Blogging, what is it good for?

I haven't written here in ages, but "Blog" keeps appearing on my to-do lists and goals every year.  But why?  I'm not in it to be an influencer, to make money, or to propagate a movement.  I'm not a writer, I don't really have any advice, and I only rant sporadically, if at all... So why do it?

It's taken me a while to find an answer to this question, and for me that answer is memory.  This blog has been our family history archive since we had Lolly, nearly 8 years ago.  Despite lying fallow for a couple of years now, there is a ton of history in these virtual pages.  And so much of that history is things I never would have otherwise marked or remembered.  Little things.  "Doings."  And that's what attracts me to keep blogging.  It took me a couple of years to work out what was important to me about blogging, and what I missed, exactly, about not blogging.  So I'm setting a goal around writing here again.  I'm pretty sure that one day, looking back, I'm going to be glad I did.

Our family has got a fair bit older since we last talked, my step-son, Smash, is 20 now; Snail is about to turn 17 (!!) and Lolly, the youngest, is nearly 8 (that "nearly" is super important!).  We're a little older and a little wiser, and still plodding along.

Lolly, an Arctic Fox

To anyone still reading this, HI, and I'll be seeing you soon.

A cat's life

It's hard to be a cat, sometimes.

Alia says: *le sigh*

An array of Princesses.

Blurry Circus snaps!

Lolly has started her very first class!  In circus!!  She loves it about as much as you might imagine, and has tried a huge range of amazing cool stuff.

On the ring!!

Plate twirling.

Balance beam, with fancy plate action!

Tightrope!

She's also done trapeze and that awesome fabric stuff they hang off.  And pole climbing and juggling.  We're loving it and have signed up for next term!

When I say "Lolly wants to be a vet" I am NOT kidding!

We have a VERY serious play program here for prospective vet surgeons.  Here are some recent shots, she is operating on a very bad tooth problem that her pet toy snake developed.

Here's the vet in surgery.  Gloves and all. 

Sharp implements are required!

Complicated lego jaw restraint system, co-designed by DinnerDad.

You can see it's a delicate procedure....

Her tools all laid out on a "sterile surface".

This Blog has no continuity: or, Lolly's sixth Birthday some more...

Because of course, Lolly's birthday comes 9 days before Snail's!  And also, it's in March :p

We had a small party after school with some friends, including a late season swim (it's mostly still hot as anything here in sunny Brisvegas!).

The highlight was the piñata, though the puppy cake was a close second!

As for me, I have the usual parental disbelief that my baby is SIX!!!  And we've *almost* recovered from the sugar overload.  Almost.

Some Birthdays are Bittersweet

Snail turned 15 last month.  It's a sweet and sad day.  She has no idea it's her birthday, or what birthdays are.  Though she likes presents and cake and attention.

The hit of the day was this Bananas in Pyjamas book!

It's hard to get presents in the toddler aisle or online at special needs places.

And there's just something about birthdays that make her seem more different. They are markers that show how much her life is different from other 15 year olds.

But she had a nice day, some big smiles, a bit of joy, and a big piece of cake.  That's something.

Cat and Kitten

On a rainy day, Pickles and Alia contemplate the rain, and each other's existence.  This post has nothing else to add, other than supporting the Interwebz cat addiction.

Pickles is 4 months old, Alia is 13!  Be sure to especially admire the moustache.  It is adorable!!

Art and puppy-kids

Here's how to have a lovely day.

First, have a fabulous Modern Art Museum in your hometown.

Second, get them to have some kid-friendly and future-vet-friendly animal-lover art.

Third, have a kid who wears cat ears (or lion or cheetah or leopard or puppy ears) everywhere.

Fourth, have a section at the gallery for kids to make their own art!

Fifth, combine and enjoy!

Six!! Now with more kittens!!

Lolly turned six recently!  This year, we made the big call of getting her a kitten for her birthday.  This is still the most awesome thing ever.

So we have a new Memo-er: Pickles!

Also, little kittens make small people very happy.

Here she is on her first day!

Meeting Alia, the cat of grumpy.

Yes, she has a moustache!

Meeting Squirtle!  

School Holidays, in Picture form!

We're coming to the end of our very first big 7 week school holiday.  We've had a lot of fun at home this year, no big trip as we'd just been to the US in October (will photo-bomb in a future post).  Some snapshots of our time at the end of Prep holidays!

