Adventure

Posting from a phone is difficult, so this will be short!
We have been without WiFi for a few days now, ence the pause in updates.
We are now in Bowentown, near a town called Waihi, where Bryce lived a part of his youth. Bryce has always been a big story telling when it came to the stories of his growing up. The boys faces are priceless as we see the famed places  and experience the same wonders of their Dads childhood. Just yesterday we got up early, no choice there, and drove up the road to Anzac beach. It’s a beautiful little cove we call Shelly Beach, I don’t know if that is a local name for it or what. We didn’t go straight down to the sand and sea, but hiked over a moderate hill, and came out to the most beautiful secret cove beach! We were the only ones there. The water was so still and crystal clear. It was a great to get out our goggles and discover under water. We saw little fish, lots of krill, and even a stone fish! The boys found lots of drift wood and abandoned fishing line and attempted to make a raft. We packed up and headed to our Bach for a quick lunch. After lunch we headed to the post office and spent $36 dollars on postcard sendings! Haha, so worth it, when ever will we send post cards again?!
We also got some great coffee for us, cuz we were on our way to the Karanahaki gourde , and little did we know we would be hiking for the next three hours!  We started out by crossing a suspension bridge that lead into an old train tunnel! This tunnel had to of been like miles long, it went on for forever! The boys lovedddddddd it! Here is the gist of the tunnel: dimly lit, drippy, walls covered in old train engine soot aka face and body paint, amazing echoing abilities and glow worms covering the ceiling like stars... it was a boys paradise in that tunnel. When we emerged through the other side  we crossed another bridge then climbed down under the bridge and swam in the gorge! The war paint from the tunnel stuck to the boys like glue, so the idea that it was a bath in disguise, well, failed. It was amazing to see each boy cross their own personal boundaries in the category of what they were brave enough to do. Jumping off boulders and swimming in unknown moving water, were big check points for most of them. After that we continued on the hike around the bottom of the gorge. At one point we had the option of going down one path that would have taken us back to the car park, but we chose to go on further hence 3hr hike) and travel through the mountain in old abandoned mining tunnels! Parts were PITCH black, and scared the boys into singing “this little light of mine” when we brought out the cell phone light! 😂  The rest of the hike consisted of a suspension bridge over rapids, narrow paths over steep gourde walls and sooo muchhhh funnnn! Today’s hashtag would have been adventure, and would have made us the poster people for the book Wild At Heart, at least!!!
My thumb was s killing writing this, so here is the end: amazing pizza for dinner, friends visiting us, and scrubbing the boys down in epic baths where they said this should be my job!😂 Can I say it was an  amazing day again??! It was. We love you NZ.

-Spa Lady Out aka Christina

Video time - boys

So it has been a while since we put a video together, so here it is. The boys have been having fun capturing pictures and footage to share and help keep the memories.

We are having a blast!

- Bryce, and the boys

Cathedral Cove, HW BEACH, TIDAL pools, OH MY!

Cathedral Cove, viewing point 

Yesterday, our Wednesday, we hiked up and down to Cathedral Cove! If you have seen Lion Witch and the Wardrobe's, Prince Caspian, there is a scene it the movie that is shot there along the beach looking through the hole in the rock. It was a 40min hike, 8 children (2 cousins) and 3 adults (1 uncle/brother in law) and we allllll survived! It was amazinggggggg. I personally think i burned enough calories while hiking all the way with a 1,ooo pound baby on my back to earn ice cream for the rest of my days, with no guilt included. Thank you very much. The kids did amazing, and made all the old people, miss their youth as they LITERALLY ran up the hills past them, it was shocking. I am in that old person category atm. HA! So, anyways, after the hike you reach a beach with roaring waves, secret caves, a passage through a GIANT mountain/rock/whatever it is, amazing, to reach another beach on the other side.

Secret Beach!

