Clinging To These Moments So I Never Forget Them

I love the holidays.

They have always been my favourite time of the year, I guess it’s hard to not enjoy sitting in the sun, swimming in the pool, catching up over drinks, chatting over the braai and just generally spending lots of quality time with our family and friends.  This year is extra special because we get to spend some much needed quality time with Mia and Ben who have come all the way from Australia.

In between all the social engagements, the running around and the crazy business that is happening around us, we get brief moments of respite.  A little R&R.

It’s so easy to just play down these moments and just let the kids play and entertain themselves while you pass out on the couch (I am struggling to stay awake most days).  But it’s these little moments that I am enjoying the most.  It’s in these moments that I have a chance to just sit back and take it all in, to notice the affection between siblings, to witness the girls learning to swim in front of my very eyes and to just be there – for them, for Seth and for me.

This house lends itself to so much more than out old one did.  There is actual wildlife around here (as in bugs, spiders, butterflies, more bugs, squirrels and all sorts of birds), where at our old house, I think it was quite possibly more than a couple of years since I had seen a butterfly.  Another really special opportunity that we have here is that my Dad can come and join us in the garden and spend quality time with us, watching the kids have fun.  Such a lovely time that we never would have had before.

These swimming photos need a preface – in that just last year, Riya pretty much refused to get in the pool, if anything she dipped in her toes, but that’s as far as we could get her.  This year, she is constantly pleading to get in the pool (often annoyingly so), but let me tell you, it’s worth it.  Seeing her in there determined to learn how to swim and really making progress is just amazing.  You can’t really see it, but when she has the wings on, Seth isn’t holding on to her at all.  It’s a pretty big deal for us because we’ve never been able to send them for swimming lessons yet.

These two get on like a house on fire.  Constantly looking out for each other and entertaining everyone.  These little kisses (that left Kyla needing to wipe her face clean) are hard to come by, I literally have to beg for one, but she gets them for free.