Our Christmas

I decided because it was Christmas that I would pull out my good camera, and take most of my Christmas photos on there. Tonight I went to get the photos off my camera, and something was wrong with my SD card and I've lost all my Christmas photos. I'm disappointed that I'm stuck with photos off my phone, but glad that I took pics on my phone so we have the memories for later on.

On Christmas Eve we went to see Aaron's Dad and Step Mum Carrol to exchange presents.  Aaron's Dad seemed quite teary and I could tell that he finds Christmas hard now too, but he always loves it when we come to visit.

For tea on Christmas Eve the boys were excited to do our tradition of a picnic on the lounge room floor, while watching a Christmas movie.  The boys chose to watch Elf and we had a great laugh.

When it got dark I decided that because the boys were too excited to go to sleep any time soon, that we may as well jump in the car and go and see some of the Christmas lights in our area.   We hadn't seen any yet, so the boys were excited to go out.

 It was a nice night to go and do it and we had a good excuse not to stay out too late, as Santa was on his way.

Kobe cracked us up with his card that he made Santa.  Obviously Santa has been very naughty this year and has turned into Satan!

Harri woke up at 2.30 am and told me he couldn't go back to sleep. I told him he had no choice but to go back to sleep, but five minutes later he was back in my room. He ended up sleeping in bed with me till 5.30 am when he couldn't wait any longer.  We woke up the other boys at 5.45 am and they couldn't wait to see their presents.

My brother Chrish arrived from Sydney about 9am so I went and picked him up, and then we had him and the missionaries from church over for brunch.  We love our missionaries at the moment - Elder Nonoa and Elder Chan-Tung.  They're awesome guys and are also a lot of fun.  It was nice to have them over as it gave me something to do in the morning, and they made Christmas morning fun.

The boys couldn't wait to get out on the trampoline with Uncle Chrish.

Elder Nonoa has an amazing voice and is very talented on the guitar as well.  We had heard about his talents, so we asked him to bring his guitar on Christmas morning.  We loved listening to him, and could've listened to him all day.

At lunch time we headed out to my brother Eden's house.   We decided to have our big family 'Christmas day' on Boxing Day, so that my sister Nicki and her family could spend Christmas Day in Hobart without having to travel up, so our Christmas Day was very casual, but really fun. 

We spent a long time playing cricket in the backyard.   I don't love watching cricket (unless it's a really exciting one day match) but like playing it. It was so much fun that we couldn't wait to play again on Boxing Day.

My sister in law Steph put on some music and all of a sudden there was a dance party on the deck. It was fun watching the kids dance away together.

Even some of the adults got up for the nutbush!

It didn't really feel like Christmas, but we had a lovely day just hanging out with my family and eating yummy food.  That night we stayed at my Mum and Dad's house, and went to look at a home near theirs that goes all out on the Christmas lights.

On Boxing Day morning we took Milly to the dog beach, and she had a lovely time fetching the ball.  She would go for hours if we let her.

When we got back Mum had made us a yummy brunch.  Dad has been keeping us entertained with all of his stories which are starting to come back to him. 

When we went back to my brother's house, my niece Chloe told me she had a little shop set up and I could come to get hair chalk, nail polish and could have my portrait drawn.    It's fun to do girly stuff with my nieces.

When my sister Nicki and her husband Alex arrived, I noticed her tummy straight away and thought she was pregnant, but then thought how embarrassing it would be if I asked her, and then she wasn't, so I didn't say anything! I did quickly run over to my sister in laws and told them I thought she was pregnant, and once they had another look they agreed too.

I was waiting patiently for her to make the big announcement, and finally as we sat down to eat they told us the exciting news that she is not only pregnant - but is 27 weeks pregnant!    Living in another state makes it easy to keep such a huge secret.  We are very excited to be getting another nephew in March.

After lunch my brother pulled out the black plastic for an awesome water slide. It wasn't warm enough for me to brave it this year, but the kids loved it.

It seems to be our new Christmas tradition since Aaron passed away, and I love it.

