Warming up :) "SPRING"

So what happened in August? We had the tail end of the Parker's visit, the Kwast family, Jim & Terry Beach, and the arrival of David Jackson, & Joe Trapenese... shew. That's a lot of hunting! David and Joe are with us now, and we are so enjoying all of the laughter! David hunted with us last year with his son Jeremy, and has come back this year to bag a Cape Buffalo. They had a successful hunt, and are now after all of the critters who eluded him last year! They had the unbelievable fortune of having a Cheetah make a kill right inside their camp down in Hoedspruit, during their buffalo hunt... WOW!
Michael, Quincy, Jacob and Julia from Michigan were such a pleasure to have, and the kids just HAD A BALL! Jacob enjoyed HUNTING with his folks - every waking moment and many 'sleepy' moments too! ;^) Both of the kids made excellent shots, and were a pleasure to hunt with!
Jim & Terry had a full bag hunt, and have fallen in love with Africa too - what a privilege to introduce hunters to Africa. Terry bagged her very first animal ever, making a perfect shot on an impala. Jim shot really well too, making one shot kills on all nine of his trophies!
:D Champ has been unbelievable - and has arisen as the real Champion. There is just nothing to say, other than he LOVES to hunt / LIVES to hunt. What a pleasure. He has now started getting more actively involved in the hunt... and when he feels that there is not too much success on the part of the hunters, he has on several occassions gone off and rounded up the desired quarry, and brought them into shooting range!!!!!!!
On the home front, it's warmed up a lot, and despite our experience of many years, we are all hanging back on the temptation to pack up the winter woolies, and unpack the summer cozzies.... what a pleasure to charge up on our vitamin D again, and enjoy the warmth and heat of the sun... The veld is really dry now, and dusty in many places... by about 11am - it's pretty warm out!
We are nearing the last quarter of Micaela's grade 7 year, and she would dearly like to attend a regular high school for her high school career. We are in the process of researching / looking / visiting & deciding on the various options available to us, and looking to many changes ahead in 2012. There are many factors to weigh up and consider.
I have finally managed to transfer all of my pictures on to a 2Terabite external hard drive, so my computer is a little less 'loaded', and hopefully many of my functions will be restored!!!!!
Big hugs to you all from this dry, warm and very happy place in the bush!

Fun and Games!

Well Sir, (to use the Southern term) I don't know how much more challenging of my PH we could all take! Yes, my Professional Hunter / Personal Hero / Perfect Husband was severly challenged by Will Parker. I know he and his Dad came here to hunt, but during some of the quieter moments - the table tennis table on the verhandah here in front of the office, was the scene of some serious battles. Needless to say, Ken naturally (because he has always been so accommodating) allowed our young guest to taste the joy of victory "occasionally", just to keep him coming back for more. ;)
We all had a lot of fun, both hunting and with all of the games. JohnD & Micaela's table tennis improved in leaps and bounds.
The Parkers were followed by the Kwast family from Michigan - and the fun and games just continued. With Jacob and Julia closer in age to Micaela and JohnD, there was much hilarity and giggles around every meal time. The Kwast children both bagged lovely trophies, as did Mike and Quincy. Some of the hunting challenges were faced head on, and despite many hours put in... the score remained Caracal:6 - Hunting party:0! At least there will always be another reason to return as long as the elusive smaller critters keep winning!!
With Jim and Terry's arrival - some cold / wet / windy weather moved in for a few days, but it has not dampened the successes or the fun.
C'mon Summer c'mon!!!
We have had another three lovely little calves - and another is due any day now. Our "Champion" has been tremendous this season, and seems to get better and more amazing with each safari. He's earned himself some serious hunting credits, and for a "rescue dog" - we couldn't be more chuffed with him! Well done CHAMP!
Big hugs to you all, from this dry and dusty part of chilly South Africa xxx

Team work makes the Dream work...

