I Solemnly Swear: New Years Resolutions 2012

So its the last day of the year and its time to get reflective - on the year past and on whats ahead in the year to come. Its also the time when bazillions of people around the world choose to set themselves those very special New Years goals that we call resolutions - and i am one of those people. And because i'm also a blogger i get to share!

( I know i used this pic last year bit i love me some Calvin and Hobbes! )

The Conceptual Goal: as i explained last year this is the goal that has no real, measurable outcome - its more of an intangible. I've had a think about the what i've experienced this year, things i have seen and done and learnt that can be done in a better way in 2012 and i've come up with this as 2012's goal: to find the ability to trust, and to share of myself more readily with those whom i can accept into my circle. Ooh, all deep and meaningful. Basically, i have trust issues - that is, i trust very few people which means i can quite often be misinterpreted as being cold, or boring. I'm neither of those things, i've just been very badly burnt in the past when i've given wholly of myself and found that that trust has not been reciprocated. So this year i want to find it within myself to take that chance at trusting people, which means i will be able to open myself up to the opportunity of friendship more easily. And that can only be a good thing right?

The Physical Goal: So where the conceptual cant be measured, the physical of course is the one where everyone will be able to see whether i pass or fail. This year i actually have two: #1 to have a baby and #2 to establish a successful business. The first is kind of self explanatory. The second is what i hope for the business that Mick and I have bought ( and that we start running as of January 3rd - nervous! ) - i hope that we can at least match the finacial forecast that was given to us by the previous business owners, and establish a comfortable relationship with the existing clients. That to me would mean a " successful " year, and would give us the confidence to proceed as small business owners into the future.

How about you? What is on your agenda for 2012?

Polly Dolly - Catch Up Week

So you may have noticed that Polly Dolly has been M.I.A around here lately.... and believe you me, i've missed her! So i was happy to see that Dani from Danimezza is playing catch ups this week posting a new Polly Dolly theme every day. Here are my first 3 for the week:

Hello Polly Claus! I tried to recreate what i wore on Xmas day but i couldnt find the right cut of dress ( mine was an empire waist with spaghetti straps ) so i went with this one instead. I swapped my casual sandals for something a little dressier and found a gorgeous little pendant which i would love to own in real life...

Both myself and Polly love to be comfortable in bed so for those hot summer nights i've found a cute little nighty, some comfy pillows and some soft cotton sheets. Music is an essential for falling asleep and a bottle of water beside the bed so i dont have to fumble to the kitchen in the dark in the middle of the night...

And lastly, Polly as a Bali beach babe. I thought we have to go with a huge pop of colour for a tropical holiday so i've gone with a bright orange kaftan, some beaded flat sandals ( swap for some wedges for night time cocktails ) and a big tote to take to the beach!

Dear Flynn, Aged 2 Years - Happy Birthday!

To my dear Flynn,

You crazy little fluffy-nut - happy birthday! Mama ( yep, just lately you almost always call me " Mama " instead of " Mummy " ) can't believe you turned 2 yesterday and you can NOT be called a baby anymore. As Daddy and I keep telling you, you are most definately a big boy now - a funny, (mostly) well-tempered, smart little boy who loves being outside, wrestling with his dad and pretty much anything with wheels.

When you're not being all rough and tumble, you  do enjoy reading a book or five. This is something i really love about you. I love that you've taken an interest in books and even if Daddy or I can't sit and read to you, you are more than happy to sit on your bed with CharlieBear and Hoot and your teddy bear Bruce and flip through the book yourself. You also love music and ask me to put your music on for you in your room at least once a day ( Justine Clark and the Wiggles are you favourites ). And then you dance and sing and a few times i've even caught you just lying back on your bed listening, just like a teenager would. That kind of made me smile even though it kind of reminded me of how fast your growing up...

You've conquered so much this year - you started walking just after your first birthday, then running, and then climbing up anything you could get to. You talk constantly and your speech is developing rapidly ( methinks this is because you know a lot of children older than yourself, and you spend a lot of time chitty-chatting with them ) and you've even starting counting to 10 ( although apparently the number 6 doesnt exist.... ).

That binky you have in your face there is going this year too....

This coming year i've got one major thing on your to-do list, little man - potty training. Mama would love for you to learn to go to the " potty " so that we can throw away the nappies. We've already started - slowly - and though we had one morning where you successfully went in the potty most times when i ask if you need to go you shake your head and say " No mama no! Dont want it! ". No matter - slow and steady and i'm sure by this time next year we can say you're nappy free!

I know i say it all the time but - Mama loves you! I'm so proud of the way your are growing, the personality you are developing, the little person you are turning into. I love that you use your manners 99% of the time, that your pretty fast and loose with your kisses and "huggles" and that you love to laugh. Daddy and I couldnt love you anymore if we tried!
Keep up the awesome sleeping and you're pretty much the perfect kid,
Love you millions,
Mama

Santa Photos 2011

So - it was inevitable that at some point before Christmas i would post Flynns 2011 Santa photos, right? Come on, every " mummy " blogger worth her salt is throwing out the best pics of their kiddies, and by "best " i mean one like this:

Oh yes, that is my beautiful son - cacking his daks and screaming his lungs out at having to be anywhere near Santa. This is honestly the ONLY photo we could get Flynn in the frame with the big red man... every other time i'd plop him in that little chair and he'd dart straight back up before the photo could be taken. Luckily we have our Santa photos done by my very good friend Ree ( look her up under Speaking One Thousand Words on Facebook ) and she's smart enough to know that not every child is going to like Santa, so she has a couple of other Christmas-y set ups to be used. Also luckily, we jointly decided to take some photos with the other set-ups before we tried with Santa, because i had kind of predicted a major Flynny meltdown. So, instead of having just that hilariously horrible Santa photo, i have these beauties to remember this Christmas by:

He wasnt overly fond of the tinsel under his bum....

