The Coming Together of Family

 

This week we lost a very dear family member, a fabulous lady who I have countless fond memories of. It was a very sad farewell, lots of tears were shed as old stories were shared. The thing I am most grateful for, through the immense sadness, is the coming together of family. My Dad and his cousins all together in the one place for the first time in years, a lovely dinner with us all and the feeling of great comfort with just being together, all of us, sharing the burden of grief together.

The coming together of family is always so special, the shared memories, funny stories unearthed, the companionship that can only be had with family. Then the time afterwards to relish in my own little family and hope that they also have the same bond with their cousins and extended family as they grow.

I am joining in with 52 Weeks of Grateful which can be found here over at Octavia and Vicky.

Toasted Marshmallows

My Muddy Pixie and I have had a whirlwind trip to Sydney and back this week, I've squeezed in a day of work a little bit of washing, some trips up the paddock and taken the Muddy Puzzler to a birthday party, it's been go, go, go and it's nice to know tomorrow is Sunday. In all the busyness I have made sure to stop and reflect on what I'm grateful for this week.

Toasted marshmallows with the Muddy Kids up the paddock.

Family Drives around the farm.

A flexible work place.

Specialist Doctors who keep you calm and know what they're talking about.

Good Friends who can answer techy questions about which I have no idea.

New ugg boots that keep my feet toasty warm.

My Muddy Hubby who has stepped up when I am sick and in bed by 8:30.

Lots of things to be grateful for on the Muddy Farm this week. Check out the other lovely grateful posts over at Octavia and Vicky where Kylie hosts 52 Weeks of Grateful.

A Haircut

Yesterday it was raining, it was also a pupil free day for my Muddy Organiser and all 4 of my Muddy Kids were home, by 9am they had gone stir crazy, we channelled their energy to tidy the toy verandah, that got them through to 9:30, then there was a board game, and then they were planning their own masquerade ball, decorations and all. By 3:30 things had really gone pear shaped and my Muddy Puzzler had given herself a new hairstyle by chopping lots of locks off her beautiful hair.

On the bright side though there is lots to be grateful for:
- The self-styled haircut could have looked a lot worse than it does
- The Muddy Organiser and Pixie had a lovely sleepover with 2 friends coming to stay with us
- I have a gorgeous new niece who I cannot wait to meet
- My car is at a smash repairer and I should only have to try and manage without a family car for a couple more weeks as opposed to the couple of months with all the other smash repairers
- My Muddy Puzzler had a wonderful time playing with friends at a birthday party, it is so lovely for her to step out of the shadow of her siblings
- My Muddy Boy is on the mend after being sick and his smiles are getting more and more
- It is a fabulous drying day today, lots of wind and sunshine
- Dress Ups, whether it be full on princess outfits, my shoes or Muddy Hubby's beanie dress ups always bring a smile to my face

Linking up over at Octavia and Vicky for 52 Weeks of Grateful. Make sure you check out all the lovely Gratefuls at their new home.

A Return to Gratefuls

I know the value of finding the Grateful in the everyday, to boost your spirit and your mood. For the last few weeks I have struggled to find the time for grateful, and it's been quite evident, I've been tired and snappy and often too busy to stop and find the grateful to focus on. This week though I'm making a conscious effort to make time for gratefuls. I have stopped trying to clean and move the fish tank and do my footy tips and instead am taking time to post my gratefuls.

So this week I am grateful for:
- Being outside in the nice fresh winter air
- Bicycles and scooters and little trikes
- A fabulous OT service right here in town that is going to help me support my Muddy Pixie
- My coffee machine which gives me fuel to keep going
- Special moments in the shearing shed with my wonderful Muddy Family
- A new home for grateful at one of my favourite blogs to stop by and that grateful is keeping going
- An unexpected dinner with friends
- My Mum and Dad and the time they have spent with us and helped keep my household running
- My Muddy Hubby for boosting me when I'm down

Now that 52 Weeks of Grateful is at a new home make sure you go and check it our here. It's always so lovely to read what people are grateful for.

