I love you too, too

A neat little conversation I had with Ethan last night:

E: Mummy, I love you.
Me: I love you too.
E: I love you too, too.

I love that little guy so much!!

Have you Thanked Him today?

I love this poem/prayer. My dad sent it to me a few months ago, at a time when I really needed to hear it. I also really needed to hear it yesterday (it wasn't the best day).

Dear God:
I want to thank you for what you have already done.
I am not going to wait until I see results or receive rewards, I am thanking you right now.
I am not going to wait until I feel better or things look better, I am thanking you right now.
I am not going to wait until people say they are sorry or until they stop talking about me, I am thanking you right now.
I am not going to wait until the pain in my body disappears, I am thanking you right now.
I am not going to wait until my financial situation improves, I am going to thank you right now.
I am not going to wait until the children are asleep and the house is quiet, I am going to thank you right now.
I am not going to wait until I get promoted at work or until I get a job, I am going to thank you right now.
I am not going to wait until I understand every experience in my life that has caused me pain or grief, I am going to thank you right now.
I am not going to wait until the journey gets easier or the challenges are removed. I am thanking you right now.

I am thanking you because I am alive.
I am thanking you because I made it through the day's difficulties.
I am thanking you because I have walked around the obstacles.
I am thanking you because I have the ability and the opportunity to do more and do better.
I am thanking you because you have not given up on me.

God is so good, and he's good all the time.
THANK HIM

Lesson of the day

If you feed your one-year-old a large bowl of boysenberry trifle, his poop will be dark blue the next day.

What can I say? I needed to use up leftover cake, the boy was hungry, the cake was actually made for him (he just didn't want to eat it on his birthday). Anyway, trifle can't be that bad - it has fruit and custard in it!!

Gymnastics

I’ve enrolled Ethan in Kindy Gym next term. Basically it is gymnastics for 2-4 year olds. He’s really excited about it. Ever since he was little, he has loved to climb and jump and run. A few months ago he perfected the forward roll. His cousins have a trampoline and he plays on it for ages when he visit them.
Thank goodness he is not a daredevil. He likes to try things, but he’s cautious. Now in my opinion, that’s a great combo. My friend’s son is what you would call a daredevil. The child has no fear! It scares me to watch him play.
I hope Ethan will enjoy Kindy Gym. They sent out some information yesterday and it sounds really good. They start each session with a “sing along” and warm-up exercises. Then they work (play?) on the equipment. Sessions finish with a goodbye song.
The really great thing is that the club is new, so everyone will be starting for the first time. That means there won’t be kids who already know each other, and a new kid starting who has to break into the group. Because that is where Ethan gets a bit shy. He just stands back and observes, instead of joining in. Hopefully the kids will become good friends – there are only 12 in each class.
I want to buy him some “gym clothes” but Rob seems dubious. I think he is worried that I will buy him a leotard or something. But I just want to get some shorts that aren’t 6 feet wide and that don’t come halfway down his calves!

The party is over

Tyler’s party was a huge success.
He absolutely adored the attention, and didn’t get overwhelmed by all the people and presents.
Tyler was equally excited about each present that he opened, and the pure joy and delight on his face was wonderful!
He got thoroughly spoilt, of course.
A lot of people got clothes for him, which is great because most of the time he wears Ethan’s hand-me-downs. It will be nice for him to have new clothes for a change. He got lots of books, too. I’m happy about that because I love reading, and have managed to instill that same passion in Ethan. I’m hoping Tyler will start to become more interested in books.
Thankfully nobody choked on a bamboo skewer while sampling the cake. The kids really loved it and fought over who got a paw or an ear! Tyler wasn’t too interested in eating it. He did enjoy throwing it though.
I’m starting to feel like a bit of an expert at this birthday party stuff. I’ve only organized four parties but it definitely gets easier each time. Only 8 months until the next one comes around! Ethan has already requested a spiderman cake. I’m fairly sure spiderman won’t remain “toy of the month” until May next year, so perhaps I will get to make one of the other fabulous cakes in my new book. I like the skateboard … and the dinosaur … oh, and the number 4!

