Well, I am back and still not sure how my blogging future looks but I will just take it one post at a time :)

I want to say a BIG THANK YOU to those that left wonderful supportive comments on my last post! A lot of what you gals said really hit home and has made me do some thinking! So fingers crossed, I may be SLOWLY getting back on track.

I have joined the latest Biggest Loser Challenge on the Parenting Forum that I belong to and in the first week I stayed the same... probably would have had a loss but I forgot to weigh myself in the morning, so did it when I got home and I was the same as I had been the week before but first thing in the morning. The more I think about it, the more I think I may need to go back to daily weighing as that really does keep me on track. I know it doesn't work for everyone and that there are some of you who definitely don't agree with it... I don't really agree with it either but the times I have been successful in losing weight has been when I was doing daily weighing. But will see how I go with this challenge.

Though, I must be honest and say that I should definitely get a good loss this week (weigh day is Monday) as I have had a tummy bug/food poisoning for 6 days, and when I weighed myself yesterday about mid afternoon, I was almost 2 kilos down! I have eaten a little bit today... but do still need to watch what I eat and how much I eat otherwise I end up back at square one again! Oh I should add here how my darling Rachel told the teachers that "mummy sick, sore tummy' lots poos"! How embarrassing! LOL

Took a days sick leave yesterday as we had our units christmas lunch and I decided that I was not going to sit at a restaurant and watch everyone eat... nor was I going to go, eat and then be crook again today... nor was I gonna be the silly fool that stayed behind and worked! LOL After dropping Rachel off at creche I went back to bed and slept till almost midday! And then had a very quiet afternoon just blobbing! Then today, I had already booked Annual Leave so decided to go ahead and have today off as well... though I was a write off until about 10.15am with a very crook stomach but not loose motions this time... the diastop had done its trick - they were firm but very continuous for over 2 hrs! But once I came right, I went and completed my Christmas Shopping... and then did the groceries before coming home for a wee rest before picking up Rachel a bit earlier and then back to the local mall to post off the Christmas cards and Rachel had a ball helping me put the stamps on them all! Though I do now recall why I prefer Rachel in the buggy rather than walking... OMG! What a nightmare in the Warehouse! Not so much touching but going in her own direction!

I have a hair cut in the morning, then catching up with a friend and her daughter who is slightly older than Rachel in the afternoon.. then maybe some other friends in the evening... Then on Sunday, we have the Annual Summer Party at Stephan's parents place though this year, one of his sisters has combined her 40th with it! So a busy weekend ahead of us.

And on that note... a few recent photos of Rachel and then I will sign off and head to bed. Tummy bugs certainly zap you of all energy!!!







Oooops photos are backwards when it comes to the dates of them... but never mind, they are still cute or so I think anyway :)

Good night :)

Yeah it sure has been quite some time since I last posted on here… just running out of enthusiasm for this blog. Struggle to find the time and energy to update… and to be honest I seem to be running out time of time even read my favourites as well! I when do sit down and catch up… I don’t have the time to leave comments… perhaps I should just give this whole blogging thing up for once and for all???

Rachel had a lovely 2nd birthday party with immediate family and her 2 “best” friends – Maddie and Jack. We were so lucky with the weather as on the Saturday we had heavy rain and wind etc… and then on the Sunday we had beautiful blue sunny sky and it got quite warm! So that was lucky as it meant that the kids (big and small) could play outside as things had dried up quite well. Am writing this from work so no photos available to share at this stage but will try to post some soon… hopefully before her 3rd birthday! LOL Rachel got very spoilt especially in the clothes department – her wardrobe is worth so much more than mine! LOL and OMG she has a shopping fetish already!!! All she wants to do is shop – whether it is grocery or whatever…. She loves shopping!!! She often picks up one of her bags, and says she is off shopping for treats or food etc... It is just so cute! Her speech is amazing and is often commented on by family, crèche and friends at how well she does speak. We can not believe how fast she has grown up and has become Miss Independent! Next job on the list is Toilet Training… she knows when she has done #2’s and always tell us after it has been done… and sometimes will tell us as soon as she has done wee’s too! So am hoping over the summer she will get an opportunity to run around with no pants on and start to learn to use the toilet.

Work has been full on, especially throughout November with the boss being away for the whole month. I was boss for the first couple of weeks and then a colleague had a turn at being boss. But it has been full on and very stressful. He is back on Monday but in a roundabout way it has been a nice month as we have agreed that the boss does have a tendency to make situations even more stressful than things already are.

Overall, my state of mind is not that great at the moment… I lay in bed last night listing the things that are worrying/stressing me and I was quite surprised at how big the list was. Some of things I know there is not a lot I can do about them i.e. money and the endless bills, missing my friend Jude who passed away almost 3 years ago like crazy at the moment (it was her birthday on Monday), missing Dad like crazy too (Dad’s birthday was on Tuesday) – wishing they were both here to know Rachel and to watch her grow up! But other things, like my weight, lack of will power and motivation, sweet fuck all exercise, eating crap food continuously… I CAN do something about these but do I choose to – NO! As I keep putting these things in the “to hard basket – lets deal with it another day”! My weight is creeping up, up, up… and last time I weighed myself (about 1 mth ago) I was only about 15 kilos off my heaviest weight! That freaked me out big time and one would have thought that it may have been enough to kick start my motivation again… but has it? NO NO NO… I continue to eat and drink crap! I continue to sit on my fat arse! I continue to moan about everything and still do nothing about it! The Parenting Forum that I belong to has continuous Weight Loss challenges and I have joined 3 of them so far and have dropped out of them all! There is another one starting on Monday but I just don’t think I can do it… I am not in the right frame of mind yet I know I want to do something about this before I am back at 129.2 kilos or god forbid even heavier!!!

Anyway, I am at work so guess I should be doing some work since that is what I am paid for. I just wanted to get some of that off my chest…

I might be back… I might not… thanks to anyone who is still reading or checking in here…

You will recall in my last post that I had a barking cough... well the next day (Fri 3 Oct) I awoke to having no voice whatsoever... and 13 days later I still have no voice!!! Yes some may say how peaceful things may be and how lucky Stephan is but I can tell you that 13 days is far to long to be without a voice! Oh I can whisper but that is my limit! I thought I was getting it back last Friday (so 8 days later) but by Sunday evening I was back to square one if not worse than I had initially started with! I had worked all of last week with no/minimal voice but was getting increasing frustrated at not being able to communicate freely with team members etc... and obviously by continuing to work meant my voice was not getting a rest at all! And evenings and weekends are self explanatory with Rachel around!