When Friends Come to Stay

This June long weekend has been the first one that we have been home for in a few years, normally we have been heading to Sydney. This year however was different, we had friends come and stay with us, with their precious 2 year old twins, they packed up their car and headed west to us. It was pure bliss, they were such easy house guests and the Muddy Kids just loved showing the twins all of their toys and all around the farm. We took them up the paddock and checked the sheep, we got them on the bikes and the tractors and even the back of the ute.

We shared good food, good drinks and good stories. This friend and I used to live together many years ago and it was just like slipping into old times, being in the kitchen together, just chatting and reminiscing, but with the added element of husbands and children, it was delightful. Simply delightful.

I am so grateful this week for when old friends visit with their new families, it is so special to be sharing our families and hopefully our kids will be firm friends like we are for a long time to come.

Linking up at Village Voices for 52 Weeks of Grateful.

Grateful for A Day to Breathe

The last two weeks have kept me on my toes, kept me busy and worn me down, but today I got to breathe. To stop and spend a day at home, a full day at home with just my Muddy Baby Boy. We pottered around the garden, cooked, cleaned the fish tank, read books, explored the house paddock, spent time with the chooks and dogs. It was just lovely.

It gave me an insight into the next few years as my Muddy Pixie and Puzzler start school, where I might get some more 1:1 time with my two youngest Muddy Kids. It let me take the day slow, rather than at the full pace of the last two weeks.

I am so very grateful to my Muddy Hubby for taking my Muddy Pixie and Muddy Puzzler to the shearing shed, keeping them entertained and busy for the day. I am grateful for the special time with my Baby Boy and I am grateful for having a day at home to just be. Delightful.

Linking up with some lovely bloggers over at Village Voices for 52 Weeks of Grateful. Make some time to check out some wonderful blogs.

Grateful for farming stuff.....

I feel like this week has passed in a daze, struggling to focus on what I'm doing from minute to minute, losing track in conversations, starting one task, getting side-tracked by another and forgetting what I started. It's been driving me crazy.

This afternoon though I got to do farm stuff, nothing ground breaking, just feeding sheep, but I loved it. Simple straightforward in the outdoors, despite the number of gates I had to open and close and the return trips to pick up hats and drink bottles Muddy Baby Boy threw out the window, it was invigorating.

It was also slightly depressing driving through paddocks with no feed, watching the sheep race toward you when they see the big yellow feeder bin on the back but I was out and about so I put that stuff aside.

Somehow just being in the garden isn't enough, to drive over the farm and see the sheep and what's happening from block to block just gets straight to my heart and lifts me, that's what this afternoon did, despite the tiredness and crazy brain my whole mood was lifted and for that I'm grateful.

 

 

Linking up with the fabulous Bron over at Village Voices for 52 Weeks of Grateful.

 

Grateful for Inspiration

I have been lucky enough to spend this whole week in Sydney - well almost the whole week anyway. Wonderful, vibrant harbour city that it is I got to catch the ferry to work each morning, soaking it all up. As well as soaking up Sydney I spent 4 days at the most amazing conference learning so much that I think my brain is protesting, making it hard to hold conversations as I can only seem to manage yes/no answers, with a nod or shake of the head.

I will go home tomorrow and return to my Muddy Family who I have missed so much, but I go home with lots of amazing ideas to try and implement in my working life, and some in my home life. I was inspired by people who have fought against the odds their whole life, being born with Complex Communication Needs, but who have triumphed despite the obstacles they face on a daily basis.

I attended presentations by some of my work idols, people who are doing fantastic things in the world of communication for people with a disability, I even got 'retweeted' by some of them, for which I was absurdly excited!

This week I am grateful for Inspiration, for the inspiring people doing wonderful things against the odds, for my professional idols who inspire me to keep going and try new things to make for better outcomes for my clients. I am also grateful for the inspiration I get from Sydney every time I visit.

Linking up with Bron over at Village Voices who hosts the wonderful 52 Weeks of Grateful. Make sure you check it out.

Grateful for Sleepovers and Besties

Since I've added an extra day into my work days I have struggled to find time to catch up with my friends and subsequently my Muddy Kids have also missed out with only a small amount of spare time to fit in a long list of things. These school holidays thought I've tried to make a conscious effort to let my Muddy Kids get some quality friend time in. We've had sleepovers and play dates and netball clinics. All things that would normally have to slip by the wayside.

