Cherished Moments

I'm moving.....

2009-06-05T12:15:00.002+10:00

Will you come and see me???

I have been thinking and pondering about this blog. For some reason, the title and url are irritating me every time I think about them. They are just a bit too.... schmaltzy for me. Is that a word? Do you know what I mean? I am not really a silly, frou-frou kind of person - I am honest enough to know that I am more the 'practical' type. I am more likely to be wearing boots than high heels (heavens, do I even own heels any more??).

So, rather than let it bug me any more, I am moving my blog. Yep, pickin' it up and plonkin' it down somewhere else. Somewhere that suits me and where I am in life, a whole lot better.

So PLEASE come and visit me, and re-mark your favourites button to Small Town Mamma . I am working with a lovely blog designer to spruce it up a bit, and will be posting about my cooking, crafting, child-raising, gardening and small town life in general.

Oh, and don't worry -- the Total Pamper Pack giveaway is definitely still on - it has moved too! I will be keeping this blog open for a while, and any entries that are made here will be transferred over and entered into the draw.

It's a tough life ...

2009-06-04T12:32:00.004+10:00

but some baby has to do it, right?

Ryan fell asleep while looking at the toys hanging above his play mat, the other day. And just a few minutes ago he drifted off while having his 'tummy time'. I know about the risks of kids sleeping on their tummies, but I am right here beside him and I have a firm 'let sleeping children lie' policy.

Oh, how wonderful it would be to sleep like, well, a baby!

WFMW - Great idea resources

2009-06-03T14:14:00.006+10:00

This is the "Mum, I'm Bored" edition of WFMW. Thankfully, I haven't heard those words much yet (Naomi is still stuck in an "I want..." phase, which is driving me crazy).

Anyway, when I need to divert attention from crankiness, boredom, or simply pinching her baby brother's cheeks too hard (yep - he doesn't have *naturally* rosy cheeks, poor kid), I have a stock standard list of places to get easy ideas that can be done quickly.

Some great websites that I highly recommend:

http://www.huggies.com - yes, good old Huggies. I don't buy their product, and don't ever intend to. But their website is chock full of great activities, games and ideas for keeping young children entertained. Lots of templates to download and print off and simple hands-on activities that we can do with things we have in our craft box. You just have to sign up online (for free) and receive their junk emails (which I have directed straight into my spam).

http://www.starfall.com - this is a great site for very young children to learn their letters. Naomi (age 2) adores it - it is interactive, colourful and I like to think it is educational. I was put onto this site by Kara at Eskimo Kisses & Air Hugs.

http://www.handsonhomeschooling.com - This one isn't fee, but Terri has written curricula folders for children ages 2 to 5. I bought the one for 2 year olds. It is about 3 inches thick, and is chock full of wonderful fun ideas for activities that are also educational. It also includes devotionals and simple activities to teach little ones some Bible stories. I highly recommend it as money well spent, that will last for years.

For more ideas to keep children entertained, head over to We Are That Family.

June competition - Win a Total Pamper Pack

2009-06-02T21:40:00.005+10:00

I have decided to spice things up around here. Or was that just the Satay chicken wings that we had for dinner?

Anyways, I thought that a monthly competition / give-away would be a nice way to send loving vibes to my bloggy friends. And perhaps, just maybe, to get all you lurkers to leave a comment and make me feel loved ... (are you still there, lurkers?!? Please don't be frightened away. This is a totally non-committal type blog!). I just love getting comments, fan mail etc!

This month is a Blog Box giveaway. I saw the concept on someone's blog a while ago (and with my sincere apologies to whomever it was -- I can't seem to track you down again, but will be happy to give credit if you can find me!).

The theme for this month's box is Total Pampering - because who doesn't need a little bit more of that, right?

Each Monday in the month of June, I am going to add an item to a box I have sitting here beside my laptop. I will then post about it to let you know what piece of deliciousness has been added to the Pamper Pack. At the end of the month, I will randomly draw a winner from the millions of comments that I just know will be left.

There are plenty of ways to rack up lots of entries, so do any or all of these:

1. Leave a comment - and you get to leave a new comment EVERY SINGLE WEEK! Yep, you can enter again for each Monday, until the end of June.

2. Extra entry for blogging about this give-away and linking back here (leave another comment with the link, so that I can add the extra entry credit).

3. Twitter and/or Facebook about it, and again, leave another comment here to get your extra entries.

So, by my calculations, every week you could have 4 entries, if you comment, then blog, twitter and facebook about it!

The first item in the box is a plastic packet of total decadence. For those from overseas, you may not have heard of TimTams. They are heaven in a little plastic biscuit tray. Seriously. I believe that wars may have been fought over them.

The latest addition to the TimTam family are TimTam Crush Mint Crisp biscuits. And I have snared a pack (from my local supermarket). They could be all yours, to do with as you wish. I have a friend in the UK who stashes TimTams in her bathroom cabinet and eats them, while in a steamy hot bubble bath, with the door locked to keep out prying family members. I told you - total decadence.

My advice is to leave a comment and get your first entry in very quickly - so that I will feel guilty if I eat them myself! Otherwise, I'm telling you, they won't last a month in this house.

Don't forget to stop back every week and enter again - when there will be more scrumptious things in the box.

Tuesday Tips for Mum - Playdough recipe

2009-06-02T09:38:00.002+10:00

Which child (or adult, for that matter), doesn't love the squishy feel of playdough between their fingers ... or toes? Of course, we all know it is a great activity for development of fine motor skills, creativity, colour / shape recognition etc etc etc. And it keeps sweet darlings entertained for hours!

My favourite playdough recipe is simple, and uses only ingredients that you will have in the pantry, so you can whip it up at a moment's notice.

Ingredients:
4 cups flour
1 cup salt
1/2 cup water (approx)
1 tbsp oil (approx)
Food colouring of your choice

Method:
Mix flour and salt together. Mix food colouring into the water and stir well. Divide the water into several cups and mix up a few different colours, if you want.

Add the oil to the flour and mix. Divide flour mix into several bowls if you are making different colours. Then add water to flour mix, stirring well. Add more water, or flour, to make a good squishy (but reasonably dry) dough.

Play!

Keeps well in the fridge in an air-tight container, for about a week.

To make playdough a bit more educational, and add another dimension, have a look at this website: Sparklebox . They are playdough mats that you download, print off and cover with plastic. Then you can play the various games, which are mostly focussed on basic counting skills. Of course, you could make your own, with addition, subtraction etc for older children.

This is a Tuesday Tips for Mum post. For more great idea, check out Raising Olives.

http://www.sparklebox.co.uk/md/counting/mats.html

My "Argyll Vest"

2009-05-31T22:43:00.002+10:00

In my family, the words "Argyll Vest" have a very specific meaning. Yes, in a literal sense, they mean the beautiful green and white vest, in a traditional Scottish diamond pattern, that my mum knitted for my dad ... over a period of years.

However, "Argyll Vest" is also a euphemism, for a project that seemed like a good idea at the time, but turned out to be difficult, irritating, fiddly, time-consuming and down-right painful.

A project that is put down, picked up, dropped again, and returned to many times over a period of years. It is eventually only finished due to a deep abiding love for the intended recipient, and a dogged determination not to let the darned thing get the better of you.

Do you see these sweet little 'puffs', made in pretty green gingham and cupcake print?

Don't be fooled by their innocent appearance. They are the most fiddly, irritating, time-consuming craft project I have ever contemplated, let alone actually started. The concept is called "puffy quilting". You make all the puffs, then hand stitch them together. I have seen them used to make very soft linings for baby capsules, prams etc. When I saw the kit at Spotlight, with the words "quick and easy" printed in big letters, I couldn't resist the chance to make something for Ryan, and at the same time test it out for the possibility of adding some lovely baby items to my market stall, or SashaSews.

I spent about 3 hours on this yesterday. Do you see how many there are? Yep ... a grand total of 7 puffs. And they still have to be hand-stitched closed (the hole where you stuff the filling in), and eventually stitched together. I estimate that to make a small lining for a baby bouncer, I will need at least 70 of them.

The good news is that I think I know what Ryan will be getting for his 21st birthday!

Photo title winner

2009-05-31T22:36:00.003+10:00

Thanks to Aimee for her very witty title of the photo in this month's competition! Considering my maritime profession and a general love of boats and the sea, her title of "The Poop Deck" was very appropriate and made me laugh out loud.

So Aimee, email me on sgp_davidson (at) yahoo (dot) com (dot) au with your address, and I will post you out a delicious serve of my handmade lemon myrtle and rosemary bath salts.

I am going to be having monthly competitions / giveaways, so check back regularly to see what is happening!

Tagged!

2009-05-30T09:00:00.003+10:00

by Aimee at Aimee's Land. I hope you get to know something you didn't know about me before!

8 things I am looking forward to:

Naomi sleeping through the night consistently (maybe by the time she is in high school!)
taking my sewing to sell at a local craft market in a few weeks
trying the Cadbury's choc-mint drinking chocolate that I bought this week
our holiday to the Whitsundays in August
a lazy afternoon of sewing and baking scones this afternoon
bacon & eggs cooked by Brad, for breakfast tomorrow morning
lots of travel when the kids have left home!!
my birthday next month

8 things I did yesterday:

Posted off my first sale from SashaSews!
bought a new pair of jeans on sale at Rivers
made fresh pasta with Naomi
had lunch and a cuppa with my mum
fed Ryan
surfed the web
cut out fabric for a new bag
pushed Naomi around on her bike

8 things I wish I could do:

knit
live in the UK again
own a cosy cottage B&B
own a sweet craft and books store
lose 5kgs!
be more organised
find a gym with Pilates and child-minding on at the same time!
hug my dad one more time, tell him i love him and introduce my children to their Grandad.

8 shows I watch:

Master Chef
news
CSI
Law & Order
Playschool
Bananas in Pyjamas
Antique Roadshow
any classic British comedy or period drama

People I tag:

Emma at Heart at Home

Nikki at Nikki's Notes

Kara at EskimoKissesandAirHugs

Kimberly at Raising Olives

Melody at biglittlesister

Chicken, corn & tarragon pie

2009-05-28T12:18:00.005+10:00

I am not much on buying magazines - I can usually think of better ways to spend the money (like feeding my fabric addiction). But the cover of the Notebook: magazine does grab my attention, whenever I see it on a shelf. They look more like real women than those on the cover of any regular glossy. And there are usually some very pretty flowers, or vintage type furniture or something. So this month, I went ahead and bought it.

What does this have to do with the title of this post? Well, there were some totally scrumptious sounding recipes - including this one for chicken, corn and tarragon pie. Naomi and I baked it on Monday night - it was received with the great accolade of "mmm... alicious" from Naomi, and a totally scraped clean plate from Brad. It is going in the family favourites recipe book.

Apologies for the dodgy photo - for some reason, I can cook food but photographing it nicely is beyond me!

Ingredients:
1 tbsp olive oil,
4 chicken thigh fillets, cut into small pieces
1 brown onion, finely chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1 celery stick, chopped
2 tbsps plain flour
1 cup chicken stock
1 large (420g) can sweet corn, drained
1/4 cup cream
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp chopped tarragon (I used dried tarragon)
1 sheet frozen puff pastry
1 egg, lightly whisked

Preheat oven to 220 deg C (hot oven). Heat oil in a pan and brown the chicken. Remove from pan. Brown onion, carrot and celery in the pan, for 5 minutes. Add flour to vegetable mix and stir for 1 minute or unti well combined. Add chicken and stock and stir until mixture starts to bubble and thicken. Add corn, cream and mustard and stir. Remove from heat, then add tarragon and salt/pepper to season.

Spoon into a pie dish (or 4 individual dishes). Cover dish with pastry sheet and brush pastry with lightly beaten egg mix. Bake for 15 minutes, or until pastry is golden and puffed.

Yummmm.... and just as good for lunch the next day!

This post is part of Thursday's Ultimate Recipe at www.lifeasmom.com . Head on over there to read more yummy things to do with food.

Photo Caption Competition

2009-05-27T09:24:00.006+10:00

I took this photo a few days ago. It made me laugh, and still does, every time I look at it.

Yep, she's on the back porch. Right beside her blackboard, with chalk in hand. On the potty.

I have several captions running through my head ... "A loo with a view" springs to mind.

But I want to hear your witticisms -- so I am going to give away a fresh serve of my favourite bath product - delicious lemon myrtle and rosemary bath salts - to the person whose caption suits best. Just leave your title or caption in a comment to this post, and I will announce the winner on Saturday, 31 May (Australian time).

And, dare I say it -- bring out your best 'toilet humour'!!

Tuesday Tips for Mum - Baby sleep tip

2009-05-26T12:41:00.004+10:00

Kimberly at Raising Olives is hosting a new blog carnival, called Tuesday Tips for Mum. It is all about passing on those hard-learned gems of inspiration, ideas or tried and true tips that may help all (or even one!) of us mums make it through the day (or night) that little bit more easily.

My tip is about helping a sweet little baby sleep better. Ryan is treating me wonderfully, and usually sleeps through until around 1am, when he wakes for a quick feed. I then want him to go back to sleep quickly too. But after having been warmly snuggled in my arms and nursing on warm milk, I was then putting him back on sheets and blankets that had gone cold in the chilly night air -- and expecting him to sleep!

I know that I hate getting into cold sheets - so why expect the baby to be any different?? My solution is to keep a hot water bottle wrapped in a blanket, beside the bassinet / crib. When I pick him up to feed, I slip the hot water bottle in where he was, and tuck the blanket back down over it. Just like they have seat-filler people at the Oscars, Ryan has a stand-in (or would that be lie-in?) baby, as it were!

When I put him back in, I take the hot water bottle out and he is snug and warm in his cocoon again.

Head on over to Raising Olives for more great parenting tips.

Menu Plan Monday - the comfort food edition!

2009-05-25T20:47:00.004+10:00

It must be something about the cooler weather. Or the delicious recipes I have been reading in magazines lately. Or even just the feeling that life in a country town moves slower, and gives you more time to enjoy things like home cooking. Whatever it is, our menu this week is packed full of comfort food.

