Alas, three of the four dresses have already been returned - they were all from Zara, and the manager kept asking me if there was something wrong with them! I wore your blue sparkley throw over my dress at the Christmas party - compliments a plenty!!

Thank goodness you are not doing bungy jumps...that is a relief! Hope the Christmas phone saga gets sorted, and that you are feeling better!

Love you, happy driving x

Hi everyone! We are in Wanaka at the moment, and are about the hit the road again. We've tried to put some photos up, but the computers here don't like it, so we'll try again in the next town. Great to read all the messages. Niamh, I take it the other 4 of those 5 dresses bought are to start replenishing my wardrobe stocks?? Annette, great to hear from you, it's a shame we're missing seeing John and Tina, I'm sure they'll have a ball. Maddy, you can just email me via this - see "contact" above - easy. Loving your conversational spanish - congratulations. We have indeed seen hobbits, and we've both posed in photos as Golem, so all is going swimmingly. A warm welcome to Fee bops, and NO we're not doing bungys. we watched some people doing them, and poor James nearly threw up on the spot! Thanks for that though Fee! And thanks for the heads up on hometime - we'll start preparing now! Give our love to the bearded one. Good to hear from you Bon and Andrew - hope the santa list is getting longer (!). And Katy, I'll definately have a visit to you on the cards, once I'm home. Looking forward to it already.

Have to go - 2mins left of internet. Love to you all. xxx

Rois - please tell me Fee is joking...you aren't doing a bungy jump are you???

Feeling very tired today - Christmas work party last night - on a Tuesday!! I cannot believe that I have 3 more working days of this week! My new dress went down well (ended up buying 5 'maybes' in a panic on Monday, have 4 to leave back!)

That's all folks, N x

Hello Roisin and James

I intended sending you a message a long time ago but I didn't get around to it! We had a wonderful weekend with your Mum and Dad in Nuneaton, we really enjoyed it. Hopefully we'll see you there next time! I can't believe your year is nearly up but you seem to have a had a great time judging from all your photographs and messages. I'm sure you are looking forward to seeing Niamh and Ed now in New York. Christmas will certainly be different for you this year but its a great experience for you. It's a pity you aren't in Australia for Christmas as John and his girlfriend Tina are spending Christmas with Tina's sister in Brisbane and then spending a few weeks travelling around.

Here's wishing you both a very happy Christmas and all the best for 2009. Granny will be in touch soon. She is patiently waiting to get up here to send you a message. She was delighted to get your postcard from Alice Springs last week.

Take Care of yourselves.

All the best

Annette

I also found out the devastating Terry news from these pages. What a blow! Looks like that's the decisive factor. Totally changing my flight til after the eurovision now. Watched Britney: For The Record at the weekend and found it very depressing. I think we saw her during the golden era! Spanish is coming on. Would officially put it on a form as "conversational" now so that's something. If the conversation is about drug use and abuse and I don't have to do much talking that is....quite specialised yes. I am also ATTEMPTING to teach a boy to READ. In Spanish. All with home made resources. I wish I really could tell you about what it's like where I work but I can't quite get my head round it myself. Suffice to say quite a swingvote from that to Britney. Let's not talk about poverty, let's talk about american pop starlets. Ok. What is the winning email address since the Rois43 bit the dust?! xxxxxxxxxx have you seen any hobbits yet? Are you both going to do a skydive? you are fans of Flight of the Concords arent you? (NZ questions exhausted)

Hi guys. Look what happened. I found your bloggy thingy after spending months and months and months as your bff and never once checking it out! It's fab... Who says fab? Great to hear how you're getting on and even better to see photos of my good self in happier times when i hung around with you guys. Sniff sniff. If you're ever thinking of coming home - don't. Think of the time when you were most depressed Rois and then add this to the time when you, James, were most depressed and then add...you see where i'm going with this. It was absolutely class to see all of our friends and family when we got home but we completely forgot that none of our friends actually live in Derry anymore and therefore since we have been home we have seen them a grand total of once. Also the only question that people ask is "What are you going to do now?" and when you don't have an answer it gets pretty annoying. But other than that it's great to be back in Derry.

How are your travels around good old NZ going? I hope Jedi is doing you well. Have you both done your bungy jump yet? I am extremely jealous that you're there. Isn't it beautiful? Where has been your favourite place so far?

We'll be getting our camera back soon from Greg and Margy who are in Derry at the mo and will be putting up the rest of our NZ photos so that you can have a gander at them on bebo. You'll find them under New Zealand 6, New Zealand 7, New Zealand 8...Get some more photies up yourselves. I'm hooked now that i've found this blog yoke!

