Yummmmmmm!

Today we went into 3 Rivers to do some shopping. The girls begged and pleaded to have something unhealthy for lunch...just this once! So, of course, mommy said no......NOT! Milky Lane still has awesome waffles!! Sorry Daddy......but man were they yummy.....
Then we went to Vaal Mall. We drove past Vaal Tech. The mall is huge and has everything you could want. But mommy, in her usual fashion, got very tired very quickly of window shopping. Micci bought herself a really cute little skirt, and mommy found some sunglasses (the squinting was getting ridiculous). Also, bug spray and sunscreen was purchased seeing as how my little monster is a speckled, itchy lobster!

Aunty Jean's 75th!

So, yesterday, we all went through to Tim's to surprise Aunty Jean for her 75th birthday. The look on her face was priceless!! She had no clue that Uncle Alf had come up, or Aunty Phyl and Uncle Wim. It was wonderful to be amongst so much family, the warmth and love that was floating around was so incredibly beautiful, and made me very heartsore that Warren couldn't share in the moment. But I took lots of pics! And I managed to copy my pics to cd, so I can now upload a whole bunch of pics to make Daddy happy!

Here's Aunty Jean just as she came through and saw everyone.



Uncle Alf and Aunty Patsy having a catch up.

These are all of Grandpa's family (only missing Warren - we wish he could have been there - it was such a lovely day)

Uncle Alf (Aunty Jean's brother) and Gary (her son) toasting her and generally giving her a hard time, as seems to be the Rafferty way !!!

This lovely picture is all of the siblings Grandpa (Bob), Uncle Alf in the back row. Then left to right in the front - Aunty Cathy, Aunty Patsy, Aunty Phyl and Aunty Jean. I hope I got the names right !!!! LOL

The girls decided to make a nest using dried grass, leaves, twigs and flowers.

Aunty Phyl and Aimee.

Aunty Phyl and Caily.

Tim, Aunty Phyl, Granny and Aunty Patsy.

The girls picked flowers and then Grandpa was all beautified!

Aimee giving me the 'tude face!

Our First Friday!

It was a great day...well, it started a bit too early for my liking. Aimee woke up at 5 to pee and was scared to go by herself in case the doggies chased her down the hallway, so she woke her sister up, and then they were whispering in the hall outside my door, so my sleep was done!
The sun was shining and we spent the morning outside, soaking up some sun and listening to the birds. Aimee was very intrigued by a caterpillar that she found.
Boopa took us on a tour of his workshop...very proud of it he is!
Then after lunch we borrowed Boopa's car and drove down to Granny and Grandpa's so that the girls could play with Caily. We didn't take their swimsuits because the sky was quite dark here, which in retrospect was silly, because when we got to Grandpa's the weather was a bit better and the girls were dying for a swim. They borrowed some stuff and had a great dip in the freezing water that was still filling up the pool after being hit by lightning!!!
After Granny came home we chatted for a bit and then had some supper. Then suddenly it was 9 pm and Micci had fallen asleep on the couch next to me. And I still had to come back and chat to Warren....he wasn't available...harumph!!!!
So I thought I would put some stuff on the blog. Still haven't got out to buy disks, will pick up my car tomorrow and then I can run around for stuff like that.

Paradise!

I'm sitting in Boona's study with the windows and the front door open. I can hear the birds chirping on one side and the very nostalgic cooing of the turtle doves on the other. It brings back so many childhood memories and gives me a sense of calm and belonging. The sun is beating down and it's only 8:40 am. But the smells coming from the dewy earth as the sun dries it, are breathtaking, and makes it clear that once Africa is in your blood, it can never be removed.
Still have to buy cd's then you can see all the pretty flowers in the garden and birds etc....

We're here!

We arrived safely and are all happy and most importantly....NOT cold!!
The weather has been nice. A bit overcast and rainy but really nice after the cold and snow of Edmonton. I have taken lots of pics, bt my laptop is giving me grief about connecting to the wireless, so I will have to make a plan in the next day or so to copy some pics on to a disk to upload.
Really tired now, jetlag is catching up with me, gotta go sleep!

Halfway!!

Well, we left Edmonton and we are now at Heathrow. We booked into Yotel, which is a super idea! It's a temporary hotel and it's a cubicle type room. There is a bed and a fold out desk and chair, a little bathroom, and of course wi-fi!
It's perfect for long layovers!
Going to catch a nap now and then we set off for the 11 and a 1/2 hour flight to Johannesburg. That's going to feel REALLY long!

More Vancouver (B.C)

Vancouver etc...

Here we are in Stanley Park and the girls posed for a pretty picture along the Seawall. They couldn't believe that we used to live in English Bay and moved away! Till they got a taste of the incessant rain, and then they decided they preferred sunshine too!

We took them all around the park and we stopped and walked in a few places. We drove by the apartment building where we lived and we also went to the martial arts supply store which was not too far from Gastown. It was quite thrilling to visit all our old haunts and tell Michaela that her and I used to walk EVERYwhere. She has no recollection of course!





Pretty scenery from the viewpoint in Stanley Park.

I think somebody's eyes were bigger than her tummy!! Those were REALLY good burgers though.....

This little bandido decided to visit the restaurant in Stanley Park to see who he could hold up for some leftovers. The patrons were quite entranced by his bravado but the staff were horrified and irritated. I bet it must be quite a trial having these pests around all the time.

These were just really pretty flowers along the mountainside (North Vancouver - Mount Seymour). I made Warren stop so that I could take a pic.