Hey Yup Skipper!

Well, it's taken us 5 years - but we decided it was about time that we set up a blog, to keep all our friends and family up to date with what was going on in the busy lives of the Brummie Vines...

Yes peeps - we have officially been in the UK 5 years as of the 1st of May 2008!  

Sometimes it feels like another lifetime ago that we took our first brave (some would say stoopid) steps onto this green and pleasant Isle (also known as The Land of Sog) but we have survived it...Bought an apartment; refurbished the apartment and refurnished an entire house - not bad considering we arrived with just £2000; 3 suitcases and a 10 week old baby!  And I can honestly say I don't regret a single day of any of our move!

So much has happened to us in those 5 years, that I sometimes feel I could write a book, to rival Tolstoy's 'War & Peace' - but I'll save you all the pain!

For those of you that didn't know, Robyn's division of the company she works for, was placed in liquidation in February - but thank God his hand of provision proved true, and out of a branch of several hundred staff, she was the only member of staff to be offered another position within the same company - working in another division on the 'Contracts' side of apetito's 'Meals on Wheels'.  Supplying Old Age Homes; Schools and Hospitals with delicious meals - Yum Yum (Not)!

Shaugie is well and truly into the swing of 'Big School' now - and he is LOVING every minute of it - He can write his name - no mean feat considering we gave him such a LONG name; he can read and he can count and do sums - as well as piddle on the playground...

Now before you all do a double take...we were called into Ms Davie's classroom the other day(Shaugie's Teacher) and given a stiff telling off - because our very own (butter wouldn't melt in my mouth) Shaugs - had become so engrossed in chasing his mates around the playground, he couldn't make it to the boy's loos in time - so he nipped off behind a quiet tree and had a silent little piddle!  Much to the utter disdain of his teacher.

I had a good chuckle and told her - 'At least he had the decorum to go behind a tree - and not whip his Wigglesworth out - and chase a bunch of screamin' girls around the playground with it'....methinks Ms Davies was NOT impressed - but I'm not TOO sure on that one...Will get back to you later on.

Me, well I'm still doin' my 'thang', producing corporate videos; leaflets; pamphlets and brochures - work is a little slow at the moment - but hopefully that is set to change in the foreseeable future!  I had been winding down some of the work that was lined up - because for those of you that didn't know - we were due to fly to Turkey on the 20th of April for two weeks of five star ALL inclusive LUXURY at the WOW Topkapi Palace.  

Well fate had other plans - and so after shelling out our hard earned dosh to Thomas CRook Holidays - we arrived at the airport at 04h00 pumped and ready to go - only to be told that Shaughan's Passport had expired by 14 days!  I kid you not! FOUR people had checked the passport (including me)  and no one had picked up the expiry date.

You could have bowled us all over with a feather.  Thomas CRook contacted the Turkish immigration department to find out if they would bend the rules and allow him entry - but we were told outright that he would be detained and not released until a valid passport could be presented.

After some desperate calls to the Souf Effrican Embassy - we were told by a weker there, that it would take a MINIMUM of FOUR MONTHS for a new passport to be generated for my wee 'illegal alien'...And the thought of my Shaugs languishing in some Turkish Prison at the tender age of 5 was just a little too much to bear - although I must confess to being guilty of harbouring the thought of giving him the Taxi Fare back home - and the keys to the liquor cabinet - but it WAS only a fleeting thought!

So our holiday lay in tatters - and Thomas CRook have refused to try and salvage some of the holiday on our behalf.  None of us could quite believe it - but we have picked ourselves up - and we will start saving again for another holiday (hopefully sometime soon)  And this time - I'll make DAMN sure ALL passports are well within their sell by date!  Robyn and Shaughan are actually now in the final process of getting their British Citizenship - and then we'll all be on British Passports!

Fortunately Robyn's company were  gracious enough to cancel her leave - and Shaugie went begrudgingly back to School - where he has just been kept busy between 'footie' and Judo -  he has just been awarded a certificate for his first 6 weeks of Judo training...Handy thing to have when you wanna annihilate pathetic ineffective airline staff and non-comital Souf Effrican Embassy wekers!

Shaughan is looking forward to having his Nanna & Poppa close by in the next month or so  - they have just bought a house about 5 km's down the road from us - and are emigrating here on the 2nd of June.  It's going to be great to have them nearby - and we can't wait for them to arrive. 

They managed to sell their house in Kloof in record time, and the removals van has been in to pack the house and send it off to The Land Of Sog - so now they are all chomping at the bit to get here to the UK, where they can be closer to all of us - their move appears to have been a doddle by comparison to ours - but then again - I wouldn't have wished my worst enemies the hard time we were given when we naively stepped on to that Virgin Atlantic flight bound for England, way back in 2003!

Well - I must be on me bike - but please feel free to subscribe to our Blog - and we'll keep you updated!  Till next time...Stay Safe

All Our Love

The Brummie Vines

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