Happy Times

Freshly washed diapers.

Lego love from G and J.

First smiles.

Yes, we have no bananas

It's 10 to 8 on a Friday night and I am about ready for bed. How many 33yr olds across this city can say that? But before I do that, let me send a shout out to the guy who stole the bananas out of my shopping trolley yesterday while I was putting the kids in the car. Yeah, I know you did it because the lady in the parking space across from you dobbed you in. In fact, she was pretty keen for me to jump in the car, chase you down and take my bananas back. You left the copy of Eat, Pray, Love I'd just bought in the trolley, so I thank you for that but stealing fruit from children is low, dude, low.

Remembrance of things I love

JW is sleeping in the bassinet where all our children have spent their first few months. It is also where I and my sisters slept as well as my cousins, my nieces and nephews and my mum and uncle. My grandmother bought it 70 years ago when my uncle was born and it has been cherished and handed down ever since. My grandmother even has the receipt for it and for all the other baby stuff she bought. In fact, she could probably produce the receipt for everything she's purchased over the years. I'd ask her how much the bassinet cost but I'm afraid she wouldn't be able to remember and since moving into a respite care bed in a nursing home on Monday she's not at her home to look it up for me.

She is 91 and has been living on her own since her husband died in 1961, she has resisted moving for years but after a few very difficult weeks has had to admit that she needs to be looked after. I visited her yesterday and was shocked by the change in her. 4 1/2 weeks ago when she came to the hospital to meet her newest great-grandchild she was physically frail but was radiant, sharing our delight at JW's birth and keeping us all amused with her latest complaints about friends and neighbours. Yesterday she was pale, confused and so weak she looked breakable. As I was walking back I was wishing her well but I couldn't decide if I that was a return to good health or a swift and peaceful exit from this life.

I might just add here that there is something very disturbing about looking at a picture and seeing simultaneously what you looked like at birth, what you'll like at 64 and what you'll like at 90.

I don't know why blogger won't insert these photos properly but I'll add them anyway. I have struggled with getting the spacing right for months and now I can't even add a photo correctly. Sheesh! If anyone knows of a Blogger For Dummies course let me know!

JW's freshly bathed little feet in adorable mary jane socks given to her by her Oma and picked out for her every morning by her big brother.

The completed baptism forms (July 6th!), a reminder notice from the kid's dentist and a pencil flower made by Grace and given to me on Mother's Day.

Mail!

I had a hanging around day today, tending to J who is feeling decidedly miserable and waiting for the nurse from the early childhood health centre to visit for JW's first check-up. I'm a very slack mama to have not even weighed her before today but I like to think that's because I'm confident in my capabilities as a mother and not because I've become complacent the fourth time around. I'll just keep telling myself that, shall I?

So, it was a very pleasant surprise when the postie turned up with a parcel for Juliet. It's a beautiful sterling rattle from Greg's sister in Atlanta, GA. It really is beautiful and hopefully I won't forget where I have put it when Juliet is old enough to move out to her own place and she can take it with her. That sounds flippant but I know that it won't be looked at much between now and then. I have put it by the 'good china' in the sideboard, you'll have to remind me in 2028, OK?

Illness

J has contracted bacterial tonsilitis.
Excellent.

Koffie Uurtje - tick!

Here it is! My mother-in-law's table runner is ready to be wrapped and posted with a little thank you note for all her help with the kids while I was in hospital having Juliet. I am able to give it to her as a thank you present rather than a birthday present - that worked out rather well, don't you think? The binding always goes quickly but with a small project like this is flew by. I was able to finish it yesterday while JW was asleep in the sling, C was napping and J and G were at school.

My to do list for today is much less exciting, mostly paying bills and trying to settle on a date for JW's baptism. I'm hoping to have her baptised by the end of June. We always seem to have more difficulty organising a baptism date than we did a wedding date - insane!

Pattern: a freebie from Quiltbus.com
Dimensions: 90cm x 31cm
Fabrics: purchased from retromummy.com and my local quilt store
Details: machine pieced, hand quilted, fusible applique

Daytripping

Hey! diddle, diddle,

The cat and the fiddle,

The cow jumped over the moon;

The little dog laughed

To see such sport,

And the dish ran away with the spoon.

When C was just a couple of weeks old we drove to the Hunter Valley and did the tourist thing visiting a couple of cellar doors and cheese and olive tastings (Binnorie Dairy Marinated Feta - OMG, buy it if you see it and enjoy). We also visited the Hunter Valley Gardens and spent some time walking through the Story Book Garden, it was a stinking hot day but it was wonderful and the kids had a ball. Now that J and C are also old enough to recognise the story book characters and stories I think we'll need to find some time to do this trip again.

One of my mum's close friends died suddenly on the weekend, she had been up north visiting her sister and wasn't feeling well so she rganised to come home early. She was travelling home by train and died before she made it back to Sydney. Her husband was waiting for her at Central train station when an announcement was made that the train would be a couple of hours late so he went home to find two police officers waiting for him with the news of his wife's death. There are so many things that are upsetting about this, but it also drives home (yet again) that we need to make the most of what we've been given. I've got a lot and want to take the time to enjoy it, a day trip with the family should fit the bill nicely.

Feeling the cold

I'm tired but I have a very good reason,

aren't they just adorable? They're all sitting on J's bed (the bottom bunk) and you may notice that some of the paintings in the background have 'Jeremy' written on them. One of J's pre-school teachers cannot get his name right despite several gentle reminders and J's too timid to say anything himself. I hope she gets the hang of it before too long

Unfortunately, we've all been unwell and although I had been hoping JW wouldn't catch it she spent all day yesterday snuffling and has a congested nose today. I haven't had to deal with an ill newborn before so I'm winging it. I'm just keeping her warm, making sure she's getting enough fluids and keeping my fingers crossed that she gets over it quickly. The latter is very scientific of me, I know. I don't know if I should take her to the gp yet or wait and see if anything develops...

We're getting a gas fitting put in the living room this afternoon which will mean we can use our heater again and that should help us all feel better, we've had some very cold nights over the past few weeks. Fingers crossed the plumber turns up, he's already postponed twice!

Quilt-a-long

I've signed up for Crazy Mom Quilts star quilt-a-long. Just the sort of thing every sleep-deprived mother of a newborn should be doing, right? LOL.
This will be the quilt for G using the fabrics she selected 12 months ago. Yes, 12 months, I can't believe I still have done anything with them! I need to get to the fabric store this weekend to buy some cream background fabric and I can get started.