To Market...

Sticky, hot children needed a little help on the entertainment front yesterday afternoon. After their quiet times (during which Heidi fell asleep as she played... Who can blame her in this weather?!) they were niggly and fidgety and just winding each other up. They're usually pretty good at letting their imaginations run wild and inventing all sorts of games, but yesterday, well in that heat, a little help was needed from Mama...

The two of them spent last week driving their wagon between their cabin and "the market" and so I thought a little market stall, right in the shady spot of the garden, would land a treat.

It did.

There was fresh fruit and veg, ice cold lemonade and even warm milk straight from the cow (which doubles up as the horse they use to pull their wagon to get to market!!)

Everything we bought was weighed up on the scales and priced up. Two tomatoes cost £1, a glass of lemonade was £11... I guess Ava's already got the business concept of pricing up when there's high demand!

The girls travelled too and fro on that wagon of theirs, taking trip after trip to "market", taking it in turns to serve and be served. And it was so much fun just to enter into the imagination of it all. So often, I let them get on with it... I'm a big believer in them learning to play without adult intervention or stimulation, and they're pretty good at it, but now and again... Well, now and again its just nice to play the games I loved as a child with them...

Even if my lemonade does cost me £11!!!

Little House Love...

"I am beginning to learn that it is the sweet, simple 
things of life which are the real ones after all"

- Laura Ingalls Wilder -

Sunshine days...

Bare feet run on green grass...

Little girls giggle as they pick dandelion heads and imagine themselves on prairie lands...

Roles are handed out: "You're Laura, I'm Mary" - and in that instant, storybooks come to life...

Busy little girls living life as pioneers... 

Churning butter...

Feeding the animals...

Boiling bacon and cleaning out cabins...

And looking after the vegetable patch.

These little girls of mine are loving "Little House on the Prairie" life... 

And I am loving sharing their imaginary life with them!

The Ordinary Moments - Play...

"Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning,

But for children, play IS serious learning...

Play is really the work of childhood"

- Fred "Mr." Rogers -

A weekend of sunshine, a garden calling, two little girls happy to be out while Mama and Papa got on with their weekend chores.

 A little Hütte with windows to clean, meals to be cooked and a tea-party courtesy of our lovely nextdoor neighbour who hands them fresh-baked iced cakes over the fence.

These are the ordinary moments of our weekends. The play. The imagination. The freedom. The opportunity to let the girls learn as they explore the world around them, as they reenact the daily life they see in front of them, as they "perform" Disney song after Disney song at the top of their lungs...

Sometimes I feel guilty when we spend Saturdays at home, when Dave and I get on with odd jobs and leave the girls to their own devices. But I'm learning that sometimes that's the best thing we can do for them. Step back. Let them learn to amuse themselves. Let them come up with their own games, use their imaginations, have space to get bored and learn that that's OK. Let them sort out their own disagreements and figure out a way to work together without us intervening.

It's all learning.

And in a world that is obsessed and saturated with constant entertainment and background noise and screens and having every experience life has to offer by the time you're five years old, maybe that's the best kind of learning there is...

Maybe that's exactly the kind of learning they need.

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Spring in the Huette...

Our house is not the only residence on our little piece of property that likes to have a seasonal makeover... our little ladies house also enjoys a seasonal spruce-up, and this spring is no exception. So yesterday, while Heidi napped, Ava and I headed down to the playhouse to give it some TLC...

We took down the remaining Christmas decorations (cringe... yes, the odd few had escaped!) and put some little springtime touches onto the Huette.

Of course, a bit of spring cleaning was the order of the day too!

And then Ava decided to concoct some soup before her little sister woke up...

... to very great excitement! Heidi was thrilled at all the changes in her little house and sat down to eat her soup straight away!

They spent the whole afternoon playing down there, popping their heads in and out of their little house, visiting friends, playing restaurants, travelling to Norway (yes, apparently they fitted that in too!) and looking after their babies. I'm hoping for lots of quiet hours in the summertime adjusting to baby number three while these two occupy themselves whiling away the hours in their own little cosy home.

Spring's greatest joy

beyond a doubt,

is when it brings the children out!

- Edgar Guest -

My little Washerwoman...

We are revelling in the little glimpses of springtime... getting out in the sunshine, savouring the scent of the first fresh flowers and listening on the school run for the sound of those songbirds making their presence known.

