My Life's Winding Roads: February is history and March has arrived.

My Life's Winding Roads: February is history and March has arrived.: Good Morning world   from a blessedly cooler, damp little Village on the Cape coast.  We have had some rain on and off for about two weeks a...

February is history and March has arrived.

Good Morning world from a blessedly cooler, damp little Village on the Cape coast.  We have had some rain on and off for about two weeks and what a difference it makes. The humidity is still high but nature has responded to the change immediately. Our grass has grown in less than two weeks to ankle height and is actually green and not dry and crispy.  It is pure joy to hear the rain on the roof.

February was a short month in just about every respect, it felt like it just started and is now gone. As usual it was a busy month with work, family and just trying to keep up with daily life. we started off the month with a trip to Hout Bay, while BigBear was away in the USA.  This last trip was two weeks which [proved just a little too long for a certain little boy. Nevertheless we kept him and his Mama company and busy. We did a few outings, played lots of games, learnt new sounds and got LOTS of cuddles.  My Gran Gran heart was and is full.  He is now 18 months old and his  personality grows by the day. 

I had ended off January with having to wear a Holter device as I had been experiencing Syncope type episodes for months and had put it down to the heat and or Fibro. Hmmm when I mentioned it to my GP he was anything but impressed and ordered the Holter.

 This is a small device, much like a car remote which is attached to the middle of ones chest. It has electodes built in and for the duration that you wear it, records all your heart rythms and Blood Pressure.  I wore it for four days and actually felt like it had been a total waste of time and money.  Well apparently not. We arrived in Hout Bay on the wednesday (two days after removing it) and thursday evening I received a call from the Cardiologists rooms telling me to come in the following day.  I had just arrived on the other side of CT and  asked if it was possible to come in the following week.  Not a good suggestion as within minutes my GP was on the phone explaining that I was a Stage 3 Stroke Risk category and there was no such thing as waiting until the following week.  He duly set about making the appointment for the next day with the Cardiologist, this all took place at about 19.30 in the evening.  At the Cardio app the next day I had a heart sonar to check for clots, another sonar and then a stress ECG.  The upshot of all this was  firstly he asked how I got there, when I replied and said I drove, a very stern lecture was issued. No driving - I still had to get back to HB.  Apparently my heart has a little area next to the Left valve which allows blood to flow through as well as the through the Valve. I do not know the official name. On the other side the electrical impulses from the veins are irregular.  Medication was started immediately and i am due to see an Electrophysiologist on the 6th of this month to discuss an Ablation.  Since taking the meds my BP is more stable and I have had only a few fainting feelings.  This is nothing that God cannot heal and I am trusting Him for complete healing and His wisdom and guidance.  But, as you can imagine this kind of blew up the month a little bit as well as being a bit scary .

We were home for a week and then last week back to HB as it was MamaBear's turn to go to Jhb for work.  Our little Munchkin found it difficult but he is such a little star and was beside himself when she got home on Thursday evening. His little world was complete once again.

JB has also had some medical challenges and saw a new Dr last week who seems to totally understand the problem and has offered solutions and is now walking a road with her. She is a Type 1 Diabetic who is Insulin Resistant, it not an easy road to travel but, just in the last two weeks we have seen a radical change in her Glucose levels although at the same time her body has struggled to adapt to the change.  We are winning this battle in Jesus Name.

Big Guy is really enjoying his job and absolutely flourishing in it. Well done Son it is so good to see you happy and motivated.  Poppet is doing well and is currently up in Jhb with Princess who has been going through a very challenging personal situation.  One of the biggest blessings I see in my family's lives is their individual "villages" who are constant and always there when the situation calls for them.

Hubby has been busy with his sailing and an undetermined amount of clocks needing repair.  I am not sure even he knows how many are hanging in the garage.  He also had to do some work on his car this weekend.  We had taken his car to HB as we had to travel from there to Hermanus and back for JB's Dr appointment.  When leaving HB on Friday morning the gearbox felt like it was locked.  I had left the car in first gear because it was parked on a steep incline - i have always done this. Anyway we could not disengage from first gear until eventually BigBear released the handbrake and rolled back a little, this released it, BUT, thereafter first gear had become reverse. So we drove home using second gear in place of first. Apparently the "gear linkages" had moved and he was able to sort it out.  Whew talk about stressful - visions of needing to replace the gearbox had been my biggest concern.

As I sit and type this the rain is coming down and is honestly one of my favourite sounds.  We have truly had a brutal summer, all of our dams are very low and there as been talk of water restrictions, so every drop that falls is a miracle.  Meanwhile "up" country they have had nothing but rain, rain and even more rain.  I would be surprised to know if there has been one week during summer where no rain had fallen.

