Domesticali

There are many reasons that someone might need to have their spirits lifted. And there is nothing more uplifting than getting a little something through the post to let you know that you are in someone's thoughts. It might be as simple as a postcard. Or something a bit bigger. In a mysterious box tied with ribbon.

  And inside there just might be chocolate treats.

And pink lemonade and tea and jam and marshmallows and more chocolate. Did I mention the chocolate? Nature's own mood-enhancer?

So thank you, fairy godmother, and Interflora. Consider my mood enhanced. Now, if I could just spread some of that fairy dust around, because there are some folks out there who could really use a little of it just now.

Sunday syndrome

So, the weekend is at an end. But I escaped the Sunday night syndrome this time. Partly, I think, because the boys are off school until Tuesday.

Do you get Sunday night syndrome at your house? The dawning realization that the weekend is drawing to a close and you've had your chance  to get anything done or have any fun. I'm sure I make it worse for myself by dedicating Sunday night to ironing. Talk about ending the weekend on a flat note (pun fully intended, sorry). 

But this weekend was a very good one. Not because we did anything special, but the sun shone, we did some clearing up in the garden, ate together, watched the boys play rugby. Nothing very dramatic or out of the ordinary, but good all the same.

One of those weekends when you see your life for what it is, and smile a little. Not because it's perfect. Not by any means. See, the sinks in our house refuse to stay clean for very long.

And the children (and the kitchen floor) seem to be constantly covered with a thin film of mud.

But in the grand scheme of things, life is good. Spring is coming (even if it is snowing again today) and next weekend is only 5 days away.

Very sophisticated

 Caramel cupcakes from The Primrose Bakery book. Officially named the victor in the half-term cupcake taste test. And these suckers are good.

Because turning 6 calls for a new level of sophistication. Though he tells me he doesn't want to get any bigger - apparently it's all downhill after 4.

Happy Birthday little Bean.

Happy Valentine's Day

Doesn't that sound like the most blissful idea?

Happy Valentine's Day to you.

If you go down to the woods today...

Party time for Johnny-almost-6 today. His birthday falls in half term, so we thought we'd celebrate early with his classmates. 

Though  the cake issue was almost a trauma.

Me: Johnny, what kind of cupcakes would you like for your party?

Him: I don't want cupcakes.

Me: (hyperventilating) What? {but, but, but Mummy is the queen of cupcakes. I have wrappers in every hue, sprinkles galore, can bake them with my eyes closed. How can you say this to me? Did I not give birth to you? Change your nappies? Blow your nose? How can you do this to me?}

Him: Can I have a BIG cake?

Me: (exhaling) Oh, okay. What would you like on it?

Him: A tree.

Me: Sure {I can do that, just about - I have a leaf cookie cutter somewhere...}

Him: Growing straight up out of the middle.

Okay, so the last bit did defeat me, but he got a tree cake (and I got to use the edible glitter from my Christmas Stocking).

And I even snuck in some bite sized cupcakes under the category of  'food'.

And some flower lollipops for the party bags. Well, I call them party bags, but really they all just got a lollipop, a slice of the BIG cake and a book each. Because I am so over buying fistfuls of plastic tat.

And I think they all had a good time. They certainly ran about enough!

And now I have earned an evening in front of trash telly with a very BIG glass of wine.

Celebrate the Boy

Johnny was off school on Friday - earache. He's a little prone to it and having suffered a couple of bouts as a child I am most sympathetic - it's such an intrusive kind of pain. But actually, dosed up to the eyeballs with Paracetamol, he was actually very perky and good company. And I realized how different the rhythm of our days used to be when he and I had big chunks of time together at home. Not that I'm wishing myself back to babe-in-the-house-hood. Oh no. 

I bumped into an old friend in the supermarket the other day. Her eldest is  in double digits now. Two housemoves later and our lives have  diverged somewhat and so I hadn't seen her for about a year. She had a newborn in a sling. My jaw just about hit the floor, right after I asked her whose baby she'd borrowed. Oops. I was so very happy for her (and so utterly relieved that I didn't have to do it again myself).

But in the midst of all that intensity of the hands-on child rearing years, there are the moments of sweetness that keep you sane. It's so different as they grow. Not sure if it's just that I have boys and not terribly communicative ones, at that. But so much of their lives becomes hidden from you. The intensity of their emotions blunted in the re-telling. I find myself, like a forensic scientist, trying to re-create their days from the snippets of evidence in the bookbags and their incomplete testimony, interspersed with requests for food. So just sometimes, it's good to have an unexpected quiet day at home. And to re-connect.

Can you tell we've got a birthday coming up? I'm such a sap, but it always makes me feel so wistful. For them it's a marker of new things, of growing up. But for us Mamas, it's a sign of time passing and all that means we have left behind.

In the midst of my nostalgia-fuelled wallowing, I came across this:

Celebrate the boy is a month dedicated to boy related sewing and crafts. I will be keeping a close eye on it. And celebrating mine - big boys or not!

** and thank you so much for your sweet replies to the last post - I had to close the comments because I was getting all embarrassed. Your friendship make me feel very Special indeed. **

Seven Days of Specialness

So, it's February. Phew, breathe a sigh of relief that we have made it through another January and are peeking out the far side. This is always the time of year when I feel the lure of a fortnight in Barbados (not that I've ever had one, but i imagine that if money/real life were no object, that I would make an annual booking for the end of Jan/beginning of Feb).

Well, in real life, it's not really an option, but way back in December, I thought a 7 Days of Specialness Swap might provide a similar uplifting effect. The idea was to prepare a little series of gifts to be opened over the course of a week during February. Tiny treats for the recipient, to cherish and uplift them.

My only error was not actually allocating myself a partner - I know. How crazy was I? But by the time I matched everyone up, there was an even number of folks, so it just didn't happen. But still, even if, like me, you aren't swapping, you might still be uplifted by the pictures that are appearing in the Flickr  7 Days of Specialness Project pool.

Here's a big old list of all the blogs of everyone participating - they ought to all be feeling special any time now. Unless of course, there's been a bit of a delay in the sending of parcels, in which case, please please do let your partner know.

Pennys Hen House

Getting the skinny on knitting

Contented

Rattling on

Woolie wanderings

Generally Gemma

Busywork

Daisie Days

Two Owls Design

Dottycookie

French Knots

Fan My Flame

Pink Cat, Custard and Cake

Being Frank

Pebbledash

Lucy Locket Recycled her Pocket

Vintage Pleasure

The Antidote

Make Do and Mend

Dragonfly

Moogsmum

Things [Handmade]

Amanda Makes

Badsparklythings

Love those cupcakes

Pins and Noodles

Just a smidge

Quilt while you're ahead

The Little Pink Room

Driftwood

Linaloo

Little Cotton Rabbits

Ma Mercerie

Soozs

Weedwacker knits

And Sew it is

The Scent of Water

Prosestitich

Kolo kolo mlynsky

SASS

Camelama

Lolo Craft

Crafty Maine Mom

The Moveable Alphabet

Bravexperiment

Little Elephants

Kleas

Do let me know if your link isn't working properly!