Chicken, sweet corn and tarragon pie, baked potato and veg (new recipe)

Homemade pizzas

Lamb and bean casserole with rosemary dumplings and mashed potato

Homemade sausage rolls, corn fritters and veg

Cottage pie, cauliflower with cheese sauce and beans

Roast chicken with baked vegetables

Spanish omelettes with bacon and toast

Spaghetti bolognaise with zucchini, pumpkin and carrot

Kimberly at Raising Olives commented that she does a weekly menu plan, but doesn't allocate specific days. That sounded nice and flexible to me, so that is what I plan to do.

Brad told me tonight that he wished we'd moved to a small town ages ago, as his palette is definitely enjoying the delicious meals I am serving up! What a sweetie.... little does he know, it just takes a plan, and a shopping list.

Don't forget to head to Organizing Junkie, for more great menu plans.

Creative storage...

2009-05-25T17:02:00.000+10:00

We now live in a rented house. It is has some great design features and some that I wouldn't mind changing, if it belonged to me.... Brad and I love the back deck, from which we can just see the mountains, while we nibble cheese and bikkies and watch Naomi ride on her little bike.

Naomi, on the other hand, likes finding creative ways of storing all sorts of things. Just look at all the different things that can be stored in the slots of a built-in wine rack, that is very conveniently placed at 2-year old level...

A biscuit container, a plastic lid, assorted hair clips and ties, both of Mummy's house shoes (neatly placed side by side in adjoining slots). And for the record, I had to take the camera out of one of the slots to take this photo!! Every time I walk past it, I notice something different slotted in one of the boxes. A juice cup. A baby doll. Naomi's hairbrush...

And one lonely wine bottle!

I'm sooo excited!!

2009-05-22T09:09:00.002+10:00

I am so excited that I am typing this post with one hand, while holding Ryan, rather than waiting until I have the luxury of having both hands free.

You may have noticed the ad in my sidebar for a sweet little Etsy shop called "Sasha Sews". Yep, I'm now a big-time entrepreneur (hahaha) and purveyor of fine bags and sewing. Anyway, to kick it all off, Connie at Smockity Frocks is hosting a give-away of one of my bags! Yep, you too could be the proud owner of this sweet Bag-ette, (in any colour you like), or a Bright Daisies carry bag.

So head on over to see Connie to participate -- or buy your own to be sure of getting one, of course!!!

Menu Plan Monday - and de-brief

2009-05-18T12:55:00.003+10:00

Last week's Menu Planning worked well for me - I kept the list stuck on the fridge, and each day I knew that I had something to cook, and that the ingredients were in the cupboard. I still struggled a bit with pulling meat out of the freezer for each dinner ... but that is what microwaves are for, right??!?!

My little family loved the winter vegetable soup, and the roast chicken dinner. The carbonara pasta was equally a hit. Unfortunately Thursday was a disaster - my slow cooker decided to go REAL slow. Like, after 18 hours the meat was still chewy -- that kind of slow. So the beef & burgundy was ditched in favour of pizza, when it was discovered at 6pm that dinner was inedible. Other than that, it was a good week - and I now have an excuse to look for a new crock pot!

This week's menu plan is:

Monday - French onion soup with bacon and herb muffins

Tuesday - Chicken parmigiana with baked potato and veges

Wednesday - Devilled sausages with mash

Thursday - Beef stroganoff and rice

Friday - Chicken with roasted tomato and garlic sauce

Saturday - Marinated pork chops

Sunday - Roast beef with baked vegetables and gravy

Menu Plan Monday is hosted by Laura at www.orgjunkie.com.

Hungry sheep ...

2009-05-16T12:49:00.002+10:00

We live in a suburban stree, but right on the edge of town. Two blocks over are the dairy cow paddocks. Naomi loves to see the cows, and we often walk along a public path, beside the fields. At the end of this path is a little acreage hobby farm - large vege patch, chicken run and, just this week, 2 new black sheep.

As we looked at the sheep, through the fence, I said "Look Naomi, the sheep are eating the grass."

She said "yes... must be hungry." Then she thought about it for a minute and said, "Sheep should have eaten more breakfast."

Which I say, on a regular basis... to the 2-year old. Not to the sheep.

An Award!

2009-05-13T09:32:00.004+10:00

Thank you to Aimee at Aimee's Land for giving me this award, which is very sweet!

Here is the description -

"These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind of bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated.Please give more attention to these writers."

I am passing this award on to

Kara at Eskimo Kisses and Air Hugs;

Amy at Butterflies and Buffalo Wings; and

Nikki at Nikki's Notes.

Warm fluffy goodness ... and some menus!

2009-05-11T13:20:00.006+10:00

Here is a photo of what my sweet Naomi (and her daddy) gave me for Mothers Day. Soft lambskin slippers, perfect for keeping toes warm on our timber floors.... yummmm..... They are so comfy that I got all the way to the car as we were going out for dinner with my Mum last night, still wearing the slippers -- Brad came back in the house to get me a pair of 'outside' shoes!

I have been thinking lately that my repertoire of meals seems to be getting smaller - or is it just that I am cooking less and less imaginatively?? So I am determined to start some proper menu planning, and consciously expand the range of homecooked meals that I prepare for my family. We are definitely eating at home more often (less takeaway options in a small town!), and I want everyone to enjoy variety, rather than the same few dishes each week.

So here is my first try at a menu plan...

Monday - Winter vegetable soup, garlic toast and spring rolls
Tuesday - Beef and burgundy casserole (new recipe to try)
Wednesday - Chicken and mushroom risotto
Thursday - Spaghetti carbonara
Friday - Roast chicken and vegetables
Saturday - Lasagna (double size, half to freeze)
Sunday - Sausages and mash with onion gravy

For more great menu plans, check out Laura's blog at www.orgjunkie.com .

Happy Mothers Day

2009-05-10T13:36:00.002+10:00

Happy Mothers Day

I hope you are all having a wonderful, pampered, peaceful day...

What a weekend!

2009-05-06T11:11:00.004+10:00

We had a long weekend here in Queensland, and on the Tablelands, the May long weekend is always dedicated to the Mt Garnet races and rodeo. It is about 90 minutes drive out west into the bush. Mt Garnet has a population of about 100, and about 2000 for this weekend. The rodeo, races and obligatory B & S ball brings people in from all the stations.

I love rodeo - it brings back vivid memories of childhood times spent huddled against the cold, watching the open bull riding ... or working in the Scout canteen, selling burgers to fundraise. And the music, dust and checkered shirts just make me happy - I am a country girl at heart.

This was the view of the sky over the arena, as the sun was setting behind me -- is there anything as beautiful as big sky country?

We camped the night and Naomi was thrilled to sleep in the tent.... she even slept through the music, and the mine trucks that drive through the night along the road behind the campsite!

Delicious apple cake

2009-05-01T12:31:00.004+10:00

I recently saw this recipe on KimC's blog, Life in a Shoe. It sounded delicious, and also had few steps, making it perfect for a cooking project to do with a 2 year old.

I am pleased to report that the results were just as good as it sounded, and it was indeed a good kids project - plenty of measuring, tipping and stirring, and then just straight into the oven.

So the recipe is:

German apple cake

2 eggs

1 cup oil

2 cups sugar (I used brown sugar)

1 tsp vanilla

2 cups flour

2 tsps cinnamon

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

4 cups of peeled, sliced apples (I used 1 large can of pie apples instead)

Beat the eggs and oil together in a large bowl, until well mixed. Add all other dry ingredients, except the apples. Mix together well - the mixture will be very thick at this stage. Stir in the apples - mixture will soften up nicely now. Pour into a 9 x 13 cake pan, and bake for 45 - 50 mins at 170 deg C (350 Fahrenheit). This does make a large size cake - halve the ingredients for a regular round or square cake.

Serve warm with cream or icecream. Or cold, straight from the fridge (as I am eating it at this very moment!)

Nikki's giveaway

2009-04-29T10:20:00.002+10:00

Just to let you know that my friend Nikki, who is so clever with her nimble fingers, is having a give-away at her blog, Nikki's Notes.

She is giving away 2 hand crocheted dish cloths, that look very sweet indeed.

Ryan's Baptism

2009-04-28T12:44:00.003+10:00

Our little boy was baptised this past Sunday, in the church where we were married, Naomi baptised and my family has worshipped for 25 years. It was very special. In addition to the usual candle, the congregation gave Ryan a white shawl, to show that he is enfolded in the family of the Church, and God's love.

Unfortunately, our camera batteries were flat. Brad's sister took a lot of photos for us. But her camera has been lost on her return journey to Sydney (she was a bit distracted by her vomiting 5 year old, on a 3 hour plane flight).

So I will have to ask around friends and other family for some photos.... Until then, here is one of the boy napping, taken just a few minutes ago.

Update...

2009-04-27T13:18:00.002+10:00

It was all fine. Naomi had a wonderful day at her daycare mum's house, and is talking about going back again this week. She made a friend, and brought home a picture that we had to stick on the fridge. Just in case you were all wondering...

What a relief! Now I am looking forward to this Wednesday, as well!

A Farewell, and Feeling Guilty

2009-04-22T11:31:00.003+10:00

Today I say farewell and thank you for all your long years of service, to Sadie, my vacuum cleaner. She has been with me through thick and thin ... until today. I was half way through vacuuming our little patch of lounge room carpet when **pop** and clouds of acrid black smoke billowed out of the little grill on the back of the machine. And I mean, it smelled awful. I had to open windows and turn on the fan to get rid of it!

I do try to get major appliances repaired where possible, but I think that after 10 years, this hard working machine deserves to take her final rest.

Just to clarify, I don't name ALL of our appliances... only the important ones. Like Gunther (spelling?), the fridge.

The reason for this inane post is because I am trying to keep my feelings of guilt at bay. My sweet Miss Naomi is spending her first day at Family Day Care today... without me. She has made some great progress in coming out of her shell, and getting a bit less shy in the last few months. We didn't want to lose that progress by moving to a town where we don't know anyone and she has no little play friends. And also, I have been feeling the need to have some time to catch up on housework, sit on the couch and get to know Ryan, and to do a few things that I enjoy. So I signed her up for 1 day a week, in family day care.

Naomi enjoyed our visit to Stephanie's (our daycare "mum") house last week. She was excited to play with other kids. But then this morning, reality hit. She cried "Mummy come too" in the car, all the way to Steph's house. I know that a short goodbye is best all round, but it was so hard to leave her crying, in someone else's arms.

And now I am feeling guilty, for wanting some Naomi-free time at all. Is it awfully selfish of me? If I clean the house from top to bottom, and do 4 loads of washing, will that help to relieve my guilt, so that I can tell myself it was productive time?

Dirty hands...

2009-04-21T12:31:00.004+10:00

I love planting -- the rich smell of soil, the cool splash of the water and the anticipation of the pleasure of flowers or fresh produce.

Naomi loves planting too -- running around the nursery looking at statues, getting very dirty hands and the fun of washing under the tap afterwards.

The catch is that I am not too good at the growing and maintaining bit.... But here is our latest attempt. Basil, parsley, chives and some pretty flowers. I am hoping the cooler Atherton weather will be kinder to my gardening ambitions than the coastal heat and humidity was....

Still here!

2009-04-17T12:59:00.003+10:00

I am still here, in case you were wondering.... I am just digging my way out from underneath a mountain of packing boxes, and dirty nappies. Boy, do little babies go through them!

We are now officially moved to a small regional town, about 1.5 hours drive from the city we were living in. And I love it! On a very busy day at the local supermarket, the check-out girl offered to have someone help me take my groceries to the car, and then a lovely man offered to push my full trolley up the steep slope to my car (I had to park in the very back of the car park). Obviously a lady with 2 small kids gets sympathy in the country. In the city, they just look sideways at you and think "Crazy lady - who brings 2 small children shopping?", then keep walking.

All is well with us - Ryan is still being very kind to his mamma, and sleeping very well. He is down to 1 feed through the night now, and sleeps till 7am most mornings. Of course, he feeds like a trooper all day, and is putting on nearly a pound a week -- eek! I think he is going to be a front rower - must remember to advise the Wallabies (Australia's national Rugby Union team), that he is available for selection!

Bliss is...

2009-04-02T14:11:00.004+10:00

a long nap, on a warm afternoon.

A friend mentioned to me that she had read that children may sleep better when they are in the same room. I was a bit sceptical but the proof is in the pudding (or the snoring, in this case!). My cat-napper Naomi has been asleep for nearly 1 1/2 hours, without me lying on the bed with her (totally unheard of). Maybe the little snuffles and squeaks that Ryan makes are just enough to make her subconsciously believe I am there?

Whatever the reason, I am enjoying the peace and quiet!

Remembering and learning

2009-03-31T12:19:00.003+10:00

Things I am remembering about newborns:

Newborn nappies do NOT last through the night. I had definitely forgotten this one! It was quickly remembered, at 4am, with a saturated child, sleepsuit, blanket wrap and bassinet sheet!
They take an awful lot of organising to go out with. I was so used to just throwing in a nappy, some snacks and a drink bottle for Naomi - we went out with just a tiny backpack for the 2 of us. Now I feel like I need a shopping trolley, and half an hour to pack it up, before we are prepared to go anywhere!
They do not co-operate at all with the nappy changing process - quite the opposite, in fact. Trying to corral both tiny, flailing legs and handle a nappy, AND avoid the boy-style fountain is proving a logistical challenge. (Little boy fountains aren't just an urban myth!!)

Things I am learning about 2-year olds:

Naomi has an amazing capacity for love. She has accepted and welcomed little Ryan with a full and open heart - he gets far more kisses than I do, from her! I was a bit worried about the total change of our family dynamic, and how it would effect Naomi.
They are extremely curious -- what happens if I poke Ryan with this paint brush? Answer - Ryan just blinks, Mummy yells at me.
A 2-year old will pick the most inopportune moment for everything - like announcing that she wants to wear "undies", (ie ditch her nappies), 2 days after I came home from hospital. At first I thought this was an attention thing. But to her credit, she is doing reasonably well (when I ask if she needs to go to the toilet every 15 minutes), and is very proud of herself when it all comes together!

