{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??