Christmas day was awesome! Nathan dressed up as Santa and passed out all of the presents! The whole family was there. Nathans parents and sisters with their partners, my brother and his crew, Nathans grandad and also others that came along during the day!

Nathans mum Marian brought a bubble machine which was a great hit on Christmas day! Flynn kept following the bubbles to the other end of the section because they didn't pop and then got confused when he couldn't catch them! He soon figured out where they came from! Flynn got so many pressies it was just unbelievable! Anyone would think Santa really does exsist! He loves the bike he got from his Aunty Amanada and Gemma the most I think! Although it is hard to tell because he has so many presents I don't think he knows which one to play with! (He is coping though!!)

My cousin and Aunty turned up last Tuesday afternoon and left on Friday morning! It was really cool to see them! They have been doing a road trip from the North Island - Whitianga to be exact and have taken about 2 and a half weeks to do it! This is them, Aunty Dot holding Jessica (my neice) and Lesley looking pissed of or something with her arms folded!! Not very good photos, never the less, you can kinda see them!
Lesley and I get on really well, she had planned to come down anyway but it was a bonus that my Aunty came as well! When you move to a place that you haven't lived all your life and you have little or no family there, its just great when they make an effort to come and see you!! This is a photo of Lesley trying to figure out my brothers camera!!

Moving on, I had an interview with ACC on Thursday and I am waiting to hear if I have been succesful for the role or not! I find out Monday!! I don't want to go on about that too much just yet incase I haven't got it - but I hae my fingers crossed!! I will tell you a little joke I made in my interview though (I know your probably not suppose to joke in interviews).

They asked me how much I know about ACC and what they do... my reply was ' I have never made a claim myself, however, my brother is the most accident prone person I have ever met so I do know a fair bit about what you do". My bro Steve a few weeks ago now fell off his motorbike at work and had to have 3 or 4 stitches in his bottom eye lid and was concussed! Hense this photo!

Granted not a good photo, but I had to take a photo of this photo off his camera so - you get the idea of how bad it was anyway!! He has had so many more injuries that the average 'jo blog' you would not believe! (It would take a novel to tell all!!).

So please keep your fingers crossed for me and I will be sure to keep you up to date with the results on Monday re: the job!

Life in the South has been quite unpredictable lately! (weather wise). We had snow at the beginning of November, which was unreal really considering summer is suppose to start in December!!

Here she is standing in the falling snow when it started!

Mum and her partner Graham came over from Adelaide for two weeks! The first weekend they were here we went to Christchurch. It was great, Graham and I helped with a surprised for mum! Her best friend Sue and her partner Kev had organised to come to Christchurch to surprise mum as they had not seen her for a year or so!

The shock on mums face when she saw Sue was priceless, well worth the surprise!

Here she is telling us all off for not letting her in on the surprise! Well she loved it really! Good times.

We all had a great time in Christchurch. We went on the Gondala's and looked over all of Chch and Littleton (etc) The views where awesome.

I had an especially good weekend as Flynn was with his Nana and Grandad in Mosgiel so I could just chill out and relax for the weekend! We also went to Akaroa - which mum and Graham had not seen before!

We acheived quite a bit over the few days we were there and had a blast! Well worth the trip! Nathan couldn't come because he was working.

The following weekend we decided that mum and Graham would like to see Wanaka (Nathan came with us this time as it was his weekend off!). I think we all enjoyed Wanaka very much. The weather was just awesome and my neice Taylah came along with us.

We went to Puzzleworld, this involved an outdoor maze which was harder than it looked! Also an indoor illusion room and this photo here is from the waiting area for the loo's! Can you see the illusion? The wall is painted to look like there are people sitting there on the loo! So we all sat down next to the wall and tried to blend in!

We also walked Mount Iron (which nearly damn killed me, but I am getting fitter - touch wood). Again the views were totally worth the effort! Mum and Graham looked after Flynn for us as there was just no way I was gonna carry him up there! Nathan, Taylah and I did that mission!!

This is Wanaka down behind me in the photo!

We took the kids to the park, drove around to see the sights and stayed in Nathans Aunty and Uncles holiday home while we where there! It was lovely to get away and have a break as a family!

Mum and Graham have gone home to Adelaide now and things are starting to return to normal! (What is that - normal?!)

Anyway over the last few days our temprature has been in the 30 degree area so very hot and hoping that we won't have anymore snow until next winter now! Looking forward to seeing Cousin Lesley and Aunty Dot who are leaving Whitianga on the 27th of November for their big road trip to 'The South'. Over and out for now - watch this space!! xx

Okay so now you know how my life in the south began, I guess I should get up to speed with the NOW and keep this thing up to date! I have just within the last months been very busy and quite the wee traveller! I went for a visit to see family and friends in auckland and enjoyed my time there but it wasn't quite long enough! (11 days). Tracey and I went to Butterfly Creek (for Flynn of course) and I am not sure if it was us or Flynn that had more fun there!! It was a great idea to take Flynn there though, very entertaining for adults and children!!

