Same again Sam

Rob and I ran the City to Surf 12km "fun" run again this year.  It was a spectacular spring day and if it hadn't been for some pretty harsh hills, it would have been a perfect day out.  I had forgotten that the only inclines in this city are concentrated on that 12km stretch so the shock to my thighs was quite something.  The irony is that I finished in exactly the same time as last year:  1 hour 7 minutes.  Rob ran ahead this time and finished about 6 minutes faster than me.  I could hardly blame him for leaving me stumbling up the slopes when I had thousands of other runners to keep me on track!  The three distances (12km, 21km and 42km) attract over 40,000 competitors and it really is a great day out.

We were very fortunate that cub scout camp was on the same weekend for Russell and Adam and it was only Hugo who had to be farmed out to Liezl and Jaco for the night.  We enjoyed our 24 hours of total solitude, interrupted only by the tiler grinding the floor out of our bathroom!

It's all about the Dads

Rob and Hugo walked to school at 7.15 this morning for Fathers' Day Breakfast.  Rob was proudly wearing the tie that Hugo had made for the day.  It was very funny arriving at school and seeing all the dads in their corporate suits playing in the sandpit.  This week is littered with activities for the dads to enjoy with their children as this Sunday Australia celebrates the head of the house, the masculine role model, the provider and protector!  Tomorrow is Adam's turn to take Dad to breakfast, then there is the cub night with Dad too.  Our boys have been busy making gifts for their dad at home and school. 

We are really grateful and blessed to have Rob in our lives.  He is an awesome father and a great example for our boys of how to love and care for a wife and how to treat everyone.

This week we thank God for our Dad.

SUP Boarding

There was a first peak of summer weather on the weekend and we couldn't resist getting the SUP board out for a debut paddle.  The whole family had fun and it is certainly more difficult than it looks!


Cold and Nervous



Young and Effortless



Hot and Intense

The balancing aspect does take some getting used to.  I discovered quickly that my four men will call endlessly from the shore but it is very tricky to turn back, let alone answer them.  New Family Rule:  no calling the paddler while she/he is struggling out on the swell. 

We each had our turn to fall in the icy water but it was all in good fun.  Our friends, the Zwitsers came down to the river to spectate and ended up all giving it a go.   After a couple of hours of beach soccer, kayaking, swimming and SUP boarding, we gathered at the Deep Water Point Cafe for coffees to thaw out while the children had ice creams! 

I can't wait for summer and the fun times we are all going to have on my board.  What a great gift.



Hi Ho Hi Ho

It's back to work I go!  And this time I am selling a beautiful girlie product that makes us all very happy:  lingerie!

INTIMO is one of the largest direct selling businesses in Australia and direct selling in the form of "party plan" is very big here.  The idea is that someone hosts a presentation of a product in their home.  The product is then sold to the group of friends and hopefully one of them decides to host their own presentation for another group.  If the product is right and the hostess rewards are enticing, the business rolls forward.  I have been invited to Enjo cleaning parties, candle and decor parties, natural health parties and more.

In this way I stumbled across the most gorgeous range of bras, panties, camisoles, nighties and casual daywear at a friend's presentation.  From there I decided to host my own demonsration which was so successful that I had a good look at the business model and decided to give it a go.  This business ticks many boxes for me:  I have many years of sales experience which could be put to good use, I can choose the hours I want to work, I can run it independently as my own business, it is sales target and incentive driven, the rewards are excellent, the customer profile is high end middle aged women, I get to have a drink or tea with the girls while doing what I do best, the product and free samples are divine, and the list goes on.

An INTIMO consultant shows the range to the group of women and then offers a private measure and bra fitting in the bedroom to ascertain each client's needs.  It is a wonderful way to purchase good underwear and ensure a great fit and look in an unintimidating environment. 

So I have spent a great deal of the past month revisiting sales training DVD's, doing product training, learning to work the online sales portal to administer my business and coming to terms with how to measure bust size!

I have just received my sample kit and am having such fun playing with all the bits and trying them on.  My friends have all been amazingly supportive and many have offered to host a demo to get me up and running.  I start in September and have eight parties booked already.

The idea is that I will build a team of consultants under me who I can motivate and manage as well as do my own selling.  There are some great incentive trips to work towards as an added bonus. 

I can't wait to get back to the coal face and see if I can still close the deal!  Take a look at http://www.intimo.com.au/ to learn all about my next career.

multiple births

And multiple pregnancies.  I had no idea that Australian families were so large.  In South Africa I would often get raised eye brows when I mentioned that I am the mother of three boys.  Here, I am an average achiever.  Two children just doesn't cut it and more than three is the norm. 

Perth is a great family city and everyone includes the children in all forms of entertainment.  Babysitters are expensive and it is far more common to be invited out as a family.  The trouble with this is that a dinner for three families often results in 10 children on your guest list. 

We love entertaining so this is often how our table looks.  We now have two dining tables in our living area to accommodate the masses or we just eat in shifts with an age restriction on each!  Australian families are amazing at handling their children and their busy lives.  It is not uncommon to be the only mum alongside the pool at swimming lessons as many dads have one or two days a week off work to share the load with a working wife.  Australian women in general clean their own homes, do their own laundry and hold down some form of part time work.  Stopping at two children just doesn't seem right even when life is very busy and often spinning out of control.  The good thing is that on the odd occasion that we have had a babysitter, they never even flinch when we say that there are three boys to look after - that, my dear, is just a very common occupational hazard.

