Changes in diet #60

So my trip to the USA was first to renew my Green Card, which expires in 10 years... so that is how long I have it...

Did you know that I won my green card through a lottery? You can do that as well, see my picture below and google it, every year I filed for the lottery and my 4th year I won! That was also the year I did it through a lawyer, maybe a coincedent, but you can't affort to make 1 simple mistake in filling in the form, because that will disqualify you. So my advice is if you want to pursue go through a lawyer who specializes in this field. The money is worth it!!



To do this you also need updated biometrics in your file, which expires... believe it or not every 15 months!! I thought finger prints never change?? I still don't get why this is done??

So after I got approved for a new Green Card... I am waiting for that confirmation. They will send me an invitation to do my Biometrics (fingerprints)... I need to do that in the USA in person as well... so you get the idea??

In about 30 to 90 days I can expect to get an invitation to go the US immigration office, that can be done in a lot of locations in the USA, and now a days in some countries outside the US. But I doubt that that will be the case for South Africa, it is not on the list where the USA immigration would put a priority for such an expensive equipment.

So that probably means I need to go to the USA again in 30-90 days....

But at least I can keep my Green card updated for another 2 years... pfew, it seems long another 2 years, but you know what the last time I did it 2 years ago seemed like yesterday!

Another reason, which I added later to make my trip a bit more useful than just go for the Green card, although it is very important to me, I am buying loads of stuff for my new diet I am going to follow. Since the fluid diet I like to follow to give my weight loss a kick in the butt and this diet comes from the USA all the products are easy to buy in the USA, but NOT in South Africa. So I thought I will buy the protein shakes and vitamins and diet supplements in the USA for the first 2 months and then if I haven't lost enough yet to get going, I will see if I can buy other brands that have the same results.

Another thing I am planning to do is... already for quite a while now, but everytime I chicken out, because I am scared of operations... is getting a hysterectomy. I have severe endometriosis and lately it is getting worse. My hormones are out of whack, I have more and more pain again.

And then I am thinking I probably loose some more weigth after I get my hysterectomy, at least that is what quite a few friends told me... we will see! This I will not do of course to loose weight, but more to get my health in order as I wrote in the beginning of the year as my New Year's resolution.



The liquid diet is also a good detox system, and since I do one detox every year, mostly in spring, or in the first few months of the year, since in South Africa it will be fall instead of spring, but that doesn't matter really. A detox once a year is always good, especially to get your body in a kick start for a diet.

So wish me luck in getting my renewed Green Card and in my pursue to loose those unwanted kilos!!
Enjoy your day!
Mireille

Hard time... #59

I had such a hard time to enter the USA....

Every time when I come in, it almost pisses them off...

That's because I have a Green Card, and I don't live in the USA...

That fact really pisses them off...

And the guy at Homeland affairs, I always need to go to this special office at the airport, when I need to update my paper work.

This time I was there to renew my Green Card, it is expired after 10 years and get a new re-entry permit.

Oh the guy really intimidated me... with info like: You have a green card, but you don't live here, don't work here, don't own property here and don't pay taxes here... well, the last 2 are not true, but of course he was NOT interested in my response...

My situation is almost like an Military family, they don't work IN the USA, but that doesn't mean they work FOR the USA. Same here, we are not physical in the USA, but we still work kind of for the USA.

So he gave me a hard time and totally intimidated me with big words, loud voice and stern face!

But I got through, got my re-entry permit anyway and are filing for my new Green card and hoping that it all works out and I can leave again with the paper work done with.

So today I have time for some shopping, since I did all the filing of the paper work, and now I am just waiting for them to confirm that they have received it....

This is the mall I am hanging out today, it has these huge boots in front of Saks 5th Avenue, maybe I should buy the girls some boots like this??



So hanging out in the mall, wandering around, doing a bit of shopping... have nothing else to do besides waiting for my paperwork to get processed and getting a confirmation that this is done, so I can leave again.

A bore...

But somebody has to do it!

