Pinehurst, NC With Mum

Good afternoon my dears,

We recently had an overseas visit from my Mum. On her first day here we went to brunch and then home décor shopping (on a quest to find a deviled egg dish). Then, the following day we went on a day-trip to the charming and idyllic village of Pinehurst, NC which I wanted to share with you today. 

Pinehurst, NC is about an hour-and-a-half drive from our home and is where we celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary. We thoroughly enjoyed spending the day here for our anniversary that we put it on our calendar to come and visit every year. My favorite times to visit (if your not a golf player or golf watcher) is during the spring, when all the flowers are blooming, or in the fall, when the leaves are colorful and crunchy. Also highly recommend high tea at Lady Bedford's Tea Room, although call and reserve in advance, as its a popular place for locals to celebrate. 

- Video -
Grab yourselves a cup of tea and enjoy scenes of our day-trip to Pinehurst, NC with my Mum



Thank you for stopping by. 

-Kiki Nakita-

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In Memory of my Dad on his 60th Birthday

Good morning my dears, 

Yesterday would've been my Dad's 60th birthday.

Parents:
William Harold Smith 

b. August 4th, 1924 d. 1999

married on December 12th to 

Veronika Ortrud Heier

b. December 27th, 1938 d. 2010

My Dad as a toddler and his Uncle Winifred, who tragically passed away in the late 1950s/ early 1960s in an automobile accident. 

My Dad and Aunt Diana (underlined) in the newspaper.

My Dad used to DJ on the weekends to pay for new records and music. 

My dad:
Sven Marten Manfred Smith

b. September 16th, 1958 d. May 21st, 2013
Hamm, Germany

married on August 10th, 1985

Julie Ann Bird

- private as still alive- 

My Mum and Dad in the mid 1980's. 

My Grandpa Smith was in the British Army, so my dad spent most of his childhood travelling and living in Europe and Africa. He attended Ellis Robins, an all boys high school, and Salisbury Polytechnic, for college. He also joined the Rhodesian Air Force in 1978.

40th Anniversary since Rhodesian Air Force 

 My Dad is in on bended knee, far left. My Uncle Buffy, who married my Aunt Diana is also pictured. 

Our parents welcomed me, in 1986 and my little sister, in 1990.

Our family at my sisters christening in 1990. 

Kiki and Gigi

 

After working for Tron Air, my Dad and several partners started Inter Avionics, an international aviation/electrical engineering business, in South Africa, North America, Europe, and Australia. This meant that my sister and me travelled a lot during our childhoods too. He worked at the company for almost 25 years before passing. 

My Dad and me in South Africa, 2000. 

My Dad was a hobbyist. When he pursued a hobby he would go overboard, and overthink, and overbuy, to pursue the hobby. For example, one year he decided he was going to plant a garden. He researched about the types of beds, the types of soil, how to start composting (he made his own composter), he created rows and rows of gardens and kept an exact record of plantings on a birds eye view map. He is what young'uns today would call "extra".

My Dad and me Easter, 2012

Sadly, eight weeks after his mother's passing he found out he had stage I pancreatic cancer. Although smaller that the size of a pea, the cancer was inoperable because it was so close to major arteries, so for two-and-a-half years he fought, and I did my best to take him to the hospital, to his chemo and radiation, to lunch, and to get his prescriptions, until his passing a week before my 27th birthday. 

Forever in my memory.

Kiki Nakita

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Happy 58th Birthday In Heaven

Today, would've been my dad's 58th birthday. He passed away after a two-and-a-half year battle with pancreatic cancer about a week before my 27th birthday.  I have many photos of my dad from the 1970's onwards, so a few weeks ago I asked my aunt if she would send me some of his childhood photos from my granny's 1950's and 1960's photo albums. Wasn't he a cute baby?

September 16th, 1958 - May 21st, 2013

Kiki Nakita

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