Imagination In Marriage

"Love is a beautiful flower in life's garden, but it is a frail one, and needs careful tending.  In married life love dies much more often from neglect than as a result of active damage.  Such neglect can be avoided.  All that is needed is to use your imagination. 

To maintain a healthy and fruitful relationship three things are highly desirable  - adequate time for love-making, a congenial setting and some variety."

This little bit of advice was found in the 1965 book "Frankly Feminine: A book of comprehensive information and advice for the woman of today."  It was edited by Eileen McCarthy for The Grolier Society Limited of London.  (The picture was taken from the book.) 

Things are still chaotic here. The boys have one room of carpet left to lift, and there are boxes, paint cans, and bits of timber everywhere, although I am trying to keep my bedroom and the kitchen tidy.

Son has used acoustic wall panels to make a feature wall in his room. I like his choice, especially using the two colours, and think the end result is rather stylish.

Renovations can be stressful at times, but I'm really looking forward to the end result. 

Margaret xx 

Keeping Busy

It was great to go away for a few days, and good to be home again - even though it meant facing a lot of cleaning up.

Most of the painting was finished while I was away.  It's surprising how much brighter and larger a space appears when it gets painted in a lighter colour.

I am loving the new colours in my bedroom. 

Everything has to remain packed up until the carpet goes down next week.  I still have some china-ware to pack and then my part in preparation will be done.  I've been stacking boxes of fragile things in the bath so they won't need to be moved around to make way for the carpet as it goes down through the house.

Our strawberries are now producing and we have been able to pick a handful every couple of days.  The new plants Son bought this season are producing mammoth size berries - what a shame he can't remember what variety they were!

Sorry I haven't been able to visit other blogs the last couple of days.  Hopefully, once things settle down here my routine can get back to being normal again.

Keep smiling 😃 

Margaret xx 

Back Home

I made it home safely, after one last long lingering look at the beach.

Not having much to say tonight, I thought I would post some more photos of my time away.

These rocks were at the entrance to Leisure Island. 

Can you see the jet fighter that screamed through above me?

This pohutukawa was growing at the base of the small hill named Mt Drury.

My very comfortable motel unit.

The fountain at Memorial Park is working again, after being closed when someone drowned in the water around it.  The water is now covered with a solid mesh.

Mittens is thrilled to have me home again. 

Margaret xx

A Walk Along The Beach

It's been a quiet relaxing day, resting lots and laughing at the sparrows having dust baths on the sandy lawn.

There is a beach access path not far from my motel unit, and I went for a long (for me!) walk along the sand this morning.  This Papamoa end of the coastline is much quieter than the more popular Mount Maunganui end.

Mount Maunganui was visible in the distance. 

There were a few shells along the tide line, but nothing to get excited about.

Years ago, when we lived in this area, I used to pick up one shell each time I walked along the beach - I ended up with quite a jar full.

It seems others have similar ideas, judging by the sand dollar shells hung on this fence.

I dabbled my toes in the ocean and got my feet wet. The water is still too cold for swimming, unless you are young and a bit crazy.  Last night I watched some blue shivering teenagers returning from a swim, chattering happily and not seeming to mind the cold.

There are houses/baches along here that are literally built on the sand dunes. I'm not so sure about the wisdom of that.

I liked the perspective aspect of this view. The tracks were made by a large running dog.

The holiday park office sells drinks, so I treated myself to a frothy hot chocolate when I returned from my walk.

I am feeling quite content, feeling rested, and ready to return home tomorrow.

Margaret xx 

People Everywhere

It has been a beautiful day, with blue skies and sunshine, although it was still fairly windy.

I decided to visit the Tauranga rose gardens but there were no free parking spaces, so I moved on to Memorial Park.

For the number of cars occupying spaces, the dearth of humans was amazing. Perhaps they park here now and catch a bus into town?

The main attraction here is the playground and it was almost empty.

Heavy traffic was causing congestion on the harbour bridge as I made my way back to the Mount, where I was lucky enough to find a park.

