It's begining to feel a lot like Christmas

Well Christmas time is upon us...the mad rush to get all the presents bought and wrapped is almost over (well dh will be off into battle to finish the shopping this evening). Nearly all the pressies are bought and wrapped, clothes are pretty muched packed, toiletries too. Just got a few more bits and pieces to do - a card to make for my lil brothers wedding which is a few days after xmas, etc.

There is always one thing that you can't find that stresses you out though isn't there? I can't find Brett's xmas stocking anywhere - now in the scheme of things that is really insignificant but it is driving me nuts.

Gotta say though that I feel sorry for my poor hubby already.

yOu see I'm a little bit insane when it comes to trips....really you say? surprised? rofl ok maybe not surprised.

Somehow, somewhere along the line I decided that 10am was a good time to leave if you are going on a long car trip. Common sense says not too leave too late and the 'i hate morning' part of me says not too early girly! So I like to leave at 10am....to the point where I get frantically stressed and turn into the mega bitch from hell should we look like we won't be leaving at the aforementioned time. Dh had it all worked out last time - he sent me to do a last minute errand and when i got back everything to go in car was in the driveway and it then took 10min to pack the car and we were off without tooo much stress! Now most of the pressies have been sent on ahead of us anyway and Mum has a portacot/pram/bedding etc so we really only have to pack clothes and just a few extra pressies and toiletry bag, the kids night time toys and our pillows - shoudln't be a drama really....i hope....

Now just have to take a big deep breathe and calm down - an 850km odd trip with 3 small boys should be an adventure - not torture.....yeah right!

I have my life back....

I got it out! woohooooo!!!!!

spider solitaire is taking over my life......

When we got the new PC with xp I discovered new games...one game of spider solitaire and I was hooked. Got it out with one suit then with two and now the 4 suit version has taken over my life...I am playing 'just one game' everytime I come near the computer! I have things to do but til I get it out it keeps calling me back....it should come with a health warning! rofl....

anyway i have things to do so I'm off...after just one more game!

A few years ago we started a new xmas tradition. We have dinner with a few of our closest friends jsut before xmas. This gives us a chance to catch up with friends and gives in a little to my hubby's xmas tradition of the full roast meal which I refuse to cook on xmas day.
So tonight we had xmas dinner - six of us and it was cool to sit down and relax a bit - especially after the stress of getting everything cooked and the place respectable etc...why do we stress ourselves out over stuff like that!?

Gran's funeral on the weekend went really well - can a funeral go well? it really was a celebration of her life, as it should be....tears were shed of course but there was an air of 'joyful sadness' as my dad so eloquently put it. She had a good send off anyway and would be happy with the way family came together.

xmas shopping almost done... jsut a few more bits to finish off now....it's a race to get it all done!

Tomorrow is usually my day to run errands etc but car is being serviced so might just stay home instead...well perhaps a bit of a walk ...will see. dh's xmas dinner for work tomorrow night too.

I made some bookmarks for the girls at the boys daycare instead of xmas cards...dh will give them to them tomorrow when he drops them off, hope they like them.

Goodbye Gran

My Gran died early on Sunday morning.

She had been ill for a long time. She broke her hip several years ago and then moved in with my uncle and slowly but steadily her health deteriorated. She had been suffering from emphasemna for a long time already after years and years of steady smoking. Last time I saw her was over a year ago...I was planning to visit again on my way home from Mum's for Christmas...to show her her newest great grandchild. I'm told that her memory was fading - indeed last time I spoke to her she asked who's daughter I was but thankfully at the time was able to answer the question herself. My Gramps died back in '78 so she has been missing him a long long time and is now reunited with him, she was ready to go. She had told me that last time I saw her.

In a way it is a bit odd but I am mourning the Gran who I remembered, that Gran (through illness) has been goone a long time.

This is the Gran I remember...the Gran I love..

