High Tea or "Hi Tea!"

Continuing on from the last post...there seems to be a theme here...today we had High Tea instead of our regular dinner.

Dinner has degenerated a bit to an 'around the TV snack' or a 'gobbled down' affair. When I lived with Peace we usually sat at the table to eat. Not because we were overly formal but because it was the best most convienient place to eat.

I love the dinner time conversations, the 'dishing-up' ; usually done by one of the kids could take quiet awhile. But most of all I loved spending that time together as a family at the end of the day. Time when we could all chat about what we had done, about what we might do tomorrow and just love and laugh together.

Since I have been solo parenting in my own home (I say this to distinguish from single parenting...I don't single parent in general...Peace is a very prominent part of the kids lives...I am just solo parenting in my own home) meal times have become more of a 'get the kids fed' ordeal.

So tonight, I decided to put in a bit of effort and do something special.

I told the kids we were having High Tea...so all evening Tui kept saying 'Hi' to her cup of tea! LOL

We set the table



made cup cakes and cucumber and avocado sandwiches with th crusts cut off



the mad hatter was present!



Rain poured...homemade lemonaide for the kids



and I poured wine from my teapot!

Love the temple cat at his feet

Rain at the Kings Tomb

Sandbagging Bangkok against the coming floods

Last night in Bangers.

Not very clear but the floods in Auruthaya from the plane on the way to Chang Mai

It is so hot but there is plenty ice cream.

Blessed and blissed

I'm feeling blissed and blessed.

Our new house is lovely. The unpacking is coming along slowly but surely.

I have been loving lighting the fire and spending cosy nights crocheting and talking to friends beside it.

My happy flags are coming along nicely. I think by the time I've finished unpacking I'll be hanging them up.

I received the most amazing house warming gift in the mail. A beautiful soul named Lars, whom I met at a Rainbow gathering sent me this amazing Candelabra. It's has a lovely family story behind it which makes it so much more special. The kids were also most grateful for the treats included in the parcel. Tui loves her little doggie; she carries it every where, and they made short work of the lollies!!!

Where there is unpacking there are many boxes.

So of course a Mansion had to be built in the lounge room.

I love how the kids co-operate when they are doing something fun together.

And Rain and I are both loving the spacious kitchen. We've been cooking and baking everyday.

Rain made some raw ice cream yesterday (she even made a small lactose-free batch for me, with coconut cream instead of regular cream.) It went perfectly with the banana and chocolate cake she baked! 

I've just said goodbye to my first house guests. Friends fresh home from India have been staying and been the best guests ever!

Every night we've been cooking up a storm in the kitchen. They left me with a load of fire wood they collected, clean gutters and many happy memories. They played with my kids, helped me out, gave me space, shared many lovely and inspiring tales of their adventures and shared 1000 cups of chai.

Man! you guys should just move in!!!

And I've been spending lots of time with majikfaerie. What could be more blissful than that?

Rainbow's and dreams

Always thought there is something so magical about raindows, the stories and dreams they conjure, the ever surprising beautiy of nature, their transient nature.

Free wheeling dare devils

Often my kids have the ability to almost stop my heart with their crazy stunts. Yesterday I watched 16yr old Zan doing back flips off a 4m high rock above a water hole in the river. He then encouraged 11yr old Rain to jump off as well.

I must admit that I jumped too. It was fun and exhilarating but I think a part of my motivation was to prove that I'm not a boring 38yr old mum sitting on the sidelines, passed participating because I'm too old and 'responsible'.

But watching the kids perform stunts can at times bring on a bit of 'mother anxiety'.

Today 6yr old T was doing back flips into the local swimming pool. Then this afternoon at home he created the Aerial Half pipe. (see video below)

Even Tui at age two does things that make people cringe in their fear for her safety, their assumption that kids are not born knowing how to keep them selves safe, with an acute sense of what they are capable of. She will happily push a chair up to the kitchen bench, select a sharp knife from the draw and cut up an orange for herself to eat. Because she has never been told not to, she has never been told "don’t use knives or you will cut yourself!" Comments like these erode a child's confidence in their abilities, it sets up negative outcomes for them, if you are told often enough that you will fall or will cut yourself then chances are you will.

And although my heart jumps up into my mouth sometimes and I have to bite back words, (that come unbidden from my own childhood) words that you hear parents saying way too often, I feel so proud of my kids.
A great Aussie example of these words is "Don't do that! You'll break your bloody neck!"

I'm proud that they are free to do stuff. They push their physical bodies, they test their courage, imagine incredible feats and all with no interference from me. I’ve have tried hard to never tell my kids negative outcomes, sometimes I have suggested modifications for safety but mostly they work it all out for themselves.

I love my free wheeling dare devil kids.

Gardeners Falls

We drove up to Maleny today to pick Zan up from his Dad's house and on the way home stopped at Gardeners Falls.

I haven't been there for years but it's one of my favourite waterholes on the coast.

Zan Rain and I took turns leaping off the 4m high waterfall, into the deep pool below.

It was so hot today and the water was so refreshing.

Tui and Mr T played in the shallows further up stream.

Mr T was most impressed when I showed him how to disappear under this small waterfall into the little cave behind it where you can sit and watch the water rushing down in front of you.

We had to do it so many times.

There was alot of  damage surrounding the creek from the recent floods but it is still a beautiful place. I love the feeling I get in the rainforest and swimming in fresh clear clean water.

Come for a walk with me

"come look at the creek"

"ooooooh, water"

"What are you doing now?"

"I'm playing in the puddles."

"Looks like fun."

"Yes, this is fun!"

"I've had enough. I'm going home."

"Catch me if you can!"

"Hey, where did he go?"

"There he is."

"Way up there."

"That was a big walk, I'm tired."

The week in Pics

Mr T's amazing magnet and cutlery sculpture...

Rain's jigsaw puzzle...

P looking puzzled about the puzzle...

Zan giving his step-dad and younger brother guitar lessons...

And a gaint slug (the wooden floor boards on the deck are 18cm \ 7inches wide)