Thankful Thursday - The Zany Edition

Deciding what to write about for today’s Thankful Thursday post was pretty much a no brainer. You see nine years ago today I became a mum of two. That’s right, today is my dear little Zany’s ninth birthday.

This was taken back in March when we were in Pemberton, Zany would wake up every morning
and the first thing she wanted to do was feed the birds that hung around. She has an amazing way with
animals and at this stage says she wants to be a vet when she grows up

Over the last week or so I have found myself staring at her wondering how it is that she is actually nine. It really does only seem like yesterday that I was calling the midwife to let her know that the baby was on the way. Not any time soon mind you but definitely on the way.

It was a Sunday morning, about ten I think. The midwife, Josie, was already at the hospital and told me to take my time. Since she was already there she would get a room and set it up for me. I had been hoping to have a water birth. Though back then the public hospital would only let the birthing pools be used for pain relief, birthing, whenever possible, was to occur out of the water.

By the time Mr Awesome and I dropped Lovely off at my parents and arrived at the hospital, dear Josie had well and truly set up my room. That woman was beyond amazing and to this day I am thankful she was there for me.

We walked to a dimly lit room with candles gently glowing and the sound of Enya wafting through. It was all so perfect.

The hospital was relatively close to the ocean with the maternity ward positioned on a floor high enough to see the sea. While I may not be able to remember whether it is the sixth or eighth floor I do remember looking out the window and out across the water and being mesmerised by what looked like shimmering diamonds.

After a relatively short labor, around four hours I guess, my beautiful little Zany was earthed and in my arms. 

Now nine years later I am still blessed to be in the presence of an amazing little person. My baby has grown into a young girl who is kind, thoughtful and caring. She so often puts the needs of others before her own. Though there is always a point where she says no more and takes what she needs as well. 

She has a fabulous sense of humour and a laugh that is infectious. A radiant smile that can instantly lift me.

Of an afternoon when I pick her up from school she will break out into a run the moment she spots me. Smile on her face and arms out wide, engulfing me the moment she is within reach. It is without a doubt one of my most favourite times of the day. A blatant reminder of how blessed I am to be a part of her life.

I can only hope the next nine years are as wonderful as the last. I am so thankful that I get to call this precious soul my girl.

Other random things I am thankful for this week

• having my first unsupervised and paid day at work
• making awesome pumpkin soup
• as I crawled into bed Wednesday night remembering I had left said pumpkin soup on the stove and not yet written this post and getting up and writing this post while eating said soup
• the kindest and supportive comments over on Rhianna Writes
• a day that was just warm enough to wear shorts, the novelty of jeans has gone
• steaming hot showers

What about you? What are you thankful for this week? Join in with a blog post or just comment below

An InLinkz Link-up

Day 63 Sept 20

Today was meant to be our leaving day, though we decided a few days ago that we would stay on for another two nights. It is hard to not stay for longer but really there is no reason to. Other than read, walk on the beach and crochet there is not a lot to be done here. Which in many ways is the beauty of it all.

We have noticed that there are quite a few long term residents here. They arrive at the start of the season (April) and stay till the end of October. There are certainly worse places to spend six months of the year. Two of those long termers, Bill and Pam are leaving tomorrow. A few weeks earlier than what they normally would due to some ill health. We have been watching them pack and sort themselves out for the last few days. In some strange way it was all a bit sad.

What wasn’t sad though was when Pam asked me if I wanted to take her little box of lettuces with us. I had said to Mr Awesome at the start of the trip that I would like to take a little herb garden with me but he said it just wasn’t possible. Fingers crossed the dirt doesn’t fall out all through Edna the first time we move.

Late yesterday afternoon we gained some new neighbours. Rather close ones given how many empty spaces were available. It always amazes me how some people think camping is done best when sites are on top of one another. It also amazes me when people want to camp in close proximity to us, because you know, we have children and are (at least to my ears) noisy. Turns out that the new neighbours had children of their own though so perhaps that was why they thought being close would be a good thing.

Their two girls were close in age to Zany and Teapot. One was a year younger than Zany and the other a year older than Teapot. They had the most wonderful time all playing together. Children just seem to be drawn to playing at our camp. Which in many ways is very lovely but today I barely wanted my own children around let alone any extras.

I didn’t exactly sleep well the night before and woke up a tad on the grumpy side of life. To make things worse I was expecting a visit from Aunty Flo and her non arrival was making slightly anxious. As late as I am with most things in life, getting my period is not usually on the list. Unless of course there is a baby growing. Having another baby is the absolute last thing I want. My baby making days are done and dusted, I am quite happy working with the ones I have rather than starting again with new additions thankyouverymuch.

In slightly happier news though yesterday, despite it's somewhat dubious start, turned out to be a bit of a cracker of a day. Once every one else had caught up on the whole getting up thing Mr Awesome and I enjoyed our coffee together and these two little fellows decided to stop by and say hello. I really do love watching birds.

