One Week and Counting

Well, our time here in Gisborne is almost up. We leave one week from today on our long (did I mention that it is a LONG trip) back to the States. We leave here at 2:30 in the afternoon on the 13th and four flights later our plane gets in to Wichita at 9:00 p.m. on the 13th...a 24 1/2 hour trip that includes a 14 hour flight from Auckland to L.A. Whew, I'm exhausted just thinking about it!

We figured it was time to head back now that it's getting to be winter here. Basically, this means it's cold (in the 50's) and rainy with a few nice days thrown in here and there. Two weekends ago, we took advantage of a break in the clouds to head down to the beach and search the tide pools for creatures. Our friends, Mark and Lori and their daughter, came with and we had a great time getting out and exploring the rocks. Gum boots (aka rubber rain boots) were a necessity for the kids...



We went to a beach called Sponge Bay. It has a really rocky coast line, and at low tide you can even walk out to an island that is about 400 yards out from the beach. The rock formations are quite interesting...



Brad & Mark relaxing after climbing around on the rocks.



WARNING: You may want to put on a pair of sunglasses for this next picture...Jonathan dressed himself and it's a bit intense.

Jonathan checking out the crab we found.




The kids showing off their gum boots.



Harrison with his bucket looking for hermit crabs.