{this week i'm grateful for..} being a mumma..

{image from here}

We've had a massive two weeks full of fun, laughter, celebrations, sicknesses, hospital stays and it all involved us as a family. I seem to always reflect during the first two weeks of March, as its the time of year I married my mate, my favourite season begins and the month became a mother. I'm feeling incredibly lucky right now.

Becoming parents was kind of a big joke for us. We had the 'knock-up plan' in place for 4 years, down to the day we would start stop trying not to get pregnant, to the star sign we wanted our first child to be and we even had the name picked out. I fell pregnant on our first attempt, felt sick 2 days later, bought a home pregnancy test, checked it 7 times just to make sure and sure enough.. our little Ella was born 9 months later, on her due date.

We did a little calculation for our second child and the scenario was pretty much the same. Pregnant on the first go, I pretty much chose the date Zac was going to be born as it was convenient. We had no family in Australia and the friends that were going to look after Ella were going to be at a party we were also invited to. There was going to be a jumpy castle and birthday cake and overall a nice place to leave Ella to go off and give birth.

Well.. that was us. As ho-hum as it all seems, and as incredibly well it all worked out, we were scared before we started trying. The 'knock-up plan' was just a big joke. I wasn't sure whether I would be able to have kids. You see, when I was 17, I had an ovarian cyst and had one of my ovaries removed, so we really weren't sure. We discussed other options and had a bit of a plan just in case.

Motherhood is one of those funny things... it's exhausting, such hard work, stressful, confusing, unpredictable but so incredibly rewarding. I get that crazy warm fuzzy feeling in my tummy each and every day with my kiddos. They crack me up, they make me laugh and smile, they blow raspberries on my tummy, they make me cups of dirt coffee, they give me slimy pre-chewed crackers... They just rock my world.

Since becoming a mumma, I've watched a few close friends struggling to fall pregnant. Some have taken the path of IVF and some other natural methods, some have managed to fall pregnant but have experienced multiple losses... watching each of their struggles is just as heartbreaking when the result is not what they were hoping for.

I was recently emailed a media release about a study which shows that one in two women could be trying to conceive at the wrong time and that Clearblue Digital Ovulation Tests take out the guesswork. I was instantly interested in reading further as if there was a way I could help one of my friends succeed in falling pregnant then hey.. I'm there. I used Clearblue home pregnancy tests to find out I was going to be a mumma, so the brand was quite well known to me.

The Clearblue Digital Ovulation Test is available nationally from major supermarkets and pharmacies in a pack of seven tests (RRP $69.99). For more information on the Clearblue Digital Ovulation Test and other products in the range, visit www.clearblue.com/au  or call Clearblue’s Careline on 1800 125 021.


If you are trying to conceive and would like to try out one of the Clearblue Digital Ovulation Tests, just drop me and email, as I have been given 3 packs to share with my readers. I'd love to hear how you go with them. 

So this week I am grateful for:
{1} lady luck for allowing me to bypass all the stress of getting pregnant..
{2} my amazing children.. they are the icing on my life..
{3} opportunities to share something with my readers that may help them..
{4} still grateful for our health system..
{5} rain for making my backyard look slightly more green than brown..

joining in with maxabella loves..

the day my life changed..

Four years ago today, my life changed..
at 1.13am on the 1st of March in 2007 I became a mother..
My gorgeous Ella came into this world and gave my life a whole new meaning...

Here are photos of my angel's first two years..

{this week i'm grateful for..} friends and the www..

Another little week of reflection and re-evaluation for this mumma. I started the week of with a horrible head cold so I tried to do the 'relax and take care of yourself' thing that everyone talks about. I even got a box of Lemsip and religiously took it along with my echinacea, zinc and vitamin C tablets..

I spent a lot of time on the computer as I am not entirely capable of doing nothing at all. I joined in with a group on Aussie Mummy Bloggers to improve my blog. I wrote a pitch for my blog and business. I found a number of amazing sites written by amazingly inspiring mums and I stumbled upon this gorgeous clip which a friend of mine had emailed me a while ago and I completely forgot about.



I read this incredibly amazing post about post natal depression and got re-inspired to work on a project that I have been working on for a few months, that has taken a back seat of late. I will share soon.. I promise, its just not quite in its sharing state yet.

What advice would you give to a new mum?

As far as PND goes I'm great, we have a happy groove happening in our little family and life is fantastic. Whenever I read posts or watch clips like the ones above though, reality hits. I realise how incredibly lucky I was to have such a amazing set of friends to help me identify PND and get it under control as quickly as I did and I am so grateful that they didn't make me feel like a bad mum because I went through PND.

So this week I am grateful for..
my amazing friends.. you guys know who you are..

the www..
{1} i get inspired by other people
{2} i love reading what real mums have to say
{3} i am so incredibly grateful for people that are able to share about post natal depression
{4} i love the community feeling that is in blog land
{5} i love access to information

joining in with {maxabella loves} i'm grateful for..

time for a change..

So.. I've been here for a little while now.. in blogland that is. I like it, it's my little spot to do what I like, write what I like and in a way my little world. I've met a number of great people, some amazing and inspiring mums and have made myself quite comfortable really.

But why am I here?? Well.. because I like it!

When you are posed with a question though, and you are not entirely sure how to answer it, or on the other hand you are sure, but what you do and how you answer the question is a little different, you question yourself.. right?? Well, I know I do..

My little kasiabear business has taken off and is moving into some amazing new directions, so a lot of time has been focussed on this area of my life. Needless to say anything other than family and kasiabear at this stage is getting analysed and re-analysed and needs to be justified so that I feel right about dedicating time to it.. and this includes my online pocket of joy.. my blog.

Since I heard about the 31 Days to Build a Better Blog Group starting up on Aussie Mummy Bloggers, I have been umming and aaaaring about joining and participating. I'm trying to justify the time spent on my blog already.. not to mention the added time to build it to be something better.

After a lot of thought and especially after reading the first part of the ProBlogger book I purchased a while back, I realised that I want to stay here and the reason is kind of what this blog originated as.. the juggle between all the things I love, the love and passion I have for all aspects of my life and finding a balance.

Over the next 31 days you will see a change happening on my blog.. it may look entirely different one day when you drop past.. its still me though.. just look for my photo with my kiddo's.