Supersize me

I just watched this show. Haven't seen it? Well, basically young vegan fellow, Morgan Spurlock, decides that he is going to eat McDonalds every meal for 30 days, and if he is asked whether he wants to "Supersize" he has to say yes, but he isn't allowed to ask to be supersized, they have to ask him. Well, what happens to him over the space of the month is pretty ordinary in the grand scale of things.

And no, I haven't decided to give up KFC.

I have, however, decided to give up Coke. Yes, you read correctly. I am going to give up Coke. I have 2 litres in the fridge as we speak, minus a glass that I just had, and once that Coke is gone I have instructed Mick not to buy any more, and I'm not going to buy any more either. I will allow myself Red Bull every now and then, but the Coke she be gone.

I'm wondering if I will notice a difference? I'm thinking I'll probably need to drink a few more coffees than usual. I wonder if I will notice it on the scales? There is an obscene amount of sugar in each glass of coke.

Why have I decided to do this? I have no idea. I guess just to see if I can.

Just don't expect it to spill over into my giving up KFC. If that day arrives, look out the window and wave to the pigs flying past.

Windows hurt

when you slam them either open or shut on your finger. I think we can all agree on that one. I was putting a load of washing in the dryer (gotta love the wet season up here) and thought I should probably open the window just to let some of the hot air escape. Well, I wish I hadn't because it opened with such force that it slammed my third finger between it and the wall bracket, kind of hard to imagine, but picture the clippy claspy things on sliding windows that you have to hold in order to release the window from the lock position, then picture that clippy claspy thing squashing my finger against the wall.

It hurt. A lot. And so I did what any normal person would do - I grabbed tight hold of my finger and put it down the side of my body and didn't look at it. Often times just looking at it will make it worse. After a few minutes of the girls just staring at me blankly as I explained to them that mummy hurt her finger I decided I should probably look at it. And here is where it gets really bad. There was, I can't quite believe it, NO evidence that said finger had been brutally crushed by a rogue window. I was actually disappointed. For the huge amount of pain I was in there was no indication that I had even scratched the nail. And so it throbbed for the next hour or so, and I kept checking to see if I was going to actually develop a war wound. Nope. Nothing. Nada. Nix. Can't believe I'm actually disappointed.

It is a common saying be careful what you wish for, and I have said it before in relation to sleep and waking times. I said it again yesterday though. Why? I (stupidly it would appear) wished for some peace and quiet so I could get a bit of my essay done. It was only after I had had such peace and quiet for 10 minutes that I realised what I had actually done. For we all know that quiet = danger where toddlers on the move are involved. And that was indeed the case. I found the girls in my bedroom, I also found Angus's nappies strewn all over the floor, the washing that had been folded had been "unfolded" and the tealight candle stand that sits beside my bed was hanging artistically from the fan. My own fault really.

I enjoy giving the girls a variety of foods, as does Mick. Anything that we eat the girls get to try for I figure that's the best way to open up their eyes to the myriad of different foods available. It isn't always successful. Spicy foods are one reason why, and things with odd textures and the like. Well, Mick brought home some cheesecake the other day. The girls had had a try before when lovely friends had brought some over, but this cheesecake was bought when Lexi was at the shop the other day, as I think I mentioned at the time.

The cheesecake is gone. The cheesecake has been gone for some time. Yesterday, Lexi was stomping around the house saying "I want cheesecake. I want cheesecake." over and over and over. I said to her "Lexi, firstly we don't have any cheesecake, and secondly that is certainly not the way to ask for it."

She stopped, dead in her tracks, put on the sweetest smile and said "please". It was an awww moment. Till she realised I wasn't lying and there was no cheesecake, but that's another story......

Youtube is great.

You basically have any sort of music videos you like at your fingertips. Now the girls love love love to dance. Lexi, well, she isn't the most coordinated child but she does enjoy music and dancing. Tabitha is a little rocker and gets her groove on without a problem.

This morning Mick decided to play them some songs on Youtube. So there was the standard request "Tickle star" from Lexi. And so "tickle star" was played. I was more than unimpressed by this. Strange you say. Well no, not really. For it is not the song so much as the rendition that upset me. It was the Wiggles. I hate the Wiggles. I really really hate the Wiggles. I have declared this house a Wiggle free zone. They weasel their way in through the Kingdom of Paramithi, which they are not in but are solely responsible for, and also on the little snippets on ABC. Not impressed. So I was more than happy with the next song, Old McDonald, to which the girls danced around making chicken actions and the like. Tabitha was probably less taken by the nursery rhymes as Lexi. However when we put on Short Stack Planets she went off like a frog in a sock. There was literally no stopping her. Mini chick booty shaking like nobody's business and the blonde curls she has retained because we haven't cut her hair yet being thrown all over the place. Adorable. Then Lexi screams "my turn my turn". We ask what song she would like. See if you can guess........... Yep. Tickle Star. She also likes the ABC song, which, I realised, is quite confusing. For I was changing channels on the tv today and told her play school was on on the ABC, and then of course she wanted the song. Trying to explain to a 2 year old the difference between ABC the song and ABC the television station is more difficult than you would think.

I made the comment this morning that "mummy really needs to have a coffee". What followed next was nothing short of brilliant. Lexi reached up on to the sink and got my mug (I only ever drink coffee out of one mug, it is black and shiny and I have black coffee and it just is a comfortable mug from which to drink and I won't have coffee if I don't have my mug) and she passed it to Tabitha, who then very delicately walked over and placed it on the table. Lexi then went to the drawer, removed a teaspoon and placed that beside the mug. There you go. Done well.

Funniest thing that happened today, without a doubt, was when I went to iron a shirt for Mick. I rarely iron. Read that as never. However today a shirt was required and I volunteered to iron it. I got out the ironing board, and it became quite obvious how little I iron as Lexi thought we had a new table. She was quite put out when I folded it up and put it away. She had her little red plastic chair sitting beside it and everything, bless her.

Well I just heard the hugest noise, which sounded like nothing a child should be able to make, so I went to investigate. It was the coathanger from the aforementioned shirt being repeatedly belted against the cupboard door interspersed with hysterical laughter alternating between Tabitha and Lexi. So I removed the coathanger from Lexi's grasp, to which she stomped her feet, screamed "go away" at me and ran away. And I had the natural reaction you have when your child chucks a tanty, and I burst out laughing. I really don't mean to but seriously her tanties are just hilarious.

And so she started laughing, Tabitha started laughing, I was still laughing, and the world is a happy place. And Angus is asleep. Nice.

It is a well known fact

that the difficulty level in having a photograph taken wherein everyone is looking at the camera increases exponentially the greater the number of children you have. The graph also receives a sharp nudge the closer together in age these children are.

I am not sure if you would class my photographic quest as successful or not, you be the judge. This was one of the first ones....

and further attempts resulted in this.....

At least all the kids are visible. I do have a lovely one of Lexi, Angus and myself however the only part of Tabitha that pops in is her right foot. Hardly a portrait with the three kids. Ah well, I'm happy I at least got a few shots.

You know when you are a mum, as well as putting everyone else first and thinking of yourself basically as an afterthought, 99% of the time it is you, as mum, with the camera. Thus many key events pass by with no evidence that you were even present, save for the fact that someone has wonderfully captured the spirit of the day. Don't get me wrong, I'm not actually a huge fan of having my photo taken, predominantly because I have been pregnant for about a hundred years so have felt like a pygmy hippo with attitude for quite some time. I think once I trim down a bit and finally treat myself to some clothes and maybe a haircut my attitude might change. But I will still be the one with the camera won't I.....

Oh, and I'm devastated to add that my shameless plug of earlier, which I can't promise I will never do again because I do love a good competition, was fruitless. Alas I was not to be the recipient of the $200 gift voucher. No matter, I'll keep trucking away entering as much as I can. Why? Cos I love free stuff, that's why. Bring it on.

I have no shame!

and as such I am going to shamelessly try and win a $200 voucher by suggesting everybody go, join up and visit this great website, Go Deals!

They do some fabbo deals - I just got a mega box of stuff for the girls for Christmas for only $39. Can't go wrong!

And there ends my shameless plug for the day. I shall return at a later stage to rabbit on about a few odds and sods that have happened today and some other general flotsam jetsam that is floating around the quagmire that is currently my brain.

Tata for now.

For those of you who have not heard

apparently the alphabet has been changed. This is according to Tabitha. Now, instead of the cumbersome 26 letters it has been reduced to simply A, B, Y, Z. I'm not sure how this affects the every day running of life but let's just say the song is now a lot shorter.

Yesterday was a good day. There was nothing monumental about the day to make it rise above other days, the day just had a good "feel". I often associate my days and moods with colours. Yesterday was definitely a golden yellow day.

I wonder how much the weather actually affects one's mood. I'm sure they have done studies on it somewhere. At the ends of the earth where they get almost no sunlight or almost no night things have been know to go awry there also, so surely massive rains or excessive heat would have some affect also. Might google it.

I don't eat dairy. Except cheese because it has a minimal lactose content. However upon returning from the shops young miss Lexi and her sweet toothed father brought with them half a caramel cheesecake from the cheesecake shop. And some KFC. Actually I think I have found the reason it was such a good day.....

Anyway back on to the point (and I ate the KFC with ranch dressing - hot n spicy with ranch dressing is truly amazing....and not the Paul Newman's one, oh no, you need the Praise ranch dressing....mmmmm). If you mention to a child that they can have cheesecake "later" be fully prepared for that child to sit at the table, spoon in hand, and repeat the word "cheesecake" until "later" arrives. This could be five minutes or 55 minutes. Be prepared. And the batteries don't run down. If anything the repeated chanting serves as a generator, feeding more power into the cheesecake demanding machine.

