threelilprincesses.com

Category: Life and laughter

  • FEATURE: Breaking up is hard to do

    FEATURE: Breaking up is hard to do

    My beautiful li'l princesses

    RIGHT now I’m filled with a little excitement and a whole lot of fear. This week I made one of the hardest decisions of my life. I can barely utter the words. In fact, when I did “the deed’’, I couldn’t even bring myself to say them. “I am …’’

    As the Editor put it: “breaking up is hard to do’’. You bet ya. This week I broke it off with journalism. We’ve been together now for 16 years. Our first day together was an absolute shambles as I fumbled my way through my first story – after which my boss rewrote the whole thing. Oh dear, was I really cut out for this? I still have that story and can’t help but laugh at what absolute drivel it was. Kind of shows you how far you’ve come, I guess.

    Throughout my career, I’ve been blessed. The majority was spent as an entertainment journalist, interviewing big name TV, film and music stars. People often ask `who was your favourite?’ It’s usually followed by slight blushing, head bowed and a whispered: “John Farnham’’. I know, I know, you can stop laughing now. Give me the biggest names in pop and rock and, I’m sorry, but this one fulfilled the long-held dream of a little country girl.

    Sure, there have been plenty of junkets (wining, dining and realising Jason Donovan is also only 150cms). Then there was the behind the scenes stuff. The Australian singer who took me shopping in Sydney and the entertainer who allowed me so far onto the stage (without being seen by the audience) that the screams from his hundreds of female fans left me with goosebumps.

    Then something happened. I got knocked up, popped out a li’l princess and suddenly my career-obsessed life changed. Forget chasing the stories. All I wanted was to witness that first roll, first crawl, first step and first “I love you’’.  I can have a career anytime, but this time with my two girls I can never get back.

    Priorities change. Life changes. Sometimes we need to move on and I’m so fortunate to be in a position to do that. Is being a housewife “superstar’’ all cupcakes and roses? No, I think not. But I’m ready to be a stay at home mum and all that that entails.

    This week I resigned. There, I’ve said it. Now the next chapter of my life begins.

    Are you a working mum or a SAHM (stay at home mum)? What led you to your decision?

  • SHED: When life gets in the way

    SHED: When life gets in the way

    Ella with her hat on, ready to play with Dad.

    THE words came out of Princess Ella’s mouth so casually, but they cut like a knife. It happened as I was preparing myself for work on Sunday morning, with my three-year-old quietly watching on.

    The first words out of her mouth were to soften me up. “Why are you going to work today, Dad?,’’ she said simply. Now normally, I’m a Monday-to-Friday professional, leaving Saturday and Sunday to spend blissfully with my princesses. However, there are occasions when I’m required to work Sunday to Thursday.

    “Daddy has to work today, but he’ll be able to spend Friday and Saturday with you this week, does that sound good?,’’ I said. Then, Ella went “WHACK”. “Not good enough Dad,’’ she said in much the same tone as her mother would address her after finding texta on the curtains (again). Those words and the look on her face knocked the wind out of me.

    Now, I’m confident enough to know I maintain a pretty good work/life balance, but it still hurt me to think I’d disappointed my little girl by trotting off to work on a day she’d normally spend tormenting me in a million different ways. In a strange way too, it also made me feel good that she enjoys my company and is not sick of me yet (my guess is that will come in her teenage years).

    Unfortunately, Princess Ella is going to have to get used to the idea she has a dad who works hard to provide things for the family. I enjoy my time with her and make sure there’s plenty of it, despite having a busy workload and some other community commitments, but it always has been, and will be, “family first”.

    How do you manage your work/life balance?

    Helena from New-Age Retro Mum debates Should Both Parents Be Home?

    Feli from My Life In Mono, having just returned to work this month, discusses The Working Mum.

    Read more from The Shed.

  • SLEEP CHALLENGE: How do you get a baby to sleep unwrapped?