I miss my girls and my hubby, hope they are doing well. I am not often without them!!
Hope the days will fly by....

Ciao,
Mireille xx

San Antonio #58

Arrived and well...

Not much to tell yet, getting over my jet lag....

Need to do loads of paperwork for my Green Card....

Go to UPS store, copy, fax and posting to do...

Back soon with more!

Miss my girls and hubby already....

Love, M xx

In the air #57

OK, I am in the air while you are reading this.

Flying from Johannesburg to Atlanta to San Antonio.



That means that I left the house at 6 pm on Saturday FEB 25th and will arrive in the hotel in San Antonio on Sunday FEB 26th around NOON.

I don't like these long flights!! It screws up your body!! Your internal clock!!

Distance from San Antonio to Johannesburg is: 9144.1 Miles = ( 14716 Kilometers / 7940.7 Nautical Miles )

Approximate flight duration time from San Antonio to Johannesburg is 18 hrs, 59 mins.

Time difference between Johannesburg, South Africa and San Antonio, Texas USA is: -8:0 hrs

Johannesburg is 8:0 hours ahead of San Antonio. That means when it is 8:00 am in San Antonio, it is 4:00 pm in Johannesburg

Then think about not only time difference and the tiredness you have from flying and being locked up in the air so long, the temperature difference between San Antonio and Johannesburg is luckily not that BIG. Actually this week it is almost the same, about 19C = 66F.

That's why I didn't want to fly to NEW YORK CITY!!

I have my Kindle, Iphone, Laptop and Ipad with me, so I don't need to be deprived of being out of touch... how did we do that 10 years ago??

Happy Sunday!
Mireille xx

getting ready... #56

I am flying today to the USA...

But only in the evening...

So today...

I am packing my suitcase...

Giving Dirk, the girls and the helper instructions...

Making some pre-cooked meals, so the girls and Dirk don't need to deprive and eat frozen Woolies meals....

Preparing some lunches and clothing sets, so the girls look decent at school....

Making a list of "not to forget"....

Make sure there is enough of everything in the house... like toilet paper, shampoo, fruit, milk, bread, cheese, to make it short: make sure the pantry is filled to the brim, so nobody needs to go hungry or thirsty or cranky!

Mentally preparing my girls for the fact that they need to grow up a bit this week and take a bit more responsibility of themselves since mommy is not here!....

What a mother has to do when she leaves the house for a few days, is so much more complicated than when a guy leaves....

Dirk just leaves, he only needs to pack his own suitcase, doesn't need to worry about anything else...

My mind is overflowing... is everything organized for them while I am gone???

The whole time thinking... about my list in my mind, since I don't write lists really....

It's a bit blurry up in my head...

But I have confidence in my hubby and my girls, that everything will just go fine!!


What do you do when you have to leave the house for a few days, are you letting it all go or worry??

Have a wonderful Saturday! Next time I will be in a different time zone!!
Mireille xx

Curly girl #55

The girls had crazy hair day at school again. I took some pictures of the in-the-making-process, but not of the end result :-(

Juliet knew exactly how she wanted it... like she had her hair at Halloween, maybe you remember?? A lot of kids thought it was a wig, because Juliet and Jasmine have such a straight hair. But I found a way to make it so curly, even the texture of the hair seems to change, it is really really curly when you do it this way.

For the crazy hair day, Juliet had it like this, without the make up and the rest of course, just the curls. Jasmine decided to attach all different colors of hair extensions and make it a bit more wild.



So here's my tip to change your child's hair for the day!

You wash it, and then take small strands of hair, I divide her hair in half and each half I take 10 strands, so 20 in total. Then I turn and turn the strands of hair very tightly, keep turning and then you wrap it into a little pile and secure it with a hair elastic.

When all 20 are done, I blow dry it a bit and let her sleep with the curly knots for the whole night. Make sure it is dry before you take out the curls, otherwise it will be all gone very fast.

Take out the elastic bands and uncurl the hair and try to brush it a bit to make it wild, it looks honestly like she has natural curls.





