100 DAYS

Have I made a post yet that doesn't include me talking about somebody being sick? Well, then why stop now? My allergies and sinuses were acting up again but I managed to avoid a 6^th sinus infection, for now. Plus I can no longer get my antihistamine nose spray here so I have to try something else. Jackson got sick the end of January with a low fever for several days that ended up being a left-over ear infection and bronchitis. He took his breathing treatments very well. Three weeks later he got a low fever again but it didn't turn into anything, although he has new bumps and blisters on parts of his body. Two days later Miranda got a high fever and then a sore throat with a splotchy red rash all over – Scarlet Fever. She missed 3 days of school but was able to go back today.

We had workers all over adding another layer of thatch to our house for 3 weeks and 2 days. They should have been done a lot sooner, but when you don't show up until 10am, then immediately lay down in the garden and take a tea break, it takes much longer. It was such a horrible mess and seriously aggravated my sinuses with all that junk falling from the ceiling all day. They pretty much just take bundles of grass and shove it into the old stuff. I was taking pictures and stopped to talk to one of the workers, trying to explain to him how it's impossible to have a roof like this where I'm from. He seemed to think otherwise, we just needed a thicker layer and stronger wooden supports. Apparently he has not seen 'The Wizard of Oz'. Then he proceeds to tell me that Americans are 'ignorant' because we all think that the people in South Africa live in tiny huts. What? I was not in the mood to argue with someone who clearly is unfamiliar with mass media.

Miranda is back in swimming lessons and progressing nicely. After 7 months of lessons last year and taking a break during winter, she 'forgot' how to swim. Luckily a friend of mine started teaching here in the estate and has a lot more patience for her than I do. She is growing like a weed, and since we'll have summer again when we move home, hopefully all her clothes will still fit. Poor thing had an evil classmate tell her that 'Santa doesn't exist because he got really old and died.' What kind of parent tells their 5-year-old this and then says it's ok to go to school and tell all her friends? I can accept that not everyone does 'Santa' at their house, but this is going a bit too far in my opinion.

Jackson loves school and is really bored on the days he is home with me. But he LOVES to ride his balance bike and play in his jumping castle. Trains and cars are still his toys of choice, and anything that Miranda is playing with. We converted his crib to a toddler bed and pushed the open side up to the queen-sized bed in the room since it is still pretty high off the ground. He would have been fine without it converted, he has never tried to climb out, but we thought we'd give it a shot and see what happens. Every night has been very successful, and he stays in bed until we get him up in the morning. The potty-training is going ok, he's starting to figure it out, but I'm not going to push it until after we get home. Who wants a newly-potty-trained toddler on a 16-hour flight or in line at customs?

Rusty & Jozi both had their birthdays and now we're trying to figure out travel arrangements to fly her home. Unfortunately the airline-approved kennel we purchased here is too small for the height requirements, so we are having the transport service make her one. She is still a puppy and likes to chew up the kids toys to get attention. She's a good walking companion but is still needing more training.

100 more days and we will be home! I'll actually be able to go to one grocery store to get everything I need and they will have kleenex every time. When it rains, the traffic lights won't just stop working for several days. I can go for a walk at dusk and not fear bats attacking me. But I won't be able to stock up on $3 bottles of wine or live within walking distance from all my friends. If anyone still wants to come visit, I'd love to take you on a safari!    

Who's Going to Mow My Lawn?

Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's, and school! November ended very nice with a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner at our house with about 30 of our South African family members. Since the holiday is not celebrated here, we moved it to Saturday since the husbands had to work and some of our kids had school. Miranda gets some of the American holidays off as well as the local ones, so she had a little break. I was able to take advantage of some of the 'Black Friday' sales online. It will be like Christmas all over again when we return home! We took the kids to Sandton City to see a live Dora show and Santa. Jackson cried for the first time, saying 'cheese' through tears, but he finally calmed down enough to get a nice picture. We traveled there via the Gautrain which was a 5 minute drive to the station and 10 minutes train ride to the mall. Christmas brought another round of sickness. Poor Miranda had to miss the company party due to a 24-hour stomach bug, and Jackson went to bed Christmas Eve with a fever. Rusty & I took turns attending Christmas Day dinner at our friend's home. After 6 days we finally took him in with the result being a double ear infection as well as chest & throat. As soon as he got better, Rusty & I started to feel bad. So New Year's Eve was spent sleeping, waking at midnight to the sound of the neighbors setting off fireworks. I am currently on several medications to cure all this junk I have going on.

