Steve & Meri's Blog

Smiles

2012-02-09T17:21:00.008+02:00

Watching Mommy cook

2012-02-07T08:48:00.012+02:00

Lots of chatting going on :)

After bath cuteness

2012-02-04T16:48:00.003+02:00

Tummy Time

2012-01-23T13:20:00.002+02:00

Growing so fast!

2012-01-21T15:52:00.003+02:00

1 month old

2 months old

Not as much sleeping anymore...

2012-01-21T13:23:00.005+02:00

Like father, like son

2012-01-18T16:41:00.005+02:00

Steve 1972

Nick 2012

It's just too hot!

2012-01-17T14:20:00.005+02:00

Other than lying around with no shirt on, Nick really enjoyed a long cool bath yesterday. I made it quite deep so he was almost covered and he just kicked about in there for a while.

Playing Outside

2012-01-17T14:17:00.005+02:00

Play Time

2012-01-14T21:24:00.015+02:00

Steve's on leave and enjoying some quality time with Nick, now 2 months old and enjoying his toys!

Boys and their toys

2012-01-10T11:16:00.007+02:00

... and all these pics are thanks to the Nifty Fifty!

Nick's first Christmas!

2011-12-28T17:14:00.008+02:00

Skype

2011-12-20T17:33:00.001+02:00

Chatting to Granny and Gramps

Pure cuteness!

2011-12-18T17:29:00.000+02:00

Afternoon nap with Mom

2011-12-09T17:50:00.001+02:00

Needless to say, Mom didn't get quite as much sleep as she should have...

Putting up the tree and other things...

2011-12-03T17:57:00.002+02:00

The Brewmaster

2011-11-26T12:02:00.001+02:00

First bath - the second was better...

2011-11-22T16:11:00.012+02:00

Now that we're home...

2011-11-21T08:48:00.005+02:00

We get to have early morning cuddles

and mid morning naps

and take millions of photos :)

Could we be any prouder?

2011-11-16T08:31:00.003+02:00

We are so amazed by this precious little boy!

Grannies, Gramps and Aunty

2011-11-15T17:40:00.006+02:00

Here's our boy!

2011-11-14T20:42:00.002+02:00

Nicholas Stephen Tester

2011-11-14T17:02:00.000+02:00

Our boy arrived!
Weight: 3.7 kg
Length: 50 cm

He is perfect, we are very proud!

Ready or not, here comes the boy!

2011-11-14T16:54:00.013+02:00

Steve's old toys

2011-11-08T10:38:00.002+02:00

Steve got out all his and Leanne's old toys which have been stored at Val's. We sorted through them, played with a few, and then kept the ones out that our boy will enjoy first.
We're all getting excited now!

Class party

2011-10-29T18:03:00.007+02:00

Class party!
I was spoilt rotten. The mom's went to such trouble decorating the hall and the kids brought loads of presents. Thought the day would be absolute chaos, kids were excited but managed to settle down to some work after the party. It's been a nice group of kids and parents, I'll miss them.
It was a good last day :)

Then came the staff presents....

Now to find homes for all our boy's goodies!

Leanne's birthday picnic

2011-10-17T12:17:00.006+02:00

You'd never guess it was Leanne's birthday, she was on photo duty again.... it was such a beautiful day in the sun with delicious food and good company :)

Baby Shower

2011-10-15T11:47:00.005+02:00

What fun! Elzette and Jackie were very kind in that I didn't have to do anything embarrassing in front of strangers. I had to guess who had given me each present by identifying their baby picture. As I got the answers wrong, I was dressed in a nappy, had a dummy around my neck and a tiarra in my hair. Once I was all dressed up, I was blind-folded and had to taste various baby foods (lesson learned: make all baby food yourself, they are not pleasant!)

Thank you Leanne! Always there to take photos but rarely in any....

Bottling the beer!

2011-09-11T18:34:00.001+02:00

Now we wait 3 weeks before the taste test...

Baby Bok in the making

2011-09-11T17:52:00.002+02:00

The Bokke played their first game in the Rugby World Cup, we played Wales and just managed a win...

