I'm baaaaaacccckkkkkk!!!

Yes - it's true - I am still very much alive.
I had to shake out a few cobwebs on my return - wow - it's been a while.
Here's the last few years in a nutshell -

• took a two year break from Uni - needed some space - needed some money!!

• worked a couple of jobs - one mindlesss (admin for a construction company) - another very interesting (ASADA - Aust sports anti-doing mob - short term contract - good times).

• I now have two daughters in highschool - MissG in Year 10 (& now taller than me - eek!) - MissE in Year 7 - and little MissJ is in Year 3. All have great teachers - all doing really well. They are the light of my world.

• girls are playing HEAPS of sport - a mixture of netball, volleyball and Aussie Rules football / AFL!!

• last November I played a week of netball at the Pan Pacific Masters Games on the Gold Coast. It was amazing - never thought I'd ever do such a thing - great team - great times - and I survived 8 games of netball in 5 days!!

• while in QLD I also got to finally meet my bio mother and two bio brothers! Weird, exciting, emotional, stressful - in fact every emotion under the sun. Needless to say - I now feel a peace that I haven't in a very very long time.

• did a few (some minor/some major) renovations on the house - put in an inground pool (woot!) and landscaped the back garden. (below is a peek....) Pool built by JS Pools. (local Canberra pool company - the link is to their yellow pages entry as they don't have a website - highly recommend them - we have 5 other friends who have used them). Lanscape design & labour by myself and Mr W. Hard work but REALLY happy with the results. 

• We're currently working on fixing up the study (looks pretties so far!!) - and the lounge-room. I'll add photos along the way to show you bits that we've done.

• I am now back at Uni - (Bachelor of Education - Primary teaching) - doing a full load - just want to get the flippy thing done!!! I should be able to teach from mid next year - with just one or two extra subjects to finish off by the end of next year. Love, love, love to teach - just bored with the studying bit - but need that bit of paper (the actual degree) - so will suck it up and get on with things!

• looking at starting a design company with my girls. The creative streak has flaired up once more with the return to Uni and the space to use my brain! We've decided to call ourselves stuff by us - and we'll have some crafty homewares - like quilts, paper craft, small home furnishing etc etc. Keep watching this space as I add pics of various pieces along the way. We're all very excited - this is going to be fun!!! (of course it's going to be a slow process - with Uni, school, sports, life - but hay - we have to start somewhere!)

• Molly - our Spoodle - is still doing very well. She's a joy to have around.

• MrW - still my rock. He deserves a medal most days. xx

• and I nearly forgot - I've lost almost 10 kilos!! Last year I went on 'Lite n Easy'- really great food. Have stagnated for now - can't afford the special food with the loss of my income. Have concluded that exercise would greatly help with greater weight loss!! (but it has been a few months - and I have managed to keep it off). Very happy.

That's all I can think of for now. Oh - it's been the stock-standard rollercoaster of life - with all it's ups and downs - but we've faired well - and life is - as always - GREAT!

Nice to be back. xxx

Spring Has Sprung - And Other Things.....

03Sep08 - Today I am grateful for -

• The blossoms have started to bloom.......it's a sign of warmer things to come. (YIPEE) It was a rather chilly winter - and although it was a bumper season on the ski slopes (2 hours south from here) - we didn't manage to fit in a snow trip this year. Hopefully 2009.

Here are some almond blossoms in our front garden, taken today.

• A great tutorial at Uni today - with lots of discussions on the state of Australia's education system - and all that has been in the news lately.

Sadly - our society puts so much emphasis on the measure of success for a child being how high their university entrance score is upon finishing high school.

Seriously though - one can not measure a child's ability to be successful in life in only those terms. That's really quite absurd!!
As teachers (and as parents) we must care for our students, help them to have a love of knowledge - and just give them the best tools to take on the world.
And those tools MUST include the ability to think for oneself / think creatively / think outside the box / think with empathy & compassion for one's fellow man - as WELL AS having a good grasp of literacy and numeracy, science and social studies.

Teachers and schools are asked to show their worth by children scoring well only in the areas of literacy and numeracy.

How on earth can that really work???????

It baffles me that this education system - and all the government debates - haven't really changed at all in the last 100 or more years.

There HAS to be a better way.

Frustrating - to say the least.

(and I won't even start on how low teachers are paid in this country!!! Scandinavian countries pay their teachers almost the same as doctors - whereas here - we're expected to work our magic for the kids - but live off very low wages. No wonder over 50% of new graduate teachers leave the field completely within the first 3 years.........yes - 50%!!)

Anyhoo - the discussions were good. Rant now over!!

Now I have to work out how I can change it all!!! (I'll get back to you on that one......!)

• Getting around to doing a big food shop today. It's been awhile - just grabbing small bits here and there. Our pantry and fridge are now fully loaded!!!! (we'll see how quickly this hungry family manages to consume it all!!)

02Sep08 - Today I am grateful for -

• Teacher's strike this morning for 2 hours at school - so we managed to have a sleep in. I dropped MissJ and MissE down to school at 11:00am. It was a nice and calm morning!!

