News from our mini-farm

It's been ages... I know.... But we're still here!  I thought I'd write today as I've had a typically crazy day and it seemed worth sharing. 

My morning started before 7, out in the yard, milking the goat. It's been a steep learning curve over the last month for Jorgie and me, but we're getting there. What started four weeks ago as a hand milking of about a shot glass full of milk has become a hand vacuum pump milking machine and about 400ml a day. It's not enough milk for cheese and yoghurt and baking, but its enough for drinking and it tastes a-mazing!  

After breaky, there was sourdough to start and some odds and ends with the boys. They turned 9 last week, you know? My baby boys are growing up way too fast!  They had a pupil free day today and spent most of it playing with birthday presents, but they did come and help collect a bucket full of willow for the goats. 

At about 10, I had to walk the goats. We wander up the road a bit and I let them munch on various weeds along the way. Our baby goats are growing quickly too. They're seven weeks old now and growing so fast!  They were disbudded at two weeks old, and we wethered Storm this week (poor little guy). We've found lovely local buyers for him too which is both fantastic and terribly sad. We always knew we couldn't keep him, but we'll miss him terribly when he goes. 

My afternoon was filled with baking, tutoring my 17 year old brother and belly dance work. I've been back teaching kids classes this term and absolutely loving it, and I've also recently been lucky enough to perform a few times, including once at our local Ishka store - so much fun!

I cooked us a yummy dinner, which, like every meal at the moment, featured broad beans - our massively glut crop at the moment!  After tea, I geared up and visited a friends place with Lachie to undertake our first duties as new beekeepers!

We've bought a hive and are 'rescuing' a beehive each from walls of buildings. The bees would have had to be killed if they didn't have a home, and Sharon and I are both very excited to turn our hand at apiary. Sadly, we can't find a local teacher, so it's down to lots of research, some common sense and a lot of making it up as we go along. All went well tonight and we have one hive in a box with no stings and only a few dead bees. 

And now, I'm chilling out with a glass of home brew, taking the evening off. 

So life is good here!  How are you?

There was this one time, at belly dance camp.....

I'm taking the day off today.  I got out of my pyjamas at 1pm after a little snooze and have done little more than keep the ship running all day.  Why?  Because I am coming down from a HUGE weekend.

A few years ago, my friend Sharon and I decided that a belly dance camp would be a lot of fun, and hosted our first in 2011.  It was a huge success and we have just had our second, even bigger, better and more successful camp and it was quite simply, awesome.

I've been planning and preparing for camp for the last 9 months.  We changed things around a little and split up jobs, so I haven't been on my own.  But as the one in charge of marketing, admin tasks, teaching and overall planning, I've been busy, and in the last two weeks, more than a little stressed.  But as the weekend rolled in and everything fell into place, I was so proud of my little team and all of my work.  It was a weekend that I would have loved to attend as an outsider, but even as someone who was working hard all through the camp, it was a huge amount of fun.

So what happened at Belly Dance Camp 2013?  Let me take you there.

Camp was held at Southcombe Lodge in Port Fairy.  This venue is designed for camps and has space to eat, play, cook, sleep and dance.  Friday night saw 25 women arrive at camp, set up their beds in the bunk rooms, order takeaway for dinner and get to know each other over a few bottles of wine in front of the fire.  We had a local henna artist join us and many of the girls had her do some amazing art for them.  There was some setting up done for the rest of the weekend, but most of the night was relaxed and fun.

Saturday morning, after a continental breaky, the campers from Friday night either attended a special rehearsal or relaxed: strolling the market that was (conveniently) being held in Port Fairy, chatting over cuppas or greeting the remaining 25 women who arrived and settled in on Saturday. 




Belly Dance workshops

At 12.30, camp officially began.  I welcomed our 50 campers (the camp was completely sold out with a waiting list), and sent them on their way to attend the first of two two-hour workshops that were held in the afternoon.  The workshops, taught by myself and three talented and wonderful guest teachers, covered a range of belly dance styles: I taught a workshop that was American Tribal Style while Ma'isah (from Melbourne) taught one on Baladi Ashra (a traditional Egyptian style) and later Lisa (from Geelong) taught a Tribal Fusion workshop while Adalia (from Mt Gambier/Adelaide) taught a Classical Orientale workshop.  Each camper attended a workshop in each session and came away with a head full of new moves and ideas and a well used body!

The workshops finished at 5.30pm, leaving us with a crazy hour and a half to do our makeup and hair, get in costume, have market stalls set up and the hall and meal prepared for our Hafla (belly dance party).  A fly on the wall would have collapsed from exhaustion watching the mad array of colourful dancers flitting about preparing!




Happy Campers on Hafla night

Our Hafla was different to any other belly dance concert I've attended.  I went out on a limb in how we ran it, and was a little nervous as it began (when I'd explained to some how the night would run I'd been met with some interesting looks....).  Our hall was set up with tables and chairs all around the edge - each camper (and my family who were there to help) had a front row seat at a table, with the dancing to take place in the middle (I personally hate having to peer around people in front of me at concerts, or having to sit twisted around in my seat to see a performance behind me).  We had no running order for the night, but instead, I had all of the introductions for our performers in a basket and they were drawn out at random (with a little tweaking by me as the night went on).  Each dancer would perform, then introduce the next act.  So while I was running the show, I wasn't the one doing all the work introducing acts.   The audience was made up only of the campers and a few helpers - no public - and nearly everyone there performed at least once.




