The Paperson Family.

Both kidlets are down and out with a cold, but Mari and I still managed some creative fun yesterday. Well, Mari did most of the work. I just cut out the heads.

Our big little girl!

Rosa is sitting up! Unsupported and on her own. Yup, we're ever so proud. She only decided to reveal this new talent to us minutes before she went to bed this evening, so this decidedly unphotographic photo is the best evidence we have so far. Expect more artful pics in the very near future.

Oh, the relief! She's hit that lovely (but tiny) window where she can sit up and play with toys, but can't crawl away fast enough to escape in a serious way.
Rolling under the couch doesn't count.

Lazy Days (it's all relative of course)

I know we desperately need (neeeed!) some rain. It's been so dry for so long. But I love (looooove!) spending half the day sitting out in the lovely warm sun, drinking lattes (my contribution to yummy-mummyhood), occasionally passing Mari a bite to eat when she happens to pass by, and bouncing Rosa on my knee. The downside is being used as a handy drawing board for her soggy biscuit. Remind me to stop wearing black, and invest in some beige clothes.
Mari gets to play with her friends, I get to chat with mine, Rosa gets to eat some gravel (roughage), and we all get some sun on our faces. No, I'm joking about the gravel, but she does try. Then it's home to dirty clothes, tired but nap-resistant kiddlets and a scruffy house. Ah well, nice while it lasts.

Photo edition

We spent the afternoon yesterday at a friend's block of land. He's just had a house deposited on the side of his hill. A nice company called Prebuilt Homes built the house in their factory, brought it up on a truck, plonked down the house and unfolded it like origami in 3 1/2 hours. Instant house. Nice.

Adventures in the air and on the ground...

James was finally returned to us safe and sound after an epic day or so of engine failures and fruitless collection attempts. I bundled the girls in the car and headed down to the airport (a 1 1/2 hour drive in late arvo traffic), not knowing that at that very same time, James' plane had suddenly half-broken down in mid air and was turning around to limp back to New Zealand on one engine. So, I negotiated carpark, etc, got us all down to the arrivals terminal to be told "well, try again tomorrow morning". So back in the car we hopped and came back home. Got back 3 hours after we'd left, a little frayed around the edges and with sleep routines out of whack. It was nothing like James' trip back to NZ on half power, night in musty hotel, and early morning back on the plane, but I reckon doing it all with two kids under three gives me a few bonus points. :-)

Despite the long trip home, James had a great time at the conference, swapped notes with other intellects and got snowed upon. A great time away for him, and a good time for me to get the girls into a bit of a sleep routine. Fingers crossed, touch wood and all that.

girls girls girls

The house is a girl only zone this weekend, apart from the cat. James is off having a fabulous time in sunny Dunedin, south New Zealand... with the camera. So. I've been having fun with the video cam. I can't work out how to upload quicktime movies to this blog so have a look here. This is one of the several messages we've been sending him. Another one here. James gave a paper at a very exciting sounding conference that I just can't quite remember the name or theme of at the moment. He was a great success, and after presenting on the first day (friday), he now has the whole weekend to swan around and get lots of uninterrupted sleep. I'm happy for him. Really.