How long has it been? I'm really not sure to be honest.
Somehow my blog, taking colourful creative photos and writing short tales of our days around those same pictures has been packed away with all our worldy goods.
I'm not sure if blogs get read in the same way as they did when I first started tapping away all those years ago. I still intend to get back in the writing saddle again once I finishing putting the shapes of our new life together. I think something new and fresh will be needed along with the new me that is emerging. I haven't really changed all that much just found that life has taken me on a different path.
My girls and I spent the summer at my mum's house while all of our possessions, the things that we believe give our lives shape, were packed away. By late summer I knew the time had come to find a home for the three of us. It didn't take long to find exactly the home I knew we needed. A city pad where they could walk to school each day and I could work full-time.
I didn't look for work until the summer was over so I could be there for them.
We visited a few places, but ignored the old stomping grounds. The Museum of Childhood was new to us and we'd wanted to visit for a while so that's just what we did.
A few bits of fabric found their way to me on my travels.
As did Afternoon Teas.
Then the summer started to draw to a close and on September 1st Miss Rosey turned fifteen.
I'm not sure how she skilfully talked me into hiring a bell tent for a weekend party but she did. I'm glad though as nine girls came and they had a blast. By the light of the moon they raced over the golf course at the bottom of my mum's garden and then in the morning they hunted each other water pistols at the ready.
The next evening Miss Millie had her friends over for a movie night in the tent.
I was the only one not to sleep under canvas. I did ask my man if he fancied a sleepover in the garden, he looked at me and laughed thank goodness.
So ... my girls are getting older. We've swapped the country for the city and I have to be a grown-up and go and work full-time to keep this show on the road. There's lots of fun in the middle of all this as well as teething pains and problems too.
It's not easy trying to balance a new relationship, one that is really good and makes me very happy indeed, with being a mum to my girls who still need me. I've been told that it's happened too soon by those who live life in the shadows, but life doesn't follow according to a tight schedule. If something wonderful comes along then only a fool would refuse it.
I think this has been my least creative year of all with anything textiley, but when I stop to think then I know I've been so busy creating a new life that that has to be enough for now. It will all come back again once I unpack those boxes.
I did manage to have a taste of stitchery at my friend Cat"s of Lulumama fame session with our WI group. My brain wasn't really on what I was making at all. It was being surrounded by friends and chatting while we stitched that was the blissful part.
Just before we moved house I started working as Project Support for a friend.
The following week we moved house and I had an interview for a grown up managerial job in Children's Services. Sadly I didn't get it, but I realise my head was all over the show. So slow steps are needed sometimes. I'm still looking and applying for that right job all the same.
The weekend before we moved house I panicked thinking of all our furniture from a big cottage and wondering how on earth it was going to squeeze into a terrace.
Turns out it did. You know in the kind of way where you can't get to sit on anything or find anything, but know it's all in there somewhere.
It was really exciting that week. The sun shone and I worked like a dervish unpacking and putting a kitchen and bedrooms together.
I took a couple of weeks making our home as liveable in as possible and then we all moved in properly late one Sunday.
I've been buying a few much needed things for this new home and life too.
My bed was the most exciting buy. The type of bed I dreamed of having for years. I even treated myself to Orla Kiely bedding. Well this beautiful new bed deserved being well dressed after all didn't it.
I have new sofa's coming soon and I also found some beautiful barkcloth that I'm tempted to turn into curtains. Maybe with a matching dress for when we play hide and seek!
As life in our new home takes shape and the girls pop into town to see friends and bring friends home after school, I feel thrilled with this place that I found for us. It's even got a great little pub a stumble away which man and I have sampled on a few occasions. What good planning that was too.
There you have it. Life has lots of sunshine. You just have to keep on looking for it not look the other way.
