Five for Friday #term2

Back to school for term 2! yay!

1. I picked up my Voortrekker team t-shirts this week. I am SO happy with how they came out.
I cant wait to give them to the kids and take a photo with all the kids in their t-shirts. I honestly didnt know that I would enjoy Voortrekkers this much. Any excuse to behave like a kid yourself, right? I am amazed by how different boys and girls are. I mean, I know they are different but when I plan my activities I can immediately tell you what the boys are going to enjoy and what they wont enjoy and the same with the girls. Eventually the team will have to split and I am leaning towards going with the boys because Mr W is in that team and ultimately I am doing this for him.

2. Last weekend was Easter weekend. It already feels like a lifetime ago. We attended my favourite church service of the year called "Road to the Cross." It is such a special day reflecting about the days leading up to Jesus's crucifixion. We were served communion halfway through the service and I remember thinking why on earth are these little glasses only filled halfway... little did I know they were filled with vinegar. O my goodness... you can just imagine kids choking and spitting after taking a sip of vinegar. It was so funny but neither of my kids will ever forget that Jesus had to drink vinegar on the cross.

3. School started this week. Roll on term 2 - we are ready for you! The kids are excited about the Netball and Rugby season ahead. All I can think about is that I hope we play at schools with good coffee because those early morning Rugby games are FREEZING!

4. My uncle passed away this week. I have been thinking about my dad's last days/hours all week. I miss him like crazy...

5.  I "invented" a new chicken dish with pasta, tomato and basil. DELICIOUS... I am sure everyone feels like this but food has gotten SO expensive. I really need some new ideas for supper and lunch.

How has your week been? Any great recipes that you can share with me?

Ramblings of a confused mama...

Parenting is HARD. Wait, let me rephrase... parenting is F^$*#(@king hard. I have blogged about Miss M's chess career obsession (for lack of a better word) before. She has been invited to play in the SA  junior championship and have been practising with her coach since December for this event in April. One night last week she asked to speak to us and after a whole long story and drama she says she wants to quit. Say what? Yes, she quit. She wants nothing to do with anything chess related. The school is begging her to play, I have had numerous phone calls from teachers and the school coach to try and convince her otherwise but she refuses. She has been called in FOUR times in the last week to discuss this matter. She has a serious stubborn gene that she (might) have gotten from me. The more everyone is pushing, the less inclined she is to play.

I have NO idea what to do.

Do we push? Force her to play?

Ignore all this drama and just carry on like nothing happened and hope she comes to her senses.

Run away and hide under my bed with a glass of grown up cool drink?

Both coaches says she has a natural talent that she cannot just give up on. My thinking is that one does not "lose" your talent... it will still be there when she decides to play again.

By saying its okay to quit, are we saying that its okay to give up?

She wants to explore other things as chess takes up a lot of her time. I am ALL for this because chess takes up a lot of MY time but stopping completely sounds a bit insane. She has worked so hard to be where she is today, would it be like throwing all that effort into the bin? On the other hand.. art classes sounds like so much fun.

F..ck this shit. I am hanging up my grown up shoes.

xxx

Melmoth Wedding

How on earth did a whole month pass since my last post? Its INSANE how quickly time is flying by! I can hardly believe that I already received Mr W's rapport card yesterday signalling the end of yet another term.

We went to Melmoth in KZN where I grew up for a wedding the beginning of the month. O my.. the memories and the sheer beauty of the area. It was amazing... I also realised that my kids are definitely city kids. Is this not just so beautiful? I can remember playing on that dirt road as a child with all my cousins. Kind of made me think how differently my kids are being raised...

My mom is a master baker and she always baked and catered for weddings and functions. She owned her own restaurant when I was at Varsity but my dad hated the long hours so she gave it up. My cousin asked her to help with the dessert table.. Isnt this just amazing? She baked and baked for a week. I contributed the donut tower and was in charge of the taste tests which had to be conducted frequently :) I had the same thing for my wedding many moons ago 

The venue on the farm :)

5 for friday - week 4/2017

1. Vaping. Who knew that a non smoker like me would become a fan of vaping. The boss man swopped over December and it was a rough 2 weeks before his body adjusted. I never had an issue vir Mr K's smoking but now that he has stopped everything just smells better.

