Changes.

I've always been fairly good with dealing with change. I can usually take things as they come and appreciate things for face value. Time moves fast, life moves on....it's all part of it!

But, as I get older, I'm struggling more with accepting change. Because I'm realising that change means growth and next stages and moving forward. And although growth, next stages and moving forward are all positive & exciting changes - they are also scary and overwhelming and contain too much meaning. I've been noticing change a lot lately. Changes in the distance traveled from Ryder being a newborn to now a walking, chattering toddler with personality and spark. Changes in location and careers and relationships. And changes in Ella! I swear it was just yesterday that I was dropping her at Daycare for the first time, at 12 months of age - both of us in tears. To today, her last day of Kindy FOREVER!! She's grown and stepped up to a new stage and moved forward. Fulltime school starts in January, and this brings a heap of emotions for me. Letting go is seriously the hardest part of parenting.

Last night, we celebrated the end of an era. The end of Ella's Kindy days....

Her school put on a fabulous picnic / concert / disco.

It was all kinds of lovely.

Baby Brother cheered on from the sidelines. It'll be his turn one day. Don't even get me started on that!!!!

Nanny & Pa came along. The love between Grandparents and Grandchildren is so so special. I'm so blessed to be able to witness this often between both mine and Chris's parents.

We danced and sung, and basically celebrated the end of a fabulous Kindy year.

Being a teacher, I found it quite hard deciding what school we will send our children to. As the year progressed, we were reminded many times that we have made the right decision for Ella, and for our family. This school will truly help Ella bloom. It just feels so right. Again, last night we were shown how perfect this place is for our girl.

And watching these two together, was pretty special. Daddy and daughter having fun. Loving life!

Yes, he did the Chicken Dance and wore a flashing head band. Coz that's what Daddy's do; to make their girl's smile.

I know I'm an over-analyser, but this morning seemed so nostalgic. It was the last time I was taking her to Kindy. The last time she wore that uniform. The last time she walked through that classroom door and greeted her amazing teacher; Mrs P.

I couldn't help but be emotional. Another whole year has come and gone. It doesn't feel too long ago that we dropped Ella off here for her first day!

She's grown so much. Changed so much. Blossomed! And all I can do, as her Mumma; is embrace this change, accept it and move forward with her!

Step by step, year by year, I'm learning to let go. {How long does this last? Will I still be holding on to each milestone and change when she's 16, 18, 25?}

Until then..... we have until the end of January to hang out together, every single day. I'm making the most of it.

Accepting change!

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We head off to Japan on Sunday! Oh.my.freakin.gosh! This week has been a whirlwind of to-do lists and 'stuff to do'! I have not stopped! I can't wait for this holiday! Stay tuned as I'm planning on doing some writing from there!

Yipppeeeeee!!!

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The winners of the Christmas Planners were:

Comment #2: Claire

Comment #13: Steve

Comment #11: Karyn

Comment #5: Jodie-Lee

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

E - is for ELLA

This week's letter for the A-Z ALL ABOUT ME challenge is E. This linkup is hosted by Kate. You can see my other letters so far HERE.

I was going to go off on a different tangent with the letter E this week. But this weekly challenge is to write about ourselves...to write about ME, and a huge part of me, is of course our little bug Ella. How could E not be about her? :)

This blog is jam packed with how I feel about my kids. I have dedicated many posts to my gorgeous girl. Just search her name on here, and you'll find hours of Ella posts :)

So, I thought I'd do this one a little differently.....

An acrostic poem, listing words that describe our big, beautiful 4 yr old girl.....

E is for .....

Ella, energetic, entertainer, easy to be with, excited, eager to learn, electric with life, educated, and sometimes emotional.

L is for....

loveable - oh so loveable, laughing all the time, loves big, learner, loyal, lively,

L is for....

 loud, left handed, loves life, ladylike {most of the time}, lucky, loved.

A is for....

angelic {sometimes}, academic, active, always thinking, allergic to sleep, animated, addictive, alert, alive.

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Oh, Miss Ella Bella Boo...we love YOU!!!!

The Baby Whisperer.

Ella has been a pretty fab big sister these past few months.

Towards the end of my pregnancy with Ryder {not long after our USA holiday}, Ella started to get a tad touch of the 'diva attitute'. She started to, very mildly, do things for attention or talk back to me. I worried. This was not like her. I cringed....ahhhh, yikes, what happened to my easy angel? I put it down to her feeling a little uneasy, maybe confused, maybe even jealous about another child about to enter our family. That phase didn't last long thankfully. Ryder arrived in November & Ella slipped into the role of "big sister" easily & lovingly.

For the first few weeks of Ryder's life, I had major 'Mummy Guilts' from the decreased attention & time Ella was getting from me. But it was me making myself feel that way, not her.....she was fine, she was happy, she was coping!

This girl has always amazed me. Still on a daily basis, she leaves me gob smacked with something she does or says. She's a breath of fresh air.....so full of life, so full of passion & intent. 

