Just pottering about...

Weekends are just great, aren't they?

We have a ritual here, which starts with coffee and biscuits, while the boys are allowed to watch a programme or two on the laptop, all tucked up together in bed. We usually have a cat or two in there with us too, but the more the merrier! ;)

Weekends are for doing nothing much, for enjoying each other's company, for playing, for pottering... Of course there are things that need to get done (like the laundry - though I have occasionally forgotten about that, which gets a bit awkward on Monday morning when you realise that the school uniforms are non-too-clean...), but most of all it's for doing whatever you think is fun.

This weekend we spent some time allotmenting (I had some fruit bushes to plant), and since the weather was good we also played in the garden quite a bit. I also practiced a bit on my concertina. I'm still very much a beginner, but D managed to accompany me on the Banjo for 'Danny Boy', so that is a minor success. It didn't even sound completely awful! 

Most of all, though, I played with clay. After being so busy for so many weeks it was such a joy to spend a few hours pottering. I made a few houses (a commission for a friend), and then continued right on and made some more. 

And last but not least, I managed to plant up this little fella. 

Isn't his new haircut fetching? So trendy... ;)

He was a bit of an experiment, and because of that he isn't at all tidy. As I was planing I managed to break one of his legs off. Oops! 

I like him, though, and as a proto-type he works well. There will be more like him, I think.

Weekending...

Another weekend draws to a close. Boy #3 had his first ever swimming lesson on Saturday. The boys were ridiculously excited and wound him up no end. Of course, after all that excitement, the reality didn't quite deliver. He went into the pool just fine, but lost his nerve half-way through and started crying for Mummy... I went to sit by the pool, which I am not sure, retrospectively, was such a bright idea because it really didn't help him pull himself together, but in the end he did manage to stay with the lesson until it was almost finished. 

He got cuddles and praise afterwards, which immediately cheered him up, as did the fact that the was wrapped in a warm towel - he hasn't quite understood the link between staying active and staying warm in the water yet, but his brothers made sure to explain to him that he needs to 'keep bouncing and kicking to keep warm'. :)   We'll see how the next lesson goes - that evening boy #3 was sure to point out to me that he is 'still little' (as opposed to being a 'big boy', which is how he usually perceives himself!) and that he has now learnt to swim anyway, thereby eradicating the need for a repeat visit to the pool.  I've promised him some cool new goggles for the next lesson... 

Upon arriving back home I felt the rare need to bake, so I made some shortbread, which was received with some enthusiasm by the family. D played his banjo, and that's how we spent the rest of our Saturday - playing, knitting, eating shortbread, and listening to D play. Good times. :) 

Sunday we had one of our 'grandma days' - after a leisurely breakfast and some much-needed haircuts for the boys (I wonder when they'll start objecting to me cutting their hair...) they went to grandma for a fun-filled day while D and I got some time to ourselves to recharge. D went into the shed to build another banjo and I divided my time between some weeding and onion-planting at the allotment  (so peaceful and calm this time of year - I really enjoy being out and spending time there getting the plot ready) and painting. My 'red canvas' is morphing into something quite different to what I'd initially intended it to be, but isn't part of what makes painting fun to go with the flow and let yourself be surprised by the results? 

Hope you all had a relaxing weekend too! 

Out of the house...

Today was the first day that I left the house since the tonsillectomy. I was getting increasingly cooped up and by this weekend I was a little stir-crazy. I love being in the house, don't get me wrong, and especially in the cold months I tend to go into a state of semi-hibernation (if and when I can), but not being able to leave the house is a different thing entirely, and I can't actually remember the last time I've spent a whole week and a bit in the house without leaving it and connecting with the outside world. 

So it was particularly precious to me that today was a fair day, cold and crisp and sunny, and since frosty means that going to the allotment for weeding and digging is pretty much pointless we decided to go to the Kilnwick Percy Buddhist centre instead. We are not Buddhists, but the centre is lovely and peacful. It's located in a stately home, Kilnwick Percy Hall, which is very old (it appears in the Doomsday book, which I find geekily exciting). I have no idea how exactly it became a Buddhist centre, but the Hall has had a long and varied history. You can read more about Kilnwick Percy Hall here and about the Hall and the Buddhist centre there here if you are interested. 

In any case, it's a beautiful place. There are extensive grounds, that you can walk, a lake with a plank walk around it, and an old Norman church which isn't used anymore. It's mainly boarded up, but you can peek inside through one of the doors. It's all quite gothic with the old gravestones leaning at odd angles, and sad too when you start reading the inscriptions on the stones. 

We didn't go around the church today, but we walked through the grounds and down to the lake and then went into the little cafe at the Hall, which bears the grand name 'World Peace Cafe'. It's a cozy little place with a big wood burning stove and just 5 or 6 tables. They serve tea and coffee and home-made cakes and scones, and they have soup and some small luncheon things. There is a box of bricks and jenga for kids to play with. 

Coming back home we lit the fire and spent the late afternoon cozy and together. 

And to top it all - looking out of the window now I can see it's snowing! :)