When being spontaneous just works!

So you might remember in one of my last posts, how I had a spontaneous fail of a camping trip. Well, spontaneous ideas are quite a common occurrence for me. I seem to just have these crazy ideas pop into my head, and I just have to follow them through! Well, I had yet another one of these moments just last week.  

We live in a small house. I like to refer to it as a Lego house as its one of those ones that come up on a truck in 3 pieces, and they kind of just click them into place. We have no shed, just a 'store room', which is the size of a toilet, and no roof space to store anything in either. So errrrrrrrrrything from our massive home in Perth has been crammed into plastic tubs and piled high in our spare room (as well as into the girls wardrobes and under beds!) I had kind of had enough of our "spare room" being chokka block full of random bits and pieces everywhere (one of the biggest pieces being DD2s new king single bed and mattress). 

It took what seemed like an eternity to get that child to sleep through the night in her cot (she was well over a year old), and she had only recently just gotten over a nasty 2 week spate where she refused to sleep day and night in there altogether! We had finally just got our peace and quiet back in the terms of her day sleeps, and her sleeping well through the night again...So of course I decide.....HECK why don't we now just bite the bullet and put her into her big girl bed (**read.....craaaaaaaaaazzzy ass idea right there...someone slap me!)

When we were last down in Perth we hunted high and low for some big girl beds for the girls. We were tossing up between getting them a bunk bed to share a room, or King Singles for their own separate rooms. We decided on the King Singles as we thought they would be better off kept separate from each other (due to their intense love for one another to date!) and they would be able to use those beds right til they are adults (provided they stay in good enough shape!)

When we got back home (around January) we set DD1s up straight away. She had previously been sleeping in a toddler bed and LOVED her new spacious abode! We thought we would try her sister in the toddler bed that she had been sleeping in, just on the off chance she would be ready and like it. Ohhh....we were so wrong there. She didn't last but 5 minutes in it. She jumped straight up out of the bed and ran for the door screaming...the poor little poppet! She was just too little and too afraid to have her room looking so different!

The girls have always been in separate rooms and had their separate space. There rooms have always been pitch black (like so dark we even put alfoil on the windows to make it as dark as possible!) with their doors shut too. They both had white noise, which we used to help them block out the noises to from one another when they had day sleeps, but also helped block out general household noises/dogs barking/thunder etc (no...I'm not crazy! Its a common thing.....its just like listening to static on the radio! Everyone always chastises me when they walk in and they're like WHAT the heck is that noise?!! hahaha....it works people....trust me!). As she got a little older though, DD1 did start becoming afraid of the dark and has had to sleep with her door open and lights on in the hallway and a lamp in her room. Whereas we noted that DD2 doesn't sleep well with lights on at all. She still needed it pitch black.

Anyhow, back to the story.....this particular day, when the whim overcame me, we originally were just going to set up the King Single in DD2s bedroom, with her cot still in there too, just on the off-chance she really wasn't ready to change yet. But, then I thought....hold up. Why don't we try putting them both in a room together? It might be just what DD2 needs to help her transition into the big girl bed that I so desperately just wanted to set up and it might even help encourage them to really look out for one another. If one got frightened, the other had the chance to look out for them. They could play with one another and do all the silly things siblings do when they share rooms!

I didn't share a room with my sisters, but I do remember we had a lot of fun over the years! My older sister, Rochelle, and I made up a secret knock on the wall between our rooms, so we had a sort of code where we could talk to one another! I used to get frightened sometimes too and just want to sleep in her bed, but I was too scared to walk to her room, as I was afraid a monster was going to grab my feet on the way! So she would come and get me and piggy back me to her bed!

I never really re-payed the kindness to my younger sister, Maddison, though. There is 7 years between us. When she was about 10/11 I remember her being frightened and coming into my room and I would kick her out of my bed. She would be so scared she would sleep on the floor curled up in a ball by my door.....how mean am I! I was 18...I guess I wanted my space! 

