Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Learning through Living - Life in Knysna

My sisters and I have had a very full life and we have learnt so much over the past few years. We have lived almost all over South Africa and if we haven’t lived in a certain place, we might well have visited it on our travels!


We have seen beautiful countryside, long stretches of ocean, busy towns and hectic cities! We have seen so much and sometimes we forget to take moving around the country as a blessing – we have learnt things most of our friends haven’t!


I decided to take you through our travels, showing places in beautiful South Africa that you might not have visited before. I want to show you crazy things we have done but enjoyed so much! So now sit back and enjoy looking at the heap of photographs I have to show you! I know it might or might not inspire you to step out of your front door and tour the beautiful countryside that you live in! But we learnt and we are learning about life and the world around us through living!

Each week I will show you a different place we’ve lived in.

This week I would like to show you Knysna – a holiday-type town where my dad got a permanent post at the local primary school. God also miraculously provided us with a huge house belonging to the school for very little rent!



We had huge grounds to play on and I also started my first ‘mini garden’!  The only disadvantage was that the house was freezing cold in the winter months, but cool in the hot summer weather.


Gabrielle was ‘my baby’ and I did everything for her!  I sometimes put her in the pouch and carried her around the garden till she fell asleep.


A beautiful family picture


Me and my new puppy, Jemma, getting ready to go on a ‘doggie walk’ around Leisure Island.


Nancy waiting for the ‘doggie walk’ to begin.


Beth waiting for time to go by, by playing on the fence.


We went on lots of outings to the Knysna Forest and explored many old churches and places.


We sometimes took our new puppy, Jemma, on these outings to let her get some exercise – Labradors are always full of energy and we found that out the hard way!


We got two new kittens, Tom and Jerry – here Jerry sleeps in an old ice-cream carton!


For Christmas my parents bought us a pool.


I used to swim with Gabrielle in the pool!


Cooling down by eating ice-cold watermelon!


“This is yummy!” Gabrielle


Beth celebrated her third birthday in Knysna and I was put ‘in charge’ of snacks.


Beth eating her chocolate cake.


We visited the Beach of ‘Noetzie’ which is just outside of Knysna where there are many old castles!


Mom and her little girls on the beach


Nancy and I built a huge sand-castle


Nancy and I with our completed castle!

Gabrielle wearing a rather worried expression playing in the sand.


Nancy celebrated her eighth birthday...



Lots of presents for the sweetest little Nancy girl...she has her own beautiful blog now called ‘Homemaker in Training’ and I’d love for you to take a look!


Sweetest sisters!


Mom with her two little girls on Mother’s Day


Gabrielle and Mom smelling the roses.


I celebrated my eleventh birthday...


We all dressed up in pretty clothes and colours.


We sometimes went to the park.. Gabrielle and I on the swing bridge.


“Hello, I see you!”


Beth on the see-saw.


All the girls playing on the see-saw!


We joined the homeschooling group and on one of the outings we visited the Featherbed Game Reserve on the Knysna Heads.



Going on a hike was part of the fun and the scenery was breathtaking.


View from the top.


Looking onto Leisure Isle and in the distance, Thesen Isle where all the white houses are.


Gabrielle with Mommy on the day of her dedication.


Isn’t she just too cute for words?


Jemma loved to swim so whenever we had the chance we took her with to the beach or to the river!


Nancy, our little ballerina, with her teacher.

So that is Knysna and after two years we moved to Fish Hoek - but, don’t let me run away with myself...more in the next post!

Blessings,
Kelly-Anne

Monday, May 2, 2011

Gabrielle's 4th Birthday

Last Sunday, Gabrielle, my second youngest sister, turned four. She had a special day and the week before Nancy, my mom and I had lots of fun making her presents.

Nancy and my dad turned an old dolls house into a beautiful one – the paint was peeling and it really was an eye-sore! Gabrielle is collecting little wooden people and their furniture and she needed a house for them, so after years of lugging this house around and using it as shelving, it finally came into good use!



Nancy painting the first coat on the house...look out for a post on doing up this house on her blog: wwwnancylblog.blogspot.com coming soon!


My mom made the curtains for the windows and I made the pillows and quilt for the bed.  My grandparents bought her the mommy and daddy wooden people – Gabrielle got the children for Christmas 2010.


Gabrielle unwrapping the present I gave her...look at her sweet face!


Nancy made a few hair bands with felt flowers like the one Gabrielle is wearing in this picture. She loved her gifts and had a ball playing in her pink and white dolls house!


Rebekah also likes Gabrielle’s new toys.

We had tea and cake later in the afternoon with another family that lives close by.


My mom made a heart shaped cake with pink and white sweeties around the edges!


Blowing out her four candles


Delicious vanilla flavoured cake with bright pink icing!

A family birthday tradition is that the birthday girl gets to choose a meal and dessert for the evening – we usually have pizza and this time Gabrielle chose jelly and custard for dessert. We really enjoyed spending the day with her and we are so proud of our little sister!

Love you lots, Gabrielle and happy birthday!

Kelly-Anne

Sunday, May 1, 2011

An ABC Card for a Boy


Hello everyone, I hope you are well. Thank you very much for all the lovely comments that I received with my last card! This week I have made a card for a little boy. I don’t often make masculine cards as I think ladies and girls appreciate handmade cards more, but to broaden my horizons I decided to make a blue card!

This paper I bought at a cute craft shop in Sedgefield for R3.00 a sheet! I was so surprised to find such cheap, good quality paper. This little shop sells everything from ribbon to brooch pins to wool...the scrapbook paper is in a pile on a shelf and the lady is so sweet that I just sit down and work my way through the pile and pick out my favourites!
So here is my card, I hope you like it!



I really enjoyed making this masculine card...I was actually quite surprised!


I used a cute stamp from Whiff of Joy...I am still pondering on what his signboard should say...


I think the ‘ABC’ letters suit the little boy because he looks as if he is going to school...I think I might print out a ‘123’ sentiment on the signboard!


I love using corners and because this card is for a boy I didn’t think flowers would go down very well!


I put three blue gems in the bottom right-hand corner to add some ‘bling’ to my creation!

I would also like to enter the following challenges:
Digi Doodles Shops Best - Anything Goes
Craft your Passion - Show us your Layers
The Crazy Challenge - Use Three Different Patterned Papers
Bunny Zoe's Crafts - One for the Boys
By the Cute and Girly - Anything Goes
AiFactory - Anything Goes
Sweet Stampin Challenge Blog - Try Something New
Crafts and Me Challenges - Vintage/Distressed

Thank you so much for these challenges!!!

Have a wonderful week further!

Many blessings,
Kelly-Anne