My 2 year old girl

Niamh feeding the ducks

Niamh playing in the sandpit at home

Nimah and her beautiful beads playing at the beach this year just before winter set in.

Niamh fully clothed in the water we just weren't quick enough.



Niamh and Gabriel in the bath with way too many bubbles!

Niamh and papa having a snooze (1 year old)

Niamhs 1st birthday I made a caterpillar cake for her.

Opening pressents on mum and dads bed is a special treat for birthdays. These were some of the ones she got for her 1st birthday

Niamh and Gabriel and daddy. Niamh was only a few hours old her brother was very impressed with her.

5 days old on Christmas day

3 monhs old having a bath

2 months old having a nap on sissys bed

aww getting some love from my big brother Xaviour


Niamh on her blessing day she was a wee bit tired

nana and Niamh on blessing day

Niamh at about 7 months old having fun in the car

Niamh playing with Sarra


Niamh and me and my mum at 6 months old visiting Melbourne

Niamh, me, mum and my nana (6 months). 4 generations of girls

Niamh and my nana lynch.

Niamh and Jasmine at 3 months

Niamh and papa just a day old and so little

Niamh and myself only hours old and still so new

Niamh at a few months old

Newborn Niamh

Its been 2 years today since our little Irish girl was born. Niamh was born at 12.30 am on the 20th of December wieghing 8pd 2onces (she has been my smallest so far). She was a quick birth in the end we only just made it to the hospital before I had her. She is a joy to have and we all love her alot so without further chit chat here are some pictures of her first 2 years.

Leavers dinner

Its been on our minds all year and its OVER! Jasmine had her leavers dinner last Thursday and it was the only day that it poored with rain! Jasmine had jus enough time to get a hand full of pictures taken outside before it pelted down again. All the girls looked fantastic Jasmine looked beautiful she was wanting to look like a Disney princess and I think she did a good job. The parents were invited to predinner drinks before their dinner but all they had to drink was full strength beer and a few salty snacks, I wasnt impressed with that at all.. The hall was decorated fantastically with a "winter wonderland" theme. We left and Jasmine got back home at about 11pm. She didnt want to go to the after party as there were going to be drinking etc so she had some of her friends come here and they sat up watching spooky movies and then headed to bed. Im glad her friends are sensible :o)

SO here is a picture she did look so grown up *sniff* I cant believe she is going to be 17 next March!

Its begining to look alot like Christmas

Its almost December! Where did the year go? We have sooo much to do over the next few weeks its amazing! Im deturmined to get the Christmas tree up and decorated tomorrow Im very fussy and I colour co-ordinate all the decorations on the tree. No the kids are not allowed to help! I know that sounds mean and yeah it probably is but hey its my mean thing they can blame me for later when they are in therapy :o) Jasmine is on work experience all this week and set off this morning to catch the bus into Launceston where she is spending the week with "TasDance" Tasmanian dance company. She really enjoyed it today and got to spend a bit of time with the director of the company. She also informed me today that next week is her leavers dinner!!! She has been super exited about his all year its there one big night to dress up and look fantastic, she has her dress and shoes, her hair is organised as is her makeup and car and date :o) We are so lucky to have so many talented members of our ward that are willing to help her with her big night and all will get a mention on the night. I also have a week to get my very first ginger bread house up. I baked all the pieces last week at Suzannes house and they look ok a bit wonky but it is only my first attempt at this. I actually dont like gingerbread so this is really only for Allen and the little kids. I have another dr's appointment next week (yuck) I will have to mention the contractions that Ive been having I know Im going to get in trouble ohh well it wont be the first time ;o) Then I have dad flying down for 3 days to see the kids and give Niamh her Birthday pressie. She's going to be a big 2 year old and dad bought her a Harrods bear from England when Robyn went over this year. Jasmine got one when she was small so it will be nice that they both have the same bear :o) Then just after dad flys home to Melbourne hes on another plane for New Zealand for Christmas with Robyn and her mum so hes going to be tired. Then Erik, Allen's friend from the states arrives on the 20th. Its just one thing after another!! ALl the days are starting to blend into each other now, Im sure it will settle a little after the new year only to begin hectic in the January when the baby is due!(thats if he makes it that long). Phew! Im tired just thinking about it all!

