A Winter Wine Evening .. ...

.... where we enjoyed a delicious meal paired with wines, was organised by Elaine's workplace ..

.. and was held at the FNB Conference Centre ...

... where there were rows of coloured cushions against decorated walls outside the dining area ...

Loved this delicately twirled chandelier which was one of a few hanging from the ceiling in the dining room ....

.. where the wines for the evening were supplied by the Bartinney Wine Estate, which is situated on the steep slopes of the Helshoogte Pass overlooking the picturesque Banghoek Valley in Stellenbosch.

Three wines .. a Savignon Blanc was served with a fruit/cheese starter, a Chardonney was paired with a delicious chicken dish .....

... and an 'easy on the palate' and 'drink now, don't keep' 'Noble Savage' Cabernet Savignon, very reasonably priced ... was paired with a delicious steak and baby onion bredie topped with a dumpling (inside the little potjie pot) ... (for overseas bloggy friends, this is miniature version of the traditional potjie pot which was traditionally used/and still is used for cooking maize meal as well as stew type, yummy tasty meals and sits on an open fire or hot coals)

.. and for 'pud' .. mini cheese cakes in ramekin dishes served with chocolate truffles .... yumm!

Thank you, Sweetie Pie, for organising tickets for us .. it was a most enjoyable evening ..

Elaine and Bryan ... and hubby and me ...

My hubby turned 60 on Sunday ...

... and before the rest of our family and friends arrived, Erin helped her Grandpa open his presents ... two BIG presents ....


... oooooh ....
.. 'what is it, Erin' ..... her reply .... "a box!!" ....

... 'what's inside the box?' ..... "a pot !"

.... "Nooo ... Grandpa .. not on your head" ....

... ooooh .. another box ....

.... we gave a delighted hubby/dad/grandpa a Weber Braai/Bbq ....

Happy 60th Birthday to my wonderful hubby !!

Jeanette took more photos of his special day shared by family and friends

http://www.jeanetteverster.com/2010/07/my-dad-turned-60-today/

Weekly Winners :

Monday - better late than never, for my Weekly Winners !!!! The heavens have opened again this morning .. it's dark and rainy ... again !!! When will it stop? Very unusual for this time of year .. lovely for the garden except some plants think it's spring or mid summer and are sprouting new leaves ... which will get zapped when the frosts come ....

One plant that should be flowering at this time of year, and is flourishing, is the indigenous yellow Cape Honeysuckle (Tecomaria capensis) ...

... the cluster of buds open up ...

.. to reveal tubular shaped flowers which die off quite quickly with others to follow ..

.. another autumn special are the roses with their last blooms for the season .. like the white Icebergs ..

Delicate pink Queen Elizabeth looks rather shy and hides her face under a patch of bright sunlight ...

Autumn blues of the hydrangea ..

A prickly aloe slipped/gate crashed into the 'autumn collection' ..

I have never grown tulips .. must give it try one year ... I have to buy them ...

.. love their perfect form and striking colour ...

Elaine and Bryan went off to a friend's wedding on Saturday where Jeanette was the wedding photographer ... I took a few of my own pics before they left .. "Ahh .. mom .. that's enough ! " says she ...

Weekly Winners without grandchildren is rather dull .. here is Bradley in his 'Soccer Friday' t'shirt ... everyone is encouraged to wear 'soccer' shirts on Friday's including the school children .. they love it .. no uniforms for one day a week !!!

.. just smile for Granny, pleeeease !!

Captured Connor counting/collecting leaves ..

"Can I put it through the window" is what he was saying ... odd child !!! No .. you cannot !

Ok .. will play tennis instead ... yikes .. great shot, Granny, did you see ? ..

"Watch this ... are you ready, Granny .. "

" Phew ... that was a good game " ..

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Nice is nice !!

Hubby still away ... Elaine and I had lunch yesterday .. somewhere different ... Nice on 4th, Parkhurst, an old suburb of Johannesburg. Old houses bought by younger people bringing a vibe back ... this street used to be full of antique shops .. now 'hip and happening' restaurants and coffee shops have taken over ... still one or two antique shops .. but other very interesting places ..

.. a definite re-visit !! There are contemporary decor and design studios and all sorts of foodie places .. 'I love Cup Cake ' is one them ... really really need to pop into that place !!! It was closed by the time we left ..

Anyway .. back to 'Nice' which was ever so nice ... such friendly service .. makes you want to go back again .. and again ..

Menu on blackboards .. kitchen behind counter ... which stocked the most delicious looking desserts/cakes which Elaine was eyeing-but-didn't-have-space-for-any! Next time!

..decor old and funky ..

.. table decor .. simple ..

.. food ... oh sooo delectable !! Elaine had a chicken, avo, parmesan panini drizzled with a tasty balsamic dressing ... I had a salmon, avo and tomato relish salad. To drink, E had fresh watermelon juice and me ... chilled Fat Bastard Chardonney !!

Old books scattered about .. this one was on the sideboard which caught my eye having a large rose on the cover .... 'I recognise that style of painting roses ..



... I have placemats at home with same ' .. !!!!!

Must take hubby there ...

Weekly Winners : 24 - 30 Jan

Join me for a cup of tea ..

... it's all the way from Ireland ...

... while we sit down and browse through my week ....

... of excitement ... when Elaine bought a new car ... brand new .. out the box ...

... while all the paperwork was being 'signed and sealed' ... the boys had fun on mini Mini's ..

...this size is fine for now ... perfect ! ...

... two is even better ....

... need to know the rules of the road before I take it ....

.. "Grwanny ... take a photo of my 'bumblebee' transformer ... pleeeese !"

Yay - we had sunshine for ONE day ..... so, out and about in the garden I went ...

... the asters are bursting into flower ...

... groundcovers under the bench is flourishing ...

... black-eyed Susan is flowering and creeping up the wall ...

... orange crocosmia (indigenous) is bright and cheerful ...

... Pride of India is looking it's best ... all dressed in pink .....

... the purple Cuphea is covered in tiny blooms ...

... and this Euphorbia - Diamond Frost with it's small, dainty flowers is fluffy and soft like a cloud ...

And lastly ....

(just for Jientje ... "peek-a-boo ... I see you!")

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