There's no place like home

We've been away for a week and a bit so no missive from me. Had a lovely time in the sunny Hawkes Bay, staying on an apple orchard. Bax became a little obsessed with apples and carried them around munching all day. One day we went to an open home for a nosey and he even found an apple there to eat as he wondered around the house and garden. Later on in the week when we had gone down to Gissie to see my aunt he got up at 6am and brought G and I three apples in bed!

Both kids got ear ache while we were away but dealt with it very well. It was beautifully crisp weather and very blue skies so perfect for imagining ourselves living down there.

Now we are home, home for the meantime at least. As soon as we gt in, late on Sunday evening, Bax went right around the house checking out all his belongings. There were ahhs and oohs and oh wows to be heard in every room. We sat down to watch a little bit of The Wizard of Oz. Bax danced with the Cowardly Lion and Dorothy as they skipped down the yellow brick road. Home: There certainly is no place like it.

Green Eggs and minding Baxter's Bs 'n' Ps

Watching a little kid learn how to speak English makes you realise just how many words sound alike. Bax has now mastered 'hello' and 'goodbye' and best of all 'no' but when it comes to b and p words they all come out sounding the same: bubble, baby, bubba, bye bye, poppa, puppy, puppet, pocket. I know what he means and he knows what he means but the rest of the world just hears bubba bubba bubba bubba bubba no!

Marvellous thing happened yesterday though. I was dragging Bax around the lawn in a clam shell tied to a piece of string - as you do - when I spied on the grass before me a green egg. Well Bax thought it was a green egg but actually it was a feijoa. In a corner of the garden I had never explored before we have a huge tree spitting out a bumper crop of feijoas! We had a great time gathering them all up in a big purple bucket and hauling them inside to show Dad. He was ecstatic as they are a real favourite. Bax, being a little food-shy, wouldn't try one but he did enjoy bringing them to me and then taking away my 'empties' and posting them into the rubbish bin. Very handy. Normally I want him to try new tastes but with this if he doesn't have any then it's a good thing, as Mum would say "all the more for me!" and I know that as soon as he does brave a try he'll be as hooked as the rest of us are.

Mass hysteria and Mall crawlers

Went to the mall. After daycare. Never having two concepts been so missmatched.

H was having a nightmare re her papa in Vietnam so we went to have tea and the proverbial sympathy. Managed to get a few much needed birthday and new-baby gifts and also to chat to a pimply youth about laptop vs palm pilot stuff (when I said to him that I wanted a word about PDAs he looked very confused, perhaps he thought I meant 'public displays of affection' rather than 'personal display a...'(whatever the 'a' stands for)).

The kids were great until Bax decided to eat a packet of coffee sugar. Piled him and Izzie into the car and pretty quickly got trapped in a traffic jam. Both kids go so mad at one stage that Bax pulled Izzie's muslin over his head so he could scream in peace and quiet. Then right on the motorway he managed to not only open his door but also to wind down his window - I wound it back up again from my master switch in the front and for a while we played power games with the window, but that was nothing to having about six people drive past me miming "Your back door's open!!" with me miming back "I know, I've got a kid here on a serious sugar high and a bawling baby to match, a loose back door is the very least of my nightmarish problems on this sunny afternoon!.

swimmin' 'n' shoppin'

Bax didn't fancy the twisties for lunch in the end and opted instead for luncheon on rice cracker. Spent ages trying to keep the luncheon exactly on top of the rice cracker as they were exactly the same radius - perhaps he's autistic.

Off to the Parnell Pools for the afternoon to enjoy the tail end of summer. Bax loved it, Liv almost drowned and Izzie slept through the whole thing...pretty typical then!

Had to do a supermarket shop too. Spent the first half leisurely wandering around, then izzie started screaming so we spent the next ten minutes running down aisles haphazardly throwing random items into our trolley. Not the best way to get a nutrious diet into the whanau.

Walking in the sunshine

Took the kids out to Henderson to walk the Green Network up to the new Stadium - don't I sound like I know about what the council does!

On the way home had another nosey around the inorganic and found a better seat for our go-cart.

Picked up milk and the lady in the dairy gave Bax a bag of Twisties - damn it - he wouldn't give them up and went to bed crying for them. Now I have a problem...do I throw them out while he's asleep or do I keep them for his lunch like I promised I would...

Captain Jim Budgie

So off we went to Ethan's pirate party, all dressed up. G had on the full kit and caboodle with mask and headscarf et al. Izzie had a skull and cross bones stretch and grow on (made it myself!) Bax had on a stripy tee and some ragged pants, he ditched his hat and patch before we got in.

G was so realistic that little Oscar burst into tears when he saw him.

Bax was the littlest invitee and spent most of the time running around after loose balloons and eating chocolate crackles.

Izzie slept through the whole thing and only two people saw her outfit!

Home now, both in bed, and me working. Lovely sunday night in Autumn. All snug and cozy after a fun day.

Lord of the (Burger) Rings

On the way home from daycare yesterday I bought Bax a treat. Bribery for having to send him to daycare when he wasn't feeling very well. Bought him a little bag of Burger Rings. I was driving and handing them to him in the bag seat one at a time - just handing them over without looking back to see what he was doing. Seemed to be going through them pretty quick. When I stopped I had a look and there he was with two burger rings on each finger and a whole lot stuffed into his hand. I thought "Cheeky monkey" and I said "Can Mummy have one?" "NO!" He said. He had stashed half and eaten half - pretty good thinking for 20months.

Poppa arrived right on 5pm and I had to hug him I was so pleased to see him. Izzie hungry and Bax throwing a tanti. G was stuck in traffic and not due home til after six. I handed Poppa Bax and a beer and he seemed happy.

Today we're baking and getting ready for the Pirate Party at the Clark's on Sunday.

Miss Behavin and the King of Puke

After feeling really tired last night, tired but happy and proud of my kids, was awoken by Bax in the middle of the night crying. Got him up and in with us where an hour later he vomitted all through my nice new clean white sheets, his hair, my pjs etc. Izzie woke up because of all the noise we were collectively making. G washed B down and tucked him up and we all fell asleep again...until 7 when the phone woke us, G's sis L has just had a baby boy, Jasper. All's well.

This morning Bax spewed again but seemed happy enough, jumping around and chatting. I took him off to daycare and went to work with Izzie in tow. Haven't had a call from the daycare yet so fingers crossed it was just a hair ball or something.

Izzie isn't sleeping today. Very tired but refuses to close her eyes for more than five minutes. I'm working anyway, just reaching down every now and then to pop her dummy in.

Pizza for tea.

First day with a new toy

This is the first time I've tried this - after hearing so much about it. Thought it might be a nice way to let my Mum check out what our family is up to. It'll be interesting to see if I actually have enough time in my life to keep it up-to-date. Bit of an experiment really.

Today Baxter is at daycare and seemed pretty happy to go in, no crying. He bowls on in like he owns the joint. Was met at the door by Olivia who got a shoulder ride to daycare from her Mum - a funny site.

Isabella has been a fussy feeder for a day or two but just sculled about 150 mls and I think she's gone to sleep now. Won't go and check because that might wake her or distract her from going off if she isn't already!

I've got lots of work to do so I shouldn't be doing this...let's just call it research!