Im also getting Niamh a nice new big girl bed it wasMakayla's and will fit nicely in Niamh's room, so Im off to get a mattress tomorrow. Then I can raise the bed level in the cot move it into Gabriels room along with the change table then I'll be ready when the baby comes :o) Still plenty to do :o)

we're off to see the Wiggles!

Today we went to see the Wiggles in concert at the Silverdome in Launceston. I had booked "hot Potato seats so I knew we were front and centre on the floor seating (go me!). We left home at about 9:30 and got to the Silverdome just before 10am as the concert didnt start till 11am. I thought we were theere early but there were allready about 300 people ahead of us! We (Jasmine, Gabriel,Niamh and myself) went to have a look at the gift shoop first and I bought the kids a wags tail, a dorothy tail and a feathersword each. they looked very cute with their tails on :o) We waited for the doors to open and then were led into the stadium and down a million stairs to the floor so we could find our seats. We were seated at the end of a row so we had a great view of the stage. They had music playing befor ethe show and Jasmine took Gabriel up to the stage and sat him on it to have his picture taken. The show satred on time with a circus theme which included accrobats and juggling as well as some nifty trampoline stuff. All the Wiggles came out on the stage one by one and introduced themselves. Jeff was first out followed by Sam then Murry then (my favorite) Anthony. they started with "rock a by your bear" and we all sang along. Gabriel was in awe of them I dont think he comprehended till then that they were real!

After the first song ended the Wiggles all got off the stage and walked up and down every isle (and I mean EVERY isle) to say hi to all the kids they shook hands possed for pics and played a huge game of frisby to each other and a fair few parents who helped join in :o) Niamh got a pat from Murry when he was passing by us( she was standing in the isle). ALl the charactors were there as well Dorothy, Wags,Henry, and Captain Feathersword. There were never less than 2 performers from the group on stage at one time and most of the time (unless doing a costume change) they were all on stage for the full 90 mins. They sang all their hits and some groovy new ones that the kids really liked too :o) Jasmine was having as much fun as the little ones were if not more I mean she has grown up with them watching them since she was born! She was excited to come and sang just as loud as the ones on stage :o) All in all it was a fantastic show! The kids really had fun (all of them) and if I could go again next week I think I would they were great!

*photos to follow Jasmine has them all*

Black tie

Allen and I were invited to a Black Tie dinner a few months ago and all I could think was what the heck am I going to find to wear??? I know this is a common thing for women it made it more difficult when Im almost 8 months pregnant! So the task of finding something that was A> affordable and B. Something that would pass for Black Tie? Tricky.... I had a quick look in the maternity stores and decided that paying for anything that expensive was just out of the question I just cant justify spending huge amounts of money on an item that might get used once... So off to the Op Shops to see what I could find there, I have got lucky in the past in finding some super bargins so I did the rounds of all the ones that are decent. No luck there double bum! The question was were to go next? I had a look through the big stores Myer etc no luck and again to pricey when I did find something so on the way back to the car I go throguh Target and I found a black and white maxi dress teamed up with a dark red shiffon jacket I thought that should pass.(I did find some awsome shoes huge heels Jasmine loves them too).
After settling the little kids we headed off it was interesting to see what others considered Black tie, some guy was wandering around with black jeans and a black shirt it was a bit of fun to watch. Some of the women werent much better! I mean you get only so many oportunities to wear something really nice and some of them were shockers! Some young irl turned up in a "dress" that was nothing more than a T shirt with some elastic around the base to hold it under her backside. hehehehehe
We left early so we could still order a pizza for us to eat :o) We had a great time and Grant and Jan who were our hosts for the night did a great job. Yes there were pictures taken (not by me) and yes they did manage to get one of me ( I hate having my picture taken when Im pregnant) I'll get a copy and put it up as soon as I have it.
Ohh also should have a great day tomorrow as Im taking Jasmine and the little kids to the HUGE! Wiggles concert in Launceston in the morning Jasmine is so excited to see them she's been watching them since she was a little girl :o)

