Youtube Tuesday - Obama is so funny!

President Obama

Good on Obama for making light of what really is a pretty crappy thing.
President Obama was asked to show his long form birth certificate proving that he is indeed an American Citizen. All this was spurred on by Donald Trump.
I wonder how many other Presidents Donald Trump has doubted the birthplace of? I'm pretty sure the answer would be none as apparently being white is enough. That's just my view on it though.

Anyway, watch the video and admire the President. What a guy!

Moaning Monday

Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!

Mini Him is sick which means no daycare for him today but we still have to pay for it. This means in the last fortnight, we will have paid $150 in fees for schooling he isn't receiving :(

This sucks!

Sharing Saturday

I have been MIA for a few days now. A family of 7 takes some work and some days I find myself flopping into bed along with my husband and closing my eyes for what feels like 15 minutes before I am either woken by Cinderella needing a feed/nappy change/dummy or the alarm going off telling us it is time to start yet another day.

Basically, I have decided I will be popping in here as often as possible. I am hoping to try to make this one of the first or last things I do on the computer every day.

So, today is Sharing Saturday and here is what I am sharing with you all today;

Smoked Salmon Pasta

• A packet of dried pasta - we used bucatini (hollow spaghetti pasta)
• 1 tbls olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 300mls of cream
• Salted capers, rinsed, finely chopped - however much you like. We used 3 tbls in total
• 1/4 cup grated tasty cheese
• 150g smoked salmon, cut into thin strips - or more if you like

Method

1. Cook pasta in a large saucepan of boiling, salted water, following packet directions, until tender. Drain and return to saucepan.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add garlic. Cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Add cream and capers. Simmer, uncovered, for 3 to 4 minutes or until cream is reduced slightly.
3. Add grated cheese to cream mixture and stir until it is melted through. Add Smoked Salmon then add the sauce to pasta. Toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper.
   
   You can make variations of this recipe by adding things like shallots, parmasan cheese etc. Regardless, it is an easy & yummy recipe.
   
   Hope you enjoy it as much as we do! :)

Thinking Thursday

Today I have been thinking about how much I love the labels I recently purchased from Bright Star Kids.
With Mini Him recently starting day care, I recalled just how many things need to be labelled. It has been a while since Teen Queen went to daycare and back then all I did was write on her stuff with permanent marker.

The Bright Star Kids labels are so much better than permanent marker! Not only do they look amazing, they last!!! The iron on labels are fabulous and so easy to use.
I decided today that I need some more regular labels, so I got some for Princess Kewpie. Because her clothes will be passed down to Cinderella, we're just going to have our surname put on her clothing labels but her name & surname put on her regular labels. I think she is going to love having big stickers just like her brother.

I was also pleasantly surprised by the speed of delivery. There was no way I thought they would be here in time for Mini Him's next day care day, but they were. They got heer 2 days after I ordered & paid!!! Gotta love that.

So, I am a bit of a fan. I admit, it is nice to farewell the permanent marker.

Website Wednesday

Todays Website is the wonderfully beautiful

Bridiejo Handmade Clothes

I am a MASSIVE fan of Bridiejo. Sinead, the wonderful woman behind Bridiejo is amazing. Everything she makes is just so beautiful, so girly and oh so special. I have purchased many Bridiejo dresses for Princess Kewpie and my beautiful niece and I will continue to keep purchasing many more if I can. Sinead is a busy working mum to beautiful twin girls so Bridiejo is her hobby so her dresses can be hard to come by. It can be difficult to buy a piece from the collections but it is so very worth it when you do. I am going to try to buy 3 dolls in the very near future. Fingers crossed!
Check out the website and like her facebook page. If you have a special little girl in your life I am sure you will find it hard to resist wanting something from Bridiejo!

Sharing Saturday - Lawrences Favourite Choc Cake

This cake is so easy. The good thing is that this recipe makes a decent sized cake which is freezable!!! Who doesn't love that?



Chocolate Cake

• 2 tablespoons cocoa
• 1 1/2 cups caster sugar
• 150g butter, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon bicarb soda, sifted
• 1 1/2 cups self-raising flour
• 2 eggs

Chocolate Icing

• 50g butter, chopped
• 1/4 cup caster sugar
• 3/4 cup icing sugar mixture
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder

1. Combine sugar, butter, bicarbonate of soda, cocoa and 1 cup cold water in a saucepan over low heat. Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes until sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to medium. Simmer for 2 minutes or until mixture doubles. Transfer to a large bowl. Cool for 15 minutes.

2. Add flour and eggs. Using an electric mixer, beat mixture until pale and smooth. Pour mixture into prepared pan.

3. Bake for 35 minutes or until a skewer inserted in centre comes out clean. Stand in pan for 10 minutes. Turn, top side up, onto a wire rack to cool completely.

4. Icing: Place butter, caster sugar and 2 tablespoons cold water in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to the boil. Remove from heat. Sift icing sugar and cocoa into a bowl. Gradually add butter mixture. Stir to combine. Cover. Refrigerate for 30 minutes or until frosting thickens. Beat with a wooden spoon until spreadable. Spread cake with icing.

Family Friday

Princess Kewpie

Prince Charming & Mini Him

Metal Man, Teen Queen & Mini Him

Cinderella

Teen Queen & Cinderella

Yes, we're one of THOSE families!

Big plans

I have some plans for my blog. They may change as I go along, but this is what I am thinking right now.