We're still on the toilet training wagon with Lexi, and we're still having only minimal success. She does have a little insert that goes between the bowl and the seat which has a support so she doesn't fall in, and quite often she will place this on the loo and hop up, just to get used to it.

Last night I was bathing Lexi. I was in the process of washing her hair, rinsing the water out when behind me I saw a flash of Tabitha, heard a very plastic hitting porcelain kind of sound (this turned out to be a juice pop container attempting to find Nemo) and I was able, by some amazing force of nature, to reach Tabitha and grab her by the back of her tshirt in time to prevent her following said juice pop bottle into the toilet. I believe that if the toilet training aid had not been there I may not have been as successful. Who knew that toilet training saved lives?

I'm sitting here eating leftover KFC (original recipe) with ranch dressing for breakfast.....don't worry, it's the wing, the best possible breakfast piece, and also a couple of morsels of popcorn chicken. It is not the breakfast of champions though. Not entirely. For I only have a water, a coffee and a coke. The true breakfast of champions involves hot n spicy KFC, ranch dressing, coffee, coke and Red Bull. Still, it's a nice way to start the day.....

I don't know how long this will last

The quiet I mean. Tabitha is asleep, Angus has just gone to sleep and Mick has taken Lexi down to the shops with him. I have the tv on mute and all I can hear is the incredibly annoying, though at this moment in time oddly soothing, buzz  of the fridge, and the tap tap tap of my fingers typing what you are at this very moment in time reading.

I dislike my computer quite a lot at the moment. Why? Because the keyboard is ridiculously stupid. And why you ask is it stupid? Okay, well, that may be partly my fault. But then again it may not. I decided to clean it because let's face it keyboards collect all manner of whatnot from the air and from fingers and from tiny little people coming up and chewing over the top of it. So I thought I'll just plink the keys off and give it a good clean out. Hmm. Better in theory than practice. It appears that at some stage some sticky liquid has fallen into the depths of the undercarriage of the keyboard, and as such everything that fell subsequent to this liquid has become trapped, never to be freed, much as a fly gets caught in the web of a spider.

Out came the baby wipes. They truly are fit for all occasions. If you ever need to clean a ceiling fan, use a baby wipe. Trust me.

So back to the cleaning. I managed to get quite a bit of gunk out of the keyboard, but the problems really started when I started putting the keys back on. What I did not realise prior to delicately flicking them from their normal places of rest was that certain keys also had little metal  parts that click onto goodness knows what in order that they can function correctly. The key (no pun intended) button here was the space bar. Now this space bar is giving me such grief it is ridiculous. And do you think the computer will accept a different keyboard? You got it. Nope.

Pair with this the fact that many of the keys are now without name due to the fact that the keyboard has received such attention and use over the last few years, and, well, you get the drift.

What I would reeeeally like is a laptop. Why? Firstly because it would mean that I could go anywhere with it. And with these new fandangled internet stick things, well, the world is my oyster. Secondly, I could close the lid. No more little fingers inserting ",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiffffffffff-09999999999-----0098;;;;;;;;;;;;;" into my essays. No more INADVERTENTLY TYPING THINGS IN CAPS BECAUSE YOU DON'T REALISE A LITTLE FINGER HAS TOUCHED THE KEYBOARD WHILST YOU REACH DOWN TO WIPE THE NOSE OF SAID LITTLE FINGERS. Thirdly, well, it's kinda cool.

I have a wish list. I'm thinking that if I believe in santa hard enough maybe my stocking will be full. They say to children that if they believe hard enough if just may come true. Well, essentially I am a child (well, I once was), and I certainly behave that way sometimes, and I enjoy watching cartoons, so let's just accept that for argument's sake, for the purpose of this particular scenario, I am a child.

Bring it on Santa, I've been good....

It is my firm belief

that somewhere in my genetic history we must have been related to an octopus, for my children appear to have the ability not only to reach incredibly high, what would appear to be inaccessible places, but to do so at several of these locations at once. There is no other explanation for it.

I wonder where children learn to lie from, or whether it is built into humans when they are born. Yesterday I asked Lexi that age old question "Who has done a poo?" which is of course spoken on quite a few occasions in this house being that there are three bottoms apart from my own with which I am charged.

The answer? Angus. Now Angus was in bed, out of sight, and had most certainly not done a poo.

So I replied "No, it wasn't Angus" and I asked the question again. "Who has done a poo?"

Lexi: "Tab Tab", pointing at Tabitha with eyes wide open.

Me: "Oh really?" and over I go to check Tabitha (who I had changed literally minutes previously). "No, it isn't her". So third time lucky I say "Who has done a poo?" And Lexi says "Me" and giggles insanely.

Seriously wonder where they learn that.......

I have decided that it should be mandatory for all KFC restaurants to comply to the following list:

1. Be open 24/7
2. Offer home delivery
3. Every restaurant in Australia should offer hot n spicy chicken year round
4. There should be a frequent Kayfers card wherein you earn points every time you partake in the colonel's wonders resulting in free food.
5. There should be a birthday club where on your birthday  you get a free feed

This list could really go on for some time, but I think these few points are keepers. Definitely.

I want

is the phrase that has somehow entered my two year old's vocabulary. I was wondering how on earth this was possible, until I heard myself, after she had said mummy for the 750th time saying "What do you want Lexi???". I can only assume she has learned it that way.

This afternoon it was I want apple juice. And we all know how far one gets with manners like that. Not even to the fridge.

This evening it is I want baby food. Interesting. She even got it out of the cupboard, complete with little spoon, little bowl, and also one little bowl and spoon, and baby food, for Tabitha as well. So she is sitting at the end of table with her dress around her waist, for no apparent reason, a shopping bag over her arm, again, for no apparent reason, baby food all over her face (the joys of pureed foods) and when I go over there to help clean her up she tells me to go away.

Tabitha is in her high chair eating turkey gyoza. As you do. She is happy when food is in front of her as a general rule so that's a win.

Angus is in bed. Another win.

Bathtime is rapidly approaching, but my bones are still weary so I'm building up the energy.

Oh, and a lesson I learned yesterday afternoon.... when you clean the toilet and leave the blue stuff in the bowl to soak, just make sure you close the door behind you. If you do not, once you finish doing the dishes you realise that the swishing watery sound was not your doing the dishes, but rather your daughter, a toilet brush, and blue.

That is all for now.

General consensus

is that three seconds is not a long time. When you are a mother three seconds is PLENTY long enough. For so so much to occur. The three seconds in question this morning was the time it took for Lexi to take a biscuit from her little container, run over to Angus and try to shove it in his mouth while saying "here you go mate". He was sitting on my lap (thankfully) so I was able to intercept what may well have been Angus's first experience with solids.

Three seconds is all it takes for your daughter to lean over to your baby and say the child's equivalent of "aw aren't you gorgeous" only to have said child burp and/or vomit directly in their face. The response time to this incident is also included in the original three seconds as it is instantaneous.

Three seconds is all the time needed in the process of "spinning" (where you stand, look at the floor and turn around as fast as you can, pretty self explanatory really) before the spin goes out of control and where an empty space once was a kitchen table appears.

What takes longer than three seconds is the reaction from such a spinning incident. Sometimes I wish they would cry straight away. It's the silence wherein you realise they are sucking in as much of the room's oxygen in order to fuel the fire of their cry that is more terrifying than the cry itself, and the longer it takes, the louder it's going to be, of that you can be sure. So when the kids hurt themselves and it is silent, I wait, and I count, to see how bad it is. It's like thunder and lightning. 1, 1000, 2, 1000, 3, 1000, 4, 1000...... although it's the opposite, because with thunder and lightning the closer the noise is to the light, the closer the strike is. With kids and that cry, the longer the wait, the worse the ache.

I have discovered that Lexi is more likely to eat things she has helped make. Most of the time. Sometimes this theory is blown directly out of the water, such as the gyoza case. She LOVES making them, won't put them anywhere near her mouth it seems. Eggy pie though, bring it on.

I tried to frock the girls up this morning. Lexi adores wearing a frock, absolutely loves it. Usually with other clothes underneath or over the top, but the frock rocks in her world. I bought Tabitha a simply gorgeous little dress from Pumpkin Patch a few weeks ago. It is blue (and you don't see a lot of blue clothes for girls) and simply adorable. I tried to put it on her this morning and it was as though I was throwing a bucket of bugs at her. She literally screamed, blood curdling, terrified screams. I did actually get the dress on her only to have her grab at the straps and try with all her might to pull the dress off frontwards with tears streaming down her face. Heartbreaking!!! I removed the dress and put shorts and tshirt on her, but I'm just wondering why the problem. She hasn't worn a dress in ages, so perhaps that is it? Who knows. Even the sight of the dress an hour later was enough to make her run down the hallway screaming. Hmmm. Strange little creatures these children. I might give it a burl tomorrow with a different dress and see how we go.

I've just turned around to see Lexi making a wonderful pattern on the table with her lunch. I thought it smelled a little stronger than previously. Guess I should go and appraise the artwork.

Phonetic discrepancies

can be quite amusing, particularly in the hands, or mouths as it were, of children. My favourite one at the moment is twinkle twinkle little star, which in Lexi land is actually tickle tickle star. So cute. There are many more, none of which pop into mind at the moment but when they do be sure that I'll pass them on, probably at random moments in the middle of an otherwise normal, or as normal as my waffles are, conversation.

