Mama Jane asked a while ago if Dean would take some photographs of the twins Birthday party on Saturday. Sisi & Booty were 5 and had a great afternoon. Their friends were particularly plaesed with the party packs that Mama Jane and Aletta had put together. Once again Mama Jane models something really positive in the community!-
Dean and Paula in Blighty, autumn 2025 -
Dean and Paula pastor The Gathering -
Our beloved Palace - FA Cup winners 2025 -
The Gathering -
Baptising in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit -
Leaders preparing to serve at The Gathering's Soup Kitchen -
Soup Kitchen Xmas lunch
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Serving hands - the heart of The Gatheirng -
Thankful Thursdays -
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HOPE Home Based Care Team -
Gathering Ground -
The Helderberg - The prettiest of the mountains we face
Mama Jane asked a while ago if Dean would take some photographs of the twins Birthday party on Saturday. Sisi & Booty were 5 and had a great afternoon. Their friends were particularly plaesed with the party packs that Mama Jane and Aletta had put together. Once again Mama Jane models something really positive in the community!
A very dear friend emailed us recently and was commenting on a something we had said about Joel enjoying stickers and described how one of her sons is also into sticky things.
David (not real name) heavily into stickers at the moment! So much so that he found 6 pantyliners, stuck them on a bit of paper, drew on them, and then insisted on showing them to the Betterware lady when she came to collect her catalogue. Ohh the shame!!
That made us laugh, hope you enjoyed it too.
PS. Apologies to the original author of the above quote as it was used completely without permission!
David (not real name) heavily into stickers at the moment! So much so that he found 6 pantyliners, stuck them on a bit of paper, drew on them, and then insisted on showing them to the Betterware lady when she came to collect her catalogue. Ohh the shame!!
That made us laugh, hope you enjoyed it too.
PS. Apologies to the original author of the above quote as it was used completely without permission!
Meanwhile, back on the ranch... we were having lots of fun, playing silly games, watching Tom & Jerry and playing on the swings.
As ever, the highlight of my week is my Men's Bible Study. This morning (and next week) I got the men to share a favourite passage from scripture and explain why the passage speaks to them and why it's a favourite. Two of the men have spoken to me privately to say they can't do it but the rest are all having a go. This is great as after two years they really should be able to take some responsibility for the group and what we study. Hopefully we can build on this exercise and start to develop their Bible reading skills and encourage them to be more active in sharing their faith. Please pray for this!
We've not Blogged anything of note for a while now, mainly because we've been busy but also because sometimes we experience things that it's simply not appropriate to write about very publicly - and we're not going to elaborate now!Dean had a great 40th Birthday and party. We had promised to post some photos, unfortunatley we were enjoying ourselves too much to bother taking any! So all we can post here is the invite for you to marvel at.
Dean's birthday celebrations have been ongoing over a week & a bit and concluded on Monday when Paula had arranged for the boys to be looked after whilst we went for lunch in Franschoek. Then, halfway through the meal, Paula informed me that we were staying the night! Wicked!! My only concern here is the depths of my wife's deceipt! I had no idea!!!!
We went out for lunch with Joel today to celebrate Dean's 40th. Joel was delighted to be eating pizza - again! We had a lot of fun, especially as Paula had earlier delivered a cake to the restaurant. Joel was chuffed to blow the candles out for Daddy who was struggling a bit due to his age! Eli was being looked after by some friends. As you can see below, Joel doesn't do kiddy portions.
Click here for the BBC article and make up your own mind.
Aunty Kuku died in the early hours of yesterday morning. Sadly this is the third death in Chris Nissen in 4 days. She had really struggled since Patrick's death last year and was deteriorating rapidly. Paula spent some time with Aunty Kuku before we went on holiday and felt at the time that she had said goodbye. The funeral will be next Saturday as there is another big funeral this Sat in the community.We're really grateful to Aunty Kuku's family for looking after her so diligently since Patrick's death, they really did do a great job!
Our dear friend Hazel and her husband Martin have had a website about their ministry for a while now, but recently they have started a Blog too. The Blog can be seen by clicking Martin & Hazel's Blog and their website can be seen here.
Eli's highlight was probably learning to pull himself up and then cruise the furniture, he also really enjoyed the beach.
We're Back!We've just had a wonderful couple of weeks in Sedgefield, chilling out with the boys and re-acquanting ourselves with each other, brilliant! The weather was OK, we managed 4 days on the beach and were only housebound on one day due to really heavy rains.
We had a lot of fun doing all sorts of stuff. Joel discovered pizza and can't get enough of it. He also discovered Tom & Jerry and giggles himself silly watching it.