All of the grandchildren (except for Noah and the one on the way) with Grandma and Grandpa.  Apparently Jalen's silly face is very serious :)

The whole month of December is hard with the lead up to Christmas, but Christmas Day and Boxing Day were actually okay this year.   It was nice to have some fun and laughs and not feel too sad on the days.  I think because all of our Christmases since Aaron and Noah passed away, have been different to when they were here, it has made it easier.  It's been good to make new traditions, but also have some of our old ones as well.

Christmas Wishes

I want to wish everyone a happy Christmas, but know that Christmas is a hard time for many.  It's been a hard year for many people that I know, and my thoughts are especially with them.  I'm lucky as my boys make it easier for me, as they are so excited.   All day Kobe and Harri have been saying 'this is my favourite time of the year' which is lovely to hear, because I know that despite all they've gone through, they can still enjoy this special time. 

Thank you to our friend Alison, who is also our personal photographer at different times ;) We love our Christmas card photo that she took for us this year.  We decided on this one.

It was a hard choice as we also loved these photos that she took too.  

I love Kobe looking at the balloons in this one.

I had better get to bed as Santa is on his way, and no doubt I'll have three boys up very early in the morning.  

42

Today Aaron would've turned 42. If he were here I would love teasing him about what an old man he was, but 42 is way too young to not be here.  We planned to get together with my friends Simone and Lisa and their families, like we have for Aaron's other birthdays since he passed away, but yesterday was a really hard day, and I messaged them and told them I wasn't really feeling like doing it, and we would see how I felt today.  This morning I woke up feeling a lot more on top of things, so told them to keep our plans. 

I still find that the days leading up to an anniversary or birthday is the hardest, but once the day is here it's usually okay.  I woke up this morning feeling okay, and had a busy day which probably made it a lot easier.

It was lovely to catch up with an old school friend this afternoon, who I haven't seen for probably 8 years or more.  Bec, Tonya and I went to school together from Kindergarten right through to year 12, so we have known each other for over 36 years.  Tonya now lives in New Zealand and it was lovely to hear about the things she has been up to, and meet her partner.

This afternoon we had our annual BBQ with Simone and Lisa and their families for Aaron's birthday.  The weather wasn't great, but it was still warm. The kids had fun playing cricket.
I told Kobe to sit next to Eden for a photo, and made them sit close and then Kobe said 'I need my personal space!!' which cracked us all up.  

Simon made a pav which I would say was very yummy but I resisted having a piece :)

Just as we started to talk about heading to the cemetery, it started pouring down with rain. The kids thought it was great fun!  

Just as we were about to get to the cemetery I noticed a bit of blue sky, and I joked with the boys that Dad made it rain for a little bit so he could send us a rainbow.  Just as I said that we turned the corner and there it was!  Right over the top of the cemetery!
Jalen still isn't convinced that it's not a coincidence, but it's happened far too many times that we've seen a rainbow or double rainbow at times when we have been feeling sad or talking a lot about Aaron and Noah, or I have done something with the boys that I know Aaron would've loved.

My Mum and Dad had beaten us to the cemetery and were just walking out as we were going in.  They got stuck in the rain, and we had a laugh when we saw how drenched they were.

The rain cleared while we were walking in. 

We all had a Pepsi for Aaron, before letting the balloons go.



We just had to get a selfie :) I'm so glad that I didn't decide to cancel our annual tradition, because the day turned out much nicer than I thought it would be.  These girls always make me laugh. Who would've thought almost three years ago that we would be smiling away at the cemetery, drinking Pepsi and taking selfies!

I loved seeing Flynn playing with Noah's Christmas toys at his grave.  I'm sure Noah would've loved it too. 

When we got home the missionaries from church rang to see if we were home.  I told them we were, and they said they were coming around.  We got a lovely surprise with all of the missionaries who are serving in the north of Tasmania turn up, with my Uncle Tom to sing us a couple of Christmas carols.

We were especially excited that one of our favourite missionaries - Elder Sargeant was with them, as he is still in Hobart.  He has spent over half his mission in Tasmania!

Tonight there was a beautiful sunset, which I only just caught the end of.  It was nice to feel that Aaron was around, and the day was much easier than I thought. 

