No, I am not having quintuplets.

About 5 months before our little Quinn was born, our friends announced the birth of their third child, Quinn. Of course we assumed they had had a girl, but then I realised it could have been a boy, so after some sneaky sussing-out, we found out it was in fact a boy! We decided that we were still able to use the name Quinn, which we actually had chosen for Chance if he was a girl.

A few weeks ago, they sent me a photo of their Quinn. I’m a little concerned that they look as though they were separated at birth!

Theirs & Ours 🙂 Look at those blond curls! 

Home again home again jiggety jig.

Well, Brisbane home anyway. It’s nice not to have to board the plane first with children. It’s also nice to read a book for the entire flight. But the nicest thing is coming home to two gorgeous kids who are happy to see me.

I had such a great few days away, and it certainly helped with my resetting. It’s my Dad’s birthday tomorrow (which means it’s also his birthday week) so there will be a bit of celebrating around these here parts in the coming days. I’m looking forward to more yummy food and cake, and also lots more walking to help with the balance.

But for now, even though it’s not even 9pm, I can barely keep my eyes open so that’s all from me for another day. I plan to start writing more posts on mum’s laptop rather than my phone, as I’m much more likely to put a bit more effort in.

Until then!

Today we caught a bus to Coogee Beach for another delicious brunch (have I mentioned it’s my most favourite meal to go out for!?) and afterwards, on another day of beautiful weather, we went for a walk. We followed the path from Coogee to Bondi but stopped and turned around between Clovelly and Bronte as I was meeting up with my cousin for a catch up back at Coogee.

If you had told me I would be walking that far in my pair of $30 Payless Shoes ballet flats, I would have laughed, but I didn’t pack well this trip expecting it to be much colder, and didn’t have a choice. These shoes (pictured below) are what I have been traipsing around Sydney in these last few days, and have been incredibly comfy.

As per usual the view was stunning. Sydney really has been putting on great weather for me this weekend and I’ve had the best time catching up with everyone down here. But I am missing my little monkeys and can’t wait to see them tomorrow.

Can you tell I don’t have much to say today? I’m having such a lovely time catching up with my friends, eating yummy home cooked meals, partaking in delectable gelato, and doing lots of walking around Sydney in the most delightful weather.

There has also been perfectly cooked eggs benedict and beautiful coffees.

The kids are having a great time back in Brisbane which lessens the guilt somewhat, and although Hubs is recovering from a man flu, he seems to be doing okay without us, though we miss him a lot.

I’ll leave you with one of the views I had today.

I went for a walk from my friend’s place today to the end of the main road and came across this. So I sat down and read my book. I love being on a holiday.

I flew to Sydney today and had the fun experience of sitting next to a pilot. No, not the pilot. There were a few pilots sitting with us plebs hitching a ride, and I was lucky enough to sit beside one. As he was settling in, I was about to make the obvious joke.

Can you guess?

That’s right, “Are you sure you’re in the right seat? “

I refrained. A few years ago I made a commitment to try not to make obvious jokes or comments. So instead I said:

“I can’t wait to tell my 3 year old son that I sat next to a pilot on the plane.“

He appreciated that. I did say I thought I’d refrain from the obvious joke of “are you in the right seat”. He agreed that it does wear a little thin. Does it still count as my not making the obvious joke? I think so…

So as we were landing, I looked to my left and saw another plane. It looked as though it was at a similar height to us, and preparing for landing.

I must say that I freaked out a little. I’ve never flown so close to another plane before and I didn’t think it was “the norm”. I turned to my new pilot friend (who had slept pretty much the whole flight) and said as much. His response was “Yeah it’s pretty cool Hey.” I took this to mean that all was right in the skies. Not long after, this other plane and ours performed a perfectly synchronised landing.

It was a beautiful thing. I have been on dozens of flights in my life and this was a first. It’s nice to know that life can still make mundane things a bit extraordinary sometimes.

Something worth remembering.

In 12 hours time I’ll be boarding my flight to Sydney, Hubs-less and child-less. I’m not sure how I’m feeling about it to be honest, other than a little terrified. I know the kids will be fine – they’ll be spoilt rotten by their Gran and Grumpy and Ouma. I hope they miss me a little though 😉

And Hubs is back in Mount Isa. He’s okay, other than the fact he’s eating meat and ravioli out of a can. Yeuch.