Big girl undies

The day has come! Ive been putting it off for a few weeks because the weather hasn't been great. Yesterday we went into town and bought some "big girl undies". She has been wearing them very proudly I'm glad I bought a ten pack as we have already gone through 5 pairs in 2 days. The mop is now my best friend as I follow her about cleaning up after her accidents. I'm confident that this will end soon as she has been telling me when she has "gone" and waits for me to change her. I'm hoping that by the time the new baby comes that she'll be done toilet training and I'll be able to just use the "magicalls" reusable cloth nappies.

Billicart challenge

Today we had the annual Billicart challenge for church. We had East and West wards from Launceston, Burnie, Devonport, and Us from Deloraine ward. The teams are broke into boys and girls and each have their own cart that they have to help make and design themselves. Our girls from Dloraine won last year so they had to try and retain their title.

They had 3 races one was a cross country challenge where they went half way down the hill round a cone then up the hill to the finish line. Both our boys and girls tams won their event. Then they had to push a member of their leadership up the hill again Deloraine girls won and the boys just got through by a fast finishing Burnie team. The main event is the down hill run, this is a fairly steep hill and this year we had a left turn to manuvor at the bottom of the hill (tricky). This left alot of room for overtaking if your game... The Burnie team got a bit close to the Deloraine girls and they almost crashed "Morgan" who was doing the driving did a fanastic job and we came away with the win! The boys did a great job too by winning their race!

It was agreat day with sausages in bread for lunch for everyone after the main race had been won. It wasa fantastic day weather wise with lots of sun and Im sure more than a few people getting burnt. Gabriel and Niamh drank all the cordial I bought plus more and ate all the bikies I bought for them to eat. Niamh sat with everyone at one stage or another during the day, Thats what I love about being at one of the church activities even if the kids wander off I know that someone will be watching them even if I cant see them :o)

I was more than ready to go home by 1:30 (we were there at 10am) so after sitting in the sun and baking while trying to watch the races and the little kids was tiring and I was glad to get home and have a cool shower.

Well done Deloriane champions again !!!

Getting used to being pregnant again

Being pregnant is hard to describe when you havent been there before but its kinda like someone has taken over your body and mind. Ive been nesting like mad lately which is driving Allen and the kids nuts. They go to school etc and the furniture is in one place and when they get home everything is different! I cleran every day vacume, washing etc. This nesting thing is getting out of hand with me moving the furniture and of course it goes back in a different place when it goes back :o) Im also tackling the garden outside (nowhere is safe) Ive been pulling weeds and trying to get the vegie patch ready for planting this weekend. I still have a heap of stuff to do and I need to get a few things for this new baby before he gets here. The baby will be sharing a room with Gabriel (that should be fun) and so Im ordering him a new bed with draws under it. It gives me more space to play with when bub arrives as Gabriels bed will be painted (by me) and then put in Niamhs room for her and then the cot and changetable go into Gabriels room plus his new bed and draws :o) The only downside is that this baby seems to be in a hurry to get here! It could have been all the work Ive been doing but I was having contractions for over 30 mins this afternoon.... Not a good sign. I called ALlen but he wasnt near his phone grrrr. I waited till 5pm to call the hospital but the pains had subsided by then so all is good :o) I do have a doctors appointment tomorrow so I'll remember to let her know whats been going on. I'll also get all my test results back so cross fingers that all is well :o)
Well I better get to bed I need some more sleep, shopping tomorrow and a trip to Bunnings! zzzzzz

