Is there anything better than lunch on a warm sunny deck overlooking the tranquil yacht dotted azure of Pittwater, with people you have known (and better still have known you) for most of your life?

M and J are the parents of one of my oldest and bestest friends, and as such are a bit like family - but without the worry, judgement and obligation! Catching up with them is a soothing ritual, and there are the reliable 'traditions' to uphold - the boys always get a 'special little milk' and M always had butternut cookies on hand!
We always talk about how much we miss L (our mutual connection - my friend - who happens to live overseas a lot of the time) and compare notes on how much we have or haven't spoken to her lately. And they ALWAYS have something yummy to eat and something gorgeously delicious growing in their garden. Monday was no exception.....although this time we talked about home schooling and how much they love the freedom farm blog! So M and J - this one's for you!!!

The following evening we were priveliged to have the infamous trumpet player James Morrison do a workshop at our music shop. The boys were front row centre and Flex especially was absolutely entranced with the buddha shaped trumpet-lipped man. James is a great presenter and speaker and can play pretty much any instrument you put in front of him. A man with enough personality to match his great talent, funny stories and a real sense of generosity with his knowledge. We also catered the food for for the group - another responsibilty that Flex took extremely seriously, carving out perfect melon balls and arranging the carrot sticks 'just so'.

We also managed to squeeze in some surfing for the wwoofers, a play with friends at the park, and a spot of shopping. We found 'penny' skateboards for $50 and a second hand xbox set up from the salvos! This is our first foray into the world of gaming consoles and so far so good...they have one car racing game ("This is great practice for when I get my drivers licence Mum!") and one surfing game ("whoa Lucky! Nice method 360 bro!").
But this is the photo of one of my most favourite moments: Magic Beach -  lolling in the water, Lucky meditating on his surfboard! Aaaaaahhhh

Over the weekend the Satyananada Yoga ashram hosted an Akhanda Kirtan which is essentially a chanting marathon! For over 24 hours straight a roomful of people sang, played great music, danced and blissed out fuelled by chai!!! Gav was the sound engineer for them and I must say - it sounded bleepin' awesome! There were some fabulous singers, also clarinet, harmonium, bassoon, various drums, double bass, electric bass and guitar, bells, piano accordian.....a real musical smorgasbord. And all with the intention of (as one yogi put it when I asked him why he smiled so much - "How can I not smile? I am singing a love song to God!") celebration and devotion. We are not strictly hindu, buddhist or even that yogic, but it was a beautiful ritual to be a part of....

I sang happily in sanskrit (who woulda thunk an Australian girl raised by a Swedish mother and Dutch father raised in the Catholic school system and with a fondness for Nirvana would ever sing songs in sanskrit!) and had a pretty good boogie. My shaved head felt right at home as well. The boys drifted in and out, but had found a mate to play with so spent most of their time doing cartwheels and playing DS in one of the luscious huge carpeted yoga asana rooms. They always seemed to be around when the chocolates and chai were served however! 
It was a truly juicy experience.....(no the boys and I didn't do the full 24 hours - we squeezed in a luxurious 10 hour sleep...) We love you Mangrove Ashram!!

It's been raining for 4 days straight, and looks set to continue. The wwoofers are making lemon butter at present and the boys are watching Top Gear 'American Adventure' with their Dad. Eating raisin toast and peaches. All is good in the world if I don't think about all the gardening I need to be doing....
Anyway, thought I'd let you know that we have identified the 'glotta' (interesting and beautiful little sea creature we found a while back) - with the help of a few wonderful people we met on the oyster barge. I was chatting about our new 'discovery' to them and two separate people offered to get on the case and do some research.
I have since received two lovely emails with links to pages and books which id the little critter as a Bullina Lineata or 'red-lined bubble snail'. It is between 15 and 25 mm long and exists all over our the Asia Pacific region.
Now the really cool thing about all of this is realising how many people are willing to help you, share information, pool resources and offer suggestions when they find out you home school. Yes, I have come across a few naysayers but by far and away most people are supportive, interested and encouraging.
Yay to them! After all as the old saying goes - "it takes a village to raise a child".

