The Present Debate

The other day when I asked Muddy Hubby what he wanted for Christmas he replied with 'A Day Off'. This of course was not much help to my very tired and stressed brain. Each year I struggle to think of a good present for Muddy Hubby. I know that there are lots of things I would like to buy him, but most of these I cross off the list very early, as I can hear his practical voice in my head 'That's really nice Babe, but what do I need these for?' or 'You shouldn't have bought me that, I already have one of those' (ignoring the fact he's had it for 15 years and it's practically worn out!

Last year I took a new tack, I went VERY practical. I went to Bunnings, grabbed a basket and walked down the aisles filling the basket with little tools and handy items for the truck and workshop. I wrapped up these parcels and put them in a Santa sack with some VERY practical socks and undies. It was a success, the only time I heard 'You shouldn't have bought these, I already have a pair' was on the new Levi Jeans I bought him, and I bought them because they looked good on him and his other jeans are old and way too short on his long legs.

This year I'm thinking I'll take the same path, I've already purchased a couple of small items, including Ear Muffs for the lawn mower (really they're for me), a magnetic tool holder thingy and my plan is to get him a camping chair to keep in his truck for long waits at the silos! I'd love to be able to guarantee him a day off, and if we FINALLY finish harvest and make it to Sydney for Christmas he may even get a few days off, some time on the boat and maybe even some fireworks like we did a few years ago!

Muddy Hubby and Muddy Preschooler relaxing on Sydney Harbour

Enjoying the New Years Eve Fireworks

What do you buy your Hubby's?

Are your Hubby's as practical and money minded as my Muddy Hubby?

The Christmas Bake

I have known that Christmas is coming for a while (kind of hard to miss), I've pretty much done all of my present shopping, and there's only a few small things left to buy. What had slipped my mind though was that this week is the last week of term! For Muddy Preschooler at least term ends this week, we have one more day of Day Care next week and then it's holidays until the end of January.

For us the end of term means not only a Thank You present and card for the Preschool Staff, but also a Thank You present and card for the staff in 3 different rooms at Day Care, plus the Director. The big thing though is a present and card for Muddy Preschooler's 4 (yes 4) Bus Drivers! These are the people that ensure my little girl gets to and from Preschool Safely (They only slipped up once when she missed bus changeover once, and got the bus bogged only once at our stop, so not a bad result).

I'm not big on buying presents, I think that they all probably get enough nick nacky, kitsch, tacky gifts, so I go down the food or plant route. Because really who doesn't love food, and who couldn't do with a nice little plant. This year we settled on baking (can you call it baking if you don't actually bake it, and just melt stuff and put it in the fridge to set?). Muddy Preschooler and I picked four items to make to put in our little packages (9 Packages all up!).

Today we had a massive day (had to be today because it had to be ready for the morning because Bus Driver Phillip only drives the bus on a Wednesday). We made Rocky Road, White Christmas Slice, Peppermint Bark and Mint Slice Balls! A VERY sweet, but yummy, combination. The hardest part of the day was trying to remember whose turn it was to stir or add ingredients! All in all a fun day in the kitchen and the packages, while not all finished, look not too bad. Now to make sure they all get delivered safely before Muddy Hubby finds them and tries to sneak some onto the Tractor.

My Muddy Pixie

My Muddy Girl 2, Muddy Bubby and I have had a little sojourn together in Sydney over the last few days. It has been really really lovely to spend some one on one time with My Muddy Girl 2, My little Pixie as I often call her. My Muddy Pixie was the smallest born of all my Muddy Babies, weighing in at 6lb 4oz. I must say she hasn't grown much! My Muddy Pixie is very petite, long in the limbs and very lean. About 2 years ago I was a little bit worried, she just didn't look healthy, it wasn't just the lack of weight, but she was pale and wouldn't eat much and it was a battle to put weight on her. I ended up taking her to a Naturopath/Iridologist/Herbalist - Jen and she worked wonders, the colour came back into My Muddy Pixie's face, she started putting on weight, she turned into a different child and I am eternally thankful we went and saw Jen when we did.

