I likw this/I DON'T like this...

Bryn has always been so communicative that it's hard for me, sometimes, to remember that there was a time when he didn't actually SPEAK his mind, but communicated very clearly in other ways...

The latest verbally informative bits of communication coming from from the Buddha though are very helpful to us - probably more so than anything else he's said to date, really...

Atm the moment he is busy dividing the world into two categories; the one where he proclaims his favour, "I LIKE this, it's yummy/funny!", and the other one where he proclaimed his disfavour, "I DON'T like this!!!"

Sometimes, when his mouth is full and he can't physically talk, he merely pats me on the forearm and once he has my eyes, he gives me the thumbs up! He persists in giving me the thumbs up and bringing my attention to this until I respond correctly, which is to return his thumbs up!

As well as this, he is now counting everything. Not obsessively, LOL, but in context. He counts well up to 11, but doesn't not see the necessity to always start at one, so sometimes he'll start counting, "six, seven, eight, nine..." Sometimes it's, "one, two three", and sometimes it's, "five, four, three, two, one!" He does seem to recognise the value of one, two and three, so I think the rest of it is practicing the rote...

Oh, and I have a "thing", you know, one of those "things" that is a secret game between you and your toddler that makes almost anything and everything better! Our thing is to sing songs and nursery rhymes, and we have quite a repetoire going, and if he is frustrated or getting cranky, and especially on busy busses going to and from the boys' school, I will go through our current list of titles, until he says yes. So, it'll go something like,

Me: Do you want me to sing you a song?
B: Ye-es (in a sad little voice)
Me: Ok, what about the rainbow song?
B: Nuh
Me: Humpty Dumpty?
B: Nuh
Me: Incy Wincy Spider?
B: Nuh, Frog!
Me: The Frog Song?
B: Yes!

And then I'll get in right close to his ear and sing the frog song so only he can hear it, and after he might like more songs, or he might feel better and not need more songs, but it always makes things better!

It's great having a "thing"!

Today he had nappy free time at home and was on and off the potty like a Jack in the Box. When he finally did wee, it was on a Spot book, so I quickly picked the book up and poured the wee into the potty - to illustrate where the wee goes. He thought that was FANTASTIC! He totally isn't aware that he wees at all. He wee completely involuntarily and while doing something else, didn't even pause to note the changing sensation. But it's all good! He didn't need to wee again before we went out to pick up the boys from school, so was in a nappy for the rest of the day.

One unexpected positive I hadn't considered is that Erik and Luey are really keen to help Bryn figure out how to use the potty. And of course, anything they want to do is WAY COOL with him! And I have two more sets of eyes to spot accidents (well, on the weekend). I'm feeling confident that this will be a relatively easy transition for Bryn, compared to either Erik or Luey (who were both twice his age before they stopped using nappies during the day...

I had been thinking about Bryn going to some form of daycare or something once he turns three, partly because I'm hoping to have #4 around then, and I would love to have a two-three hours a week alone with the baby. I really enjoyed having Bryn to myself a lot more than I did with poor little Luey... Anyway, of course, having anyone else care for my baby is not something I've EVER done before, and so I've been umming and ahhing over it a LOT... Then, this week, it turns out that Jayne is applying for a casual position as a daycare assistant at the NH that we have our playgroup at. If Jayne does this job, then I could put Bryn in care there knowing that he already knows Jayne really well, and Sienna too (he loves Sienna) and that if he was upset Jayne would not only be very sensitive to him but would tell me honestly! It would be a perfect way to find out if he'd be ok with this sort of arrangement, and until the baby arrives, I could use those morning to be a class helper in Erik and Luey's classes, just one street away! So, everyone would benefit!

Generosity Abounds...

I started this blog last night, but got interrupted, then had to reboot...

Anyway, yesterday I experienced two grand gestures of generosity and I just want to acknowledge them!

Peta came over in the morning to drop off the turtle potty she was giving me for Bryn. She stopped for a cuppa, and Aidan and Bryn had a bit of a play with lego! So good to talk to Peta again :D! Just before she left she told me she'd also pulled together some little boys' clothes that her boys had grown out of. Talk about perfect timing! I've been so slack lately that Bryn was basically down to rewearing not pristine clothing just to pick the boys up from school because this clothes were still damp in the dryer.