    SLEEP CHALLENGE: How do you get a baby to sleep unwrapped?

    Baby Holly playing with her pacifier

    MONTH FIVE:

    What’s been happening this month? More sleep deprivation. Not even a touring Keith Richards lives this hard.

    Baby Holly is now a full-on roller – front and back. This means the whole wrapping the arms thing has to go, in-line with the SIDS guidelines. The fact she only sleeps a maximum of three hours at a time has made me reluctant to start. But I bit the bullet and began this week.

    The outcome? I went straight back to wrapping. If I unwrapped just one arm, she’d spend the whole time pulling her dummy out, then grizzle because she couldn’t put it back in again. After standing by her cot and holding her hand for quite a while, I ended up feeling like someone was stabbing me in the back with a sharp knife and no, Julia Gillard was nowhere in sight. Then Holly looked up and laughed at me. Nice! Little rotter ….

    You may be wondering what we did with Princess Ella at the same time. Well, due to the fact she was such a small baby, we somehow got away with wrapping her until she was eight months old. By that time, putting the dummy in and out of her mouth was a cinch.

    SOLUTION: No idea. Keep her wrapped, maybe? How did you go about unwrapping your baby for sleep? Any tips or tricks for me?

    Next in the series is: Month Six: Guest Post A mother’s heartache. Read all posts from the Sleep Challenge.

  • FEATURE: Five super techniques for losing the pacifier … for good!

    FEATURE: Five super techniques for losing the pacifier … for good!

    Losing the pacifier can be tough

    A PHOTOGRAPH of famous preschooler Suri Cruise sporting a dummy at age four attracted much comment this week. It inspired this week’s poll and sparked a bit of a conversation on our Facebook page.

    One of my favourite contributors, Barb, joined in on the conversation and had me crying from laughter. So we had to share it. “I knew of a girl (school age) who had a dummy and would carry it in her pocket at school and go to the loo for a quick suck a few times a day.’’ Hmmm, I’ve heard of people hiding out in the toilets to feed some strange habits, but dummy sucking?!

    Feli from My Life In Mono also had a cute tale to tell. “Mum told me that I was on the dummy at age four. She weaned me by telling me the dog ate my dummy and that was that’’.

    Exactly when your child loses the binky is really a personal choice. For Princess Ella, who was only ever allowed her dummy at bedtime, it was two and a half years due to the seed of Baby Holly being sown. It happened pretty easily, thanks to flagging the idea with her weeks in advance and being positive about it. But every child is different.

    If you’re in the midst of losing the pacifier or about to, here’s some suggestions. We had success with a combination of the first two.

    1. Tell them how the Dummy Fairy will come and get it one night to take it to a li’l baby who needs it more than they do. This idea makes them feel like they’re helping someone else.
    2. Provide them with a gift (either from mum and dad or from the Dummy Fairy) in return for the pacifier. It’s always fun for them in the weeks leading up to it to guess what the gift might be.
    3. Just go cold turkey.  Yes, surprisingly this sometimes can work, especially when they’re really young.
    4. Cut the tip off the pacifier. The child is unable to suck and loses interest. Prepare for the fact they may carry it around with them for a while though.
    5. Tie it to a helium balloon and release it into the sky or pop it in the post (addressed to grandma, maybe) so it can be delivered to a baby who needs it more.

    Getting rid of the dummy can be tough. Share with us your story of losing the binky.

  • Lesson for wives No. 4: Bras are for boobs

    OK, THIS may not be a lesson just for wives. In fact I think the main culprits of this disturbing trend are probably not in steady, long-term relationships, but it is an important lesson to be noted nonetheless. Although one of the recent culprits I witnessed was indeed pushing their pram up the street when I saw them commit this heinous crime.

    “What is the crime?’’ I hear you shout. Well, when did it become OK to use your bra to hold you mobile phone?

