Last Sunday

Late last Sunday afternoon: a beach walk. 

Dark and moody, wild wind and tiny drops of rain. Sticks and logs and foam and baby jellyfish, upon the shoreline. Fishermen. Usually my most favourite kind of beach day... however on this day, Spunky Monkey discovered a needle syringe on the edge of the dunes. On the edge of the dunes, where he and Miss Moo Moo play, where all the children play, where mum's and dad's and grandma's and grandad's sit to rest 

their weary legs. 

It left me quiet unsettled.

We have asked Spunky Monkey not to play in the dunes, his most favourite place to be. 

This makes me sad.

Autumn

(this photo was taken last May on a visit to New South Wales)

My favourite season has started. It took a few days, but the weather is cooling slightly.

I am looking forward to the true arrival of Autumn. Fresh mornings, chilly evenings, heartwarming casseroles, crumbles, pudding and custard. I hope to do more baking and will try my hand at bread making. I want to pull on a cardigan, drink hot chocolate and snuggle up to watch old movies.

Here are a few of the things that we have been up to since the beginning of the month:

• Taking late afternoon walks on the beach. Steel grey skies, murky green, warm water. Clusters of bluebottles washed ashore and dried by the sun. Beach combing with our collection bags. Big holes and sandcastles.

• We watched a butterfly hatch from his cocoon. He had been collected as a caterpillar from our passionfruit vine and we had been watching him closely. Then, just as we were walking out the door for school, there was great excitement. Muuuuumm! he's hatching.

• Catching up with lovely friends, drinking lots of tea.

• Eating: creamy chicken soup, spinach and barley soup, spanish cabbage soup, dragon fruit, lamb tagine and cous cous, homemade pizzas and garlic bread, pancakes with lemon and sugar and hungarian chocolate pancakes.

• Crafting and embroidering - me and the kids

• We enjoyed a blustery morning at our favourite coffee shop to celebrate Uncle JJ's birthday. Ham and swiss cheese croissants, cappuccinos and baby shortbread. Happy children climbing trees.

• We enjoyed an amazing lunch at our favourite restaurant for Mr Moo's birthday. Lemongrass chicken curry, whole tamarind chilli fish, jasmine rice, Thai beer, New Zealand white wine, lime and coconut panna cotta, macchiato's. We were in heaven.

This last weekend was quieter, deliberately so. We have hit the ground running with another hectic week. Teacher meetings, dentist appointments, a sports day, a crazy hair day, a day on kindy roster and dinner guests. I even hope to squeeze in a couple of play dates.

I hope you are having a lovely week.