Sunday evening and Monday (while at work) I then started the nasty barking again - and was spending a lot of time coughing up phlegm. So stayed home on Tuesday and was able to get an appointment to see the Dr - so now on top of the laryngitis, I have a chest infection and an inflamed throat! So am on Antibiotics and am really hoping that they will kick in sooner rather than later as I am so over being sick! This year has been a bad one for me health wise so am really hoping that next year can only be better for me! The Dr put me off work for the week since a bit of my work involves phone work and even if I put my phone on divert, there is still the general day to day chattering etc... So have had 2 days of peace and quiet and saying sweet bugger all! The only talking I am doing is first thing in the morning getting Rachel ready for creche and talking.. oooops whispering to the teachers in the morning. Then again in the afternoon when Rachel and Stephan arrive home. So am roughly getting 8 hrs of no talking which surely must help a wee bit! Am not sure what I should do if I still have no voice on Monday when I am due back at work - will face that hurdle at the time should it arise and it will also depend on how I am feeling too I guess!

Right changing the subject now.... one of the local radio stations is going to be running a 6 week "Fit and Fabulous" competition which is basically going to consist of 2 teams of 4 people having full access to a gym, Personal Trainers, dietitians, etc etc... and the "winner" gets a trip for 2 to Fiji. Am considering sending in an application for this, but the gym that is sponsoring it is at the other end of town and I know that will be a major issue for me time wise etc... but it is tempting - will keep thinking about it.

Only 2 weeks and 3 days until Rachel turns 2!! Can't believe that has come around so quickly! Still have no idea what we are going to get her as a "main" present as yet - and whether we get something extra special as a combined Birthday and Christmas present. She now a right real helper and loves "watching/helping/seeing" everything we do! Loves carrying her stool around so she can stand on it to watch us do whatever it may be doing at the time! At times, it is so cute but at other times it can be frustrating especially when one is in a hurry in the mornings but I just try to grin and bear it! Her language is coming along in leaps and bounds and it is so scary what she takes in and comes out again with a few days/weeks later! She has a memory like an elephant! LOL

Anyway, time to get moving and start organising myself for bed... catch ya later :)

Another month over and another month begins! I simply cannot believe that we are in October already!!! As someone pointed out the over day - this time in 3 mths we will be in 2009!!! How scary is that??? Well to me that is quite scary indeed! Time sure does fly by faster as you get older! Well in my eyes it does!

So what's been happening lately for us... well not a lot really. I am currently at home with a barking cough (thanks Rachel for sharing your germs with Mummy)! I did go to work yesterday for an important meeting in the morning which had been postponed from last week due to me being away so thought I would make the effort to go in to work - by the time the meeting was over the whole team was telling me to piss off and go home! Got a telling off from the Acting GM as well (who is a very special lady for a number of reasons) for coming to work and sharing my germs! So yeap every couple of hours or so I seem to be coughing my guts out which ain't nice at all and very painful as well. Touch wood - it was been 3 hrs since my last bathroom visit so fingers crossed I am starting to get over the worst of it. I have had a lot of people tell me that they too have had this nasty cough and it takes WEEKS to go away! Flaming Nora - that is the last thing I wanted to hear and I really do hope it does not hang around that long for me!

Last week I was off work for 4 days (should have been 5 but that's another story) after I sprained/twisted my hip while putting Rachel into Time Out on the Saturday evening. It was one of the most painful things I had done - the pain I was in on Saturday night while trying to sleep was unbelievable! Off to the Drs on Sunday and got some GOOD anti inflammatories and pain relief! Thought he might say take a couple of days off but no he wanted me to rest for the whole week! By Thursday I was getting bored so went to work on the Friday which was good in a way work wise but bad for me and my hip!

I have also been having panic attacks during the night lately... I was getting these a bit this time 2 years ago - so in other words when I was heavily pregnant with Rachel. I wake during the night, and have trouble breathing and every time I lay down I just freak out! Tried sleeping sitting up but that's not something I can do very well! Actually while typing this I am thinking that perhaps I should dig out my rescue remedy though if I recall rightly it didn't help much 2 years ago but nothing stopping me trying it again. I am actually wondering if it is weight related (am heavier now than at full term with Rachel by about 8 kilos) but only one person can doing anything about that and that person is ME, MYSELF and I!!! And I really do hope that I can do something real soon!!! The parenting forum that I belong to have regular "Biggest Loser" challenges which are very popular indeed and I have tried a couple of them but just end up pulling out as I don't get anywhere. There are some marvellous mums who do the challenges and some of them have lost in the excess of 15+ kilos over the last 4 challenges! Challenge 5 is about to start so am giving that some serious thought currently.

Rachel is doing really well - and we still can not believe that she will be 2 in 4 weeks time! She is a real "helper" around the house - loves putting away the groceries with us and helping me clean the bathroom etc... She is petrified of the vacum cleaner though! It came on suddenly about 10 mths ago and I think in that time I have managed to get it out of the cupboard and vacum the house twice without her screaming hsyterically! Even with Steph here to comfort her, she goes to town with the screaming and tears. A couple of friends have suggested leaving it out in the hall or lounge for her to get used to and to explore while its off but we have a small house and don't really have the space to do that - well not with her stuff everywhere! :) Keep thinking of getting her a battery operated toy one for her birthday or Christmas but not 100% sure if that will help or not. We even dug out the dustbuster and hoped that might help her a bit but nope it hasn't so far.... I do have some great photos of her but they are not downloaded off the camera yet - must do that sometime soon!

Anyway, think I have rambled on enough to bore anyone who is still reading to tears! Will catch ya all later :)

Ooooops, it's been awhile since my last post but lately its just been a total lack of energy and time in the evenings.

I have gone back to full time hours at work (just finished the 2nd week) and the extra hr that I am working each day is really knocking me for six at the moment though the bank account is liking it. It is hard getting home at 6.10pm and getting straight into either bathing Rachel or organising dinner (Steph and I alternate these each night). So most nights I don't get the chance to sit down and "relax" until about 8.30pm or so... and then it is to check emails, parenting forum, perhaps a quick glance at Trade Me, and occasionally a blog read if I have the time.

Had a mental health day off work today as I just couldn't do it today, was feeling rather emotionally run down, and rather blah/blue so top that with a bit of a headache I decided that I would stay home. So after dropping Rachel off it was home to bed for another few hours of dosing off and on... had a relaxing afternoon and did a bit of retail therapy for Rachel as she desperately needed some new shoes and sandals along with some creche clothes so popped up to Save Mart and scored some good bargins there for clothes and also won a TM auction for 4 pairs of shorts for $6 so she has an initial set up for summer but still needs some more shorts and t-shirts to see her through for creche considering the mess she gets into!

Speaking of Rachel, she is growing so fast and I find it hard to believe that we are starting preparations for her 2nd birthday party in just 5 weeks time! Still trying to decide what to get her as her "main" present - got a couple of ideas but nothing definite as yet. Just having a family and couple of friends party due to the lack of space in our house so just gotta hope for a fine day as with just family and 2 friends coming the numbers are in the low 20s! Just having an afternoon tea and am getting the cake made by my bosses sister who owns a cafe across from work - she is doing a great deal for me so am looking forward to seeing her creation :) Rachel is speaking so well now and is coming out with new stuff all of the time. I can't wait for summer to be here so we can take her to the beach and all of that fun stuff. She has a swing at home and was given an old trampoline by one of the mums at daycare, and we have taken her suggestion on board and have it on pieces of 6x4 blocks instead of legs so she can get off and on it herself when she wants to. She loves to "jump jump" and to "go go go".

