Nothing gets her down...

Well here I am at Sydney airport, waiting for my flight to go home from spending a week with Mum. I really wish I could've stayed longer to help her out but am really ecstatic to say that she is doing really well and is being Miss Independent as much as possible...nothing gets her down, that she has proven to me time and time again.
Mum finally had her operation and is now in a cast from her wrist to her shoulder! She has a plate and has been wired up in her wrist so she did a good job, that's for sure!!! Even though I tried to do as much as possible for her, every time I turned my back for a shower etc...she had either made something, put washing on, cleaned the bathroom...she really is unstoppable!!! I was like her Mother though and told her off for everything! She wanted to go to the shops on her own but I wouldn't even let her do that which she wasn't impressed about, but I was there to look after her and let her rest as much as possible. She has the next 5 weeks or so to be independent although if my brothers have their way, she will not be doing too much as they are keen to pitch in as much as possible for her. At least I can go home knowing that for the next 2 weeks she has her dinners made and frozen for her convenience and the housework and washing etc...was up to date. It's all the little things like opening jars, washing up, tying shoe laces etc...as she can't use her other hand at all! It's times like these when I wish I was just around the corner again...actually it's all the time I wish that but I won't bore you all with my feelings there!!! The Mountains is such a wonderful place that you really don't appreciate when you live there. The first thing I noticed when I got back was the beautiful aroma of the blossoming trees, flowers and the constant singing of the beautiful birds. The lovely cockatoos, parrots, lorikeets, all over the place, just stunning. I can't believe how all of this stood out this time around. I guess where I'm living, there is so much land development etc...that there's not much wildlife around like this!...plus it's an 'age thing' where you start appreciating flowers, birds isn't it??? The other amazing thing aboout being home was seeing my brothers and Cass. They had the whole week off so I saw them all the time. Bailey just loves his Uncles and never left their sides. His face lit up every time he saw their cars pull up. He also picks up little habits and phrases from them that will stick with him for ever which is adorable. They all have such a close, unbreakable bond. Dale cooked an amazing roast for us one night...unbelievably the best roast I've ever had!!! It was just so great to see them all and Mum.
Yaz seems to be having the time of her life still in Italy and now apparently doesn't want to come home! Maybe it was the shopping in Milan that won her heart...just so glad to hear that this trip has been incredible for her in every way and she seems to be making lots of new friends. Apparently her host sister is coming over to Australia in February so that will be fantastic! I can't wait to meet her. From what I can gather, they have made great friends with each other.
I will pop a photo of Mum on here when I get back to Brisbane. I found it very hard to hold in the tears today saying our goodbyes but miraculously I did as I didn't want to see her upset. Bailey comes home tomorrow so he feels like he's had an adventure flying down and back on his own...what a big boy...too keen on wanting to be grown up though : (
Ian has had a very quiet week without all of us. I spoke to him last night on the phone and all I could here was Ramses in the background meowing his head off like the baby that he is. I was trying to speak to him via the phone and he was responding to my calls which made my heart melt. Can't wait to give both of my boys a big cuddle tonight. Hopefully next time I go to NSW, Ian will be able to come with us as he hasn't been back since we moved, nearly 4 years ago...wow, time has gone so quickly!!!
Better go as I'm just about to run out of internet credit here at the airport. Hope anyone reading this is well and happy and if you are reading this then I thank you for your interest in our lives. xx

Mummy Dearest...

