The end of a chapter...

 Last Wednesday was Jake's last cub pack meeting.  I blogged about all of Jake's achievements recently - he's really been an amazing cub.  As the first boy in his group EVER to get each and every badge, he's learnt so much and grown up so much since he started when he was 7.

Corky and Bi were spending the night with my mom and dad, so we popped in for a quick bite to eat before going to cubs.  They wanted in on the photo action...

 Salute!  Jake has earned 57 badges, as well as all his advancement badges - another 12!!

 Jake with Pip and Duracell...

 Corky decided that he wanted to go with Jake to cubs...

 Jake seems to have become physically too big for cubs - he's much bigger than the other boys and girls now...

 Introducing Corky to one of the leaders (he's a scout that helps out at cubs)...

 Playing games - Jake and Corky are together in the middle...

 I think that Jake is going to miss the silly games and fun that they have at cubs.  Scouts is much more serious and they do proper scout things (don't ask me what, I have no idea)...

   Indoor games.  Funny story - both Jake's dad and I did cubs and brownies in this same hall.  It was also my pre-school classroom one year and my mom was involved with friends in the fundraising to get it built...

 Nini and Pa brought Bi down to see Jake's leaving ceremony...

  Jake being awarded his last cub badges...

 Jake taking the flag down for the last time as a cub.  We were mid-power failure, so my photos are not wonderful...

  One of the other boys, Luke, was also moving up to scouts with Jake.  They paid a lovely tribute to both boys and I cried the whole way through it.  What is wrong with me...

 Each boy walked around the pack to shake hands in farewell with each of the remaining cubs...

 Corky was a little embarrassed to shake hands and Jake wasn't quite sure what to do - I mean, it wasn't like he was never seeing Corky again...

 Saying farewell to his six...

 And waiting for Luke to finish his farewells...

 Jake and Luke saluting the pack...

 And the pack all saluting their final goodbyes... sob, sob, sob...

 Some of the scouts were there too - they created a step with a stick to symbolise the boys leaving cubs and stepping into scouts.  Jake and Luke were then introduced to all the scouts and welcomed into their new family...

 And now Jake looks so little again as we prepare for the next chapter in his scouting journey...

 Before the cubs were dismissed, the scouts leave the hall with Jake and Luke.  Back to the beginning...

Because it was Jake's birthday, I had baked for the boys, not registering that the scouts would be there too.  They were THRILLED with the home made treats and have asked Jake to bring more as often as possible.  Jake's been to about 4 scout meetings already (prior to leaving cubs) and will be invested shortly.  He is already learning lots of new things and loving every moment.  There is a lot more structure in scouts and he is still learning his place.  He is busy and excited.

I've already been warned that there's a competition at the end of May, where the scouts are split into groups of 4 and dropped off at an undisclosed location.  They have to hike 15km in 8 hours, preparing food along the way.  I'm not sure how I feel about this letting go stuff just yet, but if Jake's keen I guess I have to follow his lead.  Thankfully, when I told him about the competition, he told me he'll do it next time... phew!!

Love,

Sue XXX

Rugger...

Pre-match warm ups - Jake's underneath the Harcourts sign.

The rugby season is upon us again.  Jake's team has played 2 matches already and he is thrilled to have been picked for all games so far (including the 3rd one tomorrow).  They have been working so hard as a team and practices have increased from 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours!  Jake has taken up position as full back this term, so he's seeing how he feels there, instead of on the wing.  He is quick, but he's still quite a nervous player.  They've also increased the intensity of the game this year, with contested scrums (thankfully Jake's not in those) and penalties and conversions...  it's hectic to watch and I'm learning to keep quiet instead of running onto the field to see if my baby's OK.

 Team pep talk before the match...

 Jake was first on the field and quickly got into position...

 Scrum!  To be fair, it was the first time our boys had faced a real scrum with pushing and shoving, so we didn't do great, but managed.  So glad that Jake's not in the scrum...

 Hands on the hips - ready to run after that ball...

 Hanging back until his team needs him...

 There's Jake going in for a tackle - not the boy flying through the air, the one in front of the boy with the ball.  I always stop taking photos at this point - I have to watch and cheer...

 Our boys scored a try in the last seconds of the game...  We won 12 - 5 and the boys were thrilled.  To be honest, Jake still doesn't really care what the score is, he's happy to just be playing...

 I love how the boys are starting to celebrate their win as a team now too...

 and the most important part for me - shaking hands with the opposing team at the end of the game...

 Tomorrow's game is against an Afrikaans school, so will be a tough one.  I hope my nerves survive it!!

Love Sue XXX

Starting point...

 

Michael, 12, in his dad's army jacket.

 I know, I know - I've been bad at blogging again!!  We've been super busy though, so that means lots of photos to sort through so that I can share them here!

