Nearly Up & Running

Bella started to walk a few days ago and now staggers and wobbles about the house with glee! We all shout "good girl!" and clap her, especially Lockie.

This morning we walked to the park and fed the ducks nearby, and played on the swings and jungle gym. We took morning tea so we wouldn't be rushed and the weather was sunny and glorious. Aaah, bliss. Lockie asked me when I would have another baby, as he loved to play with babies [and obviously Bella is growing up fast.] His question took me by surprise because he'd never seemed that keen on babies. I pointed out our neighbours were having a baby in a few months, so he could play with it eventually.

Christmas Pleasure

This pohutakawa tree [complete with tree elf!] symbolises Christmas in New Zealand for some, but I just think it is a really pretty sight on a hot summers' day.

We had a great Christmas Day, hanging out with my kids, sisters, brother and Dad, giving and receiving gifts, attending a service lead by Dad, eating yummy food we all helped prepare, and generally enjoying ourselves. The weather was perfect and we all behaved ourselves - Bella slept right through Christmas lunch which meant I got to actually eat with the grownups!

On Boxing Day we went to the Jimmy Barnes concert and I experienced time-warp-like feelings seeing many people I had gone to school with nearly 20 years ago and not seen since. There were about 7000 people there apparently which was a small and comfortable number for an outdoor venue. Of course, Jimmy totally rocked the crowd and showed he still had it even though he's over 50. He had 4 of his [grownup] kids onstage with him too, which was a nice touch. He came back for two encores and then we got a call from Dad's house and got home soon after to find Bella bawling her eyes out while Dad and Guy tried to comfort her. She doesn't usually wake before midnight so I hadn't expected this - poor blokes just didn't have what she wanted!  

carrot sticks and water

OK, I've been 'dieting' for a week now and, according to my scales, I have lost about 2.5kg. This feels pretty good, and is to be expected at the beginning, although I would be surprised if it continued to drop off at this rate. The thing that surprises me most is that I am not craving the sugary, fatty foods I am forsaking at all, and am feeling pretty damn virtuous and healthy - all the fruit, veges and copious drinks of water gotta do it!! If ever I get the urge to nibble on a biscuit with the kids or grab a processed snack in a rush, I think for a minute about what this food can offer my body and it's easy to resist after that.

I have joined the gym but have yet to fork out for the membership, and I figure that this pre-Christmas week is too crazy to be starting at the gym properly so I will do all that next week, no really! The people seem nice there and the atmosphere seems friendly - we'll see soon anyway. I figure that there's no point in dropping the weight if I'm still in my usual couch potato mode so I hope to get there at least 3 times each week. A lot will ride on Fraz helping me out in the evenings and I have barely seen him for several days now! Hopefully things will settle down for him at work once the Christmas madness abates.

Lockie's last day of school today, and only a half day at that. So I am mentally preparing myself this morning and enjoying the last morning of calm for a l-o-n-g time. He's a lovely boy but needs a fair bit of maintenance, as 5-year-old kids often do! Bella's not so good at having her naps when he's home too; he's just so darned exciting! Speaking of Bell, she woke me at 5:30am today [yawn] even though it was a great day for sleeping in - rainy and overcast. Must teach her about the weather and staying cosy in bed...

Tomorrow night Meg arrives from Sydney!!!! Can't wait to see her...if you had a twin, you'd understand.

Santa sweetie

Bella and I visited my mother-in-law at her shop last week and she draped some tinsel and a hat on her and snapped this cute shot. Bella doesn't see her Nana very often, hence the shy smile. It's a shame, as Nana is the only grandmother Bella has and I think it would be great if they could see each other more often. Nana is very busy with her business and her social life though! Fraz and I have vowed to be more involved personally with our grandkids - should we get any!

This morning is a scorcher and I [foolishly] decided, on the spur of the moment, to tackle the jungle in the backyard. I spent nearly an hour ripping out weeds and trimming back foliage and discovered two things: the yard is bigger than I remembered and it has a low rock wall that was previously invisible beneath the weeds. Was quite satisfied with that job but it's taken over half an hour for my overheated body to cool down indoors - my face has only just lost it's blush. Not that we ever spend any time in the yard as it is sloped and terraced with dangerous drops for kids. Oh well, I see it when I hang out the washing to dry so can appreciate my hard work then.

This afternoon I am checking out the local gym. It's annoying that they usually charge a huge whack to join, as well as the weekly fee - minimum of 12 month contract too! I guess joining the gym at this expensive time of year is not my smartest move. At least I can take advantage of the two-week free trial.  

Super Anna rises from the ashes?

I was telling myself off for not writing in my blog this morning and the thought suddenly [and unrelatedly] came to me that I am very much influenced by books. Maybe I always have been, but lately it's been ridiculous.

