SS blog challenge #32

Haven't done one of these for a while so I thought it was about time to try again. (Comments in italics are added by me...who else?)

This blog challenge is easy (for some maybe!) .. Enjoy.

Countdown List

10 Things I Want to Do Before I Die:

• See my children grown and happy
• Watch my grandchildren grow up
• Get back to a healthy weight
• Travel overseas by myself
• Scrap all my important photos
• Learn sign language
• Get over my fear of heights
• Make a positive difference in a child's life (as well as in my own children's lives)
• Visit the houses I grew up in (in England, Fiji, Singapore & Hawaii)
• Learn to play a musical instrument .. properly!

9 Places I Last Spent Money:

• Amazon.com
• Big W
• Woolworths
• Southern River Pharmacy
• Laker's Tavern
• Caltex
• Creative Memories
• Just Scrapbooks
• McDonald's

8 Sounds I Routinely Hear Around My House:

• "Muuuum" from any and all of the boys
• Wii/PS2/Playstation/computer game sounds
• Laughing
• Arguing
• The washing machine
• Music
• Doors slamming (no-one seems capable of closing one quietly around here!)
• Kettle boiling

7 Real Restaurants Where I Last Ate Out:

(Not sure what is meant by a 'real' restaurant but I'm assuming a place with table service, real tablecloths, metal cutlery and alcohol. In which case, I haven't eaten out since last year's work Christmas party!)

• Atrium @ Burswood (aforementioned Christmas party)
• The Pasta Bowl in Margaret River
• Nicholson's Bar & Grill
• and that's about it! Sad huh?
• .
• .
• .

6 Things I've Recently Scratched Off My To-Do List:

• Pay bills
• Order Becky Fleck Sketch book
• Tidy scrap area
• Bake some snacks for the boys
• Check boys' summer school uniform for sizing
• Make doctor's appointment for Alex

5 People I Don't Know (or haven't met in person) But Would Like to Hang Out With:

• Lita
• Cowtown Stacy
• Kaye
• The Pioneer Woman
• Frank from Postsecret

4 Songs That Make Me Happy (or feel more upbeat):

• Annie's song - John Denver
• I'm yours - Jason Mraz
• Can't touch this - Ricki-Lee Coulter
• These are a few of my favourite things - Julie Andrews

3 Things I Hate To Do:

• Clean toilets
• Look foolish
• Deal with arrogant people

2 Things I'm Really Good At:

• Being positive (for other people!)
• Retaining (useless) information

1 Bad Habit:

• Procrastination .. "Procrastinators of the world, unite .. tomorrow."

Pitter patter

The little feet are here ... along with the rest of her. I'm an aunty again!!

Welcome to Mackenzie Hope born this morning (8/10/08) at 8:18 weighing in at 8lb 10oz. That's a lot of eights and ones .. wonder what that means in numerology?

I haven't seen her yet .. stupid work .. but will hopefully be able to get there on the weekend. It's a cut lunch and waterbag job just to get to the hospital but I will go and see them before they get home!

Poor Mark missed her delivery .. she wasn't prepared to wait .. but luckily was due home today anyway, so now he has a couple of weeks to spend at home with them. The twins have taken to her really well and are always wanting 'cuddles with my baby', to the point of telling their grandparents to give her back for more cuddles.

I can't wait to have cuddles of my own. Just love, love, love that new baby smell!!

Excuses, excuses

The reason I've haven't been posting much this week is I've been ... reading. Yeah I know, what a surprise, yada yada yada, but this time I was so engrossed I forgot to get dinner ready, do washing or even acknowledge the boys' existence. Pass the 'neglectful mother' award this way .. it will look great next to the 'uninterested wife' award!

Anyway, I have been reading the Twilight series. I know it's supposed to be aimed at the teen girl demographic, just as Harry Potter was supposed to be aimed at the tween/teen market, but it's actually surprisingly good. Well, maybe not 'surprisingly' as it obviously wouldn't be such a success if it wasn't good; more that I wasn't expecting to be as drawn into the story as I was.

I usually have little or no trouble putting a book down and doing things I know need to be done but this time I was delegating jobs left, right and centre to be able to keep reading. If Peter hadn't been home, I probably would have stayed up all night (and home from work) just to finish them. It nearly killed me to have to go to work yesterday halfway through Breaking Dawn .. not literally of course, but I was thinking about it all day. I won't say anything about how it ends and what happens in the lead up to the end so I don't spoil it for those yet to read it, but I really enjoyed all four books.

I've also been reading some more of the Stephanie Plum books as well as the Maximum Ride series by James Patterson. The Maximum Ride series is another set aimed at the tween/teen market but I'm kind of at the stage where I don't want to have to think too hard about what I'm reading .. just want to go along for the ride. Ha ha, I crack myself up .. Maximum Ride, go along for the ride .. get it?


(crickets chirping in the silence)


Maybe you had to be there....

Quirks

I've been tagged by Lita!

Here are the rules:
Link the person who tagged you.
Tell about 6 quirks of yours.
Tag 6 fellow bloggers to do the same.
Leave a comment to let them know.

1. All the washing has to be folded a certain way. If anyone else folds it, I have to do it again my way. (I usually wait until they've gone home before I do it though!)
2. As soon as I get home from being out anywhere, I take off all my jewellery except for my necklace. I can't stand wearing rings while I'm doing household stuff and will even take them off to scrap.
3. I have to wash something new before I can use/wear it. Except scrapbook stuff of course!
4. When I eat things like jellybeans or M&Ms, I eat all the odd ones first leaving pairs of the same colours to eat last.
5. I have to lie on my left side to be able to fall asleep in bed.
6. When I make coffee, I have to put the milk in before the water. It tastes different if it's done the other way round.

I can't think of six people to tag so I'm only going to tag Debbie.

Random stuff ...

• I managed to achieve some of the things from the list in the previous post. Numbers 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 12 and 13 all got done or are almost finished. I know, I know .. don't count your chickens before they hatch .. but they are this close (insert finger and thumb placed about 1/2 cm apart) to being done.
• I really enjoyed number 12 (which for those who haven't read the previous post .. tsk, tsk .. was Debbie's visit). We both tried to do something creative, me with my albums and she with her cards, but we just weren't channelling very much mojo so we gave up and had cuppas and brownies (number 5 completed!) instead.
• Bradley was explaining some very in depth specifications on his Mechquest warrior and at the end, after understanding absolutely none of what he had just said, I said "whatever floats your boat darling." His instant reply was "not concrete; that just makes it sink."
• Andrew and I were having a (pretend) war of words when he said something rather cheeky. So I told him he was a cheeky little boy to which he replied "I can't help it. You made me with four cheeks. That's what makes me cheeky!"
• I'm trying to decide whether to look for another job as I'm really unhappy where I am. I like the job and most of the people but the change in management has really affected morale and everyone is just miserable all the time. I realise there's politics in every workplace and that some people will just never get along with others, but surely not every workplace is this bad. Then again, maybe it's just another stage .. a "this too will pass" situation. Here's hoping!
• I managed to start a layout about Brad losing his first tooth (four years ago!) so hopefully I will be sufficiently motivated to finish it tonight.
• Andrew and Brad both love reading the "i can has cheezburger" site. The study has been ringing with the sound of their laughter for the last 20 minutes. Such a glorious noise!
• All in all, a pretty good day. Oh and the brownies were really yummy! They'll be even better heated up with some ice cream for dessert. They were supposed to be for snacks during the week but they're nearly all gone already. Oh well, I can always make another batch when the kids have gone to bed .. and tomorrow morning .. and tomorrow afternoon ..

Things to do ..

..hopefully today. The joys of a long weekend!!

1. Get rid of headache
2. Find material and zips for Alex to make himself a new pencil case
3. Get Alex started on making pencil case (so he'll leave his brothers alone!)
4. Washing, washing and more washing
5. Bake some goodies to tide the kids over during the first week of the holidays
6. Help the kids start (and hopefully finish) the mini album for Pete
7. Hang new curtains in my room
8. Help Andrew finish sorting out his room (I'm sure a paper bomb exploded in there!)
9. Pay bills
10. Vacuum games room .. again. (I hate dark carpet .. it shows every speck of dust!)
11. Water potted plants
12. Enjoy visit from Debbie
13. Scrap .. if I have time!

