"us"

So today I spent a bit of time blog reading, and ended up at this article 

{found via Kelly Rae Roberts}

I read it twice.

Then sat and thought about it some more.

It is pretty powerful, thinking about the future years and their memories of me.

And realised that yes I do this.

Make excuses not to be in the photo.

Or because I am generally the one taking the photos, 

I am not in them.

And decided, that today, with both kids at home,

we would snap a 'selfie' on the Fuji Instax

{which doesn't scan so well, but you get the idea - 

smooshed faces all together}

So this is 'us'.  

My kids and their Mama, as we were today.

 

October

 October, is it really you?

Signs of Spring

We are beginning to see signs that Spring is not far away....

and I am loving it.

and then...

and then...

just like that....

I fall in love with the beach and polaroid all over again....

Balloon Polaroids

 

I have been slowly using up my stash of expired polaroid film.  

I have been loving the quirks (the film expired years ago), 

and so last week when I walked around to our local park at dawn,

 and was greeted with a field full of inflating hot air balloons, 

I just could not resist taking polaroids.  

Yes, I knew there was not enough daylight, and the sky was so grey.  

But still, when something as magical as the balloons are filling up the early morning sky, 

they deserve to have the polaroid used.  

Don't you think?

A polaroid self portrait

This was a challenge for me.  

I have been wanting to take a polaroid self portrait for ages now (years?) 

but whenever I think of it I have every excuse under the sun - no time, too busy, bad hair day etc etc.  

This morning, my little guy and I got home from walking Annabel to school,

 and in between playing trains, having a tidy up 

and mentally planning all I have to do today to get ready for a market tomorrow, 

I realised that if every day is a busy/bad hair day, then I would never take the photo.  

So before I could talk myself out of it, I put down the washing basket, grabbed the polaroid, 

and here you have it.  

A selfie.  

Bad hair day and all.  

Of course I asked myself why was I posting a very real (read un-glamorous) photo here?  

And you know why?  

Because life is short.  

Life is real.  

And this is me.

the smocked dress

Another polaroid taken at my friends house on the tea cup photo shoot.  

There is something so adorable about little girls smocked dresses, isn't there?

In the midst of summer

Summer....this year you have been the perfect mix of long hot sun drenched days, and cold snaps to remind us not to take you for granted.  The best days have been those spent out at the beach, and fingers crossed we get some more fantastic weekends when we load up the car and head out on an adventure....those are the days that both kids exclaim it was the best day of their lives, and make the car sicknesses, the sandy mess, the tiredness at the end of the day all worth it.

my little guy

Playing along with Faith Hope and a whole lotta Love for Wordless Wednesday.

My little guy, and some very old expired Polaroid film.

Free worldwide shipping!

 
This weekend, I am having free worldwide shipping in my Etsy shop.  I don't know about you, but I have started cruising my favourite Etsy shops thinking about holiday shopping.  So this is a great time to get organised with holiday gifts!  Does not apply to jewellery, but everything else, even the photo blocks, ship for nothing.  Not a cent!  This deal will finish end of day Sunday.

What are you plans this weekend?  We are starting to paint walls, skirting...which will take us a step closer to painting the wooden floors white.  Oh happy happy Spring!

The tea cups

On Sunday I spent a few hours with one of my oldest and dearest friends, 

photographing her most divine vintage tea cup collection. 

I had 2 packs of Polaroid film waiting patiently in the fridge for our afternoon, 

and I cannot tell you how much these photos mean to me...for 2 reasons.  

Because I know how much the tea cups mean to my lovely friend, 

and well, because after being so uninspired for what feels like months and months, and doubting myself, 

these little tea cups set up on her adorable kitchen table, have given me that feeling again.  

You know, the one where all you can think about is the photos, 

when you just want to hold them in your hands and look at them again and again.  

When your heart feels alive and you feel the passion for it again.

Thank you, my wonderful friend,

for letting me come and take these photos, 

and for bringing the inspiration back. 

A Trip down Melbourne Memory Lane

Do you ever feel like your heart belongs in two places?  

That you have two homes?  

That you belong here....but you also belong there?   

Today, my heart is here in our home in Carterton.  

Yet my heart is also wandering the city streets of Melbourne.....

A note to Winter.

Dear Winter, 

Thank you for being so mild, for letting the sun shine through on crisp blue sky days, 

for keeping a lot of rain and wind away.  

Thank you for delivering just enough cold weather to make me really appreciate spring.  

Thank you for bringing us snow - SNOW!  

The winter illnesses we will forget, but the magical snowflakes that fell from the sky for 2 days, 

the snowman we built on the front lawn, that we will remember.

Winter, thank you......for being over.

August

Already?  Really?

She floats in a daydream...

{she floats in a daydream}

 Letting the photo do the talking, 

and playing along in Wordless Wednesday today with Sarah 

over at Faith, Hope and a whole lotta Love.

thinking about hearts

I've started to think about Valentine's Day. 

But really, shouldn't we go the extra mile for those we love

every day?

While we're on the subject...

...of vintage goodies, I've turned the latest vintage inspired polaroids into photo blocks,

available individually (on both Etsy and Felt)

or as this set titled 'Nostalgia'-

It is my new favourite set, now hanging in my 'still to be finished' studio. 

But that's a project for another day.  :)

it's all about the music...

 {the blue ukelele}

I've been waiting all year for December to roll around so we can start playing the Christmas Carol music.  It seems to get us all in the festive spirit, and I love how Annabel requests her favourite songs all day long.  We never get sick of them, and oh how her face lights up if we are out and she hears one she knows.  Even Otis is getting in on it, following Annabel around copying her dance moves.

{it's all about the music}

It's no wonder with all this music and dancing in the house all day long, I was inspired to take some more polaroids...

Oh, and if you pop over to Much Love, the wonderful Anna is hosting a 2011 Polaroid Daydream Calendar giveaway...

The music

'can you hear the music.....'

'the strummer'

'the listener'

If a man does not keep pace with his companions,

perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer.

Let him step to the music which he hears,

however measured or far away.

~ Henry David Thoreau

what's around the corner

Savour every moment....
because we never know what is around the corner....