Easter Weekend

I can't believe Easter has come and gone, and all within the blink of an eye! It well and truely sinks in, when I pack away all the Decorations and goodies around our home, but I must admit, I am loving the clutter free look around the house now!

We spent an amazing few days with my family, my parents and sister and family, in the beautiful town of Shark Bay, about 4 hrs North of Geraldton, where we live. The weather was really turned on for the weekend and ALOT of fun was had by all!!

The kids have spent the last few days recouping and recovering, playing quietly and just hanging at home, because all they did for 3 days solid was play with their cousins!

We fished, swam, drank, ate, chatted, laughed, did a bit of siteseeing and just enjoyed each others company! This years trip was alot more relaxing than that of last years, a combination of staying in a chalet, not a tent (yippppee) having just one baby , not two (but 2 toddlers instead!) and the awesome weather!  We all had the best time and are well and truely looking forward to next year !

And now for the photos, sorry its an overload, there were too many to choose a favourite!

Max and Lacey are now pros on their "kootas" , and look so cute on them too!

Angus was an absolute delight, he is a dream baby and so laid back and casual. Not the best sleeper in the world, but his beautiful temperament and personality , well and truely make up for it!

Do you think he was excited to get an Easter egg/bunny? I must deprive my kids of chocolate! haha

The picturesque Monkey Mia , with the dolphins. They are just gorgeous aren't they?!

Watching the 'dol-pins' , so cute. And they learnt a new word, and used it repeatedly for the next 30 mins!

                                      Wild Emus wander through the Monkey Mia resort!

Cheekiness!

Our kids sure love their Grandma!!

Fun fun fun!

We got home, did 10 loads of washing ( I am being serious!!) and are in chill out mode! All in prep for DH to go away for work next week, I may be requiring a drink or 3! haha

And , we decided now was a good a time as any to Toilet train Max and Lacey! So far, so good, but I will keep you posted and have been asked to do a post on our Toilet training experiences , so that is coming!

Meme - Quiz Me

After reading a great post by one of my favourite bloggers Lisa, at Life As We Know It tonight, I got inspired and thought I would play along with the game. I always seem  to learn something about myself, and its rather fun trying to think of answers. The list comes from Sunday Stealing, and is available HERE.

1) Which TV character do you think you are most like?
Hmmm there is nothing like being thrown in the deep end and being stuck ont he first question!!
I think I may be a good mix of a few characters!! My husband thinks I am like Bree off of Desperate Housewives, hmmm not sure that is a good thing! But I'm not sure I can put my finger on any others, do you have any ideas? Who do you think I am like?

2) What time do you go to bed?
I'd like to say 9/9:30pm, but its just not true!! I am a night owl. I am absolutely cactus when all the kids just go to bed and seem to get a second wind about that time, and feel like I could go all night!! I know , I know, its bad for me and I need the sleep. Believe me, I KNOW!! But I think it has more to do with a matter of achievement. I have mentioned before that I like to feel like I have actually achieved something for the day and often that doesn't happen until the kids are snoozing! So really, its more like anything between 10:30-12pm

3) What was the last meal you made from scratch?
Does a sweet count? Just tonight, at around 8:30pm, I was whipping up a Peppermint Slice to take to Playgroup tomorrow morning, but last night we had a Hearty Beef Casserole in the slow cooker, so that would be it!

4) What is your favourite type of music?
BC (before children) I used to have a really wide range of music that I liked, however since having the kids, my music tastes have changed. Almost settled. I figure I hear enough noise, screaming, shouting , crying , etc for the day, the last thing I want to listen to , is singers doing the same. So I like Jazz, acoustic, folk sorta style music. I LOVE LOVE Adele at the moment, think she is great, potty mouth and all. She has such confidence, and doesn't care what she says and when she says it!!

5) In what position do you sleep?
On my side, feet hanging out over the blankets and arms under my pillow . And I pretty much stay like that. Oh and I like to face the door, and my back to hubby. I figure if someone breaks in, I want to see them, not get snuck up on!! Yet again BC, we used to sleep entangled in each other. Every night, at least something of our bodies were touching, and we would spoon and sleep comfortably like that all night. Not now. NOOOO sir -eeeeee!! A few pregnancies and ouchy pelvic issues put a stop to that and the habit is broken!

