Friday, April 6, 2018

lessons learnt

Hello honey bunches, how gorgeous to see you again. I hope you've had a lovely week since last we met. Ours has been filled with school holidays, family, friends and autumn fruits. Not necessarily in that order. In fact never in order. Well not orderly, anyway.

So here are some things I learnt, or relearnt this week. Just for fun. Still disorderly;

That farmer Bren was right when he told me that we'd have a great tomato season even though it was our first year growing without poly tunnels.

That all the colour can drain out of someone's face. It's not just something that happens in books, I've seen it.

That sewing up the seams of my Mirehouse sweater is taking me almost as long as knitting it in the first place.


That there is no apple that compares to a home grown granny smith picked straight off the tree.

That there is no coffee better than the coffee brought to me in bed on the first slow morning in months.

That it feels strange these days to post a blog without any photos of flowers.

That getting dressed in the morning when you have a pair of jeans that fits you well is super simple and quick.

That 10 and 14 year old girls can still spend HOURS in the garden making pretend food from mud, flowers and petals.

That eventually bras just stop working.

That in order to cut really long stemmed flowers, sometimes you have to sacrifice some buds.


All about life in prison in America after reading The Graybar Hotel by Curtis Dawkins.

That there are still people living among us that don't own smart phones. A man sitting opposite me on the train to Melbourne the other day, asked me to look up the address for the CFMEU building in Melbourne and spoke of how despite the fact that he'd had a hand in building half of Melbourne and also built his own family's mud-brick house in the forest, he didn't think his spelling was good enough to be able to use a phone. Of course I filled him in on the joys of auto-correct, but he still looked skeptical.

That after reading a book describing intimate details of life inside prison, I will find myself staring at the man sitting opposite me on the train's faded black tattoos of birds and bees and wonder if they were drawn using a guitar string, a Bic pen and the mechanics of an old Walkman.

That there are brands and styles of jeans that suit me and my eldest two daughters.

That there are people around who think it's okay to give unasked for advice about parenting even though my kids are not babies anymore but in fact practically grown ups.

That boxing into pads held above my head is so much harder than I thought it would be.

That even though I don't like eating pumpkins, I love growing them. The bigger the better.


That despite the fact that I'm only five jars away from my 100 jars of tomato sauce target, I still want to make more.

That happy 14 year old = happy life.

That I should have gotten up and written down the hundreds of lessons I've learnt this week when they woke me up at 4am, because the 5.12pm lessons aren't as free flowing or clever.

That the biggest kangaroo I have seen, jumping as fast as it can to outrun our dog and coming straight at me and my children is one of the most frightening things I have even experienced. Thank goodness it saw us at the last minute, tried to change directions, fell over and jumped away before any damage was done. The youngest of us was still upset hours later.

That a Clydesdale horse eating a carrot sounds like a washing machine.

That a kangaroo can hold an apple in two paws and eat it standing up.

That year 12 seems like a cruel and unusual punishment.

That when the dentist gave each of the five of us a toothbrush after our appointment this week, I was disappointed to discover that mine was orange, my least favourite colour. I'm still childish like that.

That even though every week I feel confident that I will make time to reply to all of your comments and emails, most often life gets in the way and it doesn't happen. I do read and appreciate and answer every single one in my head though. And I love you for taking the time to write them.


I think that's all. Well that's everything I can think of right now anyway.

Tell me some things you learnt this week.

See ya next week!

Love, Kate x




21 comments:

  1. Hi Kate. Thanks for sharing your week. I have had three children do Year 12 and that awful ATAR that they need had no bearing on what they are doing now.Encouragement,praise and a bit of space and the most important, knowledge of all the options, got me through the year.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I've learnt that your youngest makes me smile whilst she was talking on the cucumber phone.
    I've learnt that as much as my darling man loves his footy I do not.
    I've learnt that a cool change and lowered humidity means things grow so much better.
    I've learnt that putting back your recliner whilst holding a bowl of hot soup in your spare hand is a really stupid thing to do.
    I've learnt that I really hate the wind. The pesky cyclone that has been hanging around off the east coast has been driving me nutty.
    I've learnt that the beach is still my slow down and breathe space.
    I've learnt that I love my lavender pillow spray.
    I have had a week of learning and isnt it wonderful? Yes is the answer.

    ReplyDelete
  3. My dad (a commercial flower grower by the way) still and always will, only ever use a “dumb” phone. There’s many of them out there!

    ReplyDelete
  4. That when your plan doesn't work you have to change the plan never the goal! I have finally moved to Mallorca :-). Arrived early this morning, after:
    having driven 2 days through europe, 2300 km alone in the car
    having crossed 1 bridge (between Sweden and Danmark)
    having taken 2 ferries (between Danmark and Germany and Spain and Mallorca, that is still Spain).
    I am finally in a place that I hope I can call HOME!

    ReplyDelete
  5. It just dawned on me this week that each one of my children embodies a different part of me - my interests and passions and personality - and the realization amazed me more than their very existence.
    I also learned that there is nothing like the physiological joy of seeing the first brave leaves of tulips, hyacinths and daffodils pushing hopefully out of the snow-melt towards spring.
    I hope the colour drained back as fast as it left the face in question, and that nothing serious happened. My Mum described such a draining and recoloring of my face to be just like a roller blind when I stabbed my hand with the full force aimed at an avocado stone!!
    And by the way, you never need to feel guilty about not replying to comments. If your other readers are anything like me, we so enjoy the delightful, wry, raw,and inspiring photographic and written updates each week that we are just simply glad you take the time to enliven our weeks.
    Have a wonderful weekend
    Clare

    ReplyDelete
  6. Och, I missed you last week -- don't know how I skipped it. What a treat to see TWO new posts today!

