Happy birthday wishes...

Before I get on with the wishes, I'd like to apologise to those who check my blog regularly. I'm so sorry that I haven't updated this week... It's the end of the month though and work has just been so busy that I haven't had a spare second to do anything else. It'll calm down a bit next week, so I promise to update properly as soon as I can. I've got lots of new photos, so check back again soon...

My first birthday wish goes out to my dad, who turned 57 on Sunday. This is a bit belated (see how busy I've been - my own dad has to wait!!). I already know that he had great birthday, but I'd like to wish him a fabulous year ahead. As most of you know, my dad has had a bad run with his health and to be honest, for about as long as I can remember, his health has always been a concern to the rest of us. On Sunday morning, we got up early (thanks, Jake) and climbed into bed with my folks. Jake brought gifts through and we had coffee. While we were lying there my dad just kept saying '57! 57! Yes, I made it!!'. So, congratulations on your 57th birthday, we look forward to sharing your 77th with you!! Thanks for everything you do (and have done) for Jake & I - I know we've turned your lives upside down. You are a wonderful father and a fabulous role model for Jake. We are very lucky to have you in our lives. We love you lots xxx

Second - a very happy 60th birthday to Jacques' dad; Jake's Grandpa Hubie!! 60!! What a wonderful milestone! We hope that you, too, have a wonderful year ahead. We love you and are so blessed to have you in our lives. We're looking forward to sharing in the celebrations with you this evening!!

And that's me. Home time. Promise to be back again with news and photos soon!

Lots of love, Sue xxx

What we've been up to...

I know I've been really bad about keeping my blog up-to-date lately, but, to be honest, I just don't seem to find time during my working day to do much else, besides work. And my computer at home has been broken (something about the motherboard - don't ask me), so I haven't been able to use that either. Actually, my home PC's sitting on the floor next to my desk at work, waiting for Simon, our techi at work, to finish repairing. It's been here for something like 4 weeks...

So, it seems the silly season is literally upon us, as life is getting busier by the moment and my poor diary is actually being used for the first time this year. There's dinner club year end dinners, book club picnic lunches, office parties, school parties, Uncle Paul's party (our annual kids Christmas party in aid of charity - photos to follow after the event on 15 Dec for those of you not in the know), it just goes on and on. Do you realise that tomorrow it's only 5 weeks till Christmas?? And 6 weeks till 2009?? Thankfully, I'm nearly through with my Christmas shopping, but there's always a few things that you just have to leave till the last minute. Things you forget. I'm sure there's going to be lots of Christmassy news coming your way from me soon...

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This weekend past was nice, but really busy and I'm still feeling the effects. Think I'm going to have a really early night tonight - I must be getting old. On Saturday we went through to Lourensford wine estate for a local music event, K-Day. The music was really good and the event was really well organised, which was surprising. Except for the parking - it took us nearly an hour to get out at the end; we literally stood still (and we left before the last act) for a full hour. The weather was unbelievably hot though and we were only allowed to put up our sun umbrellas in between acts for a couple of minutes. It was almost unbearable, especially for the kids. We retreated to the shade alongside the stage, which meant not being able to see, but it was SO much more pleasant.

This is the view across the entrance to Lourensford...

The view of the stage from our picnic spot...

The view of the crowds from the safety of the shade. There were 11 000 people there. And take note of that huge blue & yellow climbing thingy in the background for later... There were less people sitting around in the shady area. The kids had fun running around and getting rid of some energy. It was just too much for them to be expected to sit quietly in the baking sun all day long. They had great fun wetting one another with a bottle of water...

And they ate lots of ice-creams. This was Jake's 2nd and he had another later... And after all the ice-creams, Jake tried to join in a soccer game, but the bigger kids didn't want to know his troubles. He was most put out!! Shame, check him trying to fit in. At least he tries. I mean, he went right up to them, without me needing to convince him that he should go and play and trying to get noticed. Most kids would just shy away. My baby's growing up... Remember that big blue and yellow climbing thingy from earlier? Well, this is my "baby" climbing it. Seriously, my nerves would feel a lot better if he'd just concentrate on his hands, instead of looking down at the boys below. It only cost R10.00 for his first two trips up, when I went back with him later, they charged R10.00 for 4 trips!! Bonus, since a day pass would've cost me R60.00 and only included 4 chances to climb. Jake just couldn't get enough, he's fearless... I mean really - look at your hands!! Phew - that's better. Least for your mother's poor nerves. Seriously, I'm already having nightmares about the ginormous jungle gym at his new school...

