An early arrival, meet the newest family member!

The delivery was reasonably painless.  And that is probably something I have never said before, because all 4 of the boys 'deliveries' were a wee bit painful! 

I was skeptical about the abilities of the piano handlers, doubting we would have a intact piano by the end of the process.  Happily, I was proven wrong.  Except for a few hairy moments where the piano was slipping off the trolley as it ascended up out rocky pathway, it went smoothly!  From my perspective anyway.  Though my keen skills of observation told me that the sweat trickling down the faces of the handlers was not a prop.  No stage crew in sight to run in and spray water on faces for added drama and affect.

Though he only gave the difficulty a 6/10!  Come on, I thought it was more like a 7 and a half!  They are the experts however and have delivered to much more difficult locations. 

I even threw in the added distraction of a 4 and 2 yr old screaming at each other. They were fighting over the toy phone that lives on the side of the play kitchen that had (2 minutes previous) been up against the wall where the piano was going to live.

Taken just moments before I enquired if they were enjoying the view. 

Turns out they weren't.

A piano has been on the want list for years.  We were going to wait until the house was extended before filling it up anymore.  But when Coder mentioned he wanted a pinball machine for Father's Day.. I said "Not until the house is extended!".  There was no way I was going to try and make room for a pinball machine in the lounge room.  Of course he thought I would still get it.  So to make sure he didn't get what he wanted... No I am kidding.  He really wanted a piano.  More then a pinball machine.  Honestly.

Why a pinball machine in the first place?  Well why not? He is an expert now you know.  During Oshawott's party, Coder would frequently disappear into the dark arcade.  Later I discovered he had joined a pinball tournament and was trying to get the highest score he could to secure his position in the top 5.  The top 5 in each location are invited to attend the State tournament.   

He does this to me occasionally. Surfing for example.  When we were holidaying in Coolum he casually mentioned he had always wanted to learn how to surf and proceeded to have some lessons in the days following.   Surfing?  I have known him for 15 years and this was the first mention ever about surfing.  Ever.  Sure he didn't have to disclose every tiny bit of information about his interests during that 15 years, but you would think it may have accidentally popped into conversation at some point? Nope.  Also, he had always refused to swim in the oceans of Australia (he is American) because he was certainly going to be eaten by a shark.  Seems to me like surfing would put you pretty high on the menu.

So not entirely new to being sprung with these kind of secret lifetime wishes, I go along with the idea.  He seems to be good at anything he tries, he probably can be the next Statewide pinball champion.   

But we are not having a pinball machine in the lounge room.

Period.

However, lifetime wish of owning a piano I can do.  And I will even allow it to be in the lounge room!

It's a second hand Kawai.

So even though it's a gift for the whole family (and I am pretty sure as soon as Pichu wakes up from his nap I will not be viewing it this way anymore), we surprised Coder with the piano for Father's Day. 

It was two days early, because if you have ever tried to hide a piano in your  lounge room for two days, you'll know it's not easy.

And yes, he did think it was a pinball machine!  -insert evil laugh here-

Who can play you ask?  Well, technically, no one.  But I did take lessons for a whole year when I was young so I am sure all my talent (*cough*) will come flooding back.  Coder has been teaching himself to play for years, because when you teach yourself something like that it's going to takes years!  

Hopefully 1 or 2 of the boys may show enough interest to want lessons.  I am considering taking it up again.  My Dad started to learn in his 50's, so I can do it too! Not that i'm 50, but you know what I mean.

My dream.

In 20 years we will sit around the piano at Christmas time, all 4 boys, Coder and myself taking turns to play Christmas carols as my Lamborghini is driven up the driveway to surprise me.  Oh wait, that's right, the Lamborghini?  That's one of Coder's life wishes too! 

A girl can dream.

Happy haircut.

Pichu had a haircut yesterday.  It wasn't his first, but he hasn't 'loved' any of them so far.  But yesterday he really didn't love it.  Or even like it.  Actually, he almost didn't even cooperate at all.  I did try my best to distract him with a movie on my phone, but gave up in the end and reversed the camera on the phone so he could watch the haircut instead.  