Not a lot more happening really - I THINK I may be SLOWLY getting back into the right frame of mind to start getting healthy again... no getting excited as yet but hopefully with the warmer weather and it getting lighter again with Daylight savings, I may get out and do some walking... And eating wise - well once again I am SLOWLY trying to change my bad snacking habits. I would love to get back into going to a gym but with now working full time, I just don't see when I would be able to go during the week and obviously I would need to go more frequently than just the weekends.

Oh, we have 2 weddings and a 21st to go to between late Dec and March so it's gonna be a busy time for us. The wedding in March is my eldest nephews wedding and it makes me feel so old to think that my nephew is getting married! He will be 27 by then but still in my mind he is so young... but at times he is more like my brother since we are only 10 years apart in age. The other wedding is one of Steph's sisters so that will be another great celebration. The 21st is my friend Lynaire's daughter and is child free so must line up a babysitter for that evening.

Anyway, this has taken me over an hour to write as am watching Criminal Minds at the same time. But my feet are freezing for some reason tonight... it's turned cold this evening after the warmer weather we had started to get used to. Roll on Summer!

Catch ya all later

Hi all

Well almost 3 weeks since my last update... and well not a hell of lot has been happening really.

Let me see - I am still hating winter and am so over it and the germs that it brings and the use of the clothes horse, dehumidifier, dryer (occasionally) etc... but I guess that it is only 10 more days until the 1st day of Spring and it is also getting lighter in both the morning and the evenings - very slowly but it is happening! Daylight saving is only 5 weeks away as well so that will be great as well.

Though speaking of Daylight saving, it will be interesting to see how it affects Rachel this year now she is getting older - the last couple of changes haven't really affected our household too much.

Mum is still away on her 8 week trip - well now I think of it I am not sure if I have mentioned this in earlier posts or not. Mum was selected as part of a NZ team to represent NZ at a seniors petanque tournament in the States at the beginning of July. Then my eldest brother in Ireland said, well since you are there you may as well visit us, and then it was decided that she would visit my baby bro in South Africa and then another of my elder bro's in Aussie while she was travelling. So her trip consisted of 2 weeks in the States (including a 7 day cruise), 2 weeks in Ireland (including 4 days in France to see my brothers B&B they have set up), 2 weeks in South Africa, then 2 weeks in Australia!!! She is in Melbourne on her last stretch at the moment and has been having a total ball of a time while away! I told her to find herself a nice, loving gentleman on the cruise so she wouldn't be lonely anymore but doesn't sound like she did! So only 9 more days until she returns... we are picking her up from the airport and then taking her home, will have an early tea with her before coming home again.

Steph and I are both on Annual Leave at the moment - we had 2 weeks off and had hoped to head to Taupo but that wasn't able to be done so we have had almost 2 weeks at home (back to work on Monday) and it has been fantastic! The first couple of days were spent getting all of our "clutter" out of my friends garage where we had been storing it when we had the house on the market and going through all of that. We have biffed heaps and donated heaps as well to either the Sallies or to Pregnancy Help (most of Rachel's baby clothes and a few other bits and pieces). It was really rewarding being able to do that and to help others who are less fortunate than ourselves. Rachel was at creche for these two days and that worked really well as we got so much done without her "helping us"! Then on the Wednesday we took Rachel for a day trip into Wellington on the train which she loved. She did really well esp since she really only had about 2 20 min naps rather than 1 big sleep of approx 2 hrs! It was a great day out :) On the Thursday, we met creche at the library for story time there and she was a right little ratbag to put it mildly... but it was fun being part of the parent help there :) Friday - it was back to creche for her and some blobbing time for us :) We spent the day in Masterton with my sister and her family on Sunday which was great though Rachel had developed a slight cough but we all still had fun.

Monday, Rachel woke very miserable and very clingy... turns out she has tonsillitis and mild asthma so she is on ventolin for the asthma and some strong AB's for her throat. So we have had a couple of very quiet days with a very clingy, miserable little girl... took a couple of photos of what she was like :(





Thankfully she is looking a lot better now! *phew* We had planned to go to the Zoo today as they have $5 wacky Wednesdays in August but I was not happy that the cold air would be good for Rachel so we had another quiet day at home but I can tell you we really are getting tired of Hi 5, Love 2 sing, The wheels on the bus DVD's!!! Her fav Wiggles one had been loaned to a friend which we are getting back tomorrow so I think I am actually looking forward to it as I am so over Hi 5 etc!

We will reassess the weather tomorrow and Friday and might head to the Zoo one of those days as the AB's have definitely started working but obviously don't want to make her go down hill again...

Enough of our boring family life... what else has been happening with us??

Am returning to full time hours (extra 45 mins a day for me) by end of September - just need to organise Stephan's hours with his boss so must remember to write that letter in the next couple of days so he can give it to him on Monday when he goes back to work.

Am considering selling Tupperware for a 3mth trial to see how things go - we really need the money and I do love Tupperware. So have Annie (the Area Manager who I would be reporting to) coming to see us tomorrow morning to chat everything through so am pretty nervous about all of that especially standing up in front of people talking but then it could end up being good for me and my self confidence.

Am really wanting to join a gym and have been hearing so many good reports about Configure Express here in Upper Hutt... would love to get back into that side of things but to be honest I can't see myself coping mentally and physically with the fulltime work, tupperware and going to a gym so am dealing with the other 2 for now and then will see how things are going so I can reassess things.

I am only approx 16 kilos off my starting weight when I started this journey back in 2003. I am shit scared of getting back to that weight and I DO NOT want to get back there but at the same time I can not get in the right frame of mind when it comes to eating and drinking the right foods. Only I can do this for me and having been down this road before I know I have to want to do it for ME not for others! But for my sake (and Steph's and Rachel's) I have that motivation comes soon! I know I wouldn't succeed if I was forced to do anything so I need to want to do it myself!

Anyway, I started this about an hour ago and between eating corn chips, watching the Olympics, and hanging out washing I think I may have rambled enough and bored you all shitless! In fact if you are still here reading - well done!

Before I go, just a couple more photos of my girl before she got sick..

ABC courtesy of Janene

A - Age: 37

B - Bed size: Queen size but I do wish we had a king or super king at times

C - Chores I hate: Cleaning the bathroom and dusting!

D - Dessert I love: Trifle, fruit salad, baileys cheesecake

E - Essential start to my day item: Alarm clock

F - Favourite actor(s): Leonardo Di Caprio, The Wiggles LOL and yes there are definitely more...

G - Gold or Silver: Gold

H - Height: 5 ft exactly!