I thought that if I wrote at least some of them down, I might have a chance of completing a few! Numbers 1, 5, 12 and 13 are taking priority right now so I'd better get started.

Sleeping Beauty

As much as I despair of ever getting through to this child, at least he still looks like an angel when he's asleep.

It's 3 o'clock on Sunday afternoon and he's asleep. Mum came over to take him to Bunnings for some rose spray (and to give me a break from the incessant boundary pushing) but he decided he was, in his words, "unusually tired" and didn't want to go. So Mum took the other two instead and Alex took himself off to bed. Must be going to grow again!

Can you hear that? Ssssshhh ... listen ... blissful silence! I'm off to get a cup of coffee and a good book while I can. Hope you're all enjoying your afternoon too.

Now I understand ..

.. why some mothers eat their young!! It's so they don't become teenagers!

I had a meeting at school this morning about Alex and some of his behaviours. The meeting itself went well and I came away feeling like we were all on the same page and would be able to work together to help Alex. I should have had Alex in the meeting too; maybe then he would be on the same page as the rest of us. The meeting finished at 9:30am and I was at work by 10am. I was back at the school at 12:30pm picking Alex up. And on the last day of term too.

He had decided he didn't want two boys talking to his friend so he told them to leave. When they didn't, he threatened them and when they still didn't leave, he thumped them both. In the ensuing scuffle, Alex fell over and hurt himself which he then had the nerve to complain about to his class teacher. The original phone call to come pick him up was that he had hurt himself and wanted to go home. The next phone call, while I was packing up at work to go get him, was that he had started a fight and "it would be in his best interests to not be on the school grounds for the rest of the day." After hurriedly explaining things to my boss I raced down to the school expecting to find an at least somewhat contrite child, but was greeted with a boy who has absolutely no appreciation of what he's putting everyone through.

I know we're supposedly not given more than we can handle, but I really wish someone had checked with me first. I'm at my wit's end as to what to do with him and don't know where else to turn. Ultimately I'm hoping this is just a stage he's going through and also that I've got enough patience to get through it and out the other side with both of us relatively intact. At the rate we're going, alive is all I dare hope for at the moment. He is on severe restriction of privileges (computer, TV, etc) and is grounded for the holidays. (Not that that makes much difference .. he doesn't have a social life outside of school!)

AAAAARRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!!

breathe in..1.2.3.4..breathe out..1.2.3.4..breathe in..1.2.3.4..breathe out..1.2.3.4......

If you've made it this far, thanks for reading and letting me vent. If not, oh well, you won't be reading this anyway!

Ch-ch-ch-changes

In case you hadn't noticed, I decided to change things just a little around here. Supposedly a change is as good as a holiday and as I'm in desperate need of a holiday, which I can't have at the moment, a change is as close as I'm going to get for the next couple of months. (Phew, how was that for a run-on sentence?)

Anyway, the new picture up the top is one I took in January in Broome. It's a sunset looking out over Cable Beach but could quite easily have been a sunrise over Roebuck Bay on the other side of the peninsula, if it hadn't been the wet season and if the clouds were soft and fluffy looking instead of being great big sheets of grey nothingness and if I could have been bothered to get out of bed that early, which I actually did all three mornings and still didn't manage to get a nice colourful sunrise photo! (note-to-self: must find those sunrise photos and stop these run-on sentences!!)

The previous header picture (the waterlilies) is one I took at Araluen Botanic Park in the Perth hills back in 2005, as was the one before that (the tulips with the waterfall).

I've decided I'm going to change the picture as often as the mood takes me so keep an eye out and let me know what you think.

I've noticed in the Feedjit thingy on the side of the page that there are a few different places starting to show up on a more regular basis. Quairading, Merredin, Kwinana and Sydney jump to mind. I know most of the people who visit regularly from Perth, Melbourne and Oswego, New York, USA (Hi Kaye!) but I don't have a clue who would be reading from these other places. Please drop in and say hi in the comments section as I'd love to get to know you too!

Enough rambling for now. I'd better go hang out the second load of laundry for tonight, set the dishwasher going, finish putting away the various assorted detritus from another day with children, iron uniforms for tomorrow, put the bins out for collection in the morning and head for bed soon as I've got another busy day unloading trucks tomorrow. (A story for another time!) Night all!

It's all in the (c)attitude

Bradley:

more animals

Andrew:

more animals

Alex:

more animals

I never realised how many ..

house rules my kids had actually listened to until I heard them telling Alex's friends:

• "You can't ...",
• "We have to ...",
• "That goes away here not there"
• "We're not allowed to .."
• "Only one at a time"

and my personal favourite:

• "Put it away yourself. Mum's not your slave!"

All in all, it's been a relatively quiet night despite having 5 boys in the house (2 x 13yo, 1 x 12yo, 1 x 11yo & 1 x 9yo). I think the 3 older boys finally fell asleep some time around 2am after their sugar-filled 'midnight' feast at 11pm. Luckily for them, they let me sleep in this morning until 9am or there would have been bloodshed for sure!

Now I just have to negotiate the wreckage that is my kitchen for a cup of coffee and then I can start the day in earnest. Or not.

Check this out

I was reading a new-to-me blog this morning and found this. It's pretty cool, especially for a stationery geek like me!


EepyBird's Sticky Note experiment from Eepybird on Vimeo.

"I need a papyrus scroll"

... is what I heard at 4pm this afternoon. The ensuing conversation went something like this:

"You need what?"

"A papyrus scroll."

"Why?"

"For a school project."

"When is it due?"

"Technically not until Tuesday next week but ..." (voice trails off into mumbling behind hand)

"What? Stop mumbling child! When do you really need it by?"

"Tomorrow so one of the other kids in my group can write on it and do some hieroglyphic things to it."

"Tomorrow?! OK. Hop in the car and we'll go find a shop that specialises in ancient papyrus scrolls. The shops are open tonight so it shouldn't be too hard, should it?"

"Muuuum! (stretching it out to two whole syllables) I need to make one, not buy one."

"Oh. I didn't realise you had perfected a time travel device. By all means, off to ancient Egypt with you and don't be late for dinner."

"Muuuuuuum! (three syllables this time!) I already rang Nonnie and asked if we could borrow her paper-making kit so we can make some paper and then we can stain it and tear it a bit to make it look like a papyrus scroll so can we go get it please?"

"What's this 'we'? Aren't you supposed to be making it?"

"I will be, with some help from you 'cos I've never done it before and you said you did it once in primary school and that's more times than I've ever done it so you have to help me or else I'll get in trouble and you don't want me to get into trouble again 'cos then we'll have to deal with another detention and I know you don't like it when I get detentions and if you don't help me it will be your fault this time." (finally stops talking and starts gasping for air like someone who has been underwater for five minutes.)

"OK, get in the car and we'll go get the kit from Nonnie's house. Oh, and just so you know, I stopped listening after the part where you said you were doing it."

"But Muuuuuuuuuuuuuum! (five, or was it six?, syllables.) I need help!"

(Must.keep.sarcastic.answers.to.myself! I am Pollyanna! I am Anne of Green Gables! I.will.not.give.in.to.this.temptation! Happy thoughts .. happy thoughts .. chocolate .. coffee .. both at same time .. aah .. that's it!)

Can anyone guess what I spent the last two and a half hours doing? And no, unfortunately, it didn't involve either coffee or chocolate!

It never ends ...

Just when one issue goes away (temporarily at least) another one rears its ugly little head.

Peter and I have been having quite a few 'discussions' about what to do with Alex's schooling. Peter reckons he's had enough chances at this school and isn't putting in the effort to justify keeping him there. I think he needs to be in this sort of environment, suspensions and detentions not withstanding, to try and foster some sense of accountability and understanding of consequences.

The trouble is, we have used the threat of being removed from this school as a consequence of getting another detention for any reason, and now we have to decide one way or the other.

If we don't remove him, is this going to send the message that he can do whatever he likes and get away with it?

Or by removing him, are we going to be going from the frying pan into a raging inferno?

