butterfly

What a face! Eventually she told Cam to 'put it there'. Poor butterfly was most likely dying. We picked him up off the footpath and then afterwards he was still sitting on the leaf we left him on half an hour later. 

happy birthday miss two

To my dear and darling daughter on her second birthday,

We spent the morning of your birthday at Playcentre. Ada you found it hard to be the centre of attention with so many adults talking to you and so you clung to me. You enjoyed the cupcakes we had made and blowing out the candle. Most of all on your birthday you wanted to swing. Swinging is your number one activity over all others right now. When the sun came out you warmed up too, running and giggling with the other kids in the sprinkler. You love laughing with other kids!

Ada you love your sister so much. You no longer seem obsessed with your baby but are now obsessed with copying and being with Olive. You want each and every thing she touches. Sometimes we can convince you to give her a new toy in exchange. Even rarer still you give her a toy for no reason and allow her to play with it by herself. You roll on the floor and make baby noises with your sister. When we say well done Olive, you say "well done Ada"! When she cries you tell her, "it's OK Olive, it's OK".

I love all the different looks that come over your face. You have eyes of wonder. You have a mischievous grin. You have a silly scrunched up laugh. You have a fake laugh and a fake smile too. When we ask you to have a laugh you look something like this:

My dear, right now, you are a sensitive soul. There have been more tears in the past few months than in the rest of your life. For example you were deathly afraid of walking on the lino in the bathroom after you slipped there yesterday. You say 'cuddle mama' and 'cuddle daddy' more than any other phrase. You are slowly, slowly learning how to move on by yourself when you have been upset.

Some of the best times are when we dance and sing together. You have got some moves Ada! We kani kani, huri huri and peke peke. You can't quite jump yet, but you love to try. You sing little songs to yourself and love wheels on the bus and incy wincy spider best of all.


I love spending time with you Ada and hearing what you have to say. You say things like "I am being a rabbit boing boing" or "I like strawberries". You chatter more and more, about things that have already happened or are about to happen, so I can't always guess what the words are that you are saying. I love that you have ideas and thoughts unique to you and you have begun to express them.

Happy Birthday sweet girl. I love you.

the girls

My babies have become 'the girls', as in "you stay here with the girls" or "look at these photos of the girls". They are a pair now and always. I love watching them laugh together, this is happening more and more. This week Ada has begun sharing with/teasing Olive, different to the FULL TIME snatching. The balloon was a fun time, giggles all around! Thinking about the friendship that will grow is a wonderful pastime. Will 'the girls' be similar or different? I wonder if they will be sporty or arty or both? Will they always have the same friends or not? ...Such fun!...

love poem

My darling is a poet.

I tease Cam about previous loves and crushes but he came to me whole and healthy, so thanks for that, girls.

He wrote this before we even met!

Love Poem, Cameron Hockly

There is nothing timid or meandering about my love for you,
it does not head to the shop
for a bottle of milk and a newspaper
only to find itself in town,
browsing at umbrellas and suit jackets.
Although it does notice camellia trees,
the recently pruned climbing roses.

My love for you is not a walk in the park,
although we may, in love, walk in the park.
This love I have for you
is not off the cuff, or impromptu,
which is not to say that my love for you is rehearsal
and performance.

Nothing about it is calculated or expected,
it was not written in the sky
or the sandy fields by the beach,
if it was written anywhere,
it would be on the pathway
next to the pool,
between our bodies,
as we lie there, drying.
Dipping out fingers in the water
and leaving wet notes for each other.
Chlorine in our hair.
Skin baking on the concrete.
Almost warm enough to get back in.

I (we) am (are) lucky to be loved by a man who loves like this. 

haere mai cutie pie

We planned a small gathering (already small and then it clashed with a few weddings) for Ada's second birthday. I managed to get her singing on video rather than asking to look at herself on video so I did a crazily haphazard job of editing it (yay I have finally tried out iMovie on my computer!). Here it is.

"Haere Mai Cutie-Pie,
Haere Mai Cutie-Pie,
Haere Mai.
Come my party,
please."

The original song is goes "Haere Mai ki te whariki", Ada only ever sings the cutie pie version. You have to admit it's pretty cute.