Day 90 Piahia Russell, NZ

Today was our final full day on our trip as a family. We capped off the two weeks with a day on the water. We sailed this morning on the boat "Lion New Zealand" which is a boat constructed to compete in the Whitbread race, which is a ocean crossing race. The boat was commissioned by Sir Peter Blake after previously competing on another boat that broke some critical components a few years earlier. He was determined that that would not happen again so this boat was built extra strong. Unfortunately, the extra strength meant extra weight so the boat has not been able to win any significant races. It has competed well especially in around the world type races.
We enjoyed the boat and were able to have Patrick, Tracy and Chris swing from the mast in a mesh chair. Patrick was dunked a few times for extra fun.
It was a full day on the boat but we enjoyed the entire experience.
Tomorrow Auckland to catch our flight to Papetee, Tahiti while the kids fly back to the states.

Chris - The sailboat today was a ton of fun with helping to put up and take down the sails, driving the boat, kayaking, hiking up some significant hills to enjoy some gorgeous overlooks, riding out over the ocean on a mesh chair and enjoying our last full day together in New Zealand. We also have enjoyed our last two days here in a two bedroom suite at the Paihia Beach Resort Spa io the Bay of Islands. It has an enormous porch overlooking the beach with two sets of tables and chairs and a huge living room...dining room...kitchen, which has been wonderful for playing cards and hanging out. It's been a perfect location for our last days in New Zealand because we can all be together. A highlight for me isn't the 5 pools, although I sure enjoyed them, but the washer and dryer I have in the suite. Paul and I will get on our container ship cruise on Saturday and it was VERY helpful to get a chance to wash our clothes, not to mention some of the kids clothes as well. Sharing New Zealand with the kids has obviously been the best part of our trip. It's a dream come true to be able to get them all for two weeks and watch them enjoy each other as much as the magical adventures we've had around New Zealand.