It's The Small Things.

Right now, I am sitting in a friend's house, watching her two beautiful boys for her while she and her partner are out for the night. The boys are both sleeping, I'm curled up on the couch with an iced coffee, a block of chocolate and Season One of Gray's Anatomy. The Cats just won the football, and tomorrow is Sunday.

It's the small things that make me happy, and today has been full of small things....

Chatting to a friend I haven't spoken to in a while....

Taking the kids to watch some vintage racing cars race up Mt Ommaney...

Miya saying, as we watched the cars, "I LOVE this! This is my FAVOURITE day!"....

Nath and the girls going for a picnic in the park, giving me valuable time by myself.....

Having a wonderful four hour nap this afternoon while my girls first slept, then played happily....

Ordering our Autumn seed collection ready for planting next weekend....

Both Eden and Miya saying "I love you", unprompted, at different points of the day....

Looking at the housework and thinking, "It will wait."....

Counting four little green tomatoes growing on our tree....

Watching the girls pick herbs and salad greens from our garden to go in the scrambled eggs from our chickens....

What have your 'small things' been? I'd love to hear them, being the voyeur that I am....

May You Keep Your Feet On The Ground And Your Head In The Clouds

May You Keep Your Feet On The Ground And Your Head In The Clouds

 

It may seem strange to begin my post with a benediction, but this is where I have arrived after a week of pondering direction, choices and our wishes for the future. For the last few months (the entire life of this blog, in fact) I have felt weightless in life. 

Unsure of the next step, waiting, wondering where the wind will next blow.

Like Mrs Robinson hiding her secrets in the pantry, I have worked hard to seem 'settled'. You know the old saying 'fake it 'til you make it'? We have tried to buy a house here... Miya is enrolled in school... I am in committees, friendship groups, involved in weekly activities... we made plans for the future. After years of moving around, shifting house, town, even state every couple of years, I felt I was ready to give being settled a go. It is, after all, what married people who have children do.

Then we missed out on the house. And I quit my job. And we decided to move to Broome.

And the old anxieties started to whisper in my ear... are you sure this is the responsible thing? People will think you are unreliable. Shouldn't you be providing a settled childhood for your children?

 

I quietened them with a dose of common sense, and by remaining focused solely on the needs of our family. I anchored myself to this plan, this direction, and felt buffered from the winds.

Until this week.

This week, we got options. That may seem like a great thing (how many people in how many countries would not even dream of the options we are blessed with?) but really, all it served to do is re-energise those little whispers in my head.... see? You don't have to do this.... you could forget the whole thing.....the kids are happy here..... and left me reeling. Confused. Unsure, again.

The worse thing is, not even our options are set in stone. Things are open, nothing is certain... there is so much waiting to be done... continuing on with life, knowing things are about to change, but not knowing how, or when.

Many hours have been spent reflecting, discussing, considering the options. I have realised, through all of this, that in the same way many people are terrified of becoming married, I am scared of settling down. I am scared of committing to one place. There are so many wonderful places on this Earth, even just in this great state... and right now, I am torn between just two of them.

It leaves me questioning the premise of home. Our eldest daughter was named Miya, because that word means 'Home' in the Indigenous language of the Yindjibarndi people of the Pilbara area of Western Australia, where we lived when we decided to try for a baby. By the time we welcomed her into our lives, we had been travelling, and were now in the process of 'putting down roots' and setting up home in the hustle and bustle of Melbourne.

It was a hard process. We were broke. We had large gaps in our resumes from the time we had spent on the road. Just feeding ourselves was damn hard work. We felt countryless - like strangers in a land we didn't understand.

The along came our baby.

We understood 'home' for the first time. Home was what we were making for her. Home was us, the three (and later, four) of us, wherever we were. Home was fiercely protecting the sanctity of our family... against work commitments, against the breakdown in communication that often sneaks in without warning... against things that vy for our time and attention and keep us turning away from our most loved ones.

We are relearning this now. We relearn this everyday.. and will continue to do so, I suspect, until our days run out.

I am drawn to the analogy of a tree. The idea of being grounded, yet reaching skyward to our dreams and hopes. Knowing what is good, and right, and healthy... meeting the needs of our family, but not being afraid to think big, to look at the impossible, and wonder.

A tree. A symbol of strength, of tranquility. I picture this, and I know that I can make home. I know that I can be grounded, provide, enjoy my family, wherever we are. I know that, ultimately, it doesn't matter which path we take - what matters is that we continually turn inwards, into our souls, into each other. That we place the needs of our family above all other considerations.

