Once Upon a Wishing Stone

Jeremy came home from a solo forest hike recently, and told me about this lovely place he had discovered. Tucked away along the path, he said, were stones that had been painted with a variety of sentiments. Wishes for the world, if you will.

We went on an excursion so I could appreciate the wishing stones for myself. But they were gone. It was Valentine's Day, so we thought it was probably a one-off... perhaps it was a holiday thing or a scavenger hunt even.

But I couldn't shake what a fantastic idea it was to put something so wonderfully simple out into the terra, from the terra. So Elsie and I decided then and there that we would put them back, and leave wishes for others to enjoy as much as Jeremy did when he first stumbled upon them.

This weekend, we went back to the place it all began to add our own wishes. 

This is the wishing forest. If you look closely, you'll see where the path leads in.

There's something irresistible about hidden entrances into magical places.

Tucked along a portion of the path, were newly painted stones that someone had recently placed. 

SO fun to walk along and try to spot them hidden in tree hollows and rocky runoffs. 

We slipped ours in too...

 and hope that the stone fairy gets a warm-wished surprise of her own.

After all, isn't all magic in what you bring with you?

But sometimes, it's what you leave behind.

*All stones shown are ones we left, and are painted with environmentally friendly acrylic paints.

Our House. A Very Fine House.

As you probably know, we came to New Zealand for Jeremy to take a locum tenen position with a medical center here. With the position, came a house and a car. They made it SO easy to just pick up and come.

This is our comfy little house. It is perfect.

It came completely furnished. I mean, they even had food in the fridge for us when we got here, anticipating that we'd be racked and not in the mood to head straight to the market.

Of course, being me, I've had to move a few things and add a few embellishments here and there. The shots over the couch are mine. Everything is in classic, subdued tones, so I thought that this green would add just the right amount of sass. It does. I love green, and there is SO much green outside I really needed to bring a bit of it inside.

The kitchen was re-done shortly before we moved in. It's a great, easy to use and entertain, space. The only thing I'd change is the stove from electric to gas, but that's just me. The stones on the table are from our beach excursions. I can't begin to tell you how much time we've spent stacking and re-stacking. It's great entertainment!

Oh look. More stones. I might have a thing for stones. 

My window sill. The old medicine bottle was an acquisition from a little shop in town. There is usually a rose from George in there. 

The lighting is incredible. I've never lived in a house with this many windows. I love it. Most days, every window and door is flung wide.

Lily's room.

She probably has the most storage space in the house. Fitting.

Elsie's room.

Our lovely room. LOVE this window. But let's just say it's probably a good thing we're not in a city, since I can't seem to learn to take my clothes to the shower with me.  I don't think I've ever lived in a house with my room on the ground floor. And can I just say Yay! No stairs!

We even have a guest room!

Our fresh little bathroom. Not shown is our spacious shower. I spared you all a pic of the separate toilet, which we lovingly refer to as the Poop Closet. Just keeping it real for you guys.

And look...stones.

Our mudroom/stoop. It is fantastic space. It's so multifunctional, and we use it for everything from firewood to a craft-drying spot. 

Our yard with the cherry trees...and clothes tree. Oh the clothes tree. I have quickly come to love line dried clothes. But not towels. Towels have to be dried in a drier. 

And our cute little cottage garage.

My wee garden.

And my wee pumpkins!

Home Sweet Home.

Queens for a Day

We went up to Queenstown for the day. It has been quite a while since I've seen so many people and cars in one place all at the same time. Queenstown is a VERY hip little ski town that is just as hopping in the summer. It's also very "touristy." Which translates to "pricy." I have to say, we did get our money's worth in memories.

I'm just going to share some pics of our day so you can see where we were and what we did. 5 points if you can find what's funny in this picture.

Any town with a chicken roosting on the side of a building is a-okay in my book.

This really is a lake town, that just so happens to have two ski resorts. Loads of little cruises and water sports keep the masses well entertained during the summer months.

Darling little bridges span over streams that run out of the mountains and down to the lake.

And how can you argue with this!?

We took a gondola ride up to the top of the mountain.

They don't even realize that they are about to have the time of their lives.

When we got up to the top of the gondola, we hopped onto a chairlift and went up some more.

Almost to the tippy top.

When we got there, this is what we saw.

And this.

And then we did this. Oh my. Luge=crazy awesome fun.

Since there wasn't nearly enough to do, Lily decided she wanted to do this. Did you know that bungy jumping was "invented" in New Zealand?

Yes my darling, it's a long way down.

Feel free to scream the whole way.

FYI, she loved it. Like, really loved it. I'm frightened.

This one isn't heavy enough to jump. So she got a cut-out pic instead. Even trade, I think. At least for my nerves.

After spending hours luging, bungying, and sitting on the top deck sipping flat whites and taking in the scenery, it's time to head back down the gondola. Note all the bikes heading back down too. There are crazy bike trails and gorgeous hiking trails top side.

Being a wee bit afraid of heights, I LOVE getting into a tiny pod and dangling over the abyss. I might have imagined it snapping off the line and rolling down the mountainside into oblivion. But seriously, it is a very smooth ride with a stunning view.

First day in Queenstown was a smashing success.  At just under 2 hours drive from our house, it makes a great day trip. Well, not so great on the wallet, but hey, you only live once. 

Here are a few shots of our drive home. This is Lake Wakatipu. 

She's rather lovely with the Eyre Mountains and the Fiordlands in the distance.

View of The Remarkables. If they look vaguely familiar, it's because this is were the Dimrill Dale portion of Lord of the Rings was filmed.

As the sun goes down over the mountains, I think it's safe to say that another bang up day is in the books.