Sunday 31st May 2009

What a stellar weekend....that is literally the only way to describe it.....you know the kind when everything goes right and you spend the entire time in a warm happy fug stupidly grinning to yourself and simply loving the life you are in - well that was me all weekend, and it wasn't that anything particularly spectacular happened but rather the people and atmosphere that made it all so perfect.

Friday dawned with magnificent weather so I decided to treat my children to a swim in one of the local outdoor swimming pools which have now opened for the summer and I think the massive increase in Vitamin D obtained by lying prone on a sun lounger for 2 hours has contributed tremendously to my overall state of well being.

There really is only one way I can think to describe the English reaction to hot sunny weather and that is to say it is absolutely identical to the way Durbanites react when it snows in the midlands and everyone takes off in a festive "party" mood and complete strangers smile at each other and exchange plesantries and reallity is suspended for a short time. Now I have to say I find this reaction somewhat strange as the sun certainly shines here A LOT more then it snows in KZN but yet the English are positively delightful to be around when the mercury rises and I find myself happily being carried along in this holiday atmosphere.

Saturday was Lindfield Village day (and yet more perfect weather), and as I strolled down to the park to take up my post selling hamburgers and hotdogs (pork sausages and onions in a roll) for the cubs I couldn't help a small smile as I thought back to the identical weekend last year, my first in England. Simon, the children and I had tentatively made our way to the park to see what the area had to offer and now there I was, just 12 short months later strolling through my new home with a place I needed to be and a guarantee of knowing at least a few people milling around during the course of the day....and for the first time in a very long time I felt like I truly belonged.

Saturday night Lisel, Kerry, Rob and their children joined us for dinner and as always it was a delightful evening filled with good friends, good food and lots and lots of laughter. Sadly for us, but wonderfully for them, Lisel and AJ will be returning to South Africa in July to resume their lives in Paarl - even though we haven't known them for long, we have spent an "orphan" Christmas together and we are going to miss them very very much....eish and I thought when we moved here we wouldn't have to keep saying goodbye to friends - seems like in this tiny global village we live in it is inevitable.

Today dawned yet another perfect day and as we were expecting friends from my NCT group for a braai / BBQ we couldn't have asked for better weather. It was fun for the men to get to know each other and nice for us all to spend time socialising together....the three babies were an absolute delight and crawled around in the garden very happily while the adults enjoyed Pimms and lunch in the glorious sunshine. Pure magic!

A tiny touch of inspiration

I picked this up recently and some of the points really resonated with me so I thought I would share it...

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be kept under wraps, you shouldn't be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words 'In five years, will this matter?'
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.
31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.
35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood.
38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.
41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
42. The best is yet to come.
43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
44. Yield.
45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift.

Written By Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The Plain Dealer, Cleveland , Ohio

Weekend away

I was fortunate enough to go up to Whitley Bay (Near Newcastle on Tyne) to spend the long weekend with Tanya and her family....originally the plan was for the whole family to go up next weekend but Sheila had developed a small oil leak and after all the drama with Aunty Madge (aka the bus) Si really didn't want to chance it, so he kindly agreed to Nick and I training it up on Saturday morning to spend 2 nights up there.

The overland trains in this country are truly amazing (if a wee bit expensive) and I really felt very comfortable strapping my backpack on my back, hoisting my baby onto my hip and setting off on a 4 hour journey cross country. I was lucky enough to have a free seat next to me all the way up so Nick alternately slept on the seat next to me and charmed the other passengers, so really not difficult at all....the trains are equip with toilets and little mini restaurants and bars so breakfast was easily available and I ended up enjoying myself immensely.

Tanya and Sam (her eldest son) met us at the station in Newcastle and we trained it down to her little town about 30 minutes away....the weather was perfect and we spent the afternoon catching up and taking the children for a play in the park. Saturday evening Steve and Tanya treated me to my fav Chicken Corma at the Himalaya (a little Bangladeshi restaurant just down the road from them) and Jennifer (Steve's 22 year old daughter) kindly watched Nick for me so I could enjoy an evening out.

Sunday unfortunately saw Tanya and Tom stricken with a nasty tummy bug that Sam had had earlier in the week and although we all managed a wonderful morning on a glorious warm sunny beach, the afternoon saw Tan forced into bed where she remained for most of the afternoon and night.

