Fabulous Friends

I have a group of ladies, I have never had the pleasure of meeting although we chat online via email daily. We have been doing this for oh well since before our 5year olds were born.
They are a great bunch of ladies, they all have their special qualities and talents. One such lady is Kathy who is a dab hand at sewing and her speciality is Quilting which she loves. Anyhow I went to the post box and there was a parcel from Kathy. Inside was the cutest quilt. I loved it immediately and so did the boys and I am positive that baby girl will too. She was also very sweet and included two small presents for the boys. Pirate Lego and new Face Cloths, small crayons and paint. Thank you so much Kathy, you are soo sweet. Here are some pics showing off the quilt and the boys new wash cloths.

A Sheep and a Present

Okay so its been a while. Well nothing really newsworthy to report up till now. Luke had his nativity play last night and what a wonderful performance by all the children.
The play was done by two classes. A lot of the children that are graduating preschool this year and going to Proper school next year had most of the main parts. However all the children had something to say and sing so nobody was left out. As a result, Luke ended up being a Sheep and a Present. When they first got on stage Luke was doing this weird thing with his eyes like looking through binoculars. I asked him later and he said the lights were too bright bless him. LOL.

In the beginning when the shepherds see the star pointing to where baby Jesus is located he is a sheep and pretends to eat grass LOL.

Then later he changed to a present, he was Gold and had to say "I am Gold" LOL.

Straight after he sang a song, I cant actually remember for the life of me right this second (porridge brain) what the song was but there were three boys singing on their own mikes, and two of them had the giggles. Thankfully Luke managed to keep it together and sang throughout which was great.

Anyway he was brilliant all of the kids were brilliant and shame they had been practicing so hard and often (every day) for two weeks. I think the teachers were quite stressed on the night though, but they should be proud that it came off so well.

Tagged thanks Ladies

The rules:
1. Go into your archive
2. Find your 23rd post.
3. Find the fifth sentence (or closest to).
4. Post the text of the sentence in your blog along with these instructions.
5. Tag five other people to do the same.

My 23rd post and my 5th sentence:

"This is a photo we took in the garden half an hour before leaving for the airport."

As for tagging anyone else, you have all been tagged those of you who I know own a blog. So it looks like the buck stops here.

A Friend ties the knot

A good friend of mine who I have known ugh probably since 1992 finally got married to her long time Partner of ten years. The day dawned Saturday the 24th September 2005 beautiful, sunny and windless, which if you know P.E. is a godsend this time of year. The Bride was a fashionable/unfashionable 20 mins late Ha ha. She looked stunning and her dress was beautiful. A beautful shimmering Green. Their children 7 and 5 walked their mom (the bride) into the ceremony and led her to the podium where the Minister and her Partner where waiting. I of course being the emotional animal that I am balled my eyes out when she walked in, when they were pronounced man and wife and when her new Hubby said his speech.
I was just so happy for them both. The ceremony was beautiful, the company was excellent, the decor fantastic and the food scrumptious. All in all it was a wonderful day. Congrats Gilly I hope you both have a very long and happy marraige. Below are some pics, unfortunately we didnt get very many good ones, due to lighting.

Children walking her into the ceromony.

Gill and I.