I had a very interesting dialogue with Lexi this morning actually. It went something like this:

Lexi: Drink
Me: Pardon?
Lexi: Drink
Me: Pardon?
Lexi: Drink
Me: Pardon?
Lexi: Driiiiiiink
Me: Would you like a drink?
Lexi: Yes
Me: Well what do you say?
Lexi: Drink
Me: Drink what
Lexi: Drink apple juice
Me: No, drink what
Lexi: Drink apple juice
Me: What did you forget to say?
Lexi: Pleeeeeeease
Me: Okay one minute
Lexi: Pleeeeeeease
Me: I'm coming
Lexi: Drink pleeeeeeeeeeease
Me: Hang on a tic seriously I'll be right there
Lexi: Muuuuuuuuuuuuum drink pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease
Me: Hang on Lexi I'll be right there.
Lexi: PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAASSSSSSSEEEEEEEEE

So you get the gist. She did eventually get some apple juice, although it wasn't apple juice. Lexi calls anything that isn't milk or water apple juice. Red cordial (not that she's ever had it and probably never will) - apple juice. Pineapple juice - apple juice. Red bull - mummy's juice. Iced coffee - daddy's juice.

I've been vomited on quite a bit lately. Angus had his shots on Monday and I figure that's why. Yesterday he did a particularly nasty chunky burp and retained much on his lips. I looked down to see that none was on my tshirt, which was great. Do not, however, assume that just because it is not on your shoulder it isn't on your back or in your hair. I realised this when I went to move my ponytail and, when reaching for my hair, instead grabbed hold of what was, by then, a curdled mess. It was then that I realised my clever little man had actually done what appears to have been a "curve ball" vomit. Impressive. Very very impressive.

We made turkey gyoza today. They turned out rather well, and there was nowhere near as much mess as by all rights there should have been given the way in which Lexi was treating the mixture to go inside the little wrappers. Gravity was being defied today in our kitchen, there is no other explanation for it. I must say though that turkey gyoza really don't taste that much different to the ole standard pork gyoza. Turkey mince is probably actually cheaper. Maybe. I'm not sure to be honest. They were nice though.

I'll leave you with a lovely sight I was witness to this morning. I think you'll understand why it made me happy, on several levels.

Watching the girls share

is truly wonderful. Lexi will have something and break off a piece and give it to Tabitha. Tabitha will smile a smile that lights up the room and scream out ta as loud as she can before shovelling whatever it is into her mouth. If I offer Lexi a biscuit or a fruit stick from the container she will always take two - one for herself and one for Tabitha. She is very good with sharing.

Generally. Most of the time. However, there is the odd occasion where the sharing thing doesn't quite go so well. Take for example earlier on this morning. Lexi decided to remove a food sachet and snack cup from the cupboard as she apparently felt that 7.54am was an adequate time to have beef and vegetables. Now Tabitha saw the snack cup and thought hmmm yes I think I'd like that, and, while Lexi's back was turned, she took the snack cup and sat on the ground with it. Now rather than going to the cupboard and getting another snack cup Lexi decided that the one she had previously removed, which was now in Tabitha's hands, was the only snack cup that would do, so she endeavoured to remove the snack cup from Tabitha's vice-like grip. I say vice-like because Lexi was unsuccessful, and in fact I was also unsuccessful. She is one strong mini chick.

During the time of pulling of snack cups and food sachets, young Lexi started squealing and running up and down on the spot, after which mini chick also joined in with this wonderful display of river dancing, until she promptly fell flat on her backside and Lexi ran off behind the high chair saying what appeared to be "go away" (again) repeatedly. So I told her to go to her room, to which she replied in dulcet tones "no", so I followed her and she screamed her way into the bedroom, jumped onto the bed, whereupon I burst out laughing because truly she was behaving so ridiculously and my laughing then made her laugh, and Tabitha followed us in an started laughing too. Very odd. But much better than the sound of two girls vocally duelling.

Today is Thanksgiving in the states. So in order to celebrate this I have decided to make turkey gyoza. I have leftover chinese cabbage from the original gyoza, and I ordered some more of the wrappers thinking, mistakenly, that they lasted a few months. Nope. Unless I have been given a dodgy batch that is, because they expire in a few days. Gyoza time. I might try other things too. Google is going to get a bashing so I can find out some other uses for Gow Gee wrappers.

I'm also going to try and make cornflake cookies today. I say try because I need to find a recipe that does not involve creaming the butter and sugar. Why you ask? Well, I'll tell you. Tabitha's reaction to the electric mixer is not dissimilar to if one were to try and remove a snack cup from her. Very very loud. So I try to avoid using it if I can. Lexi used to be the same until I made a game out of it. I would count 1, 2, 3 and then start the mixer and shake my head about violently while using the mixer and making the sound myself so that would make her laugh. Now when I go to the mixer she says 1, 2, 3, bzzzzzzzzz and shakes her head around. But at least it doesn't upset her anymore.

I've done about 1/3 of one of my assignments and am having serious issues of a motivational nature. I'm thinking steak and chicken wings will solve this problem so I might head to the shops and sort that out. Might grab a Red Bull or 4 while I'm there.....

For the first time

in a very long time I had breakfast this morning. Granted, I did start the day with a Red Bull, coffee chaser, Coke and another coffee, but it's the thought that counts. I had some of the egg and veggie pie we made yesterday so that is sort of a breakfast food.

I don't understand why we have to stick to the "norm" for breakfast foods. Aside from the fact that I don't drink milk and find that soy stuff absolutely revolting, I am not a huge fan of cereal anyway. Except Froot Loops. I think they rock. But, as I have found out, Froot Loops and young children don't mix, unless you want their nappy to glow in the dark for three days afterwards. They were a birthday treat once and they shall be no more.

Little man had his shots the other day and has done remarkably well in response to them. I do recall the girls got a bit ill after them but mini dude must be uber tough as it doesn't seem to have affected him, save for the fact that he doesn't appear to be sleeping as long at night in the one stretch.

Last night was a night to remember. Mini dude woke up around 12.30am and then again at 5.30am, however BOTH girls slept through without a peep. I truly can't remember the last time that happened. So much as the day started early and the night was a little long though ending prematurely, I was in a chipper mood when the girls did eventually wake up (that may however have had something to do with the Red Bull, coffee and Cokes of the morning....).

It's raining again.....wooooo it's raining again.....I'm actually singing that as I type it. We got 100mm overnight. That's a fair schlack of rain. The last "wettest" November was 10 years ago when they got 520mm for the month. We have had 500mm so far and there is a week to go....you do the math....

Mini chick has taken to running towards me with sheer joy and reckless abandon from as far away as she can get. You can actually feel her happiness radiating with each step she takes. Until she runs into the sofa. Or falls. Then some other things radiate. But this morning there were no obstacles - she was running and laughing and having a wow of a time, running full force into me. Which is fine and well, however she is a rather tall child, and a rather tall child running full force at you places their head in a position that is less than comfortable when a running child smashes into it. Say no more. I sat down.

I'm thinking today might be a "get the slow cooker out" day. Or the pressure cooker. Some form of cooker will be removed from the cupboard today anyway, that's fairly certain. Unless I can't find anything in the freezer to stick in it. Hmmm. Must get some more meat methinks.

I'm drinking water at the moment because I had a moment this morning when I couldn't actually remember the last glass of water I drank, I could only recall coffee, Red Bull, Coke, or an alcoholic beverage. So I think I need some water.

Mini dude has fallen asleep in the swing in his little jeans and tshirt. So so cute. It's funny everyone says how gorgeous the little girl clothes are. Yes, they are cute, but a lot of them are just so prissy that they don't suit battleaxe girls or those that have been raised around horses....aka mine. But the little boy clothes, my, I just think they are adorable. And don't get me started on Pumpkin Patch...for girls and for boys....the credit card is still warm from the last online sale they had.....

The thing about far north Queensland

is that things don't happen the same as in Victoria. The pests we used to get in Victoria tended more to be things like nasty looking spiders and red bellied black snakes (we had a rather nice sized one living under the verandah). Up here, little bit different. The rain, and has there been some of it in the last week, brings out other creatures. Cockroaches. Filthy, disgusting cockroaches. Note to self: when trying to kill cockroaches, make sure that the bottle of water you are holding is the right way up lest you feel drips of water hit your leg and throw the water bottle in the air because you think a cockroach is crawling up your leg. We also had a green tree frog placed rather nicely in the light thrown by the bathroom, sitting quite comfortably on the hall wall. Instead of catching them (and they are wriggly little things) you can actually chase them out the door.  But beware the u-turn. They can come back in just as quickly as they jumped out.

Today I discovered that while nappies on heads of toddlers may look cute it is best to check whether or not these head nappies are actually dirty before reaching for the camera. Needless to say I did not make it to the camera. And Lexi had a hairwash.

One thing that surprised me is the strength of Angus's head. I looked upwards for some unknown reason just as he decided to headbut me, which consequently hit me directly in the throat. In case you were not aware, a baby's head hitting your throat at speed whilst your head is looking upwards and thus tensing your throat will cause you to feel as though you have swallowed a bowling ball.

I asked Lexi what she wanted for dinner tonight. She replied "ice". I actually toyed with the idea of giving her ice but thought that that might be perceived, in some circles, as negligent. So I opted for salad...nature's own substantial form of food that is as similar to ice as anything else in the fridge and just a touch more nutritious than ice itself. I guess it's a step up from the marshmallows she requested for dinner the other day.

As we sat in front of the tv this evening, everyone on their respective sofas (the girls each have a little sofa) Lexi stood up with two of her soft toys and walked to the door. She said bye. Okay then. "Where are you taking the toys Lexi?". The answer? School. Okay then. No problems.

Moods were generally better today than they have been for the last few days. No fevers, but tantrums aplenty. To be expected with a 2.5 year old and a 16 month old though so no surprises. I must say though, and wrong as it may be, sometimes it is so funny watching them. I mean the things they get upset about are quite hilarious. Your spoon is facing the wrong way? Oh. My. God. Alert the authorities. Oh no, your biscuit broke? I'll get you a pillow, you must be feeling faint.