There were some fantastic pieces in the bag, and I particularly loved a pair of tan cords, with red tartan-ish lining that look to be completely reversible. He wore them as cords to pick the boys up, but last night I turned them inside out, and they're so funky and cute, LOVE them!

The other great generosity of the day was that Dave's supplement drink arrived from Agender yesterday afternoon, sent by express mail so it arrived the day after I paid for it! Bloody Australia Post had managed to crush the cannister so the lid had popped off (breaking the seal in the process!), and about 1/2 cup of powder had spilled out into the package. I managed to salvage most of the spillage, but because the seal was broken and there were instructions not to use the product if the seal was broken, I just queried that with Maree at Agender - I was pretty sure it was ok to use, but just double checked.

Well, she has INSISTED (despite me saying it was absolutely not necessary) to send my a second cannister of powder for FREE! I had to order a second cannister in November anyway, so that saves me $140!!! And the other one is perfectly fine to use as well.

I'm VERY impressed with the customer service, I have to say!

Dave wouldn't know a great opportunity if it came up and bit him!

So, Dave took the boys to school today and then called me to tell me that Luey's teacher (she snorts derisively while typing "teacher"), approached Dave this morning and said that she wanted to talk with him about something she'd already mentioned to the parents of Luey's best little mate, Liam... It seems the two boys, who are as close as little mates can be, have a tendency to chat in class (ah, so Luey DOES take after me in some aspect, then), and while Luey is keeping up with his work etc. she thinks all this distraction can't be good for him, and perhaps it might be a good idea to split the two boys up next year by moving one boy to another class...

So, Dave is telling me this over the phone, and I'm silently punching the air as YET ANOTHER LoA thing comes to fruition, and then he tells me he feels "let down" by this stupid woman (when FINALLY she is doing something *I* want her to do)...

He, like me, doesn't really believe that Luey and Liam are that distracted in class because, well, she hasn't mentioned it before now, and she's only mentioning it now because transition classes start next week, and it would be a good time to for the boy who would be moving to spend some time in his new class for next year.

I'm saying to DAve we should OFFER for Luey to be the child to be move. For two reasons; first, my GUT is telling me this woman is NOT the right teacher for Luey, and so moving Luey to another class would be a GOOD move (despite it meaning he won't be in class with his bestest bud); second, by offering to have Luey moved, we have a lot more control of the situation, than saying we don't want him moved and then having Luey in a class where he has no other good friends and with a teacher who I don't like, and who doesn't like me either (which I totally understand btw, seeing as I've been a bit obvious about my lack of faith in her abilities, wrt Luey specifically)...

Dave is concerned that Luey will feel "cast out" or rejected (he's totally projecting, don't you know). I was saying to him that Luey did NOT need to feel that way as long as we didn't frame the move in those terms. Luey will be miserable ANYWAY because he is being split up from his best mate. So, our job is to support him through that by encouraging the boys to spend time together after school or on weekends, so they won't lose connection in the school yard. Besides which, if we don't offer to move Luey, then Liam's parents will certainly agree to move him (because they tend to let the teacher call the shots. They LOVELY people, who are very loving and connected with their children, but I've seen Liam's mum stand by while the teacher lectured him in a way that I just would not tolerate her doing to my son, yk? The teacher is horribly condescending both to parents and children, and Liam's mum either doesn't see it, or ignores it - maybe she's smarter than I am, LOL)...

I honestly see this as a gift from the Gods!

I totally think this has been the teacher's plan since the whole Crab incident where I rang the Vice Principal to complain about Luey's teacher's handling of the situation. Since then she has not talked to me at all, unless I talked to her first. She won't even meet my eye. On the one occassion where she needed to talk to me about Luey's behaviour, she actually got another teacher to do it, LOL. Totally doesn't bother me, I couldn't be happier, the woman is a twit. So, anyway, I reckon she's been planning this, and I think she honestly wants Luey out because she knows that she needs to have an open line of communication with the parents, and she doesn't with me, and I'm the parent who picks the child up in the afternoon, at the end of the day, when she is most likely going to want to discuss the events of the day with the parents.

I'm ok with her wanting to send Luey to another class. I think it's to Luey's benefit in the long term. This teacher has very unrealistic expectations of, at least, our little boy. She DOESN'T know how to deal with him, that is evident! I wanted to move him at the middle of the year, but Dave talked me down, LOL, which was good because being in the class cemented Luey and Liam's friendship.

