Magic Words

At the end of May, Leilani came home with a pile of certificates - she had learnt all her magic words - including the first 100 and the next 100!!!!!! Usually they work on a specific colour at a time - starting with the 12 Golden Words, but she skipped through all of that and was tested on all 200 because she was reading so well. 

It was very exciting and Leilani was very proud to show us and tell us all about it! I will add a photo of her with all her certificates soon (when I take one!) 

She has been reading for quite a while now, she started in Kindergarten and picked it up really quickly. She can read most words and has a good go at sounding out the ones she has never seen before. It's a great help when she reads to Emily! She loves it!

May - Started Cooking Again!

It felt really good to start cooking again, the tablets are working great and I nearly feel normal again. It was nice to finally be able to have a play around with my Thermomix, which arrived a few days after the morning sickness began - so I had hardly touched it. 

Mick used it a fair bit so it wasn't left unused, but it was hard to even answer his questions about it because just thinking about food there for a while was a bit much!

 I tried out a few of the recipes in the Everyday Cookbook that comes with it and then started adapting my own recipes. This was a chicken curry pie and it was beautiful!!!! I pretty much just put all of the ingredients in - including the raw chicken, and 20 minutes later it was ready to go in the oven with the pastry!  

March & April

March and April were both tough months for us. I was stuck on the couch with terrible morning sickness for a lot of the time and Michael was beginning to feel the pressure of his upcoming exam.

At the beginning of March, Mick spent a week in Brisbane at an exam prep course and then took a few weeks off as annual leave so that he could concentrate on his study and prepare for his exam. Even though he was trying to study as much as possible it was a great help as he was able to get the kids ready in the mornings and get tea organised of an evening, which he wouldn't have been able to do if he was working as he usually leaves by 7am and doesn't get home until after 8pm if he stays back with his study group.  

The house was a mess most of the time and I got so sick of watching day time TV. Mum and Elle were great helps and the kids were really understanding as well. They never really complained and seemed to understand that I couldn't do much. I was so thankful when I went to my first appointment with the obstetrician and he gave me a prescription for some anti-nausea tablets. Even though they were really expensive they worked really well and I was able to start eating again. I would still feel quite unwell at times but compared to how I felt before I was on the tablets, it was great. 

The kids didn't get out much, but Mick took them to the park several times while he was on annual leave  which they loved!!!!!

They are such good girls and have been so caring and thoughtful towards me, especially while I have been sick. I got several cards a day saying 'Get well mum' 'I love you mum' and they always cheered me up!

On the 24th March Mick headed to Melbourne for the first part of his final exam. I had booked to go over with him but had to cancel because I was so unwell. 

It was a stressful and pretty full on couple of days for him. He had a 3 hour written exam in the morning  and another 3 hour written exam in the afternoon on the Friday and then had to go to a hospital the next day for a couple of hours of Medical Vivas - which is an oral examination. 

He was glad when it was over and then just had to wait (about 5 weeks) to find out if he was invited to sit the next part of the exam at the end of May.  

He received a letter in the mail at the end of April inviting him back to Melbourne to sit the second and final part of the exam, so we were all pretty happy about that! When we finally found out the dates of the exam we booked more flights back to melbourne and hoped I would make it this time! I was feeling a lot better and pretty confident that my tablets would help me get there!!!!!

Jumping

Easter Eggs Everywhere

We had a lovely little Easter getaway this year. We headed up to Launceston and stayed with Grandma and Poppa for a couple of nights. The girls Easter Egg collection started on Good Friday when we arrived, with Eggs hidden in Grandma and Poppa's garden.  It was a nice day and after the drive up we just relaxed for the afternoon and the kids played. 

I actually wasn't feeling very well and had a bad head cold on top of everything else so my weekend was very calm! I didn't do much but was really grateful to be able to relax and watch the kids enjoy themselves. 

On Saturday we joined some of the Woolley family on a trip to the Launceston Museum to see the Dinosaurs. It was a great museum and very interactive with lots of things for the kids to play with. It was nice to be able to spend some time with some of the Woolley Mammoths who were up for the weekend staying at Grindelwald. 

