Going Commando

The school holidays keep rolling by; today was yet another day waiting to be filled. After finding a bunch of stale bread in the freezer/pantry (and knowing how my darling hates waste) I had planned a little trip to the end of our street to visit the ducks. The troops were less than enthusiastic until daddy announced he would join us. All of a sudden it was a family outing.

One of the bonuses of Mr G working for himself is that every so often when the inspiration strikes, he can take a few hours to just hang out with us, like today.

At the end of our street is a wonderful stretch of native bush complete with stream, ducks and waterfall: The Oakley Creek Reserve. No sooner had we ducked below the treeline into our little hidden patch of paradise (ignoring the scattered litter and crappy tagging) than the kids started begging daddy to play Commandos.

Mr G is really just an overgrown kid, and needs no second urging to play silly games.

They found some "guns" (large sticks) and our Commando expedition began... The Captain was carrying his radio pack (Scrag) and ordered the Sergeant and the Corporal to fan out and keep an eye out for bogeys.

We spotted this suspicious looking guy...

...and this suspicious looking object placed right across our path (a tank trap? a trip wire?)

"Man down! Man down!" The Corporal tripped over what could have been a land-mine (or just some uneven concrete?) She was brave, as all SAS crack troops are trained to be; The Captain picked her up; we never leave a man behind...

A helicopter hovered overhead for a while - not sure whether it was friend or foe.

I suggested it could be airborne backup troops; Mr G muttered something like, "Don't quit your day job!"

I went back to taking photos...

Our mission was to feed the wild ducks, paying particular attention to the ones who looked hungriest... a serious business requiring the full attention of these crack SAS groundtroops...

We noticed that the RadioPack seemed to prefer eating the bread rather than throwing it...

Mission completed we carried on to our destination for some R&R and broke open the rations...

Ahhhh, perfection! Our whole little family on a bench overlooking the waterfall with nothing around us but birdsong and bush... What a nice warm fuzzy moment, perfect for capturing on film...

"Muuuumm!!! Put away that camera you japanese tourist!" shouted The Sergeant.
"Yeah, don't you think these kids are going to grow up scared to go out in public because of the paparazzi??" The Captain agreed, somewhat illogically.

"Ahhh well, you'll all be glad that I take so many photos in the future when we can look back and remember all the cool stuff we did together...!" I retorted.

And I'm sticking to my photo-taking guns.

Cheats Bunting

It's no secret that I am a non-sewer. I am the queen of the Hot Glue Gun and the Stapler.

If you are one of those talented gals who knows how to drive a sewing machine, you will probably want to skip this lazy-girls guide to bunting. You probably already have your whole house festooned in colourful swags of properly stiched fabric flags.

This post is for the non-sewers; the girls like me who need to beg their craftier friends to do sewing for them (as I have been known to do).

This weekend sees my little Scraggadag turn TWO (boo hoo, not a bubba anymore); he is having a Whacky Wheels party.

Today I whipped up this string of bunting in about fifteen minutes flat (maybe less).

Here's how to make easy peasy bunting for craft-challeneged non sewers (like me)...

Materials:

6 sheets of A4 lightweight card, assorted colours

Scissors

Stapler

String

Cut the card into horizontal triangles like this:

Fold each triangle over at the top, hook it over the string and staple it into place. Alternate colours and repeat. That's it. One very colourful strand of traffic-light bunting for less than $2. 

I also made a string of chequered flags to hang across the driveway/raceway. Enlarge a chequered pattern like this up to A4 and print it out doublesided onto white paper. Staple onto string and there we go!

Alternatively, tape onto straws for waveable flags; or position them in mini-traffic cones to decorate the table.

• Wacky Wheels Party
• Felt No-Sew Bunting
• Tangled Party Bunting

Honesty and Art

I feel like I should begin this post with, "Hi. My name is Simone and I'm a blogaholic..."
I try, I really do, to keep my blogging to the hours when the baby's asleep and the kids are at school. But sometimes I just can't help myself. It's my slightly addictive personality at work, you see. Pre-kids I was a workaholic. I burnt myself out, living with no boundaries. I learnt the hard way to chill, baby, chill.
But the tendency to go too far is still there.
Just five more minutes, OK?
Just one more paragraph, OK?
Just one more photo upload, OK?

Too often my kids are tugging at my sleeve and pleading, "Mum, get off that computer!!"

We were driving in the car the other day and Dash was complaining, "Mum, you spend way too much time on the computer. You never play with us!!" Awwww, you cut me deep, Shrek!
It was a wake-up call. I had to apologise to them, there and then.

