PaisleyJade: photography

Lately...

By PaisleyJade - Sunday, December 05, 2021

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Rotorua Roadtrip!

By PaisleyJade - Thursday, January 21, 2021

We've just returned from an amazing family holiday to Rotorua with our two youngest girls.

Both Symon and I remember our parents taking us to Rotorua for holidays when we were young, but neither of us have visited Rotorua since.

While we are on our extended holiday/sabbatical, and because we wanted to visit a Pastor friend in Hamilton, we decided to turn our trip into a mini family getaway.

Our Roadtrip from Whangarei started with the classic stop off at Puhoi for their amazingly cheap and giant icecreams. The girls loved it.

We decided to stop in Cambridge for lunch (loved visiting "Paddock" for lunch - so good 👌) and had a little explore around the shops while there.

From there we headed off to Rotorua while listening to the classic and one of the best podcasts for long road trips called "Lore", after having already nearly exhausted our 80's music playlist.

Finally we arrived in Rotorua and first on the list once we'd checked into our hotel and explored the town and had dinner was the Redwoods Tree Walk!

This amazing adventure is a must see. You can either walk above the trees during the day or night. We chose the night option and it was sooooo good! The photos don't do justice (you can't capture the amazing lights on a phone camera) but if you're in the area, definitely put this on your to do list.

Check out their website here.

Day 2 included visiting Whakarewarewa Living Maori Village and Thermal Reserve. Both Symon and I remembered visiting here as children, and it was just as stunning years later.

It's so hard to comprehend the bubbling mud and steaming pools as you walk through the tracks. Also the fact that the village is a "living village" with families still living there amongst the pools and geysers.

The location is stunning and we had out breath taken away more than once.

The rest of the day was spent exploring Rotorua town Centre, eating and also taking the Gondola ride (multiple times) to view the city from high up.

Day 3 was home time, but we left with full hearts after having so many great adventures. We swung by Hamilton and spent some time there before heading back to Whangarei.

Favourite food places we highly recommend checking out are Pig & Whistle for that classic English pub meal (their chicken tacos and ribs are amazing along with their burgers).

Also Sobar & Cafe have the coolest Kumera fries and wedges and are located in the middle of Rotorua's "Eat Street" which gives it such a fun vibe for dining out, especially at night.

Lastly, while you're there, make sure you grab an ice cream or sorbet from the famous Lady Jane's Ice Cream Parlour. I loved their vanilla coconut sorbet 👌🍦.

So appreciative for this special family time and for our beautiful country of New Zealand.

For more Roadtrip adventures, visit here.

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family life

Drake Wedding Photos...

By PaisleyJade - Thursday, April 23, 2020

Only 7 hours before NZ went into lockdown, my son and his bride were married. Such a beautiful day. So sad we couldn't celebrate with everyone as planned, but so special to see these two still able to get married.

Thank you Renee Lansdowne (Pedrotti Photography) for the stunning photos! It was hard to choose which ones to share. Enjoy...

Getting ready...

Originally all of us would have been getting ready for the wedding day in a hotel in the Bay of Islands, but with the change of plans, the girls got ready at our home, and the boys at my parents (their Grandparents).

It was very hand to have Monique's makeup skills and Kimi's hairdressings skills on hand...

With all the florist shops suddenly closed, flowers were bought from our local supermarket and arranged...

Monique wore blue shoes in keeping with the tradition of something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue...

More getting ready photos...

The cheeky graffiti in the background was done by Symon during our hall renovation prep...

This moment was special as I placed the tiara on Monique that I wore on my wedding day. Something borrowed...

Thankfully Kimi was trained in the fine art of how to lace up Moniques dress...

So thankful that my parents allowed us to hold the wedding in their garden at short notice, and lovely that the boys could get ready at their place.

Special note: Jasher wore cufflinks that Monique had given him for Christmas with the original wedding date engraved on them (04/04/20). Even though they didn't end up getting married on this date, it's still a special reminder of the unique wedding they had.

Along with most guests, six of the wedding party were unable to make it to the wedding. A bitter sweet day, but thankful for those that were able to be in the bridal party.

A very special moment when Grandma's rest home (that was already in lockdown) allowed us to show her Monique's dress from a distance. To watch the video of this, click here.

It was very special for Symon to be celebrant for his own son...

A lovely touch, remembering those family members that are no longer with us on this earth...

And then the bride arrived...

Family photos...

So thankful for the amazing photos by Pedrotti Photography...

The boys...

Love my kids so much!

We asked a local small business if we could buy some pastries from them, and they delivered them to the house, and gifted them for free. Blown away - thank you Bocky Boo!!