This week, Brett spent his last week of his holiday at the Lodge with his trusty sidekick Billie, while I was back in Auckland working.  However as is often the way, my working seemed a bit more relaxed  than Brett’s holiday

Brett’s holiday activities included in no particular order

• digging up the septic tank pipe and clearing it – ooh blucky
• removing a fence
• digging up a huge aloe vera plant – thank goodness my Dad was able to help with that one with the front end loader
• painting
• putting in expol
• and all the other things that he does around the place that helps make the Lodge such a nice and special place to visit

I on the other hand am not going to tell you about my working week, except I was able to ease into it.  And I did play the “I cleaned the work fridge, so I am a saint card” pretty well.

I do have some photos of Brett’s industriousness – funnily enough there aren’t any photos of mine.  I really should have taken one of the fridge – doh.

There was a fence here, but it has now gone in preparation for the planting that we (yes even me) are going to do this year.

Rainbow blinds for the Place of Rainbows

And a photo of the awesome deck because well it is awesome

I also came to the realisation that Ms Billie really has me very well trained.  It felt very strange to not get up and take her for a walk, let her outside to stalk the cat next door, check her water bowl is filled and all the other little tasks that dog ownership entails.   I am quite used to Brett being away, but being completely on my own without another heart beat in the house was something I am not used to at all.

Anyway I think Billie had the greatest holiday of all, she got walks every day, all the resting time she could ever want, a visit to Whangamata to torment her friend Pippa and more scraps of ham and chicken than is necessary for a little dog.

Here she is on the morning of the last day of December 31 2015 in her happy place at Whangamata – off leash and on the beach.

And just two more things I do want to add – one that is kind of related to Brett’s awesomeness, and one that is just an observation.

Today is our second wedding anniversary, and I just feel so lucky and happy I can say that.  Hey we might even be crazy and go for another year 🙂

I am reading the Geraldine Brooks book – The Secret Chord.  Based on the life of King David and it is a really good read.  But I can’t help thinking if your God sent you to the Promised Land, but you had to fight and kill a whole lot of people who were living there first to take it over, maybe it wasn’t that Promised after all – just saying