She's Getting so Big

I've been so bad at getting postings done lately. I don't know what I do with my time somedays. Feed the kids, cuddle the kids, clean up their toys, prepare more food, do washing, clean up, play with kids, tidy toys, cuddle kids, feed kids as well as mowing alot (the grass grows in inches per day here) and regular housework - lol well you get the picture, which I'm sure is not unlike everyone elses household. Before I know it is bed time and my list of my things - such as craft, sewing, photography bits, updating blog, renovating - have been missed and then go on to the wish list for the next day which more often than not gets overlooked once again. I use to be able to stay up late to do things but I seem to just need bed by 10pm. I feel like an oldie already lol. I have a problem with wanting to keep things tidy and iron everything (except undies of course :P) which I know takes up alot of my time. I need to let myself just look away and have a bit more focus on more important things I think. Or just get more organised. I don't know how some of you fit all that you do in. Don't get me wrong I love doing things for my family and appreciate having the privaledge of being a stay at home mum. Anyhow thats enough whinging lol.

I thought it was about time I updated my pics of my little girl. Can you believe she is 11weeks already. She started smiling at five and a half weeks along with the ever adorable baby babble which is the cutest thing, and since then she continuously smiles and almost laughs all day long, except sleeping and feeding, mind you she tries to talk while feeding - such a girl already (can't stop chatting).

Her big brothers still adore her and her little face lights up soon as she hears them or sees them. It is amazing to see her love for them already. How special to have two beautiful big brothers! The poor little thing though doesn't have much opportunity for tummy and floor time due to Fin and Luc being typical boys and not looking when they bound about the house.

I feel just so blessed to have three such healthy and beautiful little ones. I need to spend less time doing things that really aren't that important and to and enjoy these perfect little gifts.

My Big Boy 4

My beautiful Fin turned 4 early last month. Seems only yesterday he was a newborn and now I've been blessed with number three. Time really does fly hey!!! Fin had a great birthday. Grandma and Grandpa came up for lunch, he was given some fantastic presents and daddy even got home just a little early bringing yummy happy meals to sweeten the deal. It was a lot of fun for all. The lazy mum smarty cake made its appearance once again but my rationale was I have to give evenly to the boys - really just mummy not being more organised but hey it tasted great and they ate every smarty (and left the cake behind lol).

The little sweetheart had to have his 4year immunisations yesterday. He was so perfect. I was just so proud. He barely flinched and didn't shed a tear - only when his baby sister had her's did he have a little sympathy cry - yes little miss Eliza is 2months already. I love it when your kids just surprise you and are just beautiful mini grown ups. I thought it would go one of two ways. Either tantrum, screaming, kicking, hot and sweaty, or just a little cry. But no he was an angel. I had been telling him about what was to come for a couple of days which I think helped prepare him. He told me this morning he was still 'a little bit scared' and that his arms were a 'bit sore'. He was treated to super yummy rainbow ice cream afterwards and grandma bought him a little gift. I was just so proud of him. I'm so blessed with three such fantastic, happy, loving little ones (although strangley enough look and act somewhat like little monsters on occassions lol).

One Month Old

t's hard to believe that little Eliza was one month old on the weekend. How fast does time go!! She is growing so much everyday and so much brighter and alert. I'm loving having a little girl. I never thought I would enjoy pink quite as much as I am. It is feeling more complete as a family now that we have Eliza. I'm so pleased we decided to have one more - I did have my occassional are we doing the right thing moments. Life hasn't really changed too much, just become more enriched and blessed.

The boys love her to bits. Luc is having some jealous moments though where he won't let me feed her or won't let me cuddle him if I have her in my arms, but he loves giving her cuddles and kisses. So far she hasn't lost an eye, incurred a head injury or fractured a limb from his loving touch lol.

I still haven't managed to get a photo of the three of them together without one moving, crying or pulling an interesting face.

They're Back!!!!!!!!!

Hooray!!!!!!!! They're Back!!! Yes our beautiful friends spent a couple of days visiting us last week as they ended their mammoth tour of our gorgeous nation. I was finally able to introduce my beautiful little girl to Aunty Lis and Uncle Ant. Fin was so excited to have 'His Nat and Noah' back to play with (or maybe torment lol - poor Natty was so great playing with little Fin who was so over excited he didn't give Nat a break). We had missed them all so much. We had a really great time with them. Next job on the agenda - to make a flat caravan site to entice them to come stay more often lol (Our whole property is on a hill ).

We couldn't go a visit without a game of 'footy ' out in the paddock. Well as much as can be with little ones - lets just call it kick and throw the ball in all directions. A lot of fun though. I was inside feeding Eliza and having some lovely one on one time with little Noah as he wasn't well

How Blessed we are to have such special friends.

