What a few weeks it has been....

My beautiful cat Eli passed away on the 31st of July. He had cancer in his stomach and fortunately didn't suffer, but he got very skinny in the last few weeks of his life.

We inherited Eli about 7 or 8 years ago when a family a few houses up the road moved away and left him behind. He adopted us and there began a beautiful relationship with my lovely boy who was to become my constant companion when I was at home.

In many ways he was a fourth child. He was very needy of attention and love. He followed me around everywhere and if I sat at the computer typing he would lie on my hand and half of the keyboard and swat at my hand when I moved the mouse. He would snuggle up on my chest or on my knee if I sat down and was always under my feet when I turned around. If you left any food unattended he would steal it. He came and took over my pillow every morning purring so loudly that sleeping was difficult. Eventually with the aid of a carefully primed claw he would manage to shoo me off the pillow.

Eli was a cat in a million and I loved him to bits. He had a fun personality (though I will carry some scars from his claws forever) and was a wonderful member of this family. My home feels so empty without him here and he can never be replaced in my heart.

Uni has been full on and I feel as if I have hit a bit of a wall this past couple of weeks - though this is not helped by all that is going on in my "normal" life. Things have really stepped up this semester and although learning heaps the reality that clinical is happening in a couple of weeks and I have to go out and look after people in hospital is pretty scary. I feel a bit behind in the study and will be seriously hitting the books over the next few weeks. That's not to say I'm not enjoying it, because I am. I think it is the stress of deadlines and the thought of failing that is scary.

Finally, the building is coming along nicely and they are doing a great job and on schedule too. I just can't wait to be over there. I feel that the walls in this tiny house are closing in on me at times. It is very noisy with my lovely kids and me trying to study is pretty tricky in amongst all the chaos. However it is short term pain for long term gain. Movie below of progress to date.

Operation "Reno" begins (at last!)

Photo montage of the renovations on our house. There's no going back now!

The semester that was...

I can't believe that the mid year break is halfway through! Assessments are over and results are coming in. So far A for Midwifery and A- for constructions of knowledge - Yay! All that hard work and stress has paid off. Only the lovely research paper result to go and frankly, it could go either way!

I spent a week going out with Matty - no births but attended antenatal clinic and postnatal visits. Did lots of palpation and baby checks. I feel quite confident on conducting a postnatal baby check now and supporting a mum to breastfeed. Antenatal clinic is similar although the palpating and fundal measurement is going to take a while to get to grips with, however I've heard that can take the full three years to get down pat.

I feel like I've learnt heaps and Matty has been a great teacher and she is always happy to answer my questions (of which there are many).

We had an antenatal visit with a couple who had an increased risk of downs syndrome from a nuchal scan, Matty set me homework to find out about the absence of nasal bone formation and downs syndrome on ultrasound. It was an interesting exercise and I learnt heaps compiling it. The nuchal thickness risk was 1:200 for a downs baby, but the nasal bone was present, which (from my research) decreases the risk factor further, though this is not taken into account in the risk percentages given on the nuchal scan, other than noted whether the nasal bone is present or not. Very interesting.

The couple decided to proceed with a triple serum test and then decide what to do after that. It showed me that to support a woman fully as a midwife you have to be totally there for her and put your own feelings about things aside in order to counsel, educate, advise and reassure.

Another situation that arose was with a VBAC who is supposed to be trying for a normal birth this time, but when we bumped into the obstetrician at the hospital who had reviewed her we found out the woman had said she wanted to have an elective caesarean. The OB said that no it was more risky and she was a good candidate for VBAC. The woman then proceeded to book a c-section in for one day after her due date. M is not going to go to the caesarean as a matter of principal - the woman ignored her advice and that of the OB but his happy to put her baby at risk with unnecessary surgery. I must say I admired her for her stand on this.

One thing that I have noticed is that sometimes the woman gets lost. We had one situation where a mum had signs of preeclampsia and to cut a long story short was induced, and ended up in hospital for three days before anything happened. She was a bit "precious" as the staff called her, but I said to M that it was understandable given that she had been having this normal pregnancy and all of a sudden it was risky and she had to be induced NOW. The induction then failed to work and she is stuck in hospital for three days with not much but minor contractions.

