Goodbye Lizzie Loo

Oh sob. Lizzie Loo's gone. But wow - it was amazing to have her. Such brilliant timing. Just when Tone and I were running out of energy - she swooped in like Mary Poppins and lifted us all up again. And she spent soooo much time with the kids so Tone and I could catch up on work. The girls really needed that attention - and Lizzie Loo was incredible - face painting and teaching Tara to swallow capsules, baby chinos and um...pink champagne (with LOTS of orange juice)! When she left yesterday, Tara packed her new pink billabong bag (from the Coopers, thank you!) full with clothes and medicine so she could go with Lizzie back to London. We told her she had to stay to get her pretend leg, but she wasn't worried. "Just post it to me," she said. Luckily when they got to the airport, Tone realised Tara didn't have her passport so she couldn't leave! Whew!

Tara's developed some party tricks - like asking Lizzie Loo to say hello to Leggie Loo - and then flapping her stump up and down to say hello. When she's really excited - which is a LOT lately - she flaps her stump so fast, she's like a dog wagging its tail. The scab on her scar is unfortunately still there, so we still can't start the process of shaping her stump for the prosthetic. But we're having a good time in between. It's amazing how good these set backs have been. I don't think we would've coped nearly as well with Tara's op if it had been when we first thought it would be back in January. We were so not ready for it then, in retrospect. So now we've been directed to soak Tara's stump in the bath as much as possible to help soften the scab. It's a very strong sensation for Tara - that feeling of the water on her skin. And she can't understand why her stump feels so heavy in the bath, compared to her other leg which is longer...and unfortunately nor can we (so if anybody knows the scientific answer - please yell).

Tomorrow it'll be a month since Tara's op - I had this vision that she'd be like JFK when he was a kid - bedridden and immersed in books - with so many successful people (even Carly Simon) you discover that they were stuck in bed for ages as children. But thanks to DSs, DVDs, laptops and a kid who REFUSES to be bedridden - Tara hasn't quite read as much as JFK...and in fact has probably been the most active of all of us - rushing around like a cheetah on 3 limbs, or hopping on one leg...even jumping on the trampoline...

She's been a little angel - lots of loving (helped by having her Lizzie Loo here). Actually - one of the moms at school told me how her daughter was so happy because Tara had told her that everyone has guardian angels looking out for them. And it was so poignant the other day -  we met up for coffee with a friend who recently lost his brother, and Tara curled up snugly in his lap the entire time we were together, occasionally stroking his shirt. We all thought maybe she was cold and just loving the comfort of C hugging her. But afterwards she told me she was trying to pour all her love into him to help him feel better.

The rest of the holidays were fab - lots of social visits and play dates - and first day back at school was so good that the teacher had to have a word with the class to stop giving Tara so much attention! Cassie was voted Form Captain of her class (wow! well done!) and gorgeous little Jadie made it into the coveted Top 20 in the cross country race (amazing!)! It's so funny though. You do what you can to try and give everyone attention...but still it's never enough. Cas wrote Tone and I each a note on the paper tablecloth at Lemongrass (the local Thai restaurant), begging for a day alone with each of us. So we've gotta work on that one even harder! (And be very grateful that at least they wanna spend time with us!)

Lizzie threw the girls an early birthday party and gave them these fab wigs (below) that they've barely taken off!  Tone and I are both suffering such mental traffic jams that today I was arranging a playdate for the twins for next Saturday...and totally forgot it would be their birthday! Argh! Great mom! We were talking about it at school - how we adults have so much on our minds that only gets processed while we (try to) sleep or in conversation - whereas with kids (particularly girls) they role play the new stuff they're learning and process it in a simple, fun way. Like on Sunday at the Patons the girls turned Bella's room into a hospital ward - and they used the office swivel chairs as pretend wheelchairs to get around. And a couple of parents have mentioned that their daughters have been doing the same with their friends - playing hospitals and taking turns being Tara. (When Tara plays she pretends she's someone else who's had a wildly dramatic accident.)

So we're off to Broken Head tomorrow - just south of Byron Bay - to relax, rewind and spend a day chilling with the girls and their cousins who are camping down there. It's a big day for Australia - Anzac Day - to honour and remember our soldiers who sacrificed their lives in World War I. Thank you! We're loving our lives - the freedom - and it wouldn't be like this without brave men (and young teenagers, Cassie informed me today) like that.