Things we learned today

Learning is fun

Ballet

Georgia is such a girly-girl. She is learning ballet - from her rather hopeless mum! This weekend she roped her mother into numerous ballet dancing sessions, complete with toe-pointing and tulle. Do I love it? Of course I love it. She has so much fun!

Yogurt

Mix 1/2 cup yogurt and 2 cups milk in milkshake tumbler. Leave in thermos container, covered in boiled water (We have a yogurt maker). Leave for nearly 24 hours. Voila - yogurt!

Pesto

Ok, this is not *real* pesto, but we bought a big bunch of basil at the market and we improvised.
Mix bunch of basil with olive oil, garlic, parmesan, sunflower seeds (didn't have pinenuts), pepper, salt, balsamic vinegar. Make a thickish paste.

and finally...

Glad Matthew's not a whale!

Baby whales drink 500 litres of milk a day.

Eggsellent!

Today, as I was about to prepare dinner, Monte came in excitedly, holding two eggs! He had been to feed the chickens and he found their first two eggs!

YAY!

To celebrate, we ate them. It felt kind of weird! We ate red-lentil burgers.

Here's the recipe:

What you need: 1 cup red lentils (soaked and cooked), garlic, 2-3 eggs, moroccan seasoning, cumin, 1/2 cup wholegrain flour. Mix ingredients. Form into patties. Fry in canola (or other) oil. Makes about 18.

We served ours on sourdough bread, homemade hoummus, mayonnaise, cheese and salad (lettuce, avocado, spring onion and homemade dressing). Yum! It was a very pleasant meal. The children were asleep. We drank some of Monte's homebrew.

It is very empowering making and producing so much of our own food. As we become less and less dependent on other corporations, we feel stronger in our own survival. Not to mention we are feeling so healthy!

The fruits of... a chicken

Puppets

Georgia rapt in her puppet making

I make time to play and create with Georgia by being behind in the housework. Honestly, when I am eighty I would rather remember the times I spent with Georgia making toilet roll and peg puppets than how tidy my house was...

Anyway, looking for a simple kid-friendly way to make puppets, I gathered some fabric scraps, pipecleaners, rubber bands, textas, toilet rolls and wooden pegs. Basically, you can 'dress' the puppets with fabric and rubber bands. Draw faces with textas.

It's so much fun and it's terribly easy. Georgia loves getting out her 'puppet box' to 'make puppets.' We make them, dress them and play with them. It's great fun. It entertains Georgia and makes her happy, which makes me happy, and also makes Matty happy because he can be left alone to learn how to crawl!

Mrs and Mr Molly, our toilet roll puppets
A peg doll puppet
Georgia loves her puppets! They are dolls for her to play with.

Breaking News:

Matthew cut his first tooth on Monday! He is almost crawling. Today he took one 'crawling step.' He can pull himself up and stand with support. He's growing up so fast!

In true Goulding fashion, Matthew LOVES his meal times!

Wedding Anniversary

Oh my gosh! We're married!

On February 6th Monte and I celebrated our Eighth Wedding Anniversary. We were pretty happy! We went out for lunch and then took a stroll along Norwood Parade. I bought some books and some beads, as well as some wire for a crocheted piece of something.

It is wonderful to be married to somebody with whom you can laugh about things. For example, Monte told me in the morning that he loves me more now than when we were married, but some days he doesn't love me much. We laughed, because it is true. Some days we love the people with whom we live, other days we don't. He said I am more beautiful now than the day we were married, which is pretty nice of him, seeing I am noticing little wrinkles around my eyes these days.

I have included some old wedding photos. To remind those who were there, and educate (?) those who weren't.

In love at the church
The toast

The bride
The waltz
The laugh

More about Us

These are my blessings

I am back at work. I don't have as much time for my hobbies, like beading, crochet, knitting and scrapbooking. I am cherishing my time with my children, and each day I make time to sit them on my knee and sing to them and read them stories. Georgia is playing 'mums and dads' with me all the time. I am always big sister. I am always feeling sick and she needs to make me better with her doctor's kit. This is when she changes from 'mum' to 'dr seuss.' She said the most hilarious thing today. We were sticking some wall stickers up in her room - lovely princess ones I bought before I would have thought they were hardly necessary - and she called Sleeping Beauty 'Sleepy Bruce.' I think that will join the list of Georgieisms that have become part of our vocabulary (Witsies, fishied, abcd kids... the list goes on).

