Earth Walker fleet

We have a new addition to the Earth Walker family. Her official name is the Naboo Queen's Royal Starship, but we just call her Naboo Starship for short.

We think she's a nice addition to our fleet and will complement the Millenium (Horrendous) Falcon and our speeder bikes nicely.  

Yours truly,

 Princess Lisha, now crowned Queen of the Naboo Starship

Mud

Pie

The sun and the rain

...such a magical combination.

As I arrived at the school to collect the boys, the rain was pouring down and the sun came out, what a joyful moment.  Children were running out of the school hall and they immediately noticed in the sky a magnificent rainbow.  All I could hear was "look at the rainbow, look at the rainbow".... music to my ears.

A taxi drivers day

It's been a bit of a crazy weekend with a lot of things going on. I was the underpaid taxi driver on Saturday, getting the boys to their games on time and in between games getting them to their soccer team photo's. Then finishing up with Toby's pre-school Fun Day and Donald's soccer game.  

I love the funny face photo's the photographer lets them do.  Oh what a handsome bunch!

Ethan played a great game of soccer again this week, scoring another goal and flying up and down the field. He had a pretty good week at school too. He finally received an award for putting great effort into writing, something we had been working on in the last month.

Another handsome bunch, check out the coach, back row second from the right...who is that guy??  

Toby had been getting excited about his pre-school fun day all week and had been counting down the days until Saturday, he kept saying "I can't wait Mummy for the pre-school fun day, I just can't wait, I don't want to wait", and "Is it today Mummy, is it today?".  The day finally arrived but he had to sit through two soccer games and two lots of soccer photo's and nattering parents after the soccer games before he could begin his fun day at pre-school. 

It was the pre-schools 50th birthday and they celebrated with Maxine McKew (Federal Member for Bennelong) and Julie, head of the pre-school, planting a tree, singing Happy Birthday with the kids blowing out some candles on a cake. Poor old Toby was a little sad at not getting some birthday cake, but Donald made up for it buying half the cake stall.

The first thing Toby wanted to do was get his face painted.  Now most kids like having their face painted, but the Walker boys have always hated it, they don't like fake tatoo's either so we've never forced the issue.  Toby is a little more adventurous than his older brothers so it was a new experience for us. He chose the colour green and wanted to be a frog. I love how he sits so calm and peaceful while he's getting his face done.

Next a bit of jumping on the jumping castle until our money ran out.

We spent the rest of the time admiring the children's art work, and finding out that we had to buy our childs beautiful painting that had been framed, only we had run out of money by this time.  What to do?  Break your child's heart because you didn't buy his painting....hopefully they'll let us buy it this week at pre-school.

As for the taxi driver, I'm afraid she never made it to Donald's soccer game, she collapsed on the lounge in a heap with a continuing migraine before organising sharing time for church and making dinner.  Sometimes I'm thankful for Monday's coming around.

Do you dip...

your scotch finger biscuits

into your hot chocolate?

We do!

We love it!

Kids Day

It has come around so fast.  I can't believe we're nearly halfway through the year.  Kids day has arrived again.  The day when the Walkers celebrate a fun day with treats, activities and outdoor fun, if we can manage it.  If you're not sure what Kids Day is then have a look here.  

I started my day with Toby snuggling in bed with me, sharing his blanky and toys, the normal morning ritual.  He was rather excited by Kids Day because he said "there was food on the table".  Which means that the dining table had some magazines and chocolate treats set out for the boys.  They wait until all three of them are awake and then they get to open their magazines and pour over them until breakfast is ready.  This year the boys chose to have fruit crepes for breakfast.  For the recipe go have a look at "What's for dinner Mum?".  They love making their own crepes, rolling them up with fruit and covering with syrup and butter, just delicious.

This morning Donald had a soccer game scheduled just down the road from us so we packed the boys bikes in the car and went down to watch his game.  The boys played in the park and rode their bikes around for a while in the beautiful sunshine.  Ethan practiced his skids, while Toby had to keep stopping because his pedal kept falling off.  I forgot to take photo's, I was too busy sitting in the back of the Horrendous Falcon reading, watching the boys play and following the soccer game.  A lovely morning well spent.

Right now is Nintendo time, Bob the Builder dvd, Donald mowing and me blogging.  The boys chose Donald's BBQ'd hamburgers for dinner and we'll finish it off with a golden syrup steamed pudding that I tried making last night, but didn't quite turn out right but is sort of edible and a game of spot light inside (hide and seek with the lights out and only a torch).

