Rasita

What A Day!

Every day is a big day when you are pregnant.

Today started off great, I managed to sleep in, despite kids coming in at various time from about 6am onwards. Saturdays usually start off late as the kids entertain themselves with a few cartoons in the mornings.

Hubby got up not too much longer after I did as he had to teach a business skills class which he was volunteering his time for. While he did that, the kids and I made collages out of sequins, plastic gems, cereal, glitter and various bits of furry material (and enormous quantities of glue). After that we tried to make cereal (Honey O's) necklaces but i think they ate more then they threaded onto the wool, it was easier that way. Once that was all over, and my fish bowl decided to practice a few reversals of the stretching process it was time to head out to the beach.

The beach was great and relaxing, the water a perfect temperature. After waddling there, from the car, I sat and rested while watching the kids and daddy play until Erin decided it was time to get mummy included and find the rest. We packed up our stuff and made our slow way (fortunately I was walking with a 2 year old) towards the others, which were halfway up the lagoon. This was when the beached whale decided it preferred the buoyancy of the salt water to the gravity of the land. It was so nice the whale hated having to get out when it was time. After a quick play in the playground (kids that is), it was time to head to the van and make the short journey home.

To see pictures of this day click here.

Dinner tonight was simple but nice. Chicken nuggets, salad and home made chips.
The secret to crunchy chips is very hot oil, and to slice them as thinly as possible, preferably till they are transparent.

Right now the hubby is turning over his bike's engine, as he has not been able to ride it for a while due to his collar bone. I can tell it is healing as he was able to drive almost normally today while i was too tired to drive.

That's it for now, time to get the girls to bed and then delve into a nice warm shower and wash my hair.

Bub's News - none, it is head down and it is down. The odd contraction but nothing significant yet. Hopefully it is looking for the exit hatch.

Things are swimming along at the moment, though the pool seems to be getting low on water as the fish grows too big for it's tank. It is like keeping a goldfish in a glass cup and expecting it to be happy.

The fish moves and wriggles, but doesn't get very far as it feels like the pool is shrinking in on it, an alive mass of muscle. It is yet to work out that all it needs to do is find an escape hatch in order to swim in a bigger pool that it will never grow out of.

The stand that holds the pool upright is starting to feel the weight of the growing fish, and it's legs are starting to creak and beg for more support. At least the filter seems to be working in top order and ensuring the water is kept in tip top condition while regularly releasing adequate amounts of nourishment so that the fish may grow bigger and stronger and successfully survive in the bigger pool.

No one knows when the fish will click and see the green exit sign above the escape hatch, using this to it's advantage. The fish though, shall not use this today as it is too busy trying to enlarge it's current aquarium.

Perhaps it will prove me wrong, only time will tell.

While reading Sadie's site (she is a really cute newborn) I read up the mother's report on the golden globe awards. I just had to check out the dress pictures to see if they were as tacky, and yes they are. They don't have all the pics there but it is enough to get an idea. A few are nice but most are tacky.

Enjoy!

A Quick Note!

The meal turned out perfectly btw. Everything was cooked on time and even the sweet potato chips (garnishing) turned out perfectly. It was a good meal. No pics tonight as it was eaten before I even thought about doing this.

Kids headed out for a quick swim after dinner while I did a little reading and hubby interacted with them. They have been good kids today and hopefully will sleep in tomorrow morning (they slept in this morning which was great)

Menu For Tonight's Banquet

Entree
Cheese & Ham Pastries - seasoned with fresh herbs

Main
Oyster Blade Steaks seasoned with fresh herbs
accompanied by
onion gravy and steamed seasonal vegetables

Dessert
Baklava type dessert with blue jelly, topped with cream and cinnamon

The kids helped me make up this menu for tonight's dinner and have helped to make the entrees and dessert. I am glad they like to cook.

A little bit about my day.

As you have already read, Jade now has her ballet slippers and danced for us. With Jade I also helped her do some work on her laptop. She got 88 out of 100 for her score, which I think is really good. She also helped make the pastries by putting ham on them.

Miranda did her two tests today and passed both after she had to make some minor corrections. She also helped with the pastries and jelly. Miranda is quite competent in the kitchen and this is a real blessing especially if i need someone to look after something i am cooking. Her patience isn't great enough to stand cooking a 2 hr meal in one go and she does love to taste test as she goes, but she is still and fine and dandy cook.

I try to teach the girls cooking from scratch and not how to just cook half prepared meals. We have done knife training (how to hold it properly and cut without cutting yourself, etc), hygiene, bread, jelly, toast, scrambled eggs and a few other basic items.

Erin has had cuddles as we watched some TV together and also some time out at the 'mermaid' pool. There have been various other things throughout the day, which currently escape me.

My girls have been really well behaved today and I think I know why. I have always known but at times it does escape me due to other distractions and stresses in life.

I think I will reward them with a chocolate frog, and myself, then have a lay down and rest while they play or watch cartoons.

Note: I am sure the meal will turn out perfectly.

Have a great day!

Here is a another bit about me.
I like to draw, and you can see for yourself what type of artist I am. I am amatuer with no formal training so I am happy with the way most of this has come out.
Enjoy!

Note: If the pictures on the first page do not work, do not worry too much as their links still work and clicking on the picture will bring up the picture still.

Note: I have to thank a friend of mine who made this page for me as it is beyond my skills to do this sort of thing. Thanks Rhysanus (Dave)

The greatest series of books I have ever read and am still reading (as they continue to be written) is the Discworld Series by Terry Pratchett. If you follow the link it will lead you to a monthly discworld site. I receive monthly newsletters from it.

