Chilling with Wayne

Wayne and Bec arrived back here on Tuesday morning and after unloading their bags joined us on a trip to Heidelberg. In Heidelberg we visited the Gold and Diamond Shop which they both enjoyed spending ages browsing through everything. We had a late lunch in the tea garden where we were entertained by a tortoise and a family of Silke bantams. Bec took loads of pics and was feeding the tortoise grape leaves and whole grapes. It was cute to see it munching the grapes. We all enjoyed our lunch of Italian bread open sandwiches and drinks. After lunch Bec did some shopping for her family and we then drove around looking at the historical buildings like the old jail. Before returning home we drove through Henley-on-Klip as Wayne wanted to show Bec the village and the Weir.
On Wednesday we went into Chinatown and Eastgate where Bec was thrilled to do some more shopping for herself and for her family. Wednesday evening we went back into town to the Italian Club where the Model Car Club was having the last meeting of the year. It was a lovely chill evening having a good meal and wine while Hubby got himself a couple of cars to add to his collection.
Thursday was a quiet day with Wayne and Hubby playing with the old cars. They had a drive in the blue Plymouth and then tried to start the Studebaker but had no joy. Hubby was most upset as usually it starts straight away but with him being wheelchair bound for so long he has neglected the cars and he thinks the fuel pump must have packed up. Thursday afternoon Hubby took Wayne and Bec down to the Klip River to try some fishing as Wayne has been wanting to fish in a river for ages now. These poor Ozzies really miss out on a lot of things. They both enjoyed the experience even though they didn’t catch anything.
Friday morning Wayne and Bec packed their things ready to go to Donovan and after loading the car we left for The Glen. First stop was Dischem where they bought themselves insect repellents ready for their trip to Mpumalanga on Sunday. After some more shopping we made our way to The Ocean Basket where I had my favourite of Prawns and they had Sushi. Bec is really having a good time eating out here as she finds the service and food standards excellent compared to Oz. Once the meal was over we made our way to the car and left to drop Wayne and Bec off at Donovan’s place. Diane and I returned home where we chilled for the rest of the afternoon. Hubby went out to a car meeting and Diane went out with a friend to see the latest Harry Potter movie. I had a leisurely evening doing some cleaning in the cottage in between watching TV.
Saturday both Diane and I were feeling rather grim with infected sinuses so didn’t do much at all. Sunday we went into Alberton City where we met Ali and Travis to do some Christmas shopping. We were home lunchtime and after dosing up and resting I started cleaning the lounge. All the curtains have been washed and once windows are clean I can put them back and do the rest of the room. Yay the place will look good for Christmas and the New Year.
All for now. Have a great week and drive carefully if you are going away.

Another pic from Gold Reef Fun

Wayne's Arrival

Wayne and his girlfriend arrived Tuesday morning after spending a day with Donovan. It was good to see him again and to finally meet Rebecca who is a lovely person. Wayne is very lucky to have her for his girlfriend. After a catch-up chat under the tree over tea and coffee Diane took the two of them off to Eastgate where they all spent the rest of the day having a great shopping spree. I spent the day doing office work and relaxing after the hectic cleaning spree. Wednesday they all went to Gold Reef City for the day enjoying themselves at the funfair and casino before doing some more shopping on the way home. Bec is really enjoying shopping thanks to our prices in comparision to Oz. The evening was spent chilling under the trees having a braai. On Thursday morning Ali phoned to say Travis was sick with bronchitis again so Hubby went through to fetch him to stay so that I could look after him and get him better. Wayne and Bec spent the day relaxing and doing washing in between driving the Sunbeam and going for a drive in the DKW with Hubby. They left about half three to go back to Donovan ready for their weekend in Sun City. Diane and I went into Meyerton to get Travis’s medication and some shopping. Friday was a day of playing with Travis and giving him his medication. Saturday morning Travis was still sleeping when I left to go fetch Josh as I had offered to look after the boys while she went for her Staff Christmas Party. When we got back Hubby and Travis were playing in the Play Area in the Sandpit. Diane left about eleven to go to friends and Hubby left about twelve for his monthly Tit Meet. The rest of the day was an exhausting round of looking after the boys, putting them to sleep, feeding them and keeping them amused. To have a Toddler and a Baby the main ingredient in coping is energy and at my age it soon runs out. It was a relief when Diane and Hubby were home to help look after Josh while I bathed Travis and got him ready for bed. Diane took Josh as he was wide awake while I got Travis to sleep. Sunday I was up half five with Josh and had seen to him with his bottle and breakfast as well as had a chill coffee outside before Travis woke up. Hubby made a bacon and egg breakfast which we enjoyed under the trees as it was a lovely day with plenty of birds around. Ali arrived about eleven and after eating her breakfast chilled with us before leaving for home. Once they were gone I started to clean up after Hurricane Travis and when the cottage was done relaxed a couple of hours before finishing the rest of the house. Diane and I watched the Sunday night Movie and after all was cleaned and ready for the week ahead we finally went to bed about midnight.

