February March 2026

The last few days of January and the first week of Feb were all about our Rule family. We spent our days reliving memories and celebrating Ernest and the wonderful life he lived. We gathered at he and Dorothy's home with their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren to watch the Edendale Crankup Parade at their front gate; a long held special tradition. I'm sure he'd be watching over us all with a wry smile on his face! We all gathered again on the 3rd Feb, with a large contingent of family , friends and colleagues to formally celebrate Ernest and lay him to rest at the Edendale Cemetery where he has a wonderful view of both Edendale and the home farm. RIP Ernest. We loved our time at the farm and are truly grateful that Donnah and Neville made us so welcome. A very special time for us both. Thankyou.

The following weekend we attended the Wyndham District High School/Menzies College school reunion. It was wonderful to reconnect with friends and colleagues we'd not seen for ages. It was a really lovely day. We popped in see Jude at her Mum's home and caught up with Trish and Chris. A cracker family! Xx

We flew to Auckland to watch the Edinburgh Tattoo, a long held wish for me. It was wonderful and we loved it all but we both wished there'd been more piping
We discovered a couple of things. Auckland's streets are steep! Especially when you to choose to walk to your hotel at the top of Wakefield St, not that we knew this, with suitcases in tow on a very warm day! We were definitely puffing! We very quickly learned how to use busses! We had a lovely wander around the Viaduct among the thousands who had disembarked from the 2 huge cruise ships berthed there. We DONT do crowds! 🤣
We were very pleased to get on the ferry.
We had a lovely evening/ night with Michael and his soon to be wife Coralee at his home in Gulf Harbour followed by another lovely evening/ night with my cousin, Pauline and her husband Gerry. Lou and Julie popped in so all 3 girl cousins entertained us. I love catching up with them! Always plenty of laughs! Thankyou family.... we loved our time with you all. We'll be up your way again soon and look forward to more time with you. Xx
We were home for a week and then headed up to Lake Ruataniwha to watch Tully and Harper row in the South Island Secondary Schools Regatta. We were so very proud of them both with each making finals in their respective events. It's such an exciting sport to watch!

Inbetween all the above happenings we've been donkey deep planning and helping to organise the NZMCA National Rally, a large gathering that is to be held at the Cromwell Racecourse from the 26th-30th March. We're part of a group of 6 so it's been a whole lot of work but now that we're at the pointy end of it all, everything is coming together well. Our Convenor, Neil and his wife, Anne, have lived and breathed this event for months. We're all confident it'll be a great success. I'll let you know in the next update.

Of course we've also spent time with our kids and their kids, such a joy, following their comings and goings as they live their very busy lives. Between work, university, school and sport they're on the go all the time. Oh and we're chuffed to bits that Olivia has been selected for her Year 10 A netball team. Such a debacle last year so a just reward for her stand out performance at her recent trial.

We had the wonderful Paige visit for a couple of weeks. It was such a special time and we loved hitting the road with her, Liv and Kate. Paige loves fishing! ❤️ So good! Come back lovely.....soon! Xx

Capped this period of time off by visiting Ian and Prue in their new home in Roxburgh. We love it..... it has a gentle warmth to it that certainly has their name written all over it.

Lastly I got quite the surprise when told there was something for me at the local St John station. Off I popped to collect it to discover the item had been issued about 7 years ago and had been 'lost' in a drawer in the Alex station since Covid days. The ceremony where it should have been formally presented, by a Knight of the Realm of St John, was canceled then forgotten about! I say 'DO BETTER' St John! This is the only collection of medals that still feature Queen Victoria, who granted a Royal Warrant ages ago, including the civic awards so its a bit special.
Anyhow turns out I'd been awarded the Queens Service Medal, recognizing my continuous 12 years of service, through the St John award system which is similar too and runs parallel to the civic system. I also have a lovely silver bar recognizing a further 5 years service so 17 years all up. In fact I got the bar before the medals and had no idea what it was or what it was for. It all makes sense now. Again St John.....DO BETTER! It can be formally presented to me and will be at some stage.Read more