My first ever "Friday Phone Dump"

So, I have finally worked out how to do it....  and yes, some of these photos are very old!  Have restrained myself and only included the favourites!

How can a dandelion ever be dismissed as a weed?

The most beautiful crown ever, pity it fell off!

Nicasso's most recent masterpiece, 'tis very Hundertwasser.

Out of several hundred photos I only posted a few!  Well, admittedly a lot of them were more along the lines of Emma's wish list items and not so much photos of the kids! Maybe I should do a post on that next! Have a lovely weekend everyone! xx

The kitchen

Husband has been requesting that I do a blog post about the kitchen.  Intrigued?  I was.  Apparently friends of his read the blog and wanted to see some photos of it.  Who are you anonymous readers that are friends? Identify yourselves!  The main reason I haven't posted photos of the kitchen already is that it is pretty much constantly in use.  Yes, the heart of the home it is.   So here are some photos of the kitchen that aren't perfectly styled because... well, you know how it is.  I have to actually use this room! 

The shelves in the island store the most frequently used cookbooks and bits of my enamelware collection.

Looking back from the dining table into the kitchen and the pantry beyond.

The island bench.  I  need to find some stools to go here and am leaning towards getting some basic bentwood ones but haven't found the perfect ones yet.  Also haven't hung any pendant lights as I can't decide what to do... I swing between hanging cane, industrial enamel style and various different vintage pendants....  what to do, what to do...

Love the porcelain sink and the mixer. It is one of my favourite parts of the kitchen.  Plus the view out these windows is stunning.

Looking into the pantry.

Appliance shelf in the pantry.  Little one has been into the muffins and left the tin sitting on the kitchen stool!  Busted!

Open shelves on the other side of the pantry.

Looking back into the dining room from the pantry.

Kitchen island from inside the kitchen.  Love the drawers underneath the stovetop.  Last kitchen we did we installed a big freestanding Ilve.  This one we did the separate stove/oven.  So pleased we made this decision in the end.  As it means that you can cook and still be involved in whatever is going on in the room and you don't have to bend down to get things out of the oven!  Both R and I love cooking and entertaining and this way you can be chef and still be part of the party, not stuck facing a wall!

Side view from kitchen to study nook. 

Awww, my assistant hard at work!  Big thanks to everyone for all the links and suggestions that you made regarding cushion making.  I will keep you posted! xx

Life lately...

Nicasso's latest masterpiece on display at the school art show.  Sold to Mummy for the princely sum of $20.  It is called  "Mr Peacock feather"

Money well spent I say, it will look fabulous hanging in our house!

Library bags that I have been busy whipping up for the school fair and would you believe... I made all of them in a week.  Considering I don't sew, this was no easy task!  I even lined them all.  My Grandma would have been so proud of me for this.  I copied the ones that she made me when I started school,  a long long time ago... in the 1970s (shudder) and that I still use to this day.

 Lastly, me modelling my lovely Mother's Day gift.  A gorgeous necklace from Dinosaur Designs, thank you my beautiful boys.

Now that the school fair is out of the way I kind of feel, for the first time in ages that I have a bit of spare time on my hands again.  Woohoo, and now that I am getting into sewing (so can't believe I just typed that) I am thinking of trying to make some cushions.  Is it hard... does anyone out there know how to make them?  I really want to learn as firstly lovely cushions are always super expensive and half the time the inserts are still polyester rubbish, grrrrr.  I would rather buy some decent feather inserts and make my own cushions from gorgeous fabrics if it isn't ridiculously hard.   Although, I do have to start planning the little one's 4th birthday party.  How can he be nearly 4 already?  I am going to have to stop calling him the Baby. Oh  no, does this mean I will have to change the blog title to Two Pirates.... they are hardly little anymore. Sob!

