A couple of horrible days...

Both the girls Dad and I were struck down with food poisoning this week.  Besides feeling terrible for 3 days, I have only just managed to catch up on washing and housework... Sheesh! 

Sharing a bedroom...

So we did it... 

We shifted Bub's in to our Big Girl's room!  And... the transition was as smooth as smooth can be!  

Until a couple of nights ago Baby O had been in with us, we thought at 8 months it was probably time to move her out of our room.

We have a 3 bedroom house and have for a while debated whether the two girls should share rooms or sleep separately.  We talked about the pros and cons for ages, then decided to give it a go.

In the end we thought rather than moving them both and it going horribly wrong, we would just put Bub's into H's room.  Its a bit of a squash, but fine really!

H is happy with the arrangement... she has someone to share her room with, she no longer needs to sleep by herself while Mum, Dad and Baby O get to share.  

There are a few adjustments and compromises that need to be made, but overall it has been a great success so far and we are happy with our decision.  

Wake up has shifted to 6am, but hopefully it will shift back as they get used to sharing.

So... so far, so good.  We are happy with the arrangement as are the girls.  

Tonights debacle...

So I was on track to be in bed by 11pm, fairly unusual for me... I was quite looking forward to it.  

Bubs woke at 10.30pm or so, she was given her bottle - 210mls, was then changed, then popped back in to bed.

Dad was reading with the lamp on, and this proceeded to wake Bubs out of her milky slumber, he continued to read for 20 mins or so as she lay in her cot talking, squealing... wanting to play.

Meanwhile, I went in to check H... my usual routine, only to find she had wet the bed, first time in months!  I redressed her and transferred her into bed with Dad (who had by now turned the light off - but was still listening to Bubs babble away.

H went straight back to sleep (thankfully), whilst Bubs didn't.  I went back to H's room and began to change the sheets, so I could transfer H back to her own bed.  Bub's began to cry.

I went back in to my room, and took Bubs out of her cot (she had poo'ed), changed her for a second time and sat with her on the sofa, patting her back gently in the hope she would go back to sleep.  She started grabbing at my face... obviously wanting to play!

I put her back in to her cot... I needed to finish changing H's sheets, so I could transfer her back.  Once finished, I relocated H, and she went straight back off to sleep.

Bubs remained awake, Hubby soon bought her back out... possibly in the hope I would take over?  I'm unsure?  He then took her back to her bed, and tried to go back to sleep himself.  

I made another bottle - 120mls, which she later chucked up on me, burped her, and popped her back into bed, this time she remained quiet, and quickly fell into sleep.

It only took 330mls of formula, 2 nappy changes and 2 hours to get her back to sleep.

But tomorrow is another day! 

I'm back!

I know, I know, Its been quite some time!  You may have thought I had fallen off the face of the earth... thankfully I didn't... I am still here... I had just become lazy... and forgetful... but... I should get back to it. 
I think attempting to do a daily entry was hard, with two little ones... and a daily entry, slowly turned into every second day, or even more.

I have decided rather than doing entries regularly, I will just do them as things eventuate... that way you don't feel obliged to read every entry and there is no stress for me trying to remember to make an entry every couple of days!

Two 3 year olds playing in the car =

Having your ear drums blown out (well not quite) when you turn the radio on!  

This is what happened this morning.  

I should know better!  I had just forgotten that these two 3 year olds had been pushing and turning all the buttons and dials in my car yesterday!  

I just hope I have learnt my lesson!  

A little something for you to watch!

My girl amazes me!  Constantly!

She is a smart little cookie, very switched on when it comes to language...always looking for extension!   

She loves her art too.  

She received a new paint set from us for her 3rd Birthday a few weeks back, and yesterday we did a bit of painting.

I knew she could do faces, consisting of a circle for the head, hair, eyes and a smile, she in the past has drawn ears, but in the last week has just begun to draw arms and legs.  Her people are really coming along.  

I thought I would share a video with you. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7UtNNYaxWKk

Enjoy!

Night wake ups! Arggghhhhh!

So its been a busy couple of weeks...

The little one is still coughing, as am I... but as far as illnesses go, that one was not too bad, just tiring, happening to 3 out of 4 of us at the same time!  

Apologies that I haven't really had the time to write.

I thought I would share with you the night before last.  A normal bed time by our standards... dinner, pyjamas, teeth and toilet, an episode of Peppa Pig, and into bed for a book with Mum or Dad before blowing the lights out.

I took the opportunity to get an early night after a busy weekend... Dad had worked late one night and had a bucks party the next, so I hadn't really had any down time.

At about 3am H woke... I toileted her (as she no longer wears a nappy), but she had great difficulty in getting back to sleep (very unusual).  We are in a routine where she goes back to sleep by herself... but for some reason this night she couldn't.  I was getting increasingly frustrated as I was so desperately tired.   After an hour of her Dad and I getting up and down, up and down to a pretty upset little girl, I changed my tactics, from being annoyed (which I felt rather guilty about the following day) and turned it into a positive thing.  

We have been have quite a degree of success with sticker charts, so while we cuddled I suggested that the next morning we make a sticker chart together.  If she could go back to sleep without calling out and getting so upset for the rest of the night, she could have a sticker in the morning.  It worked perfectly, I left her room and didn't need to return until she woke later that morning!  

That morning we drew a caterpillar... she helped, drawing the face and two legs on each segment of its body, and we stuck our first sticker on (thanks Sal!).  

With each of our sticker charts we work toward something... a ride on a miniature train, a trip to the zoo...  They are all very achievable!

What we are working towards on this one is a biggie!  Baby O will soon move out of our bedroom into her own and we gave H the opportunity to share her bedroom.  H jumped at this chance... I said that she wont be ready to share with her sister until she can go back to sleep without any fuss.   

So far it seems to be working.

Fingers crossed!

Great... now I'm sick..

Sorry, its been a busy few days... so far 3 of us have had this cold... mine is not as bad as the girls...yet!  

I have a splitting headache... but with 2 little kids, you just have to soldier on!

I thought we would make play dough... keep H busy for a while... pressing biscuits!  We made a beautiful pink dough, a lovely consistency... thought I would share the recipe with you!  Easy Peasy to make!  So... here is the link!

http://www.k-3teacherresources.com/play-dough-recipe.html

Let me just say, I am looking forward to the girls Dad arriving home tonight!  

Will I even get a shower?

I have a feeling I'm not going to get very far today!  Hopefully I have time for a shower!

Between my clingy 3 year old and a very tired bub who keeps waking herself coughing, I think it is going to be a busy day.

I had to bribe H to take medicine (something she absolutely hates).  But she took it, and has settled a little.  Have also dosed Bub's up, 1st time since birth 5 and a half months ago!  Hoping it will help her to sleep.  

Need more medicine!  Don't want to run out!

A lovely day out...

So the girls are still sick... 

We kept them indoors for most of yesterday, but decided to take advantage of the sun today and explore the Cranbourne Royal Botanical Gardens - http://www.rbg.vic.gov.au/rbg-cranbourne.  

