With the hail damage last month, we put in an insurance claim to get the guttering repaired, and clear roofing over the back 'carport' replaced. We decided to leave our van and Caleb's car, but Aaron's car was worth getting assessed. As expected, it was written off as so many cars are being - a repair is not economically viable for these lower value cars. So, the hunt for a new car began. We found this beauty on TradeMe, and drove up to Christchurch to collect it today. Aaron drove it back all the way on his learners licence (with Nick supervising of course), and did superbly on his first little road trip. Coincidentally, that's Caleb's Passo parked behind Aaron's new Passo...yup, the boys are now driving the same brand of vehicle!
The Clevely Chronicles
Thursday, December 12, 2019
Tuesday, December 10, 2019
Officially Kiwi Clevelys
Ten years and three months ago, Nick and I started the odious process of filling in the necessary paperwork which would allow us to touch down in Aotearoa and live temporarily on a work permit. A few years after that there was more paperwork for the next work permit, and a few years after that we could apply for residence. Now finally, we have reached highest pinnacle of belonging in New Zealand - we attended our citizenship ceremony today and swore our oaths of allegiance. The mayor asked us which rugby team we would be supporting now. Caleb, ever the quick-wit, said, "whichever team is winning"! We are so thankful to the Lord for His gracious hand on us, and for our FriendsWhoAreFamily in NZ.
Wednesday, November 20, 2019
Goodness gracious, great balls of ice!
We've noticed that spring weather in Timaru can be pretty crazy. We'll be sweating it out in shorts and t-shirts one day, then lighting a fire the next. Today was a day of Much Excitement with the biggest hailstorm we've seen in Timaru EVER. Sure we've seen a few bouts of hail over the last nine-and-a-half-almost-ten years we've been living here, but nothing like this. No wonder the young kids at the school where I'm employed were scared - they've never seen anything like this in their lives! In the aftermath we have a few broken gutters, half the leaves from our trees lying in the garden, and three pock-marked cars. But others were far worse off - we've heard tell of broken windows, leaking roofs, and car dealerships whose entire fleet may need to be written off.
Monday, July 08, 2019
Second one with wheels
Congratulations to my 'baby' who bought his first set of wheels today! Aaron has been diligently saving his burger-flipping and fries-cooking money, and was able to buy this Toyota Spacio entirely by himself. The dealer was surprised when Aaron uncovered two extra seats in the boot - a little hidden feature which makes this into somewhat of a family van. Safe travels, my boy!
Friday, July 22, 2016
Friday, June 24, 2016
House renos
("Mo-o-o-ommmm...what have you done??!!!!" It's called being committed to painting the wall the next day!)
Friday, June 03, 2016
Grandma and Grandpa
I think you're going to be seeing a lot of upcycling projects coming up on the blog. Before we moved I spent ages on Pinterest, looking longingly at all the ideas which I'd never thought to implement and getting impatient to start experimenting! We bought these chairs shortly before shifting, and I made them my first project. They went from this...
to this...
to this...
to this!
Thursday, May 05, 2016
Moving North (actually South, but...)
After sixteen and a half years of marriage, Nick and I have finally bought a house. We are thrilled! The Lord has blessed us with the means (financially speaking) which we would not have thought possible. We saw our new home for the first time in February, and it was the only one we walked into where we both said "wow". It met all our criteria - most importantly, open plan living area. So it's been a pretty crazy week, spending days at the hospital in between packing and getting ready. Now, here we are - Moving Eve.
'Twas the the night before moving
And all through the house
Not a bedroom was tidy
Not even the kitchen
There were boxes and boxes
Taped and labelled all well
And there was chaos and clutter but lots of excitement.
And this poem doesn't rhyme
Microwave
'Twas the the night before moving
And all through the house
Not a bedroom was tidy
Not even the kitchen
There were boxes and boxes
Taped and labelled all well
And there was chaos and clutter but lots of excitement.
And this poem doesn't rhyme
Microwave
Wednesday, May 04, 2016
Caleb, age 15
Sunday, March 27, 2016
Easter '16
As another Easter rolls around, we look forward not only to reflecting on Jesus' sacrifice for us, in His death to pay our sin wages, but also to the Annual Easter At The Gregorys Non-Tenting Camping Event. It's an epic weekend of church activities, friends, eating, playing games, crafting, socialising, blobbing...and did I mention that it's fun?
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