Once in a Blue Moon

Every now and then it is imperative that you come up with a reason to just do something a little on the wacky side. That you find something or some reason to celebrate ESPECIALLY if you have been feeling a little on the groove-less side and waddling like a penguin!  Now some may argue with me that the latest blue moon happened in August but pfft we chose to 'celebrate' in September, with the second full moon of the calendar month actually happening tonight (30th of September)!

Ooooo this was a chance to 'milk' the blue moon theme for all it was worth! Blue clothes, Blue food, blue drink, blue balloons etc. All we needed was some just as crazy friends to join us!

Cue crazy friends!!

(note blue clothes) 

a few drops of blue food colouring to a bottle of lemonade....

 and Presto.... 

 

Blue Moon Fizz! 

 

Jamie hunted out a blue sheet for the table cloth....

 

and a blue blanket for the kids!

 

I find it exciting that a celebration of sorts can be flung together just by using what you have. Blue serviettes were leftover from a wee boys birthday party!  Who knew they would play an integral part in putting finishing touches on such an occasion.

 

Below is the actual 'Blue Moon'.

I think the kids were a little confused that the moon wasn't actually blue but bright orange. A suggestion was made that maybe we need to change the cupcake icing.

I know its a terrible photo and it most certainly doesn't do it justice.  The moon in itself was 1000 times more impressive than the photo, believe me.

 

Dessert was far more easier to do blue than the main course.  The only food that I could think of to be blue was Paua, Blue Cheese, Blue Nose (a fish I think) and Blue berries.  Apart from the blueberries I don't think I could of made my kids (or my husband for that matter) eat such a dinner.

BUT dessert well that was more fun.

Blue jelly, Blue/Green gum drops ice cream, Blue pikelets and Blue-iced Cupcakes (which according to one of my boys - were EPIC!)

We did throw in a choc-pudding as well too.

 

 

 

A bunch of blue kiddies!



 

In realty, one could say, we just had friends over for dinner. But we made so much more and not to mention the memories that we made for our kids.

I love that they will be able to look back and see their parents having fun, being a little wacky and laughing hysterically.

I just love when you have friends that can come and are just oh so comfortable.

No worries, no airs, no pretense.

I love when you laugh so much you cry and nearly put yourself into labour!

Utterly price-less!

 

PS. During the course of the evening we started with ten blue balloons, we have one left!

We had four injuries/situations all requiring cold wet flannels for various levels of bleeding.

Two stubbed toes, a grazed ear and a split forehead!

Cleary celebrating a blue moon is not for the faint-hearted.

Our kids play hard around here!!

 

 

 

Groove-less

Have you ever had one of those days, (weeks, months or years) that you feel like you haven't quite got your groove on.  Yesterday was one of those days (if I am completely honest I have been having a few in the last little while)  You know almost in an instant soon after your feet hit the ground in the morning that  perhaps at some stage during the night, you lost your groove.  I spent the whole day trying to catch up with myself.  Breakfast was chaotic, morning clean up time was chaotic, school was chaotic and bitzy and on and on and on. It effected every part of my day.  You know its really bad when you are wondering around and around the house feeling bored, tired and apathetic!  I was really looking forward to the day being over and crawling into bed and sleeping into the next day with the hope that it will be hundred times better.

I think the kids pick up on me sending out 'groove-less' vibes.  They know - oh how they know!  And boy do they milk it for all its worth.  And all I want to do is scream "Do I look like I am in the mood for this!"  Actually I do think I said that a number of times yesterday and then I went and gave myself time out for it. In other words I went and lay on my bed in self imposed quiet time. I tried to give all 5 kids quiet time but very soon discovered that that was next to impossible - and that it was far easy for me to go to time-out.  Just me, the cat and a book, door closed, ahhhhh semi-peace (I say semi-peace because I could still hear them through the closed door)

Today was a better day.  School was better, I spent time with a friend and I got a lovely surprise box of chocolates and a beauitful card left on my side of the bed from my husband.   Tonight I actually wanted to cook tea and that can only come from having a better day.

Now don't get me wrong, which is always a fear of mine when I come out and say that I had a bad day or that I am struggling, that it will come across like I am complaining and not enjoying life, my children or where God has me at the moment.  I do and I am.  But like everyone else, one cannot have it all together all of the time.  We are allowed to be groove-less at times.  I could put it down to hormones or being 32 weeks pregnant, or any number of things but hey it could be just a groove-less day.  And I give YOU permission to feel groove-less from time to time and not feel bad about it!

Anyway check out some of these photos from over the past week!

Kaitlyn (5) had collected a bunch of feathers off the side of the road after one of our chickens get runover by a car.  She wanted to make an old fashion pen to write with.  As soon as I had made one I said to Jamie, "I just know I am going to have to make four more of these"  and what happened?  I had to make four more of them!  So five broken pens later and feather clipping around the place we had five 'old fashion' pens! 

 

The strawberries are in and looking great!  We have four of these strawberry patches and are looking forward to a good harvest of them!

 

 

 

My cat likes to hide in boxes!

Just about the right size, don't you think?

 

I love what children come up to do and create when you leave them to their own devices.  Too many times I have heard parents (myself including) interrupt  childrens play, creativeness and even them just being with statements, questions or at its worst trying to create teaching moments.  For example  when a child has lined up the chairs and is playing trains/buses and the parent (with all good intentions of course) come in and say "Oh look at you!  What are you playing?  Do you know how many chairs you have lined up?  What if I took two away, how many would you have then?"  You know what I don't think they really care, they were just playing!!

Kaitlyn quite often goes away and creates by herself and I have learnt not to interrupt (just like I don't like to be talked to while I am writing)

This was one of her creations.

 

Sophie (3) just being cute!

