Weekly Wrap-Up: A Time of Connecting

This week has been a wonderful week of connecting. Connecting with loved ones. My God Father spoiled us with pizzas for dinner on Monday night and we sat chatting for hours. He is one of the most interesting people I know and is so interested in each and every one of us. He always has a wonderful story to tell and I think we could all sit and listen to him for hours. 

Wednesday morning my Dad and I had a long overdue breakfast together, another wonderful couple of hours. Ooh and the great food we enjoyed at a neighborhood restaurant deserves a mention too!

There was connect group and an outing with my friend to enjoy free lattes at Food Lovers. There were a couple of evenings where the family all sat by candle light enjoying music and chit chat while the power was out. And a lunch time heart to heart with my sweet girl in the sunshine. 

There was rock climbing at City Rock on Monday, I don't usually get to go as I have to do the art run in the afternoon but this week I got to see what Zak does there. It was great to see him enjoying himself and learning new skills as well as overcoming a fear of heights. 

As well as climbing, he has learned to belay too. That's him at the top!

 It was great for me to hang out and chat with some of the other home schooling moms as now that the kids are older there aren't so many outings anymore.

Besides the usual work, there is always art for Keren. She has been spending hours on her term practical, She is enjoying the space she has with the art table hubby made for her. 

On Saturday morning hubby and I visited Arderne Gardens. Definitely a place to visit again. I have always wanted to visit there and can't believe I never have. It would have been a wonderful place to take the kids when they were small. There are beautiful lawns, ponds with ducks, beautiful tall trees and one of the two biggest trees in Africa! Well worth a visit!

A Visit to Oranjezicht City Farm

For the longest time I have wanted to visit the Oranjezicht City Farm nestled on the slopes beneath Table Mountain.

My sister, visiting from the Free State, managed to round us siblings up on Saturday morning for a visit. 

In the 1700's this area was part of one of the largest farms in the Table Valley. 

It is fed by perennial springs that provided water to the Company's Gardens way back when they produced fresh produce for passing ships and the colonists. 

With urbanization, the land was used for housing and later as a bowling green. 

The bowling green was unused for several decades and the City Farm was established in 2012. 

It is a non profit project that celebrates local food, culture and community.

The perfect place for my 3 year old nephew to discover and enjoy. 

I was reminded of childhood stories of Mr Mc Gregor's garden and expected Flopsy, Mopsy, Cotton tail and Peter to be hopping past any moment.

There is a  market which is open every Saturday from 9 until 2pm.

The atmosphere was vibrant and friendly.

Fresh produce from the city farm is sold as well as produce from other suppliers.

My sister bought some smoked cheese, simply delicious!

There was a variety of fresh bread 

and sweet treats 

and samosas and mini pies to mention just a few!

Everything looked and smelled delicious!

Fresh mushrooms and chilies

or beautiful flowers and so much more!

A wonderful feast for the senses!

...... and definitely worth visiting again with a full wallet!

Weekly Wrap-Up: The Holiday Week

What a lovely week indulging in the pleasure of school holidays! Time to just shake off all the stress of term time, enjoy each day without the pressure of completing assignments or tests or getting to a class on time.Time for friends, time for extra rest, time for reading and watching series till late at night. It has been wonderful!

Zak and Keren have spent much of the week at church, preparing for the upcoming holiday club. It's meant early morning starts with packed lunches and a day full of work and friends. Keren is part of the core team and has spent hours preparing for the two fun filled weeks ahead. 

Zak is part of the "vibe team". They are the MC's. I had a good giggle when I saw him dressed up with his dreads! The theme for the holiday club is "The Croods".

On Monday evening Keren and I went to the movies.

Gosh, what a beautifully, sad movie. We cried so much but it was wonderful anyway. I would love to watch it again just to take it all in again.

Early on Tuesday morning we braved the cold and took advantage of Kirstenbosch's birthday celebrations which meant free entry for SA citizens to the botanical gardens. We made our way through the gardens to find the Centenary Tree Canopy Walkway, the Boomslang (Afrikaans for tree snake).

It did not disappoint. 

It was wonderful to walk through the tree tops, 11.5m above ground level and take in the magnificent views of the mountains, though cloud covered, and the city sprawling in the distance. 

At first the kids were somewhat taken aback by the gentle movement of the walkway in the wind. 

Despite being a man made structure in the beautiful gardens, it is not an eyesore.

The forest floor below is lush and green. I am sure that in time, vines will make their way up the uprights and it will be even more beautiful. Well worth a visit if you haven't been yet. I am sure that it will be even more magnificent on a clear summer day or at sunrise. 

