Ok, so I have had a lot of things just going through my head and things that have happened. So here goes the data dump!
I got my first ant bite a few weeks ago. Right between my shoulder blades under my bra strap. Happened in the girls change room at the school pool. I managed to pin it with my finger, hollering, "Ant, Ant!" One of the other moms came right over and helped to squish it. Nasty buggers. Feels like a bee sting. No wonder the kids start to holler for ice when they get nailed by one (or more) of them!
Declared war on the cockroaches and ants again. These things are nasty and hard to get rid of. The pest control guy said they nest in motors, such as dishwashers and washing machines. Two guesses where I have been finding the damn things! He put out bait and sprayed for ants. I also bought some outdoor ant bait. Great stuff! They swarm it and die in a few days. Found the cockroach in the garage that has been evading my shoe for the last couple of weeks. Dying on his back with legs waving! We will be sorting through the boxes, repacking, and putting in mothballs. Great things, mothballs!
Ian put on a pair of chino pants he hasn't worn in a few months. They are seriously highwater on him! He also "dove" off the pool staring block and swam to the side ladder to get out all by himself! He is still talking about his birthday party. It was a serious hit!
Last weekend of swim season. Yay! Friday night usual meet and Saturday night was the age championships. Annika set a personal best in freestyle Saturday night, Alex set freestyle personal bests both on Friday and then again on Saturday! She now qualifies to swim the special event races-100m various strokes at the start of the Friday night swims. Wednesday night is trophy night and Thursday after school is pool party. Long and busy week swimming here!
There is a lashing rainstorm that just crashed through. Lightening, thunder, tons of rain. Glad laptops run on battery power. Just shut down the main computer and unplugged from the wall as the power is blinking already. It is pretty awesome! Very loud and bright.
I'm teaching the Chinese language class the last week of school this term and the first week of term 2. And, no, I don't know Chinese! I do know the kids in most of the classes now and they wanted me because I "can handle just about anything that comes my way." I will also be doing 2 days a week in a 4th grade class for the rest of the year! I'll be working with/for the teacher I did half of 3rd term for last year. She asked for me! So excited!
Lyle turned down the job offer from Newcastle. On the other hand, he is spending nearly every week there! Glad this week and next are both 4 day weeks with public holidays on Good Friday and the Monday after Easter. The kids also have 2 weeks off for the end of term break. They need to catch up on their sleep! The two youngers are crabby. Course, Alex is too, but we chalk that up to almost 13!
We got sad news from Wenatchee this morning. Our timeshare dog, Happy, passed away last week. He was 14 1/2 years old and kept going until the end. We are all sad to hear this, but fondly remember getting to keep him when his mom and dad were out of town. He would trade nights sleeping with the girls, often banging his head on the underside of the top bunk when he hopped in with Annika! He would also try to sleep with us, hogging most of the bed, until he got evicted and went to the girls. Loved having him escape his yard and come to our front door barking to be let in to play! Miss you Happy Dog.
On a good note, found an Ugg outlet shop. Boots for Alex, slippers for me! If you must have a pair, let me know your shoe size and style you are looking for! They also carry the Emu line, so if you know and must have, drop me an email.
Love you all!
Sunday, March 24, 2013
Sunday, March 17, 2013
Birthday Boy!
The much anticipated 6th birthday has arrived! Ian has been wild about his Pirate Party and the park around the corner-locally called Pirate Park because of the big ship built there! We invited all of the boys in his class plus a couple he is still buddies with from last year's class.
So, birthday morning started with the usual swimming lessons, minus his favorite teacher who was out sick. Sad face! Rachel, Alex's friend, joined us for the day to help out. She and Alex had planned the pirate treasure hunt for the kids, so figured they would want to lead it as well!
Once we got back, I got baking cupcakes in ice cream cones and ship biscuits with worms (cinnamon scones with mini chocolate chips!). The kids loved both! Lots of cut fruit, cheese and crackers, dips and cold juice boxes and water. It was a warm afternoon-about 85 degrees with "abundant sunshine" as they say in the weather reports! Passed out the sunblock and bug spray and they were off!
Lyle led the newspaper hat folding as the boys arrived. Once they were all here, we handed out eye patches and swords, and they were off for their hunt! Alex and Rachel had 2 teams that as they charged all over the park they collected clues and parts of the map. Once each team had their pieces, they came together and checked the map, and headed back. Those Raiders of the Lost Ark fans-you know the scene where Indy is being chased by the headhunters as they come over the hills by the river? Yeah, that was them. We could hear them coming through the trees well before we saw them, then they break through, streaming in a line back towards the ship. Hysterical! The treasure box held gem rings, gold necklaces, uncut gems (bright chocolate Easter Eggs!) and plenty of pirate gold coins (chocolate too!). The hunt was a blast!
