Just a quick update…just haven’t had time today to do much!

Looking at 2 more houses tomorrow to get a comparison on the one we like. I’m sure one of them will be the right one for us.

Rach and the kids came over today. Holly asked me if Rach was short for “Rachess” like me being Fran that is short for Frances. Love her new short haircut, it suits her so much and I could tell that she feels better just by it being a cute cut.

OK, dinner is burning. Better dash…………………….

We are taking a second look at a house today. We first saw this place on Saturday and I loved it immediately and Justin did too. Getting Justin to like what I like has been a huge battle and with this one, we both just knew it was great. It is only 2 minutes up the road, so we can stay at the same school and be in the same community which is a relief.

So the house….it has 4 bedrooms (3 really big ones and one regular size one), a study, a rumpus room with ensuite and spa, main bedroom with ensuite, a dining room (aka scrapbooking room) and a great big block with no grass – just paving, decking around the pool and masses of ground covering plants. French doors lead out from the rumpus room to one of 2 entertaining areas. It is really great. The kitchen is blue, and newish, but it would need an update in due course. The 3 bathrooms are all decent, not a brown scanky 1970’s tile in site. It is the kind of place that wouldn’t need anything done to it immediately, and that is very appealing considering I will be busy with new baby in a few months time.

So fingers crossed that this is the one. We just have to negotiate the price – I don’t want to be anywhere near that conversation, I’ll leave that up to Justin.

The family party on Sunday went well. I had to give a speech and while I was very nervous I think I actually did a good job of it. Met the new boyfriend and Holly was horrified at the “pin in his tongue”, but he was a really nice guy and my sister is obviously very taken with him, so that is all the verification that I need. At one point we were having family photos and he was in it. Mum said “Just stand on the side, so in case it doesn’t work out with Kate we can chop you out of the photo”. Oh dear!!!!! He took it all in good jest, thank goodness. 210 This is everyone (minus my 2 nephews – one was asleep and one was hiding). 3 more babies on the way in the next 6 months. 18 people all up now – we will need one of those panoramic photos at Christmas with all the newies in it too.
213 And this photo is of my sisters and I. I don’t think we look alike at all 😉

I recently had a comment on my blog from a friend from uni that I haven’t seen in over 10 years. She found it by chance. Isn’t that a spin out. So now she has had a catch up on my life and I’m sure she was sitting there thinking what the hell is on the water here with all these babies that I am having!! Gotta love the blog 🙂 Thanks for stopping by Caz. Can’t wait to catch up with you a bit more.

OK that is enough for today. Have a great ANZAC Day and I’ll be sure to blog again if this house is THE ONE.

Ok so I resisted to urge to be put off by all the plan possibilities, and went with a prepaid Virgin. In the end Justin got the new phone, and I got his hand-me-down! I hardly use it, so I guess it doesn’t matter that I am not up with the very latest and look at tad daggy 🙁 Please don’t judge me by my mobile!!!!

I looked at my calendar today and the quote was “To have good friends, you have to be one first” – good point, but geez it is hard isn’t it? Keeping up with phone calls and visits and birthdays and anniversarys and blog commenting is a full time job 🙂

More house hunting this weekend. And on Sunday we are having a huge party at my parents to celebrate 3 events – My Dad’s 60th birthday; The arrival of my nephew Jacob and the departure of my sister on a long holiday on the Trans Mongolian Railway (and to also have a squiz at her new boyfriend 😉 ) We are most excited about the squiz at the new boyfriend – Justin asked me how much we were allowed to interrogate and hassle him. I think Jus just wants to get back all the inquistions that were imposed on him when he first arrived on the scene 15 years ago.

So have a great weekend one and all.

I saw ‘Catalyst” on the ABC last week and there was a segmant on an experiment that a Uni Professor had undertaken to determine why so many of his “well off” students failed to get a job at the end of their studies. Why did so many of them, who had all the opportunites in life, end up working at Starbucks?

The experiment was set up so that they had 24 different types of jams for tasting and for sale. Lots of people tasted, but hardly anyone bought any. When they reduced the number of jam samples to 6, they had the same number of people tasting, but sold much more jam. The concluded that in the first scenario there were too many choices and the brain doesn’t like the high proprtion of risk assocaiated with failure. Choosing 1 jam to buy would mean chancing faliure 23 times and that is too much for us. In the second scenario, with only 6 jams, the chance of failure is only 5 out of 6, and that is more acceptable odds for us to deal with.

I had a light bulb moment!! I hate making decisions when there are so many choices, because I hate the thought of not making the right one and thus facing the ridicule. For example – I never go the the video store to choose a DVD. I loathe standing in front of all the releases and having to make a choice. I would much rather someone else make that decision. I am freaking out about buying a house (we have to move with number 4’s imminant arrival) because what if we choose one and a better one comes on the market a week later. I desperately need a new mobile phone, but the number of plan choices is so overwhelming that I am just sticking with this portable brick because it is easier to do that than make a wrong choice.

I never realised that this was my problem until it was demonstrated on this show. Thank goodness I am not the only one!!!!

On a brighter note, School holidays are here and it is so nice not to have to dash off in the morning for school. Holly has a friend over today and I have not seen them since she arrived. Ahhhhhhh – the serenity!!

Hope everyone had a great Easter – I only ate 2 tiny eggs the whole weekend!

If I had have rested, relaxed or slept any more than I did they would have pronounced me dead! It was so great to sit in the sun and read a book, walk along the beach, take the kids to the park and sit in the sun and read a book. Just blissful! And just what I needed. I feel so much happier and rested and positive about….well everything 🙂
189 This is me feeding one of the hundreds of birds that came all throughout the day. The kids were facinated by them.
192 Holly got her hair cut while we were there. She must have had about 10cms or so chopped off. All the curls came right in, but she prefers me straightening it with the hair dryer!!! Come Monday morning and the rush for school – there won’t be any hairdrying happening!
195 This is Jess and cousin Andrew. There is 3 weeks age difference and they were a delight to watch. The plodded around and chatted and played together.
198 And this is the girls. We had such a great time altogether and they loved having Mum and Dad around 24/7. 🙂

To top off a awesome week, we had some great news on Friday. My brother Matt and his wife Penny had thier first baby. A gorgeous little boy called Jacob. I could have held him all day, he is so cute and so tiny. 201 Me being clucky!
204 The divine Mr J.
207 Jess was so taken with him. She wanted to touch him all the time, but was a bit rough! I think she’ll be right when our baby comes along. I was a bit worried because she so much likes to be the baby. I thought she might have her nose out of joint, but I guess she’ll just have to adapt like the others did!! (Note – could Jess’s eyelashes be any longer? I measured one and it was 15mm. Mine was only 9mm. Where is the fairness in that?)

So that just about wraps up our week away. Got an antenatal appt this week – can’t wait to hear the heart beat and be reassured that all is OK. I am starting to feel little kicks which is so nice.

Thanks for popping over!