Back On Track

Our Orange tree is in bloom. The scent of the blossoms linger in the evening air and at times mingle with that of the Jasmine growing just outside our fence line aside the bamboo thicket.

This morning for the first time it was hard to ignore the light peeping through the slit in the kitchen curtains while preparing lunch boxes for Rob and Josh for the day. It is funny how suddenly and all in one moment you realise the change of season is not just words or about to happen - it is happening. I feel a little cheated this year. I am always aware of the slightest change, especially when Winter turns to Spring and then Summer to Winter. These moments are always so very profound for me. But not this year, not this turning of the wheel. I seem to have been lost in the last few weeks of trying to juggle the emotions that came with Danika's hospital stay and all the things that come with homeschooling and this new life of being a stay at home mamma. All those little things that you thought you would have time for do not always come to be. And I am absolutely fine with that. New paths do that, they sometimes (even if slightly) change the way you perceived it would all be.

Danika is faring well. She is back to singing (literally) through her day. Thank you all again for all your gentle healing vibes sent from all over the world. Those vibes made their way here and are helping more than you know.

Earth-ing.

we have been spending a whole lot more time outside thanks to the seasonal weather..

Although there are days were a tie-dye of grey covers the sky the temps are still pretty warm right into the evening. we are in for a good Summer ahead. Our pool pump has gone to the workshop for a service and it always amazes me how fast it can change from brilliant clear sparkles to a luminous green. But it will be worth it once the pump is all happy again and the pool all clear again just before the heat sets in for the December holiday.

It is the last stretch of the school year for the young men folk here at the Cottage. I watch on and see that they are all weary from the year that has been and that they are mustering the last strands of energy they have to just get through this last lunar cycle. We see Josh only on occasion as he takes impromptu breaks from his studies in his cave, to join us, and I try to make sure there is ample amount of earthing and love when he does.

how are the seasons fairing your side of the world?

This. That. The Other.

22 . 33 . 22 . 33 . 33 . 18 . 21

The numbers in degree Celsius predicted for our weather for this week gone by.

Funny thing about last weeks' post was that as soon as it was sent a strange wind howled on in  - whipping through the tops of the pine and gum trees - causing such a hullabaloo, not only on our homestead but around our town. Just outside of town a poor man was caught in the throws of the storm while fishing and sadly never made it to shore alive. Fallen trees brought down power lines and the rain disturbed the already sorely neglected infrastructure to the water pipelines that carry water to our suburb. So, no electricity and no water for the rest of the weekend. We would have coped without the water, as we do have a water tank in place for times such as these, but Rob had just filled the very low pool for fear of burning out the pool pump, an expense we could just not entertain. We are kitted out with solar emergency lights, which Rob has set up, throughout our home and we do have a gas stove to cook and make tea and warm water on. In reality we were absolutely fine and thankfully safe this time and I am so very grateful for that.

Here's a small clip of those howls that screeched through the tips of the trees.

https://youtu.be/KHmI16hxfNg
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHmI16hxfNg]

Ostara

The wheel of the year turns again dear sweet humans!
Bright brilliant blessings at this time when the hours of the day and night are again in balance. I love that this time of the year signifies renewal and abundance and new life to come. I have been silently watching and waiting and I know that although awakenings of Spring have already long begun there is still such abundance in the making.

Here is to the season of life and sweet beginnings.
Here is to the egg, the bud and the seed.
Here is to the prosperous harvests to come.

May the returning light bring you and yours abundance in all that your heart may desire.

Degrees in Celcius

6 . 38 . 37 . 19 . 26 . 31 . 20

I wish these were the winning numbers for this weeks' Lotto draw - but they're not. These numbers were the high temps (in degree Celsius) that we experienced this week and it is only September! I am a little worried as to the highs in the making at Mid Summer. Usually around this time of the year we have the last of icy Winter. It's as if Winter would say "Hey you all - just so that you dont forget me - here is some snow for you all to play in" and then we would make our way into the Berg to play in the cold white stuff. Kind of like our last farewell to Winter.

