To My Stalkers

Hi there, spunky trunks.  Yes, you.  The hottie that faithfully clicks on my page, even though I've not posted in .. oh .. forever.  You are my favourite person.  People, even!  My little visitor counter down the bottom of my blog is clicking over because of you.  So you earned something special.  A blog post.

I can see you jumping up and down with excitement.  I'm so glad I can make you happy.

Of course I'm kidding.  I doubt anyone is actually reading this anymore.. but hey, it's worth a go, right? :)

Firstly I will update you on all the boring stuff.  My kids aren't boring, at least not to me, but it's the small talk I have to write before I can give you all the latest goss.

Eli is now 6.  SIX.  Older than 5.  Crazy. Town.  He's in grade 1, which is basically like saying he's grown and left home.  It just blows my mind that he's so... OLD.  But along with the age has come something else that's quite satisfying.  Self awareness.  He is SO conscious of being a good person, doing the right thing, behaving properly and generally just being awesome.  He is the child I hoped I would eventually have, but never really believed I would.  He's doing wonderfully at school, and he is indeed the teacher's pet.  Not once did I see that coming.  But I'm so uber proud of him for it.

Sullivan is almost 4.  (September).  He hit the threenage years with a bit of a vengeance.  I was slightly more prepped for his crazy burst than I was for Eli's, which was a very good thing, but I thought I might have gotten away without a terrible tantrum throwing two year old when BAM!  He put his foot on the accelerator and left me in his hissy-fit-throwing dust.  Not to worry.  He's almost through it.  At least.. I hope so.  In there is still my extremely soft and kind little boy, and every now and then he wanders out to play.  I love those times.  He's so very special.

Arlington (who I don't think I've formally introduced) is our third and most wonderfully wild little man.  He was born in August 2013, after a little bit of a prod (A.R.M - artificial rupture of membranes, AKA water breakage) and it's a lucky thing he came when he did!  I managed to (basically druglessly) heave out a 10lb 4oz BOOF head.  I distinctly remember thinking that his birth was much more difficult than that of Sully or Eli.. it was SO TOUGH to get him out.  But I did it.  And I'm alive.  So, yay.  Arlington (Arlo/Arley) is my wild child.  He climbs.  On. Everything.  He loves to draw.  On. Everything.  He is not gentle with the adopted cat that lives here.  I'm almost certain she has bald spots.  If he could ride her around the yard, I'm sure he would.  He is certifiably the most crazy, bad-ass kid I have.  And yet.  He's so extremely cute and cuddly and deceptively sweet looking that it kind of makes it all ok.  He has Sully's softness and Eli's passion (for mischief/getting his way).  He's incredibly stubborn, and loves his brothers with everything he has.  He will occasionally give out kisses and cuddles, but not for everyone.  It's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen, when I watch him playing happily.  His smile melts me.  He's very, very, VERY cool.

So that's the chit chat, about the kids and what's up.  Now on to me.

I have launched a new business!  Why?  I'm not sure, maybe I wasn't busy enough.  Definitely bored or something.  But I'm really excited about it...

Meet my newest 'baby', Love Illuminated.

Big Love, the sign you will see prominently displayed on our website, is the first of many super cool light props we have for hire for weddings and events.  I am the designing mastermind, and I have minions doing the nitty-gritty/hard work.  It's been amazing so far, and I honestly cannot wait to see where this venture takes me.  I read somewhere that to be successful you have to work 'on' the business, not 'in' the business.  So I'm focussing on removing myself from the major equation.  Not only because I want to be able to conduct business in my PJ's, but also because I can't be away every weekend (or even every week day) from my littlings.  They will always come first.  But who says we can't have it all, right? ;)

Now that I've shamelessly plugged my (insanely fab) business, why don't you check out the site, and then write a little comment to let me know my blog posts are being seen by at least the 2 of you who log on and visit me every few hours.. ;)

A. xo

Staring down the barrel..

It's week 31 of my third (yes, THIRD) pregnancy.  We are having a third (yes, THIRD) boy.

So, in case you were wondering, no, it wasn't "worth" trying for a girl.  It didn't work.  BUT, it was most definitely "worth" trying for another adorable baby.. I'm actually really excited about it all.

