First year around the sun

It would be nice if I could pretend tomorrow wasn't really happening. But, alas it is here my baby boys first birthday and thanks to being in Perth I 'technically' get and extra 3 hours of Angus being a baby. I'm enjoying every minute of those three hours resettling him back to sleep. But that aside, I honestly want, no need time to slow down. Where has this year gone?

This time 1 year ago I had quite a restless night, just couldn't get comfy. Nothing painful but in my heart I knew that my baby was on his way, I just didn't want to let my head know because of the disappointment if I were wrong.

It is hard to believe that this strong little soul has been with us a full year. In one way it feels like it was yesterday, in another way it feels like he has been with us a lifetime. My heart swells with love and pride when I look at him. My little Angry Angus is a contrast in so many ways, he was in a tearing hurry to arrive earthside yet is not in a tearing hurry to do much else in life. He has a feisty fiery aspect to his personality but at the same time he is so laid back and cruisy. He is a cheeky devilish little thing and at just 11 months 3 weeks and 6 days I can see he is going to be a handful, he has a taste for adrenalin....yet at the same time he is the cutest most angelic little boy.

I want to drink him in, remember every little bit of him at this age. I don't want him to grow up, but at the same time I want to see the person he becomes and see what he achieves in life. I want to protect him, wrap him up in bubble wrap and never let him out of my sight - but at the same time I want to miss him, I want to hear about all the things the world is giving him. I want him to stay near me so I can see him all the time - yet I want him to explore everything his heart desires. Why can't we control time even more? With Hamish I felt like time went by in an absolute blur and somehow I have a nearly 4 year old on my doorstep. I thought with a second baby time might go slower I would have time to drink him in because I had 'done it all before'. But then we get thrown with a completely different child (naturally) and I feel like a whole year has gone yet I'm still trying to get to know him.

My darling Angus, don't grow up too quickly. Let me saviour and capture each milestone with you. We love you so very much...thank you for choosing us as your family.

Embracing our new home

Since moving to Perth we have been trying to embrace the 'seaside living'. With this we have had fish on the menu...weekly. We have enjoyed fish and chips whilst out on the weekends and enjoyed learning about cooking fish in our own home. This is a novelty for me because prior to now Chris would not allow me to cook fish at home so I would have to enjoy it whilst he was out of town.

BUT, Chris is now not only eating fish...but cooking it too.

Tonight we had the following beauty of a meal. Straight out of our kitchen fresh Salmon steaks with tarrogon sauce and asparagus (a Woman's Weekly recipe no less).

Making your own fun

In the world of two little boys I can certainly see that the sillier, crazier and more dangerous activities are the most fun! Last week I grabbed the already falling apart laundry basket and allowed the boys to have some of their own fun. This will not be a frequently repeated activity as when we get our new floor I won't be encouraging it but for now it was a fun activity that filled in half an hour in the afternoon.

I LOVE

Wouldn't it be nice if Valentines Day became less about doting on that 1 person you love most in this world and more about enjoying and really appreciating the things you love most about your life? Sometimes I think we are too busy living to actually stop and think about those things. So what do I love? I'll show you a little about what I love.

My family! I love all my boys and I love our life. I'm so so fortunate to have 2 healthy little boys that are all mine and a supportive and loving husband (most of the time, don't go getting a big head Chris!)

Okay so we might not look quite like the Kardashian sisters but I Love my sisters. There are 4 of us all up, all different and individual but we get along alright!

Okay so we don't quite have the same issues as the Fockers BUT families are complex and ours are no exception. But we love them anyway and we and our boys are very fortunate to have both sets of parents in our lives supporting us and what we do.

Friends! They really are angels without wings. I'm very blessed to have wonderful friends in Canberra and now also in Perth. Today a very beautiful new friend of mine bought over a 'sleep deprivation survivor' it had oly the very best things in it that I would most definitely have picked for myself. A very beautiful soul to have bought that to me today. How did I get so lucky to have so many beautiful people around me?

Speaking of beautiful...

 I love turquoise boxes with white ribbon....need I say more?

It is a new love, but it is a love. The iPhone is my sanity when at a coffee shop with a disinterested threenager, my navigator when I am lost, my entertainer when I am waiting and my friend at all hours of the night! If it would settle the baby for me then we would be set.

Okay so honestly I LOVE all food, food and I have a wonderful relationship.

So really I love a lot of things, it is nice to sit here thinking about what I love. What do you love?

While you were sleeping

It's something I do every night, I just pop in to see my little boys fast asleep. It's nice to have their peaceful faces as the last thing I see before I hit the pillow myself. This is what I see.

How many do you do?

