Goodbye

Yesterday we had to say goodbye to a much loved member of our family. She has only been with us for three years but she is such a part of our lives.
If the kids are outside you will find Maggie trailing along behind - she loved being near people and adored the kids. She made it to the amazing age of 17 and we had her with us for longer than we had first hoped for. It doesn't make it any easier to say goodbye though. We will all miss her terribly and there have been plenty of tears here this weekend (from all of us)

Love you Miss Maggie May

Oh NO!

Just to add to the dull life we have around here I was out South Nowra yesterday when a woman walked into the shop we were in to let us know she had just run into the side of our car as she was pulling into the parking lot!
From near the boot along the back panel and along the back door is now a BBBIIIIGGG dint, and scratch marks.
So Tony ducked out this morning to get quotes etc to get it fixed. Oh well, at least it is still drivable (oh and Cass - it is on the other side to bike mans dint!)

Beginnings and endings

Well this week has been another big one. Last week I worked Mon, Tues, Wed so I could head off to Cowra on Thursday with Mum and John. Mark flew in from Brisbane and we all happened to arrive at the motel within about 20 minutes of each other! Then we headed over to Dave's to catch up and spend some time together. Mick and auntie Di were there too so we had our own family reunion.

Friday morning we got up and headed to the church for Uncle Les' funeral. The service was lovely - David and Michael got up to speak and actually got through everything (eventually) and then Mum got up to recall some of the moments she had growing up with Les. THEN I had to get up after all that and do the bible reading - not an easy job! We headed out to the War Cemetery at Cowra for the burial and then back to the church for lunch. I was so glad the boys had been able to speak and get through it - it wasn't easy and Mick had to stop and ask us "to bear with him" but those boys did such a great job. And they don't scrub up too badly either!..... Dave (Uncle Les' oldest son), Mark (my brother), Rod (Mick's mate for years and pseudo member of family) and Michael (Les' youngest son and my old partner in crime)

Then we went out to the club for dinner - here is a photo of Mick and Dave with Mum

And (some of) the kids. Not all of the kids came to the funeral.... and yes Henry's hair is blue (it was originally orange). Rylee (on the right) is Mick's daughter and almost exactly the same age as Kyle... hehe I won by one day!

We also got to meet David's girlfriend Tanya who is just lovely. You know how sometimes you can just click with a person - well she fitted in with us so well and we have already arranged a catch up at Christmas.

And here is what is left of the Cox/Reynolds adults here in Australia. Kind of scary that this is all thats left. Oh... and because it was Mick's 40th birthday last week I am officially the only young, irresponsible left. (Although the boys did argue they may not be young but they could always be irresponsible).

We got home from Cowra late Saturday feeling exhausted and washed out etc etc.

Then Sunday was a celebration of soon to be new life with Mone's baby shower for her little girl Olivia who is due on the 3rd of Sept. It was a great day - nice and casual, lots of laughs, chats, the kids had a great time playing and we had very yummy lunch. What more could you need?

Speed dating......

Hehe thought the title might get your attention. I went to parent/teacher interviews at Kyle's school last night. Now I have been to many P/T interviews over the years - but never a high school one before and oh what an experience.

Firstly you must log in online and tick the boxes of the teachers you want to see and then it gives you a schedule of appointments which you print off and bring with you - each in 10 minute increments.

You walk into the hall and all the teachers are seated at desks spread out in a circle around the outside of the room facing inwards. The parents walk into a group of chairs laid out in a square facing outwards... (I was tempted to call out "Musical Chairs" and start skipping around but didn't think that would go down well)

At your alloted time (mine started at 5:00pm as I finished work at 4:30) you head over to the first name on your list then you sit down and have your interview (which went well by the way) then in exactly 10 minutes a bell rings and you get up and move onto the next teacher on your list until the bell rings again etc, etc.

Felt like I should be rating each person for future reference..... gave me a great experience of speed dating (hhmmmm should I be upset that no-one wanted to see me again?)

