Fun and games

Greetings all from a wet and cool Betty's Bay, every drop of rain is precious because we have not had nearly enough. After all of the rain last Monday it was very mild and dry, some days not even needing a jersey, yesterday was unbelievable as we had a HOT South Easter blowing and it was like standing in front of a roasting oven, most unpleasant to say the least, thank the Lord our house is cool inside.  Today it is grey, cold(ish) and some rain every now and then.

Well, it was a busy week to be sure, after Zeepha's little visit for X-rays the Vet came back with a clear report, and after a lot of discussion we are taking her in tomorrow morning and they will attempt to spay her again, this time using gas or a much lighter Anaesthetic, I would really appreciate your prayers for her tomorrow morning and for wisdom for the Doctors.  She is being a real little madam at the moment and I am pretty much getting the cold shoulder, unless I have food in hand, needless to say my dear Hubby doesn't help in always being so welcoming when she is around, grrrr, it is common knowledge he steals ALL my cats and then feigns innocence.

After Doctor check ups required by all three of us and a series of trips into Kleinmond it turned into one of those weeks where it felt like all we did was run around.  One exciting thing though, when Jelly Bean and I went into the Doctor I needed to stop at KAWS which is our local Animal Welfare.  They have a fabulous little second hand shop with some amazingly good bargains and sell little doggie jackets for R5 which is for nothing, in the shops they are a minimum of R160.  Anyway Max kept walking right out of his old one and we stopped to get him a new one, while we were chatting to the staff I suddenly remembered Jelly Bean saying that she would love to volunteer there and asked how to go about it.  Long story short we are both going to volunteer at least once a week to go in and play with the cats and kittens, many people volunteer to take the dogs for walks etc, but no one plays with the cats.  We are both very excited about this and are putting together a small assortment of toys we will take back and forth with us.

On Friday evening we had our friends around for a delicious curry and some really good, long overdue catch up time.  We looked after their puppy last year when they were overseas and so he is very comfortable here, but what happened as they left had us all holding our sides with laughter.  We had brought his towel inside so he could lie in the lounge and when it came time to go we all moved towards the door but for some reason Buddy would not move past the sofa ????  We tried everything - calling, opening the door, cajoling, but there was no way he was walking past that chair.  He would take a half a step then dance backwards (to visualise he is a fairly big/medium sized Alsatian cross rescue, with long legs).  By this time all our attention was focused on him, when his dad tried getting stern and calling him he then began THE most hysterical movement to the door.  All four legs were bent out at the 'elbows', he was trying to walk on his tiptoes which made him look like someone had pushed him down a wet, slippery incline towards a huge pool of water.  It was two inches forward then brake, one inch forward then brake.  If we had taken a video it would have gone viral, I have never seen anything so funny in my life.  Needless to say it took quite awhile to get him out and once he reached the door mat he practically flew out the door.

My clever Hubby has at long last got the 'problem' clock working and it has been on test throughout the weekend, gee whizz this once gave him headaches, even to the point of constructing parts for it.  Well done my love !  I tried my hand at making some marmalad and oh my word, I will never again by it in a shop, so am feeling very chuffed with myself.  The family are all well, Princess has started writing mid year exams, the curriculum they set is ridiculous.  She has 16 exams in 16 days with not one block day, talking to Poppet yesterday she agreed that it is by far, more intense nowadays than it was when she was at school.  Good luck Princess and all the other children who are writing, take a deep breath, study hard and then do your very best.

Folks, that is all my news for this week, I will be glad when tomorrow is behind us and after that am looking forward to a hopefully quiet, peaceful week.  Don't forget in all the busyness to take a few minutes every day to stop and just breathe in and 'smell the roses'.  Stay safe out there,  Ciao Ciao til next week.

Bright and cheery bottle of homemad Marmalade.

Wind, rain, highs, lows and flats

Good morning everyone, a little later than usual, but then it's been a super busy start to the week. Yesterday the wind built up steadily to quite 'strong' gale which happily brought the rain with it.  We have had the most amazing rain overnight and all the waterfalls are flowing strongly.  This morning saw us up bright and early in order to get Zeepha to the Vet in Gordon's Bay so that she could have her X-ray.  They initially wanted me to leave her there until  4pm which I simply refused to do.  She was such an angel going in, even in the midst of the heaviest rain we've driven in since we moved down,  she just snuggled into my jacket and didn't make a peep.  My biggest prayer was that they would not need to sedate her and because she stayed in my jacket she was very calm, it literally took 3 minutes, no sedation and it would appear no hernia, now the next thing is for them to figure out how to spay/neuter her.

