Pilanesberg National Park

So I know how my dad feels after a road trip. On Tuesday when we were at Pilanesberg National park I drove for about 10 hours. Average speed 30kph/18mph. Every time we got out at a hide (those were areas where you could get out and go closer to the watering hole. ) it felt funny to walk. Like it does after a good day of skiing.

It didn’t bother me too much. I wanted my mom and sister to enjoy their first safari. We started at about 830 and finished at 630. Between those times we saw so many animals. No lions though :(. (I was really hoping) About an hour after we got into the part we rounded a curve and there as this mama and her baby rhino about 6 feet off the road. So beautiful. We sat there in the middle of the road with our engine off for about ten minutes watching and taking pictures. It was so cool. The Giraffes and elephants took a bit longer. It wasn’t till around 12 that we started to see Giraffes. Nothing up close till after lunch. Same with elephants. There was one right next to the car but it was down in a old dry river bed and not easy to see behind the bushes. We did see a whole herd young and old alike a bit after that. Nothing close up till we were heading out of the park. One by himself right next to the road munching on food. Hippos were another story. I felt like in every body of water we saw some. First it was 3. The there were 7 or 8 with one that got out for a bit. There more with two out sunbathing. And more after that. Zebras, wildebeest, and every kind of bok (deer) were everywhere. Along with warthogs and these guinea fowl that were spotted with blue heads.

 

We had a PB and J picnic inside the park in a safe picnic area with a huge Rhino in the distance. A picnic Aunt Carol would be proud of. We also stayed till the very last minute. Even taking a side road last minute in the dark. But we did see another Rhino up close. Plus it gave me more pothole experience. Some of those roads were quite a puzzle to drive. It must have rained a lot recently because you could see the washout likes. I felt sorry for our little rental a few times. But we got through all in one piece.

For a first safari I don’t think mom and kt could have gotten luckier. That is unless a lion was spotted.

Family comes to SA!

Most of you know my mom and sister came to visit this last week. And if you didn’t know , MY MOM AND SISTER CAME TO SOUTH AFRICA!  It was a much needed holiday. Almost 8 months of working 6 days a week 10 hours a day with kids wears you out. Don’t get me wrong i love it and its totally worth it but it was very good to do something else then TLC for a change.

In 9 days we covered a lot of ground.
We petted lions, giraffes and monkeys.

We fed Giraffes and Ostriches.

We saw Elephants, White Rhinos, Giraffes, Wildebeest, Hippos, Lots of deer like creatures.

We went to markets and malls.
We stayed in the middle of the bush by ourselves. (In a cute BnB).
We (I actually) drove kilometer after kilometer.
We at at an african restaurant and got our face painted.

We ate cold KFC and played bananagrams.
We got turned around once or twice. But, had our trusty GPS to get us straightened out.
We floated up in the air in a hot air balloon.

We took tons of pictures. About 2000 combined.
We had a picnic in the middle of an old volcano crater.
We saw beautiful african sunsets and sunrises.

There were lots of things accomplished and lots of babies held and loved.

Just a thought.

We have gotten two new babies in the last two days. Its so exciting when we do. But should it be exciting? It always makes me think about the whole situation. We shouldn't need a place like TLC in the first place. It would be so much better for the kids to be with their tummy mummies. Not a bunch of strangers. But we have been intrusted with them. To be honest I would rather they come here and not some other home. Here its like a home not an institution.

The thing with TLC is we aren't strangers for very long. Soon we are family. The kids learn that we are here to Love them. To be there for them to play with or to cry on our shoulders. They know we will pick them up when they fall and make sure they are warm at night. They learn to trust us and love us. Some of them get very attached to some of the volunteers and in return some of us get very attached. Love at first sight.

So even though I want babies to stay with their mammas. I do hope when they cant they can find their way to TLC because here we love them sometimes too much.