I have said to Peter that the only reason it seems so bad at his current school is because there are consequences to his actions, the school follows through on them and they keep in contact with us to let us know that he's having issues. I think the constant feedback and communication are making it seem a lot worse than it is because there just wasn't that level of interaction when we were at school. If we didn't do our homework, our parents didn't find out until the end of the year when the reports came out.

If he were at the other school that Peter wants to send him to, I don't think we would have that same level of follow-up, accountability and communication. It's a huge school with something like 3000 students and I'm scared he will just fall through the cracks.

I'm probably just in protective-mummy-bear-mode, but I don't want to uproot him from his only two friends in the whole world and what I believe to be a better learning environment, just to prove that we are serious about following through on a threat made out of frustration.

Then when you factor in that, according to Peter, "one out, all out" and I'll have two other very upset boys being dragged away from their comfort zones too.

Any ideas??

Oh my!

What big ears you have!

All the better to hear you with my dear!

What a lot of teeth you have!

All the better to eat you with my dear!

What a strange tongue you have! Is it supposed to do that?

Yes! Yes it is. Look my brother has one just like it.

But what about your other brother?

Oh, he's inherited Dad's genes. They have very strange tongues indeed! Not a sideways curl in sight.

(This all started because Bradley came to me and said"Look what I can do Mum!" Then they all had to get in on the act. I'm so proud!!)

I promised myself ..

that I would try and be more positive in the things I say. I'm no Pollyanna or Anne of Green Gables, but I'm trying anyway. I'm also trying to do one nice and unexpected thing for someone per day without expecting any sort of reward.

So far I've made it through two days and have achieved my goals.
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It's been the hardest two days of my life!!!

I never realised how hard it would be to not join in with the whinge sessions at work, to bite my tongue when someone says/does something really stupid, to not be sarcastic when the situation is just crying out for it and to stop and think before saying or doing anything. But, overall, I'm getting there.

What are you trying to achieve this week?

Dear Universe ...

This week I would like to:

• thank you for giving me the intestinal fortitude to keep returning to a place that is slowly draining my life force and logical thinking skills. I realise that it would be extremely unhealthy to be surrounded by happy and joyous people all the time, but can you please arrange for it to happen at least some of the time?
• question why on Earth did you decide to give two of my male children testosterone surges at the same time? (Yes I do realise that it would be kind of pointless to give female children huge testosterone surges but work with me here!) If you are planning on doing this again in the near future, please let me know first so I can run away to somewhere more peaceful like, oh I don't know, maybe Iraq?
• ask for help to understand why the washing pile, children's appetites, my waistline and certain people's egos never seem to get any smaller. 'Nuff said.
• thank you for giving us such a choice of designers of women's lingerie and swimsuits. Just a side note, when do you think I will have paid enough for my obvious bad karma in all my previous lives, because I'd really like to be able to buy a bra that fits, is comfortable and doesn't look like a frontline battle outfit.
• thank you for all those wonderful people around me who are capable of seeing when I've had enough and who just "move away from the crazy lady". Now if you could just work on the rest of them, I would be eternally grateful, especially if you could manage it before I end up in prison for mass homicide. Then again ... at least I wouldn't have to deal with them, or their mates, in there. Leave this one with me; I'll get back to you later.

All in all, thank you for allowing me to learn so many lessons about human behaviour this week. I really appreciate this opportunity but next time, please could you check that I wasn't already having a breakdown first? Thanks again!

Yours faithfully,

Donna

I'm officially the mother of a teenager ..

and I don't like it! Alex is now thirteen (and one day, as he reminded me this morning) and I feel like I blinked and he grew up overnight.

Where did my baby go?

What happened to my chubby little toddler?

And the talkative little pre-schooler?

As well as the sometimes unco-operative, but mostly lovable primary school child?

I miss them all but I'm glad he's growing into a fine young man.

(Except for that teensy-tiny complication of the three-day-suspension but aren't we all supposed to learn from our mistakes? Here's hoping!)

I took yesterday off work, ostensibly to deal with the repercussions of the suspension but really just to be home with him on his first teen birthday, and we had a great day. Peter took a couple of days off work as well and drove down from work on Sunday night, arriving after Alex was asleep, just so he could be home with him too.

The two younger boys gave Alex their presents before school (a DS game and a Wii game) and then Peter and I took him shopping for his present. We wanted to get him a stereo for his room and a "proper" watch but wanted him to have some input into the choice. We managed to get both with a minimum of angst and then treated him to lunch. Of course, still being a kid, he wanted Macca's so we went to the shopping centre food court where he and Peter had Macca's and I had a ham and cheese crepe .. yum!

As soon as we got home, he set up his new stereo and settled into his room to play his new DS games. I tried to go and sit with him to watch him play and was told that I could watch another time .. and not in his room because that's where he goes "to get away from it all". (I'd prefer to get away from it all in Fiji or even Margaret River, but I suppose it's a good thing that he's easy to please .. for now!)

We went to Sizzler for dinner with Pete's Mum and Dad and my Mum. Andrew and Brad thought that Sizzler was only in Queensland so they were over the moon that there's one here. The food was ok but the kids' joy at being able to help themselves to whatever they wanted made up for it. After dinner, we thoroughly embarrassed Alex by singing Happy Birthday at the top of our lungs but he got his revenge (on me anyway) by refusing to eat any of the birthday cake I had made at his request. Devil's Food Cake with chocolate icing .. how could he want Sizzler's melted soft serve chocolate ice cream mush over that? I always knew he was switched in the hospital .. he can't possibly be my child!!

As much as I joke about you Alex, I love you heaps and I'm glad you're my baby .. sorry, not my baby .. my teenager!

What a week!

Where to start? "Start at the very beginning. It's a very good place to start." (Anyone else have that song stuck in their head now?) Anyway ...


Wednesday 27 August

• Had the day off work because Brad has tummy troubles .. again!


• Did very little else but washing, washing and more washing. At least the weather was good enough to get most of it dried because the evening chill hit.

Thursday 28 August

• Due to having Wednesday off work, I missed the staff meeting at which all the new rules of the offices were discussed. So I had my own "little chat" with my new boss where she basically asked me to play enforcer and tattletale for her. She has also asked that I use my "close relationship" (said with raised eyebrows by her) with one of the managers to pull him into line too. Sorry, nope, not going to happen. That's your job lady, not mine! And since when does being able to have a decent conversation with someone of the opposite sex constitute a "close relationship" worthy of raised eyebrows?


• After leaving work exactly on time (gee what a rebel I am!), I went shopping for a wedding present for a friend (Belinda) whose wedding was that afternoon. I ummed and aahed over what to get and ended up buying a lovely picture frame and statue gift set from Willow Tree. Then headed for home to change for aforementioned wedding.


• On my way to pick up Jackie to take her to Belinda's wedding, I received a phone call from the boys' school telling me that Alex was suspended for three days for fighting. After an initial bout of "I'm going to kill him with my bare hands", I relegated it to the "I'll deal with that later pile" in my mind and went to the wedding. It was lovely to see Belinda so happy after all she's been through and Harvey looked pretty happy too!


• I dropped Jackie off and went home to deal with Alex. As soon as I called him down to the lounge room and told him to shut the doors, he confessed all. (And I was so looking forward to trying out the new torture tools too! Maybe next time.) Whilst I could understand why he reacted the way he did, as can the vice-principal, violence is never an acceptable way of dealing with problems. So now he, I mean we, had to deal with the end result. The worst part was ringing Pete to tell him. Alex was so terrified that Peter was going to just take him out of the school that he cried himself to sleep.

Friday 29 August

• Worked my normal hours at Livingston then worked an extra 3 hours at Armadale store, helping them to get stock and invoices processed. Was absolutely exhausted by the time I got home (with takeaway for tea because I couldn't be bothered even trying to think about what to cook!)
• Talked to Peter some more about what to do with Alex. Surprisingly, he said that he wasn't going to "go Amish" on him because he felt the suspension was enough punishment in itself (Hellooo? Are we talking about the same child? Not going to school is not a punishment!!) After a bit more discussion, we agreed that Alex should have some privileges removed and have to do a whole lot more chores around the house until he goes back to school.

