Last day of school today…and now we’re one third of the way through this year’s course. The day was a short one as anticipated. Nick and I decided to give Caleb his birthday present a day early, as there would be little time on the day of his birthday and the party to experiment and play with it. We sat the boys down on the couch, then Nick brought through the enormous box – Caleb’s face was a picture as he stared at the huge present, and he was so excited when it dawned on him that it was a keyboard! We bought him a good one (ordered late last year from the UK and hiding in Nick’s office since then) which will last for many years. The goal is to teach him music properly on it, and Aaron as well. This is a good start!
We started the two kittens on some solids today and they loved the locally tinned pet food. Charlotte is looking less like a rat but still has impressively thin little legs. She and her sister have become very playful and thus a lot more fun! We’re still dropper feeding Charlotte on formula although I don’t think she really needs it anymore. 
The boys spent a lot of time outdoors today. Lovely to have some blue skies here, even though the temperatures are dropping in preparation for autumn.
Aaron was particularly nervous, and although we said he shouldn’t watch the needle go into Caleb’s arm, he did anyway. Thus when his turn came, after having seen what he saw and hearing Caleb’s “ow, ow”, he was disinclined to subject himself to the apparent torture and his brave façade crumbled. I had to hide my weak knees (I’m rubbish with needles and blood and things) and convince him that he would be okay…eventually he conceded and it was over quickly. Shame, the things our kids have to endure.
Following Aaron’s tooth saga at the end of last month, the corresponding permanent tooth has now come up through the gum – what a relief! True, it’s come through perpendicular to the first tooth, but at least the first tooth gets to stay in. His little mouth is going to be filled with orthodontics at some future point.
I had taken some spicy buns with me from the freezer in case we got invited somewhere, but since no bids were forthcoming I simply invited ourselves to Steve and Maureen, along with Pam and Maddison! Nick took Maddy with him and went via town to pick Geoff up, and Pam took me and the boys – she needed directions anyway. Steve and Maureen provided a pre-made pizza and millionaire shortbread, Maddy brought some more spicy buns and biscuits, and I had the spicy bun provision – so it was more like a lunch. It was a super visit with them. 
We came home and literally spent the rest of the day at home. We had thought perhaps we would go swimming or walking but the weather was too mucky to do anything.
We were home from town by 1 pm, had a late lunch, then the boys watched a DVD while I finished off March’s PotD (finally!). It’s already the 9th of the month and I’ve only now finished it. Before I know it the next one will be upon me. 
Nick informed me when I got home that the other two bigger kitties found homes today – two ladies came around while I was out to adopt them. We are delighted that they are being taken, as we would have to seriously consider getting them put down otherwise. The two younger ones are not ready to leave their mom yet. We are still formula-feeding little Charlotte who is a treasure. Her sister is about twice her size, but still quite small. Both are very friendly and responsive cats. 
The service at Knollcombes was very good, and fairly well attended. Pam and I sang a duet which we both thought went well. After the service, the people left so quickly that all I could get was a photo of the exodus up the hill! 
Directly after church we went to Pam and Geoff’s house for a quick cuppa before heading to the docks for a swim. It was hardly swimming weather – late in the afternoon and drizzling – but it’s been so long since we’ve been out that we really wanted to take this opportunity. The boys weren’t in long as the water was a little chillo-s, but the rest of us swam out to the closer of the two wrecks in James’ Bay. Very interesting to see the ghost of a ship, all rusted and barnacled in a twisted heap on the ocean floor. Part of it was sticking up so high that I could stand on it in flippered feet. The water was quite choppy and getting out at some different landing steps proved tricky. Pam managed it on her own but had a cut leg to show for it, while Geoff, Maddy, Nick and I swam around to the regular steps, which in itself was no small feat as we had to fight the current and swells and dodge the slimy mooring ropes. It was great! We had supper at Pam and Geoff’s which was a great way to end a wonderful day. I marvel at Pam’s kitchen calmness and her ability to whip up a highly adequate meal, including dessert, in 15 minutes! 
The rest of the day unfolded in a Saturdaily way. I sold jewellery during GNC but it was a slow morning, and then we all went home for lunch. In the afternoon Pam came here – not for our usual scrapping, but rather to practice a song item for church (and chat, chat, eat chocolate, chat, eat more chocolate). Nick went to Tammy for a band practice.
