My Life's Winding Roads: Interesting times

My Life's Winding Roads: Interesting times: Hello all on this beautiful Monday morning, I hope everyone had a good weekend and you are all ready for the new week. We had an unusual wee...

Interesting times

Hello all on this beautiful Monday morning, I hope everyone had a good weekend and you are all ready for the new week. We had an unusual weekend - it didn't rain all the time😀. Saturday was cool and we have had a lot of wind but yesterday was a little warmer and eventually the wind died down, leaving a very quiet little Village with only the sound of birds and the sea to keep us company. Weather wise, we had a mild week, no major lows or highs just a comfortable temperature. As usual lots of things going on in and around the house, it just never ends. We have had a leaking sink plug hitch Hubby replaced only to discover yesterday that three of the pipes themselves were loose and also, leaking grrrr. We were without internet on Friday and after trying all the usual tricks we called our service provider who came out very quickly and changed a cable (which they had replaced only three weeks ago). The Technician said he would come back on Saturday morning and when he did it was to discover that the cable from the Antenna to the Wi-Fi Router was full of water, with all the rains and winds, the cable had somehow sucked in water like a straw and then it 'fritzed' the antenna's electronics. So, we now have a new, thicker cable AND a new smalle, but stronger dish/antenna, such fun🤦🏻‍♀️😬. Hubby has been quite busy as we received an order for a few more Embroidery Stands as well as two big Grandfather clocks which came in. Along with that there are also some furniture items on the agenda from Poppet and Princess for when they move down. Things have come together nicely for them with regard to their move and as far as I know, everything is now booked and ready to roll. I will be able to get their keys at the end of this month which will enable me to measure up for curtains where needed and also take delivery of anything that needs to be delivered. The rest of the family are all well and very busy from what I can tell, they were all fairly quiet last week. Last Monday for Hubbys birthday we took ourselves off for breakfast at a lovely little restaurant in Pringle Bay, so much atmosphere, fantastic food and really friendly hosts, thank you La Galleria for a lovely morning. From there we 'explored' a teeny bit by going down to the small beach in PB. It is small and secluded but an easy path to access it, there also has a lovely bench to sit on above the sand. Charlie eventually got his feet onto the beach and was more interested in all the new smells than actually venturing into the water, he really enjoyed his outing and is such a well behaved little boy when it comes to going out with me, we just need to conquer his travel sickness and then do longer trips. So far, on the short local trips he does well. Today he is going with us into Hermanus so here is holding thumbs (and taking a towel with hehe) This week is already looking busy, oh my !!! I'm still on my quest with the bedroom /bathroom make over, I haven't painted the wall yet but yesterday I got fed up with the floor so I grabbed my small steam machine, floor and tile cleaner, scrubbing brush and old toothbrush and got down to do some cleaning. Well ............. perhaps overdid it just a tad and I can't even say it looks that much better 😏, I did however discover a couple of new uses for the steam machine but was just too tired to get to them. Needless to say I have not put it very far away, it needs to be close to hand. I also did the winter / summer clothes switch over earlier on in the week which is just going to equal more work because I found a few items which could do with some re-purposing and experimentation, this I AM looking forward to doing. My quilting carries on unabated and I am already thinking of what I will make when the big quilt is finished. So folks, no dramas apart from anhialiating a small scorpion I found next to the bed, and no specific events as such. Just a lot of 'life' and all that it entails. We did have a wonderful, surprise visit from friends yesterday afternoon who popped in for coffee, what a joy and just lovely to visit. I wish you all a wonderful week ahead, please stay masked, stay well and stay safe. Please don't get complacent with your CoVid procedures. Ciao ciao. Pringle Bay.

My Life's Winding Roads: The Wind Huffed and it Puffed

My Life's Winding Roads: The Wind Huffed and it Puffed: Good morning everyone from beautiful Bettys Bay. Since yesterday it looks like we might just be approaching spring, that is certainly no g...