We're in the process of organising the rooms for the boys now.  We've ordered the mattress for the second bed in Eli's room, and I've got all the goodies I wanted to get to decorate the new one's room.. The only dilemma I now face is how to shuffle sleeping times and making sure everyone gets the undisturbed sleep they deserve.. (read: me..) I also invested in an amazing hammock - I have EVERYTHING crossed that he likes it..  In any case, it's called the Happy Hangup.  It's seriously the prettiest hammock that I have ever come across, and seems to be a hit with other people's babies...

I guess I'm worried about little things, like with the addition of any new child.  I have never been a mother of three before, so it's all a little bit daunting.  I'm sure that I'll be ok though.. I mean, if I can do pregnancy with 2 kids, surely a newborn is equal to or perhaps slightly less than that?  I'm pretty tired now, and on top of it, I'm sore and stiff, so maybe, just maybe I'll simply be tired and not sore?  Wishful thinking maybe.... I'll let you know how I go.. ;)

A. xo  

Schleeeep and a biscuit

I wanna snooze. Nap. Sleep. Doze. Pass out. Conk out. Slumber. Fall into the open arms of Morpheus. Catch 40. I'm freakin' tired...

We've been visiting my family in Kingaroy since Thursday (hubby had some local work to finish off -- go figure!) and as great as it's been, I'm wrecked.  Eli is overtired and crabby, and Sully cannot seem to sleep for more than 2-3 hours a time at night.  He might be hungry - true.  But he eats almost his entire body weight in food (solid) every day, breaky lunch and dinner, and has ALL his breast feeds in between, and no matter how much I feed him before bed, he wakes up almost exactly 3 hours later.  I'm going blind, I can't think, my head feels like someone hit it with a hard object at quite a pace.  I'm annoyed too.  This was meant to be my easy baby, and he is in some ways, but he's NOT SLEEPING!!!

I've been debating within myself recently whether or not we'll *try* again for a girl.  It's probably not the ideal time to be thinking about it while my eyes are tripping me over (hanging out of my head, get it? Never mind...) but I am becoming less and less sure I even want to do this again.  The cons are currently outweighing the pros, by a long, long, LONG way.  It kind of makes me sad sometimes, the thought that I will never get my little lady, but having another baby doesn't guarantee that anyway.  I don't know.. I'm just too tired to care right now.  Besides, let's face it, I want to live a life at some point outside of motherhood and having child after child will not get me there any quicker...

Anyway.. I keep looking for tips and tricks on how to make a baby sleep.  The truth is, I don't think there are any that really do work.  There are kids with genuine issues that need sorting, granted, but Sully used to sleep 5 hours, and then 3 hourly after that.  Now he can't, and I don't know why.  I don't do anything different, and yet his sleeping patterns are all over the shop.  The only consolation is that I know it will end at some point.  Eventually, he will not be breast feeding anymore, he won't need cuddles and kisses to sleep, he flat out won't really even need me, so I guess I have to try and enjoy the sleepless nights while I still have a dependent cuddly little baby to snuggle with.  They grow up so fast..

A. xo

Light and fluffy

I typed out a whole blog entry and was about to press publish, when I realised that my computer does not have auto correct...

Not to worry.  I can do this... I think.  Bear with me!

I wanted to tell you some cool stuff about my kids, cos I love them to pieces, and I think you should too.  So.  Get comfy.

My eldest son, Eli, is unquestionably hilarious.  He's full of beans, and drives me CRAZY, but he's really honestly funny.  I often find him stretched over two pieces of furniture, at which time he announces he is a bridge.  He's clever, and knows a little too much about too much.  But he has this amazing softer side, when I kiss his head, he'll say out of the blue ~ I love you so much mummy ~ and I swear I nearly lose it every time.  He'll tilt his head to the side and smile, the most incredibly cute cheeky smile, and he knows I cannot resist his charms.  Occasionally, I'll enter a room and he'll say "..nothing", which we all know means "I'm being mischievous".  It's a laugh a minute, minus the crying (from me) and the tantrums (from both of us).

Sullivan.  Well.  I've never known such a sensitive soul.  I'll tell you a story about something that happened the other day.  I was chastising Eli, while holding Sully.  I stormed out of the room and in doing so, Sully's little feet hit the doorway as I walked through.  He was so distressed about all of this, thinking that I had perhaps done this to him as some sort of punishment (when it was directed at Eli) that it took him a full 5 minutes for him to look at me.  I was literally chasing his gaze and he would avoid eye contact.  He's 5 months old.  I was amazed.  I'll have to be very very mindful of how I discipline him, where Eli takes a lot of *encouragement* to behave, Sully will most definitely not need the same level of coercing.  I felt terrible, just so you know..   He's so smiley and happy, even when you know he's so tired and bored that all he'd like to do is crash out in bed all afternoon, he still smiles.  He really only cries when he's got poop in his nappy.  He's honestly the easiest baby to love... and he's really cute. But I guess I have to say that, don't I?

