Living, loving, learning and laughing.

This week has been the big countdown to some fun, fun, fun in our household. For those who don't know what HESFES is, it's basically a week-long party in a field with a whole bunch of other home edders and the biggest of its kind in Europe. Are we are off there on Monday morning - hurray! It will be great not be the only freak in the village for a whole week. We've never been before since it was always too far away for us or the kids were too young, this time it's all going on. We're camping with some gorgeous families from our own local home ed community which will be great since we usually only meet up for a couple of hours here and there, and a little sporadically since we're a spread out bunch, and nice for the dads to chill and be part of it all too. My hubby loves our home ed life but doesn't get to go to many meet-ups since he's working his butt off so we can live this dream in the first place. (Thank you Pete, and all you other home ed daddy-o's - we love you!).

There will be tons of workshops:

Bee keeping - Circus skills - Zumba dance - Science breakfasts - Iron-Age battle re-enactment - Rocket stoves - Fizz rockets -Plastercasting - Coppercraft - Puppet-making - Football - Quigong - Yoga - Creative writing workshops - Theatre performance of Elmer by Blunderbus productions - Live music every night - Disco's - singing workshops - Mask-making - Wire and bead craft - Pixel8 retro gaming programming workshops - Sewing - Table tennis - Children's cabaret - Belly dancing - Poi workshops - parenting skills talks - Sport's day - Green woodworking - Crochet - Radio-controlled cars workshops - Gospel choir and banjo workshops -  Iron age and roman activities - Leather purse making - plant identification walk - Parent and toddler area - Amp Jam - The big draw workshops - Rag rug brooches - Dry felting - Storytelling - Pole-lathe have a go - Tea party...... oh the list goes on and on!

We can't wait! And before that we have the added pleasure of Miss Betty Dare's 1st birthday party campout weekend down in Somerset. So lots of fun travelling around and catching up with folks from all over.

So what else has been going on this week? My iphone takes terrible photos but here are some anyway.

 Hope to have some time to blog whilst we're at HESFES. Until then, have a great weekend everyone and hope that you too are enjoying living, loving, learning and laughing!

Thank You!

I've just hit the 2,000 pageviews mark so am writing a little celebratory post.

Now I know this is small-fry for you long time bloggers, but for me it's an achievement I'm super proud of nonetheless. I never guessed that writing would be something I'd do, so this happy accident has been a nice surprise for me, but I'm thrilled you guys are here reading whatever nonsense comes into my brain and finds itself in your inboxes, and am equally glad you can be bothered enough to keep clicking to see what that crazy home-educating lady is up to! Your messages on the blog and your private encouragement away from it by letter, email, or face-to-face is truly, very much appreciated.

I'm really indebted to Lucy at Dreaming Aloud for her encouragement and praise which gave me that boost I needed to get going at all, since I just kept leaving innanely long comments on her blog for ages before realising I should get one of my own and write random stuff for you guys instead!!! If you haven't checked out Dreaming Aloud yet, get yourself over there pronto, it's all goin on over there. She's writing a proper book, making mojitos, and raising a fine family all the while!

Dreaming Aloud: http://dreamingaloudnet.blogspot.com/

And I'm also really glad that Mama Earthly gave me a wee boost by asking me to do an interview, so give it up for her too! Here's a link to her blog where you can find some really inspiring posts:

Give an earthly: http://giveanearthly.blogspot.com/

Thank you dear readers and dear friends!

xxx

Feet off the ground...

Oh we have been dreaming up a dreamy thing. A whopper.

Something crazy.

Something life-changing.

Something scary.

We've been flying all weekend on the wind of our excitement - of all the possibilities - being carried away, swept away, blown away, spirited away! We've been flying a kite up to the highest heights and sent it soaring!

And as the moon shone and did her secret magic work, we've floated back down to this earth again, a little bewildered, laughing at ourselves, with bits in our hair, windswept, but definitely back firmly on the ground.

Oh the pure joy of big, juicy, crazy, wonderful, dreams!

Welcome to my first GratiTuesday...

Welcome to my first GratiTuesday. 

The idea is the brainchild of my dear friend over at  theknittygrittyhomestead as a way of appreciating and taking stock of the happy, lovely things in our lives for which we are grateful, so I'm joining her in this act. 

Anytime you see this sexy little button, you can click on it and it will link you to her lovely blog, where she is doing the same thing.

***

So, things I am grateful for today, huh?

***

Well, I've been pretty consumed with the horror that is my face today. It's still hot, itchy and so on. But I can see better, and the swelling has slipped down a little today, off the eyes and onto my cheeks, so I am grateful for that.

I'm grateful to have Herbie back with us after his belated birthday treat staying with his Granny and Grandad for a few fun-filled days, and for the fact that my mother-in-law drove him all the way here, and back again, since I can't drive right now and Pete was unable to leave work early today.  It's a 5 hour round trip for her, so hurray for Bernadette!

