My Life's Winding Roads: Family time, bees and penguins

My Life's Winding Roads: Family time, bees and penguins: Good morning friends and family from a very quiet, happily cool BB.  Gee what a busy two weeks we have had, but the most wonderful two weeks...

Family time, bees and penguins

Good morning friends and family from a very quiet, happily cool BB.  Gee what a busy two weeks we have had, but the most wonderful two weeks.  Last week while Big Guy was busy jetting off to Thailand we had Poppet and Princess here for a visit, even though Poppet had to work we had the most fabulous time together.  We caught up on all the news, gossip, drama and just generally had a really good time together.  Its not often I get time with all my side of the family almost in such a short space of time, my 'mom' batteries are all fully charged.   Big Guy is having a ball on his holiday and tantalizing us with all the beautiful photos he is taking, enjoy your very moment son.  BigBear and BabyBear are going flat out in preparation of their overseas holiday next week, the family are all busy and happy.

Wouldn't you know it ? No sooner had I posted that the bee invasion was over, when I looked out and lo and behold  there they were grrrrr.  We did some extra reading up and have started off with pinching the spout of the the water bottle (in the middle) so that they can't actually get into the bottle. This seems to be working, so far, they still come around, but not in huge numbers and the birds are getting braver and chase them away.  The ongoing bee saga ..........    On Friday afternoon when Poppet had finished working we went to the restaurant at Stony Point, which is the big penguin colony in Betty's Bay, it is estimated that there are approximately 3 600 penguins currently and growing in number, which is quite an increase from the original 2 penguins in 1985.   Sadly the restaurant proved to be a huge disappointment but the view was great and Princess was able to take some gorgeous photos.  Jelly Bean had gone on ahead to the car and by the time we got there she was in 'deep communication' with one of the Penguins who likes to take charge of the car park, she named him Percy and he is really cute.

This week is going to be a quiet one and I intend to do some catch up baking and generally taking it easy.  This weekend was womderfully cold and we had rain the whole of yesterday, I must confess that I slept a lot which is totally unlike me, I never sleep during the day.  I have found myself in a bad Fibro Flare but am finally learning when to rest and take time out.  Whoop whoop.

Folks apart from all the family news that's it for this week, I wish you all a good week, be kind to yourselves and please stay safe.  Ciao Ciao .

'Percy at Stoney Point Penguin Colony'

 A penguin and a dassie sharing some sun.

My Life's Winding Roads: Family, whales, elastic and the rugby

My Life's Winding Roads: Family, whales, elastic and the rugby: Good morning folks from a crisp, bright Betty's Bay.  Big Guy arrived last Tuesday and even though it was a brief visit we managed to pa...