I am planning to have;

Moaning Monday - The one day a week where I will have a moan. 1 day out of 7 sounds pretty good to me.

YouTube Tuesday - I will post my favourite thing from YouTube. I might even give an explaination why I chose to post this one.

Website Wednesday - I will share my favourite webpage.

Thinking Thursday - I will post my thoughts & plans and maybe some reviews.

Family Friday - I will post pics of my family and blog about our lives.

Sharing Saturday - I will share a favourite recipe.

Funday Sunday - This will be my do-what-I-want day.

I'm excited about the news changes I am planning to make to the blog. I'm not sure if there is anyone out there that actually reads it, but I am kinda doing it to amuse myself more than anything :)

Nothing much happening

There's not much happening here right now.

Metal Man has decided he wants to leave school, much to my dismay. He is looking for work and is going to be enrolling in a TAFE course for next semester.

The 3 youngest children are all due for immunisations so I am taking them in the coming days for them. 3 kids getting needles should be so much fun *insert sarcastic sigh here*

Me - I'm getting there. I have a sore throat at the moment so I have been feeling yuck because of that. I wish so much that I could get more sleep, but the minute I put my head on the pillow, someone needs to talk to me, or someone comes to the door, or someone phones, or Cinderella decides she wants a feed! Waaaaah! I am so glad this stage doesn't go for much longer.

So much for that!

Of course I didn't get to have a nap yesterday.

I'm sure any Mum out there would completely understand how it is. The second you decide it is important to get some sleep - and lord knows we usually only get this way when we're at breaking point - someone decides to call, or there is a knock at the door, or someone decides to mow their lawn/use some kind of machinery or do something equally as noisy. For me, it was all of the above and then I decided that just relaxing and watching some TV was better than nothing. Thankfully Cinderella decided to give me a lovely 5 hour sleep, so I feel slightly recharged today :)

Yawn!

There is so much I want to write but my body is screaming at me to sleep!
In the last 36 hours I have had 4 hours sleep. I feel horrible, almost intoxicated. So while my 3 youngest babies are sleeping, I am going to follow suit and catch up on some much needed sleep.

G'night!

Bitten! My worst fear came true.

This morning I was sitting in bed feeding Cinderella. When we had finished, I let her have a snooze on my bed while I sat and watched some TV.
The older 2 kids were walking out the door to the bus. I had my hand on my leg and I moved my hand and felt something prick me. I thought it must have been a splinter or prickle caught in my pants, so I ran my hand over and suddenly realised I had crushed something. An insect something. Actually, a spider something *shudder*

I freaked out and instinctively threw it across the room. Unfortunately I threw it in between Cinderella's cradle and change table.
My hand really hurt. It felt like I had been pricked with a large, hot needle. I got scared, especially when I looked and realised it was a white tailed spider. I remember hearing some horror stories of their venom being flesh eating and I got really upset. My hand and wrist were starting to swell. Mini Him ran out and (God bless him) tried to find our cold pack but couldn't so he grabbed a sandwich bag that had refrigerated play dough in it - it was cold so I graciously accepted it.
I got worried and called Teen Queen who told Metal Man and they both decided to come home to check on me. I also called Prince Charming and he told me to relax and remember our first aid training.
Teen Queen and Metal Man arrived and helped me relax. Metal Man decided to stay home to keep an eye on me and help me with the kids and Teen Queen caught the later bus to school.

By the afternoon the swelling had gone down and I felt fine. I am still shocked that I was bitten and I am really thankful that it was a small, barely venomous spider.

Time flies when you're having fun!

Cinderella is 1 month old today!

Remembering

Tomorrow will be a month since I gave birth to my perfect little Cinderella. So many thoughts are running through my head today. I am remembering all the births of my babies. I am smiling yet my eyes and heart are filled with tears.
I think Mini Him's birth was the hardest. Physically it was fine, but mentally & emotionally it was painful.
Walking those same corridors where almost a year before I walked knowing I was going to give birth to a very tiny, still born baby. I remember thinking to myself that it must be similar to the feeling that someone on death row has when walking to the end of their life. I thought about the movie "The Green Mile" and realised I was walking my own, yet I was walking 'The Beige Mile'. Yet this time I walked the corridors in pain from contractions.

When I finally arrived at the Labour & Delivery ward, I remember being asked if I thought I should go into a labour room or an observation room. I chose delivery as I felt like Mini Him wasn't too far from being born. I prayed I wouldn't be put in Room 3 - the room that was so very quiet. The room that the very thought of still makes me cry. The room my precious little angel was born into that bright, sunny day. How I hated that the weather didn't reflect how I was feeling. Why wasn't it raining? Why wasn't the sky dark and the day miserable? Room 3, with the big windows that at the time faced out over a construction site. Room 3, the same room I was put into when Mini Him decided to have a sleepy period over the Christmas break and required me having a few hours of observation. Room 3.

I was instead put into Room 1. Room 1 had a nice big bathtub. I had a bath in that tub when I was in labour with Noah. I briefly considered asking if I could be in Room 2. Room 2 held no memories for me. Maybe Room 2 would have been easier on me.
I remember when Mini Him was crowning and how I was, for a brief moment, scared to let him come out of my body. The last time I had a baby come out of my body I was crying hysterically and there was no other sound but crying - crying from me, crying from Prince Charming and crying from the midwife.
Eventually, Mini Him did come out of my body. I reached down and grabbed him. He didn't cry. He barely moved. He'd had the cord wrapped around his throat - twice. I was told this as he was coming out and here he was, on my chest not crying. I recall asking the midwife if he was okay. My heart was breaking again. I thought he was also born an angel. My midwife exclaimed through her joy that he was perfect and just a bit shocked from the fast birth. We rubbed him over with a towel and I heard the most amazing sound I had ever heard - The beautiful cry of my new baby son. At that moment, I felt healed.

