Quick update

I started this post a few days ago and for some strange reason whenever I save it as a draft it publishes. It's just a lazy update on whats happening in the Penney household at the moment.

Me - I joined up to Weight Watchers last night and I am determined to loose at least 7 kgs, hopefully 10! I've always hovered around 67kgs, but after having Xav its slowly crept up to around 74 (even though my scales say 72kg), so I thought it was about time to stop calling the extra kg's "baby weight", (especially since my baby is now 2! ) and do something about it. So my mil and I joined up and Nicole is going to come along next week too. It'll help having each other to stay on track and keep motivated. Plus, I'm going to pay a month in advance at a time, so having already paid will keep me going back as I'd hate not to get the value out of it. I'm hoping to loose 1/2kg a week, and hopefully by Christmas I'll be under 67. I don't find following weight watchers all that hard, I did it just before I was married and lost 10kgs quite easily, getting down to about 57kgs. I just have to remember to drink lots of water, watch my portions sizes and make an effort to exercise more. Sounds easy hey? My weigh ins are on a Thursday, so in an effort to keep myself accountable I'll put my stats on every Friday. Crap, now I have to stick it out!

I am also getting very excited about the upcoming birth of Bubba Dew. Trude been one of my best friends for over 10 years and I feel so honoured and privileged that she has asked me as a support person to her birth. She is looking & feeling fantastic, especially considering she is 41 weeks tomorrow. I set up a "guess the stats" game, and every ones birthday guess has been and gone - except for Trude. The crazy girl is wanting to go over, she's even hoping to make it to 7/8/09, which takes her to 11 days over her due date. She has been desperate to avoid family birthdays, but after midnight tonight it's a clear run, so really she can go any time. My psychic abilities are crap, every night for the last week I have thought "tonight's the night", and every night nothing happens.

I feel like a lovesick teenager, obsessively checking my phone for the call out, even calling it from my home phone just making sure it works. Just thinking about her & Murray becoming parents makes my eyes spring leaks. Seeing them meet their little boy for the first time and witnessing the moment where they go from a couple to a family is going to be so precious. I have tried to describe to them how amazing birth & parenthood is, and I'm sure they think they know. But it truly is something that you just don't get until you've done it. nobody can explain to you the immense feeling of love as you've never known it before. I also can't wait to meet their precious little boy - he has chosen a very special family to join. Gosh, I know this little fella is going to send my hormones spinning - but I must stay strong and keep repeating, "In a few years, In a few years".

Grace - She's being a typical 3 1/2 y/o and perfecting which buttons of mine to press. Man, she drives me batty sometimes, mainly with the whinging and constant chatter. Shes asleep beside me now and looking like an absolute angel who could do no wrong. She is lovely, caring and thoughtful most of the time, it's just a few times in the day that she has me hollering like a mad women and ready to ship her off to boarding school. I know that at the moment my patience is thin with her, not really sure why. I think it has a lot to do with being together so much. I love spending time with her, but really the only break we have from each other is on a Tuesday and snippets during the week. I'm going to have a chat with Duane and arrange for 1 afternoon that he takes the kids out every week. he normally does, it's just these last few weeks we have been doing things around the house of an afternoon, but I'm finding I want some time home by myself.

She has been very sweet lately and learning lots of wonderful things at pre-school and her new playgroup. Duane and I both been going along with her to the playgroup, which she absolutely loves. It's at the Steiner school and runs from 1pm-3pm on a Thursday. It's lots of singing, storytelling, craft as well as inside and outside play. The kids also make their own bread rolls which are baked during the session and ready for them to eat on the way home. Whilst the kids are playing the parents do craft. Duane took her last time by himself and got stuck sewing a felt whale, which I thought was hilarious (he didn't!). This week I started finger knitting a flower garland that Grace will wear at the Spring Festival.

