Friday 27th February 2009

It is only since living in England that I have really come to appreciate the amazing miracle of the change of seasons.......and it is better then any drug out there, the feeling of euphoria when the weather warms and the flowers bloom is unbelievable and each new sighting fills me with total joy and wonder. I know I know, I have said it all before, but I never want to forget this awe and in 10 years time when I look back on this journal in possibly a more jaded state I hope to remember the emotions that these first blossoms have evoked in me.

This morning the sky was once again electric blue and Phil, Nick and I took a quick walk into the village to drop Phil at school - I happened to grab my camera as we walked out the door and I am glad I did, I thought the flowers were wonderful a couple of weeks ago, well that was nothing, the ground is now literally blanketed in yellow, lilac, purple and white crocus and the first daffodil are sprouting everywhere, for now it is predominantly stems, but in a couple more weeks when they all bloom it will be spectacular.

One of my oldest and dearest friends arrives for a weekend with me tonight and I am alot like a child on Christmas Eve, I simply cannot wait for her to get here. Tanya and I have been friends for over 20 years and she is the one person in the world who probably knows EVERYTHING there is to know about me.....and I haven't had to kill her. She has been living in the UK for around 9 years and it is so wonderful that through our moving here we have been able to get back into each others everyday lives and I feel so blessed when I think about it, and now this weekend I have her with me......def another diamond of a day!

Thursday 26th February 2009

Back up to London today to the Embassy and I must say today's experience was very very different from the first and I was pleasantly surprised.....let me tell you I was dreading the experience in the worst possible way.

After a couple of false starts, wrong turns, 4 train changes and one traumatic escalator trip balancing Nick on the step in front of me I finally arrived at the Embassy 30 mins before my appointment only to hear my name being called by a young Indian girl just as I lurched through the door. I rushed to the counter and literally thrust all my paperwork at her and stood waiting like a deer in headlights while she went through them, dreading the shake of the head that indicated there was a problem.

When it finally came I nearly burst into tears imagining that I was once again going have to attempt this trip, but she kindly told me the problem and said that as it was before my allotted appointment time I could go and correct the paperwork and give it back to her.....one frantic text message to SA and armed with the necessary info I completed the new form in record time. My second trip to the counter however also resulted in a problem as I hadn't produced the required registered self addressed envelope (how I was supposed to know to produce this envelope I am still trying to work out as there is no mention of it on the web).

After a quick discussion with security I was able to ascertain that the closest post office was approximately 750m up the road and I could get the envelope there.....wonderful.....except that the Embassy closes for lunch between 1.30 and 3pm (don't you wish you had that kind of job) and as it was already 1.10pm the chances of me getting back before they closed was slim to nothing, meaning I would have to wait until 3pm and then try and catch tubes and trains home right in rush hour and that is not something I was looking forward to with Nick.

My solution, much to the surprise of the security guards and vast numbers of tourist, was to take off at a run and I am sure there are still people out there talking about the mad woman running full tilt though Trafalgar square pushing a pram at lunchtime lol. Needless to say I arrived at the post office only to find the longest queue imaginable (of course) and just as I had decided that I was going to have to accept my fate I was called to the front of the queue and told that pregnant ladies and ladies with babies were always given priority......yippeeeeeeeee.....

By now it was 1.23pm so with envelope grasped tightly between teeth I hit the pavement again at breakneck speed and swung into the Embassy totally out of breath and sweating (Nick + Pram = 17kgs) at 1.29pm. The very kind security man didn't let me into the Embassy (seems the close at 1.29pm) but he did take the envelope from me and get it to the necessary person. So after everything I was triumphant and came home feeling very proud of myself.