....but he did enjoy ringing Santa's bell...

....and this? This is my favourite.

So what about you? Are you're kids " okay " with Santa, or did they crack it? And how were you as a kid?

Oh - and from me and mine to you and yours - Merry Christmas everyone!

A Musical Interlude

Having run all over town this morning doing some semi-last minute errands before Christmas ( including taking Flynn for a haircut appointment at 8:15am.... ) i got to listen to a fair bit of music whilst out and about in the car. Usually its The Wiggles all the way while we cruise around - lets just say it keeps the peace - but today i vetoed the thousandth repeat of " Wake Up Jeff! " and decided to switch on Micks IPod. After wading through some crap ( ahem... White Zombie ) i came across the first dance song from our wedding... which firstly made me a bit nostalgic - even though we've only been married 6 weeks - and secondly, i remembered that i had promised a few more wedding posts. So, today i present you all with the three most important songs for any girls wedding:
#1 - the song she walks down the aisle to;
#2 - the song the newlyweds walk back up the aisle to to greet their guests and
#3 - the all important first dance song.

#1 - " Just Because " by Nikka Costa. I thought a lot about the song i wanted to walk down the aisle to and the one thing i knew is that i didnt want it to be a song that had be " done " a bazillion times before. So i (we ) went with one of my favourite love songs of all time, which really just somes up my feelings towards Mick... basically, i love him ' just because ' - because of all the simple, little things that just make him him.

#2 - " Burn Your Name " by Powderfinger. One of my FAVE bands of all time. This song came out a few weeks before Flynn was born and from the first time i heard it it was a song that represented so much about how i felt about Mick and our impending family. When it came to planning the wedding i knew i wanted to have it somewhere, and because its a bit more uptempo we decided to use it as the song we played after the ceremony, when everyone is a celebratory mood.

#3 - " Bless the Broken Road " by Rascall Flatts. We were pretty much unanimous on this one. We both love this song, it represents the way we felt coming into our relationship, and its a great melody for a slow dance. Love!

So there you be - the 3 most important songs from my special day. How about you - what songs did you have, or would you have, at your wedding?

Nothing Yet....

Seeing as its Sunday and there is precisely zero happening around, i dont have much to say - except this:

There is still no bun in my oven. Absolute boo to that.

To be fair - to myself, and to everyone else out there trying to conceive - we have only been trying for 7 weeks, or two cycles ( the first of which, having come off the pill, i dont think i ovulated anyway ). So its not like we've been trying forever, or are even anywhere near thinking about fertility tests in the like.... its just that i so badly want a baby like RIGHT THIS VERY MINUTE and had my fingers crossed that it would all happen in an instant . ( You know, like it did last time, when i missed two days worth of the Pill and miraculously fell pregnant.) But it hasnt and i know, in my head, that it very rarely does happen like that.

However, the heart wants what the heart wants, regardless of how much the head knows better. Long story short, i'm not pregnant yet and i;m taking one positive from it - it means i can have a drink ( or two or three ) over Christmas! Hello $3.99 bottles of Muscato!

A Different Christmas Perspective

It was Christmas – full of tinsel, and baubles and fake-bearded Santas. It is, of course, also a time full of other, more grown up concerns but when your 5 years old the sparkle and the whispered wishes for presents is all that you notice. You dont notice the petty arguments about whose family you’ll be spending Christmas lunch with, nor do you notice the bank account rapidly emptying as those sought after presents are paid for and hidden away in the back of the wardrobe.  You only see the happy, pretty, most-wonderful-time-of-the-year things.

 
However, even though your 5 years old, its hard not to see the panic in your fathers face, or to not recognise it your mothers voice. You cant understand why they’ve left you and your brother at Nanny’s, and they’ve sped off down the street with your other brother strapped tightly into the back seat of the car. Its worse when they dont come back by dinner, and Nanny gets off the phone to tell you “ You’re a lucky duck – you get to have a sleep over! “ It upsets you, partly because Mummy and Daddy and Eli havent come back yet, but also – how is Santa going to find you if you arent in your own bed? Where will he leave the presents? For you, and 4 year old Josh, and for Eli? You arent to know that Eli wont be getting any presents this year, nor any other year after that, and that Christmas, though it will always be full of tinsel and baubles and fake-bearded Santas, will now always be tinged with sadness.


 You dont know all that when your 5 years old – ignorance, as its said, is such bliss. But naive as 5 year olds are, its hard to be ignorant when your parents come home without your baby brother, and the only thing in abundance that Christmas is hot, silent, tears....