Update

Erin:
just showed me a picture of a butterfly that she coloured in. It was done symmetrically and all in the lines, my little girl is growing up *sob*. She was devastated yesterday when she accidentally dropped her piggy bank and smashed it to smithereens. She does drama well and for the rest of day would randomly start sobbing and wail "It was my FAVOURITE piggy bank, and I loved it and I BROKE it! Oh no, I will have to buy ANOTHER one! I will have to save up my money WAAAAAIIIILLLLL!" I probably would have had a little more sympathy if she hadn't been surreptitiously trying to get it off the top of the freezer without asking first, but as it was I just had to bite back giggles at the drama queen impressions as I told her "well honey, lesson learned. Suck it up kiddo." I am so harsh.

Billy:
wore a back pack with some changes of clothes and a quilt in it all day at Agfest on Friday. He insisted on carrying it and didn't complain once. I had to laugh when an elderly lady tapped him on the shoulder and whispered "you know, your bag is almost as big as you are!" He is so wiry and strong, I poked his belly this afternoon and it was like poking a brick wall! The boy is pure muscle.

Christopher:
is becoming reacquainted with blanket time. He is getting too heavy to tote in my sling now and I needed a way to contain him other than the portacot. I kinda keep putting things in the portacot when I am "cleaning up" so I can't fit Christopher in and it just gets in the way. Given that my youngest son has been specially created to do some amazing feat involving a strong will, character and single-minded focus (read: is stubborn beyond all belief) it is going quite well! Quick confession: of all my children Christopher is most able to make me completely melt or break out in giggles at the moment, but he is also the one who makes me say to Beloved: "I am SOOO glad I am not a single mother, I could not handle that child on my own!"

Anna:
needs to stop growing up so fast! When we were out last Friday I saw pregnant bellies and newborns and got a little wistful. Some babies seem content to just stay babies, others seem to plunge forward and grow up extra fast. Anna is the latter. If I put her in her rocker, she often cranes forward lifting her head, neck and shoulders off the rocker to try and sit up. She has never been content laying in a sling unless she's asleep, preferring to be forward facing upright so she can see everything. She is such a happy girl though and I love waking up to her cooing and talking in the morning.

The house:
is 60% reorganised now with the kitchen finally finished being thoroughly cleaned, the lounge room totally rearranged yet again and a new set of drawers in our room meaning a complete reworking in progress again. If the cat pees on my PJ pants or in a basket of clean washing again, it is in MORTAL danger and if it doesn't start catching mice soon I want to exchange it for a dog. The kids do adore it though and it is very tollerant so I guess I will put up with it.

The garden:
is a busy place at the moment with crisp autumn days providing the perfect foil for planting, pruning and cutting out trees and shrubs that are weeds, ugly or in the wrong spot.

Jess