Everything in the mind of a toddler is everything. But I guess if you put yourself into their shoes their life is quite limited, and something like the breakage of what would otherwise be a perfect biscuity snack may well be the worst thing that can happen in their day. Still, I'm gonna tell them about it when they grow up.......

It is quite disturbing

when you can smell vomit but there appears to be no earthly link between the smell of said vomit and its actual reality. I will no doubt turn the place upside down trying to find the source of said vomit also, however I don't like my chances. I think perhaps it is one of those "poltergeist" vomits....the haze appears randomly, appears only to specific individuals (in this case me), stays only long enough to disturb them (which it has duly done) and then retreats back into the depths of nothingness from whence it came. That's my theory anyway.

Mini chicks are much better now, thanks for asking. Was not good the few days we had with soaring and plummeting fevers. Lexi is really comparatively a very good sick child if that makes sense. She just wants cuddles and to rest. Tabitha on the other hand suffers through sickness much the same way men get "man flu". She is like a bear with a sore head, and there is no person within cooee of her that is not aware she is ill. And clingy. Very very clingy. To the point that the other nights I was literally almost stuck to her for close on three hours, simply because she just wanted to be held. This was made slightly difficult by the fact that she is quite heavy, but you do what you have to do. She is my baby, that made her feel better, and that was my sole intention, to make her feel better.

Mini dude got his vaccinations yesterday. Such a horrid sound to hear them scream when the needle goes in. I actually found myself settling him by saying "It's for the greater good" of all things. Because it is when you think about it. Seconds of pain and confusion as to why someone is stabbing him full of whatnot, compared to what could be an incredibly nasty bout of whatever illness the vaccinations contain protection against.

Might make an egg and bacon pie today. Then again I might not. I'm feeling as though my cooking is stagnating somewhat (metaphorically, not actually, stagnating food sounds pretty ordinary, perhaps I should have chosen a better word). I think I might bash the google button on the internet machine today and see what little recipes I can find......

For now, I'm sleuthing like nobody's business. And I will find this vomit.....mark my words......

There are good nights

and there are bad nights. Last night falls into neither category but has created a category of its own. Let's call it "shattering" shall we? Both the girls were ill all day yesterday with temperatures rising and falling, off their food (which believe me is incredibly unusual) and just wanting cuddles from mummy which I was of course happy to provide.

The evening began well with all kids in bed by 7pm and I took this opportunity to watch the remake of Journey to the Centre of the Earth. Basically completely different to the original, and yet another classic that Hollywood has managed to butcher. Still, it wasn't actually that bad, just not a patch on the original.

I think I was lulled into a false sense of security as at around 11.15pm Angus awoke, with the girls following suit some 15 minutes later. Lexi and Angus were back down again by midnight however poor little mini chick just wasn't coping with being sick and it was a further two and a half hours before she relaxed enough to fall into zed land, and even then it wasn't a deep sleep. Even my lying down beside the cot didn't help (nor did it help my back). Poor little mini chick was just inconsolable. As I crawled into bed at around 2.45am I prayed that the sounds of Angus stirring was simply him repositioning itself, which he was, however when he stirred to the point of fully awake at 3.45am I just wasn't ready. Psychologically, physically, anythingly. And yet I dragged my tired self out of bed, as mothers do, attended to him and popped him back into bed. What time that was I could not tell you as by this stage I was doing things in such a foggy sleepy haze that he's lucky he hadn't been drinking bread rather than milk.

So this morning my eyes feel as though I have gone 10 rounds with Lester Ellis and my body feels as though the steamroller they are using down the road took a detour overnight. But, as I have said many a time, every cloud has a silver lining. My incredibly shiny silver lining is that both the girls have woken up without temperatures and in surprisingly good moods all things considered. I'm not saying their moods would win them Miss Congeniality or anything, but surprisingly more chipper than I would have anticipated bearing in mind the events of the last few days.

I still hold out hope that Angus will escape the lurgy that has plagued this house for the last few days. He is not quite himself though and I have a terrible feeling that it is due to illness, not due to babydom, where every day is a new adventure and sometimes it just gets overwhelming.

I'm thinking I should probably cook something today, and it should be something really nice. I mean like insanely nice, something that I love and that I don't make very often. I did that last night in making gyoza, dreamy little Japanese dim simmy kind of things that are just sensational. It helped. Today, well, it's anyone's guess but I'm tipping it'll be something small. And lots of it. I love small food. Hors d'oevres, canapes, if I go to a wedding I would prefer to just eat the little savoury things they give you before the reception actually starts. Maybe I should make something stuffed with cheese....

I'd best away to have a coffee and a coke and sort my mind out to the point where I can narrow it down to thirty or forty things I want to make. I have all my bits crossed that the girls keep on that path to wellness and that mini dude doesn't slide down into the garden of illness.

Do love my kids, breaks my heart when they're not well. But I do love to cuddle them better.

And I wonder

still wonder, who'll stop the rain.

It is bucketing down here. Literally bucketing down. And although there is a fear that flooding will occur and to be perfectly honest it is incredibly likely, at least it is keeping the outside temperature down, which is, at this point in time, a relief. For both the girls are ill with temperatures and general malaise.

There is no adequate way to describe the wrenching heartache a mother feels when her child is ill. You just want to take the pain and bad feelings away from your child and would gladly take them on tenfold if it meant your child didn't have to suffer at all. I can not even begin to imagine how parents of seriously ill children manage to cope. But you do, as a parent, everything you can to stay strong for your child. I'm struggling with lack of sleep and seriously just wishing the girls would get better, particularly Lexi who seems to have copped a very nasty dose of the flu, but I do know that in a few days' time she will be better. Some parents don't have that, and I am just lost for words as to the admiration I have for them. Such strength. Such fortitude. Amazing.

So today and perhaps tomorrow also I will not be jumping on and off the computer and rushing around. I'll be sitting on the sofa with my baby girls lying around me, stroking their hair and telling them it'll be okay. Because it will. But until it is, my heart bleeds for my babies. I just want them well.

It's probably just as well

that I decided not to get stuck into the starting of my assignments last night, for it was not long after my posting that my poor little mini chick awoke, sad, distressed with the state of the world due to those horrid white hard things that attempt to rip apart the gums in order to surface for ease of steak eating in later life. Teething is truly brutal.

To say I am tired this morning would be somewhat of an understatement. Thus far I have had one coffee and one red bull and it hasn't even touched the edges of the fatigue. Mini chick finally settled at around half 11, and I fell into bed, my eyes closed and mental state hazy before my head even touched the pillow. It was a mere hour and a half of sleep before the little guy woke for a feed. Falling back into bed around 2ish I just hoped the girls didn't wake up too early.

As I have mentioned, Lexi had fallen asleep on the lounge room at 4 o'clock. The long and the short of it is that she stirred several times throughout the night, uttering a random "mummy" at all different hours, but she stayed in bed and didn't get up until 5.45am. Mini chick, well, she was up nearly half an hour earlier than that.

And so today, as many days before, commences in a fog of sleepiness, the rain pounding on the roof as only tropical rains can do, the frogs doing their frog calls, not galoomping, not la di da di da'ing, the girls are munching on raisin toast while I source as much caffeine as I can to try and force my eyes to remain open without the assistance of matchsticks.

If I can get the energy up today is gyoza day. Mmmmm gyoza. Sensational wonderful amazing little parcels of sheer delight. I think what makes them so special is that they are fried as well as steamed. Double cooking. Double methods. I'm going to make up a little dipping sauce as well. Actually that is starting to wake me up. I don't know why I don't think about food more often when I'm tired, it really does a wonderful job, gets the salivary glands functioning, opens the eyes, generally wakes me up.

Speaking of food, I dreamt about KFC last night. Would you like to know what it was that I dreamt? Give you a bit of an insight into my subconscious mind?

Well, here goes. A little while ago (in reality, not in dreamland) I got some KFC and they neglected to include the hot n spicy pieces. I was devastated. So of course I rang them and let them know and they took my name (again) and said to come in and tell them next time and they'll fix it up. No problems.

As a side note, does anyone else have KFC's phone number saved into their mobile phone or is that just me?

Anyway, back to the dream. We're in dreamland now, and in my dream I told Mick that there was KFC for the taking due to the error they made and could he go and pick it up. So he goes, gets the 10 piece pack with 2 chips, extra salt. Now, if you don't know about this deal, ask them. It isn't on the board, but you can get 10 pieces and 2 chips for $19.95. That is a bargain if I do say so myself. Back to the dream. So in he goes and gets the chicken and returns home. I have a few pieces and some chips and then realise that it is all gone, but that is not possible because I was sure there was more when he brought it home. So I check the fridge and nothing is there. Mick is on the computer and non-plussed about the whole thing. Me, well, I'm upset. Not really really upset, but confused upset because I could have sworn there was more chicken. Cut to five minutes later, I look over on the bench and there is another whole box of chicken. Four of the pieces are drumsticks (because in the dream in the first box I was looking for a drumstick and couldn't find one). And so the dream culminates in my realising that they have in fact given us extra chicken.

So that's how my mind works. Disturbing hey?

Frogs

I live in far north Queensland. In far north Queensland there is no shortage of frogs.

I have a bone to pick.

I have never heard a frog go galoomp, nor have I heard a frog go la di da di da.

That is all.

Bed at last

for the three munchkins. It has been kind of a strange day though. We started toilet training with Lexi today. For days she has been sitting on the toilet "miming" the actions, and has also put her soft toys on it. She doesn't want a bar of the potty, just wants to go straight to the big toilet. So we thought yep, let's try. I asked her if she wanted a nappy or undies and she wanted the undies. Sensational. I must add though that prior to the undies going on she did the teeniest tiniest little wee in the loo. Never thought I would get excited about wee, but I was overjoyed! Anyway, undies went on. She didn't make it the next time. That's ok, try again. Nope. Not quite. Third time she made it to juuuust beside the toilet and didn't quite get on there. After that she was ON the toilet but didn't have her pants down. Anyway, you get the gist, it wasn't supremely successful, not for want of trying on both our parts.