I'm so glad I have my children.  I couldn't imagine living a life without them - as tired as I am, and as much as some days I miss my freedom to sleep..  I think every married couple needs a baby or two, you know, just to keep things real.  They're only babies for such a short time, and the sleeplessness is such a small part of it in the long term.  I have more than likely posted about this sort of thing before, but seriously, if you don't have one, have one.  They fill your life with such love and joy, and you have a friend for life - if you treat them right.

A. xo

Baby Opinion Speaking Syndrome

B.O.S.S.

It's a poorly documented, but very real problem, affecting any woman of any age.  It's insidious nature means that people of any race, religion, creed or colour can become overtaken by the symptoms of BOSS.  BOSS usually presents at first with an obsession with reading parenting magazines and books.  From there, this disease takes hold and spreads to mother's groups, blogs (such as this) and constant facebook posting.  Due to easy transmission, BOSS has practically taken over mums around the globe, causing them to not only compete with one another on the "quality" of their parenting choices, but also to earbash each other with their personal opinions.  At it's worst, BOSS has been known to cure the incurable friendship, and break parenting groups apart. . .

Ok, so maybe it's not a real disease, but I totally think (myself included) that when a woman becomes a mother, she gets a certificate of BOSSiness, valid for eternity.  It's not necessarily something she wanted, or needed, but she gets it.  It's a part of the hormonal mess that is motherhood.  All of a sudden, even though you may have never or never will experience some of the things you seem overly concerned with (breast feeding/formula feeding, smacking, bedtime practices, food for toddlers etc etc - trust me, the list goes on and on and on and onnnnn) you are THE expert with THE opinion to be known.  Even the most even tempered mums have at least one topic that they're keen to "share" their knowledge about.  The worst offenders, however, seem to be the older generation, who have literally got ALL the answers, despite newer research, studies and scientific proof that they are indeed wrong.

Oh, and don't bother trying to tell a mother she is wrong.  You'll probably get a lot more than you bargained for.

So.  What is my point??  My point is this:  opinions are like belly buttons, everybody has one (yes, that line is plagiarised..).  Experience, however, is not as common, nor is the poorly named "common sense".  The latter is surprisingly rare in fact... And even though the dominating factor in all of this is the children,  the child itself varies greatly in innumerable ways.  Something might be ideal, in an ideal situation, with the ideal parents and the ideal child.. but basically, that scenario is about as likely to occur as the moon turning red and falling into the ocean.. Get my point?  It's fine to have an opinion.  Ok to express it.  But when someone (another mother perhaps) disagrees, or chooses to ignore your point of view, don't be offended.  She's just got a case of BOSS that's about as bad as yours!!

A. xo

UPDATE..... OMG...

Oh wowee.. I didn't realise how long it's been since I posted anything.  I'm a naughty blogger.

Not to worry!!

Ok, so long story short, I'm not pregnant anymore (thank heavens for that!! haha) I have instead a gorgeously handsome new little boy baby we named Sullivan Cole.  He's such a dreamboat and I am officially in love with him. :o)

He was born on September 20th of last year (2011) at 3.50pm after a really amazing labour!  Let me fill you in.

On Tuesday morning, at 39 weeks and 1 day, I woke up feeling as good bad as every other day in the past fortnight.  I was so uncomfortable and felt sick most of the time.  But that was ok, I knew that it would all come to an end soon enough.

