Gardening with naked beasties

Something of a heatwave in Auckland means Joe and Georgia head into the garden to find water and shade. The garden being a work in progress, shade is hard to find, but J and G find ways to cool off....

SPARTANS!!!!! Death to the weeds!!











Amanda's arrestingly adorable artchokes are outdone only by...

Her blindingly beautiful beanstalk. "Shut up," says Georgia.

"Can't you see Joe's got the hose?? He'll run amok...."

OK Joe, just put the hose down and.....

TOO LATE!!! RUN!

Order restored, it's back to work. And with all its delights, what still amazes everyone most about the garden is that daddy's fence is still standing.

Captions go below the photos, idiot.

Summer was excellent in December and the holidays were the same - Christmas in Whakatane with family was great for beach visits, berry picking, Santa spotting and adventure at sea and on Rotoma Lake. So hot it was we were grateful for the odd cloudy day for a bit of relief.

But of course, the best time of all was present openng on Christmas morning:

Here, Joe prepares himself for a marathon present opening session..

"......I'm not the man they think I am at all, oh no, no, no.......I'm a Rocket Man.."

The rock star image obviously suited Joe - meanwhile...

Georgia fell in love with her purple-maned pony.

Joe discovers the guitar - a legend is born.

Amanda, uncle Angus and cousin Rose wait longingly for that rare and exquisite delicacy....

AMANDA'S SUMMER PUDDING!! Blackberries, strawberries, raspberries and notsureberries combine in one delicious culinary symphony.

Oh and then there's the mince pies, made and eaten with Georgia's assistance. Joe casts a critical eye on the results and finds them acceptable.

.. a good chance to show off their new chairs - monkey and frog themes.

Later that morning, a visit to Ohope beach - cousin Jack was along to help order prevail over chaos.

But Joe preferred knocking things over.

Georgia knows there is ice cream nearby.

A Christmas miracle - Georgia shares her ice cream.

Back home Joe and Jack take a brief break...

And then it's off to Ohiwa Harbour on uncle Angus' new boat - Georgia and Amanda get nautical..

..while Joe returns to deliver more blistering fretwork to an adoring crowd.

Like any real rockstar, Joe's adoring female fans follow him everywhere.

"This one always makes me cry...."

The two faces of Georgia...angel.

....and other thing.