Pics from Botannical Garden Outing

Back Again with the latest News

Life has just flown past the last few months. My time has not been my own and it has been difficult keeping up with the blog. Hubby’s recuperation time is finally at an end and he has been good with following Dr’s orders. His sugar levels have been stable and he has rested his feet. Towards the end he was getting very frustrated with not been able to do much or drive himself. I must admit it was difficult for me too as I was doing a lot of driving around and going backwards and forwards to the workshop and neglecting the house. Hubby has had his follow up visit to the Dr who was happy with his progress. He is able to drive himself around and is back at work part-time. He only spends a couple of hours a day there as his feet start aching very quickly and he comes home to put them up. There is one thing I am VERY ANGRY about and that is – he has started smoking again. He went out about a week ago to a Tit Car Meet and had a smoke while out and keeps sneaking a smoke outside. I was really furious and hardly spoke to him for a few days. He has said he will stop and I really hope he does for his health’s sake.
Diane and I have been to the Movies a couple of times to see ‘Despicable Me’ and ‘You Again’. Both of which we really enjoyed. We made the most of our outings with having a meal and a good shopping spree while we were out. I can’t wait to go for a hike again as I have really missed going and enjoying the Suikerbos Route.
Ali started work at the beginning of November and while learning she has to work Saturdays to do the training so we have looked after the Boys a couple of times. The first Saturday we had a get-together at Lifestyle with Pauline, Val and Kim so they could finally see Josh. We had a super time over breakfast catching up with each other’s news. Ali joined us just after twelve and after saying Hi and Bye to Val and Kim she had lunch with Diane and I. Once she left with the boys Diane and I did some shopping before returning home. Last week we picked the boys up and spent the morning at the Botanical Gardens. It was a lovely relaxing time as Diane and I spent most of the time chilling on the grass under the trees while Josh slept and Travis ran around tiring himself out. A tortoise came out of the bushes and was walking around eating the grass. Travis was thrilled and walked around with it until it went back into the bushes. Ali joined us there for lunch and we spent a pleasant hour or so chilling and listening to the birds – there certainly were plenty around in the trees.
I have managed to do some of my annual spring clean with only a few rooms left to do. We had a contractor in to do some much needed repairs to the cottage. Now that it is finished it really looks good though it was most frustrating while they were working. On the Wednesday night we moved the furniture out of the main bedroom into the small bedroom and the lounge furniture into our lounge. The workers only pitched on Friday as they were busy elsewhere and spent most of the time loafing as they didn’t have the right tools. This meant they weren’t finished and had to come back on the Monday. Monday they came late and didn’t finish again. Tuesday they didn’t turn up at all and instead came on Wednesday. This time they had the wrong size ceiling board and only late morning was the right size bought to the house. Once again they didn’t finish and Thursday morning the job was eventually finished. Friday we quickly painted the main bedroom and on Saturday I was finally able to start making it habitable. Saturday we painted the toilet as it was looking rather the worse for wear. The rest of the weekend was spent moving the furniture back, cleaning and hanging the clean curtains back up. Sunday evening while I was in there finishing off the lounge a bat came in and kept flying around. I opened everywhere up so it could fly out and had a drink while I waited for it to go. When I peeped back in I couldn’t see it so closed up and carried on. While arranging the flowers I turned around and found it flying around again. It flew behind the curtain and I closed them trapping it against the window and opened the windows again. I left it and we had supper. When I went back it had gone and I was able to carry on until about twelve. Monday I was able to finally clean the house and by bedtime (twelve) it was finally decent again. Wayne will be here tomorrow so at least I am ready in time for his visit with his girlfriend. We are looking forward to seeing him again and to meet his girlfriend.

