Hello my name is Lucas ,I'm ten years old I hope to be a video game maker when I'm older. Continue reading

Love -it's really hard to find a definition that adequately covers every manifestation as many song writers have discoveered. Of course it's what we feel for our kids, maybe our pets, our spouses (although not necessarily every day, (!) our old friends who drop everything in our hour of need and leave their own loved ones behind to offer comfort and solace, our good buddies who listen patiently to our ramblings without judgment or favor. but mostly I think it's the people who colour world in whatever way,which make us want to squeeze the life out of every day and... Continue reading

Pack a spare crochet hook - they disappear especially in piles of hospital linen never to be seen again. Share your scissors with the nurses because when you lose yours you can be sure to borrow theirs. Stay on top of loose ends. You can look like a crazy person surrounded by small bits of multicoloured wool. Even surgeons can wait for you to finish a treble cluster so you don't lose count. Someone will tell you how clever you are. Smile in agreement and don't let on how easy it is. Chooose an easy pattern and modify as you... Continue reading

This is probably the worst crochet ever done but it is oretty colours and it's in wool so it will be a functional warm blanket when it's all done and dusted. I've adjusted the pattern a little so I rely on how it feels rather than looking for stitches and holes. And I feel productive! So much better than just lying around waiting for hospital food to arrive. Continue reading

Eyesight is really dodgy! But I really felt the need for some stress busting crochet. May look at in the morning and wonder what I was thinking?? But the repetition was soothing and meditative. More important than the end result. At least with dodgy eyes I can't see all the mistakes. Continue reading

I have an iPad!! hopelessly inept at using it Got no idea how to take load or blog a photo but I will figure it out. Maybe. Thank you Dave. I knew having an IT guru husband would one day bear fruit!!Now do I turn it off? Or just shut it? Continue reading

Done. Continue reading

The thought of crocheting blankets never appealed but when the boys actually requested one each it was hard to say no. So they picked their colours and away we went. The black, white and red is for Hamish and Lucas chose the harlequin colours. Got to say this is addictive! Meditative and easy it's not hard to get into. If course there are still mistakes because apparently I can't count to 3 but given the stress that's been flying around here the last couple of months I'm leaving the mistakes in and calling them scars not errors. That's how life... Continue reading

I don't pretend to understand boys. You would think living in a household full of them I would get the way they work. But I don't. Love and worship them with all my heart. They are my first thought. My last thought and pretty much every thought in between. But no I don't get their casual attitude towards time and schedules -Their ability to do nothing and actually enjoy it! They can be completely unconcerned about hygiene one minute and then be obssessed with the state of their sports gear/trading cards the next to the point that I am requested... Continue reading

It was a last minute decision to spend the last lot of school holidays in Sydney. But a well received idea all round. The kids have been to Sydney before and the idea of getting on a a plane never fails to impress. If you are getting on a plane you must be going somewhere exciting. But it had been a long and tough school term so there were some simple rules. This would not be a heavy duty sight seeing holiday. There would not be any major admission charging destinations. There would be lots of relaxing and enjoying the... Continue reading

Just had a lovely morning pottering around Circular Quay. Asked the boys if there is anything they wanted to do before heading back to the hotel. They wanted to get on a double decker train. They had spotted them on the overhead train tracks and they were determined to get onboard. Not that we needed to. Perfectly good bus available. But instead we took two trains and a bus just for the experience. I'm happy to catch public transport but it's never going to excite me. But then I'm not a ten or twelve year old boy. Oh my god... Continue reading

Bondi is certainly not the biggest, prettiest, best beach ever. But it's an icon and you've really got to go. Boys loved it but then they love anywhere with sand soft enough to throw yourself upon whilst stretching for a tennis ball. Is it ok to crochet at the beach? Not really sure but I did it anyway. Surely worse crimes have been committed at Bondi? Lovely lunch afterwards at Icebergs. And yesterday I wore a dress - first time my 12 year old had seen me in one! But seriously my legs are so white they could guide a... Continue reading

It takes a certain amount of self confidence to wear a hot pink and white tie dyed singlet (which he dyed himself) with maroon and gold running shorts. He totally missed the fashion gene but you gotta love him. Continue reading

