New Start....

Well, it's official!! As of 10 September 2010 I will be staying home with Alexander. No more work...no more day care....just me and little man!! How do I feel? Odd....Funny too, Alex was due 10/9/09..... see the irony?!

Anyway, I feel odd because I have always thought I would be a stay at home mum, but when Alex was 4 and a half months I returned to work and did between three and four days each week. I complained, I hated day care, but I did it and I did it for the family. Now I like day care, don't mind working (never have really, as it keeps my mind moving along) but I am excited that my wish will come true.....and I will be doing the odd shift here and there...afterall that's a good thing about the medical profession- I need to keep my hand in and remain current with my practice and I can do shifts here and there....

So it is with excitement really that I look forward to our new life!!

That's it for now as I am exhausted after a long day at work....oh and just for the record...Alex was in bed at 7.15pm, no fuss, straight to sleep....WHAT A LITTLE CHAMP!!!! xx

Milk....slow and steady

Alex has been a formula baby (long story-short, I had no milk supply) so since he is inching closer to being a one year old (OMG!!!) I am weaning him off formula and onto cows milk....

So here is a pic of what I thought would be his last can of formula and his first bottle of cows milk....hmmm nope...Alex seems to have other ideas!! He enjoyed the cows milk on Sunday, but since then has simply thrown the bottle at me.....oh dear...could be a battle for a few more days....but I know we will get there, we do with everything, after all slow and steady wins the race!

Tuesday with Talia!

This morning, we enjoyed a lazy morning. Alexander slept until 6.40am!! Then he enjoyed a lovely warm milk and we played upstairs for awhile. Eventually I pulled myself from under the doona and had a shower. Next was breakfast which was a debacle as Alex now likes to side swipe the spoon as it comes towards him!!

We met Susan and Talia at BB's for a coffee and muffin (see pic below).

We then enjoyed a quiet afternoon at Nonna's and then here at home. I am now preparing for day care tomorrow and doing some household chores!!

Alex now enjoys clapping his hands when we sing the song....here he is here.

Enjoy your afternoon!!

Thankful Monday

What am I thankful for today?!

...... The weekend with my boys .....

I have some things to work out this week with work and day care.... will keep you posted!

I'm back!

I'm back!!

Last week was a little different around the Maston home. I was sick (grrrrr), Warren was away for work (week 1) and Alex was being tested on a new routine....didn't really work because it came to bed time every night and I had a thumping headache and sadly gave into him each time, however, he did get to bed earlier than anticipated!!!

Work and day care, that went well actually. I had no dramas. I stayed back Friday afternoon at work as I thought I would because work was chaotic but I still got to daycare on time...the only sad thing was that I dropped little man off at 7am Friday and he was the first one there, and I collected him late Friday afternoon and he was the last to be collected! ;-( I felt so bad for him!!!

Anyway, then we headed for an impromptu dinner at my parents house, albeit a quick dinner it was good to be fed after a week of sandwiches at dinner time....

Late Friday night, actually early Saturday morning, Warren came home (flight delayed). YEAH!!

Saturday we did our thing and went and voted for the next PM and government.... we walked there, it was a short lovely walk, and then waited in line for half an hour to cast our vote. Voting done and we headed across town to a home auction. The house sold, a little lower than we all thought it would, now we can watch it be redesigned over the coming months.

My parents invited us to lunch at Del Ugo, New Farm so we all headed there and enjoyed some yummy Italian cuisine. We all enjoyed chatting about our past week and life in general.

Saturday evening, sadly I was glued to the tv re the election result....I actually find it interesting and have an interest in politics. We also managed to watch SALT the new Angelina Jolie movie, which was actually much better than I expected!

Sunday, we did the usual grocery shopping and cleaned the family home. We enjoyed some family time and Sushi for lunch, followed by watching DATE NIGHT - which was lighthearted viewing. We enjoyed our weekend together and so now it's back to work, daycare and other weekly chores....

Wishful Tuesday

Right now, I wish I was here....at the Colloseum!! How perfect would that be? Instead of doing the weekly work, day care, dinners, washing.....