We parked near the entrance at a picnic area, had lunch, then walked a couple of km (H walked too) to a lookout and the 'Australian Garden'.  On our way we saw a Jacky Dragon http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amphibolurus_muricatus, and a Bandicoot http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bandicoot.  

The lookout was fantastic, you could see Melbourne City, Port Phillip Bay, Western Port Bay, the Dandenong Ranges (where we live) and the Australian Garden that we were about to visit.  An impressive view on a clear day!

A couple of hundred metres down the hill was the Australian Garden, an enormous, beautifully landscaped and very interactive child friendly garden. 

I would say we spent a good couple of hours, going at H pace, wading in the rock pool waterway (a stream of paving bricks of different levels - a nice escape from the heat), hosting a Birthday Party in the shell of a house (inviting any one that would come in), playing in the beautifully landscaped park.  

Was a fantastic place to take a child.  There is a beautiful cafe and a gorgeous shop on site.  A real treasure of a find!  

Oh and I was pleased to discover on one of the pamphlets that they play host to a great many activities, including night walks - http://www.rbg.vic.gov.au/australian-garden/whats-on/whats-on-cranbourne/set-dates/for-the-family/night-prowl to discover native wildlife and the 'Gum nut fairies and elves gum tree adventure' - http://www.rbg.vic.gov.au/australian-garden/whats-on/whats-on-cranbourne/set-dates/school-holiday-programs-and-activities/gum-nut-fairies-and-elves where kids can dress up, be told stories and get creative with crafts!  

Just a stones throw from home!  What a find!

Sick girls...

My girls are sick.  Nothing too serious... a viral cold, no sore throat or ear infections or anything.  

Still... it makes you appreciate them being well.  

The last couple of days have been hard work.  My choices are 1. To keep the big girl up all day, when she is so obviously tired, or 2. Let her sleep through the day and have her not go to sleep until 9.30 at night.

The last few nights have been tiresome too... There have been more wake ups than usual, bad dreams and being upset at bed time... all fairly unusual in our house!  

For our big girls Birthday (which was last weekend), we gave her a voucher for 'A day out with Thomas' http://www.puffingbilly.com.au/news-events/day-out-with-thomas/ .  We were to go on Thomas tomorrow, but have postponed it for a week, so she will be feeling better and will get more out of it.  Disapointing for her, as we told her  on her birthday that we would be going on Thomas this weekend, but in the long run, the right thing to do.

Anyway, I think it will be a quiet weekend in this house, a lot of lounging round, reading, painting, baking and watching movies (our fav's at the moment... Toy Story, Curious George and Madeline!  

Wish me luck!
Have a lovely weekend!

Crazy weekend!

On Sunday after our weekly swimming lesson, we organised ourselves (which always takes some time), and headed down to the Werribee Open Range Zoo http://www.zoo.org.au/WerribeeOpenRangeZoo

We didn't arrive until about 2pm and on our arrival noticed we had forgotten to pack the bottles for bubs.  

I went inside the zoo to sit down and breast feed... (I don't find breast feeding anywhere that easy!), while Dad found a local supermarket and a carton of formula to last us the rest of the day.

As it happened my mobile battery was flat, so I had left that at home, so we had to organise to meet somewhere on what was quite a busy day at the zoo!  Thankfully it all worked out fine.

Thank goodness it all worked out okay... though bubs (who is actually on prescription formula) was a little out of sorts the following day.

Still we got there!

A big day!

The party is all over and done with... thank goodness!  

It was a lovely day, thanks to all that read my blog and that came along for coming.  H had a wonderful day, and was very disappointed as her last friend left! 

It was a slightly chaotic day, but loads of fun too.  The little one was an angel, sleeping in the Ergo the majority of the time! 

I loved it, but am glad its now over!

Now I can have my head back... it has been elsewhere since last week, thinking constantly about what I need to do, what I need to buy... etc! 

Looking forward to not having to think too much tomorrow!

Imaginary friends...

On our way to school (child care) this morning, we were listening to Justine Clarke's song 'My Beautiful friend'.  

H is very good at picking up on lyrics and is constantly asking me for explanations.

The lyrics of the song we were listening to this morning are as follows...

I've got a friend who's just pretend, and you can't see,

but my little friend is real to me...

It goes on, but these two lines were our main focus...

The entire trip to childcare was spent trying to explain what an imaginary friend is, how it isn't a real person, but an imaginary one... etc.  We talked about people we knew who used to have imaginary friends and what they were called, about how only that person could see their imaginary friend.

What a concept to explain!  Next we will be having the sex chat!  Argghhhhh!

High heel heaven!

Presents have started arriving.  Our girl is getting very excited! 

2 more sleeps and it will be her party! 

3 more sleeps until she turns 3!  

Tonight we decided to open 1 present... she was so excited!  

It was ripped open to reveal a purple hand bag, a purple brush and comb, purple hair ties, and purple high heels!  

Her favourite colour is purple... so you can imagine how excited she was!  

The heels and hand bag went on straight away!  When she got ready for bed, they were taken off and then put back on very quickly!

Funny to watch her clip clopping down the hall in PJs and high heels!

Busy little bees!

We are busy little bees... making things for H's Birthday Party on Saturday.  Decorations mainly pictures for the tops of cupcakes... streamers... banners... she is loving it! 
Apologies for not having been on here, but I have'nt had the time, and my brain feels like theres a ping pong game going on inside it! 

Bring on the weekend, and hopefully a more settled brain!

Stinking hot to electric blankets cold...

So it is our big girls 3rd Birthday next weekend... we are busy trying to organise ourselves and have one more week to do so.  

The thing hindering our efforts is the weather.  

We have gone from 38 degrees last week to low teens this week... and so far this weekend all we have had is rain!  I shouldn't really complain as much of New South Wales, Canberra and some parts of Victoria are in flood! http://www.theage.com.au/environment/weather 

So the main things that need to be done are to do with yard maintenance... mowing of lawns (which is almost pointless after all the rain in the last few days!), edging, pulling of weeds and plants, cleaning out of chicken coop, etc, etc, etc!  

What did we get done today?  NOTHING!  It has rained fairly solidly all day and as a consequence we have managed to get absolutely nothing done... am hoping for a bit of respite tomorrow!

7 day forecast brings good news though... Sun on her Birthday... am hoping things don't change too much between now and then. 

What your kids get up to when you are out of the room...

I left H inside looking at an album of her cousin C on F/book while I quickly hung a small load of washing.  I came inside maybe 3 minutes later to find an 'Age TV' video playing titled 'Kid's on Pills'...

http://www.theage.com.au/tv/show/kids-on-pills-20120106-1pny5.html  - The diagnoses of children with manic depression, bipolar disorder and ADHD have risen by a shocking 4,000 per cent in the past 10 years. Most commonly used to treat these disorders are psychotropic drugs, stimulants with similar effects to amphetamine, methamphetamine and cocaine. Prescriptions have risen 250 per cent despite criticism from many in the medical community. Kids on Pills explores the conflicting views of psychiatrists and psychologists and explores the effects on the children, families and schools involved.

