growing pains

guess who is having the growing pains? ME!! yes i am having the pangs that every mother must have as they slowly realise their child is growing up....

our lili turned 8 in January and is maturing in a text book fashion. mister and i once watched a documentary in which it informed the viewers of the subtle changes that occur around the ages of 8 and 9. some of these changes included, modesty, keeping secrets and a truer understanding of cause and affect. now we knew something was changing when she asked to move into her own room the previous December and requested that she be allowed to shower without the other two knuckleheads. then the request for her ears to be pierced for her birthday really came as a shock, made me think she was really growing up.

acting in her school sacred time

i have noticed that she opts not to go onto those indoor playgrounds anymore and seems to hang around me if we are visiting with friends that have children younger than her. and in the last couple of weeks she has fixed her hair for school and gone back for a second look...almost like she cares about how she looks. that has never happened before, she is always tidy but never really interested in how she appears...we have had simple chats about the boys in her class and how we think some of the boys are quite handsome. we have been particular about which shows we watch but it seems harder and harder to avoid the word sex or passionate kissing even on commercials.

oh well i guess it was going to happen sooner or later. we are lucky she is sensible and innocent she will be the trail blazer for the other 2...GOD HELP ME!!!

she received an award at her school Assembly today for being a great actor in a class presentation.

glad that i am a stay at home mum..i get to see all of these wonderful moments!

i guess i should start reading some material on how to explain the birds and the bees to one of such an age...very simple birds and bees mind you!!

anyhow on a different note...i am working for shona at funky fabrix each Wednesday and some Saturdays and holidays. it is such a welcomed change from teaching! shona is very very nice and i think that this job is exactly what i needed to feel refreshed again. i am also volunteering some of my time to help out in the classrooms at school, in a parental role just like any other stay at home mother. that feels FANTASTIC.

best be off and feed the littlest bonser, she is home on Mondays now and it is OUR day together.

xxrosey

special soul

i began this blog a while ago now with the intention of having an online journal that i could look back over (and i do) to remind myself of how much my girls and life have changed. i have kept diaries for each of my girls as they grew in my womb and the months after. as you an well imagine lili has a staggering 3 diaries which sadly dies off to 1 for poor old Claudia (actually i don't even think she made 1)

i guess as technology changes so do we and i see this as better than those diaries in that it is more about our family as a whole rather than 1 particular child and their journey.

what i didn't expect when i started this blog was to make a true connection with other bloggers...i seem to have found a reliable 10 or so ladies that comment on a regular basis and in some ways i rely on them to make me feel good. it is like the old days of pen pals except on a grander scale :)

one such lady is Kylie 'cupcakes' who has a great down to earth blog called a bite of country cupcakes . if you aren't a follower you should do yourself a favour and become one. not only does she make the most amazing faux cupcakes and other sweet treats, she is a kind and generous soul. i have no doubt that if we lived closer our children would have many play dates while we chatted over cups of coffee. after our recent news about paddy and my decision to take a step back from teaching, Kylie sent me a lovely care package. very kind and generous indeed.

something for each of the girls, some you can eat and others you cant :)

a cuppie for me with a tag that says 'follow your heart' how thoughtful! and the violet, which holds such sentimental feelings for me, was painted by her mother. that is one talented family (you should see her sisters home!)

here's a closer look..it even smells good enough to eat!

but the words meant the most to me.... this is not the first time i have received a parcel from Kylie, i told you she was kind.

Kylie has recently gone through a rough patch herself. her mother in law had a fall and had to have surgery, after a long ordeal she is recovering but still needs our prayers for her strength. thanks again Kylie you are a doll!

another reason to smile was this

that's my Mia, grade 1, receiving her first award for the year on assembly in front of the whole school!

here she is with the other students.

the award is for neatness and handwriting skills! makes a mothers chest swell with pride.

here she is with lili. now if i had been working i would have missed this proud moment. yay for being a stay at home mum.

on that subject...it is funny how guilty i feel about staying at home. i know that when the money runs out and things get tight i will have to either do relief days or find some other job but at the moment it just doesnt feel right staying at home while the kids are at school. us women put too much pressure on ourselves to 'do it all'. i am seeing someone about my anxiety and it feels nice to have someone acknowledge my feelings and try to help me get through this tough time.

i almost feel like this blog and the comments i get are all the therapy i need!

ok enough from me. enjoy your week and thanks for your continued prayers for paddy. he is trying many different alternative potions and is having chemo, his spirits seem better this week and i believe our prayers are giving him strength.

