Goodbye 2010

Today was the epitome of 2010. It was a great summary of how daddy and I experienced the past year. The day was spent with children up very early, parents up early, kids running and running, parents running and running (sometimes not quite as fast as the kids), kids needing to do a poo miles away from a toilet even though when near a toilet you had asked if they had needed to go, tired kids denying they are tired kids, making gourmet meals only to have them thrown on the ground, and very tired kids taking a minimum of 2 hours to go to sleep. An absolutely perfect summary of the past 365 days.

We walked the beach this morning and then spent hours in the rock pools playing and discovering. Then we came back to the caravan park and had a swim in the pool. We had lunch and then we all showered and got clean again before then venturing out to a butterfly enclosure. We had a great time. The butterflies were spectacular. I didn't realise that they needed such hot conditions to live in. We took heaps of pictures. The boys also painted some plaster moulds. Bailey especially loved it, so much so that he painted 2 moulds.We then went and did some more food shopping to get us through the next few days. Once home we feed the little boys and several hours later they are finally asleep. Daddy and I are sitting on the deck drinking a wine and a beer listening to the live band that the caravan park have got playing. They are good but loud so hopefully tiredness will prevail and the boys will stay asleep. Goodbye to 2010. Bring on 2011. I can't wait.

In Memory...Of My Shoes

I dedicate today to my shoes. Since we have been on holiday they have covered such a huge distance. We walk and run and then walk and then run, run, run. I must not forget jumping. Although I haven't jumped so much since we have been away. Daddy and I are on the go full time. My book still remains unopened.

Since my shoes had smoke coming off them today I'll recount our adventures for the day. The 2 boys and I started the day walking along the beach. Daddy was having a sleep in so we journed out to the water. It was one of those moments that I will never forget. The image of the 2 boys just walking along the beach both looking after each other. We looked at rocks in the sand and the foam on the water.

When we arrived home daddy was emerging so we all had breakfast, and then started walking to the beach for another walk. It was at that point that I noticed that the 2 boys were hardly even moving their feet. They were shuffling almost and cranky. So I cancelled the beach walk and we went to the swimming pool instead. The sun was shinning and it was a beautiful day- perfect weather for swimming in a pool. We must have spent several hours there because it was nearly lunch time by the time we got home. We all had lunch together outside, although by now the boys were tired and weren't interested in food.  Eventualy Bailey ate food, although for Bailey his  food looked better on the ground, much to our disappointment.

Bailey slept for 10minutes in the car as we all headed over to a friend's house who now lives at our holiday destination. We spent a few hours there which was lovely. Once we had left, we headed to the shops to buy some food essentials because tomorrow is New Year's Eve and we don't want to be in the shops then. Both boys fell asleep in the car on the way back to the cabin. So daddy and I put them into their beds. Surprised that they were both still asleep.

By the time we got home it was just after 5pm so we began the dinner routine for the boys. The boys gobbled up their food and then threw everything on to the floor. If they weren't spilling it, they were throwing it. After dinner we all went and collected our washing from the laundy mat before then embarking upon a full bike ride and scooter around the caravan park. Off we go. No wonder my shoes have worn out!

Big Ray Of Sunshine

What a perfect day. The sun was shinning galore. Apparently it was the first time in 3 months. Bailey and I  walked the caravan park this morning before anyone was awake. He managed to find every single puddle in the whole caravan park and proceeded to walk through them all. Once everyone was awake we all headed down to the beach where we stayed for many hours. It was a fantastic time. Brandon loved being in the ocean. Bailey was happy digging in the sand.

Eventually we headed home to wash off the combined suncream and sand that was sticking to almost every part of us. From here we decided to walk to the local shops to get some lunch. Everyone else on the Island Hamlet must have decided to do just the same thing as us because there was hundreds of people bombarding the take away. Once home we sat outside and ate our hot chips and drank our nice cool drinks.

We all traipsed up to the laundromat to do 2 loads of washing only to discover that we didn't have enough change for the coin operated washing machines. So we all traipsed back to the cabin where Brandon and I dropped off daddy and Bailey. By now it was very hot and we had already spent a lot of the day in the sun so Brandon and I walked down to the reception area to get some change for the washers. Once there we also hired a big tricycle bike on Brandon's insistence. He had been asking daddy and I for the past 2 hours so we hired one. Of course mummy had to ride it while the boys took turns being passengers. Once I maneuvered up the hill and across the bridge and over the speed humps Brandon and I got back to our cabin where we picked up our 3 bags of washing and rode up to the Laundromat-at the very back of the caravan park. For the next hour I cruised around with a different little boy beside me. We rode past all the campers and I admired the fact that they were all sitting around relaxing and drinking alcohol. I admired the fact that most of them were just relaxing and reading a book. By the 3rd time we past them I was wondering how old their kids were and questioned whether they had some time in their life ridden around a caravan park with little children.