For my girls to share a room, however, it was going to be a mammoth effort, not just in setting up the space, but also for the fact that they are like chalk and cheese! DD2 needs dark and white noise and DD1 needs light and doors open - how the heck was that going to work, I had no idea! We had to rearrange all of the back bedrooms and make their room the old spare room (as it was the biggest of the 3), which obviously meant completely pulling apart DD1s bed, and setting it up again. So, Matt didn't just have to set up 1 bed, but dismantle 1 and set up 2. Along with dismantling the cot and change table as well....eeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!

I had been at the shops all morning on this WHIMsical day (get it?! haha...). So when I came home around 2pm, I thought I better run the idea past DD1 first. Our conversation went a little like this:

Hey, would you like to share a room with your sister?

Umm...............................................yeah, Ok! I think I would like that!

Really? It would be so cool and special! But, its kind of permanent. Your bed would be next to hers sharing a room. 

Yep, but we like, need to be laying next to one another, you know, just like this (holding her two hands side by side)...

Well yes, your beds will be next to one another, but you will be in separate beds.

Ok...Yes, I like it! **runs to tell her sister the great news**

The toddler was on my side.  Now to convince the husband....Lets just say, Matt wasn't really rooting for my idea! However, he is such a sweetheart and he knows how I just don't cope with mess and chaos and that spare room was just making me itch! So, he willingly obliged and we set to it, at like 3pm that afternoon!  When I get an idea in my head, i like it to happen right then and there...I'm not very good at waiting patiently. We smashed it out - dismantling and setting up beds, moving an entire bookcase and books/baby toys/boxes/random accumulated rubbish things and it was complete and ready to rumble by bed time! WINNING!

We followed our usual bedtime routine, which involves watching Shaun the sheep, saying goodnight to all the animals on the giggle and hoot end of show theme song, then saying goodnight to everyone on the ABC theme song, followed by a little dance to the interim music between ABC3 and normal ABC....off to brush our teeth with the nurdle durdle app, into pjs, bedtime story, say our prayers, and into bed.

We had mentioned to DD1 that she couldn't keep coming out of her bed, particularly these first few nights, as her sister needed to learn that when its bedtime, its time to stay in bed. And, she was a doll! We gave them both a kiss and walked out, and they both stayed put! DD2 was chatty and talking to her sister a bit, but after about 15 minutes DD1 said, time for bed, nigh night DD2! And she was gone! And....they slept through....til 8am! Say whaaaaaaaaaaaaat?!

And then the next night, same thing. And the night after that, and that! It has nearly been a week now and I am SO glad we made the decision to move the girls in together. Thankfully, for us, it hasn't disrupted any routines which has been a blessing! If anything, what it has done is bring the girls that bit closer together. As I type this...they are currently "scaring" each other in their beds! DD2 is going RAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRR and DD1 is giggling her head off saying "scare me again!!!" I cant be angry at them though, as they are making memories, and their little bond is getting stronger by the day...and as you will have learnt from past posts, that is the one thing we have been working so hard to repair. 

 I also love that we are able to read them both a book together at bedtime, all sitting together on one bed. They take turns choosing a book and whoever chooses the book, we sit on their bed together. I worried that it would be the wrong decision, or that it would be unfair for DD1 to have to "share" yet another thing with her sister, but you know what - life is full of situations where we have to share and it is SO important to encourage looking out for one another...and others. That is a virtue that should be carried right the way through life to adulthood.

So....in closing this mammoth random rambling of a post.. I would like to announce that for once, one of my spontaneous whim ideas has actually, worked....and for the better! I did something successful! That's 1 for me, and like 99 to Matt. I still have a looooooooooooong way to go before he starts agreeing with all my crazy ideas...but, it's a start! Now....what to do next ;)

xxx

PS: how awesome are these monitors! So funny being able to talk to them through them!

(Recipe) ::: Chicken Bone Broth

On our journey to find lifestyle choices that will help support our kids health (prompted by the onset of eczema with DD2), we were introduced to the idea of using bone broths as a way to support healthy gut function and increase the productivity of the immune system. Research is showing more and more that gut health is the direct link for so many different ailments and illnesses, from eczema to depression and anxiety. It's exciting that we can start supporting ourselves more with something as simple as a broth!

