Mauri, yes a very overdue greeting at that.....

Mauri and sorry........

3 months since my last post, I must have amnesia because I am not sure where the time has gone....however it is now 3 weeks until we leave and time is slipping away faster than the proverbial sand in the hour glass.

So much has happened, I promised to update you all fully with a series of blogs this week.

 

Kristy and I embarked on a strict fitness routine of diet and exercise twice a day! The upside was great weight loss and the ability to greet the days sunrise every morning, this was a beauty, such a tranquil time of day.

 

 

The new Zoku pop chocolate maker arrived so we thought we'd better test it out....the kids had a ball trying out new recipes and designs on the pops. It was loads of fun

Sam's pre-school class had their end of term celebration at our compound, the kids had a ball playing on the equipment, running about and we cooked chicken on the BBq for all. The lovely ladies surprised me with beautiful hand made momentos to take home and ti-butas to wear, to thank me for all I had done for the class, it was very touching.

 

This month JJ & I decided to buy a new motorbike for Meei in appreciation of all her hard work and loyalty she has shown us. I was sick and tired of her old one that kept dying on the way to work...so here it is, my choice......Meei and I went fo a spin around Betio, a very comfy ride :0)

 

 

 

On a Sunday the local lads get out on the ocean side with their home made outrigger models to race. Te wa ni Markei is the racing canoe models I-Kiribati's name and boy do they fly across the water when the wind catches their sails. The boys pay money to enter the competition and others bet on the canoes, it is a serious business.

 

 

 

In September JJ finally took the families on his "War Tour", it was fascinating to hear all about the war that was fought on Tarawa, mostly the atoll of Betio, right where we live. Jack, Gemma, Kaitlyn & Sam came along too and enjoyed the sights around Betio.

 

 

 

The local boys love to "Cock fight", it is a very tame version with no spurs and no blood, the boys love their roosters and would hate to see them hurt, here are a few kids giving their roosters some practice before the Sunday competition which is also a big business.

 

 

 

While Scott's parents were here we got up to a favourite place Te Bon te Keeke in North Tarawa. An outrigger canoe ferries us across the channel to North Tarawa and a few hours of total bliss.

 

 

 

The boys on the beach at Te Bon te Keeke, in the back ground is a Kia Kia you can stay in, over the water, it is such a peaceful spot to stop and stay awhile. We had a blissful day swimming, eating and drinking, the food is usually a freshly caught fish turned into a curry with veggies and rice, moi-moto (green coconut) to drink and plenty of icy cold beer, hammocks and big lunge chairs over looking the water means hours of relaxation and bliss.

 

Right so this brings us up to date for September, I will do another blog tonight as I am due in the gym!!! Ti bo moa......this time I promise it won't be so long :0)

Oops!!!

Gracious me, 2 months since my last blog, how very naughty of me!!!!!

So much has been happening that I really can't recall it all, but I'll do my best!!!

So I documented May and our holidays so I'll move on to June, thank goodness I take loads of photos to remind me of what was going on!!

Kristy and I decided to have a staff luncheon, so all our staff knocked of at midday and went and collected their families and reassembled for a huge Chinese lunch from Ahboy's Kitchen. This was perfect as no one felt compelled to do dishes as we ate on plastic and threw it all away!! After lunch the kids played on the playground, rode bikes, scooters and trikes and then we all hoped in the pool, rigged up a net and had a game of water volleyball which was loads of fun!!!!

the following week Sam's kindy class came to visit for their P.E day. Most of the kids had never seen a slide or play equipment and they had an absolute ball. I provided morning tea and the kids sang and danced for me- too cute!! Most of the kids had to be dragged from the compound crying and kicking. This week is the last week of term so the kids are coming back this Friday and their parents are bringing a feast, it will be fun for all the kids to join in!

JJ got some very exciting news - he got promoted, so as of January 1st he will be Commander JJ Williams. It was very unexpected so you can imagine how shocked and excited he was, here he is on the phone to his Dad, a very proud moment!!

 

Jack and Sam went with JJ to the airport. I had 3 hours bliss, all to myself and so rare!!! Best part the boat had just come in so I cooked up a rare treat, an avocado, cheese and bacon melt with a bunch of grapes and fresh orange juice with a perfect cup of tea and a good book, talk about spoiling ones self. I sat on the verandah, overlooking the lagoon at high tide and enjoyed!!