Here's an example: I saw a book on 'dejunking and getting rid of clutter' at work, so I took it home and read it and before I knew it I was reserving every book on clutter that the libraries own. I then put their good advice to work and managed to clear quite a bit of clutter from various parts of the house before I got bored with it all.

Then I read the book about Trade Me, and started selling off bits and pieces like a mad woman; all done with that for now thanks, but I was full-on for a month.

My latest discovery is a book called "Body-for-LIFE for Women", by Pamela Peeke. It wasn't the title that drew me in but the awesome before and after photos inside the front and back covers. This woman [a doctor], advocates a 12-week programme of dieting and exercise that transforms your body into a svelte, sculpted and super-healthy marvel. I was feeling pretty unhealthy and low-energy, etc when I spotted this book and now I have read it cover-to-cover and have already made big changes. [Whether I can keep them up is another story but I really want to.] I have changed my eating - no white flour products, or sugar, no junkfood at all, drinking 10 glasses of water each day, wearing a pedometer and trying to increase my steps each day, loads of veges. The tricky times are when I am feeding Lockie his regular diet of high-fat food, and baking bikkies for his school lunches - today I managed to bake our all-time fave choc chip cookies and bought the kids KFC for dinner because I worked and couldn't be fagged cooking - and still I stuck to my sardines, brown rice and salad. And I am joining a gym [applause please, this will be a tough one for me!], I am not sure when I will get to go but want to get there at least 4 times a week and lift weights!! No creche at the local gym so will probably go in the evenings - oh boy.

But I reckon I will be doing my body a huge favour - this book talks of the high rates of heart disease, cancer and diabetes in older adults these days which can all be much reduced with a more healthy lifestyle. Tired of being pear-shaped and not fitting nice clothes too...size 16 is not a good size to be when clothes shopping. Will keep you posted on my successes.

On the family side, Bella was stung by a bumblebee at the caregiver's today - she was really apologetic and called me at work, but Bella seems unaffected [despite swollen pointer finger] and now we know she's not allergic to beestings. Today Lockie brought home his school report for Term 4 [finishes in a few days!] and it reduced me to tears - in a good way. I was just so proud of the little bugger. The teacher's comments were very glowing. She'll be getting a Christmas present from us this year!

Our Christmas Tree Elf

Here is Bella and me with our new Christmas tree, high up on the entertainment unit, out of her reach! [Lockie took the photo, hence it is a little crooked and I am missing from the shot!] We bought the tree yesterday from TWH for $6.43, an obscenely low price. We needed a small one [4-foot] to fit in this space - the star just touches the ceiling. Lockie and I decorated it while Bella slept this morning and she was so delighted when she woke and saw it for the first time. It's a little overladen with ornaments but we have many more left over - our regular tree is a lot bigger. It does feel a bit early to be putting up the tree but [peer pressure prevailing here], everyone's doing it!!

Very warm today, but Fraz is at the shop for a few hours, so we are awaiting his return and hope to drag him down to the park for a play with the kids - or maybe I'll send him down...need to suss out what Chrissy presents I have and what I need to still sort out. Privacy is essential for such tasks, especially if I want to keep my gifts a secret from the kids, which of course I do.

Super freak

I saw the freakiest doco on telly last night - "Super Size She". It was about a woman named Joanna Thomas, a Brit based in LA [I think], who has devoted her life to bodybuilding with the end goal of winning the Olympia world title and retiring 'at the top of my game'. I don't know how old she was [she started at 15], but she had lost nearly all resemblance to any woman I have ever seen - if it wasn't for the huge breast implants and the frizzy blonde hair, I dare anyone to take a glance and say she wasn't a man. She had such HUGE bulging muscles that even in repose she was busting out of her clothes like the Incredible Hulkess. Seeing her totter around in high heels - calf muscles popping - was freaky enough but even her deep voice and facial features were very masculine. She layered on the makeup and slipped into a tiny sequinned number when doing shows and managed to look like a pretty good drag queen. The worst bit I reckon was that to finance her 'sport' she ran a personal website which people paid to enter and request poses of her [including pretty provocative ones] and chatted with her too. I don't think she had time for a job. The other women she hung out with at the gym were just like her - all drag queens in the making, except they were apparently female.
It was described as a 'sub-culture' by the narrator. This may be true, but OMG it was the weirdest lifestyle I have seen in a while. She had no life beyond bodybuilding and when she managed to qualify for the Olympia event she ended up 7th out of the 9 women who made it to the finals. She found out that she didn't win because her top and bottom halves weren't symmetrical. Hmmm, there's got to be more to life surely. Her body fat measured 2.6% - the recommended minimum for women to maintain fertility and adequate hormone levels is 10%. Just watching them measure her fat [desperately trying to pinch something on her back] was a joke. Her skin was spotty and she was described as malnourished and dehydrated - this was in the days prior to the Olympia competition in an attempt to define the muscles even more. Then the women stuff themselves with sugary food just before going onstage to strut and pose - this was to make the veins pump up. Ooooh.

