I just want to get started already!!!

Blog?  What blog???

Yeah, I've been M.I.A. recently from the blog-o-sphere.  Sorry 'bout that!  We've been busy, the Big Fella has been out of action with sciatica, and I haven't felt like I had anything worth writing about.

As I've said before, it's my blog and y'all can just deal with it ;-p



Several people have mentioned how frustrating my post "Re-dreaming" was.  I apologise for the frustrating element of that.  At the time I was processing and needed to write it out, but wasn't ready to share the details.

When I was a child, my mum used to get very sore feet and she'd get me to rub them.  She told me to imagine how what I was doing to her feet would feel if it was happening to my feet.  In that way I learned how to do a pretty good massage.

By the time I got to late high school, I had to choose an occupation for "work experience".  I chose Physiotherapy, and got to see it in action in a hospital, rehabilitation centre, and in a hydrotherapy situation.  I particularly loved the rehab, but was completely scared off by the level of study required in both completing the degree, and the continuing education requirements for accreditation.

So I decided not to study Physiotherapy.

Life went this way (USA) and that way (Bible College), I got married, we moved states and had a child.  I worked in Customer Service and Administration, and pretty much floated along.

I met several Physiotherapists along the way - at College, on a trip around Kakadu, getting treatment myself.  And every now and then I looked into studying Physiotherapy again, but it was always too hard, or wouldn't fit with our family life at the time or whatever else.

On the day that I wrote the "Re-dreaming" post, I'd taken the Big Fella to see our local Physiotherapist.  I went in to his appointment with him as an extra set of ears, and to see if there was any way I could help him at home.

And it was like someone pushed a button in me!

I watched as the Physio assessed the Big Fella, and could see what she was talking about.  As she explained what was happening and how she could help him, I was honestly inspired!

When we got home I started looking up what options I might have to become a Physiotherapist myself.  Could I do some of it part-time?  By distance education?  Would I need to go to the campus?  Could that possibly work for us at this point in time?  Can I afford to study?  Is it even worth it?  Will I be too old?  Can my body physically do it?

I watched a short video on one of the University's websites and I was sold.  For the first time since high school, when I knew I wanted to go to the USA for Master's Commission, I actually had something I wanted to do!

I can't tell you how much of a big thing this is for me.  I'm a pretty laid back person.  I love being at home and just "bumming around".  And I've been basically happy to go with the flow as work options have come up.

But since having the Little Big Fella, and especially as school came looming up on the horizon for him, I've wanted to do something more.  But I had no idea what!

And now I do and it's got me so pumped up!  I'm really excited about it!

Yes, I know study will be work.  I've done it before and I know I'll probably be in tears at the end of most semesters.

I know it will change the dynamics of our household, and cause financial stress at times.

And I know travelling for residential schools and possibly on-campus classes in the future will be a big fat pain in the butt!

But I want to do this!  And the Big Fella fully supports me!  He said the other day that it's great to see me with a direction for a change.

I spoke to the Uni the other day and it looks like I'm going to have to take a slightly different path into the course than I'd originally hoped.  But it's possible I'll be able to start mid-year.

Honestly, I just want to get started now!  I want to start learning and practicing and trying stuff out.  I want to be able to help people in pain, and to re-gain movement!  I wish I was already qualified so I could help the Big Fella with his sciatica.

But now I have to play the patience game and make the most of this stage of my life.  Because soon I won't have as much "free time" to help out at my son's school, and spend the day baking, and take an impromptu trip, and just sit and read a novel all day (definitely going to make the most of that one before I get sick of reading for a while).

I just can't wait!  Can I start now????

Priorities

I've wasted a lot of time looking at Pinterest tonight, but I also came across some wonderful new blogs that I'll read regularly, and have printed out some bits and pieces for the coming week.

A couple of themes have hit me as I've been reading:

1. People are more important than tasks, and 
2. I need to include the Little Big Fella in the tasks that need to be done.

Since Christmas I've noticed that my patience has been rather thin, and I've been grumpy with my Fellas.  And basically it's because I've been focussed on the tasks that need doing (cleaning up messes and "catching up" on the housework that got behind while I was working), rather than the two most important people in my life.

The Little Big Fella has been desperate for someone to play with.  Almost all of his friends have been away on holidays so he's been wanting mine and the Big Fella's attention and energy.

Yeah.  Definitely failed him on that one lately.

I haven't stopped to play games with him, or read him stories, or imagine with him.

So, instead of kicking myself (that won't help anyone!), I've written down a few things I'll do with him over the next few days/week.

And I'm planning a playdate for after the weekend.

I've also realised that the Little Big Fella is about to start school (duh!), and is definitely old enough to be a contributing member of our household.  So instead of putting him aside while I do things like laundry, dishes, meal preparation, and cleaning, I can make extra time now (while we have some!) to teach him how to do them.  Not only will he be learning valuable life skills, I'll be getting the essential tasks done and we'll be spending time together.

And, speaking of school, it's only 18 days until the Little Big Fella starts!  He's SO excited about it.  Every day he asks how long until he goes to school.