I puddled around, organised Eli some food, had a snack myself, tidied up the house a little bit (as best I could with what felt like dislocated hips..) and sat down to relax and surf the net on my phone.  10 minutes later I heard a pop, which kinda felt like a balloon popped in my pelvis, and I paused, knowing that this was more than likely that infamous "pop"before a "gush" of "waters".  I leapt off the couch with speed greater than any I'd shown during my entire pregnancy, just in time for the flood.  I stood there, with water literally pouring onto the floor.  I was SO HAPPY!!!!  Of course, this means it's time to have the baby I'd been dying to meet.  It was all going to come to a climactic end TODAY! *insert delirious screaming here*

While I was standing there like a human waterfall, Eli walked in and dramatically paused, announcing, "Mummy!! You're weeing!!"  No baby, no.  Go get mummy her bath towel darling.. and off he ran to save the day.  He was awesome too, cos he returned lightning fast with my towel and went about helping me clean up.  I let all the relevant parties know what was going on and soon had mum and aunty in my house, making me food, asking me frequently if I had had any contractions.  About 11.30am-12pm (an hour or so later) I started getting gentle contractions.  They weren't overly painful and were irregular - about 6-8 mins apart.  Every time I moved I would get another one, I'm thinking if I'd just got up and moving it would've been an extremely quick labour - as in, quicker than it already was - but I was still waiting for Hubby to arrive from 3hrs away, so I didn't want to speed things up until he got there. :o)

At about 1.30 I decided I should go and shower, to get comfy and obviously clean.  The contractions were getting worse, but not unbearable, and they were about 5 minutes apart (regular).  I jumped into the shower, and they instantly intensified.  I don't know if that was because I was standing (quite possible) or if it was the heat, but the shower ALWAYS works for me at getting things going.  By 2pm-ish I decided to go to hospital.  Hubby still hadn't arrived, so we called him and told him to meet us at the hospital.

When we got there, they strapped some monitors on me to see how the contractions were measuring.  For 15-20 minutes they made me stay there, and the machine failed.. it didn't measure a single contraction!! I was starting to fret a tiny bit, because these buggers were really starting to hurt!!  They were about 3 minutes apart, and lasted around a minute.  At around 2.45 I wanted to get into the shower.  I was there for all of 10 minutes (on a hard plastic chair.. uncool people..) when I decided I wanted some drugs.  It was getting gnarly by then and I didn't fancy the thought of pushing a baby outta me with no drugs on board...

Mum and Hubby started to recognise the signs of transition (that really intense bit right before the pushing stage) and they all hurriedly got my out of the shower to do an internal exam.  I got back to the bed and dressed (don't remember how to be honest) and they did a VE.  I was 8CM!!!! You can imagine how pleased that made me... :o))))

Within the next 10-15 minutes (or by about 3.20pm) I was in delivery suite.  I started sucking down on that gas like no man's business, and begged for something QUICKLY, as I knew it wasn't going to be long.  It was too late for anything more than the gas, so they just kept telling me to keep going, keep breathing and that it wouldn't be long now.  I declared at that point that I was quitting.  I wasn't going to push.  Cut the baby out.  I'm done.  It would've been funny to watch a high as a kite labouring woman say such ridiculous things - but I believed it.  ;o)

All of a sudden I felt the need to get on all fours.. so they organised me and then it was time to push.  OH MY GOD!!! What an amazing feeling.  It's a welcome pain after the agony of those last few contractions prior to that point.

Sullivan was born with 2 big pushes and some panting, and had his cord over his shoulder and down his belly.  This meant that when he came through the birth canal his cord was compressed, limiting his oxygen for a good few minutes.  He was very limp and grey and they worked him pretty hard to get him empty of fluid and breathing well.  But!  All is well, and it didn't take long and he was thriving!  They put him on my chest and he managed to wriggle his way down and attach for his first feed.

He is amazing, and Eli is a great big brother.  They are going to terrorise me when they're both older.... :o)  I can't wait.

A. xo

Random update!

It's been almost 10 weeks since I was last on here.. and since then, nothing much has changed except the date.  Oh, and I'm 17.5 weeks along now, instead of 8..

I'm starting to feel ok.. not great, but ok.. I'm run down, very tired and cannot seem to get on top of my health at this point.  Just today I've woken up with a full blown cold.. ugh.  Just what I needed...

Also, we've decided not to find out the sex of the baby until birth.  That's exciting news.. cos you'll have to wait and see and keep checking back to know what we've had.  Any time around September 26th we should all know! :)

Lastly, but certainly not least-ly.. My darling little munchkin man has turned 2.. It's come with a bang, that's for sure.  He's strutted into terrible twos with all his might.  He's great, as you probably could guess, and I love him to bits.  BUT I cannot wait for him to go to Kindergarten.... ;)

That's all for now, as I'm overtired and quite frankly feeling crappy.

A. xo