Moving Forward….

Posted on June 7, 2013 by natalietrew

It’s been a week now since my nana left the world in which we live. Since then we’ve shed many tears, reminisced about the wonderful times we’ve shared with our beautiful lady, we’ve laughed, we’ve cried some more and we came together to share in a memorable service to celebrate the fabulous person my nana was!

Now it’s the aftermath….
The time when everyone goes back to their respective places of dwelling, work resumes again and the times spent together are fewer than they’ve been. It’s during this time, now the formalities are over, that the real grieving process begins. Over the coming months we’ll feel as though we are climbing a sea of mountains with many peaks and troughs! Today we feel worse than yesterday, but tomorrow we may feel better, until the next day rolls over when we feel worse again. And it may just take a song or a piece of material to remind us of the hole that nana has left, but together and with the ever lasting memories of nana we will get each other and more importantly grandad through this difficult time!

It still feels so wrong that we’ll never be able to hold nana’s hand again, help her out of her chair or brush her hair to make her feel relaxed, but to save our own health and sanity, we have to make peace with the fact that nana isn’t suffering anymore and that she will always live on with us everywhere we go! Nana would want us to pick ourselves up and keep soldiering on and in her memory we must do that! If there is anything I’ve learnt from the dearest grandmother I know, it’s not to feel sorry for yourself. My whole life I’ve seen nana in pain as she had scoliosis from a young age and was told she would be in a wheelchair by the time she was 50. At 75 she was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease and was still walking and never once in the 33 years I was blessed to have her, did she ever complain or say “why me !”…even when her daughter and grandson passed away!

It’s quite ironic that although nana isn’t physically here anymore, she will be the one to help us move forward. Every time we weep, every time we feel sad or mad about the situation all we have to do is think of how nana coped with all the terrible things thrown her way. Time after time she moved forward and with such grace and dignity…if nana could then so can we!

To my beautiful family: we can do this! It isn’t going to be easy but we have been given a gift from nana and that is the gift of strength! Nana taught us how to love, how to nurture, how to laugh, how to be creative and most importantly how to be strong. It’s with this strength that we will feel happy and content again. It may not be today or tomorrow but the day will come when our tears are less and the smiles are greater. It’s a hard pill to swallow the thought of picking yourself and finding ‘normality’ again. Moving forward is not about forgetting nana, it’s about enjoying life for nana as she is unable to anymore…..

Until we meet again….

Posted on May 28, 2013 by natalietrew

Tears are rolling…
Our hearts our broken…
Yesterday we lost a great lady…Gloria Holpen – my darling nana!

She was a loving wife to my grandad, mother to my mother and uncles and was ‘nana’ to 10 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren. She was a mother in law, a sister, an aunty and a true friend to anyone she met. She was loving, she was loyal…one of the greatest women I’ve been privileged to have in my life!

5 weeks ago nana was rushed to hospital when she fell ill with a stomach obstruction. We were told to prepare for the worst then, but through her pure strength and determination, nana recovered and was ready to be discharged when a spot became available in a nursing home. Then last thursday unexpectedly, nana took a turn for the worst and started vomitting…another stomach obstruction, this time worse, this time there was nothing the medical professionals could do. Sadly nana was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease 5 years ago and now that she was in the late stages of this horrible debilitating disease, her bowel and gut system was paralysing and she was unable to eat or drink. We were told last weekend that nana only had a couple of days to live. She lasted 8 days.

We were shocked to say the least. We knew that she may be at risk of another obstruction, but months or years down the track…not weeks;( When the realisation came to knowledge that nana would need to be cared for in a nursing home, that was hard enough to stomach at first, but we accepted that and my mother worked so hard doing everything she had to do to find nana a nursing home placement and now instead of getting nana ready to move, we are busy planning her funeral. It just seems so wrong;(

In her final days, most of the family were able to spend time with nana, comforting her when she was in pain, holding her hand when she seemed scared and whispering in her ear how much we loved her and that she needed to be brave. This past week has been gut wrenching. Watching my grandad in his final days with his wife of over 60 years was nothing short of torture! Seeing how distraught my mum was at the thought of never seeing her mother again. We’ve cried an ocean of tears, but the most uplifting part of this week has been the realisation of how powerful family love can be.

