As parents we don’t get much time for, or to, ourselves. It’s so easy to get caught up in our children and all their needs and wants; we love doing it ….. but it is still so important that we make time for ourselves and look after our own needs and wants.

I know for me, when my children were younger (<5), I almost felt like I didn’t know who I was anymore. What did I like to do in my free time? ….. remember that – free time 😜. It was quite hard to start making time for myself again, to not miss the kids the whole time and then to not feel guilty when I didn’t miss them.

Over the years I have moved on to really cherishing that precious me time and feeling like a happier healthier me and mother for my kids because of it …. So girls’ trips on! My last trip away was in Canterbury; we only had 3 days so the St James Walkway in Lewis Pass is where we ended up (this is part of the Te Araroa Trail and the whole walkway can be done over 5 days).

We walked in to stay the first night at Boyle Flat Hut, then went for a quick walk up to Rokeby Hut the next day and then cruised back to stay at Magdalen Hut before heading back out 👍 We were super lucky with the weather and got 3 amazing clear days, all the main river crossings were bridged, the track was awesomely maintained and all the huts had fireplaces – shot DOC!

Below is a short video of our stunning winter walk.

Nga mihi, Anita 🥜✌️