{DAY 3 ... }

Well yesterday (they changed the date of the Chemo to Thursday morning) was more tiring than I expected, the treatment lasted 4 hours and was as the nurses warned me quite an anti-climax. Just sat around in a big Lazy Boy Chair with a drip in my hand watching my movie on my notebook, reading my book and of course chatting to every one in sight!!! The only bit of action that I got was leaping off my chair 2 drip bags held over my head dashing off to the toilet to pee every 15 minutes they gave me about 2 liters of fluid intravenously as well as the 2.5 liters that I drank (they said that flushing the kidneys is vital) ... I think that is more liquid than I normally drink in a week!!!

Once treatment was finished I felt a little 'drunk'. Chris and my sister commented that I sounded a little 'stoned'. About two hours later the hangover hit, which is very disappointing as I did not even have a glass of wine!!! - my head was quite painful, but it cleared today at about 11 am. At least I did not get the side affects that they said I would, which would be insomnia and nausea - well the nausea might only come in a day or two. I do have the sunburnt feeling on my face though that they said the cortisone might give.. Tonight I feel very achy - like a bad flu.

Though after sleeping most of the morning I felt better by lunch time. I fetched Miguel and took him to the park, where they allowed him to feed the ducks and help clean out the little paddocks of the pigs and goats, he giggled and laughed for a solid 2 hours. He also 'rescued' 3 baby ducklings by helping them over the fence to their mom, he was immensely proud of himself, though no more than I at his display of gentleness and caring. The two of us had a early bath and we were relaxing in bed by 4 pm!!! He fell asleep about 4.30 and is still out - he was so happy, it was worth dragging my body out of bed for that - he has been very tense and angry over the last week, he knows that something is not right and panics every time myself or Chris have to leave the house. . .

I am off to try and sleep, I just cant seem to get comfortable though I am tired.

Ciao for now, love to you all....

{DAY 1 ...}

The scans came back yesterday ... stage 3b cancer, it is the size of an egg. but HIP PIP HOORAY it has NOT spread to the lymph nodes, or surrouning organs. Also it seems that my kidneys are a-okay so that they can give the chemo they want, coz the kidneys are tough enough to handle it .... so today at 8.30 im off for my first chemo, it will last about 3 hours, so im all ready i have packed the following :

• music
• the new Terry Pratchett book - MAKING MONEY (cant wait to get
• note book with a funny movie on it
• fruit
• LOTS AND LOTS of water

oooooooh how could i forget ... 'THE HEELS' Let me introduce you to them

I will wear these to every treatment that i have until im all better ... arent they divine!?!?!?!?

{THE DAY MY LIFE CHANGED ...}

Yesterday my whole world was turned upside down, inside out and just stopped spinning on its axis for a couple of hours. I was given the news that I had Cancer .... did you just feel the world give a little wobble???

Yes ... I have been diagnosed with Adenocarcinomas cervical cancer (more detail here). - The doctor said that it is advanced and if it had remained undiagnosed it would have killed me with in a year. I start my course of Chemo next Friday for 6 weeks followed by six weeks of Radio .... They say 3 in 4 beat it so i think that those are pretty good odds - don't you ... I really think that I need those red heels that I have been going on about for ages for my first treatment don't you ??? The Oncologist said that the radio treatment will destroy my ovaries and that I will, at the age of 33 go into early menopause - I am mad because even though i do not want any more children, my choice has been taken away from me and it makes me mad ... how silly is that???

On Tuesday I go for my CT scan and Chest x-ray so that they can grade and stage the cancer ... I'm not sure how i feel at this moment in time, I keep thinking that 1 in 4 do die and my luck health wise over the last 4 years has not been good .. but at the same time, why should it not be my turn to win the health lotto??? If 100 of 1000's of other women make it there is no reason that I cant!!! I will keep you up dated as soon as I know what is happening. I think that once i know the grade and stage of the cancer I will be able to deal with it better, because at the moment it still seems a little up on the air to me and I am thinking ridiculous things - like my cancer is the size of a small turkey!!! LOL.

Love to you all ......

