Friday, November 27, 2009

Hold Your Hats

I know - posting twice in a week!!!

But that is because Eddie has done something twice this week.


The first was on Sunday.

'Salina and I had gone down to the beach for a swim. V finished painting her room and then came down to join us. As my burn threshhold is set to something well prior to theirs, I returned first.

(BTW - V's threshhold was about 1/2 an hour before he thought it was. 'Salina has inherited the sort of genes from either her auntie or her father that sort of only hits red in direst of circumstances OR under her eyes.)

(That was an aside. I have an "aside" habit.)

Anyhow, I returned to wash off some salt and sand, and about to head towards the stairs that lead to the back door, spied Eddie playing with something.

Something long and thin - and still moving...

I got close enough to identify "snake" (albeit obviously a baby, but I can be a bit of a baby about snakes) and then scarpered back to the front steps and locked all doors - Eddie has a habit of bringing his playthings in to the house, and frankly this is the sort of sport I would like to discourage - especially in this particular instance.

I was thoughtful enough to text my husband and child, warning them of the danger...

When they returned, we found Eddie had sported a fair bit of the play out of it (although not to death, so he isn't a felon - yet. Apparently snakes are all protected species)

I handed V the long-handled tongs and armed myself with the camera and the poor blighter was captured (in the laundry - enough incentive to neglect my new toy for a few hours) and released back into the wilds of across the road.

As you saw from my photo, I wasn't very brave in getting close-up shots!



So fast-forward to today. I was working from home, and V came home from work early. He went downstairs to grab some coke - and found Eddie in the garage with a new toy. Another snake.

This one definitely still at a far livelier stage of play, and at the appearance of V made a move to escape. The best hiding spot he could see was a pile of bags (containing 'Salina's worldly possessions, as her room is being painted and recarpeted) and so he scampered.

Eddie contemplated a chase, but V with a broom dissuaded him. Eddie eventually came to where I was (by now by the back stairs after a yell to "come hold Eddie" from V).

V - with trusty rake - started sorting through the bags. Finally, in one (filled with painting supplies and canvasses) he struck gold, and manouvred it to the front lawn. He upended the contents and the snake did an excellent job of hiding under everything until there was nothing left to hide under - so he turned to go back into the bag - rake stopped him.

Then her looked at what was holding the rake and decided he would chase that instead. (insert girly scream from wife here)

V did a dance with the snake and the rake until the snake saw a garden bed to hide in.


So - guess which garden bed will NOT be weeded this afternoon? And guess who WON'T be doing it?

See - that is better than belly stories.


oh, and for those who want asides - the first snake was - we believe - a yellow-bellied black snake - or for those who like their snakes less fancy, a common tree snake. Perfectly harmless unless you are a frog.

Today's snake was either one of them OR it could have been a whip snake. Potentially poisonous. V thinks the former - not for the venom aspect, but because the whip snake reaches only 80cm, and he thinks this one was HUGE!!

If it is the former - the fact that we have a nest somewhere for Eddie to forage freaks me out.

Oh - and if YOU want to freak out to local snakes, here is a link...

Thursday, November 26, 2009

Guess What?

On the weekend we:

  • got our new washing machine!!!
  • 'Salina's team won 12-1 in softball
  • went swimming at the beach
  • came home to a present from Eddie
  • ate well
  • and didn't have a baby


I have nearly finished all work projects (and associated bookwork) so I am about to inform my boss I am going on maternity leave - I believe there is some nesting to do.

Friday, November 20, 2009

27ish weeks

Very, very, very, very, very slack, I know.

Didn't even get here on the right day for a weekly photo update.

Am meant to be slowing down and "nesting" aren't I?

Just that every day seems to fill up with those "few little things to do" and once I do those few little things, I hardly have time to contemplate my nest.

Today we are doing another push on painting 'Salina's room, buying (and hopefully receiving delivery of) a new washing machine, getting the baby's carseat installed, trying to fix a few little "improvements" on my last big worky thing (and being on call for their meeting if they need any questions answered), trying to fix a nasty gordonian knot in one of my last little worky things and trying to finish my other last little worky thing... Its a good thing that I have 28 up to 27 days (perhaps) to fit all that other nest stuff in, eh?

Anyhow - photo and sign out...





Thursday, November 12, 2009

36 weeks - that is still a month to go!!!

Firstly - a big HOO-BLODDY-RAY I have finished the project that has been my life for the last few weeks!!

Only got a few tiny tasks to tie up before I am officially on maternity leave (ha ha ha ha ha - self-employed = doing sweet fa and getting paid accordingly) - and then I plan to:
  • Rip up the carpet in 'Salina's room (which has been cleared of clutter in anticipation of this move for a few weeks now...)
  • Paint and recarpet 'Salina's room (well - supervise V and 'Salina doing so)
  • Rearrange furniture throughout the house so the office becomes the bedroom, the bedroom becomes the nursery and the spare room becomes the office (see above)
  • Get carseats installed in the vehicles
  • Clean the house, room by room (so that I can leave it another year - I am a blitz cleaner, not a housekeeper)
  • Organise Christmas for the family
  • Work out what I need for baby that may be missing from what I got
  • Get fit (ha ha ha ha ha)
  • Get my head around the fact that I am going to have a baby
  • Pack a hospital bag
  • Nest
  • Rest

So you see, I am going to need all of that month.

You can hardly tell this is a pregnant woman, can you?

Still, very hard to get past me in a narrow corridor if I haven't lined up quite right.

