Sunny Days

Oops, there goes January...flying past at the speed of light. This pic is taken at the beach beside Freyberg Pool, at Oriental Bay. A sanitised version of the kind of beach we frequented as kids; totally man-made, and freshly swept and sifted as we arrived in the carpark nearby. But it was also Bella's first introduction to sand as not confined to a sandpit. Yes, I am a slack mother, not to have taken her to a beach before the age of 2! It's not as if we are not surrounded by multitudes of beaches here, it's just that we never got around to it. She had a ball anyway, and is still talking about it, days later. Lockie enjoyed himself too, and he and a friend dug a deep hole that had many of the other kids on the beach wandering over for an curious look.

Today we picked up a set of bunks for Lockie's room, that I bought from Trademe. Lockie insisted he would sleep on the top bunk tonight, but I just found him transferring himself to the bottom bunk, 90 minutes after I turned out his light!

Today Bella decided to forgo her nap - although she did spend an hour and a half in her cot at naptime! I could hear her singing and chatting to her toys the whole time, as I willed her to go to sleep from the next room. Funny kid. I finally went in and rescued her and she announced 'it's morning!'

This morning Bella became convinced that her Aunty Meg was here - she spotted me lying in bed after breakfast, having sneaked in to see Fraz as he slept in. She must have thought I was Meg then, because she looked at me and said "you're daddy's friend" and then ran out calling "Aunty Meggie's here!" That was pretty funny, and even though I told her I was her Mummy, she didn't believe me!! Later I got up and she asked me to come and find where Meggie had gone. We went outside and saw a Qantas plane passing overhead - I said Meg was on it, going home. Not the first time I've been mistaken for my twin but the first time my child had insisted she was right!

Fun and games

This afternoon we had friends over to play - we've known this family since shortly after moving to Johnsonville more than 5 years ago, when both our sons were small and starting Playcentre. Now we live in different suburbs and our kids attend different schools but there's still the great connection you have with great friends, even when we don't catch up very often anymore. The boys put a silly show on for us Mums and Bella, who clapped and laughed appropriately at their hilarious antics. Later, when they had gone home, Bella decided to dress-up too. She shed her fairy clothes just minutes after I snapped this photo though.

Oops

Feeling a bit twitchy tonight. It turns out that when we went with broadband a month ago, we didn't anticipate the increased usage that would happen as we thrilled to the speed and convenience of it all... now we are way over our monthly limit and I am nervous about connecting at all! Too bad though, it's been so long since I blogged that I find myself feeling a bit shy about it all.

Well, Christmas was a blast, with my two sisters and father staying for several days, and much food and booze consumed by all. Loads of lovely pressies opened and enjoyed, especially by the kids whose bedrooms need to be rearranged to accommodate the large amount of loot they received from generous rellies. Everyone remained well-behaved [except for me having a couple of PMT-inspired meltdowns in the lead-up to Christmas Day!]. The weather has been, for the most part, absolutely atrocious and practically wintery, very ho-hum. Still, when there's a break in the weather on any given day, you'll find Lockie zipping outdoors and playing on his trampoline - until he gets too cold that is.

Bella has been unwell - viral gastroenteritis no less, since a few days before Chrissy, and for a week after also. Poor mite. And poor me having to change so many disgusting nappies. She's all good now, which is lucky as she decided to undress herself for her bath this evening, including a poo-laden nappy... in Lockie's bedroom for unknown reasons... oh boy. I cleaned up the mess and later told him about it - he announced then that his room 'smelled of dung'. Great. He thinks his sister is a horse/cow/sheep.

Back to work tomorrow, and Lockie possibly to his Nana's in Otaki for a couple of nights. Ahh, peace. I may even go in early to work and help with the huge backload of 'returns' that will be piling up over the long weekend. I will also be setting up a display in the Adult Fiction section, of 'Banned and Challenged Books'. Hope people will borrow them... I haven't done many displays so have some credibilty to build there ;)

!!!!!!

I've noticed recently I seem to be suffering from exclamationitis... so apologies to any readers who find that REALLY ANNOYING. [Much like writing in CAPITALS and using ... at the end of too many sentences]. Not that I intend to mend my ways, I just want to point out that I am aware of the problem!!