Steve's brewery

2011-08-28T17:34:00.002+02:00

Steve: This is my first attempt at Home Brewing using the Coopers DIY Beer Kit. In +- 4 weeks time we should have 23 litres of Coopers Lager ready to test, lets hope it's good !

Meri: Highlights for me are that (because the beer has to ferment at a certain temperature) I've been coming home to curtains that are open, we get to put the heater on at night (even when it's not freezing yet) and Steve closes his cupboard doors :)

A family of monsters

2011-08-14T16:16:00.003+02:00

These are the cutest!

Made by Leanne.

The cot has arrived!

2011-07-17T12:49:00.001+02:00

Paul dropped off the cot yesterday and it looks amazing!!!

Take note of the shine on that new chrome work!

Now the room is starting to look like there is a baby coming :)

Heavy lifting

2011-07-12T10:55:00.004+02:00

Daddy's been working hard!
We had the carpets cleaned and so Steve had to move all the furniture downstairs and then he had to sort out and throw out all sorts in the roof and then carry everything back upstairs so we could get the baby room started! All I could do was stand on the top of the ladder and direct him with a torch, not sure how helpful this was...

Need a sit down, it's been a busy weekend :)

So cute!

2011-07-12T10:54:00.001+02:00

How do you resist these...

A new project

2011-07-12T10:52:00.006+02:00

The quilt

2011-07-12T10:50:00.004+02:00

Now I've tried the quilt, not sure I need to make another... I am pleased with it though.

The cot

2011-07-12T10:49:00.006+02:00

This is the cot Steve and Leanne used when they were babies. So we dusted it off ...

Scan photos

2011-07-12T10:47:00.003+02:00

8 week scan

12 week scan

21 week scan

Port Alfred - Mom's 60th

2011-04-26T16:15:00.003+02:00

Here come the tears...

Relaxing...

Beach walks...

Oyster eating, here's how it's done...

Elgin Valley luxury tents

2011-01-26T15:55:00.001+02:00

A weekend away for Steve's birthday.

Home make-over continued

2011-01-11T14:38:00.003+02:00

Chaos!

The Finished Product :)

Christmas Day

2011-01-06T10:30:00.003+02:00

Pointsettia Posse
(Photos by Leanne)

Christmas Eve

2010-12-26T10:09:00.003+02:00

Gammon and roasted veggies

Read our diary from Meeru - what fantastic memories!

Home make-over!

2010-12-24T10:22:00.002+02:00

Crazy week!

Monday
Workmen in to knock out damp areas on wall and roof ready for screeding.

Tuesday
Screeders in to do ceiling in lounge. Bosman's in too, armed with gas and dye to locate the leak (which was in the bath trap). Workmen everywhere, not much room for me to hide!

Wednesday
Bosman's in to fix leak. Headed to CTM to find tiles and a new toilet pan (existing one is cracked). Managed to get a tiler who came to quote . Also looked at paint as painters will be back in Jan. to paint lounge.

Thursday
Went to House and Home to match our carpet up to carpet the landing so that it'll flow from bedrooms and down the stairs - arranged for a guy to quote. Off to CTM with list from tiler, drove home with car 300kg heavier! Stopped to check out paint at a different paint shop...

Friday
Christmas Eve!

So, what have I been up to? Rather a lot, I'd say :) The house will look great though! Tiler will be in on Tuesday to put the new toilet in and tile walls and floor. Who would have thought we'd get workmen in at such short notice and the week before Christmas! Poor Steve has had to deal with me phoning about this, that and everything about 5 times a day and hearing about it all through lunch time (patient guy)!

Egg-nog Day at Val's

2010-12-16T18:09:00.001+02:00

What fun pics, thanks Leanne!
(Photos and collage by Leanne)

Franschhoek

2010-12-12T17:40:00.005+02:00

Our 1 year anniversary!
This is the Treehouse where we stayed on Klein Dassenberg farm in Franschhoek.

After we arrived on Friday afternoon, we had a quick swim and headed into town for our much anticipated dinner at The French Connection - Val, we know, next time Reubens... Let's just say it was a mix between too much hype on our part and just another table on a busy night on their part...