We're off to Sedgefield on holiday tomorrow morning for 2 weeks and have absolutely no intention whatsoever of Blogging whilst away!
See you all in 2 weeks.
See you all in 2 weeks.
Getting the Shakes is the Blog of Roger & George and their preparations for emigrating to New Zealand. Their lives have been very hectic of late especially as they race around and try to catch up with friends and family before they leave on Sunday! Wow that came round really quickly!
Rog' is an excellent writer and his Blog posts are always good. Recently he Blogged about our brief overnight stay with them when we were in Blighty and you can read this post here.
Keep an eye on the WHSmith bestseller list, one day Roger will be there with his novel!
Recently Bell Valley Initiative held a 'graduation ceremony' for the 10 volunteers they have trained in Chris Nissen Park. One of the local free rags picked up the story and ran it on the front page. As you can imagine the guys in CNP are really pleased to be in the paper.
We had a great morning on Saturday, taking the boys to the Aquarium, we were surprise by how much Eli enjoyed himself whilst Joel wanders around as if it's his 2nd home, which in fairness it almost is as we have been members for over 2 years now.Hope you enjoy the pictures, we'll post some video on Monday.
I've long held the view that science is little more than a value or belief system rather than the exact and objective discipline it claims to be. Whilst some branches of science definitely have value (medicine is a class example) not everything done in the name of science is objective or empirically quantifiable.
Despite it being winter here in the Western Cape, it's very much a growing season. Primarily because the Southern Cape is the only part of the African continent in which it rains in winter, consequently, keeping on top of the grass is almost a full time job in itself.There are however some great benefits to this, and one of them is the variety of blooms etc. which can be seen in the garden. Whilst we make no claims to be related to Percy Thrower we are enjoying having a decent garden, Dean recently bought a wheelbarrow and a few implements to do some stuff (sad!) which he's enjoying.
There has been a real baby boom in Chris Nissen in the last few weeks. Sadly, this boom is amongst the teenagers with several having given birth, several about to give birth and several more due in the next nine months. There seems to be a lot of negative peer pressure amongst the teenagers to have sex which inevitably leads to pregnancies. The other massive negative in this is that they are having unprotected sex despite the very real dangers of contracting HIV.
This will mean little if anything to you in real terms other than you may notice a few character issues as certain bugs are ironed out. The address remains unchanged, but the Blog itself should look a bit leaner and crisper.
At last our recent bout of illnesses seems to be over. The last two weeks in particular have been a complete write off as one or other of us has been unwell. We've just had a great weekend, On Saturday Joel was at a birthday party which he really enjoyed and then we lazed around in the afternoon. On Sunday we had a young couple over for dinner which was great, they've recently moved into the area and are still finding their feet. The weather was also much better than predicted so we were able to spend a bit of time in the garden which both the boys love, especially on their swings.
We had an excellent ladies cell group last Thursday. Thank you so much for all the prayers as God is speaking to us in a wonderful way this term. I have decided to bite the bullet and we are studying Mark's gospel this term. We are literally reading a chapter and a half each week at home and coming to the group with our thoughts, insights and questions. I knew this was risky as several of my ladies can't read, but they are really doing so well. Those who can are reading to those who can't and everyone is coming ready to share. We are having the most interesting and lively discussions. It is also so good and powerful to read God's Word together each week in the group.
Create Your Own Zoo
As part of Paula's birthday present I bought her a hammock to relax in the garden and yesterday finally got a chance to hang it up. Joel immediately took to it and once ensconced in it he ordered us to bring his drink and book. Not sure where he learnt to use a hammock but he was a complete natural at it!
With the onset of winter we've been using the wood burning stove in the house quite a lot. Imagine our shock when our bedroom filled with smoke and the carpet around the chimney was smouldering! Thankfully we caught it just in time and were able to prevent the house from burning down. This was a bit of a shocker especially as our landlord is overseas, thankfully we managed to find the original installer who came and sorted it out pronto.
Oh how we long for Summer!! This week has been hideous and exhausting. Joel kicked off with a nasty bout of flu one week ago which in true Joel style led to bronchialitis. He hates his medication and it is a real trial getting it down him. He has also been off of Play Group all week - oh brother! Then, on the routine trip to the doctor with Joel, Eli was diagnosed again with a double ear infection on top of his cold, so he has been miserable and on antibiotics. To cap it all Dean has been quickly sliding downhill only to be diagnosed today with bronchitis. Our doctor is becoming quite a family friend!! He is now on the same medication as Joel but 3 times the dosage. Whilst there, the doctor showed concern about Eli and inspected him again. It seems that his ear infections have got worse and he is now on a 10 day course of powerful antibiotic (his 3rd different type in 2½ weeks). This is all very wearing physically and emotionally and we have also found it very expensive. Much as we may have moaned about the NHS in the past, we have spent the best part of £80 this week alone on doctor's visits and medication, none of which is covered by medical aid.