The views are breathtaking, as you look into the ocean and see giant boulders just shooting out of the water. There are no pictures, or words that do it justice. We ate a packed lunch there then swam in the ocean, built a damn on a tiny river made by water cascading off the hill side onto the beach, ya know, just did your everyday Wednesday rituals. SO if that wasn't  enough we kept the day going with an ice cream reward after hiking allll the way back to the car park, and then continuing onto Hot Water Beach. Now, HW Beach is just incredible. It looks so innocent, and you walk over to some rocks on the beach, yada yada, and then you notice all these folks digging pools all around you. Full grown, adults, i'm talking grandmas as well, young and old, digging like a bunch of pirates. The treasure? FREE HOT TUB IN THE SAND. Yup, you dig it... you get it. It wasn't just the sand and the hot water pooling up out of it that stole the show, no, the surf was INCREDIBLE. It was a true surfers paradise, the conditions were perfect. TO a mother of 6 little babies, it was slightly tariffing. We stayed until we were starting to get taken over by random giant tidal surges, which took out the bag, the stroller, and almost the baby. The children were melting down, so it was OUTTA there time. It was only at that moment that we realized it was Valentines Day, and we celebrated by taking 6 VERY tired boys out to eat pizza, and grocery shop!
LOVE was in the air!

TODAY, Thursday, we were blessed with an INCREDIBLE day of true summer weather! We stayed at our beach, right out our door, and road the waves. We went back over to the part of our cove that jets out with rocks and tidal pools and went exploring. It brought out the adventurers in all of us as we discovered so many wonders in the nooks and crannies of these ancient rocks and ocean side. As we circled the rocky shore, we discovered a secret beach! It was there that we discovered paua shells, which are native to the Pacific region. They are beautiful with teal, and all the blues in the ocean, glistening on the inside. Many tourist spots sell paua and paua jewelry. We explored that secret beach cove for a good potion of the day, learning, discovering, and soaking up the sun, which, in turn, burnt us all, haha... ouch. What a day, what a trip. New Zealand you certainly never disappoint. WOW!

Life is made up of many moments, we are thankful for the many that are etched in our memories after a day like today, They will for ever now be a part of what makes Team8taylor closer as a family.
Cheesy moments make the days linger! Bask in the ambiance! 😂💙

-Christina

French Toast and No Screens

One thing that sticks out to us here is there are no screens on the windows! Being here on the beach there really are no flys coming in and disturbing our french toast breakfast with golden syrup. The butter here, even the budget friendly version, is dark yellow and so yum. Gideon thinks its cheese, and his own personal food group. The heavens opened up when Bryce opened up a kitchen cupboard and, BLAMO, THERE WAS AN ESPRESSO MACHINE!!!! Like, what!?!? Little barista Bryce pushed up his sleeves and made 2 sick cups of joe. THANK YOU JESUS. That little cup of life made a 4:30am wake up sooo much better. The weather is still, well, not so great, BUT, its better than SNOW! We are going to hang here today and enjoy the beach, rain or no rain. But first, its school time! Reading, and journaling time!
.........a few hours later.......

Just ate lunch and had a fantastic morning on the beach! NO rain.
We played in the surf till we got chilly then were super distracted after we found Blue bottle jelly fish! Yes, they sting. They literally look like something out of this world! We then took it upon ourselves to rid the beach of them! This took us down the beach towards the rocky coast full of tidal pools and tons and tons of amazing discoveries! The pack rats in all of us, well except Bryce, want to bring back buckets full of shells and stones. We are planning on going back out in a bit to rediscover that amazing eco system! The cousins have arrived and now the boys have some play mates!
2nd up of my baristas creation inhaled, now back to the sand!

My pockets are full of shells (Aunt Michele and my Dad would be LOVING this!)

3rd DAY in the books!

Pulling out of our driveway in PA!

DULLES!

Today, today, today. 

Wow, day 3 is coming to a close. I can hardly believe it! We are now in the Coromandel at a BEAUTIFUL secluded little beach house, literally right on the beach. Its incredible. We started out our day packing up our Thames home,(took forever) and then driving up the coast line. We stopped to get a MUCH needed cup of coffee and right across the road, on the beach side, was a great park with incredible HUGE trees. Draping vines and moss like stuff hung on them, they were mesmerizing. Bryce run into folks from his childhood church while getting coffee! Nuts!