But whatever happens now, I don't think Luey and Liam will be in the same classroom next year and I think, in that case I want Luey with a new teacher, not stuck in Mrs A's class for another two years.

Also because, ok, so next year Liam won't be in the class maybe, but new kids will be there, and Luey will form a friendship and the same chatting etc. will probably happen, and then the common denominator with be Luey, yk? Splitting the boys up won't deal with the situation, she's kidding herself, but as long as she's doing that, I'd rather her figure that out with the other child still in her class and not my child, because then the other child will be the common denominator.

Dave thinks she is counting on us wanting to move Luey, and that by doing that we'll be "making it easy" for her... I'm like, so what? We should be bloody minded, just so it isn't easy for her in the short term, or easy for Luey in the long term (because I do believe she holds grudges - as do I obviously)...

So, C'mon Dave, see this as a blessing, not even in disguise... This truly is another Law of Attraction result!!! But we have to grasp the opportunity when it is presented to us!

Very Sad News...

Just finished my major poetry project (number 1) this morning and sent it off to mum. Then rang her to make sure she'd received it, and also to ask her about formatting my Literature study paper for this coming Friday. Mum was just about to run out the door when I called, so I asked her to call me back. She said she would this afternoon, but then called only 10 minutes later.

She'd waited till everyone else was out of the office to call and tell me that my lecturer for Literature is in the final stages of bowel cancer and only has weeks to live. Now obviously, this is a blow wrt my stufies and those of the other students in her class, but as always the human element is the most tragic.

I've only met Sue twice, in July, and she seemed like a really lovely quiet lady! She had one of her children with her on one of the occassions I met her. I think he would have been about 12 years old, and I think she also has a 9 year old daughter. She hadn't been feeling well for a while with stomach cramps and whatnot, but hadn't had it checked out until last month. The results of tests have shown her to be in stage 4 of an aggressive bowel cancer, and no treatment can help her.

I barely know this woman, and yet I feel so deeply affected by this, it's so strange... I feel so bad for her not getting to see her children grow up, and for them not having her there, and for her Dh who has to face a future without her in his life. It's heartbreaking!

Who needs Manic Monday? I've got Schitzoid Sunday!

Yesterday was a B-I-G day in the Birdsnest. We had to overlapping engagements booked. A picnic in the park with our new babysitter's group at 12.30pm (going to 2.30pm) and a birthday party for Erik and Luey to attend at 1.30pm (going to 3.30pm). Luckily, one of the mums at the picnic also had a daughter going to the birthday party so she offered to give our boys a lift over there and to pick them up at at the end.

Not a lot of families turned up for the picnic despite the beautiful weather, but we did get to meet a couple of the other families, so that was nice. As it turns out the mum of the birthday girl from the party is also interested in joining the babysitter's group, so that will be excellent as we already know each other from school!

We all finally got home at about 4.30pm and Dave and I collapsed on our bed with Bryn, while Erik and Luey watched some tv. Bryn soon joined Erik and Luey because Dave and I were being boring, hahaha, and Dave and I dozed on and off for the next couple of hours. We were sooooo tired. We really not extroverted at all, we've decided. And in fact, as the years go on, we find socializing more and more draining. Yesterday was lovely, everything went by the numbers. The kids were really co-operative, and we STILL ended up feeling like we'd climbed Mt Everest!

Bryn loved the park! It was the one I used to take Erik to almost every day when he was this age, and so despite have a sleep on the way to the picnic, Bryn went to bed at his regular time because he was plum tuckered out!

Erik and Luey had lots of fun at the birthday party as well. It was held in an indoors sports centre and so each party group (there was three there yesterday from what I could tell) had 1-2 co-ordinators that organised games for them. So, lots of running around and what not! I TOTALLY forgot about Erik's nut allergy though, and only when the other mum there was going over the foods for her DD, who has an egg allergy, did I remember to check if anything had nuts in it. Nothing did, which was great. Despite nothing having nuts, Erik managed to make himself sick! Quite literally, when we picked the boys up, he told me he'd vomited in the toilets, but was fine afterwards. Now, I don't know if he vomited because he just overate or if it was a combination of eating and running around like a madman! That child is a worry!

Oh, so anyway, to today.

Well, today everyone has a bit of Event Hangover happening. Dave and I are both still tired. Luey and Bryn are roller-coasting between wailing and laughing maniacally and only Erik seems to be on a relatively even keel, in that he is his usual ever ready to be hyped up self...