Last week with Jelly Bean being in Sea Point with BigBear where she had an absolute ball, we had a very quiet week, the house felt really empty haha.  Hubby and I made a trip into Kleinmond on Wednesday and took some time to go and have a delicious cup of tea and then we browsed through some of the shops down toward the Harbour, something we never do.  I find it is so easy to get into a rut of rushing into the Village, doing what needs to be done and getting out.  It was really nice to slowly look and browse without all the tourists.  After more hours than I can even count, it would appear the my clever Hubby's perseverance with the stubborn clock has paid off and it should be working from today, gosh I cannot believe his patience.  On Friday with another early start we prepared to set off for Cape Town to purchase some clock spares and collect our gorgeous daughter.  Hmmpphh. We got all settled and ready to leave and the car wouldn't start ....... slightly frustrated we decide it's not a problem we will use my car, so transfer everything to the other vehicle, go back inside the house for the keys and off we set, turn the key and ....... nothing.  My car battery is flat, not longer was the annoyance just an irritation, the dogs were looking at us like we were crazy.  Back into the house to get Jelly Bean's car keys, transfer everything all over again, turn the key and can you believe it.......flat as a pancake.  What the heck are the chances of all vehicles having flat batteries at the same time seriously ??????  To top things off the battery charger was at someone's house to charge their vehicle.  By this time I was breathing flames internally,  eventually my clever Man went and got the caravan battery and we managed to jump start his car with that.  We lost about 15 minutes and my positive slant on the entire episode is that God delayed us for a valid reason, we may never know why.  Out trip then progressed without any further incidents and we managed to do everything on the list and still get home just after 2 pm.   On top of all the fun and games I unknowingly had run out of antihistamines and also changed my make up brand, Friday chose to be the day that the itchiness made a violent appearance leaving me unsure as to the cause.  By the time we got as far as Rooi Els most of my make up was off from watering eyes and I spent the rest of the day scratching, a bit like a flea ridden monkey, the joys of Fibromyalgia. Now that I am back on the antihistamine it is way better. I belong to two Facebook Fibro support groups and asked a question with regard to the itching on the South African Group and was absolutely blown away by the support and suggestions for all the ladies, it is wonderful being able to have that kind of support and knowing you are not alone or the only one with all these weird symptoms

Folks that was the highs, lows and itches of last week, the wind is picking up again and we are about
to light a gorgeous fire and have another cup of tea, yes I am addicted to my tea LOL.  For those of you who have children or grandchildren about to start writing exams I pray for peace over their minds and spirits and for all of you faithful readers I pray you have a wonderful week, please stay warm and as always stay safe.

The clouds heavy with rain and a gray moody ocean on the way home this morning.

A strange week for sure.

Good morning folks from a blustery, chilly BB,  as I type today's Blog my dearest Hubby and I are sitting here alone because Jelly Bean has gone to visit BigBear for the week, she is the quietest person I know and yet the house feels quiet and empty hehe.

Well, quite a busy week last week with various things that needed doing and a couple of trips into Kleinmond for one thing or another, it's strange how some weeks are just like that.  On the flip side to that I spent most of my time lying on the sofa trying to get my back out of spasm, mostly it was just too sore to sit for any length of time, happily it is now measurably better -  great fun!  Weather wise it a week of total contrasts, we went from absolutely enormous, rough seas to one day where the ocean was so still it looked like a painting.  The temperatures  also swung between making a fire every night to almost summery days.   On Wednesday, Voting Day it was absolutely freezing, windy and wet.  We got all ready and got ourselves up to the Hall to be surprised at the length of the queue, given that it was raining and I could not stand for long we beetles off back home and went up later in the afternoon where we were in and out in 20 minutes.  I found that it was a really strange week,  it seemed very long and completely disjointed.