I feel so tired! But I feel so alive at the same time. I fit so much into my day. I start with a coffee with Monte (and usually a pair of children jumping around on the bed). Sometimes mg brings me breakfast in bed, because I hate getting out of bed on a sugar low, and when I do I am cranky! So I have my relaxed morning, plus I am working, plus I play with the kids, plus I am breastfeeding, plus I do one creative activity with Georgia each day, plus I make time to do one of my hobbies, plus I 'aim' to keep the house relatively tidy, plus I cook good meals, with the help of Monte, who has taken over the washing duty because he enjoys it (!?). But I do not iron. And I watch too much television and I eat too much chocolate and I don't exercise as such.

Matthew is almost crawling. He'll be 7 months this weekend. He is on hands and knees, rocking to and fro, with a huge smile on his face. He is comando crawling around the floor! Noooo! I do not have a baby-proof kitchen, although mg and I decided that perhaps Georgia could police the law that Matty is not allowed into the kitchen. She'll be good at that.

Post Script

I've been thinking about my last post. I was thinking, 'ok, so what can I do now?' Monte and I have become regulars at our local food co-op. We buy local, organic produce. We get our vegies and our other staples, like flour, eggs and peanut butter :/ from there. This weekend, at the comunity market at the same hall, we signed up at SisLETS - Southern Inner Suburbs Local Exchange Trading System. This is where we can exchange 'units' for products and services, instead of money. We can trade things like computer skills, web pages, heavy lifting (Monte) and ESL and English tutoring and editing (me). I am also going to 'sell' some products, like beading and crochet.

I heard somebody say "rather than try to change, we should just adapt to climate change." I thought that sounded rather absurd! I think that we have no choice - we must adapt to climate change, but we also need to change our lifestyles to prevent more bad things happening to our world.

Scary Stuff

Georgia, cultivator of the earth, loves her gardening.

We're all hearing so much about Global Warming at present. The recent report suggests that by the summer of 2050, the arctic ice will be gone! Just hearing this brought tears to my eyes as I looked at Georgia and thought of her children, missing out on something my generation has been taking for granted.

Temperatures will rise; wildlife will leave its habitat or die. Some countries might like it to be a bit warmer! Sea levels will rise. There will be more storms that our architecture cannot withstand. There will be less water where it's needed, and more flooding where it shouldn't.

So, we're hearing about this a lot at present, which is great. And there is a lot of debate about what governments should do (it's a shame it's all up to them!). But what can we do about it!?

We, as households, need to reduce our impact on the environment. We need to make serious changes. Value changes. Here are some things that we are changing:

• we have switched to 100% greenpower (check that the greenpower supplied by your supplier is actually green-renewable)
• we use cloth nappies and biodegradable disposables. IF SOMETHING CANNOT BE REUSED IT MUST BE RECYCLED!
• I have made the change to reusable feminine hygeine products, such as 'The Keeper' and cloth pads. Before you think "gross" remember that fertility rates and the environment are much worse now than when women used cloth pads. And it's much healthier for women.
• I have a bike to ride to work (but am still too scared to use it!)
• We are growing our own food.
• We are getting a big water tank.
• We water our garden with recycled water from the washing machine, kitchen, shower and bath.
• We are growing a permaculture garden, complete with chickens, banana circles and a pond with swale.
• We don't eat meat. Growing meat is contributing to global warming. There are many ways we can get nutrients without meat, by eating lentils, tofu and lots of other great veges from the garden!
• We recycle ourselves, reusing products where possible. EG, chickens and pets get leftover food, paper is recycled into paper or kitty litter for the rabbit, Benjamin. We keep toilet rolls and scraps of card and other items for craft activities for the kids. Basically, try not to throw anything away! Last week we had just three bags in our weekly rubbish bin!
• Another form of recycling I am trying out this year is clothing. I am learning to make new clothes out of old ones! There are lots of things we can do with our clothes, like rip them up and crochet with them, and cut them up and make pants and dresses out of them, as well as quilts and hats and toys! Exciting!
• We're trying not to buy much stuff, unless it has more than one use. Our contribution to a consumerism contributes to global warming. For me, this is the hardest thing that I have had to change, as I love shopping! I have had to learn new passtimes, such as crochet, beading, knitting, scrapbooking and just playing with my children.

I hope this inspires you in some way to make changes where you can.

Georgia and Matthew, whose experiences on this planet will be so different to mine.

Monte's 30!

Birthday Cake

It's almost hard to believe that Monte is 30. I remember when I met him. He was a cute 16 year old boy! He had a crew cut. We liked the same music. His eyes were (and are) captivating. His smile was (and is) illuminating. Ah! He's still cute, but he's a man now. And he is a great guy. He is very interested in his family; he is passionate about the environment and he loves gardening. In the last 14 years since I met him, he has been my rock and I will cherish him for all of my days and for ever after that.

