4my11kids.com

Family and Business

It’s always been important to me to practice what I preach with my children and so last year I took the leap and finished my 9-5 job with that ever secure weekly pay packet.

Initially it was hard but I knew in my heart that if I wanted to live the life I love, I would need to make some sacrifices, take some risks and jump in with both eyes wide open!

Its been 6 months since that time and I havent regretted one single day, of giving up the daily dread of working for someone else, day in day out.

Today I work for what I feel is my worth, and if I dont work, I dont get paid, its as simple as that! So the past months have taught me to be creative in not only my thinking but also in the use of my many talents, some of which I did not know I had!

I now spend more time with my family

I had so many goals when I left work, but my focus was wrong, I was concentrating on earning the dollars instead of doing the things I love for work. Along the way i’ve somehow become that little bit more closer to what is my perfection in life. I did alot of soul searching, reassessing my current lifestyle and that of my families and sat down to really ponder the benefits of everything I had been doing and where I wanted to go.

As each day passes and my children see that I am living the life I love, they in turn want to take those same steps. There is no greater lesson that you can provide your children then to show them, they are very much in tune to what it is you do and so how better to show them how to live the life they love then to yourself do that exactly!

My older children and I decided last night that we would go into our own business venture and it brings joy to my heart to see their ideas materialising into something that gives them drive and motivation. Im happy to take a back seat in that venture, helping to grow and nurture the idea but they will be the driving force to ensure their efforts come to fruition. So today ive now become a business planner, administrator and Mother of 11.

I cant help but be proud of the startings of what my children see as a future plan for themselves and their younger siblings! So watch this space to watch their dream unfold!

Waiting for my regular TV appearance

As for me, ive got 101 ideas that need to be put into action and thankfully I have family that share some of my vision and are great sounding boards for those 2am, wake up out of my sleep, I have a great idea, moments. Its gratifying to have a wealth of support within my immediate family and I know it can only add to the life lessons that I am trying to impart to my children.

Otherwise, everyone still has their individual roles in our family that help the machine to tick over daily. The younger ones are getting older and starting to take on more household responsibilities and the older children are starting their own journeys into adult hood … somewhat still tied to the home base, but for now im happy to have it that way … im not sure how I would cope with the empty nest syndrome, but im sure that its many many years away, especially since I have 11 children and a grandson to keep my home full of the ups and downs of life!

Family gives great support and inspiration

Trying to get some work done but …

I’ve caught the bidrival bug!!

Today started off, as part of our households new routine … kids off to school, clean up, get the babies ready for their PORSE Educator, Toni and then off to my computer to do some solid work.

It so happens that today my eldest son is also looking for a PS3 to buy so what does one do when they have access to a comp … check out the auctions!! We started with Trademe, priced compared with Dick Smith and back to Trademe again, only to find a strange little advert for a PS3 console … I’ve got this TV from Bidrivals for a good deal, that’s why I’m happy to sell it. It comes with full warranty and purchase invoice from Bidrivals. … I thought to myself, hmmm, its not listed as a TV but what the heck is Bidrivals. A quick google search and badaboom badabang … the world of Bidrivals opened up to me *giggles*

Since opening that website my son and I have sat here watching auctions close for a song and there happens to be a PS3 there that would be right up our alley, and if it sells for as little as the XBox Elite, $40.76, then who am I to whinge!! So here I sit, supposedly working but really with one eye constantly peeking at the PS3 that is slowly rising in price. I think its time to step away from the computer so that I can do some real work and stop spending so much of my time being pleasantly, on the verge of obsessively distracted by Bidrivals!!

On another note, our 3 under 5 are blissfully running around in the backyard, drawing pictures to their hearts content and gobbling up every last book that is being read to them by our new “Nanny” … Toni. Trying to juggle work and childcare committments was becoming slightly draining and so we did what was best for all concerned. We went to the Porse Network and employed an In-Home Educator. Day 1 passed without issue and I got so much work done yesterday I was almost taken aback. So for a breather of 5 hours a day, I for one can’t complain. I can still hear the laughter of my children as I work but there are no stop/start distractions to my workflow. I have to admit … I love my life just that little bit more for employing Toni to do what she has such a great flare for and in addition, she gets to work on her own career and personal aspirations through working with Porse. Its a win win situation!!