Planning my route for the morning :)

Saturday was a fantastic day! We started with coffee and a muffin at the farmer's market and then did a bit of shopping :) After that we went to Solms Delta for a picnic. Lazing on a picnic blanket, drinking wine a snacking on fantastic food is the perfect way to spend an afternoon.

Before heading home on Sunday morning we went to Bon Bon Cafe on Klein Dauphine for a delicious breakfast under the Oak trees.

What a wonderful weekend!

Egg-nog Day

2010-12-05T17:27:00.001+02:00

Our new paving

2010-10-12T17:19:00.003+02:00

Tulbagh

2010-09-12T16:55:00.001+02:00

Sea Point Promenade

2010-07-05T04:30:00.001+02:00

Cape Town stadium!

Giraffe House

2010-06-03T11:07:00.000+02:00

Fun with the photos

2010-01-09T19:33:00.002+02:00

Collage at the top of the stairs.

Memory tin

Meeru - Maldives

2009-12-26T22:24:00.000+02:00

We found paradise!

Our Wedding Day

2009-12-13T17:39:00.015+02:00

The perfect day!

Thank you to our wonderful family for supporting us in having our tiny wedding. Thank you for the wonderful day we spent together and thank you for the absolutely unbelievable photos!

Thank you too, to our friends for supporting our tiny wedding :)

Wedding Prep.

2009-12-12T17:10:00.010+02:00

It was tough but we managed :)

Our worm started out at 90 odd days.... All the colour segments are shooter nights. Note the last week are all shooter nights :) We started with one every ten days and then as we got down to the last month, it was every five.

Trying to get some sort of tan going.

Last week!

Today's the day!

The Eggnog Effect

2009-11-25T20:40:00.008+02:00

Be warned:
After a serving of eggnog...
1. it may take two braais in order to get your supper cooked
2. you may lose the ability to control individual fingers
3. you may lose the ability to sufficiently grip things
4. you may no longer be able to accurately determine the exact position of your mouth

*This is not to say that we have ever experienced any of these symptoms...

Lesson learned:
Never, under any circumstances, miss eggnog day!

Knysna Waterfront

2009-08-10T20:34:00.007+02:00

Words cannot explain...

2009-08-10T19:57:00.020+02:00

Plettenberg Bay

Once in a life time!

2009-08-10T18:10:00.013+02:00

So beautiful!!!!

That tongue is huge, as are the teeth!

Terence had just been 'snorted' on so was understandable weary.

The bottom of their feet feel like the bottom of takkies (yes, we felt them!). Apparently very ticklish :)

How brave are we?

Now we're just showing off!

Some interesting facts:
* Elephants live to be 60 to 70 years old
* They usually die of starvation after losing their 6th (last) set of molars
* A set of molars can be as big as a brick
* Skin is 2cm thick but very sensitive
* Can see up to about 80m but are blind at night
* Elephants mourn, often seen throwing sand or sticks over a dead elephants body. May return to spend time at the skeleton sniffing or rubbing the bones on their cheeks
* Both males and females have tusks but many no longer have any as the gene pool is so week after generations having had their tusks cut off

You're going to want to see this!

2009-04-26T21:23:00.004+02:00

Well, it's finally happened... and well worth the wait :)

After loads of excitement last night and today, we're exhausted but happily so!

Clan William

2009-01-11T16:53:00.028+02:00

The outdoor shower

Early morning fishing.

Life about camp

Lazy days in the sun :)

As the beard progressed....

My new hair!

2008-12-24T13:27:00.005+02:00

Not a very clear shot, I know but what do you think?

Putting up the tree

2008-12-20T16:32:00.000+02:00

Of course we had egg-nog, which made for a fun afternoon/evening!

Port Alfred

2008-12-19T16:20:00.002+02:00

A few days up in Port Alfred putting up the tree, having a massage and generally catching up (all squeezed in between lots and lots of baking)

I even sold a few cards :)

"Greg's Sticks" sell like hot cakes... Like Graham says, Greg could sell ice to an eskimo.