The hospital staff were amazed at how long nana held on for. For an 80-year-old women to last 8 days without food or water showed how strong and courageous nana really was. And although nana had many loved ones waiting for her on the other side, she knew she was leaving so much behind! The closeness and love our family shares started way back when nana and grandad started their own family…nana has left this legacy behind and as a family we will keep this going.

How do you say goodbye to someone who has been there for every stage of your life?

As I close my eyes I remember so many precious moments with nana. Her gorgeous smile, her laugh, her beautiful blue eyes and how she always had the ability to put a smile on my face. I’ll treasure the safe and secure feeling I always had when in my nana’s presence and to say I won’t have that again is something I’m trying to come to terms with.

This week will be tough for everyone. Even though many tears are still to be shed, we are determined to make sure nana’s funeral is a celebration of her life and the amazing lady she was. When nana’s time on earth came to end on June 1st at 11.15am, heaven gained a special angel who will be there to watch over us every step of our ways. So for now nana it isn’t goodbye, rather until we meet again…..

I’ve Watched…..

Posted on May 25, 2013 by natalietrew

Throughout my life I’ve been blessed with being able to watch and learn from a wonderful women who I will always call my nana!

Over the years…
I’ve watched my nana love and care for her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren as her natural instinct of mothering has always been impeccable.
I’ve watched her love and nurture grandad like the fantastic loyal wife she’s always been.
I’ve watched her give her opinion with a strong view as nana always liked a good debat.
I’ve watched her laugh so hard till she almost wet herself as nana always had a great sense of humour.
I’ve watched her cry at many different situations as she always held her emotions on her sleeve.
I’ve watched her grieve as we’ve lost love ones along the way.
I’ve watched her support us with everything we’ve ever been involved in from our sporting events to our academic achievements.
I’ve watched her play many games of bingo…some she won and some she walked away with the poops!
I’ve watched her make gollywogs, croquet blankets and baskets as nana loved her sewing creations.
I’ve watched her sing and dance at concerts as nana was a groover!
I’ve watched her work her magic in the kitchen whether it be on a roast or bangers and mash as nana was a great cook!
I’ve watched my nana embrace her natural beauty as she never pieced her ears, never coloured her hair and would only ever wear her signature pink lipstick…we tried so hard over the years to get her to shave her legs, so a tattoo was definitely out of the question lol!
I’ve watched her enjoy many cups of tea, coffee and slices of cake as that’s what nana loved to do.
I’ve watched her relish in the company of all of her family as family was her life!
I’ve watched her say goodbye to her family home of 50 years and move two doors up from me – this I will always cherish!
I’ve watched the thrill all her grand babies have brought to her over the years of their developments.
I’ve watched her at her absolute best and her absolute worst.

For a long time now, I’ve watched my dear nana struggle like none of us would know how to. I’ve watched her cry in pain and I’ve watched how determined she was not to let the pain defeat her as she never winged and always had room for her beautiful smile. I’ve watched my devoted grandfather care for her and keep her comfortable at home for as long as he possibly could and this was accompanied by the dedication of my wonderful mother.

In her final days I watched my nana fight with the strength I’ve never seen from a single soul. I watched my family shed tears for the lady who has always been the glue that holds our family together. I watched my grandad’s heart break as he told her he loved her and we would be ok. I watched my nana hold onto dear life until she felt we were going to be ok because nana always put everyone else before herself.

Now that my dear nana is dancing in the meadows of heaven with other loved ones, I will forever live in peace knowing that she will be watching over us all. Our family has another angel now who has left behind a legacy that we will continue to uphold during our days.

I love you forever nana…you will always be my inspiration – today is not goodbye, rather until we meet again xoxoxoxo!

All The Threes!

