Wednesday.
The second last day of the summer holidays.
The second last day of seven months together.
A walk in the late afternoon.
Plums and blackberries picked.
And eaten.
And spilled.
And shared.
Time together.
Yesterday I tried to convince my farmer boy to chuck it all in, to hitch up the caravan and to head North again. Yesterday the impending school year felt overwhelming. Yesterday I wasn't sure where to begin. Yesterday I wanted to be free.
Today I'm not sure.
I love this place.
I love how things are so less complicated when we get out on the farm.
I love breathing in the clean air, playing with sticks, growing and picking stuff and getting dirty.
I love being together.
I have to remember to get out on the farm when things get too much this year.
To get everyone in boots and outside.
That'll get us through.
That's our secret weapon.
Do you have a secret weapon when things get too much?
Do you have a fail safe way of changing the mood?
Is it somewhere you go, something you make or something you do?
Do tell.
xx
Kate...this morning I had 6 blackberry, beautiful but tart, in a plastic container, flown in from who knows where. Enjoy your freshly picked ones!
ReplyDeleteA secret weapon? ... I really wish I had one. There are times when I REALLY need one.
ReplyDeleteI'll be reading further comments with interest. x
I think a secret weapon is a wonderful thing to have. I've never really thought about it before. But yes, I think spending time with my loved ones without a plan, except to have fun and enjoy each others company is one of mine. It could be, lounging around with the kids, going to the sea, or quiet time with my other half. I do like getting out and the beauty of nature has a way of calming the soul for me. I love it! Enjoy those delicious fruits!
ReplyDeleteAhhhhhhhh outside. I need to remember to do that more. I get caught up on the inside looking out. The other night (before the rain came) I went into the garden and watered and weeded a little, picked a bit, breathed in a few times deeply and gosh life was good! I forget to do this. Thanks for the reminders. Xxxx
ReplyDeleteI hadnt thought about it too hard either.
ReplyDeleteBut straight away I knew it.
Water.
Immersing myself in it. Whether its a simple bath, with or without company (tmi?) standing in the rain (I did this with Mali yesterday) or the ocean. Jumping off things is the best freedom I know.
x
I seem to keep my kids home and we make and garden.... already feeling like keeping them home tomorrow and it's only been 3 days of them being back to school! xx
ReplyDeleteI think I've shared with you before my secreat weapon but thinking about it I may just have two.
ReplyDeleteMy making
and my mum xo
My secret weapon is usually driving through the mountains for me. Not always practical. But it clears my head and makes me feel more in balance. Today we explored a new to us conservation park and I felt really good about it. Just getting out, looking, walking, examining nature around us with my boys. Then home for a simple dinner and some knitting. xx
ReplyDeleteI LOVE that your secret weapon is gumboots!! I know it's more than that, but how great! My secret weapon is most certainly family time, whether it be at the beach, in the park or out in our yard..it's grounding & all feels right again.
ReplyDeleteGreat post. I always go the the beach and watch the sunset. The smell and the sound of the sea always calms me and I somehow find peace!
ReplyDeleteJak x
A walk on the hills with the dogs usually does it for me :D
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your home and your family Kate x
Kate ~ what I really love about your posts is the way in which you ask questions at the end ~ which invites us readers to reflect on our own lives.
ReplyDeleteIts a lovely thing to do ~ and makes you unique and wonderfully inclusive !!!
My secret weapon is definately walking.
Secret weapon? Soup. You think I'm kidding, but it's true.
ReplyDeletew
Walk.....together, apart, fast, slow, bush or streets.....thats where our family heads :) Evertone needs somewhere to stretch and breathe in clean air. I love following your families fun. Happy 2012 to you all.
ReplyDeleteour secret weapon is the beach.....there's something about the salty air that is rejuvenating for us. mel x
ReplyDeleteOur secret weapon, city kid style, is getting out to our fave cafe for pancakes with lemon curd and strawberries in St Kilda followed by a long walk along the beach to blow out all the cobwebs. When there is more time, we head to a cottage in the woods, no tv or i-anything reception, just walks with the dog in the bush and cooking the food we bring and a fire to read by.