I - Instruments I play: Piano but it has been quite some time since I played. I did learn the violin at college but that did not last long.

J - Job title: Payroll/HRIS Officer

K - Kids: 1 beautiful daughter aged 21mths who is growing up so damn quickly! Where has the time gone?

L - Living arrangements: Me, Stephan and Rachel. No pets any longer but we do look after the daycare lovebirds for the occasional weekend.

M - My full name is: Karen Mary

N - Nicknames: Kaz, Doylie (take off from maiden name)

O - Overnight hospital stay: 1 broken ankle (3 night), 1 birth (2 nights), 1 suspected meningitis (1 night)

P- Pet Peeve: Being late, or waiting for people who are late. Although if other people are late it makes me feel better about not being the last person to arrive.

Q - Favourite quote: "If you have a lot of tension and you get a headache, do what it says on the aspirin bottle: "Take two aspirin" and "Keep away from children."
Anon

R - Right or left handed: Right handed

S - Siblings: 4 brothers and 1 sister

T - Time you woke up today: 5am when Rachel woke upset... didn't really go back to sleep despite not getting up till 6am

U - Unique habit: Not very unique but I am untidy and want to work on that

V - Vegetable I hate: Egg Plant

W - Wish for: A Lotto win and then another baby :)

X - X-rays I’ve had: Ankle, knee, wrist (was always spraining/twisting them when younger)

Y - Yummy food I make: Muffins, Lasanga.... can't think of anything else at this stage

Z - Zodiac Sign: On cusp of Capricorn and Aquarius



Now whats everyone elses A - Z. ? Would love to read some others. Easy peesy, just cut and paste and fill in your own answers.

Another cold and wet weekend is upon us and we are nearly in August as well! I just can not believe how fast the year is flying by! Only 3 mths until Rach turns 2!

I am sick of washing inside on the clothes horse
I am sick of the dehumidfier going all day/evening long
I am sick of the bloody gas heater we use as we can not afford decent heating
I am sick of the big power bills
I am sick of the wet lawn and not being able to mow the lawns
I am sick of the cold miserable train rides to and from work
I am sick of the colds/bugs going work and daycare
I am sick of the amount of money our groceries now cost
I am sick of the price of petrol and the affect it has on our outings

Okay moaning over... just had to get that out of the my system! LOL There are lots more things I could add but are more personal so will hold back on those ones for now as there is generally only one person that can do anything about them and that is me!

Rach is in bed as I write this and it was only the second time ever that she has fought her day sleep! So after about 45 mins of perservering she crashed and has been fast asleep for an hour so far. Fingers crossed we get our usual 2 hr weekend sleep today. While she has been in her room I decided to make dinner for tonight so it was one job out of the way so have whipped up a lasanga and it smells fantastic! Forgot to get the garlic bread when doing the groceries, so will pick some up later when we got out. So it means Rach can have some of it tonight for tea (rather than waiting till tomorrow night) and then it means that Steph just has to reheat when we decide to have tea (actually his turn for cooking but its what I felt like so I cooked it).

Steph is helping friends of ours move at the moment and once Rach wakes up, her and I will head down to Lower Hutt to help out as well if we can. It's Steph's birthday tomorrow and as our budget is quite tight, rather than a birthday present he wanted a nice homecooked roast meal... so tomorrow night we are having roast beef with the works! Can't wait as it's gonna be so yummy! Initially it was going to be roast pork but that was a bit pricey so he chose the beef instead. And it is a nice size as well so should get a couple of meals plus some sandwiches out of it.

Rach is really into "The Wiggles" right now but the only problem is that we still only have the one DVD which is watched over and over and over and over and over... Steph and I know it off by heart! LOL So must get her a couple more of them so at least we can get some variety. We do have a "Hi5" DVD as well but Rach is not interested in it at all! We do have some other childrens DVD's but they are more movies than anything else so she is still a bit young for those. I watch auctions on TM but the price most these DVD's go on there is dearer than The Warehouse which is frustrating. So will pop back to The Warehouse when we can to choose some more. And then for her birthday we are going to get her the Hairy McLary DVD which has 10 of his short stories on it. I know I am looking forward to watching that one! LOL Rachel also has a fetish for bags! LOL Apparently at daycare she is known as "the bag gal" so am looking out for some little bags for her as well.

Oh shit - just realised that I told the boss that I would probably go to work this afternoon to finish off my filing which I have been working on this week! Oh well that's life I guess. And with it being Steph's birthday tomorrow I won't go in then so guess that waits till next Sunday then as I am busy the next 2 Saturdays! :)

Oh in 2 weeks time, both Stephan and I have got 2 weeks off work!!! We are still wishing that we were going to Taupo but that's life! But we are looking forward to the time off work and getting some things done around the house... and we will keep Rachel home some of the days as well and do some family things like the Zoo and catching up with friends.

Anyway, best I get moving as there are more things I need to get done before Rachel wakes up... just thought I would pop in and say hi to you all.

Catch ya later

Hi all

Okay, I really am getting slack at this whole blogging thing as you guys already know! Not only have I not been updating my one, but I have been so slack in reading others as well!

Been going through heaps in the last few weeks, I have been fighting a throat infection for the last 3 weeks now! And now it is really starting to wear me down. I went to the Drs 3 weeks ago and got a course of AB's and within 4 days of finishing them, it came back though not as bad. And for the last 2 weeks now, it has come and gone every 48hrs or so! Tonight is one of my bad nights, feel like crap and my throat and right ear is so sore as well as having a nasty cough which makes every bone in my body ache when I cough! Can't really afford to go back to the Drs so am trying to persevere and plod on but at times it really does get me down. I did take a day off work last week and felt so much better for it but couldn't really afford to take any other time off but am now finding myself agreeing with a dear work collegue in Christchurch who thinks I should take a few days off to just rest and do nothing to recover properly rather than running myself ragged! Think I may take tomorrow off but will see what sort of night I have and how I am in the morning. Though, my bosses grandmother passed away this afternoon so am unsure when he will be away and for how long!

Rachel has also had her fair share of bugs in the last few weeks with one weekend being very scary and almost ending up at the hospital with her. She does seem ok at the moment but on saying that there are chicken pox going around daycare and we noticed a couple of red dots/marks on her face this evening so am guessing that time will tell if she is coming down with them or not. Lets see what the morning holds for us...

Am so over the 5am wake up calls lately! She has always been an early waker, but used to wake and just lay there chatting away to herself but for the last 5 days or so, she wakes at 5am crying and if we lay there seeing if she will go back to sleep she just works herself up more and more. So, it means getting up and giving her a cuddle etc and explaining to her that it is still night time and she should be sleeping. Once I am back in bed, all I can hear is her laughing and chatting away to herself, and then of course my alarm goes off at 5.45am so am losing out on 45 mins sleep each day at the moment and it is really wearing me down! Found myself yelling at her this morning which really upset me so once I had calmed down, I sat down with her and apologised for yelling at her and explained that mummy was very tired and not well and I was so sorry. And then she gave me lots of cuddles and a kiss too! I hate yelling at her but just lost it this morning.