Somehow I don't think we will be doing that this year.

The Moon After Yule.

Full Moon blessings dear Tribe.

This is not a time to fight, rather surrender to the will of Spirit, even if you are being asked to let go completely and tumble into the brink of Creation itself.....

Full Moon is Now in Capricorn until the 10th July 6.33 am

Be..

Ambitious * Focussed * Practical

Raining For Days

 

Happy Mother’s Day!

Belated, I know, but sent with much love to you, my special Tribu Mère.

I would have been on sooner to wish you but it has rained and rained and rained some more for days now. A welcome sight but at the same time that means there is no linking with those waves of internet connection in the sky that come and go and go and come again when there is the slightest form of any cloud cover. I gave up around late Saturday afternoon and lovingly embraced family time, thanks to the outside freezer front that blew in over the weekend. We even got some quality time in with Rob. It was way too cold for him to venture up to his workshop in the garage, and secretly (he will never admit it) I know he enjoyed the slow moving togetherness in the lounge watching movies and the perpetual buzz in the kitchen feeding us all. It never ceases to amaze how much more the boys can wolf down in weather such as this. On Sunday Rob treated us all to veggies stacked high on our plates for Mother’s Day Sunday Lunch. Someone else’s cooking always tastes a whole lot better than your own don’t you think?

I think we all may be overloaded in movie comatose states. So unlike us. Sometimes doing nothing at all is a good thing. I do miss garden time though. I should go out with a brolly and see how our new edible garden patch is faring. Rob and the boys worked very hard at getting in a new raised bed for us the weekend before. With fresh manure from the farm and borders made with thick bamboo from the bamboo thicket to the side of our home. We tried growing our wildlings there but those crazy monkeys ruined it all. We gave up the fight and after a few months of watching the sun and its movements over our home, we decided to plant another patch here. Just to keep us going for a little longer. Once you harvest your own home grown food – there really is nothing better. Is there?

 

 

So far we have planted Swiss Chard, Lettuce, Belle Tomatoes, Eggplant and Thyme (if my memory serves me correct – I do feel like I may have left out one!). And we have replanted the whispy leaves of creole onion seedlings from the seedling trays in too. Hold all those fingers and toes that they all haven’t drown in all the rain.

This week will be late nights every evening. Josh and his healed up toe will be attending the final rehearsals for their Musical opening next week. There are still ticket available for those who would like to see the show, though not for very much longer – best grab them quick. I am so looking forward to seeing this child of mine on stage.

The wind is howling again through the tips of Pine Tree tops, I don’t know how much longer there will be a connection. The wind was so bad that I woke with our bedroom doors creaking and banging and pulling at the hinges in the middle of the night. I fought with the doors that lead out into our backyard from my side of the bed, by this stage they had opened (luckily not breaking the yale lock), Rob eventually took over and got them all tightly locked up again. Needless to say that had me wide eyes for the rest of the night and today I am feeling it through scratchy eyes.

I do hope that you are all safe and my thoughts are with those that are in high risk areas and have already been evacuated to safety.

It is at times like this that I hold my dear ones even closer and realise a little more how blessed I truly am.

Winter Is Coming.

   

As I sit here and write this type this, I’m mentally preparing for the first cold front of the Season to sweep on in. I think they are predicting snow. Who has snow in May, In Africa? I don’t think that it will be anywhere close enough for us to venture out and find – they are saying it will fall Lesotho way and Drakensburg (a little more closer to home). But nevertheless _ SNOW_! I’ve been saying it for months now. “We haven’t had a proper Winter around these parts in years!” and “I feel that this year we’re in for a real Winter. Last year, while I was still pregnant with Danika, we took Garren to play in the snow that blanketed the mountains in Impendle. I wonder if we will be snow hunting a little closer to town this year? This may be the weekend we pull out the winter blankets and get those electric blankets on the beds. Winter is Coming!

