Summer-time fun!

Liesel's mom has been with us now for a full week, and what a great blessing she is to us. I am allowed to sleep in to 8am every morning, as Josh's grandmother is loving getting her youngest grandchild between 6 and 6:30am each morning when he wakes up! The entire week has been filled fun activities. Earlier in the week Liesel took her mom and the boys back to the Memphis Kiddie Park, and Nathan got to ride the rollercoaster with his gran! Later this week, they all paid a visit to the Cleveland Children's museum, where fun was the order of the day again!

Liesel and I also are benefiting, as on Friday night, the two of us could take a leisurely amble around Crocker Park, and just relax. It was a beautiful evening with live entertainment (the musician battled to find the right key most of the time). We went and got ourselves some iced coffee and found a bench where we could just sit and chat - something that we don't get to do often!

The weekend was a leisurely one, with lovely warm weather and the occasional thunderstorm. On Sunday - I had to break my routine of waking up at 8am and get up 75 minutes earlier - as I was playing in the worship team. After Church, lunch and an afternoon nap, we headed to our local miniature golf course where Nathan, Gabi and myself enjoyed navigating the 18 hole course! Liesel had Josh in his tsroller and was there for moral support. It brings so much joy to see Nathan overflowing with excitement! Afterward, we returned home where I grilled some Turkey Breast for our dinner. I also was asked to erect Nathan's tent as he and his grandmother would be sleeping outdoors tonight. Again, Nathan just bubbled over with excitement, as he brought down his stuffed animals and pillow, then climbed into the tent! Liesel and I just listened to his excited little voice chattering away to his grandmother, long after the sun had set! The memories made over these couple of weeks will be treasured for a very long time!

Welcome Home Gabi

On Thursday, Liesel and Nathan made the 2 hour drive to the airport in Detroit to pick up her mom, who has flown in for just shy of 3 weeks to help Liesel out while her hand recovers from surgery. It is such a pleasure and blessing to have around to help us out. Nathan is over the moon with having his "gogo" staying with us again. The two of them are almost inseparable.


On Friday, I returned to work after working from home from that Monday. It was good to be back in my office and mingle with my colleagues again! That evening, it was time for Family Fun Night, and I had the honor to decide what it would be. My decision included untold calories, as I took the family to Mitchell's Ice Cream for the best ice-cream in Cleveland! Since Gabi had only ever visited in the winters, we wanted to show her what summers in Cleveland were all about - and we were not disappointed. I invited a good friend to join us and we had a good time devouring those decadent desserts! Afterward - it was home time and bed time for the two boys. While Liesel and Gabi ensured the boys were tucked in, Ian and I pulled out the Wii remotes and had our own Wii Fest! We played tennis, bowling, golf, more bowling and then some tennis! The intensity was tangible, and some of those earlier calories were very quickly burned off in our contest!

The weather this weekend was perfect - not too hot, and definitely not cool. On Saturday morning - Liesel decided to trade her family fun night for a morning activity - and she directed us to The Original Pancake House in Rocky River for breakfast. Among us we had pancakes, potato cakes, crepes and a waffle - and enjoyed every mouthful! Later on that day we headed to the Westlake Recreation Center for a leisurely stroll around the ponds and their facilities. Nathan ran ahead with his gran while Liesel and I got the rare opportunity to walk together and just chat (while pushing Josh in the stroller).

That evening, I grilled some burgers for dinner, and we sat outside on the patio savoring the summer tastes and taking advantage of the mild temperatures!

This Sunday morning I had my first opportunity in about 10 days to sleep in, and loved every minute of it! Eventually I dragged myself out of bed around 8:30 and came downstairs for breakfast and use that time to Skype my family back in South Africa! We left for church shortly afterwards and then came home to a delicious roast chicken that Liesel had prepared. Later that afternoon - everyone was out in the yard - doing some gardening, and I made a shelf for the garage.

Again - the weather was gorgeous - and we took a walk around the neighborhood (I followed alongside on my bike). Again, we enjoyed dinner out on the patio, and soon enough it was bed time for the boys again. Once they had settled down, Liesel took her mom grocery shopping at 8pm, an activity that isn't possible in Africa - due to most stores closing at 6pm.

Summertime in Cleveland! I just love it!

The Hair and Liesel's Hand

On Wednesday evening, it was time to tame Nathan's hair again, and I hauled out my trusty clippers! This was probably the best haircut I had ever given Nathan, as there were no moans or groans that usually accompany this task. Quite proud of my handiwork, I decided to give my hair a trim too. So I went up to the bathroom, and started cleaning the clippers to clear out Nathan's hair before starting on my own. This became an intricate affair, as I slowly dismantled the head and removed the blades. It was during this process that Nathan barged into the bathroom asking me to fix a toy that he had just broken. I told him I would do it later, as I was clearly busy now. I also wanted my hair cut as quickly as possible, as Nathan was waiting for me to bath him and put him to bed. A couple of minutes later, Nathan again invaded my bathroom requesting me to fix his toy, and again I told him that I was really busy now and that would have to wait. I think it was the third time that Nathan came to ask me that I really started getting irritated and sent him downstairs so that I could finish my hair in peace. As soon as I reassembled the clippers, the irritability in my body obviously outweighed the common sense, and I raised the clippers to the back of my head and started trimming my hair - when I realized that I had not added the stupid attachment to the blade!!! So in effect I was shaving the back of my head. Not good! Considering the rest of my hair was over 1.5 inches long, the bald spot stood out like Roast Pork at a Bar Mitzvah! The best form of damage control I could come up with was to add the #1 attachment and trim the rest of my head with that. It is the shortest I have ever had my hair! The contrast between the two is not so bad now and I can wear a cap for most public appearances until the hair in the bald spot grows back.