But for now it looks like i’ll take a morning tea break and maybe, just maybe, take another peek at that PS3 auction before I complete my next task ;P

The New Year is in Full Swing!

Its the first day in March and its taken me a while to get into the swing of things in terms of my blog, but believe me, we’ve had a full on year in the first 3 months.

First and foremost, we our daughter Sharquille is going to be having a baby. It wasnt something that we had planned for quite so early, but still, our first grandchild is on his way and so we are looking forward to another chapter in our lives.

I had to have a giggle after the initial shock, but here I was thinking that our children are getting older and will soon be leaving home. Not quite the case here. We still have all our children at home and in the next month or so we will also have a new grandchild!!

We also have a new boarder, Toni, Leo’s girlfriend, moved in about a month ago and so I feel its time for our family to start looking for a new place to live … something alot bigger then what we have now. If you know of anywhere that would be ideal for our family, send us an email at roseanne@4my11kids.com.

Our 3rd eldest son HoRoymana started High School this year, and to date I am very impressed with his new College. HoRoymana didnt pick the same high school as his older brothers, much to their disappointment but im sure his Dad was beaming with pride since the first of his 3 sons had decided to go to his old High School.

The school camps are well under way, Fanatanu Ieremia just returned last week from a week of fun, outdoor activities and adventures, and what stories he had to tell. We’re quite blessed in New Zealand with the range of activities our children are able to participate in during their school camps. Next up is Kaneihana, with a slight difference in her school camp. Its a week long, but they wont be staying at any camp location, they will infact be spending a week of activities, fun and adventure in good old Windy Welly. Shes excited about all the weeks upcoming events and its a great way of her getting to visit places in and around Wellington for some fun and new experiences. HoRoymana will finish out the camps this year with his Year 9 Camp, and is looking forward to spending some quality time with his friends from school for a 3 day adventure.

As for our teens … well, Isiah has gone from Youth Worker to his first year in Uni. We both strongly believe in the skip year for our children, to experience life a little before committing to University, so its good to see Isiah start off his University years. Hes had alot of great and positive support from his employers, Challenge 2000, and what leaps and bounds they have taken him through over the past 6 months. Isiah has been exposed to so many different lifestyles, situations and experiences over this time that Challenge 2000 has played a huge part in helping develop the man that he is becoming.

Sharquille, 16 and pregnant has also recommitted to study and is completing her High School education at He Huarahi Tamariki, an alternative school for young mothers and mothers to be, and she has found a new zest for learning and is loving. The daily reports I get from my daughter are real gems, I love that she has found that dedication to learning that she once lost. Shes also making leaps and bounds in preparation for her baby in April, and we’re all excited about her next phase in life … being a Mother. I’ll definitely be there to support her, but she knows well that ive had my family and this is her child, so she will be raising her baby, with our support and help. No late nights and early morning wake up feeds for me, thats a responsibility that Sharquille is going to have to cope with as a new Mother .. alongwith all the ups and downs that come with it. But we’ll all be there to help when the times get tough and to share our love with the new edition. Im very excited!!

Leo has finally found something that he loves to do as a Labourer. He had initially started working for Ieremia and I in our home business but his love of the outdoors and physical work, to compliment his Rugby League training, led him to labouring and he loves it. My Dad was a Carpenter and I had not seen any of my children going into this trade, but it looks like Leo may follow in the footsteps of his Grandfather, and a proud Grandfather at that! Part time he’s still helping out with the home business but Labouring ensures he comes home to a shower, dinner and then out for the night!

The little ones are all getting much bigger. Danii Malu’aute and Paese Sivai are starting to develop their own dress sense and the arguments over clothing and accessories have begun!