• A surprise package arriving from my sister L - who lives in Darwin. She recently went to the UK - the trip was part business / part jolly - and she hunted around for some great treasures for us all.

And here are pics of the girls with their new Gap t-shirts from London....

Yes - it's a dorky photo - I know - but it's so cool that they're all at a similar height difference!!

(they're growing up so quickly - * sob*)

So here's a more relaxed shot - with Miss Molly!!

01Sep08 - Today I am grateful for -

• Having a monumental BLONDE moment - but still being able to admit it - and to laugh harder than I have in a very long time!!! I think it's a good skill to be able to laugh at your own mistakes. It's lucky I can - as I make mistakes often - and I'd be a depressed mess if it weren't for the laughter!!

• My gorgeous friend MrsSmiff came home from hospital today - after 5 days in with pnemonia. She's a busy woman - and the hospital stay forced her to rest. We're all very glad she's now home - on the mend - and resting for another week. It's also made her re-think life choices - which could be a very good thing. Life's far too short and precious to be running around after everyone except you and those that you love.

• Long over-due phone-call with my sister L. It's been awhile - and it was great to catch up. Sadly we may not be able to see one another this year (she lives 8 hours by plane away - in Darwin) - but we'll look forward to when we can.

Time For A Walk......................?????

Trying to get my attention - you think??!?!

Our Spoodle - Molly Moo!!

New Addition To The Family.

As hinted in my previous post - yes - it's true - we have welcomed a new member to the House-o-Possum.

She's blonde and beautiful - just like all the other female members of this household (ha!) - and she was born in September 2007.
We had been considering adding to our brood - but the timing had to be right (I had to finish my studies for the semester) - and we had to wait for all the stars to align - just right.

Name: Molly Moo
Current Age: 9 months
Breed: Spoodle - Cross Cocker Spaniel/Poodle
(or 'Cocka-Poo' for you USA peeps)
Place of Birth: Bungendore, NSW
Where we First Met: Pet Shop, Canberra
Nature: Extremely Cuddly, Fluffy & Cute

Photo 1: Molly on MissG's lap - day of arrival Nov'07
Photo 2: Molly with MissE

Photo 3: Molly with MissJ

Photo 4 & 5:  Miss Molly Moo!!

All About A Bunny

We've had a couple of rough weeks here in House O Possum.
And it's all because of a Bunny.

Name: Bouncer Bunny
Age: 1.5 years
Breed: Miniature Floppy Ears
Nature: Extremely Cute

Two weeks ago, said Bunny escaped from the back yard - and after numerous searches, he was nowhere to be found.

Picture this - 3 girls - various levels of emotional distress - depending on the age and the capacity to feel the full effects of the loss. Mum and Dad just trying to console as best we can.

We just started to move past it all a little - when 1 week later - neighbour tells us that someone up the road had found said Bunny - and had handed it into the RSPCA Animal Shelter - half an hour away - on the other side of this fair city!!!

Photos were gathered to prove ownership. Family flew down the road hoping that Bouncer really could be found. Excitement reigned. Bouncer Bunny was there - and he was brought back to his family home, safe and sound.

(I even had quite a few cuddles over the past few days - and smiled deeply as I watched him once more bounce freely around our backyard during his 'Bouncing Times')

Late yesterday - something was wrong with Bouncer.

He didn't jump away when MissG went to collect him to replace him in his cage. He was in fact rather limp when held - and he was struggling greatly to move at all.

We checked him out. We tried to coax him to move. We attempted hand feeding and giving fluids gently with a tube. I sat for hours with him on my chest, starting to realise that something was just not right at all.

We tried to make him comfortable and warm for the night - hoping that the rest would do him well and he'd be a little better in the morning.

This morning, after dropping off said girls (again in various degrees of grief) off to school and preschool - I rushed straight to the Vet.

I immediately couldn't stop crying as I saw that Bouncer was in fact even weaker than the night before - and this was the same Vet that had to put down both our dog and our cat many years beforehand - on two very seperate and traumatic occasions.

The Vet's plan of action - try to rehydrate - give him a thorough physical - keep him warm and medicated for pain - and see how he was in 2-3 hours. I got to the car and fell into a heap.

Bloody rabbit. Bloody pets. They make our hearts bleed when they're sick.

I kept myself busy for most of the day. Praying, hoping that my worst fears would be swept away.

I called. Not much change. He hadn't moved much all day. Wasn't interested in food. Prognosis wasn't looking real good. But we left it another 3 hours just to see how he would go.

School pickups - and attempts at keeping the troops busy. Not looking them in the eye. Explaining that he really was very very sick. Trying not to let on how upset I really was.

Then at 4pm - I made the call - and together with the Vet - we . decided to let Bouncer go.

So - tonight - I'm a bit of a mess. Until today I didn't realise how very attached I'd become to this Bunny. And now he's gone - and I hurt for him - and I hurt for my girls - who have now lost a very special friend.

RIP Bouncer Bunny.

You were greatly loved and will be greatly missed.