glue, paint, mess, chaos = fun

a couple of weeks ago, Audrey decided to do away with her 2 hour day time nap. much to my despair. i still put her to bed, and while she doesn't sleep she is generally happy to lie in her cot plying with her "babies" as seen above, they are: Iggle Piggle, Macka Packa, Upsy Daisy, baby giraffe and teddy.

i had told Nicholas and Audrey that we would have some different activity days while i am home with them an extra day.

Thursday was garden day. this was good in theory. i have been desperate to get to some weeding in the garden. last week i managed a bit of spontaneous weeding while the kids played, so i thought if i planned a whole day of it i would get a lot done. not in practice. i removed the tomato plants from the vegetable garden. i think we are a bit late to plant our winter garden, but i am determined to get something in. then i tried to tackle the couche grass that has infiltrated our side garden over the past year. i think David and i need to get an early start on that one morning when we can have the kids looked after for a couple of hours. it is hard work to get it out.

Today is craft day.

last year my Aunt Chris sent Nicholas a pack of cards with numerous craft ideas. Nicholas voluntarily went through the pack last night and selected a few activities for us to do. this morning we set ourselves up on the deck.

we made slime: Nicholas loved it. Audrey was too wary of putting her hands in that stuff

1 cup cornflour

1/2 cup boiling water

food colouring

mixed together.

we had glue, tissue paper and card.

we made play dough.

and for lunch we made an omlette with our own eggs, tomato's and zucchini.

Saturday will be story day, and we will go to the library for story time and to the dvd store. books and a movie. a quiet day!

speaking of books, David's mother asked me if i wanted their world book encyclopedia. no thanks, but the Childcraft books would be very welcome! and they arrived home on Wednesday night. :) i knew Nicholas would enjoy looking at the 'Green Kingdom' volume. he particularly enjoyed hearing about how leaves change their colour in Autumn, and of course all about one of his favourites: pine cones. it thrills me to be able to share this stuff with him, and helps me to recall these days, on the days where his behaviour drives me to despair!

we finished with some Yo-Yo Ma and Bobby McFerrin.

buses and gardens??

Nicholas and i went on his first school excursion together today. to the bus car wash. lots of fun (ha ha) and he and his friend had a great time, which is most important...

i have a couple of days off work, giving me an extra long weekend. there is so much i need to do, and so much i should do, but i am dedicating my days home to Nicholas and Audrey - we will have an "outdoors" day (all outside activity (and maybe a little garden work)), a "reading day" including story time, and a craft day. it has been a little while since i have made a bit of an effort, so here we go.

i have been enjoying watching this woman. the Nigella of gardening! :) and since i love winter, and jumpers, and scarves, and gloves so much, i think she can become my new style icon! her book is on my wishlist.

drum roll please...

today, i turned 38!
all year as the day was approaching i thought i would dread it. but i actually feel good about it! and i feel a little grown up. ;)
it all began yesterday when i had coffee and cake at Lanyon Homestead with some of my favourite people. my husband, my children, my mum, my dad and my sister and nephew. a little chaotic with children that just wanted to run - everywhere, but the sun was shining and the scenery was glorious. (how that woman gracefully sitting at the table next to us with children who were aged around 5 and 3 had them sitting so quietly, i fear i will never know!)

i started the day with a long breakfast prepared by David, of bircher muslei, a cup of tea and some french toast. Nicholas was excited to help prepare it for me and Audrey enjoyed helping me open my presents. breakfast with my family to begin the day and dinner with my family to end the day. the perfect birthday for me. i had a lovely day at work, with messages popping up from dear friends at regular intervals and lunch with my mum - i mean she was there with me 38 years ago, right? so she should be there with me today :) then i came home to veal Marsala for dinner. i feel loved and spoilt. nicer that the tumultuous anxiousness that has plagued me the past couple of weeks. but no mention of that today. today is just about family and about love. i am grateful.
oh, and not one, not two, but THREE Addicted to Fabric vouchers! i am going to have my quilt finished in no time. well, at least i will have all i require to finish it.

and a movie and music. very bad photographs, but still, a fuzzy way to remember this day. thankyou David, who worked hard to make today special for me...

around here, now.

on Tuesday i spent a couple of hours helping at the preschool. Nicholas was so excited. it was sweet to watch how familiar he already is with schooling. going from activity to activity. Audrey just loved being there! while Nicholas was sitting near a girl at the table i listened to them talking:

Nicholas: "my name is Nicholas"

girl: "i know. i like your little sister - she is cute."

Nicholas: "yes, she is. i love her."

of course any mum would beam! :)

David had an exam on Tuesday night. i think i was more anxious than he was! it is exhausting for all of us during assessment time. the dining room table and the loungeroom become a study for a week. i take on responsabilities at home to give David the time he needs, and try to keep the kids to some form of a routine without being disruptive. i am happy when assessment is over! i am sure David will do as well as he has been for the past two years, and that is my satisfaction...

today Nicholas and i have been busy making these biscuits. Audrey was busy licking the beaters - i even gave her more of the mixture - she is such a terrible eater that as long as she is actually eating something, she can have it!

the recipe for the biscuits are from here. i printed it out last year and feel like making something new. biscuits are my downfall though...

and for Melanie, who will be busy in the garden this weekend:

Maggie Beer's Green Tomato Chutney

1 kg green tomatoes

3 granny smith apples

3 onions

3 cloves garlic

600ml white wine vinegar

250g sultanas

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

175 g soft brown sugar

Core the green tomato's and apples, then peel the apples, Roughly chop the tomatoes, apples, onions, then finely chop the garlic.