Today I borrowed a trailer and drove across the city to collect a sofa bed I had won on Trademe [yeah, yeah], and found myself manoeuvring the damn trailer on an Island Bay hillside cul-de-sac lined with parked cars - in reverse. Mini-nightmare qualities there, but I am proud that I avoided digging up the grass verge or dinging any of the cars. I did have to retie the ropes a couple of times before I made it back to J'Ville, but it was all worth it in the end. Even though Bella saw me putting on a jacket 10 minutes before I actually left the house and when she realised I was going out without her she spent the time crying 'me wanna come' over and over, in her bedroom. Fraz tells me she eventually sat down and read a bunch of books there and came out later, quite happy.

When I was home and the sofa was in-situ and we had all tried it out, Lockie then threw a major wobbly because Fraz had suggested they go out somewhere together. He whined so much I was begging him to go too. In the end, Fraz left alone, and Lockie sulked in his room, probably thinking nobody wanted him around. I told him I loved his company but just thought he'd have more fun out with his Dad, and this seemed to mollify him. We had a big hug for ages and for once, Bella didn't try and butt in and claim me as her one-and-only. I forget sometimes that it must be tough not being the 'cute little one' in the family anymore. Bella does get a whole lot of attention and Lockie misses out at times. When school finishes later this week I have planned a special day with him, with movies and shopping on the menu, plus a haircut for Lockie!

Today I helped Lockie to make special placemats for our Christmas Day Lunch. [Admittedly he did suggest I give him some pocket money for that, but I pointed out that everyone would be so proud of his creative efforts that that should be reward enough!]

Lockie lost two teeth yesterday. These teeth [lower central incisors] had been wiggly for TWO MONTHS and I was sick of them. He just wouldn't wiggle them out. Anyway, one fell out when he woke up so we saved that one for the Tooth Fairy, and he did actually lose the second one at a birthday party he attended at lunchtime - he thinks he swallowed it* along with a mouthful of sausage roll. At the same party he got blue streaks in his hair and freaky tattoos. He loved it, although nearly didn't go as he got stage fright. We even dropped the present off earlier in the morning as he was adamant he wasn't going. Luckily the birthday girl's Mum had said he was welcome to pop in anyway, so we did.

*We wrote a wee note to the TF pointing this out. He got $2.50 for them, which he was quite satisfied with :) No gaps in his mouth to whistle through though, as a new tooth had grown in behind the two loosies weeks ago.

Bella has taken to exclaiming 'Oh my God!', which doesn't sound right from the lips of so small a person... all my fault so shall have to curb my exclamations it seems.

Trying to be an angel

Yesterday I did a Random Act of Kindness. Call it the Christmas Spirit infecting me. I do like to do nice things for strangers sometimes, a) because it makes me feel good and b) I like to make others happy and also c) I hope that they too might spread some kindness around. You know, when a butterfly flaps its wings in Brazil, it triggers a hurricane on the other side of the world, or whatever that saying is.

Anyway I was down at the shops with Bella in her mountain buggy and decided to bug the guys at the bike shop and get the tyres pumped up. They were lovely about it, so I then went to a nearby bakery and bought them some cream buns for their morning tea.

I remember several years ago when I worked at Wellington Hospital I befriended an lonely old lady who came in often, and we always chatted a bit. She lived alone nearby and a few times I popped a small box of chocs and a friendly anonymous note into her letterbox. Looking back, I really hope she didn't think some whacko was stalking her...

RAK are such simple things to do. Unselfish acts, just going out of your way a bit, for strangers. Hard to classify really. Being courteous on the roads may qualify. There isn't enough of that these days certainly. I used to occasionally take a plastic bag along when taking the baby for a walk, and pick up rubbish from the street as we went. The other day at the Mall I picked up a few items from a shop display that had tumbled into the way of passersby. Took 5 secs and meant others didn't have to manoeuvre around them. [The shop staff were crazily busy]. Now I sound like I'm bragging about my saintliness! Not so, I just want to spread the cheer...cheesy as it sounds.