I couldn't change the channel though - like watching a train wreck maybe: I just couldn't look away.

Christmas Stampede

OK, there isn't a Christmas stampede quite yet, but the end of the school year is looming and with it goes my freedom. It feels like it is galloping towards me at a great speed. Lockie just thrives on school and is likely to get quite bored as the school holidays drag on - and that's where I will be stepping in and pulling out all stops...

Hopefully the weather will be lovely and sunny and calm and we can all go to the beach frequently and the parks, etc. Sounds good. Of course, if the weather is crap we'll probably go crazy fairly often. It's times like this I am grateful for living in a big city where there is always some place to go if it's wet outside - these hol's we will go to Te Papa and maybe even [finally] get around to their legendary Story Time. [Legendary to other Mums anyway]. We can also go visit different libraries - the new Karori Community Library [and cafe!] is lovely. The Karori swimming pool is the best one in our area I reckon and it may be a good time to introduce Bella to the joys of water, besides bath water of course. Then there are always lots of different malls to hang out at - the newest one in town is the Westfield Queensgate in Lower Hutt - I went the other day and it compares favourably with any of the fantastic Aussie ones I have seen in Sydney and Brisbane. Unfortunately Lockie always wants to make a beeline for the $2 Shop and buy some rubbishy item there that will guarantee to break in the car on the way home and then he will cry about it and then get mad and throw it...*sigh* STOP IT ANNA - got to be more positive!!

Read another good book the other day - "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time", about an autistic 15-year-old boy and the odd world he inhabits, surrounded by normal people who mostly don't 'get' him. It's quite an insight into living with autism [from his parents' view as well as his own], and very well-written by Mark Haddon. The boy actually has Asperger's syndrome, a form of autism. My midwife's teenage daughter has this, so it was interesting to read about it; she would often comment on something her daughter had said or done, when she visited me during my last pregnancy.

Looking forward to Christmas in that my wonderful twinny will be flying back over the gap to stay with us for a week or so, and we will reunite with two younger sibs and Dad in Wanganui for Christmas Day. Then there's the Jimmy Barnes concert on Boxing Day - I know I've mentioned this before but I ALMOST NEVER go out in the evenings so this will be a treat for me. And I bloody well deserve a treat every now and then!!!!

Tuesdays With Morrie

This is the name of a book I have just finished reading. It is a most amazing book - the dying days of an old college professor and the conversations he has with an ex-student, now grown up. I was sceptical that I would enjoy it but had heard of it and decided to give it a go. Right from the start I was hooked and at the end I cried. I really recommend reading this book - it really changed my perspective of the material world we live in. No, really! Go see for yourself and read Tuesdays with Morrie, by Mitch Albom.

Roll on summer days

We've had such bitterly cold weather for days lately but today we are back to tees and shorts and loving it! It's great to be able to walk to school with ease again too.

Lockie is all excited about December starting tomorrow - possibly because of his 'Hot Wheels' advent choccy calendar... and the countdown to Christmas. He's been really well-behaved lately too - he has even instigated some methods to help himself stay good! He suggested an idea for his 'star chart': "don't make Bella cry", which is working a treat, and I started a 'bad word jar' with a counter being added for each bad word he uses in a day [I'm talking idiot, meanie and stupid here - mainly aimed at ME] and it has remained empty for last couple of days. I have made him a list of things to do in the morning that I had laminated and he checks off the boxes as he does them - this is fun for him and saves me nagging him to do the next thing like brushing his teeth and putting on sunscreen. Also, and most telling I feel, we have not had to use timeout for a few days. So I am holding off on the need for a homeopath appointment.

Bella is so cute - she is practising standing on her own a lot these days and will stand up in the middle of the room and clap her hands with delight - and to catch my attention. She loves to be walked around with someone holding her hands too. My baby is growing up!!! I'm excited to see my sisters and brother at Christmas and show her off to them. They'll be surprised how she's grown, for sure. 

My new hobby?

Here's another good book I've found - it's called "Your Ultimate Guide to New Zealand's Biggest Online Auction Site, Authorised by Trade Me". I am a big fan of Trade Me so snapped this brand-new book off the shelf [at the library anyway] straight away and have been studying it ever since...I recommend it for anyone unsure of whether they should use the website. Now that I am more of a seller than a buyer it is kind of turning into a hobby. What can I find to sell next? It's given me the onus to clean out my cupboards and wardrobes and drawers and sell sell sell - right from the comfort of my own home.

Most mornings after Bella and I drop Lockie off at school we will pop down to the Post Shop and post off another 1 [or 2 or 3] parcels around NZ although most of the people who buy my stuff are from Auckland. I am not making much money though because I don't charge much for my old junk. I'm just glad to shift it really.