Happy 21st!

Happy 21st day to my sweet little Cinderella!

These past 21 days have flown by. She is changing every day and she is so very beautiful. I am massively in love with my gorgeous girl.

I love...

I seriously love those first smiles!

This morning, Cinderella was having a feed and when she was done, she just stared at me. I was talking to her and telling her how she had beautiful big blue eyes and she then gave me the biggest grin! Poor Prince Charming was brushing his teeth at the time so he missed out on seeing it. I tried to see if she would give me another one but she was all smiled out sadly.

I am excited that she may now be at the stage where we might see smiles much more often :)

I'm so in love with my gorgeous little baby!

I can no take my eyes off of her. She is amazing, just like all my babies. I often sit back and wonder what I did to deserve such amazing children. I am so truly, truly blessed!

Because it is so appropriate for me right now, I thought I would share this - http://birthunlimited.ca/parenting/92-why-mothers-kiss-their-babies.html

We've had a gain!

Cinderella gained 298g in 10 days! I am so proud of my baby girl, she truly is a breastfeeding champion :)

2 more days...

In 2 more days, Cinderella will be 2 weeks old. Wow! Time is seriously flying by.

In 2 more days, Cinderella is going to have her first weigh in since being discharged from the home midwives where she only lost a small amount of weight (140gms).
I can not wait to see if she has gained or lost. My gut feeling is that she has gained. She is looking a little bigger, she is doing everything she is supposed to, which is always reassuring.

She is so unbelievably precious. I can't stop watching her, kissing her and holding her. Tomorrow she meets her Nanna for the first time! I can't wait for my Mum to hold my new daughter :)

Cinderella has a song that I sing to her - Don't wanna miss a thing by Aerosmith. Although I am no fan of Aerosmith and I have never really liked that song, it is so appropriate for my baby girl right now. Being my last baby, I truly don't wanna miss a thing.

Finally posting - The beautiful home freebirth of Lucinda Molly

The birth of Lucinda Molly

My due date was Feb 6 2011. I had an ante natal appointment booked for Feb 8, where I had already been told that they would be discussing induction with me, as they didn’t want me going too far over because of the fact that this was pregnancy #6 over 20 weeks and I am 35 years old. I had written up a birth plan stating things like ‘no vaginal examinations to be performed’ but that was completely ignored by my midwife who told me they would like me to have a S&S (strip & sweep/stretch & sweep) done at the next appointment.           

Because of these facts, I decided to skip my ante natal appointment and just hope for the baby to come out asap.

I had a feeling about Feb 10. Maybe it was wishful thinking, but Feb 10 stayed in my head.

On Feb 9 I started to do some acupressure and almost instantly the Braxton hicks contractions I had been having began to intensify. I got excited that thought it was the real thing. I was sorely disappointed when they all faded into nothingness. The best thing about them fading was that I got to have a decent night sleep.

On the morning of Feb 10 I woke at 6am with more Braxton hicks contractions. I told Prince Charming to stay home as I was rather exhausted and the pains were coming fairly regular. By 7am I was ready for DH to go to work as I wasn’t convinced this was the real thing. Metal Man & Teen Queen had school photos on and Prince Charming drove them to school. I asked Prince Charming to drop in to Bi-lo on his way home to buy some snack type foods for the little ones, just in case the Braxton hicks amped up and I went to hospital later in the day.

I went for a shower while Prince Charming was gone and Mini Him joined me. We had a sing along and splashed each other. I felt fine even though the Braxton hicks were bugging me. I got out of the shower and put on a top. Something told me to fold my towel and sit on it on the bed. I grabbed the laptop and hopped on facebook to keep me occupied until Prince Charming got home. I got another Braxton hicks contraction and suddenly I felt my water break. I was really confused at first because it was so opposite to what happened the last time my water broke naturally. Last time I was in what I knew was labour, I lost my mucus plug and not long after my water broke. This time, my water broke while only having Braxton hicks. That’s when I thought that perhaps the pains actually were the real thing and I was probably in labour. I called Prince Charming and told him what had happened. He was shopping in Bi-lo and decided he’d best hurry home. I decided to get back in to the shower and clean myself up a bit. It was around 8:15am.

Prince Charming arrived home and I hopped out of the shower. I got back on facebook to distract myself for a bit while Prince Charming got the kids their breakfast. Pains were coming every 7 minutes and lasting for 1 minute. I wondered if I should head up to the hospital. I decided not to as I thought the baby would be way off as the contractions weren’t really intense and they were still 7 minutes apart. I had no problems talking through the contractions.

So I basically sat in bed with Mini Him & Prince Ratbag and we watched a movie. Prince Charming put a whole heap of pillows behind my back so I could be semi reclined and comfortable. Prince Charming dozed off while I watched TV and got through my contractions.

Princess Ratbag was being really clingy to her Daddy and was a bit sooky. She wouldn’t leave Prince Charming alone and wouldn’t settle next to me. Prince Charming went to take her into her bedroom but I didn’t want him to leave my side. Prince Charming asked if we should head up to the hospital and again I said no. I told him that they contractions were not strong enough and there was no way I was going to be in labour up there with the little ones unwelcome and bored. I had previously been told that this time around it was highly likely I would not be allowed to have the kids in the room while I birthed the baby. This really upset me.

