13/52

"A portrait of our children, once a week, every week in 2013"

Master 15:  Enjoying the return of football season.

Master 12/13:  Master 12 becomes Master 13 very aptly in Week 13.

There's one little thing of which I am certain,

Time's flying by and we're up to Week Thirteen!

Another week of fun....linking up with Che and Fidel.

Busy, busy day......

The day began with yet another trip down the freeway to Sydney.

We were reminded by a message from above that it is indeed the Easter weekend....

....you need to look closely....very, very closely!

Then it was lunch with the in-laws....

....sort of an Easter/Master 13 Birthday/family get-together....and MORE chicken schnitzel to be consumed.

Once that was done we rolled ourselves out of the pub and into the car and drove over to Sydney Olympic Park.

The Sydney Swans were playing Greater Western Sydney in the opening round of the 2013 AFL season.....and we had to be there.....of course!!

It was hard to keep my mind on the game...as I was constantly being distracted by this couple....

....who spent the entire match canoodling.....by the time she started licking his face...I must admit I vomited a little into my mouth :0P

Aaahhh....young love....it's all romance and roses....NOW....but I give it 5 years before they will be arguing.....all the time....about money....and kids....and who's turn it is to do the dishes.....and she will be driven to distraction by the whistling sound coming from his left nostril....all night long!!!  

Enjoy it while it lasts kiddies....but please do me a favour.....next game.....enjoy it at home.

How's your Easter weekend progressing so far?

Egads....my baby's 13......

The big day has arrived and Master 12 is no more....hello Master 13.

Last night we all survived the murderous killing spree....aka a Laserblast Party.

The  only casualties were a bruised arm from some careless walking into a door frame and a case of appendicitis....which required a call to a mother for an early pick up part way through the party.

We always like to have a bit of added drama to spice things up!!

Please note the amazing colour coordination I achieved...which I would like to claim as skillful but was in fact coincidental.

Despite it being Good Friday and a public holiday....we were up early....for the present distribution......

....which Buster was convinced were for him......

....unlucky Buster!!

McDonalds was requested for birthday breakfast....and of course.....they were open......do they ever close??

Which left Master 12 free to nurse a bad case of indigestion until 10am when he officially became Master 13.

Happy Birthday Master 13!!!

And heaven help me....TWO teenage boys in the house!!

Let's get ready to rumble......

There's much activity and organisational goings on in our abode today.

Tomorrow Master 12 will be going through an unofficial and non existent name changing ceremony....where he will become Master 13.

But first I must get through today.

As it is such a special birthday.....where he makes that great leap from gorgeous little boy to ratbag teenager...it calls for a special celebration.

For starters there was no effort spared on the all important birthday cake.....I promised Master 12 that I would whip up his all time favourite recipe.....whatever he'd like....and then I made this.....

....he loves it....really he does!!

In my minds eye the icing was going to be lime green....cause I'm up with the jiggy jig and that's an "in" colour......in reality it was more mushy peas than cool limes........

Here's the end result....I'd eat it.......

Then I came up with this ingenious plan to transport it......

That's the cake container upside down over the top....keeps the glad wrap off the icing....but means I can keep the cake on the serving plate....haha....*pats self on back*

This afternoon I will be keeping out of the way supervising while a group of 12 and 13 year old boys run around and shoot each other...it's a lovely little game where the person that kills the most other people is declared the winner.......violence in our society......what violence?!?

In between rounds I will feed them chips and pizza and cake....and then I will send them home to their mothers....hopefully in one piece.

Wish me luck!!

Lunch anyone?

It has come to my attention that I am now a mother that "does lunch".

That's if the last couple of days are anything to go by.

My pal Mrs C and I have had a long standing tradition of coke, cake and conversation on a Tuesday morning.  However with the rising cost of cake...we have decided that lunch would be a better alternative.  Besides given all the problems of the world that we solve each week...we really need the extra time that a full meal presents.

So we have taken to meeting at a local Chinese restaurant...which we will call Noodle Express....because that is what it is called.  Now we enjoy coke, Chinese and a chat.

