Nice, Eh?

Tessa's vocabulary is just getting bigger and better by the day!  She comes out with some pretty random things to say but some are just too funny.  One day this week after dinner, she decided she wanted to go and bounce on the trampoline, so I went down with her while Julia sat with Libby who still had to finish her dinner (Reuben wasn't home from Karate yet).  We went out the door and opened the gate and Tessa says, "Nice, eh?"  It was a very nice warm sunny evening, but who knows if that's even what she was referring to...just a very Kiwi thing to say and it came out of nowhere. 

I've also got back into some swim training, slightly longer distances the three days I went this week, because I think my next step is to enter to swim from Rangitoto Island to St. Helier's Bay, 4.6k.  I haven't actually entered yet, but that event would be Sunday morning April 10th.  I layed out and took a photo of all the swim caps I've acquired since being here from all the different events I've tried and competed in!

I've yet to get my CV (NZ Resume) out to all the bars in Takapuna, but in the mean time I'm now coaching a couple high school kids, more of a beginner swim team, for 4 weeks, for an hour and Wednesday night.  And someone else is leaving the swim school, so I'll be taking over her lessons for 3 hours on Thursday mornings, also for 4 weeks.  Today we started teaching the Belmont kids (who come and swim for some lessons during school on Fridays) flipper ball...a beginner version of waterpolo, which I need to read up on, rules and such so that I can teach them properly. 

Yesterday, An, Rachel, Sophie and I went to this free concert for the Uni kids at Mt. Albert.  It was pretty good, Kids of 88 were there as well as J. Williams (they're NZ bands actually on the radio) and some others whose songs I recognized.  I also had these yummy choc chip pancakes with choc ice cream, whipped cream and choc sauce...freshly made and massive, for only $6!  That's twice now I've found myself probably the best deal and yummiest festival food!  They were also giving out free Lipton iced tea all afternoon. 

Oh and Wednesday night we went for dinner at the Belgian Beer Cafe, ribs were on special, but they just didn't compare to the ones I had at Serengeti...yummy sauce, but super hard to eat!

Training cap, Harbor Crossing, Kohi swim, Stroke and Stride, Triwomen Triathlon

While we were still clean...not for long!

Triathlon Results!

I completed my triathlon right on my goal time in 50min and 45sec!  7:06 for a 300m swim in crazy waves along the beach!  Because it was in waist-deep water I was actually washed ashore and nearly beached in the middle of the swim!  It was also a nice little run back up the beach, across the road and into the transition area.  Then 23:58 for a 9k cycle, also after wheeling the bike across the freshly cut grass it wouldn't go when it got to the road!  There was so much grass shoved in it the wheels wouldn't turn so I had to dig it all out!  And then 19:41 for a 3k run...a bit slower than planned but clearly there's plenty of room for improvement in the run segment!  Overall, I was very happy with that result and I finished 21st out of about 130 competitors!  Unfortunately, it was raining the whole morning, and pretty windy as well.

After our successful morning, Jenny and I got all glammed up and ready to go to Auckland Derby Day.  It did continue to drizzle the whole day but the races were still pretty entertaining.  It was exciting to watch the horses race by, especially once everyone started cheering.  And lots of girls put bets on so was exciting when their horses won! Astrid's horse won a race and so did Josie's horse!  Everyone was very fashionable and it was fun looking at all the different head pieces.

From there, Josie, Rachel, Jenny, An and I went back to Rachel's (since the weather wasn't looking too promising for the night).  I got an Indian takeaway to treat myself for my hard work that morning.  The other girls made a dinner of mashed potatoes, fish sticks and veggies.  We watched American Idol and Moulin Rouge, an excellent day overall!

pre-race start

got cleaned up for Derby Day!

running back up to transition after the swim

after finishing!