After a shower it's all gone!!

Just curls for a day!

Fun to look different for just a day, but when I asked JJ if she would have liked to have curly hair, she said she rather not... it is so hard to comb ;-)

Glad they like themselves the way they are!!

Mission accomplished... the "I love me" which I wrote about a few days ago is working :-)

Enjoy your Friday, what are your plans for the weekend??
I am flying to the USA tomorrow for my green card extension, so Dirk and the girls are home alone for a whole week.
I will see if I can blog while I am there... going to try!!

Ciao, M xx

Carnaval in Rio!! #54

Carnaval in Rio!!

A.M.A.Z.I.N.G.!!

This year I have to do with just looking at these fabulous pictures...

BUT

NEXT YEAR... I will be THERE!!

I am planning to go with my good friend Candice, and I hope that Marta & Tehmina will be there as well, as some other local friends who are planning to join us...

JUST US GIRLS!!

Dressed like these girls :-)



And we will be sitting in one of these boxes... see we have connections :-)



It will be A.W.E.S.O.M.E.!!



One year to prep our bodies to get into shape to dress in feathers... I better start working serious on this!!



But if you are celebrating Carnaval in Rio, you better get dressed in fancy feathers!! And walk the parade!!



Dirk wants to go to, but we only want girls... so he has to form a boys group and enjoy, he can be on one side of town while we celebrate on the other side of town... or he stays in Joburg and watches the kids....



We haven't figured that out yet... but have a whole year to plan :-)



BUT... I AM GOING!!



See you next year in Rio ISIS!!
Get your feathers ready :-)

Pictures from LA TIMES.

We can celebrate together!!
Love, M xx

Margarita Day #53

I was driving home yesterday when I heard on the radio that today is National Margarita day in the USA.

OK, after Pancake day.... Margarita day is even BETTER!!

Since it is Wednesday and I have my cooking classes, today is Chinese take-away made at home, with dishes like Sweet & Sour pork, Beef Broccoli, Fried Rice and a Chinese raspberry snowflake cake. My homemade drink will be Blueberry Mint Lemonade and then for lunch I'll add tequila and triple sec to it, to make it a tasty MARGARITA!! Normally I don't serve alcohol... so this will be an extra treat!



Here a little know-how I found on the net....

February 22, 2012 is National Margarita Day
Hey tequila lovers -- it's National Margarita Day! There are dozens of people who claim to be the creator of the first margarita drink. One of whom is a bartender named Willie from Mexico City. He says that in 1934 he concocted the drink for his friend, Marguerite Hemery (whom he named the drink after).

Salvador Negrete is another man who claims to be the inventor of margaritas. The day before his brother's marriage in 1936, Salvador presented the margarita cocktail as a wedding present to Margarita (his sister-in-law). There are various other stories of the drink's invention, but the true identity of the tequila master remains unknown.



To celebrate National Margarita Day, invite some friends over to make your own margarita bar. Set up a potluck for each person to bring ice, tequila, and different margarita flavors. Don't forget the limes!

So since I posted this blog so early in the morning, you still have PLENTY of time to invite your friends and have a Margarita potluck tonight!!

Go for it, and let me know how it went!
Also some nice tips of which margarita is your favorite, to give ME some ideas are welcome :-)

Cheers!
Mireille xx

Pancake Day #52

Today is Shrove Tuesday (also known as Pancake Day) is the day preceding Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent.

Shrove Tuesday is observed in English-speaking countries, especially in Ireland, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Philippines, Germany and parts of the United States. Shrove Tuesday is linked to Easter therefore its date changes on an annual basis.

I had never heard of this (maybe because I am not a native speaking English person?), but saw some comments on FB and thought it was quite a funny tradition.

In most traditions the day is known for the eating of pancakes before the start of lent. Pancakes are eaten as they are made out of the main foods available, sugar, fat, flour and eggs, whose consumption was traditionally restricted during the ritual fasting associated with Lent.