Thank goodness she was only 40 seconds in...

Tantrums...

Currently listening to a tantrum... they seem to have escalated of late, over the most ridiculous things.

They really are hilarious.  Lots of short sharp screams and thumping of walls... lots of slowing down of words, so she is sure I understand her anger.  Oh, I definitely understand, I'm just choosing not to listen!  

It usually takes about 5 minutes (sometimes more) before she calms down and is ready to be reasonable.

Our rule is door open, she can come out when she is ready to listen and her behaviour has changed.   It seems to work for us.  

Funny little souls!

Sorry to go on about sticker charts... but...

... we have started one for trying new foods... particularly for dinner time... and H is actually willing to try new foods without any trouble... why did we not think of this months back?

I LOVE a good sticker chart...

Can I just say that I love sticker charts!  

If we have issues with anything... ANYTHING... a sticker chart seems to do the trick!

Of late... (review past posts)... we had regressed a little in the toilet.  

H has been trained since before 2, but since October when our second daughter was born, we began to have a number of accidents... we wondered actually if they might be deliberate.

Anyway... we decided to do a sticker chart... we had recently done one for listening and it had worked a treat!  The chart was more for independence in the toilet than not having accidents... she had to get on to the toilet herself, wipe her own bottom (wee only), and wash her hands... all unassisted!  

AND ... it worked beautifully.  I think we have had one accident in the last 3 weeks or so... we have one sticker to go and then she can have her incentive, which was some Croc accessories.

They might not work for all kids, but they sure do work for us!

Too hot!

Well, we have just had 3 revolting days of heat!  To those of you who have lived in Melbourne your whole life, you probably love and look forward to days such as the ones we have just had... me on the other hand, having grown up in New Zealand, in a cooler, but more humid climate, doesn't cope well with day after day of heat, especially when teamed with humidity.  

Let me say, I am thankful those 3 days have passed, as I don't function well at all!  

What's that?

After returning home from a shopping outing, I left an unopened packet of tampons (sorry guys) on the table.  

H returned from creche and sat at the table for her dinner.  She saw the packet, 'What's that?' she said.  Dad didn't know what to say, so decided to stay quiet as long as possible... H managed to open the packet and exclaimed 'Oh, they're little soaps!'.  Dad was happy that he didn't need to discuss what they were!

Love it!

A chat about death...

Dad was reading H a book tonight called 'Old Elephant'... It is a story about an old elephant and a young mouse who are great friends.  The elephant tells the young mouse about 'the valley of the elephants', a place that elephants go when they get old... a place they don't come back from.

H experienced death when she was 6 months old.  We talk about her Nana often.  We have told her that her Nana got very sick and died and now she is up in the clouds.  

Whilst reading the story, to help H to understand better, he talked about how the 'valley of the elephants' is like 'going up to the clouds'... H replied with 'I don't want to die.  Do you want to die Dad, do Mum or Baby O want to die?  

Dad said, 'No one wants to die'.

Seems that we are having some deep conversations these days.

Sleep...

My sweet little darling girl (who lately has been sleeping for about an hour, an hour and a half at a stretch), has so far slept for 2 and a half hours... hoping for a little longer... 

What a sweet cheeks!

Bicycle Race...

Dad took H for a big bike ride today... on the way back, listening to the ipod on random, Queens 'Bicycle Race' came on... 

Now H is just beginning to discover our music.  We often play it, but she much prefers her own music.  As you know lately she discovered Goldenhorse and if you've read recent posts, you will know what I have to endure each and every day!

Who knows whether 'Bicycle Race' appealed to her because she had just been on a big bike ride, or for some other reason, but she requested it again and again and again... 8 times over if I must be exact.  

So I'm guessing tomorrow we have another album to add to our repertoire of 'must listens' for the day.  

I love Goldenhorse, but I wont miss listening to their album 4 times a day!

Hello Queen...  Thank goodness I love you!

Flipping out! Does it happen to you?

So I don't know if its the age or what, but H can be really difficult to reason with at the moment.  It hasn't always been like this... she was much easier to reason with a few months back, but it has all changed lately.

She just seems to flip out when things don't go her way... not all the time, just sometimes.  I guess she is trying to assert her authority.

I wonder whether its an age thing... I am guessing it is, I am hoping it is!

Missing my girl... home from creche soon!

Missing my girl... looking forward to her getting home... nice to have some time to yourself, but I miss the questions, fences, cheekiness, dance moves and Goldenhorse!  Haven't heard it all day!

Funny little habits!

So H has a new favourite band... 'Goldenhorse' or as she calls them Goldensheep, a New Zealand band I loved before I left NZ 9 years ago,  (Check them out on Grooveshark http://grooveshark.com/!).  

At the moment she is really into dancing, and requests the entire Goldenhorse Album 'Riverhead' about 4 times a day!  

I have resorted to alternating different albums... 'Goldenhorse'... then 'Angus and Julia Stone'... 'Goldenhorse'... then 'Luluc'... 'Goldenhorse'... etc.

The other thing she has started over the last week is wearing dresses... everyday.  It began with 'the pink one', but because it needs to be washed every couple of days, she is having to choose others to wear.  This morning it took her about 10 - 15minutes to choose which one she was going to wear today!  I love the dresses in her cupboard, and she doesn't wear them often, so it is nice to see them on.

How funny are little girls! 

Things keep going missing...

For the last few days, I've been thinking that I was losing my marbles!  

Since Thursday or Friday I have been missing my phone and H's hairbrush too.  I had been searching in what little time I have, but had been unsuccessful!  

The big girl is currently really into building walls/fences to keep out dinosaurs, tigers and monsters.  Her other favourite past time is putting things into other things!

I am constantly walking over toys that have been carefully placed in lines all over the house or emptying prams, bags, suitcases of the weirdest stuff!

Well... today I found the hairbrush, missing for a number of days (H preferred hairbrush)!  When I said 'Look what I found', she just smiled at me.

Later that night, I decided to empty out the bag she had filled... as I did this I told my partner of the hairbrush find.  As I continued to empty the bag, I came across... my flat phone!

Off to the mall... ughhhhhh!

The girls and I did a bit of shopping today.  Let me say that H has become quite the little shopper!  Me... I hate shopping!  

She didn't miss a thing... 

As soon as we walked through the doors, she saw a sign for a 'Thomas the Tank' ride through the mall... then she spotted a stall where they buy your gold (she had once been given a balloon there, and wanted to try her luck for another)... then she spotted the smoothie shop... then an ice cream shop... then a 'Wiggles' ride...  She was constantly saying 'Can I do this?' 'Can I have that?' 

When we were in the big stores, she gravitated toward anything with princesses or Dora, she wasn't interested in what I was doing, although she always knew where I was!

As we walked through the mall she kept going on and on about the Thomas ride, but I wasn't about to traipse around the mall looking for Thomas, so I let her sit in any of the stationary rides she wanted to (she doesn't like them when they go around).

 Just as we were leaving she spotted Thomas, who had already left his depot, so I promised her next time she could have a ride on Thomas.

