Raya brings the whole clan together

 Well Disney here is a challenge for you... I have a family of five, three kids ages 11ish (going on 33) to almost 16 (I know everything and you can’t teach me anything at all)... I need a movie that will entertain the kids. Bonus points if it keeps the attention of my wife and me. The footy is on so don’t be offended if we miss half the film...

Raya you say? Raya and the Last Dragon... Hmmm... Young, fierce, female driven adventure... Quirky characters with a riveting story... What?! What?! Whaaaaaar?! No singing?

For my eldest child to say he liked it... Well Disney I think we just watched a winner... Daughter number one and daughter number two still talking about it the very next day... Yep, definitely a winner...

The greatest test of all my wife and I only spent the occasional moment checking the football scores...

Five stars for the five tribes, well done Disney... Well done indeed...

Sadly our last Sports Day at Jervois Primary

 Such a cold day today and a sad day too. As our Miss B is off to secondary school as of next year it was our last ever Sports Day at JPS today. I always try to be there for this day, a chance to help out the teachers and cheer on the kids. Our little school has a real mix of sporting superstars and those with far less interest (and skill) in sport. What I love most about Sports Day is that regardless of skill, interest and natural talent (or lack there of) each and every student is encouraged and everyone is applauded for giving something a go.

It was difficult to understand why a school would schedule Sports Day in the throws of the season of Winter, difficult for us Laws residing at Casa de Norman anyway who are not overly sporty and so have no real interest or comprehension of primary school sporting events that occur later in the school year. So it was though that the school decided the day pending what could be a mamoth storm was to be our 2021 Sports Day. In fact such was the uncertainty regarding a downpour of rain (that is still yet to unleash) that a back up day (also in Winter) was suggested. Luckily the cold came, the grey clouds came but there was not a single drop of that theatened rain all day.

Foolishly I though a beanie on my head and a long sleaved shirt would be enough to keep the near freezing temperatures at bay. I had left my thick jumper behind as I did not think I could force my yellow T-shirt (the only piece of clothing I own that is the colour of my daughter's team Sturt) would fit over the thickness of such warmth. In hindsight I realise I probably should have just worn the T-shirt underneath and the hidden my support. As at previous Sports Days my voice would always betray my aligience to YELLOW and Sturt, yelling out the team name passionately and proudly to every teacher, student and parent regardless of what colour clothing they wore. Last year I was informed due to COVID no shouting was allowed, a very quiet affair that year. 2021 was not the case here in South Australia and so I now sit by the heater at home pondering a port to sooth my throat.

For all my screaming, shouting and teaching my little niece to do the same unfortunately this year was not our year. It seems Sturt was competative until the team games and then it all seemed to unravel. So on such a sorrowful note we farewell the wonderful day that is Sports Day. So proud of Miss B for her efforts and so proud of my amazing wife who gathered together such a wonderful cheer squad for Boo today... Another farewell... Another step closer to our next chapter...

Discovering the legend of The Plant Guy

 Yesterday evening I had the privilege of meeting Adelaide resident and well respected ‘plant guy’ Markus Hamence (https://markushamence.com/). Markus appeared on my radar after he held a number of workshops at other libraries in and around the city of Adelaide. Prior to meeting this wonderful man I had seen a few things online but nothing prepares me for the real deal.

Markus is larger than life, the personification of friendliness and professionalism. He had our local crowd engaged (and in stitches) within moments of him beginning his presentation. A wealth of knowledge regarding indoor plants, indoor design, in fact I highly doubt that there is anything indoor related the man does not have a brilliant idea about. He comes across as zany, creative and energetic but his wisdom shines through all of this just like peering through the internal jungle of his two bedroom flat to discover the man that is hidden amongst the foliage.

Markus was the perfect presenter for a community so garden focused but he would be just as capable and comfortable in any scenario. Keenly we look forward to him returning regularly to the Murray Bridge Library, annually updating us on the latest trends. Thank you Markus Hamence for your visit, it was a true pleasure.