Family, whales, elastic and the rugby

Good morning folks from a crisp, bright Betty's Bay.  Big Guy arrived last Tuesday and even though it was a brief visit we managed to pack a whole lot into the short time.  There was much catch up, a delicious meal prepared by the 'Man'  himself which was a real treat.  On Thursday we went through to Hermanus and can you believe it, we actually saw some whales ........ Hmmm let me rephrase that, we heard the Whale Crier and he showed us where they were, we saw the spout  and a brief view of its back.  We wandered through market and then found a stunning restaurant called The Wooden Barrel, while we ordered my dear Hubby walked back to move the car closer and can you believe it he actually saw the whale hit its tale on the water #sadface.  As for lunch it is going to be a definite 'go back' as far as I am concerned, their food was wonderful, the service friendly and prompt, basically a perfect meal.  After all that we went through to the Mall in Hermanus and did some quick shopping and stopped for a quick drink before heading home tired but happy.  Friday  my precious Hubby had to take Max our Yorkie to the Vet, for months his one eye tooth was loose and after standing out sideways it eventually fell out, it never seemed to bother him, then r century the other eye tooth did the same thing and last week we realized that it was really causing him a lot of discomfort so after speaking to the Vet Hubby left early and all she did was cut it and pull it out, it was hanging on by the nerve, poor little guy.  He is going to have to have all his teeth removed but I just want him to recover from this first as he is now 11 1/2 y years old and only weighs 2.4 kg. After all that we went through to Kleinmond to do the normal weekly odds and ends before coming home and spending a hugely entertaining / frustrating afternoon.  I had bought elastic to repair some of his shorts before he flies off to Thailand on Wednesday, problem came when I miscalculated the width of the elastic and purchased one that was too wide.  Oh my gosh ........ How such a simple task became a monumental family event.  To all the seamstresses out there, my apologies up front for what you are about to read heehee,  eventually after trying a number of things which did NOT work, I cut the elastic lengthwise then had to machine stitch it to stop it from unraveling. Then, getting it through the actual seam was quite an endeavor.  Threading with a safety pin wasn't strong enough, the other pin was too wide, eventually my clever Hubby got a long piece of 'bloudraad' or fencing wire and made a loop at each end.  We then had to pull out the ties (after numerous failed attempts) and it took two of us to push and pull and thread using pliers and lots of grunting.  What should have taken three quarters of an hour took the entire afternoon, I'm certainly glad nobody was recording our antics.  The end result was not as good as I would have liked but we did a passable job.
BigBear arrived on Friday evening and both the guys then braaied  up a storm, more meat than we've eaten in a year I think. It was a wonderful evening which ended up with both of our sons falling asleep in front of the television and us 'oldies' wide awake hehe.  Saturday dawned and South Africa's first match in the 2019 Rugby World Cup, I had booked a table at the local restauran/ pub and the guys insisted that Jelly Bean and I join them, that was a first for me.  We had a fabulous table and once  again I was reminded at just what a special area we live in, the comraderie and atmosphere  was fantastic, the place was absolutely packed out, the food fantastic even though I had not planned to eat, sadly South Africa just didn't manage to win the game.  After some good coffee at home the guys left and went back to BigBears home as he took his brother to the airport yesterday morning.  Thank you both for absolutely everything and Bon Voyage Big Guy, enjoy your holiday, make lots of memories, take lots of pics and stay safe.

Tonight Poppet and Princess arrive very late and will spend the evening with BigBear in Sea Point before coming through to us tomorrow morning, I simply can't wait to see and hug them and feel so blessed to have been able to see all my kids within the space of a week.  Unfortunately Poppet has to work this week but we will make the most of every moment we have available, more on their visit next week.

Folks that was our week in a big nutshell, I wish you and yours a fantastic week further, enjoy the Public Holiday tomorrow and please stay safe.

Our view at lunch the other day #thewoodenbarrel #hermanus

My Life's Winding Roads: Busy, busy, busy.

My Life's Winding Roads: Busy, busy, busy.: Good morning folks from a bright and breezy Betty's Bay, we are still enjoying mild weather, thank goodness and looking forward to a bus...

Busy, busy, busy.

Good morning folks from a bright and breezy Betty's Bay, we are still enjoying mild weather, thank goodness and looking forward to a busy two weeks as Big Guy arrives tomorrow until Sunday and then next Monday Poppet and Princess will be arriving for a work/holiday.  Needless to say that our house has been under somewhat of an onslaught making everything ready, it feels and has been simply an age since we saw them, I am soooo excited.

We had a fairly busy week with Hubby finishing and delivering a large order of art display boxes, finishing off one clock, which proved rather temperamental and creating parts for an antique watch he is working with.    After nine months I am quite happy to say that now when I do my nails, it no longer takes the entire day and  now I am down to two hours, still room for some improvement on the time but I am getting there, at least now I have them the way I want and don't have to pay to have them done.  We did have a really strange thing happen, in the two and a half years we have been feeding the sugar birds, sun birds, mouse birds, white eyes, bul buls, weavers to name the regulars, we have never for one moment had a problem with bees.  All of a sudden last week when I looked out we had a mass 'bee suicide' event going on, for some unknown reason they were around the feeder in droves and not content with just drinking, they were actually going into the bottle and drowning.  We have not changed the recipe or any thing else and when I asked the local community group a few people said that they have had similar experiences in the past.  We removed the bottle, very carefully, and did not replace it for three days, when we refilled it again we just put in plain boiled water which the birds were not impressed with and then on Saturday replaced it with a weaker sugar solution, there were a few bees but none that stayed so yesterday we went full strength and all is still normal ????? One of those mysteries which I will never know the answer to, what was very interesting to us all is that the birds are very scared of bees.  Whilst the bees were around there was not a bird to be seen and when the few that came out on Saturday appeared the birds actually reversed away from them and flew away.

