Well, we made it -- 2 hours to DFW - 3 hours to LGB -- 1 hour to LAX and 12 hours to AKL and we got here safely.  Picked up by the master brother, Anthony, we've had an awesome first 2 days here.  Visited all sorts of people and eaten all new foods...Lollie cakes, sally-lanns, lemingtons, and lots of lamb (Simon ate this - I didn't).  More to come.  Lots of love to Mom and Dad who are helping us out at the Country House over the next two weeks.  We love you and miss you!!  Wish you were here.  It is beautiful and crisp!  We leave to go north for the next couple of days.  Planning to tour an avocado farm and some vineyards on our way.  Had Devonshire tea this afternoon in a lovely valley.  Went to a very cool pub...back now to have prawns for tea.  Nice place this is.  Great people.  Talk with you as soon as we can.

So we have one more day before hours and hours of grueling travel.  Simon says we'll be on the plane for at least 18 hours - and that doesn't include the flight from DFW to LAX.  We're actually traveling to LGB and are seeking a ride from LGB to LAX if anyone reads this...

 

We're hoping to keep up with the website at least a couple of times during our holiday to keep you up-to-date on what we're up to.  No promises, though.  Not sure what to expect in Kiwi-land -- getting excited, though. I'm going to meet my new family!!  Many thanks to the Tony-meister for taking some time out to show us North Island.  Whoo Hoo!!

Thanks so much to the St. Jane Vineyard for throwing such a fantastic shindig!  We loved it!  And many of the grape stompers joined us for an overnight stay or dinner -- what a great collection of folks.  Many happy returns to our new friends from Dallas, Ft. Worth, Tyler and Palestine!

 

Talk about new friends -- we met a fabulous couple from the Ft. Worth area this weekend who met via ballroom dance (near and dear to our hearts) and who were related to one of our Long Beach students.  How cool is that??!  We love it when the world interconnects over such long distances.  Looking forward to many more opportunities just like it.

We've had a few cooler mornings and nights up on the hill lately and have really enjoyed sitting out on the patio to enjoy a nice cup of cappuccino early and pudding late.  A breeze flows through from the back pasture to take the edge off the humidity at the beginning and end of day.  We're hoping to soon have an arbor up over the patio that sports a ceiling fan to help cool off during the heat of the day as well - but that'll be a little time.  So much to do!  See you soon!

Thank you, Mary Rainwater!  We were interviewed by Mary last Friday - and sure enough we hit the front page of the Palestine Herald today.  The picture's not too bad, except that Simon seems to have grown a little belly!  Not to worry, he's just fine.  Traveling back to LA this week for instruction at Kitchen Outfitters in Naples, we're looking forward to seeing some old friends and making some new ones.

 

We've certainly made a few new friends in Palestine over our first week open for business.  Many thanks to everyone who supported our Ribbon-cutting and other opening week events.  We're quickly working out the kinks to bring you the best meals and best service possible.  Please let us know if there is anything you believe we need to add or adjust to make your experience with us even more special.  See you soon!