The Discworld Series is an interesting and captivating series of books. I can't quite remember how many are actually in it but I seem to have quite a few of my own. They make me laugh at the content and the world around myself. Terry Pratchett has also written quite a few other books which are equally as interesting. Check it out on the web, do a search on either the author or on Discworld.

It's A Girl!

Great news hey! Well not for me but for a friend. She delivered a healthy baby girl last Friday by caesarian. She already has one daughter (aged 7) who is now a big sister to a tiny tot. Her sister was brought into this world weighing a mere 5lb 10oz (small like her sister was when she was born). I am guessing she has a dark shock of hair like her sister as I am yet to see her. I will wait to go visit her though, until her mother has recovered from the caesarian.

This morning, Jade finished earning her reward of a pair of ballet slippers (jiffy shoes) and quite proudly put on her tutu and shoes and danced around for us.

Isn't she cute.
She had a great time dancing around for us and can't wait till Monday when she has a trial run at dance classes (mostly ballet for little kids)

As you can possibly tell, I am feeling a lot better today. Majority of the pain has disappeared and I had a good long rest, broken by frequent toilet trips.

I am sure this kid is a yoyo, it is up and down all the time, unable to decide which is the better position to be in.

The kids and I made a mermaid pool this morning. We found all the underwater toys we could find and put them in the paddling pool to make it as close as we could to an underwater scene. When the toys float upside down or have had tails chewed off it doesn't seem to have quite the same effect but fortunately the girls didn't seem to notice this and had a ball playing with the underwater creatures (along with the giraffe, zebra and robot). Now they are inside watching a few cartoons while I deal with business.

I want maternity leave!

Pregnancy & Pain

These two things just do not go well together. Since you are carrying another person, whom is soley dependent upon you for it's life, doctors are reluctant to give you anything should you be in pain due to pregnancy caused pain.
Note : As you can see I am not thinking too clearly
As mentioned previously, my jaw ligaments have relaxed somewhat and this causes pain, the level of pain is dependent upon the level of activity i have done previously. I am guessing this week was just too big for me and now i am paying the price. The pain has been so bad today that it has been impossible to feel tired or concentrate properly and then upon taking some paracetamol the pain has only lessened to a state where i can feel tired again. I just hope this last lot i took recently will kick in and give me a short amount of pain free time or else i shall sleep on an ice pack tonight.

On the interesting side. I sat in the car today and watched hubby go to pick up the kids from childcare. It was surreal watching the toddlers come toddling out of their room for their afternoon play. They literally toddled. It wasn't funny, but just interesting. Jade and Erin were so happy to see daddy as he picked them up, they were beaming from ear to ear. But they are always like that and always seem to be playing happily when i pick them up. Jade did bring home a big pink butterfly which we will try to suspend in her room somehow.

Last Night
Last night we had about 3 mini blackouts followed by a 12 hour blackout. This is the third night in a row that we have had blackouts. We have been having a lot lately as there has been a lot of storm activity around here. We are expected to have another big storm tonight with possibly Friday and Saturday free of storms before they start back up again. I am glad we have plenty of candles and our camp torches still work as does our lantern. It is a bit of a bugger trying to cook though but we fortunately have a gas camp stove and the gas bbq.

Bubs News
It has been active of late, well today actually. I felt every time it moved. It feels really cramped in there and it has descended again. I don't know if it can make up its mind or not about where it wants to curl up. Not too much longer now. 4 weeks today in fact.

Here is the website that I found helped me to choose Raz, though you can alter it to get the results you want. It is good and provides basic information about the different breeds. It is called SelectaPet

The day is only half over and already I am ready to pack it in for the day!

It hasn't been long, just I am exhausted and feeling the high temps we are currently having, along with the high humidity.

The weather thing on my PC reads - temp 30 degrees Celsius, feels 35, humidity 70%

The kid has also moved out of it's engaged position to sit high and press against my lungs.

Erin has lovingly spread rice across the tiles (it is the same colour as the tiles so not that easy to see) and then she did it again after i swept it up.

Raz Soondari

The dog, a keeshond, has decided it isn't hot enough under the patio and has gone for a walk in the sun. She is as individual as we all are in my little family. She is obedient when she chooses to be so, but she is not so disobedient that she causes trouble. She has never bitten the children or deliberately hurt them. She will sleep outside bedroom windows (provided she can hear or see in them). She will protect the house from strangers (by barking very loudly), rogue cats (or any cat really), the dog through the fence, birds on the ground and anything out of place. She has done us a good service in the past by alerting us to snakes in the backyard and she hasn't been silly enough to get close to them though.

Not too long ago she dislocated her knee. At first we thought she hay have had a paralysis tick (they are deadly to dogs) due to the way she was acting but at the vets we soon found out that it was a dislocated knee. $145 later and a shaved knee, it was discovered to have been an existing problem that could have developed when she was a puppy, without our knowledge. The vet seems to think it could also be up in her hip, the problem that is.

She has a problem called osteo-arthritis and her knee joint isn't formed as it should be, there is also a bow in her leg bones (cant remember the name) which shows it could have been caused when she was younger or even born with the problem. We have had no problems with her since then and hopefully it wont recur anytime soon as it is an expensive problem to fix and well, we don't have pet insurance and now we wouldn't be able to get it to cover the operation. The operation will cost roughly $900.

She is a good dog and so we will look to raising the money, later in the year, for her operation as it isn't an emergency.

