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Recently my daughter and I have been on a bit of a Roald Dahl binge. It started with ‘The Giraffe, The Pelly and Me’ and slowly we have worked our way through a large array of them with more to come shortly:
- The BFG
- The Witches
- Matilda
- Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
- Fantastic Mr Fox ( one of my daughter’s favorites)
Since my daughter was very little (in fact from the time she was born) I have been reading to her. Its amazing how reading to your child at such a young age, even is he or she does not understand the wording at the time, extends their vocabulary at a rapid rate. I will never forget the day she came to me and said her first proper full sentence, it was “Mommy, the flower is beautiful” she was just over a year old at the time and it was one of the proudest moments of my life and it just keeps getting better. Why just yesterday, my daughter’s teacher came to me and remarked on her fantastic behaviour in the middle of the mayhem that transpired (I don’t have the exact details on this but it sounded pretty raucous). She got up, removed herself from the situation, quietly sat down and read a book until things calmed down with the other kids. I don’t know if I have mentioned it, but we don’t have DSTV or even normal free stations on our TV set. In fact the last time I watched TV was in March of this year. So we keep a large array of movies instead. Perhaps that is helping the interest in books along?
Besides Roald Dahl though, we have managed to sneak in a few lovely illustrated books which my daughter truly loves including:
Winnie the Witch who goes on the most absurd adventures and has the two of us shouting abracadabra every time we turn the page.
My Granny was a frightful bore( but she isn’t anymore) , one of my all time favorite story books, on finding this book in my local exclusive books I felt a sense of nostalgia creep over me, and it was as if my heart jumped. An absolute classic and a must have! If one day I am able to do even one of the things this granny gets up to at age 82, it would be amazing. The book has a bit of a rhyme to it and is a lot of fun to read together.
The Gruffalo’s Child , every bit as good as the Gruffalo itself, ‘The Gruffalo’s Child’ takes you on a journey through sights and sounds and descriptive words that your child will pick up easily due its rhythm and easy to read style of writing.
Now that she is getting older, and to encourage her to read on her own more, another little idea that recently spawned in my head was to buy her several colourful and illustrated encyclopaedia’s. Every evening now instead of her catching half a movie, I ask her to find out about something new, yesterday it was about Inca’s and today’s topic was Ancient Egyptians, she does this while I make supper and then we discuss it at dinner. It then becomes a family discussion and the resulting conversation brings us closer together as well.
A love and passion for reading and literature is a wonderful gift to give your child and something alot of kids are missing out on to easily these days due to being exposed to, too much electronic media, too young.
We are always looking for new books to read though, so my question is, what are you reading to your kids at the moment? What are theirs, and your, favorite children’s books and why? Sharing is caring after all, so please leave a comment for us to share with other mom’s ( and me too).
Being Nation wide school holidays ( with the exception of a number of schools) I thought its about time for all our readers to know what is hot and happening this week in Cape Town Johannesburg and Pretoria!
Beat the holiday blues away for you and the kids, below is a break down of some of the events happening this coming week, if you want to see what is coming up in the next month, please click here.
Happy Holidays everyone!
Western Cape
| Adventures in the Enchanted Garden with Buggles | R30 per child | Cavendish Square Shopping Centre, Cavendish Street, Cape Town | More information |
| Kids Play Zone-Cooking Class | Entrance is R80pp, w | Durbanville Business Park, off Klipheuwel Road | More information |
| Kids Play Zone-Holiday Programme | From R20 per child a | Durbanville Business Park, off Klipheuwel Road | More information |
| Mysterious Ways | R65 p.p. | Broadway Theatre, 88 Shortmarket Street, Cape Town | More information |
| Numetro Cinemas: Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs | unreleased at time o | All NuMetro Cinemas in the Western Cape | More information |
| Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs | R40 p.p | Central Court, Canal Walk, Century City | More information |
| The Holiday Club | Entrance is R40pp pe | Helderberg Nature Reserve, Verster Avenue, Somerset West | More information |
| Thumberlina | Normal play rates ap | Plinka Plonka Play,171 Buitenkant St, Gardens, Cape Town | More information |
| Vodacom Funny Festival | R120 p.p, Discounts | Baxter Theatre Centre, Main Road, Rondebosch | More information |
Gauteng
| Annie Junior | R60pp for evening sh | Wits Theatre, Johannesburg, South Africa | More information |
| Grand Bird and Reptile Show | Entrance fees: R38 a | Johannesburg Zoo, Upper Park Drive Park town Johannesburg | More information |
| Holiday Programme at Johannesburg Zoo | R55 per child, for c | Johannesburg zoo, Upper Park Drive Park town, Johannesburg | More information |
| Jozi´s Winter Circus | Contact for Cost | Gold Reef City Theme Park | More information |
| Noddy | Special schools perf | People´s Theatre, Johannesburg Civic Theatre Complex, Braamfontein | More information |
| Numetro Cinemas: Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs | Not available at ti | All NuMetro Cinemas in the Gauteng | More information |
| Pippi Longstocking | R60pp | 3 Junction Avenue, Parktown | More information |
| Shepherd´s Fold Stables Pony Camp | R220.00 per day plus | 55 Sunset Drive, Elandsdrift, Muldersdrift, Gauteng | More information |
| Sleeping Beauty | Adults:R 70.00 p.p; | Pretoria Youth Theatre,Gerhard Moerdjik Street, Sunnyside, Pretoria | More information |
I have got to put my hands together for the manager and staff of our latest party planners to be listed in the Western Cape, namely, Fantasy Kids . My daughter has just turned 8 and we have done the fairy, princess and pony parties to death. We needed a change! Basically, the original idea that my daughter had decided on, was rock and roll, however I felt that this may be wiser to do at a slightly older age. So I did what I always do when we are stuck for ideas, I started scouring magazines and the web for more original party ideas. When whose website should I come across? Why, that of Fantasy kids, of course. It took a total of 10 minutes for me to make up my mind on the theme after logging onto their website, which I found user friendly and easy to browse and we ended up going for the ‘Pamper Party’ option. My daughter is also in a new school this year, so to get everyone a little more well aquainted, we invited pretty much the entire class! 20 girls to precise.
