Not enough coffee today .....

Greetings folks from a very windy BB, and when I say windy I mean high wind with gusts of 43km inch has been blowing since Saturday, it's the kind of wind that when you open a door your feet pick up speed all by themselves. Needless to say it's delaying some outdoor tasks, we wanted to wash the windows on Saturday but seeing as this is a South Easter, apart from being impossible it's a waste of time because in ten minutes they will be salty again. On that front I am not complaining as my energy level today is almost non existent and pain levels are on the opposite side of the scale hence the title of this Blog 'Not enough coffee' there is literally not enough that would replace my energy. Having said that I have just put my poor husband through a huge search expedition. For days now I've been trying to find a particular Bible and have looked EVERYWHERE, so today the search extended to storage boxes in the garage which only Hubby can get down, sadly all that effort resulted in nothing. Never one to give up I then dug through my kist also resulting in nothing at which point Jelly Bean walked in and asked what I was doing and then asks the very obvious question, pointing to the bookshelves she asked if I looked 'there'. "Yes" I said, but just not the back rows of books. My precious daughter walks up to the first bookshelf and has a 2 second look, pulls out a book and says "is this it ?" SERIOUSLY ???? How did I not see it ? I can see both my sons right now rolling their eyes and thinking "it's called old age Mother", no it isn't guys I don't know what to call it but old age doesn't work for me. Haha

We've had a pretty normal week if you take out all the driving, the best part of that though is how the sea changes every day so the view never gets boring. Hubby and I have also had some super dates for either coffee or dinner which is always special, I am so blessed that we are best friends as well as marriage partners unlike so many couples I've heard of, who once the husband retires he drives the wife crazy and they end up spending no time together. We have so much to do and see that every day is a new adventure.

Tomorrow Jasper and I are taking a visit to the Vet, hopefully nothing serious but I am positive that he will be very annoyed by the time we are finished. Ever since we've had him he tends to have had a blocked nose and therefore 'snuffles', the problem is that for the last few weeks he has had really smelly breath, and for a cat that loves licking his human and sleeping face to face I need to get it sorted quickly, so wish me luck folks, please. This morning I awoken by a bored cat who wanted to get out of the bedroom and so decided that the way to wake Mom was to bite her, not gentle bites I may add. He had me up in minutes to open the door for him and then returned about a half an hour later for head scratches and proceeded to knead my arms, also not a painless event. One very special kitty. Now that the cooler weather has arrived Gemma is also a lot more loving and claims one of our laps every night.

Friends I wish you a wonderful week filled with positive things, lots of energy, favour in every situation and lots of joy. Don't forget, be safe out there please.

Jasper posing for the camera.

A time of experimenting.

Hi folks I hope you have all had a fabulous Easter weekend, ours has been very laid back and quiet I suppose that's to be expected sometimes when you move all the way across the country. I will admit that I have missed the family some thing terrible this last week as we usually have at least Big Guy, Poppet and Princess over for an Easter Egg hunt and a big family meal. I truly wish I could wave a magic wand to get them here more often, thank goodness for telephones and Skype that still keep us connected and in touch. Jelly Bean worked every day which kept us on the go, but the plus side was the weather has been cold with really high winds which meant we could cuddle up with blankets and keep our fire going, winter is my absolute best. I did manage to catch up on all the baking, which takes up a fair bit of time but keeps everyone happy, especially Hubby dearest.

Betty's Bay is now settling back to normal as the school holidays come to an end, what always amazes me is that even though our little village 'fills up' during the holidays it never gets noisy here or feels like there are a lot of extra people around, until you get out onto the main roads and see the increase of traffic. I have not ever missed the 'city' for even an instant and we still remind ourselves that this is home and it's permanent.

Having said how quiet it has been right now it feel super, extra quiet hahaha. Because I haven't 'paced' myself for the last while, and with Jelly Bean only working an afternoon shift today, my precious husband decided to take her in and then visit with some friends of ours so that I don't have to drive today and can just rest up and re-charge my battery. As sweet and precious as that is, it still leaves me very frustrated as I hate missing out on anything and the house is super quiet. I mentioned last week that I have stopped eating meat for the last two weeks in order to see if it makes aby difference to my health, interestingly enough it has made a difference as well as discovering that onions which I've eaten all my life, make me really sick. I made a French onion soup last week and spent the next 30 hours in absolute agony, all these years when I've had fried onion rings or a lot of onion and been ill I have lblamed it on the bread that usually went with it. This is a huge adjustment for me because I use onion in just about everything, but whatever it takes to feel better is what I am prepared to do. So onions are history for me and I am continuing to eliminate different foods in order to find out what increases my pain / exhaustion levels. For now I'm curled up with a heating pad and lots of tea.