May is a crazy time of year for us.  It started last Friday, when we joined the boy's mom at her house for a braai to celebrate Michael's birthday, which was on the 9th.  It was a relaxed evening, just the family and we actually all had quite a nice time.  I don't talk about the boy's mom too often here, because it's not really any of my business.  She is fine though.  We get on OK when we need to and I think that's good for the boy's sake.  If Marius can do it, so can I!!  

Saturday saw us celebrating Michael's birthday with all his friends - they went paintballing and all had an absolute blast!  The venue was amazing, except for taking photos and the weather was perfect for running around.

Jake was excited to spend time with Michael and his friends and he loves paintball, so loved being included...

 Cameron (aka Cammy-stinkles) in another of his dad's army jackets...

 Jake and Michael have a love hate relationship - they can go from serious punching matches to being devastated that it's home time for Jake already.  They're both fiery Taureans and I guess hormones are starting to come into play as well.  Cameron's much more laid back...

 the boys getting briefed on the rules of the game - they all listened very well and we only had one set of tears.  I can't believe how big these kids are.  They're only a year ahead of Jake and his friends...

By the time the boys were finished playing, the sun was setting and the wind had picked up - it was cold!  Marius made boerrie rolls for the kids and we did the cake...

 

 Michael loves the attention that comes with having a birthday.  He's a total extravert...

  Singing to himself as loudly as he can...

  This was the closest the 3 boys would stand to each other for a photo... they wouldn't even look at me.  I am totally uncool...

 Jake icing Cam...

 Birthday boy and his dad...

And this was just the beginning.  Sunday was Mother's Day as well - Jake and I have 3 moms to spend time with!!  And Tuesday was Marius' mom's birthday too.

Next post coming up soon...

Love Sue XXX

Catching up...

 Last Friday saw us all gather at the Moelans home to celebrate Jake's grandparent's 44th wedding anniversary.  It was a nice chance for me to get some snaps of Jake with his big cousins.  It's awesome how well the 3 of them get on and the girls adore Jake as much as he adores them.

Jake's very relaxed around the girls - it's so sweet how they all accept one another so well, warts and all.  They really love each other and Jake is very lucky to have such beautiful girls to call his cousins.  Becky (middle) is Jake's class prefect this year.  As you can see, they're all kind of tech-junkies.  At least they're together, right???

 I've been spotted...

I love how relaxed they all are together.  Abi's 14, Becky 12 and Jake 10.  That's her sharing her foot-stink with the rest of them.  Must've been bad - this picture makes me laugh...

 My beautiful nieces...

Not to miss out on a photo, Jake sneaks in too...

 This photo also makes me laugh - Abi "fweeped" Becky.  Jake has no idea...

 What does "fweep" mean?  It's the noise you make when you tweek someone's boob.  Jake thought it was the most hysterical thing he'd ever heard...

 OK, enough photos - back to phones...  The kids have such funny things on their phones...

 Abi's had enough of me...

 But she knows I'm still watching her through my camera...

 One last smile, while Becky contemplates getting a "fweep" back in on her sister...

 On Sunday morning, we met up with some good friends that we haven't seen in a while, for brunch in the Company Gardens in town.  For those of you not from around these parts, the gardens were built by the Dutch when the Cape was "first" discovered in 1652.  They established a garden to supply fresh fruit and veg to the passing ships.  Over time, the gardens became a bit run-down and dodgy, but they've recently been giving it a bit of a re-vamp.  The restaurant is gorgeous and they've even started growing fruit and veggies again...

 There's Jason and his daughter, Eve.  Jason was in pre-school with me and he was one of the best men at our wedding...

 Jake is getting too big... I love it, but I don't...  stop growing so fast...

 It was nice for the kids to explore the veggie patch...

 Jake was great with Eve.  I think, thanks to Bi, Jake has a lot more patience with younger kids.  Jake hates it when Eve's mom, Sandi, tells him that Eve's his future wife...

 but he was so sweet, showing her things in his quiet way...

 Jason & Sandi...

 The view of our mountain from the gardens, with the South African museum to the right.  Not sure who the naked man is with the horse, but Eve did say it was her daddy. hahahaha...

 Jake bought some nuts to feed the pigeons...

 It made for some funky photos...

 He wasn't happy when I told him that the birds were doing "it" on his hand...

 Seriously - have you ever seen him looking happier?  He was catching them by their feet with his thumb to keep them in his hand longer...

 Blur...

 Like I said, happiness is...

 and yet, he won't actually look at the camera at the moment.  At least not when I ask him to...

 The feathered birds are way more entertaining...

 A few years ago, Jake's Auntie Tam took him to an outdoor restaurant and made a video of him actually catching pigeons.  You can watch it here - very cool and look how little he was!!  Baby teeth and all...

We had a holiday here on Monday and tomorrow's another one, so it's been a short week, with two really long weekends.  It's been insane trying to get through the mountain of month end paperwork on my desk, but it's just about up-to-date now.

Sending love, enjoy the long weekend

Sue XXX