No I'm not talking about the new bloody (!) Twilight crap movie, (although I was strangely mesmerised by Bella's weird whingy melancholy and Edward's gravity defying hair in the first one - and the boys both want to be able to run up trees super fast) - I'm talking GARLIC baby!!
My best crop yet - a huge armful of chunky purplish organic bulbs, fat and fabulous. Today the boys and our two wwoofers from Switzerland plaited the garlic into bunches, constructed a garlic drying area and hung them up for all to admire.
Sooooooo proud!

We had a pretty great weekend. On friday we went back to Cockatoo Island for some more street art yumminess and it was another glorious shiny Sydney day...the boys hung out with some old school friends and some new home school friends and lots of fun was had by all....Flex is truly enamored with Banksy! He loves the simple style of this artist's work and is really starting to 'get' the satire. Lucky really enjoyed riding his ripstik around with his mate!

After we had farewelled the other families, the boys and I decided to chill in the Rocks for a while. We fed seagulls with our toes and tried to get them to land on our heads (no success), marvelled at the sheer enormity of the cruise ships docked at the overseas passenger terminal and chatted a bit about the gritty history of the area. Check out the lady sitting on the bench in the photo below - she was laughing at our attempts to commune with the seagulls but I have to say - for two hyper energiser bunnies, my boys can  sit stiller than zen monks mediatating when they have a reason to!

We found a Guylian shop (LOVE) and indulged. You know it's rich when even your 7 and nearly 9 year olds can't finish the gold leaf chocolate brownie.

And then - joy of joys - we realised that we had stumbled upon the famous Rocks' moonlight markets. Well.....the boys tolerated me while I browsed the stalls (finally purchasing a cute Mona Lisa pendant) and I tolerated them while they tried on grotesque rubber masks. While exploring a cool upstairs gallery space we happened upon an amazing artist called Ping Lean Yeak - an autistic savant who creates vibrant, pulsating works of incredible beauty and energy. The boys were gobsmacked to see the works he had done when he was merely 9 years old, and to hear his story. They were even more enthralled to meet him and teach him how to ride a ripstik. It was a truly rich experience - my boys were gentle and kind to him and he was STOKED to 'play' with some other kids. His mother had tears of joy in her eyes and told me how happy she was as Ping Lean rarely connects with ANYONE. He is 19 now and I look forward to following his artistic career...
We then sat at a little al fresco cafe, had yummy drinks (Sangria for me, ginger beer for them) and listened to the incorrigible Christa Hughes (my MC idol) work the crowd and a fabulous honky tonk piano player and her washboard rockin' husband play good old boogie woogie. After that it was time to 'be a tree' at an interactive live graphics project and enter the tiny and definitely weird world of a conjoined twins ventriloquist act.....who developed a crush on Flex (much to his squirming discomfort/delight).
I love a little bohemia on a friday evening!

On saturday it was Avalon market day which is arguably one of the best market days in the universe. After a few hot hours of circus play on the oval, shopping for a beach umbrella, new cossie, cool water beads and magic pens, accompanied by the eating of popsicles, sugary sweet lolly straps and snow cones we were BOILING and ready for a swim. And this brings me to the whole point of this post....(better late than never huh!) the joy of watching your kids experience something that you loved as a child. 
At the beach pool the waves and tide were perfect for 'wave braving'. This is where you hold on tight to the chain around the pool and wait for giant waves to splash over you. The anticipation is delicious! The shock of cold water and the bit of fear and the sun on your face and the squeals of yourself and the other kids makes this one of the FUNNEST THINGS EVER! And while I lolled in the water in my new (awesome) red cossie watching my sons enjoy this thing that I have enjoyed countless times myself in a younger less saggy body, I don't think I could have been smiling any wider.....

Is there anything better than a sweet, freshly shucked oyster straight from the river? Shuck no! Escpecially when these oysters are grown and raised by a friendly man named Bruce....