I ate humble pie and admitted to them that I don't always know when to stop. I told them, if you see me going on the computer too long, you can say, "Mum, you're doing too much, you have to stop..."


And seeing that it's the school holidays at the moment, that's a tough one for me to keep. But I am trying to turn over a new leaf and really focus on the kids and do more stuff with them (not that I completely ignore them all the time and let them run wild while I bloghop - no, really. Hardly ever!)

Right now I am sneaking in some computer time while Miss Fab is at gymnastics, Scrag is asleep and Dash is watching a new Star Wars DVD. (Actually no, right now he is standing here looking over my shoulder and reading what I am writing. He wants a "special coffee". And for me to come and watch the DVD with him... which I will. As soon as I have uploaded these photos of the kids doing their Art...)

So after turning over my new improved creative-mother-leaf, yesterday, I took the kids for an "Art Class", at their request. In other words, I was their Art Teacher. It was great!!
They paid for it with chores (teehee): tidy rooms, folded washing, emptied dishwasher... My classes don't come cheap.
Then we painted some canvases together.

Miss Fab did hers all by herself (of course).

Dash (who's new passion is Star Wars) wanted me to do a space picture for him; he watched and gave advice on colours and object placement while I painted; then he added the finishing touches - fire shooting from the spaceship's guns.


We had a lovely non-computer day. (I was absolutely drained and done-in at the end of it. Withdrawal??? Do I need professional help?? A Blog-atine patch to wear on my arm??)

Oh well. Only one more week of School holidays, then I will get my regular computer time without the guilt.
I'm off to watch Star Wars now with my son. I never did get to see how Anakin turned into Darth Vader, so I'm really looking forward to it.

But I'll be seeing you... you know I can't resist for long!

It's In the Bag

I love my handbag. It's not designer, it's not trendy. It's black scuffed leather with a long strap and plenty of pockets for holding all my crap.  It's a great accessory: I can sling it across my tummy to disguise any bloating... or I can fling round the back to cover my butt. It goes wherever I go. And into it gets shoved everybody else's bits'n'bobs.

How long since I've cleaned out my handbag??? Since forever.
I thought it would be fun to pull out the contents and see what is making it so heavy (and so hard to find anything)...
I had some help...

Inside my time capsule handbag were the following essential items...

• one travel toothbrush
• one squished "Milkies" snack bar

• red nail polish
• a broken watch
• a hair tie
• A Lemon Meringue Stamper from McDonalds
• A full box of tampons (and one loose one)
• an empty strepsils packet
• a popsicle stick
• four random AAA batteries
• earplugs

• an envelope with photos of my kids
• an empty chewing gum packet
• my hubby's business card
• an expired parking ticket

• my studdly westie wallet (um, maybe i need a prettier one?)
• random ribbons, buttons & hairclips
• a krusty hanky (ew!! Mr G?!!!?)
• various dried up lidless markers and some artwork by a certain Miss Fab
• velcro
• a sticky sweet

• random advertising flyers
• a movie ticket stub
• a bic pen and finally...
• some lip gloss

There was also some unidentified crumbs and crustiness lurky in the bottom. I think I'll just empty it straight into the rubbish, and hope like heck there's nothing important lodged there.

I'm scared to touch it wihtout surgical gloves (especially since Mr G's crusty hanky has been swanning around in there since who-knows-when. Ugh!! I shudder to think. I've probably touched it without realising it was even in there... eeeewww!! Thanks a lot sweetie!

Footnote (later that day): Since this was posted, several items have gone "missing". Ahem. A certain young lady has been spotted with red toenails and sporting a broken watch on her wrist. She denies all knowledge of any events leading up to the disappearance of the Lipgloss and... er, the tampons. We are still investigating this case....

Are you a handbag girl? What have you got lurking in there?

Comment Me This...

Okay... I have stepped out of the boat onto the scary water of a new commenting system for my blog. It's powered by Disqus and gives me better options for communicating and replying to commenters - in fact, we can hold discussions and reply to each other now as well. No, we can't. The drop in comments was immediate and obvious. I've deleted the new comment system and returned to good ole Blogger comments :(

One of my blog friends, Jenny, mentioned that the thing she doesn't like about the Disqus comment system is that they want you to sign in to them i.e. create yet another account. It seems a lot of you agreed with Jenny. And stopped commenting. Awwww.

