In a few weeks, we'll be saying goodbye to 2011 and saying hello to a brand new year. You know... the time when we all make resolutions and promises to ourselves and loved ones that 'this year will be different.'
I've got mixed feelings about saying goodbye to 2011. It's been a tough year, I'll definitely say that. It's been full of wet and shitty nappies, plastic forks, spoons, plates and cups, pureed and finger food, milk powder and maintaining a constant supply of cooled boiled water and chasing the elusive idea of sleep and all those other things that come with caring for 2 kids under the age of 2. But how can I say that is tough, really? People I know are celebrating this Christmas without their baby. Babies they hardly got to meet. And other people I know are celebrating their first Christmas without loved ones they have lost throughout the year. And there are still some people who still don't have a house, or probably even a Christmas tree to celebrate under after they lost everything in the January floods. And how can we forget what the Morcombe's Christmas is going to be like, the first one they will have knowing for sure that they will never celebrate another one with their son. I could go on.... there are so many people out there that are doing it a lot tougher than dealing with a bit of sleep deprivation and I feel really bad for saying that my year has been tough, when in the grand scheme of things, there hasn't really been anything too tough about it.
2011 really has been a great year. It was the year that my baby was a baby. We probably won't have any more kids, so the days of having a tiny baby around are well and truly past. Piper is a more than confident crawler and is now learning to stand and climb and put one foot in front of the other in a walking type motion (it is far from walking just yet, which is why I'm reluctant to call it that.) She is growing up so fast and before I know it, I'm going to have 2 little people running around at my feet. She is getting much more interactive with Mackenna and her Daddy and everyone she meets and sees and is always smiling.... so long as she's not hungry. She can be very unforgiving if she's hungry, bless her. She's a TV junkie and doesn't like it if the TV is on, but not on cartoons! She's laughs at the strangest things..... the louder the noise the better and she just loves it when anyone sneezes (real or fake!)
It's also been a year of so much growth, learning and development in Mackenna as well. In the last 12 months, she has completely transformed into this beautiful little girl, who knows exactly what she wants and the best way to go about getting it. She is so incredibly smart all while being the dizziest little dork I know! She is polite, kind, loving, respectful, caring, curious, imaginative... everything that you want your little girl to be. I feel so blessed every single day that I get to call her my daughter. I can't believe that in about a week, we will be celebrating her 2nd birthday. I so wish I could just press the pause button on her right now and keep her this age.... she is so much fun to have and be around. In the same respect, she has so much more learning, growing and development to do this year, that I can't wait for that either!!
I'm not one to make New Year's resolutions. Personally, I find them kind of flimsy and I think if you want to make changes to your life, that there is no time like the time you want to do it, rather than waiting for New Year's to tick around. This year though is a little bit different. I have one huge goal that I am going to give my absolute all to achieve and I know Todd is on board with me on this one as well, so hopefully we can make it a reality.
We want to move out of this house.
Seems like a simple task, right.... just find a new rental, pack up and go... right? It's a little bit different for us though. Firstly, we would love to buy something of our own. At this stage and with our current financial position, this is far from a reality. Being a stay at home Mum for the last 2 years has meant all the sacrifices and dent to our savings that I'm sure every new family experiences. I am planning a return to work in late Jan/early Feb, so hopefully we can start to put some extra $$ aside for the deposit we need, but this we'll just have to wait and see about when I'm actually back at work. So that means we would be looking at a new rental. Again, seems easy enough right? For us... no, unfortunately it's not. Firstly, we have 2 big outside dogs. And the Malamute makes a mess.... he sheds thick wads of hair 10 months of the year and loves making goat tracks in back yards where he likes to wander around. He is also not particularly friendly with other dogs and needs a largish, fully fenced back yard, so that cuts our options to a very short shortlist!! Secondly, we pay such great rent to live here that to move to something a little bit bigger would mean a HUGE increase to our rent each week (and I'm talking $100 - $150 a week increase!) which just seems so pointless in the grand scheme of things and in the bid to get into our own house. Thirdly, to move would cost us a fortune!! Robertson's have lived in this house since it was built in about 2000 (Todd since 03 or 04... I don't know exactly, maybe even earlier) and in that time, we've gotten pretty settled. Things need repairing (things that are OUR responsibility and that I would not leave the way they are for the landlords to have to repair, although there is a few of those wear and tear things too) and every single corner needs really good cleaning (which I don't think I could do to a standard I'd be happy with, especially the vertical blinds..... and anyway, who wants to pull down 8 sets of vertical blinds to clean each and every one when people have ultrasonic machines that can do it in a fraction of the time!!!) And don't even get me started on removalists and the cost of them, however - doing it ourselves would just be a bigger nightmare than what it is worth.
So those are the major issues with us and a new rental... there are other's that I won't bore you with, but yeah.... it's not quite as simple as just finding a new house and moving. But somehow and some way, we are determined to do it, whichever way it works out for us.
It will be sad to leave this house. There are a lot of memories held within these walls.... some are bad, but most are good. (I would hate to know what they'd tell you if they could talk ;o) ) And it's a great street to live in. We live at the top of a cul-de-sac which comes off a dead end street, so we don't get much traffic come past and all of the neighbours are great. We all stick to ourselves and have our own privacy, but everyone is keen to wave or shout out a 'hello' if they see you and we know that if we go away anywhere that they'll all be keeping an eye out to make sure nothing funky is going on here (as we do with their houses!)
It's just too small for us now and for our little family. The girls need a bigger and better backyard, they need a rumpus type room for all of their things and Todd and I need room to breathe!! At the moment we are so deep in 'stuff' that we find it difficult to find room for things and I find when I clean up, I seem to just move 'stuff' from one pile in one room to another pile in another room. And it's dark..... it's eastern facing, so the sun rises and falls at the front and back of the house, where all the windows run down the northern and southern sides.... not a great deal of light gets in and I spend most days with all of the living room and kitchen lights on. I hate it and doesn't help our power bills!!
So that's it... I've made a New Years resolution and I so hope that Todd and I can achieve it before the year is out. It's not going to be easy and we are going to have to work hard, but when we get our minds set on something, look out!!! So wish us luck.... we really are going to need it!!
(Oh and on a little side note, I also resolved a few weeks before the new year that I was going to teach Mackenna to write her name before she turns 3... this is completely dependent on her and her development I know, but I am determined to help her with it as much as possible, so stay tuned for a post about that this time next year!!)
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