This is my FAV shot, taken just as the sun went down from my front yard – how amazing is it? and without any filters or tricks!
All of these photos were taken by my iPhone 5 and haven’t been edited in any way.
There is nothing more amazing than the power of mother nature and I adore storms, lightning, thunder.
Do you have a favourite type of weather? Sun, rain, stormy?
It’s Wednesday so I’m linking with Trish at My Little Drummer Boys
Bree @ Twinkle in the Eye
And Ai at Sakura Haruka
While most mums are pulling victory laps of the school drop-off zone – I’m actually lamenting the end of the school holidays!
And no I haven’t gone soft in the head, I just really adored spending quality time with my oldest cherub, we also had lots of laughs.
Not surprisingly I also LOVED not having to force help two cheeky toddlers get dressed, put shoes on, get in the car, sit in their car seats, get strapped in to their car seats, be transferred to a stroller, not scream and hit me in the head, EVERY MORNING!
Styling it wearing my daughter’s helmet, sunglasses and cardigan – eat your heart out Pink!
My girl and I had such a great time bonding, dressing up, crafting, catching up with friends, riding her scooter, and playing Candy Crush Saga – sorry Jess it must have my daughter who asked you to “send me a life” (okay so it was me but let’s not tell anyone else 😉 )
In saying all of that – it just wouldn’t be a post from me if I didn’t point out a few obvious benefits of school.
QUESTIONS
For six hours a day I don’t have to answer 345 tricky questions from a curious and smart five-year-old, especially ones such as “what is a stiffy?” (thanks husband for this great terminology).
SEATBELTS
Instead of strapping three kids in the car, I only have two – that also means less toilet stops, fewer shoes to put on, fewer teeth to ensure are brushed, less time wasted picking clothes to wear, and less time spent spraying anti-cootie product in hair!
LIES
I can tell my three-year-old that Maccas has run out of chips, we have no ice blocks, and that there is a sign in every shop telling him that he can’t do the naughty thing he is doing!
SHUT EYE
While I didn’t get any more sleep, I did spend more time with my eyes closed, lying in bed and not worrying about having to get up and out the door at a certain time.
However, this was marred by the fact that No.3 had more time to learn how to open the fridge, pull out the water jug and attempt to fill his cup most mornings! I can’t believe the little monkey can actually do it, but I have a huge pile of towel washing to prove it!
I think the kids also enjoyed being allowed to watch more movies, I mean visual educational material 😉
I think it was about 7am when this photo was taken, and the first time I had actually got out of bed for the morning – BLISS. And surprisingly they aren’t staring at the periodic table of elements, the TV is on!
What do you LOVE or HATE about school going back?!
It’s Tuesday so linking with Jess from Essentially Jess
Some people come in to your life for a short time not a long time.
They have their reason for being there, a purpose or perhaps something to teach you.
But there some people that come in and out of your life throughout the entirety of it – not staying for long but making a cameo appearance once and a while.
Just recently I went on holiday with two women who I have known since I was 16.
The two women that accept me for who I am – and that’s some sort of crazy at times!!
I spent my last year at high school in a new school, but was made to feel welcome by a group of girls, including the two I recently went on holiday with.
We are now in our mid-30s, have eight kids between us and haven’t all been in the same room for more than 10 years.
But being on holiday with them was like nothing had changed, deep down we were still the same people we were some 20 years ago and accepted each other for that.
For example, they knew I would say inappropriate things, make comments about spunky staff, and never refuse a bubbly.
There was no awkwardness and no feeling of having to make polite shit-shat about stuff.
If it was a spade we would all call it that.
We were all comfortable being around each other – it’s like we were back in high school.
Accept we have kids whinging at us, can’t seem to find our waistlines, and can no longer drink like we used to (although I still gave it a good old fashioned try).
Ain’t that the truth! Image source
What makes me happy is that these two woman accept me for who I am, warts and all, even after all these years.
Maybe it’s a reflection of how friendships can grow over time.
Or perhaps it’s just that they were too polite to tell me my kids were devils in disguise and they never wanted to holiday with us again!! 🙂
Either way I’m thankful to know them and be a part of their lives, even if it’s just every now and then.