Now I dont know if you have ever been left in charge of 20 children before, let alone trying to entertain all of them, if you have, you will know it is rather chaotic if it isnt a classroom environment, but I didn’t need to worry about a thing.At this age parties are more stop and drop, so there were no other parents around for the duration of the party. The Fantasy Kids staff were incredibly Professional, and 3 helpers arrived as if on que. They quickly sorted the girls into teams and set them up in a makeshift salon ( magazines in a circle on the floor and all the girls on pillows) in our lounge. They then took turns to wash their faces and got started with applying make up and having a genuinely amazing time. They proceeded for a short interval and icecream and then it was back to business. Nailart, nail polish and pretend stick on nails suddenly became the order of the day. It was the first time in my life I have experienced such a well coordinated and stress free birthday party.They were great!
Party Time
Fantasy Kids have also given us permission to distribute some vouchers to our clients valid until December 2010, so if you would like one just click here to download it. To find out more about Fantasy Kids click here or visit their website by clicking here.
I am ecstatic! Finally, months of work, sleepless nights and barely any social activity finally bears fruit…I am watching as I am typing this, our new website go live. Features include forms for every service, navigation that ensures you know where you are always, and some other wonderful features on our Content Management. Over 200 pages all neatly tucked into their individual spaces and all fully, easily navigable!
Like I said I am ecstatic. Check it out www.sitters4u.co.za
I recieved this chain mail this morning and had to share… Enjoy:
The Price of Children
This is just too good not to pass on to all. Here is something absolutely positive for a change. I have repeatedly seen the breakdown of the cost of raising a child, but this is the first time I have seen the rewards listed this way. It’s nice.
The government recently calculated the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 and came up with R1,681,470.00 for a middle income family. Talk about price shock! That doesn’t even touch college tuition.
But R1,681,470.00 isn’t so bad if you break it down.. It translates into:
• R93414.93 a year,
• R7784.49 a month,
• R1796.34 a week.
• A mere R254.52 a day!
• Just over R10.50 an hour.
Still, you might think the best financial advice is: don’t have children if you want to be ‘rich.’ Actually, it is just the opposite.
What do you get for your R1,681,470.00?
• Naming rights. First, middle, and last!
• Glimpses of God every day.
• Giggles under the covers every night.
• More love than your heart can hold.
• Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs.
• Endless wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies.
• A hand to hold usually covered with jelly or chocolate.
• A partner for blowing bubbles and flying kites.
• Someone to laugh yourself silly with, no matter what the boss said or how your stocks performed that day.
For R1,681,470.00, you never have to grow up. You get to:
• Finger-paint,
• Carve pumpkins,
• Play hide-and-seek,
• Catch lightning bugs,
• Never stop believing in Santa Claus.
You have an excuse to:
• Keep reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh,
• Watch Saturday morning cartoons,
• Go to Disney movies, and
• Wish on stars.
You get to frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets and collect spray painted noodlewreaths for Christmas, hand prints set in clay for Mother’s Day, and cards with backward letters for Father’s Day.
For a mere R254.52 a day, there is no greater bang for your buck. You get to be a hero just for:
• Retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof,
• Taking the training wheels off a bike,
• Removing a splinter,
• Filling a paddling pool,
• Coaxing a wad of gum out of hairs, and
• Coaching a rugby team that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream regardless.
You get a front row seat in history to witness the:
• First step,
• First word,
• First bra,
• First date,
• First time behind the wheel.
You get to be immortal. You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you’re lucky, a long list of limbs in your obituary called grandchildren and great-grandchildren. You get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications, and human sexuality that no college can match..
In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there under God. You have all the power to heal a boo-boo, scare away the monsters under the bed, patch a broken heart, police a slumber party, ground them forever, and love them without limits, so one day they will, like you, love without counting the cost. That is quite a deal for the price!!!!!!!
