Another Christmas in Oz

So this was our third Oz Christmas and definitely the best, not sure though if I'll ever adjust to a warm Christmas (although the day was cold at 24 degrees as opposed to the last two in the 40s).

Mum and Mike came down Christmas Eve and we went to the 11pm service at the local Anglican church. On the way we picked up Karen and Robyn so it was a tight squeeze with 5 adults in the car but we made it ! Got home to discover Paul had been busy - he'd wrapped all the presents, vacuumed, mopped and prepared Christmas dinner, what a star ! Finally got to bed at 2am.

Nakita hit the lights at 4.55am, she had woken Tallulah at 4.30am but Father Christmas hadn't delivered to Tallulah as she no longer believes so Tallulah went back to bed ! We persuaded Nakita to get in bed with us and after lots of thrashing about and turning we gave up at 6am when Tallulah showed up to discover we'd done her a stocking in our room. Stockings over we tried to keep them quiet until Mum and Mike woke up but the stockings had contained a small foghorn so they were dragged out of bed at 7am. The girls did fabulously well with all their presents, they had presents from Mum and Mike, Brett & Gaynor, Dad and Nanny Pat and money from Debs, Aunty Lynne and Grandpa Joe (well Nakita did but it was 10 pounds so unspendable anyway !) so the tree was heaving unlike previous years and Tallulah and Nakita were a bit overawed !

We had a croissant curtesy of mum for brekie followed by a sausage sarnie for dinner (I never want to see another sausage again !) and then tea was marinated steak with a mushroom sauce, wedges and salads - all done on the barbie. Well done Paul !!

Mum, Mike and Paul spent a lot of the day out by or in the pool but it was a bit cold for the girls and I so they played with all their new stuff and I spent the day on my pc sorting out my new tomtom and then Tallulahs new ipod touch. So we all did what we wanted to and never made it to the beach !

Boxing Day was a bit warmer so we mooched around in the morning and then packed a hamper and headed up to Kings Park, we walked around the botanic gardens then drove to the synergy area for a picnic tea (not a sausage in sight !) and then went into the Moonight cinema - and outdoor cinema - to watch Mamma Mia. Good film and I love the outdoor cinema, we all had blankets and hired beanbags so were nice and cosy when the sun went down, result ! Another great day.

The weather is now starting to heat up, it's back to 35 today and expected to get hotter over the next few days. Mum and Mike are next down for New Year and we'll head off to the foreshore for the fireworks then. Tallulah is off camping (!!!) with a mate and we were going to go kayaking in the sea but a guy was taken by a shark yesterday where we were going to go so Nakita and Paul went on the estuary instead. Scary. Luckily we have life assurance as Paul and Nakita are having surfing lessons in January !!!!!

05:28 - Sun 28 December 2008 - comments {0}

Graduation

Tallulah graduated from primary school today and what an eventful day it was !

We all had to go to the first ceremony which was the class book awards. These awards are so prestigeous that the chances of you being awarded one are practically nil. The very top girl and boy get them so they do tend to be the same people every year. This year Tallulah's name was read out which was a massive shock and this is what her teacher said about her :

"Tallulah is a caring, mature and independent young lady. As a student, Tallulah is always open to learning, tackles each task with purpose and ensure she achieves her full potential. Tallulah has built excellent time management and independent skills which will be of great  support in her future. She is always organised in her approach to her school work and with personal and school property. Tallulah is a key inclusion in any group situation as she is a fair leader, is individually accountable and ensures her group works productively and cooperatively. Tallulah is a trustworthy, reliable, courteous, respectful and responsible individual and an extremely worthy recipient of a year 7 class award for 2008"

Is this my daughter ???? The same one who was always in trouble in the UK ???  The teacher also had to pick three words to describe Tallulah and she chose ; kind, imaginative and diligent.  I am so very proud of her.

