603 + 499 Weeks

We got some crummy news this week: our house we are renting is going on the market for sale.  A sign is going up tomorrow and a photographer is coming.  We were not expecting it as this house has been a rental for years and years, and we've only been living in it for 18 months.  Legally we are allowed to stay in it until our lease is up in June, but this poses a problem.  We are throwing our all into getting Jeff's guitar school up and running this year, and he is giving lessons out of our front room.  The rental situation here is dire, finding a rental can be very difficult.  And now we don't know when we will be moving as we probably won't be waiting until June because we don't want to get stuck with nowhere to live.  But how do we advertise for a business when we don't know where we will live?  Argh, so stressful!  We really do not need this right now!  We are not in a position to buy because for a mortgage Jeff would have to have his business up and running for 12 months minimum.  Ugh.  We are trying to look at this positively but it's very hard!

Arley tried out a woodworking class this week.  He was very excited to do it - super excited to use the equipment.  There were three other boys all his age.  The class was 90 minutes long, but he didn't make it past an hour.  His anxiety was really high, and the hammering of the other boys was getting to him.  He had to pair up with another boy so they could help each other, and poor Arley just couldn't handle it.  We left deflated, and he was really apologetic.  I'm starting to realise that Arley can only do things one on one, at least for a while.  Waiting for the instructor to come around to him was like torture for him.  Any type of down-time seems to make his head hurt!

The good news is that Arley went fishing with Clint on Friday and they caught eight fish.  He also did great at Taekwon Do (learned two new kicks!), and got through horse riding without too much grumbling.

Carmie is doing well this week.  She has made a good online friend - a girl who lives in Oklahoma. They spend a lot of time chatting with each other, and it's really nice to see her happy.  Carmie has also reconnected with her old friend Delphi from Ulladulla, so that is great too.  Next week she is starting a small social group for tween girls, so keep your fingers crossed!

I finally went to get my foot x-rayed this week, as well as my shoulder.  They did ultrasounds on both too.  I injured my foot back in December, and it hasn't really healed, and my shoulder has been sore on and off for two years.  I should get the results tomorrow.  Getting old sucks!

Trying out our new mattress (our Christmas present to each other).  It's life-changing!

Australia Day swim

602 + 498 Weeks

Lolo and Dida left this morning before we even woke up.  They had been back at ours since the 15th, and it was nice having them here, except for night time when each night the kids would fight with each other because they were sharing a room.  The fighting got pretty bad, and then last night they were the best of friends again.  Of course, because it was the last night they would be together.  Lolo and Dida left happily, as the next time they come up here, it will be permanent!

The weather was crummy on Monday, so the kids didn’t have surfing.  On Tuesday Lolo and Dida came up to watch Arley’s private Taekwon Do lesson, and he did really well, as did Carmie and I afterwards.  Then Lolo joined us at horse riding, and the kids did great!  Carmie was trotting around like a champ, and Arley got back on a horse again.  Lisa lead him around by a lead, but we are still counting that as a win.

On Wednesday morning Jeff took the kids to see Clint, and I went up to Peregian Springs to see Mum and Geoff’s new townhouse.  It’s great!  It is really big, has lovely light, a great outlook into a reserve, and two living spaces, one upstairs, one down.  I think they are going to be really happy there.

I don’t have much else to report.  Mum and I played a lot of Scrabble while they were here, and I have to boast, I was the clear overall winner!

601 + 497 Weeks

We've had an OK week.  Arley's been having a tough time of it - I think having so much free time over Christmas and New Years isn't good for him.  He really needs to stick to a schedule, because transitioning back to one is very difficult.  The kids both had OT this morning at home, and Carmie did really well, Arley not so much.  Just getting him to sit and talk with the OT was challenging.

Yesterday the kids were both supposed to see Clint, but Arley ended up staying home with me.  He had a fight with his dad over keeping his computer desk clean, and then he was too upset to leave.  Oh my goodness, the tears!  Then on Tuesday at horse riding, Arley refused to ride.  He groomed, but that's it.  Carmie got back on her horse Chilly like a trooper.  That morning I had taken Arley to Taekwon Do and he did only a few minutes before he got tummy pains and had to stop.  See what I mean?