The Big U/S update

Sorry its only today but I am so busy at work right now and I had to scan all the pics in, it took me forever.
So we went for our 20 wk ultrasound at 21wks1day. Its so weird how even though you know everything is fine and you feel the kicking etc. As soon as that appointment looms you begin to panic that something isnt quite right. I have chatted to a few Moms and they all agree with me, you tend to live from one appointment to the next.
Anyway this was the big ultrasound at the wellness clinic not at my Doctor so we didnt really know what to expect. It was awesome, I had my own LCD screen over the bed so I didnt have to crick my neck. The Doctor, yes a doctor, not a Tech. had her own. I have never seen an ultrasound this clear and remember this was only a normal 2D one not a 3D one either. At one point we even got to see the halo of her Iris. Apparently it reflects back the ultrasound waves right through the fused eyelids. Awesome. She was sleeping at first and when we took her heartrate it was a nice 135bpm which is just fine. She was lying faceing the wand so couldnt get a good profile, so we had to nudge her awake. As you can see by the pics we got some really good profile shots. She lifted her hand, drank fluid, sucked her thumb. Really quite amazing. We saw all the four chambers of the heart and the directional blood flow. Her bladder was full as well. It was great to see her kick on the screen and feel it at the same time, quite freaky. We got a good pic of her mouth and lips no problems there. All the spine was great and intact. She has a nice little upturned button nose which you can just make out on the pic. The pics are great but really dont do the real thing justice. All her major bones, Femur, Tibia, Humorous and skull are measureing spot on to my dates and according to the measurements they estimate her weight to be 448g which is almost 1Lb and her length to be approx 21cm. So she isnt small. I still look small because once again she is lying breech, horizontal breech. I just hope she gets with the program later and turns round to the right position. Anyway the whole thing took round 30 minutes and it was really great to see. One thing I did like as I mentioned earlier was that she was a Doctor and not a Tech and thats a good thing because, techs take notes but wont give you a diagnosis cause they arent allowed to only a Doctor can do that. She was able to tell us there and then exactly what she was looking for and the fact that it was fine. Which is a huge relief let me tell you. Anyway here are the pics.

With Her mouth open swallowing fluid.

Profile

Profile with lips slightly parted

Her Foot

Adams 1st Concert or Non Concert as it happened

So we have just got back from Adams 1st concert. My poor baby got a case of serious stage fright, as you can see by the photos below. The second pic is basically how he sat for the whole 20 minutes. Its amazing because out of the two of them, I really thought that Adam would be "Out There" but nope, he went silent. He stood up when he was supposed to and thats it. All the other kids sang their hearts out but he wouldnt. He has been practising forever and knows all the songs and was very excited. I think it just all turned out too much for him. So these pics are it. LOL. I feel really sad for him, cause I just know that he is going to be so upset that he didn't sing, after the fact. Oh well I suppose there is always next year.

Other weekend stuff

Hmm what else happened. Well after they all came back from the beach and I was feeling quite pooped, I ended up having to cut everybody's hair, yep, I realised that we are going to a wedding next Sat the 24th and obviously I needed to get them ship shape, so yesterday was it.
Oh our pool pump motor packed in so that is something we need to get sorted out. Summer is just round the corner and I want that pool ship shape for the holidays. M reckons he is going to try and get it fixed/repaired first before we look at another one. I phoned to find out a new price and they are just under R2000.00 so. At the end of the day if we have to get a new one , then thats what we have to do. Budget account here I come. Never rains but it pours so they say. On Saturday afternoon we took the boys for a milkshake and we had a coffee at the Wimpy. Weather was atrocious, it was really really windy outside and it was impossible to do anything or even have the windows open. So we went to the Shopping Centre to have coffee. It seemed the whole of Port Elizabeth had the same idea as it was really busy.
Tomorrow is Adam's concert. He has a bulldog mask and has to sing. I will take pics so look out for them. Luke's concert is only 27th of October so a little while before that comes around.
My Fetal anatomy scan( the big one as some call it) is on Thursday the 22nd. Looking forward to that as it takes around 45minutes. So should get some really good pics hopefully.
Thats it for today.

Stuff

Okay I know its been awhile but there you go. The weather here is getting warmer which is great. Yesterday M took the boys to the beach while I pottered at home, I think I was supposed to rest, but it didnt happen. I did washing, hung it out, tidied up and then did some gardening for which I am paying today. I cleared a bed that has been bugging me for ages, it took me ages which serves me right for leaving it that long, but I did it and today I am rather tired. I am 20wks and 5days today can't believe it and feeling fine. Beanette is getting more active which is very reassuring. I downloaded these pics today and found that M, hadnt taken any of the boys at all, which was rather disappointing. These are basically what he took.
Above is a pic of the boys at the beach, they built a sandcastle for me apparently. At least M remembered to take a photo.


Above a close up of the sandcastle, pebbles, feathers, sponge and all.

Above a pic of our more popular beach, called Hobie Beach with the Shark Rock Pier in the background.