Bone broths have been around for years...they are not a new concept. Your grandma most probably used to cook them all the time! They are super easy to make and the benefits they provide, and the ways in which you can use them, are endless! My beautiful friend, Stephanie Rayner, introduced them to me, and we have been making them since! If there is a cold or flu running its course, this stuff is liquid gold! I would heat some up in a coffee mug and drink it hot - so nourishing and delicious! 

The recipe I use is adapted from The Red Tent Health Centre. I slightly changed quantities to suit my massive 15 Litre pot I got from Kmart - which I use to make my broth! 

Whenever you cook up a roast chook (or buy a hot chook from the shops), instead of just chucking out the bones and carcass, pop them in the freezer until you are ready to make your broth. For the broth I made yesterday, I had 2 x carcasses and about 16 x leg bones and the more chicken you use, the richer your stock is. It is better to get organic chickens, as they are obviously free from any chemicals or hormones. We are very restricted with choice where we live, so I have been simply using Free Range chickens.

The same is true for the vegetables - the more organic produce you can use, the better. I used organic onion and carrot in my recipe - however we had no organic celery so just standard there. The apple cider vinegar is used to help bring out the calcium and other minerals in the broth.

I tend to prepare my stock after the kids have gone to bed, and leave it on a gentle simmer overnight - which works out to about 12 hours or so. If you have a slow cooker, you could also pop it in there for 10 hours. If you have only simmered yours for a short time, you may need to add salt to taste at the end. However, due to the length of time mine simmers, it never needs extra salt.

We use our broth in everything! Whenever a recipe calls for stock, we replace it with broth. I even replace recipes calling for water with the broth. For example, mashed potatoes in the thermie, i use the broth instead of milk (and if i dont have broth I use coconut milk and its divine!). Boiling rice in broth, adding it to spaghetti bolognaise mince, boiling vegetables in it. The limits are absolutely endless! One of our favourites is a dairy free potato bake recipe, which I will put the link up for on our facebook page!

So dont be afraid of the broth! It is really a simple, inexpensive addition to your meals which will continue to give back to you in health benefits!

Chicken Bone Broth Recipe

2-3 Chicken carcasses 

4 sticks celery, washed and cut into pieces

2 brown onions, skins left on, washed and cut

2 carrots, washed and cut

4Tbsp apple cider vinegar

First we need to clean the chicken by placing it into a pot and covering it with water. Bring it to the boil. Once boiling, discard the water and replace with fresh water. 

Place all other ingredients into the stockpot and fill it with water to 4/5 of capacity. Bring it to the boil then turn the heat down to a simmer. The longer you leave it to simmer, the richer it becomes. 

When complete, leave to cool and strain through a sieve using muslin cloth. Store in fridge or freezer. I tend to go through my stock very quickly so i keep mine in the fridge. Though if you prefer, you can freeze in ice cubes, or little ziplock bags ready to defrost and pop in your favourite meals!

x

Homemade Baby Wipe Recipe/Tutorial

I filmed a quick tutorial video today on how to make the baby wipes we have been using for DD2 since she developed eczema at the age of 3 months old. The recipe is super easy to make, and is SO good for the skin. The ingredients are easy to pronounce (no nasty chemicals in there at all!), and have antibacterial/anti-inflammatory properties which will keep your bubbas tush smelling divine and squeaky clean, as well as helping to keep eczema and skin irritations at bay!  You can watch the video here - but be kind, it was my first go at making any sort of video! It was dark, the camera was too low, I was tired...you get the drift! haha! 

Ok, so here is the recipe and instructions for those wanting a hard copy:

Homemade Baby Wipes

1 x roll of paper towel (I use Viva Double Length)

2 cups warm water

2 Tbs Coconut Oil (I use Planet Food Organic Virgin Coconut Oil)

3 x drops lavender oil (I use Doterra)

3 x drops Melaleuca/Tea Tree oil (I use Doterra)

Container to store wipes in

Cut your roll of paper towel in half, length-ways with a sharp serrated knife and place one half of the roll into your container, standing up.

Mix the water, oil and essential oils in a separate bowl.

Pour the mixture into the container with the paper towel, and allow it to soak in for a minute or so.