The most agonising part of the whole body change thing I am going through.. (oh, and I did book a wax for next week so the fat legs above the cankles can shimmer instead of stun)

The one I prepared earlier...

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

This whinge is brought to you by the letter I

You would think, after a near all-nighter the other night and brain-drain yesterday, when I flaked in bed at 9.40pm last night, I would stay there, wouldn't you?

I mean, it is what NORMAL people do, isn't it?

But no, insomnia came along and whispered to me at 10.00pm. Yes, so tired I dropped off and got a whole 20 MINUTES before I woke!!

By 10.30, I gave up. The good news is that I got a heap of housework done and caught up on a taped show that otherwise would have been buried before watching.

I didn't turn on the 'puter, because I knew that my brain wasn't quite up to logicking and therefore worktime would be wasted.

I got back to bed at 12 - but not before accidentally leaving a window open to allow Eddie to sneak out.

That would mean that my Eddie alarm-clock had been deactivated for the morning, but unfortunately couldn't turn off the old sun one, which is now set for 1/4 to 5...

So today - I am still on this last job... It should be rolled so quickly, but then one little problem emerges and it can take hours to pinpoint.

I do have high hopes of finishing today - although of course I have to go out twice for school things and V is home, which is NOT conducive to coding (love him dearly, don't need someone to offer me a rub or cuppa while trying to figure loops and breakpoints).

Then all I have to do is rearrange the house, clean, get Christmas gifts, install car seats, finalise stuff for end of year at school, pack a bag and get my head around having another child - after that, the baby is allowed out but NOT BEFORE.

Might even try and squeeze in that whole get fit, get beautiful and organise world peace while I am at it!!!

(Speaking of which - BB sent me a pic of the well-turned ankle - see end of post...)

I think it has turned - kicks are in different part, but still fairly transverse. I caved and bought a few mangoes yesterday (still cannot justify to my inner miser the $2.50 price tag) and am going to dole judiciously. V doesn't like them - unfortunately I taught 'Salina good taste and so will have to share a little.

(Oh - and the greatest pain of pregnancy is the complete lack of footwear available in my cupboard that offer anything in the way of style - actually, that is a general problem but can blame it on pregnancy - gotta get the mileage.)

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

The spirit is willing

but the mind is currently coding.

I have discovered when I am doing a programming job, the power of speech and human reasoning gets moved aside while I logic out problems.

It is something that means it is far easier for me to work on projects in a vacuum - or failing that, at a place where no-one else expects anything from me or wants to communicate with me.

I can work with interruptions - except it will take an extra 2-20 minutes at the resumption after each interruption to get back into the headspace where I am tinkering with my little programming problems.

Sometimes iIt also takes my mind shifting down through the gears to understand the nature of the interruption and dealing with the outside world - which equals time and a lot of blank looks and misunderstandings.

Not exactly conducive to family life, working from home when anyone else is in the vicinity or holding roles in school committees. Also not a great fit with volunteering (because there is no-one else to step up... Save the lecture, I give it to myself)

The good news is, there is one time of day that works well with such strains - it also means that your spouse has hogged the whole of the bed when you finally get there!

However, after pulling up stumps at 2 this morning, I can say this project is so close to finished, and after that all I have to do is clean a house, rearrange all furniture, organise Christmas and nest - then I will be ready to have a baby, I think...

Friday, November 06, 2009

35 weeks

Well, it was during the week, but I have been flat out here - hopefully finishing up the last big work project today, and tidying up the littlies early next week.

I will despair of the lack of income (like it was rolling in) but perhaps those "nesting" things you are meant to do - like pack a bag for hospital and setting up space for the new baby - will float to the surface. Otherwise we'll just have to roll with it, I suppose.

It seems all I have done is apologise for not going round and visiting all my Bloggies throughout this pregnancy, but I really hope to do a bit of that with the nesting.

Sweet dreams, hey?

Anyhow - latest bump shot and will (hopefully) be a more wordy (and nesty) blogger next week...



(oh - and I do have a top to my head, just that 'Salina was more concerned about not getting a red hand on the photo - something that happens with movement and a slow shutter speed - than framing)

Tuesday, November 03, 2009

Happy Birthday 'Salina

10 years ago about right now I was being given some heavy drugs after a horrible night of labour going nowhere (don't you wish there was more information on posterior position?) and finally gave birth to a beautiful baby girl.

She yelled for the first few hours!!

After that, the ill-advised sleeping pills I had been handed upon going to the hospital 20 hours earlier took effect and I crashed - to be woken by the wonders of learning to breastfeed (she had to learn also) and newborn nappy changes (NOTHING prepares you for that).

The good news is that MOST of the intervening 10 years have been wonderful.

Happy birthday to my wonderful little girl.

Sunday, November 01, 2009

On a Platter

Happy Halloween (or whatever the greeting is - we are not learned in the art of Halloween here, to the bemusement of V)!

I do have a child, however, who has a birthday and an imagination suited to take advantage of this festivity - as always, 'Salina-style.

Five of her besties from school came over for a sausage sizzle and then FILLED the bathroom with make-up and hairstyle needs - an eerie premonition for adolescence.

Anyhow - the final product:




(She is a head on a platter - geddit?)

We took them around 2 local blocks for a total haul of 3 houses (the first 3 - 2 had been worded up), quite a few either "oh, is it Halloween? You girls look great, lets see what is in the pantry" or "oh, is it Halloween? You girls look great, sorry we have nothing" and one gruff "We are religious and don't do Halloween."

Still, there was more than enough sugar products to keep them all amused - and hatching even greater plans for Halloween '10.