I'm A Real Life [paid] Blogger!

After blogging for almost 10 years someone approached me at the beginning of the year and asked if I would blog for them! Oh hey, that's a first!

I'm now contracting myself to EziBuy twice a month to help fill up their blog with fun parenting and lifestyle ideas, diys, and anything else I can think up that their customers might be into.

My first post went live today and I'm quite proud of it, go check it out here

Feeling rather chuffed and proud of myself.

Katie Updatie Month 10

Happy 10 months little babe!! Out longer than in! I hope you've been enjoying your life Earth-side so far!

This month we had to say Good Bye to Amy and Raj, I hope its not too long until you see them both again. But you know, life carries on, and a week later you were walking behind your trolley and clapping your hands. "If only they saw this" I said, but life doesn't stop, you don't either!

So we've pulled the trolley out and the little sturdy baby pram and you are loving being vertical! Slow and steady wins the race Katie, figure it out first okay? No need to rush things.

Clapping came at some point, it feels like you've been doing it forever but it's only been a short few weeks! Any time we say "paki paki", "clap" or laugh, or sing... or do anything remotely exciting you clap and look around for approval and praise! (but with a new phase an old one must go, you've stopped waving! We miss it so, but we know it will return again soon)

You've started talking more this month. We're pretty sure you say "mumumummm" for Mum and "Dadaddadad" when Dads around. It's become not quite coincidence that we're almost 99% sure you're saying our names. 

You also masted how to pick up your sippy cup to your mouth and drink. Clever cookie!

Oh! And you got two top teeth! Except you grew one front one and one side one (which is a tiny bit different), so you're a little lopsided right now! It makes for a hilarious grin because you try and match your teeth up, it's gorgeously hilarious! So now you have a total of FOUR teeth! Yahoo Katie! (and all the dribble to boot!)

Only two months until your birthday! We will start planning the celebrations soon! x

Love you Little One xxx

Happy Easter Katie! 

Little Mark

Milla, when you were two and a half we spent a morning in hospital having your "little mark" removed. 

I don't actually think you ever saw your Little Mark since it was on your side/back, but you could feel it with your hand. You called it your Little Mark, and one time you itched it and it bled. Thats when I decided to ask the doctor about it. 

You weren't born with it, and it had started growing quite quickly so they decided to remove it and do some tests. It's nothing sinister, but hopefully it wont grow back.

You were a star on the day. When you woke up from your quick surgery all you wanted was food. There was only one person allowed in recovery and Dad wanted to go in and be with you so he saw you as soon as you woke up. He said you were quite loopy. 

After some milk, iceblock, icecream, jelly (which I ended up eating), chips and water you were back to your usual self wanting to play with all the toys. It was hard work prying you away from their big ride in car (its your favourite toy right now at Toddlerock).

Two weeks later now your see-through bandage has come off and you're left with a little cut that is healing quite nicely. I guess it will scar, so I wanted to write this down so when you asked about it I would remember. 

I'm really really proud of you. 

Katie Updatie Month 9

Sorry Katie, life was crazy when you turned 9 Months old and I don't have proper photos from our monthly photoshoot. You can blame your Aunty Amy for that one. Her and Raj came over from London to get married! We got to spend a whole two weeks doing life with them! It was amazing and you two got on so well. It was true love from the first moments of meeting!

ABOVE:In this photo above you and Milla are watching Mum and Dad run in the City to Surf, the whole family came out to the street corner to watch us run past!

BELOW: Nana and Aunty Amy at Halswell Quarry. 

When you turned nine months we were busy making trips to Akaroa to set up for The Wedding, visiting Westport, having family come stay with us. We had dinners and breakfasts out, late nights and no routine. You were a complete star. You went with the flow and kept on smiling! 

After two weeks you began to protest all the holding, Nana realised she hadn't seen you crawl properly because you were always being held by someone! You just wanted down and some freedom back! They soon realised you were quite good at crawling and pulling yourself to stand, haha.

This month your newest cousin was born, we were so excited to meet Delilah!! You even got to attend her baby shower a few weeks earlier and then we got to see her again when we went to Westport. She is so little and so so sweet, with a whole head of dark hair, she's gorgeous! 

It's going to be so cool when you're all a little older, all you girl cousins are going to have a ball!! 4 of you cousin girls 3 years and under! Yikes!  I can already see the bond that Milla has with Shire of the same age, it'll so sweet when you can have the same with Delilah.

Stay cool and cruisie little babe xxx

Katie Updatie - Month 8

Crawling didn't last long as the "new thing", you were quick to progress onto pulling to stand shortly after that. You're a fast mover, just like your big sis. You've got lots of guts too. I don't think much will stop you in life Katie. There's something about your spirit that just wants to give things a go.

