Nov 12th

The fragrance of fresh basil and tomato filled my kitchen this morning.

Home made pizza was calling.  A quick google search and my favourite TMX blog, Quirky Cooking came up with a gluten-free pizza base recipe.  I hoped substituting amaranth for millet would work and got busy.  I was very pleased with the resulting dough.  And loved that not only was it gluten-free, it was also vegan.  

I ruined that of course, by sprinkling mozzarella over the top.  But the thing is, I abhore waste.  We had some in the fridge and I wanted to get rid of it - like we're getting rid of all the meat in our freezer at the moment.  It's funny.  The more I look at cheese in food - even in its natural habitat, like on top of a pizza - the more it seems so unnatural for me to be eating it.  Congealed and thick - kinda like mucus (and not the good kind).  I have always loved cheese.  Of every kind:  hard, soft, blue, smoked.  It turns a Mediterranean pasta dish into something wonderful.  And makes a jam sandwich a filling and fulfilling experience.

This gorgeous dish I have just made from scratch is divine.  I just devoured a piece.  The cheese hasn't added anything I don't think.  Oftentimes, cheese adds the flavour of salt - which improves most dishes (that's the commercial almost-chef in me talking).  But I can add salt for that.  I have avoided dairy on a large scale, for health reasons, for about the last 12 years.  I have still eaten, but in nowhere near the quantities of my previous enjoyment.  I feel this is another conscious step towards embracing veganism.  When it's a taste reason, it's even easier to embrace (for me, anyway) than when it's health or political.

So, cheese aside - the verdict on the pizza?

The base was a little thick in the middle (rookie mistake), so a bit doughy.  But the edges were crunchy and tasty.  The fresh basil and tomato is a winning combination, and with a little salt and pepper - a truly magnificent warm afternoon indulgence.  I would have like to enjoy with my man, but alas, his sojourn to Bunnings took a little longer than expected.  He's building a mezzanine level in his bedroom.  Why, you ask?

To fit the queen sized bed into a small room that already has a king sized bed.  Again, with the why?  Well, when we did the room rearrange, Goose and I moved into the bigger room, as her own room was reallocated to our new housemates.  We placed the bed in the only spot available in the room (when windows, doors, wardrobes and ensuites were taken into account).  And she slept terribly.  The first night.  Then the second night.  Then the third night.  No longer a random one-off.  After having my building biology knowledge refreshed - it made perfect sense.  On the external wall, the same wall our bed shared inside, was the meter box.  A massive generator of electromagnetic fields.  While not noticeably having his sleep disturbed while he slept in the same spot before us, we don't think its a coincidence that Ben has not been able to remember his dreams for the entire time he slept in that room.

So, the three of us now have to find space in one room.  It's becoming a little like what I imagine homes that house the entire extended family are like.  Five people sleeping in two rooms.  I will draw the line at washing being strung up inside though.  Living in Australia - that's just not necessary *grin*.  It makes me smile, I must admit, when I think about huge McMansions being built with five bedrooms for a family of two adults (who share a room usually) and two children.  One room inside which often the only person sleeping, is a tiny baby (who most often wants to be snuggled between his parents, anyway! *laugh*).

So, why a queen bed above and not just a single raised bed?

Well - we have a mattress and linen for a queen.  No point buying another single mattress (the one we own will be used by our new housemates) and more linen.  That's unnecessary consumerism.  It also means, that Ben has the upstairs bed and Goose has the downstairs bed and there is room for two in each, which means I have the option to take my pick in where I sleep!  I do love how Goose may be the only person sleeping in a king sized bed on occasion.  Quite amusing.

It got me to thinking why more families don't cram lots of people in fewer rooms - after all, you're just sleeping in there.  And I think the reason is, nowadays, bedrooms are not just for sleeping - they are a sanctuary of private space.  And that's important.  But I also think, separate rooms for living can be alienating.  I recall sharing a room with my two sisters for the majority of our childhood.  In some houses, it was two in one and one in another.  The one in her own room almost always felt left out and spent her time in the room of the other two.  I also recall alliances being made between the two that shared a room, often to the point of leaving the third out.