Friends, thank you for being part of this Blog and for your continued encouragement. I pray you all have a fabulous week and if you are on the roads please be extra aware and super safe.

The full moon last week.



A spectacular sunset a couple of days ago.

Never a dull moment

Good morning from a chilly, windy Betty's Bay where I do believe winter is making its presence felt gently, needless to say that makes me one very happy girl. Talk about a week of weather extremes, last week certainly rates up there on the scale. I find it so exciting watching the ocean and its various moods, there are no two days the same. Because we are driving the coast road almost daily that gives us constant differing views. We went from calm as a fish pond, to absolutely massive swells and waves, to such strong winds that we had to really hold on tight to the steering wheel, on that particular day the wind was blowing the spray across the water to such an extent that it looked like mist. Unfortunately it was blowing so hard that I couldn't take any photos good enough to share because it was impossible to keep the camera still. On the way into Somerset West we noticed an incredibly bright and wide rainbow against the mountains in Gordons Bay and I thought that by the time I returned it would be gone, on the contrary when I got back there it had spread right across the mountain and had a smaller one behind it. I was then able to count another six huge rainbows on the way home, most of which were doubles, I personally have never seen so many and such vibrant rainbows ever. We have had some rain although not enough to make any measurable difference yet.

We also had a somewhat unusual visitor during the week. You know when you hear a noise (in this case the dogs barking) which keeps on and on then all of a sudden you are aware and it's WHAT ARE YOU BARKING AT? Well our two frantic, hysterical dogs had found a tortoise such a cute little guy, and they had decided he was the threat of all threats. Good grief. We would have loved to leave him in the yard but I was worried that Max might actually hurt him and at the very least would drive him insane or deafen him. It took quite a while for him to accept a new path because no matter where we put him he kept coming back. Eventually Hubby dearest put him into the plot next door which has a LOT of fynbos, peace restored, or so we thought. On Saturday the same thing all over again only this time on the side of the house, on investigation we found 'Timothy' the tortoise busy making his way back up toward the road using our fence as a guide line. In desperation for all our sakes and sanity I brought both the dogs inside. I wonder what they would do if they saw Scott the local leopard?

On a more personal note I have cut my meat consumption back to practically zero in an 'experiment' to see whether it makes any difference to my health. Amazingly enough I am not craving or wanting meat but it does stretch the brain cells in terms of providing tasty and nutritious meals without having to make two separate dishes. So far I cannot say I've noticed a huge difference on the pain scale but there is a definite improvement on the IBS, only time will tell. I don't know if I've ever mentioned that stains on clothing or anywhere for that matter, and I have an understanding. They appear and I make them disappear, I wage war on stains. Well yesterday I encountered a problem I've never had before. I splashed curry onto a white top, just four tiny spots, but OUT they had to go, so I did all the usual tricks with no success, then used my old friend Bleach. Horror of horrors, it removed the curry stain and left me with a bight pink and white tie dye looking shirt ????? According to Google a common problem judging by all the questions on how to remove it. Nothing worked so eventually I put it into another bleach solution with some of my washing powder and left it overnight, this morning Voila - stain GONE even though it took aver 12 hours. That was one for the books.

