Everyone who loves cheesecake, put up your hands. Hmmm, I see quite a lot of you. Scroll down to the freebie section and download a recipe eBook with cheesecake recipes.

In keeping with the cheese theme, there recipes in the recipe section all contain cheese as an ingredient. Chees it and enjoy it!

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Our Lotto is increasing their ticket prices, more good reason to get your entry to the UK Lotto or Euro Millions. Just click on the banner to the right and start dreaming BIG! You can now get tickets for the UK Lotto , Superena, Powerball, MegaMilions and Euromillions. some paying up to the equivalent of R1,830 million . Get a ticket and dream BIG!!! Just click the banner to the right, its easy and safe to play.

I happened to find this really nice Blog, please click on the link below and go browse around.....

Following with thanks from Brian at Kitsch'n'Zinc

Rooibos Iced Tea.
Jennifer Iserloh

Homemade iced tea is perfect for quenching your thirst on a sweltering summer day. Make it ahead and keep a big pitcher in your fridge to sip as the mercury rises.

My pick this summer is red bush. If you're craving flavor, it comes in vanilla, orange, peach and even red bush chai. If you can't find your favorite, try adding a teaspoon of vanilla extract, lemon or orange zest or a cinnamon stick while the tea is steeping.

Red bush -- or Rooibos in Afrikaans -- tea comes from the leaves of a bush that grows in southern Africa and like many teas has valuable antioxidants such as aspalathin and nothofagin. Red bush also contains soothing compounds that work as an antispazmodic; people who have chronic stomach problems and cramps swear by it.

I like it because it's caffeine-free, yet has a rich, well rounded flavor so I can drink it in the evening and throughout the day while I'm working away. It's tasty straight without sweetener but you can choose how much sugar to add.

But if you are craving something gently sweetened, add a tablespoon of maple syrup or raw honey. To make the red bush cooler in the picture above, add 1 cup of basic red bush iced tea to 1 cup of cubed watermelon, 1/4 cup orange juice, and 4 ice cubes and blend until smooth.

Basic Red Bush Iced Tea
2 quarts of boiling hot water
4 tablespoons of red bush tea or 8 small tea bags
Ice for serving

Steep the tea in the boiled water for 3 to 4 minutes. Cool to room temperature before refrigerating in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

Learn more about Jennifer at skinnychef.com, and read her exclusive Slashfood blogs every Monday and Friday.

We will be visiting the resort at Hole in the Wall on the Transkei coast in October. I remembered that I had an article on Hole in the Wall on my South African Myths and Legends page. Here is the Hole in the Wall legend

The Legend of Hole in the Wall (click here for a photo)

Near Coffee Bay is a prominent rock formation with a big hole in the middle, which has become a symbol for the Xhosa of a great historical tragedy, the "Great Cattle Killing".

It is a unique structure with a huge detached cliff that has a giant opening carved through its centre by the waves. The local Xhosa call this place "izi Khaleni", which means "place of thunder". At certain seasons and water conditions (high tide) the waves clap is such a fashion that the concussion can be heard throughout the valley.

A young girl called Nongqawuse had seen a messenger from the realm of the ancestors at a waterhole. She told her uncle Mhlakaza about her vision. As he was an important Xhosa priest, his social rank granted a great impact to the prophecy he derived from his niece's vision. He announced that soldiers who were incarnations of the souls of dead Xhosa warriors, would arrive on the 18th of February over the sea, come onto land through the "Hole in the Wall" and defeat the hated British. But, he continued, the Xhosa had to make a sacrifice to help the warriors by destroying all their cereals and killing all their cattle. After the victory, there would be food in abundance for everybody. The Xhosa followed the instructions in his prophecy and killed their whole stock of cattle. The catastrophe took its course. Thousands of Xhosa starved and the British had an easy time conquering the remaining people.

Jonathan Elliott sent me the following article:
Love made that 'hole in the wall', they say
By Brian Msebe

