Finding treasure, making memories.

On Saturday Murray and I took the kids on our annual conker hunt. I love this tradition as it never trully feels like Autumn until we have been.

This year we took our sweet Joe boy with us.

It was wonderful.

I love these sweet faces.

The day was bittersweet, as that scrumptious boy in the middle is now starting his new life in Spain, with my big sister. Sniff.

I took 200 photos of our day and plan on adding a whole chunk on here. Be prepared!

Autumn is really here.

I have to wait until December before I can snuggle this boy again.

Sniff.

Although I may get to skype with him tomorrow, I can't wait xx

Aaah. It' here.

The glorious cold weather has finally arrived. With attitude! Earlier this week we had some crazy wind that seems to have blown some deliciously low temperatures our way. It's bliss! I feel like I can breathe again!
As much as I have been anticipating it - I don't seem to have been organising for it!! I still have no gloves. Oh dear, it seems I will need to go shopping..........

Today marks the second last day of the October holidays. Sigh. I love having the kids home every day, no time restraints or deadlines. I will miss them so much next week. They start back on Monday, which is , unfortunately, the same day as Sarah, Joe boy and my Mum fly out to Spain. For the start of a new adventure.
Nope , I can't do it, I can't think about that yet. I'll deal with it on Monday.

For now, we are going to have a nice stroll on this cool , sunny day, finish up some crafts that we started yesterday and I have a TON of cutting and sewing to do for an upcoming craft fayre (eek!!).

I have two weeks left to get organised and I have barely even started? All I have so far are a few felt rose accessories

Three things. Not exactly a "fayre"

On the plus side - I have discovered how to get good non-blurry pics of K!

I just need to be attempting to take a photo of something else and ...... bam! There she is! Ready to pose!

Love it.

Love that cheeky little face.

I am looking forward to the next three days, I get to have Joe boy for a couple of days to let his parents pack for their upcoming move. We are planning to go on our annual conker hunt on Saturday and this year we get to take Joe with us. I can't wait xx

Down time.

It just feels like we have been go go go for weeks now, I guess it's because we have! Getting used to the school routine for K has been quite challenging. Although she is loving it and enjoying it so much, it takes a lot out of her and her emotions become very fragile when she is tired and a little overwhelmed. It's a lot of fun!
 We have also been away for a night for the last two weekends. Which has been super fun, and has added in to the busyness.

Today is day two of the kids October holidays and we are having a home day. So far K and I have laid on the couch with blankets, had a cup of tea and a biscuit (or two) and just enjoyed a little down time.

We have watched countless cartoons and I got to snooze a little.

It's been great.

K is now eating plain pasta and grapes for lunch.

I love days like these.

This afternoon I want to make some lentil soup, pumpkin bread and maybe try a re - run of some carmelised onion marmalade.

 My sweet hubby bought me a special gift a few weeks back and I have been putting her to good use -

Goood old Bessie.

We have had a lot of fun making jam and yummy apple jelly. But our onion marmalade was a disaster! Hoping for better luck this time. Better judgment? Just a better result I guess.

Yesterday K , Lor and I went on a trip to Ikea to collect Frase ( he had stayed an extra night in Berwick) Ikea was a sensible half way point. (woo hoo!)

I may have went slightly crazy with the christmas stock

I'm trying to persuade Murray that these glasses aren't overly christmassy - we could use these all year round, Right?

I bought all of my christmas wrapping paper!! And some dreamy napkins.

It feels good to be getting organised, it's not long to go now, only 75 sleeps!!

I also have a real sickness. I CAN NOT go to Ikea without buying bedding!

Does anyone else "suffer" from this?

mm yummy.

Now, to the untrained eye (murray) these look exactly like our other covers! But really they are a very different, much more festive, updated version!

Promise.

I was going to hang some washing now and try to get some pics on here while I have time

 ( time? Thats a joke - K is being all sorts of demanding now that my attention is here!) but the rain has come on! Ah well, I'll just hang it inside for now and go set up the monopoly board while the photos are uploading.

 We must also try to finish our autumn project that we started yesterday

 

This lazy day is not turning out quite so lazy!!

We will try to squeeze in a snuggle with the Joe boy at some point too!

It's probably going to be busy in the end but I'm just happy to be home with my full little nest.

I love the school holidays!!



Changes.

I am sitting in my cosy kitchen. It smells of roast chicken and home. Family. Everything I love.

Instead of making me all warm and happy as usual, it feels like a punch in the gut.