Saturday 30 August

• Worked at Armadale again for another 3 hours and came home rather sore and tired. Three and a bit pallets piled high with boxes of books, that all needed to be opened and scanned then neatly repacked, would tend to make most people tired. It was a bit disheartening leaving there with another 4 pallets still to be checked, but at least we got some of them done.
• After the tiring morning, I spent most of the afternoon lazing around reading .. I mean supervising the children's attempts at housework. Because they need to know how to do these things for the future, right? Every boy should know how to clean a bathroom and toilet especially considering they still can't aim!!
• Had an extra child in the house Saturday night .. Lachlan, Mina's son, came for a sleepover. Luckily they were all well behaved so I could continue my lazing around with no bloodshed. I finally managed to get them into bed at 9pm and I think they fell asleep by 9:30pm. I'm not 100% sure because I was dozing in the recliner in the lounge room. Sometimes those chairs are more comfortable than my bed!

Sunday 31 August

• Slept in until 7am .. woohoo! .. then got up and tried to persuade the boys to stop playing the Wii long enough to eat breakfast and get dressed for the day. I'm still not sure if I succeeded with he breakfast part but they'd eat if they were hungry, wouldn't they?
• Mina picked Lachie up around 10am so we sat and had a cuppa and a chat before she left to help a friend clean up her shed and I sat down to read another book.
• I realised at noon that I'd said "anytime after 12" to Debbie and Mum for scrapping so I hurriedly cleaned off the scrapping tables and then tried to decide which project to work on. They both turned up around 1pm and we had a lovely afternoon scrapping. Mum left a bit early to go home to have a nap before starting work that night which left Deb and I some time to have a good chat about everything and nothing. Good times!

Sums up my afternoon ...

Courtesy of i can has cheezburger


more animals


more animals

BWO ...

Found this through Lita's blog today and it struck really struck a chord with me.

blogging without obligation

So, without further ado, that is all for today!

Why oh why?

Why ...

• .. do children wait until the last possible minute to tell you they need a costume for a school event? Five minutes before they have to be on the school bus doesn't even give me enough time to yell at them, let alone find them a King David costume. "No, we don't have any white sheets, towels, tablecloths or even clothes. We live in a house full of boys; of course we don't have anything white!" (He ended up wearing a dress provided by one of the girls! Nobody tell Pete .. sssshhh!)
• .. do the stupidest people seem to get promoted the quickest? I realise that working in retail saps a lot of a person's common sense and logical thought processes, but when even the customers ask if he's been employed as part of an 'Equal Employment Program for the Intellectually Challenged', surely the big bosses should realise the truth!
• .. is it, that when you find an item of clothing you actually like, going out cheap, they don't have it in your size? Admittedly, "side-of-a-house" isn't really a size I want to buy, but I didn't think it would be that hard to find something that fits without making me look like the aforementioned side-of-a-house on some mind-altering drug trip.
• .. when you feel like eating a particular food, that you thought you had stashed very well in your pantry for just such a moment, it has mysteriously disappeared? All I wanted was a handful of peanuts .. not the ones I get paid; the kind you eat .. but they have vanished into thin air. Is the Universe trying to tell me something?
• .. is it so cold when the sun is out and shining happily? Maybe because I'm sitting in here looking at it through the window instead of being out in it. Nah, that can't be it. I was out in it before and I was still cold. Come back hot flashes! All is forgiven .. for now!!
• .. can I say something twenty times and it doesn't sink in, but when someone else says it, it's all of a sudden a good idea? And not just at home either. I kind of expect it here .. that lovely parent-child/mother-son thing .. but when it happens at work as well, I just want to scream! But that would just give me a headache, so it's probably not worth it, right?
• .. are there never enough hours in the day to complete everything you feel you need to do? I suppose it's just all a matter of priorities. I mean, I could be hanging out washing, mopping the floor, cleaning bathrooms or weeding. Then again, I could be reading, scrapping, playing/talking with the boys or having some quality me time. Priorities people!
• .. is it that no matter how many things I find to whinge about, I can always laugh about them in the end? It may take time, but I'll usually get there. Cosmic balance I suppose. (And the fact that some things really are only funny ten years later).

Attack of the evil twins ...

First of all ... get your minds out of the gutter! This is a clean story about my "innocent" little boys who have obviously been watching waaaayy too much TV.

I was sitting in the lounge room last night while the boys were watching some incredibly boring, oops I mean wonderfully entertaining, cartoon show. Andrew came down to give me a hug and sit with me for a while but soon got sick of being tickled, so after a few not-so-half-hearted attempts at knocking my glasses up my nose and into my brain, he went back to the TV room.

Once I had recovered some of my sight, I called Bradley down for a cuddle. He answered me and when I spotted a Bradley size blur coming down the hallway, I just assumed it was him, until Andrew landed in my lap again. The following conversation ensued:

Me: "You're not Bradley."

Andrew: "I know. I'm Yeldarb, his evil twin, come to get the Mummy monster! Bwahahahaha! (insert more evil genius laughing here)"

Playing along, I made the appropriate scared girlie noises at which point Bradley comes running from the other room. (Bear in mind, he didn't have a clue what Andrew had just said because he was totally focused on whatever was happening on the TV).

Bradley: "Yeldarb! How did you escape from maniac prison?"

Andrew: "I'm an evil genius, remember? Why would I tell you anyway?"

Bradley: "Because I'm Werdna; Andrew's evil twin. Can't you recognise me?"

Andrew: "Of course I can't! You look just like him! That's why you're twins silly .. you look like each other."

Then they both started talking about the other evil geniuses in the house, Xela and Annod.

Andrew: "So, have you seen Xela around lately?"

Bradley: "Yeah but I stay out of his way. He's really a maniac!"

Andrew: "Annod is too! She's the worst one of all of us!!"

Me: "No she's not! She's the coolest one!!"

Andrew and Bradley together: "In your dreams Mummy monster!!"

Silence while I glare at both of them.

Andrew: "Hey I've got a great idea. We should form our own evil genius union. Then we'd get paid better and wouldn't get caught so much."

Bradley: "But if we form a union, we might actually have to do some evil genius things and I really can't be bothered right now."

Andrew: "Same time next week then?"

Bradley: "Sure. See you later Yeldarb. I'm off to turn back into Bradley. He gets nicer things than Werdna does. Priorities you know!"

Sometimes I wonder just what goes on inside their heads. Then I realise I really don't want to know .. it's safer that way!!

A good day

All in all, today was a good day.

1. I got to sleep in until 9:45am (but only because Mum had the boys overnight last night so I could go out for drinks with some people from work).
2. I got to catch up with Debbie for a cuppa and a chat (which it feels like I haven't done in ages).
3. I got to play with the boys instead of just being Grumpy Mum (amazing what a bit of sleep can do!)
4. I actually managed to do some housework without feeling resentful that I was the only one doing it (because I wasn't .. the boys helped and it was almost voluntary!)
5. It was a beautiful day and the boys went outside to play without me threatening to lock them out there for their vitamin D dose.
6. I didn't need to use the dryer for the washing because of the aforementioned beautiful day. Freshly washed towels that smell of sunshine .. mmmm!
7. I enjoyed the boys' sillyness (is that even a word?) and I even joined in!
8. I treated the boys to McDonald's for dinner ... just because. And they behaved at the restaurant .. bonus!
9. I got to really see how much my boys are changing but also how much they are staying the same.
10. Today, I liked my life.

I'm scared ...

Andrew is trying to go all gangsta on me!

We were listening to Flo Rida's song "Low" on the way back from McDonald's tonight and I just happened to glance over at him when we were stopped at the lights. He had the real gangsta thing happening with the facial expression, the hand movements, the fingers in the 'right' positions and so on. I almost burst out laughing but managed to restrain myself just in time. I hadn't seen anything funnier in a longtime. The ultimate white kid trying to go gangsta .. hilarious!!

(Before anyone rings Children's Services on me for corrupting my innocent child's mind, I am aware what the song is about, but he isn't. He only sings the chorus and thinks it's about a girl who just happens to be dancing at the same place this man is singing!)

Men!

Why do they keep their thoughts, fears and feelings bottled up until they explode all over the person they're trying to hide them from? More to the point, why do they try to hide them at all? A lot of angst would be saved if they just made a single comment/request at the beginning of any perceived problem before it escalates into all out war.