Today we are back to normal with my precious Hubby still busy with the two clocks, both of which need parts, which of course are not available anywhere here or overseas, never without a plan he has painstakingly rebuilt the one part and will test it out today before moving onto the other, so watch this space. Yesterday we went through to Sea Point  to have a special Mothers Day Lunch with our Bears.  It was fantastic seeing BabyBear again, we haven't seen her since New Years Day with all all her travelling back and forth and it was just awesome being together and having a delicious meal and some really good catch up.  Thanks for the spoils guys and a special afternoon.  I was also thoroughly blessed with calls and messages from the rest of the family so I am feeling thoroughly loved and blessed.  Love you all family, each one of you is incredibly special and unique and I am blessed and honoured to be your Mom.

Folks that's about it for this week, the wind is howling and it is an overcast day so I foresee some good reading time in my immediate future.  I wish you all a wonderful week and in closing I would just like to leave you with this encouragement.  Irrespective of what life throws at you ( and it loves to throw curves and rocks) , even though you may be feeling like you have reached the bottom of the barrel or feeling that you are an island amongst humanity,  there is and always will be an upswing in your circumstances.  Never loose the will to fight for what you deserve because you alone hold the ability to follow your heart, to make decisions that will change your circumstances.  No one has ever said that it will be easy but I can assure you that it will be worth it - the biggest step is making the decision in your heart and mind, then following through with it.  You deserve the absolute very best that God has for you.  Ciao ciao and please  stay safe.

Two pics of the ocean from last week.  Both taken from our deck.

Life is never dull.

Good morning folks, another short week for those of us in South Africa as Wednesday is Voting day.
Saturday brought very high winds which buffeted the house through the night and gradually waned as the day wore on, leaving in its wake enormous waves and a tumultuous ocean, today the waves are even bigger which is fascinating to watch.

Well it might not have been a busy week, but it sure was an interesting one.  On Monday Jelly Bean noticed that little Zeepha was behaving oddly and we soon realised that she is back in heat, the SECOND time in three weeks.  Poor old Jasper he is so irritated and once again Jelly Bean and I were as important as chopped kale, eventually I resorted to giving her some Calm Eaze to try and calm her down at least a little, I really hope this is it for awhile so that we can try and get her X-rayed and then hopefully find a way to sterilise her.

Generally it was a quiet week spent getting things done around the house with all the usual things like baking RUSKS etc.  I am still doing my own nails and am delighted that I have got to a point where I am 100% happy with the outcome and consider them as good as if they were done at a salon, and this week I get to practice by doing Jelly Bean's so here's holding thumbs hehe.

On Friday I went for a Body Stress Release treatment that had been gifted to me by a precious friend, as it turns out it was not the best thing for me to do.  Within an hour of leaving my back went into a huge spasm which literally knocked me off my feet, I have spent the entire weekend lying down and trying to work through the pain and the inevitable Fibro Flare that came with it.  Needless to say I have done a LOT of reading haha.  Today I find I can sit for a little, hence a short Blog, before I finish off things needing attention in the house and find myself a new book.  As they say "this too shall pass".  My wonderful Hubby and daughter have been fantastic with all their help.  Hubby even managed to get out yesterday for a well deserved and long overdue game of golf with some friends.
The rest of the family are all well, some recovering from flu but in general all are well, happy and busy.

Folks that's it for this week, I wish you all a wonderful week, please take care out there and stay safe. I would just like to say that I appreciate each and every one who reads this Blog and for all your encouragement, love and support.  Ciao Ciao for now

Zeepha cuddled as close as she can to Jasper

Our world is shrouded in white.

Good morning all from a very chilly and white BB.  Yesterday was a lovely sunny day until a sea fog rolled in through the afternoon, we have a joke in our house when this happens that 'someone has stolen our mountain and the sea' hehe, well anyway as of this moment they have not been returned and it is wet and foggy, which I have absolutely NO objections to whatsoever.