I must say that toilet training is not easy. And it is even less easy with an 8 week old and a 16 month old put into the mix. However, we are trying. A lot. So when Lexi fell asleep on the floor in the lounge room at 4 o'clock I thought she might just need a little kip. When she was still asleep at 5.30 I thought I might just change her nappy and put some pants on her and put her to bed. Well, it's nearly 8 now and she's still asleep. I'm wondering what the rest of the night will bring, as she didn't have dinner. I wonder if toilet training is as exhausting for her as it is for me??

It's actually been kinda good to be honest, having her fall asleep early. Angus was having a little kip for a while there too and I got some great one on one time with Tabitha. She is such a little unit. Absolutely hilarious. She will repeat basically any word you throw at her (although she did look at me strangely when I asked her to say hippopotamus, but what can you do, we're all only human). We read some books, had a bit of a dance to the music channel, had some cuddles, and basically just experienced what it was like to have one child for a little while, which I rarely get to do with Tabitha, and I really enjoyed it.

I'm still rapt about the whole online grocery shopping thing. To the point where I'm visualising next time. How sad is that? It really is exciting though.....because my brain has been sapped of much of its worth in the real world I had no idea what I had ordered, so it was like Christmas, every bag I opened was a new surprise to discover. Lexi adored it too. Tabitha just eyed the delivery bloke off with great suspicion. I really don't think Angus cared one way or another to be honest.

Well I'm back. You didn't know I'd gone anywhere did you? Well, I went to look at something else and completely forgot I was blogging so there you go. It's a bit later now hahahhaa. Bet that time just flew for you......

I'm trying to build up the motivation to start my uni assignments but to be honest I just don't have it. I'm thinking maybe tomorrow. They're due in a few weeks' time. Hmmm. Probably should start. But, well, I truly can't be naffed. Executive decision I'm not going to. Yep. That's the way. I wonder if anyone else has these conversations with themselves....and answers......

I also wonder who is actually reading this....young people, old people, mums, single chicks, blokes, anyone....and what they think....it's a deep day today...as you can tell. Oh, but I'm making gyoza tomorrow hehehe. I am sooo excited about that! If you haven't heard of it, google it. Seriously.

Well, with the best of intentions I approached the computer, and with the relative comfort of the office chair underneath my larger than pre pregnancy posterior I have opted to ignore those intentions and chill. And chill I shall. Until something else invades my brain and I feel the need to splash it on here, just for the hell of it. As you do.

My life will never be the same

now that I have discovered the wonders of ordering groceries online and having them home delivered. Now I was a little sceptical, I must say, and was concerned that I wouldn't be getting a good product as far as fruit and vegies, and meat as well, were concerned. How wrong could I be? Now at the risk of sounding like an ad, I would highly recommend this service to anyone. Even if you don't have three kids under three and the inability to drive anywhere with all three at once because you can't fit the three car seats in the car.

As a side note, if you attempt to sift meat you will be unsuccessful. This handy hint was brought to you by Lexi.

There should really be

a boot camp to which you could send your toddler and have them returned a few days later completely toilet trained.

That is all.

And she says baby

it's 3am I must be lonely. Angus woke up at 3am for a feed, I looked at the clock, saw the time, and Rob Thomas infected my brain and has not left since. I guess it's better than Dora. Or that Justine Clarke.

I'm not sure if I have expressed my feelings about Justine Clarke yet so, just to be on the safe side, I shall give you a brief rundown. Did you ever see the episode of Seinfeld where every time Kramer hears the voice of the chick from the morning TV show he has a seizure?? Well, it's kinda like that with me and Justine Clarke. Now don't get me wrong, the girls love her on both Play School and those little snippet things that Nick Jr puts between the programs. However I find her voice has much the same affect as, hmm, let me see, running your fingernails down a blackboard, um, shoving a knitting needle through your ear, something like that. I do not know why I have such an aversion to her, there's just something about her voice and her mannerisms that really get my goat. And what does that mean?? where did that come from? Get my goat. I find some of those little sayings absolutely hilarious. "You'll be laughing on the other side of your face". Yep. Some bright spark made that one up.

Now after the fully clothed bathing incident last night mini chick surprised me yet again with her words when she repeated "all clean now" after me. She is quite astounding. We can now add such words as muffin, puppy, baby and the like to her vocabulary, and when she leaned against the flip top lid of the rubbish bin and ended up in it, once I had settled her down and said poor bubby she continued repeating this in a melancholy tone for the next five minutes. And she pronounces these words correctly. It is truly astounding. It isn't an exaggeration to state that she actually pronounces many words better than Lexi.

Okay so what's on for today? My first delivery of online grocery shopping! That is of course if the truck can get through because we have had quite a bit of rain and the ground is less than solid. Mick actually mentioned that the last time we had this much rain was the day I went into labour with Angus. It had been bucketing down all night and Mick literally had to wade out through the paddocks to feed some of the mares in foal. When I was going out to the car, in labour, the ground was so soft that my feet literally sunk into it. It was that bad that when I dropped the girls off at a friend's place on the way to the hospital I washed my feet while I was there. As you do. She mentioned that I was awfully calm. I reminded her that I had already had three labours that pregnancy so this was just another, but that story is for another time :)

A bug just flew at my head and I said, out loud, "oh that bug is going to do my head in". Lexi runs off, to the cupboard, grabs the flyspray, comes running back with it and says "there you go mum." What a good girl. What's better? I spray the bug and Lexi says "good shot mum". She, and the others, do rock.

Looks like my coffee will be going cold as young Mr Angus has decided it is time for him to awaken. He was up at 5 as well as 3. Perhaps he is a little more peckish than usual today.

Until later, may the day be one of joy and minimal nagging.

Just as an indication

of how my day has been, I bathed Lexi in the teensy baby bath that we are forced to used due to Lexi's strange fear of the shower and the fact that our house does not in fact contain a standard bath (a 100% must in the next place to which we move). I was taking her up to her bedroom to get dressed when I heard a sound behind me. Naturally I went to investigate. This is what I found.

That about says it all I think.

My hero

is generally known to be the colonel for his wonderful 11 secret herbs and spices, his sensational hot n spicy and oh so alluring popcorn chicken. Bearing this in mind it is a huge statement to say that there is something else that is my hero. That thing is puff pastry.

I am having a distinctly unmotivated day, due largely in part to the huge amount of sleep I did not get last night. So breakfast was cereal, morning tea was fruit and a meusli bar, lunch was fairy bread (this because Lexi has been bringing me the hundreds and thousands dozens of times a day and I basically got sick of it so to shut her up, I know, terrible mum, I told her she could have them for lunch - she did not argue with me), afternoon tea was a muffin, and dinner is, wait for it, puff pastry with pureed baby food inside. I think I've stumbled onto something here. It was the perfect way to involve Lexi in cooking where I didn't have to clean up the carnage that usually follows - I used Raffertys. Any of you that know Raffertys know that they come in a soft pouch with a screw top lid - perfect for little hands to squirt on to puff pastry. And mum adds a bit of cheese and squashes it all together with a bit of milk wash on top, piff it in the oven on high and 15-20 minutes later out comes dinner. Essentially just vegies in puff pastry with cheese. But oh so very very lazy to make, and the kids love them. Granted it probably isn't the healthiest way to eat vegetables, pre prepared and shoved between layers of buttery goodness, but, well, I'm absolutely buggered and just couldn't face the thought of cooking. I'm thinking for the grown ups tonight will be Noodle Paradise or something similar.

Prior to having children I didn't realise that it was possible to say the same phrase so many times in one day. If I got a dollar for every time I have said "get out of the cupboard" I would be living the high life somewhere spacious in the country, the girls would have a great playground outside, we'd have a vegie patch, a grand piano, one of those double door fridge freezer things, a home cinema .Ok, I'm getting carried away, but you know what I mean.

Lexi has recently (as in the last two days) decided that it is she who will decide the clothes she wears for the day. Gone are the days of mum offering the choice of two outfits and Lexi choosing the preferred one. Now it would appear that the new age has arrived and Lexi, who has obviously watched far too many episodes of Project Runway with me, will be dressing herself. Yesterday it was a purple floral sundress teamed with a pair of red and white spotted pants, today it was a blue sundress with black corduroy pants. It's hard to visualise, so I'll attach a photo.

Mini dude has commenced the siren call so I must away. Might be time for a feed. In fact definitely time for a feed. A bientot....

Be thankful for small mercies

The small mercy for which I'm thankful this morning is that Angus slept from 7pm until 4.15am. That is enormous! Why, you ask, is this classified a small mercy? Well, usually it would not be. Usually I would be jumping up and down screaming with joy, embracing the world for all its wonder blah blah. However it is a small mercy because Tabitha was up from 2am. I am merely thankful that Angus held off waking until I had managed to settle Tabitha back down. Needless to say I am rather tired this morning and, once again, I find myself decidedly short of Red Bull. I have Coke, the kettle is boiling, that will just have to do for today.

If you've ever watched poker you will know that some people have amazing poker faces, not giving away any idea as to the strength of the hand they hold. Conversely, there are some people who have what are referred to as "tells". These are the subconscious mannerisms that reveal to others the relative strength, or weakness, of the hand that is held. Lexi has a tell. When she comes out with her hands clasped together, prayer style, you can be 100% sure that she has either done something or been into something, and more than likely it is the latter, the hands being folded in order that the adult (me) is not able to see that with which she has been messing around.

