Halloween

Halloween.  Such a controversial topic.

In our home, we love Halloween. We love the crafts associated (I will share a few simple ones we did tomorrow), we love to decorate the house and we love to dress up. 

Seeing as though it is also Angus' birthday, it has made the organising and celebrating a little hard but we seemed to hit the jackpot this year!

By mid October our front cupboard unit (the first thing you see when you enter our house) went from this;

to this;

A simple display with some goodies I have picked up quite cheap over the years.

And who can resist the fake spider webs?

And this year we received a new goodie to add to our decks.

My MIL is a fantastic patchworker and sent this up to us!! Awesome hey!

Stella also had a dress up day for school, and she asked to go as a Vampire! I didn't think she even knew what a vampire was but they were obviously talking about it at school! 

Thankfully my Mum sent up some costumes from the cheapie shops as we don't have any of those in our new town!

The most gorgeous Vampire I ever did see!

Stella's teacher also dressed up as a witch and looked fantastic and decorated her whole classroom with spiderwebs, signs and bats etc. It looked amazing and the kids were all so excited and stoked!

And that arvo/night, we all headed off to a Halloween party at a friend of Stella's house. 

All the kids were invited which was fantastic and I think they looked so cute (and Angus had a ball on his birthday night)

At the party (which was a bit out of town) the kids did Trick or Treat (only going to the party holders families houses in the street) , watched a Halloween movie, had some dinner , played with glow sticks and had fun with a pinata.

All in all, the day and night was a heap of fun , and thats what it is all about for our family and children!

Our baby is Two!

I can not say it enough, but kids grow up too quick! Especially my cherubs. You just want to bottle up their littleness and stop the clock. But then again, growing up means new adventures, a whole lot of excitement and more independence. 

Thats what I'm afraid of!!

We no longer have any babies in our home :( 

Our little Angus Frankie turned TWO on the 31st of October, a Halloween babe was he.

It was an exciting day for all, none more so than his big brother and sister who shower him with love , every second of every day. ( Well maybe not every second! They all like to fight like cat and dog too!)

They were excited about the cake, about his little party and about his presents!

So here it is, a birthday for a beautiful little boy. Our little boy. 

And it only feels like yesterday that I wrote this;

It has become tradition in our home to decorate the kids doors for their birthday morning. It makes them feel special and builds the excitement for whats to come!

                                    

                                              Which is lots of presents!! 

                       

I just love capturing the look on their face when they first see their presents!! Priceless. And the party that are waiting in the flanks to help the unwrapping!

                        

And he got a bike from his Grandma and Poppy!! Excitement plus (but jealousy from Max and Lacey as they don't have one yet , bad I know, but are getting one from the big man at Christmas!)

                       

                       

He was chauffeured around the house by his big sister for most of the morning and loved every second!

We decided to throw him a little party with a few friends and their kids, seeing as though we aren't near family anymore and wouldn't be doing the birthday dinner and cake with cousins.

And with his birthday being Halloween too, we had a Halloween party to attend that night so cake and candles in the morning it was!

Someone was so tempted but very patient as I was setting the food out for the party. I was mean and made him wait until people arrived to eat. So he sat here for about half and hour. Watching, waiting ......

I kept the party and decos very basic!! Shock , horror and surprise for me I know! But it was a busy week leading up to the day and he had a ball regardless!

                          

                         

Some simple Goodie bags from Woolworths with bubbles, a lolly pop and a few lollies, nothing too major!

                         

I presented Angus with the Womens Weekly cake book with a few days to go , and despite all the attempts from his siblings to try and convince him to have a certain cake, he chose this!! Good boy!! Nice and easy for Mum!

                         

It was a simple , 2 tiered butter cake with chocolate fingers and Curly Wurly chocolate for the front gate!

                          

                          

                          

And then it was over. And now we have a big 2 year old, that is toilet training (and nearly mastered it), doesn't sleep with a bed rail on his bed anymore and is just one of the kids!

He is loving, affectionate and by golly is he active and mischievous. But we wouldn't have him any other way! 

Where did the time go?

Thats right .... too quick!