What a week

Well this week has been one of ups and downs - sounds like life as usual around here!
Sometimes you think you just cannot take any more knocks but then they just keep coming. When the phone rings at 10 o'clock at night you know it can't be good news - and then you realise it is your mum on the phone and you KNOW it is bad news. Mum's brother Les passed away and was found in his home by his son. Les and Mum have always had a really close relationship - they came out from England when they were teenagers and only had each other and their parents in a strange new country. He will be very sorely missed by us all.
This pic is of Uncle Les with his Grandson Henry and son David. Then the next day we headed up to Wollongong hoping for good news from the specialist but unfortunately the drugs they were trialling have not worked so now it is on to the next trial. Praying that this one will work!

We have also had a house full of flu-ey people with Tony having a shocking dose of flu and me just the headaches and runny nose/sore throat and then Tasha decided to join us as well.

However there has been some highlights to this week and some fun social times:
On saturday we headed up to the Kings for lunch and some time just hanging out with the King family. I love this family - they always make us feel welcome and loved. Tasha and Annie played finger puppets and all sorts of games with the boys playing Wii games and even all the kids heading outside for some cricket and soccer (ooops sorry for the mud on the carpet Cass - hope it came out okay)

OH and of course we had a game of Flippin Frogs.

Then saturday night I got a call inviting me out to dinner. It was a really good night. We went to Wing and a Pear and had a 3 course meal for $30 and the food was oh sooooooo yummy. Will definately have to do it again - I miss our times together and our chats. MWAH.

Worked Mon, Tues, Wed - but still had time for some catching up. Was able to meet Jane for lunch on Tuesday and it was so just what I needed with all the upheaval of this week trying to organise getting us to Uncle Les' funeral.

So we head off to Cowra tomorrow - Mark is flying in and will meet us there. Mum, John and I are travelling over together and heading home on Saturday. It is really sad that it takes a funeral to get us all (cousins etc) together.

A girl and her dad

Yes you guessed it - spent some more time in my craft room! Some days (okay, okay lots of them lately) I just find it difficult being around others and just wish I could sit on the lounge and relax but that is not possible around here so I tend to shut myself in my craft room as I just don't want to talk. The upside of this is that I am getting some scrapping done.

These pics were taken 3 1/2 years ago and I have been waiting to scrap them. Tash and her dad have such a great relationship and she is such a daddys girl. Another thing I have had lying around waiting to be used is these chipboard swirls. They are so gorgeous and I knew this was just the project I wanted to use them on.

Oh and I got to use up some of my new alpha stickers (thanks Cass- they have made me and my family smile, laugh, ooh and aahh!) with the phrase "any man can be a father - it takes a special man to be a daddy"

A Berry good weekend

Wow - time to take a step back and try and find time to just enjoy life. Last weekend we had a nice quiet one planned so after having a rough night Friday night we decided to get out in the fresh air. Saturday morning we headed over to have morning tea with Mum and John to wish John a happy 85th birthay. The kids had a ball playing out the front (my girl is so camera shy hey!) I know Kyle's face is all screwed up in this pic but I love this photo anyway.

Mum has her new garden going well. They are working on a vegie garden at the moment but the major gardens are established. Had to share this gorgeous camelia (I think - my knowledge of flowers is very limited) from Mum's garden. Aren't the colours just amazing!

We then headed up to Gerringong and had a wander around and Tasha felt she had found her place in life at Natural Necessity. Hmmm pity she doesn't have the wallet to go along with it.

Sunday we headed back over to Berry to wander the Berry Markets. We used to do the market thing regularly but haven't been for a while. Apparently we didnt get the memo that said 1) you have to take your dog with you to the markets and 2) don't forget to take out a bank loan before you go.