I know that I am always telling people to be safe and those are not empty words. On Monday last week I had a really strong urge to pray for my youngest son, BigBear which I did. I phoned him and asked if everything was ok which it was and left it at that although I continued to pray for them all. One night during the week he and Babybear were on their way home after gym and they noticed a scuffle going on in the bushes on the side of the road. As they drove past they saw that three men were attacking an elderly couple, so he drove around, parked the car and got out running towards the scuffle. #momsheadinherhands. Seeing him coming, he is 6'8" tall, the attackers fled leaving a hysterical lady and her husband drenched in blood, he had been cut with a panga. This couple were tourists and staying in a hotel just across the road. Between them Bigbear and Babybear got the couple back to their hotel, tried to stop the bleeding and call for an ambulance and the police. This scenario could have ended so very differently and I truly believe that was why I felt the need to pray so strongly. Needless to say I am SO proud of my son and his wife for being such amazing human beings although the 'mom part' of me always wants to keep my family safe. His words to me were "Mom I had to help and would like to think that if it was you guys in a foreign country, someone would come to your aid and do the same." Thank you Lord for protecting our families on a daily basis. Last night we had Babybear stay over as she has to work in Hermanus and surrounding areas today, such a treat to have her here. We had a super relaxed evening but this morning was where things got funny. When I got up to make tea Jasper followed me as usual but when he got to the threshold of the bedroom/lounge he came to a standstill and went into a low crouch, looking suspiciously from corner to corner in the lounge. He saw the mattress in the lounge occupied by a body and there was no way he was going to enter said lounge. He's never had anyone sleepover before. After about five or ten minutes of him checking out the threat assessment and Babybear actually moving around talking to him, did he cross the threshold and almost leopard crawl behind the chairs to get to the other side of the room. My brave, stout little cat. Hahaha.

Friends I wish you a wonderful week of positive experiences and wherever you go please stay safe and be aware of your surroundings, be the person who makes a difference in someone's life this week.


The rainbow on our way into Somerset West


One of the rainbows on my way home, please excuse the rain on the windscreen taking the pic in the car was the only way because the wind was so strong.


Timothy the tortoise

Loving where I am

Good morning friends, can you believe we are already into April? It is school holidays and Easter is just around the corner. On the one hand it feels like December was just the other day and also like it was eons ago perhaps I am just feel nostalgic, I will however admit to be missing our family. it has been a particularly tough week for me health wise which is tiresome but everyone else is well, healthy and happy. Our little Princess got a fabulous school Report, she has been working so hard and the results are showing, we are SO proud of you Angel Girl, keep it up because there is no limit to what you can do.

It never ceases to amaze me how many things there are that always need doing or fixing, so many people have asked us whether we get bored or what do we do all day now that we have retired, and yet we never seem to stop haha. There is so much to do and so much to see that we actually feel weird when we sit down to relax. After the usual kind of busy week, and with Jelly Bean working a full day yesterday, we went for breakfast in Kleinmond to a restaurant that is situated right on the beach and I do mean right on the beach. It was a glorious day with no wind and this place is situated between the sea and the lagoon. It may not be a five star establishment but they serve good food and their location and view is unbelievable. We have been here for eight months and I cannot believe we have only just discovered this little gem, it's a definite go to next time the family comes down or we have visitors. We also took a little bit of a drive along the sea front and watched the waves breaking over the rocks which was absolutely awesome. The sea was calm and yet the waves were magnificent which made me determined to get down there the next time we have a Spring Tide or really rough seas so that I can get some, hopefully, really good photos. The one thing that really seems to set the Capetonians apart from the rest of the country is that they make the most of what this province has to offer and especially love nnbeing out and about, maybe it's because we have long wet winters, or maybe it is just appreciation for the beauty that is everywhere we look, but wherever you go you will find young and old, local and tourists out exploring and appreciating what we have.

On the animal front apart from Max actually escaping AGAIN, through a hole which it appears he chewed through on the plastic mesh they are all doing their thing. Jasper as usual is a source of joy every day, he is the gentlest of cats and has grown so much since I got him, he is a big, stocky, gentle cat who still thinks I am his personal kneading pad - ouch. He has just emerged from behind the books after spending the entire morning there following his twice weekly encounter with the 'red monster'. He comes when I call him, will follow me from room to room and if I happen to go outside or he 'looses' me, he will utter a tiny little meow calling me. That is the only time we ever hear him meow. A couple of days ago he was in his sandbox and I went to the bedroom busy doing something, the next thing I heard was this little single meow when he discovered I wasn't there so I called him and he came trotting through quite happily for a cuddle. Such a precious little fellow. Gemma still moans and groans whenever she sees or think she hears him but other than that ignores him.

Friends, enough of my ramblings for this week, I have just taken a fruit cake out of the oven and put a ciabatta bread in to bake, so I need to get on with the rest of my day. In the midst of all the turmoil in our country and in the world in general, please take encouragement that God is still the God of miracles. I continue to pray for our country, for everyone of you for whatever needs or obstacles may arise in your lives. Be safe out there folks and have a fabulous week.

Waves breaking over the rocks in Kleinmond




Jasper trying to blend in with the ornaments