Grow Yer Mo and an Update

Hello everyone!

Oh I know its been a while....4 months to be exact, Plonkers.

My blogging has taken a back seat to real life for about a year now...

Being a full-time working mum of two very busy girls and a very busy social life, its hard to find time to blog every day.  I'm actually not sure how I did it for 7 years before that?  I guess you just make time - like everything else.  Well, during those 7 years I did get a little side tracked by the blogging community and so I wanted to take some time to refocus on what I really wanted to do and where I wanted to spend my time.  You can so easily get sucked into the blogging world and spending more time speaking to faces you've never met, than spending the time with the REAL people in your life.  By real people, I mean family and friends you see in real life on a regular basis.  I'm not saying that the blogging community are not REAL.  Not at all!  I'm just saying they are online relationships with awesome, real people that you've never met.

I am still quite a social media whore and I'm now on FB, Twitter and Instagram mostly.  Some of you have found me on Twitter and follow me there, some of you on Instagram.  My FB is mainly for family and very close friends.  I don't have hundreds of Friends that I post random shit to.  I use it mainly to keep in touch with family overseas and far away.  Kind of like my blog actually, thats why I started it all those years ago.



Something that has changed in my life, is that I've found a love for running, specifically trail running.  I've always been pretty active, going to gym and Pilates but I never thought running would become part of my life as previously it always came across as something really BORING.  Well, for me its time to think, time to put my favourite music on full blast in my ears and enjoy the alone time. 

So, its Movember Plonkers which means all those men here in South Africa are growing their facial hair to create awareness for men's health, specifically cancer but also things like depression in men and prostate health.  The aim is to Grow Yer Mo aka Moustache in showing support for these causes.

My Boerewors aka Hubby is taking part and is trying to raise money for the cause over HERE.  Go check him out and make a pledge.
 
Are you taking part in Movember?

So, how have you all been??  I'd love to hear from you. 

Leave a comment and say hello. 

I have noticed a lot of my previous follows are not blogging anymore either.  I really have to update my reading list....eeek!  lots of work to do to catch up with my blog. It's possible that I may be redesigning the look of the blog as I find it a little outdated.  It's not going to be over-night though, it will be gradual.

A Rough Day

Kaylin went for her first assessment with the Speech Therapist on Monday this week. Two hours and R950 poorer, my wee lassie was knackered. All the focus and concentrating took it out of her and she fell asleep on the way back to school on the back seat of the car.

I dropped her off and sped back to work, knowing that they’d been pissed at me for taking so long. My eyes were leaking from being told that my wee lassies needs lots of speech therapy at least once a week as her expressive vocab is on par with that of a 4½ year old. Her interpretive vocab is age appropriate, she just needs help verbalizing herself and learning to form correct and full sentences. 

Kaylin hides this very well, though. She hides behind her humour and dramatics or avoids you like the plague if you're pressing her.  She is not confident about speaking at all but rather uses facial expressions and sounds to get a laugh.

Kaylin is 6 and needs to go to “big school” next year.

I am doing everything in my power to get her “school ready”.  Her ADHD meds help but she also attends Occupational Therapy once a week (she needs more, but we can’t really afford it).   Kaylin is a happy wee lassie and oblivious to why she goes to “PLAY” at all these lady’s offices. She thinks we’re just visiting. I feel overwhelmed and forever rushing here and there with her. I can only trust that I'm doing the best for her as I'm not a professional in these areas.

Today at the OT, she suggested that I have the Neurologist do a cat scan on KK to make sure that she has no neurological nerve damage to her brain. Just to rule it out. This scared me. She said that she’s never seen a case this severe.   The fact that Kaylin battles to recall simple words, express herself in sentenses and follow simple instructions.   Kaylin gets extremely frustrated when she can’t do something or finds it difficult. She immediately gets extremely anxious, starts talking “baby talk” and pulls back. You can see the apprehension on her wee face. It breaks my heart.

It was a very emotional day yesterday.  I cried a lot.  Normally I just "get on with it" but yesterday I just broked down. I felt alone and helpless.

I'm praying we can out-rule it and with long-term treatment with the OT and speech therapist we can experience improvement. 

In the meantime we are still searching for a suitable primary school for my wee lass.

AFC Under 9's win 2-0 against Sedars

Keanu in action

Megan Defending up as storm

Goal!

Megan in action.

Congratulatory Tunnel after the victory

Megan won man of the match

Megan's Trophy

I found this wee creepy bastard underneath one of our buckets.  I nearly shat myself when I saw him moving.  Look at that nasty red belly.

