Year 2013

Well, this should probably be a year in the life of GJ!!

Our last blog was from March 2012 and so much has happened since then.

Let us start from April 2012.....

April 2012 - Ash and I were chatting on the phone (as per usual) and all of a sudden it turned into us moving in together.

May 2012 - What a month it had been.  GJ and I did the big move from Lota to Caboolture.  Found a new daycare, mummy found a new job and life was going great!

(GJ's new room at Caboolture)

September 2012 - Ash proposed to me!  It was either he decided it was the time to, or else he was sick of me leaving jewellery catalogues all over the house and asking him when he was going to propose to me.

December 2012 - Was a first family Christmas together at home and the first (and last for now!) that we hosted with our families.  It was a fantastic day and GJ was so excited to see that Santa had delivered him (yet another) rubbish truck that he wanted.

February 2013 - GJ starts in pre-prep at daycare and starts to learn to recognise letters and write his name.  GJ turns 4 this month!  He got his first big bike! We had a party for him at Hungry Jacks where he had a few of his friends come along.  He had an absolute ball.  Still can't believe he turned 4....  I'm in denial he is growing up.  We also had a birthday celebration at home with the family.  He must've thought it was the birthday of all birthdays!  He had a real life ambulance turn up at the house!  Albeit, not for him.  Grandad had decided to ride Ash's bike out on the road while GJ rode his.  Alas, as Grandad hit the kerb, fell off and knocked his head on the road.  After fainting and other symptoms an ambulance was called.  Mum and I were freaking out!  GJ didn't know what to do with all the commotion going on. 

April 2013 - Ash get a new job offer to move to Canberra.  Our parents are destraught, GJ doesn't really understand.

May 2013 - Sees our little family do the car trip from Brisbane to Canberra.  Our families are in tears, I'm in tears, GJ is in tears because I'm in tears because my mother is in tears!  Goodness me, and we hadn't even left the driveway!  We ended up in short term accommodation for 2 weeks while the house was still getting ready.

 (Ironman at daycare dress up)

 (GJ in his Canberra winter gear)

October 2013 - We all made the trek back up to Brisbane for our wedding!  GJ looked so cute in his little suit and my now husband looked handsome in his.  Thank you to all those who attended and/or gave us their best wishes.  It was the best day of our lives, apart from GJ entering mine as well.  Two weeks up in the sunny part of Australia saw us come back to Canberra where it was still cold. We still have the heaters out now and use on a few occasions.

November 2013 - Trying to get ready for our first Christmas with no family around for any of us.  Santa has been busy looking at presents for GJ that he wants.

It truly has been a whirlwind 19 or so months for all of us.  A lot of changes, new experiences, new challenges and a whole lot of fun.  What lies ahead for the future?  Who knows, one can only take it day by day.  GJ is growing up so fast and is off to primary school (kindergarten, prep for those in Queensland) next year.  I need to learn to get go of the cotton wool around him and trust that it will be a good experience for him.  He changes every day to my amazement and as I sit here typing he is busy building with his lego and showing me the different models he is making. 

I've been lucky enough to find a job down here that was full time, then be able to go part time.  Sometimes I still go backwards, and anyone who has had depression knows you never 'get over it'.  You have moments or weeks where it is blurry for you, where you don't feel right and nothing goes right.  Unfortunately it is hard to express that feeling to someone who hasn't had it.

Well, that's an update for you all since we last posted.  Christmas will soon be upon us, then the new year, then the school year.

To all our family and friends, thank you for your support over these times and we look forward to sharing our journey with you all as we follow our new path in life.

Mummy, Daddy and GJ xx

October - March

My oh my...  Life takes unexpected twists, turns and bumps and you never quite know what you are going to get!

December - CHRISTMAS!!!  Christmas 2011 was made extra special in that GJ could actually open his presents this year!  Santa brought him a Thomas the Train train table and train set and Daddy Ash set it all up Christmas Eve night.  As soon as GJ walked out Christmas morning, he turns around, whispers "mummy, look!" and runs over to it.  He was very spoilt this year with heaps of presents from everyone and he certainly had a big day.

January - brought along GJ's first family holiday.  Ash and I took him down the coast for a few days.  He had a ball!  Wouldn't go into the ocean though, so that is something we will need to work on.  Broadbeach has a fantastic enclosed park for the kids.  Probably wasn't the best time in terms of rain, we had to run from the park to the hotel one afternoon but it was good to get away for a few days and spend some time together.  We also had a trip to Sea World (albeit a quick one, rain again!) but just seeing the smile on his face was totally worth the trip down.

February - saw GJ turn the big 3!!  And of course, there was rain!  I don't think this child has had a birthday yet where rain hasn't been involved.  Luckily it stopped during the night of the day before his party and didn't start until we were packing everything up.  The joys of having it at the park? Not having to sweep or clean beforehand.  Again, he was very spoilt.  His 3rd birthday was made special as he had some friends from daycare there.  He hadn't seem either of them in a little while and ran over to play with them as soon as he saw them.  February also saw him commence swimming lessons again.  Although we only managed to fit in one before weekends of "can't do it this weekend" started.  Miss Shae was nice and patient with him but he still refused to hop into the water!  Hopefully this weekend he will be enticed to hop in and start swimming again.