 

It has been so delightful for my two big Muddy Girls to go on a sleepover together and see how much fun they had, my wonderful friend made snow globes with them and let them watch a movie and have a spa. We had the Muddy Pixie's bestie over for a play and they had so much fun playing in the wool shed, jumping on the wool bales and playing hide and seek in the sheds. We even braved the world of having a friend for a sleepover and it was lots of fun. Not only has it kept the kids entertained and they are falling into bed exhausted each night but the smiles on their faces and the joy it brings me lets me know it's worth the effort.



 

So this week I am grateful for my Muddy Kids friends for being so special and bringing such lovely friendships into their lives.

 

Linking up over at Village Voices for 52 Weeks of Grateful, hosted by the lovely Bron.

Loving Music

Tomorrow night Dubbo is hosting Triple J's One Night Stand. Dubbo is our nearest regional centre, it has a population of about 40,000 and tomorrow night they are anticipating the population will increase by a 1/4 as 10-15,000 people converge on Dubbo to attend the One Night Stand.

Business in the shops is reportedly booming, there isn't a single bed in any accommodation left, and I imagine many will be sleeping in cars or on the floors of friends or not sleeping at all, as people do whatever they can to make it to this free concert.

It amazes me that sooooo many people will converge in one spot, and all for music. Yes that's right Music. Music is bringing people together in a major rural centre, it's got people travelling huge distances to be there. Music is bringing joy into people's lives and boosting the local economy (even for a short time).

I know music is an important part of my life, and the music I listened to growing up still influences me today, I can only hope I pass that love of music onto my Muddy Kids and one day they might be making a trek to a music concert like this one.

This week I am Grateful that Music has this kind of power, the power to get so many people in one place. The power to bring a big concert like this to Dubbo, which has never experienced anything like it before. The power to bring smiles and joy.

Linking up for 52 Weeks of Grateful over at Village Voices. Take sometime to check it out.

Grateful for Reading

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As the mornings start to get a bit cooler and the weekend dawns you seem to get that urge, to just snuggle down in bed a little more, pull the doona up and try and sneak in a sleep in. Work days are fine, my brain switches on and I jump up and into the day, but Saturday and Sunday mornings I crave even an extra five minutes of doona time.

Lately on a weekend my Muddy Girls have been getting themselves up, visiting the bathroom and heading back to bed to read books to each other. The Muddy Pixie and Muddy Puzzler sit listening attentively to the Muddy Organiser read them book after book, before they take turns making up the stories in their books and reading them out.

It is a joy to listen to them, all from the comfort of under the doona, yes I may not be asleep but I'm cozy and I'm ridiculously happy listening to them read books, knowing they love them as much as I do.

This is what I'm grateful for this week, the joy of reading, so happy it has been instilled in my Muddy Kids.

Linking up for 52 Weeks of Grateful, hosted by the lovely Bron of Maxabella Loves..

 

Grateful for the Garden

Thursday afternoon I knocked off work early, I got to pick my kids up from Preschool and School for a change (Muddy Puzzler was very excited not to catch the bus) and the sun was still shining by the time we arrived home. After two days in the office I was itching to be outside, so Muddy Baby Boy and I put on our ear muffs and jumped on the lawn mower to mow the lawn. I was in heaven. I love being outside, I love pottering around the garden, doing little bits here and there.

This week I am Grateful for the Garden, for time outside to just potter around.

I am Grateful that I found time to plant my garlic and start to dehead the dead roses, that I can sit and soak up the fresh air, lie on the grass and play with the Muddy Kids. I am Grateful that we have space to do it, to run and run and chase and fall down, to ride bikes and scooters and plant veggies and flowers and grow our own fruit.

Without the Garden I think things would be a little less bright, so this week I am linking up for 52 Weeks of Grateful about my spacious garden that brings me and my family happiness.

Grateful for Organising Tasks

No, this is not my house but things like this make my heart sing, sad really! source

I am the kind of person that when things start to get very busy and out of control my head races, I can't switch off and everything just starts to snowball and I feel very unsettled and I don't like it one little bit. This has been my life lately - unfortunately.