The Wind Huffed and it Puffed

Good morning everyone from beautiful Bettys Bay. Since yesterday it looks like we might just be approaching spring, that is certainly no guarantee but a possibility. Here we have three or four days a week of having the fire going all day and then a couple of days of sunny, wind free, mild weather so it's a 50/50 situation right now. Praise the Lord our dams are now full as we have had the most wonderful rains. This past week saw some extremely hectic winds in Cape Town itself, many trees uprooted and blocking roadways, roofs blown off in the Strand etc, it was very windy here but no damage reported or possessions flying around. Well, so much for painting the section of wall in our bathroom - I did not even get near the paint tin much less prepare the wall tiles, it just was not on my capability/energy scale. I did however bake rusks (they just seem to vanish into thin air 🤷🏻‍♀️), I did some good cooking and even made a ciabatta bread for the first time this year, yes I know that is shocking given that I used to make one or two a week. We had an odd week with a lot of catching up on chores regarding house maintenance, I did a nice amount of embroidery, sent out some letters to hopefully new distributors, learnt how to 'more or less' use Sheets which is the Google version of Excel. Thank you Poppet for taking time out of your very busy month end to show me what to do and set up the formulas, at least now we can keep an up to date record of what wood/screws etc we have and when we are running low. It is amazing how much time Admin takes up, I had forgotten. For the first time I noticed a very significant reaction with regard to Fibromyalgia and the change in weather. We went from hot and sunny to freezing cold and wet overnight and my body was not impressed, it pushed me into a flare which I'm not quite out of hence no painting. Yesterday just doing my embroidery was too much for my arms, beyond annoying is what it is. We have also come to the end of birthdays for the year, Poppet celebrated her birthday on Saturday and I truly pray this is the last one we cannot celebrate with her. Hubby dearest celebrates his 71st today and is exactly 30 yrs and 2 days older than Poppet. His celebration of choice for today was to go out for a nice breakfast which is what we will be doing. By this time next month we will have the keys for Poppet and Princess' beautiful new home down here prior to their big move. They have been very blessed to find a home within spitting distance of Princess' new school, it is an Estate within a secure Estate and utterly gorgeous. The Bears have bought their first 'home' which is equally beautiful and very 'them', a loft apartment in Gardens, Cape Town, in a much quieter more peaceful area, the only downside is the beach and promenade are not just a three minute walk away. So much change wherever I look, but change for the good. I have to give a 'hats off to Big Guy' here as well, he started a brand new job in a totally different field in January and although things have been incredibly rough and uphill with CoVid 19 and the lockdown he has, through sheer grit, prayer and determination, continued to work really hard, storing up contracts for as and when Lockdown levels drop and is doing very well. To all of our children, and grand children, we admire your work ethic, and the people you are, We could not be prouder. Well folks that brings me to the end of today's Blog, I wish you a wonderful week. Climb those mountains, fight the battles and enjoy the victories. Stay safe and say well. Ciao ciao Charlie looking to share my food.

My completed quilt squares to date.

My Life's Winding Roads: Always interesting!

My Life's Winding Roads: Always interesting!: Good morning one and all, can you believe we are in the last week of September? Good grief it has been a long year and yet in some ways it...

Always interesting!