Then the 2 boys and I ventured over to the jumping pillow where the boys jumped and jumped and jumped. Brandon and Bailey have gatecrashed a group of teenagers gatherings several times and they did it again now. It is always the same group of teenagers. They are all pretty good with it. Brandon just adores them. He stands in the middle of the group and tells them to either jump or to stop and watch him or to show them something. No matter what, he is the centre of attention. Just how he likes it. Bailey is a little more subtle but he is right there with Brandon all the time. He just goes around the outskirts. By now daddy has joined us so we decide to walk up to the local pizza and pasta shop and order some takeaway pizzas. Off we go again.

Dinner was delicious as we sat outside and gobbled them all up. Then the boys slept. Finally. Daddy and I sat outside on the deck. I drank a wine and daddy a beer and we thought how wonderful it was to have kids asleep.The sun was still shinning. We look forward to another sunny day tomorrow.

Going Bananas

Today was all about bananas, but then we are on holiday in the Big Banana town of Australia. It's still raining. Hopefully tomorrow will be a beautiful sunny and hot day. This morning the 2 boys and I walked down to the reception in the rain to let them know that we had arrived. All 3 of us then ran home as it continued to pour rain. Then we collected daddy and we all went for a walk up to the general store to get some basic food and then we ran home because it was really raining. We had a great breakfast though sitting out on the deck of our holiday cabin.

We contemplated our options for the day and then decided we should go to the tourist information centre to gather even more ideas. Armed with some truly fantastic ideas we were now on our way to be tourists. First thing we did was go to the Big Banana. We have never been on holidays while the rest of the country is on holidays as well so we were astounded by the amount of people around. Principally travellers from overseas. At the Big Banana we had lunch and then I bought a frozen banana coated in chocolate and dipped in sprinkles. Divine. By now the boys were tired and overwhelmed by all the people. As we had left the stroller at home both boys had no option but to walk. And they were tired. But they didn't sleep.

We headed back to the cabin where the boys played with some play dough that they had got in a meal at the Big Banana. They entertained themselves for a little while. That was until all the play dough of various colours ended up in one big brown blob that proceeded to get thrown against the wall. Play dough time ended pretty much then. We were going to go for a walk along the beach but because it was now bucketing down with rain we jumped back in the car and went to the shops to get some fruit and yoghurt and cheese.

There was people everywhere at the shops. We got in and did what we needed to do, plus we also bought 2 nice big umbrellas. Once back in the car with all our cold food in the back of the Ute, we attempted to head back to the cabin only to have daddy's car not start again. So we got straight on to the mechanic and as there was already 3 other cars needing fixing in the same car park as us apparently, we knew it wouldn't take too long to get some help. The mechanic was with us within 30 minutes. With a new car battery in we were off.

We gave the boys dinner almost straight away once we got home. Again we sat outside on the deck, ate dinner and watched the caravan park world go by. After dinner we decided to go for a walk around the caravan park and we were having so much fun that we decided to venture down to the beach. We all had a great time. It was a shame we had to come home but the kids were now quite wet and it was getting dark. But we will be back tomorrow. Once home we washed and fed the boys some more food. Brandon ate 1 banana before bed while little Bailey ate 2. Mind you they also ate yoghurt and fruit gel, but overall it was a day full of bananas.

We Are Finally Here

After travelling 7 hours to get to our holiday destination we are pretty tired but it's a fantastic place. As the 4 of us jumped in the car this morning all ready to go I said " Everybody ready? Let's go!" And then the car wouldn't start. The battery was flat. So daddy made an emergency phone call to the mechanic where we were told it would be at least 45 minutes before someone would be able to come and see us. So we all jumped begrudgingly out of the car and headed inside. There was nothing that we could do so we all sat on the lounge and turned the TV on only to be greeted by Bob the Builder telling us that we could fix it- yes we could! And then the mechanic was here. So much for 45 minutes. I don't even think it was 45 seconds. It was very good service. Problem solved. Again we piled into the car and off we went, and the car started.

