it’s strangely quiet…and yet peaceful

I went out last night to a friends place and ate way too much good food and just enjoyed some company for a while. I had been toying with idea of going to midnight mass but thought it would be a bit weird going alone. It was a little but I am glad that I went. I had a good sleep and this morning got one last load of washing done and everything in the car packed – leaving room for the kids to choose some toys. The picnic lunch for tomorrow I will make after the kids go to bed tonight, and the bike rack will have to go on late afternoon or just after the kids go to bed as they will want to ride.

Shortly I’m going to curl up with a bacon sandwich and a good book and perhaps even just one glass of tia maria and coke – I may even follow it up with some chocolates. And while I am enjoying my little feast I shall curl up in the chair with my book and enjoy the peace and quiet around me for an hour or two until it is time to go and get my little noises (hmm not sure that is the right words as really they are big noises trapped in small bodies)!

I hope that everyone has a peaceful and happy Christmas and that amid all the hustle and bustle of it all you take a few seconds to look around you. If you see family and/or friends that love you, happy faces and good food then you really are amazingly blessed…as I know I am.

So Merry Christmas everyone.

oh and hey …..do you know what I have waiting for me for my 2nd Christmas at Sue’s …..a cherry ripe cheesecake…..YUM!

It was the day before Christmas…

….and everything was stirring. The shops were packed with shoppers getting their last minute things but somehow the smiles still appeared on most faces as Christmas day approached.

My house it is quiet no yelling and banging of boys can be heard. The Presents lay under the tree all wrapped – Santa came a little early to this house this year. The clothes are all washed and have been dumped on the couch. Ready to be folded into suitcases which stand on the floor just waiting.

The tow ball has been removed from the car (with thanks to some borrowed tools and muscle). The car has been cleaned out and is ready to run. The housesitter organised, the site backed up onto hard drives delivered into safe hands for the holiday.

Some lazy girl just needs to pack and have everything ready to go in the car tomorrow morning – before I pick up my favourite 3 little noises. The rolls for the trip are in the freezer so they can be pulled out again tomorrow and made up fresh for the trip. The boxes of shapes to be divided into ziplock bags to keep hungry kids quiet on the long long drive. Just need to locate the drink bottles too. Just about set.

problem solved…

Kmart was open til midnight. Took the racetrack back…now I have replaced it with a red fold up scooter. Am sure that this is something he will LOVE so its all good.

Atonement

Went to see Atonement at the movies today – my freebie I won! Had a great time despite leaving at 8.30 am after getting to bed sometime around 3ish! The movie was actually really good and the chairs divine. The best bit was the goodie bag – it had a copy of the book the movie is based on in it.

But the bad news …..just had a chat with the ex….seems that we have both bought Owen the same racetrack for Christmas….seeing as he has the boys now and claims to have told me back in June I’m going to have to take it back…the good news I guess is now I can justify that new scooter for Owen as he broke his…just have to find the receipt so I can return it…..eeK!

purple flowers, fights and cuddles

They drive me crazy, they drive me insane, they fight and they moan, they generally disobey, they are full on and flat out and never stop from the minute they get up to the second they fall asleep. And yet in the middle of that they bring me purple flowers off the tree ‘to make you happy Mummy’… they put their arms out and yell ‘tuddle’ and come running…they ‘bop’ you on the nose and wrap their skinny arms around your neck pulling my hair at the same time….

yup 3 little boys drive me up the wall…and yet where would I be without them…how lucky am I to have them….mind you just one day I would love to have more energy than THEM!

best I crash – last swim lesson of the year in the morning!

I have been thinking about my Gran…

My beautiful wee Gran has been gone from us for two years now. Perhaps it is the time of year, the fact that two years ago the weekend before Christmas I was at a funeral, or perhaps something else…but I have been listening to a bit of Josh Groban ever since I found that song ‘thankful’ and I keep finding myself thinking that she would have loved his voice. Don’t be sad for me. I am not remembering her in sadness. I am remembering her in joy.

I am thankful to have had her in my life for so long.

still thankful….

still loving Josh Groban. Still loving his song Thankful…and amid the cries of ‘he did this’ or ‘he did that’ still finding that this song can help to bring me peace.

Last night I got a call from Mix FM….I won two tickets to the movies! The comp is here – if you looked you will see that it isn’t just regular movies it is the movies in STYLE! Yup mini makeover, goodie bag and directors lounge (hoyts answer to gold class) tickets to see the new movie Atonement that comes out on boxing day. Well I had to wait til the details came through to ask people but am stocked I have found a friend to come with me for the 10am show! Scrapbooking has brought me so many friends and sometimes they become friends in a kinda ‘professional’ setting and putting your hand out to ask someone to step over that invisible kinda blurry line can seem a little daunting….and yet why so…I love that scrapping has brought so many friends into my life and today I celebrate that again.

