Tali - well done on the ticker, your kids look gorgeous! You'll pick up the lingo soon enough.

Ik - well done on hosting your childs first birthday party. Its such an achievement! So much work goes into it and you end up buggered at the end of it. Sounds like Oscar had a good time, which is the main thing. Marley loved the singing part but she wasn't so sure about the candle! Can't believe your parents turned up with the guest of honour late! My theory for making a kids cake is make a sample one a few days before hand just to make sure it tastes good. I did 2 batches as I had never made these cakes before and I was a bit nervous. At least the second one turned out and nice of you to do a gluten free one. That poor child must feel so left out at most parties. A very thoughtful gesture from you. I did Gymbaroo when Chelsea was 6 mths old, she really loved it. I did 2 terms but found it a bit expensive. Check out and see if there are any others in your area as there are some other independant places that are cheaper and do a very similiar thing.

Nic - RA can be useless sometimes! My dad recently sold and had real trouble with his RA. He enlisted a vendor advocate and the house sold in 2 days! The vendor advocate did so much more work than the RA, chased prospective buyers (2 were interested but pulled out and RA didn't really chase them and find out why) and got one of them back and settled on a price. You don't pay them, they get a percentage from the RA commission. Might be worth checking out. Or just change RA if thats an option. You have a beautiful home and in a good area, there must be a buyer somewhere, esp in this market. Good luck and try not to stress too much about it.

Rory - my cot has 2 heights, newborn and toddler. The toddler one is quite low and Marley isn't very tall either. When she stands up, her head just makes it over the rail! Not sure what you can do, maybe another mattress on the ground just in case!

Julie - sounds like you had a very productive day. I should do a toy clear out too soon. The canvases were easy. To get the neat lines etc, you just mask the areas off with good quality masking tape. Paint the area and peel off straight away to prevent bleeding under the tape. Once that section is dry, you can mask another area. I go through lots of masking tape. Next time I get a chance, I will upload some of the other art work I have done, my house is full of them!!!

7th - hows your back today? Hopefully not giving you too much grief!

Received my Donna Hay kids issue today and for those looking for meal ideas its packed full of some brilliant recipes and all kid friendly and easy to make. Chelsea has already picked out a heap she wants me to make.