OOOHHH we have Miguel's first school play tonight - my little boy is going to be a speckled frog ... I cant wait to see him in action!!! We are off now to a birthday party, so I have to get the team in order ... ciao

{IM BACK...}

Well after being away for a week in the UK, we are home ... I will fill you in on the trip once I have gone through our 1000 photos (well I'm sure that it must be around the number). I am renowned to have similar genetic traits as a Japanese tourist .... We had a WONDERFUL time and I could not give enough thanks to IBM for hosting us in such a magnificent manner (you too Greg, our incredible 'tour guide' from Penquin). I will post some pics as soon as I have processed them ...

Tomorrow we are off to Chris's cousin Didiers wedding - it is to be held at a stunning B&B called Collisheen Estate in the beautiful sea side town of Ballito, which lies just 30 minutes north of Durban in the heart of the KwaZulu Natal North Coast, is nestled between rippling fields of sugar cane, KwaZulu Natal's famous Green Gold. The Dolphin Coast, as this area is otherwise named, gets its name from the many Bottle nose dolphins that frequently surf the waves along this stretch of coast. Ballito is flanked to the east by golden beaches and the warm waters of the Indian Ocean.

I did not know what to get Dids and Hilke for a gift, so I decided to make them a visitors signing book for the wedding (please dear God don't let them have one!!!) .... this is what I came up with. I did 6 layouts with photos of them - the photos are not very good as I had to scrounge them from Face book etc .. so I ran a few actions, then made them black and white so that they (hopefully) look grainy and a little dreamy on purpose. On the opposite page of the lay out I gave words of advice ... things like :

• For each time you vent about your husband/wife to your friends, tell three positive stories.
• Never go to bed angry. (Unless it's 3a.m. and you're exhausted, angry, and not thinking straight.)
• Never compare your marriage to others. What you see on the outside is not always what it is on the inside.
• Don't make love in the same place/position everytime. Variety is the spice of life!
• Fight naked. ;)
• Marry someone that you enjoy listening and talking to.
• Do you want to be right or do you want to be married?

All the paper and card embellishments I have made myself & the papers are ones that I have scanned and reduced to the right size and printed. The remaining 8 pages are for the gusts to sign ... I am quite pleased with the result - except for page one, it is soooo not my style and I cant bring myself to like it. sooo here goes ...

well it is 1 am here and i think i should be off to bed ...night!!!

{though for the day...}

credit : weeds & wild flowers brag book...

2 days (well technically one and a half days) and counting for my trip ... sooo excited!!!

First 3 Things Challenge

Here is my layout for the weeds & wildflowers challange - check it out here...

CREDITS :

Natasha Whiteley - Diffuse Glow Action

Weeds & Wildflowers - Lazy Days - red paper

KSKD - bubba boy blue paper

Kim De Smet aka Shaky - paper - recoloured yellow

KHMize-AdChalFree-041507 - yellow label

khadfield_UKSclass template

{sometime you have to ask why ...}

and so it goes ....

{A fantastic Weekend!!!}

Well we had a great week - it was Chris's birthday this week and his very good, long time friend since childhood - Justin came down form Johannesburg to spend the week with us!! YAY we LOVE Justin. Chris had a blast having him with us, it has been a while since i have seen him so carefree - the two of them acted like teenagers the whole week, just what the doctor ordered.

Miguel loves having Justin around, he treats Justin like one would a big brother - teasing, joking and just having fun being as silly as you can. Justin thank you for being so good to Miguel - we all love you ... come back soon.

dont you love bobble heads - it is my new fave thing - you will be seeing a lot of it so brace yourselves)

On Saturday night we had a birthday party for Chris, we had a blast. A BBQ was the order of the day , with much wine, laughter and seeing which was the most arb one hit wonders that we could find in between out MP3 collection with has about a bizillion songs!! Of course with those long forgotten one hit wonders can out all the screaming recollections of bad haircuts, perms, MC Hammer pants, Madonna bangles etc ... as well as live renditions of our 'hot' dance moves from the early 90's ... goodness when did we get to be middle aged?? though admittedly we sure do look fine!!!