And tonight…I took the kids to see the Xmas lights. There are some amazing displays out there. One I had read about that had buttons to push etc etc…so I took the kids to see….it was the only place I let them out of the car and it was on a main road so I was a little cautious but wow the joy in their eyes. I am amazed at how generous people can be with their own home but also grateful for the joy they help to spread.

also confirmed that I get the kids back on Xmas day at around 2-3pm so it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas….

I hope that this Christmas everyone finds some joy in their heart.

glad the day is over…

spent the morning in frustrating phone calls.

Went to kinder to pick up the boy from his last day frustrated and cranky. Had a couple of parents thank me for the cds. Then had one who I knew from last year as her son is doing a 2nd year like Owen but who I had never really spoken a lot too, come up and give me a big hug and say thanks so much that he just loved it. Put the stupid phone calls into better perspective for me. Mostly because it was soooo unexpected! The farewells were so different this year. We have truely been blessed with an awesome group of people this year and all the parents got on so well that it was a long time in breaking up.

oh and the kinder pressies – the xmas trees for the teachers – they seemed happy with them – one said that she wondered how I could top last years but that I had. She said she still got out the xmas things her children had made – I get the impression she appreciates the hand made which is nice.

Took my extra home and was handed a box of chocies to say thanks for taking her to kinder/home this week – really not necessary but lovely.

exhaust is fixed – the reason for the mornings frustrating phone calls has been resolved and life generally not so much of a worry – hate getting bogged down in the small stuff!

in honour of Owen’s last day of kinder tomorrow…

here is a typical kinder morning at our place….bear in mind this gets you from around 7-7.30 til 8.30-8.45ish!

Good morning boys, yes I love you too. Kinder this morning can you get dressed please…clothes are in your draws you know that, pants today and a t-shirt. I said get dressed, no you can’t watch TV. Get dressed now please we will be late, no that isn’t dressed you still need shoes, yes you can open Corey’s door, can you get him a nappy please. Good more Corey do I get a cuddle… ahhh..Shoes, I said shoes you need your shoes on Brett and Owen you too. Of course they aren’t in the shoe thing you didn’t put them away, try your bedroom floor, can’t find them no wonder your room is a mess, ok I’ll look in a second I’m trying to get Corey dressed, back here now Corey, I said now. 1, 2…no it isn’t funny Corey James! Breakfast, what do you want, no you can’t have a lolly it’s breakfast….ok now come on we will be late. Owen here’s your kinder snack put it in your back pack please. Kids pick up those crusts. At the table, Corey take the food back to the table. Owen kinder snack in your backpack please. I said pick up those crusts, no you can’t watch TV. Owen do you have your drink bottle…good lets go. Owen isn’t that your drink bottle on the floor, yeah oops put it IN your backpack. Corey STOP, get in the car, no not that way, in the car it’s time to go….ok bye Corey…oh you DO want to come after all good boy Corey! Ok kids lets go….oh no forgot the bins…Owen jump out and help can you take the little yellow bin, good boy thank you…back in the car, seatbelt….lets go…..

Ok here’s kinder, come on everybody out, don’t forget your backpack Owen…backpack Owen…Owen your Back pack! Ok ready 1, 2, 3 go, stay on the path Corey ok boys in the gate….out of the garden come on inside *sign kid in* Corey & Brett lets go…now…ok Corey Bye seeya….Corey I said now….come on Corey time to go!

…Prof Paddy says…see you in 6 months

last year when Owen saw Prof Paddy Dewan he wanted to see Owen again in 12 months and said that by the time he had his next op he would ‘want to have it done’. That is – he would have realised his was a bit different. Now being that I don’t actually have one I wasn’t sure what age that meant but know better than to push Paddy for actual dates as it is all about hoping he will ‘grow into it’. (For those that are reading and going huh? Owen was born with a very severe case of hypospadias – finally found a good simple explanation on-line hope no one finds the illustration offensive). Owen’s had severe chordee but luckily for us we were referred to the wonderful Prof Paddy Dewan who has now operated 3 times (plus the emergency op when he had post op complications the first time)! Anyway Paddy is waiting for him to grow into it and I’m speculating that wanting to see him again in 6 months instead of 12 means we are getting closer to ‘growing into it’ iykwim although you probably don’t – he has, following his previous surgery still a bit of a bend and a fair bit of excess ugly lookin skin that needs to be removed.

So anyway before I move on I just wanted to point out that not only has he been so wonderful to us he has also formed his own charity to assist kids in 3rd world countries. He heads a team of surgeons and nurses etc who go overseas and operate on the kids who have been put into the ‘too hard’ basket but not just that he teaches as he goes as he is a big believer in the skill transfer side of things. If you ever have a few extra dollars or can help in any way then check it out at Kind Cuts for Kids .

so will just see how it goes when we go back in 6 months.