Happy mother's day

It's been a crappy week. A really crappy week. My eyeballs ached. My back was sore, my legs screamed at me and my chest hurt. It went on for days. I longed for silence, but the boys seemed to play louder on the stupid wooden floors, rolling everything that had wheels, jamming anything together for maximum effect. Luca's hearing went at exactly the same time, so I couldn't whisper. I had to repeat myself over and over, yelling to get myself heard.

It's been a week of frustration and contemplation. Contemplating if we are the only family to have moved across the world away from all our support.

I didn't enjoy being a mum this week, as hard as it is to say it. It felt lonely.

On day number 4 of feeling yuk, instead of lying down and resting like I should have been, I ventured into the garden and for the first time ever, I felt its restorative power.

As I dug, planted, shovelled manure and mulched with hay, I felt better. I was lost for a few hours in my own world.

Day 5 was the community playgroup. This time Luca came too. It was fab. Luca ran around the back yard trying to tickle the chickens with their own feathers laughing himself silly and Kian gave the decking a good soaking. I was tired afterwards, but it was lovely to get out and see some people.

Cleaning abalone Daddy caught that morning

I'm on Luca's chair, I'm playing with his scissors and I'm laughing at you

And today I almost forgot the crappy week. A lie-in (yes, 7.30am is a lie-in!), breakfast in bed, a very special card and lots of kisses and cuddles.

Then a visit to my plant seller man with Luca so he could chat with his pet sulphur-crested cockatoo. We filled baskets with strawberry plants, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower and peas.

The five of us ran around a rugby field trying to get our kite to soar, but Kian and I gave up and played on the grass underneath the bright autumn sky.

The afternoon was spent planting strawberries, chasing Kian down the road, repotting chillies and blueberry, pulling chicken pellets out of Kian's hands, soaking hay in water and molasses, watching Kian snap off immature aubergines and try and eat them, staking a climbing pea, and catching Kian's hands before he picked off all the strawberry flowers.

It was fun.

And because we were all so grubby, I got in the warm bath with them.

Luca beamed a big smile and said 'Mummy, I love it when you have a bath with me'.

After stories, he said 'I love you right up to the stars and back again'. I have to try and beat his stars each time, with tallest buildings, mountains, and as far away as Grandma lives.

But 'the stars are much further Mummy'. They're always much further, so Luca always wins.

But I still love playing it.

Thank God the week ended well.

Hope everyone had a lovely mother's day too.