(this post was done aweek ago, It wouldn't publish at the time)

Our Breakie visitor

The other morning I was enjoying some freshly made scones - made ever so lovingly by my dear hubby - and a cuppa when I had a very impressive visitor. A gorgeous King Parrot came onto the verandah to say g'day. It seemed almost friendly and very inquisitive of us. I tried to get a few pics before the kids scared it but it hung around in the tree near the verandah for a while. We seem to get quite a few different parrots around so we should really invest in a bird feeder. I love living here.

Bathtime Babe

It's so funny how with your first child you barely have a camera out of your hands but by the time you get to the third it seems I never have it with me. Eliza is so sweet and getting so chubby I hate that I'm not capturing her as often as I could. These were taken (although not so well - I'll just blame poor lighting lol) the other day at bathtime. She is starting to love her bath and nuddie time, kicking her little legs about. She seems to be changing everyday. I can't believe she is 2weeks old already.

Her big brothers are still very much in love of her and constantly want cuddles and kisses (I hope it last a while yet lol). How blessed are we to have three such gorgeous little ones.
Scruffy morning cuddles from her big brothers

Master 2

Our gorgeous Luc celebrated his 2nd birthday on Monday. It is hard to believe he is so big already. He had a great day with some pretty cool presents (one being a cosy coupe car that is the source of way too many an argument lol) and lots of time with Mummy, Daddy, Fin, Eliza and Grandma. Seeing as I was only 5 days post op we had only a little family party with some of his favourite foods and a choccie cake covered in smarties and lolly sprinkles (I still feel a bit guilty not doing the whole sugarpaste decorated cake thing - there is always next year). But there were lots of balloons, streamers and lollies to make it a true birthday.

Happy Birthday our sweet Boy. We love you so very much.
He is such a little monkey being a grub in no shirt and he would not look at the camera so we could see his big brown eyes.

Welcome to Our Little One

We welcomed our beautiful little daughter 'Eliza Rose' into the world on Wednesday the 1st of October at 1716hrs.

Weight - 7lb 9ozs

Length - 49cms

Head Circ - 34cms

She arrived as planned by caesarean. Eliza gave a beautiful cry right on que and the paediatrician gave her great healthy scores. I did really well and recovered quickly (we came home yesterday morning). It is great to be home with my boys. They are so excited at being big brothers. Little Luc just seems to be in awe and wants cuddles all time (just have to watch the eye poking and rough patting lol). Fin has taken the big brother role on with so much excitement and energy. I'm sure he has grown up so much in the last few days.

We have been so blessed and we thank all of you for your prayers and kind thoughts.

Our little doll ready to go home in the gorgeous layette grandma made for her.

One Day to go!

Yes it is hard to believe but our family will become a family of 5 in just over 24hrs. I feel like I have been pregnant forever but I can't believe it is tomorrow already. It is exciting to know we will meet our little bundle so soon but I am so nervous at the same time. Everything from the actual procedure to how my little boys will be with my mum and stepdad and their reaction, and to how bub will be post op is all racing through my mind. It is still such a miracle to me that God gives us such a gift in bringing a little one into his world. We pray for safety for her delivery and so many thanks for the bubs and my health so far.

Next post will hopefully be of our beautiful healthy little girl (hopefully a name too lol as we are still a little undecided). Please keep us in your prayers.

Baby Girl (no not arrived yet)

We had a scan of bub yesterday just to check on growth and a few other things. Baby appears to be definately a girl so I can go and wash the cute little dresses I have. She seems to be growing and developing normally. A little chubber though lol. Very round little cheeks and nice meaty lips. I can't wait to meet her in a week and a half (If I last that long as I had a show yesterday morning). Just thought you guys might like a sneak peek. Its a bit of a messy pic as she wasn't in a good position and her little hands kept moving about in the way. I'm sure you will work it out.

If you look towards the centre and to the right you will see a round little nose and then lips below and round little cheek left of her nose just before the shadowing. It is a little tricky sorry.

Cubby Building

My boys (yes all three) are so excited as we scored a cubby house from a demolition site that my stepdad was involved in. It is suppose to be up high like a fort with a huge slide and sandpit underneath but for the sake of mummies nerves and to hopefully incur less injury we are just having it at ground level for now. The boys helped daddy put it together on saturday. It still needs the roof to be put on but it is all colourbond with sharp edges at little Lucs height so we will wait until we can trim it with rubber hosing.

Even little fingers and hands were in on the job. I just love watching the boys imitate their dad and try to do things so seriously. Finlay is such a helper.