Hamish does 5! 5 Weetbix is this little 3 year olds breakfast. Impressive huh.

Brothers

Ever since we bought Angus into the world it has been quite an adventure for our little family as we learn our roles in the family with this new little person who really changed us. I really felt that we went from a couple with a child to a family. I guess family is what you make it, and for me I always knew there was more then 1 baby waiting in the wings for me and as a result, I just didn't feel like it was a family until we had more then 1 child (and okay honestly, I feel like there are more...but sssh Chris might see this and freak out!).

Anyway, part of what I really have loved seeing is little Hamish becoming a big brother. There relationship is complex and has many levels to it. I suspect on the whole each would do anything for the other...as long as they wanted to do it. hehe. Anyway here are some photos of them from this week. Beautiful boys!

Would you trust that face 'helping' you up the steps?

Angus is not always happy when his brother smothers, I mean hugs him

Big brother teaching little brother how to play with the bead toy

Big brother teaching little brother how to use the Buzz big boy toy.

A perfectly relaxing day

Yesterday on a perfect day we took a lovely trip to the local Marina and enjoyed a relaxing walk, drink and lunch together as a family. I don't think I could have planned a more perfect day. The sky was blue, the sun was shining and the kids were in good moods (YAY!).

The day was our first family outting which didn't involve purchasing things for the house or doing errands. It was just a day to experience baby's first fish and chips, baby's first sorbet and enjoying the Perth lifestyle that we moved here for.

We all returned home positively exhausted after so much relaxing, who knew fresh air, food and relaxing could be so exhausting?

Fun with my boys

Often our weeks are just a blur of at least 1 visit to Bunnings, play centres, play dates, shopping trips, beach trips, park trips and playing at home with a bit of gardening inbetween. This week was no exception. We had the return of preschool for master three which we were ALL most excited about. Hamish enjoyed his time immensely and didn't even want to come home at the end of each day. Angus and I enjoyed our days alone and come Wednesday we were ready for our usual activities to continue.

Whilst at the park Angus was keen to try to keep up with his big brother...this ofcourse means climbing the slide from the bottom and trying out new found standing and pointing skills. As the below photos will demonstrate.

Not wanting to stray too far from our usual activities the boys and I also visited Bunnings to purchase more items for our vegetable garden. This ofcourse includes the exciting use of a little trolley for Hamish. A must on ANY Bunnings visit.

I must say, taking these 2 boys out is tiring. I'm left quite exhausted at the end of the week after navigating them in and out of the car at the parks and managing food etc for them. How do mums of more than 2 do it?

This morning's baking...

...is tonight's dessert!!!

Anyone who knows me knows that I love food. I love making it, I love sharing it, I love eating it, I love looking at it, I love watching it being made. I love it! So to write a whole blog update on food is not really a surprise, well at least it shouldn't be.

Whilst I sit here feeling helpless for all the North Queenslanders currently being hit by Cyclone Yasi I am eating away my mornings baking. This morning we had a lovely playdate with some new Perth friends, Hamish and I baked some delicious Carrot and Pineapple Cakes to share with our friends <3

Here is the delicious recipe and a dodgy picture of my dessert! YUM!

Mini Carrot Cakes (The Australian Woman's Weekly)

Ingredients:
-1/2 cup (125ml) vegetable oil
-3 eggs, beaten lightly
-1 1/2 cups Self Raising Flour
-3/4 cup caster sugar
-1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
-2 cups firmly packed coarsely grated carrot
-3/4 cup (160gm) drained crushed pineapple

Cream Cheese icing
-50gm butter, softened
-1/2 cup (120gm) cream cheese, softened
-2 1/2 cups icing sugar mixture

Mini Carrots (for decorating)
-6 dried apricot halves
-green snakes

1. Preheat oven to moderate. Grease 6 hole muffin pan (or in our case prepare pans of choice).
2. Mix oil, eggs, flour, sugar and cinnamon in large bowl with a wooden spoon until combined. Stir in carrot and pineapple.
3. Pour mixture into prepared pan holes. Bake in moderate oven (35 for large muffins, 15 for small) until muffins spring back when lightly touched.
4. Meanwhile, make cream cheese icing and mini carrots.
5. Spread cold cakes with cream cheese icing; place carrots on cakes, seam-side down.

Cream cheese icing: Beat butter and cream cheese in small bowl with electric mixer until light and flussy; gradually beat in icing sugar.
Mini Carrots: Place apricots in cup, cover with boiling water; stand 10 minutes. Drain apricots; dry with absorbent paper. Cut snake into six 3cm lengths. Place one snake piece at the top of one apricot half; roll apricot half around snake, allowing snake to protude from one end. Make several thin cuts in snake for carrot top.