Performers part 1

And it seems my kooky plan paid off.  The night was a huge success, full of fabulous performances, lots of giggles and the most supportive audience I've ever experienced at a dance (of any sort) event, and I spent much of the rest of the weekend receiving praise on the format.  Yay!

We had performances by dancers who had never performed before, right through to our teachers and experienced, professional performers.  The costumes, music and dance styles were so varied that it became a gorgeous, colourful night that we'll remember for a really long time.




Performers part 2.

Along with dance performances, we ate a delicious meal (all homecooked by our group and coordinated by Sharon), shopped at the great belly dance market stalls, enjoyed some free dance time together and hosted a zahgareet and shimmy contest.  My boys were the judges for the shimmy contest and won the hearts of every camper by choosing to award the prize to the dancer who had the best smile and looked like she was having the most fun while she shimmied - lady killers!

The hafla was over by 10.30, but It was after 2am before the last campers head hit the pillow as many of us stayed up to enjoy the fabulous company and atmosphere created by a group of likeminded women.




Beautiful belly dance goodies to buy.

Sunday dawned and there were many sleepy, tousled heads making tea and coffee in the kitchen before settling down in the hall to share breakfast.  I think Sunday morning is my favourite part of camp.  I love seeing the groups of people that came to camp, dissolve into one big group as the campers choose to sit among the new friends they've made.  I love the cosy, relaxed atmosphere of women sharing the morning cuppa and caring for each other as they begin the last day of camp.

At 10.30, we gathered the troupes for a final workshop.  This one was my favourite.  An all-in workshop attended by all campers and taught by all of the teachers.  Sadly, Adalia wasn't well enough to teach, but Ma'isah, Lisa and myself all taught fast and fun workshops that had us all sharing in the joy of our dance.  The workshop concluded with my lovely friend, student and yoga teacher, Neika, calming and stretching our tired bodies with a short yoga session. 

Thank yous, lunch and hometime followed. 

I can't thank the people who helped out at camp enough.  I'm so proud of what we achieved!  And now we're left to decide if we leave it another two years before the next one, or do it all again next year.

Here's some of the comments that I've been sent on Facebook from campers so far (aw, thanks girls!):

• "Thanks Tracey and all the Meenkeel Gypsies for a wonderful weekend. I would love to have the opportunity to come next time too. Fantastic performances and such a diverse array of styles and costumes! Really enjoyed it all, excellent workshops, fabulous food, entertainment and the opportunity to shop, you've got it all covered!" Rebecca
• "I love, love, loved Belly Dance camp....... what an awesome way to spend my birthday weekend. Wonderful teachers, performers and dancers........ Catching up with old friends, making new ones. The only thing I would change for next time - is that I definately need to bring my daughters along So book us in for next time so we don't miss out!!!! Thankyou sooooo much Tracey and everyone for a great weekend xxxxxxxx" Kasia
• "aaawwwhhh we love you girls xoxoxo" Julie
• "Was so amazing :-) thank you for all your hard work organising it and can't wait for the next one! X" Misty
• "Belly dance camp rocks, can't wait for the next one! Thanks for organizing it Tracey and thanks to all involved was amazing to have a weekend to share with like minded women supporting, encouraging and learning from one another xx" Neika
• "had an amazing amazing amazing time!!! *ADORED* camp thank you one and all it was a brilliant weekend, I danced, learned, taught, shared, loved, laughed and met beloved friends and made new ones and had a wonderful weekending doing what I love more than anything else in the world - YAY!!! xoxoxoxoxoxo" Ma'isah

Together

Having good people around makes so many things better. 

Not everything, we need time for just us, but many things are made better by the company of someone special.

A cuppa tastes better with a friend to chat to.

Digging holes is less like a chore when you do it together.

Laughing with a good friend is like therapy.

Watching a movie is nicer cuddled up with someone you love.

Sad times are made more bearable with a hand to hold.

An op shop bargain is better with someone to share it with.

We're social creatures, things are just meant to be done together.

I'm thinking about this because I'm planning a belly dance class for duets. Beginner duets that is - mums and daughters, sisters, friends etc who can come and learn belly dance together, because it is more fun that way.

I love dancing with my troupe mates.  All three of us is good, but dancing duets is special.  There is a link between the dancers that is almost physical.  A warm bubble around us that means that we dance together and feel the music together.  Most of my favourite belly dance moves are ones designed specifically for duets.

I started my belly dance journey with my mum.... something to do together.  It didn't last long, mum has a busy life and it wasn't perfect for her.  But it was fun while it lasted, and taking those first tentative steps into something new was so much easier for having someone to do it with.

Sometimes I think that's why I blog - it takes all of my little things and gives me someone to share them with.  Being able to share those simple things and knowing that my blog friends are going to enjoy reading about them makes them feel even better.

My boys are lucky.  They live with their best friend and do everything together.  They never have to go anywhere alone.

I feel very lucky too as I'm surrounded by wonderful people.  I have people that I can enjoy doing so many things with.  My hubby, my best friends, my mum, sisters, brothers, step mum, grandma and my dancing sisters.  They're all so different, and yet so perfect for doing all of the different things in my life with.  Love them all.

A warm and lovely weekend

We've just had one of the loveliest weekends. Lovelier still because most of it happened without plans and in a simple way.

It started with rain at home on Friday night. Real rain that made puddles. It was so lovely that I went outside to dance in it for a while.

