Easter at Wivenhoe

Every Easter Matt's family gathers at Wivenhoe Dam. Peter (Matt's dad's cousin) and his wife Jennie have a house there with lots of land and horses -- perfect for camping out while still having access to all the amenities, including a lot of good food! This year my exams started the week after Easter, so Matt took the children to Wivenhoe on Friday, and I stayed home studying till Sunday then went to join them. Julia and Liam had a fabulous time with lots of cousins to dote on them and keep them busy (I think Matt even got a bit of a break despite my absence).

A small slice of the view of Wivenhoe Dam

Not sure what Matt was going for with the first few of these posed pictures, but here are some glimpses of the family...

Taylor


Jennie & Greg (family friend)Connor, Jessie-Claire, Tobias

Happy Liam playing with the pebbles by the BBQ grill --
'Hey Mom, look at these great snacks I found!'


Peter (Jon's cousin) with Jon & Liam -- Julia calls Matt's dad 'Pop' and when she saw Peter with similar features (including a moustache), she began calling him 'Uncle Pop'

This year for our big Easter dinner, we had a traditional New Zealand 'Hungi'. I'd never heard of a Hungi (traditional or non-traditional), so I was interested to see the process which began with digging a huge pit in the ground. It's a lot more involved than your average pig roast (not that I'm entirely clear on the process there either), and the preparations took nearly 3 days! Rocks are placed in the pit and then the food is prepared...

Pound after pound of meats (lamb, chicken, pork) were placed into these foil-lined crates. Potatoes, cabbage, and corn went into other crates, and then the crates were placed on top of the pit on sticks (I think) with a fire over the top. They poured ice onto the hot rocks below to create steam and halfway through the cooking process, the crates then drop down onto the hot rocks. I'm sure there was a lot more to it than that, but the result was some incredibly tender meat and delicious veggies! Quite an experience!


**Pictures from our USA trip coming soon***