… from reading sales and retail blurb and not really in the mood to write. Was going to write at lunchtime but my internet connection didn’t. So I’m going to resort to cute picture of my son again. Sorry.

No, that’s not a dress he’s wearing – he decided to “borrow” my jumper and parade around the room with it yelling “Look at me, Mummy!” Was very sweet.

It occurs to me that I really don’t emphasise the good side of parenting enough. I spend ages on here whinging about how hard it is looking after a toddler, and tend to miss out on all the really good stuff.

Two years old is a really great age. He frequently comes up and gives me huge hugs and sloppy kisses – particularly in the playground. He’s started to tell me that he loves me (albeit not frequently enough for my liking!). We’ve started having what amounts to proper conversations now too which is fantastic – he has a “real” personality now and is more of a companion (not that he didn’t have a personality before … it’s just… I don’t know – I think I’m more aware of the individual soul with his own likes, dislikes and opinions living with us now). There are now small segments of time where I genuinely enjoy his company and it doesn’t feel I’m looking after him, we’re just two friends enjoying being with each other.

Today, it all feels worth it.

Well, as you’ve probably seen, I’ve got a new “Projects” section on the left menu bar with my 800×600 and 26 Things entries. I’ve now fixed the pop ups so they scroll and are resizeable which should be a bit more userfriendly (sorry wintermute!).

I’m at a bit of a loss what to do now. Any more major photo projects coming out?!

I’m not sure if I’ve been very very silly.

Being a bit worried about our current household cashflow (cash? wot cash?) I’ve been thinking for a while about doing one of these catalogue delivery things to earn a bit of pocket money. The guy who used to deliver catalogues to our house in Croydon was really cool – not in your face, was reliable and friendly so it seemed like a reasonable idea that could be combined with looking after Akra Jr full time. Flexibility is the key.

Finally took the plunge and bought myself a starter kit. Feeling horribly guilty for all those times Akra Jr ripped up a catalogue before it was left out again for pick up or when I forgot to leave it out to be collected as I now realise the poor sod had to pay for replacements. All the literature seems very hard sell, but I don’t want to be like that – I just need some pin money. I don’t have to be, do I? The other guy wasn’t like that.

*sigh*

money
cash, coins, change, currency

Good old Financial Times…. but …. 1 quid?!!! Do they think we’re all rich or something?…

So that’s all my 26 Things photos done. Now all I have to do is design a page to put them all on.

My druidry course (well, the introductory “see if you like it” part) arrived yesterday and it looks really good – I’m very much looking forward to getting started on it even though it’s likely to take years. It seems to have a good emphasis on the experiential which is encouraging. Also, on completion I can use the credits towards a distance learning degree if I so choose.

However, it occurs to me that those of my readers who haven’t had much contact with anything pagany may wonder why on earth I would want to go this route. Am I nuts? What is it that draws me to paganism in general and druidry in particular? I’m not sure if I can really explain it completely in words and probably not in a satisfactory manner to the “she’s nuts” camp, but I’m going to give it a go anyway.

To get an idea, borrow a young child. Don’t worry, not for long – just for an hour or so. You can give them back after the fun bit (here, borrow mine!) Take them for a walk around. I guarantee that after about 5 paces, 10 at most, you will have stopped to have a closer look at a leaf, or a dandelion clock or to stamp in a puddle. After the age of about 7 years old, we don’t seem to have time or want to bother to squeal with delight when we see a snail, let it crawl across our hand and watch intently at the feelers telescope in on themselves when they touch your skin. After all, we know what they look like, don’t we? Recapturing that child-like wonder at the world around us is an amazing experience – you very quickly realise how little you know about the world around you.

It’s more than that of course. It’s finding connection with the world around us. It’s about learning to live with the rhythms of the day, month, year instead of constantly fighting against them. It’s feeling the spirit of a place and working together. It’s listening to the trees grow. Just those few hours in Kelsey Park helped to show me that it was possible, even for a diehard city dweller like me. Not only that, but despite the fact I love centrally heated, double glazed cocoons, this path continually draws me to it, even when I try very hard to ignore its calling.