It is enough to do anyone's head in. I felt that the staff were a little blase about her and wrote her off because she was a hassle, but in fact she was a tired, frightened woman. I have found it a little disturbing the way that some of the midwives talk about the women when they are out of the room (Lordy, it makes me wonder what my midwife said about me!!). It is very disrespectful.

Everyone (including myself) had pretty much expected that she would end up with a caesarean and in the end, she went from 2cm to fully in an hour and had a normal birth - which I ended up missing because I had left the hospital with the expectation that nothing would happen until the next day, so I had a few wines and when the call came a couple of hours later that she was fully I didn't think I should go. I wouldn't have made it in time anyway as she had the baby within the hour!! I felt really pleased for her though, because she ended up doing really well and having a healthy little baby.

I received a lovely box of chocolates and a card from one of the women whose birth I attended. It said some lovely things. I have also had another evaluation back from a woman and it was very good, with some fantastic comments, so I was really pleased. It really is an honour to be present at these births and I can't wait to be a fully fledged midwife.

Following a midwife around...

I haven't been very good at writing my journal as I go. I find that the paper/study/clinical experience are so intense that it takes me a while to process everything before I can write it down.

I went to the Michel Odent conference last week, which was so inspiring and so needed after the hospital births that I've attended. It is good to know that there is a movement alive and well that not only promotes but practices birth without epidural or caesarean unless clinically indicated. Did lots of good networking at the conference - heaps of people I knew there and met heaps of people also. Learnt lots and got to meet the amazing Michel Odent (I think everyone there is just a little bit in love with him - don't worry though he's 78 so Steve is not about to be replaced). Also James McKenna was amazing and probably for me the most beneficial session on cosleeping and SIDS. Alison Barrett, as always was an interesting, funny and thought provoking speaker on breastfeeding. So that was a nice little break from study.

My practical skills assessment and exam are now over over. Did well on the assessment, although it was nerve wracking, I managed to get through it and not cock it up. Exam was ok and I should (fingers crossed) pass. If I don't I will crawl under a rock and hide for a long, long time!

After the exam (last Tuesday) I went straight to the campus bar with a couple of pals and had a wine and then met one of my darling friends for lunch. Handed in two assignments last Friday for my other paper and have got one hideous research assignment due on Monday. Have I started it yet? No. Will I pass. Probably not. Do I care...No...well yes actually because I hate the paper so much that I really really don't want to do it again. I would be happy with a c-...any pass, I don't care. The intermediate research paper has put me off research for life!! After my breastfeeding research for my CBE Diploma (which I was told was a very good piece of research - an A+ I might add) I thought it might be a field I could enter, but now I don't want to go near researching with a barge pole. I feckin hate that paper with a vengeance!!

Anyhoo, I refuse to waste energy on that. Onto better things. This week we are on clinical which means following around my darling midwife (dear friend, and future business partner) like a little lap dog. It is really interesting and I am completely knackered - pathetic really. Just not used to working a full day...I need to toughen up.

We have spent the past two days doing antenatal clinics and postnatal visits. One of our women has preeclampsia and has been induced tonight - so will head off to bed shortly and see if we get a call in the middle of the night.

Today I had one ah-huh moment when I actually felt the fundus very easily in two women..I was very excited about that.

Things are starting to fall into place slowly. I managed to get the blood pressures done pretty accurately and am getting a little faster. Have done three baby checks this week (all bar the hips) and can fairly confidently pick up the heart sounds now. Ok on reflex checks but hate measuring the head - the buba's hate it and scream! Overall really enjoying the vistis and clinics.
It is incredible that every woman is so different and her needs, fears and excitement is so individual. Some bring their partners, some have screeds of worries, others have no questions and some have zillions of questions - it never ceases to amaze me what a huge proportion of the job is listening, counselling, reassuring and supporting. Such a small (yet very intense) portion of the job is the actual birthing.

Had one couple in clinic today with a Nuchal scan that came back with a slightly increased risk of Downs, so sat in on a farily heavy visit with them. Midwife gave me homework to research the nuchal translucency and nasal bone assessments in relation to downs risk (which I have done). It was very interesting and illustrated to me how you have to put your own feelings aside in regard to terminations, ultrasound testing etc, and counsel and support the couple.