December was rough, but I knew it would be. With some good friends moving home and others leaving for the holidays, it was very quiet and lonely here. Miranda and Jackson had 3 weeks off of school to torture each other which they succeeded at very well. Santa almost brought coal, I may have to cave and buy one of those creepy elves for next year so I can have at least one month of behaved children. But we now have a jumpy castle in our dining room and an over-priced train set on the coffee table. It will be interesting trying to get everything home in 16 suitcases/boxes in June.

Since we spent our 12th anniversary at the doctor and taking care of our sick boy, we moved our celebration to the next weekend and enjoyed a show at MonteCasino last weekend. We saw a live performance called “Potted Potter” which was a two-man comedy show covering all seven Harry Potter books in 70 minutes. The theaters here are so different, they let you bring in any food or drink you want! So refreshing.

Miranda and Jackson went back to school on Monday. I'm going to try sending Jackson 3 mornings a week and see how it goes. He moved up to the next class as this month is the beginning of the new school year for local schools. A miracle happened on Christmas morning, he peed in the toilet! So our journey down that road has begun, and I can see it being a very long one. Miranda is getting back in the groove and happy to be back at school even though she protested at first. I'm hoping to use some of my free time accomplishing as many things I can for the remainder of our time here.

Summer is in full swing and it is HOT! When it rains in the afternoon or evening it cools things off, otherwise 84 degrees outside with no air con inside makes a stuffy house. Our pool is freezing but we have used it a few times recently. The sun is up from about 4:30am to 7:15pm. Since all the gardeners and maids were off for 3-4 weeks over Christmas, Rusty actually had to mow our lawn a few times. I found it pretty easy to keep the house clean, I honestly don't know what our maid/nanny does all day when she 'cleans' my house Tuesdays and Thursdays. My neighbor called me the week before Christmas and asked if my gardener was still in town because she wasn't sure how she was going to get her garden (lawn) taken care of for the next 3 weeks. She was serious. I think she's funny.

6 More Months

October & November just flew by!  The last 3 weeks of October were spent with Rusty's family visiting. We kept them very busy to try to get in as much 'Africa' as possible.  Although about 16 hours after their arrival we whisked Rusty's sister and her fiance of to a German Bierfest.  The following day we drove up to Kruger National Park which is South Africa's first national park that has been protected since 1898 and covers an area of 7,523 square miles.  We stayed inside the park at Jock Safari Lodge which was founded by the Fitzpatrick family in the early 1900s.  Their descendants just happened to be staying there at the same time although they had their own private accommodations.  My goal was to see the 'Big 5', specifically the elusive leopard, and that goal was accomplished within 24 hours of arriving.  This trip was by far my favorite since arriving in Africa.

The next week we packed everyone up and flew to Cape Town for our 2nd visit.  Those 3 days were the windiest days I think I've ever seen!  Several attractions were closed down, although we managed to take a tour bus to the Constantia winery and get in some sight seeing & hiking.  Poor Jackson had a fever the whole time except for the day we left, and Miranda started the trip out with a fever and stomach pains that resulted in a mess all over the kitchen floor.  I think I've had enough of Cape Town for now.

Our neighborhood got hit with a massive hail storm which resulted in shattered windows and dented cars (the neighbors, not ours).  It seems that a lot of our thunderstorms produce at least some hail and our roof continues to leak, but it's not over any electrical devices or furniture so it's manageable.  But every time the outside lights get wet, the circuit breaker trips.  Go figure.

