Weekly Wrap-Up: One With a Birthday

It seems the week flew by in a flurry of activity. 

Over last weekend I had the joy of going to watch my sweet nephew in concert. It was the cutest thing to watch these little people singing their hearts out with all the accompanying actions.

That's my cutie pie touching the floor and the little girl next to him spent the entire time covering her ears! Poor little thing! I am really not sure how the teachers managed to keep them all so calm and still for so long! 

This week kids got on with their work and kept on track most of the time. 

Zak has been enjoying a story about Joan of Arc and learning about Medieval times. We have decided to prepare a low key Medieval dinner next week some time. A number of years ago we had a wonderful Medieval feast with dear friends. The kids were much younger, we all dressed up, had a castle backdrop and a wonderful evening of fun. I don't think any of us will ever forget that evening! This time around we will keep it simple.

Zak had a long awaited haircut this week and is looking so good!

It was hubby's birthday midweek and our best-man and his wife treated us to a relaxed lunch out.

 We also enjoyed a lovely dinner together as a family and spent some time playing bananagram, a word game, after dinner.

Talking about word games, we have discovered online "words with friends" and scrabble. All week various members of the family have been challenging one another to games. It's great fun as one can play when you have a moment and a game does not need to be played in one sitting, a word or two played here and there. 

Zak and I have also been enjoying CNN Student News which is delivered to my in box daily. It's a great way to keep up with current affairs.

The week ended with art lessons and youth where Keren was running the night. It is wonderful to see her growing in her ministry to the youth. 

Weekly Wrap-Up: The Festive One

On Monday my eldest was working from home. It was great having him home and the two us enjoyed lunch out together, a rare treat, and wonderful to have alone time with him. It was his birthday treat from his Gran and lovely of him to share it with me. 

Monday evening was loads of fun!
We had a great big get together with family and friends at a braai to celebrate my niece's 19th birthday. Most of these kiddos have known one another since birth. Its wonderful to see them all growing up.

It was the first time we have been together in years on her birthday!

Keren wrote some term tests this week and been working long hours creating her candyland outfit the joint birthday party she and my niece are having on Saturday. 

There was little school for Zak this week as his cousin was still visiting from the farm .

 But we enjoyed planting our spring seeds, perfect timing as he is studying botany at the moment.

On Tuesday a friend, Zak and his cousin went go karting, an early birthday gift for his cousin.



The boys had a blast racing around the track !

Wednesday was Heritage day here in S.A. otherwise known as National Braai Day and hubby had the day off. Keren worked despite the fact it was a public holiday and she got her hair redone with one of her vouchers from the hair show.

I love the rich colour!

 Zak left on an adventure with his second cousins....
a four day trip to the Breede River, lucky boy!

They stayed in this beautiful house.

Had fun in the Jacuzzi!

And the great outdoors....

He had an absolute blast and came home happy and tired on Saturday.

Thursday my sister popped in for an impromptu visit and brought us the most delicious lunch to share. It has been wonderful having her here and spending time with her.

Friday she and my niece popped in again and took Keren off to get fabric for her party outfit. 

It was a whirlwind kind of a week, culminating with the girls joint party on Saturday night. The guests all dressed up in something beginning with the first letter of the name.



The pirate, Zorro and Katy Perry!

 There must have been 70 or more happy and loud teens and it was loads of fun!
 Eating, dancing, laughing and celebrating! 

Weekly Wrap-Up : Sweets and Celebrations

This week it was Zak's 14th birthday on Monday. 

And because we home school, birthdays are holidays!

We started the day with the early morning tradition of kids piling into our bed and the birthday boy opening gifts. Hubby headed off to work and we all dozed a little more before I made a delicious breakfast.

 Because birthday boys have special requests it was waffles and bacon with syrup. Yum!

Later he was treated to lunch at Spur and movies.

 That was Keren's gift to him.

 They loved Guardians of the Galaxy.

Monday evening we had a house full of family who came to celebrate and enjoy hubby's home made pizza.

 It was a wonderful relaxed evening and a lovely start to the week.

The girl cousins were dressed exactly the same that day without even knowing it!

Tuesday we got back to the books. We have moved onto the Roman Empire, infectious diseases and immunity. I love the "ah-ha" moments when new things are understood and love to hear Zak explaining things that he has learned to his siblings. Such a privilege to be a part of that.

Josh took the day off on Tuesday as he needed to collect his drivers license. In the afternoon he and I took a drive out to the northern suburbs to UNISA (University of South Africa). We got the wonderful news that Josh has been accepted to study Industrial Engineering at UNISA in 2015! He is blessed to be able to work and study at the same time. 

Poor guy got so sick with bronchitis and only managed one other day of work this week. A trip to the doctor was necessary..antibiotics and cortisone and an inhaler. It has been strange having him at home but I am glad he is able to rest and get well. 

Keren dedicated most of her week to Consumer Studies practicals.

 She made Swiss roll, fudge, coconut ice, marshmallows, coconut biscuits, vanilla biscuits....

milk tart,

and a vanilla sponge cake. 

I am so thankful for all her hard work in the kitchen as tonight we have about 20 hungry teens descending on our home for Zak's party. She has taken care of all the party food and all I have had to do is provide hot-dogs, cool-drinks and popcorn. 

We had my little nephew here most of the day on Wednesday and Thursday there was a casting for Zak for a fabric softener ad. There was  the usual basketball, connect group, youth group and art this week. 

I love Zak's latest pastel drawing. 

All in all a lovely week. 

