GIVE A CHILD A WOODEN TRACTOR

A couple of months back Daddy spent the morning in the workshop with Miss 9, Master 6 and Master 4.

They were so excited that they had designed and "helped" Daddy to build this tractor and trailer for their little brother.

Just thought you might like to see :o)

God Bless
The Mummalady

MORE AND MORE SOFITES!

Had a bit of a run on making softies again!

These guys are for sale on Trademe.

If anybody wants a VERY special, unique present just click on BUY NOW!!!!

Thought you might like to see them.

God Bless
The Mummalady

HURRAY FOR ANIMAL SEARCH AND RESCUE!!!!

Our little girl is a very Imaginative and Doing Things sort of a child.

A few weeks back she directed and organised her younger brothers, and they formed a group called "Animal Search and Rescue."

Daddy allowed them to clean out and use the old Donkey Shed (it's never housed donkeys and I can't remember why we called it that - but it's always been The Donkey Shed) for their headquarters, and Mumma and daughter doodled around and came up with a Logo which big brother made into a badge and some letterhead.

So - the children were all set to SEARCH AND RESCUE!

They got their kits organised - scissors, "bandages", buttons, hair clips, note pad, pencils and various other essential paraphanalia.

However, nothing needed to be Searched, or Rescued.

Today Little Girl's friend came to visit. She is also a keen animal lover, and avid bird watcher. They did some Searching, but no Rescuing was required.

BUT! Just before bedtime we went out onto the deck, Little Girl, Little little Pomeranian doggy Bobby and Mumma - to trim Bobby's nails.

Trim, trim, snip, snip ... PEEP! PEEP! PEEEEEEP!

Urgent peeping issued forth from the direction of the old bathtub situated at the back of Animal Search and Rescue Headquarters.

Little girl's keen animal saving instincts jumped into action and in one glance she had taken in the situation.

There was Victoria (Little Girl's own lovely tame white hen) clucking anxiously around the bottom of the bathtub and the PEEEEP PEEEP noises were accompanied by some wild flapping of tiny little banty wings and then nothing.

"Quick!" I shouted "A chick has jumped into the bathtub!"

Like lightning, Little Girl SPED across the paddock - elbows pumping, feet pounding, pinafore flying behind her.

She reached the bathtub, scooped up a soggy wet banty chick and held it close, carefully running back to the house.

"HURRAY FOR ANIMAL SEARCH AND RESCUE!!!" I yelled. (I was very excited! God allowed us to be outside at that EXACT moment when the chick had flown up into the bathtub, and He had called our attention to it. How cool is that?!? What an awesome God.)






We wrapped the soggy banty chick in a bit of cloth and gently dried it, then Little Girl rounded up the other chicks and Victoria and got them into their A-frame for the night.


The soggy chick was a bit shocked and didn't know what to do, so Little Girl tucked it under Victoria, and it soon settled down.






We're not sure if the soggy chick actually swallowed any of the old bath water, so Animal Search and Rescue will have to go and check on it first thing tomorrow.

Daddy has covered the bathtub so nothing else will fall in tonight, and the Big Boys will empty it tomorrow onto our feijoa trees.

Little Girl took these photos (the lower picture shows two chicks poking their heads out from underneath Victoria's feathers - very cute) and asked me to put this story on our blog.

That's enough excitement to last for quite a while! Ah! And now ... it's bedtime. :o)

God Bless
The Mummalady

GUIDED TOUR WITH LITTLE BROTHER JOFFA

Little Brother Joffa hopped down from the table after tea and ran to the bathroom. He carefully washed his hands and thought about what to do next.

"Maybe I should go outside - it looks like a lovely evening."


But - oh dear - on the way outside he got distracted by all the lovely threads, pins, braid and ric-rac in Mummy's sewing box.

"What is that beautiful orange stuff?" he wondered. He was just about to pull it all out and play with it but he remembered that Mummy had told him to Leave It All Alone.

"I must obey joyfully!" he said. "Obedience brings joy. Disobedience brings trouble!"
Little Brother Joffa jumped off the table and ran outside singing happily to himself.


The first lovely thing he stopped to look at was the fuschia plant. Some of the flowers were open and they were bright pink with purple in the centre.

"Shall I pull some flowers off?" thought Little Brother Joffa. "No! That would be naughty. I think I'll go and see Harry."