Bit of a sad end to the day as the wonderful photoshoot which had me so excited last night has unfortunately been cancelled. We are going away that weekend and it would seem that the family that booked the shoot won't all be together on the Friday and can only make the Saturday......and for once I have put my family (and the Andrew family) ahead of a fledgling business and I am going with them instead of staying behind to do the shoot.....it breaks my heart and makes me nervous as the phone hasn't exactly been ringing off the hook, but I have put my faith in God and if it is meant to work it will, it is a numbers game after all and if nothing else I am used to those!

Wednesday 25th February 2009

What an incredibly exciting day, I am literally dancing on top of the world. During the course of the day all my wonderful new photographic equipment has been arriving and you can imagine the excitement as I opened boxes and peered in at lighting equipment which until now has been the stuff of fantasies. To crown off the day I have my first booking, a private session to shoot a family to commemorate a wedding anniversary......such joy, I can't believe it is actually happening, it is like a dream come true!

My poor little Nick has been suffering with a nasty sore throat (and some mean temperatures), but even he has been caught up with my excitement and has remained cheerful throughout, well almost, a few crying spells through the day which for Nick is unheard of, but by and large he is coping like a little trooper.

Tuesday 24th February 2009

Seems like we made the right move with Phillip and he came home today deliriously happy and met me with a friend in tow ready to organise the first playdate, we also bumped into a mom on the road on the way home (yes we walked) and as she approached us she asked if this was the famous Phillip, so he has obviously making an impression, and both the girls she was with shyly said goodbye and see you tomorrow, so long may it last.

Other then that an uneventful day, rhyme time this morning at the library and the usual coffee at Cafe Rouge, then home to restock on Nicholas's home cooked meals as my oldest friend Tanya is down from Newcastle to visit me this weekend and I don't intend wasting time in the kitchen.

Monday 23rd February 2008

Spent a stunning afternoon with Lisel and AJ yesterday at their home in Plumpton Green. Lisel spoilt us with a wonderful roast lunch and the big two spent many happy hours playing on AJ's wii, in fact they really didn't want to leave to go home and I definitely don't think I will have any problems getting them to visit there again. Such a great way to spend an afternoon and something I hope we will be doing again soon!

Megs is back to school this morning while Phil still has one more day before his new school opens. His new school has a teacher training day today and I must say it has been a blessing as Philly has been a wonderful babysitter and has kept Nick occupied which has really given me a chance to get on top of all the admin for Tums 2 Tots and Pedal Studio (and to think a month ago I wasn't working at all and now I have two jobs lol).

I have now ordered all the lighting equipment and backdrops and am expecting my new lens tomorrow morning, so am really really starting to get excited, and lets face it terrified at the prospect. Spent the morning designing the marketing flier which has now gone to the printers and I will start marketing in earnest as soon as they arrive back.

Saturday 21st February 2009

Woke up this morning to lovely bright blue skies and temps promising to be above 10 degrees....deciding not to miss the best weather we have seen in weeks we quickly packed a picnic lunch and jumped into Aunty Madge (aka the bus) to head off for Devil's Dyke on the South Downs near Brighton and Hove.

Devil's Dyke is about 35 mins away by car and is a lovely national park area offering great expanses for walking and cycling. It is essentially a huge dry valley with rolling hills on either side and legend has it that the devil dug the valley to drown the parishioners of the Weald (Hence the name). Scientists, on the other hand, believe the largest "dry" valley in Britain was formed in the last ice age. Whichever is true it is certainly a very pretty place to spend an "almost Spring" morning.

On arrival we quickly realised that we were not alone in our decision and the whole valley was littered with people enjoying the outdoors....that is one thing Si finds difficult about being here, the lack of solitude, it literally doesn't matter where you go there will be someone else already there.....I on the other hand find it comforting, you never every feel totally alone, and I find it gives everything a very "holiday" feel as people are generally very friendly along the way.

We have acquired a backpack for Nicholas from Freecycle so we quickly had him out the car and we were off. I was impressed with how fit the entire family is becoming and we covered a 1.5km distance in no time at all and without breaking a sweat, the big two were even scampering up and down the hill side like little mountain goats.

