I see the Bridge!

What to do for a Beach Christmas?

Our first beach Christmas in our little Island cottage and the days are filled with endless possibilities. Which beach to walk on in the morning, which one to swim at (all while DH finishes the fences and the turfing just in time for Christmas Day, it was a close call but he made it with some wonderful assistance from 3 small children, a broken up Granddad and Grandma and one Knight in shining tool belt Rosey's husband Mick).

Of course we had the pleasure of nearest and dearest coming to visit us for Christmas and even the soaking rains that fell from Christmas day onwards didn't dampen our spirits, in fact we delighted in the fact we could just pop down to the beach between showers and we had games and puzzles aplenty if anyone needed entertaining.

When we were down at the beach assorted children took great pleasure in my.....'Make your own sandcastle Christmas Tree challenge'.....they were to only use found objects and no buckets or spades.....the girls were of course much more enthusiastic and when they got off to a flying start the boys saw their creative talents were better off spent chasing a soccer ball in the ocean and looking for soldier crabs.

Of course I didn't have my camera with me and my phone was flat so I was sent home post haste to get it before the tide washed away their endeavours....pretty impressive don't you think? I love a bit of beach combing, full of endless potential. I did need to explain to said children though that the crab shells didn't occur like that in nature, they had to be cooked to turn that pretty red colour.....they were not concerned, they just though they looked pretty.

Now look closely at the photos and see just what they did beach comb....elephant beetles!!

I do have to point out thought that Miss 8's tree did have an unfortunate accident with a soccer ball, kicked not by the boys but by the Grandmother who was supposed to be guarding trees from such an accident......yep yep yep.

Of course the only reward for hardworking Christmas tree artists is a Christmas Tree ice cream. 

 

Such a fun way to spend a few hours! The children had great hats and were sun-screened within an inch of their lives, so slept well that night with warm toasty skin on fresh sheets. It was their mother who was glowing red and lathering on huge amounts of aloe vera cream and drinking bucket-loads of water......I hate sunscreen......

kiss noises Linda  

Would you like pictures with that?

Finally pictures to go with that last post, I don't know why Typepad is still freezing when I try to post photos but they worked this time.

ttfn Kiss Noises Linda

Perfect Pre-Christmas Day.

Not many more sleeps until Santa brings gifts to good boys and girls and to those who beleive. My answer to the children as to why we don't get presents under the tree from Santa is that sometimes the gifts that grown-ups can't be wrapped. Things like having a family to celebrate with or good health and the ability to enjoy being with each other or having two calm quiet hours when the children don't fight.

One sure place they don't fight is the beach....so with only a few days before Christmas day, this is the way we spend the early morning or the afternoons......and this is all FREE! How lucky we are to live where we do. 

Christmas decorating pictures.

it's a weird mix but it works.

Having just moved to this Island lifestyle less than 2 months ago we have brought with us all our Christmas things from our other house. The colours are a litle wrong for this house and we hadn't really worked out the whole where to put the Christmas tree properly before it went up and now the children are stringing tinsel and baubles through their newly decorated rooms and it is all a bit of old and new and somethings somewhere inbetween. We have just put our outside Christmas lights up....how many days to Christmas? Our mechanical reindeer are sitting on the new turf and there is a great view of our makeshift lights from the street....until the new fence goes up in the next few days...poor darling husband is working his fingers to the bone while I try and close up Lilly Cottage.

It all sort of works though...what do you think....inspired or insane? Actually do not answer that one...

Cleo the Christmas Cat.

When we first moved house we kept our cat Cleo inside for the first couple of weeks so that she would be familiar with the new surroundings and the new smells and sounds of a different house. I made sure everyone used the double door system so she didn't get out and then forget to come back. Finally she was driving me crazy jumping on me at night and sitting on the chest of drawers and looking longingly out the window from the window sills.

We had a put a collar on her (she is micro chipped) with a bell and the first time we let her out, she rolled on the concrete in the sun for ages as if to say...thank goodness I am out. Then she jumped the neighbours fence to explore and their little dog chased her back....and basically that has been it, she ran inside and won't come outside again for any length of time. Usually our dogs bark at her, once the magpies attacked her and you know she is soooo scared of Thunder....the original scardey cat.

Since she spends so much time inside we keep finding her in unusual places like, under beds, on top of suitcases, in the linen cupboard, on the back of the lounge chairs etc etc....and this is the place you find her when you come home....

Yes well, luckily we do not eat off of this table, it is for games and drawing and the like...just as well bleah!

Last week however we put the Christmas tree up and this gorgeous new Christmas Tree Skirt around the bottom....obviously it must have been very soft and comfy as well..

She was kind of hard to spot but the Santa lying down on the ground was a bit of a giveaway, he was standing up before.....and she has crinkled the skirt up...jeez ! I hope she doesn't scare the real Santa away on Christmas Eve.

Kiss Noises Linda ps don't you just love my beautifully decorated tree....the children did it all themselves and I wasn't allowed anywhere near it....when we met Santa in the shopping centre today ( you know he likes to hang out in the airconditioning) he said it was lovely for the children to have done that to give me a rest....funny that wasn't how I was looking at it.....

Where Women Create 12 days of Christmas giveaway.

Oh How I adore 'Where Women Create'. I love to read about the artists who are just people like you and me and they create works of art in such a variety of places, I just love love love to read about them. Anyhoo the Where Women Create Blog are having a 12 days of Christmas WWC style giveaway where each day they are giving away a wonderful prize each day for 12 days. There are only three days left though so you need to run run run over there and have a look and enter some or all of the amazing giveaways.

 

Have fun, be back soon,

Kiss Noises Linda

The crows and the lunchbox.

Starting a new school always has it's problems. My children have started a lovely new school which is about 3 times the size of their old school and everyone has been great. There have been some teething problems like getting lost in the huge maze of buildings and losing a school hat 3 days in ( which luckily I had named). Some things you just can't plan for or maybe you can?

Miss 8 came home devastated the other day as she said 'she had the worst day ever', among the list of grievances(?) including, there was another new girls and she wasn't new anymore and it was hot..was that the crows had eaten her lunch!

Apparently between lunch breaks they leave their lunch bags out in the under covered eating area and when she came out her lunch bag and containers where strewn over the ground. Of course she didn't tell the teacher, just went hungry and cried about it home...Jeez Louise! It is a common problem apparently and no doubt she didn't shut any of her lunch containers properly and the crows were hungry!

To counteract this terrible (but slightly amusing to us) problem, Darling Husband presented her lunch to her like this the next day.

She wasn't very amused...we were though.

Kiss Noises Linda 

Pretty Roses and Beautiful Books.

Really what more could a girl want? The Farmers Markets out at Old Petrie Town on a Saturday are quite lovely and I have become addicted to the fresh roses from a local grower (also some chocolate croissants but we will keep that a secret between us OK?). I wish we had a scent button on our computers so you can smell these, they smell  like real old fashioned roses...just Heavenly! I have two bunches this week but only the pale pink are scented...that's OK having a bunch of scented roses is such a treat!