Full And Thorough Holiday Reporting

You guys, I have begun half a dozen blog posts in the last few weeks, and then they sit there in my drafts folder and go no further. I don’t know about you, but the summer holidays have whizzed by, and I’ve been back at work for a week now (insert sad face). I’m taking the folder of drafts as an indication that the summer has been good, and it really has been.

After we got back from Forster I had that inexplicable January urge to sort ALL.THE.THINGS

I spent a day sorting out Toby’s bedroom and having a pretty thorough cull (much of which I had to sneak out when he wasn’t looking). His clothing cupboard was appalling, and I was trying to work out what to do when it hit me. He had a large hanging space above some drawers, but we don’t hang up any of his clothes. His wardrobe is from Ikea, so I added some more shelves to the list of things to get at Ikea (oh yes there is an IKEA visit in this story!). We made the decision to sell his wooden Thomas train set as well. Initially, he was not interested in selling (despite having not played with it in over 12 months – we moved it twice last year without it being used), but once I said he could keep the money if we sold it, he couldn’t get rid of it quickly enough. He is now studying Lego catalogues and planning his next purchase. Speaking of lego, I managed to rearrange furniture after the cull and then turn our kallax bookshelf on its side. I got some of the lego tape and ran it along the back of the top to help stop bits of lego sliding over the back, and now Toby and Meg have a Lego shelf and play area that they can use.

I also got some curtains for the kid’s room from Pottery Barn Kids online. They are blackout curtains in a dark denim colour and I love them. Both Meg and Toby are loving their room so much more now. I’m trying to decide what to do about the hooks under the window. I can just leave it as it is, shorten the curtains, or remove the hooks.

While we’re talking sorting, I went through our bed linen and got rid of a couple of old grotty sets, and picked up some new ones in the January sales. As you may remember, I’m a big fan of patterned linen, so I got two lovely sets. I also got new quilt covers for the guest room beds and new pillows for everyone (our old ones were embarrassing). Toby had climbed into his dirty clothes hamper and ripped it (seriously!!??), and ours was also broken, so I splurged on new clothes hampers.

I went through our DVD collection and got rid of any movies or series we didn’t think we’d watch again. I got rid of all those first reader books now that Toby is starting to read chapter books. Old jigsaw puzzles and young kid board games also went. Meg got in on the act and went through her art supplies, getting rid of several kits and books she is never going to use.

All this culling then led to a rearrangement of furniture. Lego moved to the kids’ room, board games and jigsaws to the loungeroom buffet, and now there is room in the linen press for the esky and cooler bags. Why is it that January brings on this urge to sort and organise?

I have further plans to rearrange more furniture etc, and finally get some art on to the walls. Now that I’m back at work, the sorting and rearranging should slow down a little.

I spent another day making plum jam for the next year. We went and picked wild plums from along our creek, and then I cooked them up, sieved all the seeds and skin, before turning the puree into jam. Thirteen bottles are now sitting in the pantry. I’m hoping to get my hands on some cheap apricots sometime soon and make some apricot jam as well. I took along the camera along for the ride, together with the new 35mm lens that CB bought me for Christmas. I’m loving the crispness of the photos it takes, and the larger aperture.

I also completed our photo book, created a photo poster for our hallway, and did countless other little sorting jobs. In between all the sorting, reading, and watching the kid on their kayaks on the dam, I got in some good old time doing not much which was perfect for clearing my head.

After a week at home, the kids and I headed to the mountains to spend more time with my family while the kids did swimming lessons each day. We spent an afternoon getting school uniforms and shoes, as well as a million other little things we needed. The rest of the time was spent catching up with family and friends. On the way home, we picked up a few silkie chickens for the girls burgeoning chicken business.

The last week of the holidays was spent reading, and taking time to do not much, as well as a little time to prepare for work, Summer evenings in the orchard putting the chickens away and afternoon naps.

Summer holidays are never long enough!