Rachel is also approaching that "terrible 2's" stage, and is very quickly learning the art of tantrum throwing! This is proving very trying for all of us but we are getting there slowly but surely...

It is my Dad's 6th anniversary today and I am missing him so much! Am so sorry that Rachel will never get to know him in person, just all the wonderful stories that she hears about him and the photos we have of him! Mum is away overseas at the moment so am feeling rather lonely family wise right now... Mum is spending 2 weeks in the States (including a 6 day cruise) representing NZ at some senior Petanque tournament. Then she is spending 2 weeks in Ireland with my eldest brother (and his family), then 2 weeks in South Africa with my baby brother (and his family) and then 2 weeks in Melbourne with another brother (and his family) before coming home at the end of August.

Work is extremely busy at the moment as we had a resignation of one of our team members and another one is off on ACC! So we have a temp and another staff member on a secondment so it's pretty full on especially with all the questions that we are getting all day! Have had a couple of interviews for new jobs but unfortunately I missed out on both of them! One of them was a local role and I really, really wanted it but I missed out to someone who had used to temp there so knew the system etc...

Stephan and I both have 2 weeks Annual Leave in August, and had hoped to go away for a few days to Taupo to see a dear friend and her family who used to live in Wellington however the budget is not going to allow this to occur now so it's gonna be a couple of quiet weeks at home but we both need the break away for our respective jobs. Rachel will probably still spend time at daycare but will also keep her home for some of the time to catch up with friends and to do daytrips around the place.

Anyway, I have rambled on for long enough now... so will end with a few photos of Rachel before heading to bed!

1/2 way through June already! Where on earth have the last 6 mths gone???

Am at home today with a grumpy, clingy, miserable, tired girl... well ok she is currently sleeping so hopefully won't be tired when she wakes up! Got a call from Daycare to collect her early yesterday (at lunchtime) as she was very miserable and coughing lots... but by the time I got there she had had a sleep and was her normal cheeky self and started showing off etc! Brought her home and we had a quiet afternoon, she had a reasonable night but woke at 5am extremely chatty and talked to herself for an hour before I got her up. I had made a Dr appt for her for this morning when we had gotten home yesterday so was tossing up whether to go ahead with it or not but after watching her for a wee while and she was crying at everything and kept say "sore"... went to the Drs and am glad we did as she has one badly infected ear with the other one on the borderline of infected... and her chest is quite rattly so Dr told me what to look out for in regards to asthma as Dr thinks Rachel could be developing that but time will tell. So after getting home, she had some lunch and a little play but then we had a HUGE battle to get her to have a sleep - think she cried (read screamed) for about 5 mins before going to sleep and an hour later she is still asleep.... yay!!!

We are going to do the groceries once she wakes up so that should fill in some time for us :)

I have a bit of cold as well so am quite pleased to be having a quiet day...

Ummmm what else is new... not a lot really. Got a family lunch on Sunday at Mum's as Mum heads overseas for 8 weeks on 3rd July and this was the only day that suited Mum! Boy she has a better social life than we do! LOL Guess that's what happens when you are on so many committees etc :) At least it keeps her busy and occupied. :)

Oh I have got a few jobs on the go at the moment, I had an interview for one on Wednesday which I felt went really well and was told that I should know by the end of the week (i.e. today) whether I have made it to stage 2 which includes physicometric testing and another interview with the big boss so am anxiously waiting for my cellphone to ring. I guess I would say I am 75% confident of making it through to stage 2 but time will tell... this job is still doing payroll but also includes some finance work (i.e. helping with FBT, accruals etc) so that will be great. The other great thing is that it is closer to home which is always a bonus! And the best thing is that a great friend of mine already works there and if I am lucky enough to get the role, I would be sitting approx 10 metres away from this friend! YAY! She also put in a good word for me to the HR manager so fingers crossed.

There was one other role in Upper Hutt that I applied for - it was not payroll but needed a lot of the attributes that I had from doing payroll work. Didn't even get an interview for that one! The other 3 are still in town and doing payroll but paying more... so thought there was no harm in going forward for them.

I have joined another challenge to help me lose some weight as well... this one is an 8 week challenge on the parenting forum that I belong to so fingers crossed that this motivates me as I DO need to do something as I am only 18 kilos away from the weight I was when I started my journey in Feb 2003. I have got so many bad habits that I have gotten into so I need to work on them one at a time as I am sure if I tried stopping them all at once, I would go berserk and overboard!

Anyway, time I got moving as this is hurting my back sitting typing this (hurt myself yesterday in a fall at daycare when dropping Rachel off).

Catch ya later :)

A few photos...

Look Mum I can wash my hair!!!


In my big red car...


Nope I am not going to smile for you Mum!


It's my party and I will be silly if I want to... (her last day at in the nursery room at Daycare)


My first day sleep in my big bed (but am still in cot at night time)


We have also had some professional ones done so just need to scan them before I can share them with you...

Not much to say really - still plodding on. It is such a relief having the house off the market and not having to stress about keeping it tidy and the open homes etc... Scored Rachel 3 pairs of shoes from the Warehouse today - $5 a pair (normally $18 each) so that should do her nicely for winter hopefully.

Had a lovely Mothers Day and Rachel bought me an awesome CD (Mum's favourite songs) and I love it and listen to it all the time!

Am off to bed now... (9.40pm) - bugger - another week of work ahead of us!

Popping in to say hi...

Hi everyone

Just thought that I would pop in and say hi to everyone... not much happening still.

But the big news is that we have had a couple of meetings with the bank and we have been able to take the house of the mortgage and refinance all our finances and debts. Gonna have a big mortgage now but at least we can stay in the house and don't have to face the prospect of moving. This is great as the agent told me yesterday that with the market the way it is we would have been lucky to get $250K when we had it on the market as offers over $270K. So now we can keep an eye on the market and will be reviewing things every 6mths or so. So yay to no more open homes and having to tidy everything each morning which was frustrating me with Rachel doing her best to "help".

Have had my PND meds reviewed and had tried coming off them (as per the chat with my Dr at my last visit) but unfortunately I wasn't able to at this stage so am on them for at least another 3/6 mths for now.

Work is still extremely busy and stressful at times. Still looking for a job in the Hutt Valley - have applied for one on line last week but haven't heard anything back as yet. Between you and me - I think I may be over qualified for the role but will wait and see.

Rachel is doing extremely well - coming along in leaps and bounds with all aspects of her development! She is starting the transition from the nursery to the Infants room at day care next week... she will spend two weeks spending more and more time in the next room but as she already spends heaps of time in there (as a lot of her friends have already gone up as they are older than her) we don't think there will be many problems with the transition. And with the transition, she gets to sleep in a big bed (okay a stretcher with a mattress etc) - so they thought they would just try it yesterday and she slept in the big bed for 2 hrs!!! Which is a lot longer than she has been sleeping lately and she didn't even try to get out or anything - just lay down and went to sleep! Our little girl is growing up so fast! Will down load some photos and share them with you soon though we have been a bit slack in taking photos recently.

