I haddn't realised it had been so long!

Time is just slipping away from me. I have had Mum here for a week and I tend to get out of routine (in a good way! she often takes over the washing :)) which means that I simply forget to do stuff. As usual there are not a lot of changes here but heaps all at the same time. I have cut my hair to shoulder length (that meant taking about 20-25cm off) to get a handle on the split ends that have been irritating me. I mustn't look that different because it took Jon over 8 hours to notice and not one friend I have seen since has commented. So either it isn't that noticeable or it looks awful!!! I think it is just not that noticeable as I usually have my hair up anyway.

Erin:
has a bit of a cold at the moment which means her nose is sore from wiping and she is tired and a bit grumpy. She is still very precious though! She started her "job book" last week on her "unbirthday" (we celebrated her turning three and a half) and she has three or four jobs to do before each meal (i.e. before breakfast she gets dressed, makes her bed (with my help), picks up the books that are invariably all over the bed and floor and puts them away and has her hair brushed and put up). We put a tick each time all the jobs are done before the meal. The long term goal is to have her self motivated and only needing the accountability of me checking her book every now and then. I don't want her growing up and going out into the world still reliant on Mum nagging her to get stuff done plus the look of pride and self confidence on her face when she gets a tick is a reward in itself.

Billy:
has scraped most of the skin from up the inside of his legs after a mis-adventure climbing (and dancing on) the dog kennel! It is healing well but he still has to be reminded often not to climb up there. He is generally pushing the boundaries at the moment because for a few days over the last week I was very destracted and grumpy. It always shows in the kids and it shows in him first. I let him get away with stuff when I am tired and it soon spirals out of control. He was very cute this morning though. When he was told to come and sit down for songs and prayers he came singing his version of "Jesus Loves Me" at the top of his lungs "DESUS la eeee nah nor baeee ewwweeee SO eeeooooo aaa ooooeeeeeeeeaaaa...." we have to work on getting some more consonants in that boys vocabulary! LOL Then during songs and prayer he 'helped' Christopher do the actions. Then when he had a drink of juice later that day he came and babbled and Christopher and pointed at the cup and - in their own special language - asked if he wanted some!

Christopher:
if he could talk, his words at the moment would be "not happy Jan!" The eczema is really bothering him. He still has smiles and laughter in between the bouts of unhappyness - but after sleeping through from VERY early in the piece, I know he isn't happy when he is awake every ten to fifteen minutes from midnight to about 3am Sunday. Bi-carb soda in his bath makes a big difference and paw paw ointment. I am going to try going off sugar for a bit and see what that does. I want to give it a little more time before taking him to a dr. about it.

The house:
has slipped a bit due to my tiredness and being out last Thursday (cleaning day!). But because I have re-vamped my routines (this needs to be done as the kids grow and life changes) it is still all under control. If we were to get a visitor right now they would not instantly assume on entry to the house that they have caught me at a very bad time. There is a big pile of ironing with the ironing board set up in the lounge that announces my intention to iron one day soon (it has been making the announcement in vain for a few days now though!) There are a few dishes on the kitchen bench, but not an overwhelming amount and the floors could do with a quick vacuum. So it just looks like the home of a slightly frazzled Mum of three small children!

The garden:
is producing fruit (nashi and plums) and we picked our first ripe tomato (a cherry tom about the size of a pea!). The weeds are ALMOST as tall as the plants though!

Jess