Visiting Santa

I'm lucky that Jalen still humours me and still visits Santa every year with Harri and Kobe.
Yesterday I remembered that we still hadn't gone to visit our favourite Santa, so we jumped in the car, hoping that we had the right time to see him.

He was there and it was so lovely to see him.  Every year he would remember Noah and would greet him by name, and I was sure that he was the real Santa, and not just Santa's helper.

We got such a beautiful surprise at Noah's funeral when a lovely old man came up to me. I didn't know him at all, but he said to me 'I'm Santa Claus'.  I then realised that he was the lovely Santa that we see every year. It touched me so much that he came to Noah's funeral.

He doesn't remember the boys, but as soon as we remind him they are Noah's brothers, he is so excited and lovely to them. He always asks me how I am going and I can tell he makes an extra special effort with them. 

It's crazy how you I don't notice the boys growing up, till I look back at old photos. 

 

2010

2012

2013

If only Santa could bring us what we are really wishing for. 

Summer Holidays

We've had a really busy couple of weeks with school winding up for the year.  It was lovely to attend Jalen's school presentation night, and to see him announced as a member of the School Leadership Board for 2015.  He has already been busy having lots of meetings, and helping out at things at school, so I can see how busy he will be next year, but it will be great for him.


School finished on Thursday and I am happy that it's holidays as we are all very tired and need a break, but I will miss my EAL (English as an Additional Language) students a lot.  They have come so far this year, and have gone from just saying a few words in English and understanding just a little, to now having great conversations with me, and understanding most things that I say to them.

I can't believe that they've come from only understanding things if I showed them pictures, at the beginning of the year, to me having to tell them to be quiet and listen! :)  I feel so lucky to have been able to work with them.

The best part of the job is seeing them experience things they haven't before.   Before they came to Australia they had never swum before.   We were very lucky to be able to go swimming for a few sessions this term.   I love hearing them all yell 'Mrs King, look at me!!' as they show me the things they can do.

All of the students are Muslim, but their parents are happy for them to participate in Christmas activities at school.  The other day they asked me how many days it was until Christmas.  We worked it out together, and then they said 'and then Santa will come to our house with presents!?'.  I didn't know what to say at first, but then asked them if their families celebrate Christmas.  They said no, and I told them that Santa knows that they don't celebrate Christmas, so he won't go to their house. I reminded them of their special celebrations they have such as Eid and Ramadan and said that we don't celebrate on those days, so they get to have a special time then.   Luckily they were okay with that. 

When the kids first arrived they were so scared of animals, but they are getting used to them.  I loved seeing their smiling faces when we visited Kindergarten the other day to meet the teacher's new puppy.
My contract teaching them has finished, but I'm hoping that I will get another contract when school goes back.  I won't know till later in January and I'm very nervous as I wait to hear anything, but hope things will work out.  Because I am not yet a Permanent Replacement Teacher or a permanent teacher, I have to wait until all the permanent teachers and PRTs are placed before I can be offered a contract.   I'm hoping Aaron and Noah are up there pulling some strings for me.

For Christmas this year I have been saving up for a trampoline for the boys.  The boys have been loving jumping on trampolines at their friend's houses, especially when we stayed with my cousin Kristen and her family in Canberra, because they had a basketball ring on theirs.

Santa just brings small things to our house, and I didn't want to be working out how I was going to put it together on Christmas Eve, so when our missionaries from church asked me if there is anything they could do to help me, I knew exactly what they could do.  I bought the trampoline from a store on eBay and was very nervous that it may not arrive, but luckily it did, and the missionaries and our friend Aaron came around that same day, to put it together for us.
I don't think they knew what they were in for, as it took a lot longer than we thought, but they were making us laugh the whole time.  They're hilarious guys, and the boys love having them visit.   I'm doubting they'll ask me if they can help me again! ;)

The boys are very excited to have an early Christmas present, and are on it all the time. 

The basketball ring has already come loose thanks to them dunking on it, but luckily my brother Jared is very handy and has welded it together for them.  I told them no more dunking, and I think it's killing them!  It's great having something fun for them to do during the summer holidays, just in the backyard. 

