Babies Born June 2006 #13

[Roryrory]

Sorry Bath, I'm with IK, Enigma and Amanda - never heard of it! Like it though!

I am such a procrastinator - still haven't done any work this evening. Watched "House", though (only show I reliably watch and love). Should get to work now. I know - am going to procrastinate by getting "organised". I am going to print up A4 sized sheest with "Food/Menu", "Exercise", "Cleaning", "To-Do" and a timetable on them so I can be super efficient - might be more efficient if I actually started work, but you know how it is. Sort of like planning an elaborate study timetable that takes that long to design you use up the entire swot vac preparing it (like Lister studying for his chefs exam in "Red Dwarf", for any SF nuts out there...)

[Bathsheba]

Oh well, at the risk of annoying everyone at least I can say there are documented cases of people using the phrase "skin a rabbit".... I Googled it and found an excerpt from none other than The New Yorker:

Skin the rabbit—that’s what my mum used to say when she pulled off my shirt and singlet for a bath. Mr. Bailey gives me three dollars for every rabbit, to feed his dogs.

So I don't feel so bad now. Sorry for all the short posts... IK was right, the mods don't like them (I could be cheeky and post an entire essay on the usage of the term!) There was also an example of the phrase as part of a book review from a childrens' book of 1958... so it is a saying of years gone by... oh well... my three kids will know and use it and their kids will too.... if we breed like rabbits the saying is bound to return to popular usage again!

[Cee_Cee99]

IK - I've never heard of it.. but I LOVE it..In fact, I will start using it!

Rory - i love House too! I also like "thank God you'r here" - it is just different to most shows on TV.

[Roryrory]

CeeCee, I just caught the last 5 mins of "Thank God You're Here" last night and it looked pretty damn funny! I think I will have to add that to my "must watch" list.

I have been thinking a lot lately about something Marylin Warren, Victoria's Chief Justice of the Supreme Court (first in Australia, I think) said a while ago. Warren CJ said in a speech that women have a "duty to their gender" to take the hard case, take up partnership - essentially put themselves "out there" in terms of career. When I heard this a few years ago I was quite inspired by it - there have been many times in my career when I have tried to do just that and take bold steps. I discussed it with my mum, but she said "That's rubbish, you don't have a duty to anyone but yourself and your family. You need to do what is best for you." Now Flynn is here, I think I agree. I am still as pro-career as ever, and do think that women should put themselves out there in public life (take IK, the other day, at her CFA meeting). But I really can't live the whole "personal is political" thing any more. I mean, it is for partly political/feminist reasons that I am so keen to work, but there is no way I am going to slog myself 8 days a week trying to prove something. Flynn is far too important, my future children are far too important, and my relationship with DH is far too important. I am crazy enough to believe I can have both. But you know the ironic thing that I reckon will mean I maybe can? My DH, who is prepared to look after Flynn while I work. How ironic that a man can be so instrumental in making a feminist dream a real possibility:eek: Seems like I should add to Virginnia Wolf's adage - you don't just need 4oo pounds a year and a room of one's own - you need a DH like mine as well!

Enough musing - must get to work!!!!

[nickers]

Bath you've never see back to the future?!?!?!?!? how is that possible!
Hope your working hard Rory!
Dh & I are going to dinner & movies tonight! First time since before Nixon was born! Friends are just egging to babysit so we took them up on the offer, looking forward to it!

[simone]

Im sorry bath, im with IK... never heard it!!

IK- HAHAHA on the McFly comeback... thats one for us youngin's!!
(not callin anyone old or anything...)

[*Ali*]

If it helps Bath I have heard the say- you look like a skinned rabbit! Close but not quite the same.

Rory- I am in the same fortunate position as you, wanting to go back to work at least a little bit and having the opportunity to do so because my DH is able to spend some time at home with Tori. I have only been out of uni for 3 years, so for me it was way to early to just dissapear off the radar, it would be far too hard to get back in after 5 or so years away. I think there is nothing wrong with believing that you can have both a family and a career if you are willing to share responsibility (and have someone who is willing to share the responsibilities of child rearing) and to also make some concessions in your career- ie. part time instead of full time etc.

[Bathsheba]

Nic: Looove Nixon's new ticker piccy! Does that say "security" on his t-shirt? LOL Oh and I think I've seen Back To The Future but it was at a friend's party on video when it first came out and I didn't really concentrate. How are you coping with the heat? did you buy an a/c? I've just closed up the house to keep it out... it stays relatively cool that way...at least in the front part, being an older style house with high ceilings... plus thick curtains help.