So, back to driving up the coast. I said to Bryce as we were driving, I can now look at the map of NZ and say, YUP, i touched that wholeeeee rim up and around, lol, we were hugging the coast as we drove. NZ had a big storm up in these parts just a few weeks ago, and the edges of the road, for miles, were caving in on the edges, literally were washed away! IT was hair pin turn, after hair pin turn, over and over again for most of the 1.5hr car ride. (The boys enjoyed chanting for Bryce to GO FAST every time they saw a 100kph speed limit sign) We stopped in Coromandel town where the SUN came out, and our necks got burned!!! We ate lunch (meat and cheese pies and lime and strawberry primo milk) outside of a little bake shop, got some groceries, postcards, and continued up the coast! When we arrived we could hardly contain our beach crave and made it there asap. IT.WAS.HEAVEN. All the boys are loving it, and Levi is surviving life without Franks Hot Sauce! Its a miracle!! Bryce had lamb and carrot cake to celebrate his birthday, and I discovered fb live streaming, its been a gooooood day.

Now, here are a BUNCH of photos to catch you up! (Most photos are from the beginning of our trip just up to our Thames visit. More photos to come of the Coromandel tomorrow!)

Its GOOD to have wifi! 

-Christina 

 

 

School Work Proof! :) 

View from Thames House

Playing with cousins for the 1st time

Shark tooth??

SO many sand dollars!

 

BROTHERS!

"I'M FLYING!"

“I’M FLYING!!! I’M FLYING!!!” Gideon shouts out as he experiences his first take off!
Two seconds later…. “WE”RE GOING DOWNNNNN! WE’RE GOING DOWN!!!” First comment, adorable, second comment probably sent some passengers into a panic attack. Thats kids for ya, one moment bliss, next pure and utter panic. Before we got on that aircraft, and were just traveling in an innocent, quiet, elevator at the airport. Gideon, the almost 4yr old, shouts out, while all was quiet…. “Ewww, whats that smell?? I FARTED! I FARTED!!!” I loved it. SO funny. I cant wait to be his future friend on FB… i’m gonna need to teach him to filter his thoughts before they exit his mouth.
SO, we landed. We made it. No one knows what day it is, or time, but they are STOKED we time traveled! Skipped all of February 9th. We can honestly say, we interacted with some amazing staff along the way. From check in, to security, TSA, customs, fellow passengers, to the Pilot himself, we were interacting with people of JOY! It was SUCH a blessing.
It was so cool to watch our children interact with strangers.  I don’t know if its from being in a big family, or just the fact of who my children are, but they held conversation initiated by themselves, asked questions without fear, and had people rolling with laughter.
Our first day we landed at around 9:30am local time, and were picked up by Bryces brother and his wife and children. It was raining as we left the airport, but it was HOT so it felt amazing! We loaded the van, and headed to get some groceries before we got to our first holiday home. The rest of the afternoon we played on the beach, in the rain, then ate fish and chips with the family!
That was yesterday, and today, Sunday, its still raining, BUT we’ve still played on the beach right across the road from our house, collected shells,(found tonsss of sand dollars and one shark tooth) hung laundry on the line,  got ice cream cones from the corner Dairy shop, hiked a MOUNTAIN, and ate FISH n CHIPS again!!! SO, No matter the weather, its STILL the best weather i’ve ever had in February!
Tomorrow we pack up this house, in Thames, and head up north to the coast of Coromandel to stay for 5 days. As much as we LOVE having a positive outlook on this rain, NO rain would be a much better reason to celebrate! Will post some great stuff from the boys ASAP!

One last laugh to send you with before I collapse into bed. On the way back from the hike, Ezra is yelling from the back of the van that Miles put a FISH in his water bottle! A fish!! Now, we obviously all believe that this is NOT true but Ezra was in hook line and sinker (pun intended) and not happy, a few moments later Ezra proceed to tell me that he just “farted for revenge” after Miles told him there was no fish. Boys and there infatuation with flatulence is something I will NEVER understand.

