Time with Travis/ Joshua Arrives

Monday morning Hubby was still in an otherwise mood and took himself off to work fairly early. No sooner had he gone then Ali phoned unsure if labour was starting or not. I phoned Hubby to go through and fetch Travis as it would take too long for Diane and I to sort ourselves out and go. Luckily it was a false alarm and I went through to Alberton to fetch Travis from the workshop. All the excitement had improved Hubby’s mood and all was fine again. Travis spent the afternoon playing outside as the weather was a lot better.
Tuesday was another good day weather wise and we went to visit Ali and fetch things she had forgotten to pack for Travis in her panic. We stopped on the way at Steers to buy lunch and spent a couple of hours together before we returned home. Travis spent the rest of the day playing outside until supper and bath time. The rest of the week was spent with him playing outside apart from nap time. By the end of the week he was scooting around on his bike as if he was on level ground.
Friday morning Ali phoned at nine to say Joshua had arrived just after eight and weighed in at 3.2kgs. I spent the morning doing washing and sorting out Travis’s bag in between playing with him. Just before lunch we went into Meyerton to collect Hubby’s antibiotics for his infected foot and got ourselves lunch from KFC. When we got back I finished packing for Travis and we left for Alberton to pick up Hubby to come with to Flora Clinic to visit Ali and Joshua. We had coffee at the Coffee Shop in the clinic grounds while waiting for visiting hour. Travis went in with me to see Ali before going home to his Dad. Hubby visited briefly before going back to the coffee shop to rest his foot and have something to eat as he had missed lunch. Ali and I had a chat and admired Joshua before we left for home. It was our monthly night out at the local entertainment and we didn’t want to get caught in traffic. We were home in plenty of time to get ready and have some soup for supper. Hubby decided he would rather stay home and rest his foot as it was very swollen and throbbing. The evening was an evening of comedy and music which we thoroughly enjoyed.
Saturday the weather was still good with day temperature reaching 24 C. I cleared some washing and started cleaning after the week of Hurricane Travis. Diane had a photo shoot in the afternoon after which we went shopping. The rest of the afternoon was spent doing more cleaning before an evening of TV viewing. Hubby spent the day resting his feet. Hubby bought breakfast in bed about eight after which we watched TV lying in bed. The weather was not too good as it was overcast and windy. We spoke to Ali and all was going well with her and Joshua. I spent the morning cleaning while Hubby rested his feet and Diane sorted out things on the computer. In the afternoon we had a visit from Pam, Linda and Jordan who is now three and a half. He is a real chatter- box now and just loved Hubby’s cars. After they left I started Statements and invoicing stopping to make supper in between. Diane watched the Sunday Night Movie before coming to help with scanning and emailing. It was a very productive day as by the time we went to bed around half eleven all but one statement was done and more than half had been emailed.
Hope everyone has a good and productive week. Cheers

