we have baby!

 a baby girl no less! daisy rain decided to join us last tuesday, slipping quietly and contentedly into the world in the wee hours of the morning.  Three days past her due-by date, she was causing her mama a bit of concern, as she continued to make sure this pregnancy was unlike any other I'd had. With days and days of false contractions and discomfort, we tried every trick in the book to entice her out of hiding...finally a trip to a local lookout over a bumpy road and a little walk in the woods at the onset of a windy rain squall did the trick.

needless to say, we're all very much smitten with her, and are all getting used to saying "she", although Jasper is sticking to "he" for now. Everyone is "he" to him.

time will tell how having a little girl around will change this little family of ours, but I think that we are in for some fun times. For now I'm just making the most of all those yummy baby snuggles and inhaling as much of that sweet baby smell as I can. Wish I could bottle that stuff.

these boys

sometimes, when I remind myself to stop and just see them for what they are, three boys at various stages of development, I realise how very wonderful they are. Because we really do have it all going on here. A thoughtful and very independant nearly twelve year old, an adventurous and sensitive nine year old and a tornado of a four year old. How can they all be so different?

 The other day was willow's birthday, he was worried that with the baby due to arrive any day that his birthday wouldn't be such a big deal. Needless to say, I kept my legs crossed all day, because although it's cute and quirky to share your birthday with someone you love (arran and I share ours), birthdays really should just be all about you. And, as it turns out, the baby wasn't planning on making an appearance that day anyway. Apparently, it wants to have it's own birthday too.

there are many emotions going on at the moment...I find it important to remind myself that I am not the only one here waiting expectantly to meet this new person. The boys are excited. Fin walks in the door every afternoon and asks me how I am, any signs yet? Willow spends most of his time on planet willow, but sometimes pops in to see how I am, and to give me a little foot rub. And then there's jasper. He's displaying all the signs of a boy who realises his days as the baby are numbered. I really have to watch him at the moment, because things are being sabotaged. The whale is drawn on the wall above his bed, and although the walls really need to be painted, I don't know if I can bring myself to lose it. Other people's belongings have been cut up or hidden as he does his best to wreak havoc on the entire household. Not to mention the fact that he won't let anyone but me do anything for him.

 But I wouldn't have it any other way. I've seen it all before, and I know it will pass. And before we know it, we will be living with at least one teenager and then we'll really be in for it.

bunny still in the oven

I thought it was high time, at 38 weeks, that we took some shots of the belly. I'm not good at organising photo shoots and it's pretty hard to pin down the mister these days as he seems to have an endless to-do list. I'm not sure who is nesting more at the moment, but he's certainly onto the "outside" stuff.
We're hanging out in the burbs for next couple of weeks as we wait for baby...it seemed to be the sensible thing to do with my tendency for quick labours. I'm well and truly into the last stage now, feeling oh-so tired and more than a little uncomfortable. This little one likes to spend the evenings and most of the night squirming away on my bladder and I am seriously lacking in sleep as a result. I find myself on the lounge watching abc kids shows most afternoons.
I think we're all just very keen to meet this little one now. I don't know how many more conversations I can take about whether it will be a boy or a girl (it's sitting differently to my others, so of course this is cause for much speculation). We'll soon find out, not long now.

am I four yet, mum?

we celebrated this little boy's birthday this week. 4...not so little anymore. And soon to be a big brother too. I can't tell you how many times over the past six months or so he's asked me when he will be four, the magic number it seems. So, it was with great anticipation on the morning after his birthday that he asked me "am I still four, mum?" (a whole day had elapsed after all). When I replied yes, he sighed a big sigh of relief and told me" it's good to be four".needless to say, we are now talking about five. What's with all this wanting to grow up, or is it just the thought of more birthday cake? I think we'll just stick with four for now. And soon-to-be nine. And nearly twelve. Oh, and then there's bubba who will no doubt be in way too much of a hurry to grow up too.

happy new year

after spending the last two weeks back on the coast for christmas and catching up with family (and washing!), it became absolutely necessary to get back to the farm, back home. The thought of spending new years eve with the drunken early morning stragglers and random fireworks going off all night, not to mention multiple doof doof parties around the neighbourhood, just didn't appeal to me. Don't get me wrong, in years gone by...well, long gone if the truth be told, I've enjoyed a good party as much as the next person. But not these days. To lie in bed and listen to the symphony of frogs and crickets is my idea of a good night (in!).
the past year has been interesting, inspiring and life-changing for us, and we are looking forward to many more good things to come in this new year that has just begun.