Thank You

 It has been a while since I have shared my thoughts to this blog but Anzac Day is one time where my thoughts come together in something I want to share. It is not much, but it is an opportunity to say thank you.

Today is the day we celebrate in New Zealand and Australia, a day for remembering the coming together of the ANZAC (Australian and New Zealand Army Corp) forces, their sacrifice in World War One and all of the many campaigns that have come after.

In memory of such courage, such sacrifice and such loss I wish to share a poem I have titled Thank You.

Thank You

For all the sacrifice of family and friends

We offer thanks

For Christmases, birthdays and occasions missed

We offer thanks

To those who left and never came back

Lest we forget the ultimate sacrifice

For all those who returned but were never the same

To those brave souls who left a piece of themselves behind

We cannot know, we cannot say that we understand

All we have is a moment, a candle and that haunting sound

The Last Post plays and the words are spoken

At the going down of the sun and in the morning

We will remember them

What a massive change a year can make... Valentines Day 2021

 Happy Valentines Day to everyone. Whether you have someone special to share this day with or whether you do anything at all to celebrate I just want everyone to know that there are a lot of different ways to love and show love and in one way or another I love you all!!

Valentines Day 2021 started for the Laws at Casa de Law on Norman with a very late wake up... My gorgeous, amazing wife showed just how selfless she is by presenting us all with a Valentine gift bag, each bag holding things that she knew we would love. Following this I got on to the pancake mix, runny this time so we could use the new squeeze bottle to make shapes with the mixture. My first two hand drawn hearts looked more like blobs so we used the heart mould instead. Little pancake hearts were accompanied with unicorns and flamingoes and by 11am we were fed and energised, ready for a trip to Mannum.

My gorgeous girl again made my heart skip a beat as we popped into the local Mannum bakery for lunch. The chicken pie I had was nice but what truly brought me joy was when Miss H came back from the counter with an entry form for the Mannum Show. I'll be writting one or two short stories to enter this year (the first time I think where there is a chance for writers to submit). I have been having some success throughout 2019 and 2020 with my story writing so fingers crossed this is another opportunity for success.

Our final stop in Mannum was the local Waterfall walking trail. Both myself and my wife have found memories of Mannum Waterfalls either as kids, teens or in our early twenties when we went there on a picnic date. This time around it was not quite as we remember it (hard work too with three kids in tow). Half an hour (maybe) of wondering where everything had gone we remember and then back into the car.

By 3pm this afternoon I finally got around to buying my Princess her beautiful roses (12 this time! She deserves every one). Back at home safe and relaxing it somehow made us think back to this same time last year.

2020 Valentines Day started off at our local radio station where as a couple we got third place in the VD couples competition. Red roses were paid for that year thanks to our 'win' and on top of that Miss H scored a cheese platter from the local shopping complex. We were a week away from leaving for a cruise around Tassie (so lucky we got that in when we did), a family trip around Victoria (again so so lucky) to then finish off with a birthday party in the backyard (the jumping castle saga of 2020).

Truly what a change a year as made...

Hope you are all enjoying everything this beautiful Sunday has had in store!

A Christmas letter

 Dear all,

It has been a while since we the Laws of Casa de Norman have been organised enough to send out Christmas cards to all of our friends and family. It feels like a decade at least since our last Christmas letter. Every year though I read through the letters that we receive and I marvel at the incredible year each and every letter has captured. Equally I look back fondly on the copies of our own past letter that we have kept and regret that so much has happened to us without capture.

So 2020 seems like a year we all won't forget in a hurry. So much chaos and sadness for many. So little joy to record. Somewhere in amongst the tears and worries though there are the hidden gems. For us here are a few...

The Laws saw in 2020 with our usual backyard bash, completely oblivious to what lay ahead. Our spirits were high as we had just around the corner our first ever cruise (shared with family Crook) and for me and the kids our first time stepping foot on Tassie soil. Late February and early March saw us enjoy our time on the ocean and our visit to Port Arthur and Hobart followed by time spent traversing Victoria. We returned to home soil in time for a joint birthday celebration for Tills and Boo when the Scooby Doo bouncing castle moved in to our backyard. Heavenly Hotdogs catered (delicious) and everyone enjoyed a beautiful day.

