Glenbrook Gorge

this months hike was glenbrook gorge.

and we got lost.

maybe not lost but this is the first hike

that the instructions made completely no sense.

what they were saying should be there,

was not there lol.

so there was rock climbing involved in this hike,

there was jevan running ahead to make sure we were going to right way involved,

there was eel spotting,

lizard spotting,

sticks cutting our legs involved

but this was one enjoyable hike.

it was so nice to see the boys help and encourage each other

through the difficult obstacles we would encounter,

that we were absolutely not prepared for.

lucky we packed extra snacks

and maybe next time this mum will check the grading of the hike

not only the time it takes to complete.

i thought it was an easy/medium hike but it was graded hard

(whoops.)

the boys thought reaching jellybean pool was the best reward ever though

and then they realised that we had to walk all the way back to our car,

then it was not so fun.

Mr Five

our baby turned 5.

i don't even know where the time has gone?!

i still look at him and see a 2 year old

and then i pick him up and we are basically almost the same size lol.

i love seeing him grow

but saying goodbye to the last things that we will ever do breaks me a little.

he absolutely LOVED this birthday.

in our family when you are 5 you get a party

so zay has been waiting for this moment since he turned 4.

he chose to have a flip out party.

he invited friends from school, church and his cousin.

i did not see him for the whole 2 hour party,

he was in his element.

we had his party on the saturday

and on his actual birthday (sunday)

we went to church in the morning

and he got to have his favourite cousin/best friend spend the day at church with him,

we then headed in the city to have a picnic under the harbour bridge.

zay LOVES the city.

he talks about it a lot.

he loves the bridge, the trains, the boats, the ferry, the hustle and bustle.

he is def a city boy.

he requested pancakes for breakfast, yorkies with gravy and corn for dinner,

for his birthday cake he desperately wanted maxibons ice-cream

and i was more than happy to fulfil that request of his.

his day was "the best ever" as he puts it.

happy birthday our not so little zayden boy,

the little fire of our family.

we love you and can't wait to see what this year has instore for you.

Kindy 2019

my dear zayden boy,

you have no idea how proud i am of you in this exact moment. 

you started a new phase of your life today,

you started big school. 

and my dear, 

you smashed it.

my favourite part of saying goodbye to you was

just before you went into class you ran and 

gave me one last hug and patted me on the back.

you will never know how special you are too me.

you have been my little side kick for the last 5 years

and out of all the boys you are the biggest mumma’s boy.

i have watched you grow and conquer your fears

and today proved just how brave and strong you are.

you did not cling to my leg or even cry.

you only turned back to give me one last hug because 

you knew mum was “happy sad” for this moment.

you are going to move mountains,

but sometimes life is going to kick you down sometimes 

you need to remember just how stubborn and defiant 

you are in those moments to kick it back.

you are a mixture of cheeky, kind, considerate, anti-social

 mixed with a little fire.

our family wouldn’t be complete with out you in it.

being your mum is an absolute pleasure and honour.

i cannot wait to see what the amazing things the future has instore for you.

“I’ll love you forever, I’ll like you for always, as long as I’m living, my baby you’ll be.”

love mum.

School 2019

the older boys started school today.

on one hand i feel like

YES I MADE IT

and on the hand 

my heart is legit breaking.

you blink and then they are all grown up.

this year we have a yr 4 and a yr 2-er.

i love watching them be challenged and grow every year

but a little part of me breaks to think 

each year they become more and more less dependant of me.

their are so many hopes and dreams i have for my boys

but my biggest hope is 

that they will always be the best version of themselves.

jevan and i try and raise them the best we can

(sometimes that in itself is a challenge)

we hope that we are doing right by them,

we hope that they will learn to distinguish between good and bad choices,

we hope that they will be able to understand with agency comes consequence,

we hope that they speak kindly to people

and use their manners.

most of the time we fail them 

as we get use to managing each stage of life they go through

but i hope they know that no matter what they do

that we will always love them.

here's to the beginning of the 2019 school year.

Christmas 2018

christmas in 2018 will go down as my ultimate favourite.

this was our very first christmas we had just with our little family.

we did not have to leave the house

and rush to different events.

we ate whenever we wanted to 

and the best part was we ate so much on christmas eve

that we had left overs on christmas day,

which meant basically there was little to no cooking !

we started off by taking the boys to their favourite restaurant

- GAMI

came home, read the christmas story

and then opened presents up from the Nicholls side 

(christmas eve is a big deal on my side)

and finished it off by watching The Polar Express.

the big day came.

the day zayden had been counting down for since christmas 2017.

seeing the expression on his face 

when he realised santa had been was priceless.

i don't know how many more we have with the boys 

where they 110% believe that santa is real

so we soak it up every year.

we read the christmas story again but this time from the book of mormon

and opened up more presents.

i don't know what they like more

opening their own presents

or watching each other open the present that they bought.

we spent christmas day doing a scavenger hunt.

each clue lead to a different game we would play as a family.

(thanks stoddard family for this awesome idea thats now going to become a tradition)

we played 5 second rule, blokus, basketball and had a water fight.

we didn't get to play our big family grid iron game because it was wayyyy too hot.

it was a perfect way to end off a crappy year.

christas 2018 you were exactly what i needed.

Mount Kozi

so for our 10 year anniversary 

*WHOOP WHOOP*

we decided to do something a little different 

and a little australian.

we hiked mt kozi

(i have no idea how to spell it so i just call it that.)

seriously,

AH-MAZ-ING.

we walked 24 km's through rugged mountain ranges,

over the snowy river and little creeks,

fought against the wind in some spots

and made it to the top of australia's highest mountain.

it took us just over 8 hours return.

boy did our butts and thighs hurt the next day.

we had to go for a little walk around lake jindabyne to loosen up,

we realised we ain't what we used to be when we first got married in 2009.

it was something pretty special and

i'm so glad we got to do it together.

24km's is a whole lot of talking time lol,

although for the first 2 km's going up the mountains killed jevan,

who did not speak until it flattened out.

i don't even think pictures do it justice.

the scenery looked like it had been painted.

i'm super lucky to have married someone who lets me

and even comes with me on these crazy things 

i have on my bucket list.

jevan would happily sit at home and watch sport
all.day.long

but instead spent the whole day in my happy place.

he even came with me to explore an abandoned brewery

as a pit stop on the way down

AND let me stop in at marulan on the way home 

to do the historic meander of all the old buildings
(in 40 degree death heat)

but they combine my love of old buildings with his love of history,

it was a win win.

on a soppy note -

i cannot believe we made it 10 years,

there have been some tricky times 

where i legit could've packed up and just gone.

marriage is up there with motherhood.

its super super hard at times.

but every time we go through a trial

and when we come out of it,

i see how much we have grown as individuals and a couple.

we are not the same 19 and 20 year old 

that got married 10 years ago.

we have screamed at each other,

we have cried together,

we  have laughed together,

we have supported one another,

we have been through trials together

and i can honestly say i am glad we have stuck everything out together.

we are complete opposites in every way you could think of,

we have pretty much nothing in common

- except for our children

but it works for us.

he is my greatest adventure

and i'm so glad he chose me.

happy 10 years my love.

p.s jevan hates photos,
that's why most are of his back.