A part of History

Saturday night we were a part of history. South Africa participates in many rugby tournaments throughout the year so I am always confused about which one means what. The past few months(June-October) all the domestic teams have been competing for the Currie Cup. This Cup is only played by South African teams and each province(similar to states in principle) has several teams that represent them. There are 14 teams in all, if you are deeply interested in finding out more about the history,etc. click here.  Jeff says this Cup is like the Superbowl.
Our province has three teams, our city's team the Lions, haven't won the Currie Cup in 12 years. Yep, that's a long time. We are often on the wrong end of many jokes made about the Currie Cup. So this year when we were advancing through the stages and staying at the top of the log, people were getting hopeful. Last week Jeff and I got tickets to the semi-finals through a friend(thanks Joey) and took Asher to his first rugby game. What a trooper. Here we are supporting the boys!

We beat Western Province(which has several national team(Springboks) members) which is difficult to do. This week we played the final again on home ground at Ellis Park(Coca-Cola Park now) against the KZN Sharks(also has several Springbok players on their side). You have to understand that historically we are pipsqueaks next to these two towering teams. We were definitely the underdogs coming in, but we had a good season behind us and lots of confidence. The stadium was packed out and again some loving friends(thanks again Joe and Siyanda) got us tickets. This time the whole family was supporting the team. The vibe in the stadium was intense and so much fun. The game began and I wasn't sure how it was going to go. To everyone's surprise we killed the Sharks. I mean gave them a beating. What a game! Final score 42-16. So proud of the boys and happy to finally break the losing streak.

The girls

The boys

Scrum

FIRST Family Photo(can you believe it?!)

Siyanda, Jeff and Asher chilling

Fans going wild

7 months of Asher

Guess who is 7 months old today???

ME!!

Happy Boy!!

Asher loves to laugh and smile. We love that we have a happy boy!

Soon-to-be crawler?

Look at those cheeks!!

This is how you smile for the picture Max

Africa has BIG spiders

Thursday morning I was getting Jeff's lunch ready for his trip to Pretoria, where he had an all day meeting, which he was leading. I was trying to be a helpful and thoughtful wife as I poured his coffee into a travel mug, grabbed some naartjies(sweeter than oranges and way easier to peel) and went to get a travel lunch bag for his food to go in. I opened the door under the sink and began looking around. Couldn't find what I was looking for exactly, so I opened up the other door to look on that side, when I saw this crawling a few inches from where I had just been digging with my hands.

Picked this picture so you could see the size of him. AGH! Gross!

Note: not the actual spider (but this is the kind of spider it was)as I only thought about posting it today after all the trauma and drama. :) sheepish grin. 

I ran out of the kitchen screaming(not piercing but loud) more in horror that I had been so close to that thing that looks like it would eat my face off. Our new puppy Max, who you can see here, proceeded to jump out of the storage bin he was sitting in, while we house train him, and ran yelping into our bedroom, which is where I was running as well :). Asher slept peacefully through the entire ordeal, thankfully. We saw a spider like this guy(not as big as this one was) earlier this year in the back portion of our house and Jeff proceeded to kill him with half a can of Raid. I kid you not, it took half a can. So Jeff tells me to get the Raid out and spray this guy too. We found out this spider is the Huntsman spider and originally comes from Australia and is good for the garden (eats pests) but won't eat your face off. I chickened out of returning him to the garden as I was way too freaked out and proceeded to kill him with half a can of Raid(sorry bug lovers, I couldn't help it at the time I was way too freaked out to think logically). He finally died in a corner of the kitchen and after checking he was dead throughout the rest of the day, we had Jeff come in and sweep him up and out. There was no way I was even getting close to the dead body.

Needless to say I am calling the exterminator. I am fine with these guys cleaning the pests out of the garden, but not okay with them in my house, especially my kitchen. EWWWW!!!!

Any crazy/scary bug stories out there? Would love to know I am not the only one.

Timing...

         I think it is everything. Calling for reservations to your favorite restaurant when there are only a few spaces left. Pulling into the parking lot at the mall for the rockstar parking spot, favorite for moms with strollers(prams). Getting the last outfit in your size at your favorite store. Timing is key. More than that I believe that God's timing is impecible. I have been feeling this a lot lately as we have been waiting to hear from high schools for our cousin Casey, remember she lives with us. Also lots has been going on in our lives personally and in the last week or so God's timing has seemed wild and unexplanable. This morning however was one of those "huh" moments where you see how awesome His timing is. I was reading a devotional book my friend Haley(shout out) reminded me of this week. Here's the book. I put it on my "putting in" list on the right hand side of this post :)

Here's today's entry, short and to the point.

