Getting Older

I celebrated my 3rd birthday on the 18th of March. A friend told me that he never gets older than 9. As soon as he is suppose to turn 10 he starts all over again. So I am 3.

A small group of us went for a meal on the 17th. There were several reasons for a celebration. Sue, from the Israel trip and the lady who took Neale and Ilse's wedding photos, (see 2nd blog) was in London for work. Neale got older. I think he is about 9 now. It was also the first time some of the Israel people saw Neale and Ilse after the wedding. What better reasons do you need to get together? I am not going to say much about this meal. I will allow the photos to tell you the story.


From front left: Sally, Andrew, Minnaar, Marlene, Me, Jubilie, Liesl, Ilse and Neale.



From front left: Ruth, Sally, Andrew, Anita, Minnaar, Henk vdM and Jubilie.



From front left: Ruth, Sally, Andrew, Anita, Minnaar, Henk vdM , Henk B, Me, Marlene, Jubilie, Liesl and Byron.


Refreshment.

Anita, Minnaar and Henk vdM. Minnaar is the 4th person in our house.

My actual birthday was a day of fun and relaxation. I've spent it with the best company you can ask for. (If I did not spent it with you, it was because you were too far away.)

My day started at 06:00. I woke up and realised my dad would phone anytime soon. I could not go back to sleep, so I got up and made myself some coffee. I was suppose to phone my housemates to ask for coffee, but I thought it was a bit too early to wake them up. At 07:00 my dad and brother phoned. They did phone me "late in the day", because they did not want to wake me up too early. At was 09:00 in South Africa.

By 08:00 my housemates woke up and ordered me to sit. They prepared a lovely fried breakfast. Once again they ordered me out of the kitchen and started baking.




Jubilie and Liesl. The 2 housemates that did all the cooking and baking.

I went to church and was greeted with more : "Happy Birthdays". After church we were suppose to go out, but winter is back in the UK. It turned cold again over the weekend and they did actually forecast snow for some parts of England. A disaster as most trees are already in bloom. (see previous blog) We went back to Henk vdM's house for the most delicious left overs and helped him to finish of the tiling in his kitchen. After that no one had the courage to go out in the cold and rain anymore. We decided to invest some money. OK, it was only a game of Monopoly, but it did feel real. I won of course. I owned some hotels in some dodgy areas of London, (we played a London version) but some people frequently visited my hotels. Of course it lead to bankruptcy. What do you expect if you spent your money in areas like that. That is except if you invest your money wisely in hotels.





The beginning of the end. Rudolf, who started playing Monopoly with us, retired to his room to phone his "mum". He handed his properties over to Marlene to control it for him.





Henk happy that some bad luck came my way.






Look at all the money in front of me. Marlene is getting nervous.




Henk declared himself bankrupt and Marlene had to follow. Robert is looking to see what his wife can cook for him.

We had waffles and ice cream for dinner, before I returned home for the cake that was baked in the morning. After an episode of Grey's Anatomy and CSI New York the day was over and we all went to bed tired but happy.


Henk and Rudolf preparing waffle dough.

It was a lovely day and I want to thank everyone who made it special for me. Thank you for all the phone calls and text messages.

Love
Jaco

PS. Contact me if you need any advice on how to invest your money. (Monopoly money only)