Photo A Day June - Weeks 2 and 3

Day 13. Art - Keira's work of Art from child care

Day 14. Time - I took this pic while I was out shopping with the twins at Westfield

Day 15. Yellow - Visiting my parents and spotted this beautiful yellow lilly

Day 16. Out and About - Reading cinemas Auburn - where we went for our date with Keira

Day 17. In your Bag - the twins toys we can't leave home without - Miss Ellie and Mr Z Dog

Day 18. Something you don't know about me - I'm a DOOL fan! I have been reading Days of Our Lives daily updates everyday since 2004

Day 19. Imperfect - Got these chocolates on special - not the perfect way to start my 'health kick'

Day 20. Fave photo I've taken - one of my faves of the twins - their first smiles at 3 months

Day 21. Where you slept - I had a nap on Lia's bed before I left the kids there to go a dinner with Darcel and Kristall at Pho's

Day 22. From a high angle - My 3 munchkins playing with toys at the library

Day 23. Movement - Met my parents at Westfield and took Keira to the play gym

Day 24. On your mind - At Paulo and Marcia's farewell BBQ and thinking how I would love to be going on their around the world trip to China, Europe, USA and a Carribean cruise. Sooo jealous!

Kids Half Yearly Update

Keira

Our big girl Keira Olandina is growing up into a beautiful little lady who always makes us laugh - even the twins. At 2 years old she's had to grow up pretty quickly having two baby siblings to share mummy and daddy with. She did ignore them for 2 days and she finally accepted them when they came home! Now at 2 years and 7 months she is, in our eyes becoming a little lady and not so babyish anymore. Of course she will always be our baby but she can now dress herself, feed herself, put on her shoes, run little errands for us like putting things in the rubbish or grabbing things for us . We still need to toilet train her but we've been advised to wait until Spring when the weather is warmer. We were initially worried about her lack of English vocabulary but she surprises us everyday with new words and she loves to read and learn so as we spend more time teaching her, we anticipate that she'll be talking non stop - something to look forward yet dread at the same time haha

Keira is so active, loud and independent. She is real Daddy's girl and the two have gotten even closer since the twins. She can be a handful but I guess that's just the age she's at. She is affectionate, loves hugs and kisses and we love to see her being so attentive and loving (sometimes a little too much) to her baby siblings.

Keira loves:

Dancing - especially to music by Beyonce, Jessica Mauboy and Timomatic

Singing - favourite songs include Happy Birthday, You are my Sunshine and nursery rhymes

Reading - Cat in the Hat and library books

Watching DVDs - favourites include Wriggles, Hi Five and Sparkles and William

Housework - washing dishes, hanging the clothes, folding the clothes, cooking, sweeping, mopping, vacuuming but at the moment, as much as I appreciate her help sometimes it creates more mess!

Colouring in, wearing dresses, hand bags, dressing up, wearing big people's shoes (especially mummy's), anything sweet!, pasta and noodles, bubbles and playing with water

Dislikes - anyone brushing her teeth, getting her hair blow dried, getting her hair done, getting her hair cut, rinsing shampoo out of her hair, cereal, the dark, bread crusts and unpeeled fruit

 Montana

 At 6 months, our gorgeous Montana Rose is a very clever little girl. Even though she was the smallest of all our babies, she has really blossomed and has caught up, if not pass her twin in weight and height.

She is practically crawling already, babbles non stop, is very adventurous, very attentive to everything around her, the last to sleep yet the first to wake up, loves her food, is a little 'thinker', a Miss independent who knows what she wants and lets us know it! It always seems like she is in a rush to grow up! She doesn't like loud noises, is cautious with people and she really loves her mummy and is another daddy's girl.

Lucas

Our youngest by a minute and our only son, Lucas Orlando Halo is a real mummy's boy. He loves his daddy too but his mummy just a little more! (for the moment) He has the most softest, silky skin, is so friendly and is very smiley with everyone he meets although he's not so independent and prefers to stay close to mummy and daddy. He loves being held, loves his sleep and is pretty comfortable to grow at his own pace. He is a happy go lucky little fella and not much bothers him. He used to be a cry baby but it may have to do with his foot when he had weekly casts for the first 8 weeks of his life. Before we had children, I told Damo that I always wanted a daughter and if I never had a son, it wouldn't bother me and now I just can't get enough of our handsome little man. Damo teases me all the time about what I said and now I have to eat my words because I can't imagine life without this little man in our family!