Grace is also loving pre-school and is really starting to feel comfortable there. She is still only going one day a week, but from next year it will be 2 days. The teachers are always telling me how great she is and how much she loves doing all the outside things. She's always wanting to visit the worms, play in the veggie patch and potter around in the garden. Apparently she is always polite, friendly and willing to help with anything. The kids are encouraged to help clean, cook and prepare the food - which Grace really enjoys doing. Last Tuesday she told me that she spent most of the indoor time polishing the bookcases - sounds thrilling. Maybe I should save the fees and just have her do my housework!

The Dogs - The dogs nearly got the boot the other day. I woke early before the kids and thought I'd head out for a cup of tea in the peace and quiet. All was happy in my world, until I noticed random bits of green and yellow plastic all around the dining area. On closer inspection I realised it was my LIMITED EDITION Silicone cupcake moulds, damn dogs had dragged them of the bench where I had left them last night after making individual apple pies. Out of the 6, 5 were now laced with canine teeth marks - and even though Tupperware has a fantastic guarantee, I really don't think that being used as a dog chew toy comes under normal wear and tear. Those bloody dogs better hope that research keeps getting released sprouting the benefits of pet ownership, or their time at the Penney residence could be nearly up. Man, why don't' Labradors ever grow up. I mean they are 7 & 8, surely they should be out of the stage of chewing things up? Lucky they are cute most of the time.

The chooks - Well turns out 2 of the babies that we hatched were roosters. Kinda gave it away when the both started wanting "special" cuddles with the other chooks, well actually it was their Mum they harassed the most. Sounds a little incestuous, but I guess technically she was just the incubator as it wasn't any of her eggs so really they weren't related. Either way, chicken sex & crowing was not a good combo to have happening in the front yard. I didn't mind the crowing, but I'm sure the neighbours weren't too impressed with the 4.30am wake up calls. So Frizzle and Da were shipped of to Duane's friends farm and apparently have fitted in well. Also was goof to know that the guy doesn't eat chicken - not that he would get much of their skinny frames. They have the run of a huge area and lots of hens to hit on, so perfect for them. I do miss having them around though. Although they weren't tame enough that we could pick them up, they were both friendly and also beautiful looking roosters. Frizzle is a "frizzle" breed, with beautiful soft brindle coloured feathers that actually grow backwards. Named by the children of course because of the breed, original hey!

~~Frizzle with Da in the background~~

Da is the other chicken, who had a name change after the humping and crowing incidents. Grace had called him Trudy, but after turning into a rooster we change the name to Da. Why Da? Well Xav likes to mess around with people, and insists on only saying "Da" when he is around Trudy, even though he can say a gazillion other things. Da is a small brindle bantam that in the sunlight is a green/black colour. He was the gentleman of the hen house, always waiting outside on dusk to make sure all the other chooks were tucked up in bed. Only once everyone else was in did he head off to bed.

~~Da, Frizzle and their incubater Silkie~~

The other chooks are all happy. Why wouldn't they be though really. They get to wander around out the front from the crack of dawn, eating the kids breakfast leftovers and any other food scraps that they choose. All we ask from them is an egg a day and to stay out of the veggie patch - otherwise everything else is free reign. They really are fantastic animals to have though. I initially was hesitant, thinking that chooks would need a larger area but they are fine on our little 800sq suburban block. Sending the kids out to collect the 3 eggs a day is a big bonus, and then cracking them open and seeing clear egg white and a big orange yolk. Nothing beats it.

I often catch Henny & Bertha nestled in a dust whole, looking like a couple of old bitties having a gossip:

~~"You don't say Bertha!~~

Happy 2nd Birthday Xav

Happy 2nd Birthday my sweet little baby. It still feels like I blinked and you went from a snuggly little newborn baby in my arms to a loud, confidant and cheeky toddler. The last 2 years one the one hand have flown by so quickly, yet on the other hand so much has happened in your short little life.

So now you are a big 2 year old, and what a clever little boy you are!

You are such a cheeky little thing with such a wicked sense of humour. If we ask you to do something that you're not too keen on doing, you through your head back and let out a loud, rambunctious laugh. It's as if to say As if!