Well folks I still have a mountain of things to get done and shall be saying goodbye for this week, don't forget to check out the Hints and Tips page as I am going to add a tip or two that I discovered purely by mistake and that work wonderfully.  I pray you all have a blessed week and please stay safe wherever you are.  Ciao Ciao for now.

Bee Suicide, so sad. 

My Life's Winding Roads: Treat women with respect !!!!!

My Life's Winding Roads: Treat women with respect !!!!!: Hi all from a very confused, weather wise, Betty's Bay,  in the last week we have been through three of the four seasons and quite frank...

Treat women with respect !!!!!

Hi all from a very confused, weather wise, Betty's Bay,  in the last week we have been through three of the four seasons and quite frankly I'm ready for winter permanently.  Last week it was so cold we made a fire, then we had one mild day and THEN wham over the weekend the Cape was frying in a 35 c heatwave.  I simply cannot function in heat like that Ughh. Weather rant over hehe!!!

This week passed fairly quietly with me catching up on a number of things in the house and taking some time to 'be kind to my body'.    My Hubby was very busy as usual, I really envy his energy,  he is busy with a complicated repair to an antique pocket watch, as well as completing a large order he got for 'box frames' to display art.  This last has proved to take a lot longer than he anticipated as it comprises 24 boxes in all, hopefully that one will be completed this week as there are a number of other things in and around the house which are starting to mount up.  The family are all very well with great excitement mounting for Big Guy, BigBear and BabyBear who are all planning or about to embark on overseas holidays. Big Guy is up first and leaves in 16 days, but first a flying visit down to see us yippee - some organizing to do this side for his visit.  The girls are good after an extremely stressful three weeks which led  Poppet to decide last week, to postpone the wedding due to the unexpected medical diagnosis on Sonshine's side.  The wedding will still take place but when everything is settled and it can be enjoyed In its entirety as a wedding should be.  Yesterday was our youngest Grandsons birthday, in the UK, where he turned a whole 7 years old and celebrated by having a 'football' party.  When we spoke to him after the party he was almost fully kitted out to join Chelsea Football Club hehe, Happy Birthday little man.

On Saturday, being ignorant of the heat that lay ahead of us, we went into Cape Town city for watch parts and then across to Milnerton to collect yet more parts and spares. Our trip 
started off beautifully until we were suddenly confronted by a terrible accident on the coast 
road, Clarence Drive.  A motor cyclist had overtaken us earlier and was  going around a blind corner had hit a smallish car head on as it turned into one of the pull-off areas.  I found this extremely difficult to deal with and having arrived on the scene only minutes after it happened, and having to sit waiting until any cars could get through just made it worse. All I could do was pray fo him. We haven't been able to find out the condition of the biker and can only pray that somehow he survived.  All feeling completely shocked we continued with our trip and when we eventually got to Milnerton it was 35c, Jelly Bean and I went into a huge Checkers there and OMW what an exceptional shop.  I want to know why we can't have one this side of town.  Just as well we were on a time constraint and Hubby had to be back home by 3 pm to help someone with a car engine he is redoing, because we might have gotten lost in there.  I will admit to being to grateful to be home where is was a hot 24c although that became worse overnight and yesterday we nearly cooked.  Today, thank the Lord it is overcast and if not cold it is certainly cooler.