I know there’s a lot more to druidry than that but I think that’s the part for me that’s easiest to explain. Of course, I don’t know enough about it yet, that’s why I’m doing the course after all.

monument
remembrance, tribute, tomb, dedication

The obligatory war memorial. I love the colours on the stone and the angle of the steps though.

food
breakfast, brunch, lunch, afternoon tea, dinner, dessert, midnight snacks.

Yes, veg was supplied as well and it was all very very yummy. Shame we’d had quite a bit of wine at that point so I just thought it was my eyesight out of focus rather than the photo. Oh well. Time running out and all that.

This time 7 years ago, a handsome man was pulling stupid faces at me while I repeated “for richer for poorer” back to him.

I am probably the luckiest woman alive – I got to marry my best friend. Not quite sure why Akra wanted to live with a selfish cow like me, but I’m very glad he did! It seems appropriate that we’re finally back together again just in time for our wedding anniversary.

We’re being very brave and going out for a romantic meal for two. Akra Jr is going to be looked after by (hopefully) an extremely professional lady from Sitters – a babysitting agency. I am a bit nervous about leaving him with someone I haven’t met before, but I am hoping that we can budget a night out a month at least.

Is it unromantic to take my camera so I can get a 26 Things picture for “Food”?

symmetry
balance, equality, evenness, mirror image

I think this is the best I’m going to do with the time left – my washing basket (which has a double life as Akra Jr’s “take the entire contents of my room downstairs” basket).

Finally got my computer out of the box YAY! It’s so nice to be at a proper keyboard with a real mouse instead of those stupid touch pad things.

I have downloaded the pictures off my camera at last, and thought I’d share with you my latest 26 things images. Let’s just hope I manage to get the final pictures taken before the end of the week!

footwear
what do feet wear? what goes on feet

These delectable feet actually belong to my mother. Personally, I think bright pink nail polish is all the footwear anyone should need…

love
something you love, something that is loved

Sorry for using yet another shot of Akra Jr for this photo project, but I really couldn’t come up with a better image of love than this: Akra Jr with his beloved Nana (my mum).

sound
things that make noise, loud or quiet

I’ve always found windchimes so soothing, particularly the wooden ones.

home
a house, town, state, country, what makes your home, home

Don’t laugh. It’s what represents my home most at the moment – piles and piles of boxes!!

signage
stop signs, go signs, shopfronts

Seemed like the most appropriate sign for the month of July to me.

scape
your surroundings, panoramic views, terrain, cityscapes, landscapes

This is actually quite a disappointing picture. I’d hoped for something a little better, but conscious of time running out I’ve decided to use it anyway. It’s a view of the River Severn in Worcester – trust me when I say the view is far far better than this crummy photo.

transport
how we get from A to B

Akra Jr gets a new set of wheels. This was our bargain buy of the week – normally about 40 quid new, we found an ad in the paper for one at ?25 and it’s in excellent condition! Always wanted to get Akra Jr one of these, but couldn’t justify the money.

weather
hot, cold, spring, summer, autumn, winter, sun, snow, rain

I love this picture. The sky almost looks too perfect, doesn’t it? Such a shame it seems like we’re only getting that kind of weather for half an hour or so at a time recently.

empty
deserted areas, finished products, blank expressions

My glass isn’t half full, it’s not even half empty… More please, barkeep!

a sunset
one sunset in july. the sky before the sun goes down

Yes, I finally managed to get a picture of a sunset. I’d actually forgotten all about it, until I gazed out of the window last night before pulling the curtains. Akra looked up to see me run out of the house and down the footpath yelling “bugger!” on the way past…

new
just bought, current, modern, unused

Just had to be the fifth pushchair, although I was tempted to use this one for transport instead.

communication
how we speak to each other, how to express your thoughts

With more time I would have come up with something better for this category, but thinking about it, it is rather apt. The internet is my primary method of communication (well, other than direct speech, which is harder to capture on film) – I blog, I use ICQ, frequent bulletin boards… With touch-typing speeds that border on being faster than my brain can think, I find it so much more convenient and relaxing than the telephone or a letter.

light
natural or artificial, bright or dim, unique lighting

Actually, it’s the shadow patterns I like most about this picture. Oh, and the warmth of the colours.