Soon after our amazing holiday was ended with an incredible birthday bash I returned to work and life in SA continued as normal. We had all heard by now of this dreaded illness that had spread across the world and finally come to Australia but for the moment it seemed we in SA were a-OK...

Fast forward to the end of the month and suddenly our whole world was turned as upside down as everywhere else. Everywhere but those places deemed essential were to shut down! Libraries were to stay open until our State Premier clarified we too were to close our doors. Amazing and confusing to us my wife Heidi was still able to work at our local Big W and we were slightly confused about whether the kids could or couldn't go to school.

Home schooling began (fun) along with my attempts to work from home (more fun). The silver lining was our opportunity to venture into the brave new world of online events. Tim the Wizard and his storytelling sessions discovered new fans at home, interstate and oveseas. It has been so exciting to start exploring the idea of online events firstly with my daughters and then with the Library Team. We also discovered COVID Safe ways to continue to supply a borrowing service (call and collect and email and collect) as well as an increase in our home delivery services that started up only a few years before. With staff only allowed onsite the library undertook a long overdue (pun intended) review of our collection with a challenge set for us to massively reduce out average item age. Couple this with a few pilot programs that I put our hand up for, some library committees I was asked to be on, a couple of digital surveys we asked our community to take part in and it has been an extremely hectic and very interesting working year. One positive that came from state boarders and international boarders closing has been the abundance of South Australian writer and illustrator talent available for events at local libraries. We were lucky enough to host the amazing Monica McInerney for almost 60 community members. It was a real thrill to meet with such a wonderful person as well as such a talented writer.

Speaking of writers I have been seeing some success with my short stories. Since publishing my novel The Eleventh Tome in 2018 I have discovered the art of shorter prose (anything from 100 word drabbles to 5,000 word short stories and everything in between). I have had great encouragement from friends and family and have been accepted numerously by The World of Myth Magazine, Spillwords and Black Hare Press to name a few.

Heidi has been amazing throughout this crazy year. She has picked up extra work with a friend's amazing business (Heavenly Hotdogs), continues to deal with all the wonderful customers at Big W all the while being her amazing, selfless self (mother, wife and friend of the year). Nobody visits Casa de Law on Norman without a full tummy and so much laughter.

Our eldest has had a much better year in high school this year, helped by having an extended holiday at the start of the year and a period of school closure early on. He too has picked up some shifts at Heavenly Hotdogs and we are so proud of his efforts.

Miss 13 has helped out with Heavenly Hotdogs too with a summer job on the river bank. Great feedback from owners Sunnie and Troy means we are hoping next year she will be able to join the team and make it a real family affair. As mentioned we have two teenagers in the house now with a special Christmas in July celebration. Lots of fun for friends and family alike. Such a fun filled and festive celebration. At the end of the year we had a graduation from Primary into High School which COVID made difficult. Regardless of the virus there was still a chance for a jump into the river.

And of course our youngest continues to keep us entertained. I continue to suggest to Boo that once she reaches High School she MUST do drama. She is now double digits and tries everyday to keep up with her sister. Boo is blossoming at school and has such a wonderful friendship group there. This next year will be our last at our favourite little school as 2022 is Year 7 High School for the whole of the state.

With all that in mind we now say farewell to 2020 with mixed feelings. I fear 2021 will start with similar uncertainty (thanks again COVID) with hopes of a little normalcy as the year ahead progresses.

Sending love and well wishes to all of our family and friends.

May your Christmas be merry and your New Year a safe and much happier one

Kind regards,

The Laws

Celebrating an end and a new beginning

 Miss 13 has done us proud. This last month has been all about her last moments of Primary. Next year we will have two at High School with one to go. 2020 has proven to be sadly a year of missed opportunities and canceled events but the lessons of resilience can only make us stronger.

Farewell JPS and hello MBHS. My fingers are crossed that 2021 will prove to be a much better year.

Is there a word for being excited and nervous in equal measure?