Joel went with Twinkle Tots to the local fire station this morning and had a great time, despite the awful weather. Joel was a bit disappointed not to see Fireman Sam but was quite pleased to see Fireman Michael who is a real fireman. All the kids seemed to have a great time and there was an unusually good turnout of dads!
Our good friends Nikki & Rian recently moved to the UK for work and we miss them a lot! However, they are now online and have joined the 'Blogosphere' with their own Blog 'Carstens Experiences' where you can read about their new lives and see some great photos of their gorgeous kids.
This morning Dean attended Douglas' funeral and these were his thoughts afterwards:
So, how do you address the congregation at a funeral where you had little respect for the deceased and really didn't like him very much. After all, I only knew the man as a cantankerous old drunkard who placed a heavy burden on his son and never showed any appreciation for his loyalty and unconditional love.
So, how do you address the congregation at a funeral where you had little respect for the deceased and really didn't like him very much. After all, I only knew the man as a cantankerous old drunkard who placed a heavy burden on his son and never showed any appreciation for his loyalty and unconditional love.
I spoke to Michael this morning to find out what's happening with Douglas, as when we visited him in hospital on Friday evening he was unaware of why he was in hospital and what was going to be happening. I managed to explain to Douglas (with Michael's help) that he was due to have both his legs removed due to gangrene. As you could imagine Douglas was very upset, whilst Michael was just cross that the hospital staff hadn't informed Douglas about the impending surgery.
Watching 'Spikey', both Joel & Eli seem to enjoy watching Spikey, Joel enjoys feeding him bread (although we were told-off last time!)
We took a gamble on Saturday and decided to go to Hermanus to see if we could see any whales as the 'official' season is just about on us. Thankfully the weather was great and we did see a couple of whales although they weren't very close to the shore. Joel was excited but we could tell he was a little disappointed that we couldn't get a really clear view of the whales.Just before lunch it clouded over and the swell was increasing so we decided to go home via the coast road (the same road where Jaguar filmed their ad for the new XK!) and as we were about 15Kms from Gordon's Bay we saw a whale really close to the beach. Hope you enjoy the photos below.
My first week back in Chris Nissen was mainly taken up with visiting friends and reassuring folk that we had returned – it’s nice to know that we were missed. By and large, things seem to have ticked over quite well in our absence with the members of our groups having held onto some of the key teachings we imparted just prior to our leave. In particular, gossip amongst the brethren appears to have reduced which is an amazing answer to prayer! We now need to build on this and help people to move forwards, building on the works God is doing in their lives. As such, our groups will press on with basic biblical teachings and discipleship which is really key to seeing personal spiritual growth.
I (Paula) have arrived back in Somerset West with a bang. My first week was hectic, not least getting everyone used to the old routines again! It is very hard to get out of bed at 7 am when it is freezing and dark.... convincing Joel that it is time to get ready for nursery when it is like this is even harder!! Nonetheless, it has been good to catch up with old friends and to meet 6 newborn babies from the last 6 weeks! (still 4 more to come!! Eli is going to have a huge peer group and hopefully plenty of future wives to choose from!!). One of these is the new daughter of 2 teenagers in Chris Nissen. I went to see her on Friday with her mum and both are doing really well. It is so hard to believe that 7 months have gone by since Eli was that little! Also encouraging in Chris Nissen are 2 new groups set up by social welfare for pensioners and the ongoing creche which keeps going despite very limited resources, praise God!
This weekend is predicted to be the coldest of the year with snow falls on most mountains in the Western & Eastern Cape. Certainly it is very cold at the moment and after 5 weeks of decent weather in Blighty we're not really prepared for this.This is a picture of some ice we found in the garden this morning, just to prove it really is cold!
We certainly hit the ground running when we got home. Joel is back in the swing of nursery and friends which is great, he certainly seems to have got his rhythm back. Eli is about to start at a weekly baby group with Paula, whilst Paula has had to debrief our last FYP volunteer as well as juggle life.
Dean spent Monday afternoon in Chris Nissen visiting his friends and saying 'Hello' & catching up with many people. It was great to be there again and we definitely feel affirmed that this is where God wants us to be which is great as there is no better place to be!
Dean spent Monday afternoon in Chris Nissen visiting his friends and saying 'Hello' & catching up with many people. It was great to be there again and we definitely feel affirmed that this is where God wants us to be which is great as there is no better place to be!