Good news is, we will be in 4 months time!!

It's good to dream, it's healthy and positive.

Buona Notte! (Good night)

Change to the routine perhaps?

These last few days or weeks have been hard, Alex has been proving difficult to get to sleep. It's really his only issue that needs to be sorted! But, it needs to be sorted ASAP!! It sounds selfish, but I need time at night to myself to get organised for the next day.

Little man is about to have a change to his routine and here's hoping all goes smoothly!!

At the moment, he is tending to sleep late in the afternoons, after day care in the car home or just any late afternoon really which of course means that we don't get him to sleep until mmmm lets say 8.30pm.....or 9.15pm as last night and the night before and at that point he is overtired....cranky and hard to get to sleep.

So....the plan is earlier morning sleep....he is currently asleep and has been since 7.30am (it's now 8.30am). To get him to have an earlier afternoon sleep, lets say at 1pm- 3pm and then in bed at 7pm.... ??!!

My other plan of attack over next week or so is to introduce cows milk and wean off formula!! Yay!! But, wow my little man is growing up so quickly!! Then after that....poor little man, in about a month needs to come off a bottle and onto a cup.....I think someone's life is about to change direction??! Here's hoping we all come through the other side with big smiles on our faces!! Day one, so far so good....positive attitude is all that is needed....I will keep you posted!

A few of my favourite things!

I am looking for a new diary for 2011 and have found this cute one....at Kikki K. I LOVE that shop!!! I could just about buy one of everything!!! I have always loved stationery and pens....it used to be a bit of a habit really...(secret ssshhh). Anyway, my niece Emma celebrated her 9th birthday recently and I made my way into kikki k for part of her gift...hope she liked the selection we sent her as much as I did!!

What else do I absolutely love?!
* handbags (mentioned this before - oroton ones to be exact, they are so me)

* chocolate (I mean who doesn't!??)

* travelling

* great food

* cups of endless tea (simply tea at the moment....oh goodness....now I want one)

* my family

* my friends

* Warren and Alexander

What do you love?

We love Saturdays

This morning, I was given a sleep in! Alright, so it was only until 7am but it was perfect!! Warren got Alex up and gave him his morning bottle and then we did a team effort for breakfast.

We headed to Woolworths early this morning which was good as there was no one else there and we sailed through in no time!!

Then we headed to collect a birthday present, grab some sushi for lunch and headed to the park.

We enjoyed watching all the families around us and savoured some family time. Alex is always full of smiles but today he was non stop smiling, which makes a perfect Saturday even more perfect!

Our beautiful boy and some pics to share from today's trip to the park


After lunch we headed to Anaconda to get some thermals for Alexander for our big Italy and Hong Kong trip.

Uncle Adam and Auntie Bron came to visit this afternoon to show us Alexander's birthday cake plan (Auntie Bron is making the cake). Alex is a little overtired at the moment and will not give into sleep....

What am I thankful for today?!

I am thankful for such a beautiful family, extended and immediate.

I am also thankful for such a lovely day!

What a perfect perfect family Saturday!

Something to look forward to

Tomorrow or Sunday I think I may spend some time baking. Baking makes the home smell so good and of course it's nice to enjoy a treat every now and then.

Here is what I was thinking of baking....

Choc chip & almond slice

Photography by Steve Brown

The almond meal makes this choc chip slice moist and gives it a delicious nutty taste.

Preparation Time

20 minutes

Cooking Time

30 minutes

Ingredients (serves 15)

• Melted butter, to grease
• 150g butter, at room temperature
• 100g (1/2 cup) caster sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1 x 250g pkt dark choc bits
• 1 x 110g pkt almond meal
• 75g (1/2 cup) plain flour
• 75g (1/2 cup) self-raising flour
• 1 tbs milk
• 80g white chocolate, finely chopped

Method

1. Preheat oven to 160°C. Brush a 16 x 26cm (base measurement) slice pan with melted butter to grease. Line the base and 2 long sides with non-stick baking paper, allowing sides to overhang.

