Drained

I wrote almost continuously for five hours today.

Now, I am drained of words.

Leaving you tonight with just this image of a fern unfurling.

Something that for some reason always reminds me

of
my childhood

and many happy years

spent in the land of the long white cloud.

Journey

Too often we are so preoccupied with the destination, we forget the journey.

~Author Unknown~

These are my two boys, enjoying the journey.

Boys will be boys?

Hero likes cars and trucks and rockets and planes

just as much as any other little boy.

But he likes playing house too,

making me tea and cake

in the play kitchen,

and serving

it in a

tray.

He loves

helping me cook,

often asking what he can

do to help me in making dinner.

Standing on a stool by the counter,

Hero enjoys mixing, stirring, peeling, grating.

I know parents who will frown on boys being encouraged

to enjoy activities more often associated with girls. Do I look like I care?

Do you ever feel like...

...you are being watched?

That there are eyes all around,

observing your every move?

If I were...

Sometime ago, I saw this on Caroline's, and I thought I'd play along.

if i were a month: i’d be december, a time for family and fun,
if i were a day i’d be a saturday, carefree and relaxed,
if i were a time of day i’d be the quiet early morning hours when the sky is reddish gold,
if i were a font i’d be something freestyle,
if i were a sea animal i’d be a starfish,
if i were a direction i’d be right, oh yes, always right!
if i were a piece of furniture i’d be a comfy couch,
if i were a liquid i’d be a cold refreshing smoothie,
if i were a gemstone i’d be nothing less than a diamond,
if i were a tree i’d be a coconut palm... (the mad hair, you see?),
if i were a flower i’d be a hyacinth, always sincere,
if i were an element of weather i’d be gentle, cooling raindrops,
if i were a musical instrument i’d be a tambourine,
if i were a color i’d be the colour of dark honey,
if i were an emotion i’d be love. definitely love,
if i were a fruit i’d be an orange... completely round ;)
if i were a sound i’d be the sound of laughter,
if i were an element, i'd be essential oxygen,
if i were a place i’d be a warm sandy beach,
if i were a taste i’d be sweet, very sweet,
if i were a scent i’d be a mix of sweet spices,
if i were a body part i’d be the arms to envelop you in a warm hug,

if i were a car, i'd be a volkswagen beetle,
if i were a song i’d be i will survive by diana ross,
if i were a bird i’d be a falcon, protective and fiercely caring,
if i were a city i’d be somewhere by the sea,
if i were a door i’d be simple and sturdy,
if i were a pair of shoes i’d be a pair of wedges,
if i were a poem I would be jabberwocky, by lewis carroll.

On stage

The first evening of Em's school concert.

Skits and dances by the different classes.

Fairies and superheroes.

Aliens and robots.

This last one by Em's class,
singing and dancing to a local song.

Random list from this week

Planted some sunflower seeds. The children are already impatient to see the first shoots appear.

More school runs. Em's school concert starts tomorrow, and is held every day till Sunday.

Hero has slipped back into thumb sucking. Making more efforts to get that stopped this week. But without much success yet.

The cast is off and H is back to work. But the ankle has not yet fully healed. But will he take it easy? Not likely.

Waiting, waiting for rain. I have just had it with this sticky heat, and am so looking forward to there being rain and more rain all day long.

Are you putting in your all?

“Make the most of yourself, for that is all there is of you.”
~Ralph Waldo Emerson~

“When all's said and done, all roads lead to the same end. So it's not so much which road you take, as how you take it.”
~Charles de Lint~

“What you want to do, and what you can do, is limited only by what you can dream.”
~Mike Melville~

Pretty useless?

During my process of decluttering,

I came across things like this.

Pretty to look at.

But not much use, really.

This one is a bag

only big enough to put in two flat packets of incense,

side by side.

No real use for it once the incense is used up.

So it joins the rest,

waiting to be sent away.

Which spice?

Did you know that Eqyptian women in the past

were buried with their spices?

Which spice would you take with you

to your grave?

Must be a sweet, fragrant one I guess.

Don't want to be sneezing away in there

with cayenne or black pepper.

I use a lot of spices in my cooking.

But the one at the top is probably the least used - allspice.

I need to figure out a way to use it more, I guess.

Any ideas?

I love this - nutmeg and mace.

A two for one bargain in the spice world.