Guess what i did for the first time today ???? make cup cakes!!! Tomorrow Miguel is baker man and this means that he has to bring cupcakes to school for his class mates ... my brilliant neighbour Antoinette ('Tony') offered to make them for Miguel & she whipped them up in about 3 seconds flat and then left the icing to me - not bad for a virgin icier if i may say so my self!!!!!

{WHAT A NIGHT OUT!!!}

Last night a group of us - Myself & Chris, John & Michelle, Michelle and Brendan, Charmaine and Branden too (and then later we were joined by Danie & Inada) - went out on a nights out - yes folks with lipstick, perfume and high heels !!!!! All the kiddies were sleeping at their grannies and grandpa's and we had the night to our selves.

We started the evening at PRIMI PIATTI - I think that this is the BEST restaurant ever. It has the best food, the staff is amazing - they have this fun, funky slightly cocky attitude that is all about fun & excellent service. We started the evening off with a round of cocktails - I of course could not start the evening with out my frozen Margarita ... MMMMMMMMMM This drink I'm my humble opinion is the MOST delicious drink ever made. The problem was that this was only the beginning ... as the evening progressed we got louder and the drink list got longer - Jagga Bombs ( Jaggermeister mixed with Red Bull), Suitcases ( Shot of Jack Daniels held in the mouth followed by a shot of passion fruit, shaken in the mouth and swallowed - like a slice of heaven!!!)

The evening ended with us all laying on the body outline in the middle of the restaurant, trying to see who was the most convincing corpse - I think that I made a dramatic and good looking corpse - what say you??
Wanda (the Incredible waiter) stated then that the evening would not be a resounding complete success without a zip down the fire pole - all the girls copped out, but I had to give it ago ... I was terrified I thought that I would drop to the floor like a stone and at the very least break a heel. But I did it any way and all I can say is YEAH HA!!! It was a blast.
Then we were off to Joe Cools for some dancing ... I haven't had such a great time in forever, thanks guys for the fantastic night - my cheeks and face are still a little tender from all the laughing!!

Special mention must be made to John who took it upone himself to relieve me of my usual designator driver duties and he was as good as his word .. THANK YOU John for my night off - your name is now officially JOHN-A-LUSCIOUS.

Guys I think that we should do this every second month !!!

{JUST A PHOTO TODAY}

I must say, i am very proud of this photo .... took it when we were at golf. Quite pleased with the result.

Have a very busy day tomorrow - Miguel has a birthday party at 11am, then I have a baby shower at 2pm, then we are meeting our fabulous friends Michelle, John and branden for dinner and a night out on the town ... YAHOO!! Will let you know how it goes .....

{INVITATION}

On the 4th it is Chris's 35 birthday, so we are having a littly party to celebrate ... just wanted you to see the invite that I did for him ... i think that it is really fun plus i think that he looks really devilish inbetween Holly, Kendra and Bridgitte, dont you ????

Miguel looks like he is on the mend and went to school today for the first time in over 2 weeks. He came home happy but very tired ...

i forgot to tell you what he said when last week when i had to take him back to the hospital last week when I could not get his fever down the one afternoon. I took him to Parklands hospital, the same hospital that he stayed in for the 4 days the previous week, in the peadiatric ward they have a tiny court yard with astro turf and a jungle gym for the kids to play on - Miguels most favourite thing in the world is golf followed by your guessed it - Jungle Gyms. He askes me on entering the hospital if he was allowed to go to the jungle gym later when his head felt better. I told him that he could'nt as we were going to emergency and that you could only play on the JG if you were VERY sick and had to sleep at the hospital. About 20 minutes later when the ER doctor was examining him, he asks Miguel if he was feeling very sick? To which Miguel instantly relpies .. "YES!! Im very sick, i think that i might even be dead - so i think that i should sleep here!!" Cheeky monkey!!

Mig Ayesa - Baby I Love Your Way

this song was so beautifuly performed, that it made me cry and my heart ache - i think that it is the best performance i have ever heard!!

