We have a walker!

Lach just walked across the room!!

He was so excited about it he stopped half way to give himself a big round of applause.

You should have seen the grin on his face. I will try to get some video.

Oh, my little man! I have tears streaming down my face.

Details details

A few friends have been asking me for more details about Hamish & Lachlan's first birthday party, so I thought I should oblige.

The theme

The first thing I did was choose the theme. I chose a kite party for a few reasons - partly because my babies have never suited traditional 'baby' things - they have way too much personality and zest!

I also didn't want a licensed character party. I am sure I'll have to sit through enough of those when they get old enough to fall in love with Thomas or whatever. Kites are old-fashioned kid fun. And while the boys were too young to fly them, I liked the concept of the freedom of looking upwards, dreaming big, and flying free.

The other obvious benefit was that the toddlers and children could fly kites in the park, entertaining them for hours on end without having to have a whole host of party games up my sleeve.

The colours



I chose the colour palette next. I think I always knew I was going to have red and sky blue. Red and blue is a traditional combination for boys, but the sky blue just gives it a bit more pop, and made it look like Spring.

The location



T and I scouted parks for weeks. We drove all over the city trying to find a park that had enough tables, enough shade, a playground near to the party headquarters, toilets, and enough room for kite-flying. We looked at so many before we remembered about the park underneath the bridge. I don't know why we didn't think of it immediately - we have been there often enough! But as soon as we arrived for the reccy we knew we'd found the place. It was perfect.

The only concern was that the pavilions couldn't be reserved, so we knew we'd have to get there early to make sure we got them. In the morning when we arrived, a marquee wedding was setting up on the other side of the park, and they were in the loo block cleaning, changing the paper over for much nicer stuff, adding hand-towels, hand soap, and flowers!!!

The invitations



I wanted a kite shaped invitation, and I wanted it double-sided, but I didn't want to pay lots extra for cutting, trimming and for special sized envelopes. I knew it was a bit beyond me to do it myself, so I set about finding a designer. Jennifer Birkhead was recommended to me by a friend, and she was amazing. She got it right first time. No changes. She's a star. I've recommended her to a couple of other friends recently too, and again, she has got it right for them first time too.

We had another stroke of luck. When Jen sent them to print, the printer accidentally printed the back upside down, making them un-useable. So another run was done to fix it, but Jen sent me the incorrect ones anyhow, with the fantastic idea that I could use them for party decorations.

The decorations



15m of bunting made from the 'wrong' invitations, using old-fashioned twine and some gorgeous Michael Miller bias binding in the perfect red and blue tied in between for a nostalgic look.

Tissue paper pompoms over the pressie table (thanks Martha)

And some red and blue balloons.

All very simple :)

The cakes



I knew I wanted the boys to have a cake each. I have twin sisters, and one of the first things they said to me when I told them I was pregnant with twins was they must have their own birthday cakes and their own 'happy birthday' singing session.

As detailed in a previous post, I am NOT a skilled cake decorator. But the thought of paying $100 for two small cakes that weren't even going to be eaten (whoops, I was wrong about that, actually...!!) made me feel a little sick to the stomach. So I determined to do them myself.

They weren't perfect, but they were delicious!!!

I also bought a cake knife that we will be able to use every year for birthdays and special occasions.

We also had cupcakes made by my mum's beautiful friend Margie, from Dellicious Cupcakes. They were so beautiful - almost too beautiful to eat :)

The food



I wanted to keep it really simple because we were having to transport everything to the park. It was close to home, but we still had to load it and unload it all.

For the 'party table' we had cupcakes, jellies, vanilla bean sugar cookies, lollies, home-made marshmallows, little cases of popcorn, and fruit skewers.

We also had loads of lovely finger sandwiches and mini quiches for passing around. We also had fresh orange juice, champagne, and lots of little cute bottles of water.

We finished off with some slices of yummy cold watermelon.




The party favours

Instead of putting together a traditional lolly bag, I decided to give the kids something that they could keep and enjoy. We had "Kites for Kids" and "Bubbles for Bubs". Big hit :)





The photography





My friend, and fellow twin-mum, Katie Walker-Smith is a wonderful photographer. I asked her to come along to make sure we got beautiful pictures to remember the day. We think it was well worth it. She captured it beautifully. And we now have such beautiful candid joyful shots of us with our babies that we wouldn't have had otherwise. Thanks Katie xxx





I think that's it....? The weather was glorious, there was enough wind for kite-flying, and all the special people in our boys' lives came along. It was a perfect day.

Getting to know me..!

The lovely Sarah from One Perfect Day has 'tagged' me - my first ever. And what a lovely way to begin.

Sarah's blog is delightful. I love reading it, and I love the way she captures such precious beautiful moments with her little boy. She's unbelievably creative - always doing amazing things with her little man that I wouldn't dream of in a million years. But the most beautiful thing about it is that she is happy. Truly happy. And it's wonderful.

So, here are my answers. Enjoy

What is your favourite time of the day?
I love the late afternoon into early evening. That soft sun warming my face, slowing me down, forcing me to just sit. I especially love it in Spring and Summer. From my back verandah I can feel the happiness that seems to always be around at that time of day. Kids are laughing, mums are calling them in for dinner, glasses clinking, laughter tinkling, and the smell of bbqs and jasmine in the air. Love it. If I could bottle it I would. Guaranteed to bring a smile to my face.