I'm not sure what is scarier. Luc hurting himself on the cubby or Luc helping with tools in hand. They both had so much fun and felt so important that they were using daddy's tools and doing big boy jobs.

Of course there is always time for a quick ride in dad's fathers day present - or should I say the boys new toy.

I will post a pic of the cubby once it is complete. We also managed to get an animal pen/cage sort of thing that is quite big. We are planning on converting it to a chicken house and yard. Hopefully should be up and functional in the not too distant future. Can't wait to have chickens and lots of eggs for yummy biccies and cakes.

Sweet Bits

One of my big loves when preparing for a new bub is washing the tiny little clothes and seeing them dry. I did mine about a week and a half ago and of course took pics of a few of the gorgeous little pink things drying (I'm still hoping that they got it right when they said bub was a girl - although a little boy would be just as precious). I just love the smell of lux too. Can't believe it is all so close - now under three weeks. I still have a bit to wash but I thought I would just double check at my scan next week as I haven't taken any tags off and I have kept dockets just in case lol. I just can't wait to hold the tiny little one and meet them for the first time. It's such a precious time.

My Amazing Mum

My wonderful mum has been tirelessly knitting for the last few months to give us a beautiful shawl for our little one. Even painful shoulder surgery couldn't stop her. This is a picture of it after I washed it. It will be treasured always and will surely become a family heirloom. What a beautiful blessing to have a mum like I do.

How Spoilt am I

As well known I have a little bundle of joy arriving in just under 6weeks (getting so close - a little scary lol). I have, seeing as we live a fair distance from baby shops, started shopping on the web and I found this gorgeous nappy bag, or mum's bag really, which arrived today. Its so gorgeous and so non baby like. My old one of the past four years has seen much better days and I couldn't bring myself to put precious little newborn clothes in it (just didn't seem to revive itself after probably too many goes in the machine - I'm a bit of a clean freak esp with bubby things). This one is so big compared to my old one (a kapoochi small satchel) and came with a huge separate coordinating satchel, bottle bag and change mat. All beautifully made, leather trimmed and just so nice and girly (reversible to a chocolate brown for the man of the house lol). And it only cost a smidge more than my old vinyl one that came with nothing really more than a little change mat. Anyhow I'm feeling very special and spoilt to have such a gorgeous accessory as a mum. It will make a great overnight bag down the track as well. Just thought I would share my treat.
Sorry the photo isn't very well taken - it looks better in person.

I also bought a sling this time as my baby bjorn has had a good thrashing, and it is so pretty and soft and I'm sure it will give a much nicer ride for my little one with the advantage of being able to breastfeed on the go. I don't like spending money on myself but with my husbands encouragement I finally made the purchase (I have hummed and haaad for months).
What a lovely gift.

Nanna and Grandad Visit

This last weekend we had Andrews parents come up and stay for a night. It was so nice for them to see our new place, Faith (MIL) had seen the outside but hadn't been inside, and it was all new for Bob (FIL). Unfortunately though the boys had their first ever bout of a vomiting bug which started early saturday morning and continued throughtout the whole weekend. Fin had been so excited to see them all week and the poor little chappy ended up resting and sleeping on the couch for most of the time. It was so lovely to see them though and for them to see how much my little men have grown and changed. It was great for all of us. Thanks Nanna and Grandad for making the long trip.

Special time with grandad. Poor little Fin normally loves running up and down the paddock but barely managed to keep his eyes open yesterday when we went for a walk. He loved the attention from grandad though. How special.

Daddys head made a nice pillow. It was especially nice for Andrew to show his Dad his new place. He is so proud of it and was able to show off his new baby, his Husqvarna ride on mower - boys and their toys.

Luc decided to use his bout of energy up in a quick go on the swing. But needed a rest shortly after by way of daddys arms.

What a blessing grandparents are.

Cows

Our neighbours have cows like so many farms out our way. The boys are so fascinated with them and we have to go out to the fence most days to see them. There are two new calfs that run around like a couple of little puppies. They are so beautiful. There use to be alot more cows in the paddock next to ours but they have separated them into separate paddocks which is a shame as there was one we had nicknamed stan and he always came straight up for a pat, a lick, and grass from the boys. It is such a nice way of life out here.

our peach tree blossoms

We have five peach trees (well we think they are lol) and I just love the beautiful blossoms they have. Hopefully their fruit is yummy too. We also have a small mulberry tree which is covered in small berries so we are looking forward to mulberry pies. Got to love country life. It really is the life I have always dreamt of. Its just taking me a little while to adjust to the change, to prepare myself for more renovations lol (we had almost just finished our old house), and to feel at home in a small country town.

