At last, an evening to myself to catch up on my admin (see: online scrabble games) and write something in my blog!
I stopped looking after my friend's boys last week, and Mapera is missing them a bit. She is more demanding of my attention now, but she has also come on in leaps and bounds with her language development. We had the lady from PAFT visit, and Mapera went up to her while she was writing and asked "Are you finished with the pen? When you are finished I will have a turn" The lady was amazed! I felt like a bit of a smug parent then!
Mapera has also been testing boundaries this week. She is not a "naughty" child, but she likes to try and do something that is almost, but not quite, the opposite of what you have asked her to do (or not do). A typical exchange goes like this:
Mummy: Mapera, please sit down on the chair
Mapera: [standing] I just jump
Mummy: No jumping, sit DOWN please
Mapera: [kneeling] I just go on my knees like this
Mummy: Sit down properly on your bottom please
Mapera: [flinging herself across the sofa] woa!
Mummy: Sit down before I count to 3
Mapera: [looks at me to see if I mean it]
Mummy: ONE
Mapera: [kneeling]
Mummy: TWO
Mapera: [rolling about]
Mummy: THREE
Mapera promptly sits on her bottom just as Mummy reaches THREE and looks at me.
GAH!
The 123 thing does work most of the time, but we always reach 3. Tareka has been known to count to 3 twice, but I soon corrected that! Daddy may have to go in the naughty corner for 34 minutes one day!
One of the main reasons for starting this blog was to keep myself on track with projects. I think I will have a look back at my original list and see where I am at....
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Perfect children
I recently caught up with an old friend via her blog, and she posted a great blog about how perfect her kids are, and it got me thinking about my own.
My kids are perfect too. They do exactly what children are supposed to do! I'll give you my two current favourite examples:
Just a couple of days ago, Mapera came running up the corridor shouting "Mum! Mum!" so I popped my head round the door to see what she wanted. She had my breast pump in one hand and was pulling up her jumper with the other when she demanded "Mum! Fix this to my booby!"
Yesterday we were trying pomegranates for the first time, and I noticed Mapera trying to push a seed up her nose. I promptly took it off her and told her a very stern "no!", thinking thank goodness I spotted that in time.
After dinner, she was unusually whingy and kept rubbing her nose...yes the seed I had stopped was number 2 and number 1 was firmly lodged up her right nostril. I thanked my lucky stars I had managed to teach her how to blow her nose, so I covered one nostril and told her to blow hard. To Mapera's great delight, the little red seed popped out and flew across the room.
I'll be storing these stories and many more I'm sure in preparation for 21st birthday parties, or maybe even wedding days!
My kids are perfect too. They do exactly what children are supposed to do! I'll give you my two current favourite examples:
Just a couple of days ago, Mapera came running up the corridor shouting "Mum! Mum!" so I popped my head round the door to see what she wanted. She had my breast pump in one hand and was pulling up her jumper with the other when she demanded "Mum! Fix this to my booby!"
Yesterday we were trying pomegranates for the first time, and I noticed Mapera trying to push a seed up her nose. I promptly took it off her and told her a very stern "no!", thinking thank goodness I spotted that in time.
After dinner, she was unusually whingy and kept rubbing her nose...yes the seed I had stopped was number 2 and number 1 was firmly lodged up her right nostril. I thanked my lucky stars I had managed to teach her how to blow her nose, so I covered one nostril and told her to blow hard. To Mapera's great delight, the little red seed popped out and flew across the room.
I'll be storing these stories and many more I'm sure in preparation for 21st birthday parties, or maybe even wedding days!
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Pictures of the Pollywogs
Terry the Tadpole is joyous!
Terry and his friends, Arfur, Dave and Chisholm
Terry has LEGS!
Tadpoles like spaghetti too.
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Tadpoles and tantrums
Well, I have a week off from looking after the boys, and so I thought I would get up to date on the blog. They've been great kids to look after, not needing to be watched constantly, playing nicely most of the time and generally being lovely. It's tiring, but nowhere near as crazy as I was expecting.
Kaitereo had her first taste of solid food today, just plain baby rice mixed with cold boiled water. Once she realised what it was, she opened her mouth like a baby bird - I don't think we're going to have any trouble feeding this one! Mashed banana tomorrow, then I will start stocking up the ice-cube trays with fruit and veg purees.