Where and when did you meet the love of your life?
T and I met in 1997 (can that be right??). We were so young. We met at the races - a young member's day I think - and found out afterwards that we knew lots of each other's friends. It was quite astonishing that we hadn't crossed paths earlier. Just mustn't have been our time until then I guess.

We've been together now for 13 years, and married for nearly 9. We're one of those lucky couples that has grown together as we've grown older, rather than apart, and we know how rare that is.

We're best friends.

What three words would your friends outside of the blogging world use to describe you?
This is a funny one because I was just having this conversation with some girlfriends the other night. We were at the Valentino exhibition, and some bubbles had been consumed, so I'm not sure how truthful this is, but they said intelligent, bubbly and kind.

What country would you like to visit and why?
I'm lucky that I've travelled a lot. But I've never been to Asia. I don't know why. I think it's because it always felt so close to home that we figured we do it "later". Still waiting!! I really want to see Vietnam.

We've also been talking about where we can travel easily with the boys and have a Japan ski trip, a trip to Canada, and a driving holiday through Germany all competing for next year's holiday.

What is your favourite dish to cook?
I love cooking. Not as much as I used to, but I think that's more about time available and exhaustion levels. But when I do it, I always remember why I love it.

I love cooking two things over and above everything else. Risotto with grilled mushrooms, and a traditional roast chicken with the scrummiest roast potatoes in the world (how's that for confidence :) )

Salt or sugar?
I have low blood sugar and low blood pressure, which is apparently why my body craves salt. When it's really low I am sometimes compelled to pour a little bit of salt into my palm and lick it straight off. Isn't that revolting?

But I love sweet tea. I always try to cut back the sugar I have (2) but I never manage it. Ever.

What are your must have make up or beauty items?
Mascara. Lashings of it. I'm a bit of a tart too - I don't have any product loyalty. I'm constantly searching for the holy grail of mascaras. At the moment I am LOVING Estee Lauder Double Wear. It's so fabulous that I may actually buy it again.

And blush. I love red rosy cheeks.I'm currently using MAC Cubic - a powder blush, but will change to a stain soon I think.

What are your favourite flowers?
I have three favourite flowers. Gerberas because they are so vibrant. They look like they're smiling. I can't walk past them without grinning back. I had them for my wedding because I couldn't think of anything else that would make me smile as much.

Tulips. The first flower I fell in love with when I was a little girl. I thought I'd never seen anything so beautiful. And there is still something about a field of tulips that takes my breath away.

And, peonies. Divine. So so so pretty. Romantic. And so hard to get!!!

What are your worst vices...honestly?
I have a tiny penchant for the dramatic.. Not in a 'throw myself on the ground and scream and yell' kind of way, but quite strange things seem to happen to me a bit more than is probably normal. And I don't mind a *little bit* of artistic license in story-telling :)

At what time of your life were you happiest and why?
The moment I saw my babies for the very first time. I can't describe it well enough to do it justice. But I loved them so much, so intensely, and so instantly that for a second I couldn't breathe. I've never been so happy, so proud, so relieved, and so in love.

So now, a couple of other girls who I'd love to know a bit more about:

Jacki at More than a Mummy
Amanda at Homely One
Kylie at The Rockgarden
Shan at Missy Melly

I'd love to hear your answers if you have time or the inclination for this bit of fun

Thanks so much Sarah. This has been fun. That raspberry cake sounds delicious.
xx

Waving the white flag

I've officially surrendered. Arms up. Admitted defeat.

I will never win the battle of twinaphernalia.

From the bottles on the sink, to the baby bath and toys in the bathroom, to the portacot permanently up in our bedroom, to the rumpus room toy floor, and the spare bed still covered in presents from their first birthday party, the house has been taken over.

And you can't miss it. Primary colour bonanza! It smacks you in the face from every angle.

How can two such tiny little people amass more possessions than I think I have gathered in the past 33 years?? What kid needs 47 stuffed toys? And where did they come from? I know I didn't buy a single one of them.

One day I'll tackle it, but right now, I'm too tired. So instead, I might just sit down and have a little play with the stacking cups :)

raining

It's raining here. Really raining. Our pool is overflowing, as are our dams. The roads are turning into rivers.

We're all a little sick here too - chesty coughs, runny noses and eyes, lots of Vicks.

The boys are sleeping like angels, and I am drinking endless cups of sweet tea under a warm duvet surrounded by my favourite mags.

I don't mind it actually. It's nice to slow down every now and then.

Thank you

Darling T

Thank you for sitting with me last night while I worked until very late, and for helping me when it all got a bit too much.

Thank you for letting me sleep this morning when the boys woke with the birds.

Thank you for knowing me so well that you know what I need before I know it myself.

I love you
Jx

Changing

My little men are growing up so quickly.

We had lunch today with some dear friends who have a little girl a few weeks older than the boys, and a brand new 9 day old little baby girl.

She is *teeny tiny*. Tiny! Well, she seems it. I can't believe that only a year ago my little ones were only 1/3 of the size she is.

I truly had (and still don't really) no comprehension of just how little they were.

But you'd never know it now. This is them. Growing up faster than I can believe. Loving the car.

Grateful

This Saturday I'm grateful for a husband who does the washing up. And wipes up all the resultant peripheral splashes.
And who brings me extra sweet cups of tea.
And who spends all day digging out ugly plants and replacing them with pretty ones.

Thank you darling.

xx


(ps play along with Maxabella here)