So when we were food shopping the other day, I picked up a cheap calendar, which we have hung in his room.  We've highlighted the first day of school (as well as our birthdays later in the year) and have been crossing off the days until school starts.

We did something similar in the countdown to Christmas (this year's version of an advent calendar), so he is starting to understand how far away a week is, and he's getting some great practice at recognising numbers!

Anyway, it's midnight (again) so I'm going to join my husband in bed for the next hour or so before he goes to work.  Goodnight!

Blogger's block

I feel like I need to apologise, but I've no doubt you'll all forgive me anyway.  I have a bunch of excuses (starting work, trying to keep my house somewhat clean and orderly, computer dying and it's trickier on the laptop or tablet, Christmas, New Year....) but really, they're just excuses.

Reality is that I have "blogger's block".

I don't feel like I have anything to say that anyone would want to read, and when I do, I don't have the time or energy to put it together (hopefully coherently).

So, let's see if we can break the block by writing this little apology.  Actually, it's not really an apology, given that it's my blog and I can write whenever I want.  But I guess it is an apology in the sense that I know that when I read a blog regularly, I miss it when they take a break, so I apologise if you've missed me.

Okay, let's see if we can break the block by giving a quick recap of what's been happening around here then.

I finally started work at one of the big Australian banks and finally, after two full weeks, managed to balance at the end of the day without having to re-count and re-check all of my work.  I literally did a dance!

Working full-time for two weeks was great and really hard.  It was awesome to be working again - spending so much time around adults, learning, and using my head all the time.  And it was hard not being around my Little Big Fella, trying to keep my house up to scratch, trying to fulfill the commitments I'd made as a non-worker, sitting almost all day, trying to get plenty of sleep and keep up with my workout program.

There were Christmas parties and birthday parties, often on the same day!

And, of course, there was Christmas!

My grandparents were going to join us this year but unfortunately that didn't work out.  But we had a great day!  The Little Big Fella got way too many presents, again!  And we had a fun time playing with all of them :-D

The Big Fella had a sleep in the afternoon (he'd done a string of night shifts with very little sleep in between) and I got a little down, I think because I'm used to Christmas day being full of people.

In the evening we visited some friends.  They'd gotten together with others in their street to hire a blow up waterslide and the Little Big Fella had a good go on it.  There were a few drinks and lots of laughs.  It was a great, relaxing way to end the day.

Boxing Day saw us follow a tradition that began early in our marriage, with Lord of the Rings, actually.  The Big Fella, the Little Big Fella and I went and saw the Hobbit at the cinema, 2 hours away.  It was expensive, and mildly frustrating a couple of times, but I think it's definitely a tradition we'll continue whenever possible.

The days between then and now have been very quiet and homely.  We've caught up with a couple of friends who've remained in town, been to the local pool, avoided the few shops that are near (and all of the ones further away!), practiced on my scooter and the Little Big Fella on his little motorbike, put up our pool and hidden away in the airconditioning from the high 30s to 45 degree days, and slept our way into the New Year.

Do you remember last New Year where I mentioned that I don't like it?  Here's the link if you want to look it up.  I actually happened to wake up 15 minutes before midnight this year and during that time I remembered some of the really bad New Year's Eve "parties" I've been to.

One included being at church (not the bad part - I loved going to church and spending time with the people around me who I considered my family), where the guest speaker actually continued speaking through the countdown to the New Year!

Then there were others (probably most of them really) where, possibly because there was no alcohol involved, we were trying to stay awake until midnight so we could count down, yell "Happy New Year" and go home to bed.

But this year I've added another reason to not like New Year.  And I suspect there will be plenty of people who disagree with me, which is absolutely your prerogative.

Many people seem to think that just because we've changed the number that we write to designate the year, their life will change... without them doing anything differently.  Then they whinge their way through the year, get to the other end and complain about what a horrible year it was and how they can't wait for the new year to begin.

Ummmm, sorry folks, that's not the way it works!

If you want your life to change in any way, big or small, you have to make a change!  Whether it's a new year or not!  And change is hard!  Which is why you haven't done it yet.  And, not only change for a minute or a day, but consistently!  And that sometimes feels impossible!!!

Anyway, I guess I'm off on a tangent, but I guess that means I'm cured of "blogger's block"!

I had a quick look back through my 2013 posts, just to see what I've recorded about our year for you.