So, I sat back in my mountain of pillows while Prince Charming timed my contractions and talked to me. Suddenly, I felt a massive need to push. Once again, Prince Charming asked if we should head to the hospital and I told him I was going no where! The baby was going to be born where I was sitting as I couldn’t move.

Between contractions & pushing, Prince Charming & I discussed little things like him slipping the cord off the babies neck should it be wrapped around it and what we would do in regards to the cord etc. We decided that I would birth the baby and he would call an ambulance. I guess being told so often that I would haemorrhage played on my mind a fair bit, so there was a part of me that wanted that covered just in case.

Princess Ratbag was still clinging to her Daddy and Mini Him was sitting up next to me with his play stethoscope. I explained to Mini Him that the baby was going to be born soon. Through contractions, Mini Him would place his stethoscope on my belly and listen like a little Doctor. It was very cute.

It was lovely having my babies there with me. I kept pushing & pushing and I felt like I was getting nowhere. Part of me kept thinking “call the ambulance and get me to the hospital right now” and the other part of me thought “this is transition, you CAN do this”. Prince Charming grabbed a spare doona and some extra towels and we put them underneath me as I moved into a less reclined but still semi reclined position. I started pushing some more and Prince Charming then told me he could see the babies head and there was lots of hair. Prince Charming was telling me how great I was and how well I was doing. I pushed and pushed some more and out popped the head. I told Mini Him to move down by my leg and watch the baby come out. I kind of expected it to be easy from here, like it had been for my others but it wasn’t. I felt like the baby was a little stuck so I asked Prince Charming to help me. Not real sure what he did but it hurt a little and it made me push really hard. The rest of the baby slid out and I felt instant relief. Mini Him & Princess Ratbag watched the whole thing and when the baby came out, the first thing I heard was Princess Ratbag say “Bubba”. The time was about 10:50am.

I grabbed my new little baby and put it on my chest. Prince Charming grabbed the towel we had bought for it and placed it over us. Mini Him looked at the baby properly and said “It’s a little boy”. I realised I hadn’t checked to see if the ultrasounds had been telling us the truth. I moved the cord aside to discover the ultrasounds were right and I was holding my little princess. I showed Mini Him that she was indeed a little girl and told him her name is Lucinda. I sat there with the 3 of my babies cuddled up to me while Prince Charming called the ambulance.

The operator asked if I had delivered the placenta yet and Price Charming said no. I told him to tell them it wasn’t far off and with that, I pushed and out it came. Prince Charming went out to the kitchen to find an old ice cream container but there were none, so he grabbed an old salad bowl and came back and put the placenta in it.

Next thing we hear a quick siren sound outside. Prince Charming went to the door and let the ambulance women in. They were lovely and joked that I had left nothing for them to do! By this stage the only thing left to do was to clamp and cut the cord. The cord had stopped pulsating so we clamped and Rob cut it. I was feeding Lucinda all this time. We then wrapped Lucinda and talked about how she & I were to go to the hospital to just get checked over. I handed Lucinda to Prince Charming and went off for a quick shower. I cleaned myself up and the ambulance lady carried Lucinda out to the ambulance as I walked beside them. I hopped onto the stretcher and continued to feed Lucinda. We arrived at the hospital and we were wheeled past what felt like a thousand different people who all turned to look at me. I couldn’t take the smile off my face as I wondered what everyone must be thinking.

We arrived at Labour & Delivery and I hopped on to another bed where I was checked over and offered something to eat & drink.

Prince Charming then arrived shortly after with Mini Him & Princess Ratbag. They both hopped on to the bed with me and we shared the dessert that came with my meal. The midwives came back in and weighed & measured Lucinda. She weighed 4160kgs or 9lb 3oz, was 53 cms long with a 35.5cm head circumference. Prince Charming was praised for keeping such a cool head throughout the birth and the midwives were so proud of how well I did. We arrived back home around 2pm with our newest little perfect princess.

So, since reading over this I have discovered a few other things to add. Going by phone records, I called Prince Charming at 8:47am when my water broke. Photos taken of Lucinda show she most likely arrive at 10:47am but the ambulance records show we called at 10:50am. The ambulance people/paramedics were named Belle & Relle. Lucinda was born on Belles first day back from maternity leave. I was told by the midwives at the hospital that ambos always want to get a call to deliver a baby.
Arriving home from the hospital and seeing our bed was funny. It looked like a scene from a bad movie. Everything cleaned up fine though and the mattress got only the tiniest little mark on it, which is awesome.

If I could change anything about that day, I would have had Metal Man & Teen Queen there also. I would have also had a clock near by to get the actual time of delivery. They're the only 2 things I would change. I think Lucindas birth was perfect. I am so proud that I got to end my birthing days with the birth I have always dreamed of.

I'm lost!

I'm currently lost in the beautiful world of newborn snuggles, milky deliciousness and family bonding. I hope no one finds me and drags me back into the other world anytime soon as I am more than happy where I am right now.

Cinderella (as bub will from now on be referred to as) had a massive giggle in her sleep this morning. It was so amazing & beautiful!

Announcing the highly anticpated arrival of...

Our sweet little princess Lucinda was born this morning at 10:50am.