After that we had the graduation ceremony of all 96 year 7 children - took a while but we got through them all. Tallulah was given a certificate and class picture and then we all (mum, mike, Tallulah, Nakita and I) went off to Doddies beach for a picnic (wedges from the Dome, yum). We then got their end of year reports. Tallulahs was, as usual, outstanding, and Nakita's was the best we have ever received too.

So today I am getting a bit of pay back for the 10 and 12 years hard labour I have so far completed. Well done kids.

04:55 - Tue 16 December 2008 - comments {1}

Suprising week

This week started like any other. Nakita is being bullied at school, we have been into the school quite a few times but nothing seems to change. On Wednesday evening she had her school disco and she was sooo excited. She had a new dress and I did her hair for her and she really looked lovely.  By the time she got home she was in tears and very distressed. It would appear that the ringleaders spread a rumour around the whole year about Nakita that was humiliating and untrue and this resulted in everyone sniggering at her and avoiding her the whole night. So on Thursday I kept her home and went and saw the deputy head and demanded consequences for those involved. The one who started the rumour did at the end of the night apologize to Nakita and admit it wasn't true but that was one on one and the rest of the year still believed it ! She stayed home Friday too to give him a chance to sort it out and for the others to forget it and move on. Fingers crossed tomorrow goes ok and we get through to the end of term on Thursday without any more incidents !

Then on Friday I went to pick up Tallulah from school and, when we got home, my mum and stepdad were sat out on the front lawn. I had found out the night before but the girls had no clue so their faces were a picture. Mum and Mike have a house up in Subiaco about an hour north so will stay sometimes with us and other times at theirs which is a nice idea especially as the girls are at that 'difficult' age ! Luckily they brought the nice weather with them as it has been 35 degrees or more ever since and we've spent most of the time in the pool !! So long may they stay

05:30 - Sun 14 December 2008 - comments {0}

Orthodontist - part 2

05:37 - Tue 9 December 2008 - comments {0}

Trip away - Cervantes - day 3

We didn't fancy another day at the beach, well I didn't anyway, so on Monday we headed up to Geraldton stopping in Dongara on the way.

We met up with the emus again but one look at Paul and they were off and were fascinated with the landscape of massive sand dunes in the middle of bush and turquoise waters on the other side. Every now and again there would be a tin shack 'house' which looked incredibly isolated and that was it !

Dongara was definitely touristy but we didn't stop for long as it was about a three hour drive to Geraldton. When we got to Gero we wandered down the high street with the girls stopping in every tourist shop and then tried to find the shopping centre as we had promised them we would. After a long walk we gave up and headed for a cafe near the beach. The girls then ran through the water fountains before having a game of baseball with Paul before we headed off back to Cervantes.

Paul hated the driving and I have decided that I am not keen on these types of 'holiday' so we have now decided that weekends will be spent much closer to home and that we need to go for longer and have more flexibilty if we go further afield. A caravan it is then !

After a very early start the next day (6am) as workers were building right outside our unit we headed home. I never thought I'd ever be so pleased to see Mandurah. It no longer seems 'small town' in fact it seems practically cosmpolitan now !! Won't last long though !

03:48 - Thu 20 November 2008 - comments {1}

Trip away - Cervantes - day 2

On the second day we called into Lake Thetis on our way out as it was so close. They are part way through building a boardwalk to the stromatolites so we followed that and checked them out. They are the oldest 'living' thing in the world although they didn't seem to be doing a lot of 'living'  but what do I know.

We then headed off to Jurien Bay which was gorgeous. We will definitely be going back there that's for sure. The beach was beautiful and there were little cafes and shops dotted around, in fact we have decided to go back there for a week at some point and hire a house. The aussies don't really 'do' hotels favouring caravans, tents and chalets and it's not any wonder when you see the prices hotels charge. However I am not someone who can sleep in a tent so we are going to save really hard when we get a chance and get a caravan. Never thought I'd ever say that !!

