Changes

Somehow my good intentions of doing a 'back to school post' faded into dust..maybe I was too busy enjoying those last few days of holidays. I have loved this summer so much and I really didn't want the long break to end. 

Although those last few days were a little...ahem..trying! Most people I spoke to said their kids were getting a bit antsy, niggling at each other and ready to return to a bit more structure, to their friends, to school. Change is such a constant part of our lives but sometimes it's the most challenging isn't it? There I was happily sending my kids back but part of me didn't want to let them go. The house was so eerily quiet when I got back from drop off..a little bit spooky really. And the reality of the kids going back to school is that I finally have time to myself and it suddenly fills up with a million other things. Lots to readjust to, lots of things to carry around in my head.

Activities, fee's, meal planning, uniform, blah blah blah! This had me dreaming, somewhat sadly, of our relaxing summer where everything was much slower, where time was all floppy..remember that?

But then I snapped out of my funk and thought of all the things I"m looking forward to this term, this year.! I'm enjoying my kids being a little bit older, they are more independent and can help out more with day to day things. I'm loving the various groups I'm involved with book club, the oral history gang, school committee's and also hanging out a bit with my lovely friends. This includes you guys who I feel I have neglected somewhat lately. Which leads me to something else I'm looking forward to..

my new blog look & online store!!

I'm pretty excited about these changes - I can't wait to show you! 

I'll be blogging more often and also updating my store regularly with a wider variety of handmade items including of course my Dandelion bunnies.

I'm working hard on my vintage linen bedding & accessories range too which has been so much fun. As soon as I have more stock sorted I'll be unveiling my new store and celebrating with a giveaway! So stay tuned.

After much consideration over the summer I have decided to give my little business a real go in 2012.  Being available for my kids is really important to me so working from our own home is pretty ideal. Having said that I am being strict with myself on 'work days' as it's so easy to get caught up in the ongoing domestics. You know what I mean I'm sure..

So yes, a few changes for me - happy ones! Have you got plans for 2012?

What's happening in your world?

See you soon lovely ones xo

summer loving

I'm loving summer. I love the smell of summer, the raspberries and cream taste of summer. The birds in the blue sky sound of summer. the slightly sunburnt, way too tired feel of summer, after a day at the beach.

I've loved having a couple of days in Melbourne with my two youngest girls and my eldest. I loved watching the girls play, together, running in the wind, holding hands, swinging, climbing high. I love the way they try to work things out, the simple joy of watching them having fun is so beautiful.

We had a crazy old, funny time at the beach. For my country girls it's such a huge adventure. One a little nervous but her sister helped her to find the courage to step in, go deeper.

I found a beat up old chair and plonked it in the sand next to an extremely tanned exotic dancer. She was amazing in her red bikini on a striped banana lounge. The girls skipped over waves, splashed, looked for shells, watching the beach police driving up and down, the groups of families, the gulls and the ships dotted on the horizon. They were amazed at the rubbish in the water and helped to drag a whole newspaper out. Eventually we had to go, we left the chair for someone else.

We got to do city things too. The Muppet movie was incredibly great! I loved it and so did they. We did a little bit of shopping and Rosie practised her escalator skills. They negotiated crowds, learning to walk so as not to bump into people, a tricky thing if you are never in a crowd.

We stared up at the roof of Melbourne Central with it's beautiful old shot tower, gracefully still standing amongst the endless shops and bustling throng.

We spent time with our beloved Char. When the girls were in bed she & I became detectives and hunted down lost family on Ancestry.com./

 So much fun, so addictive, so amazing. We found the ancestors of  dear William Henry Walker who died in a gold mine.  His grandfather, his brother, our relatives, our blood. Char found the shipping information for my parents trip to England in 1960 - their names crossed out as they jumped ship in Marseilles, hoping to hitch hike to London.

We went out for dinner, walking the hot & steamy  footpaths of Lygon Street where I had flashbacks from the 70's. There once was a pub on the corner of Lygon and Faraday and I went there often as a child, with my friend and her mum. Us kids looked for lost coins on the sticky carpet under the bar, and ate peanuts from a machine. All to the sounds of Skyhooks and The Stones and Bob Dylan on the jukebox.  It was such a different time, we did as we pleased really, as the adults drank and smoked and partied on. Hard to imagine now. What was that pub called?

I took the kids to  Ikea where we looked in all the rooms, picking our favourites and sitting on couches not wanting to ever get up.  I wonder if anyone has ever crawled into one of the beds for a nap and stayed the night. Imagine that.

We managed to sneak in a bit of op shopping too. The amazing oppie in Woodend had a half price sale, woo hoo! And a trip to Savers is always fun. We tried on dresses and skirts and found some ace treasures. 

We're home now and our summer holiday continues. I'm loving the looseness of time, the sleep ins and the freeness to do as we please. Although it was fun to be at school today for a working bee, nice to see old mates and give the grounds a tidy up.

What's happening in your world? Are you finding some simple things to make you smile? Hope so,

see you soon lovely ones xo

 Tagxedo by Sunday

summer holidays..

Hello!

Happy New Year!! Did you have a fun New Years Eve? We did, although I was sorry to miss the annual Daylesford Gala Parade this year. Our neighbour and friend, Ruby, looked so fabulous and I wanted to see her and all the other amazing people who were taking part. Oh well, there's always next year..