Since I like this cute tradition, I will serve pancakes today for dinner. People in the Netherlands actually eat a lot of pancakes, we have tons of Pancake restaurants in the country, more than any other country I have been to... so why don't I know about this pancake day?? I still have no clue!!

But anyway... at those pancake restaurants in the Netherlands you can get 100 kinds of different pancakes. The Dutch ones are large, and you can get savory or sweet toppings like: apples, bacon, mushrooms, cherries, just sugar and cinnamon and the list can go on and on.



So are you planning to eat pancakes today?? I made 2 versions: Bacon & Apple with maple syrup, Spinach & Feta cheese, so yummy!!
Let's make it all a tradition and share what version you had, a sweet one or savory??

Good day!
Mireille

Greece or Bali?? #51

I am in dubio....

Where shall I go for the 10 week summer break in June/July when it is here winter! So I want to get away say 8 weeks.

Greece or Bali??





When I think about Greece, I think about the Acropolis in Athens, Ancient theaters, Greek Archeology & Mythology, the Greek islands like Santorini, Mykonos with their gorgeous beaches. Greek food like olives, feta, seafood, souvlakia, ouzo, retsina, baklava, moussaka, spanakopita etc.



I could take some cooking classes and renew my Greek food knowledge! We used to live on Rhodes before, so I am familiar with Greece, but this time I would go to places I have never been before. I think the girls would be intrigued by the old culture of Greece.

But then again...

Bali is so Zen!

When I think of Bali, I think of all the temples, the rice terraces, the beaches, the colorful festivals, the peace & zen lifestyle, the culture, and of course the food! Balinese food is heavenly! All the spices and herbs... YUM YUM!

I grew up with Indonesian food because my dad ran a few Indonesian supermarkets in Germany and Holland when I was a child. He started with a driving supermarket only with Indonesian food, called a Warung Keliling who drove door to door in Indonesian suburbs. So I am very familiar with dishes like Gado Gado, Satay, Nasi and Bami Goreng but I could evolve my cooking skills by taking local cooking classes in the open air cooking schools in between those lush and green gardens... Sounds really good to me!



I know this is a luxury problem, both countries are great! Fun, but so different. So I have to think logistically, what is easier and better to arrange? Because staying 8 weeks in a hotel, or house during high season is not cheap!!

So I am exhausting my options and will let you know which one it will be... but in the meantime, which country would you go to!
I would love to know!

Mireille xx

I ♥ Me! #50

We have to empower our girls!




t's true, NOT everyone is born with high self esteem and self confidence. We're not all born natural leaders that are admired by the whole world. When low self esteem is taking control of your life and keeping you from reaching your goals and fulfilling dreams, it's time to take action and make a change. I always try to encourage my girls to to try everything, to reach for the stars and stay away from that little voice in their heads that says" "You can't do this" YES YOU CAN! But a lot of times I need a lot of persuasion, especially with one of my girls!!

As a mother of two daughters I know the importance of teaching girls how to love themselves unconditionally. And believe in themselves, and not to compare... which with twins is not an easy thing!

Did you know that 7 out of 10 girls believe they are not good enough or do not measure up in some way, including their looks, their performance in school or their relationships with their families and friends? It makes me sad to think of that high number!

When I read this statistic it made me wonder just when do our girls lose their self-confidence? When do they go from little girls who do not have a care in the world filled with confidence and self-esteem to girls who are filled with self-doubt who do not love what they see when they look in the mirror?

According to research, the self-esteem tipping point happens during the transition to teenage years. These years are the most crucial for girls; this is when they stop communication with us - the adults in their lives.

So we have to keep the communication lines open at all times during these teenage years, but even now as my girls are pre-teens I feel already that the chitter chatter is slipping away and I am reading and learning as much as possible to become more understanding of what girls are going through these years, in the hope to support them no matter what!

I remember my relationship with my mom, and it was NOT good. She couldn't handle my teenage years and of course in that time there was no internet or self help books about this subject, so we didn't talk at all.

