Our new addition

I couldn't help it, it was love at first sight. He stared up at me with those take me home eyes and I caved, plus our dog Nook needed a friend, so the next day I convinced my man to come and have a look...we brought him home half an hour later, Yay! Obi is our Shih-Tzu x Maltese pup and he is just the sweetest thing, super fat and cuddly. He also doesn't shed hair and is hypo allergenic-OMG! Yes, he cost a bomb but is so awesome and worth it, plus, you know, I'm turning 25 in 2 weeks so its kind of an early present and our dog and cat adore him...look at me trying to justify my outrageous spending. I try so hard to reign in that ever growing grocery bill and make my own cleaners etc. But hey everyone has to indulge sometime and I don't do things by halves. Hmmm will put up photos of our darling pets...eventually.

Bigs 5th birthday photos

This was Bigs cake, we got the idea from greatfun4kids blog-this woman is amazing! Then I was browsing through a 1,2,3 dollar shop(always a great place to find partydecorations and loot bag stuffers for cheap) and found these sparkler candle which I thought would be a great way to make our volcanoe "erupt" the effect was awesome and exactly what I wanted.

Bigs pinata, a last minutes idea from Big so not exactly dinosaur themed but still pretty awesome. I was going to make a dinosaur egg filled with goodies but we just ran out of time. Hint: when doing a pinata use wrapped lollies as they are going to explode out of it and land in the garden and all over the place, we put glitter and sparkles in ours too.

Bigs Ben10 cake, yes he had two cakes for his birthday as we went out for dinner on his actual birthday to celebrate. I got the edible icing image from the cheesecake shop, they have alsorts to pick from and the cost about $15.oo(they are purely for looks though they taste pretty blah)

Good-bye Kindy kid and Hello big school boy!! Bigs playdough cake and birthday crown, made with help from mummy!

Mayday!

What a busy month! March was so hectic for my family, of course its fun and exciting, filled with birthday parties and what not, but after Christmas and New Year festivities, the extra long holidays and then the buying of lunch boxes and school bags and stationery for starting school... I'm tired, it seems there has been quite big events happening every month so far and so I'm really looking forward to May. For starters May is colder and I love the cold! Autumn is my favorite season oh and also EXCITING NEWS...Little starts Kindy in Term 2! Yes my littlest lad celebrated his 3rd birthday at the end of March and is now starting a new and exciting phase of his wee life. Very, very cool! I'm proud and a tad nervous but mainly happy about the whole thing! We had an awesome birthday party with a very cool morning tea on the farm theme. Hmm I should really put up some photos of our boys birthdays, I'm proud to say I think I out did myself on the cakes and themes for this year...Go Me!!! But as I was saying I'm looking forward to May. May will be a month of getting into more of a routine for our family, I crave organisation and clean cupboards and children who pick up toys when asked....ha, ok well that last one probably won't happen, but yeah, organisation is the plan. These school holidays I'm going to get sorted in preperation for May-my month of routine and relaxation after an extremely busy time so, you shall hopefully see photos of before and afters, of the de-cluttering of my wardrobs, kitchen cupboards and of organising my laundry...ahhh laundry, I feel like I never see the bottom of my washing hamper and as my man pointed out it often spills out onto the floor. All of my cleaning products are in a box on top my dish washer... yes my dish washer it's in the laundry and you'll understand why when you see a picture of my soon too be organised yet still tiny kitchen. So I'm looking forward to reporting back to my blog with good ideas and inspiration for all of us mummies with messy houses in need of organisation, especially as our kiddies will be spending more time indoors as the weather gets wetter and colder in the coming months. Tomorrow, I'll be looking some cheap and cheerful (and hopefully a tad creative) storage options, so watch this space...

The big FIVE!

