Delicious, decorate, clothes and kittens

Mon 28 Nov: On the ladies camp they made this delicious roast veg meal. I got some instructions and gave it a try myself today. I didn't include potatoes (as Ruth needs to stay off nightshades due to her inflammation). I used orange kumara, carrots, parsnips, beetroot, and red onion - drizziled with coconut oil and cracked sea salt. Then some friend up bacon to top it off. I was so pleased I had managed to create teh wonderful tastes I had enjoyed on camp.
It has become a favourite for a few of us (and specifically Ruth - which I am pleased about). I am so pleased that we are all doing so much better now that we don't seem to be having major reactions to all these lovely veggies.
Tuesday 29 Nov: I entered a competition for some free Hemp oil with this photo. Asher continues to enjoy her daily "juice" which is topped with Hemp oil. She has had this since she started AEDs way back before she was 1, so she is so used to the taste. We are sure that it helps counter some of the behavioural side effects of the drugs she is on - and hopefully it will continue to help her with the new drug she starts on the 1st December (behavioural problems being the most common side effect).
Asher had a doctor's appointment this afternoon. We got her script for the new AED as well as discussing her possibly starting the Ketogenic diet in the new year. You can read more about that all in my detailed post here. She had some blood tests done so they have a base line before starting the diet.
She started crying with just being in the room and being held still. I asked if they had a bubble machine and she said "we can blow bubbles" and they had an extra nurse come in to help. The bubbles calmed her down immediately and there was no more crying. It went so well. The nurse even told me to always make sure I ask for bubbles.
Wed 30 Nov: So cute the way Little Miss has her front paw over the one kitten, like she is hugging it. And it's snuggling up against her neck.
Champion Centre this morning. Asher just loves the "I have a teddy bear" song where it goes on your head. She sings it without fail with Ali every week.
Asher got a bit stressed in the play room today, so Emma got the table tennis balls out and she posted them down this long tube. So therapeutic for her.
In the evening I headed back into town with a group of ladies from Parent 2 Parent for a Craft night. I chose to make this star and wreath. It was fun doing something crafty (especially as it was free), but it was also such a blessing to get time to chat to other mothers. Specifically the one mother I met who started her daughter on a ketogenic diet about 3 years ago. There was no funding then, so she did an easier version on her own. Her daughter has been seizure free for 2 years now. So it was great getting to chat.
Thursday 1 Dec: Hezekiah made this fish at school. A fun way to take a photo of it. :-)
Ruth's class has been doing science experiments this term. Today they had them all on display so I headed up to have a look. The class was empty when I arrived (they were swimming) so I got to read a few of them.

And then Brendon got home a bit early so that he could also go up and have a look, and Rachel went with him. He got a photo of Ruth at hers.

Off to ballet this afternoon. The girls are using their school dresses for the opening scene. They had fun trying on "Michael's" top hat and glasses. Hannah does like posing for photos. :-)
Fri 2 Dec: On Thursday morning Rachel goes to work really early and then as soon as the girls get home from school, we head off to dancing. So there is no time for a monthly children's photo. It worked well having it on Friday morning through, as they had another mufti day at school.

The theme was "high vis" (visibility) and so the girls could wear nice bright dresses that Ruth had. I suggested Hezekiah wear his suit that Rachel had bought for him. It was a cooler day (so he was comfortable) and he does love his suit. With everyone in bright colours, he was definitely highly visible. :-) And the girls in his class loved his suit.
Before going to the hospital on Tuesday afternoon, I picked up this old bookshelf (for just $4). It had a horrible old wallpaper on the back, so this morning I stripped that all off and re-did it. They had used a thick ugly glue, so it was a big job to scrape it all off.
Rachel had the whole of November focused on writing a novel (which she managed) so I didn't ask her to help with Asher or cooking much through the month. So today was her turn to watch Asher and I could just focus on getting the bookshelf done. I wanted it for the decoder and DVD player so that Asher doesn't have anything to climb on. It also works nicely to have all the DVDs that she watches all in one spot. I was impressed with the end result.

Little Miss has wanted to be in our room a lot (she started that a couple of weeks before the kittens were born - perhaps because of the earthquakes). So we have had the kittens in a box in there. She has started taking some of them up onto Asher's bed though. So we have to find her a more comfortable bed. We still have Shadow's comfy mattress - so we got that out for her which as worked well.

Our research indicated that you should wait between 10 and 14 days before handling the kittens. So as they will be 2 weeks tomorrow, I let the children come and have a little cuddle.
Ruth has especially been longing for this day the whole time.

Hannah does not like the flash of the camera.....