Energy vampires

My daughter has decided waking at 3am is her new thing. I am not sold on the idea myself. Somehow she always has energy despite what time she wakes up. I suspect she is an energy vampire. She must siphon energy while we least suspect it. Using it to fuel her cuteness. I might be onto something, or the sleep deprivation has caused mild delusions. Either way I am still exhausted.

Crocodillus Puppiesus!

My daughter allowed the dogs to sneak inside while I was out doing the washing. She closed the door so they could not get out, which in dog language is an open invitation to play with all her stuff. One dog decided to try and get into the jumperoo and the other started to give grover a death roll. All three girls were quite disappointed when I broke up the fun. I will have to keep an eye on these cheeky girls!

Queen of hearts

One morning I was cleaning up after a particularly delicious messy breakfast of black cherry toast and my little girl starts performing some bizarre sideways epileptic manoeuvre. I was completely dumbfounded. She seemed happy enough and only repeated the movement if I was watching so I decided it was some weird experience all kids must try out. A few days of bizarre sideway attacks of movement, it occurred to me she was trying to dance! I admit I do wake up highly caffeinated on life some mornings and sing and dance thru our morning routine. I'll have to remember to do dances that are easier to do!

Gumnuts and spidermonkeys

When I was little we lived in a small old mining town that was basically heritage listed to preserve that little bit of Australian history. Summer was hot and the heat was like a sauna. There was a lot going on and always something to do. 

I would wake up early in the morning to see the blue sky outside my window and hear the kookaburra's laughing. I used to lay in bed and wiggle my toes, pretending I lived in the bush and I was like the people from the stories we learnt about at school. I used to imagine there were bottle brushes and eucalypts as far as I could see and the birds were so tame because there were so little people to disturb them. I used to pretend that there were only dirt roads and you did not need a car to go where you wanted to go. I remember wishing so hard that I lived in the bush and that I could know what it was like to be completely free of expectations and day to day stress. 

I also wanted my own possum with a big bushy brown tail and tiny little paws for digging. I was not greedy tho, I told myself I would be happy with just living in the bush and knowing there were possums around. I knew my possum might like his freedom and just knowing he would be happy was enough. 

It has been many many years and my home is now in a much bigger city. The kookaburra's do not announce the new day, the eucalypts are so few and far between and I do not remember the last time I saw a dirt road. Tonight I realised I did live in the bush! I did not live in the 1800's like the people in the stories I learnt about at school but I lived in such a gorgeous town and am so lucky to have these memories. I wonder whether my daughter will ever wake to wild bird calls and whether she will feel the heat of the new day from beneath a massive eucalypt tree. I will have to be creative to give her these kinds of experiences, so that when she is older she has these wonderful memories to cherish too.

10933 Unbirthdays!

The last few weeks have been a blur of activity, sickness, joy and an unhealthy amount of coffee. I probably have not done as much as a should or as much as I like, but I am happy with how it has turned out anyway. My birthday came and I spent the day just being in the moment. All those every day activities were sublime, spending time with my family laughing was pure delight and then knowing I get to do it every year makes my heart sing with joy. I do not ever remember being happy like this. Is it because I am getting older, things are more precious? Is life more fun? Or am I just in a happier place? I wish I could have had this years ago.

The Mad Hatters Tea Party began and there was a lot madness squeezed into a little room. Tea was poured and conversation flowed. Cake was devoured and children laughed. I relaxed. I enjoyed. I loved, every minute! No one mentioned I wore my Mad Hat backwards and no one minded when I sat down with the children and had tea with my special little ones. I needed a nap by the end of the day and dreamed of all the tea parties to come. It is something I need to do more often. Now I have a teapot and taste for sweet things, tea parties seem idyllic.

10932 Unbirthdays!!!!

Making the Mad Hat Step 4: Embellishing!

I looked at the mad hat and thought to myself, hmmmm too plain, too much peacock arse and just not  shiny enough. Then I embellished. Glue a shiny ribbon pinwheel here, add a spotty flower there ... Oooh, needs more ribbon!

BAMM!

Awesomeness happened. Now I just have to work out how it's going to stay on my head!!! It's a bit heavy with the cardboard I used on the rim so it will be interesting how it will feel on top of my head. Do not even mention how I forgot to add holes to thread ribbon thru to keep it in place! 

Old badger takes a nap

I've been making a gift for my best friend and going thru all our old photos together. It has amazed me of how many good times there were. I have been thru a lot in the past ten years, I think to protect myself I had blocked so much of my past but unfortunately that meant good times too. This process has been so powerful. The memories have surprised me. I did not realise there had been so much happiness. If only I can hold onto those realisations.

I had so much joy remembering the things my partner and I had got up to in our first few years.  Oh my, we were so young. So very very young. We were in fits of giggles last night discussing the outrageous things we did and our naivety. Can't discuss those things here tho, my mother might die from laughter if she every read about such things and my daughter may get ideas when she is older!

My hero the seahorse

In Australia it is Father's Day and my little girl took her first step into her fathers arms! Such a precious moment I cried a little, which always freaks her out. Daddy was very proud and I do not think we will ever be able to top this Father's Day ever again. I spent most of the day just being with my family and watching the joy on my husbands face as he interacted with our daughter. True love. Unconditional and pure. He is the man I fall in love with every day, the man who holds my heart, the man I will spend the rest of my life with. I never knew how amazing life could be before we became partners, and then when we became parents, and today makes me feel so blessed that our daughter has such an amazing man in her life.