Back from Mmabatho

Spent a short break in the Janz house in Mmabatho. Got all last minute stuff done. Got to see the house on the campus and last visits before we leave. Hottest three days I can remember!

Tomorrow packers will be here. Will really be relieved when this move is over. Kids are still at camp - will meet them in Mmabatho tomorrow. Can't wait to see them.

Speak again soon.

Meant to be ...

Got a call to say the movers should be here to pack by this afternoon! 'What the .....?' (as Caley would say). MBC were not aware the arrangement to be out of Nico's house by 15th had changed. Unfortunately we're not quite ready but should be ok by Mon/Tues.

This is really getting exciting now! Can't wait to post pics of the new house. (big enough to play squash in the lounge!!).

Talk later ...

...to be

Call committee came back to us this morning and it's ... to be. What a sense of relief. At least we can start making concrete plans for next . Would like to give you more details about MBC once we've settled. Hope all will turn out well for CBC - really miss that lot.

Caley's trip with the Gestrings in Durban comes to an end today - will collect her in Lichtenberg later today. Laurent just lazing around. He'll have a chance to see friends next week in Mafikeng and then it's on to summer camp. Trusting for an enriching time for both of them.

Mthatha - to be or not to be?

Are we going or not? Over the last 3 months all we could think of was Mthatha. Over a long time of consideration we concluded it was the right thing to do. What does a pastoral family do when their application has been successful yet the calling church is not satified with the terms of employment?

The feeling is one of frustration and confusion. Doubt is also a word that comes to mind. We do understand the reasons for Mthatha's hesitancy but what do we do with what we believe has already been confirmed?

So the waiting goes on. There is no 'plan B'. Where will we spend the New Year?

You'll know as soon as we do.

Watch this space.....

CONFED CUP

Lau and I were there. Royal Bafokeng Stadium in Rustenburg. Our first live soccer match and the home side had to go and lose... what a pity.

Wedding Anniversary

This week we celebrate our 22nd wedding anniversary. For those of you who were there this should bring back some memories.

4 July 1987 - yes, it was last century!

The park opposite Rosebank Methodist Church.

'No more lonely nights'. Cleaning the Beetle at a farm near Elgin.

A day in the sun in the middle of winter

A lunch treat to Jasmyn Restaurant at Hartebeespoort Dam for 'Fathers' day'. Wonderful to get away from the 'busyness' of Rustenburg! (Fathers' day/Mothers' day - my worst!!)

Reunion in Rustenburg

The road from Rustenburg to Rondebosch

Laurent in his room. We later discovered this room was not going to be dusted or vacuumed for 2 months!

His room is in this block in University House.

The car and trailer needed to be unpacked.

It was looong ! We managed to find a place in Colesberg to sleep over and arrived on Tuesday afternoon in time for rush hour . It took about 30 minutes to get him settled . He has a room to himself so he's pleased . He's been in continuous orientation programmes and seemed exhausted .
We attended the 80th birthday party for Karen's dad and it was quite a bash ! The entire family was together - some for the first time in 10 years . Karen , Caley and I slept over with Heidi , Jack and Bo .... a great treat !
We said our goodbyes to Lau on Friday night and left to come home early Saturday morning . He didn't seem as sad to say goodbye as we would have liked him to be ! But I suppose that's the beginning of the 'typical college experience'.
The weekend before we said our goodbyes to Olivia who spent the weekend with us before going back to boarding school in JHB . She and Lau had a great time together and would not see each other again til June . (we know the feeling ...)
That's all news for now . Keep well and keep commenting !

'Royal Connections' in Rustenburg

Ramblings from Rustenburg

On Monday 29th we moved to Rustenburg . The transport company took a while and we were only able to get away in the late evening .The two hour trip was quite an adventure with one wife , two kids a dog and a cat !
The house was all ready for us to move in . Nico and Di had gone through a lot of trouble to make us comfortable . In two days we managed to clear all 45 boxes . We all worked hard at unpacking while Caley spent time in her room painting her nails ...(sigh) ...
Olivia's visiting for a couple of days . It was good to see her after a number of weeks with her family in CPT . Karen went to school to sort out her classroom .
We plan to attend and investigate some churches in the area . Was quite strange to be at home from 11:00 to 12:00 on a Sunday morning . Kept thinking :"what's happening at CBC ?" but I suppose that will carry on for some time .
The next big event in our lives would be the trip to CPT when Lau will begin his studies at UCT . This will give us the opportunity to see family and friends .
It will also give us a chance to see Des . Nathan's passing really hit us all badly . Who could ever have imagined ? How we searched for words of comfort for the family but everthing we said sounded so hollow . We have promised to pray for her and the girls every day .
Zita's back op was a success and our thoughts are with her as she recovers .
Any way , we promise to keep up with this blog as time allows and hope to hear from you all soon .