We made it through Christmas and there was a tree and turkey and presents and everything! It was great!

Erin:
loves her new hippo craft caddy which has crayons, textas, pencils and paints in it. Today she painted pictures for Nanny and Poppy and Mummy and Daddy.

Erin (to herself): "First there is a capital M then.........Mum, is there an 'o' in Mum??

Me: No honey, it is 'u' M-u-m

Erin: Oh, well, I've made a CIRCULAR 'u'

When I had a look, Mum ended up being spelt "Moum" LOL

She also got a few books and a CD called "The Singing Bible" which I think is fantastic. It's put together like a radio show with talking between the songs and it links up songs to tell Bible stories from Genesis to Revelation. I actually managed to get her hair into a plait at the back today (two pigtails at the front still!) and she is getting so grown up. She is wearing her overalls and the cuffs aren't turned up at all! I am planning our home schooling for next year and I just can't wait to get into it all with her. Things just look more exciting through her eyes!

Billy:
got his own foam fold out couch because Erin's was being a bit trashed with all the use so he got his own, and a Colin Buchanan DVD which he LOVES. He has been spending a fair bit of time using both of them at once! He also got a few books and a CD of Jay Laga'ia which I personally love! He has had a few unauthorised visits next door while my back was turned hanging out the washing so I need to keep better track of him outside - he is off like a shot! He is very affectionate with everyone but he is the BEST at making Christopher laugh and smile. Almost every day I look at him, a hard little rock of pure muscle with big blue eyes and a grin so big you could get lost in it forever, and wonder where on earth he came from - but gosh I am glad he's come!

Christopher:
is even bigger and happier! Although he did have a bout of weeping eczema over his head after I put some massage oil on there to get rid of the cradle cap! I usually use olive oil but just grabbed the massage oil because it was closer. It was a gift from someone and I haddn't used it before. It is going in the bin now. I keep forgetting he is so young and thinking he should have better head control or be thinking about rolling over by now - then remembering he is still only weeks old! Speaking of Christopher, he's awake so I had better get going. I will check in again soon and do a proper entry!

Jess

Hi all!

Well Christmas is looming and I haven't even put up the tree!! How slack am I? Things have been a little busy and in the course of running around I have let myself get a little run down! I woke up with laryngitis this morning. Actually, I think that is God having a brilliant sense of humor. I was praying yesterday and asked that I would become more thoughtful about the words I speak and more soft in the tones that I speak them - and I woke up with laryngitis! I can just imagine Him saying "oh, she will get this one, she'll think it is funny!" Yet more evidence that it was God who created my sense of humor! And yes, I did think it was funny. I've been chuckling about it most of the day. I have been enjoying Christmas shopping even if I haven't done much else. In my opinion, it doesn't do to start the Christmas excitement too early with little ones. We have done our annual pre-Christmas toy purge though. Before every Christmas or birthday I put out a bag or a box and we go through the toys and the kids can choose some to give away. This promotes a giving spirit in the kids and keeps down the clutter - and I admit I do steer them toward toys I'm not particularly fond of!

Erin:
is thoroughly ruthless during a toy cull. She was tossing things in right, left and centre! I had to rescue a few of her brother's toys and there were a couple that I had to restrain myself from keeping just because I like them! We gave about half to the Unterberger family and half to charity (the ones that leave little bits everywhere or make noise went to charity - I like Katrina's friendship too much to do that to her! LOL). That night she told Jon that she gave some toys the the Unterberger kids and some to "the other kids, not the Unterberger kids, ordinary kids" LOL I guess that makes the Unterberger kids EXTRAordinary. She also thanked Jesus that she was "generous to the other kids" in her prayers which I thought was cute. She is getting MUCH better with the phobias she started having (it went from the bath filling, to pretty much all taps, the noise of the kettle and the noise of the microwave and a few other random things!). It was Jon that turned the tide. He spent a lot of time with her over the weekend and taught her that it is Mummy and Daddy that control those things and we won't hurt her. SHE isn't in control and she needs to trust Mummy and Daddy and relax a bit! She still gets a bit nervous and she asked to go jump into her bed tonight when I filled her bath - but that is light years from wetting herself in terror about it which she was doing last week!

