Oxlade Exploits

Uniforms, lunch boxes and tears.........

2012-01-29T16:59:00.000-08:00

It was like a scene from a movie.

You know the ones - somebody had been away for a long time and has just arrived home. People are clustered around hugging, crying and welcoming this person back in to the fold of their loved ones' arms etc etc.

But this scene was in reverse.

Mothers were climbing out of their cars at the school carpark pushing kids into backpacks and hats and propelling them into the school front gate while yelling "woohoo baby, I'm so excited".

Many mothers stood around in groups planning long, chatty coffee sessions and talking over the top of each other in a competition to share whose holidays were the absolute worst.

The kids, once deposited at their classroom doors were practically ignored, left to stand alone or next to someone they recognised from last year.

I, on the other hand, freak that I am, stood at my sons classroom window, watching him settle in and chat with the teacher. I knew he would be fine, in fact he will probably have a great day, but there's still a part of me that doesn't want to be saying goodbye, but would rather them stay right with me.

No growing up or changing allowed.
Especially into one of those children who doesn't want to have anything to do with their parents, or one of those kids that mothers can't wait to get rid of.......

Nev came up from behind, grabbed my elbow and said, "just don't let his mates see you cry".......

The $64 million dollar question......

2012-01-23T13:43:00.001-08:00

Old bloggers never die, they just can't be bothered most of the time (but are always writing in their head - fantastic funny stories of which they are always the star and come off looking like an absolute champion wife/mother/secret agent - except for the times when they do something really dumb and just end up looking like a total loser......

2012-01-16T00:17:00.000-08:00

Anyway - after that mammoth effort - I just wanted to say that I am still alive and I really do have so much to write about and yet, struggle to put it all into words let alone find the time/energy (bahahaha that's so funny, I haven't got the energy to sit on my rear end in a comfortable chair and write) - but you know what I mean.........

Like many bloggers, I'm a bit of a collector of moments.

I hear something or see something, that in my head creates a whole blogging story, which I must immediately relay to all and sundry (read: mother/sister/hubby and Karen - the only people I know who actually read and want more of my blog - love you guys!!!!) and I store it away for future use (because as of yet, I haven't got a computer linked to my brain which will actually type up these stories, place them on my blog and send it out in to the big wide world).

But as luck would have it, I am also getting older and my brain no longer retains the things I want it to (like all the really good blogging moments over the last 6mths or whenever it was that I last wrote) hence the huge gap in my posts.

Sigh.

So here I am, resorting to some manual labour (using 3 fingers to type)to relay this little moment that amused me so much I nearly drove off the road......

The other day I was driving Harri and Ellie to a birthday party, down a very steep hill.

Ellie started to have a little scream over the downward angle of the car, when Harri pipes up with...

"Pshaww Ellie. It'sall OK. Mum's a very good driver. She's been driving for years and years and years. Yep. You know the dinosaurs. Well, Mum's been driving since they were around".

Cheeky. Little. Man.

What is it with the youth of today (how old does that make me sound??!!!)

2011-08-22T03:52:00.000-07:00

I am completely thankful for my job.

OK, OK - not completely thankful.

There is actually a good part of me that is incredibly resentful not to have been born independently wealthy.

The same part of me that is ripped off by the underwhelming amount of international travel that I partake in.....

Sigh. I shall blame my parents.

Anyway, back to the point. I have been doing some extra training at work that has kept me busy (read: exhausted) and really, I'm completely over the whole thing.

All this extra training is just time away from the things I really want to be doing (ie: drinking tea and reading, staying at home and hanging with my hubby and kids etc).

I had a polite little whinge about these things to Nev, how work was getting in the way of my real life, and adding in very restrained tones how truly unfair it is that people who don't do a good job neither get reprimanded or sacked, (there are some young guys who think they are doing Woolies a favour just by turning up, never mind actually doing their job) and those who do a good job (namely me) are never recognised etc etc blah blah haughty comment.......

At the end of a particularly long 7 hour shift (where I had not only been revoltingly polite but unusually helpful, sincere and thoughtful) I was rewarded with a box of choccies from my boss who passed on that "not one, but two customers thought I was a lovely girl and an asset to Woolworths"

Way to stick it to me!!!

( Pshaw, I love being called a girl........)

18th wedding anniversary (or: serious cack fest).....

2011-08-06T23:21:00.001-07:00

P.S. I do actually love you more than wine Nev......

Do everything......

2011-07-30T18:41:00.000-07:00

(Hehehehehehehe - I love, love, love these cartoons!!!)

This is just how I'm feeling today.

I'm not well (got a stupid cold again) and I'm supposed to be singing at church this morning which I was really looking forward to, I'm tired from too little sleep and too much work and I managed to cop the world's crankiest customer yesterday - aaargh I really wanted to tell him to go shop at Coles (and a few other choice things as well) for goodness sake!!! and my bathroom/toilet is just not cleaning itself.....

And it's when you feel like this that other things start getting on top of you - neglected housework, not spending enough time with the kids etc etc - the list goes on.

And Nev is trying so hard to stay on top of things, but I think he is feeling a little overwhelmed too. And unappreciated. and just plain old worn out.

We are trying our best to smile and carry on, but I think both of us just want to climb into bed and pull the doona down over our heads......

Quite often (for me anyway) all of these feeling spiral into the whole "I'm not doing anything right" guilt, guilt, guilt....

(WHAT is with women and guilt anyway........)

So I knew I needed a reminder of everything good and right that is in my life, that everything isn't wasted and indeed will all work out in the end. A reminder of what's important and to keep on putting one foot in front of the other.

Lurking around in my pyjamas this morning I went to the website of one of my favourite singer/songwriters Steven Curtis Chapman http://stevencurtischapman.com/ and at the bottom of the page there was a little button to play one of his new singles "Do Everything".

I pushed it.

Talk about what I needed!!!! Slapped me right up the back of the head with a resounding "stop being such a prat!!!!

Might need to hear it again later (when I manage to get all "meh" again), but right now I'm off into the beautiful sunshine to thank God for my blessed life, and perhaps, maybe, clean the bathroom/toilet with a smile on my face......

Drum roll please.......

2011-07-12T23:34:00.000-07:00

My Dad turned 83 on Saturday.

All of the family and some selected hangers-on went over to celebrate with him.

Dad cooked some yummy Thai and Indian food and what with the cheesecake and the wine, it was a day of total indulgence.

And You Studio had it's first official engagement!!!!!

Here's some of the 320 shots taken on the day..........

And one of my personal favourites of me and mah big sistah which we will use for promotional stuff.....

We are just so cool...........

2011-07-04T04:19:00.000-07:00

All the way back in 1947, someone thought it would be a great idea to plan and bring to life a long distance walking track throughout South Australia.

Well I'd like to give that person a big round of applause, as 64 years on the Heysen trail is a true wonder of nature.

The Heysen trail - named after a German born, Australian bush watercolour artist Sir Hans Heysen - begins at Cape Jervis and ends in the north of the Flinders Ranges.

Over the 1200kms of this trail, the countryside ranges from the rugged cliffs and beaches of the south, right up through the city of Adelaide, the winery regions of the Barossa Valley and the desolate outback of the Flinders Ranges.

Something to see right!

So we did.

We explored a whole 8kms (pshaw - only 1192kms left to go!!!!!) of it the other weekend and were completely blown away by it all.

It was supposed to be a cold, rainy, windy day, but we started out in sunshine (albeit chilly) and blue skies.

The scenery was spectacular and the walking track varied from bridges.....

to meandering along the clifftops.....

through paddocks full of sheep and cows.......

and across beaches.....

One of the secluded beaches we came across had evidence of other visitors before us, and Ellie and Harri immediately began work on our calling cards.....

We stopped for a prolonged picnic lunch (and big meaty bone for the dog) at another of the beaches...

More exploring after lunch .....
led us to a "Land Before Time valley" according to Harri.

The afternoon was drifting away, and as we half-heartedly agreed to turn around and go home, a pod of playful dolphins enticed us to stay that little bit longer.

The clouds began to roll in and the sky darkened and splattered us with a misty rain, producing one of the most beautiful rainbows I've ever seen....

Woohoo - what a great day!!

Funny girl......

2011-06-28T01:30:00.000-07:00

My poor little girl has been at home sick with a bad cold for the last few days.

Her nose is running, she's coughing every five minutes, but worst of all, her ears are blocked up.

She can't hear a thing and it's driving me mental.

She's always had a little bit of selective deafness - especially when it comes to things like "Ellie can you please hang up all your clothes" or "Ellie can you please tidy up all the glitter and beads you've spread all over the house" - but this is to the point of ridiculous.

For instance, she can be standing right next to me and I will tell her what we are having for dinner - she will nod as if she understands and then asks "Mummy - what are we having for dinner" - or she will ask three times in quick succession, "what did you say".......

And you know the whole thing about being a little bit deaf so you talk just that little bit louder.....

In a priceless Ellie moment when she was talking to me at the top of her lungs - she yells "Mummy am I overtalking myself?"

Umm, perhaps just a little bit sweetheart.....

Another classic from my little cherub occurred tonight when she had read a note that came home with Harri from school, notifying parents on a confirmed case of Whooping cough within the school community.

Ellie looks up and says "Mummy, I think I might have Whoppers disease".......

Dancing in the street........

2011-06-26T19:35:00.000-07:00

Ellie and I are well on our way to being famous.

Maybe not quite as famous as Michael Jackson - but, still.......

A couple of weeks ago there was an ad in the local paper inviting anybody to join in on a Flash Mob Dance.

We had recently seen one on you tube - Resurrection Sunday Dance in Budapest, Hungary - http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=iv&v=NVv0jH33nL4&annotation_id=annotation_287881
-and Ellie immediately wanted to go as anything that is vaguely related to dance has her, well....dancing.

It was free, it was on a Sunday avo, and we had nothing better to do, so we went for it.

I was like "yeah I'll take you babe, but I'll just sit and watch....."

The young, beautiful, dancing instructor who is trying to get a government grant to continue this community work - had a great sense of humour considering about only 15 people of all ages and dance styles turned up - and taught us (drum roll please) Michael Jackson's Thriller!!!!

Pshaw, you should have seen me go - I totally dig the whole zombie moves and it was so much fun!!!

After this, she tried to teach us some hip hop and then some jazz style steps - all of which were really fun, but by now I had so much stuff in my head that I really wasn't making a lot of progress.

Ellie had an absolute ball and did so much better than me - "don't worry Mummy, I'll go over it with you at home" - snigger, snigger.....

We are now waiting to hear from her as to when the real practices begin and at the end of the year we will be trying it all out on the local Saturday morning markets.

Victor Harbor Saturday morning markets one day - the next - the world........

I can sing a rainbow....

2011-06-21T02:43:00.000-07:00

In the last two days, I have seen two rainbows.

Not just any old rainbows, but rainbows where you can see both ends.

Rainbows that are bright, vivid and shimmering.

And then today's quote on my little kitchen window sill calendar reads.....

"God sends the brilliant light of a rainbow to remind us of His prescence"

Nice one God.....thanks.

Mental Health Day.....

2011-06-20T04:04:00.000-07:00

It appears that I am not coping well with life.

I am stressed, anxious, tired, and emotional, and apparantly as it's been nearly 12 months since leaving Qld, this behaviour is not normal!

Or so the counsellor at Ellie's school tells me.

Pshaw........what would she know?

She doesn't know me.

How can she possibly label me "not normal"!!

It's a bit of a long story so I'll just fill in the basics - Ellie had been having a little bit of difficulty with some of the boys in her class - so I headed off to school to have a word with the teacher about this. I should never have approached her on this particular morning as I was hormonal and exhausted (not to mention freezing) and I basically opened my mouth and burst into tears.

Now, anyone who knows me, knows that I am very good at crying. Crying can often be my first response to any number of situations.

I don't think it is by any means abnormal, it's just how I deal with stuff.

But it obviously raised the alarm bells with Ellie's teacher as an appointment with the schools' counsellor was made and before I knew it, I was sitting at a desk in her room crying too.

By this time, I had a major headache and ten minutes before I had to pull a 7 hour shift at work.

Needless to say, it was not a good day and by the end of it, I was convinced there was something wrong with me - after all, anybody else in the world who had been through what I've been through in the last eight months or so - moved interstate and left behind some wonderful friends, turned 40, worked every day for the last six days in their first job for ten years, settled their children into a new school after homeschooling them for two years, putting together a small business etc etc - would be bouncy and cheerful, every second of every day and never, ever have a small melt down over something so little as their daughter being teased at school........

To combat all of this, the next day (a day off for me) Nev took me out for a long walk and then out for lunch at a cafe.

It was so good.

We talked. We ate. We slowed down for a while.

It felt good.

It felt......well, normal.

Precision instrument......

2011-05-24T00:22:00.000-07:00

That's what I'm going to change Spikeys' name to.

Can't you just picture it.

It's a beautiful spring morning, daffodils are proudly displaying their colours underneath the weeping willow tree. The grass is swaying in a gentle breeze, the birds are singing softly and in the background you can hear a dog barking - pan across the meadow to a small cottage and zoom in on the front door.....

I step out the door in my fluffy pink dressing gown and ugg boots, hair a mess, the first fag of the day hanging out the side of my mouth (I don't actually smoke, I just liked the image???!!!), and in my best fish-wife impression yell "come here precision instrument".....

Nah, it's not pretty is it.

To be honest, when you look at Spikey, "precision instrument" isn't the first thing to come to mind.

I mean the dog just sags all over the place.

His eyes are droopy, his jowls sag, he dribbles out both sides of his mouth and froths from his nose when he's really excited, his chest and neck all come together in one big droopy fold of flesh and fur - as far as dogs go, he's a mess really......

But the thing that impresses me - "stand back and be amazed" kind of thing - is when he's going flat out, nose firmly placed on the ground, little legs going a mile a minute - he manages to not stand on his own drooping jowls.

Precision instrument, I tell ya.......

Coming to you from a happy place......

2011-05-15T22:05:00.000-07:00

Who was it that said "think happy thoughts" - in my scrambled mind I can't work out if it was Peter Pan to the children after he sprinkled them with flying dust or if it was Charlotte to Pig, just before she gave birth to a trillion kiddies and went on to a better web somewhere........

I'll probably find out it was neither of those, just a suggestion of Nev's last week when I was struggling with absolutely everything...

Sigh.

Some weeks are like that. Just the effort of breathing seems to be too much.

But having said that......this week is a new week. That was last week. Last week is gone, gone, gone and replacing it is this brand new week.