I treated the kids to milk shakes and enjoyed a steaming rooibos latte at the restaurant before we rushed off to get them to the church for their day of work.

On Wednesday a dear friend who I have not seen in a while treated me to breakfast. It was wonderful to catch up and we shared, laughed and cried our way through the morning (as only us girls can!) We forgot the time and chatted on way past the time she needed to leave. 

Zak enjoyed spending the day at a friend on Thursday, while Keren was working at the church. I spent the morning reading, a rare treat to have hours to do as I please. In the afternoon I enjoyed coffee and a catch up with our pastor's wife. Last night we stayed up till 1 in the morning watching Switched at Birth!

Today, the end of a lovely week, has been stormy and cold. Zak and I have spent the day relaxing, wrapped in blankets, catching up on sleep and reading. Tonight we will be celebrating our neighbor's birthday and snow is predicted on Table Mountain. That doesn't happen too often!

I hope you had a wonderful week too!

PS: Happy 4th of July to my American friends!

The Gravel Garden

While my sister was in C.T, the two of us enjoyed a wonderful morning visiting The Gravel Garden in Somerset West. My sister had bought some of her heirloom seeds from this South African seed company. 

The Gravel Garden is open to guests every Friday morning from 10 to 1. Visitors can stroll around, enjoy a cup of tea and delicious eats, trade or buy home grown produce and preserves and purchase heirloom seeds. Seedlings are also on sale. 

Those red onions peeping through the soil were just enormous!

The garden is a delight to stroll around in and the grow bags look like a fantastic idea. 

Everything growing in them seems to be doing incredibly well!

Never have I seen such enormous tomatoes!

A table and chairs tucked away in the garden, covered by an overgrown trellis, looked like the perfect place to escape to for some time out.

The Wendy house was a hive of activity with trading of fresh produce, talk of gardening and a general air of happiness. 

My aunt and uncle joined us and we relaxed under the giant plum tree to enjoy tea, freshly baked polenta cake and chili cheese muffins.

My sister treated me to a 6 pack of basil plants and my uncle kindly bought me some seeds.

New Zealand spinach, Detroit Dark Red Beetroot and Hellanthus Sunflowers...

Sunflowers with a dark red flower!

Oh, and another gift from my sister, some lovely wine from a local wine farm! 

On the tables out under the giant plum are numerous recipe books, books on gardening and more. Definitely a place to return to and enjoy at leisure....

Portobello Road

Last year my daughter and I were driving down Main Road Kenilworth.  Pretty bunting caught our eyes and we stopped to take a peek into Portobello Road, vintage style clothing and coffee shop. What a delight!

 I knew my sister and her daughter would love it....

So recently we visited for a joint birthday breakfast treat for the two of them.

Portobello Road is owned by a mother and daughter team, designer Jane Banks and her mom.

 The shop is a treat for the eyes...

Vintage style clothing, accessories, decor and gifts.....

                                                    The girls just loved those shoes!

Jane's own labels, Janie B clothing and Rewind Vintage as well as other designer ranges are stocked by the shop.

The staff are friendly and the service fantastic.

A selection of teas, juices and Origin coffees are served.

 Oh... and the best Chai Latte I have ever had!

Red Cappuccino served in a beautiful tea cup!

My sister enjoyed her pot of Earl Grey along with delicious cheesecake.

Breakfast was generous and my salami and pesto toastie superb. 

We will certainly be visiting again! 

A wonderful place for a mum and daughter catch up .

Do yourself a favour and pop in if you are in the area, enjoy some breakfast, lunch or a cuppa...

you won't be disappointed!

You will find them at 313 main Road Kenilworth. 

Silvermine Waterfall Walk

Last Sunday, despite the heat, we joined a few other families for a walk and picnic at Silvermine. We entered Silvermine on the east side and strolled along the gravel road. 

 

The views of the valley and Noorhoek in the distance were magnificent on this crystal clear day.

Fynbos is a scent I never tire of. I didn't take many photos of the flowers but kept my eyes wide open, taking in the sights and sounds and even spotted a dung beetle rolling his ball of dung along the path.

The kids were way ahead of me, but waited up for me about 15 minutes from the start, where we turned off the gravel road and down 150m into the valley.

The walk down was steep but so worth it. 

The cool waters of the waterfall were so refreshing.

We sat among the trees beside the waterfall and enjoyed our lunch and conversations with fellow walkers. 

The climb back up was pretty strenuous on the legs but once again the kids kept calling out and checking I was ok. It was a great outing, a place to visit again for sure and perhaps linger somewhat longer in the shade besides the cascading waterfall...