Nanny Cam.

Lily has shown us recently that she is not happy unless she is about a foot taller.   Boy, is she going to be disappointed when she realizes that height is predetermined by genetics, and things are not looking as though they are in her favor.  Good thing she isn’t afraid to climb.  She must have some prop to lift her up to new heights.   This week Em and Lily were busy.  They went to a book time at the library, read by a real ballerina.  They went to a mummy play date at a park.  They cheered Ty on at soccer practice.  They had a lunch date with me at the office.  Busy girlies!  

  

   

  

                                   

                    
 

Tradies.

Anyone that does a specialized trade job (plumber, electrician, carpenter, etc) is called a tradie here.  If you have been following my blog for a while, you may recall some of the drama we have had with tradies.  No worries.  We will get to it tomorrow (or not).  She’ll be right.  We have had a leaky roof causing a really bad stain on the ceiling that looks like it will collapse during the next storm for a year and a half.  Attorneys number one to fix it was to paint over it.  Weird.  It came back.  I have heaps of examples…

We have received unexpected news that there are some people interested in renting our home in the US for a short 3 month contract.  We didn’t have it listed because we were waiting to do the repairs when a friend was available.  But, now that we have a renter, we had to find someone quick to get the job done.  Huge thanks to Ann and Kurt for hooking  us up with a guy that was able to start work immediately.  He is going to have our entire house put back together before the stain on our ceiling is fixed…  I don’t have any pictures of the damage to our house – only some of it after the demo work was done to rip out all of the wet, ruined stuff, but it gives you an idea of what we are dealing with.  Not fun to do from 13,000 miles away, but thankfully we have awesome friends that have been a blessing.

         

Invites.

I finally found the invitations that we wanted for Ty’s birthday (although I had to go back to buy more the next day because why would anyone stock more than 2 packages).  Ty helped by writing his name on all of them, he stuffed the envelopes, and put a sticker on the flap.  He was really excited to invite all of his friends.   If anyone else wants to come, it is Sunday, 24 May from 2-4 at Allabah Park.  See you then!   

  
Tea.

Ty’s class was hosting a Mother’s Day afternoon tea, and there was no way I was going to miss that.  I left work early and didn’t quite know what to expect.  The tea exceeded all of my expectations.  I need to take tea party tips from Mrs H and Mrs Winter.  The kids were all sitting at the front of the classroom and as soon as all of the moms were in the room, they started singing a beautiful Mothers Day song.  I nearly cried.  So sweet.  The tables were all pushed together with tablecloths, a place setting, pretty pink gifts, and an envelope of adorable and precious artwork.  Ty and I decorated cupcakes, drank some juice.  I was so touched by the whole event.  Absolutely perfect.   

         

Soccer.

This term Ty gets to play soccer on Thursdays after school.  Jay and I got to go to his first practice – right after tea.  He was really into it, listened well, ran and ran and ran.  His coach looks like Puckerman from Glee.  Ty looks like a pro.  

   

Wine.

Jay flew home for his niece, Miranda’s, high school graduation.  This is what Em and I needed to survive the next two weeks.   Keep calm and drink wine.

Awards.

We have been encouraging Ty as much as possible to sit quietly and listen at school.  This has not been easy for him.  Even though he doesn’t seem to be able to sit still, the amount of information that he is storing in his little brain is shocking.  He has weekly tasks to do on the computer on a program called Literacy Planet.  He has 5 activities that he has to do before he can play other games.  If he isn’t happy with his score, he can try again to improve it.  He loves it.  Last week he attempted a couple tasks several times, getting better every time.  His dedication paid off – he was so excited to show me his awards on Friday!  Not just one, but TWO awards!  On for brains, one for behavior.  Way to go mate!   

    
 

Saturday.

Our first weekend day without Jay went surprisingly well.  Swim lessons, followed by a trip to Bunnings.  Then it was back home to do what I thought would help calm my nerves and would teach my kids a lesson in organization and colors.  Hello.  My name is Nicole and I sort Legos.  Ty actually enjoyed the activity as well (I have created a monster).  It was amazingly therapeutic.  Highly recommend as a natural remedy for anyone suffering from anxiety and uber-stress.   

  

Oh, and that couch that I wanted to move downstairs for a year and a half that Jay wouldn’t help me with is now sitting downstairs.  And it is awesome.

  A little cleaning, fort building, costume party, and buggy/scooter ride to round out the day.   

       

Mama’s Day.

Ty could not wait for Mothers Day.  At approximately 5:00 AM he came into my bed and said he really needed to go downstairs.  He woke poor Auntie Em up and they came upstairs with not one but two pots of flowers, a perfect card, and Ty’s envelope of crafts made at school, and the biggest smile ever.  Love my kids so much!!!

   
     

The day got me thinking about my own mom.  I miss her so much.  She would do anything for her babies (no matter the age), has sacrificed for us our entire lives, bends over backwards to make us happy, has super model good looks (just ask Andy Reutter) and loves us all so much.  I can only hope to be half the mom to my kids that my mom is to us.  And she is cool. I mean really, how many moms dress up like this for a Halloween party?   

   

Shop.

Against my better judgement, fueled only by the need for Em to look hot on her birthday, we took the kids to Harbour Town.  We got there just in time for lunch and then Lily slept in her pram most of the afternoon.  I think Em came home with 5 pairs of shoes.  Not just shoes.  High heels.  After we finished shopping, we took the kids to see Pitch Perfect 2.  Both kids loved the dancing and singing.   

   When we got home we asked Facebook to vote on which dress Em should wear on her 30th birthday.  Red or blue, it’s up to you.  And the overwhelming winner was…….red!

   
 

Week.

The week has been a blur.  It was one of the busiest/stressful weeks at work. But I have an awesome team that pulled together to get through it all.  At home, Em took care of the day to day stuff – laundry, cooking, cleaning, chauffeur.  Evenings were eating, cleaning, bathing, reading.  Attempts to sleep.  Mostly failed.  Mornings were rush rush rush.  Repeat.  Survive.  We have done surprisingly well, but we miss Jay.

Birthday.

And then it was Friday, May 15.  30 years ago, I got a new baby sister.  She is my 6-year-later twin.  Despite being born with a heart defect, everyone that crosses her path quickly realizes she has the world’s biggest heart.  She is a natural born caretaker.  She is the most carefree, hardworking, hilarious, loving, all around awesome person I know.  I am lucky to have been able to live with her in Perry, Waterloo, and Hope Island during different phases of our lives – when we were kids, when she tried to be a college kid, and when I had 2 kids.  She has been such a blessing to us and I am so lucky to experience this adventure with her.  Happy birthday kiddo!!!