Bright, sweet days

I feel like I'm coming out of a tunnel, of sorts. The panic at being on my own with three has peaked, and worn off - not completely, but just... enough... Yesterday was a blissful day of the sort that has been in short supply since Martin went back to work. Paternity leave seemed so short this time. I needed a good long while to babymoon, revel, adore my new baby. Some days I feel like she has been ignored for so long! Even today I took her out of the wrap after a long morning in town and surprised myself with the rush of emotion - hello baby, I missed you!

And here I sit going on about the strange, uncomfortable feelings instead of the joyous ones. Perhaps even after a really good day I am still a little run down. No matter, the smiles make up for the tired evenings. Today we went into town, really early to avoid the crowds of children at story time. Even though we're feeling better, Rowan is still coughing a little and I don't want to take the chance that we're passing germs around. I also have to feel normal again!

I re-read some of Pam Leo's Connection Parenting last night and got a good strong reminder that when I want to hurry them along it isn't them being naughty "dawdling" or "running off" it's them needing to explore conflicting with my priority of needing to Get Places. So we took pleasure in the journey a bit more.A favorite method of getting places TOGETHER without losing someone or getting fraught is the "stop and go game". Oh how I am loving this for stress-free town trips! Pity it doesn't work with avoiding the pulling of things from shelves... ;)

Right, enough with the rambling. We got home and did crafty stuff. Salt dough. Finger knitting. Star weaving. I have some pictures!Bounty from yesterday's walk is turned to jam, blackberries and MOUNTAINS of lovely little crab apples. Hope the jam turns out OK...There is always time for yoga!Tea: carrot and lentil soup (Jenna's favorite) with veggie sausages as an added treat - and home made potato and rosemary bread. Mmmm...And why does this baby refuse the breast only to suck her little thumb? It is slightly heartbreaking, but also so tiny and sweet... Irresistable. Makes me want to wake her up with kisses and offer milk again - which she refuses with confused sleepy frowns and gets the thumb back in on fourth or fifth try...Last but not least, the charity shop haul of the week, more books! My THIRD copy of What Mothers Do included.

Lessons in weekend magic from my nature babies

What an amazing weekend...Always make your own path...Notice the small things...Reflect...Breathe deep of life...

Two days in the house...

...and I am DEFINATELY ready to get us all out of here for a while! There is, however, almost nowhere around here where I won't be passing on our bug. *sigh* Tomorrow we can go that little bit further and not have to have any human contact at all to get there, but until then...

At least the girls seem to be able to keep themselves occupied with no help whatsoever! They have been little fairies doing yoga... (Note the cut on Morgan's head from hitting herself with the hefty solid wooden castle!)Argh! Pleeeease don't look too hard at the state of my floor!They willingly nap (shock!) to combat the all-over tiredness...They play those endless creative games with their little figures and vehicles...And have been helping out around the house (sometimes without my knowledge, hence the slightly guilty smile from Morgan).They play in the sand, and *on* the sandpit.We make spelt bread...We try to get the washing done, and get distracted by the little cutie playing with her hands on top of the washing pile...
And they all nap (again).They wear their babies in unconventional ways, and go back to the shelf-top game again...Do yet more yoga...And basically carry on being curious, funny, amazing, LIVELY little people. And drive me and my headache up the wall. ;)

Keeping busy

For a few days now, Rowan has had a bit of a cough and been generally under the weather. Of course, now we've been told it's swine flu... But if it is it isn't bothering any of us much (only me lol, splitting headache) - mostly it just means we're stuck here rather than risking passing it on. *sigh*

I certainly can't give her medication, because we haven't weighed her LOL, and I can't take anything because nobody is sure about breastfeeding. Ah well. *shrugs*

So we traced each other today, and coloured in clothes on some of the outlines, and did body parts on others. Then we read. Did some yoga. Watched The Secret of Moonacre (Jenna and I now want to live there, thankyouverymuch, with the bedroom that has real stars on the ceiling and the fairytale faux-gothic dresses).Then we played in the garden, picked more broccoli and ate it raw, gathered and dried some more rose petals, picked our first tomatoes. And when we came in we finished the Very Hungry Caterpillar picture we were making a couple of days ago.Also, I had to take another picture of Jenna's game with the small figures! She had several birds, a baby dragon, and a horse, all eating a fried egg together today. For reasons known only to herself...Hmm, what else? Oh, gorgeous pre-loved clothes and books came from Gina today (thanks Gina!) so we have plenty to read. And Myriad sent our order of Birthday and Christmas presents (oh yes, nearly halfway with Christmas making and buying already) and it's SO tempting to unwrap everything. But if I don't leave it boxed up then the smalls will find something they ought not!

