For a nearly 5 year old

Last night as a 4 year old. Sparklers on the front lawn.

By the time you are 5 you will have lived in two houses and be 6 months into pre-school. You have, while in my stomach been to university and listened to lectures on Health, Education, Legal Studies, Sociology and Physical Education. You heard my ramblings to customers as I managed Sanity Music stores, hence I believe this is where you love of pop music has come from. Your favourite music artist is the Black Eyed Peas however, anything played loudly in the car is good enough for you. By the time you are 5 you will have discovered that your favourite foods include olives and avocado and you are happier sitting down to a fruit salad than anything much more tempting to a child. Your favourite movies will include Lilo and Stich, Pirates of the Carribean, Spirit and Shrek 2. Although Sinbad, Atlantis, The Princess Diaries and Mary Poppins are never far away.

It will be well established, by the time you are 5 that your favourite colours are all shades of pink. You will have an obsession that your underwear and hair bands will have to match the colour you are wearing. This is fairly simple if we keep everything pink. By the time you are 5 you will have been called an 'old soul' by countless people, some familiar to you and some not. You will have visited the buddist temple and the card you pull out of a deck, for you, will be a 'deep soul' card. You will also have been to Coffs Harbour, Newcastle, both the Sunshine and Gold Coasts, Hervey Bay and several little day trips in between. By the time you are 5 your mum would've liked to have taken you to Bali and Fiji to explore the cultures of another country however, this was not to be.

By the time you are 5 you will like to 'kick it' with the boys and accessorise with the girls. You will be an outside girl and have a deep respect and understanding for animals and all things nature. You will be most at peace in the sunshine particulary on the beach or in a lush green park. Time of year is irrelevent. Your favourite animals are horses and when you get up every morning and come home every afternoon you go straight outside to the dogs and sit with them. By the time you are 5 you will have daily conversations with your 'friends'; the one's your dad and I like to call 'imaginary' but you insist on chatting to, arguing with, hiding from, playing with and reading to.

Particular likes and dislikes will form a very important part of your nature. You like having people or animals around you at all times, you dislike wearing socks, you like sleeping on the couch, in Joshua's room, in our bed and dislike sleeping in yours. You also dislike having your feet and arms covered by a blanket. You like being able to sing and chatter freely and dislike being told it is "quiet time". When you turn 5 your parents are so despereatley hoping that you may go to sleep earlier and stay in your own bed.

By the time you are 5 you will have developed into a confident, happy and intelligent girl. You will draw people to you with your smile and your charisma. You will have a deep, loving and fiercly loyal nature. You will have a family who loves you very much and a future bright in front of you.

Happy Birthday for tomorrow Jillian Grace Cuskelly.

Love Mum xxx

Something Blue

These photos were taken at our wedding. We had such a blast when we got our photos taken. We were adamant that the photos would not be traditional style and would be typical of our nature. I wouldn't pick these papers for the LO but they were given to me to use by Paper Trenz for a display. I'm rekkonin the page has come up just nicely!

Did any of you stick to the something old something new something borrowed something blue?

inspiration

Had a scrapbooking fest last Saturday night. After whinging to a fellow scrap tart that I have no motivation and I am bored with the craft I got off my bum and did a page or four.

Kim and Mandy, you would be proud to know that I completed an A4 page. Have included it just as proof!.

I really like the Pure Sass page. Somewhat simple and not at all like me. Hmmmmm perhaps I am evolving.

Willing Participants

As some of you know I like my photography. I am no where near the standard of our friend RR but I get enjoyment our of taking photos and the fact that I can capture a memory for the rest of time. Welllll..... As my family are thoroughly sick of me and as soon as I go anywhere near the camera everyone bolts (hang on a second... get the camera, everyone bolts, Briohny's left alone....Now there's an idea) Anyway I conned some suckers oh sorry some friends into being my please-please-please can I take some photos of you two?

Let me say here these guys were FANTASTIC!!!! They were so willing and helpful and god dang it OBLIGING! For two hours they endured, "stand here", "Lean there", "Look right", "Chin Out more" (MMS never really got the hang of that one) and the best part is not once did they complain, groan, roll their eyes or do anything else that suggested they may require therapy from being photographed so much (unlike MY family!).

The photo above is a sample of one of the 472 (it seemed that many) that were taken. There are others that are my fav's but I don't believe MMS (Mere Male S) would appreciate seeing his face and that of his lovely partners' on the internet. Note to MMS - It could've been worse!

So a very heart felt thanks to you two (Amsey and MMS) for being so fantastic and allowing me to explore my hobby a little bit more.

