~ what I've been reading ~

I struggled with this week's list for the #52 lists project.
Not because I'm not reading much (I read every day ... it's like a compulsion).
Its because I took the "great" part of the title of the list seriously ... so I've read a lot ... but most of its not even memorable, let alone great.
So these are my top of the tops for the first part of 2013.

Stasiland - I loved this.  Fascinating stories from East Germany in the era of WW2.

Keeper - one of my daughter's books.  I loved this too.  A complex story of mermaids, love, family and dreams.  The structure is unusual  - short chapters, lots of repetition, jumping around in time lines... but its a fabulous story and we've got lots to talk about.

For all Creatures - a picture book Jack chose from the library last week.  It's simply beautiful.  This is the practice of gratitude made real - for children (and their parents)...I'm going to write more about this with pictures soon.

A letter - you know I love mail.  This was a letter from afar that made me laugh and cry

Foxslane  - Kate's writing is honest and warm and I cannot wait for her book to be published

Raising Boys - I keep dipping into this - lots of wise words

Animal People - I just finished this - her art is in capturing the everyday lives of people so accurately - this book is about our values, how we treat animals and what that says about us - lots to think about.


What are you reading?
Do you try and keep up with what your children read?
Are you list-making this year?

 ♥

~ more favourite flowers ~

I quickly wrote my list of my favourite flowers this week (and was already ruing some of my omissions as I hit publish) and Iris kindly asked me to show my favourite shots of my favourites.

And so here they are.  
Well sort of.
These are the ones I could find today.
Minus daphne and gardenia because I simply cannot find a shot of them in my archives (although they're there - its my lack of organisational skills that are to blame - I really need to find the time to sort all my photos) and I really can't believe that I can only find an orange ranulcula (my least favourite colour of flower).

We're off to Victoria for the weekend for A Day on the Green (Lisa Mitchell, Paul Kelly and Neil Finn) - I'm so excited...I just wish I knew what to pack (always the dilemma).

Hope your weekend is fabulous.

 ♥

~ the list about favourite flowers ~

This was almost as hard as choosing favourite books or (gasp!) children.
They're in no particular order
And already I'm regretting the absence of magnolia.
What's your favourite flower?

You can join up here  - its not too late to play along


 ♥

~ just because ~

 

... yesterday I bought a beautiful bunch of them at the farmer's market.
... I miss doing wordless floral posts
... I've been madly trying to instil some sort of order into my photo library
... I just love them so

♥

~ grateful for ... so much ~

I'm overflowing with gratefuls this week - the sun's been shining, I've had my hair done and life is good.
 
I'm grateful for summer afternoons where we can head to the beach after school and swim (even though we forgot bathers).

Grateful for the lovely school we're involved with, how welcoming they have been and how well my children are settling in (even my little klingon Jack who is so proud of himself in his school clothes and of the "work" he's doing at school).

Grateful for Lindt dark chocolate (with sea salt) that is my evening treat.

And super grateful that I won a little giveaway over on FB and this amazingly beautiful piece of stitching made its way safely from Belgium to Hobart this week.  Please check out Rhi's adorable work and think about treating yourself and your family.

{the original - Grace's self portrait from Kinder}

{a Tailorbird Designs version on linen, stitched with love, that I just adore}

Writing about being grateful never fails to leave me feeling more grateful.
Thanks Bron.  There are more gratefuls here too.

♥

~ the pattern of my days ~

This is my #52 lists contribution for this week's theme of "things I do everyday" (you can play along on IG or blog....details are here.)

I listed the things I feel I choose to do - not the everyday musts like eat/sleep/toilet.

What do you do everyday that defines the pattern of your days?

♥

~ love is in the air ~

We're not big on celebrating Valentine's Day around here.  Are you? 
It's a bit like Halloween for me - an American tradition that I haven't really jumped on board with.

In the last couple of weeks though,  I've been feeling the love.

I joined Sarah's lovely good mail club last year and have just sent off some heart/love themed mail to brighten up some letterboxes.

I filled my envelopes with little papery treats - origami hearts, Moo mini cards and stickers. 

I also made very quick and easy heart garlands from little hearts punched from paint chip colours and twine.  I had intended to send these too but the girls fell in love (!!) with them and they stayed here.

I'm hoping for some lovely mail this week.
Are you celebrating the 14th?  or are you more about celebrating the everyday like me (those little rainbow hearts are making me smile every time I walk past)? 


♥

~ grateful for ... a great start ~

{holding hands with his sister as he walks into school}

Almost since he learned to speak he's been wanting to be bigger.
"Me not a baby, me a big boy" has been his refrain from toddlerhood.
We've all resisted.  
We still call him "bubba", we indulge him, we let him be "the baby king" of the family.

This morning he put on a school uniform
And suddenly he was.
A big boy.  My big boy.
Who's still my baby.

{the new breakfast routine}

We've been building up to today all week. 
The girls went back to school on Tuesday.  
Lily into grade 5 - no hassles there, she's used to the school, happy with her teacher and her class and loves the routine.  She's been up, fed, dressed and ready to go by 7 every day.  She adores school.
  
Gracie's starting grade 3 - a new school but with lots of her old classmates (they transition them beautifully from their infant school to this bigger primary school), lots of new friends and a beautiful teacher.  She's made the change seamlessly (so far)  and has largely had good things to report (apart from "the naughty boy" whose latest exploits we hear about every day... I wonder what his parents hear).

And today my baby started school.  
5 day fortnight kinder, in school, (as we do in Tassie) in uniform.
I hadn't been sure what to expect ... but he did brilliantly.  
We sat down and drew pictures together, he requested a "huge cuddle" and then went off to play with one of his little friends and didn't look back.  Me? - I was wiping the tears as I walked away.

And after school?... he wanted to know if he could go again tomorrow.

I'm so grateful that he's had a great beginning on this long school journey.
I'm grateful they've all had a great start this year. 
(and I'm grateful for my new {baby} school kid).

I'm back on my grateful journey.
Linking up with Maxabella and other lovelies here.

♥

~ more lists ~

I still haven't written a shopping list but here are the two most recent lists from my #52lists project.

list 4 - favourite smells/scents

list 5 - favourite snack foods

I'm really enjoying this project.  I'm learning more about me as I sit and think then write it down.  
I don't give myself very long so its really the first things that pop into my head.  
Then I have a few "lightbulb" moments when I read other people's lists and realise I maybe should have added something else but really, they are what they are.  
A snapshot of me.  In a list.  Which is not really me at all.

What's your favourite snack?

♥

~ journalling ~

January slipped past in a haze of sunblock, lazy days, icy poles and sunshine.  I blogged about our summer here and I've written about it in both my journals.  Yes, both.

It happened like this...

I treated myself to the completely adorably cute Frankie diary in the madness that was Christmas shopping.  I absolutely love to look at it and I'm being really good at writing every day.  I'm using coloured pens and stickers and its completely gorgeous... but... the daily spaces are just TOO small.  I'm used to the the full sized pages of the Kikki-K 365 books that I've used for the last 3 (!!) years now and I'm struggling to make my words fit.  

So I'm using another blank journal as well and writing when I need to just let the words spill out.  
To record.  To remember.

I think I need a better system.  But I'm not willing to give up on Frankie just yet.

  

This week will need a lot of words.  School starts for the year and I'm feeling more fragile than usual.  My baby starts kinder this week and whilst he is getting excited and can't take his new school shoes off I'm not ready.  I've shed tears at each beginning but this is the last beginning.  

Lasts and firsts - such a tug on our hearts.

Do you/ how do you record your days?

♥