Pull out the inner cardboard roll, and you are ready to use the wipes!

EASY PEASY.

x

When things start looking up.....

Today has been another great day. My ratio of good to bad days is slowly improving....im thinking we are at maybe a 1:2....whereas we were previously at 1:10 only a few weeks ago! Hooray for small mercies!

My girls are close in age. There is only 20 months between them. I remember when DD1 was about 8 months old we were thinking of trying again for number 2, as thats about the age that things became "easier" for us, after having a somewhat difficult baby. So by the time she was 10 months old, we were pregnant with DD2. 

It has been a really rough ride for DD1 getting used to having a baby sister. Really rough. She was quite a dependant baby herself...she loved being with us, hated being separated from us. She disliked hated loud noises (alot!), and was a very serious child. So when DD2 arrived, and came home (and was loud with her screaming/crying). and she was separated from us (for the birth and with DD2s multiple doctor/hospital visits for her ailments and illnesses) - I dont blame her for struggling to accept this tiny loud nuisance sister into her world.

It has broken my heart to see them struggle to get along. And struggle they have. DD2 got a fair bit of attention with her ailments (as I mentioned) and it was hard for me to make up for that time with DD1. She became jealous. She hated when DD2 would make any kind of noise (even if it was the happy little squeals that babies develop). She would scream at her and say "too loud, too loud". She would hit her, she would ask for me to put her back to bed, just so she could be away from her. I was devastated. I was so blessed to have 2 beautiful little girls...but I felt burdened and isolated because they seemed to hate each other so. 

We used to jokingly warn DD1 that when her sister grew up, and became stronger, she would repeat those behaviours back to her. It never bothered DD2 that she was disliked by DD1 so much. She took it in her stride. She rarely even cried if she was hit or hurt. Until...as the months rolled on...she grew a voice and strength of her own. Then she started lashing out at her sister, and started doing things on purpose, just to annoy her. She would be extra loud - because she knew DD1 hated it so much. She would snatch toys, hit and scratch her - she was getting her own back! 

We had to separate the girls in the car - with a spare seat in between the both of them - out of safety for the both of them - as they would just be at it with one another in the car constantly. I cringed at the thought of going out in public with them both together, as it almost always resulted in them bickering with one another. People would say, "Oh...that's not very nice, how they behave to one another". And I would wearily tell them, its the norm and that it has been that way since DD2 had been born. No one really understood though - I've only met maybe 1 other mum (I can think of) who had children similar to mine in behaviour. Its hard, you know. You see all these wonderful things on facebook of friends and family members with children and siblings who love one another! I mean the occasional sibling rivalry is granted, but sisters who dote over their baby siblings etc. I would get envious of it and think what the heck have I done wrong to get the 2 girls who despise one another with such passion! This is one of the reasons why I am so passionate about being transparent on social media. I want to be real....so people who struggle, as I did - know that they aren't alone! 

Anyway....all of this has been the norm....up until the last...mmmmm...lets call it a week, or so. DD1 will be 4 in July and DD2 will be 2 in July. DD2 is talking so well, forming short sentences and able to articulate what it is she wants and needs. She is also better understanding consequence, and when she does something wrong, can realise it and 9 times out of 10, will apologise after realising what has happened. She hates seeing anyone sad or hurt. If DD1 is in timeout, for example, she will go up to her and say "Its ok, DD1. It's ok. DD1 sad..s'ok" and then will bring a toy or something to lighten the situation. 

Because her language is coming in leaps and bounds, and because DD1 is also more understanding and less volatile in her responses to when she is hard done by, the two of them, are getting along MUCH better. They are able to engage in active play, build lego together, play outside, ride bikes/push prams, bounce on castles together. DD1 has started inviting DD2 into her bedroom (the oh so sacred ground that NO ONE other than herself and mum and dad have previously been aloud in!), and even wanting to do things for her, like her makeup, etc.

For me to get a cute photo of the two of them hugging or playing together, used to involve bribery - and lots of it! Whereas today, there was at least 3 occasions where DD1 said to her sister, "Come here and give me a cuddle...I just love you so much" and then would proclaim to me "MUMMMM.....I JUST LOVE MY SISTER"

BE STILL MY BEATING HEART!!!! What is this!? Unprompted love?!?