Last Thursday we were lucky enough to be passengers and participants in a 'WaterWatch' day on the river, which meant we rode an awesome oyster barge from Mooney Mooney to Spencer, testing the water along the way.
The boys had their friend S with them and were happier than oysters in lemon juice to have a go driving the barge, hanging out in the 'cabin' with Bruce and learning all about phosphorous levels, sewerage treatment systems, shipwrecks and so on. All this while taking in the mist-shrouded 'land before time' scenery which is the awe inspiring back drop to life on the river. We stopped at Spencer where we had a gourmet picnic lunch under the tree and tested the water for pH levels, clarity and phosphorous. We are awaiting the test results and will let you know how our river is faring....
It was dismaying to learn that Sydney Water was downgrading the sewerage treatment facility which filters water into the Hawkesbury as it was 'too expensive' per capita. Apparently several groups including the mighty CWA are lobbying against this, so if you can, get involved.
Here is the info about phosphorous and how it affects our water. Please read and take into consideration....

One of the highlights of the day was most definitely Bruce the Oyster Man. He shared his story of struggling to find contentment within the workplace, and finally agreeing to take on this position of 'mere' oyster farmer's assistant. He now lives a life many would envy: cruising the river every day, smiling into the sky, eating oysters to his hearts content. And what he saw as a 'lowly' job has proven to be highly scientific, stimulating and fascinating work which takes him into the fields of marine conservation and sustainable food production -  EXTREMELY important areas if you ask me! His knowledge, depth of understanding and passion was inspiring. Just goes to show - with an open mind you can walk many fabulous paths - and don't judge a book (or an oyster man) by it's cover!

The magical experience of gazing into beach rockpools and discovering new and exciting sea creatures never loses it's charm....Lucky and I had an epic day at Copacabana (which is fast becoming one of our favourite spots on the central coast) doing just that , and this is what we found....

Does anyone know it's name? It was the size of a thumbtack, there were several of them in the same pool, and their iridescent blue edges had us squealing with delight. OK, maybe I was squealing a bit more often and loudly than Lucky but the delight was unanimous! Lucky named it a "Glotta" - because it glowed, but we would love to find out it's 'real' name!
Aside from that, I have been having a few doubtful days recently....wondering if my kids are getting enough exposure to 'discipline' in their lives. I don't mean the wooden spoon kind of discipline, I mean the kind that makes you stick at something even if it's hard work because you understand the outcome may be worth it. It's been making me contemplate what I truly value in life, how we really achieve what we need/want to achieve and how important 'self' discipline really is. And I'm still confused!
But gazing at the 'Glotta' (and Lucky just noticed it's tiny little eyes) makes everything alright somehow....

Oh street art how I love thee! The beauty and grotesquery, satire and politics, colour and action, attitude and adventure....combine all this with the historically laden, textural and stunning Cockatoo Island as a venue, and you have a pretty amazing art experience on you hands....

A bit of a comedy of errors, our day was intended to be spent visiting the Sea Shepherd's ship in Circular Quay...which wasn't there. I had gotten the dates wrong. Ooops.
Oh well, off to Cockatoo Island we went (the boys and I, along with our great friends and neighbours) to this urban art extravaganza that is in it's first incarnation....we started the day off, as you do, with coffee and a picnic on the grass under the giant soy sauce fish. Yum!
The kids had a ball 'cuprocking' which is inserting coloured plastic  into a wire fence to make patterns (or not!). Creative!
Then we wandered past the skate park which was offering free clinics and did some chalk art in the giant quadrangle. Cool!
We wandered into the great hall where there was a whole house, complete with a living grass lawn, which had been covered with an exquisite skull mural. Amazing!
We strolled through a sandstone tunnel which had been transformed into a gorgeous gallery featuring Michael Jackson portraits, fantastical hippoes, hypnotic patterns and much more. Underground!
We played  pong and slouched on couches in the ping pong bar - Flex practicing his serve against an incredible mural on the wall. Fun!
We hummed around the 'Oi You!' exhibition featuring works by some of the world's most talented and renowned street artists including Banksy, HaHa and Meggs, marvelling at the social and political subtext to the more famous works. Thought provoking!
Here we go, I know you are all itching to see some of the pictures I took....enjoy - we did! 'Outpost' is on til December 14th and in the tradition of all good street art, is completely free. :)

