We have now officially entered the winter term at school. What does that mean? It means a whole new set of sports for the kids, colder weather, and a new set of school uniform requirements. Back to the uniform shop we go, spending more money to outfit our kids for school in South Africa. Kara has switched from the Girl Scout look to business attire, complete with the official Pearson green and black-stripped tie and coat, black skirt, and black stockings. She looks very professional and when we drop her off in the morning I find myself encouraging her to "do well with the merger" or saying "hope you make your quota today, honey." She actually looks great and I believe she thinks so also. Transformation from Girl Scout to professional look--Total cost: 800 Rand. Katilee has switched from the tartan jumper and blue underwear to long sleeve white shirt, tracksuit pants and top (that's like a fancy running suit), and official Summerwood blue tie with seahorse emblem on it. It looks as if she is dressed for a quidditch match. Very cute and stylish, with the proper professionalism attached to it. She likes her new look and is even learning how to tie a tie. Transformation from tartan schoolgirl to casual professional--Total cost: 510 Rand. Jack. Now Jack is a different story. If you know Jack personally or remember from an earlier entry in this journal, he is a boy who cannot stand to wear socks, long pants, or a button-down shirt. His favorite outfit is a pair of khaki shorts, his Little League t-shirt, and no shoes or socks. It was a struggle getting him to adopt the idea of wearing the gray shorts and white short-sleeve shirt associated with the fall term uniform. Now he has to wear the same getup as Katilee, complete with a button-down, long-sleeve white shirt and a tie. You would think we had sold him out to the lowest bidder. "I'm NOT wearing that yucky old tie!" "But Jack, you need to because it is part of the uniform and all the kids need to wear it." 'I don't care! I'll take it off and tear it to little pieces!" "But you look so good with the tie." "I don't care! It's yucky!" After feigning a few moments of choking and gasping for a dying breath of air, we were able to get the tie on. "I can't breathe! I'm dying! cough-cough-choke-choke" 'How about if we unbutton the top shirt button, will that help?" "Aggh, kkggghh, cough-cough, aaaggkkhh." "There. Okay, how's that? Better?" "It's yucky!" Okay, so the boy doesn't want to wear a tie. I can relate to that. At least we know he probably won't grow up to be a "suit." That gives me strength to carry on. Transformation from proper schoolboy to proper schoolboy with tie--Total cost: Excessive wine consumption for mom and dad. Bekah is not required to wear a uniform although she so desperately wants to. So, in true Bekah fashion, she devised her own uniform, complete with knee length socks and cute shirt and shorts. She looks adorable and very proper and wants to wear the same outfit everyday. She eagerly watches the kids put on, or in Jack's case, struggle with, their ties and is hoping someday she will also be required to wear one. Transformation from beginning preschooler to advanced preschooler-Total cost: Realizing our baby is growing up.