I know this is rather cryptic but I just had to put this out there into the universe to relieve some of my stress!

AAAAAAARRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!

That feels better. OK, off to get ready for another day in the paradise that is Big W.

I hate windy nights!

Although it has been relatively windy around around here for at least four days, I've only gotten hayfever today. It used to be that as soon as the wind started, I'd start sneezing immediately but it would get a lot easier to breathe without sneezing after the first 24 hours.

Now it's pretty much the opposite. The wind starts and I'm fine for a couple of days then all of a sudden, I can't see, breathe or stop my eyes from watering. I have tried every over-the-counter anti-histamine and some that require a prescription, all to no avail. I get some short term relief, usually about an hour, then it's back to being full on.

I know that this too will pass, but I am just in whingeing mood! Thanks for letting me vent!

Random stuff ...

• I've been back at work for 2 weeks and four days and it feels like I haven't had a holiday in years!
• We have a new manager at work who is driving everyone crazy and not in a good way. He managed to last all of 3 hours on his first day at our store before he had to "go and sit down somewhere quiet with a cup of coffee" for two hours!! And he talks so much about absolutely nothing, the other office girls and I have resorted to asking him if he wants syrup to go with his waffle. I think he still doesn't get it because he just smiles and nods!
• Had parent-teacher interviews for Alex on Tuesday night. What a surprise .. he hasn't been doing his homework (can you see the sarcasm dripping??) I resisted the urge to say that it was because I didn't have the patience to stand over him with a big stick for the entire time he wasn't actually at school to try and make him finish it. Instead I said something along the lines of "I've finished high school and I passed. I don't need to do it again. It's his turn to step up and take responsibility for his own actions or lack thereof." (Doesn't that sound soooo much better??) Now I'm just in the running for the "Neglectful Mother of the Year" award. Yay, something else to dust!!
• Andrew is going through an 'overly emotional' stage (who needs a teenage girl for mood swings?) That usually means he's about to grow so maybe he'll finally grow out of the uniform shirts he's been wearing for the last three years. Poor kid is hanging out for the day he reaches my chin. Not quite sure why .. it's nothing spectacular to look at!
• I have finally managed to catch up with Jackie for a coffee. It's been so long since we sat and had a counselling session .. oops, I mean chat .. but we just picked up where we left off last time. Either we both need to get new, more interesting lives or rejoice in the fact that our friendship can survive, even when we ourselves are floundering. Thanks Jack .. love ya!
• My littlest darling is being rather forceful in expressing his opinion at the moment. I have had to remind him several times that this house is not a democracy; it's a benevolent dictatorship and that the level of benevolence can change very quickly when the dictator is pushed too far. He now understands what "going Amish" means in practical terms!
• Last Monday was the 8th anniversary of Dad's death. Mum wanted us to all be together so we had dinner at her house, then watched a very old video (1985) of our holiday in New Zealand. Bradley was fascinated by the footage of Dad and Andrew was happy to hear his voice again. They all asked why he was speaking 'funny' though! (Dad's from Liverpool, England and had quite a broad accent at times)
• I had some money left out of my and Peter's tax returns after paying the council rates and water rates bills ($2200!) so I splurged and bought myself a pair of new earrings. I figured I could always pawn them if I needed to. (Just kidding!!)
• Scrapping has taken a back seat to reading at the moment. Trashy romance novels are the theme of the week so far because escapism is a wonderful thing! I'm still trying to find the rest of the Stephanie Plum series at the library so I might just have to give up and buy them instead.
• Only have to put on one more load of washing, start the dishwasher, fold the washing on the table ready for tomorrow, clean up the kitchen, take the garbage out and turn out all the lights the kids have left on and then I can go to bed. Night all!

Moving update

The building next door has sold at auction for 'only' 1.4 million and the organisation that bought it want to keep it as is, so the short version of the long story is that we're not going anywhere in a hurry.

Apparently it has been bought by a Muslim group that want to use it for youth training. There is a very large Muslim population in this area and, whilst I believe in peaceful co-existence with people of other faiths and cultural backgrounds, there are a lot of people around here who think "they should go back to their own country".

I just hope we're not going to be the target of vandalism like we were when the previous daycare director was accused of 'restraining children unlawfully'. It took ages to clean up all the broken glass and rotten food that got thrown over the fence into our yard that time, so here's hoping it doesn't start again.

Playing nurse now...

Today has been another interesting day.

I was out of bed and on the road at 5:15am taking Mum to the hospital for surgery on her right wrist (for carpal tunnel syndrome). Of course, I didn't think to check my fuel gauge last night so I had to find a petrol station open at that hour of the morning (most don't open 'til 6am around here) and then hope I had enough money to pay for it because I realised I left my eftpos cards at home.

With Mum safely delivered to the hospital, it was back home to get the five boys fed and ready for school. For some reason, they all picked this morning to sleep in and to be in a 'go-slow' mood. They all made the bus (just) then it was time to wait for the phone call to pick Mum up again.

I managed to do some washing, pay some bills and even a little bit of scrapping before the phone call came at 11am. I couldn't believe it took me 55 minutes just to get there to pick her up and another 50minutes to get home! The whole round trip was done in 60 minutes this morning. (The fact that I missed the turnoff to the hospital and ended up on the freeway heading south of the city had nothing whatsoever to do with how long it took .. honest!)

Once I picked Mum up, I found out the surgeon had given her a cortisone injection into the left wrist as well as operating on the right one. Apparently the left wrist had a pain level of about 9 out of 10 but the right one didn't hurt at all. After dosing her up on major painkillers, I left her watching a DVD while I faced the joyous prospect of cleaning the boys toilet. (5 Boys, 1 toilet, very poor aim .. form your own mental picture of my level of elation!)

I went to check on Mum and found her dozing off so I talked her into going to bed. She managed a couple of hours before the painkilers wore off and by that time, the boys were home. She watched a bit more TV while I supervised homework and made dinner, then she begged for some more pain relief. I dosed her up and put her to bed in my bed where she is now curled up fast asleep. I even got to tuck her in (the joys of having both hands bandaged!)

Anyway, I'm going to go make the couch into my bed for the night and hope I get some sleep too. If I don't, work will just have to function without me for one more day!

What colour crayon are you?

This quiz has been doing the rounds of some of the blogs I read and I thought I'd give it a go.

You Are a Blue Crayon

Your world is colored in calm, understated, deep colors. You are a loyal person, and the truest friend anyone could hope to find. On the inside, you tend to be emotional and even a bit moody. However, you know that people depend on you. So you put on a strong front. Your color wheel opposite is orange. Orange people may be opinionated, but you feel they lack the depth to truly understand what they're saying.

What Color Crayon Are You?

So what do you reckon? True or not? What colour are you?

I'm surviving .. just!

Having this many boys in the house is actually not as bad as I thought it was going to be.

The two older ones have tried giving me attitude a couple of times, especially Alex, but I think I've pretty effectively squashed the attempted uprising, at least until they gather their minions and form the army they're always talking about.

The two middle ones are quiet most of the time, unless they're refusing to be the minions of the older two, in which case they're very loud indeed!

The younger one is happily tagging along behind the two middle ones and is trying to recruit them to be his minions instead. They, bless their little cotton socks, are loudly resisting him as well.

If I could just have the two middle ones, things would be right with the world!

The next couple of days ...

should be interesting. I have five boys in the house at the moment, which may not seem like a lot to some, but it's most definitely a lot for me! Add in the fact that 3 of them are on the autism spectrum and it just gets better. Two attitude-filled-almost-thirteen-year-olds, two slightly quieter but just as sassy eleven-year-olds and my rather loud and unco-operative (at the moment) nine-year-old. Paradise!

A friend has had a death in the family on the other side of Australia and asked if I could look after her two boys so she could go to the funeral. Flights to the Eastern states being what they are (that is, unavailable at short notice unless you leave and arrive at dark o'clock .. aka midnight), she was planning to drop them off on her way to the airport at 10:30pm and pick them up on her way home from the airport at roughly the same time.