Somerset Gift - Swellendam

2008-10-15T15:55:00.002+02:00

Happy Birthday to you...

Nothing like a spot of fishing :)

A mid-morning rest...

Let the adventures begin!

Here we go...

Relaxing with some chocolate cake after all that excitement!

As the sun goes down....

This puzzle kept Val and I very busy! Steve sensed the pressure to get it done in the eleventh hour and so stepped in to help.

Clan William

2008-10-01T15:20:00.028+02:00

Another fantastic camping trip with amazing weather! The campsite has changed slightly. It's bigger now, with about four or five more sites. Each one has electricity, which we took advantage of and took the electric kettle with us - luxury, I know! Even with the extra sites, electricity and rule board, it is still pretty much the same, laid back place we found five years ago!

We used our time in the sun to read, fish, star-gaze and generally laze about... what more could you want. Take note of the new cooler box - supposed to keep ice frozen for up to five days! We did have frozen ice on day three, which meant ice cold Savannas and beers throughout the weekend - oh, and it helped for the meat :) The gazebo was fantastic, not sure how we could cope without it now! We had beautifully warm days but freezing nights! I don't remember when last I was that cold... possibly camping in Knysna in July, not something we'll attempt again.

Orange blossom in the tent put there by romantic Steve :)

We borrowed the tent from Terence and Justine which is why there is a bit of confusion on our faces :) It was great to have the extra space, thanks guys!

Just dipping into the cooler box after all that setting up...

New long board

2008-08-01T16:09:00.000+02:00

Absolutely Franschhoek

2008-07-13T16:46:00.010+02:00

What a treat we had! Terence and Justine took Steve and I on a "site inspection" of Le Franschhoek. We first had a delicious lunch at the restaurant at the hotel! There were six stations with different types of food. Things like stir fry, curry, steak, pizza, pasta and many puddings! After lunch we were taken on a tour of the rooms in the hotel. Our guide used the word "absolutely" in every sentence, hence the title of the post :) After the tour, we went to a wine farm, Duo Donne. They have just started making beer and as we were on a "site inspection" we had a free taster. We then went to a very fancy hotel called Le Residance. Apparently that's where Elton John stayed when he was over, our claim to fame... Anyway we spent the afternoon sitting at the fire drinking red wine and "bubbles". A different world entirely!

Beat these views - Swellendam

2008-04-20T17:34:00.015+02:00

Steve booked a weekend away at Somerset Gift for my birthday weekend, spoilt rotten! We had booked a smaller cottage but Deon was still busy renovating and so gave us the biggest house. It has the most beautiful views, I have never seen anything so amazing from each window! What a fantastic weekend, we had lots of rain but good books and those views....

Beaverlac

2008-03-24T12:16:00.003+02:00

Beaverlac is situated on Grootfontein farm. It's a working farm, with citrus orchards and olive groves. It's over the narrow and dramatic Dasklip Pass near Porterville, a favourite launching spot for paragliders. We saw a guy launch on our way home and he actually landed at the bottom before we got there. The pass is tarred, but the track down into Beaverlac is not, and in wet weather sedan cars might have trouble. We had to go up in first the whole way and it was dry!

Thursday: When Steve and I finally found out where we should be going, (we drove down the steep untarred road twice trying to figure it out!) we found Terence and Justine and got on with some setting up which included patching up Steve's foot, another windsurfing injury, and discovered we hadn't packed the sleeping bags! We then went to see the Main Pool. Terence and Steve jumped off the rock (see the photo of Steve). When we headed back to start the fire we realised we had left all the frozen meat in the freezer at home... luckily there was a shop :)