ReplyDeleteI'm an inside girl, a bookworm, a sleeper but stress calls for fresh air, especially night air. And extreme stress requires salt air, even if it's just standing at the railings looking down over the sand and sniffing with my head held back and the ocean winds blowing through my hair. Tomorrow will be better. Cherrie
ReplyDeleteI hear you Kate - fresh air and physical activity is the answer for me, especially a walk, some work in the vegetable garden or getting out and about on the farm :)
ReplyDeleteExcellent Plan.
ReplyDeleteWe get outside Often, head up the paddock or go for a drive or have a play in the garden, anything to not be confined within four walls. Otherwise I'd be a total mess.
Oh yes that is a great weapon . Exactly what I used to do with my kids then and now , get outside and blow some steam off . It works for us xx
ReplyDeleteTodays secret weapon was a crochet hook... a new project, and a little hooking time... damn therapeutic.
ReplyDelete...but getting outside is always good too.
No secret weapon to speak of really... nothing is fail proof but we're always mixing it up and trying new things. Getting out is good. Staying in is good. Music is good. A swim is good. Yet all of these things have turned bad at times too... so I suppose our secret weapon is to keep trying... eventually we'll find something?!?!?
ReplyDelete1. Walking with the hound.
ReplyDelete2. Listening to the rain on the tin roof.
3. Swimming in the local outdoor pool at 5.30am.
4. 'Boro' sewing (there is so much to make with scraps of fabric!).
My secret weapon is usually cleaning or baking! :)
ReplyDeleteMy secret weapon is your mum, Kate. xxxxx
ReplyDeleteoooh...if it's a rainy day in our small house...i have a cupboard loaded with cool stuff:vintage games, puzzles and THE CRAFT BOX.
ReplyDeleteor...the beach, the garden, or head for the hills...change the scene, change the headspace in my motto. And i try to keep it mindful. Often, days that look like they're heading to crapsville, end up to the best. If i can remember to surrender to the moment. IF!
We go down to our water hole. Everything always feels and is good down there.
ReplyDeleteMy secret weapon is to drop everything I am doing and just get down on the floor and really truly play with the kids, without any interruptions or distractions. Makes us all feel good x
ReplyDeleteAh, I wish I had a farm to go get lost in! Since I don't however, my secret weapon is to lock myself in my studio and paint or draw pictures of places I'd like to go or people I'd want to meet.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you are hanging around.
ReplyDeleteI'd miss you too much
xx
Personally, I think you should head north in Winter this year....
ReplyDeleteHmmm, secret weapon... I don't know... probably my hanging chair on the new deck, it feels like a little nest, I can look out at the trees and hurumph and then forget what I was hurumphing about...
it doesn't always work. did the girls go back to school today?? I hope it went ok- weird for all of you. xx
We have national park at the end of the road so most evenings I try and go for a walk in there amongst the kangaroos, and gaze at the river, the hills and the sunset. Usually works. A bit of nature does, doesn't it?
ReplyDeleteOur weapon is wheels. We escape on our bikes and scooters down to the park to look for treasure. Roboboy has a eye for tiny things, colourful leaves, bits of rock, sequins from days ago parties, bugs, sticks and sometimes giant palm fronds that he makes me drag behind the pram all the way home. I have learnt not to ask what for or why. melx
ReplyDeletelove the cute little smiles & giggles in these pics Kate!
ReplyDeletemy secret weapon is to ignore the boring jobs and just be with the kids, watch them play, give them cuddles and just appreciate what I have in that very moment.
hugs to you ♥
Love the dog! Is that a Pyrenean or Maremma? I have a Pyr pup who is just about to turn 2. Yours is super lucky to have all that room to roam around on and bark in.
ReplyDeleteI love this post Kate. xo
ReplyDelete