It finally feels like home

I’ve said this several times over the past few months that this has truly been one of the hardest times of our lives. Whilst it has also been the most exciting time with us building our first home together is has at the same time been a real adjustment financially with me halving my salary, Rich travelling a lot and also me moving into a work environment that has been quite different!

But over the past two weeks we have settled into a little bit of normality and it has really started to feel good. Don’t get me wrong I have NEVER doubted our move but I have wondered where we’d have been had we not have moved.

Two weeks ago we had a really busy weekend. We had Daniel’s teddy bears picnic with school after church and then we took our very tired bundle home for a sleep. Then we went off to a braai with friends from church….. and you know what? IT ROCKED! The whole frikking weekend just rocked.

I say it again it has been such a wonder and joy to be part of CCNC our church. Not in the 9 years I was in JHB did I have that sense of community and friendship that we have had in the short time we’ve been a part of CCNC. Whilst my dad was sick in Feb the prayers were unbelievable and the offers of food etc. THAT is what a church is about! It about having a family away from family. And of course there’s the amazing benefit that Rich after us being together for 9 years is finally worshiping with me and it’s because he feels comfortable and he too feels the sense of community and that’s awesome!

Last weekend was super awesome too. We went out for supper with Daniel’s “girlfriend” Lilly’s parents and on Saturday I played Action netball with the mom’s from our school.

We got our asses kicked but it was helluva fun (I couldn’t walk for three days kinda fun ;)) Then we rushed off for an impromptu date night Daddy Abs and me and went to watch my home rubgy team The Sharks play the Lions.

This weekend we having people over for a braai. I’m unfortunately having to work the morning tomorrow but then I’m done for the week.

So yah it finally feels like we have a little bit of life and it feels really good.

In other news our plans are ready to be submitted to council. So fingers crossed and lots of prayers that they sail through and that we can start building by May.  All Very exciting!!!

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2013 A summary

 

Wow where has this year gone I thought to myself as I settled down to write this. Then I went through my posts and all of the sudden it wasn’t “Where has the year gone” but FLIPPING HELL ITS BEEN A BIG YEAR!!!!

If you don’t have time here’s the shorts version: Moved cities, moved house, unpacked rental house, bought land, New job, Daniel turned two. I’m exhausted!!!!!!!

If you have a little time here it is in a slightly longer version….

So over Christmas last year we seriously contemplated moving back to the coast. It was always in our bigger plan, but something we had always hoped to do in our 40’s. All of a sudden we found ourselves asking, WHY? Why only in our 40’s why not now? Then it all happened. Rich found a job in two weeks, we sold our house in 7 days and the reality hit. We were moving back to Durban.

What followed was a hectic time for the family. Even though we had a relatively smooth ride it still took its toll on the family and there was quite a large deal of stress placed on my shoulders…but I survived, us women are made of tough stuff  🙂

In February I headed down for the weekend to Durbs to chat to a couple of people regarding jobs and also for a few interviews. We also got to walk on our new land that we had recently bought and start the dream of the house we will build in 2014.

Moving cities is no joke and it came with lots of roller-coaster material. There are quite a few rambling about my time over these months which you can read here.

April proved to be the hardest month as Rich left us and headed down in his packed-to-the-brim car to start his new job in Durbs.

Empty cupboards I came home to….was horrid 😦

 

This meant six weeks of single parenting and Daniel battled a bit. What’s with kids that the minute they are going through something they DON’T SLEEP! Daniel did a bit of this.

April was also the month of Easter and this saw us getting a visit from Rich’s folks. It was lovely to spend a few quality days with them.

May was moving month and came with much stress, box packing and bittersweet goodbyes. We had a lovely photoshoot with our friends as well which rounded off the month well.

It again came with its stresses though as up until 10 days before we were due to leave we didn’t know if we had a place to live. But mom eventually found us a lovely place to live and things fell into place. In between that was a rushed and unplanned trip to Durbs again for a long weekend as I had finally gotten a bite on my CV. I interviewed with a company that looked set to offer me and then it went completely cold. Looking back tho it’s funny how things work because it would’ve been the worst thing ever ….more about that later.

