Wednesday, 17 February 2010
It's the little things that make a house a home......
We gave Megan 3 canvases and some acrylic paints for Christmas and these "artworks" now hang on the wall in our passage way just outside her bedroom....I love her use of bold colours, signature of absolutely ANY art she does, it really brightens up the whole area :0)
Tuesday, 16 February 2010
Monday 15th February 2010
Every Monday morning I have a group of friends round for tea so that the babies can have a chance to play together in a smaller, more intimate environment - it has become one of mine and Nick Nick's favourite days of the week.....he just adores his little friends and I love the mommies so it is perfect and it is so sweet to watch them growing up together.
She really is his best girl in the world :0)
Nick is happy to just be by Ruby's side and watch her play
She really is his best girl in the world :0)
Saturday, 13 February 2010
Saturday 13th February 2010
Have had a really eventful week and lots of exciting developments which I am not quite ready to blog just yet surfice to say my husband is my hero and once again has show just what an AMAZING man he is :0)
Thursday, 11 February 2010
Wednesday, 10 February 2010
Wednesday 10th February 2010
Today I had the second part of my emergency root canal treatment and I am sore - I have an incredibly high pain threshold, but when the pain breaks through I am exceptionally intolerant so am feeling VERY sorry for myself and counting the sleeps till my mommy gets here - funny how it doesn't matter how old you are having mom ALWAYS helps :0)
Monday, 8 February 2010
This evening after dinner while Meg was watching telly and Phil was having a bath Nick Nick climbed into one of his toy chests and literally sat for an hour playing with his toys....he is such a precious child and I couldn't resist snapping a photo or two.
Playing with George his talking bear (christmas present from Granny and Papa)
He has learned what the camera means and this is his best posed smile lol
Sunday, 7 February 2010
Sunday 7th February 2010
Man am I tired.....this weekend I worked for friends Kerry and Rob in their catering business called Heaven Scent. Now as those who have known me forever will know I used to own my own catering business in South Africa years ago and thought I was prepared for a weekend serving lunch, dinner, breakfast (I didn't go in for that one) and lunch again, well I wasn't :0)
This is not serving like we do in SA where someone else carries the crates and loads the dishwasher and clears the cutlery and wipes the counters and mops the floors and empties the rubbish bins etc etc etc - Kerry and Rob (and me this weekend) do it all and let me tell you it is incredibly hard work and I was so proud to stand beside my friends and hear the compliments shower down on them.
Kerry and Rob are amazing people and they run a sharp and professional business with superb food that was served on time at every meal and without any stress or fluster - for 65 people and with only the three of us doing literally EVERYTHING....I am humbled by their positive attitude to hard work and inspired by what you can do when you set your mind to it!
A good weekend even if my muscles are aching from the strain ;0)
This is not serving like we do in SA where someone else carries the crates and loads the dishwasher and clears the cutlery and wipes the counters and mops the floors and empties the rubbish bins etc etc etc - Kerry and Rob (and me this weekend) do it all and let me tell you it is incredibly hard work and I was so proud to stand beside my friends and hear the compliments shower down on them.
Kerry and Rob are amazing people and they run a sharp and professional business with superb food that was served on time at every meal and without any stress or fluster - for 65 people and with only the three of us doing literally EVERYTHING....I am humbled by their positive attitude to hard work and inspired by what you can do when you set your mind to it!
A good weekend even if my muscles are aching from the strain ;0)
Thursday, 4 February 2010
Thursday 4th February 2010
End Week 3
Loss: 3.3lbs (1.5kgs)
Total Lost: 7.1lbs (3.2kgs)
To goal: 10.2lbs (4.6kgs)
Well seems like exercise really is the way to control those calories....no really ;0)....funny that, seems all my hunking Nicholas up and down snowy mountain sides burnt off the hot chocolate and slice of Lemon cake - must say I am very relieved as was a bit worried I had blown the whole thing.
Loss: 3.3lbs (1.5kgs)
Total Lost: 7.1lbs (3.2kgs)
To goal: 10.2lbs (4.6kgs)
Well seems like exercise really is the way to control those calories....no really ;0)....funny that, seems all my hunking Nicholas up and down snowy mountain sides burnt off the hot chocolate and slice of Lemon cake - must say I am very relieved as was a bit worried I had blown the whole thing.