Let me tell the story in pictures...

The Pretty and the New

It's been a couple of weeks since I downloaded from my camera and today I took some photos of the stuff I got at the Kids Expo, and discovered these forgotten photos... Just had to share...

Bryn wearing Luey's neck to knees Superman swimmers... Bryn was running around in these yelling, "Super Dude! Super Dude!" - which actually sounded like, "Stupid Doo, Stupid Doo!" Hahahaha!!!

Then Luey swapped his black magic cape (which I made for him for a Halloween party two years ago) for his swimmers, and Bryn took up running around yelling, "Stupid Doo, Stupid Doo!!!" some more...



Another day during the holidays (after I'd given Luey a bit of a hair cut), Erik and Luey thought I should take photos of them being "Strong Men!"... Couldn't help but think I need to feed these kids some more! Mind you, they ALREADY seem to eat more than either Dave or I, like skinned rabbits that they are...

LOL, even when being a "Strong Man", Erik is ever charming and beguiling!

And finally, here are the things I bought today (minus the non-dangerous parring knives I bought for the boys, will have to photograph those another time)... From the left. A couple of pair of swim nappies/training pants for Bryn for this Summer. My FIRST outfit bought for my daughter!!! I've wanted one of these since Jayne bought one for Sienna, and so today I bought, and immediately felt like a fraud! Oh dear, I need to work on believing I can have a daughter, I think! The final item on the right is a nighttime nursing pillow for in bed...


Look, it lights up in the dark!!! Baby's back lies against the sloped side, and you just press that square on the top and a bar like comes on inside the pillow (press it again and the light goes off, or if you fall asleep the light turns itself off after a time)... This should making latching on in the dark a lot easier with our next baby. Even Dave was impressed - though not least of all by the price... Just $15, reduced from $55!!! Pretty good, huh???

So, anyway, I felt kind of weird after I left the Expo, like I'm just making believe I'm going to have another baby at all... I think this comes from years and years of trying to convince myself that there was no way Dave was ever going to agree to no. 4...

AF still isn't here in all her glory, but I've had more signs today that she is imminent. I'm excited and nervous to be ttcing in January. It feels like ages away, and at the same time like it's just around the corner! In terms of cycles, ttcing is only two cycles away. Once the third cycle begins, we're officially ttcing, and that DOESN'T feel like too long from now at all...

So much to organise before then. Ordered Dave's supplements today, but payment won't go through till Tuesday and then Maree has to send it out. Hopefully the supplements will arrive before next weekend, so Dave can start on the weekend. Then I have to organise my own supplements to be delivered the following fortnight, so I can start them in a months time or so, eek! That's when my diet also begins and it's not for the faint hearted.

Have to remember to email Maree and ask her about licorice root tea. Licorice is a no no, but the tea is not the same thing, so have to ask about it...

I dub thee, "Good News Wednesday"!

OMG, I'm soooo tired, but it's a good tired! It's that kind of tired you have when all the stress finally slids down off your shoulders and you feel like you can sleep the sleep of the innocent for a week or more in one go!

When AF hadn't arrived this morning, I couldn't help myself and ended up buying a three pack of tests at the supermarket that I used one of in the public loos while waiting for Dave to come back from dropping Luey at school. It came back negative, but with the yet increased nausea I was feeling this morning, and the low down cramping, I thought maybe Kate was right and I might just not get a positive till after AF was due (which could be after Friday)...

Anyway, met up with Dave and he, Erik, Bryn and I headed off to the city.

Today was Erik's second assessment in the Behavioural Clinic and while I hadn't actively thought about it in a couple of weeks, I could feel this knot of anxiety in the pit of my stomach, or was that morning sickness making it's presence known, I just couldn't tell...

We got the appointment 45 minutes early, but the 10.30 appointment had not turned up so we got to go in early. The lovely Dr did a few balance and co-ordination tests with Erik, as well as fine and gross motor skills tests and then went over the results of those and the reports with us.

Here's the basic results:

Erik seems a little distractable, but still within the "normal range", he is just at the more spirted end of normal. Because he is bright, this doesn't seem to affect his ability to keep up at school. His slightly lower than average reading and maths scores atm can be put down to him only having been at school for 8 months, and in light of that, he's actually doing VERY WELL!

In auditory and visual processing, he is within the normal range, at the lower end of the scale for auditory and the higher end of the scale for visual (I could have told her that, hehehe, so happy to see I was right!)...

