A glimpse

May 21, 2015 / Renae / 2 Comments

Do you ever catch a quick look at yourself in the mirror and see something you didn’t expect to see?

That happened to me last Thursday. You know, the cheesecake day? After spending the majority of the afternoon kicking myself for eating too much cake, my self esteem and body image were taking a bit of a battering. I was faffing around in the bathroom when I got a glimpse of myself in the mirror. It actually made me stop and smile.

My sunnies were holding my hair back which made it nice and spiky out the sides; I had been bothered with a bit of foundation and mascara that morning, which were both still present; and I just didn’t look as tired and worn out as I was certainly feeling at the time.

I had to go grab my phone (and move to better lighting) and take a photo for the sake of my self esteem.

Okay, so I took a few photos 🙂

I gave myself a metaphorical pat on the back for looking at myself and seeing the good stuff. Far too often I am critical of my appearance and dwell on things, when I could be spending that brain space and emotional energy on more meaningful things instead. Like loving myself, and telling myself that I’m doing a pretty damn good job at this thing called life.

Happy Mothers Day

May 14, 2015 / Renae / Leave a comment

I’ve been meaning to blog about Mothers Day since Monday, but our computer died and I just haven’t had the inclination to fire up our new laptop (which we coincidentally and fortunately bought two weeks before the death of the PC.)

This year was a bit haphazard in that Hubs was working most of the weekend so things were a bit spread out. I got a nice sleep in and some time to myself (well, just with Darby) on Saturday morning, then Hubs worked most of Saturday arvo/evening. He had to work early Sunday morning, so I just hung out with the kids and made pancakes for us all. Hubs came home around 10am and I was given a few prezzies which was nice. Then most of the household had a rest/sleep/nap/movie time from noon til 3, at which time Hubs had to go back to work. So the kids and I spent the afternoon outdoors and did some painting and lounging about.

Thankfully Hubs didn’t have to work at all on Monday so I got another bit of a sleep in, followed by more presents! And some cuddles in bed.

That was actually Hubs’ first full day off (aka 24 hours) in 3 weeks. Yeah, it’s been full on! We then all went out for brunch and The Giddy Goat, our favourite place in Rocky, and spent the rest of the day just pottering around the house which was actually really really nice. I didn’t want him to go back to work the next day 🙁

Being a Mum to these three monkeys is the most challenging thing I’ve ever done, and will ever do I’m sure. And even though I sometimes miss the days of sleeping in and not having to be responsible for anyone but myself, I wouldn’t change a thing.

Now, I have half an hour before I pick Chanbe and Quindy up from their respective places of care, which begs the question: Coffee, or nap?

I’ve taken up deep breathing

May 4, 2015 / Renae / Leave a comment

Why? Here are some reasons just from today:

When it’s the afternoon and it takes you an hour and 10 minutes to walk the 800m round trip to the post office to check the PO box and pick up a parcel that I apparently missed the delivery for.

Deep breaths all the way, and it was a lovely walk. Even when Chanbe lost his cool because he wanted me to buy him the wooden model aeroplane that they had at the AusPost shop. So so many deep breaths and we all got through it.

When we’ve had a great dinner time, easy bath time, no trouble getting PJs on and teeth brushed, and Chanbe wants to read The Cat in the Hat and The Cat in the Hat Comes Back. For about the eighth time in recent memory. I take my deeeeeeep breaths and ask him very nicely if maybe he could choose two different stories tonight, since we have so many to choose from. And he did. Because I asked nicely and calmly. I am the adult, after all. (Meaning I need to set the example!)

When I’ve read the stories, (Chance ended up choosing two Hairy McLary books which I’m quite fond of) talked about what we did today, sung three songs, (I sang them Bike by Pink Floyd for the first time tonight and they loved it!) and brought them their cold water in sippy cups (man do I ever regret starting that little ritual a year ago) and Quindy starts up: “I wan’t more dinnnnnnaaaaaahhhhhh.”

I take my deep breaths and I calmly explain that she ate all of her dinner and her yoghurt and her fruit and now it’s bedtime. After a bit more fussing about (“I need a bandaid/blanket/froggy”) it’s done with and she is going to bed happy.

When I’m transferring my beef schnitzel from the frying pan to my plate and I drop it on the floor, and the Schnitzel von crumbs go everywhere (see what I did there?)

I took my deep breaths, brushed it off (I had just vacuumed the floors an hour before after the kids were eating grated cheese sitting down in the kitchen while I was cooking) and put it on my plate.

And finally, after a long day, and another day of not knowing when Hubs will be home, I should have known better, but learned the hard way, not to open a screw top bottle of wine while I’m holding it horizontally.

Deep breaths while I clean up the floor for the third time in 2 hours.