Sunday saw us down in Tirau at Tareka's Marae for a committee meeting, the first we've attended since I was 38 weeks pregnant. It was great to hear all the progress that has happened in our absence, and it looks like our dreams for the development of the Marae will become a reality over the next few years!
Tomorrow my cousin Rich will be coming to stay for a few days, he just got into NZ from some little island where he was caught up in a tropical cyclone! Good job things are all calm here.
Well I am procrastinating again, I really should be finishing typing up the minutes from Sunday.
Pictures of the tadpole shortly!
Last Friday we managed to get out for a forest walk for the first time in ages, and I am glad we went as Tareka found a pool full of TADPOLES! Mapera was most entranced by the "fishies" and luckily Daddy had a jam jar in the car, so we caught one and brought him home. Terry the Tadpole is now happily swimming around in a little goldfish bowl, complete with rocks, pond weed (which is sprouting new growth) and a teaspoon of catfood every couple of days. I think he is starting to get his legs, so watch this space!
Kaitereo had her first taste of solid food today, just plain baby rice mixed with cold boiled water. Once she realised what it was, she opened her mouth like a baby bird - I don't think we're going to have any trouble feeding this one! Mashed banana tomorrow, then I will start stocking up the ice-cube trays with fruit and veg purees.
Sunday saw us down in Tirau at Tareka's Marae for a committee meeting, the first we've attended since I was 38 weeks pregnant. It was great to hear all the progress that has happened in our absence, and it looks like our dreams for the development of the Marae will become a reality over the next few years!
Tomorrow my cousin Rich will be coming to stay for a few days, he just got into NZ from some little island where he was caught up in a tropical cyclone! Good job things are all calm here.
Well I am procrastinating again, I really should be finishing typing up the minutes from Sunday.
Pictures of the tadpole shortly!
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
I don't know how you do it
Spent the morning looking after 6 kids, all under 5. Then managed to get rid of 2 just after lunch, so had 4 til 6pm. Just got my mental 2yr old off to bed, hoping she is asleep now!
Wow. I've agreed to look after my friend's 2 boys for a couple of months as she is going back to work. Originally, her hubby was finishing his job end of January, and he was going to stay home and be a house husband. Yeah, right! Bless him, he's a lovely guy, but he really has no clue how hard it is to run a household and look after 2 kids. Anyway, he's wussed out and got another job starting beginning of Feb. Meanwhile, my friend got herself a job early, assuming she's be at work for at least 6 months, and could finally give hubby an idea of how much she actually does around the house (he is inclined to think she's lazy if the washing isn't done, or if the dinner isn't ready). This one is a contract til mid March, and she's expecting bub number 3 at the end of this year, so she'll stop when this contract's up. In the mean time, I'm minding the boys.
Today it was OK, the 4 of them get on fine, and they all keep each other amused, but my neighbours kids (who are ALWAYS wanting to come and play, I mean ALWAYS. From the minute I open the door in the morning, til after I put the baby to bed in the evening) came over for the morning. Now I can send them home anytime really, but I let them stay til lunchtime to see how I coped. I coped. But I lost my rag at my poor hubby who was trying to make helpful suggestions - !!
Tomorrow, I will only let them come over for an hour or so, and I'm not giving them lunch!
So now it's 10 to 9 at night, the 2 yr old is still awake cos she keeps getting up to go to the toilet. I have a mountain of dishes to do and a garden to tidy. So much for getting to bed early!
Wow. I've agreed to look after my friend's 2 boys for a couple of months as she is going back to work. Originally, her hubby was finishing his job end of January, and he was going to stay home and be a house husband. Yeah, right! Bless him, he's a lovely guy, but he really has no clue how hard it is to run a household and look after 2 kids. Anyway, he's wussed out and got another job starting beginning of Feb. Meanwhile, my friend got herself a job early, assuming she's be at work for at least 6 months, and could finally give hubby an idea of how much she actually does around the house (he is inclined to think she's lazy if the washing isn't done, or if the dinner isn't ready). This one is a contract til mid March, and she's expecting bub number 3 at the end of this year, so she'll stop when this contract's up. In the mean time, I'm minding the boys.
Today it was OK, the 4 of them get on fine, and they all keep each other amused, but my neighbours kids (who are ALWAYS wanting to come and play, I mean ALWAYS. From the minute I open the door in the morning, til after I put the baby to bed in the evening) came over for the morning. Now I can send them home anytime really, but I let them stay til lunchtime to see how I coped. I coped. But I lost my rag at my poor hubby who was trying to make helpful suggestions - !!