We had a god time back in Blighty although it is good to be back home here in Somerset West. We didn't get to spend as much time with friends as we would have liked (hopefully we've not offended too many of you) but we were able to spend some quality time with a few friends who are special to the kids and we hope you enjoy the photos below.
The most excellent news on our arrival home was that Eli's name change is now 100% legal as we have his new birth certificate and ID number stating that Eli Thomas Finnie is here!
We are so grateful to God for this massive answer to prayer as it means we can now crack on and get other bits of paperwork sorted such as passports, residency etc.
We are so grateful to God for this massive answer to prayer as it means we can now crack on and get other bits of paperwork sorted such as passports, residency etc.
After an 11½ hour flight we're home and in one piece with no missing or damaged luggage!
We arrived at Heathrow quite early and had to wait to check in which went smoothly once it happened. We managed to find the only bit of terminal 4 from which you can watch the planes coming and going and Joel really enjoyed that. We had some dinner before boarding and that's when our evening started to go downhill. The manager of the restaurant told us that we'd have to take our trolley out of the restaurant (though it was causing less obstruction than the pushchair) and we had a bit of an argument over this. We couldn't believe how pedantic he was being, plus we didn't want to lose the trolley, so eventually we agreed that he could take the trolley on the condition that he finds us one after our meal. To cut it short, he stored the trolley in the entrance to the restaurant which caused mayhem and resulted in them losing several customers! Pathetic really.
We arrived at Heathrow quite early and had to wait to check in which went smoothly once it happened. We managed to find the only bit of terminal 4 from which you can watch the planes coming and going and Joel really enjoyed that. We had some dinner before boarding and that's when our evening started to go downhill. The manager of the restaurant told us that we'd have to take our trolley out of the restaurant (though it was causing less obstruction than the pushchair) and we had a bit of an argument over this. We couldn't believe how pedantic he was being, plus we didn't want to lose the trolley, so eventually we agreed that he could take the trolley on the condition that he finds us one after our meal. To cut it short, he stored the trolley in the entrance to the restaurant which caused mayhem and resulted in them losing several customers! Pathetic really.
We're in the last 24 hours of our time here in the UK as we fly out of Heathrow around 7pm on Saturday. Things are getting a bit tense in our house as we struggle with the packing and making sure that we're within our weight allowance, thankful we have just over 100Kgs allowance to return with which is a blessing.
On Tuesday Dad, Grandad and Joel went on the Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway, a real boys day out. We had a lot of fun and hopefully will repeat the event next time we're home, so that Eli can join us.
Life has been very hectic since leaving the Lakes. We had an excellent Sunday with Holy Trinity at Gee Cross, and it was a pleasure staying overnight with Norma! After giving our Powerpoint presentation in the morning service we had a shared lunch in the church hall which was a great opportunity to meet people and to renew old acquaintances. Straight after lunch we shot off to Sheffield to stay with Roger, George, Yas' & Theo which was brilliant. Sadly it was a real flying visit as we had to get home on the Monday afternoon as we had a commitment on the Tue morning.
Below is the text which should have accompanied the post below:
We arrived in Cheadle on Saturday afternoon and just had time to settle the boys down before we were off to the Upper Room in Cheadle to speak at an evening meeting which was part of the Stockport ‘Big Deal’. The evening was excellent and despite a slight technical glitch with the laptop and data projector the presentation went well. We had a lot of positive feedback and were encouraged by the response. It was also great to see some old friends such as John & Helen.
We arrived in Cheadle on Saturday afternoon and just had time to settle the boys down before we were off to the Upper Room in Cheadle to speak at an evening meeting which was part of the Stockport ‘Big Deal’. The evening was excellent and despite a slight technical glitch with the laptop and data projector the presentation went well. We had a lot of positive feedback and were encouraged by the response. It was also great to see some old friends such as John & Helen.
We've had a busy time giving our powerpoint presentation, having spoken on Saturday evening at St. Mary's Cheadle and again at the 11.15 service on Sunday morning. We were also interviewed in the 9.30 service, so we were really pleased to be in the Lake district for a week after that before speaking at Gee Cross next Sunday.The Boys have been an absolute credit to us as they cope with so many new and different people almost daily, they've also carried on in their routines brilliantly which makes our lives much easier. We know many of you are praying for Joel & Eli in this respect and we know that God is faithfully answering these prayers.
Below are some photos of our time in then Lakes so far.
Joel was at the Weald playgroup this morning and really enjoyed himself there. This is a real blessing for us as it allows us to get some stuff done without having to drag him around with us. Eli remains 'under the weather', we're sure he's got hay fever but will keep an eye on him. Please pray against hay fever as he already has a lactose intolerance and suffers eczema quite badly so he really doesn't need any further allergies.
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