Oh - YES ... You guessed it! :) The kids have moved up to the starting blocks. We had a slight overlap with guests, and the last hunting day for the Brantley sons had DUIKER AND JACKAL high on their list. Kiffin had shot a Duiker already, but James had not, so the heat was on. With FW and Will Parker having arrived, Ken started hunting with them and we allocated the jobs of driving and guiding to Micaela and JohnD respectively...
How I wish with all my heart I had a picture of all of them up on the Cruiser, heading out in the early morning. Their smiles were bigger than the vehicle they were piled onto. JohnD had borrowed my Binoculars (or should I say yours Rick!!!). Micaela was armed with her book and lucky feather. The morning hunt left them completely frustrated, as they saw every female duiker on the property, but the males just eluded them... So at lunch a new game plan was hatched. James was going to hunt himself a female Duiker, and then between the brothers, they would have a His / Her matching pair. I guess word got out, as by night fall - their mission was successful, and James was the proud owner of a Duiker RAM!!! Who says that psychology does not work in the bush? I know that both Micaela and JohnD worked hard for their trophy, and they will never forget the experience. The sunburnt faces, smiles, laughter and excitement of recounting the story, will long be remembered and retold! So the Brantley family have returned home, and our children have grown up overnight, and made us so proud of them! Well done dream team! ;)

Falling Star?

It is really a joy to have David, Janell, James and Kiffen here - never a dull moment. ;) We had supper at Mucha last night, and there was a falling star that absolutely lit the night sky like nothing I have ever seen before. We ALL saw it, and the trail remained visible for ages! Did anyone else see it?

The young hunters have certainly been successful, with yesterday in particular, being a busy day. Big smiles on everyone's face around the fire.


The kids only have a week left of holidays, and then it's back to the normal routine. I must say, the child in me will never be 'happy' with the return of the school days... ;) JohnD had the joy of camping out on the Limpopo with some friends of his for two nights. He came home exhausted, but full of stories. Micaela also had the joy of visiting a friend for a few days (also along the Limpopo too !!) The house is quite a different place when there is only one child home!

Midwinterchills brrrr

Overcast, windy and a tad damp... even our very mild winter sun has gone indoors to keep warm. Thank you LORD for my coat!!! ;)
The children are on holiday from school for three weeks... oh boy do I love the joy of waking up WITHOUT the alarm. Don't you?
The table tennis table has been repaired and put on my front stoep, and I have a birds eye view of the continuing sibling rivalry that plays out. JohnD whips Micaela's but quite consistantly, which is great for him as with her so tall, she usually gets the better of him in most of their other combats!
With a few days break, I'm slowly catching up on my Admin, bookwork, and other office arrears!
Hope all of our USA family and friends had a great 4th of July weekend.
Big hugs to you all, and we are so looking forward to the return of David and Janell Brantley next week, with their sons!

Sunny days and blue skies

This month of June has flown by so fast, and has had the most typical winter weather we have seen in a long time. Crisp and fresh early mornings and evenings... cloudless blue skies and the coldest temperatures yet! Don't think that because we are in Africa, that it's only ever hot here.

We have had the joy of David Harrell's company from Texas, and his 10 day hunt has been quite unusual. All of his desired trophies were harvested within about five days, so he has just been 'having fun'... Talk about no pressure! Ken, David and Micaela also took a three day trip to Kruger National Park, and were blessed out of their socks with spotting ALL of the big five.

Micaela took him for her very last ride on Chloe. On Tuesday I delivered Chloe to the same man who purchased Jasmine from us. Both horses are now settled in their new home, and it is a relief. Our original intention to have "a horse for Micaela" somehow turned into SIX horses ... so our two "starter ponies" have now moved on to someone who has just started. No doubt he will also learn how quickly 1 + 1 = 15 "when it comes to horses!"

JohnD has got to play in two cricket matches this month, and both times his team won. He is really enjoying it. The kids are both looking forward to their winter school holidays, and will finish up with their tests tomorrow.

