28 April 2010

Spot the difference

A week or so ago I took a photo of Mylo, and when I looked at it, was just like looking at baby Noah. See what you think!


What a blessing it is to have not one but two beautiful boys. Thank you God for giving us this amazing opportunity to be their mummy and daddy.

The wisdom of teeth

As I sit here recovering from the extraction of 4 wisdom teeth under general anaesthetic this morning, I'm pleasantly surprised that I'm still smiling (well ever so slightly as much as the swelling and bruising will allow anyway). More to the point I have retained my sense of humour, and am having to tell Mark not to crack too many jokes at my expence since I really can't laugh. I wanted to laugh when I put the icepack on my head, feeling like something out of a bad cartoon, or maybe a rugby player stapped up after a knock to the head. My face itself looks like a cross between a boxer after a fight and Alvin, Simon, or Theodore (the Chipmunks for anyone slightly confused) - I can't quite decide which. And it feels like someone has smashed me in the jaw several times over, remind me not to ever get in a fist fight with anyone if this is how it feels!


I was more than a little nervous about the whole thing beforehand. Which in itself was slightly ironic given I've been through childbirth twice with no pain relief! But it was my first time in hospital (other than giving birth), and definitely my first time under a general anaesthetic. I'm glad I opted for the general though, given that all 4 teeth were not through the gums it wouldn't have been at all pleasant to be awake for the entire duration of the extraction. Have a couple of stitches in each hole which will disappear after a week or so.

In the end I decided to go ahead and have them out whilst I was still on maternity leave so I didn't have to take too much sick leave once I'm back at work. Also pretty relieved that our health insurance meant that having it done at a private hospital under general was even an option. Not to mention the fact that at this stage in Mylo's life, all the pureed food I have in the freezer for him has come in doubly handy for me! Since I've been home this afternoon, I've had a chocolate banana smoothie, pureed pear/nectarine for dinner, and some yoghurt for afters. Add to that the icecream and jelly at the hospital, and it's been a very yummy liquid diet so far.

I'm told the swelling will probably get worse before it gets better so am probably in for a few pretty sore days. No pain, no gain though as they say. But all in all, it can only get better from here, and I'm so relieved the actual procedure is over and done with. Here's to a much less crowded mouth in the future!

25 April 2010

I'm a little dynamo

I reached the 7-month mark this week, and I've decided my mission in life is to keep everyone on their toes. Whether I'm eating jandals, trying to pop Noah's balloon, grabbing Murphy's fur, playing with power points, or investigating anything with wheels, I'm on the go...go...go.....

Can you see my fiddle fingers in action here? Mum is finding she can't take her eyes off me for long as I pop up in different places every few minutes!



And I move pretty quick these days...could get a job in the army at this rate I reckon!


Flying Solo

This week I took Noah & Mylo up to Nana & Poppa's for 3 days on my own, hence the blog title. After flying up to New Plymouth with them and Mark's mum a month ago and finding it incredibly exhausting to the point of having a bit of a meltdown on my return, I have to admit I was a little anxious.

The flights were relatively uneventful. I was armed with an arsenal of food for Noah, plus the iPod to watch mini movies and listen to music on, so he was pretty content. Mylo did have a bit of a cry but not to the extent I got any evil eyes from fellow passengers.

Mum & Dad had to work on Thursday & Friday, so we had the morning to ourselves until Poppa got home around lunchtime. We treated ourselves to some fresh air and a walk up the road to the local cafe (about 1.5 km away) both mornings for a trim latte and milkshake. Noah and I had all sorts of fun playing in the big wide open space of Nana & Poppa's 2-acre section, finding dandelions to blow, grassy hills to climb and hide in, and squelchy grass to make footprints in. We also spotted cows, pukekos, ladybirds, a hot air balloon and a hare with the biggest ears I've ever seen!



Saturday we enjoyed having Nana & Poppa all day and took our usual pilgrimage to the Gardens. It is the first time I've been there with such stunning autumn colours.



And then it was home again, home again, jiggity jig to a lovely daddy and husband who had missed us lots. He had made the most of a quiet house to have a few early nights, caught up with friends for a poker night Friday, and enjoyed the last weekend of the Pompeii exhibition at Te Papa.