I could have gone further as I was so enjoying the outdoors, but was outvoted as the lure of a picnic lunch still back in the car was too much for the other three. 1.5kms back and then a lovely picnic on the hillside watching the paragliders taking advantage of the perfect conditions. I have never seen so many in the air at once and we sat mesmerised watching there antics for at least half an hour.

I have to say that the whole morning had a very "South African" feel to it, the weather was warm enough for the children to strip down to tshirts (in fact Phil had his shirt off at one stage) and the country side was looking quite brown, it reminded me so much of days spent with my dad at either Summerveld or Karkloof watching him fly his model aircraft and when a glider went over it was just like being at home.

After a fantastic morning, Si and I spent the remainder of the day working on our respective projects and I can now say that I am ready to unveil the new business......Tums 2 Tots Photography

Friday 20th February 2009

Are we really already almost at the end of February.....time is just whizzing by and I simply cannot believe that in 5 days time I have been living in England 9 months.......our first year anniversary is just around the corner and I think we are going to have to have a bit of a party to celebrate making it this far.

The children have been on half term break this week, basically they are at school for no longer then 5 weeks at a time and then have either a "half term break" or a full holiday - wish I worked like that were I could have a week off in every 6 - eish and they want to grow up.

Megs has been out gallivanting since Wednesday and only returned home (with plenty of attitude let me tell you) at around lunch time today......I am please to say that I soon sorted her out and we were back on SA standard in short time. Spent the afternoon at Wakehurst place with some of my friends and I was a very proud mommy when one of the curators came to tell me that my children were the most delightful and best behaved that had been there all day - and it was saying something as over half term there are literally 100's of children there at any one time, so once again VIVA LA SOUTH AFRICAN PARENTING!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thursday 19th February 2009

Days like today make me look at my life and realise how truly blessed I am....As I stand poised to start yet another business I am so grateful for all the people who are in my circle of life and I wonder if these people have any idea how precious they are to me.....

I have to begin with my husband and my parents, without their support (emotional and financial) I wouldn't be the person I am today. My parents have always encouraged me with my business ventures and stand behind me 100% and that together with Simon's love and constant belief in me is what spurs me on to try new things. My dad is ever willing with a cheque book to fund a new business idea and so far I haven't let him down, so here's holding thumbs that this is another success. This financial aid has meant that Simon and I have never had to risk our home or our children's security on a new venture and it has meant the world to us both and we can only strive to offer our children the same kind of security one day.

To my cuz who has been the inspiration on this one....watching him with his new business and seeing his determination, commitment, hardwork and courage has me ready to go again and I can only hope that this, my fourth new business, will be as much of a success as the last have been and as Pedal Studio is.

To my beautiful children thank you for your patience whenever I go off on another business venture.......in your own way you support me more then you will ever know and I hope that you grow up to follow your dreams and reach for the stars as I have been able to do.

To the Viljoen family who have been such a part of this new venture, first as a sounding board and now with marketing ideas and constant encouragement......Guys you have NO IDEA how much you have come to mean to me in such a short time. I spent the ENTIRE day with Kerry, Rob, Kerry's friend Helen and their precious children using Kerry's laptop to trawl through 21 gigs (yes you read it right) of photographs in order to find the perfect ones for my new website as my computer doesn't have a dvd reader. Kerry watched Nick for me and held him while he slept, Rob made us a delicious lunch and Ben, Zac and Donay kept Phil company while I worked.....they didn't need to do this for me, but that is simply the kind of wonderful family that they are and I know I have said it many many many times before but our experience in the UK would not have been the same if I hadn't been blessed enough to walk into Argos in Burgess Hill on the precise day that Kerry was in there doing her shopping.