We can do that anywhere. We know this, because it is what we have done in the past.

It's nice, sitting in the shade of our family.

Food In The Belly, Food For The Soul

I write about food a lot. Food is something I devote much of my time to, as well as a significant part of our income. Food excites me, challenges me and inspires me (and sometimes defeats me). Much of our weekends are taken up with the growth, preparation, cooking and celebration of food (and by that I mean eating).

Every society has a food culture of some sort. Countries are known for their cuisine; the particular ingredients and cooking methods they employ, the rhythms and routines around meal preparation, the colour and bustle of marketplaces around the world. Early trade was centred around foods, and what was commonplace for some cultures was exotic and sought after to others. Nomadic communities based their movement around the availability of particular seasonal foods.

I believe that, by and large, Western society has lost its food culture. And we miss it, by god, do we miss it. We spend millions annually on the business of food; fine dining restaurants, specialty food stores, cooking schools, food festivals. I believe that, as we have evolved, this disconnection from food and its production that we have created has left our society feeling somewhat... hollow. We make up for it by spending more millions traveling to other cultures to experience their food culture... and when we try to recreate it with our Western tastes, we adulterate and compromise the essence of the food. Food culture is, and should be, entrenched in the soils it was raised up from.

Anyway, I was determined to write a lighter post than the last two, so I wanted to share with you some of ways we try to recreate a connection with the earth and its edible gifts in our space. These are photos from this weekend, a lovely, productive two days of pottering around the house and garden, feeding our bellies and feeding our souls.

Breakfast: fruit and honey damper with the last of my apricot sauce

Our harvest on Saturday

More bottled tomatoes - a pantry staple

Our little garden gnome, Eden

The bed we planted this weekend - tomatoes and rhubarb

Orange and date chutney simmering away - a sweet, spicy smell

Finished product - three more jars for the pantry

The beginnings of beer bottling

A clean, mucked out chook pen - and our reward!

Another Blessed Weekend.

It's Friday. A sigh of relief. Another blessed weekend, relaxing into our family, slowing down, finishing up and preparing for another week.

Weekends are for projects, for the tasks that require time, and patience. The tasks that still our minds, slow our bodies, let us ponder life, let us enjoy the rituals of providing. 

 My mending basket

The tasks that see us sweeping hair out of our faces, shifting weight from foot to foot, while we absent-mindedly stir a pot on the stove.

Nice, ripe tomatoes for paste

The tasks that see us brushing flies away from our eyes, dirtying our knees and the palms of our hands, as we unconsciously pull weeds, examine soil and feed our garden, with water and attention.

Weekends are for children, for family, for engaging our souls. For balancing the burdens of responsibility with the need for let-loose, energetic fun, for self expression, for reconnection.

My two frocked up princesses

Weekends let us choose what we bring to the home, and what we shut out. What we leave behind, hidden in busy weekly timetables, on messy work desks. When we find time to feed our souls and our minds.

My current reading list

 Weekends are when we re-establish what is truly important to us. We do this every weekend, to keep us in check, to give ourselves something to anchor to during the busy-ness of the week ahead, to keep us in mind of why we live the way we do.

A Woman's Work Is Never Done.

I don't, for one second, wish to imply that a man's work is ever done, or that women work harder. I have the utmost respect for the role of men in society, employment and family today and the tension they strike between these areas of their lives.

I have, however, been reflecting on the cyclical nature of housekeeping. I apologise for the gender assumptions I make here, but in our house, since I left paid employment, the logistical running of the house falls to me, and Nath continues in paid employment and upkeeps the gardens. It works, for now.
At least daily, I find myself muttering (or wailing, depending on the day) some variation of the phrase "all I ever do is clean." So much so, that Miya, one housecleaning day, turned it into a song as she helped me in my daily tasks. Since then I have attempted to instill in her a sense of value in the little tasks she does around the house, as well as the tasks she sees me complete.

For a long time, I have seen housework as a task that needs completing. I can't relax in my home unless I have ticked off the cleaning and housekeeping items on the list in my head for that day. Of course, once the list is complete, no sooner do I sit down and put my feet up than there is something more to clean. That is the nature of running a house, particularly one so lived in by small children.