Right, I am off to bed as I am on Rachel duty tomorrow and then we have to go to the bank to sign the papers etc... so think I will go to bed, read my book and have an early night.

Catch ya all sometime xxx

Taking a break...

Hi all

Am going to take a break from blogging for now... don't feel I have a lot to say that interests anyone these days and it sure isn't about weight loss that's for sure!

House still hasn't sold - only 5 people thru in 5 weeks so very quiet and very stressful.

So will take a break and will be back at some stage... might be a week, might be two, might even be a month or so... will see how I am feeling and how things are going.

Thanks xx

Morning all :)

Thought I would do a quick update before leaving for work since Rachel and I are both ready early for a change! :)

Managed a loss of 1.1 kilos this week though that has probably been aided by a V&D bug I had for 24hrs on Friday and Saturday so am still recovering from that! But I must admit that was one of the worst bugs I have had for a long time!!!

Here are a few recent photos of Rachel:

Another bad week weight wise... have offically pulled out of the 12 week challenge on the parenting forum as the graph was looking real bad for me! But am going to try to continue it on here - just didn't want all those other mums etc who I don't know that well seeing how badly I am doing!! Had another gain - this week it was 400gms! Not going to dwell on it - just move on and TRY to do better. One day I will get there.

Had another open home on Sunday - no one through this week but out of the 7 or so open homes our agent had - three of them had no one through so we don't feel to bad about it. These things take time (like Chris H knows too well)... and am sure the right buyer will come around sooner (rather than later).

We went up to Mum's during the open home to take her out for lunch to say a big thank you to her for helping me declutter and clean the house. We went to a lovely cafe around the corner from Mums and had a lovely lunch. Both Steph and Mum had the fish of the day while I had the specialty burger which was fantastic!

Work is full on as usual - didn't help matters being away sick on Friday so things just piled up for me! I do wonder about the "Team Work" motto we are supposed to have in our team at times! But never mind I am over that already... Have heard rumors that there may be a sole charge Payroll position coming up fairly locally so am keeping my eyes and ears open on that one as that would be fantastic!

Rachel is doing really well - 3 (maybe 4) teeth coming through so they are causing her a bit of discomfort. She learnt how to climb on the coffee table this evening while we were having tea!! She has been trying for some time but hadn't been able to get her leg right up - but tonight she succeeded and thought she was so funny doing it! I did finally take some photos of her at the weekend so now I just have to download them...

Am out tomorrow night at the Parents Center AGM - am not taking on any new positions as the Funding Officer role is more than sufficient for me at the moment. Then Steph has his rifle club AGM on Thursday so a busy week for us.

Anyway, time to go hang out the washing and then make Rachel's lunch - catch ya all later

Well week 4 of the challenge is over... and unfortunately another disappointing result with a gain of 600gms! :(

Not going to say much more rather than life sure is a bitch at times!

One step at a time... baby steps... but in a vicious circle of not having time/energy to do exercise... wanting to... but make excuses.... feel guilty and feel like crap.... know deep down that if I do exercise I will feel better and more energised... but don't have the energy... so feel guilty yet again... get the picture???

Had first open home yesterday - only 1 person through but it only does take 1 person to be interested and to buy it... but unfortunately for us it wasn't that person. Problem is that next door is on the market too and as a mortgagee sale - has a new kitchen and bathroom and an extra bedroom and will probably go for about $30K less than what we are asking. So until the auction next week - we just have to sit tight and plod on. As that one will probably go first so best we let that one take its course... We did have a nice time at Westfield for a couple of hours while the open home was on - nice family outing and Rachel was so well behaved :) Next Sunday, we are going up to Mums to take her out to lunch to say thanks for all the help she gave me cleaning and decluttering... the following Sunday we have a post wedding BBQ to go to.... then the following one is Easter Sunday and we may head to Masterton to my sisters.... fingers crossed it may be sold by then but am certainly not holding my breath.

Right, time I was in bed - better finish making Rachel's lunch and then head to bed. Have a good week everyone :)

Oh well - not such a great week this week unfortunately. I am back to square one weight wise... yeap I have put on the 900gms that I lost over the last 2 weeks so am back to 109.1 kilos! Bugger! Bugger! Bugger! But only person to blame and that is me, myself and I!!!

Ate to much, drunk to much crap and did sweet fuck all exercise!!! That's how my life has been lately and I am really struggling to change this lifestyle that I have gotten myself into over the last 12 mths or so! But like I said, there is only person to blame and one person who can do anything about this and that is ME!!!

Hopefully I will get out of the vicious cycle sooner rather than later cause there is NO WAY IN HELL I want to go back to 129.2 kilos! NO WAY!!! So best I get myself into gear sooner rather than later and get back to those double digits!

On to the most important thing - Rachel :) We had her at the Drs on Sunday morning and she has a middle ear infection and a sore throat brought on by a case of Laryngitis! My poor wee girl has such a nasty cough - very much like croup in a baby and so harsh! So she is on AB's for the infection but not a lot they can give me for the cough so am doing an old fashioned remedy of honey and lemon drink and giving her about 10mls whenever she needs it. She was a much happier girl today (and had a better nights sleep) so decided to send her to Daycare but didn't think she would see the day out there but she did. Despite only having one short sleep there - but she sure was grumpy when Steph picked her up so she crashed and had a power nap just before I got home. And so far, so good tonight.

Only had one couple through the house so far... bit disappointed really but have our first open home this coming Sunday so fingers crossed we will get some interest shortly. Yeah I know its only been 1 week so far but talk about the extra stress etc in making sure the house is tidy and clean before I leave for work each morning! Have found out that the house next door is also on the market but think it may be a mortagee sale by the sound of things! Haven't seen the neighbours for quite some time - they seem to come and go pretty randomly.

Really busy at work as well but did get a lovely surprise on Friday when we all (our team) got given a letter advising us of a nice pay increase backdated to 1 July last year. Not quite enough for us to be able to afford to stay here but definitely will help us each fortnight.

Anyway, best I get moving as there are still a few things to do before I hit the sack... oh before I go, I just want to mention how sad it is that so many of the "old" blogs are closing down. But I do totally understand what they are all saying and how they are all feeling as I go down that road occasionally myself and yes sometimes I find updating here a chore... but I know that I have made some true friends through the blogger world and I know that no matter whether we are blogging or not - we will still keep in touch.