 

 

Sam is just at the stage where if he has an afternoon nap he won't go to bed in the evening, so we have cut the naps but occasionally of a late afternoon he crashes in the chair. The funniest thing is how he does it, this time he fell asleep sucking a piece of pandanus fruit, when he woke up he continued gnawing it like there was no interruption, so very funny!!

 

The last week of July the island hosted the 'Pacific Partnership' program. I was privileged enough to work with the veterinary team in recovery! The 1st days clinic was in Bairiki and we desexed 40 dogs, a cat and 59 pigs!! It was crazy busy and so much fun. I dragged Kristy along for the experience and boy it was that. The veterinary team was mainly made up of World Vet volunteers, whom leave their jobs and pay their way around the Pacific to work for nothing, just the experience of operating in primitive conditions and mostly outside, amongst the flies and dust! They were truly amazing people. Kristy and I spent 4 days with them and one afternoon after clinic closed they all came back to our compound for a much needed swim and afternoon tea that didn't include any ration pack items that they had been eating for weeks and weeks. So we gave them loads of fresh fruit and hummus and veg, a cake, bikkies, fairy bread and Moimoto!! The food disappeared instantly and the guys had a great few hours lounging and playing in the pool.

 

A puppy was thrown over the fence so the vets went ahead and desexed him, of course he was homeless and 'Dobby' was adopted by the vets and defence personnel staying at the Betio Sports Complex, off course he needed a home and has ended up as Defence dog number three!! All our animals are now desexed, woohoo.

 

As Scott is away I was asked to represent the compound in the last fishing competition. It is held monthly and I am pleased to say I didn't let the side down, I caught the only Yellow Finned Tuna, which was weighed in and the caught a Wahoo that was also weighed in, the only two fish that the Australian boat offered up. I am proud to say that after the adrenaline kicked in I managed to haul in this beauty weighing in at 31.5lbs. I am now holding the title of largest fish caught by a lady angler!!! I am hooked and looking forward to getting out again. The weather was kind and it there was an amazing display of wildlife. We saw Frigate birds, Spinner Dolphins, Flying fish, Turtles and the most amazing feeding frenzy with thousands of birds. Yep no photos I was busy fishing :P

We weren't sure if we'd have to postpone Sam's birthday as the last 4 diplomatic bags with the mail had been put off in Fiji and still had not made it to Tarawa. So not one of Sam's presents had arrived. But it all arrive the morning before so it was a mad panic to bake two cakes, one to take to kindy and the other for a late birthday tea with a few other kids. Well it went off well and Sam got to blow out his 3 candles!!!

Probably the most momentous news is that JJ has been recalled back to Darwin for his first posting as a Commander. This is not negotiable. We are leaving this wonderful place in early December. I am devastated, not to mention the kids and staff. I had this wonderful 18 month plan and now it is less than 6!!! I can't tell you how much food and supplies and meat we have to either get through and sell!! It will be a crazy time trying to get everything organised. It is going to be so sad to leave Meei, whom has become such a huge part of our family. Not to mention my gorgeous cat Birdie who is such a character, he follows me around like a loyal dog. I will miss this compound, my chooks, dogs and veggie garden.
I think the next 5 months we will cram in as much as we can, take every opportunity and invitation. So I guess we'll be seeing you at home sooner rather than later

tia bo moa

Jodes xoxoxox

The Playground has finally arrived....

 

 

The long, long awaited play equipment finally arrived. It arrived in a wonderful jigsaw of small parts and a instruction manual that may well have been written in Chinese!! So JJ, Scott and Johnny set aside a weekend to make the final thing appear and it certainly took the whole weekend with many eager little helpers thrown into the mix!!

JJ did the honours of digging the first hole, the first of 12 to do....

 

 

 

The end result after 3 hard days of digging and constructing. The pirate ship playground is finally up and functionl (prehaps not built to the manafacturers complete instructions, with a few pieces and bolts left over....but here it is and the kids of the compound are are happy as can be with their new play toy!!!

 

 

The kids having loads of fun

 

Sam is enjoying his kinder, he goes most days with Meei on the bus but last Friday jack and I went along to deliver some new toys, balls, crayons, paints, paper and beanie bags (we made!) to the class. The kids had a fun time playing with the beanie bags, putting them on their heads and walking, picking out colours and throwing them into hoops and buckets. Such small giftd but it created such huge smiles and the kids and parents sang and danced for us, it was so cute.

 

 

Birdie continues to grow and cement his place firmly in the house. The kids love him and he is just so

naughty......

naughty enough to have fun with my toilet roll in my ensuite, who needs the kleenex puppy when we have Bird!!!