Can I just say how fantastic she was... I didn't have one tantrum... not one!  Lots of asking for things, but no complaints when I said no!

What a sport!

My Birthday weekend!

What a chaotic weekend!  

Starting at 5am yesterday morning, when the little one woke for a feed.  

Dad was on bottle duty, but unfortunately (for the first time) the big girl woke.  

I was tired and she was not going to go back to sleep in her own bed (especially with Dad up feeding).  So we had her come in with us! 

Can I just say that I have always slept terribly with a third in the bed!

Yesterday was no exception.  I was sporting a hangover from my half glass of beer the night before.  

Let me tell you why I object to H coming into our bed...

She only wants to share pillows with me... she plays with my face, talks and wriggles around... it is very irritating when all you want to do is sleep!

Finally... after what felt like some time, she went back to sleep.  I however was uncomfortable and in and out of sleep, due to not being able to turn on my small slither of bed, while H and Dad spread themselves comfortably on the remainder of the bed.  

Finally not long after I had fallen asleep, we all woken at 7.50 am when my Mum and Sister Skipped me for my Birthday!  

Three Skype calls and three phone calls later, we were able to ready ourselves for our drive in to the city to meet a friend and her two boys at the Melbourne Zoo to see Justine Clarke performing live!

It was great.  The kids had fun, and thankfully the weather was the opposite of what they had forecast!

We pulled into the drive way at 5pm or so, for the witching hour... You all know... when the toddler (who no longer sleeps through the day) is hungry and tired... and the baby is constantly hungry as she readys herself for a big sleep.

Thankfully the night was lovely and relaxing, and we both got sufficient sleep for today!

Again, it was another really busy one.  

Dad and H were gone by 8.30am for swimming, followed by a local farmers market, while bub's and I went to a baby market with a friend.

Then I had the girls for the afternoon, while Dad went off to pick up my latest eBay purchase!  

A lovely weekend had by all... just not a lot of down time!  

There is still stuff that needs to be done... but it might have to wait for a new day!

Hopefully next weekend isn't quite so busy!

Stress out!

Just drove home from a friends house with bub's screaming (the entire way).  

There was too much noise so I turned the CD we were listening to off, and then the big girl started carrying on.  

It was a very stressful drive home, especially listening to my little one being so upset.  

Thankfully as we pulled into our drive way, she closed her eyes and went to sleep.  

She is currently in her capsule on the lounge room floor resting her eyes!

Looking forward to bedtime... theirs, not mine!

Memories...

So we think our girl has an amazing memory...  she often blows us away with things she remembers from months gone.

Today is a prime example.  

She asked me to put Sia Furler http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sia_Furler on... her favourite music that isn't kids music!  

I thought I had put it on, but when I came back iTunes was on random and Andrea Bocelli's 'Time to say goodbye' was on.  

Now H knows this from You Tube, but she knows a different version, which is the 'Time to say goodnight' http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BDVvB7Xx1w sung to Elmo by Andrea.

Anyway, H started reeling off all that happens in the video clip.  I spoke very soon after ward to my partner about when was the last time he had played it to her... to which he said months back.  

We assume its been 4 - 6 months since she last saw the video clip. 

I think that is pretty amazing!

Immunisations = Irritable baby!

I thought I probably wouldn't have an entry today as the big girl is at school... otherwise known as long day care/creche.  

I had no plans today except for washing, which is currently flapping in the light breeze of a gorgeous Melbourne day.

I rang our local Doctors surgery to make an appointment for Baby O's 4 month immunisations.  Surprisingly they had an appointment only half an hour later, so we readied ourselves and headed out to the docs.  

Baby O was not happy at all when the nurse pricked her with the sharp needles and screamed the house down!   Not for too long though!

We came home and I put bubs down to sleep... she had been up a while and I thought this probably would have wiped her out, and besides it had been about 2 1/2 hours since her last nap.

She slept reasonably well, but woke unhappy and has been pretty irritable since!  I bathed her, and she cracked it, but that was reasonably easily soothed with 'the boob'. 
I have ended up putting her back to bed in the hope that sleep is what she needs!  Otherwise I am outta ideas!

Could be a long night!

Baking with two 2 year olds!

So today we spent the day with our friend G.  

After a slow start we decided to do some baking, deciding on banana and choc chip muffins (you know me... I like my muffins! http://mummakesmuffins.blogspot.com.au/ ).  I organised myself as much as I could before inviting H and G up to help.

I like to encourage them to do as much as they can, so I would fill cups with ingredients and they would tip them in, etc.  

I happened to turn my head to remove egg shells or something and when I turned back one of the girls had tipped a half a small tin of baking powder in (just trying to help me out)... whoops... I scooped out as much as I could, leaving a little in, as the recipe required.  

Thankfully they turned out well... although perhaps I should have left a little more in, as they didn't rise quite as much as I would have liked!

Was a little chaotic, but good fun!

A bit of alone time...

We were hopping into the car to come home after playing at a friends house this morning.

There was a major meltdown that began as we were leaving!  About her seat belt being to tight (which it isn't), as we headed down the street it became progressively worse... 

So I said, I think maybe you should have a sleep today!   As you well know, we recently cut out our day sleep, so she was adamant she wasn't going to do that.

So I gave her another option.  She could nap OR play on her bed with any of her toys, books etc for a half hour, so I could have a break.  She took the second option and is currently playing very happily on her bed using her fantastic imagination (Oh and we are up to 45mins... she is happy, so I will leave her a little longer).  

Couldn't have asked for a better outcome! 

I need your advice! Your recipes too!

So I was talking to the girl's Pop Pop a few weeks back about veges, and how I have taken to hiding them (sometimes) in the bid to get more goodness in to H... note, she eats some veges, so I don't hide all!

He offered his juicer.  I thought... Perfect, I can hide them in juice, she loves juice!

Yesterday I made a fruit juice with peaches, pears, mandarin, apple, and blueberries... she drank a little, but not all of it.

This morning I decided to do a vege and fruit one with... beetroot, ginger, orange, apple, carrot, and I thought I may as well try zucchini, as we growing and harvesting them at the moment, I meant also to put mint into it, but forgot!

I called her to come drink her pink juice, which I had watered down, as the ginger left a bit of an aftertaste... one I like, but not so sure kids would like.  She again drank a little, then lost interest!

I am calling for tasty juice recipes!  Fruit, veges, or fruit and veges... I don't mind!

While I am at it, here is a lovely juice I wanted to share with you...

Pineapple, apple, celery and ginger...bit of mint in here would got down well too me thinks... delish!

A bit of Spring cleaning...

I know its not Spring, but the house really needed a bit of Spring Cleaning and today was the day for it.

H was fantastic and pottered for a good couple of hours while her Dad and I scrubbed, vacuumed, dusted, wiped... and more!

I have been wanting to get behind and under the fridge and oven for ages, but wanted a bit of help with the moving of both items.  Dad was super helpful with my request, and now all the crap that was behind and under the fridge and oven is in the vacuum!