Shortly after Mr A, living up to his name realised that I was not necessarily in the mood for dealing with the trials and tribulations of children and bundled the little two up and took them down the beach. 

After enough peace and quiet, when I felt able to deal with the never-ending tirade of the cries of mum that are inevitable whenever I am in the presence of children, I mustered up the energy to walk down to the sand and investigate what they had all been up too. 

As it turned out they had been up to some pretty masterful sand castle creating. Standing there, surveying the scene before me, my heart began to swell as I was once again reminded of just how incredibly awesome Mr Awesome actually is. Something tells me there are few fathers that would spend a morning creating a sand castle masterpiece such as this.

Oh the sighing

I have sat here all morning trying to think of what I could write about today. 

Well that sounds a bit dramatic really, it has probably really only been a little over and hour, hour and a half tops I suppose, but when the temperature has already reached thirty two degrees and it is not yet half past eight an hour or so can feel like all morning.

To help with my inspiration I have trawled through my Facebook feed countless times and read a few blog posts that popped up along the way. Sadly all that did was make me feel like the world was full of writers with much better ideas than I. Which I guess at the moment is exactly the case.

Sigh.

In a few short days the end of the month will have passed and November will begin. November. The month when wanna be writers the world over put their finger tips to keyboards and bang out fifty thousand words towards the novel of their dreams.

Double sigh.

I have lamented greatly as to whether I would bother this year or not. I vaguely remember what it felt like all those years ago when I actually managed to complete the challenge. Seems like a lifetime ago now mind you. A distant memory faded by all the following years of failure.

Cue even more sighing.

At the moment I feel like the mayor of Struggletown. Anything and everything is more effort than what I can muster. It is ‘all’ just too hard. 

Only when I stop and think what this ‘all’ is that I am referring to I feel the over whelming need to berate myself for such ridiculous thoughts. Considering that at the moment we are on #ouradventureofalifetime. Even if it is temporarily on hold I am still free from the normal day to day living that most have to endure. 

Or at least to some extent I am. There are no toilets to clean or floors to wash any more. Nor is there a morning school rush to be late for. There are however still mouths to feed (continually I might add), clothes to be washed (more frequently because we have less to wear) and school lessons for me to give.

Oh the sighing.

All in forty degree heat I might add.

All I keep trying to remember is my old mantra of complain I will not, because blessed it what I am. 

Because deep down I do know that blessed is what I am. It’s just easier to complain about everything. And by everything I think actually just mean not having a phone. 

Which really is all kinds of ridiculous. What kind of spoilt cry baby do I think I am?

It's Tuesday and I have blogged. 

Joining IBOT with Essentially Jess

A nothing kind of day

As the thirteenth week away draws to a close it is hard to believe that we are at day 91 of our adventure. On the one hand driving off day feels like only yesterday yet on the other it almost feels like a lifetime ago. One thing I do know is that I don’t ever want this way of life to come to an end.

Today, a Saturday, has very much been a nothing day. Mr Awesome finished the first of his six weeks at work yesterday and we celebrated with a quiet rum and coke. Ok so maybe there was more than one and quiet possibly more rum than coke.

Today we woke up feeling a little under the weather. To say the least.

Actually on the scale of worst hangovers ever it probably doesn’t even rate a mention it has just been so long since I felt the after effects of alcohol that it really knocked me for six. Though I am certain it was the lack of sleep more than the grog that left me feeling worse for wear this morning.

Mind you I wasn’t feeling bad enough to swear off drinking forever, or even any period of time for that matter. As I type this there is an icy cold cider by my side. 

Speaking of not drinking though October is the month also known as Ocsober, where those with more will power and sense than I refuse alcoholic beverages for the month. All in the name of raising funds for worthy causes that encourage children to make healthy life choices. Like saying no to drugs and alcohol.

This year a dear friend has decided to be a party of this worthy cause. Which makes her all sorts awesome. Well actually it makes her even more awesome than what she already is. Anyway the whole point of me telling you dear reader is in the hope that you might have some spare coins to donate her way.

All the details can be located via this link. 

Thanking you so very much xx

One of the things I love most about where we are currently staying are the galahs that regularly pop in to say hello. Actually they are probably stopping in to eat the seed we put out for them more than just dropping by to say hi. Regardless, their presence makes me smile. A lot.

For now though I should go and get dinner for the troops sorted. The never ending battle that feeding seems to be drives me to distraction. I mean it is not a battle to get them to actually eat, just the relentlessness of it needing to be done all the bloody time that makes it feel like a battle.

On being disconnected

One of the things that I have liked most about #ouradventureofalifetime so far is the way it has made us so disconnected from the world at large. Though I must admit that this comes as no surprise to me. As even before we left it was something that I looked forward to.