In a moment of inspired madness, I talked her into dropping them off at dinnertime tonight and picking them up from school as usual on Wednesday, so that I didn't have to wait up for them. (I like my sleep but I'm sure we've covered that numerous times before.) Judging by the noise level now roaring through the house, it wasn't one of my better ideas, but I seem to remember that they sleep well, when they actually go to sleep, so there's hope yet!

The noise seems mostly to be about the Wii. Four remotes and five children is never a recipe for peace especially when they're all boys, but they seem to have reached a compromise with a two player game that they are all taking turns with. It's really quite enlightening listening to all the instructions being thrown around and yet, none of them seem capable of following their own instructions. I hope the games consoles (and my eardrums) survive the onslaught!

In all seriousness though, they're all good kids (most of the time .. no-one's perfect!) and it shouldn't be too bad. As I said to their mother, "I'll get them back to you in one piece physically. You can send me the bill for the therapy later!"

I'm off to try and send them all to bed and to find the bottle of port from Margaret River. I have a sneaking suspicion I'm going to need it by 9pm.

997, 998, 999, 1000!

I can't believe there's been nearly 1000 hits here since 30th April. Not bad for the ramblings of a full-time nutcase!

Are you the 1000th visitor? Please leave a comment and let me know who you are and where you're from. (Even if you're not the 1000th visitor, please leave a comment anyway! Everyone loves a response .. even us nutcases!)

The things kids ask ...

but this is more about the times and places they ask "those questions", all prompted by Andrew's question in the checkout queue at the crowded supermarket last night. (More on that in a minute).

Like the time Alex asked, at the top of his oh-so-loud-five-year-old-voice, in the middle of a very crowded McDonald's in the dinner rush, "Where do babies come from?" After looking around me to find every other person over the age of 10, and some under it too, looking right at me, waiting with bated breath to see what I was going to say, I quickly made the decision that short and sweet was good: "Out of their mother's tummy." Another quick glance around me caught several other mothers giving either approving nods, one of those 'I feel for you because I've been there too' looks, 'relief that I didn't go into more detail' looks or just squirming 'cos they knew it was coming for them too. We had just reached the counter when Alex decided to hassle me about the anatomical incorrectness of being in the mother's tummy ...
"It can't be the tummy. That's where the food goes. I thought it had something to do with ovaries and tentacles (testicles) and that other thing, you know, the room (womb) in your insides".
"Yes, it does but I'll explain more when we get home."
"OK Mum. But what I really want to know is how do they get out."
I still don't know who was trying to get us out of there quicker .. the girl behind the counter or me.

Then there was the time Bradley, also in a rather loud and penetrating tone of voice, asked why one of my boobs was bigger than the other, while we were waiting in a long line at the petrol station to pay for our petrol. The fact that I was the only woman in the whole place was just a bonus. I wasn't just blushing; I was the colour of tomato sauce!

But to get back to the question that started all of this, Andrew was helping me unload the shopping onto the conveyor belt when he suddenly turned and asked, "Mum, what's a condom?" Now the question in itself is fairly harmless as public questions go and the answer I gave was very matter-of-fact, ("It's something a man puts on his penis so the woman doesn't get pregnant when they have sex"), but you know how you have those moments when everything seems to just stop and get very, very quiet just as you say something you don't want overheard? This was one of those moments. I'm sure the entire supermarket had picked just that moment to cease making any and all noise. All I could hear was my own voice saying the word 'penis' very loudly at the exact time everyone else stopped talking.

The checkout girl nearly dropped the first dozen eggs as she went bright red; the lady at the checkout next to me just stood there with her mouth open staring at me; the guy at the checkout on the other side of me was trying really hard not to crack up laughing and I was just wishing the floor would open up and swallow me whole. All the while Andrew was still unloading the trolley, completely oblivious to the reactions of people around him. In fact, he just ploughed on with his train of thought ... "So why do they make pink ones if they're for guys? Guys don't wear pink undies so why would they wear pink condoms?"

I then had to wait to get the other dozen eggs replaced because the guy at the next checkout laughed so loud, it startled the checkout girl, who dropped the eggs, which bounced once then smashed. I also had to explain the whole situation to the checkout supervisor who was ready to yell at the poor checkout girl, who I'm sure will run and hide the next time she sees me walking into the supermarket.

Have I mentioned lately how much I love taking my kids out in public?

Moving worries ... again!

I know you're probably all sticking your hands over your ears .. I mean your eyes .. and yelling "no more with the talk about moving already!" but 'the elephant in the corner of the room' just won't go away. (I'm still not moving to Red Dirt Central though!)

Little bit of background: Our block was originally part of a bigger block that had a church and our house on it. The church wanted to amalgamate parishes (and make some money) so they subdivided the bigger block into two; one large block (3000sqm) with the building that was a church and one smaller block (1000sqm) with our house on it. It was originally an almost square block, but due to regulations about lot sizes for public buildings, both blocks ended up being odd shapes.

The building next door is currently being used as a daycare centre and the owner has decided to sell it to fund another development project he has in the works. As a result, it's now up for auction at the end of this month. Due to the current trend of building as many units on one block as possible and therefore making a huge profit, the agent selling next door asked if we would be willing to sell our house to whoever wins the auction. He then went on to state he has several very interested parties so the chances of us selling are fairly high.

Now I have to admit, as much as I love the idea of living next to a major construction site, on a main road, on a block that only has one access point that is often blocked due to idiots and their insane parking habits, I think I would rather move. (In case you hadn't gathered, this is where the talk of moving starts again. Just so you know and can run screaming from the computer.)

After another brief conversation with Peter about moving, we still haven't come any closer to an acceptable-to-both-parties compromise. He's still looking at places about 2 to 2.5 hours drive away, in prime red dirt country, whereas I'm looking at something a lot closer to where we are now so the boys can stay in the school they're in. Yes, it's more expensive now but it will be worth a lot more in the long run, especially if things keep expanding the way they are now. (And no, I am not referring to my butt and its nasty habit of expanding. I meant the edges of the suburban sprawl, so be nice!)

I really think I should be looking at rooms in the local mental hospital at the rate I'm going. I wonder if they do discounts for advance bookings?

I've added some photos...

to some of the holiday posts but they take so long to upload, I'll have to do the rest another time. Just thought I'd let you know there's pictures of fudge, fudge and more fudge ...

I have come to realise...

I 'stole' this from clovergirl. Thanks Brandi!

I Have Come to Realize...

1. I've come to realize that my boobs... are being affected by gravity more and more each day.

2. I've come to realize that my job... is nowhere near as important as my family.

3. I've come to realize that when I'm driving... I like the radio up loud and the kids to be quiet!

4. I've come to realize that I need... to take better care of myself.

5. I've come to realize that I have lost... the chance to make amends for some of the things I did and said when I was young and stupid.

6. I've come to realize that I hate it when... I spend too much time worrying about what could be instead of appreciating what is.

7. I've come to realize that if I'm drunk...I'm going to be really sorry the day after!

8. I've come to realize that money... is only a tool; not a measure of who I am.

9. I've come to realize that certain people... will always be 'that' way and it's not my fault.

10. I've come to realize that I'll always be... capable of more than I think I am.

11. I've come to realise that I really wish I could... play a musical instrument properly.

12. I've come to realize that my mum... is just another imperfect human being who loves me in spite of my own imperfections.

13. I've come to realize my cell phone... is not really necessary.

14. I've come to realize that when I woke up this morning... I was looking forward to facing the day and the challenges it would bring.

15. I've come to realize that last night before I went to sleep... I was glad to be home.

16. I've come to realize that right now I am thinking about... where on earth will I move to if my house sells.

17. I've come to realize that my dad... wasn't perfect but was a good person all the same.

18. I've come to realize that when I get on the computer... I lose track of time!

19. I've come to realize that today... is another chance to start again.

20. I've come to realize that tonight... I have to 'remind' Alex about his homework.

21. I've come to realize that tomorrow I will... have to move faster to achieve more.

22. I've come to realize that I really want to... find a happy compromise.

23.I've come to realize that the person who is most likely to repost is... um, er, no idea!

