Courtesy anitapeppers@morgueFile free photos

Browsing Thursday Blogs to connect and link with I came upon this gem. It ties in well with my last post on having gratitude on an ordinary day….the writer commences

” Let’s start this post by complaining, shall we? Life is hard. Life is a challenge. Life is not always sunny days, happy kids, and a clean kitchen. Aches and pains. Sadness and disappointment. A strained relationship. Illness and an unsure future. And hampers full of dirty laundry. Those things are never empty.

The writer continues…

” On any given day, at any given moment, I can be found stressing about something. Even if I seem peaceful or happy, there could be something nagging at my subconscious. This is my life, but I am not alone. I think everyone lives with their own particular burden, concern, hardship. That is life.

Finding that one thing to be thankful for, even when my insides want to rant and complain, brings me to a place of peace and even a deep abiding joy. It is a humble moment and that is a good place to be. Gratitude has saved me from being buried by anxiety and stress, from spiraling down into a place of darkness and despair. For if we can’t find something to be thankful for, how would we be able to keep going?

So sometimes, I have to dig deep into my heart and say “Thank you” but when I do, I don’t just find one thing, I find a hundred things. And then I am astounded by the blessing and gift of this life I live.

We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures. ~Thornton Wilder

Courtesy cherylholt@morgueFile free photos

God gave you a gift of 86,400 seconds today. Have you used one to say “thank you?”
~William A. Ward

Thank you God for this day and for those (seemingly hundreds of) people in my house who wear those clothes that end up in those hampers. ”

Now it is back to me as I take up the pen so to speak.

Do the above thoughts resonate. Do they sound familiar?

Are you a new mum , a mother to many, a mother again, a young mother, an older mother. Are you alone through circumstances, or by choice. Are you busy with work and family, struggling or coping. Or are you older like myself, retired, a grandmother to toddlers, baby and Tweens and Teens.

It doesn’t matter what stage in life we are at, the principle still applies. So let’s all try to remember the thanks and the blessings by searching for them in our simple everyday lives.

Thanks for the inspiration and Re-blogged in part with permission from
Thankful Thursday: Even When I Want to Rant

Courtesy taliesin @ morgueFile free photos

World environment day which was some days ago…

…well Life and Caring happened in between, but Hi, I’m back

How am I doing world environment day … every day
How do I see it … every day

In simple language, in a grandma, mum and dad and family way

Abundance of newly striked cuttings vigorously growing

Grow plants from cuttings to spread and share the abundant growth and joy around

Huge mushrooms on a dinner plate grown from mushroom compost by friends…a by product of spreading compost under the orange trees :)

I’m going to again push my love of seeing bees busily collecting nectar amongst the bushes and herbs which we grow in our tiny patch….as soon as the sun comes out even in winter here in Australia the bees come out foraging. But soon I’ll have to prune my flowering Lavender hedge which I am so loathe to do. I know, I have to be cruel to be kind to keep my hedge nice… But still !!! Also this time of year our little veggie/herb patch looks a bit sad as I really need to plant spinach to fill in the hole left by the finished Basil and tomato

On an aside though, did you know that Rhubarb flowers and goes to seed. That spike of a tall Lacey flower though has the most disgusting smell which made me promptly cut it off…but there are still stalks of rhubarb growing for a second crop….firstly I wondered how to harvest rhubarb as I’ve never grown it before, so I Googled for info and found that you twist the stalks at the base and they come off easily. Then as I hadn’t cooked rhubarb for years I found a recipe which may have been a Jamie Oliver one. The instructions said to roast it which I did in an old-fashioned Corningware dish from the Op shop. The dish was just the perfect size. Pour the required sugar on top with a tiny dribble of Vanilla essence. Cover and cook. There was a suggested time and then also that you’ll smell it as soon as it’s done….well that was so correct as to the smell; divine. Next time though I’ll use less sugar. It was SO rich I could only eat a bit of it with my homemade thick Greek yoghurt.

I was happy to have learnt that old milk is a good fertiliser even though it was only half a cup….my parsley is thriving

Then memories…Remembering when…the tying up like a bandaged bear and staking, with a neighbours help, of a vandalised small tree on our park just opposite our house. It is now a huge gum tree.

Also saving a tiny acacia tree years ago from having the long leaves plucked off by then toddler grand-daughter, explaining that we wanted to see the tree grow big. It has!

So there’s many a way to celebrate World Environment Day. We care. We do it everyday without even thinking sometimes, just like the older generations before us.

If you pause for a moment, how or what have YOU done. How do you care.

Do you wish to share?

Even the seemingly trivial things?

Whether you are just starting life’s journey or well on the way like us. With a looking forward to it soon to be retired hubby. New happenings and new adventures and new horizons but always learning.

Mother who raised her dear children and in later years with always a fresh supply of crunchy Anzac biscuit adorned with half an almond in the biscuit jar

Then their children nurturing some of their own families

Remembering you especially today but also everyday.

Memories like scattered dewdrops to refresh anew.

Thank you for your inspiration Laila from Tableofcolours

Courtesy Jusben@morgueFile free photo

Happenings whilst trying to have a conversation when little children are part of the picture

Conversation on the phone with a mother …
Chatting about every day happenings
Hearing little boy playing in the background
Oh you’ve finished, that’s good says mum to boy
We continue chatting
Little voice pipes up, Quick quick
Mum saying, good boy, quick into the bathroom!

Little boy wanting to talk to grandma
I chat to him, he remembers things we did on holidays…”yes”

He tells me about some dogs coming into back yard
I know a lot of head nodding is part of the conversation
Bye grandma and a kiss is blown

Me back to chatting with the mother
Little voice wanting to chat again and tell grandma his finger is sore
Pointy finger held up I’m told by mother

More about the dogs in the yard told me by the mummy
The neighbours two young boys sitting in a toy electric jeep car found and salvaged by them from the annual council clean up.
Add a lot of yipping and yapping
One small dog and a larger strong dog
A struggle as they try to hold dogs

The picture…
Arms, legs and paws going every which way as they try to “drive” to their house next door

And one delighted and wide eyed little boy watching it all

Joys of a semi rural last day of holidays….for Rachel

…and lessons from a little boy to grandma to be patient and let him explain himself x

Photo Courtesy revwarheart@morgueFilefreephotos