Nothing like the smell of sour milk in the morning to get your gag reflexes going...

Lately Archie has been drinking out of a proper cup. No spill proof lid, no straws, just a proper, big boy cup. He still hasn't accepted the rule that you don't walk around with your cup. Hasn't grasped the concept that no lid = spillage. This has led to quite a few sticky messes of late. Thank goodness for floorboards. So obviously it's not his skill and prowess that has prompted this promotion to big boy cups. It's the lack of an alternative. You see, all 3000 sippy cups, drink bottles, etc have mysteriously disappeared from our house. I've searched high and low and come up empty. So big boy cups it has been. Until this morning. While sipping my tea and nibbling my crumpets this morning after rushing the 4 bigger kids off to school, I was interrupted by a sweet little voice. "Mum, mum, 'mere" (Archie speak for come here) I followed him up to my room and he pointed to the end of my bed and said "mook" (Archie speak for milk). I very cautiously peered over the head of my bed and sure enough, there was his *stash* of sippy cups and drink bottles. One of them was even half full of rancid, sour milk. Yum. Now my bed is one of those big, solid, heavy wooden jobs, one that takes at least 2 strong men to move, not one short, stout, strong yet pregnant woman. So I grabbed a broom and dragged out what I could, including the hideously gluggy bottle of sour milk, which Archie immediately tried to snatch out of my hand. Of course no other cup or bottle would do, it had to be the one half full of disgustingly off milk! I tried throwing it in the bin, only to have Archie trying to dive in after it! So into the laundry I went and off came the lid. Oh the smell!! There are no words sufficiently descriptive enough to describe it. Of course this got my gag reflexes going and it was all I could do to keep down what little breakfast I had managed. There was no way my child was drinking from this contaminated bottle ever again!
After much persuasion (and a fair amount of bribery) he finally settled on a big boy cup once again. Predictably, the juice ended up all over my lounge room floor, mixed nicely with the muffin used as enticement to drink from said cup. Needless to say we are off on a shopping expedition this afternoon to restock the house with sippy cups and drink bottles. And this time I'll know where to look when they start mysteriously disappearing again!

This shall be my first foray into the blogging world. As a blogger that is. I am an avid blog follower already. It's quite daunting actually, taking this step. I've considered starting a blog for a while now, but having read so many blogs by so many very talented writers, I was more than a little apprehensive about starting my own. My insecurities shining through in the first paragraph. Awesome.
Still, I guess this should be an introductory blog. But how to begin introducing myself? How do I hope to convey who I am to the world when I barely have a clue myself? First and foremost, I am a mother. I do loathe being defined and labeled as *just a mother* but in all honesty motherhood is what most defines me. I revel in my role as mum to my adorably exhausting children. I honestly don't know who or where I would be without them. Isn't that the case for all of us though?
I have 5 children, each one incredibly unique and challenging in their own way. And number 6 is due later in the year. That's a secret btw. Only a very select few people in the real world are privy to that awesome news. Even though I'm now 19 weeks along. Most people don't wait this long to share the news of their impending arrival. But most people aren't adding another child to an already large, somewhat dysfunctional family. And most people aren't dreading the reactions they know they'll receive once the cat is finally out of the bag. So yes, for now it remains a secret. Thankfully I am a rather larger lady (Ha! Never thought I'd say THAT sentence!) and all evidence of said secret is still sheltered from the world.
So as well as being a mother (and a self confessed baby addict lunatic) I am also a partner. I don't really like the term *partner*. It implies a union, or partnership that I don't really feel is applicable in my situation. A situation which I sincerely wish was unique but one which I am almost certain is far too common.
How much honesty is required in a first blog? Brutal, blatant honesty? Or simple shades of truth? Let's try for a little in between and admit that I am not overly content in my relationship with my *partner*. Have not been for some time in fact, but that's a story for another day, another blog. Suffice to say that we co-exist as painlessly as possible. Hardly romantic bliss but such is life. For now at least.
It's hard to say what road I want to take with this blog. I'm torn between being completely, unashamedly open and honest or keeping it light and sweet and sharing only the happy, joyful parts of myself and my life. It's so hard editing out the not so great parts of life though, so time consuming and exhausting. Time will tell I guess, where this blog will lead me and what path it shall take. If you've gotten lost along the way on my ramble I'm not suprised. I find it difficult to follow my own train of thought sometimes myself. But i shall persevere and perhaps some sense will be made yet?!