March was the month that COVID finally found us! Nevaeh testing positive and spent a week in her room unwell with us all at her beck and call, which was very hard for my very independent twelvie! With hand sanitizer, masks and a whole lot of Glen 20 no one else caught it! On the 7th day, all of our tests were negative and so while Nevaeh took a shower, I took the opportunity to disinfect her room, change her sheets and clean everything accumulated in her "Rona" basket (washing she acquired while she was infected!) I was very proud of our little family unit all working together to contain and prevent COVID from spreading.
Here is a screenshot of one of the nights where Nevaeh was cravinf time with us and so we decided to facetime through snapchat to spend time trying to make her laugh.
As you can see from her facial expression, she was really impressed.. Not!
This next photo is the moment when she could finally got her hug after her COVID experience. This was so needed by both of us and something Nevaeh craved while isolating in her room alone.
Much to our surprise, I received a call on the 10th from my nieces and nephew's worker asking if we'd be able to have the Hiram and Justine in urgent care. That they couldn't give me details, but that it'd be after school that Thursday afternoon. Of course I said yes, but considering the fact that Hiram hadn't reached out to speak to me in the two years he had been with his recent carer, I suggested that he stay with a friend of his just up the road from us.
And so, that afternoon, I picked up Justine, with no knowledge of why and let her know that she'd be staying with us for a while and so has began the journey of becoming a full time Aunty again..
Here is a photo of my 10yo niece Justine peacefully sleeping with our cat Altius before I had to get her up for school one morning.
After settling Justine back into our home, outlining our family rules and routine and ensuring she had connection with her siblings the first weekend she was with us we decided to enjoy a beach day out at werribee the following weekend while Nevaeh spent a few hours with her new high school friends at AquaPulse (an indoor pool) in Werribee.
The 17th was a hard day for me as it was the first time my Dad's and my team played in the 2022 AFL season just as they always do, it was however nice to cheer for both teams with Justine pulling down the photo of my Dad from on top of Nevaehs chess of drawers. Here is a photo of our night..
Justine coming back into our care couldn't come at a worst time for our little fam-bam honestly, as at the time David had been out of work for over 3 weeks with chronic back pain and I had been out of work around a month as my new role in which I pitched was approved and I had to wait for them to outline and publish my position. And so with no income at all our bills have been accumulating and so we were relying on community and church organisations to get us through before Davids Mum helped us out.
Budgeting for lunches and dinners for 5 people for under $100 a week really had us being financially savvy and creative with new cheap, easy and fun meals such as homemade pizza night..
Also on the 17th I was offered my long awaited position back with Western Health Melton as their Community Health Service Liaison. I started back at work on the 21st..
A typical weekday of mine goes like this:
7.30am Wake up and wake kids up and do breakfast
8am Kids and I getting ready and lunchboxes being packed
8.20am Leave to take Nevaeh and Justine to school. Jie walks.
9.30am-2.45pm Working with community.
3pm Pick Justine up
3.30pm - 5pm Kids debrief about their day and then have freetime while I make work calls, send emails, deal with any school issues, get back to DHS and communicate with my nephews carer whom is new to caring for a child in care. Also take Justine to netball training and Nevaeh to her after school program during this time period once a week.
5.30pm-7pm Washing, dishes, showers, readers, cooking dinners before home and away.
7pm-8.30pm Cleaning of rooms, help with homework, family time, movie time or freetime to call friends or family, justine settles in bed quietly at 8.30pm.
9pm Justines lights out, clean the kitchen, I have a shower, clean common areas.
10pm-12am Catching up on reality shows, scrolling social media, playing games on my phone, bible study and D&M's with my partner before bed.
After busy days at work its always nice to hear of what the kids have been up to at school.. especially when there's something fun they've done like Justine doing the slime color run..
After struggling for a few weeks and surviving on next to nothing, it was nice to be able to afford a spontaneous family adventure (with thanks to Davids Mum) to Werribee after dinner the other night to our favorite Ice creamery.
As I'm getting used to juggling life as a partner, mother and aunty; my daughter is trying to navigate through all the up and downs of her first year of high school. So far we have had some high highs, and some low lows, but most of all, it's just nice to know that through it all my daughter has a supportive network of friends and teachers as well as her big brother to help her through the hard days. And even on my busiest day, my kids and their wellbeing will always be my priority.
But also, with all the changes in and around our home this month, there are some things that have not changed at all, such as the bond between my kids and my partner David. Sometimes it really is the small things, like these two playing cards as I clean the kitchen..
I'm all for giving credit where credit is due and so I'd like to mention the Kinship team at BADAC whom are involved with my niece and nephew. They provided us with petrol vouchers (as petrol prices rise to over $2 a litre here in Australia this March) food vouchers/hampers as well as two massive bags of clothes, shoes, toiletries and bedding for my niece whom came back into my care with next to nothing. Thank you!
I'd also like to thank Justine's teacher whom noticed Justine wearing the same tatty shorts and t-shirt everyday and bought her a pair of school pants. It was such a beautiful gesture for a teacher to notice a need with the days getting colder and with no money coming in (which she was unaware of) for us to get the things she needed. From the bottom of my heart, thank you!
I also approached the school for a new uniform for Justine and as of this week, Justine has a brand new uniform, bag, lunchbox, drink bottle and stationary. For all involved in helping us set Justine up in our home - Thank you!
Look at that smile!!
My proudest moment this month has been my son catching up on all of his school work as well as learning guitar. I love seeing my kids reaching their full potential and seeing them putting the effort into their future makes me so proud as a parent..
Finishing off our March, Justine face-timed with her big sister Jeanette tonight and gave her a tour of her room, showed her all of her new things and was excited to tell her that she will be changing Netball teams! This phone call was so precious and so needed for these two whom are missing each other so so much.
Hopefully Jeanette doesnt kill me for posting it.. I just wanted to showcase their love and bond for each other because at the end of the day, family is family no matter where you live!
Until next month,
Mel x