Lucinda was freebirthed at home into her Daddy's arms while her brother & sister both watched on.

She weighs 9lb 3oz and is 53cms long.

I am enjoying many newborn snuggles and gorgeous booby feeds. I am totally smitten by my perfect little daughter :)

Now, I am beyond tired

I have adventured beyond tired now and I am just plain exhausted. I have had an afternoon of pre labour contractions and I am physically, emotionally and mentally wrecked from it all.

I wonder if there is any way possible for me to be able to sleep until this baby is born? I wonder if I could sleep through contractions & labour and wake up to a precious little newborn? lol

This afternoon, Prince Charming is going to buy me some Clary Sage Oil which he is going to massage in to my belly & back, after he has made dinner. He really is my Prince Charming. I love my husband so much. He has been on high alert all week, but especially today. He can't wait to meet his new baby son or daughter too.

So tired

I'm so tired. I'm so pregnant. I'm so over it all.

Today I have an ante natal appointment and I am expecting to have a fight on my hands. I really shouldn't have to be this way. It is crazy.

Hopefully the little bundle of Beanie joy will decide to come out very soon and all this stress will be over with.

In case anyone is wondering...

Yes, I am still pregnant.

Today

Today I am officially having my second longest pregnancy.
I wonder when this little one will arrive? I have a feeling about Feb 10, so we will see. I'm just excited!

In 1 hour & 15 minutes...

I will be officially due to have my Beanie Baby.

Time flies by so fast! It feels like just yesterday I was doing a home pregnancy test that I knew would come up with 2 lines.
I wonder when this gorgeous little one will bless us with its presence?

Still pregnant

But the great news is... Beanie now has my permission to arrive at any time.

I wonder if I will have another due date baby? Hmmmm.

I'm still....

Pregnant. Meh.

Whatever, Braxton Hicks!

I'm over these Braxton Hicks contractions! Tonight, straight after dinner, I felt sick. I then started to get pains that were coming every 2 minutes and lasting for 45 seconds. They led to nothing more than me being completely exhausted.

Now, I truly believe my Beanie Babe is a smart little one. Obviously s/he does not want to be born during a heatwave, so is most likely staying safe & snug inside my womb until it is cooler out. That's what I want to believe anyway ;)

As long as s/he doesn't arrive on Mini Him's birthday!

Medical "professionals" HA!!!

Hospitals annoy me.
Obstetritians annoy me.
Professors annoy me.
Many midwives annoy me.
Why? Because they treat pregnancy and birthing like it is a fast spreading disease that needs to be handled by medical staff, many drugs dished out and constant monitoring needed to make sure everything stays on the right track.

Well... POO TO THAT!
Today it reached 42 degrees here. I am 39 weeks & 2 days pregnant. I also had an appointment to see my midwife and have my weekly check up done. Every week it is the same old thing. I race around at home dressing Mini Him & Princess Ratbag. Then I pile them in the car and drive for 3 minutes to the hospital. From there, I drive around the car park looking for a parking space. As always, there is never one near the lift. I park way too far away, take out the tandem pram and load the kids in to it. I then push the kids to the lift, go up 2 levels, then walk to the hospital and through the main thoroughfare and down to the Ante Natal Clinic where it is always too hot and too cramped. I am then seen by my midwife who takes my blood pressure which is always perfect and gets the doppler out to listen to Beanies heartbeat, which is always difficult to find. I am then left to sit myself up and always hurt my back/hips/public bone in doing so. I then go through the motions, watching my midwife type up this weeks notes and then I go home.

Well, seeing that today was so hot, I decided not to go to the hospital for my appointment and I called to reschedule. Seriously, who in their right mind expects a woman at 39+2 weeks to go out in this heat? Everything was fine. My midwife called me to have a chat and see how I was going. She asked the usual questions in regards to pain & discharge. I told her the same thing I do every week - nothing to get excited about yet. We decide that I will come in next week as planned.

So, Prince Charming comes home and the phone rings. It is my midwife. She tells me she has spoken to the Professor and he wants me to come in on Friday to have an ultrasound done, to have CTG monitoring done (checking the babys heart rate) and to have a vaginal examination done to speed things up. Now, I have made it known that I will not be having nor accepting any vaginal examinations let alone one to speed things up. For crying out loud, this Friday I will be 2 days away from my due date and they're already wanting to intervene and bring on my baby! Apparently the hospital have 3 due dates for me - Jan 29, Feb 2 and Feb 6.
I have no idea where the Feb 2 due date comes from but this is why they wanted to perform a Stretch & Sweep/Strip & Sweep on me as this Friday, going by their dates, I will be the whole of 2 days overdue. 2 f**king days overdue. Seriously.
So, pregnancy hormones got the better of me and I started to cry. I told my midwife that I will not be attending that appointment as I don't approve of the vaginal examinations nor the S&S. I also wanted to know why no one has acknowledged that my due date is actually Feb 6, not Feb 2.

Long enough story short, my midwife called me back and upon looking at my file the Professor has noticed that my due date should in fact be Feb 6. So there is no need for the appointment with him, but I will be having the ultrasound done still.
So I am praying, wishing & hoping so hard that my baby comes out before next Tuesday so I don't have to go through all the intervention stuff and end up in tears again.

February Stars - Foo Fighters (HD)(Skin and Bones DVD)(Acoustic)1080p

Another February Star!

Well, I am definitely going to be having a February Baby!

Noah, Mini Him & Beanie will be my 3 February Stars :)

An emotion filled day

Today has been a bittersweet and emotional day for me.

