Happy Birthday Hayzel !

Hope you have a lovely day today ... lots and lots of love from all of us and especially me xxxx

Snow!

Well er ... it DID snow at Ewan's school this morning for all of about one and a half minutes ... large flakes mixed with a bit of rain but by the time I got home it had stopped.  The air is very icy cold, I thought when I got out of the car this morning that it felt cold enough for snow. Oh well, we'll see if we have anymore. 

Not long to go now and soon I'll be able to cuddle up to this little munchkin ...

Daniel in bed the other morning with his Aunty Ally - looks like he's learning how to take the perfect Selfie

Brag Bag

Faye is doing very well at school ... here's a copy of her latest report and also a laminated certificate she got from her teacher for the work Faye did on her last school project about the Galapagos Islands ... technically her dad and me should have also got a reward for our contributions :)

I made the right dumb comment in the car this morning to Faye that I'd finished two chapters of the story I'm writing for her ... so of course now I have to get it completed before we go to South Africa because she kindly let me know that she wants to read it on the plane!  Aaargh ...

Ancient houses

Norfolk and Suffolk have some of the oldest preserved Ancient houses in England - many dating from the 15th Century - that means they were built during the 1400's,  Ally.

When we went through to Ipswich and then Southwold, we passed a LOT of really old places.  There are quite a few in Ipswich itself but we couldn't park near them for me to get a shot, so I've stolen images off Google. Here goes ...

Leaning house - Lavenham

Crooked house Lavenham (most are crooked actually)

Another old house in Lavenham

Stratford Saint Mary  - Ancient house

These houses are by no means isolated examples, there are hundreds, if not thousands of wattle and daub preserved homes in East Anglia.   Harry Potter and other movies used Lavenham's Ancient houses in their settings.

Potters house in Lavenham

More wonky houses in Lavenham.

Day trippin', fairy dew and sleeping babies.

On the spur of the moment, Hayzel and Kevin decided that we would go for a drive through to Ipswich today.   Well, Ipswich is very old and a bit like Germiston-next-the-sea ... we didn't manage to park anywhere and walk around.  So after putting in some petrol, we then drove up the coast to Southwold, which is a very popular seaside resort in summer.  The beaches to the north and south of the main pier (i.e. the wilder parts) are truly spectacular but we didn't venture out there as it was decidedly chilly today and one would need a map, to figure out which beach to go to and the best route.

Here's a panning video I took when we first arrived - yes, it's wonky, no I didn't use a tripod ... anyway, you get the general idea and YouTube did try and be a dear and 'stabilise' it. 


Sorry, lots of photos to follow ... as always click on photo to see full sized, more detailed image.

 The kiddies have fun, no matter whether the tide is in or out.

 View of the North beach cliffs (I think) on telephoto - you can see these in the background of the shot above.

Views of the pier  - it's not as chintzy as the one at Gt. Yarmouth

 A few moody shots of the seaside huts and pier

The Brits are big on these wooden beach huts (like you see at Muizenberg) ... they line the entire parking frontage at the Southwold main beach.  I believe they aren't cheap to buy either.  So very Victorian! 

 The 'water clock' on the pier ... you can see Hayzel is looking a little bit uncomfortable, the wind was very icy when we were out on the pier.

 Looking out towards the nuclear power station further down the coast line - I was interested in how the sunlight struck a patch of waves, making them sparkle - quite pretty.

 T'Duck Pond end ...   Norfolk (and Suffolk) have the most amazing skies - no wonder Constable painted a lot of his famous pictures in this landscape.

Earlier on this morning, Faye came running to me to say that the fairies had sprinkled sparkling diamonds all over the tree out front of our house.

And here is a shot of Ewan taken the other night, after him and Faye were playing with Star Wars characters and her dolls.  He wrapped this doll in his dressing gown and insisted on the doll sitting at the table whilst we ate dinner and then it seemed to end up tucked under his arm in bed.  So cute (no he's not turning gay).

Faye got her report from school on Friday and she has done really well. I will try and find a scanned photo of it, or else Kevin can quickly do that and put it up here for you guys to see.

All for now. Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Happy Birthday Leigh

Hope you had a stunning birthday, we saw all the messages on Whatsapp and photos of your ring, very lovely!   Hope you liked the Bonsai ... See you soon.

