. :) The picture was totally worth it though!!

Top tens from New Zealand flight home

1. Moving 9 pieces of luggage, two car seats, one baby backpack, and 8 carry-ons through the airport.

2. Two crazy ladies commenting loudly on our ridiculous amount of luggage with each turn of the check-in line.

This was pretty funny. I finally started looking them straight in the eye when they would make their comments. They still continued to comment as if I didn't exist. I was honestly already too tired to even come up with something funny and slightly sarcastic to say to them.

3. Crazy lady with the blank stare that took an hour to check us in.

We walked to the counter and told her we had 9 pieces of luggage and two car seats to check. Blank stare followed by, "You are only allowed four pieces of luggage," followed by another blank stare. "Yes, we know and we will pay the fee for the extra baggage"...still a blank stare. Then she spent some time typing a few things into the computer, followed by a few phone calls (not related to us) and then she disappeared. Later, she comes back with another lady who tells her we will need to pay for the extra baggage. Again, blank stare. Other lady walks away. We stand there again while she fidgets with her computer and our passports. Finally, she says, "You will need to pay a fee for the extra baggage." Then she walks away again and another phone call. Eventually, some nice Air New Zealand man came over and seemed to light a fire under her and finally our luggage was tagged and on the belt (except for one...that I had to go back and remind her to put it on the belt) and we had our tickets.

4. Verbally abusive woman in the customer service line.

Aforementioned ANZ nice man escorts Todd to the front of the customer service line to pay for the infamous extra baggage so we can make our flight and some crazy woman starts in on how he should have to wait in the line like everyone else. Nice man becomes not so nice to mean lady who backs down and Todd pays for baggage. We thank nice man again and again and are on our way.

5. Running through the airport with 25 minutes to flight departure.

6. Almost leaving John in the Auckland New Zealand airport.

Another run in with gate lady about the baby backpack being a carry on. In order to demonstrate it's carry-on ability I removed John from it to show her how it would collapse. Meanwhile John meanders over to the window to watch the planes with Joe....I'm thinking Todd has him from when I took him out of the pack, Todd thinks I have him. Lady gives in and tells us to board the plane. We walk down the boarding ramp, board the plane, start settling our other children only to realize John is not with us. Holy instant panic!!!!! Todd is running off the plane. Stewardess' are yelling at him that he is not allowed to leave the plane or security will be called. I am yelling at crazy stewardess' that our baby is missing. They're looking at me like I'm nuts. Todd keeps running up the ramp. Katie is starting to cry. We look like lunatic parents. Hooray! Welcome to flying with the Clevengers! Todd gets to the gate and they aren't going to let him have John without a passport which is on the plane. Meanwhile John is happily watching planes from the window. When Todd called him he comes over screaming "daddy" and the gate lady has to give in. After only a few minutes (that seemed like forever) Todd is back with our little man. Fortunately, most of the people on our flight spoke only French and had no idea what we were saying...at least that's what I tell myself. :)

7. Having to deplane in Tahiti wearing jeans and shoes in 80+ degree weather for three hours in an open air airport.

Seriously, we were in Tahiti and not on the beach. So sad! They also made us go through security again right after getting off the plane. We're talking remove your shoes, cell phones, computers, water etc. What a pain!!!

8. Joey missing the potty in the Tahiti airport and having to go commando the rest of the flight.

Little boys are tricky. Not big enough to stand up, but too little to get "everything" down in the potty without hitting the undies. Therefore undies are in the trash of the Tahiti airport restroom. Joey is devastated and bawling...it was Nemo underwear. He was sure we could never find another pair of Nemo underwear in the world and that that pair would be so sad left there in the trash, and why couldn't we just wash and dry it there in the airport. Oh boy, there were a lot of tears. Good thing Disney is so popular in the states. Nemo will be replaced tomorrow.

9. John hand feeding Todd peanuts on our flight from LA to SLC.

This was absolutely hilarious. John knew he could get whatever he wanted from us at that point. We were at hour number 4000 of traveling really only 27, but it sure felt like that long and we couldn't handle any screaming tantrums at the point. So since John wanted to feed Todd peanuts he ate them whether he wanted to or not. I'm pretty sure he didn't want them!

10. Driving home on the right side of the road.

Wow it felt weird. I thought it would feel more normal, but even a few days later I still panic on roads with blind corners. I can't remember which side of the road I'm supposed to be on. Both Todd and I still use our windshield wipers for blinkers (they're backwards in New Zealand). I've definitely tried to get in the wrong side of the car a few times. Also, it's so fast and easy to get anywhere here. The roads are so curvy there and so straight here. Salt Lake to Ogden seems like a hop skip and a jump after the last few months of driving.

All in all it's good to be home. We found a nice place to rent today near our old house and neighborhood. The weather has been kind to us. Todd is back at work. Joey starts preschool tomorrow and Katie school in a week, after we move in. We're settling in nicely. Just wish we could transport the beach and a few friends back here!