school hols

As I've mentioned before, I have a fab arrangement with a great friend, to share kids during the hols on our respective workdays.
It doesn't ALWAYS work, but when it does, I get her three gorgeous kids and all 5 of them play together beautifully. Sometimes, we throw in a craft project or two.
More often than not these days, the big kids battle the day away on their DS's or the Wii, but I still have lovely Chloe to do stuff with me.
Last week, we made a sock dolly cat together.
Here he is..very cute and a little demented I think.

cool change

Kids go back to school on Monday.
Usually I am feeling very excited and relieved to see them head off. This year Mackie starts Year 7 and I admit I am feeling a little bit sad as I say goodbye to my Primary School kid and welcome a High School kid.
I have charged myself with the task of restoring order in the house and hopefully in the minds of the family in readiness for this big transition.
They have gone to the movies.
There's washing, vacuuming, mopping and shopping to be done which we have allowed to slide on account of the frickin' hot weather.
There's dog fluff blowing up and down the hallway. There is mud all through the house thanks to the next-doors demolition fest and bucketing water out of the bath onto the poor pathetic vegies.
We have been living on beer and fish n chips. Feeling pretty crap on that front.
There is still debris from the camping trip littering the house which really makes me feel disorganised, but who can be bothered climbing the ladder to put things away or squeezing lilos under the bed? Not me.
As you can see I'm procrastinating at the moment. Washing is ready for the line and the juicer is beginning to fester on the bench after this morning's juice.
At least all the school books are labelled and Mackie's new uniform is ironed for possibly the only time this year. Got the school shoes yesterday and I'm wondering how "thong boy" will cope with the unaccustomed rigidity of shoes and life in general in the upcoming days.
Cheers everyone. Enjoying that southerly breeze? I am.

growing, slicing and stamping

I am so excited. I grew a cabbage! It's very beautiful as you can see. It is around the size of a tennis ball and now I will have to say "was" because it is at least half gone.
I gleefully constructed a salad of cabbage, rocket and parsley (all from my very own garden) with a tin of toona and a squeeze of lemon juice. How delicious it was.
Back to school holiday thrills.. Today Mackie, Maddie and Dylan all decorated their own t-shirts with a mixture of painting and potato stamping. I fear Mackie is anticipating stormy weather as you may judge by his t-shirt design.