Have a lovely day at work Meg, a shame about working on the weekend but hopefully time will fly by, and bring you closer to coming over to NZ!

Ally, if you read this, I'm sorry I was a slackarse and didn't contact you on your birthday...big Happy Birthday to you!

And Aud, when you receive a small package from me, consider that your Birthday gift, even though I forgot to add a note or card... am posting that off today! xxx

New beginnings...

So, here we are, in our new house. The virtues of this house are many and varied; suffice to say we are loving it! It's just generally bigger and sunnier, and the backyard is great. The trampoline has had a bit of use, although today it is so dreary and drizzly that it will get a wash instead. Which is not a bad idea as it appears to be a target for birds practising their pooping aim...

The move itself was not so stressful as I had imagined it might be, although, there are several boxes still waiting patiently to be delved into and emptied. May do something about that today...or not. Didn't get a redirection order organised at NZ Post - the fact that they now charge for it does have something to do with it, plus just haven't got around to it. Oops.

Yesterday would have been Mum's 63rd birthday. I guess she'll always be young[er] in my memory. The only good thing about dying before your time, perhaps. I've taught Bella to call her 'Grandma', when she sees her in photos. I remember that when Lockie was younger he thought she was called 'Diane' because she had 'died'. Kid logic again.

Tonight is Bella's childcare centre's Christmas Party, complete with Santa. Should be interesting as she is not keen on the old guy in the red suit... even when he is bearing gifts. Lockie is off to his school disco tonight too. Yesterday he had to sing a carol to the class as his weekly homework. He chose 'Jingle Bell Rock' and said it went really well. Maybe we can get a rendition out of him on Christmas day for his aunties!!

Take Your Positions

Tonight the battle commenced. The battle to get Lockie to eat his dinner that is. This afternoon we took Lockie to see his paediatrician for his regular check-up. All went well, until we somehow got on to his lack of appetite at dinnertime. The Prof suggested we offer him the same food as we are all eating and send him to bed hungry if he refuses it. Common sense maybe, but we have never actually done this and instead I would make him his own meal, effectively making two dinners each night. I'm talking about a boy who will eat a VERY limited range of food. With Frazer and Lockie both present when the Prof talked to us today, I resolved to Get Hard and start to address the problem properly. So when we got home I made dinner, and an hour and 10 minutes after we had finished eating, Lockie finally stopped his loud ranting and raving and sat down to consume a [small] portion of spag bol! Small miracles, as he has never bothered to even taste it ever before, and it's a dish we have every week. He was rightly proud of his efforts and went to bed smiling and relaxed. Whew! Day One is over... I'm hoping his confidence will grow as he finds that the meals I cook aren't too bad after all :)

Masterpiece

Lockie has produced this lovely waterslide with Jerry, about to zoom down! It is a school 'news' project - to create a model of your favourite piece of playground equipment. He is so very proud of it. Except, he has seen other models brought to school this week and his apparently pales in comparison to the [parent-assisted] creations of wood and wire... I feel for him. He put his heart and soul into this slide and I didn't help him beyond the occasional encouraging comment. Now he feels it's not that great. I hope his teacher sees that he did it all himself and praises his efforts accordingly.

I bought a food processor on the weekend [Trademe!] and this morning attempted my first recipe using it. I made Honey and Sultana Scones and the mess I created was astounding. Flour and sticky goop covered most surfaces including myself and the machine made some odd grunting noises as I added the 3 cups of flour down the feed tube [missing the tube mostly]. When the scones were finally baking, I noticed the last line of the recipe stated that it should only be attempted using the Super version of the machine I had...oops.

I am soon going to attempt to put Bella down for a nap. She has been most reluctant to do this lately and a couple of days ago she actually untucked herself, took off her shorts and NAPPY and ended up sleeping butt-naked, and wetting the bed of course. Yesterday she practically skipped her sleep owing to the fact she had tumbled on an armchair at lunchtime, hurting her arm. She made such a huge fuss about it for so long, that I gave her some Pamol and then drove her to the A&E at Kenepuru Hospital, fearing the worst. She napped on the way, for barely 10 minutes, and when I woke her in the carpark, she was FINE. No pain, crying or whinging. I tested her - "wave to Mummy with two hands!" - and ended up confusing her, but was satisfied there was nothing wrong with her. What a palaver. My little drama queen... 