I was in DD1s room this evening making her bed (and chucking away tidying her plethora of collected things on her bed). DD2 came in and took one of her sisters teddy bears, and I warned her, if she saw it, she would get upset. DD1 came into the room and saw her sister with her teddy and said "Oh...DD2....thats my teddy.....BUT...You can play with it, its ok!"

HOLD UP!!!!

I said "DD1....why are you being so kind to your sister today...I like it!!" And she replied, "Mum, my love heart is happy...its not grumpy anymore! It's pink and sparkly!"

I do alot of emotion coaching with my kids. I dont really know what emotion coaching is - im not trained in it....but I figure its about talking through emotions and getting them to recognise their feelings and validating them. When they are angry or frustrated - they tell me. If they whinge or scream or jump up and down stamping their feet, I remind them to use their words, and we talk it through. Sometimes it just clicks, and when it does - it is magical! Its really rewarding to see all your hard work pay off. 

We also talk about our love hearts alot, and how when you do or say something nasty to someone, it hurts their love heart, but it also means your love heart is being unkind (we associate it with the colour black or dark). And when you are doing the right thing, your love heart is all healed again (DD1 calls this a pink and sparkly heart) which is where that came from! I also tell her that when she does the right thing, like playing nicely with her sister or friends, or speaking nicely - that her loveheart is so sparkly there is a light shining from inside her that makes her glow and shine. Its the same I suppose for adults - people are drawn to those who have kind hearts....who act in kindness and speak love. I guess that is what I am hoping to instill in my kids.

And then sometimes they forget, like DD1 did at one point today. She had a small argument outside when her sister wouldn't move out of her way on their bikes. She proceeded to chuck me a really nasty grinch face (bearing her teeth and grunting)....so I sent her straight to time out. In our house, timeout lasts for the same amount of minutes as they are in years. So 3 minutes for DD1. She knows the rules are to sit on your bottom for that time and to be quiet. She can be upset and disappointed to be in timeout, but cant yell out or scream at me, or whinge and me to get out...etc. For every time she pipes up - I add another minute. I got to 10 minutes with her today. It took 10 minutes for her to listen and obey. And it took a whole lot of strength on my part to go through with those 10 minutes.  I said a silent prayer in the hallway in that last minute that she would not yell out again....and thankfully, she didnt.

It has been a tough journey raising two strong willed, independent, emotional, passionate girls. There is such a fire in their hearts and eyes though - I am grateful for their strength at times as I know, when they grow older, that these traits I've struggled with, will bode them well as they grow into young adults. I hope they fight for what they want out of their lives with as much passion as they have fought with each other (and me) when they were younger!  

If you have kids that struggle to get along with one another - there is hope. I am seeing the faintest glimmer of it now. Don't give up. Don't despair. And certainly dont think you are alone, as you aren't! Even if I am the only other person in this world with kids like this - you can take heed that I am with you!

xxx

Spontaneous fail

I love adventure....I have an adventurous spirit. I love the excitement that goes along with doing something you haven't done or experienced before. I remember when Matt got the job up here I was so excited! I couldn't really care less where we live, as long as we are together, that is all that matters! Now, I love being spontaneous and all too, however.....there are seldom many times that my spontaneity has worked for me, and this particular occasion is no different!

I was keen to head out on a little camping trip with the family as we hadnt been on one for awhile, and never by ourselves. With Matt's work, he gets a few days off every swing, so i thought it would be ample time for us to head down to Coral Bay. My thought process went a little something like this:  "Yay...lets do it. We will go camping. It will be fun. We will go to Coral Bay, its only like 5 hours in the car...that's a piece of cake! It wont cost us much, ive already got supplies for meals we can take..ill just need to grab some fruit and we will be sweet as! We will leave at like 6:30am and be there by lunchtime...too easy! We will cook some snags up for lunch and kids can have a play down by the beach. Couple of nights...bliss! Matt and I can take some wine and some yummy nibbles...stay up late chatting, kicked back on our camping chairs! Perfect!"