Night xx

Just a quickie to say that in Week 2 of the challenge that I am doing that I managed to lose 400gms. Not as much as I would have liked considering the amount of exercise I have been doing with all the cleaning of the house but on the other hand my eating and drinking (coke) hasn't been the best. So all up 900gms lost so far... and my motto has always been slowly but surely! :)

The house is officially on the market now and the opinion of the company who brought all the agents through today is that it is well priced and they were very impressed with the presentation etc... so it is now on Open2view and a few other websites so we just have to sit and wait now! And oh keep the place tidy! :) First open home is Sunday 2nd March.

But right now, I am heading to bed so will be back in a few days for another update...

Hi all

Happy Valentines day to all of you and for those of you who do celebrate it - may your celebrations go well and you have an awesome day/evening. No celebrating of it here - just an "I love you and Happy Valentines Day" as Steph walked out the door!

Going ok so far this week... but being kept busy at home with the decluttering is keeping me away from the crap food I eat at work is which a big plus! And of course I am doing more "exercise" too with the cleaning and shifting things around! Only down side is the coke that I am drinking but hey I am getting there slowly. Would rather wean myself off the coke slowly rather than going cold turkey!

The decluttering isn't going as fast as I thought it was going to! Have got a couple of extra days off to try to finish things off! Initially we thought that we were just going to concentrate on the decluttering for the Open2view photos on Tuesday and then we could do the cleaning etc next weekend before the first home home... BUT........ of course it is officially on the market as from Monday with the agency so they will be bringing people through from their database etc before the first open home so its gonna have to be clean before then! This has freaked me out a bit but am sure we will get there slowly. Might send an SOS out to family this evening (once I have chatted to Stephan) and see if those that are free this weekend can pop around and give us a hand doing something around here...

Poor Rachel fell and knocked her head (in the exact same spot as she did last month) yesterday as we were leaving daycare and the lump came up quicker and bigger than the first time so off to the Drs to be on the safe side. Got given the all clear but just to watch for vomitting and drowsiness etc... Apart from it being black and blue this morning, she is very happy within herself and happy as larry at daycare. Have taken some photos of it so will try to post those at some stage.

Anyway, this sure as hell ain't helping me declutter... got the Sallies coming today (anytime between 10am and 1pm) to take away HEAPS of stuff so once that is cleared it will definitely give me a better idea of what is left to do!

Catch ya all later...

Going ok...

Well week 1 down into the 12 week challenge and I have lost 500gms for this first week! And I avoided the scales all week which amazed me so I had no idea at all what they were going to say when I got on them this morning... And to be honest last night I was thinking that I may have even had a gain as I haven't had that greater week for various reasons. So to have a 500gm loss makes me happy and is on track for my goal of 500gms per week...

So what have we been upto for the last week... not a lot really. Just plodding on and TRYING to get motivated for the house tidying since we go on the market next Monday! OMG!!! I am so scared and worried that no one will like our place and we will never sell... but am sure that is just first timer nerves and we will do ok. Okay I am worried how I am going to make sure the place is tidy each morning before going to work since I have enough to do each morning as it is already... And the Real Estate Agent is not going to bring people through after 6pm so we can bath Rachel and do her bedtime routine without people coming through so that will be good. First home open is Sunday 2nd March but it will be on Open2view by next Wednesday!

And for those long time readers, some of you might recall in January 2007 I was bitten on the arm and reacted badly to whatever had bitten me (tried to do a link back to the original post but it won't let me do any links whatsoever). Anyway, I have been bitten a few times in the last couple of weeks which we have put down to me sleeping on top of the sheets etc (with a nightie on of course) but they have just been itchy and then gone... however on Saturday morning I awoke to 9 new bites and 8 of them enlarged quite considerably and became red, hot, painful, extremely itchy and were just getting bigger and bigger! So went off to the Dr's on Sunday morning, and at least 3 of them were at the beginning stages of infection so am on a 4 day dose of a very strong AB to kick them in the butt! Am also taking the anti-hestimane tablets too... but if they haven't gone down by Wednesday morning I need to get my butt back to the Dr's who will put me on to a specialist. They seem to have gone down a bit this morning but still red, warm and itchy...

Anyway, best I get stuck into the de-cluttering which is why I am off work... so will catch ya all later...

I can do this!!!

I have bitten the bullet as the parenting forum that I belong to has started up a 12 week "Biggest Loser Competition" with the Biggest Loser receiving a pampering voucher (paid for by the rest of the team who each pay $5).

We just send a PM (Private Message) to the lady who is doing all the spreadsheet work and then each week she will post the % loss for all the competitors so am hoping that this will provide me with some motivation to get my big fat arse off the chair and to lose some weight.

Am going to work on the eating/drinking side of things first and then slowly TRY to reintroduce some exercise regime! One of the ladies who is doing it has also been successful in losing weight in the last 12mths and has posted a basic "at home" fitness programe for those of us who can't get to the gym or can't afford to go...

So with the support from there and the support from all of my blogger friends I know I can do this! My initial goal is to lose 6 kilos in the 12 weeks which is a simple 500gms per week. I don't want to aim for anything to high - would rather have a small goal and do more rather than a big goal and not get there. It's gonna be a stressful time as well to do this, with the house going on the market on the 18th Feb and then of course all the open homes and keeping the place tidy all the time with a 15mth old who loves terrorising the place!

Anyway, best I get moving as I want to make our lunches for tomorrow... Catch ya all later

Hi all

Once again I have been meaning to post for the last week saying that I am going to be a regular poster but haven't quite made it on here... well not to post anyway. But have been reading all the blogs (and posting when I have the time).

Not a lot happening here - just plodding on day by day. Have organised a date to put the house on the market which is the 18th February. So we have 2 1/2 weeks to do the decluttering, tidying, and sorting everything out. To be honest I am pretty scared of all that lies ahead of us as I haven't done the selling part before (as ex bought me out when we separated) so am pretty nervous but we have a fantastic agent who will be us all of the way. I do have 5 days off after Watangi Day next week so am aiming to get heaps done then and Mum is going to come and help me on one or two of those days.

Rachel is doing really well - walking most of the time now - only crawling if she has to! Though we have had her back at the Drs twice in the last 24 hours as when I was at the Dr yesterday (for a few things), I mentioned Rachel's bump and a few concerns we had about her since the accident so Dr suggested we bring her back down once I got home... so did that and she is still suffering from a mild case of post concussion so have to keep an eye on her - but do you know how hard it is to "tell" a 15 mth old who has just learnt to walk to be careful and not to fall over! LOL So basically we just have to watch out for her and if she has another big fall to the head (esp within the next 4 weeks) we need to get her checked out straight away as apparently that is the most vunernable time for toddlers and head injuries. And then today Daycare rung to say she just wasn't herself being grizzly, wanting cuddles and holding her ear so Steph collected her and took her back to the Dr as her ears hadn't been checked last night but everything is all clear! So think she may just be going through a clingy, grizzly stage that she will hopefully grow out of soon.

Work is diabolical and so full on that some days I am struggling to really get through work and then everything at home as well... yeah I know I need some "me" time but just can't seem to programme that it in at the moment but am working on it especially since I have a few vouchers to use that I got for my birthday so some time out doing that will be fun sometime in the next few weeks if I can.