2. Suits is back!!! This is by far one of my favourite tv shows. I have missed Harvey and Mike... Who takes a 2 month long production break in the middle of season?

3. A certain brother and sister Afrikaans singers recently started their own tv show on VIA. This week the sister went home with her domestic worker for a night. What a shock to hear that her 92 year old mother has never had a bath and that they have NEVER had running water. We are truly living our lives with blinders on.

4. Childhood cancer suck. A boy in Mr W's year group was diagnosed with cancer in 2014. It breaks my heart to see him struggle and have to fight so hard to just do normal things like going to school. Here is the article...

http://maroelamedia.co.za/nuus/sa-nuus/terminale-6-jarige-begin-gr-1-jy-is-so-braaf-ek-vergeet-hoe-jy-ly/

5. Miss M is back at ice skating academy and Mr W played his first Bev cricket game this week. Its rough because both activities are on Wednesdays but both are the kids SO happy. Definite firm favourites on the activity list.

Counting the hours till the weekend...
Have a GOOD one.
xxxx

5 for Friday - week 2/2017

School and activities are back to the usual craziness. So much so that I wondered if I really just had a 3 week holiday.

• Its proving to be a challenge scheduling after school activities in such a way that I only have to drive home once a day. Last year Mr W's activities were mostly during school hours but in Grade 1 everything moves to after school. Its a different ball game with 2 kids taking part in various activities especially because I know neither would be happy sitting around at school waiting for the other to finish.

• Voortrekkers... end of the year last year I offered to help with admin for Mr W's Voortrekker group as I am total admin queen. It turns out the dad in charge of their group doesn't really want to do it after all and I was asked to be their "officer." (That sounds SO strange!) I accepted ... then I doubted my decision (Where am I going to find time in between all the craziness!!) but I am slowly getting more and more excited.

• Miss M is rocking at grade 4 and so far we have not had one homework disagreement. Mr W is another story though... His standard answer is "I don't really feel like it right now... " I tried cooking dinner while helping him at the dining room table but every time I turned around he was missing! Little sh@t snuck out the door the minute I turned my back! Wish me luck, I still have 12 more years of this ahead of me!

• Mum seems to be doing okay. Lots of people ask me how she is doing and my standard answer is that she seems to be okay. She has "moments" and of course her life is going through a period of adjustment but I think that is normal. I often want to call Daddy to have a chat which makes me incredibly sad and I think Mum have the same kind of "moments" of overwhelming sadness.

• Have you tried the new Crunchie ice cream? It is covered with delicious Cadbury's chocolate and popping candy! This is definitely an ADULT treat as they are quite expensive. Mr K and I enjoy rewarding ourselves after getting the kids into bed at night for making it through the day. Kind of like a "high five" you made it!

Have a good weekend! 

xxx

5 for Friday - week 1/2017

Its FRIDAY!!! YAY!!! Some weeks I am SO happy that I made it to Friday that I want to give myself a high five. I loved reading everyone's "5 for Friday" posts last year and I am determined to do a weekly one this year!! Haha... I will probably skip one or two but I'm going to try my very best!

1. School started and my kids are HAPPY. That is a huge one for me. No drama, no tears... just smiles and excitement.

2. Friday morning coffee club - We are 3 friends who meet up for coffee on Fridays after drop off and before work starts. Its easy and there is no pressure if you can't make it. This morning we had a nice brekkie with our lattes!

3.  I am back in the office since Monday and to be honest I love to work. I love my job... I enjoy designing, meeting clients and hanging out with the crazy girls in my office.

4. Last year one of our reps in the office gave me the most fabulous facecloth. It works SO much better than any face cloth for wiping your face. It gets ALL the makeup right off with just a few wipes. I started using it it last week and I am hooked. 

5. I cannot ever have enough notebooks. Look at all these stunning notebooks (and diary) I received for my birthday.

Grade 1 AND 4 here we come....

