One procrastination is another blog's revival

The first part of 2012 has seen me re-designing myself, from diaper retailer back to teacher and writer.  Ironically, this change to writer has resulting in my neglect of a few blogs and other projects I have had going on.  Now, I have a new job writing student articles, and today's article has seen me coming to back to my blog.  All in the name of procrastination.

So, here it is, a flash through my first quarter of the year.  Not in order of importance.

The garden:

After our months of wet weather, we are having an OK spring. The "rain at night, sun during the day" pattern is working for my herbs and vegetables.

This is my new mint plant:

My lemon tree before I pruned it.  It's a bit thin and crazy, really.

I finally got some rows into the garden.  This is the start of the herb section.

My Taiwanese basil and Thai lemon tree thing:

Hannah and I spent a couple of mornings planting seeds.  So far, the beans and sunflowers have appeared.  One bean plant has already been eaten at the base, though.  I want to go organic but it is a real challenge with the super-bug bugs we have around here.  It's nice to potter, though.

I also have a few things trying to grow in the kitchen.  The other day Kyle looked at the avocado seed, sweet potato leaves, and oregano cuttings lined up on the bench, and asked, "Mum, is this your science lab?"  I guess, to some extent, it is!

Work:

After seven years, I'm closing my diaper business. My heart is not in it at all, and things were just overwhelming me, especially the pressure to look after all the stock.  I put the word out and now have a few little projects going on.  I am still teaching at the kids' school, and I have a literacy class at a Neihu family center: www.parentsplace.com.tw.  I'll be doing some storytelling sessions for the government over summer, too.  Writing-wise, my blog seems to be paying off with some writing work coming in.  I'm also doing some free work for the Community Services Center.  My article on the Taipei City Library will be coming out in May.

Kids:

Kyle learned how to ride a two-wheeler bike this week, and we had our first road ride today, down to the river near our house.  He also loves his roller-blading.

I really enjoy being able to get out and about with him now, especially with the bike.  I hope we can get all the bikes in my little car to take it to the great bikeways Taiwan has to offer.

Hannah is almost in Grade One!  She will have her graduation photos taken tomorrow.  Hannah is doing really well at school, and is very happy.  She is really taken by nature and flowers in particular.  Here's a picture taken at a park recently.

I love Hannah's spirit and her ability to spot the tiniest details in things around her.  I try to give the kids as much time as possible to really look at the world closely.

The house:

Here are a couple of Richard's latest projects.

1. The rain took its toll on the picnic table Richard made, so he redid the tabletop with recycled tiles.

2. Here is the retaining wall's second stage.  A few friends have come over to help out of the past few weeks and it's coming along nicely.

3. Car spray painting.

I've been doing a bit of cooking, including pizza and lasagne.  I made all the pasta for the lasagne.  We also got a machine to make soy bean milk.  We had our first drink last night.  It's really good!  The machine only makes 1.5 liters though, so it goes pretty fast.