Kirsten & Mars

After a rather quiet Christmas, we are well into the new year and are finally getting back into a routine. All boxes are unpacked and everything has found a space in the new house. I finally have a bath tub which I absolutely love and can finally use all the bath luxuries I have been secretly buying and stashing away for all these years. The house feels like home already, although I am for some reason acutely aware that we are renting and its not OUR home. But at least its a nice interim home. The layout is great with a open bar kitchen going to our dining room so really lovely and easy when we have friends over. Mars and I have our own seperate studies, which is just lovely and I can finally spread out a bit with all by creatives bits and bobs and not mention I actually have a desk in this house where I can work in a professional manner. The garden is very “new” the grass is down and the plants are in but compared to our last place where we had been for 6yrs or so, and the tress and plants where cowering over our little house, here I don’t think we have anything yet over 5ft! So as much as I will enjoy seeing things grow I do miss our huge over whelming trees. But it will take time – I just hope we don’t have to move out of here just as the trees are at a reasonable height.
Mr Tapi has learnt a new and exciting skill, of how to use a cat flap – and its quote ridiculous how the novelty has still not worn off after 3 weeks. He still pops out and then within 10 seconds pops back in again, and then proceeds to repeat this at least 8 times a night, just to make sure its still working and the flap let’s him out whenever he wants. We have a open park area behind the house, so that’s lovely and our bedroom faces it directly so its lovely to wake up in the morning and see an expanse of green as opposed to to just sand. Now all we need to do is actually get in the routine of exercising and then we shall be really feel like we have got our act together. Will keep you posted! xx

09.09.09 will forever be remembered now as the day we finally got hitched!

Some people say “watch out for the seven year itch”, well for Mars and I, September 2009 was the start of our seventh year together and we decided that 09.09.09 was the perfect day to finally seal the deal and get married. After a rather rainy and cloudy night the wedding came and thankfully so did the sunshine, but only after the clouds had spent all morning threatening me with a wet wedding! So, up to the challenge I decided to go with the flow (silently freaking out) and work with what Mother Nature was going to throw at us. First thing, I got the groomsmen into action and sent them on “Mission Paddington” for Wellington boots in enough sizes to fit everyone. If I was going to slush through muddy waters to my own wedding, then I sure as hell wasn’t doing it in white satin heels. So off the boys went in a bemused daze (wondering what exactly the bride was thinking getting married in wellies). The hotel, (Kurland Hotel, located in The Craggs, Plettenberg Bay, South Africa) ran around frantically grabbing all their racing green umbrellas (green to match wellies, a bride is always colour co-ordinated) and ensured they were all neatly stacked by the door and ready to be thrown into action at the first drop of rain.

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Showered and changed into jeans and jumpers, the girls (Jacqui, Kara and I) grabbed the bulging bags by the door, overflowing with ribbons, lace, fabric, candles, and marched over to the main hotel area to assess the soggy situation at hand. On route the groom and co. called and said that whilst they hadn’t located the wellies yet, they had seen blue skies headed our way and sunshine to follow. Standing on squidgy grass, all three of us threw our heads back and searched the grey sky. “Can you see blue sky?” “Oh I can see a cloud breaking up.” “Oooh a ray of sunshine.”
We found the hotel team in the dining room, dashing around taking out all the tables and chairs from the mornings breakfast, clearing the space so we could start to set it up for the reception dinner and jazz band.
The other pressing question was where exactly the ceremony was going to take place. We had decided earlier on in the week that we would have it under an oak tree, which had a wooden deck under the branches, and faced out towards the mountains and horses. Stunning location. However given the ominous clouds, an outside wedding wasn’t exactly a 100% on the cards, and what happened if it rained half way through the ceremony? We stood on the main veranda area and looked down the garden to the oak tree, wishing full sunshine would break through, and pondered on what do to. We had two hours to decide and to fully decorate the chosen area. Time was of the essence. After much deliberation and everyone trying to be a weather forecaster, I decided we would decorate under the oak tree and this would be plan A for the ceremony, and set up a small area on the main veranda which was covered, as plan B. Plus we still had to decorate and set up the dining room for dinner. So there were only a mere three areas to arrange and decorate in record breaking speed. Pippa, our florist, cum witness, and a new official friend of the family, took the lead in getting everything ready and was efficiently running around helping get various things arranged and laid out as per my vision. Jacqui and Kara ran between areas with ribbon and fabrics and we all called out to each other for quick opinions and fast decisions. Scissors were flying, ribbons were being tied on everything, and lanterns and hearts were being hung in the trees and bushes. As a completely un-coordinated, un-rehearsed and unplanned mad dash to make the hotel ready for a wedding in less than 90 minutes, I have to say we all worked around each other with exceptional skill and unexplainable female intuition. The hotel staff moved furniture at lightning speed, and all hands were officially on deck. A special thanks to Grant, who was my hero of the moment and practically climbed trees to get ribbons, tied everywhere. Alison (the general manager) was forever nipping between areas asking what she could do to help and offering everyone teas and coffees, her kindness was appreciated by everyone (and the waiters managed after much tricky sticking to get my handmade “Just Married” sign up above the fire place).
By the time I had to leave and go back to the room, I had run between so many places and worked at such a frantic pase that I was completely confused as to where exactly the ceremony was going to be.

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