As for the role in Christchurch that I have mentioned - well I have applied for it requesting it to be considered as a secondment so at the end of the 12mths I would still have my current role to go back to if things didn't work out in Christchurch. Applications closed on Monday so am hoping to hear back by Waitangi Day (next Wednesday) so will keep you posted.

Right, its now 9.40pm and I am knackered and need some sleep - well if I can with this heat! Have a fairly full on weekend ahead of us so will try to update with some more photos after that...

C'ya :)

Happy Birthday to me...

Yeap I am another year older today... feels just like another ordinary day to me except I am now 37 yrs old!

It's been 15 days since my last update - have meant to update a couple of times in that time but just run out of time and/or energy. Work has been diabolical - in fact I am going in to work tomorrow (Wellington Anniversary) for two or three hours to try to get my work completed in time for the payrun on Tuesday. Oh well by working tomorrow I get time and a half as well as an Alternative day off due to it being a Stat holiday.

So what have we been up to lately... not a lot really. Busy at work - busy at home so no rest for the wicked so to speak.

Rachel is now walking and getting more and more confident by the hour! Unfortunately today though she had a nasty fall while at Westfield Queensgate - she was getting impatient and grizzly in her buggy so I thought I would get her out and carry her - but no she didn't want that - she wanted to walk and as it wasn't that busy I thought ok - she can walk holding my hand... but she tripped over her own feet and I couldn't stop her hitting the floor in time - head first! Initially, we both just thought - oh another fall and picked her up and made our way into the Warehouse (accident happened just out there) but within a couple of mins, Steph looked at her and pointed this HUGE lump on her forehead - right on top of her nose between her eyes! And it was basically getting bigger as we looked at her!! So turned around, left straight away with lots of people looking at us as we made our way to the car. As we were in Lower Hutt and our Dr is there as well and is open weekends - I wanted to get her checked out to be on the safe side. They saw us basically straight away and checked her out - all ok but she will probably have two black eyes by the morning! As well as this HUGE bump on her forehead! They told us the signs to look for in concussion but all clear so far and we have past the danger zone for head injuries. Have given her a couple of doses of Pamol to help ease the pain that her head must have! Dr also completed an ACC form for Rachel - just in case we need anything further down track which was great of him.

I know this is going to be the first of many falls as she begins walking and exploring but I still feel like the worlds worst mummy! :( Steff - thanks for your call today and for trying to make me feel better - it was awesome catching up with you and all of your news! I can just see the faces on the teachers at Day care on Tuesday when I drop her off! But oh well accidents do happen.

What else.... oh yes we have decided to put our house on the market in about 4 weeks time! So in that time we have mega things to do before we list it - declutter, declutter, declutter, finish painting, clean and oh did I mention delcuttering!!! Perhaps I should get Chris down here to give me a hand as she seems to do it so well at her place!!! LOL I have booked 5 days Annual Leave for after Waitangi Day to do some serious work inside here so I have one friend who has some time off work then as well so she is going to help me one day... and then mum is going to come down for one or two days to help me too! We are going to stay within Upper Hutt but not sure exactly where at this stage...

Last night, we had birthday celebrations for my mums 70th Birthday (which had been on Thursday). It was a lovely night out but it was typical murphys law with Rachel though - all week (and tonight) she had not been going to bed until about 8.30pm or so due to the heat and some late power naps... but do you think she would do that yesterday - no way! LOL But she did end up going to sleep in the pram after I took her for a walk around the block - and it ended up being the long block as I get semi lost! LOL My brother (and nephew) from Christchurch came up for the dinner and my sister (and neice), her partner and his kids came over from the Waiarapa for it as well. It was a lovely afternoon/evening to spend with mum.

In regards to my weight... not looking the best right now. It is moving slowly and surely but in the wrong direction! :( I know what I am doing wrong - eating crap, drinking crap and doing sweet fuck all exercise! So no one to blame but myself there and I know that no one but me can do anything about it! Am seeing the Dr on Friday (have the day off work) for a couple of things so might have another chat with her about Reductil as I should be able to come off my PND meds but in all reality I don't think we can afford the $70/mth that it costs. Might have a chat with Steph and see if we can make a deal and I give it a go for 3 mths and see how I go in that period... so will have a chat with him at some stage this week.

So yeah, offically I am supposed to have a 3 day week this week with tomorrow being a Stat day and then am on Annual Leave on Friday - Drs and catching up with my great friend Jo and her daughter Maddie. So am really looking forward to that catch up :)

Anyway, it is now 9.40pm so time I was heading to bed since I am gonna be up and organised to head to work in the morning and as I have committed to picking up a work mate on the way into town I can't back out of it now! :)

Right, catch ya all later... have a good week everyone :)

Happy New Year

Hi everyone

Happy New Year to you all and may 2008 bring each and everyone of you what you wish for and desire!

I know for myself personally I am going to set myself some goals for 2008 - not so much NY resolutions but just goals that I want to achieve. I guess in a roundabout way they are the same things but I like the word "goal" better than resolution. I did have some in mind when I was in bed last night but do you think for the like of me that I can recall what they were??? Nope - can't recall one of them! So will do some thinking and will post them in a new post once I have them listed down.

We had an awesome holiday in Christchurch and I so didn't want to come home! I love Christchurch and want to go back! Between you and I - there is PROBABLY a job coming up down there that one of the bosses down there is encouraging me to apply for IF it comes up so am waiting in anticipation for it to be advertised but then of course I still have to actually get the role - not just apply for it and get it! We did a day trip to Timaru on the Saturday and that was great also - especially catching up with Stephan's cousins down there who I get on really well with (get on better with them than I do with my own cousins). Rachel was so good especially since she had never met any of them before then! Took her a couple of mins to settle in and then she moved around the house as if she owned it and just loved their two dogs (one golden lab and one chocolate lab) and the dogs loved her too!

I don't want to go back to work on Monday either - I am throughly enjoying being at home with Rachel now she is bigger and exploring so much more and talking non stop! Okay most of it we can't understand but boy she sure can talk (wonder where she gets that from)!!! She is so, so close to walking now - in fact the day we left Christchurch she did take a couple of steps by herself just before we were due to leave for the airport! And then she did another couple on Friday when Mum was here so walking is definitely going to be happening real soon...

Anyway, this has taken me a lot longer to write as our neighbour just popped around to say we had left the lights on in the car.. and we got talking (as you do). They are moving to Australia next week which is a bummer as they have a 7mth old girl and I was really looking forward to her and Rachel growing up together and being friends!

It is now after 10pm (so much for an early night) - so will sign off and leave you with some photos of our princess!

Santa's wee helper


Artist at work


Fun in the pool


Look I'm on a big kids bike


Family Photo



The "girls" - Rachel, myself and Paula


Look - I'm standing!