happenings

I am waiting to blog til I have pictures but thought I'd record a few things.
Yesterday I was cleaning the toilets and I look around and Eamon is pretending to wash his hair in the shower - how CUTE I think - Kelsea urging him on and cooing over him. Turn around again and this time he is washing his hair with shampoo.. doing a great job..... so he got to have an early bath that night and all I had to do was rinse out the shampoo.... easy peasy. Eamon is starting to talk a little now and his words all sound so cute. Dad sounds like 'dah' kind of a german accent, bye sounds like a southern american, and most other words are just starting to become clearer - like bottle, bird, kels, hello, more.

The wet wraps that we have been waiting for arrived a couple of days ago. I was really excited to try them and had been talking about it a bit to Kelsea before using them. I thought that it would be pretty easy and drama-less....boy was I wrong - not about the easy part - just her reaction! The idea is that you put a set on wet - soaked in some bath oil (eczema friendly of course!) that you have bathed the child in - this was not taken well! Then you put on another set to I guess make them feel a little drier - though as she became quite upset I ended up with her on my lap for the next hour with me looking like I had wet myself! straight away she was going crazy saying how much it was itching her - she is usually super itchy after a bath - i just kind of ignored all the screaming etc (Think it was more fear of what was happening as she NEVER or very rarely wears anything tight and these are pretty tight!) She calmed down after a little while and then I noticed she was happily sitting watching tv with Jared while I was putting Eamon to bed. We took them off after about 1 1/2 hours ( was hoping to have her sleep in them) she was getting cold and as she didn't have the cream on ( chemist hadn't made it yet) I thought I'd just take it off and see how she went. Well WOW the difference in the softness of her skin was amazing! WE just dressed her as usual for bed and she played for a while very happily and I finally got her settled in bed - with her saying rub me I'm itchy (think thats just bad habit now not really itchy). for the first time in I don't know HOW long she didn't scratch her arms or legs while going to sleep. I woke about 2:30 feeling really sick throwing up.. so over this reflux heartburn stuff - its as bad as morning sickness!! Thought I would check the kids - you know in case it was a tummy bug and they had thrown up in their sleep (sorry gross I know - hope no-one reads this whilst eating), well both still asleep... strange but GOOD! Then I finally fell asleep feeling not good and a while later - not sure when - Kels came in. Now usually this would mean up to an hour or sometimes more of her laying down itching and me rubbing her legs/arms/back/ tummy till she fell asleep - then she would do it all again a couple of hours later. I was turning into the psycho mum from hell and she was getting kinda crazy herself... and very upset with me as I was getting crabby with her!! ANYWAYS... last night she came in - out of habit I guess - and just laid there and I rubbed her back a little and she fell asleep. No itch legs. No itchy arms. SO excited that this seems to help restore moisture to her skin. Just have to keep her face moist now to help her eyes ( they are getting super dry at the moment) we will keep doing this til there is no sign of the eczema then hopefully we can just use regular moisturiser on her to maintain her skin - well that is what I am hoping anyway!
A HUGE thank you to DONNA who told me about these suits and who has a never ending supply of knowledge about eczema and has tried and tested EVERYTHING out there.

Hopefully this will lead to a happier little girl who grows a little more and doesn't have such a pale face and big bags under her eyes!

**just a note on the last post - I watched the movie - it was pretty good - funny in parts too. I thought it would make a better TV series - but i guess there is no money in that. How do you jam all those books into movies? Was a good movie though - you should go see it**

Tomorrow When The War Began

Did you ever read that series by John Marsden? I started it in high school when there were only three books in the series - now there are like 9 or something. I just happened to see somewhere on TV probably that the series is being made into films. The first one comes out in September. I LOVED the books (especially when I was younger) and hope that the movie doesn't disappoint. You can go check it out on YouTube.

Go Kelsea!