Sick Papa

Anyone who knows me or my family knows that my father never gets sick! When he does which is so rare (Ive only seen him sick twice) it hits him hard. This is the case at the moment my dad AKA Papa has Benign positional vertigo. Its got so bad that he was vomiting every time he moved and has to lie still to get any relief from the dizzyness. He went to have an MRI scan on Tuesday and ended up in the hospital , after colapsing in the car park and couldnt move....
I spoke to him last night in the hospital he says hes doing ok and feeling fine wih a drip in his arm to rehydrate and giving him medication to stop the nausea. He finds in difficult when he isnt in control of his body and was a bit emotional on Tuesday. Im keeping in contact with him and up to date with his progress I'm hoping he'll be released maybe today. Get well soon dad :o)

Being a divorced kid

When I was 9 my parents seperated, I was young and I was very confussed and hurt. I was very close to my father and could not understand why my dad who I loved with all my heart could walk out on me and my brother and sister. I remember going around to the womans house who was having an affair with my father and I yelled at her through her fence to come and talk to me, to face me to explain to me how she still had her family and I didn't. It took a long time before I could see my father again and when I did I was angry and lashed out at him.
Years later I still wonder what my family would have been like if my parents had stayed together, what I would be like.
The fact is we are who we are because of the experiences we have. I am the person I am today because of the past I have. I wasnt responsible for the divorce nor did I want it. As an adult you learn that things are not black and white. There are things we dont know as children and things we should NEVER know about our parents.
I know because Ive been there, that it hurts to want your parent and he/she not being there. I know that when things are bad at home and you want to talk to the other parent and you can't that its frustrating and hard to deal with. I know there were times when I was younger whenit was too much for me when I felt pulled in one direction or another being forced to choose between parents. Who was right? Who was wrong? Who do I love more?Do I love the other one less? Its hard even now thinking of that. The fact is I love and will always love BOTH my parents they are who they are I can't change who they are nor would I want to. They are not perfect neither of them but they are good people who just could not live together anymore, and that wasnt because they didnt love me or my siblings its because they loved us that they realised that being apart from each other was the Best thing for us as their children.
When I had a man ask me to marry him I was 18 and I did love this man but I was scared. Scared of getting married to the wrong person at the wrong time. Would I end up having children and then would my children end up like me? Hurt and wondering why? I said no to this man, he is a good guy I just wasnt ready nor was I wanting tomake a mistake for either of us or my future.
When I did get married it was to someone who hurt me long before we got married, it was the wrong man and the wrong reason and I got divorced. I've tried over the years to have a civil relationship with my childrens father I don't talk bad about him to them I just waited for him to show his colours and let them make their own decision.
As a divoced kid you need to make your own decision but it has to be an informed one and without prejudice. As a divorced kid its hard to be civil sometimes when your hurt, but as a kid you need to respect the parent. It doesn't mean you have to like all the decisions they make or who they are with or what they have done in their past. What you have to do is understand that they are human too and they make mistakes just like kids do, just accept them for who they are and be happy that they have done everything they can for you. Stay in touch.

sunshine,plants and more work to do....

It was such a nice day yesterday that ALlen and I got out and did some work outside in the sun. We have been lucky enough to scrounge some second hand bricks from Grant next door who is taking down a wall in the shed. Allen was busy laying those in the drive way so that the car is on solid ground when the moat appears. We plan on getting some more gravel for the driveway when Allen has finished. I got the steps and railing and door painted and finished so I was happy with that. I also got some more painting done on the container as well.
I also bought a few more plants from my favorite store Bunnings I got 3 olive trees, a new orange tree as my other one is looking ill, and a kiwi fruit plant. Im deturmined to plant food that the kids like to eat and that will produce large amounts so I can either sell the remaining or store them. My raspberries have gone crazy and are flowering allready so Im hoping that we get a bumper crop this year last year was their first season and we got a few punnets. The blueberries are looking good too with the bushes looking really healthy so Im hoping that they produce more this year too :o) The plum tree has gone crazy and Im hoping for a few fruit this year but it is its first season so Im not going to let it produce too many. The hazlenut tree is doing well and Im hoping for it to do well this spring and do some serious growing. The passionfruit vine is doing well and climbing up the lattice really well. I'm looking forward to seeing it flower for the first time this year :o)
We still have more to do.... Allen is going to put up a roof over the sandpit and we are going to a paving auction this Saturday to see if we can get some pavers and some retaining wall blocks for the turn circle. I still have heaps of plants to buy to fill out the garden Im trying hard to propergate some myself I've got one rose to grow which is amazing since Gabriel tipped most of the dirt out of the pot! I'm also lucky that I have a friends around who have great gardens who are happy tp dig stuff up when there is too many of something and Im happy to take freebies.
I had planned on painting some more outside today but the rain is coming today so it will have to wait.... Still heaps of work to do