We are doing as well as can be expected here. The house isn't a total disaster, and I seem to have more patience with Naomi now than I did when I was pregnant. Maybe this is because I am making a concerted effort to spend time with her, while Ryan is asleep.

And speaking of which, thus far Ryan has proved to be an angel with his sleeping habits. Long naps during the day, and good sleeping at night. The biggest problem is that he always falls asleep during a feed, and I can't rouse him enough to have the second side! He then wakes within an hour, for the other half! I change his nappy, tickle his face, shake his foot... Mum has suggested a quick swish with a wet washer to get him awake for the rest of a feed. Any other ideas?

Welcome Ryan William

2009-03-26T12:41:00.002+10:00

Ryan William

Born - 3.10am, Monday, 23 March 2009

Weight - 8lb 10oz (3.920kgs)

Length - 50 cms

Much loved and cuddled by parents and big sister Naomi!

WIP Wednesday (on Thursday)

2009-03-19T09:54:00.004+10:00

I find myself with a few hours to myself, thanks to a very good friend who has come and collected Naomi to take her to the park this morning. So I thought I would actually post my works in progress, rather than just admiring everyone else's!

This first one is a patchwork piece that I have had going for, um, at least 2 years (pre-children days!). I pulled it out on the weekend, looked at the soft muted colours of the background and decided to add the flower applique and cream border. I think it will turn into a cushion cover, in due course. I have never been particularly good at applique, and all the curves in the flower petals were a challenge. I am calling the style "rustic and naive"! Hoping that this will make it charming, rather than just clumsy!

As for the garden shot, Naomi and I worked for weeks chopping down the tropical jungle of weeds and overgrown plants that was cluttering the garden in front of our lounge windows. It is the front of the house, and was not making any good impressions. I have slowly planted it out with what should be a lovely fragrant low hedge of mini mock orange plants, some brunfelsia ('yesterday, today, tomorrow' plants), and various daisies etc. Naomi loves to point to the garden and say "Made this together, Mummy".

The smell of the new pine bark chips wafting through the front windows is particularly lovely -- but not helping keep the weeds down as much as I would like! But we did have our first bird actually use the bird bath the other day -- Naomi was thrilled, watching it from inside the windows.

The way I was back then.....

2009-03-14T15:23:00.003+10:00

This meme was over at Nikki's blog. It got me reminiscing about a few years back!

1. Did you date someone from your high school? Not in Grade 12.

2. Did you marry someone from your high school? Nope. Brad and I met in a pub in London!

3. Did you carpool to school? No, mostly the school bus (we were in a rural area), but sometimes would ride along with Mum, who worked in town.

4. What kind of car did you have? I didn't. Got my first car about 4 years after high school! I think only a couple of people in our year had their own cars.

5. What kind of car do you have now? I have a 1998 Toyota Camry. It's old, but the air-con still works, which is all I need in the tropics!

6. It's Saturday night now; you're...at home watching t.v. waiting for Naomi to wake up (she wakes around 3 times a night. Snuggling on the couch with my sweetie.

7. It's Saturday night then; you're... at home with a book, music or a family board game. Or maybe staying over at my best friend's house (she lived on a farm about 30kms the other side of town to us.)

8. What kind of job did you have in high school? I worked at the local Coles Supermarket, as a checkout chick.

9. What kind of job do you have now? Full-time wife and mum. Part-time aspirer to crafty goddess. Former marine lawyer.

10. Were you a party animal? Not in high school - no opportunity! But don't ask about Uni...

11. Were you considered a flirt? Definitely not.

12. Were you in band, orchestra, or choir? Choir. Still love to sing, but only get the opportunity in shower or to cd's now.

13. Were you a nerd? Yep, at least a bit.

14. Did you get suspended or expelled? No! Not even a detention, that I can recall. My dad was a local primary school principal. I can't imaging getting in that much trouble!

15. Can you sing the fight song? Not sure what this is.

16. Who was/were your favorite teacher(s)? My English teacher and music teachers were both pretty great.

17. Where did you sit during lunch? With my best friend, wherever.

18. What was your school's full name? Left blank.

19. When did you graduate? 1994

20. What was your school mascot? Didn't have one - this must be an American thing!

21. If you could go back and do it again, would you? Ummmm.... not sure. I did enjoy it lots, at the time.

22. Did you have fun at prom? Yes - despite what I now consider to be just about the most awful dress and hairstyle I could have chosen!!!

23. Do you still talk to the person you went to prom with? Yes, she was my best friend and we went together. Not many people went with a 'date', unless they were already a couple.

24. Are you planning on going to your next reunion? Possibly, if we are in the area.

25. Do you still talk to people from school? Some - the important ones.

26. School colors? Blue and maroon.

Feel free to cut and paste and do this one for yourself -- if nothing else, it is good for reminiscing!

Patience is not one of my virtues....

2009-03-11T12:16:00.003+10:00

Technically, there are still 9 days to go until my due date. Realistically, I wanted this over and done with a month ago! I spend my days analysing every twinge, ache and pain and wondering... will it start today? Or tonight?

A few weeks ago I would have said I was nesting. The house was spotless, I was following my housekeeping routine and felt like I had some energy and a positive vibe going. Now I just feel hot, tired and aching. All I want to do is sit down and read / stitch / surf the internet / sleep. Unfortunately, I could write the same list and call it "Things Naomi HATES Mummy Doing"!!

My one really useful achievement in the past couple of weeks has been to start cooking double sizes of some meals and freezing them away for easy post-baby dinners. We only have a small freezer compartment, so I am actually sending all my frozen meals out to Mum's big deep freeze, for collection back at a later date! It has made our grocery bills a bit higher, to be buying extra meat portions, but will be well worth it when Brad and I are both too exhausted to be bothered cooking.

My mum is convinced that the baby will be born this Saturday, 14 March. The date is special to us, as it was my Dad's birthday. And it is also the first date that we calculated my due date to be, before the first scan. Me, I am beginning to feel like I will be pregnant forever!

Do you have a stash??

2009-03-02T11:53:00.003+10:00

In response to Nikki's comment on my last post, I have a confession to make. I only photographed the desk side of the office / sewing room. Gulp. Here are the photos of the "dark side", where my fabrics seem to multiply with alarming regularity. There are the wicker baskets on shelves, and the wire rack baskets at the end. As we are moving over an hour away with a week or 2 of the baby being born, I really should go through and cull.... but not today!

Now, I would really appreciate anyone who wants to come out in solidarity with me and show off their stash to the world -- fabric, yarn, scrapbooking, crafting things.... whatever it is, let's shout it out, loud and proud!

Where do I blog?

2009-02-28T11:56:00.003+10:00

My new friend Nikki at Nikki's Notes has tagged me to reveal where I blog from. Eeek! Well, here goes...

This is our office / my sewing room. And yes, it is pretty much always this messy! I don't get enough time to blog / sew / craft, let alone spending time actually tidying it up! Beside the sewing machine are the sweet little girl's aprons that I have been working on lately. There is a large wicker basket to the left of them (not in the photo), that is supposed to be WIP's - in fact, it's just another place for a fabric stash. As is that basket on the top shelf above the computer.

The view out the window is overlooking the front verandah and yard - which is a bit overgrown at the moment. It's just still too hot to get into the garden beds and give them the weeding they deserve.

Now, I am going to tag Kara and my sister Emma to play along and reveal their little corner of the blogging world.

Birth Skills - a book review

2009-02-25T11:45:00.003+10:00

I have mentioned in a previous post that I have been feeling rather apprehensive about labour and birth the second time around. I could not get past the memories of a long latent first stage that sapped my energy and my all my belief that I could actually get through the birth. It took some very strong people around me to keep me going through the 32 hours, and the disappointments of hearing how slow progress had been.

This time around, I did some serious thinking about what to do differently. I know I have to stay positive, but just had no idea how. Until a friend recommended that I read "Birth Skills" by Juju (Julia) Sundin and Sarah Murdoch. Well, I have. And I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Not only is there clear and concise information on the physiology of what your body is actually doing during the labour and delivery process, there are extremely practical strategies for coping with labour pain, staying focussed and positive. The book is based on the antenatal classes that Juju provides, in Sydney. It is the next best thing to being able to attend the classes.

The focus is on strategies for minimising the perception of pain, during the first stage of labour, and on methods for effective pushing in the second stage. Suggestions for managing pain include vocalising, using other large muscle groups (eg stamping your feet, squeezing stress balls) for distraction, visualisation, and most importantly, getting as big and as loud as the pain itself.

Juju has a website where this is all explained so much better than I am doing, here. Suffice to say that I am still nervous, but now feel calm, positive and am actually looking forward to the process (sort of!) which will bring our new bundle of joy into the world - hopefully sooner, rather than later!

Seventeen in the bed....

2009-02-17T12:08:00.002+10:00

And the little one said... "Roll over, roll over"

So they all rolled over and one fell out...

Is it any wonder she sleeps so badly when there is hardly room for Naomi in the bed?!?! Ha ha ha... only kidding, this photo was taken straight after we made her bed up with clean linen, and she decided to take all her dolls and animals off the shelves and tuck them in. It was too cute to pass up on the photo opportunity!

Happy Valentines Day

2009-02-15T11:10:00.003+10:00

Thank you to my mum, who babysat Naomi for us to go out to dinner on Friday night. We had a lovely evening, and when I got into Brad's car, there on the seat were these beautiful flowers and a card.

I sometimes think that there is a Beatles song for every occasion.... All you need is love.

Nesting? Or just motivated?

2009-02-10T12:08:00.003+10:00

Hmmm.... nearly 35 weeks pregnant. And I am actually getting some projects around the house completed, that have been bugging me for a while.

Such as the playroom toy shelves, which desperately needed sorting, culling and tidying up .....

And the pantry shelves, which also needed a good sort through, clean out and removal of suspicious looking little black specks scattered around the shelves. This is a photo of the bottom half of the pantry - I still have 2 shelves to go up the top!

In the last week I have even managed to finish off some craft projects, such as the patchwork table runner that was the first thing I started sewing on my new machine (on Boxing Day - I had nothing else to sew, and found these left over squares from a quilt I made years ago. I just made this runner up as I went along).

So... what do you think? Nesting?? Or just motivated and efficient. I am going to give the credit to Rachel at Home Sanctuary, and her great housekeeping schedule that I talked about a few days ago. Having just a few jobs to do each day, and which I usually get done by lunch time, seems to free up my mind in the afternoon for doing other bits and pieces. I feel like I have already done the necessary jobs, so spare time (ie. when Naomi is watching her favourite Wiggles dvd!) can be used for accomplishing extra things, or just enjoying crafty things.

I feel like I have a plan, and I don't have to do everything I think of at the time, because the important things are in a schedule, and I know that they will get done during the week. Am I making sense, or just hormonally rambling?!?!?

Sounds I love...

2009-02-09T12:08:00.002+10:00

I love..... the giggling coming from the lounge room as Brad and Naomi 'cook' dinner together with her kitchen set.

I don't love...... the smell of potatoes that have been there for too long, as I open the pantry door. Ick. Wet season can be such a pain.

If only the 'chicken and mashed potato' being prepared by my 2 favourite people was of the edible variety!

A Housekeeping Schedule

2009-02-03T11:58:00.002+10:00

When it comes to keeping house, I like to think that I am somewhat house-proud, with a clean and tidy house, while certainly not being the obsessive type. Saying that, there are plenty of times that I slip off the wagon and wander in the housekeeping wilderness (apologies for the mixed metaphors!).

In the past, I have tried the Flylady system. It was a bit too regimented for my liking, and dear Brad got a good chuckle out of all of routines and lists. He knows me so well that he knew it was only a matter of time!

But now I am enthused again, for my friend Rachel Anne at Home Sanctuary has blessed us with her system. It consists of some minimum maintenance each day - ie. what is the bare minimum that it takes to keep the chaos at bay? Then schedule the tasks that you feel are the important ones for keeping your family and house chugging along. Rachel explains it wayyyy better than me, so head on over to her blog for details. But, in case you are interested, here is my system:

Minimum Maintenance (done daily and at least once on the weekend):

* Make beds
* Run dishwasher and empty it out
* Sweep kitchen and dining room floors
* Tidy kitchen after dinner, including wipe down benches.

Additional Scheduled jobs:

* Monday - Dusting and all floors (vacuum / sweep / mop as required), grocery shopping
* Tuesday - Laundry (family clothes)
* Wednesday - Change beds, Laundry (linen & towels), sweep outside areas
* Thursday - Bathrooms, internet banking and clean windows (in rotation, different room each week)
* Friday - vacuum lounge carpet
* Saturday - make sure Brad's work shirts all washed
* Sunday - iron work shirts ready for the week, review menu plan and shopping list

It has been nearly a week now, and so far so good. I only got 3 work shirts ironed on Sunday, but my excuse is that we had a power black-out for most of the afternoon / evening, and I don't have one of those old-fashioned coal-heated irons to finish off the last 2 with!

WFMW - Kids parties

2009-01-28T16:39:00.002+10:00

As previously mentioned, Naomi just turned 2 and we had a small party for her little friends, on Sunday afternoon. Here are a few of the things that I found worked for me --

1. Don't feel obliged to invite every child they know. We invited 5 children, and it was just enough to have some fun chaos, but not so many that we were frazzled and cranky by the end.

2. Keep children's ages in a similar range. This makes planning activities, and timing, much easier. Advise parents of multiple children that activities etc will be aimed at the age group of your birthday child, so that they can make alternative arrangements or bring along appropriate toys for their other children.

3. It's not rude to set a finish time, and write it on the invitations. The finish time doesn't have to be set in concrete, but it will let everyone know that you are not having an open house all day, with meals provided! We did from 2 to 4pm, with afternoon tea party food. Everyone was aware that we weren't doing lunch or an evening meal.

