Take a moment!

Had a pretty bland week of not much. No riveting outings, no large unexpected gifts in the mail, no candlelit dinners with Italian musician....just the ordinary stuff that makes up most of our lives. I have had the kids all week hanging on my eyebrows because of school break and I am ashamed to say that my years of playing office-office sans kiddlets, has had an odd way of seeming appealing once again........but only this week, I promise.
I am such a ninny aren't I....8 days into school break and already I am whining.....I think I need a 'pamper-the-girl-for-sanity's-sake' day.......naaaaa! can't see it happening hahahaha!

Ok...Ok...I have been mindlessly wabbing for long enough now, I'll get to the juicy stuff.
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........I got a mail from CK this morning. They want to publish another one of my L.O's! Yeeeeeehaaa! Now if you were in the room with me you would be privy to my customary **Happy dance of joy** .....here I go.....wiggle, jump....side step....turn, shimmy to the left, shimmy to the right, side splits!

Bwhahahahahaha! had you going there with the splits thing, didn't I? I used to be able to tho'(I danced for years) but now the only splits I can do is of the banana variety as it slides down my throat. So what started out as a mediocre week, now ends a fantastic one.

I serve a very generous God, that's for sure. I am full of 'it' & yet HE still chooses to spoil me.

Thanks DAD!
XXX

Boy it's hot out!

Happy friday everyone!!!!!!

It is 30 degrees Celsius outside & bloomin' hot! I have nothing profound to share today, other than I feel really 'rich' for some reason. Rich in God's blessing & grace....I am evidently aware of the good life we live. We are ridiculously happy, we have a beautiful, spacious home, we want for nothing & I am about to step outside to the laughter of my children & husband, frolicking in our swimming pool. I then get to plunge my carcass into 25 degree water {solar heating panel really do work!} & relax without a care in the world.

Today I am especially grateful to our Lord for His unconditional spoiling. So I encourage you to enjoy even for just moment, the privilege of being alive.

Have a FABULOUS weekend!

XXXXXXX

Disappointed!

I woke up early, got myself psyched for the Dept. of Home affairs, left with x2 cups of coffee charging thro' my veins......prepared to get Max's passport done and dusted, so I can get the Canadian visa's organised. Hmmmmf! my mission was short lived. I queued only to be told that both parents need to complete & sign the form. I went back to the counter to 're-look' my form & signed Tersh's signature for him {I do this all the time for the non-important stuff of daily life-Oh, in hind sight I suppose I shouldn't stay stuff like that on my blog hahaha!} I then reluctantly dragged myself into the nasty queue once again, which by this time had doubled in length. I was about half way to the front of the line when that familiar little voice of reason, started shouting in my head. Do you guys hear that voice too??? Well, I had a HUGE episode of conscience & decided against putting my artistic-signature-signing talent to the test. I had visions of getting the most conscientious government official handling my forms. Someone who was secretly renowned for his expert handwriting analyis skills......that & the unpleasant thought of trying to explain myself to a large irritated South African policeman.

I left the queue & came home.

I am so grateful in times like these for the voice of the Lord, kicking me in the head for being DUMB!!

Tomorrow I try again, armed with Tersh's real signature.


I did however make the most of my shortened to do list this morning and picked up the Canadian visa forms for completion. On a whim, I inquired as to how much the visa's would cost us, thinking in the region of a couple of hundred bucks. When the agent told me, it took me a good minute or two to retrieve my jaw off the ground. It is going to cost us nearly R3000 {$500} for the x3 visas, which will only be valid for the duration of the trip. HECK!

The one thing this trip has been very instrumental in doing, is revealing just how much the process of possible immigration is going to cost us. Oh well....it will be worth it in the long run I suppose. I must get my head around it & get reacquainted with my cheque book.

Well lovely people I must get cracking with a whole lot of photo's I want to get printed for a L.O I am trying to get finished ASAP. I hope you too are getting a free moment here & there to scrap???
Chat soon
XXXXXX X

Living up to the mark!