We’ve had “Electricity Day” and Grade 3 Cake Sale keeping us rather busy. Garren kept on about Electricity day, and I just could not understand how Electricity Day corresponded with Book Day until on our way home an absolute exasperated Garren corrected me, saying NOT book day MOM – ELECTRICITY day! Light bulb moment to say the very least and - Rob and Garren decided to go with Centipede for the theme James and The Giant Peach. My only contribution to the dress up this year was maybe they should try stuffed pantyhose attached to the his shirt for arms. They decided it was a brilliant idea and off they went and managed to pull together a rather rustic African version of The Centipede. There was even a cigar to go with the whole look. I am utterly impressed and so proud with both Dad and Son.

I don’t know what I would do without the aid of Tristan these days. He has become such a great help in the kitchen whipping up the occasional supper and even monitoring a homework evening or two for me while I attend to the others. This year’s contribution to the Grade 3 cake sale was curtesy of Tristan’s baked vanilla muffins and whip chocolate frosting which Garren slathered on in heaps and sprinkled hundreds and thousands on to. Again so very proud – if I wasn’t so very proud I might begin to feel a little inadequate and have no purpose here anymore. But, I am going to rather go with… they are just so darn clever and becoming so independent and they are going to make such helpful wonderful husbands – one day!

Joshua sliced open his toe over the weekend which saw us at the medical centre for a couple of hours that day. Initially it was supposed have been stitched up, but then the Doctor on duty decided that it probably best to be glued because of the nail that was in the way. Well, after the last few evening of Play practise and running to various classrooms through the day at school, …. well-you-know … I am not going to go in to the gory details, so - we are off to the Doctor again! I am still trying to figure out just how he is going to jump and bump and grind to “American Idiot” alongside a bunch of hormonal teenage boys “moshing” on stage with one working foot? This could end up being a very interesting story. I personally hope it doesn’t.

On another note, a social note, I would just like to say thank you for all the love shown to my new page and blog and name change. I really feel so very blessed to have you always beside me in all my crazy wild scatter brain ideas and notions. You are all my Tribu Mère !!

I would also just like to - slyly insert a sticky note right here – say that I have signed out of my personal Facebook account. It’s been a long time in the making. As most of you know I have been on and off there for a while now. But I think, no.. wait I know, that this is the beginning of the end. Please don’t take offence it really has nothing to do with you as a person.. its me.. and it’s the ugliness that is allowed to be shared and the fact that some of this ugliness is shared to show awareness….? I am not too sure how this sharing is supposed to help in anyway. But, I know this is NOT something I wish to be part of. I live in a country divided and at war with itself and I can’t run away and hide from that. But what I can do is CHOOSE what I like to see and learn and grow from in my spare time.

My shares will continue on my new page Where Wildlings Grow on Facebook which will come from Instagram. (what a wonderful web)

Please feel free to Email me should you need to contact me or direct message me on Instagram.

And now tuning back to the bright and beautiful, where we will stay from now onwards!

We’re heading into the weekend. Do you have any special plans in the making?

Oh, and PS. - don’t forget to remember - Mother’s day on Sunday.

Oh and ppssss what do you think of the this lovely little logo that came in my mail today – thank you Frank!

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thoughts going forward.

I cant say this is one of the prettiest photographs out there of me. But this is me, right at this very moment. Babywearing, smudged attempt at one handed make-up application (just so that I dont look like death itself) and regrowth of my hair that hasn't had a touch of dye in over a year.

This is me! This is all me in my life right at this very moment.

I've had plenty of moments like this over the past couple of months. Moments where I have had time to reflect as to were I am going with all of these moments. Moments were I have thought were am I going with my shares, with this blog and the dreams I had before all these moments came to be.

Although, I still fiercely believe in the magick of the seasons, I am also fiercely walking the stepping stones of a mama with children in various stages of life. Tristan will be handed his key to his life this coming new year, he will be 21. Joshua at 16 still figuring out if the subjects he has chosen at school will be relevant in his dreams for his future, and consciously trying to figure out how to get away from the noise that is his younger brother and baby sister. Garren anxious about who will be in his grade three class next year and if another kick to his older brothers shins at the dinner table might go unnoticed. Danika.. well lets just say I am doing all the figuring our for at this moment. Rob and I trying tor juggle and balance the bliss of family life with the stresses of work. These are all real feelings and thoughts and milestones not just for me but for all of us.

