Jill Gerard and Keith Smith are responsible again for a wonderful engaging and entertaining production at the Peoples Theatre!
We were invited to opening night on Friday, and Little Miss had a ball! The African stories are so much fun, especially when the actors ask for willing participants! All the children wants to join in! We love the music which is all well-known to the big ones and the little ones!
Little Miss has a three week holiday break. It's a very long break for a little girl who still has to go to school. It is Vacation School, but still... It's at school!
Mom guilt took over, and I decided to take a week (this week) with her! The plan is to relax and sleep late. We are doing it!
Things escalate each day, because she gets me to do more than I think we/I should! Yesterday I promised her a picnic, and soon we were buying sushi at Spar and going to the Walter Sisulu Botanical Gardens. (I was thinking of having a picnic at home... Real mom rubber arms, it seems!)
Little Miss packed our picnic basket, and of course I had to carry a heavy basket, instead of the back-bag that I suggested to her. (Why do I do this to myself? Rhetorical question, of course!)
But I was glad we went. It's lovely in the gardens this time of the year. The succulents are in full bloom, the waterfall is full and the eagles are flying overhead.
Sushi picnic - Mom win!
I was also instructed to pack away my cellphone in my bag!
(Mom fail! Sorry, Miss, I still wanted to take the picture.) It is lovely spending time with you, and I want to remember it!
What are you doing these holidays with the little ones?
I had taken 5 days leave to go camping with the Little Miss! I am censoring myself so much, as I do not want to say too much! Suffice to say that it was our last time camping in this way, and that I won't let my daughter go on a trip like this again! I am so glad that Hubby and I went along. Being eight years is definitely too young to send your child on their own on a camp! I am SO disappointed!
The children made art works over the weekend camping. The marble art (rolling marbles in paint and letting it roll over paper) was part of their projects.
This past traumatic weekend was magnified by our own family financial crisis! As if not enough, the country's economy took a dive which does not bode well for a rosy future in finances (personal and investment related)!
This is life! I know we will survive!
On the personal and broader level!
I just need to dig deep, go inside (as introverts do), and carry on!
The sun rises every day!
Even on a bad camping weekend!
The school holidays are in full swing, but we are still working! (The traffic is definitely better!) Lucky you if you are able to go away for a while!
Where are you going or what are you doing for the holidays?
We had the most wonderful week at the beach the previous week! We are lucky to have been able to go. I do love a beach holiday the most!
My brother joined us at the Kwazulu-Natal South Coast from Seattle. He is chasing a bit of sun as it is winter on that side and very cold now! It was lovely to have him there as well!
Little Miss had a great time! I asked her about her highlights. She only regrets that she did not get enough time in the waves, because it was windy at first! Swimming in the sea is the best! She also loved doing flips in the swimming pool with her dad and on her own. Also getting a tracing pad to do her sketches from her uncle.
(It's the little things that count!)
I know I should not be complaining, but it does not feel right to be back at the grind and working just before Christmas. Most people are only going on holiday now or over the Christmas/New Year period!
The only way I know now of how to cope with holiday blues is to page through our photos! I will be beach-spamming my Instagram account until the blues go away! (Sorry! Not sorry!)
Are you going on holiday, and where are you going?
What kind of holiday do you love the most?
Do you prefer to stay home during the holidays?
This year has been very short, but in terms of holidays it has been very long!
We did not have a mid-year break this year, and I am beginning to feel it!
It's still two months before December.
I cope by telling myself to take one day at a time, but it makes it feel that we are in "desperate measures"-mode!
For how long have I not yearned for that long weekend in the Cape?
To place it on my vision board and on my bucket list does not help at all!
The budget is too tight!
I know I should not complain, and that I should be grateful for everything I have!
The World with it's Wars; people fleeing their homes; children who are abandoned and fending for themselves,; #feesmustfall; dictatorships; rapes; killings; GAH...!
So much weighing in! Even though I try not to read/hear/listen too much, we are bombarded by it!
I can't ignore it either! That would be stupid!
I try to be positive, and to seek the positive in every situation!
(I know: Keep doing it!)
The Cat in the Hat
Little Miss has a little break from school this week, and the holiday school programme has a fun item planned for each day that keeps her entertained.
Here she is on Monday with her Cat in the Hat outfit! We got the hat on Saturday at Silverstar when we decided on a whim to go just to get out of the house.