Ken has his birthday on Sunday. We have a few days break before the Brantley Family join us from Charleston next month. Hugs to you all. Keep warm and remember to enjoy every single day.

April, May & June all rolled into one...

Ohmygoodnessme... does anyone out there still even check our blog? I wonder.... I certainly have been really pushed for time, and my computer has been a little cranky on me... too little free memory.
After John Knowles from Boise left us, we had the privilege of having Terry and Jo here from Michigan, for their 6th Safari here. Terry, as usual, didn't waste any time with his package. We had the joy of Derek & Jen visiting us from Zim, with Michael and Kyra. The cousins had fun catching up; having not see each other since August last year. We were also glad to see Nicol, Karia and young Jean for a few days too! He is growing up so fast, and really is cute!
Great excitement while they were all here - Ken finally traded in his very old blue broken tractor for a shiny little RED MASSEY. No more pull starting every morning. No more "boer-maak-a-plan" repairs. No more worries!!! (This is actually a very long story, but I won't bore you all with the details.)
We have had a steady stream of simply BEAUTIFUL little Nguni calves being born, and while Steve & Tina Deierlein (from Charleston) were with us, they had the fun of meeting CbarC - a little bull who was given their brand name. :) He was born while they were on safari with us.
JohnD asked to be baptized in May, so he along with a group of family and friends from Johannesburg, all got baptized in our Mucha Dam. :)
We also had the pleasure of Dave Sebright and Denny Sprick, also from Michigan. They hunted with us 1x1, so we enlisted the help of Ron Sparrow for this hunt. :) Thanks Ron. Two calves were born while they were here. Dad & Mom celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary! Dad celebrated his birthday too.
Just a week ago, Brian & Dannette Reed arrived with us from Charleston. We have them with us now! Boy oh boy - they have been blessed. The weather has been really great and we were all wowed last night with the total eclipse of the moon. I gave us all dinner in the boma, and we had our own private show. By about 10:30pm we were all pooped though, and went to bed... just as it was really red!
We also have the joy of a new arrival - Prince Rocky. A tall, handsome, 11yr old Gelding Thoroughbread horse. Boy oh boy does he make Jasmine and Chloe look like little ponies. Sir Prize has now been weaned from his Momma (Jasmine). He and the two young quarter horses are at Silverbank (Dad and Mom's place), until such time we can arrange for Cruising Pleasure to be gelded... We don't want any more horses!!! In fact, we really should find good homes for Jasmine and Chloe. Anyone needing a good child's pony? Six horses is really too many for us!!! You try talk to Micaela about selling Sir Prize. Well, she just about comes undone.
Ken and I now have the BlackBerry phone ... :) I finally got it right. I'm constantly amazed by how many of my emails just do not get through. I really should have done it years ago. PLEASE everyone - if you don't hear back from me fairly promplty regarding anything - chances are the emails are not getting through. Ken is still getting his driver's licence for it, but we will get there! Anyone who has a blackberry... we'd love to be able to add you to our bbm!! It's just the BEST!
Carol is doing really well, and is pretty moblie. Well done Ma!!! She lost her skype again, so anyone who was in skype contact with her, please add her as your contact again! ;)
Since the end of last year, I have only had three domestic ladies full time, so I have been pretty stretched. We all miss Esther, but she was very unwell, and needed some R&R.
The winter is really cold this year, and I wear my coat EVERY SINGLE NIGHT! I thank my Heavenly Father for it every single time I put it on!!! I had another kiss from my Heavely Father in Australia when my Claire blessed me with another 'dream' - some tall leather boots. Boy do they also keep me warm - and they fit !!! (another long story!)
Well, I really have rambled on long enough. I must get this posted. Will try work on some photos, but no promises!!! Big hugs to you all, and hope this makes up for all of the silence.
Love Ken, Jo & Kids xxx