On my work front mending continues to come in, in a steady stream and I am now teaching JB how to do some of the sewing. With Hooked in Luv I finished a lovely Big Octopus to go with the whale and am busy working on a Penguin. Yesterday I even made a loaf of bread .... in line with my promise to myself to do more of what I love and break the treadmill of busyness.  During the week while in Hout Bay I managed to bake up a nice batch of Buttermilk Rusks as well, little Munchkin sees everyone with tea or coffee in the early morning and runs to the cupboard to get the rusks, all the while explaining in his very urgent and intense language what he is doing.  He absolutely loves to dunk his little rusk into a cup of tea and then proceeds to eat it with his little pinky out at an angle.

Folks that is what my month looked like, I sincerely hope most of you have had a quieter, less stressful, gentler month.  May March be kinder to us all and filled with blessings, healing and precious memories.  Ciao Caio for now, stay safe.

Cooling off in the pool, what a view

Curls that thousands would love 😍

Opal the Octopus

My Life's Winding Roads: January 2026

My Life's Winding Roads: January 2026:   Hi folks, what happened ? I suddenly just realised that today was the 1st and January was actually finished. Ho hum and here is me with my...

January 2026

 Hi folks, what happened ? I suddenly just realised that today was the 1st and January was actually finished. Ho hum and here is me with my ambitions to make more time for myself and tthe things that fulfill me ... I am getting there. Right now s l o w l y but I will get there.  January was, you guessed it, busy .  So much so that this morning I decided that I  need to make notes / bullet points somewhere on a weekly basis in order to remember everything I want to share here 😂

The weather - oh HELP it has been ridiculously hot, with really high humidity levels and, not a lot of wind.  The sun has been so intense that even thinking of getting into a pool is too hot. I kid you not.

We had Princess and Sunshine here for 2 nights (it went way too fast and was way too short). Such a special time and we packed in as much as possible.  As usual when they visit we played a card game every night. We know it as Nurch and it can get quite loud and energetic 😂.  Thinking back, Princess was 3 years old when we started playing and used to add to the chaos by climbing onto the table, 2such precious memories.  We did a girl's coffee date which was very special, to just sit and chat and catch up, a year is a long time to store up things to say and remember. A few months ago JB and I "discovered" a new, to us beach which can only be accessed at low tide. One of their nights here the wind miraculously dropped enough for us all to take a lovely walk.  It turns out that it is actually the bottom end of Main beach.  The tide was out, there were lots of shells to pick up, the sun was dropping.  Charlie came with and we realised that he gets absolutely frantic when the family is together but some walk ahead or onto the rocks, or lag behind. He barks and barks and goes crazy, which means he ends up in "air jail" - picked up by his harness. We walked along until we came to a small lagoon kind of sheltered between the dunes. It is not open to the sea at the moment and comes down from one of our three lakes.  We also saw a small, sadly, dead baby seal which had washed up to the water line. I reported immediately to the relevant authorities as there has been a serious outbreak of rabies among the seals here in the Cape.  At the end of the walk we figured we had walked about a kilometre. It was a super duper walk.  Princess had a dental appointment on Monday and in Wednesday had three wisdom teeth removed under general anaesthetic.  Praying for quick healing my angel  🙏🏻

JB and I also did two trips to Hout Bay. One really quick 2 day visit and then 2 weeks ago a week longer trip as Mama Bear had to go to Jhb for the week.  Our little Munchkin is growing so, so fast. His words are growing daily as well as his skills and everything else.  He runs fast, and is everywhere. Each visit is different and such a joy.  We tried to explain to him that Mama went to work in an aeroplane.  Thereafter whenever he saw a plane, he would point and say Mama. The child probably thinks when his parents go away they circle Hout Bay in an aeroplane all week 🤣. It was a very bookish week as that was what Munchkin was into.

This last week was busy with some sewing and getting personal mending done.  With regards to Hooked in Luv there is quite a lot in the pipeline. My web domain has been secured. I have added to the Hooded in Luv family with Willow the Whale as I want to expand  the range to include brothers and sisters and older children, even some adults haha.  Pic of Willow Whale below. 

Currently we are enjoying have Miss Muffet here from London, until Tuesday.  From here she spends time with other family. It has been a long time since we saw her and it is special catching up. We went for lunch at the Penguin Colony. The food was lousy but seeing the penguins is always special.

So as you can see it has been super busy and we landed in January running. This week we are off to HB again as PapaBear is in the USA. He just video called and apart from wearing four layers and a Norweigen snow jacket he is freezing. 

