These Days…

I had this almost-prepared and ready for Mothering Sunday, but just didn’t get a chance to finish it and post it… So many days later, (and so off “schedule” that I will have to make a new schedule) let me just say that it is every single day that I give thanks that I was blessed with my wonderful mother. My mother is the most inspiring person I know, and my personal parenting guru 😉 (even if I don’t always appreciate the advice at the time. Especially when it is preempted with “I know you don’t want me to say this..”!!)

So… What is happening in our house at the minute:

My kind boys are spending lots of time outside with little James while the weather is beautifully spring-like (although we are now getting a sprinkle of snow. Irish weather…) It’s sore for me to walk on uneven ground still, and I’m not fast enough to keep up with James, But I am improving thankfully…

My smallest boy wants to “help” all the time: especially when I am chopping vegetables (he loves matches, fires, large sticks, handmade dolls, knives, scissors… My brothers have given him the apt title of Danger Mouse) I give him a blunt knife and a banana and he chops and eats and makes an unholy mess. Reminds me of this cartoon I saw on Facebook:

The willows have catkins (Grace calls them “kitten-kins”!), a sure sign that spring is bounding in. Clumps of snowdrops all over the garden and some daffodils are coming into flower. Obviously a family tradition, James is beheading them as soon as they come into flower. Arghhhh!!!!

We are making a doll for my nieces impending birthday… I have a list of orders for more from my own children…

I have last thing at night and early morning discussions as to whether a fleece-or bead-filled one would be best, whether “we” (me) should make a life sized one (!), whether we(me) should make one with the body of a dinosaur, head of a baby… Important life decisions you can understand…

In between the scarily-frequent changes of clothes (“I need to look more like a princess!”), planning her wedding (to her brother, the one she fights with most)

(This is the wedding announcement/proposal he received to tell him of his impending nuptials)

(Needless to say he is now in hiding in his room) …

 …and making cards for everyone in the house (and demanding that her brothers aren’t so rude and write back), Grace and I made these cupcake soaps:

They look cute, but the soap didn’t melt like I was hoping (possibly, probably because I kept poking at it and stirring it around) Not sure, I have to have another go…

Michael (11) and Liam (8) are good at sewing, and have several sewn glove puppets under their belt (I have to be very careful about throwing out chopped up gloves, they usually are sewn up, have an embroidered face somewhere and a name and an important part in a game) I have been teaching Liam to crochet, but it is more frustrating for me than him: I just want to whip it out of his hands and do it for him; so when we were given a present of a knitting spool at Christmas, I rejoiced as this is a lovely, simple and relatively quick yarn-craft, and for small boys and girls it is hugely gratifying.

And lastly… While the rest of the country seems to have snow, we had a beautiful, warm sunny spring day here, and spent the day in the garden. Truly blissful!

 

• Mothers Day