It. Is. Really. Hot.
It's only early November and already 30+ degrees inside the house under the fan! What will summer be like? Today we enforced the rule of family siesta on the couch...well as much as something as awesome as a siesta involving ice blocks and iced coffee can be 'enforced' or a 'rule'!! I feel it will become a summer staple here on the freedom farm....so it got me thinking of the wonders of weather, and how if we go with the flow of what mother nature chooses to wear on any particular day, all sorts of adventures can ensue.....like flying a kite on a windy afternoon....

....or building a snowman because...well.....you are in the freakin' snow!!! This is the image I will be remembering tonight as I lie in bed, waiting for the storm to come and cool down the air....but I promise to enjoy being warm because there will come a night in the future (6 months or so!?) when I am shivering in bed dreaming of hot summer nights.....:)

We are back down on the northern beaches enjoying a hearty start to the hot summer party season!
Palm Beach yesterday by 11am was already 'wear your thongs on the sand or you'll burn your feet' kinda hot.....and it's only the start of November! The beach was glorious and we all splashed in the surf (Flex even ventured with me out past the break - experiencing terror and the thrill of overcoming said terror), dug sand toilets (which luckily remained unused) and spent ages examining  eggshell blue moths, weird orange wasps, trilobites, 'overgrown' sea snails and collecting sea glass for a friends' future mosaic. Love-er-ly.

But really, what I want to write/gloat about was the star studded, achingly beautiful and somewhat extraordinary party we went to on sunday night......A fundraiser for 'The Living Ocean' which is a local group passionate about helping the Sea Shephard achieve their goals. Now if you don't know, Sea Shephard is an organisation captained by Paul Watson, one of the original founders of Greenpeace. He left/was asked to leave Greenpeace because he could no longer abide the 'passivity' of peaceful action and became convinced that direct, aggresive but still nonviolent protest was what the world really needed. And so formed Sea Shephard whose mission is to stop the Japanese whaling fleet from slaughtering whales in the name of research. Please google them for more info, read the fascinating Sea Shephard story or watch their somehow piratical escapades on 'Whale Wars'.
Anyhoo, the fundraiser was held at The Boathouse at Palm Beach and our music store was one of the major sponsors so hubby and I got to go.....gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous! The theme was 'Pacific Chic' and the beautiful people of the Northern Beaches came out in force! They were glowing in their natural habitat as a soft summery breeze made long silken frocks dance and tanned skin shine in the light of the lanterns....I met a lovely Hawaiian woman who had been home schooled and had loved it, drank some Moet, ate paella which had been cooked over the course of the evening in a ginormous pan (want me one of those!), listened to Kochie interview a passionate and quite funny Capt Paul Watson, swooned as Diesel sing a killer few songs, looked at some great art and some great actors and generally enjoyed swanning around being fabulous!
As the babysitting ran out at 9.15, we picked up the boys and they got to come to the party, meet the captain (They LOVE 'whale Wars' and are really big fans), eat some miniature ice cream cones (one of each flavour!!), groove to Mondo Rock and then....the REAL magic.....we went down to the sand (no pun on 'Come Said the Boy' intended - although Mondo Rock did play that song while we were down on the sand!), and discoved the most AMAZING phosphoresence in the water and on the beach!
Glittering trails through the waters edge as we splashed, our footsteps lighting up like Michael Jackson in 'Billie Jean', glowing waves and a general joyous glee in this magical, fun-as-Christmas natural wonder! All the glitz and glamour of the party actually paled in comparison....overall a memorable evening of both human and mother nature's abilities!