Bitterly Cold Times

Monday morning was a cold but mild day with the sun shining which is always guaranteed to make one feel warmer. We quickly did some sorting out to get ready for Travis on Monday morning before leaving to fetch him. On the way we stopped to do some shopping and get something for lunch. We left early afternoon for home so that Travis would have time to tire himself out running around the garden. Ali had given us his scooter to bring and he spent the rest of the afternoon playing on it until it got too cold to be outside. Tuesday the weather changed for the worst as it was overcast and chilly from the arrival of a cold front. By evening it was bitterly cold with an icy wind blowing straight off the snow in the mountains. I went looking for the gas heater and was most upset to find no gas in it. We spent the evening trying to keep warm with blankets. Wednesday Hubby was home resting his feet as it was Youth Day. Early afternoon we went to the local shop for milk, dog food and gas. It was still bitterly cold. Poor Travis must have wondered what was going on especially seeing as it was too cold to be outside. Getting home and putting the heater on was bliss. What a difference! For the rest of the week the only time the heater was off was when we were in bed. The temperature dropped to -10 here during the early hours of Wednesday morning with max getting up to 9 for a few days. The poor garden is practically non-existent now. All the thick, lush growth is just a few bedraggled brown stalks now. Winter Proper has arrived with a vengeance. We took Travis back on Friday morning and picked Ali up to get the final things she needed for her Hospital stay. It was still very icy but at least the sun was shining which gave an illusion of some warmth. After shopping we went to Mugg & Bean for a light lunch before going back to Ali for coffee and to help her finish packing her Hospital Bags. Diane and I were home late afternoon and first thing we did was put the heater on and then start some much needed cleaning.
Saturday morning was up at the usual early hour to find the sun shining and a slight rise in temperature. Hubby left for a Piston Ring meeting about half eight and Diane and I got ready to meet Val and Pauline at Bedford Centre for a get-together. We had a super time together having a chat and breakfast at Nino’s. After our breakfast Diane and I went shopping for groceries before leaving for home. It was lovely and warm in the car but freezing once we were back inside the house. We finished with our cleaning before settling in front of the heater to watch TV for the evening.
Sunday morning Hubby left early for the Piston Ring where he was one of the judges in the annual Concours. Diane and I got up about eight and after coffee/tea and cereal got ourselves ready to join him. Diane was taking pics for the Club of each car entrant to put on a participation certificate to be handed out at next month’s meeting. Luckily it was a mild day with the sun shining though the icy nip was still in the air. We had a super morning chatting with lots of people we haven’t seen for absolute ages. Hubby wouldn’t listen as usual and wouldn’t sit and rest his feet but insisted on walking around. I made arrangements with his friend who is also diabetic and suffering with his feet for Hubby to join him in his visits to the Diabetic Clinic. We left about one to take Hubby for lunch but he wanted to go home first. By the time we got home he was in a foul mood and told us to b**** Off on our own. We left him to his miserable mood and took ourselves off to News Cafe where we had a super meal and tried one of the shooters on the World Cup Menu before returning home. We spent the evening watching TV in front of the heater.

The Weekend

Was up early Saturday to a fairly mild but windy morning. When I took Hubby his breakfast he told me he was going to his Tit Meeting later. I took Diane her tea and told her that seeing as Hubby was off to his meeting we should go see a movie. It had been a while since our last movie. We spent the morning cleaning getting ready for our week with Travis. Hubby left about half ten to visit friends until time for his Meet. Diane and I got ready and left about one for The Glen. First thing we did was get tickets for `Killer’ before going to The Ocean Basket for lunch. I had prawns and rice with a glass of wine. Diane had sushi with her drink. We both enjoyed the food. Not many places can beat The Ocean Basket for prawns. The vibe of the World Cup at the centre was incredible and we sat in the sun enjoying it and the warmth even though the wind was rather chilly. We finished our meal just in time to get to our seats and sit as the movie started. It was a good movie and we were glad we had decided to make the effort to get out. After the movie we went for coffee and cheesecake at Mugg & Bean before going shopping to find shoes for Hubby. It is not easy finding the right shoes for a diabetic that don’t have hard seams or pieces inside that jut out. We went through nearly every shoe shop before managing to find shoes that were soft and smooth inside. It was already dark when we left and we were home just before seven. After having something to drink we both showered. I wrapped myself in a sleeping bag to watch TV and promptly fell asleep, waking just after twelve, as Diane was finishing watching her final movie. After taking the dogs out we both went to bed.
Luckily I had been sleeping because I had a very uncomfortable night sandwiched between the two dogs. I woke several times aching from lying in one position too long and had to force the dogs to move so I could.
Sunday morning Hubby woke me with coffee about half seven. I could see it was a sunny day so was pleased as Diane and I wanted to go for a hike. When I got up, after having breakfast and a lie-in to read some more of my book, I was most upset to see that it was almost a howling gale outside. There was a layer of leaves and dust everywhere and even though it was sunny the weather was very chilly. We have both got sinus at the moment and going out in that wind would have been a disaster so we decided to wait till lunchtime to see if the wind would drop. No such luck as the wind was even worse by then. Instead we spent the day alternately reading, napping and watching TV. I watched the repeat of the game between England and America. That must have been One Very Unpopular Goalie at half time. We showered early again so that we could watch TV all wrapped up warm. `17 Again’ was on and I thoroughly enjoyed watching one of Diane’s favourite hotties Zac Effron. After the movie we spent time on the computer before going to bed about twelve.
All for now. Have a Great Week. We will be off to fetch Travis. I am looking forward to having him here again.