sometimes I just want to be ALONE!

I had a super busy day yesterday and I thought getting up early would put me in the right frame of mond and get me going... Wrong! I did get going but I was late for everything all day??? I did my visiting teaching with Peggy then went to a late lunch with Maranda which I really enjoyed, before coming home to find the house trashed so I spent an hour cleaning up all the kids mess and ALlens mess still sitting on the bench from lunch time grrrrr!!!!!!!!! I hate cleaning up after someone who is more than capable of doing it themselves.
Today was meant to be my dentsit appointment I was geared up to go when one wrong comment from me sparked Allen off and we had a fight, we're still not talking to each other and I just wish he'd go away for a few hours. The rain is back again (which is adding to my crappy mood) its been pooring all day so the moat is back in the driveway.
I'd love a day of just sitting at home reading and napping on my own... Yeah right!

School holidays

Its that time of the year again, school holidays where I get to listen to the older kids tell me how bored they are and that they have nothing to do! Jasmine spent most of the first week at work which is good because she owes me money for her shoes being fixed (42$) and a spending spree at Kmart where she had to get me to pay for because she didnt have enough in her bank account....
Xaviour has spent the past few days asking to use the playstation or the computer, I told him to GO OUTSIDE! Its working he went for a ride and even kicked the ball around for a while yay :o)
I had my Big Ultrasound last Friday when we found out that everything is fine the baby has all the right amount of fingers and toes, and is looking good and yes we are having a BOY! Which is a great thing and a hastle as I gave all my boy stuff away after having Gabriel... Ohh well back to EBay I go.
The little kids and I have been enjoying the sunshine by doing some gardening, and lots of playing outside in the sandpit and on the trampoline.
Everything else is pretty much the same, just kicking back enjoying the warmer weather. I love Spring time

You chicken feves!

I was thinking that yesterday was pretty boring just a bit of dad day shopping and to Bunnings for some straw for the chickens. Little did I know that there was a storm brewing.....

Our neighbours Hannah and Russel have left their house for a year and have gone on holidays till December and are then moving to Burnie in the new year for 12 months. Their house is being rented by some friends of theirs who are getting married at the end of the month so they will move in then. Since they were leaving Hannah asked us if we would like to have any of her chickens I said yes please and that 3 would be great! So Hannah thrw 3 of the chickens over the fence a few days ago just before they caught the boat to Melbourne. The chickens being crafty flew back over the fence So Tuesday night I walked next door after the sun went down to retrieve the said chickens. I cut their fethers so they couldnt fly back, or so I thought.... 2 of them made a break for it so yesterday when I noticed I just thought ohh I'll just get them afet dark again. The problem with that was the neighbours accross the road from Hannah saw Allen and I and accussed us of Stealing the chickens! The woman who was doing the yelling has a screw loose and was yelling at ALlen F*** this and that for a while. I finally got him to come inside but she continued making threats and called the police.