For a while I worried about what this meant. Why did I desire so badly to be disconnected?

As a blogger, sharer and communicator a desire to be disconnected is probably not what you would expect from me. You know since I regularly try and get people to connect with my words and all...

I started to think that perhaps there was something wrong with me. Humans are not meant to want to be isolated and alone. We are community driven beings rather than islands. Apparently.

Today was a stark reminder as to why being disconnected was so appealing.

When you are disconnected you don't know about war torn countries or people displaced, pressured and murdered because of their religion or planes that crash or people that desperately wanted to be parents only to then abandoned the child they had paid for.

Or famous people that filled the world with laughter and then took their own life.

Being in a time zone that is hours behind most other places the news of this tragic event had filled my Facebook news feed before I had finished my morning coffee. It didn't seem real, though of course I knew it was. There were too many posts for it to be misinformation.

Our day had already been planned so before long we were on the the road and quickly out of mobile and internet range. With the excitement of a new road to drive on and places to discover this heartbreaking news soon left my mind.

No more thought paid to it until we returned. The beauty of being disconnected.

By the time my fellow bloggers had all found their voice and my newsfeed now filled with tales of depression and the need to break the taboo that surrounds this ghastly disease. A disease that no one, rich, famous, happy, poor or anything else in between is immune from.

It makes me sad to think there are so many unhappy and troubled people in the world. So many beings unable to live to their potential and crippled by a disease that so largely goes unseen. Somewhere along the line today I read that some three thousand people will take their life today.

As crowded as the world may be it does not need to lose that many people in that manner. In fact no one anywhere should lose someone in that manner.

When we were in Kununurra the other week the Black Dog Riders dropped in to stay the night. These guys do an amazing job at trying to create awareness of depression and suicide. I love that this is a project by men and primarily for men. You see I worry more about men's depression than women's.

Just about everyone everywhere talks about women and depression. And rightly so because it is a burning issue. But that does not mean men do not suffer either.

Days five to eleven

Day five.

So my writing every day has not exactly gone to plan. Which I am sure does not actually come as a surprise to anyone who knows me even a little.

It is currently day six and I have just written up day four. Clearly not all that much of a tragedy but I had expected to fall behind a bit later than this.

Crazily though as much as it has only been a day or two without writing I can barely recall exactly what we have done. Obviously my mind has had no troubles settling into holiday mode. In fact I have struggled to even recall what day it is.

View of Kununurra from a lookout just outside of town

Day Eleven.

So it’s been a while between drinks (posts). The whole writing every day thing has turned out to be a bit beyond my capabilities. When last we met it was day six and I was catching up on days four and five. Though I only got as far as a few paragraphs into day five before I was forced to make small talk with the mothers of some kids that Zany had befriended. Yes I know forced sounds a bit harsh but sometimes I feel that the whole human interaction thing to be a bit exhausting. 

On this particular occasion Zany had decided that she wanted to go back to the swimming pool with a boy that she had met there earlier in the day when Mr A had given me a bit of shush time and taken the girls for a swim. Despite just having settled down for some writing time I reluctantly agreed to escort her. I figured that could take the lappy down there and kill two birds with the one stone.

As it turned out that when we got there my mind went blanker than blank and I was unable to recall any events from the previous days. Though there were a small series of events that unnerved me  as I was setting myself up that may have had something to do with it. 

Things like when I dragged the plastic table over to the shade it lost two of it’s legs which meant it then became unbalanced. Which would not have been such an issue if I wasn’t juggling the lappy and a plastic cup of cider all while wearing a big floppy hat that greatly reduced my eyesight. Needless to say I managed to lose half my drink and a small amount of pride as I was certain that all in the area were watching and highly amused.

It just so happened the women that I was *forced* talk to (because despite trying to write I was the only that had been able to regularly keep track of where the children where hiding) were actually quite lovely and at various stages of adventures similar to ours. We ended hanging out at one of their vans later that afternoon to exchange tales and I was pleasantly reminded that despite being exhausting the whole human interaction thing was more often than not quite worth the effort.

Zany clearly does not share my feelings on making new friends and meeting people as she is constantly putting herself out there and chatting to anyone that will listen or pay her the slightest bit of attention. Teapot is much the same though a little slower of the mark and has told me a few times that she is actually a little shy. This is also short lived and before long you would thing she has known her new friends forever. When we left our campsite this morning she actually got a tad upset about the prospect of not seeing her friends, the kids from the next site over again.

Lovely on the other hand would not talk to a stranger if her life depended on it. The other night her and I went to an information night that was held at the station where we were staying. Halfway through this lovely young man child came and asked if the empty seat next to her was taken. Based on the look on her face I thought she was going to hyperventilate. Smiling at him I shook my head and told him he was welcome to sit with us.