Teddy Bear's Picnic

Well, today is the day. Tyler's first birthday. At this time on this day one year ago, I had just arrived at the hospital ... so in less than 2 hours time Tyler will be exactly one year old.
Likewise, his party is due to begin in less than 2 hours. I know, I know, what am I doing on the computer? Shouldn't I be running around like a headless chicken, decorating cakes and making fairy bread?
Luckily I took half a day off work yesterday to make The Cake. All up, it took 3 1/2 hours! That's not including the baking time - I had to make 3 separate cakes and because my oven is smaller than normal (hey, where is that new oven Rob promised me?), I couldn't fit them all in at once.
Here's the cake. I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out. Granted, the bear's arms look as though they are coming out of its neck, and the head is a bit small, but seriously it was a hard cake to make!!! I'm hoping no small children find a bamboo skewer inside their piece of cake ... because there are about 10 in there! Something had to hold the thing together!

I love Sudoku!

Okay, this has nothing to do with my boys, but I'm writing about it anyway.

I know it makes me sound like an old woman, but I've always been a crossword fanatic. I buy crossword books. On a regular basis. I even own a crossword dictionary! And an eraseable pen. Please don't laugh. My love of crosswords is the reason I can count the number of spelling errors I have ever made in my whole life on one hand. Its a comforting thought to know that my brain contains more pieces of useless (oops, I meant to say useful) information than it really needs. [Although I have to give some of the credit to Libra, who include all those "interesting facts" on the packaging of their feminine products. It really does help when playing Trivial Pursuit].

But recently I discovered Sudoku. Now crosswords are just boring. Sudoku is my new thing. If you haven't heard of it before, climb out from the rock you are hiding under, and visit this cool website where you can complete a different Sudoku each day. Some are hard, others are easy.

I'm just a beginner, but one day I will be able to do the "super genius" ones. I actually did the "hard" one in Sunday's Herald. Yes, I cheated. But only once. Okay, twice. But it was really hard!!

Well, .....

This is Ethan's new thing. We tell/ask him something, and he responds by saying "well, ......"
Usually he gives a reason why he shouldn't do what we've asked him. Ugh.
For example, I might say "Ethan, please pick up your toys" and he will say "Well, I don't want to" or "Well, I'm actually still playing with them" or "Well, in 3 minutes I will do it".
It was cute for about the first 2 hours, and now it is just annoying!
I'm pretty sure he picked it up from a boy at preschool (who I don't like, because he is teaching my child lots of bad habits) so I pity those poor teachers who have to listen to it all day from more than one child!

I'm SO mad!

Last night Ethan woke up coughing, I could tell straight away it was croup. He's had it dozens of times before.
But this time it seemed much worse, he was really struggling to breathe and starting to panic. I ran outside with him to get him in the cool air, which helped a little, but he was still fighting for air. He seemed to be losing the colour in his face.
So I drove to the local Accident & Medical clinic (this was about 9.30pm) and the nurse saw to us immediately. She took his temp, and then took us to the doctor's room. Nobody else was there so he saw Ethan straight away. I hate not going to our own doctor, but I really wanted to get his breathing checked.
The doctor was a young guy. He made it really obvious that he thought I was a neurotic mother. I told him Ethan had been struggling to breathe and it was much worse than the other times he has had croup. I think the words I used were "he couldn't breathe", to which he replied "well if he couldn't breathe he'd be dead" and gave me the most patronising look. Then he started saying "to the untrained eye it can seem very distressing but there is nothing wrong with him".
I'm like, WHAT THE @#$?
Did you skip the classes on bedside manner???
There actually IS something wrong with him, he has croup!! I knew that before I came, but it is your job (and I am paying you something like $20 for a 5-min consult) to check him out and reassure me that he is OK!
When I got home and told Rob, he said "did you slap him?" which is quite funny really because normally I get quite assertive when people hack me off! But this time I was so shocked I couldn't even respond.
Ethan was much better when we got home, I guess all the night air really helped. He'll be fine, I know, but honestly when your child is gasping for air in the middle of the night you should be able to take them to the A&M and get them checked out without being made to feel stupid!
Did I mention I am SO mad?

