You spin me right 'round baby, 'right round...

Last night Cassidy was being her usual pandemonium creating self when she was supposed to be getting ready for bed. She was singing a rather raucous version of Little Miss Muffet and Steve had already told her she was going to have trouble sitting on her tuffet after he had smacked it.

I was sitting on her bed, her pyjamas in hand, with the beaten look I take on at this time of day when she has got the better of me. Steve paused in the doorway, then walked toward her purposefully I think to inflict the afore-mentioned threat on her tuffet when she changed the words mid-rhyme to

"....there came a big daddy who sat down beside her and frightened Miss Cassidy away"

Again with concise life-saving timing, the crisis was averted. Steve and I lost the plot (well I lost it, Steve tried to retain decorum but didn't quite manage it) and she erupted into "aha, I sucked them into my vortex" laughter that resembled Dr Evil.

Cassidy: 1072 Mummy and Daddy: 0

Studio Reno: Part One

If you can't get Jamie Durie and Scott Cam, get the next best thing.... (only joking boys, you're much spunkier).

Finally getting around to blogging an in-progress shot (this is for you Jen!)

Steve and Lyall have been going great guns on the studio extension - I think I actually feel like it's real now! The prep work of cabling and installing my vacuumaid (all wonderful and important parts of the process, but not very exciting to watch) is now done, the stud work is done and the glass doors are in. They have started sheeting the walls now so it actually looks like a room! I think they may even get to painting this week, then it's the floor....oooh I'm getting all excited!!

It is amazing to think that however long ago we stood in the garage and said, "you know, this could make a great studio" and now it's actually happening. The other day just after all the stud work had gone up and it was seeming very "real", Steve stood there and said, "you know, this would make a great garage". At least he thinks he's funny.

Sheye is trying to convince me I need to have an opening party with champagne and canapes. I personly think about three people I know, including my family, would come and the rest would be the weirdos from down the road that heard about the free grog.

Steve and Lyall have been amazing, this simply would not be happening without them. Steve is in it for the love and the back rubs, Lyall is in it for the love and the cups of coffee :) Thanks so much boys, you know I love you both very much.

My dynamic working duo are back at it again today so there will probably be some updated shots later on :)

Home James.

our four gremlins in hoodies :)

Cassidy spent much of her time looking like nobody owned her.

Isaac's face after I told him if he kept annoying the emu it would jump the fence and chase him.

Cassidy and Bella

The playground was great - it was a "real" playground, obviously been there since before they decided fun things like round-a-bouts were un-safe :)

What you are lucky you can't see is how close I came to bringing up my breakfast whilst on the round-a-about trying to get shots of the kids.

Another cool piece of spinning enquipment I'm sure some government department has deemed "un-safe" by now

We had a great time :)

I was little nervous at first as when we drove up to our abode's for the next two nights, we realised the difference between the "deluxe" cabins and the "standard" cabins. Heidi, our fearless accomodation organiser, was planning on getting us the deluxe cabins but they were booked. There was only $10 difference between the pricing, so she thought (and rightly so) that there couldn't be much difference between the two.

Well, that was lesson one learned. The deluxe cabins were actual cabins. Ours looked like what I've always imagined the people that go on Jerry Springer live in. Lets just say there was no shortage of timber veneer or vinyl and you couldn't pass one another inside without unintentional groping. We were cosy and the kids thought it was just fantastic.

Basically we ate and drank tea, the kids played, Heid and I ready trashy mags, we made some awesome campfires and in general enjoyed being parents of four semi-independent children.

ie no nappies to change or toddlers to thwart from eating rocks and deer poo.

A little bit of crazy

What do we do when things are crazy busy and we can't keep up with it all?

We go away for a weekend, that's what we do!

Now, I know we will have a great time with our good friends and we have been looking forward to it heaps, but why at the final hour I can't stop thinking "we are insane!"

The whole remembering everything - the food, the entertainment and the not-sure-on-the-weather clothes for the kids really does me in. It's only for two nights yet my brain is spinning. When I look at Steve in a what shall we do kind of way, he just shrugs his shoulders and says,"it's only for two days. There's shops."