So far I haven't stuffed it up too much (it is only 11.30am on Monday) and the days stretching before me are like blank pages in a book.

They are not pre-determined, the story has not been written on them yet.

They lay there dormant and blank, ready and waiting for me to scratch and carve my story across them, bring this book to life so to speak.

OK, OK enough already - no more analogies and deep thought - I think I've wrung that bit dry and it's time to move on to the normal flippancy and insightful rubbish that normally fills this blog.......

So, the next few days are looking pretty good. I am not rostered on to work until Wednesday (It's not that I don't love my job, I just love not going to my job even more).

The house is clean, the minions are at school, the dog has been walked, the lawns are mowed and there is a corned beef in the slow cooker. Washing is done and hung out, and there are glimpses of blue sky leaving me with the feeling that the washing might conceivably dry in the next two or three days.

I am in a happy place. And I have decided to stay there. And perhaps (just to continue with the stupid book analogy) the next few days will turn into a love story starring Nev and I on an exotic island somewhere or perhaps it will turn into a super cool spy novel where I (wearing a skin tight leather jumpsuit) save the world alongside my hunky sidekick Hector Black (that's the name of my hero should I ever get around to writing a spy novel).......

Most likely it will be the story of a worn out, 40 year old, mother of two, who as she flips open the cover of an exciting new Nelson DeMille book, will get a phone call from Callan at Woolies going "Helen - get your butt down here girl, we need ya".......

Think happy thoughts girl, happy thoughts.........................

Exciting stuff......

2011-05-12T05:10:00.000-07:00

Nev has nearly finished the paperwork side of the course - writing up a comprehensive business plan - and he's pretty excited about that (I think it's been a bit more involved that he thought).

I am just plain old excited about this cute business card design he's been playing around with......

How pink can a flamingo?

2011-05-07T03:29:00.000-07:00

Hindsight.

What a wonderful thing.

For instance, if I had hindsight this week, there's a good chance I might not have walked into a pole.

Yep.

Street pole. Metal.

Talking to Harri, not looking where I was going. Whammo.

"Hello Mr. Pole, meet my forehead"

Good for a laugh though considering it was a stop sign.

Also in hindsight this week (sounds like a news headline - "and in other news") I might have taken the opportunity to go with Ellie and her class on their Adelaide zoo-snooze trip.

Yep, two days at the zoo.

Hiding the sun-bears food, animal feeding, sleeping in the Daintree room, night walks to meet some of the nocturnal animals, etc.

Ellie was extra, extra excited as she was allowed to take my little digital camera with her.

Here's a few of her (hundreds of)photos......

Ellie loved the flamingos despite the fact that they weren't very pink!

Either Funi or wang-Wang. All pandas look the same to me.

Beautiful hand dyed silk butterfly wings at the entrance to the butterfly garden.

Ellie's classmates - a lovely bunch of girls who all took care of each other beautifully.

Needless to say, she had a great time!

So true, so true.......

2011-05-03T00:24:00.000-07:00

Me and Spiky - we get it.......

2011-05-01T04:04:00.000-07:00

Rain, rain go away.

Decided to take the dog for a walk anyway.

Yep - the dog.

We have a fifth member of the family.

Spiky the beagle.

Such a good boy.

Fast asleep, upside down on the couch.

Anyway, out walking and the rain finally stops.

Half way down the road there is a for sale sign out the front of Mt Breckan (24 bedrooms, 8 bathrooms and 9 kitchens - you too can own it for between 5-8million!! On that subject - who in the world is going to offer more than 5 million if given the choice? Actually, who in the world has 5 million? And why aren't they my best friend?)

This particular sign is huge and glossy black with photos etc.

The rain made it even glossier.

Spiky goes past it, and out of the corner of his eye sees another dog moving alonside him.

He yelps in fright/excitement, gets a hold of himself, stops, sniffs the board, realises it's himself that he is looking at, kind of deflates and moves on with his head drooping.

Yeah, I get it Spiky.

Sometimes your own reflection can be oh so depressing.

Man cred.....

2011-04-12T15:34:00.000-07:00

"The air was so thick you could cut it with a knife"......

This particular line has been used generally to describe tension in particular scenarios, but I would like to use it to describe the testosterone that was in my backyard yesterday.

A couple of beefy, brawny, buffed blokes were out there cutting down the huge old pine trees that hang over our fence and the neighbours' fence, and they were something to behold let me tell ya!!!

My only complaint was that it wasn't warm enough for them to work without their shirts on (curse you Victor Harbor greyness!!!!)

Their actual work was awesome - our backyard is not all that big, and these trees were pretty huge - but they rigged up the branches with ropes and pulleys and when they fell, they landed in almost the exact same spot.

The kids have been home sick for the last few days, and so we were all glued to the back glass door and kitchen window to watch what was going on (and to have a perv - whoops!!).

Nev was particularly impressed with their work skills, especially the way they handled the massive chainsaws, and commented a couple of times about how these guys probably have half a cow for morning tea and the other half for lunch, and that their man cred was right up there with the guys from Battlefield Bad Company or the men from extreme axe men (????) etc.

"I on the other hand, will show you my man cred, by doing the dishes while I stand here at the sink, watching these blokes hack away at the trees," sniggered Nev.

Later that avo, we headed out to a 10th bithday party where Nev and I got into a cricket match with all the kiddos.

Nev used to play cricket in his younger, wilder and single days, and is quite good at the game, but playing with a group of children determines that your skills be put in check and play should be kept to the gentle, non-agressive type.

Nev bowled underarm, grunting and pretending to put in a lot of effort, staring down the batsman with the funniest looks on his face and handing out abuse like "your mother dresses you funny" (mostly to my kids) and generally making the kids laugh at him.

When it came to fielding, Nev of course had to try to not catch any of the balls that were hit in his general direction. There was to be no diving and sliding along the ground, picking up the ball in one hand, raising the ball above his head and screaming "howzat" and sending the batsman off the field in disgrace.

Nev had to fight his inner urges throughout the whole game.

There was a moment there when one of the older kids hit a "dolly" - an "easy catch" apparently in cricket lingo - and the gleam in Nev's eye was visible across the field where I stood yelling "no Nev, don't do it".

At the last moment, my slightly competitive husband, remembered where he was (obviously not at the WACA) and fumbled the ball in the (completely unintentional) prettiest ballet style movement I have ever seen - you know, one leg tucked up behind him, arms outstretched and a small pirouette thrown in for good measure.

When I picked myself up from laughing, I yelled "there goes your man cred completely babe!"

Speaking of slinking off the field in disgrace......

Time flies (and apparently so do pigs).........

2011-04-09T04:35:00.000-07:00

I cannot (repeat: CANNOT!!!!) believe that April is here.

What has happened to the first term of school, my last month on probation at Woolies and the first month of Nev's business studies??

It was only last month that I was busy shivering and muttering "coldest March in 20 years!"

I must have been so busy being miserable that I failed to notice the beginning of April.

The constant greyness (official meteorological term used in Victor Harbor) began to get me down.

I couldn't be bothered with my morning beach walk, let alone getting out of my PJ's or getting breakfast.

Every morning with bated breath, I rolled up the blinds expectant of some light through my bedroom window and the warmth to radiate into my small world.

And every morning I was bitterly mocked by a grey and empty sky.

This went on for a bit, and after a while, even I gave up on the "holding my breath" part.

Just kind of staggered out of bed with the doona wrapped around my head, halfheartedly rolling up the blind, muttering "surprise, surprise" at the lack of sunshine and collapsed back into bed.

And then yesterday - the same old desperate routine.

But riddle me this - the sun was there to greet me.

It was a peachy 29 degrees, and everything looked beautiful.

I wanted to cavort and frolic.

I wanted to be a small child running through a pile of leaves and squealing with delight.

I breezed through my morning and was generous to a fault with my good mood, to everyone I met.

Except the old dear who came through my check-out with her 300 tins of cat food, newspaper and cheese slices (who makes up these combinations???) and said "it won't last lovey - it'll be freezing again tomorrow".

Pshaw - as if.

I mean come on - the sun is out, Bambi and a whole contingent of butterflies are on my back lawn, every flower has it's face wide open to the sky and even the neighbours dog was howling the hallelujah chorus when I skipped down the driveway to work.

There's no way the weather can change so alarmingly or so quickly.

"Tomorrow will be beautiful too" - I say in a sort of whining, "in denial" kind of voice - pitifully adding "it just has to be".

LATER:

I write this, huddling over the keyboard, hot water bottle on my lap, beanie on my head, wiping my frozen breath from the screen so I can see what I'm writing, all the while listening to the clatter of hooves on my roof as the pigs take off heading north for the winter..........

2011-03-30T00:25:00.000-07:00

Apart from the joy of being able to stand up while peeing (and for that matter - pee just about anywhere), men have quite a lot going for them.

I often tell Nev that I wouldn't mind being a man (especially him cause the lucky blighter's married to me!!!) as generally they don't seem to struggle with a lot of the stuff that we women have to combat - emotions, hormones, looking like a circus tent in a frock etc.

And they have a mind that leans towards the logical, and practical.

I mean, how on earth did Nev turn this.......

into this.......

A fantastic storage unit for stuff in Harri's room.

I wouldn't have the first clue.

I suppose I could learn, but then what would be the use of keeping him?

Heh heh - love ya babe!

Inspirational....

2011-03-23T01:58:00.000-07:00

Right now, with all the floods, tsunamis, fires, droughts, starvation, people trafficking, wars, terrorists etc etc the world feels very bewildering, tragic, frightening and just downright scarey.

But if you look hard enough, there is incredible beauty, inspirational people, and a whole lot of joy to be found in this world.

Check this guy out and be amazed.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GF9wo9sVn2c

Blatant advertising.........

2011-03-19T22:03:00.000-07:00

So a little bit of explanation is necessary.

I didn't get around to it last post as I was too excited to let mere details get in the way of a good celebration.

"Youstudio" will be an eclectic bunching together of all things photographic.

The basis of a lifetime opportunity for Nev to immerse himself in his passion (which hopefully one day will include overseas travel and a book).

But to start with, we will be a hire studio.

OK - so you've got a growing family and you'd like to capture it on film. The sweet moments you can share, the way your children look right now, something to treasure and remember.

We all want to do this. In fact, we'd probably like to do it often. But there's quite a few reasons we don't.

The first being that photographers are expensive, and to be honest it can be a bit difficult getting natural results when you're posing for someone you don't know.

Alternative to this is doing them yourself, but maybe you don't have the equipment and you want something a little bit different, and a professional result at the end.

So that's where we come in. We pop over to your house, or a setting that you like with a couple of props and things, set everything up, hand the reins (or at least the remote shutter control) over to you, you pose, dress up, climb on top of, over and under some of the props and take as many photos as you like.

Hence the name "Youstudio" - studio quality, but you do it yourself.

When you're finished, we come and pick it all up, put the photos onto a screen and go through them with you, suggesting tweaks to the prints as we go along, and then turn it all into a photo book, a special shot into an enlargement or a canvas - the whole kit and caboodle.

A fun family photo shoot for a fraction of the cost and memories to treasure forever!!

Awesome eh!!!

I mean that's it in it's most basic form - I could rave on a lot longer but I just wanted to get a little bit of it out there at this beginning stage.

Currently Nev is undertaking an eight week Business Management course through NEIS (saved us about $2500) and writing a conclusive business plan. He is also building some of the props we will be able offer as part of the package.

Then we'll gather my family and friends together and do a whole lot of promotional photos and begin our marketing campaign.

So - exciting yes. Short term, no.

Step, by step.

Trusting God.

And having a ball along the way.

To be continued......

2011-03-17T02:51:00.000-07:00

My blog has been a constant source of annoyance recently.

Every time I looked at it, I was thoroughly unimpressed with what I had written, and my mind became a total blank when I looked at it. This in turn stopped me from writing something new - leaving the old post on the page, which in turn annoyed me with it's uninspired content, prompting me to try and write something (anything!!) My mind refused to co-operate, completely annoying me yet again, and on and on it went........

It's not like I've got nothing to write about.

In fact, the opposite is true.

There has been quite a lot going on, but for various reasons I haven't been able to write about it.

Until today anyway.

But how to begin.........

For a while now, Nev and I have dreamed about one day owning our own business and working together.

Just what that business would look like and what it entailed, we never really sorted out - we had a few rough ideas (a furniture moving business called "We'll pack and stack your crap" was a favourite for a while)but you need to stake the future of your family on a bit more than that.

With our move to a new state, Nev staying at home, me working and the kiddlies going to school - completely turning our lives upside down and inside out - we decided to put a bit of effort into things and come up with a bit more of a conclusive plan.

We heard about NEIS - New Enterprise Incentive Scheme - which offered financial support for the first 12 months to a new business idea that passed their inspection - and decided that it sounded like a golden opportunity.

We contacted NEIS and Nev met with them and explained our idea. They gave us all the application forms and we proceeded to carry out the extensive paperwork - we had to conduct various consumer surveys in the area to guage people's reaction etc - we mailed it off, prayed and waited.

I'm not very good at waiting.

And as it turns out - neither is Nev when it comes to matters of this enormity and importance.

We both felt restless - wanting to do more but not knowing what "more" we could actually do, bagging our own ideas as ridiculous, second guessing ourselves etc (and writing really crappy blog posts) but somehow also knowing we had done our best and that it was now out of our hands.

We had to let go of it, and give it to God.

And......tomorrow morning at 10am, Nev signs the papers that will put:

in the yellow pages.

Woohoo!!!!

I Am Woman - hear me go slightly mad....

2011-03-08T18:56:00.000-08:00

I have joined the thousands of other working Mums, who miss their husbands, children and their home in order to put a meal on the table.

My admiration for these women has risen dramatically - especially for those who seem to balance it all and still keep their sanity intact.

Mine, I have to admit, has gone right out the window.

It up and made an escape - using just old sheets tied together - one night while I was sleeping.

No note, no forwarding address. Just gone.

The etiquette of speed dating.......

2011-02-21T17:50:00.000-08:00

So, my children are away at school for a fair part of the day.

I am only working casual, Nev is not working at all at the moment and we don't really know many people or have become involved in the community yet.

It would be fair to say that Nev and I are seeing a lot of each other these days.

We are by no means sick of each other, but it did occur to us that perhaps we haven't had a completely original conversation in quite some time.

Yesterday, Nev was out in the shed, building a toy unit/bookshelf thing for Harri's room and I had been busily cleaning and baking banana muffins - I made a cuppa to have with a warm, fresh yummy muffin and called Nev in.

