Now those of you who have been to ‘Chez Hunter’ in recent months will have noticed that our garden was beginning to resemble the deepest and darkest of all the jungles. Seriously, the grass was chest height and the tiers which split the grass area and the patio directly outside our french doors were totally overgrown. We are so lucky to have the space that we have in the garden, and its potential is vast, but it has become such a headache, danger and nightmare over the past year. Having decided that enough was enough, and prompted by the warm weather, we decided to take the plunge, and admit that we just weren’t going to get anything done, and consequently, I contacted two guys who had recently done some work for some friends of ours. They came today. And oh my goodness! I got home from work and was so overjoyed with what they had accomplished in just one day! Everything has been cut, cleared and cleaned, and we are now left with a usable (if a little bare!) space that is ready to be a blank canvas for us to transform. They have become my two new heroes! It was such a brilliant end to the day, and has really put a smile on my face as it has made me feel like a huge weight has been lifted, which may sound dramatic, but you all know what it’s like when something is hanging over you. So now all we need is a plan of what to do next! It’s definitely the minimal look at the moment, and ready for a real splurge of planting activity. Still, it’s a great starting point, and is yet another project – woo hoo!!! I feel another list coming on… I will keep you updated as to how Project Planting develops.
I’ve got the blog on!
I have been absolutely rubbish at blogging. Totally and utterly rubbish. No entries for ages, and no discipline in my writing. So I’ve decided to be focussed tonight, and write something. And we had an INSET day on writing this week at school, so I’m expecting great new depth and quality to my work. So here I am. Just one problem. I haven’t got a clue what to blog about. No news, no amusing anecdotes, not a thing will come. I have Blogger’s Block! Agh! It’s the same with all my writing at the moment (or lack of writing, I should say). Nothing. Zero. Zilch. Anyone got any tips?
Am I heartless?
OK so here’s my quandry. I think I may be heartless, and I’d like to know what you think. So I’m sitting here on my sofa having finally got Sam in his cot (still waking up lots in the nights for feeding…long story which most of you will be living daily with me anyway!). Anyway, it’s 8pm, after a long day at work, and also following the arrival of the gas men to knock half a house wall away to move the gas meter (not at our request, I hasten to ask), and I’m daring to sit down and breathe, get ready to eat and have a few minutes down time before going to bed. Suddenly, there’s a knock at the door, and I open it (in a slight frenzy in case Babylicious decides to wake up at the noise) to find a man in a bright t shirt advertising a charity (a well known animal charity) standing there smiling. It transpires that he is knocking door to door to try and get people to commit to giving monthly amounts by direct debit. Now, as you may know, I’m a big supporter (obviously not in height) of several charities, and I’d like to think I’m a fairly decent, kind and compassionate person, who is not selfish and contributes to the greater good. At least, that’s what I’ve always thought about myself. However, I cannot lie. I was cross. Quite cross indeed. And I’m now left wondering what it was that made me so cross about this. Was it the disturbance? Was it the feeling that my privacy had been invaded? Was it the feeling of not being able to say no (although that can’t have been it, because I did say no) or was it something else? Supporting charities is essential in my mind, but surely it is personal choice about how, when and who to do this for? Or am I just becoming grumpy? And heartless? What do you think?
The pressure of defining my status
Facebook and Twitter have hit our staff room. Big time. And though I try to pretend that I don’t get involved, it’s all lies. I was touched today to be told by some of my colleagues that my status updates on Facebook are apparently ‘amusing’ and ‘clever’. It was quite ridiculous just how pleased that made me! It is a comical illustration of just how great the extent of being bothered about what other people think about me is in my life! And for a few minutes, it really brightened up what had been quite a difficult day. And then it dawned on me that I’m going to have to work hard to maintain this now. Not that I’ve really thought about it before. But now, I will have to. And one thing I do know about myself is that when I try to be funny, I can’t do it (Jingle will testify to that!) So whilst juggling all my other spinning plates trying to live up to the various other ’statuses’ in my life and do them justice to my stupidly high and unattainable standards (perfect wife, supermum, best Christian ever, non-geeky crafter, world’s best listmaker etc) I have now turned what started out as harmless fun that required no thought into yet another quest for perfection in the eyes of others! Agh! There’s only one thing for it…a list! A list of amusing status updates to which I can turn when Facebooking!! And maybe I could colour code them according to general mood… ooh and then get people to score them for their comic appeal!! Suddenly, I understand the closeness of comedy and tragedy…on so many levels…
A momentous day
Today has felt like a day of milestones! Two very simple things, both involving money and shopping, but both in my mind significant symbols of Sam growing up (too quickly in my opinion!): his first shoes and a new, front facing car seat. It made me feel quite emotional, and not just because the shoe shop was packed again, even though the holidays have finished! He is growing so quickly, and stages seem to be whizzing by. He has such a sparkly personality, and is incredibly active – now he’s crawling at lightning speed, and has just started to pull himself up and take little steps along the furniture. Agh! Time seems to speed along ever quicker as I get older, and I feel like it becomes ever more important to treasure as many moments as possible, not just with Sam, but in life in general. The problem I’ve found is that as my need to remember and treasure grows, so my memory’s capacity to remember seems to get worse! That is the illustration of cruelty in my opinion! And so my need to write, photograph and scrapbook grows. The ultimate in aides memoire! I now just need to remember to write, photograph and scrapbook. Hmmm…
Now That’s What I Call Lynsey, Volume 1
I’m loving Spotify at the moment. If you haven’t heard of it, it’s a music streaming application which allows you to listen to music for free on your PC. I’m loving it because it allows me to listen to all kinds of music from lots of genres (which I can match to my ever fluctuating moods!) and find all sorts of weird and wonderful blasts from the past without having to actually own the CDs. (An additional bonus is the comedy tracks that it keeps recommending for James based on the playlists he’s been creating…) In a similar vein to all the things Facebook, where you to write 20 random things about yourself, or describe your life in 30 books you’ve read – all of which I sadly admit I love – I’ve decided to create a playlist called ‘My Story in Songs’ on which I’m putting songs which remind me of specific memories, people or times in my life, both good and not so good (both the memories and the music!) I’m loving it – obviously, it’s a list based exercise!! Music is such a key part of my life, and the emotions it stirs in me are so powerful and varied, it is proving a really enjoyable and cathartic experience. It has also involved much laughter and reminded me of so many important times in my life. It’s going to take a while to complete, but there’s no rush. One of my more valuable wacky list-based ideas, I think!