Are you happy with having friends come in and out of your life? Or do you get upset when they don’t contact you for ages and expect to you to pick up where you just left off?
I’m linking with Leigh at Six by the Bay for Thankful Thursday!
And Blogs and PR for Talk to Us Thursday
We could have been on any tropical beach in the South Pacific, except we were a one-hour ferry trip from Brisbane.
Not a bad view huh!
In the background you can see the shipwreck, the quad bike track and the front right is our balcony!
Some of the 220 steps we did up from the beach to our house. Then it was 220 down. THEY WERE TIRING!
The sunsets were just beautiful!
Watching fish at the jetty!
We had 10 dolphins come in for a feed, and two babies, just adorable.
Mum and bub were quite a hit with the tourists!
Cheeky boy who thinks he’s a big boy!
Kookaburra feeding!
Behind me is the wreck the Husband and I swam next to, we didn’t have fins and current was too strong so we didn’t attempt heading out. The crazy face is a result of having a drinkie on the beach! Our friends gave us two hours without kids, and we did the same for them, best idea ever!
Looking from Moreton Island towards Brisbane, a storm’s a brewing!
On the way home! All tuckered out!
Do you have a favourite family holiday spot? Have you been to Tangalooma?
I love Wednesdays because it’s Wordless Wednesday and I can link with Trish at My Little Drummer Boys
And the lovely Ai at Sakura Haruka
And last but not least – Bree @ Twinkle in the Eye
Hey peeps, happy ‘shit this sun is bright’ Easter from me!
CUTE, my boy kept his on for 29 seconds!
It was rather cute actually because big sister would give the yellow wrapped eggs to her brother!
As for this ratbag, it was more about what was on the INSIDE of the foil!
Not a bad view yeah?
Here is No.3 heading down to see the cows, with pancake mix in hand!!!!
Got halfway there and cracked the shits!
But that didn’t last long because the world famous ‘gate swing’ ride was operating (thanks nanny) x
This is brick face, I just added grass and VOILA – doesn’t it look amazeballs?!
Some of my mum’s flowers!
Okay so this is probably a flower, the other might just be a weed but WHAT EV’S!
This big sucker here is a HUGE cactus, anyone know anything about it!
Rusted fence, bull ants crawling up latch and I made mum close this, because that’s what mums do for their kids!!
All of these were taken with my iPhone 5
What is your favourite photo and why?
It’s hump day – aka Wordless Wednesday – and linking with the amazing Trish at My Little Drummer Boys
Ai at Sakura Haruka
Bree @ Twinkle in the Eye
When I took this photo I just thought it was cute because it was my boy staring into the vast ocean.
Then the more I look at it I wonder what he’s thinking about.
Taken during a gorgeous day at Burleigh beach with friends.
I bet he’s just taking in the scenery, the waves rolling in, the seagulls flying over head, and wishing he could have another wee bottle of juice, his favourite treat in the world!
And that is all I want him to be thinking about. I don’t want him to worry about a thing in the world because as his mum that is my job.
It’s my role to make sure he feels safe, happy, wanted, adored, appreciated, and loved unconditionally.
Every time I see my daughter chew her nails I ask what’s bugging her or making her anxious and then do my best to take away her worry.
As we grow older, we become more independent and take on that role ourselves.
We are the ones responsible for our own happiness – because no one else can do this for you.
It’s true that we have partners, friends and family to love and support us, but it’s foolish to rely on them to make you feel whole.
Besties!
But it’s hard to explain to a three-year-old why we can’t invite ourselves to his daycare mate’s house for dinner.
Or why an older child is mean to him because he’s not a ‘big boy’.
We can’t shield our kids forever, but if we can educate them that we can’t be friends with everyone – then maybe we can build resilient kids.
Every day I learn something from my children, usually it’s something about ‘poo pee and wee wee sandwiches’ but sometimes it’s amazing.
Like the other night my son looked me in the eye and said ‘I lub you mum because you smell nice and lub (love) me even when I cry’.
The next day my daughter gave me a reality check, with her big brown eyes, she starred into my eyes and said ‘I don’t want you to die mum!’