We sat down opposite each other at our little kitchen table, and with a glint in his eye, Nev pretended to ding a bell and said, "You've got five minutes to tell me about yourself"

"Well," I started hesitantly. "I'm 40 years old, I am the mother of two and I work on a casual basis at Woolies as a check-out chick."

At this Nev raised his eyebrows, "Any chance of a promotion any time soon?" he asked.

"Well, I've not been there long and I'm......"

Nev stood up and said, "let me just get a pen and a piece of paper."

He grabbed a crayon and one of Harri's Star Wars drawings he had done earlier that morning, sat back down and dinged the bell again, "OK, where were we"...

"Umm, I really enjoy walks along the beach, bike riding, reading, eating, sleeping"......

I glanced at Nev and he was very busily scribbling notes with a very concerned look on his face.

I blathered on a bit longer, telling him stuff that he already well and truly knew, wondering whether I should make something up to make me sound a little bit more interesting.......

"So that's about it," I finished up lamely, batting my eyelashes at him in a last desperate attempt to win him over.

And then my husband of 18 years, looks at me sadly and says.....

"Times up - er, thanks for coming. Not sure you're my type.

Next", he yells over his shoulder.

Sigh - I should never encourage him.

Sometimes I should really not say anything at all........

2011-02-18T13:14:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure I've mentioned this, but I have a really bad habit of reading things aloud.

Yeah, you know stuff.

Anything that catches my eye.

Random signs, bumper stickers, street signs, notices on windows etc.

Often the most inappropriate things, at the most inappropriate times.

Like yesterday.

Dropping the kids off at school, we pulled up behind a big, dirty, rusty 4WD that had a bumper sticker which read:

"My farts smell like fish guts"

The kids just looked at me.

Nev looked at me.

There was silence.

And then everyone burst out laughing.

At me.

(Not at the lunatic who actually printed that bumper sticker, or the lunatic who thought it would be a great idea to stick it on the back of his car).

"They aren't that bad Mummy," says Harri scrambling out the car door, "pretty bad but not that bad" agreed Ellie getting out the other door.

I looked at Nev.

He was still laughing.

Nearly fell out the car door.

"Love ya babe" he said when he could catch his breath.

Sigh.

I'm a loser baby..........

2011-02-10T17:23:00.000-08:00

Yesterday while I was at work, Harri and Nev had a discussion that went a little something like this.....

Nev: OK Harri, so what we're going to do this avo is have an hour or so at the beach, then we'll head home, have showers, do homework, pick Mamma up from Woolies, have tea, stories and into bed.

Harri: Oh - homework!! I don't wanna do homework. (sigh) But I guess I have to. It's a bit like school - I don't really want to, but I guess I have to.

Girl (approx 20 years of age walking in front of Nev and Harri who has obviously overheard entire conversation): You have to go to school mate, otherwise you'll end up working in a Supermarket for the rest of your life and that wouldn't be much fun would it!

So anyway....

2011-02-04T22:31:00.000-08:00

OK, so it's Saturday afternoon and I'm getting ready to go to work.

(I need to set the scene a bit better than this and give you a few more details so that when I finally get around to admitting what I did to myself, you'll be able to say...."poor old thing, she must have been tired" etc.)

I've worked three days straight and haven't slept very well, and am horrendously tired (got your sympathy vote yet???)

So anyway......

I've just showered, washed my hair and am dressed in undies, sox, bra and my work shirt and am trying to blow dry my hair.

I've discovered I'm not very good at this.

I have spent my entire life trying not to spend time in the bathroom etc. (low maintenance, that's me!) but the culmination of 40 years of age and having a job for the first time in ten years, kind of requires a little more attention to these details.

So anyway.......

My work shirt is rather cute. It's quite tailored and covered in tiny light/dark green spots.

There is a Woolies logo over the left pocket (a pocket that has a small stitch in it to hold a pen upright in an easy to grab position) and my name tag (which funnily enough says Helen) is also on the pocket and has my locker key hanging off it.

I have a pen in the little upright slot-thing.

This pen has its' lid on.

The lid has quite a sharp end to it.

So anyway....

I'm trying to blowdry my hair and I think to myself, "If I just hang my head upside down and get a bit of air under it - that should give it some body" blah, blah etc.

So I flip my hair fowards (using the "not so Schwartzkopf" violent swinging motion) and the pen lid goes right up my nose!!

So anyway......

Obsolete....

2011-02-02T01:26:00.000-08:00

In the beginning there was nervousness, a little bit of clinginess and a few tears.

And there was evening and there was morning - the first day.

On the second day there was less nerves, more confidence and the carrying of one's own backpack.

And there was evening and there was morning - the second day.

On the third day there was strict instruction:

"We'll be right Mum, you can meet us at the gate this avo!"

And there was morning and much hilarity amongst the parents.

Letting go....

2011-01-31T19:50:00.000-08:00

Completely unbidden, the very tall man got down on his knees so he could look my son in the eye.

"I know what it's like to start a new school mate," he said with a look of such tenderness I thought I would cry. "It's a bit scarey, but you'll be fine. I'll be praying for you."

There.

That bit.

That's it in a nutshell.

If I could just bottle that moment.....

That moment where a person went out of their way and genuinely cared for, and encouraged another.

The same moment when I was reminded once again that God is bigger than all my fears......

I should pay more attention...

2011-01-22T20:13:00.000-08:00

Back in our pre-children days, when Nev and I spent many months travelling our beautiful country and working in some pretty odd jobs, we spent a lot of time in and around beaches (I actually think we spent more time at the beach than working - sigh! That was the life!)

All of this time at the beach, somehow or other ended up with us learning to love body boarding.

Neither of us were very good at it and certainly didn't have the whole "surfie" image or the professional accessories needed to be taken seriously.

What we did have were a couple of cast off foam boards we picked up somewhere and an addiction to the sensation of all that powerful water picking us up and chucking us towards the beach.

When we stopped roving the countryside, settled down to work and have children, we forgot all about our addiction (if only my addiction to chocolate was as easy to forget!!).

Our home beach at Hervey Bay wasn't very conducive to surfing. The coastline in that area is largely protected from the savage ocean by Fraser Island, which keeps the waves to a gentle lapping against the shore - which of course is great for small children, but surfing - not so much.

Down here in SA is another story completely. The coastline is rugged and the surf spectacular!

The minister at our church is a keen surfer and through many talks with Nev, has awakened this once forgotten passion, ensuing in the purchase of bodyboards all round.

(They still aren't the groovy ones, and we still don't look very cool, but man we are having so much fun!!!

The children, especially Harri, have embraced it wholeheartedly, often staying longer in the water than either Nev or I (actually, it's the getting in part that is difficult - cold SA water!! - Nev is thinking along the lines of purchasing wetsuits (horrors) - I'd look like two pigs fighting under a neoprene blanket!)

The other day, as we descended upon the beach, squealing with excitement over the perfect waves and interrupting all the peaceful sunbakers (who sunbakes these days????) I was feeling pretty good about it all - this new found family fun, (a family who boards together, stays together kind of moment).

I had my board clutched under my arm, high stepping over the waves (trying not to get wet!!), checking Harri hadn't gone too far out and that Ellie was close by my side, mentally writing a blog post about waves, surfing, lost and found joys etc. when the inevitable happened.

I was wiped out by a big wave.

Knocked down, turned around, shaken all over, smacked in the back of the head by my own bodyboard, nose diving into the sand, breath knocked out of my chest, coming to the surface coughing and spluttering.

Decidedly uncool.

As I regained my feet and some of my breath (none of my dignity) I remembered the extremely wise advice handed down by the great surfer Z in the movie Surf's Up:

"Don't take your eyes off the wave dude!"

Kevin and the fish wife.............

2011-01-19T01:13:00.000-08:00

In the middle of our town there is a fountain.

This fountain - a whale tail with water streaming from it's tips - is a monument and testament to the beginnings of this little seaside village (fast growing into the "Gold Coast of SA") and it's history.

These days, there's no whaling going on in Victor Harbor (thank goodness) but the whale tale fountain, situated in a beautiful grassy area with park benches, big trees, surrounded by pubs and coffee shops (and today a lady demonstrating the ancient art of writing on grains of rice!!!???) is a common meeting place for locals and tourists alike.

People were lying on blankets on the grass, playing cricket, sharing fish and chips, wandering back from the pub with a beer in each hand or just plain old ignoring the crazy rice-writing chick - it was almost a Renoir painting it was so serene.

So here we were (neither local or tourists exactly) on a beautiful sunny day, having just completed a bike ride around the place (with a stop at each and every one of the 38 million playgrounds in the area), with hot feet and sore backsides.

The bikes are scattered across the grass, helments, shoes and socks lie where they have been hurriedly removed and chucked. Ellie is eyeing the ice-cream vendor (next to the rice-writing chick) and Harri is already ankle-deep in the water of the fountain.

"Mum, can I get wet," he says already rolling up his pants leg.

Various, serious adult reasons why he shouldn't flit through my head - no dry clothes, still got to ride home etc - all negative, logical and very unadventurous.

"Go for it Hazza," I yell, throwing all caution to the wind.

And he does.

Wildly and enthusiastically soaking every inch of his gorgeous little bod.

Ellie wanders just a little too close and he grabs her and pulls her in, splashing her while she squeals her protests for a micro second.

Miniature rainbows flash through the spraying droplets of my children's play, the sun is on my face, the rice-writing crazy chick is actually doing a demo - all is well in the world.

"Kevin, get out of that mucky fountain, you'll pick up some horible infection from that filty water," screams some kind of fish wife a little bit too close to my ear - breaking my reverential moment, the serenity and the peace across the park in one defining moment.

Poor old Kevin, who had seen my kids having a wow of a time and had merely stuck his left toe in to see what the water was like, nearly fell in from the shock.

Give him credit though.

Kevin got out.

Kevin went straight back to his Mum and sat down on the grass.

"She must be a wonderful parent," I thought to myself.

"I on the other hand, am the worst parent - look at what I am subjecting my children to. The dangers of all those germs and infections."

Needless to say, we all smirked on the way home.

Every day it's the same old thing.....

2011-01-08T14:05:00.001-08:00

A couple of tough guys.....

2011-01-04T19:33:00.000-08:00

This Christmas, I bought a family present that I don't think any of us will get tired of playing with.

Some people more than others......

In the wild with the Oxlades.....

2011-01-01T23:07:00.000-08:00

The other weekend we decided it was high time to check out our surroundings.

We packed our picnic lunch, put on our hiking shoes and headed off to Deep Creek Conservation Park.

The hike began amongst some pretty scruffy coastal shrubs....

(Speaking of pretty scruffy!!!!!)

and included some speccy views!!.

We eventually found where Deep Creek ended.....

(local wildlife)

and the sea began.....

Garden of Earthly Delights.....

2010-12-31T01:50:00.000-08:00

My Christmas present from my Mum and Dad - a big bag of fish emulsion, blood and bone and mushroom compost (nice eh!) - to go with pumpkin plants, eggplants, cucumbers, chillies, rocket, tomatoes, carrots, strawberries, chives, parsley, mint and a peach tree.

I am communing with the earth.

I feel that well fertilised soil, and I, are as one.

("Nature - it's all over me!")

Just call me "Farmer Mummy."

I feel like I have taken my rightful place on the food chain of life.

I am self sufficient (yeah right - as soon as I've planted a chocolate bush)!

Now all I need is a cow, some chickens, more vegies, a wind generator, my own water supply, ooh yes and perhaps a nice piece of land........

Might just pop down to Big W and grab a pair of overalls and some gumboots instead.

Our First Gingerbread House...

2010-12-22T15:35:00.000-08:00

Sigh.....

2010-12-22T15:29:00.000-08:00

As I worked yesterday and the amount of people coming through my check-out in a tired, grumpy frame of mind increased, I realised that we really do seem to have this season of joy and peace, somewhat, completely, wrong.

One lady I served, came through with a mop bucket full of cleaning gear. Without me saying anything at all, she launched into a tirade of the pressures of having her family down for Christmas, all the cleaning she felt she had to do, not to mention the cooking and then afterwards she's just have to clean all over again. She sighed, paid and headed off with out even a glimmer of a smile.

The Bakery Department Manager came through my check-out yesterday looking weary and fed up.

"Well it must be winding down for you now," I said, hoping to cheer her slightly. She looked at me with quite a forlorn look and said, "nope - we start Hot Cross Bun preparation now."

What can you say to that??

It just seems to be the way it is. We go from one thing to the other. And we don't take the time to enjoy the thing that we're doing before it's time to start stressing over the next thing.

Already by this time of the year, everybody is exhausted from all the "normal stuff" - school and other extra curricular activities are over and the break-up party has been held, it's getting hotter, and for at least a couple of months we've been bombarded with "last minute Christmas ideas" advertising, and the stress of forgetting that visitor who just popped in to say hello but who must have a present (even if they don't really exist - but you just never know!!) - phew - it's no wonder we're all a frazzled mess!!

Even our own little family is feeling the pressure this year.

We normally have a very relaxed Christmas - ham sandwiches for lunch and a swim in the pool or at the beach - but this year it will be a little different. We are having Christmas Day with Nev's family and Christmas day on New Year's Day with mine.

There is a whole lot more preparation involved, packing and travelling and travelling back again. Two days full of opportunities to overeat and get hopped up on sugar, and more presents to get.

This is the way I've been thinking, and I have to say the result is a whole lot more anxiety and stress.

I've been worried that I'm not getting enough hours at Woolies to be able to afford Christmas.

I've been worried that there has been someone I've forgotten to send a card to or that the present I've bought for this person won't be suitable.

But this little thought on my window calendar pulled me up short -

"We expect too much at Christmas. It's got to be magical. It's got to go right. Feasting. Fun. The perfect present. All that anticipation. Take it easy. Love's the thing. The rest is tinsel."

All of this is just frivolous. All of this is just passing insanity.

I had to give myself a very stern talking to.

(Proper English School Marm's voice needed.....)

"Helen - stop long enough to realise this is the first Christmas with Nev's family for 14 years. You love these people, and they love you. Go and enjoy, you silly old cow (or something like that). You're getting enough work for now, leaving you plenty of time to enjoy the children before they go to school next year and as for all the presents, it's just too jolly late so you're going to have to deal with it. Now take a Bex and have a good lie down..."

Sigh.

Happy Birthday Jesus. Forgive me for getting so wrapped up in tinsel that I forget to celebrate you and all that you've done. Thankyou for all the blessings - family especially!

2010-12-16T16:04:00.000-08:00

So......we did it. We finished our second year of homeschooling!

It's funny though, considering the amount of doubts and anxieties I had at the start of the year, to look back at it and say, "we had a really great year!"