Lately ....

Life for us in our new town is a little slower paced, not as many obligations and things we HAVE to do each and every day and we are all enjoying the change.

Here are a few snippets of what we have been up to lately. filling in the days and enjoying our new home.

Baking is always on the agenda here. I feel like I can't keep up with the demand!

I have just about finished my first round of the Michelle Bridges 12WBT and have loved all the yummy food, especially this Ginger Salmon stir fry!! 

The kids love to collect "treasures" from all around the place! 

And Pick flowers for Mummy

I was inspired by a gorgeous friend to give the kids little manicures one Sunday morning. They loved every minute!

We have been exploring and enjoying the warm weather and water

And I have been getting my craft on and made a few cute necklaces  for myself and gifts for friends and family!

As you can see, plenty to keep us busy and new experiences all the time. Life never has a dull moment, why would we want that?!

A home again ...

To say the last 4-5 months of our lives have been emotional , is an absolute understatement. There have been many lows, tears shed and tough moments but the highs and happy times , by far out weigh all of the hard times!! We are happy, content and feel like life is working out for us , finally. 

Yes I miss my family. More than anything else in the world. I miss my Mums cuddles, my Dads pats on the back and my sister and her beautiful family BUT , I am making the most of everyday. The meeting of new people, establishing new relationships, discovering new places to go , new things to do and generally forming a new little life for ourselves here. Complete with a family of friends , all here for the same thing, in the same boat and willing to share their lives with you too. 

I have surprised myself by realising that I indeed LOVE our new town. Sure, the lack of shopping, places to eat or go to are a downfall, but the town is full of gorgeous friendly people, lots and lots of activities and things to do all the time and as a family we have a much calmer and more relaxed lifestyle. 

My husband works less, we go out more as a family and have loved spending lots of time at the pool and parks on weekends and afternoons. The weather is nice and warm (and its only October), usually sitting mid to high 30's , sometimes the odd day reaches 40 degrees but with a lot less wind than our home town, the afternoons are glorious!

I finally feel settled now. And I know a large contributing factor to that would be that after 10 weeks in a transit house, we finally moved in to a house of our own. 

I can not emphasise enough, just how amazing it was , to see the big orange truck pull up and start unloading our containers that had been in storage! 

The kids were in heaven! Discovering all their old toys and belongings, even just having their own quilts back on their beds put massive smiles on their little faces!

So..... a few pics of our moving process ...

Packing up the transit house. This is all we had for 10 weeks. Clothes and some kitchen items. 

Our new house!! The colours are out there! It is a slightly renovated 70's style home , but with new tiled flooring and quite an odd layout, but we have made it work and love it now!

Our BRIGHT laundry!

Living area looking towards kitchen and hallway with front door

DURING!! Just keeping it real!

The boys now share and so do the girls and the change has been really good!

The buffet in the entry 

Our Liatorp unit that was a part of our TV unit before didn't fit anywhere unfortunately , however we split them up and now the kids toys are housed in here in their Toy area.

More of the toy area

Our living room

A girls gotta move over 1200 km to get herself a craft room!

And when most of the unpacking was done, the kids got to rediscover their long lost Trampoline!!

So there you have it. A few sneak peaks inside our new humble abode. Never fear, this place needs lots of organising and redecorating and all for a rental, which is a bit different for us, so stay tuned for more posts!

Ahhhh it feels so good to be back blogging again x

Same same but different ....

I just love that saying, 'Same same but different' , it never ceases to make me laugh. Especially when said by a Balinese person who is trying to get you to buy something that is a 'genuine fake'.

Anyway, you know how it goes. You have children, and to you they don't look like anyone really, just themselves. Their big personalities take over and they looks and features are all their own. Every now and then they may look at you a certain way and you think ' oh geez, she is her fathers daughter '  or something to that effect but its when you go out, see people you know or show people photos that the comments start rolling in. 

People saying that Stella looks so much like me, then you turn around and the next person you see , says she looks like her Dad?! Go figure?!

But when it comes to siblings looking alike, I knew right from the start that these 2 of ours are like two peas in a pod.