I laughed it off and told her it would be ‘years and years and years and years and years and years etc etc’ until that happened.
But honestly a little piece inside of me felt crushed – because I knew there would come a time when she would mourn for me.
Anyway – enough doom and gloom – I’m going to leave you with a CUTE photo of my girl and I at my parents wee ‘ranch’ this Easter.
Awww – CUTE or what?
What have your kids taught you? What lessons do you think we should pass on to our children?
So I’m a sheep and have joined the new world of Bloglovin
Hey Jess @ Essentially Jess – thanks for another IBOT
Without sounding paranoid, I think my boys are secretly plotting to f#*k me up.
They have reached new heights in driving me ‘bat-shit mental’ and now verging on sending me ‘I really should trim those hairs on the palms of my hands’ crazy.
Don’t be fooled by their innocent-looking faces – they have recently written a new chapter in the boisterous boys book.
My boys are like two peas in pod at times.
Nothing stops them from doing what they shouldn’t be doing, running on couches, hurling themselves on the couches, opening the fridge and pulling everything out, turning on and off the air conditioning, getting food out of the pantry.
They truly just stare at me, laughing, as if almost daring me to tell them off or put them in the naughty corner again.
Oh sorry, did I mention they are just 3 and 1.5 years?
Honestly, I’ve no idea how to move forward from this, and embarrassingly, I think they are out of control.
And I’m not going to even weigh-in on the whole ‘give them a wee smack on the bottom that will sort them out’ debate.
It doesn’t work folks – kids will still be little shits – and teaching them it’s okay to hit someone else really isn’t the way to improve their behaviour.
Here’s a few things I know my boys do that make me want to go out to the shop, buy some cigarettes and never return. (and no I don’t smoke, but that’s the stereotypical thing people say when they talk about mums who escape desert their families).
1. They are always on the scrounge for food, so pantry/fridge gets opened 85 times a day.
2. Leaping across the couch, which freaks me out as No.3 already cut open his eye doing this a few weeks ago.
3. Crying, screaming, screeching when they don’t get want they want, which is pretty much ALL the time!
4. Waking up at 4.30am and not going back to sleep.
5. Going into the shower and trying to eat the body wash/shampoo and then pumping it all over the house – note – this is only the 1.5 year old.
Now I know they’re only little but damn they can get inside my skin like nothing ever has before.
Leaving the room doesn’t help, they seriously follow me around like flies to a cow’s bum.
Counting to 10 also doesn’t ease my blood pressure, I haven’t got the patience to meditate and while it’s tempting, I can’t start drink during the day.
Awww – aren’t they adorable little shit heads!
What’s a girl to do?? Seriously peeps words of wisdom gratefully received!
This Good Friday I’m linking with
Miss Cinders @ Saturday Morning Orge Mum for Things I know
Grace @ With Some Grace for FYBF
Cathy @ The Camera Chronicles for Flashback Friday
And Bree for Flash Blog Friday
I shed more than a few tears as I put this post together.
Five years ago today, at about 3pm, my gorgeous girl started her journey on this earth.
Her birth was peaceful, she is amazing and I can’t imagine my life without her.
When she tells me she loves me I tell her ‘I love you more’, she then says “I love you the most’.
I wish I could go back in time and just cuddle a baby version of her one more time….
Just hours old
Battling chronic reflux, at six weeks the only way to get her to sleep for more than 20 minutes during the day was to put her on her tummy! I watched her the WHOLE time.
She has never loved food, but I persisted because having something solid in her tummy helped settle her tummy after she vomited about 15 times a day.
She had a taste for newspapers, just like her mum
Peek a boo!
My favourite photo of my girl and I!
She didn’t even start to get hair until she was 2 years old!
GORGEOUS even when she was sad
Her favourite activity was going for a bike ride with dad!
At three years old she was already wise beyond her years.
Playing doctors was her favourite thing at three years old!
The morning of her 4th birthday with her little Buzz brother
Waiting for her cake to come out!!
I love the look on her face when she sees her princess cake – just gorgeous.
Celebrating with her school friends!
Growing up so fast – she loves to scooter to school!
Gorgeous birthday girl who is SO excited she is now 5 and told the supermarket check out chick that today is ‘actually my birthday’.