4. Have age appropriate activities. We recently went to a 3-year old's party where they did 'pass the parcel'. This was a disaster. 2 - 3 year olds do NOT share well, and didn't really get the concept of only opening one layer of paper on the parcel! For Naomi's party, I got some individual little art canvases from the discount store, and each child painted their own artwork. I also pre-cooked cupcakes, and iced them, then put a bowl of assorted decorations (marshmallows, lollies, sprinkles, etc) in the middle and each child decorated their own cupcake. These individual activities worked well - minimal opportunity for arguments!

5. For the butterfly cake, I ordered a half a plain vanilla sponge slab cake from our local bakery. I then just made a paper template of the basic butterfly shape, cut it out and iced it. Much less fuss than trying to bake cakes and stick them together.

Hope these tips make your next kids party a bit less stressful! For more tips, see Rocks in my Dryer.

The good news and the serious stuff...

2009-01-23T12:36:00.002+10:00

So I had my next OB appointment this morning. To get the results of the Glucose Tolerance Test that I had to do, after failing the Diabetes Exclusion Test. Apparently I failed the first test pretty spectacularly (if you are going to do it, do it well).

The good news is that I passed the GTT just fine - the OB classed the first one as an 'anomaly'. YAY!!!! I suspect I should probably still ease off on the Mars Bar Cheesecake, but it is good to know that I haven't been labelled as a Gestational Diabetic. And I can nibble on the occasional piece of chocolate, totally guilt-free!

As the title of this post implies, there are some serious thoughts going through my hormone-swamped brain as well. Brad and I are just sort of getting our heads around the whole 'actually having a second baby' thing. I have asked a good friend to mind Naomi when the time comes, and she has happily agreed to do so. N has played there with her little friend Harry a few times when I have had to do things, so hopefully she will be fine.

I had a long labour with Naomi - the first, 'latent' phase took about 24 hours, but the contractions were 3 minutes apart right from the first one. At about the 18 hour mark, I was tired, emotional and worrying that I couldn't make the distance. Then when I was told that I was only 2 cms dilated, I fell apart. It took some pethidine and a few hours sleep to get me back ready for more active labour, which still took another 10 hours. I was lucky to have had my wonderful sister as a midwife, and she knew what I really wanted -- ie, that my yelling for a caesarean to get it over and done with was just the tired raving of a scared woman. She (and Brad, my mum and another midwife) were a tower of strength in talking me through it.

I find myself being a bit concerned that the OB and the private hospital that we are going to this time might have a firm time frame in mind, and start talking about interventions such as epidurals, if I am not on their schedule. I did have a chat with the OB about this today, and he assured me that second labours are always different to the first time, and that he certainly did not expect me to have anything like the time frame. We also discussed natural options to get things moving - taking a walk, having a sleep, going home etc. He is happy to do these things, and doesn't feel the need to leap into breaking the waters, or using drugs to speed things up. This was reassuring.

A good friend who has had 4 natural births suggested that I use a little notebook, just to jot down my wishes before going to the hospital, so that the midwives have a note that I don't want to be told how dilated I am, don't want an epidural if at all possible etc. I think this is a good idea - especially as I want Brad to be able to focus on me and our baby, rather than have him in discussions with medical staff.

My question (after this long-winded and boring post) is -- has anyone actually written a birth plan, and if so, did you find that it helped to communicate your wishes and facilitate the kind of atmosphere in the birth suite that you wanted? If you know what I mean???

Happy Birthday Blossom!

2009-01-21T12:45:00.004+10:00

Who could believe that it has been 2 years since our sweet Naomi made her entrance to the world? As with everything else she does, she insisted on doing it her way, and in her own sweet time - but we are so glad to have been blessed with her as our child.

We had a little party on Sunday afternoon, for a few friends from playgroup and family daycare. It went really well, and the kids seemed to have fun. I plan to do a WFMW post on things I learned about what worked and what didn't... but the cupcake decorating was enjoyed by all, and the butterfly cake seems to have been a hit.

So happy birthday my little Blossom girl. We love you more and more every day....

It's Coffee Time!

2009-01-10T12:29:00.003+10:00

Well, it's mostly tea that is on the menu in this house - but there is a small jar of coffee for those who prefer it.

What has been happening in my part of the world this week. Well, I am now 30 weeks pregnant, and feeling it. (so great to hear the news that Rachel Anne is joining the Hot Mammas Club again!). It is still hot, but at least the monsoon rains have started which does cool things down a bit (although bringing with it the frustration of entertaining a nearly 2 year old indoors all day!).

This has been my first week without daycare children, or a husband, in the house all day! On the whole, I have enjoyed being able to potter around and do the housework without 4 children under the age of 3 to entertain as well. Naomi loves to help Mummy do housework - I am going to have to get her her own spray bottle with water in it, because she gets upset that I won't let her spray the cleaning products!

On the down side, I was somewhat shocked to find out that I failed the Diabetes Exclusion Test that I took at 29 weeks. I shouldn't have been so stunned (my maternal grandfather had Type 2 diabetes, and one of my older sisters was pretty close to gestational diabetes in her last pregnancy). I now have to do the full 2-hour Glucose Tolerance Test to determine how serious it might be. Ick - having blood drawn 3 times in 2 hours.

The hardest part is that my wonderful husband is a Type 1 diabetic. I know the will power and lifestyle modification that requires. I am just not ready to give up chocolate!! Even as I received the phone call from the doctor's surgery, I looked in the fridge and saw a peppermint Aero bar, half a packet of chocolate Tim Tams (the world's best choc biscuits), and the box of Lindt chocs that Brad gave me for Christmas!! Does chocolate freeze well??? How can I stare them all in the face for 10 weeks without breaking down?!?!?!?

Anyway, I could rattle on about Naomi's broken sleep patterns (see this week's posts). But I won't bore you all any further -- what has been happening at your place this week?

Easy kids artwork

2009-01-09T12:52:00.004+10:00

I have thought for some time that Naomi's room is rather drab. I made new curtains for her, but the paintwork really needs refreshing and she had nothing else interesting to look at. As it is highly likely that we will be renting out this house and moving some time in the next few months, I didn't really feel like painting and decorating (and the fact that I have been threatened with dire consequences by Brad if I even think of climbing a ladder at 30 weeks pregnant!).

So instead, I came up with this easy and fun idea for some interactive artwork to brighten the walls. I bought some cheap art canvases at the crazy bargain shop, and 2 tubes of pretty contrasting paint. Brushes, a roller and other bits and pieces we already had in the craft stash.

Step 1 was to roll the background colour on each canvas. Using a slightly damp roller produced the soft wash cloudy effect. Naomi loved this part, and proceeded to roller paint every surface in sight... thankfully, after I had rinsed out the paint and it was just plain water!

Step 2, when the background paint is dry, is to let your child go crazy with brushes and the contrasting coloured paint. Naomi adores painting, so this bit was easy to get her interested in.

Step 3, after allowing the painted masterpieces to dry, is just to raid your buttons / ribbons / scrapbook supplies and stick things on to your heart's content! Naomi helped choose the ribbons and buttons that she liked, and picked the flower stickers. She also pointed out where she wanted each one. Warning - this step can be just a little frustrating for the adult ... "there... no, um, there. This one. Or maybe this one...."

Step 4, we added a little ribbon loop to hang the canvases from, and allowed the whole lot to dry.

We think they came up looking pretty darn good. And when Brad got home, he actually thought we had bought them in a spending spree! In fact, he has taken one to work to hang on his office wall ... so we need to make another one for Naomi's room!

A couple of hints --

Check your perfectionism in at the door, before beginning this project. I had a mental image of what I wanted, which at times didn't coincide with my darling toddler's spontaneous creativity.

All sorts of ideas for embellishment spring to mind - sparkle pens? glitter glue? ribbon bows?

Sleep negotiations

2009-01-08T13:21:00.002+10:00

Conversation held in Naomi's bedroom last night:

Mummy (as tucking in and giving hugs and kisses) - "Naomi, if you sleep all night in your bed, and don't come in to wake Mummy up, in the morning I will give you sticker. OK?"

Naomi (nestling under blanket) - "Mmm?"

Mummy - "So stay in your bed, and don't wake up Mummy, for a sticker tomorrow."

Naomi (clearly thinking about this concept) - "OK.... wake Daddy".

For the record, she came in and woke me up 3 times, needing to be put back into her bed. No sticker was given this morning.

Does anyone have any ideas for getting a toddler to sleep through? She doesn't wake up crying - she just wakes up, and requires me to be lying on the floor next to her bed, before she will go back to sleep. She has a nightlight, soft music playing, her drink bottle available, etc etc....... I am exhausted, and very worried about what we will do when the new baby comes in 2 months time.

I am not a morning person, but...

2009-01-07T12:21:00.005+10:00

I must admit that it isn't too bad starting the day off when it is still cool enough to drink a cup of tea, and watching Naomi play on our front verandah (today she was lizard spotting). We wave goodbye to Daddy at 6.30am, and after 2 weeks of playing non-stop together, Naomi is distraught if she doesn't see him in the mornings.

Here is the view from the front door step, where I was sitting this morning with my tea and toast.

The tranquility was only broken by the garbage truck coming on its weekly round!

Stitching days...

2009-01-06T13:10:00.006+10:00

What do you get when your lovely Mum drops by on her day off work, to enjoy a girl's afternoon of stitching, craft and cups of tea??

Mayhem in your button collection and days of finding tiny buttons throughout the house. Good one, Gran! But they had fun, and I got to make Naomi a dress on my new sewing machine.

The pattern is a McCalls, and the fabric is a cute gingham and cupcake print that I bought a while ago and has been sitting in my ever-growing stash of materials! Naomi of course refused to model my creation for the camera, so here are the photos on the hanger instead....

It came together very quickly, and you could have all sorts of fun embellising the basic pattern. My question for you all is, how much would you pay for a cute little girl's dress like this, if it was on sale at a market stall (or perhaps on a blog?) with other similar home-made things?? Would A$18 be too much?

Perspective

2009-01-02T12:26:00.002+10:00

No, I haven't dropped off the face of the planet (again)! But Christmas and New Year have been rather crazy, not least because Brad took these 2 weeks off, so we have had lots of family time and activities.

And I have been waiting for time to add perspective to a few things for me... I have found that most things seem a bit better, with time and perspective. We had a lovely Christmas morning, with 5 kids (Naomi and 4 of her cousins), dancing around the Christmas tree desperately waiting for their parents to have their tea and toast in hand, before gifts were distributed. I must congratulate them all on their restraint!

Naomi got into it all, helping Daddy to distribute the presents, and with regular cries of "Another one!" when she didn't have one to rip open herself at any particular time! She has loved the little kitchen set that Santa brought her - it has been great entertainment for her, and we have been offered "Dinner ready - bacon, sausages, egg" at all times of the day. My budding little chef!

Now that I am on a break from the Family Day Care I hope to have more time for blogging and crafting... particularly as darling Brad got me a brand new Janome sewing machine for Christmas!!! It is even quiet enough that I can sew while Naomi is asleep in the next room (the old Bernina that I had was such a clanker that it would often wake her up if I tried to sew during nap times).

I have been reading along my friends' blogs, and glad that you all had a great Christmas / New Year season. My New Year's resolution has to do with some personal peace and quiet, and having 30 minutes to myself occasionally. We shall see how I go with that!

Company Girl Coffee

2008-12-14T09:37:00.002+10:00

I have a confession to make. I have been lurking on Rachel Anne's blog, Home Sanctuary, for several months now. I don't always do the Small Things challenges, but I do THINK about doing them (ha ha ha - how bad is that!), after I finish working with the Family Day Care children, at the end of next week.

So anyway, I have decided to come out of the closet, have emailed Rachel Anne and asked her if I may please become a Company Girl too. Please please please please, pretty please!

Perhaps for my first Company Girl Coffee session, I will tell you about our own special part of Paradise. I am a wife to Brad, and mum to Miss Naomi (nearly 2). I am also pregnant with our second baby, due in March. And I am hot... darn hot. You see, we live in tropical North Queensland, Australia. Where it is currently summer, and monsoon season as well - so hot, humid and driving me crazy!

But I do love Christmas, and am looking forward to having my sister and her family of 4 kids stay with us for the next week. Am hoping to get the rum balls and Christmas cake made today, so that is one less thing to do before Christmas. I do looooove rum balls!

Handmade decorations

2008-12-12T12:10:00.005+10:00

If you read along on Kara's blog over at Eskimo Kisses & Air Hugs you will no doubt have been enjoying her great series of posts about their Pioneer Christmas, with lots of ideas for homemade decorations.

When my very crafty friend Barbara at Warm Woollen Mittens posted a link to a great Christmas craft, it got me up and in the festive spirit. The link is here if you are interested. They are very easy paper rosettes, with the addition of glitter and buttons for a bit of glam.... Here are the ones that Naomi and I have made in the last few days. Thanks for the link, Barbara! I am hoping they will look nice hung up in my kitchen window. And it was a great excuse to buy some really pretty scrapbooking papers from my local crazy bargain shop!

Totally Decadent Mars Bar Cheesecake

2008-12-11T11:53:00.002+10:00

With the only other adult in our house being Type 1 diabetic, it's not often that I make the effort to bake sweet things. But this one, I just couldn't resist. I have not tried making cheesecake before, but this one was so easy that I am now afraid that I might become addicted.... at least I have an excuse, while I am pregnant!

Mars Bar Cheesecake

Ingredients

2 cups chocolate biscuit crumbs (approx 15 chocolate cookies)

5 tablespoons butter, melted

500 grams cream cheese

1/2 cup caster sugar

1/2 cup thickened cream

3 level teaspoons gelatine, dissolved in 1/4 cup boiling water

2 large Mars bars, chopped as fine as you want

Method - Base

Place 15 chocolate cookies in a large zip-lock bag and seal. Crush the biscuits with a rolling pin or anything that will whack them down firmly (feel the stress relief already!). Measure to make sure you have 2 cups of crumbs and place in a mixing bowl. Add melted butter and mix well. Press crumb mixture into the base of a greased springform pan. I found this quantity just covered my large pan - if you have a smaller pan, it will make a thick base and you may want to adjust quantity accordingly. Or you may like thick layers of crumbled choc cookies... mmmmm. Put the pan in the fridge while you mix the filling.