We handed out cold drinks and eats to the hot and sweaty kids, sang for the Birthday Boy, ate some more, and played pirate until parents came back to claim their sweaty boys! Arr, Matey!
So, birthday morning started with the usual swimming lessons, minus his favorite teacher who was out sick. Sad face! Rachel, Alex's friend, joined us for the day to help out. She and Alex had planned the pirate treasure hunt for the kids, so figured they would want to lead it as well!
Once we got back, I got baking cupcakes in ice cream cones and ship biscuits with worms (cinnamon scones with mini chocolate chips!). The kids loved both! Lots of cut fruit, cheese and crackers, dips and cold juice boxes and water. It was a warm afternoon-about 85 degrees with "abundant sunshine" as they say in the weather reports! Passed out the sunblock and bug spray and they were off!
Lyle led the newspaper hat folding as the boys arrived. Once they were all here, we handed out eye patches and swords, and they were off for their hunt! Alex and Rachel had 2 teams that as they charged all over the park they collected clues and parts of the map. Once each team had their pieces, they came together and checked the map, and headed back. Those Raiders of the Lost Ark fans-you know the scene where Indy is being chased by the headhunters as they come over the hills by the river? Yeah, that was them. We could hear them coming through the trees well before we saw them, then they break through, streaming in a line back towards the ship. Hysterical! The treasure box held gem rings, gold necklaces, uncut gems (bright chocolate Easter Eggs!) and plenty of pirate gold coins (chocolate too!). The hunt was a blast!
We handed out cold drinks and eats to the hot and sweaty kids, sang for the Birthday Boy, ate some more, and played pirate until parents came back to claim their sweaty boys! Arr, Matey!
Sunday, March 10, 2013
That Yellow Orb in the Sky?
It's called the SUN and it has been out more than hidden by rain clouds this week! Wahoo! Temps are hitting 80 most days with early morning and afternoon showers (of course most hit at school pick up-Murphy works really well in Australia too) that are more typical of summer here. The temps are actually a bit low, but I will not complain about that at all! As of March 1 we are officially in Autumn, but mother nature is slow to get the hints.
Busy week this week. The P & C (AUS version of the PTA) is doing their Easter Raffle. Yep, you can call a religious holiday by it's real name here. No Spring Raffle when it is going to happen right before the EASTER holiday school break! There has been plenty of drama about it though. I get the feeling there is always drama to some extent, but this has gotten to "have a beer and laugh about it" proportions. The Executive board resigned a month before their terms were really up-I think they were supposed to go out in April and jumped the gun. Needless to say, no one was at the meeting where this happened to be elected into the vacant positions. The board was then informed they cannot vacate the positions as the After School Care group, by law, HAS to have a board to report to. Nice Try Guys! At any rate, the raffle is back on track. I floated the idea last year to try a theme basket raffle, similar to what Washington Elementary does in Wenatchee for silent auction time. Every class picks a theme and then contributes items to make a nice prize. Just so you know, I volunteered to coordinate with the staff, P&C, and make sure it all came together last year. I was told they would get back to me as they needed to think it over-new idea and all. No one ever got back to me, so the next thing the fundraising team knows we are getting an email from the coordinator asking if we should cancel the thing since nothing is happening! Needless to say, I was pissed and let her know-nicely. And replied all on the email. Ha!
Raffle is coming together nicely now. Amazing what the ladies can do when we know something needs to get done!
Ian's birthday is Saturday! Big 6! The pirate party will be a hit I am sure. We will take pictures and get some up next week.
Ian and I have been hit with a bug the last few days. Yuck! He had to miss swimming Saturday morning and the school disco Saturday night. Annika had a great time, but came and told me 10 minutes before it was over that she was tired and wanted to go home. Wow! She went right to bed and crashed out in seconds.
Lyle is working 4 days in Newcastle as the 2 weeks on 1 week in the office never did pan out. The week at home turned into 2 days down there and 1 day up in Gladstone. So, plan B. He has now traveled 7 weeks straight as I will not count the off week that didn't happen as a home week. The next several weeks look to be the same, but having him home on Thursday evening was such a nice change! It makes Friday night much easier to know he will be home to take Ian and relax with him while the girls and I hit the pool for swim club. Only 2 more weeks of swimming to go!
I'm working all 5 days this week (as long as no one else gets this bug!) in grade 4, 4/5 combined, and grade 1-2 special ed. Pam was able to get me a 1 week contract since I am working all days at 1 school, which is appreciated as it adds a bit to my pay as well.