Spring Fever

Well yesterday the 1st of September was officially the first day of SPRING. Yahoo.
It was still a bit chilly but the thought of nice warm days to come, cheered us up. Well actually Luke cheered us up. He went bounding through the house yelling its Spring, its Spring. LOL. He was very excited and insisted this morning (2nd) to take his teacher some flowers from the garden, well the only thing blooming already really is our Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow, its in full flower and smells gorgeous, but its a bush so we snapped off a small twig for him. Today the weather is much nicer and tomorrow promises to be even better. But just so we dont get too excited Sunday is looking bleak. Typical. Anyway I think we should plant something this weekend as a show of solidarity to the season. Luke will be quite excited about that I think.

ITS A GIRL!!!!!!!!

Yes I know that most of you know by now but I thought I would make it sort of official.
We are all very excited. Luke was totally NOT suprised. His very words were "I told you so". It really was a wonderful birthday present to get. Now the hard part, finding a name that we love. Not going to be easy, we like traditional type names, hence the boys names. Martyn has been coming up with some stinkers that I wont even entertain, I am sure he is thinking about exotic dancers when he comes up with them. Oh well in the end we'll agree on something I am sure of that. However we will keep those secret until the actual naming, so dont bother asking LOL.

The Pro

Luke after the party was practicing his golf Ha Ha.   These are my Dad's clubs that we are "storing" got left behind in the move.   Maybe Luke is the next Tiger Woods.  Who knows.

On Saturday we went to a Knights Kingdom party, Luke and I, Martyn took Adam for an icecream at the beach. He had a helmet and a sword it was cold and didnt really want him prancing around in next to nothing just to look the part.
Party went well until the chair I was sitting in collapsed and before you say anything it wasnt because of me, apparently the chair had recently been repaired and guess what it didnt work. So luckily didnt hurt myself just my pride really in front of everyone, but next day found a massive bruise on the tendon at the back of my knee, its still sore. Anyway Luke enjoyed the party and I have decided that swords (lots of them) and 5year olds(lots of them) shouldn't go together, there were a number of minor incidents involving swords in numerous body parts, Luckily Luke wasnt one of them for a change.

Adam'ism's

Adams News
Well just thought I would share a few things Adam says which I think are quite cute.
Relating to Cartoons: Tom & Jerry is "Tom & Jerry & the Dog"
Scooby Doo is "Scooby Doo and the Man in the Suit" (we tell him the monsters are men in suits, which they generally are) He loves Scooby Doo.
He doesnt say " I am" he says " I'm mam" I think its cute and makes me laugh every time.
Anyway he has had a bit of a cough recently and I noticed his cheeks were really rosy and it suddenly dawned on me to look in his mouth and sure enough there are the second set of bottom molars trying to break through. No wonder he hasnt wanted to eat much lately. Bless him.

What Slanguage do you speak??? Kinda interesting

Your Slanguage Profile

British Slang: 50%

Canadian Slang: 50%

Prison Slang: 50%

Victorian Slang: 50%

Aussie Slang: 25%

Southern Slang: 25%

New England Slang: 0%

What Slanguage Do You Speak?

The afterparty?

Well after the dress up party we went home it started getting a bit chilly so we all ended up inside. Supper was served and we ate. Adam as usual was last to finish then all of a sudden jumped from the table and wandered off, we settled into the lounge to relax. Luke was playing with lego on the floor and we PRESUMED Adam was playing in the bedroom. Finally I told Martyn that I thought Adam was a bit quite, he said he is fine he's playing yeah right. So off I go. Anyway I found him in my bedroom eventually with the wardrobe door open (mirror on the inside) busy decorating himself with the facepaint crayons I had used for their Indian look. I had to really try and keep a straight face as bless him he was concentrating so hard and making sure he put each crayon he had finished with back in the pack.
Here is the final result.

Interesting Look I thought.

Dress up parties

Well this past weekend Luke and Adam were invited to a friends Peter Pan dress up Party. Well I was at a loss and not having much time decided that to send them as Indians would probably be the best thing to do. So here are the boys, ready for the party, they were quite excited although when we got there, Adam was slightly overwhelmed but all in all they enjoyed themselves and had loads of fun. This weekend Luke has been invited to a Knights party, yep so keep your eyes peeled for that update.