That's Angus on the left and Stella on the right. Amazing huh?

And most people did not pick it. But I knew the minute Angus was born, he was just like his sister. 

In looks only , their personalities are polar opposites, especially at the same age. 

Angus is full on. A thrill seeker, fearless and never, EVER stops. 

At the same age, Stella was quiet. You told her off once and she never did it again. She liked to read and sit quietly. 

Don't get me wrong. I can see similarities in all of the kids. Even Max who seems the odd one out , but these tow, especially here!! Crazy!!

Nudie Kids Juices - Review and Giveaway

 When the lovely people from the iconic Australian -owned beverage company nudie approached me to try out their new range of juices specifically for children, I was so excited!!
 I had personally tried some of their yummy juice while staying at a friends house, and thought it was delicious, and had just seen the new kids juices in the supermarket and knew we had to give them a go!

We have never been ones to buy juice boxes etc to have at home, but I do buy them for birthdays, special occasions and festive days. It is so nice to know that there is now a go-to juice , with no added sugar, additives and preservatives, and all while tasting really yummy!


When I opened my package (excitement in itself when you have just moved towns!) I smiled. A gorgeous bag and inside a cute container.

They even made me my own nudie character!! Can you see the resemblance?! ha

And then the yummy juices. Bright, funky and in a nice size and shape tetra pack carton (not like the traditional juice boxes that are small and wide, so wide that every child squeezes them instantly and juice goes everywhere!)

So a nice park outing, gorgeous winter weather (winter?! really!!) and a special juice treat and the kids were in heaven!

And ..... the verdict?! They loved them! Even the orange one was a hit (and our kids have never been that fond of orange juice and favour apple varieties) and the lemon juice (which is quite tart but strangely addictive and my husbands personal favourite flavour.

                                                          The facts?! The part I like most-

One nudie juice contains two serves of fruit and contribute towards your children's recommended daily intake of fruit - According to the Australian Dietary Guidelines
They are NOT made from concentrate and contain no added sugar, additives or preservatives.
Three out of the four children's flavours available are made with nothing but 100% Australian fruit.
The new tetra pack type cartons means the juices do not have to refrigerated to last all day in school lunch boxes, but can be frozen.

And the facts from a Mum of fours point of view- 

I was able to give my kids a treat , without having to worry that the effects of excess sugar will last all day sending them (and me!) troppo.

There was no mess, not like the usual episodes involving juice boxes, these cartons are fantastic!

I had the pleasure of finishing the very little amount of juice that was left, but it was delicious.

I just love Angus' lips when he says "juice"

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Kids nudie juices are available from the chilled section in Woolworths stores and selected cafe/corner stores and RRPs at $6.99 for a six pack.

nudie has also teamed up with Australian Sporting legend Liz Ellis for the launch of the new range, to encourage Australian parents to give their kids a healthy diet and lifestyle. 

For more on their products head to the nudie website, there you'll find some activities for kids, games, jokes, colouring pages and information on how to grow your own fruit trees.

I can safely say that these juices will be a welcome addition to our fortnightly food shop and the occasional surprise and treat in Stella's lunch box.

Fancy trying some juices for yourself or maybe you love them already?

Well its your lucky day!!

Thanks to nudie , I have 3 prize packs, as below,  to give away!

That's triple the chance of winning, one of each of the new kids flavours !

Entry is easy, simply use the Rafflecopter below and 'like' the nudie facebook page.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Conditions

The competition has already began and will finish midnight Tuesday 23rd July.

The winners will be drawn and announced some time Wednesday morning when time permits.

The winners will be announced on this widget and the Bizzy Dayz facebook page 

The winners have 3 days to email me with their contact and postal details before I draw new winners

I reserve the right to draw new winners upon failure to comply with the conditions.

The product will be sent straight from nudie, I have no part in the postal and delivery process.

Disclaimer

I was not paid by nudie to complete this review, however I was gifted the products and giveaways to try and give to my readers.

All the opinions are spoken with truth and are that of my own.

I am approached by companies constantly, but only choose to accept those I know I will like and are relevant.