Friday: After setting our tent up on a slope, Steve and I woke up with terrible headaches from sleeping upside down - much to Terence's amusement... After breakfast we started the Leopard Trail. The path starts from the campsite and climbs up the rocky hillside, passing the Upside-down Waterfall (see photo of fountain, actually outlet pipe). Less than a kilometre from the camp there's a left-hand diversion to the Grotto and Jacuzzi pools. Well, thinking we were already there, we headed to the pools but were actually at Fake Grotto and Jacuzzi pools. What a fantastic find (see photos of Steve and I looking into a hole, Steve standing in water and lizard). Back on the path, after a few hundred metres ... we realised we had been at the wrong Jacuzzi and Grotto after seeing the real ones... you reach the extroardinary rock that has been brilliantly named "Klip Art". If you're in digital denial you might not get the pun (you can imagine how desperate Terence and Steve were to find this, both being total geeks); the klip art itself is on the back of the rock, and is easier to spot on your way down. Beyond klip Art the path climbs steadily past Butt crack, Flat Rock and the ominously-named Puffadder Rock - it's the snake-patterned lichens that have given the name. No sign of Klip Art :/ Just beyond Puffadder Rock you can divert again to the oddly-named Top Pool because it's not really the top pool. Another amazing find, they seemed to get better and better! (See photos of Terence and I doing synchronised swimming and the reflections in the pool). We had our lunch here and enjoyed lazing in the sun. A slightly stiffer climb lies beyond the pool, but it is worth it. About 500 metres ahead stand the Totem Poles, impressive rock pillars with another beckoning swimming hole. This pool was breathtaking! (See photos of the pool with enormous rocks). After a nice long break here, we headed back down and "YAY" we found it - Klip Art which (actually Terence guessed it) was many small stones in the hollows of a big rock, it looked a little more impressive than I have explained. After getting to the bottom we went to Main Pool for a cool down before heading to the tent for a snooze before supper - it's a tough life we lead :)

Saturday: Attempting to find our way to the Olifants River to go fishing, we headed for the hills, only to find out from passes-by that we might be walking for about four hours. We decided to give the fishing a miss and found ourselves at Nik-Nak Retreat ( see photo of pool with lots of grass on edges) for a quick dip before having lunch and a lie down at Jaffel Bay (Photo of Steve and Terence making jaffels). After lunch we went to Amphitheatre to see what that was about, another amazing pool! We took some sundowners. Terence and Steve jumped off Beginners Ledge and then enjoyed a beer on Sunset Rock. Justine was coaxed into jumping too.

Braam Malherbe gave a talk about the universe that evening, so interesting! Did you know...
- If light could turn corners, it would go around the earth 7 times in one second.
- More to follow... might need more time to think :)

Sunday: Went up to the real Jacuzzi and Grotto where we spent an hour or two swimming, eating and lying in the sun! We then went back to the campsite for a lazy afternoon. Of course we stopped at Main Pool for a dip, can't pass by without jumping in.

Monday: Time to pack up. Before we attempted the hairy road out, we went to Amphitheatre for our last swim. I had to do it and was awarded my Beaverlac badge for jumping off Beginners Ledge. Steve and Terence then plucked up the courage and jumped off the very top!

* Taken from Peter Slingsby's notes.
* These names are our own creation.

Candice's wedding

2008-03-16T19:08:00.007+02:00

I had great fun dressing up, don't get too many opportunities so made the most of it. Cathrine, a colleague from work, offered to do my hair and make-up so I jumped at the chance and I think she did a great job! If you look closely you might even notice the false eyelashes - can you believe it! She then saw the shoes I was planning to wear and promptly pulled out some others from her cupboard which I hobbled around in for the evening. Don't know that I'll be wearing shoes that high again! Super smart Steve looked great too :)

Christmas Day 2007

2007-12-26T14:43:00.002+02:00

Christmas Eve

2007-12-26T13:55:00.001+02:00

"Merry Christmas"

mmm, doesn't that food look yummy!

