Three months in and we're finally getting a handle on life in New Zealand. While Hunter and I navigate all the complexities of setting up a new life down under, the kids adapted in no time.
There are some very simple things that are new for my kids. Things that I took for granted growing up but as Alaskan kids, Pea and Little Hunter wouldn't have access to. For example, sidewalks. The street we now live on is basically one giant oval and there is a new sidewalk that goes around the whole thing. For two kids with fresh access to scooters and tricycles, it's heaven!
Doorbells are another thing. We didn't have a doorbell in Alaska. We do here. Two of them, in fact. One on the front door and one on the back. I don't know why there's two.
My kids LOVE pressing the doorbell. They think it's a hoot. They never press it just once. What two year-old does? The problem is that Kiwis seem to like doorbells as much as my kids do. They don't press it once, either.
You know what they say about making assumptions?
I was trying to book a campervan the other day while the kids were outside riding their bikes. I was feeling frustrated by what was available and the lengths I had to go to ask a few questions from the rental companies. Suffice it to say, I was feeling irritated that I was getting nowhere in my efforts. Then the doorbell started ringing.
Frustrated and peeved, I shouted (pretty loudly, not very attractively and full of irritation), "NO! NO! GET AWAY FROM THAT FLIPPING DOORBELL! I AM NOT ANSWERING THE DOOR AGAIN! ARRGGGGHHH!"
Pea walked into the house, looked at me and calmly said, "Uh, mom, it wasn't us. Willow's dad came over to introduce himself."
A little girl who lives on the next street has been playing with Pea for the past two weeks. She comes by every day after school and the two play their little hearts out until dinnertime. I love it. I love that Pea's got neighbourhood friends and I encourage Willow to come by as often as she likes. Days earlier I told Willow I was going to wander over and introduce myself to her parents and make sure we had each other's phone numbers. Didn't think her dad would beat me to the punch.
Classy move, Sarah. Reaaaal Classy.