Photos pending

- Christina

post by Ezra

Ezra opening up his NZ piggy bank!

"There is only 4 more days until we go! Alright, what should i say next.... i didn't mean, like type that.. Mom, what are you doing? Are you gonna type whatever I say?!....."

...5mins later.....

"Mom, just put emojis!"

"Its gonna be good! I am excited to see the bubbling mud. And thats it."

"ok... now can i put emojis??"

😇😈😚😂😁😀🐸🐵😎😍😌😋😊😉😘😖😕😓😏

-Ezra 

the big WHY

SO, why are we taking our 6 little men half way around the world to the INCREDIBLE NZ, only for half of them to never remember it, dish out over 10k JUST for tickets, and for us 2 adults to be tortured on our 32hr travel duration??
SO, why are we going? Why are we doing this? ...i have no idea, haha, NO, just kidding.
Why do we do anything? Where do any of us place our values, obligations, commitments? Every action has a driving force behind it, a reason why, some good some not so good. This choice was created by two individuals, myself and Bryce, who have an adventurous spirit!
Bryce is a natural born Kiwi, a New Zealander. (well kinda, but we can tackle that issue later) The last place we called home was New Zealand, 7 years ago! We took a position at an amazing camp along the east coast, a few feet to the beach from our front door... is that really work?? WHY on Earth did we leave, you say? Haha, well many decisions, but those decisions lead us to PA, where we are SO home, and feel very planted. ANYWAYS, before that, we lived in NZ right after we got married, and ways before that Bryce lived there as a full time Kiwi being a barista and being such a fantastic kiwi, surfing, etc, and being such a handsome bloke. He originally left Middle Earth to pursue the Lord and go to Bible School in New York, and met the LOVE of his life, ME! A few months later we were married, and in no time we had 6 boy children. WHOA. We get it done!
So, back to the Why.

Missional people sacrifice.

Bryce has been in the states off and on for 15 years. He has missed more than just his home. He has missed births, deaths, family, friendships, holidays, food, his culture, he has missed out on driving on the wrong side of the road. You name it, the everyday things you take for granted that your land offers you, he replaced it with a foreign land, foreign holidays, a foreign culture. Its been 7 years since Bryce has stepped onto the lush NZ soil, and its time to show our boys the culture of their father.

We are so excited to experience this with our children, some who won't remember it, but we will hold the memories for them. We hope that the seed of adventure will be placed in their hearts from this decision. Cease the day! We hope that our boys will feel a connection to the other part of their DNA, from a land Down Under, where Hobbits run wild, kiwi birds don't fly, and pies are filled with meat and cheese.

THIS is our WHY.

-Christina (the only girl in this fam)  

Post by Levi

LEVI TAYLOR

 I am so excited for nz, and i am really sad too... because i am going to be leaving all my friends at school and if you are from my school, well then , HI! I am 9yrs old and my Nonna died, but my Nana still lives, they are in NZ. Have you ever traveled on 2 airplanes? We are going to go to Las Vegas, err i mean LA, where Elvis lives! And where Lelo and Stitch movies were filmed. I think we are going to stay there for a few days, i am not sure, its up to my mom. Send me some comments and questions, and i will try to answer them. OH, and check out all the photos we will take in nz, I'm pretty sure your gonna love them, and ill take a video  of what i will do during the days, breakfast, lunch, dinner, and all the new foods. Well, thats all i have to say right now, BYE< oh and thanks for listening! oh, wait reading. BYe. 😢😢😢😎😎😎😧😧😧😧😂😂😂😂😂😂😟😟😟😇😇😇😈😈😈

TIME

SO, the last time Bryce and I flew to NZ, we went with 2 little children. 