While going through all my thousands (literally) of photographs I came across so many that brought a smile to my lips, photos of friends and family so precious and of moments in our lives that will never be repeated but will be etched into my mind forever. To all of you who have let me photograph you over the years, you have been part of this journey and have brought me to this place so THANK YOU

The wonderful day did not end there however as when I returned home I had a phone call from my precious Linda to tell me that she and her family will be joining us at Devon Cliffs in March....now this was a surprise from Linnie and her family and I had absolutely no idea what she was planning, if fact even while she was telling me that they were going away in March I didn't click until she said the name of the caravan park......I was literally screaming and running around the room in excitement - a wonderful plan for a holiday has just become more special because friends have chosen to spend it with us - So thank you Cayne, Linnie, Caylin and Jordy for being the special family that you are.

I am so so blessed and I thank God everyday that he has chosen me to have such a wonderful cast in my life.

Monday 16th February 2009

Spring is definitely trying to arrive and today the temps actually topped out at around 14 degree allowing Phil, Nick and I to walk down to the village wearing only jerseys and without the 3 layers of clothing that we have become so accustomed to. The days are also getting longer and the sun is up by the time Si leaves for work at 7.30am only sinking again towards 5.30pm which is more like a normal South African winter day to us and is therefore much easier to cope with.

I have no doubt that we will probably experience another couple of cold snaps before the true change of seasons, but remember the little yellow flower which I photographed in the snow? Well they are now literally everywhere and their beautiful little faces together with our first sighting of a squirrel since the beginning of winter has the whole family's spirits high and even Phil finds himself drawn to looking at all the specimens of crocus growing wild on the estate.

Of course I couldn't resist a couple of photographs, I haven't seen a flower for months so these are definitely something to celebrate.

Saturday 14th February 2009

After a delish roast chicken for dinner last night Si and I decided that chicken mayo rolls were just what the doctor ordered for lunch......but problem, English mayonnaise tastes like......well nothing really, it is totally devoid of any flavour and we HATE it - it is literally the only thing we hate about here, but fortunately the problem is easily solved by a visit to the closest South African shop for Cross and Blackwell Tangy mayonnaise.

Having made a couple of phone calls however I quickly discovered that our two closest shops were out of stock which necessitated a 40 minute drive to New Haven to the SA shop there (couldn't just give up on the mayo, that was simply not an option lol). Stocked with 3 jars of mayo, 2 large packets of niknaks, some dry wors, 10 fizzpop suckers and all the ingredients for a peppermint fridge tart we we thought we may as well make the drive really worthwhile and explore the area a little bit.

Ended up taking a stroll down to the beach where the big two couldn't resist dipping their toes into the icy ocean and I got to enjoy taking some photographs of the sunset.....there were some really dramatic cloud formations which made things a little more interesting, and of course a day out wouldn't be a day out without the obligatory family shots again made a little more interesting by the sunset.

Thursday 12th February 2009

Omg what a wonderful, happy and exciting day.......I have made contact with one of my oldest and dearest friends again and all through the wonderful medium of this blog. Now you have to understand, Nita and I have been in each others lives for like forever and we had lost contact since I have been here, (thanks to the hateful horribleness of BT e-mail....but don't even get me started on that one) but today thanks to a comment she posted on yesterdays blog we are reunited and I am literally skipping around the room grinning like a mad woman.

A second piece of wonderful happy news is that we have found a minister who will dedicate Nicholas for us in our garden at home and my wonderful cousin Andrew and two closest friends Tanya and Linda have agreed to stand as his godparents. We will be having him dedicated when my parents visit later in the year, but feels good to know that it is at last actually being planned and we are not just living in limbo.

I have to confess however to a small bit of sadness around this event as my wonderful brother-in-law Brett is godfather to both Megan and Phillip and had we remained in South Africa he and his wife Charl would definitely have been Nicholas's godparents as well, but in the absence of family I am so grateful for true and wonderful friends who I know will love and cherish little Nick as much as we do.