Enter the police.... We saw them driving our way and started laughing being so close to the station (next door) means we know most of the officers by first name. I showed thema note that Hannah had left for me asking me if I wanted any chickens and they left. Honestly it was so funny!!! Allen stirring up the local nut job didnt help but he had his fun she was screaming F*** Mormans at him and he was asking her to come over for tea. I half expected dead chickens this morning but they are all there and in the pen. Justice prevailed :o) I love this town hehehehe

sock monster

I never have worked out how this happens but every couple of months our sock population seems to get halved literally! I have at the moment 15 odd socks, most of which are Niamh's. She has to wear socks pretty much all day, with her boots at night we go through 2 pairs a day but I'll be buggered if I know where these socks have gone to? I checked all the cupboards and draws and went through all her clothes and no luck...??? On the other end I have Gabriel who I swear eats his socks he had at last count 8 pairs of new socks, yesterday after compleating all the washing he had 2 and a half pairs? grrrrr!!! Kids socks are so expensive! I'm waiting patiently for summer and then socks wont be such a big issue.

40!

Yes the day has come :o) Allen turned 40 yesterday and because he has a regular gig every Tuesday night with the young mens group we decided to go out on Monday night instead. We went to dinner which was ok Allen had his favorite duck. He complained that it wasnt very fat I comented that we are in drought and thats why the duck was so scrawny.hehehe Afetr dinner we went to watch "Inglorious Bastards" at the cinema. Im not a Brad Pitt fan at all but the movie was good. It finished late and we got home after midnight so we were very tired. Yesterday he got his pressies and was happy so I did good :o) He also got his regular cheesecake for a birhday cake :o) Happy Birthday Allen

nasty weather

I know we need the rain but this is just rediculous! Our front driveway looks like a swimming pool again and the chickens had a wadding pool in their pen. I made a very stupid decision to hang some washing out before it raianed againand yes it ended up all over the yard and now I have to wash most of it again AHHH! The kids are going nuts being inside all the time they cant go out as the rain just hasnt stopped for days now. The loungroom which was cleaned up is now a sea of toys again. Im glad tomorrow is Thursday and they can go to kindy gym :o) Its also really cold again so the heater is running all day grrrr..... I have plants out the front that have been waiting to be planted for 2 weeks now.... Im seriously considering flying to Brissy just for a chnage in weather. Cheak out the pictures of the gorge in Launceston (thanks Helen) its so flooded and getting higher. We have had flood alerts for ages now Im glad we are not on a slab!

Calista Renee

I know I didnt mention it in my past post and I guess I didnt because it really does need its own space. Allens niece Calista lost her battle with cancer 3 weeks ago she was 20 years old. She was an amazing young woman who lived life to the fullest. I was lucky enough not only to comunicate with her on the phone and net but we met when we were over there 2 years ago. Her husband Ben was very sweet and looked afetr her right up to the very end.

Jody and John her parents (my sister in law) are both so strong and were positive about her condition through all its ups and downs for thepast 2 years. She was first diagnosed when she was only 18 with a rare cancer on her left shoulder joint they took it out replaced it with a titanium one gave her some chemo and she was sent into remission :o) Everyone was very happy and she married Ben that year with a head scalf on covering her bald head she looked beautiful. It came back again this time with spots on her lungs and back to chemo she went it was tough on the whole family but everyone was really supportive. She went back into remission and everyone was happy and Cali and Ben talked about starting a family. Then it came back this time leukemia blood cancer, she went back into hospital and went looking for a doner match. Luckily for Cali she has 4 brothers all with a 25% chance of being a match! Both Frank and Andrew were a match WOOHOO!! Everyone was on a super high but something was wrong Cali was getting worse and her doctors told Jody she was to sick for the transplant and was sent home. She was home less than 2 weeks and passed away peacefully and without pain.