Today Metal Man started Year 11. He is now a Senior High School student. My baby has grown up so much! It feels like just yesterday he was that little guy starting kindergarten wearing his Godzilla backpack.

And, today should have been the day that Noah started school. I wonder what type of bag he would have had. Would he have been in to Disney Cars? Toy Story? Spiderman? What would he have looked like dressed up in his brand new school clothes & shoes?

His Daddy would have taken the morning off work to see him start school. We would have taken hundreds of photos and I would have cried as I said goodbye and watch him go off to his first big boy class. I also would have also been waiting at the school gates eagerly awaiting the stories of his first day, just like I did with Metal Man & Teen Queen.
But, the tears have been flowing and it is not because I have said goodbye to him as he goes to his first class. They're flowing because almost 5 years ago we said Hello & Goodbye on the same day. On Feb 21, it will be 5 years since our precious little boy was born still.

Still pregnant

Sigh.

I'm still pregnant. I guess my womb is too cozy for my little Beanie Baby.
Oh well. I just wish I could enjoy it more but the pain is making it suck, especially first thing in the morning.

Prince Charming annoyed me this evening when he declared that he has a feeling that the baby will be born on Friday. Friday is Mini Him's 4th birthday and the one day I really don't want the baby to be born on. All I could do was laugh though and if Beanie does decide to grace us with his or her presence on that day, I will somehow make it a special day for both of my babies :)

Operation GET THIS BABY OUT begins.

Where do I start?

Prince Charming & I did the deed and nothing happened. It was my sure fire, fool proof plan and it didn't work! It worked for the last 2 kids.

I am planning to majorly clean up our room. I am going to wipe down our horrid venetian blinds and wash the curtains. I am also hoping to drag my fit ball out from whatever box it is still packed in. I'm even considering a beef vindaloo for lunch. I refuse to use Castor Oil. My Mum made me try it when I was overdue with Metal Man and it was horrid. It was even worse when it came back up again!

Today would be a brilliant day for the baby to be born. C'mon my gorgeous little one... I want to meet you!!!

CARS!!!

So the ante natal appt went fine. Nothing to report, blood pressure is fine, heart rate is fine, baby is going great.
I got home, pulled the car into the garage, took the kids inside and sat down to read the mail. Suddenly I heard a strange sound coming from the garage. I got Metal Man to have a look for me. Oh joy, there is steam pouring out from under the bonnet and coolant pouring out from underneath the car. FABULOUS!!!
So, here's hoping my awesomely talented husband can fix whatever has happened. I sent him a pic and he thinks it is a radiator hose.
I hope it can be fixed this evening as I want to have the baby asap!! We could have 3 car seats across the back of our Commodore but that would mean there would only be enough room for the driver & 1 passenger. With school about to resume and uniforms to be purchased on Thursday, that could suck. So please God, PLEASE PLEASE be a simple thing to fix and PLEASE let Super Cheap Auto or the equivalent stock the parts needed!

UPDATE - Well, it turns out that it is the heater hose assembly. It will take a month for Chrysler to get the part in for us from Germany (which is the only place that has one!) and it will be over $350. Prince Charming went to a different store for a non genuine part that cost barely anything. Car companies love to rip people off!

Midwives visit today

I so do not want to go to see the midwives today. If I am gonna make the trip to the hospital, I want it to be because I am going to birth my baby!

Be sure to get your rest, you're gonna need it. YEAH RIGHT!

SLEEP!!! Where the hell are you?!

I am over this crap. I just want to go to sleep instead of being wide awake at 1:46am.

I have worked out that the belly babe is very active around midnight til 1am. Then every morning at 1:30am Princess Ratbag has a sook and wants to come sleep in our bed. If this routine continues, I am going to be a mess.
Princess Ratbag has never been a co sleeper. She has been miss independent right from the beginning and has loved her own space. Ever since we put her in with Mini Him, she wants to co sleep. I wish we had the room to have her & Beanie in with us when Beanie arrives, but it just isn't gonna be the case, unless Prince Charming & I move our room to downstairs which also isn't an option.

So, I would just like to get some sleep rather than sitting here typing away and trying to get sleepy while my Prince Charming & Princess Ratbag are soundly sleeping next to me and making me so jealous!

Off to try to get some sleep now. I wonder how long it will be until I need to turn over, pee or whatever joyful thing being so heavily pregnant will bring?

Some quiet days

Things here have been quiet lately. I wonder if it is the calm before the storm?

Wishing & hoping so hard for an Australia Day baby. I can't wait to meet my new son or daughter :)

For Lucy

Thinking of you, your beautiful children, your wonderful family & friends who are all remembering you today.
I wish I had got to know you better. I'm sorry you had to leave so soon. I'm sure you're sparkling as brightly in heaven as you did here on earth.

Blocked plumbing - gross!

I hate older houses. It seems that most that I have lived in have had a problem or 2 with the plumbing. Not often something you find in the newer style homes, but then again, I find that the newer style homes go for smaller drain pipes in the bathrooms, so you're constantly standing in a puddle of water whilst showering.

Anyway, my issue here is one that is probably our fault. We ran out of toilet paper. It was early morning and Teen Queen was busting to use the toilet. So we agreed she should use nappy wipes as we also had no tissues around. I also needed to go and used wipes also.

