Winter Update

Well, it's been a while since we posted on here! I suppose one could say that we've been having a blogging break for a while. :) We have also been extra busy these past few months and have been away from home quite a lot as well. We've been to lots of lovely interesting places and done fun things - and have tons of photos so hopefully we'll be able to get back to blogging more often and share some of them with you all. :)

We're still in winter here, but we are blessed in this country to enjoy mild weather mostly though we have had a few really cold spells - cold for us but probably not really that cold compared to many other countries, as you can see from the pictures below. :)

Living In A Cloud

For the past two days we have been living in a cloud! Well, at least that's what it's felt like! :) The cause of this has been some unusual weather - unusual at least for South Africa  - and me.
The Summer rains started late this year, but thankfully we've had quite a bit since then. Our "rain" in this part of the country usually means thundershowers of the kind that build up in the heat and then there is something of a cloud-burst with lots of lightening and thunder and sometimes strong winds and hail. When it's all over, the sun comes out again and everything is back to normal and everyone is thankful for the showers. It's not often that we have days of continuous rain.

Rain water pouring down the carport roof like a mini waterfall.

Last weekend, however, it began raining constantly - not the usual thundershower but a quiet, steady rain....and it's hardly stopped since! Then about two afternoons ago the rain changed to a light drizzle and we were shrouded in mist. Now usually when we have mist in the early mornings, it usually clears quite quickly and then the day is very hot. This time the mist just hung there! We live quite high up on a hill  near the edge of a gorge and usually have views for kilometers, well the last couple of days we haven't been able to see past our front gate. I found it very strange, really like being enclosed in a cloud. Even our pets were puzzled at the weather and would stare out the window at the funny sight! :D I suppose this sort of thing is common in many other countries, especially Europe, but I've never experienced this before!

Our cat, Munchkin.

I'm sure it's somehow got something to do with the Leonid meteor shower that happened on the 18th - EVERY time there's a meteor shower, we have strange weather (and miss the "shooting stars", of course!)

Well, this afternoon the mist has finally lifted and although it's still completely overcast and everything is dripping wet, we can see across the gorge again and all the birds and insects are very busy and noisy. The birds are all preening themselves and the bees are visiting the wet flowers.

My reflection (while taking a photo) in a pool of rain water. :)

Here rain is always welcome and it also helps to keep the heat down but the last week and especially the two misty days have made me realise how much we take sunshine and clear weather for granted here in South Africa!

Just for interest:

S.A. is famous for it's sunshine. There are an average of 2993 hours of sunlight per year with an average of 8.2 hours of sunlight per day.

South Africa receives some of the world's best sunshine and experiences some of the highest solar radiation levels in the world .

Showers of Blessings!

It's raining!!! :)
As I'm typing this I'm listening to the wonderful sound of steady rain and the almost constant roll of distant thunder. We've flung open all the doors an windows, there's a wonderful coolness coming through the house and the smell of damp earth and a mixture of flower scents. We aren't the only ones rejoicing - you can almost "see" the plants drinking up the rain and the birds are bathing on the damp leaves or in the puddles on the ground. Winter's drought is broken - even the weather sticker on the side of my blog is showing a background of rainy weather at this time so it must be quite widespread! :)

How we thank the Lord for His wonderful showers of blessings - outside and inside, and most of all in our souls!!

There will be showers of blessing: 

This is the promise of love;

There shall be seasons refreshing,

Sent from the Saviour above.

Refrain: Showers of blessing,

Showers of blessing we need:

Mercy-drops round us are falling,

But for the showers we plead.

There shall be showers of blessing,

Precious reviving again;

Over the hills and the valleys,

Sound of abundance of rain.

There shall be showers of blessing;
Send them upon us, O Lord;

Grant to us now a refreshing,

Come, and now honor Thy Word.

Refrain

There shall be showers of blessing:

Oh, that today they might fall,

Now as to God we’re confessing,

Now as on Jesus we call!

Refrain

There shall be showers of blessing,

If we but trust and obey;

There shall be seasons refreshing,

If we let God have His way.

~ Daniel W. Whittle

It's Officially Spring!