  

The Date Crasher

Since we've had the twins, Damien and I had only been on one date. With three little ones, Damo's inconsistent work schedule and babysitters availability to consider - going on a date can take a few weeks to plan! The main factor being babysitters availability. Knowing the demands of looking after all 3 kids - even for a few hours, we like to leave the kids with at least two adults and no other children to look after. This cancels out my parents if they have Jaime and Liam at home but luckily it leaves us with three reliable families - the De Sousa's (Uncle Jason, Aunty Nina, Teia and Cinta), Da costas (Uncle Carlos, Aunty Zinda, Lia, Tildy and Tuly) and the Asekona's (Uncle Sau, Aunty Fou and Evie).

The De Sousa's looked after the kids on our first date and the Da costa's are always looking after my kids for an hour or two when I have errands to run so when we planned for this particular date we asked the Asekona's who lived further away but it also provided us an opportunity to catch up and for them to see the kids.

Our movie date was booked two weeks in advance for last Saturday and when the day arrived it was a cold, rainy and gloomy day. As the children had just recovered from a cold, we were relunctant to go out but then we didn't know when we'll have the opportunity to go on a date again so we bundled the kids up in warm clothes and decided to go. We arrived at the Asekona's with a few hours to spare so we could catch up and I could feed the twins etc When it came time to leave Keira had a big tantrum consisting of screams, tears and leg kicking. We thought that we  would have to cancel our date afterall as I could tell that our babysitters were not impressed with her sookie act especially when they suggested that we take her with us! We first baulked at that idea as she has never been to the movies before but as Keira kept on whining - it seemed like we had no other choice and so we decided to take her with us.

Twins Montana and Lucas stayed warm at Uncle Sau's and Aunty Fou's place

Once we got to the movie theatre, Keira was like a different kid and all smiles when she got ice-cream and cheezels

As we were waiting for the movie to start - Keira was really excited which made us excited too! We were actually glad that she came along with us as it gave us an opportunity to spend some quality time with our 'big' girl.

We got the best seats right at the back (so Keira could stay out of trouble)

Yummy treats

Keira looked so cute in her 3D glasses haha

We watched Prometheus 3D as we had planned as there were no kids movies on at that time and we also knew being Keira's first time at the movies, she wouldn't be able to sit still.  We were right because Keira didn't really watch the movie at all - once her treats were finished she walked up and down our aisle and played in the empty seats in front of us. She yelled out a few times and made a few noises but luckily there weren't too many patrons for her to annoy.

After the movie, we went to have dinner at the restaurant Alcatraz next door and although the food was nothing to brag about, the company was fabulous. What started off as a date crash ended up being an enjoyable date plus one although next time we'll be taking Keira to a children's movie :) and.... we'll also try to sneak away on a date on our own :)

Six Months later.....

It's been six and half months since we've become a family of 5, since I've been a stay at home mum with newborn twins and a 2 year old. They say time flies when you're having fun and yes time has flown and it has been fun but not without its ups and downs.

I remember some of the early challenges we had when we bought the twins home.  Firstly, we had just moved into a new place one month before the twins were born so there was still unpacking and sorting to do (there still is as we are still looking for 'time' to finish it!) Secondly, Lucas was born with a right club foot (where the foot is turned inwards) so we had weekly hospital plaster appointments for the first 8 week weeks of of his life to straighten his foot and that was on top of helping Keira adjust to her new baby siblings as well as us trying to adjust the demands of two newborns ourselves.

The most difficult thing for me was when they were both crying I didn't know who to pick up first and when I held one, I felt like I was chosing one over the other even though I wasn't. The first few days were heartbreaking for me as all newborn babies deserve and demand a parents full and undivided attention - at least for the first weeks of their lives and our twins had to share ours. I tried to take turns or held the one I thought would be the hungriest etc. I always wished (and still do) that I had an extra pair of arms to hold all three of my babies. It was worst when Keira was crying too and sadly most times she ended up being the last one I tended too (unless it was an emergency). There were times when she was upset she'll just bypass me altogether and go to her father because she knew that most times when she came up to me I would be holding a baby or two in my arms. Yes - lots of adjusting for all of us! There were some days when they would just be a blur - it seemed like it was going slowly but by the end of it I felt like it went by so quickly yet nothing seemed to be done.