Yesterday Lexi came out with her hands clasped together. Oh dear. Tell. So I say "Lexi what have you got on your hands?" and she unclasps her hands to reveal they are wet. Instantly I run through my mind what sources of water there are that Lexi could possibly reach. My mind jumps to the shower, where I had been not long before, and there was some remaining water on the floor. So I got up and went for a little mosey to the bathroom. I was not prepared for the sight of the toilet brush sitting on top of the toilet and water strewn all around it. Not prepared at all. All I could say was "oh no" over and over. This was not a nice sight to see let me tell you. Usually the bathroom door remains closed at all times, however we also have a tumble dryer in there, and with the wet season firmly in place up here the tumble dryer does get quite a bit of use, which was occurring at the time of the toilet brush incident. And so the door was open in order that some of the hot air could be released from the dryer as the fan is simply insufficient. Anyway, fact remains she got in there, created a mess in a disturbing fashion, and I had to clean it up. The small mercy to be thankful for there is that the toilet had been cleaned only the day before.

I'm thinking today might be a banana bread day. I would also like to get my online shopping order finished. I had made so many attempts at it yesterday however with Cylone Lexi and Typhoon Tabitha blowing through at consistent intervals the shopping was relegated to a position of slightly lesser importance and the cessation of hands opening and closing doors and drawers was the priority.

It's quite funny the things that run through your mind when you are awake with your children. There is the inevitable feelings that you wish your child would sleep, and, in Tabitha's case, that she was not in pain. Teeth truly are mongrels. But then there are the other thoughts. Random thoughts. I often find that words jump into my mind and replay until they gather some form of meaning. I was watching Ace of Cakes last night and they were doing a cake that was shaped like a dynamometer or something, and then they mentioned hydraulics. As I was stroking Tabitha's back at 3am this morning I suddenly realised that hydraulic is related to hydro, which means water, and thus I instantly understood hydraulics. Now how's THAT for random??

Some days

just drag. It wasn't a hugely early start this morning. Angus was up through the night from 3.15am til 3.45am, then Tabitha woke up at 3.46am and remained alert, awake, upset and fairly inconsolable til just before 5am. I managed to squeeze in another hour's sleep before the troops awoke. So I guess although it started later than usual the night itself was what might be classified fairly long.

Visitors always makes the day more pleasant and today was no exception. It's also always great to chat with someone else about kids, not kids, life in general, future, past, basically anything. And have coffee. While it's hot. It is actually easier when visitors are over because the kids interact with the "newbies" that have entered the house, and although there may be some friction or some issues with height/weight/toy difference, the kids just love it.

Lexi has been a little demanding today. I have absolutely no idea why, or whether she is in fact being demanding or whether it is I who is just a little less tolerant today. It's hot, again, just for something different, and I do think that has a bearing on one's mood. They say that grey miserable rainy days reflect on your mood. So sticky, hot, muggy, oppressive days must do the same. You would think anyway.

I'm having a burl at this online shopping caper today. So I jumped onto Woolies online to see what I could do. Well, I can tell you, once you get yourself into a routine and get sorted out with what you need and want, and have navigated your way around the site, it will be SUCH a time saver, and having it delivered also. HOWEVER, the first time is NOT quick and easy and hassle free because you really don't know what you're doing so every page is new, every discovery opens up other options, and basically I have been sitting here on and off for the last two hours and still don't know if I have finished my shopping yet. But I'll press on. I think I saved my shopping list so I can come back to it later. I think.

During my forays into the world of online grocery shopping the girls were being, hmm, how shall I say this, annoying as all get out, so I decided that a piece of chocolate would solve this. And so I gave Tabitha a piece of chocolate (a clinker to be precise), Lexi reached in and grabbed literally hands full and I told her that she could have two, one in each hand. She put the others back, no questions asked, and retained one in each hand. She then promptly gave one to Tabitha. I just about cried - how gorgeous that she was given two and her first instinct, that she acted on and was happy with, was to share with her sister. I got such a warm glow (and I reached in and grabbed another clinker for Lexi.....). It is truly wonderful when you witness things like that.

Five minutes later, when Lexi grabbed the toy from Tabitha's hand and ran off I wasn't quite so proud, but shhhh if you don't tell anyone I won't......

I hate teeth

Poor mini chick is having such a hard time with teething. She has 12 teeth already and there are four more threatening to pop through any day. Her little gums are all swollen and though she is generally a happy little chickadee once night falls and she goes to sleep she is restless and sad. Tonight was the second time ever she has had Nurofen. In days gone by she would spit it out, same with Panadol, but tonight, and the other night, she didn't. I just wish there was something more I could do for her.

Needless to say my me time didn't last. But that's okay. I knew what I was getting in for when I signed up for the job. Just breaks my heart that there isn't anything more I can do for her. Once they're through then we're all good, but the leadup is horrid.

We were actually "lucky" with her top four teeth. It was truly an horrific way for them to come through, however she had three bottom teeth for some time. Cue one day when she decided that she would climb up on furniture (well, pull herself up anyway) however she was still shaky on her feet, tumbled, and hit her chin on the coffee table. I was absolutely devastated. I simply could not make the two metres from the sofa to the coffee table in time to save her from hitting herself. And there was blood, oh so much blood. And her three bottom teeth cut through her top gum, and then all of a sudden instead of the three teeth she had 7. So much as it was awful at the time, in the long run it probably saved us a little heartache. I did cry that night though.

They say that to have children is to permanently have your heart walk around outside your body. They are not wrong.

It's 8 o'clock

and all three kids are in bed asleep. It would have happened sooner only my poor little man got what can only be described as an absolutely brutal case of the hiccups. Less than a second would pass before his little body would spasm and baby hiccups burst from his sad little mouth. He was achingly tired, that was obvious, however there is no sleep with hiccups. After what seemed like an eternity I opted to give him some more formula to see if we could alleviate the problem and, luckily, it was not long before this did work and he drifted off to catch a few zeds.

So now it's me time. Mick's out, the kids are asleep, and it's time for me to just be me, which in all honesty doesn't happen often. If I'm not doing something for the kids, one or more of them is attached to me, and if I'm not looking after their needs I'm either doing the domestic tasks that come with running a household full of people, large or otherwise, and if I'm not doing the domestics I'm studying. So as you see, not a great deal of time to just be me. Tonight I have decided to make that time.

They say that if you want something done give it to the busiest person because they will make time to do it. There's a lot of truth in that statement. I am baffled to know what I did with all my spare time prior to the arrival of my beautiful little ones.

Julie and Julia is on the tv tonight. I saw it as a premiere at the movies when I was pregnant, with either Tabitha or Angus, to be honest I have absolutely no idea who. It was a film I greatly enjoyed, not because it was a brilliant film, but because I firstly got to get out of the house and see a movie (which is a rarity), secondly because I was able to catch up with a dear friend at the same time, and thirdly because I actually learned something. It's not often you can go to the movies and learn something. The one thing I took away from that film was that you should pat meat dry before you fry it. If you do this it will brown much better. So I tried it. And they were right!!!! Amazing. Truly amazing. You should also not crowd the pan when frying mushrooms....again, the browning thing. So there are some lessons for the day from the school of Christy by way of Julie and Julia. Or vice versa. You know what I mean.

Julie and Julia was really where I first heard about blogs. The film itself tells the story of a young (well, she's 30, that's young for me) woman who is seeking something, anything, that she can do to feel fulfilled. And so she blogs about cooking, in particular the recipes of Julia Childs who, if you don't know, was a famous cooking chick. I could tell you more about her but I'd have to google and I really don't feel like googling, but feel free to if you would like.

So I find myself here, some however long later, again, no idea, and I'm blogging. It's quite odd really. I do feel as though it is a wonderful way of winding down, getting out the traffic in your mind, and at times having a little chuckle while doing so. The kids will always make me laugh, there is nothing surer. But every now and then even the little random thoughts that run through my head will make me laugh. Or become perplexed. Or wish to seek further information, so google here we come. By the way in 99.9% of cases google is the devil. Except where it comes to recipes. Just in case I haven't mentioned that before, which I'm fairly sure I have, however it's best to be on the safe side and err on the side of caution, thus, I have mentioned it once again, or for the first time, depending on whether or not I have in fact already mentioned it. If that makes sense.

Decisions decisions....to sloth in front of the tv and watch Julie and Julia, lay like broccoli on the sofa relaxing and tuning out to the world, or to play a game of poker. Hmmm. Might flip a coin. That's the best way to decide anything. Do you know why? Because if at first flip of the coin you are pleased with the outcome you can feel sure you want that option, deep down. But if at first flip of the coin you opt for best of three, then perhaps you really do know what you want but want fate to tell you that's what you should do.....interesting hey.....

A few more minutes

and Play School will be over so things will buzz into action again, but for now I have a little time. That seems to be the story of my life, buzzing buzzing going mad getting things done and chasing after little folk unless one of two things is on TV - Play School (which I believe deserves a medal for its consistent ability to keep the kiddies amused) and Mister Maker. Now Mister Maker is an English show. It is absolutely sensational. This wild young fellow gets up in his little studio room that has bright colours and bits and pieces everywhere and spends about 15 minutes just making things. It is an arty crafty show that both the girls absolutely adore. Aside from learning how to make things, they have little segments on shapes and colours and it really is a great show. So there is a Christmas present organised.....Mister Maker DVD.

Lexi came up to me with the remote control today and I said would you like me to change the channel? And she said yes. I asked her what she wanted me to change it to and she said "Mister Maker". Yes, well, great that she knows the remote changes the channel, and she can do it to a certain extent, but I don't think she understands I don't actually control what show is on at what time..... So methinks the DVD shall be rather welcomed.