Undoubtedly the three months of travelling and seeing some amazing new places definitely helped the year go a whole lot faster, but I also think that it really balanced out all the book work that we crammed in around the trip.

Their journals of the trip will always be a source of great amusement for all of us!

Through the whole process of homeschooling, I have discovered much about myself as well as the kids.

The most obvious being that as a teacher, I am definitely lacking in the areas of passionate research and dedicated preparation.

Despite this huge (read: massive and essential) shortfall, the children have flourished and I think enjoyed most of the work we have done.

I have also seen Ellie and Harri's individual strengths become obvious - completely different areas - but as everything they do is almost opposite, I am not completely surprised.

Nev has taken over a lot of the homeschooling responsibilities in the last weeks while I have been working, and the kids have loved having a whole new lot of resources and activities, not to mention a fun, patient teacher!

For the last week or so, Nev and Harri have been hard at work on their very first Lego movie, and I think they have a great future (heh heh) - check it out - it's called Why did the Lego man cross the road?

Ellie (with a lot of help from Nev) has written and recorded her very first song - a Christmas song about the joy of being with family and celebrating Jesus birth together.

(Can you tell that I am a little bit proud of my beautiful family? Sorry, didn't mean to rave quite so much)

Next year is a whole other kettle of fish. We have enrolled the kids in a small, local state school.

I have many different emotions when I think about this. The first being "I can't believe I am letting someone else teach my children, I am going to miss them so much" - to actual fears as to what they will have to face throughout their day.

But I also realise that as they get older and require more stimulus than I can give them
(see obvious faults as mentioned before) that perhaps I am not the best person to teach them either.

This is where I have to put my children completely in God's hands and ask for protection for them and trust Him that He will do it.

I'm not very good at letting go.

But that's one of the main things we parents do for our children. Let them go. Prepare them and then let them go off and experience life, make mistakes, get into trouble, and generally stuff up.

And if they go out, knowing that they have a safe haven at home, parents who love them and support them and are behind them at all times - then they should be alright.

Shouldn't they?

Sigh.

A celebration of life, love, laughter and Lego............

2010-12-13T00:54:00.000-08:00

My baby turned 7 on Sunday!

My funny, sweet, little dude is no longer so little.

So here's to Harri - aka: Mr. McTavish, Hazza, Thunderjox, Cabbage Head, Master Smelly, Hazard - you bring us so much joy!!!

We love you.

Memoirs of an old lady.....

2010-12-03T20:40:00.000-08:00

(ha ha - I didn't mean mine!)

Today as I was serving at the check-out, a fragile-looking, white haired, little old lady came through.

She gave me the biggest smile and said, "just the essentials today dear!"

On the conveyor belt sat a packet of Tim-Tams, a small bag of crystallised ginger, a bottle of ginger ale, a packet of tea-bags and a trashy magazine.

She winked at me like we were partners in crime and said, "don't ever forget to love your life - it's over way before you are ready."

I wish I had met this lady in a place where I could have taken more time with her.

I don't know what her story is, and I may never find out, but I will try and take her advice - along with some Tim-Tams and a cup of tea.

My son.....

2010-12-02T01:47:00.000-08:00

Snuggled up on the couch, freshly washed PJ's, freshly-bathed children, reading aloud - just a few of my favourite things - when Harri says,"Mum, pause your mouth - gotta go to the loo."

Backwards smirk as he runs off up the hall.

Sigh. Looooove that child.

They're not on to us yet......

2010-11-28T01:39:00.000-08:00

Waddayamean I've been living in the past?

Just cause I've been re-hashing over stuff we've done and haven't even attempted an update on what we're actually doing now......

So, here goes.

We have settled in a lovely little seaside town called Victor Harbor. It's about an hour south of Adelaide - it's so cool to be that close to a big city (whoops - I meant sister) and we somehow manage to just pop up there at least once a fortnight.

We see Mum and Dad at least once a week and I don't think they are sick of us yet.

Bwahahahah - they'll find out soon enough.

We are in a cute little cottage up on a hill - right down the road is a fair dinkum castle, complete with 24 bedrooms, 9 bathrooms and 8 kitchens. It's for sale for between $5-8 million. Ellie and Harri want us to buy it so we can turn it into an orphanage.

Speaking of the kidlies, they are both well and are madly trying to catch up on their schoolwork. They have settled back into it really well - it worried me a bit after having three months off! Of course there are days when it's all a bit of an effort, but I reckon we should be back on target in a couple of weeks.

We have decided after excruciating agonisation (good use of English!!!) while travelling, that the kidlies will be off to school next year.

Massive decision. Lots of tears. Mine.

We went and checked out a couple of schools last week - a new little state school of 300 students which was really nice and offered fantastic curriculum - and a Lutheran school with 250 students which was even lovelier and even better curriculum.

Hands down I want Ellie and Harri to go to the Lutheran school but it is just so expensive - $5,500 compared to just $600 for the state school.

We have gone over and over it, but we just can't do it. Especially as I am the only one working at the moment (did I mention I'm a check-out-chick? Heh heh!!).

Nev received a call from the minister of the church we have been going to, who asked Nev to apply for the position of Chaplain at the local high school.

Talk about one out of the box. Nev has never seen himself in this sort of role, so it kind of threw him a bit.

I, and everyone else he has talked to recently, thinks he would be brilliant at it.

So we will see. We will pray and we will be still.

We have been going to the local Baptist church and are very impressed with their commitment to the local community. They are very hands-on and missional focused which is what we really like, and Ellie and Harri have settled into their children's program and made lots of friends.

And they seem to like us.

Bwahahaha - they'll find out soon enough......

P.S. As Harri was getting ready for church this morning, he was struggling to do up the last button on his one and only button-up-shirt. Rolling his eyes, he looks at me and says,"a man can't get comfortable in this here monkey suit"
Sigh.

Yoohoo.....

2010-11-26T00:32:00.000-08:00

I know that nobody is actually reading my blog at the moment, but if you do find yourself "here" - get yourself over "here" instead:

www.wix.com/nifty01/web

It's my wonderful husband's photographic site and (I don't mind admitting) it's totally wicked!!!!!!

So, ok I'm a little bit biased - but you go over there and then tell me I'm wrong......

It's a big, beautiful country....

2010-11-16T23:08:00.000-08:00

So anyway, where was I? Oh yeah. The outback.

I had an interesting experience in Longreach. I was minding my own business, when an extremely curious bug flew in my ear and decided to have a little nibble on my ear canal.

Oh my goodness, I would rather give birth than go through that kind of pain. It was horrendous.

And all I got for my trouble was a ride in the back of an ambulance - admittedly with a very nice man who was extremely concerned for my welfare.

No lollipop in sight though.

From there we headed up to Undarra and the amazing lava tubes.

I had read a little about them, but it didn't prepare me for how completely unique and amazing these underground tunnels are. They run for approx 26 km but unfortunately due to some collapsing roofs, only a small section is open to the public and is tour guide accessable only.

Our tour guide was called Greenie and he immediately made Ellie and Harri junior guides which thrilled them no end. He was very patient and answered ALL of their questions. Better man than me!

It was quite difficult to capture the immense size and magnificence of these tunnels, but Nev as usual did a brilliant job.....(I really would like to take credit for all these photos, but Nev's the gifted one!)

From here we headed to the tropical coast of Far North Queensland where we spent a lazy week in a lovely, shady site in a caravan park in Cairns.

The site included a macadamia tree and with all the bat activity (eating, digesting and then wantonly splattering) the camper was quickly christened "The Bat Guano Hotel". This was a great joke until it came time to pack up!!!

One of my favourite places was the Daintree Rainforest. It was so thick and beautiful, and with the constant, fine rain, everything glistened and dripped.

We took a very long walk along the beach at Cape Tribulation, getting steadily wetter and wetter.

I love this photo......

Sedate and suburban....

2010-11-14T02:56:00.000-08:00

I LOVE to explore new places!!!

I am convinced there is nomad blood pounding through my suburban veins.

A piece of me that is not entirely happy unless it's going somewhere it's never been before.

Unfortunately, one cannot continue to explore new places constantly, as one's finances will not allow this kind of lifestyle.....

Sigh.

(Why oh why, am I not independently wealthy?)

Anyway, if you can't actually go exploring and are currently in a very suburban loungeroom - you hash back over the places you have been, and as there is a huge gap in my blogging patterns this year, I may as well write about where we've been this past few months.

Two birds with one stone so to speak.

Hmm.....

So we kissed Hervey Bay goodbye at the end of July.

My, that was hard. Leaving behind a life and friends that we loved dearly.

But we had our minds set that the best thing for us as a family was to return home and be with family again. We had already been gone 13 years.

So after a series of near misses and miracles (mostly involving our moving truck that somehow got completely confused as to where they were picking up and then moving our furniture to and from???!!!!!), we headed off into the great unknown.....

Well, just up the road to Emu Park, just south of Yeppoon, where we stayed for three nights.

It rained.

The entire time.

Except for when we went walking on the beach one afternoon.....

From behind insiduously dark and laden clouds, the sun burst forth and kissed the beach with a golden glow, turning soldier crab diggings into natures' fireworks......

From here we headed west. To the outback. I was very excited about this. I couldn't wait for the children to see the great expanses of nothing, to see what life is like away from the beautiful tropical coast.

We went through some classic outback towns, with fantastic pubs and beautiful main streets.....

We had planned lots of adventures while in the outback - fossicking for sapphires at Rubyvale

(we found eight little beauties - not big enough to have cut into jewellery though dammit!) and fossicking for dinosaur bones at the Australian Age of Dinosaur Museum (we held a real bone of Banjo the Australovenator, a newly discovered carnivore - it was very, very cool!)

We visited and explored thoroughly the Australian Mining Museum, the QANTAS museum, Waltzing Matilda museum, The Stockmans Hall of Fame, School of the Air tour, Flying Doctors tour etc etc.

The local wildlife was just as curious of us, as we were of them...

We needed so much more time to see everything properly so we plan to go back again in about five years when the Australian Age of Dinosaur Museum in Winton, holds their three weeks of fossil digging in the black plains surrounding the museum - woohoo!!!

(TO BE CONTINUED - STUPID COMPUTER WON'T LOAD ANY MORE PHOTOS!!!)

2010-11-12T13:08:00.000-08:00

My computer is not my favourite thing at the moment.

Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.

I have the longest post (with heaps of photos) written and waiting, but the stupid thing just doesn't want to put it up....

Anyway, it seems to be working at the moment, so I will just say....

I got a job at Woolies as a check-out chick!!!!

How cool is that!!!!

Just when you thought it was safe to get your groceries......

Bwahahahahahah (evil cackle etc)......

There ain't no festival in this state........

2010-11-01T20:36:00.000-07:00

For the princely sum of $542.00, I was allowed the privilege of removing the last little bit of QLD from our lives.

Yesterday we went off to the South Australian Government Service Centre (woohoo - what a great day out!!!) where we exchanged our Sunshine State licences and licence plates for new SA ones.

My old QLD licence - although a very strange, alien yellow colour - showed a much younger version of myself (I think the photo was taken about 8 years ago) that had good hair and an attempt at make-up.

That licence was a bit like a pair of comfy shoes.

I took it for granted, didn't bother looking at it, just carried it around in my wallet, confident that if I ever did need to show my licence, it would all be OK because, after all - I didn't look too bad in the photo.

But aghast South Australia!!! With fear and trepidation do I await the post that will bring this licence to my mailbox.

Something must have slipped in my brain - the part where I was supposed to remember to do something with my hair etc before the photo was taken - and I shall be forever captured (well, for the next two years) with my great new look happenin'.

The "I've just finished work and am completely exhausted" droopy face and no-fuss ponytail.

Not to mention that I've just lined up for 45 minutes behind some very smelly, noisy, toothless people (???), filled out six pages of totally unrelated questions (in triplicate) and have just realised that I need to pee but if I leave now I'll have to line up again for another 45 minutes.....

Sigh.

My Dad has a theory about drivers' licence photos.

He tells me the picture has to be bad so that when you're grossly dead by the side of the road - they should be able to recognise you!!!!

It's a theory that I shall embrace wholeheartedly!

I guess we're not in Kansas anymore Toto......

2010-10-30T01:06:00.000-07:00

Tentatively, delicately. A grimace plastered to my face.

(I tried really hard to smile - but I KNEW what was coming)

"Yay Mummy - go Mummy - you can do it" came the cheers from the safety of the sand.

Sucking in my breath, because I knew in a minute it was going to be knocked right out of me.....

I did it.

I stuck my toe in the water.

Just to see. Check if my guess was correct.

Yep. Freezing.

(Who are these South Australians trying to kid?)

Coming from tropical QLD, I KNOW what swimming at the beach is supposed to be like, and it doesn't resemble this breath-taking moment even slightly.

But having said that (or whinged that), just check out this scenery...................

Now that's breathtaking!!!

Guilty, as charged......

2010-03-09T14:33:00.000-08:00

I am a passionate person. And also naive and gullible.

I am quick to make judgements, but just as quick to admit my mistakes and try to fix them.

Thanks to Jane, who is a much more diligent person than I, and one who researches things thoroughly, I will now put a link up in regards to my last rant.

http://www.hoax-slayer.com/mass-muslim-marriage.shtml

Thanks Jane.

Don't get mad, get evil (or some things make me really cranky).....

2010-03-07T17:46:00.000-08:00

I am the first to admit that when it comes to current world affairs, I am particularly dense.

I don't watch the news as I find it too depressing, and I hardly ever read a newspaper except to do the crosswords and look at expensive real estate.

I have no particular political views, and wouldn't know one politician from another.

I tend to keep my head in the sand, happy in my uninformed state.

I guess in some ways this is irresponsible - to be informed means to make wise decisions - but I received an email last night which reminded me why I prefer to be so giddily uninformed.

This particular email, shocked and horrified me. It reinforced for me that this world is going to pot, and ignorance can in fact, be bliss.

My sister (the infamous Naughty Nanna) pointed out to me this morning, that (a) I must be feeling quite cranky as this is my second rant in two days, and (b) the pen is mightier than the sword, so I should write about this. (Thankyou NN - you are so wise. Take $50 out of the till and go home!)

So anyway, apparently in Gaza, Muslim leaders prepared a wedding ceremony for 450 couples. The men were aged between 20-25 and the girls were all under 10!!!!

(Take a moment to think about this. My daughter is 8 and all of her friends are around the same age - and the more I thought about this, the more I literally wanted to be sick.)

As I looked at these sweet, innocent little girls, all done up in white dresses and wearing makeup (to make them look older????!!!) my heart nearly caved in on itself.