it's a bad time of year to leave the house

I don't like shopping at the best of times, but at this time of year, I find that it becomes really unbearable. I try to do most of my christmas shopping (and let me just say, there isn't much of it) online, and even rely on the mister to pick up groceries on his way home from work during the week while I'm out here in the sticks. But every now and then, I feel the need to get out, and the other day decided to head into town for a few things , including a sniff through the local oppies which are always beckoning. I should have known better, I knew it was risky with the christmas crowds and jasper's unpredictability in public, but filled with optimism, I went anyway.

he is by no means an unruly child, it's just that he's either "on" or "off". He was switched to "on" by a well-meaning old lady in the first op shop we visited, who handed him a bright green lollypop before I could get a word in. That's the other thing about this time of year, you can't avoid the sugar. That lollypop kept him going through three more oppies, which was good in itself, but after that there was a weird kind of quietness as the sugar did it's thing. And that was when I made my first mistake and did a '"quick" trip into target. I don't know why, I think it was the promise of 20% off lego and secret santa gifts to buy for carols on the weekend, but I actually thought we could do it. And then I made my second mistake, I saw something I wanted to try on and jasper promised to sit quietly on the little seat in the change room, and I believed him. Mid way through this exercise, he decides to exit underneath the door (why can't they make those things go all the way to the floor??). So, I'm in the change room, trying to wrangle my way out of a pair of cossies whilst calmly calling out to him, but he's not answering. And then a horrified voice comes from the change room oppposite "oh my god, he's in here". Right, so he's crawled under the door of another booth, no biggie. I open my door, and she opens hers, and through gritted teeth, says "can you just get him out of here", whilst cowering behind the door. Jasper by this stage has realised his mistake and is in his hiding place, underneath the chair, crying.

Now, I don't know about you, but if I found a small child hiding in my change room, I'd probably laugh, definitely try to make them feel better when they started to cry, and assure the mother that it was no biggie. But no, hostility reigns supreme in the land of fluoro lights and that is exactly why I will continue to do my shopping online and if I do feel the need to get out of the house, it will be by myself.

Oh, and the kicker, the lego I was after was all sold out. Merry bloody christmas, target.

water, everywhere

for the past few months, our "sometimes" creek has been a real life stream, and after the recent rain we've had, it's been the favourite after-school hangout for the boys. They spend all afternoon swimming and catching tadpoles...good old fashioned fun. To tell the truth, I'm a little envious of their childish enthusiasm, it reminds me of doing the very same things when I was a kid. Finding suitable accommodation for my tadpoles seemed to be the only real concern I had back then. I do love a good stream. Ever since I can remember, I've had a dream of one day having my own little farm, complete with stream. In my mind, it would be something like the one that scuffy sets out on his big adventure upon...it seems I've found it.
Jasper asked his dad to tell him a story the other night when he returned home from work, and he told him a story about a girl who met a boy and had three wonderful children, with one more baby in her tummy, and they lived on a farm and they were so happy because they had all they ever dreamed of in life.
I am reminded to be thankful and cherish what I have.

hello, from here

ok, ok, I know it's been ages since I wrote anything here, but there has been so much going on in our lives that I simply didn't know where to start. And really couldn't be bothered, if the truth be told. At the start of last term, we made the move to our little farm, enrolled the boys in the local school and generally decided to just give it a go. Nothing to lose, everything to gain. I had my reservations, but I've been grumbling about living in close-knit suburbia for so long that I really had to try. I knew that it was going to be hard, no washing machine, no running water in the house, very close living quarters...just a whole lot of space (outside!) and freedom, and an amazing little school that is everything I ever dreamed of for our kids. They cook, garden, craft, play music, watch chickens hatch and generally just have an awesome time. Not to mention the great friends they have made. We actually thought this would just be a short term thing, but this place has really got under our skin, and we are still here, despite the lack of facilities (they will come), and I don't think any of us ever want to go back to the burbs. In fact, I think we would have mutiny on our hands if we tried.happy kids, happy dog, happy chooks. Happy life? I'd be lying if I said it wasn't difficult, but yes, it's a happy life. And, it's about to get a whole lot happier too...well, busier, anyway, with a new little person joining us early next year. Must be all that fresh country air.

p.s. as you can see, snowy has two new friends, chooka and atilla-the-hen. we are now enjoying fresh eggs once again, although snowy has chosen to retire from the egg laying business and leave the hard work up to the young ones.