Some weird and wacky things are sold on Trade Me - I found some guy selling a piece of A4 paper, two old plastic bananas and a bent piece of white plastic pipe...wtf???!!!?! Meg sent me details of one auction for a timemachine - and people were actually bidding on it! Hee hee. Not everybody has good experiences though - you can still get ripped off if you pay in good faith and then never receive your goods - I am lucky not to have had this happen to me yet.

To change the subject completely, today at work I helped a little old lady do some photocopying. She is 88 and soooo reminded me of my own dear departed grandmother. We chatted for a while and after she left one of my colleagues told me she was really rude and mean to her and one of my other workmates! I was surprised because she seemed so sweet and lovely. Apparently she was a teacher - I guess that makes me the teacher's pet...

blogging on

I've been reading a good book about blogging so will be trying a few more adventurous things with my blog soon. The book is from the library [where else?] and is called "Publishing a Blog with Blogger" by Elizabeth Castro. The trouble with working at the library is that I am unable to resist getting out piles of books that I am unlikely to get to read once I'm at home! I get a mix of fiction and non-fiction but half of them get returned without me opening them. This is not good! Maybe I should watch less TV and read more in the evenings - and not just in the ad breaks... TV's pretty crap these days anyway. I do like "Desperate Housewives" - they are sooo dysfunctional and yet so normal.

Recently a friend has taken her child along to a homeopath following some unhappy behaviour from him, and the results have been really encouraging - considering he only had to take one small pill. I am considering taking Lockie for a consultation - his moods can swing so quickly and he can get very aggressive and full of anger at the smallest of things. Sometimes Bella bears the brunt of his violence - she is sporting a bruised forehead at the moment from him throwing a toy at her. I sometimes wonder if the high-fat diet so necessary for his CF is affecting his behaviour - lots of junk food can't be great for anybody. I have checked out the website www.homeopathy.co.nz and have been cautiously impressed with the case studies there. Will keep you posted. Lots to do between now and Christmas so may not do anything further til January.

Only 32 days until Christmas Day!!!

Raging Little Man

Lockie is such a sweetie but lately his rages are all-consuming and require quick action from me - we're talking time out, in the laundry, for a good 5 minutes [timed on microwave timer!] This morning he came into the lounge all chatty and happy, and then I asked him to get dressed a few times before he SNAPPED and yelled and screamed at me for 'being such a mean Mum'. A bit OTT I feel. Anyway, he was duly manhandled into the laundry [wearing just a t-shirt mind you] and he spent the 5 minutes mandatory 'thinking time' shrieking at me through the door and calling me nasty names! Fraz came in and we whispered about what to do with him [he heard us and demanded that we 'stop talking!'] and eventually he came out and slowly calmed down. Whew, mornings can be a nightmare when he's like that. I watched Supernanny last night and thought about what she would do and that helped. Poor Bella was crawling around during this time, looking quite concerned that Lockie was making so much racket - he yells at her too, especially when she tries to cheer him up with her smiles and chirrups.

Luckily Lockie was a little angel after that and even walked uncomplainingly to school. Holly's Dad asked if we would like to come over next weekend for afternoon tea so that's nice. Locks is sooo besotted with her! She gives him hugs apparently but he is very shy telling us that. Is it just me or are kids growing up real fast these days?

Aside from that, Fraz is being such an extra-lovely husband lately - he does dishes, makes the bed and opens curtains, puts out rubbish and has even changed a nappy unasked! These may sound like small things to some, but they are not normally done by my man. Of course, I make sure I show my appreciation! I think he has a little less stress in his days now his band is off overseas for a few months. Only a little less mind you, as his work is pretty high-stress at best. 

Young Stud

The stud I am speaking of is none other than my own little boy. Yes, Lockie has a 'crush' on a little girl in his class at school. Although he'll only admit to being 'best friends', I like to think of it as the beginning of a life-long adoration of the opposite sex. On Sunday night he spent ages making a special card for Holly, and I watched from across the classroom on Monday morning as he gave her the card and she read the message. From memory it was along the lines of "to Holly, you are my best friend, I love playing with you, from Lockie". She seemed quite chuffed and a few other girls crowded around to look at it as Lockie strutted and preened like a peacock. Then on Monday night he was busy for ages making another card "to Holly, You are my best friend, I will never have anuvver best friend, from Lockie" - getting serious now! He lets me read them, in case you were wondering. This evening he made TWO more cards - apparently Holly has indicated she would like 150 cards please. Yikes. Lockie doesn't play exclusively with this lass, he also hangs out with Tom and Raymond from his class. I asked Lockie casually if any 'kissing' went on and he replied that sometimes Tom kisses Rex, and Rex runs away and tells on him. Hmmm. Takes me right back. Fraz likes to boast that he had a girlfriend at 5 too. I vaguely recall having a crush on a kid back then, but I'm pretty sure it was because it was the 'done thing' at the time.