Flynn and Tracey - Great mates!!

We also went to see Ange and her new baby girl Giselle who is just so beautiful! I managed to rock her to sleep a few times, but it was my way of getting a cuddle!

She is just a beauty!!

Mean while the boys (Michael and Flynn) played together famously well! Best buds!!

Flynn and Michael playing in Honey and Lady's kennel at Anges!! (mmm fun).

We managed a trip to Whitianga which was nice and relaxing - good to get away!

View from Uncle Dereks Lounge in Whitianga!!

So my trip in Auckland was busy busy, every day something happening! Nice to be home again so I can relax and not have to rush around.... I do miss my people though. xx

Life with a baby

Before life with Flynn everything seemed so much easier. Independance is something taken for granted until you have a baby! No one tells you how hard it is. You think you know, but you don't really until you get there!! Flynn was in the hospital for the first 3 weeks of his life and came home on February 6th 2007 - just 3 days before my 30th birthday. I was so happy and at the same time.... scared. I wondered how I would be as a first time mother, especially considering I am not usually very good with little sleep! I ended up surprising myself, just look at this beauty of a picture!

As time went on and life goes by, our new man, well, just became a part of who we are as a family really! We (obviously) would not be with out him now. We went through all of the milestones together. Sitting, crawling, teething etc and we love every part of seeing this new person develope into a little boy with his own personality! I would have to say that having Flynn has been the best thing I have ever done as a person and the rewards are just endless.

So even though we have moved to a new house and a new Dairy job for Nathan, we seem to be getting on in the world okay! The beaches and walks around here are amazing and along with the endless opportunities we are looking forward to what will come next! We are in Dunedin at the moment but who knows where we will be next year or the year after! The world is our oyster and we are up for the challenge. Lets see where this life takes us and hope for the best along the way!

Watch this space for more updates!!

Life after Auckland

Okay so here I am and the story begins.... I am currently 31 years old. My name is Sarah but my mates call me Sarz.... I had spent the first 27 years of my life living in Auckland, being a regular 'J.A.F.A'... going to work, going to the gym and out to the pub with my mates in the weekends!! Then I decided that it was all getting a bit tedius and wanted something new and exciting. I decided what this 'new' start would be when I came to Dunedin to visit my brother, his partner and their new baby Xavier! I came down for the first time with my Aunt and Uncle and then again on my own.... I wanted to move to the South Island, so I had to check it out for a second time then I wrote down all the pros and cons for doing this huge move I had never done before and decided that Moving was the only thing that was going to broaden my horizons and give me that change my soul needed!

I moved to the south and started work within the week with Radio Works. It was a really great way to make friends and still feel like a part of the world! I had also met one of my brothers friends Nathan, who I took a liking to very quickly! We where together for maybe 6months and he proposed to me, then we moved in together! Nathan decided that he wanted to go Dairy Farming for a change of life style, so only one year after being in Dunedin we moved to Oamaru an hour and a half North of Dunedin!!

We called our 'home' 'The Shed', mainly because thats what it was!! Two bedrooms but no space! Nathan and I spent the first Dairy season up here. We moved up in March 2006 and in May 2006 I found out we were pregnant! The pregnancy

seemed to go well and for a change I enjoyed getting fat!!

(Even though there were uncomfortable parts of the 'getting fat' process!).

I worked part time in Oamaru, which suited us at the time. Unfortunatly at the end of the pregnancy there where complications and our baby decided he was going to come 6 and a half weeks early! Scared the living **** out of me! (He was okay when born - Thank god!).

This photo is of me at Christmas time, our baby was not due until the 1st of March 2007.



As it turned out after Christmas when we went back to Oamaru in early January, we went for a midwife visit who decided that at 33 weeks pregnant with a family history of diabetes, I should be tested for Gestational Diabetes. I had managed to catch a cold and with being heavily pregnant the midwife suggested I rest for a week or two to get over the cold and then go and get tested!

I went to get my blood test done on January 12th (which was a Friday). I was advised my results would be back on the Monday, turned out it was too late as our wee man bet them to it and decided to come .... very early!!

Flynn Lloyd Knight came into the world at 5.15pm on

Monday the 15th of January 2007.

He weighed 2.97 KGs which is 6 Pounds exactly.

He is under blue lights here as he was very jaundice for the first 48 hours.

Flynn stayed in the hospial for 3 weeks while he learned how to feed. Due to being born so early he had not learned how to suck, swollow and breath all at the same time, so we had to teach him! Then he came home, 3 days prior to my 30th birthday! Couldn't have asked for anything more!! This is the beginning and I am so happy to have had the pleasure of living it!