All in all a very interesting day. Exciting that another baby is about to be born as we didn't think we would have any babies during my clinical week - so I'm looking forward to it but at the same time it is completely terrifying! So on that note I had better have my cup of tea and away to bed, just in case I get the call. I definitely need my beauty sleep (and my brain does too!).

A natural birth

Finally, two births in the past couple of weeks which were completely normal (well as normal as they can be in a hospital).

Both fast (not first babies) and no drugs or other medical intervention. One was a complete posterior and came out posterior (and I caught it).

I'm becoming more confident each time - although still have freaked out moments. It is very interesting that at most of the birth's I've attended as a student midwive, the women are so tired and wrung out when baby arrives that the ecstasy of birth is not there. Some are not even interested in looking at their babies.

I've just seen the Business of Being Born (which is a great film), and the homebirths on it show that orgasmic moment - something that has not been present in some of the births I've seen. Is it because they are in hospital? Are women not prepared? I'm sure it can be like that for more women - what is the point of difference that makes a woman feel euphoria at the moment of birth?

I do find being in the hospital environment seems to squash that and really increases the intervention in birth. I so want to get a primary birthing unit established in our area so that women can have a middle ground between home and hospital.

Next week is a big week. The plaster cast comes off Matt's arm - at last. Hopefully we will get the permit to begin building so we can move forward on that. And a big week with the Midwifery exam.

The pressure is on, we have to pass or else that's it for the year ...so back to the books....

Stop the world I want to get off!

It's been a crazy few weeks and I sometimes wonder what the hell I am doing - then I go to a birth and realise it is because in my soul I am a midwife and was always meant to be a midwife!

Events in last three weeks - Matt's arm (which will be in plaster for four more weeks), Nana's funeral, assignments, births and lectures - not to mention moving house and trying to organise builders, kitchens blah blah blah. I feel that I need to just hop off for a day, take a deep breath and get back into it.

We have got assessments an exam coming up for Midwifery Practice plus two assignments due for the Research paper (which I HATE!) as well as attending clinic and births. It is very full on and I'm starting to panic a bit. The midwifery stuff I feel relatively confident on, but the research paper is giving me major headaches and nightmares! My last assignment I had felt was OK but just got it back with a D on one of the learning outcomes - it was very disappointing and the paper is an online paper with the lecturers not being particularly approachable. This is one paper where I will definitely be giving fairly robust feedback on.

We presented our community project on monday, and after a bit of nervousness we presented an awesome project and were very happy with the way it went. One more job off the list.

Tuesday night was the last session for antenatal and I've got the next series off, so that will give me a bit more down time. It was a great group and I will miss them - we had lots of meaty discussions and loads of fun! I was still there chatting to them at 10pm when I got the call from Matty that our woman's waters had broken and that she was contracting but didn't want to move so I needed to race to hospital, meet another midwife and get a homebirth kit. So I raced in and picked up the kit. We'd just got it into my car when Matty phoned and said they'd managed to convince the mum to come into hospital. I went up and waited at the midwives station and did a couple of little bits for Lyndon (the other midwife). Eventually Matty turned up with the mum and her partner. We raced around getting her admitted and doing paperwork and setting up the room. They arrived at 2250 and at 0022 baby was born. We gloved up and Matty said to me "you can catch" and then we were looking at the head and realised baby was a complete posterior which explained why mum was in so much pain! So at 0022 I caught my second baby, a little girl. She needed a little oxygen at about 20 minutes after birth but came right, fed well and is just adorable. I showered mum and did some of the baby check and Matty did paperwork and the transfer and we managed to get mum over to Postnatal ward pretty quickly.

I got home at 3.30am and had a nice long shower, a cup of tea and a sandwhich and massaged my feet which were very sore (I was in my "dressy" clothes from work - so had full make-up, boots and not my normal midwife attire!) and I was just getting into bed when Steve's alarm went off, so had a quick chat with him and then grabbed a couple of hours sleep before my day started!

Sam and Matt's memories of Nana

Hi I’m Samuel Carson and this is my brother Matthew we’d like to talk about my family’s memories of my great grandmother, or as we affectionately called her, old granny.

Whenever we visited old granny at Northbridge we wanted to see the fish in the pond. Old granny always used to give us mints or some money.

