This week we...

• Travelled up to PMB to collect our new Defy 13kg washing machine (bliss) thanks to Gumtree (SA's fledgling version of Craiglist), then took the kids to get Micky D's (Mac Donalds) & chased the sun till it set at Midmar dam, found a gorgeous spot on a grassy hill overlooking the dam & munched our way through the happy meals.  What a happy time.
• got the girls to school super early every day (the boys were tardy thanks to me) much to Sophie's relief and they got to travel in style with their Papa (my dad).
• planned Phoebe's 9th Birthday party, set for Friday 4th June @ our place.  We decided on the games & menu for the afternoon.  And sent the invites out.  Very sweet.
• This week I coaxed Cindy Picolo to come over to my place Tuesday morning & paint with me - and it was WONDERFUL.  We discovered some great new colours & transformed our paintings from nay to YAY in 2 hours while we chatted and laughed. 
• got a big box of wooden blocks...and I painted some of them & then sold them yesterday(my good old 'HOME' & 'LOVE' blocks).

• baby-sat baby Rose for Bronwyn (she turned 28 on the 28th!).  I guess the girls really did all the baby sitting - Rose loves the kids and gets carried around the whole time.  I think she forgets about using her  legs when she comes here:)
• went birthday shopping for Phoebe...she has expressed a wish to accumulate clothing this year.
• (Brod & I) went on an impromptu date Wednesday night to the Pavillion, Brod had an appointment, so my mom watched the kids for us & I went with him.  We went to a movie (1/2 price Wednesday) and watched Iron Man 2 (& enjoyed it) - I always enjoy movies these days since I hardly pay anything for them:)
• worked, worked, worked!  In the office & in the house
• enjoyed the company of Simon Cooper (an ex mission companion of Brod's from JHB Mission).  He has come out with his family from the UK this week - so his brother could run the Comrades marathon today.  Lots of laughter & memories.  It's been great. 

My latest find

Noah was in Speech with Carmen Robbertse the other day, Jonah & Ethan were messing up the waiting room while I sat and paged through one of the mags. (might i quickly mention that Carmen only has the latest & best magazine's in her waiting room - so I tend to get my magazine fix there) and I came across the latest (of course) Elle Decoration Mag.  Wow.  Gorgeous local talent!  I stumbled across Heather Moore and was hooked.  I have since become an avid Skinny Laminx follower and am in awe of her talent.

And, hooray!!!, she's on Etsy - the first SA designer I have found and ships from Cape Town.  And I am thrilled :)  And I'm still smiling, and eating some Traditional Vanilla & Strawberry marshmallows from Woolies dusted in icing sugar. 

I went to the local art shop yesterday - I am determined to start my drawing again, even got 2 small canvases (for R10 each!) and after wondering around in a daze (I often do that when I'm buying art supplies - never know what I'm supposed to really get & like to stick to a tiny budget...so I walk away from most of the stuff) I walked away with my little brown paper bag, and inside I had a drawing pad, coloured pencils & my 2 little canvases.  And I felt just grand.  And in my euphoric state I went to 2 local art galleries to get quotes on framing for one of my completed drawings & almost fainted when they gave me the price.  I think I'll have to crop the picture & drastically reduce the size of the frame and then pay them off in monthly installments :) Ho hum, what a conundrum. 

Life is good. And it's the weekend!

xx

Enchanting Africa

Yesterday I was up at 2am...kids.  And due to a restless mind, started the washing, did accounts and had a look at all my current favourite blogs.  Shawni's blog gives me lots of inspiration at the moment.  I then proceeded to make the family breakfast - egg, bacon, pancakes, rooibos. 

Once the kids were off to school with our most favourite bus driver Brod, I got a call from Cindy to invite me out for a Mug & Bean breakfast.  I do love a morning out(of course all I had space for was a muffin & tea & my eyes were pretty heavy by then & I couldn't speak very clearly from exhaustion) - and really enjoyed the visit with Cindy & Nadine. 

Nadine has started her own Travel & Tours company called " Enchanting Africa". She's been in the industry for all the years I've know her & has finally decided to dig for diamonds in her own back yard, and is doing so well already.  I love being around such motivated and exciting people - it really inspires me!  Cindy and I begin our first art class next Tuesday at my place - she has the knowledge & talent and I have the desire - so I'm hoping for some special creations to come out of those few hours every week. 

I'll keep you posted!

The kids are all well - P & S are counting down the days till school holidays with glee.  They've each made a count down worm & are thrilled to cross off the days.  Swimming again today - they have a great instructor who enjoys their funny ways.  N & J are still puzzling along nicely - they sit together in their PJ's each morning during breakfast working on the same puzzle.  Very sweet.  Brod is busy with work & busy with play & looking happy.  There's always time for a laugh and music - which we have blasting in the office while he works on portfolios.   Life is stressful & filled with obligations, but we're working hard & doing our best.

xxx

The Blue room

Finally - I get the chance to post pics of the blue room. It's intended to inspire creativity in children (and parents).  That's a baby born dummy in Jo's mouth by the way  - not the real thing. 