Rest In Peace

Two days ago was the 7th anniversary of my Mum's death. I spent the day [at work] feeling strangely lost. I vividly remember the day I got a phonecall from my brother-in-law to say she had suddenly passed away. I felt so choked with shock and despair I could barely breathe. It was like my life [as I knew it] was over. Of course, it wasn't really over, but a few months later my first child was born and discovered to have CF and my grief really hit me then. Mum would have known how to comfort me - she had the knack of saying just the right thing, and her humour was guaranteed to make me smile through my tears. I sure hope I can be a Mum like that to my kids when they are grown.

This morning Belinda Emmett passed away in the hospital my sister works in in Sydney. We had watched 'Rove Live' last night and I feel deeply sad for Rove's loss. He's such a likeable character, it feels awful to imagine his pain at his wife's passing, not that I can.

What a sad little blog! Sorry folks. Will be chirpier next time!!!

Just Like Daddy

Bella was singing 'You Are My Sunshine' as she strummed on her Dad's guitar. She knows all the words too!

Today I splashed out on a trampoline [yay for Trademe] as we will soon have a yard worthy of one. Lockie is excited and bouncy already, although he'll have to wait a few more weeks to try it out. Bella isn't really up with such things as tramps so she's going to be in for a lovely surprise.

Bella's most favourite caregiver at her daycare centre is leaving tomorrow. This is quite a blow for all the parents too, as Dao is a favourite of many of the kids. Hopefully Bella will latch onto another of the teachers there soon enough. 

Happy

I have just helped Fraz go through a performance review for one of his staff. Now he reckons we should each do a review on our marriage! YIKES. Luckily I was checking my Trade Me sales at the time and he got bored waiting and plugged in his guitar [and headphones] so I am off the hook for tonight. He has the day off tomorrow so will be up till all hours happily plucking the strings. As for me, I have had a couple of wines and am merrily tapping away hoping for not too many spelling errors. Nothing on telly, I have checked out what Wanda is up to, always interesting in a nosey kind of way, and also Jess of course. Am feeling at a bit of a loose end as I am not out tonight [obviously], unlike the previous 4 Tuesday nights, when I was pretending to be a Karaoke Contest judge in the city. We decided on a winner last week and now it's all over :(

Today I received a cardi [yes that's right!] in the post, the first Trade Me win I had achieved in many weeks - have been trying hard not to spend money online this way. Anyway, it's really nice and just what I wanted for my librarian role. Maybe some bifocals that balance on the tip of my nose would be useful...

We move house in 4 weeks and I CAN'T WAIT. It's not far from here, I can see it from our letterbox in fact. I really like all our neighbours so that's a good thing.

Small dilemma happening for my tipsy self - do I feel like chippies or chocolate? Or maybe more wine? Determined to get up at 5:15am for the gym so maybe not more wine...

Fisherboy

Here is Lockie with his catch - a trout weighing 538g and measuring 30cm! The biggest of all the trout caught by him and his friends this morning. The rain may have been pouring from dark skies but this did not deter our Lockie. He had a great time but now we have to work out how to gut the thing and cook it up...oh boy.

We spent the rest of the day hanging out at home, and later we popped over to see some friends for a wine and a catch-up before tea-time, [and a spot of Playstation for Lockie!].

P.S. I have now cooked the fish and it was very tasty - Bella and I sampled it happily but the boys wouldn't even taste it: 'we caught it, you eat it'.

Saturday Movies

This afternoon Lockie and I started watching 'Madagascar' on DVD, while I was doing his physio, then Bella woke so I parked her on the couch with a bowl of popcorn until we had finished and we joined her there, once the curtains were pulled against the grey day outside. We had a lovely time, although the similarities between the storylines of this movie and the recently released 'The Wild' were rather obvious. Brought to mind the twin-like qualities of two other animated movies: 'Antz' and 'A Bug's Life'. I'm sure there are others I haven't thought of. What's with that anyway?

