My Dad's Birthday

We were invited by my parents for lunch the day before my Dad's birthday.  We were so excited getting his presents and couldn't wait for him to open it and see his face.  We bought him a new fishing box and a whole lot of lures and gadgets.  He was sooo thrilled with it.  Graham was so stoked, he did choose the right gifts!!!!  While he was opening his gifts, Jas came back from the postbox with my sister and Yannick's parcel that just got delivered!!!!  And well, more fishing stuff.  Good timing though, we were all quite surprised.

Mom made this delicious chicken bake, an old family favourite.  We were spoilt for choice with her special roasted potatoes, rice, veggies and more...  Dessert was fresh fruit salad with delishous French vanilla icecream, yum!!!  We we were all feeling like little piggies after that glorious meal.

This is what the chicken & mushroom bake looks like and believe me, it's full of wholesome goodness:

Happy Birthday Dad!!!!

Honesty Box

This is just an interesting photo we took over the weekend.

This honesty box is on a very quiet road, belongs to a farmer and is fully stocked with the freshest fruit & veg.  The prices are great and the goodies sooo fresh and delish.  You just pay for what you want and put it in the little "honesty" box in the bottom left.  We love supporting the farmers this way.

This is a common thing in here and it's so much fun buying great farm fresh fruit, veggies & eggs.

My special birthday surprise

I got such a lovely surprise coming home last Saturday, on our doormat, there was a huge envelope and a parcel addressed to me!!! And I knew right away who it came from... my bestest friend ever, Adele.  We have know each other since we were 10 and is still each other's best friend.

This was inside the big envelope - a beautiful hand drawn heart with our initials, 2 birds and then 3 tinier birdies for our 3 boys.  She is a graphic designer and made this specially for me.  Now I just can't wait to buy a special frame for it.  It is so nice to know that I am so loved by my special friend.

She also gave met this beautiful birthday card and a leadglass blue heart!!!  I am not sure if she mad it or not.  It is soo beautiful and makes me smile whenever I look at it.

This is the gorgeous carrot cake, my fav, my mum bought me for my birthday from the French Bakehouse.  It was absolutely delish and such a treat.  I love you Mom!!!!

And yes there was more cake, choc mud cake and a blueberry strudel.  All yummy and the boys insisted we have a party!!!

I was so spoilt on my birthday.  The boys took their pocket money to buy me some lovely smellies for the bath, they know what their mama loves.  The best gift of all was being with my husband and our boys.  All of us together through another year, a happy, healthy, exciting and adventurous but mostly blessed year.  I thank God for keeping us safe, together and giving us our new life.  I am so grateful for each one of them and off what they mean in my life.  I also got to spend the evening with my parents and that warms my heart knowing we have spent another year with each other.

My three favourite things at the moment...

A new chapter

Yes, so tomorrow I have my first day at my new job.  I have been so blessed to spend almost 2 1/2 years at home with my littlest boy, Ethan.  I have so many mixed feelings that I find it hard to put into words.

This is an end to a very special chapter in my life.  A very special time spent with my boys being a stay at home mum and being there for them 24/7.  No more little sleep-ins with my baby boy, lounging around in our pj's, watching cartoons or movies (his favourite Madagascar 2) and just doing whatever we feel like...  Sitting outside in the sun with him, hanging my washing out in the sun or just getting the post out the letterbox and most of all going for our walks to the park.  No more snuggles and special little rituals while everyone is at work or school.  No more being there for his every need and to kiss each little hurt as it happens...  BUT now we have weekends to spend extra special time together. 

How I will miss Jas and Dyl getting home after school and sharing their school life with me as they settle down after a long school day.  Now, they are becoming these independant young men with a working mother leaving home early and getting home late.  Like I said, now weekends will become just so much more special - OUR TIME.

I will miss so much of what I shared with them but I am so grateful and blessed for what I have been able to share with them in this time.

This is a new beginning for me to explore and challenge myself.  A new beginning to invest in me. 