growing up

I stood by the side of the road and waved goodbye to my biggest boy yesterday morning as he set off on his year 5 camp. They are growing so fast, these boys. Fin will be 11 next month, and he's quite the man of the world, packing his own bags and heading off into the great unknown. Willow has become a lean, lanky 8 year old, and jasper is heading towards 4 a little too rapidly for this mama's liking.
so, feeling a little melancholy at this rapid passing of time, I came home and made jasper a new library bag. He loves to go to the library and it's high time he had his own bag, goodness knows I've made enough for other people. Owls, because he loves them too, grey cord on the bottom and for the handles and a little pocket on the front for that elusive library card and the all important receipt (if I don't have that I have absolutely no hope of knowing what we have at return time). Sweet. Now, apparently, willow needs one too.

down on the farm

no need to explain where we've been, I think it's fairly obvious. It's getting harder and harder to come back to suburbia. We'd rather be here.

bathing under the stars,

catching sweet morning rays,

making mud puddles,
working together,
climbing trees,

and blowing bubbles.

Life's good.

one chook down

a couple of days ago we sadly lost one of our chooks, mymble. I don't really know what happened, over the past couple of weeks she just got really weak, and her comb went flat, and I think the heat we've had this week just proved too much for her. It's never nice finding one of your little friends dead like that. "She's sleeping", jasper said. "no, darling, she died". "oh".
I don't know what was sadder, the dog barking at the chook, trying to wake her up, or the other chook, snowy, looking back over her shoulder as she left the coop, to see if her friend was coming. After I had buried her in what is now known as the pet graveyard down the back, snowy let out the loudest, most heartfelt cry I've ever heard from a chook. She crowed for about ten minutes, a fine farewell to her sweet friend. Sensitive creatures, these chooks. there is a happy ending to this story, though. Today snowy laid the first egg we've seen in months, and was very proud of herself too, I might add. It seems that mymble's sickness must have been affecting both of them, and now snowy can get on with her own life. Either that, or it's a one-off.
The question now is, do we get another chook, to keep snowy company?

double digits

boy number one turned ten the other day. 10. My goodness. Although I find it hard to believe I've been a mum for ten years, there's no doubt that he's been with us for that long, and then some. He was an old soul from the start, and always a challenge. Fin is all about the "why not?" and "when can I?", and rarely lets go of something once he's latched onto it. But, what would life be without a challenge? I love this boy, in all his dark and mysterious ways, and he never ceases to amaze me with the things that rattle around in that brain of his.

10. What fun to be ten, the biggest concern being which wheels to buy for your scooter with your birthday money. I now find myself stepping precariously over allen keys and screw drivers rather than lego when I make his bed in the morning. Wondering, how does one get grease out of a mat? Not sure I'm even going to bother with that one, I think I have better things to do.

Happy birthday biggest boy, we love you lots.

p.s. yes, I know there are cobwebs on my chandelier, they add to the old world charm.

school holidays in pictures

I'm not going to pretend the school holidays have been one big picnic, but we did have some good adventures in the few brief moments of sunshine that we were graced with (and some in the gloom as well). Rainy school holidays? That's just not funny.

whilst mamma was busy in the garden today...

someone decided to help himself to a little snack. Because, you know, milo is good for growing boys.
oh look, I can just eat it straight from the tin, I don't even need to use my hands.

um, maybe just one more mouthful?

no, maybe not.

jasper, please be careful...

when riding your scooter very fast around the house. There are obstacles.
(I've had to explain this bruise about 100 times this week. It keeps changing colour every day and each brilliant shade looks more gruesome than the last. I've seen some eggs in my time, but I think this one may just be the best one yet.)

birthdays are nice...

especially when they fall on mother's day. Ok, so it was nearly a week ago, but I feel that it's worth a mention, remembering of course that it's not only my birthday we're talking about here. Sharing your birthday with your husband is kind of cute, kind of quirky, kind of romantic and sweet, but the thing is, you need to remember that for the rest of your life you will share your birthday with someone else. Someone else who just happens to live with you, so there's no ignoring it. It will never be all about you. That's something you really want to be sure you're ok with when you get married. Lucky for me, I have a husband who believes in magic, and he does go out of his way to make me feel special, more than I deserve at times, I must admit. He spoiled me with new music and the funnest book I've seen in years. The chocolates weren't actually from him, but I found it quite pertinent to tell the world that I have a box of 48 ferrero rochers in my posession. I'm doing my best to share them. on a completely unrelated topic, a couple of items made their way into the shop today. A couple of things I found in the shed when I cleaned up recently.
Mental note: when you go to all the trouble of making an item, list it in your shop. It will be much easier for someone to buy it that way. Do not place it in a corner of your shed and pile fabric on top of it, for it is quite possible that you will forget that you ever made it, and thus it may never again see the light of day.

life goes on (obviously)

so, I'm ok. I just got a comment from someone anonymous on that last post linking to a pets' memorial site, which admittedly brought a tear to my eye, but also made me think, "oh crap, I'd better write something on this blog so people don't think I'm still a blithering mess".