You learnt to wave this month. A super cute, rotating queen like wave. It's adorable and melts my heart every time. You learnt it in your high chair, and then figured out thats what we do at bedtime too. And now, because its so adorable, you just do it when you're sitting in your capsule to get anyones attention. 

Here's a little weird story, theres been two instances when you've repeated words back to us that have sounded just like what we said. The first was when you were just a newborn, maybe only two weeks old. We were skyping Amy and Raj in London and as we said his name, you squeaked "raj" back. WHAT. We couldn't believe our ears. 

Just this month, I was standing over your Daddy holding you and we were saying goodnight to him, he was blowing kisses to you saying "kisses" and then YOU said KISSES. No. joke. seriously. you did!!! You left us speechless!

You are sharing a room with Milla, you have every night since you upgraded from the basinet in our bedroom. Usually Milla will sneak out in the morning and find something to entertain herself with while you sleep on for another half hr or so. 

One particular morning this month I woke up to the sound of hilarious laughter, you were both cracking up, soo loudly. I smiled to myself and let you both continue on with whatever was so funny. Only to get up 5 minutes later and to find that Camilla had pulled every single item of hers and your clothing out of your drawers and thrown it on the floor. You both thought it was the funniest thing everrr! (I had a little chuckle too, after the clean up!)

As in the picture above, you've lost the dark hair you were born with and its regrowing in quite fast. Some times it looks blonde, sometimes dark, and some times ginger. You've got lots of long wiry bits on top, just like me. Ask Nana Ngaire to show you some photos one day and have a good laugh at me when I was a little girl!

Every Wednesday morning I go to a womens connect group at Church. They run a creche for all the Mamas to pop their kids in, run by the lovely Vynnie. I've just started leaving you in there by yourself this month. Usually you hang out with me in the group of ladies, but not any more! You seem to love it in there with all the other kids and toys and you don't look back for me for one second!

You like to eat most of your foods by yourself, so most of what you get is in finger food form. You are still breastfeeding but you much prefer solids and aren't particularly attached to me for my milk! Your favourite solids are pineapple, beetroot, plums and eggs.

Carry on Katie, as you were.

Big loves, from Mama xx

(You can view other Katie Updaties by clicking here)
Katie's dolly is from Creative Mama's felt shop, Mrs Aldridge

Katie Updatie - Month 7

We're in our new home now Katie. It was so sad for me to leave our little apartment. The one that you and Milla were born in. That address was printed on your birth certificates, we'll never forget it. 

However, we're glad to have more space at our new place, and now you're moving we can't stop you! The extra space is much much better. It will be so good when you can freely explore outside with your own two feet. We have a park right behind our new house, we've been to it quite a few times with Milla for an afternoon picnic and you're begging to go play with her.

But. We are only renting at this stage. So at some point in your next few years we'll move again and create new memories together at that place too :)

You've perfected your crawl, you're so fast now, you love to crawl right down the hallway and see me in the kitchen at the very end. I can hear you huffing all the way along until you appear at the doorway.

This month we took you to our friends wedding. Celeste and Joel got married in a forest and had their wedding reception in the middle of a paddock under a marquee. You were the only kid allowed there (Milla had her first overnight stay with Nanny), so you got passed around a lot, much to your delight. We fed you dinner, then took you for a little walk down a few rural gravel roads and soon you were fast asleep in the pram. We woke you when it was time to go after Mama had a big dance and Dad had DJ'd the party, around midnight. Yup, you're the best baby ever. I marvelled.

You grew two teeth this month. Your two little bottom ones. One appeared, and then the next one a few weeks later. You weren't particularly fussy and we didn't notice you teething, but those teeth were definitely there!

Your favourite foods to munch on right now are steamed carrots, spaghetti and banana.

Now that we're in our new house we have a bath for the first time!! You. LOVE. the bath. You get to share bath time with Milla and you splash and squeal to your hearts content. When you're in the bath you prefer to hold on to a little orange tea cup dish, and any of the pink stars that float about.

We go to church every single week, and I only ever need to leave the service and go into creche when you get too excited (thats right, its not because you're grumpy, only ever because all of the smiling faces, the music and the lights gets you going with joy!). But that's okay, you've met the sweetest little friend Eda in Creche who has started coming to our church and you've quickly become Best Baby Buddies. 

Baby, you're the best. I love you. 

Love, Mama (and Papa and Milla) xxx x

(You can view other Katie Updaties by clicking here)

How To: Make your own book at home

As Milla grows and discovers the world I've grown to love home made books! She has a love of reading and seeing her own face on a page in front of her so they are the perfect tool for establishing routines and expectations that our family has.