So nice to be able to take advantage of a mid-week break away with my 2 gorgeous boys. In less than 2 months I'll be back at work full-time and it won't be easy to just disappear on a jet plane for a jaunt when the mood takes us.

18 April 2010

Fiddle Fingers

My Nana says my new name should be Fiddle Fingers. Now that I am commando crawling everywhere, I love to investigate. Everything.

Here I am having already tried to get into the TV cabinet, found the wooden giraffes and got tired of them, and now made a beeline for the curtain. If only I could find a way to get underneath.




Well, actually I did.

This morning I had fun playing with Noah's 'Mac' truck. I have a real fascination with trying to turn the wheels on anything that moves. I played with the truck for ages. I investigated it from every angle, turned it upside down and round about. Noah's bike is also super exciting. I love touching the wheel, the seat, the handlebars, it all feels so different.



Mum and Dad are already wondering if I am going to do something with my hands when I grow up because I love to touch everything so much. I'll keep them guessing for a few years yet though I think! No point letting the cat out of the bag too early :-)

For now I'm just happy exploring.

P.s. And if you're wondering about my tongue poking out , it's would seem to be happiest when it's out exploring too. It's what I call my trademark Mylo shot!

Finding fun in simple things

The boys finding fun in playing 'The Parachute' last night. I think you can definitely tell they are related in this little clip!




Some family fun at our local park this afternoon. A gorgeous autumn afternoon, warm sunshine, and not a breath of wind. This is what Sunday afternoons are made of.




And yesterday Noah and I went to see The Farm At The End Of The Road at Capital E. It was good fun, but a tad loud at times, and to be honest I still think Seasons is the best show we've seen there. Noah enjoyed being there with his daycare friends, and also enjoyed the chance to walk around and see all the emergency services vehicles on display at Waitangi Park for the Emergency on the Waterfront day. Not only did we get to see lots of fire engines up close, even climbing up inside the airport firetruck, but Noah also got to sit on the side of the Helipro helicopter and jump off the back, and I must admit I think it's the closest I've ever been to a helicopter too! We then took the opportunity to go indoors for a bit as the wind was a little bracing and we came to town without jackets, not used to the autumn feel in the air yet! Noah had been asking to go to Te Papa for ages, so we had a look around the Mountains to Sea exhibit and the Nature Space discovery centre and on our way back to the car, we got to see 4 men repelling down from the helicopter in mid air..wow!





A fun filled family weekend to be sure.

14 April 2010

P..P..P...Proud

This is what Noah drew us all on his own on Monday night.


This is what he came home from daycare with yesterday.


This is what Noah went dressed as for dress-up day today.


All in aid of the letter P, which has been the letter of the week this week and last week at daycare. The 'letter of the week' concept has really been helping his letter recognition and composition since the beginning of the year.

We often practice writing letters on the steamy windows of the shower box when we're showering, and the other night we had great fun thinking up as many words we could think of starting with P - and there are a lot! Hence why the letter P has run for 2 weeks........how many words starting with P can you think of that a 3.75 year old might know?

Pasta, pizza, plums, pudding, pineapple, potato, pikelet, picnic, puzzle, pyjamas, purple, pink, people, proud, princess, pirate, policeman, pig, piranha, pukeko, parrot, pigeon, play, peach, puppy, pump, pop, push, poke, pull, pen, pencil, pip, pancake, page, pony, paint, park, pork, pedal, poo, pod, pea, porridge, pepper, pip-pop, pardon to put paid to just a few....!

Speaking of things starting with P, Noah actually rode a pony for the first time on Sunday. He went out with friends Phoebe and George to Ohariu Valley and had the opportunity to try out a pony and a horse. Bless our cautious boy, he did not want to try the horse thank you very much, and wouldn't have had a second go on the pony other than the fact Daddy made him. However, good on him for actually giving it a go, even if he looks a tad terrified. Still, we're proud of you for even getting on precious poppet!

11 April 2010

Happy Birthday to us!

Another year, another joint birthday. Even though Mark and I have now shared 11 birthdays together on April 10, it never fails to amuse other people and somewhat annoy us. After all this time, it still feels so strange to be sharing your birthday with your best mate! Not that we don't love each other dearly, it's just that we really don't get to enjoy that one special day of pampering as we're always too busy being nice to each other! To be honese, I'm not sure we'll ever get used to it, although it should at least make it harder for Noah and Mylo to forget our birthdays when they get older!