Big and Hairy

OK Jess, so you are not the only one with a big fat spider lurking in your house! I found this marching across the kitchen floor and whacked a large glass over it. It froze and has been like that for the last half hour - I can see it from where I am sitting now. I kinda feel sorry for it, but then again, maybe it's already laid a whole bunch of eggs and is planning an invasion...time to get the house sprayed again. We had it sprayed last year and the effects certainly did last 12 months as they predicted. We didn't see any live bugs or spideys for the whole time, which meant no cobwebs to clear from corners, and any bugs that flew/crawled into the house died pretty quickly. I wonder if this is a redback spider - but maybe not because I think they are only in Australia, right??! Fraz is down in the basement tonight learning some music for a solo gig he is doing in a few weeks [his first!] so I will wait till he comes back upstairs and get his opinion. I am OK about removing it outside [far from the house mind you!] but would rather not go too close to it if possible. I have a can of flyspray handy in case it goes nutso like the ones in the "Arachnophobia" movie.

On the brighter side, today we had a family excursion [a rare occurence for us!] and drove over to the Grasslees Reserve in Tawa, with Lockie's bike in the boot. He zoomed around the large concreted area and Bella had a big swinging sesh which she loved. Later we came home and ate iceblocks on the back lawn. Lockie managed to have several temper fits throughout the day but despite this we had a good day and had our first BBQ for the summer. Normally the boys head off for 'boy adventures' for several hours on a Sunday so this was a refreshing change - usually Bella and I can get quite bored waiting for them to return.

Lockie went to a friend's birthday party on Saturday and had a ball - he even got his face painted [first time ever!] with a rainbow - his idea. He wore it all day and we had to scrub quite hard to remove it in the bath. Fraz showed him some pictures of KISS in their makeup.

Bella is starting to cruise around the furniture and last night she pushed her little yellow trolley up and down the lounge and giggled gorgeously with glee the whole time [till she fell over!]; it was very cute. Lockie used this same trolley when he was learning to walk too.

My Mum

My Mum will never age - in my mind she will forever be 55, as that was how old she was when she was taken from us. I vividly remember the day I got a phonecall from my brother-in-law, telling me that she had died, in PNG, where she and Dad were living. I was 5 months pregnant with my first child and my grief was for my own loss as much as my child's loss of his grandmother. Mum and Dad had come to Fiji for my wedding 3 months earlier and I had told them of the pregnancy then, not guessing for a minute that it would be the last time I would see my Mum alive. She was vibrant and beautiful that night. Now, exactly 6 years on, I have another child who has only my Dad to cherish her as a grandparent can - lucky for me that he is a wonderful man and well able to step up to the mark - thanks Bubu. I sometimes daydream about Mum meeting my kids and how she might react to them if she was alive today. It's really hard to imagine. Theirs would have been a unique relationship and it's a tragedy that I'll never know. RIP Mum, I love you XXX

Guy Fawkes Night

Lockie and I had a blast on 5 November this year. We caught a train into the city and joined the thousands down at the waterfront for the 9pm fireworks. Just prior to 9pm we spotted a fire up on Mt Victoria - I could imagine that the fire engines would have a hard time reaching the summit because it was an ideal spot to view the fireworks and it's such a narrow winding road to get there. Lockie said he was scared of it! I pointed out that half the harbour lay between us and the fire... We travelled back on a packed train later and Lockie was so adorable, giving me hugs and kisses all the time and saying how great it was to spend time with me like this, to which I agreed. He really enjoyed the fireworks too - his second big display ever I think.

It was nearly 11pm when I was heading off to bed that I got a phone call from London. It was two of my sisters and one little niece with some happy stuff to tell me - love phonecalls like that!!! I went off to sleep happy, thanks girls. A pity Lockie 'forgot' to sleep in the next morning though.

The next day was Sunday and Fraz and Lockie went off for a spot of fishing off a wharf in Petone, and they saw a small fire started near the beach by some people setting off fireworks carelessly. Fire engines, police, the works followed. Lockie was a bit freaked and had a nightmare that night, but he didn't tell me until the morning. I can understand the call for a ban on public sales of fireworks - I agree! 