{AT LAST ...}

At last i have a few minutes to sit and think ... Last week we had to rush Miguel to the Hospital on Sunday morning, as on Sat night he was running a constant fever of 40 deg Celsius all night, they diagnosed him hospital with a serious bacterial throat infection. We were there for 4 days so that meant 5 days of 40+ degree Celsius fevers. On Wednesday they said that we could go home and I thought that he was better this week, but no such luck its back.

He stared with the fevers again on Sunday night, the Doctor at the hospital confirmed of Wednesday that it was back ... looks like the only way we are going to get rid of it is to remove his tonsils ... and now it looks like he is developing a nasty sinus infection on top of everything, this evening on top of his fever he was choking and throwing up. Oh my poor little angel, he really is having a tough time of it ...

I had to post this to remind you all of that smiling face and cheeky grin ... I could just eat him up at times.

but he did have one good day though ... on Friday Chris managed to get home in the early afternoon, so because Miguel was feeling better we said that he could have a treat - the first thing that came out his mouth was - GOLF. Golf is his obsession, he cant get enough of it. So we took him to play mashie at EMBERTON GOLF CENTRE.

It is such a lovely course and perfect for Miguel. He played such a great game and had some real hum-dinger of shots, getting some great lift and length on a few of his shots. The putting is still some thing he is too impatient with - I think that when it comes to putting he is under the impression that you play it the same way you would an action filled game of hockey, but hell the boy is only 3!!! After finishing the 9 holes with dad, off they went to the driving range and hit a bucket of balls between them (about 40 each). Miguel thought that he had died and gone to heaven - playing 3 hours of golf AND spending a weekday afternoon with dad.

I wanted to give shout out to our friend Alan and Lisa who had the following exciting news .. Squishie was born at Parklands Hospital on 19 September 2007 @ 13h50, weighing in at 3.48kg's and is 53cm in length. Squishie (his name for the last 9 months) is now officially named... Corban Spies

Welcome to the night shift guys! The hours are lousy, but the benefits are great! Congratulations on Your New Baby. A baby will make love stronger, days shorter, nights longerbankroll smaller, clothes shabbier,the past forgotten,and the future worth living for.So not all bad then?

INTRODUCING CORBAN ...

the poem in the LO goes as follows:

Someday I'll jump through puddles,

Take a stroll or run a race.

Someday I'll walk across the street,

Or maybe walk in space,
Someday I'll scale a mountain,

Or I'll join a ballet corps.

Someday I'll walk a tightrope,

Or explore the ocean floor.
Someday these feet will do some things,

That only heaven knows,

But for today they're happyJust to wiggle all their toes

{SORRRYYYY .... }

I am so sorry... things just seem to be getting away from me these days. I have created a new layout of Miguel and those incredible baby blues of his!!!

My for my sisters birthday, she treated us as well a a friend of ours Pam, to see an I-N-C-R-E-D-I-B-L-E show as Sibaya Casino. I saw Marc Salem's MIND GAMES.

WOW!! WOW !! WOW !! is all I can say ... this man is incredible, he insists that he is not in any psychic but im not sure if he is quite telling the truth. Follow the link that I have attached to his name above and watch the video. It will blow your mind. If you ever get the opportunity to see him, DO SO!!!

We are now off to a birthday party followed by a house warming ... will try to catch up with you tomorrow!!!

{TOOO CUTE}

I have to show you how cute Miguel was this day. We had been painting in the afternoon with a couple of the kids from the complex, they had a blast - I think that you can see how much fun they had by the mess in my kitchen!! I was trying to film Miguel doing one of his masterpieces when I got this cute little 'hello'.

Photobucket Album

{POOR BABY}

My poor baby Miguel ... yesterday morning I got a call from Miguels teacher saying that she thinks that he had sprained his left ankle. When he got home at lunch time, he kept moaning that it was sore and he would not put any weight on it. I put a bandage on it and he seemed a little better for the afternoon. During the night as he slept he kept complaining about it - even in his sleep. I kept him home from school as i did not like the fact that he was saying that the arch of his foot was sore and not his ankle. I took him to the doctor in the afternoon, she said that she did not like the place that he was saying it was sore too.

