Hi Abbigail,

Enjoy these family photos from my early 2025 visit to Katikati, New Zealand, where your Grandpa Francis lives. I sent these to you in printed form, but they didn't make it. So here you go!

 

Your dad playing the role of Santa on New Year's Eve 2024. Note the "Christmas Chimney" in Grandpa Francis's living room.

 

Grandpa Francis and Aunty Helen about to enjoy plates of potato-and-green-bean fritters for breakfast! These fritters are one of Francis's specialties. He cooks a mean batch of scrambled eggs, too...

Grandpa Francis and Aunty Helen near a scenic waterfall in the area of Lake Rotorua on a sunny day in early January 2025.

 

 Grandpa Francis with a moose mat at lunchtime.

 

 Grandpa Francis and Aunty Helen strike an arty pose for the master photographer (me!) in Taupo, New Zealand.

 

 A creepy weta has found its way into my bedroom from the garden! Weta are large native insects that can bite, but they're not usually aggressive. This one is a female with a long ovipositor sticking out of her rear end.

 

 Your dad in his new rental home in Nelson. Flatmates and cats not pictured. August 2025.

 

Love, Dad