So there you have it folks. You heard it here first – breathing is good for you. I made a conscious effort to just walk around all day taking deep breaths, so when situations arose that needed me to be calm, I was already well on my way. I just have to remember it again tomorrow…

Today I’m playing with Lego

May 4, 2015 / Renae / 2 Comments

I decided pretty early on that I’m not adulting today. I just need to play and be with my kids. Or just play, and let the kids do their own thang. So this was my first couple of hours:

I know it’s hard to tell, but this will eventually be a helicopter, if I can find all the damn pieces. But since I “sorted” the Lego a little while ago, I now have to sift through all the pieces to find the parts for each model. From now on, each model will stay on it’s own in a zip-lock bag. I wish I had thought of that a few months ago…

So the washing shan’t be done today. We are eating lots of easy things like crackers and tomato and cheese, fruit and sultanas. I’m just letting the kids dictate the direction of the day, and not worrying about getting adult things done. Just lots of sitting around and just being. I’ll deal with the adult things once the kids are in bed. I’m glad I made the decision this morning, because the only other way today would have gone, is me moping about the house “knowing” I “should” be adulting but not wanting to.

This way, everybody wins.

It’s a girl!

April 24, 2015 / Renae / Leave a comment

Wow have I ever got a story for you! Remember our friends who we met in Townsville, Haz and Maz, and their gorgeous boys Jaz and Az? Well, Maz was pregnant with baby number 3 and was due this coming Sunday. And being as crazy/adventurous as us, they are currently driving from Townsville to Perth, where Maz is from, to spend a couple of years over there, and planned to have the baby somewhere along the way. When they asked if they could stay with us for a few days, it was a given, and when they arrived on Tuesday afternoon, I told Maz that she was to stay until the baby was born. I also asked her if she could have a girl as I had heaps of gorgeous clothes to give her.

And boy did she oblige! Mia was born in the wee hours of Wednesday morning, and is the teeny-tiny-est baby I’ve ever seen! Well, it feels that way since she weighed in at a delightful 3.2kg whereas all my babies have been over 4kg. And here she is with Darby-doo:

Who is currently weighing in at a very healthy 8kg 🙂

It’s hard to convey the excitement about them staying with us and sharing this lovely time with our little family. The kids have been playing together wonderfully (again, most of the time!) and after they have opened their house to us on numerous occasions, it’s so nice to be able to return the favour. They will be leaving us tomorrow which will be very sad but gosh it’s been a terrific few days. Our next plan is to go to Perth for a visit! Moments like this just warm my heart:

14 days 14 photos

April 14, 2015 / Renae / Leave a comment

Seeing as how it’s been two weeks since I blogged, here’s what we’ve been up to.

The kids falling asleep in the car on our way from the Sorrento holiday house to the airport.

Too cute 🙂

And just another baby photo of Darbs

The disastrous first batch of cookies

The second batch was better

I’ve been walking the hills of Kelvin Grove and really enjoying the views from the top.

We celebrated a birthday with family

And we had very sleepy kids on the way home

Quinn is finally letting me plait her hair!

Ooooooh yeah. Look at that face.

There has been so much of this going on And it has been so gosh darn delightful.

And aaaaaah… another wedding

“That word. Say it clear now. L-O-V-E Love.”

Love these girls so so much.

That’s about it for now. We have another wedding coming up this weekend, and due to a clerical error (ie me forgetting to book a flight), Hubs won’t be joining us. This also means that I’ll be flying back to Rocky with the three kids on my own. But I’ve done it once so I can do it again.

Just FYI I’m loving life. I can’t wait to get back to Rocky and back to Hubs and back to our beautiful house and back to a bit of a routine.

Loving. Life.

We bought a horse

February 10, 2015 / Renae / 1 Comment

*house. We bought a house. Though, when I texted my friend with this autocorrect gem, she was pretty excited that we had embraced the country life and bought ourselves a steed, and perhaps not quite as excited when I corrected the error.

But yes, we are in the final stages of buying a house. I don’t exactly know how it happened. One minute we were looking at rentals and the next we were joking about how we should buy something instead. Just like we joked about going to Mount Isa for a year.

I’m sure this venture will work out a little better…

Some people spend months looking at places and look at dozens of houses before deciding on one and putting in an offer. We looked at this one house and decided. It was the right location, the right price (after talking them down a little) and we put in an offer 2 days after our walk through. We haggled a bit for the next 36 hours, but then the deal was done and the contract was drawn up.

I never thought I would say this but our Real Estate agent is fantastic. He’s probably in his 60s and the business is his own. He is a softly spoken, genuine guy and we just feel like we’re being well looked after. Plus whenever we have mentioned his name to locals, they have all sung his praises which is nice.

We got off to a bit of a rocky start (ha ha. Rocky…) as I rang him at about 4 and he agreed to meet us at the house at 4.30pm on that rainy afternoon. By 4.50 he hadn’t turned up and I was getting really annoyed. I rang him to see what was going on and he said “Renae I’m on my way right now.” I was all huffy, saying to Hubs “If this were a half million dollar house I’m sure he would have been here on time.” Anyway he showed up and apologised and said to me that after he got off the phone to me something came up and he completely forgot about our arranged meeting.

And you know what? I really respected and appreciated his honesty. He could have made something up to make himself look busy and important but he told the truth and from then on, he had me on side.