It is also a new beginning for Ethie starting in Kindy, and boy, he loved me taking him there these two days, just to test this new experience and to let him settle in.  I have found him a loving little haven where he can grow and explore every day!!!!  I am so excited and eager to see his face at the end of the day and hug him in my arms and take in his smell.

I am nervous, unsure, scared and most of all sad.  But at the same time I am excited and happy about all the possibilities that lay ahead and all the new adventures I will experience with my loved ones in the year ahead.

Be still my heart and just breathe... who you are is enough!!!!

A day to ourselves

For months now we have been wanting to take some time just for us - us meaning, no kids... Since we've been here we've only had about 2 maybe 3 nights to ourselves, so this year we have decided to make time for us too.  We need a good balance between home time and couple time.

Most of our home time is either spent with the boys or at the beach or when the boys go fishing with their dad.  I have been feeling like going for a drive for such a long time and I managed to turn Graham's arm and he agreed.  Yeay!!!!! 

My parents offered to take the boys for the day and night, much to our delight.  But things didn't quite work out the way we wanted it to,  Ethie wouldn't stay and he cried and cried until we decided to rather take him with us.  I just can't leave my littlest boy behind knowing he is in tears and feeling sad!!!   

It was a rather rainy and cold day at Bucklands Beach.

This is some of the yachts moored right near the beach.

Yes, this was our lunch of burgers, chips & milkshakes right on the beach!!!

All the driving was a bit much for this very tired boy of ours, he did wake up for his lunch in time!!!

My husband enjoying his lunch.

Then the rain stopped and it started to clear up beautifully!!!! 

You should see this on a sunny day, really a pretty place.

This is our new fav delish dessert - deep fried pineapple with cinnamon sugar!!!! 

After lunch we drove around a bit more and then decided to head for the shopping mall at Botany Downs, this is a real upmarket mall with the loveliest shops!!!!  Wish we could spend the whole day there...

We found the Starbucks, we had mocha frappe!!!!!!  Just for you, Cands, I took this photo!!

Well, after having a wander and look around this beautiful mall and a visit to the toilets, we discovered this really nice SA shop, Inside Afrika.  Unfortunately, we were so excited that we totally forgot to take any pics.  We boughts some bikkies, Chokkits and Eat-sum-mores.  We were going to dinner at Clinton (a h/school friend of Graham's that we recently found out lives in Auckland too!!!) and Taryn's place so we got them some Ouma Rusks (her fav) and also chokkits.  We also went to Kmart where we bought Ethie some new winter pj's, undies and the whole family's Easter chokkies. 

Dinner was great and we had some good grown-up conversations going on without any little ears around to hear every word too.  We have found some friends now and that is a real treat in itself.

Ahh, it was so great spending time with my hubby.  Just doing what we love and chatting all the way, and no, not about the kids, just grown-up stuff.  

We decided to set definite dates just for US time more often!!!!!!   



A Treat for Mum

Since it is Mothers Day on Sunday, I thought it a good idea to make something for my mum as a treat. 

We always tend to run to the shops to buy something special.

Be different this year and why not try out this really simple and fun gift idea!!!!  You can make it yourself it's just soooo easy.

My mum sure will love it.

Homemade Body Scrub

Slough off dry winter skin with invigorating homemade body scrub.  It's so easy, all-natural, and so inexpensive, you'll want to make enough for yourself too.

Tools & Materials:

• Body Oil
• Epsom Salt / Sea Salt / Organic Cane Sugar
• 12 oz PET jar with a cap
• Lemon Zest

How-to:

1. Combine 1 cup of body oil with 2 cups of salt / sugar (your choice).
2. Add lemon zest for colour and fragrance - try lavender flowers/ rose petals.

Tip:  Package in plastic jars as it is safest by the tub!!!

Have fun with this!!!!!!!

I will be updating my blog very soon.  I have been really busy going for interviews and having the boys home in the holidays.  Tomorrow I have another interview in Whangarei and the boys start their second term of school.  I am driving up on my own and really excited about this job.  Please think of me!!!!