I didn't end up making a cake. I have no idea why. I got a bit distracted when Tabitha only slept for 45 minutes, and then we had to pack up Lexi's crayons because Tabitha thinks they look rather tasty (and to be fair in some countries they may well be a delicacy). Lexi though is not thrilled with the idea of her crayons being eaten so back into the cupboard they went, and into the toyroom the three of us went. Angus was happily kipping. As you do.

Today we did do a lot of singing. Lexi has started requesting songs now. It's quite funny actually. The farm song (Old McDonald), Baa baa (self explanatory), ducks (three little ducks) and the alphabet song all feature. The alphabet one is my favourite though as Lexi sings along. She also does it with twinkle twinkle (or tickle tickle as it is referred to in this house). Funniest part is her interpretation of the words to the song. I shouldn't laugh but really, it is pretty funny. Not in a mean way. In a cute awwwww kind of way.

Well there you go I just got distracted and completely forgot I was doing this. Oh dear. I think I need sleep. On a good note dinner is starting to smell wonderful. We're trying out a new recipe. Well, a new flavour of chicken in the bag anyway, that counts doesn't it? We did make potatoes to roast as well though, and no bag thing happening there so at least we have done some "real" cooking.

I'm thinking mini dude will be waking up soon. He's a very chilled out little man. Often times he won't even cry or squawk when he wakes up, he'll just lie there looking at the ceiling. I check on him quite often (as I have done with all the kids, and continue to do so...just a mum thing, well, a me thing anyway) and it's fairly amusing every now and then to have him staring at the doorway as I walk in. Cute little thing.

B1 and B2 have just rocked over, B2 deciding my glass of water would be better utilised to clean the floor with so I had best go clean that up. She's probably right though, floor could use a wash.....

Marshmallows

If you ask your children what they would like for lunch, be prepared for the answer to be marshmallows, followed closely by cereal when you tell them they can not have the requested marshmallows. They didn't get either. Nor did they get the red jelly (unmade still in the packet) that was the other request. They got banana, apple and mango. It's a pretty hot day today and I think that's a fairly nice refreshing lunch. They appear to agree as the fruit is rapidly disappearing from their plates.

I have 2 assignments due on the same day in about three weeks time. You'd think that the subjects would talk amongst themselves (well, the lecturers anyway, subjects are unlikely to talk) and work out a staggered rate at which assignments may be submitted. But no, that would be logical wouldn't it? So I have three assignments for each subject, and each assignment is due on the same day or within one or two days of the other subject. I'm ecstatic. Truly. Can you sense my enthusiasm?

Much as I haven't actually started either of these assignments I have requested the required books from the library and downloaded a few bits and pieces off the internet. Hopefully the books will arrive by the end of the week giving me a few weeks to utilise them, and the articles, well, I can start the assignments by using those.

Tabitha said tortilla this morning. Random? Not particularly. Lexi and I were looking through a recipe book trying to work out what to add to the shopping list that we can make together for meals and so I was just reading the recipe titles out loud as I went and Lexi was repeating them. Every now and then Tabitha would repeat them also. So we had stereo versions of dip, chips, bread, squid, and, surprisingly, tortilla. Shopping list has been duly amended and I must say I'm quite looking forward to making some gyoza after the shopping has in fact been done. Gyoza are like posh dim sims. Japanese in origin I do believe, utilizing pork mince and coriander and a few other things, and my word are they tasty. I could eat a dozen. I have done so in the past actually. So yes, when I make these up with Lexi at the end of the week I'll have to make sure we make enough to satiate my large gyoza appetite.

Dramatics have now begun....Lexi is reaching for her plate but can't reach it (it is a good 5 or 6 cm in front of her so it is quite obvious that her arms have lost all feeling or have shrunk dramatically). The groans and grunts of pain and frustration at not being able to reach accompany this. I stand corrected, she is now leaning with her head on the seat. Fun times fun times.

For now I shall go and remove the mango from Tabitha's hair.

I have a theory

that the person who invented garden gnomes was in fact a recluse who was lonely, so he or she invented some friends that he could talk to, thus they have different outfits and personalities etc. That's the theory anyway. Apparently if you have garden gnomes and you are trying to sell your house each garden gnome detracts $1000 from the sale price. So if you have an asking price of $200,000 and you have 50 garden gnomes, you'll be looking at around $150,000. Interesting hey.

You know the sounds of nature vary so much throughout the course of the day and night. During the day it's all birds twittering and horses whinnying and dogs barking and then all the man made things like trucks and cars and whatnot. In the evening there is a symphony of sound with crickets and cicadas, frogs and other night creatures. Now in the middle of the night, I'm talking 2 or 3 in the morning here, most of these sounds are gone and all you can hear is the sound of the wind and the odd frog taking a base jump from a tree branch and landing with a fairly hefty plop onto the ground below. That and the odd buck of a horse against the stable. Or a random bird flying overhead, usually a duck or a goose, and a honk honk there you go. Well, that's here anyway.

There was actually a point to this train of thought, however I have, since beginning the paragraph and ending the paragraph, changed two nappies, cleared off the breakfast dishes and grabbed myself a Red Bull, so now I've lost it. Oh well. It's also noisy in my head. Probably should mention that too.

I think the job for today will be installing all the cupboard and drawer locks in the kitchen. If I say get out of the cupboard one more time, to either of the girls, I think I may go even more insane than I already am. I'm also quite sick of seeing Tupperware strewn in various places around the house, and, more disturbingly, replaced by the girls back into the cupboard. They will think nothing of using a little container to house whatever tasty floor food they have found in their travels, mix it in with a little water from Tabitha's bottle, tip it all out wherever it may land, and then pop the container back into the cupboard. My jaw also dropped rather low when I witnessed Lexi finish her breakfast, lick the remaining milk off the spoon, then place it back into its rightful spot in the drawer. Let's just say I'm extra vigilant at mealtimes these days.

It's a lovely day outside although rain is forecast. Another joy of the tropics. Wet season.

Lexi and I might cook something today. I still have quite a few mangoes so might make a mango cake. Or an apple tea cake. Or a banana cake. I think it is fairly safe to say though that whatever we do make, it will end in cake.

Don't you hate it

when you have plans for the day and you talk about them the night before and then you have such a dodgy night that the only thing you can remember when you wake up from your minimal slumber is that you need to bake bread? I was sure there was something else I needed to do today but all I can think is bread. So I'm assuming I was going to bake bread considering that is the only thing in my mind, so Lexi helped me get it all organised and pushed the buttons and bread is duly baking.

Maybe I should start writing down a list at night of things to do the following day, just so I don't forget. I do tend to write most things down because the kids have sapped my memory something shocking. It was pretty dodgy beforehand anyway but they have signed the deal that things just go in one ear and out the other. Or start in the head and end up goodness knows where, usually resurfacing at 3am when I'm in a deep sleep and all of a sudden I'll wake up and go "meusli bars" because that would have been the thing that I needed to add to the shopping list but hadn't yet because I got distracted by one of the kids doing something or falling off something or needing something. Or something.

It's raining here today. Fairly grey and miserable. But Play School is on as we speak so I have approximately 19 minutes in which I am able to do whatever I choose. Soooo I have logged on the uni website, as uni summer semester starts today. I have downloaded the assignments that I have to get started on, and had minor nervous breakdowns about them because they were not what I was expecting nor are they something I can see myself particularly enjoying, however one subject out of two looks okay so we shall see how that goes.

I think I might make that mango, avocado and bacon salad again tonight, and I think I'll also cook up some of that 88c asparagus. Love it. And a steak. Shame I haven't got any mushrooms though, steak with mushroom sauce is sensational. Wonder if I have a tin of them....hmmm....will have to look. I really should find out some alternatives to mushroom sauce. I'm a bit of a creature of habit sometimes and tend to do the same thing over and over and eat the same things the same way over and over. So maybe I'll give google a burl and see what it has to offer. Actually I wonder if there is a steak and mango thing....oh yes, the cogs are turning now!!

Little man has been up and down all day today. He's a little unsettled, not sure why, I figure it's the whole growing thing that he's doing. Still can't believe he's 8 weeks today. I still remember when Lexi was 8 weeks old, some 2.5 years ago. Who would have thought then that at this time I would have three kids. Insane. Great, but insane.

I think I need a makeover, Trinny and Susannah style. What not to wear. They would go MAD with me!!! I tend to live in shorts and a tshirt because it is just the most practical. It's always hot here and I'm always getting vomited on or food wiped on or boogies or charming stuff like that. And I hate shoes. Can't stand them. Thongs are okay, sandals are passable, but shoes, yuck. And don't even get me started on shoelaces.

So yes, I do believe that once I lose some more of this post baby weight I might treat myself to something. Haircut definitely. Pedicure, well, that would be good cos they feel sensational. But I'd loooove to get some kind of fashion advice - what colours and styles to wear to make me look good! Haha! Wonder if anyone does that here??? Hmmmm. Again, the thinking cap's on.

I'm hearing thuds again. And a squeak. But Play School is on so I don't understand it. I'd best go investigate.....I shall return......

Retribution

It is always risky to make statements publicly lest there be some form of retribution. It appears that this has been the case I'm sad to say, however it is surprising the source of the backlash.

It appears that the mosquitoes can either read or have become smarter overnight for I now have bites on my thighs, stomach and backside. Definitely gone for the fleshy areas now. Oh, there are still some "slow" ones as I also have fresh bites on my chin, elbow and calf, but I'm pretty sure he's the one I squashed this morning.

I'm winding that bug again. Still. Pretty soon it's either going to turn into a butterfly and disappear without a trace, or Tabitha is going to sit on it. Same end result.

