COOL FUN: Taydin Hill, 20 months, cools off with a splash in the Christchurch Gardens pool on Boxing Day.

Lucas Corcoran, 2, trudges up a sand dune at Oreti Beach, Invercargill.

FRIENDLY: Keo Bouche gets a peck on the cheeck from a friendly cow but warns there are limits to the friendship.

WET AND WILD: Nico Martin and Nathan King cross tracks at the Hokitika River mouth.

WHITEOUT: Mackenzie Norton, 10, and Minty awake to a snowy New Year's Eve at Three Tarn Pass.

HOLD ON TIGHT: Dominic, Kate and Sam hold on for the seabiscuit ride of a lifetime at Kaiteriteri.

BLOW-DRIED: Francesca, Stella and Margaux Hlavac cross Cook Strait, heading back to the Mainland after a North Island holiday.

PURRFECT: Ali enjoys a relaxing cup of tea after a long summer afternoon.

GOT YA: Laylah, 8, gets a faceful.

LONESOME: Nick McGuigan is a lone soul as he takes a dip at Tasman Bay, Motueka.

EYES WIDE SHUT: Simon Anderson carries out a blind tasting of the Mahau Sound water.

BODY BUILDING: Jack pushes the boat out, keeping fit on his holiday at Ligar Bay, Golden Bay.

SAFE: Bruce McLachlan, of Wellington, finds peace and quiet in the children's playpen in Kaiteriteri.

RUB-A-DUB-DUB: Julian Sanderson and Sandra Upston have given up worrying about the West Coast rain, which flooded the creek enough to sail away in a bathtub.

LOOK, I'M FLYING: Jack Williams, 8 months, takes a no-hands approach to trampolining on Boxing Day in Christchurch.

BRAVO: Sam throws a winning shot in a boules match at Paradise Beach.

RACE YOU: Hugh and Lexie Ironside race to the cooling waters at Rabbit Island near Nelson.

TAKING A DIP: Steven and Sophie Dunn at Kaiteriteri Beach.

SPLISH SPLASH: Sophie Cowens, 2, of Rangiora, splashes in a pool of runoff water from a sprinkler.

MUD BROTHERS: James, left, and Thomas Duggan, at Okains Bay.

JUST THE SPOT: Vicki O'Connor finds a relaxing spot with a view.

GOING NOWHERE: Joe Wilson, with passenger Willie, is going nowhere fast at Cable Bay, Nelson.

PEGGED: Hamish MacKay, 12, hangs around at Cooks Beach, Coromandel.

MAKING TRACKS: Holidaymakers enjoy an early-morning walk at Goat Bay in the Abel Tasman.

SPLASHDOWN: Clementina de Ruiter jumps over rock pools at 14 Mile Beach at sunset.

LEARNING PATIENCE: Four-year-old Tom Shaw fishing in te Fraser River near Alexandra in Central Otago.

COOLING OFF: LilidhRuth McDonald loved the water slide at her grandfather's property in Christchurch on Christmas Day.

HOT STUFF: Some overseas tourists enjoy the warmth of a Christmas Down Under at Gillespies Beach, South Westland.

NOT ON MY PATCH: Jayme decides Sumner Beach is no place for seagulls while he is visiting.

CAT NAP: Cali soaks up the summer sun in Nelson.

CAVE MEN: Grandpa Rob and Connot cool off in the Waipara Gorge on New Year's Day.

STARS: At the Twelve Apostles in Port Campbell National Park, Victoria, Australia are Anna Lee Anda, JoJo Ting and Laetitia Thullier.

FERN FRIENDS: Niamh and Kayla Webb are tickled by the fronds at Peel Forest.

HOLD ON TIGHT: Lewis Rooney, 4, takes a leap of faith while camping at Omarama.

BEACHED: Nancy Sloane finds a tranquil spot in Abel Tasman National Park.

WET AND WILD: Charlotte Helms, 8, cools off in the sprinkler.

ALL GO: Rachael Phipps enjoys a splash in her own pool in the Ashley River.

OUT TO IT: Rachael Phipps snoozes in the sun at Le Bons Bay on New Year's Day.

HAVING A GO: Great-great nana, 94, gets stuck in as the family play backyard cricket on Christmas day. Using a big ball so she could see it and a runner she scored 17 runs before retiring.

OPEN WIDE: Leo Crawshaw feeds a donkey at Takaka.

CHOOK, CHOOK: Urban chick Harper Brown, 3, meets a rural rooster Russel Crow while on holiday in Hawkes Bay.

SITTING PRETTY: The Kowhai River mouth, south of Kaikoura, proves just the right spot for a picnic. NOTE: This photo has been cropped to fit our gallery. To see the full photo, please see a copy of The Press.

SOLITUDE: Fred Day fishes in peace and quiet at Hakatere, near the mouth of the Ashburton River.

MUDLARK: Tobias McKee, 20 months, loves the feeling of mud squishing between his toes in the Mackenzie Country.

CLEAR AS MUD: Thomas Ludemann of Darfield snorkels in a puddle at Lake Lyndon.

IN THE COOLER: Morgan Liliana Thomas cools off in the ice bucket.

MERMAIDS: Tracy and Jayde photograph themselves underwater.