Matt was not too keen on this camping trip from the get go! He doesnt like being rushed into things...and in hindsight...its probably not a bad quality to have! But all along, I kept reassuring him what a fantastic time we would have!

So, Matt finished up work early on Tuesday morning. He sleeps til around noon, so while he was sleeping, I whipped up a quick shopping list of things I wanted to grab before we left. DD1 had Kindy Prep and dancing to go to, so Matt did the run around to those whilst I tried my best to pack everything! There is no such thing as lightly packing in our house! I just dont get it! How on earth can you need SO much stuff when you are only camping for 2 nights! I had a huge container filled with all the bedding (fitted sheets, sleeping bags, blankets and 2 sets of towels - 1 for the beach and 1 for showering). Another container was filled with fruit and snacks and cooking utensils etc. We borrowed Matt's brothers Engel which was a godsend - so much easier and neater than using an Esky!, then we had the portacot for DD2. On the roof of the car was the tent, the self inflating mattresses (one for us and one for DD1), 2 x jerry cans, 1 x gas bottle for the bbq cooker we borrowed also from the brother in law! I had a little bag with pencils and paper and buckets and spades for the girls. And then a suitcase with clothes for us all.

By the time I got back from the shops, it was quite late so we had a simple dinner of eggy soldiers, and popped the kids to bed, while I got busy preparing our dinner that we would take camping! I made Grandma Zoe's amazing beef casserole - which is quite simple, but takes a good hour or so to prep and then 2 hours to cook!! Then i whipped up some cupcakes as a treat also. We didnt hit the hay til close on midnight, and were both too stuffed to even begin packing the car. We declared we would wake at 5am to chuck everything in the car and on the roofrack and would hit the road by 6:30. Matt set his alarm (he told me to set mine too, but I was too tired to bother with that) so off we went to sleep.

**beep beep** I woke to a FB message from a friend on my phone (completly unrelated, but thank you Mel!) - it was 7:30am! What the?!? Noooooooooo....where was our alarm? Why didnt it go off?! Seriously....worst start to the camping trip ever! We sprung out of bed cursing the morning (and cursing myself for not setting my alarm as backup!). This was gonna be a great day!

We started packing the car and getting the kids fed and ready. The car was almost packed when Matt couldn't find some screw for the jerry cans so there was more fussing around, as if they didnt clip in properly, we couldnt store them anywhere (or take them) as there was no room in the car for them! Stress!!! We had also completely forgotten to update the kids USB with movies...so I fumbled around on the computer to get that going whilst we kept packing. 

We finally hit the road at about 9:30am, a good 3 hours after we had wanted - which was disappointing as it really would cut into the girls play time when we arrived. The drive was long, and slow....and you know what? Its not just a quick 5 hour drive to Coral Bay...IT'S ACTUALLY 6.5 HOURS...and when you add in a fuel stop (and sanity stretch of the leg and wee stop) make that closer to 7 hours! Slight oversight on my part!

At the fuel stop, Matt found a dead butterfly and brought it around to show DD1 (who LOVES butterflies at the moment. The other day, out of the blue, she came to me and said: "Mummy, I just want to be a butterfly. I just want to fly up high with my wings. And I want you and daddy and DD2 to be butterflies too!"). So he brings this butterfly to her, and says: "Look at this beautiful butterfly. It is dead, but you can have a hold and look at it". Instantly, her face changed to sheer devastation. Tears began rolling down her precious little cheeks and she started sobbing. REALLY sobbing. She held that butterfly with so much love and tenderness and was asking "Who killed the butterfly, why did it have to die? I just love the butterfly mummy. I just love butterflies." Precious heart. Isn't it amazing how innoncent little ones are, and how huge their hearts are for all of God's creation. She used to cry when we killed a cockroach in the house! Yet....in the blink of an eye, she can throw daggers of dislike towards DD2 and yell and scream and fight and carry on....go figure.

The kids were pretty good in the car trip...just the usual "Im hungry...I want a movie...I need my water...I need to do a wee....this is taking too long.....when are we going to get there...I want to go home with Billie.....why cant Billie come with us.....I want my iPad.....I dont want my iPad anymore...." You get the drift

Gloomy clouds!