 

Thanks to her big brother Casey taking her training wheels off and her other big brother Jayden, Dad and Poppa Peter teaching her.  Kaitlyn can now ride her bike on two wheels!  It was just a day later and she was doing hill starts! Scary for her Mum (It pays not to watch too much)

 

No its not the planet Mars, it is my (then) 31 week pregnant stomach and its only going to get bigger.  As you can see my feet are long gone!  Those chocolates Jamie bought aren't going to help either.  I did have a normal photo taken of my pregnant self but...well...not really super confident about it. 

 

It took me a while but I did it.  I worked out how to upload a video to YouTube and therefore upload on to here.  Aren't I clever!

 

 

So thats about it, a week in pictures. 

 

How is your week going?

 

Paint and Rainbows

I don't know too many parents that don't have even a little hesitation when their children ask if they can paint.  I think even the best ones still have at least a small intake of breath and drop of the shoulders when painting is requested or suggested.

My kids love to paint.  Paint pictures. Pictures on paper, on stones, on faces, on blocks of wood..if it can be painted then they will have a go at it.

The thing with painting in my house is that if one wants to paint then everyone wants to paint and it turns into a huge exercise.  Next minute the table is lined with newspaper, the paints are out, glasses are half filled with water, brushes are lined up, sleeves rolled up and the smell of paint has permeates through the room.  All this can happen in minutes!

I think what keeps me on edge with paint, especially with the little ones, is that it gets over everything. Fingers, hair, faces and clothes!

And if its all over those things when it comes time to wash up it could end up on the walls, couch chairs and whatever else is on the way to the bathroom.

This is very scary!

 

 

I do however, love the creativeness of children's minds.  Unlike me, whenever I have a paint brush in my hand, my mind goes blank and I never know what to paint.  Clearly painting is not a gift of mine.  Children don't need to ask what to paint, they just choose a colour and a brush and away they go.  Oh how envious am I!!  I usually end up painting a rainbow every single time.  How original!

 



 

 

 Isn't this cool! 

Even if it is just the paint plate!

 

Speaking of rainbows.

This was outside our window just a few days ago.

A pity there wasn't a pot of gold at the end of it since it was almost in touching distance.

 

Maybe painting rainbows isn't so bad after all.

Happy Weekend to you. May you do something that is just simply...well ....fun!

 

All you need is a box!

 

Breathe

I don't know about you but sometimes I feel like I forget to breathe!  Does that sound weird?  At times I feel so overwhelmed about all the things I need to do think I need to do, BELIEVE I need to do, that at times I catch myself holding my breath!

Someone please tell me that I am not the only one.

I have a lot to cram into my day and somedays I feel like the only one in the world that has as much to do as I do. (although realistically I know I am not)  I get frustrated.  I don't want to feel like this. I don't want to miss the small things because most of the time they are the most beautiful, the most important AND its usually the stuff that teaches you the most....if you let it.  I don't want to miss out on these beautiful moments just because I am battling with the things that I THINK I NEED to be doing.  Who says these things anyway?

I have to remind myself that being a home schooling Mama is more or less the equilivant to having a outside-of-the-house job of some sort.  Working Mamas still have washing to hang, fold and put away, still have bathrooms to clean and floors to vacuum, as do I.   Having 'Number 6' on the way has got me looking for ways to streamline, normal everyday household jobs...like folding washing.  And if you know anything about me you already know that I HATE folding washing!!!

Like having a Family "Life Skills" Lesson in folding washing!

I just know that one day someone is going to thank me for this!

I have to keep myself in check and even though it is cliche I have to remind myself and if I forget to do that, Jamie will happily remind me

"Don't sweat the small stuff"

It really doesn't matter that the kids have breakfast cereal for dinner every now and then.

It really doesn't matter if I buy a packet of biscuits to take somewhere because I just can't (or don't want to) squeeze baking in to my day.

It really doesn't matter if the dishes remain unwashed overnight and the floors don't get vacuumed that day (or if I am totally honest - a few days)

 

Can I hear gasps of horror?

Everything always gets done eventually!

 

I think children have a lot to teach us. 

 How to make something beautiful out of nothing.

 

 

How to amuse oneself by creating and having fun out of simple things.

 

Take one box of firewood and two little girls imagination and determination...do you know how many times it fell down!

 

 





 But...dare I say this, while all this creating, building and imagining is going on...sometimes I just need some peace and tranquility.  Two things that are a little (a lot) hard to come by in my house.   But even now and then, just once in a while I would like not to be living in a flippin kindergarten/school/art room/science lab/sports arena/wrestling ring!! Just sometimes I would like to be able to function without ducking rubber bullets, standing on lego, little fingers eating the biscuit dough,finding my baking utensils in the bedroom and plastic animals in my kitchen drawers!

 

Breathe Sharni, just breathe.

 

Its the "I love you Mummy" moments that make it all worth while.

Like....

Snuggles in bed,

"Mummy, you are the best" declarations,

Flowers picked especially for me,

The 11 year olds random hugs,

The 7 year old saving me the 'black and red' lollies cos he knows I like them.

"I just love the dress you are wearing" comments.

and all those other special things that children do for you.

 

No mountain of washing or un-vacuumed floors should deter us from basking in these small delights!

 

 

In school......

The Ragcoat by Lauren Mills

and

Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt by Deborah Hopkinson

 

One raining Monday morning, 'school' was replaced by making 'quilt pictures'!

We had a lot of fun, especially if you don't count the fights over the two pairs of sharp scissors. (I should of expected it really, 5 kids and 2 pairs of decent scissors)

 

 

 

Sophie looking decidingly cute as she takes it upon herself to check up the days school work! 

 

"Don't sweat the small stuff"

"Without oxen a stable stays clean, but you need a strong ox for a large harvest"

Proverbs 14:4