Yesterday I had a headache. It was severe enough for me to put Playschool on for the girls, ring Nath and ask him to come home early and close my eyes to the world. Before doing so, I surveyed my house and felt the familiar anxiety that arises from having so much to do, but knew that I would be silly to push myself to do it. My body needed rest, and was telling me in no uncertain terms to give in to it. When I woke up this morning, the work was still there, more or less. Nath and the girls had tidied some things, but in place of the tasks completed were more chores vying for my attention.

But, imagine if we cleaned the house and it stayed clean? Imagine if we washed the clothes and there was no need to ever wash them again? Or if we cooked a meal that sustained our families for eternity? Would there be any value in that? Through our roles as women, we teach our daughters to nurture. We teach our sons to appreciate. We remind our husbands to respect. I have been trying so hard to teach Miya the value of a woman's work, and yet have forgotten to remind myself that what I do is important... not only for what it gives others, but for what it gives me.

I want to embrace the rhythm of housekeeping, the way it cycles around, daily, weekly, annually. The way it keeps my hands busy, my mind active, my children clean and clothed and fed. The joy of a task well completed, the challenge of a task not yet begun. I can't promise that the next time my children run sand across my freshly swept floor I won't raise my eyes to the ceiling and sing out, "Why do I bother?!" but I will endeavour to learn to relax amidst the piles of washing, the sink of dishes and the scattered toys, knowing that it will still be there tomorrow, and tomorrow is not far away.

An 'Eco' Holiday, A Food Journey and Change In The Air.

The time between before Christmas and now has flown by so quickly. I apologise for my absence from the 'blogosphere' but have truly enjoyed the family time we have enjoyed together.

Nath is back at work now - yesterday was his first day after a month off. It was slightly strange to see him off in the morning, but the girls and I enjoyed a pleasant day pottering around the house, running some errands and re-establishing our 'weekday rhythm' that I have secretly missed!

Before Nath went back to work, we enjoyed five days away without the children. This month marks ten years of marriage for us, and since the wee ones have been in our lives, opportunities for 'us-time' have been few and far between. We decided to head to Margaret River (South-West of WA) for a break, and stayed at Yelverton Brook Eco Chalets.

I am becoming uncomfortable with the word 'eco' when used to describe a product or a service, as I feel it is becoming a 'brand name' of its own, and often further investigation reveals that the product or service in question is not as 'eco' as one might expect it to be. By far the best example of an 'eco-resort' we have stayed in (or even come across) is this one on the Ningaloo Reef coastline in WA, which has such a minimal impact on its surrounding environment that if it was to pack up and leave, you would not even be aware that it had been there. Beside this, our preferred style of environmentally aware holidaying is bush camping, where we stick to existing tracks and live by the the motto "Take only photos, leave only footprints."

However, when all is said and done, Yelverton Brook does a fine job in providing a less impactful holiday stay to people who are used to holidaying with all the trappings. The chalets are furnished with recycled and cast-off timber, they do not use any chemicals in cleaning and bins for recycling and organic waste are provided. They run a breeding program for endangered mammals (Woylies) and control pests naturally. We thoroughly enjoyed our stay there (particularly the six man private spa under the stars!)

The wildlife provided much fun, as they are quite tame (many were hand raised by the owners of the property as part of the breeding program) and they came to the chalet door nightly for some organic feed provided by Yelverton Brook. I quizzed the owner, Joy, on the animals and came to recognise each kangaroo by name and learnt how they were related to one another. One cheeky kangaroo even hopped right into our chalet one night and rummaged through the scraps bin looking for treats!

Each night as we hopped in the spa, the possums and woylies would venture in for their share of the food, fighting amongst themselves. It was such a treat to see nature close up, and I miss that part of living in the North - the opportunity to be involved with the 'rawness' of nature, and to catch a glimpse of how things are in the wild, without human intervention. I am usually not keen on hand feeding wild animals, but these ones are part of a controlled environment with the ultimate goal of re-establishing the natural order of the local environment. When numbers get too high on the property (usually with kangaroos) some of the less tame ones are released into the wild by the owners and monitored to ensure their successful transition.

Over the New Year, I read "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" by Barbara Kingsolver - a book about Kingsolver's family, who embarked on twelve months of eating only homegrown or locally produced foods. It was a brilliant commentary, and provided much insight into the ethics of our food consumption. With this fresh in my mind, I was keen to enjoy our holiday by delving into the many local foods that the Margaret River Wine Region has to offer. Our 'buying ban' is in full swing (and is going well) which afforded me the freedom to spend some money on sampling locally produced treats. We had some great fun scouring for dairy, olive oils, wines, beers, spirits, breads etc and I probably came away ten kilos heavier!

