E - Vida

Ours was a quiet Saturday, until after lunch, when we took a 'spontaneous road trip' to Burlington, VT. Hitting the road some time after 3pm, I felt sure that we would be making our way back to White River Junction around 7.30pm. But I began to question my ability to keep cool (and spontaneous ) while trying to dish out rolls and pour chocolate milk in equal parts between two hungry cup-holders for dinner, travelling on a pitch dark highway...long after 8pm! It was great to visit this city again, since we only just passed through it the last time we were in the area and didn't even realise that there was a beautiful Waterfront! We arrived in good time to see the last of the Summer's holiday-makers enjoy ice cream cones, watching the sun dance off Lake Champlain. We spent a good part of the afternoon walking around - with the mandatory toilet stops and hip-rides. Before we knew it, dusk had settled and hunger pangs were calling. I thought our last stop wou...

Over time we've discovered that most days do not feel like any particular day of the week, here in Vermont. In fact, we can often lose track of what the day or date is! For instance, first thing on a Monday morning doesn't feel any more pressured than a Thursday, much like a Tuesday afternoon feels as good as a Saturday! But there is a certain element of chill that falls upon us on a Friday... Whether it's a special breakfast, like pancakes, or a longer nap time or an extended playtime in the park before dinner... Tonight, we had capoeira and cartwheels until late into the night! The locals and our two very own South African acrobats teamed up and put on a Brazilian-inspired dance fest for us to enjoy. A good start to a weekend...even if it doesn't necessarily feel like it!

Well...the weather outside was cooler And our tummies were slightly fuller But we bent the ' don't go too often ' rule And took Daddy to see the pool! ...Plus I just had a get a pic of Ethan in those goggles. Doesn't he look a little bit like a minion? Jorja enjoyed swimming underwater with Dad too! We stopped at Singletons Market on the way back and Ethan was elated to find a coin-operated horse ride. Shame boy, I really must see if there are any more fairs or farms that we can visit for your real life horse ride. And after dinner, we enjoyed PJ's melt-in-your-mouth Blueberry Cake!

We enjoyed a wonderful day at the Quechee Club pool today!  The sun was out and we were destined for the lake, originally. But instead, we got a very special treat and we were taken to the very posh (and warmer) pool - where the kids enjoyed hours of splashing, wall-crawling, diving and hopping...aka swimming. Stopping only briefly to enjoy some snacks, including a special delivery from the Restaurant, not only did we enjoy a refreshing time in the clear blue water on a picturesque golf course setting, but we also enjoyed it almost all to ourselves! As it turns out, with most people either back in the City by now for the start of school (and the fact that it was midday on a Wednesday), to have more than 4 people in the pool is a 'crowd' for the local lifeguard. Imagine? Well - we had enough fun for 20 people at least!

It was a quiet day for us in White River, today. Home-based most of the time - except for when we ventured out to the post office - only to discover that we'd forgotten the post at home! Fortunately, the blue post boxes are scattered almost everywhere you look, so we can drop it in one tomorrow. A pesky fox was up to no good on the farm too - but Jorja still got to join in for a quick egg hunt before dark!

I’ll admit that just one session of book work was more than a little challenging, so instead, we took it out on the road…To West Lebanon to be specific. We counted the hoola hoops in the toy aisle at CVS, arranged skinny jeans from shortest to tallest length in GAP, compared the price of toothpaste at the pharmacy, shared a juice in three equal parts and also picked up the fallen water guns, grouping them by colour in K-Mart. Of course, all of this means that: Ethan ran through the store with the hoola hoop around his waist, re-arranged clothing hangers, collected boxes of toothpaste and was the one to knock down the water guns in the first place! But it was a better way of learning for the day – for me anyway. Back at home, both kids evaded their nap time even though we took the long way home, stopping in at Sunrise Farm for Monday’s vegetables. Jorja brought back her first spaghetti squash with beans and her complimentary carrot, leaving P-J to carry the rest of the prod...

This morning, Ethan walked around with an old lady's walking stick around his neck. [I'm guessing it belonged to a woman, because of it's fashionable giraffe-like print on the high polished wood. Thankfully, she didn't see my son wearing it while she had it parked up against the wall.] First he was stroking it softly, saying " Ooki my steak " - Look at my snake. The horror! Then he started strumming the piece of wood like the guitar it could've been, singing the animal songs that he remembers from Bonny Babies. What an entertainer! I'm glad that we could retire the walking aid to its original waiting place without further incident or injury. That would not have gone down well. Just before the end of the service, a rider on her horse went by the front door. Of course, my horse-loving son was right there to see it. And by the time we left for home, everyone both up and down the road knew that he so desperately wanted to ride the horse! We enj...

On Saturday our kitchen transformed into a Cape Malay cookhouse - preparing by request - roti, lamb curry and malva pudding. The trifle...well, that was more Christmas than anything else! The curry pot was on just after breakfast and the whole house smelt like a passage in Miriam's Kitchen . Next, I started on the malva. This was the first time that I did a repeat of a recipe since being in Vermont, and I was wondering if I'd get it right again! I decided to let Jorja help me construct the pudding before baking. While the kids were supposed to be napping, I looked at all the components of the trifle that I was going to attempt to make. Coming from a slightly trifle-obsessed family, this can be quite intimidating. I already had a different version of trifle sponge, I was using canned peaches only and not fruit cocktail, the custard was imported from England - and missing that very Moirs yellow colouring, the fake cherries and flake were replaced with Reese's Peanut But...

