E - Vida

We woke up with the sun Some self-isolated under the duvet  until well after 8am We mixed chocolate into breakfast oats And we lay out our best made plans We smiled, wondering if they would be implemented today or ever? By 9.30 we were driving on new roads On our return we forfeited stockpiling  For urgent bathroom breaks But when we arrived we enjoyed the sun from inside the parked car instead After lunch the devices rang non-stop Beep! Ring! Buzz! Mail! Chat!  Real time, ceaseless demand  All those unseen germs that we swipe left and right with our dominant hand and press to our cheeks Yikes  I start a grocery list I should start with food staples and emergency supplies  I write "chocolate"  I wonder how long the internet will last under this pressure Perhaps tomorrow I'll unplug it for a while, to rest It's only Day 1 

"You just get to the point when you realise that even if you were to drive straight to Boston Logan and board a direct flight, you wouldn't get to Cape Town in time for Christmas." Once I reached that point this week, I exhaled a little.  The look of Christmas time may be changing for us but the meaning remains the same. And as I dust those hard-to-reach-so-just-ignored places, put on the holiday playlist, light some candles and set the table for lunch, I'll have a lump in my throat - no doubt. But I resolve to have a more thoughtful Christmas -  to smile more and yell less,  to put aside for someone needy and be a gracious hostess,  to think about Jesus - the real gift worth giving  and make that the focus of a life worth living  Merry Christmas!  (Christmas Doodles found throughout the house, by Ethan.)

Thinking back over the last 3 months... Five places visited: 1. Stonewall Farm in Keene - by accident - but found goats, muddy nature walks and a park 2. Riverview Farm to check out the corn maze, pumpkins and apple orchard     3. Leede Arena where Jorja attended a basketball clinic run by Dartmouth University                                                        Credit: mpn-arch.com 4. Shaker Museum Fair with horse-drawn carts, candle-making, butter churning and more!   5. Sharon Rest Stop to see the Eco-Machine and first Vietnam Memorial On repeat in our car: Frozen Movie soundtrack Favourite pass time then (Autumn): Playing the  game of Ga-ga   any place we can find the space Quite a nuisance then (Autumn): Neighbours' leaf blowing tactics... Would be nice to have: Hairc...

Wet-wipes, water, tissues and chocolate. The base of any good tote bag. Or mom bag. Or even sister storytelling survival kit! We are at the clinic today. There will be injections. And the kids don't know...yet.  I've come as prepared as I can be and I hope it counts.  My family always seems to be the the loudest presence in an entire superstore. SUPERstore - the bigger one. How is that? So can you just imagine how many decibels they may muster up at this visit? I'm not deluding myself...it may get pretty loud! ... We survived! And I'm proud to say that the water, chocolates and tissues did NOT go to waste. Tissues to wipe away tears, chocolate to soothe upset and water to wash it all down at the end.

And just like that, the Summer holiday is over. After we had labelled stationery and packed the bags, gone to the dentist and found matching socks, I needed a loooooong nap - almost as long as my self-inflicted To Do list... The waiting has just a few more hours to last and then we'll be off to our first day of school! I feel nervous. Very nervous. While attending school is not new to these three, joining classes on this side of the world, will be. For starters, I even had to google some of the items on the supply list! In all of the (combined) time that we've spent here, we've never done this . So there are questions and unknowns and a few insecurities. To our relief, there are just two days of school before the weekend...so anything that we've misunderstood, we can hopefully fix before the new week! I feel grateful. Very grateful. I drove past the school a few times in last year. And then I said out loud, "If we make it back here, I'd like our children...

Some lessons from our first 3 months (back) in Vermont, in no particular order: It's Summer and there is the occasional thunderstorm. Maybe I forgot what heavy rain looked like, after the drought in Cape Town, but they sure do supersize them raindrops here in the States! In the end, we're left with puddles and mud. Now if you have or know anyone between the ages of 2 - 4 years, you'll know that "when you jump in muddy puddles, you must wear your ....boots!" Adrienne is very good about wearing her boots - any day, to anywhere, in any weather. Poor feet! But she is especially good about burying her hands in wet mud and dry sand. And she can do it for ages without feeling fussed and without having that short attention span, like kids do with almost everything else! I used to have to turn away so that it wouldn't affect me. I've learnt: Let them play in the dirt. We have soap. I'm the one with the lists. I'm the one who will say, "I can ...

Dear Jorja, You are now 10 years old.  Double digits   , as the Grannies would emphasise when I was younger. Just days old So, what does this mean? Well, it means you've been given the gift of life for 10 years already! Some have gone by in a blur and others have stuck in your mind for longer.  Don't take any one of those days for granted. It means that you are growing up - learning more and knowing more. And hopefully using that knowledge to make wise decisions. Now, when asked to choose between knowledge or wisdom, always choose wisdom!   It means that you have reason to celebrate; who you are, where you've been and what you've done. You often choose the path less travelled and don't seem to feel alone on the journey. You are braver than you know . It means that you don't have to change who you are, to be loved . Jorja Sarah, 10 years old We love watching you paint and craft, bake and dance, snuggle up with a book and ride your bike...