fever + hot/cold flushes + stuffy head + sore throat + queasy tummy = not a very cheerful christmas for this little black duck.

Having Torby recognise an get excited over presents is kinda cool though.

hooray for ritual

It occured to me again last night that I truly do love rituals and especially this time of year.
So, why did this occur to me last night?
I was sitting around at our annual Chrissie-Pissie and marvelling that I have been doing this for the past 8-10 years (I think). In that time it's changed (a bunch more children have appeared on the scene, including mine), the people attending has changed slightly and Speedy's backyard looks slightly different after the renovations but the rituals remain the same. We all bring amusink presents an they are distributed by surly (or smiley in this case) santa, we eat, we drink, we chat, we play with amusink toys, we generally all bond again as a group.
For the first time in about 8 years, I won't be attending Christmas lunch at Miriam and Richard's. Babies apparently need a nap during the day and will get rancid without them. Whilst this will be a good thing because now I'll actually be hungry at dinner, it will be odd to not partake of that ritual. MrNw may go though (if one of us needs to stay home with Torby, the one who can drive the car gets to go out) so he can tell me all about it when he gets home..hopefully that will be enough.
I guess as Torby gets older we will create new rituals as a family, I suspect that a lot of the ones we have now will be incorporated.
I like that on Christmas Eve, we gather at Meaghan's house and Nw's parents come over an we all have dinner together. I like sleeping over there so we all have present frenzy and brekkie together, especially now that there are the children. I like Christmas lunch (usually) and dinner with lots of friends. These are all things that make up my christmas. Mind you I also love the fact that lots of people throw coloured lights at their house and arrange it in a christmasy way...I love the gaudiness of it all!

My name is MissDV and I am a Christmasaholic. Admitting is always the first step.

Just in case I forget to say it later.

Merry Christmas and may you spend the time with those you love. Enjoy your rituals whatever they may be.

Thursdays are for seeing people

Very Merry Baby Deathmatches are t'riffic fun. Release 4 babies into the living room and see who survives..oh, this time with presents and christmas cake!

After waving the last fractious baby and adult out the door and putting our own one to bed, we had more people around...the excuse being that Miss J was in town and needed feeding and catching up with.
Was nice to sit around with friends and chat and eat nachos (nachos burps hurt though) and solve the problems of the world (foolish world needs a lot of saving) and discuss all things wedding-y and work-y and christmas-y and everything-y.

I do so like days like that...they're tiring but oh-so-worth it!

The conversation Torby and I had this morning as I was getting him out of his cot...

'Dad?, Dad?, Dad?'

'Dad's just left to go to the train station' (doesn't want to drive so he can get liquored up at his work chrissie party'

'Nooo, Dad work!'

Well, at least he pays attention to what we say some of the time

ZOMG!!!

It's one week exactly until Christmas...when did that happen?

Although I can feel virtuous because all our shopping has been done

It will be a Very Merry Fight Club tonight and perhaps a Very Merry Baby Deathmatch on Thursday.

Oh and then Chrissie Pissie and then Yay for the day of present and eating frenzy that is Christmas.

I think I haven't quite gotten used to the idea yet because I still don't have a tree. Last year we drove to a Xmas Tree farm and found a little one and chopped it down, perfect for on top of the coffee table. This year we just haven't had a convenient time between socialness, shopping and naptimes. Also not especially into the christmasy spirit this year, not sure why, just not. Eh, sure I'll get better by next week.

Damn Mindy and her posting of these at ForBattle...

One Word Meme

Where is your mobile phone? Recharging
Describe your boyfriend/girlfriend? Husband
Your hair? Dirty
Your mother? Dead
Your father? Here
Your favourite item? Lots
Your dream last night? Four
Your favourite drink? Alcohol
Your dream car? Cute
The room you are in? Lounge
Your ex? Married
Your fear? Death
What do you want to be in 10 years? Happy
Who did you hang out with last night? Family
What you’re not? Blonde
The last thing you did? Sleep
What are you wearing? Singlet
Your favourite book? Argh
Last thing you ate? Icypole
Your life? Good
Your mood? Good
Your friends? Great
What are you thinking about right now? Son
Your car? Silver
What are you doing at the moment? Typing
Your summer? Hot
Your relationship status? Married
What is on your TV? Nothing
When is the last time you laughed? Morning

oh what a weekend

Hooray for delightful weekends!