Tomorrow, I will only let them come over for an hour or so, and I'm not giving them lunch!
So now it's 10 to 9 at night, the 2 yr old is still awake cos she keeps getting up to go to the toilet. I have a mountain of dishes to do and a garden to tidy. So much for getting to bed early!
Thursday, January 10, 2008
A few snatched minutes
Just managed to get both babies off to sleep after a coffee group, and Tareka is out fishing with a mate from the UK, so I have a couple of minutes to catch up.
Things are slowly getting back to normal after all the excitement of Christmas and Mapera is back into her normal routine without too much trouble. She is also almost toilet trained! We've been out with no nappy on a couple of times and she is learning to tell me when she needs to go, or taking herself to the loo if she knows where it is. I reckon we'll have it cracked before the end of the month!
Monday we did a big day trip to Miranda Hot Springs and I forgot to top up my sunscreen, so I am a bit burned. I've been slathering on the cold cream, and I don't seem to be peeling yet, so I think I've rescued it. I'm not taking any chances again though, so it's shirts with collars and long sleeves til I've completely healed.
Tuesday my boxing training started up again, but our trainer couldn't make it, so I opened the gym up for him and managed to do a solid 30 minutes of tai-bo style cardio before I collapsed! Ah well, I've been lazy for a month, so I reckon I can do an hour tonight. Weight seems to be slowly decreasing, and I am trying to watch the food intake. It does help being hot, so I'm not feeling hungry, I'm drinking a lot more water and I'm out and about more.
My projects are ticking over, and I've just had another batch of arty photos printed, so I'm going to try framing them ready for the stall. The woolly hats are also still being made, just taking a bit longer about it.
I really should be writing thank you letters for the girls' Christmas presents, but I keep getting distracted when I sit down at the computer! At least it means I've managed a new blog post for those of you interested enough to read it!
Kaitereo continues to develop very quickly, she had learned how to roll from her back to her front already and she's kicking her legs trying to move. She's started going round in circles on her tummy, so I reckon she may crawl sooner than Mapera did. Mapera is a little angel, she is getting very good at patiently explaining what she wants, instead of having a tantrum, but tiredness or hunger seems to override that.
I was intending to get onto starting my website this month, in order to sell stock in between markets, but my friend Liz is going back to work for a few months, and I've agreed to look after her 2 boys full time, so I will have even less time during the day to do anything. I'm also waiting to hear from Black Magic Tackle about doing piece work for them, which I will need to do training for, so it looks like the website will get put back again!
We're also expecting another influx of visitors at the end of the month, so I can't see me getting anything extra done for a long time!
Things are slowly getting back to normal after all the excitement of Christmas and Mapera is back into her normal routine without too much trouble. She is also almost toilet trained! We've been out with no nappy on a couple of times and she is learning to tell me when she needs to go, or taking herself to the loo if she knows where it is. I reckon we'll have it cracked before the end of the month!
Monday we did a big day trip to Miranda Hot Springs and I forgot to top up my sunscreen, so I am a bit burned. I've been slathering on the cold cream, and I don't seem to be peeling yet, so I think I've rescued it. I'm not taking any chances again though, so it's shirts with collars and long sleeves til I've completely healed.
Tuesday my boxing training started up again, but our trainer couldn't make it, so I opened the gym up for him and managed to do a solid 30 minutes of tai-bo style cardio before I collapsed! Ah well, I've been lazy for a month, so I reckon I can do an hour tonight. Weight seems to be slowly decreasing, and I am trying to watch the food intake. It does help being hot, so I'm not feeling hungry, I'm drinking a lot more water and I'm out and about more.
My projects are ticking over, and I've just had another batch of arty photos printed, so I'm going to try framing them ready for the stall. The woolly hats are also still being made, just taking a bit longer about it.
I really should be writing thank you letters for the girls' Christmas presents, but I keep getting distracted when I sit down at the computer! At least it means I've managed a new blog post for those of you interested enough to read it!
Kaitereo continues to develop very quickly, she had learned how to roll from her back to her front already and she's kicking her legs trying to move. She's started going round in circles on her tummy, so I reckon she may crawl sooner than Mapera did. Mapera is a little angel, she is getting very good at patiently explaining what she wants, instead of having a tantrum, but tiredness or hunger seems to override that.
