It came.

a little excited :-)

a gorgeous sight at our breakfast table

it wouldn't be Isaac without a contemplative look...

...and mummy contemplating the next 10 years of her life on Anzac ave .... :-) :-)

learning where everything goes

signing in :-)

number two is so incredibly excited for him....it's beautiful.

The day that our biggest boy goes to school.

I won't go into the expected ramble from a mother who has sent their baby off to school as you all know the story...can't believe how fast it's gone, how big they are, how can we be old enough yadda yadda yadda. The thing is, you hear the same stories from all these parents because it's simply true - it's a kind of out of body experience.

Of course it wouldn't be our household without a drama :-) ... Isaac came down sick with croup a couple of days ago. After refusing to leave the doctor's office for the second time with him until I had some form of drug (he insisted Isaac was fine and his chest was clear, but of course didn't hear him doing his Free Willy sound effects in the middle of the night) he's picked up and I felt okay about him going to school.

Today they are just sussing out a third of the kids (all the kids go over three days so they can have them in smaller groups) then tomorrow they will organise them into their two classes.

Ebony or "my Eb" as he calls her, the love of Isaac's life, is also going there so lets hope they end up in the same class! Apparently there's a shortage of boys - only 15 of them out of about 50 kids - so the odds for Isaac the Fonz are looking good :-) :-)

I once read a quote that said, "the decision to have a child - it's momentous. It's deciding to forever have your heart walking around outside your body".

Today especially, how that rings true. I am so proud of you my darling boy xxoo

Happy Snaps

the kids on the kiddie version of a drop-you-and-make-you-scream ride. It was really pretty tame but Cassidy just looked at us over the safety bar with complete terror in her eyes making squeaking noises while Isaac had a vice like grip on her leg :-)

Cassidy with the proverbial ice cream

a poorly timed shot by mummy, but Steve and I had a good giggle over how appropriate it is :-)

I have a deep dark terrible secret.

I loathe taking happy snaps. Definition? Happy snaps to most of the lovely mummy photographers I know qualify as shots taken that aren't in great light, usually involve food covered, sweaty and un-willing children (actually, now that I think of it un-willing isn't a qualifying factor. They are always un-willing) and are basically un-planned by us. We are all secret control freaks you see.

Basically they are shots taken in Real Life. Without gorgeously dressed children running through some kind of Sound of Music scene that we photographers dream about yet can never achieve because Real Life gets in the way. You know, those sort of shots :-)

Just like today. We attempted Seaworld round two before Isaac starts school this week. It was a beautiful day, we went and conquered Ikea on the way down first (note to self: always take Steve to Ikea; he wrangles at least one of the kids and I much rather directing which heavy box to hoik rather than hoiking it myself).

We had a lovely half day wandering round Seaworld, just doing the kid rides and then spending an hour in the water park.

Perfect full sun, grotty, sweaty and uninterested kids happy snap potential. Sometimes the memory is better than the photograph, but the photograph awakens the memory :-)

In a few years time, I know that I would choose to be awakened.

Ready anyway

This morning Cassidy flounced into Isaac's room where I was making the bed and said,

"I'm ready mummy. I have all my stuff. I couldn't fit it all in one handbag so I had to use three." (the attitude with which she made this simple statement doesn't come across well in typing).

I said, "well I'm glad you're prepared but I didn't realise we were going anywhere".

She said, "oh well, I'm ready anyway".

That describes her perfectly - Cassidy is ready anyway. I just hope the poor young man that eventually comes along and gets drawn in by her is "ready anyway".

Move over Calvin Klein...

...cause they don't come much spunkier than this.

A minute silence please...

For all the mummies that go overdue with their babies :-)

Poor Cath is still up the duff :-) and what's worse, the mad people that call themselves health professionals are saying they won't induce her till the third of Feb! How inconsiderate is that :-)

But I must say I think she makes such a cute pregnant chick I couldn't resist posting another photo.

And a few from the vault

Well maybe the vault is a bit extreme :-)

From the 'holiday' at Caloundra actually, taken on one of the rare moments when it wasn't raining and we took the kids to the park to play cricket in the mud...as you do.

I took a few dispirited shots on Jen's camera (luckily she had the forsight to bring hers, I was too busy sulking) of the non-cricket playing kids that were not as close to the mud. I don't do mud, just not my thing. Especially not when I'm cranky :-)

Almost...

