The Balancing Act...

A lot of the same old stuff is happening around here! Boys are in school, and the homework has picked up again-unfortunately! I am looking into getting Taylor a tutor to make sure he is keeping up with what he needs to know for eventually returning to the States! He is doing very good here, but I am afraid that we are not being taught what is required back home especially in English and reading. I am hoping that if I keep adding extra work that the transition will not be too difficult when the time comes! He has really gotten "lost" in Hardy Boys books, and I can hardly keep new ones on the shelf that have not been read, makes a momma proud! Hunter is getting assessed for speech here, he had speech in the States but I had not followed up until now! He also might be lacking skills required back home, but with speech I am hoping that it will help him in the areas that are lacking! I feel like I am always in "balancing act" mode, trying to make sure that the boys are socially surviving and then trying to regulate that they are academically doing what is needed to keep up with what is required in US schools! AHHH!
And then of course there is Claire! She started her first ballet class-she did well but she was very reserved and scared to join in. She finally did join in the last 5 minutes! I am hoping that this class will be good for her socially, I know she sure looks precious:). I am having a hard time deciding what our next step is for her, academically and physically she is progressing well in her current situation, but I know she needs to transition eventually into a "normal school"! Only time will tell, I get one child settled and then I have to work on the next. Only mother's know of the constant struggle we feel as we make sure that everything is perfect (as close as it can be) for them-the great Balancing Act of life!
On an irritated note, my cell phone was stolen yesterday! I had gone to the grocery with only my phone and wallet and came out with only my wallet! I questioned the manager yesterday and she saw nothing; today I went back just to double check before I purchased a new one, and the manager was very helpful. She went through the security tapes and is looking into it, I have put my new purchase on hold! I do not think Walmart would have given me a second glance, but here they took the extra time to make sure all is well! Unfortunately, as much as I HATE the phone, it is quite a life line!
On a sadder note, I thought I was doing OK without mom and dad this week until my mom sent us the nicest Thank You-Only made me cry, Thanks for the Thank You, NOT! Just Kidding! I guess you could say this is the balancing act of emotions!

Happy Birthday Dad!

Thanks for making us laugh!
We love and miss you very much!

Lilly is lonely without you...

It's Only Been A Week?

It seems like it has been so long since my parents were here, but it has only been a week. Our house seems a little quieter and our dinners have not been near as good since they boarded their plane, but we did survive the week(only the occasional tears, OK a lot)!
And a busy week we have had...
The boys have started back to school this week, and are very excited about starting rugby! They went to their first practice yesterday, and loved everything about it-being on a team, toughness, roughness, running, catching, getting dirty, and just playing the sport! Although I am a little leery of the dangers that come with rugby, at this age I think we are fine and how can you deny a boy a game with a ball.
Claire also started back to school, at least on a consistent schedule, as these past few weeks we were never on a schedule. She starts ballet on Wednesday, I think I am a little more excited than her! Oh yeah, she is sporting a new do! While Mom was here, she talked me into cutting her thin hair, and what a difference it has made. It actually looks a little bit thicker and when fixed it is precious! Way to go Mom!
I also kept busy, after having a great birthday I did some me stuff this week! I got my hair done, my toes done, and my nails done(thanks to a really sweet friend). I also went to my book club, and caught up with some friends that I had not seen in awhile, I really have enjoyed meeting all kinds of new people. Then one of my South African friends had a birthday, and I was invited to a brunch in honor of her! Now this friend, Gherda, has been a God send-she has included me in so many things and has introduced me to so many new people. A big shout out to all of my new buddies, they have made my new life a little easier and kept my mind off how hard this week has been without my parents! We finished up the week visiting with friends and doing what we do best, eating!

We're Going On A Whale Hunt....

Our last big adventure with my parents was a whale watching tour in Plettenburg Bay! We drove for two hours to get an up, close and personal view of some whales. Yes, you can spot them from most anywhere along the coast(10 min from our house);and we did ,but we wanted the real deal! We left early in the morning because we heard the earlier you go, the more likely you are to spot the whales. We arrived a little too early and decided to have breakfast at this great restaurant right on the beach. When it was time for our boat to leave, we had to all suit up in life jackets and we where on our way.