Adam and his placemat

Kathy here is Adam enjoying his placemat.   They are like manna from Heaven I tell you.

Kathys Placemats

Kathy your placemats are a hit, here is Luke patiently waiting for his supper while being thoroughly entertained.

They really are great and the boys love them. For anyone who doesnt quite understand. Kathy is a very talented friend of mine living in the US. She has made these placemats with a chalkboard in the middle. They are brilliant. Although she says they are quite finicky to make.
She is also an excellent quilter.

Feeling a bit more perky

Well yes I am finally through the first trimester. YAY. 13 wks tomorrow. No more nausea, still feeling a bit tired but thats to be expected I suppose. A lot better than a couple of weeks ago thats for sure. I took the boys shopping on Saturday as M was painting our bedroom. Purdy-Ivory is the colour. Much better than white. Anyhow, I say to Luke , lets buy something for the baby. So we head off to the baby clothes section and would you believe he headed straight for all the pink stuff. I had a hard time convincing him that we need to go neutral as we dont know if we are having a boy or a girl yet LOL. So he turns and says, No we do its a baby sister. I finally got him round by saying how cute this nuetral outfit was with sheep on LOL. I hope he is right otherwise we are going to have a very disappointed 5 year old on our hands.
Adam is having some teeth filled today under sedation as he wont get into the dentist chair willingly. This is going to be so much fun I just know it. Wish us all luck.

Tired

Okay well I completed my 10th week yesterday and my body caved LOL. Yep by 11a.m. at work I decided I needed to go home, I felt terrible. Tired, nausea and headache. Got home and I slept for three hours straight then I watched some godawful soaps on the tv. Had an omelette for supper courtesy of Martyn bless him and then I went back to bed. I must say I felt tons better this morning and I have deduced that basically my body was just exhausted and had finally said this is it. I dont get to nap at work obviously so I am going to make a concerted effort to make up for it on the weekends. Told Martyn he has to take the kids out for an hour or do something withthe boys so I can rest a bit. Thankfully next week I am taking off to give the boys a rest from aftercare before school reopens on the 18th. So looking forward to lazy mornings and relaxing days. I do want to take them to see the movie Madagascar. They havent been to see anything since Brother Bear so its about time.

Its raining cats and dogs

BowersNews So much for weatherpixie, as I write this it has been chucking it down literally that you cant see 10m in front of you for the last half an hour its freezing cold and the little weather pixie says its 19 and sunny with a few clouds, Yeah right. So dont believe everything you see.
Tonight its log fire, warming food and Desperate Housewives and CSI: New York. Perfect evening. I am sure I can sling a bar of chocolate in there as well.

Cold rainy Days

Its been rather cold, rainy and miserable in the mornings for a while now.  This is a pic we took of the boys one morning.    We took it not because of how they were dressed but because they were pretending to be robots.  They have a thing about robots at the moment.  Check the hands.   I realise that the presence of the sunloungers while the boys are dressed up for the north pole is a bit strange but they are under the patio so are sheilded from any bad weather.    Martyn said he is going to build them a robot this weekend.  That should be fun. I will be sure to take some pics if he does LOL.

The Mime

We have a place at the beachfront called the Boardwalk, like an open air mall with games, movies, restaurants etc.   It has  a big man made lake in the middle and we go occassionally to have a walk round and let the kids have a ride.   Well recently there have been a couple of mimes.   Luke and Adam love them and love throwing in our small change to get them to move.    So anyhow.  We come home after an outing there and Luke gets a bowl out and puts some change in it then gives us all a few coins and tells us to throw them in.    It was hilarious and he was doing really well.  Of course Adam thought it was extremely funny and just kept laughing and throwing more coins in.

A popcorn Moment

The boys and I love popcorn and we all had the munchies so I made a batch of micro popcorn and I shared it out.    Yes I know I got the biggest bowl LOL.   Anyway after I had sat down to munch, the next thing Luke and Adam decide that the popcorn eaters should be sitting together so they both perched themselves on an arm and we munched away.   It was a special moment for sure but I think the alterior motive was soon apparent,  as their bowls got empty they refilled them from mine.  No who says I dont have clever kids LOL.