2. Use an electric beater to beat the butter and sugar in a bowl until pale and creamy. Beat in the vanilla. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition until combined. Add the choc bits, almond meal, combined flour and milk, and stir until well combined.

3. Spread the mixture into the lined pan. Bake for 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Set aside in the pan to cool completely.

4. Meanwhile, place the white chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (make sure the bowl doesn't touch the water) and stir until the chocolate melts and is smooth.

5. Use a fork to drizzle the melted white chocolate over the slice. Set aside to set. Cut into squares to size

   
   

   Taste.com.au

Friday Thoughts

The greatest degree of inner tranquility comes from the development of love and compassion. The more we care for the happiness of others, the greater is our own sense of well-being.

- Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lamat

The greatest thing you will ever learn is to love and be loved in return.

Natalie Cole

What's your inspirational quote today?

Ekka Wednesday

So....today is a public holiday here in Brisbane!!! The organisation I work for doesn't normally close for public holidays, but in the new agreement we are closing Ekka Wednesday and Labour day, which means I scored a sleep in!! (and Alexander helped this by doing the same!!).

This morning I woke to a pitch black room and the sound of pitter pattering rain on our roof. It rained all night which was perfectly fine with me because we had no plans for today except for spending time together. Warren starts his travelling next week for his new job so all the spare time together right now is perfect!

The other reason it is lucky we had no plans is because I went to bed last night with a very croaky voice and woke up with no voice....well....I can start a word but not finish it or I can finish a word but not start it. Which leads me to Alexander....when he is getting up to mischief and doing things no little 11 month boy old should be doing, I say "no". Sometimes he gets it sometimes he just doesn't. Well this morning he just laughed at me when I said "No" as it was so hard to understand what I had said and well it really did sound funny! So it looks like a quiet day for Alexander on the "no" front...

I spent my morning catching up on some tv - I don't usually watch much television except for the news and current affair type shows, but I am watching a few things at the moment so we taped them as they were too late at night for me. Now Warren is watching a Bond movie...he seems to be addicted to the Bond movies at the moment....meanwhile our gorgeous little man is fast asleep!

How did you spend your public holiday?

Time to stop and smell the roses....

This morning, Alexander and I headed to the local shopping centre for coffee with Donna and Susan and Tahlia. Elke wasn't there today as she is in daycare for her first week!! After early morning coffee and a chat, Alex and I headed home (I am suffering from a bad case of sinusitis) for a quiet lunch and some time with my mum.

Warren came home surprisingly early and did a spur of the moment "daddy day care" for me so I could take my mum to a medical appointment in the city without traipsing Alexander around. Whilst waiting for my mum, I headed to New Farm where I enjoyed looking in a couple of little homewares boutiques and a lovely jewellery shop before indulging in a delightful coffee. It was quiet time where I could contemplate life. It is different not having Alexander with me when I am on days off as I am so used to having him with me and enjoying his chit chat from the back seat. Mum and I then headed home and found that Alexander had enjoyed a lovely 2 and a half hour afternoon sleep so apparently he didn't even miss me!!

Now we are all home keeping warm and dry as it is raining quite heavily outside, should make for a pleasant night in!! Hope you enjoy sometime to stop and smell the roses....it's well worth it!!

Thought for Monday

"Make every day count. Appreciate every moment and take from it everything you possibly can, for you may never be able to experience it again".

Very true....

Monday Photo

Isn't this photo the most gorgeous photo you have seen in a while!? I love being a mum to Alexander!!

What are you thankful for today?!

It's interesting, I asked a few people yesterday what they were grateful for and they all had to think about it!! I can roll what I am thankful for each day off my tongue when asked....so here goes....

Today I am thankful for

1) such a brilliant winters day here in Brisbane, albeit a little cold the sun is shining and the sky is a gorgeous blue colour!!

2) the dark chocolate I am going to enjoy this evening with my hubby (such a treat!)

3) that today isn't a work day for either of us so we can spend some quality time together

4) it is my niece, Emma's 8th birthday this weekend - she is such a delightful little might and I am thankful for her being my niece and so beautiful

5) that we are headed to Italy and Hong Kong for Christmas and New Year (very exciting!! we are all looking forward to a cooler festive season with my parents)

6) that I have a gorgeous home and am loved by people that I love as well...we have to be mindful that there are people out there in society that don't have homes or families

and lastly, I am thankful for my beautiful little family!