We didn't stay at home to enjoy the rain, but instead visited my mum, stepdad and teenage brother and sister for a casual tea. We helped pick some of their fruit and veg, Stu played a spot of cricket with my brother and we caught up with them all for the first time in a few weeks. I gave my sister her birthday present - a pair of crocheted leg warmers- totally unseasonal, but perfect for a girl who loves all things snuggly.

Leg warmers for my little sister (modelled by me)

Saturday morning, the boys asked if we could go to garage sales. For some reason, they were keen to go bargain hunting, so (armed with their money boxes!) we headed out to visit a few. One was the sale of some family friends. The boys spotted some boogie boards that they liked. They were prepared to pay, but were given them for free - best type of bargain! We didn't really find other bargains, though we enjoyed the browse, so we headed to the Warrnambool Sustainable Living Expo instead.

The expo wasn't very big, and we were a little disappointed that it was mostly stalls selling their solar panels, solar hot water etc, so not much for us. There was the new organic veggie box business there and we stopped to introduce ourselves and have a chat - they live in our little town and I think they're doing a terrific job of doing something that noone else was in our area. We were most dissapointed that there were quite a number of stalls handing out stacks of stickers, magnets and brochures. I try not to take brochures if I don't really need them as I feel it promotes waste and our kids are the same. It made me quite cross when stall holders said to take them anyway as they had heaps. But the worst of all was (this really made my blood boil) was the big box hardware stall that was giving out balloons on those plastic stick things - how does that promote sustainability? Piles of extra plastic off to landfill - not impressed.

There were however some good talks going on about growing food, backyard chooks etc which was good to see, though we didn't stop.

The most exciting thing for us at the expo was having a chance to look at some electric cars. They're way out of the budget, but fun to dream about!

After a family siesta, we headed out again for a fun family meal out followed by a concert that we all performed in (dancing and drumming) to raise funds for the Make-a-wish foundation. The concert showcased lots of different dance genres and schools from the area. It was a good night and I was made so proud by my family and all of my dance students who put on a fabulous demonstration of the joy, inclusiveness and beauty of belly dance.

Sunday morning was a true celebration of our evolving mini farm - the kids played outside in their pyjamas with their homemade toys. They caught escapee chooks to return to their homes and hunted for eggs. Meanwhile, I picked tomatoes and Stu and I prepared the kitchen for making another batch of passata. I peeled tomatoes, Stu washed bottles, then the boys came back in and all four our us ground the tomatoes and bottled them with a few basil leaves before processing the bottles in the Vacola. So much fun and I'm sure we'll be able to taste our smiles and laughter in each bottle.

Grinding up tomatoes

Cappings bottles is a team effort

The sun was starting to beat down by then, so after a brunch of fluffy pancakes with fresh fruit and homemade jam, we grabbed our gear for a trip to the beach.

We swam, boogie boarded, played in the sand and taught the boys to snorkel. Everyone was in such a great mood it was one of the best beach visits ever!
Sunday arvo, we topped of the weekend with a play at a neighbour's for the boys, a garden project planning session for us, a beer with another neighbour and a delicious home cooked dinner.

Fabulous weekend.

I hope your weekend was great too, and if not, I'll send a little of our sunshine your way.

This week I'm an event organiser.....

A lot of my time lately has been taken up with preparing for a belly dance camp I will be hosting in May this year, and I thought it was about time the blog saw a bit more of my life as a belly dancer!

In 2009, as a fledgling teacher, my friend Sharon and I hosted our first ever Night Bazaar.  It was held in the gardens of the local nursing home and we had dance groups from all around come and put on a wonderful, colourful show for the locals.  We had a number of stalls and people came to pinic on the lawn, enjoy the show and shop. We were thrilled with the success.

Some of my students at our first ever Night Bazaar.

In 2011, we hosted another Night Bazaar, but this time, went out on a limb and combined it with a camp.  We expected about 20 of our closest dance buddies to show up, we hoped another teacher might teach a dance workshop and we thought we would put on a little show too.  Well, the camp was a massive success!  We sold out, had to put on an extra set of workshops (and still had more teacher's asking to teach), had a fabulous show, lots of stalls and people standing outside the venue just to see in!  We were, again, blown away!

Me as a student in a "ballet for bellydancers" workshop at the 2011 camp

Some of the fabulous performers at the 2011 Night Bazaar

We were immediately asked when the next camp would be.  It was tempting at the time to make it for the next year, but we knew that most of our supporters are mothers, without a massive amount of disposable income and that perhaps doing it every year would make the event stale, so we scheduled another for 2013.

Last October, I started advertising the camp.  By Christmas time, I had sold 40 of the 50 camp places, had 3 fabulous teachers from Adelaide, Melbourne and Geelong in place to teach workshops (I'll also be teaching), was set to be the Victorian host of the ShimmySkirt project and well on the way to preparing for camp.

Our logo for 2013.  Copyright Meenkeel Gypsies, Koroit Belly Dance and Elissa Taylor 2013

This week, I have only a few places left to sell, and have been busy allocating people rooms, checking payments, sending letters to all of our campers, planning workshops, planning menus (yes, we feed them too!), liaising with screen printers and our designer for tshirts and sorting out the performance.  In the next few weeks, I will have to speak with the venue and work out how many tickets I can sell to non-campers for the performance night and have a meeting with my fellow committee members to move along the preparations for food, stalls and a fundraising raffle.

Its an awful lot of work - voluntary work that I'm not trained for.  But I love it!  I love the organising and planning and the fiddling around with the fine details.  But most of all, I love that I am able to put on a wonderful weekend that people look forward to.  A weekend full of feminine joy, friendships, giggles, makeup and dressing up with friends, performing, teaching and learning, and community spirit.  I can't wait!