8 hours. On her own. In her OWN bed. So FANTASTIC. We really don't remember the last time she slept all night in her bed. She woke once at 10:30pm (after being asleep for 3 hours) very itchy as usual. I had been asleep for an hour. JAred gave her some phenergan - like half a dose (as it usually does nothing much and I didn't want too much in her system) and she eventually fell to sleep. Of course Eamon woke about this time! But Jared gave him a bottle and then, well the night turned into the next day as if by magic! Only I couldn't sleep as I kept waking and having really strange crazy dreams and this morning at about 5:30am I woke for good and so did Eamon - we tried to leave him for a while but it seems that 5:30 is his natural waking time - maybe 6:00 at a stretch. So we had about 6 and a half hours straight in our own bed with NO kids!! This morning Jared said 'wow I almost feel normal!"

On Monday night we made a chart in FHE for Kelsea. it was a "I can sleep in my own bed" chart. I really didnt' think it would work - but the first night she came in I said - 'oh we need to take you back to your bed!" and she agreed. There is an incentive - if she stays in her own bed all night for a week she gets a barbie.... not even sure she remembers that now though as I keep forgetting the stickers and she doesn't seem to mind. So not sure if making her go to her own bed is the reason she eventually slept or sheer exhaustion from 4 years of poor sleeping but I'm not complaining fingers crossed its her new pattern from now on ( had to get her out before the belly gets too big anyway!).



Oh we are LOVING LOVING LOVING it in the new place. This morning I opened the blinds to a summer-like day (no doubt it is chilly out there though) we have views of mountains and a tiny bit of ocean, no neighbours and we can't wait for summer to go to the beach everyday. I'd go now but Eamon heads straight for the water and it is far too freezing for that!

PACKING, CLEANING & MOVING

I can't say how excited we all are to be moving even Kelsea... "mum I not going to make big messes in the new house I'm gunna pack up my play dough when I finished".

It will be soooo good to move to a mould-free environment especially for the kids. AND a sunnier nicer place. it is BRAND new so no one has even lived there - it will feel like 'our' house - so hopefully we don't get kicked out too soon!

I'm not even bothered by the packing - its kinda fun - and even cleaning is no bother - its just the 'paper' areas, you know where all the old uni stuff is or under/on/around the computer that is a huge massive paper mess that needs sorting and I have kept putting it off for oh about 2 years!! But I'll just have to make a start and DO it! Looking forward to more storage and more room also - hopefully I can finally bring the piano up from mum's (tho it will no doubt get trashed by my little darlings).

EXCITED!!! (we move this week - its come really quickly!!)

7 seven VII

Whoa what happened to the last 7 years!! Its been 7 years that were long and short, fun and hard, sad and Happy and crazy and did I mention crazy!?! - I guess all in all its been LIFE!!

To Jared love from me xx

{I'd show a pic of us getting married - but have no idea how to make THAT happen - but I can tell you that we looked A LOT younger, thinner, less wrinkly, no big black bags under our eyes and more energy!}

Another Conversation

The following occurred driving home from church today:

Kelsea: "DAD - Eamon's picking his nose!!!!"
Dad and mum : "he he ha ha"
Dad (sarcastically) : "oh, and you NEVER do that!"
Kelsea (loud and proud) : "YES I DO!!"

Poor boy is pretty snotty at the moment....teething AND a cold :(




(Pictures are still old ones as I haven't been able to load up ones on my computer.... :( ...)

4000 years ago.

Ever since we went to the UYC fireside and heard the Young Single Adults sing the theme song (don't think this is the title!!) Kelsea has been singing the song - well the chorus line over and over. The other day I happened to ask Lisa if she had a copy of the song - and she thankfully did. Kelsea is so excited about it! She loves singing and has an incredible memory for tunes and lyrics. Now thanks to Aunty Lisa we can learn all the words.... she holds open a book and 'reads' from it! Even Eamon loves it bopping and singing away. For a boy with such a deep deep voice he has a surprisingly sweet soft singing voice!

"Aunty Lisa, I love you,
And I love 4000 years ago,
Love Kelsea"

Trying to keep up with Steph!