24. I've come to realize that life... is what you make of it.

25. I've come to realize that this weekend... shows how much my kids do love me.

26. I've realized the best music to listen to when I am upset... is the music my parents listened to in my childhood.

27. I've come to realize that friends... are extremely important to my mental health.

28. I've come to realize that this year... I am finally accepting the fact that "if it is to be, it's up to me."

I'm Home

So that’s my holiday in 12 or so entries. I had a good time while I was away but couldn’t get over how quiet it was. Sometimes it was nice to just sit and enjoy the ‘serenity’ but at other times, I had to go and put the radio on just to have something going on in the background.

I’m glad to be home, but already it’s like I’d never been away. I’ll have to plan another trip in six months …, make that three months … actually next week sound good. Any takers?

Holiday Update #12

Friday 18th July

The stormy weather really picked up overnight so I didn’t get much sleep. Too many weird noises in a strange house ensured that I was up and packed ready to go by 9:30am and ended up leaving at 9:45am. (I thought that I’d better take it nice and easy on the way home due to the severe weather warnings). It was really quite upsetting to drive away from the little home-away-from-home but I’ve promised myself I will do it again … someday.

First stop on the way home was the Candy Cow … again! I even managed to get some photos of the inside of the shop this time as well as more fudge (for the boys this time!) and I bought them a stuffed toy each … a cow of course!

Next stop was the Busselton jetty which was getting quite a lashing from the waves. There was so much sand being stirred up in the water, the waves looked like chocolate foam. As well as being really windy, it was actually quite cold so I had a quick look around, then went back to warmth of the car before going on to Bunbury.

I grabbed some takeaway food for lunch in Bunbury and decided to just keep on going. The wind had really picked up so I slowed down to make it a bit easier to stay in a straight line. (That’s one of the problems with driving a small, lightweight car … the wind can really push it around). Slow and steady wins the race and gets you home in one piece!

When I reached Harvey, I stopped in at their Tourist Bureau as I hadn’t been in there before. It was quite interesting wandering around the exhibits as well as perusing all the souvenirs (as if I hadn’t spent enough already!) I might take the boys down there for a weekend away if I can scrounge some more time off work.

Then it was back into the car for the last leg of the journey. The weather was getting progressively worse the closer I got to Perth but I made it home in one piece at about 2:20pm. As soon as the kids heard my key in the door, they were all over me like a rash. So nice to be loved … and they didn’t even ask if I brought anything home for them! Alex did say, very seriously, that I was allowed to go away again, just not for a very long time, because even he missed me!

Holiday Update #11

Thursday 17th July

I tried to do some more scrapping this morning but it just wasn’t working so I went into town to buy the boys a souvenir of my time away. Of course, I couldn’t find anything that I considered reasonable, so I spent a lot of time just wandering and even took a drive out to Caveworks. I had seen some grow-your-own-crystal kits there that I thought would be great but they only had them in one colour … white. Pretty boring! I already had a few little things so after that I gave up and went back to the house to start getting things organized for the trip home. Well, that was the plan anyway!

I ended up spending all afternoon and half the night reading the Janet Evanovich series about Stephanie Plum, Bounty Hunter. What a laugh! I like reading crime novels that have a bit of humour in them and the mental images she manages to create are absolutely hilarious. And the grandma .. what a hoot! Now I just have to raid the library to see if they’ve got the last couple I haven’t read.

In case you hadn’t figured … another late night!

Holiday Update #10

Wednesday 16th July

Another lazy morning of pottering around before jumping in the car to go and check out some of the galleries. The weather had cleared a bit so the drive along the scenic route was quite pleasant. I stopped at a couple of different galleries but nothing really much interested me and, once again, the prices were aimed at the considerably more affluent tourists.

The one place I did want to see, called ‘Wood be Good’, was a gallery of handmade wooden furniture with a sculpture maze. After driving up and down the stretch of road it was supposed to be on, I finally noticed a very small sign for ‘Wood be Good’ with any even smaller sign underneath it saying ‘closed’. Apparently it had closed the week before I got down to Margaret River. At least there were other things to look at.

I ended up driving to Yallingup to have a look around. There was a lookout with a bench overlooking one of the beaches, so I sat up there for a while and just watched the ocean. It was very calming but at the same time rather overwhelming to think about the power of the waves and the vastness of the ocean. It made me feel very small in the grand scheme of things, which was actually kind of good in a way, because it helped me to regain a bit of perspective on the things that are troubling me.

After it had rained on me one too many times for my liking, I went to Dunsborough for some lunch, some much-needed petrol (182.9 per litre!) and a drive out to the Cape Naturaliste Lighthouse. It’s another thing that has changed heaps. The last time I can remember going to this particular lighthouse, I was about 10 or 11 years old. (I suppose you have to expect things to change in 25 years!) I decided against doing the lighthouse climb... my knees were still recovering from the Jewel Cave … and the whale watching platforms were a 3.5km hike away in the rain. Call me a wuss but I didn’t want to get soaking wet on the off chance that there were some whales way out to sea.

I went back into Dunsborough township for a wander around the shops and found a lovely little bookshop. I happily browsed in there for a while and found a book full of retro (1950’s) pictures with some rather more modern sayings attached:

“You remind me of my husband, except you’re not buried in the backyard.”

“Your proctologist called. They found your head.”

“My mother doesn’t just enjoy guilt trips; she runs the travel agency.”

“If size doesn’t matter, why aren’t there any four-inch dildos?”

“Does my fat ass make my ass look fat?”

“I understand the concept of cooking and cleaning. Just not as it applies to me.”

And my personal favourite:

“What we have here is a failure to give a s***.”

After deciding not to buy the book, as I had already memorized the ones that appealed to my warped sense of humour, I checked out a couple of other stores where I got a head start on my Christmas shopping. By the time I had finished paying for everything, it was getting rather dark and the rain had started again, so I headed off to check out one last gallery. Unfortunately I missed the turnoff to it so I just kept going until I got back to the house. Not bad for a little afternoon jaunt … only 110km round trip.

Soup for tea and another late night.

Holiday update #9

Tuesday 15th July

The weather was rather stormy this morning and is apparently going to continue this way for the rest of the week. Perfect scrapping weather if I could just find some mojo!

I decided to have “PJ day” and do very little. I think I managed to achieve that. It’s all in the expectations isn’t it? Did some washing, updated this diary, some scrapping, some lounging around, some reading and not much else. Just what holidays are supposed to be ... relaxing. I even had another nanna nap on the couch which of course meant that I stayed up late because I couldn’t get to sleep at a reasonable hour. Oh well … it’s not like I have to do anything in the morning is it? The joys of holidays!

Holiday update #8

Monday 14th July

I woke about 6am, looked at the clock, groaned and rolled over. Before I knew it, it was after 8am. I must have really needed the catch up sleep. Debbie was already up and around so I had a shower then had a chat before she left at 9:45am.

Being alone again was rather unsettling at first. I wandered around the house trying to decide what to do with myself before curling up on the lounge with one of the books I brought with me. While reading the book, my tears reminded me that it would probably be a good idea to take my “happy pills” as I had forgotten to take them for nearly a week! Realistically, I think it was more a sensory thing of being more aware of being on my own … no sound of anyone else in the house and even the neighbourhood was quiet. The fact that the book was pretty sad in parts didn’t help!

I know it may seem strange to some people but I like to read stories about people who have lived with children who have difficulties of one sort or another. (My eldest son is autistic, only very mildly so, but enough to make life interesting at times. He is slowly learning more of the unwritten social rules but as his two closest friends are very similar to him, it’s taking longer than it would if his friends were neurologically typical/”normal”). I even read these sorts of books as a child, specifically about autistic children which must have been the universe trying to prepare me for what was to come. On another train of thought, reading these books helps me appreciate how good I do have it and that it could have been much, much worse.

The book I was reading today is called “A Friend Like Henry” and is about a severely autistic boy who is slowly and lovingly brought out of his own world by his very determined and patient parents and a Golden Retriever puppy called Henry. It was just astounding to realize how bad they had it and how much blame was squarely placed on the parent’s shoulders. You would have thought this book was written about someone born at the beginning of the 1900’s, not a child born in the 1990’s. I experienced some of the same attitudes when we were trying to get Alex diagnosed but luckily not to anywhere near the same extent as the parents in the book. (Their son is now functioning well as an adult but the parents are going through it all over again with their daughter who is also autistic).