We spent a good few hours battling the flies and then popped into Leeman (why ?? There was nothing there) and Green Head which looked like it may have a bit of life in tourist season before heading back to Cervantes and a bbq. On the way Paul had to brake to avoid two wild emus which he then chased down the road roadrunner style before they went off into the bush. Nakita was worried Paul was going to hit them but I think he was more worried about the damage they'd do to his ute !

03:34 - Thu 20 November 2008 - comments {0}

Trip away - Cervantes - day 1

Well I finally managed to persuade Paul to take some time off work to get away. In the two years we'd been here he's only had two days off !! So  booked a few nights in a hotel in Cervantes, a few hours north of Perth.

Saturday morning we left home at 9.30am and after a quick stop for a Body Shop delivery (and picked up a recruit !!) we prepared ourselves for the long drive.

We had to stop off at Gingin, one of the BS consultants had done a party though so I had to be nosy and check the place out. It was pretty with a lovely little church and set of shops and a cafe but the flies were bad so we didn't stop too long.

Next stop was the Pinnacles. These are wierd. They are like staligmites but made from limestone and rising up out of the sand. It was a very yellow sand. For $10 you can drive round them all and stop and have a look around. The girls chose to stay in the car but Paul and I wandered around for a bit swatting flies and battling the wind. Having sand blown in your face is a very good exfoliator I have found !!

We then stopped at Hangover Bay which was lovely - beautiful white sand and turquoise water (you can see why they call it the turquoise coast !)  and also Kangaroon Point (but not for long at the latter - between the dragonflies and the flies you could barely see anything !!)

We finally arrived at our hotel in Cervantes at 4.30pm, very hot, tired and hungry. The restaurant there was fabulous with lovely food but the pool was out of action for our stay - argh !!! Worse still, the social club across the road had a 21st birthday party which started at 8.30pm and lasted until 4.30 the next morning and came complete with the odd firework every now and again. 3 hours worth of sleep later Nakita woke up !!!

01:38 - Thu 20 November 2008 - comments {0}

Orthodontist

So this week we had our consultation with the orthodontist. I paid $120 for the two of them for a 5 min look at the x rays we'd had done and a quick look at their teeth, jaw alignment etc. Now it turns out that Nakita swallows wrong !! Not that I ever knew there was a right way, but most adults put their tongue to their mouth to swallow, unfortunately Nakita still puts her tongue to her teeth to swallow which is what babies do before they have teeth. The downside of this means that she is pushing her teeth out which is doubly bad as she still sucks her thumb too !!

Nakita's teeth are worse than Tallulahs, she is also missing two adult teeth which have never formed but the two that are there are coming down at an angle which is impacting her two adult top middle teeth which, if not corrected, will mean surgery. Gulp.

So we now have another appointment for November - $250 for them both to have moulds and more x rays done and then an apoointment in December for a consultation to agree a forward plan and costs. It's not going to be cheap that's for sure - minimum of 8 extractions and five implants for starters !

Tally of costs paid so far - $170

03:18 - Sat 18 October 2008 - comments {0}

swimming lessons

well the school hols are drawing to a close and the only thing the girls have managed to do is swimming lessons. Both Paul and I have been sick all through the holidays so they have been pretty lousy ones for the girls again. Hopefully the next holidays will be better - well it will be Christmas after all !

On the plus side Nakita passed her swimming badge so is onto the next stage and Tallulah passed two badges !! On the negative side all of their swimming stuff has lost all of it's colours due to the chemicals - I hate to think what it's done to the girls themselves !

03:02 - Sat 11 October 2008 - comments {0}

Perth Royal Show

Since landing in WA Nakita has begged every year to go to the Perth Royal Show. This is very similar to the Bath and West show but on a smaller scale and happens every year for a week at the end of September / beginning of October. We wish we'd agreed the first year when we had the money but ever since have said "not this year, we'll go next " So we finally caved in.

We had been warned that 1) the crowds are really bad and 2) it's as expensive as a holiday overseas !