ON the road to the coastal resort of Coffee Bay, there is a turn that leads to the Hole in the Wall, one of the most beautiful spots on the southern African coast.
The creation of the natural phenomenon of the Hole in the Wall has, according to legend, a far more romantic explanation.
Many tales have been told about the impressive arch that was named in 1823 by the crew of the British survey ship, the Barracouta, because of the portal carved through an island rock castle with sheer dolerite walls.
The Portuguese had called the rock Penido das Fontes (rock of fountains), while the rock's Xhosa name is esiKhaleni (the place of sound), a name derived from the waves that continuously crash through the hole.
The hole lies directly in the path of the Mpako River and it is this, rather than the surf, that has created the hole.
Xhosa mythology tells of the water or sea people, semi-deities who resembled humans but with supple wrists, ankles and flipperlike hands and feet.
They were kind people, although sometimes a little mischievous, delighting in teasing mere mortals.
Legend tells of a beautiful girl who lived in a village on the Wild Coast near a great landlocked lagoon.
The girl was so fair that one of the sea people fell in love with her and persuaded her to come and live with him in the sea.
Her people were land people who speared fish in the river and swam in the lagoon where giant milkwood trees, with their dark, shiny leaves and comforting shade crowded the water's edge.
Long ago, they had decided that the sea was cruel and dangerous and had warned the young girl not to go there.
"Beware the sea people. They are born of the salt spray and are as cruel as the sea. They envy us because we rule the land and the sunny pastures," they advised her.
But the elders' words seemed to have fallen on deaf ears. Not even her angry father, who after discovering the unnatural liaison forbade his daughter from seeing her lover or leaving the village, could deter the young maiden, who found the sea endlessly attractive.
So attracted was she by the beauty of the sea that one night she slipped away in the dark of the night and met with her sea lover, who after hearing of the maiden's father's disapproval of the affair reassured her and asked her to watch and see what he would do to prove his undying love for her.
And so as the sun dipped low beyond the wall of the rock, the young beautiful lady watched with amazement as thin, willowy figures appeared on the top of the rock.
Excited and defiant, she started to run towards the lagoon, followed by the village folk who sensed that something strange was going to happen.
The sea people had brought with them an enormous sea serpent with green, glittering scales and a mighty head.
Using its enormous head, the monstrous creature (fish) rammed a gaping hole in the wall. A great spout of water gushed through with all the force of the tide behind it and on the wave came hundreds of sea people, singing, shouting and waving their arms with joy.
At the front of them all was the man who had come to claim her.
He rode the wave right to her feet, stretched out his arms and she moved to join him.
Then, as the wave retreated, forming and frothing its pleasure, she went with the people of the sea -- back through the hole in the rock wall and the villagers never saw her again.
That is the tale the Xhosa people tell. They say the sea went on eating away at the curved rock wall until it no longer formed a barrier between the sea and the river mouth.
They say on the nights when the tide is high, the sea people can still be heard above the noise of the waves, streaming through the Hole in the Wall in their search for a bride.
So intriguing are tales about the Hole that legend has it that boastful swimmers have attempted to go through the Hole, but the incredible force of the waves makes this impossible.
A trooper of the Cape Mounted Rifles tried it to win a bottle of whisky in a bet but was never seen again -- so the locals will tell you. Fragments of ships wrecked on that part of the Wild Coast are often found in the sheltered shore pools.
The truly awesome spectacle of Hole in the Wall, now an angler's paradise, is one of five of South Africa's myths and legends reflected a set of stamps.
Explaining why the Post Office chose to feature South African myths and legends on stamps, Philatelic Services communications specialist Louis van Niekerk said it was because of country's rich cultural heritage and diversity.
"It was decided that myths and legends would be an appropriate topic for a set of stamps, especially because this is the first time they are featured on a set of South African stamps."

Mirna is an educational psychologist from Stellenbosch. She taught at several schools, amongst others Stellenbosch High School, Bloemhof Girls’ High and Jan Kriel School for learners with barriers to learning. She is a mother, loves art, the ocean and children.

You are welcome to comment or send questions to her at mirnafvanwyk@gmail.com

Thank you all for the letters, requests and comments. Last month I discussed ways for parents to be pro-active about disciplining their children. These great tips come from Becky Bailey and they can even help you getting along better with your boss and spouse!

1. Encourage your children during wonderful times and tough times. Do not attempt to get children to feel bad in order to behave better.

Principle: Encouragement empowers.
Application: Be your children's cheerleader. Constantly tell them, "You did it," "Way to go," "Look at you," or "Good for you." When you children are struggling you might say, "Let’s find a way to get through this, you can do it."
2. Take back your power. You are in charge.

Principle: Whoever you believe to be in charge of your feelings, you have placed in charge of you.
Application: Instead of saying, "Don't make me have to pull this car over," say, "I'm going to pull this car over until the seatbelts are fastened and everyone is safe." Instead of saying, "You drive me nuts," say, "I'm going to take a few deep breaths and calm myself down. Then I will talk to you." When children refuse to do what you ask state, "I'm going to show you what I want you to do." Help them be successful.
3. Do not save your children from the consequences of their actions.

Principle: Psychological pain is a signal to make changes in your life.
Application: Help your child handle disappointing choices. Offer empathy instead of lectures after poor choices. Instead of saying, "I told you not to take that picture to school. It's your own fault it got torn in half. That is what you get for not listening to me," say, "How disappointing for you. I know how important that picture was to you." Empathy allows children to take responsibility for their actions, while lecturing allows them to blame you for their distress.
4. Teach children how to handle their conflicts instead of punishing them for not knowing how.

Principle: Conflict is an opportunity to teach.
Application: When one child comes to you tattling on the other, use these moments to teach life skills. When one sibling says, "He pushed me," you say, "Did you like it?" The child will likely say, "No!" At this point you can say, "Go tell your brother, 'I don't like it when you push me.'" Use these intrusive episodes as a way to teach assertiveness skills to your children.
Most importantly, love them and have fun! Raising a child is a journey, not a destination. Sometimes the journey with lots of unpleasantness, but if you keep consistently, lovingly yet within definite rules and boundaries at it, it might even be an adventure!
Blessings from heart to heart.

Click here to see a list of countries and shops that sell S A goods. If you own a shop overseas that sells SA stuff or if you know of one, let me know and I will add it to the page

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