Whenever we sent old granny an invitation to our birthday parties, old granny would send a card and a nice note back to us.

Old granny loved to do jigsaw puzzles. She gave us one of a boat with 1000 pieces and we have never ever done it. Once when we visited her she had done a whole puzzle where none of the pieces matched up and she had just forced them in. We thought it was kinda funny.

Old granny loved to sing and had a special song she would sing to me called Sam Sam the dirty old man who washed his face with the frying pan . She gave me a nice Christmas decoration which said S for Sam and she gave us a Santa decoration which we hang in our Christmas tree every year.

One year we took cupcakes with purple icing down to old granny and sang her happy birthday and she was really happy. Old granny had some pretty cool soft toys which we used to like playing with.

Old granny always used to get me and Matthew muddled up (like everybody else). We had a big celebration for old granny’s 80th birthday.

Most of all I remember old granny had a really nice laugh.

These are some of my mum’s memories of old granny. Mum remembers working in the shoe shop with old granny. Old granny taught her the value of hard work, taking pride in your work and also made mum realize that she didn’t want to work in retail.

Every Sunday Mum and Gran went to church with old granny and would have morning tea together afterwards in gran’s kitchen.

Old granny would make the most delicious roast dinners and whenever she visited she would always have some caramello chocolate in her pockets for mum and Uncle Paul.

Old granny was away with poppa on a cruise when mum turned 10 and they sent her a telegram from the Fairstar, which mum still has. They brought her back a transistor radio for her birthday present which in those days was pretty cool.

Mum says that old granny was a crazy, impatient driver and a hazard on the road, and she wasn’t much better in her noddy car, but she always would let mum drive her car.

Mum says old granny always voted national and woe betide anyone who didn’t. Apparently old granny gave some of mum’s boyfriends a hard time if their families were labour supporters. Politics and religion were never discussed at dinner when old granny was around! Old granny had strong opinions and wasn’t afraid to stand up for them.

Old granny was strong and was good at arm wrestling and mum said her and Uncle Paul used to hate it when old granny would rub Vicks on their chests…it was very painful.

Mum remembers the year old granny brought Gruncle Peter a bottle of Gin for Christmas, but it was only half full!

The Hospice shop in Highbury was never as well run as when old granny was in charge.

Mum remembers staying for the weekends at old grannys and being spoilt rotten.

Mostly mum remembers how old granny loved her family and that she had a wicked sense of humour.

We all have memories of old granny and she touched us in many ways. Even though she is gone, her spirit lives on in all of us in the memories we have of her.

Photos of Matt

Boy plus monkey bars = trouble!

I had the dreaded call yesterday from school to say Matthew had hurt his arm. I had my phone on silent as I was taking a class for new mums so by the time I got the message Steve had collected Matt from school and they were at the local A&E. When I raced in Steve had just seen the xray and was looking a bit faint. His ulna and radius had completely broken and slipped under (apparently medical term is off-ended!). They put a cast on and splinted it so we could move him and we parked Steve's car down the road outside some friends house and took off to Starship in my car.

We were seen quite quickly and the Doctors said, he had done a great job of breaking his arm - if you're going to do it you may as well make a good job of it! They wanted to give him surgery under GA but there were no theatres available so they put him asleep with an amazing drug called Ketamine and they set the bones back in place. It was good as I could be with him the whole time and was right there when he came round. When he was Ok he was xrayed to see if we needed to stay in and have surgery, but they made a great job of it and it should start to fuse together ok. We got to come home and will go back next week for a check to see whether they need to re-do it.

So my poor little guy is in a plaster cast from his armpit to his wrist. We took him to Macdonalds for dinner on the way home from Starship hospital and then picked up Bex and Sam from where they were, and our family unit was all intact and safe at home by 7.30pm.

Poor Matt didn't sleep well last night so I was up to him quite a bit, but he doesn't seem to be in any pain (and we are giving him ibuprofen and pamol to keep it at bay). Sam was fussing over him this morning and I am home with him today just chillin - lucky it is school holidays next week for him and me!

Student midwife on the loose

Well it's taken me a few days to get my head around my first experience of being at a birth as a "midwife".

I wasn't sure what to expect from M as she is a very good friend of mine as well as my assigned midwife for clinical placement. A couple of years ago I attended one birth with one of her clients as a birth companion and I wasn't sure what was expected of me, so I was pretty nervous.