It took us 7 hours to go just over 400km's because of Christmas traffic, road works, and torrential rain. That rain came down. It was amazing. I questioned whether we should have bought a boat with us or maybe even an ark. Surely the rain would eventually stop. And yes it did but not until 5 hours into the trip. But it is raining again now.

It has taken us a very long time to get the kids to bed. We booked a 2 bedroom cabin for the next 7 nights but I wish now that we had booked a 3 bedroom cabin. Brandon and Bailey do not need to be sleeping in the same room. Mummy and daddy do not need Brandon and Bailey to be sleeping in the same room. So we have just separated them. Brandon is hopefully going to sleep in our bed, of which we will move him asap. and Bailey is attempting to go to sleep in the porta cot. Let this be a lesson to anyone planning to put a 22 month old boy into a porta cot- DON'T!!  It's been a long time since we last used the porta cot and I had forgotten how upwardly mobile a little person can become very quickly. Needless to say I don't think Bailey will ever sleep in that cot again.

Once we arrived at our destination this evening. we all went for a brief walk around the caravan park. Everything looks so much fun. After we had unpacked the car we all went and checked out the ocean and the playground by the ocean, the huge big jumping pillow, and the pizza takeaway menu. After we had ordered our pizza we headed over to the playground where we all played for a little while before then running to the beach. Mind you with day light savings here that we are now no longer used to, it was still fairly light at 9pm. Which explains why we were still outside on the beach at 8:30pm. Anyway, when you're on holidays it's good to break from routine. We are all just thankful that we are finally here.

Play, Clean And More Play

This morning the 2 boys and I spent several hours playing with their Christmas presents. We all had a great time. As you can see the boys ended up with Bob The Builder stickers all over their legs. It seems to be where all the stickers in our household gravitate to and then they separate and end up in all sorts of different places.

Even before the boys were awake this morning, I managed to read for at least 1 hour. I haven't had a chance to read properly since kids came along so this morning was extra special. Especially since I used to read quite a lot. I am looking forward to our holidays as I plan to read as much as I can.

We all had an at home day today. Daddy and I cleaned and cleaned and started to organise ourselves for our journey away tomorrow. We can't wait. We were a little thrown back late last night because we think that daddy interrupted some potential burglars in the street. We called the police and we presume it was all dealt with. So it took us, especially daddy, quite awhile to go to sleep. So we just had a quiet day today as we had had a rather late night.

The weather was pretty awful outside all day so it was the perfect day for cleaning and playing and eating chocolate biscuits and Christmas mince pies. Daddy cleaned his Ute so that it is all lovely and clean for us to travel in tomorrow. As you can see we didn't do anything exciting today but we did do heaps of productive things. At least we have clean bathrooms, loads of clean washing, a clean Ute and happy and clean boys.

Our Christmas So Far

Merry Christmas. We hope you all have had a great day. We certainly all have. Today we unwrapped presents at record speed and then spent the rest of the day playing with all the toys and other presents. Thanks Santa. We look forward now to a wonderful 2011 for everyone.

( Today's date should say the 25th December 2010 but I posted these photos so early Australian time it still came up American time as the 24th)

Santa Is Nearly Here

This will be very brief because I am still helping Santa and all his elves wrap hundreds of presents. Great for the boys tomorrow but rather continuous tonight. Today I was in the shops by 7:45am to get fresh fruit and veggies. I also managed to get some swimmers and some final presents for the boys. I was all done and home by 9am. The boys and I hung out for the remainder of the day as daddy had several appointments and Christmas shopping to do.

No-one slept and strangely enough no-one jumped on the trampoline today. The reaon for the lack of jumping was the rain. Even though we have jumped in the rain with our swimmers on before it wasn't an option today. So now the boys are finally asleep and Santa is welcome to arrive anytime. We have Santa's favourite food out- Smarties- all ready for him. Plus we have a carrot for the reindeers and also an orange juice.

Anyway, I must go because I can see wrapping paper just staring at me.

Summer Holidays

Our holidays have begun. I can't believe that finally this year is coming to an end.  Hooray!!  Daddy and I are so very excited. So are the boys. Brandon in particular is looking forward to going on holiday. Just before he went to sleep tonight he asked me if there would be crabs at the beach when we go on holidays. It was a bit unexpected because we hadn't been talking about crabs.