It’s rather exciting really. The house needs some cosmetic work – if that’s what you call a new bathroom and kitchen – but according to those who have inspected it, it’s a good sturdy house, and it has a beautiful view that is just dying to be seen from a huge wraparound deck. Yes we have big plans for the place. The first thing is to rip up the carpets and have the floors sanded and polished before we move in.

Settlement date is tomorrow week and everything is in order to go ahead. I’m really quite excited actually. I thought that the idea of living in a house being renovated would make me throw up in my mouth a little, but I really can’t wait to get stuck in to the place and make it our own. We have been scouring Gumtree and garage sales and have already bought a beautiful leather couch, a set of bookshelves and an awesome fridge, complete with ice and water dispenser. Next in my list is a washing machine.

We should be moving in on the weekend of the 21st of Feb and mum and dad are coming up this weekend for some extra help.

So even though is not a horse, it’s a big “adult” decision and I couldn’t be happier. Can’t wait to start showing some before and after pics!

Happy birthday to Quindy

February 1, 2015 / Renae / Leave a comment

Our dear little Quinderella. Holy moly you’re a cutie.

Those big brown eyes. Those gorgeous blond curls. You steal the hearts of all you meet and you have definitely stolen ours.

You are such a cheeky-chops and you get away with far too much, but no one seems to notice.

You love picking up your bag, my keys and whatever sunnies are lying around, and announcing you’re going to the shops. I ask what you’re going to buy and the answer is almost always the same.

“Ice and fruit and yoghurt.”

You love pretending to talk on the phone, and you use whatever is available to you at the time. Today you picked up a little hard paged book and pretended you had a flip phone.

You love your big brother Chanbe, and will follow him and copy whatever he does. Even when he turns on you, you can generally hold your own, and can give as good as you get. Not that we encourage such things off course….

Your latest antics are pulling a “funny face” when I’m trying to take a photo.

And even though you’re still not quite sure what to make of Darby, you do love to give him kisses and cuddles. I won’t mention the donks on the head though…

So my darling baby girl, keep smiling. Keep charming people with those eyes and curls. Keeping making Chanbe laugh with your silliness. Keep making your Gran and Grumpy smile at your sassy strut. Keep giving your baby brother kisses and cuddles – he’ll be giving them back soon enough. Keep your Dadda wrapped tightly around your little finger. And keep being my baby girl, just for a little bit longer.

A great insight

January 27, 2015 / Renae / Leave a comment

I remember when my friend went from having 2 kids to 3. I only had 14 month old Chanbe at the time and was enjoying motherhood, especially since he was finally sleeping through the night.

When I visited my friend, I asked her what having 3 kids was like, and I still remember her reply: There are always 3 things that need to be done immediately but you can only choose 1. Right now the breakfast dishes need clearing, I need to get dressed, and my cup of tea needs drinking. Okay so the last one is not necessarily pressing but gee it makes me feel better in the morning. Oh, and write a blog post. And do the folding.

It’s very true, and I’m learning to adjust and try and choose one thing at a time. Obviously when Darby needs feeding the choice is simple, but when war breaks out between the other two at the same time, things get interesting. I’m trying to let them sort themselves out and that mostly works which is good.

I’ve had a few outings with the 3 of them which have gone really well and I plan on taking them to the pool this week. That will be interesting. We went to church on Sunday and meet some nice people and we’re going to their playgroup this morning.

I think Rocky is going to suit us 🙂

Rocky rocks

January 25, 2015 / Renae / Leave a comment

Okay so it’s not exactly the most original title, but I’m sleep deprived and have had a (rather generous) glass of bubbly so it’s the best I can come up with right now.

It’s been a good first week. We arrived last Monday just after midday and it was an absolutely stinking hot day, but I dare not complain. We drove to the hospital to pick up the keys for our temp accommodation and while Hubs went to do that, I took the kids to the cafe and bought 2 huge bottles of water. It was at this point that both Quindy and Darbs decided to fill their respective nappies. I bundled them up and found the baby change room and took a look at myself in the mirror. Yikes. I was extremely glad I had decided not to meet Hubs’ colleagues that day. My hair was dripping wet and I I didn’t have sweat patches – I had dry patches, and very few of them let me tell you.

Anyway we arrived at the accommodation and were pleasantly surprised. It’s a 3 bedroom house and although it’s on the main highway through town and is a bit of a hike from the hospital, we are grateful for the space, the air con in every room, and the luscious, green grassy yard!

We spent that afternoon and the next day looking at rentals, and even a couple of houses for sale. Hubs started work on Wednesday and I took the kids to the lovely big shopping centre. We had a 100% successful trip and I was particularly impressed with the parent rooms there! I arrived home feeling very confident that this year is going to be a good one. The next 2 days were equally great with the kids and after exploring the beautiful botanical gardens this arvo, I know that there will always be things to do with the kids here.

We have a couple of things brewing in regards to housing but I’ll share more when we know more which will hopefully be very very soon!