Jam making

On Sunday while the children and daddies recovered from their survivor night, my sister and I got down to processing some of the apricots we had picked on Saturday. I made 7 jars of delicious wholesome apricot jam. What a treat to be able to make it from apricots we had picked ourselves! I look forward to eating it when we are home and savouring the memories of our wonderful time on the farm.

We had also brought a leg of lamb up from home and so my sister and I made a roast leg of lamb in orange and garlic with roast potatoes and all the veg to go along with it.It brought back memories of our early married years when we used to get together to make mustard and pickles and enjoy one anothers company while busy the kitchen.

As we were busy in the kitchen, the sweet little girl from next door kept popping her head in to ask if she could help us. She then announced that she was going home to do some cooking too. She came back and proudly presented us with a plate of rice crispie and marshmallow treats. She truly is the sweetest little girl!

Arctic Wolf Adventure Camp

As Z, my sister and I made our way towards the survivors, we came across K and E. We thought they may be dropping out of the camp and making their way back down to the cottage but we were pleased to see they were only coming down to get water at one one of the water tanks near the fields (and to give one of the horses a cuddle!)

They showed us the way to the camp.

The survivors had found all they needed to survive the night on the mountain. A tarpaulin, food and some tools that may be useful. Their camp looked well organised and each one knew their duties. The Pilots (dads) were "injured" and unable to perform any duties around the camp....at one point, the survivors thought it may be a good idea to do them in so they didn't eat all the food!

Some were in charge of the shelter, others gathering the food and cooking, others were making spoons out of bamboo and still others cutting grass for a more comfortable nights sleep. Z took one look at this and pleaded to stay. As Eric was there to keep an eye on him, I agreed. He was ecstatic and soon joined in with all the fun. My sister and I left for a more civilised evening down on the farm. (We were treated to a wonderful dinner at the main farm house and had a long night chatting and catching up! It was wonderful!)

The survivors headed off to the reservoir for a swim but there was not enough water for a swim...

They made their way to a shower under one of the centre pivots used to irrigate the crops....

As darkness fell,

the survivors gathered around the camp fire and ate lamb chops,skewered marrows and honeyed apricots (gathered from the land) and potjie . They roasted marshmallows and told scary stories. Some of the older children chose to sleep under the stars and saw a magnificent meteor shower of more than 100 shooting stars. Jackals were close by and the dogs and jackals were barking at one another all night long. Not much sleep was had by the survivors and many were up and warming themselves by the campfire from about 02h00 until first light....

Breakfast was bread made on the fire and was gobbled down with cheese and some hot chocolate.Exhausted survivors hiked over to the dam for an early morning swim before the

long walk back over the farm lands and towards some civilization.....

Worn out, but happy survivors crashed at various stages during the day....

Our First Day

OK, there are just SO many photos to choose from and I had difficulty doing this post without adding too many. So much so, that this is one of two posts about our first day here....

On Saturday morning there was great excitement as the children got ready to leave on the Arctic Wolf Adventure Camp organised by my sisters husband. It was a simulated plane crash in the mountains on the farm and the children were the survivors. Children from the farm joined in as well as children from the surrounding towns. There were 15 in total, ranging from 6 to 14 years old. They were allowed to take a change of clothes, a towel and a blanket. Poor Z could not join in as he has to be careful with his collar bone for 6 weeks.

The girls were delighted to all be reunited as they have all been looking forward to being together on the farm.

The survivors set off, all piled in and onto the bakkie. It was a short drive from the cottage and then they were dumped on the farm road and their fun began. I was surprised that Eric chose to join in and spend the night with them. That left my sister and me with Z who was somewhat sad not to be going with all the other kiddies.

After tea and a chat at the main farm house we took him to see the foals. They are so beautiful!

We drove out into the orchards.....we saw the biggest dandelions ever and we picked and ate the juiciest white peaches straight from the tree....a taste that is indescribable! Z picked and ate them too and exclaimed that they were the best peaches he had ever had in his life (he has only ever eaten canned peaches!)

We picked and ate yellow desert peaches too. The trees are so laden with fruit that the branches are breaking under the weight of the fruit.

We stopped to admire the golden wheat which will soon be ready to harvest. The Free State sky was magnificent and the sun was beating down upon us....much later we measured a temperature of 33 degrees in the shade!