Weekly Wrap-Up: Back to School and a Birthday

Monday dawned sunny and bright after a cold and wet weekend. Zak and I had both not been well over the weekend and I let him sleep in despite it being a school day...the beauty of home school!

As he wasn't feeling 100% yet, we spent Monday watching BBC Horrible Histories series one instead of diving into math and languages.

 Informative and amusing!

Keren had spent the night with her cousin and went to college with her just for the fun of it and to see what her days are all about. She took her art assignments with her to keep busy.

Later in the week we got into the rhythm of normal school days and enjoyed continuing to learn about Ancient Greece and we found Discovery K12 which is an online homeschooling curriculum. It covers each grade level in all the relevant subjects. We have added their science and their visual and performing arts to Zak's daily activities. 

Art classes and teen connect group started again this week. It was wonderful to have the kids here and to hear them actively discussing the new topic. Always loud , always laughing and enthusiastic. 

On Thursday evening we had a pre-birthday family dinner for Josh. The kids always get to choose their favorite meal for birthdays. He chose enchiladas, a joint effort between me and hubby, and a delicious berry cheesecake which Keren made.It was lovely to have my niece and Josh's girlfriend joining us for the celebratory dinner. 

Friday dawned, his 19th birthday!

 The last of his teen years!

 I can scarcely believe how the years have flown by so fast and that this tiny first precious babe of ours is now all grown up!

We so enjoy him and the fine young man he has become. We wish him God's richest blessing today and always and a wonderful, purposeful, awe-inspiring, incredible, fantastic, magnificent, extraordinary, blessed, thrilling, blissful, grace-filled, jubilant, delicious, unbelievable, astonishing, mind-blowing, spectacular, and ridiculously happy year ahead! 

As usual it was the traditional early morning family pile up on on our bed for birthday gifts and then a special birthday breakfast before he went to work.

On Friday evening family and friends joined us in celebrating his special day. The party went on late and we are all tired today but it was fun!

Here's hoping you had a wonderful week too!

Celebrating 18

I can scarcely believe that our first born son is now 18! 

It was his birthday just over 3 weeks ago and there was great excitement around this special celebration.

It has been such a joy to parent him over the last 18 years and watch him grow from that first sweet baby we called ours into a young adult. A young man of good character with a wonderful sense of humour. A young man who has taught us so much as we have parented him. A young man who is a friend to many, young and old. A studious young man who has done well as he has been dedicated to schooling himself, almost independently, for the last 4 and half years. A great big brother and a son we are immensely proud of. 

We are blessed to call him "ours".

Birthday tradition in our home calls for an early morning pile up of sleepy kids on mom and dad's bed for gift opening, and there was no exception on this special day. I was fully aware that this may possibly be the last time that our now 18 year old may take part in this early morning tradition.... 

We don't know what next year may hold for him...

Being the 25th of July, we had the perfect excuse to have a Christmas in July dinner to celebrate, and hubby's mom even put up the Christmas tree! 

We enjoyed a wonderful evening together as family, and the dinner my mom in law prepared was absolutely superb! 

We reminisced about the time seventeen and half years ago that our tiny, sweet, not yet rolling baby rolled off the bed while we were enjoying a Christmas dinner around the very same table. The cute and ever so chubby toddler who loved to pretend to sell flowers to us all and always wanted to be at his Oma and Opa if he ever felt ill or unhappy. The times he spent as a little boy, eagerly helping his Opa "work" in the garage and more...

Such sweet memories and such a blessing that this was where he wanted to be on his 18th birthday.

The celebrations continued the next evening as we had around 35 guests at home for a Spiderman Party.

Why Spiderman you may ask?

When this young man was a little thing, all he wanted was a Spiderman web blaster that could shoot out webs. We never did buy that toy for him....

With him turning 18, it seemed it may be my last chance to get him that toy after all these years, and if I could have, I would have bought one for him and all his friends so they could enjoy some silly Spiderman fun!

 It turns out that this toy is rather expensive and we decided he would appreciate the cash more than the toy at 18, but if he still desperately wanted a web blaster, he was free to use the cash to get one!

He decided cash is king at this stage :)

Hence the Spiderman party that was enjoyed by the littlest cutie pies to the teens and oldies.

It was a wonderful birthday and we look forward to many more years enjoying our young adult son.

Time flies!

The years have flown by since we had cute toddlers in our home!

This precious, sweet, chubby little toddler is now taller than me!

About 7 weeks ago we celebrated her 14th birthday. She is growing into a fine young lady of whom we are very proud. We are so blessed to be her mom and dad.

Her day was special!

She wanted to go to the beach with some special friends.

What fun we had together!

The moms all caught up with one another and the kids ran wild and free on the beach....

Dunes were climbed....

Happy memories were made...

Ice creams were eaten...

Flavours too numerous to mention!

She had a party with all her friends on the weekend and cupcakes were baked.

The piggys in honour of her farm cousin whom she misses so much !

The teens all came dressed up!

Fun, food, music and laughter!

Birthday Celebrations

Birthdays are fun.....

......especially when you are 11 and all your birthday wishes come true!

One excited boy woke to our usual tradition of piling into mom and dad's bed, surrounded by siblings, to open gifts. The excited exclamations confirmed that he was happy!

Then it was off to Oma for more spoiling! 

Phone calls, text messages, fb messages and emails poured in throughout the day.

Big sister lovingly baked a birthday cake

 and then the birthday boy and his sister had fun decorating it.

Friends and family gathered to celebrate

and spoil the birthday boy more!

Far away cousins were missed....