I want to break that cycle and try to keep in touch with their needs at all times!

For girls a steady relationship with their dad is also very important, because a girl with a low self esteem will fall for the wrong guy, but if there is a strong example of a positive male role model in their lives I believe that the battle is already half won!

Luckily our girls have a good role model in Dirk, he is doting on his princesses all the time and compliments them, invest in them and LOVES them above all and everything!

Click on the picture to see a larger version to read the text as well....



Any tips of good books or websites on this subject are always welcome!!

What do you notice between the differences between boys and girls going through these hormonal years? Is it easier with boys or girls? What are your experiences? Share with me!

Mireille xx

What to do with telephone wire? #49

DUH!!

Make baskets!!



You didn't think of that one, did you??

LOL!

I didn't think of that one either, before I moved to South Africa!

So you are not the only one :-)



But aren't these beautiful??

The Zulus are the largest ethnic group in South Africa and many of us have heard of their most powerful king, Shaka, who united the fractious tribes and created the Zulu nation in the early 1800's.

The Zulu people have long been associated with their skill and artistry in fashioning African baskets from the native plants and grasses of their homeland as well as for their intricate and culturally important beadwork.

Now they have taken their age-old craftsmanship and applied it to a new medium: telephone wire. These bright, washable and sturdy wire baskets, called Imbenge in the native language, come in myriad colors and intricate, mesmerizing designs.

The idea to use wire for basket weaving reportedly came from security workers on the graveyard shift in South African factories. To while away the hours, they would often wind and weave brightly-colored bits of recycled telephone wire around their nightsticks.

From then on, a cottage industry was born. Weavers around the country started making bowls, plates, and other decorative pieces of art from what was essentially scrap metal. Some weavers use the designs frequently found in natural fiber baskets, while others create their own bold, new designs: swirling patterns in black-and-white or bright colors.



A weaver will spend between 20-25 hours weaving a 12”/30 cm imbenge basket. They are either made from grass or telephone wire. Just gorgeous these Zulu baskets!!

You want one??

Come and visit me :-)
Mireille xx

Mama Mia #48

Where did the time go that my girls did these performances for us... I wish they would never have ended.

So funny!

So cute!

So adorable!

BUT GONE... are these times!

So what's left over are a few videos....

Now I wish I took more!!

Remember if you have kids in the performing stage, video tape it ALL!!

See here a few of the videos of times gone by.... ;-(

The girls watched the Mama Mia movie at least 20 times... look at their passion... you even hear my mother and Dirk at the background.... Money, Money, Money!



By the way: these cute little polka dot tops the girls are wearing are coming from a Dutch Designer: Br@nd for Girls, check out their site, cute cute cute!! I wish I could order online, but it will never reach my address since the postal system is so corrupt here and steals a lot from packages... unfortunately! The quality is so good in this clothing line, check their online shop and order something you will be pleasantly surprised how good, how fun, how beautiful it is!!

"Lay all your love on me" Jasmine is the girl and Juliet plays the boy from the movie and they push and shove each other like in the movie :-) But then JJ finds it not funny anymore and I stop the movie. My mom giving directions in the back ground... too funny!



And for a while they were totally into Belly Dancing, I even bought them a costume. No words... just dancing :-)



This is only 3 years ago... but they would NEVER do this again!!

Too bad!! I had so much fun watching them.

See all our videos on YouTube, search for Funkydoodledonkey as one word.

Enjoy your day!
Do you have videos to share?

Mireille xx

LemonGrass & Lavender #47

So far I gave 3 cooking classes, the first I wrote about already, see here.

But yesterday was my third, the theme was Terrific Thai! I made a homemade drink, I always make one, every week a different one.

This week it was Lemongrass, Ginger and mint green tea. Then a spicy, sweet and sour soup ~ Tom Yam Kung, a Spicy Beef salad ~ Yam Nua and a mushroom version for the vegetarians among us and stir fried noodle dish called Pad Thai. These are real Thai classics and a favorite all over the world. For dessert I made tropical fruits in a coconut jelly.