So off we went ot hav ex-rays taken, Miguel took it all in his stride - he sat so still for the x-rays. When I showed him the film, he asked where is 'naked skin was???' The doctor then confirmed my suspicion - he had a green hairline fracture on his 1st Metatarsel (the long bone that makes up the arch of his foot). No cast has been put on .. as the doctor said that a hairline fracture does not need one. Just keep it supported and in about 2 weeks it should be healed. So I am keeping him out of school tomorrow and he is off any way on Thursday and Friday die to public holidays ... my poor baby!!!

I wanted to show you some of the work he has been bringing home from school this term ... I am so proud of him. He tries very hard and his cutting skills are improving nicely - he says that he cant do it like his friends but they are all between 7 months and a year older than him ... I think that he is doing brilliantly!!! We had a parents night not so long ago .. his teacher Maria said that he was the quitest boy in the class - WHAT ??!!?? Are you sure that you have the correct child?? Miguel does not stop talking and singing from when he wakes up till he falls asleep - she assured me that she indeed was talking about the correct child!! She said that he was doing very well and was on par with the 4 yearolds in the class with regard to number recognition and was ahead of most of his class mates on recognising letters of the alphabet - he can easily recognise 9 letters of the alphabet!!

A last little Miguel-ism for you - 'Miguel close your eyes and go to sleep' ... ' but mama if I close my eyes they cant work!!'

{lots of new things!!!}

Well here is part two ...

The last month has seen a lot of new beginnings happening, the first most precious one is the arrival of a new family member to our family. Her name is Isabella and she is just perfect. She is my brothers daughter - not to mention the person with out whom it would not have been possible, his stunning wife Bernadette - Well done the two of you - you have done an amazing job... Isabella (that would have been Miguel's name if he had been born a girl like we were all convinced that he was) made her arrival on the 20 July 07 at 4.15 am, weighing 7 lb 12 ozs. Her full name is Isabella Niamh Spencer .. without further ado her she is, let the cooing commence ....

Is she not the most beautiful new born (this picture was taken when she was 4 days old!!).

The second thing that has happened is that I have gone back to work, my sister needed a half day DTP operator (computer graphics) to help her at work as she is drowning with her work load and I went for the interview and I got it. The position is a inhouse DTP operator for a stationery company, where we design their packaging, catalogues and any other graphic work that they need. I travel to Umhlanga every, which is about 35 km up the north coast from where we live and still getting used to being in traffic, but im getting the hang of it now, thak goodness most of it is freeway. My mom and dad pick up Miguel from school at 12 and I get to their house about 1.15,so I still have time to take him to the park, the beach or anything else we decide to do.

Ohh I have to tell you what HRH said the other morning - last week we were going through quite a cold spell, so the mornings were quite chilly (well for Durban standards it was actually bloody cold!!). He gets out of bed, takes his pyjamas off and is standing in his underpants and is shivering with his teeth chattering (he wont let me help him to dress quickly). 'Mama. i think that you can help me quickly, cos look my teeth are wiggling!'

Credit for this quick page goes to EMerritt.

He makes me cry with laughter at least once a day ... the other day is was a miserable day and he was not feeling very well as his sinuses were playing up again to I said that he can have a relaxing TV afternoon and can watch a marathon run of Cool Kat and Tom & Jerry. He was about a half hour into it when the satellite (think you guys in the states call it cable??) lost its signal and the picture kept coming and going. 'Mama!' hear in a voice of pure raw exasperation, tinged with desperation (you know all how mean i am with his TV time) 'please come fix the TV!' What was wrong I asked him, 'Its got hick-ups please give it a fright, so that it can be fix for me!!'