Method - Filling

Chop Mars bars and set aside. Beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add caster sugar and cream, beat all together and set aside. Sprinkle gelatine onto hot water and stir gently until almost dissolved. Stir gelatine mix into cream cheese mix, making sure all ingredients are thoroughly combined (no lumps). Gently stir in the chopped Mars bars. Pour the filling onto the crumb crust, in the springform pan. Refrigerate at least 3 hours, preferably overnight.

When set, run a knife around edge of the tine and unclip the springform tin. Decorate with whipped cream, or grated Mars bars/choc biscuits. Anything you want, really!

Of course, you can change it up by substituting honeycomb, cherry ripe, or your favourite fruit, instead of the Mars bars.

Feeling Festive

2008-12-02T12:39:00.003+10:00

Yes, it's official - I am now feeling Festive. We put up our decorations on the weekend. It was such a lovely feeling for Naomi to be able to participate in a meaningful way - even perching on Brad's shoulders to put the star on the top of the tree.

Naomi is enjoying her Advent Calendar - which I didn't post a photo of last time, so here it is....

I also got inspired by the Christmas episode of Better Homes & Gardens and made Naomi her own Christmas stocking on the weekend. I am quietly pleased with the result, and even had a jingly bell to sew on the toe, as they suggested! The funny line of the side of the stocking in this photo is just a fold of the fabric - it is actually the right shape in real life!

Are you in the spirit yet?

2008-11-15T12:45:00.003+10:00

My friend Kara at Eskimo Kisses and Air Hugs recently asked whether we all had our 'Jingle' on yet. Thanks, Kara! You have given me the perfect excuse to 'get Festive'! I adore Christmas ... but don't like when the shops start playing the carols in October. When we were kids, my family always had a rule that Christmas decorations and preparations started after the last person finished school for the year (in Australia we have our major 6 week school holiday break over December / January). This person was always my Dad - being a primary school principal, he worked until the last day of school, and didn't get out early for good behaviour!

So it feels a bit wrong to be doing decorating etc before early December. However, I have started trying to get things together so I am not totally "snowed under" (ha ha ha - the temperature here is scorching and humid every day!) for the Christmas rush.

I have been meaning to make a patchwork Advent calendar for the past couple of years - but it just isn't happening. So when I spotted one on a beautiful craft stall, at some local markets, I snapped it up. It has numbered pockets for each day and I love the idea of putting little trinkets and treats in each pocket, for Naomi to open. Far more personal -- and healthy -- than the commercialised chocolate-loaded 'Christmas Count Down' calendars that are in all the supermarkets.

I went to the crazy outlet shop and bought some little sheets of stickers, pretty jingle bells, and nice wooden ornaments for her to hang on the tree. Other things (like a book that was on special and a little plush toy), can be hung off the appropriate pocket the night before.

What have you done to start Christmas preparations? What is your favourite family tradition?

Great sauce recipe

2008-11-07T11:16:00.004+10:00

Last night I cooked pork chops, but was trying to think of a quick and easy way to jazz them up a bit. I threw the following ingredients into the frypan, after cooking the chops and draining off the grease (but be sure to leave the yummy browning stuff in the bottom):

A good dollop of cream
2 tsps crushed garlic
A shake of dried rosemary leaves
Fresh garlic chives, snipped up with scissors

Stir together and let it simmer on very low for a few minutes, soaking up the meaty bits in the bottom of the pan. This made enough for generous pour-over servings on 2 adult dinners.

I had intended to put some seeded mustard in as well, but didn't have any in the fridge. It was just as delicious without it. I think this would go well on any meat - steak, pork, chicken, even fish or prawns. And it was literally conceived and made in 5 minutes, from ingredients in the condiments shelf of my pantry and fridge.

Do you have a special sauce, or something quick that you use to jazz up otherwise plain meals? Please share it with me - leave a link to your site in the comments!

Meet Bluebell...

2008-11-03T13:22:00.003+10:00

A warm welcome to the newest member of our family... Bluebell the Budgerigar. We have been mulling over getting a pet for Naomi for a little while now. With work and the prospect of moving we didn't think that a dog or a cat would be the right level of commitment for us to take on at the moment. So that left rodents, fish or birds. Brad outright refused my suggestion of a mouse. I can't understand why!! We decided that fish didn't give too much interaction, so a bird it is.

Bluebell has been a big hit with Naomi. Every morning she races out to say hello to 'bubble'. She is thrilled when Bluebell eats the seed that she has helped to put in the dish, or drinks some water ("Bubble eat seed!"). With a lifespan of around 12 years, we are hoping that Bluebell and Naomi have many happy times together, and that our little princess learns a bit about responsibility and a love for animals too.

Having said all of that, we have been a house of sickness for the last 5 days. I started with a chesty cold, the coughing had me nauseous and then the nausea took on a life of its own and turned into gastro. I ended up with a shot of maxolon from the doctor to settle my stomach, so that I could at least keep fluids down. Then on Saturday evening, Brad came down with the same thing - we ended up in our hospital's Emergency Department for him to have the same shot. In Brad's case, being type 1 diabetic, he has to be able to consume a reasonable amount of carbohydrate, or his blood sugar levels drop dangerously low. When he can't keep down fluids, we know we are in trouble and it is time for intervention.

Thankfully Naomi's tummy has remained unaffected, although she has done some truly awful nappies in the last couple of days (sorry... too much info!). Again, the Lord has blessed me with a clogged up nose so I can't smell them during the changing process. We must be grateful for small mercies!

WFMW - tender noses

2008-10-29T16:10:00.003+10:00

Despite it being spring in our part of the world (and feeling more like summer), we seem to currently be afflicted with a round of colds, 'flu, and chest infections. As our Family Daycare children are also bringing these bugs along with them into our house, some days I find myself wiping up to 4 little noses all day! All this blowing and wiping gets very painful for tender noses with just plain tissues, so I have found that occasionally interspersing tissues with blowing/wiping on wet wipes is quite soothing to little noses.

You can get wipes with aloe vera and other soothing things added, but do make sure that you use alcohol free wipes, so that you are not contributing to the drying-out of tender skin. Your little darling will have a moistened and soothed nose -- at least for a couple of minutes!

Now head on over to Rocks In My Dryer for more handy hints!

Out of the mouths of babes...

2008-10-27T13:11:00.003+10:00

So I had my scan and 19-week check up last Friday. Everything is fine - the doctor tells me that I am having a 'textbook pregnancy'. Which is comforting, I guess! We don't know whether we are having a boy or girl - we had decided not to find out, but it was hard to say 'no' when the sonographer asked... I was watching the baby move on the screen and wondering "Are you a boy or a girl?".

I had to take a ur*ne sample to the doctor's appointment. As all mothers know there is no privacy whatsoever, and as one of our daycare kids is currently toilet training, Naomi has an obsession with toilets and their workings... She was watching as I filled the sample pot. And insisted on carrying it in the car (after I had tightly sealed the lid). She then resisted all my attempts to put it discreetly in our bag as we walked through the doctor's office. Not my girl -- she waved it around and announced to the receptionist, at full volume ... "Toilet! Mummy undies!"

The only saving grace was that, as the first appointment of the day, there were only staff and 1 other patient to see my humiliation!

Nearly as good a story as my friend, who tucked her sample pot in the back pocket of the seat of her car, couldn't find it at the doctor's surgery so did another sample, then forgot about the whole incident. Until her BOSS discovered a little jar of yellow liquid in the seat pocket, several weeks later, as she was driving them both to an important work meeting!

Does anyone else have an amusing 'sample jar' story?? Or do these things just happen to me, and mine?

Love is...

2008-10-21T12:26:00.002+10:00

... your hubby getting up early in the morning to deliver your 2 plain crackers to the bedside of your sick little one, where you have been sleeping on the floor all night, knowing that you will be nauseous without them.

Last week Naomi had some sort of viral thing that seems to be going around. She was spiking temperatures of 39.7 deg C (sorry, my maths isn't up to converting to Fahrenheit!), the doctor found no cause of infection so sent us home to ride it out with Panadol and cool sponge baths. 5 days of medicine every 6 hours later the fever broke. Thank goodness its over with no lasting effects (other than that we are back to square 1 with her sleeping habits -- or lack thereof!)

I woke up one morning after tossing and turning on the floor beside Naomi to find 2 Sao biscuits on my pillow - I had forgotten to bring them with me (not anticipating being there ALL night), and Brad noticed when he snuck in first thing to see how we were doing. What a sweetie he is!

The quilt show I mentioned...

2008-10-17T12:15:00.006+10:00

I mentioned a quilt show that my Mum and I went to a couple of months ago. It was in a small town about 20 minutes south of us, and is the only quilting show that I know of in this area (other than the small display at the annual city's Show).

There were some spectacular quilts, in styles ranging from pretty vintage to strikingly modern. It was such an inspiration to see what other people in this area are doing with patchwork and quilting. I sighed and said to Mum "Won't it be great when the kids are grown up and I can sew all day??". To which she replied "You are still pregnant with one of them! You have a Loooooonnnggg way to go yet!!".

I am a vintage kind of gal, so you know which ones I fell in love with! Here are the photos....

I love the idea of a patchwork window scene and would like to try this concept myself one day.

And one of my cheeky monkey who loves having her photo taken and was such a good girl (after being bribed with the pikelets for morning tea!).

But to show that I haven't been totally craft-less these past few months, here is a photo of the butterfly cross-stitch that I have done for my part in a round robin. It is now winging its way (no pun intended) back to its owner in the US. I hope she likes it!

Still alive!

2008-10-10T14:05:00.002+10:00

Although it feels like I have dropped out - or off the planet - for the last few months, I am now beginning to feel that I have just a small bit of control over my body and my life again. The morning sickness has almost totally receded, and aside from aching feet and being exhausted at the end of every day, I am actually now feeling pretty good again!

I have had so many ideas for posts in the past few months, that just haven't materialised into words on the screen. My mum and I went to a wonderful quilt show about 8 weeks ago, and I found the photos still on my camera the other day. I will definitely get to posting them up on here... soon! (Can't rush these things, you know!).

Anyway, in other news, there is the distinct possibility of a move in our near future - to the other end of the State. Brad's project work here in our city is wrapping up, the next project that company have lined up for him is over an hour's drive each way, up a winding mountain range, and they are not making any provision for families to move closer to the site. With work hours being 7am to 5pm, and every 3rd Saturday as well, we wouldn't see much of him - which is not a prospect I would look forward to, with the new baby due in March.

So instead he is looking seriously at other options in the south of the State, and specifically a move to our capital city (hi sis!). But we shall have to wait and see how the interviews go......

Must dash. Naomi has woken up from her unusually long nap (all of an hour!).

What happened to my life??

2008-08-29T13:38:00.002+10:00

Who am I?? Where is the real Sasha??????

I feel like I fell pregnant and my life just collapsed around me. Let me take stock.

Motivation - nil.
Energy level - nil.
Care factor - nil. Sometimes less than nil. Negative care factor.

I just wake up, nibble my dry crackers, crawl out of bed in time to get Naomi and I breakfast and brush my hair before the first daycare children arrive. Then it is the usual ups and downs, and by the time the last one leaves I just collapse on the couch, wondering what on earth I am going to feed my own little family for dinner. It's lucky our bill paying is all forward scheduled through the internet banking, because I hadn't turned the computer on in about 3 weeks.

Trying to think positively, I have been much less nauseous this time around. With Naomi I was actually sick most days, all the way through. This time, I have felt seedy all day but only been sick a couple of times (one was the result of a particularly awful nappy!). And it seems to be receding a bit, this week, so maybe I will be better in a couple of weeks time.

But will that bring my energy back??? My motivation?? My enthusiasm for the things I was doing before?? I hope so. Because I still want to do them. I just can't think about anything that complicated now!!

There were 2 pink lines...

2008-07-22T12:06:00.002+10:00

on the test strip that I did over the weekend!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I had my contraception implant out on 2 May. And now we have conceived in the first full cycle after that!

By my calculation I am about 5 1/2 weeks pregnant. the women in my family have a history of awful morning sickness. With Naomi, mine started at about 8 weeks, and didn't stop until the day I had her. I am therefore enjoying this brief respite period where I still feel fine (although rather tired), and stocking up on ginger biscuits for the morning that I know will arrive when the reality check hits me like a ton of bricks.

Can I really be pregnant again? It just doesn't feel like it yet... but I am getting excited, nervous and all the other roller-coasters in between.

Pssssttt..........

2008-07-17T11:36:00.002+10:00

Can you keep a secret? I am rather excited about what I am unveiling for my 100th post (very very very soon). I mentioned before that I might have a give-away.

Well, it is going to be something that I very much hope you will like - made with love and care, from my family to yours. I also hope that you will like it soooo much that you tell your friends (ha ha ha -- cheap fishing for linkage there!!)

Anyway, I am working with the Nap Warden to make it all look very pretty before the red velvet curtains are thrown open and you all get to see it!

One born every minute

2008-07-12T10:33:00.004+10:00

A sucker, that is!

I have been putting off going back to my usual hairdressing salon. It has been about 4 months now - I tell myself that I am growing it back out after 7 years of short hair. In fact it is just that I have recently had trouble justifying the expense of this luxury salon - not to Brad, but to myself. I think I am my own harshest financial critic. I had just decided to make an appointment at the much cheaper hairdresser at our local shops, when a parcel arrived on my doorstep. It contained this....

A birthday gift from my salon. A selection of delicious hand creams, soap and bath gel.

Did I do the sensible thing and set it aside from my mind? No, not me. I started thinking about what a fantastic salon they are - how luxuriously pampered I always feel after an hour or 2 there. What a great job Jessica does of cutting my very thick and fluffy hair. How I adored the hairstyles that she did for our wedding.

And I rang up to make an appointment 'just for a trim - I am thinking of growing it out'.

Frugal cheese

2008-07-09T12:01:00.003+10:00

What is working for me this week? Well, a number of things aren't working for me, but this one sure is.

Miss Naomi likes cheese. Oh, boy, does she like to eat slices of cheese. And not the cheap processed stuff - it has to be the real McCoy block cheese that costs an arm and a leg. So how to make this fit into the Cherished Household budget??