The 2 boys and I went and did some Christmas food shopping this morning. It was relatively pain free because we went to a brand new supermarket that was quiet, cool and the trolleys worked. The biggest commotion was little Bailey who did not want to get into the trolley in any way shape or form. He just wanted to stay in my arms. I knew he was tired and when he gets tired he just won't let go of me. Eventually he sat in the trolley. I used food as an incentive. It seemed to work.

Brandon managed to talk the whole shopping trip. Even when I eventually said that I would like 1 minute of quietness because I like quietness Brandon confirmed to me that he likes talking so he will keep talking. And so he did. Who knows when I'll ever get quietness or if I will ever get quietness again. We all survived the shopping so then we ventured home. Neither boy slept again today so it was full on all afternoon. We went outside to jump on the trampoline which I would have thought would tire them out, but no, they just kept jumping and so I joined them. And together we all jumped. We had lunch outside which was nice before we then ventured out the front to check the letterbox. Outside we were greeted by one of our neighbours who invited us over to have a look at her Christmas tree and lights and all of their miniature displays. While a very lovely gesture of kindness, it was one of the hardest things I did all day today. Bailey 's real name is destruction. Actually his true name is super destruction torpedo so imagine the potential chaos I was attempting to deflect.

Once we got home daddy arrived home soon after so then we all jumped on the trampoline. We just spent the day jumping on the trampoline. I went to work for the last time for 2010 while daddy jumped on the trampoline with the boys and somehow managed to feed them some dinner between jumps. Once I had finished work I was back jumping on that trampoline. The 2 boys pretty much bounced from the trampoline to the bath then to bed. I am sure that if it's not raining tomorrow we'll be back jumping.



Ho Ho Ho - Just 1 Day To Go!

I have 1 day of work left, as does daddy, until we are officially on Christmas holidays. Hooray!!! I can't wait.  The 2 boys and daddy and I have had a very big year. And we wouldn't be us if we weren't trying to wrap up another property deal before Christmas. We'll just have to see how we go.

The 2 boys and I searched high and low to find a Christmas tree today. We searched every where. The only place we found one was at the very bottom shelf at Coles supermarket shoved at the very back. We all jumped for joy. It was at this stage of desperation that the price was irrelevant. Luckily for me it was on sale for $10.50. It was worth every cent. We had 3 things to get at the shops today. The first one was the Christmas tree then we had nappy wipes and lastly we had to buy a new dual DVD player for the car. I had spent most of the morning trying to fix our current portable DVD player, even trying to organise spare parts. Alas, it was becoming more and more evident that I was going to need to get another one. As we are going on holiday soon and will be travelling in the car for many hours, DVD players are essential for every one's sanity. And they make time pass quicker.

With all 3 things in our trolley we ventured back home in the rain. Once home we hit the ground running. Apparently the Christmas tree had to be up straight away. So after a 1 minute reprieve, up it went. Nothing beats a real Christmas tree, but at least a plastic one is better than nothing. It just means that I'll order one  next week for next Christmas.

The tree looks good. For some completely unknown reason to me both boys needed to be nude to put Christmas decorations on the tree. Luckily I managed to take 1 photo pre-nudity. They never cease to amaze me. As neither little boy wanted to sleep today the camaraderie between the 2 boys was starting to slip away the tireder they got.. Eventually I had to separate the two because it was becoming all out war. The afternoon was spent with Brandon putting decorations on the tree while Bailey was around the other side of the tree causing mass destruction and ripping them off. I spent the afternoon trying to understand why they had to be nude to decorate a tree. I am still pondering.

I went to work for a few hours while daddy and the 2 boys watched Toy Story on DVD. Bring out the sunshine I say. Then we can all go outside and run around or jump on the trampoline. Well this time tomorrow we will be celebrating the beginning of our holidays. Fortunately I am fully booked with clients once I go back to work in late January -  which is reassuring.

For now though I am excited it's nearly Christmas and that it's nearly the beginning of another year. I can't wait to see what journeys and adventures we all have.

One Of The Greatest Smiles In The World.

When I heard Bailey awake this morning yelling "Mum .Mum. Mum" as he does every morning, I went in to say hello. I was greated by one of the most beautiful smiles I have ever seen. Bailey's smile lit his whole face up and as a result I broke out in a huge smile myself. It was the most perfect way to start the day. Then I changed a nappy. Any warm fuzzes feelings I had disappeared  for a few minutes as I wiped a little boys bottom. Then the beautiful hug Bailey gave me made everything all worth it.