This year felt like quite an under-celebration. Whether it was the fullness of our Easter weekend, or our sadness at seeing Grandma depart for home on Tuesday, or the colds we've all been battling this week, one way or another we got to Friday night almost unaware of our birthdays being the next day.

Mark had at least bought me a card, and when I realised that I didn't have one, had to do with making a swift homemade jobbie on Saturday morning whilst Mark and Noah were out doing the shopping. I thought it turned out rather nicely using my winnings from the Little Treasures Magazine for the first time - a stamping and card kit.



We shared our birthday afternoon with Sam's 4th birthday party (one of Noah's daycare friends). It was held just around the corner (well by Wellington standards at least - a 10 minute walk) from our house at the Kelburn Playcentre. It was a glorious afternoon, and the kids had a ball running around on all the equipment. What really made the day special was when Marian (Sam's mum) came out carrying a very cool-looking dinosaur cake, followed hot on the heels by Sam with a smaller cake which he came and gave to me! We hadn't made a birthday cake this year, so to be given one unexpectedly by a 4-year old sharing his birthday was rather sweet!

Last night, Baba babysat for us so we could enjoy a rare night out together, as we hadn't been out just the two of us since celebrating our wedding anniversary a couple of months ago. I have wanted to go to Trade Kitchen  for ages, and we weren't disappointed. The restaurant was very quiet (there were only 3 tables including us the whole night), so we had fantastic service from a very friendly waiter, although I think he would have been equally attentive even if the restaurant was full. When we mentioned our birthdays, he brought us a small complimentary bubbly each, and when we were both trying to remember the name of the artist whose music was playing, he obliged us by going and finding out. He also was very helpful when I was trying to choose between the duck and salmon mains, as I'm not known for being able to make a quick decision on a menu at the best of times!



We're not prone to tipping in NZ, as it is certainly not expected, but I asked Mark if we could leave a really good tip since the food, ambience and service was so fantastic. Although the day slipped in oh so quietly, very unassuming as far as birthdays go, it packed a real good punch at the end!

06 April 2010

Monday at Makara

On Easter Monday morning, we all jumped in the car for an hour's dash out to Makara. Unbelievably, it was the first time I can remember being there in nice weather, it's usually blowing a northerly gale and rough as, but Monday was a southerly and so Makara was quite sheltered. Many other people had the same idea, there must have been at least 30 cars parked up. Other times we've visited, we have been the crazy occupants of a sole car braving the wind and elements to throw a few therapeutic stones in the water before retreating shivering back to the car.





A lovely way to top off a lovely long weekend. And such a beautiful shot of Grandma and Mylo below. It pulls hard on my heartstrings tonight as Grandma is winging her way back to England as we speak. An unbelievably precious time together for the past month. One we will treasure forever.

04 April 2010

Daily Dozens & Angelic Aural Art

Mylo is getting quite the workout now that he's a little more mobile. His new favourite toy is the ring on the side of the toy box. He loves the sound it makes as he dings the metal ring against the wood.


He is also amusing us with some very funny faces as he does his 'press-ups', getting up on all fours. He's so very close to crawling now, it's just the hand over hand part that is ever so slightly eluding him. But he can make it to where ever he wants to go with a series of forward motions put together.


He's also been sitting up better the past week or so, still needs a bit of support from behind but is pretty good at not falling forwards.



Whilst Mylo gets his daily dozens around the floor at home, we also took the opportunity to all go for a walk down to the waterfront on a breezy Easter Saturday afternoon, firstly heading for the City Art Gallery to listen to the Forty Part Motet.








Whilst it is incredibly hard to describe, I will try my best! It is a medieval piece of music from 1573 sung by 40 singers recorded in Salisbury Cathedral. Each of the 40 singers in the choir had their own microphone which is represented by an individual speaker. The music itself is 14 minutes long and you can wander round the room going up close to the speakers which are at head height to hear individual voices, or simply sit in the middle of the room and soak up the overall symphony of sound. As I was sitting listening, I was overwhelmed by the thought that hearing the angels sing upon entering heaven would be just like this. Wow. I could have listened all day, and even Noah sat patiently with us all throughout. I am definitely planning to go again. I would recommend to anyone to go, firstly as it's free, but secondly as I think that no matter how interested in music you are, you could not help but be really moved by the experience.


