Birthday Boy(s)

Oh do stop growing please!  Hugo turned 4 last week.  FOUR! And of course his dad celebrated another birthday too.  It's pretty fun having half of our families birthdays on the same day.  I documented the day in photos, though of course there's a disproportionate amount of photos of the youngest member of our family.  We didn't fancy following Will around at work with a camera, though I managed to snap this one later in the evening of him receiving his gift...a frying pan.  Yep.  Exciting stuff huh, but really it's what he wanted! 

Our day was spent cycling to the balloon shop where Hugo picked out balloons (of course) and party hats.  He chose green as his colour of the day because he said it was daddy's favourite colour and its his birthday too you know.  It was great fun cycling home with helium balloons tied to our bikes! 

He played with his birthday presents. Favourites include a spinning top, glockenspiel and marbles.

 

 There was a lot of running around like maniacs with the balloons and we made a cake which Hugo didn't eat because, well, kid doesn't like cake!  Must be something to do with being born on the 5th of April as his father doesn't like cake either.  More for Dex and I!

And we finished the day with a late night dance party.  Hugo danced so hard he ended up crashing out in my arms about 2 minutes after asking for a cuddle around 10pm.  Dexter is still telling everyone how he stayed up until nearly midnight!  

Dancing Shoes

 Extremely cheap* canvas shoes + fabric markers = easy way to pass a rainy afternoon.

 Hugo finished his and announced 'these are my dancing shoes, they make me feel like dancing!'  So dance they did!

*$6 for Dexter's size 13 and $4 for Hugo's size 9 from Kmart.  Seriously, I don't want to think too much about the price because shoes sold for so little surely can not be manufactured under ethical conditions, can they?

Tuesday: Experiment Day

The blogging may have come to a stand still but let me assure you our Tuesday: Experiment Days have not.

Here is a photo journal of this weeks fabulous, simple yet thrilling, experiment comprising the easier than easy ingredients of milk, food colouring and detergent.  Oh and a borrowed book from these lovely folk from which we drew our inspiration.  

It was so much fun the boys demonstrated the whole experiment again for Will when he popped home for lunch.  And have requested that they do it all again for their awesome babysitter Becca when she babysits them on Friday.   Why not?!

Dog farts and giggling fits

Here's a little moment from our day yesterday.  Two small boys giggling their butts off over dog farts.  Offending dog not pictured.  But it was bad, real bad.

Little steps

It's difficult to know where to start or how to explain my absence from this space without just coming right out and saying it.

 So. Because I want to share it and because it's been an experience so huge for me that I can't move forward without acknowledging what we've been through I'm going to tell you just where I've been.

A few short - but long, so, so long - days ago we were preparing our family for a new member. I was 16 weeks pregnant. Four months. I'd been writing my blog post to announce this wonderful news in my head for weeks but in the mad rush to Christmas and the level of crazy that life takes on during the festive season - on top of morning sickness and general pregnancy weariness - I never got the chance.

Now, sadly, I haven't such joyful news to share. I lost my baby 2 weeks ago, at home, supported by my wonderful midwife. The story of my too-soon birth is huge. Too huge for here. But let's just say that physiologically it's been one hell of a journey...so much so that my heart is only now beginning to catch up to the loss of my baby girl as I lay in bed, new iPad in hand :), recovering from anaemia.

 I could say so much more but I wouldn't know when or how to stop. I could begin a rant and rave about the stark difference in my care between my beautiful home birth midwife and the hospital staff whom I sought help from when my body needed it. Or I could tell you instead about the storm that was brewing but never broke the evening we buried our daughter. Or about my wonderful mum moving in to take care of my boys and I while I build up my blood supply and begin my journey of recovery. Or the amazing support of my friends who have provided meals, child care, a shoulder to cry on and shown such kindness and love I could never repay them. Or.... See? Where to stop? Too huge.

So now I am taking little steps. Back to Normal Life. To blogging. To leaving the house - 17 days and besides hospital and doctor visits so far just one outing....to the pet food store for cat food yesterday afternoon. Big moment! Back to reading my boys their bedtime stories, feeding them and playing with them. Back to my body which no longer contains a new life, a wee baby who should have been entering our lives in June.

 Little steps...

A Doily Ornament

I snuck in a little time at the sewing machine the other day.  To finish off those stockings.  Which are still a work in progress but close, close to completion.  Of course the kids followed me upstairs and set to creating their own little creations.  Here is Hugo's 'Christmas fire engine'. 

And my, Dexter out did himself with this embroidered Santa ornament don't you think?!  I helped a little with the final sewing together, it's tricky business turning fabric in a circle while sewing when you are only six- though he is becoming more and more a master of the sewing machine every time he uses it.

Beginning to look like Christmas...

Growing up we always decorated our tree on my sister's birthday, December 1st.  This year was no different.  What is different though is we've left the fake Christmas tree in it's tub under the house and instead bought this lovely living tree from the nursery.  We'll hopefully one day plant it in the ground, though it may have to wait until we move house as our little garden is about as full as it can be for now.  It's a Norfolk Pine, how about that you guys?!

Dexter and Will put up some fairy lights outside on the weekend...

I began a project that has been on my to do list every christmas for years now.   Home made stockings! Cut from an old table cloth I found at the Salvo's a few weeks ago.  Do you think I will be able to finally tick it off my list?  Fingers crossed, it's still sitting exactly like this on the floor, but I should be able to find a couple of hours to sew them all up and perhaps even hand embroider our names on each one sometime in the next two weeks.

I whipped up this little bunting the other day.  A quick easy sew, just the kind I should probably stick to if I ever want to finish something!