Boerie on the Barbie

We are so chuffed with our new Barbie! Can you tell?  It's mid winter but we are outdoors grilling chops and wors on our newly purchased gas barbecue.  We gave combed the benefit list, discussed the pros and cons at length and have given in to peer pressure. And what a revelation it has been.  This little baby can cook meat within minutes of making the decision to tackle dinner.  Russell now cooks mid week meals (because it is way cooler than conventional cooking) and I don't get a messy hob in the kitchen.  I know it isn't the same as the trusty old Weber which is standing just out of this picture with its nose out of joint on that shiny black dome.  But it does the job with minimal fuss and can feed the never ending army that passes through my door.  I am not reporting this purchase to South African Home Affairs as they may recall our passports but I am turning chops at pace to get our money's worth back here.

There's nothing quite like a braai barbie, to get the friends round.

Technology

You've got to love it.  So here I am at 40 just getting to grips with my first Smart Phone which is reminding me daily how unsmart I am.  I haven't felt the need for another gizmo that does everything from googling to emailing with cute rings and 10mb cameras until now.  What would be more useful to me is a gadget that smacks the kids or puts out the garbage or makes the beds for that matter.  Well I have now discovered that the cheapest of cheap mobile contracts ($29 per month) now gives me more airtime and texting than I have time to make and it all happens on the smartest of smart phones.  The trouble is that I was not supposed to wait for the 4th generation of smart phones to get one or I may have been lucky enough to get a user guide/manual with the phone.  No, Samsung and all its cousins, assume that by now we all know how to sync our blogs with our diaries and our notepads with our photo albums.  So I am muddling on just barely managing to save a phone number at this stage.

This issue was compounded by the fact that almost every time I pushed a new button the phone would ask me in bold Times New Roman to open my gmail account.  In desperation while out, I entered what I thought was my gmail details from my blog but inadvertently changed two of the letters which registered a new account.  When I tried to go to rarahs, the blog had slipped off my profile as I was logging in via the new gmail address!  That one lodged in my brain for some reason and I now have two different google profiles.  I struggled most of last night to get to the bottom of the missing blog.  I went into help forums and chat rooms (as one does when one has any problem from chest pain to disappearing blogs or both) and couldn't resolve my issue.  After a rough night's sleep I woke up with the thought that maybe, just maybe, I had another gmail account.  I went to my trusty real life tactile paper notebook and paged back to last year this time where I had scrawled the details of my blog as rarahs was conceived, formed and born.  I instantly saw the mistake and logged in effortlessly.  Thank goodness for that little book that could not possibly have died in the computer crash but was safely on my book shelf.

My go slow which led to many emails, messages and fb postings; my vent about the void; and then this small typing technical hitch have made me realise how fond I am of rarahs.  It's my baby and my moment to regroup.  It teaches me stuff about myself all the time and makes me stop to count my blessings.  It gives me the freedom of speech I want, the voice from the podium I like, company in the dark. 

Most of all it made me realise that I am not ready to let YOU go out of my life and probably never will be.

Momentum

Darn it, I really have lost the blogging momentum and this week I plan to sort that out. There have been many bloggable moments lately and lots of thoughts to share but my mind has just been too full of stuff to get the words to flow. I have lots to report and to write about and a great big catch up is required. There's the never-ending house renovation, the boys, our leisure activities, Aussie life in general and my new business opportunity.

Rob is heading north tomorrow to visit the mines at Dampier and Port Hedland. I will be sorting out the photo software on my pc and blogging some of our precious moments here.

life is busy and full. The year is steam rolling forward and it's too precious not to stop now and then to take stock and type it all down.

Boarding time

Today Rob got up at 4.30 to Fly to Kalgoorlie for the first time. He is attending the "Diggers Convention" which is where all the miners congregate to discuss what is happening in the industry. Take a look at www.Kalgoorlie.com for an insight to this famous inland town which is the heart of WA mining. I think Rob was quite excited to be going and he is learning the industry really fast. His job is dynamic and interesting. He is mixing with influential people and is stimulated. It is really great seeing him motivated and up for the challenge. The MacBank experience and the year of consulting here have put him in a winning position to really use his skills. It is so good to see him feeling valued and appreciated.

For me, it has been great having him home so much. This job will require a small amount of travel and I think Rob has missed that a bit. While I would never wish our Cape Town lifestyle with him away so much, back again, I think the odd "sleep out" will be great. I want to have a chance to miss him again. And then, of course, have the pleasure of serving up bacon and eggs for dinner while he is away!

go slow

I have been on a bit of a blogging go slow for the past few weeks. While there has been a lot going on around here, I just haven't felt inspired to write. I am also not sure if anyone is actually out there!

We are now into the seventh month of renovating and the novelty of tradesmen around every corner and dirt just about everywhere has kind of worn off. We are down to one toilet and up to eight people using it most of the time and I have the great job of cleaning it! Need I say more? Amidst the chaos of the build yesterday said toilet became blocked by one of the workers on our half built garage roof and yours truly had to try and sort it out with a plunger. There was more air coming out of my mouth from gagging than going up the offending u-bend so I called for reinforcements and a plumber showed up promptly with a gadget for just such an infliction.

I am finally rid of the less than cheerful plasterer who resurfaced the whole front of the house and plastered the new garage. The job took much longer than expected due to the heavy rainfall in July. Yesterday the electrician fitted the new laundry and our en suite. Today the tiler is due to do the laundry floor. Tomorrow the old en suite gets stripped with a jack hammer (oh fun and dust!) and on Monday the plumber will fit all the appliances and vanities. Rob will hopefully assemble the laundry cupboards from IKEA on the weekend so that I can paint the laundry. During next week we should get the new en suite tiled too. From there we will strip and refit the family bathroom to accommodate a very missed bath.

Meanwhile there are two guys putting a roof on the new garage, banging as I write. Next week the roof gets tiled and the cement floor will be laid.

On my list today is to chase up the blinds for the study, choose a bath, collect a bench top for the laundry and organize quotes for a garage door.

Yes, I am a bit over it. But maybe it will be over soon, too.