What was i previously talking about? I can't remember so I will have to read back. Don't you love the pregnant brain. Now I can't remember what I WAS going to talk about, even with reading back.

I did however, start packing my maternity bag and start thinking about getting baby things organized. I think I shall get into that this arvo when Kylie is here.

I now remember what it was I wanted to say here. I can't wait for maternity leave! Bad side to that though, I work from home and school from home so that means I don't get maternity leave, not like those who work out of the home and get paid to stay away from work. I am starting to struggle in schoolwork and I am only teaching grade 3. My concentration wanes and the urge to lay down and rest is getting stronger. Today was no better with the kid pressing against my lungs and feeling a little disorientated and dizzy. I think this high blood pressure thing is going to have to be carefully monitored as I do not really want to end up in hospital with another ceaser or being induced.

Well there is still half a day to go but it shall be a rewarding, if slow, one.

Have a great day and stay safe!

Phew! What a day!

It was probably not long in anyone else's sense of a long day but when you have 4 weeks to go in pregnancy it does seem a long day as it takes twice as long to walk anywhere as it used to.

I had a midwife appointment today. I prefer the midwives to the doctors as they seem more in touch with the women and a lot of them have had children also. It was a routine checkup, first the blood pressure (which was revealed to be a little high so have to keep an eye on it now), then the routine questions, measuring the bump, feeling for the baby (head down as per normal but close to being engaged), listening to it's heartbeat and discussing when the next appointment should be. I have to head back every week now until it is born. They also gave me a slip of paper so they could test my blood. That should be pretty normal I imagine.

I am not as big as some women out there but i can feel the uncomfortable awkwardness of carrying such a heavy load. I cannot wait to sleep comfortably on my back, and I do not care if I snore and keep the rest of the household awake either!

Apart from the routineness of this appointment, I also had school to teach for my eldest (we home school), dropping off and picking up of the younger two from childcare, grocery shopping and hunting for a present (I did not find what I wanted but then I only did go to one shop). I think, if I get the chance, I shall go hunting for it on Thursday and perhaps pick up some more baby stuff.

I need to get prepared, hunt through old boxes of clothes, pack a maternity bag (very least I should do) and work out what I need to buy/replace so I do not have to worry about it when the bubs comes.

Kids are going in the pool so perhaps I shall get dinner started (Sucker for punishment ain't I!)

You are probably wondering why I have so much time for this site. Well, I am not ignoring the kids or the hubby, just doing it while they are busy elsewhere. At the moment the kids are in bed, or supposed to be in bed, and the hubby is watching the tennis while surfing the net. (He is more of a nerd then I am)

I thought I might take this time, before I head to bed, to write up a little bit about college.

College Life

10 years ago, roughly starting at this time of year, I headed out fresh from highschool and into college. This type of college was a total shock to me due to the fact it had been the last choice on my list of places I wanted to go to. I really wanted to be a park ranger and not a cook/caterer. I was out of my depth but fortunately knew one person from primary school there. It didn't take too long to make friends and settle into the life of an associate diploma business catering.

We made a variety of different type of meals there, ranging from the bakery to curries, to stirfries, desserts and even offal (crumbed deep fried calf brains aren't that bad) There was a mix of different cooking styles in there also. I remember, once, making the perfect mushy peas. They were so good that my teacher had to go and give the other teachers a taste. The were mostly english teachers. It was here I learnt my cooking skills, book keeping skills (not really but I tried, in between passing notes to friends), how to rise bread, how to stay awake and how to keep a tray upright when I am carrying drinks.

College was for two years, but since I had a teacher whom didn't seem to like me, I had to do an extra half year (2 classes a week). The teacher also disappeared and took all the test results with him so the school was unable to follow it up with him or verify what had been written in the report.

My friends at college were varied and there were some interesting people. Basically most of the class stuck together and were a group of friends with only breaking apart for lunch times. We all seemed to work well together and those, very few, who didn't seemed to drop out anyhow. Occasional some of us would go nightclubbing and just not go home, just returning to college the next day without more then a couple of hours catnapping. Those were long days.

I know I haven't really said anything in here but I have said a lot and there is so much to tell I just would not know where to start. I do want to say something though. A big thankyou to my dad (whom is having minor cancer surgery this year) for supplying me with most of what i needed to get started in college. He provided a uniform, knives, some text books and a few other miscellaneous items. He had previously finished a course similar to the one i was starting and so he passed on those very useful and expensive items. Of course I had to take the uniform in but it was welcome.

Garlic, Jelly and Cake!


The Cake!
Today the kids and I did some cooking. It was only a packet mix but it seems to be turning out well. We made and orange poppy seed cake, each pair of hands eager to help. Miranda added the eggs, erin added the water and some of the butter and Jadeen added the remaining butter while each took a turn at using the electric mixer. These kids have it easy, i didn't have the advantage of electric mixers (for small things) in college, only cause i didn't bring one. I feel old! It was only 10 years ago that i started college. If I remember I shall tell you about college one day.

The Jelly!
Nothing exciting here except that I mixed it with tinned fruit. The packet said not to mix with fresh pineapple, pawpaw or kiwi fruit. I am thinking this is due to the acidity level of those fruit, but I could be wrong. I have been known to be wrong before. Let's see if it sets or not. I know it is edible, it is jelly afterall!

The Garlic!
This was the second last of my culinary efforts this arvo. We had 3 (plus bits) cloves of garlic and we weren't using it before it started to grow, well one of the cloves. So i bottled what was good and usefull in some plain, flavourless oil. This way I will get garlic oil and cloves that aren't going to sprout on me before they get used.