Although I of course missed the time with her, I was able to spend some quality time with her boys on the pedestrianised road outside her home and it was awesome for me to finally be a part of these boys lives and to be able to bond with them as they are growing up - Tanya and I have been friends for 23 years and as I said to her husband this weekend, our friendship had to almost go on hold while she lived here and I remained in SA but now it is as it should be and we are once again in each other's everyday lives.

After dinner I decided to hit the street and went for a long long walk on the waterfront and was really able to enjoy what a beautiful coastline Whitley Bay is on....it felt a bit South African in the hot evening sun and I really enjoyed the soft sand under my feet. Whitley bay is the Bull's Party and Hen's night capital of the North and the "strip" (road where all the hotels and clubs are situated) was in full swing by the time Nick and I were heading back to Tanya and Steve's.....so much so I encountered my first full frontal public nudity in a very very long time, and I am clearly getting old as it left me speechless for at least an hour (lol).

Monday morning Tanya was feeling much better, so we (Tanya, Jennifer, Sam, Tom, Nicholas and I) set off for a long walk along the beach front in the opposite direction to my walk on Sunday night and as the weather was again glorious it was wonderful to be out enjoying the fresh air. Sadly the time passed too quickly and lunch time saw me back on the train home. Again I had a free seat next to me so it was another peaceful and uneventful trip home and one I wouldn't hesitate to make again in the not too distant future.

It was so lovely to be in the Card's home and to spend time with their family...I was once again treated with such thought and kindness - I just wish Tan and I had had a little bit more time together, we both felt her nasty bug cheated us a bit, but I guess now that we live in the same country I will be able to see her soon and it is not like it is another 3 years till we will be in each others company.

Such a stunning weekend - THANK YOU!

Monday 25th May 2009

A year.....365 days since we set foot on English soil for the first time and it has literally flown by or has it....in some respects it feels like just yesterday we arrived and I can still remember our last days in South Africa as if they were last week and yet in other respects I feel like I have been here FOREVER and everything is so familiar and like home....a strange feeling to say the least.

So in honour of my first anniversary in England here are......

5 things I love about England

• The history
• The beautiful country side
• London
• Village life
• Walking

5 things I have missed about South Africa

• My friends and family
• The sea
• The weather
• The Beat
• Steak

5 things I have learned about myself

• I have more coping skills then I thought
• I am able to do housework - even if I HATE it
• I enjoy new challenges rather then feel scared of them
• I don't mind change
• I can get on with most people

5 things I have learned about my family

• My parents love us enough to let us go
• Children are incredibly resilient
• Adversity can bring you together as much as it can tear you apart you just have to choose it
• My children are well mannered, stable, well balance wonderful people
• My husband also feels scared and down at times and he NEEDS me as much as I need him.

Some of you who have been reading for a long time will remember a questionnaire I put to my children 1 months after we had been here, well I decided to put it to them again. Megan's answers are first with the original answer in brackets below and then Phill's answers underneath those.

How long have we been living in Lindfield?
Do I have to give exact answer...thinking....about 1 year and 1 week and 4 days
(Ummm, well, I say about 2 weeks on Saturday)

I dunno
(3 weeks)

Do you like it here?
Yes I definitely do, it is the greatest place on earth
(Yes I do, I enjoy walking to the park)

Yes, no real reason just do
(Ummm, Yes)

What are your favourite things about England?
Being able to walk all by myself to the shop
(Well my favourite things are....legoland and lemurland)

Walking
(All my new friends)

What are the worst things about England?
The pebbly beaches and the cold
(Shopping!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

Um, the children swear
(Shopping!!!!!!!!!!!!)

What are you missing most about South Africa?
All the people I know and like
(My friends, my granny and pappa and my school, um and.....and Megan Houghton)

Dominic (somethings never change)
(Dominic)

Do you like your new school?
Yes I do it is very nice and I have made lots of new friends
(Yes, I do, it is lots of fun because I get to dance every Tuesday and we are doing a play in 3 weeks time and it is lots of fun because we are working on Queen Elizabeth)

Yes, it is a big school with lots of nice playtime equipment
(Yes I do)

Do you like your new house?
Yes not as big as our old one but it is a lot more cozy
(Yes I do, specially coz now I have my room all to myself)

Yes
(Yes I do)