Brandon slept into 8:30am this morning. That meant that he had had 11 1/2hrs sleeps. Wow wee! I think he is going through another growing spurt because his appetite has picked up again and no matter how much food he has, it's not enough. Our goal today was to get the boy's haircut and to finally get our real Christmas tree. It was all very exciting. So off we went firstly to get the boy's haircuts. They were both so fantastic. Both boys sat still. Both boys were well mannered. The owner of the hairdressing shop said she was very excited today because we were her first repeat customers. Excellent. We even got a reward card.

The boys looked very handsome. We jumped back in the car and drove all the way over to a Scout hall where they were selling Christmas trees. Except no-one was there. We pulled over and I rang several numbers to try and track down our tree. No-one answered and no-one was there and I had 2 boys and 1 mummy who really wanted a tree. The only way to deal with it was to move on. We headed homeward because we were going to now have to find a plastic Christmas tree somewhere. On our way home we passed some shops. They looked promising so we stopped, got out, had a peruse, spent $20 on things that we hadn't needed 5 mins ago, piled back into the car without a tree because they had sold out, and drove away. Found some more shops and just repeated the process from 20minutes ago. And yes, they too had sold out of plastic Christmas trees. Things weren't looking good.  We bought some lunch at the cafe and sat there and gobbled it up. By now we were all a bit over the shops and our eternal search for a tree so we went home.

Bailey was asleep by the time we got home and as daddy was already home Brandon was not going to sleep. We hung out together for a brief moment before I went to work. I was fully booked with clients this afternoon so I was busy. Eventually once I finished, daddy had already bathed the boys and they were in the crazy tired stage. I put Brandon to bed and daddy put Bailey. We had a busy little day.Tomorrow we will get a Christmas tree.

"I Have A Silly Mummy!"

(This post should have appeared before the previous one-this is Sunday and the one before is Monday. Due to the author's exhaustion she messed it up.)

Brandon told me this delightfully as we drove past some shops we were hoping top stop at. His words actually went like this " I have a big silly mummy. I have a silly mummy. I have a silly mummy!" By now he was in great fits of laughter. I'm thinking- I have a silly boy. Today we went to visit daddy at his job site. Being a Sunday and potentially the only worker who would have even bothered to turn up, the 2 boys and I thought we'd make a great visit to daddy. I was right- none of daddy's workers had come in to work as planned. Their financial loss.

We had made a gourmet lunch for daddy to eat, so we took that along with us on our car trip. We hung out with daddy for as long as we could while daddy had some food. Brandon was most distraught when we left daddy at work as we drove off. He didn't want to go. Eventually the tears subsided and we headed to the local shops where we were just for a little adventure. At the bakery we bought some yummy food and then went back to the car to eat it. I was hoping to set ourselves up in a park but mother nature had ideas of her own. It was still raining.

Home we came and the rest of the afternoon was just a blur. We jumped on the trampoline and Bailey had a swing. Both boys squelled in delight.

Once daddy arrived home, I drove off to the shops to attempt to buy some swimmers and some clothes. Was successful with the clothes, but not so with the swimmers

Sense Of Achievement

I have just taken this photo of the 2 boys. Brandon, Bailey and myself ventured over to our next door neighbours to look at his Christmas lights. They are absolutely lovely. Inspired by the extreme enjoyment and pleasure on the 2 boy's faces I piled them into the car and off we went to find and look at Christmas lights. We found some a few streets away. The whole street was lit up. We parked the car and the 3 of us got out to look at all the lights. The boys were so excited. The street even had a Santa there giving away lolly pops. I still can't believe that it's Christmas in only a few days.

The 2 boys and I had a busy day finalising things. We started off with my replacement Eftpos machine arriving for work. I thought they would do a clean swap, but the man installed it and activated it all. That's good. So now it's already to go. Once he had finished, I spent the next 45 minutes trying to get 2 boys dressed and then put suncream on them. It was a mission. I had sweat pouring off me. Finally to the garage where it takes another 10minutes to get the boys into the car. Again mission accomplished.

We had collected heaps more lovely things around our house that we just don't use so our first stop was to The Salvation Army to pass it on to someone else who may need it. We had boxes of kids clothes and toys and baby mobiles. You name it we had everything baby. Then we drove to a faraway shopping centre to drop in 2 entry forms that I had cut out from the paper to win a big screen TV. I just know that I am going to win! We all bought a drink each at the local bakery to rehydrate us so that we could keep on going.