Will let you both know how plans go for the big partay in March. Until then keep it real kids.

Love Feebops xx

I started watching the football and thought of ye!

Andrew has just decided to sabotage the 'sum' thing on this board!

PS

I loved the photos of the last few days in Melbourne. But imagine me hearing that Terry has retired from you in New Zealand! I always read the most recent message first hence I read your reaction and then the news!

DId you know that Irish sausages, bacon and ham have all been taken out of circulation. the whole world is going mad about it hear so I thought you could spread the gloom in NZ! It appears some dioxins got into the animal food stuff and Christmas might be minus the ham!!!

Andrew is busy writing his santa letter. At times its a lovely experience and then we get into 'no you cant ask for that mode!' Anyway he is really excited about the whole thing. We have a skating rink here for Christmas and Claire is bringing her boys and andrew to that. hopefully I can encourage them form the sidelines!

The idea of travelling New Zealand in a camper van sounds brilliant. I envy ye! if you get to Dunedin have a look at the university there. a friend of mine worked there and loved it.

Hi to smiley James. Is it something to do with being so far away from Watford?!!

Love Bon and ANdrew PS it doesnt allow you to post the message until you get the sum right!!!!!!

JAMES IN SMILING IN PHOTO SHOCKER - I am gobsmacked, amazed, bamboozled, as Adidas says Impossible is Nothing!! I agree with Katy, you should do it more often. My new camera has a 'smile catcher' function - I will get one in NYC!

Brian, thank you for the heads up about the states.

Fairly quiet weekend for us, saw M&D off to their posh do on Saturday, and then met them for lunch on Sunday, was lovely. I got some pics for you of them in their finery, I'll email them once I have loaded them on to the computer.

Work Christmas party tomorrow - thought it was a come as you are night, but found out all the girls are getting the glitter out, so doing emergency shopping after work tonight! (good job I work on Oxford St!!)

No other news with me, hope NZ is treating you well. I enjoyed looking at the photos with all the familar faces.

Lots of love x x x

Hello you two, hope you're well. I'm enjoying a very much needed bank holiday here in Spain after spending the weekend in Barcelona, seeing Brad was wonderful, he's very well and seems to be having a brilliant time in Barcelona.

Love the photos - James on the picture at the hostel where you didn't pay I could have so guessed exactly what had happened by looking at your face without knowing already! This is mainly due to a similar expression appearing when you got free sangria at Las Iguanas! Also, the photo of you smiling is lovely..you should do it more often!

Trying to put off lesson planning rather succesfully at the mo...will have to get on with it soon though....as is life. Miss you both as always, I actually got quite emotional for you when it got to the "bye australia" part - brough back memories of leaving Valencia after year abroad...but here I am again so it's all good. Hopefully you'll get chance to return to Melbourne one day. xxxx

I am quite happy today despite our 3-2 defeat at Birmingham (Priskin and Jenkins) at the weekend, why am I happy?.... well no -one has resigned or been sacked in the last 96 hours.. not even the kit man or the tea lady!!!

I didn't see it but there was a story in Friday's Sun about Buck thinking of resigning due to chaos on the board and having to possibly sell three players in January.... O'Toole Stoke/Newcastle, Tommy Smith Stoke/Reading and Jay DeMerit to Wolves?

The Watford players use the gym that I belong to and I saw and spoke with Jay DeMerit on Friday the groin injury he sustained in the Spurs game he said would keep him out for 1 - 2 weeks which is bad new because we badly need(Ward has gone back to Wolves now) him for this massive week ahead..... two home games against teams just above us Norwich on Wednesday and Coventry on Saturday.

Mind How You Go.

Hi Both - yet another message from me!

Just wanted to let you know we found a NZ address and I've mailed it to you tonight.

Not sure if it will effect you guys - and message for Niamh as well - just read that if you are travelling to the States after 12th Jan 09, you need to apply for the visa waiver on-line at least three days before you travel. On-line is the only way it can be done after that date - just done ours on the ESTA website.

Must just mention a story that's been running for a few days about an MP who's been using a mole in one of the Government Depts to get info. In one of the papers the other day, it was suggested that the MP might have been 'grooming the mole'..................!!

Take care.

PS Mum won the teachers' prize for best fancy dress.......photo to follow (they went mad - the prize was a bottle of wine, which means they know teachers well I suppose).