Are you happy to be living in England?
Yes, it does have up and down sides but I do like it here
(Well, yes, but I do miss a lot of people, and sometimes I wish we could go back)

Yes because I can walk around and be safe on the street
(Yes I am)

Sunday 24th May 2009

Today is my 12th wedding anniversary and also 1 year since I boarded a plane for England to join Simon in our new life here together. Now I have to put it on record that Simon and I don't really go in for all this celebrate on a special day kind of thing and really don't do valentines, mother's day, father's day etc etc etc and our wedding anniversary is no exception, we try to show each other that we love each other every day and don't feel the need for a day of celebration....now I KNOW this doesn't work for 99% of the population but it works for us and like Steve Mack (a well know Durban psychologist) said.....we are VERY DIFFERENT so lets just leave it at that :-).

All that said however I thought I would break a little bit with tradition...only a little as I did spend our anniversary away from home with a friend (but that is another post), and jot down the 10 things I love most about this wonderful man I am married to, so here goes.

1. His loyalty.....when Simon loves you (or even likes you) you can count on him to be in your corner always, no question just commitment and I LOVE that about him.
2. His adoration of his children....Si is a WONDERFUL father and I fall in love with him all over again every single time I see him playing with Megan, Phillip and Nicholas or just lying on the couch chilling in front of a movie eating popcorn and giggling along with them.
3. His ability to follow through.....Si never quits, he is a FINISHER and from someone who chops and changes and gets frustrated and hates something and wants to stop I find this ability a HUGE inspiration and wish a little bit of it would rub off on me.
4. His sense of humour....Simon has a wicked sense of humour and when he is on form can keep me laughing for hours - it is wonderful that so many years into a relationship (18 years we have been together) we are still able to laugh together
5. The way he looks after himself....Si has always taken care of his body and health and as a man of almost 40 he is still looking good and I often find myself "admiring" him from a distance without being aware who it is ;-)
6. The way he supports me....Si is one of my biggest fans when it comes to business, and his faith in me helps me to believe in myself.
7. The way he loves my parents.....Si really sees my mom and dad as family and it is so wonderful to me that he welcomes them into his home and makes it as easy as possible for us to be together.
8. His honesty....Si says it like it is and sometimes this comes across as harsh, but he is one of the most honest, sincere people I know and his word is his bond
9. His belief in himself....in some people I guess this could come across as arrogance, but in Si it is more a quiet confidence, he really likes himself and believes that he is a capable, good person which means I don't have to spend my life building him and feeding his ego.
10. That family is first....no sport, no television program, no friend, no work, in fact not a thing I can think of is more important to Simon then time with his family and he will drop anything and everything to help us or spend time with us.

LOVE YOU BABE....Happy Anniversary xxxx

Thursday 21st May 2009

Megan had her country dancing at school this morning and it was lovely to sit outside in the warm sunshine and watch the children celebrate the arrival of spring with many traditional English country dances including the year 6's around the maypole.

Megan had an absolute ball and was smiling from ear to ear whilst her baby brother also thought the whole thing was great and sat mesmerised though it all. I even had a chance to dance around the maypole in the Mother's dance - another first for England....such a lovely morning!

Bought my train ticket to Whitley bay this afternoon so the trip is now official.....yippee just two more sleeps until Nicholas and I head up to Tanya for the long weekend.

Wednesday 20th May 2009

As I stood this morning stacking my dishwasher I was struck but the stark contrast in my life today as opposed to yesterday - yesterday I was a business woman focused on producing a state of the art dynamic website, without children as they were all being taken care of by others, and with work as my primary concern....today I am back to vacuuming carpets, convincing Nicholas he actually wants to sleep, stacking dishwashers, cooking dinner and washing clothes - is it any wonder that my head is all over the place and I sometimes feel like I am going mad. I know that I am not the only woman with this life, but for me it is new and scary and overwhelming and I wonder if I will ever get on top of it.

I so cherished the peace when I first arrive here and yet somehow I have managed to find myself back on the treadmill running like a crazed hamster..... I have NEVER in my life worked as hard as I am now and worn as many hats (I am a mother, a wife, a housekeeper, a friend, an employee and a business owner), and I don't know whether it is because I am just plain stupid or because God is giving me an amazing opportunity to grow as a person and find inner strengths that I never knew existed....So am I crazy?