So I'm not so good at blogging regularly and as I can't load pics at the moment I find it hard to blog anyway!
There are so many everyday things that I'm not recording in a journal - like the many wet patches all over the floor from Eamon tipping water out of every cup I give him (gotta find one that doesn't leak!!) And I think as a result of not actually DRINKING the water he is getting a little constipated!

Kelsea is having 'night itching' again. I can't for the life of me think why it really is a problem at night and not in the day - i get it could be from sweating etc but that can't be the case the first hour or so into bed time. Thinking it may have something to do with our water or washing powder or both.

House hunting is so annoying.... Wish i had unlimited funds (hey but then I'd BUY instead of rent!) looked at a place yesterday that had an awesome kitchen ...but the rest of the house was the size of a shoe box, had no bath (my kids freak in a shower) and also was about to be sub - divided to have a new unit built ( I KNOW how much noise power tools make !!) but something will come up - hopefully sooner rather than later - Kelsea's chest is sounding bad again....well her breathing anyways.

My mum is having an operation on Friday - not sure how 'big' it is - but she will be in heaps of pain for a while - hopefully htey will discharge her with some strong pain killers - not panadol like Jared got last time (what a hoot they gave him morphine in hospital then just panadol!!)

Ok thats about all the ramblings for one night. Oh did I mention my car died!!!?!?! Such a pain - I am really not good without my own transport - I've had a car since I was 18 I think and man I don't like being without one (tho I am in town and can WALK everywhere!) Will get one soon!

A New Calling

So Sunday comes as I get released from Primary - which is sad and good at the same time. I'll really miss all the people in there and the kids too. BUT life moves on and I've been called as Second counsellor in Relief Society! HUGE change - not sure how to think on adult level and really not sure what it all entails but I'm sure but ther end of the year I will get what I need to be doing (hopefully) and if not I can blame 'baby brain' or lack of sleep for any massive slip ups!!

Grandma's and Grandpa's

Its always fun when grandma/grandpa comes hurray!!

(well in this case when we go to them!)

I think all the Grand kids love to sit at the bench and help Grandma with the cooking.

And she always tells the best stories.

Eamon having a cuddle with Grandpa before bed.

Catch up pics

On Saturday we decided to head out to Jared's parents place to help Kelsea get better. ITs always a lovely place to stay - quiet, peaceful and REALLY dark at night (there is a street light out side our bedroom!!) Kelsea LOVES it at Gramma's (thats how she pronounces it). She gets out the pretend food and plays contentedly for days. She has't even asked to go outside (which is good coz I want her to stay in). Eamon isn't to rapt about being kept inside and I think is sick of being around me so much! So here are a few pics taken with the new camera - so far all I know what to do is use the 'auto' function so they are just regular pics! Kelsea loves to run. She plays running games at home around the yard and wants me to commentate. When she crosses the finish line she goes "YAY I'm the one-est"

Playing 'kick the ball' together....

These are mostly from home. Eamon LOVES to be outside eating dirt, playing with tools or hanging out with dad in the car.

Near our place is the 'flower park' its a huge open grassed area with beautiful gardens that is open for the public to use. Its only a 5 min walk from our place and its so peaceful and lovely there.The kids love to throw gravel into this drain and hear it splash in the water far below...


Kelsea got some long wanted Gellybaff (don't know the spelling) this stuff that turns water into goo. It is expensive though and you only get one use....it was worth it to see the kids enjoy it.....this is the only non 'rudey' shot!!
Every night Eamon has a bottle before bed and Kelsea always asks to hold him and 'tuggle' him.

mmmmmm
jjj
h
eeeeeee
aAAAAA
ac
e
cccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccc
lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll
j
(Kelsea wanted to write everyones names, initials down - thats what all the letters are about!!!! Chrish the HUGE row of c's is for you!!)

