Monday 26 August 2013

later winter outtakes

It's lovely to look out the living room window at my budding flowers - a great distraction from the continued lurgies that are lurking in our home.  Last week I had my first ever trip in an ambulance, courtesy of a small one's croup.  It was described as mild to moderate, but enough to keep us in hospital overnight (I would hate to see moderate to severe croup, this bout scared me as it was...).  It's been hard to make plans and stick to them with either one or all of the kids sick over the past little while, so it's become easier to just let each day happen as it comes.  It's life with plenty of outtakes at the moment, like the spilled water on the bench and the flowers knocked out of their vase...  Beautiful, yes, but not as planned!

Thursday 15 August 2013

new plants - good for the soul

Our nursery visit on Monday coincided with a quick storm and heavy rain, forcing us undercover.  I picked up the bargains I could find in a short amount of time, not wanting to get completely soaked.  My purchases have vastly improved the view from my bedroom window, which looks out on to a green colourbond fence - ew!  I'm hoping the ornamental quince will shoot up fast and stay in flowering mode year round - it's just gorgeous!  It's been joined by both red and yellow tulips and chinese star jasmine.  The dutch iris in the foreground was a gift from our lovely friends (along with a Chinese elm and a Japanese maple - lucky us!) and has been planted in full sun out in the back garden - can't wait to see it bloom.  Slowly, slowly, the garden is becoming ours...

Tuesday 13 August 2013

laughing over broken eggs...

What do you do if an egg breaks and you're 6 and a half and full of mischief?  Squelch it between your hands of course!  It looks like thick homemade cornstarch paint and Sophie thought it felt terrific!
We're back from a quick break away in NSW, catching up with old friends and their two beautiful children.  We couldn't have asked for better weather on Saturday and Sunday - cold, but glorious blue skies and sunshine.  Perfect weather for picking jonquils!
Horse riding is now 'the' thing to do as far as my kids are concerned.  I'm about to sign off and find out about riding lessons - hideously expensive?  Here's hoping they're not!

Edited to add:
No riding lessons locally for under tens - Sophie will be very disappointed!  And the lessons for ten year olds are $50...  help!

Monday 5 August 2013

the writer's edition: month 5 check-in

The leaps and bounds I'd hoped to make this past month have been largely affected by poor health.  I find this time of year is a real challenge, whether it be having kids home sick from school or else being unwell myself.  In fact, it was at this time of year Joe and I looked at each other and thought that three children really was enough, we couldn't manage having to deal with four sick kids in winter!  Snotty noses and sore tummies make for wonderful birth control!!!!!!!!  Anyway, the impact of poor health on my writing has meant I'm only just over 57,000 words and I haven't got as far as I'd hoped with my editing and re-writes.  I have transferred my manuscript into a folder though, with each chapter in a separate section.  This makes it easier to edit and work on my chapters as  I prefer editing by hand, then transferring those changes back to the file on the computer.  

Please cross your fingers that the winter lurgies flee and that the next month brings great health and productivity!  Until then...

Thursday 1 August 2013

ch-ch-ch-changes...

We've spent the past seven months getting used to how we live in our new house and our set-up hasn't been quite right.  We had the couch positioned so you could only see inside, whereas I love lying on the couch and looking out into the garden.  We were watching television in our kitchen/living room and thinking we'd prefer to be in our sitting room at the front of the house (which is also my office, but more about that later)....  There was only one way to find out if another way would be better and on Monday evening we bit the bullet.  Please see our new dining area - open and spacious.  We love it!  I'm also really enjoying having my glass cabinet on display finally!  I bought it second-hand in about gosh, 2007 or 2008 and this is the first time it's working as intended.
And there, at the back, is our new sitting area, complete with couch readily positioned for gazing into the garden.  There's a lot more actual seating area than where we had it previously (see here), plus we don't have the kitchen table blocking the view to the back.  My double dining table has disappeared momentarily, as I've stolen our 'new' dining table for a temporary desk.  Yes, I've relinquished my office space!  It wasn't as big a sacrifice as I thought it would be.  In fact, in time when it's set up properly, we will have created a hot-desking type situation - a homework space for the kids and a workspace for Joe and I.  Photos will come when it's looking a little less paper strewn and a lot more aesthetically pleasing!
And we're not the only ones happy with our new kitchen/living/office space.  Minnie was caught enjoying a spot of sunshine - it looked like such a lovely place to chill out I lay there for a while myself!    I'll share more with you over the coming days - it's as much a revelation to myself.  It shows the benefits of having a very flexible living space, which is one of the things that was important to us when we built.  Now, it's proven just how valuable that kind of space is - and with the television in the front room, it's also out of sight, out of mind.  A bit easier to ignore when it's not just sitting there, staring at the kids and reminding them when it's turned off!