Slacker

I just realised that I have been neglecting my blog - this is unforgiveable but understandable I hope: I have been doing the 'Trademe' thing lately. I've been a 'buyer' for several months now but recently decided to become a 'seller'! So I've been culling my collection of paperbacks [mostly the chick lit stuff] and also attempting to get rid of a pile of old LPs we were given a while back. Don't know if we'll have much luck with the LPs - who has a turntable these days anyway - unless they are a DJ and then they probably wouldn't be into Merle Haggard, Kenny Rogers or even Bruce Springsteen. [Told you they were OLD]. It takes ages to load auctions [for me anyway] and I have been having a few late nights hunched over the keyboard sorting them out. Knowing my luck not one will sell. At least the chick lit is getting snapped up. At my prices I'm not surprised. I am a Bargain Queen!
Lockie is throwing daily tanties these days and I am determined to get him back on the straight and narrow - I watch 'Supernanny' religiously and agree with everything she says so he'd better watch out. Fraz just despairs of him sometimes but I have faith that he is a good kid underneath the shouting and tears. Kids are little for such a short time - I want to enjoy his childhood and for him to enjoy it too. And this might mean a bit of 'timeout' and lost privileges but that's not the end of the world [now I just have to convince Lockie this!]
Bella is her usual adorable self - she nods and shakes her head when I ask her questions and it is surprising how much she understands. She loves toast and Marmite and this morning at breakfast time she pointed to the toaster and told me 'toas'. She also loves to see birds flying about and she stands at the lounge window and tweets at the birds outside. Her pointing is useful too. The only troublesome new behaviour from her is when she arches her back and flings herself backwards when she is cross - usually when she is being carried. This is tricky when manoeuvring through a doorway...ouch.

LOTR time

I am watching "LOTR: the two towers" on the telly while I write this - it is sooo long with the ads left in. I didn't get to the theatre when any of the LOTR movies came out so this is my chance to get with the programme and check out what all the hype was about. So far, I've seen 2 of the trilogy and am pretty impressed. I love seeing so much of the NZ landscape and the special effects are spectacular. The acting is great too - love that Orlando Bloom and Viggo Mortenson. Lots of faces I recognise from Shorty St too. Gotta go now as the fight for the two towers is about to begin and I must give it my full attention. 

BBBBBoston!

Frazer is back! Yes, my husband has returned and we are happy to have him home safe and sound. It sounds like his US trip went well and he saw a whole lot in the two weeks he was there. This photo shows the kid-sized Boston cap he brought back for Lockie - modelled by Bella. Most of the time he and his Mum were in Boston visiting his brother and family, but they spent a few nights in Las Vegas before their return - what a crazy place by all accounts. Quite mind-blowing apparently, so little ol' Johnsonville must be quite a shock to come back to. It appears they put everything into aerosol cans over there - my mum-in-law brought back spray-on butter and canned marshmallow fluff! Bizarre but fascinating, and calorie-free - main ingredient being air I think, and a few dozen chemicals and flavourings of course.

Bella has been unwell this week, with the runs and off her food, thank God I'm still breastfeeding as it's the only thing she has taken. Although today, after 3 days of being off-colour, she has been quite perky and actually playing with her toys again. She even ate some chicken at dinner, and a small vanilla ice cream in a cone.

Lockie got a surprise on Wednesday - I had not told him exactly which day Fraz was arriving home so he was not expecting his Daddy to collect him from school that day; apparently he hugged him for a very long time, and then they spent the afternoon together while I was at work and Bella was at Fiona's. He really missed his Dad - more so than Bella and I even. 

Recycling King

Here is my boy - the recycling king indeed. I was ready to put the recycling bin out for collection today when I realised that he had emptied it, and here is the result: a 'weapon castle' in case you need translation. We are not into weapons as such in our house, but I have yet to spot any in the castle anyway. He did this just before bedtime, hence the jammies. It isn't dark til about 8pm these days so summer is definitely nearing. Not that todays gloom and rain would have us believing. I could swear we were promised BRILLIANT weather today, over most of the country. Maybe Wellington is the loser and if we ventured North we could find some sun...naaah. We are staying put today I reckon.

Have just baked some banana muffins for morning tea and the house smells yummy. Bella is snoozing away in her room and I may curl up with a book for a while. I am starting "Farewell My Ovaries" by Wendy Harmer. Another 'chick lit'; my fave I admit. Call me shallow but I like to escape when I'm reading.

Yesterday we had Lily-from-next-door over for the morning, to play with Locks. And in the afternoon we took off to the park and had a great time in the sun. Bella indulged in a little swinging, a little sliding and cooed at the ducks and seagulls. Lockie posed for umpteen photos as I wielded the camera madly. Some of them are actually quite sweet.

Sleepy cat

I wish I were a cat...napping whenever I wanted, coming and going as I liked, and being fed without having to cook anything. Although I wouldn't fancy shitting in the garden...especially after the weather we've had today - rain and drizzle all day long. Still, I got to spend it at the library, which is a great place to hang out on a wet day. Bella spent the whole day with her childminder Fiona, and was reportedly well-behaved and happy - phew!! I thought about her a lot today and missed her little face.

On the telly behind me is a doco about people with facial deformities caused by fibromas, etc. Amazing stuff. People's faces are just so important - first impressions and all that.

I actually should be reading - I'm nearly at the end of "Friends, Lovers, Chocolate" by Alexander McCall Smith. It's a great read but I struggle to empathise with the main character as she is written by a man! Silly I know. I even took the book to work today - kinda odd to take a book to read at the library I s'pose.