    I always used to want the clear toothbrushes. Now I don't care so much. It took at least 35 years to get past the preference, though!

    What jeans fit your body type? I've lately put on 'winter comfort' weight, and none of my jeans are complimentary now. But our hemisphere's Spring is around the corner, so the weight will decrease with renewed activities.

    I am fascinated by the idea of wild kangaroos, though I'd wager the reality is quite a bit different. Like giant, anxious and slightly angry upright bears going about the countryside. Yipes.

    Lots of love to you and yours, Kate!

    Glori B.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Well that’s a bumper harvest. I love the feeling that all the laundry is done and dried on the line in between shocking downpours of rain. I’ve had two days with no rain so I feel as if I have won. Raining here in the UK for the next three days again. Spring must be reading to spring soon surely.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I've learnt that I'm a nicer person if I go for my daily walk, and the beach is my favourite place to walk.
    Ive learnt I don't enjoy sewing in the ends on stripy scarves.
    I've learnt that people who walk their dogs are usually very friendly
    I've learnt being the parent of young adults is much easier than parenting teens.
    I've learnt that I don't like commenting from my phone

    Have a super week kate
    Cheers kate

    ReplyDelete
  9. Hello lovely Kate, thankyou so much for writing your beautiful blog each week. I'm wondering if there are special blogs that you love to read? Have a lovely week! Michele

    ReplyDelete
  10. I love your list-y blogs! I agree that year 12 is cruel. A friends child said to me recently that they wouldn't go to university just yet because they felt so burnt out and low after year 12. Imagine feeling like all the doors are closed at 17! We need to do something better for our kids.

    This week I've learnt that sometimes the job application that you thought was completely awful brings you to an interview for a job that you really want. And, with fingers crossed, might take away a little of the salt for saying no to the perfect job that you landed earlier in the year and wanted so very much but couldn't find suitable childcare options to make it work. I've learnt that seven late nights to finish uni assignments is tough but can be mitigated by early morning walks through the bush. I've learnt that I'm not as bad a runner as I thought I was. I've learnt that I miss blogging.

    I hope you all have a lovely week :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. I love you lessons learnt... even the simplest things can still teach us things. How special to meet that man on the train. He wouldve been fascinating to chat with.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Hi Kate, gosh those tomatoes! Joy! And that Kangaroo! I am so glad none of you were hurt lovely. I have learnt that the pressure I put on myself leads me to burn out and a break from Instgram is a good way of taking stock and reenergising. I have learnt that plants in my garden will do their best to survive despite my neglect and lack of knowledge! And I've learnt that I really enjoy reading what your other readers have learnt! Lots of love to you and your family, Lucy xxxxxx

    ReplyDelete
  13. Ha ha, I still don't own a smart phone (by choice). I like the simplicity of a basic phone, and I know that I have a weakness for social media that would only get worse with a smart device. So this way, I can leave my phone in another room for hours at a time and not even worry about it :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. So many lessons... a pair of well fitted jeans cannot be over-valued (and I laughed at the mental image of a roo eating apples!) xx

    ReplyDelete
  15. gosh kate those tomatoes are amazing! How on earth do you keep the fruit flies away without the tunnel?

    ReplyDelete
  16. It's strange to think of a time when we didn't have smart phones and all that information at our fingertips...but kind of nice too. I've thought at times about ditching it but there are so many good things about them too. Sometimes I turn off my mobile network for chunks of the day and revert back to a 'dumb' phone for a little while - it's nicely freeing.
    This past week I've learnt:
    The joy of single tasking - probably a relearn but good either way
    Digging couch grass out of a garden plot is quite satisfying if you just focus on the patch at hand
    That although i'd say I have a healthy relationship with myself and my body that I still objectify my body (listened to a few episodes of this Body kindness podcast https://www.bodykindnessbook.com/podcast/)
    I'm a little obsessed with preserving (perhaps i already had an inkling!).
    Have a lovely week.
    Cheers,
    Laura

    ReplyDelete
  17. Great tomatoes and realy nice story!

    ReplyDelete
  18. I must must ask, will you share your tomato jar recipe, I'm planning on growing lots this year to make up my own sauces and you are my obvious choice of who to ask :)
    The kangaroo sounds so frightening and amazing all at the same time! Do you get many on your land x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We get HUNDREDS of kangaroos here!! They're everywhere.
      And we just make a sauce base out of onion and garlic, tomato and herbs. Just a bit of a head start for a meal for when the time comes. x

      Delete
  19. I love you lessons learnt... even the simplest things can still teach us things. How special to meet that man on the train. He wouldve been fascinating to chat with.
    สล็อต ออนไลน์
    Gclub

    ReplyDelete

Thanks so much for stopping by...

I do read every single comment you leave and appreciate it very much, but I should let you know that I can be a wee bit on the useless side when replying to comments, that's just me, everyday life sometimes gets in the way....so I'll apologise now, just in case.

Kate XX

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.

Visit my other blog.