Rain rain go away
Come back another day ... or not!

Hello all. I am sitting by the fire as I write this on the first day of the new month, with the rain relentlessly hammering down outside. My 'to-do' list sits on the kitchen bench collecting dust waiting for the next sunny day!

Our trip to the South Island last month was magic - such fun. A perfect mix of shopping, cooking, eating, drinking, sleeping, reading, catching up with whanau and being a tourist. Fiona and I tried lots of restaurants, but our favourite was Indochine in Christchurch - one of those delicious meals which you remember long after you leave. Colin and I are still raving about the Little River Cafe on the road to Akaroa - now that is the sort of place I dream of having! Gracie was suitably impressed with the feel of Lincoln University, so she is all fired up for next year and we are happy that she is so enthusiastic. It feels good to be familiar with her future surroundings. Hamish took her up Mt Hutt for her first snowboarding lesson - she loved it but is not yet ready to swap her horse for a snowboard.

Number One Tart and I went up for a day at the Auckland Food Show this week and came home laden with goodies and ideas. We watched cooking demonstrations by Donna Hay, Peta Mathias and Julie Biouso. A real treat for us to be in the audience. We are so amazingly lucky in New Zealand to have such a diverse and ever-expanding range of delicious products to choose from and we kiwis are always coming up with innovative ways of preparing and combining them.

I will finish this off now and swap my computer for my new novel ... it's just that kind of day. Remember that The Lofthouse is a great hideaway even in the winter - it is well heated, has piles of snuggle rugs, electric blankets, bean bags, DVDs, board games, books and of course the hot tub. A cosy place to recharge your batteries. Check out what our guests have said on this website.

See you soon.

"A friend is someone who has the same enemies you have".