Just Nicky

Thursday May 15, 2008

Leila woke sometime in the early hours. I didn’t get up. Mark did.
Got up when Finn came in to ask me to hunt for and remove a spider from his room.
Got dressed.
Had a look for the spider. Didn’t find it.
Got Leila out of bed, changed her nappy and dressed her.
Made the kids’ breakfast.
Fed Leila.
Got Finn dressed and made snacks for kinder.
Put Finn’s hearing aids on.
Made Leila’s bottles for childcare.
Took Finn to kinder.
Had a chat to his teacher about an issue with a couple of other boys and told her that Finn may scream if he sees a bug after yesterday’s ant attack.
Had a chat to the kinder fundraising officer and another committee member.
Took Leila to childcare.
Came home and made some toast and tea for breakfast.
Sat in front of the computer to eat while reading and blogging.
Sorted out some kinder stuff.
Made a phone call to the council re: kinder.
Called the doctor and made an appointment for Leila.
Went back to kinder to do some stuff and pick up Finn.
Took Finn to the aquarium shop to buy plants for our tanks.
Came home and put the plants in the tanks. Somehow managed to break the filter on the big tank.
Had lunch.
Read some blogs while Finn played on the other computer.
Took Finn to swimming.
Came home and put the nappies I washed this morning on the clothes horse (should have remembered to hang them out earlier).
Cleaned up dog poo. There’s never any shortage with two dogs.
Put Finn’s swimming gear in the washing machine.
Went to the supermarket to pick up a few bits and pieces. Bought far more than I intended to.
Picked Leila up from childcare on the way home.
Got home and brought the children and groceries in.
Unpacked the groceries.
Went outside to put the chook to bed.
Came inside to find that Finn had had another poo accident. Quite cross about that.
Got him cleaned up. Told him to go and play in his room until his dad got home - I needed a break from him.
Sorted and put away some of the kids’ clean washing that was left out from yesterday.
Mark got home and (unfortunately) asked the wrong question at the wrong moment and got snapped at.
Made carbonara for dinner.
Fed Leila.
Apologised to Mark.
Changed Leila’s nappy and put her pyjamas and sleeping bag on.
Gave Leila her bottle and had a little cuddle before putting her to bed.
Apologised to Mark again.
Sat down at the computer.
Went to bed.

Reassurance August 31, 2006

We all have times when we need to be reminded of our worth, assured that we are who we think we are and that we are at least part of the way to being who we want to be.

One of the great things about Mark is that he is willing and able to do this for me when I need it, regardless of what may be going on for him. He reminds me that I need only see myself through his eyes to understand how valued I am.

This is a very good thing and I’m very lucky to have it in my life.

Industrious August 13, 2006

Mark is fond of telling me that I am terribly industrious. Frankly, I think he’s just flattering me, since I am a complete slackarse by nature. When I say that Mark has been astonishingly industrious today, though, there is no flattery about it. It’s the unvarnished truth.

He & Finn were outside before I’d even gotten out of bed this morning working on the garden bed I want to create at the back of our yard. I’ve been pecking away at it for months and in one day Mark has managed to achieve far more than I had.

He’s dug up weeds, pulled out weedmat that had weeds growing in it, taken rubbish to the tip, built a garden edge from sleepers, taken apart an old planter box, built a new planter box and been to Bunnings twice. All that’s required now is dirt.

Thanks to all this industriousness we should be ready to move my roses and (finally) plant out the pot plants that people gave me for my birthday in the next week or so.

It’s amazing what a bit of concerted effort from a lovely person can achieve.

Happy Birthday Mark March 7, 2006

Today is Mark’s birthday. At the moment he’s still asleep due to Finn deciding to deliver some (very) early birthday wishes, so it’s the perfect moment for this post.

I don’t know of any men who would deal with the changes to their life over the last 3 years with as much equanimity as Mark has. To be retrenched, become a parent and primary caregiver and return to study is a big ask and he has managed it all beautifully, in spite of the hiccoughs and bumps along the way.

The term Sensitive New Age Guy has been much maligned and mocked, but it is a good description for Mark. He’s not afraid to show his feelings and share them. And he has no need of machismo to enlarge himself in the presence of others. People mistake this for weakness and they are wrong. There are many who could learn from it.

Of course, he has his faults. But they are far outweighed by his virtues and I think that those of us who have Mark in our lives are the richer for it. There’s no one I know who would say that they are worse off for knowing him.

Happy Birthday my lovely.
nx

Zoom, zoom, zoom January 12, 2006

This morning I was pottering around at about 8am, taking my time about getting ready for work, when I remembered that the big red car was going in for a service and I wasn’t going to have time to drop it off in Sth Melbourne and get the tram into work with sufficient time to prepare for my 10am meeting.

Mark, bless his cotton socks, got Foozley out of bed, dressed and into the little red car with his breakfast (toast) in a brown paper bag by 8.30 and was able to follow me to Sth Melbourne and then drop me at work a smidge after 9am.

I’ve sent out the spreadsheet I needed to send the attendees at my meeting and now I have time to blog. Just need to think of something to blog about…

Mr Industrious September 18, 2005

I’ve been sitting here phaffing on the computer for a while now, thinking that I should grab the wet washing and take it out and hang it. Just as I thought ‘five more minutes…’ for the umpteenth time, Mark went past on his way out the door with the basket. He really is amazing.

Last night Finn apparently started chatting, so Mark got up to settle him and hopped into the spare bed to avoid startling me coming back to our room. I knew nothing about this until Cosmo woke me at 6.30.

Since I got up up Mark has taken Finn to the shops to get the newspaper for me (we don’t get it delivered any more), given Finn breakfast, taken Finn to the park, put Finn down for a sleep, started preparations for tonight’s dinner, done some washing and gone out to hang it. All while I’ve been wandering around the house looking befuddled.

I think they need to add ‘Mr Industrious’ to the Mr Men series. He could be kinda cute looking with glasses and he’d have to have 8 arms like an Indian deity, each of them holding a different household implement.

Happy Fathers’ Day Mark September 4, 2005

Mark has not really had the best Fathers’ Day.

Up at 4.30am to tend to a wakeful Foozle. Back to bed at 8.00-ish and up again just before 12 to race off to my parents’ for lunch and dinner has not given him much of a Sunday.

It’s 9pm and he washing dishes and working away preparing for the week while I sit here blogging. And at no point has he complained or shown any sign of annoyance.

Is it any wonder the Foozle & I love him to bits…

A few of my favourite things May 16, 2005

It seems like a good time to say that I don’t know what I’d have done over the last few weeks without either of my boys.

Mark, as always, has been kind, caring, generous and extremely tolerant and has enabled me to keep putting one foot in front of the other each day.

Finn has really just been Foozley and … what more could one ask for?

MMMWAA!!

“It’s that way, Dad”

And, just for the sake of it, Cosmo:

It’s stupidly expensive but fantastic April 17, 2005

On Friday Mark & I were talking about what to do with our Foozley-free Saturday night.

There were no movies that either of us really wanted to see badly. Nothing at the Comedy Festival.

So I idly mentioned Cirque du soleil and how it would be good to see it, but it would be stupidly expensive and out of reach of people who are trying to give up their prodigal ways.

Mark said we could talk about it later.

And went and booked the tickets.

It was very, very, very, very, very, good.

Dissonance April 10, 2005

It seems to be one of those days. We’re like a set of out of tune wind chimes, producing a painful clanging noise every time we bump against each other.

Still, he’s probably the sweetest, most thoughtful and caring person I know and this will pass.

mmmwa!