Allen and I ( me especially) am gratefull for having known her and were sad that we could not have attended the funeral in Utah. Ive decided that if we are having a girl that I'll honor Cali by naming the baby after her as her middle name. We will miss you "bossy boots".

blogging update

Yes I have been told how slack Ive been ( thanks Jason). I have been both a combination of busy and sick.
I went to visit my mum and grandmother (who is 91) in May/ June I havent seen them in about 12 months maybe longer so the guilt was really starting to set in. I spent 10 days with mum and even had a day with dad where we spent the day at Healsville sancturary. The trip was marred by 2 visits to my sisters house which I cant stand going to. My sister is filthy dirty and her home fits her well. I know what its like to have kids at home and how long it takes to clean my house ( which is twice the size of hers!) and when I was working and still keeping my home clean, I see no excuse for why my sisters house should look like a pigs pen. She is also very negative and I find it hard to talk to her when she twists everything into something negative so I generally dont say anything. I was glad to get home and sleep in my own bed without having my wiggly son sharing with me.
It wasnt long after I got home that I was wondering where my monthly visitor had gone to? So off to the chemist to but a pregnancy test I went. I waited a while not really wanting to know and took the test it was positive... All the memories of past pregnancys started to invade my thoughts. Ive never had a "normal" pregnancy Ive always had complications of one or the other. I told ALlen when he got home from work and he was thrilled I was apprehensive I man hes done the hard part of getting my pregnant now all he has to do is sit and wait. I on the other hand started having morning sickness (why they call it that is a mystery to me as I have it all day and night). I started loosing weight and couldnt stand the smell or sight of food. My migranes which I normally take daily medication for begain to get worse as I can't take my medication while Im pregnant. I ended up in the hospital where they treated me and sent me home, this was to become my weekly trip. So to and from the hospital we went for 2 weeks. Then, just when I thought the danger period had passed my uterus prolapsed, it in turn cuts of my urethra and I cant void. Its very painfull and needs immediate attention. I went in and gave them all the details (its happened the last 2 pregnancys so I knew what was going on and knew what needed to be done). The nurse was sypathetic but the doctor was hopeless. They put a catheter in to drain my bladder then sent me home. I was still unable to void on my own and knowing that the more I drank the more my bladder would fill and thus be in more pain so I stopped drinking any water. I became dehydrated and still in pain so back to the hospital we go. This time Allen is about to do his block as he doesnt like seeing me in pain ( hey Im not thrilled with it either!) This time Im not only in pain from the prolapse but Im having contractions and Im getting upset. They give me a room finally and some pain relief and into la la land I slip for a few hours. When I come rould I find I have a drip and they are pumping me full of fluid because Im dehydrated. After several hours they decide they want a urine specimine from me so in I go only to find that I still cant void. I panic as I know I now have 2 litres of fluid thats going to want to come out and cant. They send me home and the next day Im back to have a catheter fitted again, Im still sore and Im upset at all the coming and going I asked to be admitted but the doctor says no and tells me to come back the next morning in the out patient ward for obstetrics. I go in with Allen and they put another 3 liters of fluid into my arm with the catheter still in Im not as worried but I dont want ot go home again without being well. The doctor admitts me and they put me up in the labour ward where I share a room with a woman in labour all night, yep lights on monitor on and off all night not much rest for me at all. The following day after breakfast the doctor comes by asks how Im feeling I say a bit better and she says "good you can go home". I asked her "what about the canula and the catheter I have? What about my prolapsed uterus? " She says "You have a Catheter? You have a prolapsed uterus?" I replied "yes a urine catheter". She says "ohh" and leaves the room. I ask the nurse later in the day whats going on? She says as far as she knows Im leaving I informed her that I had not even got an examination and that the doctor didn't seem very informed. She goes to cheek whats going on. At 4.30 the doppy doctor comes back by this time I have very little confidence in her ability to do anything positive for me. She tells me I have to leave that they need the bed and Im just not sick enough to stay another night. I loose my cool and told her she didnt examine me didnt even know what was wrong with me when she came by that morning and that I didnt want to go home with the catheter again. She argued with me lied to my face about knowing about my condition and told me I still had to leave. By this time I was getting loud and very upset and was crying the doctor then tried to console me and offered to then do the examination I told her "dont you touch me!" I asked for another docotr to examine me and was told he would when he could get to me as he wsa in the birthing suite. I was happy to wait, at 7:30pm I asked the nurse again to check what was going on and she came back to me saying he was too busy and I could stay till morning when he would get to me.
Allen was getting irrate at home about the situation, he made a complaint that night to the hospital about my treatment and that of the offending doctor. The next morning the complaints person called Allen back and asked him some question s about what had gone on. They agreed that he had a valid complaint and that calls were being made to "fix things". Again after breakfast I dissapeared from my room to sit in the breakfast room where there is some space and I could be comfortable on a couch. The doctor came by and she was nice and informative she asked me what I wanted and what I thought would be the best plan for me. I told her what I neededand what I wanted and she agreed that that sounded like a good plan so we did that. She did a thorugh examination checking where my uterus was sitting and talking about the removal of the catheter and canula. I did a trial void and could manage allthough it was numb. By 6pm I was home, sore but home. Im still a bit sore and tired but Im on some great medication for my nausea, its expensive so we have to get it from the hospital and they pay the bill. I still have a long way to go in this pregnancy but Im hoping that the worst is over and that the next time Im in the labour ward its with a healthy baby in the crib.