It is a learning experience for me, not the cooking part, but explaining and trying to follow each recipe like I give them out. Because these dishes I make at home often enough, but never follow a recipe to the T. But if you are teaching that is a different thing, so now I have to follow the recipe in order for my friends to follow what I am doing.

Today I was BBQ'ing the meat for the Spicy Beef salad, and I opened the gas, but forget to fire the flame. Normally I let the BBQ heat up a bit and then put the meat on the grill, so when I opened the gas BBQ again, it was not hot but smelled like gas. So I realized I forgot to push the fire button and then when I did.... of course you can guess what happened... a HUGE flame came up and burned my eye lashes and my first row of hair around my face! Big mistake!! Luckily that was all and I have not a complete burned face!!

Pfew! a big scare!!.... now I am thinking: Are these cooking classes worth my life?? Just joking... it all went well... just a few burned hairs ;-) They will grow back again, and I was planning a trip to the hairdresser anyway soon. LOL

Last week I made Asian Appetizers, I had 8 of them, a bit too much to make in those few hours, although it was yummy I took on too much dishes for 1 lesson. Well, I learned and will not do 8 dishes in one week anymore!

We had: Thai Mieng Kam, Vietnamese fresh spring rolls, Chinese lettuce wraps, Asian Ceviche, Spice crusted Almonds, Maple Tamari Cashews, Miso Aubergine dip, Avocado Wasabi dip and as a fresh drink Indonesian Es Juruk, an orange lime drink.

So you can see that I covered a few countries of Asia with these appetizers. It was a lot of work for one lesson, but I got some help and we all pitched in making the fresh spring rolls and some cutting of the vegetables to make it on time to have lunch at noon, and it ended up real yummy!



It is fun to give these cooking classes and I hope that my friends who come to learn a bit more Asian cooking enjoy this as much as I do!

I am planning the menu for next week today, so if you like to keep updated on my lessons go to FACEBOOK and type in the search colom: LemonGrass & Lavender. What comes up is the CLUB and the EVENT, at the weekly event page you can sign up your name to be part of it.


Have a Terrific Thursday!
Mireille xx

I ♥ ... #46

I just ♥ this song by Train... and it is called "Drive by"


Now available on iTunes: http://bit.ly/yBFnDI



I never heard of them before, but Train is an American pop rock band from San Francisco, California, formed in 1994. The band currently comprises a core trio of Patrick Monahan (vocals), Jimmy Stafford (guitar, vocals) and Scott Underwood (drums, percussion).



What is your favorite song of the moment??

Share it with me!!

Have a lovely Wednesday... I am busy with my cooking classes.... making Terrific Thai! with Tom Yam Kung, Pad Thai and Spicy Beef Salad = Yam Nua.

Mireille xx

Happy Valentine's Day! #45

Happy Valentine's Day to everyone!!

I hope you will have a romantic and fun day today :-)



The girls have a V-day party at school, but unfortunately I won't be there since I have to go and renew my passport in Pretoria.

We made Valentine's for all the kids in the class. We made a picture of the girls with their hair in ponytails and then I shaped hearts out of it. Then they hold up their fist as if they are holding something and then later I made little slits above and under their hands and slid a lollipop through the incisions.

So a 3D lollipop Valentine's card!

For their teachers I slid a single rose through it, quite cute!





I made these Heart Hair pictures before, about 3 years ago, see here. As always the girls were so much more in the mood for taking pictures than these days... At 7 years of age they were so much more cooperative, these days I have to plead and plead to take some pictures. And that you can see in the end result as well...

Oh well....

Enjoy your Valentine's Day :-)
Mireille xx

Scavenger hunt #44

The kids are off for a long weekend, today Monday extra day off. A friend stayed over and another came over to play, so I have a house full of kids and the weather is not that great to swim. I hear that they are rowdy and wild, so quickly I planned to get them outside with a scavenger hunt to do.