• We've had chickens,
• been flooded in,
• the Little Big Fella started kindy and turned 4,
• our house has been painted and we have new furniture,
• we've played with friends,
• the Little Big Fella has spent a lot of time in superhero costumes,
• I joined the CWA and was Treasurer for our playgroup,
• the Easter Bunny and Santa visited, as did my brother, and the Big Fella's parents,
• we visited our old town a few times,
• I rolled our car and we got a brand new one,
• the Little Big Fella and I flew to Melbourne,
• I went to my first "real" concert and P!nk was AWESOME!
• I got a 2nd and 3rd in the state CWA photo competition,
• we went to the local race day,
• I've (possibly excessively) considered various aspects of parenting,
• I cut my hair short (again),
• the Big Fella and I exchanged rings in a private (and moving) ceremony... in our car,
• I've gotten back into papercrafts with some of my friends,
• the Little Big Fella played his first sport (soccer),
• we went to the May Day Fair, and the school fair,
• we've been fishing and swimming and backyard camping,
• we've attempted a sleepover with the Little Big Fella's best friend,
• the Little Big Fella finally worked out how to ride his motorbike by himself,
• I've raised the concept of letting men be manly,
• the Little Big Fella gave some of his face-skin to the concrete, and shared his hand with a knife (thankfully not needing stitches),
• I had some bad days and some bad weeks,
• the Little Big Fella had his first visit to the dentist,
• we had backyard fires and front yard fires, and fires at friends' houses,
• the Little Big Fella played with (manufactured) snow for the first time ever,
• we got airconditioning in our living area!
• the Big Fella turned 40,
• we got a shipping container/workshop,
• the Little Big Fella learned how to teatowel fight,
• we did Halloween again, and ate too many sweets,
• I had a girl's night in,
• I re-learned how to tie balloons and got to do it at two different events,
• the Big Fella and I lost weight, and the Big Fella's kidney health has moved back to the "normal" range,
• we've been to local footy games,
• I ran my first ever fundraiser, and it was a success!
• I've found a million reasons throughout the year to be thankful for my friends and family,
• I totally got into the Christmas spirit in the lead up to Christmas,
• we've had LOTS of fun times with friends at the park, at playgroup, at their houses, at our house,
• we've laughed, a lot,
• the Little Big Fella had his Prep Transition days, and loved them,
• we've spent plenty of time splashing around in water,
• the Little Big Fella and I have done a fair bit of cooking,
• and I've returned to being ScooterShell.

No wonder I've felt so tired these last few weeks!!!!  That was a really big year, with lots of fun times.

Now take a deep breath because 2014 is going to have lots of big moments in it too!  The Little Big Fella is starting real school, we're going to Melbourne in March (as a family), in May (possibly just me) and September (just the Big Fella), I'll be getting my full motorbike license, there'll be birthdays and parties and playtimes and homework and events and competitions and Halloween and Christmas and work and love.  Put that together with whatever "deep" thoughts I dump on y'all, as well as all the random things that you never expect or plan for...

Can I go to sleep now?

Christmas joy

This evening has been one of those "essence of Christmas" times for me.

I've been watching the "Carols in the Domain" re-run (one of the two major Christmas carols productions here in Australia), and baking macadamia and white chocolate shortbread.  The Christmas lights are on, I finally finished my outdoor decorations and installed them this afternoon and they're looking good.

I'm thinking about my family and the things that have made Christmas for me in the past.

As a kid it was definitely presents.  Actually, as a late teenager/early adult, it was about presents too, but the fun, cheap, gag presents that we all bought each other for our Christmas stockings.  There were an awful lot of laughs involved in that!

Carols are definitely a major part of Christmas too.  I love singing them, listening to them, and watching them on Christmas Eve on TV.

Growing up, a big part was church as well.  Not as a tradition or religious element, although there was that as well, but more as a celebration and fun with my friends, who I definitely felt were like family.

I remember sneaking out of bed when I was a kid to sit by the Christmas tree and just look at the lights.  Then as I got older, I got that same sense of wonder and magic and "special-ness" from wandering around and looking at all the homes with outdoor Christmas lights.

This evening we also booked tickets to see "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" on Boxing Day.  Seeing a new-release movie on Boxing Day became a bit of a tradition around the time the Big Fella and I got married.  It started with the first Lord of the Rings movie, actually!

I guess I've just been enjoying the quiet evening, the break from the rush and chaos that this season can bring.

And being thankful for my life and those around me, past and present.  I am so blessed in every way.

In these last few days before the BIG day, I wish you love, laughter, excellent friends and family, and a few moments to reflect and relax and simply enjoy the season.

Attitude and effects

Yesterday the Little Big Fella and I went and did some supermarket shopping to re-stock for the long weekend.  We also stopped in the discount store for a few bits and pieces.

While we were there, another customer happened to have an armful of items and dropped the lot all over the floor.

Know what my Little Big Fella did?  He said, "don't worry, I'll help you pick them up"!  And he did!

In that moment I was super proud of my boy and felt like I'm doing a pretty decent job as his mum.


This weekend our neighbours have family staying over, and the Little Big Fella gets along really well with the kids.  So today he spent the morning playing over there and they spent the afternoon playing over here.

At one point all the kids were here having a splash in our blow-up pool, so their mum came over to help me supervise them all because, according to her, "my children are the spawn of the devil".

I don't really know this woman.  We've met two or three times over the past 6 months, but in that moment I felt my heart break for those children, and that family.

Between that conversation and this post I read this morning over at Single Dad Laughing, I realised that the words we use and the attitudes we have toward our children create who they are!

Surely there are going to be enough people in your child's life to tear them down and make them feel worthless that you don't have to be one of them!

Surely, as their parent, you should be their safe haven and the place they come to for consolation and reassurance that they're okay!

Surely.

I get that kids are wearing.

I get that sometimes you get sick of saying the same thing over and over and over and over and over and over and you feel like you may as well smack your head into a brick wall

I get that there are some things about your kids, and as they get older their decisions that you're not going to like.

