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Some things are just too good

As the years go by, it seems that the number of personal or family photos I post gradually dwindles, almost to a trickle. The everyday adventures of the early years of parenting seem at first to burst forth like an open dam. The memory of every dimple and smile , first laugh , first taste , first step , first fall , first penance , first tragedy , first friend, first day of school ... feels so fleeting and precious, I want to hold on to each one for as long as possible. The long days begin to quicken in their momentum, and soft little chubby arms encircling my neck soon extend into long lean muscled limbs resting heavily around my shoulders.   I  don't have to hold their hand any more when we cross the street. But they hold mine. L ove's pain grows sweeter with each passing hour, day, and year. A fleeting image captured of a moment, pales in comparison to the truth of everything it means. Some things are just too good. " ...I never tell them about our lives. You know why? ...
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Recent posts

For as long as it lasts

Today I finished reading the book 'Laurinda' by Alice Pung, which fourteen-year old Nathan recommended to me, from his English reading list last term. Afterwards I got up to throw the bunch of scrunched up tissues into the bin. The book was an easy read, but uneasy on the heart. Good stuff doesn't always have to feel good. Apart from the above-mentioned text, I've also enjoyed side-splitting funny, as well as deep philosophical discussions on other books on his list, including 'Animal Farm', 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy', 'The Martian' and 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'. With my eleven-year old Grace, it has been just the best fun talking over our shared delights and exasperations over classic novel heroines like Anne Shirley, Elizabeth Bennett, Emma Woodhouse, Jane Eyre and the Dashwood sisters. ...On this side of the horizon, these are truly the best days.... Early last year, I turned the page of that last chapter of '...
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The Gap

. I acknowledge this long gap. . In the past several years, it has been becoming difficult to be completely open about about many things.  But like a mirror, the very same little people I taught to fly free, think for themselves and live fearlessly have reminded to do the same for myself. These past few months, so many little things like listening to inspiring songs , revisiting favourite stage characters and reading new material had been chipping away at the dam I had erected around me over the past few years. In my fear of becoming an outcast, I silenced my voice and imprisoned myself, holding myself captive by the thoughts of others. Alone, I was most myself, most true. But the self that really mattered was the self that was visible, the self that could be shown to other people. Yet, I'd had to keep my true self apart, and there's only so much of yourself you can hide before you start to fall apart. (almagation of quotes from ' Laurinda ') So this year, I'm giv...
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"I'm just going to miss him"

During our regular bedtime chat this week, Grace and I were talking about plans for tomorrow and the rest of the week. Then seemingly out of nowhere my little girl suddenly burst out angrily...  "Sometimes I think Nathan has more fun than me!"   She started sobbing "When he's playing something fun, I feel sad when I can't join in!"   I knew it was not true that Grace is excluded from playing with Nathan. My two kids love playing together all the time, and my little girl absolutely adores her big brother as much as he dotes on her.  "Why do you say that? Did something happen today?" I prompted, trying to figure out where this was coming from.  "Well... not today, but one time! Like playing Star Wars!" "I thought you guys were playing Star Wars together yesterday? " I clarified.  "Okay... maybe not Star Wars... but other times... Like when he's playing Lego..."  "Can you tell me what happened?"   "I ...
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Double digits

It's been a fantastic decade! Ten years since  the arrival  of this dude... and the beginning of a  new era . Just look at the size of this guy.  He keeps waking up each morning bigger and taller (why on earth do we keep sending him to bed each night?). This boy is absolutely one of the smiliest people I ever knew (possibly barring my own dad , but this guys is definitely a serious contender for first place). I am seriously bursting at the seams with pride over my little man. I always have been I suppose. But lately, the credit has been well and truly well-earned on his own merit. It's still early days to tell if there is a Shakespeare, Einstein, Mozart or Da Vinci waiting in the wings. At this age, almost all possbilities are wide open. What does shine through is that unpretentious spirit... sincerity... sense of honour... milk of human kindness or whatever you want to call it. That's what shines through. Of course, I wholeheartedly recognise that every child deep ...
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No longer young, not yet old

Recently I had one of those little lightbulb moments and thought of this... When it comes to ' adulting '... Your 20s are like the childhood stage of adulting, Your 30s are like the adolescent phase of adulting, And your 40s onwards are like the start of the grownup chapter of adulting. Sometimes in my musings, I like to imagine clever quotes or advice I might give to my younger self. There are many things that if I were to do again, I would have done differently.  So much of what I did in my early years was because I was trying to 'do the right thing', or to please others or impress them. Of course I would have vehemently denied it at that time. In my mind, I was always convinced that everything I did was for myself. But it's inevitable that a lot of what we do, especially when we are starting out in life, is outwardly focused. We are all wired that way after all. Humans are by nature social animals. We constantly try out different things to figure out how and wher...
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Stay fabulous darling!

Grace turned seven years old this month. We decided to keep the celebrations small and exclusive with just the family ( in light of the current situation happening all around ). It was a toss up between a day at the Perth Zoo or a visit to the Swan Valley Cuddly Animal Farm. Grace went back and forth on the options for days. Finally she chose the animal farm so she could cuddle some guinea pigs and rabbits. It was a fantastic day for the whole family! View this post on Instagram Celebrating Grace's 7th birthday at Swan Valley Cuddly Animal Farm A post shared by Serenely (@livingserenely) on Jul 11, 2020 at 10:04am PDT Her birthday cake request was a unicorn cake (which I pimped up myself ✌). Her other seven year old wish was to finally get some bling! 💠 What a sophisticated young lady she's growing into. These days she's also into Katy Perry and Taylor Swift; Leg...
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Pandemic

Blink. And it's now four months since our family holiday in Bangkok . I should chronicle some thoughts on this unprecedented time in history with the Covid-19 pandemic that is has brought the entire globe to it's knees. What has life been like for us these past few months, riding through this storm? Here's a month by month snapshot of what's been happening at our end. February... Coming back from our holiday, settling back into our routine for work and school. There were murmurings of the new Coronavirus in the background. But it was the start of the new academic year for the kids who were excitedly settling into their routine with their new teacher and catching up with old/new friends. A number of my daycare kids were starting kindy this year too, and I had a couple of new daycare kids I was happily getting to know. So it was all busy, busy, busy. We were on full steam ahead to take on the new year. The murmurings and news about the Coronav...
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