Posted on April 8, 2013 by natalietrew

Since the new year rolled over, we’ve celebrated Mia’s 2nd birthday, Bailey’s 7th, Kane’s, Dad’s and Easter and last Thursday on April 4th I celebrated my 33rd birthday! Like most years my birthday was on school holidays which I LOVE!! It was such a fantastic day, one of the best birthdays I’ve had, especially since becoming a mum!

I spent the day doing all the things I love to do best….
During the day I went down to Wynnum and had morning tea and fish and chips for lunch. Mum came with us as well as my two nephews. The kids had a ball kicking the footy around, playing on the playground and swimming! It was a bit windy but the sun was shining – it was glorious!

The afternoon was spent lazing around before we got ourselves ready to go out for dinner with the family. We ended up at Hotel HQ, the kids love the kid’s playroom there. Again it was a great night filled with beautiful food, yummy cake, lots of laughter and I was very spoilt by everyone…especially with a custom made frame with photos of My Party of 5 from my hubby and children:)

Love it…thanks babe!

I went to bed that night feeling happy and content! I was so overwhelmed with all the birthday messages I received either via Facebook, text and phone…I was definitely feeling the love!

And if my birthday wasn’t great enough, on Saturday night I organised a small party with my friends! Since turning 30 we’ve been through so much with my health, the kids and Kane’s job, this year I wanted a night out where we could get dressed up and celebrate a birthday where for the first time in a long time I haven’t been pregnant, breast feeding or recovering from surgery! We had a great night out at the Glen. 35 of our closest friends joined in the celebrations where we laughed a lot, chatted heaps and enjoyed a few drinks or three or four…lol! I really appreciated the effort people went to. I know how hard it is to get out and about these days, so it was great to see everyone relaxed and enjoying themselves. Once again my wonderful parents took care of our munchkins, but were able to pop in for a bit and my sister and brother in law stayed and drove us home:)!

And of course what’s a birthday without a cake…my latest edition!

To end what was a great few days of celebrations, I managed to get up to Garden City yesterday to spend my birthday money. I already what I wanted in mind and when I’m on a mission there is no stopping me! It took me exactly one hour to go from home and back with my money spent and everything bought that I wanted!

A new handbag and purse, pair of havaianas and the best of all a Tomas Sabo bracelet and charm:)…very lucky lady I am!

Thank you to everyone who made this year’s birthday extra special. I feel very blessed to have a wonderful husband, three amazing children, a loving family and a number of great friends! For now all the threes has been awesome, lets hope it continues!!!

EaSteR….

Posted on March 25, 2013 by natalietrew

Easter is normally one of my favourite times as it’s the only time of year we are guaranteed a 4 day long weekend! But, I don’t know about anyone else, I so wasn’t ready for Easter at all this year! I feel like I haven’t fully recovered from Christmas and with it being earlier than normal, it really crept up on us very quickly! The kids haven’t even gone on and on about it like they normally do weeks leading up to it!!! It’s been such a huge year so far and it’s going by so fast, nothing feels as enjoyable as years gone past, I’m hoping that changes as the year goes on!

But with all this said, I still tried really hard to make this Easter an exciting one that the kids will remember! Up until the day before Good Friday I hadn’t bought a thing!!! Thankfully I was able to complete most of my shopping at late night shopping just in time for
the extra long weekend! The kid’s and I had put our decorations up on the Wednesday and the excitement did start at 2.30 on Thursday which signalled 2 weeks school holidays!!!! 🙂

We spent Good Friday at the skate park, playground, swimming at mum and dad’s and finished the day off with the boy’s going to the footy and is girls having dinner at mum and dad’s:)

Easter Saturday was an extra special day as it was my daddy’s birthday! It’s hard to believe that it has already been a year since we celebrated dad’s 60th birthday with a fabulous party at my sister’s house. Now another year has past! It was a lovely day spent doing what dad loves to do the best…beers, horse racing and footy…with his loved ones around him:) I made the cake of course and we relished in each other’s company all day!