School started yesterday for us (like for most of SA) and it was a big day, as our little man started grade 1! He is normally a shy, reserve boy but he totally rocked his first day. Confident and sure of himself, he showed us where his classroom is and where he should leave his school bag. The attitude was very much one of "Please can you just LEAVE?" and "Enough photos already... so not cool, Mom!" I told everyone I that I was probably going to sob my heart out but my boy didn't even give me a chance. He had ME out the door before I could even have a "moment"!

Miss M started grade 4 yesterday. A big year in terms of starting exams and having different teachers for each subject. She has been eagerly awaiting this year and was very excited to go to school yesterday. I am so grateful for moms at school with older kids who are willing to share some wisdom in making this transition as easy as possible. I think being super organised is going to be very important this year.

I fetch the kids yesterday afternoon and they were all still smiles and super happy about school, their teachers and of course, seeing all their friends again. We are ready for 2017!
How was your kiddo's first day back?

xxx

Ramblings of a chess momma...

If you asked me what chess is 3 years ago, I would have said its a game with black and white pieces where the object is to checkmate the other side's king. Three years later my answer would be way different. Now it would include words like - ratings, forks, openings, end games, notation, strategies... The list is endless. I have gained a new vocabulary, I can talk chess baby.

Miss M wanted to play chess as an extra mural so I filled in the forms, paid over the fees and promptly put it at the back of my mind. I am a working mom... There is a lot of thoughts racing around my head all day. "Whats for dinner? Who is fetching the kids today? Shoot its me... Better move that meeting quickly..." Chess just did not really come up on my radar as something that I needed to worry about until Missy brought home her first tournament notice and begged to take part. I guess you can say the rest is history. Miss M has earned her SA colours in 2014, a mere year after she started playing.

There are two things that I really want people to know about Miss M's chess career.  Its all her. I don't even play chess. All the fancy chess terms that I know she taught me.We put no pressure on her to take part. I encourage her to take part in lots of extra murals but she seems to naturally gravitate towards chess again and again.

The second thing is that chess is damn hard work. Memorising all those openings and practicing tactics takes up a lot of time. Coaching, tournaments, playing at a club somewhere... It all adds up. Chess is expensive... both financially and time wise. I think its save to say its a "family sport" because sooner or later everyone gets involved.

Advice for newbie chess moms...

1. Learn to pack a mean cooler bag full of healthy snacks and invest in a good flask. Tuck shop coffee before 8am on a Saturday morning doesn't hit the spot. 
2. Invest in a good camping chair because you are going to sit around a lot. 
3. Most tournaments you are not allowed to watch so find something that you like doing. I read... Some parents work (laptop on a camping table) while others make friends and socialise a bit. 
4. Don't plan anything else for the day of the tournament. We learnt this this hard way. Inevitably somewhere along the line, you are going to have to call a mom and cancel at the last minute for a birthday party you had planned to attend. 
5. Win or lose its still just a game. The main focus should be to enjoy it. 

Last bit of vacay vibes

We have been hanging around the house for the last week, relaxing and recharging for the new work year thats starting way too soon. Miss M started her extra chess lessons last week so we can only plan fun things for the afternoons. Usually we hang out around the pool or binge watch series... Until today... When this happened...

The kids (and their mum) have been dying to try gourmet milkshakes but it seems like a lot of the places here in P-town are still closed so we decided to make our own crazy milkshakes. It was loads of fun. We added everyhing chocolate we could lay our hands on and topped it off with mint sweetie pies. Happy memories are made when there is a ton of chocolate involved.

Hope you are enjoying your holiday! 

Why o why does time seem to fly when you are having fun?

xxx

Last few hours of 2016.... Roll on 2017

The year is a few hours from being over and I still cant make up my mind about what my "word" (focus) for 2017 should be.  This year I focused on having hope in all circumstances. I don't think I always succeeded but it was a good year on the whole. Losing daddy was the lowest point of my year and I know we still have quite a road ahead of us as far as that goes. The rest was really pretty awesome.... I know I worked and stressed way too much with times.. Perhaps I will manage things better in 2017.