SuperGirl

After the football match we had friends over for a Burger Braai and, as usual, we had a BLAST

Emma, My Boerewors and A Daft Scots Lass

My Boerewors being daft

Rudi

A Daft Scots Lass and Tania - Sharks Fan

Our Wee Penny

Unstoppable and a Dukan Diet Update

"Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude."


- Thomas Jefferson - 

I don't have a real post today.  I'm so busy at work with our up and coming Homemakers Expo and the girls going back to school and organising their combined birthday party for this weekend.

Dukan Diet Update:  

Day #15 and I'm down exactly 5.1kg (11.2lbs) and going strong. I also had a big of a tummy buy yesterday and couldn't hold down much at all.  Drinking tons of water and eating loads of protein. I even had two bites of chocolate cake to celebrate my daughter's 9th birthday - my only cheat so far.

Sorry for the poor cellphone pic.  But you get the idea.  Go Meeeee!

Funky Hair Friday and Update

I sprayed our hair blue today and took some pictures....Kaylin took cupcakes to her school today for her wee friends as she's turning four tomorrow.  They got to celebrate her birthday a day early.  My baby is turning four.  Can you belive it?  Gosh, I feel old.

Today was a pretty shitey day overall. 

Riaan got his final verdict from the company that he's been employed with for seven months and they have dismissed him. 

We still can't believe it!  Its been a long 5 weeks at home for him worrying about his job.

He was out of the blue slapped with a suspension five weeks ago pending an investigation from the company's side.  It was a week and a half before he even knew was the charges were!  After he knew what the chargers were, he requested access to his emails to do his own investigation.  Then the light went on and he knew what it was all about.  He'd missed a request on the bottom an email to do something (he was pretty busy on another project).  One little mistake and he's been charged with Deregation!

BS  ....total BS!!!

Especially since he has no formal job description, has had no formal hand-over from the guy who was supposed to be assisting him settle into his new position at the company.  At no time did they call him in to discuss why he didn't follow the instruction.  No counselling was given to him.  No verbal warning, no written warning, nothing!

He had a disciplinary hearing that lasted from 9am in the morning until 4:30pm in the afternoon and he was totally shattered when he got home.  He has no company representative as he's only been there 7 months and doesn't have a strong trusting relationship with anyone there.  He's had to wait an entire week for the findings and the verdict from the Chairperson.  More waiting and worrying...

Emotionally it has taken its toll on him.  He is a broken man at the moment....he's so demotivated, so desponded and very down.  Its been exhausting for me trying to keep him in good spirits as well as trying to keep it from the girls, my dad's car accident, my mum in the hospital and all this amongst our Expo (the busiest time of my working year).

I'm drained, my Boerewors is depressed and its a tense household right now.  We don't know how we're going to get through the next month with no salary from my Boerewors.  We may have to sell our belowed Ford Focus ST to make ends meet.

He wants to contest it all.  He wants to appeal but I'm not sure he has the energy for it.  One day he has the anger in him to fight them, the next day he's like, Woteva and couldn't be bothered going through it all again... I hope he finds some fight within him and take the company to the CCMA for unfair dismissal.  I know he has a case as he clearly got the short end of the stick.  They wanted rid of him somehow for something and we don't know who has stabbed him in the back or why.  There is no closure for him.  He is the first to admit when he's done something wrong but one little mistake and you're out?  Its just doesn't seem fair.

Give a guy a break!

Yet Another Update

Mum has been diagnosed with diabetes that she could probably control with her diet at this stage.  No insulin is needed yet but the Dietician has been around to give my mum an Eating Plan to stick to.  They want to keep her in to get her sugar levels balanced and under control and then she can go home.  Oh crikey, I just wish I could be there to give her a big cuddle and kiss...


Riaan's hearing has been going on all day!  He is emotionally and physically exhausted.  They've hauled out the Big Guns and are trying to nail him on every tiny little thing that has happened during the 7 months that he's been with the firm.  Its ridiculous...surely attacking his integrity is not legal?  Best of all, none of this was even discussed with him first, he was just slapped with a Gross Misconduct Disciplinary Hearing.  I'm so angry with them.  Gross Misconduct is serious and all the charges against him certainly cannot be categoriesed as GM.  He is representing himself and he surely isn't a Lawyer.  I hope he said enough to save his job to at least bide us time so that he can find other work.  If not,  it will be off to the CCMA for an Appeal.  Final closing statements and mitigating circumstances will be on Monday *sigh*...and the saga continues for us all...
 
I'm knackered.