 

 

Last Friday everyone knocked off work at midday and we had a staff botaki in the maneaba. Wives, husbands, kids and grandkids came to have lunch, play on the play equipment and swim.
The majority of us got into the pool to play and we rigged a rope and had a fun game of water volleyball. It was a great afternoon and something we hope will appen on a regular basis. It was a great way to show our wonderful staff our appreciation for what they do for us each day.

 

My sweet little Birdie snoozing on my bed!!!

The weather has been lovely and we have had some really lovely nights down at the maneaba chilling out listening to the water lap close to our feet as we watch the kids potter about on their scooters and the play equipment. We really are blessed to live this very mellow life style, allowing the kids to live an outdoor lifestyle in the sun. The new entertainment area is awesome and adds so much to the compound and our already enjoyable lifestyle. Thanks James and everyone in Canberra that allowed it to happen :0)

ps when the boat brings some more wine my lfe will be complete :P

Sam's first day of Kindy - i-Kiribati style.....

We decided Sam needed some interaction with kids his own age so after a few recommendations we enrolled him at Betio Seventh Day Adventist Kindergarten!! Our next door neighbour sews the uniforms and she made Sam's. It is so cute!! Mind you Sam is probably the biggest kid in his class so of the i-kiribati kids are positively tiny!! Yesterday we went to enroll Sam and today kindy started.

Sam was quite shy today with so many carers and kids about. He sat on my lap most of the time until Miss Lisa his teacher showed flash cards to the kids and he was interested enough to get up and have a closer look. Miss Lisa sings rhymes and songs first in English then in I-Kiribati. They sing for a bit, then Miss Lisa shows some cards which are black and white photocopies on a bit of cardboard. The kids did a bit of writing or copying shapes on the very dodgy blackboard.

This is Sam's classroom, an annex to the chapel on the verandah. It is very basic but the kids don't seem to mind, however I am seeing a huge scope for resourses and toys and things to engage the kids with. Tomorrow Meei is taking a storybook and a set of coloured flash card pictures for Miss Lisa to use.

Miss Lisa doing round and round the mulbury bush shapes on the blackboard which is ready to fall apart!! But she had gotten Sam's attention. I think he'll become less shy with the other kids as the weeks progreaa, being the naturally bold and sociable child he normally is!!

One of the traditional outriggers was sailing past and with my new camera I was finally able to get a good picture. They are tiny to sit in but skim along the water quite quickly.....

Tiabo Moa (see you soon))!!

Jodes  :0)

Fiji, photos and all!!!

Our break in Fiji was much anticipated and it did not fail to deliver everything we wanted. The resort was fabulous and I would highly recommend it to families or couples alike. This time we had the added bonus of clear sunny weather!! Bliss, as the beach and pools were definately a high light of the resort. The beachs of Natadola Bay were clean and the water clear, Sam and Jack had a fantastic time pottering in the shallows and racing up and down the clean sand.

We decided to go 'all out' and book an exclusive suite in the 'club' area. This is the private pool area and most days we were the only ones utilising it, the sun lounges and funny little bee hive huts were so incredibly comfortable and all of us at some stage are guilty of falling asleep on one or the other!!

Sam had just woken up from a little nap in a bee hive hut, it was soooo comfortable and nicely sheltered with a gentle breeze, who could resist!! About 40 seconds later he jumped into the pool for a swim then sat up for a milkshake served to him by the butlers whom look after us so well. They called us by name always and even sussed out our drinks of choice for various times of the day, how's that for attentive??

 

 

Everynight was some sort of Fijian inspired entertainment around dusk, this night was the fire show which had Sam absolutely enthralled. Two men and two women did the most amazing things with lit torches and ropes. It was all very pleasant watching the shows with a cold eime in hand!!

 

The outside 'cleopatra' bath was bliss to lie in at the end of the day for a soak and of course the boys thought the bubbles were fantastic and had a ball playing in the bath each night.

I think I managed to drink my way through my 7 days away, but as there is no white wine to be found on Tarawa (that is drinkable) I was in seventh heaven!! Especially as of an afternoon I would be bought a very cold glass of my fav wine by a butler, oh and I didn't even have to ask!!!

 

 

JJ enjoying a Rose in the suite whill Jack and Sam did enjoy watching some satalite tv!!

