South Africa has such vast open skies that sometimes you can be fooled into thinking it is warm outside because you look out the window and the sun is out and it is so bright that the light could blind you. Then you leave the house dressed in a lightweight top and flip flops and die on a hill of hypothermia.

It can be icy cold winds or it can just be cold! We were all wrapped up like we were off to Siberia.

Then later in the week the heat got up to 24 to 27℃ and we were back to caftans and sandals.

Last Saturday it started out beautiful but windy, then it started raining that evening and carried on doing so intermittently over the bank holiday Monday.

My friend Louise picked me up for brunch on Monday and we went to The Deli Social, our usual spot.

Due to the bitter cold outside the inside of the restaurant was vibey and busy. There is a large oval communal table and we happily sat there. I ordered an iced coffee (despite the weather) and Lou had a glass of wine. I caught her up on my health and healing adventures and she caught me up on her life lately. We are always able to catch up as if we just saw each other.

I ordered the Granola and Yoghurt: house granola, Cream of the Crop yoghurt, seasonal fruits & berries with Hout Bay Honey. I did not think of cosy food on such a day because, well, who tf knows. I did ask Louise if my choices were weird and I love that she reassured me there is no weird with food – you are eating it so get it how you want it!

Then again later she had to suggest I cut my apple slices since I was struggling so with fitting them in my mouth. Nope, never thought of that option. I just swabbed off the copious blobs of yoghurt left after each bite.

I also ordered a plain toasted bagel with strawberry jam. I ate that like a normal human.

Louise chose the Shakshuka which is spiced tomato, roasted pepper, harissa, warm spices, two poached eggs, labneh, house dukkah, & grilled sourdough bread to sop up the last bits with. Louise loves this dish, it is her winter fave and it does look warming!

On Saturday afternoon Norm and I babysat our little granddaughter Bree. It was pouring with rain so we could not play outside like we usually do. She was already bathed and in her fuzzy teddy bear onesie and was happily running around the house. She and Norm played on her little climbing frame which is set up in the lounge. She then decided she was going to show us her new trick, a forward roll, combined with her slide and tried to do a forward flip down the slide.

Luckily, Norm realised what was on her mind and dove in and caught her just in time.

My nerves.

She then bossily told Norman to move the climbing frame off of the matt and she did forward rolls and all manner of tricks to perform for us. She has just started gymnastics class and is the youngest child there, most of the others are over 3 and she is not even 2 yet. She then had a game where she lay flat out face down and I said goodnight and made snoring sounds. Then she popped back up and we both shouted ‘Morning!!’. This went on for what felt like hours.

We had such a lovely time with her. There is nothing like having her all snuggled in to read a book and then her saying ‘I love you’ when you say it to her on your way out of her room. Bree is not a very affectionate child so you take it where you can get it!

Amelia is a love of the squish – she loves being snuggled in and cosy. Nothing wrong with either, you let them be who they are. We are firm believers in not forcing contact or affection from a child. They have autonomy.

Little Reuben had his casts back on his legs this week and we hope that this time it takes care of the issues with the bones in his feet. We hope it can be resolved non-invasively. A prayer is always welcome.

Those babies are my heart walking around outside my body.

I have continued my rebounding every evening and I am being more conscious of what I eat and when. I have cooked most of the week. I cooked a big beef pot roast which did us for two nights dinner. I cooked carrots and potatoes in the crock pot with the beef and it was bloody gorgeous. Sitting at the table like proper grown ups is good for our communication and for conscious eating. I am also not snacking all night after dinner. Maybe a little bowl of nuts but not bags of sugar like previously.

One night I cooked what they call Kassler Chops in SA, but they are just Gammon steaks in the UK and Ham Steaks in the USA. I had no idea what Kassler meant so I looked it up. Kassler chops are named after an 19th-century Berlin butcher named Herr Cassel, who invented or popularized the specific method of salt-curing and lightly smoking pork chops around 1880. Isn’t that interesting? No? What am I – a performing monkey??

Anywayyyyyy.

I served these little frozen Frozen Potato & Cream Gratin things from Woolworths but they were horrendous so I did not finish mine. I cooked baby cabbages as my veg.

I was also a bit achy the following day so I am going to be more observant of how my body responds to certain food. I also had crazy dreams that night.

My breakfast is fruit, Greek yogurt, toasted coconut flakes and almond slivers. I buy a serving of mango cut up and each day add a small slice to get the sweetness. That is better than eating a whole mango every day! That is my goal, to improve, not be perfect. I am also eating the healthy blueberry which I used to detest.

The family of Cape Robin Chats are still nesting at the back. They fly up to our doors and sit on the backs of the outside chairs and planters. They are very interactive and will fly down to intimidate the dogs. A southern boubou was making a nuisance of himself near their nest, they both kept dive bombing him until he left and went to the front garden to attack my suet ball.

They are loving the new feeders now that I turned them the right way around.

It makes me so happy to watch them enjoying the food I give them.

Poppy still chases the Guinea fowl daily.

In our stand up meeting (a video meeting) I looked up as a colleague said something quite serious and I spotted Poppy in a crouch chasing a Guinea fowl past the large front window and I burst out laughing. Not appropriate!! Oops.

Yesterday I went for a pedicure at Pamper Me Pink again. I booked their first morning appointment and remembered to take flip flops this time!

Before we started I nipped in next door to the new coffee shop Café Roastique. I picked up a coffee for myself and Sibo whom I had booked with. Their lunch special look fabulous and I may pop in one day to treat myself.

Sibo has such a calm aura and she quietly soldiers on with sorting my feet while I talk about all manner of nonsense as I do when anxious. I am always anxious if I am outside of my house and anxiety either turns me into a verbal assault weapon or I am completely mute.

After my appointment I was back to work but as I had worked late several evenings for meetings with our US clients I was feeling so tired. Norm treated me to a meal from the Chinese restaurant Blue Lotus in Hout Bay. I ordered prawn fried rice which was yummy. I also ordered Salmon Roses and ‘Creamy Prawn Roses’.

This is how they described these alleged prawn roses. Usually a prawn rose is wrapped in a prawn, not salmon. There is no mention of chili and these were incredibly spicy. There is no mention of avocado. It tasted like guacamole. Granted the cockeyed state of them is due to my husband manhandling the packets but, what did I eat?

Everything is expensive these days and I do not like paying for something I cannot eat. We were recently given a free meal after complaining multiple times about the quality of a new item on the menu of a restaurant we go to at least once a week as it is very close by. We complained about it being burnt one night and our order that night was again burnt and Norm kind of got annoyed. Norm mentioned to them he thinks their pizza oven needs cleaning but apparently that suggestion was not received well.

Anyway. I am trying to create more meals at home but some nights I do not have it in me if I finish work at 7pm. On those nights I try to make better choices. Sometimes I succeed and some nights I do not, but that is also OK. I know I am doing my best and I acknowledge that. I am over 3kgs down in weight now.

This weekend I had wanted to have some friends around but I was just too damned exhausted and decided to have a quiet weekend at home. I have my new fairy items to set up and I am excited about that. Norm and I will try to fix her wings because I am sad about that.

I also have some plants that need to be de-pestified. I will give them a soak in some soapy solution and replant them. I have a very cute new bunny planter and a bee planter! Not for planting bees and bunnies – they have images of them on the pots. For the literal autists.

I hope you enjoy your weekend however you choose to spend it. Until next time, Kisses from the Kitten xoxoxox