Weather wise we had a cool week with some downright cold days requiring a good cheerful fire going and lots of wrapping up in throws, needless to say I got a lot of reading done, thank goodness for a good library.   We had a good, fairly uneventful week for a change, some of the family are fighting  the flu and are now thankfully on the mend, the rest have just been busy with normal life and it's every day challenges and delights.   My precious Hubby got one clock out, one is still on test mode and another came in which is proving to be extremely interesting.  This clock has not worked for 60 years, it came in in various pieces which means some of the vital gears are missing.  We have dated it back 1850 and after literally contacting Clock Makers around the world trying to source the parts needed, this brilliant man of mine sat down on Saturday with his computer and modelled the missing gear which he is going to have laser cut in brass.  We are going to take pics at all the various stages of the repair but, as you can imagine it is a wonderful challenge for him and very exciting.
Our next door neighbour has been here for the last week catching up on maintenance and lots of garden clean up which resulted in a couple of interesting finds.  First being a teeny, tiny baby tortoise (see pic below) which once we'd all had a good look was put back exactly where he was found to rejoin his brothers and sisters.  Next on the discovery list was a Skaapsteker snake which is apparently harmless, that being said I stayed well clear of that discovery.  We ended up with two cars having flat batteries which was just an irritant more than a challenge, thankfully we have a battery charger so each one was systematically recharged and back in use.
Yesterday I decided to make some scones (our gas had run out on the stove) so as per usual  Zeepha had to supervise and run interference hmmmmm, the result of this was complete confusion.  I planned on making a half a batch and with moving things around, away from her nose and tongue I ended up adding liquid for a full batch, so quickly adjusted with the extra ingredients and surprisingly,  a delicious result.  Shortly thereafter Hubby took the dogs for a walk in the fog, and as he came back down our road bumped into a lady with her young daughter who were all agog because there was a lone penguin wandering around in one of the gardens.  Clearly this little fellow had wandered too far as we are about 950m from the Penguin Colony, the relevant people had been called and were on their way to catch and return the solo wanderer.  All in all a wonderful, uneventful week but as usual never a dull moment, who knew retirement would be so exciting and busy.

Folks I now have the delightfully domestic chore of figuring out how to dry a full wash load including towels on a wet and foggy day, such fun!!!  I wish each and every one of you a truly blessed week, may you walk in divine health, may the wisdom of God fill your minds and words and above all may His protection cover you every minute of the day.  Ciao ciao for now,

Baby Tortoise.

 Zeepha taking ownership of my book.

Easter Monday

Hoping everyone has had a blessed Easter weekend, good morning all.  Our weekend has been a mix of busyness (around the house and garden) and good relaxing, happily the weather played right along with rain, wind and much lower temperatures making it almost ideal.  With the family all busy or away we just did our own thing and had some friends over yesterday for a wonderful braai with lots of catch up and good conversation, then ended our evening by sitting reading in front of the fire, we didn't even think to put the television on.

Our week was not quite as relaxing but then is it ever ???  My amazing Hubby has had two clocks in for repair, one a cuckoo clock which fell off the wall and broke and the other is one that has really given him a hard time.  The cuckoo clock spent its last few days in the house  in 'testing mode' before being collected this morning, it was lovely having it chirp and chime away.  The other one has probably taught Hubby more than any other clock but is now almost ready to come in for testing before going home.

Dear little Zeepha kept us on our toes last week,  on Monday Jelly Bean noticed that she was making strange noises which to be honest I didn't really pay attention to, thinking she was coughing.  Anyway  Tuesday dawned and oh my word - madam was on 'heat' and literally did not know what to do with herself,  she spent half her time squiggling along the floor making funny little chirping noises and following Jasper like a shadow.  Poor Jasper, he was neutered at 9 weeks so had absolutely not a clue as to what was going on and just ended up getting irritated and looking for places to hide.  Obviously we had to keep windows closed or open with screens on which limited his freedom, but she was relentless.  I felt really sorry for her because also didnt have a clue as to why she was feeling 'frisky' and behaving like a little tramp.  The funniest thing though, is that as far as she was concerned Jelly Bean and I could have been chopped kale.  All she wanted was to be next to a male, it didn't matter what male, just A male.  We found her lying side by side with Max, as close as she could get to Jasper and then Hubby was the flavour of the week.  Eventually I read that it is best to keep petting and stroking to a minimum and that is what we did, together with some Calm-eaze and she sort of settled down.  She even took to sleeping glued up against Hubbys legs at night which for her is unusual as she sleeps glued to my legs.  Thankfully it only lasted until Friday and my sweet little kitty returned to normal in every sense.  I don't think Jasper has quite recovered from the 'trauma' as he waivers between being a little stand-offish with her or downright being rough.  She is back to my side of the bed and has now decided to wake us up in the morning with whisker kisses on the nose or mouth hoping for some head scratches, accompanied by much purring and the tickle of her whiskers it is hard to ignore LOLOL.