What an eventful and emotional week. My poor Mum...where do I begin? With her never ending energy supply that enables this amazing 71yr old lady to be so totally self sufficient by all D.I.Y. aspects etc...well unfortunately Mum had a bad fall whilst out mowing her lawn...which she should never be doing and will get into big trouble for when I get to her tomorrow. Anyway, she fell on her wrist and badly broke it. She knew at the time that she had done some serious damage, so what did this energetic lady do?...she kept mowing and tidying the garden! Seriously!!! After going inside and having a clean up, she took a couple of panadol for the pain and decided that she'd better ring Dale to take her to the hospital. Luckily Dale had started his first day of his holiday so was able to get to her within 20minutes. Once at the hospital she was seen to straight away and x-rayed where the severity of the break was revealed and then it was the waiting game as to when the operation would take place...This was Friday afternoon...Saturday came and went...Sunday came and went, with tension and emotions high in every corner...Monday morning was promised, but nothing happened until I got a phonecall from Shane Monday lunch time, she had finally gone in for an operation after nearly 3 days of laying in a hospital bed, 'nil by mouth' everyday in case a vacancy came up in the operating theatre and on nothing but panadol forte! My poor Mum...you hear of terrible hospital ordeals all the time in the public system but when it happens to someone you know and love you realise just how stretched the staff and Dr.s are and how we are all in terrible strife if there's not enough Dr.s on if in an emergency. It's really sad and I believe the Dr.s and nurses deserve to be the highest paid people on the planet as it's our lives that they deal with day in and day out! Mum apparently had a great team of nurses looking after her but what a long wait to have for an operation! Anyway all went well and the last I heard she was sleeping the operation off. She is spending another night in there and will be out tomorrow as long as all is well, just in time to welcome Bailey and I on our arrival. It's perfect timing of our visit as I can totally look after her in every way and make sure that this bionic woman is able to rest and allow people around her to lend a helping hand.
I always like to find a positive out of any situation, so my positive note is that Mum may now realise that although her 25yr old mind is as active and capable of anything, her 71yr old, very healthy body for that matter needs to slow down and ask for help. It may unfortunately have been what she needed, so to speak, to stop doing so much for everybody else and let all of us now do things for her. She is so independent and stubborn that it will be hard for her to accept but at least this coming week she will have no choice as I will take charge and she has me and my two brothers to contend with as they both have the week off! I know it will make my brothers and I feel a lot better if we know that she can actually accept a lending hand now and then...
Take care Mummy. You are miraculous with your fantastic health and vitality, like no other woman your age, but be sensible and know your limits...easier said than done though I suppose!!! I have to admit that I totally admire everything about my Mum as she really is the stongest woman I have ever come across and I hope that someone is telling me to slow down when I get to that age!
On a happy note, Yazmin is still having the time of her life in Italy. She has now arrived at her host families house and has text me to say they are LOVELY! We couldn't be happier and relieved. One week down and three to go until our poppet comes home, back to reality and work, school etc...may this perfect experience remain a happy memory for you forever and make every second count our precious angel. We love you and miss you but are ever so proud of the wonderful and beautiful young woman you have become. It will be a very happy occasion to see your stunning face again and let your smile light up our house once more. In the meantime though, let Italy have a taste of your presence and make a mark on the beautiful place that it is.
So tomorrow Bailey and I fly down to NSW, different flights, to spend the week with Mum and my brothers. I never like leaving Ian and Ramses but I know that Mum really needs us now so I can go without feeling too bad. I will update this when we return, until then stay safe everyone and really look after those that you love as everyone is so precious so be thankful that you have wonderful people in your life....sorry I think this experience with Mum has made me even more of a sopp! Love to you all xxx

Yazmin's trip -Blog

I have put up a link on this page to take you straight to the Italy Blog I was talking about earlier if it interests you. Just scroll down when you get onto the page and the blog starts half way down the page. Cheers xx

Back Again...

