reading...

“But how? How can you just get over these things, darling?...You've had so much strife but you're always happy. How do you do it?'
'I choose to...I can leave myself to rot in the past, spend my time hating people for what happened, like my father did, or I can forgive and forget.'
'But it's not that easy.'
He smiled that Frank smile. 'Oh, but my treasure, it is so much less exhausting. You only have to forgive once. To resent, you have to do it all day, every day. You have to keep remembering all the bad things...I would have to make a list, a very, very long list and make sure I hated the people on it the right amount. That I did a proper job of hating, too: very Teutonic! No' - his voice became sober- 'we always have a choice. All of us.'" p.323” 
― M.L. Stedman, The Light Between Oceans

I've just finished this superb first novel from M.L. Stedman, and I truly loved it.  I went from wishing that things turned out the way that my heart felt they should, to just observing what humans so fiercely do - and the struggles with truth and fiction and the ever enduring love a mother has for her child -- in whichever form that child comes.

The above quote was just huge and profound.

And I want to remember it always.

The truth in it is so blaringly obvious - and so very applicable.

Thornbury

:: men in scarves
:: hot tea
:: coffee machines hissing their caffeine thru their veins
:: hipsters and rockabilly
:: op shop love
:: sweet potato and haloumi salad - who said low carb is no fun?
:: must advert my eyes away from the sweet counter. 
:: well behaved smalls wagging school for the dentist. 

Spring?

Babies are arriving.  And 5 more mouths to feed arrived this morning.  They're mothers are milked for cheese and these little ones are the males that we put our hand up to raise.  How will I know when we have enough if they're this cute! Uh oh! Happy weekending. Stay warm and well.  X

Saturday & School Holidays

Hello there!

Oh so much has happened since I've been blogging regularly... 2 overseas trips, and much much family hoo-haa.  So, instead of feeling overwhelmed with too much to blog about, I'm picking up from now instead of reflecting back at this stage so that I actually blog once in a while! 

Anyhoo - have been on school holidays. A bit of a better round this time - I remember last time as horrendous. We've had a bit of beachy time and winter jobs.  Today we're baking Apricot Oatbran Muffins with Chia and Pepita sprinkle to pop in the freezer for lunchbox frenzy for the next term.

...adapted from this recipe subbing the sultanas for chopped apricots.

we also added vanilla and 6 drops of orange oil.

for the topping we blitzed together pepitas, chia, and coconut sugar with a couple little bits of butter to make a "sand" to pop on top.

I always use an ice cream scoop to put the batter into the trays - always just the right amount.

taste testing always vital to baking!

In our freezer we've ferretted away lasagne, pesto pasta bake, ham and cheese scrolls, savoury scones and a bit of muffin action.  

What else do you put in lunchboxes? I loathe the sandwich scene.  We only send sandwiches once or twice a week if we can help it. Nutritional value is usually zero and sustanance the same.  Would love clever egg ideas if anyone has them. My kids are not big fritatta fans in the lunchbox. I should try the bacon in the muffin tin with a whole egg and some cheese/chutney drill.

How many of you struggle with balancing time on the computer between facebook and other social media? How do you manage it so that the big screen in front of you doesn't zap your day away? Just been duped into pinterest too - haven't gone there for ages because I was sure that I would love it, and alas... I do...

a bit of boogie

Cannot help shaking the hips to this one!
Anything with Pharrell Williams makes me groove.

3 feet high

The time has come.  All things deemed safe in the house must be 3 feet above the ground.  9 months Savannah is.  Full of toothy smiles and curiosity.

Reading

My bedside is very full.  What are you reading? Read any of these? The bottom 4 are on their way to the bookshelf to store.  Currently on Raising Girls and The Light Between Oceans. 

Wednesday sometime in 2013 I think.

Oh my poor poor neglected blog.  

I miss you.  Has anybody taken a walk from that ever hungry mad time consumer we all know as facebook? It seems to be my "quick" place to update photos etc... but is it all that quick? There is SO much there in FB land.  Ads, mundane crap, etc... I would like to quit it. Have you?

Anyway...

Babe #4 our Gorgeous little Savannah also known as...

ahem...

Huskvanna (ala Baxter)

Savlova (from the rest of us...)

is big. She's 6 months old, weighs more than a ton of bricks, has adorable chubby thighs, spikey hair, 3 + 3/4's teeth, comando crawling, and is the apple of everyone's eye.  Everybody seriously seriously is smitten by her.

In other news...

Nic and I have quit sugar.

9 days clean and counting.  We're talking all sugar.

Kids are still having fruit etc. but we're working on better eating as I've let it slip a bit since having 4 children...  Never knew it would possibly be so busy.

And yet more happenings...  A meal for dinner and lunchbox winner:

Chicken Sausage rolls - with our home killed chicken sausages, kale, silverbeet, onion, carrot, parsley -- all from the garden... rolled up in bought butter pastry -- yes, that is the ungodly expensive pastry that actually uses butter at the grocery store. Worth the extra dollars in flavour and in health!  The other ones are full of marg and crap oils (*bleh*) and sprinkled with chia seeds after an egg wash.

 

Always tastes better served on a blue alien plate.

Because that's how we Sausage Roll.

I am so bleary and sleep deprived I'm a snappy yelling cow of a mother at the moment.  Not terribly proud of that.  Needs some work and I am constantly trying to remember that I am shaping these kids' childhoods. Look - I love them to bits, but coming off the back-end of school holidays I was at the END of my tether.  I keep trying to remind myself that it should get easier, but does it? 

(these are the dahlias in my garden that don't talk back, lie, hurt their brother/sister and leave their clothes everywhere. Sigh.)

I know there are mothers out there with more kids than me, but I am finding having 4 children CHALLENGING.  I do remember having 1, 2 and 3 children challenging during the early days though, so I think it's probably just sheer exhaustion.  

Probably nothing that a 4 hour stretch of sleep wouldn't cure I think.

In the meantime... we'll go gently, and try to build up more patience for these little tackers. To remember to speak kindly. To be in the moment. To not worry so much about the state of chaos in the house. To paint. To read. To cuddle.

Happy Autumn days. xx

easter 2013

Our little lady baby eventually thought that the mulch was much more interesting than these tasteless foil eggs!

A lot of crafting done on our first day of school holidays.
4 children at home is a big task at the moment.  They are all young and still need so much.  A lot of bickering, but a lot of gentle sweet moments too.  Every last one of us thinks that Savannah is the bees knees, so heaps of lovely moments with her too.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wishing you and yours a Happy Easter from all of us!
xx