We had a lovely family dinner to celebrate his birthday. Our families gathered for an Indian feast. I was a bit flustered (what's new) but it was a really lovely night and Monte was stoked. We also had a lovely dinner together to celebrate. It was a magical evening but we got home a bit late, and my parents, who were babysitting, were a bit peeved.

Family Dinner
God Bless you Monte

x

Matthew's First Christmas

Matthew ready for his Christmas Lunch

This year's Christmas was so much fun. We were all so happy!

It all began with the Children's Christmas service at church. Georgia was an angel and Matthew was baby Jesus! After Church we had a lovely meal of Atlantic Salmon. The next morning, after a sleep-in until 9am, we opened presents and enjoyed Georgia discovering what Father Christmas had left her in her stocking. She also liked going through Matty's presents. It was very exciting! We had Christmas lunch at my parents' place before coming home for a rest for a few hours. The day ended with a lovely Christmas tea at Monte's parents' house.

Matthew, Georgia and me, with Matthew's new Christmas Bear from Nanny and Gramps

Such a beautiful boy!

Georgia and Matthew, matching bibs and all, ready for Christmas tea at the Gouldings

Georgia on Boxing day at Harry's naming day

Nearly Christmas

Christmas Letter 2006

Georgia and Matthew at Carols (Dec 3)

It has been a wonderful year for us. We have many blessings, for which we are thankful.

This year we experienced several seconds. Our second child arrived in July and we bought our second home.

We are very happy and comfortable in our new home. Since moving in in February this year, we have made some changes, including painting the walls and polishing the floors. More changes will be made in the near future.

Matthew snuggles up for his first Christmas Carols (cute)

Matthew Montague Gordon arrived after a very quick labour on July 10. Matthew is named after his great grandmother, Audrey Kenny (nee Matthew), his father, Monte and his grandfather, Gordon Goulding. Matthew is a very happy, alert, delightfully easy baby. It was a special day when we celebrated his baptism on October 29th. Family and friends gathered at church early that morning and then joined us for a brunch afterwards.

Georgia was very grown up singing carols by her own candlelight!

Georgia is living up to her name – cultivator of the earth – and is doing a great deal of gardening with Monte in the garden. We celebrated her third birthday on October 20th with a delightful fairy party. She is talking beautifully and is very tall for the average three-year-old. It will be exciting when she starts kindergarten next October.

Rebecca is enjoying her time at home looking after the children, and has been spending some spare time knitting and sewing, as well as meeting with other mothers for playgroup and reading group. Her plan is to return to work part-time, teaching English.

Monte continues to run his business, Sweat Technologies, from home. Monte’s passion at present is gardening. He is growing a productive vegetable garden, as well as growing new plants from seeds and learning about permaculture. Other activities Monte has been taking part in is renovating our home, including building a new kitchen and renovating the existing extension to contain a home office and a home theatre. One of the most enjoyable projects was to create a playroom in the sunroom.

We have had a busy year, and no doubt, the New Year will be similar. We wish you a very happy Christmas and a safe and happy 2007.

Warmest wishes for the festive season,
Monte, Rebecca, Georgia and Matthew Goulding

Georgia, Rebecca, Matthew and Monte...

Merry Christmas from all of us!

Matthew's Baptism

Matthew poses, wearing the beret made by my mum

We had a marvellous day today as we celebrated the baptism of our lovely Matthew Montague Gordon. The church service was lovely. What stands out in my memory was Matty's attentive gaze as the minister (Rod) explained to him the blessing that his baptism brings. Then Matthew smiled at Rod as he prayed that Matthew's ears would hear the Gospel and that his mouth would proclaim God's love. I felt that Matty knew in some way what was happening. He smiled when I made the sign of the cross on his forehead.

Matthew with his Baptism Bear, made by the sewing group at Church Matthew with Rebecca and Monte, and the Baptism Candle Matthew and Georgia

I read a poem that I wrote for Georgia and Matthew. When I wrote the poem I cried, because I just poured my heart out, as best I could with words. It is possible t love your child to bits but still be frustrated when the three-year-old is too excited to sit still to have her hair done!

The Family Photo

I am blessed to have my family. As Georgia often proclaims: "I love my family!" I am blessed to have Monte, who I have known almost half my life. He is a wonderful man. He does so much for the children and me. He is a better person than I am!

Matthew with Grandma and Poppa GouldingMatthew with Nanny and Gramps Turner

We are blessed to have our parents, who offer support and help and lots of love. We thank them for their help for the baptism party, and for being there in our ups and downs, always. They really love our children, and it brings so much joy to us when we see them loving Georgia and Matty, and the children loving them and raving about them. Georgia: "you're wearing nail polish like nanny!" They certainly have an impact!