SPOOKY: Tony, Emily, Nicole, Jono, Steve and Tori have fun making 2010 moon shadows during a camping holiday.

FASTER GRANDDAD: David Rogers tows Kimberly, Jemma and Caitlyn Dickson at Sumner Beach on New Year's Day.

ALL THE RAGE: Every girl loves to accessorise and Tanner Batram looks fab.

POP GOES THE ...: Otis Agnew enjoys his new bubble-making machine in Nelson.

SMILE: Molly Clark, of Lincoln, tries out her new camera on Christmas morning.

SLIM PICKINGS: It's bread and water for little Lucie.

SHOOTING THE BREEZE: Puddling about on the Avon yesterday.

BOYS WILL BE BOYS: Tom Smith, left, and Jackson Wills, both 6, after a mud fight in the sandpit.

WORKING THE WAVES: Tabitha Brown tries out the family's new kayak, Granddad's present, at Tahunanui Beach, Nelson.

BLOWING BUBBLES: Leah Dowling, from Brisbane, has fun in the tub at her grandparents' house in Christchurch on Christmas Day.

UP, UP AND AWAY: Liam Kelly, 8, flies his new glider at Akaroa on New Year's Day.

WAY TO GO: A good book is as relaxing as a dip in the surf at Waikuku Beach.

PROTECTED: Nina Iseli-Adams, 3, has remembered her hat and shoes as she negotiates the shallows of the Thomas River at Castle Hill.

BALANCING ACT: The photographer's wife, Sharne Clarke, does and handstand among the lupins near Lake Alexandrina.

FRAMED: Jahan Pitcorn and a sea kayak guide stroll through Cathedral Cove on a stunningly warm Coromandel summer's day.

MORE THE MERRIER: Nana Dale takes a breather in the hammock on Christmas Day with her grandchildren, Isabella, Jake and Alex.

HOUSE JACK BUILT: Jack and Charlie Stewart camp in their backyard.

HOT BRIDE: Newlywed Amanda Jennings enjoys a cream freeze during the heat at Sumner Beach.

PEEK-A-BOO: Taylor Brown, 9 months, enjoys her first camping trip at Hanmer Springs.

HOSED OFF: Marko Balvan cools down under the sprinkler in Christchurch.

STONE ME: Keira McKaskell, 9, enjoys New Year's Day at Birdlings Flat.

YEE-HA: Morgan Carter, 5, and Tim Murdoch, 15, hurtle along in a sea biscuit in Queen Charlotte Sound.

BIG SPLASH: Shane Faulkner, left, helps his son Grayson Faulkner gather speed on his new water slide.

SKY ON FIRE: A glorious sky rings in the New Year in Hanmer.

BATHING BEAUTIES: Crystal, Hayden and Amy Cowens, all 11, enjoy a soak in the spa in Amberley.

A DOG'S LIFE: Boris, a 13-month-old Siberian husky, grins for the camera.

TAKING A BREATHER: Graeme Palmer found that being Santa is hot work and needed to cool off in the pond at the Miyazu Japanese Gardens in Nelson.

ON A MISSION: Kate and Lucie Vanderpyl pan for gold in the West Coast river.

SUMNERSAULTS: Gerard and Alex Simpson watch after launching Henry Graham into the air at Sumner Beach.

DOUBLE THE FUN: Crystal, left, and Amy Cowens, both 11, enjoy snorkelling at the Waipara River.

ALL IN THE FAMILY: Kelvin Burke enjoys his turn on the water slide on Boxing Day.

NATURE'S GARDEN: Rosa Dunnlogan enjoys the lupins at Klondyke.

JUMP FOR JOY: David Marcijasz, 11, shows his delight at reaching the highest point on the Otago Central Rail Trail.

ENDLESS SANDPIT: Monty Williams relaxes at Waimairi Beach.

RIVER STUDY: Shikha Thakali on a school tramping trip last month.

CHECK THIS OUT: Hannah and Alex Murdoch have fun after a day's tramping.

OTAHUNA TRAIL: Horse trekking on the Port Hills, Christchurch.

PERFECT FIT: Ted Pearson tests his new Christmas scuba gear over breakfast while his wife, Leneke, checks the fit.

WHERE IS IT?: 18-month-old Harrison Gregg, the photographer's grandson cools off on Christmas Day.

BETWEEN OVERS: Alex Bocock finds a good use for the cricket stumps.

TIRING WALK: Meg Rowlands relaxes on the Humpridge Track.

LUXURY: Three abyssinian cats have a lounger each to enjoy the sun.

LUNCH IS READY: The photographer, from Granity, West Coast, writes: "We have many frogs in our pond but this is the first time we have seen one IN a water lily!".

BOMBS AWAY: Di, Rose and John aim to make a big splash a North Beach, on Christmas Day.

JUMP FOR JOY: Ken Pagey ponders about being young again as he watches granddaughter Molly Parker playing dare-devil at North Beach on Boxing Day.

DOWN THE GULLET: While travelling home to Blenheim on Christmas Day Keith and Pauline Jackson stopped to have Christmas dinner. In true Christmas spirit they shared the leftovers with seagulls.

SLAPDASH: Molly Donkin, 4, has a word to say to her Aunty Donna about how to apply sunscreen under the Napier sun.