The days and weeks have moved on, and so have we. And the thing is, there's still sally mally pseudo-dog to keep us company. And the chooks. Now that little combination in itself provides endless entertainment. The chooks have realised that it is possible to instill fear by running straight at sally very fast, forcing her to run for cover while they scavenge what's left in her food bowl and drink water from her bucket. She meanwhile lays in waiting, recovering her shaken wits and as soon they have their backs to her, lunges at them with the intent of removing some tail feathers, only to have them turn around at the last minute and send her running again. Scary crazy fun.

Something that I hadn't really given much thought to previously was that sally was very much dominated by scully, only natural I guess. She went off her food for several days when he died, and I was thinking she was pining for him, but then I realised that she just took that long to realise that she could actually eat it all herself. He was a bit of a stand over man when it came to dinner. Now she's enjoying a generous helping, even saving a little bit for later safe in the knowledge it will still be there (unless the chooks are around). Generally she's becoming more dog-like, stepping up to the job of loyal companion and protector. I'm thinking maybe scully had a quiet word in her ear before he went. She's found her woof, and is using it freely to warn us of intruding lorikeets and magpies, and has also taken to sleeping under the house, which does wonders for her thick white fur. Very dog-like indeed.

The thing is, I'm so glad that we got sally when we did. I was worried at first that it was the wrong thing to do. Scully was getting old, and I thought she might just be an annoyance for him in his retirement, but he actually seemed happier when she was around. And the pain of losing him was so much easier to deal with after everyone realised that she was still here and she needed us too. It helped especially with the kids, teaching them that it's ok to be sad, but life does indeed go on. Needless to say, she's revelling in all this extra attention.

I will be back soon with less doggy tales and more crafty ones.

farewell to the best dog in the world

we lost our oldest and dearest friend, scully, last friday. It's taken me this long to be able to even think about writing about it here, and even now the tears stream down my face as I sit here looking at these pictures and thinking of him. To tell the truth, I'm heartbroken.

scully came into my life in my twenty second year, around the same time that arran did. He came everywhere with us and usually managed to find some mischief of one kind or another along the way. His favourite kind of mischief was the kind that involved rolling around in whatever dead animal he could find, coming home with such a look of satisfaction on his sweet little face that I could hardly get angry with him. It was just what he did, worth the punishment of having to sleep outside rather than on the end of my bed.

Arran and I were having a long distance relationship in those days, me on the south coast, and him up here on the central coast, with about 4 hours travel between us. He'd visit on weekends, and the three of us would pile into his datsun 120Y and go on adventures, scully in the back with his head out the window all the way. He could smell a cow a mile off and would bark and yelp hysterically until we were well past them. I still don't know what he would have actually done if faced with a cow, but he seemed fairly confident from the safety of the car.

Arran would leave in the wee hours of monday morning, to head straight to work in sydney (an apprentice in those days, oh my, such a long time ago). Scully would chase him all the way out of town, and then run back home to me and sleep for the next four hours until it was time for me to go to work. Such dedication.

14 years. So many stories, so many pictures. I am so grateful to have had this dog in my life, and I miss him so much that it hurts. We all miss him, he was here to welcome all our boys into the world. He treated them with such patience and gentleness and taught them how to be kind and gentle in return.

Thankyou scully, for sharing your long life with us, it's been fun. We'll never forget you.

scenes from a fortnight

as usual, I must apologise for my extended absence. We've been busy, spending lots of time in the garden, making new friends.

enjoying yummies from jasmine greens. Gabby's grapes are the best.

wallpapering! Yes, my first attempt at wallpapering. We have this funny little "wall" which we built in our living room, which houses cd's on the other side and kind of creates a little corner for the telly, and it just needed "something" on the plain side. The other day it just came to me (I have my moments) that wallpaper would be just the thing. I bought this very nice piece from the lovley grevillea vintage (picked up a sweet piece of fabric while I was there too!). I knew nothing about wallpapering, but google's good for that. Let me just say, if this wall had been any bigger than 1m x 1m, we would not be talking about this right now. All's well that ends well, though, and I'm very happy with my new little flowery wall.

rippling. Ok, so it's still a little hot for crochet, but it is autumn, right? Loving this project.

and making lovelies for my new shop! I'm having lots of fun with these sweet little dresses, and aren't self-cover buttons just the funnest thing? If I had a little girl, this is just the sort of thing she would be wearing. (sigh).