6) What is your favourite childhood memory?
Ohhh I have alot. I had a great childhood. The best of everything and my parents worked bloody hard ( like my Dad worked 3 jobs and my Mum went back to work when I was 9 months old, yep they are absolute legends and I have the MOST respect for them!) so we have alot of fond memories.
Trips to Lucky Bay with my cousins, were I learnt how to drive (thanks Emma!! Maybe the landy should have had brakes though!!) nights at the speedway watching my Dad , and me wearing possum earmuffs (they were grey with a pink nose and fluffy) Of my Birthday cake when I was like 7 or 8 maybe? A round carousel cake , with fairy figurines holding ribbons from the centre, blue icing (which I later threw up as I ate too much) and a wonderful fairy birthday party!!
See I could go on!

7) What is your least favourite smell?
This is a hard one, there are soooo many awful smells , and I fear I have inherited my fathers nose , and its a sensitive one! Purhaps BO (Body odour), like I am talking , bad bad BO, and vomit. Ick

8) Its your round at the pub and your friends asked you to surprise them. What drink would you buy and why?
Definately a round of Alize' and Lemonade!! Yummo! The obsession started in Sydney a few years back when I went over with a friend for the annual 'Hair Expo" and we drank it til we were blue in the face, literally!! Yummo. Either that or Gin and Tonics.

9) What was the last thing you read/watched that made you cry?
Honestly? I am an absolute SOOK!! And it was about 15 minutes ago, and a note that came home from school!! We are invited to watch Stella's Kindy class do a performance for us for the end of Term and celebration of Easter! I cried just thinking of it, imagine how I will be watching the darn thing?

10) They say you learn something new everyday. What was the last thing you have learned?
That I am NOOOOO computer whiz and that Facebook is being a twang!! I hate not knowing how to do things on the internet and computer, it frustrates me no end!

11)Which Literary love interests would you snog, marry and avoid?
I would snog/ marry Alexander from The Bronze Horseman (Paullina Simmons book) and I am sure there are more, but purhaps sleep deprivation is causing Baby brain, yet again!

12)Vegemite....Love it or hate it?
I do love it! Not too thick and has to be put on HOT toast with the butter melting. Yum

13) What is your favourite quote/saying?
Ohh I have SOOO many, just ask the habib! "Cos thats the way I roll", " 50 million times" , but my favourite "Cos I said so!!" haha)

14) Paper back, Hardback or Kindle? Which of these is your favourite reading format and why?
I would say Kindle, on the iPad, LOVE LOVE my iPad, otherwise paperback , or high glass magazine pages may trumph them all at the moment!

15) If you could bring  back any cancelled TV series for another run what would you pick and why?
Party of five!! I can't remember the specifics of the show, but I just remember I LOVED it!

Fancy playing along? Simply fill out your answers to the questions and post a link to your blog post in the comments section on 'Life as we know it'

And before I sign off, I just wanted to thank everyone for the support and wonderful comments on my last post!! It was so lovely and uplifting to see mothers all sharing their experiences and troubles and no negativity!! Its the way Motherhood should be, this gig is hard enough, let alone making it hard for one another and judging each others decisions!
Night all
xo

A rollercoaster called......

Why breastfeeding of course?! Strange topic for a blog post I know, and feel free to stop reading now if it doesn't interest you (as with any of my blogs) but I am feeling quite profound and deep today. Must be my new desk (blog post to come on the makeover extrordinaire!!)

The Breast versus bottle debate has been of hot topic lately, on Facebook and pages especially, but its a constant cause of arguements, and trust me, I am not about to start one, more sharing how I have felt about me journey/s with our cherubs.

I believe that Breastfeeding a baby would have to be THE BIGGEST emotional rollercoaster a mother has to endure. The pressure put on you by society, healthcare professionals and other Mothers is second to none with the pressure we place on ourselves. Constantly second guessing and doubting yourself , and your supply/technique/ timing is hard work, and before long, it all starts to take its toll.
Isn't it funny that your body requires sleep, proper nutrition and a constant and adequate intake of water, to produce milk and that of a high quality, yet it is the most sleep deprived, mal -nourished state that we will ever be in?! I don't know about anyone else, but the last thing I think of during the day, when I have a newborn, is eating myself. My needs go by the waste-side, and that of our baby/babies has always come first. This may have been my issue all along, who knows? All I do know is , that breastfeeding has never come easy to me, but my determination has got me through in the end.
The pressure I have felt  by some people to feed my babies, has always haunted me, and then on the other hand, the pressure I have felt to place them on a bottle, has angered me. Its like you can never get it right, but ultimately, its our decision, my decision and I have always treasured that. People are always quick to judge and even quicker to give their opinion and comments. Do I really need to know that you had so much milk you had to get rid of some before feeding your baby? Do I need to know that you gave up within 2 weeks? Share, sure, but sometimes oversharing , especially when you are feeling vulnerable, can often make things worse.
 I have always had our childrens best interests at heart, as have any mother, but I just wanted to give it a go. To say I tried, and thats the best anyone could do.

