We nearly started the New Year with a third dog

We waited and celebrated the New Year in Pretoria. We were visiting friends, and stayed overnight as to not be on the roads.

We had a great New Year's Eve!

But we did worry about leaving our two dogs alone, especially since the black dog is highly strung and people are still doing fireworks...
(How stupid and irresponsible as our social media streams are filled with lost and injured dogs today!)

We got a Whatsapp notification this morning from a concerned neighbour about a black dog running around near our complex. From the picture it looked exactly like our dog. Luckily we could ask the neighbours to catch her. Little Miss freaked out and wanted us to go home immediately!

Our friendly complex neighbours caught the black dog, and put it "back" in our yard.
It is only when we got the picture and message about "three" dogs that we realized it is not our dog!

The one being sniffed on the photo is the one that was running around. Luckily she was taken to the vet and she has a micro-chip!

It all turned out well!

Thanks to concerned neighbours, and thanks to a dog that is micro-chipped!


Photo by the complex neighbour!

Play dates and sayings

The two Besties have been planning their play date for weeks, and each afternoon I hear the dreaded "When?" and "How?" and exchanging of parents' telephone numbers.

So I HAD TO call the other mom and we organised a play date for last week Friday afternoon at the local Spur. The girls had a ball!

Now they are planning the next one!

The sleepover!

Yesterday I had to hear about all the plans for December. But while they were asking when and how, it came up in conversation that the Bestie wants her mom to come along as well! Because she still goes to sleep next to her!
Little Miss immediately chimed in and told her that her mom and dad also sleeps next to her!

So I could remind them that it's not a sleepover. If she can't come without her mom, she still has to wait a few years! Or they will have to hold each others' hands!
You could see that Bestie was not convinced...

I wonder what plans they will have made by this afternoon?

What are you going to become?

Some children know what they want to do and become with their lives from a very early age.

I asked Little Missy the same question the other day. Up until now Grade R is still the ultimate goal in Life...


She wants to become a house worker.

(Obviously I asked for an explanation.)

Because a house worker is in Grade R.

She learns the children how to write.

It is not being a person that cleans people's houses!


I tried to press the issue some more, to understand what she means.


I am going to become what I am going to become!

You have asked enough questions (VERY ANGRY)!

Weekends with Big Sister

We really miss our eldest when she is away at university. It was really nice to have her with us this past weekend!

Little Missy told me before the time that her sister would immediately go with her to her pink house when she comes home. That is her ultimate "gift" she bestows on a person; to promise them a visit to her pink house! (The pink house with the two dragons, the little sister and the small kitten.)
She told me that we could not come with, because our wings are broken...

We went again for a Saturday lunch at Glen Afric. It is not that far out of the city, and we feel as if we can breath a bit of fresh air, while looking at some animals walking in the distance. We saw a few elephants, giraffes and some antelopes. It definitely helps in recharging the batteries!

We are having a bit of summer again. The days are still warm and sunny!
Weekends are best spent outdoors!
Hope you had a lovely weekend as well?


We are missing you, again, Big Sister!


Related post:

Glen Afric: A place to go for a bush outing

Funny weekend stuff

The Toddler

When she gets hold of a tissue, she goes into “one-track” mode and does not stop cleaning her nose, mouth, the table, floor…. Any-Thing! With the same tissue!

She found the perfect place for the potty. On her head! (Luckily a brand new one…)

She skipped her Sunday morning nap, and could not keep her eyes open when lunch was served.

The Finger she reserves for the dog. (We feel guilty; we scold the dog too much, it seems!)

The Teen

The Teen had her own funny story. She got a phone call from a shop in the nearby mall last week. She had handed in a couple of resumes for weekend and holiday work. She blames the bad cell phone signal, but she pitched up at the wrong shop on Saturday. There is a difference between a Gospel shop (which she thought phoned her) and a toy shop. Luckily the toy shop phoned her and asked her if she was still coming, to which she could reply “I am in the Mall already!” Now she is a casual over weekends, and that bank account is growing for the French tour of next year… (Sigh of relief!)

Divorces lead to funny stories

Each year when we tick off another anniversary, I always think back and compare my previous life to what I have now. It is of course way way better!

I had a previous life (it feels like a reincarnated life, so far removed it is from us now), which ended in divorce. It was one of the most awful and traumatic times of my life! It was as bad, no! - Even worse – for my daughter! For years she blamed me for the split, and wished we were just a whole family again. I know that is the wish of all kids who are impacted by divorce! Now the teen understands what it was all about, and she herself has put down a few rules with regards her own dad...

I had great friends who stood by me during the difficult times. (I will always be grateful to them!) Two of my friends who had two boys came to visit us after we moved into a flat on the third floor of a block of flats. The boys were extremely impressed with the stairs in the building. They were playing on the stairs for the duration of the visit. They were even sad to leave...

On the way home they asked their mother when they are going to get divorced.

Shocked, my friend asked them why they wanted them to get a divorce.

Because they wanted to stay in a flat as well where there are stairs...

My friend’s husband was, of course, not impressed at all! Not at all!

(Photo: Patrick Pretorius Photography)

The reality is definitely stranger than dreams

You sometimes find yourself in a situation where you think: This can’t be real! But it is!
Last Thursday I was in a course where they had to explain the Occupational Health and Safety Act of South Africa to us. Apparently the law requires companies to inform the workers about their rights as well as making them aware of safety issues in the workplace.
Our course presenter was an older man who looks like he has spent his whole career in security, with his curly grey hair, his purple shirt and a short tie.
He introduced himself very politely to each of us, and tried to remember our names by using it again. But he struggled to pronounce the African names, because he only addressed the white workshop participants by their names again. He addressed the rest of the African course participants (which were in the majority) as “Mister” and “Misses.” (Although he had asked for their names as well).

He asked the course participants to read passages from the law, as well as from the course notes, but as soon as they started to read, he interjected by reading as well or saying something about the content.

He initiated a role-play with one of the participants:
Boss (presenter): Knock on door.
Worker (course participant): Come in.
Boss: Will you please drive a fork-lift for me?
Worker: No, I don’t have a license.
Boss: Please, I will give you R500. Do it for me?
Worker: Okay, I will! (And it is explained that he proceeds to drive into another worker – with consequences to the company and the boss.) (Very, very lame…)

The best was when he explained that workers are not able to do their work without their hands or eyes. My blind colleague immediately reacted by saying: “I am going to go home now!”
The presenter flushed bright red, and said that he wasn’t thinking.
My colleague was laughing, but you could see that the presenter felt very bad about his faux’ pas.
A very strange four hours, indeed!

The teen got into trouble because of the toddler

Funny anecdote: The teen got into trouble at school because of the toddler. We had forgotten some of her toys at friends, and Arnia got it from them to bring back home. She put it in her back pack. One of the toys is a plastic cell phone. During math class, a cell phone started to ring.
The Chinese lady’s voice on the phone says: “Information, how may I help you?”
The math teacher is famous for her no tolerance of cell phones in class. She got furious, and Arnia had to confess it is her sister’s toy cell phone.
The teacher said: “I do not believe you!”
Arnia had to take it out and show it to her. Her class mates laughed their heads off, and asked if she is playing with her sister’s toys now. To which Arnia replied: “Yes, off course I do!”

(Ronel's photo)