Wednesday, 3 February 2010
When immigration isn't easy
Over the weekend I developed a severe pain in my left jaw so on Monday morning I was off to the dentist to see if they could solve the problem. I have an EXCEPTIONALLY high pain threshold and it seems to have once again let me down - I had missed the initial pain of a tooth abscess and the pain in the jaw was being caused by the root dying due to all the infection. The dentist was unable to complete the emergency root canal due to the infection, but did put a sedative and medicated filling into the tooth and sent me on my way to return next week for them to complete the procedure - pain gone, problem solved or so I thought.
Yesterday morning I woke up feeling very tired and like I told my dad on the phone pretty crappy, but kinda got on, as mother's do, with all the things that need doing, especially without a wonderful maid to help - by 11.30am my headache was pretty severe so when Nick went down for his sleep I joined him, by 2pm I was vomiting my heart out and literally asking relative strangers to bring my children home from school as I was by this time too weak to do anything. Si caught an early train home and managed to get me into an emergency appointment with out doctor - diagnosis: severe toxic shock from from the dental procedure and secondary infection in my blood stream. I am now on very strong antibiotics and feeling stronger, not completely better, but well enough to function with some form of normality.
As my header said, days like yesterday are the real test of immigration - I was literally crying on the phone to Simon, knowing that he was over an hour away and that I had no family around me to look after Nick was very frightening as at times I really felt like I was going to pass out - yes there are many wonderful and exhilarating experiences linked to up and moving your entire life, but when the chips are down I do still think the easy thing to do is to stay where you are in your comfort zone with a full support group around you....does that mean I wish we had never immigrated? NO, but it just reaffirms that this is NOT something to take lightly and as this week has shown it is probably the hardest thing we will ever do.
Yesterday morning I woke up feeling very tired and like I told my dad on the phone pretty crappy, but kinda got on, as mother's do, with all the things that need doing, especially without a wonderful maid to help - by 11.30am my headache was pretty severe so when Nick went down for his sleep I joined him, by 2pm I was vomiting my heart out and literally asking relative strangers to bring my children home from school as I was by this time too weak to do anything. Si caught an early train home and managed to get me into an emergency appointment with out doctor - diagnosis: severe toxic shock from from the dental procedure and secondary infection in my blood stream. I am now on very strong antibiotics and feeling stronger, not completely better, but well enough to function with some form of normality.
As my header said, days like yesterday are the real test of immigration - I was literally crying on the phone to Simon, knowing that he was over an hour away and that I had no family around me to look after Nick was very frightening as at times I really felt like I was going to pass out - yes there are many wonderful and exhilarating experiences linked to up and moving your entire life, but when the chips are down I do still think the easy thing to do is to stay where you are in your comfort zone with a full support group around you....does that mean I wish we had never immigrated? NO, but it just reaffirms that this is NOT something to take lightly and as this week has shown it is probably the hardest thing we will ever do.
Monday, 1 February 2010
Weekend 29 - 31 January 2010
As many of my regular readers know, my beloved husband turned 40 last week, we have been together for 19 years on 28th March 2010 and I am delighted to say I love him more now than I ever have and feel amazingly privileged to be his wife.
Simon is a strong, loyal and committed man and his family is his absolute life, he has ALWAYS put us first in EVERYTHING and so I was delighted to be able to jiggle and juggle our savings to make sure that for this birthday he got to have one of his dreams come true.....learning how to ski.
We left Haywards Heath for Gatwick via train on Friday morning and then from there it was on to Inverness with Easyjet - and no they aren't as horrible as they have been made out to be, we found the staff very helpful and accommodating, the plane was spotless and the pilot more than competent (thanks heavens lol). Flying time from London to Inverness is only 1hr 20mins but I am delighted to say Nick Nick shut his eyes as we taxied down the runway only to open them again with the jolt of landing....I know what a star, and let me tell you that was only the beginning of it, my baby boy was an absolute SAINT the entire weekend.
