This week one year ago I was fully immersed in my book writing bubble. There was all this end of year stuff going on around me, but I was on a deadline. I had word counts and edits and chapters to write. I was locked in my office for hours at a time surrounded by scraps of paper and scribbled notes and photos and map books and print outs. My life was tap, tap, tapping away on the computer. It was such a crazy and intense time.

At one stage, quite possibly on the day my girls finished school, I remember my editor writing me an email all about how wonderful this week was going to be in 2013. How in 2013 my book would be written and out there in the big wide world. How I would have such a great present to give our teachers and friends and family. And how I would have more time. So much more time.

I remember clinging on to those words. At that time I could barely imagine finishing the next section, let alone the whole book.

And yet here we are an entire year later. It happened.
Last night we had a little family ceremony to celebrate and mark the passing of another school year.

Each one of us took our turn to strike a match, to light a candle, to make a little speech about the school year that was and to burn some school work.

It's been an enormous year in the history of our family. Miss Indi started high school and dealt with that roller coaster of highs and lows. Miss Jazzy swapped over to another school and blossomed. And Miss Pepper did her year of prep and loved it.

We learnt languages and techniques and reasons and stories.

We learnt lots about other families and other kids and social networks.

At home we did projects and spelling words and readers and maths. We woke to alarm clocks, we washed uniforms, made lunches and braided hair. We dropped off and we picked up.

We clocked up the absences by taking time off to travel to Israel, to Queensland, to farm, to publicize my book and to hang out.

And we did OK, and we could have done better and we did great .

And as it happens Jacqueline my editor was right, my book came out and this summer I have so much more time and so much more space. And because of last year I know how precious that is. And I am ridiculously grateful. And I intend to make the most of these weeks of school free days with my girls. I intend to make and bake and farm and grow and swim and relax with them, with no time tables or deadlines or due dates at all.

Thank goodness for the summer holidays!

Can you believe there are only two weeks left of this year?

Big love to you wherever you are. I hope you have time, I hope your deadlines are manageable and I hope you have yummy things to eat.

xx