We travelled into our local big shopping centre where we had many things to do. First up was all the banking. Done and relatively pain free. I never go into the bank anymore. I had forgotten how cumbersome it is. Anyway, from the bank we checked the PO Box. Then we went to BIG W to pick up our photos. We also had to buy some candles for my work and also a Christmas DVD. We went straight to the photos where I did a 180 degree turn and went back the other way. The que to collect photos was nearly 50metres long. There was no way I was going to wait. From here we went to get some candles for my work and then have a look at a Christmas DVD. We ended up with 2 DVDs, neither of which were Christmas related. I tried. The boys DVDs were - Thomas The Tank Engine (The first episode ever written.), and Meet Diego with Dora as well.

We eventually collected our BIG W photos when there was no-one in the que. I just walked straight up.and was served. BIG W led us to our next destination-The Newsagent. I was hoping that we may have won a huge chunk of money from Lotto, but alas, we didn't even get 1 cent, let alone our money back. I decided that it was home time so up the escalator we went. At the top we turned around and came back down. I had decided that this would be the only time I would have to get the last of Daddy's present. So I bought it. Now we really were heading home.

Both boys slept. So much so, that I had to wake Brandon up later in the afternoon.  We did washing and I managed to make some phone calls and then I got ready for work. Once daddy came home I went to get ready for my clients. My afternoon was spent at work. I can confidently tell you that daddy's afternoon was spent sneezing - for hours. He only stopped sneezing because he fell asleep on the lounge once I had finished work and was bathing the boys. We only have 3 more days until we are all on holidays. Can't wait. Once I had bathed the boys and got them dressed in their pyjamas, that's when we went off exploring our suburb for Christmas lights. I managed to get both boys organised, fed again, read to and then both to sleep. What a great sense of achievement. I really wanted to take the boys to look at Christmas lights and I'm glad that I did it.

Go. Go. Go.

I didn't take any photos of the 2 boys today as neither of them stayed still long enough for me to take a picture. They were just a big blur on the camera screen. Our day started very early this morning as daddy left for work at 5 am. The things you do with your own businesses and when it's only a week until Christmas. I was optimistic that daddy would be home by 10am because I was working very soon after that. The 2 boys and I went outside and jumped for ages on the trampoline. Then I swung Bailey on the swings while Brandon stomped around. By 8am it was way too hot to be outside any longer so we headed back inside to rehydrate and cool down a bit. The boys and I played with toys, had breakfast and then did some art and craft. We drew around our hands and then coloured them in. Then we got some coins, placed the drawing paper over them and then rubbed them with crayons. Before we knew it, the boys had their very own treasure. Brandon still has the coins by the side of his bed.

Daddy arrived home right on 10am and then off I went to work. I didn't have a very big work day planned which was quite nice. I'll make up for it this coming week. While I worked I think the 2 boys and daddy watched some TV and played with some toys and jumped all over daddy. Once I finished work the 2 boys and I went up to the local bakery to buy some late lunch. We hadn't gone food shopping yet, so our food situation was not looking good at home. Fully stocked from the bakery, we headed home to fill our bellies. Mission accomplished. Once refuelled all 4 of us went into the supermarket to buy our food for the week. And did we spend big.. The food better last us all week.

We didn't get home until nearly 4pm. I had had plans to go out and actually buy some clothes for myself this afternoon, but it just didn't happen. I think I need a personal shopper or at least a baby sitter. The perils of not having any family living anywhere near us. The boys were crazy. They were running around and squealling and wrestling and blowing raspberries on each other and just being the most silliest kids ever. So I started preparing dinner early. It was so very hot that I just gave the kids a huge platter each of some very yummy food. Bailey's ended up on the floor within the first 2 minutes. Brandon stuck it out by eating his. I am remaining optimistic that one day Bailey will stop throwing his food around and actually get it all into his mouth.

Once fed and bathed and all nice and clean, Brandon decided that he wanted to be a ghost using his bath towel over his head. He thought it was hysterical and it was pretty funny. The boys eventually put their heads on their pillows, and asleep they are. Hooray!. Now daddy and I can celebrate our 11th year wedding anniversary today. Congratulations to us!!!

A Storm Is Coming.