The afternoon was taken up with scrapping, looking at beads on the internet, and sweeping the courtyard and storeroom (and of course, playing with the kittens). Little Charlotte, the rat-cat, is so tiny that she can sleep comfortably curled up in my hand, which she did for a while today. I have to keep encouraging Granny Cat to feed her. Granny seems to be carrying the burden of caring for the kittens – Simon still wants to play but occasionally feeds them. The boys are also very much enjoying the little pets.
After lunch I had to get to town, as there was yet another course of antibiotics waiting for me at the dispensary (I had to phone the doctor during the morning for test results, and I have something between a fungus and a bacteria). When Aaron and I got home, Nick was holding a different kitten – this one a beautiful tabby, much stronger and stockier and a bit bigger and far more alert. Kitten #1 had gone missing though – vanished without a trace. That was sad, but kitten#2, who we shall call Tiger, was just lovely. Simon didn’t seem as interested in this one as she had in #1, but eventually the two of them connected and Tiger was fed. We got them settled in the storeroom instead of under the pumpkin leaves where the first one had been. Later in the afternoon, a coal black kitten appeared next to Tiger. This one was the same size as Tiger, which made us wonder why #1 had been so tiny – just runty? Still no sign of #1 though. Coal black, called Nina, and Tiger were very happy. The original Mother Cat, who is now Granny Cat and who we know also had kittens a month or two ago (but have never seen), had been hanging around all day, along with Uncle (black-white-black has now found a name). We were a little suspicious of Uncle and wondered if perhaps he had eaten #1, but somehow that didn’t seem possible. He was more protective in his demeanour towards the little one than predatory. After supper as Nick was about to leave for bible study, Sappho and Jayden appeared outside our house with two more kittens – these were of the tinier variety again, the mewling, shaky, helpless sort. They said they had found them in the bush. Where was the mother? To add to the confusion, Jayden’s cat had also recently had kittens and she wondered if any of today’s four might have been them. Meanwhile, Simon was anxiously looking at the two new arrivals. Nick had to go to bible study, I had to figure out what to do with the tiny things. I settled on putting them in the storeroom with the other two instead of back in the bush as there was a dog about and it just didn’t seem the right thing to do. Simon followed us, not taking her eyes off them. It was soon obvious that these were also her two, which raised the question of the sizes – how could she have two big rowdy ones, one of whom had the audacity to hiss at me, and two such young ones? When I went back to the storeroom later in the evening things became a little clearer. Simon came out to greet me; Granny Cat was suckling all four. I’m certain that the two bigger ones are Granny’s and the two smaller are Simon’s, and yet they are sharing the load between them, each of them feeding all four. How they worked this out between them is beyond me. Neither Granny nor Simon have been at all put out by our picking up and petting the kittens – months of feeding have won them over! It’s awesome to observe the circle of life…we knew Simon when she was just a tiny kitten when we used to visit the Williamsons here at Piccolo. And I think that one of the two small ones is really the missing #1, but will only be certain when I can see them in the light tomorrow, based on photos we took early in the day. 
And now for something completely different. This evening there was a knock on the door, and I opened it to a strange man (only strange in that I didn’t know him; not strange looking) who wanted to know if I would be interested in buying some fresh potatoes. WOULD I?? I must have sounded either desperate or stupid when I asked if he was kidding in what surely must have been a giddily excited tone. He was asking ₤2.50; I gave him ₤3 for a big bag full of lovely big potatoes. I’m over the moon. Potatoes are unavailable in the shops following the debacle in Cape Town before the ship went to the UK – apparently the potatoes were unhealthy or not up to standard and thus were excluded from the shipment. Tristan da Cunha have offered to send some potatoes over on the next cruise ship. Potatoes therefore are presently a hot topic and a valuable commodity! I would have paid ₤10 for the bag if that had been the going price. 
At 2.30 Nick pointed out that it was a really lovely day and suggested a swim. He dropped me off at Pam where I helped her with the lasagne and then we read; dropped the boys off at the pool where they swam with Maddy and Elizabeth et al, and he went on to swim with Geoff in James’ Bay. Eventually we all met up again at Pam and Geoff’s for ‘tea’ (the British type). It was an excellent afternoon, and a pleasure to just walk next door to church!