Maybe but one thing I know for sure is that when I look back on this first year in England in just a few days it will be nothing if not interesting and filled with challenges and I have begun growing into the kind of capable, strong woman I have always admired....I have LIVED this last year and although I may be totally on my knees at the moment and sometimes desperate for the opportunity to just lie on the couch with absolutely NOTHING to do, I don't have a single regret and that is what gets me through the next hour and the next and the next and the next.

Weekend 16th - 18th May 2009

A stunning weekend filled with obtaining new knowledge and developing good friendships. Phil was away at cub camp in Ardingly (pronounced Are-ding-lie) so we had a big space in the house where he should have been and Megan missed him more then she was willing to admit when he finally came home.

Saturday morning was spent doing the final admin relating to the move and trust me there is as much red tape and frustration in this country as there is in South Africa and bureaucracy definitely seems to be is a universal problem (lol).

Simon and I are working on a big website rebuild at present and the backend (Simon's responsibility) is finally coming to an end so I spent from 1pm Saturday to 1am on Sunday working on the front end in Dreamweaver and I am totally hooked.....all I need now is to get my mac and I will officially be the happiest little person in the world - the fact (as my dad pointed out) that the mac will cost exactly the same as our latest car is beside the point ;-)

Sunday we had one of Megan's friend's parents for lunch and thanks to the cold grey morning the original plan of a ploughman's lunch went out the window and was replaced by a thick vegetable soup starter served with garlic and cheese croutons followed by a traditional roast chicken with pork and onion stuffing (thanks to Sainsbury's), crispy roast potatoes and 5 vegetables , all finally ended off with a raspberry pavlova and thick cream.

It turned out to be a lovely relaxed afternoon during which Ligia and I cuddled up on the couch with our feet up discussing play therapy in children while the men chatted about all and sundry and the two girls played happily upstairs. At 4pm Si shot out to fetch Phillip and it was one very tired little boy who finally arrived home, so tired in fact we found him asleep in the bath 30 minutes later.

Spent all day Monday working on the Pedal Studio newsletter and by the time Simon got home I was desperate for some fresh air, so we packed Nick into the backpack and headed off to a nearby wood for a walk. I have missed walking recently, time and the weather seem to have been conspiring against me and it has been at least a month since I last managed 30kms in a week so I really relished this opportunity and before we knew it we had managed to cover around 5kms - a distance which 1 short year ago would have left me breathless and which is now quite manageable complete with Nicholas's 11kgs on my back.

Friday 15th May 2009

I have had a lovely busy two days, but in the spirit of my last entry they have been days focused on family and friends and I have been trying to breath rather then shout and to take back the control in my life that I have felt missing for the last few weeks.

On my mom's recommendation I have started taking the medication that Dr Rout prescribed me for possible post natal depression before I left SA and it seems to be making a HUGE difference....basically my PND was triggered both times by hormonal imbalance and these tabs were there to stabilise it if need be and hey presto they seem to be working now as well, so viva la little white tablets (lol)

On Thursday I hosted a lunch at our new home for 4 of my friends and it was a super couple of hours spend sitting on my lounge floor amongst a host of babies enjoying each other's company and catching up on each others lives.....I have known these women for a relatively short time and yet each one has become special to me in her own way and I really feel their absence in my life when we haven't had a chance to meet up.

Phillip has gone away on Cubs camp this weekend so with Nick tucked up in bed it is back to just Si, Meg and I and we are about to sit down and watch a dvd together while enjoying some hot chocolate.....and I am not going to work, I am actually going to snuggle up with family and enjoy the movie - finally trying to get my priorities straight :-)

Life is too short

This blog hasn't been so much a diary of our life in England over the past few days but more of a journal for my thoughts as they are occurring.

There is a lot of press here at the moment about a family who very tragically lost their 2 year old son in an freak accident at a fun fair in North London last weekend. Instances like this one really highlight that life is simply too short and I have no doubt that that poor father is just wishing he had done something differently that morning....that he had decided on the beach rather then a visit the fun fair or that he had chosen to have lunch in a different area of the park, or not stopped to chat as he had when his little one managed to escape and in this instance run right into dangers way.