We then took the kids to the Aquatic centre with Mel & Adam, Ben & Claire and Kayla while some of the 'grown ups' did some garden walks. I didn't swim because I was still unwell but the kids had a fantastic time and it was fun to watch their confidence grow with the spilling bucket (which would throw water out every few minutes and make a huge splash!) They had a lovely time swimming with some of their cousins. 

On Saturday night we headed up to Matt and Kristy's new house (which we hadn't seen yet) for Pizza.

It was yummo and really nice to see Gus and Olivia again. Emily fell in love with Kristy's cat and can't wait to get one of her own!!!! Leilani still isn't real keen on any kind of animal - so Em is waiting a few years until Lani is 'brave enough!'

It was a lovely drive to their house, and I really enjoyed seeing a small part of Tasmania that I hadn't seen before. Some lovely views and it was really nice to be out in the country again. I had actually forgotten how dark it gets at night in the country with no city lights around! The stars are amazing!!!!! I thought I would never forget what it was like to live in the country but I think perhaps I have! 

Sunday morning the girls woke up very excited to a special Easter Egg trail that Easter Bunny had left. They were very happy and so fun to watch because they made sure each other was getting the right amount of eggs each - in a really sweet and kind way! Em even offered her big Bunny to us because she had so many!

Mick took the girls off to church in the morning and then we went and visited Grandma and Grandad and the Woolley Cousins at Grindelwald where we went for a nice walk and had a bit of a play. It was all quite relaxing really and just what we needed.

We travelled back home Sunday afternoon because Mick had to go back to work on Easter Monday. The girls and I spend Monday at home and then we headed down to Uncle Scott and Aunty Katrinas for a Carmichael Easter Tea, which was also really nice. The kids were excited to see each other and tell what they had been up too! We also enjoyed some evening performances which made me realise how grown up all the kiddies are becoming!!! 

Drip... Drip... Drip...

 At the beginning of April, Mick and I spent a few days sleeping in the lounge room on our futon mattress because we had a leak in our roof - right over our bed. 

The rain was coming down from all angles and we had a few other leaks as well so there were buckets everywhere! It was so heavy that it was also coming down the girls fireplace in their room. All a bit of a drama really but we survived!!! 

We ended up sleeping in the lounge room for a few extra nights because I couldn't move the futon mattress by myself (those things are really heavy and awkward) and Mick was getting home really late and by that time we couldn't be bothered - so 2 nights turned into about 5! 

When we finally did get the mattress moved back it only made it to the stairs before 2 little girls jumped on it and set up camp!!!! We left it here for a few hours and the girls had a lovely time!!!!

Ezra's Baptism

On the 30th March Ezra turned 8 and invited us to his Baptism. It was a special day for Ezra and we were happy to share it with him. After the baptism we celebrated with some yummy food and a birthday cake, took a few photos and then headed over to Paul and Rachaels with a few hours. 

Leilani Turns 6

A week after Emily's birthday we celebrated Leilani's! She was also very excited and glad the day finally arrived! She woke up and opened a few presents and then headed off to school with some cupcakes to share with her class at recess! 

We decided Emily would have a party this year and Leilani would have one next year - the girls were both happy with that and even though Lani didn't get to have a party she still had a special day and was very spoilt!

We headed out for tea at Salamanca Inn on her birthday with most of the Carmichael's and she really liked that. The meal was delicious and I think we all want to go back! Leilani is still impressed at how the waiter knew it was her birthday - there was a candle in her chocolate sundae dessert!

On Sunday we had family tea at the Woolleys house and some of the cousins came to help celebrate Lani's birthday with a Pinata Cake!  I didn't get many photos of Leilani breaking the cake with the hammer but we have it on video!!  

If you ever make this cake - I suggest you keep it in the fridge so it stays hard and 'cracks' when the hammer hits it! It still worked well and Lani loved using the hammer but because the chocolate had softened I don't think it cracked at well as it could have! I didn't even get a photo of all the 'goodies' inside!! Too much happening!! 

Emily's 4th Birthday

Emily couldn't wait to turn 4! She counted down the days and was so excited when she finally woke up and it was her birthday!!!! We headed to the Train Park with family and a few friends for a celebration. The kids were having a lovely time playing until it started raining..... and wouldn't stop! 

Even though we got washed out, Em had a great day and we managed to have a treasure hunt, open the presents and cut the cake 'just in time.' Thanks everyone for sharing Em's special day with her!