His writing and drawing, but specifically drawing is above peer level. In fact, he draws at the level of an 11 year old (in other words he takes after my brother and my mother, and Dave)...

His gross and fine motor skills are normal, with gross being at the lower end of the spectrum, and fine being at the higher end of the spectrum.

His frontal lobes processing is good - and this is the main indicator that he probably DOES NOT have ADD (YAYAYAYAYAYAY!!!)...

She also reitterated that we are making all the choices with how we manage his distractibility and himself in general.

So, basically, any issues the teachers are having with him are THEIR ISSUES!!! Whoo Hoo!!! Of course, Mr A. said he didn't have issues with Erik outside the normal range of behaviours, it was Ms. B who felt Erik had issues, LOL, so now we can basically tell her that Erik is a normal, bright, energetic boy and she needs to figure out how to deal with the entire range of normal...

You know, this was all stuff I knew about him, and I'm a tad annoyed at myself that I let my instinct be swayed by the opinions of "professionals" who would have me believe he just wasn't behaving normally for his age... But anyway, now we'll have a letter to state that he is perfectly normal, bright, and yes energetic (but hey, would rather that than the opposite!)...

EDIT TO ADD:

Haha, well it seems MY ADD is still alive and kicking, Leah just pointed out that I didn't finish my good news items off properly...

When I got home, I discovered that I'm spotting and so AF is going to arrive tomorrow, despite the temperature rise this morning and all the nausea and cramping (well, actually the cramping was probably a symptom of impending AF not pregnancy)...

So, alls well that ends well :D!

Oh, get a grip!

Have you ever wanted to grab you body by the shoulders and shake it? Pretty bloody difficult, let me tell you! Right now though, my body really needs to get a grip. It's gone a bit mental - or maybe that's just me, I don't know, but I'm trying to be the rational one here, and my body is just refusing to listen to me...

Here's the deal. I'm 11 days past ovulation. Since about 7 days past ovulation, I've been feeling lower abdomenal bloating and cramping. At first I thought this meant my period was coming early and I was cursing the god for messing with me this way when I'm trying to align my cycles for the end of January.

But then, I had all these sustained high temps on Fertility Friend, and not sign of a drop that would indicate Aunty Flo's imminent arrival. I was also feeling fatigued. Then I start getting increased creamy cm that remind me of the cycle where I conceived Bryn and these red flashing ambo lights went of in my head.

Oh, for crying out loud, "No!" I sooo definitely could NOT be pregnant because, well, I'm all set to get pregnant in JANUARY or FEBRUARY, most definitely not October!

Then yesterday my boobs swell up and I start getting stabbing pains on one side or the other, and then yesterday afternoon I started to feel ever so slight nausea.

That's when I decided to call my body's bluff and get a couple of hpts to test. The one I took yesterday afternoon came back negative. Not surprising, that, just 10dpo, and in the afternoon. So, I did another one this morning. I've ALWAYS gotten my positive tens on dpo10-11, this mornings was definitely NEGATIVE, too...

And yet, here I sit, bloating and cramping away and feeling MORE nausea than yesterday.

I'm NOT pregnant and my body is just tripping!

Luckily I had a slight temp dip this morning, so hoping AF will arrive tomorrow. In an ideal world, all these symptoms would subside by this afternoon, and AF would arrive on Friday, which would be 14 dpo and closer to aligning me for January... Also, I'm sporting two new pimples since last night, that's GOT to be a good sign that AF is on her way!

The power of the mind, hey?

Cousins, cousins, cousins...

I got some photos from my family up in Queensland. Two of my cousins have had babys in the last three months or so, so there was the christening of the older of those two babies which brought part of that side of the family together (namely my Dad's two younger sisters and their children)...

This is my aunty Crystal with her grandnephew, Ephraim. I love this picture! Aunty Crystal has always held a dear place in my heart. This picture is so funny to my, because here she is actually "Great Aunty Crystal", and there is already a Great Aunty Crystal in our family, my Grandmother's sister... So, now there are two of them!

These are my cousin Crystal-Lee's three sons; (l-r) Elijah, Ephraim, and Ezekiel. Ezekiel is the spitting image of my Uncle John (his grandfather).

And this little sweetie holds the honour of being the first GIRL in this generation of cousin's children on this side of the family (there are 7 boys and then her). Her name is Trinity, and gosh, I do kind of hope my girl looks a bit like her, she's so adorable!