During our teenage years, we all slept in a fitted out attic space.  There were three sections (and invisible lines we dared not cross if border control was enforced), but no doors or walls.  I know without a doubt, these years during our childhood strengthened the bond we have as adults now.  Oh - there were fights - oh boy, were there fights!  But because we couldn't lock ourselves away in a room, we were forced to figure out our shit.  Because we couldn't avoid each other, we were in each other's faces and life is more enjoyable when we were harmonious, so peace was reached, I believe, much sooner than it would have been, were we able to lock ourselves away.  Particularly during teenagehood.

And I have wonderful, wonderful memories of sharing space - of talking until we fell asleep, telling stories, sharing jokes.  I remember laughing until my pillowcase was wet with tears and my stomach muscles ached (my sisters are incredibly funny - or perhaps, we're just an amusing trio, we often did bounce off each other - another benefit from sharing space so often).  And falling asleep with endorphins pumping through our veins was a wonderful sleep aid.

In our home now, we will have two rooms for sleeping.  And because we'll be so tucked in, there won't be much space for living.  Throughout the rest of the house though, we have a large lounge that merges with the kitchen, a long sunroom that doubles as an office space, that can be zoned off with glass doors and now an ex-bedroom, which will double as a large walk-in wardrobe and a study.  We have a sofa that is sitting in the garage that needs a home and a desk that no longer fits in any sleeping rooms.  And of course, there is an undercover outdoor space and a backyard.  Many, many spaces for living (not to mention the beach a ten minute walk away).  Space for sharing and enough space to find your own quiet if you need it.  I'm looking forward to seeing how it will work.

With regards to the merging of sleeping space of Ben, Lucy and me - we're a tad apprehensive, but we're also optimistic.  And the man loves any opportunity to get out the building toys *smile*.

Nov 11th

11/11/11

A truly auspicious date!

According to some, the official transition from the Age of Pisces to the Age of Aquarius.  Although, as my MIL pointed out, transitions between ages that last 2100 years will generally last longer than one day *wink*.  The shift from away from old, fear-based habits and into a reality based on hope rather than despair, of abundance rather than lack, of peace rather than war, of contentedness rather than yearning, and of connectedness rather than separation* is most certainly being felt and I feel started in my lifetime, if not before (think swinging sixties).

* Description taken from this blog post, by a gorgeous yogi :o)

I couldn't think of a better way to celebrate tonight's full moon and of course, the small thing of the dawning of a brand new age, than congregating with my loved ones, dancing with fire and LED lights, to the beat of some African drums.  So, we did!

It was a wonderful gathering!

The joining of two (perhaps more?) communities.  Our humble gathering of local families in the village (that have met on a few occasions now), a group of African drummers and more fire twirlers!  The spot we chose, down on the foreshore, meant on a balmy night like this evening, the foot traffic was huge - so the atmosphere of those that lingered to watch us dance and hear us play, was just magical.  Beautiful, beautiful community.

I wish I had more images for you - but the absolute truth is, I barely put my poi down from the minute I arrived.  And Ben was busy on the staff until much later in the evening, when Goose and I had a play on the drums.  Most of the crowd had dispersed by the time these images were captured.  It would have been wonderful to share more of the action!

The generosity of spirit amongst all was beautiful.  I learned so much from more experienced twirlers and in turn, I stepped a few newbies through a couple of swings.  The night had magic in the air from the moment we arrived on the sand to enjoy our dinner, in the company of families from our village.

I have just received permission from a beautiful woman who was amongst last night, to share two short clips she shot on her phone.  The first is of Ben twirling (closest to us, on the right) and the second of me tutoring a few swings.  One day, I may be lucky enough to secure a capture of me in full swing.  I would find that very cool *smile*.

July 5th

Grateful for experts in their fields.

We attended a feline fun workshop tonight and learned a lot about feline behaviour.  And some great information, debunking myths about toxoplasmosis in pregnancy, which I look forward to sharing on the A&O page later in the week.  I thoroughly enjoy spending time with knowledgeable people who are generous with their information - as is the case with Dr Nicole Hoskin, the vet at Prahran Veterinary clinic who conducted the workshop tonight.