Officially it's the first day of Spring here today! :) Over the past few weeks the weather has been warming up quite a bit and lately it's actually been hot. It seems as if we are going to "skip" Spring and go straight into Summer - that often happens here! We are eagerly awaiting the first rains - it has been so dry throughout the Winter.

The trees are budding and getting new leaves and blossoms and the birds are all chirpy and starting to build nests. We always keep a look out at this time for the first Swallows to return. :) The tortoises already came out of hibernation weeks ago and there is a chorus of crickets singing at night.

No matter where in the world you happen to be, Spring is always a wonderful time! :)

A Mid-Winter's Day

At the moment we are in mid-winter here in South Africa. In the northern part of the country we get very little rain in winter so things can get quite dry and dusty. Except for when there’s a cold front passing by, the days are usually warm and sunny and the nights cold. As I’m typing this the time is 2:30 p.m. and the temperature is 23⁰C/75⁰F.

Here are some very recent photos taken about a week ago on a typical winter day:

Sunrise photo taken through the bedroom window

We have an old rusty table which we use to put out fruit and other treats for the birds. Here a Black-collared Barbet is enjoying a fruit mix. :)

The Wild Garlic is blooming - there is a long, wide flowerbed in the back garden filled with these flowers. They are always enjoyed by the bees.

Wild Garlic is an indigenous plant/herb. Besides being pretty it has many uses. There is also a belief that planting this around the house will help to keep snakes away! Well, I can tell you that doesn't work! One of our farms had lots and lots of wild garlic planted all around it and we still had snakes visiting by the dozen!

Although there are not as many butterflies around now as at other times of the year there are still some about to enjoy.

A favourite place for lizards - they like to bask on the rocks and quickly disappear into the Ivy-leaf Geranium whenever danger is near. They don't sit still long enough for us to get a photo of them.

Lama, our Bull-terrier/Wire-haired terrier cross enjoying a game with me. You can see how much browner the grass is after the frost we had a couple of weeks ago and how it affected some of the plants.

Winter's almost-always cloudless blue sky.

I couldn't resist putting in this picture of Lama just about to come down the back steps - she looks so cute! The dogs and cats enjoy basking in the sun as much as the lizards do! :)

The Shortest Day Of The Year

Today is the shortest day of the year in the Southern Hemisphere. I'm so pleased about it because it means that the days will slowly begin to get longer, the nights shorter and that we are heading towards Spring again and Spring is my favourite season of the year! :)

Today the Sun reaches it's northern-most point in planet Earth's sky, making it mid-summer in the Northern Hemisphere and mid-winter in the Southern. This event is known as a solstice and happens twice a year when the Earth's axis is most tilted away from or towards the Sun.
It's interesting that the word "solstice" comes from the Latin 'sol'(sun) and 'sistere'(to stand still), because at the solstices, the Sun stands still in declination; that is, the apparent movement of the Sun's path north or south comes to a stop before it reverses direction. Summer solstice for the S.H. is on December, 21.

When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him?

- Psalms 8:3-4

Winter Has Arrived

We woke up to chilly weather this morning. One look at the sky told us that there is a cold front passing by - not surprising as snow has fallen on some of the Cape mountains and when that happens the whole country feels the chill!

We woke up to a sky of cold-front clouds

Up till now we haven't had much of a winter this year - the mornings and nights get cold but the days are still warm and sometimes hot. In this part of the country the grass usually gets dry and dull when Autumn sets in as we hardly get any rain in winter but this year our lawn is still green and some of the deciduous trees are only now starting to loose their leaves.

At the moment the sky is bright blue but the wind is cold and blowing quite strong. It's nice inside the house though as it's North-facing and gets a lot of sun. Houses here don't normally have central heating - it doesn't usually get that cold but when we do have a cold spell we can turn on the heaters or light a fire in the fireplace. It's also time to make a big hot pot of homemade soup!

Jessica's cat, Thomas, in a sunny, sheltered spot.

Jessica and I have never experienced a real snowfall before. We've seen snow at a distance laying on top of mountains and about three years back we had a sprinkling of snow one very cold winter morning - it was very little though and soon melted away. We are always hoping when winter arrives that just for once there will be a nice heavy snowfall so we can make a snowman! :)