Rory: very interesting musings... I recall the gradual transformation with my own realisation that I was going to put the needs of my family first too. It happened soon after having Verity. It also came as a shock... I had all these things planned to do in my life that I just assumed Verity would fit in with somehow. Then I realised that it wouldn't really be fair and that maybe it didn't matter if I waited until my children were older. I'm also fortunate that my DH has supported me with a few aspects of my career such as returning to uni and travelling o/s when Verity was 7 during which he didn't hesitate to assume total care for her for a month. I've found that I'm now very settled and comfortable with my new "old fashioned" beliefs in putting my family first for a while.... but that some other women in my life seem to imply I am letting the "team" down. They are slogging it out with full-time jobs whilst raising their children and I get the feeling from them that I should want more from life. Sure when Verity was 5,6,7 years old i juggled uni/part time work and domestic duties but it certainly wasn't sustainable. Anyhow, I believe that balance is the key: being a SAHM isn't sustainable forever either... it would drive me insane. However I am going to try to enjoy it more and ignore the pressure from other women. I suspect that at the end of the day when I do return to the workforce i'll be less likely to "burn out" and have children that are also not dizzy from all the shuttling around. As IK says, "i'm thinking aloud now"... But I also need to add that I do not lump all working mums into the 'slogging it out' catagory. Many love their work, and their children love the time with other carers... and these are usually families where the father is very hands on... so i agree... it CAN work... but it does depend heavily on the man... ironically as you said.

[nickers]

hehe yes his shirt says "security"! i put him in that when we flew to sydney, everyone was chuckling @ the airport! we end up getting evap cooling, i turned it on about 9am thismorning so it doesnt have to work o/t once heated up.
But yesterday i kept all the blinds shut & (besides upstairs) it stayed relativley coll most of the day.

[simone]

NIc, i didnt realise that on his shirt... DH has one of those shirts too lol!!

Im planning to go back to work within the next year, more than filltime... Im joining the RAAF as an officer, which mean 3 months away, then off to job training and officer training. I definately wont see my family for 3 months, hopefully they will be able to come along with me for the rest, depending on how long-if the posting is longer than 6 months, they have to post the whole family.

We're doing this as DH has been unable to get any work (and if it is, it casual, and he gets sacked before he gets to 3 months, so they dont have to give him benefits-super, sick leave etc etc) We have decided DH will be a SAHD and i will go to work, and if i put my ideas about having another baby off for a while, i will get mat leave too... bonus! Ill just miss my babbies (and BB lol!) so much...

starting to get really excited about tomorrow... not only about the meet, but also geting out of the house!!

And DH made a really good suggestion today about the races. I was wanting to go, but it wont be viable this year, he said next year we should have a BB races day for the girls. I was surprised, he normally "poo-poo's" my suggestions of meets with BB girls (not that he hates you guys, but i talk to you guys more than him!!) I thought that was a pretty cool idea... BUt its a year away still

We dont have cooling (and i cant find any fans) but the way our house is, if i close it up early it stays relatively cool for the day. And we have roller shutters which do a really good job. (but they are manual ones, and the kids think its funny to open them and close them and open them... you get the idea! And then they leave them open and that room gets hot again...

Well, we are relaxing, watching Bob the Builder on DVD, (declan has muted it, and is quite happy just watching it like that, so ill leav it quiet for now...) Xander knows this one word for word, its generally goes on and when it finishes, xander gets a chair up to the DVD player and presses enter so it plays againa. And again. I swear im going to hide it soon...

I have yet to get dressed, the kids are only in nappies (well, nothing for Xander, he pees in jocks so just a singlet for him!) and im in my dressing gown... Wonder how that would look when the lady from DHS rocks up at midday? Im going to say i didnt receive the letter, so my house just looks nice and tidy all the time... lol

[Smoke Jaguar]