It's hot, oh so very hot. The humidity is extreme. So the 2 boys and I went swimming. Firstly we managed to do 6 loads of washing and get most of it dry before we went out. I had a feeling that the rain might come again later this afternoon. We all got into our swimmers and drove to the lagoon out next to the beach. It was busy with the school holidays on but it wasn't so extreme that you couldn't move. Perhaps everyone was at the shops. The 2 boys and I had a fantastic time.We swam and played with the surfboard. Brandon met another little boy and they had a great time together. In fact it was myself, Brandon, Bailey and the other little boy-Keiran- that all played together.

We did laugh today which was fantastic. Unlike yesterday. The sun was shinning and the 2 boys were having a great time. Eventually I had to pull them out of the water and encourage them to get dressed. They needed no encouragement to eat some food. There was a kids Christmas party happening right next to us while the boys ate their food. Brandon couldn't understand why he wasn't invited. From swimming, we came home. Both boys were asleep. Which sounds like the best place for them at the moment.

Once they awoke we changed nappies, had lunch, and drank heaps of water. Then we all went outside and played. We jumped and jumped and jumped on the trampoline. It was getting hotter and hotter and so were we. By now the boys were nude and jumping and wrestling on the trampoline together so I started squirting them with water. They loved it. It kept them cool too. Many hours later we actually got back inside. It was starting to rain and even though the boys were nude and wet, I didn't  think they really needed to be out in the rain. Once inside I put on a DVD for the boys to watch and cool down with.

I heard thunder. More thunder. Here comes the storm. This time I have candles, and torches and matches handy. Just in case we have another blackout. And here is the storm. Holly Cow. Hopefully we won't  get washed away. The storm came but here comes another one.

It's Truly How You Make It.

Today was an interesting day. Today was not a day that I would ever like to experience again. Today was a day when the 2 boys and I encountered a lot of cranky and tired and incredibly rude sales assistants. While I realise that there is only 1 week to go until Christmas and that the shops are very busy, and everyone appears quite stressed, I still don't believe there is a need for rudeness. So by 8am this morning when I had just had a very unexpected tyrant of abuse thrown my way by one of my suppliers, I wasn't feeling so optimistic about the day.

Shaking and very upset I thought I'm not going to let this 1 sided and unwarranted verbal abuse spoil my day so I packed the bag for the day and off the 2 boys and I went to Kmart to buy a little boy's birthday present. Here we encountered several sales assistants that truly did not want to be at work. Perhaps I wouldn't either if I was having to deal with all the people in the lay by que. But then again, perhaps it's truly how you make it that determines whether you have a happy experience or a frustrated one. At this stage I was still trying to maintain my composure. Then Bailey began to cry and cry and cry. Then he screamed and screamed and screamed.  I was calm and composed while trying to calm Bailey down. Then I thought "this is ridiculous. I don't want to be here. Evidently Bailey doesn't want to be here. Let's go." But Brandon insisted that we stay in the lay by que for our turn. He was such a good boy. I just looked down at my little 3 year old and I was so very proud of him. He truly has his moments. Most times he is a hurricane of pure energy but right now he was calm and composed and letting me know what he wanted to do.

After finishing at the lay by counter we walked through the front cash registers to be served by yet another person who should just have stayed in bed. Bailey was screaming still so I grabbed the nearest thing at the registers for calming someone down. It was chocolate and it was for me. And I enjoyed all of it. The learning part of today's Kmart experience was I never realised how many people walk around a shop on a mobile phone by themselves. The only reason I learnt this was because of the absolutely filthy and disgusting looks I got as Bailey screamed and screamed and they couldn't hear themselves. It was best we go to the car and go home.

Baileys screaming continued most of the way home until I pulled over to a side road, jumped out of the car, opened up Bailey's door and sat down next to him. And there we sat. By the side of the road. The 2 boys and I. Life passing us by.

Both boys were asleep by the time we eventually got home. The afternoon just passed. A huge storm came over and everything got very dark. I thought we would have another blackout, as we did last night. But the power stayed on. I spent the evening at work before finishing up and then putting Brandon to sleep. I was so tired that I actually fell asleep on Brandon's floor, as daddy did while putting Bailey to sleep. As I sit here recounting today's experiences I have tears rolling down my eyes. Tomorrow will be a better day and the 2 boys and I will have lots of fun and there will be lots of laughter, because that's how I choose to make it.

"It's All About Me!!"

This is what Brandon continually told me today while in the car. Before I knew it Bailey was saying "Me. Me. Me" copying his big brother. Eventually the intensity and angry-ness of Brandon's comments subsided to be replaced by a game with Bailey of taking turns to say "Me. Me. Me".