Billy:
weighed in at 13.4 kg and measured 89cm tall yesterday - what a whopper!! He is off the charts in height - not in weight though the string bean. "Please Mama" is very much part of the vocabulary now. He has been getting away with yelling and whinging a bit too much lately though and I do need to bring that under control before he does my head in! I really don't know why I always melt with him! He is very cuddly at the moment. I told him he could wake Erin up the other day and he went over and patted her head and said "Hello!". She responded by wrapping a sleepy arm around him and kissing him on the forehead. I nearly called Jon right there and then and demanded he came home to make more babies because ours are so cute! Today we were over at the Unterbergers having morning tea and he was either cuddling and playing SO nicely or standing hollering at the top of his lungs for me or (once) whacking chooks with a stick! (I think he was trying to pat them) That's my boy, storm clouds or rainbows, nothing in between!

Christopher:
is 7.36Kg and 66cm long - so he's HUGE! I have moved him to the cot in Erin's room as he is sleeping through the night now and it won't be long and he won't fit in the bassinet anymore. He is cooking and laughing and smiling and still throwing up his on body weight daily - yes, that IS a lot!

The house:
Oh dear, guess who has fallen off the wagon? It is CLEAN washing on the loungeroom floor and the dishes are stacked neatly ready for me to take out to the dishwasher and I only swept the floor and changed the sheets last night so it isn't TOO bad - but I need to get on top again before it gets too bad. I have a piece of paper stuck in front of my sink with "It isn't finished until you clean it up. Shiny things will keep!" I have been easily distracted lately and going to bed FAR too late as well which throws the routine out which makes for a deterioration in quality of life for all! I need to go pull it all in line again.

Garden:
is growing fantastically! Flowers everywhere. I moved a ladybug larve off a flower that I picked on to another rose bush today and it was eating aphids before it had all it's little legs on the new rose bush! I love those little guys! The veg is doing well, although I need to get in to some cooch that is starting to come up - again! I have harvested cherries off our cherry tree and they were very yummy!

Craft:
I knitted Katrina a kerchief to wear on her head for her birthday. It is snuggly warm - just right for Dunorlan winters!

Jess

I'm back.....again

Sorry I have been neglecting the blog for a week or so. Jon was VERY ill with a nasty tummy bug which chewed up a lot of time plus there have been a few disruptions this end. We are back on track though.

Erin:
has developed a phobia of running taps. She is worried that I will flood the house for some reason. She has full hysterics about it. I am slowly talking her down out of it. I have to remind her that if I overflow the basin all that will happen will be me saying "Oh bother, oh dear!" then we will have to work together as a team to clean it up. Her absolute terror of things is almost frightening to watch! We are reading Charlotte's Web at the moment and we are both really enjoying it! Her conversation is getting more and more grown up and articulate. Tonight she was able to tell me the happiest, saddest, most exciting and cleverest thing she did today! Happiest - bouncing on the trampoline, Saddest - getting in trouble for being naughty, most exciting - going to visit the Unterbergers and playing with their toys, cleverest - counting to ten on my toes!

Billy:
got his chickenpox jab the other day and didn't even squeak! I was expecting him to howl the place down but he didn't even blink. His vocab has gone through the roof and he is a real conversationalist now. He is speaking more clearly too. Tonight "Milk please Mama" sounded like "Mik peas Mama" which is leaps and bounds on what he was attempting two weeks ago. We have a game where I ask him "Have I told you today that I love you?" and he says "Nooooooo" and I say "Oh but I do I do I do!!" and give him cuddles and kisses then ask "Have I told you today that I think you're special?" and he says "Noooooooo" and so we go on for ages. We both love it! As always he is my full on little boy and he has emptied two handsoap pumps all over the basin in the last few days! There are moments when he gets very frustrated at not being able to make himself understood now he has started getting the speech going too. But as always with Billy this is soon followed by giggles, grins and great big hugs!

Christopher:
does NOT like needles! The poor love cried more than he has in his whole life. It took at least five or ten minutes to get him settled again! He is still sleeping all night and happily throwing up liters per day. He grins, laughs and has a go at babbling some times. He can now suck his own hand and sits there noisily slurping at it. He is so laid back and in no hurry to do anything much other than drink and gaze adoringly into my eyes. It is hard to think that in a few months he will be rolling over and giving crawling a go! I am finding it hard enough to come to terms with him sucking his hand already.


