The One Thousand Crane Project - Wish #7

Today's Wish: May you always find the words for what you wish to express.

Today's Paper : Crane - From an old calendar with the quote "When the thoughts we think are the same as the words we speak, others will feel our integrity.  

The speech bubbles (empty, ready for the little one to fill) are from the same calendar.

Cranes to date: 36

We've been thinking a lot about language and speech, or lack there-of in this house for a while now.  The little one hasn't found her words yet.  She can communicate so very well and is certainly vocal and expressive, but can't seem to form words.  

With a background in applied linguistics (and language acquisition) for the last year I've listened to her with concern.  At the same time, I've also listened to well meaning friends and family assure me that she was just a late talker, that at one point it was all going to tumble out.  We've tried different methods to encourage language, but it just isn't happening.    I'm now going with my gut and after I get back from Japan, she will start with a speech therapist.

I know the words will come, but we may just have to take a longer road to get there.  And I must say, I'm really looking forward to hearing what she has to say.

The One Thousand Crane Project - Wish #6

Quite a while ago now, I started my "Wish a Day" project, and not long after, daunted by the daily requirement I had set myself, it was cast aside.

I'm now ready to pick it up again.  No longer in a daily format, but trying to create something regularly until I reach 1000 cranes.

Today's wish: May your imagination always be ripe and may it always bring you joy.

Today's paper: Taken from a drawing that the little one and I did yesterday that inspired today's wish.

The little one and I sat down to do some drawing.  With crayons in hand I decided to draw a story, one of the house we'd like to have one day.  We (I) drew a house with a red door.  I drew our little family.  She gestured that daddy had to be wearing a hat, and she and I hairclips in our hair and then hats on top.  We drew the pet dog we'd like to have and then she suggested a pet purple elephant as well, because every family needs a pet purple elephant of course.  We drew trees and grass, a strawberry patch and flowers.  And from the tree hung a swing.

The little one loved the swing and gestured that she was going to do something.  I didn't quite understand until she promptly sat on the drawing where the swing was and pretended she was flying back and forth on it.  With a little suggestion she picked the strawberries and they were declared delicious.  She smelt the flowers and patted the dog and elephant.

We played with the drawing for quite a while and mummy was also given a number of goes on the swing while she pushed.  The whole time I loved watching her interact with our little, simple illustration and the wonder and joy that it created in her active mind.

Cranes to date: 35

It's been quite a while, you can see the first cranes and five wishes here;

Wish One

Wish Two

Wish Three

Wish Four

Wish Five

A Wish a Day - Day.... Five?

Today's Wish: May time always be your friend.

Today's Paper: Taken from last year's diary, pages include the day the little one was born.

Number of Cranes: 29. One for each hour of the day + five more for the extra hours a friend pointed out it would nice to have.

Cranes to date: 34

Ummm... could we just pretend that today is really day five and that I didn't miss an entire week of my Wish a Day - especially before I'd even completed a week! It can be our little secret.

Time just seemed to have run away from me over the last week. What with preparing for markets, a market, then a market day that turned into a sick day, then another, then catching up on things after market and sick days. All is good now though and I'm back on track. So little one, my wish to you today, may time not run away without you.

My Creative Space

One tiny crane down, another 28 to fold for tonight's "Wish a Day". I did fall off the daily project wagon last week, but I'm back on it today. The pieces of paper are from last year's diary and include the page that the little one was born on.

For more creative spaces, Kootoyoo is the place to go!

A Wish a Day - Day Four

Today's wish: May you have limitless energy.

Today's crane: Paper from the recycled paper envelope our energy bill arrived in today.

The pinwheels and landscape: Paper from an old magazine.

I've been thinking a lot about energy today. We received our latest power bill and ouch! I try to be really good about our consumption, but have apparently let things slide a little. I often have my "if I win the lotto" fantasies about the house I would have built; it would be eco friendly, energy efficient and off the grid as much as possible. Like many people, I worry about what energy sources will be available in the future and would like a push by the powers to be towards more sustainable systems.

And then on a personal note, something I don't normally talk about on the blog. I've wrestled with the decision to talk about it at all. I have a couple of chronic health conditions that can really zap my energy, one of which is fibromyalgia. Usually, as long as I take care of myself and stay on top of sleep, for me it's quite manageable. Recently I haven't been getting enough sleep. Today the fatigue and the pain levels went through the roof. It was a morning when I was really glad I didn't live alone as I'm not sure how I would have managed. For most of the day I struggled to walk and wasn't even able to pick up my little one. To get through the day, I took the strongest painkiller cocktail I could, which then made me even more exhausted. By the afternoon, I gave up and just went back to bed. I worry sometimes about what genes I may have passed onto my little one. There were a number of times in the past when the illness was bad that I wondered if I really should be a mother at all. Even on a daily basis, energy is something that I have to decide how I will use, knowing that I only have limited reserves.

So there comes the inspiration for today's wish, one that works on a global and a very personal level.

A Wish a Day - Day Three

The first day of spring. And what better way to celebrate the first day of spring than to go to a friend's wedding. At was a lovely afternoon ceremony in the park and the weather was perfect. The grass was lush and green and the perfect spot for the little one to run around on while blowing kisses to all the other guests.

And so the inspiration for today's wish.

Today's wish: May you have someone in your life who truly makes your heart soar.

Today's cranes and hearts: From today's wedding invitation, with some hand colouring and drawing.

Crane count so far: Four

A Wish a Day - Day Two

Books. We love them in this house, all three of us. We started reading to the little one when she was in my belly and have continued each day. She'll now bring us her favourites and insist we read them to her. I hope that she will always love books and that inspired today's jar.

Today's wish: May you always find joy and comfort in the written word.

Today's paper and words: From a pre-loved copy of Babar, An Elephant's Best Friend.

Thank you to everyone for their kind words on my project beginning! I have been feeling a bit silly about it, so they have all meant a lot. And as my dad pointed out, no there are not 1000 days in a year, but some days more than one crane will form a wish so hopefully I'll still get to that magical number.

A Wish a Day - Day One

Well today's isn't real pretty, but I'm hoping I'll get better at this....

Today I began my "Wish a Day" project. I plan to write a wish for my daughter, our family or the world around us each day on a piece of paper which I'll then fold into a paper crane/s and put into a jar for safekeeping. I plan to do this each day for a year, and over that year fold 1000 cranes so that there is a wish for my daughter to make herself when she chooses.

Today's wish: May you live a long and happy life with each year being one to truly celebrate.

Today's paper: A piece of wrapping paper from her recent first birthday.

The candle: From her first birthday cake.

I'm quite nervous about starting out at this, nervous that I won't make the distance, nervous that I'll run out of things to say. At the same time, I am excited about the idea of getting into a creative habit, a little bit each day.

Flickr Faves on a Friday

In last week's Flickr Faves I alluded to a new project planned, well today's images form the other half of the project's inspiration. Cute little jars, sweet little terrariums...

The project is a piece-a-day-for-a-year type project and I've been scared of committing to a start date. I'm thrilled by the size and duration, but terrified of it at the same time. A few previously planned start dates have been and gone... I need to just begin. I need to commit. I need to commit for all my mum's group friends who have been saving and storing jars for me. I need to commit for my husband who has been very good to not complain (too much) about having to step around boxes of empty baby food jars or to ask even once when I was going to start. I need to commit for me, for a creative project that isn't business related. So commit I will. Monday. This coming. The "Wish a Day" project will begin.