Wednesday 11th February 2009

The remainder of the weekend passed in a blur of ironing with both Meg and Phil being out on Sunday afternoon....Megan swimming with her friend Sophie at the Triangle and Phillip at a birthday party at the Lazerhub up in Crawley. The first two days of this week have also seemed to just sweep by and poof before I know it it is midday on Wednesday and it has been 3 days since I last did a post.

Nicholas and I walked to Kindermusiek again this morning as the sky was blue (for a change) and although it is freezing cold I enjoy getting out and getting some fresh air....there is something a bit stale about warm centrally heated air and I think both Nick and I benefit from the 10km round trip.

It was on this walk that I started thinking about how lucky I feel to be alive today (I know I know a bit corny, but it is true), it was not so much about counting my blessings (of which I have many) it was more about the fact that life can be so short and we just don't know what is around the next corner.......hundreds of families are being destroyed in Australia at the moment by fire and people left home on Monday morning not knowing that by that evening they would have no home to return to and that members of their family may have perished in the blaze.

A story which has stuck with me constantly over the last few days is of the reporter who left to go and do a story on the fire only to receive a phone call from his wife to say that their home had been overrun, shortly after that he lost contact with her and had no way of knowing if she was alive or dead.

It is just something we don't think about I guess, but it is something we should think about.....live life to the full and like it is your last on earth are sayings we are all familiar with, but a friend of mine's mom has just been diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumour and given 6 months to live....what would I do with those 6 months if I knew they were my last and if I would do something differently to what I am doing now, then I am doing something wrong.

Fortunately I don't think there is much I would change, yes I may go into debt to travel more, but other than that I believe that I give my family everything that I can every day and I never let them leave my sight without telling them I love them.....it may be as many as 5 times in a day, but I want to know that the last words they ever hear from me will be "I love you".

Saturday 6th February 2009

Not entirely sure what has happened to the snow, they certainly keep forecasting it, but as of yet we have only had wet cold weather and none of the lovely soft white stuff that we have so been looking forward to.

Weather aside today was another diamond.......woke this morning to the sound of the doorbell ringing and there was the postman from Royal mail with a lovely fat envelope addressed to me from my mom....yes here the parcels are delivered to your door on a Saturday by a very friendly man on a bicycle all dressed in red at 7.30am.

Needless to say it didn't take long to rip open our pressie and discover it included a gorgeous new jersey and two beanies for Nic, a wonderful beanie for me, a moms and babes cd and a perfect little baby feeding spoon for Nicholas - felt like Christmas, receiving little treasures from South Africa always brings great excitement to the house and lifts the spirits for the whole day.

At 11.30am my friend Tanya came to collect Nick and I and we headed off to The Chequers in Slaugham (Sloth-ham) for lunch with the girls from my NCT group - it was lovely to see Josie again as she has returned to her teaching job and we have decided that a boozy lunch in the pub once a month is just what the doctor ordered......well not really boozy, we all had one drink - but hey ho who knows we can always hope lol.

Nick and I arrived home literally in the nick of time to catch Si and the big two heading out to Burgess Hill. We dropped Megan and Phillip off at the Odion to watch Bolt the new animated Disney movie and Si, Nick and I went to coffee with Kerry and Rob for a couple of hours. How lovely to feel comfortable enough to leave our children alone in the movie house.....yes armed with mobile phones and strict instructions that they were not to leave until Daddy got there to fetch them, but a wonderful feeling for both us and them and they have come home filled with confidence and feeling so proud of themselves.....another big FIRST for England.

Dinner was bacon and eggs cooked by my precious dh and the rest of the family is now settled watching Indiana Johns......another good weekend in Enland me thinks.

Wednesday 4th February 2009

The snow has melted in most places now and my word has it dropped the temperatures.....we are back into minus temps and the pond in Lindfield has again frozen over. There is more snow forecast for tomorrow so we will see what happens.