So, where am I going, where do I want to be? Not 20 years from now- cause that would make me like.. almost 60 something or other. But where do I want to be right now, tomorrow and the next day. What do I want to share with you today, tomorrow and the next. These are the kind of thoughts that twirl around my head now that we have welcomed a little baby girl into home and our lives. After being a mama to boys for twenty years, I thought that it would be just the same with a little girl. But, I am not too sure about this anymore. They are very different - aren't they? Like a delicate little flower? They kind of change all those perceptions you had – dont they?

So, I am going back and forth in my mind and can feel change not only happening within me but change within our little tribe now that our boy tribe has a growing little flower, a little lady.

I have hopes to keep this little blog going in the same direction, with shares about our family and shares about what is cooking in my kitchen and growing in my garden and of course shares about whats all knitting up on my needles. But, I think its time for me to also share my intentions and my personal traditions as I, we... us... live by the seasons here in South Africa.

So that is what my plans are for the new calendar year. Intention.. Intuition.. Family.. Magick… and trying to keep it all constant, with a dash of smudged eyeliner. 

Who knows maybe those smudges may start a new tradition out there.

Thank you for sharing in all these with us my friends. May the new year bring all your intentions to life and bless you with not too much or too little but rather exactly what you need.

❤ Angie

T’was the day before Christmas.

We have made it! We have made it all the way to Christmas Eve, the day before Christmas. The build up has been excruciating for some I might add. I love this time of year and the excitement that comes with it from our littles. And, just as we thought we were coming to the end of the deep seated belief of it all with Garren and his moments away from finally becoming a “non-believer”. We were gifted our little Danika.

I think he confessed that .. “When I am in Grade 3, I cant believe in Santa Claus anymore” – with great thanks to his peers at school for that, and yes, my heart broke. Who knows, just maybe, Santa will gift me another year with him?

I will keep believing in the magick, no matter what, and now I get to do it all again with our littlest of them all.

Merry Christmas my friends may you always believe in the magick of it all.

Love Angie & Family.

solstice blessings

I love how my feeds are filled with snow and how my favourite humans are all welcoming in their Solstice, the Winter Solstice. And I'm here breathing in our Summer Solstice and reflecting on how I will share this dark half of the year with my beautiful tribe.

I love how in my little space the earth is awash with all shades of green and that there is an abundance of magick in the air around us.

May this day, whether it's the longest or the shortest be filled with peace, love and light.

santa's message

I absolutely love this time of the year. Especially this week, the week that leads up to Christmas Day, I've always been about getting the kids all crazy excited for the day.

Garren has been getting his yearly message from Santa for years now and we have just added Danika to Santa's long list of messages that he has to send out.

I had hoped to embed the actual video of each here on this post - but this looks just as sweet and can be kept for our littles for a later day to look back on.

I am certainly excited about this year. We seem to have been able to get all the pressies done on time. All except for one. Which I am still busy working on. Hold thumbs!

Happy week before Christmas everyone.

subtle changes

There seems to have been a lag on our updates lately and all I can seem to blame it on is the unrelenting heat. The last month seems to have been a stagnant one with hardly enough rain to keep our little home hydrated.

For those who have followed my "blogging" you may have noticed a little trend that happens in my shares, as have I. All the seasons hold my attention long enough to capture a few photos and type out a few updates - except for Summer.

There is such a subtle change in my day of late. The darkness from the evening before lingers while I busy myself with my early morning chores. The leaves from the trees are ever so slowly changing and falling. And although the midday heat still lays across the homestead like a heavy blanket there is a coolness to the mornings and late evenings that hint of change.

Dare I say -  Welcome Autumn....

first signs of spring

The first signs of Spring are here. When our Magnolia starts flowering I know we are heading towards warmer weather. But as I sit here and type this, I have to reflect back over the past season , we really haven't had much of a Winter. Well the cold part anyway. Yes, we have been blessed with such comfortable warmth the past few weeks that one would believe that Spring is upon us even earlier than before.

