We're MARRIED!

Hi everyone

A lot has happened since I last updated this blog. Rory and I were legally married on 5 October 2009 at the Department of Internal Affairs in Wellington. We'll have a second (more romantic) ceremony in Africa during our travels, and then receptions in the UK and US.

The rest of the photos can be viewed here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2088286&id=39206091&l=2a83176785

We'll be leaving NZ as soon as Rory gets his green card--hopefully around Christmas. Our plan is to spend a month in SE Asia, a couple of months in Africa, and then some time in the UK. We'll move to Portland, OR for a year or two trial period.

We can't wait to see everyone.

Love
Amy

Lindsay and Brett's visit

Hi everyone

Lindsay and Brett left this morning. It was great to see them!

They arrived Thursday evening, did the touristy stuff on Friday, and then hung out with Rory and me on Saturday. Friday night they met us on Cuba Street, and then we went to the Hurricanes vs. Bulls pro rugby match. It was good fun.

Yesterday we had a relaxed day here in Island Bay. We took Lindsay and Brett to our favorite viewpoint, out to fish 'n chips, and then to the beach to search for beach glass. We took them to the Jewel of Nepal for dinner, and then out for a quick beer in Newtown.

It was great fun to show them around, and I hope that the South Island is good to them, too.

Love

Ames

Our four-year anniversary

Hi everyone

We're celebrating our anniversary today. Four years ago, Rory and I met randomly at a hostel in Budapest. The rest, as they say, is history!

So we took a 10K (6+ mile) hike to the top of Mt. Albert, over to the other side to Lyall Bay, and then followed the coastline back to Island Bay. We stopped for a cheap beer at the Bowls Club on the way home. It was a lovely day.

This week we're hosting Lindsay and Brett, some friends from home. Expect some piccies of pro rugby, too, as we're going to the Hurricanes vs. Bulls match on Friday.

I know I haven't been reliable at updating the blog. When you fall into a routine, you just sort of forget you're on holiday. Things haven't been easy either: Rory is still recovering from Whooping Cough, our jobs have both been stressful, and I was bitten by a white-tail spider. Ah, travel!

Love

Ames

Lucy and her mussels

Hi everyone

Lucy loves her seafood, and the big green hairy NZ mussels didn't disappoint. The pictures go in order: happiness, enjoying the mussels, and then sad because they're gone.

Enjoy!

Love
Ames

Feeding the eels

Hi everyone

There are wild freshwater eels in Golden Bay that love to eat ground beef off of sticks. The experience was about as weird as it sounds.

Love
Ames

Mud masks

Hi everyone

We bought some Rotorua mud masks in Nelson. Enjoy the pics!

Love
Ames

Rory's fam's visit

Hi everyone

Enjoy the pictures! I'll be putting up more throughout the week.

By the way, my boss is suffering from two different heart conditions, and she isn't coming back to work anytime soon. She will probably be undergoing open heart surgery.

Love
Ames

Second go at calling the ambulance

Hi everyone

My supervisor collapsed about an hour ago, and I had to call the ambulance. I'm finding out that I'm not very good at calling emergency services. I didn't know our address, the main phone line, directions...my mind was blank. Thank god our receptionist, Amberley, took over.

One minute Michelle was on the phone, and then I heard a yelp and I heard her fall out of her chair. I ran around to find her on the floor, shaking, and not responding. I yelled for help and there was nobody around, so I had to leave her to run around the office. It is a terrifying feeling needing help and not being able to find it.

It might be a heart attack, we'll see.

Love
Ames

Another week has flown by

Well, it is Friday again.

I don't have a lot to say today, but I needed to blog since it has already been a week since my last one.

So, what have I been up to? Taking my Business Grammar course (fascinating), playing with the new bunnies (cute), working (a bit frustrating), reading in Te Papa in the afternoons (relaxing), getting fingerprinted (intimidating), and cooking (improving).

Rory's mum and sister will be arriving on the 19th, so we have lots to do before then. Tomorrow is Valentine's Day, and Rory and I are going on a date to the Monet Exhibition at Te Papa (I'm pretty sure it is the real thing this time!). Tonight I am going out for drinks with my coworkers and then out to dinner with Rory.

Life is pretty good. Rory is slowly improving, and we have a lot of fun things to look forward to.

Love

Ames

Hi everyone

The warriors disappointed, but the Rugby Sevens didn't!

We didn't know that the warriors are only reproductions. I guess since the real ones arrived in London while we were living in Brighton, I figured it was the same traveling exhibition. But it isn't...these were fake warriors. What a bummer.

But the Sevens costumes were awesome. We saw: walking iPods, Guantanamo prisoners, the Harlem Globetrotters, Traffic cones, superheroes, Elmos, Oompaloompas, etc. There were crazy people all over town, in the middle of the street, on the buses, in the pubs. I can't wait to go next year (if we can get tickets).

Love
Amy

My birthday

Info to come.