You are talking in longer sentences, and the fluency of your words is getting better every day. You try hard to learn every new word we teach you, copying it back almost perfectly and most of the time remembering the word and using it later in its proper context. We have fun and teach you complicated words like "harmonica" "hippopotamus" and "elephant", then we all giggle as you trip over the words trying to copy the pronunciation. Your manners are beautiful and most of the time you use "please" and "thank-you" without prompting. I love it when in your sweetest voice you ask, "More rice milk please Mummy" or Nice tea thanks Mummy" - Just adorable. I've lost count of how many words you say, there aren't too many things that we use or do that you wouldn't know the word for now. Some of your words only Daddy, Grace or I understand, but you are definitely getting easier to understand. Grace does sometime interpret for you, when we have no idea what you are trying to say!

Food is one of your greatest loves. There isn't much in the wide word of cuisine that you will reject. You love porridge or weet-bix for breakfast with rice milk and honey. You always insist on having some honey left on the spoon so that you can lick it.

You love playing with the kitchen and tea set, always asking us if we would like a "Cup of tea?" or "toast, sandwich or pizza?" I hear you in your kitchen crashing about, putting things in the oven and then loudly declaring "Ready now" before you bring them over for me to eat.

Out of all your toys, your matchbox cars are your absolute favourite. Just like your Daddy as a little boy, you always have a car close by. Whether that be in your hand, pocket (oh and how you love pockets!) or in your bed - there is always one or two within arms length! You zoom them around on any available surface, including up and down our legs and arms. You always need a car to take to the toilet, frantically looking for one before you dare tell us that you need to wee.

You love playing outside and would spend the majority of your time out there. Whether it is going to collect the eggs, feeding the chickens or playing out the back - any time outside you are happy with. You and Grace have a blast bouncing on the trampoline (reminder to post a pic of how it looks now), or baking up a storm in the sandpit.

You're a beautiful little boy with so much determination, which I'm sure will become even more apparent over the next few years!!

Thanks for all the beautiful moments and love that you have bought to our family Xav, every single one of them has been treasured.

Love Mummy xx

My sick little girl

Grace is bloody sick again. Poor little thing is laying listlessly beside me on the couch, which is all she has been able to manage for the last 2 days.

It all started on Tuesday. She had been coughing Monday night, but nothing too bad and wasn't showing any other symptoms. When I picked her up from school both of the carers said that she wasn't herself, and that she had woken from her sleep distressed and upset. They said that she was quiet in the afternoon and only wanted to be resting or getting cuddles. She seemed ok when I picked her up, but both teachers thought that she was probably coming down with something.

She was ok that afternoon, excited to show us the lantern that she had made that day and eager to light it for dinner that night. We had a lovely dinner by candlelight, she was happy and ate up most of her dinner.

Tuesday night she slept fine, coming into our bed early in the morning as usual. When she woke she was quite warm and just asked to lay on the couch. She was complaining of stomach pains, then about 10am she started vomiting. From then on she hasn't stopped. The poor thing has nothing left to vomit, but still her little body is heaving and nothing but bright yellow bile is coming up. She hasn't eaten since Tuesday night, only wanting to drink water. I've tried to get her to have hydrolyte icy-poles, but only managed to get her to take 2 so far over the 2 days.

I took her to the Dr today as she was so lethargic, hot and still vomiting. My normal Dr surgery was fully booked, so after calling around 5 others I finally got an appointment for 10am this morning. Grace really didn't want to have to move. Every time she wasn't laying down she would vomit. I finally managed to dress her and put her in the car with towels all around to catch the vomit.

She was ok in the car, just drifting in and out of sleep, but luckily not vomiting. I had to carry her from the car, which was a little difficult as a) she is 18kg & b) I still had to carry bags and wrangle Xav. I hate Dr's surgeries at the best of times, but with the swine flu epidemic they are just over-run, feral and germs being spread everywhere. I walked in, took one look and wondered whether she would get sicker just from being there. I managed to find a quiet corner that didn't look too feral and set the kids up. Grace had a few more spews whilst we were waiting, which I'm sure the other people waiting were impressed with.