And she has a way with her Baby Brother. She can make him smile; the biggest possible smile. She can make him laugh; a really big belly laugh. She loves him.....and it's pretty obvious he's loving her back! As a Mumma, that makes me so incredibly complete. That's happiness!

Ryder {like all newborns/infants} can be quite fussy. Overtired, hungry, uncomfortable, bored etc etc....he lets us know when he's not feeling any form of contentment.....and a lot of the time, this happens in the car. During a loud, frustrated moment whilst driving the other day {Ryder's grizzles getting louder, every red light stopping just for us I swear, we were running late for wherever we were going & Ella trying to talk to me over the top of the radio & the crying baby} {yep, that's my new normal lol} I huffed & puffed and cursed a little something under my breath. Ella grabs the book she had lugged into the car the day before & says "Don't worry Mum, I have this book here about Babies. I will read it to you & then we'll know why Ryder is crying!" She begins to read. {ok....well, not read, she's just turned 4...and the book is full of HARMONY quotes & mentions no where any parenting or baby tips.....but she was serious, so I took her serious.....I had to listen} She started: "If your baby is crying, he is probably growing teeth or hair. This can hurt. All you need to do is give them plenty of rest & sleep. Feed them bottles, change their nappy & change their clothes. If they are crying, don't worry, it will be fine, just sing them a lullaby." And on that cue, she breaks out in the lullaby I still sing to her each night when I tuck her into bed. She sung it so calmly, so beautifully, over the top of the cries....making up the words as she went. And do you know what? Ryder stopped his grizzly shrieks and just gazed into his sister's eyes!

She's got this baby thing down pat! I might book her out......anyone need a Baby Whisperer?

I love these crazy 2.

Oh, the joys of her! At 4, she already takes so much notice of what I do, what I say & how I parent. I guess it's important that I remember this...she's always watching & learning from me! She's a sponge & I love filling her with watery knowledge & imagination.

Yet, sometimes, she's the teacher & I'm her student. This girl has taught me so much about life & living it and being a Mum. Funny that.

Friday Funk Fix

I woke up on Friday in a bit of a funk....a mood. No real reason I couldn't put my finger on the exact cause of the mood. I'd say it had something to do with the many wakings & attending to baby during the night plus a wet bed belonging to a certain gorgeous girl that I had to clean, change & remake at midnight, mixed with the 5:30am start for the 5th morning in a row! Yeah, I'd say that was the cause!!!!!! But, like all mornings, I chose to get on with it & make the day better. I walked down the stairs {more like stumbled, all fuzzy eyed} and was greeted by an amazing sun rise out our back deck. That made me smile. Followed by a strong coffee & some baby snuggles on the couch with a grizzly 4 month old. The dewy, misty clouds covering the forest & mountains lifted & a vibrant blue sky was revealed. "Today's gonna rock" I decided. "I will turn this mood around!"

So, I started the motions of the morning chores & routine. Ella had missed kindy the day before due to a runny nose & cough, so I decided to keep her home Friday too. I got on my running shoes & Lorna Jane gear & planned out the rest of the morning in my head: cleaning, baby naps, baby wakes, go to Mum n Bub fitness class, stop at Print shop, go to Post Office, go to IGA, home for baby's nap....etc etc....

And then.....it all fell to crap! Ryder was sooky & needy. I could not put him down for 1 second. And normally I love to carry, cuddle & nurture....but 1. He's heavy....really heavy, and 2. I had stuff to do, lots of stuff, and I was on a time schedule too. He refused to sleep, yet refused to play. He cried when I tried to feed him. He cried when I took the food away. He cried if I dared put him down to go to the loo, or do the dishes. You get my gist!

So, fitness class was to be missed. All chores called off! I dropped a few {ok, a lot} of things off my 'to do' list and came up with a new plan.

My bad mood returned. I was frustrated.....I hate when plans don't go to plan.

After lots of cuddles & rocking & patting, Ryder eventually passed out :) And at that moment, I was just about to sit down with a coffee & loose myself in some blogs, facebook or emails....AND....Ella asks "let's play Mummy!" "Can I put some makeup on?"

Normally, I would say no to makeup. Too messy, and she's too young. But at that moment, I didn't think that.....I thought: "Ummm Hell yeah! Some time with my girl, doing girly things may be EXACTLY what I need!"

And, you know what? 10 minutes in our bathroom, sittng on cold tiles.....cured my mood, just like that :)

Yeah, she looked like a Drag Queen after doing her own makeup....but it was fun...and funny! And yes, I let her go out later that day like that :) Hey, you only live once don't you? :)

White eye shadow on cheeks & chin.....the new 'in' look :)

And, then we shared a "you paint my nails, and I'll paint yours" moment :)

Coz...that's what girls do....apparently :)

Maybe it won't work everytime a nasty mood creeps up on me....but on this Friday....it worked a treat :) Watching my girl messily apply makeup & then painting each other's nails.....perfection! The end result = 2 happy girls!

Then Ryder woke up.....crying {damn teething & the after-math of immunisations!} and on with the day we rolled :)

The day definitely got better though.....awesome in fact! And ended with lots of wine, guests sleeping over & kids having fun! Will blog about it later :)

What 'things' cure your bad moods? I'd love to know.....hey, maybe I can borrow your cure next time :)

The Balloon.