Take 1 vegetable peeler. Take your block of cheese. Apply one to the other. Voi'la, as the French would say!

I use the peeler to shave off very thin slices of cheese from the block - enough to satisfy the tastes of our little cheese monster, but frugal enough to make the block last for ages, and soooo easy to cut. I am useless at cutting straight slices off with a knife - they are too chunky, hard for little ones to easily eat and wasteful of the cheese. But this way, everyone is happy! And it makes slicing cheese for sandwiches so easy as well.

Now head on over to Shannon at Rocks in My Dryer for more great tips.

Who's your Mama?

2008-07-08T12:27:00.003+10:00

Are you a 'Mummy'? 'Mum'? 'Mother'? 'Ma'? Despite having given birth and nurtured a gorgeous little girl for the past 18 months, I have been none of these. The word "Daddy" is heard from morning till bedtime. But on the subject of who I am, Naomi has been stubbornly silent.

Except for a brief and horrifying period of several weeks where she called me 'Sasha'!!! What the?? I am NOT having one of these open, new-age friend relationships with my daughter. Where is the respect? The honouring of parents? Although, it wasn't surprising as everyone else in the world calls me 'Sasha' (or Sweetie). All the daycare children that I care for call me Sasha. Thankfully, she is over that phase.

One day when playing the "Where's such-and-such person" game, I said "Where's Mummy?", and Naomi pointed to herself. The penny dropped - the words sound too similar for her to differentiate and all my saying 'mummy' was just confusing her. So instead, Brad and I have been saying 'Mama'. And guess what? Yesterday, Naomi said "Mama", and when I said (with tears in my eyes) 'Yes, blossom?" she went on chatting to me about the rocks that she had collected from the garden - completely oblivious to the moment of pure joy that she had just brought me. She has said it many times in the last 24 hours, and I may even get used to it -- but I will never stop enjoying the sound of it.

Where, oh where has she been?

2008-06-13T20:47:00.001+10:00

Trapped. Digging my way out from under a huuuuge pile of packing boxes, containing all of the stuff that was deemed necessary enough to be moved. I thought I was ruthless, when I packed. I took large bags of clothes to the charity shop. I threw out several car loads of junk and rubbish. I even culled (ok, maybe that is too strong a word. Maybe I lightly pruned) my craft and sewing stash. So why do I still have boxes of things that I look at and think ... why did I keep that??

But more to the point.... What did I do with the can opener?? That is driving me crazy. Do you know how many canned goods there are that don't have ring-pull lids? And that I have always just blithely opened with the can opener that I had before moving into this black-hole void for kitchen utensils?!?!?!!

Oops. Sorry for getting carried away. See what happens when you blog late in the evening after 2 glasses of wine?

A new addictive craft

2008-05-18T13:26:00.005+10:00

My neighbour across the road invited me to a Creative Memories scrapbooking party, which was held yesterday. We each had to take along 6 - 8 photographs, with a theme.

I am ashamed to say that it was hard to find that many actual physical photographs, and I had to go hunting in the bottoms of sideboard drawers - it certainly is the age of digital photos! But I came up with some lovely shots of Naomi at various stages in her first year - from a couple of weeks old, through to her first birthday party.

And here is a photo of my first ever attempt at scrapbooking, entitled Naomi's First Year.

I love quilting, and have been in withdrawal for the last year, as I haven't even finished one project! I miss the beautiful vintage print fabrics, and the satisfaction of making something with my own hands that I can snuggle up under in the coming winter months. Which is why scrapbooking has the worrying potential to become a new addiction -- such beautiful papers, ribbons and embellishments - like an Aladdin's cave of pretty things. And preserving the happiest of memories.

But the thing I liked about it was the 'almost instant gratification'. Within half an hour I had created a page of memories and I was actually happy with the result! While not as utterly scrumptiously satisfying as finishing a bed quilt or lap rug, it was the sort of thing that I might even be able to find time for around Naomi and the daycare kids.

Luckily the cost of the materials, albums and fripperies that were in the catalogue were waaayyy outside our current budget, so the danger remains only peripheral... but certainly lurking there, waiting to pounce when I have more time or funds..... Does anyone else enjoy scrapbooking? Is it as addictive as I think it could be?

A quick house update

2008-05-15T17:47:00.002+10:00

It's official. We will be moving out of the house we started our little family in, on 28 May. The plan to move into the next house on the same day has come completely unstuck. The vendors of our next house cannot sell to us until 4 June - a whole week later!

So it is a week in a holiday apartment, with our furniture in storage, for us. Expense we could have done without, but so be it. Also, I will be unable to have daycare children until we are set up in the new house - so nearly 2 weeks of lost income. Darn. The best laid plans of mice and men.....

But on the upside, we are spending a week in a holiday apartment!

Being a mum is the greatest job

2008-05-13T13:16:00.003+10:00

I have recently felt very inspired by some of the blogs by mums with many blessings - Life In A Shoe, Large Family Mothering and Lines from the Vine are blogs by mums who welcome the highs and lows of being a SAHM of many. The inspiration for me is to keep going on days when 4 under-2's have driven my round the bend! And also because Brad and I have made the decision to stop our contraception and leave the decision of when we have another baby in God's hands.

Ironically, I am currently surrounded by tiny babies! And getting clucky as all heck. We have had 3 new babies in our Mothers Group within the last month - the most recent just 2 days ago. My good friend Veronica has also just had her fourth child a couple of weeks ago. And then there is the 4 month old baby I care for 2 days a week (who is currently snoozing in the rocker at my feet).

I hope that you all had a wonderful Mother's Day. Naomi's gift to me was a 2-hour nap, which is completely unheard-of, and which allowed me to get a quiche cooked, the house cleaned and table set with pretty linen, for the lunch that we had with my Mum. But I was also the very happy recipient of this beautiful set of china breakfast crockery, presented in a pretty green hatbox. Just perfect for lazy tea and toast on the verandah, enjoying a peaceful start to the day while wrapped in my soft fluffy dressing gown. Anyone know where you can buy such a morning??

House sale and bargains

2008-05-09T07:37:00.004+10:00

I forgot to mention yesterday, our most exciting news - the sale of our house is set to proceed on 28 May! The purchaser has confirmed that he is happy with all the inspection reports that he has received (pest, building, electrical and a property valuation!). So I now have less than 3 weeks to pack up the combined clutter of a 3 bedroom house and a Family Daycare business into boxes. The big catch is that we are not yet sure that we can move into the new house on the same date. It may be as much as 2 weeks after we sell this house. Whilst I relish the thought of 2 weeks in a holiday apartment, we could do without the expense of renting, storing furniture etc, not to mention the loss of my business income from not having a house to care for kids in!

I have to get onto our lawyer today and get confirmation of a date to move into the next house, so that I can warn my parent clients if there is going to be a delay of some days.

Above is a photo of Naomi enjoying her new property - a diorama book called 'Maisy's Farm' that I picked up for $2 at a garage sale a couple of weeks ago. It shows signs of previous hard lovin', but the daycare kids and Naomi love when I set it up and they can play with all of the cut-out people, animals, tractors etc.

Sewing bee

2008-05-08T18:34:00.004+10:00

Where has the last 3 weeks gone?? I cannot believe it has been soooo long since I found time to post!

I have been busy busy busy. The Family Daycare business is really starting to take off - I now have as many children to care for as I want for the moment. I have decided to limit myself to Naomi + 2 each day, rather than the +3 that I can legally take. Four children of 2 and under is just crazy. I know -- I've tried it! Frankly, the money for 1 extra child isn't worth the frustration and exhaustion that I feel by mid-morning! And having 1 place available each day allows me to take emergency care if the need arises, or if one of my current children needs an extra day of care for some reason.

As for the reference to sewing in the title of this post, I have been busy on that front too. It is getting chilly here now (well, what we tropical people think of as cool, anyway), and I wanted to make Naomi some long-sleeved t-shirts and rompers. I took her and Brad to Spotlight (I know... crazy, huh??), and he picked out a pattern for short-sleeved rompers, and some very light-weight knit fabric. Ummm... why? Because he liked the print and thought it would be cute on our little Blossom. Oooohhhhh kayyyyy.......

But I thought, well, I can put long-sleeved shirts under the strappy rompers, so that will work well. My wonderful Mum gave me a lesson in t-shirt making, (which is easy, when someone is showing, and a fiddly pain in the neck when figuring it out on your own!). Then on to the rompers. A very easy pattern, so it only took a couple of sessions to get it all together. I made the 12 month size for my tiny little Miss 16 Months. Then I tried it on her. The legs (meant to be a short-leg romper) dragged on the floor. And the shoulder straps fell off - on both sides.

The picture below wouldn't turn right way up, so you will have to tip your head to the side. I am putting this romper away until next season. Or maybe next year!

Mince Casserole for toddlers (and anyone else!)

2008-04-21T18:30:00.004+10:00

Just a quick post to share - here is Naomi's favourite food at the moment (and I love to make it, because it is so darn easy!)

Crock-pot Mince Casserole

1/2 kg lean beef mince
1 beef stock cube
2 carrots (diced)
1 potato (diced)
frozen corn kernels and frozen peas
crushed garlic
herbs
rice (about 3 handfuls)
1 can diced tomatoes

Brown the mince and place in the crock pot with the can of diced tomatoes. Add stock cube and about 1/2 a cup of water, and the diced carrots and potato. Stir in about 1 teaspoon crushed garlic. Simmer for 2 hours. Add the frozen corn kernels and peas, and the herbs of your choice (I use dried mixed herbs). Add several handfuls of rice and continue simmering. Keep an eye on the liquid level - the rice will absorb excess water.

When vegetables and rice are cooked, allow to cool. Serve into individual portions and freeze. I get about 7 meals for Miss 15 Months from this quantity.

WFMW - How close is too close??

2008-04-17T07:37:00.003+10:00

If your kids are like mine (well, mine and our daycare kids), and allowed to watch a very limited amount of television, they will probably be desperately excited when it is on - and perhaps even cluster around the screen, to get as close as possible (because you don't want to miss a moment of the Bananas in Pyjamas!). After repeated efforts at "stay back from the TV - further, further...", I knew I needed another plan.

I now set up a picnic blanket on the lounge floor, as far away from the TV as I want the kids to be. They are not allowed to go past its front edge. This is a clearly marked line, and there can be no arguments about creeping closer to the TV. My real tip is to make it a comfortable, fun place to be -- add some cushions, have their water bottles close by, and maybe even a snack, if it is the right time of day. Make sure to allow some room around behind the blanket, for dancing etc, and for those kids that lose interest in the program. Pretty soon your kids will WANT to be on the blanket (and therefore away from the screen). They can all see, there is room to stretch out and it is almost like having an inside picnic, at a regularly scheduled time!

For more great tips, go over to Rocks in My Dryer.

Tropical cool and war wounds...

2008-04-10T14:01:00.004+10:00

You know its autum when... you can have a lazy Sunday morning in your soft fluffy warm dressing gowns without overheating! Yes, we here in Paradise think that it is getting cooler - the days are now around 28 to 30 deg C. Clear blue skies make for crisp cooler mornings (in our opinions, anyway!). Naomi is now bundled in flanelette pyjamas for overnight (mostly because I don't have a sleep bag that fits at the moment, and she hates having covers on her).

Yep, people, this is the best time of year, here in Paradise. The heat and humidity have gone (although I do miss the monsoon thunderstorms and rain). You can pretty much guarantee that the weather will be fine on any given day, and it is cool enough to make your morning cup of tea a total pleasure.

However, whilst the weather may be divine, things in the Cherished household are taken one day, and sometimes one hour at a time this week.

You may have noticed the red splodge on Naomi's nose, in the above photos? She took a tumble down the auditorium steps at my mum's graduation ceremony on Saturday afternoon. It was a glorious swan dive - right onto the metal non-skid strip that they attach at the front of stair treads. Think cheese grater effect, on very delicate skin. She had a red lump on the forehead and gravel rash from bridge of the nose right down to the top lip. Blood everywhere. Screams echoing around the auditorium. And I couldn't even muster up a tissue - not even the crumpled up type that live in the bottom of every handbag (you know you have one lurking in there somewhere!). But not me. Because I don't carry a handbag - just a gorgeous little pink princess ballerina backpack, stuffed with snacks, crayons, paper, toys and a spare nappy. I briefly flirted with the idea of sticking the clean nappy on Naomi's face, but thought the better of it when I realised it may be needed later.

So instead, I scooped up screaming child and all our paraphernalia and hobbled painfully (as I had twisted my ankle earlier that day!) the 50 metres to the nearest bathroom, to get handtowels with which to stem the bleeding.

It has left a very impressive scab down her nose. But I am having trouble with the top lip - it won't dry up and scab over, because of course the nose has started running like a tap again, causing the top lip area to be constantly covered in... well, you know what I mean.

Consequently, sleeping has been disrupted, child has been very whingey and grumpy and I have been tearing my hair out.

A nice tall glass of Motherhood, anyone??

Banner of Blessings

2008-04-03T19:39:00.003+10:00

For all of you vintage hearts out there, you are in for a treat.... Check out Banner of Blessings, for free... yes, you heard me, free blog and Etsy banners. They are gorgeous vignettes, all taken by Polly, who runs the site. I like this one, but had so much trouble choosing that I may just use them all in rotation, over the coming months!

Home Alone... well, almost!

2008-04-03T18:11:00.004+10:00

2 evenings in a row where I find myself sitting down in front of my laptop, with Naomi asleep, Brad still out, the lamp on and music playing gently in the background... I would complain about Brad working back every night this week (he has a building to deliver tomorrow - got to love the construction industry), except that these few moments have been pure bliss. And tonight I have dinner on my lap and a glass of wine by the keyboard. Heaven!

Naomi has found getting back into the swing of our daycare kids very tiring. She still only naps for 40 minutes, around 11 am. No matter what I do I can't seem to get it any longer. So by 5 pm the poor thing is collapsing - here is the evidence of her falling asleep in the highchair, between mouthfuls of dinner. Clearly I have to work on improving my dinner table conversation, so that she is interested enough to stay awake!