Dad took to the ceiling corners with a duster, getting rid of spiders... it seems to be the time of the year for them... I have noticed a lot more around lately... anyone else?

I pulled beds out, and vacuumed behind them, plus got to work cleaning skirting boards.  I'm not much of a duster... I hate dusting if I am being completely honest... today I used the brush function on the vacuum... easy peasy... was good for windowsills, and especially for dust on bookshelves!

We still have a way to go, but at least a few jobs that were really annoying me are out of the way!

I must be boring... a blog about cleaning my house...  fancy that!

Baking beautiful banana and blueberry muffins...

So H and her Dad have gone down to the peninsula for the day, which means me and Baby O have the day to ourselves!

While she slept, I tried my hand at some paint stripping.  I have two beautiful art deco side tables, which have been painted since before we acquired them.  Well today is the day for the wood grain to take centre stage once more.  Have almost finished one unit... will be sure to post a pic of what they looked like... after stripping... and when lightly sanded with steel wool.

Each weekend H and I bake muffins... I have started yet another blog about making muffins... http://mummakesmuffins.blogspot.com.au/ .  As you know, yesterday me and my girls went blueberry picking... so I thought I may as well use blueberries in our muffins.  I decided on banana and blueberry muffins, and I just had one for afternoon tea, and they were delish!  

 Recipe on link posted!

It felt a little strange not making them with my big girl, as she wasn't here to help, thankfully my little girl was here(4mths), so she played assistant instead!  Thanks Baby O.

Berry picking...

Today me and my two girls went to a blueberry farm to see where blueberries come from and to do a bit of picking. 

Blueberries are by far my big girls favourite fruit! 

Initially she was picking too, I was forever telling her to find the big juicy ones and she kept giving me scrawny little ones. 

Anyway after a while she got bored and instead followed behind saying 'I'll just eat a few more, just a few more okay Mum!'. 

I reckon she must have eaten a couple of small supermarket punnets full! Blue poo tomorrow!

I feel like a new woman!

Yesterday was our big girls first day back at childcare, or as we call it... school!

Me and baby O hung out together all day... was nice.  We had coffee in Mt Evelyn, had a maternal health visit, and I had my eyebrows, which looked like an unmaintained overgrown garden beautifully manicured!  I feel like a new woman!

Oh how I missed my girl though! 

So we are having a bit of an issue with H wetting her pants.  She has been trained completely since around 2yrs, for goodness sake she is even trained through the night... anyway... recently, on occasion she will wet her pants, with no warning beforehand.  

For a while I thought maybe she is just too busy, but today I asked her, 'Do you do it because you didn't have time to go to the toilet, or did you do it because you think it is funny'... her reply 'because it is funny!'.

I came back with 'It's not funny and that if she was going to do it again, I would have to put her back in nappies!'.

She was horrified.  So hopefully it will suddenly stop!

Spring cleaning in summer!

The little one was sleeping beautifully yesterday afternoon, so I put 'Toy Story' on for the big girl and decided to do a bit of sorting.  

Now, I am a collector... of what you say?  Well... anything that takes my fancy really!  And I decided today that we have too much stuff!  I wont be getting rid of it all, but when time allows, I intend to do a bit of a cull!

When H had had enough of Toy Story she joined me in her room, shutting herself, or asking me to shut her in her tipi.  She played happily in there for over an hour with her toys (or as she calls them, her children), reading to them, putting them to sleep in a little play bed.  

She was fantastic, allowing  me that time to potter and clean, oh and she had a blast!

Fingers crossed I have a few more days like this!

A great degree of difficulty!

Today wasn't terribly chaotic... a bit humid and sweaty at times, but not chaotic.

I thought I would share something funny that happened today.

The story starts two days prior, when H and I sit down at the coffee table (her at, me under), to do some colouring in together.  Stupidly I forgot to get the Peppa Pig colouring in sheets we were to colour, and because I was essentially wedged under the coffee table, I politely asked my girl to fetch them ( I was trying to point out to her that it was far easier if she did it!).  Her response was, that she was too busy (a fairly common response these days), so I loudly grunted and huffed and puffed (trying to make it look like getting out was hard work), wedged myself out, and got what we needed to continue.

Today, I was sitting at the computer zoning out for a while, H was watching a bit of afternoon TV... she mentioned that she was hungry, so I suggested she go and get a pear out of the fruit bowl.  Her quick response was that it was too difficult for her to get out from under the coffee table.  I continued with encouraging her to get it herself... in the end she did, but she made sure it was known, by way of grunts and huffs and puffs that she was having a great degree of difficulty wedging herself out (although she wasn't).

Got thrown up on!

Got chucked on big time tonight, by the little one.  

I had been attempting to put her into her bed for the night.  She was particularly unsettled for some reason.  I got her back up in case she was still hungry, put her on the boob for a while.  When I went to burp her, she did a massive chuck all down my back!  

Nice!

To share or not to share... that is the question?

A good friend recently told me that her two boys had just started sharing a room, and it prompted me to think about it too.

We live in a little house, with a lovely big back yard.  Life generally revolves around the living area, the kitchen/eating area and outside, bedrooms generally being for sleeping.  

So Dad and I are currently having 'The discussion' about whether it would be a good thing or not.  I really love the idea of it, thinking the benefits far out weigh the cons.  He is the opposite!

I think it would foster a lovely and lasting friendship, teach compromise and negotiation, and be beneficial when it comes to worries at night (of which we have a few). 

He thinks more about dis-organisation, mess, lack of space and storage.

So really, what I'm looking for is advice, or experiences in this matter... do your kids share, what do you think?

Escaped chickens!

Huge day yesterday, hence no entry!

Dad had the day off.  We went to the zoo, and met up with a good friend, and spent the day there.  3 Adults to 4 kids... good ratio if you ask me!

But that wasn't it... we then drove straight to other friends and spent the rest of the afternoon with them, arriving home at 8.30pm!  Long and exhausting day in high heat.

Today was another hottie!  34 in all!  I oiled the deck today, silly I know in 34C degree heat, but my thoughts were it would dry quickly, and I really wanted it done!  

At one stage we were all outside, Dad decided he was going to do a chicken poo collection.  What we do is collect all the droppings from inside their coop into a bucket, and fill the bucket with water.  We then sit it in a hot spot to brew, then tip it around plant bases... very stinky, but very good for plants!

Anyway, as Dad was going in to the coop, the chickens escaped, something that happens when you aren't organised or quick enough (sorry Dad).  Thankfully the dog was tied up (I didn't want him making foot prints on my newly oiled deck!), but I had to grab him quick smart anyway to ensure he didn't lunge at and kill Harriet II and Flossie II (especially whilst H was outside watching what was unfolding!).  

Anyway, we managed to get them back into their area unmaimed, Phew(wipes brow)!

Thank goodness the day has ended.  It has cooled down somewhat, and we only have one more hot day to endure before some cooler weather rolls in.  Yay!   So lets just say that now the small ones are in bed, I am basking in the coolness that is 27.5C degrees!

Have a lovely night!

Home, Marysville, Healsville, Home!