Before the sun became too much to handle we stopped for my sister to pick some apricots from the trees and for Z to see the baby marrows in the fields.

We came back to cottage for lunch and a dip in the neighbours kiddies pool. The two little girls that live there are just the sweetest little things! They frequently knock at the door of the cottage to see what is going on and seek out the company of my sisters children.

We decided that we needed to check on the survivors and that it would be good for Z to see where they were and what they were up to.....that requires another post of its own.

The journey

K helping me to close one of the cases.

We woke at 03h00 and loaded up the car and were gone by 04h00. The journey went well.We made a number of stops for coffee and at about 09h30 a stop for breakfast come lunch. The children coped really well with the journey .We played games, listened to some cds and enjoyed the story of the "The Horse and His Boy". It seemed as if we didnt stop eating all day with all the treats that we had for the journey.

Z looking like a fly with huge compound eyes!

The landscapes were amazing. The contrast between the Little Karroo and the Eastern Free State is huge. The land was dotted with windmills everywhere.The highlight of the journey was crossing the Orange River. We had read and learned about this major river in our studies earlier this year. It was amazing to see it....

A windmill at one of our loo stops.

The Orange River.

We got frequent calls from my sister to check where we were on our journey. Just after Hobhouse she said we had an hour and half to go.....I wanted to cry as I thought it was only 1 more hour. Thankfully it was just one more hour and we were welcomed by excited children who showed us the way to the cottage.It was amazing to finally be on the farm and at my sisters home. She prepared an amazing meal for us and we all flopped into bed for a well deserved sleep.

All Set

All the bags are packed and ready to go, the children are sleeping and so is hubby. The house sitter has the car and the house keys and Father Christmas has come in various forms to drop off gifts for the Woods all day....

We are about to set off on our cross country adventure! Thanks to my clever sister I have a bag full of tricks for the car. She has done long road trips many times and gave me a myriad of ideas. Ther are games to play, a map to mark the towns off with stickers, gifts to open thanks to Aunty Tam and yummy treats to eat thanks to Oma, stories to listen to on cd thanks to Aunty Tess. We know we have been covered in prayer too, thanks to my prayer warrior Mum and her hubby. There are cds with our old favourites like Abba and Lionel Ritchie and Casting Crowns and some of the kids and Erics favourites. We feel so loved by all those who have helped us to make this long car trip a pleasant one!

The countdown...

We counting down the days for our trip....seemingly endless to do lists are being worked through and the final plans and packing are about to happen....

J has diligently been finishing off his work and he wrote his final science test achieving an overall aggregate of 94% for his science course this year. He has a little reading to complete and then he is done! Z has some outings to record and K has a little research to do for her Kids Literature Club.Then it is all over and the holidays are truly here!

As we wont be seeing my brother and his wife over Christmas, they invited us to join them for a braai last night. We had a wonderful evening together.

He and his wife have such green fingers and whatever they grow just seems to do so well! These sunflowers are just magnificent! They have all sorts of vegetables growing too.

My tactile defensive boy did not enjoy the feeling of the wire head massager....it is the same face he pulled the first time he ate baby food.....I on the other hand could enjoy this treatment for hours!

We enjoyed a fantastic meal together in the garden and it was a real treat not to have to cook!

Christmas Carols

There is one thing I really enjoy at Christmas and that is going to carols by candlelight. Tonight we enjoyed a delicious picnic and carol service at St Luke's.

There is something special about this particular service and lighting of the massive tree.The lights are in remembrance of those who are no longer with us. I always think of my paternal grandparents and remember them fondly. This year we also remembered a good friend of ours who spent his last days here in 2005 as well as my friends son who died just 2 months ago.So though there may be sadness when remembering loved ones, we know that we are never without Gods light and love.

A large children's choir sang beautifully and some meaningful words were spoken. We were reminded to show our love to those that are with us and share our love with one another every day.

Mother and son enjoying the picnic.

Our children have fond memories of coming to the lighting of this tree.It is something we have done since J was about 2 or 3 but we missed the last couple of years.

The boys donned their Christmas hats and had a great time!

Our special friends.

Daddy and his girl

It is just amazing how brightly these lights shine! Just after dark, there is a count down to the turning on of the lights. The look on the little children's faces is priceless.

A relaxed enjoyable evening was had by all and a perfect start to the Christmas season!