Easter Sunday started with its usual tradition of the kid’s Easter egg hunt. Usually we have to race off somewhere for breakfast, but this year we didn’t need to so it was so nice to potter all morning with the kids as we didn’t have to be anywhere until lunch time. On our way to my sister’s for lunch, we stopped in and saw nana and grandad. The rest of the day was spent eating, laughing and playing backyard sports with the kids! Another quiet but fun Easter:)

Now it’s Easter Monday and the realisation that nothing has been done for three days has hit lol! Washing is
coming out of my ears, the house is a sad sight and the Easter presents need to be sorted and put away…all I can say is thank god it’s school holidays!!! We finished up today spending the morning at Movie World and the afternoon having a much needed rest! So far I’ve put the Easter decorations away and sorted my washing! It’s been a fabulous Easter weekend filled with the things I love doing the most…family time, running, eating, laughing and giving gifts!

Happy Easter to My Party of 5 followers…I hope your Easter has been filled with all things you love!

All in a Year!

Posted on March 3, 2013 by natalietrew

Exactly one year ago I started my blogging journey. I’ve put myself out there to the world and exposed myself as a mum, wife, daughter, sister and friend. I’ve covered parenting topics from breastfeeding to middle child syndrome, I’ve shared my highs and lows with you all. I’ve captured moments of my running achievements and posted pieces about my cake creations and my love of decorating and fashion!

Blogging for me is a great hobby where I can release my inner thoughts and a perfect way to capture my life as it stands. I started blogging in the hope to help people! As a teacher I love to offer something to someone and help them to learn and as my blog’s caption says ‘life is about learning’, it’s nice to know that someone out there could be learning something from the pieces that I write! And even though I started blogging to help people, it also didn’t phase me if only a few people here or there read my posts as it’s a great memory for me to always look back on.

I remember when I posted my first blog, within hours I had people respond…it was a bit weird at first! But from one blog to the next, it became a natural routine of my week! And I’m happy to say that so far I’ve had nothing but positive feedback and a wonderful supportive audience who I appreciate them talking time out of their busy schedules to read what I have to say!

To celebrate my year’s journey, I’ve included my top 5 most read blogs over the year and my top 3 that I loved the most!

Top 5:
Number 1 – Tattoo
Number 2 – Bulging Belly
Number 3 – ‘Jackpot’
Number 4 – Tiger Stripes
Number 5 – 10kg Gone

My favourite top 3:
Number 1 – In the name of ‘love’
Number 2 – Bond of sisterhood
Number 3 – End of Breastfeeding

I hope you enjoy reading over some of my favourite blogs that I’ve written. I can’t believe I’ve posted over 100 blogs now! When I was choosing my top three there were pieces I went through that I forgot I’d written about…always such a wonderful memory of what has been achieved! Once again thank you for your constant support it’s always warmly appreciated! I look forward to sharing more of me and my Party of 5’s life over the coming 12 months!

A Year’s Reflection….

Posted on December 30, 2012 by natalietrew

With the chapter of 2012 about to end, I want to take the time to reflect what this year has bought My Party of 5! It’s definitely been some what interesting. Many ups and downs, new memories created, lessons learnt, there were tears of joy and disappointment, but through all of this we’ve been able to hold onto each other to enjoy the rollercoaster and all the while love, laughter and hope was certainly present!

As I write my last blog post for the year and I look back at all the memories that have been created, it brings to light how busy the year has been and how quickly it has flown by! I question myself then…have I embraced it enough? I really dislike looking back at things with regret, but I’m happy to say that I am ready to shut the chapter of this year with no regrets, only lessons learnt and am really looking forward to a new year with new beginnings and new memories!

2012….

The year started on a good note with great times spent at the coast! It was Mia’s first summer and our first summer as a party of 5! We had a few mini holidays as a family and with family! The kids love going away and so do we!