Before long he started trying to make some small talk about how long we had been there for and what we had done that day. Turns out he had seen us during our gorge walk earlier that day. In order to break the uncomfortable silence that followed each question I felt obliged to answer. Lovely told me afterwards she didn’t feel the need to answer because I got in first but I really doubt that was the case. I joked me needing to leave the moment he sat down and the look in her eyes was one of pure fear.

Though truth be told gorgeous young boys from Switzerland are not really the friends I want to encourage her to be making. But that is probably just the over protective mother in me wanting to preserve my child's innocence forever coming out. While I didn’t find our his age he did seem a few years older than her and obviously a lot more confident and probably experienced if you know what I mean.

For now though I must leave it here. The sun has begun it’s descent and dinner needs to be cooked. 

Crazy times just getting crazier

With work well and truly down with now all my spare time can be directed towards the final stages of house packing and renovating. Though even just typing that out leaves me feeling slightly exhausted. There is just so much to do and be done.

The kitchen has not progressed since we last met. Well that is not exactly true, the walls have changed colour but that is about it.

Halfway through packing up on the weekend Mr Awesome and I realised that the walls just and to be painted. You know because we didn't already have enough to do. Anyways since we are still waiting to have the kitchen installed it seemed to make sense to get the kitchen walls out the way now.

A quick trip to our local hardware store and and even quicker stay in the paint aisle and before we knew it two cans of paint and a whole heap of painting paraphernalia were on the way home with us.

Now if I was a good home renovations blogger I would be able to tell you what flash and fancy names were on the paint tins. Instead all I can say is they are a lovely shade of yellow and very very light blue.

The kitchen is a pretty simple and white so I am hoping it will blend well with the yellow walls. As much as everyone who walked into my old red kitchen said it was awful I really loved the brightness of it all. Hence the yellow walls.

Fingers and toes crossed that as you are reading this my lovely kitchen boy is busily installing my kitchen. With less than two weeks till are planned departure date it feels like we are quickly running out of time.

Our beds and most of the stuff we plan on keeping have now been safely popped into storage (mental note I must still sort insurance). There are so many thoughts buzzing round my head that sometimes I find it hard to keep track of them. Nothing really new there I know, but this time round they are all kind of important.

Since all our prized possessions are packed away and we have no workable kitchen we have decided to move Edna to mum's and take up residence there. It also gives us a chance to start packing Edna and work out what fits where.

Exciting times abound.

Joining in the IBOT fun with EssentiallyJess

Getting Away

In a bid to have a relaxing weekend surrounded by the tranquility of our most favourite camping grounds Friday was a flurry of activity. As I mentioned in my late night ramble as I tried to unwind from it all there was much to be done before we could hit the road. 

There were last minute additions to camping gear and food to be purchased. Not to mention all the washing that needed to be done so that not only did we had clothes to take away with us but also some clean ones to return home to and the tidying up that I just knew I wouldn’t want to do up our return. I had no idea that the preparations necessary for relaxation were so intense.

Actually that is a lie. I did have, I has just selectively blocked it from my memory else we would never get away.

By all accounts Edna the Eagle (our caravan) should be fine with a bit of a rough track. While not technically an off road model her previous owners had modified the suspension and raised her higher of the ground than her factory floor sisters.  Before we actually set off on #ouradventureofalifetime though we wanted to give here a bit of a test run on some dirt that we were at least a little a familiar with.

The idea was to head out to Umbrawarra Gorge. A place that we have been to many times before that involves a rather exciting dirt track. Sure at three and a bit hours it was a bit of a drive but the thought spending some time at a place we all love so much made it seem worth the while.

apparently we weren't the only ones that thought
getting was a great idea

Given the long weekend we expected there to be lots of other like minded souls hitting the road. Though we did expect most of them to be choosing the road that led to the Barunga Festival. We were also under the misguided impression that few people knew of our destination.

After a break of day start that involved almost as much rushed and action packed movement as the previous day we were packed and ready to go only thirty minutes later than Mr Awesome’s requested departure time. Which to me feels like we basically left on time.

Ignoring Lovely’s pleas for Maccas and my desire for coffee we powered off. It was a bit of a lesson learnt for both of us. She was told to have breakfast before we left and due to me being up too late the night before I didn’t get up with enough time or energy to make coffee. Live and learn right?

After an hour on the road, which was slower than normal on account of excess traffic and pulling Edna, the cries for food from the back seat were hitting the unbearable level. The two younger ones had joined in with Lovely. It was like a strength in numbers kind of unison or something. They momentarily lapsed once we passed the final McDonalds but quickly picked it up again five minutes later.

Due to my lack of caffeine and my own rumbling tummy it wasn’t long before I quietly said to Mr A that I thought he should stop at the next roadhouse in the hope they sold egg and bacon sandwiches. I also reasoned it would be a great chance to break my fifty dollar note so as to make it easier to leave the camping fees in the honesty box that gives no change.

