My brave boy!

This child of mine surprised me so much this weekend!! We went to an inflatable fair and they had all these amazing rides - mostly for bigger kids - but we went anyway. My child wouldn't jump on the baby jumping castle BUT he did slide down this HUGE slide!

Mike had to climb up behind him because it was that high....

 And down he went - SO BRAVE!

Where does this courage come from... my goodness! I had to be careful as a mom not to let my fears hold Lolly back.... I am so proud of his courage and his bravery in moments like these! Anyone who knows Lolly knows that he rather reserved and its taken him a long time to come out of his shell and do something as brave as this... I am one proud Momma!!

Cuddles....

I LOVE a good cuddle....I crave them from my boy who only likes to cuddle when he's tired!

I bribe him daily with cuddles and kisses but I love when he gives them away for free!!

Big boy haircut...

On the weekend Lolly had his first big boy haircut!

 He was so good, I was worried he wouldn't sit still but on daddy's lap he was perfectly fine!

Half way through I asked the hair dresser to put all his hair back on because he was looking TOO big! I love his new hairstyle.... my big boy!!

"Help you mommy"

This is Oliver's way of helping me exercise.... he is delighted when I exercise and does a little dance that is suppose to be exercising (I must say I look like a monkey in his eyes but its too cute to offend me) - then after the work out is done he says "well done Mommy" - my little cheer leader!

I love exercising at home even if I have a little monkey jumping on me and "helping me" - it means that no time is taken away from my boys!

Kitchen therapy...

I have been enjoying some kitchen therapy lately.... baking / cooking / trying new recipes - it has been my favorite pass-time lately!
My folks popped in for dinner the other night and I decided to make a veg pie. Instead of just covering the pie with pastry I had some time to make it look pretty.

It came out golden brown and looking so pretty, it was tasty too!
Tomorrow we are having friends over for a pizza day and I am excited to try a variety of toppings - mutton curry and coriander / butternut and caramelized onion / mince and chickpea.... and my all time favorite spinach and feta. Y.U.M!

A little DIY...

We are trying to be a bit more organised and have a place for everything - or at least for the things that tend to lie around e.g. shoes, bags and jackets. I love coming home and having a place to hang up our bags and I want to teach Oliver that these things have a place - he starts proper school next year and I want to start a routine from day one about handing over lunch boxes and hanging up bags...
I decided to paint Mike and my hangers just a normal colour but when it came to Oliver I wanted him to be involved in the making of this, to make him part of it.

I thought painting it white and then doing hand prints in blue for him.... he was so excited to paint with me!

During Lolly's nap on Sunday, when the wood was dry, I jumped into bed to watch some series and finished off the hooks - I am very proud to have done this all by myself :)

 Lolly's hooks are at his height so he can hang up his own things....

This is in our passage so its out of the way and looks so neat and tidy!

Baby Bunny...

On Saturday I was cleaning out Lolly's cupboards and we found this tiny little size 1 nappy that he used to wear as a new born. I was telling Lolly about how cute and tiny he was, how he used to wear this tiny nappy and how small he was. Next thing I know (I am still not so sure how this came about) Bunny had the baby nappy on, we were searching for a little cot that bunny could sleep in.....

 AND the pram arrived as if from no where.

Oliver is SUPER cute with babies, he loves them and he has been extra cute with baby bunny. He rocks him to sleep and when he is sleeping we have to whisper so as not to wake baby bunny up. So it isn't true that only girls play with dollies, it seems my boy is enjoying playing daddy to his baby bunny! I love no only this child's heart but his imagination too!

Before bedtime play...

We had Che Che and Pops over the other night and Lolly enjoyed playing a bit after bath time before bedtime. He was on top form and entertained us so much!

For some reason he needed his helmet on to entertain us.... we love this child's colorful character!

"Cook fire"

My little monkey loves to "cook fire" any chance he gets! He gets so excited if him and Mike braai for us....

Since Oliver has taken an interest to cooking on the fire Mike seems to have mastered the art of cooking our lamb or chicken on the fire beautifully! Its a win win for us all :)

Hadasha's cafe...

I love finding new restaurants and new cultures, we love trying new things and different foods so we tried a Ethiopian restaurant on the weekend. All I can say is we LOVED it - the owner was so friendly and welcoming and the food was amazing!!

Even Oliver got in on the action and ate this food the way it is meant to be eaten.... we got to try three different meat dishes and three different veg dishes.

We made friends with the owners little boy who was super cute, he spoke only Amharic so we couldn't really chat to him but a smile is universal and we soon become good friends. He shared his toys with Lolly and Lolly shared his juice and chips with him.....

 Mom and I tend to like the same foods and experiences so we loved sharing this feast with them!

 Our meal ended with traditional coffee which was infused with ginger, and the coffee was served with popcorn. Seems like a strange combination but they went so well together..... the ginger in the coffee was strange at first but partnered with the popcorn was so delicious.

It was lovely going as a family but I am very keen to go back just Mike and I to enjoy a few different options and enjoy the experience just us.
I cannot wait to go back!!!

Quiet time...

Our boy wakes up from his afternoon naps and just wants a little time to cuddle and surface slowly...

These are my absolute favorite times.... the quiet and snugness of a cuddle.... my heart!

A little sunshine....

For the first time in a while we popped to the beach on Saturday morning. the weather was divine and our boy LOVED it! He played in the sand...

 We were running in after the small waves and then running away from them again when they came back and if our feet touched the water Lolly was scream "caught me".... he started off fully clothed (we didn't think to bring his costume assuming it would be too cold) but he ended up sopping wet in his undies....

The sunshine, fresh air, chilly water and company did us the world of good!! I think the beach needs to become a more frequented spot for sure!!

Love notes....

I love getting notes like this in the morning, it makes me feel so loved!

Mike had gone to bed after me and put my wrap in the fridge after it has cooled down.... he didn't want me to forget my lunch (as I tend to get grumpy when I forget my food) so he left this note under my car keys! Gotta love this man!

Babysitting face...

This is the classic babysitting face....

Gotta love this milkshake smile!!!!

Saturday morning view...

This was my Saturday morning view... I am  not sure which was sweeter - my coffee or my boy playing so beautifully!

This child of mine is honestly getting cuter and cuter daily... like for REAL!

Wednesday is happy day...

Wednesday has become a happy day for me.... its half price sushi day!

It makes the middle of the week SO good..... one more sleep till my next Sushi day!!!