Woohoo! Holidays.......Kinda.

Before I started Uni, I scoured the timetable searching for the mid-semester break so that we could have a camping trip. I booked us in for 4 nights down at Lennox Heads (again!) and was really looking forward to a relaxing week of switching my mind off and just enjoying the kids.

And then once I started Uni, I realised that this mid-semester break, is actually a break before my triple-whammy of mid-semested Exams. Eeek. First off I stressed that I would be loosing precious study time, but now I'm going to embrace the break and spend lots of relaxing time beside the lake learning all about Epiphysis and Epiglottisis. I also have an essay that I'm frantically trying to get done before we go, even though it's not due till 30th April - I want the first draft finished and then I can leisurly spend my time tidying it up.

Duane has taken the next week off too, so apart from my study time, we are going to be having some much needed family time. 2 days in, and I'm already loving the lazy mornings and not having to rush everyone out the door by 8am!

I got the result from my first assessment this week and I surprised myself with a HD! It was for a reference portfolio, so although fiddly it was rather easy. Saying that though, most other people I spoke to got between 62-88, so I was a little excited by my result. It only accounts for 10% off my over all grade for that subject, but every little bit helps.

I also got some good news about the Anatomy quiz that shook me up last week. I haven't got the result back yet, but the Lecturer advised us that our Lab group was actually given the wrong quiz - a harder one than we should have got!!!! There is about 300 students and there are 22 in my lab, so ours will only be marked out of 7 questions instead of the 10 that everyone else's will be. Those 3 questions should have been multiple choice, but somehow the multiple choice option was left off. The lecturer was very upset that it happened, and had to report to the Dean of the Uni that there was a problem as it would affect our overall grade. I now that I got at least 5 right, so hopefully now that it is out of 7 I'll get a better grade!

The kids have been great. It seems every time I blink, Grace has matured a little bit more. She's quiet shy now though and finds it really hard to talk to adults, until she warms up. The teachers at school say how quiet she is, but she apparently plays really well with the kids and talks well with them. I'm sure by the time she gets to prep next year (Where did THAT time go!) she'll gain a bit more confidence.

She went along to the Hi-5 concert today with Chelsea and Malia. She was excited about going, even though she hasn't watched hi-5 for about 2 years. She still remembers Nanny taking her to the concert just after she turned 2 though. When she got back today, she said she enjoyed it but there was a bit too many people there. I think the thought of getting dressed up to go out was more appealing to her, as she spent last night and this morning choosing her outfit and swapping it around until it was perfect!

Xav is just being Xav. He's had a big growth spurt over the last few weeks and has grown a few extra centimetres. I only noticed cause before he was stretching to get his tippy toes on the ground when he was riding his balance bike, where now he can do it flat footed. He's a skinny little thing though, you can see every single rib bone on him! He's been a little sick this week, but seems to be over whatever it is now. He just had a clear runny nose and was quiet warm for a few days, so I thought that he must have been coming down with something. He just spent a few quiet days at home with Grandma when I was at school, and seemed to shake whatever it was off quite easily. We are still having daily battles about his specific need for certain things. He is so particular about what bowls/plates he wants to use, and has to have the whole bottom covered in food. I gave him apple the other day that was cut up and didn't cover the bottom of the bowl, and he stood his ground and wouldn't eat it until I had put more in. I've tried standing my ground against him, but it's really not worth the battle and he does eat it all so maybe he's just a really good judge of how much he needs to eat! He's battling with Independence and wanting to do everything himself, but not having all the skills just yet. He's a stubborn little boy though and only asks for help if he has tried his hardest first. Just makes things hard when I'm running to a tight schedule and need to hurry him up. We had an instance this week where after 3 warnings he wasn't dressed in time, so was put in the car in his Pj's. He wasn't really happy with that, so hopefully the lesson has been learnt.

Easter bunny comes tonight and both kids are very excited about his visit. We had a BBQ around at the Dews tonight which was lovely, all the kids had fun going on an egg hunt and also painting hard boiled eggs. They ran around in the back yard playing chasey and hide & seek, it's so lovely to see them all play together and listening to their giggles and laughs. Malia declared that Grace was her friend but she didn't like Xav, and Xav glued himself to Emily's side for the whole afternoon. The kids and I had made little Easter cups for all the kids and we had filled them with straw and some chocolates that we made today.

I wanted to do something special for Easter and to do something that would build the anticipation of the day coming. We made a small inside garden and planted some wheat grass and timed it so it would be in full sprout on Easter Sunday. It's going beautifully and the blades of grass are already about 6 cm's tall, so will be perfect for the morning where I'll cover the garden in small flowers and other little things I've made for the kids. I'll put some pics of that on tomorrow, as well as the Easter egg hunt we have planned!

Anyway, that's my big update. I'm tired and no doubt it'll be an early morning as apart from the kids excitement, we are having Wendy and Trevor around for a yummy pancake breakfast. tomorrow