Highlights of 2016
- Getting to know my brother's quirky wonderful girlfriend and welcoming her to the family.
- Two of my friends fell pregnant after a bit of a struggle.... Super excited for all the babies next year.
- Friday morning coffee club was a definite highlight. Spending time with like minded moms are always fantastic.
- Both kids joined the Voortrekkers this year. I loved it as much as what they did.
- Mr W played Bulletjierugby once again and he totally rocked. It makes all those late nights and early morning worth it when you see how much your child enjoys an activity.
- Being a bridesmaid again and celebrating my friends wedding with them. Very few people share a love like theirs. O yes and I baked a killer chocolate wedding cake :)
- Miss M totally rocked at chess this year. She had to work really hard after missing the SA champs in December 2015. We met and employed an amazing new coach for her. Coach S is fantastic and I cant stop singing her praises to everyone. Miss M won all her games at the SA team event December 2016, playing for the under 10 girls A team. She received her first board prize ever. Super proud mom!
- Looking back I am so grateful for all the time we spent with Daddy this year :)
- Both kids did really well at school and it gives me hope for next year... Gr 1 and 4 in one year does just sound like its going to be terribly hectic.
- I read so many good books this year. My favourite by far was the Rose Gardner series by Denise Grover Swank.

Cheers 2016... Thank you for the memories and the lessons learnt. I am waving goodbye as I waltz lightly towards 2017.
Xxx

My daddy died...

Its so hard to type those words. The memory of my daddy's last breath still so clear in my head. I cant believe its been 3 weeks exactly today. It feels like just yesterday that we last spoke. I walked into my parents house this morning expecting my dad to sit in his chair, cup of coffee in his hand only to realise that his usual chair is empty.

I feel like I have to write about what happened because I dont want to forget any of the details. Almost like my kids birth stories... Perhaps I am being strange and I will delete this post somewhere down the line but for now I need to write about it.

28 Nov 2016 - my dad is admitted to hospital with heart failure. He was first diagosed in 2009 so we know what's coming. A lasix drip and a bed in the ICU.

29 Nov 2016 - Daddy's last birthday here on earth.

1 Dec 2016 - The Dr amputates Daddy's toes due to bad circulation and in infection.

Saturday, 3 Dec 2016 - I am at a chess tournament with Mik. My mom calls to say the Surgeon wants to operate at 10 to close the amputation but they are extremely worried because Daddy condition has deteriorated. I arrive at the hospital to find Daddy in a good mood. Chatty and happy... Perhaps a bit high on pain meds?

Sunday, 4 Dec 2016 - Daddy is sleeping when we arrive. His nurse looks pale and nervous. Later she tells us he stopped breathing... An "episode" she called it ... They dont know what happened and wanted to intubate him but before they could he came to and started breathing on his own again. They leave the ventilator next to his bed, unplugged, all day.

Monday, 5 Dec 2016 - I receive the worst call from my mom. The dr wants all of us to come to the hospital immediately. On arrival the Dr had already spoken to my mum. There is no hope. All Daddy's organs are failing. We have to decide if we want to use "extreme measures" in other words a ventilator, dialysis... Mum says no. Its only a matter of time... A few days, perhaps a week. The ICU nurses tell us to spend as much time as possible with Daddy. Visiting hours don't apply to us anymore. Mom tells all of us to not be negative around my dad so we chat and even laugh with him like nothing is wrong. Daddy makes jokes about the nurses and pulls faces behind the one nurses's back when she moans at him for making the alarms on the monitors go off.

Tuesday, 6 Dec 2016 - We arrive at the hospital a few minutes after mum and miss the Dr's update. Daddy's condition has worsened. It will be today. He has set the drips to lower the dosage of meds every hour. Daddy is awake and full of beans. He makes us laugh and kisses mum every time she comes near. I think he knew what was happening. Not once did he close his eyes or fall asleep. My brother's girlfriend asks him if she should get him and mum a room and he laughs and says.. Yes please :) At 1pm the nurse gives him a pain injection. We walk out of the ICU just as Daddy falls asleep only to be called back almost immediately because his blood pressure is extremely low. We sit with him for an hour... Watching his breathing becoming slower and shallower until it just... stops... 2:08 on Tuesday, December 6th. 72 years old... A good innings as my dad always use to say. In his mind anything over 70 was a life well lived. My heart is shattered. My dad is gone.