BowersNews

BowersNews
Well I am 9wks exactly today, its unbelievable really LOL. Feeling great all in all although a little pendantic about untidyness more than normal, so I figure yep thats those hormones going wild in there.
The boys are both doing well. In holiday care at the moment. But I am taking leave the 11 to the 15th so as to at least give them a break before classes start proper again on the 18th of July. To tell you the truth, I need the break just as bad as they do.
I have sent all you guys the relevant website for Adams birthday photos.
I will post some more tomorrow when I get that photobucket thing sorted out LOL.

Well winter is here finally I think and other stuff

Its been getting colder last couple of weeks but this week has really been cold so far. I watch TV with a blanket over my legs and I am still cold. Boys have been going off to school wrapped up like little eskimos. Its not so bad in the day when the sun shines but that wind is icy, man its cold. Winter woolies are out and are being used in full force. Its really difficult getting up in the morning now. The boys especially dont want to get up. Luke asked me the other day to wake him up at 7 rather. I said thats too late then I couldnt take him to school. So he says "Thats okay I know where the school is I can walk there" Yeah right. The cold makes you tired too. Wouldnt be so bad if our buildings were set up for it but they arent there is a huge draft coming in the window in my office and the windows at home.

So soon its Adams birthday and I have no clue what to do for him. I was thinking of having some of his classmates over for his party on Saturday 18th and then whoever wants to can pop round on the Sunday. Thing is if I dont do that then all the other kids we know are soo much older than him and he usually ends up in tears, mainly cause he doesnt understand their games or they dont want him to play with them. Which I dont think would be fair on his birthday.
Anyway just throwing stuff out here really. I can't believe he will be three finally LOL. In lots of ways he has always just seemed older than he is and because of that, I have in my mind he is three already LOL. Silly isnt it.

Going to do some work now. Chow.

Luke is starting to GET IT.

Lol I know that sounds weird but he is starting to get things like quirky adverts, jokes etc. Its really funny to watch him react to stuff now LOL. I wont tell you all what part of the Scooby Doo move is his favourite, just let me say its a competition between Shaggy and Scooby and it involves breaking wind. LOL. I was almost dying with laughter on the weekend watching him trying to emulate the two.

Luke is also saving up, yep he is saving for a trip to England, bless him.
He asks me constantly when we are going and I keep saying well we havent got enough money. So he says, but I have money. Poor thing its like the stuff in his money box. Bless.
Anyway so I ask him so what do you want to go to England for. Well I asked for it.
"So I can go see , Nanna Pat, Uncle Bill, Grandad, Ouma Jenny, Patrick , Angela, Grandma, Uncle Dave, Aunty Jo, Abigail and Rachel." I know I shouldnt have asked. It only hit me then that most of our family live overseas, and he didnt mention Adrian or Emma either, heck, and that made me really sad. The boys miss you all very much. So do we. Then it hit me that if we did come for a holiday it would have to be at least 6 weeks long to enable us to stay with everyone. LOL. What a mission. At least a week with everyone and a couple of days inbetween to travel and see some sights. Not going to happen soon thats for sure. So I still play the lottery faithfully and believe one day my ship will come in, but right now I dont think its even been built yet!

FrogBoy

Well it was a really wet and windy weekend and the boys watched TV generally. We actually had hail on Friday night and Saturday morning which is unusual for us. So it was log fires, winter woolies and lots of warm yummy food and drink. This is a pic we took while I was on the phone to My Mom. (ps thanks for the comments). He looked soo utterly dejected and sad sitting there. But he was actually engrossed in a TV programme LOL. I think it was Scooby Doo. They love that.

This one is him realising we are taking the photo, yes he was that enthralled by Scooby Doo.

Dad has left the building......

Well thats it my Dad has flown the coop so to speak.   He, Jenny and Angela left for the UK on 10th May 2005.  I actually can't believe it.   Luke was rather upset after we left the airport I think it only hit him then.    This is a photo we took in the garden half an hour before leaving for the airport.   It was emotional so to speak.   Life seems dismal right now, but I know it will get better and hopefully if my luck is in, we might get to make a trip over there Summer next year.   Well I can hope can't I.