I am currently on a mission to eat my way through their entire lunchtime menu.....one dish at a time...one week at a time.

My beef and black bean had barely had a chance to digest when I realised it was Wednesday.

On Wednesday...once a month....I "lunch with the girls".  Just so happens this Wednesday was the day.....so that meant another trip to Sydney....in order to eat more food and solve more problems!  It was at the Leagues Club....so I had what everyone should have at the Leagues Club.....a chicken Schnitty and chips.

The floors might be getting filthier.....the pile of dirty laundry higher.....the bathrooms grottier....and the dusting dustier.....but I'm a "socialite"....and lunch doesn't stop for anything!!!

Anyone free tomorrow....around noon???

Pulling teeth....

Whether he liked it or not....yesterday was the day of Master 15's tooth extraction.

There had been much talk at home in the lead up to this event.

The size of the needle was contemplated. The number of injections required were pondered.  The chance...as a percentage....that a needle in the roof of your mouth could in fact pierce your brain was considered.  We ruminated on whether the dentist would need to put his foot on Master 15's chest to get enough leverage to yank that sucker out.  We speculated on whether scalpels and stitches would be necessary and we gave due consideration as to whether we should stock up on soup and custard and scrambled eggs.

As you can imagine with all these issues meditated upon.....by the time the appointment finally arrived....nerves were at a fever pitch. There were clammy hands, cold sweats, nauseous guts and a stress induced migraine to endure.

Master 15 was fine.....that was just me.

So Master 15 lay back in the chair and the dentist went to work.  Within a minute or so he leaned back with a sigh of satisfaction, brandishing Master 15's molar in his vicious looking pliers.

I clapped my hands together with glee...."Thank goodness that's over....I didn't feel a thing!"

Master 15 just rolled his eyes.

Exercise is good for you...or is it?

In this era of computers and PlayStation's and iPods and iPads and mobile phones and stranger danger, children end up spending way too much time inside sitting on their bums and not enough time outside running around.

As a direct result of this situation I am a huge fan of children's organised sport.....until training day or game day....when I have to stop sitting on MY bum with my computer or my iPod or my iPad or my mobile phone...and take them there.

Oops...I digress.....I am a huge fan of children's organised sport...particularly team sports.

It teaches them to be a team player.....to be responsible....to work together with others. They learn skills...both physical and mental.....it gets them moving...it gets them fit.  It teaches them how to win and even more importantly how to lose....graciously.

Most importantly of all it gets them outside and into the fresh air.

On Saturday afternoon Master 15 had his final trial soccer game....before the season proper begins after Easter.

There they were...on a perfect Autumn afternoon....running around...with the sun on their backs....a gentle breeze blowing...breathing in great lungfuls of fresh country air.....

......in the dappled shadow....of a huge, monstrous, belching POWER STATION!!!

Eeewww.....maybe exercise is a health hazard after all!!

12/52

"A portrait of our children, once a week, every week in 2013"

Master 15:  Looking like something from a horror movie....

but he was actually finishing up a rousing rendition of the National Anthem with a dramatic flourish.

Master 12:  Decided a very serious portrait was in order.

Any plans to relax...I had to shelve

Get the camera out....it's now Week Twelve

Linking up with Jodi...and the 52 Project at Che and Fidel.

A double century.....

Back on the 28th August 2012.....I decided to start writing a blog.

I wrote about my reasons for this momentous decision here.

Ever since that date I have tried to blog every day.  There have...of course....been occasions where I haven't been able to for one reason or another....but in the most part I have surprised even myself by just how well I have stuck to it.

I have this theory that if I miss a day...it will turn into two days and then a week and then a month...and before I know it I will never blog again....much like what happens to my plans for an exercise regime.

Some days I actually have something to say....most days I just rave on about the minutiae of my life and hope that I'm not boring anybody who happens to read it too much.

Well, today just so happens to be my 200th blog post....and they said I'd never last!

An Ode To My Blog

I sit at my computer and type the details of my day,

Nothing deep, profound or smart...I just like to have my say.

I could write it in a journal and lock it up all tight,

But what if someone wants to see....it's unlikely...but they might.