Our Week

Tuesday morning I was happy to find the weather was a little warmer. Ali was feeling a lot better so I carried on with cleaning and office work. Diane and I went for a ride around and really felt the after effects of our pedal boat ride. Early afternoon an icy wind blew up and the weather turned chilly. By evening when we had our wine it was miserable and cold. Tuesday night we watched our usual favourites ‘Ugly Betty’ and ‘Flash Forward’ having our Milo in between.
Wednesday morning was windy and cold – much too windy to be able to ride unfortunately. After doing some office queries Diane and I left about midday for Alberton. We stopped at Alberton City where we had coffee and cake at The Coffee Shop before doing some shopping. Once that was done we went up to the workshop to check on the latest happenings. All was OK apart from Hubby who is not feeling too good at the moment. We left the workshop to return home in time for our daily dose of medicine. After checking emails we had an early supper before watching ‘The Mentalist’. While doing the daily dressing on his foot before going to bed Hubby discovered an open sore on the side of his other foot. Not a good sign! Hope we can get it healed quickly seeing that he discovered it fairly early.
Thursday was up slightly earlier than usual as Diane and I had hair appointments at eight. Hubby was off to get his blood sugar levels tested again so was not allowed breakfast. We all only had something to drink before leaving for our appointments. The weather was bitterly cold and overcast. I had a long-sleeved T-shirt and two jackets and was still cold. While at the hairdresser a friend I haven’t seen for ages came in for her hair appointment and we spent a pleasant time catching up on all our latest news. Leaving the hairdresser we went into Meyerton to collect Hubby’s monthly prescription. We were both freezing and hungry so decided to stop at Wimpy for breakfast. I had a full breakfast and coffee while Diane had the vegetarian breakfast with coffee. By the time we left we both felt better and not so cold. I quickly run into the bank to make a deposit before heading into the chemist. It was just after half ten by the time we got home where we got onto the computer to check emails. Hubby phoned and asked us to bring his medication to him as he had forgotten to take it with him. I got everything together and we went into Alberton City to collect my cell phone which was ready for collection at last. Hopefully it is really fixed this time. Leaving there we stopped at the workshop to drop the medication off before going on to Eastgate to look for a cellphone upgrade for Hubby. We found him one there and left for home arriving at three. We had a short nap and then I phoned Ali to see how her Drs Appointment had gone. She has been given instructions to rest even more than she has as the baby is still at risk and the lungs are not developed enough yet. Diane and I will go through on Monday to fetch Travis for the week. Ali has been booked for the 25th to have her Caesarean. This is going to be a big baby as he is already 3kgs. Diane and I spent the evening alternating between the computer and TV. We watched parts of the World Cup Opening Concert which was fantastic. The amount of people attending was unbelievable. We had our Milo while watching ‘Fringe’ wrapped up in blankets.
Friday was another icy morning. I started some cleaning early as Diane and I were going in to Alberton for appointments we had. Before leaving I asked Diane to change my sim card into my new cell phone as it had been charging all night. We were both furious when it wouldn’t switch on at all. After trying for at least fifteen minutes we gave up and I got the repair card out to take it back in. I dropped Diane off and then carried on to Alberton City to take the phone in. I stomped in there and told them it was not fixed and I didn’t want it anymore. To my absolute embarrasment the girl at the counter ,after two attempts, got it working. She looked at me as if I was stupid – I certainly felt that way. After taking it back I told her if it switched itself off again I would be back and then slunk out of the shop. I quickly shopped for a nappy bag for Joshua before going back to Diane. She had just finished as I arrived and I went in for my appointment. Once my appointment was over Diane and I did some shopping before returning home to do a bit more cleaning.Hubby was home fairly early as he wasn’t feeling too well. We had our glass of wine and watched some soccer. It was a good game with Bafana holding their own. The evening was spent on the computer as there wasn’t much on TV.