23 more sleeps (after tonight)

Yes, it's not long now folks!  Really looking forward to our trip to the hot sunny African continent.  Congratulations again to Andrew for getting confirmation on your promotion and the impending move to Durban at the end of February/March - that is really great - National Manager, Business Intelligence* - not bad going, dude!

We have a few jam packed days ahead of us.  Faye will be taking her Brownie Promise soon and then there are lots of activities planned for her unit throughout the first half of this year; including a camping weekend, a sleep over at the SeaLife centre in Great Yarmouth, a Big Walk on the Boudicca Way and lots of other interesting things.

School is also keeping the kids (and me) busy - Tuesdays are now quite cool (as far as I'm concerned).  Faye does her 3.16 Club (run by the Church) and now Ewan does drama.  I don't have to go to school to collect the kids until 4pm on Tuesdays - as they both go straight to their respective activities with no help from parents or hangers on.   Wednesdays is also choc-a-bloc what with Ewan's L'il Dragons, followed later by Brownies.   The mum of one of Faye's friends (Megan) has kindly offered to pick Faye up from our house on Wednesdays and bring her home again because Megan does Brownies at the same time and the girls are already quite good friends.  So that's cool - although I will miss my walk to Brownies, it's good exercise despite the fact that by the time I've finished 'holding' (read dragging) Ewan's hand all the way there and back, I feel like my arm is coming off.  Fridays is 'Show and Tell' at Ewan's class from tomorrow  - he is taking the Penguin that his Great-Granny Ruth got him when he was a baby - as the topic is things from home that come from near or far and the theme at the moment has to do with the South Pole.

December 2009 - Hermanus - Ewan and Penguin

The transcript work isn't coming in as fast and furious as it was this time last year - I keep getting told that it will pick up and knowing my luck, will happen when I'm in SA!  Oh well, if it doesn't get better in the next couple of months, then I'm going to have to look at alternate forms of income.  I am still doing a lot of work for IIA, in fact I got a sign up yesterday!  We (Hayzel and I) are not sure whether to keep this business going for very much longer but I don't want to cut it off at this point, as it is definitely worth while getting sign ups and we receive at least one referral a week. In fact, we have had four referrals in the past week and I'm currently working on the others - so hold thumbs I can sign some other suck ... er client ... up before we leave for warmer climes.

I'm very glad that my Auntie Barbara has come out of hospital and her op seems to have gone very well - so well done there and I hope the physio doesn't hurt too much next time. 

Anyway, not much else to report.  A little bird told me that Leigh has a birthday soon - so a bunch of birthday balloons will probably start off my next post.


*I think that's what the full title is hey?

Special Belated Happy Birthday to Uncle Les

A very big belated Birthday wish to Uncle Les, who celebrated this extra-special event yesterday - of course, my birthday calendar system wasn't working (typical).   Anyway, we wish you a wonderful year ahead and hope that you got well and truly spoilt.   Once you get your SKYPE sorted out, we can have a video chat!  .... Lots and lots of love from all of us at Spider's Web.

Get well soon!

My Auntie Barbara went in on Saturday last week for her second knee operation, so I hope that she is doing fine. Uncle Les said that she would be coming home on Wednesday - so that will be good and looking forward to perhaps having a chat on Skype - which will be the first time we've done that with you guys! 

The weather is up and down here at the moment but not really cold, to be honest.  Despite that, I've got a bit of a head cold, woke up in the night sneezing my head off and my nose has been dripping all day.  Anyway, to cheer myself up I spent most of the time today sorting out the house - re-arranged the dining room, entrance hall, Ewan's room (brought the bookcase from the office upstairs and filled it with his books), also re-arranged Faye's room and put another plastic storage 'chest of drawers' (that was actually mine) there so she has more space to store her thingies.

Entrance hall bookcase with games in - we have a ton more to put here. Best place for them!

Dining room - all moved about

Bookcase in dining room, all tidied up

Bookcase in Ewan's room with his books and stuff

Madam's room re-arranged and half-sorted out

Girls are NOT cleaner than Boys! 
Sorting out Faye's room is like walking into a bio-hazard.  I found a half-decomposed apple, a whole apple, four or five pairs of dirty socks, at least two pairs of panties (also a bit crusty), hair clips, fluff from the dog, fluff from who-knows-what, bits of sweeties, sweetie papers, first draft letters to Granny, bedazzling jewels stuck to bits of paper, pencils, pens ... she's so neat (not).  I didn't even TRY to sort out the contents of her chest of drawers or plastic storage units - I didn't have the strength left in my stomach.  Of course, I moved her bed into what I thought was the perfect position, finished cleaning the room, made her bed, only to find that I couldn't close the door!   So back to the drawing board and more heavy lifting followed.  Anyway, it kinda looks half-decent at the moment - won't last.

