We're all going on a...

Summer, no, Spring holiday! In our fancy old caravan, no less. We didn't see much sun, but who cares when your house on wheels is parked opposite the beach. And hey, my one year old went in for a dip and she wasn't the only one in the swim. Kids are fearless when it comes to swimming in sub zero temperatures. I often wonder at what age we cease immersing ourselves in freezing waters simply because swimming is way more fun than being warm and comfortable. I suspect it's around the same age that fashion stops being a compelling reason to prance around the streets in singlets, sandals and short shorts the moment the sun peeks it's cheery head though the clouds after a long Winter.  Have you seen those girls? No sense, no feeling??
On the up side of being in a child's mind, I envy the way they can wile away the hours on seemingly pointless but infinitely beautiful pursuits. Sitting in a patch of sun watching my daughter meticulously collect and sprinkle tiny handfuls of stones on to a blanket made me want to be in that blissfully absorbed state. My son would have happily played, barefooted on the "lovely" grass at the front of our caravan all day, so involved in the sensory experience he couldn't hear a word anyone said. Wandering along the beach I happened upon this...

At first I wondered if it were one of those grey nomad folk perfecting the art of ikebana (Japanese flower arranging) but the maker herself happened to be walking past when I came back to take a picture. She told me it was a "little floral garden". Such skill, consideration and patience and so sweet. It has become this weeks goal for me to find that childs head space to fall into, I think it's the space in which people go when they meditate, or run, or lie in a warm bath. It's that space where your mind can go where it pleases without that constant "must do this, have to do that" chatter that gets in the way. By the end of our week at the beach I think I was almost there. 
Holidays have a timeframe. For my family it takes about five days to wind down. Those first few days seem to follow the frantic pace we've supposedly left behind. There's lots of walking the streets checking out the sights and shops. Having picnics of fish and chips and ice-creams and trying all the playgounds. Not to mention sifting through all those super duper coastal op shops. You know the ones. Old school and filled to overflowing with goodies discarded form dusty old on site caravans and beach houses. They're usually at the back of churches and have ladies called Doris at the helm selling everything cheaply, with an obligatory box of 20 cent lemons on the counter. I love them, but the hunt for retro treasure really keeps me from the chilling out, getting into that holiday mode. So, by the time day five rolls around and I've finally settled in to sitting around with a glass of wine mid afternoon my mind starts to ponder packing up and heading off. Now, as usual I've developed a theory. I'll call this the "speeding up the slowing down" theory. Next time we head of, caravan in tow, I'm instituting that the first two days require the car remain parked at all times. The rule means we can only go somewhere accessible by foot and I think I'll add a no eating out rule, too. That way we will be forced to settle and enjoy the peace and lack of something to do at every tick of the clock. The distractions will be filtered away and we can look forward to some quality time enjoying all those simple things. I look forward to spending our next holiday sitting around reading, throwing a ball to the kidlets, remarking on the facilities at the caravan park while intermittently preparing something yummy to eat. I might even find myself creating a little world out of sticks, stones and bottle tops...fully immersed in my child like self.

In those quiet moments on holiday I managed to flick through the pages of my gorgeous new book featuring little old french shops. It's given me a few ideas for my stall so I'm looking forward to spending some time fiddling around with some bits and pieces to see how I can make my lovely stuff that little bit more lovely. I've started with this funky old spice cupboard I found in an op shop and I'll see where it leads. So, before you settle in to an unhealthy overdose of football on Saturday (wasn't one grand final enough??), head out to the Daylesford Makers Market and say hi. Bring your purse, too because I've heard a rumour it will be packed with oodles of clever people selling many a beautiful thing.