Folks some pics of the month below are and I will end off for now.  Have a super special February, stay healthy and safe.  Ciao ciao.

Walk on the beach with Grandkids.

The little cove where the lagoon is 

Little Munchkin got tired 

Hello Willow the Whale 

The penguins today

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All lined up for a photo 

My Life's Winding Roads: Happy New Year all and welcome 2026.

My Life's Winding Roads: Happy New Year all and welcome 2026.:   Good morning friends and family all around the world. I hope you all had a very peace filled and blessed Christmas.  As I write this we ar...

Happy New Year all and welcome 2026.

 Good morning friends and family all around the world. I hope you all had a very peace filled and blessed Christmas.  As I write this we are on our way to the Bears for the day as well as dropping. BigGuy off with them for his last night in Cape Town.  What a joy it has been having him here with us and seeing him bonding with his little nephew (he is an absolute baby and dog magnet - they all naturally gravitate to him).  We have had a wonderful time with him visiting. He cooked so many meals, we went for coffees and breakfasts.  We also went through to Lourensford  Wine Farm on Friday evening for their night market, which was a first for JB. When he arrived he spent two days with the Bears and then the entire family met up last Sunday for brunch and Big Guy came home with us. Christmas day was spent in Hout Bay with the Bears and some family from MamaBear's family as well as friends who were not with family.  What a truly wonderful day, Soo much food, so many laughs, people got sunburnt 🥴 in the pool (not me 😉). It was the first time in many years that the whole family was all together on Christmas Day and I was so blessed and will treasure all the memories. Thank you everyone making it so special, my heart is full.n

Backing up a bit we did our makeover day, which took three days and oh my goodness it was chaotic. We all painted, and painted and painted.  Eventually on the Friday we paid our gardener, who is also a painter , to come in for the last coat on the walls.  It looks absolutely stunning and I could not be happier.  I also got my sheer curtains up on the deck. I will post a pic below. N

There was also a lot of heartbreak just before Christmas. Our precious little Dash has always hated our one neighbour and the feeling was very mutual.  He would bark whenever he saw them and they are in the garden all the time. They would react by spraying him with water and swearing at him. Naturally this only escalated the barking.  On the Friday before Christmas he was barking and as usual JB went out to stop him (we did this every time he barked, we never left him). This day the neighbour was spraying him with water and when she got outside, he looked her in the eyes and let forth a string of abuse and swearing.  This was so upsetting that she made the extremely difficult decision to surrender Dash back to the Dachshund Rescue we got him from,  the fear that the neighbour could be so violent and out of control , was what the next level he would resort to.  This has really caused so much heartache, he is truly the most lovable dog we have ever owned, he brought us so much joy.  His welfare is the most important and happily he is being fostered by his previous foster mom and she has another three daxies at the moment. She keeps us updated and gave him his Christmas presents and treats from us.  JB and   I still get very emotional about it and are working through the anger and sadness.  Even Charlie has been very low key since he went. We are praying that he finds the perfect home where he can run around outside without a care in the world. 

Weather wise, oh gosh it has been unbearably hot.  Most days with no wind at all. Today however the South Easter is blowing so hard that it is difficult to walk . I am already counting down to winter 🙏🏻.  The fans have not stopped lol, perhaps we will get to swim today if the wind is not blowing a gale in HB. 

This is usually the time that many people will be making. New Year Resolutions, what are your resolutions or the things you want to change  or accomplish in the New Year ?  As for me, I want to handle my work time better. Making time for myself and for my home. Ie. Baking more, cooking the kind of meals I enjoy as opposed to standing in front of the freezer at 5pm when I'm exhausted and trying to come up with a menu. More time for beach walks and my hobbies.  It is a tall order and one that I alone can control, so here goes. 

Feeling a little bit sad, having said goodbye to Big Guy for now, he flies out tomorrow morning. It was super special having you son, thank you for the laughs, all the meals and our special family hugs. 

Folks that is all from me for this year. I wish you only the best for 2026. May you make memories, try new things, step out of your comfort zones and take time for yourselves.  Please stay safe wherever you are and enjoy good health.  With love from a small seaside Village in the Cape.  Ciao ciao

2 of the 3 units we painted, before and after.

In this pic you can see the previously pink unit now Navy in the mirror 😉

The whole room then the deck with curtains.

We actually did it !!!!

I love our Christmas tree this year

l

My Life's Winding Roads: December and we made it.

My Life's Winding Roads: December and we made it.: Ooops and good morning everyone.  I am so sorry, I completely forgot it was Blog time. 🤦🏼‍♀️. It truly has been so busy that I have had a ...