Love & enjoy your children & grandchildren & great-grandchildren!!!!!!!
It’s the best investment you’ll ever make!!!!!!!!!
If you have been keeping up with my most recent articles ( not to difficult to do really seeing that with the moving, update preparation, etc etc I have not been able to post as often as usual), you will know that recently we went to the Exclusive books Kids National Geographic day in Cape Town.This was so much fun, my daughter and her friend really enjoyed hearing the stories and learning to draw a lion! A big Thank you to Exclusive Books for making that possible.
What I was not aware of at the time of going was that it was also Cansa Shavathon day! Shaving or spraying in solidarity with a cancer survivor” was the theme of this year’s CANSA Shavathon because hair loss is a common side-effect of cancer treatment ( said Sue Janse van Rensburg, National Executive Director of CANSA, who is a cancer survivor). Now unfortunately Im not very brave when it comes to my hair, I have had my hair cut extremely short at one time, it was disastrous and the girls were not keen for it either, however there were many showing their support by shaving it all off! We went for the alternative and sprayed! What fun just to add a bit of colour, show our support and really get into the swing of things! The girls loved it purple stars and pretty pink streaks and I got an idea of what I am going to look like once the grey hits,well if I also turned into a rocking granny one day who had purple streaks in my hair,still, I took the time to explain what it was all about. Sharing that moment to show our support put a big smile on all of our faces!
You can also show your support by visiting www.cansa.org.za or click here to go straight to the donate page.
This weekend I was reminded of why we are so lucky to be staying in South Africa! Not only do we have so many National treasures in the terrain,wild life and people, but our cities are also definitely something to be proud of! South Africa really is the most beautiful countries in the world! I was lucky enough to be reminded of this, over the weekend and thought its a trip to share with all of you…
This last Saturday my family and I decided it was definitely time for a visit to the top, the top of table mountain that is, Cape Town is gorgeous! It was just such a beautiful day and I couldn’t resist. It was my daughters first trip up.
We arrived at the cable car and thanks to the J&B MET and with so many people taking the opportunity to visit the beach instead, we found parking near the cable car station quite easily, which generally never happens..
We made our way to the cable car station ( the pricing by the way is made for tourists, they should seriously think about providing a discount to South African citizens) and my daughter was amazed with not only the speed at which we elevated and the view but above all else, the rotating floor.
On reaching the top of the mountain we took a trip to the self serve restaurant, they offer a variety of options, from warm cooked food to a full salad bar and everything from coffee to a full selection of wine and beer. It was definitely a unique experience.
After enjoying a relaxing meal our adventure began, my daughter couldn’t stop asking questions and we took more than one go at the binoculars provided by the National Park ( at R 5 a shot, if you are planning a trip up there be sure to take a few R 5 coins with you, its a big help). We walked around admiring the view, reading the interesting informational boards ( that covered every subject from Dassies to Robben island history and the weather 6 million years ago) for a further 2 hours. We also had a few very interesting chats about Fynbos which my daughter found hard to understand, “How can Fynbos only grow in the Western Cape and no where else in the world?”, was the question of the day, a very difficult question to answer to a 7 year old (particularly considering she doesn’t understand weather patterns and climate at this stage). We spent the rest of the afternoon checking out the flowers and searching for fairies and Dassies (Did you know they are related to the elephant?)( I think they were hiding from the heat) and then we ran into a lizard or two. They were actually quite funny to watch, part of the pleasure of having children is that you can remember and even partake in activities such as simply watching little creatures with fascination for up to 10 minutes at a time.
Going down was almost as much fun as going up! What an awesome day! It really allowed me to appreciate the uniqueness of the Mother City and gave me some much needed “out time” with the people I love most in the world!
So there I was! Working up a storm as usual, the clock had just struck midnight. I thought, why am I working this late?
Today reminded me of what makes Sitters4U different. We started because I could never find the reliable help I needed, when I needed it for my daughter… We started so that when a mother needs to go to her graduation she doesn’t need to worry about whether or not her child will be in safe reliable hands( this happened today, she sounded so nervous yet ecstatic and thanked me for the service). We started because there are 1000’s of candidates out there! Some are people you would never want in your home, some are so over qualified they deserve to have work on a regular basis and can bring the help needed by so many moms and dads out there, we started because this is our Country, our Beautiful country and I believe that any positive contribution to that, whether it is in the form of jobs or growth of other kinds is something we should all be doing!
So today I look at the delicate balance I have created between my daughter, my partner, my clients and the candidates I have met and helped, and I am grateful for the late hours, I am happy to have the luxury so many parents do not, time with their child, I am happy to be able to help other parents get the most out of time they have with their children and I am happy to be helping so many wonderful people find work and jobs they deserve to have and are dedicated to having…Helping feels good! I know I wont always work these long hours but i also know that by putting these values and time into this business that it will flourish….
I firmly believe it, you should do too….Help those that will help themselves and you help so many more!