We were all very happy on Thursday after school, as holidays had officially begun. 

The days are very long if we don't keep busy, so yesterday I dragged the boys out (they would actually be happy to stay home all day, every day).  We went up to Heritage Forest which has been done up a bit lately.
The boys were excited to go on the new flying fox there.  They loved the one we went on in Queensland, so it's nice to have one close by now.   This video cracks me up as Kobe almost flies into my phone!

Holidays are often hard, and especially when there's Aaron's birthday, Christmas and the anniversary of Aaron's death happening, but we are all happy to have a break, and hope to keep busy and have a lovely summer together. 

Four eyes!

Over the last five years or so, I have taken a lot of photos and spent a lot of time on the computer editing them.   I noticed that my eyes would get really sore after a while, but just put it down to too much time on the computer as I found my eyes always felt better if I didn't spend as much time on the computer.

In the last month I have had sore, watery, itchy eye.  I kept thinking it would settle down, but it just kept getting worse, so I ended up going to the chemist and asked the pharmacist if I could have some over the counter drops to help.  He said he could sell me some, but said he would prefer if I went up to the optometrist first, just to get my eyes checked, in case something was going on.

I told him it was just one eye, and I probably just had allergies or a touch of conjunctivitis or something, but he was really keen for me to get it checked, just in case.

I went to the optometrist and they were able to book me in for an eye examination straight away.  The whole time I kept saying 'I'm sure I don't need glasses...I've just got an allergy or something'.  As the exam went on and she kept asking me questions, I started to realise that I probably did need glasses.  The optometrist broke the news to me that I could do with glasses for reading, computer work, watching television and driving at night.  I was actually so shocked as I had no idea that things were so blurry, until she showed me how clear things could be.

She told me it was up to me, and that she could just keep the script there and I could come back any time to get glasses, but once I saw how clear things could be, I realised how much glasses would help me.

I was freaking out about having to choose a frame as I didn't have anyone with me to give me their opinion, but the lady working there was great, and knew what would suit me, and was good at trying different things when I would tell her what I did or didn't like.   The last pair she showed me were very bold, and I didn't think I would like them, until she took photos of me with four different pairs and showed me all four photos at once. 

As soon as I saw them I knew the frames I liked the best, and they are not at all what I thought I would choose.  I think Aaron would love them, as they look a lot like the ones he used to wear. 


 The optometrist said I also had an allergy, so I did need eye drops as well.  I went back to the chemist and the pharmacist saw me and said 'well?'.  I smiled and said 'I need some eye drops as I have an allergy'.  I wanted to stop there, but I laughed and said 'and I also need glasses!'.  He had a little chuckle and promised me he wasn't getting commission. 

When I came home and told the boys I had to get glasses, they thought it was hilarious!  When I went to pick them up the woman serving me told me they call them 'concentration glasses' and that she has hers for the same reason. She said she is now so used to wearing hers, and everything is so much clearer, so she just wears them all the time.  I've only had mine for two days, but I think I'm going to be the same.  It's a pain to have to take them on and off at different times, and I can't believe how much clearer everything is!  I actually can't believe that I didn't notice how blurry everything was.  I just put it down to being tired. 

The boys think they look good, but Jalen said he doesn't think he will ever get used to seeing me with glasses.  I told him it's the same for me and I can hardly look at myself in the mirror, because it just looks so weird.  I told him in a little while, we probably won't remember when I didn't have them. 

When I posted a pic of me wearing them on Instagram, my brother Chrish sent me a text with this photo.  He thinks he is hilarious, and now I'm being called Nana all the time.  I don't think he's saying that looking like Nana Mouskouri is a good thing, but maybe he is!? ;)   Some of the older girls from school told me that I look 'so pretty with those glasses on'.   They obviously need their eyes checked as well! ;)

It is so much better now that things are clear (even though I didn't realise things were blurry!).  I'm finding that I'm staying up longer watching TV because my eyes are not tired anymore.  I just assumed that I was tired, so would head to bed as my eyes would start stinging.  Now I can watch TV and go on the computer without my eyes aching.


I'm sure Aaron is having quite a laugh that I've joined the four eyes club.