The 'Celebrity Edge' cruise ship was in port for the day (that is it below, sitting behind the building), and many of its 3000-odd passengers were wandering around town (it was difficult to take a photo without someone looking at you!).

After a last look at the crystal clear harbour water lapping the beach, I headed back to my motel in Papamoa.

There is a Marathon on this Sunday, so I imagine a lot of people will be arriving tonight for the weekend. No doubt there will be more surfers arriving as well, to swell the numbers already out enjoying the ocean.

I may find busyness and crowds of people a bit daunting now, but the beach is still beautiful and I'm enjoying being here.

Margaret xx 

Taking It Easy

I walked down to the beach after dinner last night, to say hello to the ocean. I loved hearing the sound of the surf again.

My intention this morning was to go beach walking near Mt Maunganui.

But the strong wind and frequent showers meant my walk became a very short stroll, before I went back to my car.

I returned to the motel for lunch - then fell asleep on the sofa!  This old body just needed a rest!

I saw pohutukawa flowering this morning so am going for a drive now to see if I can find some more.

Then it will be dinner and bed. I lead such an exciting life, LOL, but then I am on holiday!

Margaret xx 

I've Run Away

With all the renovation chaos at home, I've escaped to the beach for a few days while my room is painted. 

It was too early to check into my motel, so I spent some time at Pilot Bay wharf watching some of the ships entering and leaving Tauranga Port.

The weather was a little miserable, with rain for most of my journey.  It began clearing later in the afternoon, though, with a promise of better weather for my stay.

I am very pleased with my motel unit - and nothing says Welcome quite like some complimentary chocolate!

Stay happy 😊 

Margaret xx 

Beautiful Roses

With all the chaos in our house at present, I finally reached my limit and escaped for the day.  I spent quite a while in the city rose gardens.

The beds are spread out over a large area.

Each area is dedicated to a particular type of rose, such as these ones.

I rested for a while inside this little summer house.

While I drank my water,  I watched one of the garden staff tending the garden.   It takes a lot of work to keep everything looking lovely. 

Rabbits are a major problem here, and each rose bed is surrounded with a barrier fence.

It was a gorgeous day for my visit.

Welcome, Summer!

Margaret xx 

It's Scary Out There

Usually, I like to stay home on weekends and public holidays, but today, Sunday, I had to make a quick visit to the supermarket.

Coming home I became entangled with several Girl Racers using the public road as their private racetrack. Twice I had to brake heavily to avoid an accident, and also brake three other times when the car in front was being dangerously passed by these idiots.

This was at 9.30 in the morning!

I was very glad to arrive home safely and relax with a hot mug of tea.

Enjoy your weekend everyone.

Margaret xx 

NZ Olive Oil

There are a few areas around New Zealand that are producing their own olive oil.

My favourite variety is the peppery Picual olive oil, but it can be difficult to find at times.

Which is why I was thrilled to find this online at Allpress Olive Groves on Waiheke Island (near Auckland).

The Free Fatty Acid rating shows the quality of the oil (it must be below 0.8 to be called Extra Virgin - this is 0.18).

Allpress state their locally grown olives are processed fresh without chemicals or excessive heat.

A thankyou card with my order showed a view of Verdale Grove on Waiheke Island.

I've read that including some quality fats in your diet helps to stop food cravings.

Hopefully using this oil will have that effect!

Margaret xx

Lunch With A Friend

I met up with a dear friend today for a spot of shop-wandering and lunch together. 

For my lunch, I had a hot milk chocolate drink and a bacon, cheese and onion toasted sandwich. 

Then, this afternoon, son whisked me off to his favourite hardware shop to buy interior house paint.

The house has a couple of walls that need repainting and I'm also going to have my bedroom freshened up.

I don't have to do any of the painting myself - that is what I have sons for!

My choice was for a creamy yellow with a pale blue feature wall (the photo colour isn't entirely accurate).

Our whole home is in quite an upheaval - but by the end of the year it should feel like a new house. 

I'm looking forward to that!

Margaret xx