09/01/2026
✨ Mischief Makers Update! ✨
Hey all.....
We wanted to share a little behind-the-scenes update as we get ready for the upcoming term and our move into our new home.
But..... first things first.... I so hope everyone is safe and was able to stay cool today!!! Let's all keep our toes and fingers crossed, our firefighters catch a break and get some rest tonight!!!
Back to the update... We’ve been packing, planning, dreaming, and prepping like crazy… but we hit a small hiccup. Settlement isn’t until January 16th, and until then, the current owners don’t want us painting or changing anything. They also still have a lot of stuff here that we are trying to work around. So for now, we’re a little limited in what we can do — but trust us, the ideas are flowing. We so believe in 'putting your dreams out there and the universe will help make it happen!' - an with lots of community help too I imagine! hee hee. A great example is Miles since little has always wanted a tennis court or sports court - well we now have a tunnel that is the perfect volleyball court and badminton court, etc!!!! Great dreaming, Mr Miles!!!! I also love living near water and smelling the fresh breeze from it - well we so have it with Silvan Dam across the road and every day we get the beautiful smells coming across. Wahoooooo! Now we need a really high tree house so we have lakeside views!
Meanwhile, we’ve been deep in problem-solving mode with the hothouse tunnels. Mornings and evenings? Absolutely magical. Afternoons? 🥵 Let’s just say one friend suggested we open a hammam (wet sauna)… which gives a pretty accurate picture of how hot it gets!
Jasp and Miles have been absolute legends, laying giant covers over the tunnels. This has involved hours of shooting balls tied to strings across the full length of the tunnels just to get ropes in place so we can try pulling the big covers over the top.
Equal parts fun, chaos, and creative problem-solving 😄
Winnie has also been heavily involved — generally supervising from the top of anything we attempt to move.
We’ve trialled a couple of evening group catch-ups, and oh my goodness… pure magic ✨ Fairy lights glowing, one tunnel turned into a badminton/volleyball court, table tennis, endless hide-and-seek (soon to be epic Nerf battlefields), and a beautiful open space perfect for a fire at night. Add to that nearly ¾ of an acre under cover if the weather turns, and an overall magical, market-style feel that we’re completely in love with.
And the best part?
Everyone who walks in comes alive with ideas within about 15 minutes. It’s magical… and a little confusing in the very best way 😄
Some of the latest ideas include:
• Giant 9-metre white tables for screen printing
• Bell tents and mini camps
• A teen tunnel
• A pottery tunnel
• And (dream big, right?) an indoor container pool for swimming lessons and rehab!!!
Yes — if anyone happens to have contacts for a free container pool or rehab pool, please yell out. 😆
One of the most beautiful, unexpected things has been the response from our neighbours at Silvan Glades Retirement Village. The residents are at the gate daily, asking when they can start coming over to garden, craft with the kids, and simply hang out with the local community.
It’s already clear this space is going to create layers of connection, friendship, mentoring, and genuine community — across generations. That part alone feels incredibly special. 💛
Behind the scenes, Jasp has also laid flooring for a brand new gym space (we were so blessed to have a dear friend donate gym equipment 💛), creating a great option for homeschoolers who want to train in between workshops.
Miles has been up on top of the tunnels checking out best way to get additional covers across, rearranging plants and helping wherever he can.
We were also thrilled to be donated over 300 beautiful pots from a beautiful family in our community who closed a business a little while back, meaning when we run plant, permaculture, and growing workshops, kids will have gorgeous pots to take their plants home in — and that’s just the beginning.
Our hope is that within the next two weeks, we’ll be fully set up with at least one cool tunnel ready for workshops, and we’ll be raring to go. Once we’re in, we’ll be running workshops, events, birthday parties — and dreaming of the occasional homeschool or local market with music, food, and all the good vibes.
We honestly cannot thank people enough for the support so far. Taking on something this big as a single homeschooling mum with two boys has been a little terrifying - but in usual form, we are so excited and just cannot wait. This place is already alive with possibility (probably too many options!!), and it’s going to be epic.
We’re still on the lookout for:
• Fake grass for comfy tunnel floors
• Clever cooling ideas for commercial-sized poly tunnels
* Good soil by the trailer load
* Lots of fruit trees or nice plants, if anyone has one or two spare. We are hoping to make the tunnels like an edible wonderland for everyone, surrounded by flowers!!!
If anyone in the field has advice or contacts, we would absolutely love to hear from you. We’ve got more ideas up our sleeve — and once we’re allowed to do more, we know we’ll have it sorted.
January 16th — it’s ours.
And then? Bring on the party! 🎉🌿