There was children running around in the park for Torpy and Lumpelina
There was mass consumption of cake and fairybread by adults and children alike
There was seeing my sister Nic again after 2 years
There was seeing my dad again after 5years (and a bonus dinner last night)
There was lovely presents and crads from friends and family
There was a successful going to sleep at meg and jamie's for Torby
There was pizza and lost of wine

and that was just Saturday

Sunday involved lots of Christmas shopping (all done now..w00t!!!) and dinner again at M&J's (mmm ribses).


If anyone has photos of the pary on saturday, can you please, please pretty please send them/load them on flickr/something..okthxbai

This time two years ago a baby was born..and our world changed

Happy Birthday Torby

I'm not quite sure what these past two years would have been like without you but I don't think they would have been as filled with love and happiness as they have been.

Might have had more sleep though.

love you my bunny

mmm christmas and meme..my two favourite things..

The Christmas Meme
via TOA and Mindy

Wrapping paper or gift bags?
Wrapping paper...I do so love wrapping pressies

Real tree or Artificial?
Real Tree..the smell!!

When do you put up the tree?
As soon as possible

When do you take the tree down?
As late as possible

Do you like eggnog?
no, raw egg makes me feel all woogy

Favorite gift received as a child?
my Barbie dolls.

Do you have a nativity scene?
hehe. no.

Hardest person to buy for?
MrNw

Easiest person to buy for?
Torby!

Mail or email Christmas cards?
hmmm. I like to think that I'm organised enough to mail christmas cards each year, but I'm not. I'm now a big fan of the Christmas SMS.

Worst Christmas gift you ever received?
a freaky clown statue when I was in high school.

Favorite Christmas Movie?
don't have one sadly

When do you start shopping for Christmas?
I start very early and then give up and then usually manage to complete the frenzy about 3 days before the day.

Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?
Hmmm, not that I can think of.

Favorite thing to eat at Christmas?
oo oo oo spyder's ham in coca-cola with corny smoosh.

Clear lights or colored on the tree?
both? and lots of tinsle and sparkly things. My name is DV and I'm a magpie

Favorite Christmas song?
Little Drummer Boy. Always brings a tear to my eye

Travel at Christmas or stay home?
Travel to a few different houses..exgausting but I like it

Can you name all of Santa’s reindeer?
nope. Too much listening to Tripod has convinced me that one of them is called Fabian and he's a twonk.


Angel on the tree top or a star?
umm a pointy thing.

Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning?
First thing in the morning...torture otherwise

Most annoying thing about this time of year?
I'm with Mindy on the badly played musak christmas carols

Favorite ornament theme or color?
sparkly!!

Favorite for Christmas dinner?
see previous point

What do you want for Christmas this year?
my friends and family around me drinking wine and eating far too much and having a lovely time.

Who's next?

I heart haircut day

Hooray for having it all off the back of my neck again. Hooray for it being all light and feathery. Hooray for it being re-dyed. Hooray for haircut day!!

a post about nothing much

It was Yule Feast last night....it wasn't spectacular but it was ultimately very pleasant..kind of just what I needed. Got to catch up with old friends, chat with some new ones and generally hang out with a bunch of people I like. Always pleasant. The badges I'd asked Sveinn make (and the lovely Finn and Caspian helped paint) were handed out and they looked t'riffic. So happy. We all need more bling in our lives.

I love this blog template but I don't now how long it'll stay for. I kind of miss my links etc. Eh, we'll see.

The laptop died the other day but MrNw managed to fix it without too many swear words. Must remember to create backup/recovery disks in case it happens again. oh the technology!