Asthma again

Two days ago Kelsea woke with a runny nose.... not thinking too much of it {Eamon's was worse} I thought it would pass in a few days. But Today i took her to our GP {had to go to Westbury!} only to find out she has a chest infection {which I suspected} and having asthma attacks. This is the third time this year that she has had an infection and asthma straight away follows. Its a pretty scary thing for a little kid to get though she is really good about it all and sits very still while having her puffers. I think she will have to be on the preventer puffer all winter long to try and ward off any more attacks. She is also on antibiotics and prednisolone for a few days. Rushed home to get it at the chemist to only wait for 20 mins then be told it would take another 20 mins for it to be ready - should have used to local one at Westbury!!

We think that our house in contributing to her bad health. ALL three bedrooms, the bathroom and the toilet {which has an open vented window} all have mould. Jared got a suit Jacket he hasn't worn for a while out of the closet to find it COVERED in mould. So needless to say we are constantly looking for a new place!

BUT good news! After thinking our health care card had be cut off - today I received a new one in the mail! {two days too late for the $300 dental trip Jared had to make on Monday - if it was today he would have had it out for free....it was $1700 to have it fixed so he couldn't do that :( }

New stuff

Yesterday JAred and I got a new camera - finally! Ours has been pretty unhappy for a while what with sand, water and kids dropping it - a lot - actually I can recommend it for its resilience....but it kinda just won't really work anymore soooo.....we got a new one....only I can't load pics as it has high speed something a rather and the computer is slow speed something a rather...!!!

AND (as most know anyway) a new addition to our family will be happening this year! So I'm 12 weeks and one day. Waiting for all the yuckiness to pass but it's not as bad as it could be!! NOt sure of due date sometime in the start of December (haven't been to the doc for 6 weeks).

Family Photographers

SO it seems that we have two new family photographers!! Lisa and Chrish! They are both really really good and I love the way they see the world through their lenses. Here's one that Chrish took at Sheila's funeral of Kels...

{While doing this post Eamon escaped out the back door and ran barefoot out into the puddles and rain - no wonder it was so quiet!}

I don't like slobber!!

Yesterday i heard this coming from the bedrooms "happy birthday, I don't like slobber. Happy birthday, i don't like slobber! HAPPY BIRTHDAY I don't liker slobberrrrrrr"


All sung to the tune of Happy Birthday to you. Eamon is a huge slobberer (is that a word?) at the moment. With all but 3 teeth through his mouth has been having a really rough time of it all. It also means that he sleeps badly yet again :( so some more crying sessions are needed!!

With all the excess slobber Eamon has discovered spitting - kind of - which is gross and a habit that is apparantly going to be difficult to stop.... dang!! He also loves to kiss and blow copius amounts of 'raspberries' on anyone and everyone - so if you see him coming watch out!!

3 years.

It's three years today since my Dad passed away. Feels like forever ago mostly, then some days it seems it was yesterday that I was a young girl riding in the truck or tractor with him

{Dad with Kelsea at about 6 months}

Last July Jared and the children and I were fortunate enough to go to the Temple with Stan, Lisa, Halle, Nan and other family to have Dad's work done and to have him sealed to his parents. Now I know he can Rest In Peace at last. 'Til we meet again xx.

We drifted back through childhood days and shared each others grief,
Realised so quickly now how life can be so brief.
When we are born we start to die its He who calls the turn, and when he called you home 'ol mate He called you Much too soon.

Oh the dream I had of you old mate forever will remain, to me you are my earthly loss,
To Him you're Heaven's gain.
As I stand beside your earthen mound no words can quite express,
Just how I feel but memories mate,
To me are Heaven blessed.

So long 'ol mate 'til we meet again, rest in perfect peace.
Your mem'ries locked inside my heart,
My thoughts will never cease.
I know you cannot answer mate but to me it always seems,
WE can live a part of life again, even though its in our dreams.

{Lyrics from "Dreaming" one of the Slim Dusty songs Tyler Chose for Dad's funeral. The other one was "The man who steadies the lead" and "O my Father"}

{At Kelsea's blessing September 2006}

what to do?

So what do you do when.....
Your one year old {who is obsessed with power points} can get the little pluggie things out??