Little Miss loved playing in the water in the Piazza area.
(We should be doing more of this!)
We have three weeks of school holidays during winter in South Africa!
It was back-to-school yesterday already, and we are back to reality!
Although we did not go away this year, it felt like a break for us as well!
We continued working and Little Miss had to go to Holiday School, but it was a break from the daily rat race!
Five reasons why school holidays give everybody a break
1. The traffic is tolerableand we get a break with regards the volume of the traffic and the time we need to get out of the house! Especially in winter where it is still dark at 6 am.
This alone gets all the marks for school holidays! My daily commute is a lot less stressful and shorter!
2. We can sleep in for a bit longer! I had 30 minutes more in bed each morning, and Little Miss could also get at least an hour more!
3. Wedon't have to rush home to do homework, and we can be more relaxed with bed-times.
4. We don't have to rush from one extra-mural activity to another!
5. At work it is also a more relaxed as many people are on holiday, and we have to give them time to get back in the office again. My calender was not as full as always!
I can have more of these, and you?
How was the holidays?
A great fun activity for children 3 - 7 years of age: Barni's Great Big Learning Adventure.
It will be open at The Zone for the rest of the week until the 18th of December. It's near the outdoor area where The Zone has put up a plastic bottle Christmas tree . It is open from 10 am - 4 pm daily.
Did I mention it is for free?
The little one's love the colouring and making finger Barnis. They are stepping into a giant storybook being helped along by friendly Barni helpers. Barni and friends also sings and dance and "picnic" (eating Barni sponge cakes) every hour on the hour.
If you haven't seen the Barni Chocolate cakes in shops already, your child will definitely have seen at in school lunchboxes. Little Miss convinced me about two months back to buy her a box of five for school, and she loves absolutely loves it! It does help that the Barni sponge cakesdoes not have colourants, preservatives or trans fats.
We were invited to the activation on Saturday, and Little Miss did not want to leave!
Photo op with Barni
(Big Sis had to pose alongside!)
Making Barni finger puppets
Part of the entertainment area
Barni adventure story being told
- each child gets a chance to pull on the kite string
What does Barni eat?
Barni chocolate sponge cakes!
Off course! ;-)
- She has to wear her pajamas for first day of vacation school during the holidays! (We had to assure her countless times that everybody is going to wear their pajamas!)
- She can't wear her slippers on it's own, because it scratches her!
- It was difficult to find the right socks to wear with the slippers, because most of her socks scratches her!
- When asked to smile at the camera, she told us that she does not feel very well!
- We could not get all her stuff in one bag to take to school. She is adamant that this bag should not be a school bag.
- When asked about what character she wants to be on Wednesday, we had a whole flood gate of tears, because her princess dress is too tight around the arms. We should go to the shops to get her a new outfit before Wednesday! (Most unlikely that that is going to happen!)
- The swim cap does not fit (it does!), and she is taking her toddler swimming cap today. (Luckily sorted yesterday already)
Mondays are difficult for a little girl!
Mondays are difficult for Mom and Dad with a little girl that struggles with a Monday!
As much as I thought the previous time that Home Affairs was a breeze when we applied for our passports, as much my mind has been changed completely!
We were there on Saturday at half past seven, and the queue was a queue ... was A QUEUE!.
It took ages to get in there as they do not let everybody go into the building all at once. (Which makes sense!)
We had to be there with Little Miss as her thumb print is required again when picking up the passports. She was hungry (of course!) for three whining hours long. The breakfast bars only went as far as breakfast bars could go.
We finally got our passports, but it was an epic!
We did not do anything much the rest of the weekend!
Earth Hour 2015
We switched off the lights on Saturday at 20:30, and got very sleepy with the dark of the dark hour! Earth Hour is always something we enjoy doing with the children.
In final news: Little Miss pulled her seventh teeth yesterday. It is the first one that she managed to dislodge herself, and she was very proud.
The Tooth Mouse was also very eager, and she got R15 (a note and a R5 coin, nogals), while she was in the bath. The note stated that he was very impressed with the quality of her teeth!
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Little Miss is attending Vacation School during the holidays. She is still eager to go to school while they are keeping them busy. With an extra payment from the parents (of course!), but it helps as we are busy saving leave for the longer vacations coming up!
What are you doing with the kids during the school holidays?