Where were these little girls' mothers??

They certainly were not holding on for dear life to their precious daughters screaming "not my child" or looking to beat the crap out of the first person responsible for such an atrocity!

Was it possible that these mothers were in fact, agreeing to it all in the name of their religion?

How on earth did a religion get it so wrong that it was not only allowing this ridiculous and heartbreaking situation to happen, but encouraging it. And how on earth does this religion have such a grip on it's followers as to stop them thinking for themselves??!!

I know a lot of religions are responsible for a lot of atrocities throughout the ages and I guess as humans we will constantly stuff up this beautiful world.

But when, oh when are we going to stop being completely stupid?

Rant over.

Will somebody please, get this here camel a back brace..........

2010-03-04T15:02:00.000-08:00

I'm generally quite a nice person. I get along with people and my mother taught me ages ago, that if I have nothing nice to say, then don't say anything.

I moisturise after every shower, and I do my anti-double chin exercises every day.

I go to the effort of double pegging my sheets on the line so the dog can't pull them off and drag them all over the back yard. It hasn't stopped him yet, but I also have not sent him off to the pound yet.

I wait for the little green man before crossing the road, even if there's no cars coming.

I try my best to be environmentally friendly by not using harsh chemicals and recycling etc.

I am always kind to the little baby geckos who live in our kitchen, and I never play golf with cane toads.

But you know what?! Something happened this morning that has put an end to Mrs. Nice Guy.

I noticed a patch of rather suspicious white furry stuff growing (yes, actually growing!!) on the frame of my nice wooden bed.

OK. So I like my windows wide open. Yes it has been raining non-stop for quite a while now. But seriously
- mould!!!!! Aaaaghh!!!!

So that's it.

You can stick your clove oil and vinegar.

Tomorrow I am buying myself a great, big bottle of hospital strength, toxic, caustic, rip-your-lungs-right-out-of-your-body, bad boy bleach and not caring about the environment one little bit.

Tee hee.......

2010-02-28T15:26:00.000-08:00

Reflecting on the fact that this weekend has not been at all synonymous with any kind of Weight Watchers' eating plan, I give you this cartoon......

Life is more a rollercoaster than a highway, and quite frankly I'd rather be sleeping than riding all night long (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah) etc.....

2010-02-25T15:18:00.000-08:00

It's been a good week, a busy week.

But it's also been a week of self-doubt, pity parties and wanting to get off the jolly thing before I'm sick all down the front of my shirt....

When I say it's been a good week, I feel like it's been pretty balanced - nobody has had a major hissy-fit or a tear-fest or even a breakdown - we've had some fun and I think we've all learned something.

We tie-dyed some old pillow cases, and began our photographic recipe index cards, we finished off one section in our Science program with a trip to the blood bank (where I donated and the kids got a choccy, sticker and a tattoo!!!! where's the justice in that???), and began our study into the islands of Hawaii.

We have been looking after friends' cats and chickens while they are away, and the children have been thrilled with the "hunting for the eggs" game and cuddling with big furry, balls of purring happiness.

There has been wild hilarity after I told the kids that their favourite presenter on their favourite TV show (Michala's Wild Challenge) is actually called (I kid you not) Ellie Harrison. They both believe that she has been named after them!!!! How can you burst that sort of bubble eh?!

I received actual certificates from the QLD government stating that I am a Home Educator for Ellie and Harri (thankyou Home Education Unit - they are quite pretty certificates!) and I am having a National Education Standard tester coming on Monday to check that our work standard is up to scratch.

Although I requested this procedure, I have been riddled with "oh my goodness, what am I doing" negative thoughts, all week. What if I find out that what we've been doing, just isn't enough, or not of a high enough standard? Aaaaaagh. Why do I do these things to myself?

Hmmmmm. Could it be that I think peace of mind is over rated???? Surely not......

The great debate......

2010-02-22T22:04:00.000-08:00

So far it is a tie.

Two of us on one side, two on the other. (If I asked the dog, I know which side he would be on, so his vote doesn't count).

We are trying to decide whether we have ourselves a smart dog or a dumb dog.

The children (bless their gullible little souls) think the dog is quite smart.

Nev is convinced he's an idiot, and I tend to agree with him.

There are times when I think he's quite intelligent and I think it has a lot to do with the different relationships he has with each of us.

He is ever so gentle, sooky and calm with Ellie - happy just to have his head in her lap, his tummy rubbed and told he's a good boy over and over until he actually believes it.

With Harri, he's completely mental. The louder, messier the game and the more destruction that is involved, the happier he is. Jumping completely over the couch seems to be the favourite at the moment.

With me, it's "the hand that feeds" and "the one who takes me out for walks" kind of total, drooling adoration.

With Nev, it's all about the inappropriate humping of his leg. I can't help it (smirk, chuckle), the look on both their faces is absolutely priceless.

The other morning on one of our long walks, the dog was tracking a sexy little poodle on the other side of the road. I was trying to get him to hurry up, but he was smitten, lost in a place where Nev's leg was no longer the object of his desires.

He continued some forward momentum (basically because I was dragging his lead), but his head was stuck firmly in the "backwards glance" position.

And then - the definitive moment - he walked straight into a light pole!!!!

The dog had to sit down and shake his head for a second, but then went right on oggling the chicky-babe.

I had to sit down or I would have fallen down I was laughing so hard!

So, it's decided.

If he can fall that hard for a woman, and not let a hugely embarassing situation (not to mention concussion) get in the way of his pursuit, he is definitely a smart dog!!!

Lazy Sunday afternoon.....

2010-02-17T14:54:00.000-08:00

Rain, rain, rain.

Just us, hanging out on the verandah.

Perfect time for some photos.....

You do what?!.......

2010-02-16T01:50:00.000-08:00

Mouth absolutely agape, eyes wide in some kind of shock.
She stared at me for nearly a full minute.

And just because I said "Ellie and Harri are homeschooled".

We were at the local library (loooove the library!!!) and had met a nice little girl and her mother. The children were happily playing, and we mothers had gravitated towards each other in the hopes of some adult conversation.

We began by raving about how much we liked the library, how much we liked Hervey Bay (sigh....love Hervey Bay), how much we like our children, how much she loves it when her daughter is at school so she can do her own thing......

And that's when it happened. "Where do your two go to school?" she asked.

And that's pretty much when she started to see me as some crazy, nutter woman. Seriously. The eyebrows came down into a sort of frown, and she could not get away from me quick enough.

Luckily for her, she found something riveting over the other side of the library that needed her immediate attention, and occasionally threw me those cautious, "don't talk to me anymore" looks from behind a book.

I wonder at the thoughts going through her head, what was it that she was actually thinking about me.

People's comments to me on homeschooling have varied greatly. They range from supportive and encouraging, mild enthusiasm, laughter (nervous and shocked), flat-out "you must be mad" to disapproval and even mild anger.

And these responses always surprise me. I guess I just take it for granted that this is what we do, and is really no different than any other parents' decisions on their children's education.

I think I understand some of the reactions and the reasons behind them.

Some people are shocked that I would try to teach - after all I'm not a qualified teacher of any kind. How can I bring my children a proper education?

The only thing I am actually qualified to do is mother my children. I know both of them intimately. I know how they tick, how they work and learn, play and socialise. I know when they are having a good day, and when they are having a bad day, and how best to deal with them while they have that bad day.

I know how to show them how special they are, and show them that what they do with their lives will affect the world around them - and that they can make it a better place. I know how to encourage them to keep on trying to do their best, and help them discover their passions and interests and encourage them to go after them.

With the help of some fabulous curriculum, I can also help them to read, write, add and subtract, divide and multiply, make sense of difficult instructions, creatively write about our world's rich history, experiment with different materials/substances and write about the outcomes etc. etc.

Other people are amazed to think that I would actually want to spend so much time with my kids.

I actually quite like my kids. There are days when I would probably sell them for 50c, but on the whole they are not bad. The more time I spend with them, the more I like them, so that works out pretty well.

Of course there are days when I am desperate for some time out and some serious adult conversation, but I can generally count on Nev for that. And then of course there's always the phone, emails and blogger (thankyou blogger for restoring my sanity on sooooo many occasions!)

As parents we are always wanting to give our children the best we possibly can.

For some people this includes expensive private schools, horse riding/piano/"what fork to eat a salad with" lessons.

For others it may be sending their children to a good state school and getting up at 4am to take them to swimming training.

For me, it is keeping my children home with me, building in them a love of learning, and helping them take steps in becoming the independent people thay are meant to be.

We are all so different.

And that's what makes this world so interesting.

To quote Harri....

2010-02-06T18:13:00.000-08:00

Sigh.

Bigger sigh.

"I wish I was a tornado Mum"

"Then you wouldn't be able to tell me off when I destroy everything"

This came after a week of him being quite "off" (six year old molars coming through, grumpy, tired and destructive!) and borrowing a DVD from the library called Angry Skies.

You have to love em......

Mantra......

2010-02-02T15:13:00.000-08:00

Live simply.

Love generously.

Laugh loudly (and often).

Care deeply.

Speak kindly.

Leave the rest to God.

Scurvy 101......

2010-01-31T20:34:00.000-08:00

As a homeschooler, I really, really love it when something you have tried to teach your children (and they either don't get it, or choose not to learn it) is reinforced through some other means and they have one of those "AHA!!!!" moments.

Followed closely by "Mum was right all along.......(head down, abashed look, shuffling feet etc).

Yep. Total and utter satisfaction.
("you may have the rest of the afternoon off, take fifty from the till and go home".....)

This morning as we looked at the early history of "The Great South Land", the question was asked, "why wasn't Australia discovered earlier?"

We narrowed it down to two main reasons:

It sounded too scary.
It was too far away.

Because so little was known of these undiscovered lands, people began to make up (and believe) crazy stories. They believed giants lived on the land, and that the seas down south were so hot they would boil the ship and anyone aboard would die, (and my favourite) if you went to these new lands, you would be upside down!!

Scarey stuff eh. I wouldn't want to go either.

Most of the explorers could not equip their ships with enough fresh supplies for such a long sea journey. Many of the crew died of scurvy, leaving the ships to wreck upon some uncharted reef, rocks etc.

I found all of this quite fascinating, and when Harri piped up with, "what's scurvy Mum", I got a bit excited and googled it straight away. (Quite often I'll google something first and then share it with the kids after I've checked it out - but alas, not today!)

Horrid pictures of diseased gums, skin and nails appeared on the screen and Harri uttered a small squeak of horror.

"How did they get like that Mum," he asked in a tiny voice.

Seizing the moment for the golden opprtunity it most definitely was, I very seriously said (with a slightly spooky edge) "they did not eat their fruit and vegetables Harri".

Funnily enough, Harri ate all his pineapple and banana today at morning tea. Wonder what could have got into him?................

(Heh heh - evil Mummy cackle)

2010-01-24T14:32:00.000-08:00

A kind of madness has taken over our house.

People are forgetting to eat, sleep and even breathe.

We are caught up in a new craze. Well, a new craze for us. It's actually been around since the 70's, but as per usual, we are always a "season" or two behind everybody else.

It's all part of our Australia Day celebrations. We are getting into it this year, being all patriotic and "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie".

The children and I began our Australian History curriculum on Thursday, looking into the lives of Aboriginals. Harri especially found it all fascinating, wanting to know so much more about their hunting and eating habits.

A few of their traditions brought about great discussions, with Ellie (already a bit of a feminist) up in arms about the practice of women being banned from the men's ceremonial gatherings. I revealed to her somewhat hesitantly, that women were under the threat of death should they even so much as look like they had been listening in.

"That's not fair Mummy. Women have just as much good stuff to say as men", she howled.

I calmed her with the thought that the men were probably just talking about the best fishing spots or whining about their dinner the night before being cold, and that the women were back at camp making lovely bead necklaces etc, and she seemed to get over it.

We then made a "Bull Roarer" out of an old ruler and took it out in the back garden to try out. It was amazingly loud and sent the dog absolutely mental. We also had a few goes with a boomerang, but that thing just would not come back!

On to some traditional dot and x-ray painting which somehow ended up in the kids in undies, covered with spots (these things do get out of hand sometimes), and we felt "immersed in our rich history", just as the curriculum promised.

So the next step (quite obviously) was to get out our Australian version of Monopoly that we bought ourselves for Christmas. We set it up on Saturday after lunch, and the game has not yet stopped. Even Nev on his way out the door to work this morning, stopped long enough for just one more roll of the dice.

Talk about a house divided! No one is showing anybody else any mercy whatsoever. Land has been bought just so somebody else can't have it, and so help you if you don't have enough money to pay the rent!

Ruthless and soooo hilarious!

At one point, when Ellie had just bought The Sunshine Coast for $2.6 million, Harri said with a really smug look on his face, "I am never, ever, ever going to let you have Brisbane airport (which was the other piece of land Ellie wanted). You've just got Australia Zoo and Bindi and you can't have everything,"

And it wasn't just the kids being greedy. Nev refused to let me buy Barossa Valley - wouldn't swap it for anything! And all because I wanted to put a hotel on it and charge people $3.5 million every time they landed on it.

Honestly, I thought marriage was sacred and you shared everything. Obviously not when it comes to Monopoly.......

A good day to learn something new.......

2010-01-17T22:22:00.000-08:00

We began our homeschooling today - very slowly - as this year, not only do I have two full-time students but we are using all new curriculum.

(Pshaw! - as if I didn't already have my hands full with the whole world domination thing and training a puppy not to eat the legs off the outdoor table!)

We began with Maths, and the children learned all about place values. We drew up "Decimal Street" and built houses for the "units, tens and hundreds". Fascinating, riveting, exciting stuff....

As for me, I learned today that I have Planters Fasciitis (sounds a lot more exotic than it really is) which would explain all the pain in my right foot. It's very common apparently, but also very expensive.

I have to have orthotics made for my shoes at $390 a set. Guess who'll be getting one set and only allowed to own one pair of shoes!!

So, we all learned something new today. Except the dog. He's still eating the legs off the table......

Handy hints from the Post Office.....

2010-01-14T19:30:00.000-08:00

It always surprises me where you can pick up one of "lifes' little gems" - a saying or thought, so profound that it causes you to catch your breath.

So here I was, in line at the Post Office, and out of the corner of my eye I notice a rack with fridge magnets spread out all over it.

("What do you mean - how profound can fridge magnets possibly be?")

Well let's take a look at these little beauties........

There are two big lessons in life:

Don't sweat the petty stuff.
Don't pet the sweaty stuff.