Miah Caroline will be starting school in April, so she is enjoying her last weeks at Kindergarten before she joins the school “walking” bus to primary school, with her 2 older sisters and brother.

As for Troy and Tiana, life is grand, they are the golden children of our family. I know that we have endulged them alot more then any of our other children, purely for the fact that they are the youngest, but for me, I do this in the knowledge that these are the last pitter patters and terrible 2 stomps that I will experience with any of my children. Each day is a new experience for us both and although the lack of an age gap between them can sometimes be extremely trying, my patience perseveres and the day ends with a sense of “that was a great day” feeling.

My family is in the full swing of the new year, all working towards our own goals for a happy, great and successful 2010.

Welcome to another weekend

I spent a large part of today being in awe of a family in Cambridge, New Zealand that have decided to give their $1 million home away, in order to pursue their passions. Thats a huge leap of faith. You can read all about the Smith family here.

I figure that i’ll probably buy 1 ticket a week, until the big draw is made. That way I get to use the pics for my blog and win a beautiful home overlooking Lake Karapiro. I was sold after watching Close Up last night. What caught my ear was Lake Karapiro, up pricked my ears, especially since my younger teens involved being a hard core rower – single skulling, doubles, fours and eights … I loved it all, so why wouldnt I want to live overlooking that famous piece of rowing history!!

Heres to a family move to Cambridge in the new year!!

On another note, Ieremia started a part time position today. He really is a working mans man. When I started freelance writing I had also wanted to play a bigger role in my children’s lives, especially since I had worked most of their lives. What I did not realise was that playing a bigger role was going to be challenging with their “tried and true” Dad still being at home. The kids automatically approach their Dad first for everything and usually bypass me in favour of their Dad. Its something that I have grown used to, and I have absolutely no animosity towards Ieremia or the kids because of this behaviour but I think that with Ieremia returning to work, even if it is part time, will provide a great opportunity for me to play an increasingly active part in our children’s lives. The bonus of it all is that Ieremia starts at 6am and finishes at 10.30am, so we barely even get to miss him when he arrives back home!

Ieremia will now have to bypass the piggy tales for his day job

As for everybody else, the roll call for today is a little like this …
Isiah will be missing in action for the next week while he goes on Retreat with his workplace. Leo is working. Sharquille is working. HoRoymana is doing the paper-run with Kaneihana. Fanatanu Ieremia just finished his game of Water Polo. Sivai, Danii and Caroline have returned from their cheerleading role at the Water Polo game. Troy is still glued to the television, watching his 100th re-run of Shrek, yes we will need to address that television time soon for our boy. And lastly Tiana is blending in wherever she fits best. A few minutes ago it was on my desk, trying to lie on my keyboard.

Bring on tomorrow, my family is going to have a family day out tomorrow. Hopefully the weather clears up beacuse we’re hoping to take the kids swimming and have a picnic to boot. Mum, Dad, my brother Patrick, his wife Agnes and their 8 children, my sister Caroline, her partner Danny and their 4 children, and hopefully my younger brother Tuna, his wife Natalie and, yeah, as you can see, they have a number of children to choose as their own for the day.

Until tomorrow … see you then.

Today was a good day

Today was a full day!!

The house was a buz this morning as we all got ready for work, school and for me a Work & Income appointment.

Its taken me almost 8 weeks to realise that I may be entitled to some accommodation support from Work & Income and so I filled out a generic form online, made an appointment through the contact centre and arrived on time at the service centre to see if I was infact eligible. I had found alot of information at their website, fairly user friendly and the online application is a great idea – Work and Income website!

After my appointment it was off to find a shirt for my 12 year old son’s leavers ball. Nothing too fancy, its a one off event and so I decided to check out our local St Vincent de Paul’s. We found a shirt that later on in the afternoon, after master 12’s approval we bought it, all for a bargain price of $5.00 and a really nice lilac coloured shirt too.