Scrapping

One good thing about all the hibernating I have been doing in my craft room lately is that I have been getting some scrapping done. Admittedly it is nothing flashy and all very basic but I have scrapped!
This first LO was using a pic taken of Tony sitting on the beach at Vincentia. The tag above the photo comes out with some journalling I wrote for him. The Life is Good rub on is one I bought at a craft show in Melbourne. Kyle and his cousin Mark. I have been wanting to do this LO for ages. Just to get the story down. Kyle and Mark had an amazing relationship and when Kyle was younger he totally hero worshipped his cousin and he was the only one who was allowed to call him by a nickname.

And what LO of Gail would be complete without Basic Grey papers and lots (and I mean lots) of fussy cutting - and of course I had to use Romani - the first papers she fell in love with! I was going to call this Lady in Waiting but the look on her face doesn't seem to patient so I thought I'd better not!

7 years

Wow... is it really 7 years since we got THAT call and raced over to Karinya to say our final goodbyes to Dad.
I guess with things the way they are at the moment it all seems so much more real and the loss really hit hard this year. My dad was a tall man, to others he was gruff, non-tolerant and set in his ways. To me:
* He was the man who ran along beside my bike over and over until I had the confidence to take off by myself
* He was the gentle man who would sit and share tea parties with me and my dolls
* He would read to me at night and shared a love of stories with me

*He was so proud of the fact that I was the only girl in his family for generations (and with a big brother and 2 older male cousins the only girl in my generation)...... even if he didn't believe the hospital when they told him I was coming.......okay so maybe I did make my entrance slightly early! * He would always play "just one more game dad".

* He taught me to drive - but first he taught me to change a tire and check the oil before I got behind the wheel

* He was so excited at becoming a grandparent and totally spoilt my kids rotten. He was the proudest Pop around and loved to introduce Kyle and Tash to anyone who would listen ~L~

He was my rock. He was not always easy to get on with but then who of us is? He was always there. Sitting in HIS chair in the corner of the lounge room - watching sport on TV and fiddling with his coins or his stamp collection. I had some of the deepest conversations with dad sitting at his feet whilst he had his coins or stamps spread out on the table in front of him and we would chat and sort for hours. If any of you have seen my little Paseo driving around you will see my number plates "CS1937" dad's plates - proudly displayed on each car they owned and now on my car.

Love you Dad.

Flying High

Last weekend Tony, Kyle and I headed out to the Fleet Air Arm Museum at the local Navy Base. We had promised Kyle a trip out there for a long time and decided on the spur of the moment to drive out there.

He had a blast! Not only does he love all things history based but he was excited to see the Seakings and BlackHawks his school sports teams are named after....... oh and of course lots of guns, torpedoes and other weapons of war!

We spent a lot of time wandering around photo galleries, looking at all manner of planes and helicopters and learning more about our local base and the armed forces.
And Kyle got to go in the helicopter simulator which he LOVED. Although I have said before after seeing his driving skills I wouldn't be getting in a car with him - watching the way his helicopter was spinning out of control I probably won't be flying with him either!

Chez Tash

I found these pics and just had to share. I have two great kids and they have been so supportive and considerate lately. As I mentioned in a previous post I had a particularly shocking day with doctors visits etc and basically I came home - went into my bedroom - and just sat in there - just didn't want to deal with people. Tasha had mentioned cooking dinner one night and had made sure we had all the ingredients.
Anyway this Friday she came into my room - gave me a big hug and told me I was not to come out until she called me. Then she went and cooked dinner all by herself (well she got Tony to help her drain the pasta) and this is the amazing meal she came up with:

Pasta Bolognaise for herself, Tony and Kyle And nachos for me with freshly made guacamole. What better comfort food could she come up with for me!

Oh and thats not all........... she then followed it up with these amazing fruit kebabs - again all cut up etc by herself.

This is another pic I had to include. Tash is rapidly understanding my world...... with Tegan now in another state she realises why I cherish phone calls, emails and text messages. I would be completely lost without them. Ah technology - it's no substitute for the real thing but it does make it slightly easier dealing with the distance. (Counting down the days till November sweetie!)