March - saw GJ have his own weekend with Nana and Grandad as mummy and Daddy Ash went away to Canberra for GJ's god mum's wedding (Aunty Shae).  I tell you, it was great to have time away from GJ (my first time since he was born, well deserved I think!) and to be able to spend quality time with my superman.  March has also seen the beginning of Uni for mummy (who should be studying rather than writing this).

That has been just a quick overview of the past few months.  Very enjoyable to say the least and I'm sure the next few months will be even better!

September - October

How quickly does this year seem to be going by!

Had a bit of a teary moment at daycare today.  GJ told me to leave and then started to play catch with one of his kindy teachers.  Kind of upsetting to see others doing the 'mummy' job of a day.  But once I got to work, I was too busy to even tear up anymore!  GJ is loving daycare, the kids and his teachers.  I found out tonight that he has started to 'copy' the other boys at school and stand up at the toilet (something he isn't allowed to do with his potty at home).  Miss Alex told me tonight that he was standing up there this afternoon, holding on to his wee wee but there was nothing coming out.  Turned out he was holding on far too tight and he was stopping it from coming out.  Had me in tears of laughter in the car on the drive home.  Just goes to show how quickly he is growing.

I bought the Toy Story movie for him on the weekend, and since Saturday, he has watched it about 5 times.  Ash gave him a Buzz Lightyear toy that had been left at the swimming pool and GJ was too timid to play with it, given it makes noises etc, so I thought what better way for him to get used to it than watch the movie.  Well, it has certainly worked.  He loves the movie and has started to exclaim about Buzz when he appears on the screen.  Perhaps Toy Story (or Rio) will replace his all-time favourite movie, Mamma Mia!

The soccer run is happening on Sunday this weekend.  I've organised for him to have a trial at soccer with a group of kids around his age.  They all take turns kicking the ball and learning what to do.  Hmmm, is this what all mum's end up like?  Ferrying their kids around to sporting events on a weekend.  Didn't realise it would start happening at such a young age!

Christmas is still coming closer and closer.  Very much looking forward to seeing Donna, Brock and Abby when they come back down for a visit.  Lots to catch up on!  Santa is still deciding on what GJ will be getting for Christmas, he has organised far too much already and I told him we have no where to store it all after Christmas.

64 sleeps to go!!!!!!!!!!!

August - September

Thinking back to 2 years ago, Gregory was just 7 months old.  How time flies by when you don't expect it!  Back then, he could hardly crawl, he was eating 3 small meals a day, having 4 sleeps a day....  Fast forward 2 years, he is running all around the place, talking your ear off, eating anything and everything he can find or ask for and having just 2 sleeps a day.  They grow up so fast, it's frightening.  He's going through an independent stage at the moment and it involves a lot of tantrums when he doesn't get his way.  We have settled into a new routine, which involves GJ waking up between 5.30 - 6am every single day of the week! Trying to get him to stay in bed in the weekends just isn't working and mummy doesn't function well at that time of the morning.

Mummy is still enjoying work and has been placed in a seat on a permanent basis.  My partner and lawyer are great to work with and the other secretaries and I get along really well.  It's like I've been there forever and a day, but it seems to be only 6 weeks!  Have my 3 month review coming up this week, so hopefully everything will be ok.

 
Gregory did really well on his first sleep over without mummy.  He had a ball at Uncle Tony and Aunty Jodie's and mummy and Ash had a great time at the Defence Charity Ball.  A few too many wines perhaps, but nevertheless a fantastic night had by all!



That night was the start of something good, something that will hopefully continue on...  We shall see!  Gregory has met Ash a few times and slowly getting to know him.  It's a big step for the little guy but I'm sure he and Ash will get along fantastically.

On a uni note, I have 'deferred' for a few more months, at this stage.  I just didn't want to be spreading myself too thin in terms of work, Gregory and uni, as well as having a few minutes to myself of a night!  Uni will still be there when I am ready to return, but I only have the young years with Gregory once, and I don't want to miss out on them by being too stressed or not having enough time to spend with him.

Hard to believe that it is only 10 or so weeks till Christmas.  I best start paying off those Christmas layby's and actually look at what I've purchased for him and not buy anything else....  Those of you who know me know how hard that can be!  I love to spoil my little boy but think 'Santa' will have to start holding back.

Reality

I've been reminded several times tonight of the fact that my problems are, as quoted on the X Factor, pathetic to what others are or have been going through.  For Daniel Morcombe's parents, they will never again (and haven't for the past 8 years) hug their son, watch him grow up to be a young man nor watch him experience life as it changes.

