Cousins meet

Here are Lilli and Bella, American and Kiwi cousins, meeting for the first time, this week. They seem quite fascinated with each other and wanted to do/have/eat/drink exactly the same things, at the same time mostly, which was tricky. Lilli and her parents stayed over last night and the girls shared a bath in the evening. There was a little squabbling and possessiveness over the bath toys, but it went well otherwise. Lilli has crazily thick long curly-as hair and this was hard to handle - her Mom wasn't allowed to wash her hair but Aunty Anna was, eventually. She was concerned about the amount of water I let in her ears though, so I have room for improvement obviously.

This morning they continued to copy each other, down to the same cereal and - potential for problems here: the same pair of sandals... Luckily Lilli wears a larger size so Bella was spared seeing her fave Winnie The Pooh sandals on the feet of another. The two Dads and I and the two girls walked Lockie to school, and soon after Lilli and her parents left, but we caught up later for lunch at Petone McDonalds, with the girls' Great Aunt, and they spent ages exploring the playground there. [Bella surprised her parents with her daring on the big steep tunnel slides.]

Soon we will head off to Mokau, in Taranaki, for a few days. When I say we, at the moment that excludes Bella and me, as I have work commitments and Fraz doesn't feel he can handle sole care of two kids at once. It's a five hour drive from home, although Nana and Lilli and her parents will be there too. It is supposed to be a chance for the two families to hang together, but frankly, it's a bloody long trip to do this, when our house fits everyone quite nicely... Still, it's not our holiday. We would have chosen somewhere closer! [We have changed our minds many times about how to do this trip so everyone is included, but in vain. We figure that the toddlers won't remember it anyway.]

Enjoyed watching 'Rude Awakenings' tonight on the box, as usual. Love NZ dramas and there's plenty of drama [and dubious acting] in this one. A few glasses of vino didn't go amiss of course. Got Fraz through it at least!

Last night I went out with Lilli's parents, to the bar in the city where Frazer's band was playing. It was a good night, although as the driver I only had a couple of drinks early on. Ben Hazelwood, a finalist for the last NZ Idol, got up and sang with the band for several songs. He was very good and the crowd was appreciative, although I wonder if many recognised him. Apparently he's a friend of the drummer's girlfriend, which got him a place on the stage in the first place, and then he wouldn't leave!! I had a nice chat at one point to a couple of lads in kilts. I only understood half of what they said, with their broad Scottish accents, which was quite funny. A bit sleep-deprived today, but that's the pay-off, with young kids, and a night out.