6th of 6...

Back to Pretoria today. Will be back Friday.

6th of 6 - VIDE

We nipped into town quickly this afternoon to have JohnD's blood drawn. It is safe for us to continue with the next session of VIDE. We will head back to Pretoria again on Tuesday the 28th, and will be away until the 31th of July.
Debbie Pedersen (our guests visiting from Grand Rapids) celebrated her 50th birthday with us today. It's wonderful to have a good excuse to bake a cake! ;) Her daughter Sara got a lovely Impala today.
It's turned cold again... brrr
Micaela & JohnD each have a friend visiting tonight, so everyone is happy! His little friend Maruits is turning 9 on Monday, so we need to celebrate his birthday here too - as JohnD couldn't go to his birthday party this afternoon.

Back to school

Finally back into the routine of school. WONDERFUL!

The incredible power of games... a huge big thanks - yet again - to both the Sligar family, and the Kern family. The portable game toys that you gave have given me leverage! Quite amazing the motivating force. ;) Here is a picture of these two little monkeys of mine just cuddling down just this last cold, damp Saturday - indulging in these wonderful tools!

It took me quite some time to get the correct chargers for them, as our power is different from the USA - but they are making up for lost time!

Dad and Ben went up to Mapungubwe for the night. It's got to be warmer there than here!!! They will no doubt be home this afternoon with some stories.

I took a trip out to Venda with Ben to look for Janell's pots. We found some nice ones. I do love their big pots, and it's always so nerve racking driving home with them on the truck over those bad dirt roads.

Micaela had a nasty scrape on her leg last week Thursday with her horse charging off and running her into a post. She lost quite a bit of skin... It's finally healing nicely - but I guess she has had her first INCIDENT with her beloved horses.

We have the Pedersen family arriving tomorrow - so got lots of cleaning to do, menus, lists, and planning. I'll be in Pretoria again (if his bloods are up to it) from Tuesday, while they will be in Kruger.

Sofie's 40th!

JohnD's fever finally broke today, and he started to eat again. Thank you Lord! He is still on his medication. Hopefully tomorrow will be more

normal.

Ken, Micaela and I had a fun evening on Saturday night - JohnD stayed home! :( It was Sofie's 40th "Rock Party". Micaela was totally blessed by Delaney with an outfit that I could never have come up with here!!! She looked five years older than her 11 years, and she just had a "Ball"!

Karia had curled her hair, and she even wore some "makeup". She looked amazing. I would have given anything for boots like that when I was her age.

Hot 'n Cold

Please pray for my John John... he has a fever, a bad cough and he is not well. He is in bed, and has not been eating.

Home again

Phew - those Pretoria road works are something else... thank goodness for good old "Sally"! Ken got us a GPS... she certainly knows her way around. I keep thinking of Charlie & Sheila Lord, who called their GPS "Fransoir"... Sheila vowed that Fransoir had earned a spot in her will - for all of the navigation arguments Fransoir had saved them!
JohnD pretty much goes into a kind of tunnel with his 4 day treatment, and just "zones out". He doesn't talk much, eats only a very small bowl of oats first thing in the morning. He drinks nothing, and vomits quite a bit. He watches tv, dvd's and sleeps. He doesn't have the energy to play games. I read to him quite a bit in the evening when he is just too low to even sit and watch tv anymore.
He has spent today in bed, and my guess is that by Sunday he will be up and about again, starting to eat little bland meals.
Thanks for your continued prayers and messages!

VIDE #5

It's so bitterly cold here now. Overcast and windy too. Makes for difficult hunting, and early nights! I hope Pretoria is not as cold as here. :(
We head back for JohnD's 5th chemo session early Monday morning again. He has been quiet well. He was glad to have his good pals Maurits and Ivan here for a few nights this week. He always enjoys all of our guests, and both he and Micaela have been joining us for dinner and lunch at the lodge - so it sure breaks the monotony of their day. It's school holidays here now, and they are enjoying just 'hanging'. :)
While I'm on the road to Pretoria, the folks we have with us will head up to Zimbabwe, and we will have David and Janell Brantley join us from Charleston.
Will update again on my return.