The house:
is still looking great after the Unterbergers. The kitchen is being thoroughly cleaned every night and I am well on the way to making that a proper habit! Erin is learning to dry the dishes those times when we only have a couple of bowls and it isn't worth taking them out to the dishwasher. And I have actually been using my craft room for *shock* CRAFT!

Garden:
is going great! Seedlings are planted all over the place, flowers are blooming. I am pulling up a lot of weeds, especially cooch in the green house, but so far I'd say I am on top of it. I planted a lavender plant the other day next to a rose near the trampoline behind the garden shed. I am picking armloads of flowers for inside all the time.

Craft:
I finished Erin's pillowcase to go with her doona cover - then Christopher threw up on them both before she had a chance to use them, or even take a photo! You gotta love little brothers.

Jess

The house is so empty!

And CLEAN! It's had the Unterberger treatment inside and out and I am trying to maintain it My biggest thing is trying to finish (and clean up)one thing before moving on to the next - scary concept for a bubble head who is distracted by shiny things! We have skipped a week because things have been a little full on around here. Jon has had a nasty tummy bug which has laid him out for a bit. I have had to keep my priorities straight and concentrate on the real world rather than spending time on here!

Erin:
is doing great. She is really on the 'helping mummy' band wagon at the moment. We have semi-regular "apron time" where we don our aprons and clean or cook together. She is also learning to dry and put away dishes. We've been given a DVD of Charlotte's Web and I just started reading the book to her last night. We are reading chapter three tonight after tea. She was a bit terrified last night when thunder hit just after the lights went out while she was in the bath. She can now tell you though, that thunder is just a hot cloud and a cold cloud bumping together. She is still afraid of smoke coming out of the smoke alarm and coming into her room at night and hurting her. This is from an add that she saw about six months ago where smoky hands came into a little girls room - it was a reminder to check the battery in the smoke alarm. To this day, however, she sleeps under the sheet or doona and just the other day she mentioned the whole thing in a prayer again. This has just firmed our decision to be VERY careful about what our kids watch on TV!

Billy:
got his 18 month jab yesterday and didn't even flinch! The Dr looked at his bandy legs and pigeon toes and told me they are nothing to worry about (of course, they didn't look HALF as bad when we were there!) and the nurse complemented me on my well behaved children who sat on the floor with their hands folded when not being seen :) It is great when we can fake it in public! LOL We have decided to teach Billy to actually talk because he CAN talk, he's just in such a rush to say things nobody can understand what he is saying. So before getting a drink he is encouraged to say "Dink peass Mama" (Drink please Mama) etc. The other day we knelt down for prayer and lo and behold a little voice pipes up "Deeer Desus"! With some encouragement he said "Deeer Desus, Peasss bess Daeeee Amen" (Dear Jesus Please bless Daddy Amen). He now blesses the whole family, including Christopher! I look forward to this new-found verbosity cutting down on the frustration of not being able to make himself understood.

Christopher:
DID squeek when he got his jabs yesterday! He was not happy and it is the most upset I have ever seen him in his short life! It was heart breaking to see actually. But he is growing well, eating well and is generally the happiest baby ever to exist! He's still sleeping 7-10 hours a night. His eyes are brown now and we are getting even more grins and giggles. He has had a bit of a rash on his face and torso but that is fading at the moment. Nothing to worry about, just a bit red and rough and blotchy but disappeared as fast as it appeared.

House:
Is surprisingly good at the moment! I did something I don't normally do today and employed the square babysitter for a couple of hours while I got the kitchen sorted (with going out and Jon being sick yesterday I didn't get my usual evening clean up done). But I was then able to sit and play with the kids without worrying about the state of the house. My study is actually usable at the moment - now to find a moment to use it!

The garden:
is beautiful! The roses are out and the scent fills the garden as I peg out the washing. Our vegetable seedlings are doing well and we have even had a few BBQ's on the front verandah. The green house has seedlings growing in it instead of weeds! Although something is eating them a bit at the moment, not sure what. The cooch grass needs to be weeded out constantly and we need to get some more of our seedlings planted, but other than that we are doing great!