This one has Martyn in and me behind the camera

What a great saying

Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of
arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather
to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, wine in the other, body
thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming
"WOO HOO what a ride!"
author unknown

A Surprise visit

About two weeks ago now,  my brother and I got a really nice suprise an Uncle that I hadn't seen in 11 years came to town for 1 night only.  LOL sounds like a Bee Gees concert.    We had a fantastic evening and I did have way tooo much to drink but heck it was great.    Hopefully it won't be another ten or so years before I see him again.

On the left is My Brother John, Me in the middle and Peter on the Right hamming it up.

Luke doing the firemans Pole

Adam ready to tackle the firemans pole

This was also at Lukes bday party at a place called Stone Castle.   It literally is a big Stone Castle in this big grassed /treed area.  Its great the boys love it.

Lukes Bday Party April 13 2005

Luke here is a bit red in the face LOL.   They had been running around before the official cake cutting and party pack moment.   He had a lovely day and thankfully it didnt rain.   He was just soo animated and loved being the centre of attention. 

Oh my goodness

I cant believe its been this long since I have blogged.
I will sort this out a.s.a.p.

Adams first Pony Ride

We went to a friends birthday party on the 29th of Jan and included in the party pack was a pony ride ticket.  I wasnt too sure if Adam would get on the pony.  Luke has done it before at a previous party.  So it would be Adam's first time.   He waited patiently in the queue with Luke holding hands LOL.  So cute to watch.  Then Luke said,  Mom I think Adam better come on with me.  So I said well thats nice my boy.  Lets see if he will get on ,on his own first.   So anyway up he went. I told him to hold on tightly and he loved it.   Precious.  I have a pic of Luke too so will post that in a bit.

Boys first day at School

Hi there, so here is Luke and Adam and me in the background leaving the house to take the kiddies to first day of school.  They were really pleased as punch.   Luke was glad to be going back and Adam was glad of the new adventure.   Thankfully Adam has settled in really well and is enjoying it.   Luke has also settled quite nicely into his new class and is happy.   Thats all I ask is that they are happy to go and happy at school.   

Luke and Grandad swimming

This is a pic of My Dad and Luke having a swim.   He loves swimming and he wears a blow up lifejacket and with it own he is fine.   I tried him without it and he just sinks.   He panicked so for now he will wear that.  Obviously he will always have an adult alongside.    This was at the start of our Holiday.  Its sad to think that my Dad will be moving overseas soon.  They have since moved out of this house and are renting before they leave the country.

Semi Update- OUr Holiday Part 1

Yes its going to be in two parts LOL.
Well our holiday was great , got off to a bit of a rocky start as I was quite stressed and strung out till about the 3rd day, yeah nice one. So DH and I were bickering all the time. Drove the 7hours to my Dads place then relaxed for two days swimming, eating, chilling. The Monday 20th we left on the trip. We only travelled short distances everyday but with us being in a convoy you tend to drive slower and you stop more frequently so it tends to end up being long in the car.
Anyway we saw plenty of places in South AFrica that I havent seen yet and it was a different kind of beauty, the way we were travelling was semi dessert what we call the Karoo. Our first stop was overnight at a lovely stone and thatch cottage alongside a river. The temp was high 38deg C but dry and for us it was a big adjustment. Needless to say we swam for quite a while in the river which was literally knee deep all the way across, but it was flowing quite strongly so we had to keep a hold of the little ones cause as soon as you lay down and floated, you moved quite quickly. But it was a lovely respite from the heat. Adam particularly enjoyed it as he could keep his feet on the floor and be totally submerged LOL. That evening we bbq'd and just chilled out of doors. It didnt really cool down and it was quite a mission to get to sleep.
Next day we were back on the road again and we travelled to a place called Springbok. This town is in the heart of the Namaqualand and its famous for its annual show of flowers (naturally occuring ones in the semi dessert) they flower for like two months of the year starting in October. Part two tomorrow...............