Crowds - yes, true but similar to the Bath and West and ok by English standards, the Ozzies just aren't used to seeing so many people in one place. Getting there and back though was a doddle. We got the train up, changed at Perth to a train that stopped at the showgrounds, unfortunately it was packed when we got on and it did stop at every station between Perth and the showground for more pople (and buggys !!) to try and squeeze on. By the time we arrived we did look like a tin of sardines ! At the show it was easy to get in, we had prepurchased a ticket with a $6 saving but it looked like everyone else did too as this queue was the longest so we went into a queue to buy tickets for all of, ooh, 30 seconds and went straight through.Going home was even easier, the station is right outside the door and trains were leaving every 5 minutes or so. Easy peasy and all for $8.40 for two adults and 3 children !

Expensive - $54 for a prepurchased family ticket. I didn't think that was too bad but, when we got in, I did start to wonder exactly why we had to pay to get in as everything cost once you got in. Food was expensive, luckily we took our own food and drinks. There were rides there which are one of the highlights with each ride costing between $5 and $10 and a lot saying children had to be accompanied by an adult so the average ride for both children was $27 !! This would add up quickly and considerably. Then there's the showbags, the excitement and demand for showbags is incredible - I liken it to the Next sale ! Showbags are like goodie bags with lots of different things in them. For example a Cadbury show bag may have $20 of chocolate in for $10 and there may be another one with chocolate and a shoulder bag worth $40 in total for $20. The weekend before the show the national newspaper puts out a leaflet listing the hundreds of showbags available so you can choose before you go - nice of them. There were people laden down with showbags of all kinds, it has to be seen to be believed !

After having done lots of research before going we gave the girls a $50 budget - they could go on rides or buy showbags or food or whatever they wanted but had to stick to that budget. It worked really well as they all made the call that the rides weren't worth the money and instead ended up with loads of showbags ! Not one cent was spent over $50. I am glad we went, it really was an experience, but not one I would do in a hurry again. Could definitely put that money to use elsewhere.

Now I just need to find another excuse as to why we can't go to Adventure World again this year !

02:58 - Mon 29 September 2008 - comments {0}

..and the results are in.

We had Nakita tested for allergies a week ago as every now and again she gets covered in lumps like mossie bites which are really itchy and which she picks at leaving scars !

Turns out she is allergic to house dust, dust mites and cockroaches.

Help !!! That means I have to clean the house now !!

Paul decided to replace the loo in our ensuite as it was continually running, only to find it cemented to the floor so the floor tiles had to come up. He got a bit carried away and ended up removing everything bar the shower  !!!! So now my house is looking even worse (if that's possible) as he still hasn't finished the patio yet either (that's the outdoor roof area). Not like Paul to start lots of jobs and not finish them !

Luckily the weather is meant to be good next week so he won't be able to demolish anything else. However, I do need an ensuite I can use as it's a long walk to the other loo and bathroom - especially first thing in the morning when everyone is trying to get in.

09:41 - Sun 21 September 2008 - comments {0}

Definitely NOT Tallulah's week !

Poor Tallulah was identifed as potentially needing glasses a while back and, since then, her eyes have got worse so she now has glasses. We were dreading the bill but the opticians had a special offer on - buy one get one free for $268 and then, luckily, our health cover stumped up all but $68 so that was a pleasant suprise. Also, Tallulah adores her teacher who wears glasses so she thinks it's all quite cool really. Fingers crossed she doesn't stand or sit on them or lose them !!!