Once our summer fun was over and Kane went back to work, the reality of me going back to work after having 13 months off started to hit hard! I wasn’t ready at all. Between being diagnosed with my heart condition at the end of my pregnancy with Mia and then Mia being a very difficult baby, I was only just becoming content with everything when the time was up for me to return! It took ages, at least a term and a half for me to settle back into teaching and a new school at that! I’m happy to say I love my job now and am very settled and pleased to be Crestmead State School’s prep/1/2 special education teacher!

With me going back to work two days a week it meant my beautiful mother was back helping us out with babysitting again. It was Mia’s time with nanny as this year our Sie Sie girl started preschool! This was traumatic for us all! Unlike her brother Sienna cried and cried and begged us not leave her (I did that to my mum)! But after a few months the tears were gone and she has become such a confident little student all ready to tackle prep in the new year!

Bailey was so excited to be starting grade 1! He felt like a big boy this year and took responsibly in his stride all year. He had such an awesome year in prep so facing the new curriculum in year 1 was a little bit of a slap in the face at first, but I’m so proud of Bay he never gave up once. Even with more ear problems mid way through the year, he still managed a good report card. He excelled in semester 2 and where he started the year on a reading level 5 he was benchmarked a 21 to finish the year and received a brilliant report card!

It was a very special year for birthday’s this year….Mia’s 1st birthday, mum and dad’s 60th and nana’s 80th! This meant there was lots of cake decorating by myself and lots of family gatherings! Mia started the birthdays off in February when she turned 1. It was a lovely day spent with my little bear. Her first year had been such a trying one, but we’d made it and almost 12 months on she is the cheekiest, most delightful funny little girl, that is soooo full on lol!!!

Two 60ths and an 80th which were fantastic celebrations filled with close family and friends!

And of course we all turned another year older….

Bay turned 6:)

Kane and I turned 32 this year!

Sienna turned 4:)

Like every celebration we embraced it with plenty of decorations and cake! This year Easter was at our house for the first time! The kids had a ball hunting for eggs, playing on their jumping castle with their cousins and I made my first Easter cake:) Halloween was also a hit this year! I made dinner and dessert for everyone to enjoy, while the kids went trick or treating!

This year was the year Kane had been waiting for since Bailey took his first breath….he finally was ready to play football and that he did!! I still remember his first game. I felt nervous for him. I thought so many things that may of happen, but all that happened was my boy running, scoring, tackling, encouraging and most of all having fun! He had a brilliant footy season with his team being undefeated. Kane was assistant coach and it was a great time for him with his son doing what they both love best! They are both bursting at the seams for the new footy season to start!

Bay’s footy is not the only one we supported this year. We supported our Queenslanders to victory and were there when Petro played his last game for the Broncos! Kane still goes for his beloved Bulldogs and will never convince me to convert lol! But our biggest highlight of the year for achievement in sport was my nephew Sebastian. He made the Queensland under 12 rugby league team who took out the carnival in Mackay! This was such a special moment for our family as dad and I had made an under 12 state side as well…we even made the paper!

Our biggest challenge of all hit us mid year when the business Kane worked for went into liquidation. Kane was left without a job and we were down to one car! Thanks to fantastic mates, Kane was able to work and work and work until he finally landed a fantastic permanent job only a month ago. We were prepared for him not to find anything until the new year, so when this came up, we couldn’t believe it! We’d never lived without stability. Living from day to day, watching every single penny we spent so we could maintain our home and investment property! It has been such an unsettling time for us all, but we made it through and all thanks to my wonderful husband who is a work horse!

Visiting daddy at a job site…water playground – score!

But through the hard times I’ve laughed a lot at the kids this year! They are my everything. They are my light when I’m feeling dark. They may drive me crazy at times, but I would not be able to breathe without them….

And like I stated above, I’m not only blessed with three adorable children, I have the best husband to go with it!