Here's Trinity with her big brother Kurt.

Here are my cousins Crystal-Lee (on the left) and Brooke, obviously breastfeeding their babies (YAY!), they're obviously a lot more modest them me, hehehe!

Brooke, Trinity, Kurt and Brooke's Dh Dr Daniel :).

This is Brooke's little sister Karina, and that is her natural hair - lucky duck!

Assorted family, the girl standing behind Karina is my cousin Beau Marie, and the lady standing next to her is my Aunty Lorna (I think! OMG, it's been so long since I've seen her, I can't be 100% sure!)...

My uncle Ron, Aunty Crystal, and baby Trinity. We used to call Uncle Ron "Ape" (and Uncle John "Grape" because it rhymed).

Poetry Schmoetry...

That muffled sound in the back is me dragging my arse, YET AGAIN, to get an assignment done... I love writing. I mean I LOVE writing, have always loved it since I wrote and published my first book at Hinck's Avenue Primary School, way back in 1977...

So, now I'm doiing my dream Master's and getting to write, and here I sit dragging my arse...

The problem is, of course, as always, that I'm having to stick within guidelines, both those set out in the unit outlines, and those set out just by the personalities of my lecturers...

Take for example my poetry lecturer. He's a lovely MAN. Now, you might be wondering why I emphasised the word "man", and of course, I'm setting you up so that I can explain that to you, hahaha!

I handed in an assignment a number of weeks back, for which I got 80%. The reason I didn't get higher (and well I always want a higher mark, if that is possible - which believe me, it most often is) was because he wasn't completely happy with my Sonnet. Now, I thought that was because of it's style or meter or something, but last night (talking to mum) I found out that his biggest criticism of it was it's subject matter. The fact that I had described myself as lying in bed listening to Dh and DSs outside my bedroom making a racket. His comment to my mother had been, "She's lying in bed, WHINGING". In other words; what has she got to whinge about, he's the one getting up and making breakfast and dealing with the kids.

ARGH! Well, I could go into a diatribe about how he has no clue about what I do, and how I have the RIGHT to whinge simply because when I wrote this, I was still BREASTFEEDING NON-STOP through the night, something I'm pretty damned sure his wife DIDN'T do. But it's pointless really, because he's teaching me something very useful about audience.

Here's the problem though. For this major assignment, my theme is Labour and Birth. I've written three poems about blessingways and am about to write a two part poem about labour set in the Amazon rainforests and juxtaposed with a labour scene in a major metro hospital. But knowing my lecturer isn't partial to sentimentality, I can't be sentimental about it. The aim of this poem is show that despite the major differences between these two kinds of birth there are Universal similarities as well which break down the barriers between these two quite distinct experiences.

But how to do this while engaging this MAN, and not being sentimental. It's too late to start a whole new batch of poems so I've just got to make this work...

Wish me luck!

He has agreed to ttc No. 4 in January!

Gosh, I feel shy posting about this now. I've been going on and on and on about this for so long, it's almost hard to believe he has actually agreed. This last week has been soooooo hard for me, and I've been swinging between trying not to care if he says no, and feeling like I'd have to leave every forum and stop talking to every friend in order to cope if he said no. The pain of seeing other people going down the path I so want to go down when I can't would be just too hard...

But now all that worry is behind me...

Dave came home last night and said he would give me an answer before we went to bed, but that he didn't want me to pester him all evening. As the hours passed I just go more and more tightly wound. I felt quite sick by about 11pm! I had convinced myself he was going to say no and he was waiting till just before we went to sleep to tell me so I wouldn't go off on him. I played all these scenarios in my head about how maturely I would deal with it, and how I would just get on with my life and let it go and focus on other stuff...

Then we went to bed, and in the dark he held my hand and told me that based on my arguments for having number and for how I'd cope etc. he would have decided to say no. However, he's decided to take a leap of faith with me. He's decided to do this because he loves me and wants me to have all my dreams come true and in order to that he feels the only thing he can do is support me in this. He still feels anxious about it all and he still feels just as reluctant as before.

LOL, I was umping for joy internally, but being just as sober and serious as him on the outside in respect for his feelings of trepidation, and then he says, "So, don't I get a kiss or anything?" LOL...

I haven't been able to really believe untill the last hour or so, so now I'm thinking I'm going to have to organise something really nice for him tonight...