Jess

The Unterbergers have the house! YAY! They will be moving in early December and I know they are hanging out to have their own home with their own habits and lifestyle, but they are stellar house guests and I will miss sitting down in the evenings to talk Faith and Babies (although I will get more sleep perhaps!) and having their beautiful children around me all the time.

Erin:
has some how grown up while I wasn't looking! Her drawings are now very recognisable as people and she put together her "Dora the Explorer" jigsaw this afternoon with NO HELP! It is probably about 25 pieces. I have gleaned many great ideas on teaching Erin how to show respect and manners etc. from the Unterbergers and she is thriving - still a bit of a cheeky streak that came out of nowhere a few months ago, but we're getting there. She loves wearing her apron and helping me, and she is getting to the age where she really is a help now too. I have started putting her in dresses with shorts on underneath lately because I have found that many pants end up showing her bottom. Why on earth would you make hipsters for a 3 year old?? The dresses don't seem to be slowing her down too much and she looks like a real little lady (until she is covered in muck that is!

Billy:
has learned to sit on a mat! This may not seem a big deal to all of you, but it does to me. I now put a blanket on the floor, give him a toy or book and tell him to sit on there and he STAYS there for quite some time with minimal reminders! This will make outings and making tea in the evenings a whole lot easier. He learned so quickly! He hangs over my shoulder as he goes to bed and yells "Byyyeeeeeeee!!" and gets a huge chorus of "BYYYEEEEEEEE!!" back at the moment which he thinks is hilarious. We will have to hang out the window and shout it to next door in a few weeks.

Christopher:
slept 10 hours last night, 7 hours the night before and 10 hours the night before that. He is still just sleeping and eating and eating and sleeping! Oh, and grinning and laughing and pooing and chucking (alot!). He has adorable little fat rolls and the cheeriest disposition. The other morning I got up early and he was my prayer partner. He lay on the rug next to me and cooed and giggled to God!

The house:
is lovely and tidy. Thanks to the Unterberger family doing my dishes, cooking, tidying etc. I have been able to get in and organise the pantry, clean off all my 'hot spots' and find homes for things. It has been fantastic!

The garden:
is fill of flowers and almost empty of weeds! The boys have just started in on the greenhouse.

Jess

We are having a fantastic time here.

The joy of a big old farm house is 14 people doesn't really seem that many! Best news is, we were outside and our neighbors started chatting to us. The neighbors are selling their house but the latest contract negotiations aren't going well, so our neighbors want to rent their house to the Unterbergers if the latest contract doesn't go through! This means we will have our own playgroup between us, and we only have to work out which lounge room we want to use LOL

The big kids have given my garden the 'backyard blitz' treatment (it got a bit out of hand when I was heavily pregnant as I mentioned before) and it is all mowed and weeded and lovely and tea is being cooked for me tonight :D My house is spic and span and all my laundry up to date. As I sit here the little ones are asleep, the big ones are reading or working on something quietly and the house is peaceful. The kids are getting on really well and Erin has referred to the girls as her sisters and Paul and Katrina as Mummy and Daddy Unterberger! I have also had to explain to her that I am not Mrs. Guest to HER! The most difficult thing about the Unterbergers being here is trying to get to bed early as we get chatting and time flies.

As much as I love having the family here and want them to stay FOREVER! I know how they need a household of their own so they can set thing in their own order rather than shaping themselves around our lives. I don't like treating God like Santa and putting a 'wish list' in, but I do ask that you pray that if it is the Lord's Will they will move in next door. Please pray also that there will be peace and contentment with whatever plans God has for our lives!

Jess

The Unterbergers are here!