I get that.

But one of our roles as parents is to love our kids and make sure they know it!  They need to know how proud we are of them, how brilliant they are, how creative and interesting and beautiful.  They need to hear from their parents that, no matter what happens, they are acceptable to us!

And they need to hear it in our conversations with other adults.

We parents are very human.  But let's not allow that to be an excuse to break our children.

Let's keep trying to improve our communication with our kids, find out all the wonderful things about their personalities and views of the world that we can be proud of and inspired by.

Because our children, no matter who they are or what they do, are beautiful and inspiring and deserve to be loved.  They are, after all, human just like us.

On to the next stage!

I was rather nervous this morning.  And I didn't really sleep so well last night either.

Why?

Because last night I was cramming.

Yesterday I was called in for two job interviews (at different businesses) today.  So yesterday evening I attempted to get my head into "interview mode" and remember all the great things about me as an employee.  I read a few websites about job interviews and came across those stupid "behavioural" interview questions.

You know the ones!  They normally start something like, "tell me about a situation where you...".

God I hate those!

Ask me any question you like about my skills or approach and I'll come up with a decent answer.  But ask me for specifics and my mind goes completely blank!

I haven't worked full time in over 4 years!!!  And in the meantime, I've had a baby.  Haven't you ever heard of baby brain???  I'm sure it deletes all memory of everything you've ever said or done!

And then there's the "why do you think you're the best person for this position?" question.

So this morning I was nervous.

The first interview turned out to be more like a job description.  She told me about the role, I asked questions, she asked a couple of really easy skill-based questions, and it was over!  She said she'd call in the afternoon and let me know.

The second was an interview at the NAB (National Australia Bank).  I'd done an interview back in March and didn't get the job.  But I was told that I'd interviewed well and they'd like to keep me on their files in case another position came up.

I got a call-back at the end of June, went in for a chat and didn't hear much until mid August, when I was told that they hoped to start training me for a relief position at the start of September.  Nothing happened.

Then yesterday they asked me to come in for another interview today because the relief is in our closest town and the next largest town as well, and the manager there wanted to know more about me and meet me herself.

The first interview in March was the behavioural style of interview.  So you can imagine my complete relief when they said it wouldn't be that style of interview!!!!  Yay!!!!

We had a chat, I answered questions, I asked questions and by the end of it the other manager approved me for the position.  The local manager then told me about the process that happens now and it looks like I'll be training in about three weeks time!

So, I'm going to be a Customer Adviser (that's "teller" to most people) for NAB.

Which means we, as a family, are moving in to a new stage of our lives.  I won't be a 100% stay-at-home mum anymore, which will change the way some things are done.  Add that to the upcoming start of school for the Little Big Fella (in 4 months) and we have another change to our family dynamic!

The Big Fella decided that we needed to celebrate so we went out to lunch at one of the local pubs.  Then we went and bought a new blow-up pool (the old one had a hole in it), came home, mowed and then put the pool up under the shade and had a swim.

I called the other place that I'd interviewed at this morning to tell them I'd accepted another job.  Know what she said?  "I was just about to call you and say you had the job!"

Guess it's just time for me to get back to work ;-)

A Rambling Catch-Up

Obviously I haven't written a post in a while.

But, because it's not "work" for me, I don't have to!  And I find that I get on a roll and want to write about everything sometimes, and other times nothing seems good enough to share, or is just too hard to write down.

However, I do like to provide the opportunity to allow people (especially family in other states) to keep up to date with what's happening with us.

So, what has been happening with us?

Well, we've been for a visit to our old town and hung out with my grandparents, sister and nephews (and briefly saw my brother-in-law - sucks to have to work for a living!).

I've collected the enrollment forms for the Little Big Fella for school.  I just need a few signatures and a copy of his birth certificate and I can drop those off.  Some time next term he'll have a day or two at the school in preparation for next year!  It's all very exciting and a little bit trippy.

The Little Big Fella's best friend had his birthday party.  It was a great day for all the kids and I met some wonderful women too.

Speaking of birthdays, the Big Fella turned 40 last week.  But, being the Big Fella, not a big fuss was made.  He hates cakes and cards and balloons and fuss.

Having said that, we had dinner with his mate the night before, dinner with a great couple on his birthday night, and some friends over for the afternoon/evening a couple of days later.

And the Big Fella and I gave each other rings.  He gave me an eternity ring and I gave him a new wedding ring (his old one has been beaten and chipped and now sits, surprisingly sentimentally, in his drawer).

And although the Big Fella doesn't like fuss, I think ceremony is important.  So, on the day he gave me my eternity ring, I gave him his ring (I'd had it for several weeks) and read out a page I'd written about our lives together so far and how much I love him.  I guess it was our own, private re-commitment ceremony in our car, in the parking lot of a shopping centre.

Which is kind of funny, given that we got engaged in a car, too!  (Just to set the record straight, we'd been out to dinner at a fancy restaurant and had driven up to a lookout but it was raining.)

What else?

Oh!  We got a shipping container delivered.  No, we're not moving.  The Big Fella calls it our drug lab, but it's got all his workshop tools in it.  We now have so much more room under the house!!!