We took the kittens along, for demonstration and cuddling purposes, but they spent 90% of the evening huddled in a corner, under a cupboard.  We learned a few tricks about preventing them from jumping on the bench - such as they do not like sticky things on their feet.  So we plan to cover the edge of the bench in double-sided tape for a week or so, to prevent them jumping up.  And when they do, entice them down with a treat and reward them on their return to the floor.

We also learned how to train cats to use the toilet.  I love this idea.  Considering we have three inside cats and they live to about 18 years of age, on average.  That's a lot of poo scooping!  Apparently there's a lot of tutorials on You Tube to help!  Looking forward to researching that a bit more :oD.

Will let you know how we fare. ;o)

July 3rd

Technology.

Oh, how I adore thee.

I received another speeding fine in the post earlier in the week.  It appears I spend far too much time looking at the road, and not enough time checking my speedometer.  *le sigh*  Whatever the case, I decided to get proactive about this situation and initiated a conversation with Ben about what to do.  His first suggestion was an application for the phone, that cross referenced GPS coordinates and determined my speed, then ideally, sounded an alarm to tell me if I was traveling more than the speed limit for that road.  Genius!

And this is what he found in his search for exactly that!

http://www.appbrain.com/app/speed-watcher-pro/com.bondfamilynet.speedwatcherpro

Whenever we enter a road, we touch and hold the designated speed and it stores it - AND remembers it for the next time you're on that road!  Brilliant!

We tested it out on our way to our dinner date this evening.  The alarm was fairly quiet, so not sure what to do there.  Ben suggested emailing them to see if any future upgrades would include a volume control.  I intend to get on to that.  Yep.

And - yes!  We had the pleasure of dining with a gorgeous family this evening.

I was blessed with lots of cuddles, giggles and story telling.

And dinner was divine - traditional Arabic dish, quite piquant!  I loved it.  AND I had a one-one-one tutorial on how to do a wrap and turn with my WIP, the knitted cardi, which turned into not actually being a wrap and turn at all.  I was shown a much easier (and more attractive) alternative.  Honestly - why to pattern writers make things so difficult?  Is it a one-upmanship?  Kinda like "if you can work this out, then you're ace like me"?  I'm attempting to plant seeds in the mind of my friend to go into pattern writing.  At last mention, she went all dreamy-eyed, thinking of a rather delicious man who does pattern writing for men, in the US.  I don't recall his name, I was too busy being amused by my friend dissolving into a pool of goo on the sofa.  I shall keep you up to speed on my progress here, cos I reckon her patterns would rock and you might just like to bookmark her Etsy and Ravelry pages, once they're up and running.

So - lots to be grateful for today.

Yep.  Life is ace!

June 8th

I received some ultimately wonderful news today.

I say ultimately, because initially it seems crazy ironic.  Lucy's dad has suggested I become majority carer next year, for when Lucy starts school.  One of the (many) reasons I'm not a fan of Lucy entering the schooling system, is the time pressure.  At the age of five, I don't think it's a healthy thing to get her up to an alarm, coax a suitable amount of protein and carbohydrates into her body, rush to dress, rush to groom, rush out the door - all within a 2 hour time period, then sit in traffic for 20 minutes in order for me to deliver her to the institution I have painstakingly chosen for her, that I believe will damage her least.

One of the other things I dislike about the schooling structure is the systematic setting of homework.  Yep, even at five.  At five, it's reading the book she's chosen from the library.  Never mind the idea that at five, she may not be ready to read.  Never mind that the regular daily practice of sitting down together to read a book that she may not be able to grasp, may set up all sorts of failure mindsets in my already self-flagellating child.  *sigh*

So, yes.  The irony that I will now be the person dancing this school dance that I don't want her to be a part of, is not lost on me.  But I did say 'ultimately'.  Because having Lucy during the week will be wonderful.  I will be a part of her daily life (despite the fact that it will be school focused) and I love that.  

I am trying really hard not to concern myself with the fact that my time with her during the week, when she's not at school and not preparing for school, or debriefing from school, not eating dinner, preparing for bed or sleeping, is not what I would consider a great amount of quality time.  I'm trying hard not to feel ripped off by the two full uninterrupted weekend days of quality time that her father will have with her.  I'm trying reeeeeeally hard.  I'm sure by January, I'll have a handle on it.  Somewhat.