Ouch!!!!

Yes one of those moments that any mum dreds. Last wednesday night I was preparing dinner. The boys were running up and down the hallway (or so I thought) - which they know not to do. I could hear them and thought to myself I will just quickly finish chopping the meat, put the water on for the veges and go and settle them down (about 2mins). Well there was no need for that as the next moment Fin came running into the lounge, hid under a cushion and little Luc ran out with half a face of blood and a 40mm x 4mm cut along his eyebrow. One of those sinking tummy moments. Andrew arrived home just after it happened, and being new to the area we didn't know if the local hospital - a little country one - had an emergency ward and I didn't think it was wise to go to the next big town which is 35mins away in the car just in case he had an internal head injury and passed out or seized so we called the ambulance. I'm a paeds nurse and have been for over ten years but when its your own little baby all that experience isn't too much help. I felt silly calling the ambulance but thankfully they too were concerned due to the size and his age and they transported us to the local hospital - it does have a very small ER. I think the ambos were happy to have something to do as well as it can get pretty quiet out here for them.

Thankfully my beautiful 3yr old is very honest and he showed me that Luc had actually been jumping on his bed and hit the end (and I believed him as thats where the drops of blood led to). Fin was so upset and worried about his little brother but he was such an angel throughout the whole ordeal. Luc ended up having it glued (could probably have used sutures though). The boys enjoyed ice cream (what else cures a little ones injuries and concerns hey!!!) when we got home.

When we went to put him in our bed when we were going to bed - just so I could keep an extra close eye on him - we discovered he had removed the dressing along with a fair chunk of the glue, opening it up again so back up to the hospital at midnight. He was such a good little boy and his brother was so concerned but just sat quietly even though we had dragged him out in the middle of the night with the temp barely 1degree Lucas the next afternoon with the special pens daddy bought them for

being such good little ones.

I know all mums probably have similar stories but it is so gut wrenching to see your little one hurt. Thankfully the damage was only skin deep and it certainly didn't deter him from doing all those things he shouldn't be - he was trying to jump on our bed when he woke the next morning. He is such an amazing (and very cheeky) little person and the thought of anything happening to either of them is shuddering to say the least. Thank God for his protection over my family. We really are so blessed.

A New Start

Writing a blog post. A new concept to me as this is my first one. Many of my friends have blog sites and I love reading them each day and watching as their families change and grow, so I thought it was about time that I created my own so that my friends and family could see us from afar.

Finlay 3 and Lucas 20mths

I have a wonderful family. My husband and I have been married for almost 4years and have two beautiful little boys and a little one on the way - we certainly haven't been wasting any time lol. We have recently moved from the beach to country life surrounded by mountain ranges, cows and crops. And as the title suggests we live on a hill. I love it out here. The fresh air, the friendly people, the ease of lifestyle. I don't miss the business of suburbia at all and I can't ever imagine going back to that way of life.

Our house is an 1920's rambling Queenslander with verandahs all around. It is the house I have dreamed of since I was a little girl. Inside is in need of a lot of work, especially painting as almost every room as never been painted. It is going to take years to just get the painting done but I guess there aren't really any time limits. I would love the baby's room done in time for her arrival in 8weeks but we will see how we go.

Sunrise over our land

We live on five beautiful acres, which seems huge to us but is just a house yard compared to some of the farming properties around us. For us though it is managable as Andrew works long hours and we love to have family times on weekends. I'm itching to get out into the gardens but it isn't a priorty at this point. There are quite alot of roses already in the front and I'm planning on doing it all as a cottage garden. Even the house yard is huge compared to our 615sqm block in suburbia. We have so many plans for the house and land that I just don't know where to start.

Since moving we have added a new addition to our family in the form of a puppy called Lola ( My son loves the kids program Charlie and Lola). She is a border collie with a bit of blue cattle. Very sweet natured but can be a bit boystrous for the boys. They will all be good mates eventually I'm sure.

Lola 10 weeks, the day she joined us

Lola 4 months old


Things that are different to get use to are:

• mooing of cows
• Walking 250mtrs just to get the mail
• Taking the bin out the 250mts and bringing it back up (least favourite thing)
• The peace of knowing the kids are no where near a road, even when we are out of the house yard
• The lack of neighbours (we have fantastic neighbours about 100mtrs away unlike suburbia where neighbours are three mtrs away)
• The freedom to have space
• Relying on our own source of water - thank God for precious rain
• And so many more, and those yet to be discovered

We have been so blessed to have found this life for our family and we thank God each day. Hopefully this is the start of many blogs from us Irvings, as our family grows, and this little plot of dirt becomes our own.