I was sitting in bed having a lie in and reading a book (trashy novel) on sunday morning. Boys were all out fishing and the daughter was watching telly. Phone rang and it was all on. Deposited the daughter at her Gran's and raced up to hospital arriving at about 10.30am.

Day progressed quickly. Lots of physical - walking, supporting the mum, tidying the room. I took blood pressures, temperature, pulse, fetched things, and helped write up the mountain of notes that are expected. M showed me the ropes and explained everything she was doing.

There were a few out of the norm things with this pregnancy and an epidural was required and the birth ended up being a failed ventouse and forceps.

The anaethetist was very old school and was quite abrupt with M and also very dismissive of the mum and dad. The registrar kept asking me to get stuff which I didn't know where it was - so I felt like a moron. M explained I was a first year and this was my first birth as a midwife and then he said "did I want to be useful - then glove up" - so my worst nightmare after my whole glove debacle ... I had to put the STERILE GLOVES on while he watched and then stand in the sterile zone and pass him stuff and cut the sutures while he sutured up the episiotomy.

Good news - I didn't feel faint looking at the episiotomy gash and the suturing...in fact it was all very interesting and lord knows how you know what to sew into what! Bad news - I made a complete DICK of myself. A very blond moment.

I cut a couple of sutures for him and then he said "How are you feeling, are you doing ok" and (OMG I'm so embarrassed just typing it) I said "oh yeah, I'm a bit shaky but I'm ok" and he said "that's nice but I was meaning the mum". It was a beam me up scotty moment. I laughed though but I think he thought I was a complete moron.

I found watching the forceps from the business end quite traumatic and felt quite emotional. I didn't intend to but I think I may have shut my eyes when he did the episiotomy but it was quite interesting watching how the forceps went in and all that - right up until he literally YANKED baby out.

Anyhoo buba arrived with huge forceps mark over his eye and a very sore looking swollen head (and I should imagine one hell of a headache) and the next couple of hours were a flurry of trying to get buba to feed, paperwork, cleaning up the room, more paperwork, before my sore feet and I left for home at 9.30pm.

Very exciting, very scary. It is hard to imagine doing all of that on my own and there is so much to remember, learn and do.

I passed my intermediate research assignment (by the skin of my teeth) and also passed my CPR assessment (actually I'm not too bad at CPR) so things are trucking along ok on the uni front. Have another woman who is overdue and is going to be induced on Friday night so watch this space....

Four words for Friday.

I have only four words....

I hate intermediate research.

Camping is so relaxing

What a wonderful four days we have had. Sun, sand, good company, good wine and good food with a smidgen of sheep shit and the odd mozzie!

We managed to get packed up in miracle time on Thursday and left about 9.15am on good Friday for Tapapakanga regional park which is about one hour south of auckland.

We did however manage to get lost (well when I see "we", I mean HE) and our one hour journey took us three, which to give him his due did include one stop at a service station and one stop for breakfast (or brunch by the time we got there).

So after our shakey start we found the campground which was covered in sheep shit, but after we scooped it up we pitched the tent and then had a beer followed by a swim. Heaven.

Camped with one other family and had a ball. We swam, ate, drank, read, fished and relaxed. The kids managed to ride their bikes, play games, do an Easter Egg hunt, make rafts and race them down the river, dig up and cook pipi's and mussles, make smores, read, swim, make a giant slingshot and make a possum trap - all good fun and all in four days.

Saturday was my birthday and we made a celebration brunch and then some visitors arrived for the day. We went to the beach and sat around drinking most of the afternoon, then back for a lazy dinner and a show put on by the kids. Visitors left and we went off to bed. All in all not a bad way to spend my 42nd birthday and see in my 43rd year.

Nice to be home. Most of the unpacking was completed before I had to go to work tonight. Relaxing is over and it is back to reality and an assignment which needs to be done by Monday morning!

Out with midwife

This morning was big for me. I went out with "my" midwife, that is the midwife I have been assigned to for clinical placement.

Of course it is my dear friend Matty, but so different watching her in a professional capacity. I have seen her in action before as I have been a birth companion for one of her clients, but to watch her knowing that in a few short years that will be me....wow.

