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Last year Sitters4U assisted Vanessa to find an au pair for her grandchild in Johannesburg. They were so extremely happy with our service, we have done it again for her this year with another grandchild in Cape Town. Thank you for the lovely comment Vanessa!
Thanks Bianca yet again for finding us what I am sure will end up being a great au pair!
Very best regards,
VANESSA
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 |
Today I had the pleasure of watching Canal Walks Fred Abrahamse & Marcel Meyer’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs with my daughter. I have to say, what an incredible performance! The sound and lighting were spectacular while the make up, stage and costumes left nothing to be desired, not to mention the fantastic performances of the actors and actresses involved .
It was an amazing performance! My daughter loved it and surprisingly so did I. I will admit, there have been a few performances in shopping centers we have attended where I was far from captivated, if not completely bored but Canal Walk certainly knows how to put a show together! They really weren’t kidding when they said”visual spectacular” and said “Its a tale sure to mesmerize even the most hyperactive of little bodies.”
Take the whole family along for an hour in the world of Snow White, Sneezy, Dopey, Sleepy, Doc, Happy, Bashful and Grumpy in their little cottage in the forest at Canal Walk.Its playing everyday from the the 27th of June to the 19th of July 2009 ( excluding mondays). For exact times visit Moms Gig Guide by clicking here.
To book your seat with computicket click here
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.
So you have probably been wondering, why so quiet lately? Well I have been extremely busy on our updates for Sitters4U’s major website update coming to your PC in what will evidently be no time at all ( seeing how fast the year has moved).
So much has happened, I have spent extensive hours working out all the kinks with our current system and finding what works for our clients. Well apparently what everyone has been loving the most is our application forms and request forms being online, no need for faxing or emailing, unfortunately this is a very expensive update which we will be applying to all of our services soon with new forms online for every service we offer. However this means an increase or a slight change in a number of our policies, the number one being our registration fee for services. It is sad how so many clients have taken advantage of this system over the last year, filling in the form, we find the candidates we have available who are appropriate and interested in the position and we never hear from them again or if we do its months later when all of those staff have already been placed and we need to start from scratch! We need the clients interest as much as they need ours, if they do need it that is. So the saying is true, a few bad apples spoil the lot.. and we will now be requesting an administration fee instead of a registration fee before a client is assisted, how else are we going to afford the convenience our clients crave?
On a lighter note though, its been an amazing hard month for many especially my family and I, we moved homes and our offices all in one go, my daughter finally started swimming (which makes me want to jump up and down and shout “Hooray!!”), we welcomed a number of new staff to our listings and they are working well, and 2 close friends of mine welcomed their new bundles of joy into the world ( a boy and a girl), most of the written updates for the website have been completed (well, now its just the technical side, which apparently could take until the end of March or longer) and even with all this I can say I feel good giving myself a pat on the back for sticking to the Taebo Kick boxing!
Bring on March 2009! Im ready to make this month the best yet! Having stuck to almost all of my New years resolutions thus far is definitely leaving with the sense of accomplishment I have been craving!
About two years ago I received a piece of paper from a stranger . She looked at me and said, “This will help you”. It was a completely random occurrence that changed my life. I now believe she was definitely a guardian angel or had one working through her. Today I look back and realise how much that piece of paper assisted me, stuck to my fridge and although almost impossible to live up to, trying to do so, has definitely assisted. I would like to share it with you today, so please take a few moments to view the wise words of the Dalai Lama that changed my attitude and perspective. Perhaps you will glance over it and have a wonderful day, or print it out and make it your Mantra, whatever you do, whether you take it seriously or not, I am positive, that just by reading it, it will assist you in making a great success of your life. It stays in the corner of your mind, hidden and slowly but surely new connections are made in the mind, altering reaction and action alike:
Instructions for Life by The Dalai Lama
- Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.
- When you lose, don’t lose the lesson.
- Follow the three R’s:
- Respect for self,
- Respect for others and
- Responsibility for all your actions. - Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.
- Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.
- Don’t let a little dispute injure a great relationship.
- When you realize you’ve made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.
- Spend some time alone every day.
- Open your arms to change, but don’t let go of your values.
- Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
- Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and
think back, you’ll be able to enjoy it a second time. - A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.
- In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don’t bring up the past.
- Share your knowledge. It is a way to achieve immortality.
- Be gentle with the earth.
- Once a year, go someplace you’ve never been before.
- Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.
- Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.
- If you want others to be happy, practice compassion.
- If you want to be happy, practice compassion.
So there it is, I now try to run my life and business according to the wise statements above, and it has assisted me greatly. I hope it will assist you to in all areas of your life.
So it’s that time of the year, Christmas is less than 20 days away!
In reflection, 2008 has been an amazing, trying and yet progress packed year for most of us including myself. Every challenge considered and so many lessons learned, it has all lead to progress in our lives and yet now it’s the time of the year that everyone needs a little quality family time. School holidays are going into full stride this week, and many are enjoying their annual leave. Summer has arrived and the sun is shining!
Now its unfortunate but true, its not very often where one has the opportunity to take exclusive quality time out with the ones we love, whether your children, parents, family or friends. Sure, all year round we have weekends and afternoons, bedtime stories, braais, picnics, walks, dinners and so much more fun time with those closest to our hearts on a day to day basis. All too often though, we end up spending this time with our thoughts a million miles away, distracted and wrapped up in work, technology, daily chores, bills, what we are having for dinner, and the many other aspects of life we need to worry about. This diminishes the value of these precious moments and after the last 4 days I have now come to the conclusion, that it needs to be reiterated that spending time out, time in the sun and time with the people you love most in the world is sometimes worth more than doing or thinking about anything else.
I must say thank you to all our clients and staff that bore with us for the last 4 days while we closed for the first time since we opened for business almost 2 years ago. I have honestly not taken a single day without checking, or at least having the ability to check email or receive phone calls, so much so that any and all time out, when we have gone away for a weekend was planned almost entirely around cell phone reception.
This year we decided on visiting Wilderness Nature Reserve, which is one of the most breath taking, captivating and somewhat magical places I have seen or had the pleasure of seeing in my life. I will admit, I was extremely uneasy about not having access to reception, I worried, perhaps I would let someone down, in hindsight I am so grateful for that time.The peace of knowing I could not check an email and that I could not receive calls, the clarity and silence in my mind suddenly felt like a dream, like being a child in a way, able to have a small and yet infinite amount of time without worrying about anything. What bliss, 4 days later I feel entirely reconnected to all of those in my life whom I love and cherish most.
We went canoeing, hiking, swimming in the waterfalls (surprisingly child friendly waterfalls) and the fresh water river, braaied and chilled. We went to visit Sedgefield (a tiny town just past Wilderness) on the Friday where I found the most stunning dress for my daughter and on our way back we stopped in at the fairy Sanctuary in Swellendam. If you ever are in the area, this is Swellendam’s claim to fame, and well worth a visit especially if you have a daughter with you.
While we were there I found 2 amazing books in their fairy shop, written by Dr Wayne Dyers:
• Incredible You! 10 Ways to let your greatness shine through
• Unstoppable Me!: 10 Ways to Soar Through Life
These books are brilliant, absolutely brilliant, books for children, teaching so much more than any other children’s books I know of currently, for children of any age. The pages and illustrations speak to you and your child, and the book end questions in the last pages, encourages your child to really thoroughly grip the messages being sent through these books.
Two exerts from Dr Wayne Dyers website describes both books perfectly ( click to visit site):
Unstoppable Me:
If you intend buying your child a book this year, even if it is only one book, I highly recommend both of these books for your shopping list.
All in all , being back home now, re-energized and ready for the new year was worth every second, so go on, take time out, leave your work alone for just a few days, don’t give yourself a choice in the matter and enjoy the time out to concentrate purely on the yourself and the ones you love! Happy Holidays!