 

Note:All entries is from the perspective of God writing these things to you.

          To live in My Presence consistently, you must expose and expel your rebellious tendencies.  When something interferes with yoru plans or desires, you tend to resent the interference. Try to become aware of each resentment, however petty it may seem.  Don't push those unpleasant feelings down; instead, let them come to the surface where you can deal with them.  Ask My Spirit to increase your awareness of resentful feelings.  Bring them boldly into the Light of My Presence, so that I can free you from them.

          The ultimate solution to rebellious tendencies is submission to My authority over you.  Intellectually you rejoice in My sovereignty, without which the world would be a terrifying place.  But when My sovereign will encroaches on your little domain of control, you often react with telltale resentment. 

          The best response to losses or thwarted hopes is praise: The Lord gives and the Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.  Remember that all good things--your possessions, your family and friends, your health and abilities, your time--are gifts from Me. Instead of feeling entitled to all these blessings, respond to them with gratitude.  Be prepared to let go of anything I take from you, but never let go of My hand!

Psalm 139:23-24; 1 Peter 5:6; Job 1:21

 

Thanks Pinterest

Have you heard of Pinterest? It's a site that is a virtual pinboard and you can basically capture any image on the internet that you like and then stick it on your "pinboard" with a link attached to the website you found it on. You can also re-pin something of your friend's/fellow pinterester's that you like. It can really be time consuming and swallow all the "free time" a person has in their day. I was addicted at first after my friend Emily told me about it. She even blogged about it, which you can read here. I have since calmed down in my pinning pandemonium and I am trying to create some of the great ideas I have seen through the other people's pinboards. Here's my latest creation which will hang in our house very soon, as soon as I get the frame for it. It took a few hours of looking for the letters that matched Jeff and my personality, which basically wound up taking about two days between baby, teenager, marriage, church, etc :)

I got the idea and tutorial here.

If you are interested in the Pinterest thing, go here. 

Have a great Monday.

A new addition to our home and family

His name is Max. He's a thuroughbred Jack Russell(which Jeff has always wanted). He's just a little guy still but we love him already. He came to live with us Sunday evening and has adapted quite quickly to life in the Viljoen house and lifestyle.

Getting acquainted

Having a chat

Casey is keeping him at night to take him outside to do his business, showing good responsibility(part of our plan there). Asher is enjoying him somewhat, I mean how much can a six month old and six week old puppy bond? We are trying to get Asher used to him at this stage and having supervised visits :) Any advice from dog owners with babies? He'll be an outside dog, since I am allergic(though I haven't had a bad reaction to Max just some extra nose blowing).

Our friend Fifi with Max, fast friends.

This is my first pet ever(except for the goldfish in college,which sadly didn't last long) so I am fresh in this area. Thankfully Jeff and Casey have both had several dogs so they are helpful. Here are some of the first pics of Max and the family. I need to get some of Casey and me with him.

Stick out your tongue

This normally, ready to smile for pictures boy was way too involved in something bigger today...his tongue. Any other parents or aunts, uncles, grandparents, cousins, etc.experience this with your babies around 6 months? Very cute and as a result I have been calling him Charlie Brown for the day.Update: I found out that he is teething. He's been doing all the other stuff, but I didn't know the tongue was part of the deal. :)

Taking the train

Last Thursday we, the Viljoens, took our first family train ride. In August the Gautrain opened it's lines to transporting people between Johannesburg and Pretoria. Last week we took our first ride together up to Pretoria to visit friends(and Jeff had a meeting). Here are some pics of our fun time on the train. Asher enjoyed himself before he fell asleep. A normal car ride takes 45 minutes on a weekend day and at least 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours on an average week day. The train only takes 40 minutes from Joburg to Pretoria CBD. Add a kid and the displeasure of sitting in traffic and you get a great reason to use the train.  No driving, sitting in an air-conditioned car with few people riding along. There is lots of security at the stations and a security guard rides in each car on the train so you feel safe(this is still South Africa :) ). I definitely suggest it as an option for travel between these two cities. As Asher gets bigger I think the ride will be more fun for him, but right now it's just his momma and daddy who love it.

Jeff loading up our Gautrain cards with cash to travel

Asher's ready and teething :)

Mom and Asher on the train

Dad posing for a scenic moment

Nice spacious areas to sit