We had a stressful couple of days after the kindy teacher mentioned that the Little Big Fella might be lacking in some social skills, and possibly have sensory issues.  After talking with her, and reflecting ourselves, we decided that he probably needs a bit more direction (most often in the form of play) from us.  We're going to see how he's going in a couple of months and go from there if need be.

The CWA had a special morning tea before Father's Day.  They play a game called "bug" where you roll dice and draw a bug based on what you roll.  It's played in teams of 4 and is very fast-paced, and thus exciting.  It sounds strange and kind of boring, but it really isn't.

The school had a big garage sale and I shared a "stall" with another lady to sell some of the playgroup's extraneous equipment.  And baked some yo-yos (a traditional Christmas treat in my family) for the school's P&C to sell.

And, just this past weekend Australia had an election, so there was all the annoying advertising that goes with it to wade through in an attempt to make an informed decision.  Ha!

Then there's the normal work, play, shop, fix, garden, de-clutter of our lives.  And there you have about a month in a few short paragraphs!

Hopefully that will help me get back on the blogging horse for a while ;-)

Tea towel fights

When I was about 4, my family lived in a large, 2 story home.  It was my parents, myself, my two sisters... and a bunch of teenagers.  I don't actually recall how many "extras" there were in the house, but there was a girl's room upstairs and a guy's room downstairs and I think there would have been at least 4 or 5 at any one time.

I have a strong memory of that time.  I remember sneaking out of bed one night and sitting at the top of the stairs, watching a bunch of these teenagers washing the dishes.

Except, they weren't washing the dishes.  They were having tea towel fights.

I have no idea how long I sat there, watching them all laughing and screaming and threatening.  Eventually I was noticed and sent back to bed, but the scene obviously had a strong impression on me.



This evening the Big Fella was drying the dishes for me, while I washed.  He walked into the lounge and tea towel-flicked the Little Big Fella, who started bawling his eyes out!

"But I didn't do anything wrong!" he cried.

The Big Fella then grabbed another tea towel and proceeded to teach the Little Big Fella how to flick a tea towel.

The obvious next move was to attack Mummy!

We spent the next 5 or 10 minutes running around chasing each other, flicking tea towels, trying to hold limbs still whilst inflicting tickles or flicks as seemed appropriate, and laughing till our sides hurt.

And now I'm wondering if this scene will impress itself on my Little Big Fella's mind in the same way that mine did at his age?

Unambitious

Over the past month I've had the privilege of spending time with both of my sisters (unfortunately not at the same time).  They are awesome women and I love them both to pieces!

One thing that they have in common is that they're ambitious!

My youngest sister started working in a major department store quite a while ago (maybe 10 years?) and has since worked her way from the shop floor to the office to now being the person who decides what products to sell in one of the departments.

My other sister is currently an at-home-mum, but has her sights set on major event planning.  Not just weddings, big parties, business meeting-type events.  She's looking at major festivals and shows.  She'll be starting study to meet those goals next year.

Then there's me.

I only ever dreamed of being a mum, and maybe a secretary.  And while motherhood has turned out to be WAY harder than I ever thought, I still haven't dreamed of anything else for myself.

Until now.

Talking to my sister this week made me ask myself, "why not?".

My answer so far is that my location and my son have caused me to limit my possibilities.  But that's not necessary.  Between the internet, YouTube, the support of my husband and friends, the reality is that I could do anything!

But what do I want to do?

Looks like it's time for a little dreaming!

Busy at home

Although we live in a town of about 360 people, out in the bush (or maybe the outback, I'm not sure if we qualify for that one?), with little in the way of shops nearby, and few facilities of entertainment, life gets kinda busy!

Here's a few of the things that have been going on since our return from Melbourne almost three weeks ago:

Our new couch arrived!  It is SO comfortable - all three of us have fallen asleep on it at least once!

Unfortunately I forgot to arrange for it to be scotch guarded, so I had to spray it myself.  After three cans of spray, my right pointer finger was pretty much numb.  Surprisingly, it's still numb on the end!  I wonder if that will ever fix itself?

The Big Fella and my new mattress also arrived.  It's taken a little bit of getting used to, because it's a lot softer than our last one, but now we like it very much!

We've been to our closest major town and tried out their cinema for the first time.  There was a cinema running in the next town, but it wasn't very comfortable, and they didn't even do real popcorn!  They did microwave-in-a-bag popcorn!  So the experience really wasn't there.  But the cinema we tried out satisfies the experience, as well as providing the movie, so we'll probably be going back.

The Little Big Fella and I have been for a dental check.  It was his first one ever (I know, I'm a terrible mother! ;-)  ) and he thought it was pretty cool.

Apparently his teeth were lovely and clean (amazing given how he seems to brush them), and I was told off for not flossing.

The Little Big Fella was wearing a path into our grass with his little motorbike, so the Big Fella took the mower across the road and cut a track through the paddock.  The Little Big Fella loves it, but not so much if no one is watching him (I think we may have created a little show off!).

Every time the Little Big Fella came close to the house, the dogs jumped and yelped.  They love chasing the motorbike around!