After a month, the twins started to adjust to their new world and us with them in ours. I was up a lot during the night - as I would feed one, put baby down, go to sleep and a few mins later the other baby would wake up wanting their feed.  Damo was up to holding the other crying baby or helping me with putting the two babies on me to nurse and then taking them off as they started to get heavier for me to do it. Sleep was a luxury. I really wanted to train the twins to sleep in their cot from day 1 but it only lasted a few weeks as in the end it was just easier for me to sleep in between both and turn to nurse on demand. It's not the ideal solution but I got more sleep, the twins were really happy to be fed straight away, they cried less as they both loved being close to me and overall a happier household. I know people advise against co - sleeping and it can be seen as the lazy way out to parenting but to be honest I really enjoyed it with Keira and I enjoy it with the twins.  I love the cuddliness and closeness of my babies. I love watching them fall asleep and even when they are asleep - I just love watching them, smelling them, kissing their beautiful little features and baby smooth skin, always marvelling at their perfection and that I am their mother. I'm fortunate that I am a light sleeper so I can do that but I am hoping that they will be happy to sleep in their own bedroom when I stop breastfeeding. It may seem like wishful thinking but I am an optimist!

Being an optimistic person is what made me get through the first six months. Yes, there were (many) tough days but luckily I would only be upset or stressed for a few hours after which I would assess the situation or life in general, look on the brighter side and get over it. That is one of my good traits - the ability to always be positive and move on when faced with challenges. I'm no where near the mother/ wife/ person I want to be. I have definitely learnt and grown up so much as a mother, a wife and a person. I still do everyday and always strive to be better and the best I can be.  

No matter how tough and challenging it was or it can be - I am always grateful because I think I had a pretty good first six months. I am so grateful that I had a trouble free pregnancy, a safe delivery of two healthy babies, plenty of breastmilk to nurse both twins, a loving husband/ father and plenty of support from our extended family.  There is not a day that goes by that I don't let my Heavenly Father know how grateful I am for the many blessings He has bestowed unto me and especially for entrusting me with these three precious babies.

Six and a half months on - we still don't have the perfect schedule, our days can still be hectic, chaotic and crazy, our home is still not fully sorted, the house is almost always messy and hard to keep clean, socks are always missing their pairs and Keira is starting to write on the walls but we are slowly adjusting to our little party of 5 and we all healthy and happy!

I thought the the first six months would be the hardest but thinking of the next phase of our lives which will include weaning, teething, solids, crawling, toilet training Keira and my return to work - it makes the first six months look easy when the babies just ate, slept and pooed! However, the ever optimistic person in me says Bring it on! (with a smile :) )

Our little family when the twins were 3 months - Gees we look tired but happy :)

Photo A Day June - Week 1.5

I finally made life easier for myself and upgraded my iphone so that I can now upload new apps including this great collage app to put my Photo a Day pictures instead of tediously uploading individual photos. 

 

1. Morning - Our favourite winter breakfast of porridge with honey and cinnamon
2. Empty - Perfect weather for a hot chocolate or two
3. On Your Plate - Banana spring rolls with melting vanilla ice cream. Easy yet delicious dessert!
4. Close Up - Beautiful red rose from our front garden
5. Sign - Raining, cold and wet = a sign that Winter is well and truly here!
6. Hat - My little Rasta twins in their beanies sent from Aunty Lauryn in NZ for Xmas
7. Drink - I am addicted to McDonalds Choc Whirl Frappe
8. Six O'Clock - Bath time for little Miss Montana who commando crawled across the floor battling the remains of Keira's nutella sandwich
9. Your View Today - After all the rain, perfect sunny weather to do the washing and play in the backyard
10. Best Bit of your Weekend - Going to the parentals place for mum's Soul food. Yum!
11. Door - This is the best looking door at our place
12. From a Low Angle - From our front yard, the sun is beginning to set

Lilly is back!

After living in Tamworth for a year, cousin Lilly and her mother Natalie are back in Sydney and are here to stay! Lilly's dad Bowen is Damo's brother. When Bowen and Natalie divorced and Bowen moved back to NZ, we regularly had Lilly over on the weekends from when she was was 6 months old for so she is like our first daughter. We missed her so much when she moved to Tamworth but we are so glad they are back in Sydney and now Keira has a girl cousin to hang with :)

Nat and Lilly are currently staying with Nat's mum Kate who are my children's 'white Nanny'. Nat is also back because she is expecting identical twins in November! How exciting for Lilly to have her own little twin brothers or sisters.  