Well Big has turned five and boy did we celebrate! I awoke at 4am to the sound of clicking in the lounge. It was big he had found his GIANT automatic nerf gun set up on the coffee table next to his presents with a big, blue bow on it and had decided to give it a go. I opened the door to find him with the biggest grin on his face. Seeing him with a smile that big was worth being up at 4am. I let him have a play for half an hour and took some photos then he jumped into bed with me and eventually fell asleep again until the sun came up where there were more surprises in store. He opened his presents excitedly after he was finished I said "Oh, I think there's one more thing, just something small, it's outside." I ran outside to capture his reaction on camera. He ran out and yelled OH YEAH! throwing his fists in the air and jumping up and down at the sight of the huge trampoline in the middle of our backyard. (Mummy and Poppa were out in the rain putting it up in the dark, ahh the things we do for our kids.) After a bounce we all got dressed and went to McDonalds for breakfast. Big wanted pancakes and I was going to be super mummy and make them before leaving for kindy but it just didn't happen. Then we headed to his kindy farewell. I helped him make his 5th birthday crown and playdough cake whilst taking a bazillion photos. And yes I admit I shead a tear or two, onto a new, exciting and more grown up stage of my little lads life, who wouldn't need a moment to collect themselves. He chose a yellow cape to wear and we all sang Happy Birthday and the Schooldays song and all his little kindy peeps came and said good bye and Big gave them a stamp on their hand. But its not really good bye as Bigs Dinosaur party is happening Saturday so he would see his friends again. He got lovely cuddles from his teachers, those ladies are just awesome. As we walked out the gate and I caught his cheeky grin on camera I felt a little sad but so excited and extremely proud if this lovely little boy standing before me.  After a relaxing day playing with his new toys, that night we went out for dinner with family. OMG to meals out in one day I hear you gasp! Chill out, it's his birthday. I also made a huge Ben10 birthday cake which I was really rather proud of and it tasted delish. Once he was home and in bed I had a chat with my man reminising Bigs baby days and marvelling at where those five years went and also how awesome they've been. Happy Birthday Big, my school boy! xoxoxo

Home Grown Kids


I thought I'd write a post about what I do for a living. I've always had an interest in art, being creative and I see myself as a caring and positive person. I had children at a relatively young age, I found I was pregnant a few months before my 19th birthday. It was completely unplanned but there was no question in my mind that this was the path I was ment to take. Because of my age I never really got to explore my career options, motherhood was to be my career and I was going to do my best. For me there was no other choice, I had decided to be a stay at home mum. After having Little I started thinking, raising two children is pretty difficult and with a fiance that works sometimes 50+ hours a week how would I manage a job once they were both in school that would enable me to pick my children up at 3pm, give them the time and attention required for homework and to just hanging out with them. I have to do all my usual cleaning, washing, meal preparation, baths, stories, bed time cuddles not to mention find the time to get out in the garden and do all the other boring bits of house maintanence. With a new job I'd be having to impress my employer, make a good impression, I would need to be flexible not the job. I considered career options, I thought about retail as I'm a bit of a people person and had experience in the area. I thought about nursing but that job rarely leaves time for family. I decided I wanted a job to do with children, a kindergarten teacher, hours that were flexible enough to be there for my kids, an outlet to be creative through art and teaching and dancing. Helping children to learn through play, yup that was it, the perfect fit for me and so I started my Degree in teaching-birth to eight-the early years, through corospondence... Argh! study from home, with two boys running around?! Challenging yes, but I was up for it.  I got through my first semester and did pretty well but then everything changed. An offer came up to buy a home that we couldn't refuse, so I left study, for now. I looked for a job and this is where I came across Home Grown Kids my sister had children in her care and she had a chat with me about it all. I would be able to do what I always wanted to, care for children, help them to learn through play and reach their goals. I could look after my own home and children. I could plant my veggie garden, bake scones, visit play group and feed the chooks and these children could have fun doing all these things with me! I needed a police check, as did my man, a safety check to prove my home was a safe and nurturing place to care for children and once I ticked all the boxes I was up and running. I turned my home that was alredy full of educational toys, art and animals into virtually my own kindy but more personal.  Mums and Dads come in and have a chat with me. They get a written account of what their little one has been up to today in their journal, whether they have been grizzly had a runny nose or learned a new word. HGK is a great company to work for, they are so willing to help with any questions. You can care for children from your own home or be a nanny in someone elses. It works so well for us. If you think you'd be interested you should take a look at their website below. I am very busy but I love how the kids have fun and that my children have made some good friends because of my job. I love that I can still cater to everyones needs. I feel because of this career move we have a great work/life balance and I can't ask for much more than that.