Little Brother Joffa had a nice plump clover flower to feed to Harry.
Harry gobbled it up gratefully.


Just then Little Brother Joffa saw Bobby so he stopped for a chat, but Bobby just licked his ear.


"What beautiful dandelion clocks!" said Little Brother Joffa.

He took a big breath and BLEW AND BLEW! All the little fluffy bits went dancing up into the air and floated gently down to the grass.


"Where shall I go next?" Little Brother Joffa wondered. "Perhaps if I climb the silk tree I will be able to get a better view."

He carefully climbed up and up until he could see all around the section.



"Ah! The strawberry patch! I'll just go and see if there are any strawberries."

Little Brother Joffa carefully climbed down the tree, ran to the strawberry patch and hunted around for strawberries, but he couldn't find any ripe ones.


Next he visited the lavender patch and spent quite a while listening to the bees and smelling the lavender.


Next to the lavender were the towering sunflowers. They were much much taller than Little Brother Joffa.


"I wonder what this is?" puzzled Little Brother Joffa.


"Ah! This is an almond in it's fuzzy jacket." He said.


"And some juicy plums nearly ready to pick - but I won't pick them. Oh no! I won't! That would be VERY naughty."


"These apples arn't quite ready yet."



"Oh! What beautiful flowers! I wonder what they are called? I will ask Mummy."


Little Brother Joffa felt rather puffed out after his tour of the section, so he toddled inside to chat to Mummy about everything he had seen.

********************************************************************************

I hope you have all enjoyed this tiny little tour of our section.

I just finished making Little Brother Joffa today - I was going to sell him on Trademe, but when I finished I was rather embarrassed about my sewing. It is definitely Family Quality - not Selling Quality.

So Little Brother Joffa won't be sold. He will live here. And I think he'll have quite a nice life.

God Bless
The Mummalady

GIVE A CHILD LOVE

These two little men had a busy day and were fast asleep minutes after they got into bed.

I didn't know that our 4 year old had made a bed for his dolly - all by himself. I almost melted when I saw how lovingly he had tucked Daddy Joffa in.

Actually Daddy Joffa has been helping us discuss obedience. Daddy Joffa was going to jump out the window! He had chosen to be disobedient and naughty.

Our 4 year old listened to Mummy telling the "jumping out the window" story with wide eyes, and when we got to the bit where Daddy Joffa was just about to jump out the window he snatched him away and held him tight. He didn't want his dolly to make the wrong decision. He helped him to obey.

Obedience brings joy.
Disobedience brings trouble.


God Bless
The Mummalady

FAMILY QUALITY vs VISITOR QUALITY (subtitled An Apology To My Sister-In-Christ)

It's not like we pretend to be something we're not. People that know us know that. What we show to the work is what we are.

Honest!

But one of our boys just pointed out the "Family Quality vs Visitor Quality" thing, and I have started noticing it too!

The plate of blueberry mini-muffins above were the Visitor Quality ones.






The muffins on the brown plate were Family Quality.




And they were perfectly acceptable as you can see.



My frumpy old grey and pink striped apron is Family Quality.


My floral apron is Visitor Quality.

A while back I gently admonished a friend who was wearing her old (very old) worn out dress around the house because it didn't matter - it was just family who were seeing it. I said that it did matter - her children had to look at her in that dress all day!!!

As often, when I give "good advice" it comes back to get me!

I sometimes glimpse at myself during the day and wonder what my children see when they look at me. What do they notice? It's not usually what I wear. It's what I am to them, how I love them, how I speak to them. And if I smile when I look at them.


Nobody here has ever complained about having to look at my boring old grey and pink striped, slightly stained apron.

And nobody minded the blueberry mini-muffins that had blueberries spilling out all over the place.

I'm sorry I told you off sister (I know you're reading this!) about your favourite ripped old blue dress. Your children love you and they would never have noticed.


Love you sister!

God Bless
The Mummalady

SEW A SOFTIE

Well - ok , I put my sewing machine away, but I still have the sewing softies bug.




Handsewing is much easier to pick up and put down, and doesn't interfere with the children too much. However, there is a certain desire to finish a project once I start!



And then to go ahead and make three more to sell on Trademe!



Too cute.


God Bless
The Mummalady