I watched a recording tonight from the Sunday Night program on the soldiers in Afghanistan who have been killed or injured and think to myself, there are men and women are out there right now, away from their families, forever on the lookout for something that could go wrong.  Yet, they don't complain - it's their job.  This is probably what half of them joined the Forces for - to protect their country.  Those parents and family members of those who have been killed, like Daniel Morcombe's family, will never again hug nor watch them grow.  No one had the chance to say goodbye, to say one more I love you or to record that one last look of them before you watch them head off.

Life is full of ups and downs, things that don't go quite to plan and things that just go to absolute shit.  In the end though, I'm grateful for the life I have, as much as I do complain or whinge about it.  Gregory and I are both happy and healthy and have a roof over our heads, and really, that's more than what some people have in a lifetime.

So as I finally head to bed, I take one last look at my child, plant a kiss on his head, whisper I love you and hope and pray that we are all lucky enough to be able to deal with all that life offers tomorrow and in the future.

July - August

A huge month in the lives of Gregory and mummy this month.  Gregory is just learning so many new things each day and week, and it kind of upsets me that I'm missing out on it but I know he is having a ball.  He has recently moved up to the kindy room full time in daycare so has huge days with the older kids and in particular, his 2 best friends.  A few discussions this week between daycare and mummy has resulted in a few changes, which we shall see if they actually stick.  I guess we were kind of spoiled in the toddler room, a few less kids and I actually got to see one if not both of his teachers each day to talk about how he went, what he did etc, but now I'm lucky to talk to his teachers once or twice a week!  All in all, GJ is loving it and didn't want to come on Friday when nana went to pick him up, he wanted to continue to play.

Work is going fantastically.  I'm loving every minute of it, particularly at the moment as I am working for a partner and a new lawyer.  From the minute I walk in, to the minute I walk out the door, it's all go go go.  I've missed it, sad to say I know.  Hopefully if all goes well I will be offered the chance to stay in that seat on a permanent basis.

The new uni semester starts tomorrow and I'm just attempting the one unit to see how I go.  Will be interesting to see how much study I get done on the train and in my lunch break, but I will still continue as I want to get this degree completed.


In 2 weeks, GJ will be going for his first sleep over at Aunty Jodie's and Uncle Tony's (only mummy's second night away from him) and mummy is going to a Defence Legacy Ball.  Dress, shoes, bag all bought and I'm very much looking forward to it.  I'm also very much looking forward to who I'm going with.


That's pretty much it for this month, it's just work, daycare, weekends for us now and we are finally starting to settle into our 'routine'.  GJ took a few weeks to get settled, understandably, but now, he has the best attitude, behaviour and temperament I have ever seen him have.  My little boy is growing up!!

June- July

What a month it has been....!!  Gregory has come in leaps and bounds and growing up so damn fast every day, it amazes me as to what he does or says next.  It really is a surprise with a child and each day is as amazing as the last.  He has taken to full time 5 days a week daycare like a duck to water.  It was probably the best decision I've made.  He has got into a routine more than what we had before work and is just one tired little boy come the end of the day or the week.  For those who don't know us that well, Gregory and I have had the same routine, give or take, for over a year now.  He is such a routine based child it scares me, but he seems to cope better with it, rather than not knowing.  He is now being transitioned from the toddler room to the kindy room at daycare and as such, will be with his two best friends, Hayden and Oscar.  He apparently waits for them outside of a day to play with them, I wish I could see him interacting with them.  Again, over the past few weeks, we have lost socks, pants, tops, jumpers.....  I'm beginning to wonder which child I am clothing!

Work for mummy has been a huge learning curve.  I was wondering in the first week whether I had made the right decision in taking such a long time to go back to work, but now I realise that I had time with my child at home, that some people do not get.  Of course, since each legal firm works in different ways in terms of processes etc, it is taking me a little bit of time to get used to it all again.  Last week I worked the full 5 days with a part of the Projects and Property team and had the best week.  The 3 people I worked for were understanding about my not knowing all the processes, but after the first day, I was just going along with the flow and loving every minute of it.  Not used to running around the office in a frenzy because one photocopier won't work, or that I was running late to get to the train to reach Gregory.  This week sees me back in Dispute Resolution for a day and Corporate for 3 days with hopefully one day at reception.

The past 3 weeks has also brought along some news/information that I had been trying to get for 2 years.  So hopefully in the next few weeks I will be able to share some news with you all that will make me so happy.

Saturday saw Gregory spending time with Aunty Jodie, Jermaine and Kaelan as nanna and I took some time off to do some shopping together.  I think mummy was more upset about letting her little boy go than he was.  He had a ball and came home so tired for his lunchtime sleep.  No rest for the wicked though, he had to have lunch so we could go to his 2 cousins' birthday party (Ben's family).

Knock on wood, Gregory hasn't gotten sick since I started work, however he has some sort of cold at the moment and I'm hoping him complaining of a sore ear is just the last 2 molars coming through.

That's pretty much it for this month.  Apart from daycare and work, we haven't had much of a chance to do much.  But I guess that's our life now and pretty soon it will be such a normal routine for the both of us, we won't know the different.