I think he's almost a boy. I mean they go from baby, to toddler, to little boy...but looking at him sometimes lately I'm not sure how long I can get away with the little boy line.

I think he's almost just "a boy".

Now I can ask him to go and find something quiet to do in his room while Cassidy is asleep and he actually does. He does lego or practises his writing or does a puzzle. I guess that's what little boys (oh sorry, boys!) going to school do.

We picked up his uniforms the other day and he wanted to put one on in the car. How many times have you heard mums with kids going too school for the first time saying how they felt when they sent their baby off to school. Well next Thursday doesn't bode well for me because I almost couldn't handle seeing him in a uniform. There was something about seeing him in that slightly too big uniform, proud as punch that almost did me in.

Here's also a pic of his new bunk bed. I've been wanting to do nice new furniture in his room for a while and have kept an eagle eye on ebay. Last week this one appeared for a bargain price - like brand new with a trundle, storage drawers and shelves for all his cars - he thinks it's wonderful.

I almost re-thought the bunk bed idea when the first morning I came into his room and the kids had constructed the most unstable and structually-unsound "ladder" of pillows and furniture (we haven't put the ladder on yet for safety's sake with Cassidy). Isaac had hoiked Cassidy onto the top bunk and was doing his best to scramble up there as well.

At that moment I was very glad we are with Medibank Private - I feel better now! :-) :-)

Isaac-ographer

Whilst over visiting Aunty Em, Isaac got loose with their camera and spent a good part of the afternoon snapping away.

Em and I had a good giggle when we opened up the card and saw what objects had taken his fancy - sort of like at the end of the movie Rain Man when they roll the credits and you see all of Ray's pictures :-)

Photos by Isaac and a bit of lightening in photoshop by mummy. We make a good team eh? :-)

Details mummy, details...

Today we were driving along the highway and beside us is tow truck. Off the back off the tow truck is a car that is in a very bad way.

The most major and confronting thing was the windshield was completely smashed. There was a huge hole right in the centre, the rest of the glass was shattered and held together in chunks by the tinting film. The bonnet of the car was crumpled in. All in all you looked at the car and thought that you really hoped that whoever had been in it was okay. It definately qualified as a write off.

Cassidy sees the car and said, "Look at that car on the tow truck".

Isaac said, "Yes I know why it's on the tow truck. A policeman saw someone driving that car and said that their number plate wasn't on there straight and so they had to get a tow truck because you can't drive your car with the number plate not on straight".

I'm sure whoever owns that car would have loved their biggest problem to be a skew-if number plate :-)

Guilty as charged

Today I had a mummy meltdown.

You know the type. Something like the woman off the NRMA ad hissing to her children "don't make me come back there".

I bravely decided to go down to Ikea to try to beat down a list of "oh wouldn't that bookshelf/storage rack/ useless but interesting looking caddy-thingy" that has been building for quite some time. I say bravely because over the past few days, like what I imagine the chinese water torture to be, my children have been wearing me down. Remind me on the first day of prep when I'm crying that my baby is going to school how I feel at this moment. You know when they get to fighting over how many nutra grains are in their bowls that it's a severe case of home-itis.

So off we went and for the first hour I browsed in bliss while the kids stayed and played at the child minding playground. I think it was the quickest hour of my life and when I went to get them, it started to go rapidly downhill. I say rapidly because I just about had to prise Cassidy's fingers off the ball pit as I dragged her away.

Half an hour and quite a few heavy products heaved off high shelves later I was descending in to NRMA mum once the camera was turned off. That's right, you know the one where "don't make me come back there" turned into you went back there and what was back there was ugly. Ikea is one of those places that every time you go you think to yourself I'm never bringing my children here again..yet for some reason by next time you always think it will be okay. The one and only consolation is basically every other parent there is kid wrangling along with you.

Fast forward driving back to Aunty Em's where the kids were going to stay for a few hours while Steve and I went for dinner and a movie. Our anniversary night out turned into rushed takeaway ("sorry we gave your dinner to someone else". "Um...okay".) and got to the movie late to be told there were only seats left in the first two rows.

Let's just say it was one of those days where you get to the end and you know you should have cried "ABORT CAPTAIN!!" much earlier in the piece :-)

ps. the pic is one of the usual suspects in her favourite guilty spot under my desk...with daddy's keys.

Miscellaneous memories...