Finally we got to see the Dr. Xav insisted on being the sick person "Doctor, see sore arm...Owie." The Dr amused him and had a quick look, then moved on to the more obviously sick patient. She checked her all over and asked about any medical history. I told her about the recurrent uti's and gave her the urine sample that I had taken this morning. She did the dipstick test, which came back 2 + ketones and 1 + protein, exactly the same as the one a few weeks back. The culture wont be back until Sunday, but given the past experiences the Dr insisted that she had Ab's just in case. Although I am reluctant to give them until it is confirmed, I will in the hope that they will make her better.

She is still so unwell. Her face is pale with a slight tinge of green/yellow. Her normally plump face is sunken and gaunt, with dark black circles surrounding her hollow eyes. She is not well and I hate seeing her this sick. She slept with us last night and spewed 6 times, which did not leave much time for sleeping. She has spent the last 2 days laying on the couch, only moving to be sick and only crying out in pain when her tummy hurts. She wants me to sit with her constantly, which I am happy to do but the 2 y/o doesn't fully understand why I am not at his beck and call. He has been fantastic though, probably due to the free for all TV viewing he is indulging in. Back-to-back episodes of Playschool is keeping him very happy. Little terror has been mimicking Graces spewing noises though, which is not pleasant.

I just hope that she isn't getting dehydrated. She is drinking lots of water but I worry that it isn't enough, especially when she jsut vomits most of it back up. I have an appointment for her at my regular Gp, but hopefully she is on the mend by then.

Xavs 2nd Birthday and party

What a weekend! We have just come off a 3 day celebration in honour of my littlest baby turning 2.

Every year Duane takes the kids birthday off work, this year Xav's fell on a Friday which meant a lovely long weekend together.

I tucked my little boy into bed on Thursday night with a little tear in my eye. I spent the rest of the night annoying Duane, starting every sentence with "This time 2 years we were....." I am still amazed that the last 24 months have gone so quick, and yet on the other hand I really can't remember our family without Xav..strange hey!

I was planning on taking a photo of Xav at 4.07am, but just in case I missed it I took a quick one at midnight, just as the clock tuned to the 17th July.

Xav stirred when I took the pic, so I asked him if he wanted to come into our bed. Ungrateful little sod just told me "NO" and promptly rolled back over. He did come staggering in about 3am though, so I got to have my warm, snuggly cuddles in the end.

Grace had snuck in about 5am, then we all woke for the morning about 7.30am. Nothing better than lazy mornings in a big king size bed with 2 little people snuggled in the middle.

The kids were both so excited that Daddy was here in the morning. Seeing him of a morning is a real novelty for them, he gets up at 4.30am for work during the week and then early on the weekend for golf.


We lazed around on the bed, singing dreadful rendition of Happy Birthday to Xav. I snapped a few sleepy pics, then we all got ready to head out for breakfast.

We headed up to Duane's work for a lovely breakfast. It's become a bit of a tradition to go there for special occasion breakfasts. Its such a lovely place, and usually we are the only ones there so the kids don't annoy too many people! I had a yummy vegetarian omelette that has the most deliciously crispy outside, just devine! Duane had his usual big breakfast and the kids chose fresh fruit salad with raisin toast, washed down with babycinnos and copious amounts of Marshmallows! Yum!

After breakfast we headed home for a quick change into warmer attire as we were heading up the mountain. We were planning on going to O'reilleys to show the kids the wild birds and have a wander through the rainforest, but on the drive up we decided to detour and head to Mt Tamborine instead.

It was a windy trip up the mountain, Grace was looking a little pale a few times, but luckily no heaving was had over the back. We had a quick drive through the village, but pretty much headed straight to the Botanical Gardens.