    Seriously, I am not joking, in the past week I have seen about 10 women at different times poke their mobile phone into their bra instead of their pocket. It’s a growing phenomenon. I wasn’t even aware Target sold bras with built-in mobile phone holders these days (and if they aren’t, then on the evidence, maybe they should start).

    Ladies, while it may be convenient, it looks downright ordinary and if you think otherwise we blokes might just start sticking our Nokia’s down the front of our Bonds hipsters … um, though I’m not sure I’d then want to stick the phone to my ear without giving it a good wipe down first.

    Now, I can hear you all thinking “well, what are you doing looking when women do this?’’. Well sorry, but frankly it’s hard not too. It’s especially disconcerting when standing, waiting for service at a shop beside a lady when her boobs start ringing to the tune of Lady Gaga’s latest single.

    Please, remember boobs are for bras and mobile phones are best kept in pockets or those expensive things designed for carrying stuff you girls love so much – yep, handbags.

    Read more Lessons for wives.

    Rewinding with And Then There Were Four.

  • FEATURE: Activities for preschoolers

    FEATURE: Activities for preschoolers

    DURING the week, tweets kept popping into my @ThreeLil Twitter account by northern-based mums battling 30C-plus heat. Here we were rugged up like Eskimos as we toasted our toes by the heater.

    With summer momentarily disappearing, it enabled Princess Ella and I to rediscover our list of fun indoor activities. Today I thought I’d share some of our absolute favourites (even though the warm weather seems to have returned).

    Ella painting her toe nails

     Fingernail painting and pedicure:

    Ella constantly asks to have her nails painted. She also likes to take over and paint mine. Of course, there’s usually more colour on my feet than my nails. My three-year-old nephew loves this activity too, so don’t exclude the boys.

     

    Craft at the little table

    Craft table:

    The craft table, set up in the corner of the dining room, is constantly filled with pencils, crayons, paper, glue, sticky tape, pipe cleaners, pom poms and well, crafty items. Since Baby Holly came along, it’s been my saviour during breastfeeding. A fellow mum also set up a craft table, but had her house redecorated when the phone rang and her three-year-old ran, glitter in hand.

    Messy craft at the big table

    Sometimes Ella gets to play at the “big’’ table.

    Hair in a braid after playing hairdressers

     Hairdressing:

    Aided with hair brushes, combs, bands and clips, the conversations usually goes something like this: Ella: “How would you like your hair done today?’’. Mum: “Ah, a cut and colour, thanks Ella’’. Ella: “No, I’m not Ella, I’m a hairdresser. Would you like a pink and purple colour today?’’ Mum: “Yes please, hairdresser. That’s exactly what I was thinking’’.

     

    Cooking with Dad in her MasterChef outfit

    Cooking:

    Donning her MasterChef apron, Ella’s requests are usually M&M Biscuits (recipe to come soon), birthday cake (even when it’s not her birthday) and ABC muffins (Apple, Banana and … chocolate, of course).

     Knitting:

    This week Ella asked me to teach her to knit. Sound impossible? Quite the contary. She was thoroughly entertained with her needles and yarn, creating a beautiful big…

    …ending up in knots

    …knot! Our next step may be sewing (with glue, instead of needle and thread). She may just be the next international fashion designer.

    We also enjoy Play Doh, dancing to music, doing household duties (she loves finding the sock’ “mates’’ and using her vacuum), taking photos with her Dora camera (see some photos we took together for Sunday Selection), tea parties, babies (although Ella likes to be the baby more often than not), reading books (particularly from the library), singing songs (with pretend microphones), puzzles and playing cards (I taught her to play Fish, but accidentally called it Snap Now she refuses to let me teach her Snap “No mum, that’s not how you play Snap’’).

    Has this left you inspired? Please share some of your favourite activities with your preschoolers.

    Visit Be A Fun Mum’s Activity Ideas for Children 2-5 or check out her list for Activity Ideas for Children Under 2.