Just starting a lovely ten days at Coogee. Great hotel, beautiful weather, gorgeous coastline. How lucky are we? No plans just lots of exploring and coffee breaks. Continue reading

Hamish's class spent the whole school term designing a sustainable house and then building a scale model - right down to compost piles, sky lights, air vents, insulation. Amazing work boys! Continue reading

Coffee with Lucas after school down on the Shorncliffe foreshore .... Just because we can. How good is my life? Continue reading

Hamish has played hockey for seven seasons now and of all the sports I regularly watch, hockey is my favourite. I love the way he gives absolutely everything at training and at games. It takes a certain amount of commitment to be still trying for a goal when your team is down 7 nil or even worse. But he never gives up and not surprisingly we've had our fair share of close exciting games which I think are far more stressful for the parents than the kids. Last weekend he won the most consistent award for his team. Not the... Continue reading

I don't know who coined the phrase - it certainly wasn't me - but there is a lot of theory out there that to get through life you need to find your "tribe" and stick with them. They are the people you rely on, you share with, laugh with, cry with, support, encourage, love. Usually, but not necessarily the tribe is all girls or all boys. Sometimes they are family as well as mates. There is not a definitive list for the tribe and no membership rituals, handshakes or secret codes (except maybe "do you wanna grab a coffee?"). There... Continue reading

The Shane Webcke Shield is an annual carnival for under 10 rugby league teams and although it is supposed to be a fun event all about participation and enjoyment, that really only applies to the kids. The adults - some of them anyway - take it deadly seriously. Lucas's team competed in the carnival last weekend amidst torrential rain and vast expanses of mud. It was dirty, cold and miserable but only the parents complained - well we were standing in ankle deep puddles. The kids loved it as they had genuine reason to jump belly first into and then... Continue reading

Friday nights usually see us driving around to accommodate sporting events and find time to eat and sleep in anticipation of Saturday's sporting events. But this Friday night we tripped north to Caloundra for a performance of the Ten Tenors. We had acquired four tickets and it seemed easier to take the boys with us instead of organising babysitters even though it would make for a long night. The kids weren't overly keen but, little troupers that they are, they were happy to give it a go as it was something a bit different. Well, they loved it. There is... Continue reading

Everyone either loves the Ekka or hates it. My boys and I are most definitely in the "love the Ekka" camp. We go pretty much every year and revel in the sights, the sounds, the smells, the crowds, the junk food and the search for the "Ekka moment". That is the one experience of the whole visit that just leaves you wondering where else could you go to see or do this. This year the Ekka moment was The League of Sideshow Legends. Basically an old-fashioned freak show. And we only stumbled upon it because we were trying to escape... Continue reading

Today I went running in the Bunyaville Forest while Hamish was at baseball training. Just a stunning place, lots of hills and little valleys, the sun setting when I made it to the top of the hills. Crunchy gravel that's so much kinder to the shins than concrete. Yes running hurts. Your lungs scream because they're working hard getting oxygen to the muscles moving your legs. Your bones and joints are aching because they're bouncing off that solid immovable ground. Yes it hurts but that's because you're moving. And we really are meant to move. Just one foot in front... Continue reading

This is Hamish in the midst of a tight singles tennis match. This weekend he has already played a game of basketball and four hockey matches. Yet he is putting his heart and soul into this tennis match as if it was the Wimbledon grand final. And he still has two doubles games to go before we head home. I love his commitment and energy even when he must be exhausted. He just won 6-3. Continue reading

This is the outlook from my boys' classrooms. They see this every day. Nothing but a cliff between their school and the Pacific Ocean. How lucky are they! Continue reading

Both boys were lucky to enough to earn academic medals for their efforts in the first semester of the school year. Lucas was particularly chuffed about this because he really hasn't had a lot of confidence in his academic ability up until now. Amazing what a teacher who believed in him and pushed him along when he needed it, could do! Special for me to see both boys recognized. I suggested a photo opportunity but Lucas was busy with handball commitments - as you are when you are 10. But I tracked him down for this pic - no doubt... Continue reading