For the record, she didn't even wake up when I took her out, changed her into pj's and wiped her face (which she hates). But she did wake an hour later, when her tummy figured out that it had missed half of dinner, and her bedtime nursing!

I had a 14 week old baby start in my care this week - just for 2 days each week. Boy, was that a shock to the system! But with a name like Valentino, was he ever going to be anything but a total charmer??!!?!? And yes... I am now clucky again. Which Brad is thrilled about!

As for the house -- well, anyone want to buy a cute 3-bedroom house with tropical pool?? In a lovely little estate, tucked in a valley with great views. Lol... we had an offer for exactly what we wanted, while we were away in Fiji. They emailed the contract to us and we signed. We were absolutely thrilled and couldn't wait for it to go through, so that we can buy our bigger house! And then we heard yesterday that the buyer's finance had fallen through. So we are back to square one, and I have to have the house ready for an open home inspection again this weekend. Just when I was congratulating myself on cleaning and presenting the place beautifully while we were away, and not having to keep it that way once we got back from holiday. Sigh.....

Home again, Home again, Jiggedy-jig...

2008-04-02T18:00:00.003+10:00

I am tired. My feet are aching. Boy, do I know that I am back at work! I should be cooking dinner. Or at least folding the clean washing. But instead I am immersing myself back in the lovely Bloggy world that I have missed, while we were away in Fiji!!

I could bore you all with our holiday happy snaps (and no doubt will do, in the coming weeks), but for now, I am just going to upload a photo of the view from my hammock on South Sea Island, where we lazed away a day, and one of Brad & Naomi at the Garden of the Sleeping Giant.

Fiji is a wonderful place to take children. The people are all so friendly, and they adore kids! Staff in the restaurants will offer to take your fractious baby for a walk while you eat your dinner. Staff at the resort will take your child swimming in the kids pool, while you sip your pina colada in peace (which is a good thing, as Naomi finally figured out how to actually use a straw -- in my cocktail).

I have so much more to tell - the ups and downs of our house being on the market, new children in my Family Daycare business, and lots more about Fiji, but now dinner and the laundry really are SHOUTING my name....

So much to tell!

2008-03-11T08:07:00.003+10:00

NB - Posted without photos until such time as Blogger figures out its "temporary error"!

What a week - so much happening, and yet I have had no time to blog about it!

After much thought and discussion, we have decided to put our house on the market. We are currently in a 3 bedroom, 1 bathroom house that we love. It has a pretty little garden and a lovely pool, and has been the perfect place for us to start our little family. But, with the advent of the Family Daycare business, and the possibility of more little ones, we have decided that we need 4 bedrooms. And it helps that we have found a house nearby that fits our "wish list" (4 bed, 2 bath, office, landscaped pool, bigger back yard for kids to play in, closer in to the village centre), and that we plan to make an offer on today!

The next big decision is which real estate agent to list our property with. We are actually planning on selling our investment property as well, to get a really good deposit for the new house, so we are double customers for some lucky realtor. There is a lady with extensive knowledge of our area (we bought this house off her, and maintained contact in the interim). But she has been a bit presumptuous that of course we would use her company - and the commission she is charging is around A$11,500 per house!

On the other hand, a new-ish realtor (2 years) has taken the market by storm up here, by offering fixed price commissions at much lower rates (around A$6,000 per house). That is half price! And the agent I have dealt with there impresses me as being honest, down-to-earth, not ridiculously pushy or presumptuous.

So today I have to tell the other lady that unless she can do a really good deal on the commission for selling 2 houses, we are listing with the other realtor. **Be strong, Sasha... stand firm. It is a lot of money at stake!**

Let me see, what else to tell.... oh, yes, Naomi has learnt herself a new skill. Look closely at this picture... See that white lumpy thing on the floor in the bottom left of the frame? Yep, she has figured out the velcro fastening on her disposable nappies. More specifically, she has figured out how to undo the velcro fastening! I am going to have to get some nappy covers, or put her in shorts every day from now on, to avoid having to clean the floors again, and again, and again!

Last but definitely not least, it has finally happened.... I am in love. Yes, at the tender age of 30, I have at last found true bliss. Here is my new partner....

We have had my mum's old washing machine for the past 3 years. She had it for 15 years before that. It worked just great, and was nice and large. But it finally died on Saturday morning, so we decided the time had come for a new one. Front-loading, water-saving, quiet-spinning, all-singing, all-dancing... and we get a $200 rebate off the purchase price, from the Government, for buying a water-saving model. This made it cheaper than the top-loading, water-guzzling machines we had been looking at! What bargain shoppers we are.

Nervous Nineties....

2008-03-03T11:48:00.003+10:00

Well, here it is... my ninetieth post. And it is about.... being my ninetieth post. Yep, inspiration has been at a low ebb for the past few days.

So I thought I would pep you all up by announcing that I will be doing a give-away for my 100th post... when it finally gets here. Which may take a couple of weeks, unless inspiration hits fast!!

I like to give away delicious handmade scented soaps, 'cause everyone loves them, right?!?!

Sweet as a rose!

2008-02-27T14:58:00.002+10:00

I love gardening. But I am not really too good at it. So when the trailing rose that I bought in full flower didn't get any new blooms after the ones that came with it died, I rang my father-in-law, who grows beautiful roses.

He suggested trimming it back and putting.... a banana peel in the pot. Apparently roses like potassium, to flower well. And a great source of potassium is decomposing banana peels! I am pleased to report that my rose soon produced another flush of buds.

So, my WFMW tips are:

1. Put banana skins around your roses (or bury them near the roots, if you don't like the sight / smell!); and

2. Give even strange-sounding advice a go, if it comes from someone who has demonstrated expertise in the area!

When did my perspective change??

2008-02-26T12:08:00.005+10:00

We went on a family outing a few days ago - to the local pub bistro, ostensibly for dinner, but mostly to watch the Socceroos World Cup qualifier game (the Australian soccer team), which was only televised on pay TV (which I won't let Brad get, for fear of losing him altogether to the television!).

As we were sitting eating dinner, we realised we needed to get some cash out of the ATM, to buy a round of drinks (how did we become such a cash-less society??). This pub has a great family bistro eating area, and a separate public bar, for the serious workmen-type drinkers. And the teller machine is in the public bar area. So I say to Brad "You had better go to the teller and get some cash out, sweetie". To which he replied (in true 3-year old fashion) "Why me??".

All I could think of was "because you're the man". And yet, it seems like just the blink of an eye ago when I was working in the male-dominated, macho world of maritime shipping. I would not have batted an eyelid at drinking in a public bar, let alone just going into one to get some cash out. In fact, I would probably have been surreptitiously eyeing off some of the fine gluteous maximus muscles as I passed them by, and being just as loud as the next person!

So what has changed?? Why is it suddenly Brad's job to go into the rowdy part of the tavern, to get some cash, so that I can sit in the family bistro sipping my glass of riesling???

On a lighter note, here is a picture of the lovely torenias that I transplanted into a terracotta pot, on the weekend. I had them planted in a garden bed last year, and they came back up of their own accord. So they are now featuring on our back patio, making me look like an accomplished green-thumb (ha ha ha!).

Middle Name Meme....

2008-02-25T12:40:00.004+10:00

Kara has tagged me for a middle name meme.

Here are the Rules: Post the rules on your blog, and then give your answers. List one fact about yourself for each letter in your middle name. Each fact must begin with a letter from your middle name. If you do not have a middle name, use your maiden name(or create a middle name).Once you are tagged, update your blog with your middle name and your answers. At the end of your post, tag one person for each letter of you middle name. Leave them a comment on their blog telling them that they have been tagged, and that they need to come read your blog for details.

If my wonderful mum and dad had known when they were naming me that I would have to come up with something about me for each letter, I am sure that they would have given me a shorter middle name. Or at least, only 1 of them, rather than 2! My middle names are Genevieve Peta. I am going to stick with just Genevieve for the purposes of this Meme!

G - Gardening - I love it, and wish I was better at it! Hardy plants do best in my garden!
E - Enya is one of my favourite music artists. I was given my first Enya tape when I was about 12, and have loved her music ever since.
N - Not good at maths or science subjects. I know enough to count my change at the supermarket!
E - English is where I excel - I am a speed reader and enjoy writing.
V - Vintage. All things shabby-chic, soft, girly, country-ish. I love them all.
I - Ireland. Spent a wonderful week exploring County Galway, and County Waterford, with my mum, a few years ago. We booked a little cottage in the country and explored around as we pleased. We have some fantastic memories and stories from that week.
E - Elegantly dressed, I am not! It's comfort and easy wash / low iron that I look for in clothes. But I do admire women who look like they have a touch of 'polish' about them (their legs are shaved, for a start!!)
V - Very very very addicted to sweet things, since having Naomi. Savoury used to be my downfall - now I crave that sugar rush!
E - Every cloud has a silver lining. I am working on trying to see the good in things, and being more positive about life.

Now, I am not going to do specific tags -- but anyone who reads this and wants to play along, just link back to this post from your blog, and we can have us a miniature bloggy carnival together!

WFMW - easier nappy changing

2008-02-20T13:11:00.003+10:00

Do you have a 'roller' or a 'climber' on your hands? When you approach the change table do you just know that you are going to end up fastening the nappy 'on the run'?

It is now 5 weeks since I started running Family Day Care from our house, and I have the care of 3 little angels, all under the age of 2. (Yikes, how did that happen?!!?). I am learning some tricks pretty fast, I tell you!

My tips for making changing easier are:

1. Hang some windchimes (get them cheap at your local $2 shop), above the change table - up nice and high. Chime them when you put the child down, and re-tinkle whenever you have to!

2. Give the child a job to do. "Naomi, could you hold the nappy cream for me please?" (I keep an empty tube of cream so that I can still use cream without wrestling her for it.). Or "Could you get me 3 wipes out of the box please?" (Count to 3 with them -- otherwise you will end up with 23 wipes that can't be stuffed back through the dispenser!).

3. Bring a little toy with you, to keep little hands busy - but make sure that it is a plastic or wooden one that you can quickly rinse in anti-bacterial rinse afterwards. Stuffed toys are not good for this job!

4. Learn to fasten nappies up with the child standing (on the floor, of course). This is the last resort!

Now head over t0 Rocks In My Dryer for more great WFMW tips.

Found a bargain!

2008-02-18T11:14:00.003+10:00

Brad worked on Saturday, so I found myself driving to the shops with Naomi, at around 8.30am. On the way I happened to pass a sign advertising a garage sale. Maybe it is the wee drop of canny Scottish blood in my veins, but I do love to find a bargain. I quite enjoy rummaging through garage sales! But as it is not really Brad's thing, and sleep on weekend mornings is at a premium, I rarely get the chance.

But here was my opportunity - footloose & fancy free, and with money in my purse! Browsing through the items, I spotted a lovely little set of shelves & drawers for a kids room - but sadly, it was already sold. Then I hit paydirt.

These pillowcases were bundled together with a sign saying "Pair of pillowcases, $2". Seriously?!?! I liked the fabric, could see that they were mariner's compass quilt block patterns, and snapped them up. When I got them home and had a closer inspection, it is clear that these are hand-quilted! Someone's mother / aunt / grandmother has put hours of work into them.... and I got it all for the princely sum of $2!!!

PS -- please ignore the fact that we have a pink floral bedspread on the bed today... I was so excited by my find that I had to use them straight away -- matching linen, or not!

A Book Meme

2008-02-15T13:28:00.002+10:00

My friend Kara at Eskimo Kisses & Air Hugs has tagged for this book meme. The rules are:

Pick up the nearest book (of at least 123 pages). Open the book to page 123. Find the fifth sentence. Post the next three sentences. Tag five people.

The book by my computer is London by Edward Rutherford. I have owned it for about 8 years, and am currently re-reading (again). It is a fantastic account of the history and development of an amazing city. For an Anglo-phile and ancient history obsesser like myself, it is heaven in 1200 pages!!

Here is the excerpt from page 123. This chapter is called "The Rood" and is about the coming of the Catholic Church to pagan Britain - set in the year AD 604. The character, Elfgiva, is a loyal wife who is struggling with her husband's demand that she convert to the new religion.

"Whatever destiny might finally decide, there was little doubt that Elfgiva's fate that morning lay in the firm hand of the powerful figure who, unknown to her, was at that moment riding exactly parallel to her course only twenty miles to the south.

All those who knew her husband would have agreed, "She may be brave, but no one gets the better of Cerdic." Two events - one that had taken place the day before, the other which Cerdic planned for the following morning - would have convinced them: "She doesn't stand a chance."

I am going to tag Emma at Heart at Home, Barbara at Warm Woollen Mittens, GHD at So, what do you do all day? and Lani at The Wooden Porch.

A place to curl up.

2008-02-12T11:09:00.001+10:00

They say a picture says a thousand words.... I have always wanted to have a window seat, to snuggle up with a blanket, soup and a book, on wet days, and watch the raindrops slide down the window panes, and soak the pretty cottage garden outside.

Thanks to DesignerSpaces.com for supplying the photo that shows exactly what I was thinking of!

Fiddling...

2008-02-11T11:00:00.000+10:00

I am mucking around with my template. Ultimately, I want to commission Nap Warden at NW Designs to make me a lovely new template. In the meantime, I have been looking at the free ones from Pyzam.

There are certainly thousands to choose from, but the only differences between them all is the background wallpaper. And I have lost my links etc from the sidebar.

Back to the drawing board!

A nice recipe....

2008-02-09T16:15:00.000+10:00

The Recipe For Sasha

3 parts Impishness
2 parts Tolerance
1 part Vitality

Splash of Style

Finish off with whipped cream

What's the Recipe for Your Personality?

I played with this link this afternoon, while Naomi had a nap. Have to laugh at what it came up with for me... I am quite cheeky, but my patience can be seriously stretched, and as for vitality -- I can't even find the energy to take my multi-vitamins - what chance Vitality??

A splash of style - um, cargo pants and a weetbix-smeared t-shirt?. But give me the whipped cream, baby ... preferably on top of a decadent Death By Chocolate dessert!!!