Lolly found some colourful bug, insect and lizard toys and spent a happy day making "zoos" out the back.  Here she is proudly showing me around the zoo.

The zoo also had a very fierce cheetah...

We're encouraging Lego play, and Lolly got a big "Friends" house set for Christmas.  DinnerDad has a long and abiding love of lego, so on weekends they build new things with it.  Here's a vet surgery.

Tasty bones.

This puppy is getting an x-ray!

Dressing up is a BIG favourite of Lolly's, and has been her whole life, really.  She spends a lot of time being a puppy, cheetah, cat, and a range of creatures.  Okay, mostly puppies.  This one is Christmas puppy.

This one is a movie-watching puppy.  It's basically all of the cute.

Lolly has been more interested in dolls, though mostly as vets/zoo keepers.  She has taken lately to taking "her girls" around with her, brushing their teeth, and putting them to bed.

Of course, the pets are still the favourites, even when they're asleep!

We've had some fierce hot weather here, but with the air conditioning on, you need a blanket while watching your favourite kids TV (Backyardigans and Lazy Town).  For a while there it was basically too hot to leave the house!

Yes, this is the best couch in the world.  Yes, those are cupholders!

We like to head out for lunch, wearing our Disney Princess hat, coz that's how she rolls.  

She learnt some fearsome new stunts from her older brother!

She's very interested in Snail's chair and standing frame, I had to get it out for her the other week so she could be "just like my sister".

Here are the girls out with their "cousin", puppy, Lou-Lou!

And finally, the awesome Elmo, modelling Snail's doll wheelchair that we bought in the US at American Girl!

Lots of home time, lots of playdates, lots of family, and back to school next week!

Old Blogger Attempts New Tricks...2013 in Review!

Or is that *Old blogger attempts old tricks?*  I mean, I was a regular blogger once before, so that makes it an old trick, right?  Okay then...

With that out of the way, here is the Memo to Self family at the end of 2013, by their humble chronicler.

The Memo family moved house in August, we sold our family home in September, and are in a fab (and HUGE) house closer in, which we are loving.  The joy of not having the extra 25 minutes drive out to the "country" is still pretty fresh and awesome.  We have a pool here, and Lolly has become at least 70% mermaid.

A Mermaid and her Dog

Lolly, DinnerDad and I scampered off to the US in Sept-Oct for a holiday (except for the bits where DD had to work :p), we took in a weekend at Disneyland, a few days in New York, and just over a week in Washington (unfortunately, when the government shut down was on, so not the most action-packed time to go, to be honest!).

Toys about to embark for the US!

Lolly and her favourite princess!

The Princess thing really stuck! Eating a street hotdog in New York!

Empire State Princess

Lolly has finished Prep, which here in sunny Queensland, is her first full year of school!  She goes to a fabulous alternative, democratic school nearby, which she has loved.  We've had a couple of moments of separation anxiety, funnily, more at the end of the year than at the start, but we're still doing great, having fun, and producing innumerable items of art!

At School (end 2013)

Snail had a mixed year, early on we were still feeling the effects of a pretty awful surgery and recovery, which saw her have 6 months off school, be in a lot of pain, and need a lot of therapy.  We got our fab wheelchair adapted car in April, which has been quite simply amazing, so we've got heaps more mobility.  As the surgery got further away, and we got a pretty good 12 month report from her surgeons, along with some drug changes for seizures, Snail has been fabulous this past month, back to her smiling, interactive, chatty and playful self.  Without getting too deep about it, we were kind of afraid that she had gone, so it's been beyond awesome that our bright happy girl is still in there!  Still getting seizures, but hoping for more balance with meds to come next year.

Intrepid bushwalkers!

OMG Eyes! Xmas 2013.

Smash has had an eventful year, but is hanging in there, slightly bruised, but still going strong.  Some of the bruises are real ones, from all the skilful and scary-to-watch BMX and skateboard tricks he can do these days.  Best for parents to look away, really...

Also, he turned 18 - first legal drink at his birthday dinner!

DinnerDad is going strong, and I've been working a few hours a week at Lolly's awesome school, which has been good fun, I'm continuing on with that in the new year.

Princess and Me on a carriage ride in Central Park.

I'll be back blogging some more, so tune in :D  Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all!

Our awesomest Xmas Wreath, ever.