While My Muddy Pixie still remains slight of build she consistently puts on weight, eats all her meals (especially if it's sweet or spicy) and has lots of colour and energy in her world every day. The one things I struggle with though with My Muddy Pixie is her concentration! I am always commenting 'She's off with the Pixies' as it is hard to gain her attention and hard to get her to focus on a task. Yes, I know she's only 3, but My Muddy Pixie lives up to her name. Muddy Pixie will start Preschool one day a week next year and I'm very interested to see how she'll go in a new, and at times chaotic environment. I am sure she will thrive, but being the overanxious Muddy Mum I can be, I got her assessed by an OT, to make sure if there was anything I could do to help her I had a heads up and could get started. I think too because I'm a health professional by training I definitely over think and over worry, hence the OT assessment, probably before she needed it!

My Muddy Pixie is an absolute delight, always keen for a cuddle, loves a good laugh and will retell stories over and over just to keep laughing. Muddy Pixie is so far my only Muddy Bubby not to get Car Sick (see here for our car sick history), she also doesn't like to sleep much. My Muddy Preschooler always loved to sleep, especially in the car, we'd go somewhere and it wouldn't take long and she'd fall asleep (still does). Muddy Pixie on the other hand has never liked to sleep much, in the car she always just used to scream, until we got to our destination or she passed out from exhaustion. Now, she fights sleep with all of her being, talking her way through roadtrips, commenting, asking questions, drawing pictures and telling us all about them, reading books to her Baby Brother, whatever it takes to stay awake! The same goes for a day time rest she pushes herself all day until eventually she passes out from exhaustion, wherever she happens to be at the time, after she's flitted from one activity to another and the house looks like a bomb has gone off!

My Muddy Pixie I feel sometimes gets a little neglected (not on purpose, but by default), she's pretty independent, isn't as loud as her two sisters and doesn't need the regular attention that Muddy Bubby does, so these few days have been so refreshing to provide My Muddy Pixie with some undivided attention, including an outing for a cupcake which she LOVED so much so that she spread crumbs from one end of herself to the other!

Muddy Pixie on her Birth Day

On the Tractor early on

My Muddy Pixie on her 2nd Birthday

Her Best Gene Simons Impression

 

My Threenager!

Ready for a Cup Cake

Exhausted at the table

Starting Early

On Saturday we had Muddy Preschooler's big Christmas Concert, Graduation Ceremony and Preschool Fete. A BIG Day. Lots of excitement from Muddy Preschooler in the lead up, with comments such as 'I'm going to walk around the fete with Emily (best friend) not you', and 'You go off with the other girls, I'm with Emily', 4 going on 14 I think.

Beforehand I struggled to get out of her exactly what the concert was about, other than she was going to be a Rabbit and the Rabbits were the last ones after all the other animals. Anyway the concert was a great success, as was the fete and no, I didn't let her go off with just her friends, as much as she tried, she is still only 4!

After the Graduation Ceremony though I got into a conversation with Muddy Great-Grandma who asked me 'How many more graduations will she have?'. It got me thinking about whether we're going over the top with things. Yes it's great that she's finishing preschool and moving onto Big School, do we need to have a graduation for that? Not only that but we also have a Day Care Graduation and Ceremony with another certificate. Are we starting on these things too early, come the next 3 children to graduate Preschool and Day Care will we be so over it that it doesn't mean as much? Are we peaking too soon, starting Graduations at the age of 4. I know I didn't have a Graduation when I finished Preschool, an end of year concert yes, but Graduation No. 

My Muddy Tribe will move from Preschool to go through Primary School and then Graduate, then High School Graduation and fingers crossed either University or a TAFE or Trade Certificate and the Graduation Ceremony for them. Am I being a cynical Muddy Mum? Should I just be making the most of all opportunities to see my Muddy Tribe shine up on stage or am I right, we are peaking too early?

Muddy Hubby dropped in to play photographer for the duration of the concert before slipping back to harvest duties.
That's Muddy Preschooler looking at the other Rabbits to see what she's supposed to be doing!