We also bought tickets to go home and visit family! We are skipping the Vancouver/Portland legs this year as that added 3 days of driving and the kids really want/need to see their grandparents. Lyle's dad is in a rehab facility right now recovering from an infection. We hope to know more after he sees a neurologist this week about what is going on and when he can be transitioned home. Alex really wants to go to the gun range with Baba and try out more shotguns and Ian wants to see his shotgun in action. We also have to test out the new camper and hope to get up to Grandjean for a fews days. Thinking the grandparents can take the kids, and Lyle and I will take a tent to the other side of the campground? If you must know the dates, send me an email, FB message, or give my dad a call. We are super looking forward to going home for a couple of weeks!
Love you all!
Gayle
Busy week this week. The P & C (AUS version of the PTA) is doing their Easter Raffle. Yep, you can call a religious holiday by it's real name here. No Spring Raffle when it is going to happen right before the EASTER holiday school break! There has been plenty of drama about it though. I get the feeling there is always drama to some extent, but this has gotten to "have a beer and laugh about it" proportions. The Executive board resigned a month before their terms were really up-I think they were supposed to go out in April and jumped the gun. Needless to say, no one was at the meeting where this happened to be elected into the vacant positions. The board was then informed they cannot vacate the positions as the After School Care group, by law, HAS to have a board to report to. Nice Try Guys! At any rate, the raffle is back on track. I floated the idea last year to try a theme basket raffle, similar to what Washington Elementary does in Wenatchee for silent auction time. Every class picks a theme and then contributes items to make a nice prize. Just so you know, I volunteered to coordinate with the staff, P&C, and make sure it all came together last year. I was told they would get back to me as they needed to think it over-new idea and all. No one ever got back to me, so the next thing the fundraising team knows we are getting an email from the coordinator asking if we should cancel the thing since nothing is happening! Needless to say, I was pissed and let her know-nicely. And replied all on the email. Ha!
Raffle is coming together nicely now. Amazing what the ladies can do when we know something needs to get done!
Ian's birthday is Saturday! Big 6! The pirate party will be a hit I am sure. We will take pictures and get some up next week.
Ian and I have been hit with a bug the last few days. Yuck! He had to miss swimming Saturday morning and the school disco Saturday night. Annika had a great time, but came and told me 10 minutes before it was over that she was tired and wanted to go home. Wow! She went right to bed and crashed out in seconds.
Lyle is working 4 days in Newcastle as the 2 weeks on 1 week in the office never did pan out. The week at home turned into 2 days down there and 1 day up in Gladstone. So, plan B. He has now traveled 7 weeks straight as I will not count the off week that didn't happen as a home week. The next several weeks look to be the same, but having him home on Thursday evening was such a nice change! It makes Friday night much easier to know he will be home to take Ian and relax with him while the girls and I hit the pool for swim club. Only 2 more weeks of swimming to go!
I'm working all 5 days this week (as long as no one else gets this bug!) in grade 4, 4/5 combined, and grade 1-2 special ed. Pam was able to get me a 1 week contract since I am working all days at 1 school, which is appreciated as it adds a bit to my pay as well.
We also bought tickets to go home and visit family! We are skipping the Vancouver/Portland legs this year as that added 3 days of driving and the kids really want/need to see their grandparents. Lyle's dad is in a rehab facility right now recovering from an infection. We hope to know more after he sees a neurologist this week about what is going on and when he can be transitioned home. Alex really wants to go to the gun range with Baba and try out more shotguns and Ian wants to see his shotgun in action. We also have to test out the new camper and hope to get up to Grandjean for a fews days. Thinking the grandparents can take the kids, and Lyle and I will take a tent to the other side of the campground? If you must know the dates, send me an email, FB message, or give my dad a call. We are super looking forward to going home for a couple of weeks!
Love you all!
Gayle
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
100th post!
Amazing, but I have to point out that I have now written 100 blogs! Bit of a milestone. And moving on.
The rain continues to be absolutely shocking. It is measured daily in our equivalent of inches fallen. The minimum for our area the last week has been 1/2 inch, the max near 1 1/2 inches. It has varied from slight drizzle to flooding the front yard in half an hour as the drain is plugged with toad or lizard housing materials. The creek we drive over to get to school is overflowing into the golf course again. The sand traps have serious water erosion on the banks, or have become water hazards themselves! This has been one of the wettest summers in over a decade-I think the drought is safely over-and is what I have been told is a more typical summer. But cooler. I shudder to think what it would be like with over 85 degree days and all this water. Temps have been in the low 80's and they are welcome to stay there!
