reflections on everything!

could i have set this up better if i tried? i don't think so. my biggest concern was that one of them would move away while i got the camera. making custard last night with dad:

i've been posting pretty consistently the last few days. i expect that is about to change! i am entering my last week of maternity leave. so this has been it for me - the only time in my life i will have been a fulltime, stay at home mum! including my mat leave after N was born, that has been a total of 14 months. now i enter the rest of my life! not that it is meant to sound negative. :-)
because we are entering the last week i'm at home i have let a few things slide so that we can just enjoy the moment. there is a constant train track of one sort or another across our lounge room floor and where there isn't a track there is a blanket for A to practice rolling around on the floor. she's only done it once. so this all means no vacuuming! N was blessed to receive some different Thomas the Tank Engine toys for his birthday - trains, tracks, puzzles, games... and a great mini Thomas set. it now has pride of place in his top bedside drawer. i am going to make a little marble bag as this will be our "to go" Thomas set, for holidays and visits to the homes of family and friends. a great gift!
i have posted about a blog, and a book, i enjoy by Amanda Soule Blake. for anyone interested, here is a clip of a radio interview she did recently on creating with children.
it is holidays, so there is no playgroup and no swimming which means my next week will be full of the indulgences of being at home. in preparation for my return to work i have cleared out my folifax, and uploaded some podcasts and music on my ipod, ready for my bus trips. really, so many people i know couldn't imagine having to rely on the bus, but when i am on my own, it really is my time - reading and listening to something uninterrupted. it is only when you are trying to get around with a baby and a toddler it can be frustrating, but even then, N looks forward to the bus ride - it is like an excursion for him.
i have been finally able to get some decent amount of reading done while D sits up late into the night doing his essay. i'm really proud of the way he has tackled essay writing. he has never written one before, and here is his first - a tertiary level essay. tonight we are celebrating it's completion with a bucket of KFC! and D and i can get back to our ritual of watching West Wing once the kids are asleep. i'm finally getting through People of the Book. i'm keen to get it finished as after seeing the Isabel Allende interview there is a book of hers that i haven't read i want to get stuck into, Paula.
i still have dreams of moving away. in my mind there is this life that is slow, that doesn't have so much running around, so much activity, so many people and so many expectations. and to show that what i'm talking about isn't just something in my head, see here.

i can see the house we would live in 'cause we went there in April. too bad it is a friends family home! i wish i had pictures of the inside. it was gorgeous. small and beautiful. here is the outide...

i now tell myself not to entertain those thoughts, but instead to be grateful for what i have here, and now. the funny thing is though, when i think of the lifestyle i'm seeking, these pictures from when i was little come to mind. you can't even see the house and i can't really remember it. only that it was old and i think i recall the living area was immediately to the left when you walk in. the house has been demolished. so my dream probably comes from some sentimental memory of being a child! besides, my biggest fear is that i would get want i dream for, only to find it isn't what i expected!!Anyway, on my list to do today is to write up a rough guide to the routines for both N and A to assist the wonderful family who are sharing in their care while i am at work. and then i am going to prepare another job application. i have been on th computer long enough already!