Leo, Tiana and Toni on their day out

We made our way back home, I had alot of work to catch up with. To date I still have a website to complete, an e-book to finish publishing / promoting and a few other pressing jobs that need to be completed. They’ll all be done, all in good time. I have no doubt about that!

Mr 17, Leo, took our baby girl Tiana with him, about town, and no doubt she was spoilt with sweets and food galore. They arrived home at around 3.30pm and Tiana was absolutely pooped, infact she had fallen asleep on Toni’s shoulder.

It was around that time that HoRoymana and I made our exit to pick up a pair of shoes and any other bits n pieces that were needed for his Leavers dinner.

Im a great bargain hunter so we picked up a really nice pair of dress shoes, suitable to my budget and HoRoymana’s taste and made our way back home in time to sort our gift-giving event and to get ready for HoRoymana’s big 6.30pm date.

Everyone waiting for their turn to pick their gift receiver

During the Christmas period our family celebrates our years achievements by buying a gift for an individual within our family.

Sharquille had bought Troy a new pair of shoes today and so we used that box to do our pickings. I put each person’s name on a piece of paper and put them into the box, whereby every child proceeded to select the individual they would buy for. We usually assign $10-20 as the maximum amount that each present is bought for, however, if anyone is able to contribute more we encourage them to put this towards a present that would benefit the entire family instead of their chosen person.

There was lots of laughter and although there is supposed to be some secrecy to the event, im fairly certain everyone knows who is their gift giver.

HoRoymana got ready for his Leavers dinner and I must admit I shed a bit of a tear, hes getting so big so fast, and before I know it he’ll be leaving home. I can imagine the flood of tears on that day.

The Leavers Ball man of the day - HoRoymana

My dashing young man was well dressed for the occassion. On his return we briefly discussed the event, he was fairly tired but did manage to keep his eyes open long enough to tell us about the delicious meal of chicken, pork, ham and rice, with a ice cream and chocolate sauce dessert that followed. I’m sure there was alot more food but my mouth is watering now so I wont torture myself anymore at this late hour!

Today was a good day … today was another great day in paradise!!

The end of the school year is near

Today was the junior/middle school athletics day at Sivai, Danii and Fanatanu’s school. We had gone to Fanatanu’s a few weeks ago, but today it was Danii and Sivai’s time to shine.

Both girls had fun, and Danii just got pipped at the finish line to gain a well deserved 2nd place.

Sivai usually isnt one for running but she gave a good effort today … dressed for the event, got her runners on and enjoyed the moment. Thats really what it all comes down to, having fun. Its always great to win but its the participating that counts.

Sivai getting ready to dash

The rest of the day has pretty much been a bit of a blur for me. I spent the rest of the morning enjoying the company of Leo’s girlfriend Toni and talking about the future and amongst other things, moving.

Its something that we have been considering for some time now, but its always been put to the backburner, something has always come up preventing us from packing up and leaving but I think the planets have finally aligned themselves correctly and I feel a move in the air.

About 7 years ago Ieremia and I had thought about the big move to Oz but because the distance was so great, we had to consider our older 5’s Dad and the impact being so far away from him would have on the big 5. Now that the big 5 are starting to find their own place in the big world, soon to be fleeing the paternal nest, I figure a move is on the cards.

My eldest 5

Isiah got back from almost a week in wine country, Martinborough. Hes been putting in some long hours recently. Quite possibly it has something to do with our gift giving celebration being right around the corner.

Me, Ieremia and our children celebrate Christmas differently, infact we dont celebrate the birth of Jesus at all, but what we do celebrate is on or around 30th December, we reflect on the year that has past. Before New Years arrives where new goals are set, we reflect as a family and inidividuals on the achievements that we have made in the year that is about to end. This is what our family does instead of the somewhat traditional Christmas with presents, Christmas Trees and the likes. I’ll save that post for a later date where I can be alot more thorough.

Its been another wonderful day in our little corner of the world, where theres never a dull moment in our household.

Bring on the summer weather …

Its a sure thing that Summer is in the air when our family changes to sandwiches and cold cuts for dinner.

