Who's Who In The Zoo

We're a family of 6 (humans, that is), currently living in Pretoria, South Africa. Shortly after our marriage in 1997, ZooDaddy and I went to the UK, ostensibly to find enough work to pay off a student loan. Our 18 month to 2-year stay, however, somehow extended itself to 8 years, and it was only in 2005 that we returned to South Africa, with three kiddies in tow. Our fourth was born in 2007. Our elder children initially attended school, but we have subsequently decided to educate our children at home (see the page on "Learning in the Zoo" on this blog). We're a proper motley crew - all very different in character, temperament and style. Maybe that's what makes home seem much like a zoo so much of the time.

ZooMomma (That's me!)
I'm the Mom. I'm a slightly crazy, arty, earth-mothery information junkie (my friends tell me I'm a post-modern hippy). I have a few great passions: my husband and kids, learning (both doing it and facilitating it), music (listening and making), language (reading, writing, listening), God (knowing Him and critically examining and exploring my Christian faith - I blog about this here), freedom (and its paradoxical links to community) and accessibility (in particular the unfriendliness of the wider world when it comes to physical disability - my great area of interest is visual impairment).   I think of myself as pretty conventional, but not too many people seem to agree with me. Many of the choices I make do seem to be unusual, but at the same time I make them thoughtfully. I trained as a veterinary surgeon, but left the field some time after the birth of treasure number two. At present I'm full-time at home with the offspring.

ZooDaddy
ZooDaddy works as a wildlife veterinarian and researcher. He is based at the National Zoo in Pretoria. He's a quieter, more stable soul, but no less passionate for that. Being outdoors, especially in any unspoiled habitat makes him come alive - that's his natural habitat. He is passionate about conservation, honest science, beauty - especially visual, indigenous gardening and plants (aloes) and, it goes without saying, animals.





LadyLolo

LadyLolo is our "Millenium Baby", born in Bury, near Lancashire, England early in 2000. She's a beautiful girl, and full of music. A passionate dancer with a real gift for choreography she, like her Mom, spends a lots of time surrounded by music. She's a sociable body, with a wide circle of friends. Academically she's a neat thinker, a natural at the rational subjects like maths and science. She's particularly fascinated by the human body and how it works, and is the family "first-aider". She loves cooking and the idea of home-making: if we give her the TV remote she goes straight to the food and lifestyle channels. She's a typical big sister - sometimes bossy, very much in charge, but at the same time responsible and caring. Her siblings definitely look up to her.

SirBiggs
SirBiggs is our creative, off-the-wall dreamer. Born in 2002 in Penarth, Wales, he has always been a quiet, contemplative observer (pretty much from day one). He's a very intelligent lad, and surprises us often with his wit. He can be a complete clown - but think Gary Larsen's Far Side, and Monty Python rather than more "straight and narrow" comedy. Artistic, musical and with a real love of words, he's a reader, a strategy game player, an intuitive mathematician and a philospher. He's pretty quiet and quite shy, but that doesn't seem to hurt him socially. He is very valued by his friends, and as in-demand as his socialite sisters.

MissyGeorge

MissyGeorge was born in Penarth too, three months before our return to South Africa, in 2005. We say that she came out of the womb yelling "Look at me!" because that's who she is. She's cute, bubbly, noisy and fun. She loves attention and will do pretty much anything to get it (which her siblings do NOT like). She's our boundary-pusher, and can use her charm very well to get out of a tight spot. She's also very bright, doesn't miss a thing, is full of questions and comments, and provides much entertainment with things she comes up with. A dancer like her sister, she's light and flexible, and scared of nothing. We regularly find her scaling a wall or up a tree; she also taught herself to swim pretty early. When not being physically adventurous she's usually to be found either curled up on someones lap, talking someone's ear off. or both.

MrTepps

MrTepps is our only South-African-born South-African-only child. He's a comedian, computer and puzzle genius, and the true blue-eyed boy of the family (despite being the only sibling with grey eyes). We became aware of a delay in his language development when he was about 18 months. We soon realised that this was coupled with some social delays too (reluctance to make eye-contact, refusal to respond to his name). An OT assessment followed by a visit to a neurologist confirmed our suspicions: he was diagnosed as "somewhere on the autisitc spectrum". Since then he has contrarily come along in leaps and bounds. We have discovered his genius and stubbornness. He has begun to talk much more (a lot of it borrowed language, but used very appropriately, and often hilariously so). He throws many tantrums (as appropriate for his age) but counterbalances that with his delightful laugh and appreciation for the funny side of life. He goes to MissyGeorge and SirBiggs's old pre-school and fits in extremely well, albeit participating in things a little differently to the majority of his school-mates. We love him dearly.