Collecting our rental Golf from Eurocar went without problem and it wasn't long before we were on our way to Aviemore and the start of our skiing short break weekend. Our accommodation at 101 Dalnabay was out of this world and filled with all the modcons we could possibly need - I actually heard Simon breath a sigh of relief as we went inside and he saw how gorgeous the accommodation was, such a relief after our first attempt at finding somewhere to stay was met with reviews like "the best thing that could happen to this hotel is for it to burn down".
An early dinner was followed by an early night and an even earlier start on Saturday morning - we needed to be at the ski school to collect the equipment by 8.30am so it was up and out even before the sun had risen properly (day starts late in the Highlands of Scotland in Winter).
We had an AMAZING day and it was one very very proud mummy that watched her family skiing down the slopes unassisted at the end of their first day...to say they were hooked was an understatement and while I tried angling for a day at Loch Ness on Sunday the others were adament we were returning to Cairngorm for another day on the slopes....sigh, I had by this stage spent many many many hours entertaining a baby in a restaurant the size of a South African lounge....admittedly a magnificently patient and well behave baby, but a baby none the less :0)
Phillip
Megan
Simon
Saturday night saw lights out before 9pm - my skiers were absolutely exhausted from all the snow and fresh air and also wanted to be out on the mountain by 8.30 on Sunday morning so as not loose too much skiing time due to our flight back to reality. Sunday we had no lessons booked so after hiring the equipment we would need Simon decided to head up to the top of the mountain to some beginner runs up there for he and the children to practise some of their skills.
Up the mountain we went in the funicular (a little monorail which carries skiers up and down the slopes) and were met with an almost total white out at the top - literally could not see more than 5 meters in any direction and it was FREEZING (-15 degrees). After getting Nicholas and I nicely settled in the top day lodge, Si and the children head out in search of the beginner slopes....well there I am sipping my hot chocolate when the next minute I see Si and the kids heading onto the top of a red slope instead of the nearby green one - after watching for a minute and seeing them edge closer to the slopes I grabbed Nick, thew his coat over his head and ran out into the icy conditions yelling on the top of my voice to save my precious family - well lets just say all is well that ends well but I am sure people will be discussing the mad South African woman out on the mountain in just a jumper for years to come :0)
Anyway, disaster averted I returned to the warmth of the day lodge and continued with my hot chocolate -this time joined by a slice of lemon cake....I know I know and on Thursday I will be devastated when I haven't lost any weight, but 8 hours combined over two days in a restaurant will break even the strongest will (lol). 30 minutes later I glance out of the big picture window and there struggling up the mountain come my family - Phillip's hair has big white icicles in it and Megan's pony tail is a solid lump of ice down her back, needless to say we decided the top of the mountain was WAY to adventurous for our little party so back down we went to the relative safety of the lower slopes.
Another two hours were relatively peacefully passed with only a couple of mishaps - Si missing his ski lift and being the only person in history to go up the slope with his arms wrapped around the t-bar as opposed to his bottom being on it....nuff said lol and Phillip losing his ski pole while being involved in a mountain rescue - you don't wanna know, and then it was time to retrace our steps and head for home.
Personally I don't think Cairngorm Mountain will ever be the same - but hey as I often say if you are going to go, go big! Such an awesome holiday once again made possible by this wonderful journey we are on.
Simon is a strong, loyal and committed man and his family is his absolute life, he has ALWAYS put us first in EVERYTHING and so I was delighted to be able to jiggle and juggle our savings to make sure that for this birthday he got to have one of his dreams come true.....learning how to ski.
We left Haywards Heath for Gatwick via train on Friday morning and then from there it was on to Inverness with Easyjet - and no they aren't as horrible as they have been made out to be, we found the staff very helpful and accommodating, the plane was spotless and the pilot more than competent (thanks heavens lol). Flying time from London to Inverness is only 1hr 20mins but I am delighted to say Nick Nick shut his eyes as we taxied down the runway only to open them again with the jolt of landing....I know what a star, and let me tell you that was only the beginning of it, my baby boy was an absolute SAINT the entire weekend.