Dinner!
Nothing special, just marinated some lamb cutlets in a little olive oil, salt, freshly cracked black pepper and fresh rosemary. I will cook them later when they have been sitting there for a while.

On the non-food side of things, the girls have been playing happily outside today, making full use of the paddling pool. The bubs on the inside has been it's usual self, kicking high, having hiccups low and occasionally causing small twinges of pain (think it is just pressing on the cervix or something like that) It is still inside and that is a good thing for the moment as I am not prepared for it's entry into the world yet. I need to stock up on disposables and baby supplies and go through the boxes I have to see what I still have.

Time to check on the cake!

What is a segway?

Pancakes & Iced Chocolate

That was the menu this morning for breakfast. As per the norm, when we have pancakes, it is a late breakfast, usually about 9.30am. It was good this morning as the pancakes turned out perfectly and when i sent hubby to the shop to buy cream he came back with something extra - strawberry milk for me and chocolate milk for the girls. It was a good breakfast and one we all seem to enjoy and be able to sit down for together. Of course the pancake mix was a shop bought packet mix but it works well and has very limited additives in it.

We try to be conscious of additives in our food and have found it helps the girls if we are conscious of this. We still have a lot of normal children type food in the cupboards and occasionally they are allowed a treat of buying their own lollies from the shop. As is the case in this country, and I am assuming in other developed countries, the people are becoming increasingly aware of what additives can do so they are starting to look for alternatives. We occasionally treat the girls to lollies, bought at our discretion, which are as natural as I have been able to find. Apart from the sugar in them they are pretty good (the flavour is better then some of the heavy additive brands out there)

Well time to get off this thing, for now at least, and be creative.

We found Jadeen's skirt and after 2 blackouts I am able to add it.

The Skirts



Erin doing her pose



Miranda - I think I made it a little long



Jadeen's face because we couldn't find her skirt, she lost it in the last 24 hours and it hasn't been worn.

Dinner plans changed, no cooked veges but salad.

Have a great meal!


I did some fiddling with it, dunno why but well, you see the results!

Simple But Satisfying

Dinner that is.

I think that we shall accompany the kebabs with some rice and steamed veges. Julienned carrots and courgette and what ever else I can find in the fridge.

I did have a semi rest, inbetween looking after the kids and then getting up to tell the hubby it was time for him to go out. He forgot to watch the clock. Business was a no show so we all went out to lunch instead.
This arvo has been uneventful except for the making of the kebabs which are marinating/waiting in the fridge. I brushed the kids ones in tereyaki sauce and brown sugar while i added fresh chilli to the adult ones' marinade.

well it is early still but we have to organise dinner around hubby who has another meeting tonight re some volunteer work he is doing, so time for me to get off this thing and start thinking about rice...which we haven't got! How about pasta instead or mashed potatoes? I think mashed spuds will do the job nicely.

Have a great one!

Beef Kebabs

skewers, which I am yet to get
beef cubes
pineapple
capsicum
onion
teriyaki sauce

place meat and veges on skewer in a pretty pattern then brush with teriyaki sauce. Cook on bbq or something similar, turning to brown all sides.

That is my planned dinner meal for today, but now that I think about it, there probably won't be time for it because as soon as lunch hits, the day will be too busy.

I think I need to head back to bed. Try to make this a rest day instead. The kebabs can wait till another time.

Hamburgers & Sausages On Bread

That was lunch today and what a good buy it was. $5 covered the hamburger, sausage on bread and a bottle of water. It was a fund raiser for some group but it was the cheapest lunch for 2 I have seen in a long time.

Erin & I had this as we were out hunting for the elusive dark pink cotton, and I had the perfect timing of going out during lunch time.

I was in the mood to make the girl's some clothes, and have so far made them a skirt each out of some pretty pink flowery material. If I get a photo of them dressed up then I shall add it to the site. If I get around to making up the tops, I shall add their piccy to the site as well.

Robots!
Miranda loves robots, she is in the process of making one with her father. It is called cybot.

The baklava type dessert, I made yesterday, turned out really well and hubby proceeded to finish off the kids' share. It isn't as sweet as it sounds like it should be, but has a nice taste (hard to describe but the lime is a prominent flavour) to it. I guess we will have some more for dessert tonight, if I get around to making dinner.

What A Wonderful Day!

Now Can I Go Back To Bed?

It is amazing the things you can still do when you are pregnant. People seem to think you can't do much and that you should rest. Rest is good yes, even a broken rest is good, and it is important, but it does not stop you from doing things. I have 4 Weeks & 5 Days to go and I have slowed down some but it has not stopped me from doing things. I still carry the kids to bed (well only the two younger ones), still bend over and still try to improve our lifestyle, among other things.

Last night I was the bus driver, that was fun as I got to listen into the variety of conversations that was going on, and learn new stuff from those in the car. We had a couple of friends in the car while we headed down the coast on business. We packed the car to the maximum with people and it still drove great. I could feel the extra weight in the car and how it was distributed but it still drove great. It was a late night but it was also rewarded with a good solid 4 hrs sleep before I had to wake up to the call of nature and to send hubby to bed.

Today has been good, hubby made the girl's breakfast this morning and I got to eat mine before it went cold or stale (I had toasted bagels with cream cheese and strawberry jam, and they are yummy when still warm). Hubby is now teaching a family friend a little bit about basic accounting/book work as he is trying to start up his own business. Hubby is a great teacher. The girls are watching their favourite cartoon - 'Buzz Lightyear' and I have just finished business for the day, unless I can get some up and running later in the day.