He has also recently become very interested in shoes and will bring me a shoe {this morning it was Kelsea's dolphin one} to put on his foot. He is a very cooperative little boy when it comes to putting on his shoes and will lift up his feet to help out.
But....he is a terror when it comes to nappies and it takes both of us to hold him down {I have lots of fun when Jared is at work}.

(Eamon enjoying his first taste of honey - he licked it clean off the sao!)

A day of drama!

So on Thursday I was in a store with the children and pulling Eamon along he does the usual "drop" down that the Kids all love to do so much. This time pulling him back up - something pulled in his shoulder....i didn't realise this though and he became grizzly so picking him up I tried to keep looking around and he bit my shoulder! I think - oh he must have a tooth pushing through..but no amount of peek-a-booing from kels would keep him cheered for long. I soon realised he wasn't using his left arm. So when I got home I made an appointment with a new doctors surgery (mine was booked til Monday). Very greatful to get in that day I dropped Kels off with Nicki and took the little fella to this doc. Well She sent me to have an xray - so we picked up the girl and the dad and went to the hospital where he SCREAMED so bad (Jared took him in while i sat with Kels, and he hated the dark and noise etc). The radiologist chatted to us and said there was nothing broken (or dislocated - which is what the doc thought) and he moved his arm in the socket a lot with no crying. So they sent us home. Eamon didn't use his arm still - it just hung limp by his side...he just would walk around and not use it then all of a sudden yesterday evening he decided it was better and has been fine ever since. I guess kids know how to let themselves heal though! AND he slept til 6 this morning making it an almost 12 hour stint!! {so glad he figured out how to sleep again I was worried he was turning into another bad sleeper!}

Julie &Julia

So we really loved this movie. Meryl Streep was SO funny!

Love in a Torn Land

Nope it isn't the title of a trashy Mills and Boon novel!!

I recently borrowed this book from my mother in law and thought it would be a hard book to get into. Boy was I wrong. Its the story of a Iraqi Kurdish woman named Joanna Al-Aksari Hussain. She grew up in Baghdad as the daughter of an Iraqi father and Kurdish mother. The story tells of the atrocities that the Kurdish people were subjected too. I guess I am very sheltered here in Tassie. I knew about Saddam Hussein's attempt at genocide against the Kurds but really that was it. I didn't realise however that about 100,000 Kurds were murdered and that after they dropped the chemical bombs on the villages and cities of Kurdistan the Iraqi military went in and blew up the buildings then bulldozed them so the people who had fled the attacks had nothing to come back to. Joanna fell in love with a Peshmerga (a Kurdish freedom fighter) and after a mills and boon like start to their story (she loved him, he ignored her broke her heart and years later wrote her all these love letters, she ignored him then EVENTUALLY they got together - fairytale stuff!!!!) they lived in a Kurdish village that was routinely bombed every afternoon. Anyways after the chemical attacks Joanna was partially blinded, and her husband Sarbast and his cousin and herself climbed over the massive mountain (i am pretty vague on the details) into Iran where even more hardship awaited them. I just can't describe all the hardships, trials, terror and horror that they faced. The evil that is in the world really is frightening. I am so greatful i was born in Australia. This book made me think differently about all these refugees that seem to be flooding into our country, not that I ever thought they shouldn't be here, but we have no idea what some of these people are fleeing from - I mean who would willing take their kids across the ocean in a dilapidated boat?

ANYWAY! I recommend this book to anyone - it has so much in it and I couldn't put it down (though i had to due to the recent gastro bout!) A real tribute to patriotism and the power of Love!

Fresh FLATHEAD, Sleeping Through and vomit.....

Yesterday Jared went fishing with Eden at Port Sorell. We were very excited when he came back with some flathead and some other fish that we put in the freezer. So we had the fish, bought some chips and made a salad....really yummmm. Flathead is my absolute FAVOURITE seafood.