So there we are. I have only 4 categories left to get: food, symmetry, money and monument. I have a good idea what I’m going to do for money, but the rest (symmetry in particular) have me stumped. Going to have to come up with some ideas quick!

We own 5 pushchairs.

Seems a little extreme for one child, doesn’t it?

I think it should be compulsory for any prospective first-time parent to go shopping for baby paraphernalia with someone who has spawned at least 5 children so they can advise you properly on what you really *need* as opposed to what the sales person tells you what’s essential. So many things we have bought “the best” of, finding out later that something much much cheaper would have been much much more practical.

The first pushchair was bought while under the influence of pregnancy hormones. Oh, and my mother. We did the trawl around the baby departments, and as my mum had offered to buy The Pushchair it was expected that we buy a really really good one that would last several children. Something that screamed quality. Something that put a dent in the credit card. Despite me mentioning to the sales assistant that really I needed something that would fit in the boot of the car and get on and off public transport, we ended up with a huge bulky (if somewhat classy) Britax 3-in-1 thing that was all singing and all dancing.

The second pushchair was bought once past the initial few months of not really wanting to go further than the local park were over and I wanted to go somewhere adventurous… like the town centre. I realised that big and bulky was NOT going to go on even the special wheel-on buses or have a decent turning circle in narrow supermarket aisles. Also, not forgetting I’d do my back in every time I had to get the pushchair up a small flight of stairs. So, off to Mothercare we trotted and came out the proud owners of a cheaper Graco thingy. Which was a very good pushchair. More or less. We could have done with researching it a little more carefully though, before parting with our cash.

The third pushchair was bought shortly after the purchase of a new Micra for me to drive about in. My thoughts of freedom were brought back to Earth with a bump when I realised that the Graco wouldn’t actually fit in the damn boot. Back to Mothercare for an extremely cheap “fit in the boot of the car and just extract for quick journeys” pushchair.

The fourth pushchair was bought a few weeks after the third pushchair after we realised that we’d bought the first one without checking the front wheels were pivoted. (It never even *occurred* to us that they’d MAKE a pushchair with wheels that didn’t turn!). Not a total disaster though, as pushchair number 3 found a new home with my mum as an emergency pushchair when she looked after Akra Jr. This latest pushchair again was pretty much the cheapest out there with the same criteria as the third.

The problems with the fourth pushchair were prolific, but as it was only occasional use, it was never really that important. It veers slightly to one side, so I end up with my left shoulder aching after a while of constantly having to correct it. It’s heavy and awkward to get up stairs. The basket underneath is completely impractical. The angle of the seat is odd and Akra Jr always looks slightly uncomfortable sitting in it.

Then there’s the move. All of a sudden I’m using it all the time as most of the pushchair trips out now involve a car trip first. Then the other day the folding mechanism jammed while I was in the carpark with someone waiting to take my space. Managed to get it closed eventually but only after a lot of swearing and stress. That was the final straw.

Enter pushchair number 5. With Akra Jr still likely to use a stroller for long distances up until the age of 3, it had to be worth getting a better one. This time it was researched properly and I have found the ultimate. It’s a Maclaren Volo and it is a joy to push around. It’s ultra light, fits in the boot of the car (and still room for shopping), has a decent size basket and has go faster stripes (okay, I lied about the last bit). It’s also nice and comfy for the little tike.

This is the last pushchair I’ll ever buy. Well, until kid number 2 at least…