Beware of low hanging branches 9/23

So, a couple days ago I walked into a tree branch, and not just a skinny little twig either. It was actually more of a tree trunk that has bent at an angle and is strategically positioned between our braai area and the house. Now my head hurts, and I am not sure if it is still from being sick or from taking a hard knock to the noggin. Today we managed to get out of the house a little before 9. Mama Rebecca came to clean today and Darin and I had decided over the weekend that it would be wise to get our kids out of the house for the morning so she could have some peace and quiet. So we all got up by 7:30 (well Darin and the kids were up an hour earlier) and were ready to go when Mama Rebecca and Amos arrived this morning. We headed back to Montana where the Kolonnade Mall and McDonalds's are both located. First stop, Mugg and Bean at the Kolonnade, the coffee shop where we have an internet account. Sadly for us, we could not get on line today. The stop at the mall wasn't a total loss as we did get Jori's hair trimmed at the barber shop. She is looking a little less like a street urchin today with her pretty curls.

After the mall, we decided to head to McDonald's. It was about 10:40, so we figured the kids could run wild in the play area for a while before we ordered lunch. While the kids were expending great amounts of energy, Darin discovered that Mickey D's also has WiFi. Today we were able to get on ten minutes for free and download all of our email. Our new plan is to use up our time at Mugg and Bean and then sign up through McDonald's so our kids have a place to play while we are on line.

Tyson and Jori have really been getting along since we've been here. They still have their sibling moments, but they also have learned to play more together, help each other and empathize with each other. Today at McDonald's, Jori was a little too short to climb part of the play structure. After a suggestion from Darin, Tyson willingly let his little sis stand on his back so he could boost her up. It was really sweet. If one of them is crying (or has just been disciplined by mom or dad) the other is always ready with a hug and an offer to “go get your blanky” for the sad sibling.

Getting back to our big day out, we left McDonald's after enjoying some delicious, calorie laden burgers and fries and headed to Pick 'n' Pay. Darin was eager to get more pretzels and chicken and I was super excited to find that Oreo's were on sale. By the time we reached the check-out, our kids were ready to be done. We headed home to our spotless house and tucked them both into their clean beds. They both slept for a couple hours while Darin and I caught up on some essentials like Zuma and reading the Calvin Spark (thanks Amy!). We both managed to head outside for a walk around James' farm. It is much warmer today, probably 20 degrees warmer than this past weekend.

If anyone out there is familiar with South Africa (Weeda's and Leenstra's, this means you!) we could really use some suggestions for things to do and places to go with our kids that are within an hour or two of here. The lack of internet access has made it hard to go back and check your blogs and emails to get ideas for things to do. We have 5 more weeks to fill before we head to Cape Town, so help us fill them!