31st May the trucks arrived and carted our belongings to Durban. We stayed with friends the night before and in the early hours of the morning of the 1st June we bid the city of smoke farewell.

Last JHB sunset

5th June was a sad day for our family, as my sister’s Dad passed away. Sal and Mally have been family friends for many years, even before Morne and Kels met. So we too felt as though we’d lost not only a friend but a family member too.

July was an eventful month….

I finally had another interview for a position very close to home.  This after a few months of stressing. And 10 days later I was finally given the call to say I had the Job as the new marketing manager at the Umhlali Country Club.

I had a serious scare in the middle of July. After eating a piece of Dorado at a restaurant I ended up in hospital with a serious allergic reaction. Apparently Dorado is incredible dangerous to eat from the amount of histamines that are produced if the fish are not properly chilled from the time of capture to processing and consumption.

This raised some serious concerns about my health as I had been chronically tired for a few weeks. I headed off to my sister for her to do an analysis. She raised some concerns about my stress level and also thyroid etc and also picked up that I had somehow picked up a hepatitis at some point. So I was off to the health shop and loaded myself with all sorts of things and I’m please to say I’m back to perfect health.

The Drakensburg couldn’t have come at a better time and we headed up to the beautiful mountains for some rest and relaxation . My in law’s joined us . It was lovely to see them again as we had last seen them over Easter.

At the end of July I headed up to JHB to hand over my projects. I relished in the fact I could lie in a bath , get room service and go to bed early.

August I started at the club. What an amazing place to work, not only is it beautiful but it beats the cr@p out of working in corporates. 🙂 It has also been such an amazing and rewarding role as I’m able to really add value here and also see the fruits of my labour on a daily basis

September our little Ginger turned 2. Again I was so thrilled how things had worked job wise as I was able to go to his birthday ring at school.

I’ve said it before. It’s such an incredible privilege to watch a little person grow up. We also had an aeroplane party for Daniel with a few friends and family.

In October I couldn’t take the heat anymore and chopped my long hair off. I’m considerably cooler now 🙂 We also decided not to wait on the house build and engaged an architect (who we subsequently fired due to him being a moron – sadly after paying him R8000). So we have now appointed our second architects and yesterday saw the first draft of our new plans 🙂 So it looks like 2014 is gonna be a another big year!!!

November has been a really busy month for both Rich and I. Richard working for an ad agency has been incredibly busy and working long hours. I have also been very busy at the club.

December got even more crazy with me practicing for the Carol Service tonight. We also decided to put Daniel into a big bed which has been largely successful.

And here we are 5 days before Christmas. Family arrive in 2 sleeps 🙂 And I go on leave in one more week Whoop Whoop!

So there’s not much more to say than Merry Christmas. I hope you have a very blessed Christmas and New Year and may 2014 be nothing but awesome!

Growing up

The advantage of the Ginger growing up is that every week are able to do more and more with him. And as always it is such a treasure to be able to share in these moments of wonderment and amazement as my Ginger does something for the first time.

Two weeks ago we went to the Animal Farm and Daniel got to ride a pony. This wasn’t his first ride however his first ride he was a little overwhelmed and this time round he really enjoyed it.
He is still talking about “The pony” three weeks on so it’s a good thing that we are off to another animal farm (this time in Assegai) for a birthday party this weekend.

We also visited friends in Kloof last weekend. It’s a 140km round trip so its the kind of pack your flask or coffee and sarmies kind of trip. But it’s lovely that Daniel and Tayla got to see each other. Tayla is 5 days older than Daniel and you could see they were the same age because in terms maturity they just got on like a house on fire. Except when Daniel leaned in for a hug….Tayla was having none of that!

Bath time was especially fun though and there were many bubbles on the floor! 

Last weekend was by far my highlight of the past few weeks thought. We got to take Daniel to his first movie. There was a brief moment in the beginning where it was touch and go and he wanted to leave but he soon settled and watched right until the credits.

This was followed by Macdonalds another first. He was in awe!!!