Clan William

2007-12-24T13:59:00.001+02:00

We arrived on Friday afternoon to fantastic weather, although not that great when your stuck in the car with no air-con for over 3 hours so Steve and I were in the water within about 2 minutes of arriving :) We put up the tents and then went out on the boat. It was such a great evening that we only got off the water after 7. We used the boogie board which was far too hard and so resulted in many many bruises! The tube didn't work so well, just kept digging into the water. So we headed in to start supper happy and exhausted. We saw the most amazing shooting stars that night, really unbelievable! They were like the ones you see in movies with tails that stretch right across the sky. We saw about 6 in 15 minutes! After a little research, we found out that what we saw was in fact a meteor shower! It was best seen on the 13th and 14th Dec. "at least 60 to 120 Geminid meteors can be expected to burst across the sky every hour on the average" Here is what astronomers David Levy and Stephen Edberg have written of the annual Geminid Meteor Shower: "If you have not seen a mighty Geminid fireball arcing gracefully across an expanse of sky, then you have not seen a meteor." http://www.space.com/spacewatch/071207-ns-geminids.html "Often referred to as a shooting star, a meteor is not a star at all. Meteors are actually fallen debris from a comet. At night, a meteor shower is visible to us as quick streaks of light. Meteor showers occur as the debris traveling in the path of its parent comet enters the Earth's atmosphere. The heat produced by the ram pressure upon atmospheric entry is what creates the streak of light. Most meteors are destroyed during this process. Those that make the journey all the way to the ground are known as meteorites." http://www.space.com/meteors/

Saturday was another beautiful day, about 40 degrees so needless to say we spent all day in the water. We gave Steve's surf board a go at the back of the boat. Steve stood up and had a great time surfing behind us. Terence and Justine got up to their knees. All pretty impressive when you get to me... I just lay on the board, too sore to attempt anything other than holding on! Instead of a shooting star show that night, we had a lightning show - a little scarier when all that's between you and the lightning is a thin sheet of plastic!

Sunday was wet and gloomy so we drove to Lambert's Bay for lunch, not too much going on there except potatoes... It was starting to clear by the time we got back to the campsite and so Steve and Terence went fishing while Justine and I snoozed in our tents :) What a surprise to see the guys walking back with a fish (1.6kg). Terence had an acquaintance down the way who offered to gut the fish for us, of course we didn't refuse! He was also kind enough to lend us his tube for the back of the boat, now that I can do :) Justine braaied the fish to perfection but even so we've decided that Bass aren't the tastiest of fish...

We had much better weather on Monday and so headed to the water again.. We had to head in when the surf board got a hole in it. Another great weekend at the dam :)

Hi-lights:
Shooting stars!
Strawberry dacary (I need the spelling of this one..)
Fish for the braai
Fun behind the boat
Amarula hot chocolate!
Afternoon snoozes :)
Oh.. and seeing Terence's costume fall down while kneeling on the surfboard (he he he)

Low-lights:
Bruises!
Rain
Scary lightning
Nearly setting the campsite alight while on the boat (oops! Note the pic of Steve, Terence and Justine sitting at the fire)

Bathurst Farmer's Market

2007-12-24T12:46:00.001+02:00

Wow, what a job! The baking never ends, if it's not for the home industries, it's for the Farmer's Market. The kitchen closes at about 9:30 and opens again at about 3:30 the following morning! The bread is such a hit though that no matter how much there is, it is always sold out! The Sunday I was there, Mom and Greg had 55 loaves of bread which were all sold. It's been bettered since then though, they sold 72 loaves yesterday!

Kowie River - Port Alfred

2007-12-24T12:17:00.001+02:00

Hal and Lauren took Cassie, Guy, a few other friends and I up the river for sundowners.

East Beach - Port Alfred

2007-12-24T12:12:00.001+02:00

Christmas lights - Port Alfred

2007-12-24T12:05:00.000+02:00

Mom's tree, we limited it to red and silver balls and it looked great! The house belongs to an electrician in Port Alfred, it gets crazier each year :)

Christmas lights

2007-12-04T22:13:00.001+02:00

Lying around watching a U2 DVD... Aren't our lights great!!!

Christmas 2007

2007-12-02T20:42:00.001+02:00

It's always great putting up the tree! We had a whole weekend of it this time and put Steve's mom's up yesterday with so much egg-nog that we couldn't face it today when we did ours :)

A time to remember...

2007-12-02T20:30:00.000+02:00

Clan William

2007-11-18T14:38:00.001+02:00

After a week of wintery rain in Cape Town, we arrived to a cloudy sky in Clan William with icy winds...