Sorry about the deviation ... My last bit of awesome news is that today I took possession of ... wait for it .. my NEW CAR!!! I bought a car, a new one, not a old one but a brand spanking new car! I cant believe it, I never thought I would ever be able to have a car at this stage never mind a new one. It is a Toyota Yaris T1, 3 door and I am in love, the space in the back is huge ... sorry Chris I have traded you in for a newer younger model... ;op ...I love this little car and cant wait to drive it to work tomorrow. Watch out world here i come!! I have to at this point make a very large and loud public 'THANK YOU' to my mom, for the last month now she has let me use her car without a work of complaint, even though she was missing her scrap booking club and her Italian lessons. Thanks mama you are the best!!!

Well im off to bed, I have work tomorrow you know!!!

{MY MOST HUMBLE APOLOGIES}

Im sorry every one that I have been MIA, lately I just never seemed to get around to it!! Well I have lots of news -

YIP His Highness turned 3!!! Can you believe it!! The first thing he said on the morning of his Birthday is 'Mama, I'm in charge!' and so he has been!! He had a blast - once again we spent money on way cool scooters, pirate swords, pirate hats and hooks, a stunning Pooh kite and all he wanted was the 10 helium filled balloons that I had promised him .. when will I ever learn?? Like we have been instructed by his RH - we had to sing Happy Birthday and 'Funk' (his word for light -its the sound that the lighter makes) the candles 3 times so that he could yell at the top of his voice ..' happy birthday to MEEEE!....' and blow out the candles. He loved it!!

CREDITS : Sharon Kenealy - Bubbaboy_Blue paper, star stitchingprisalles_kraftframeRedju_torn paper, TemplateHM_Kit_ILoveYou_LabelMissMint_PlaygroundPop_bracket - RE COLOUREDmISS mINT_Party Pants - Cupcake, pressie, word art

A few days later we took him to PHEZULU SAFARI PARK is an exciting tourist venue, situated in Botha's Hill, This picturesque park has magnificent views of the world-famous Valley of 1000 Hills only 35km from central Durban. Miguel loves it there, the sound of the Zulu drums beating through the air, the way that you can feel them in your chest. The sound of slapping as the dancers feet hit the ground ... He will sit there entranced beating out the rhythm on his lap listening to their voices, completely captivated.

At PheZulu village, the well-known Zulu clan of Gasa have, over the last 30 years, allowed visitors to PheZulu the opportunity to savour the taste and feel the rhythm of Africa.
Visitors are taken into the traditional beehive shaped thatched huts, where the various artifacts, beliefs and rituals are explained, giving foreigners an insight into the fascinating Zulu culture. The Zulu dancing show is impressive with the dancers in their traditional garb, showing off their skills with grace, agility and humour - a truly unforgettable experience!

Facilities include a reptile farm, which boasts a large selection of Nile crocodiles, including the oldest (nearly 100 years) and largest (4.5 metres) croc in captivity - called "Junior". There is also a superb collection of indigenous snakes.

4x4 vehicles take tourists into the valley of 1000 hills on a game drive and a visit to a contemporary village (this is a community based project). There are two curio shops and 2 restaurants to cater for all tastes.

I have loads more to tell you all about quite a few exciting things that have been happening ... but you will all have to be good and wait for the next installment .....

{Another Winters Day In South Africa!}

It was such a stunning day yesterday, that after I picked Miguel up from school we collected my Mama, my Da, Gen and Justin and headed off to the beach. If I may say so my self that was a fantastic idea. We went to the Beach Cafe on Durban Beach Front. This is a awesome little restaurant, the tables and chairs are all on the sand - so this means that you can sit and have something to eat or drink and the kids play right next to you!! I love this place - just might go there today again!!

Miguel was in his element digging and bossing every one around on how to dig, where to dig!! He is going to grow up to be president one day - actually he is SOOO good at directing every one, he may grow up to be a dictator!!!

It was also his first day with NO NAPPIES !!!! YAY!!! I am definitely more excited about it that he is ...

He did very well the whole day and every one was very proud of him. Last night after dinner he tells me ..."Mama, I'm a VERY (Said in a deep voice, standing on tip toes) big boy now, coz i don't wear nappies, so I'm thinking about (with finger tapping on side of mouth) big boy things now - so the good idea for a big boy is 2 Little Einstein's before bed!!" That was so skillfully done that he got his 2 Little Einstein's at bed time, and as a treat he got to watch them in bed on daddys notebook!! He was very pleased with this sucessfull wheeling and dealing ... waiting for tonights negotiations !!!