I shall be sure to remind him of his nochalant attitude if I forget to pack his socks and he's complaining about cold tootsies at night time :)

Anyhow, as my mum would say - we're going and you WILL enjoy it! Have a great weekend everyone xx

ps. and yes, the first picture she is actually asleep. She got put in her room this morning for being cheeky (I'm sure you can't imagine that!) and fell asleep on her chair :)

Labradoodle for sale

12 week old male, cute and cuddly, big brown eyes and is the devil incarnate.

Today I arrived home to find Toby had had the run of our house all morning. He had busted his way in through the cat door and the laundry door was also open, giving him full puppy-reign over the entire house.

I walked in the front door to see him at the top of the stairs with Cassidy's baby in some sort of sordid looking crocodillian death roll. He had her by the neck and was shaking her back and forth. I don't know if he thought he was releasing his inner rottweiler, but at that moment I was glad we don't have a newborn in the house.

Once I recovered (he didn't hear me come in he was so engrossed in his prey) I yelled "TOBY! WHAT ARE YOU DOING!", and he dropped the doll, sat back on his haunches and unleashed the full extent of his Cadbury chocolate eyes on me.

One glance around at the devastation and I unleashed the full extent of my foot shoving him out the door.

My folding at the top of the stairs had been re-distributed around the house. Cassidy's pullup from that morning was torn into bits. Various items which he obviously decided he now owned as Canine King had been dragged onto his bed.

Well King Toby better abdicate his throne pretty quick or a trip to the taxidermist could be arranged.

My marketing manager

This afternoon I picked Isaac up from school. As we were walking out to the car we passed another mum carrying her brand new baby. Everyone walking along the path was stopping to ooh and ahh as I'm pretty sure she was still pregnant only the day before :)

Luckily we had passed by when Isaac chose the moment to offer a pearl of marketing wisdom for me.

"Hey mum, you should just ring that lady and ask her if you can take photos of her baby in your photo room, eh?"

Nothing like the straight to the point marketing approach. I'm sure he doesn't see why I can't just accost new mums at the school gate. Forget waiting for clients to come to me, I'll start chasing them down like a hungry lion brandishing a 5D.

Maybe we could do a team effort - he can distract them with his baby blues while I thrust a flyer into their nappy bags.....

Fete-ed out

Isaac's school fete was yesterday.

The usual overload of hot chips, lollies and rides left us looking a sad state of affairs come five pm.

The kids had a great day (as kids tend to do at fetes!). Steve proved his culinary skills by manning the hot chips and dagwood dog fryers for an hour whilst I did my best in the face painting tent.

My first customer off the ranks sweetly asked for a dolphin diving into the water at sunset. I kid you not. I was about to suggest she kindly take her pigtails round to one of the more dolphin-savvy artists when her mum jumped in and said maybe just something small on her cheek would be fine. So I did my best to create a cheek-sized dolphin. I thought it looked like the logo on the Greenseas tuna can, but my little Greenpeace customer seemed satified so that's what counts :)

Em was most distressed that she forgot her camera, but braved mine to take a shot of us (I was very impressed at this, Em's not usually one for trying new technology :P )

What a bedraggled lot we are. Cassidy has the "end of day" glaze, Spiderman's face had started to peel and I was on my fourth hit of sherbert lollypop. Steve for some reason looks suprisingly good. But as photos of the four of us together are usually hard to come by, this is a keeper for sure. Thanks Em xx

Our puppy is short on love.

Do you think?

Maybe not, but the Tobalicious is certainly short on his lifespan this morning. I found him in the shoe cupboard, after I had locked him into the laundry, and he has chewed the heels of my favourite pair of peep toes. Not. Happy. Jan.

I have to say I do admire the ways animals manage to get their "I'm not happy about this situation" message accross. They can't talk but still manage to pick the exact thing to do that will hit you where it hurts. For example, "you lock me in the laundry, I chew your Fiorelli's. Put that in your pipe and smoke it, nasty human".

The problem is the big pathetic labrador eyes. I'm thinking of blindfolding him.

Pictures on yet another walk with Toby...we ran across a cute old mini, my favourite car. I plan on having one of these before I look too old and daggy driving one.

Although I'm thinking of the newer, soft top (and ahem, $45,000) one.