I miss my Daddy every day. I want to pick up the phone to call because I want to hear his voice.. I want to hear his opinion about the latest news events. I want to make him another cup of coffee and ask him about the Protea's last game. I know its even harder for my mom. They loved each other deeply for 47 years. Two halves of a whole. How do we go on from here? Our ship has lost its captain...

Its ALMOST holidays...

The year is racing towards the finish line with such speed I really don't know which way is up most days. I am counting sleeps with the kids because I really need some downtime to regroup and get all my ducks in a row again. I'm constantly looking for my notebook to add more things to the holiday list or the Christmas pressie shopping list. I'm going totally OCD with my lists and driving the rest of the family crazy. 

We fetched report cards this morning and said thank you and goodbye to the teachers. We did some fun bracelets for teacher gifts this year. I think they are pretty awesome. Sometime different to the usual chocolates and hand creams. 

I usually reflect back on the year a little bit later in December but I was chatting to Mr W's teacher this morning and she reminded me how far he has come this year. He started the year off as a shy, reserved boy and grew into a little chap with self confidence. He really came into his own this year. He made a really good friend and I can see that this is going to be a long friendship. I have never seen 2 little boys just totally "get" each other like these two. They have even developed their own special way to communicate! With a few nods and shakes of the head, they are totally on the same page whilst the rest of us are still wondering what on earth is being discussed! Once in a while the kids have a teacher who just means the world to them (and to their mom) - Mr W had one of those this year. These teachers are so much more than just mere teachers - they make a profound change to your child's life and I will forever be grateful for this teacher for doing that for Mr W. 

Ms M rocked this year like she always does. She thrived in so many areas and got an amazing opportunity to represent SA at the Commonwealth Chess games in India. How many 8 year olds go to India to play chess? She worked hard this year and it makes me so proud. She started out the year with clear goals and she did everything she set out to do and more. We hit a bit of a rocky patch in the middle of the year with girls bullying her and making her life miserable but even that she faced head on and I can see she is not even giving it a second thought anymore. Her rapport card reads like a bit slot machine according to Mr K... 7 - 7 - 7! She has a great teacher next year and a very good friend who will be in the same class. I am so glad for her because she deserves a bit of happy to end this year with! 

Onto other news.. I found this on my desk this morning with the new Joel Osteen book. I am overjoyed about the book as I was planning on buying it for myself anyway but even more I didn't know that all the nonsense I talk on a daily basis made such an impact on this lady's life. She is a single mum with a son the same age as Mr W so Mrs Bossy Boots is always offering advice and an opinion on various mommy things. Her fiance was killed in a car accident last year, right before she started working here and her mom the beginning of this year. I burst into tears when I read her card... how SWEET! Just shows that a little friendliness (or is that bossiness??) can make a huge difference to someone's life. How cute is the drawing? She calls me the Queen. I think its SO funny cause I can be a bit of a drama queen at work! :) I am so humbled by her kindness and generosity. This surprise gift has definitely made my week! 

End year functions, Christmas parties and more

This weekend was one of those crazy ones where you think it was weekend but you are not really sure cause you were just so busy that you didn't spend much time at home.

Friday night we finished up at holiday camp swim school. We have had such special instructors this year and both kids have really made so much progress in the last 3 months. I am very grateful that we decided to stick it out even when its a real pain to take them cause its quite far from school and because it means that we get home late on Tuesdays with very grumpy tired kids. The reward for completing the camp was a chocolate medal and a beautiful embroidered t-shirt. The kids LOVE t-shirts with logos and slogans on so this was such a treat for them.

I promised the kids that we can attempt gingerbread houses this year and although the houses are not made from ginger bread biscuits (I cheated and used Golden Cloud's cookie mix) it was such a fun project. What I really loved that it kept all of us busy for quite a long time. Mr W demanded a break from all this baking after about 1.5 hours of decorating :)

Saturday afternoon was our work year end function. As always there was lots of laughs, lots of pressies and fun to be had. As usual the "unwanted" gift was the hit of the party. The rules state that you have to bring an unwanted but unused and unopened present to the party to swop with someone else's unwanted gift. The gifts are wrapped so you never know what you are getting. There was a a set of wooden cats, the ugliest candle I have ever seen and a really old unopened board game from 2005 that made their rounds. The gifts are REALLY awful but its so funny ending up with someone else's unwanted gifts. Printing is an incredibly stressful industry to work in with tight deadlines and incredibly demanding clients. I love it that at the end of the year we can all sit around a table and just be friends in spite of it all. 