Another piece of good news - Jadeen will be trialling dance classes in a week and a half. She is so excited about it and it is nice and close and easy to get to which is a great reward. Miranda will be starting back at hose riding soon and perhaps I will include erin into kindy gym (toddlers gymnastics). Will see how it goes as I don't have long until the next kid is born, but the good thing will be that the walking will be great and easy exercise to start getting back into shape with.

Well that is enough for now, time to go add some more water to my body. I am thirsty!

4 Weeks & 6 Days

I made my filo pastries today, kids didn't like them but hubby and I did. Here is a rough recipe below

3 Cheese Filo Pastries
1 tub ricotta cheese
1/2 tub cream cheese
2 handfuls of grated tasty/colby cheese
small amount of fresh rosemary
numerous sheets of filo pastry (about 2 sheets per pastry, less if they don't stick together)
melted butter

Method
1. Mix the 3 cheeses together until combined
2. Put butter onto melt
3. Add chopped rosemary to the cheese mix, mix well.
4. Take individual sheets of filo and spread with butter
5. Place a heaped dessert spoon of cheese mix onto a corner of the pastry and fold as best you can, all the time spreading more butter onto the pastry as you go (need to cover those bits which don't have butter on them so they stick and go brown)
6. Bake in a moderate oven until golden.

Note: They may decide to share their fillings with the tray if not wrapped properly but the taste will be the same.

Then after I made 6 of these I made a baklava type dish, which is yet to be eaten, with the left over pastry.

ingredients
yet more filo pastry, this stuff works better the further you get into it.
melted butter
coconut, brown sugar & cinnamon mixed together in a plastic bag/bowl
Syrup
1/2 cup white sugar
4 tbs golden syrup
1/2cup water
4 limes, juiced

Method
1. Brush pastry with butter, and sprinkle with coconut mix.
2. Start to roll up, brushing more butter to the unbuttered pastry sides as you roll.
3. When fully rolled, cut into roughly 6 even pieces and place, standing up, in a deep dish/cake tin
4. Bake in a moderate oven till golden brown.
5. To make syrup, combine all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to the boil.
6. Pour over cooked pastry and allow to soak overnight.
7. Sneak one to eat when they are cool enough to eat and don't tell anyone.

Apart from having an interesting time in the kitchen and trying to teach the kids to cook with filo, which is really a one adult job, I had a good night with one sale made at a friends' house down the GC.
Had an lime spider when I got home and then did this wonderful thing called a blog.

No baby news tonight except that it had hiccups again and I think it is running out of room in there.

Here is a piccie of the new baby, well it was taken at 19 weeks gestation but it is a good facial profile



and it is still head down, must have just been rolling over!

5 Weeks to go

Today has been an interesting day, as are most days.

Miranda did her schoolwork while the other two headed off to childcare to celebrate Chinese New Year.
Jadeen & Erin seemed to have fun there today with all the art and craft and cooking. They painted a big box Chinese dragon, made paper lanterns and cooked fried rice and noodles for lunch. They kids really enjoyed this as they got to help with everything.

This afternoon was a good one, we managed to get a few promotion flyers out for the upcoming Valentines Day. One lady was real interested and was wanting to look at the entire range. She is going to call. There were a few who were interested and some who weren't, some who were nice and some who were rude. Overall it was a good day.

Miranda learnt some important lessons today during this.
They were :
1. Patience, you will get results if you keep trying.
2. To be nice to people even if they aren't nice to you and don't let it discourage you.
3. To just smile and say little, let them do the talking.

I managed to even get out the small amount of jewelry I took with me and show it to one lady. This is pretty cool jewelry, something there for everyone at cheap prices even if is good quality stuff.

After this it was a quick drive up north to pick the kids up, drop off my sister's PC and have hubby help my mum with a PC problem, then we headed home, closed a sale, forgot to pick up the dog's heartwormer, and buy take-away as a small reward for today's work.

Tomorrow afternoon I am off to do the same thing but in a different area. I hope people call so we can make the sales.

I shall head off soon to make the filo pastries, I just hope they turn out alright.

Baby News
I think it turned around today, it was feeling uncomfortable there for a while. It has still been hitting/kicking up high but I feel it has turned around so is now head up. It is currently hitting/kicking out to my left, below the belly button. I wonder if it will be a little girl or a little boy. Hubby is getting excited over the prospect of being a father again, which is good. He makes a wonderful dad.

Here is a good baby blog. I read it for the past 3 weeks, leading up to the birth. It is interesting and comical side to pregnancy and childbirth (very realistic also)

Sleep tonight shall be a welcome thing

Last post of the day, unless for some reason I get the urge to write.

Well the filo pastries never happened. When I got the box out of the freezer I read the defrosting instructions and it was a minimum 2 hours to defrost the pastry so it could be used. It was too late by the time I got it out so they will have to wait until tomorrow night provided I have the energy to do so. We had frozen pizza instead, well it wasn't frozen when we ate it, I heated it up first.

We also had lychees for dessert, they were yum! Hubby said they tasted like mouldy leaves but I don't think that they do.

Hall Of The Mountain King - Peer Gynt
Is a pretty cool piece of classical, if you can call it that.

I am just chilling to some nice classical music at the moment. It is pretty cool when you sit and listen, especially if a movie/play is put to these types of music. Jadeen is into ballet so she likes this type of music also. I wonder if she is into music as I used to do belly dancing while I was pregnant with her and she would become most active when the drums started up. She has a good sense of rhythm, balance and co-ordination. Miranda's balance and co-ordination has gotten better since she took horse riding lessons. We hope to start her back into that again soon.