Death of the Dummy

Finally! After almost 3 1/2 years, Ethan has given up his dummy (that's a binkie, by the way).
He even went down without a fight!
Rob decided, out of the blue, to chop the end off Ethan's dummy on Tuesday. I was pretty torn about the whole thing, to be honest. I thought he would be too upset. Every time Rob has raised the issue in the past, I have said no, let's wait until Tyler is born, wait until Tyler is sleeping better, wait until Tyler is sleeping through the night, wait until Tyler is sleeping in his own room [don't ask me what Tyler has to do with Ethan's dummy, it was just a really good excuse at the time], wait until we move out of mum & dads, wait until we finish the renovations, wait until I have settled back into work. You get the idea.
Well, I think Rob got fed up with my excuses! So I said I didn't want anything to do with it, that he would be the one to explain it to Ethan, get up to him during the night, stop his tiny heart from breaking into a million pieces. I know, I know, I laid it on a bit thick.
Tuesday night came and all was calm. Ethan had his story in bed, then said "I want my dummy" and reached over to get it from his bedside table. He put it in his mouth without looking at it, then realised there was nothing there anymore! He took it out and said "What happened to my dummy?" at which point I looked at Rob and smiled. Rob said "Daddy cut your dummy because you are a big boy now and you don't need it anymore." Ethan said "Oh, but why?"
At this point I was ready to leave the room, anticipating a LOT of crying. But to my surprise and delight, all Ethan wanted to do was say "goodnight" to what was left of his dummy, and place it carefully on the table so it would be near him during the night. He said goodnight to us, we left the room, and he went to sleep!! He slept all night!
Wednesday night came, and he didn't even ask about the dummy. He just went to sleep.
The paraplegic dummy is still sitting, in pride of place, on his bedside table. It obviously remains a treasured possession, a necessary comforter. But at least the thing is out of his mouth now!!!
I have to say, Rob was right. It was SO easy to get rid of it! After all the worrying, all the research into effective methods of removing a dummy (yes, I did the research, not Rob ... and he chose to ignore my findings ... typical). I can't believe it was so easy! Just like on SuperNanny!
Am I a little bit crazy to want to keep the dummy?
Ok, maybe I will just take one last photo of it, instead.

Sugar Sugar

This actually happened about a week ago, but I've retold it so often that I had to post it here as well!

Rob was bathing Tyler and I was upstairs, when I heard a "clink" noise coming from the kitchen. It happened 3 or 4 times so I went down to investigate. I found Ethan coming out of the kitchen with his hands outstretched, huge grin on his face:

Me: "What have you got, Ethan?"
E: "Sugar" [look of pride on his face]
[I look closely and see it is all over his shirt. Look even closer and see it is all over his face!]
Me: "Have you been eating the sugar?"
E: "Yeah!"
Me: "Have you done it lots of times?"
E: "Yeah. Its my favourite!"
[Go into kitchen, pick up spoon from the sugar bowl. Start wiping sugar up from the floor and all over pantry shelf]
[Must remember to put sugar on a different shelf, not the one that is at preschooler height]
E: "Be happy, mummy. I ate the sugar!"
Me: "But we don't eat sugar, Ethan."
E: "Why?" [looks genuinely surprised]
Me: "Because your teeth will fall out."
[Ethan goes very quiet. Doesn't cry, just watches me clean up]
Me: "Didn't you know you weren't allowed to eat the sugar?"
E: "No, mummy."
[Give Ethan a hug just because he looks so darn cute]
[I am still coming to terms with the fact he has been eating sugar STRAIGHT OUT OF THE BOWL for I don't know how long]
E: "I'm sorry mummy. I won't eat sugar anymore."
Me: "Oh Ethan, you are such a good boy!"
E: "I'm not always good. I ate the sugar."

Ohhhhhh!

Later that night, Rob says "Oh, I had noticed that the sugar has been stuck and dried onto the spoon lately."
Hmm, that explains things!