We finished off the weekend with our monthly dinner club's Christmas party. I can't remember when last I spent the entire day in the pool with the kids. I love our dinner club buddies. We are all so different but every month the conversation just picks up where we left off last month and we spend the entire day/evening chatting away.

What an incredibly nice South African Summer day. The entire family was in bed before 8 last night ...tired and happy. 

rapport cards and end of the year drama

M started going to Mr's W school in January of 2011 and now after 5 years we are done with "baby" school. Next year Mr W is in grade R and Miss M in grade 3. I'm so sad yet also happy about this new phase. My babies are growing up so quickly! 

The teachers put so much effort into the school's last rapports for the year. I have never cried about a rapport card before but this one with all its special memories of 2015 made me bawl. 

Mr W - I am SO proud of you and I am so excited for the journey ahead of us. 

Mr W is 5!

Dear Mr W,

You are 5! I almost can't believe I am typing this. I can still remember when you made your dramatic entrance into the world in the ward at 3:26 instead of the labour room no less. I can remember your lifeless blue body when the doctor had to grab you from me and start CPR to keep you breathing. I remember the time we spent in the NICU. Me telling you how much I love you, how long I have waited for you and how much I wanted to take you home to meet your sister. I have clear memories of us having long chats in the small hours of the morning while the rest of the world was sleeping. The excitement of finally taking you home... And now you turned five.

You are such a special little dude. Me and you still have long chats but luckily they are not in the middle of the night anymore. You are my little kitchen helper and the one who is always first to ask "How was your day, mommy?" You are a super star in making sure all our furry friends get their treats before we leave in the morning. You detest colouring in and art is hard work and you do not enjoy it at all. Your teacher says what she admires about you is that you will finish every project even though one can honestly see that you would much rather be doing anything else.

You love your Minion duvet and gets very upset when its wash day. You love swords, guns and anything army. Favourite cereal is still weetbix with water (yuck) and you wont eat if if you didnt see me put the sugar in. Favourite lunchbox treat is a chocolate muffin from Wild Bean Cafe and your least favourite popcorn. You are not a morning just like me. We avoid the other 2 members of the family and their cheery conversation first thing in the morning. Actually we run in the opposite direction if we hear them coming!

My boy... My little man... I pray that you will soar and that you will be a true man of God. I pray that your life will be filled with the fruit of the spirit and that you will never forget the important things in life. All those things that seem important when you are young... They are not. Forget the fast car, the perfect girl, the great body... Find the things and people who give you joy and keep them close. I love you with all my heart x

Bucket list for December 2015

I saw this on SUPERbusyMOM 2.0's blog (https://superbusymom2point0.wordpress.com) this morning and I immediately couldn't wait to write my own! Life is so busy and a while ago I thought to myself I should plan more outings, do more things... the kids grow up so fast and then all we are going to have left from this precious time growing up are the memories! (And lots of photos of course!!)

First on our list is definitely a visit to Dinokeng.  I designed a vistor's guide for them a while ago and since then I have been dying to go. Who knew there was such a nice game reserve right on our doorstep!

I think a follow up visit to the super fun water slides at Zambibush is defintely on our list.

I might not be able to walk the next day because that red slide is not as meek and mild as it seems but I cant wait to let my inner 5 year old come out.

We are super blessed to kick off our holiday with a week at the beach! Wooohoo! 

Lots of sand, water, sun are vital ingredients to recharge our batteries.

I love ice skating but we haven't been there in the last 6 month even though its literally 5k's from home. Miss M is a little pro but Mr W still hangs onto mum's hand all the way around. Nice outing for daddy to show off his cool moves and its usually nice and cool to be inside the rink when its a 40 degree summer day outside!

The kids have been Acro Branching quite a few times this year but I haven't tried it yet.

I am deadly afraid of heights and I am probably going to wet myself but I think this is my birthday outing for the year. If I'm brave enough...  Every year I pick something fun/extreme/nuts to do on my birthday which I usually end up regretting yet loving at the same time!