I can't wait until next Halloween and my kids can experience what it's REALLY like.  Our estate celebrated the Saturday before, but Miranda had a 103 fever and it was thunder storming, so it was pretty much a bust.  Plus, only about 1 out of 10+ houses actually have candy, so it can be exhausting.  On the actual Halloween date we headed to a local shopping center where they had a costume contest (we didn't win even though we were a very convincing Dorothy & Glenda), jumping castles, face painting, and trick-or-treating at the shops.  Unfortunately the candy here consists of little hard pieces, and everyone posting pictures of their children's loot back home was torture!  But luckily Rusty's family brought us some bite-sized Kit-Kats.  We have them here, but they're different.  It had been so long since I'd had the 'real' thing that I had to do a taste-test, and sure enough, totally different.  US Kit-Kats are thicker and the chocolate is creamier.  Also, high-fructose corn syrup does not exist here.

Miranda is still enjoying school but is looking forward to having a 4-day weekend.  Even though Thanksgiving is not celebrated here (of course), she still gets the holiday off since her school is based on the American schedule.  We will be celebrating on Saturday with our South African family.  Jackson is still having bad skin issues and after a blood test (THAT was fun), it was determined that he might have a mild allergy to milk, peanut butter, and dogs.  We have been avoiding those and there is no change.  He is not allergic to Jozi because we lived here for a year before getting her and he already had issues.  It's eczema, and we've tried every cream available, we're just going to have to try to maintain it the best we can until we move home.  I'm convinced it's the air, grass roof, old carpet...

6 months from yesterday is technically the end of Rusty's 2-year contract here.  Miranda's last day of school is May 31 and our lease on the house is up at the end of June, so we are still unsure of our move-home date.  Hopefully it will be as early in June as possible so we won't miss out on any of Rusty's sister's wedding festivities.

Holy Sh*t

Spring/summer has been slowly making it's way in and the rain has been making an appearance off and on.  After a very warm weekend with a little pool action, it was chilly and windy this morning.  During one of the thunderstorms a few weeks ago, I believe lightning either struck our lightning rod or somewhere close to our house as the little hairs stood up on my arm and then the internet stopped working.  Luckily it was only the power supply to our router that got fried so that was easily replaceable.  Along with the warmer weather come the increase in the police check points.  This is where the local police set up alongside the road and stop random people to check and make sure their car is properly licensed.  Unfortunately they can also be very threatening and do things that the police are not supposed to do.  This has caused me to be very anxious whenever I have to venture out to the grocery store, which has to be done 2-3 times/week.  The warmer weather has also brought out the bugs.  They are everywhere!  But that's what you get for living in a house with a grass roof and no seals around the doors or windows or walls.  

Miranda is enjoying kindergarten and likes PE and lunch and recess the best.  A couple of weeks ago, the school celebrated their annual 'International Day'.  Each student dressed in clothes that represented their home country and marched in a parade that was similar to the 'parade of nations' that you see in the opening ceremony for the Olympics.  Afterwards, the parents transformed the gym into a culinary heaven with booths full of foods from each of the countries represented.  The kids got first dibs and we just couldn't wait that long, so we headed out to a local Thai restaurant after drooling all over the Thailand table.

Jackson is doing well at preschool and is getting bigger every day.  My little boy turned 2 last Saturday and I didn't think it was possible for the 2nd year to go even faster than the first, but it did. We celebrated his big day at a park down the street with football cupcakes and lots of running around.  His favorite things right now are airplanes, trains, cars (especially "Cars 2"), golf, and kicking his soccer ball into the goal (GOAAAAAAL!!!).

Holy sh*t!  Which word do you think they'd censor for TV?  Heaven forbid we insult someone for using the word 'holy'.  Regards, Erika.  Or should I say 'warm' regards?  Yes, let's use the word warm, it is warm now.  Family arrives in 3 days.  Guess I need to go brave the cops to get some groceries.

SPRING!!!

Looks like I forgot to post in August.  Whoops.  But it was very busy, so I'll use that excuse.

