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Here's Lockie on his way to a friend's pirate birthday party today. The eye-patch was removed in the car a few minutes later, but the bandana stayed put for hours. He had a great time, and later in the day Frazer taught him another chord on his guitar, so that's 3 he can play now - enough for a tune! He looks so little behind his guitar, despite it being a half-size model.
Last night I went to see Bic Runga at MFC with my friend Judi. We got there a bit late and caught the last song from hilarious support act 'The Flight of the Conchords' and wished we could have seen more. But then Bic and her studio band came onstage and blew us away. She sang all the songs from her new album 'Birds', and many more familiar songs too, finishing with my favourite, "Drive". I can't say enough good things about Bic - she has such a unique, almost haunting voice and her songs are just beautiful. A multi-talented woman - she can even cut hair - namely my littlest sister's!
It was sunny today - this is noteworthy only because it's rained every day for the past week [at least] and everyone's been grumbling about Winter arriving early, etc. The rain is supposed to return tomorrow. Typical.
I actually went out on St Patricks Day last night!!! This is rare for me and I had a groovy time on the sticky dancefloor of JJ Murphys with 2 friends whom I first met exactly 8 years ago, at a gig of Frazer's then band, Zoo Station. I don't see much of them these days but we'll always be friends. It was worth the half hour queue to get in and all the bright green clothes people seemed to feel obliged to wear. I actually forgot the occasion so was dressed more demurely [what an old fart!]
My boots were great though, and Bella loves them. Yawn, am a bit sleep deprived now. Hopefully I can get away with a quiet Saturday today.
I'm finding this blog thing more of a chore than I should, and I feel absurdly guilty about it. I mean, it's pretty self-indulgent to rattle on about my kids, my complaints, and books I read! But that's just the nature of it I guess. Once I do get around to it it's fun. And I occasionally get a comment from a friend about how much they enjoy reading it and this makes it all worthwhile.
BTW, I read a good book recently - The Children Of The Dust, can't remember the author. A woman I work with said she had studied it in 3rd form English, so I thought it might be worth a try. It's set over 55 years and chronicles several generations of Britons, starting with the nuclear war that all but destroyed the entire world. It's really hopeful at the end though. I couldn't help thinking that it would make a great mini-series....OMG I am a product of too much TV viewing...
Here's my boy - Mr Guitar Man! Well, Fraz has finally succumbed to pressure and bought his son a geetar. It's a half-size model and I forget the brand. Anyway, Frazer and Lockie have worked their way through 2 music theory books to get to the stage of actually handling a real live guitar, and Lockie is so proud of it! Not that this makes him any more likely to practise it, although he has told a friend of mine that he prefers to practise his guitar over watching Playhouse Disney channel on TV...yeah right. He's lost a couple of picks already down into the soundhole so it rattles a bit. [He won't accept help to get them out]. To those who are astute enough to notice, it's a left-handed model, because the poor kid takes after both his parents in that respect. It's a bloody bugger to get hold of decent left-handed electric guitars apparently, or so Fraz would tell it, and he should know, having played guitar for about 26 years now.
I like to think Bella may also be musical - she chimes in quite tunefully when I sing 'Five Little Ducks Went Swimming One Day'. And she too is handy with a guitar pick - when I can persuade her to keep it out of her mouth...
Today I took Bella over to the house of the new woman who will be minding her one day each week. She has a daughter a few weeks older [but several cm taller], and loads of lovely toys. Bella was interested in the place but only if I was in view. I sure hope it works out OK as Bella was so settled at the last caregiver's but that only lasted 6 months. I have put her name on the waiting list at a few childcare centres but at least two of them were reluctant to even put her name down - as if their current waiting list was miles long and I would never get a place! I insisted anyway. Apparently next year the Govt. has decreed that we can get 20 hours free childcare per week. Sounds good, but I've been advised to get Bella's name down at as many places as practical to ensure she gets a place somewhere. Hmmm. Seems quite political.
Lockie saw his paediatrician a couple of days ago and he has given him on a course of antibiotics [to kick a persistent cough] that requires me to wake him at 6am to take a pill, and for his teacher at school to administer two doses also - they've gotta be on an empty stomach which is actually quite hard to work out. It seems he normally eats a lot more frequently than fits the prescription needs. 3 weeks of this better be worth it...
At least the check-up was a good one. There's a new treatment for CF pioneered in Australia [hypertonic saline] that is being discussed at the next NZ CF Conference in Christchurch in May and Lockie's paediatrician is very interested in this subject and the possibility of good benefits for young CF sufferers like Lockie. Sounds good.
The smile on her face says it all - Bella loves her new stroller very much. She never used to look twice at the doll [bought for Lockie a few years back] but now it serves a purpose! After I took this photo she tried to climb into the stroller and suck on baby's head... Turned out she wanted a breastfeed. Easy mistake to make?
Bell has been unwell for over a week now, with nappy woes and a short temper being the main symptoms. Also, waking in the night has been a regular thing lately [yawn!], but the last couple of nights she's pulled it together and slept through. I dropped into the doctor's surgery with a poo sample for testing last Friday but it turned out it went missing [like who would possibly want to take it??!?!] so we did another one this morning. She's got a bit of upheaval coming up over the next couple of weeks as her Thursday caregiver is [sob sob] having to call it quits as her own work hours have changed. So it's the last day with Fiona this week, and next week a day with another friend, and then hopefully I can settle her in with yet another friend on a temporary basis until I can get a place sorted at a local childcare centre. It's enough to make me want to give up work but as Jo pointed out - I really do love going to work, so will persevere and hope for the best.
Yikes just noticed it's after 2 and Bella is still napping, so will need to wake her and shovel some lunch in before the school pickup...
Yesterday Lockie whispered to me [Bella was in the room too], that he didn't really like Bella at all. I said surely there was one thing he liked about her, but he couldn't think of a thing. What's that about I wonder - how long does the sibling jealousy thing continue? Despite this, he often tells me how cute she is and gives her kisses and hugs, so I'm not too worried. Personally I can't see a thing not to adore about this wee girl! She's been a bit unwell with a tummy bug lately, but is still chirpy and happy mostly [when she stopped vomiting!!]
Have just finished a rather riveting book, if not a grim and ghastly one: 'I Choose To Live' by Sabine Dardenne. She is the 22-year-old survivor of the Monster of Belgium, Marc Dutroux, who kidnapped her at age 12, and kept her as his sex slave in hideous conditions for 80 days, before her rescue. He had previously raped, tortured and murdered several other young girls, with the complicity and full knowledge of his wife... I vaguely remember the media stories about this case, back in 1996. Not a happy book obviously. Makes me want to lock up my children away from harm almost...lucky I'm not the paranoid sort.
Here's Lockie on his way to a friend's pirate birthday party today. The eye-patch was removed in the car a few minutes later, but the bandana stayed put for hours. He had a great time, and later in the day Frazer taught him another chord on his guitar, so that's 3 he can play now - enough for a tune! He looks so little behind his guitar, despite it being a half-size model.