So I do what I like to do best when I have this lump in my throat, I write it out. I always feel better once I have formed the words.

Around an hour ago I received a crisis call from my sister. She was distraught. She is in the process of moving home and had arrived at the storage facility and had no one to help her. This was the last straw in a long line of stress that she has endured the past couple of weeks and it broke her resolve.
There were tears.
Luckily she was around 5 mins from my hubby who was able to finish work and go to help her out. Isn't that the great thing about family? We can all be there for each other when we are needed. This is leaving me with that same lump in my throat and punch in the gut feeling.

My sister is  not only moving home, she is moving country. She and her sweet little family are headed for sunny Spain.

How can we help her when she is so far away?

It is a rollercoaster for us all. I am so happy they are finally getting their wish. Thrilled that my amazing, adorable nephew will get to enjoy this wonderful opportunity. Pleased for my sister who can rid herself of our scottish climate that she loathes so fiercly.

My heart is breaking too.

If one more person tells me that it will be great! Imagine the cheap holidays you can have! I may not be responsible for sharing the punch in the gut!

Holidays don't come cheap when they are costing you everyday moments with your family.

It is no surprise that my family are important to me.  Just have a look over on my labels tab, there are more posts on family than anything else. I have been blessed with staying so close to my entire family for my whole life. The furthest I have ever had to drive to see family members is 45 mins. The changes that are happening spread so far into all of our lives, it is a deep ache.


It isn't just that I will miss seeing them on Christmas, Birthdays, Halloween. It is the hundreds of days in between where we see each other, just because.

It will change the dynamic of our whole family. Because we all live so close it doesn't matter if we aren't spending Christmas with my parents or my sister, we will see them regardless. It is a 5 min drive, one of us will pop in to see the other. (usually them popping in to us, we had the kid card to play for a long time ;) )  But now if my parents are spending Christmas with my sister and Joe boy - we wont see any of  them at all.

It will be different, another change to get our heads around.

My sister will be spending a lot of time alone (due to her hubby's job) so I would presume my Mum will spend a lot of time over there, and quite rightly so. But I will miss her too.

I am grateful that it is "only" a 3 hour flight.
I am grateful that we have skype and that sarah and Joe are used to using this to keep in touch with their other family who are spread far and wide.
I am grateful that we will be able to fly over and that we are welcome to stay for some holidays!
I am grateful that I have lived for 30 years without feeling the pain of missing people who haven't even left yet.

I guess I just didn't see it coming.  We played our whole lives out when we were little. Our favourite game was "Sarah and LeeAnn".
Sarah was a high flying career woman, yet loving sister and aunt. She drove a convertable and loved to shop.
Lee Ann was a stay at home Mum who loved to bake, look after her child and make a home.

Never once did Sarah sell the convertable, up sticks and jet off to Spain!!?? (I'm sure there is a law suit in there somewhere!!) Maybe if she had given me 25 years notice, I could have been prepared!

Uh oh. More tears.

I feel like I have been treading a fine line recently. How do you support someone you love but be secretly sad at the same time?? If you keep that sadness a secret you run the risk that people think you don't care.

I care. I just want to show the happiness more. I'm sure my sister doesn't need to see the tears to know they are there.

I am so happy for my dearest ones to be moving into this new chapter of their lives. Please know that we are coming right along with you. Even if we are very far away, I will be there for a virtual hug a cup of tea and a shoulder to cry on. Murray can share inappropriate jokes by internet. The kids can send art work and postcards or something through the mail. And there is always skype to blow kisses and give virtual tickles to my favourite baby boy. We will always be right there from right here in our busy, messy little nest.

I will be sharing a virtual goodnight handshake with you every night x

October

Autumn is taking it's sweet time to arrive. We even had a heat wave last week! I try I really do, I do all of the things that I should do in the summer! 

 But  now, I am so over summer and hot weather. I am desperate for cool days and warm colours.

I need fallen leaves to scuff through, leaves falling like snow as you drive underneath them. Warm hats, cosy boots and a little gloved hand to hold.

Today I took a stroll in the sunshine with Murray. I roasted myself alive in a scarf and woolly hat! I was treated to my first gingerbread latte of the season! It was lovely. I even bought a pumpkin!

Pumpkin bread and a walk in the woods awaits.

The weather may not yet be ready, but I wont wait.

 It is October and I WILL enjoy every autumn delight!

The weather can catch up ... eventually.


ps- my husband thinks I am crazy because I was talking to my pumpkin. Seems perfectly normal to me....