Now, I'm going to put a dvd on and try to think sleepy thoughts... reading hasn't been helping so maybe this will. Wish me luck.

scars and regret

I've always had a problem with the phrase 'you should never regret anything'

Why not? Why shouldn't I regret that some of my actions and words have hurt people? Should I be that callous? Really?

I know that who I am now is made up of experiences both good and bad. I know that I still have a whole lot more of growing up to do. I know that without 'ucking some stuff up I wouldn't have had the opportunity to learn from them and thus might be a shallower (oh god is that possible??) person now. I know that most of my best relationships have involved dumb words and stupid actions from both sides. Doesn't mean I don't regret hurting that person even if it did all turn out okay or that I would take back every harsh word I've said, I still believe that the bulk of them needed to be said, just rephrased or better timed perhaps. And yes, there are a portion of things that should never have been uttered. Mostly careless throw away comments that you don't realise what you've said until it's out of your mouth and it's all too late.

So I guess it's a dual-edged thingy..I regret that I've hurt people but I don't regret that I learnt from it or some of the consequences.

We are all made up of scars I guess. Some visible, some not so much. I guess it's what we learn from them that makes all the difference. "I really shouldn't try to sweep up broken glass with my bare foot" for instance or "I'll just move this sharp pointy thing now rather than wait until I eventually do cut my leg open on it" or maybe "oh, that's why they said that...might try to be less of a twonk in the future" Without those scars, we wouldn't have learnt that fire is hot or rough bits of metal shouldn't be rubbed up against your leg..doesn't mean they didn't hurt at the time. Doesn't mean that you would rather not have your body cris-crossed with white lines and dots and weird patches.

ewwww

Just stepped in cat crap.
eww
ewww
ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww

I'm a sucker for these

A meme from ForBattle..I've left in the amusing comments by Mindy

1. Are you dating the last person you kissed?
considering it was my son..happily, no!

2. Pretend you've had ten beers. What would you be doing right now?
Throwing up somewhere

3. What do you want?
everything..and I want it now!

4. Who was the last person you shared a bed with?
The cat and the husband

5. Do you talk to yourself?
All too often..my lips even move. Yup I'm one of those slightly insane people you see muttering to themselves whilst out and about


6. Do you drink milk straight from the carton?
I don't drink milk at all unless it has coffee or kahlua in it

7. Who knows the latest secret about you?
That would be telling

8. How long is your hair?
Too long for my liking

9. Do you like Batman?
hehe..but I am batman

10. Who was the last person who told you they loved you?
MrNw, a few minutes ago

11 and 12 seem to be missing.

13. Do you like anyone now?
Yup..A fair few people actually

14. When was the last time you lied?
I never do *angelic face*

15 is off somewhere with 11 and 12.

16. Is your birthday on a holiday.
Nope

17. What instant messaging service do you use?
GTalk mainly but also the Windows Live thingy

18. Last thing you cooked today?
Caramel Slice

19. Did you have a nap today?
oh yeah...and it was great!

20. Whose house did you go to last?
My sister's

21. What do you wear more jeans or sweats?
Jeans.

22. Why is the sky blue?
Why wouldn't it be?

23. Do you like green beans?
Yup

24. Do you swear a lot?
I'm learning to do less of it around children

25. Where did you get the shirt you are wearing?
Ummm the supermarket I think...it's black Bonds wife-beater bought when I was preggers.

26 is also awol.

27. Do you use an alarm clock?
yeah

28. Where was your default MySpace picture taken?
Don't use mySpace

29. Do you snort when you laugh?
Nope..I do when I yawn though.

30. What's the first thing you notice on the opposite sex?
I don't know. Their lack of bosoms? their facial hair?

31. Is cheating ever okay?
Depends if you get caught and what you're cheating on

32. Do you want someone you can't have?
nope

33 has buggered off too.

34. Do you wear underwear.
Yup..I love my collection of underwear...the pink sparkly ones are my fave

35. Do you wear a bra?
Yes.

36. What size?
guess

37. Are you a social or antisocial person?
generally social

38 who knows?