Tomorrow Lockie is going to fish for trout somewhere in Brooklyn. Yes, that suburb that is up a hill. Hmmm. Should be interesting. Will keep you posted.

It is Labour Weekend and yesterday Lockie's school had a 'Teacher's Only Day' so everyone gets 4 days off school, instead of the usual three. Handy. Except the weather is yuck. Typical holiday weekend!

Gym Bunny

On Saturday night I took Lockie along to a party at my local gym. It was an early start and we didn't intend to stay long. The party was a birthday celebration for the gym and there was the enticement of the drawing of a $16,000 cash prize too, to which I had an entered my name. We got there after the band had finished [Mickey Finn, appropriately as it was an Irish theme] but there was still plenty of food and drinks to go around. The prize draw was long-winded and convuluted and in fact 5 names were drawn and each one had a go at winning the big prize, although 4 scored a Mystery Prize and one won $160 cash. And THAT WAS IT! Everyone packed up and started to go home. I felt cheated and ripped off! What about the 16 grand? Upon asking, it appears that the advertising posters mentioned only a 'chance' to win, with no promise that the cash would be won. Not good enough, and I know several gym members who thought it was a crock of shit too. As it was, Lockie, who spent the first half an hour whining that he wanted to go home, spent the next half an hour playing on the equipment [under my eye of course], especially the treadmill. And then a staff member kindly handed him [and a bunch of other kids] a gym backpack, and we discovered it had a gym cap, headphones and drink bottle inside. That cheered him right up and we went home in time to meet Bella getting out of the bath - still early! Not much of a night out... Fraz had to go out later so I got comfy on the couch with some wine, pineapple lumps and Donnie Darko.

Move over Megan Alatini!

For those who don't know who she is, Megan Alatini is on the panel of judges for the latest edition of NZ Idol. I was in her place last night [not really!] when I helped to judge a Karaoke competition in a bar in the city. Fraz was supposed to be doing it but sent me along instead. I was up for it and laughed my head off at the wannabe Idols as they warmed up the mike. And then the competition started and I was all seriousness, of course. At least, I hid my giggles behind my hands. The girl we chose to win [bar tab and entry to the final in 3 weeks], was very happy. She did Whitney Houston a treat! The Elvis impersonator didn't look too happy at not getting a placing and the worse performer left with his entourage before the competition finished. Can't please everyone. I'm thinking of doing it next week... I got free drinks at least.

I'm Back

Eeek! I have forsaken my poor lonely blog for far too long!

Now to remedy that, I will skim over my recent trip to Sydney. Meg was a wonderful hostess and made sure we kept very busy - we spent 8 days shopping, drinking/dancing, sightseeing and walking, plus numerous hours on public transport getting about the city. Lockie would have loved the trains I reckon, but we were kid-free! I really enjoyed seeing 'Varekai' by the amazing Cirque du Soleil, we saw an art exhibition by a highly acclaimed sort-of distant Swiss relative, visited many beaches, and the Sydney Aquarium with our cousin Ally and her two kids, and of course, I brought back loads of pressies for the family. In fact it was touch and go that I would be able to close my bulging suitcase.

Fraz seemed to have coped very well with his stint as sole carer of the children, with the help of his mother at times. I am toying with the idea of booking another week away in Sydney in fact.

Home now, after a week of extreme holidaying [for me anyway], life is back to normal, and I have just survived the first week of the school holidays relatively unscathed. One more week to go. The weather, so lovely and sunny and HOT in Sydney, is totally shite here, so maybe we will see some sun soon... PLEASE!

Spring has Sprung!

This morning I decided on the spur of the moment to take Bella to the Wellington Zoo. We arrived shortly after it opened and spent two hours roaming the exhibits in the sunshine. These two otters were delightful as they squealed at us for food. I think they mistook me for a zookeeper as I was wearing a black cap. Bella loved seeing the animals, including the lions, tigers, giraffes [we were only two feet from them with nothing between!], sun bears, kangaroos and meerkats. I was sad to see that Cairo the camel had died since my last visit there. Bella adores 'Alice The Camel' song and I wanted to show her a real live Alice. We had a really pleasant time. I think Lockie will be annoyed with me though!  