Sunday/Monday

Was woken when Hubby bought me my coffee in bed about seven. Nice to get but I was not impressed that it was So Early, especially after the ridiculous hour we were up on Saturday. Breakfast was about half past and after chilling for a while in front of the TV I was up about half eight to see to the dogs. After giving the kitchen a brief tidy up I got ready for our lunch-time braai at the Vaal Old Wheels Clubhouse. Diane stayed home to reformat her computer which crashes if we are too long on the internet. Real Pain! Sandy and Godfrey picked us up in their Lark about eleven to go through stopping on the way for salads and shopping they needed. We arrived and after ordering our drinks Hubby took me on a tour of the place. The place is a plot where Izzy lives. His house is at the back. In front he has built old- fashioned buildings housing his collection which comprises of old cars, old tractors, old implements and steam engines among other things. Unbelievable to see it all! After the tour we went back to the pub to rejoin the club members. The rest of the afternoon was spent chilling, chatting and drinking. We all had a wonderful time together and I was pleased we ate late afternoon – no supper to make – yippee! We got home about half five to find Diane still busy with the computer. I spent the evening on the computer while Diane watched the ` Twilight’ movie. I couldn’t do the weekend blog as she still had to install the programme for that. We had our Milo after the movie and were in bed fairly early where I read some more of my book.
Monday was a very busy day and there was plenty of catching up to do around the house after the last week of being out so much. I cleaned and cleared all the washing- Thank goodness it was a sunny day and the washing dried fairly quickly. During the day I phoned Ali to see how her and Travis were. She was not well at all again. It is very worrying and I will probably need to fetch Travis again this week. Diane carried on with the computer reformat as well as sorting her pics from last week and the weekend out. I did some office work in the afternoon in between cleaning. We were so busy before we knew it it was time for our wine and Diane’s soapie. We never even had time for a ride but at least I cleared a lot. I must just do ironing now – the worst job ever! I did my blog in the evening while Diane watched TV and then we tried to upload pics but gave up in the end. There must have been too many people on-line.
Cheers and have a great week.