{CHEEKY MIGUELITO}

Miguel is going through the typical 2-3 year old stage of not wanting to eat his veggies. I try my best to get around this by telling him that if he eats his veggies, his stomach will take the food and turn it in to energy for his muscles so that he can then go play golf, read, build blocks etc. As I have told you before I limit Miguel's TV time to one 30 min program a day - his favourite is 'Little Einsteins' and will do his best to wangle as many viewings as he can. Today at lunch I again use my energy for muscles speech to get him to eat. He goes very quiet for a few minutes when all of a sudden he says "Mama, I have a great idea. If I eat ALL my lunch my muscles will have lost and lots of energy, so I think that i must use all my energy to watch 2 'little Einsteins' - okay? Is that a deal? Lets shake on it!" He says holding out his hand, head cocked to one side with that little cheeky grin... needless to say that he got his 2 Little Einsteins as a reward for resourcefulness and great invention!!

p.s The poor little thing was so tired from school that he fell asleep 10 minutes into the first one!!!

{FINALLY A NEW LAYOUT!}

Yes I know I have been very bad .... 'my bad'.

I did this one to say thank you to our friends the Banfields - you have come to know them over the last few weeks - Michelle, John, John jnr, Hannah and Rachel. We spent a great morning with them all on the beach yesterday. The kids had a blast in the freezing water.

Especially Miguel who has found two new 'best' friends or as he puts it "my friend the boy John' and 'my friend the big girl Hanna'.

On Saturday afternoon we went to their house for a BBQ for the Rugby - Miguel was in heaven, playing in the the garden, weaving in and out of all the bushes, jumping on the trampoline - Hannah made his week when she suggested that they play hide and seek, she was so patient with him and let him find her most times. He was shrieking with laughter and excitement!!! Thanks Hannah for spending time with him.

{JUST FOR MY SISTER}

Look what I learnt to do ... Just a little something to say hi to my sister and to thank her for all the baby sitting that she does for us - my own personal lifesaving princess!!

I tell you what ... im feeling pretty chuffed with myself!! ooohh now I have to go and tidy up the house enough me time!!! later ... :o)

{ANOTHER BUSY WEEKEND!!}

Well on Tuesday last week we had a grown up night out with Branden, John-Terry and Michelle. We decided that it would be great to go go-karting. We got to the track and Michelle chickened out ...'cheep, cheep, cheep". She left me all alone with the boys on the race course. My Larry those karts are fast!! I felt like I was flying - flooring it on the straights, skidding around corners - I was an animal. I thought that was actually a contender, until I realised that Chris had won, followed closely by second place John (ooooh... I bet he is hating to see that in writing!!) and then Branden - when I realised I still had two laps to go !! To drown my sorrows we went our for sushi afterwards.

This is Michelle, she and John are the funniest couple that I have met in a long time. We all actually knew each other about 15 years ago whilst we were at school. Michelle and I did not become friends then, but now reconnecting with everyone after all these years. We have connected and I think we are on the way to becoming friends ... gosh I hope so, she is such a down to earth person who is incredibly funny and positive - she (and John) make you feel good just being in their company.

On Friday night we decided to have a FONDUE or a fondle as Chris likes to call it ... Michelle THANK YOU SO MUCH for the fantastic organisation, the food not only tasted great but it looked to good to eat!! Miguel fell asleep in the car on the way there, so we had loads of grown up time, while he slept! Yay! Thanks Miguel. Brendan and the OTHER Michelle joined us. We started off with a cheese fondue and some wine. We tucked in like children at a party ... the wine started flowing and the laughing started. I cant remember when last a laughed like that. The boys were hilarious, the more they laughed and joked the more wine was consumed - it was a vicious circle, till I was begging for mercy.