Our return home from nursery at lunchtimes has taken a change too. The children are no longer eager to burst into the house, to warm their icy hands and devour a warm lunch... instead, they are rushing straight out to the garden to their happy little Huette to busy themselves with cups of tea, picnics and sweeping the doorstep!

And this week, a new activity kept my little ladies busy. It seems spring cleaning has hit even the smallest ones!

After all, dollies need their clothes washed too!

And so an afternoon was spent working hard washing all the dollies clothes in their little sink (the old fashioned hand-washed way, with invisible water... I know, the best Mamas would've let their kids loose with real water, but I'm too much of a neat freak for that!)

 

And then, once they were washed, the clothes were all hung out on the line to dry! As I said... we are making the most of the glimpses of spring sunshine!

 

Of course, little sister was keen to help out too, although she was very clear that her own "Tilly" did not want her clothes washed. She was more than happy to help Ava out with her babies though.

Then, like any productive housewife, she stood back to admire her handiwork...

I thought that was the end of it as I promptly packed the girls off to their nap time/quiet time, and was surprised when my eager big girl appeared an hour later ready to head straight back out to the garden.

After all, you can't leave your clothes hanging on the line all day!

The clothes were taken in, ironed, and folded and laid to one side, ready for babies to be re-dressed!

Note our makeshift iron... sometimes Mama's desire for creative perfection is usurped by a need for speed. No pretty little iron for this girl... a butter lid, a yoghurt pot and a little sellotape was enough for my little lady. You don't have to be creative if your little one has a good imagination!

As she busied away all afternoon, it struck me that my little lady means it when she tells me "when I grow up I just want to be a Mama"... that may not always be the case, but while it is, I'm proud of this little girl and her joy in something I find so menial. I work so hard to teach my girls to delight in the ordinary.

Yesterday I realised she was teaching me.

Advent Day 22: Christmas in the Hytte...

Our little piece of Norway is situated in our back garden...

In a little corner, right by the vegetable patch, is a cosy little Hytte specially built for two little ladies.

In the summer, it is practically lived in... in the winter, its been a little quieter down there as bugs and colds have hit us hard.

But this weekend, while two little girls were enjoying "nap time", Mama went down to our little Norwegian haven and turned it into a winter wonderland fit for two little people.

A few baubles, a christmas tree and a move around of the furniture and the place was transformed.

Needless to say, the little people and their friends spent most of yesterday afternoon cooking up a storm down there.

A few Christmas nibbles.

And a little place to rest, ready for Father Christmas of course...

Our little piece of Norway... Christmas Scandi style...

A special Merry Christmas to all our Scandinavian friends and family today. xxx

Late Spring in the Hytte

These past couple of days, I have been busy nursing my big girl who's come down with a nasty bout of tonsillitis. It has put a hold somewhat on us enjoying this sunny weather, but I know there'll be more to come. Looking after my girly is the priority right now.

At the weekend, though, we were bug free and savouring every second of the sunshine. These final spring/early summer days are just perfect for two little ladies eager to keep house...

Honestly, they are spending so much time in their little Hytte at the moment... I am SO glad we made this investment, and they are just happy to potter and play and cook and clean and look after their babies.

Late spring is a busy time for little housekeepers...

 

There are dishes to be washed...

... flowers to be watered...

... views to be admired...

... babies to be cared for...

... there is elderflower cordial to be made...

... and children to be disciplined... (I was informed Baby Annabel was sitting on the step for hitting)

As you can see... plenty to be done!

Perhaps the summer will be a bit more restful!

Me and Mine: March 2014

March is a wonderful month. It's a month of birthdays and its the birth of springtime. We have savoured the first signs of sunshine, enjoyed lots of garden play and adventured out on a few family bike rides.

Our baby girls are growing up... they are slowly and surely turning into little girls - little girls who love to play dress up, cook playdough dinners and whose world is all about rainbows, butterflies and Disney Princesses.

Soon, Heidi will give up her morning nap and Saturday mornings will be ours, as a family, to explore and enjoy the summer months.

For now, we are savouring the quiet springtime mornings at home while baby sleeps and big sister cooks and cleans and cares for her babies in her little Hütte. 

This little home has been well used, loved and cared for... I can't wait to see these girlies spend many happy hours playing there. And, of course, Papa and I are not averse to a constant supply of tea, coffee and cake! Homemade by our little ladies!

So here is our March "Me and Mine" photo... sunshine, smiles and a Scandinavian playhouse.

Our March in a nutshell!