Fall Break in the Mountains

Last week was our fall break, so we took a nice family vacation within South Africa.  We were looking for something relaxing and fairly low-key since we have been going strong for a couple of months now, and we definitely did not relax on our long weekend to Munich a month ago.  So we headed to the mountains and enjoyed two of our favorite South African destinations: Clarens and Drakensburg.

Clarens is a cute little touristy town that has great restaurants and an art, wine, and beer focused down town with lots of hiking nearby.  We took the girls on a small day hike to start, and they did incredibly well.  They loved following the trail and heading up the mountain.  Justin and I also took advantage of the many running trails that ran along the mountains and streams alongside of town.  Before we left, I made sure to get a nice massage at my favorite spa, and Justin went golfing for one morning.

Next, we went to Drakensburg where we stayed in a nice little cabin at a great camp resort called Dragon Peaks.  We had a great back porch that overlooked a lake and the mountains in the background.  It was beautiful.  The girls had a great time here because there was a lot of activities for them to do.  They went horse-back riding a couple of times on the property as well as a kids' zip-line.  Taelyn particularly liked the horses and became rather close with a small, brown horse that she named Brownie.  Each time we went to the stables, she made sure to pet Brownie and get plenty of hay for all of the horses to have to breakfast.  Kaelia was a star on the zip-lining.  She loved the experience and spent most of her time hanging upside down from the cord.

We also went on another hike in Drakensburg, but this one was significantly longer than in Clarens.  We made our way through trails at Monks Cowl Sanctuary until we found a beautiful waterfall.  It took us 1:20 just to get there, and the same amount of time to get back, making our journey a total of 2:40 on foot.  The girls were champs during this hike.  They complained about being tired from time to time, but for the most party, they were champs.

For most of the trip, the weather was a bit cool which was great for hiking and running.  By the last two days, however, it got a little warmer, and the girls were able to swim at Dragon Peaks.  There was a fantastic kids' pool with a waterfall, and a couple of water slides in the larger pool.  The girls had a great time splashing around for a while on those days.

Our trip to the mountains was the perfect getaway to relax and still enjoy the outdoors.  Take a look at the link below for some pictures and videos.

Digital scrapbook made with Smilebox

Dale's Birthday Party

After Kaelia's concert today, we also went to a special birthday party.  Taelyn's little boyfriend, Dale, celebrated his 5th birthday.  Taelyn was quite adamant about what she wanted to get him as a gift: a Power Ranger because the two of them always play Power Rangers at recess together.  Then she spent a good hour making him a card last night.  It contained some Power Rangers, Taelyn and Dale together, and lots and lots of hearts.  She wasn't quite finished when dinner started, so she brought her card to the table, took a bite, and then added another heart, took a bite, added a heart, etc.  I have never seen her work so diligently on a drawing before.

This is the outside of her card.  The left is Taelyn and Dale together, and the right is the pink Power Ranger, Mirage (that's why there is an M on the head).

This is the inside.  It is full of hearts, a flower, another pink Power Ranger, and Taelyn's name.






When we got to the party, all of the kids enjoyed some entertainment by a group that puts together shows and obstacle courses.  Taelyn was, of course, seated next to Dale throughout the entire event.  Eventually when the entertainment portion was over, though, Dale wanted to get away from the big party and play with his closest friends.  So he asked Taelyn and his brother to play Power Rangers with him in the back yard, and that is where they spent most of the rest of the party.

It was really cute to see how well Taelyn and Dale play together, and I got a few nice pictures.  Here are a couple to recap the party.

Kaelia's School Concert

This morning was Kaelia's first school performance - a little concert centered around an African safari theme.  Kaelia's class, the Puffertrains, were monkeys and performed two songs: 10 Little Monkeys, and the Chimpanzee Song.  We didn't know quite what to expect from Kaelia because whenever we asked her about the songs over the last couple of weeks, she wouldn't tell us anything.  We assumed she knew the songs and routines, but we didn't really know for sure.  But at the concert, Kaelia was a star!  She did a great job with the songs and motions.  We could tell that she really liked seeing us in the crowd as well, and she waved to Taelyn quite a bit.  We are so proud of Kaelia because she is rather young compared to the rest of her class but clearly fits right in despite her age.

At the end of the concert, Kaelia took a bow with the other kids, stepped off stage, and ran right toward me.  Once she got to me, though, she gave me a hug and just started bawling.  She said she wasn't sad or hurt, so I think she just got a little emotional about the whole performance in front of a big audience.  It was so sweet.  She quickly recovered once she saw her closest friend, Arianna, who came to the concert to watch her, and we all celebrated Kaelia's performance by going out to lunch at a restaurant with a great playground and bouncy castle.  Kaelia kept her monkey costume on the entire time!