 

Now that we are back into the swing of things, we are looking forward to seeing what 2011 brings to our lives. We have been in a time of transition over the past few months, playing the waiting game in terms of buying a house, me leaving employment to be at home with the girls and seeing what might eventuate with Nath's job. Some of these questions have now been resolved, and this has allowed us to step back and look at what we want for our family and how we might go about achieving some of our goals.

Since leaving the North of WA nearly five years ago, we have missed the laidback approach to life that is so present there, the landscape and the lifestyle that isn't found anywhere else. We have decided to work towards moving back to Broome this year, for a last 'adventure' before we truly grow up and settle down. We love the town we live in currently, and plan to return here, but while our children are young we would like them to experience the 'wildness' of the North and the opportunities that Broome provides. Our lifestyle goals are very congruent with living in Broome - endless fishing trips will supplement our home grown produce and Broome has a fantastic market also.

We have also decided to have another baby. I am looking forward to hopefully introducing another little wee one into our family late this year or early next year. Our children bring us much joy and we feel we have done a pretty good job raising the first two thus far!

Finally, before I sign off from this epic post, I want to acknowledge the suffering occurring in Queensland at the moment. I can't begin to imagine what those people are going through. Many people across the country have felt helpless this week, wondering what they could do, if anything, to help. The Queensland government, as well as many welfare organisations involved, are reiterating that monetary donations are far more helpful to the people and communities affected than donated goods, for a variety of sound reasons. The Oz Material Girls have organised a huge auction of donated, handmade gifts. All proceeds will go to the flood effort. Some wonderful work-at-home-mothers have made and donated some truly beautiful creations to this cause, so please, if you are Facebook, head over, like the page, and check out the flood appeal auction albums. You can find it here. This link will only work if you are already a member of Facebook.

A Day In Photos.

Nathan is on holidays. He has a month off work, and we have been looking forward to this break for so long. Aside from a short camping trip over New Year, we do not intend going away. We plan instead to spend some long, slow, quiet days as a family in and around our home, finishing projects, starting new ones, tending the garden, playing together, reading, cooking and relaxing.

Although this 'holiday' has been much anticipated on my part, I must admit I have struggled to slow my rhythm down and just enjoy being. I'm not used to having less time pressure and not having our weeks revolve, even grudgingly, around work days.

Today we did nothing. And it was glorious.

 

 
While I slept this morning, Nath took the girls on a nature hunt and they made these beautiful leaf/feather/stick collages. Miya particularly was so engaged by this.

I went on a op shop treasure hunt this afternoon and found these beautiful, large, festive fabrics for $1 each (each piece is about 4 metres in length) that I plan to cut and hem to use as an alternative to wrapping paper. We do have some gifts wrapped in recycled paper under the tree but I would love to replace the need for further wrapping paper, that will undoubtedly be torn off in a frenzy of gift giving and end up in our recycling bins, with reusable, material wrapping.

I also found some fantastic patterns for dresses, shirts and skirts in vintage style, which is making a return to fashion, for 50 cents apiece, as well as bags of unused wool which I picked up for my mother in law, who lives overseas and finds it difficult to find wool to sustain her knitting hobby.

But by far the best find of the day on my op shopping adventure this afternoon would have to be.....

..... an old style Soda Stream complete with the original glass bottles. This will come in very handy as I struggle through giving up my addiction to Coke Zero. The best bit, though, was the price tag....

Armed with my goodies, I came home to tuck a last few items into a Christmas Hamper to be sent overseas to Nathan's parents. Nathan's mum has a great appreciation for treasure hunting in opshops, living frugally and reducing waste, so I know she will be thrilled with their Christmas gifts this year, which, aside from a couple of iconic Australian food items, are entirely handmade or thrifted. Including the box they are being sent in.

Dinner was Nathan's creation tonight - homemade chicken burgers on damper rolls. There is something so satisfying about eating meals that have been made entirely from scratch - that is, entirely from natural, rather than processed, ingredients. We are not yet at the point where we are producing 100% of our own produce, and won't be until we either own our own home or are settled long term into a rental property, but we grow or barter or receive from the gardens of friends and family roughly half of our fruit and veg, and make almost everything from ingredients in their most natural or unprocessed form.

