German shepherd, funerals and funeral homes.

 I have been absent from this site for a while….it has been a very busy few days. We left one house sit to go to another short term one at a moments notice.

 This house sit was lovely, with a German shepherd dog, a bird which roamed free quite a lot and some fish. I am a bit nervous around large dogs, but this one was lovely, very obedient, and very friendly. He had a very regal look about him too, sitting like the sphinx and surveying the surroundings. The house also was very clean and neat and tidy, which is always a bonus. We have had very few dirty homes to care for, and although I am not a cleanliness freak, I like things clean and tidy.

Ah well, I am having trouble putting up some pictures on this post...the computer has a mind of its own today......

We had just moved in when I got the phone call to say my mother has passed away. We were half expecting it, she was 93, and going downhill very fast. My sister and I went over to New Zealand to see her just a few weeks ago, but now a message from the doctor gave her a few days, and then the message came that she had gone.

Peter and I had already talked about what we would do when the time came. Peter did not feel up to the trip, and leaving this house sit would be complicated, and he was happy to stay on and I was happy to go over alone. My eldest son and his wife also came over for the funeral so I had family with me.


Kapiti Island just off Paraparaumu.

My sister and I had already worked out the main plans, so once I landed in NZ everything was fairly settled, but I was amazed at how much there was still to do. I stayed with Donna, who cared for Mum in the last few years, a family friend who was really like a sister to us and a daughter to Mum. She did a wonderful job, and then over there she ran me all over the place to make arrangements. Our family  had lived in Paraparaumu for some years, (we abbreviate it to Pram), and our friends were just wonderful, helping with all arrangements, putting on an afternoon tea, and generally give tip top support to me and the family.

I was also thrilled to see so many old friends turn up, some driving long distances to be with us at the funeral. I was really grateful for their support too, and to see them again, seeing I live in Australia now, was just lovely. We spent some time together after the funeral service and friends had some of us round for dinner that night too.

So it has been hectic, and then travelling back to Aussie, and the three hour difference in time zones sort of throws the body clock out of synch.

Paraparaumu is only a small town, and it was while we were living there that my dad died, so we used the same company to arrange the funeral.  It is called Kapiti CoastFuneral Home.

I have to say that funerals can be difficult things to arrange because you are already emotional, but they do a wonderful service, and do all the legal work too, stuff that would be so difficult for most of us to do.  They cared for Mums body, arranged the cremation, and gave us back Mums ashes in a rather lovely box. Her ashes have been taken back to another city by friends who attended the funeral and they have been laid with my father’s ashes . .  something I wanted done.

 So now I am staying with my eldest son for a week, then we will go to Bundaberg for a quick visit. In the meantime I am trying to catch up on my sleep.