A couple of weeks ago the government introduced a new scheme for teenagers (12 and above) whereby they got a $150 voucher for a check up at the dentist. As you have to pay for all dental work for children, not many actually go and the school dentist only sees them once every two years and that isn't a proper dentist but a dental nurse. So to try and stem the problems with peoples teeth the government introduced this scheme for teenagers whose parents earn less than a specific amount. Our voucher came through a week or so ago and today it was Tallulahs date with my dentist. He was quite concerned that she still had two baby teeth that she should have lost at around 8 years old as well as another two she should have lost at 10 years old. After a bit of wangling they managed to agree to a free all round x ray and this showed up that on one side she is missing an adult tooth and the other the tooth is coming down at an angle. This is fairly rare at about 3% of people and is genetic (thanks Paul !)  so we had Nakita x rayed to see what is happening with her and will find out tomorrow. Tallulah now needs to be referred to an orthadontist (sp?) to see what can be done as it is the worst scenario that could have happened and we'll find out tomorrow if Nakita needs a referral too.  The worst bit of all this ? The cost - $s of dollars we are talking here which we just don't have nor can get hold of - there is no equity in the house and no space on the visa bill. But, on the other hand, I am glad we found out now and not any later so thanks to the government !

05:36 - Tue 9 September 2008 - comments {0}

Nakita's week

Well this definitely was Nakita's week.

On Friday it was the faction carnival aka sports day. Tallulah was in lots of races - 100m, 100m relay, 75m hurdles and most other sports too. Nakita, as far as we were aware was only in shot put, javelin (very risky for a dyspraxic child !!) and tug-of-war. They both wanted me to watch all day but I managed to negotiate just the afternoon. A lot of parents do go all day, they take chairs and an esky full of food and settle themselves down for the day ! The races are run along the lines of the Olympics, very professional commentary, bronze, silver and gold medals and are taken seriously with children putting in mximum effort.  However, by the time I got there Nakita had run 75m and come second .... and I missed it !! Needless to say she was very chuffed with herself. Tallulah, unfortunately, didn't come in the top four for any of her races but she has been put up a division in each race as she has finally realised that she can run !!

Today was Father's Day and, yet again, the church put on a spectacular amusement arcade theme. Paul was dragged to church and the girls had to dress up as super heroes - Nakita was Wonder woman and Tallulah was James (aka Jane!) Bond ! Last week they had to draw a picture of a super hero for an art competition and the winners were announced today. Nakita came first in the over 10 catagory !! Yayyyyy Nakita !! She won two tickets for the cinema. So we have a very happy Nakita at the end of this week - quite different to last week. Let's hope these events build up her self confidence and she remembers them !

The sun is back most days now and is lovely to see and feel. Paul is still spending every spare moment on the patio and yet still it's not finished, nor are the pictures up in the house (well it has only been nearly two years !) the retic hasn't been mended and the 'to do list' of jobs around the house is ever growing. Considering there are only a couple of months left before he down tools until winter due to the heat I'm not exactly a happy bunny but, as Paul says, I never am !!!

06:23 - Sun 7 September 2008 - comments {0}

Citizenship test

They changed the rules just after we landed so that you have to live here for 4 years before you can apply to become a citizen but we still only have to do two !

Before you can apply you have to sit a multiple choice test in Perth so Paul and I trundled off last Monday after having revised for weeks - this is no easy test and, if it wasn't multiple choice I wouldn't stand a chance. In fact when they tested it on the Aussies they failed !! Luckily there is a low pass rate too of 60%.

I passed with 100% and Paul got 90%. Paul started to tell me that he'd had harder questions but I had the same ones as he got wrong so that didn't wash ! Still, we both passed which is the main thing as Paul had to take a day off and now just have to wait until 30th August before we can apply for our citizenship.

02:20 - Wed 13 August 2008 - comments {0}

Summers coming !

We have now had sunny days for the last few weeks with no hint of rain, at last !! It is still a bit nippy during the day though and cold at night especially as we are now out of wood for the woodburner !!

I currently have 2 or 3 Body Shop parties a week and the last 6 Sunday afternoons have been parties so, this weekend, Paul decided to take Nakita out in the kayak. Other than putting the kayaks in at the wrong place and Nakita getting stuck on the rocks, it seems they had a fabulous time so this may be a regular thing in the summer. Not sure how we are going to go with only two kayaks as, I am sure, Paul and Nakita will head off never to be seen again leaving Tallulah and I twiddling our thumbs ! Nakita's arms are still hurting her though three days later so she may have to build up her arm muscles !!

