Loving saying, ‘Goodbye winter and hello spring!’

Last night we sat around the table, adorned with daffodils and lush ferns, sipping a hearty homemade vegetable soup, to bid farewell to the last day of winter.

♥ The bright joy and hope daffodils bring. ♥ Ferns, so lush and green. My favourite plant to hide under, like a fairy, seeking shade from the sun.

Today we celebrated the first day of spring with a visit to the beautiful Botanical Garden in Wellington and singing (Charlotte performed in her school choir this evening).

♥ Love the gardens. ♥ Love Spring. ♥ The sound of a choir singing.

And I escaped for my first jog of the season, on my own, running free.

♥ Love solo running, just me, my feet pounding the ground, my thoughts and the sound of the sea.

It was so hard to get out the door and leave the children, but felt so great when I did (and as I ran I kept telling myself off for feeling guilty – I really needed a run!). I so readily put their needs before my own. It’s only when I reach breaking point that I put my foot down and head out the door – I really need to learn to pace myself a little better and put myself first a little more often (I’m a much happier Mum when I do!).

Of course I get out a lot during the day and am forever grateful at being able to share so much with my children – but whilst they run carefree I am often carrying a dozen things, making sure everyone has had food and water, visited the toilet recently, washed hands etc. And then there’s the meeting of their many requests (and the reminders to say, ‘Please’ and ‘Thank you’ over and over again). ‘Pick me up Mama, I want to dance on the stage!’, ‘Can we walk up the hill to the playground?’, ‘Play tag with me!’, ‘Can you carry this flower?’… It definitely takes a great deal of patience to respond positively to the many and varied questions and requests (some of which sound like demands!).

I definitely need to stride out on my own a little more often, like my youngest explorer here…

I was mesmerized by the beautiful magnolias in the gardens today. I would have loved sketching them, or dabbled with water colours… but I barely had time to take a few photographs before a game of tag was called for 🙂

♥ The beauty of spring buds and colours.

Motherhood is so precious, yes, but trying to keep sane and attentive to our children is sometimes a struggle without snippets of alone time to recharge. I really don’t get much of that precious time. It is at night, when my children are sleeping, I get a little slither of time. I can then look at the flowers and sigh with reflective delight. I also look at the smiles on my children’s faces, take stock, and remember why I do devote so much time to them. It is time I will only have once. It passes all too quickly and I am so grateful for being able to share it with them.

Given more evening jogs, alone with my thoughts, I will feel better charged to play those games of tag!

Finishing up with my youngest, Alice, tapping away to video footage of her 8 year old big sister, Charlotte, singing in her first choir performance with her new school. So gorgeous!

Linking up with ‘Things I’m Loving’ over at Paisley Jade’s blog…