Our first sighting was right there as we were taking off, amazing. The most common whale here in the South African waters is the Southern Right Whale, he travels all the way from the Antarctica to breed and to give birth. They are most commonly seen from July through October(so we hope to see many more)! These whales are protected in South African waters, which meant that our boat was only allowed up to 40 meters from the whales! Of course once the boat stops it is up to the whale to move in closer and they did- one swam right past our boat! These whales are magnificent in their size and rituals. They will come in very close to shore so that they can rub their bodies along the sand bars(hate to be hanging out on that sand bar!) to remove old skin and any parasites.

These large formations on the whales are parasites, some come off as they rub against the sand bars!

We were also lucky to see a large pod of about 50 dolphins, playing in the surf!

And some seals, but luckily no sharks!

Here Me Roar....

(You must turn your speakers to full blast, this is the lion roaring!)
That's what the lions were saying the entire first night of our safari! Our game ranger told us before we went to bed ,that the next morning we were going on a lion hunt. I woke up at 3 in the morning to a huge roar, and then heard a lion roar about every 20 minutes until we left for our early morning game drive at 6am. Just as we left our lodge we came upon the lions with their kill! There was one male lion standing in the road, and right along side of the road was three large cubs, and three females feeding on their kill. We just about died, it was very scary to see them right there. I thought my dad was going to die, the rest of us barely breathed!




Unfortunately, our pictures are not very good and do not portray the awesomeness of this incredible experience. It was too dark and my camera was acting up. We would all agree this was an experience not to be forgotten! They fed on this carcass all day and we spotted them later in the day, and again that night our ranger took us out about 11pm. This time the pride had moved away from the carcass and were lazily hanging out in the field. At first all we saw were the cubs and females, but then from the distance we heard the ROAR! It was coming from behind, our ranger turned the jeep around just in time for that magnificent creature to walk right past us. So close that Taylor was literally shaking, as Mimi will tell you! All I can say is PRICELESS, INCREDIBLE, AMAZING, and BREATHTAKING!

Detour

Back to our safari,we saw so much that I hate to only talk about the cheetahs. The first game drive also included lots of elephants. We saw herds of them-males, mommas and lots of babies! The highlight was when the head male was being tested by one of the young males-typically they will test the older male, but the younger one will eventually give up and go away. We came across a very stubborn "teenager" that did not give up his fight, in fact at one point he picked up an entire tree trunk with his own trunk. We have some great footage of the two fighting...



This video is of a brand new baby elephant. When they are born they are very unsure of how to move around, and this little one was so clumsy with his big legs and his trunk!

We also saw a lot more animals, my favorites where the zebra and the giraffe; but the rhinos are also very cool-they resemble dinosaurs!

Another Year Older!

Hopefully a little wiser! It was a wonderful sunny day in South Africa and I had a great birthday, just spending time with my favorite people! Thanks to all -loving my new goodies! My sweet boys have been hiding their gifts from me and were so happy to finally give them to me- Hunter gave me a great wooden necklace and Taylor got me a really cool zebra. I also received some other fun stuff, one of them was a beautiful handmade quilt from my mom, and Pat got me my favorite perfume. Here's to another year filled with adventure, God knows this one has been!

Tell Me Again...

Why we are here? asks Hunter as we leave the airport. I ask him what he is talking about, and he says why are we here in South Africa, when everyone we love is in America? Well how do you explain these tough life questions, when I am so unsure of most answers myself?
We just said good bye to my parents(Mimi & Poppa), and I think I have cried ever since we left them. What an amazing trip we have had, we have done some great things, but the best part was just hanging out. My favorite times were when we were all at home just visiting or sitting in the backyard, or playing tennis. I will miss them greatly, but I do have some great memories I will keep forever!

We're Doing What?