39. Do you have a tan?
yeah

40-44 can the person who made this meme count?

45. Are you afraid of the dark?
Hmm depends

46 nope, I'm guessing they failed counting

47. Did you miss someone today.
always

48 how did they make it past kindergarten?

49. Do you still have pictures of you and your ex's.
I'm sure I do somewhere

50. Who's always there for you no matter what?
my stalker

mixed bag of stuff that's running about in my head...

- I'm awfully content with where my life is at the moment. Content with where my family ad friends are, content with who I am. I would, of course, prefer it if none of my friends lived in other cities.countries but I'm happy that they are happy with their lives and that they seem settled.

- I still have good and bad days/weeks/months but on the whole, am getting better. I do still need to remind myself to talk to my friends more about it as I know they like to be kept in the loop on my mental status as I do on theirs :)

- The SCA is just a game people. It's a diversion from real life but at the end of the day, you have to go home and be a normal person. Having said that, I'm enjoying the involvement I have with it at the moment. Not too much, not too little. Looking forward to Yule Feast on the weekend and seeing the reactions to the fabulous baronial officer badges I've organised. (and yay for sveinn for making them and Finn and Mr C for painting them..my god, MrC is good at the painting)

- It occurred to me the other day that the music I listen to on my iPod is a good indication for what I'm feeling. I have a big mix of stuff that I have on random and will skip past certain songs on certain days. So much of it is tied up in memories and associations I have with the songs or bands. Listening to a lot of the Barenaked Ladies stuff at the moment and remembering the fun times I've had in Melbourne and in planning Melbourne trips. must go back again soon. Also a lot of Cat Empire and subtly bouncing or swaying down the street.

- Am going to cook biccies etc for most people this year for christmas, partly as a money saving technique, partly as a brain space issue (the whole tryin g to find appropriate gifts for everyone can be exhausting at the best of times) and also I feel that most of us have way too much stuff in our lives already and either only really want specific things or edibleness...mmm edibleness.

- I love that so many of my friends are creative and are willing to let me read/hear/wear/look at what they have created. Wether it be writing, singing, sewing, drawing.painting, music, jewellery or just making things...I love it and am in awe of the talent.

- I'm excited for Finn et al about China next year..but will also miss them. The wondrous powers of teh interwebs will keep me going though. I think it's great that so many of us have blogs and a bunch of us talk through IM-services everyday. It's helped me develop or continue relationships. It's a different type of communication than face-to-face or verbal but still a very valid form nonetheless.

- Oliver's birthday party will now also involve Zoe's party. I kind of like it. Makes it easier for Meg and Jamie and for everyone else... so many babies born in Dec, so few weekends.

- Happy 1st Birthday to Zoe for today. We had a present opening/cake before FC tonight (Jamie's lovely mum was in town). I'm enjoying being there for my niece's and watching them grow up at such close range. Because Oliver is likely to be an only child, it's important to me that he has lots of other kids around. His extended family is great but his 'real' family is even more special. They all come from a bit of the same gene pool and I get glimpses of them all in each other.

- I'm having a lot of fun with warcracking... a bunch of us do a big instance on Monday nights and we are progressing through it and stuff. I play the game with a bunch of great people who are pretty much just like us (some of them are, in fact, 'us') and there's a great vibe. Makes it all the more addictive.

- I thnk I'm now tired enough to actually falla sleep soon...so on that note..away I go.

Luvyaz all and don't ever change :)

Just can't cope with it...

I have the Sydney Morning Herald RSS feed.

It's great to keep me slightly updated on the world.

I am however very close to stopping it because every single day there seems to be headlines of children or babies being killed, or sick or abused or dying..I really really want a parent filter on my news.

It's a fine line between wanting to stay informed of the world and wanting to go sit in a corner singing a happy song a pretending that we all live in a good world where nothing every happens to babies.

Go my flying computer nerd monkeys and create me a parental filter :)

Nothng says love like

a piece of toast with the peanut butter licked off