We really don't know when we are going to speak to or hold our loved ones for the last time and we take so much of the time that we have with them for granted....I know that I am guilty of this and am inclined to ask my family to wait while I fulfill my other commitments, but should the unthinkable happen I know that it would be a regret that I would live with for the rest of my life, and so with that in mind I am determined to stop and smell the roses more often, to spend time celebrating the wonderful souls that have been sent to spend their time here with me, and to try and just live one day at a time instead of 3 weeks ahead as I usually do.

Giving up feeding

I have just given up feeding Nicholas and I am not entirely sure who is suffering more.....he is definitely more then a little confused as, up until now, he has been exclusively demand fed and if that meant 3 times in an hour then so be it and now the tap has been abruptly turned off as it were and he is reeling a little bit (his fault for refusing the bottle and holding out for the breast feeds).

I too am going though all kinds of angst, not only am I dealing with breasts from hell (sorry my male readers but my word, this is painful going cold turkey and without the use of drying up tablets) but my hormones are all over the place and I am back to crying at the death of animated dogs and turning on my husband in a rage one minute and kissing him the next - to say that Simon is confused is the understatement of the century and he even asked me if I thought I may be going mad the other day.....of course this was done with great trepidation and from behind the safety of a closed door in case I chose that moment to flip and throw something at him (lol), but it actually got me to thinking.

What is it with woman and hormones, they control us and turn us into strange beings at least once a months....if our hormones are out of wack so are we, I literally cannot think reasonably and the aggression is almost like a physical force in my stomach....I am now so desperate to get it under control that I am seriously thinking about speaking to the doctor about some kind of medication.....anything to restore some semblance of sanity, but preferably in the form of a patch or injection.

I don't think our diets help any either, most of the meat we eat has some kind of hormone in it and all the fruit and veg has been so irradiated or frozen or both that most of the vitamins and minerals are gone.....my biggest problem (and I can admit this) is that I can't remember to take the supplements that I have spent a fortune on in the past and so the cycle never gets broken and I find myself spiralling into a kind of frenzy for a week every month and then spending the rest of the month feeling alternately guilty about my behaviour and frustrated because I know it is going to happen again.....so why am I noticing it all now, and why am I suddenly determined to fix it?

Well I have had relatively stable hormone levels for the last 18 months and I liked it....no I LOVED it, I was able to enjoy my life, my children and my wonderful dh and if Nick didn't now have teeth I would seriously consider feeding for a considerable time still in order to maintain the balance.....so what now....well I am going to endeavour to get things under control and in the mean time hope that my dh and children don't give up on me entirely....I know they have also preferred the woman that has been living with them for the last 18 months and I will do just about anything at the moment to get her back.

Jann

Simon took Jann and Rodney to the airport yesterday after a lovely braai out on our terrace and I can definitely feel a Jann sized hole in our home....I have never spent more then a day with my sil before and I have to say I LOVED it, we clicked and connected on so many levels and although I have felt like one of the "Robertson girls" for many years I think this trip has definitely cemented my sisterhood with her - we seemed to share a similar view on so much and I can honestly say that we had one long opened ended far reaching never boring conversation which flowed day after day and often into the early hours of the morning.

The whole family enjoyed having her in our space and spending time catching up and I suppose for the siblings it gave them an opportunity to "get to know" each other again....we didn't DO much in the tourist manner of things but rather spent time talking and walking (we averaged 7000 steps per day on Jann's pedometer) and Jann was able to experience our life in this sleepy English village.



The children seemed especially touched by her time here and Phil commented this morning that he wished Aunty Jannie hadn't left - he seemed to establish an almost instant and deep connection with her which I am sure he will remember for a long time. Jann's tireless listening to Megan writing and "recording" of her song was also a big hit and Meg has now asked for a dictaphone for her birthday so that she can follow in her very talented aunts footsteps.....Jann was in many musical productions in South Africa and continues to explore her amazing ability through songwriting and her website designed to market and promote South African talent http://www.yourart.co.za/

Such a lovely trip, I am going to miss Jann in my space and hope that we will see her again before too many years have passed.

Friday 8th May 2009

As I sit this evening watching my precious family all watching Kung Fu Panda and laughing out loud as only the Robertson's can do I am struck by just how lucky I am to be surrounded by such amazing souls......

Megan, the old soul, has been here before and is filled with an inner peace and calm certainty that astounds me - I am certain that she has been sent into my life to teach me something and at times I definitely feel like she is the parent and I am the child. Megan has coped with this move probably better then any of us and she is growing up to be a responsible, compassionate, generous and sensible young woman.