...the kids in the garage "helping" dad...I went in there to find Isaac, Cassidy and Cassidy's baby on ladders according to their size. They only allowed me one photo but it makes me smile :-)

...and flowers bought in for us by Cassidy (and Tom I think) and lined up on the kitchen bench while Jen and I were chatting.

Miscellaneous but priceless.

all dressed up with nowhere to go

Cassidy has had this dress in her cupboard for a while, I think we bought it for one of Heidi's girls then when they grew out of it Heid gave it back to me for Cassidy.

She never noticed it till a few days ago and since then she wants to wear it at every opportunity. So many times over the past few days she has skipped out of her room wearing it.

The first conversation about it though went something like this:

c: Mum I want to wear that dress.
me: No darling, it's still too big for you. You can wear it when you get a bit bigger girl.
c (agreeing suprisingly easily): okay mum, when I'm bigger.

(I had a breif moment of shock at this point that she did not argue further).

10 minutes later we're making her bed....

c: Mum I don't need my bedrails anymore do I? (she has just slept her first night with no bedrails).
me: No you don't do you, clever girl! You must be getting so big.
c: Oh good - I can wear my dress then!

I swear she planned, laid and implemented this trap for me. She must lie awake nights plotting the next way she can scramble my brain.

And did I let her wear the dress, even though we were just around the house, they were going in and out to the sandpit and the trampoline and eating chocolate biscuits?

You bet I did. Just go and read my beautiful friend Sheye's blog about Ava's Seven Skirts rule if you haven't already and you will understand why.

I am terribly guilty of stressing about things that simply do not matter. I do my best absolutely every day to assess myself, see if I am doing it and stop it. I mean all you have to do is think about it.....worry about ruining a $30 dress from Target or get to watch your little girl twirl?

Pretty simple really.

Superhero Woes

a typical superhero pose from Isaac

sulking after I took his web blaster off him cause he threatened to shoot my camera

even superheros have mask wardrobe malfunctions :-)

resorting to pretend-blasting me with webs

Nanna and Pa gave Isaac a Spiderman suit for Christmas. He loves it. To go along with it as his one completely-useless-and-total-ripoff-toy he got a Spiderman web blaster from us.

What is a web blaster I hear you asking?

Simple. It's another piece of crappy plastic without a real purpose. But it's red and blue and has Spiderman on it so little boys want it and their mummies give in and waste $50. If you have ever wondered what the worst kind of toy is, its anything that requires a refill. This thing came with one can of Spiderman web and that's all Isaac's getting. Being the rather cautious boy that he is, he asks me at least once a day do I think his web is going to run out soon (he must be the only kid in Australia that still has the first web cartridge more than a month after Christmas!) On the bright side, it doubles as a water gun which he uses most of the time.

Most days you will find him out in the yard, in full Spiderman attire web blasting my plants or various objects. To use the gun, you must be in full Spiderman garb. He couldn't find the mask the other day and looked at me as if I'd totally lost my marbles when I told him he could use the gun fine without his mask.

Cutest superhero in the world I reckon :-)

Who took McDonalds?

Driving along on Saturday and Cassidy sees a sign for McDonald's on the side of the road where there wasn't actually a McDonald's building.

She announces in the back of the car, chortling to herself, "That's funny! There's a sign there for Donald's but there's no Donald's there! Where did they put Donalds?" and proceeded to erupt into uncontrollable giggles.

Someone should really stop McDonald's doing all this false advertising. First they're trying to tell you their "food" is actually good for you, now they're advertising restaurants (if they can be classed as that) that don't really exist.

Somebody stop them. The sanity of a three year old girl depends on it :-)

The rain stopped :-)

Cath the yummy mummy :-)

the amzing fig at the top of Grant and Cath's block

Isaac loved throwing sticks for Cassie (that's right, the dog Cassie, not
CassIDy :-) although I'm sure he'd like to give that a go too!)





Cassidy mothering (or smothering!) Amelie

Yesterday we went out to Samford to our friend's Grant and Cath's block of land to take some photo's of Cath before she has bub no.2!

What an amazing HUGE block, the kids went wild running up and down the hill with Amelie, Grant and Cath's gorgeous little girl and Cassie the dog (mind you, they have been rather contained for the past few weeks!)

Then we decided to move on down to the river so the kids could have a paddle. What a beautiful spot - I got carried away taking more photos of Cath and the kids had a great play. Fasta Pasta for dinner and we called it a great afternoon/evening :-)