Our life less ordinary

If someone had asked me ten years ago, what I would do with a weekend in 2013, I don't know what I would have told them. I probably would have predicted spending it with Stu - right. I might have hoped I would have a couple of kids in tow - right again (though I would not have predicted the identical twin boys I ended up with!). But as for the rest....? What I do know is that there is NO WAY I would have predicted the list of things I've been up to with my little family this weekend!

Friday saw me planting out some more seeds in my vegie garden, hanging out with the kids at home and studying the new fitness program I'll be teaching next term. That night, we met Stu in Warrnambool to work on our tiny school's fabulous, parent run, pancake stall at the night markets. We worked really hard, but it was so much fun!

Saturday morning found us in the garden fixing a gate to stop our over friendly chooks camping on the back door step (and possibly being hurt by the dogs). Mum stopped in to say hi, then later, in the spirit of tiny towns, one of our friends and neighbours dropped in for a cuppa. We emptied our waterless toilet and made some adjustments, and spent some family time discussing the possibility of getting a milking goat, and debating the best solar power option.

That night, after a homemade curry packed with homegrown veg, I dressed up in a belly baring costume, did my hair, put on too much makeup and went to a local restaurant. It was completely booked out, and I was there to belly dance.... people really enjoyed watching me (and my dance buddy) performing the dances I had choreographed.... AND I got paid for doing it!  Can you believe that?!

A job as a belly dancer? !  I never would have guessed that one!

After dancing, I came home to a peaceful home (it was screen free Saturday of course) and cooled down with a homemade apple cider, hanging out with Stu and our books for a quiet night.

Early this morning, I was out and about with Stu for a run - yep, a run! Stu is helping build up my running stamina. Once I was spent, I was home for some yoga before breakfast.

The rest of the morning was spent processing three of our home raised chickens for the freezer - a job that, while not exactly pleasant, was surprisingly satisfying and not as horrible as either of us expected it to be.

This afternoon, I have watched brand new chickens hatch, completed paperwork for this terms belly dance classes, crocheted a small gift and baked bread for the next couple of days. And while I was doing that, Stu was working on the belly dance website and the kids were enjoying their favourite thing - time together at home to just play.



Hatchlings!  Six hatched and at least two more on the way!

I'm exhausted! But would I change a thing? No way! And I would love to know what I'll be up to 10 years from now.



Around our place today

More presents are appearing daily beneath the Christmas tree.  We're all getting very excited!

Christmas baking and lots of it.

My hip scarves have been hung up after completing my fifth year working as a belly dancer/teacher.  I'll take a bit of a break, and then back to it for next year which will be even better and brighter.

My young chickens are getting BIG!  These in the front are about 9 weeks old, and the smaller ones with their mum in the background are about 5 weeks old.

The vegie garden is thriving and we're eating zucchinis.

And I have no pictures, but Stu is starting his new job today which is very exciting, and the kids are finishing up at school this week.

What's happening at your house today?

I already have a job, thankyou.

The boys went back to school this morning to begin their final term of their second school year.  They are getting so grown up. 

Stu didn't go to work though.  His company made him redundant on Friday and while they've given 10 weeks notice, they were told to take today off anyway.  His redundancy wasn't a surprise, we've been waiting most of this year for the company to set a date.  You see they made some new grand plans that involve cebtralised call centres and jobs in the city and no more rural and regional branches.  Stu has been with them for over 7 years and the only other remaining lady in his office has been with them for 36 years.  The office will close just before Christmas.


So how will this affect our family? We are fairly confident that Stu will get another job in the next couple of months.  If he does, things will go on as normal.  If he doesn't, then I will look for some sort of "stop gap" job to help out until he does.  But despite what some people seem to think I should do, I won't be looking for permanent employment.

Since the boys started school (and occasionally before that) I have frequently been asked if I've 'found a job yet' or when I'll be going back to work.  Thanks for your concern folks, but I already have a job, in fact I have several!

In terms of the employment that I put on my annual tax return, I teach belly dance and perform regularly.  This earns enough each week to cover basic weekly expenses such as fuel and food.  But more importantly, I love it, it keeps me fit, and it doesn't put out my family.  I am here each day when my boys go to, and return from school.  I am able to spend time with them and my husband, and cook dinner for and eat with them every night.  My paid work fits our family life.  If I returned to secondary school teaching (or office or lab work, all of which I've done in the past), I would need someone to care for my kids before and after school, I would need to do preparation and marking in the evenings and I wouldn't have the time or energy to be the homemaker, mother and wife that I want to be.

People wonder what I do all day.  Well it isn't lunching at cafes and shopping with friends.  If I'm lucky, I might have a cuppa (at home) or a long phone call with a friend once a week. I will either have lunch with Stu or browse the opshops with a friend about once a month.  The rest if the time I spend working.  Today I have made more household cleaning products and my herbal hair rinse.  I have washed and hung on the line all of the bed linen (and will soon be bringing it in to remake the beds), I worked in the garden, planting, weeding etc to make sure we are growing enough vegies for summer and I also checked on the laying chooks and our newly hatched chickens which will, in a few months either join the laying flock, or become meat for us to eat.