http://www.homegrownkids.co.nz/

Movie Review-Whip it-2009-Directed by Drew Barrymore

So I have to say I loved this movie partly because it's a real hardcore chick movie it's got girl power but they are nothing like the spice girls!





The movie takes place in the 1990s in Austin, Texas. Bliss played by Ellen Page (extremely talented actress from Juno and Inception. Can you tell shes my fav!) is a bit of an outcast living in the small town of Bodeen, Texas. Her mum, a former beauty queen, pushes her to enter beauty pageants despite her lack of interest, ick! During a shopping trip with her mother, Bliss encounters three roller derby team members. Intrigued, she and best friend Pash go to the roller derby and see the Holy Rollers defeat the Hurl Scouts. Bliss tells the Hurl Scouts that they are "her new heroes" and is drawn to the idea of being in a roller derby herself when one of the Hurl Scouts replies, "Well, put some skates on. Be your own hero."  Returning to Austin, Bliss lies about her age and tries out for the Hurl Scouts, where she discovers her natural talent for skating. After realizing she needs to be ruthless in a roller derby, Bliss sees she needs to take charge in other aspects of her life, revealed through various sub-plots.  All and all this movie is fun and funny. It's easy to watch, not a family movie-definitely for the older teens or grown ups.  I love quirky movies where we come across characters that walk/skate to the beat of their own drum, and put themselves in situations that aren't the norm. The Movie is based on a novel by Shauna Cross and is directed by Drew Barrymore who also acts in the movie as Smashly Simpson a hardcore derby chick that would rather get even with her fists on the track than go for the win which is rather, entertaining. I think you'll either love this movie or you'll hate it. Another thing I liked-these women aren't teens and they don't play teens, they are in their 30s and look awesome, one of them is a mum, very cool. If you need a dose of strong, independent women on film here's your movie ideal after a break up, or argument with your man. For those ladies out there with men I'm sure it wouldn't be hard to get him to sit on the couch and watch it with you, after all, this movie is filled with sweaty women in short skirts, they will appreciate the movie for that and probably only that. Haha. It was a pretty cool soundtrack too. If you loved Juno, as I did you'll probably get a kick out of this film too, enjoy.

Looking on the bright side..

Firstly, my heart goes out to all those involved in the Christchurch earthquake. It must be a frightening time for those missing family members and you're in my thoughts. It's moments like these, in times of tragedy we tend to count our blessings. For me it's a time to step back and be thankful for what I have. So what am I thankful for? Mostly my children, those gorgeous boys with eyes of blue and being able to give them a bath, fill their tummys with a good meal and have a warm and safe place for them to sleep. I think we tend to take these small things for granted. I'm also thankful for my man, he is my rock and is rediculously hard working and appreciative of me. When you've been caring for loud, rampaging boys, you've been cleaning up the house just to have that cleaning undone less than 10 minutes later by those darling kids. When your kitchen is a mess, but you have to cook dinner, when you've run out of coffee and almost break your neck tripping over lego and when you finally collapse on the couch in an exhusted heap it's nice to hear the key in the door and a greeting of  "Hey, the house looks great babe, whats for tea, it smells good." - and this is the norm, like I said, appreciative, that's just the type of guy he is. It's not like we havn't had our ups and downs but now we are solid, its a good thing and for this I am thankful. Like alot of people I've always had a connection with places that hold great memories, where I grew up, driving up my old road towards what was the house my Mum and Dad built, I know every bend in that road, infact I could probably drive up it with my eyes closed. It brings back childhood memories. Ohakune our first family holiday with my boys and my first trip ever to see and touch snow, again, great memories. So I'm greatful we have a place to call our own, a place my children will have a connection with when they grow up. We are making great memories here and for this I am thankful.  For people that would rather love than hate, these people honestly make my world go around...we are a blended family you see, a loving muddle of step, half, siblings and parents and I'm greatful that our family puts aside differences and loves one another for who they are. Half, step, no matter, we're family and how cool is that!! These special people know who they are, Bigs stepmum- wonderful, my sisters-inspiring, love to you all. And finally, great mothers, you've got to be thankful for good mums, a mum that for a long time was your everything but eventually helped you to stand on your own two feet, so thankful for women like this!! My Mum is great Mum! Count your blessings people, life's to short, what are you thankful for?

