Best week ever

As the title suggests, Missy 9 has been having the best week ever. And it’s only Wednesday.

Although her birthday is next week (turning ten! How can it be?), we knew she wanted a present relating to animals. My fiance and I have been itching to get a second puppy when the right offer came along anyway, so we thought we’d get one that Missy 9 could call her very own.

We got this beautiful Staffy pup that you see in the photo above whilst Missy 9 was at school. All day we didn’t know what to call her! I told Mr 4 that we were planning to hide the puppy in Missy 9′s room and he wasn’t allowed to tell her about the puppy as it was to be a surprise.

‘But I have to tell her!’ he told me. Oh. Crap. So I decided to hide with the two little ones in her room so as not to have anybody let the cat (or dog) out of the bag. Meanwhile, my fearless fiance picked her up from school. As she got in the car, he thrust a book about dogs onto her lap, and casually said, ‘this is your birthday present, you’re getting it early’.

She raved about how great it was and she was excited, because she could learn more about how to look after Daisy. ‘Yep,’ was the stony reply from my man. She couldn’t believe her luck when she found this little Staffy pup in her bedroom. ‘Cute puppy,’ she said, and later she told me she thought either a), we were pup-sitting, or b) it was Daisy and she didn’t remember her being that small!

We told her it was her puppy, and she just froze in disbelief. She cuddled her, and cuddled her and kept saying she was worried it was a dream. She told me she’s worried when she wakes up tomorrow, it’ll all be untrue. Aw… She stressed and stressed about naming her, then came up with the best name for her pet: Daffodil.

Remember these daffodils? These were her favourite flowers, as they sat right outside of her bedroom window. She was really upset when some nasty person ripped them out and took them. So now she has her very own Daffodil that no-one can take away. Daffy the Staffy.

As if this weren’t enough excitement for her, she was also selected with one boy from our school to go to finals for a spelling bee (which was held yesterday). When we first arrived at this new school this year, we were surprised to be told by her teacher that she is spelling at the level of a fifteen year old. We knew she could spell well, but this was astounding! I don’t like to talk too much about her abilities on here, because I find if a parent has a smart child, they then become accused of being a liar and/or pushing their children too hard. But stuff it. I’m proud, and just for today, I’m shouting it from the rooftops!

We praised her, forgot all about it and got on with our little lives. So, yesterday at 7am, we packed up the three kids and high-tailed it to Wagga Wagga. How nerve-wracking for this mum was it? Oh my god. The session started with one girl vomitting all over her grandmother, and a bunch of terrified-looking school kids. I prayed that Missy 9 would at least not get eliminated on the first round, not because of competitive reasons, but simply because I didn’t want her to feel bad. It turns out I had little to worry about, as she found it fun, and made it to the second last round before being eliminated. I’m not sure, but I think there were 3-4 kids left by this stage? Missy 9 believes it was 3.

I was so proud of her, not just because she made it to this final, or that she did well, or that she put in such a big effort. I was most proud of her for her excellent sportsmanship even though she didn’t win, and for not snickering at the other kids making mistakes, unlike many of the parents in the audience. I’m so proud of her sweet nature, her sense of fun, and her gratitude in the tiniest things.

Tomorrow is her last day of term, and she’ll have the pleasure of handing out her birthday party invitations. This is the first party she’s had thrown for her since she was two! Most years, we couldn’t manage a party for her living in Sydney, as we paid the outrageous rent, fed and clothed our kids, then if we were lucky, paid some bills. We did plan a party for her when she was five, but she missed out. She was going through the ‘kindergarten know-it-all’ phase, and felt she didn’t need to listen to her idiot parents anymore. I warned her if she didn’t improve her attitude and behaviour that she wouldn’t have her party. She learned the hard way that we meant business! A year later, she told me that she had learned her lesson and didn’t act like that anymore because of it. So this party will be special. We’re so blessed to have moved out of the city and into a tiny country town where the cost of living is fantastic.

I’m so grateful also for my fiance being able to come along to her spelling bee, since two hours is far too long to expect two and four year old siblings to sit quietly! So while Missy 9 spelt her little heart out, Missy 2 and Mr 4 did this with Dad:

Now, you know around this blog I generally like to keep it real, but I can honestly and unashamedly state, that this was the perfect day. Perfect week, even.

I hope your week has been fantastic too.