I had a mild panic when I realised I haven’t packed yet, but packing for 1 is a little different to packing for 2 kids and a husband as well.

I think I’m a little scared of being away from my family, as in this point in time, they pretty much define me as a person. I’m a wife and a mum. And for now, that is good. That is enough.

I’m half way through my reset and restore, and I’m already feeling a little better. I’ve been spending great quality time with family and friends and have made a bunch of plans for the next 2 weeks as well. I’m being re-energised by those around me; by the cooler days;  by the rain I can hear right now; by walks along the water; by good coffee and good company.

All good things. And for now, it is enough.

It’s something I used to pride myself on. I would always try and see the best in people, but I would confuse that with assuming everyone was lovely and thoughtful and would have my best interest at heart. The problem with this, is that when someone made a mistake or acted in a way I didn’t agree with, (ie they were human) I would get so bitterly disappointed in them as a person. This did not bode well for either me or the person in question. I remember Hubs pointing out to me early in our courtship that I would say about anyone and everyone “they are so lovely” and he commented that it didn’t mean much if I said it about everyone.

I remember being a little hurt by this comment, before understanding what he was saying. I don’t think it’s a bad thing to try and see the best in people, but I do think it can be a bit misguided when I have unrealistic expectations on people (friends/family/colleagues) and react negatively when they don’t act how I would in a similar situation. It’s something I’ve worked on over the years – to really see people for their attributes and faults; to accept people as they are; to try not to judge; and to show grace and understanding when I feel let down by them, knowing that that says more about me than it does about them or their actions.

So why can’t I do this for myself?

Why can’t I see the best in myself? Why do I constantly feel like I’m falling short, and that the life I’m leading isn’t “enough”? I compare myself to other people every day. They have a career and I don’t; they are more attentive with their kids than I am; they have been able to lose weight and have a healthy lifestyle and I can’t seem to stick to anything; they know what they want in life and I’m still searching; they are home owners and I am not… the list goes on.

What a waste of time and energy. This is something that I clearly need to work on. Seeing myself how others see me: Accomplished; confident; pretty; kind; resilient; adaptable; brave; a good mum.

These are the things I need to be thinking throughout my day. I don’t need to live up to other people’s lives, or at least how I perceive them. I need to start believing in myself more; as an example to my children if nothing else. How can I teach them that they can be anything and anyone they want to be, if I don’t even believe that of myself. I’m not talking about a grand gesture or revelation, I just want to stop those everyday thoughts of not being enough, and start knowing that I am.

Playing Scrabble with mum and dad tonight. This was my first round of letters. Coincidence?

Flying with kids. The mere thought of it can send some people into a tailspin. (har har) By the age of two, Chanbe had been on over 20 domestic flights, so my little guy is a seasoned traveller. And he was always an easy baby on a plane – he would fall asleep as soon as we would take off and not wake up til we landed.

Quindy is another story. My little girl is the easiest baby in so many ways, but she is quite the handful on a plane. Not in a misbehaved, bratty way, just in a 1-year-old curious way. And she has never slept on a flight thus far. No matter what I distract her with, each thing only works for a few minutes before she’s looking for something else to do.

Her most favourite thing to do is walk up and down the aisle, grinning at her fellow passengers. It’s completely adorable, albeit a little tricky when we hit turbulence and we’re supposed to be sitting down. She does not like to be strapped into her seat belt on my lap.

Chanbe is now at the age where he is happy to do stickers or watch a movie, as long as there is a constant supply of food avaliable. He’s actually really great on flights which makes my life a little easier. So even though they’re both pretty well behaved, it’s absolutely exhausting travelling on a plane with kids.

On our most recent flight, with about 40 minutes to go, my energy stores were running low, as was my arsenal of kids entertainment. And then Quindy spotted it. “Bah! bah! bah! bah!” which means “please hand me that thing I’m madly pointing to immediately!”

An apple.

This magical apple got us all through the end of the flight, as well as the baggage collection, and half the car trip home. She couldn’t have been happier.