This is coming down the other side of the climbing net... Ready for another go! I wish I had half his energy... This is Rebecca. She's Jake's 6-year old cousin. Jake & Rebecca have a real love/hate relationship, almost like siblings. They drive one another mad and are forever teasing each other, but they're as thick as theives. They're the two, we're already anticipating, who will be sneaking smokes together behind granny & grandpa's (or worse, the school's) garage. Here, Rebecca's trying to get Jake to do something he doesn't want to do. Look at that strop..

A quick discussion and agreement's reached... And it's all sorted... On Sunday, Jake decided that he wanted me to cut his hair. And he wanted it SHORT. So, I shaved it on a number 3. He told me it wasn't short enough, so I did a number 2 - I wasn't prepared to go any shorter, he already looks like a convict... But he's happy and it made him smile for my camera for a change... Sunday saw Jake celebrating his 4 1/2th birthday. Yip, we're on the downward spiral to his next birthday. When I realised and told him that he was officially 4 and a 1/2, he insisted on getting a "cake" (milk tart), having a candle (didn't have any small ones) and having us all sing happy birthday to him. We also had a braai. I mean really, look how excited he is... That's my sister, Rose... On Monday evening, we were all feeling lazy. The weekend had been busy and I think we all just needed some time out. I was watching something on TV (just quickly) and Jake disappeared off to his bedroom. When I went looking for him 30 mins later, I found him browsing through his books...

Jake's trying his best to read. They learn Letterland (http://www.letterland.co.za/) at school these days and I have the beginners book at home. He loves the stories that go along with each character, so I do read them every now and then. They're sweet and he may as well get familiar with the characters. And don't worry - I'm not one of those parents, who push their kids to be the best at everything. I never will be. I'll only show him if he's interested, as he is in trying to write his name at the moment. My personal belief is that kids are kids for such a short time in their lives, they need to enjoy being able to just play and have fun. Anyway, Jake's just recognised "Sammy Snake" on the page in front of him. Looks like a really sweet scene, doesn't it??

Until you look at mayhem of the bigger picture. It wasn't that bad really, but still - all it takes is 2 minutes for Jake to create a mini war zone in his bedroom... Oh and just for giggles, this is Amber with my dad's hat on...

Sending lots of love to you all, promise to try write more again soon!!

Sue xxx

A new school...

2009, sees Jake starting Pre-Primary School. For those of you not yet in the know, Edgemead has 2 pre-primary schools and it's determined by where you live as to which one your kids get to go to. I've managed to get Jake into the "top" school (top due to it's location, not rating - it's up behind the primary school, at the top of Edgemead), because I own a house directly across the road. It's called Garden Village and it's really nice, with great outdoor facilities for the kids. If I'd put down my current residential address on the applications, he'd be going to the old school down at the bottom, that we all went to. Incidentally, it was there that Jacques and I shared a classroom, when we were just 5 years old...

I've chosen for Jake to follow the 2-year pre-primary programme, as I'd really like to give him a chance to settle into the school and routines, before starting grade 1 in 2011 (can't even begin to believe that I'm already having to think about it!!). All the kids in his class next year are 4, turning 5, so they'll all be the babies and I think it'll do them all good to experience that before moving on to big school. Anyway, we were invited to an orientation at the school on Tuesday afternoon. It was just 45 minutes and they got to see their new classroom, have a walk around the school, checked out the grounds and animals, had a play inside, had a play outside, had a snack and drink on the mat and ended off with a story. It was great for them to meet their new teacher and fellow classmates and for us to meet the other parents. Hopefully it won't all be so intimidating on their first day next year. Jake's new teacher, Mrs du Plesis (aka: Kristy), is great. Her mother is Jake's teacher this year and I've known Kristy since she was about Jake's age. She's 6 years younger then me and it's going to be tough for me to call her by her married name. Weird. Still, she's great with the kids and I know Jake's going to have a good time in her class next year!! It was quite weird to see all the kids together and to know that these are possibly the kids who Jake'll spend the rest of his school life with. Maybe he'll even marry one... Oh, my.

I must admit, I was a little embarassed to whip out my camera, but did steal one or two photos - who cares what the other parents think of you?? Right?

This is one side of the classroom. Behine me was the dress-up (or dolly) corner. On my right, the mat...

Taking a walk around and meeting the other teachers. That's Jake's new teacher-to-be in the pink top at the back. And, please, note my brat climbing and paying absolutely no attention...

See? He even had energy to look at me and my camera and wave...

This was snack time. When Jake's group's plate of chips and biscuits was wiped clean, they headed over to the next group to help them out... There are 3 other kids from Jake's current school going to the new one. Nathan, sitting next to him, is one of his closest friends and I was at school with both his parents (Margaret & Steven Roberts). He's got a brother a year older too and the three boys have heaps of fun together. I pity the teacher...