After I’d wiped all the tears away, I went into town to try and update my blog. Unfortunately the cybercafé doesn’t have Word on any of their computers so I couldn't use my diary to quickly update the blog. I surfed the net for a while, then went back to the house for a bit more sloth-like behaviour. Scrapping, reading, watching TV, contemplating my navel (figuratively of course!), making delicious toasted ham, cheese and tomato sandwiches for lunch at 4pm, more reading, more scrapping, more TV … you get the picture!

I had decided to have an early night, but at 9:30pm my brain was still racing so I stayed up a bit later … midnight. Your body uses less energy watching TV than sleeping so I figured I was resting while perving on the Tour de France riders! Ooh la la … magnifique! (Apologies to all the French speakers out there! That’s about the limit of my very bad French).

Holiday update #7

Sunday 13th July

Even though I went to bed early, I was still awake at 10:30pm so I figured I may as well do something instead of tossing and turning. I ended up finishing an entire That’s Life puzzles section in an hour before I finally crashed and slept through to 8am. By the time we’d both had our morning wake-up shower, a lovely cooked breakfast of bacon, eggs and toast and decided what we were doing for the day, it was after 10am.

The rain didn’t seem to be too bad and I’d heard reports of whales down in Augusta, so we headed down that way. Debbie even let me drive her car. (I so want to get an automatic for my next car and one with cruise control would be even better!) It only took 35 minutes to get to Augusta and driving down the main street was an eye-opener. It’s nearly twice as long as the last time I was there with three times as many shops as there were before.

I was trying to work out where the whale viewing platforms were but couldn’t find them so we ended up taking a little scenic drive along the waterfront before stopping at a craft shop which was right next to the Tourist Bureau. After having a look around at all the souvenirs and asking where the best place to spot the whales was, we went out to the Cape Leeuwin lighthouse. Another place that had changed heaps since the last time I was there. You used to be able to just walk into the grounds and have a look around and you only had to pay if you wanted to go into the lighthouse itself. Now you have to pay just to get into the grounds, which is where the whale viewing platform is, and then pay extra for the lighthouse tour and the viewing platform binoculars. Oh well ... literally the price of change!

We decided to have some of the yummy smelling soup from the tearooms for lunch (we didn’t have to pay to get in there … just for the food!). It was so nice to able to sit there, eat lunch and not have to worry about the kids fighting or getting bored or disturbing anyone else. There were plenty of kids there but none of them were ours so we didn’t mind!

When we ordered our soup, the staff were trying to talk us into having some of their freshly baked scones. We finished lunch, sat and chatted for a while then thought we’d try them. One of the guys had even said they were “The best in the West”. Unfortunately, he was sadly mistaken! The Berry Farm’s scones are still the best I’ve ever had by a long shot. Once we’d finished what we could of the scones, we went outside to get some pictures of the lighthouse over the fences and then went to look at the old water wheel.

The water wheel used to draw water from a local freshwater spring and pump it to the lighthouse. It’s not used anymore and the wheel has calcified but it still made for some pretty photos, especially with the banded rocks in the background. I also tried to take some photos of the hundreds of shells stuck to the rocks but didn’t release I was standing in the wavezone. When the waves came in, the rock I was standing on got covered in water so I ended up with wet jeans legs again! Luckily not too bad so I could still get in the car without dripping everywhere.

We were both pretty windblown by this stage so we headed back to the house for an afternoon of scrapping. Amy rang Debbie several times during the afternoon for instructions on how to make a white sauce for the lasagna she was trying to cook, so Deb didn’t get much done and I only managed to finish a couple of the kids’ school pages but it was the perfect afternoon. Scrapping, cuppas, bikkies and great company … what more could a girl ask for?

I was feeling a bit sorry for myself because the boys hadn’t rung me once the whole time I was away and I thought it must have been because they didn’t miss me. Amy proved that wrong in one of her phone calls by telling Debbie that the boys were really missing me (they’d been out to Wayne and Debbie’s for dinner on Saturday night) so then I started feeling guilty for not ringing them more. Mother guilt is a wonderful thing isn’t it? After a phone call to them I felt a bit better and hope they did too. Apparently they’re helping Peter clean up his (very messy) side of the backyard and are having a ball playing the new PS2 games he bought them. A bit of bribery never goes astray!

At about 6:15 both Debbie and I developed a craving for Chinese food and went out to get some. The lady at the Chinese restaurant is rather odd to say the least! We fronted up to the counter where she informed us to “come back in hour” to place our order that would then take another 20-30 minutes to be ready. I think Debbie’s response of “Chooks it is then” changed her mind because all of a sudden she was quite happy to take our order. What a strange way to run a business!

When we eventually got our Chinese food, we came back to watch TV for a while before we both headed for bed at 9:45pm. Another great day in paradise!!

Holiday update #6

Saturday 12th July

Today was the day I woke the earliest … 7am! Of course this was bound to happen because last night was the latest night I’d had. (Must have an early night or five or I’ll never be able to get up for work!) I had thought I was the only one awake but then I heard the other shower start just as I was about to get into my shower. The water pressure isn’t strong enough to have both showers going at the same time so I waited until whoever it was finished, then jumped in quickly.
When I emerged, Debbie and Mina were having an in-depth discussion about the joys of raising teenage daughters. (Mina’s daughter is 13 and Debbie’s are 15 and 11). Once Mina realized I was out of the shower, she went for one, then packed up to go back to Perth. I tried to talk her into staying for the morning and going back after lunch but she had already made plans for the afternoon. Once Mina had left, Debbie and I got organized and went in search of The Berry Farm for some of their scrumptious jams.

After we had perused all the available jams, chutneys, sauces and wines, we tasted their apple vanilla port. Smelled divine but boy, did it have a kick and a burn! Then we tried the chocolate liqueur that Mina had had as part of her dessert at The Spaghetti Bowl. Another one that smelled fantastic but it had a bit of a kick as well. Debbie bought some after we worked out that we could make our own mudshakes with it! Then we headed over to the café where we had the most delicious Devonshire tea. The strawberry jam was, of course, the Berry Farm’s own and the scones were fresh out of the oven. Delish! I would even go as far as saying they were the best scones I’d ever had!

The rain had let up a bit by this time so we went out to the back verandah to check out the parterre garden. Of course, as soon as we stepped out from under the roof the rain started again, so we contented ourselves with using the zoom lens to take pictures. It’s funny how much we think alike. We both took pictures of the exact same things in the garden!

The rain was still coming down quite heavily so we moved to the front verandah where we noticed quite a few pretty little birds hanging around the railings. I had noticed some children feeding the birds on our way in and the birds seemed to be waiting for another feeding so I obliged. Debbie managed to get some photos of all the birds sitting on my hand helping themselves but they moved so quickly, most of them were just blurs. It was the strangest feeling having them moving around on my hand; almost a tickle but kind of scratchy as well. Another lot of kids had noticed what I was doing so I left them to it and had a look around the cottage garden instead.

After we finished at The Berry Farm, we went into Margaret River to check out some of the galleries and shops. I finally managed to have a look inside The Melting Pot, a glass studio and the Christian Fletcher photography studio. So many beautiful items and images to look at and I would have loved to take some home, but the prices were most definitely aimed at the more affluent tourists. Oh well, at least I got to look … that still doesn’t cost anything!

We wandered up one side of the main street and down the other, stopping at a few places to buy a couple of things, before stopping at Brumby’s for some crusty bread to go with our dinner of creamy chicken soup. A bit more wandering down the street to where we collapsed into the car (I’m sure that street gets longer every time I walk it!) and went back to the house for a quiet afternoon. Reading, puzzles, cuppas and a bit more updating of the holiday journal.

I noticed that there was a fair amount of mist outside, so I grabbed my camera and went down to the creek at the end of the street to try and get some of those lovely, misty scenery shots. I need to take the legs on my jeans up though because even though I got a couple of ‘decent’ shots, the bottoms of the legs were soaked from the wet grass and puddles. I should probably pay more attention to where I’m standing instead of just focusing on the picture!

By the time I got back, Debbie had the fire going nicely so we did another crossword puzzle then had a leisurely dinner. I settled in front of the computer to update the holiday diary while Deb watched the football before we both decided to have an early night … 9:30pm.