Good morning one and all, can you believe we are in the last week of September? Good grief it has been a long year and yet in some ways it still feels like April. I am going through a case of the 'missing my family' - it feels like a decade since I last saw Big Guy, Poppet and Princess, I can only thank the Lord that we have been able to see the 'Bears' or I might literally have exploded. We were also scheduled to see Miss Muffet and her family in August which was also cancelled, it is just as well that our lives are beyond busy. Speaking of which we had a pretty good week, both Hubby and I managed to catch up on a lot of small chores and repairs in and around the house that have been filling up the blackboard for ages, clearing the backlog so to speak which is a very nice feeling. We are going into this week feeling a bit freer and it is my intention to contact some more possible retailers about our Stands as well as sending out pics of the Big Stand to our existing customers. I even managed to find someone who made us a gorgeous Dragonfly stamp which we will then put onto every stand - woohooo. We had the 'Happy Hackers' back on Wednesday and they finished cutting down all the alien growth on the plot next to us. Where once I was a bit sad about all the greenery being gone, now we can see the little vlei which has developed there the view now is beyond special. I mentioned a couple of weeks ago about how I could hear the geese splashing in the water next door, well now I can actually see them if I'm outside or standing at the kitchen window (see the video below). What a treat to see them and hear all the frogs etc, in fact the house directly behind the vlei even had their chairs out there last week, sheer bliss. We seem to have a pattern with the weather at the moment which is, lovely balmy days, cold nights and wet weekends. I can handle anything but the heat. After some really wonderful days a couple of cold fronts started rolling in on Friday and yesterday was clear and sunny but still cool which, given there is snow on some of the mountains again is to be expected. Last week one of Hubby's watch clients brought in some bracelets which needed fixing and a calculator which needed a new battery. Whilst talking she saw Charlie and mentioned that she had seen him and Sasha running down the road on the Friday before. On that day we were out in Hermanus sending off stands and now I know what that little rascal does when I go out. He finds a weak spot in the fence and chews a hole which then enables him to run off looking for Mom. The moment I pick him up prior to opening and closing the gate he starts crying and whimpering 😭. How to feel like a bad pet parent, all I can be grateful for is that he at least came back. Once again, Hubby has done further fence repairs and I had a metal tag made for Charlie's collar with his name and my number on it, he is chipped as well, but the disc is very visible 🤦🏻‍♀️🐩. While I am on the pet topic - one of last week's tasks was cutting the grass which was very long. Our neighbour had asked us to keep the cuttings for him to use as mulch, so Hubby had all the bags lined up along the fence and someone/something had torn one open (perhaps a mongoose? Haha ) obviously Sasha and Charlie just had to get into them, it was very wet when he went out first thing in the morning and when he is let back in his first thing is to take a flying leap onto me in bed. Well ..... he leapt and as he landed, in those split seconds I saw what a state he was in and managed to catch him with one hand and hold him off the bedding. We had to get a towel to dry him off and clean him as he was covered in grass and weeds and anything else that once was growing, he was more green than white oh my, he brings so much joy and laughter and really does keep me on my toes. On Saturday the jewellary was collected and paid for and Hubby dearest left a R100 not on the kist, a little while later we watched as Charlie stood up on his hind feet to investigate, grabbed the note and was on his way to the couch which is his storage place for all things precious. We managed to rescue the R100 before any damage was done haha. A wee bit of extra news which has been all over social media is that there was an earthquake of approximately 6.2 happened 1600m off the Cape coast on Saturday evening which thankfully did not cause any damage, but was felt in all of Cape Towns northern suburbs as far afield as Malmsbury. Apparently there was a very small quake later on, along with the after shock tremors, we never felt a thing 😬, but all of yesterday were kept apprised of the situation and also to expect lower tides than normal, I would have thought they would be higher but then what do I know 😀. For the rest everyone is well, the girls' application on their absolutely gorgeous new home rental was approved and the removal truck booked so it's a go on all fronts for their big 'trek'. Big Guy has been super busy with site visits and working hard and the Bears are well and as always busy, busy, busy. Folks that is it from my side, I am going to keep an eye on the geese 😍, keep on quilting (about to finish square number 21), marketing our stands AND I want to paint over some slate looking tiles in our bathroom as another step in my 'bedroom makeover' - it should be fun. Have a truly wonderful week folks, please stay safe and keep wearing your masks. With love from all in BB Ciao Ciao. Our little vlei next door - please put your sound up to hear all the frogs in chorus.

My Life's Winding Roads: Time to Breathe !

My Life's Winding Roads: Time to Breathe !: Greetings everyone from a slightly frustrated / stressed Blogger. Please forgive the change in text and any other differences. The host fo...