Collecting our rental Golf from Eurocar went without problem and it wasn't long before we were on our way to Aviemore and the start of our skiing short break weekend. Our accommodation at 101 Dalnabay was out of this world and filled with all the modcons we could possibly need - I actually heard Simon breath a sigh of relief as we went inside and he saw how gorgeous the accommodation was, such a relief after our first attempt at finding somewhere to stay was met with reviews like "the best thing that could happen to this hotel is for it to burn down".
101 Dalnabay, Silverglades, Aviemore, Scotland
An early dinner was followed by an early night and an even earlier start on Saturday morning - we needed to be at the ski school to collect the equipment by 8.30am so it was up and out even before the sun had risen properly (day starts late in the Highlands of Scotland in Winter).
Our little rented golf having just been desnowed at 8am on Saturday morning
Cairn Gorm (Cairngorm) is the sixth highest mountain in the UK and one of 5 major skiing resorts in the Scottish Highlands, just 45 minutes drive from Inverness it is a winter wonderland comperable to many of the best in Europe - after experiencing record snowfall this year the mountain offered 37 runs from beginner to advanced and had plenty to do to keep even the most jaded skier busy.
We had an AMAZING day and it was one very very proud mummy that watched her family skiing down the slopes unassisted at the end of their first day...to say they were hooked was an understatement and while I tried angling for a day at Loch Ness on Sunday the others were adament we were returning to Cairngorm for another day on the slopes....sigh, I had by this stage spent many many many hours entertaining a baby in a restaurant the size of a South African lounge....admittedly a magnificently patient and well behave baby, but a baby none the less :0)
Megs enjoying a cup of the best hot chocolate I have ever tasted
Excitedly waiting for their lesson
PhillipMegan
Simon
Saturday night saw lights out before 9pm - my skiers were absolutely exhausted from all the snow and fresh air and also wanted to be out on the mountain by 8.30 on Sunday morning so as not loose too much skiing time due to our flight back to reality. Sunday we had no lessons booked so after hiring the equipment we would need Simon decided to head up to the top of the mountain to some beginner runs up there for he and the children to practise some of their skills.
One very very very patient baby!
Up the mountain we went in the funicular (a little monorail which carries skiers up and down the slopes) and were met with an almost total white out at the top - literally could not see more than 5 meters in any direction and it was FREEZING (-15 degrees). After getting Nicholas and I nicely settled in the top day lodge, Si and the children head out in search of the beginner slopes....well there I am sipping my hot chocolate when the next minute I see Si and the kids heading onto the top of a red slope instead of the nearby green one - after watching for a minute and seeing them edge closer to the slopes I grabbed Nick, thew his coat over his head and ran out into the icy conditions yelling on the top of my voice to save my precious family - well lets just say all is well that ends well but I am sure people will be discussing the mad South African woman out on the mountain in just a jumper for years to come :0)
Anyway, disaster averted I returned to the warmth of the day lodge and continued with my hot chocolate -this time joined by a slice of lemon cake....I know I know and on Thursday I will be devastated when I haven't lost any weight, but 8 hours combined over two days in a restaurant will break even the strongest will (lol). 30 minutes later I glance out of the big picture window and there struggling up the mountain come my family - Phillip's hair has big white icicles in it and Megan's pony tail is a solid lump of ice down her back, needless to say we decided the top of the mountain was WAY to adventurous for our little party so back down we went to the relative safety of the lower slopes.
How Nicholas spent most of his time on the mountain - he really was a miracle baby
Another two hours were relatively peacefully passed with only a couple of mishaps - Si missing his ski lift and being the only person in history to go up the slope with his arms wrapped around the t-bar as opposed to his bottom being on it....nuff said lol and Phillip losing his ski pole while being involved in a mountain rescue - you don't wanna know, and then it was time to retrace our steps and head for home.
Champion Skier waves for the crowd :0)
Two very tired but very happy children at the end of the second day
Personally I don't think Cairngorm Mountain will ever be the same - but hey as I often say if you are going to go, go big! Such an awesome holiday once again made possible by this wonderful journey we are on.
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