Latest from the Plot

Life has been rather hectic the last few weeks. We have entertained plenty and also done some visiting ourselves. We spent a day at the Vaal visiting Barney for lunch. The weather was perfect and we took the Sunbeam for an outing though on the way home Hubby was over enthusiastic when he pulled the handbrake and snapped it. Luckily there was very little traffic and no robots from the Vaal to the Plot. Ali and the boys came through for a day bringing Bob and Sylvia. We had a very pleasant day chatting and enjoyed our lunch together. Their visit must have been lucky as we had our first rains of the season with a downpour just as they drove off. On Saturday Diane and I took Hubby to Suikerbosrand where we went on the Wheelchair Trail. The Trail is only a km long but when it is going up and you are pushing a wheelchair it can be rather exhausting. Diane and I took turns in pushing and when we got to the top sat for a long time enjoying the scenery and peace of the area. There were plenty of birds in the trees and we used the binoculars to try and spot them. Hubby really enjoyed himself. Going down was also tiring as we had to hang on to the wheelchair to make sure it didn’t go too fast downhill. The hike was even more exhausting then doing the 4.5km hike but we enjoyed having a hike again as the last hike was before Hubby’s op.
Time has really flown past and I can’t believe Christmas is just around the corner. Wayne and his girlfriend are coming to visit from the 29 November until the 23 December.
I really need to organise myself as usually by this time I have done most of my Christmas shopping and am on track for the end of the year. Looking after Hubby has kept me busy and distracted from time passing. Also back and forth to the workshop has taken a fair amount of time. It’s hard to believe it is almost two months since his op and only another month till we know what the Dr’s decision will be. Hubby’s foot is doing well but we are both disappointed as the healing process seems to have slowed down drastically. There seems to have been little improvement since last week though at least it is still looking good. It is just the last little part that needs to close now. Weather wise we are still having gale force winds and plenty of thunder and lightning though not much rain at all. The mornings are too windy and cold to sit outside under the trees and I really am missing being able to sit there and chill while soaking up the peace. My hectic life at the moment is starting to take its toll - not as young as I used to be – and I keep falling asleep in front of the TV. I wake up and find I have missed half of my show which is most irritating. Thinking of meals for Hubby also is getting to the stage of running out of ideas for something different. Sometimes he gets sick of having so many veg but that’s Dr’s orders and at least Diane and I love them. I tend to cook extra so that some meals are leftovers which make things easier for me. Apart from that it is great having Hubby around all the time as we have plenty of time to sit and chat. Pushing his wheelchair around is also keeping me fit. The biggest problem now is Hubby’s boredom with doing nothing and he has started doing odd jobs around the place. I stress every time as he stands to do things which sometimes take nearly an hour such as when he replaced the outside light on the Rondaval which had stopped working. He had to drill new holes and fit the new fitting which seemed to tske forever.Afterwards I made him rest for the rest of the day and not even sit in his chair. He is now talking about going up into the roof to see what thermostat is on the geyser to get a new one. He is crazy if he thinks I will let him.
Well that’s all for now. Have a great week and fabulous weekend.

News of the Week

Ali and boys arrived on Sunday morning just in time to join us on our outing to the Circus Coffee Shop for breakfast with Sandy, Godfrey and Kirsten. We arrived just after ten and had a super morning chilling over our breakfast. It was good to be out with friends and family and the time just flew past. It was almost one when we left going via the shops to stock up on things for the week. The rest of the day was spent relaxing and enjoying time with Travis and Josh.
Monday morning Ali took Hubby in for his wound check-up while I looked after the boys. Loraine was very happy with the progress of his wound and removed the KCI as there is nothing left for it to work on. The hole is almost closed up and must now finish closing naturally. Hubby was really pleased to have the machine removed and feels free now that he is not attached to it. The best part is not having that noise constantly going all night while trying to sleep. Late Monday afternoon we went into Alberton to meet up with Diane as well as Angie, Margaret, Julie and their boys to have Pizza at The Harvard Cafe. It was an opportunity for them to see Josh for the first time. We had a great family get-together and Travis really enjoyed playing with Byron and Jared.
Tuesday we all had a fairly busy day. Ali was feeling very energetic and cooked a whole lot of food for us to freeze and use as needed. Hubby and I looked after the boys between us, taking it in turns with Josh and Travis. Travis as usual spent most of his time outside playing and Josh gurgled happily with whoever spent time with him. He is three months old now and really cute. He loves to gurgle and laugh watching everything around him. In between I started my invoices and statements with Ali also helping with them while the boys were asleep. I carried on till late with my statements and scanning to e-mail. I actually fell asleep a couple of times while sitting in front of the computer and eventually went to bed about one in the morning.
Wednesday Ali took Hubby in for his next check-up while I played with the two little ones. Loraine was very happy as Hubby’s wound was still doing so well. Once Hubby and Ali were back we had lunch (Ali’s efforts) before we going into Meyerton to do some shopping and get a new back-pack for Travis for Nursery School. We got back in time to have a cappuccino before Ali bathed the boys and left for home. After they left I quickly vacuumed around the place before having my glass of wine. It was very quiet and peaceful on our own but we were already missing them as we both enjoy having them around.
Thursday was spent finishing off the last few statements and doing some cleaning. Friday we went in to Alberton again for Loraine to check Hubby’s foot. The wound is healing beautifully and looks really good. Loraine will be away next week so showed me how to clean and dress the wound. I hope it keeps healing so well while I am doing it. We went off to the workshop to check on things and I faxed the final few statements. We went shopping to get things needed at the workshop before stopping at Diane to pick up an Ottoman set she had bought herself.
Saturday we left early for the Pride March and after picking up a friend of Diane’s we arrived at Zoo Lake at half nine. Ali and the boys joined us shortly after and after putting them into their prams we went up to where the Parade starts. The day was already very hot with the heat wave that has just started. The parade started earlier than usual due to the heat. The floats were the usual colourful display with the most amazing costumes imaginable. Diane and her friend followed the parade around but Ali and I decided it was too hot to walk and found seats in the shade where we waited for the procession to arrive back. Travis really enjoyed himself and was fascinated by all the colour and music. We had a great day and really enjoyed the vibe of the event.
Sunday was a relaxing day with visits from Priscilla and Justine as well as Barney and Crystal. All for now. Have a fabulous week.