I’ve learnt a lot about myself this year! Losing weight and getting fit was the best thing I’ve chosen to do since having my children. I’d never been in a position before where I needed to lose weight, but when faced everyday with a heart condition and letting myself go a bit after having my third child, this has kicked my butt into keeping myself at my best, in order to give myself the best chance of living the longest life possible….this mumma ain’t going no where! Not only am I physically fitter, I’m as mentally fit as I’ve ever been! Things that use to bother me don’t anymore (although my husband may disagree lol) and being forced into not having my husband around as much, I’ve learnt that I can do anything on my own! I owe all of this to running! I believe if I didn’t find the love of running, this paragraph may have been written differently!

Even though we had some really shaky parts of the year, it certainly is ending on a beautiful note! Christmas was so fantastic this year. We embraced it for all that it’s worth and most importantly we were together relishing in the love we have for each other!

My last cake of the year:)

As a new year approaches it gets you thinking what you’d like to see happen, resolutions and goals! All I want for the new year is for us all to be happy! After having such an unstable year and watching my husband feeling unhappy, I just want us to be settled and happy! It’s not about money or possessions, it’s about being settled and grounded, once these things are in place, everything else around you balances off nicely!

Of course there are lots of things that I hope don’t happen in the new year! I’d like us to go one year without having to take one of our children to the hospital to have their ears fixed. It was Mia’s turn this year and already Bailey is booked in for the end of summer if his ears don’t improve….but I am thinking positively!!!

And of course there are things I hope to achieve like cleaning out my laundry/study, the one room I just can never keep organised – it is my dumping ground. I want to get my scrapbooking in order and finish off Sienna’s baby album so I can start Mia’s! I have new running goals and the new year will be my first year where I plan to enter competitions!

Our biggest event that will kick start the year off though is our eldest daughter starting prep! How exciting! I can’t believe that the 10 pound 2 baby I gave birth to is about to start the adventure of primary school. I’m going to miss my little pumpkin so much and so will her baby sister….it’s just you and me Mimi….please be kind to mummy lol!

On that note I shall end my final 2012 blog with thanking you all for your support and reading about my life and My Party of 5! I started blogging as a way of helping others an if I’ve only helped one person with something than I’m happy with that! My goal was to reach 10 000 views of my blog by the end of the year and that has been well and truly achieved with over 10 300 views to date over the 90 odd blogs that I’ve written thus far. I wish you all a very happy new year that is filled with lots of love, laughter and good health and I look forward to sharing more of my life’s findings in the new year!

Seeing in the new year on our holiday at the coast….couldn’t think of a better way to spend it!

Family is EVERYTHING!!!!

Posted on December 29, 2012 by natalietrew

I love this time of year! It oozes family time and for me there is nothing better than spending time with my beautiful family. Not only am I blessed to have my very own party of 5, but I’m also blessed to have grown up in a party of five that has extended a great deal over the years!

The fabulous people who have started off this great chain is my mother and father! They are truly the best parents anyone could ever ask for. Devoted, supportive, loving, generous and fun parents and grandparents. Without them, none of us would have half of what we have today!

The festive season always allows me to reflect and appreciate my family. One of my sisters lives in Melbourne with her family, so it is quite rare now that we are altogether, but when we are, we sure make up for it! Over the past week, we have spent several days together laughing, joking, debating, reminiscing and watching the kids have fun together! Amongst all of that a fair bit of eating (by the women) and drinking (by the men) has taken place lol! Gosh they are always good times!

My family is the essence of me. They complete the person I am. They are always there in times of need, sharing each and every happy or sad moment! They are people you can both laugh and cry with and be your absolute self. They are the ones you turn to and lean on when the going gets tough and the ones you call to rejoice with when something fantastic happens!

This is my family…my EVERYTHING!!!!!

We have gone from a party of 5 to 15!!!

My beautiful sisters….best friends forever!

My gals….my backbone!

The party of 5 I’m blessed to have come from!

Our 7 beautiful offsprings!

My party of 5 who I could not exist without!

Trew’s Christmas Traditions #6….Christmas Day!