The Ginger just amazes me with how quickly he is growing and developing. In many respects he is becoming so much easier as he is able to communicate better what he wants. Getting older does come with it challenges though but I am implementing the 1…2…3… magic principle which seems to be working well.

We have also sort of started potty training. Last weekend was our first weekend. We are taking is slowly and there is no pressure. Daniel has shown the interest so we thought we’d take the bull by the horns and give it a go. Whole new dimension there!

It’s insane how quickly they grow up…..

Think of me, think of me fondly

Tomorrow I’m gonna ask that the God’s shine down on me, as I’m going for an interview.
Can you believe it. Second interview after 6 months of looking. THAT’S how dead the market is in Durbs!

The job’s paying peanuts….. like 2/3 of my current salary peanuts, but does boasts perks of being 3km from home and comes with much less pressure than the corporate world.

Look, I have to get the job first, but if I do I’m going to take. Hey, better having some money coming in than none! It’s funny because I’m actually really excited about the role (as it stands on paper ) I really think I could add great value as hopefully I’ve learnt a thing or two in my ten years experience. The thing that excites me most is that I will really be able to put my stamp on something again and proudly be able to say: “I did that” Not that I’m fishing for complements but one of the hardest things I’ve had to deal with in my current role is that I’m a nobody and really leave my job everyday feeling like I’ve added no value other than being the kippie (aka loser ) that was prepared to sit and audit a document system or prepare internal comms for the organisation. It’s been a really hard year to go from being the marketing manager of 16 well renowned and successful eyewear brands to the paper pusher/PA/person who will do all the kak jobs. And don’t get me wrong I’m the first person to roll up my sleeves and get my hands dirty….just miss having my opinion count and being someone whose opinion is respected as something of value….

But moving on…..hopefully in a few weeks 🙂

This excitement comes on the back of a great really busy weekend. So busy that both daddy Abs and I have said no more! Well for this weekend at least Saturday was a friends baby shower and Sunday it was church in the morning , followed by the beach and then a braai with friends in the afternoon. But it’s required. If we’re going to make friends we are going to have to make an effort to meet people and this means going for braais etc. We have however said this weekend is a family chill weekend and hopefully will be spent on the beach with the Ginger.

Keep your fingers and toes crossed for tomorrow. All of you!!! 8:30am….think of me!

2012 in Summary….

It’s been another busy year for us and of course filled with lots of exciting times and of course some big milestones. If you want to catch up on the long versions of the goings on of the Abdo’s you can click on the any of the links below, otherwise here is the concise version…..well as concise as I can be.

The year started relatively slowly for me as I was still on maternity leave, but soon the 23^rd January was up and I headed back to Moscon Optics. VERY HARD DAY and I won’t lie there were a few tears.

We settled nicely into the whole working thing and our first milestone arrived in mid Feb with the appearance our first two toofies. This didn’t come without any bumps in the road and we were soon to find out Daniel is a SHOCKING teether!!!

We also had some bumps with our first crèche experience and after a few nasty incidents we pulled Daniel from the crèche and moved him to Toddlers Inn just around the corner from us.

February was a very special month with family and friends as we Baptised Daniel. It was a beautiful day and one we will always remember.

March loomed all too quickly and we felt the toll of the year already starting. Lack of sleep and adjusting to our new dynamic led us to book a trip to Dullstroom for the weekend. It was so great to get out of Johannesburg and recharge the batteries.

April was yet another big month for me as I left Moscon Optics after almost four years and moved into the financial services game at Investec Private Bank. I’m still however in Marketing.

Rich continued to be really busy and has had a really successful year in starting up the digital arm of Timesquare called Humannode.

The long weekend in April we also had a visit from Granny and Grandpa. They hadn’t seen Daniel since Christmas so they saw quite a change in him. He was sitting beautifully and was starting to tease us with crawling. We also cut the top four teeth over those 5/6 days. Not pretty.

We have really battled with Daniel and his sleeping and after several chest infections we decided to go down to Durbs at the end of July for my sister to test him and see what was up. In the meantime Daniel had been trying to crawl for about 3 months without much luck and so I decided to try cranio sacral therapy. It was amazing the difference we experienced immediately and that weekend in Durbs Daniel started crawling.