Apparently everyone else on the road was having the same conversation because when we arrived at said roadhouse it felt like half of Darwin was also there.

Sadly there were no egg and bacon sangas. Instead we had to make do with a couple of ham and cheese toasties plus some rather dodgy pork and cheese and beef and cheese ones. Beggars can’t be choosers and all that and at least it filled the gapping holes in our stomachs.

Little did I know though about it being a sign of things to come.

Eventually we made it to the turn off that would lead to our final destination. The highly anticipated dirt road to see just how sturdy old Edna really was. Mr A pulled over and took the stabilising sway bar thingies off and we were ready to go.

Oh my goodness and holy dooly.

For some reason the corrugation drove me insane. It went completely through me and left my poor little brain feeling like it was rattling around the empty hollows of my skull. Cue intense headache. All of which may possibly been related to the lack of caffeine for I was still without my daily hit. As luck would have it the road house coffee machine was out of order when we passed through.

To make matters even worse as we approached our beloved campsite we were greeted with the most horrid of sights.

Other people. And lots of them.

So many in fact there was no room for us!!

Cue complete and utter devastation.

After slowly trawling through the entire area it was evident that there was just no possible way we were able to squeeze ourselves in anywhere. And with that before I even had a chance to process what was going on Mr A was back on the dirt road and heading back to the highway.

“We will just go to Edith Falls” he said.

“If it is packed out here then what chance will we have at Edith?” I said. Trying to not take my disappointment out on him as deep down I knew it wasn't really his fault though I desperately wanted to hold him accountable.

All the while fielding questions from the girls as to why we have just turned around as opposed to getting out and setting up camp.

Tensions were high to say the least.

By the time we reached the highway my headache had multiplied tenfold and my patience had completely disappeared. I shut my eyes in a bid to make it all go away and save myself from having to answer any more questions or make any decisions. All this really did though was put my neck at a funny angle giving me a creak in my neck and something else to complain about.

So much for a relaxing getaway.

As we pulled into the entrance to the camping grounds at Edith Falls we couldn’t help but notice one of the gates was closed. The sign attached stated that there were no caravan spaces available only cars with tents and small vans. Mr A suggested we go in and talk to them just in case they could squeeze us in somewhere. Edna may have room for all of us but she by no means a huge space taker. Of course I shot him down in flames and stated we were not a tent nor a small van. A small van being an all in one unit that had beds on the back seat.

Given it had been nearly four hours since we left home he decided to pull over and give everyone the chance to stretch their legs and utilise the toilets. Lovely began asking for ice cream the moment she saw the kiosk. Her request quickly shot down in flames because I was just in the mood for saying no.

After relieving myself I began to feel marginally more human and when she asked again I was in a slightly better frame of mind and said why not. After all none of this was their fault and I did have some money in my pocket. The change in fact from the sandwiches earlier that was meant to be our camping fees.

I am so incredibly glad that I had a change of heart.

You see as we were paying for the ice cream another customer asked for a coffee. The attendant told her she would need to wait a few minutes till the boss, who was out seeing what sites were actually available, returned. This of course prompted me to ask if by chance there was any room for us. And would you believe it?

There was.

Hallelujah and praise the Lord. I almost instantly began writing my next Thankful Thursday post in my head.

Mind you my thankfulness was quickly on the way out when they said they had no Eftpos and it was cash only. Having just spent all my cash on ice-creams and all.

Thankfully though we were able to scrounge together enough from the bottom of my bag and Mr A’s wallet to see us through. Talk about edge of your seat though!

Of course getting to spend time hanging around here did make it all worth the while.

Check out my Snapshots of Us post for more images from the weekend and check out Essentially Jess for more great #IBOT posts

A late night ramble

The machines are all quietly whirring away doing my chores for me, allowing me a few moments to sit with my own whirring mind.

Today (Friday, which is now actually yesterday) has felt like a never ending rush from here to there and back again. I am quite certain that I passed myself coming and going on more than one occasion.

If I was a sensible as I sometimes claim to be be I would not be here right now. Instead I would be snuggled up alongside Mr Awesome in the comfort of our bed. Allowing my poor weary body some much need rest. The opportunity to sit alone with my thoughts though was to good to pass up.

Thoughts and words have been floating around my head all evening.

As I wiped the harden breakfast cereal from the morning, off the table I had written the start of this post in my head at least five times over. Naturally, all of which sound better than what I have managed to produce right now.

That is always the way though.

It is easy to claim something which is not actually here is better than what really is. Much like it is easier to complain about oneself than give the praise which is more often than not more deserved.