The first signs of Spring are here. I know the seasons are changing when I hear the weasy fresh fruity cough explode from Garren. Where did that come from? He was perfectly fine yesterday and the evening before. The seasons are changing!

As I sit here and gaze out the window while typing this, I see a haze in the air and patches of dark clouds lightly circle on by, I think we might be in for much needed rain later this week. I know as I type this that as with every year as we start celebrating the new life that Spring brings too early, Mother Nature hits us with a freak icy spell to remind us that she is still in charge out there. So, I will sit here and type and keep my eyes to the skies and this year not presume too much. Just take each day as it comes and remember how blessed we are.

Love
Angie xxx

joining suzy mae

It Was There All Along

The needles on the tops of the Pine Trees rustle as the winds howl through the forest this evening.
Our Sun could have set already but I cant seem to see it for all the shades of grey  that have come rumbling in..
Darker clouds wrapping around the already lighter shades and there is a low grumble from heavens.

I am out later than normal... Well, the "norm" that has been us since halfway through August! Tonight is also the first night, since our home invasion, that I am not panicking and my eyes aren't darting around for strange movements and my ears aren't pierced for the crunch of earth under unwelcomed visitors feet to our home.

As I stand in the middle of the backyard with the soft earth and fresh lawn squished between my toes and comforting my bare feet, I feel the wind whip my hair softly around my shoulder. I feel peace..

I can feel a little spark ignite within me. The spark ever so slowly burns into a growing flame.
Hello there ol' friend... I have missed you!

I close my eyes and for the first time in quite some time... just feel again.
The magick never disappeared it was there all along.... just waiting for me to feel again.

For the first time in which feels like forever, I hear the kids shriek with delight as the winds toss the last of winters leaves all around us, and the puppies yapping out in the evening as the play tag under the now lit up  backyard. Rob has so protectively fitted spot lights to our new secure fence line around the backyard. So no creepy corners for Trolls to hide ...

I stayed out late tonight. It was not me who yelled for all to come in so I could lock us all snuggly away.
It was all who yelled for me!

Love
Angie xxx

Blooming Super Moon

Did you all get to see the Super Full Moon last night…… ?
We had cloud cover and the lightest of sprinklings of rain. I may not have seen Luna but I sure did feel her…!

Well I for one am slightly elated that we are now on the waning gibbous.. The lead up to said Super Moon has played havoc on our once tranquil life. If there was anything else that could go wrong through last week well then…. &^%#!

On a normal Full Moon, yes our Lifestead does become a little crazy. My family do tend to get all hyped. But this one was Super ~ Rob ended up with migraine (thank the stars I keep Tissue Salt no 8 on hand! I may just have to get a few more bottles at the rate he is guzzling down on them ;) ) and the Boys, well..
I kept them outside to just release all that pent up all sorts!! Whew….



But then again…… On Saturday, Mama Mavis blessed us with a new little fluffy butt to add to our growing homestead… <3



I am a Granny you all!!! AND I am so super proud. I was planning to wait until all the little peeplings were hatched.. Oh wait – you don’t know!! We found the missing eggs  that Pookaloo DID in fact lay… They are all hidden warmly under Mavis!! :) The egg-napper!!

I am spent.. And I am so looking forward to a little of a breather.

Time waits for no man or in this case woman…. So I have to get myself busying again with our gifts for our special family up north for their Yule celebrations!

The Season Of Awakenings

Tis time for the beginnings of Spring!
Where we will be keeping our eyes to the skies as the migratory birds start returning. The flittering signs of new growth shall appear as our acceptance of Winter is giving way to urge on new growth and stretch new shoots of beautiful brilliant greens and new life for the coming of Spring….
I have to admit that I have noticed, as I go about my early morning chores, the brilliance of our sunrise has been creeping up every so slowly but also earlier. The signs of Spring are slowly starting to show in the tiniest of little green leaf buds along our fence line.