Back into the swing of things

It was an interesting week, last week...  the Captain's school partially burnt down and all classes were cancelled whilst the damaged classrooms and library were demolished and all the hazardous materials removed from the school site.  I volunteered to help out any of the parents from the Captain's class who were struggling with child care issues and thus found myself operating a day care centre for 6 and 7 year olds.  It was great fun.  Amazingly I either ended up with all boys or all girls each day.  The day that I had all girls (save for the Captain of course), we did lots of craft and a lot of dressing up!  We have mostly "boy" dress up items but that didn't stop the girls... I had a couple of cowgirls and some medieval Knights and would you believe they had an all out battle in the backyard!

The Captain was King of course!  I would love to show you some more photos but there are too many faces in them to put on the web unfortunately!  Yes...I am one of those Mums that lets her kids play with toy swords and the girls were thrilled with them. Much more so than any boys that have ever been here to play!

Apparently this is my future daughter-in-law.  

The days that I had boys were dominated with Lego, Thunderbirds and a trip to the local Waterfall.

They spent hours trying to build a dam and yes, one fell in and yes, I am pretty sure it was an accidentally on purpose thing.   Ah, you just have to love little boys! 

If anyone has any good fundraising ideas for a small school to do I would love to hear them.

School Holidays Round Up

RIP my favourite sunglasses.  

Someone who shall not be named stood on them... 'tis, very lucky the culprit is cute... 

.... and loves to shop!  

Caught up with the gardening.  My assistant landscapers were occasionally helpful!

We also explored some of the local parks and beach paths.  

And, the story behind these two walking together ahead of me: after months of sibling fighting and me desperately trying to referee, R instructed me to leave them to it and that they would sort it out themselves.  Best suggestion ever, as they are finally learning to resolve issues without my intervention.  As we walked up this path they both wanted to be the leader... after a bit of discussion they agreed to walk together and hold hands.  Proud Mama moment!

The Captain is currently obsessed with climbing trees.  Every tree we encounter is examined for tree climbing potential.  At home he spends hours drawing up plans for tree houses.    He has now read all the fabulous Magic Tree House books and I suspect that they might have ignited his passion! I am now steering him towards the Emily Rodda books... both Deltora Quest and the Rowan series.  Any other suggestions?  

Lest We Forget

It is Anzac Day today in Australia, a day of remembrance.  Many years ago, in the little country town where I attended boarding school I was called upon to give the Anzac Day Speech.  At the time I was horrified, overwhelmed with nerves and wracked with indecision about what to actually say.  Now, recalling this moment in my life I can't believe I was given such an honour at the age of 17.  The same age, or close enough to so many of the young men who have lost their lives at war.

"In two major wars and in some smaller our young men have marched.  Some did not return, they rest in foreign fields or beneath the seas.  However, many more did return, bearing scars both emotional and physical, legacies of experiences too horrible and shocking for us to comprehend.  We young people today cannot visualise what they went through and how they suffered.  At school and through books we can learn about their experiences, yet to truly understand or more importantly to empathise with them, we need to have been alongside them.  As it cannot be our returned heroes must be satisfied with our remembrance, our compassion and our gratefulness.  In this way we do way little we can to truly honour you."

(An excerpt from my speech that day, 1990)

Lest We Forget.

Seal Rocks

We have just had a fabulous week away up on the mid North Coast of NSW at Seal Rocks.  A gorgeous little spot that reminded me so much of Depot Beach.  Perfect beaches that are totally unspoilt by development, surrounded by national parks.  No cafes, just a tiny little general store and best of all no mobile service.  Woohoo, it was bliss.  The one significant difference from Depot though was that Seal  Rocks has a lighthouse.  The boys having had the fabulous Lighthouse Keeper stories by Ronda & David Armitage read to them from a young age were just besotted with it!

These two are their favourites!

                  I think I could have quite happily lived in the lighthouse keepers cottage on the cliff!

                               I think that they had my husband in mind when they whipped this particular sign up.

          

 This is the house we stayed in for the week.  Yes, we lit the fire every night, despite the fact that we didn't really need to.  There is just something ever so cosy about having stories in front of the fire in the evening after a lovely day at the beach.

                                   


    The locals call this little corner of the beach kiddies corner.  It was divine.   Crystal clear water at a gorgeous temperature, the kids adored it and so did we.  I can't wait for our next visit!