Put half the vinegar and the remaining ingredients into a non-reactive pot and bring to a boil, Reduce to a simmer and cook gently for 40 minutes.

Add the remaining vinegar and simmer for a further 20 minutes until the chutney thickens. Check for seasoning and ladle into warm, sterilised jars. Seal, then invert the jars to create a vacuum.

women hold up half the sky

it is late (or is it early??) David has been studying around the clock, and for whatever reason i have stayed up too, doing other things. over the past couple of weeks i have listened to two talks about the same thing - women. the poorest of the poor. i have put myself in a self imposed hiatus, but these things still matter to me.
i would like to pass these links around to all my friends. the men and the women. the first is from a favourite author/ speaker - Isabel Allende, the second link is found here. a proverb says women hold up half the sky. so why are they the world's poorest and most oppressed people?

autumn style

could Autumn be any more beautiful? and could anyone style it better than Donna Hay? it is easy to see why it is my favourite season - i love the colour palette of Autumn. i look forward to the Autumn issue of Donna Hay magazine each year. the 2010 issue hasn't arrived yet, but i am enjoying flicking through older issues. all of these pictures are from issues over the past five years.

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i read something on a blog today. a quote from a book, and it rang true:

"...understand that to nurture and love others with the grace you desire means taking care of yourself and cultivating your own inner harmony. Inner harmony grows not by finding ways to get away from your child, but by giving yourself the gift of a hot bath at the end of a long day, reading a book of poetry, talking to a friend on the phone, taking a nap, crying, getting a massage, having a day off from cleaning and cooking, staying in your pajamas all day, swimming, going out to eat, or attending a conference. Do something for yourself as you give. Learn to laugh at yourself and not take yourself so seriously." ~ Peggy O'Mara, The Way Back Home.

i see the importance of doing something for yourself, taking a little care, in order not to burn out. i know that i often haft felt / feel guilty about working, and that my time at home and with my children being cut short by other commitments. more often than not deprive myself of something i enjoy (a hobby) or of a little quiet space for myself because i feel i owe every spare minute to Nicholas and Audrey. but now i see that by having something that i derive pleasure from, just because it is something that is mine, is healthy and good not only for me, but by default for my family. i think that is why i am getting so much pleasure from sewing my quilt, or from looking at pictures in magazines... because really i am a contented person and it is the small things that make me happy.

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and Daisy's adventures? yesterday Daisy helped Nicholas collect the eggs. :)

escape **updated**

ok, so i had a whole other post here, but i realised that i have other more memorable things i can write for posterity's sake here, rather than whinge about a 90 minute meeting with senior management.
last night i came home and bathed the kids. David had put the roof on the cubby house. now all it needs is walls, a sandpit underneath and a coat of paint... all in good time, as working fulltime and studying part time means that his spare time is minimal.

we had dinner together and Nicholas said we should all "talk about what we did today". when he finished his dinner he put his plate and cutlery in the sink and his corn cob in the bin. when did that start happening?! it was lovely, just all being together. once the kids were both asleep in bed i drew the design on the last panel of my quilt. tonight i will sew.
that is the stuff of life. last week when we all went to a friends house for dinner, i got home from work and quickly got ready. when David came home with the kids, Nicholas ran to me and then stopped and said "mama! you look beautiful!" given that i had just thrown together a mix match of what was in my closet i felt pretty flattered! then on Sunday morning we were leaving for church and he said "mama, you smell wonderfully!". so i'm feeling spoilt with compliments from my boy.
dad took Nicholas and Hayden to the show last Saturday. Nicholas loved the fire engine. he loved putting the balls in the clowns mouth (he always enjoys that one) but he said his favourite was the animals - "the cow with the thing hanging down you get milk from". and was thrilled he actually got to pat a "real" sheep. he had a wonderful time, and i thought dad was very brave going out on his own with kids in tow - for four hours! last week David and i went to acolleagues' house for dinner - a lovely night of yummy food and good conversation. it was funny because while we were sitting all over the house, conversation turned to books (it would be difficult not to as their entire house is filled with the wonderful treasures!) a woman currently working with us, an international who is reputable in her field, mentioned the 'Little House on the Prairie' series. i said i had been just reading them, and then another colleague said she loves reading 'Little House in the Big Woods'. it was funny seeing the conversation in this crowd turn to these books. (only amongst three of us, but still...) then today David asked if he could take one of the books to his tutorial, as he needed some non-fiction written for children. they really are great stories. have i said much about Audrey lately? Audrey has had fun playing tea parties with her dolls, and today Nicholas brought home his class "pet" to look after until next week. a monkey, that Audrey is thrilled to have here! we have to keep a diary for the monkey (Daisy).today Daisy met some of Nicholas' favourite toys. he made her a special bed to sleep in.

so, it is pretty easy for me to leave work dramas at the office and just come home to my family...