We had a fun time at a friends house anyway, although I was in bed before the new year began. Were you? I lay in bed and listened to the fireworks exploding over the lake, bang bang bang!

The next day was a biggie for me so I got up early and headed off with Lucy to Glenlyon. Our little school runs the BBQ and kiosk at a big, old fashioned sports day that runs on the first day of the new year.

 It's been running since 1847 and each New Years Day they put on horse races, wood chopping, mineral water drinking and gumboot throwing competitions, amongst other things. It's a great day and we have a lot of fun. I love it!

It's a real family day, lots of kids running around, watching the comps from the red truck, and many visitors from all over the state coming to enjoy a day in the country. It was a hot one too, so we did a roaring trade in icy poles and cold drinks.

So it's day four of 2012, how is the new year shaping up for you? We've had a shaky start with a bit of illness, never fun in summer. And in two days we are heading off to Robe in South Australia...I hope everyone is well for the trip.

A group of friends are setting up camp in Robe so we are looking forward to hanging out together, walking on the beach, eating, drinking, chatting, and hopefully RELAXING!

I can't wait to get to the beach, I'm craving some sand and sea and shell action. Do you get like that? I think it's the thought of a change of pace too, a different scene. When we lived in the city I loved heading up to the bush to get away from the hustle and bustle. I guess we all like a change, it clears the air, brings a new perspective, I love that.

Although I'm enjoying the holidays I haven't really settled into them yet. I haven't found my holiday feet.
Hopefully this trip will be a fun one, perhaps it's just what I need.

I'll miss our doggies who are going to the dog motel for a week, and all the ducks and other creatures. Mumma duck is back on duty, sitting on five white eggs which will hatch out in about 20 days! More baby ducks..sigh.. :)

So, one more day and we're on the road! Charlotte is coming too, the whole family together again. I'm sure we'll have some fun, some crazy moments, some tears and lots of laughs. Maybe that's what the summer holidays are all about, going with the flow, ups and downs and hanging together.

What are you up to? Are you on holidays too? 

Hope you are having some relaxing time too..see you soon lovely friends xo

Summer days

Yesterday our family headed to Melbourne for a long overdue family gathering. We met our lovely extended family at a big park in Elsternwick and I finally met my cousin's new baby, Lily. Isn't she adorable? It was so good to see all my cousins and aunt's and uncles, and of course my brother & his family who are visiting from Hobart.

Back home it seems that summer has finally arrived!

 So today I spent lots of time in the garden, while the kids played, inside & out.

Rosie could be outside all day, she has so much energy. She watered the apple tree for me and jumped in the pool ten thousand times.

Our two apple trees are covered in fruit so I am keen to get nets over at least one of them before the birds discover them. The year before last we had so many apples that I took boxes to school for Fruit Munch.

At our school the kids break for fruit every day at 10 o'clock,  I love this idea, does your school do something similar?

Being outside today was very therapeutic, I love our garden. The recent heavy rain means my roses are looking lovely and my vegies are thriving.

Yay for hanging washing outside! Tragically this is one of my favourite things to do. It's so peaceful out there by the line, just me and the blue sky. 

 Until nutcase Freddie appears and chases Daisy round the garden! Actually it's quite funny and Daisy is not at all phased by being attacked continuously by a mad duck.

Speaking of Freddie I noticed today that he and his girls have finally found the bath I set up for them several months ago. Perhaps the hot weather was the clincher. Anyway, they seem to be enjoying themselves!

Are you on holidays too? I'm enjoying just mooching around, staying in bed late in the morning with a nice hot cup of tea and then seeing what the day will bring. I've been walking every day and that is making me feel good, good, good! I've decided to walk every day, even if it's just a small one, and so far I'm doing well. I walked down to Hepburn, along the fire track today, arriving hot and sweaty at my mum's, but feeling happy & satisfied. I hope I can keep up my walking in 2011, it really clears my head and helps me sleep. Do you have any things you plan to do in the new year?  Hope all is well with you dear friends, see you soon xo

rainy days

It's been a funny old weekend. I got up super early on Saturday morning to drive up to Callawadda to harvest our garlic crop. Michelle & I arrived to find a pretty depressing sight,  a lot of the garlic had rotted and about a third hadn't formed into individual cloves yet. Not enough sun and too much rain meant that this year has been a real dud. We did salvage some garlic, and some shallots though. We ended up leaving the silver skin in the ground (you can see if above, behind the shallots) & we'll go back in a few weeks to see if it has divided. Fingers crossed.

Although it was disappointing for us we are lucky that it isn't our main occupation. I really feel for all the farmers who have had a terrible year, whose crops have failed, who have been affected by the torrential rain and lack of sun. What a tough life it is.

So all of a sudden we had finished pulling out garlic and it was only 11.30! We hung out for a while with Terry, who was crutching sheep,

checked out the new sheep dogs, 

 and William's new buggy.

Back home it's been raining all day and I'm well & truly sick of it.

I'm hanging out for some sunny days and blue skies.

Have you had a look in my shop lately? There are some lovely bunnies

looking for good homes so do have a peek.

And don't forget to enter my giveaway!!

It's not too late,

bye for now lovely friends, I hope all is well in your world,

see you soon xo