Ieremia topped off the cold cuts with potato chips and pies. Our family seldom eats takeaways, so the pies were a welcome treat for the kids.

After dinner I contemplated the meaning of life over the next few weeks, while HoRoymana, Sivai and Ieremia hit the streets to deliver newspapers.

Since the beginning of this year our tweens had been harping to get part time jobs to earn a little more cash and to add to their savings and so we told them that if we could find a paper run, they’d be the first to know.

It took quite a while, 6 months of a while, before we were able to get a run. But before long Fanatanu Ieremia (9) and HoRoymana (12) were doing a local run, just down the road from our house, which took about 30 minutes. We figured that the paper run would encourage 2 things, exercise and a feeling of accomplishment through earning your own funds. It seems to have done the job in both areas and so now our girls are keen to join in with their brothers.

A few weeks ago we took on a couple more runs as motivation for Ieremia and I to exercise but our daughters Kaneihana (11) and Sivai (8) have somewhat taken a shine to doing this run. After going over the run, we felt safe to have our girls deliver to our own street and occassionally they team up with their older brother or Ieremia to complete the run. And me, well, I havent even attempted to try a run … so much for the incentive to exercise!!

I have lots more on my plate like ummm making up excuses to not exercise!!

A reality check is what I need, and if I reflect on this time last year I was training to eventually do a triathlon. That is the complete truth. I lost around 20kg and decided that I would push myself even more by aiming for a triathlon but somehow I lost my way and I have gained almost every single one of those lost kilos. Now that Summer has come im dusting off my bicycle again and clearing the cobwebs from my sandshoes and i’ll see what comes of it.

But for now ive got my sights set on more change in my life and new experiences for our children, to take them out of their comfort zones once again. I welcome change and its something I hope to instil in my children.

Monday, Monday …

Its been a late night for us all tonight, we didnt get to have dinner till around 8.45pm and so the tweens are just finishing off their chores now.

The day started fairly early but drawn to a morning of movie watching, Ieremia and I didnt start “working” till after 1 today.

We watched a movie with Leo called “August Moon”. I loved the movie, thought it had a not so common storie line, but it did challenge the imagination. A bit of a let down in terms of the ending, but a great movie nonetheless.

Its my big sisters birthday today, as Mia put it, shes celebrating the 13th year of her 30th birthday. I spoke to her today while she was at the school picnic for Danny boy. Yes, there is a Danii girl and Danny boy in our family, both named after my sisters other half. Danii girl is older and her name is spelt as such because of DanII, Dan number 2, a unique twist on her name but cleverly put together by her Papa. I remember when my sister and I were younger, in particular her first pyjama party. We were bought up in Dunedin and attended a small Catholic school, but that year my sister had a pyjama party with a handful of her friends. I think I may have been more excited then she was about the whole event. It was a great night of junk food, giggling and im sure alot more, as I got sent to bed early, but it is my most memorable recollection of a birthday that my sister had, I believe it was her 13th birthday. She said she was going to pop round tonight and to bake her a cake, but at 10.06pm, I have the feeling their may not be a visit tonight, but if she should pop up, i’ll whip up a chocolate self saucing pudding to celebrate her birthday.

Celebrating Caroline's birthday back in the day

Ieremia’s just walked in the door to a grizzly Troy, whose routine is slightly askew, well, lets say its ALOT askew. The thing with routines is that if they’re broken you have to put the effort into resetting them. Troys bedtime routine has been off for over a week now but neither Ieremia or I have put the effort into resetting it. He now goes to sleep around the same time as us and then wakes at around 11am in the morning. I think that at this point what counts is that he gets his 10-12 hours sleep, the only issue is that hes now cutting into mine and Ieremia’s quality time. Im sure that if this gets to be a major issue that we’ll put him quick smart back into his normal routine. And thats part of the beauty of having 11 children, its like 2nd nature to know, do or reinforce things without too much drama!!

As you can see ... my sister turned up (=