So let's try again :-( Firstly before I go on ... this blog is for family and friends and I have set it up as such so that only people invited to view the blog will actually be able to view the blog. I would appreciate you not sharing this blog with others so that I can keep it as private as possible. Blogs really scare me and honestly I do not want to put as much information about my family on the web as I am doing so in here so keeping it private is what is key for me, thanks !!!
Anyway, I cannot believe it's been weeks already since we got back from our month long trip to South Africa and even though we had tons of fun, nothing really says it better than 'Home Sweet Home', living out of suitcases to me is never fun !!!
Taking these trips once every two years reminds us of how much we miss out on being so far from our family and friends but it also makes us realize how lucky we are to be living in a first world country with everyday stuff that we take for granted. The worst for both Dave and I was constant traffic, traffic, traffic, it was such a frustration for us to have to plan days around traffic in Cape Town, I know people that live with it on a daily basis don't probably think much of it but for us, it was painful. Actually that wasn't the worst for me, the worst was Tv, if you don't have satellite in South Africa, there is NOTHING to watch, it makes my basic cable of over 100 channels look like total luxury !!! And let's not talk about the Internet, golly !!!
For me the best part of going back was seeing Jade getting to know grandparents and cousins, she is now at an age where she will actually remember this vacation which makes the trip so much more worth while for us. Ok so I lied, that wasn't the best part for me even though it was way up there ... the best part was that for the entire month we were out there Jade spent only 3 odd nights with us at our timeshare, can you believe that, can you imagine what that must have been like for us ? As much as we missed her and we did, we have never been away from her for this long, yeah we saw her frequently but I mean, it still felt like she wasn't with us much because she wasn't spending every night with us. It was very weird for us, we could sleep late in the mornings, that already was a huge treat, but we could go see movies whenever, eat whenever, out at places that were more adult friendly, just do adult stuff together and stay out late without a schedule of any kind to stick to, it was amazing and well we are very thankful for this special time we were given :-) Thank you grandparents, uncles and aunts !!!
Dave and I also went away for a very romantic weekend, this was a weekend that I had planned a long time ago but it was a surprise for David, I took him Shark Cage Diving in Gansbaai, a place famous for this. It was amazing, we spend the Saturday taking a long and slow drive up to Gansbaai, spent the evening with my departed grandmothers best friend Rosemary which helped me put this little trip together, you see she runs one of these Shark Cage Diving companies :-) she was instrumental in all the fun we had and we are very thankful to her for the probably once in a lifetime experience we had with her. The long and the short of it, after a long while on the Sunday out at sea on the boat we eventually started seeing sharks, the biggest one was 5 odd metres in length and believe it or not, Dave was in the cage in the water when that shark came by, less than a metre from the cage. I was freaking out onboard as you can well imagine since this shark was just a little too close for comfort for me, anyway the sad thing is that the visibility in the water wasn't good, even though we had a perfect day out at sea, so when Dave looked under the water he couldn't see much even though the shark was as big as a car !!! Thankfully when he came up for air he could see how big it was and had an even better view when he came aboard and saw it as we had. We really had a wonderful time. After a long day at sea we spent the evening at a luxurious bed and breakfast in Hermanus, again what a rare treat for us, we had a wonderful time. Took a slow drive back on the Monday and then it was back to the rat race in Cape Town.
David In The Cage Waiting For The Sharks To Arrive
Now That Is As Close As The Shark Gets To The Cage, Dave Was In The Cage When This Picture Was Taken
He Doesn't Look That Big In The Picture But This Shark Is The Size Of A Car !!!
Jade on the other hand, had a ball, she got to see the best of both worlds. She spent time up at the river in Stilbaai with Oupa and Nana, she got to go to the beach frequently, play in the river and on the sand bank which is on their doorstep, Oupa taught her how to catch big fish with her new fishing pole they gave her while Nana helped her catch little fish in the pools on the sand bank. Nana also taught Jade how to drive her Beach Buggy which Jade thought was a real treat after learning to drive her Barbie Jeep at home in the States ... I cannot believe she didn't catch an African tan while she was there but I guess the grandparents were being very careful. She also got to spend a little more alone time with uncle Gavin and aunty Gigi too, time enough to put them off kids for a while longer (hehehe) !!! I keep telling them they are not born this way but in time I am sure they will forget all they went through this holiday.
And Who Said You Had To Be 16 To Learn How To Drive ...
So Peaceful In The Middle Of The River
Uncle Gavin - My Brother And Aunty Gigi Relaxing At The End Of A Tough Day With Jade
Jade Watching The 'Happy Feet' At Boulders Beach
Dave And Jade At Boulders Beach - I Wish We Could Have Spent More Time There It Was An Amazing Day
Nana And Jade Giving Each Other Some Love
Saying Bye To Uncle Gavin, Jades Godfather
Then she also got to spend time with Daves family too, granny and grampa and of course uncle Sion and Aunty Tiana and her cousins Jessica and Olivia. She got to swim there a lot too, our swimming lessons that we rushed her through before we left really paid off, she had a ball swimming with everyone. She also got to go ice skating, thank heavens I didn't have to watch that one, hopefully we will get pictures shortly and I can let everyone see them too, she also got to go to the beach with them and to many fun other places but I can tell you one thing she enjoyed the most and that was her cousins new little kittens, the poor things were probably happy to see her go but she still talks about them a lot !!! Hopefully that we now have bought her a pet Betta fish since we got back, she will stop wanting me to buy a cat, yuck !!! I am definitely not a cat person !!!
Look At My Little Fish
Looks Like Our Swimming Lessons Paid Off (Hehehe)
Jade With Her Cousins Jessica And Olivia, Daves Sister Tianas Kids
Relaxing After An Afternoon At The Pool And A Good Home Cooked Meal
Uncle Sion, Aunty Tiana, Jessica And Olivia
The Three Cousins
Saying Goodbye To Grampa At The Airport
David And His Mother At The Airport
On the whole she was amazing, even flying she was so much better than two years ago. I would never travel with another two year old again, that is for sure, that trip was a nightmare for me but this one, as long as I prepared her for everything that was going to happen, she did fine. She was a little uncomfortable on the plane sleep wise but still she did amazing. Also be shunted from one family to the next sleeping wherever, she did so well, I am so very proud of my little girl, I can hardly tell you :-)
Anyway leaving as usual was tough but now we are back into everyday life here, both Jade and I have been battling colds with bad coughs which hopefully we will both be over soon, it becoming Spring here isn't helping but anyway.
One last thing ... thank you to everyone that had us over for a visit and spoilt us rotten, it was great to see everyone again, you all contributed to us having a great vacation. Please keep in touch !!!
I will write more soon but thought for right now, this is already major overload for you guys, since it's been a while since I have written something this long.