What I have found over the years though is that if I take a some time out, even just a few minutes, to reorganise something in the house then I am instantly a little calmer.

Sometimes it's going the whole hog and rearranging bedrooms, sometimes it's reorganising the filing system. For me today it was cleaning out the spice cupboard, you know the one that has countless amounts of herbs and spices, often multiple jars of the same one, mostly out of date because you just bought them for that one recipe you had to try and haven't been back to use ever since.

My spice cupboard is a big one, it also has all the food colours and gels, the stocks and the salt and pepper shakers in abundance, so it was not a small task, but it was a calming one. Getting rid of the excess, even alphabetising the herbs and spices to make them easier to find, all served to give me a small semblance of calm heading into the weekend and for that I am grateful.

Linking up for 52 Weeks of Grateful, hosted over at Village Voices by the lovely Bron. Such a fantastic place to visit.

Grateful for Good Friends with a Hammock

After feeling very sorry for myself last week and my lack of friend contact Muddy Hubby and I made the decision to get away from the farm for the day and go and visit some very good friends we hadn't seen in a while. It was just lovely and wonderful and delightful. I felt like a kid in a candy store getting to spend time with friends, soak up the time away from the farm and spend the time catching up and just chatting like good friends do.

 

The Muddy Kids were entertained, they spent a large portion of the day on the tyre swing or in the hammock. So quite simply this week I am grateful for the hammock swing for keeping my Muddy Kids entertained so we could chat with friends and enjoy being away from the farm.

 

 

Linking up over at Village Voices where the lovely Bron hosts 52 Weeks of Grateful. What are you grateful for this week?

 

 

 

Grateful for good friends.

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At the moment I miss my friends, friends both near and far, things being so flat chat has meant that I haven't had the chance I usually do to make phone calls, have an occasional cuppa with my friends or even run into anybody really. The focus has been on work and home, trying to get that balance right and keep things moving.

The thing is though that for me it's my friends that keep me moving, that keep me running on an even keel. Yes Muddy Hubby is fantastic and he and the Muddy Kids are my world, but sometimes I just need a friend to bring things back into focus.

So this week I am grateful for my friends, because I know when I finally find some time they will be there for me, to listen, to laugh and to just enjoy spending time with. Because that's what good friends do, just be there for you, even when you don't have time to call them!

I am delighted to watch my Muddy Girls start to make more friends and I am hopeful that one day they have built a strong friendship network just like the wonderful one I have.

I get such joy out of them coming home and saying 'I made a new friend today' and hearing all about their new friend and what they did at school or preschool together. We sit down and we talk about the importance of friendships and being nice to everyone and I can't wait til they realise the true value of good friends who will always be there for you.

Yes, this week I'm grateful for good friends, you know the ones, they're always there for you no matter what.

Happy to be linking up with Maxabella for 52 Weeks of Grateful over at Village Voices. Please check it out, you'll be pleased you did.

Grateful for Rain

It's been busy, at home, at work, in my head, things have been going along at a fast pace and I am scrambling to keep up with it all. The best bit about this week though has been the rain, up until this morning we had had 59mm, that my friends is glorious rain for us, the last decent rainfall we had was in July last year, so this was very welcome, as things were getting dry and everyone's confidence was getting low.

So this week I am grateful for the lovely rain we've had, for the fact that even though I'm in a bad mood, the rain kind of matches my mood and it's made Muddy Hubby very happy, so that is a good thing.

I'm also grateful for the lovely Bush Mobile that comes once a fortnight, it lets my kids get dirty and messy and have lots of fun and my only thing to clean up is their clothes. It's a win win for us.

I am grateful for the afternoon routine of feeding the animals, to stroll outside and spend some time feeding the animals, getting to know them and watching the kids joy as they feed them and care for them.

Lastly this week I am grateful for shovels at the back door, so that we are always prepared when the snakes are about. We got another one at the back gate this week, it was dark and my wonderful sacrificial snake dog alerted us to it, and Muddy Hubby was quick to act, stopping the snake from getting our precious dog, so yes, I am grateful for shovels and for my snake sticks which are now charged and working in the garden.

Linking up for 52 Weeks of Grateful over at Village Voices. Bron hosts a great link up every week, definitely worth checking out!