For desert we had a CHOCOLATE fondue ... good God, I think that i died and went to heaven, I made and absolute glutton on my self and I say this with absolutely NO shame. I revelled in chocolate and I am proud. Then the photos came out - you know the ones ... the 80's photos - oh my goodness, the Madonna hair, tanktops, stone washed denims. We were screaming with laughter and Brendan and Michelle just kept the commentry comming, until we were almost falling down with laughter. The party ended at about midnight and to tell you the truth, if Miguel hadn't woken up, I think that we would have all been there till the wee early hours of the morning!! Thanks guys for a awsome night!!

I have to tell you some of the things that Miguel has come up with lately .. he is always making me laugh!!

The other day I am trying to give him some medicine that he is not very fond of, when he tells me ... "Mama, coz im a big boy I will take my medicine, but after I'm going to say YUCK!"

I have been trying to teach Miguel the concept of brothers and sisters, explaining to him that boys and girls that have the same mama and daddy are called brothers and sisters because they are family ... he thinks about this for a while and promptly states that " daddy is my favourite brother because he is my family!"

I an still trying to convince Miguel to move from nappies to underpants as he is now a big boy ... well to say the least - this has been met with great resistance. On most days he will use the toilet with confidence, but on this day he was too busy too and did not have the tine to take a loo break (according to him " No fanks mama, I'm busy"). I kept asking and he kept turning me down until at one moment I said to him "All your friends at school use the toilet and underpants" " Yes mama" he replied, "but they are not here .." How can you fight logic like that??

{WHAT A BUSY WEEKEND}

Well i don't even know where to begin ... oooh oooh i know I think I will begin where I whipped the boys at Poker on Friday night !! Yea Ha !! Malcolm has made me promise to let you all know that he was NOT there on Fri night to defend his title and according to him my win would not have been possible if he had been there ... humbug is what I say, GIRL POWER IS WHAT MADE ME WIN !!! Not the lack of Malcolm's 'expert' competition.

On Sat it was Brendan's birthday we went to JT and Michelle's house for a stir fry ...mmmm it was good!! Miguel stayed overnight with Abuela as he was not 100% better yet and I did not want him in the freezing cold air in Kloof. He picked up a bug - I assume from some-one at school, and was so ill on Friday.. Poor thing had his first school outing marred by coming home and being sick allover Abuelas couch and himself. Took him to the doctor because he kept complaining of a sore head and I know that it is unusual for young children to have headaches - Dr van Rooyen said that it WAS a virus and the headache was caused by the glands on the top of the back of his neck swelling (did you even know you had glands there?). Ran a very high fever all night 40/41Deg Celsius (40 degree Celsius = 104 degree Fahrenheit). By Sat mid morning he was 100% better - im so glad as it breaks my heart to see my Miguelito down and out.

Branden, Michelle and JT thanks for an amazing party - it has been ages since I have laughed and chatted like that - it was a medicine that the doctor ordered. Thanks. (See you on Tues at Go Karting - watch out baby I'm a mean machine!!!)

On Sunday we met up with Branden, Michelle and JT and their great kids - Jonh Jnr, Hannah and Rachel at Giba Gorge Bike Track. What an amazing place, it has over 20kms of off road bike trails for just about every one (though none sedate enough for me!!) as well as a huge BMX track that was infested with dozens upon dozens of kids of every age, shape and size. There is place to picnick, BBQ as well as a little coffee shop. We will be going there again.

Here are some photos that I took of the kids having the time of their lives, Thanks Michelle for allowing me to put photos of your kids on my blog. Will let you all know how the Go Karting goes tomorrow night ...

{Introducing Snap Shots from Snap.com}

I just installed a nice little tool on this site called Snap Shots that enhances links with visual previews of the destination site, including condensed excerpts of Wikipedia articles and IMDb profiles, instant playing of videos, display of stock charts and more.

Sometimes Snap Shots brings the information needed right to the readers, without them having to leave the site, while other times Snap Shots enables users to "look ahead," before deciding if they want to follow a link or not, saving them time and effort and increasing their ability to focus on the content that matters most to them.
However, should you decide this is not for you, just click "Disable" in the upper right corner of the Snap Shots bubble and opt-out.