Slow days at home - what a blessing!

Under The Christmas Tree

I went to a Learning Ladder party a couple of weeks back at a friend's house. Learning Ladder is a 'home demo' business that sells children's books and educational games. On the table there I saw something I have been thinking about buying for the girls for some time - a tub of cotton reels and string for threading them onto. As a teacher, I know that threading is fantastic for developing fine motor skills and those early pre-writing skills. However, I could not justify spending the $20 this tub of plastic reels cost.

It occurred to me that I might be able to make my own beads (See? The whole not-buying-anything-new thing is already starting to kick in!) Nath and I experimented with cooking some beads shaped out of pink playdough that my mum had made with the girls, but only a few turned out usable. I then remembered that I had a cupboard full of old jewellery that I no longer wear (having little babies with grabbing hands cured me of that obsession!) So I spent the girls' nap time today cutting up my motley collection of necklaces and bracelets and saving the beads for Miya.

I found an old basket that would be great to hold them in, but the gaps in the wicker were too big for some of the beads. At the local markets the other day, I picked up a bag of material scraps for $2, and in it was a lovely pink scrap just big enough for me to make a lining for the basket. Onto the sewing machine I hopped, and half an hour later I had a lovely ribbon-edged lining for Miya's bead basket. I'm pretty proud of myself!

She will love this little homemade/upcycled gift, and hopefully, with some beading wire and string from my old short lived beading hobby, it will provide her with hours of entertainment.

Slow Down, You Move Too Fast....

... you've got to make the morning last!
Kicking back the cobblestones,
Looking for fun and feeling groovy!

(49th Bridge Street Song, Simon and Garfunkel)

It's been a crazy week. I finished work on Friday, and we spent the weekend doing what we do best... gathering bits and pieces for various projects from various places. We are getting used to hitching the trailer up and setting off on trips around the countryside to pick things up that we have sourced from Freecycle, friends and family.

This weekend, my mum needed some things removing from her yard, so we travelled down and collected some star pickets, an old pond shell (the ducks will love this.... they are getting too big for the baby bath we currently use as a pool for them) and a raised timber garden bed complete with stakes. We will head back down next weekend to pick up an aviary that we plan to use as a larger chook shed, freeing up the moveable one to use on the fallow garden beds.

We also picked up my old bunk bed that my parents bought me when I was probably six or seven. This has replaced Miya's single bed and Eden's cot, now that Eden is big enough to sleep in a bed. The girls stayed down at my parent's place for a couple of nights, and I can't wait for them to come home and see their bedroom.

Also on our 'collecting foray' we stopped at my grandparents' house to borrow some tools to help us with our latest project. We were very lucky to find an old cubby house advertised for sale locally, and we plan on 'renovating' it ready for Christmas, with the help of some paint sample tins generously donated to use by friends. Grandad loaded us up with timber from his shed, some power tools and, as a bonus, a Fowlers Vacola electric preserving kit and about 50 Vacola bottles. They will come in handy around here!

I've also been preparing jars of layered hot chocolate mix for a local Christmas "Cooking Co-op" that I am involved with this year. Seven friends and I have each chosen one Christmas-y food item to cook or make in bulk, that will be shared among us for gifts at Christmas. The premise is that it is cheaper, easier and less wasteful to prepare a larger amount of just one food than it is to buy ingredients for smaller batches of many items. I got the idea for layered hot chocolate at Getting By On A Dime and am very happy with the results. I can't wait to see everyone else's goodies!

With all this running around, I am once again reminded of how I have the tendency to 'busy' myself, and forget to slow down and enjoy a steadier pace to life. This blog, and my values, are about a healthier me (and family), as well as a healthier Earth. Since finishing work on Friday, I feel as if I have had to begin all the things I have been postponing until I am at home full time, all at once. I want to cook, sew, rearrange, sort, clean and I want to do it all today! I have to remember that I stopped paid work to give myself time to do all of these things, at a steady, sustainable pace, and that my days now will be about finding a new rhythm with the girls that is about things happening naturally, involving all of us. Over coffee today, a good friend said something in the context of a conversation about the 'more, more, more' mentality of many in our society that resonated with me: "It's like we have to go backwards to make progress". This is what I'm after... a relearning of traditional ways of keeping house, feeding the family and finding fulfillment.

I went to the gym today. It was the first time in months, and a lovely re-affirmation that my non-employment means that I can and will prioritise myself and my family above all other things.