Last Sunday, we caught up with Nat, Lilly, Kate and Dees at the Fish Markets as they just live down the road in Glebe. It was a sunny, windy day but it was great to see them as Lilly missed her cousins and her Aunty and Uncle of course! No doubt there will be plenty more catch ups in the future now that they are back plus Nat and Lilly need as much twin practice as possible! ;)

Happy to have Lilly back in Sydney! Lilly, me and Keira

 

Master Lucas and Aunty Nat

 

Damo, Lucas, Keira and Lilly

 

Miss Montana and Nanny Kate

I'm so glad my twin pregnancy is over! Lilly, Nat, me and dirty Keira in the background

Aunty Dees with her gorgeous nieces - Montana, Keira and Lilly

Gaybo couple pic haha 

Boavida Cousins

When I was pregnant with Keira, my sister Flavia was also pregnant with her first child. It was fun being pregnant together for the first time- we had fun baby shopping together, sharing ultrasounds and reading "What to Expect when you are Expecting together. She had a beautiful baby boy Jaime Joseph 7 weeks before I had my beautiful baby girl Keira. My parents were so estatic to have one grandson and grand daughter at the same time . What a mix they got too as Jaime is half Scottish and Keira is half Niuean.

Fast forward 2 years later, I was expecting twins and my sister was also pregnant with her second boy. All our extended family teased us about planning to get pregnant together again. However this time around, with our toddlers in tow - there was not much time for baby shopping bonding! Liam McKenzie was born 6 weeks after the twins Montana and Lucas. My parents went from zero grand kids to 5 in two years!

When we are all together at my parents place - it is  fun but chaotic! Keira and Jaime getting into all sorts of mischief in the backyard or fighting over a toy, a book or grandpa, babies crying - needing to be fed, changed or held, my sister and I attending to a baby or breaking up a fight with the older two, my mum trying to cook and my dad holding which ever baby is crying.  So it is not suprising that it took us over 4 months to get a picture of all 5 grand kids for the first time when we went for a visit last week.

Take 1 = fail haha

So we tried a different pose = better

No tears or tantrums = As good as it gets.

All 5 Boavida cousins - Jaime (2.9), Montana (6 months), Keira (2.7), Lucas (6 months)and Liam (4 months) :)

The Elusive 60's

About 12 years ago, I joined a gym and gained a personal trainer. I had to weight myself for programming and to my shock and embarrasment - the scales read 60kgs! I was 22 and in all my teenage/ adult life I was in my 50's and I was always petite. I know I took it for granted that I would always remain that way!  I got married a few years later and before I knew it I was mid 60's and just before I had Keira I was 76kgs! The heaviest ever! In the months before then, I was wishing that my scales would say 60kgs again! I tried the gym, Weight Watchers (twice), shakes and detoxes - but the lowest I ever got to was 69kgs - only to be back in the 70's not long after. A year after Keira, I joined the gym again, started interval running and did another detox through a nautropath - I was 75kgs and got down to 69kgs again and then I fell pregnant with my twins. I thought that's it - I will probably be in my 80's after they are born wishing to be in the 70's again BUT to my suprise, I was back to  69kgs within 10 weeks after they were born! (Must be the double breastfeeding) and now 3 months after that without trying, I am now at the lowest weight I can remember since my 60 shock and that is 64kgs. It's unbelieveable that I had to have twins to get back into the elusive 60's. Now I don't want to be so laxed about my weight again. I want to be a healthy and fit mother so I have made the 'decision' and set myself the goal to be 60kgs on my 35th birthday on 10th August. That's 4kgs in 8 weeks. It seems doable. I don't want to do anything extreme - just eat more wisely and move more. I have to write out a health plan and stick to it.  I know they say the scales is just a number but after more than a decade - 60 will be more than just a number, it will be a dream come true! Good luck to me!

Family Photos 2012

While on Facebook, I saw an advertisement from Manatu, a lady from Church introducing her new photography business Eye Love Photography whilst studying a Photography course. She was offering a special $50 deal to take family photos with edited high res copies on a CD. I've had photos taken before which were 4 times that price so I kept her in mind to get some family photos later in the year when the twins were able to sit up on their own and when I had lost a bit of weight. However, due to the popularity of her special and also the realisation that it's a steal for all the work she has to do - she announced that her $50 offer was only going to be until the end of April and from May it would go up. Despite not being at my ideal weight, I made a booking for our family photo session which only left me a week and a half to organise our clothes etc. I had envisioned a different colour theme but as I didn't have much time so I just ended up with the black and white theme. On the day of the photo session it was such a rush to get everyone prepared and  get to the location at Naragyngi Reserve on time but we made it! After a week of rain, the weather was perfect, the twins and Keira were well behaved (no tears at all) and we all had a fun family photo session. Even Damien, who was a little relunctant at first to pose and get photos - had a great time and realised the importance of having family photos done. The photos turned out wonderful - (even though I am even more determined to get rid of my double chin!) Manatu did a great job for someone who is just starting out. I really wanted photos of the three children but seeing as the twins were still too young and had to be held, there are quite a few photos of us with the children (each individually and together) which I'm really happy with. Manatu also took quite a few of Damo and I which I didn't want initially but looking back at them now, I'm so glad she did as we've hardly have any photos of us together since the children joined our family. Above and below are a few of my favourite photos of our little family. I'm so happy that we were able to finally get some proper, beautiful pictures of our Party of Five - an hour of our lives captured and to be cherished forever. I  heart my little family so much!