I have been particularly harsh on myself of late. Some of which is possibly quite deserved, though all of is most definitely not. Deep down I do know that, but for the most part I am far to easy on myself, I let myself get away with far too much.

There are times when toughness is called for and that time for me is probably now. The tricky thing about being tough on yourself though is it must be done in a manner in which incites action. It is pointless to label all one's faults and not do anything about them.

For now though I am going to stop fighting sleep and get some of the rest I complain of lacking.

Thankful for Mr Awesome

Once again Thursday sees me being thankful for something that involves Mr Awesome.

Though just between you and me I actually wrote those words nearly two years ago. They are however incredibly true for this week as well. Why I didn't get to finish the post two years ago I do can not remember, I guess life or something like it got in the way. The rest of the post, or at least the rest of what I had written, went a little like this.

This week we very quietly celebrated eight years of wedded bliss.  When I say very quietly I mean we did nothing.  When I say wedded bliss I mean absolute joy and happiness that comes from starting each and every day with the one you love.

And that's it.

Me and the man himself

Thankfully though there is so much more that I can add today.

Well there was so much more that I could have added then but time just never seemed to permit me the opportunity then. I have actually gone to give thanks for him on a few other occasions since then but never actually got the post out on account of worrying you may be sick of me harping on about how I got beyond lucky in the husband department.

Last month I started a post about him and then thought I would give thanks not just to Mr Awesome but all the awesome men out there, because I am certain there are others, only it was about the same time that a father killed his son and there was a lot of domestic violence talk in the  media and it just didn't seem quite right.

Today however I am so overwhelmed with his awesomeness I can not hold back.

As much as this post is spurred by his support in me purchasing ridiculously expensive goods;

My beautiful new boots and jacket, both of which make me
feel beyond a million dollars

it is also about an unwavering and constant support in every little thing that I set out to do. Regardless of how achievable or ridiculous it may actually be or even turn out to be. While he may at times suggest I don't proceed with whatever I hair brain idea I have come up with, rarely is it that he will actually stop me (or even try to) from proceeding. He is never one to stand there and say I told you so or anything similar either.

If I succeed, he cheers and encourages me to do more.

If I fall down, he helps me back up again.

If I am unsure, he encourages me.

If I am scared or sad, he comforts me.

Everything that he does, is with my best interest and thought in mind. Always has been and I am relatively confident that it always will be. 

I really can not even begin to explain just how blessed I feel to have him in my life. He is a dream come true.

He is selfless, committed, beyond understanding, supportive, loving, compassionate, giving, thoughtful, honestly the list could be endless but I think by now you are starting to get the picture. 

He is the type of man that every parent hopes their daughter will marry. I am so, so, so very thankful that he is the man I got to marry.

So Mr Awesome, thank you for being you, my rock and central force. Without you I dread to think where I might be.

An InLinkz Link-up

So tell me, what are you thankful for this week?

Thankful to not feel so alone

As you may recall I recently became the parent of a teenager. A path I am taking with great trepidation I can tell you.

On the whole I always felt myself as a rather confident parent, I rarely doubted myself and life was just peachy. In fact I was such a confident parent that I even had the nerve to write parenting advice articles.

The terrible twos and threes slipped on by without there being any of the terror that many warned me of. In fact it was quite the the opposite and were quite terrific. I continued on my merry path of parentdom rather happily, perhaps even a little smugly. All of which I was super thankful for.

Now however as I am thrown into the perils of teenagerdom it is an entirely different story. I can barely tell whether I am Arthur, Martha or something in between. My once delightful little child has transformed into some form of wildebeest that knows no reason and insists that conversation be replaced with constant battles.

The worst part is that I feel beyond alone in it all. None of my friends really have teenagers yet and the few that do seem to have a rare breed that are rather angelic. Making me feel like some kind of terrible failure because I have a child who wishes to do nothing but rebel. To make things worst most of the blogs that I stop by seem to only talk about youngsters and the troubles they are facing with them, though perhaps I just haven't looked hard enough...

All in all I can't help but feel completely and utterly alone in this new world of parenting a teen. Or at least I was for a while.

I am thankful that this delightful post from The Bumpiest Path was brought to my attention. I suddenly began to feel a little less alone and a little more filled with hope. It was the perfect gentle message that I needed to be told.

Raising a teenager is no easy feat or a walk in the park. Nor is it something that you need to go it alone. There are in fact other parents that have had their teenagers replaced with the devil incarnate. Just for some reason no one seems to talk about quite as much.

I am also thankful to another friend, who while does not have a teenager right now, she has been there and done that and in a few short years will be going through it all again. She told me of Kevin Leman and how she is looking into some of his ideas to help her through. I too found some possible ways forward after listening to this father of five accomplished children for a bit. Though it will still not make it a walk in the park.