Busy Times

Friday was up to a chilly day again with Travis. We had our morning cuppa together before we fed the dogs and made breakfast. I cleared all Travis’s washing and put it out to dry before going outside with Travis. He was tired and fell asleep about eleven and I quickly did some cleaning and made him lunch before he woke at half twelve. He ate his fish fingers but just poked disgustedly at his vegies. After he had finished eating Diane took him for a walk while I packed his things ready to leave for Ali. We left just after one and were lucky to have a clear run through again. Before we got to Ali we stopped at KFC for some food which we ate when we got to her. After eating Ali made us a drink and we sat outside with Travis while he played. It was just after three thirty when we left for home – what luck – another clear run through on the highway. Our arrival coincided perfectly with time for a glass of wine. The peace was pleasant but I was already missing Travis. We spent the evening alternating with cleaning and working on the computer going to bed fairly early around ten. When I went to let the dogs out for the final time of the evening the outside dogs were going mad at the fence and the next door dogs were also carrying on. I checked but could see nothing. Hubby went to check on things while I phoned the neighbours to see that all was OK. Can you believe it! They hadn’t even noticed the noise. We went to bed after setting the alarm for three forty five. I took ages to fall asleep as the dogs carried on with their noise for quite a while.
Saturday early morning was absolutely freezing when the alarm woke me. I quickly made coffee and teas before waking Hubby and Diane. I got dressed and then fed the dogs while they got themselves ready. We left about twenty to five and stopped to put petrol in the Deke and buy sandwiches for the road. Diane was all cosy on the back seat with her duvet and pillow while I wrapped myself in a little blanket. We arrived in Alberton about five fifteen and as we drove in Hubby remarked that we were a bit early. When I asked what he meant he informed me that the meeting time had been changed from five to five forty five. I was really p**d off as we could have stayed asleep about an extra half hour. After sitting waiting and freezing I was relieved when we were joined by the other two Dekes and we carried on to the next meeting point just past Kempton. I tried to doze but was so cold and Hubby kept talking so it was impossible. After leaving the next Meeting Point there were five Dekes in convoy. Just before Pretoria the leading Deke pulled into the Petroport where we had another meeting point. Going in Convoy can be a real pain when there are so many different meeting spots as they waste so much time. Diane and I went into the Quik Shop and got ourselves and Hubby a rusk and cappuccino. We drank it outside in the sun while saying Hi to all and sundry. We left not long after eight and now had fifteen Dekes in the convoy. After turning off at Bela Bela we had another wait for two more Dekes coming from the Polokwane side. It was a relief when we eventually arrived shortly after nine and parked all the Dekes together. Diane and I immediately went exploring after saying Hi to those DKW club members who had stayed overnight. Klein Kariba was an absolutely stunning spot with spectacular scenery. After our exploration we went back to the Dekes where an urn for coffee and tea with rusks had been set up. After having our drink we joined Hubby and friends for a chat before we went on another walk around. Hubby joined us and we climbed up a path through the trees on the Kopje above the cars. At the top were a group of Dassies sunning themselves. Diane managed to get some pics of them before they disappeared. We walked around the top of the kopje making our way back down to the cars. Several people went off to swim in the hot baths – there were four of them plus an indoor pool. Hubby rejoined some friends and Diane and I decided to walk down to the little dam where there were pedal boat rides. We had our pedal around for half an hour. It is amazing how long half an hour can be when you are pedalling almost non-stop. We only had a few brief stops for Diane to take pics. I told her we must keep pedalling to make up for the rides we had missed during the week. Hubby phoned while we were on the boat to see if we minded if he joined his friends for breakfast. Silly question! Of course we didn’t. We finished our pedal and made our way back arriving about a quarter to twelve. Hubby and friends were just finishing their meal. After chatting a while Diane and I went in to quench our thirst with rock shandies before ordering something to eat. Diane got herself a plate of chips while I had chicken schnitzel and chips with a glass of red wine. Diane finished off with a strawberry cocktail while I had a coffee. Outside the restaurant was a swing bridge across to the waterfall and we made our way over it to go take more pics. There was a steep stairway up to the next level and we felt the effects of our pedal as we neared the top. We took a breather at the top while taking pics before making our way back down to the bridge. Crossing the bridge Diane decided to jump up and down in the middle to set it swinging. When I eventually managed to get over it I couldn’t believe the effect of it. My head felt as if it was next to me as I tried to walk. It was the most weirdest feeling. We joined the others back at the cars where Diane took pics while Hubby and I chatted to friends. We left soon after going for a drive around the place before making our way out. Near the entrance were some bokkies and a group of zebra. Diane got out and took pics. The zebra were very tame and didn’t even worry about her being so close. Going home was so much quicker seeing that it was only us and no convoy. We stopped to get salads for supper and food for Sunday on the way. When we got back I went and had a nap as I was feeling very tired. I was up just after eight to watch ` Eragon’ with Diane followed by `Suspect’. It was about midnight when I went to bed. Diane had gone while `Suspect’ was on and Hubby had gone to sleep hours ago.