Aside from school uniforms, the other big change with the new term is the start of a whole new set of sporting events. Of course each one requires the purchase of specific equipment, most of which we have no clue what size or shape to buy. Kara is thick into the throws of cross-country, which is great because that is the sport she excels in back home. If you remember, she qualified for the state meet last year as a freshman (brag, brag) and was an outstanding runner all through the season (humble, humble). Cross country here is a 4K race, versus the 5K back home, which is okay with Kara. Just when the race is getting grueling, it's over. She's finished at the top of the pack in both meets she's run so far. Katilee continues to play tennis and has jumped in head first to learning the game of field hockey. She's a naturally gifted athlete, so picking up the game was not too difficult for her, especially since she has a lot of experience as a soccer player and understands strategy associated with moving a ball down the field. She was a star in her first game, and is looking forward to her game next week (games are every other week). It's also fun for her because some of her best friends are also on the team. Jack continues to have fun playing tennis and excelling in karate, at which he is closing in on his yellow belt. As I wrote in an earlier entry, he has a natural talent for combining strength and balance. Ask him to balance on one foot and he topples over. Ask him to put a toy away and it can get slammed into its box. But ask him to use his strength and balance to subdue an opponent and he is in perfect form. So karate is a natural for him. What I believe also makes him so good at sports like karate and wrestling is his understanding of how to "wield a stick." Ever since he was a baby, he has had the natural ability to imagine any item within his reach as a toy weapon. Through play, he has learned how to respect the power of a potential weapon, and thus is able to naturally pick up a stick, engage in a play sword fight, and never hurt his opponent. He knows the damage a weapon can do, and so has great respect for its power. So to with his own strength. Bekah is currently involved in "nude house running," and is building up quite a competitive spirit. The flat we live in is about 75 feet long, which provides Bekah with quite a runway for her running meets. These often occur right before bath time when she is in the buff. Ah, the freedom of running in the nude. She's up to at least two laps without being caught. It is the only sport I know of that requires a constant giggle throughout the event. Kathy and I continue to run almost every morning down by the sea. It is a beautiful running path that follows the beach for a nice 5K run. Kathy and Kara competed in a 10K race over the weekend, which followed the sea for much of the way. The three of us are looking at running a 10K race in a couple weeks out on a farm in the country. It's been great to run together as it has given us ample time to spend time together and just talk without any outside interruptions. It's made us realize how easy it has been to lose the ability to spend quality time together back home. Of course the kids have been a great help in taking care of themselves so that we can take a moment or two just to regroup as parents. Our trip to South Africa has helped me remember why I fell in love with Kathy in the first place and reaffirmed that she is my best friend. It feels good. Damn good. For those of you who are closing in on the 20-year mark like we are, you know what I mean.

I failed to mention in an earlier update that Livingstone was returned to us after his bout in the Karoo Motors hospital. They actually did quite a fine job on him and he runs as good as ever. It was a nightmare getting the "mechanical breakdown" insurance to cover the blown clutch. We inherited the warranty when we bought Livingstone, which I assumed we would never have to use. Trying to deal with these guys was an unbelievable experience. No one had a clue what was going on, what their policy covered, or who I needed to talk with. Plus, half the Motorite staff or so-called "claim administrators" I talked with were arrogant and completely useless as far as customer service was concerned. After 2 days of frustration, threat, wasted calls, and belittling, I got them to admit that a blown clutch while traveling on the freeway is considered a mechanical breakdown and the clause in their manual that says "Breakdown parts covered include blah, blah, blah, CLUTCH, blah, blah, blah" includes a broken clutch. The policy we have includes a clause of "vehicle repatriation," which basically means "we'll bring your car back to you if you live in PE but actually broke down in BFE South Africa." Guess they didn't expect the breakdown to be 600K away from PE and with an all-wheel drive Land Rover. Being in permanent 4-wheel drive, the vehicle cannot be towed, but rather must be transported on a flatbed trailer. I offered to send a driver over to bring Livingstone back here and charge them only half the cost of the trailer transport. They refused. So, it boiled down to the inherited policy costing Motorite four times the amount of the original policy purchase price. Hakuna mathata.

On Mother's Day Katilee made a wonderful breakfast in bed for Kathy and then we spent the rest of the day at the home of some friends of the de Jagers. They live in the country on a gentleman's farm, complete with ostrich, sheep, geese, and other farm-type critters. The ostrich was a riot. It was breeding time for the ostrich and he thought he was Mr. Mojo. He would fluff his feathers, act real important, and let us know he was in charge. Even tried to charge us at one point until Louie, the gentleman farmer, chased him off with a stick. Ostriches aren't too bright. They make for great watchdogs, as they will kick to death anyone who gets in their way. Very powerful legs and feet. They kick in a forward motion, so if you are in their way, you're toast. "So how do you survive an ostrich attack, Louie?" "Just lay flat on the ground. Then they don't know what to do with you and they'll run right on over you." See, they kick forward. If you're on the ground, they can't figure out how to kick at you. They haven't figured out that they could just kick down on you. So anyway, the male ostrich, feeling quite studly, would go into his "Hey babe, I'm ready to mate! Watch how I bang my head against my back and fluff my feathers!" routine every time Kara was around. I keep telling her it is her pheromones. Not scoring many father points there.

It's been good to catch up on life a bit over this past week. It's helped us get ready for our next stage which includes Kara, Bekah, Katilee, and my birthdays and visits from the Earl's (good friends from Utah) and Kathy's parents; all within the next 3 weeks.