It was a beautiful clear day, albeit cold and a little windy, but the kids were happy to run around in the brisk mountain air. I used the beautiful backgrounds and happy children to my advantage and went snap happy with my camera. It was a bit tough at times as the lighting was a bit bright, but I still managed to get some good shots. I should have taken my tripod as I was getting a little nervous balancing my pride and joy precariously on uneven benches. I desperately wanted to get some family pics though, I always seem to miss out on being on the "cheese" side of the pictures. However I have marsted the remote control on my camera, so there should now be no excuses!

The kids had a blast going from one section to the next. Xav zoomed by in a whirl of excitement, but Grace the little nature lover, took her time to stop and smell the flowers. There were lots of little seats, winding paths and wooden bridges, and the kids had a great time exploring everything.

After we had been around the whole area, we headed back to the car and made the trip back down the mountain. Both of the kids were buggered and promptly curled up in their car seats and fell asleep.

That night Duane's parents came over for dinner and to give Xav his present which was a wooden 3 storey car garage. Xav loves it and has spent every day zooming his cars up and down the ramps, winding them down the lift and squealing the tyres around the corners. It was a big hit!

~~Cupcakes decorated in melted chocolate!~~

Saturday we spent the day at home cooking, baking and organising for the party on Sunday. We had held off giving Xav his present from us until today, figured we could stretch the gift giving over the weekend! We gave him a shiny red metal ride on car, and he loves it! Grace had picked out some crayons that her school sells, pure beeswax block crayons that make the most beautiful colours. She excitedly gave him her present then promptly took it back, unwrapped it and then gave it to him!

Sunday was party day. I had only wanted a small get together, which was made even smaller by a few people cancelling from being sick. So even though there wasn't any kids Xav's age, he still had a blast playing with everyone.

Making the kids birthday cakes is one of my most enjoyable parts of their birthdays. I love picking out with them what type of cake they want, and then researching how to do it. As Xav wasn't exactly insisting on any particular cake this year, I narrowed it down to a few of his favourite things. It was a toss up between a clock, car or digger. He is going through a very obsessive clock phase though, so in the end we decided on that.

Slight problem though, Xav is still learning how to pronounce the L in clock. I had to stifle laughter when I heard him ask his very straight-laced Poppy where his C*ock was! I figured we had a week or so to teach him how to say it properly before the big event, otherwise it could have been interesting when someone asked what type of cake he had for his party!

Anyway, I know that a straight round clock would have been nice, simple and over and done with quick. However, he does seem to have a thing for Grandfather clocks, so in all my excitement and eagerness I committed to making a Hickory Dickory Dock cake. I searched everywhere online, but couldn't find any that were made out of fondant, only iced ones. So with a bit of creativeness I baked, cut and shaped 3 cakes into a 3d Grandfather clock. I froze the cakes (easier to ice that way) then on Saturday got to work doing the decorations. Fondant is a pain in the butt to work with. I had dyed 3 different colours, enough to make the outside of the cake and also 2 little fondant mice. Every time I went to roll out the brown, it would go streaky and stick to the board. It was a no win situations, I needed to use icing sugar to stop it sticking, but every time I used it the fondant would go streaky. Finally I worked out that if I used icing sugar mixed with cocoa, it would be fine.

~~Grace putting the candles on the cake~~

~~Hickory Dickory Dock~~

Of course I can find a million things that I don't like about it, but overall I'm happy. Xav loved it, so that's the main thing.

Xav was spoilt with lots of lovely presents. A giant wooden floor puzzle, lots of lovely books, 5 much needed t-shirts, a very special car with doors that open, an Iggle Piggle book, a wooden clock and also a car track soft mat. Everything was a hit and has all been played with by both kids.

It was a wonderful weekend, a perfect way to celebrate the youngest member of our family turning 2!

**Stupid Blogger is not putting my photos where I want them. Also took me FOREVER to upload the pics, so not all the ones I wanted are here.

Update on Grace

I just wanted to follow-up on Grace's sickness a few weeks ago.

We took the urine sample to the Doc's, who ran a quick check of it and confirmed that she had a trace of protein and 2 pluses of ketones. Wasn't anything too bad, apparently the ketones are just an indicator of muscle mass breaking down from not eating much.