Happy Kids Day!!

Happy Birthday Uncle Hugh too!!

Our Saturday

There is sunshine in my soul today

From this, yesterday (and the past few weeks)...

...to this today

Oh what a welcome sight the sun was today.

Oh my...

I had a hankering for one of these over the weekend.

The most enormous, delicious, naughty chocolate eclairs I've ever seen.  The boys and I shared a couple after going for a drive one day in the holidays.  We found these at a bakery in Redland Bay.

We drove past the houses I used to live in around the Bayside area east of Brisbane.  I told my boys tales of my childhood, where the magpies used to attack me on my bike.  I told my boys tales of working on the farms around the area and that none of the houses used to be there.  They used to be the fields my friends kept their horses in and gladioli and sweet potato farms.  Sam kept asking "Why do they do that?".  Why do they sell the rich, fertile farm land and build lots of ugly new monstrosities of houses there instead?  Sea views, lifestyle, the farmers couldn't afford to keep the land......but I sometimes wish it was still the same as it was when I was a child, doubling bare back on my friends horses around the neighbourhood and walking through tomato fields on the way home from school and getting pummelled by flying tomatoes from boys in the neighbourhood.  I want the same for my boys...one day I will have my dream.

So we then went and explored the mud flats of Cleveland Point at low tide.  Listening to the peace and calm, the bubbly noises from the crabs in their holes, smelling the salty air, slippery rocks, muddy feet, blue skies, the boys loved it. 

 

I think I am missing those blue skies....and those chocolate eclair's.

Magic Boots

One fine day, this very day, Sam needed some boots, 

which Donald provided, 

And on his feet they landed.

Oh the magic boots, the magic boots

They run like this, and they run like that,

They ran down the field,

Through the air the soccer ball spun

Which bounced off Sam's head and started the fun.

Oh the magic boots, the magic boots

They run like this, and they run like that,

Running along

They tackled that ball free

Then Sam did some throw-ins, I think about three.

Oh the magic boots, the magic boots

They run like this, and they run like that,

The ball passed to Sam

Who ran and wove

He kicked the ball in the goal, by Jove!

Oh the magic boots, the magic boots

They run like this, and they run like that,

Sam played on fire

He was man of the match

I think he'll make an excellent catch!

A special mention to Ethan because he scored a magnificent goal and I wasn't there to see it.  It's hard to be in two places at the same time.  I think Ethan and Sam scored their goals at about the same time.  

Inspiration and Credits to Mem Fox for her incredible book of rhyme "The Magic Hat".

I scream, you scream...

...we all scream for ice cream!  There is something wonderful about being the first one to open a new container of ice cream.  Like a fresh snow fall, little ice cream mountains and valleys call to me.  I feel it is my rite of passage as the shopper and mother of the house to steal the first taste of ice cream from a newly bought bucket of ice cream.

Once it has travelled all the way from the shopping centre it loosens up a little and slowly starts to melt around the edges.  To me that is my reward for "battling it out" at the shops.....pushing a trolley around the supermarket along with my 3 year old, trying to remember what I "really needed" to buy, answering a 3 year olds questions, getting distracted by the chocolate aisle, having your very helpful 3 year old unloading the trolley at the checkout for you, trying to remember if there is enough money in the bank to pay for this trolley load, transferring the bags from trolley to car and the final leg of lugging the shopping bags from the car to the kitchen.  Once home it's time to dive into those snowy mountains of ice cream.

  

I always share with my little shopping companion, it's his rite of passage too.

What did you do...

...this  lovely wet Saturday?  Soccer was cancelled due to the wet weather all week.  We had plans.....going for a drive to the mountains, perhaps go ice skating.  What do people normally do on a Saturday if you're not driving around to sporting activities?  We slept in, Donald made pancake/crepes (fat crepes in other words) and then we......didn't do much.  We stayed in our pj's all day, except Toby who got dressed.  I even had a shower, but put my pajama's back on.  We watched tv and read.  This afternoon we sat around the table eating nacho's and cookies and playing scrabble and a little Nintendo DS in between.  It's been the most relaxing day.  I think it's toast for dinner tonight.  

I just hope no one comes knocking on our door, cause I'll have to answer it in my pajama's, maybe they'll think I'm extra early for bed, after all it is 5pm now.  What did you do this lovely wet Saturday?  I hope you weren't floating away in the floods.