Matthew with Uncle Russell, cousin Isaac, Auntie Lori and Uncle Chris

Matthew with Auntie Emily and Uncle Arthur

We are blessed to have our brothers and sisters; we are blessed to have so many uncles and aunties for our children.

And I thank my very good friends for being there too! Thank you for coming to see our baby be blessed!

Our prayer is that Matthew will bless other people's lives like he blesses ours. You only have to see his smile as he engages your eyes to know that he will touch many lives for the better.

Birthday Girl

Georgia preparing for her fairy party, waiting for her guests.

We had a lovely time celebrating our daughter's third birthday last weekend. The weather was perfect for a fairy party, and Georgia was so excited. Six of Georgia's friends came to the party. We played fairy dancing, parachute and some other little fun games. Mostly the children wanted to eat, and there were only a few squibbles over the food (twisties, pies and sausage rolls, jelly cups and, of course, fairy bread!). My good friend Kristen brought along her makeup and painted the fairies' faces (except Sankkit, who was painted as a tiger!). I was so exhausted by the end of the day, I slumped into a chair and fed Matthew for a long time; my feet too sore to stand up anymore.

Special special thanks to the people who helped us on the day: Amanda for making beautiful cakes, Kristen for her face painting, Brooke for lending us lots of chairs, and MAXINE AND GORDON for doing ALL the cleaning up at the end, thus saving our sanity and our lives AGAIN. Without these people the day would not have been so great. Thanks from the bottom of our hearts.

Georgia, complete with face painting and a special necklace from Grandma and Poppa.

Georgia with the birthday cake, which was a success. (I tried to hide the broken-off Barbie legs!)

Georgia and Matthew with the cake. She just adores her baby brother. Several comments were made about Matthew enjoying Georgia's 21st more than her 3rd! ;)

VERY proud parents.

And the little fairy was tuckered out, so she slept for most of the following 24 hours, and lived happily every after.

Until next year - or next weekend, when we celebrate Matthew's Baptism (I'm buying the cake!).

Additions

Oh my gosh, it looks good enough to eat!

Yesterday we added 5 new ladies to our family. We got some chicks: Ava, Bessie, Chloe, Daphne and Ella (yes, we can tell them apart, at the moment). We can't keep Georgia away; she really loves them! We must admit that they are really cute. Our cat hasn't noticed them yet!

Cloth Nappies

I am proud to say that I use cloth nappies! I used them with Georgia, but I am more strict about using them now. It's partly to save the $3000 we would spend on disposables, but it's mostly to save the stress on the environment. Disposable nappies took 2/3 of our rubbish bin each week. People suggest that perhaps, with the current water restrictions, it might be better to use disposables, but I disagree. Disposable nappies are bad for our environment, fom the moment they are made until they lie for ever as landfil.

I do, however, use biodegradable nappies during the night, and when we go out, some times. I have heard that if you use an incontinence pad with a cloth nappy they absorb a lot more. I will try that when I run out of disposables. One package of nappies is lasting a lot longer when you only use 1-2 a day.

Using cloth nappies is not hard. It doesn't take that long to do an extra load of washing every 1-2 days. It is good to reuse the water from soaking or washing; the garden loves it. I use the fitted/shaped nappies. I just love the fat nappy-but. And I thought that they might restrict Matthew's movement, but he is rolling around just fine!

Changes

Matthew is changing. Growing, changing. He's three months now. He is getting a tooth. If he's not getting a tooth, he is just dribbling more, gnawing more and being more grumpy. He is trying to sit up, and when we hold his hands, he pulls himself up and smiles and giggles with glee. He is really into his toys, particularly the ones he can hold and chew. He likes a little "noodle," which is a long stripy fish, that he can hold and chew. He also likes his cooled teething ring, my fingers, my shoulder and any other toy he can grab.

Georgia is changing. She will be three on October 20. She has skipped size 3 clothes and is right into size 4. What I thought was a cold is actually hayfever, but she is calmer, happier and more gentle with the baby now. She adores her baby brother (nothing much there has changed though!). I love talking with Georgia. She says the cutest things! I've learned that her brain reallys is like a spnge, as she really does soak in everything we say! Occasionally she will pat me and say, "it's ok honey!" or "come over here babe." We're looking forward to her fairy party next week. Maybe I am looking forward to it most of all. I can't wait to play games with the little fairy friends! I am changing. I am so calm and happy these days. We've got a routine in the house. I feel like I usually get enough sleep! You know what? Monte does all the cooking. I think he's great. He makes my life so easy. Monte, Georgia and Matthew just make my life great :)