kick-start-ing

It's been quite some time since I wrote a post here. Right in the middle of Poppytalks colour week something happened. One of my kids went safe and sound to bed the night of the pink, and woke up in the early morning - very sick. We had some hard months back then, lots of anxiety, frustration, being in hospital with one child while trying to take care of the others. Finally getting an diagnosis, coping with that, and facing a long period with heavy medication. Dealing with the fact that in order to make your child well again, you have to poison her. We're still waiting for her total recovery, but she's ... well, if not actually better or well, she's being damn strong and absolutely wonderful.

I've always been grateful for my children being well, healthy, safe and sound. I think I've been aware of the fact that being able to feed my children plenty of fresh, healthy organic food every day and clothe them, to live in a democratic country, to live in a part of the world where natural disasters are extremely rare and where education is for everybody and for free - is both a rare and a precious thing. Still, an experience like this, well, it simply gives gratefulness a new meaning altogether.

I found that having a sick child somehow 'draws' energy like nothing else. Hence the long blog break. It also clarified what's important to me. I already knew, but I suppose being reminded of the really important things in life is also something to be grateful for - especially when the story has an happy end. Like I know ours will have.

 Life hasn't been all about sickness and misery, she's been up and about for quite some time now, but we've been enjoying life, each others and the summer holidays. But as life is getting back to normal, I thought I'd better kick start this blog before it's too late.

If I think too much about what to blog about, I'm never getting at it. (I can proof it, you know!) - So without further ado: Last night I made supper and put it in a basket. Put the children and the dog in the car and drove to a nearby lake where we enjoyed the food, played in the water ...

... made a bit of yarn ...

... and made a mental note to self about doing this more often. No complicated picnic baskets, no getting elaborate about stuff or going to fancy places. Simply: food in basket, find a place in nature nearby and enjoy ourselves!

Another thing to do more often is to sit down for a creative moment, inspired by nature and the moment. By myself or with one or more children. When - obviously - one has something else to do. Like laundry, cleaning, tidying, well the never ending usual stuff. One has to distinguish between what's important and what can wait. In this case the latter can definitely wait!

Today my eldest daughter and I had a moment like that, sitting quietly outside, drawing and painting some of the edible flowers from the garden.

Moments like these are so precious - and luckily a kind of moments that we can make happen.