April 1, 2025
The boys were up and at em with ghostbusters play in the backyard. They like to ask us for missions to get ghosts so we will tell them, “There is a green slimer in the treehouse, go get him!” and off they run. We’re on day 2 of this game and hopeful it continues.
We started homeschool early this morning so we could hit the road by ~10am to head to botanical garden.
We spent the late morning and early afternoon at Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden. We learned that the Cape Floral Region is a distinct botanical region and one of the world's six floral kingdoms and the only kingdom to only occur in one country. We also learned that the boys did not find plant or flower hunting interesting or fun.
We tried to grab the boys’ interest by making our walk an ‘animal hunt’ but sadly only found a few snails. We saw a sign warning of the types of snakes on the property but again, thankfully, we didn’t see any. We were able to make a small loop at the gardens and walk along the Boomslang Canopy Trail, but after that we knew we needed to feed the boys and switch up the pace of the day.
Though their snake dreams were squashed, there was a small playground near the restaurant that the boys loved. Len managed to bruise his face and chin pretty badly on this playground but Ollie made it out unscathed. Their favorite part of the garden was definitely the playground followed by playing with sticks in the mud as a close second.
Len’s new favorite phrase has been, “I know that already!!” when we tell him nearly anything.
Kayleen, “Lenny, look two big snails!”
Len, “I saw dem already!!”
Or,
Kyle, “Len, its time to leave to the playground.”
Len, “I know dat already!”
Or,
Kayleen, “Len, this flower is called Lion’s tail!”
Len, “I already know dat!”
We wrapped up the afternoon by returning to Green Point park. We found another Labyrinth for the boys to explore and a handful of new playgrounds. Kyle made up a challenge where he offered $20 to anyone who successfully made their way across the very slippery balance beam. Ollie was focused on this challenge and made many attempts but sadly couldn’t make it. I successfully completed the balance beam challenge but Kyle said the reward was only meant for the children.
Ollie has shown he can be incredibly outgoing. He doesn’t shy away from asking strangers for directions or asking kids at the park to play together. Len tends to sulk in the background while waiting for Ollie to confirm if the new kids want to play, but will then gladly join in once the kids agree to join them.
