Reflection

I've been officially unemployed for 20 days now.  Without job, lady of leisure and my personal favourite semi retirement are phrases being kicked around.

Despite a lack of money and feeling very weird, I'm doing okay. It was good to go away for school holidays but now we are back, and school has begun, I'm trying to get grounded and work out what to do next.

I must say that I don't, for one moment, regret resigning from my job.  It feels as if a dark cloud has been lifted, yes cliche I know but a fitting one. I now realise how ridiculously busy I was, how much stress I was carrying around and how I've been missing out on so many different things.

I'm definitely calmer, I can feel it in my soul. Those feelings of worry about fitting it all in, of doing things half heartedly and not having enough time have gone.

My choice has been a good one.

And I've been baking!  Yeah I can't believe it either!  Homemade treats for the lunchboxes, thank you very much!  I'm making an orange and chocolate chip cake tomorrow because we have an abundance of oranges and mandarins on our trees.

They are delicious!

Today the kids and I walked down to the trees and picked some fruit, it was such a beautiful day.  Not a sound and such peace and quiet. These precious, easy moments are what I've been missing.

I plan to have many more.

Oranges

Miss T (aged 8) invited me to go exploring with her today.  We have 75 acres, and we've recently discovered a hidden orchard with trees filled with oranges, madarins and mangos!

It was such a beautiful day, and so peaceful just taking our time.  We made our way down to the freshwater creek, with the craggy gumtrees giving way to delicate waterfalls here and there.

The trickling of the water was only surpassed by the narrative of my little companion, who delighted in instructing me where to walk and what to look at! 

My April

Fun park + Easter + Harbour Festival + School Holidays + Eisteddfod + Dance Festival + Work + Kangaroos + New Life + Sunshine + Farm Days + Tears + Tiredness + Sports + Home + ANZAC.

 

 

 

Where I'm at in the Blogosphere

Forgive me Father, for I have not blogged for two weeks.....

That thing called Life, has been in the way! Work, homelife, kids activities, dancing festivals, school stuff, more work, washing, new house housework, Easter, Harbour Festival, kid wrangling and the list goes on.

When I sit down at night to relax, I'm so tired that I can't concentrate on stringing two words together, worthy of even publishing on my blog.  But I 'm happy to say that school Term 1 is now over, and the holidays are before us!

I can't believe how quickly the first term has passed! It's usually a busy one for us, with Miss D (aged 12) dancing last weekend in our local dance competition (scoring for herself a 4th, a 2nd and a 1st), dancing on stage at the Harbour Festival last week and now preparing for an Eisteddfod next week.

Mr C (aged 10) has been busy with a special reading project at school, called Project 600, and now is looking forward to AFL, with training starting this week.

Miss T (aged 8) has been loving her Saturday morning dancing class, and has been working on her loudest quite voice, which she delivers every time we are in the library!

The Hubbster has been busy working on the Farm, cutting grass at every opportunity! He doesn't need an excuse to take Jaffa the Tractor for a spin, he even cut the grass at our neighbours farm last week!

The Money Pit is just wonderful! We now have door stops and bathroom mirrors, and every week, something new is done and those final little touches are taking shape!

We still don't have a television in the house, as we would like to buy a flatscreen tv for the Theatre Room, so I'm still heading back to the Shed to watch my shows at night, which frankly sucks as it brings back memories of the four year never ending bad camping trip we were on!

So what else is happening you ask?  Well, did I tell you that in July, I'll be attending Blogher13.  Oh and it's in CHICAGO USA! Can you believe it, because I can't! Only the biggest blogging conference ever!

My flights are booked and paid for, and I'm now working on the fun stuff - where I'll go, what I'll get up to, what I'll wear and I'm trying to find the perfect walking shoes because after Chicago, I'll be flying to New York for a week!

It doesn't seem real yet!  After 16 long years, I'm finally going back to my beloved America, the one place that has held my heart for so long......

2012 - My Country My Life

Images of My Country - 2012.

 

 

 

I never thought living on a farm would be so sublime and that it would fit me so well

 

 I really feel this is where I belong. Our house is a country house, with large wraparound verandahs that are just crying out for a wicker chair

 

 

 

 

 

 It was such a bittersweet time for me, moving from our comfortable home in the suburbs to a farm, a shed and a totally new life. Having never lived out of town before, I was scared. Fearful of the unknown, worried about change

A treechange

The country life is in my blood, born from the roots of my mother and my grandmother. I just....belong here

 

 

 

 

 

 

I love living in the country

I love the space, the clean air and the peace

The early morning wake up call of the magpie, and the laugh of the kookaburra

 

 

 

 I plan to grow old on the verandah of my house, knitting something amazing while my grandchildren play in the fresh air.......nothing would be sweeter.....