Randomly thrown in, here are some of my recent flower shots. They're not my flowers, but they're still pretty... I caught Jake helping our dog, Duracell dig a hole in the back garden. We have a large field/nature reserve behind our house and suffer with moles in our lawn (they haven't discovered the veggie patch yet... touch wood). Duracell, hunter that he is, loves digging for moles. He gets me up in the middle of the night so he can go check what's happening in the lawn. Oh, he also likes to catch the occassional field mouse. Gross... And lastly, Jake finally picked his first baby marrow (shitini) and patty pans. It's been a tough job getting him to leave them to grow. We sliced them and cooked them up with onions, mushrooms and garlic (YUM). He loved them!! And considering he never liked marrows or peas before he'd grown them himself, maybe there is some truth in kids enjoying their own home-grown food. You know, reaping the rewards of their hard labour... Errmmmm....

XXX

I wasn't going to...

post today, but I feel I have to. Need to. To my sisters (especially Rosanne, who cries at the drop of a hat): stop reading now...

Today's Jacques' birthday. Or it would've been, should I say. He would've been 31 and I can't help but wonder how the past 4 years would've changed him. Not only as a man and father, but in his basic appearance too. Would he have more grey hair? Would his skin be slowly starting to wrinkle more, as mine is? I wonder how many kids we would've had by now. What our own family would've been like. Where would we be living? Still at Buitenverwachting? I wonder what would've been on his birthday list this year? I know he would've been a wonderful dad and Jake's surely missed out by his absence in our lives. There's a huge part of me that's learnt, through all this, that some decisions just aren't ours to make and that we can't do anything to rewind life. We can only put a smile on our faces each morning and keep moving forward, walking life's path. I have so much to be thankful and grateful for in my life and that's what gets me through each day. And, honestly, I'm looking forward to sharing the next chapter of this adventure with Jake...

But, for today, I'm looking forward to it being tomorrow...

XXX

A week by photo...

Sorry I've been a bit busy this week and I'm heading home now too, so really just a few photos with some short descriptions along the way... I've only been too busy for my blog, by the way, I have been keeping up-to-date with all of your news around the world. Life has been exciting for many...

Jake dressed up for our Halloween party. He'd already ditched the cape. OK, I know it's not really a Batman suit, but I wasn't spending money on it and he thought he looked great...

Imagine this mob knocking on your door??

This was our party, ex kids and a few parents doing the rounds. We had a fabulous braai and the kids all got on really well. It was a stunning evening and we'll definitely be doing it again next year. Just hope the neighbours are better prepared for trick-or-treaters...

My uncle (driving) has been fixing up Noddy's car for the upcoming Uncle Paul's party. It was a real highlight for the kids and he did numerous laps around the block. Surely that's overloaded...

Saturday we went to the aquarium, with our friends, Lizelle & Lara-Lyn who came down to Cape Town for the weekend - it was great to catch up with them again. There's a new section at the aquarium, in celebration of this being the year of the frog. It's super and the kids had ball. This was the puppet show stand...

Every thing's super-sized, it's really quite enchanting...

And they have real live frogs too. This is a giant bullfrog - it was HUGE...

Here's Lara-Lyn trying to snuggle up to Jake. He's a bit anti-girls at the moment (YAY!) and was most put out that she wanted to "love" him...

Much happier to smile sitting next to her, without a cuddle...

This one's here just cos I think it's cute...

My mom bought some Gerber daisies. I love them and these ones are especially pretty...

And I have a nice lens...

On Wednesday evening, Jake's great grandfather came for dinner. Jake was very excited to have him around and we used various bits out of his garden, so he was really proud. We made spinach and mushrooms; potatoes and herbs. The table was decorated with lavender from the garden. Jake was pretty tired and reasonably uncooperative as far as photos went...

Until I told him that he wasn't getting dessert...

His garden's coming on really well, by the way. This is his new black berry bush. He just can't wait for the berries to be ripe enough to pick. He's loving everything at the moment and we still spend a lot of time working in it. It's coming along really well, so rewarding. We dug up potatoes (the ones we ate on Wednesday night) and his peas have been a real hit (thanks Caz). He took some to school the other day, to show the kids that peas don't grow in a freezer bag and got to show them all during circle time - a real treat for him. He's also enjoying strawberries and has been selling herbs to my mom. Which reminds me, I still owe him for the spinach from Wednesday. He's also growing seedlings to sell (all his ideas), so he's getting a little business going. I guess it's good for him to learn and understand that he can actually profit from his hard work. Hopefully whatever money he makes, he'll use to buy new seeds/seedlings for next year!! Sunflower seedlings...

That's all - on my way home (9 minutes late). Hope you all have a good weekend!!

Lots of love,

Sue xxx