A Snowy Sunday Morning

Yes I know... I have once again been remiss in my blogging duties.  I have no real excuse other than I'm back in the full swing of being a student and my days are once again filled with studying and sitting in lectures.  But for the first time this winter Dunedin is getting a "winter storm".  And by winter storm I mean there so far is a light dusting with the prediction of a whole inch... or two.  It's very common for the mountains surrounding the city to see frosty white mornings, but since Dunedin is nestled so close to the sea it usually escapes any real accumulation.  But, when it does... not unlike my home (Alabama)... the whole world shuts down.  So, here I sit... pretending to study, watching the streets turn white..

The best part of days like this are the awesome things going on in my kitchen!  I mean what else is there to do when your stuck at home besides seeing if you can turn that Freshman 10 into the Freshman 15 (if you don't know what this is that means then you've never experienced it and thus I might like you a little less).  My first experience with the Freshman 10 (being when I was 18) was due to junk food and late nights.  This time around would be due to this....

And this is JUST the kabobs!!  My meals are filled with the most amazing creations made by Mark.  You like how I blame him for my TOTAL lack of self control!?!  This would be my participation in today's meal....

Eagerly waiting with a big smile on my face!

This past Friday night Mark went to the first pre-season blowout rugby game for the "All Blacks".  They are the professional rugby team for New Zealand, and they just decimated Fiji!  I unfortunately didn't get to go to this "guys night out", but luckily the season has just begun with the World Cup right around the corner!!

I still love going to the year round farmer's market down at the train station every Saturday morning.  It's not even that we buy tons of stuff, but the market is filled with ready to eat hot food, drink, music...

... and Lions!

What I hate is that I missed capturing this little girl when she was eating a lamb kabob!!  It was the most civilized partaking of lamb I've ever witnessed by a lion.  So funny!

This weekend also marks the beginning of a week long chocolate festival sponsored by Cadbury!  Seriously... a WEEK of a chocolate covered city.  There is every kind of event you could imagine... but, for today it was visiting the chocolate house... with chocolate covered statues (yes they are real people)....

... with a chocolate yard....

... and treats in all the trees!

Ok it might be a Freshman 20 now!

These two ladies were in the middle of carving a block of chocolate into some famous rugby player's head.  I didn't stick around for the whole thing feeling tortured by the smell of chocolate EVERYWHERE!!

So there's our weekend.  Chocolate and snow... in July... I might be in the twilight zone!  Miss you all.  XOXO