Our good news is that Lolo and Dida found a townhouse they love, and their offer has been accepted!  It's in Peregian Springs, which is about half an hour north of here.  When we finally buy a house here we will move a little closer to them.  The kids are very excited.  Carmie was jumping and flapping when she found out.  They'll be moving up here mid-March, which is great.  Jeffrey and I will actually get some time to ourselves!

I don't have much more to say.  Carmie has had a good week despite two nights of not the greatest sleep.  Oh yeah, one more thing.  I'm starting painting again.  I finished a commission last month and I put the painting on my old Instagram account, then my old art dealer saw it, contacted me and asked me to do a show this year.  I said yes, but small paintings only and it would have to be at the end of the year.  So, I'm back!

No photos of Arley this week :(

599 + 600 + 495 + 496 Weeks

So, I took a big break over Christmas and New Year's and completely forgot to write the blog, so I have two weeks to catch up on.

Christmas was great - very chill, super relaxed, no dramas.  We just had presents in the morning, then we all did our own thing, had lunch, did our own thing, had dinner.  No stress!  Arley said it was the best Christmas ever and he got his favourite presents.  They were practice weapons for martial arts - he got a practice butterfly knife, some nunchucks, and a katana, and he is stoked.  Carmie was happy too because she got an Apple pencil to go with her iPad that Jeff gave her, so now she can do Procreate whenever she wants.  They got other presents too, as well as some cash and they are very happy.

We had the next few days off and didn't go anywhere.  I loved it.  I think I would be happy staying home and not leaving the house for a good month!  Arley told me after three days that he was bored without his activities, so that was a big surprise.  Carmie has an online friend that she chats to on and off all day, so she was quite happy being home.

On the 30th, Lolo and Dida came up here to stay so they can finally buy a house.  Once again we surprised the kids.  I called them out of their rooms like they were in trouble, and then I led them to Jeff's music room where Lolo and Dida were waiting.  We have surprised them so many times, I can't believe they still fall for it!

So, Lolo and Dida stayed with us until yesterday, then they moved 15 minutes away to a friend's house to house-sit for 11 days, then they will be back with us if they haven't found a house by then.  It is great having them up here.  We all went out to Mooloolaba on New Year's Eve to watch the fireworks.  It was lovely to sit on the sand and see the fireworks over the beach, but getting home was a nightmare.  The traffic - it was like leaving a concert!  Awful!  After we got home, Jeff and I stayed up a bit, but we didn't last until midnight.  The kids did though!  They've been sharing a room while their grandparents are here, so they watched their iPads until the countdown.  Then they promptly turned their iPads off and went to sleep. :)

For Christmas Lolo and Dida bought the kids an animal encounter each at Wildlife HQ, a small zoo here.  Arley is obsessed with capybaras, so he got to get in with them and feed and pet them. He was very excited!  Carmie got to go in with the squirrel monkeys and feed them.  And I got to go in with each child, so I experienced both!  The monkeys were definitely my favourite, even when one tried to steal my phone!

Some of our activities started up again this week, and I'm glad for the kids' sake.  We had our private Taekwon Do lesson on Tuesday, and yesterday the kids saw Clint at Chambers Island.  Today I took the kids to their paediatrician appointment, and everything is well.  Carmie is having a growth spurt and is only 7cm shorter than me.  Arley was his typical grouchy self, but he has gained a little weight, and his meds are working well, so that's good.  Afterwards I took the kids to the mall so Carmie could get her ears pierced.  Yesterday she said she wanted to, so off we went.  I thought she was going to chicken out when she was in the chair.  She asked them to wait, and she closed her eyes and took deep breaths, and her whole body was shaking!  But then she said she was ready, and she went through with it!  So now she has her ears pierced!  Brave girl.  Afterwards her legs were violently shaking.

We are having Lolo and Dida over in the afternoons and they are staying for dinner, so we are still seeing them while they house-sit.  They saw a unit today that they really like, so keep your fingers crossed!

Christmas morning

Morning at the zoo

Pierced ears!