However, once the urine sample was cultured they found that there was e-coli in her urine - which means UTI. The poor little thing must have been in so much pain, but because she was better before the urine sample came back she fought it all by herself - No Ab's. I really should have figured out that it was a uti, but she wasn't showing the normal signs. She wasn't weeing all time, she was having tummy pains and also the chest pains. I really think that the chest pain and everything else were separate, maybe she did have a bone stuck in her throat as well as the Uti.

As she has had a few, the Dr has requested that we get her kidneys/stomach ultrasound to see if there are any problems. Recurring Uti's can sometimes mean Kidney reflux.

I took the 2 kids along last week for Grace's ultrasound. The appointment was at 10 am and they had asked that Grace only eat her breakfast and to drink as much water as possible. Her bladder must have been full to the brim and just before we were called in she was asking to go wee. Lucky the girl has fantastic pelvic floor muscles and kept holding on.

We walked into the room, and I instantly recognised the Sonographer as the one who had done my 20 week scan when I was pregnant with Grace. She's a very tall, broad (think Amazon!) woman who I remembered as being a little gruff. I had already explained to Grace what was going to happen, but once she was in the dimly lit room with a strange woman and lots of medical equipment around she was a little scared. I explained everything again and then she hesitantly got up on the table.

She was perfect for the rest of the exam. All up it took about 20mins for the sonographer got all her measurements and checks. It all seemed good with no signs of any problems.

Xav was wonderful through it all. He was totally mesmerised by the screen and all the dials and buttons that he was refraining himself from touching. They both were given a sticker at the end becuase of there impeccable behaviuor.


So now we just wait and see if it happens again. If it does she is off for a test that involves dye and an x-ray, so I'm hoping that we can avoid that.

Good night my baby Xav

I've just tucked my little boy into bed for the last time as a 1 year old.

In a little over 5 hours my second born baby will be officially 2 and I'm feeling a bit nostalgic for his babyhood. It felt like I blinked and it was over, one day I was birthing him and now he is a little person - it all has happened way too quickly.

I'm loving the kids stages at the moment, but I'm also finding it hard to wrap my head around not having a baby to look after. Tomorrow I'll have a 2 year old and a 3 1/2 year old, it's all a little strange.

Anyway, tomorrow should be a fun and exciting day. We are heading out for breakfast with the kids then either up the mountain or down the beach, depending on the weather. Xav will be so excited to see Duane when he wakes, it's a very rare occasion that Daddy is here of a morning! Duane always takes the kids birthdays off work, which we all love.

I'm off to bed, I think I might scoop the little boy out of his bed and into mine. I need to have him near me tonight as I try to steal his last hours of babyhood.

I'm also going to put the camera beside my bed and Duane's set the alarm at 4.07am so I can take a picture at the time Xav was born. Slightly pathetic, but one of my rituals as I remember their birth day.

My special two

My 2 little kidlets are just being so adorable lately, my heart sometimes does little flip flops just watching the 2 of them interact together.

They are just so in love with each other, its sometimes sickening to witness. Of course the love is balanced off with plenty of fighting, but most of the time it's just a big love fest.

Our mornings start with 2 little midgets snuggled up to either side (Duane gets up at 4.30, so plenty of room my morning visitors), and a long cuddle in bed when we wake at around 7.30am. The 2 little ones spend a good half hour cuddling up to each other, planting big kisses on each other and having a tickle fest. I get a look in every now and then, only ever as an object to fight over though. Oh, and I am also apparently good for reading them 10 or so books before they want to get up and greet the morning, hence the reason we haven't been rising out into the cool winter mornings until around 8am.

Once we are up the terrible twosome are still joined at the hip. Running around laughing and giggling, playing chasies up and down the hall. One usually calls out to the other, then all I hear is cheeky cackling as they rush past in a blur. Way to much energy for me, I'm more interested in wiping the sleep from my eyes and organising my morning cup of earl Grey tea.