We needed to do some chores today in the shops so off we headed. It was busy but it didn't feel chaotic. Everyone was just moving very slowly and spreading themselves across the entire walkway. Apart from that the 2 boys and I survived unscathed.

Home we went with no-one sleeping today. Some days they do and some days they don't. We walked in the door and then we were all drawing. As you do. We had picked up a big delivery at the post office of my stationary supplies and I needed to start doing some envelope stuffing for my clients. I also needed to get all the letters out in the post today. There is nothing like running a business with a 3year old sticking stickers all over you and a much smaller little boy jumping all over you. Somehow I managed to finish it all. I never would have dreamed I could do it. Hopefully my clients have got all the correct information I was attempting to send them and not a whole heap of wild animal stickers or drawings or anything else that made its way on to the table.

By now it was so unbelievably hot. If you moved you sweated. And we had the air conditioner on already. Once everyone was fed, the 2 boys and I ventured outside to the back yard to get wet. I set up a long blue tarp we had, covered it in bubble bath and then added water. Dressed in their swimmers the boys had a great time. They slipped and slided and ran and giggled. It was great fun. We stayed outside in the water for a very long time before eventually coming inside so that I could go to work. I only had 1 client tonight. Just as well because it wasn't long before my client left that we had a blackout. A storm was coming. With both boys eventually convinced that the thunder was OK and that someone was fixing the electricity they went off to sleep. While waiting for daddy to put Brandon to sleep I sat on the lounge with Bailey's torch and ate the remaining chocolate ice cream and read junk mail. I didn't know how long the power would be off. I didn't want to take the chance it could be hours. I wasn't letting the ice cream go to waste.

We ordered gourmet pizza for dinner which arrived in the dark. Luckily the lights went back on after about 2 1/2hours as did thankfully the ceiling fans. Ceiling fans are great. I was cool again. As Brandon would say "It's all about me!". Thanks electricity workers.

(I haven't put any photos in here today of the 2 boys. Once I eventually got the camera out Brandon was already completely nude. I didn't think he would appreciate me putting the candid photos of his nude butt on the computer. Instead you'll just have to enjoy my colourful text.)

Library Exhaustion

The 2 boys and I had a slow morning this morning. We are all just a bit tired. The boys must know that it's nearly the end of the year and things are winding down.

Nanny A left this morning at 4am to catch her plane. A charter bus came and collected her to drive her to the airport. We have all had a good time with Nanny. Now we are really on the downward slide to Christmas. Daddy and I have 1 more week and 1 day to go. It's also our 11th wedding anniversary this Saturday. For the past 11 years our anniversary has always got wrapped up with Christmas. One day I am determined that we will celebrate on a tropical island somewhere. 

Eventually the boys and I ventured into the car to drive to the library. Our local library has moved to a new location. The new space is OK. Not as big an area for little kids to play and read and draw but still good. Brandon played with a big boy who must have been about 8 years old. They played on the library computers together and Brandon was in great fits of laughter listening to this big boy. Bailey just kept running between the aisles. There was one moment for about 10seconds where I didn't know where Bailey had suddenly gone. I ran straight up to the library entrance/exit and worked my way back very quickly. My heart had stopped I am sure. Then I saw him. The good little boy was just standing near a lounge in the kids section waiting for me. It was literally 10 seconds but my gosh it felt like eternity.

There isn't anywhere to eat some food any more at the library so the 2 boys and I borrowed 12 books and aBarney DVD and then went back to the car and ate some morning tea/lunch. Once we got the car moving both boys eventually fell asleep. I knew that they would. I knew that they needed to. Today it was actually Brandon that fell asleep almost straight away, while Bailey read and read his Thomas The Tank Engine library book.

The 2 boys hardly slept so by the time I had put them in bed and unpacked the car, they were both awake again. The afternoon was spent playing in the kids bedrooms and in the toy room. The boys watched the Barney DVD. Absolutely riverting. Once daddy came home I flew off to get ready for work. The boys spent the afternoon playing outside on the trampoline with a very tired and exhausted daddy. We all just have to hang in there for 1 more week..

Both boys love the library. They looked like they were having a great time. It was my turn to put Brandon to bed tonight so we read quite a few of the library books. I just know that we will be reading the rest of the collection bright and early in the morning. What a great way to start the day.