My Phillip, I believe, is here on his first journey and his soul is excited just to be alive....where there is Phillip there is joy (and noise and huge amounts of energy lol) - I don't know what I would have done without this little person in my life, he reminds me often that life is about living in the moment and even in his most exhausting moments his love of life is infectious.

Nicholas is still too young to have fully formed his character, but again I believe that I have been blessed with another old soul.....this little boy has a wonderful calm about him that soothes me in my most harassed moments and I find people watching him mesmerised where ever we go as he seems to have something about him that attracts attention and melts hearts (and no I don't think it is just his chubby cheeks and thunder thighs lol).

As for the man I chose to spend my life with....WOW....sometimes I can't believe how lucky I have been - yes we argue and we have had our rocky patches and steep mountains to climb, and at times we drive each other utterly mad, but at the foundation is a strong loyal love that I believe will see us through it all. Simon the father is a phenomenal man and I fall in love with him over and over again when I see him playing with our children and holding our baby boy feeding him his bottle with that soft "daddy" look in his eyes.....sigh.

Moments like this remind me why we are here, it is not about the money or the material success, it is about connecting with others and sharing our lives in meaningful ways.....it is about raising the next generation in a loving environment and giving them the tools to carve their own way in the world, the rest is all just stuff and if we can find a way to let some of that stuff go I think that is the path to true peace and happiness.

Thursday 7th May 2009

I am back on line.....woooohoooooo......and very very pleased to be here, blogging has become such a part of my day to day life that I have felt a huge gap this last week and I am delighted to be back tapping away on my keyboard while life in our new house gently goes on around me.

The move, as I indicated in my last post, was very hard, but it is over now which is the important thing and we are happily ensconced in our new home and so far I have not had a moments regret at my decision (well maybe a slight fleeting moment sometime late on moving day when every muscle in my body was aching lol but not since then). It turns out all of the four flats in the house are occupied by families with children, two of which are delightful little boys who have turned out to be great playmates for Phillip and he is spending some lovely happy hours out in our stunning communal garden enjoying his new friends.

Many people have asked me why on earth I felt the need to move when we were very happily living in a spacious 3 bedroom home with no apparent problems and apart from some not too hectic financial reasons I think it boiled down to the fact that I had never chosen our first house and as such had never had the totally emotional "gut" reaction to it. My dear friend Bee always talks about loving where you live and I so get that and now I do, love where I live that is.....when I moved to England I never really imagined living in a 1960's new build and although it ticked all the boxes on paper our first home was simply no comparison to our new quirky character filled Victorian flat and I am so so grateful I decided to look at one more property :-)

The first week in our home has also been an eventful one as not only did it see the 1 year anniversary of Si's arrival here but one of my sister-in-law's is also spending some time with us while her partner is doing business in Germany....it has been indescribably stunning to have family here and Jann and I have literally spent hours and hours and hours chatting about everything and nothing (if that makes sense), I have LOVED having her in my home and little Phillip has taken to her in the most amazing way, she is so patient with them and spends hours on the floor in the afternoons playing board games and pick up sticks so she is definitely a firm favourite. Jann is a singer/songwriter and this has Meggie absolutely enchanted.....this afternoon they even spent a couple of hours writing songs and "recording" them on Jann's Dictaphone so Megs is in her element, especially as her uba talented auntie actually thinks she shows latent promise as a lyricist.

So all in all a string of diamonds recently....see I am already putting the nightmare move out of my mind lol and really looking forward to to the summer and all the excitement and promise it brings.

Sunday 2nd May 2009

Just a very brief post.....move has been LONG and EXHAUSTING and I am glad that it is almost over - have told Si at least a million times this week that I am ONLY moving again when it is into our own home.

Monday the weather was very difficult and it rained the entire day...poor Si and Rob were waiting for breaks in the rain to bring the furniture up the stairs and I think they were both very very relieved when the final load was eventually in the house. I have spent the entire week unpacking and sorting and let me tell you it is not an easy task with no help and when you still have to keep the home running

We are spending the afternoon (Saturday) with Kerry and Rob and enjoying a lovely braai and (for me) some much needed blog time (lol)....it is a long weekend here with a bank holiday on Monday so it will be nice to have Si and the kids home with me and Si's sister Jann will be arriving to spend a week with us which will be stunning.