And of course this famous saying:

I don't skinny dip anymore. I chunky dunk.

(Smirk, smirk)

I told you.....profound!!!!!!

A hot date with the hubby......

2010-01-12T22:21:00.000-08:00

Each morning this week, the kids have gone off to Vacation Bible School, and left me sans responsibility for a couple of hours.

On Monday, Nev took me out for coffee......

On Tuesday, I went to the video store and came home with a feel-good movie and a box of chocolate, caramel thingies (which apparently I inhaled because one minute they were there and the next minute I was licking out the box)......

Today, I did the groceries and put them away, made a cup of tea and read my book.

Tomorrow, I have to go to the Drs. (blechhh - hate Drs.), the Medicare office, pay some insurance etc etc.

There seems to be a decline in my free time excitement level. I think I want to start the week over. I want to go back to when I had two hours of adult conversation with my favourite person.

On Friday I will most likely be scrubbing out the toilet and having conversations with Naked Ben.

Sigh......

The life and times of Naked Ben.......

2010-01-09T18:02:00.000-08:00

Naked Ben drops his guts

(hahahahahahah hysterical laughter)

Sorry! I just had to!

Validation......

2010-01-08T20:26:00.000-08:00

We all need it. It keeps us functioning, enables us to go on. One foot in front of the other.

In a world where so many instances and situations make us feel like we're not OK - or that perhaps we're actually invisible, or even that what we could bring to the table is totally insignificant not to mention possibly delusional or ridiculous - to receive validation for something we are doing, believe in, or just for who we are, is a wonderful boost to the ego.

And I'm feeling pretty good right now as I just got a great, big, fat, validation sticker put on one particular area of my life.

At the end of last year, I put together an application for registration as a Home Educator through the Queensland Government. I felt a bit daunted just looking at it all, but with some help from a couple of lovely friends, it made a bit more sense.

The process of the application was pretty huge. There was quite a lot of criteria that I needed to prove I could meet within our homeschooling plan, and every second piece of info. I was sending had to be certified by a Justice of the Peace.

When I thought I had everything together I sent it off, praying for a quick response.

And yesterday I received a lovely "welcome letter" from the Home Education Unit telling me I had been given a provisionary registration and that they would be in contact in about three weeks' time for "further support and assistance if needed".

To be honest, I had been a little bit terrified of the response I would get from the Home Education Unit. I even had nightmares involving my children being taken away and me being burnt at the stake with a sign over my head saying, "Not a teacher".

But all my worries and fears have abated, and I'm feeling pretty confident and ready to meet the challenge of homeschooling head on.

At least for this week anyway..........

No Mum, there really aren't any extra naked men in the house.....

2010-01-06T19:39:00.000-08:00

"You're not going to blog this are you Mum?" Harri almost begged me. (Who's he kidding - some of my best stuff comes straight out of his mouth!)

I just laughed even harder (it's not good to lie to your kids - avoid answering by all means, but don't outright lie!)

We had just finished our weekly shop, and I managed to pick up something very cheap that I have had my eye on for weeks - waiting, hoping that it would be there long enough for me to afford it. (Yay half price clearance!!)

A little helper for Science - a hands on kind of thing.

Seeing as it would be used quite a lot, especially this first term, I told the children that it probably required a name. A kind of tag per se. After all, the kids like to name things - even the geckos on our verandah are all called Dave...

Harri, with a wicked little grin in his eye, yells out "let's call him Naked Ben".

"Very apt", I thought "and absolutely brilliant (snigger, snigger) as a title for a blog post".....

"Naked Ben moves in with us", "Me and Naked Ben", "What we've been doing with Naked Ben", "Naked Ben in the classroom" and most importantly, "The Secret Life of Naked Ben".

Better not though, my Mum will disown me. Heh heh. Hi Mum. Love you.

Free Rice and Free Education.....

2010-01-05T20:01:00.000-08:00

I did not know this horrific fact: somewhere in the world, every six seconds a child dies from hunger related causes.

I also did not know that passepied is a triple-time dance, or that clinquant means glittering and an alforja is a saddlebag. I also certainly did not know that Victoria is the capital of Seychelles (not to mention where Seychelles is on the map!)

But I am learning these things and so are the children. Thanks to Mary of Resident Alien who introduced us to the world of http://www.freerice.com/ we are having so much fun. And helping to end world hunger - it doesn't get much better than that.

Free Rice is sponsored by the World Food Programme, Citi Foundation and various other sponsors and has been running since 2007 when John Breen donated it to United Nations. The whole idea behind it is to get people fed and educated all over the world.

While you play, a sponsor banner bar appears at the bottom of the screen and the money generated from this, buys the rice and sends it to wherever needs it. The more people play, the more rice gets sent out and the more we get to learn and have fun.

The children and I will be using it mostly for Geography. A country appears on the screen with a multi-choice answer. The kids took a good long look at the country, noting it's shape and where it is in relation to other shapes etc and then rush over to our big world map and see if they can find it.

When they get the answer right they both get very excited.

"Yeah, we're feeding the world Mum", yells Ellie, fist in the air.

If you've got a few spare minutes, check it out.

Got myself a couple of Chefs......

2010-01-04T17:37:00.000-08:00

My headspace is starting to get ready for homeschooling again this year.

All our curriculum has arrived (just needs to be covered in contact - an area that I am not particularly gifted in!!) and I have to say that we are all a little bit excited.

I can't wait to start. It will all be so much more exciting than last year, so much more hands on and activity based. So much more reading and preparation for me!

So while I read and get together all the stuff that we will need for at least this first term, and make lists, and ponder, and make another list etc, the kids have been busy with their own stuff.

This is a list Ellie made the other day.....

I believe she acheived all the things on her list (which is a lot more than I can say about any of mine!!)

We have all been having a ball in the beautiful rain......

And even found time to do a bit more of this...

And after a good long therapy session with my husband over my most recent issue of being a control freak, we have put into place a few things which should help me to let go of some stuff.

One of the main areas, was for me to let the kids help more about the house. I am still making their beds for them and generally cleaning up after them every day ( I love neat, I can think when things are neat. I get a bit flustered when they aren't) And quite frankly, it is often easier to do these things myself.

But the fact of the matter is that I am not helping them to become the independent people that they need to learn to be - I am not teaching them about the reality of life and I am taking the easy way out for myself.

(Sigh - self knowledge sure isn't easy!)

So Nev and I put together some lists of things for the children to take care of, and I am not allowed to nag them to do it, or am I allowed to redo anything after they have done it. They need to learn their place in the family and to grasp the fact that they need to do their fair share. And I need to let them do it, and even handle it when things aren't necessarily how I would like them.

So last night, they cooked tea. They made Muffy's special sausage rolls and they did a really great job. I was very proud of them. And they enjoyed being left to make a mess and were very proud of the end result.

And I was proud of me. I didn't jump in and take over. I celebrated this fact with a glass of wine on the verandah while dinner cooked in the oven.

This could turn out to be a really great thing!

2010-01-03T01:09:00.000-08:00

I haven't written on my blog since last year (sorry, truly pathetic attempt at humour).

At the start of this new year, I'm reminded of my friend Andrew, who gets very excited at the prospect of a new diary - (he is ~~incredibly wierd~~ slightly whacko) - but I do get the general gist of what he is trying to say.

A blank diary is kind of like endless opportunities. There is nothing determined, so anything can happen.

Yep, it's all pretty exciting. All this stepping off into the great unknown. Life - the great adventure.

Actually, I believe that this year will hold much of the same for all of us - you know; work, eat, sleep etc - but there will be those golden moments of unexpectedness that life just kind of chucks at you, and what we will actually do with those moments, is what makes it all so unknown and unchartered.

I was going to borrow Library Girl's New Years' Res. which was along the lines of not stuffing up too much.
On reflection, I think that stuffing up is pretty much a given for me. If I don't stuff things up, then I probably won't learn anything.

So what I have decided my New Years' Res. will be is to stop being such a control freak. I say this with a bit of an aching heart. This is only a fresh discovery. I am a control freak, and I am a little bit saddened by this.

Two of my lovely friends have pulled me up on something this past week, something that I do for my own personal reasons, which in fact actually hinder other people. It is only something small on the scale of things, but it has caused me to take a good, long look at my life.

And I can see it. I can see those times where I have manipulated things and people to get the outcome that I want. And that not only scares me, it saddens me. I very probably, have hurt people, and affected things in a negative way.

And I regret that so much.

Now that I have made this painful realisation, I can do something about it.

And that's what a new year is all about isn't it. A chance to begin again. To change the things you did last year, and try something new.

So for me, it will be a year for learning to let go. And being thankful that despite my problems and issues, I am loved anyway.

The public shame of David Attenborough........

2009-12-27T14:54:00.000-08:00

I wasn't at the scene of this particular story, but it's a story that definitely needs telling.

Nev took the kids to Maccas for an ice cream last night, and when he got home he was still laughing about what happened........

In every Maccas store these days, there is a giant screen TV mounted on the wall. So big you can't help but watch it.

Last night the program "David Attenborough's Life in Cold Blood" was showing. Harri loves these shows -and although he couldn't actually hear what was going on, he sat riveted watching various scenes of turtles doing what they do.

At one particular point, a fire swept through the turtles' habitat and a later scene showed David standing behind a still-smouldering log saying something useful with much waving of hands etc. (remember nobody could hear what was being said).

In the foreground of this shot, a turtle wandered across the blackened earth, probably looking for food etc. and David continued to talk in the background, showing no particular concern for the said turtle.

Under his breath, Harri began to mutter something.

Nev, not quite catching what Harri had said, spun around to look at the TV to get the gist of what Harri was watching.

Harri, who was by now far more animated and with a look of desperate urgency on his face, was waving his hand and pointing at the TV.

"Dude, help the turtle. Dude, I said help the turtle. Dude!!"

Christmas past......

2009-12-26T21:09:00.000-08:00

Well, Christmas is over for another year.

In some ways it seems quite perverse - all the preparation and thought goes on prior to it for months, and then "one sleep" and it's all over.

As I walked the dog on Boxing Day morning, I noticed that the Christmas decorations in shop windows seemed out of date already somehow. As the Bearded Rambler mentioned - life is so fleeting!!!

Still, what a wonderful day we had.

Ellie and Harri roused us abhorrently early, and Nev and I consumed far more than our usual cups of tea, just to get through to lunchtime.

Because so many of our presents come from down south, we stagger the gift opening, ringing each giver in between the next lot of presents (did that make any sense??) Well it seems to work - the kids tend to take a little bit longer checking out their presents, and they actually know who they are thanking for what present etc.

We seemed to have a bit of a theme this year - puzzles - which was brilliant as we all love them!

I asked my Mum and Dad for a world map jigsaw for our Geography studies (I am so globally challenged!!!) and they somehow found the biggest puzzle ever made! 6ft x 4ft, 60 thick foam pieces with all the countries, flags, people, animals, details etc. It is absolutely awesome!! (photos to come Mum!)

I also found a couple of 3D puzzles for the children while I was in Adelaide (oh how I love the variety of big city shopping!!) and these had us all very quiet yesterday afternoon. It was a little bit tricky folding some of the pieces into the right shapes and then slotting them into the right slots etc. but the end result was brilliant!!

This is supposed to be the castle in the story of Cinderella. The description on the box made me fall about laughing for most of the day......

"Cinderella is the protagonist of the tale, who suffered humiliation from her stepmother and two elder sisters. But she bear it quietly and finally acquire the happiness"

Harri's puzzle was supposed to be Puss in Boots but to me it looked just like a scarey castle - perfect for Harri!

Is there a scarey castle in Puss in Boots? Actually I haven't the foggiest what the Puss in Boots story is all about. Other than a Puss in Boots. Obviously. Heh.

We spent Christmas afternoon, playing games and hanging out with our friends who came for a very relaxed dinner (and wine) on the verandah. The kids all went to bed exhausted, slept well and were ready for an early swim at the beach the next morning.

Wonderful! And over way too quickly......

A very festive merryness to you.....

2009-12-23T15:22:00.000-08:00

Love's the thing at Christmas, all else is tinsel......

What is it about rain? (or maybe it's just my family??......)

2009-12-20T20:35:00.000-08:00

Last night it rained, it poured, gutters overflowed and puddles appeared from nowhere. It was a blissful sight after not having it for so long!

When it rains, my family go slightly mad.

For days now, we've been sitting around whingeing about the heat, the lack of green grass, the lawns turning into dustbowls etc etc. So when the raindrops began falling on the roof, a glint appeared in each and every eye.

(In the past when it rains heavily, clothes have been ripped from bodies and left strewn about the floor, and a mad dash is made out into the back garden to "dance betweeen the drops").

But this time, a mad chant began "rain swim, rain swim". This continued until we arrived at our friends' house who have a lovely pool (Nev's work Christmas party - held there because of the heat and everybody being desperate to get cool) but for some reason, nobody wanted to swim??

Except us of course.

There is something wildly exhilerating about swimming while it rains. Why is that?.....

But I did have to laugh at the picture my children made - drenched from the rain, sitting under the big shade umbrella to put on their flippers before jumping into the pool. Why the umbrella? I guess they didn't want to get wet?? Ha ha ha ha ha

Well, it amused me. Sorry. Need Christmas drink.........

It wasn't funny at the time.......

2009-12-16T14:52:00.000-08:00

OK. Here's the picture. I am slowly recovering from the flu. I'm really tired and could care less about being exciting, fun Mum and the kids are a bit restless. I haven't walked the dog for days and he is just a pent-up ball of misplaced energy.

Just ripe for things to go monumentally wrong eh!!!

Let's back track to yesteday morning when I fed the dog. His food comes in 1.5kg tubes and he normally gets about 1/5 each day. I fed him as normal, and headed back up stairs to get breakfast for everybody else.

(Yep - you already know don't you!! I left the rest of the food out where the dog could get to it, and what dog in his right mind is going to say no to more food? Not mine, that's for sure.)

The kids and I tried hard to settle down into some puzzles and drawing competitions, but things went downhill pretty quick and we were all a little bit tearful by lunchtime.

"I'm just going to feed the dog, and then we'll switch on the A/C and have some stories and a big nap," I tell the children cheerfully, feeling optimistic that the day may still turn out to be a good one.

As I walk down the stairs, a sense of impending doom strikes me, and I wonder why.

The scene out my back door was one of absolute nightmare material. The dog had not only dug about three giant holes, but thanks to his sneaky-feast, had vomited and poohed all over the place.

There was nothing else for me to do, but sit down and have a really good cry.

So I did.

And then I planned the dogs' demise in delicious detail.