Garden update

Dahlias at the letterbox

The roses and petuna and dalia's at the turn circle

One of my new clibling roses I planted 4 of these 2 on each side of the house I'm hoping that they grow up and out so they close off the space under the house.

The sandpit all built no prebuilt stuff! Allen has done a really good job setting this up the kids love it. The rope at the back is for the little monkeys to climb on its doing really well :o)

Yes we did put a cover on it we have alot of cats in the neighbourhood, we used some shade cloth and a piece of wood the hold it down securely. We have heaps of Tonka trucks for them to play with.

The Sunflowers, pumpkins, tomatoes here self seeded its where the old chook pen was.

This is one of my baby pumpkin plants

As you can see the toms went mad this year and the zucchini has done a great job

more zucchini plants and my baby nectarine tree plus all the raspberries along the back near the fence. The middle of the garden bed did have seedlings in it but the snails got to them so will need replacing this week grrr hate snails!

Th Super chook pen we are planning on getting 10 more from a local chook farm Allen still needs to put some tin on the other sides so that they saty dry and on the left you can see Charlie our neighbours rooster hes over for a play date :o) Our chicken "henny" has been clucky so we thought he could help her out

After looking back at some of the blog pictures I noticed that the last garden pics were a bit sad so I went out yesterday afternoon and took some new ones, as you can see Ive done a bit of work putting in some new plants and I know it will pay off later its just that right now it still looks bare. I have a lot more work to do and alot more plants to buy but I'll get there..... I'm alos wanting to put up a new fence (hopefully before winter hits) across the back of the garden. Still heaps to do in the meantime.

I have a huge busy day with a trip into town to visit the vampires, yes Im giving blood today a group of us are going even Jasmine said she would come :o) Allen has 2 job interviews and Niamh has to go to the hospital and get fitted for her new boots and bars. Phew! We are taking all the kids minus one Xaviour is in Melbourne for a few days :o(

I might try to take my hand vac back Ive only had it 5 weeks and now it wont go at all!!!!! Not happy! Will see how we all feel after lunch we may just pack up and come home.

After Easter we are hoping to get Allens papers signed off so we can hand them into court regarding the child support order from the states. We have been trying to get this done for a over year now, we tried to get it done ourselves but we didnt get anywhere so we hired a lawyer here and hes been sorting through it all for us. This will mean that he will be seen as an Aussie by the Aus child support system and they will take over the case and the payments which means it will get adjusted properly and then he can afford to make the payments. I mean the current order is 1275 US dollars a month! Thats just silly and to be paying that here under Australia's child support formula he would have to earn over 100K a year. So we are looking forward to that being dealt with, its just a shame that the other parent is not willing to give any in this case, as the step father yelled at us when we were last in court "We just want the money" hmm what does that tell you? I thought it was whats best for the children?