So this Thursday I am thankful that it has taken till now for me to feel like such a failure as a parent. I am also thankful that deep down I do know that I am not really a failure. Despite her awfulness at times there are glimmering moments where Lovely still lives up to her name.

I am thankful that I have a strong ship that will hopeful be able to weather this storm, even if it may last for many a year. It appears as if it is just a case of battening down the hatches and hoping for the best.

What are you thankful for this week?

An InLinkz Link-up

Living in the moment, planning for the future

Before too long this will be
my constant view

Lately these words seem to be constantly floating around my pretty little head. Living for the moment, planning for the future. I can't help but wonder if it is possible to do both. To me they just don't seem to go together.

There is no denying that I am very much a live for the moment kind of girl. I always have been. And for the most part it has served me well. Sure there have been occasions when I wished I stopped and thought about the consequences of the moment a little more while I was living it but on the whole it has served me well.

But what happens when the moment you are living in is not really as great as what you like but you can't do anything about it because it is all part of the plan for the future?

As a regular reader you would have probably heard about my impending #adventureofalifetime. Due to said trip I have returned to regular paid employment for the first time in over eight years.

I have always known that I was blessed to not have to work, until I went back to work though I just never really understood how blessed I was.

While I really enjoy the actual working side of things, at least at the start of the week, there is so much of it that I don't enjoy. Like all the extra organisation that is needed. The intricate planning of childcare arrangements and them being picked up (we only have one car), making sure dinner is organised on the nights I am working, less time to squeeze in a load of washing that should have been done days ago. All the little things that quite honestly I struggled with before I added twenty hours a week out of the house into the mix.

I don't like the rushing here and there, the having to be at another place at a particular time. The dump and run policy I have had to adopt at school because there is just no possible way I feel I could squeeze anything else into my precious time. The fact that sometimes when I drop Zany off at school I know I won't actually see her again until we wake up the next morning.

On top of all of that working makes me tired and cuts into my running time. Neither of which please me greatly.

I keep telling myself that it is all only short term and all for such a very valid reason. The end result of a few hard months will be well and truly worth it.

Deep down I know it to be true.

It's just I don't like living in a moment that involves waiting for the future.

joining in with the IBOT gang over at Essentially Jess

Snapshots of Us - Week 16

In my head I have the tune of The Platters hit The Great Pretender going round and round, only the words have been changed to say the great procrastinator. I have even gone so far as google the lyrics to see if I could actually rewrite the whole song. Because I am, without a doubt a great procrastinator.

There is a uni assignment patiently waiting for me to do it. It is a critical analysis of a journal article. My brain keeps freezing up at the mere thought of it all and sending my mind into a panic wondering why on earth I thought returning to study was a viable option. Hence  I have taken my procrastination to all kinds of new levels and done anything but actually study.

Sigh.

So what has happened in the last week I here you ask?

Well in my last Snapshot update I mentioned that we had gone for a wee drive to see if we had found our new home for #ouradventureofalife. Turns out we had.

The drive out there was all kinds of awesome and even involved passing through some water. Which was made even cooler by the fact we had just had a new snorkel put on the day before.

While we were out that way, and by out that way I mean Kakadu National Park, we thought we would take the opportunity to do a bit of rock climbing. Ubirr Rock is one of Mr Awesome's favourite places.

And with views like that you can totally understand why.

It was also a great chance to get the girls posing for a few shots in amongst the rocks. In this one they were just pleased to be in the shade. Unfortunately we were out and about in the hottest part of the day but it was unavoidable and most definitely worth it.

Originally we had planned to head west on for #ouradventureofalifetime but now it appears as if we will do a dash down the middle, check out Ayres Rock, Devils Marbles and Kings Canyon before seeking out some snow. We will then head back to Darwin for my specialist appointment and a few test and then head west.

Which has given my mum the perfect opportunity to get her needles out and get her knit on. Teapot is just in love with her scarf, beanie and mittens. They almost need to be forcibly removed when she tested them out.

Oh and this happened

I became the mother of a teenager.

This was taken on her last day of being twelve. It amazes me sometimes just how grown up she not only looks but actually is. Seems like only yesterday she was cradled in my arms.

Getting my run back on

Just over two years ago, on the 18th February 2012 to be exact, I began to change my life forever.

Inspired primarily by Trish and Kate I laced up my sneakers and decided to see if could suddenly become a runner.

I say suddenly because for my entire life before that point running was not something I thought I could do. Sure I played team sports as a teen that involved a lot of running but that was different. Short dashes from one end of a field to another chasing a ball hoping to get there before someone else did was not exactly real running. Especially when it left you completely and utterly out of breath and gasping for air.

Somehow though, with time, patience and perseverance I could slowly feel a change occurring within in my inner being. As I worked my way through my beloved interval training program I noticed that I was actually able to run for extended periods of time. In fact after about eight weeks I was actually able to maintain a steady much faster than walking pace for a solid thirty minutes.