Posted on December 26, 2012 by natalietrew

6 weeks of red and green, Christmas trees, lights, shopping, wrapping, Santa visits, catch ups with family and friends and lots of baking and cooking and Christmas day is always over in a blink of an eye, but what a great day it was!
It’s like anything, your wedding day, engagement party, 1st birthday parties, you put so much time and effort in for weeks leading up to the big event and before you know it your are onto planning the next event of your life!

This Year’s Christmas was as great as any. The kid’s were really awesome going to bed Christmas eve, after they left food out for Santa and his reindeers, they were out to it by 7.30! This allowed time for us to finish wrapping their gifts and setting up and playing Santa!

I love christmas morning and the priceless looks on our babies faces when they see that Santa has ate all his cookies and drank his milk and of course how thrilled they are that Santa delivered awesome presents! It’s my favourite part of christmas day…our party of 5 relishing in each other’s love and devotion!

Christmas morning at the Trew Household…mmmwah!

I love the comments from the kids when they open their presents…”oh mum look what I got!” “yes I got it!” “omg mum look…!” “yay mummy!” “dad we can play this together now!” Paper flying around everywhere, ripping and tearing!

Christmas morning….

Love my new sun lounge chair;)

Once we enjoy our time together it’s go go go from then on in! Traditionally we always have breakfast at my in-laws and then lunch at my parents house. This year we had breakfast at our house with my in-laws and then lunch at my sister’s house which was easier for my nana. It really was an awesome day full of eating, laughing, giving and receiving!

Opening presents with family:)

Love family photos:

Food…there certainly was enough of it!! So much so that boxing day is always round 2 and left overs always taste so much better:)

I roasted the lamb, but most importantly made quite a few sweet treats: chocolate balls, cheese cake, red velvet cupcakes, jam drops and chocolate cookies and I made my first Christmas cake that was a vanilla sponge with butter cream icing!

Once we filled ourselves up and enjoyed nana and grandad’s company, we all hauled ourselves over to mum and dad’s where we swam all afternoon! What glorious weather we had:)

After starting our day at 5.30, we arrived home just before 9pm and fell into bed! It was a massive day but always filled with beautiful memories that will be cherished forever! We hope you had a wonderful Christmas and were spoilt with love and laugher like we were!

Merry Christmas from my family to yours:)…xoxoxo!

Trew’s Christmas Traditions #4….Christmas Card Photo!

Posted on December 21, 2012 by natalietrew

To Christmas card or not?

I remember back before I moved out of home, getting excited each day when the postman came. We use to guess how many cards would be in the mail! Mum would sit for a couple of nights writing out her Christmas cards and we would do the same for our friends at school. Christmas cards are really starting to become the thing of the past now though. Between email, texting and social forums, electronically really is the new way people are spreading their Christmas joy!

I’m a Christmas card person and I can’t see that changing anytime soon! Prior to having children I would write on a traditional christmas card, now I create a photo post card of the kids that I send out each year. Some years I’ve made my cards from scratch and other years I’ve just sent out the photo. Sometimes I do a little of both. But it’s the sentiment of the photo of my angels that I know people appreciate receiving!
Bailey and Sienna enjoy writing out Christmas cards now to their friends and I endeavour to keep this tradition going with them!

Although it requires some preparation and time to get my Christmas photo and then address 50 plus envelopes to post, I will always make time for this Christmas tradition that I love doing! The following are some of the photos I’ve used in the past….

Our very first photo I sent out in 2006:)

Our first photo with two children back in 2008:)

This is the photo I used the year we were in America for Christmas of 2009!

I love 2010’s photo of Sienna:)

Our first photo with three babies…2011!

This year’s photo…which I absolutely adore!

Like the yearly photo with Santa, our Christmas card photos are a great memory of our party of 5 in progression!

Merry Christmas to all my followers…may 2013 be filled with lots of luck, good health and plenty of love and laughter…xoxoxo!

Ps – a scratchie is up for grabs if you can locate our 2007 Christmas card photo because I can’t find it anywhere!

And the winner is one of my best friends from primary school….Natasha Keerie…thanks Tash:)

2007 Christmas card photo of my adorable little man:)

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