Four Laps Round The Sun

Today, my girl completed her forth lap round the Sun. How amazing it is that in that time she has changed from a tiny helpless being, into a little person who knows so much, who says so much and who does so much. 

She talks non stop, she uses large words to explain things- disgusting, amazing, humungous! 

She loves to dance. 

She loves to dress up, especially as a fairy, a princess or a mermaid. 

Her favorite colour is pink. 

She has a shoe addiction and prefers to spend her savings money on a pair of shoes rather than a toy. 

She draws amazing pictures of flowers and her family and friends.

She loves her sister. She also loves to boss her sister around!

She enjoys wring her name- on pictures, on steamed up windows, with the fridge magnets- everywhere.

She thinks that now she is 4, she is bigger, smarter and more grown up than she was yesterday.

But most of all, she is an amazing girl whom I adore with all my heart.

2011.

There have been 2 years in my life, where the course I thought I was following has been inexplicably altered though no act of my own doing. The first time was in 2000 when this happened. The second time was this year when the Christchurch earthquakes sent our lives onto yet another, different, unexpected route. 

The earthquake, within a few seconds destroyed a lot of the community in which I lived. It caused grief and anguish to many who lost a lot more than I did. But on a personal level, it caused my girl to become very reclusive, frightened and withdrawn, as her little 3 year old mind tried to come to terms with the situation she found herself in. 

In amongst all this, she turned 3. We had an impromptu party and for that day, everybody smiled. It was beautiful.

Shortly after her birthday, she got her first pair of glasses, teeny tiny glasses. I never knew they made them so small.

In the immediate aftermath of the earthquake, we spent serval weeks in Golden Bay, enjoying the idyllic beaches and relative normality of life there. But upon or return to Christchurch, we made a big decision. The right thing for us, for our family, was to move away. Leaving was scary. It had never been in our plans. But as it turned out, it was a good thing.

We found our selves here. Five hours from home in this beautiful alpine lake village. We found ourselves welcomed here. And slowly, we have built a new life here. 

Holly started preschool. I still find myself stunned that my baby is big enough to give me a quick kiss before she rushes off to play with her friends each day.  She started swimming lessons, ballet classes and had her first haircut. This girl of mine is growing up!

And this little girl? Over the course of this year, she has grown from a baby to a toddler. She talks non stop, she loves to dance, she loves to cuddle and she is mad on thomas the tank engine. She has the biggest character. She makes me laugh out loud so many times a day. And as 2011 drew to a close, this littlest girl of mine turned 2. 

Sadly, in 2011, we also said goodbye to a loyal friend. Our lovely old dog Tim died. We had him for 15 years, he was a good gentle pet and we still miss him a lot.

2011, what a year eh?

Bring on 2012. 

Zoo-ing

My girls are animal mad, as our poor perpetually patient cat will attest too. 

In our household, a little ritual has emerged in recent months. Instead of our usual bath, book, bed rhythm, on a sunday night, once the girls are all rugged up in their PJs, we snuggle up together and spend half an hour inthralled in watching a local wildlife vets show. 

So, when we knew we where coming up to Christchurch for the little ones birthday, we took the opportunity to take them to the local wildlife park. The girls had a blast, they saw all their favorites- lions, tigers, zebras and monkeys. They watched in awe as the lions play fought each other. They laughed with glee as the monkeys came right up close to greet them. We all stood in amazement when we saw the usually reclusive native kiwi bird. 

It was such a fun way to spend the day and celebrate Isla's birthday, even the rain could not wash the smiles off their little faces. 

Road Tripping

Road Trip- two words that can set fear into the hearts of any parent with young children. 

Yesterday, we made the long drive up the spine of this beautiful country so that we can spend christmas with our families. It was a long drive, full of the stunning scenery, the kind that causes tourists to travel this route in their droves. But with a 1 year old and a 3 year old in the car, I was apprehensive about doing this drive again. But, surprisingly, my girls where really good. Playing together, reading, singing, talking, for the whole 6 hours. The littlest one has, in recent months, completely moved to using the potty and is out of nappies. So, that was another thing I was anxious about on this trip. But, again she surprised me. Telling me every hour or so "wee wees mama". We would pull over, she would do her business and we would be on our way again. Easy. In hindsight, I wonder why I worried so. 

Puddles

"I like puddles. Do you like puddles Mumma? For jumping in?.... It's quite fun"

Holly age 3

Dear Santa

Dear Santa,

I have a very big christmas list but all I really want is a fairy dress and a wand.

Love Holly (age 3 and 3/4).

Oh how I love that little girl in all her sweetness. 

And just quietly, it seems Santa must be very smart as he already has a fairy dress and wand,  ready and waiting for the big day to arrive. 