Sorry for the silence guys! I have been man down with some weird viral thing.....and have been coughing & spluttering for days. x3 days of little or no sleep makes for a very grumpy Mama & rest of family too I might add. So much so that this morning after a rough night & then to be woken up @ 5.40am by an energetic little boy, I was not my best. Maxi decided he must pray for me {in our home we pray often out loud for various things through out the day, so he is used to 'talking' to Jesus}

The prayer went like this:

Dear Jesus Please can you take my Mamas sickness away. Make her all better. Cos then she won't be grumpy in the morning & she can play cars with me .......& that would be very good!!!! Amen

It really tickled me but made me feel guilty for my yuk! attitude, so I played cars with him & felt forgiven. At least until the next time I am woken up at some silly hour again & faced with some more of my yuk! attitude for being dog tired. Flip, I wish sometimes I could be like those amazing women who's blogs you read from time to time. Where their lives seem ridiculously perfect, every hair seems in place, the photographs of her children look as if they had just scrubbed clean moments before. Where the dog never gets sick, the garage door never gets stuck & PTA meeting are fun, fun, fun. Maybe it's just me but if thats the measure of great motherhood & wife is all about, I'm getting about a 2 out of 10 this week.

**FREEDOM**

As I say this I am reminded tho' that we live purely by the phenomenon of GRACE, for which I am so, so grateful. An unfathomable gift given to us for free, by a God so Big, He cannot be measured or contained......yet He chose to live inside little, insignificant us. All I can do is try to remember that I wasn't made perfect but I serve a God who is and He walks beside me waiting for me to ask for His help each and every day. {Especially when I am feeling dog tired and grumpy as all heck!!!}
Life with our Saviour isn't half bad, is it??? We must keep reminding ourselves constantly that our home lies elsewhere & we are only visitors here on this planet. So 'vas-buit' as they say {the english translation means 'hang in there'.}

Have a super & hopefully encouraged day.
XXX

Oh joy!!!

Joy comes in many forms......we had plenty of them this weekend.
We decided on Friday, that this weekend would be a 'holiday' weekend. Our original plan was to find a little B&B to stay in for two nights but short notice threw the plans out and we were unable to find anywhere that had space available. But we made the most of it anyway and had a fine time!!!

Our FIRST JOY was in the form of a leisurely brekkie under the trees at our fav coffee shoppe, with French toast,bacon & unbelievable coffee. The highlight was Maxi asking the waitress if he could have : " Biscotti, please!" .....excuse et moi!




Our SECOND JOY was being able to visit a Farmers Market nearby. Not only were we able to sample delicious home bakes from various stalls but we were able to buy and sample fresh organic vegetables grown by the lovely people we met at the market. We were blown away by a group of African ladies who create art from other peoples garbage. It was the most beautiful thing to see up close, the colours were brilliant and the design incredibly ingenious. Max was fascinated by the color Tree, he found tucked inside an inner courtyard. Wow! He also got an opportunity to visit with a real live brass band. They were the live music for the affair and were so supportive of Maxi's love of the saxophones. They put him on stage with them & surprisingly enough Max was overcome by shyness. He did this little 'finger-in-the-cheek' thing for all the photographs. Sweet hey?


The view from the farm across the valley is nothing short of amazing!! The weather was questionable, cold & yet so full of contrast that it was impossible not to be in awe of God's creativity & to think he did all of this that we might find JOY in it.



We had an unbelievable relaxing, family time that we needed so badly!!! Tersh is working ridiculous hours & I am struggling to adjust to my new life. Our need for 'us' time is paramount for our sanity but in the busy-ness of life, it is easier said than done. So this weekend was long overdue!

Our THIRD JOY came in the form of a Fun Fair organised at one of the Primary Schools in a neighboring suburb. It was FREEZING and we were horribly under dressed but for the sake of a little boy completely overjoyed to see so many rides to go on.....it was worth the hypothermia.
He was like a Eveready battery bunny.....bouncing & dashing to & fro, trying to decide which ride to go on next. The elation on his face when he got onto those carousel horses is something I will never forget. Oh to be young enough again, not to be affected by the external things which can so easily trap......he never saw the chipped paint, the rusty wheels, the missing ears, the awful tinny music, the taped up gates. Years of wear & tear from 1000's of tiny bottoms eager & bursting with the joy of childhood experience. He just saw it for what it was.....his first Fun Fair & it was Fun personified!!!! Flip!!! I am loving being this child's Mama. As hard as it can be, moments like these are the fuel my soul needs to get through the next batch of challenges I am sure I will experience as a first time Mama.

Thanks for stopping in to read my blog guys and double thanks to all those who had the kindness of heart to leave me a comment. I love knowing who stopped in.
Chat again soon
Luv
KJ
XXXX