I can't wait for the holidays. A whole month of relaxing with my family. There is a lot of other things on the kids lists like another visit to BOUNCE Inc and the Snake Park in Harties which we will probably also fit in somewhere.  I know we will be spending a lot of time in and around the pool,  having braai's with friends and generally just hanging out and having fun. We play lots of board games, legos, Miss M and I read a lot while the boys watch their "stories" on TV. Its such a special time of the year for me and there are only 19 sleeps left! WOOOOHAAAAA! x

Be thankful

I wrote this about a year ago and its so relevant to how I feel lately so I'm going to post it on my "new" blog! 

I am a worrier. I over think and over analyze things. I have been feeling hurt and unsure because of various things that has happened the last few weeks. Tonight I had dinner with a dear friend who put all my irritations right back into perspective for me. I feel awful for judging someone instead of loving. I let my own human nature get in the way of what God wanted from me. She is such an inspiration to me and I walked away with so much food for thought. I need to learn to let go... of people... of past hurts... of doing too much... of seasons that are over in my life... When we hold onto past hurts and by not forgiving we are actually only hurting ourselves. Holding on to anger is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die. I am so guilty of this, time and time again. I need to learn to let go of things. I realise that this is something I need to work on.

That being said... the other thing that has been on my mind is competitiveness. Miss M is like me, we push ourselves harder than what is needed but because we work hard, I don't know why we cannot be proud of what we have achieved. I don't mean bragging about being better than someone else but being happy about succeeding. Miss M, like me, competes with herself and she is happy for anyone who does well in something. God blessed us all with different talents and its our job to use it to God's glory. I think we honour God by working joyfully. Kahlil Gibran writes, "Work is love made visible and another one. Keeping yourself with labour you are in truth loving life."

"Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people do that but the really great make you feel that you too, can become great. Hang out with friends who are likeminded and who are also designing purpose filled lives." Mark Twain

I think its fair to say that we all have different priorities. Things that are important to me might not be important at all to the next person but thats okay. Its okay to be different and to care about different things. I wish people would stop the hurtful comments and embrace being different. At the moment I feel like I need a break from all of it.  I want to crawl under a rock and hide. I have realised that I need to go back to the drawing board... put God first.. and then all the rest of it. Sometimes being busy even with good deeds are not a good thing. Its not necessarily God's plan or will for your life right at that moment. I think I have blogged about it before but finding your balance in life is hard work cause the "target" keeps on moving. It is something that I need to work on daily. I am drained by all the bad things that have happened to people around me lately... its time to focus on the good... to have HOPE... to focus on things and people that give me JOY.

I remember reading this once ...

Its easier to be sad than to live a happy life.  Its easier to complain than to be happy. Its SO true. Some people love to complain. They LOVE drama and feeling sorry for themselves. I have to remind myself often to not get dragged into that negative way of thinking. Being healthy, having a good marriage, raising kids that are well behaved is hard work but its WORTH it. I try my best to focus on being thankful and to not get drawn into the drama but let me tell you, some days its DAMN hard!

This is my desktop background at the moment. A constant reminder to be thankful!

We love weekends!

Mr W took part in his first judo tournament this weekend and boy, it was SO  much fun! I am so impressed with his Sensei and with the amount that Mr W has learnt in the last 6 months. I could see that he was having a blast and for once it took no convincing from me to go join his friends and take part. I am overjoyed that we have finally found something that Mr W loves to do. This is one proud mama bear!

How cute is this boy? I just want to eat him right up

After a lot of backwards and forwards Mr W decided that he wants to celebrate his birthday at the new resort in town, called Zambibush. The agreement was cousins and one best friend because its a swimming resort and I am terrified of kids getting hurt on my watch. Last year I learnt the hard way that people love to drop their 4 year olds in your lap and fetch them later. I was a bit skeptical cause Mr W has only recently got the hang of swimming and I was worried that Zambibush catered more for the older kids. I was pleasantly surprised but they have more than enough to do for young and old. All the adults and all the kids swam almost the whole day. Just stopping long enough for a quick hot dog on the braai and something to drink. You can take in everything you need for the day so pack a well stocked picnic basket. Its very well priced at R70 per adult and R50 per child. Zambibush is definitely on our December holiday to do list.  