Folks that's pretty much it for this week, it was quiet and all in all a good week.  For those of you that are traveling today particularly on the roads, please take is easy, stay alert and above all be safe.  Getting home ten minutes later is nothing compared to not getting home at all.  Already the highway over the Pass here is bumper to bumper and I can only imagine what the rest of the country is like.
I pray that you all have a good, prosperous, healthy week.  Don't let circumstances dictate your emotions remind yourself that because Jesus died on the cross and rose again YOU have the victory, YOU just need to exercise it.

Luke 10:19 King James Version (KJV)

19 Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

Zeepha peacefully settled last week

Here is praying for a stress free week.

Good morning friends and family I hope this finds everyone well and ready for the new week.  I find since we retired, that I rely on the calendar a lot when it comes to Public Holidays, previously we would almost always go away with the caravan so there was normally a countdown.  I knew Easter was coming up more or less now but, only realized this morning that it is this weekend coming ........ Happy Easter to all we know.

Well as Jelly Bean said to me last night  "let's hope this week is less stressful than last week."  It certainly wasn't intended to be a stressful week but things have a way of turning upside upside down in a second.  You may remember I mentioned last week that little Zeepha had gone in to be spayed.  Well ......... That didn't happen.  Just after lunch on Monday I received a call from the Vet who then went on to explain that they had not been able to neuter this little treasure.  Apparently after doing a full health check on her because I had some concerns, she was deemed fine and the procedure began. They had no sooner administered the anaesthetic when she just stopped breathing completely, apparently there was at first absolute shock and horror and then a fair amount of drama and action.  The four ladies then had to administer oxygen and eventually even use the paddles to bring her back which they did, Praise the Lord.  If any cat we expected to have problem under anaesthetic it was CeCe and definitely not Zeepha.  They managed to clear her eye which apparently had a dead flea caught between her two eyelids, hence the closed eye and soreness, the Vet also discovered that just about all her baby teeth have fallen out on the one side which is why she wasn't eating properly and then this.  Aaargghh.  In light of her reaction to the anaesthetic our amazing Vet wasn't even prepared to administer Zepha's vaccination.  They have asked us to take her for an X-ray as they suspect she has a hernia, because she seems to breath with her abdomen and not her diaphragm. and this would be too risky to repair, in which case she will have to remain unsterilesed and a purely indoor cat.  Yikes.  Nevertheless off  I went to collect and bring my little Squeek home.  She was still very dopey and a VERY unhappy kitty but glad to be back home.  It took most of the week for her to get back to her normal self although I have noticed she hasn't been on top of the cat condo yet, which is normally her favourite place.  She was also coughing a lot whenever she drank anything but thankfully all is now fine.

The family are all well, very busy with their lives and in the case of Miss Muffet and Fam they are whiling away the week on the beach in Spain, lucky girl. Hubby has been wrestling with a wall clock that has given him no end of trouble, in typical fashion he doggedly and patiently keeps adjusting and at this point it looks like it is almost done.  He is also busy putting together a genuine Cuckoo clock which fell off the wall and broke in to dozens of pieces as well as working on the deck as and when time and weather allow.  Talking weather .......... Yippeeeeee.  It definitely looks like we are moving right along into winter as the temperatures have dropped significantly and we have had some reasonable rains, we even lit our first fire yesterday.  This is how I remember the Cape winters from when I lived  here in the '80's, usually winter would begin at Easter time but since we moved back the last two winters have been short, fairly dry and not as cold.  So this makes me one very happy camper.

Folks that's about it for this week, for those of you who are going to be traveling, especially on the roads, please be safe and careful out there.  For those who have family coming to visit enjoy and make lots of memories and, for those who are staying home enjoy the down time and recharge your batteries.  Ciao ciao for now with love from my family to yours.

Jasper and Zeepha all snuggled up.

 Zeepha, my sous chef helping and running interference when I made rusks yesterday