You may not be able to see, but Daddy is watching from the comfort of our little balcony.

Hmmm, what else has been going on?

Ah yes!  We had a bit of a girl's night out last weekend.  A friend invited us all around and the Big Fella happened to be home so the Little Big Fella stayed home with him and I got to go out on my own!  Ah, the freedom!  We had a few drinks, lots of food and lots of good laughs.  And one of the girls lit a fire - a very impressive fire!  It had to be moved so that it wouldn't accidentally catch on the verandah.

A new cafe/bar/restaurant has opened in the next town and we went and checked it out one afternoon.  It had gone on the "definite" list as a location for a future evening out!  Hmmm, I need to line that up with our babysitter.

The Big Fella had a few things he wanted to do with our camper trailer so we set it up this week.  Of course, the Little Big Fella then wanted to sleep in it.  So he and I had a sleep-out when the Big Fella was on night shift.

It was freezing!!!!

And no, I don't mean Queenslander freezing, I mean generally freezing.  As in, single digits, I believe below 5 degrees.  I spent the whole night with my head inside my sleeping bag - and I never have my head inside my blankets (it's the one experience that makes me feel claustrophobic).

I've also decided that I don't like sleeping bags anymore.  It was warm enough, but I hate how hard it is to turn over.  The result of that particular night was that I didn't turn over much and woke up with sore hips.

But the Little Big Fella was happy, so that's the point, right?

This week was also my 34th birthday.  Now, I have to say that I have some awesome friends and family!

A friend made me a birthday cake (spewing that I didn't take a photo because it looked spectacular, and tasted brilliant!), another friend bought me a birthday cake, I got flowers and presents and hugs...

I got a card from my parents that reminded me of how loved I am.  And you know what?  That's what I loved about this particular birthday!  As an adult, it's not the cards or the cakes or the presents that makes a birthday special for me.  It's the love of friends and family, and the effort they put in to make sure I know I'm appreciated.

How can that not make my day great?

So, as well as all that has been the normal housework, kindy runs, food shopping, cooking, reading, watching a little TV, hanging out with my Fellas, playing at the park, and (just this week) getting back into an exercise routine.

You know, sometimes I wonder how I will ever fit my life in when I go back to work???

Melbourne trip - Last days

Our last two days in Melbourne ended up being pretty busy!  I guess I wanted to squeeze in as many visits with people and activities at the same time as I could.

But, we "squeezed in" a sleep in first :-D

Most of the morning was unplanned so we had a sleep in and did a few domestic duties, then jumped in the car and went to find a motorbike gear shop.

See, since the Little Big Fella has started riding his motorbike by himself, my heart has often been in my throat watching him.  And while that will probably always be the case, safety gear can go a long way to making me feel a bit better about it!

We found the shop and found these funky motorbike pants (with appropriate padding) and a pair of little gloves.

We've since found some elbow pads that fit him, and decided that the gloves are actually too big for him, so found some that fit even better.  For now, we've decided that we're not getting boots.  Partly because they're ridiculously expensive and his feet are growing an an equally ridiculous pace, but mostly because he's riding pretty slowly still and there's no logs or anything where he rides, so covered shoes are okay (for now).

After the motorbike shop, we went to a camping place and found me a new winter jacket.  I'd bought the jacket I had when I first arrived for my year in America - in 1998!  Definitely time for an update.  Sorry, no pics for this one, but it was a bargain $50!!!

We got a call from the Big Fella's sister and partner and agreed to meet at a nearby shopping centre for lunch.  We ended up at a place called Outback Jack's.  There was a big crocodile hanging from the ceiling!

We had a great (BIG) lunch and a good chat then headed into the shopping centre.  While the girls were sorting some stuff out with their phones, the Little Big Fella was entertained on a car ride and by going up and down the escalators a million times.

We picked up some gorgeous pork chops to cook up for dinner then it was time to say goodbye until our next visit to Melbourne.  Obviously the adults wanted this to last just that little bit longer, but the Little Big Fella strongly believes that when we say goodbye, we're actually going.  So he headed up the stairs toward our car!

So we said our goodbyes and had one last hug.  I hate goodbyes :-(

We had a bit of time before needing to be "home", so we dropped in on Cadbury J and her kids for a last play.

You know the saying, "two's company, three's a crowd"?  There was a little bit of that going on for the first while, but thankfully (after a fair bit of frustration) it settled and they played well together again while us mums caught up some more.

Then it was time to say goodbye.  Have I mentioned that I don't like goodbyes?

Sigh.

Back at mum and dad's place, I made dinner, then my sister called to say she'd be coming over.  We ended up watching Origin 3 (kind of like a grand final for rugby league), which is kind of funny given that my family isn't very sporty at all and Victorians don't tend to watch rugby.  Dad totally got into it!

Just for the record, Queensland won, making it 8 years in a row :-)

Afterwards, my sister wasn't really keen on leaving and we ended up talking till pretty late.  Dad also pulled out a bunch of old letters between his parents.

I found out that they lived in a suburb of Melbourne when they first married, and we found the place on the map.  That area is now very hoity toity!

Eventually it was that time again.  Time to say goodbye.  I really hate saying goodbye.  Hanging with my sister (especially at P!nk) was really awesome.

