Project 12 jan l/out

Yes its late & I really battled with it, why because I thought I would be clever & finish a UFO & do the Jan l/o in one. Well lets just say using something half done is not easy or quicker.

My DH & DS (baby) are restoring Grandad Louis's old workbench. He died the year before we were married & my hubby has had this wooden monstrosity for ever but DS has become very interested in restoring - he did Grandad Louis's cupboard in Jan this year & so enjoyed doing it, I have to confess that at times I thought it would not be put back together but I was wrong.

I have good news that my BF Debbie is improving everyday & should be in remission by June of this year, we are still praying & thanking God for every improvement. Its been a lesson in patience & how not to indulge in self pity for me but Debbie has had faith and perserverence the whole time .

1st of March 2010

Wow I really can't believe it, where is this year going.

We had such a nice weekend with Mark being home & all the family going fishing on saturday & sunday (no fish LOL) and just relaxing. It was very quiet when all the brood went to their various homes. Makes our house seem empty but it didn't take us long to enjoy it again. Spent a lot of time in the pool & Durban is very very hot at the moment, even if it rains it just pushes up the humidity level.

This morning DH had to go to Empangeni (a sleepy place about 2 1/2hrs up the north coast) I went along for the ride & its lovely the north coast, you have the ocean on one side & a sea of green sugar cane the other.

On a very positive note my financial year end is done, whew what a relief & welcome to the new financial year. Still have to do the two laundries but thats not too bad.

Happy Birthday Alan.

Tomorrow is Alan's birthday & I hope he has the best day ever & lots more.

Poor guy will be at the Durban airport at 05.30am (yes thats right )for the red eye to Joburg where he has a meeting with some importers & then home by 3 pm in time for a dinner date with Kylie & I as both boys will only be home on Saturday but he is quite happy to go out again !!!!!

He is an amazing man, who has a fantastic capacity to love, provide and nuture.
I love him more now than ever before and hope all his dreams come true.

Pics

Our little cottage on top of the hill.

A windy day & fire in the bush on the other side.

One of our views & where we swim.

We're back & its great but busy & I guess thats normal life.

Heres a few pics of paradise where we just chill out & enjoy.Thats one of the perks of not having to worry about school holidays.

Africa is Awesome.

We have been very blessed to travel extensively in & around the UK, Europe, Asia, New Zealand, Australia, North America, Argentina etc & we love travelling still so many places to see.

But my best travelling is done in Africa, whether its locally in South Africa, or Swaziland, Nambia, Zimbawe, Lesotho, Botswana, Mozambique or futher afield Mauritius & Madagascar.
Africa is awesome, apart from the exquisite beauty and vast openess of the landscape vistas the PEOPLE of Africa are amazing.

We are in Mozambique, business done we are now in our cottage (shared by 17 familes) and I am always amazed by the people. They use anything, everything & carve out a living not an existance. They are happy & as their economy is starting to bloom so it shows. The government here is very big on schools, clinics etc & you can be in the middle of the bush and there will be a school and clinic. We have been coming here for 16 years & the changes are incredible - long may it last & I just hope that it blooms without becoming over commercialised. I walked to get fresh bread "pau" here - its baked in an open outside oven and is delicious......

friday at last & all packed to go.

Side view & Alan's old faithfull packed & ready to go.

A side/ front view without the garden area which is a mess.

I made it through the week(with lots of prayers & faith) & am so glad to say yay its finally Friday...... Am posting some pics of our newly painted house not a full front because we are redoing the tiny front garden as a combined anniversary plus DH's birthday pressie at the end of this month. Its long overdue & looks like a demolition site but the landscaper has assured us when we get back it'll be done !!!

So we will be away for a week or ten days & our youngest son runs the business ( I think he loves it when we are away) & we are leaving at about 4.30am and will overnight in Maputo and then be at Tofo (Inhambane) by lunch time on Sunday. Just a bit of paradise in Africa - its incredibly beautiful, the people so wonderful (dirt poor) and motivated. They use everything & create with nothing I am always humbled when I see how happy they are with so little.

On Sunday Mark turns 26 years old & I have sent off a care package because he's in Joburg. His siblings here in Durban thought that was crazy - he'll be home for the weekend end of Feb but still I am a "mom".

Should you worry over people who really don't care !!

I really needed to think this through before I blogged about this but its still bugging me & so here goes.
I learnt to scrap(about 6 years ago) & enjoyed many hours at a prominent scrapbooking shop in the northern suburbs of Dbn & like the majority of us spend more than I should but really loved it, the people, atmosphere, friendliness etc. Even my DH has been known to visit a certain someone on birthdays & Christmas time & has always commented on the friendliness.
This has changed really drastically & in the last three (yes 3 ! I am a slow learner) I have been stung by the unfriendly don't care attitude & thought maybe it was me ! Well on Saturday off I went because I needed a special thing for a RAK swop & knew I could get it there albeit at a higher price but I just thought of all the positive things - well I came out of the shop with my purchases a bit disgruntled but still thinking it was me & I was met in the parking lot by such hostility ( over a parking space LOL which I was vacating !!) and decided thats it!!! I came home my DH & DD took one look at my face & said whats happened - thinking it was something terrible - I told them the whole sorry story & both of them said they had noticed too.
Well I cried not sure why except I feel quite a loss !
On saying that there are many scrapbooking shops in Durban & I support them especially my local as I call it & please I am not in anyway labelling all the Durban & surrounds shops in a similar manner.
On a positive note my rak has been posted in good time & I am looking forward to this week as we prepare to go on a mixed business/ pleasure trip to Mozambique next week.