I am not the best feeder in the world (sorry if its Too much information, but I am real, this is real) and have always struggled to maintain a good supply and keep my babies satisfied for the length of time deemed to be appropriate, but who determines that? Who says that a baby should be fed only every 3-4 hours? Doctors? Nurses? A mother knows what is right by their own child, and thats how the schedule should be made. Sure, if a baby is demanding every 2 hours, its a pretty short length of time, but if you are prepared to get up and feed all that time, than power to you , I say!
I have taken supplements, herbs, baked cookies, eaten this, not eaten that, drank X amount of water , and tried (as much as a mother with newborn/s can) to sleep and rest , you name it, I have done it. All for milk supply. All to justify to myself and more so, to others that I "Have enough milk for my baby". All to avoid judgement and snide comments. But more for my baby, because in the end, thats why I am doing this.

If you are a good feeder, have an abundance of milk, and have never felt this way, then you are lucky. You are blessed and you should embrace it, however if you aren't , and you are much the same as me, I am sure you are relating to every word I say.
This emotional rollercoaster is hard.

I will never forget the day , that a paediatrician said to me that my beautiful baby boy (Max) had an allergy. He was allergic to milk protein. In my milk, in formula, in everything. He had to be placed on Prescription formula, or he was never going to be free from pain. And I wanted that. So desperately. I wanted my boy to sleep longer than 20 minutes at a time. Day and night. Seriously, twins and a baby waking every 20 minutes, how did we survive?
But we did, and I had to make the emotional decision to feed one baby and bottle feed the other. Twins. My two babies that I so desperately wanted to treat equally , and was more than conscious of doing so. But, he was happy, he started sleeping and the screaming stopped. Enough said. (He also had Reflux, BAD, and the meds worked a treat)
And you know what?! Max and Lacey are one in the same. Sure, Max is better at talking , (Lacey is more quiet and mischeiveous) but Lacey is better at climbling ladders, walking up slides and scaling furniture. Neither of them is better than the other, more advanced, or dampened by their form of nutrition and feeding. If you ever feel pressured or have been told that what you are doing/have done is wrong, they are prime examples.

Don't get me wrong. I LOVE feeding my babies, but I am not anti formula either. From 2 weeks old, Stella was supplemented at night and slept through from 10 weeks, got to love that. Formula is great, and if I didn't want to feed or it eventuated that I just couldn't through lack of supply, I would be more than happy to bottle feed, but I do love it, and we are going great. Especially this time.
Feeding Angus has been the easiest out of my 3 pregnancies/sets of newborns. And for the first time in 4 years, I am enjoying it, and feel confident.
And its nice.
Really nice.
Lets hope I can continue until he is 12 months, and that my goal when I was first pregnant with Stella, 4 years ago, can finally be realised!

PLEASE know, this is NOT an attack on anyone, or any form of feeding. But a statement about me and my experiences.
Care to share yours? Go for it!! You never know, there may be someone out that that can relate, or just needs to hear the words you have to say!

Keeping it Real

So, I know I said that I had a great day on Monday, but today I had one of "THOSE" days. Yep, I was looking forward to 6:30pm alright, bedtime for kiddies!

Even though we had a wonderful morning catching up with one of my good friends, talking and the kids playing, the school drop off and pick up run , were horrendous!!

They have quickly become the most dreaded parts of my day. Why oh why does my precious girl have to go to school anyway? Max and Lacey just want to stay, I mean why wouldn't they? They are 2 next month and have most certainly hit a hard age. Strong willed and disobedient when we are walking, crossing the road, everything. And today I had to wake them from their day sleep, and Max is not well. He has an ear infection and the start of Tonsilitis , according to the doctor when we went yesterday. Grumpy kids, a fair walk to the Kindy area and it made for a difficult trip. Thankfully, a lovely parent and good samaritan came to my rescue when Max wanted to be carried ( he is dizzy and sad from being sick) and Lacey decided she wanted to walk in the opposite direction , head for the road and cling to a pole for dear life and not listen. Hmpf, you just can't push a pram and carry 2 toddlers at the same time, unfortunately!! BUT... we made it! Tomorrow is a new day (and a daycare one!) and I keep telling myself that it will get better! It will, and it is! And...... then the terrible 2's set in! Oh dear!

Seeing as though I have just had a whinge, and in the spirit of keeping it real, I want to share something with you. Now... you don't get much realer than this!