Most of the schools in the area remained closed yesterday so I had Megs and Phil home with me again. Unfortunately it did mean that we were unable to go and check out the new schools for Phillip but luckily I was able to reshedule the appointment at Lindfield today and it seems that we aren't even going to see the second school as Phil fell instantly in love and is very willing and eager to make the move at the end of half term (basically 3 weeks away). I must say, for me it is very quick and has left me reeling a bit as I was only expecting September, but it is now or never and even the head teacher at his existing school recommends that we take the place as they don't come up very often.

This school is much bigger then their current one and offers a whole host of clubs which Phil is very excited about, he is looking forward to taking up tennis and table tennis and possibly even trying his hand at tag rugby again. There are 60 children in his year (as opposed to 75 in the whole school) and there will be approximately 32 in his class, but I am not too stressed as there is a teacher and teacher's assistant which keeps the ratio at 15:1 which I have no problem with.

Monday 2nd Febuary 2009

The first thing we all did this morning when we opened our eyes was rush to the window to see if there had been any more snow overnight and we certainly weren't disappointed, outside was white and lovely and the snow was still falling. Five minutes in front of the news soon told us just how wide spread and serious the snow was and it quickly became apparent that Si would not be getting into work as the trains had all been suspended - fortunately I suppose he wasn't feeling that well (think he has Nick's cold) and had already decided to take a days sick and stay in bed.


Just before 8am we received word that the children's school had been closed due to the dangerous roads and it was all systems go for a Robertson Family Home day. Leaving Nic asleep upstairs with Si, the children and I went racing out to the common to see how deep the snow was and there we met Stuart one of our neighbours and the chairman of our governing body, and what a fortuitous meeting it turned out to be as not long after we had returned home for breakfast Stuart was knocking at the door holding a traditional Austrian wooden toboggan which he has lent us for the remainder of the winter as he was sure we hadn't bought one with us from SA....what a kind and generous thought and both Si and I were incredibly touched by this gesture. Needless to say it was a matter of minutes before we were out again trying it out......I even had a go, and screamed all the way down the hill like a girl I must admit, but what fun and even Si was convinced to come outside for a bit to try it out.

Snowman building was also in the order of the day and we built one in the morning before our walk into town for milk (unable to drive as the roads so bad) and one in the evening.....our second one was a real masterpiece and we were so proud of him - unfortunately some local louts took it upon themselves to knock him down the minute we had crossed the road to go home, but what can you do.......at least we had the joy of spending time as a family building him. Other then the three in the park who crushed Mr Frosty everyone was so friendly and chatty and there was a real holiday feel in the air, such a nice community spirit.

Sunday 1st February 2008

What a lovely slow lazy day....the snow has arrived and the children have been out in the garden making shelters and enjoying this new experience. It was lovely to sit round the table enjoying a beautiful roast pork with 4 veg and roast potatoes (I really pulled out all the stops) and watch the snow falling outside our window - such a surreal experience and I have been driving Andrew and Simon mad with my constant chatter about how awesome the snow is and how lucky we are.

I have been amazed by how much snow will actually have to fall in order to cover the ground completely and give us that lovely white landscape, but I am hoping it will fall again overnight and we will awake to a white wonderland in the morning.

Si and Cuz are sitting watching Black Adder (my gift to Si for his birthday), Nick is asleep upstairs in his cot (poor little thing has such a bad cold his nose is constantly running) and Meg and Phil are in the conservatory playing playstation as I type this and we are all about to stop and enjoy a lovely toffee pudding and tea before Cuz heads back on the train to London....a stunning way to spend a Sunday.

UPDATE: Well toffee pudding turned into hours of chat about Pedal Studio and some developments we think would work well on the website and guess what, when I opened the door to take Andrew back to the station it was white white white, so another FIRST for me.....actually driving in the snow, so beautiful that when I got home I simply HAD to grab my tripod and set off round the estate - unfortunately my freezing fingers eventually forced me back inside, but how lovely to be safe enough to walk around alone at night with my camera and tripod and to actually be photographing snow.....sigh.....a perfect day!