Google and FB are great resources to make a list in an instant, and off I sent them to find all my items I have listed below.

They went off in groups of 2 and the winning team will get to pick a prize. Jasmine and Cathlynn are in one team, and Juliet and Aviv in the other group.

Cathlynn and Jasmine found a Y shaped twig :-)



Aviv and Juliet are still looking...



Barsa, Cathlynn's dog wanted to be part of the game as well.



Aviv and Juliet decided to take the bike and go a bit farther to get more luck in finding their items.



If you want ideas and do this with your kids, here is my list:

Scavenger hunt around the neighborhood

* Find 5 different leaves, each needs to be a different color and shape.
* Find 5 different stones, each needs to be a different color and shape.
* Find 3 things that don’t belong in nature.
* Find one item beginning with each letter of your name.
* Find a shell
* Find a feather
* Find a nail
* Find a piece of moss
* Find a piece of white bark
* Find a Y-shaped twig

This will keep them busy for a while!


Enjoy your Monday.
Mireille xx

Soccer tournament at AISJ #43

On Friday the girls had a soccer tournament at school. This year the girls had to play against each other, so only one of them could win :-)

They were so competitive!!

Last year they didn't play against each other and both teams won, but now the pressure was on!!

So fun!!

Jasmine's team were called the Rock Choppers, and Juliet's team were the Turbo Turtles.

Here all the kids are lining up with their teams before the game starts and they walk each to their soccer field.



Juliet's team: the Turbo Turtles in blue.




Juliet here in front with the cap, her team was in blue but later had red sleeves on during the game.



Jasmine's team before the game. The Rock Choppers.



Cheering on their team, which was split in half, so everybody could at least play for 12 minutes. With their own made banner.



Is that going to be a goal or not?? Everybody is watching in anticipation...



Jasmine in the opposite team in her black shirt and jeans short.



Both sides want to win, so everybody is running for the ball.



But in the end Jasmine's team: the Rock Choppers win! Their team was a bit of the underdog, but won in the end! Great job 4B!



Even though these are girls from both teams, they still are friends and happy together. That's what it is all about!!



It was raining during the match, but the kids didn't really notice.. only the parents on the side cheering them on were not all that happy...

A good day anyway, and now off to a long weekend, Monday = off!

YEAH!!

Have a Super Sunday!
Mireille xx

A close encounter with Zebras & Giraffes #42

You know I had Zebras at my pool one day almost 2 years ago... Yes, I know, quite THE experience! And if you don't believe it, look at my blog post here.



So that was a pretty cool moment... only one that you can experience in Africa, which is why our lives are so fascinating by moving to all these different places all over the world. But don't you get that feeling sometimes of 'done that, been there', and you want to top your awesome experience somehow...

So what next??

I was googling Kenya, because that is still on my list of places to go to. And my favorite animal is the giraffe, we can see loads of giraffes here in South Africa, but now I want Giraffes in my dining room!!

Dining Room?? I see your face, why in the world would you want that??

WHY???

Because when I was googling Kenya, Nairobi... I saw these pictures.....

And don't you think that is so COOL??





These pictures are from the Giraffe Manor in Nairobi, Kenya. I totally want to go there!!

I mean I need to top that list... zebras at pool, giraffes in dining room... sounds like a good list I am building here, don't you think??

Giraffe Manor is set in 12 acres of private land within 140 acres of indigenous forest and is only 20 kilometres from Nairobi city centre. Built in the 1930s, this luxury boutique hotel has maintained all the charm of the era and is now famous for its resident herd of Rothschild Giraffe. Giraffe Manor offers you an unparalleled experience of the giraffes, with them vying for your attention at the breakfast table, the front door and even your bedroom window. Cool huh?

Now I just have to find an appropriate time to go and of course I will keep you updated with my own pictures.

But for now... I just go to the local Lion Park where we can snuggle up with these cute giraffes and play with lion cubs... not bad either!!





What is on your bucket list of things to do??
Have a Wonderful Weekend!
Mireille xx