Life With Chelsea

I had to use pink for this post. Being a step-mum to a 5-year-old girl means seeing the world through plenty of pink. Chelsea is adjusting splendidly to her brand-new Australian surroundings. She has been here just over one month and there have been no major disasters to speak of. We're becoming a more close-knit family every day - we've already passed a nasty cold around to each other. We even sit together at the dinner table every day for meals. It's bloody amazing.


The best parts so far: going to fun places together (like the zoo), brushing her hair, singing her to sleep, picking her up from Kinder and being greeted with lots of cuddles, watching her pet Jackie and call her "my best-est friend in the whole wide world!", hearing her say "i love you, Bern-dette," admiring her outstanding artwork, and watching her play her little violin.


The least best parts: watching her turn her nose up and gag when she tries something new to eat (that I have just spent an hour trying to make), biting my tongue when she talks about her grandma, pop-o, or mom - the kind of trouble they got into or how they did things differently, how it takes 3 times as long to get ready to go anywhere, setting new boundaries and reinforcing them, having my schedule in shambles, and lacking the energy to keep up with her.


I am getting better at handling all the challenges, and I know how much better off she is now living with us. I hope that when she gets older she will understand why we brought her here. Ah, look at the time! I have to go pick her up from Kinder!