Elise's 4th Birthday

Above is a thank you for Elise's birthday with a slideshow of some photos of some of the games and her cake. Can't believe she is so grown up! Elise had a wonderful time. She has been telling everyone for so long about her birthday and turning 4, she was so excited. Thank you so much for the presents and the well wishes.
Tonight at dinner she said "mum, for my 6 birthday..." She knows she can have a party again when she is 6. Of course we had a great time too but Sean and I need a while to recover!

She got a new bike for her birthday- Tinkerbell, of course and loves riding it to the dog park. We also made her a special fairy garden and she and Gisele go and have a chat to Clarabel (named by Elise) and her friends - so cute!

We have to share a funny photo with you. While I was at the fair trade market yesterday at Manly, Sean was looking after the girls for the day. He couldn't find Gisele. He was looking around the house and calling out to her with no answer. Eventually he spotted her in the kitchen , grinning and very amused with herself, perched up on the side cabinet holding the vase of flowers like an ornament. What a funny chicken!!

Hard to believe it is almost December. I have been super busy with Every Little Girl. It is a peak time for fair trade markets as well as all the fun of pre-christmas catch ups!
Megsy, Nate and Nige are coming to Sydney for christmas so we are looking forward to having them stay with us. Gisele told Meg on the phone today that she and Nate can eat rice cakes when they come to stay....mmm yum yum!

Family Photo

Here are the recent family photos we had taken at Elise's preschool. The girls look very sweet. So rare to get them looking and smiling together.

Nova came along for a photo too- impossible to get her to smile?!
How fast they grow *sigh*!

Long time between posts

Hello,
I haven't blogged for a while as Sean and I have been very busy setting up our online store. A labour of love that has taken a while but been a very enjoyable process. http://www.everylittlegirl.com
Here is a picture of the girls below modelling the felt necklaces for me. These necklaces have been popular and I am sure it is because the girls modelled them so well!!

The local fetes and festivals have been a treat. Getting into the spring spirit. Here is Gisele patting a bunny rabbit with her friend Madeline (looking the otherway) and here is Elise in the kid's ferris wheel. She's a brave girl!

In September we went up to Lake Macquarie for the afternoon to see Natalie, Otis, Reuben and Hugo. We met at Murrays Beach which was a lovely spot and we had a lovely time. Here are the kids wetting their feet.

At the start of the school holidays the girls and I went to Dubbo for a few celebrations. Uncle Mick's birthday. Hip Hip Hooray says Archie. The kids love a birthday cake - don't we all!

Here is everyone at the restaurant for Mick's birthday dinner just before Gisele's memorable big BURP that went everywhere....well we won't talk about that anymore....

It was Aunty Byna's 70th in September in Dubbo so the girls amd I were there for her special afternoon tea.

Little Archie is keen for the hip hip hooray again in this picture!

Sean has been to the USA and back again. Sailing season has started but he hasn't had too much of a sail as yet as there always seems to be something happening. http://www.everylittlegirl.com
Can't believe it is the end of October. I realised I had hardly taken any pictures of the girls this month because I had been so busy. On the countdown to Elise's birthday and christmas now! We plan to stay in Sydney for christmas this year and we will head to Canberra after christmas for the national sailing championship.

Seasons

Grandma and Great Grandma Agnes Edmiston sadly passed away this week. Sean will be going over to Perth in the coming week to join the family in celebrating her life. A grand life of 88 years!
Here are some photos of her over the last few years.
Below are some pictures of Grandma at our wedding.


Below are some photos with baby Elise at 5 months and 9 months old.

Some with the family

Then there are some photos of their visit to Sydney when Hugo & Gisele were babies.

Here is Gisele content being held by Grandma.

With the Edmiston great grandkids, then some grandkids as well.

Last of all pictures of us together at the baby shower on our trip to Perth this year.

We are thinking of Grandad and all the Edmiston family. Sean says " May angels wings carry you home grandma.....all our love"

Springtime Outings

We have had our lovely friends from Mildura staying for a couple of days. My old school mate Merryl came to visit for a conference with her son Rohan (4years) and their 16 year old exchange student Erik from Denmark.
The girls and I took Erik & Rohan to the Aquarium one day. We caught the rivercat into Darling Harbour.

Here is a picture of the little kids with the mermaid & Elise with the Dugong

We will have to plan out visit to their farm in Mildura sometime. Elise was very sad that Rohan went home.

I have been a bit slack with blogging lately as I have been busy getting the new shop ready with Sean.

Below are some pictures from our breakfast with the Edmistons on Fathers day. We went to the new Deckhouse Cafe in Woolwich which was pretty snazzy!

Nana & Grandad with the grandgirls. Elise, Gisele and Nina.

Gisele LOVES wearing dresses at the moment so was very happy to pose for a picture in her dress!

Above is a picture of the completed deck/ outdoor space. Weather is turning warmer so we plan to live out there a lot this summer.

Every Little Girl comes to life...

Sean and I have been hard at work building our new small business called Every Little Girl. Recently I heard the American journalist Nicholas D. Kristof and his wife Sheryl WuDunn talk about their book called "Half the Sky". They witness stories of girls over the developing world who struggle with issues of poverty in their young lives. Girls are less likely to be immunised or to go to school but sadly more be likely to be exploited. The Girl Effect, n, campaigns that CHANGE IN THE WORLD STARTS WITH A GIRL. Powerful social and economic change is brought about in the world when girls have an opportunity to participate.

Being a mum to 2 little girls I dream that every little girl can be safe, free to go to school and to have access to healthcare to help them thrive and grow. Since becoming a mum this strong gathering urge has devloped in me and I have become addicted to online shopping and selling. The conveniance of being able to shop late at night or in the comfort of my pyjamas is a winner for me. It also means I can search all over the world for the best deals and the best quality items.

Many people are becoming more conscious of the impact globally of our everyday choices. This is why we have chosen to focus on fair trade and eco fashion and toys for little girls. Fair trade guarantees a better deal for thirld world producers. Most importantly 10% of our profits will go to projects that enable little girls (and in some cases their mums) in developing countries access to healthcare, education and protection.

We are very excited about this. It is already bringing us great joy to focus on something worthwhile. We will be ready to launch in October. More news soon!

Josephite Community Aid Reunion weekend at Gerroa.

We went to Gerroa for the day recently to say goodbye to the legendary retreat centre. This where I used to go with fellow JCA volunteers and refugee families for weekends away at the beach. It brought back memories of the great spirit of the place and JCA. We saw some familiar faces....Here are a few photos with the nunny bunnies.

Here is Elise and Declan helping Sr Maria Sullivan blow out the candles on her 70th birthday cakes...

We wish Adi & June well for their big trip to Rome in October for the canonisation of Mary Mackillop. They are leading the group of young people in the Josephite spirit.

7 mile beach at Gerroa is heaven...

Below are some recent pictures of the girls...

The girls are growing fast.

Gisele astonishes us with her rapid language development not to mention her cheekiness and stubborn determination (don't know where she gets that from LOL!)

Elise has grown more than 5cm in 2 months and is always hungry!

They pull the funniest faces....