My Soccer Hero

Lockie is shown here proudly displaying both the medal he received at his soccer prizegiving yesterday, and the two sock puppets he created right before bedtime ['Ben and Lisa']. Bella was fascinated by them and a little afraid! This morning I had the medal engraved for him and have promised to deliver it to him when I collect him at the end of school today - so he can quickly show it off to his friends. I'm pretty sure the engraving cost way more than the medal... but it was worth it. He reckons he won't be playing next year but hopefully he will change his mind by next Winter. Not that I can blame him for not wanting to play - this is the harshest winter we've had in years. Wellington hasn't dipped below zero officially but the fields where Lockie plays soccer are sub-Antarctic as far as I am concerned.

I took Lockie to see his paediatrician last week for his regular 3-monthly checkup and all is going well. In fact, the Prof was delighted with his progress and the fact that he has been fairly well this winter - often a really hard time for Cfers it seems. I always feel a wave of relief when I hear this kind of feedback and can come away from the hospital smiling.

I went out last Friday night with two of my oldest girlfriends [not old old, I am older!], and we had a bite to eat up Cuba St followed by a drink at Kitty's and then boogied the night away at Boogie Wonderland, a really fun bar next to the Paramount Theatre on Courtenay Place. Haven't had so much fun in too long. A Ceroc dancing class had just finished before we got there and we watched in wonder as the dancers continued to monopolise the dancefloor with their wild shimmying and dipping, partner-swapping constantly and keeping us guessing as to who was actually with who! We even entertained the notion of returning another Friday night and joining in but I'm not sure any of us are quite that bold... 

A Tale of Jif Misuse

Gee, I just can't resist posting cute photos of Bella on my blog! [A shame about the dirty sneakers though.] She's just so adorable... except this morning I was in the shower and Daddy was in charge of the kids and Lockie came in to tell me how she had picked up a bottle of Jif and sprinkled globs of it all over the kitchen floor and herself, and was starting on the living room before she was discovered! Fraz did an admirable [for a fella] job of cleaning it up but I still had to do a fair bit of scrubbing to get it off the carpet. I said to Bella, 'look at you', to which she replied 'I'm a messy girl', very matter of fact about it!

I decided not to take Lockie to soccer this morning as he is on antibiotics for a cough and also, I just couldn't be bothered. Woke up feeling apathetic and empty for some reason. I really really wanted Fraz to take the kids out for a while but he only took Lockie. I realised that a bit of retail therapy was in order so packed up Bella in the car and went to Westfield Queensgate for a browse. Came away with a pair of jeans for me and a little kiwi toy that makes REAL kiwi noises when you squeeze his tummy. The latter was a bribe to get Bella through me trying on copious pieces of clothing in the changing rooms of three different shops! We dropped in on Fraz and Lockie and then headed home for lunch and naps :)

I caught up with a couple of old friends I used to party with a lot years ago, before marriage and kids [of course], last night and it was great to see them. One was housesitting in Northland and we met there - there's a lot to be said for being single and unfettered, Jo! The house was awesome.

Only a few more weeks before I'm relaxing, shopping, partying, and most importantly, sleeping in [!] in sunny Sydney...can't wait. And can't wait to see my twin of course!!

Just like Maisy Mouse

Bella loves to brush her teeth in the bath, but only once she's opened her Maisy Mouse book to the right page!

Lockie played soccer on Sunday, for the first time in a month [weather woes,etc] and I nearly wet myself laughing at times! The best bit was when he was goalie and all the action was at the other end of the field, and then a wee voice could be heard asking "can I have a little help here please?" - Lockie had managed to half-collapse the portable goal posts and was trying to hold them up - and then the ball was heading his way! A couple of Dads rushed over to sort it out while I wiped the tears from my eyes and tried to stop cracking up. He had a great time, despite the wintry wind and freezing drizzle that was falling. Last weekend he simply refused to go at all, to our horror. Not sure why he changed his mind this week but it could be he couldn't face his parents' ranting and raving about it!