Daybook with Hama beads, cupcake chaos, and a broken washing machine

Outside my window the children are playing in the garden. Two are dressed as superheroes, and one is a mermaid. The garden is in its usual disarray, with children's hand tools, toys, and empty flower pots around the place. I have just recycled an old toy box into another raised bed and weeded all the areas of my garden soon to receive the tender little seedlings from my kitchen window sill. 

It's a warm bright day in spite of the clouds, and the willow tree is almost fluorescent yellow with catkins. The hint of pink frills at the tip of one or two buds on the apple tree promise a shower of blossom any day now.

I am thinking that I will miss the warm heavy weight of this baby on my arm when she no longer falls asleep on me. :)

I am thankful for the warm fresh earth, dirty finger nails and naughty toddler footprints in the middle of my vegetable bed, the deep resonance of the wind chimes in the kitchen, the fuzzy blonde fluff of this baby's hair, and the chaos and peace of family life.

In the kitchen the floor has an array of muddy footprints, and the surfaces show evidence of an eight year old having made chocolate cup cakes all by herself - I can see dirty pans stacked up, a bowl with traces of luminescent yellow icing, and a good sprinkling of pink edible glitter. 

I have a pan of boiled eggs cooling to make sandwiches, as the children are still apparently hungry after their lunch of vegetable soup. All of this fresh air is not helping the food budget!

I have the ingredients for mixed pepper veggie fajitas and I am SO looking forwards to it - I finally found a way my children like to eat peppers cooked. :)

I am wearing my favourite yellow tshirt, and unfortunately, pink PJ bottoms with lace around the hems. I have four pairs of trousers, and all of them have been child-ed, and our washing machine is broken. We have had to go four days without doing any laundry (except what we can carry over to my brother's house to use his machine) because it took us that long to get money together and find a machine within budget. My brother is helping us pick the new one up tonight hopefully, and I will have clean trousers, yay!

I am creating a huge cream shawl (for me), a small ribbed beanie (for the gorgeous Jo of Journey's Way Photography), and a yellow bonnet for my shop. Oh, and the children have had the Hama beads out today, though I'm not so much creating with those as constantly finding stray beads and picking them up...

I am wondering what Rowan is saying, talking in a funny voice to her Octonauts in the big wooden dolls house. Her sweet chatter is rather endearing when not directed at me in a stream of requests for more food (she is definitely having a growth spurt again)!

I am reading Mirror Dreams by Catherine Webb - written when she was just fourteen and really very inventive and fun, but unfortunately I am just not getting anywhere with it as I've only had reading time this week very late at night when I'm too tired to concentrate!

I am hoping for good news from one or more of the applications Martin has been feverishly filling in. He is struggling with rejection and not feeling useful. (Prayers welcome!)

I am looking forward to getting a backdated payment from working tax credits from the short period when both Martin and I were working long hours. I have no idea how much it will be, but it will be something, and when you have broken appliances and close to zero income, the prospect of a one off payment for *anything* is a relief.

I am learning how to make easy skirts from large tshirts, how to properly clean beeswax crayons, more lace knitting skills, and as usual I am learning how much easier it is to manage the garden if I work it all year round rather than April to September. ;)

Around the house I have a lot of laundry. Four days without a washing machine will do that when there are six in the house and one in cloth nappies and one who still veery occasionally wets the bed (and of course did so, on the day the machine broke). *sigh*
Oh, on the other hand, I did finally manage to hang (in my bedroom) the beautiful shell garland I made when Talia was born - from shells sent to me all the way from the very far North.

One of my favourite things is the joyful creativity of a group of children with a cardboard box.

A few plans for the rest of the week: well I will hopefully have some new shop yarn arrive soon for dyeing. And we'll be at the museum session on Friday. And that's about it. Next week it's Martin's birthday. :)

A peek into my day...





Simple Woman's Daybook