Each guest at Indi's party, was given a red & white polka dot helium balloon to take home. I suggested to Ella that we make a wish for Indi on it, and let it free. "No hanks Mum" {I love how she says 'hanks' for 'thanks'.....CUTE.....I guess I should start correcting her.....but gosh it's cute!} "I already made a wish for Indi at her party, 2 wishes actually, so I think we should keep this balloon for a bit longer". I then reminded her that helium balloons loose their air after a while & within 2 days it'll be deflated & we'll have to throw it out....she was ok with that!

BUT......almost 5 days on, and the dang balloon is still flying strong in our house :) There's magic in this balloon I swear {Kate, where did you get these? lol}. It is still full & flying high!!!!

And it's kind of become one of the family :) It's bobbed around from room to room {and gave me an almighty fright the other night when I stumbled out to the lounge at 3am to feed Ryder & saw this dark round object above me!!}. Every now & then Ella will play with it & we will find it tied to something....Chris's bike, the microphone stand, the nappy change table...or Ryder:

Even he's loving having the balloon around.

Yes, I know, we need to buy the poor boy his own fold out couch. So Brother isn't always photographed on a pink floral background :)

And even Mr Tiger enjoys having the balloon here....nothing like a view of red spotty joy when you're being fed invisible mashed peas :)

I wonder how long we can keep this balloon in tact before science takes over & the pressure & heat forces the helium out......or until Chris or I can't resist the temptation anymore & suck out the contents for a hilarious moment of chipmunk talk :) Either way, surely this balloon won't be still cruising the inside of our house next week.....I'll keep you posted :)

Happy Thursday!

Building Bears & Bowling......week-a-boo.

Saturday afternoon called for hot cocoa. It was rainy, dreary & muggy. It was definitely not cold.....but the look of the evening just yelled "Hot chocolate weather!!". So, my girl & I enjoyed a mug of sugary goodness. And it was gooooood. 

I'm totally over this rain! It has rained almost non-stop since the week of Ella's party. Our backyard is a sludgey mud pit, the local park is almost a swimming pool & when we drove past the beach yesterday; instead of seeing the usual horizon of aqua blues & glittery silver waves.....we saw a mush of chocolate coloured wash. Everywhere & everything feels damp and getting washing done is, well.....not really happening! OVER IT!

On Saturday, I was just about to loose it. I had cabin fever & it felt like the walls of our living room were closing in on me. Most of the time, I like the balance of homey weekends, where we do puzzles & make messes & squeeze in nanny naps in the afternoons. But not at the moment, I feel forced inside & I hate that. I really did not feel like doing yet another Dora puzzle or round of Princess Bingo for the 15th time.

Then Chris's parents called & said they were dropping in for lunch. Thank goodness! It broke up the afternoon perfectly & my cabin fever nicely dissolved. We enjoyed wine at 1pm.....because we can :) It was nice!

Somone wants to roll.

Sunday, we braved the wet, slippery roads & headed out as a family of 4, for our 'Annual Build A Bear Day'. We've been doing this around Ella's birthday every year since she was born.....a little tradition that we'll continue until she's too old & too cool for stuffed bears :)

Four Years - Four Bears.

It was kind of sad & kind of exciting at the same time, to see how much Ella has grown....even since this time last year. She hardly needed our help this time. She chose the toy, followed all the steps with little assistance & even typed the details onto the Bear's Birth Certificate at the computer! I guess that's another cool thing about traditions.....even though you're doing the same thing over & over again, it's still different; you get to see it in a different light, at a different stage, a different feel. It's refreshing & reassuring all at the same time. I love creating traditions & memories with my family.

Stuffing the bear, putting her heart & voice in and stitching her up. All while little brother looks on from his pram.

Grooming the new bear.

Creating the birth certificate.

The finished product.

Introducing our latest 'build a bear' member....CANDY!

And Ella paid for her herself, using some birthday present money :) Thanks Pa Ken!

Hmmm.....Mummy needs to iron more often I think :)

We then went upstairs to the Cavill Ave Timezone. It's basically a buzz of serious over-stimulation & chaos.....but a lot of fun, especially on a rainy day of forced inside play.

Chris got right into it :) Ella was a little overwhelmed by the noise at first, but then sister relaxed & had a blast! Ryder just looked around & took it all in from his pram....this boy likes to chill & observe :)

We played away the rainy blues!

And bowled.....

Not sure what's going on with these last 2 photos.....they were a nightmare to upload on here & now they look all blurry! Ah well. You get the general gist of the bowling experience. 

I love weekends :)

Now, to get ready for the busy week ahead.....sister is off to 3 full days of Kindy this week, Chris is having surgery on Wednesday, I've got some invitation & print orders to complete.....and a photo/blog project I'm kicking off on Wednesday :)

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Talking of prints.....

Have you seen my 2 new ones in the 'rainbow range'?......

Both available to buy HERE in my webstore.

Have a great week everyone.