Well the first of our winter holiday gang met at the farm on monday and as the opening line says ... ... ... 'What a great day!'
Imogen, Clementine, George, Soul, Jasper and Charli really enjoyed themselves and each other even though it was for some a first meeting.
We started the day with a guinea pig cuddle, always a gentle and way to warm up to each other and the farm.
We looked for eggs, found none :( and wondered off to the vege garden.
As we wound our way through, Rebekkah was walking quietly into our plot , me a way behind with the kids and Soul had obviously been watching and taking us all in and he asked, 'Did you two fall in love?' I turned to look and see who he was talking to. He was looking straight at me. I asked, 'Are you asking me that Soul?' He said, 'Yes' and looked from me to Rebekkah and back again.
How beautiful, the day so young and in trying to sense what our relationship was about, he'd decided we must have fallen in love. I told him, 'Yes we did, a long time ago when she was a baby. I'm her mum, she's my daughter and we do love each other.' I found him so astute in his perception of things as we hadn't exchanged a whole lot and Rebekkah and I were both engaging with the children and not heaps with each other.
The garden was fun and allowed me to pick some of the snail pecked Asian greens I've been growing, :) for chicken food.
Well we were really warmed up to each other and the farm after this, feeding the chickens was a hoot. The chickens enthusiastic, the children as well and lots of green leaf to keep us all engaged and entertained for ages.
Jasper held court and set the tone for his contribution to the day, good humour, sunn dispostion, loads of interest in everything and enjoying seeing the other kids happy.
From here on, we milked the cow, visited the pigs, walked for miles, met some horses, found a pile of wood that needed shifting, visited the 'Witches Garden', the most beautiful little paddock down the back that is hardly ever visited, all shady and soft, with a little path as you enter under the bushes that immediately set things apart and really creates the feeling of being somewhere quite magical and special.
While we were playing there, Soul came up and say down by me with a bit smile, sighed and said, "I'm having a really great time."
Charli called out very excitedly in her play, 'Look, I've found spiders eggs.' She came and got me, big eyes and really wanting to show her discovery. 'Where are they Charli?' I asked. I was looking at the bush she was playing near and she stood near the fence pointing into the paddock next door. I thought there must have been a web or something on the fence wire. I asked again, 'Where?' Look she pointed through the fence, and there on the ground were her 'Spiders eggs'. I looked and what I saw was a neat little pile of goats poo! Charli had obviously taken in how neat the little balls were, how neat the little pile was and decided from her past experience that these were spiders eggs. I got down with her talked about how they were sort of like spiders eggs, all neat and round and in a pile, yet they weren't. She looked at me with big eyes as if to say, 'Well what could they be?' I asked, 'Do you want to know what they are?' 'Yes' 'It's goat's poo.' A moments surprise at this from Charli, then lots of laughter, then, 'Hey, look what I found, it's goat's poo.'
George sat next to me at one point on the little timber seat, he looked up and smiled and I said, 'George, you are very sweet' He looked at me some more and smiled a little shyly some more and I said, 'Really George, you are a very gorgeous little boy.' He tipped his head on his side, turned his eyes and said, 'Awhh, don't say that', like little Mr. Coy. Very endearing.
Clem and Immi, were in the pink together .. .. .. happy to be at the farm, remembering their past days there together, loving the new kids to explore with, playing their little hearts out as they both know only too well how to do and for me a blessing. It was such a treat to share the day with them both, see how they'd grown and to enjoy who they are both are now. Very beautiful young girls.
They looked at the detail and small things together.
We found sap and made, 'Lolli pops' .. .. which brought lots of smiles and best of all while the farm was busy with holiday crowds we were mostly in a sanctuary of our own enriched and enlivened by the imaginations at play.
We also played in the sand, rolled drums, lolled round in the garden on the bluestoune seat.. .. ..
.. .. ..and most of all enjoyed ourselves and each other HEAPS! .. .. .. take a peek.. .. ..
