Life's a party for Labradors ...

I know .. I know ... it’s wrong to expect our coffee haunt to be open 365 days of the year ... they are entitled to a few days off I guess .... but a ramble without our fix from the Village Co-op just isn’t the same!

Waiatarua Reserve

Julia and I felt like traitors yesterday, getting our ‘coffee-to-go’ from The Coffee Connection instead, but no morning’s complete without satisfying our caffeine addiction. We didn’t even walk on the beach, it just didn’t feel right, so we went back to Waiatarua Reserve instead.

Indy wasn't too comfortable with this one's attentions!

It WAS an awesome ramble .... not only was the weather amazing but there were so many humans with hounds at the reserve too. The hounds love Waiaitarua Reserve ... no leash to restrict them and so many 4-legged friends. There’s been lots of tail-wagging, bum-sniffing and nose-kissing action!  Not all of the nose-kissing action was welcomed by Indy though.

My hound had her rugby ball pinched by ANOTHER Chocolate Lab ... a rather rotund chocolate lab ... who refused to give it back. Her humans seemed unwilling, or possibly unable, to get the ball off her. It took the efforts of both of them, husband and wife, to PRISE the ball out of her mouth ... but only after they’d managed to corner her in the reeds!!  To say I WASN’T amused is putting it mildly. It was my WELSH ball so there was no way I was leaving it behind!

We saw a whole gamut of hounds yesterday .... German Shepherds, Schnauzers, Boxers, Border Collies, Great Danes ... lots of little fur balls .... and so many Labradors ... which prompted me to find the collective noun for a whole heap of Labradors. Googling it bought up an answer - a PARTY of Labradors!  Not only is “Life a party” for Labradors but some of them, like the rather rotund one we saw this morning, are ‘kegs’ on legs ... and you can’t have a party without a couple of kegs!!  I love it ... google triumphs again with completely insane information!


This weekend has been full of SUNSHINE so far .... and I LOVE it ... but the clouds this evening are making me think it might rain tomorrow ..... I so hope not!

The Mallard Ducks and Pukeko in the wetlands at Waiatarua

Cayl’s and Dave suggested heading to the Auckland Domain for a picnic lunch yesterday ... so we did! I haven’t been to the Domain since Callum finished school last year and it was a timely reminder of how absolutely magnificent a spot it is. This is what I LOVE about this city ... the multitude of public parks and reserves ... they are the ‘LUNGS’ of our city and they’re vital! 

One of the Great Danes we saw .. he was HUGE!!

As with most of the parks and reserves in the Auckland area though, the Domain has been developed around the cone of an extinct volcano. Yep, I know that freaks some of you out ... but you soon become quite blasé about the GLUT of  EXTINCT volcanoes when you live here!

A Gaggle of Geese at the Domain

Spending time together at the Domain yesterday made me so aware of how precious these ‘family’ moments are ... they’re fewer and farther between ... and likely to be more so over the next few months as our oldest two lemmings make plans to move out. The ‘busyness’ that I so often make mention of will be gone. I’ll be able to open the fridge or pantry door and find the chocolate I bought ... the biscuits I bought. No longer will a mouse with two legs have had access to them first.

Wintergarden Cafe

I love my kids to bits but I’m the first one to admit that this is a necessary thing for them to do ... they need to spread their wings. Callum is NOT overjoyed about going back to being an ‘only child’ ... he had a taste of it in SA when the older two were away at boarding school. Despite the occasional bickering they all get on incredibly well so I know he’ll miss their everyday presence.

One of the roads through the domain ... Wintergarden Cafe down to the left and the Greenhouses above to the right

The only unpleasant distraction in my weekend so far has been the Sharks losing to the Hurricanes ... and I was so convinced the Sharks would walk away with this one!! They’d better pull their socks up for their outing against the Blues next week ... I’ll be there IN PERSON to CHEER them on!!!