But that's just the reality of life when you live in a different state, isn't it?  Goodbyes just become part of your life.  I guess they're a part of life anyway because even if you stay in the one place, others come and go.

Okay, time to move on again.

The following day, our last in Melbourne, was another friend day.  In the morning the Little Big Fella and I met up with my best friend to see Despicable Me 2 at the cinema.  Definitely a movie that will end up at our house!  It was very funny and entertaining.  Unfortunately, my friend hadn't seen the first movie, so some of it wasn't as fun for her.

After the movie, the Little Big Fella got excited about the games in the foyer and pretended to drive the cars, ride the motorbikes and shoot the guns.  We had a game of air hockey, which was pretty funny because he could only reach the smallest part of the table.  Obviously I tried to make it fun for him and not get the disc in the hole too many times ;-)

Again with the stinking goodbyes!!!

Then it was into the city to meet up with another friend.  K was my best friend for about a year in high school before I moved towns.  We met up last time I was in Melbourne, when the Little Big Fella was 1.

It turned out that the place we decided to meet had some snow for kids to play with/on.  The Little Big Fella would have literally spent the whole afternoon there!!!

Thankfully he got hungry so we went and had some lunch and had a really good catch up.

One thing I found difficult by the end of our time in Melbourne was being constantly in parenting mode.  At home, the Big Fella is there to take some of the weight of parenting, and the Little Big Fella has kindy so I get a break then too.

But in Melbourne I was constantly in parenting mode - thinking about distances and how far the Little Big Fella would be happy to walk, thinking about what kinds of food he'd actually eat when we were out, finding toilets in a hurry, dealing with the fact that he gets bored with stuff I like doing.  It's all part of being a parent, but it got a bit wearing by the end of our trip.

After lunch it was straight back to the snow to play, while K and I chatted some more.  I'd noticed a little earlier that the sky was starting to get quite dark, but hadn't paid that much attention.  All of a sudden it let rip!  The rain came down hard and fast and we ran to find some cover.  Thankfully it settled down a little so we made our way to K's car, because it was closer.  Then she drove us around to our car (although, I was a bit disoriented and we went the wrong way initially).

Then there was another goodbye.  Sigh.

You know, my biggest problem with goodbyes is that I'm a terrible long-distance friend.  I try to keep in touch, but I'm really just not good at it.  Life gets busy and it slips further down the to-do list.  And I'd understand if my friends felt that they weren't important to me.

But I honestly treasure each of you!  At various times in my life you've been the very reason that I love living!  Friends (and family - but they're my friends too) are my favourite thing about life.

So, I'm sorry that I'm such a terrible long-distance friend.  I will try harder to make time to call or write or text or send you a Facebook message.  Because I think you're awesome and I'm incredibly grateful to have had you in my life.

Back to the story ;-)

We managed to head home in peak hour traffic.  Woo hoo!

Okay, another side note.  I don't know how you guys stand driving that far, in those conditions, all the time!  I mean, I only drive a couple of days a week, for about 15 minutes each way, on the highway and it's plenty of car time.  But you guys drive up to an hour each way, often in the dark, with crazy people all around you!  Hats off to you!

The saving grace on this particular drive was the massive double rainbow!

Mum and dad have recently moved and now have a couple living across the road from them that they get along with really well.  So this night we had dinner at their house.

G & K are pretty cool and it was great to finally meet them in person (we would have met them when we were heading back to our old town, the day we had our little roll).  I can see why mum and dad get along with them so well - they're the same kind of crazy, as one poster I read recently put it.

We had a lovely dinner, and the Little Big Fella had a play with their dogs, then we retired to the front room and sat around the fire.  K had bought some American marshmallows and made some awesome little marshmallow toasting sticks.  So the Little Big Fella cooked them up for everyone (he only likes them uncooked) until we all felt kind of sick.

Then it was time to say goodbye and go "home" to finish packing, ready to head home the next day.

Melbourne trip - Part V

After a friend-day, it was time for a family-day!  We had a bit of a slow start then jumped in the car and headed off to the Big Fella's parent's place.

We got there just as Grandma's client arrived (she's a seamstress and works from home).  So we said hi then headed out to the back deck (the Little Big Fella wanted to see the spa).

I saw a couple of parrots in the tree so popped inside and collected the box of seed.  We put some on the verandah's railings then sat back on the lounge to see if they'd come closer.

They did!

We ended up sitting and watching them for quite a while!  Grandpa was at work but came home for "lunch" and sat with us watching the birds.  Then Grandma and her client came down and watched them too!

Eventually Grandpa had to go back to work, but we arranged to meet up with him later.  He drives buses, so we decided we'd go for a ride with him after lunch, when he was back in the general area.

In the meantime, Grandma and I took the Little Big Fella to the nearby lake.  When we first got there, we noticed a bunch of old guys with remote-controlled yachts.  Of course, the Little Big Fella wanted to have a go!  I told him that he probably wouldn't be allowed to, but one of the guys generously offered so he had about 5 minutes of controlling a smaller yacht (with a little input from the owner) and, amazingly, didn't crash into any of the others!