I've also been working on the pizza oven project with Stu (because he is home), and found time to begin making another homemade gift for the Christmas pile - of which, along with the birthday presents, will be nearly all made by me.  This week, I need to do lesson plans for my term of classes, sew some (recycled fabric) shorts for the boys and do some of the less regular chores, like window washing.  I will do the grocery shopping tomorrow, but also bake bread, make our butter spread and cook pasta from scratch.  I also hope to buy a cheesemaking kit this week so I can add to our list of homemades (which already includes most of what we eat).  I don't have time to socialize, watch tv or read all day, but I do find time to think while I work about new hairbrained schemes brilliant ideas to save us money and make us more sustainable as a family.  I have a job.  This job(s?) may not earn a paycheque, but what it saves us financially, and give us in terms of quality of life is priceless.

But how do we go financially? My husband's job earns a decent income (we think) though it is still below the Australian average.  We don't recieve any benefits from the government, though we do get some family tax benefit, and my bellydance pay too.  We own both of our cars, have no credit cards, are paying off more on our mortgage than we have to, and we are doing fine.  No-one in our family misses out on anything they need or really want.  We holiday each year and sometimes go out for tea or do other things like the pool or a movie.  We're doing just fine.

So to the people that ask about my job status, I just want to say, thanks for your concern, but I already have several jobs and a comfortable, happy and full life.  We don't need to change.

Slow living month - September

I know I'm 5 days late with this journal - its been hard to find the time and motivation to get here to blog this week.  We're on school holidays and the boys and I have been having a ball, and the weather has been great, so I've been in the garden a lot.  But I do love these journal type of entries, so here it is, Slow Living Month September.  Do pop over to Slow Living Essentials and see what others have been up to.... that's what I plan to do as soon as I'm done typing this :)

~Nourish~

We celebrated early spring one night by taking our dinner outside.  We cooked our tortillas on the BBQ plate and ate by candlelight.  We realised that early spring is really the only time you can eat outside by candlelight with kids - in summer it is too late by the time it is dark and in winter it is too cold.  It was a lovely, impromptu, weeknight dinner.  I love making our own tortillas, it is one of the few things that Stu and I cook cooperatively and I love it.  We are also now getting plenty of eggs, so there has been a resurgence of egg based meals and pancakes on weekends.

~Grow~

September in the garden has been all about preparing for summer crops.  I continued to plant and nurture seedlings in the cold frame and started planting out.  Unfortunately, snails and slugs are a huge problem here, so I've been fighting them at every step along the way.  I've continued to harvest greens from the garden and the snow peas are finally producing a few crisp pods that never seem to make it to the dinner table.  My son has decided that they are a snacking vegetable, not a dinner vegetable - I tend to agree.  I've loved joining in on the garden journal with Squiggly Rainbow too (and will be back on that when the holidays are over!).

~Prepare~

The coriander that has filled our curries with its colour and flavour through winter has sensed the spring and is bolting to seed, so I have picked huge amounts of it to make frozen coriander ice blocks using this recipe.  They're lovely and will hopefully keep the deliciousness going for us a bit longer.
We also continued to bottle beer and our first batch of alcoholic ginger beer.  The alcohol level is relatively low, but the taste is gooooooood!

 

~Reduce~

Lots of lovely op shop finds this month - clothes and books for the kids, crafty things, clothes and a couple of homewares for me and something special for Stu.  An espresso machine! It's not a super fancy one, but it works really well and Stu is enjoying his morning coffee from it.  He is not enjoying so much the regular requests for 'cinos (strawberry, vanilla, caramel and chai) from the rest of us ;) 
I've also continued to reuse and repurpose a lot of 'junk' through the garden for various jobs.

~Green~

Our challenge for last month was to do 'random acts of greening'.  We built (from recycled materials) a new compost bin; switched to bamboo compostable toothbrushes and discovered new ways to be just a little bit greener.  The kids also took it upon themselves to pick up litter when they go for their walks to check the mail or exercise the dogs - proud of my little greenies.  Our bamboo toothbrushes needed a bit of decoration.  They are all exactly the same, so we decorated the handles of them with nailpolish so we know whose is whose.

~Create~

I'm still working on my jumper that I had hoped to have finished by spring, but keep getting interrupted in its creation to make costumes for dancing, birthday presents etc.  And I have had to write a plan for the next few months of Christmas present making as the sheer quantity on the to do list was overwhelming me.  

Here are a couple of little birthday presents I made this month and was able to gift to the little girls they were for yesterday. They loved them!

A Tangled Happy Wand for a 5 year old friend

A little "spare pocket" handbag with crocheted decals.

We also started on the pizza oven, and are discovering creative masonry :) We built the arch to the base - so proud!  (photos soon)


~Discover~

The library loads have been huge this month and I was also given some vintage pattern books which are gorgeous.  On the reading pile are: Living the Good Life, A Katie Fforde novel, numerous books on building woodfired ovens, a couple of copies of G magazine and a book called A slice of Organic. 

~Enhance~

We had our Spring Hafla at Belly Dance.  I love gathering with the community that we've built with our little belly dance group.  We always have a great atmosphere and fabulous fun.  I was so proud of my own kids and all of the other Belly Kids and adult students who graced the stage with the crazy collection of dances I've been teaching them this year.  It is always such a pleasure to watch a student take to the stage for the first time and to watch the buzz they get from such an achievement.  I had numerous people congratulate me on the diversity and family friendliness of the group, I work hard to make sure that all women and kids, regardless of their abilities or body shape, size age etc are not only welcome, but truly included.  I'm really glad this shows.  I also love that I get to share this with my hubby and kids - special!

