Little Penny

We are right in the middle of our hunting season now. We sure are keeping out of mischief! Ken has been going non-stop, as have I. :)  It was so special to have Brian and Dannette Reed back again. They hunted with us in 2011. We also had the joy of Russ & Patty Perkins at the beginning of June.
We have a new addition to our little family!!!  "Penny" is a little fox-terrier puppy that we got on Friday last week from Wighardt. She is the puppy of Snip's sister, so looks quite like our little Snip did, except she has a brown face. She is very cute of course, and terribly spoilt.  There is nothing like a little puppy in the house for the kids especially at the beginning of their long school holiday!

We have just finished quite a large under-taking to widen the fire-break around our entire perimeter fence, so that is a relief.  We hired a large machine to do it, as our labour force is not large, and trying to do it by hand would have taken years! We have also recently broken a section of the concrete counter near the wash area in the lodge kitchen, in order to install a dishwasher there! J  Dad and I tackled this project together, and while we have yet to finish the “cosmetic” finish, the machine is at least operational! YAY!!!  I so love the purr of a dishwasher in the evenings, knowing the staff don’t have to face the mountain in the morning.

We had our first fire of the year today, along the N1. A very kind motorist must have put it out for us, and then called to say that we need to just check on it. Fortunately Ken had just slashed that entire section, so it was relatively simple.

Both Micaela and JohnD are well, and they both enjoy school.  We are so glad that it is now the winter vacation for the children. They have 3 weeks off school, and will hopefully be kept busy helping us with the hunters.  JohnD is especially helpful with the hunting, and is proving himself to be very accomplished in the field.  Micaela is just awesome and can be given so many things to do, and she is just a trooper!  JohnD is now taller than all of us and wears his Dad’s clothing…. But sadly he cannot share shoes any longer, as he wears a size 12 shoe now!

The cattle are all well, and keep us busy too. We have just a few more expected calves and then our winter calving is finished. We had twins “born” last night, but the poor heifer had tremendous difficulty with the second one getting stuck. We finally managed to pull him out, but he had died inside. She at least has a little heifer to nurture and it might take a day or two before she is back to normal. She really had a tough time. We are so lucky we didn’t lose her too. It is her first pregnancy.  

Dennis and Carol are well, and both keeping busy.  Carol plays bridge about once a week, which is great for her, and she has just finished a beautiful, reversible quilt which she gave to JohnD for his birthday. She is so talented.  Dad also keeps busy, and they both help so much with errands – especially now while Ken and I are both so busy. Sadly Ken's camera is still in the "shop" so no photos yet again. I am sorry!

Well, this comes with lots of love. We are having quite a mild winter, and the sunny days are welcome!

Love to you all!

Cape Town Wedding, and Russ and Patty Perkins

We are excited to have Russ and Patty with us at the moment, and they just returned from Kruger. They had some lovely sightings, and have now experienced some of our REALLY CHILLY winter days. The weather turned really cold today, but at least the sun is shining.  I believe I will need a full long winter coat tonight. I do feel sorry for those who sadly don't have one.
 :) The kids are home, and are nose to the books because of exams. They have 3 weeks of school left, and then they break for our 3 weeks of winter holidays.
Ken's camera died about 20 days before the warrantee expired, so we are without a camera at the moment! Sorry no pictures again.
I had the pleasure of going to Cape Town for two days. My cousin had his final wedding (third one) to celebrate with South African family. He lives in London and has married an Irish Lady, so they had celebrations in both London and Ireland.  We were delighted to meet her and get to know her.  I travelled without my man and kids, they were left to hold the fort!  I believe they missed me... as Micaela said that she didn't think that I should go away again...  I absolutely LOVED seeing all of my family again but it was way too short.  It is such a beautiful city, and really is a world of it's own.
The weather there was damp and cold!  We celebrated in the Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, which was a first for me! Just beautiful.
Well dinner is calling, so I'd best get moving if we are to have anything for supper!  I believe some French Onion Soup is on the menu.