4 Seasons

Summer

Summer in our home is all about bare bums, it is a chance for my little ones to run naked and enjoy the summer warmth on their little bodies. And boy do they love it... the freedom and joy of childhood. 

The number of nappies the little one wears per day dwindles over the summer months and so too does the washing. But the sight of nappies on the washing line always makes me smile. Especially when they are strung on a line between 2 trees in the forrest.

Would love to hear about your seasonal adventures. Why not link up below. 

Learning Music

One of my new years resolutions this year is to learn to play music. I have never played before except a few tunes like chopsticks on the piano. I don't know how to read music but I am sure I will learn.

After reading about the wonderful influences the pentatonic harp has on small children, and how relatively easy they are to play, I decided that my instrument of choice would be this lovely little spring lyre. It is a truly beautiful thing and the sounds it makes, even when played by an amateur like myself are divine. It attracts my children like moths to a flame. The only problem I am having now is that as soon as I try to play it, little fingers want to play too... not that that is a bad thing.

I Heart You

This week, this little blog of mine turned 1. When I started this blog a whole year ago,  Isla was only a few weeks old and Holly was still just a one year old. I thought it would be fun to keep a little on line journal of our life while the kid's were tiny. So, I signed up for a blogger account and the rest they say is history.

 It all started with this post. I think hardly anyone read it, probably only my family but I enjoyed it and so I kept on. Slowly, I began to discover other lovely blogs, blogs which inspired and motivated me in so many ways. I have made new friends along the way, I have become a better parent and a better crafter as a result of much of what I have read on your blogs. So I want to say a big thank you to each and every one of you who reads my little blog, for your kind comments, thank you.

P.S. the little heart stone is one I found on the beach this week, I am starting to get a very good eye for spotting them. One day I should share a photo of my wee collection.

4 Seasons

A Kiwi Summer

A kiwi summer, I love it. 

One of my favorite things about summer holidays is getting back to basics, and for us, we do that at the family batch. A batch, for those that don't know is a New Zealand term for holiday home. Except, holiday home congers up images of big flash houses, were as batches are all about keeping it simple. Think crockery from the 1970's, peggysquare blankets made by some now long dead aunt, cushions that are so old the filling has gone hard... you get the drift. 

At our batch, we don't have a bath, only a shower and the little ones aren't fussed on showers anyway. Our solution- a bucket bath in the evenings on the deck. I must say I was more than a little jealous, I would not have minded sitting out there myself- warm water on a beautiful summer's evening, overlooking the south pacific ocean- bliss!

So, what have you all been up too in 2011? Would love you to link up.

One Small Change- Wholefoods

One of my new years resolutions this year was to improve my family's diet. Namely, reducing the quantities of processed food we consume. I am not talking about 'junk food', we don't eat a lot of that. More the refined nature of our diet- white bread, white rice, pasta, pre-made sauces etc. Now, I am only a newbee on the wholefood scene and it is going to take me time to learn, time to find new ways of buying and cooking. But, my goal is that by the end of this year, my family will be eating a 90% wholefood diet. For those of you that don't know what I mean by the term wholefood, that is food in it's natural form or with as little processing as possible- think brown foods, legumes, fruit and vegetables.

So to get started I thought I would share with you a very yummy recipe I cooked which was a great hit with my family. It is adapted from a recipe in 'The Amrita Cookbook' produced by the Lotus Yoga Centre.

Curry Rice Loaf

Ingredients-
4 cups of cooked brown rice
1 cup of grated carrot
1 cup of brown bread crumbs
1 cup of milk
4 tablespoons of sesame oil
1 cup of chopped nuts
1 sauteed onion
1/2 cup of peanut butter
4 tablespoons of soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon of curry powder
1 tablespoon of wholemeal flour
warm water

Directions-
Mix flour and a little water to form a paste. Add all other ingredients and mix. Bake in an oiled loaf tin at 180 degrees Celsius for 1 hour. Serve with salad and homemade satay sauce- yum!

For more small changes, check out here.

What To Make Next

I was lucky enough to win an amazing giveaway on a fellow kiwi blog What To Make Next. Amber is a very talented pattern designer and she was kind enough to offer up a signed copy of her Clara pattern and a skein of vintage purls yarn. I am so very excited to get going on this pattern, now we are home from holidays, I plan to get started, so watch this space for the finished article! If you have not checked out Amber's blog before, please do. Or, if you would like a copy of this pattern for yourself, you can find it on Ravelry here.

Welcome

We welcomed in 2011 with some quiet time as a family spent on the foreshore watching our little homemade walnut shell candle boats bob about in a rock pool. A little brief interlude between the year that had been and the year to be. A few minutes to pause and remember, to dream and to hope.

Wishing you all a happy and safe 2011.