swimming challenge

So we're 11 days in to our swim every day in August challenge and so far so good! we've been to beaches at west St Leonards, Bexhill, Camber sands and Rock-a-Nore, we've been in the river Rother and even to a swimming pool! One day the tide was too high, the wind too strong and the sea too angry to let us in, but we cycled along side and got splashed by sea spray. We've jumped the waves at low tide, and ridden the waves at high tide. We've swum with friends and family and on our own. It has often been the best part of the day and has always brought a smile to our faces. Bring on the next 21 days!!

long time

Long time no post! Summer always gets busy, what with sports days and parents evenings and summer shows and tennis lessons and football matches and making the most of the weather by going to the beach and having picnics. Add in some new school induction days (No. 1 son getting the bus all by himself..weep weep) and a weekend camping, all means theres been little time for blogging! Anyway a quick catch up and a few photos...

As mentioned there's been quite a lot of emotion flying around the last 2 weeks, Freddie off to secondary school and Cherry starting primary in September. All exciting and I'm so proud of how ready they are, but that doesn't stop me from crying at any opportunity. I won't go on any more here, mostly because its nearly time for bed and my ability to string sentences together is worse than ever at this time of day!

My flower beds are bushing out, which is enthusing me a little in the garden (photo to follow).

Baking the usual sultana bread, rocky road and banana brownies (photo to follow).

Cooking lots of pasta and pancakes (photo to follow).

Rearranging the kitchen and creating a new outside eating area (photo to follow).

OK, enough! will charge my camera and return soon! x


Last weekends camping

Most recent boxes..

this is for a friends' 50th

and this one I was trying out adding something a bit different in the window. The angle of the photo is bad but you can get the idea!

I think I'm going to pursue more pattern and less people, I will keep you posted.

sunday morning

I am indulging in a Sunday morning alone, the house feels very quiet and still. I won't spend to long on this, as I have only an hour left. Here is my most recent finished piece. Oil Pastel, watercolour, ink stamps, card and paper. I am still bursting with ideas, but will not start anything today.

windows and doors

I'm not feeling very wordy this evening, so here's a few pictures of this week's boxes.

Reading on the doorstep.

An idea of scale (quite small).

Composition and colour.

Cutting windows and doors.

to be continued!

little houses

Ta Da! the box project continues, getting happier and happier with the results. Must try harder with my photography though. No matter how I try and line things up, they always seem to come out wonky. I have always been a terrible photographer largely, I think, because I have a tendency to see what I want to see rather than what is really there! Maybe it's the lighting too. Never mind, if I spend any longer taking and deleting photographs they'll be no time for coffee and cake, and that would never do.

last term

Another school holiday passed in a blur. Back for the last term of the year. Not only that, but the last term before Cherry starts primary school, the last term before Freddie starts secondary school...I am feeling a little...Well not sure really. I feel sad that the preschool years are nearly over. A little guilty that I didn't mark the change with each child so much as I am now. That's the thing with the 2 year gap between each one, there was always a smaller child to fill the hole the last one left but not this time. I am excited. I've always been one for a change, nothing more exciting than a new start. Apprehensive, what will I do (for the rest of my life??!!). But also of course aware that not that much will change really. Once we get into the swing of Freddie making his own way, Eli and Reuben continuing on their happy steady paths and Cherry not with me a couple more days a week, it will all feel very normal and my time will be as full as it is now, I have no doubt. 

Anyway, a little re cap then off to do some work....
Had a wonderful weekend camping with friends at Wowo, home to a mountain of washing and reorganising of cupboards (how did the tent etc all fit in there?). A day trip to buy shoes (surprisingly successful), a visit from the grandparents and some lazy down time, playing and watching and eating.

The box project continues....

And theres one more nearly finished, although I keep changing my mind on how to finish it!

In between making a Mayan costume, skip filling, furniture re arranging and all the usual business, I've made some flowers for the school fair...

...and some targets for the nerf gun alley!

 Been to the woods (a few times)...

And have not been able to stop making boxes! I realised I was getting too fussy, so I'm going to make o few of these small origami boxes using simple shapes and colours and only a layer or two.

Also found this handsome pair, down by the river Rother!