March 1 is the official start of Autumn in the Southern Hemisphere. I am so looking forward to winter! Dry and sunny with highs in the low to mid 70's is my idea of heaven!
The weekly round up-swimming last Friday was a good night for both girls. Annika's times have started dropping back to where she started this term. The coach and I agreed she needs a bit more individual attention and will be coming back to the Saturday morning pre-squad group and just 1 day after school. I think she was just so tired by the end of the week there wasn't any gas in the tank to sprint down the pool! Alex has been hovering around her personal best times and not quite getting them down. She's enjoying the time with her friends that have moved onto other high schools, so that is the big draw right now. And the fact she just enjoys swimming! Ian had a 1:1 martial arts lesson on Wednesday as the rain kept many kids away. He was thrilled and the teacher was a delight to watch interact with him. He knows his stuff (but is shaky with his English) and Ian loved kicking the pads and practicing a kick somersault combo.
I got to work in a grade 1 classroom that shares space with Ian's class. We had a blast! I enjoy the smaller kids in limited doses. 2 days is about right! One of the little girls has serious sensory issues and me being there really disrupted her routine. Mom was able to leave after 1/2 hour (finally) and she started to settle in. I won her over during handwriting when I let her write on my back with her finger-even let me do it to her as well! HUGE deal for a kid like that! I'll be putting on the mom hat a lot this week to help pull together the Easter Raffle. Tickets, getting the classes involved, getting info out to parents, etc. I enjoy doing projects like this!
Lyle is STILL waiting to hear what the offer is going to be. He is scheduled to be on the road again this next week, with nothing scheduled yet. Bet that won't last past Monday! This makes basically 6 weeks in a row. I can't count the week he was supposed to be home as he still ended up down there for 2 days and a day trip up to Gladstone. We continue to live our life and enjoy the moment. It is really all we can do anyway!
As promised some pics of Alex at camp. Tunneling and sticking out her tongue and climbing what is called The Giants Playground. It's about 50-60 feet tall and she did the WHOLE thing! Way to go girl!
The rain continues to be absolutely shocking. It is measured daily in our equivalent of inches fallen. The minimum for our area the last week has been 1/2 inch, the max near 1 1/2 inches. It has varied from slight drizzle to flooding the front yard in half an hour as the drain is plugged with toad or lizard housing materials. The creek we drive over to get to school is overflowing into the golf course again. The sand traps have serious water erosion on the banks, or have become water hazards themselves! This has been one of the wettest summers in over a decade-I think the drought is safely over-and is what I have been told is a more typical summer. But cooler. I shudder to think what it would be like with over 85 degree days and all this water. Temps have been in the low 80's and they are welcome to stay there!
March 1 is the official start of Autumn in the Southern Hemisphere. I am so looking forward to winter! Dry and sunny with highs in the low to mid 70's is my idea of heaven!
The weekly round up-swimming last Friday was a good night for both girls. Annika's times have started dropping back to where she started this term. The coach and I agreed she needs a bit more individual attention and will be coming back to the Saturday morning pre-squad group and just 1 day after school. I think she was just so tired by the end of the week there wasn't any gas in the tank to sprint down the pool! Alex has been hovering around her personal best times and not quite getting them down. She's enjoying the time with her friends that have moved onto other high schools, so that is the big draw right now. And the fact she just enjoys swimming! Ian had a 1:1 martial arts lesson on Wednesday as the rain kept many kids away. He was thrilled and the teacher was a delight to watch interact with him. He knows his stuff (but is shaky with his English) and Ian loved kicking the pads and practicing a kick somersault combo.
I got to work in a grade 1 classroom that shares space with Ian's class. We had a blast! I enjoy the smaller kids in limited doses. 2 days is about right! One of the little girls has serious sensory issues and me being there really disrupted her routine. Mom was able to leave after 1/2 hour (finally) and she started to settle in. I won her over during handwriting when I let her write on my back with her finger-even let me do it to her as well! HUGE deal for a kid like that! I'll be putting on the mom hat a lot this week to help pull together the Easter Raffle. Tickets, getting the classes involved, getting info out to parents, etc. I enjoy doing projects like this!
Lyle is STILL waiting to hear what the offer is going to be. He is scheduled to be on the road again this next week, with nothing scheduled yet. Bet that won't last past Monday! This makes basically 6 weeks in a row. I can't count the week he was supposed to be home as he still ended up down there for 2 days and a day trip up to Gladstone. We continue to live our life and enjoy the moment. It is really all we can do anyway!
As promised some pics of Alex at camp. Tunneling and sticking out her tongue and climbing what is called The Giants Playground. It's about 50-60 feet tall and she did the WHOLE thing! Way to go girl!
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