Stuffed!  

Have been in Marysville (yes, where the 2009 fire destroyed much of the town - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marysville,_Victoria ), at Bruno's Sculpture Garden http://www.brunosart.com/.  Last time we were there was a few months after the fires.  Bruno's house had been destroyed, as had much of his garden.  On our arrival today, it was lovely to see he had rebuilt a beautiful mud brick house, his garden was gorgeous, looking much greener than our last visit.  

It was a little chaotic on our arrival.  With me escaping to find some shade to breastfeed, while Dad and H had a look around as they waited for me.  

We headed back through Healesville and stopped for fish and chips which we gobbled down in front of the Maroondah reservoir catchment dam http:/ /www.dotheyarravalley.com.au/maroondah-reservoir-park/.  

Home late, girls to bed late.  Hopefully the little one gives us a sleep through.  Am tired!  Still a few things to do though before I retire!

Better go!

Working 9 - 5.

I worked today... my first days work in a while (actually I work everyday, damn hard too, but don't get paid for it... I do it for love).   We spent the day looking after our gorgeous little friend G.  Her wonderful Mum and Dad are cool with me taking my two ratbags.

It was a lovely day... far easier than being at home as the big girl was pre-occupied with a friend instead of me!

So it was me and 3 girls under 3.  We managed to go out walking, bake muffins and have water play in the garden.  Was a great and productive day!

And my little one laughed for the first time... just gorgeous!

Lack of sleep...

Today was hot... the second hot day over 34C.  I am pretty hopeless when it comes to heat.  I managed to function quite well yesterday, but today was another story!  

Stupidly, last night I had a late night... I love my quiet time at night, and I stayed up a tad later than I should after another late night visit to the supermarket.  

Anyway... the big girl woke around 3am, unusual for her, apparently there were a number of Shreks' at the end of her bed.  

Our girl is fairly sheltered when it comes to TV.  She sees a bit of ABC for Kids, Wonder Pets and Toy Story, and that is about it.  She had watched Shrek once when in NZ over Christmas.  

Lets just say, both her Dad and I were unable to convince her for some time that she would be okay, and that she needed to go back to sleep.

Then at 5am, the little one woke for a feed.  She took longer than usual to feed, but I managed to get back into bed before the big one woke for the day.  Good old Dad let me sleep in until 8am.  Thanks Dad!

Still wasn't long enough, so I will be turning in shortly.  The girl's Dad and I take turns when it comes to feeding.  Me one night, him the next... tonight it is his night... Thank goodness, as I am spent!

Dinner was a flop!

Oh, I tried to be organised and cook dinner early, on what was a 34 C degree day... I needn't have bothered... not only did it increase the already climbing temperature in the house... but I way overstuffed it with hidden veges, making it too dense, and it was a complete flop!

I had filled two flan dishes, and ended up chucking it all out!  

Ahh well... better luck next time!

Fast running shoes...

While H was eating her dinner, Dad walked in to the kitchen ready to go for a run (I really do wish I had his energy!).

When it was revealed that he was going for a run, she announced that she had 'had enough dinner', hopped down from the table, ran to her room, and back to the kitchen with what we call...'her fast running shoes' to accompany Dad on his run.

When they got back Dad said she had run much of the way... she loved it... any excuse to run!

A few updates...

So... the listening chart is going well... actually way, way better than well!  My girl is listening beautifully and the sticker chart is half full... by the end of the week, she will be able to choose where it is she wants to go!  Will keep you informed!

and also...

An update on the barriers thing, which I told you about the other day... today she revealed that the fence is to keep dinosaurs and tigers out!

Oh, I can now confirm that we have officially dropped our daytime sleep.  We did well to get to 2 years 10 and half months!

These little piggies went to market...

So last night, I decided that this morning H and I would go to Camberwell Market https://www.sundaymarket.com.au/.  

Prior to kids I used to frequent Camberwell Market... most weekends.  

Our house is filled with treasures I that I have collected over the years from Camberwell.  

These days i go a bit more infrequently, usually looking for vintage toys.  

Anyway... off we set.  Dad gave us a business card, which I pinned to the back of her T-shirt with our phone numbers on it, in case she was to get lost.

We talked in the car on the way about how there would be loads of people and we would need to hold hands.  

She put the gold coin donation in the money box (she loved this) and off we set ... looking only for stalls that had toys or books.  She would usually find something to amuse her while I fossicked around.  

At one stage she spotted a little girl with a plastic shopping trolley.  That was when she decided that that was what she wanted.  Each stall we went to, that was what she searched for.   I could see that there might some disappointment on leaving the market.  

And there was!  On completion, I said 'Well, that's it... we have finished the market.'  to which she replied that she 'didn't want to go home, as she hadn't found her trolley yet'.  

She sat down on a crossing (where people were walking), and didn't want to leave, so I had to sit down and explain to her, that we had looked at all the stalls with toys and there were no trolleys, and that I would keep my eye out for trolleys whenever we were out.  

She was happy enough with that... so we headed home!

I love my girl so much.  She is so grown up and easy to reason with... sometimes!

An eventful morning!

This morning I set H up to watch 'The Toy Story', whilst I showered.  As I got out of the shower, I could hear a wailing cry.  I ran into the lounge to find H in a bit of pain.  

She was complaining of her tummy hurting.  We made our way into the bathroom to the toilet.  She didn't last on there long... arching her back and only wanting to be cuddled.

We moved into the lounge once more... by now Dad was up, and in the shower... preparing either to go to the doctor or the hospital.  She continued to sit on my lap, pale and clammy, occasionally arching her back and crying out in pain... then things seemed to settle a little.

We hid some Nurofen and some Inner Health Plus http://innerhealth.com.au/ in a glass of juice, and things seemed to settle even more.  Don't quite know what was up?  She seems fine now.  

I don't think she is constipated, as we consumed an awful lot of fruit yesterday... but only time will tell.

Oh well, we were up early, and so far the morning has been productive!  Me and my girl have been baking muffins! http://mummakesmuffins.blogspot.com/

A strange and startling start to a Saturday morning!

My favourite flower...

I'm quite excited... my Pineapple Lilly is flowering.  It is a gorgeous plant I discovered last year.  It flowers over summer, one stem in all, with lots of little flowers, and dies down to a bulb over winter... just wanted to share it with you!

Sticker chart for listening...

So... we started a sticker chart.  I was getting tired of not being listened to.  

We made a chart together yesterday, and decided that when the chart was filled with stickers, we could go somewhere, and H could decide where that somewhere was... I gave her a few options... The Zoo http://www.zoo.org.au/MelbourneZoo, Healsville Sanctuary http://www.zoo.org.au/HealesvilleSanctuary, Diamond Valley Miniature Railway http://www.dvr.com.au/, or Chesterfield Farm http://www.chesterfieldfarm.com.au/ !

So far her listening has improved in leaps and bounds.  She is keen on filling the chart, and managed about stickers today and was particularly proud of herself!

Will let you know when the chart is full, as to where we end up going!

A complete turn around...