Tallulah has decided that she is fat  and, luckily, has decided that she loves her food too much so is going to become more active. She already does hip hop but has now joined the scouts too. She also forced me to let her do swimming lessons in the school hols. Swimming lessons here during hols are called Vac swim and cost $1 a day (they go every day of the hols) plus pool entry so that's a total of $4 a day - equivalent of approx 2 pounds a day so I booked them both in despite Nakitas protests. I have also booked them in for the summer hols. Here in Mandurah they offer lessons in the sea for the total sum of $1 a day but Tallulah is still scared of sharks so they'll be back in the pool - she may regret that when the temps are in the 40s !!!

So you'll know the olympics are on. We are lucky in that Bejing are on the same timezone as us so we watch it quite a bit for the first time ever. This is definitely a sporting nation though, yesterday I went to the dentist and it was on in the waiting room (the fish tank had been removed) and each dentists room. I rang the beauty shop to book the facial with voucher Debs gave me for my birthday and I could hear it in the background too. We have been warned though that the Aussies are biased towards their country so you may miss the final of something as they'll cut to the ceremony if the Aussies win a medal. Not seen that as yet except in the gymnastics where they didn't show the last two teams as the Aussies had performed !! Still, it is good living in a nation where they win lots of medals !

02:10 - Wed 13 August 2008 - comments {1}

Christmas in July, well August.

Over here quite a few people celebrate Christmas in July which I thought was wierd until this year.

The weather is cold, the television is showing Christmas episodes of all the American programmes (that's all of them then) and you just do feel Christmassy - I have even caught myself singing carols !

Last night a good friend, Karen and her two girls Molly and Alice, invited us all over for Christmas dinner. We had the full works - nut roast, mash, boiled potatoes, green beans, sprouts, carrots, peas, cauliflower cheese, yorkshire pudding and gravy etc etc followed by home made pavlova and chocolate log. She had even put up a little Christmas tree and we all had presents under the tree. It was absolutely fabulous and felt just right ! I think we will make this a regular thing now, every year, Christmas in winter. Not sure if Paul will let me put the lights up though ! I will have to make sure we get extra crackers this year to put away.

Karen had just had her cinema room all fitted out so we then sat and watched Polar Express on the cinema screen with surround sound. What a fab night !

01:07 - Sun 3 August 2008 - comments {0}

school hols

We have just had two weeks school hols in the middle of winter and what a difference the Body Shop makes !! Instead oif staying in every day we were able to get out and about a lot. We visited an old work colleague, Lucy, from AXA who lives in Tapping, about an hour and a half north of us, we went up by train and she picked us up from the station so all very stress free and great fun. She has a son who is lovely and always seems to be smiling and the girls just love him so they even enjoyed themselves.

We also went up to Rockingham for a spot of shopping, Lucy had given me two free passes for the cinema so the girls went to see a film whilst I food shopped so everyone was happy once again !! There were sleepovers at ours and the girls went to other peoples so barely a day went by withoust something happening.

We went up to Perth one day with Karen and her girls and the kids were able to pick up a 'kids pass'. This enabled Nakita to have a couple of slides down a ski (man made snow, obviously) slide on a rubber ring (Tallulah was too tall) and Nakita also had a session throwing snowballs. There were lots of other things they could do too but we didn't have the time unfortunately. We went to Scitech (a bit like @ Bristol but smaller) and ended up getting an annual pass as it was so easy to get to and will enable us to have free trips for a year and we also did a spot of shopping much to Tallulah's excitement !

Karen had both girls for us one night so Paul and I went out for a lovely meal - we have finally found a restaurant we both like - shame it's pricey !! She is having them again for us on Saturday night but Paul has had his annual night out now so not too keen. I am still working on him !

Another night I had a girley movie night with a few friends, drinks and nibbles. We watched Shirley Valentine followed by Calendar Girls and it was a great night.