They both have perfected the art of "egging" each other on, most of the time to do something naughty. They stifle laughs as they each encourage mischief to happen. Grace usually instigates with a "C'mon Xav, lets go stand on the table, chase the chickens, jump on Mum & Dads bed, find something really high and dangerous and launch our self off it" They are usually quiet for a bit, then I sit back and enjoy the peacefulness until my curious side takes over.

By now the 2 of them are a quivering mess, way too excited by there naughtiness to listen to any discipline. Grace will finally calm down and stop, but then little Xav pipes up with, "More, go more *Walrus?"

Apart from mischief, they do have a lot of fun playing together. They both crave being outside and the more time they spend out there, the better every ones sanity is. They love organising pretend birthday parties in the sandpit, complete with cakes, treats and presents all wrapped up. I went to the op-shop last week and bought a heap of intricate wooden bowls and stainless steel cooking utensils, which have been a huge hit. I've taken out all the plastic sandpit toys, they prefer to play with real things so all the new stuff is being well used.

They also play this cute little game at every meal. Xav pretends his fork/spoon is a person and trots it up to Grace, saying "Hello" Grace then gets her fork/spoon and stands it beside Xav's and they have long, crazy conversations. It's just adorable and I love watching their imaginations grow together.

I love watching the 2 little souls that we created enjoying each others company. I love watching their love for one another grow, and the genuine compassion they have for each other. Of course they have their moments, but most of the time if one is hurt the other is right there rubbing their "owie" and giving cuddles. That is after automatically saying "It wasn't me, I didn't hit/kick/push/hurt them" Or Xav with his instant "Sorry Walrus", even when he has done nothing wrong!

It's like watching a beautiful friendship as it develops right from the start and I get to witness every moment.

I am really enjoying both of the kids right now. We are having fantastic days, rarely scattered with trying moments. I'm not sure if I'd be jinxing myself, but can I dare say that they are both relatively "easy"? They really are, and I am finding our days run smoothly and we are all having so much fun together! Maybe I'm just getting better at this parenting gig? Or maybe I'm just in a false sense of security, and soon it will all come tumbling down? Who cares, I'm just going to keep enjoying this beautiful time of my life.

*Xav has chosen a very strange nickname to call Grace - Walrus. I have absolutely no idea where he got it from, it's not even a word that I ever remember saying to him. It all started when we were in Tas and he kept saying it all the time. I was baffled as to what he was trying to say, then finally he pointed to Grace when he said it. Since then whenever he talks about or to Grace he calls her "Walrus" and sometimes "Ace" If he calls her Ace, I ask him what the other name he calls her is and he ALWAYS says Walrus. It is very cute as he runs around looking for her saying, "Where's Walrus, Walrus is gone" It's right out of the blue, but the nickname is slowly starting to grow on me, I even find myself calling her that sometimes, and she refers to herself as "Walrus". I wonder if it will stick? Or maybe Xav is channelling my obsession with The Beatles, they have a song called "I am the Walrus"??

Hmmmm.....

So, my husband has bought me this new (well new to us, but still 2nd hand) set of wheels.

**Excuse the crappy photos, they are taken on my little digital which Grace just informed me she dropped. Explains the haze that is all over my pics at the moment.




I drive a Rav 4 at the moment, but it's becoming a bit of a pain if we have an extra passenger as there is only room in between the car seats for a very teeny-tiny bottom. So if Mum comes up or we take Duane's Mum out anywhere, my NOT teeny-tiny bottom gets shoved VERY uncomfortably in the back. I usually only last 5 minutes or so before the complaining starts, so maybe this is to hush me?


Or is it a conspiracy? Maybe my "I only really want 2 kids" husband is getting clucky, and he has a desire for a car with more anchor points? Doubt it, but at least now he can't use the excuse that the car is not big enough.

I mean, check out how huge it is:

Look how much room is in the middle row, enough room between the seats for a humungous bum OR another car seat!

Oh, and what do you know! Another seat that could potentially be vacated by a cute little baby:

Wow, really that other seat on the left can be folded down too? You mean there are 5 spots for car seats, dear husband?