Our master bedroom is a mess. Like stuff everywhere!! Over the years it has evolved somewhat. Before kids and even when Stella was a wee baby, it was gorgeous. Had a chaise lounge under the window, no clutter and "STUFF". Now days, it seems to be a dumping ground for anything and everything we need to keep safe from little sticky, grubby hands or things that need a home.

It really is the only room in the house that is semi safe from the rath of Max and Lacey. Well that was until they learnt to open door handles, and now they just know its a no-go zone! Still, we need to do something! Our room is now also my scrapbooking room. Believe it or not, I sit on the floor, lean on a large wooden chopping board and spread everything out. It works, but its not exactly the most comfortable of things to do and I later wonder why my bach aches? Der . And the more I go to scrapbooking, the more the spell is cast on me and the more equipment I have. Where does it all live?

In the Master Bedroom of course!

I don't necessarily thing it is a bad thing, because our bedroom is the largest one in our home, and all we do there is sleep, so I feel I should be making the most of the space and using it to its full capacity, but there are some changes that need to be made! Definately!

Here is the proof! Argh, the shame!

And I did NOT touch a thing before I took these, as hard as it was, I am keeping it real!

Boxes full of goodies that need to be sold at a Garage sale, we are planning for next weekend, seriously nowhere else to put it!

                                      The scrapbooking Storage Expedit unit is overflowing!!

Presents bought for Easter and kids birthdays next month , and they haven't moved since coming home. Lazy Liz!

So.. the plan? A makeover of course!! Not the usual type of makeover, this one is on a budget! A shoestring budget! The start of this year has really kicked our bum on the bank balance front, so I don't have alot of money to play with. No stress, thats half the fun of the challenge!!

Now I need ;

Somewhere to sit and scrapbook, and maybe be able to leave a project half done ,

 and be able to return to it.

A more streamlined and classy look, not so much "Stuff' everywhere

Better storage

And an overall new, improved and stunning room, thats useful too!

27

Last week, the 14th, I celebrated my 27th Birthday. Don't you hate it , now that we are older, that it doesn't even feel like your birthday? Well thats the way I feel. But I had a lovely day, filled with friends and family and I got majorly spoilt!

The day before I had a lovely morning tea at my girlfriends, as her birthday is 2 days before mine, and the kids had a play. Then on the day, my parents did their usual early morning visit with gifts, just like when we were kids, and I headed to Northampton ( about 40 mins away) to visit a friend and spend the day before school pick up.

No birthday is complete without the mandatory family dinner and over catered feast!

The food was yummy as usual and company even better!

All in all ,  I had a lovely day, got wayyyyy too spoilt and certainly had some yummy Lemon Meringe pie to work off at bootcamp the next morning! ha

Productive Day

Yesterday I had one of those days. No, not one of 'THOSE" days were you are pulling your hair out, have a course voice from yelling and can't wait until bedtime, but a day where I achieved alot!  

For those who follow my Facebook page, you would have seen my 'To Do' list abd everything marked off and completed! Yip -eeeee! It helped that I only had Angus at home, the other 3 kiddos went for a play at their Grandparents and I made the most of my time. I could have and probably should have relaxed, done some scrapbooking, read a magazine , had a coffee, but instead I worked like a trojan, skipped all meals but felt better going to bed than I have in a long time. Absolutely exhausted but accomplished!

 For me, having always worked, and only becoming a Stay at Home Mum 12 months ago, I have found that to be the hardest to deal with. I am used to going to work, doing wages, ordering products, training staff and all while caring for my kids, cooking , cleaning and trying to give my kids a beautiful life.

Its been hard for me, feeling like I haven't achieved much. In reality, I have achieved alot. Our kids are fed, happy, safe and entertained. We often do craft and I like to keep my house tidy and relatively clean. Isn't that enough? Of course! But often I want to feel like I have done more. I NEED to see changes, see those ticks on a list. Or I feel somewhat like a failure. Silly I know, but surely someone can relate? This SAHM gig is tough!

Anyhoo, yesterday,  I started the day like this;

I got out all the spare baskets and organising tools that I had around the house, just incase I needed them and just to see what I had to work with. I always do this, it gives you a better plan for what is going to where and how. I actually had a chuckle to myself when Clare from The HOME She Made posted on her FB Page that she does the same thing, great minds, but it really is the most practical thing to do.

One of the jobs on my list was to do something about our beloved Flash Cards. They are fantastic for a learning and interactive play tool for the kids, but lately the only thing they have been learning, is watching Mum play 52 pick up with the darn cards. ARGH! Not only that, but the boxes were starting to look rather worse for wear and the cards were all getting mixed up.

 

The boxes started to look like this.

