Letter from the Westvig's in Africa

Hello. Karl and I have been promising to set up this web-site for some time now. So here is our very first edition.

These first two pics were taken last winter so Meghan was four and Kyle was one and a bit. So much has happened since then and they're growing up so fast.

Since this picture above, Meghan had a go at her hair and so now it's really short. Kyle is talking and singing and climbing and he's just such a happy chap. He's sleeping much better which is a great help. Last year was a tough one though and we're pleased those sleepless nights and days are over.

We had a lovely Christmas. We had dinner on Christmas Eve at Karl's aunt's house, with all his family and then Christmas lunch at our house with my family and a few friends. There was more drinking than eating and so it was a very festive day.A friend from Switzerland, out here on holiday, arrived on a Harley which the kids had fun posing on. Here they are with my mother and Chiara. Meghan got a Cinderella dress from Father Christmas. She lived in it for days. Kyle got a truck which has been a hit, but he's also had fun dressing up with Meghan.

Karl had another hectic year and so he took three weeks leave. It's been great having him at home and the kids are loving all the attention. His joint-venture personal finance business is doing extremely well. They're well ahead of forecast and so Foschini, the main shareholder, is very pleased with them.

I've taken up golf and loving it. Last year I joined a ladies golf clinic which was great. I've managed to learn how to swing the club rather nicely, so now all I need to work on is hitting the ball. Simple!!! Karl's been great and very patient and supportive. I've had a couple of rounds where I came off the course dragging my lip behind me. But it is getting better and I'm not totally embarrassing myself anymore.

We're planning to start building our new house in April and hope to move in by the end of this year. It's very exciting!! Our plans are stunning. The style is Italian, with a lot of open-space living. It's a double-storey with a balcony and a huge deck upstairs and an undercover terrace downstairs. It's in a security-controlled estate, bordering on Meghan's (and soon to be Kyle-Matthew's) school. There is a gate directly into the school from the estate. So far, everyone we've met on the estate either have their children at Reddam, or are on the waiting list. So we'll have loads of friends for the kids right on our doorstep.

We have a new family member . Her name is Sally and she's a duck of about 2 months old now.

We got two ducks for the kids, and me, some time ago. Mommy duck lays eggs which the children then have for breakfast. We didn't take the last few eggs and next thing we knew, we had ducklings. Only problem was that she'd squashed three of them already by the time Meghan discovered that they'd hatched. I swept the fourth one away and we hand-reared her in our bathroom.

She is now so tame and she follows us around the garden. She comes for tickles and if we leave the gate open, she comes into the house looking for us. Duck poo is Karl's pet hate though, so my morning and evening routine consists of hosing the lawn down, with Sally on my heals. Meghan and Kyle just love her to bits!!! Well, that's enough for now. Chat again soon. Loads of love, Karl, Gabrielle, Meghan and Kyle-Matthew