Our first game drive at Shamwari started off as most do, but soon into our drive we discovered this was not going to be ordinary. Our game ranger was named Jonnie, pronounced Yawny, and was very young and very brave! We came across some typical animals in the bush- Kudos, Impala, Zebra-animals that are easily sited, and then we could tell Jonnie was on the hunt. At one point he stopped the jeep and proceeded to get out with his rifle and head into the bush-we all had no idea what was going on. We were a little scared, thinking if anything happened to him, what in the hell were we going to do? He came back saying he was looking for cheetahs. Then we drove away and once again stopped and the game ranger left again, at this time we were now laughing at our situation(the laughs were to hide our nervousness). Jonnie comes back and starts making calls on his radio, saying he has a group of six and can he go in-I was thinking he was asking to drive his jeep in close to the cheetahs-NO! I was so wrong, he was asking if he could take us in the bush, on foot! OK, a thousand things are rushing through my head-are you serious, are we safe, my two boys are here, what the hell-but then the other option is to wait in the jeep alone! So we set off-I was not prepared, of course none of us were, I had on my flip flops trudging through the fields. He gave us an overview of what was about to happen-follow single file, boys in front, Pat in the back, no sudden moves, listen to him at all times, no pictures until we are there, no talking, if an incident happens listen to his command and DO NOT RUN. I listened to all instructions, took in a huge breath and then off we went. We walked for a while, and then all of sudden we are there! We were within four feet of three cheetahs, three very real, very live cheetahs, three wild cheetahs; and all that was protecting us was this young wild ranger! My heart beat a thousand beats a minute, but what a view. We got to see them in the wild, they looked at us but did not seem interested. Jonnie said as long as we do not go into their personal space we would not bother them, and we did not look like prey because we were in a single line that resembled a unit. My question was, how do we know their personal space? We survived-we saw cheetahs in their natural setting, we walked in an African field and saw wild life at it's finest. We made the best memories of our life, of our boys life!

Best Vacation Ever...

We have just returned from an awesome safari at Shamwari Game Reserve! http://www.shamwari.com/properties/?MicroSiteID=2 We stayed in a beautiful lodge in the middle of the bush; we had the entire place all to ourselves! Sarilli Guest Lodge has 5 guest rooms, our family took up three and the others were empty. It was first class the whole way, we were greeted with wine and lunch, and then shown to our rooms-luxury at it's finest! Our room overlooked the whole game reserve and a river that ran through-fully loaded with hippos. During our stay we went on four, four hour game drives- early morning and late afternoon/evening ones. We also went out to view the stars and went on one late night ride hunting for lions! Every night as we slept we listened to lions roaring and hippos snorting! The boys did everything we did, and Claire stayed with a nanny for the game drives- she did go on the late night ones! Here are some views of the lodge. Lots more pictures and stories to come!

Looking out of main living room...

Dining area...

Living area...

One of the guest rooms...

pool...

Well, we have yet to stop! We have done a lot of eating(mom has been doing some baking), site seeing and visiting! We have walked with elephants, ridden through game parks, sat on the beach, watched whales, been to an art's festival and played lots of tennis, and of course, all of this is after our visit to Cape Town. We leave tomorrow for our safari at Shamwari Game Park, we are hoping to see lots of animals as we have ridden through a local elephant park(twice) that has close to 400 elephants and we saw about 5!
This is a face of a very happy boy... (For those of you who know this sweet boy, yes both teeth are coming in:) )

This one has kept us on our toes, but is definitely our entertainment everyday! (She has gotten her bangs trimmed since pic)

The boys at a local rugby game...

We have seen a lot of these, but are hoping to see more!

They Are Here!

Well, we are back from meeting Mom and Dad at the airport in Cape Town! We stayed in a house overlooking Boulder's Beach and were greeted by penguins everyday! We took in the sights of Cape Town and discovered some really cute coastal towns and ate some great food! We also visited and explored some of the wineries of South Africa. After walking with the elephants, we are back in Port Elizabeth. We have done some local site seeing, been to a local game park and have played LOTS of tennis-having a tennis court in our backyard has been a blessing! Everyday we have played for several hours-the boys, mom, dad, Pat and me-even Claire has tried to play!
We are really enjoying our time with my parents, and the kids are loving spending time with them! On the first night we were with them, my Mom tells Hunter how much she had missed him and he said "Mimi, I have cried a thousand tears..." From the mouth of a boy much wiser than his years!
I will post more on our trip, when I have time...


These were living right outside our house in Simon's Town!


Our house is the tallest-red with black roof...

View from deck...