Hmmmm.....you do the math. Currently we are only using 2 of the anchor points. So that leaves me with another 3 car seat spots & then a spare seat, but I'm willing to compromise and just use another 2 of the anchor spots.
I'm generous like that.

Every Woman, Every Choice

In light of the proposed legislation regarding Homebirth, Maternity Coalition are holding a National day of action on the 4th July. I was originally going to go to the rally in Byron Bay, until we decided to hold our own on the Gold Coast. A few girls from the Friends of the Birth Centre & I are organising a rally to be held in Broadbeach tomorrow at 10am.

We've sent out invitations to as many people as we could (good 'ol facebook!), alerted the media and also our local politicians. I wrote to my local MP, who also happens to be one of my good friends husbands - so slightly awkward. I was tossing up whether to go with the casual "friendly" approach, or keep it formal. Astra did suggest I just wrote, "This is crap, oppose it", but I thought I should be a little nicer than that!

I'm a bit nervous about how everything is going to go tomorrow. We spent yesterday making up some banners and signs, then today I decided to quickly make up some bandanna's with "Our Birth, Our Choice" embroidered on them. They turned out well, so I'll had them out to a few people tomorrow. We wanted to do a walk, but as it was a last minute decision to hold the rally, we wouldn't have been able to get council approval in time. So we are just going to set up an area, with some banners, our signs, some information and just hope and pray that people turn up. I'll be happy if we get more than 20 people.

I'm taking the kids, and Grace must have been taking notice when we were making signs yesterday, she's been yelling out "My Birth, My Choice" and "Have a Homebirth". Very Cute. Duane's playing golf in the morning, but has asked how much bail money he thinks he will need to get us all out of jail!

I just think it's a really important cause. If the legislation goes through, it will be a very sad day for women's rights in Australia. I still can't believe that the Government is wanting to make it Illegal for Homebirth with a midwife to happen, for it to be a criminal act. It is so wrong that the choice of where to birth is taken out of our hands and being decided by a bunch of suits in Canberra.

So I'm channelling my inner 70's protester, and doing my bit to put a stop to this outrageous proposal.

Here's the letter I have sent to my local MP, Nicola Roxon (Health Minister) and K-Rudd.


Dear *****,

I am writing to you in regards to the proposed legislation that is going to make homebirth with a qualified Midwife in Australia Illegal.

Recently, draft legislation has been released that affects the ability of women in Australia to birth at home with a registered midwife in attendance. The title of the draft is “Health Practitioner Regulation National Law 2009” and can be found on the website: http://www.nhwt.gov.au/natreg.asp.

The legislation states that from July 2010, health practitioners will need to be registered, and have insurance in order to do so. Unfortunately, no insurance has been made available to Independent Midwives, so they will not be able to register.
The legislation also includes a proposed fine of $30,000 for people who “incite or direct” unprofessional conduct. I can only assume, not being a lawyer, that this would include a woman who offers money to a midwife to attend her birth at home.

I am outraged that Homebirth will be a crime, and that those participating will be treated as criminals. I have had 2 hospital births and was planning on homebirths for any future children; my choice may soon be illegal. I am also planning on studying a Bachelor of Midwifery next year, with the hope of one day becoming an Independent Midwife. If this legislation is passed, I will have to rethink my career choice.

I wonder, if the choice to homebirth is taken away, will women still birth at home, but without a Midwife? Surely this is not a situation that the Government would like to encourage, considering Homebirth with an Independent Midwife has been proven to be a safe option.

This legislation is anti-women, anti-choice, indeed, anti-human rights. Please help prevent this backward step.

I also wanted to let you know that Maternity Coalition is conducting a “Day of Action” to send a message to Canberra that we do not accept being told where we can birth our babies. These rallies will be happening all over Australia, including one in your Electorate.

The details are as follows:
Day: Saturday 4th July
When: 10am
Where: Pratten Park

I urge you to oppose this legislation. Homebirth is not a crime.

Yours Sincerely

Kirsten Penney