In other news, we seem to have narrowed down our schooling search to two schools.  Which makes the task a little less intimidating.  One of the schools we are looking at shares the International Baccalaureate style of learning.  I'm still learning more about it, but I like what I've read so far.  The aspect that particularly sits well, is the awareness the children receive at a global level.  In IB's words: "... help (students) develop the intellectual, personal, emotional and social skills to live, learn and work in a rapidly globalizing world."  It is essentially, an international education.  Which I gather means, if Lucy decides she wants to study university in Paris (this school has French as their LOTE), her high school qualifications through IB will grant her access, grades dependent, naturally.

Contrastingly, the other school we are considering, is totally community focused.  They have farm animals and vegie garden the children tend.  There is a fully implemented recycling program - from plastic buckets in all the classrooms for food scraps to feed the goat and chickens - to solar panels and water tanks.  The question is, which suits our child best.  How on earth do you know that at five?  My first instinct is the community school.  Vegie gardens and recycling are the closest things I have to a religion.  She is animal mad and would flourish in this school.  As far as future prospects go and a learning style I resonate with, the international school wins hands down.

I am thinking, after cathartically purging just now, that we can do the vegie garden and chook thing at home.  We've done it in the past... if I'm a stay at home mama next year, it's absolutely feasible that I can do it all again....  Hmmmmm...

Sew (sorry!!), we were in the paper yesterday.  Not buried on the back page and the pic of menstrual pads was included - so that's a win in my opinion!  Great exposure for Sheree and LifeOptions.  I hope it stimulates some more donations.

And just some final melting moments from the kitties today :o)

I hope they always sleep like this.  I love how close they are.  The energy is so harmonious in the house.  Such gorgeous wee fluff balls.

May 17th

It's not often you will find a friend with three boy children aged six, four and two, willing to travel two and a half hours in the car, for an afternoon playdate with you.

But that's one of the things I'm immensely grateful for today.

April lives in a small town near Warrnambool (which also begins with a W, but I can't recall the name).  That's about a five hour car journey in one direction from my place.  In the past when I've sent out party invitations, I have not actually ever considered just how far away she lives.  Until yesterday.

I very much wanted to spend some time with her.  It was her birthday a few weeks ago (remember?), and her gift had not arrived via the post by the actual day.  So it has been sitting her for a week or two, beckoning me to the post office, which I just haven't made it to (our post office is a pain in the arse out of the way location).  So yesterday I decided I would deliver it in person.  And that's when I learned of the trek in store.

So me, being ever cheeky, asked if she knew of any good half way spots.  To which she replied with a link to a funky playground just outside of Geelong.  I was in a little bit of stunned silence at first.  To me, the magnitude of her offer was huge!  (To her apparently, it was no big deal, as travel is a part of her normal.)  

When I learned of the five hour one way journey, I considered that was perfectly reasonable if broken with an overnight stay, which just wasn't feasible for a Tuesday night.  So I was thinking plans for tomorrow just weren't going to happen.  You see, when I make an offer, the onus is on me to make it happen.  My offers carry no expectation on the other party.  So when April's gift to meet half way was forthcoming, I was so appreciative and so thrilled, because it meant that it could happen today!  And it also said volumes on how much we both value the friendship of the other.  And that was a lovely realisation *smile*.

So we had a wonderful afternoon, picnicing, chasing small children around wooden forts, sliding down slides much too small for mamas (although, we forced a fit!) and kicking a ball.

AND there was a gift of yarn!!!

*sigh*

Thank you April.  For traveling.  For sharing your children with me today.  For sharing your company with me today.  Your management style of three small, active souls has me in awe!  Time in your energy feels like the soothing of a calm ocean - has anyone ever told you that?  I had a really wonderful time today *smile*.

And speaking of yarn, the other mention of gratuity today, goes to the wonderful women in my craft circle.  I have been struggling with finding a way to make this frou frou yarn work into a blanket for Jess.  Straight didn't work.  Squares didn't work.  But a circle.  A circle could totally work.

But do you think I could work out the pattern?  

I must have pulled apart this pattern nearly ten times, trying to *see* if my interpretation of her instructions looked like the desired result in her photographs.

And finally, after much encouragement and sense talk from the women around me tonight, I nailed it.

And this is the mandala-inspired blanket so far.

*deep exhale*