I'm still hungry. I haven't managed to work out what to eat yet. But I have fed the kids and had a shower so I figure I'm already doing better than some mornings. Mini dude's having a swing, mini chick is roaming around aimlessly. She barely touched her bottle or her breakfast this morning, which for her is very unusual. Poor baby. Lexi, well, she's being Lexi, gallivanting all over the house, falling over her feet every few minutes, and every other minute bringing the bug in to be wound up. That bug must die. I don't care how it happens, but it will happen. But you didn't hear it from me.

All I want for Christmas

is a good night's sleep. Angus went to bed at around 6, the girls at around 7. Angus woke up at 1am for a feed, so not bad, that's a 7 hour stretch. The problem began when Tabitha woke up at around 1.30am. She was not a happy little chicklet. Poor baby is having a heck of a time with these big teeth coming through, and she'll sit and pull her hair and tug her ears. It must have been bad last night because she actually took the Nurofen, which up until now she has never done.

You'll hear mums say that you should never rock your baby to sleep or pat your baby to sleep because they'll get used to it. My philosophy is do whatever it is you need to do to get your baby to sleep. Full stop. If it works and you are happy with that then screw the "experts", let them be the ones to listen to a crying baby for two hours and see if they'll change their tune.

So I cuddled Tabitha for some time, laid her down and stroked her hair and stayed with her until she fell asleep, then I snuck out. During this time Angus awoke with a bubble in his belly so I had both kids going, which is never fun. In daylight hours it is doable, at night it's just frustrating, and annoying, and makes you want to rip your hair out and repeat over and over "please just go to sleep". It's surprising more mothers aren't insane to be honest.

Tabitha finally settled around 3 or so, then Angus was up again at about 4.15am, back down around 5, Lexi up around 5.45am. Days like today are not easy for the simple reason that they follow nights like last night.

But there is a silver lining. There are 2 cans of Red bull and 8 litres of coke in the fridge. Actually I guess you'd call that an aluminium lining......

I'm feeling decidely hungry with no idea what to eat. I'll be making some bread this morning in my super dooper breadmaker. Nothing spectacular, just plain ole white bread, but yum. I do love it, and am very glad it is a feature in the kitchen these days.

I have quite a few kitcheny gadgets. I love them. I do love to cook and I love all the bits and bobs you can get to help this. That said I don't have some of the common items like a mixmaster. I do have my slow cooker (which is a MUST for all mums) and my pressure cooker (like a slow cooker on speed really), milkshake maker (I don't drink milk but the rest of the mob love it), and a few others. The one thing I still don't have but will one day is a fairy floss maker. There is no situation in which you can actually justify the purchase of a fairy floss maker. I could justify the breadmaker because "if we run out of bread" kinda thing.  You get the drift.

So I'm still thinking of ways to justify it. I reckon that by having the three kids I can almost make it that way.... three kids, three birthday parties, fairy floss would be great to have at the parties.... well, it's a long shot but I am tired so I'm willing to let myself slide on this one. Guess I'd best have a look on the net and see how much they are.....

Conversations

I've been having an argument with myself for the last half hour or so as to whether or not I should write an entry before bed or not. Apparently I won.

For the record, three beers will make mosquito bites cease to itch. Well, at the very least it will make you stop thinking about them and place a rather nice squooshy kind of feeling around your body. No itching. Much better.

When I was at Target today I bought a replacement magna doodle thingy for the girls. They have truly trashed the one they have so it was time for a replacement. And so in the door I walked with this fandangled thing and both girls were eyes wide and in sheer awe of this new toy, complete with two little stampy things to draw on the pristine surface with.

That's where the fun began. We're trialing this concept called "sharing". Is it working? That depends upon what we are sharing, what time of day it is, and what mood we are in. So to state it simply, no. It was not working.

Lexi had first go. Tabitha was not happy. Lexi was. 10 minutes later it was Tabitha's turn. Tabitha was happy. Lexi was not. Then Lexi went and got one of Tabitha's water bottles. Tabitha accidentally dropped the magna doodle on the ground. Lexi, stealth chick, popped in as quick as you like and put the water bottle in front of Tabitha and said "have a bottle". Tabitha of course was rapt to get a bottle of water, gladly took it, and Lexi grabbed the magna doodle and buggered off with an enormous smile on her face.

Ah yes. That's my girl.

Mosquitoes

are annoying little bastards, to put it mildly. But the mosquitoes in Mackay I swear are quite mentally challenged. They'd have to be.

If I were a mosquito I would find the fattest, juiciest part of someone's anatomy and strike there, drinking till I nearly explode and then flying off in a blood induced drunken stupor, happily resting and not needing to feed for quite some time.

But no, not the moronic Mackay mosquitoes. I have bites on my heel, the sole of my foot, my right shoulder blade, behind my ear and on the top of my head.

Idiots.

And yes, they are itchy. I'm hoping the beer works like an antihistamine. Surely it would. If it doesn't, well, at least they shouldn't itch as much. Or won't hurt as much when I scratch them. You'd think. Worth a try though. Definitely.

I'll let you know.

Isn't it always the way?

You need milk so you think I'll just pop down the shops. While I'm there I'll check out Target and see if I can get anything organised there. So you're at Target and you get a few things for the kids for Christmas with the intention of laybying them. So around to layby you go, loaded up to the hilt with boxes, and you get there and the line goes around the corner.

Okay, so let's rethink that plan. May aswell just get them now and put them in the cupboard. So off to the checkout we go, grab a few pairs of girls leggings on the way. Once at the checkout young Bronte has a little difficulty. She'd be at least 15 I reckon. At least. Surely. Anyway, the leggings scan at the higher price so I tell her this. She doesn't believe me. She says "I can call someone if you want though". Um, yes, please, that would be good thank you. So she keeps scanning. More things scan wrong. Fabulous. This is getting better. She is getting annoyed with me. SHE is getting annoyed with ME! As though I was the one who made them scan wrong!!!!!! Hmph. Anyway, 15 minutes later (yes, you read correctly, I did say 15 minutes) she finally works out that they are in fact on special, a smile as fake as Barbie's pops on the child's face and she apologises. Yep. When yet another item scanned incorrectly (unless I was buying Angus a soccer ball, which I really don't think I was, even though he may want to play soccer in the future I think 7 weeks is perhaps a touch young to start....I'm no soccer mum.....) I told her not to bother, just ring it up because I have to get home to cook dinner for the kids (this was at 2pm mind you, but I wanted her to understand that I thought it was taking a touch long).

Blah. So yes, went to the supermarket next, and it is completely not my fault that I forgot milk. I mean, who puts asparagus at the front entrance for 88c a bunch!! That's unheard of!! See I love asparagus and it is usually so expensive, so I became rather excited to see the special and spent the next few minutes picking out the choicest bunches, thinking about how wonderful they were going to taste. It was really all downhill from there. Once I get distracted there's truly no going back. So I got chicken, strawberry topping, something from the frozen aisle, I have no idea what, and 8 litres of Coke. And no milk. Which I discovered once I got home.

Ah well, Lexi and I went to the servo and got some. 4 litres for $5. Bargain. And two outings in one day. What more could you want.

A story about mini chick

Mini chick is a funny little thing. In so very many ways. There is one aspect of her personality though that I just find intriguing, hilarious, slightly disturbing, and it never ceases to bring a smile to my face. She is, for want of a better word, a thief. But she is selective about that which she steals. It will only ever be either food, or anything that anyone else wants at a particular time.

For example, if Lexi is eating an apple, cut up into pieces, and looks away, Tabitha will stealthily reach up with her sligntly chubby little fingers and grab and piece of said apple, running away before Lexi has a chance to notice, either shoveling it delicately into her mouth en route, or finding some little hiding spot where she can look at the morsel, smile, and savour the flavours.

If Lexi has a toy, let's say for example, the Tupperware shape-o ball, Tabitha will watch Lexi playing with this, lying in wait until the shapes are released from the ball whereupon she pounces, grabs and star and a pentagon and she's off like the wind, holding these shapes above her head as she runs, giggling maniacally. Cue Lexi to follow, yelling "no baby no", reaching out to grab the shapes from Tabitha's hands, which really only appears to fuel Tabitha's desire to deprive Lexi of these precious shapes.

Well, today there was an example. I was having a shower, door open as we all know mums can never shut the bathroom door unless they want a sound reminiscent of wartime air raid sirens to ensue, and I saw Tabitha running past, giggling madly, holding what appeared to be a dry biscuit above her head. It was in fact a dry biscuit, one that I had given Lexi with some olive dip several minutes earlier basically to keep her occupied while I had a quick shower. In the time between my giving Lexi the biscuit and hopping into the shower Tabitha had awoken from her nap, and I walked in and removed her from her cot, forgetting that there were a couple of dry biscuits on the table. So, back to scenario, young miss Tabitha goes running past the bathroom door, biscuit in hand, duly followed of course by ms Lexi yelling "no baby no", as I advised you she tends to do.

I took this as a cue to remove the conditioner from my hair as quickly as possible. For the record, there is no speedy way to remove conditioner from one's hair, particularly when one's hair is very long.

And then I heard the thud. And I froze, and I waited to hear who was going to cry, for I figured at least one child had hit the deck. And I was right, and it was, unsurprisingly, Tabitha, and I saw Lexi walk casually away from her, popping a dry biscuit into her mouth as she went.

Cue mum resolving problems from the shower. "Lexi, that was mean to take the biscuit from Tabitha, even though she took it from your plate. Please go and get a biscuit and give it to Tabitha". Tabitha is still crying, though not in pain, more in sadness from the loss of the biscuit, and I'm trying to attract her attention, still frantically trying to get the conditioner out of my hair. Next thing Lexi walks past the door, and Tabitha appears from the other side. Lexi hands Tabitha a biscuit, Tabitha smiles and eats it and Lexi goes back into the kitchen. Wow. That was great. It was a back pat kind of moment.

Of course it all changed again when Tabitha came out and pinched Lexi's crayon, but that's another story.....