August was a rouge month! At the beginning of August we said goodbye to one of the most amazing men you’d ever that the priviledge of meeting. My uncle Kevin died of a heart-attack and marked the 7th relative I’ve buried in 2 years!! We had a proper send off in true Wynne style and did him proud with the red wine we drank in honour of him. I’ll still battle to crack a bottle of Roodeberg without thinking of my special soppies, he is going to be missed for many years to come.

Through all this my dad hadnt been feeling so well and was battling to catch his breath. With Uncle Kev’s sudden death he didnt really have time to tend to it and upon his return from the funeral set off to see cardiologist. Turned out he was a walking time bomb and two days later was booked in for a triple bypass!! It was a hairy few days but he made it through the surgery and is recovering really well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At the end of August after the month we’d had it was time for a break and  we headed out to Dunkeld Country Estate for the weekend. Again it was in Dullstroom and we had such an amazing weekend with Daniel.

September was another Milestone month as we celebrated Daniel’s first birthday. It amazing how this year has flown and before we knew it our house was filled with friends and many kids playing in the ball bond. Still cant believe how quickly he is growing and changing and the fact that he’s already 1!!

The next two months were hard! Daniel started cutting his Molars and for two months we battled with sleep and our poor guy was seriously miserable. This all culminated in yet another ear infection with finally ended us up at the ENT and Daniel was booked in for grommets. Through all of this Daniel has become really mummified and so I ended up having to go into theatre with him. It was not easy but the difference has been incredible.

Those months were not all doom and gloom and amongst the sleepless nights I was treated one day when I arrived at crèche and Daniel walked across the room to me. Very big proud mommy moment.

End of October saw Rich’s birthday approaching and we jet setted to East London to go and see his family. As always, weekends away are so short and the red eye flight, first thing in the morning, always looks like a good idea when you book it, but it ISNT!!

November saw Daniel and I heading down to Durban to see my family as Rich was away on his Boys Tour Golf weekend. I’m very proud of my hubby who won golf tour for the second year in a row! My weekend was not as pleasant as Daniel got the nasty bug going around which he promptly passed onto Rich and myself. It was began with him vomiting all over me on the plane!!! I’ll leave it at that!!!

November was all about shows and theatre. We were able to go and see Dirty Dancing with friends of ours. Whilst it will never beat Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey in the movie, it was still an amazing show.

Then a bunch of us girls got together and headed for the spectacle that was Gaga! WOW! It was quite the show and I must say was speechless in parts, and if you know me, I’m not often speechless!!

And here we are….December!

How did we blink and this year just disappeared? It has sure as hell been a whirlwind and we are looking to a well deserved rest down at the coast for three weeks.

We wish you all well over the festive season and for those that are travelling, be safe and we’ll catch up in the new year.

Big lesson in Technology Failure

So after a week of very unusual silence I sms’d my person asking her if we should get the Groupon  at Vikrams Banjaara and maybe leave the kids at home one Friday and go for a good curry. I LOVE  Vikrams Banjaara  in Lonehill. We have tried a few places for curry and this is still my favourite place. Not cheap hence the enticing offer from Groupon

I got no response….

Then I sms’d her later in the day about something arb and got no response….
Then that evening I sms’d her and asked her if everything was ok. She’s a pilot so when she’s flying there are often days when we don’t speak. But you must know this lady LOVES her phone and it’s ALWAYS on when she’s not flying!!!!

I got no response…..

So it the next morning I called her phone and it was off and then I got worried so I called her hubby a little concerned only to hear that she was there with him but sleeping.

*cue pi$$ed off *

I was livid, I had sms’d her over 7 times with no response and called three times and after sending her the ‘are you ok sms’ the night before I figured even if she’d been busy the least she could do is say ‘I’m busy but ok’!!!!

So I sms’d her and said just that… I was pissed and that I was tired of trying to communicate with her and getting no bloody response plus I was tired from lying awake wondering what the hell was going on?
Shortly after that I got a response!