If you’re anything like me there are days when you’ve had enough of battling with young children, the tantrums, the fights, the questions – but we have such an important role to play.
We grew them inside our bodies for nine months, and now for our lifetime we must nurture their souls, teach them the ways of the world and most importantly give them unconditional love.
Happy birthday princess – I love you to the moon and back!
My favourite blogging day – Wordless Wednesday with Trish at My Little Drummer Boys
Ai at Sakura Haruka
Bree @ Twinkle in the Eye
It blows me away the search engine terms people use, it’s a great source of amusement to me!
The majority of them were related to boobs! Seriously haven’t these people heard of online porn, stick mags or the dodgy DVD section at the video shop?
Anyway, here’s a sampler of some of the more obscure (and socially acceptable) search terms people plugged in and found my blog.
The proof that some people are just plain idiots.
1. Post about farting on a child in a supermarket – I bloody well hope it was on accident!
2. Slightly overweight shirtless naked – How flattering, but I’m confused. Do you want me to be shirtless or naked or both?
3. I’m 51 and cant get my shit together – I gotta say you’d better hurry up and start trying a wee bit harder (and learn about apostrophes).
4. Hot woman accidentally farts – It was only once and it smelled like roses – truly!
5. Land diving for kids – Glad you’re not my parent!
6. Long hair on my boobs – Buy some tweezers or get a wax, but before you do, I’m curious as to HOW long it actually is?
7. Tradies butt cracks – Whatever floats your boat.
8. Hunchback masseuse – Now this I’ve got to see, Quasi Massage, – quite a catchy name me thinks.
I can just see him wondering how the hell he got roped into the massage business. Source: senfonikankara.tumblr.com
9. A dull woman keeps an immaculate home – Damn straight they do – or that’s what I tell myself 😉
10. Do hawks laugh? – Sure they do – at your for asking such a stupid question!
Totally know this isn’t a hawk – but it’s laughing so cut me some slack. Source: palestinerose.wordpress.com
Go on share the laughter, please tell me some of the search terms you have got?? Apart from those creepy rude ones which I kinda have enough of myself!!
Another IBOT with the lovely Jess @ Essentially Jess
What a week! What a weekend! And shit oh dear it’s Monday – again!
Did you manage a sleep-in? Or at least try to fake a headache or say that you’d been up all night with ‘Johnny’ to get one – that’s always a good move.
I was fortunate to have my big sissy visiting and our children flocked to her like flies to a shit sandwich.
She was most of the reason we threw a last-minute party for my daughter’s 5th birthday.
There are heaps of people that she didn’t think of to invite (yes I let her choose) but you can’t keep everyone happy all of the time.
I know she had a fantastic day, which is all that matters.
So from start to finish, or A to Z as the case may be, here is the day in a nutshell.
Amazingly I didn’t stress or worry about the party AT ALL, despite the fact I didn’t organise a pickle ’til Friday!
But then again I did freak out when the portable CD player didn’t work for pass the bloody parcel.
Considering how hot it was, due to the massive storm that happened in the afternoon, most kids joined in the party games.
Taken by my iPhone 5
Deciding who won ‘put the chicken in the barn’ (we had no donkey) was bloody hard.
Every child got lots of prizes, but some were still upset at not winning everything – but that’s just life.
Ain’t that old man outfit so cute?!
Funnily enough my tantrum throwing baby was as happy as Larry most of the morning.
Great news for me and my sanity levels.
How long it would last I didn’t know!
I think he was too busy inhaling lollies to notice what was going on!
Some of the party gifts I wrapped up the night before
Jumping on the trampoline proved a great distraction for those who didn’t get a spot in musical chairs.
Keeping everyone happy isn’t as easy as it looks.
Luckily I had my awesome family there to help me control the rowdy crowd.
My girl had such a fun day – especially when she got her present from us!
This gorgeous outfit was handmade by Karla @ Little Miss Lacey Boutique (but that’s another whole blog post)
Needless to say – the day was a great success.
Obviously I couldn’t have done it without my awesome big sissy.
Perhaps I should also give a shout out to the Husband, who did help make room outside for a games arena!
