The Showroom

I want my milky, lalala.........

I was cleaning up after breakfast this morning and the kids went to play in the playroom. They were building yet another marble run - which is the hit toy at the moment here. Manouk was busy with magnetix. The sun was shining, it was Saturday morning so everything was looking good. It went better than good when the kids started singing REALLY LOUD: I want my milky lalala....

Now for the little story, aout 10 years ago a friend of mine got a baby, a little girl. She was a bad sleeper from the start. When she turned 2 and not having yet solved her sleep problem, my friend told us that her daughter would come into their room at 2 in the am EVERY NIGHT, screaming: I want my milky! This sticked with us, became some kind of a joke here (Well hello N. if you are reading this...See we are talking about you every day!!!!), and DH has always been using this when preparing breakfast for the kids...

Hearing them having so much fun this morning, Maxim and Manouk singing, Nathan doing the background music, playing together, I just thought about how lucky we are to have these 3 in our life! It was the start of a good day...Well of course, we had our share of bickering later on, but just thinking about his morning makes me smile...

Spending so much time in Photoshop

I needed to get these....Love them.

Many many years ago, I had the exactly same ones...

I was just a kid but buying my first pair had been a BIG event. I loved them and by the time they fell apart, I did too because I could never find the same ones again....

 

 

The color may be different but otherwise they are just so 70's Adidas. I love them...My new silver summer sneakers...Brought me back a few decades...

Big plans...

turned into a cozy lazy day. Yes I had big plans today for my monkeys and myself. Instead, we lounged at home till late in the morning, reading books, practising piano, playing with magnetix trying to build the craziest things...So I thought well..There is always afternoon. But we lounged more, not sure how, but the hours went flying by...Till I realised that we really had to get some fresh air. We mounted our bikes and went to the shops. First to buy something boring for me, then onto new shoes for the boys. They wanted the same and I agreed, which will call for trouble every morning from now on. Trying to beat the morning rush to get to school and I can already pictures my kiddos with the wrong size shoe on..Oh well, their feet will grow so this is a temporary pb if any at all! Finally we hit the bookstore where they each could pick one. The wildlife encyclopedia from National Geographic for Nathan (this kid only reads encyclopedia!!!!); A novel for Maxim (De Griezelbus 7) and a Dikkie Dik for Manouk. I am SO pleased they are finally sitting long enough to read and for me to enjoy my cup of tea.

Lazy days are ok though? On vacation, nothing wrong with that!!!

A day as light and fresh and oft as the colors of my beautiful tulips picked by Manouk for me.

   

 

Well prepared...

for Easter! I'm always late for any kind of preparations/decorations etc. But this year, Easter will be in our house very early. Thanks to Nathan, who decided that his vacation would be spent around tkitchen table crafting. We did our first yesterday (a real family affair) and I must say that the result was good. I hate messy, really dislike it...So I'm glad that Nathan picked something we could succeed at and that would look great. Mission accomplished.

We decorated eggs that we emptied beforehand (and made pancakes for the kids from the content) with rest of candles, by burning these and letting the colorful wax falls in organised (not messy) patterns on the egg shells.

 

Green

As promised. If any of you would ask me what is my favorite color, I would never answer: green. Especially not "this green". In the past weeks, however, having more time to look at things, very little things, those that matter and that are most easily forgotten when I get busy - I saw a recurring color in my house... Here is a small selection below in this collage. It seems that "this green" is everywhere now. In the big cushions on my sofa, my new Eames chair, in Manouk's new schoolbag, little touches here and there, getting my attention as I walk around doing my things.

I am not sure I can read into this and tell you what that would mean. Probably nothing, except that blue and pink and brown and turquoise remain my colors of choice. I do not have a single cothes with "this green". But what it tells me and I'm quite pleased about it is that even at my (old) age, there is still plenty of room for changes...Isn't that a sign of being young???

 

Small things and green..

I'll make another post of the "green" in my life right now but for now I just wanted to share some small things that make me very happy. Now that my exams are behind (for a while anyway) and that I finally have time on my hand - although I seem to be as busy as always - I walk around most days content, trying to po put the final touch to my house. They are days I'm thinking why should we move at all...The view from my couch is about 90% as I want it...Except for that ugly TV cabinet that keeps staring back at me.

So yesterday I was walking around the house with my camera (TTV duaflex + 5d+ macro) trying to capture a few of the things that make me happy.

I am so so so in love with my boys' art. I just love what they did and how it matches perfectly my living room. They could not have chosen better design and colors. 

 

Nathan's cactus. Anything of animal or vegetal nature in this household belongs to my middle-so-special son. He may have issues focussing on real classical school curriculum and would rather daydream all day on much more interesting stuff like the reproduction cycle of his hamster etc. We are lucky he can learn well! This little cactus makes me smile in the way Nathan has managed to make it part of the family. And the pot is green. A bonus for me!

 

And Manouk's new school bag. She knew it had to be hers before she even laid eyes on it! She's just so proud of it and me of her! Tomorrow is the start of her new-everyday-to-school life.....

 

Just in time....

Ok where would I start?

So much has happened in the past week, I am not even sure I should begin...Manouk is now 4 and had another day at school (yesterday). My mum was here since Saturday and left today. I miss her already!

We celebrated Manouk's 4th birthday on Sunday. It was a family event but one to be remembered for many reasons: it was the first time my mum was there. Living 1000 km away, she does not get much opportunity to be present on the kids' birthdays. That was really special to me and I am so grateful she made the trip. 4 marks the time that Manouk will be officially starting school. No "trys-out" anymore...Just like her brothers, she will be part of the morning trips. I am still not ok with the idea. Pathetic...

We had a great time on Sunday and so did she. She got spoiled obviously and enjoyed it all. Having my mother here was really nice. We did not do anything special except for a trip to finally get started on Manouk's bedroom. I ordered beautiful wall paper and curtains, bought a  new bed + beddings. It's finally coming together....And yesterday we visited 2 houses!!!! One is really tempting but we first need to think it through. Manouk deserves a nice rom after waiting for 4 years and even if we bought the house, there is so much work to be done that we'd never move before 2010. Yes that's how much work....Basically stripped it out and start again....4 floors...so 4 times!!!!

Wednesday Manouk went back to school. DH took her, she kissed me goodbye on the doorstep, blew me a kiss from the car..driving away..I am still trying to understand why it is so hard for me to let her go. She's doing ok, willing to go, enjoying it..And still, she looks so small...At 12:00 I went to pick her up, waiting impatiently behing the school gate, a bit anxious of how it all went. The teacher saw me and let her go. She walked the (long) corridor, passed the main entrance and walked the path to the gate like she had been doing it for years...She lookeds so sweet, so small and so ok, I felt my heart pinch. She was smiling when I got to her. That afternoon, again, she was beat, so tired and asked to go to sleep at 2. I put her down but she was downtairs again in less than 5 minutes....

I'm enjoying my vacation, not taking much pictures. That feels good to finally have time for daily snapshots of the kids. Just another week at school for the kids and it's vacation.

 

 

 

 

Pour maman....

  de la part de Cleo:

Bonjour maman, tu me manques beaucoup mais je te vois bientot alors c'est super. Gros bisous de Cleo!

 

 

 

My niece, a sweetheart. She staying with us all the way from France for a week. Great fun. Manouk and her are just having so much fun!