Enjoying Simple Pleasures

Today has been one of those lovely hot late spring days, the kind of day which fill you with anticipation of the summer to come. I made the most of the beautiful weather to enjoy an impromptu ice cream in town with my girls, followed by picking wild flowers down by the river. Simple pleasures that make for a very happy day with my girls. 

My Little Lady Of The Lake

I love how our days pan out here. A lazy lunch followed by an afternoon beach combing at the lake. This little girl of mine, just loves the water. She spends long periods sitting and playing quietly by the waters edge. She loves to throw pebbles into the water, taking joy in the plopping and slashing as they hit the water. 

Today this little girl of mine really made me smile. There is something about preschoolers and costumes, they are like moths to a flame, and my little Holly is no exception to that. Lately, I rarely seem to see her out of costume and todays choice was a butterfly fairy. She flittered along the waters edge, testing the water and enjoying the freedom to unleash her little butterfly fairy along the empty beach.

And as usual for my little girl, we spent time collecting the prettiest of the treasures to take home.

Gotta love days like this.  

I Came Back

I never intended to leave this space but, well, life just got in the way.

As many of you know, my family survived the horror of the February earthquake in Christchurch. We lived through the aftermath before deciding to move hundreds of miles away to start over. To be honest, I have found this whole year a little bit mind blowing and I have been working hard to find my bearings again and establish a new life here. We are 6 months into our new beginning and I am pleased to report that things are going well. We are happy. We have made new friends. We have been welcomed. We have embraced the change. Life is good.

And now, I am looking forward to returning to this space and sharing a little bit of this goodness again.

On Going Home

Last week was my first visit back to Christchurch following our move south a couple of months back. It was nice to be home. Nice to spend time with family and friends. Nice to see my girls playing with their cousins. Nice to be able to buy a few bits and pieces from the bigger chain stores we lack down south. It was not so nice to be around for another 5.4 quake but I was relieved my girls both slept through it.

Coming back to our new home, I am grateful for the easy life we have here. Life is so normal. My children behave normally here, they go to playgroup, pre-school, they play at the playground. All the things I used to take for granted, but never again. We are happy here.

And a little update on Holly's eyesight. While we were up in Christchurch, Holly saw the specialist. Her eyesight appears to be on the improve in the eye that was deemed blind. We will continue occlusion therapy and she will have more testing in another three months but things are looking good!

Another First

I told you this little girl of mine has a lot of 'firsts' going on at the moment.

This week she had her first day at preschool. She was so excited about starting, wanting to know when her first day was going to be.  The morning of the big day, she excitedly packed her new bag and was eager to get going. When we arrived, I got a quick kiss and she was off to play with her little friend whom she had spied across the room. I was meant to go back after an hour but the centre rang me to tell me she was having fun and in her words "did not want to go home yet". When I did pick her up later, she couldn't stop chattering about painting, play-dough, the slide and the animals.

Today was her second day and she still appears to be feeling the preschool love. She came home to proudly tell me she "made a little boyfriend"... gotta love 3 year olds.

Firsts

This girl of mine has lots of firsts happening at the moment. The latest, her first haircut. It has taken me over 3 years to build up the mummy courage to take my baby for her first haircut, but the time finally came when her hair was just getting too knotty. We knew it was time to chop off those baby ends.

She was so excited, she was literally bouncing when we arrived at the salon. She hopped up into the seat happily but did look more than a little surprised when they popped the cape on her shoulders. She was a little gem though and sat still for the entire cut.

And now we finally have the answer to our question, will she have curly hair like her daddy, or straight hair like her mummy?.... looks like she takes after her mummy.

And So We Begin Again...

Here....

I stand and find myself amazed at how far and how quickly my life has changed. The course I thought I was following, suddenly and inexplicably altered. But, that is life. So now we find ourselves here, in a different corner of paradise and I know this place is going to be good for us.

For now, we are just learning to find our bearings. Orientating ourselves to this new place. Finding our feet. Mind you, it is an easy place to fall in love with.

Her New Glasses

In amongst all the chaos that has become our lives post February 22nd, my little girl got her first pair of glasses. You may remember me telling you a wee while ago about Holly's eyesight. We went back to see the pediatric specialist who confirmed her eyesight is indeed atrocious in both eyes due to severe longsightedness, which has in turn caused the weaker eye to switch off. The new glasses is the first step in improving her eyesight.

Luckily, she has been very excited about them and has taken to wearing them easily. The first few days she walked round like a headmistress, peering over the top of her spectacles, but within a few days, she had adjusted to them and is actually very proud of her glasses.