Moral of the story: Never cut your own hair when you feel irritated or rushed - AND ALWAYS CHECK THE ATTACHMENT!
(and No! you will not get a view of the back!)

I had the day off work on Friday as Liesel was scheduled to have surgery on her hand. During her pregnancy with Josh, she developed Carpel Tunnel Syndrome in her right hand, and it never went away. She used to wake up in the middle of the night from the pain, and experience numbness for most of the day. After some nerve tests, it was concluded that the only way to relieve it would be to operate. It was a day procedure, and I took her to the hospital at 6am. At 10am I was called by the hospital and informed that I could go and pick her up, so the boys and I jumped into the car to bring mom home!

She seems to be recovering well, although it does get painful every so often. Her painkillers are particularly strong and in the beginning they brought on nausea and dizziness. It now helps for her to put her feet up after taking the pain medication.
As the only parent with two oppsoing thumbs that are in a working condition, I have taken over looking after the boys, and Josh in particular! Liesel isn't allowed to lift up anything heavier than 2lbs/1kg with her right hand - so that includes Josh. I have a new found respect for stay at home moms or single parents, as this weekend was by no means a walk in a park. Caring for a 7 month old, changing diapers, entertaining, and providing him with food and bottles is pretty taxing! Liesel helps out whereever she can with one hand - such as packing and unpacking the dishwasher, washing some dishes putting food on plates etc. So I think all single moms out there who do not have the support of another adult in the house, need a medal!

On Saturday, evening after putting the boys to bed and checking that my wife was comfortable, I retired to the living room, and opened up a pint of Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream (chocolate fudge brownie) and started catching up on the first season of one of my new favorite programs .. Lost!

On Sunday, Liesel talked me into going to church (I was initially against this as I could not wear a baseball cap to church.....), but she really needed to get out of the house, and the weather this weekend has been stunning! The rest of the day was quiet, being spent indoors, chatting to family back home and keeping the boys occupied. Liesel was able to watch Josh long enough for me to go upstairs and get a bit of shut eye - to recharge my batteries! This coming week, I will be working from home so that Liesel does not need to break the Doctor's orders, and I can move Josh around and feed him etc. Thankfully, Liesel's mom is flying in from Botswana on Thursday to relieve me of my Mr Mom duties! We are really looking forward to having her with us and letting her experience some of the beauty of the Ohio Summers!

Independence!

What a fantastic weekend! If I were elected President, I would make every weekend span 3 days! I had Friday off, since the Fourth of July fell on a Saturday this year. so Friday was going to be a fun, family day. We started our day by heading to Memphis Kiddie Park. This is an amusement park that consists entirely of rides for children under 50 inches (127cm) tall. They have a mini ferris wheel, carousel, race-cars on an electric track, rocket ships, a train and mini roller coaster, which was Nathan's favorite! Nathan's independence started shining through, as he went on most rides alone (due to the 50 inch height restriction). I went with him first on the rollercoaster, and he loved it. next he took Liesel with him. The following two times, he went alone and when asked what his favorite part of the day was, his answer was riding the rollercoaster, while sitting alone in the very front! That's my boy!

After the exciting excursion, we headed home and I went riding with my friend Ron. The County has some lovely bike trails a few miles from his house, that take you through some stunning landscapes, and over the Black River.

It was a really enjoyable 6 miles or so that we covered! Of course, while I was out riding, Liesel stood on a recently discovered garden snake while walking in our back yard!!! This seems to be the same snake that she discovered a few weeks back while I was in Washington DC! When I got home I asked her to show me where, and as she walked to the spot, the snake AGAIN slithered away, inches from her feet!! Now the south side of our house is not getting much foot traffic.... That evening Nathan and I headed down to our local beach, to catch the sun setting after a beautiful summer's day!


On Saturday, we washed our cars in the morning, and then each headed our separate ways to attend to some household chores. Fireworks were the order for the night, and this was the first year that we were at home for the Independence Day celebrations. Earlier that day, Nathan indicated that he didn't want to go to a big fireworks display, so we spent the evening at home. However, our neighbor's fireworks were quite impressive. These started being fired off randomly at around 5pm, building to a crescendo between 10pm and 11pm. Of course, some had enough gun-powder filled tubes, to keep the artificial light and sound show going to after midnight!

I had about 6 hours sleep before it was time to get and and make myself presentable for church... I was playing this morning, and this time I was playing with my very talented friend, Ian, for the first time! It was an incredible time of worship and I really had a good time. This afternoon, Liesel and I arranged a babysitter for Nathan and Josh, and we had the rare opportunity to go and watch a movie. We went to The Proposal, and we laughed until our eyes watered! It was thoroughly enjoyable - and nice to be alone, independent of our boys for a few hours!

Later that evening, Ian, came over and brought ice cream for us to enjoy! We had a really relaxed and laid back evening, playing on the Wii, and chatting. Nathan is a huge fan of his, since I have a CD in my car that has a couple of songs of his. Everytime I am in the car with Nathan, he requests that I play Ian's songs! So imagine Nathan's delight, when Ian took my guitar, and gave Nathan (and us) a private performance of Nathan's favorite song! The smile on Nathan's face said it all! What a way to end the weekend!