North Island or Bust! NZ post #3

Farewell to the South Island! Josh and I road tripped it in our awesome station wagon from Wellington (Josh's mission) to Hamilton. There aren't any free ways in New Zealand which made for a windy ride through the mountains and over the hills. Since they drive on the opposite side of the road, I left the driving up to Josh (at least that's what I told him, but really I just needed a good long nap in the car:) So, what I saw when I was conscious was some of the most beautiful countryside I have ever seen. Miles and miles of green rolling hills, some covered with sheep...lots of sheep and mountains along the horizon. Looking back I wish I would've taken more pics of this, but oh well. Along the way we stopped at some places where Josh served on his mission. We were blessed to meet up with a woman he baptized, found another woman he taught the discussions to, and happened to run into his old landlord. We ended this part of the road trip in Hamilton where we met up with one of Josh's companions and his sweet little family. We enjoyed spending a couple days with them, going to to the tree lighting at the temple, and attending a temple session with them as well. This was another highlight of the trip. On our few travels that we have made to different parts of the country and the world, it is always such a humbling, and faith promoting experience, to know no matter where in the world you are, the gospel is there. Always, always, always you will find faithful, loving members who welcome you in and share your same beliefs, and for me that is such a huge comfort and blessing.

This was no Temple Square, but they put on quite the production each night as the trees are lit. Very few people decorate with Christmas lights, so it was definitley the place to be, and I must say quite beautiful.

Not, the best pic, but a general idea of the green countryside, and little sheepies dotting the land.

Yep, this is it! The infamous apartment that Josh burned down on his mission. Let's just say the landlord had not forgotten who Josh was. haha And oddly enough, was pleasantly surprised to see and speak with him.

After a little searching for where she had moved, we found the apartment of a lady whom Josh taught on his mission. When he knocked on the door and told her who he was, she started to cry and was overjoyed to see him. She had gotten baptized and was a strong member of the church. I was touched to see how the gospel (through my husband) had influenced and blessed this woman's life and how extremely grateful she was for those hardworking missionaries 13 years ago!

Overlooking Wellington, the Capitol, with the De Silvas (Josh baptized the woman). They too were so excited to see Josh, and I was amazed at how much their son knew and remembered about him.

Next stop-Queenstown NZ post #2

Ahh, Queenstown, the Adventure capitol of the world. Where people do all sorts of crazy, life threatening things and where responsible, sensible wives take the pictures of their husbands doing these crazy things. We stayed at an awesome resort and enjoyed some of the adventurous things this unique town had to offer. Josh being the maniacal husband that he is decided to go bungy jumping...again. You'd think once in your lifetime would be enough, but you can't blame him, he wanted to jump off the bridge where bungy jumping originated. I must admit that back in the day, I would have jumped (no pun intended) at the chance to go. However, now that I am a mother and a responsible adult (haha...I know) I really had no desire to take the risk. I was nervous watching him, but mostly because I wanted to get a good video and some pics so we didn't have to spend and arm and a leg on the video/picture package that they try and sell you. Phew, luckily he survived and got the rush he was looking for, hopefully that will hold him over for a while. Anyhow, we also rode the tram to the top of a mountain overlooking a lake. A beautiful view followed by lunch at the top. We couldn't resist the "luge" as they called it...think Alpine slide plus go cart, and clearly it was a blast. We rode these things down part of the mountain going down dips, through tunnels, etc. and boy was it fun! In Queenstown we also enjoyed running along the wharf, eating lots of good food, shopping, and relaxing.


The rare Kiwi bird, and the only one we saw. :)

Just in case you couldn't tell...I was having a good ol' time!




This was just after Josh got dipped. He went in as far as he could go, which was to his shoulders, however some get up to their waists.

Kia Ora! NZ Post #1

I decided I should probably start posting some pictures from our New Zealand trip since their are so many beautiful pictures of the awesome country. We had a bit of a rocky start to the trip when our video camera got stolen out of our checked baggage and our digital camera broke in our luggage as well. This meant a new camera for us, and so many memorable experiences to take pictures of! So, I will warn you now of a picture overload, and try to give you a little glimpse of our "gonna be hard to top", "even better than I anticipated" trip to New Zealand! I thought I would start this first post with one of my favorite parts of the trip, the Milford Track. We signed up for this trip in June or July, as they only allow 40 unguided hikers on the trail per day. The spots fill up fast, so we were excited we got in and realize why it is such a coveted "trek" (as they call it in NZ). We stayed in bunk houses with our group and got to know people from Israel, Germany, UK, Belgium, New Zealand, and Australia. We hiked at our own pace and could come and go from the huts as we pleased. The scenery was unlike anything I had ever seen before, similar to being in the rain forest, with green, wet, mossy foliage, and mountains that took your breath away at their absolute enormity and beauty. All in all, it just really is one of those things that you have to see in person to truly appreciate its magnificence!
In order to fight off the didymo bacteria, we had to "disinfect" our boots before hiking.
We found this creature on the bottom of a fallen tree. The white stuff was a hard rubbery growth, which clearly looks like a face. Josh added the finishing touches and gave this little guy a stylin do'.
Ahh,the end of the trail. I enjoyed the trek, but the last day I couldn't get to a hot shower and warm meal fast enough!
Believe it or not, Josh made some serious sacrifices for this photo to be taken. What you don't see or hear is me telling Josh, "Whatever you do, don't get your boots wet, it's not worth it (hiking four days with wet boots=pain/blisters)." Nothing in the rain forest dries out, it was the first day and he was walking along the river bank to reach this vine. No sooner had I warned him, when he fell in, got not only his boots wet, but fell in up to his waist. I couldn't help but laugh, and Josh got the picture on the vine.haha,