School holidays

Wow - I am sure there were school holidays in there somewhere but they have disappeared!
Kyle's holidays started a week before Tasha's (we pay to send him to private school and he gets two extra weeks of holidays each year - go figure!) and we planned to have a mother/son day. Kyle decided he wanted to do Bomaderry Creek walk but as I had been unwell I suggested we do the shorter walk to the weir rather than the long walk........ Good plan...... except we went the wrong way and ended up on the 3 hour creek walk! We actually had a great time - he headed off on "A quest for adventure"... we ducked from imaginary ambushes and travelled through portals etc, etc.
The other problem was when we faced a sign telling us that Mossy Gully Bridge was closed due to flood damage... the problem was that this sign was at a T intersection with no indication of which way that was. So we had a quick discussion and headed off along the path on the left. Well for future reference once you walk for ages that way you come to the closed bridge and then you turn around and walk back again ~L~. I came back exhausted and feeling like I had been run over by a train but we had a great time (next time I am feeling so sick I will make sure I read the map properly!) Unfortunately due to circumstances that couldn't be avoided I ended up working nearly every day of the holidays but we did head off one weekend for a drive and stopped at Werri Beach for some takeaway lunch. The fish and chips was lovely and the kids couldn't figure out why I was so excited that the food came wrapped in newspaper! TRADITIONAL FISH AND CHIPS!
The weather was a bit chilly but we went for a wander down over the rocks and checked out the rock pools and beach.

The other really cool thing we did this holidays was go to see Aladdin at the Nowra Players Theatre. All I can say is WOW - there is some amazing young talent in this town. This was a youth production so all but 3 of the parts were under 18. We knew Bella who played the lead role of Princess So Shi and I know I am biased but that girl so so talented. Not only does she speak clearly, and sing beautifully but what a professional performer. In the middle of major personal upheavals she continued to perform shows with no sign to the audience of the turmoil and heartbreak going on behind the scenes. Well done Bella - Papa would have been so proud of you.

We also found a nest tucked away on top of the cupboard in our shed with an egg sitting in it. Tasha has loved the fact that she can see it from her bedroom and watch the mumma pigeon sitting on the egg.

Jhorjie came down and spent a day or two with us over the holidays as well and it has been lovely to spend time with her (although she is growing up waaayyyyy too quickly)

In the last week of the holidays I had a day off and Tasha and I headed off to Shellharbour for a girls day. Shopping, chatting, checking out shops, lunch out and then we headed to the Kings for afternoon tea. It was so what we both needed after the last couple of weeks. We had yummy chocolate cakes and donut holes. Tasha, Callum and Annie played Kerplunk before we all (yes Cass and I too) sat down to play Flippin Frogs! It was lots of fun, lots of laughs and just some light hearted time.

Well the holidays are over - both kids go back to school tomorrow. Kyle on monday, Tasha on tuesday. There are more difficulties looming on the horizon after some majorly bad news from the specialist on Friday so it looks like life will be very busy with lots of trips to Wollongong for treatment and doctors visits. Hopefully blognesia can be avoided but at the moment really am just working from day to day.

Blognesia

Blognesia:

A common disease where blog owners forget to update; leaving their readers with nothing to do, particularly on slow work days. (paraphrased)

Ooops sorry - life has been kind of mad. I do have lots to update - will try and get it done tonight.

What a week...

Yes, yes I know I am a bit slack with my update but I am getting there now......

