Our New Home!

Since our internet is finally up and running, here's another update!

Over the course of the last week or two, we moved into our 'new' home. It is three houses down and right next to the Vreugdenhils; much to the delight of the kids! It is a bigger home and just has a homely  feel to it. It has five rooms, and three are upstairs. So Jaclyn and Stefan have their own room and the third room is the games room/teenage retreat/study. They also have their own bathroom. On the ground floor is another two rooms and a bathroom. My laundry is HUGE! And we have space in the backyard as well as a canning room!

Stefan stayed home one day to help transport the boxes which we hadn't unpacked at the other house yet and so I could put everything straight in their places. Jaclyn stayed home the following day to help transport clothes and the kitchen stuff along with Bernice. That evening a group of about 5 guys came and shifted all the beds and furniture. It was done in about 1.5 hours! So we have now settled in and really feel at home!

Our new home

Here's some photos of the rooms empty. More photos coming soon.

Games/teen retreat/study upstairs

Jaclyn's room. Small door leading into Stefan's room

Stefan's room. Same door to Jaclyn's room

Laundry

Lounge with gas fireplace

Kitchen

Dining room

Yesterday morning, once everyone had gone to school, Taleesha was looking out into the backyard, and she said, 'look mum, there's a dog'. I immediately realised it was not a dog but a coyote. He was quite close and probably looking for food. They are generally more scared of you, than you them but there have been reports of coyotes attacking humans so we will just be wisely cautious.

And just on the days we were moving, the corn fields next to our old place got the chop. They work fast with one man on the mower and the corn then goes in the covered trailer behind it. Once that's full, a truck which trails behind, comes up along side and the corn gets dumped in the truck. This then gets emptied in to bunkers and covered up and used in winter as food for the cows.

The corn back in August

Corn in October,  with the cutters having just done a cut around the outer edge

The trailer being empied into the truck

The fields are now all level. Everything is exposed including the bunker and the cow shed in the background

Tried baking some bread in my new mixer. Worked out okay just a bit dense, so we will work on that!

Homemade bread and jam. Yum!

Here's a mower for you Dad! Big long arm that can maneouver it's way around. Here's it's to cut the tall grass along the ditches on either side of the road. Quite some skill involved. The driver is constantly going backward and forward!

The cows from the barn opposite our house.

Well, this week has been a busy one. Putting things in their places and getting a feel for everything! I was also on school cleaning duty this week, so every day after school three families help clean. The classrooms get vacuumed, toilets cleaned, bins emptied and concrete floors dry mopped. Takes about 30-45 minutes. Then on Friday, the three families rostered for the following week help as well and the school gets a more thorough clean. The kids all help and know what to do. Works really well and they also have a sense of ownership!

Well, that's it for this week. We have been blessed with some beautiful weather. Some days are foggy for most of the day but the last few days are clear blue skies. Not normal, we're told! That's all we've heard since we've arrived! Normally we'd be having rain, rain, rain!
  

Thanks for dropping by!