Kelsea for the first time in over 12 months I am thinking, slept the night through. Well til about 5:30am. I can't remember the last time she woke up from her own bed. For the next hour (she came in to our bed) she kept asking is it morning yet??

AND Eamon got sick!! It was his first gastro-like illness. He threw up before bed then also a few times in the night, so we kept him with us - then we both woke up around 2:30am from a REALLY rank smell....he had really bad diarrhea. So got him up washed all the bedding and clothes and him and he had a bottle and went back to sleep. he kinda gagged a few more times but nothing too bad and woke up htis morning jumping on me like I was a trampoline......hoping it doesn't spread to anyone else ...! {my house reeks!!!}

Easter conversations

My attempts to explain the symbolism of Easter eggs this morning.

Me: The empty egg is like the Empty Tomb when Jesus was resurrected.
Kels: Oh did He eat all the chocolate?
Me: Err.. no there wasn't any chocolate
Kels: Oh Maybe the Nephites ate it.
Me: Yeah Maybe.

Kelsea is slowly retaining all the things she is learning about - not all are connecting in the right places! Her prayers are really relevant now and she always is really thoughtful {unless she is cranky;) }.Hoping that one day Easter means to her what it does to me - that is more than the big bunny and the egg hunt - she already loves her Elder Brother and I hope she always will.

{ Thanks Lisa for the photos ;) }

This Boy

Is getting teeth so fast i can't keep up! I think number 10 popped through last night - maybe number 11?? And it feels like two more are on their way. His teeth are really big and I think they give him a lot more pain than I remember Kelsea having. He is pretty good though - just needs medicine, bonjela and a little bit of milk to settle him. He is such a lovable little boy. Really affectionate and cuddly. He kisses and pats on the back and ducks and tilts his head to the side when he tries to get our attention. I also LOVE that he has spent more time in his own bed than in ours (apart from a horrendous 2 months where he literally was feeding every single hour through the night- you get THAT hey Aimee!!) He sleeps through the night now for the most part and has at least one goodish day sleep. He is loud and aggressive and such a BOY. We LOVE him so much.

Argh!!

I am so SICK of these!!!
WE have tiny brown ants that materialise in SECONDS! I got up this morning and looked at a cake I'd made last night - it was moving - I was SO annoyed - as it was really nice and my oven usually burns everything - plus I had run out of butter for the icing :( SO today we went to Jared's Folks to Pilfer some MINT from Lorraines lovely Herb garden....she gave us some to plant - which is just awesome as I love the smell of fresh mint. OH the mint is for the ants - my mum told me she used to use it in her cupboards when we were little....

Ants are amazing creatures. A few months ago I caught sight of a teeny ant pulling a spider which was MASSIVE in comparison - not sure what his plans for it were - didn't know that ants were carnivores!! (sorry its not that clear!!)

YAY

Never Thought I'd get excited by a couple of THESE!


Now I can use my car again! My thinking-outside-the box husband found two chunky tread tyres at the TIP for $0 !! BARGAIN!!!

SICK

So its been a yucky half week in our home! Both Children have been ill with a mixture of viruses/ infections/ asthma/ teething and temperatures. Its been pretty full on during the night especially sponging down hot little heads and trying to get the little ones to settle. Kelsea so good in the night - although she is also sick she will say to him "oh its all right darlin, mummy and Kelsea are here" etc. -very cute. It is such a pain as Eamon was starting to SLEEP through the night - no small thing for one of OUR kiddies!! Hopefully he will sleep again now that the temps have gone!

Kelsea is on a preventative puffer now. Which I actually think is working - as she isn't wheezing nearly as much. She has it three times a day. So glad it isn't Eamon who has to take it - it would be impossible!

Kelsea has become SO bad at sleeping. She doesn't sleep in her bed at all at the moment. Falling asleep on the couch where we often leave her then she comes in when she wakes to us.

Jared also has had one of the worst weeks health - wise that he's ever had. Lots of pain and illness.....going to see a specialist this week hoping to finally get some answers!

Sorry no pics (would have just been of tired looking people in a GROSSLY messy house!!)

