Balls of Light.

I went shopping with Hugo today to try and replace my favourite yellow mug which I dropped on our stony concrete floor. On being told there were no yellow mugs left, I took a deep breath, did not cry and boldly reached for the purple version. It does hold a good cup of tea but I am still not sure how I am handling the colour change - maybe I really am suffering from some sort of greedy for colour syndrome.
To get over this hurdle, we then bought 4 paper lanterns to go over our lights in the colours pink, red, blue and green. I will post more photos tomorrow but the house looked so atrocious, it seemed kinder not to inflict the whole room on everyone. It has been a good bit of medicine for the house though as it looks as if we are constantly in party mode. Being the end of winter, this is a very powerful magic.
Oh dear, I have just been thinking of the things I have been writing about in the last couple of days; eggs, mugs and lampshades. I will have to go and do something crazy and reintroduce a little pizazz to the blog, I won't murder anyone though, I am just not up for that.

Another Sunday and Back on the Lay...

Another Sunday over and its passing has been marked with soft boiled eggs and soldiers. The exciting part of the childrens' dinner is that the eggs are ours. That's right, our plump little araucanas are back on the lay, popping out their blue-green eggs again. Wahoooooo!!! I think my eyes bulged most unattractively when I went into the hen house. I am so used to just feeding them and walking away empty handed while they giggle and cluck behind my back.
Life is becoming a little easier again in the organisation stakes. Funnily enough, I think it is my involvement with the farm that is doing it. With much less time on my hands I am floating less through the day and achieving more in the snippets that I have. What a revelation. I even potted up a few plants today which felt like I had single-handedly sorted the planets into alignment. Keep in mind though that my being relatively busy day still allows for a good afternoon nap so I don't think it is quite the grown-up version of busy yet.

Now, I was going to do a post on Chewy, our ultra friendly pet dog/sheep (actually a Suffolk sheep) but I couldn't arrange any photos of him. He is so affectionate and tame that every time I go near him with a camera (dear me, I almost wrote camel), he snuggles into me and refuses to go back far enough so my lens will focus on him. Maybe if Jonno has a spare minute or two I will suggest a photo session down in the orchard. I hope he doesn't get the wrong idea...

By the way, I just want to thank Raglan Guld because in the quietened blogosphere of the weekend, she always has something interesting to say and something beautiful to show.

Flowers and crochet and all good things.

I went to the nursery today to stock up on a few plants. And now I have a lot of planting to do. The weekend has brought with it the kind of sunshine it usually reserves for the midweek and the boys have been running like drunken bees (we are perhaps, not the most co-ordinated of families but maybe it is an age thing and there is still an All Black just waiting to be discovered).

So I am thinking and doing gardeny things but my mind is kind of having an affair with something else because all I can think about it tonight and that basket of wool waiting for me. So much so that even the flowers are starting to look a little crocheted. Anybody else ever seem to have that problem?

I need some beauty.

After fully expressing the practical (but extremely withered) side of my nature, I was overcome with a sudden cramping need for some kind of beauty. Something beyond the green streaks that had transferred from the back end of those sweet and furry creatures and onto my leg. So I rushed around the house concentrating on good things like wedding shoes and beads - can you tell that I plastered myself flat against the wall to get the side on view. You have to pause occasionally to think of the ridiculous positions people get into in pursuit of the perfect photo.

I have just finished watching this series from the library. If you like Jane Austen, this is the show for you. Crochet is calling even more insistently than the calves and I am going to answer and there will be love in my voice and warmth in my hands and yes I am having way to much thinking time out in the paddocks, all alone but for the company of animals...

My creative space...

This week, my creative space is to be found out and about on the farm. Our herd manager has broken his thumb and is off work for six weeks (ouch). As we are calving, Jonno is flat out so he has delegated big calf feeding to me. My job is to drive the big milk container out to the paddock and feed the calves who have graduated from the baby pens. Jonno very kindly went over the ropes with me again as it has been quite a while since the last time I drove a ute with hundreds of litres of milk into a paddock of glossy, frolicking calfies.

After they had their fill, Jonno and I sat quietly and listened to the milk sloshing around in their bellies as they ran about.

So yes, even though I am not creating much this week, I am still thinking creative thoughts as I stand about filling milk into calf feeders with a fire-hose. I guess my point is, we are our creative space and even if the physical space isn't there, the most important part, the thinking part, is always at work.

Oh, yes, the flower at the end was in my garden and I thought I had better include a bit of prettiness because we are such a visual bunch. Thanks Kirsty for letting us join in on your game and to see more players, visit here!

Pretty happy to be back, you might say.

I can't believe it is only now that I am able to re-enter the wonderful world of blogging. I had to pause for a couple of days because our house suddenly had a nervous breakdown and threw all of our belongings about in the most furious manner. Years and years of clutter and toys burst forth from their cupboards of imprisonment and revealed a secret breeding program of which we knew nothing about.

So overwhelmed was I, that my parents-in-law (bless their cotton socks) received a phone call begging for some kind of grandchildren welfare intervention so I could clad up in a radioactive suit, develop superpowers and deal with it. Norm and Maureen are made of fine and sturdy stuff and immediately rose to the challenge, sweeping the children into their protective custody. If I am sounding dramatic it is only because I am so excited to be back I can't help but show off a little. Mum, are you rolling your eyes and thinking some things never change?

So, for 24 hours I sorted and culled the most ginormous pile of toys you could ever imagine and even managed to turn the boys' rooms into a place where they could sleep rather than spend the nights fending of scavenging rats. Because of this, I felt I really couldn't do a post until there was some semblance of control (mind you, I am still not entirely sure I am there). All you can do is make a start though I guess.

The best part was that when a group of friends dropped by yesterday afternoon, I could pretend my tidy house was an everyday normality and even made a batch of biscuits to cap off the illusion... the only downside was that they thought I was an impostor and kept trying to rip my mask off which of course, that being my real face, was extremely painful.

Spring reclassified - I just remembered it's still Winter...

Nothing like sorting out a bit of beauty. Wish I could be a little more wordy but I have already used so many today just in the process of talking. If only I could go back to my wittiest moments - so many, so many... Actually, most of the words have been to do with putting warm jumpers on and not sitting on people's heads. You know how it is.