We have had a fortnight of ups and downs...full of doctors visits, lunch with Cass and Annie, a daytrip to Sydney with Cass and Jane to check out the craft show...(oh and the Lindt cafe *insert blushing face here*)... and over the past fortnight we have had either Tegan at our house or Tasha at the Baldwins. We were given a reprieve of an extra week before they left and in the interim the girls have barely parted from each other. I think out of 11 nights they had 2 apart - we even allowed sleepovers on school nights (after all Tegan is an honorary Lucas now - even to the point where Tony and I get called Mum and Dad). It has been heartbreaking to see them leave. To see the girls distraught and doing the whole "Goodbye".."Goodbye".. "Goodbye".. "Goodbye".. etc. etc. as we drove down the street one afternoon. Tasha stayed with them on their last night here and I went over and joined them for brekky before they headed off. It was sad for us as well - as I said Tegan is often referred to as our second daughter and they will be missed. I am so glad for Facebook and MSN to keep us in touch.

In the middle of all this Tasha had her dance competition (and yes Tegan came along and cheered her on!). the studio comp is basically a chance for the girls to get up in front of an adjudicator and show what they have been learning without the strictness and pressure of exams (basically a practice run for exams next term) and a chance to get dressed up and dance!

Tasha did both Jazz and Hip Hip and did both her dances with her friend Emily who is in her classes. I love these photos I took of Tash whilst she was waiting to dance. Not only did the teased hair and head bands bring back vicious flashbacks of the 80's but I can so see a page with these pics title "This girl has attitude!" She danced so well and got Highly Commended in both dance styles.

Think thats all our news. No doctors visits for 2 weeks so its just a case of wait and see. Thoughts have been turned towards Melbourne so much lately and it looks like a catch up has been organised (can you hear the squeals?). Tony's friend Ken is in town for a couple of days with his work so we will be catching up with him too.

Oh and Cass.... I am totally wearing out my Wicked soundtrack. Thinking of you everyday whilst listening to it!

Yes......

I did sit and scrap a page just for me. It is a bit eclectic, lets see there is Jillibean Soup, Kaiser, Making Memories, Buzz and Bloom and Bella. This page is just for me - it wraps up all my feelings from this week. These girls have shared some of my best times with me and we have had some amazing, mad times but when the chips are down and life gets hard they are my support. Their help, support and love is awesome and something I cherish so deeply.

Love you girls

MWAH
xxxxxxxxx

Girls Weekend

This weekend was a bittersweet one for Tasha. Saturday night we had Tegan here and then Sunday night Tasha went to the Baldwins. The girls have been cramming so much into this weekend. They wanted to do all their favourite things as this is the last weekend they have together before Tegans family move up to Queensland. Funnily enough most of their fav things revolve around water.

It is the middle of winter and we have had some very cold weather but not only did they wash the car but then decided they wanted to go to the pool! Madness! Yes okay it was Bay and Basin so it was heated but still......

They had a ball - it was so good to see the smiles on their faces as they laughed and played.

A week of soccer

Wow with the mad week we have had you would think that not much else would fit, right? WRONG! This week has definately been soccer week in our family.
Starting with Tasha - Tash made the school rep soccer team which she was very excited about. they have been training hard and had their first game on Monday vs Shoalhaven Heads. They had a great game! The first half they played soooo well but just could not get the ball in the net. But they made up for that in the second half and won the game 3 -0!

Then monday night we headed out in the cold night to South Nowra for a make up game for Kyle as their game last week got rained out! Unfortunately they were unsuccessful but Kyle had a great game.

Wednesday night we headed out to Huskisson for another soccer game for Kyle. Talk about chilly! Husky is always cold but at 7 o'clock at night in the middle of winter it is freezing. You should have seen us (I forgot to take a pic) we had jumpers, warm jackets, scraves, gloves and hot chocolate!

Shoalhaven United were again unsuccessful.... they always have a blinder second half and in both games this week the second half score was 0-0 its just the goals they let in the first half that get them! Now we just need to figure out how to get them to play that well all game.

Then Friday is was Tashas turn again and they had a very exciting match against Callala. Illaroo ran rings around them but just couldnt score. Score was 0 -0 at full time so they went into overtime. Still 0-0 so it went into penalty shoot out which is a really bad way to win or lose a game but we came out victors 2 -0!

And now the World Cup is starting!

Soccer anyone??