As we were driving I could see stormy looking clouds in the distance. And I kind of knew that the weather would be rainy, but me with my adventurous spirit was not phased by that at all! How fun! I love the sound of rain on a tent!

About an hour out of Coral Bay, the rain started...just spitting nothing major. We arrived at the campsite, and the kids were quite content to just play in the car while we got to setting the tent up. A few people walked past asking if we wanted any help, "Oh no, we are ok, thank you!". I said to Matt, maybe we should get someone to help us, but he said, now is as good a time as any for us to learn how to set it up on our own! We were doing quite well, until the rain started.....and it didnt take long for those little rain drops to turn into big whopping rain drops! There was an older couple camped next to us in a swanky camper trailer. The man came over and he was such a sweetheart, he came and asked us if he could make us a cup of coffee....I said that would be lovely, but when we get the tent up and running then we could join him! By this stage, the rain started pelting down and it was unrelenting! The man staying behind us, along with another lady and the old man next to us all came to help us put the tent up! SO kind of them....they all had awesome camper vans/caravans and didnt need to come out in the pouring rain for us...but they did! And if they hadnt...we would have been screwed! hahah...we would have got it up, but it would have taken us probably an hour longer!

The caravan park was flooded - water just wasn't draining away at all!

All the while this was going on, the kids were still in the car, but kept opening the door and closing it, screaming at each other. DD1 kept needing the toilet. So you can just imagine the frustration that was going on!

Now this tent....deserves a paragraph of its own. IT    IS   EPIC!!! There are so many poles, all colour coded (we had forgotten about this until we were halfway through erecting the stupid thing!). And its just confusing! But until you get the fly on the top of the tent.....that rain, just continues to pool on the inside of the tent! And the fly is another story to itself - its just a guessing game as to which way its meant to go one - we kinda just threw it over the top and hoped for the best! With a bit of patience and perseverance by everyone...we got the damn thing up! And I went inside to assess the damage. We had our own little swimming pool inside the tent! No joke....It was completely flooded! While Matt continued to get things off the roof of the car, I started scooping up water into buckets to tip out of the tent. I filled up about 4 x 20 litre buckets of water from the inside of that tent! How crazy is that! The kids were going cray cray jumping in the puddles and giggling their little heads off! They were saturated....we all were! 

Oh - just casually scooping up the pool of water from our tent...as you do!

Once I had scooped most of the water out, I still needed to dry up the floor so we could put our bedding down! Now remember, I bought 2 sets of towels for us all (yehh....smart thinking Danica!!) as I used all of them drying up the floor! It was still damp when I was finished, but it was better! We had our MAMMOTH picnic blanket in the back of our car too (another godsend, thank goodness we hadn't taken it out of the car!) so we were able to put that down on the floor in the girls part of the tent, which was another godsend....they could somewhat keep their feet dry and stop their beds getting wet.

By the time we had set the beds and tent up...we were all drenched...absolutely soaked through! We were meant to be reheating that lovely casserole for dinner, on the gas BBQ....but there was no way we could do that with all the rain still heavily pouring outside. Matt suggested taking it up to the ablution blocks and cooking it up there....haha...ahhhhhhhh no thanks! Off to the pub we go! We had no nice clothes...just trackies and jumpers! I looked like a drowned rat....I asked Matt if I looked ok, and he said I looked fine...hmmmm

Crazy smiles - what else can you do!

We got to the pub and were informed there would be over an hour wait for food - the rugby was on so it was quite busy - and I guess, when its raining, where else would you rather be in a town like coral bay? I looked at the menu and there wasnt really anything GF or DF for the girls...awesome! If they have even the slightest speck of Dairy or Gluten....we all suffer! So I ordered them some fish and chips, and just hoped I could pull the batter off the fish for them. We grabbed a drink and a bag of nuts and waited...and waited...and waited for our food to come!  The girls made friends with some other little kids there, which I guess was the biggest highlight of the trip for them...second to jumping in puddles in the tent of course. I made a quick trip to the loo (which I had to walk out in the rain to), looked in the mirror and noticed I had mascara smudged beautifully under my eyes...such a pretty drowned panda I was! Thanks, Matt! I wont trust your definition of looking 'fine' again ;) hahah