I had just written a whole massive page on this and it got deleted or lost in cyberspace so I'm gutted!!!! I was on a role and now it's gone...so I have to explain myself all over again with less enthusiasm than I had 20minutes ago...bare with me...
I have restarted this blog as I was inspired by another blog that I am currently following. I was going to paste the link to this other blog and this is where my entry disappeared so if you're interested in the other blog that I will soon mention then you shall have to find it on your own otherwise I will lose the plot...again!
Basically, Yaz is currently touring around Italy with the school trip. After talking and planning this trip for the past 3 years, it is finally happening and she is having the time of her life by the sounds of it! It came around so fast that I don't think my heart was ready to take on this 'seperation anxiety' I am currently going through...oh I miss her so much and I'm sure that I'm speaking on behalf of Ian and Bailey also. What a great experience though for her. We are really proud and she has worked so hard to get there as well. She has certainly grown into a responsible, incredible, beautiful woman and I swear if anyone in Italy tried to claim her they obviously have no idea who they're dealing with!!!
Anyway...they are doing a daily blog about the trip hence what I was talking about before so I've been reading it everyday, just to get a glimpse of my daughter in some way, to know where she is and what's shes doing, to try and see what she's seeing through their excited and experienced words. What a fantastic opportunity these young adults are having, let's hope they really appreciate everything that they come across. I have no doubt what-so-ever that they will.
I don't know whether this entry will be a one-off or whether I will keep it going for a while. I must admit I really enjoy doing it, whether anyone reads it or not...it's a way of self expressing I guess, which as anyone who knows me, knows I like to be expressive and let people know how I am feeling. Life is too short to bottle things up or to not let someone know that you care. I now have more time on my hands so maybe this will be a weekly thing again. Life was pretty hectic when I finished off but it's slowed down quite a bit since then so fingers crossed,(as sore and worn down as they may be), that I'll make this commitment more often.
I have finished up working at the gym due to really bad wear and tear on my hands, joints etc...It was a really sad time for me to come to terms with the fact that my amazing career had to cease due to something out of my control. If I could have stayed in that career forever I would've been so happy. Unfortunately because it was so giving, it was debilitating on me and not only drained my body physically but it drained me emotionally as well. I guess because you give your all, day in, day out, every day, that when you finish, there's no quality left for you and those around you that truly deserve it! So now I am walking along my path, looking for the next turn or side street but there's none in sight at the moment. I'm sure that it will literally jump out at me when it does come up though, isn't it always the way? I must admit though that I'm glad it's taken a while for the next thing to come along as it's given me time to re-cuperate and it's also given me quality time with my family. I truly don't know how I would've held onto a job mentally over the past month with this 'Italy' build up. It consumed my thoughts 24/7 and has given me sleepless nights with excitement, worry etc...I have also had time spiritually to get to know myself again, which I feel so strongly about. Everyone needs to find themselves in whatever way is important to them and I have found myself again. Why is it so easy to get lost all of the time??? I guess if we didn't we would never grow or learn so I'm thankful for the stones I have tumbled over and the side streets that turned out to be dead-ends...it has brought me to today...still walking down that road but the direction isn't daunting, it's exciting I guess?!
I have just realised how much I have rambled on...there is probably no-one there anymore right? Sorry...what did you expect. It's been so long since I've expressed myself that my fingers are going a million miles an hour and I have so much buzz in my brain that I can't get the words out fast enough!!!
Anyway, Ian and Bailey are doing great. Ian is still plodding on with his work but is happy and healthy. We have an amazing marriage and I just adore him to bits. Bailey is doing very well at school and is getting an academic award at the end of the year due to his amazing efforts and achievements. I don't think I could beam any brighter than I am right now over what precious gifts I have. I am so thankful and can't believe I have been so truly blessed!
I guess I had better get ready for work as I am still doing a little bit of massaging on the side until that next door swings open for me. I'm excited about this blog again, it's like an ember has been sparked again and it makes me feel that little bit more alive! Sorry I'll stop now before you all throw stuff at your screens!!!

Time flys when you're having fun...