 

Our Party of Five

    

                   

Couple shots

Daddy and kids

 

  Mummy and Lucas                                Daddy and Montana

With our beautiful Keira

 

                             Smiley Lucas                                         Serious Montana

Cheeky Keira

We got through it! Last pic of the day :)

Photo a Day June Challenge

Whoo hoo - I am so happy that I completed the two challenges I set for myself at the beggining of the month and of this blog! The Happy Days in May Project and the Photo a Day May Challenge. I enjoyed and learnt from both!

The Photo a Day May was not only fun but I like that it is a photo journal - a great way to record things in my  daily life that I wouldn't usually record through photos  eg: the weather and food. I also enjoyed sharing it with fellow challengers from all over the world on Instagram and seeing their photos and glimpse of their daily life/ world . This challenge made me use my creativity and imagination and whilst I'm no professional photographer - I enjoyed it so much I'm going to do the June challenge.

Here is a quote I found (taken from another blogger who got it from a Photo challenge website) which sums up the reason why I  will continue to do the photo challenge:


Because you love photography. Because you have something to say. Because your life matters. Because the idea of doing something together worldwide is thrilling. Because you like the thought of saving a little something of yourself for generations to come. Because your take on daily life is part of a much bigger picture.


 Here is the June list:

It looks like a challenging list ;) I also have a few friends who are joining me too so that makes it even more fun!

Photo A Day May Challenge - Week 4

Day 23 - Technology 

Fridge technology. I especially like the Child Lock feature :)

Day 24 - Something new

I've never seen German Chocolate Cake mix before so its something new. I bought it from Reject Shop. I wonder if it'll be as good as the one hubby makes from scratch? (To date, I still have not tried it!)

Day 25 - Unusual

Taken in Marrickville while Dees was moving out.  I've always wondered how and why shoes are thrown on power lines. (Someone on Instagram replied to google Shoe tossing which I did and it was very interesting re rites of passage, gangs marking their territory etc)

Day 26 - 12 O'Clock 

One down for a nap, another to go

Day 26 - Something Sweet

Nutella crunch Pizza! Yum!

Day 27 - The weather today 

 

A beautiful, sunny Autumn day in Sydney

Day 29 - A number

#2 - our house number



 Day 30 - Your personality

Open, Welcoming and Friendly - This is the most challenging word to date. I found this sign at a Dr Surgery at Bonnyrigg Plaza lol

 Day 31 - Something beautiful

Newborn babies are beautiful especially baby McCaw Manu :)  

Happy Days in May Project - Last days

Below are the last few days of the Happy Days in May project which was to write one sentence on what made me happy that day for the month of May. To be honest, there were days when I really had to think hard about what to write but what I learnt from this project is that there is happiness in my day every day - some moments just aren't as obvious as the fun outings and delicious food. During May, there was happiness in seeing other people happy, in appreciating the small things I took for granted like good weather,  my family, time with the kids, my friends, 'me' time and many other of life's blessings. So, even though the Happy Days in May project ends in May, I will certainly be reflecting every night about my happy moments of the day - even if it is just seeing my beautiful angels sleeping peacefully. It reminds me of a quote I read on Facebook " Be happy with what you have as somewhere in the world, someone is happy with much less". Now, that really put things into perspective for me and so with that thought in mind - every day is a happy day for me and I really do have a Happy and Blessed Life!

Day 28

Gave the twins their first solids of organic baby rice, visited the Sousa family and had dinner at Great Aunt Maria's with Aunty Jo, Sienna and Phil :)

Day 29

Keira stayed home sick from child care today so I stayed in bed with the three kids for most of the day watching Disney DVD's  :)

Day 30

Went to my parents place and left Keira there while the twins and I went to the Plaza where I was able to get an eyebrow and lip wax while twins were on good behavious and then had mum's special 'caldo' soup for dinner :)

Day 31

I had a great catch up with good friends Darcel and Kristall where I learnt some great tips and advice on motherhood and later went on a family date with Damo and the kids to Macarathur Square for dinner and playland for the kids :)