Playdates and Publications

Nearly every day of the school holidays is booked with a play date or some sort of plans. We have already caught up with J. and A. a couple of times, had E. over to play and made bath bombs with J. and S. from school. V. has also been dropping in to visit nearly every day and we are still intending to catch up with a lot of friends that we don't get to see very often. So the relaxing second week that I had hoped to keep clear for relaxing is now a tangle of outings and visitors, but the kids are happy. They are relaxed, are looking forward to seeing their friends and are enjoying living in the moment. Which, really, is what it is all about.

In other news one of Ruhi's pictures has been selected to be in a prayer book which is due to be published sometime next year, so she has been busily redoing her illustrations as the first one arrived rather crumpled and they were unable to scan the image clearly. We are all very proud and can hardly wait to see what the whole book looks like.

The Heart Foundation

We awoke this morning to a deluge of hail hitting our roof and windows. From the look of things it appeared as though we would not be getting our door knock appeal done today after all. But after a quick trip to a local library book sale and a brief peek at a second hand shop the weather was vastly improved and after lunch we set out with bag in hand to beg our neighbours for cash donations on behalf of The Heart Foundation. The kids love this! We have done this ever since Anisa was a baby and they look forward to it all year. They especially enjoy pounding on doors and ringing bells. This year we developed a system. Ruhi rings the doorbell once (there is nothing like three enthusiastic children descending on your doorstep each one trying to ring the bell better than the others. Trust me, I know.) and Anisa knocks once. Bayan got to put the "Sorry I missed you" cards into the mail boxes. This year was the first year we went without a stroller or baby sling and I must say that we made excellent time. We finished both streets in the one go and collected over eighty dollars. They are already looking forward to doing it again next year.

Look What I Found

I was under the impression that these were unavailable here. But lo and behold while passing a candy shop at the local shopping centre I came across a perfectly healthful display featuring such nutritious products as Hershey's Chocolates, Pop tarts, Jolly ranchers, Reece's Peanut Butter Cups and an assortment of American candies. The children are entirely unfamiliar with these products and I, for the most part, intend to keep it that way. However I could not pass up purchasing one Butterfinger (these used to be my favorite) and while we will not be doing this often I thought it would be fun to try to make some of our own Butterfinger ice cream.

Bayan wholeheartedly agreed (huge surprise there) and quickly volunteered to be my co-chef... but really I think he was in charge. He was so excited that he could not hold still long enough for me to get a good photo. So I give you the blurry grin and the fist of triumph that he held aloft while the ice-cream machine did it's bit, mixing fresh cream, vanilla, eggs, sugar and crumbled Butterfinger into a delectable frozen treat...which went over splendidly and received rave reviews all around.

Sprng is in the Air!

The fruit trees are in full bloom, the weather is turning warm again, and we are finding ourselves out in the garden more often. We have decided to do a veggie patch and the children have been helping clear the area of weeds and planning what tasty treats we will grow this year... Ahem, attempt to grow.

Oh, and we have been chasing butterflies and collecting caterpillars too.

Farewell Nushan...Hello Soheila!

After more than a year and a half Nushan has decided to move out. Really it is more like moving on, as she is engaged and will very soon be married. The above photo is of her and her fiancee with the kids after they had picked up the last of her things. He is very sweet and very patient and very good with kids. He scored serious brownie points one night over dinner while listening to Bayan's spontaneous chatter with much interest and concern and for graciously accepting the deluge of tissues and napkins that Bayan kept thrusting in his face. He and Nushan make a lovely couple and we wish them all the best.

No sooner did Nushan move out than Soheila moved in. It would appear that our home has a very low vacancy rate. Soheila has just returned to Australia from Iran and has been sponsored to work here for a couple of years. She is so sweet and considerate. She is also normally home when she is not at work and we are all greatly enjoying her company.

The Saga Continues

So, I said has been, as if we were winning the fight against the mutant virus that has invaded our household. Silly, naive, optimistic, me. I have barely slept in the past 24 hours as Bayan's fever returned with a vengeance, a deep rasping cough has settled in his lungs and and his sinuses have become congested. Add that to a sore throat and general aches and pains and you have one very unhappy little boy. You also have the perfect circumstances for further health related mishaps. Take the congestion, for instance, and pair that with the fact that he won't blow his nose, nor will he allow others to do it for him. Instead he prefers the sniff back and swallow route. Unfortunately this leads to a build up of mucus in the stomach which when accompanied by violent coughing leads to the inevitable vomit. This we also experienced yesterday. A lot. In the car. On the way to get the girls (which meant it would be at last an hour before he could change or I could clean the vehicle).