In between time I have managed to paint Tallulah's room and we are now just waiting for Paul to finish off the flooring and noticeboard so she can move back in and I can clean and repair the spare room !

Back to life with a vengence now. I hadn't booked many Body Shop parties in for July as I wanted time with the girls but now find I have 9 for August and September, October and November will now be mad due to Christmas. I need to start getting some early nights !

08:30 - Wed 23 July 2008 - comments {0}

Finally school hols

School terms here run for approx 10 weeks without a break so by the end it is a struggle to roll out of bed !! Twice this last week Nakita was late for school as she couldn't get herself ready. It looks like this may be a common thing as they are changing the school hours again next term so that they start 10 minutes later (8.40am) and no early close. I always forget that they finish early at 1.50 on a Thursday (have even left them there waiting quite a while before realizing !), what's the betting that now they finish the same time every day I show up early on Thursdays !!

Anyway, I'm sure I've mentioned before that Tallulah is taught dancesport at school. This is really ballroom dancing to hip hop music and the kids love it. Every year they have a social dance in the evening showing off their talents and having a party, however, due to the industrial action being taken by some of the teachers, this year it was cancelled (as well as the school camp, graduation, excursions etc etc - cheers teachers !!!!!!!) so they had a mini afternoon performance. As it rained early on, Paul was home so we both were able to go and watch. It was awesome what they had learnt. They had all the old time dances off pat to modern music and 'line dancing' consisted of hip hop moves to rap style songs whilst in a line.  They all danced with a partner which was quite funny as a lot of the boys were small and the girls mostly tall and there was obviously more boys than girls !! At the end the parents had to join in ........ lucky Paul was there really !!

Anyway, school all over for another term, hols are now in full flow. We have trips lined up to visit friends and the museum and I have promised to decorate Tallulahs bedroom which is no mean feat as the shower leaks into that room !! So no rest or chill days here....will I ever learn !!

09:14 - Sun 6 July 2008 - comments {0}

Kids

Well Tallulah came home with another merit certificate last week. These are not given out lightly, there's no PC here with teachers making sure everyone gets rewarded... you have to work very hard for them. Nakita has never received one which upsets her every week !!

Tallulah's read " For consistently producing work of a high standard. Your brilliant independent and time management skills are a fine example for your peers to follow. Keep up the huge effort ". I was a very proud mummy depsite the fact that it isn't cool for me to be so !!

This weekend has highlighted how they are growing up. Tallulah disappeared off out Saturday afternoon for a fancy dress party and won't be coming home until Monday after school ! Nakita had a friend over Friday evening and then waltzed off to the beach with another friend and her family at 9 o'clock this morning not to be seen until tea time - what a life and pretty good for a winters day !

Weather is now lovely - warm days and cold nights but the wood burner makes things cosy now Paul has worked out how to light it !! Still I'll be happy when Spring gets here.

02:48 - Sun 22 June 2008 - comments {0}

Winter

So winter is finally here and don't we know it !! Each week we now seem to get about four days of sunshine and three of wind and rain. When I say rain, it's never a drizzle but a torrential downpour that floods the garage (until we can get the alfresco roof up this will always happen !) and the wind takes roofs off houses !!

As our house is 16 years old, single glazed with no form of heating and drafts everywhere it does seem to be colder inside than out - in fact if it wasn't for the price of petrol I'd sit in my car with the heater on all the time !! However, a little while ago Paul bought a wood burner and decided to place it in front of a window so needed a building licence to block up the window. Last week he submitted the application and was told it would take at least a month to approve, fantastic, just what we need, especially as it has turned really cold now (about 18 degrees day time and 8 degrees at night which I know doesn't sound cold but anything less than 25 degrees now has me shivering). So Paul decided to install the fire without bricking up the window yesterday. All went well with the exception of the fact that he was unable to start a fire that stayed lit !! So today he is still practicing .... he should have been in the scouts !!

02:49 - Sun 15 June 2008 - comments {0}