I was intending to get onto starting my website this month, in order to sell stock in between markets, but my friend Liz is going back to work for a few months, and I've agreed to look after her 2 boys full time, so I will have even less time during the day to do anything. I'm also waiting to hear from Black Magic Tackle about doing piece work for them, which I will need to do training for, so it looks like the website will get put back again!
We're also expecting another influx of visitors at the end of the month, so I can't see me getting anything extra done for a long time!
Sunday, December 16, 2007
Party time!
Over a month since the last post, and we've just been spending the time preparing for the arrival of family. My brother Tom arrived on the 8th Dec, and Uncle Rowland arrived on 9th; Mum and Dad arrived on 10th December and it's been all go ever since.
Uncle Rowland was only here for a few days, so we all got together at my in-laws for a family meal on Dad's
birthday. I've not seen Uncle Rowland for 27 years, so it was lovely to catch up and spend time with him. He is technically only Dad's half-brother, but he's so like all the Kohn boys, you wouldn't think it! We played the guitar and sang, and Uncle Rowland told lots of cool stories about him and Dad and their antics as boys and young men. Dad really enjoyed having him here, and we plan to head over to Taz to stay with him in a couple of years, when both the girls are old enough to appreciate it a bit more.
After we saw Uncle Rowland off, we had to prepare for Dad's big party on Saturday 15th. We were having a Hangi, so the meat had to be bought, the veg collected, the cake ordered. Friday was a frantic day with the men-folk digging the pit and laying the fire til late into the night.
Saturday morning it was a hive of activity, but we had the food in the ground by 1pm and could relax. I'd
made steamed pudding for the first time, and I was a bit worried ab0ut how they would turn out, as the recipe was a bit mental:
40 oz plain flour
20 oz butter
29 oz golden syrup
8 eggs
40g baking soda
30g vanilla essence
12oz hot water
Rub the butter into the flour, then mix in the rest of the ingredients and beat til smooth. Pour into 2 large tins which have been greased and lined with baking paper, then cover with baking paper and a foil lid and pop into the Hangi basket!
The recipe was to serve 50 people, so it's not as bad as it looks!!!
The food was perfect, we had a good turn out, and this morning we've managed to clean up pretty well, so there is only general house tidying to do. My brother is heading back to Hong Kong tonight (flying at midnight and getting back just in time to go to work! Crazy lad that he is.)
Once Tom's gone I think we can get on with the business of leaving Mum and Dad to babysit, and getting out of the house for a few trips out!
Roll on Christmas, I can handle anything now!
Uncle Rowland was only here for a few days, so we all got together at my in-laws for a family meal on Dad's
birthday. I've not seen Uncle Rowland for 27 years, so it was lovely to catch up and spend time with him. He is technically only Dad's half-brother, but he's so like all the Kohn boys, you wouldn't think it! We played the guitar and sang, and Uncle Rowland told lots of cool stories about him and Dad and their antics as boys and young men. Dad really enjoyed having him here, and we plan to head over to Taz to stay with him in a couple of years, when both the girls are old enough to appreciate it a bit more.
After we saw Uncle Rowland off, we had to prepare for Dad's big party on Saturday 15th. We were having a Hangi, so the meat had to be bought, the veg collected, the cake ordered. Friday was a frantic day with the men-folk digging the pit and laying the fire til late into the night.
Saturday morning it was a hive of activity, but we had the food in the ground by 1pm and could relax. I'd
made steamed pudding for the first time, and I was a bit worried ab0ut how they would turn out, as the recipe was a bit mental:40 oz plain flour
20 oz butter
29 oz golden syrup
8 eggs
40g baking soda
30g vanilla essence
12oz hot water
Rub the butter into the flour, then mix in the rest of the ingredients and beat til smooth. Pour into 2 large tins which have been greased and lined with baking paper, then cover with baking paper and a foil lid and pop into the Hangi basket!
The recipe was to serve 50 people, so it's not as bad as it looks!!!
The food was perfect, we had a good turn out, and this morning we've managed to clean up pretty well, so there is only general house tidying to do. My brother is heading back to Hong Kong tonight (flying at midnight and getting back just in time to go to work! Crazy lad that he is.)
Once Tom's gone I think we can get on with the business of leaving Mum and Dad to babysit, and getting out of the house for a few trips out!
Roll on Christmas, I can handle anything now!
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