He will look lovely with a big Christmas bow around his neck, stuffed and placed under the tree!

The extremes of Christmas......

2009-12-15T15:21:00.000-08:00

I read my sisters' blog last night, and even though it was only one sentence, it kept me tossing and turning all night long......

"Why are they buying things they don't need and can't afford, to impress people they do not care about?"

I struggled with this very issue this week as I reflected on presents I had bought for teenage nephews and nieces. (Hang on that didn't come out right.... I care very much for my nephews and nieces!) I bought them various offerings from the Christian Blind Mission - goats and vegie patches etc, but then I began to panic that these would be unacceptable gifts, that the sentiment behind them would be lost......

Maybe what I should have bought them was vouchers for a music store, or DVD's or, I don't know!

And then I spoke to a friend of mine this morning who told me the story of another blogging friend. This family has seven children. Six adopted and one "home made". And ALL this family want for Christmas is the little girl who has waited five years in an orphange in Ethiopia - they want to bring her home so she can have a family for Christmas.

The other children in the family, told their parents not to buy them any Christmas presents, they just want to save the money to bring their sister home to them.

What selfless children!! I think they have a much better grip on the reality of Christmas, than many adults we know. (If you want to help out this family in any way, please see http://www.overthemoonwithjoy.blogpot.com/)

I love Christmas. The tree, fairy lights, gift giving, time with family and friends. But there is SO much more to it. Yes, it's a celebration of all of those things, but without the gift of God's own son, it is nothing more than an opportunity to "buy things we do not need and can't afford, to impress people we do not care about".

As we put up out Christmas tree on the weekend, I read out a special little story. I won't go into all the detail, but it puts a lot of the Christmas stuff into perspective, Christmas traditions etc.

The tree - an evergree fir - hope never dies.
The star at the top of a tree - a guiding light to follow.
The candle - a flame to light the way.
The wreath - a circle of love between family and friends.
The bells - to ring in people who are lost and have nowhere to go.

The gift - generosity to others and a symbol of God's gift of his Son.

The candy cane - a shepherds crook - keeping each other safe.

Santa - a worker carrying out the good deeds of Christmas.

I don't know about anyone else, but even as I try to keep our Christmas a simple one, one that is more about the giving than the receiving, more about other people than ourselves; I still feel we have managed to lose sight of what it is really all about.

Anyway, I do wish everybody a wonderful and festive Christmas. May God bless you.

Toast; it can kill ya.......

2009-12-13T14:17:00.000-08:00

We are all down with the flu.

I hate being sick!

No-one is sleeping and we are all just a little fed up, short in the tolerance department, grumpy and frankly, fairly pathetic.

Little things are enough to send you over the deep end. Like breakfast. Yep - when you feel like this and something goes wrong at breakfast time, it's nearly enough to kill you.

Picture sad, over-tired, nose running, coughing Harri, who is merely trying to eat his toast, when disaster strikes.

"I just bit my tongue. (toast gets chucked rather vehemently at plate) This is just the worst day of my life!"

Testify...........

Full circle.......

2009-12-11T21:22:00.000-08:00

I've been sitting here looking at my blog for the past few days, frustrated that I have nothing to write about.

Such a sense of under-achievement.

I feel like I have not written anything decent in a long time. You know, the stuff that makes a difference - epiphanies, catharsis etc.

I've had this blog for a little over a year now, and this is my 152nd post. This means that obviously, in the past I did have something to write about. But why is it being so elusive now?

I have a theory.

Every year, there comes a point where I begin to feel restless, a time where I tend to pick apart things in my life and analyse them, question them.

"Should I be doing more of this, less of that, something completely different or maybe nothing at all?"

I'm not sure if this is caused by the whole "end of the year" feeling - where things begin to finish up and you start thinking about the new year and what it may hold, or whether this is something that my personality (anal retentive) demands of me.

I do know that I dislike unfinished things. That I prefer to complete something before going on to the next thing (told ya - anal retentive for sure).

With that in mind, I decided to go back over some of my old posts and see if any inspiration lay in their depths.

About this time last year, Nev and I had decided to head home, back down south to family. "Plan A" suddenly changed and we ended up staying here for another year.

(Hmmm, unfinished business no. 1.)

We were going to go travelling and see a little bit more of the country. I was pretty excited about this - I love exploring new places (unfinished business no.2)

We talked about our "ideal working situation" and realised that we would both love to work part time and home school part time (unfinished business no.3).

Anybody else seeing a pattern here?

Camera House, that Nev has managed for his ex-boss for the past year, is in the process of being sold. Things will undoubtedly change for Nev at work. This may be good, and it may be bad.

Over this past year, Nev has discovered that he can make really, important decisions - decisons that will have a great impact should they go right, and perhaps an even greater impact should they go horribly wrong. In making these decisions, his confidence has returned (I call him "Alphaman" these days!!!!) and he is beginning to look happy with himself again.

And over this past year, I have discovered that I CAN homeschool. We have worked our way through things we don't like, sorted out the things we do like, and have incorporated all of that into a fun, learning journey.

So now that we have discovered these things - things that we may not have discovered if we had left at the end of last year - I feel that we are leaning towards "Plan A" again.

In fact I think it would be fair to say that this year - although a complete divergence from the plan - has been a very important one.

An epiphany for sure.

A catharsis - well maybe.

We are definitely stronger for what we have learnt. We are perhaps more prepared for stepping out into the great unknown.

We seem to have come full circle......

One of those days........

2009-12-08T14:07:00.000-08:00

Special terms and conditions (or what the?.....)

2009-12-07T01:53:00.000-08:00

There are some things in this life that are so ridiculous you find yourself asking the age-old question "What the...".

I mean just for example, the bath towels that I hung out the other day. The bath towels themselves aren't ridiculous (well - the pale orange colour is), more so the label attached to them. (Who in their right mind reads towel labels?)

It said " Do not boil".

Damn - and I was just about to do that????

Anyway, the towels aren't really the main focus of this post (somehow I have a memory for the ridiculous...)

Today, a very grateful lady bought Nev a scratchie ticket. It was a "Set For Life" ticket which means you get $250, 000 a year for four years if you scratch off three consecutive numbers/symbols/dollar amounts.

Having never bought a scratchie ticket in our lives, we did get a little bit excited about the prospect of maybe, possibly, perhaps winning something.

We didn't.

But the laugh I got out of the *special terms and conditions* on the back of the ticket, was priceless.

*Some or all prizes may have been won prior to the purchase of this ticket.

As I was saying - "What the......"

Homecoming (and going)......

2009-12-02T15:04:00.000-08:00

Running at me, arms open wide, squealing. Bowled over by such enthusiasm from the kids. And Nev wasn't that far behind them (though he didn't squeal!!).

This was my welcome home at the airport yesterday. Everyone around us, either burst out laughing or smiled knowingly to themselves.

It was so good to see them! Looking at their faces, trying to listen to them all talking at once - I knew just how blessed I am to have them - to be wife and mother, friend and lover - all rolled into one.

How refreshing, after being away from them and devoid of all responsibility, to return knowing that right here, in the midst of my family is where I truly want to be. Surrounded by them, clambered all over by them.

But oh wow, did I have a great time away!!!!

I drank far too many glasses of wine, ate way too much, shopped a little bit too much and indulged all sorts of long neglected whims - going to the movies at a Gold Class cinema, long drawn out breakfasts, turkish dips, etc.

But by far the highlight was just spending time with my sister and my Mum and Dad. It has been far too long since I've just hung out with my sister - which is so sad because for years and years, she was my best friend.

We lived through our childhood together, and went through so much in our later teen years, and that bond is one that will never be broken. I am reminded of this every time I tell Ellie and Harri "you two will always be friends if you look after each other now".

And Sarah and I having dinner with Mum and Dad, just the four of us.

I worked it out. It's been over 20 years since we sat down to a meal like that. It felt great. Like coming home.

And today, it's been back to normal. Walking the dog who was fairly well neglected while I was away, 14 loads of washing, breakfast, lunch and dinner to think about, children to play with and read to, etc etc.

It's good to be back.........

Leaving on a jet plane.....

2009-11-26T14:39:00.000-08:00

On the eve of flying out, I find myself feeling a whole bag of mixed emotions.

Funny isn't it, when you start fantasising about something (time out away for myself) and then that fantasy becomes a reality, you become unsure that you want the fantasy anyway.

Now I sound like an ungrateful wretch. Great. Now I have guilt!

I mean my darling, hardworking husband is basically saying this.....

and rewarding me with something I thought would probably never happen, and I find myself having a little freak out, thinking this......

Part of me really wishes Nev and the kids were coming with me, but I guess that kind of defeats the purpose of all this.

And I think they need a break from me too - it's probably been quite a hard year on them as well, with all the things I've been going through.

It will be good for them to spend some time together - Nev is just so much more relaxed and patient with them and just plain old good fun. I find it quite hard to balance the role of Mum/teacher and "good times Mum". Something I hope will more naturally blend together the longer I homeschool them.

I know my family is really looking forward to seeing me, and as a friend told me today - "this will be so good for you, to just go and be a sister and a daughter again".

True. There aren't many opportunities to feel like this when you are so far away from your family.

I know I will probably spend a lot of time wondering what is happening back here, and missing them like crazy, but I pray that this time away will indeed re-energise me.

I pray that I will come home grateful that God has put me in this beautiful place with this family that I love so much.

And I pray that I will hold my head high as I return wearing the crown of the reigning "Singstar Champion".....

Christmas shopping vs. peace and serenity..........

2009-11-23T21:59:00.000-08:00

I'm feeling festive! Almost light headed.

I've begun singing Christmas carols, and have thought about putting on our one and only Christmas carol CD - released by Myer a few years ago and has Bert Newton singing Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer - extremely sad!

I'm not just feeling festive because there is only 4 sleeps until I go away, but because we have almost finished our Christmas present shopping. Yeehaa! I'm feeling so organised and on top of things (and modest too!)

Nev has made photo calendars for all the rellies, I have purchased a good amount of goats, vegie patches and mosquito nets through Christian Blind Missions and the children have begun making their presents for friends this week - Ellie is making "pink, peppermint, moisture rich bath bombs" and Harri is making green slime and adding plastic worms and bugs.

Their choice of presents, pretty much sums up my two children:

Ellie - pink, pretty and sweet smelling.

Harri - the yuckier, the better.

Mind you, as we were shopping for the essential ingredients for the kids' presents, a particular driver nearly erased my Christmas spirit, not to mention my existence from the face of the earth.

And then there's the impossibility of finding a carpark in town. And discovering that the shop you counted on having all the ingredients you need, just plain old doesn't, and you have to go all the way across the other side of town (where you have just come from) and then finding only one thing you need and have no idea where to find the other six magical ingredients,and the kids are whining and it's really, really hot, and you've just about had enough.........

Get outta here.......

2009-11-17T20:00:00.000-08:00

My husband, my hero.

He is taking some time off work and sending me away for five days. Five! Whole! Days! I have never been away from Nev and the kids for longer than two nights - ever!

"You've worked so hard this year babe," he tells me.

I will certainly not argue with him on that one.

So I am boarding a plane and going home to South Australia to catch up with my sister, niece and nephew and my Mum and Dad.

I am so excited I think I may throw up!

Of course there's every chance that I'll be completely lost without my kids being around all the time. I will probably stop random strangers and push their hair off their foreheads, tell them to stand up straight or tuck in a stray shirt......

But promises of marathon "Singstar" concerts, bottles of wine at Barossa Valley and big city culture, will I am sure, get me through those moments of missing my family so much it will physically hurt.

Sigh. Well, you know, someone has to do it...........

A pink rose by any other name.........

2009-11-11T19:29:00.000-08:00

(at approx. two and a half years)

(at approx. five years)

(made by her brother yesterday)

Sssssh! There's something going on......

2009-11-11T19:18:00.000-08:00

The house was quiet. Too quiet.

"Where's Harri," I asked Ellie.

She shrugged at me; the universal language for "I dunno".

I went in search of my boy, for as anyone who knows him will tell you "quiet = mischief"

I found him, busily creating this, and just had to take a picture......

He had come across a bag of elastic bands, and was quite happily making pictures by stretching them around the knobs on an old lego board.

Huh!! I would never have thought of that. How cool are little minds!!!!

A candid moment with Helen (or strap yourself in, this is a long one!)........

2009-11-08T17:46:00.000-08:00

Well, fourth term is wrapping up and we will have officially completed a year of homeschooling!!! It is a cause to celebrate, and a chance for me to review and rethink, re-evaluate and just plain old take stock.

And all I can say is WOW!!!!

I did not know, that when I posted at the beginning of the year, my decision to homeschool would bring about so many changes, and that God would really begin a work in me and in my life.

I have always admired homeschoolers, the closeness that seemed so obvious in their families. But I was of the mindset that I couldn't do it. I knew an extreme amount of patience and self-sacrifice was required, and those two aspects are not what I would call naturally mine.

I was relieved (and somewhat sad) when I enrolled Ellie at school - letting myself off the hook with the thought that it was a good, Christian school, and if she was to go anywhere, well obviously it was the best choice.

But homeschooling continued to be in the back of my mind.

At the centre of it all, was the fact that I want to have a very real relationship with my kids. I want to be involved in their lives. I want them to be able to talk to me about anything and everything.

For them to do that, I felt like I needed to be involved in every aspect of their lives. But already, with Ellie going to school, I felt like I was pushing her out the door in the morning, and then losing her for at least six hours of the day. After school it all seemed fraught with a desperate attempt to reconnect with her, do homework and get dinner on the table.

So, I taught my daughter the art of wagging school - not in the general sense of not going to school to do something deviant instead, but just to stay home with me and Harri, hanging out together.

They were the best of days....

At the end of last year, we made a lot of decisions as a family - we would leave QLD and head off travelling, eventually ending up down south to live closer to family. With that in mind, Nev and I settled on six months' worth of homeschooling while we travelled. We would work together as a team, each of us bringing something different to the whole experience.

Woohoo!!! I was so excited. With Nev's support and the joy of travelling together - well, it was going to be awesome.

But God had different plans. At a time where we felt a little bit lost and unsure, he found Nev an amazing job, and placed us amongst some people, who would help us to take a look at our lives and challenge us on a lot of issues.

Without Nev's hands-on role with homeschooling, I doubted that I could do it myself. Having already purchased the curriculum, and with a little voice inside my head saying "no matter, if it all goes completely to crap, you can still just enrol them in school down the track", I decided to just give it a go anyway.