Some crazy Shaabi style fun with my intermediate students.  This style is representative of modern 'nightclub' style dancing, hence the casual jeans costume.  All just for fun really :)

~Enjoy~

I've enjoyed the first rays of Spring sunshine.  The first week of holidays with my kids.  Hanging out on screen free Saturday nights with Stu.  Having my stepmum visiting and taking her to meet Clover (and in doing so getting to spend time with my awesome bro and sis-in-law again).  A photoshoot with my little spunky guys before their school disco.  A family day at my mum's place where I felt closer to her and my little brother and sister than I have in a long time.  Dinner and dancing fun with my dancing sisters, including some time where we banned belly dance talk and just connected as friends.  And much more. A good month.

This week

In typical Spring fashion, the weather has been all over the place this week, and I'm flat out busy with a hundred projects on the go!

Saturday was a horrible day!  We were stuck inside baking and trying to keep the kids entertained.

Sunday was a beautiful day!  We were outside all day, working hard in the garden.  We built a new compost heap.  Cleared a massive pile of prunings (OK, moved them to a more hidden spot till we work out what to do with them!).  Made some progress on the paving/courtyard garden.  Tended the vegies that are growing well.  Mowed the lawns.  Started work on the frame that will (hopefully) support our Luffa vines.  And ate every meal in the garden.  Bliss!

Monday was an OK day weather wise - perfect as it was shopping day.  I did the groceries and all the in town running around and finally caught up with one of my best friends for a cuppa and a long chat.

Yesterday was blissfully sunny and warm.  Unfortunately, I had to run back to town to get some more things (swimming togs to replace the ones that just wore out on the first day of 2 weeks of swimming lessons for the kids!).  But the trip was made worthwhile by finding time to grab a few bargains at the opshop and then having lunch with my sister-in-law and her mum (this involved coo-ing at my beautiful niece too..... awwwww). 

Then yesterday arvo was all in the garden!  More seeds went in, some seedlings were transplanted and the new beds got a couple of bags of sheep manure and were covered with black plastic to kill the weeds that had grown from the horse manure.

And today is another ordinary weather day.  But that's OK, I don't need sunshine tempting me to be outside, I have a Hafla to prepare for on Friday!  What's a hafla I hear you asking?  Its a belly dance party.  My students will be dressing up and performing some of what they've learnt this year and we'll be sharing a meal with family and friends of the group.  We get about 60 people attend our hafla, which will this year be held in a gorgeous country hall and catered partly by us and partly by a local restaurant who will provide delicious pizzas and cupcakes - no, that is not traditional Middle Eastern food, but it will be very much appreciated! :)

In addition to hafla planning, I have a workshop to teach tomorrow and regular classes to run, and then a family event on Saturday.  Its busy busy busy!  So if the sunshine wants to stay away for a few days so I can work, that's OK with me..... so long as it comes back on Sunday, because with a bit of luck, we'll be starting on the pizza oven project then.

So if I don't get back here for a while, you know why.  Though I am going to try and get back with some hafla photos and if that pizza oven project gets going, you'll hear about that too.

The Friday Morning Go Slow.

Thursdays are busy for me. 

I start the day with home things, then spend the afternoon in teacher mode - revising lesson plans, printing handouts, dressing for class, preparing a dinner to take with me, packing the car.  As soon as the boys come in from school, I fuel them up for dancing, then we're out the door.

From 4 o'clock, I am the queen of the belly princesses (and princes).  We shimmy and giggle, dress up and play, and I fill 10 young minds with all sorts of information about the dance,  how bodies work, Middle Eastern culture and ancient stories.

Once I've chatted to mums and waved off my princesses, I'm left in the big hall with my little princes.  Sometimes we dance some more - the class stereo turned up loud and a whole hall to spin, chase and pull out our craziest dance moves.  Other times, we chill out with books or the boys play their games while I dance some more.

After 5 Stu arrives and we catch up on the day.  I heat up our dinner (filling the hall with smells I later have to explain to more students).  We eat together and enjoy the family time.  Simple meals, but usually healthy and homemade.

Then the boys leave me to prepare again.

At 6.15 my adult students start to arrive.  Some are new faces, most I've danced with for years and call my friends.  We fall into chatting about our weeks with ease and I have to remember I'm the teacher and pull away from the girly chat to start our class.

It always takes me a few minutes to get into the swing of it.  The first two songs always feel the hardest.  Then I find my groove and I push the girls through a session of world dance fitness, body conditioning, drills & skills and then learning some of my latest choreography.  The class is mixed level, so I am kept on my toes giving a challenge to the advanced students while ensuring the beginners are getting the basics right.  I sing the songs, joke and say silly things - we all have fun, get sweaty and feel the feminine joy of the dance.  Then we're done.  We stretch a little and say our goodnights.

It's 8.30, one of the troupe girls puts the kettle on and gets out some biccies.  We're not done yet.  The three of us are close - mother, teenage daughter and friend to both.  This is our time.  With cups of tea (chai on lucky nights) we keep chatting while we keep dancing.  Last night was a quick rehearsal of our regular style before learning a new choreography for an upcoming performance.  It's different each week, but always full of teasing and giggles and hard work.  I'm still the leader here, but the learning is much more mutual.  The dancing is harder, pushing our bodies to learn new things and working towards the synchronicity that our little troupe is commended for.  We're definitely not the best dancers in the world (not even close!), but people tell us we're pretty good and we work hard to make that as true as possible, and we always thread the energy of friendship through our dancing - its the ribbon that holds us together.

Eventually our bodies have had enough (usually after an hour, sometimes two), and we pack up to go home.