I write of things that happen and the things that I wish would,

I'd tell of grand adventures and odd mysteries if I could.

Instead it's just the kids, the dog.....how I'm the perfect wife,

Things I've bought or made or said in my boring little life.

So I sit down and I ramble and I tell it my own way,

And if you'd like to read along then you'll really make my day.

By Me

Pic from here

All by myself.....

I ventured out of the safety and security of the Central Coast and down into the depths of Sydney today.

I needed wanted to go to Ikea...and when I mentioned this to Hubby he demanded suggested that I go today....alone....without him.

There is both good and bad in making such a trip on your own.

It means I have to drive....which I prefer leaving up to someone else when I can...because I'm both lazy and somewhat sense of direction challenged.

It means I have no one with which to discuss the pros and cons of every individual item to be found in the market hall....an important part of any trip to Ikea. It's not nearly so enjoyable when you only have yourself to argue with.

It means that as I ate my Swedish Meatballs for lunch...the only person with which I could ponder what the actual chances of it being horse meat that I was consuming.....was myself.  Not to mention what a Nigel No-Friends I must have looked sitting all alone in the cafeteria.

However on the other side of the ledger...there was no one asking when we were leaving.....or telling me they were hungry.....or shuffling impatiently beside me.....or looking at their watch repeatedly...or asking me "What could you possibly need that for?"

Once it was time to leave I turned to my trusty (??!???!!?) Navman to help me negotiate my escape route from the mayhem that is Sydney traffic.  Now Nancy Navman...as she is unaffectionately known....must have been suffering a case of stage fright....because she froze. Clearly needing a boot up the bum rebooting she was of absolutely no help whatsoever as I came out of the underground parking station facing who knows what direction.  I certainly had no clue...and yet...with a quick check of the sun...the wind direction...the sight of water in front of me.....and the direction most of the other motorists were taking...I took a punt and only needed one u-turn to get myself on the right route home.

The right route home....which looked like this.....

 ....is it my imagination or are Sydney roads getting narrower??

With a bit of skillful driving I managed to get past the deadlock of trucks and into a clear view......

.......of the bumper to bumper traffic.

All this and it was only 1.30 in the afternoon....I can only imagine....and have no wish to experience....what it must be like at 5.00pm.

Please accept my apologies...but I am unable to attend......

The school athletics carnival was held earlier in the week.

Neither of my boys are particularly well known for their athletic prowess.

Master 15 is as slow as a wet week and Master 12 is likely to be distracted by a plane going over.....or a car driving past.....or a fast kid overtaking and in some cases lapping him...or some kid being in an out of bounds area......you get the general idea.

So when they both requested the day off instead of attending the carnival....I caved in.....at least it will save me the cost of the bus fare to get there.

This of course leads to another dilemma....the Absent Note.

School requires that after every day off the parent/guardian provide an absentee note.....otherwise that day shall be recorded as an unexplained absence....and will go down on your "permanent record".

Now I have brought my boys up to (hopefully) be an honest couple of lads...and to achieve this result you have to set a good example.  So I long ago rejected any requests for a "fake absentee note"...I took a stand that days off school had to be for legitimate reasons and therefore notes to school would be able to contain "legitimate" excuses.

Lets face it...do the school admin people really believe the "I had a tummy ache" excuses they must receive en mass after the athletics carnival.

So when I cave in and allow the boys to stay home...for no particularly good reason....I have to be fairly creative in my note writing....to keep it within the bounds of truth...of course.

This year I thought I was on to a winner.....

"(Insert name) was absent from school yesterday as he would not be participating in any events at the athletics carnival, and I didn't want him sitting outside in the sun all day, due to his fair skin."

Fast forward to roll call....Master 15's mates found it so amusing that much loud and raucous laughter ensued...so much so that his teacher enquired as to the cause of such hilarity and found it similarly amusing....so much so that she read it out to the class.

How embarrassing.....for Master 15.

Next year he'd better go to school....or start praying for a dose of the chicken pox.

Bloglovin....

I am a sheep...and I will follow!