I am looking forward to a slower, simpler life.

Oh Christmas Tree!

Today was Christmas Tree Decorating Day in our house, a day late, but I didn't pick our Christmas tree up from my friend who had been borrowing it until last night. This morning, the girls woke up to the undecorated tree up in the loungeroom, and their new advent bunting (flags) strung. The first two pockets had notes in them (for December 1st and 2nd) and the girls were thrilled to find out what it was all about.

So we decorated the tree together before Nath went to work this morning, and, as it is Miya and Eden's last day at day care tomorrow, the present we will make today will be for their wonderful day carer. Miya wants to make 'lollipops' but the closest I can get to that is toffee, so we will see.

I was glad to string up the bunting last night. I feel it is important to note here that I am not a 'sewer' so these flags are not something I just 'whipped up', but I guess that adds to a sense of achievement. At best, they could be described as 'rustic'. Observant people will notice that there are only 12 or 13 flags here... this gives me just shy of two weeks to finish the second string of bunting! It's the thought that counts at this time of the year!

Time For Me

I am passionate about feeding my family nutritious, whole, natural foods.... and yet I struggle with my own weight, and often make poor food choices.
I am intentional about planning time where the girls are outdoors, being active and engaging with nature.... and yet I rarely prioritise my own exercise.
I engage the children in creative, soul-feeding activities, such as reading, singing, dancing, drawing and making... and yet I push my own creative needs to the bottom of the list.
I make sure that Miya and Eden interact and socialise with children their own age... and yet it feels so difficult to take 'time off' to be with my own friends.
I diligently protect my children's rest time, making sure they have enough sleep to fuel their bodies for their active days... and yet I seldom feel justified in pausing in my own tasks.
I actively seek opportunities for Miya and Eden to experience learning, and make the most of the incidental chances for learning to occur naturally... and yet I feel guilt over the time I spend reading, researching and pondering.
To be a mother is to be so many things.... the most important of which is to be one's self.
I pledge to take the time to be selfish, to be reflective, to feed my soul, to nourish my body, to grow my mind, to be me.

Peace For Yuletide

I was researching today the origins of the word 'Yuletide'. Tide was easy... this means season, or time. Time for what, though?
The word 'yule' has contested origins. Most sources merely state that the meaning of 'yuletide' is 'the Christmas season' or 'the period extending from Dec 24 to Jan 6'. It seems that the 'christianisation' (and commercialisation) of this festival has resulted in a loss of meaning, not just of the event itself, but even the literary roots of its name. In fact, the Oxford dictionary reportedly will only accept the meaning of yuletide that relates specifically to Christmas, despite the fact that the winter festival that Yuletide originates from predates Christ by a few centuries.

So what could I find out? Traditionally, yuletide marks the festival of the winter solstice, when the sun reaches its southernmost point. Some believe that the word yule has its origins in the Nordic jol (wheel), which may be derived from ancient Indo-European word meaning 'to go around', the assumption being that yuletide refers to the turning of a season, or the time at which the year is at its low point, ready to come round again.

Whatever it truly means, my research today has served to highlight that our contemporary society has lost the ability its predecessors had to mark with celebration the passing of time, to join in meaningful festivities that bring together communities in rejoicing in the most mundane of daily and yearly tasks, to find value in the ebb and flow of communal life.

On a personal level, I am entering this festive season with these things on my mind, having made some significant decisions over the past couple of weeks. Last Friday, I resigned from my employment, and will finish up there next Friday. I have been working three days a week for the past (almost) 18 months, while the girls have attended day care locally, at the town day care centre initially, and more recently with a fantastic home family day carer. I have decided to return to being a full time, stay at home mother, wife, home maker and woman. Our family is looking forward to this change, and I am so excited about settling into a precious rhythm with the girls, and being able to spend more time learning, exploring and creating with them.

It feels like the end of an era for me, one that was rewarding in a lot of ways, but one that also had its challenges and limitations. It truly does feel as if our family life is coming into a more settled, peaceful period, kind of like the wheel at its low point, ready to come round again. I very much look forward to seeing what the next turn of the wheel will bring.

Slow Sundays

Eden sleeping to the mellow sounds of Angus and Julia Stone

After a crazy couple of days, it's nice to slow down and enjoy a lazy family, house-y day. It's a funny old day today, weather wise, with alternating rainy, stormy patches, and bursts of golden sunshine in between. The thing with lazy days, is I usually end up achieving much more than on those rushing-around, busy, un-relaxed days.