Since then my running has fluctuated. There has been times when I would be out pounding the pavement every other day and other times where a month and sometimes more, would pass between runs. Though the longer I went without running the more I would long to do so and eventually I would find a way to get myself back out there.

Me getting myself back out there

Over this period I have managed to propel myself nearly 500 kilometres. In June last year I entered my first fun run. A twelve kilometre city to surf event. Being able to say I completed it feels me with all kinds of pride. As does being able to call myself a runner. Words I honestly never thought would leave my mouth.

On the television the other day I heard an advertisement advising that registrations for this year's City to Surf event were now open. Needless to say I am registered. Last year I had less than a month to prepare myself for the big day. This year I have about double that and I am making the most of it.

Sadly recent months have seen less running than I would have liked. Between working, studying, the weather, being a mum and all kinds of stupid excuses have made squeezing in time for a run easier said than done.

At least that was the case before I registered for the race.

Once I had registered, which involved me parting with forty dollars, I made a promise to myself not to make any excuses not to get out there. The running inspired birthday gifts I received the other day have helped no end in this as well.

The past few weeks have seen me go for a run more than what the last three months have. In so many ways it feels rather awesome to be back out there. However there is one slight problem.

Breathing.

I just can't seem to do it while I run anymore. I am back to gasping for air like a fish out of water. It feels awful and makes running rather difficult to say the least.

Thankfully though the internet is a wealth of information and I have been able to read a few articles on how runners should be breathing. This post was supposed to share some of my new found breathing while running tips but I think we can all agree it has gone of for long enough for now. Make sure you pop back tomorrow because I will share it all then.

For now go and check out some of the other bloggers who have joined in #IBOT

Snapshots of Us - Weeks 10 & 11

When I started this whole Snapshots of Us idea I was adamant that I would be able to maintain the weekly update thing. After all how hard could it be to make sure that I took a snapshots of us all every week?

Apparently the answer is very.

Last week again saw me with out a post, though I did have a few photos of myself that I could have used. This week saw me madly rushing out to where the girls were just playing to get a few snaps of them. Which is fine enough I guess but not really the true spirit of things. Lucky I am not a stickler for rules.

As always it has been an actioned packed few weeks.

In my last Snapshot update I mentioned that I finally had the long awaited specialist appointment. Turned out that the appointment at the hospital was with the same doctor I had the private appointment with. So I only ended going to the first one. Which was great because it introduced me to my new GP. Who in case you missed it earlier is very McDreamy. Handy since I have to seem him rather regularly for the next few months.

Sadly I still need to be injecting myself though hopefully Tuesday will see the end of that. Leaving me taking daily doses of wafrin till September.

Yesterday we looked at our first caravan to take away on our trip of a life time. I don't think it was the one for us as the price was a little high for what it was but it was certainly fun to start looking.

We did however make one purchase in preparation for the trip. A lovely new Macbook. I am not sure yet whether it is mine as an early birthday present or whether I have to share it with Mr A. either it is lovely and super inspirational for getting some writing done.

Speaking of our trip of a life time, I have been trying to think of a great hashtag for it. Any suggestions?

Last weekend saw Mr Awesome and I escape our parenting responsibilities for the night and spend the night in a hotel room. All thanks to his company I might add. I made the most of the child free time with

a run, followed by

a bath with a glass of wine

Me all dolled up.
It's a shame I didn't think to take a full body selfie, in the dress I got when I was 21!

The past week has seen me enter the perils joys of full time work. I am beyond thankful that it is only for two weeks. To say we are not coping is somewhat of an understatement. I can't help but wonder if it is the mindnumbingness of the job that is driving me up the wall more than the inability to create enough organisation for everything to run smoothly at home. Either way it made for a long week.

Once again Lovely has had all her electronic connections removed. An email from the school and a letter in the mail let me know her behaviour has been leaving a lot to be desired. On the upside though the free time she now finds herself with allows her more time to play with her sisters. Which apparently involves exercising.

Though Teapot was more interested in trying to get into the pool than playing over on the grass. And given the heat of the day, who can really blame her?

I think that is about it for now. Well actually it has to be about it for now. Mr A has just taken the girls  to trade in some old PS3 games and then to Bunnings for some new door handles. Which is more trip preparation.

A lovely new air conditioning unit was installed in the girls bedrooms yesterday which means they need to be able to close their door properly. Which they haven't been able to do for a while since constant slamming broke the handle quite some time ago. As we will be renting the unit out while we are away we need to make sure everything is in tip top shape.

I escaped the trip under the pre tense of needing to do food shopping. Which is not really a pre tense because I really do need to go food shopping. Which just quietly I am less than excited about because every man and his dog seem to need to do the same on a Sunday afternoon.

Sigh.

When do you do your food shopping?