But wait. It gets better. This morning we had more tears, as his throat is still very sore, and intensive sneezing and coughing fits do little to help. Quite the contrary. In fact the delightful combination burst a capillary (or blood vessel or main artery or something) in his nose. Which began to gush blood. Now you should know that Bayan does not like the sight of blood. Especially his own blood. Poor little guy, watching huge drops splash out of his nose, splatter across his body and pool at his feet caused him to completely freak out, which caused more screaming and crying and coughing which in turn caused more blood to flow. It was all over him, me, the tiles, the couch, there was a trail of bloody footprints across the floor... By the time I managed to get him in the bath and calm him down our living room looked like a crime scene. Just the scenario you hope to have following a sleepless night and during a hectic morning while you're trying to get lunches packed, breakfast served and a couple of sleepy girls dressed and organized for school. Yet despite it all, we actually managed to arrive on time. Just.


In other news I dropped off an extra fifteen placemats that somehow (through the grace of God alone) I managed to complete yesterday in between the cries for comfort, calls for snacks and cleaning of bodily fluids. I wonder, had I known that I would wind up sewing placemats for half the school, if I still would have suggested and organized the activity. Mmmm. Probably. The girls and I have been having a great time finding the different countries on our African maps. Today the whole school is making them as well. I can't wait to see how they all turn out.

I have spent

the past six days quarantined at home with three, count them-three sick kids. Ruhi and Anisa were the first to fall ill followed shortly thereafter by Bayan who spent two days delusional with fever and aches and pains. Poor thing.

I have spent the past six days practicing patience, rarely with a great deal of success. Especially when everybody needs everything at exactly the same moment. And, just so you know, there is no reasoning with the feverish, emotional, demons that have seized my children.

I have spent the past six days making lots of smoothies and fashioning creative snacks to tempt fading appetites.

I have spent the past six days sewing ten African themed placements, for the girls' school. What should have only taken a few hours took s.i.x. days. Ugh.

Mercifully it appears as if we are at the tail end and life will soon return to normal. Normal, hmmm. I hardy remember what that is any more.

Sometimes the best laid plans

go hopelessly awry. Today the girls had a school closure day and we organized (weeks ago) to have our weekly play date at Martha's house as per the girls' request. We were going to use the opportunity to have a devotional service, with all the children present, for Marie. Marie is Vicky's Mom and she passed away a couple of months ago. The children remember meeting her when we were in Maine and I feel very fortunate that we had an opportunity to visit with her.


This play date/memorial was not meant to be. Not today anyway. Sometime, in the wee hours of the morning, Anisa awoke burning with fever. By morning it had become low-grade, but she was clearly unwell. Both she and Ruhi so desperately wanted to go ahead with our plans that they went to extraordinary lengths to prove how healthy and robust they were feeling. Anisa did a few half-hearted laps around the kitchen while Ruhi in between sneezing and blowing her nose maintained that she didn't feel too bad. I hemmed and hawed over weather or not we should go and ultimately decided not to. Their eyes had that glassy, feverish, blood-shot tinge to them, coupled with the fact that other people have had the flu (swine flu at that) and that there would be small children and a baby present it seemed more sensible not to risk exposing others to whatever we have no matter how desperately we wanted to go.


I think this proved to be the best course of action as, later this morning, they both lay on the couch, feverish, dizzy and aching all over. Bayan played nurse bringing water to Anisa who was constantly thirsty and crying and Ruhi dozed on and off throughout the afternoon.


Hopefully we can reschedule during the school holidays when everyone is feeling better. For now I must make tea and toast.

Making me Smile

The sweet sense of relief that comes from a challenging task being completed, and two happy girls (ahem, a happy lioness and a happy zebra) who are delighted with the results, no matter how inadequate they may be.

Days getting longer and waking up in the morning to warmth and sunshine instead of shadows and darkness.

The fruit trees blooming in the backyard, the thought of fresh apricots and peaches later this summer and watching the children play on a carpet of fallen petals.

Bayan's breathless, awe-struck, voice as he grabbed my hand and said: "Mummy! Look! It's a chocolate man!" He recovered himself quickly "Hey-o (hello) chocolate man!" He shouted out at the top of his lungs while waving enthusiastically at the Cadburry delivery truck driver while we walked across the petrol station parking lot. It appears we have another chocoholic in the family.

Now, in order to fully appreciate this next one, you must fist imagine the excited tone that a three-year -old would use when asking a sibling if they would like to share some glorious experience with them. You know like if you were heading to the park, the absolute best, most fabulous and fun park in the world and you were asking if they wanted to come. Now keep that in your mind as you read Bayan's question which was uttered with much excitement and enthusiasm. He turned to Ruhi, who was happily singing in the seat beside him, and asked her, out of the blue, "Hey Ruhi! You want to throw up?" Ruhi stopped singing and looked at him with an odd expression before answering:"Um, no thanks Bayan. I'm good."

Seeing the girls faces light up when I showed them the individual salads that I made to go with dinner tonight. We are so doing this again.