Quite possibly he did more but I was too busy fluffing around to notice.
Really glad that I didn’t have to do it on my own.
Seeing and hearing No.1 laugh and giggle in delight with her friends made my heart smile.
Isn’t handmade wrapping paper the best (and cheapest) ever!
Unusual for me I know!
Very nearly fell asleep when the kids did after lunch.
Wowsers – what a day!
Xeroxing my butt would have been much easier.
You can see that from the previous statement that I am struggling for an X word.
Zero pain no gain right!
And because I love the idea of being positive at the start of the week I’m playing along with Kirsty @ My Home Truths and going tell you why I’m TOTALLY AWESOME!
1. Despite the fact I have three very dependent young children, I also work from home about 20 hours a week and help pay off the mortgage.
2. I am a good and reliable friend to those who return the favour.
3. I speak to my immediate family at least once a week, often more, not because I have to but because I want to.
4. I am a parent helper at my daughter’s school, plan to volunteer at tuckshop, play netball once a week, donate to the RSPCA, write articles about charities, read books to my kids and make dinner 5 out of 7 days a week.
5. Most of the time I usually cope with all of the above, my kids still drive me bat-shit mental, but most of the time I have my head above water – JUST!
6. The reason I am able to stay afloat is because of my McAwesome husband and I am awesome for finding him!
Why are you awesome? Or what awesome things did you do in the weekend?
Ummm – anyone tried this?
Linking with Kirsty for I Must Confess
Linking with Deb at Home Life Simplified for Listmania
And spilling my guts with Alicia at One Mother Hen for Open Slather Monday!
A family day at the Queensland Museum South Bank – the touring dinosaur exhibition and the always open Sciencentre.
No.3 fell asleep in the car on the way so missed the first 30 minutes of the day!
No.1 getting into the spirit of the dino exhibit, while No.2 was just making sure it wasn’t a ‘real’ dino.
Love these two!
Digging for bones!
A very proud mumma, they ADORE each other 99 per cent of the time.
No.2 was fascinated with the tornado!
Super freaky right?
What’s good for the goose!
We went up and down 24 times, 12 each way, much to the amusement of onlookers!
Leaving the museum, the kids were blown away with the size of the whale and so was I.
We’re waiting for this baby to hatch! 48 hours and counting.
HUMP DAY Wednesday and it’s Wordless!
Linking with three super ladies :
Trish at My Little Drummer Boys
Ai at Sakura Haruka
Bree @ Twinkle in the Eye
My heart was racing, I could barely eat (a rare thing for me) and I was consumed with worry about how the next hour would unfold.
I hadn’t felt this nervous since the eve of my induction with my second child.
What could get me, Mrs I Don’t Really Give A Shit About Much, so worked up?
A GAME OF NETBALL
Yep don’t rub your computer screens, you read right, I was totally working myself up into a frenzied state because after 17 years I was about to get back on the courts.
Is this what a netball looks like?
I bet you’re thinking what an awesome looking athlete I look here 😉 – this was taken nearly 20 years ago!
I was worried because I’m TOTALLY unfit and haven’t played any sport, apart from ‘chase three little shits around the house’ in years.
Don’t let my trademark chicken legs fool you – I’m so unfit that I need to stop for drink’s break when I walk down the driveway to get the newspaper!
I also knew that if I fell or played like a gumbie then I was letting the whole team down, and I hate that shit.
Being part of a team is a big deal to me and I didn’t want to be ‘that person’ who didn’t pull their weight, literally.
All day I hoped that each beep of my phone was my friend saying the game had been cancelled (sorry Ang but it’s true :).
No amount of peep talks from friends were helping – I just had to bite the bullet, put on three bras and have a teaspoon of cement.
Check out that mighty defence lean – which ALWAYS gets my pulled up by the refs
Stressing just before I took to the court
After 10 minutes I had to sub off because my legs were jelly and I couldn’t run anymore.
I then got my second wind and played the last two quarters, some in the rain, and kicked some teenage-girl butt!
It was AWESOME, I ran around like a possessed woman, leaping, jumping, and defending that ball like it was one of my children.
We won and I felt proud that I had helped achieve this in some way.