We had to get a few oranges, because we could :) and waited for Terence and Justine who arrived after 9pm and had to attempt to put up their tent in the dark - fun to watch!

We woke up to clear skies on Saturday morning. Justine made us a fantastic breakfast. It turned out to be a beautiful day! We spent the day in the water and lying in the sun. Terence learnt to windsurf, giving us a good show :) We made a delicious potjie for supper - yum!

Sunday turned out to be as good as Saturday but we were all too burnt to stay in the sun... ouch! Steve woke up early to go fishing and caught his record fish of over 2kgs! Unfortunately he was on his own so there is no proof but it's quite a story if ever you have time to listen to it :) Justine and I had our windsurfing lessons and did very well, I was impressed anyway. All in all, we had a great weekend away and have already booked for the next trip!

A reminder of my gran :)

2007-08-29T15:22:00.000+02:00

Thank you Steve! The perfect flowers on a very sad day.

Wiesenhof Wild Park

2007-08-24T16:07:00.000+02:00

Spring is on the way! No fish today, but did get to enjoy the sun :)

Protea

2007-08-18T15:28:00.000+02:00

Taken in Pringle Bay

Swellendam - Somerset Gift

2007-07-08T14:32:00.000+02:00

Saturday - We arrived in Swellendam and walked around for a while. The first three photos were taken in the town. Then we headed out to Somerset Gift where it started raining as we stepped out of the car. It poured down for the rest of the afternoon and through the night which gave me time to do a puzzle and Steve a chance to get his rods ready for the morning and start his book.

Sunday - The weather improved so we spent
the day in the sun reading, fishing and canoeing
while listening to birds, cows and the waterfall ~ not a car to be heard :)

Monday - We did a great walk through the forest along the side of the river leading to the dam although the baboons above us did make us quicken the pace! We also saw loads of porcupine quills lying on the path so there seems to be plenty of wild life in the forest... To start the walk we had to cross the river... I had no idea how sore icy water can be! At one part of the walk you can go up a little and you get to some mountain pools with a waterfall flowing into them, must be brilliant in summer ~ we might have to go back :)

Tuesday - It was a lovely sunny day and so Steve got up early and went fishing while I started packing up. Then we spent an hour or so fishing down at the river before we had to head back to Cape Town. We think we are so lucky because every holiday we've had has been great, this being no exception!

Robertson

2007-06-17T19:35:00.001+02:00

It's been a really busy few weeks so we planned a night away at the end of it all and it finally arrived :) We set off to Robertson after days of endless rain in CT to wonderful sunshine! We wandered around the town for a while and stopped to have hot chocolate at a restaurant that looked far too trendy to be in Robertson...

We stopped on the way out of town to get some wine (I think we should be employed to take photos for Robertson Winery..).

We had lunch on a wine farm called Rosendal.

The food was delicious, doesn't the photo look great?

After lunch we went to the self-catering we had booked, Pat Busch. It was lovely! We looked out onto a giant Oak tree with cows grazing in the field behind it, they were happy to pose for a few photos :)

Then, without 'wasting' anymore time, we headed off to find the dam for a bit of fishing. As you can see Steve caught a few, nothing too big I'm afraid.

It started cooling down quickly after the sun went down behind the mountain so we headed back to light a fire and drink red wine.

The next morning, Steve got up and headed off to the dam while I had an extra lie-in and made breakfast. The birds joined us for breakfast!

Then we walked up the hill near the dam, pretty exhausting after not having been very diligent about gym for the last few months! It was great though.

When we got down, Steve fished for an hour or so while I read my book and dozed in the sun :) Then it was time to head back to a very cold and wet CT.

Another visit from the frog...

2007-05-03T22:06:00.000+02:00

Well the same thing happened, I was closing the sliding door and in jumped the frog... only this time he seemed smaller. I caught him and took him out but he wouldn't get out the glass so I left it outside and started walking in when I nearly stood on the original frog. So I caught them both to show Steve. We took photos and set them free again :) I hope that's it now with the frogs, I'm not sure I want too many more especially if they're coming inside. The last thing I want is to put my shoe on to find a frog inside!