Life on a budget

This is a topic close to my heart. Being a family of four with a mortgage and having growing boys who will no doubt eat us out of house and home when they turn into those beastly things called teenagers I am always keen to hear about any tips that will help to save $$$ especially on the grocery bill. I love cheap, nutritious and if possible one pot meals as I HATE doing dishes, loathe it honestly, infact I would rather clean the toilet or weed my garden than clean the kitchen and that job (when he's not work ) falls on the shoulders of my man, he's lovely like that. Anyway back to budgeting...both my boys were born in March so of course February the month leading up to presents and parties for us, is tight. So I thought I'd share some tips on how to make food go further and good choices for those on a budget. At Bigs kindy they have a "no junk food" policy-this includes no home baking and they have also had an emphasis on using containers and cutting down on packaging, obviously meaning less rubbish which is better for the earth plus Big gets a stamp whenever he has no rubbish in his lunch box, which is very motivating for a four year old. This comes to the first of my tips-no individually packaged lunch foods, yup no little packets of chippies, no snack bars or cheese slices covered in plastic, none of that stuff. So what do you give them? Fruit, sultanas or any dried fruit, canned fruit, veggie sticks, sandwhiches, cheese, crackers, pickles, yogurt, water-it's free and very important to keep your little ones hydrated in these muggy summer days. Buy a large packet of your kids fav crackers or chippies if you must and divide it into smaller containers yourself, much cheaper especially if you buy things in bulk or when they are on special. Go for store brands, yup the cheap ones, things like flour, sugar, salt, and butter all taste the same so buy the cheapest one. If you can afford it stock up on things like butter and cheese when they are on special they freeze fine although certain types of cheese will crumble on defrosting, but it still tastes just as good. Go for a cheap supermarket my favourite is Pakn' Save the best value for money by far and if you go to the larger ones they have a huge range of products as good as those more expensive supermarkets! Take your own bags its cheaper in the long run and more eco friendly which is always a plus, right. Meat is always the most expensive of staples in the freezer, mince goes a long way depending on how you cook it and I've always been a fan of cooking cheaper cuts of meat leaving them deliciously tender and melt in the mouth tasty when chucked in the slow cooker with a few herbs and spices. I find good quality bacon can stretch a meal further too, macaroni and cheese full of veggies and a bit of bacon is filling and delish. I actually use cooked bacon in sandwhich fillings in place of cold deli meats as they only last a few days where cured bacon lasts longer in the fridge or you can devide a packet in to portions and freeze, then you have meat for lunches all week, super! Rice and pasta are family favourites to that go further and leave you feeling full and satisfied. Growing your own veggies also helps with cutting back on weekly costs at the super market having your own source of greens to collect each night for tea means a few more dollars in your pocket, always a good thing! And lastly, write a list and make sure you look through your cupboards to ensure your buying what you need and aren't doubling up on ingredients. Stick to your budget and pay with cash.  Here are some awesome books that give me inspiration for tasty meals when I'm in a pinch, I highly recommend them.