I investigated this (after Jenny mentioned this to me) and Blogger commenters can sign in using the Open ID option. Just enter your blog address and your display name (same for Wordpress and TypePad bloggers as well). Nope, this never worked. It was too complicated. It didn't recognise us. The instructions were flawed. Boo OpenID.

So now that we've cleared that up... hopefully I won't see a drop in comments, but rather the opposite! A HUGE drop in comments. It was too complicated :( I liked it but my friends really didn't.

If my new comment system puts you off and you find it a pain, PLEASE let me know... I'm trying to make things better (and easier for all commenters), not take a step backwards! You let me know alright. You stopped commenting! I heard ya, loud and clear!

Let me know how it works for you.
I'm looking forward to getting your comments (on my flash new comment system). Cheers! Ahh never mind. We've deleted it now. It's all for the best - a failed experiment, but hopefully no harm done??
Simone
xxx

Footnote: I never was able to upload my old comments into Disqus. I made two enquiries but never heard back. Boo.
P.S. If you were one of the few who actually liked the Disqus commenting system, it's pretty easy to add to your blog, (and it's free of course). I found out about it here. Good luck!

Our Last Supper

It's Easter, a special weekend for Christian believers all over the world. I have this thing where I really want our kids to experience and connect with the wonderful stories of our faith. Because to me they are more than stories.

These events really happened; they're historically proven. The people were real human beings: Peter (the loudmouth), John (the softie), Mary (the reformed bad girl) and Mary (the mother)... how would they have felt when all the drama was unfolding?

Sitting around that table, eating pita bread and drinking wine, could they have imagined that in a few short hours their lives would be turned upside down and the unthinkable would have happened? Jesus, the One they had followed and believed in, would be arrested, betrayed by one of their friends, and executed publicly - a long slow death.

When I imagine myself in that group, I can't judge Peter for denying he knew Jesus. He was scared, terrified that what had just happened to Jesus would happen to him next. Could I have done any better? I don't think so. No wonder Peter fled, ashamed of himself for denying his friend. I wouldn't have wanted to show my face either.

Loyal John stuck by Jesus, standing at the foot of the cross as his hopes drained away with Jesus' lifeblood. John supported Mary, the mother (probably not much older than me; she married young). Poor Mary, watching her precious son die so horribly, so unjustly. I put myself in her shoes and I think her heart must have been smashed to pieces.

When I was a child I used to really get into the whole Easter story. For me, strangely, it was never really about the chocolate and bunnies. I would think to myself throughout the weekend, "This time one thousand ninehundred and seventynine years ago Jesus was... talking to Pilate... hanging on the cross...laying in the tomb..."

I found myself thinking the same thing this morning... "Easter Saturday... Jesus was in the Tomb..." It's the in-between day. Nothing really happens on Easter Saturday. Jesus was just dead. The empty in-between.

Then a thought flashed through my mind: But what was he doing while he was dead?? His body was laying in the tomb, but his True Self was elsewhere. My Bible tells me he was plundering darkness, stripping the devil of his power, taking the keys of Death and Hell, leading captivity captive. He was very busy.

Easter Saturday is the day that evil lost its teeth - although it seemed like all hope was lost and all dreams were dashed. While on the surface of things it looked like nothing was happening, in another dimension that Old Serpent was being stripped of his power. Because of what happened on that day, he is no longer the gatekeeper to Death, he has no more power over us (only as much power as we give him by listening to his lies.)

I'm sure that millions of other people have had this realisation before, but for me it felt new. I went to church and sang my heart out for the first time in years.

That's why we celebrate Easter. It's why Easter Sunday is so important: Death was conquered; Jesus burst out of the grave; it could not hold him down.

I am aware that not everyone reading this shares my faith; I know there are plenty of skeptics out there. That's OK. I'm not trying to convince your mind, I'm just talking from my heart. I heard my pastor say today, if we approach God through our intellect, he'll only ever be as big as our mind (which for me is pretty darn small).

My faith doesn't mean I leave my brain at the door - no way! But it does mean that I acknowledge there is something (Someone) way bigger than me, something I can't explain, something I've only touched the corner of. But there's a knowing, a deep down glowy knowing... that this is more than a story, it's more than a set of ideals or beliefs. Jesus is real. A real person. Really Really Real. And Alive. Happy Easter!

Our Last Supper: The kids had a friend each for dinner; there were teatowels on heads and sheets put to good use. On the Menu: Spiced roast lamb, pita bread (rice, corn, grapes, hummus) and red wine (er, grape juice). The kids took turns reading the Easter Story from the Childrens Bible. It was fun :)

Shalom! (Peace be with you!)