Do you love adventure ? I do. And motherhood is that, it also keeps me grounded. Following on from friendship and the girls pictured together in the first blog, we have all shared motherhood from the beginning. The early conversations of when would be a good time to start a family, the fun part of trying to fall pregnant, plus the “I wonder what it’s going to be, a boy or a girl?” guessing games. At the end of the day we all just wanted to have happy, healthy children and we were blessed with that.

I first met Rhonda when I was pregnant with Anton and my stomach was huge, people were scared when I came into their shops, I looked like I was about to have the baby then and there and I’d say “no don’t worry, still 4 weeks to go” and they would be like, “umm not sure about that, you won’t last that long” It turned out Anton was in no rush to enter the world and after 10 days of being over the due date, I was induced to speed up the process.

Kerrie on the other hand, had her second baby so quickly, nearly on my kitchen floor. It was a Friday night and she was due that day, due dates are usually not that accurate. When she was leaving my place that Friday night, as I was waving goodbye to her and her daughter Candice, I could hear this little voice going, “Emma I think I wet my pants!” well that wasn’t it, her waters had broken on the road out the front of my place. So I had to jump into the drivers seat and rush her and Candice to the Women’s and Children’s Hospital. Her gorgeous son James, was born 1.5 hours later.

The funny part, was when I tried to call Kerrie’s husband Craig, to say what had happened, I had too many “Craig’s” in my phone and rang the wrong person. I had also indulged in a Friday night relaxant, so was happy when I got us all there to the birthing suite in one piece. This was an eye opener for me, I was still a long way off even thinking about having a baby and this experience may have even stalled my decision making on when is the best time to have kids. The answer, there is no best time, it happens when it’s meant to happen.

One of my closest girlfriends not in this photo had twins at 49, that’s a brave move, but they would be the most cherished and loved little people I know. No regrets in life, just go for it.

Lesley and mine, oldest babies are turning 21 this year, it’s been a journey raising our children to be the best they can be. We’ve done it as a collective group, hanging out together when they were newborns, doing dinners and parties at each others homes to try and have some adult time, till we were brave enough to venture further afield to go on family holidays together to Fiji, Thailand and Europe, skiing together, beach holidaying together, it worked because they were all at the same age and have grown close as we’ve moved through the stages together.

This week was a significant birthday for this one in our family, Sophia, she turned 18. To sit back and watch how she has developed and blossomed has been lovely. The best and the hardest job in our lifetime is parenthood and motherhood, the juggle, the struggle, the tears, the frustrations, the joy, but the rewards and special memories go without saying when you see them grow, be the best they can be and they shine their unique light.

Sophia and Anton have never really caused me any grief, if they tried to I just ignored it, so really it’s just been pure joy, I haven’t crowded their space, but I’ve watched out for them and allowed them to grow on their own and I hope I have shown guidance more in my actions rather than rules. As I choose to live my life on my terms and I want the same for them, just be who you want to be and say it that way.

Since they were both born, I’ve continued to travel. I was less than two weeks from my due date to give birth to Sophia, living in Stockholm I hopped on a plane to meet my father in London for the weekend. Sophia then came with me to London when she was 6 months old and slept on the floor in a little makeshift bed, made out of a sheepskin, blankets and cushions. Anton travelled to Sweden from Australia when he was 12 months old and by the time he was 18 months old, had done 3 trips to Europe. I’ve never tried to protect them too much, but I have failed in getting them to do any help around the house, they are bad at emptying the dishwasher, feeding the cat or taking out the rubbish, simple household tasks just aren’t on the list.

I’ve tried my best to have open conversations and the door to our home is always open to their friends during the good times and also the bad, we’ve all experienced a wide selection of both. But I am getting tired of Uber eats knocking on my front door at 1am with a torchlight, saying delivery for “so and so”. I haven’t followed any self-help books nor seeked counselling, I’ve just listened with both ears and looked them in the eye when I’ve been away for a while. I’ve listened to my heart and reflected on how I was bought up, this is the best I can offer.

I’m proud of who they are today and the potential to where they can possibly go, it’s the best gift to be a mother, to these beautiful people. They inspire me everyday to aim higher for the best life can offer for all of us. There is something about children which gives a sense of hope for the future. Motherhood has taught me patience and kindness.

I was thinking as I was wrapping up this post they wouldn’t be happy with me posting the photos of the 2 of them. Then I realised they don’t read my blog as they don’t want to be friends with me on social media, the thing is I’ve done everything they are doing, probably alot more and I survived. So I look forward to more of their and our stories unfolding in time.

Happy 18th Sophia and Happy 21st Anton.

See you somewhere beautiful in this amazing world we live in.

Mum, aka Emma