We have also been blessed, this week, with our Pookaloo laying her first egg! New beginnings…. 
The boys were quite right in saying we should keep them for today, as now we have 3 little beautiful blessings to add to our Custard for pudding tonight.




I have Garren busy with some beautiful colouring activities we found with many thanks to The Little Pagan Acorns!


Blessings to you and yours for the new Season!

Love
Angie xxx

Meeting Blair

Jack frost visited this morning, he left the blades of the grass all frozen, and with that, a mystical haze of wispy mist..

As we near our Winter Solstice I cant but wish the days away until the lighter half of the year is upon us. I know I shouldn’t really, but the early morning chores are being done in total silent darkness now. The flock don’t bother to get up to greet me anymore, they just lay in the nesting boxes and watch as I go about cleaning and filling their water containers and food bowls with my frozen iced curled fingers. Our Cassie lays on her rug and can only muster the power to raise one eyelid to spy the slightly irritating happenings around her as I stomp my purple coloured muck boots to get a little circulation going to my matching coloured popsicle toes.

There is only me and the dark morning sky sprinkled with just a few glittering stars. A time of  beautiful peace.. peace just before the onslaught of warming groans and excited yappings, from our newest member of the family, as the rest of the abode awakens from their cocooned warmth of slumber land.

A new member to the family I hear your inquisitive minds ask… Yes dear friends, the tiniest most beautiful puppy breath ever has graced our little abode with newly found excited squeals that echo through the forest from the boys.

Meet the little lady Blair who has been keeping us all very busy with her silly puppy antics and new found puppy yappings.

Love
Angie xxx

Winter Vibrations

As the seasons change, so does the mood and daily happenings at our home. The Dark half of the year brings about a little more togetherness (may be for warmth?) and although there is still much laughter and happiness, there is a somberness to the vibrations around me.

It is colder and darker than before.
As I press my face a little closer to the glass panes in our kitchen door to peer out into the darkness… the warmth from my breath frost up the panes..

There really is no good delaying the inevitable… is there?

I love winter and all that comes with the season. I really do. A time for inner reflection, a time to just be still and as Rob reminds me… A time to hibernate, to hibernate like the big ol Mama grizzly bear. (I like that )

But right at this very moment as I wrap my winter gown even more tightly around me and brace myself for the onslaught of the outdoor fridge… and know that my cheeks will flush and my nose will tingle and my eyelids will stick to my now very much awake eyeballs…… I don’t like it very much….

But there are still chores to do.. tend to our babes and check on this and that.. in total darkness… not a single chirp from our once musical mornings, aside from the train in distance further up on our hillside clamping down on its brakes, there is a serene tranquility.

And then as I stand and look to the lone star in the sky and watch as the darkness ever so slowly folds back the black blanket to a brilliance of soft oranges and deep maroons..

I breathe, I am awake.. it’s a beautiful day and I am truly thankful…

Love
Angie xxx

Through The Window

I’ve awoken to another day where the sky is blanketed by hues of greys all mingled… and the wrangling of early winter’s icy fingers grasping tightly to the walls of our warm home.

The light whispers of the chilled winds wisp playfully around the tops of our fir trees and another pine cone drops to the ground.

I can hear my chooks busily chatting as they go about their early morning scratchings. I’ve heard from the boys they are much happier now. The coop has been successfully divided. Mama Mavis and Nugget, the bigger two of the flock have settled and Gizmo is once again reunited with her siblings…. yes, I hear her happy chatterings as the boys enter the coop.

I miss them all, their boks and cheeps and low light whistles. Every now and again when I get to stand by the kitchen door, I call “hello my lovelies!” I can see them stretch their feathered necks to see where I’m calling from.

The cold chill on days like today makes the ankle cranky and although my desires are to get out the ol’ crutch and wobble my way around the yard – I know the gloom that hangs there. That unsteady ground and the weak “poorly”, combined, makes for a recipe for just a slight disaster…

So, I’ll just keep on being patient…….