Another Hectic Week

Sunday morning was woken by Hubby at eight with a welcome coffee and fruit. While I was drinking my coffee I heard what sounded like rain but thought I must be imagining things. Unfortunately it was raining and that ruined the plans for our hike. After having our bacon and eggs I watched some TV before getting up to see to the dogs. I couldn’t believe how cold the weather had turned. A cold front had moved in with the rain and we had a miserable cold damp day. We spent the day chilling and working on the computer. There was not much on TV and we didn’t even bother watching it. Our Milo was taken while busy on the computer.
Monday morning the cold weather continued with a really icy start to the day. After a bit of office work and an early lunch Diane and I went into Heidelberg to take my Citizenship papers in. We were in and out fairly quickly and went home via Meyerton where we did some shopping and collected Hubby’s tablets from the chemist. We were home in time for a welcome glass of wine before I made supper.
Tuesday morning I sorted out the spare room quickly and put some winter bedding on before leaving to fetch Travis. We were having him for the rest of the week to give Ali another break to relax and make sure all was OK with the baby. She now knows that it is another boy. The highway through was clear and moved quickly as all lanes are now open ready for the world cup. We arrived just after eleven and picked them up to go for lunch at the Little Falls Nursery and monkey sanctuary. Travis had a wonderful time playing with everything and having his lunch in between. We all had trammezzini with chips and a fruillata followed by cappuccinos. We went through the monkey section again. One cage had five little monkeys in who were lying in a row in a patch of sunshine. Two were very small, two were medium sized and there was one who was very old. I remarked to Diane what an old and cute wrinkled little face it had. We moved around along the other side and on our way back noticed that the old monkey had hold of one of the medium sized monkeys and was dragging it along. The other monkey was trying to hold onto it and it was clutching at its head where it was being pulled. The cute face wasn’t cute anymore and in fact looked very evil as it glared at us. We tried to distract it into leaving the other monkey alone but it ignored us. Diane was very upset and went to find someone to stop it but to our relief, as we walked away, it dropped the younger monkey. We left the monkey area and wandered around the other shops before going back to Ali’s place. Travis fell asleep in the car so we just dropped Ali off and collected his bag before carrying on home. He only woke up as we reached home and he couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw where he was. The first thing he insisted on doing was going for a walk around the place and he didn’t stop until it was bedtime. He was already yawning and tired by five but refused to even think about bed. At seven we went off to bed and he fell asleep fairly quickly. I dozed off as well and got up about half eight. It was another freezing evening and I was thankful I had put the winter bedding on. We were in bed about eleven as I knew I would need plenty of energy the next day.
Travis woke at six and we were up for our cuppa soon after. The weather was really icy still and I put plenty of layers on him to keep him warm. Once breakfast was over he was out playing and running around the yard with the dogs. Diane had an appointment at eleven in Alberton so we left about half ten to go in. Travis had a short nap on the way there but woke as soon as the car stopped. Diane went in and I took Travis and went shopping. He has outgrown most of his clothes and only has one pair of winter pyjamas that still fit. We found him some Buzz Lightyear pyjamas and I got him vests and socks (he has bitten holes in all but two pairs). Last night he had wanted to play with my collection of musical teddies so I promised him one of his own to play with while staying with us. He chose himself a fluffy cheetah and refused to let go of it at the till. I had to remove the price tag for the cashier. We were back for Diane at twelve and waited in the car for her. Travis fell asleep while eating a little baklava I had bought for him. He slept until two so Diane and I were able to have a peaceful lunch. Once he woke it was back to running around again. We took him for a walk to give him plenty of exercise. Diane played with him in the sandpit while I started supper and then we all sat out there until it started to get too cold. He had some of the spaghetti bolognaise for his supper and then I put him in the bath where he played for half an hour. I kept topping the water up with hot so he wouldn’t catch cold. He was thrilled to wear his new pyjamas and had a big smile when he showed them to Grandpa and Aunty. It was eight when he consented to go to bed with his cheetah but luckily he fell asleep almost immediately so I was able to watch ‘The Mentalist’ with Diane. Hubby was really tired as he was also asleep just after eight. Diane and I spent some time on the computer and we went to bed around eleven after I took the dogs out.
Thursday morning was another freezing start and we had to pile on the layers to keep warm. Diane had a photo shoot so we left home just after nine to go in for it. She was taking pics of a little one so we took Travis to help relax and amuse him. Fat chance! All Travis wanted to do was play with his toys and Chris was not impressed. Luckily Diane was able to get some good shots in between the rivalry. We stopped in at the workshop afterwards. Travis loves the noise of the hammer and to the amusement of everyone there bobs up and down in time to the hammer stroke. Hubby gave him a ride on his shaper – Travis sees it as a horse and sits astride moving back and forth. We left the workshop and went down to Alberton City for some shopping. By the time we got there he had fallen asleep so I just ran in to the shop while Diane stayed in the car with him. After leaving there we stopped at Steers for a burger and chips. Travis woke up hungry and miserable. We gave him his packet of chips and he sat tucking in until we got home. The afternoon was spent in the usual running around and playing in the sandpit before having his supper and bath. He was in bed just after seven and fell asleep not long after. I have managed to catch up with the blog and will soon be in bed. It is really icy again – I am sitting with a blanket around me to keep warm. It has been a hectic week so far as we have been out every single day and are out again tomorrow to take Travis back. Saturday will also be a busy day as Hubby has made arrangements with a friend to meet at five in the morning to go out for the day. I am most certainly not looking forward to getting up so early in this cold weather.