I was nervous. I'm not sure whether having a relationship with the midwife makes it easier or harder. However I probably was made to be more assertive than I would have been naturally.

I went to morning clinic and she saw about five women. I took all bar one of their blood pressures - and was right each time (there were a couple of "funny" readings which turned out to be correct!).

I got to palp four of the mum's tummies - although I felt some of the things matty said I'd feel, but not all. And then I did the doppler (so we could hear the heart beat).

It was all very exciting, and I was on a buzz when I came home but also felt like I needed a cup of tea and a lie down!!

Have heaps of study/homework to do, have to take the girl-child to an audition in the city at 5pm and somehow find time to pack so we can head off camping on Friday morning. Not to mention work tomorrow night.

Had a fabulous night with my class last night. One of them is Matty's client and I may well attend their birth as a Student. The group is so much fun - it is our last night on Tuesday which is a bit sad.

Oh well.... I have to come down off my little high now because my peacetime has ended and i need to go and pick my little darlings up from school.

Learning to put gloves on...

Who knew freakin gloves could be so difficult to put on! I should have suspected that I would be all fingers and thumbs and find this hard to do.

Last week was the week of vaccination. I had to have Tetanus and the first (of three) Hep B jabs, plus the TB Mantoux. 2nd Mantoux this week and hopefully won't need TB. Still need to have polio jab though.

Fingernails are now very short, as per requirements (sob sob). All cut off and ready to learn how to wash my hands properly and put gloves on. It all started off so well.

I did really great on the handwashing. We checked under UV light and not one single spot was missed. They were clean as clean can be. My dermatitis did show up and I need to get that treated, but other than that all good.

Gloving however was a completely different affair. I was the class moron who managed to get all her fingers in the wrong holes and completely get confused and tangled. It's not as easy as it looks. I was thinking to myself that I'm not going to be a very good midwife if I can't get the freakin gloves on....lord knows how I'm going to catch a baby!!

Anyhoo...I managed to do it in the end, but need to practice it (lots and lots!!) so that I can get them on quickly. At speed I go the baby would be celebrating it's first birthday by the time I had the gloves on.

And of course I'm totally allergic to the soap and to the gloves.....and despite washing my hands at home have very itchy sore hands right now and have to go to the chemist and get special soap which I need to take on clinical with me. I need to check out about the gloves but assume I'll have to buy those as well.

Also made the difficult decision to resign from the Parents Centres CBE Advisory Team as I am finding the workload pretty full on and something had to go. I am still sticking with the CENZ role but I had to let something go and unfortunately the advisory team was it. I feel really sad about it but have to look forward to newer more exciting things (like gloving!).

Ah the joys. Remind me why I signed up for this again?

Ouch...

Having raced around all morning getting things organised so we can go away for the weekend (yay!) I met some of my dear friends for lunch as two of them were birthday girls.

It reminded me as we were yakking 10 to the dozen, how much I enjoy and value the company of my girls- I feel so blessed to have some wonderful and amazing women who I count as my friends.

Anyhoo, after a very pleasant lunch with the gals it was a dash to uni for our very first forum. There was definitely an excited buzz going on as we were handed out our "equipment". A fununddascope (think that's spelt wrong), thermometer and blood pressure measuring equipment (long complex name that I can say but can't spell off hand). Very exciting, so my friends and family are on notice - no chatting to me until I have taken your blood pressure!

Then the ouch! We have to be tested for our immunity for a bunch of diseases like MRSA, measles, TB and so on. The TB test (mantoux) is done in a couple of weeks at school, but the other tests require a blood test! That's the ouch - I stopped by on the way home and had the blood taken, but it is quite sore now.

Never mind, nothing a glass of wine won't fix.

So I'm off for a shower, a glass of wine, to play with my "midwifery equipment" and then off to work.

I'm Freaking Out

Okay, now I'm totally freaking out. We went through our paper booklet for Midwifery Practice today and we are doing alot more than I thought we would this semester. We are doing two weeks (80 hours) shifts at a hospital for the last two weeks of semester and will actually be doing stuff !!

Not only that but we will be going out with our midwives for our follow through women and preparing for exams and practical assessments - as in actually being tested on taking blood pressures, pulses, urine testing etc.