It is 8.30pm, I think I will head into the shower, relax some and then head to bed, put my feet up while I can, especially since I am getting thrashed at online backgammon. But first I shall check on hubby to see how he is going on the promotions flyer.

Night night!

Baby News - It is being active, head down, feet up and prodding/kicking with it's feet. It had hiccups not too long ago also.

Now I shall go.

Night night!

It's my sister's 21st birthday today. I am glad I have a calendar to remind me
I sent her an e-card but I think I may have mucked it up somehow. Well I shall find out when she receives it.

Erin was mischievous today, first she took all the clothes I had folded up and threw them around the nursery, secondly she took off with one of her father's protein bars and tried to get into it, thirdly she took off with my makeup case and proceeded to go through it before being caught. She took it somewhere dark so she couldn't be found.

Jadeen has been good today, playing happily around the place.

Miranda just hurt herself, I guess that means she has hurt all her siblings, including herself in a 5 minute period.

Tim has just arrived home and it is now time to go deal with filo pastries and whatever I scrounge up for dinner.

5 Weeks & 1 Day

Today is a lot better, I awoke in very little pain, not even enough to stray my thoughts from what I have to do. I haven't needed to take any paracetamol either, which is great. Let us hope it continues as tomorrow will be a big day, well afternoon.

Valentines is only 3 weeks away so it is time to start promotions for that day, so the jewellery will arrive on time. I even dreamt about how successful it was, that has to be a good sign.

The only hard thing today has been to keep Miranda focused on her studies. I know she is less focused when she wakes up in the morning and watches cartoons. I have to get onto hubby about that because I know she can do better then what she is at the moment. I just hope she finishes more then just her maths before the day is finished. We have already had 2 days off this week so she does have some catch up to do.

Jadeen and Erin have been playing well together, as they normally do, and I am glad of this as it makes my day easier. Right now they are sitting down, resting while they watch 'Treasure Planet'. It would be great if they went to sleep there, it would be great if I could go to sleep but I have a heap to do today and I plan on doing it gradually so it doesnt wear me out.

I am sure glad of the help we have, Kylie. She comes once a week to help us out with certain household chores. She is a blessing. We first started off with another lady whom was only able to do a few weeks before she found herself another, betterpaying and more personally rewarding. Kylie came not too long after this and has stayed with us even through the move we had to do. Kylie has just found herself another job which starts in about 4 weeks time but she is willing to keep us on as a private client. She has helped me out through morning sickness and now through akwardness. (I can only see my toes over my beachball unless I am sitting down.)

No baby news so far today, but will keep you informed.

Have a great day!

5 Weeks & 2 Days to go

I managed to get 4 hours sleep on the ice pack. I shall do that again tonight.

Today was not a big day but I have not had enough rest to allow the swelling to go down. Tomorrow, being Wednesday, I shall rest, doing only small easy and non-stressful things.

Today we got up late, taking our time to get ready. After dropping Jade and Erin at pre-school I headed off to mum's shop to deliver a calendar that my husband and I produced. Here is the picture which I drew to put on it.



It was rescanned at a higher resolution with a slightly darker outcome when put onto the calendar so there is more detail seen on it.

After mum's shop, which was real busy, we headed off to the shopping centre to do our weekly shopping trip. Nothing exciting to report here and after this it was off to pick up the girls and head home.

I am supposed to be having a lady drop around this afternoon to pick up some jewellery but she hasn't arrived yet.

Perhaps she is just running late.

It does not concern me too much if she doesn't turn up today as I am in too much pain to feel real pleasant.

Baby update - It has been a quiet day, more so then normal. This has been the first real pregnancy complaint I have had, in any of my pregancies. I can't complain as I have had less then most people and am still reasonably active, even if I have to go at a snail's pace.

Time to go put in a chook for roasting, a nice simple dinner tonight, will plan on making the filo pastries another night this week.

Well it is 3.11am and I am awake, unable to sleep and my lower belly has the hiccups.

I can't sleep due to being pregnant, no it isn't the bump or the sore backs or cramps but the fact that my jaw has decided that the past few days have been just too big and it is time to retaliate. I have a problem of a relaxed jaw. As per normal pregnancy, the ligaments in the hips and lower back usually soften to allow for the pregnancy, mainly due to the influx of hormones in the system. This problem seems to have crept higher and situated itself in my jaw. The main problem with this is that I cannot take anything stronger then paracetamol to ease the pain, without having it affect the baby too. Therefore it is easy to see that I would like to have this child now and get over the pain.

I hope I can sleep tomorrow, err today, this morning.

We have about an hour and a bit before the sun rises and the new day is declared, so that means I have about 4 hours before the kids wake up. I am glad they are not early risers.

I think I may go try to sleep on the ice pack again, hopefully the cold will numb it and not further aggravate the problem.

Nighty night, err morning!

Well they did it, they turned the lounge into a mess. It looks like a snowstorm has hit the lounge. They spread rice packing material, what I call puffy stuff, all over the lounge floor and due to their playing they have spread it even further. They are about to learn to do as mummy said and clean it up. This is just one of the joys of being a parent, encouraging kids to listen.

On the good side, my curry did turn out alright but having a pregnant brain doesn't help and I missed out a few ingredients. It should have been cooked for longer but I had to get it done before hubby disappeared into the night for a business meeting.