Fraz is home in 6 days now, and it seems like forever since he left. I don't think Lockie is coping very well - his behaviour is erratic of late. He's not 100% healthy either - we started him on antibiotics a couple of days ago as his cough was interrupting his sleep. Roll on the long weekend!
 

My Dad

Happy Birthday time again - this time it's Dad's birthday. As the only parent I have left he is extra special to me - and my siblings will agree. Here is a photo dating back 20 years, with one of my sisters. As far as old Dads go he is a great guy, a get-up-and-go kind of man who could NEVER be called a couch potato. When we were growing up he made sure we went away every school holidays as a family, whether camping in New Plymouth or Masterton, tramping anywhere in the lower North Is, house-swapping in Nelson, countless bush walks, beach trips, etc etc! We all spent time with him canoeing, and tramping up, down and around mountains and ranges. I remember numerous Tramping Club trips - especially the really social ones like pine-pulling on the slopes of Ruapehu, and camping at Vinegar Hill. Aaaah, those were the days. A special thanks to Dad for all the great memories I have of my childhood. If it wasn't for you I may not have met my husband and had my two wonderful children. [I met Fraz while doing hut-warden duty up the Whanganui River, aged 17: he was canoeing down, stopped at the hut, and the rest is history!]
So Dad, I love you and wish you a happy birthday xxxxxxxx

Day Out

Lockie has taken to pulling funny faces like this one, whenever I whip out the digital camera to snap a pic...poor kid. Today we took Bella on her first train trip, into the city to visit the Mega Toyworld. What a great store, we spent ages there. Later at home, Lockie went to bed for a sleep - unheard of for him to do this so he must have been feeling poorly. When I woke him he had a slight fever. Maybe yesterday he had a viral rash. Anyway, some brufen lowered his temp and he was a box of fluffy ducks once more. Of course, with the unscheduled afternoon nap he was still bouncing around the house til well after bedtime. Dad phoned to see how we were doing without Fraz and I was able to say 'pretty damn good actually'. We had pizza tonight from Divine in Khandallah. Thumbs up for taste and speedy delivery. Might go and have a tiny nibble more pizza before I hit the sack... 

Busy day

Mixed bag today. Lockie had his friend Lily's sushi party to attend this morning but threw a wobbly at the bottom of her driveway and refused to go any further, so I sent him home and went in to say sorry to her mum. An hour later, a subdued [and really bored] Lockie advised me he wouldn't mind going after all. So I trotted him over again [thank goodness they live next door!], and left him, although he refused to join in the pass-the-parcel that was starting as we got there. Not long after Bella woke from her morning nap and I took her over to collect our boy. He was munching cake along with a lot of little girls but managed to scowl at me when I was spotted. What a mean mum I am for making him go to a party! He scored this lovely Japanese bamboo umbrella as a parting gift.
Not long after, I dropped him off at the local pool and he went swimming with a friend, and her grandmother who is a friend of his Nana's. She treated the kids to McD's after that, with some play time at the park next to the pool in-between.
Bella and I went shopping and I bought a bunch of Christmas pressies from Craftworld - love that place. We too stopped in at McD's and she loved watching all the kids running around the playground. Yeah, I know I'm getting in early for Chrissie shopping but, as Meg pointed out, there are only a handful of paydays left before Christmas.
Lockie was knackered when he got home. He also was sporting a rash on his tummy which he showed me when he was in the bath - it looked like suburn and he cried when he got out - said it was really sore. Don't know what that was [maybe a reaction to the chlorine?] but I put some nappy rash cream on it and spooned some pain medicine into him for good measure and he cheered up. I did press the rash to check for meningitis though...you never know, do you?

Ho hum

TGIF! Actually, most days are the same to me. I'm up early every day [not my choice usually] and the cat yowls til his food dish is put down full.

Today I got all industrious when Bella was down for her morning nap and started to make a banana loaf with the last of the bananas. Unfortunately the first egg I added to the mix was ROTTEN, so that put the kybosh [?] on that and I made chocolate chunk oat cookies instead, which, despite their boring appearance, tasted pretty good. I've never come across a bad egg before, boy they smell disgusting and this one actually exploded when I cracked it.

I am watching Strictly Ballroom on DVD at the mo, so will now go and give it my full attention [as I fold washing], then maybe, just maybe, I'll actually be good enough to give myself an early night. [Yeah right].

Bella had a playdate today - her little friend William came over to our place. There were some cute moments when he patted her head when she was crying and tried to hug her. She was less than impressed but I thought it was adorable.

Gorgeous sunny day today - really summery - gives me hope! I even wore sandals - must get around to painting my toenails tho, cos they aren't too pretty to look at.