A lovely day with my two gorgeous girls!  Firstly... they both slept in, as did I!  Late breaky... then a minor melt down, followed by a lovely, relaxed and happy day.  

The weather was great, so we had an big walk to the park, once home H performed a concert for her toys (she refers to them as her children), It was a much better day.  
Looking forward to a catch up with some Mummy friends tomorrow!  And a proper coffee!

Tired out!

I am exhausted!  Totally drained.  It has been a long and very exhausting day!

I am thinking the big girl needs to drop the day time sleeps totally! 

I have been giving her a sleep every second day, on the days she sleeps, she is in bed, but wide awake until about 9pm.  

She copes reasonably well when she doesn't sleep, but gets overtired later in the day and is so tired by 7pm she sleeps beautifully all night.

So... today she has been testing my patience for much of the day in her cheeky, yet defiant little way.

I must say I was very pleased when Dad arrived home and took her attention away from me.  

I love the little mite to pieces, but some days... I need a little break... I'm sure all you Mum's get me!

Dad sent me off for a walk with Bub's and the dog.  Was nice to get some fresh air and space!

ME time!

Try shopping at night after the kids are in bed...its a much nicer experience... mostly because its me time!  It just means you go to bed a little later!  Still... I'm used to compromising... I learnt it from my daughter!

Another hot one!

A stinking hot day... second in a row... 35C today, but cooling down as we speak.  It was cooler in the house the entire day, but now it is cooler outside... consequently people are out to play... the neighbour was out with her daughter, as was our elderly neighbour, pottering in his garden.

We opted for filling the paddling pool and squirting each other with the hose!  H loved it, and it was a nice bit of relief on such a stinking hot day!

Tomorrows high is 28C.  Very much looking forward to it!

Shattered!

I am slowly going nuts!

Its been a long day... As you well know... I was up at 5.45am!

H is just going off now, after having been in bed for over an hour now.  She has been mucking around something terrible tonight.

The little one is very unsettled too... she has been in bed for about 20mins, but keeps crying out, then going quiet.  

I am so tired! I am hoping they will both fall into a deep sleep for the entire night!

I should really go to bed, as it is my night to get up for the middle of the night feed... but I would like a little time to myself! 

Early start...

Our girl woke at 5.45am this morning... hence the early entry...

Firstly I convinced her to go back to sleep, telling her it wasn't yet morning, and hoping she would fall asleep before ABC for kids http://www.abc.net.au/abcforkids/ started up,(which we leave on as a night light for feeds)... I quickly fell back to sleep...  She didn't!  

At about 5.49am her bladder got the better of her... she called out, and up I got again.

After the wee, I tucked her happily back into bed. 

Next call out was at 5.56, apparently she needed to do a poo!  By now I had resigned to the fact she was not going to go back to bed!  Once on the toilet, she decided she no longer needed to do a poo.  

So into the lounge we went to settle onto the couch to watch kids TV (by we I am referring to H, not me... I fully intended to go back to bed!).

I settled her onto the couch with her home made quilt, a drink, an apple and her snugly blanky... she was happy, so I went back to bed!

About 10 minutes later, after I had once again fallen asleep, she called me out again... she had a hair in her mouth...

Next... there was a big bruise in her apple, and I had to cut it out!

By this time, I had decided I probably wouldn't go back to bed... it was pointless...

So here I sit... yawning away, writing an entry. 

Hope you are all amused!

Sorry to go on about it...

Did I tell you I love my shower curtain?  It is so clean!

Back we go!

So at about 8.30 this morning after bubs had been fed, H and I set off for Bunnings...(for those of you that don't know Bunnings is a building/hardware/and home supplies superstore... need more info... visit this link... http://www.bunnings.com.au/default.aspx , H and I were on our way there to pick up some bougainvillea http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bougainvillea to plant along the fence line of our property.

Bunnings for my girl is an outing!  She loves it.  We take baby Ashleigh (her doll) with us, and she sits in one of the mini trolleys.  Certain rituals must be followed each and every time we visit.

Anyway, so after we found our bougainvillea, paid at the counter, had our hands stamped, and were given the bonus gift of a packet of colouring pencils, we headed back home.

My chores I had set myself for the day were lawns and planting the bougainvillea.  

We arrived home, and I left H in the care of Dad, while I moved outside to get the lawn mower out and started... alas... it wouldn't start!

Dad came out and attempted to start it too, thinking because he is a man, he could probably get it going... he was wrong!

So a hour after we had arrived home, off set Dad and H to Bunnings to see if they could track us down a new lawn mower... they haven't yet arrived back - I think they are making a day of it!

A bit embarrassing!

What has my life come to... blogging about shower curtains!

I can't believe it worked!

I have many a time thought a shower curtain was at the end of its life when I couldn't scrub the shower scum off it!  

Well... a little tip for you shower curtain owners out there...

Throw shower curtain in washing machine with two old towels... on a hot wash add your usual washing detergent and a half cup of baking soda... on the rinse cycle add a cup of vinegar.  It is recommended to take curtain out before spin cycle starts... but due to breast feeding I didn't manage this, and because of it, the curtain is a little wrinkly... but Oh so clean, so really, I am not bothered!  

Can't believe it worked!

Dad organises one child...

'Tis funny watching Dad try to organise himself and one child to go out.  I sat back (whilst feeding) and watched.  

Dad and H had been outside on the tramp...They had an idea to walk the 1000 steps (http://www.dandenongrangesattractions.com.au/attractions/1000-steps/) at the base of the Dandenong Ranges in Melbourne (our neck of the woods).  They came in and Dad proceeded to organise himself (this took long enough!), then moved on to organising H.  

What was required you ask?  

Well, for starters, H needed to be dressed... (she had had an accident outside, which resulted in her stripping off and running around naked... something she loves to do!).  This was an ordeal in itself, with her refusing certain clothing!  

There was sunscreen to be applied, toileting, spare clothes to be packed, food and drink and shoes.  I think that was about it.  

I didn't time it, but I can tell you it took a fair while! 

Who's the boss?

H is pretty adamant that she is the boss!  Little does she know! 
It's funny listening to her trying to con me or her Dad to into something!

Encouraging solitary play...

So we are going through this patch where we want to be playing with Mum or Dad all the time.  I find it all a bit exhausting.  

Rather than amuse herself H sits on the couch next to me while I breast feed.  

I am always suggesting games for her to play by herself whilst I potter around the house making beds, doing dishes etc.  

This morning I tried something a little different.  I said I wanted her to play by herself until I had finished a cup of coffee... then I would play with her... I thought that length of time was familiar and achievable to her.  

To begin with she kind of just sat around waiting for me to finish my coffee... then she moved to the Duplo (http://duplo.lego.com/en-us/Default.aspx) and began to play by herself.  

As promised, as soon as I had finished my cuppa, I sat down and had a game with her.  That was until she decided she wanted to sit where I was.  I thought, I will use this as another opportunity to encourage her to play by herself.  I moved up to the Mac and she immediately began to amuse herself.  

It will just have be encouraged constantly throughout each day!