So when you are feel that the odds are against you, think of what you have in your life to be thankful for. I am on top of the world and I am thankful each and every day for our beautiful life.

Bits and Bobs

So little man turned 11 months yesterday!! Where has that time gone?! I feel like just yesterday Alexander was welcomed into our family!

Warren fixed the side gate this morning and polished up some chairs that mum and dad kindly gave us a few months ago when they upgraded their chairs. Then we headed over to see Nonna and Pa briefly as we had to go to a shop over their way. Alexander slept the majority of the time we were there except for when he was playing ball with my dad.

I really feel like baking this afternoon, but might just leave that until tomorrow afternoon. We came home the other day and all we could smell was some lovely vanilla smelling biscuits baking next door... ever since then I have had the baking desire.

On the birthday front, I have changed my mind on 1st Birthday cake ideas, so we will see what happens over the next few weeks with that! I have mostly written up the invites, they just need to be finished and the posted!

We are all suffering from colds and sinus here in the Maston house this weekend, "euky bear" became our friend last night.

Rightio, off to get ready for the rugby (Bledisloe Cup again.....).

Enjoy your Saturday evening!

Busy Busy Busy

We have been busy this week!

Tuesday, Alexander and I went to mum's group and enjoyed a lovely cup of caramel latte. We chatted and planned our next meet, where we will farewell Donna as she heads back to work the week after next! Good luck Donna!! Then Alexander and I had some chores to accomplish at the shops. We went to Coles for a few items we needed and we chose the invites to one little boy's first birthday! I also managed to find a lipstick I have been looking for lately.

Wednesday, was a working day. A little drama started the day, I took Warren's car as mine was being serviced. I got 3/4 of the way to work and I heard my phone beep. Warren's work bag, keys and wallet were in the car I was in. We decided to taxi them back home as I didn't want to leave work in the lurch. After work - a pleasant day really, I collected Alex from day care and we headed to Wooloworths near day care to see if we could find the cook book magazine we are after for birthday cake ideas, success!!

Today after a very long morning of cleaning, I headed to work to write in a patient chart that I forgot to write in yesterday. Then we headed to a quaint little cafe in Milton where we met Alanah and Otto. Otto is 2 weeks younger than Alex and he is just adorable. He is smaller than Alex and full of great character! I enjoyed catching up with Alanah over lunch, although it was very hard to hear her as it was so loud. We look forward to seeing them again soon, maybe at a park.

We then came home and popped a sleeping Alex into his cot for 2 hours. Nonna came over to visit Alex.

We are looking forward to a lovely family weekend ahead hopefully filled with fun and time for a good book!

Auntie Vanessa

Today we enjoyed brunch with Auntie Vanessa and her son Finn.

We don't get to spend much time together as we both have very busy lives, however the time we do spend together is cherished!!

Auntie Vanessa is Alexander's god mother.

We enjoyed a lovely morning together catching up on all the latest news and happenings!

Warmer Weather

We enjoyed some time outside in the garden yesterday as it was a little warmer!

Alexander has no shorts that fit him, but he could have done with some yesterday!!

While Warren fixed the side gate, Alex played with the grass.

Alex and I enjoying a cuddle

The sun was a little in his eyes!
Feeling the texture of the grass

Uncle Adam and Auntie Bron came for afternoon tea and a chat, which topped off the perfect Sunday afternoon.

A bet each way!?

Last night I left you to go and enjoy a special treat dinner and to watch the Bledisloe Cup...here's what happened after that.....

Warren decided to have a bet each way and dress Alexander in both his Wallaby onesie and his All Black onesie. I actually thought I had hidden the NZ one well away...but apparently I hadn't!!

Then came this....

I have never seen Warren in this jersey before as he is such a Wallaby supporter, but this came out too....

Don't worry he was actually very upset at the end of the game about the result....once an Australian, always an Australian.....