Live well, Spend less - Destitute Gormet Sophie Gray

Awesome tips in here, on a range of topics!

Easy, inexpensive family meals - Simon Holst

100+ Tasty $10 Meals - Sophie Gray

Enjoy - Sophie Gray

Delicious - Sophie Gray



Book Review - Eat Pray Love - Elizabeth Gilbert



Elizabeth Gilbert for many reasons leaves her marriage, a messy and angry divorce soon follows, her bitter ex-husband makes life difficult and wont sign the papers, he wants more than his fair share and Elizabeth gives it to him desperate for the whole thing to be over. She is a busy, motivated and stong career woman who feels she's lost everything. She find herself crying on the bathroom floor, soul searching and depressed. After an on again, off again romance with a man she describes as her soul mate (whom she met while seperated from her husband), decides to take herself on a voyage of self-discovery for a year. She intends to travel to Italy, India and Indonesia (Bali). This is a story about her journey through beautiful places(and food), the people she meets and the lessons learned as she finds herself, rediscovers god/spirituality and maybe...learns to love again?

What I loved about this book: The way the book is divided into three books within the one novel. Each book is the story of her travels in Italy, India and Bali. I like how she tries to describe her experiences and the people she meets, I could really picture her eating the best pizza in Italy. Her praying in a meditation cave in India and her wrinkly old medicine man sitting on his porch in Bali. I love how easy it was to read, picking up the book in the evenings and reading a few chapters and doing the same again the next night as I am a busy mummy. I like how she describes her god. I also like the little random bits of info about the places she visits.

The downside: It wasn't gripping, and I kind of got a bit bored in places wanting to get to the good bits. Some parts are a bit slow.

Overall I give this book a 3.5/5

Its also been made into a movie which I have yet to see, hope it's as good as the book.

Introductions

So... I'm new to the blog scene, well not very true. I read alot of blogs but this is my first attempt at creating my own so here goes... I am the mum of two extremely busy little boys. I will refer to my darling rat bags as Little and Big. Big is aged four but only a few weeks off the big 5 and boy does he have a big personality! When in the comforts of his home or with close friends and family he is loud, rambunctious and fast!! He loves anything on wheels and is a real speed demon on his bike. Although he can be shy at times and turns down the loudness when he's unsure of new people or places, but usually he's all go! He also has a very loving nature and loves cuddles! Little is a gentle soul, loves animals and has a pretty easy going feel about him, he's never in a hurry, not into doing what everyone else is doing, he knows what he wants. He does have a stubborn streak though and won't be ingnored, he's almost 3 and starting kindy next term! Exciting! I adore these two children more than I ever thought was possible. Maybe now it's time to introduce myself busymummy, and aren't we all! Motherhood sure does throw some challenging situations at us mums...and dads. Late night hospital visits with mystery illnesses and temperatures that won't go down, tears from children that decide kindy isn't for them after all, tears from mums that have to listen to their wee one crying as they walk away from that kindy gate, heart breaking, and don't get me started on toilet training and midnight poop clean up or tummy bugs, Us mums have a hard job but oh isn't it worth it! We live in West Auckland, yep my man and I-westies, born and raised, in a bush setting, lots of freedom, both from large families. We have now bought our own peice of dirt in suburbia and we're loving it! Our home is full of laughter, screaming, chatting, playing, loving, children and animals, oh yes...animals, we have 3 chickens Ninny, Penny, and Lemon a dog named Nook he's a Jack-Shiht (Jack russel x Shih Tzu). The rabbits Marley and Buddy and our new addition our kitten named Annabel that I found in the engine bay of my car on New Years day this year, crazy huh!? Oh and our lonely goldfish Thingtwo.. Thingone passed away sadly and was replaced by Joethespottyfish who we think was blind in one eye...well he carked it too. For now I think we're done with fish, a four year old boys heart can only take so much...So that's a little bit about me and our crazy little world as my blog continues to grow I'm sure you will get to know more about me and mine. Until next post. Toodles.