$3 school stalls

Don't you just love the $3 stalls that happen on every 'event' at school???? You hand your lovelies the $3 as they trot off to school ever so excitied knowing exactly what they want to get just for you. Will it be the coffee cup full of lollies, the nice poem with a rose border, the bar of soap or the embroided face washer? I would love to be there watching their little faces as they debate in their minds which present mum would like most.

This year I was the lucky receiver of a bar of soap, a bookmark and a bracelet. A smirk comes to my face when they sneak their pressie out of their school bags, show whoever may be in the house, sneak it back into their room and covet it like we would a million dollars.

Sometimes, it really is the little things that matter most.

Happy Mothers Day to all you wonderful mothers out there. I'll leave you with this final thought that a friend asked me today...

How come no-one ever asks a man how he manages a career and a family?

M-U-M-M-I

Recount of Jillian's bath tonight...

"M-u-m-m-i, m-u-m-m-i, m-u-m-m-i and mummy was her name-o" sung over and over and over and over....

So very cute.

Truly Honest

My previous post laid claim to the fact that House and NCIS are my two favourite shows. On further review I have decided to broaden the field and say that House and NCIS are my two favourite shows on commercial TV. I have to say here that Sex and the City and What Not to Wear are my favourite shows on pay TV.

I sooooo love Trinnie and Sussanah. Last night they made a comment that only when someone is truly honest with you can you make a true change. My darling husband who has become a back seat watcher of the forementioned TV shows decides that this is the time to be 'truly honest' with his wife who was obviously (through his male eyes) desperate for a 'true change'. God bless his little cotton socks for being so honest and then when I replied that sometimes if you are going to be 'truly honest' with someone A LITTLE WARNING IS ALWAYS NICE. His reply,
"Trinnie and Sussanah never said anything about that. I'm just being truly honest".

I think my husband needs to watch more of 'his shows' and leave Charlotte, Carrie, Samantha, Miranda, Trinnie and Sussanah to me!

Simple Things

I just love Wednesday nights! The kids always go to bed when they are told to (gotta love soccer training and last day of pre-school), It's mid week (hump day!) and House and NCIS are on tellie - My two favourite shows. Mind you I indulge in TV on Wednesday night. Sex in the City 7:30 on Foxtel always acts as a good prelude to the night viewing on Channel 10. So with 20 minutes to go til a little luxury comes my way I'm going to have a coffee and a Monte Carlo.

5 a.m. intentions

Went to bed at midnight last night after the neighbours finished their psycho screaming at each other and I had taken two sedatives. Had alarm set for 5 am to go for a jog. Got woken at 3am by a delightful 10 year old who felt he wouldn't have nightmares in our bed. (Edit - you know that what-the-hell-pasty-in-the-mouth-need-to-wee-at-three feeling? Had that going on to0) Tony migrated to Jillian's room. Never made the 5am jog... Got to school, started straight up with lovely year 11's at 8am in the morning. Taught all day, went and hid for lunch, picked up the kids, took Josh to ENT specalist, running 1 1/2 hours late, went to Maccas (anything to get out of the sterile-no-music-5-year-old-magazine-filled-clock-ticking waiting room), picked at the hot chips, coffee machine broken (Soooo not happy now), back to the specalist, 15 minutes and $130 later we head home. Walk in at 7:30 pm. Cooked dinner, said hello to the dogs, kissed the hubby, put kids to bed, watched Survivor (Hello! Nut Case Shane so has to go. Can anyone else see that?????) and here I am at 10pm typing.

I feel like my days consist of constant madness. I am thankful that I do not lead a life of dull existance but Puhlease~ How can I gain control?

I am over "maintaining" my weight. Time to start shifting it baby. I looked in the mirror tonight and wished it didn't look back. I saw a round (not nice and oval) face and a nice Santa belly. (Thankful that I don't have a 360 degree mirror like Trinny and Susannah. God I love that show).

So the day is coming to a close with tomorrow's school work still in my bag and the alarm once again set for 5am.

To my fellow Scrap Tarts (see their blog on my home page). May you have sweet dreams about Cathie's book and we expect to see a scrap lift sometime in the near future. To my Lovely Lady friend, sleep well and get that hubby to massage those feet of yours. To RR thank you as always for your inspiration in all that you do. You truly bring true the saying that it is the little things that count.

To the rest of you who have persisted in reading this enormous wad of text and in the famous words of Johnny Young

Close your eyes and i'll kiss you, Tomorrow i'll miss you; Remember i'll always be true. And then while i'm away, I'll write home ev'ry day, And i'll send all my loving to you.