Proud Creator

Lockie picked up some twigs after school today and disappeared into his room when we got home - some time later he came out with this 'thing' [his description] which he 'just loves' and can 'imagine what it is' [as we too must do!] It is made of twigs, buttercups, paper and sellotape. Bless his cotton socks!
Bella woke this morning with a strange sounding cough, which the doctor says is 'like croup', only he calls it a virus. A bit vague really, but it should clear up in a few days and in the meantime she may be bothered by it at night. Great. That means I'll be bothered by it too. But I bet she'll sleep through as usual; dear wee dot.
Feel like I had a productive day today - if you can count doing the groceries, one load of washing, cooking up a feast of food for Bella [most to be frozen], filling the car with petrol when I realised it was payday [yay, forgot it was this week!], taking Bella to the doc, and posting off Thank Yous for B's pressies. Wow, I am soooo domesticated! Maybe tomorrow I'll slack off a bit. Oooh, how wicked, God I'm a sad case... 

Pretty as a picture

Bella is modelling her new birthday PP top and Bobux shoes, and holds her new rubber ducky and glo carebear, so thanks to all those who donated to her cause!
Lockie told me today that he knew what the 'olden days' were: "years ago, just after the dinosaurs died out, and when cameras were still not colour". Gotta love kids' logic. He is off to his school disco this Friday - maybe I should teach him a few dance moves...or maybe I should spare him.
Frazer has made contact and everything is good for him. We are coping admirably - maybe better considering I am not working this week as my childminder has a sick baby at her house, so I can't send Bella there. There goes my 'sanity time'.

I gave Bella a tiny toothbrush today - she has two tiny teeth, and she copied me brushing quite ably. Babies are total sponges and brilliant mimics. So much fun.

More Chocolate Cake

Happy 1st birthday Bella! This afternoon she had a little friend over for cake and fun and then after the school pick-up both my kids got stuck into the second birthday cake in 3 days. [Lockie is opening his mouth to blow out the candle, in case that's not obvious.] This cake was a little less pretty to look at compared to the Sesame St cake but the icing on this one was sooo much gooier [?] and I had to hose the kids down afterwards...well, almost.

Still waiting to hear that Fraz and his Mum got safely to Boston - how long does the trip take anyway [they've been gone 48 hours]. Bella is crawling around the house in her jammies looking for her daddy so I will persuade her that it's time for bed, and tuck her in for the night.

I spent a busy morning on the phone taking calls from 3 of my sisters [London, Sydney and Auckland] and my brother in Wanganui. Love having a big family :) Bella was asleep for these calls but I have passed on your birthday wishes to her. She says thanks a bunch.
 

Weird feelings

Am feeling a bit odd - tis the night before Bella's birthday and I am trying to remember all the stuff that went down before she was born. We knew the day she was to be born cos she was so overdue they booked me in for an inducement, and wouldn't do this on a weekend [I asked], so she was born on a Monday. I recall going to bed on the Sunday night and hugging my tummy, telling her we would meet face-to-face the next day. The next morning at the hospital things went real fast with a strong labour and she popped out before her daddy and brother were quite at the hospital. Thank God for my wonderful twin sis - I sure hope my screaming didn't put her off childbirth...
We'll be celebrating tomorrow without Fraz. He still hasn't called to say he touched down in Boston OK. Better not wake me up in the night with a phone call. I LOVE my sleep...yawn. Good night all :)

Fly Away Daddy

Well today Fraz flew out to Boston with his Mum. Lockie and I weren't keen to go to the airport but he needed a lift there so we took him. It was OK I guess. He's gone for about two weeks or so. Didn't take a camera. Hmmm. Hope he picks up a disposable or something.

This lovely creation is Lockie's latest rendering of items from the recycling bin. It involved a helluva lot of sellotape but kept him very busy for a while [and out of my hair!] The trouble now is where do we keep the bloody thing - it's a good two feet wide. Bella is squealing from her highchair - there's only so much she can suck out of a rice cracker before she gets sick of it. I know the feeling. 

Good Times

Today we celebrated Bella's 1st birthday with a lovely lunch at a great cafe in Crofton Downs. I went there with an open mind but serious doubts and sure enough, we'd been sitting down for 5 minutes before Lockie got grumpy and sullen and pouty and things started to look bad. Eventually he got over whatever it was and we had a great time.
Bella was loving the attention and stayed happy and delightful throughout, and, as expected, enjoyed the wrapping paper more than the pressies. Gifts included a bone carving pendant and an engraved gold-plated bangle which she found she could take off and throw around...
Dad and Guy were there, and Guy took a bit of video footage. We all enjoyed it - especially Bella. She wore a dress for the first time since last Christmas and was fascinated with her own bare legs. Tres cute if I say so myself.
A shame Jess was too unwell to fly down from Auckland :(

In The Beginning

Well, I've started on an adventure here and who knows where it will take me. I've seen other people's blogs and wonder if I can stand up to scrutiny as I have no idea what I am doing...just got a clue and went with it.
Tomorrow we are celebrating my daughter's first birthday with a family party. Should be an interesting do. Our five-year-old son is pretty excited. Hope the presents make him happy too, considering there'll be none for him and that'll be a first.