Mr K embracing his inner 5 year old :)

An easy peasy army cake for an army mad 5 year old!

A bit more about me

Are you named after someone?
Nope. I was a surprise baby and there wasn't another family name left to give me. My sister and brother have very serious traditional Afrikaans family names.

When was the last time you cried? 
Sunday in Church. The raw emotions around me always gets to me and I seem to bawl ever time I hear the song THRIVE

The chorus is something like this - "We know we were made for so much more than ordinary lives. Its time for us to more than just survive. We were made to thrive." 

Do you have kids? 
I do! A grade 2 girly and an almost 5 year old rough and tumble boy.

If you were another person, would you be a friend of yourself?
I think so. Everyone needs a redhead friend to make their life complete :)

Do you have a guilty pleasure?
I love reading. I love stories and losing myself in a book.

Do you like handwriting? 
I do! I write a lot like my sister but her handwriting is neater than mine. 

What is your favorite cereal? 
I have never really eaten cereal for breakfast but if I have to choose it would be strawberry pops.

What is the first thing you notice about people? 
Nothing specific actually. I am so oblivious... Sometimes my husband cuts his hair and I only notice 3 days later. Big oops.

What color are your eyes? 
Blue

Scary movies or happy endings?
Happy endings. I am a huge Nicolas Sparks fan.

Favorite TV show?
At the moment its the good wife. I love series - chicago fire, greys, masterchef, etc, etc.

Summer or winter? 
Summer

Hugs or kisses? 
Hugs... Physical touch is last on my love language scale.
Im not crazy about people touching me. Of course the girls at work loves to hug me and play with my hair just to annoy me. I must be honest it doesnt freak me out anymore, I just laugh and hope they leave soon.

What’s the furthest you’ve been from home? 
India early this year when miss M played chess in the commonwealth games. I have no great need to travel. I love exploring South Africa though.

Do you have special talents? 
I can draw quite well and I like taking photos.

X

Last week was one CRAZZZZZZZZY week! Ms M decided that she really wants to be on the swim team and started to practice with the school's new coach. Three mornings of leaving the house at 6 am with packed lunch boxes and fed kids. I feel like I should give myself a high five for getting everyone where they needed to be on time.

As most of you know, it has been one of the hotest weeks ever in P-town. Everyone seemed to be a bit on edge and irritated because of the heat. The kids kept on waking up in the middle of the night because they are hot/thirsty/irritated... Im a gal who loves my sleep so between getting up early and being woken up it was not a fun week. Then Thursday happens.. The highlight of my crazy... I pulled an all nighter at work. Really... I worked all night and saw the sun come up on Friday. I never do this anymore because lets face I am not quite the spring chicken I pretend to be anymore. I felt like the walking dead all weekend which really annoys me cause its the only real uninterrupted family time we have in a week. I have always been the big mouth mom who had a  lot to say about loving work and not wanting to be a SAHM but lately I wonder... I might have mumbled something to mr K about it which almost made him fall of his chair. He was not impressed at all to say the least. Financially we are almost were we want to be - finally being able to save for our kids future education and dreaming about a bigger house with a pool. I am reading a book that keeps on reminding me to bloom where you are planted. You are in a certain place for a certain amount of time for a reason... But yet I find myself asking - is it all worth it? Am I a better mom to my kids cause I am doing something I love even though it stresses me out on occassion? Then the dreaded question... Am I spending enough quality time with them, building our relationship? Ugghhh who knows!? Only time will tell I guess.

Onto a more fun topic. Mr W is having his birthday 9 days. We started the count down at day 28 this year. My boy is getting so big and what I really love is that he is such a momma's boy at the moment. We are not having a party this year for lots of reasons but I will be taking him, his sister and a few friends to zambibush resort - a new waterpark that opened a while ago. I find myself stressing over party packs and cake for 5 kids. I know its nuts but I cant seem to help myself. I want him to have a good time and not feel deprived because I didnt want to spend 3k on a party this year. Guilt... Glorious mommy guilt...

Like they say, tomorrow is a new day! Roll on Monday! X