She was exactly 5 foot tall - I remember it being a big achievement to be taller than her.
She grew up in Glasgow, Scotland and her accent was thick, we were 'wee bairns' to her.
She could talk - those that know me - I could barely get a word in edgewise with her - that is where I got it from, she had so many stories to tell though, I loved to listen to her.
She could sing! Especially at church. She would sit at the back at church (because she used to run the liturgy (sp?) stall in the foyer before and after mass) but her voice would lead the whole congeration in song. Her voice was very deep and she sang with passion. I remember as a child sitting with her, particularly at Christmas as she sang 'A little drummer boy' she rolled her r's as she sang...I sing that song quietly to myself every xmas with my crappy voice and remember the way she sang it - I wish we had taped it once to play to my children.
She had a terrible temper - we didn't see it often but when we did ....wow...not that she ever hit anyone, she didn't need to! I remember when 'Dirty Dancing' came out on video. We had hired it and loved it.. so at our regular breakfast/morning tea after Sunday mass we had been saying how good it was. Gran had a bit of a 'thing' for Patrick Swayze at the time so she borrowed it to watch. I went to go pick it up to return to the video store later that day on my bike. WELL, she opened the door and had it in one hand waving it around and the other hand on her hip and she was yelling 'this is disgusting!' it went on and on for a bit and I didn't knwo where to look - she didn't approve of the sex etc...I remember wishing the ground would open up and swallow me at the time.
She loved us and she loved her great grandchildren. When we were children she always had those tiny little hard musk lollies, she had them at home and in her bag for us. She was never to busy to play with us, sing with us, talk with us. Even as she got ill she loved to watch her great grandchildren.
She used to paint beautifully...she gave it up years ago because of her asthma and emphasemna and the paint fumes but her oil paintings were beautiful.

She was loving and caring and passionate, she was full of LIFE and laughter, she was my Gran. And now she is reunited with the love of her life who she has missed for 28 long years, may they watch over their great grandchildren as they grow.

queen procrastinator reigns supreme!

I have so many things I need to get today...washing done and folded, master bedroom cleared so we can move our bed back in there (having just moved the boys out of there), lounge room needs tidying and kitchen floor is horrible....kids are asleep and what am I doing? falling asleep myself...I'm sooo tired today I just want to sleep.

my day with Santa and the boys

Well I'm good aren't I? Start a blog and after two days I forget for a week...oh well it happens!

I had to have the car today to take Owen to speech therapy (that means getting up and dropping dh at work by 9am and picking him up again at 5.30pm but luckily work is only 15min away). So I had the kids all up and dressed and breakfasted so we dropped him at work then browsed the shops for a bit to kill half an hour as it wasn't worth coming home and going back again....well after we waited some time at speech I felt something was amiss...as it turns out the therapist had turned over an extra page by mistake and had booked him if for next week instead of this week by mistake! She was very apologetic but tis all ok as I was in a nice relaxed mood anyway...so relaxed in fact that I had already decided to chance the big shopping centre 30min away for Santa photos! Well we had them taken without too many hassles - just Owen HAVING to go do wee's when it was our turn next (we swapped our number with the person behind us and took off at a run). Santa was really good with the kids - some santa's I've seen are very reluctant to hold the really little ones but he was happy to have the three of them (4, 2 & 7weeks today!)...we had lunch in the food court while waiting for the photos then came back to collect them but they weren't ready yet so sat to wait for a bit. While I was waiting a lady sat beside me to feed her little one and asked how old the boys were. When I told her she thought I was incrediably brave and thought it was amazing that i was out and about with 3 boys...but my answer just made sense....some days you just aren't up to it so don't go out unless you have to! IF you want to do things like santa pics choose a day when YOU are relaxed and then keep reminding yourself that it is meant to be FUN for the kids not just about getting a photo for mum so when I start to feeel a bit stressed I try to take a deep breath and calm down and look at my three beautiful boys who all LOVE ME (even if they drive me insane some times) and I think I just about have to be THE luckiest woman on earth.....this of course was reinforced when i got home and turned the engine off and heard the gentle snoring of three little men lol!

why is playgroup so exhausting?

really....it mostly involves sitting around and talking to other mums for 2 hours whilst keeping an eye on a bunch of overenergetic children (in the case of our playgroup mostly boys). So why am I exhausted at the end of the session??? Finally after about 2yrs of playgroup I have worked it out....it isn't the actual playgroup that is exhausting....it is extracting the kids from the playgroup and getting all three of them strapped into the car ready to go home that wears me out!