Everything about the week was lovely. I cashed in on a birthday present which entitled me to one day husband and child free. JJ dropped the boys at kids club for the morning and I headed to the spa for a divine treatment consisting of a hot shell massage, a rehydrating facial and a luxe pedicure. I floated out of the spa and headed to the club pool to enjoy some solitude by the pool where a light lunch was served with wine, followed by a lazy afternoon on a sun lounge with frequent dips in the pool, not to mention frequent cocktails and nibbles. I got back to the suite where J had bathed the boys and I ordered them room service and their nanny arrived to take over for the evening. JJ and I headed back to the club lounge for cocktail hour and hor dorves and onto the restaurant. At Navo we enjoyed divine meals (never seen on Tarawa!!) and to die for desserts. We even finished the night with a nice sticky wine and wandered back to the room to relieve the nanny, what an utterly wonderful day!!

Home now and back to reality with school amd a truck load of washing. Mana greeted us at home as she stayed and house sat for us for part of our break. Her contract is up and it is time for Mana to move on to new adventures, we will all miss her very much, even though she only popped over from her outer island ever few months.

ANZAC Day 2013

 

sorry I am  bit out of whack with posts as I was hoping to get a few blogs done in Fiji, but the calling of the sun lounge by the pool was just too great to resist!!

this blog is about ANZAC day 13, the Aussies hosted this year and our compound was quite involved.

 

However the day before while Kristy and I were on skype having our "Tupperware Party" with Faye in Geelong the kids thought they'd play some playdough, which turned into a playdough fight!!! I made them help me clean it all up and I think we were finding playdough and had a sticky floor for the next week!!!!! Rascals......

 

 

 

The dawn service began at 6am at the Coast Watchers Memorial at Betio. JJ was MC for the event and so it began directly after the president H.E President Anote Tong & Madam Tong arrived.

 

 

 JJ & Scott standing to attention during the Last Post, played by a trumpeter from the Kiribati Police Band. Scott read the Ode and Kaitlyn, Scott and Kristy's 12 year old daughter delivered a very moving and informative speech to the President, the Australian and New Zealand High Commissioners and guests.

 

 

The Kiribati, Australian and New Zealand Flags flying over the Coast Watchers memorial

 

 

Jack, Gemma and Kaitlyn layed a wreath on behalf of the Australian children living in Kiribati! (Sam was deamed too irresponsible and left at home!!)

 

 

 

GunFire Brekky was hosted by us at our Maneaba, it was a lovely morning weather wise and most came back for a spot of brekky and a tipple of rum, the maneaba had been decorated by Meei and the AHC staff and it look fantastic.

 

 

It was a great morning and by 10 am it was all over and we were back into the schoolroom to complete our days work and as it was not a public holiday for Kiribati the men went back to work as the Tuvalu patrol boat and MSA & TA were all due in a few hours later to begin a hectic 4 days of  joint pareol preperation, celebrations and training. It was very nice to be so involved in ANZAC day and JJ has already been covented by the NZ High Commisioner to MC for him next year!!

Fiji!!!!

Bula!!!

well here we are in relaxation mode!! No photos to download as i am on the club computer because mine has died!! Well the screen won't display so am not sure what is gong on, the hard drive seems to still be working so i should be able to get everything off in the way of photos, school work etcs, still a pain in the butt  to have to set up a new computer!!!

The resort is fantastic, our suite bliss and we are very happy.....oh did i mention, the week we decide to be here coincides with the "G77" summit so we are living amongst presidents and prime ministers of most Pacific nations. What a scream, we have a security detail at our front door whom announces to, I am not sure who, all our movements in and out of the suite!!!! Not sure if I feel ultra protected or a target, so we flew to Nadi with President Tong of Kiribati and have spoken to him daily in way of greeting. This morning we had brekky at the 'Club' with the company of the president of Fiji and the Solomon Is!!!! All very bizarre!! They leave tomorrow and life will go back to normal!!

I managed a hair cut yesterday, dodgy but short and that is what I wanted so I can't complain!! Friday is my free from husband and children day so a morning spa session including a warm shell massage, a hydrating facial and a luxurious pedicure!! Bliss, then an arvo by the club pool over looking the Pacific with attentive staff to bring me thy bidding. I thought cocktails to match my toenail colour!!

Have just dropped the kids of to Plant Trekkers for the morning session including their lunch and Sam has a nanny, Sai who is a typically lovely and gentle Fijian woman.  I am about to relax by the pool with a book and my writing paper!! Oh is it too early for a cocktail :P (No, according to the butler!!!)

I had intended to do an ANZAC day blog whilst here as I had my computer but it'll have to wait for a while!!

See ya soon

Jodes :0)