Gone Tramping

Top 2 pics are from the hike on Saturday, the bottom 3 are from Friday's hike in Eastbourne.

Fridays are Kris' day off, so we usually sleep in a bit and then go to a cafe for breakfast. This week we went to Petone, which is at the south end of town along the waterfront. It's a cute area with lots of cafes and boutique shops. After walking the length of Jackson Street, we settled on Mr. Bun...bad decision! Greasy eggs and bacon and really bad coffee. But that's all part of the adventure, finding a new place to go every week! From there we drove around the harbor to Eastbourne, across the harbor from Wellington; it only takes about 10-15 minutes. It was a gorgeous day! We took a short hike up to the trail that runs along the ridge, with great views of the Hutt Valley, Welly, and the Strait. After that, we drove out beyond Eastbourne til the road ends, and we walked the gravel path along the beach that eventually leads to a lighthouse at Pencarrow Head (we're saving that for another day, when we can go out with bikes). We really love the Eastbourne area!

Saturday morning we went to the big farmer's market with Matt & Ang; you can buy everything there, it's kind of overwhelming. Way cheaper than buying from the grocery stores. From there we drove out past Wainuiomata, about 30 minutes to Rimutaka Forest and the Orongorongo Trail. This was a 10 kilometer round trip tramp along a stream, through all kinds of trees and ferns, opening up into a big river valley. We have had unbelievable weather, apparently much warmer for longer periods of time than usual for this time of year. Being outdoors like that nourishes my soul and reminds me how awesome our Creator is!

P.S. "Tramping" = "hiking"

An update on jobs: I had an interview at a women's gym last week, for a position of fitness consultant. It's very similar to a personal trainer: assessing new members, learning about their current level of fitness and their goals, designing an exercise and nutrition program, regular coaching/training sessions, and some small group exercise classes (5-8 people). The interview went really well, and I have a second interview tomorrow morning. I think this would be an enjoyable job, a way to combine my experiences in the health industry with my passion for helping people get well physically.

On Sunday, Kris preached his first sermon at Knox, about taking hold of God's vision for our lives. Call me biased, but I think he was awesome!