It's the weekend, love weekends.  Brod has taken Sophie and Jo to see the horses doing dressage around the corner from us at Summerfeld...they start practises really early.  Noah has his cousin Liam over, it's 07h21 and they've been up since 5am playing Playstation (went to bed at 10pm last night, busy with games)...I would say they are experiencing some 'addictive' tendancies??!!  I'm giving them one more hour.

Phoebe is at Ben Wiblin's place - he had a 10th birthday sleepover last night and invited his Valiant class from church.  So cute!  They were having such fun when I dropped her off last night - 3 girls outnumbered by lots of boys.

Tom Ginger is settling in well.  Now that we have established he IS a Tom, we are getting on very well.  The kids are loving him (until the claws come out and they get attacked while walking past their beds).  I am enjoying the love and adoration that he bestows on me.  We call him Meow-Meow.  Pets are great.

In all things the Supreme excellence is SIMPLICITY

I enjoy a simple life.  When demands get too much from church, work, home, school, social commitments - I like to revert to simple.  These little ones, all squashed up in my bed - remind me often about what's important in life, and what brings me joy.  Simple pleasures. 

We are all well thank you.  I am avoiding a head cold by keeping busy, the girls are busy with school & sweet social lives, that mostly include cousins.  The boys have been puzzling alot - as in making puzzles, and sitting quietly; this is a bit shocking for me, however very good to see that the Montessori schooling is having an effect.  My kids usually like to use the puzzle pieces as pretend food when playing cooking games. Small miracles.  Brod is busy with saving peoples finances - what a star, and he has come across an artist Heather Brown who lives in Hawaii and paints naiive art of the ocean (which he is passionate about but does not get to see very often these days...we keep moving further inland) and has decided he is going to become an artist now.  He wants more colour in the house - we have painted our lounge wall blue (that was my idea) and were given the most divine chair by a friend, that makes me very happy(the chair, and the friend of course)...so the lounge has more sparkle now.

I will post a picture of the lounge so you can see what I mean about having more colour - the pic is on Brod's phone - since I dropped the camera (I drop stuff ALL the time) and it is now broken - and Brod is out.

Off to clean the house.
x

It's Pat

Has anyone else watched this show?  I remember watching it years ago, when Brod & I were dating.  We hired the video (that's how old it was).  Throughout the whole show you can't figure out if Pat's a guy or girl.  I feel the same about this kitten. 

I went to visit Shannon yesterday, and she has a cat.  Neither of us have had a cat before.  Anyway, I say to Shannon - My Trixie was a Tom.  She says - My Jasper was a Jasmine.  So I turned Jasper over - and saw that perhaps I got it wrong.  Perhaps Trixie IS a Tom after all. Their 'bits' look pretty similar.  My kids are getting pretty confused by all this as well. How do I break the news to Phoebe?  She was so thrilled to have a Trixie.  Nuts.

SA Pride?

The closer we get to 2010 - the more the flag flies in this country.  You can currently get your side mirrors on your car specially stickered with the SA flag, T-shirts everywhere that say "I love SA", bags, caps, in fact, Brod bought home a milk tart the other night - with the flag stencilled on with cinnamon. 

This particular flag that features in the photo is found in the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durbs.  It is made entirely of tiny glass beads.  And so it gets me excited thinking...is this the begining of some SA pride?  I'm holding thumbs, crossing fingers, blowing eye lashes, holding my breath - and hoping.  Good old South Africa.

P.S

Hey Claire, I had a smile when I saw the photo's of the cake you made for us for the wedding - we had so many laughs together in YSA - good times.  Thanks for the huge chunk of memories I have of us, and the funny things we experienced together...the almost drowning episode in the Bluff, making the YSA movie, all the YSA activities, Beehive aftercare, trampoline jumping, heartbreaks, temple trips, Setton babysitting - and lots & lots of laughter.  Good times! And thanks for always posting comments on my Blog - since no one else ever does! Hint hint people.  xxx

Meandering down memory lane

Yesterday was great fun - we celebrated with breakfast on the deck with my folks...good quantities of delicious food & great company.  And lots of reminiscing!  We laughed about so many things that took place 11 years ago, and then when my parents were at their storeroom going through my grans old photo's - they came across photographic evidence of all the things we'd been laughing about.  Pictures of our car, that some of the YSA had decorated for us (which Brod promptly insisted that they wash off before we left the chapel), me, gripping my eye after I'd been rose petal attacked, my dad signing the consent form in the parking lot.  So many funny shots.

It's good remembering where we've come from, to appreciate even more where we are now. 

Lizzie came over to watch the kids for us, and off we went to enjoy some Brod & Melissa time - and ended up at the movies watching Date Night...I laughed so hard I choked on my mint & ended up having a coughing fit.  It's great to see that other couples experience the insane things that we do - the most ludicrous arguments and crazy moments with wild children.  It's like being a part of a great support group - giving us the stamina to endure!  And it eases my aching nerves. 

Time to prepare for another installment of church @ 10am.  Cheerio.