The closest yacht, with the yellow hull, is the one the Little Big Fella was controlling.

The guys then had a race, so the controls were handed back and we walked a little way around the lake to feed the ducks.

Initially, there were only a couple of ducks.  But once the others heard there was food, they came flying in from everywhere!!!!

When we were out of bread, we went over to the playground (another brilliant one) and let the Little Big Fella run around a bit.  This was his favourite "toy" of the morning:

You hit the silver bits at the top and they make different gong-like sounds.

While the Little Big Fella was playing, the Big Fella called.  He was out in a national park for the week and there was no mobile phone coverage, so I was surprised (and pleased) to hear from him!  He'd driven to the only place in the whole park where there was coverage, just to have a chat!

Grandma, the Little Big Fella and I had a bit of a walk and talk around part of the lake, then headed out for lunch before catching Grandpa's bus.  The Little Big Fella liked Grandpa's bus (or maybe it was the lolly frogs Grandma brought to eat on the bus???) and we drove around with him for about an hour.

Back at the Big Fella's parent's place, Grandma put a movie on for the Little Big Fella - "Pete's Dragon".  This movie has strong sentimental value for the Big Fella's family, but I was surprised at how into the movie my son was!  He's not normally a musical movie kind of kid, but he was completely enthralled!

Grandpa came home not long after the movie started and sat with the Little Big Fella to watch it.

We had dinner together, then Grandpa and the Little Big Fella had a spa, absolutely making the Little Big Fella's day complete!

While they were down there, Grandma and I were on the deck talking and we heard something in the tree.  We looked around and there was a possum!

After the spa, a bath and a bit of hanging out, it was time to head back to mum and dad's.  We said our goodbyes, somewhat sorrowfully because it will be quite a while before we see the Big Fella's parents again.  Unsurprisingly, the Little Big Fella was asleep before we'd gotten 5 minutes down the road!

So closed another big day in Melbourne!

Melbourne trip - end of week 1

Okay, I think we need to speed these up just a little bit!

The day after the P!nk concert I got to sleep in a little (yay!), and we had a relatively slow day.

When I was a late teenager, my family had a great girl/lady live with us for about 3 years.  We'll call her Cadbury J because of the regular late night runs to the supermarket we'd have to collect junk food, particularly chocolate.  Cadbury J is now married with 2 gorgeous kids - a 6 year old boy, and a 4 year old girl (only 6 weeks older than the Little Big Fella).

After a sufficient sleep in and slow morning, the Little Big Fella and I went around to Cadbury J's house and ended up spending the rest of the day with her and the kids.  The kids got along brilliantly for the most part (after a slightly shy start), and the Little Big Fella wanted to play with them every day after that while we were in Melbourne.

On this particular day, we ended up making and decorating cupcakes - a slightly messy affair (cooking with kids always is), but definitely fun and delicious (has to be when Cadbury J is involved)!

The boys had a go at a Wii dancing game and did surprisingly well.

And all three kids ended up with gumboots (galoshes?) on, playing in the mud outside.

The following day we ended up at the big park near mum and dad's place with my sister, and Cadbury J  and the kids turned up too!  Again, the kids played well together and the Little Big Fella was not impressed when it was time to say goodbye and go "home".

That morning we'd joined my parents at their Ulysses brunch - checking out all the motorbikes and saying "hi" to some of mum and dad's friends.  I expected that the Little Big Fella would be excited by all the bikes, but he was focused on wanting to play with Cadbury J's kids and was a bit of a cranky pants.

It was amusing hanging out with the "bikers", because the Little Big Fella told everyone he met there that he rode his own motorbike, and they were all suitably impressed.

The following day Mum, my sister, the Little Big Fella and I went to the Queen Victoria market (after meeting my sister's cat).  It was a very different experience to when we lived in Melbourne, mostly because the Big Fella wasn't with us, so we went to other areas of the market than just the deli :-D

Of course, we did go to the deli because that's a complete experience in itself, but it wasn't the same without the Big Fella's enthusiasm.

Going around the general part of the market was good fun!  We looked at art and clothes and bags and whatever else happened to catch our attention.  The Little Big Fella was just starting to get antsy when we spotted a toy stall.  They had a pack of superhero figurines, including his favourites Thor, the Hulk, Wolverine, Batman, Spiderman and Superman, for only $10!  My sister decided that she needed to buy them for him and for the next hour or so, he was completely engrossed in them and happy to be dragged from bag stall to clothing stall :-D  Thanks sis!!!

We decided it was time to eat and ended up at a little dumpling bar.  We ordered a selection and shared them, enjoying the food, company, sights and being out of the wind.

A little more market-ing then we headed back to my parent's place.

That evening was a family dinner at mum and dad's.  My brother, sister and her husband came and we all hung out for the evening.

I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but I love my family.  I love that we get along so well and that being together is fun for us!  And I think each and every one of them is pretty darn awesome, actually.  I'm super, super lucky!

That was the end of our first week in Melbourne!  By this stage I was happy, exhausted, having a blast and missing home (particularly missing the Big Fella).  And there was still four full days plus a day of travel to go!  Time to get some sleep for it, hey?