Muddy Preschooler collecting her Graduation Certificate

Exhausted Rabbit passed out once we got home and she came down from her sugar high

One Thousand Acres

It's raining again. Actually it's not raining at the moment but it has rained, now it's steamy and yuk and the forecast is for more rain. For something like 5 days, rain and a bit of it (I've looked at the satellite and I can't work out where it's coming from but Mr Weatherman is sure it's coming).

My Muddy Puzzler's facial expression sums it up. This is pretty much how all the Muddy Males around here are feeling at the moment.

We have been progressing through this harvest in a very stop start way thanks to the rain and storm interruptions, we are now down to 1000 Acres to go. 3 or 4 more days and our 2011 harvest would be over, but thanks to the 2mm of rain we're delayed again. I took this photo yesterday as the clouds rolled in, our 'Clover Paddock' all stripped and ready for spraying out the weeds, to get it ready for 2012 sowing. 10 Paddocks and 1000 Acres and I'm looking forward to seeing Muddy Hubby for more than an hour at a time and especially looking forward to seeing a smile back on his face, knowing Harvest is over. The countdown is on.....provided the rain stays away.



'Boys Toys'

Having 3 Muddy Girls we have a house full of dolls, dress ups, dresses and skirts and LOTS of things in shades of pink. I have never consciously pushed the girly angle, in fact for Muddy Preschooler's first Christmas she received a Tool Bench, which remains a favourite to this day. I find it so interesting though to watch what toys the kids choose to play with and how they choose to play with them.

We have a couple of trucks and a loader for the sandpit which the Muddy Kids love to play with. The trucks have been used to cart all manner of things from dolls, to flowers, grass clippings, the dog etc. The latest game of choice is to create a house at the base of the fig tree and the trucks are used to cart ingredients for cooking. Today the trucks collected dirt that went into making a mulberry cake, tea and coffee, pink water and a strawberry cake.

I am continually fascinated and amazed at their creativity. While I look at a truck and think building, roadworks and sandcastles. My Muddy Girls have looked at the trucks and thought about carting ingredients for cooking. I think it is so valuable to ensure they are exposed to a variety of toys including ones that are traditionally 'boys toys'.

Then there's the other side of the coin, now that we have a Boy Muddy Bubby does the reverse apply? He will automatically grow up exposed to dolls, prams and dress ups. What would it be like though if he was the eldest? Would I still have bought dolls and prams for him to ensure he had a variety of toys like my Muddy Girls have been exposed to trucks, diggers and tools? I'm glad I haven't had to think about that, that by being the youngest with 3 older sisters he will be ensured of a well rounded exposure to both the traditionally assigned 'boys' and 'girls' toys.



The Bad Mother Book

I absolutely LOVE to read. It is one of my favourite things. I don't get to do it often, as with most things it takes a backseat to the Muddy Tribe and the Daily Grind. Every so often though I pick up a book and squeeze in a few pages here and there to work my way through it. It might be a couple of pages while Muddy Hubby has a shower before he comes to bed, or a few pages while I eat my lunch at the kitchen bench. I just fit it in when I can.

Even more rarely though a book will come along that I call a Bad Mother Book. These are the books that you just can't put down. You sit the kids in front of Play School for half an hour so you can have a good block of reading time, you snuggle up on the couch with it rather than talking to Muddy Hubby at night, or you sit outside next to the sandpit and read while the kids play. See - a Bad Mother Book, your kids (and Muddy Hubby) are neglected, or paid little attention as you plow through the captivating read.

I'm reading one of those Bad Mother Books at the moment. Michael Connelly's new book 'The Drop'. I have always loved Michael Connelly's books, from the first time I read 'The Poet' he had me drawn in. I think it takes skill to weave a story, let alone a story that will keep you guessing and turning those pages to get to the end as quickly as you can, and for me Michael Connelly does it every time. There are some other authors that I feel the same about but for me Michael is consistently good.

My litmus test is that I like to be able to pick up a book, read the first page and have that feeling that I want to read on. If I pick it up and that first page doesn't do it for me, it gets put back on the shelf. I'm not going to waste hours of my time on something I don't find interesting from the get go. So as my children are neglected (only slightly really) I am working my way through this Bad Mother Book and enjoying it, as it will probably be months before the next Bad Mother Book comes along.