Prince Charming came home with toilet paper just as I was hopping in to the shower. I was in the shower for a short while when I heard a strange noise. Teen Queen was in her room and came to investigate. The toilet was making the odd noise. Prince Charming quickly drove to the nearby shopping centre and bought a plunger. The shower floor began filling with water and I had to get out :-(

Prince Charming came home and plunged away at the drains. It was gross!

He spent all evening trying to unblock whatever it was that is blocking the drains, all in vain. Nothing budged the blockage. Seems the wipes we used have a lovely message on the back saying "DO NOT FLUSH". We found what is causing the blockage! Shame we can't fix it ourselves. Prince Charming tried poking long wire down some pipe thing (that's a technical term right there! lol), Drain-O and lots of perseverance.

So, this morning I awake and in my sleep deprived stupor I use the upstairs toilet (the one with the issues!)
Lovely. I even tried to flush!
Lets just say, it's not a pretty sight.

This morning

Well, upon waking this morning, I decided I would love some toast with peanut butter and a glass of chocolate milk.

So of course there is not a drop of either in the house!

Lovely day

Today was lovely.
Prince Charming came home early and we took advantage of the time together by going to the local pools. Me being so pregnant and worried about waters breaking in a public pool, sat to the side and played photographer/observer/panickier.

Princess Ratbag has not been in a pool since last summer, when she was just a small little bub. Today she loved it! She was splashing & giggling like crazy. She was making Prince Charming lay her on her back in the water and glide her around.
Mini Him went on the waterslide with his Daddy and loved every second of it. The line was long, the climb up the top was big, but he enjoyed it so much he went on twice.
Teen Queen was also there with her friend and like every other teenager out there, she didn't want to be near her parents. Prince Charming noticed a boy talking to her in the pool and wondered if he should interrupt their conversation by doing a big cannonball/bomb in between them! lol

I love days like this. I just wish I remembered to pack the sunscreen! Thankfully we're not too badly burned.

So, it's 1:17am

It's 1:17am and I can't sleep.

Why? Not the usual pregnancy related stuff - actually, it is kinda - I am craving a Frozen Margarita and a Mars Bar.

Go figure.

Counting down the final weeks.

I'm just gonna come out and say it. I love being pregnant!

I am officially at term in this pregnancy and I don't know if I am ready to give birth yet. This baby was a very unexpected surprise as Prince Charming & I had decided to stop at 4 even though we did want to have 5.
I have had 2 miscarriages (before 10 weeks) and a still born baby named Noah, our gorgeous little angel babe, which was a massive deciding factor for us as to how many children we would have.
Because I know this pregnancy is my very last one I am not wanting it to end just yet. Prince Charming had the big V done before Christmas, so this actually is the last pregnancy for us.

The very beginning of pregnancy freaks the begeezus out of me; but after the baby starts moving and the nausea subsides, I do start to enjoy being pregnant. This pregnancy has been my best one yet. Very little nausea, no carpal tunnel, nothing eventful really.
Now that it is coming down to the final days, I am realising how much I am gonna miss the beautiful little movements in my tummy, the hiccups, the kicks, the flips & all!
I want this baby to come out asap, but the longer I can stay pregnant the better. I am trying to take the time to enjoy these last days without nappy changes and night feeds and just enjoy my big moving belly.

Going through photos and thinking

I have been browsing through my photos on the lap top and something got me thinking.

Now, I will be the first to admit that I am slightly OCD. Prince Charming will tell you that I am very much OCD, but who would believe him? lol

Anyway, upon looking at my photos and those of others, I have realised I am probably the only person around who insists on having all the Christmas presents under the tree be wrapped in the same wrapping paper. This simple little thing brings great pains to Prince Charming, as I always have a look in mind every year. Our Christmas decorations on the tree are red & gold therefore meaning that the wrapping paper must be either red or gold. I have to choose the paper. Prince Charming can simply not be trusted to make such a huge decision. I love that he balances me out though. Prince Charming is the designated present wrapper every year because I am hopeless. This past Christmas, I actually heard him sigh whilst watching me attempt to wrap something in my ever messy way.
We make a great team!

Christmas 2010

 

Christmas 2009

Christmas 2008

Trying to see the bright side

I'm trying my hardest to see the bright side of things, but lately I am starting to doubt that there is a bright side to some things.

Take death for example. Where is the bright side to death? Where do 4 young children left without their Mummas find a bright side to losing them? Where does a wife, suddenly widowed with 2 young children find the bright side to her husbands passing? One thing I know for certain, the world is a much duller place for having lost such amazing people. I may never have known them in 'reality' but not knowing someone in real life doesn't make losing them any less of a loss. People the world over cried and grieved when Michael Jackson passed away. Some even needed to receive grief counselling, all for someone they had never met in person, but who had touched their hearts in a way that left a profound affect on them. They missed him and mourned his loss.

Whilst I was never close to any of the beautiful souls that have recently left too soon, I did feel impacted at times by one. We rarely crossed paths. We were both members of an online forum. She was one of those people you just knew would say what everyone was thinking, or what everyone should have been thinking. She was effervescent and that shone through in all of her posts. I have stayed up reading her blog from start to end and have now felt overcome with a sense of loss. I now realise I have things in common with her. I would love to be able to ask her questions. I would love some of her advice. I would love to compare and tell her what has worked for me in the past. I would love to find a way to bring her back for her friends that had the amazing gift of knowing her in person. I wish I had the chance to get to know her when she was here.
You will be missed terribly Lucy. (Just as I wrote this, Mini Him's Alphie Robot turned on & off by itself!)

