(In Progress)December - The kids came to New Zealand! Plus Sam's partner, Natalie, who we had not met yet, only on zoom... wonderful! We kicked off their visit with a kayak trip to Abel Tasman National Park. Beautiful calm water, three nights, four days. First night was camping at Anchorage Bay, saw Kerry Packer's (Australian billionaire survived by his kids) huge yacht anchored there. It seemed out of place. The next two nights were at Onetahuiti Beach. Enroute we came upon a pod of dolphins and had a National Geographic moment with them! The third night was a "test." Huge amounts of rain and it turns out the kids' tent was not 100% waterproof. We also awoke to the DOC warden alerting campers the water was out and the toilets not usable. 😳 But, our water taxi arrived and back to Nelson we went. The kids met our very, very good friends SaraLinda and Hugh and their kids on the way back. We have spent a lot of time and adventures with this couple. They have become lifelong friends. We know we will continue to have adventures with them even after we leave NZ. Christmas was spent with Caroline and Richard and their kids! Beautiful food, and fun badminton - creating new ways to get a birdie and soccer balls over a badminton net. Fun day! On to Golden Bay on the 27th. Tata Beach, Pupu Springs, Hydropupu Walkway, Wainui Falls, Rawhiti Caves, Mussel Inn, and berries from an iconic honesty box fruit stand. We loved every minute. Sam and Natalie said farewell on 31 December and had a very long New Year's Eve traveling back in time and staying in 2023 as long as possible as they made their way back to Madison. Kelsey stayed another week into the new year. See you very soon Sam and Natalie!