Oops!

Well, I’ve done it again, lost my blogging mojo! Rather a lot of it has to do with my appetite for watching films after the family have gone to bed (Hubby normally joins the girls by 8.30pm) I’ve been indulging in a good chunk of ‘me time’, and have completely given myself over to being transported off with a good story, and unlike a good book, all I have to do is stare at the screen instead of holding something which means I can work on the Tallest’s cardigan at the same time! So not quite all about me! And I get to watch rom coms to my hearts desire what can I say! I’m easily pleased!

We’ve been slowly making steps towards recovering from prolonged illness here, the Smallest ended up with another lot of antibiotics and an inhaler for the chest infection that she had, and it finally seems to have done the trick thank goodness.

The better weather has meant that I can get out into the garden, I’m doing a bit of shifting about at home to make a new home for the greenhouse which I can then get commissioned and into action, more on that one in a later post.

The above photo is from today, I spend my Tuesday’s at home with the Smallest, and normally I’m distracted by some job or other but today we’ve done plenty of just playing, it’s been lovely, I am slightly tinged with guilt that I haven’t done more jobs etc, but sometimes you just have to ignore all that don’t you? She’s gone to bed happy, tired and far more easily than any other night this past week which is wonderful in itself.

I’ve also realised that the photo lets you in on the other reason I’m distracted – the guitar. I’m teaching myself as I don’t think I could commit to more commitments like lessons if that makes sense, but I’m really enjoying it and so far I have learnt to tune it, play three basic major chords A C and E and am practising them and my strumming, and yes, typing this is a little hard going as the fingertips on my left hand are extremely sore!

I’ll be returning to this space real soon, probably Friday as its work tomorrow, and I’ll try to make sure it’s not just to show you photos of my bruised fingertips!

Did Jack Valentine visit your house?

It was a good excuse to do a little something for valentines, the girls crafted, and I made heart shaped bangers and mash for tea!

In Norfolk there is a tradition of having Jack Valentine ( or Old Mother Valentine / Old Father Valentine or even Jack Snatch) leave gifts for the children at the door after knocking and running, it seems that no one is entirely sure where it originated from, and I know more people that don’t do it than those that do, but Norfolk must be a county of romantics as giving a gift just because “someone loves you” still continues. You never know what’s going to be left, and sometimes brooms get lent or the door to fall on you as you open it, (perhaps you havent been such a good Valentine’s that year!) or gifts are pulled away on strings off the doorstep, or ‘snatched’.

Hubby fulfilled the role for a friend this year, and was informed he didn’t run fast enough, as apparently someone caught sight of him! Though judging by the amount of oil and muck he was covered in when he returned home I don’t think that his identity has been revealed!

Half term heartaches

The sporadic nature of posts in this place are a fair indication of the kind of weariness that has befallen this household of late.

A weariness rooted in the whole family’s inability to rub along together, we all seem to want wholly different things from each other right now, and the Tallest in particular is really struggling with it. She is controlling, bossy, serious, and endlessly irritated and annoyed by the antics of her much lighter hearted sister, who cries of ” I’m being a good girl aren’t I mummy?” are NOT helping…

They are both finding it hard to “Tow the Line” as it is called in this household. Hubby and I are in constant discussion as to when did a reasonable request, such as “stop hand standing on the back of the sofa” and “please take off the hair band and tutu off the dog” etc. suddenly become an unreasonable one? Evenings that should be spent colouring, stitching and playing games, have been spent with surly looking girls with crossed arms sitting at opposite ends of the room, unable to offer up any answers as to why it is so difficult to actually comply with any of the requests that we ask of them.

A friend of mine once shared that in any given day throughout one hour in the morning it is usual for a parent to demand over 40 things of their child within the preparations for the day ahead. In this household 10 of those would be given over to just putting on our footwear, and with this in mind we have been trying, with the emphasis on trying here, to be less demanding, less urgent in the tasks we ask our children to fulfil, to give ourselves an extra few minutes so it isn’t the end of the world if it takes ten minutes to get one pair of shoes on….but….. it doesn’t always work like that does it?

I am worn down by the constant battling. I am so frustrated, with myself, for not finding a way to communicate with them that doesn’t sound like I am just telling them what to do all the time, and for them for just, well, ignoring me. A classic example happened to Hubby when he came home from work today.
Hubby: “Smallest, go and sit back down on the seatee like you were told please” (said in a pretty stern tone of voice in lieu of earlier hair pulling)
Smallest: nothing
Hubby: “Go and sit down or I will take away *insert current favourite toy here*”
Smallest: immediately sits down without hesitation

So my dilemma is, how do you help your children to get along without resorting to threats?

Help!

Sewing up a storm

Here is the beautiful red felt appliqué dress that I mentioned a couple of posts ago. I helped only with the cutting out of the dress shape, all the rest was left up to the Tallest.

She still hasn’t perfected her knot tying technique, but that was perhaps all that I was required for. Whilst the seamstress was busy with her creations, and talking me through all the other designs that she wants to make – a matching cape and shoes don’t you know – I have been continuing with knitting up her school cardigan. It’s been slow going ever since and writing that here makes me realise that I need to keep picking it up more when the opportunity arises, there will have to be a lot of adjusting to fit for the Tallest, as although I am following the second set of parentheses for her correct chest / body size, if I were to gauge from arm length I would be following the seventh set! Some careful adjustments are being made, fingers crossed that it fits!

Snow and Ice

It snowed overnight Saturday and for the whole day on Sunday, it had stopped by Monday and perhaps two inches had fallen. Nothing has fallen since. These photos are taken on my return from school Monday morning and I still have two inches of snow in my garden, brrr!

The temperature hasn’t risen above freezing all this week, and despite the fact that it is February I’m rather glad of it, it’s about time we actually had some ‘winter’. I truly believe we need clear delineation of seasons and to have missed such a beautiful thing as the winter out would have been a shame for more than just missing out on its aesthetic value, to me there is something soothing about watching your home environment move through the seasonal changes, and it does me good to know that the rhythm of the world that surrounds me and my family is doing, well, what it should be doing really.

Although I’m less fond of it on a work day morning when the car won’t start……..

Playing catch up

Life here has taken on that sort of orange glow that those of us without expensive (or even just plain old ‘good’) cameras takes on at this time of year. Time spent indoors, interspersed with trips to play outside in the snow and ice, generally accompanied by Hubby who is having far too much of a good time to bother taking photos!

There is still that low lying residue of illness and general health niggles in the household, which has been the main reason for my lack of posts, to be perfectly honest by the time one and all are safely ensconced in their beds I am just about done for the day!

We have been trying to keep ourselves occupied otherwise, the Tallest is proving herself to be a real chip off the old block and has been sewing up a storm for her doll, her latest dress made with red felt and an appliqué flower is just so stunning that I’m going to get a decent day time shot of it to share with you another day. I’m knitting a school cardigan for the Tallest too, as I am disappointed by the shop bought ones and she is currently attending school wearing both a jumper and a cardigan. She feels the cold terribly and until I get this cardi finished it is the only sensible solution!

I hope that I will get my blogging mojo back real soon, as I do enjoy my time putting together a post or two here, but sometimes rather inconveniently life gets in the way of telling others about it doesn’t it? And a good early nights sleep wins over it all!

Sweet dreams everyone and I hope you’re enjoying the snow as much as we are…