We've had a few big green tree frogs around lately. It's so nice to see and hear them. We've lived here for almost 5 years and have only seen one other one in that whole time.




Elizabeth has 2 teeth now. They are very cute. She has been grizzling a fair bit during the day, but has mostly been happy. She's still sleeping really well at night.

Jimmy and I went to Dreamworld last Wednesday and had a really great time.
DH spent this weekend laying new turf in the little area next to the pool, so we'll be spending a lot of time there during summer. The swing set will be installed there and I'm going to find a little wrought iron table and chairs so I can sit out there with a cuppa.
I have been doing a lot of sewing lately- two dresses for Elizabeth, a nappy for someone special, and some more work on Jimmy's quilt cover.
My band has its first rehearsal in 2 weeks and I'mso incredibly excited.
Life is good.

Some facts about Elizabeth

Elizabeth looks nothing like me- I've finally realised and accepted this fact! She is a Mac, through and through. The only things she has inherited from me are my not-so-desirable characteristics: my pale skin; 'freaky long toes' as Himself calls them (second toes longer than big toes-quite common); inverted nipples (mine aren't any more, thanks to almost 2 years of a baby/breastpump pulling them out); and my teeny tiny frame.

She drinks approximately 900mL of expressed milk per day.

She sleeps for an average of 11 hours a night...unbroken! And no, I don't drug her!

She loves rolling around. As soon as she is put on the floor or a bed, over she goes!

She doesn't have any teeth yet. Jimmy had his first tooth around 7 months.

She isn't sitting up yet. Jimmy started sitting the day after his first tooth came through.
She does love to sit up and have her arms held for her to keep her steady.

She has way too many nappies. Another one is on its way to her (a girly frog one- HOW could I resist?) as well as 3 embroidered minky cuts, not to mention all the minky I already have. Ooops!

She is still wearing size 000 clothing, at 8 months of age! She wears 00 as well, but I'm trying to squeeze a little more wear out of the 000s!

The colour red really, really suits her. I think we may have to make it her signature colour!

She weighs between 6.5 and 7 kg (I think). Jimmy was at least a kilogram heavier at this age. She's so petite and sweet!

She is starting to eat a bit more food. She loves banana, rockmelon, brocolli, porridge with apples and boob milk, Weetbix with apples and boob milk, bolognese sauce...in fact, everything I offer her, she gobbles up.

Oh, I almost forgot this- she has a mild tongue tie, and a mild labial adhesion. I had never heard of the latter, and the former surprised me because so many doctors had poked around in her mouth without noticing it! The paediatrician didn't express any concern for either condition, and didn't recommend surgery.

She has terrible cradle cap that I haven't really worried about up until now, but it's getting worse, so I am treating it every day with almond oil.

Her favourite place to be is sitting on her mummy's hip. If I am not in her line of sight, she gets very cranky indeed.

She has the cheekiest grin I've ever seen, and her dimples melt my heart.

She thinks her big brother is the funniest thing in the world.

She is the most beautiful gift I could ever have asked for.

Day one of healthier lunches

I did the grocery shopping today and bought loads of yummy vegies. I decided to stop buying tinned corn kernels, coz hey, it's not that hard to take the kernels off a cob. Into my Tupperware chopper-uppy-thing went cauliflower, broccoli, yellow capsicum, and mushrooms. I sauteed them all in some olive oil and garlic, then added some diced tomatoes and tomato paste. I decided to buy some tortellini as a special treat.



It was a hit for the first 5 or so minutes, until I made the mistake of asking him to use his spoon and not his fingers. He got the shits about that!



His little sister certainly enjoyed hers.



After some cajoling, I convinced Jimmy to sit down at his little yellow table (had to bribe him with the telly- we have it turned off during meals) and he managed to eat a bit more.

He ate most of his dinner tonight too- fish fingers, chips and Greek salad. And over this meal, my stepdaughter complained that the food I make is too healthy. WTF? It's not her fault though; her mother is in her ear all the time.

Happy girl playing with her brother's Lego.



Playing Lego together. So cute!


We went to Dreamworld last week. Jimmy went up and patted the 'big daddy' kangaroo, but would not go near this ridiculously cute baby one. I think it may have had something to do with the fact that the big one was lying down, and this one was standing up.


My handsome boy on the train at Dreamworld. We left Elizabeth with her Gran because Dreamworld is not baby friendly at all.


Jimmy on his 'purple horse' at Dreamworld. I love spending time with my little guy one-on-one. He's so much fun, and so incredibly interested in everything going on around him.

Jimmy is really enjoying his Thursdays at day care. He is always playing with a nice little boy called Billy. Apparently he eats all his vegetables at lunch time there. He's become a very fussy eater at home and it's frustrating me. Tonight we had yummy chicken schnitzel with sugar snap peas, carrots and mashed tatties, and he wouldn't try any of it. I have been a bit lazy with lunches lately, and have been letting him have baked beans or spaghetti (the salt reduced ones, but they're still junk) so I'm going to be a bit more strict now and hopefully he will eat a good lunch every day. When it comes to meals, everyone gets the same food. I will cook foods that everyone likes, and occasionally throw in a new ingredient or try out a new dish, but nothing adventurous. The kids can choose to eat it or not eat it; I can't force them. If they don't, no other food will be given until the next meal/snack time. For now, Jimmy doesn't seem to care if he eats nothing for dinner. I hope it changes some time soon.

Elizabeth is really happy and laughing, smiling and rolling around heaps. She's still not sitting by herself, but I'm not worried. She's still a great sleeper at night time and is usually in bed by 6pm and sleeps until about 5am, waking a couple of times for her dummy. I never in a million years thought that one of my babies would use a dummy.