Folks all I can say to you all, in the light of what occurred in South Africa last week - a little 6 year old girl was abducted from her mother's car at school drop off, and returned 18 hours later unharmed thank You Lord.  The murder of a university student who merely went to the Post Office and was raped and murdered, the huge upswing of crimes against women and children which in turn led to a flood on social media as well as hundreds of protests is that we are living in a very sick society and the ONLY surety we have, is in having a relationship with God, were it not for that we would be totally without hope.  It is time that human beings learnt the value of life and begin treating each other accordingly, that men begin treating women and children with respect, gentleness and honor.  How often nowadays do we see men opening doors for a lady to pass through, or opening the car door, pulling her chair out at the table ??? Just the tip of the iceberg here or I will not stop.  Ladies (say what you will)  it's time you allowed men to honor you and respect you, it is not a weakness to be feminine.  Yes, woman have become stronger and more and independent, mostly through their 
circumstances, that should not stop us from embracing our womanhood and femininity.  HOWEVER that does not mean that we don't want  and shouldn't be treated with respect and dignity.  Men want and expect respect but guys that too needs to be earned.  I find it heartbreaking that our women, young girls, grand-daughters have to fear for their safety and lives to the degree that they cannot walk from point A to B, that schools have to warn girls to not go out, particularly alone, that ENTIRE Girls High Schools would wear black in honor of the many young women who are being raped and murdered in our country particularly in the last few weeks.  Please pray for girls, women, our country, the world in general.  

Be safe out there folks, look out for each other and be very aware of your surroundings wherever you go.  Have a beautiful week with love from BB,  Ciao Ciao for now.

Spring? Nope not yet

A bright happy morning to you all, I can't in all honesty say that we are having spring weather yet, in fact it has been quite the opposite.  We were talking yesterday and saying that this is the first 'normal'  Cape winter we've had since we moved down three years ago,last week was positively Arctic. #

Today for some reason I am really struggling to get my body into gear, more than likely all the busyness and gallivanting hehe.  It feels as if every move I make I am doing so through treacle, it is definitely not going to be a 'get a lot accomplished' kind of day. Life has been fairly hectic, but all in all everyone is doing well and as expected very busy.  Last week was interesting, I had the most marvelous birthday treat by a precious friend - her, Jelly Bean and I spent a wonderful morning at the Arabella  Estate Hotel, sitting in front of the fire having coffee and the most delicious cheesecake I think I've ever eaten, we caught up on all our news and just generally a wonderful, relaxed morning in Five Star surroundings.  Thank you my friend for the special treat.  We also had a visit from friends of friends who have just moved down to BB from Cradock it was wonderful getting to know them and I am looking forward to future visits.  Hubby has been really busy with clocks, watches, a big order to make box frames to display art and, helping someone who is working on his car engine, as always a very busy chap is my very dear Hubby.  As I mentioned last week it is birthday season in our family and with BabyBear being home for a week or so we took advantage of it and all met up yesterday for brunch to celebrate both of their birthdays, again a wonderful catch up time and great food.  

I don't know whether it is the same in the rest of the country but the Western Cape really is promoting healthy eating and this can been seen in so many of the restaurants we go to.  Where the options are definitely more artisanal and natural as opposed to the regular meat / chips / rice type of menus.  This is something of great interest to me because just over two years ago I cut red meat out of my diet along with most fried foods, margarine and sugars, I use olive oil where I can, butter, lots of legumes and pulses, artisanal sourdough bread etc. Don't misunderstand me, I still enjoy a good plate of chips or potato wedges every now and then as a treat, but I am talking of my general day to day eating.  The effect this has had on my body has been amazing, when I go for my annual blood tests all my cholesterol, glucose, insulin and similar levels are exactly where they should be. It has been an interesting challenge learning to cook differently but dishes can be equally delicious, if not more so.  Perhaps I should put up a couple of main meal recipes that I use hmmmmm.

Folks, as you may have noticed, I've been updating my pages above and from what I can see those of you who subscribe to this Blog through email will get an email every time I add something.  I updated the Fibromyalgia page which is something I've wanted to address for the longest time but,  knowing that it does apply or is not of interest to the majority I decided to have all Fibro related posts on their own page.  

I pray you all have a wonderful week, may your stress be less, your strength renewed and may you be blessed as you go about your days, be safe out there.  Ciao ciao for now 

One of the pics I took from the deck of Arabella Estate Hotel looking out over the lagoon towards the lagoon mouth with Fisherhaven on the opposite shore.