Our grocery order also arrived this arvo, allowing me to close a jewellery sale and put toilet paper in the toilets. I am sure the kids will thank me and anyone else who needs to use the loo.

I made up a goal chart for Jadeen tonight, well it is more of a record of the points she is getting. What I have done is found a picture of a pair of ballet slippers (which is what she wants) and drawn lines on it, and each line goes up in 2's. By the time the whole picture is coloured she will have earnt her ballet slippers. She expressed this to me this arvo and I know she is really interested in dancing, especially ballet, as she always talks about it and dances around the house. I hope she doesn't take too long to achieve this goal of getting the slippers and when she does get them that she looks after them.

I think it looks like I will be cleaning up this lounge tonight, and the TV room also (the 2 yr old spread dry rice everywhere)

Time to get to work!

While I remember
I asked Miranda to do some pictures and write up some stuff about today as a school project.
I think it will be posted on hubby's blog page but this is what she wrote, well we read it as.
"The cat is ded"
definition - The cat is red - the r was reversed and curved a little too much so it looked like a d
"The bog is ded"
definition - The dog is red - same problem with the r and also the d
It was funny to say the least and we couldn't miss an opportunity to add it in.

5 Weeks & 3 Days

Well today was a long one, but a good one. I think everyone in this household is learning patience.
I can't seem to walk much faster then a slow waddle, despite the fact I am smaller then some at 6mths pregnant. I also have an ailing memory which will get better once the baby is born.
After sleeping in, my alarm didn't go off till about midday, I got up and managed to get out of the house, with kids and husband in tow about 45mins later.
Note: I did not sleep till midday, that is just when my alarm went off.
We all headed down to Logan so hubby could get to an business appointment on time. He still can't drive due to his collarbone, so I am the driver. While he did that, the kids and I headed off to the Library to check out the books and drinking fountain. I am not sure which was of more interest, the drinking fountain or books. I think Erin found the fountain more entertaining.
Soon after, after some morning tea, it was off to pick up hubby and go for a slide at a nearby shopping centre. The kids had a ball and even the littlest was going down the high slide.
Made a contact for EP, well Tim contacted her while he had his hair cut and I shall get back to her later in the week in regards to setting up a showcase. It will be a big one and lots of fun. I need to book up a time to go see her with the catalogue so we can get her more excited.
Then it was off to the doctors so the injured hubby could get some more pain killers, mail box, bank (to bank money, always a good thing that) and then home with one short stop to satisfy cravings and the kids wanting to make jelly.
Jelly is a good thing, it comes as a powder which when mixed with hot water becomes runny, then add to that a little cold water, a lot of cold and it become firm. And it always tastes good, especially with ice cream or tinned fruits or something like that.
I think I will head off and make that shortly.
Baby News
Still only a small basketball sized bump but it sometimes feels a lot bigger then that. I have noticed recently that it is starting to get in the way and I am bumping it more and I find it easier to go through small gaps front on rather then sideways. All during my driving today it kept sticking it's tiny feet up and pressing against my belly, so I would retaliate and push them back down.
Time for jelly making, have a good one!

Some piccies of me, well they are as recent as a couple of days ago.


This is a photo of a reward. If we reached a certain amount of points in a certain time period, we got to have our photo taken with the speakers of the weekend. Great speakers they were also.



This is from Leadership Dinner. I guess that means we are now leaders in our business. It was an Hawaiian theme but the closest I could get to tropical wear, without revealing too much, was a cheese cloth top and a cherry skirt. It was a fun night though filled with great company and food.

You will have to excuse the quality of these pictures, the lighting wasnt right and the batteries were almost dead.

I thought it was about time I actually said something in line with the topic of my blog, well the subtopic.

Food

What a wonderful thing it is, warming, cooling, filling and teasing, plus a heap of other things inbetween.

Tonight we had old english pork sausages, honey beef sausages, mashed spuds, onion and gravy. Plus the sauces that the guys put on and the buttered bread they also added to it.

Hubby did the spuds as he doesn't like the way I do them. I do not mind as it is one of the more tedious jobs.
It was a filling meal.

Hopefully tomorrow night I will get around to making a beef thai curry. Well I am not sure if you can call it thai, it is mainly something I just made up and it seems to be tasty with only a little heat.

Ingredients
1 red chilli
some lemon grass
some lychees, fresh or tinned
carrots - cut how you want
parsley/corriander
coconut cream
meat
baby carrots
anything else you want to add

brown the meat
add the coconut cream
add remaining ingredients and cook till, well cooked.
Serve with rice.

If this recipe isn't correct then I shall attempt to fix it up tomorrow after I have made it.

I love food, though I try to enjoy it rather then induldge in it. Being pregnant doesn't help as that just gives you cravings, but fortunately mine have not been any stranger then strawberry milk, fresh cherries/lychees, chocolate and mashed spuds with gravy.

I enjoy cooking and experimenting with things.

I am also in the process of filling up the deep freeze with meals in preparation for when the baby is born. I don't want to be eating takeaway when I get home so why not fill it up with a few tasty meals. So far we have 3 lasagne, 3 bolognaise, 12 individual blueberry pastries (they go good heated up and eaten with ice cream). I plan on making some meat pies this week, possibly with the left over roast from the other night. Perhaps I should look at making some food that the kids will eat also. They should eat the meat pie, I definitely know they will eat the blueberry pastries. I will work it out with time and every week I have until the birth will mean another few meals added.

This meal adding will be handy also as we are due to have guests over the week before the birth. We will be able to offer them decent meals without a lot of trouble.