The Terrible Transitions

2008-02-09T11:14:00.000+10:00

Terrible two's?? Ha ha ha.... I laugh in the face of such things.... because we are stuck deep in the middle of what I have now termed the "Terrible Transition".

Naomi has never been the best sleeper. I used to call her the "39 minute wonder". But now we are stuck in a terrible groove that I can't se ehow to break her out of. The dilemma is... 1 nap or 2 per day??

She usually wakes sometime between 3.30am and 4.30am, for a feed, or if I don't feed her, for a cry. Then wake up for the day between 5.30 and 6am (depending on outcome of 3.30 wake up). Ready to crash again between 9 and 9.30 (latest). But only naps for maybe an hour, at the most. And then, she is ready for action. Mostly refuses an afternoon nap and by 4pm is collapsing with fatigue. Then she quite often has 30 - 40 minutes nap around 4.30pm, and wakes up sooooo grumpy that I have to carry her on my hip until dinner is ready, then quick bath and bed by 6.45pm.

The up side is that she then usually sleeps through till that 3.30am wake, because she is so exhausted.

The poor little mite is tired all the time, she is cranky, clingy and fussy. But if I try putting her down for a nap, she screams and screams and screams (you get the idea).

I have been trying to push the morning nap back towards lunch time, and hoping it will get a bit longer, but she just can't make it past about 9.30am, and the whole cycle starts again!

Does anyone have any ideas for transitioning from 2 sleeps to 1?? I am calling on all you experienced mummies out there.... HELP!!

Love Zip-lock bags!

2008-02-06T09:01:00.000+10:00

The humble zip-lock bag. It has a million uses. And best of all, it can be rinsed and re-used over and over again. One pack of zip-lock bags has lasted the Cherished household nearly 6 months! Here are a few of my favourite uses for them:

1. Place your opened block of cheese into a zip-lock bag, to keep it airtight and avoid those dried out ends that no-one likes and you just have to throw away. Cheese is getting so expensive that I just love to use every little bit of it!

2. If you have left over chopped onion, (or peeled but not yet chopped), place it all in your zip-lock bag, and keep in the veg crisper of your fridge for up to a week -- without the smell getting all through everything you own.

3. My all-time favourite, is a use that comes from my older sister, who had her 4th little cherub in early January. In those first few weeks / months, when nursing the baby on one side, and the other breast leaks, slip an open zip-lock bag over the other breast, and collect the milk... beats expressing, and can be frozen for up to 6 months!

Now head on over to Shannon at Rocks in My Dryer for more great WFMW tips.

My First Award!

2008-02-05T11:39:00.001+10:00

Thank you so much to Kara for giving me this award - my very first as a blogger. It means a lot to me to know that there are a few people out there who like to visit my little corner of the bloggy world! Now the rules are that I must nominate 10 other blogs to receive the award -- I don't actually regularly visit that many, but here as many as I can:

1. Eskimo Kisses & Air Hugs Kara, right back at ya', babe!

2. Warm Woollen Mittens Barbara, you help keep me sane in this world of little ones and their dirty nappies!

3. Smockity Frocks Connie is an absolute wonder. She is my inspiration - I hope I am as good with the few kids entrusted to my care, as she is with hers!

4. Brocante Home Chronicles A beautiful blog, full of the ups and downs of life.

5. So, What do you do all day? This is a classic - keeps me chuckling throughout the day.

6. Chronicles of a SAHM Nap Warden, you are a gem.

7. Self Made Mom I like Sara's honesty about how she feels upon becoming a SAHM, after leaving the corporate world. This is refreshing.

So, go visit a few of these, my favourite blogs - I hope you like them as much as I do.

Do you have a nap routine?

2008-01-31T09:53:00.000+10:00

I used to be a very organised person... at work. I have never really been organised at home, despite my best efforts. But today I noticed that I have a little routine thing going.

When Blossom's little eyelids drift closed, the first thing I do is go to the loo. Is there any other job in the world where your "co-workers" not only follow you to the toilet, but want to come in with you, and cry if you shut the door?? So I grab a pee in peace.

Next thing is to put the kettle on, and prepare the cup for tea (aaahhhh... the elixir of the Gods). While the kettle is heating up, I do a quick whip around, generally picking up stray blocks, putting the books back on the shelf and even a very brief sweep of the kitchen floor. Once that kettle boils, though, it is relax time for me. I either read, or blog, or just surf and check my emails, while sipping my reviving Earl Grey blend. I figure that a de-stressed mummy / carer is a better mummy / carer, and the rest of the toys can be picked up at any time.

If there is a miracle and the nap lasts longer than my cup of tea, I do try to get a few other things done, but not until I can count the leaves on the bottom of my pretty china cup.

What do you do when your darlings are asleep? Do you have any routines that are essential for preserving your sanity?

I've been tagged!

2008-01-31T08:18:00.000+10:00

My lovely friend Kara has tagged me to divulge 6 things you may not know about me. I can think of about 600 things that are lurking in my background just waiting to be revealed, but here goes with a few things off the top of my head...

1. I don't eat salad, and not much in the way of fresh fruit. Can't stand it - if the Lord had meant me to be a rabbit, he would have given me long ears and a fluffy tail. But I do eat lots of veges, and provide plenty of fresh fruit for Naomi, who is turning into quite the little Fruit Bat.

2. I feel like the UK is just as much "home" to me as Australia. I have visited a few times, and lived in London for 6 months - the best 6 months ever. My grandfather was born in Glasgow, and I have this gut connection to Scotland. Whenever I go there, it just feels right. Like I was meant to be there.

3. I am a water baby. Could swim and laze in our pool all day - if not for the wrinkles!

4. I now have a thing about people taking diabetes seriously. Brad is a Type 1 diabetic (since he was 4), and we have had to go through 2 diabetic seizures, each at about 3am, calling the ambulance and thinking he was going to die, right there in the bed next to me. He doesn't remember them afterwards, so I am the one left traumatised by it. Diabetes is serious, people. And it kills. And most of us can do something about not getting it.

5. I love to travel. All over the world, but particularly Europe. I also want to see Canada, and "Big Sky Country" Montana.

6. Why Montana?? Because I am a country girl at heart, and always will be. Wide open spaces bring me peace, and a closeness to God.

Now I am going to tag my new friend, Barbara, and my sister Emma.

To Dr Smith, with Love

2008-01-25T15:00:00.000+10:00

Is there any more important service provider to your family, than your trusted family doctor? Ours is a lovely man, Dr Smith, who has 2 children of his own and a very thriving practice. He used to be located much closer to us at the Cherished household, but has moved his business to about 20 minutes drive away. He is so popular that getting appointments at short notice is difficult, and he is perennially late (go at 9.45 for a 9am booking!).

But he is so good with Naomi, and at reassuring her parents. Naomi had her 12 month injections today (well, 2 of them - the third is in 2 weeks time, because of a shortage of the vaccine), as well as a weigh and measure. That was the part I was dreading. At 6 months I took her to our local free health clinic for injections and a check-up. I ended up feeling terrible as the nurse told me she was "failing to thrive", due to her being in the bottom 10th percentile for size. I was told that I wasn't breastfeeding her enough (6 times a day was not enough?!?!).

Since that time I have snuck into the self-serve weigh and measure room, avoiding clinic hours, to monitor Naomi's progress without being guilt-tripped over having a small child (hello -- I am 5'2". Brad is 5'4". Do you think we will be breeding basketballers???).

So when Dr Smith weighed and measured her and we saw that she has not grown any taller, nor put on any significant weight in the last month, he just looked at me and said "Is she active?" -- Yes, started walking and can't keep her still! --. "Does she eat well?" -- Yes, like a horse --. "Is she still breastfeeding?" -- Yes, at least twice a day--. His final verdict -- "Well, then, she is doing fine and is going to be a petite little darling."

I could have kissed him. What a relief to not be put through the wringer.

And, after injections, he gave her a balloon and personally drew a smiley face on it. No sugar-loaded treats in sight, but she was happily playing with the balloon all the way home.

So, I have come to the conclusion that if you find a good doctor, stick with them. Through late appointments and longer drives. Stick with them.

In which I have a rant....

2008-01-24T16:52:00.000+10:00

I hope, dear readers, that you have by now formed the opinion that I am a generally cheery kind of person. I like to think that I have a bit of a "teflon" coating that allows some of life's minor irritations to slide right on off. I don't normally like to use this wonderful bloggy forum to spit the dummy... particularly about people whom I love dearly. But I have to tell you all about what has been bothering me recently. I have muttered my opinions to Brad, and he shares them, but this is festering enough for me to want to air it in public!

We had family visitors staying with us last week - they came up for Naomi's first birthday, which was lovely. We enjoy having them here - not least because they do the washing up every night... I have had to specifically ask them not to, when the guilt factor got too much for me! But this last few months, one issue has really bugged me.

Whenever the topic of conversation turns to Naomi and her latest achievements, behaviour, sleeping patterns, etc, (or those of Naomi's 2 little cousins, who are nearly 4 and 2), there is an inevitable comment regarding how perfect their 2 children were as little ones. And I mean, to the most ridiculous levels. I have concluded that these were not children, but dolls, or perhaps Pavlov's dogs, in disguise.

Case in point --- my definition of a successful evening out with a 1 year old is no tears or tantrums. We had a very enjoyable dinner out with the visitors last week. Naomi sat in her highchair to eat dinner (while we were waiting for our meals). Then, understandably, she got a bit antsy and wanted to get down for a while. She sat on my lap during the meal, nibbling on pieces of finger food that I gave her. I was happy with this arrangement, and things were going swimmingly.... until.... "Of course, Braddy (what MIL calls DH!) sat to the table perfectly in restaurants, and fed himself at age 2. He was never any trouble at all in a restaurant." What the??? Neither is Naomi -- by my definition, she was being an ANGEL!!

A few other recent comments...

"By 14 months, Braddy was walking, talking and fully toilet trained." To which I couldn't hold my tongue, and had to reply, "So no nappies at all after 14 months?". The response was silence.

"Our 2 never had any trouble with teething - they weren't even irritable".

"We never had any problems with their sleeping - they just went to bed, there was no crying."

"We never had to go into them at night - they just didn't cry."

The cumulative effect of these comments is to make me feel that Naomi is in some way badly behaved, for such things as needing Panadol when teething, crying at bedtime, and not being even remotely close to thinking about potty training!

I have blatantly said (albeit in a joking tone of voice), that I didn't believe it, and perhaps they had raised dolls, rather than babies. This was when I was at the end of my outer limits of patience.

With distance now firmly restored, I am able to start letting it go... but really, am I getting het up over nothing? Is it just the passing of some 35 years since "Braddy" (Lord, how he hates that name!!) was a baby, that makes the sleepless nights and food tossed on the floor mysteriously disappear??? Have you had anyone make comments that made you just want to come out fighting in defence of your child's absolutely normal behaviour for their age???

First steps...

2008-01-23T13:30:00.000+10:00

So much to tell, so little time! I often go for days without blogging, because it is hard to imagine that the little happenings in my life are of any interest to anyone else out there in the Blogosphere, but today I am brimming with things, and only have while Naomi is napping to tell them!

Our little blossom took her first steps last Saturday, with Mummy and Daddy looking on very proudly. I knew it was close because she had shuffled one foot forward a couple of times in the previous days, but the sweet thing held off until her dad was at home to do the real thing. I don't know who was more pleased with themselves - Naomi or Brad! He had been betting that she walked before turning 1 - and she made it, by about 18 hours.

Sunday we had a little party for Naomi's first birthday - just another baby friend of hers from playgroup, and family. It was my first test of birthday cake making - which in my mind, I had built up to be an essential skill for "good mummy-ness"!

I was tempted by the beauty (and simplicity) of the Dolly Varden cakes - bake a cake, plain ice it, stick a doll down the middle and plaster the cake with marshmallows. Even I could manage that. But then I thought it might be best to leave that to a year when Naomi will actually remember and appreciate it ("Remember when you made that lovely fairy princess cake for me, Mummy darling?"). So, instead I made a rectangle cake and cut out a "1" shape, iced it pink and made marshmallow flowers for decoration. I must say, it looked rather good, for a complete amateur. And I am sure that the pink food colouring will wear off the grouting between the kitchen tiles, in time....

Unfortunately the photo of my masterpiece is on DH's camera, which he has taken to work today (no idea why). But I will post it when the camera returns to its rightful place in my "technology" drawer!

Registered as a Family Daycare Carer!

2008-01-16T14:01:00.000+10:00

Yes, it is official... I am now a registered carer for the Family Daycare scheme. I had the final inspection of our house this morning, after we had our handyman in yesterday, to build an enclosure around our pool filter and hot water system.

Brad's parents are visiting at the moment (ideal timing? I think not...). They went out sightseeing today, while I was racing around making sure all of the safety latches are in place, the finger jam stopper was on the sliding door, plastic covers on all the power points, lawn mower away in the garage etc. etc........ all before the 9.00am inspection. And following the worst night of sleeping (or lack of) that Naomi has had in months.

Luckily the frequent wakes last night meant that Naomi was back down for a nap by 8.45am, and slept through the whole inspection.

A friend from the training course that I had to do, had her inspection last Monday. She rang this morning to say that they were very picky, found lots of faults in unexpected places and that she had been disappointed by the negative attitude. You can imagine the bundle of nerves that I was in by the time the FDC co-ordinator arrived!

But I was very pleasantly surprised. We chatted, she looked around the kitchen, then the sleeping area and bathroom. We wandered out into the backyard (still chatting about our kids, where we'd lived etc), and she remarked on how great the new enclosure is (phew!). Then back inside, she signed off all the paperwork and confirmed that a registration certificate will be winging its way to me this afternoon!

So Naomi and I are now wage-earners again. I am only planning to take children on 4 days, because Naomi loves her swimming lessons at the local pool so much that we will continue them, and take that day off together each week. I am looking forward to having other kids here for Naomi to play with, and the contact with the adult world again. And the money certainly won't go astray either. Please wish us luck on this new venture!