I am a shameful blogger

I know it's been a super-long time since I last posted, and shame on me for being such a terrible blogger!

Lets see, things that have happened since August:

• Camping trip for New Year's at Perigian Beach with a bunch of mates
• Celeste's first Christmas!
• I became a godmother for the second time, this time to my niece Bubberoo aka Chubba aka Squish
• Went to Sunset Sounds festival recently - was great! Danced away to Cat Empire, Franz Ferdinand, Gin Club, Blue King Brown, etc etc etc
• Went to Billy Joel and got upgrade to third-row seats - huzzah! Damn I wish I could play the piano that well.
• Job going well, doing some freelance stuff as well, finishing off my post-grad.
• New car! Which is hot.
• Pip has grown heaps - she's still cute though, and slightly insane, and I think she might be nuts, but all good!
• Went down to Coolie today to see the Australia vs NZ vs Saffaland beach cricket - was fun, just ridiculously hot.

I'm sure more has happened (I hope it has!), but I can't think of it right now.

Hope everyone is well!

So You Think You ... Wear Pants

This is possibly the most beautiful dance routine I've ever seen:



In other news, not too much to report. Lovin' my new job - keeping me super busy! Been to Melbourne and Sydney so far, but it was manic. Just the way I like it, really! Tafe has been pushed to the wayside unfortunately.

On the plus side, Leah and I made our annual pilgrimage to Canberry to visit Alice. On the agenda - food, going to a gig and meeting up with Kirri, Questacon Science Centre, and pretty much freezing our butts off. Oh, and did I mention I forgot my wallet? Yeah - smart move.

Both the babies - Celeste and Pip - are growing so much! Both giving lots of love now - so cute!

Right... I need sleep!

Babies of all kinds

It's been a busy couple of months. First and foremost, dealing with a kitten who had some toilet-training issues (believe me - not pretty!). It's honestly like having a child. You clean up, and within a few hours the floor is littered with her 'toys' again. She has a liking for an old pair of stockings, balls of scrunched up paper, scarves, leaves...pretty much anything she can attack. My legs and arms still show the hallmarks of her efforts. Still - super cute! We're having a lot of fun having an animal around the house.

Speaking of babies, my niece Celeste is now more than three months old and getting chubby, which is what we all like to see in babies. She had her christening on the weekend, and I became one of her two godmothers (no godfathers). Ironic her parents chose an atheist as her godmother, but I'm pretty sure the whole idea of godparents has changed somewhat over the ages. Anywho, a good day had by all - very short church ceremony, followed by bbq lunch, cake, more cake, and barefoot bowls by the water at Wynnum. Oh, and Celeste was cute too.

In other news, I have a new job! That's right - I've left the shift work of Police behind and have embarked on a really exciting role in the Corporate world. I'm in a communications role (the only one they have, and newly-created) at a big construction company. It's a really great opportunity and so far it's working out really well.

Not too much else to report really...singing and ballet continue, pointe shoes are crushing my toenails, but it's all part of the fun! When I grow up, I'm going to be a ballerina.

Introducing....Detective Pip Benson Loy-Bruekers

Don't ask about the name - I actually wanted Ranger McCat but this works!

So yes - this is our new kitten! We brought her home today (and now I look like I've got track marks up and down my arms, but whatever) and she's currently sleeping underneath the washing machine.

She'll get too big for that eventually.

Anyway, she's seven weeks old and our new baby!

In other news, been busy finishing off uni (already know I got a seven for one subject - hooray!) and working and ballet-ing, and singing and so forth. Such busy times are these! Also babysat my gorgeous little niece last week - she's growing super fast, it's so weird to think she's already 11 weeks old! Exciting stuff.

Her baptism is scheduled for July, and as I'm her favourite aunty (and, ironically, the resident family atheist) I'm going to be a godparent - hooray for Team Mel!

Team Mel has been triumphing a lot lately. You should all join me on my quest.

Aunty Mel is the best.

Our family is not known for being very patient, and it seems its in the genes with the arrival of my niece, Celeste, four weeks early on Friday. She's so tiny - only five pounds, two ounces - but gorgeous!! She just slept the whole day on Saturday. Because she's a bit early, she's had a few feeding problems, but they're getting there and hopefully she'll be home this week. It's so amazing to think my sis is a mum, and that's her daughter! Naturally I've gone a little nuts. As soon as I finished taking photos and having cuddles at the hospital on Saturday, I went and got said photos developed, bought frames, and went a little nuts at Pumpkin Patch. If she's my niece, she's gotta look good!

So of course we're all completely over the moon in the Loy/Harris family. Welcome to the world, Celeste! We'll try not to screw up your life.:)

Under your arm is on top of the world

Ah, ads from the 70s!

Baby love

My sister is having her baby shower on Saturday afternoon - it's kinda exciting, being my first niece/nephew and all (don't worry, it's my older sister, not my teenaged one!). However, today I went shopping for presents and, despite the help of a list my sister compiled, it was excruciating! Who would've thought a kid could need so many things? Or that there were so many kinds of things, in so many different brands, colours, materials, etc? Or that there were so many things for different stages of development?

But that really was the least of my worries. The biggest issue - what can I buy that won't risk killing it? Seriously, I was looking at things going: 'That's cute, fluffy, etc, but will it suffocate the baby?' or, 'that is also cute, fluffy, etc, but will the baby choke on it?'. Not to mention that it might be allergic to certain materials, dyes, and all of that stuff. I was so stressed by the end of it, not to mention I'd just bought a whole heap of things which I'm sure are useful, but not entirely amazing gifts. Is that what happens when you buy gifts for people who have/are having babies? Do gifts stop becoming cool and start becoming practical? Then they become fun gifts again when they're a bit older?

And then when the kid is actually born, what do you buy then, given it will probably have everything from aforementioned baby shower? I figure it's a bit like the engagement party followed by the wedding - what presents you don't get from the first, you put on the registry for the second. Honestly, married people and people having babies are so selfish!;)