Grandma then shouted us a Kaffee Eis icecream (Mylo even got a small taste of Daddy's!), before heading back along the waterfront, past the strange mirror sculptures at Te Papa, and on home. Nana & Poppa particularly enjoyed the walk on the waterfront, as in all the years of visiting us, it was the first time they had walked this particular stretch. With all the development that has gone on over the past few years, it really is an area we Wellingtonians should be proud of!

Easter Eggstreme Hunt

I had great fun being the Easter bunny this year. The fun for me is definitely in the hiding! And with a whole year passing, I could be a lot more creative and inventive with hiding places now that Noah is nearly 4 and quite the pro at the finding! The piece de resistance was the silver bunny with smarties inside that we hid up on top of the gazebo...it was a race against time for Noah to find him before the sun got too high and started to melt him!






Note to self/husband: perhaps don't need to buy/hide quite so many eggs next year, I have been making surreptitious trips to the cupboard on the hour ever since!

Dedication Day

This Easter was made all the more special for us having Grandma, Nana and Poppa here for a real family weekend. And Granddad wasn't far from our thoughts, although we knew he was being well looked after staying with James, Ann-Marie and Jack for his birthday (Saturday) and for the long Easter weekend.

When we knew that we would have 3 out of 4 grandparents with us over Easter, we also seized the moment to hold Mylo's dedication on Good Friday. Bex and Jonny Gilling (our wonderful youth pastors at The Rock) had agreed to take the ceremony for us, and we were honoured to also have many of our close friends able to attend and share in the day with us.

Jonny spoke beautifully and Bex prayed a wonderful prayer for us as a family. I especially loved the words Jonny brought about the responsibility each and every person who was there had as bringing something unique into Mylo's life, and his use of the African proverb  'it takes a village to raise a child' was so apt when we looked around at each of the special friendships we share with those who came and celebrated our commitment to raise Mylo in God's ways. Everyone who was there is part of 'our village', because the parenting journey is definitely not an isolated accomplishment of the 2 people whose genes brought Mylo into the world. I also shared a few words on our behalf:

'Today is an auspicious day. Easter is always a special time. The true Easter that is. As much as we love the indulgence of easter egg hunts and the smell of hot cross buns fresh from the oven, what we really celebrate today is Jesus dying on the cross to save mankind, and then rejoice on Sunday in him conquering over death itself. Easter is a special time for us as a family too. Both Mark's and my birthdays often fall on this weekend (and I was actually born on Easter Sunday - Mark arriving into the world exactly a year to the day later!), so it is wonderful that we were able to celebrate Mylo’s dedication this weekend too.

I was reflecting on our parenting journey so far, and I just wanted to say how much we appreciate all the friendship and love we have from you our family and friends as you support us in this journey we’re on together. Having the opportunity to even become a parent is a real gift from God, and so we must never take for granted that our children are also His children. We have a responsibility to ensure that our children know God as their Heavenly Father, and know what Jesus has done for them. In the long run, it will be up to each of them as individuals to decide to whether they will choose a life lived with God at the centre, but we as parents have such a precious privilege to be able to introduce our children to Him.

We feel really blessed to be able to parent 2 delightful boys, and we're already enjoying seeing how Mylo’s personality is developing, and how different he already is to his big brother. Variety is the spice of life as they say! Today we’d like to ask God for the wisdom to know how to be a good and godly parent to Mylo through the years, to be able to understand his uniqueness, to encourage him in his strengths and support him in his weaknesses. More than anything, we also want to thank God for the precious gift that is Mylo, and for the opportunity to love him and watch him grow, and for bringing him into our family.'



Thank you to all our wonderful friends and family who shared with us in this oh so special day, whether by attending, or by your thoughts and prayers from afar.

Uniquely NZ

On Thursday I opened some shop pamphlets which Mark had just brought in from the letterbox and got a heck of a fright, and quickly threw the whole bunch back down on the table. This was what was staring back at me!


Mark put Mr. Giant Weta out on the patio, and he scurried away in a hurry. Boy could he move. Murphy was most interested in taking on the big prehistoric insect, who gave him a good run for his money rearing up on his back legs and throwing a few punches of his own.

He was last seen heading off into the bush with Murphy in hot pursuit. Here's hoping he can outrun the cat as I'm not too keen to see him back inside anytime soon!

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