Ahhh, musings! My feminism is practiced by doing what I feel I need to do to live my values. I've got my dukes up and if I don't have to put up a fight to get what I want, then all the better - but I'm prepared for a bunfight if someone tries to tell my it's not my place to do anything. So, when I'm qualified, I don't want to work every day. I want to work 'part time' so that I can spend time with my family and my animals. I'm definitely a work to live and not live to work, even though the work I want to end up doing will be intellectually stimulating and hopefully of value to the community. I'm lucky that I didn't have a carved career before Oscar (can't call working casually - not casual by choice, either - for a department store a 'career'!), so I haven't had to juggle the two in my head, but I feel that (I HOPE that) I would always choose family over work because good, sound values start at home. And yeah, DP would be home, but I've got things I want to teach our kids and I can't do that from an office! Ideally, I'd love to practice from home, but psychology is not the kind of field where you can work from home all the time. But flexible hours could be arranged so that I can 'have everything', so to speak.
Cee Cee said what I wanted to say last night before I got caught up in the banter (sorry, mods, it was all Bathsheba's fault!) - I think I'll be using 'skin a rabbit' with Oscar from now on, cos it's pretty cool!
No aircon here - why would we have aircon when we only have a wood heater for winter??? Nah, we live on the east side of a hill, so if I keep the blinds drawn and doors closed then it doesn't heat up too much. Being a windy day I have the door open today. Not only that, now that I'm not preggers, I can go back to enjoying hot days, yay! Geez it feels good to enjoy heat...
Listening to Joanne Leez on 774 ABC Melb - v interesting interview.
Oscar asleep...on the bed...so I'm going to wax the other leg now (waxed the other one two days ago!)...

[Smoke Jaguar]

Did everyone pass out from the heat? Where is everyone?
Speaking of heat, my laptop's running a bit hot, so I might turn it off for a while and head to the shops with the dog (whose going stir crazy) when Oscar wakes for his next feed (he's crashed on the bed - arms splayed, very cute!).
BTW - legs all waxed now, no half job anymore...phew!

[jaspen]

hey Bath - I've heard the saying!!!! ETA maybe the fact I'm an only child of older parents who were also children of older parents has something to do with it
anyway will get back to reviewing the previous posts since my urgent departure last week and will catch up soon

[Bathsheba]

Good on you Jaspen Hehe... I knew there would be one... looking forward to hearing your news!

Well I was trying to be passed out but Wade wouldn't let me nap... kept touching things that he shouldn't be. I tried to tell him a peaceful story as he lay next to me but as soon as I was finished he jumped up like a jack-in-th-box. Now he is outside... in a few minutes he'll come in... then out ...then in... leaving the door wide open of course letting all the heat inside. And the front door is being blown open (!) by the gusts of wind so I'm spending all my time walking between the front door and back door closing them. Grrrr.

Ok.... now Niall's awake...

[AmandaJ]

Well I've been lurking for most of the morning, just don'thave any energyto do much. The window that I broke all those months ago has finally just been fixed, cost us $80 but its all done now and will keep the cool air in when I decide to use the air-con.

Speaking of careers, I worked full-time before I had Kailen as well as studing part-time, once I had Kailen I became a SAHM. I'm thinking of going back to study to become a midwife, I'm not really sure wether it will be next year or the year after, but I'm thinking of starting to do it by corropondence. Then when I'm fully qualified I'll only work casual or part-time, then when the kids are older I will think about full-time, there my long-term goals for now.

Better go boy is starting to get ready for a feed.

hugs xoxo

[nickers]

LOL Bath, i know its frustrating for u but i can just imagine u constantly walking back and forth!!
Nixon hasnt slept since he awoke @ 7.30am thismorning... actually finally he is quiet hoping he has crashed i dont want him to be grumpy for my friends tonight!
Maybe i should have turned the evap full blown from 9am and not just half cause now its really heated up & strugling to cool back down, oh this is bringing back bad memories of being pg & 45degree heat!

[simone]

Hey ladies

MElbo ladies... how windy is it? everything keeps rattling around here...

My kiddies are ALL asleep, even Xander, which is unusual... Anneliese slept for an hour, i gave her one boob and then she wasnt interested in any more, so i put her in her vibrating bouncer, and she nodded straight back off!!

RORY: i will be going into essendon, as DH catches the tram back into there from Elizabeth ST after work. hopefully he will be able to knock off early, as i cant afford the fuel to come home, then run back to Essendon to pick him up again...

The DHS visit wasnt too bad, they've managed to get me 13 weeks free childcare - 3 days a week for the boys, and 2 days a week for Anneliese. Just to help me get my mind back on track, give me some time for me. S'pose DHS isnt all THAT bad...

[Cee_Cee99]

Rory:

How ironic that a man can be so instrumental in making a feminist dream a real possibility

. behind every great woman is a great man. He hee. I completely understand where your coming from.

Nickers - like your new ticker... movies yeah, how romantic.

BRB