I didn't realise though, that my heart and my attitude would need so much more work. I felt quite literally defensive about what I was planning to do. I almost felt like my back was up aganist the wall, like I had dug myself a hole, but dammit, I would continue none the less. I would not be seen as a failure now, not when so many others were doing it. Other people do this, so I can too!!

A battle was going on inside me - I was determined to not become one of these lovely women who believed this was their God-given calling to stay home and give everything of themselves to their families - even though I secretly admired them.

I would not start to wear aprons and a constant serene look on my face. I would not bake my own sourdough bread and keep chickens and plant vegetable patches and make furniture out of rough-hewn timber while bambi pranced on the lawn. I felt sure that these sorts of women were headed for some kind of breakdown, and that I would never match up to them, so why even try.

I would do things differently. I would not ask for help, I would struggle on regardless. I did not need to change, or learn to be selfless. I did not want it to become an all encompassing lifestyle, I just wanted it to be just another thing that I was doing.

It all started really well, as new things often do. It was different way of doing things, and the kids interest was infectious. We began very slowly with a very basic curriculum - purely a textbook style - and sorted out our daily routine.

Once we were comfortable with that, we began to add other things and try out stuff for ourselves. I was quite smug.

By half way through third term, I was completely exhausted. I began to snap at the children and was desperate for some time away from them. I resented Nev being away at work, and became extremely defensive that I was working harder than him.

Basically, I became quite bitter. I resented people who seemed to be homeschooling with such joy and ease, and even though I began to really dislike what we were doing, I refused to ask for help and advice. I felt lonely and isolated, frightened and forgotten.

I didn't like what I was becoming and I didn't like the way homeschooling (or at least my version) was heading.

Even though I was struggling, I was not prepared to give up - I mean, where could I send them to school anyway? I was fairly sure that I couldn't let them go, but what I was doing with them, just wasn't working.
I knew I wanted to run a lot of questions past someone with a lot of experience and a genuine love for her family and homeschooling. Somebody who understood the struggles, and would encourage me to keep on ploughing through them.

And isn't it amazing that God knows who we need, right at the moment we need them the most!! My thoughts turned to friends who had homeschooled for years, and although they had moved away, stayed in contact through this blog. (Yes you, Kayleen - thankyou, thankyou for being so encouraging!!!)

My head also began to get around the fact that (I know that this is completely obvious to quite a few people) you only get out what you put in - and to be honest, I had been relying a lot on the text books to do the teaching, even though part of me was rebelling against the monotonous, repetitiveness of a lot of it.

I began to seek other curriculum, and to do something I hadn't done at the beginning - research homeschooling. (Yeah I know - duh!!!)

A great deal of my life has been done with the "fly by the seat of my pants" attitude, and I believe that homeschooling was just another thing that I under-prepared for.

I also took (just for the sake of it) a questionnaire through Google of all places - "do you think you should homeschool" - vaguely petrified of the answer! And what did I get but a 98% response that "yes, you should give it a go"! Funny where encouragement comes from sometimes!

But through all of this, there was a still small voice calling me to "be still and know that I am God". I began to see that maybe, just maybe, my calling as a woman, is to be a homeschooler. That my identity can be found in this and His plan for me and my family.

I am making a lot of changes for next year, right down to curriculums and even registering with the government as a home schooling family. We will experiment with stuff, be much more hands-on, and go out an experience a whole lot more. And I will continue to pray, that God will continue to mold me into the person He wants me to be, and the person that I need to be, to experience "life to the full".

I may not ever wear a look of complete serenity, but I have to admit there is a part of me that really likes aprons (floral pattern with a bit of ribbon - ssshh!) and quite likes the idea of chickens and a vegie patch. I am in awe of a God who has brought me on this trip and has held on tight to me, when I thought I was definitely going under.

Anyway, gotta go. It looks like Bambi has poohed on the lawn again..........

all those who are weary.......

2009-11-05T14:24:00.001-08:00

Psalm 13

v2: "How long must I struggle with my thoughts? How long must my heart be sad day after day?"

v5&6: "But I trust in your faithful love. My heart is filled with joy because you will save me. I will sing to the Lord. He has been so good to me."

Do you know what Mum?......

2009-11-02T23:48:00.000-08:00

Oh man, don't you just love it when the kids start a conversation like this!

Seriously, it could go anywhere from there - "I tried out the dog food and didn't really like it" to "what should I do with all the bubbles coming out of the drain in the bathroom floor?" - just a few examples. (yes, these are all conversations I have had recently!!!)

But today, Harri took me completely by surprise.

"I wish we had an aquarium".

"Well his birthday is coming up soon, and that would be a great little present," I thought to myself.

(I can't believe how wrong I got this whole scenario - I am soooooo small minded!!!)

"Yep Mum. We could get rid of the garage and turn it into an aquarium with a tunnel in it, so we could still park the car underneath the whales and the sharks."

Silly me.........

My life in cartoons.......

2009-10-31T14:35:00.000-07:00

Oh I love a good cartoon.

They make me laugh. They make me sigh. Some of them even make me want to cry.

I've used a lot on my blog recently, and I have to say that the insight that this particular cartoon has into my life, is quite frightening.

Cathy Thorne, the creator of www.everydaypeoplecartoons.com/ is a bit of a legend. She calls her cartoons, "cartoons about women and the people who love and annoy them" and I love that. Check her out, it's a great laugh!

Can't you just hear Aretha Franklin singing "Freedom"........

2009-10-29T16:04:00.000-07:00

My husband, who I love dearly, is not my favourite person this weekend.

He has flown off to Sydney for another Camera House meeting where he is staying for four nights at the Four Points by Sheraton on Darling Harbour!!!!!

He has buffet breakfasts, all lunches provided at the conference and even a dinner at the Conference room at Taronga Zoo (he has to catch the MV Princess - pre-dinner drinks - and then the Sky Safari (?) to get there!!!) He also has a formal dinner held in the Grand Ballroom at the Sheraton.

All this is paid for by the company, so I'm not really complaining. And yeah, I know, he works really hard and deserves a break etc. Blah, blah, blah.

But can't I at least have a good ol' fashioned whinge about it not being me, and probably never will be!!!

During the week, Nev did try and do his best hang-dog type expressions and say things like, "I don't really want to go", "it won't be the same without you" etc etc.

Pshaw Nev!!! What? Are you completely nuts?? I mean, when you look THIS good in your new formal gear, you gotta go out and show it off.....

I would go in a heartbeat. Four nights in a hotel room without the kids or the dog!!!!!

Come on girls, sing it with me and Aretha........

So....that's it then?

2009-10-26T16:02:00.000-07:00

I stared at him open-mouthed. Seriously? After all I've just told you, that's your professional opinion. You spent three hundred years at college studying and practicing your illegible scrawl, and that's all you have to say?

OK. So I don't like going to the Doctor's at the best of times. I hate the waiting rooms - waiting to pick up some horrible virus from one of the other patients, watching the other patients in their various stages of infirmness (? is that a word) - waiting to die really. Least that's how it makes me feel.

To actually go to the Dr's is a bit of a monumental occasion for me. I put it off. I avoid it. I procrastinate terribly. Sometimes I think I'd rather be sick than go. Actually, most times.

Well, I have been putting it off for far too long. I have been talking myself into it for about......hmmmm....two years now. My sister put an end to it all. "Stop being an idiot, and just go," she said lovingly.

So I sat down and wrote out a list of things I wanted to ask the Dr.

1. I'm tired all the time.
2. I get a really sharp pain in my elbow.
3. My knee feels twisted.
4. My heel hurts.
5. I have a lump in my leg that seems to be getting bigger.
6. I don't sleep.
7. My father is diabetic, I want blood sugar levels checked.
8. etc. etc.

I realise that I am not as young as I have been, and certainly my physical self cannot keep up with my mental self (I am in fact 21, thin, and an athlete......hahahahahahaha), but surely this cannot be the reason for all these complaints. If it is, I quit!

So silly me. I thought after all my effort in making a list and actually coming to see him, the Dr. would at least listen to me, and think quite seriously about what could be ailing me. I actually thought he would take time to talk about my issues with me and suggest things that we could do to perhaps.....oh, I don't know......fix them??? After all, isn't that what Dr's. do?!

"How many cups of tea or coffee do you drink in a day", he asked. "About 4 or 5," I offhandedly answered, not thinking for a moment that this was a major issue. "Well, you'll have to give that up won't you," he said.

I stared at him open-mouthed etc etc.

So there you go. That's it then. You may as well shoot me now. I don't have any other vices left.

I gave up smoking ten years ago (I still miss it) and I don't really drink much. All I had left was my passion for tea drinking. Vanilla tea in a good china cup - a hug in a cup, a small slice of heaven here on earth.

So next time you come over, I'll be putting on a pot of bourbon!!!!!

Sigh....

2009-10-25T15:50:00.000-07:00

I was in labour with Ellie for 33 hours. It was horrendous. But I maintained my focus and made it through.

Harri's labour was 8 hours long. I was exhausted, but I felt like a champion.
These days, I struggle to put cohesive sentences together after 9pm.
This is the obvious decline of my life.....

Just when I thought I couldn't take any more.....

2009-10-21T15:57:00.000-07:00

It's been a bit of a difficult week. Something grumpy has bitten the kids on the backside and they have been taking it out on each other.

As I went around the house, making beds and generally getting the day started, I prayed.

"Please Lord, give me patience. I pray for peace in this house today. Help us to love each other, be gentle with each other, and encourage each other".

And then I found these on the kid's beds........

Sigh. Isn't life just wonderful..........

Perspective.......

2009-10-19T20:12:00.000-07:00

So yesterday, I turned 39. I didn't want a fuss. I didn't want a cake. I just wanted to turn older, quietly.
(I did get quietly spolied. I don't mind that bit!!)

I have to admit that I may have faked some of the "yay, I'm having a good birthday" bonhomie. I may have to admit to being too caught up in the fact of getting older, wider and wrinklier.

(Yeah, I know. I thought I was a being a bit of a prat too!!)

Some time later, sitting on the verandah with Nev, he told me a story about a man that he had met that day. The man - not much older than Nev - came into the shop to pick up a print of his wife. His wife, who had tragically died two weeks ago in a car accident.

With tears in his eyes, my husband said to me, "I feel so fortunate that you and I are able to experience life together. All of it. Even the getting older part".

Aaah Nev. I love you. Thanks for putting some perspective in my life!!!

Dammit......

2009-10-17T19:22:00.000-07:00

Mmmm...... Peanut Butter! Instantly, images of thickly cut, heavy, multigrain bread, lighltly toasted and smeared with extra crunchy, light peanut butter come to me. Serenading me. Whispering sweet nothings to me.

Addicted?! OK - yep, you got me. Tragically addicted.

Did you notice that I mentioned, "light" peanut butter. I kid myself that this is better for me. It says on the jar - "1/3 less fat". It forgot to mention that is is about three trillion times sweeter and more addictive. Sigh.

Even with the immense, profound love that I have for peanut butter, I know in my heart of hearts that is is not good for me (dammit, dammit). I know that in every teaspoon there is some ungodly amount of saturated fats - and yet I cannot look away.....

As I ripen with age (I am currently in denial. I am 39!!!!!!!! tomorrow), there are many things that I should be doing to keep my current state of heath, and ever so many more things I should NOT be doing. I feel one of these is inhaling a pot of peanut butter per week......(dammit dammit).

In fact, as I make a peanut butter sandwich, I realise that I would actually prefer a nice tuna salad. With some delicious dressing. (I prefer this salad in the mental realm only - in the physical sense I am practically gagging for my sandwich).

I do KNOW that a salad is better for me. I KNOW that it tastes really yummy and I KNOW that the long term benefits for my health (not to mention my weight) are without doubt.

I have all the ingrediants for a nice tuna salad in the fridge, chilled and ready to go. I am torn.

"The salad will take a bit to prepare, and you are hungry now," I hear my bad self point out.

"Aaah instant gratification. Come on, show some steel. Be responsible. Show some maturity," argues back my angelic, thin self.

Dammit. Dammit, dammit, dammit. I hate it when it comes down to this.

"Eenie, meenie, miny mo etc......

As I lick the peanut butter satisfactorily off my fingers, I ponder the fact that at 39, I'll be much more responsible..........

Just another dodgy day....

2009-10-13T20:46:00.000-07:00

Today, has not even really started - I know it's 1.30pm - but all the same.... (All you have to do is take a look at Harri - he is still in his PJ's.) See what I mean. I can't even be bothered getting him changed - I'm too busy being jealous - jealous that he is in his PJ's and I'm not! Jealous, restless, tired and slightly bored - yep, that's me. Me in a nutshell.

Ellie woke up feeling a little bit - something - and so good mother that I am, I decided to give her a day off home school. (What with a holiday last week, she'll be backwards in no time at all!!!)

Giving her a day off, meant giving me the day off, and that just left me at a bit of a loose end.

I know there are probably hundreds of useful things I could be doing, but I can't seem to settle down to anything useful.

Actually that's not entirely true. I mean, I have already done some things, and I'm sure I will do something else later today - I'm just not actually sure what those things were/will be.

I did take the dog walking this morning. He's doing really well - only jumped up on three unsuspecting victims out on their morning jog (serves them right really, out there being all athletic and fit and showing me up for the droopy, glazed over, harried looking mess that I am!) and only one of them, lost their stride and got slightly tangled up in his lead. Good thing we're both so cute.

Came home, made cups of tea and breakfast. Sent Nev off to work. Tidied up. Read to the kids. Wormed the dog. Rang my sister and had a "I'm bored, what are you doing" conversation. Rang the mechanic. Rang Nev at work to see what he was doing - "you're bored, go find something useful to do" (pshaw right Nev!!).

Anyway, you get the general idea. At one point Harri said to me, "what are we doing today Mumsie" (excited, expectant look on his face). I hedged, I hawed, I generally put off answering him (because quite frankly, I had no idea!!).

Nothing gets past Harri. "Oh, it's going to be one of those dodgy days isn't it", he said. "Well, I'll get the lego out and you make yourself a cuppa, and we'll come up with something".

Sigh. If only he'd be the adult a little more often.

Aaaah holidays. Wherefore art thou?.......

2009-10-12T03:28:00.000-07:00

Just a few happy snaps of our holiday at 1770. I will have to wait for Nev to download his photos - they are much better than the ones I take on my little camera.

This was the view out our front door (ummm tent flap).....

We did a lot of this.....

We conquered bush trails to reach here...

to see this....

the kids did a whole lot of this.....

and some of this....

and a bit of this.....

I even found some time to do a bit of this (sigh).....

It's a dog's life.......

2009-10-11T21:46:00.000-07:00

It's just all so exhausting....