Equally good in both savoury and sweet dishes.

But this is probably one of the my most frequently used whole spices.

Love the sound of them crackling as they heat up.

Which spices do you use the most?

Happy Weekend

An afternoon of staying in

board games

cookies

and laughter

~lots of it~

What made you laugh today?

Flamboyant

These brightly coloured five petalled blossoms

are known by various names:

flamboyant, flame of the forest and peacock flower,

among others.

All quite apt for the statement it makes when in bloom.

Don't you think?

***

Decluttering in full swing today.

Feeling so much better

having put aside things to giveaway.

Wishful thinking

All this fabric

in a multitude of colours,

ribbons and ruffles

and rows of thread.

Makes me want to make something.

Get creative.

It will certainly make my sewing machine happy,

if nothing else.

Only one thing missing though.

Time.

Anyone knows where I can find some of that?

A bend in the river

Image from here

Have you ever just picked a place on the map at random and planned a holiday? No? Just me then?

Well, I didn't actually plan a holiday, I admit.

But last week, I read about how someone had picked a place at random on the map and planned their honeymoon. Having a couple of hours to kill, I closed my eyes, spun the world map on the atlas in front of me and placed my finger on the page. I opened my eyes to see where I had landed: Bend, Oregon, United States of America.

Hmm.

I have to admit (and apologies in advance to Americans reading this), I have never ever really fancied going to the US of A. And Bend. The name was just too unexciting. So I guess you could say that I was a little disappointed with myself for having landed there.

But, then I consulted my good friend Google, and ended up being pleasantly surprised. No, scratch that. I ended up being completed hooked on this charming place with breathtaking scenery. Now I want to go there. This gateway to the mountains and desert.

I want to go skiing on Mt Bachelor. I want to hike around the Three Sisters. I want to picnic by the Tumalo Falls. I want to ...

I just want to go there. So bad.

Decluttering

“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”
~Leonardo da Vinci~

How do we end up with so much clutter?
So much stuff?
Need to spend some serious time decluttering this week.
What are your plans for this week?

It's all good

He's home.

For good.

Yay!

But, with a torn ligament.

The foot in plaster

for a fortnight

means

rest for him,

a smiling me because he is home all the time

and

a new canvas for the children.

My Little Charmer

I knew he was a little show-off

so the acrobatics after the bunny races at today's sportsmeet were not a surprise.

But how much of a charmer he really is

hit me when he posed with all the girls in his class.

Safe?

Recently I was told by someone that he never feels the need to lock his car

or lock up the house.

That being broken into is not so much of a concern for him.

This surprised me,

especially since this person was from a city a dozen times bigger than mine.

I cannot sleep without locking up.

Can you?

What makes you feel safe?

Versatile

A simple stack of colourful nesting cups

provide

years of play

and learning.

Now of course,

I have just discovered them

as subjects for photography.

Talk about versatility.

Hiding

Hero and my little cousin Aakko playing hide and seek.

They are both counting. Who's going to hide?

***

My apologies to you all for being in hiding during the last few weeks.

I have been terrible with visiting all the blogs that I love

and have not been keeping this one up as regularly as before.

Too many things going on.

But hopefully

everything will be back to normal soon.

I'll be along to see you soon, my blog lovelies.

Morning Stroll

Stroll by the waterfront in the morning

watching the early rays of sun hit the steel structure;

see the surfers wait for the perfect wave;

and observe the crabs on the tetrapods meet for a gossip.

Faith

That's all it takes.

A little bit of faith.

That's all you need.

Cleaning Cobwebs... Looking Ahead

“You cannot prevent the birds of sadness from passing over your head, but you can prevent their making a nest in your hair”
~Chinese Proverb~

“The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere where they can be quiet, alone with the heavens, nature and God. Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be.”
~Anne Frank~

“The will to persevere is often the difference between failure and success”
~David Sarnoff~

“Laughter is the brush that sweeps away the cobwebs of your heart.”
~Mort Walker~

“But there is suffering in life, and there are defeats. No one can avoid them. But it's better to lose some of the battles in the struggles for your dreams than to be defeated without ever knowing what you're fighting for.”
~Paulo Coelho~

“Strength does not come from winning. Your struggles develop your strengths. When you go through hardships and decide not to surrender, that is strength."
~Arnold Schwarzenegger~