Off now then, to drink another herbal tea and hope that I feel better tomorrow... It's never really quiet around here. Can't decide today if that is a happy thought or not. I think, on balance, it is. :)

Some more smiles

AKA a blog post mostly comprised of those things that normal people don't take photographs of...I made this for Rowan first thing yesterday morning. Morgan had an amber necklace, but it's too short for Rowan so I extended it with blue and purple fluorite. So pretty, and I really hope it works. She has been chewing EVERYTHING this week, making the side of the sling slobbery and biting my fingers. I'm not expecting actual teeth yet though, both of the others teethed for nearly a year before getting any, and Rowan has an extended frenulum too (basically what causes tongue-tie, but more extensively on the upper gum so it has never caused any of us any hassles).A very successful trip into town, bringing home an entire storecupboard shop from the vegan wholefood store and some great charity shop finds!

And then, yes, more organising. I am SO PLEASED with how the shelves in the living room are working, we have lots of toy storage and they look pretty and best of all they get used really well for lots and lots of creative play. :)We even moved the Season Table to the top shelf of the new small bookshelves that Martin built last night, so now it's in the living room and the space in the kitchen is freed up... Admittely for washing at this moment in time, but baby steps lol. ;)

Times when the sun DID shine

Over the rubbish weekend, that is. ;)The baby continued to be squishy and adorable. My Dad's new mother in law and my Dad's mum collaborated on this sweet little cotton jumper, though I suspect they'd be horrified at wearing it with tie dye and a stripe bandana dribble bib...Jenna got REALLY HIGH up the tree. Some parents were looking on anxiously lol. But she got down again safely, without anyone saying "careful" at her and putting her off!Attenborough was beautiful on Saturday, when we popped over to see Nadia and Roland. Nadia is looking fragile, but otherwise doing fine. So good to see them both, and so good to spend some time climbing trees and watching the water birds. Morgan kept trying to make friends with the geese, but after a particularly large one stole the entire paper bag of duck corn from her hands she was understandably less keen...

And OK, once we'd got our food it was tipping it down and the whole event was a bit of a letdown, but look how sweet my children were in facepaint.(First time they've ever been allowed the stuff, and OF COURSE they came out in rashes from it, but it made them very happy for a while. Chamomile fixes EVERYTHING at this age! *grins*)

Book Sharing Monday - Daddy's Lullaby

One of Martin's very favorites.The premise of the story is that Daddy arrives home after nightfall, but finds the small baby awake in her cot. He picks her up, plays with her, talks to her, comforts her, sings to her, and finally falls asleep with her in his arms!

The fact that baby is in a cot makes the story rather unlike our current experience. The Dad-working-for-our-keep thing might not fit every situation either! But it is such an affirmation of responding, and the illustrations are warmly muted but still realistic. It is a book about generous sleep-deprived fathering. The girls now sing the lullaby after so many reads..."Rockabye Baby in Daddy's arms, Daddy will keep you safe from all harm, Daddy is with you so don't make a peep, Rockabye baby let's both go to... sleep."

Some days, lol

At least I can laugh later...

Work event: Boring, lengthy, and raining so hard none of the planned outdoor stuff happened! I got stuck in the breastfeeding bubble - you know, where I'm feeding in public and hubby has gone off to take children to the toilet and I become invisible... I guess normal people can't say hi to the breastfeeding mother in case they inadvertantly get contaminated by the mere hint of bodily fluids...

Then urgent food shop as there was NOTHING in the house. Embarrased at the till by the credits not having been paid in yet (!). They arrive five hours late, after the children have already had to go to bed having eaten a biscuit and a hard boiled egg each for tea (we'd even already eaten everything out of the garden that was ready to harvest too)!

Had a little cry. And a cup of chamomile tea. And went to bed with my snuggly beautiful baby. Not a bad end to a disastrous day I suppose!