Just a pretty picture!
Everywhere you looks waterfalls could be seen falling off the mountains. Some big, some small, but because of the large amount of rain, the waterfalls are so powerful they cut through large rocks and ripped down the mountains.
When we reached the top of the pass, we were hiking in a snow storm (wasn't prepared for that!) We stopped at the warming hut hoping the snow would stop and clouds would pass, so we could enjoy the much anticipated view from the top. We had just left the hut and readied ourself to continue on when the clouds parted and allowed us a few amazing pics!
This was one of my favorite plants that we saw. I guess it was kind of fern with these spongy (everything seems "spongy" in the rainforest) chutes that coiled at the top. You really can't get the full effect in the pic, but take my word for it...it was pretty neat. :)
Here's an idea at how clear the water was. Obviously it was pure run off, and actually the water we drank. I just loved how the blue matches the beautiful hue of my hubby's eyes. (I couldn't resist the cheesiness)
This is what is known as the Milford Sound. It was great to be able to take the relaxing boat ride back to shore and enjoy one last view of this absolutely amazing scenery.

Well, it's that time of year again. The words of "Silver Bells" says it well, "See the kids bunch..dressed in holiday style...meeting smile after smile.." That's right, it's the holiday season, but for us, it's also family picture time (cheesy...I know, it just came to me haha:) Anyhow, we kind of just threw this together last minute, but my sis in law Rebekah pulled through (as always) and did a great job! She took these in her basement and I had to convince the lady at the photo lab that they were not "professional" (although Rebekah I do consider you a profesional 100%, but you know what I mean). So, I thought I would give you a little preview of the Deaner family 2009...

"Princess", "Belle", Bailee Bops" a.k.a Bai

Okay fam, once again, here are some pics of your little Bails...I love this time of year cause you can use the Santa Claus threat for a month and it works wonders. You know, you just have to start singing the song, "You better watch out, you better not cry..." and just like that your angel child is back. haha Luckily for me, Bailee is a good little girl and has told Santa so. This year she was brave enough to sit on Santa's lap, but she was most excited to see and meet was Mrs. Claus. She was inquisitive about "Santa's wife" and started asking questions. When we found out she was coming to the library we had to go. Bailee was so excited and chose to sit on her lap instead of Santa's...whatever. Anyways, she's my girly girl, I know, who'd a thought, and loves everything princess. She's a talker, from sun up to sun down, and now that I think about it, there is probably a reason Gabe's not talking yet...Bailee does it for him, either that or he just can't get a word in. haha (Sound familiar Kac:) Well, we love her all the same!

"Shadow", "Josh Jr." a.k.a "Gabers"

This is a post only family will truly appreciate, it's been a while since I have posted any pics, so this should hold you over until I post again (probably a couple months:) As you can see, Gabe has been up to no good. :) He's been a little naughty, but hopefully Santa will understand (he's a 15 month old boy...enough said!) I can't believe how opposite he and Bailee are, two ends of the spectrum if you know what I mean. Gabe doesn't talk much yet, but there are a couple things he's made clear to us. He obviously does not like two things, 1. His teeth brushed (dad disapproves!) 2.Barbies (thank goodness). But, there is a couple things we know he likes 1.TOILETS...obviously 2. Food (takes after his mom:) He's such a messy eater, it kills me, but like I said before, he's a 15 month old boy...enough said! We love this little man even in all his messes!

Happy Birthday, Birthday, Birthday!

Holy Smokes, it's been awhile since my last post, but it's good to have my life back. We had a busy summer and things finally seem back to normal (well, as normal as they can get around here:) Come August and September it's like Christmas for us. I have to start planning for Birthdays weeks in advance so I don't get too overwhelmed. Josh, Bailee and Gabe all have birthdays within 2 weeks of eachother. This year was especially crazy since Josh was turning the big 3-0, it was Gabe's first birthday, Josh was going to be in AK on his birthday and Bailee in ID, so we had to plan accordingly. I decided to throw Josh an OSU themed surprise party on Gabe's birthday (two birds with one stone...if you know what I mean;) and that way he was pretty surprised. I wanted to have it outside, but it ended up raining so we had to have it at the church. We were greatful that so many of our friends and family joined us for the celebration and they made for a great party! As for Bailee's birthday we spent it with the Cartwright's in Boise. Josh went to Alaska for two weeks, so I figured I'd brave the plane ride (never again I might add...that experience is a whole other post), and go see my other half and her fam. We had such a great time together and were lucky enough to have most of my family come visit us. Bailee had her birthday planned out, down to the cake and balloons, she had a princess cake and decorations, but little did I know she would have a life changing experience when she opened her Doodlebops DVD. Many of you have probably never heard of the Doodlebops (consider yourself blessed), however Bailee has formed a small obsession with them. She has a crush on Moe and insists she be "Moe" for Halloween. I told her she couldn't be Moe...he's a boy and that she could be Dee Dee instead. She replied, "I won't go trick-or-treating then...it's scary anyways." So, much to my chagrin, it looks like Bailee with enter the cross dressing world at age 3...oh well. Anyhow, we really enjoyed our little vacation and thanks to the Cartwright's for letting us invade for awhile. So, we're all one year older and wiser (and a few pounds heavier too...that's what three birthdays with cake and ice cream will do to ya:), but I'm grateful we were able to celebrate the lives of these three wonderful, special, amazing people in my life.

Grandma's favorite granddaughter...two peas in a pod :)

Gabe was a little sick on his b-day and didn't get to enjoy his cake. So he made up for it and loved Bailee's cake. ;)

Can we say spoiled?

One of the games we played for the kiddies...Pin the tutu on the Michigan wolverine (only true buckeye fans will fully appreciate this.)

O-H-I-O! Go Bucks!