Today I have had my two little helpers underfoot on hand, lending their assistance wherever humanly possible. It can be so tricky to harness this enthusiastic energy and desire to contribute with everyone coming out the other end unharmed and un-yelled-at. Miya is at a great age now to be set to a task, and it be an enjoyable experience for her. So far today, she has sorted the clean washing into family members' piles, shredded the silverbeet pilfered from her great-grandad's garden into a saucepan for cooking and freezing, and 'helped' me with my list making.
On my list for the day is nappy washing, tomato sauce making (picked up a box of WA tomatoes for $8 yesterday at the Sawyers Valley Fruit and Veg market), loquat jam making (fresh loquats!! Such a wonderful childhood memory...), sewing (continuing the Christmas bunting for the girls I started at my mothers' group sewing night the other night) and descaling the $10 old stove top teapot I picked up at a second hand shop yesterday in Guildford.

 On yesterday's treasure hunt with my good friend Bec, I also managed to grab an entire pane of glass for a miserly $2, to be used for the solar oven, and Bec picked up a glorious wooden dollhouse with removable front for $20. These forays into secondhand and opshops are likely to become a regular event, as I have started seeing 'junk' in an entirely different light! I used to hate the clutter and non-uniformality of opshops, now I see treasures hidden in all of the dark and poky corners of these shops, and begin to imagine uses for objects I could not even begin to name!

Shopping Day

Market Day!

My favourite day of the fortnight these days... I love coming home and filling the fridge with fresh, local produce, and I am lucky to live near a fruit and veg shop that has a great range of organic, WA fruit, veg and dairy.

Material Girl

I dropped in at an op shop today to look for some material... my mothers' group is having a sewing evening (I know, how CWA!) this week to make 'softies' for our little ones. I don't have my own stash, and didn't want to buy new material, and was lucky enough to find a terrific range today at a fraction of the cost. I'm looking forward to dusting my sewing machine off and learning some new skills.

Some creative play...

Miya and Eden were so proud to show me the beautiful peg 'flower' they worked together on. They remind me in so many ways what is important in life, where I should be looking for joy and beauty, and what my greater purpose is. The learning we can do as a family before Miya goes off to three-year-old kindy next year will hold her in good stead for the rest of her life. I need to stay focused on fostering these precious souls' sense of wonder, and providing them with some treasured memories of their early years.

"Reflections From A Loving Mama"... borrowed from EcoMilf

EcoMilf wrote this beautiful reflection on motherhood the other day, I was so moved by it, I asked her if I could share it on here.

Written Thursday, November 11th, 2010:

It’s 7:46pm. Brad is in New Zealand for the night. The wee ones are fast asleep in their beds up the creaky stairs, surrounded by silky comforters and fluffy bears. North’s cheeks are probably flushed, his hair twirled into a whirlwind, his thumb has probably gently fallen out of his mouth by now. Indigo’s shallow and silent breaths are filling the basket beside our bed. She is double-wrapped to ensure her houdini hands don’t escape and flail around, waking her from her peaceful slumber.

I made these two gorgeous and innocent creatures. From conception to birth I helped them grow.

I sustain these beautiful, compassionate and pure beings. I provide. I love. I kiss. I comfort. I feed their little mouths, their little minds, their little souls.

I protect them as best I can. From falls down stairs, from bees, from hot ovens, from overstimulation, from UV rays, from growing up too fast, from everything that is wrong and sad in this world. When they hurt, I hurt. I feel for them and with them.

Sometimes I am so overwhelmed by the responsibility of being a parent. By these two spirits who came to me in perfection and who I will influence as positively as I can, but who I will, and life will tarnish.

Tonight as I sit back, take a breath and be thankful, I remind myself that nothing lasts forever. They will some day, too soon, grow up and live without me. But in this moment, I love them totally and utterly. They complete me, and I complete them.

What a wonderful stop in this blessed journey called life.

Weekend Life

Some random pics from weekends in our part of the world.

Some of our MCNs drying on the line.. so much prettier than disposables!

Eden playing with the 'new' toy from our local Toy Library... a new Saturday morning ritual.

Our latest harvest

Miya, who won't eat carrots served up hot on a dinner plate, loves them straight out of the ground.

Our 'lolly bags' from a birthday party we went to today. I thought this was a FANTASTIC idea!