Who will be my 2000th viewer?

Thanks for all of your support!

Name update!

My daughter has officially changed her name to Penny... she no longer answers to H!

Delegating...

I am trying to encourage independence at the moment by delegating!

She would like me to do everything for her, but because I am in no way prepared to, she needs to learn to do some things herself.

I have been encouraging her to take her plate to the rubbish bin and empty her scraps.  She quite likes this.  She also quite likes to put her cups and plates on the bench!

She is getting way better at tidying away her toys when she has finished with them... she needs some reminding that things go back where they came from.  We turn it into a game, which she loves... so tidying up in our house is generally fun!

We are also trying to encourage H to toilet herself.  She has been trained for some time now, but likes company in the initial stage of the toileting process... usually with the pulling down of the trou, or lifting on to the toilet.  However in recent  weeks, it has become a game for her to rush off to the toilet, thinking we are in hot pursuit... if we leave her to it... she does it all herself, usually requiring a little bit of help with getting dressed again, though not always!  She can even wash her hands by herself!  

I have one clever and helpful little girl!

Leftovers...

My sweet girl thought forward about what might help, and put her unfinished milk in the fridge without being asked!  What a star!

Bassinet to cot...

Baby O has officially moved into a big girl cot.  I put her in a sleeping bag a few days ago (http://t.co/WcqYnxfP), in which she is sleeping well, but... her little hands keep hitting the sides of the bassinet and waking her up... I am hoping that the move to the cot will stop her from bumping and in turn startling herself!  Fingers crossed.

The prescription...

So... the day was going pretty smoothly.  

We were organising ourselves to go for a walk to the chemist... I had a script I needed to fill, and we needed to pop in to our local butcher (Greg's Tender Joint - Highly recommended) to get some meat for dinner.  

So I managed to get us all organised, and we walked out the door... please note... Baby O was in the Ergo and H the pram.  We made it to the back gate, before I decided I should check to see if I had put the script in the pram.  No, I hadn't... so I left H in the pram and went back inside to find the script.... 3 minutes later, I am back outside asking H if she would like to come inside while I look, I had had no luck and needed to keep looking!

She insisted on staying in the pram, so back in I went(Baby O still in Ergo)... a few minutes later, after a lot of muttering to myself, I went back outside insisting that she come to be my special helper... we could look together!

In we both went... her pottering around while I went back and forth into rooms I had already looked in. After about 5 minutes more of looking I noticed a little toy suitcase(1 of 3), was missing.  I asked where it was, and if H could help me look for it.  She answered with an 'I'm a bit too busy to help'.  

I kept looking, this time only for the red suitcase... A few minutes passed.  It seemed it was nowhere to be found, until... I looked in her Dad's wardrobe.  

There, in a pile of shoes, was the red suitcase, and inside... the script!

A day out...

So... we had a lovely day today.  We decided earlier in the day that we would go to Healsville Animal Sanctuary http://www.zoo.org.au/HealesvilleSanctuary , full of native Australian animals.

It was a lovely day, a little on the warm side, thank goodness the mercury wasn't above 30 degrees!

My only complaint was that poor Baby O in the Ergo http://store.ergobaby.com/ was just too hot.

Thank goodness the sunscreen was lathered on and none of us got burnt!  

The girls were angels today!  A little overtired tonight though!

Chaos is...

...3 toddlers eating icy poles... sticky faces and fingers!

...3 toddlers who want the same toy!

...3 toddlers who wont eat their dinner!

...adults teasing 3 toddlers!

...3 toddlers wanting to pat the chickens!

...3 toddlers who are up way past their bed time!

House in chaos!

8 adults, 3 toddlers and 1 baby = an afternoon of fun and chaos!  The house is in need of another clean... Oh well, theres always tomorrow!

Thanks everyone for coming... t'was lovely!

Cleaning spree...

My house is looking cleaner and cleaner by the minute... but only because we have guests coming!

A day of chaos!

So today was completely chaotic!  I have 3 stories for you!  

Firstly - Dad(that's the girl's Dad), had organised to play golf with his Dad(Pop Pop).  He had intended to get up nice and early, but kept snoozing his alarm and ended up getting up at the time he was supposed to be departing... this threw me, as I had a Maternal Health appointment (Plunkett for you Kiwis'), it was local, so I had planned to walk with the girls.  I hopped in the shower with 20 minutes to spare before I had to leave.

I ended up getting there with time on my hands... don't ask me how I did it, but I did, however I was a sweaty mess!

Next - We had organised to catch up with friends, just me and the girls(as Dad was still at golf).  I thought I would pop into Spotlight(a fabric, craft & home interior superstore) to pick up some beans to fill the bean bag I had received for Christmas.  I planned to get a trolley, but on looking in my wallet I only had NZ coins(stupidly I hadn't sorted my wallet yet).  So in we went without the trolley, Miss H walking and Miss O in my arms.  I ended up getting 5x 500gm bags (which turned out not to be enough) which I had to carry to the check out, then out to car!  I was probably juggling a bit too much, but thanks to Miss H's excellent listening skills(they are not always excellent) we managed to get back to and into the car safely!

Lastly - I decided to fill the bean bag... I should have waited until Miss H was in bed... but I didn't!

Miss H decided to help me, but I didn't notice she was there until it was too late.  She grabbed the bag of beans which threw off my pouring skills, and you guessed it... they went all over the place... I managed to get the situation under control quickly... and now both girls are in bed, the lounge is clean once again!

Date and Banana loaf...mmmm...

I baked that yummy loaf that I told you about a while back... Date and Banana, but half of it seems to have dissapeared!  Damn!

The shift to sleeping bag... a success!

Today I have decided to trial a beautiful Merino Kids sleeping bag http://www.merinokids.co.nz/ that was gifted to Baby O.  The last few days have been hot, and bubs seems to wriggle free of her wrap, so I thought I would give it a go... So far, so good, she has fallen asleep... whether or not she startles herself awake is another question!

Will let you know how it all goes!

Result... she slept well, and has just gone down for her second nap in it!  Love it!  Thanks S!

Cool change!

Now that I am awake, I would like to take the time to officially welcome the cool change!  Can I just say that I feel human again!  Before I was walking around on autopilot!

Unpacking...

In this intense heat I get very little done... so as you can imagine unpacking has taken 3 days so far, and there is still a way to go! 

My big girl is finding it all a bit much and has taken to wearing cranky pants!  The little one doesn't have attitude yet, and is sleeping well, so long as she sleeps with the fan on her!

Looking forward to a cool change tonight!  Hopefully it comes in the form of rain, and not thunder and lightening (as is forecast), which would increase the risk of bushfire in our region!

http://www.bom.gov.au/vic/forecasts/melbourne.shtml

New blog...

Have begun another blog about the funny things my big girl says.  If you are interested, this is the link...

http://spokenbythemouthofachild.blogspot.com/

Wanna comment?

My sister mentioned to me that she had tried to comment on my posts, but couldn't... I have altered settings, so now hopefully it works and if you feel compelled to comment, you will be able to!

Ness