Eamon can say a FEW words now
- Mum
- Dad
- Hi
- Ta
- Boo
- Lots of screaming and yelling :)

OH he also is DANCING so cute - wish i had a video camera to show you!

Uncle Chrish

Kelsea is such a bubbly excitable LOUD little girl who loves to SING and DANCE and ACT ( kinda like Jalen !!). But get her around ANY adult (bar mum, dad, and grandparents) and she clams right up. She won't even make eye contact with adults when they speak to her let alone speak to them. The occasional aunt may get a nod or whispered "please" and Uncle Stan used to get a lot of attention when she was very small, and for a little bit we thought Uncle Eden was going to get spoken to more than once!! We have often said 'oh she is shy' to explain her to people. But I now wish we hadn't as I have had her say to me "I a bit shy aren't I mum!" So its not a word i like to use anymore!

BUT give her half an hour with Christian and she is chatting and sitting with him. Playing chasings or tickling him. He is a natural with kids, and all his nephews and nieces adore him - i reckon if you asked each of them they'd all say HE was their FAVOURITE! Sorry we didn't see you much Chrish the week went too fast - you really should just move over here ; ) (are you sick of everyone saying that yet....well just do it and we will all be quiet!!!)

Liffey Falls

Today Eamon, Kelsea and I met up with Lorraine, Christian, Lisa, Kobe, Nicki, Maddi, Alex and Lincoln and went up to Liffey Falls. Its a lovely drive and not nearly as far as I remembered. When we got there we were a little early so the kids, Lorraine, Chrish and I went for the 1 minute walk to the "Big Tree" . It certainly was big - especially for where it was. Eamon and Kelsea played chasings around the tree with Grandma.


Kelsea is really protective of Eamon and wouldn't let him wander around - i told her to let him be for a bit then of course he went to the one spot he could fall and he fell and whacked his head on a bit of wood. (so glad Kelsea isn't old enough to say 'i told you so'!)

After everyone arrived we started down the track.

Nicki was really kind to lend me her backpack to carry Eamon in. It was a little uncomfortable on the way down and he felt really heavy - but I adjusted the strap on the way back up and though it was uphill it was MUCH easier.

It's so good to go to the rainforest again. I really miss going to places like Liffey and I'm not really sure why we haven't been doing more of it. I love the Myrtle and Sassafras trees and the MASSIVE Manferns. There are so many different little ferns also. I think that temperate rainforests would have to be my FAVOURITE type of vegetation - that and the Cusihion plants (they are so awesome).

The Falls were full of water and were glorious. Eamon got quite excited by all the water - and played spot - uncle - Chrish a couple of times ( he was darting everywhere - getting in the falls and all!)

Kelsea and Maddi had a fantastic time looking for fairies in the undergrowth. They were excited to find some purple Fairy jellybeans and collected them to put in the fairies cave.

All of the kids were soooo good. I was especially impressed with the three little boys. Kobe stayed in the stroller almost the entire time and was so good, Eamon was in the backpack and the only naughty thing he did was to throw his shoe in the river (he throws EVERYTHING at the moment - he has a strong arm too!) And Alex walked down and back up all on his own - no small feat for a two year old!

Thanks everyone for a FANTASTIC day :) (Check out lisa and chrish's blogs for AWESOME pics coming up)

OH Kelsea mastered the art of doing up her buttons on her pajamas tonight. Very proud mum and daughter :)

(how tired does she look - our resident NIGHT OWL!)

Risotto

So this is the FIRST ever risotto that I have made or even eaten. It was a chicken, mushroom and roasted tomato one. It was very time consuming and as I was making it I was wondering if all i was doing was a drawn out fried rice - it just looked like gluggy over cooked rice! HOWEVER I was pleasantly surprised at the outcome - the aborio rice is really nice and though it looked like it would be gluggy it wasn't at all. It was creamy and firm. Go figure. SO are there any Risotto making masters out there with tips on better flavour or technique (not sure HOW it should look or taste!).