Bloody hell, as I said I'm freaking out (as was everyone else).

As always there was one person moaning "I'm a solo mum and what about childcare" - good lord they explained all that at the interview...if you don't have support for childcare then you shouldn't be doing the degree!! Having said that, I'm not sure how my darling other half is going to cope now that the reality of how much I'm not going to be here is upon us. Time will tell.

Speaking of time - tomorrow is our 15th wedding anniversary. 15 years, officially my longest ever relationship with a boy! In some ways it feels like a freakin eternity, but other times it feels like we only just got married. I really can't believe it is 15 years...so much has happened. You know boy meets girl, they break up, get back together, break up, get back together, do big OE, buy a house, get married, buy another house, have 3 kids, buy into a business, develop careers, riase the kids, do alot of home maintenance, stress about finances, decide to rennovate and wifey goes to university. It's certainly been a busy time. We shall be celebrating on the weekend as we go away with the best man and his lovely lady for a Kids free weekend up north.

The champagne is on ice and I can't wait!

I'm a Student Midwife

When people ask me what I do I can now officially say "I'm a student midwife"!

We started today and I was very nervous but felt happy knowing that I knew a few people in our intake already. In fact I arranged to meet one of them for coffee before the class started so we could go in.

I needn't have worried, it was all good fun and there are a very diverse and interesting bunch of women in our class. We had lots of laughs and spent most of today just going over what we would be doing over the next three years, what the expectations were and introductions.

Wasn't too thrilled to find out that we have to be tested for TB and have other immunisations (ouch) but I guess you gotta take the good with the bad.

Finally managed to get my AUT diary so I can now get organised - so before the kids come home from school I shall be sitting down with my computer diary, kitchen calendar and uni timetable and a bunch of highlighters to co-ordinate my life at last - well the next three months at any rate.

Mayhem and madness

Another successful kids birthday done and dusted.

The young master 8 has now celebrated with 14 of his nearest and dearest! We had 15 kids here for party games, food and cake. I thought I was so organised with prizes, loot bag goodies and having got the food sorted that come party day I realised I didn't have a cake nor time to make one.

I ended up buying some goody gum drops ice cream, turning it out on a plate, icing it with loads of chocolate icing and sprinkling it with good old M&M's before refreezing until candle time. It was a real hit but a bit embarassing when one mum asked for the recipe based on her kids report of the cake!

The weather was dodgy but we managed to get out for a swim. i drew the short straw and ended up in the (icy) pool swimming with the kids with Steve on lifeguard duty. Very stressful 30 minutes of kids sinking and me rescuing them and then trying to convince them all to get out before we turned into popsicles.

All children were safe and accounted for by pick up time, Matt was happy and we were exhausted - but nothing that a stiff drink couldn't cure!

Uni starts to tomorrow so I am trying to get everything organised for that. Currently grappling with forms for the student loan. Now, I believe I am an intelligent woman but you just about need a degree for filling in government forms! Hopefully by tonight it will be in one of the three envelopes they sent me with the three different mail outs of different forms and then they can do with it what they will.

With the start of uni and work, my "holiday" comes to an end. I can't understand where the last three months have gone. The rest was good but I have got horribly lazy and wonder how I am going to cope with being a full time student, working one or two nights a week (and one Saturday per month) as well as being chief cook and bottle washer to the family! Well we shall see.

I started a movie club in my last week of holidays. Currently I am the only member, but so far it is an extremely fun club. The purpose of the club is to attend movies while they are still in the cinema and then discuss over a wine afterwards. The discussion part will be much more lively when there is another member or two involved. Currently it just looks like a sad, half-cut woman talking to herself! I went to see "Death at a Funeral" and thoroughly enjoyed it - I laughed like a hyena most of the way through. The only thing about attending a 10.30am session of the movies is that most of the other 10 people in the theatre are senior cits whose hearing has seen better days - and they insist on telling each other what the character in the movie is thinking, or what is about to happen, and of course the only person who can hear all the comments is me. However despite these little setbacks I believe my movie club has good potential and is much less time consuming than book clubs.

Enough procrastinating though, I must away and continue my uni prep and form filling and mourn the carefree days of my holiday. I'm not too depressed though becaause the husband and I are going away sans children next weekend to celebrate our 15th wedding anniversary.