August was the month for school.  Miranda had her last day of preschool on Friday, August 3, and then her first day of kindergarten the following week on Wednesday, August 8.  She gets picked up at our driveway at 6:45am and returns around 3:30, except on Wednesdays she is home by 2:00.  Poor thing was so exhausted the first day and then came down with a fever, so she had to miss her 2nd day.  But she enjoys riding the bus, likes her class, and is making new friends.  Right now her class has 9 students with one more starting soon, and there are 4 kindergarten classes.  Her teacher is American but has been teaching internationally for 20 years.  About half of the class is made up of American students which apparently is high for a normal class.  She has all the traditional 'specials' such as PE, Music, Library, Art, and Spanish.  I have to pack 2 snacks and a lunch each day which after only 4 weeks is already getting difficult.  If I could pack peanut butter every day I would, but unfortunately is has been banned from kindergarten.  Jackson has been in preschool for 3 weeks, although he was out the whole 2nd week due to a high fever.  He has adapted well and didn't cry at all when I dropped him off today.  I am enjoying having a little bit more free time.  His language is really starting to take off and he is becoming quite the dare-devil.  Jozi is as crazy as ever and is getting really big.  Her favorite thing to do is dig holes in the garden and chew on the roots of all our trees, bushes, and other plants.  We don't have any squirrels or rabbits in the neighborhood so she will be excited when we move back to KS.  

We have been preparing to have more family visit in October which is the perfect time to be here.  We will be traveling into Kruger park which is about a 5-6 hour drive north of here.  Since it is a malaria area we can't take the kids, so hopefully we'll spot that leopard!  We'll also be traveling back to Cape Town for another visit, this time exploring the wineries, hiking, and taking in some cultural history. 

The weather has definitely changed for the better, spring arrived about a week or so ago.  It's hard to believe that just 3 weeks ago it was down in the 30s at night and even during the day, plus that crazy day where it was snowing on and off for about 2 hours.  I heard they hadn't seen any snow since 2007, and the last time they saw any accumulation was in the 1980s.  Every flake that hit the ground melted immediately, thank goodness.  After the winter we had in KS right before moving here, I would have been happy to not see a single snowflake for a couple of years.  But now it's definitely spring and we are in shorts and t-shirts every day.  A bird built a nest in the little birdhouse outside and now we have two baby birds to keep an eye on.  Just waiting for the rainy season to start so all the junk in the air can get washed away!  My lemon tree only has about a dozen or so lemons this year that will be ripe and ready in about a month.  Luckily my neighbors have trees as well!  I've been so spoiled here, I'm going to have to actually buy my lemons next summer?  Shame.  Happy Labor Day!  We don't celebrate that here.  Double shame.







   

I'm Allergic to Africa

Time just seems to be going quicker and quicker these days!  The past 6 weeks were a little rough as sickness swept through the house again.  The day of my last post, Rusty came down with severe food poisoning and was down for about 4 days.  He also got rear-ended on his way home from work the same day and what was supposed to take 10 days to fix took over a month, and 2 days after we get it back, it's back in the shop with a grinding brake.  It's a good thing I know how to drive a manual transmission! Luckily Rusty was fully recovered for our holiday to Durban.  We spent the first four days of July in Pennington with another KS family.  Since it is winter here, it was chilly and windy, but the kids still had a blast on the beach and we really enjoyed the trip.  The sand was beautiful and the water was clean, you could even spot whales out on the horizon.  The drive was easy and not too long, taking only 7 hours with a couple of stops.  The kids are great travelers, I'm ready to go back!

I have been coming down with a sinus infection every 3 months since we've been here which is not something I generally struggle with at home.  My last episode started about 2 weeks ago that began with a full-blown upper-respiratory flu which is lingering in my sinuses.  I have come to the conclusion that I am possibly allergic to my thatch-roof house.  Not only is it made of grass, but it has dried out and is very dusty since we haven't had a drop of rain for over 2 months.  Also, winter isn't really 'winter'.  Plants and trees and flowers are constantly blooming, and with so many different species I haven't been exposed to, it's tough to say what  exactly is causing all my troubles.  The ENT wants to do surgery to open up my airways, but I am not really keen to have something like that done here.  I think I will try other options for the next 10 months until I can get back to the states and get a 2nd opinion!  

With all the sickness said and done, the weather has been absolutely gorgeous!  It can get a bit chilly at night still, but with the sun out during the day, it warms up pretty quickly and we've been enjoying temperatures staying steady between 65F - 75F.  We're a month away from summer which promptly starts on September 1st.  