Now, I find myself trying to find the bright side to my own life. Metal Man is driving me CRAZY! But I need to take a breather from the last thing he has made me cry about and see how funny he is. How much he loves his siblings, how much he does try. I wonder if taking something away from him will make him stop in his tracks and realise just how serious Prince Charming & I are, or if it will have the opposite effect on him and make him rebel even more. I remember once wishing that newborns/infants/toddlers came with instruction manuals. What I wouldn't give right now for an instruction manual for teenaged boys.

But, how can I feel sad when I have Mini Him running into my room dressed in Lightning McQueen singlet and matching 'big man' undies complete with bicycle helmet? While Teen Queen is dressing Princess Ratbag? I was woken this morning by Mini Him hopping in to bed with me, drifting straight back off to sleep and proceeding to giggle away at whatever wonderful dream he was having. Moments like these are my bright side. Moments like these fade the crappy moments.
I can hear Metal Man making Mini Him some big man toast. When Metal Man was a little one we had run out of the usual toppings for toast. Rather than risking a melt down, I sprinkled some cinnamon & sugar on his toast. Metal Man being the fussy child he was flat out refused to try it - until it was labeled as being 'Big Man Toast'. After that day it became a firm favourite. Metal Man recently introduced Mini Him to the joys of big man toast and Mini Him won't have anything else on his toast now, apart from the occasional Begebite (vegemite).
My kids are my bright side. I am so blessed to have amazing and challenging children. Sometimes I just need a swift kick in the butt to make me see just where my bright side really is.

The News Today

As I am sure most of Australia (if not, the world) is aware, there is a major flood crisis happening in Queensland. They had been inundated with weeks of rain which has led to some horrendous flooding. Apparently the death toll stands at 15. It is so very sad.

As expected, this is all over the news, and I believe rightly so. We should know important issues like this, we should feel some compassion and even grieve as a nation as this may just bring us a step closer together.

But what I don't understand is why some guy who has a brother who is known to have links to NSW underworld figures, is also getting way too much of a mention in the media. Do we really care that he was shot in the leg? Seriously buddy - hang with the wrong people and wrong things will eventually happen to you. It really is primary school stuff.

Perhaps the media is trying to distract us for a moment with something a little more lighthearted (if you can call someone being shot lighthearted?!) but it is just annoying.

Just my 2 cents.

Braxton Hicks & Berocca

SO yesterday I decided to do something completely ingenious. I decided that I would have a shot of Berocca.
I am taking (having?) Berocca as my energy levels are at zero. The first day, I took the Berocca as directed, in a glass full of water. It was gross. I am not a fan of effervescent orange. So, skip to yesterday and I figured that if I had a small amount of water, I could just down the stuff in one shot. Brilliant! It worked and it stayed down.

Later that day I started to get some Braxton Hicks contractions. I thought nothing of them and phoned my sister. It was then  that I realised there was a pattern to them and started timing. They were coming 4 minutes apart. Then they came 3 minutes apart for a hour.

I started to panic. I am so unprepared it is ridiculous. I haven't even got a hospital bag prepared! I was feeling sick and was sure this was the build up to the real thing.

Before I knew it, the toilet called and the typical loose bowel movement happened. Great I thought. This is definitely labour.

2 more contractions coming 2 minutes apart and then nothing. NOTHING. Everything stopped and I was exhausted.

I decided to google Berocca side effects and found out that they can cause diahorrea.
Upon speaking to my midwife today, it seems that it was purely coincidental and that I was having Braxton Hicks around the same time that I had adverse reactions to my shot of Berocca.

I might try to remember this if I go overdue!

Delving into the world of blogging

So, today is the day that I have decided to delve into the world of blogging.

Do I know what I am doing? No

Do I know why I have decided to start? No

I guess I will work these things out as I go along. I wish I could think of a more creative sounding name for my blog, but seeing as though my every day is filled with sweet, beautiful chaos, it seemed apt that I have that as my blog name - after all, it will be my life I will be blogging about.

About me;

I am 35, married to the man of my dreams/my soul mate/my prince charming and we have 4 amazingly wonderful children who inspire us every day to be better people. Some days they just bug the hell out of us, but there is always plenty to smile about. I love my life being a Stay At Home Mum (SAHM) to these wonderful children.

Our children are;

Metal Head/ Metal Man - Currently 16 and currently into heavy metal - the heavier the better. He is the typical teenager in that he engages his mouth before his brain. He is a good kid and very quick witted. I try so hard to keep a serious face with him at times.

Teen Queen - Currently 13 and currently trying to be older than she is. She drives Prince Charming crazy as she is wants to wear make up and loves to have girly days. Prince Charming wants her to be a little girl for as long as possible (like all Daddies do).

Mini Him - Mini Him is almost 4. He looks & acts like his Daddy and has many of the same interests as his Daddy too. He is a beautiful little child who makes me smile all the time. When I am feeling down, he knows exactly what to do or say to cheer me up. Just last night he looked across the dining table at me and said "You're awesome Mummy".

Princess Ratbag - The name says it all. Princess Ratbag is our youngest child (for the moment!) at 16 months old. She is a pretty little girl and she makes me laugh every day. She also frustrates the hell out of me because she has a massive personality already and she is one stubborn little girl. I am not looking forward to the Terrible 2's with her!

And finally we have Belly Babe. Belly Babe is due to make his or her grand entrance around Feb 6 2011.