I drive home.  If I'm good, I stretch while telling Stu about my night.  Often I'm not good though and just have a drink, wash my face and head to bed.

But sleep isn't easy with all that music in my head and I often lay there till the middle of the night continuing to dance in my head.

Now I'm here on Friday morning.  I can feel the effects of Thursday on my body and my mind feels foggy.  So the boys are sent to school and work as usual, but I take my time.  It's the Friday morning go slow.  An extra cuppa, something light to read and time to think.  Today I think I'll go to the library for a weekend book, and pick up more milk for the weekend.  I will work on a few things that came up last night, but stroll through the morning.  Friday go slow is lovely.

At least until noon, when I'll be back at the hall to dance with my mums and kids group :)

The things we're doing.....

I felt that I had nothing to blog yesterday or today.  It felt a lot like this:

"What have you been up to lately?" asks friend/family member/random acquaintance bumped into

"ummmm..... not a lot really" answered, while thinking "But I have been busy just living!  I've been doing so much, but feel like I have nothing to report - how is that possible?!"

So, I thought I would share a little list of the 'not a lot really' things that we've been up to.

• Stu and I re-taught ourselves how to play Gin Rummy and played late Saturday night while drinking Baileys.
• I danced at an 80th birthday party, where the guest of honour was thrilled to have us there and danced with us for 10 minutes.  It was the best gig ever!
• I started to hack into the pittosporum hedge that runs the side of our block.   We're going to gradually replace it with citrus and avocado trees which will also give privacy but with the added bonus of food.
• I hosted the AGM for our belly dance group at our house.  It was a pretty straightforward meeting, but the afternoon tea and company was exceptionally good.
• I found some kids yoga sessions on You tube and can't wait to share them with the boys.
• I've had each of the boys home sick from school for a day.  Neither of them were terribly sick, but a day on their own/with me seems to have been good for them.
• I received my Digger's club order.  I was so excited!  I have now planted my tammarillo tree and my kiwiberry and am looking forward to starting to plant my huge pile of seeds.
• I've discovered (a bit late) River Cottage and am enjoying watching the first season on DVD with the whole family.
• I enjoyed having my teenage brother stay with us for last week while he did work experience.
• I have been talking to my sister-in-law regularly for baby updates.  I am getting very excited about its upcoming arrival.
• My chooks are slowly starting to lay again as the days are getting slowly longer - an egg a day this past week.
• I started washing my face with honey as I had run out of cleanser and needed an alternative.  I love it!
• Stu has been planning and thinking a lot about his brew shed and we've been plotting to use homemade alternatives for expensive items he'll need.

See.... not much, but a lot at the same time.  Thanks for listening :)

A weekend away

We've just had a very busy weekend without our kids. The boys went to my mum's for the weekend to be spoilt rotten (junk food, late nights etc) while we went away to participate in the Ballarat belly dance bazaar.

I learnt lots  in a couple of belly dance workshops while Stu learnt lots visiting the homebrew shop and gathering items so he can  start brewing soon. We then took the opportunity to shop for bulk bargains that are hard to find at home, stocking up on cans and dried beans to get us through several months of from scratch cooking.

After delicious cuppas and cake with Kim, who was to perform with us, and her hubby, we readied ourselves for the evening. 
It was a great night.  We caught up with dancers from all over Victoria, watched some terrific dancing and helped raise funds for the Ballarat NICU. I love being able to watch and support the range of amateur and professional dancers at these concerts and then have them support us - that's what its all about, sharing in the dance community. 
At last it was our turn.  We dumped the nerves beside the stage and did our best.  I think we did very well.... You can watch it on our website or youtube if you like. 
It was wonderful to share the joys of performing with Stu and then celebrate together afterwards. 
Tired but relaxed on Sunday, we said our goodbyes, pottered around a local market (bought a new plum tree for the mini-orchard) and came home.

At home we managed to get some more work done on the new veg beds before the boys were dropped home. It was so good to see them. 

Needless to say, we all fell into bed very early and slept soundly in preparation for a new week.

How was your weekend?

A hobby to share

Several years back, I was a stay at home mum to two adorable baby boys. I felt like everything I did was about them and that my entire life, including my body, belonged to them.  I needed to do some exercise and I needed to find something for ME.  On a trip to the local library I noticed a flyer for bellydance classes. I had no idea what belly dance  was, but the times suited our family, so I gave it a shot.
Five minutes into the first class, I liked it. Half way through,  I loved it. By the end of that class I was obsessed! And so began my whirlwind journey into the world of  Middle Eastern Dance. 
Before a year was up, I had advanced to the top of my class, was relief teaching and did my first paid performance. After 18 months, our teacher left, and I took on the teaching of our class, also enrolling in online teacher training  courses.  Over the next few years, I became a qualified teacher with training in numerous genres; I started directing our professional troupe who perform regularly in restaurants and I expanded my classes from once a week up to 7 a week (at one stage). The  journey has been a mommoth one.  But throughout the journey, i have still been a wife, homemaker and mum.  So what do my family think?
Well first of all, I would like to say that from that very first lesson, there was nothing  but support. Stu has always stepped in to care for the kids if I've been out for dancing, and he does an amazing job.  The boys have  been awesome too - supportive and proud of their mum. 
But they took it further.  The boys loved dressing in my costumes and have very proudly had me dance and teach dancing at their kinder and school.  They have come to my classes and sat to watch and now are enrolled in my kids class.  Next week they'll be with me when I teach my first workshop at the Fun4Kids festival.
And Stu... My awesomely amazing husband..... He used his business knowledge and took on the busy role of treasurer for the group. He learnt how to make a website and created one for us. He takes photos, videos, helps with projects and more.  But the best thing? He has learnt to play the Egyptian drum, the darbuka, and can play music for me to dance to.
Next month we will be taking a 'grown-ups' weekend to go and perform together at a belly dance concert in Ballarat.  I'm enjoying rehearsing together and can't wait to be on stage with him.
It is great that I found something I love and am good at, but to be able to share it with the people I love the most is truly special.