This diet just might work!

Lately I've been on the lookout for a quick, easy way to lose those unwanted kilos. And I may have found it!

The Toddler Diet
Over the years you may have noticed that most 2- and 3-year olds are trim. Perhaps their diet is the reason. This diet is inexpensive and offers great variety and sufficient quantity. ENJOY!!

Day 1:
Breakfast- One scrambled egg, one piece of toast with jam. Eat 2 bites of egg using your fingers; dump the rest on the floor. Take 1 bite of toast, then smear the jam over your face and clothes.
Lunch- Four crayons (any colour), a handful of potato chips and a glass of milk. Take 3 sips of milk, then spill the rest.
Dinner- A dry stick, 2 coins, 4 sips of flat diet coke.
Bedtime snack- Toast a piece of bread, butter it, and toss it face down on the floor.

Day 2:
Breakfast- Pick up stale toast from the floor and eat it. Drink 1/2 bottle of vanilla essence.
Lunch- Half a tube of "Pulsating Pink" lipstick and one ice cube, if desired.
Afternoon snack- Lick a lollipop until sticky, take it outside and drop in dirt. Retrieve and continue slurping until clean again, then bring inside and drop on living room carpet.
Dinner- A rock or an uncooked bean, which should be thrust up your left nostril. Pour water over mashed potatoes, eat with spoon.

Day 3:
Breakfast- 2 pancakes with plenty of maple syrup, eat with fingers, rub fingers in hair to clean. Glass of milk, drink half, stuff excess pancakes into glass. After breakfast, pick up yesterday's lollipop from carpet, lick off fuzz until sticky again, then leave on cushion of your best chair.
Lunch- Peanut butter and jam sandwich. Spit several well-chewed bites onto the floor. Pour glass of milk onto table, then slurp up.
Dinner- Dish of ice cream, handful of potato chips, 1 sip of cold coffee.

Final Day:
Breakfast- 1/4 tube of toothpaste (any flavour), bite of soap, one olive. Pour glass of milk over bowl of corn flakes, add 1/2 cup of sugar. Wait until cereal is soggy, drink milk and feed cereal to dog with your spoon.
Lunch- Eat crumbs off the kitchen floor and dining room carpet. Find that lollipop and finish eating it.
Dinner- A plate of spaghetti and chocolate milk. Leave meatball on plate. Handful of mini crackers, eat 2 and place the rest in bowling ball holes or any other convenient hiding place.

-ANON

Thank goodness Ethan is past this stage now! Actually, he was never really that bad. He was (is) fussy, but he generally ate real food, not inanimate objects. We did have raisins inserted into both nostrils, and a few of those lollipops.

But I think Tyler would really thrive on this diet. He's a completely different child to his older brother!

Bye Bye Baby Ty

In less than 3 weeks, my baby will be ONE YEAR OLD.
Can this be true? Has it been that long since he lay naked and newborn on my chest for the first time, smelling like a baby and causing my heart to swell with pride?
I was never this emotional when Ethan turned one. But knowing that Tyler is my last child and that he is no longer a baby just about breaks my heart. Something inside me is aching right now. Part of me feels like I am losing him.
On the other hand, my sweet little "baby Ty" is becoming a gorgeous little boy. And when I see Ethan, who is growing into the most fantastic human being on the whole planet, I am excited to think that Tyler is now on that same road.
I love him, with all my heart. I will always treasure the memories of this first year, and I look forward to more bitter-sweet times like these as he grows from a baby to a boy to a young man.

I'm a little princess

Ethan, who turned 3 in May this year, has become such a sweet little boy!
The other day when I was getting ready for work, he came into the room. I was wearing a long denim skirt that I don't wear very much. He looked at me and said "Mummy, you are a little princess!" with a big smile on his face. I could have melted! It really touches my heart when Ethan says "I love you" or "I missed you today, Mummy".
This is what having children is all about.

I've got a blog!

Everybody else is doing it ... so I'm jumping on the bandwagon!
I'm excited about being able to share some of the experiences of life with my Boys :)