%*_*% rosey

nothing says summer like a pool party!

gotta love a Queensland summer...actually i don't really love summer here in Queensland, it is far too hot and when the humidity rises it is actually unbearable however if you have a pool things don't seem so bad. we don't have a pool but installed air con last year so at least we can find some refuge on those hot hot days. i love air con and prefer it over a pool any day but through the eyes of a child my sisters place is a paradise made for them! narelle and mike added a pool a while ago and decided that their youngest was at an age this year where a pool party was possible (with constant adult supervision of course).

i of course made the fatal error of telling my children about the party the night before, so an agonisingly long day passed before it was time to join another 13 children for a fun afternoon of splashing, laughter and fooooood! a pool is the best party, no other games were needed as they spent the entire 2 hours in the pool and cut the cake as parents were arriving. the best part was my gorgeous niece Katie and her lovely friend Carly looking after my two youngest in the pool for me!

birthday girl Chelsea...not officially 9 until later this month but she wanted to get in before the school holidays began.

no party would be complete without jelly!

Katie did a wonderful job of layering these sweet treats which were enjoyed by....

you guessed it. hamster gobbled it up quick smart!

there was lots of fun to be had. (i have tried not to show children that i don't know)

Mia, Chelsea and Carly. Carly did a great job of caring for the less able swimmers.

my niece Katie having a cuddle with lili. she did a great job looking after Claudia for me when mick wasn't in the water.

lili, Katie and Emma having heaps of fun!

after the cake was cut and eaten...

( our eyes were bigger than our mouths but it was yummy)

they jumped back in the pool until their parents came to take them away....

i didn't think we could get Claudia out of the pool, she was having such a great time on her daddy's back!

we managed to get the girls out and went home happy, cool and satisfied...

of course we can go over any time party or no party :)

hope you can stay cool in this heat or warm if the case may be. i hope to be back to show you our christmas tree and all the trimmings around the house.

have a great week

%*_*% rosey

another first and a sad last

goodbye sweet cot!! you have been such a part of our life now for over 6 years, life will NEVER be the same:) yes the baby has won the fight and now sleeps on a mattress on the floor (we havent had the time to go shopping for a bed) so far she hasnt tried to escape the room but does protest about having to go to bed. i just cant wait until the teribble twos are over and we can reason with her (i can hear all you seasoned parents laughing) we have to face facts and get on with life. in reality lili and mia were both out of the cot before they were two so it was about time this last stage happened. another first - she had a dry nappy after her nap yesterday so going to the toilet is paying off at last. by the way, babushka is almost fininshed but i am not happy with her base. i will show you as soon as she has all her ribbons on. mmwah rosey

a claytons holiday!

this week has been fantastic! week 5 of term three is over for me and i only had to go to work for one day! the whole bonser family had monday off for the show holiday celebrated by morteon region citizens and then just lili and i had wednesday off for the brisbane citizens turn to visit the ekka. technically i would have had wednesday off anyway but it was the first time in a very long time that it was just lili and i at home. needless to say we did not stay home. we did what we like to do best - trawling the thrift shops for 'treasures' as we like to call it. we didnt find much but we had such a good time together.

one of my favourite things to do is to leave little presents on the childrens bed and we found something sweet to add to the hutch (i will show you our hutch another time). we could only find two little birds but claudia was just as happy with the packet of cheese balls:)

i would like to add lots of photos but i am not sure how. i will give it a go. the photos i would like to show are of the birds, cheesy cheese ball grin and the vintage books and record that we found - 'treasures'

xx goldsworthy