The Unterbergers used to be the tenants in the house we live in now. When we took over the lease we became friends and have remained in contact (apparently they are the biggest fans of this blog!) and we were thrilled to find out they were moving back to Tassie! We have invited them to stay for a while as they house hunt so we currently have 10 children (7 of whom are under the age of 6) and 4 adults living here....and it doesn't feel crowded! The place is neater and cleaner than it has ever been, the older boys and Jon and Paul did a backyard blitz on Sunday and the garden is looking fantastic! They are still going actually. I have been thrown out of my kitchen for tonight and tea is being cooked for me. The children just have to squeak and there is someone to cuddle or play with at their side. There have been minimal arguments between any of the kids and lots of affection (Erin calls the girls her sisters) and us grown ups sit up far to late chatting.

But the best news, our next door neighbours have offered to look into renting THEIR house to the Unterbergers!! How fantastic is THAT!

Anyway, updates:

Erin:
is sharing her room with two girls at the moment, one her own age and another who is 10 and Erin is conning into doing everything for her. She is thriving on the social atmosphere. Her manners and behaviour has been picking up around the other children. She wanted to do school work yesterday (Sunday) even though it isn't normally something we do on a weekend. She is still doing a brilliant job at that.

Billy:
is insisting on everyone picking him up and reading to him and getting his way more often than not! He keeps climbing into random laps and cuddling. He is thrilled with having two babies in the house (Jemima is almost 5 months old). I am also getting more time to spend with him as someone else has been doing my dishes, laundry, cleaning and gardening for the last couple of days! It is wonderful. He is also spending more time outside as there is always someone willing to take him out to the trampoline or to visit the chooks.

Christopher:
had his head sucked on yesterday by Jemima LOL. He is almost the same size as her! Still my contented little bub. He slept 8 hours the other night! He is still mostly doing 6-7 at least. Having the two babies in the house is just lovely! It is so bizarre to hear him wake up and go to get him only to find someone bringing him to me before I could get there! He is having baths with his brother now and Erin is helping me bath the babies most nights. Billy enjoys poking in Chris' umbilical hernia. I should go and get him weighed and checked etc but the fat rolls tell me that in spite of chucking a third of each feed he is doing just fine!

The house and garden:
have been Unterberger blitzed! Spring means lots of flowers, picnics out on the lawn and watching the birds in the trees. Extra hands means a tidy house and more time for me to sort things that have been on the to-do list for MONTHS!

Jess

Update on Granny

She is doing really well now. She apparently regained consciousness late last week and has now been moved to a respite centre for a ten day stay before going home!! Thanks for the prayers. Please continue to pray that her recovery is complete and those around her have patience and wisdom

Update

You know that 'down time' I was talking about a few weeks ago? Times when you can't maintain regular routines etc. because of special circumstances? Well, I'm hoping ours will stop soon! It feels like I have been going 10000km per hour for the past five weeks since Christopher was born! The house is a bomb site, the laundry hamper overflowing and the freezer looking decidedly bare. I'll work backwards and tell you what has been going on in the last fortnight. Yesterday we were out all day at the Delorane Craft fair all day (from about 10:30am through to 6pm) and the kids were fantastic! The previous day was Sabbath and rather than stay in a messy house, we all went for a lovely Sabbath drive. Friday and Thursday were spent going flat out trying to get stuff done around the house. Wednesday we had a rental inspection (the agent arrived 45 minutes early so there was still coffee spilt on the floor and dishes everywhere in the kitchen!) Tuesday was a flat out around the house day and recovery from being away. Monday, Sunday, Saturday, Friday and Thursday night were on the mainland. Thursday was getting ready to go... and then my mind goes blank because it is so full of what has been going on recently! I am sure there were a few more things in there. I will let you know how the kids are then I will get back to it.

Erin:
has been coping brilliantly. She is very affectionate toward the babies still and is not shy about getting her needs met! She went on an old, steam powered merry-go-'round yesterday (she rode a horse named 'Rupert') at the craft fair and walked AGES. She didn't go in the pram once all day. She was polite and charming and got herself a free candle from one stall. I realised I had been letting things slide and not applying consequences and boundaries as well as I should have during late pregnancy (I was just too tired!) and once this was corrected she became a MUCH happier girl and stopped testing me as often. I have my delightful little flower back! Her conversation is brilliant and her compassion for the little boys is amazing (unless Billy has one of her toys of course!). Giving her small moments like the merry-go-'round just lights ME up for weeks afterwards and becomes a treasure we share together. She has decided that when she grows up, she is going to have triplets. I have no doubt she will rise to ANYTHING life gives her!