So, there you go. LoA really, truly does work!!!

Whoo Hoo!!! Congratulations Mum!!!

I'm VERY excited to announce that my mum got a promotion today, out of the blue, to full-time lecturer at our Uni!!! This is so fantastic! Mum was pulled out of school at age 15 so she could go to work and help out financially with her family (she had 6 younger brothers and sister, and a father who, while a lovely and artist soul, had substance abuse issues). She married my dad, who had not finished highschool himself (I don't think) and Dad pretty said that now she was married she had to work or be home with us kids (Dad held the purse strings, too, so her money was not her own)...

When I was about 8 or 9, mum did go against Dad's wishes and enrolled in a pottery course at Tafe and became quite a good potter, but she was never allowed to throw herself (pun not intended) into it completely.

After mum and dad seperated, mum started doing nightschool to get her highschool diploma (she was around 33 years old)... Then she became a Salvation army officer, which offered two years theological education. When she was 42, she wanted to pursue a counselling diploma and the Army pretty much said no (their stance on officers studying externally has since changed, but back then moonlighting was not permitted)... So, she left (good for her!). She completed the diploma, then decided to do a bachelor of Theology, it took her several years to complete that (2003, I think), and then she decided to do a Masters of Ministry. After just one year of that course, she transfer to a Masters of Writing (the course I'm doing now), and has been working on that since. About 2-3 years ago, she had starting working for the Uni as a tutor and marker, then she became an assistant lecturer, and then part time lecturer and external student co-ordinator, and now FINALLY after all these years, she's a full-time lecturer!!!

I'm so proud of my mum, she proves that not finishing highschool just doesn't mean anything!!! It's never too late to see your dreams come into fruition, you just have to keep plugging away at it!!!

This promotion comes with a lovely pay increase (I think about double what she's getting now!!!), which means they will not have to struggle so much to pay off their house, whoo hoo!!! Yay mum!!!

And a week later, Bryn sleeps through the night in his own bed!

Well, I really wasn't expecting this! Last night I put Bryn into his bed at 6.45pm and didn't hear from him again until 6.10am! During this week he's mostly been waking at about 11pm and then we take him to bed in our bed. One night it was more like 9.30pm, and another night it was 2am, so there has been some variation but nothing to suggest he was ready to sleep all night without snuggles from mum and dad, until last night.

Dave had gone out for the evening with an old workmate (was supposed to be two workmates but the guy bailed due to illness so then it was just Dave and his 40-ish ex-co-worker, and admittedly, when I heard he'd been out all night with another woman I was a little put out! Argh, I REALLY not the jealous type, never have been jealous before of anyone, but with Dave I do wonder sometimes because of his lack of interest in me physically over the years - though that is well and truly not the case these last couple of months I'm happy to say ;)...), he got in at about 1am and then we sat and chatted for a while. Then went to bed. We were surprised that Bryn hadn't woken up yet, but decided to make the most of the time alone in bed while waiting to hear from him, only that never happened! We must have gone to sleep around 3am or so, and then were woken at abot 6.10am with Erik out watching tv in the lounge and Luey and Bryn still soundly sleeping in their beds (Yay for Erik not waking them, btw!!!)...

Erik reckons Bryn woke once during the night and that he went and got Bryn a bottle of water, but I don't know if that is the truth or just a story. It seems strange to me that Bryn wouldn't insist on seeing either Dave or myself when he woke, but who knows!

So, there you go!

In other news, the boys go back to school tomorrow! We're all a bit excited about that and Dave is running their "starting back at school" bath! Poor things haven't had much of a holiday apart from the two days Liam came over. I never did organise the play dates with C and LC, so will have to sort that for next weekend maybe... I really do wish we lived closer to the boys friends, it would make life a lot easier!

I'm only three poems into my major Poetry assignment and estimate I have another 7 or so poems to write, it's due on Friday so have to get moving on it this week because I have that Literature assignment due the following Friday... This is the last term before I start on my book, eek! Oh well, will have to think about that AFTER doing all these assignments!

One thing that will help is that I've joined a Writer's Group on Essential Baby, which is warming me up for critically analyzing other people's work (something my editing unit requires me to do)...

Exciting times!

Still waiting on Dave to say yay or nay to having #4, but I'm really, really thinking he might say yes. Certainly, if he is planning to say no, he is really not helping his cause now because I'm starting to get my hopes up again... No girl, down!