Food has become a lot easier lately, well the shopping side of things. Since we started getting our fresh fruit and vegetables delivered we have had little or non-existent stress in regards what to choose for the week. The price we pay is about half the price of what we would pay for them in the shops. I think vegetable soup is in the menu plan not to far away. We have also received a heap of fresh herbs, most welcome, in the last box. They will be a tasty addition to meals.

There is a lot I can say about food, but at the moment I cannot think of it as I am tiring and almost ready for bed (still recovering from the long but enjoyable weekend of summer conference). I did rest today but I know I am still needing a lot of catch up sleep and I hope to do most of that tonight so I can be fresh and ready for tomorrow.

No baby news at current except it is in a quiet period at the moment which is welcome after the large meal we just had.

5 Weeks & 4 Days
Had a great weekend though very tiring.
Have decided not to be a draino so will be watching what I say and do.
The kids had a great weekend with Sara (the babysitter)
Sara was a wonderful babysitter and the kids enjoyed their time with her - even Erin who always put on a show when mummy and daddy were home and about to go out to their next session for Summer conference.
The kids made a cake, some jelly, a little mess and hopefully were well behaved and allowed Sara to rest when needed.
I cannot speak anymore highly of how Sara handled the weekend and the fact that she is trustworthy, especially in letting us know if something happened that should not have.
She did well.
Baby update - still there, head down and sticking it's foot up to the upper half of my belly, like it is stretching it's legs.
Time to deal with the wet naked children and the one yelling into the fan in her fathers office

5 Weeks & 6 Days
So far this morning Jadeen and Erin have caught a baby skink (about 3cm long with it's tail on) and managed to loose it in their room. They have made a camp in the hallway between bedrooms with Erin's mattress and other miscellaneous items, and Erin (the two year old) has managed to tip over the chest of drawers she shares with her sister. These drawers are not small either and are heavy without clothes in them. I think it was helped over by the drawers being mostly pulled out at the same time. My 7 year old, Miranda, managed to right them without help from daddy.
No news so far on the baby front except that it has rolled over and now has it's back to my front and it still looks like a basketball, uneven basketball at that.
Time to get back to the clothes making so I can have something nice to wear during the remainder of this pregnancy, and something that fits also.

6 Weeks to go
Erin and Jadeen had a good day at pre-school today, and I had a good day of rest today though I am still tired even though it is early for some.
Just had to say - Erin went to sleep cuddling a piece of wood tonight. She can be weird at times in how she goes to sleep. I have seen her asleep in a strawberry crate, under her mattress, on a rug in the middle of the walkway with her feet up on a small fishtank.
Miranda did well at her schooling today and was complimented on her manners while out material shopping today.
Jadeen was Jadeen, cute with an adorable smile and thinking of others. She made some small patty cakes out of pasta today at pre-school which she gave to Miranda to carry to the car, though they were mostly dropped or lost by the time we got there (it was a short walk). Jadeen is great at sharing and loves to do it, especially when we tell her not to, eg. when she receives a special treat for doing something or we have black chicken for dinner (her favourite)
Erin is also good at sharing with her sisters also, but her special treats (if the are lollies) are less likely to be shared.
Junior is progressing well, nothing new to report except that I feel and look like I have a basketball pasted on the front of me.
I started a new top today, with the material I bought from Spotlight. It is a nice light white cotton so that shall help me keep cool during the warmer months, provided I can actually fit into it after I have finished it. I also bought some light cotton with cherry pictures on it, I hope to make a skirt out it and some items for the kids. The clothes I make, I make with the hope that I will be able to wear them after the birth.
Miranda just came out and apoligised for stuff.....I do not know what the stuff was though. I think she was more in a dream state then actually awake. I have sent her back to bed, but shall go check in on her soon. I think it was just dream related.
Time to sign off, need to sleep so I can actually stay awake tomorrow night.

My groin has the hiccups, but that isn't so bad, at least I can breath today!
Time for food..

6 Weeks and 1 day to go, and counting.
Today I put up the cot, with Erin getting upset over the fact that I put the small mattress in it. I think it is time to change over the carseats so she has time to adjust before the baby actually arrives. I hope that Erin will take the new baby's arrival well. Tried to show her the baby pictures but she wouldn't look at it.
On the plus side she is doing well in toilet training and uses the potty at preschool with no accidents. I am not too concerned about toilet training just yet as we can concentrate on that after the baby is born, it might be a boost to her confidence if mummy spends time helping her achieve this.
Miranda started school on Monday. Yes we started back a couple of weeks early but that is so she can take a couple of weeks holiday when the baby is born. This means Tim won't have to worry about what she is up to in schooling and he can just concentrate on being daddy, if he doesn't have to work, and host to his friends whom are due over at the same time as juniors arrival.
Jadeen has been a big help lately, getting interested in tidying up (especially sweeping). I have to organize a birthday party for her sometime soon, but first I need to work out how many little friends she will invite. This will mean talking to her teacher at preschool and hoping her friends turn up to church when there is no Sunday School on.
Tim is still unable to do up his shoes but thankfully he is becoming more mobile now that he has changed pain killers. Oh, incase you do not know, he broke his collar bone after a fall from his bike. He saved himself a lot of injury by wearing his helmet that day. Now I have a reason and story to encourage the kids to wear bike helmets when they are on their bikes.
Well time for lunch and I think a peanut butter sandwich is in order for today, before I have a quick nap and head out to buy some fabric so I can run up some clothes (I am growing our of everything I have except for the winter maternity clothes).