Ewan said I was the coolest Nana a boy could have because I fixed his books - aw ... he sure knows how to butter me up.

Oh and yesterday, we posted a card to Ingrid for Oma - it has a drawing in from Ewan and something from Faye and also two pictures that I printed out and put inside for her.  Hope things are getting better for you Ingrid, it's hard moving old ladies into care facilities, I have first hand knowledge of that.  Stay strong, you have done the right thing.

The Year of the Horse

Well the Christmas tree, bunting and decorations have all been packed away. Santa is a vague fuzzy memory, the kiddies have lots of things to amuse themselves with until at least February.  We hope everyone had a truly lovely Christmas and the best of New Year celebrations.  We actually managed to stay up and watch the televised 'multi-sensory' fireworks display over the London Eye, which was rather brilliant.  Over here in sleepy Long Stratton, there were a few sporadic fireworks going off into the wee hours of the morning but by and large 2014 was ushered in very quietly.

I don't do New Year Resolutions, largely because they are a complete crock of shite and nobody ever really sticks to them after the first week of January when they are back into the grind and at work.  But I do hope that this year is spectacular for everyone, that you attain your dreams or get on the right path to doing so and, of course, that you are healthy and happy.

Last year seemed to whiz past at a rate of knots, it would be nice if this next couple of months could slow down a bit (especially February when we are in South Africa!) but I know that won't be the case. As soon as the kids go back to school then the weeks will just fly by.   We are all focussed now on our forthcoming trip and can't wait to see everybody.  There are a couple of things that you guys over in SA need to get sorted before we arrive, namely:

1.   One or six family sized packets (i.e. 60 tablets per box) of Myprodol.  Important safety tip - if you each go to your doctor complaining of back pain and insist that you need an anti-inflammatory, you'll get a prescription, then you can go and load up on stocks for us.  We'll reimburse you when we arrive.  Yes, this might seem funny to the uninitiated but the UK health system really doesn't have the handle on DRUGS!

2.   We'll also be purchasing a good couple of boxes of MedLemon, Five Roses Tea and BILTONG!  I think we can bring biltong back with us in our cases, so long as it's in vacuum-sealed bags.  We'll bring you a sample of the jerky that they pass off here as Biltong and you'll see why we need to stock up.

3.  Shame, Kevin won't be able to bring back a case of Zamalek (Black Label) but he might be able to sneak a couple of cans into his case.

4.  I am going to the fat shop in Boksburg near the Flea market to stock up on some clothes to last me another couple of years (no jokes) because I'm heartily sick and tired of the clingy jersey tops that the Brits seem to adore so much.   And if I see another pair of TIGHTS I'll scream - just about every bird in this country wears tights and tops that don't cover the camel toi ... and most of the clothes only fit midget sized anorexic Chinese chicks.   Hayzel and I are battling to find clothes shops that actually sell the kind of stuff we like - well, er 'battling' is the wrong word, we CAN'T find clothes to fit us in the UK.  I've bought tons of stuff online and nearly everything I buy ends up in Hayzel's cupboard and she might end up wearing one or two of the things but not all of it.  This year I've wasted a lot of money on clothes that I don't wear.   So warn the nice people over there in Clothing City that I'll be descending on them in February and they'd better have new stock in.

5.  Ditto kiddies clothing - Jet, Ackermans (even Pep), they'd better make sure they have plenty of stock because it's also difficult for us to find clothing that we like for Faye, particularly.   I never thought I'd say this but I'm looking forward to doing some shopping in a real mall.  You could fit Chapelfield and Castle Malls (in Norwich) into one quarter of Eastgate.  

6. Another thing I absolutely never thought I'd ever say in my life, ever, is I am rather looking forward to having a breakfast or lunch at Indiana Spur!   Kevin would find that amusing, I think, considering how much I used to slag the place off when we lived in Edenvale.  The Brits don't know how to do family restaurants.

Happy New Year!   Do something great with your life.