There’s a very real sense of the changing season in the air… We’re donning socks and long tops more often; we don’t open as many windows first thing in the morning (and we have to switch the lights on); we're washing up more - either because we're comfort eating or we're wanting to keep our hands warm,  but not just because we're trying to be domesticated…and we don’t mind clubbing together on the same bed some nights! Also, noses are running and eyes are watering. That’s tell-tale sign of this du Plessis family. But Jorja’s eyes aren’t teary for this reason. Her condition is due to another bike fall – this time, with the handle bar connecting with her face on the downhill. Fortunately, another crisis has been averted and all we’ve got to nurse is a grazed eye lid and some bruising. But on to more exciting news… What fun to celebrate a birthday on this trip! Despite the very wet weather, we could still get festive – the gym was setup buffet st...

When we left home in Cape Town on this trip, we knew that we would have to try our very best to keep up with Jorja's new school activities - some alphabet recognition and writing, counting forward and backward, closely examining some insects and more.  After all this time, we've had to get more than just a little creative when it comes to completing said school activities. Fortunately, the ideas weren't too  hard to come by today and Jorja enjoyed some fun with stickers and colouring all the while identifying number sequences, decorative patterns and basic words.  Feeling inspired by a good school day, I thought that I would try and keep the learning up right until supper time... " Jorja, who was George Frideric Handel ?" I asked, trying to jog her memory and take her back to the study that her class did in June, complete with a trip to the Baxter to enjoy some of the pieces. " Oh Mom... ", she replied, " He did music ." ...

For our last two outings, we've given Jorja the camera and been suprised by some of the shots! It's quite a treat to see things from her perspective -  You can take the boy out of Cape Town... Picnic lunch Ethan's make-your-own breakfast We finally got the Hanover Market date, time and weather right! Unfortunately, the Market itself was not as big as we thought it would be, but we could still enjoy the walkabout in the Town and some time in the much needed shade of their trees. Paparazzi? Dartmouth College athletic shorts sale rail Impromptu and sub-conscious ballet show?  After two days of lovely sunshine, it's grey and rainy outside today. So we bake, catch up online and do some sitting school work!

Looking back at a post from August last year, I was reminded of my own suggestion to Lose the Manual and just make the most of these formative years with our young family. I say this on the back of only just getting Ethan to sleep – how’s that for a BEDtime success but a bedTIME fail? Turns out, as much as we Moms take whatever nap time we can get, if the nap goes into the 5pm time zone, we’re going to pay for it later! As I lay there between my talkative five-year old and my restless two-year old, playing (reluctant) bed time Twister, I started to get anxious about when they would eventually give in to some sleep. Plus, the cooler nights now also make for a chilly bed time operation because the covers keep getting kicked off the side of the bed in all of the folly. Earlier tonight (but still late enough to be bedtime), I walked in on Jorja spreading out a blanket on the floor – in airy arm, picnic laying movements. To her, the blanket on the floor would make for the perf...

Our day of errands started off at the Post Office - to collect my International Driver's license. Now, to get used to being the driver, driving on the right side of the road! Then we stopped off at the car rental place that we used on the day we arrived (56 days ago) to check if P-J's The Lily Way  beanie was perhaps there. Wait for it...wait for it... It was! How's that for service? Next we set off on a mission to find some ingredients for P-J's meat rub... From the Upper Valley Co-Op in White River Junction to the grocers in Hanover, we tried a couple of places and had fun sight seeing in the process. Then we stopped in at Chuck's for our weekly vegetable collection. Phew! After our delicious (and very local) dinner meal of veal meatballs, potato wedges and salad, Jorja showed us that she was listening during all those 'lessons'. Nah, I think it just clicked. And she was riding her bike on just two wheels!

A day at the Cornish Fair - The wagon ride from the parking lot to the Fair Enjoying the ride Interesting... Jorja talks to Hannah (from the wagon ride) about horses Smile for the photo Close your eyes for the photo (posed with closed eyes for 5 tries) The tractors make a loud noise! Fun Fair activities Farmer Dale getting ready for his tractor pull 11-year old Isaiah enters his first tractor pull The little ones get a chance to pedal pull too We had a some fun-filled hours in Cornish at the fair - watching the tractor pull, seeing the local sheep, cows and calves, horses and ponies and chickens. We watched the last bit of a poodle pony show, passed 'blooming onions' - that smelt just like the Spur onions back home and saw some other real fair food - toffee apples, candy floss, french fries and ice cream!

I remember when Robyn and I first learnt to ride our bikes... before we started the racing club in Plumstead that ended with her high speed crash into the neighbour's wall, diving into the concrete looking like Peter Schmeichel himself! Our folks took us down to the then yet-to-be developed Chukker Road fields so that our landing was a little softer. P-J remembers wiping out many times before he mastered pedaling too. And here comes Jorja dressed in her farm boots with her sweatshirt tied around her waist, with acres of open grassland but determined to learn on the gravel! She's keen to learn but just getting her to consider two wheels instead of the four she's been used to, took over 7 weeks so far. Besides, how much fun can a pedal cycle be when you've got a motorized quad bike, battery-powered golf cart and mini Jeep to try out instead? Turns out, when the power cuts and the fuel dries out - you'd better know some basic skills! In the new week w...