Billy:
is getting over a cold at the moment, just a quick head cold thankfully. His vocabulary is really expanding I realised when be brought me a book, handed it to me and yelled "READ!". Yes, we are working on asking NICELY now LOL I will have the image of him and Lilli in Melbourne in my mind forever. Lilli (6 weeks older than Billy) was sitting on a kick along trike in the back yard with a stunned look on her face as my kids played in the yard around her. Billy, it seemed, was especially daunting. He was running in circles yelling "AAAAAAHHHHHHAAAHHHH" at the top of his lungs. Every now and then he would stop, toot the horn on Lilli's kick along car, yell "OY", laugh then continue to run in circles. The poor girl looked very befuddled by the whole affair! I probably should have been using this time to calmly and patiently teach him about playing quietly and respectfully at other people's houses, but I was nearly in tears laughing! Billy is Billy. I have to work hard at not spoiling him because his smile just melts my heart, and I have to work hard at not breaking that wonderful, strong spirit of his because it will go on to great things if nurtured. Hopefully, with a whole lot of prayer, we will get the balance right and he will channel that powerful energy and enthusiasm for good!

Christopher:
is AMAZING! As I told Jon while we were away, we need to keep that recipe! He sleeps and eats and sleeps and eats - smiles and laughs - then sleeps and eats! He is so HUGGABLE I need to be careful not to waste whole days (weeks even!) just sitting on the couch holding him. The smell of a newborn baby is just as I remember - nothing on this earth smells as good! He got his own crowd of admirers yesterday tucked into his hug-a-bub all day. How he is so good natured and adaptable at his age is beyond me - but I am glad that he is! I have started bathing the boys together and big bro Billy gets smiles and giggles. Erin helps me and gets her own fair share too. She was kneeling down next to him saying (in that sing-song voice everyone seems to naturally use with babies) "are you YAWNING? Can you give me a yawn little Christopher?" ever the obliging one, he did LOL I can have another ten if they are all like him!

Anyway, we are slowly making our way back to the flight plan. We will get there soon I hope!

Things this time has reiterated for me:

Mess begets mess!! - if the house is messy, it gets messier quicker. It is harder to pick things left freshly out of place amongst the mass of disorder, things get broken or misused because they are not safely put away or cleaned promptly. It is harder to clean a messy house than to maintain a tidy one.

A cluttered, untidy house makes it harder to raise kids - They don't turn into instant demons, but things slowly slip as the structure of routine isn't there anymore and lessons long learned are forgotten. Items usually safely out of reach find their way into little fingers too.

Helpful kids are a lifesaver! - it is worth training children for first time obedience! If I hadn't it'd be a riot 24 hours a day here. My kids consider it a treat to "work together as a team" and using this can occupy those little hands productively rather than leaving them unattended for mischief and yet MORE mess. Yes, they are naughty and they get into thing they shouldn't (they are kids!) but without the discipline, it would be 10 times worse!

You need to allow down time to be just that - I have exhausted myself a little over the last few weeks trying to keep thing to the usual standard. It just ain't gonna happen! I have to remind myself that this is temporary. It doesn't have to all be fixed in one day (baby steps!!). I have my flight plan, I just have to edge towards it slowly, keeping priorities in focus.

You need to put on your own oxygen mask first - during the safety talk before take off on a plane, they state that you need to put your OWN oxygen mask on in the event of an emergency BEFORE helping others, including children. This makes sense, because if I pass out, who is going to take care of my kids? I need to start having more time with God's word. I need to start taking care of my body more by eating right, getting a little more exercise and getting to bed before midnight. I need to realise I am not superwoman and sit down for a rest every now and then. I need to remember to drink more - or at least have A drink before midday! If I do this, I will be able to cope with life better and take care of my kids better and during times of stress or celebration, I will be able to join in whole heartedly and do what needs to be done. Now I just need to do that!

There is no new news on Granny, please keep her and my family in your prayers.
Jess

Prayer request

My grandmother is in a "stable but serious" condition after having a seizure last night and is heavily sedated on a ventilator. Please pray for her, the family and the doctors and nurses caring for her.