One of the best things about ATS (AKA freaking out about dancing solo)

In the "spotlight"
(but the Alish right behind me)

I call myself a belly dancer.  I have studied and I teach a range of Middle Eastern Dance styles and think all of them are beautiful.  But if given the choice of what to dance, study or teach, tribal is my pick.  American Tribal Style dance (ATS) or Improvised Tribal Style (ITS) is a group improvised style of dance that incorporates a vocabulary of movements, each unique and (where needed) with its own cue.  A group of dancers has a leader who chooses the movements to perform based on the music she is dancing to, and the others follow.  It is a silent language and, when done well, the audience (unless educated) won't know that it is an improvised performance as the dance becomes seamless and stunningly beautiful.

At my dance school, Koroit Belly Dance, we call this style of dance MiTS (Meenkeel Improvised Tribal Style), and we study and incorporate movements from a range of teachers and troupes as well as adding some of my unique movements.  Most of the credit for our movements and education goes to Carolena of Fatchance Belly Dance and Devi of Ghawazi Caravan.

aaahhh.... reconnecting

Together with my troupe, the Meenkeel Gypsies, I perform MiTS more often than not.  It works fabulously in restaurants and parties as it fits into any space and, because it is improvised, we can work within the moment - include an audience member in the dance, move to a different space in the restaurant or (and this is the point I am coming to) duck out of the spotlight when we have a little moment of nerves or a mind blank.

Beauty in a small space

You see in all of these styles, there is a leader, but at any point in the dance, she can decide to change the lead, therefore allowing another dancer from the group to come forward and take over.  Leading the dance is the part of ITS that most beginner dancers hate - that moment of being in the spotlight and having to think of what to do, being responsible for the whole troupe!  But experienced dancers come to love the lead.  Being in the lead gives you a chance to play with the moves that you love the most, making the music work in the way that you think it should and therefore showcasing the dance how you believe it should be.  It also gives you a moment of "spotlight"!  Being up there in the lead, you can't really see the other dancers, so for a moment, you can imagine that you are dancing solo and being amazing doing so (OK, that sounds like showing off - but we're performers, we're meant to!).  So you're up there being awesome (at least you think so) and then you make eye contact with an audience member and suddenly your mind goes blank and you start to freak out...........  and here it is, the beauty of ITS .......  you turn that move around and there are your dance sisters, smiling at you, and it all feels OK again.  One of them takes the lead and you keep on dancing - seamless.

Dance sisters!  Love em!

I can dance solo.  I have done plenty of times, on stage and at restaurants and parties, and I've just signed myself up for another performance on my own.  I teach "solo" too - in all of my classes and workshops, I'm up the front of the room dancing and instructing on my own.  But I don't love it as much.  Without my sisters right there to help me out, the spotlight is a little brighter and scarier, my hands shake a little more and the butterflies in my tummy go crazy.  Solos are not my thing, but I'll keep doing them because there is a need for them, but also because they make me appreciate my dance sisters even more.

Dancing kids

Every Thursday afternoon I get myself ready, pack a drink and snack for the boys and run out the door at 3.30 to bundle them into the car and drive to town to teach my most dedicated class of belly dance students.  This is my biggest class and my students all turn up each week (unless they are really sick) - there is no lack of motivation or "just didn't feel like it"s in this class, and if they aren't able to come there are often tears - these are my belly princesses and belly dance kids.

The students range in age from 6-12, are girls and boys and come from Woolsthorpe, Koroit, Port Fairy and Allansford primary schools and the Warrnambool Special school.  Each week they come in, pleased to see each other, and usually dressed in satin harem pants or a belly dance tshirt and always with coins a-jingling. 

This is my most intense class too.  For 45mins we jump from one activity to the next - skipping, swirling veils, colouring in, reading stories, learning choreography, listening to Middle Eastern rhythms, playing musical instruments, playing games (shimmy limbo, veil pyramids, musical cushions and belly dance cards), learning new moves, improvising and always SHIMMYING!  At the end of the class the kids don't like to leave, they continue to play until I send them all home with their parents.  At the end of the class I'm sweaty and exhausted but my heart sings with the joy of sharing with enthusiastic children.

The parents love sending their kids to belly dance too.  They love that in class their children are taught culture as well as choreography and that they are given clear direction as well as a chance to immerse themselves in the music and just dance.  They also appreciate that there are no tests or requirements for the students to be at a particular skill level, this is a class that suits all abilities and if the students never improve beyond the basics, that's OK.  They also appreciate that while I charge a reasonable fee for each term of classes, they are not required to buy expensive equipment or costumes.  Not that the kids don't wear costumes and use materials, but I either supply them in class or give a range of options for buying them - from op shop, to make it yourself, to pay me a fee to make it for them and I also have a small range of items at reasonable prices for them to buy.  I run this class the way that I, as a parent, would like the class to be run.

I love this class - it brings a smile to my face on even the dullest of days.