Random Resolutions
Happy Easter, everyone! I love Easter and everything about it. Our church service always has a real party feel to it, the signs of spring are all around in nature, and obviously, Creme Eggs play a vital part in day to day life! Besides being a celebration of the greatest day in history, it always feels like there’s a real sense of new life and freshness about everything at Easter, and I often feel more like making resolutions now than I do in January when tradition tells me that I should. I read about a mission that my friend, Bek, is involved in at the moment, in which she takes hot drinks to people selling The Big Issue in town on a Saturday morning, and on her blog, she talks about the way in which it is often through small acts that big things begin to happen. It reminded me of the way in which there was a sudden surge of publicity about ‘Random Acts of Kindness’ a while ago, where people performed small acts of ’unexpected’ kindness, often for strangers, just to share love and positivity. One of my favourites was people at toll bridges paying for the people in the car behind even though they were strangers. Imagine their surprise when they got to the booth, and were told they had already been paid for! The idea was not to get a major reaction, but simply to share kindness. Not enough of this goes on in the world today. In our cell group, we also talked about how it is often in the smaller, practical acts you do for people, that the greatest love is often shown. And so, putting all this together, I have decided that this year, I am going to ignore the January resolution trend (which is a good job, because this year it involved getting fit, and I abandonded it before January was out!) and go with my heart, which feels that Easter is all about new life and fresh starts. My resolution is to do something kind (and random, which for a planning freak like me is the harder part) every day. I think I will start with small things within my comfort zone, but hope that as the days go on, I will feel brave enough to step out either in the task, or in the person that I choose to be on the receiving end. Why don’t you all join me? Who knows what we can achieve!
A lovely day
Today was a really lovely day. It was the first time since our gorgeous little boy arrived nearly 8 months ago, that James and I have spent proper time on our own. It is the only time that we have both been off work and been Mr Snuffles-less. Sam went to Grandma’s and, as always, had a great time, whilst we went out for lunch, mooched around the shops and had coffee. Once I got over the feeling that I must be a horrible mother by enjoying a few hours without Sam, I relaxed and remembered that as well as being a mummy and a headteacher, I am also a wife. And I have a husband. And we chatted about things other than Sam. Most importantly, though, the time we did have back together as the Three Musketeers at the end of the day, was perfect. Lovely day complete.
A wise woman said that a wise man said…
Through the wonders of modern technology, I have just managed to get back in touch with an old friend of mine, and have spent time reading the message she sent me, along with her blog and her Facebook page. I am so glad to be back in touch with her as we had so much in common once upon a time, and reading her thoughts, it would appear that this still remains the same. However, I have to admit, that whilst reading her blog and enjoying the familiarity of her inner thoughts, I simultaneously felt pangs of guilt over you, my poor, neglected, little blog, and have now vowed that I really must try and find the time to write more. The wise woman with whom I am now back in touch quotes Charles Buxton saying, “You will never find time for anything. If you want time, you must make it.” So that is my mission. Making just a little time. Just for the little things.
New Arrivals
We just wanted to share our exciting family news as we have had two more new arrivals in the past week. James’s sister and her husband are the very proud parents of Molly Isabella, who surprised us all by arriving early at a very healthy 6lb 9oz! She is absolutely gorgeous, and is Sam’s first cousin and our first niece, so we are looking forward to getting to know her really well! Well done Lucy for all the hard work!!!
We are also celebrating the arrival of James’s cousin Anna and her husband Christian’s third baby, Eliza Grace, who also arrived safely this week, and who is being well looked after by her big brother, Charlie and big sister, Sophia.
Our family get-togethers are going to be even more fun now! So many blessings in such a short time: what a year we’ve all had!
Lynsey Hunter
andyhoyland