I've noticed  quite a few bloggers out there are setting up the option for readers to follow their blog via Bloglovin.  Because I hate to be left out of a good  party I have decided to include the option on my blog too.

In order to achieve this I needed to do just a little bit of blog housekeeping....and that's what this is...so disregard this blog post all you like....the folk at Bloglovin made me do it :0)

<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/4563149/?claim=aqx83ue37h6">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>

Trust me...it's gonna be ok......

I was browsing through some of the photos I have on iPhoto....enjoying the fact that I still could...after the near miss of last week......and I came across this one......

By my best estimate I would say I was around 3 or 4 when it was taken.

I often look into the faces of my children....and I wonder what the future holds for them.  I wonder what happiness and sadness lies ahead in their lives.....what successes and failures....what love and losses.....and a very big part of me wants to protect them from all the bad things.  Of course I can't do that...and it wouldn't be right for me to try anyway.  It's their life to live...their mistakes to make....their joy and their grief.....and what would life be about if we didn't experience all these....experiences?

But then I got to looking into my own face....I now know what at least part of the future holds for this little girl....what would I tell her....if I could?

Would I warn her of the losses?  Parents....friends....family members.
Would I warn her of the heartbreaks?  Or do the heartbreaks have to be experienced?
Would I tell her don't worry so much...don't be so shy....have some self confidence....or do these things have to be learnt?
Would I tell her to live her life as she wants too....not as she's told to? Or do you have to walk certain paths to appreciate new ones?

I look into that face....and I feel sad....sad for all the things that I know are hurtling towards her...sooner than she could ever have guessed.....things she will have to live through....survive....adjust to....new normals to be created....but I also feel joy....for all the good things that I know will come her way.

Oh and I'd tell her last weeks lotto numbers and that she should invest in a little company with an Apple logo too.

Mummy loves you....

Being a Mum....it's such a rewarding experience...that's what they tell you.

Of course we all love our kids to bits and wouldn't be without them for even a moment.....but "they" fail to mention the frustration, aggravation and tedious monotony that day to day mothering can bring.

If you have been having one of "those" days.  Or weeks.  Or months.  Or years.  Or heaven help you lifetimes.....then I'm sure you will appreciate this one......

Warning.....a very mean person wrote this post.....

I know it's poor form to laugh at another's misfortune.

Probably the sign of a very, very bad person.

But after the week I had, I was looking for a laugh anywhere I could get it.

Buster gave us me a lovely wake up call on Sunday morning by leaving a steaming, runny pile of excrement in Master 15's bedroom.  It was the last straw....strike 5.....at least.....and his final chance for freedom within the house.....GONE.

So the baby gates that had kept him off the carpet for the last 2 and a half years were reinstalled....and he, I and everyone else might as well get used to them being a permanent fixture in the house.

Now the possible causes for the following event are long and varied.....and they may or may not have included the following...

• not looking where he was going....
• short term memory loss....
• too lazy to open the gate....
• thought he was a ghost....
• wanted to re enact the fall of the Berlin Wall....
• trying to win the grand prize on Funniest Home Videos....shame he didn't warn us to have the video ready...

.....but whatever....the end result was the same.....

Thanks must go to Master 15 for grabbing the closest device with a camera and recording the incident...even though it was an iPad which takes an extremely dodgy photo....because I was too busy trying.....very unsuccessfully I may add.....not to burst into hysterical laughter.....and I still do every time I look at the photo.

I am officially a very bad wife and a horrid, horrid person....but I'm a horrid person with a very big grin on her face.

P.S.  Can I just take a moment to point out that this is the second time Hubby has performed this amazing acrobatic feat...both times have left a big gouge in the wall....the last one I put up with for over a year....and he only fixed it LAST weekend!  If I didn't laugh...I'd cry!!!!

11/52

"A portrait of our children, once a week, every week in 2013"

Master 15:  Looking too cool for school.

Master 12:  Unimpressed to be posing for ANOTHER photo.

The sun's been shining....it feels like heaven,

We've made it here....to Week Eleven.

Linking up as usual with Jodi at Che and Fidel.