You could make a book for anything! Bedtime routines (like in this tutorial), new family members, school time, visiting doctors, or fun ones to tell your own clever stories to kids of any age, gifts for friends or co-workers about themselves. The possibilities are endless!

This tutorial is using a free website called picmonkey.com - it's a really basic website for beginner designers or photo editors. Look it up now and get creating! (i've tried to be as simple as possible, so feel free to email me if you have any burning specific questions on sophieslimATmoo2DOTcoDOTnz)

ONE
Open up picmonkey.com and hover over "design", this will bring down a new menu, click "custom"

In custom you can insert your own size you would like your individual book pages to be. I suggest doing an a5 size. These measurements are "1748 x 2480 pixels". If you'd like a different size page, have a google to find out the pixels (size) it'll be.

TWO
Now that you've got your blank canvas to work with you can play around with all the different features. Pic Monkey works by dragging and dropping, so when you click on a feature, it will most likely appear on your blank canvas for you to move around and resize.

The most fun tools are the Tt and the butterfly down the left hand size. These are your "text" and "overlay" functions.

If you want to insert photos or pictures, click on the butterfly and "add my own" overlay button. This is where you can select photos from your own computer to add in, or select any of picmonkey's pre-made overlays. This is how I got the big green circle that comes in the next picture. You can change colours using the overlay box that pops up when you're moving things around. If you're going to add text on top I suggest you fade your overlay a little bit. Just drag the "fade" option across until you find something you like.

You'll find the text options work in the same way, they're stored under Tt and there's some really fun fonts to choose from! You can also resize, change colours and positions from an editing box that pops up as well.

JUST FOR FUN
This whole process can be as simple or complicated as you like, but most of all its trial and error while you're familiarising yourself with the functions.

If you're feeling adventurous, try clicking on the "eraser" part of the overlay editing box to erase out unwanted backgrounds in your photos, or right click your overlay to find some more options like "bring to the front" to get images on top of each other in the correct order.

THREE
Once you're happy with your first page click on "save" up the top, give it a name and save it to your computer! Wa-La! Your first page in your self published book!

FOUR
Now that you've finished designing each of your pages, print them off, trim them to size and tape or staple together in the correct order! You could even laminate them if you were being extra fancy.

I know that whoever you give this book to they will love it (and they might just think you're a genius!)

Let me know if you give this a try! Leave a comment, or email me with any specific questions you have.

Happy creating!
Love, Sophie

Preparing to Race

The city to surf is tomorrow. I'm struggling between wanting to kick it's ass and being totally depressed because I know I can't.

I ran 10km last night, my longest so far and had that been the race I would have been very proud of myself, somehow I need to pull another 4km out of my aching ankles and pumping heart.

But man. How good does it feel to have. Body that MOVES. It feels so good.

As an aside, we're on our way to fill in a few hrs watching monkeys and feeding ducks at Willowbank until we go welcome my big Sis and her Beau at the airport!! (After a quick sign remake, the Maori I laws pointed out I had spelt haere mai wrong)

We just discovered the running course actually goes through our neighbourhood and training ground! Such a beautiful part of Christchurch!

See ya at the finish line?!

I Did It!

Almost 2 weeks ago MrMoo and I ran the 14km City To Surf in Christchurch. 

We did it!!!

It seems like forever ago now, but was such a personal achievement for us both!

I'm so proud of the Mr for his running, he kicked my butt on the day and wasted my time, although I wish I could have kept up I knew I wouldn't have been able to. His man legs, lungs and heart were no match for mine!

Particularly I'm really proud of my training before the event. I recovered from a sprained ankle and fitted 8 weeks of training into a few before the race. I never postponed training because I was tired (which I was), but hit the pavement whenever I could. When MrMoo got really busy NannyMoo came over a few times to watch the girls so I could still squeeze In a run.

And boy, it was so good getting out of the house to sweat out some of the day. 

I don't weigh myself, but I'm pretty sure I lost a little weight in the process too, things began to fit a little better (although that seems to have all been reversed in the last few weeks haha)

So the day was a success, I confidently ran 14km with only a few light walks along the way for drink stops!!!!! HOORAH!!

Thank you for all your support along the way and for cheering me on from the (virtual or physical) sidelines (my big sis from London even made it to the sidelines!!) I've loved training along side you and my husband.

I'm actually glad it's over now so we can see each other an night time and not always be rushing out the door! Training is a huge commitment and was hard to squeeze into our lives. It kind if feels like I've hardly seen my husband for the last few months, one of us was always off running etc

I'd love to keep up the running, perhaps a little more leisurely and not at my husbands expense in the future.