It is almost a distant memory...but some parts are particularly vivid!
Like, I can still hear Baby shouting as we hauled the Christmas tree out the back door and packed the decorations away. "It must stay up! It must stay up!" she wailed. But, what we lost in the festive look of the lounge, we gained in the form of a packing conveyor belt. Once our dinner guests had left on the Sunday night, we were all stations go on the final pack.
On Monday morning we hit the road to New York. Our 5 plus SIL, her son and Ma. Excitement levels, barakat levels and petrol levels were well high. We only started to panic a little when our GPS decided to take us on a route that would avoid all highways and we travelled through what we called "Little Italy" because of the narrow, cobblestone, windy roads. Fortunately, we rectified this setting before dark but by then our best laid plans of seeing the City by daylight had past. Instead we saw an (almost) pitch black Central Park, some beautifully designed buildings, bustling 5th Avenue, illuminated Times Square and many, many yellow taxis...all from the 2nd last row of the 12-seater hire vehicle. We did look a bit like Scooby Doo and the Gang minus the flower power paint job. By the time we arrived at the airport hotel, we were exhausted. We ordered fried chicken and coleslaw from the establishment that promised the fasted delivery and when it arrived, we wolfed it down, sitting on the room floor and surrounded by suitcases. Phew! You'd think we would've just fallen into bed after that...but you know...travel jitters.
Down at the Breakfast Bar at 5am on Tuesday, some of us were more doe eyed than bright eyed. Apparently, sleep deprivation doesn't mess up the appetites of my children! E had eggs, sausage and the works while J still had the capacity to make her own blueberry waffle. I promised myself that I'd eat something lekker once we had passed all the check-in counters and security checks!
We took the band-aid approach to the goodbyes and one last selfie for good measure. Maybe the time of day helped us not fully comprehend the action. Maybe we were all just running on the hope that we will see each other again - soon!
Once seated at the Boarding Gate, we could relax and enjoy some calm. J and I even walked around duty free like the rich and famous. Baby was finally ready to eat and we found some ridiculously priced fruit at Dunkin Donuts for her dining pleasure. We would pay for that same fruit with explosive projectile vomitting just as we touched down in Joburg though. Talk about money's worth.
Once we'd entertained the onlookers with our swift wet wipe clean up action and checked that Baby was ready to move, we disembarked with apologies and joined the passport queue. Onward to the baggage carousel and then a zig zag through domestic check in and dash to our next gate. We were overheating and just slightly out of breath when we realised that E's ukelele was sitting in the overhead compartment still :( Too close for comfort, we made a few calls and hope to arrange collection in the next week or two. I can't wait to hear him 'jam' again and bring his island vibes smiles to the family!
And now that we're back...
We are so happy to see familiar faces and give long hugs in person
We realise how much tan we lost being covered up these past few months and hope to recover some colour plus haircuts for all!
We breathe in the sea air until our lungs hurt
We are hot, hot, hot and need to keep reminding everyone to wear sunblock
We are back to work and school after taking a few slow days while our bodies adjusted
Like, I can still hear Baby shouting as we hauled the Christmas tree out the back door and packed the decorations away. "It must stay up! It must stay up!" she wailed. But, what we lost in the festive look of the lounge, we gained in the form of a packing conveyor belt. Once our dinner guests had left on the Sunday night, we were all stations go on the final pack.
 |
| Goodbye Tree! |
On Monday morning we hit the road to New York. Our 5 plus SIL, her son and Ma. Excitement levels, barakat levels and petrol levels were well high. We only started to panic a little when our GPS decided to take us on a route that would avoid all highways and we travelled through what we called "Little Italy" because of the narrow, cobblestone, windy roads. Fortunately, we rectified this setting before dark but by then our best laid plans of seeing the City by daylight had past. Instead we saw an (almost) pitch black Central Park, some beautifully designed buildings, bustling 5th Avenue, illuminated Times Square and many, many yellow taxis...all from the 2nd last row of the 12-seater hire vehicle. We did look a bit like Scooby Doo and the Gang minus the flower power paint job. By the time we arrived at the airport hotel, we were exhausted. We ordered fried chicken and coleslaw from the establishment that promised the fasted delivery and when it arrived, we wolfed it down, sitting on the room floor and surrounded by suitcases. Phew! You'd think we would've just fallen into bed after that...but you know...travel jitters.
 |
| Ready for a roadtrip |
Down at the Breakfast Bar at 5am on Tuesday, some of us were more doe eyed than bright eyed. Apparently, sleep deprivation doesn't mess up the appetites of my children! E had eggs, sausage and the works while J still had the capacity to make her own blueberry waffle. I promised myself that I'd eat something lekker once we had passed all the check-in counters and security checks!
 |
| Never too early for waffles |
We took the band-aid approach to the goodbyes and one last selfie for good measure. Maybe the time of day helped us not fully comprehend the action. Maybe we were all just running on the hope that we will see each other again - soon!
Once seated at the Boarding Gate, we could relax and enjoy some calm. J and I even walked around duty free like the rich and famous. Baby was finally ready to eat and we found some ridiculously priced fruit at Dunkin Donuts for her dining pleasure. We would pay for that same fruit with explosive projectile vomitting just as we touched down in Joburg though. Talk about money's worth.
--------
Once we'd entertained the onlookers with our swift wet wipe clean up action and checked that Baby was ready to move, we disembarked with apologies and joined the passport queue. Onward to the baggage carousel and then a zig zag through domestic check in and dash to our next gate. We were overheating and just slightly out of breath when we realised that E's ukelele was sitting in the overhead compartment still :( Too close for comfort, we made a few calls and hope to arrange collection in the next week or two. I can't wait to hear him 'jam' again and bring his island vibes smiles to the family!
And now that we're back...
We are so happy to see familiar faces and give long hugs in person
We realise how much tan we lost being covered up these past few months and hope to recover some colour plus haircuts for all!
We breathe in the sea air until our lungs hurt
 |
| Peyton showing Baby how it's done |
We enjoyed a Christmas in January with all the Cape Town family, complete with dinner meal, Secret Santa and family photo
 |
| Catching up with some of the sisters |
We are hot, hot, hot and need to keep reminding everyone to wear sunblock
We are back to work and school after taking a few slow days while our bodies adjusted
 |
| The 'lag' in full effect |
💖💖💖In good time all will work for good!
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