Crossing the Big Pond

Well, we're finally here. We've been in NZ about 6 weeks and are starting to feel settled. So much has happened and it's a bit overwhelming to try and catch up on all of it, so here's the basics ...
1) Tauranga is beautiful. And we're right by the coast.
2) The people are great. The church has already made us feel a part of their family.
3) We hit the ground running. We've been busy getting to know people and attending church activities. Now we are in the process of figuring out what ministries we will focus on.
4) It's freezing in the mornings and evenings in our house. We typically fight over who has to get out of bed first to turn on the heater. Usually Heidi gets pushed out.
5) At one point, I think it rained for 5 days straight.
6) We have a flat (apartment) that we've furnished through the classifieds, garage sales, and some pretty amusing auctions. In typical form, Heidi picked out our place while Pick was out of town at a Mens retreat.
7) Our car has already broken down and been fixed within the first week of ownership.

Quick stop in San Francisco

Before arriving in New Zealand, we spent 3 days relaxing in San Francisco. It was a great chance for us to regroup before heading south. We spent some time seeing the sites and we also got to see Brad and Rachel, which was an excellent bonus.