Miles was 3 and just newly diagnosed (Type 1 Diabetes and Celiac Disease) and Levi was 15 months old and was learning how to work his incredible screaming skills. (He has now since passed the mantel to Gideon... more on that later) ANYWHO, we were embarking out on a new adventure, sold everything we owned (other than what 4 suitcases could hold) and moved to NZ! It was exciting and awesome and nerve-racking all at the same time. Like I said, Miles had JUST been diagnosed with Diabetes, ya know, the one with at least 8 finger pricks a day, 4 insulin injections, along with a critically strict gluten free diet. Diagnosed on July 1st, moved to New Zealand December 11th. We lived in NZ just shy of a year, and truly loved it. Worked at an incredible camp, right along the ocean, made wonderful relationships and really enjoyed our time. This brings me to my point:

T I M E .

Time, even as i write this word, it looks funny. Like, is it even a word? Time is here one moment and gone the next. We can't wait for it to get here, or be over, or freeze, and in a blink, we've moved passed whatever made time stand still!! 

My children have been counting down the days, the hours, the moments till we depart on this adventure. The oldest is getting smart... he says to me, "New Zealand is going to go too fast."

Oh I so agree, son. I tell him thats why we are going to freeze time with the pictures we take, the memories we write down, and the stories we share with each other when we are back home.

With all things exciting, we long for it to come, we crave for it to freeze and be savored, enjoyed to the last drop, and looked back on with satisfaction. (I feel this EXACT way every time I eat authentic Ramen...) 

*This* is the reflection I hope we can carry into our daily lives, right here right now, into the seemingly meaningless moments of time in our day to day. No looking back with regret, but living our time with purpose. 

These are wishful mumbles from a momma watching her babies grow up so fast!

Time never, ever, everrrr stands still. 

But nothing good came from just standing still forever, so ON WITH THE SHOW!!!

"Lets Go!" 

-Christina

Team 8 Talks About NZ

Levi, Ezra and Judah answer some questions about New Zealand!

Team 8 Taylor's FIRST video upload!

As we get ready for our departure, we are testing out our communication equipment!

Here is Miles giving us the first look into Team 8 Taylor, and our next adventure...

NEW ZEALAND!

Check out our You Tube Channel and subscribe to keep updated on this CRAZY trip of the yearrrrr!

Q & A

I wonder when we cross over the international line, and get to New Zealand, if they will look at our clan and ask in a certain tone... "Anything to declare?" And then just proceed to snicker...
Its a total possibility.

Q. "Are THEY all yours?!"
A. "No of course not! We (2 lone adults) are traveling 32 hours, with a destination of 'half way around the world,' with 6 randomly chosen children JUST.FOR.FUN!!!"

*We LOVE our crazy, LOUD, hysterical, FULL ON, boy party, and wouldn't have it any other way!*

*In order as shown above: Levi, Oliver, Ezra, Judah, Miles and Gideon*

little more than a MONTH out

The passports are here, and the bags are slowly starting to fill up!

With having EIGHT to pack for, we are going light as possible. Two checked bags stored under the plane, 1 mini suitcase carryon (basically just carrying a 1,000 diapers) and a backpack for each of us, minus the baby of course. Recently my nights after putting children to bed are filled with little lists of reminder of what to pack, etc, and good ideas for the 32 hr travel duration. Did i mention that it was a 32 HOUR TRAVEL DURATION?! Ohhh, i didn't, well, yes, yes it is 32 hrs.... insert crying face here. I'm not too worried about the older kids, ages 11, 9, 7, and 5, but I am about the 3 and 14 month old. I don't think there are enough 'gummies' in the world that will keep this particular 3yr old happy on THIS trip of a lifetime. Anyways, tonights 'To Do' was to set up the youtube channel, new email, andddddd THIS very blog: https://teameighttaylor.blogspot.com
We are CRaZy excited to depart on this trip. We leave Feb 8th, and return the 5th of March!!!! 

Say a prayer and STAY tuned to THIS very Blog to get the latest and greatest (and NOT so greatest) updates with Team8Taylor!

...did i mention where we are going? oh, ya know, just, umm, NEW ZEALANDDDDDD!!!

-Christina (the mom)