She’d never gotten any of my sms’d or phonecalls. So I called her and we had a chat. There was nothing wrong, it was literally just a case of ‘broken telephone’
Funny now, but I was really angry at the time

I saw a social media preso at work yesterday and there was a stat that said : 1 in 5 divorces are blamed on Facebook   And it got me thinking how the world is changing, and in some ways not necessarily for the good. Here was a scenario that was really just a technology failure and I’m sure not a unique situation. But because of the reliance I had placed on it, the emotional turmoil that it had caused and the lack of sleep that night was not cool. It was negative energy that I really didn’t need in my life.
Made me realise how important it is to COMMUNICATE, and by that I mean IN PERSON. Too much is left up to technology to convey and that I believe is wrong. I know we all lead very busy lives but I still think that touching base with those that matter in person every now and again is essential and cannot be done over sms.
And at the risk of sounding like a granny, sometimes doing things the old fashioned way is not such a bad idea.

Feed my soul

Today I was on a team strat session. We did story telling where everyone got to share a bit more about themselves. I was privileged to be a part of that and most importantly realised just how close we are as a team already. I’m very blessed to be in a team that is living my ‘everyday’ and REALLY gets it when I say I’m tired!

So this marks my second night ever away from the Ginger and whilst my heart broke when I skyped him this evening to say goodnight, I knew this was just what I needed.

You have to know how excited I am at the prospect of 8hrs of sleep that I took a photo of my bed!!!

This also describes how much a night away means to me.

Yet even tho I’m excited at the sleep prospect I’m reminded at how much my life has changed. It’s so profoundly different to what it was 10mths ago and as much I am loving these soft white pillows tonight I will miss the familiar comfortable shoulder blade of Daddy Abs as I snuggle up to him in bed and tomorrow I won’t get my morning melt-your-heart smile from the Ginger.

But tomorrow however I will be recharged and look forward to an awesome weekend just the 3 of us.

Fun in the park

It was a chilled weekend. The Ginger is teething and was running a temp so we just took it easy. I finally managed to break the temp and while daddy was playing golf I decided to get him some fresh air and visited Aunty Sal and took a walk to the park.

It was Dan’s first time in a sandpit and he just loved it and the fresh air really seemed to help.

He is such a trooper and such a resilient little guy. Turns out he has another ear infection (hence the temp) and was back at the doc this morning…. Makes it so hard to know when he’s Ill cos he is so happy all of the time and when he’s miz it’s only when he’s really Ill.

Let’s hope this round of muti helps

Change is as good as a holiday….We need a holiday

So here we are…. new content, new things to say and in a new way!

I figured that along with all the other stuff I have to do , it would be a good idea to now write a blog to keep you updated on our lives 🙂

Jokes aside I had a long think about how pathetic I’ve been in keeping up with friends and family over the past year and half and saw that on average I was only keeping in touch twice a year. So I decided that this would be the best way to keep in touch and also update you on the going on of Rich, Myself and of course our newest (or now not so new) member our family….Daniel.

Plus it actually far easier to write more regularly that to try and sit and remember what we’ve done over the past 6 months (we’re THAT busy you know ;))

So here’s to Change….which is as good as holiday….which we also desperately need

Busy Weekend

This weekend was packed with stuff! And the best stuff was that is was packed with stuff that we dont usually do…..

On Friday evening we had our dinner club and for a change we did something really interesting. We managed to fit in with The Forum’s underground dinners, that are held once a month in Turbine Hall.

It was a set menu and the food was delicious. What a unique experience!

As usual it was a great evening and a chance to catch up with friends that we don’t see on a regular basis. It was also a double celebration in that Dave turned 32.

Saturday morning saw me pack myself off to the spa with my dear friend Zoe, where I indulged in a back massage, facial and pedi.

It was all over too quickly and my normal rushing paced resumed as we headed off to the Jozi Market for the Beer Fest.

Daniel was an angel and interacted with anybody that even looked his way. Then he collapsed in a heap for a 20 minutes to recharge when it all became too much.

Of course he was introduced to his first sip of beer, courtesy of Daddy Abs and was very put out when he was refused any more.

All in all is was a great day in the sun with friends and was really nice to do something out of the ordinary.