This is blurry because we were moving SO fast 😉
And it doesn’t matter that I’m now walking a bit like a cowboy and can barely move my arms, I leaped out of my comfort zone and have become part of a team again.
What team sport did or did you play? What’s stopping you from getting back into it?
Linking with Jess @ Essentially Jess for IBOT – she is off to DPCON13 or DEF CON 3 as I like to call it – have a ball girl – wish I was there!
People like me don’t just quietly live their lives – somehow we seem to offend, upset or mortify peeps without even knowing it!
And by people like me, I mean those who speak their minds, wear their heart on their sleeves, and usually call a spade a spade.
I don’t intend to offend but sometimes I do.
But I also pride myself on having the ability to put myself in someone else’s shoes – however sometimes it seems they don’t fit so well.
I could warble on here and give a zillion anecdotes but I’m going to spare you the melodrama.
So here’s a few Things I Know about myself that must annoy the crap out of people but they never tell me – what silly sausages they are.
1. I speak WAY too fast – like auctioneer fast – and if you throw in my Kiwi accent then half the time I know people are just nodding and smiling because they have not a clue what I just said.
2. Over sharing – it’s a McMassively huge habit of mine – I’ll divulge lots of random crap to strangers, check-out chicks and daycare teachers. PMS, period pain, why my eyebrows look so unruly, why my hair looks so dirty – you name it I’ll share it! I have no idea why, I sometimes just suffer from verbal diarrhoea, so shoot me!
Okay so I probably wouldn’t tell a stranger something like this!
3. I will put my screaming and tantrum-throwing children in a makeshift naughty corner in a shopping centre. It doesn’t matter where, in fact last week I made my son sit on the ground at the end of the check out until I was done. I didn’t blink an eye, I stood tall and strong and didn’t make unnecessary excuses for what I was doing. I was parenting.
I get about 15 of these a day, when he doesn’t get his way, usually they are accompanied by heading banging on tiles or whatever surface he has throw himself on.
4. As my children grow I will let them decide who they want at their birthday parties – why should I make them invite kids that they don’t want there? I know this isn’t a popular point of view but I’m also a parent that believes kids should learn they won’t always win, get a prize and have to have a few disappointments early in life. This might sound tough but I want to slowly and carefully prepare my children for the harsh reality that is the real world. And in the real world they won’t always get their way and will have to learn to cope with many setbacks.
Failure is not falling down but refusing to get up
6. I’ll NEVER sugar coat it. If someone asks how I am, especially someone I consider a friend, I’ll be straight up and tell them I’m struggling, going half insane and wish I could run away with the circus.
Don’t wanna know how I am, and I mean REALLY how I am? Then don’t ask! Last year every day was a shitty one and that is pretty much what I told anyone who asked – and with some I could almost hear the eye roll over the phone.
But then again, at least I’m honest and to me that is what friendship is all about, isn’t it?
Do you over-share info? Tell people how you really are? Or do you prefer to keep your private life private?
It’s been too long Miss Cinders @ Saturday Morning Ogre Mum but I’m back for Things I Know
And a big hug to Grace @ With Some Grace and Bree @ Twinkle in the Eye for letting me FLOG AND FLASH (and I do love flashing!)
My wee pork chop celebrating my birthday last month.
Trying to strangle me here but lucky she’s so cute I let her.
A cute photo but then he fell head first out the hole – OOPS!
This is what I found after frantically searching for my youngest at a park – he took his popcorn and ran so his bro and sis couldn’t get his stash (do you recognise this area Janet, it’s near your ‘backyard’?.
My princess – just like her mum – she loves to have a laugh 🙂
Don’t try this at home!
Mmmm, I wonder if mum will know if I throw myself down the slide?
Here I go…….
Totally jumping in the yukky mess she’s not allowed to!
I ADORE my children and their cheekiness, they are spirited, they complete me and without them I would be a lesser person.
What cheeky trait do love in your children or other special little people in your life?
It’s another wonderful Wordless Wednesday!
I’m linking up with the usual suspects:
Trish at My Little Drummer Boys
Ai at Sakura Haruka
Bree @ Twinkle in the Eye
Have a laugh on me 