Gratefuls on Struggle Street

I've struggled to hit my stride this week and get back into routine. I've chosen to linger and savour the sounds of the morning rather than get up and make sure all the lunchboxes and eskies are packed. I start one task, only to get sidetracked with another and not remember I had already started one. I'm not sure whether it's the after holiday let down or there's something else ticking over in my mind, whatever it is it's not made this week an easy one, today was the worst of all.

In all the struggle though there's been rays of sunshine that I am so grateful for.

Having good friends that listen to me rant or worry or just make me laugh, good friends are wonderful and special and I am so very lucky to have some lovely ones in my life.

I am extremely grateful to my neighbour who picked up my 'snake sticks' for me today, because I couldn't get to town for another week, now I just need to charge them up before strategically placing them in the house yard.

I am grateful for my gorgeous Muddy kids and the love they have for farm life and farming, for the joy they get from going to work with Muddy Hubby and helping out where they can. That is so precious and I hope they never lose it.

My Muddy Puzzler has done a complete turnaround on her bus enthusiasm, so I am grateful for the wonderful and caring preschool staff that encourage her and praise her and ensure she feels safe on the bus and make sure she's happy to get on and off.

Today though the thing I am grateful for is  those 'lightbulb moments' you know the ones, where you've been struggling to find the answer to a puzzle and suddenly inspiration strikes and you see it in a different way and you know how to go forward. Yes, that today I was very grateful for, now to just try and put it into action.

I am linking up with the wonderful Bron who is hosting 52 Weeks of Grateful at Village Voices. Stop by and have a read, you won't regret it!

Grateful for bits and pieces of our holiday

We have had a lovely relaxing week away, just us, as a family hanging out together. It's rare and we have soaked up every bit. My Muddy kids have done really well, trying to get along and help each other when they need it, play together more and more and just enjoy being together.

 

Over the week though there's been a few things I'm extremely grateful for.

 

I am Grateful for my Muddy Hubby who is not afraid to get himself dirty to help the kids have the most fun. He will sit in the sandy shallows and help them enjoy the surf, he'll let them bury him in the sand til he has sand everywhere and then he'll turn around and help them bury themselves.

 

Consequently I am grateful for the beach showers, which meant I could shower off most of the sand and it didn't have to be carted all through the cabin we were staying in.

 

I am grateful for the shells on the beach that kept the Muddy Girls entertained for hours, collecting them, washing them, sorting them, talking about them and finally sharing them by showing them off.

 

I am grateful for the abundance of parks on the coast which meant the kids didn't get bored with the same one over and over.

 

Overall I am grateful for a relaxing family holiday, it's been long overdue but we have soaked up every second and made the most of it.

Linking up at Village Voices for 52 Weeks of Grateful, hosted by the lovely Bron. Please stop by and check it out.

A Grateful Week

Tomorrow is a great day - tomorrow we go away on holiday. Yes it will probably take us over 8-9 hours to make it to the coast, but we will meet up with friends and celebrate a very special friend's wedding. We then get a week of beach action before heading to the big smoke for an engagement party for one of my cousins.

Each and every member of the family is busting with excitement and it's been a busy week trying to get things sorted before we go. I am one of those people who cannot go away unless my house is spotless, there's no washing hanging around in baskets and my lawn must be mowed, so it's keeping me on my toes.

I am grateful though for my lovely mother-in-law who looked after my kids so I could finish the packing and the cleaning unhindered.

I am grateful for my sister-in-law for keeping me supplied with vomit bags, because the reality is we will not make it to the coast without at least one vomiting child, and I would rather be prepared than spend my holiday trying to get the smell out of the car.

I am grateful for my Muddy Organiser's care and kindness, looking after her baby brother when I need her to just take his hand to help him walk somewhere or keep him busy while I complete a task, she continues to amaze me with her thoughtfulness.

I am also grateful for my hairdresser, for fitting the kids and I in for hair cuts before we go away, for knowing my kids so well that they are comfortable enough to let her wash their hair and cut it without clinging to me like they used to.

It's these little things that make me smile this week and that I want to link up at Village Voices for 52 Weeks of Grateful, graciously hosted by Maxabella Loves. It's definitely worth a look.