It has changed her too, her personality. She used to be so shy and quiet. She used to stick close to me. Now she can see better, her confidence is beginning to grow. She is starting to come out of her shell, she is now happy to run far ahead of me and run fast- without falling over! She even looks different, more grown up some how. Funny that one little pair of glasses can do so much for one little girl.

Three

Today my little girl turned three. In the wake of all the destruction, we grouped together, a small gathering of friends and family to celebrate three wonderful years of having this little girl in our lives. We listened to songs, we played, we ate. Happy birthday was sung and cake was cut. She danced round the house, she chirped about how she was having a party, how she was three, how it was HER birthday. She wore her party dress and her fairy crown. She was happy, it was beautiful.

Happy birthday my sweet Holly.

Out Of The Blue

Funny how a few simple words uttered by a virtual stranger can change everything.

Late last year, it was pointed out to me that one of Holly's eyes often rolls in. I am embarrassed to say I had never noticed. I guess when you spend all day everyday with someone, their idiosyncrasies go unnoticed, as you tend to see the whole person rather than the individual parts, if that makes sense?

I didn't really think it mattered too much, a lazy eye. It was a part of who she was, something she might grow out of? I thought I would mention it next time we saw our doctor. But he spotted it first, as soon as he saw her. Six days later we were sitting in a consulting room at the hospital while they preformed eye sight tests on my sweet girl. I knew it was bad, when, with her good eye covered, she could not make out the pictures until they were little more than a foot away from her. But what came next stunned me.

'Legally blind in her right eye'

How did I not know? She has spent everyday of her life with me, almost three years and I never knew my little girl could only see me with one eye.

Suddenly though I feel like my rose coloured glasses have been swiped from me and a lot of things make sense. Holly has always been cautious and shy of people, she often trips over her own feet and gets annoyed when I try to guide her out of the way of others coming towards her. Now I see these things for what they are. Not cute character traits but rather the result of her compromised eye sight.

She has a long road ahead of her, ahead of us. To try and reclaim some level of sight in her eye. The doctor spoke of further testing, patching, an operation. It all feels a bit daunting at the moment but if it means she will be able to see better, it will all be worth it in the end.

And Then She Turned One...

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Not sure how that happened. How did she turn one so quickly? It seems like only yesterday I was holding her tiny new little body in my arms, amazed that she was here. I remember smelling her sweet milky new born breath, stroking her near bald head and staring into her baby blue eyes.

How fast time flies. Today she turned one. I stare at her, amazed at how much she has grown and changed. The head, once sparse of hair is now covered in downey white hair. The baby blue eyes replaced with grey ones. She see's me watching her and a cheeky grin breaks out across her sweet face. She toddles over to me on feet that grow more and more confident at walking with each passing day. When she reaches me, she wraps her little arms around my neck, puckers her little cherry lips and kisses me several times. My heart swells with love for this sweet little girl.

Happy first birthday Isla, oh how we love you.

Isla Rose

Today we celebrated out littlest one with a naming celebration. Mother nature was kind to us as usual,  providing a beautiful hot day. Together with friends and family, we drew together. With the backdrop of the Canterbury plains behind us, we celebrated this beautiful little girl whom I am lucky enough to call my daughter.

Isla Rose.

We chose her name carefully. I find naming a child a huge responsibility and one not to be taken lightly. Isla (pronounced I-la) is a Scottish name derived from the island of Islay. Scotland is my birthplace, so, it just felt right to me to name her after a place with which I have such a strong connection. Rose, was my paternal grandmothers name. Holly took my husbands grandmothers name of Iris. We also found it beautifully appropriate that both our girls had flower names and the connotations that holds for us of nature and beauty.

A perfect name for a perfect girl.

Painting With My Girl

Yesterday, Holly and I spent a lovely afternoon painting. 

It is such a joy to watch little people hard at work in creation. I think these lovely words by Brunhid Muller in his book 'Painting with Children' sums it up perfectly- "To paint with colours means to live with them and in them". And that is absolutely what children do when they paint, They become so fully absorbed in the colour.

I love the way, as she selects her colours, it begins to tell a little story.

Which is added to with the next colour to create that little bit of magic.

We like to paint using watercolours as it really allows her the the freedom and creativity to express all the beautiful colours she carries with her in her sweet little heart-

Painted by Holly, aged 2 1/2.

4 Seasons- Spring

Summer. My favorite Season. Spring, my second favorite. 

The other day, I watched my 2 year old kindly share her ice block with her very excited baby sister. They sat in the sun, ice-block dripping over their tiny hands while Holly passed it back and forth between their mouthes. Afterwards, they smelt just like summer, that mix of cool ice block breath and sunscreen. Bliss.

Do you have something to share that personifies the season you are in?

Would love you to link up.