Wow, I can't believe it's nearly been a month since my last entry! How slack am I? I have no idea where I left off or even where to begin now...It's not that I have been exceptionally busy or anything it's just taking the time out to sit here and do this, as sometimes it can take me an hour to write this blog...there are just so many other things that constantly need doing! I don't even know if there are still any followers of this anymore due to my slackness...Oh well.
First of all I just wanted to say very BIG HAPPY 40TH to Tracy for a couple of weeks back. Glad to hear you had a great time and just want you to know that we love you heaps.
Now back to what's been going on here...well this is all going to be a bit muddled up I think but I'll try and get it all right...
Ian and I have decided to go on a major health kick, which at first the kids weren't too opposed to, until they got sick and tired of eating fruit and veges all day, every day. I got my hands on this book called, 'Slim for Life' by Jason Vale, and it has either brain washed me or really woken me up to what we are really doing to our bodies in a big way. If you haven't read it, please do as you will be totoally amazed at some of the stuff we are consuming which probably should be deemed illegal! Seriously! Ian and I have been wanting to do something drastic like this for a while and now that I have read this book and tell all of the facts to Ian, we are hooked! Yaz is telling me that I have totally ruined her enjoyment of food as I tell her about all of the parasites she is feeding when she is eating white bread etc...but it's important to know!...Anyway I won't go on about it, but do yourself and your bodies a favour and give this a read.
At the moment, all of us are in great health! No issues, no complaints...and I am touching wood as I type...
Yaz's football team made it into the semi's but unfortuantely lost their game on the weekend. It was close and had extra time etc...but it's now all over for this season for them. Bails has also finished Rugby and he still continues with his swimming every week though whereas Yaz hasn't got anything lined up yet...we are looking into getting her into a touch football comp but have to find one somewhere...Bails is however taking up Wrestling! Not the commercial type that he watches but the Olympic sport. We were told that we could go down to the place where they hold it in Brisbane for a trial, and we've been down twice now and it wasn't on for whatever reason! Third time lucky this weekend though hopefully. He has been so excited about starting too.
We have had to purchase a new washing machine as ours died. Ian was going to try and fix it but we decided it wasn't worth it. We got a lovely front loader and it came with a free iron worth $90 too! I was a very happy lady walking out of that shop after out purchase! That makes me sound sad doesn't it but I have seriously been really enjoying doing the washing and ironing since!...maybe I need a hobby...
Mum is moving in a few weeks, out of the house that she has lived in for 30 years! It's good and bad I guess. She seems O.K. about it though, I've certainly shed some tears for her and our family home and the pets buried in that back yard...She is moving into another home not too far from where she was, and it will be a more convenient location for her for the bus service and shops etc...and she will be nearly directly opposite some good friends of ours so that makes me feel O.K. as I know they will look out for her. I will go and help her move in a couple of weeks, just head down on my own for 2-3 days. I can't stay up here knowing what she's doing as I feel I should be there with her anyway...yep, still having trouble dealing with the fact that we don't have family around. I can't seem to get over it.
My heart goes out to my friend Robert, who had surgery last week to remove a brain tumour. I am praying for you and know that you will pull through this as you have so many people that love and care about you x
This weekend is Fathers Day and we are going to see Jimmy Barnes in concert in the evening with our good friends, Nicky and Sean. Ian, Sean and I are big fans, Nicky not at all unfortunately but I know she will enjoy it as the atmosphere alone will be incredible! Not sure what we're doing during the day, no doubt a big brekkie will be in order, maybe head down to the water with some friends or something? I'll post some photos of whatever we do anyway.
Shane and Julian come up next month so we are all looking forward to that. They will be up here for a week and a bit so I will get a little bit of my family fix...
So that's about it, well not really as I have missed out on so much but that's probably all the important stuff that I've remembered anyway. I know I will get off this and in a couple of hours think of something quite significant that I should've put on here...oh well.
Will definitely try again next week to tell you all about Ian's Father's Day. If you're reading this, thanks for hanging in there and being loyal xxxx

HUMAN AFTER ALL!

Well, I guess all hope was on little Bailey for being the only one in this family without any issues...well he has proven to be human after all, he ended up getting the flu! Not surprised really after all of us being ill with something and to be totally honest, everywhere you go at the moment you find people sneezing, coughing etc...it's a very unhealthy period for most of us I think?! He ended up having three days off school and just being so full of cold and he still hasn't lost his cough either. He did go back to school today however but it certainly took it out of him. He wasn't able to play rugby on the weekend either and won't be going swimming tonight. So that's all of us now that's had something. I am sniffling and just bearing a sore throat now so I may now be coming down with it...I hope not. I went into work this morning and had to wear a face mask for my clients who didn't mind, made me feel silly but if that's what it takes to prevent sharing my lurgy with other people and still being able to work, then so be it.
So not much has really happened as we've kind of been stuck indoors. I had to have time off work with Bailey during the week. Yaz played soccer on the weekend which Ian took her too as I stayed in with Bailey...oh I know something else that happened! Our washing machine is now not working so on both days of the weekend I had to go to the local Laudry Service to do my washing! Bailey came with me on the first day and we were so bored. We ended up walking to the shops and getting a drink and then waited for nearly an hour for the machines to finish. Ian and I are deciding whether to bite the bullet and get a new machine or he's thinking about fixing this one himself...my very handy man that he is!
What else is there?...Ian's still not back at football. He may return soon but I'm not sure yet. His leg is feeling quite good now though. I went back to the gym this week after having about three months off and I have been so sore all week, which just made me realise what muscles haven't been worked for soooo long! As soon as this sniffle goes I'll head back in there.
Yaz has a 'touch football' tournament this coming weekend in a place called, 'Toowoomba', which is about 2 hours west of Brisbane and at this time of the year, it is freezing!!! I will be taking her on Sunday as Ian will take Bailey to rugby so we have to leave at 6am to get there on time. It's an all day thing too so we are getting all of our warmest gear out to help cope with the windy town of Toowoomba. I took Bailey to it last year and we froze! At least I know what to expect this year.
I am just about to sign up for an introductory course into 'Oncology Massage'. This should be really interesting actually, full on... but interesting. It's not until October but I shall secure my place now as I don't want to miss out.
I can't think of anything else...this coming week will be interesting for one or two reasons, if I can talk about them next entry then I will...stay tuned! xxxx

Good News!