Today I'm really grateful for my husband Pete, who ordered these amazing flowers for me after I walked into his office late this afternoon and tearfully asked for a hug. 

He's such a peach.

I'm grateful for the fact that in spite of their constant bickering over  two tiny lego minifigures today, which were bought with shared pocket-money (BAD idea),  the boys were very cute and helpful too.

Looking around I found other stuff to be grateful for. My gorgeous new socks, hand knitted by a lovely friend. Thank you Julie! x

I'm grateful for the gift of some sensational sweet peas, and a beautiful beet from our garden, which found it's way into a tray of organic choccy beetroot brownies...

I'm really really grateful for all the good people in my life, and my lovely friends. You mean the world to me.

Ahhh, that's better. Thinking about all these things makes me feel much happier. I could keep going, sharing more and more pics of things I'm grateful for. But its late, and I'm up for some snacktime.

What are you grateful for today? 

xxx

Getting back on the horse....for ten minutes....

Wow, you lot are insatiable for horrible photos huh? My last post has been the one viewed the most times!

Great to see you are coming back here for my artistic output!

Well, here's another b-e-a-utiful photo of moi. Don't my eyes look pretty?

Can you smell the insect repellant from where you are? Can you? You should do. I practically showered in it. I am doused in it. Probably hundreds of times past the safe levels. But hey, I think I have a right to be a tiny bit.... paranoid? They bloody love me right now, I must be tasty, tasty, very very tasty. (You Brits will get that one)

So here I am. Defiantly gardening, in the very place where things go buzz buzz. Ok, maybe less defiant and more looking over my shoulder, flinching, double checking and sweating it out. For ten whole terrifying minutes.

Getting back on that horse.

Another buzzy attack, this time, ending up in A&E. Poor me!

I am smiling to make this more palatable for everyone. I look like the elephant woman. I've been wearing shades all day so as not to frighten everyone! This time I was stung at 7am, at my folks house this time, feeling like MY HEAD WAS ON FIRE - a pleasant sensation which has slowly been working its way down my forehead, and has now engulfed the upper left side of my face. I look like some botox nightmare! 

A trip to A&E wasn't what I had planned for today!

I am now officially at war with all things that go buzz buzz and fly around.

All things bright and beautiful?

Changes have been happening to me. Twitchy, nervous ones.

You see I was out in the garden the other day, gleefully attacking a patch of nettles, triumphing over nature, over just one small patch of my garden-cum-jungle. It seemed fair d'incum, only a small patch of nettles really, since I have happily let the rest of the garden become insectopia this year, I have let it be WILD, WILD, WILD. Just look at it!

Pretty jungley huh?

Now, the problem is this - WASPS!!! Oh my goodness, are there enough wasps out there at the moment? Not only them, but also (deep breath) hornets. Uggggh!!! You can't have your cake and eat it, it seems. If you're going to be all wild and organic and decide against the pesticides, you're gonna get all manner of nasties lurking in hidey holes, wild nooks and crannies. And the other day, just as I was pulling up the nettles we talked about earlier, I got bitten, or stung, by a wasp four times. That's just freakin' rude in my book. That is bad manners. Bad gratitude for providing these nasties with a home. In the name of love. They are having a riot in our garden. They are having a full blown waspival in our lettuces, (read that wasps - ours) ditto the beets area. Bah!

I am trying to love them. To share nicely with them, to make my peace with these stingy things that don't make honey or seem to be all that useful. Yet I'm flinching and jumpy every time I'm in the garden now and I sense some tiny movement, buzz or tickle. I'm probably highly amusing to watch in my insecty paranoia-fuelled crazy jumpetyness. I'm now racing out of my veg plot lickety split instead of loitering, enjoying it.

I keep laughing to myself whenever I think of this Monty Python song from the album Monty Python Sings, which I though I'd copy out for you all, since it's funny and true. Reminds me of the yin and yang, the flipside of mama nature. That fact that she is a sweet giver of lovely things, and a bad-ass as well!!!

All things Dull and Ugly

All things dull and ugly,

All creatures short and squat,

All things rude and nasty,

The Lord God made the lot.

Each little snake that poisons,

Each little wasp that stings,

He made their brutish venom,

He made their horrid wings.

All things sick and cancerous,

All evil great and small,

All things foul and dangerous,

The Lord God made them all.

Each nasty little hornet,

Each beastly little squid,

Who made the spiky urchin,

Who made the sharks? He did.

All things scabbed and ulcerous,

All pox both great and small,

Putrid, foul and gangrenous,

The Lord God made them all.

Amen.

:-)

Carefree days :-)

Alf and I

Indie with a new friend

Indie and Alf

Baa baa black sheep

The nibbliest, tickliest, snuffliest piglets,
making the boys laugh uncontrollably

Mama pig seemed unimpressed with feeding her bubs -
but she does have quite a few to satisfy!

 Marshmallow toasting

 Fun in the sun

The cool, cool sea on a hot, hot day

 Smiley ice-cream!

Happy days

X