I had a spare set of little plastic tubs from Ikea, available in a set of 3 for $4.95 and HERE, they really are so handy and CHEAP!
I saw on Pinterest that someone used them for card games like Uno and playing cards and instantly thought of our flash cards.
Now they are all organised nicely, labelled and whats better is, the tubs are easy for the kids to open and close themselves, no more 52 pick up for Mum! I'm not silly!

Then I moved on to finish organising Stella's wardrobe. Remember when I made the wardrobe dividers for her School clothes in this post?

Well ever since then, I have wanted to finish sorting and organising all her knick knacks that seem to scatter everywhere or get knabbed by her little brother and sister.

Even though we have a toy room, we have decided to allow the kids to keep their special toys in their own rooms. For a few different reasons, to teach  them that some toys are for sharing but some toys belong to certain people, to teach them to care and look after things and that some toys are more precious than others and need to be treated accordingly, just to name a few. So for Stella, her 'precious' toys are obviously her Blythe dolls, but they are up high in her wardrobe, but her Strawberry Shortcake dolls and accessories and a few Littlest Pet Shop ones. All of these are also small and fiddly bits and are easily misplaced.

So I moved a small white bookshelf that used to live in my sewing room (now the twins bedroom to make way for dear Angus) that has been stored in the garage and sorted all her goodies and placed them in different baskets and containers (bottom right side) .

It looks MUCH better and Stella is really happy with the result and instantly started playing with everything, simply because she knew where it was, what was in what box and where to put it back!

FYI- The bottom baskets are General shoes (left) and dress ups (right) then the pink tin is for the bulkier items like a Barbie horse etc, her keyboard is standing behind and then the shelves with her baskets . School shoes are in the shoe hanger, school clothes to the left and then normal clothes in a few sizes to the right.

I also managed to mark other jobs off the list, like filling and organising my new and mega gorgeous camera bag I got for my birthday last week (post coming tomorrow) , Sort and fill our new School folder from Kikki K ( sorry tried to find it on the website and it seems to have gone, hopefully just out of stock!), clean the inside of the washing machine, download and print the Laundry labels from  'A little delightful' and most importantly , begin our Master bedroom makeover (it definately needs it and I am going to be keeping you informed along the way).

Totally knackered by the time I was finished but love seeing the results!

Easter Decor

Finally sharing our Easter decorating in our home.

All items Bed Bath and Table (bar the egg we made last week with buttons) but over the past few years so may not be all available now.

Even some pretties in the Toy Room!

Hanging eggs from Spotlight, tree we have had for years in the kids rooms, and the bunny is from Ollie Rose

The pretty Eggs we decorated at Playgroup and home, hanging in the toy room.

On top of our bookcases in the main living area. Chook from BB&T, filled with plastic eggs from Spotlight and the yellow wreath and little pegs on chook are from a pack available at Target for $5 , I bought them last year but they are there again.

Simple tray of goodies on our dining table. Tray from Ikea, Glass jar from Target (was filled with Christmas candies) , now filled with plastic eggs from Spotlight. Small jar with foam eggs bought from Local party shop and a soft chook toy (given to kids at Christmas).

A few eggs a simple addition to our existing decor , these are also included in the pack from Target, its seriously a bargain! And yellow fluffy chook made from a plastic cup at Playgroup, CUTE!

                                                               Our sideboard display.

Our Easter books are displayed in a tin from Target (can you tell its the only department store we have here?)

And its finished with another jar filled with plastic eggs (cheap , easy and effective!) a birdhouse from BB&T(last year) and a cute bunny (also BB &T)

The next shelf has an Egg display spelling 'EASTER' , purchased from Thingz last a few years ago, and are displayed on a tray from Target.

Our Easter books, they are quite hard to come by in our town.

Easter Egg Hunt - is gorgeous, lift the flap, pull flat interactive book  (from Target)

Spots First Easter - Also lift the flap and simple for younger children (From Target)

Hop and Jump- Basic story but textured pages (from Crazy Clarkes)

And the Peter Rabbit Golden Book Set is adorable (From Target a few years ago)

Next on our list is the Anne Walker Easter book, Because I just love her books!

We also have some colouring pages ready to go, I find it easier that way , and I will post some links later on for them.

But one we have already completed, this is Stella's , isn't it gorgeous?! But I have already mounted and decorated it and put it in her art folder.

And last but not least, our chickens hang in pride of place on our Liatorp units in our family room, we made these last year!!

Phew, sorry for the photo overload, however we are getting quite the collection of Easter decos , and I LOVE IT!! However, it is making the weekly dusting chore a tad more difficult!!

Sorry for the delay in posts, I am having a few issues with Blogger, for some reason, my scheduled posts aren't working!

Do you decorate for Easter?