My baby girl will attend her last day of preschool on Friday.  The following Wednesday she will attend her first day of kindergarten.  Hopefully I will not be a blubbering mess!  The school year here is January-December, but Miranda will be going to the American International School of Johannesburg which stays on a typical American school schedule.  She is very excited and ready to go!  I'm not.  The week after she starts school, Jackson will begin preschool.  I have found a nice place that I can send him to two days/week in the morning.  Poor little guy really needs some social interaction and this seems to be the only way he's going to be able to get it.  

With the clock ticking we are busy deciding where else we would like to travel to and figuring out who else is going to visit.  Since the ever elusive leopard has decided to keep his presence from us thus far, we definitely have a few more future game drive safaris on the agenda as we will not leave this country until we see it!   

350

My parents have come and gone, the 17 days they were here went by too fast.  The day after they arrived we made them deal with their jet lag at The Phantom of the Opera.  We did a lot of damage at the local markets and stores stocking up on souvenirs for ourselves and people back home.  There's one store called 'Cambanos' that is probably the best and most affordable place to buy locally made products, and they now know who I am before I get out of the car.  They also have started offering me tea and lattes when I come into the store to enjoy while I shop.  They're really good at encouraging me to come back!  The air cleared up enough one night so were all able to view the Southern Cross in the sky.  Winter arrived a couple of weeks ago and there have been some very cold days and nights.  It's weird calling it 'winter break' instead of summer.  We took Miranda for her kindergarten evaluation at the American International School of Johannesburg where she will go to school in about 7 weeks.  After convincing the nurse (sister) here that she needs shots NOW, not when she's 6 like they do here, we're almost ready.  Still waiting for the student visa to arrive.  So much paperwork!


Rusty and I took a short trip to Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe and the Chobe river in Botswana.  Zimbabwe only accepts US dollars and sometimes South African Rand, depending where you are.  Everything is very expensive!  We booked all our excursions in advance and kept ourselves busy.  Our hotel, the Kingdom, was a really cool 'African' resort, the architecture based on the Great Zimbabwe Monument in Masvingo.  The first day (after waiting in line at customs for almost 2 hours) we went on a sunset cruise down the Zambezi River.  The next day we took a helicopter ride over the falls and then walked the path by the falls, getting very wet and stopping half way because the spray was so high that the falls disappeared.  It's 'high water' right now so what we did see was spectacular.  That night we went to a 'Boma' dinner which literally means 'the eating place.'  There were all sorts of local traditional foods and dancers doing their thing.  On the drive home there was an elephant in the road.  You wouldn't see something like that in South Africa.  We cut the night short since we had to get up early the next day to drive an hour to Botswana.  We first went on a water safari down the Chobe River and saw a lot of crocodiles, hippos, elephants, impala, and wart hogs.  After lunch was the game drive where we saw a lot more elephants that were a little too close for comfort.  Our last day in Zimbabwe we went to a local market.  The people outside the hotel are very aggressive when trying to sell you something.  They will follow you the whole time you're walking from one place to the next (we visited the historic Victoria Falls Hotel down the road) trying to bargain with you.  At one point we got a little nervous as we were surrounded by 5 people trying to sell us Zimbabwe dollars which are worth as much as Monopoly money.  We had a hotel staff member escort us to the markets since we were a little nervous about venturing out on our own, and I think I did pretty well with my bargaining skills.  I managed to talk a guy down from $25 for one little guinea fowl figurine to $5 for two, and one tried to sell me a necklace for $50 that I got for $10.  It really is a sad culture and the people do not have the goods that they need.  Several men tried to get Rusty to trade their hand made items for his shirt, jeans, and shoes.  One guy wanted my socks, my jacket, and my hand towel I was using to protect my camera.  I highly recommend reading "The Last Resort: A Memoir of Zimbabwe" by Douglas Rogers to understand why their country is the way that it is now.   


If everything goes according to plan, we should be arriving back home in 350 days (yes, I'm counting down).  There are a lot of people who work in the office with Rusty who will be leaving in December, so we should know more at that time.  I better hurry up and plan the rest of my trips!  Next up is Durban.