We ate, and went back to our tent in the pouring rain. It was still bucketing down at this stage. The tent was floating....it was like walking on a waterbed! So crazy! We popped the kids in bed and we went to bed too. We were all shattered...except for DD2, who decided to party for a few hours in her portacot. At one point, she was standing up holding onto the edge of the portacot, swinging her head around backwards (like she was pole dancing) singing DD1's name out loud....it was hilarious...well, I was laughing. Matt at this stage, was a little annoyed at me....Just a little. At this point, there was some water that had begun pooling in the tent again. Nothing major.

I got ZERO sleep - not just from the rain and the flooded tent and a sore back (as I had managed to put it out quite badly unpacking the car), but the people opposite us decided to pack up and go, at like 10:30/11pm at night! So they were banging around and had their headlights shining directly into our tent! Then when they left, the people behind them were up having a grand old boozy chat....til oh you know like 12:30am! I was seething, mainly as I just thought, if the kids wake up...the whole caravan park will know about it and I will not be the one resettling them....you wake them, you put them back to bed!!!  hahah you know it! I would have marched out of that tent and demanded they come and help put the kids back to sleep...or I would have demanded we trade places...they could sleep in our tent and we in their swanky campervan! Not really.....but that's what I would want to do!

The amount of rain that fell overnight - apparently it was around 60ml (Matt thought even 100ml!)

The rain just kept coming down all night and the water level was so high outside that it trickled into the tent - so our mattresses/pillows/bedding was slightly soaked! There was a pool of water around the bed on the sides. I could splash my hand in the water whilst laying on my bed....

Through it all, I wasnt grumpy or agitated or anything like that! I just kept saying to Matt - what should we do? I just didnt know what to expect! By the time morning came, that picnic rug that was protecting the floor in the girls area, was soaked through - water squelching under your feet. My pillow and part of our doona was soaked through. We ate some cereal sitting on the edge of our bed, then I went to get the girls dressed in some dry warm clothes...and what do you know....our suitcase had somehow managed to get soaked too! But not all the clothes....just the warm ones I needed to use for the girls! hahahaha......typical! 

We went for a walk to check out the beach (it had stopped raining at this point)....got down to the waters edge...and of course, thats when it decided to start raining again! So we ran back up to the shelter of the shops and grabbed a cup of coffee and a babycino for the kids. DD1 was in a foul mood - with some serious threenager attitude. We made the decision to pull up stumps and head home.

Back at the tent, we chucked the kids in the car while we set to packing up everything. We had just got everything out of the tent, and started pulling out the pegs, when it started pelting with rain again! Half our luck! hahahaha Seriously...not much else could go wrong!

I took the girls for a quick bounce on the jumping pillow (SO much fun that thing!) and a play at the playground...It was raining...they got soaked and dirty, but it was something for them to do! Then we jumped in the car and set off home again! We were on the road by 10:30am and got back home by about 5pm. Matt looked at me, and I just laughed. Im glad we could laugh about it - and Matt even apologised for being a cranky pants that night!We both agreed that next time I had a sponteanous thought, we would sit down and research all aspects, including the weather...thoroughly before we made any decisions!

It took us the whole of the next day to unpack the car, clean the car, hang out the tent and the picnic blanket and mattresses to dry. I did 7 loads of washing...7!!! Luckily, with the weather we get here, it didnt take long for the washing to dry! Now, Im pretty sure that this would probably  be competition for the shortest and most eventful epic fail of a camping trip in the Guinness book of records! But you know what...I would do it all again in a heartbeat - because its life...its making memories - even if they are silly ones!

Have you ever had a spontaneous fail? Or a camping fail? I would LOVE to hear your stories....to make me feel better about myself...hahahah! Just kidding...I'm ok...really **she says whilst rocking back and forth in the corner**

Some random tree Matt thought would make a good photo!

We stopped at Fortescue River on the way home - look at that bliss weather - shoulda camped there!