I'm touching wood as I type, but we have had some really good news! As any of my readers are now aware, we have had some health issues going on between all of us , bar Bailey. Well ,Yaz has had the all-clear with her hip. Apparently it is loose ligaments and her hip will stablise as she gets older and grows into it...sort of. She just has to keep exercising and she is NOT to pop it out as her 'party trick' on purpose. So no operation is necessary and we are all so relieved. I get myself so wound up and I'm silly because I google to try and find diagnosis's...which is probably the worst thing you can do as you get hit with the worst case scenarios of the conditions! You don't even want to know where I got to in my head with Yaz's hip...but let me tell you I had sleepless nights of worry. Ian tells me all the time not to google it as he knows how worked up I get about things but I guess I like to know everything so that when I am at the Dr.s, I'm all clued up on what they're telling me! I also had some good news with my Haemotologist. My white cell count had gone up, slightly but enough for the Dr. to delay a bone marrow test...phew!!! Apparently I just have something called Neutropenia which comes in three stages-mild, medium and severe...guess which one I have, the severe one of course! It will always come and go and nothing in particlar sets it off so I now have to have 3 monthly blood tests just to keep an eye on the levels as I dropped to quite a critical stage at one point where if I got the slightest infection I could have turned septic!...lovely!!! So at least I know what the deal is and there really isn't anything I can do to prevent it but I just have to be sensible in managing it and getting plenty of rest when I know it's low again, which I can always tell as I just get completely zapped of energy, get headaches and under my eyes turn black, even if I get more than enough sleep! So we're all really happy that we're all O.K. as such and no more worrying...for now anyway!
Ian's hamstring is slowly getting better. He's been very smart and hasn't even tried to have a run around on it. I will try and break some of the scar tissue down now as it's not as painful anymore and get him on the mend as best as can be.
We were really sorry to hear about Dad's incident and pray for a speedy recovery and hope that you rest as much as possible and take things a bit easy! We're thinking of you and really believe that an Aussie holiday will make you all better! ;)
Bailey is in the middle of a dilemma...what to play for a summer sport. He doesn't want to do cricket anymore and we have thrown so many ideas at him and he's just not that interested! He is slightly keen on either tennis or touch football so we will try and get him into one of those. He will also be going back to the kids gym classes next week, which is only once a week and he will also be continuing swimming once a week too. It probably sounds like we're pushing him into doing something but we just want our children to give everything a go so that they know for themselves what they like and don't like. Also his metabolism is a little slower than normal and so he needs to burn things off quicker. Maybe I'm just being paranoid about Australia being the leaders of childhood obesity but we just want our kids to be as healthy and active as can be...for their own benefits. Yaz will try and get into touch footy for summer too and wants to pursue swimming again, which I'm really happy about as she is a fantastic little swimmer but we never pushed her into doing it, she had to want to and now she does. She has given just about everything a go and now knows what she likes and what she's good at.
I have also started back at the gym after having about 3 months off. I did my first workout today and felt physically ill after. It will take me a while I think to get to any decent level again, but I'm not going to push it as I know it's not worth it.
I still haven't got photos of Yaz's new haircut, I'll try again this week.
Yaz had her athletics carnival at school and did exceptionally well in it, despite having the flu! She was off for three days and wasn't right when she had to compete but she didn't want to miss out! She came first in high jump, triple jump and long jump....all with an unstable hip too! She's quite miraculous really!
Bailey had a 'Learning Celebration' at school last Friday. It was a little showcase of the work they've done this year so far and they put together a presentation. He did a speech on why Australia is the Lucky Country and I was very proud of him as he spoke clearly and had memorised almost all of it so had great eye contact with the audience. I'm just so proud of both of my children. They put in so much effort into everything and both really want to achieve high!
I think that's about all of the important stuff. We just want Dad to know that we were concerned and again, hope that you're taking it easy. Let's see if next weeks can be a 'drama-free' entry...it's certainly been a while since I've had one of those!
Wishing all of you good health and happiness xxx