Oshawott tried his best to cheer him up but also failed.

He was on my lap, and regardless of the capes we both ended up covered in hair, which was a great look for going out to the bakery afterwards for morning tea.  Though no one noticed, they were too busy laughing at Oshawott's request for "soiled (soy) milk please".  

 

Yes, that is a half smile, half grimace in the last photo, and he was very cheery at the completion of the cut and couldn't say goodbye loud or fast enough as he ran towards the door.

What will be. Hopefully.

The house is just too small.  I have written about it fairly often, I have whinged about it even more often.  We started the process back in May, and are slowly getting to the interesting part.

Here are the plans for the proposed extension.  They were submitted to council for approval on July 31.

The current house section on the plan is light grey, extension is black.  I am very excited to be getting a new kitchen and master with ensuite!  Not to mention downstairs, which is being completely removed and re-built.  It will have a rumpus, an additional bathroom and another bedroom. In total we will have 5 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms and 3 living spaces.  

Upstairs the new living area and kitchen walls will mostly be glass so we will have magnificent views of the valleys.  Here are a few photos of the property.

This is the house at the moment.  The whole deck and the rooms under it are going to be removed.  That is one of the parts I am pretty anxious about because I realised that I have to find room for not only 2 children to sleep elsewhere, but all of the stuff that is down there will have to go somewhere for the duration of the build.

Two days ago I found this notice on our fence post, not entirely attached very precisely as you can see.  Though I am sure under normal outdoors conditions a staple and a paper clip would normally suffice.  So I am hoping that means that the council are approving the plans as long as the public do not raise any issues?

Good things come to those who wait impatiently.

All good things come to those who wait.  Luckily there is no mention of waiting patiently, or needing daily progress reports as to how far away that good thing is.

Voltorb turned 6 in May, and ever since the Pirate Party, Oshawott has been impatiently waiting for his turn. 90 sleeps away I told him, well didn't that just break his little heart.  9 is far away enough, but 90!?  He could not comprehend there was such a number.  So after that I tried to not use numbers as reference for him.  He talked about his Birthday almost every one of those 90 days.  How he was going to have a jumping castle just like the other party, how he wanted every single toy he saw on commericals/catalogues/in shops for his 'birthday!', and an Oshawott cake (oh good!).  I almost forgot the balloons, he also wanted floating balloons!

Time was whittling away nicely, I had even arranged the venue and sent out the invitations.  During our trip to Broken Hill in June, I even practised making some Oshawott cupcakes. 

Then he became sick.  

The birthday topic was the one thing that would still put a smile on his face during some of the early sick days.  We said yes to every toy he wanted, Daddy told him he was going to take him to Toy World and he could buy ANYTHING he wanted.  Then there is me, peeking my head around Coder whispering "within reason of course!".  Not that the almost 4 year old was heeding me any attention at all.  He was still daydreaming about walking into Toy World coming out with half a wall of Lego in his trolley!

The sickness managed to drag on and on.  It was one week before his Birthday that he came home from hospital (the second time).  His party was scheduled for the day before that and I wasn't sure if it was a good idea.  But the Doctor said it would be fine, and it would have crushed his sole if we cancelled it.  So it went ahead.

On the last morning in the hospital I decided that I was not going to attempt the cake this time around.  Too much stress that I just didn't need, and I wanted him to have a perfect cake.  And there would be no way I could have made it look this good:

Happy client.

Balloon man arrives. 

The plush Oshawott present was a hit.

A friend made some Oshawott friendly cupcakes. They were much appreciated!

I grabbed the opportunity of letting the 6 year old be responsible for the 23 month old so I could escape slide duty.  

It's fun to pretend to ride a scooter.

Yet in the blink of an eye it all goes pear shaped. Pichu having a tanty after the scooter was not complying to the rules of anti-gravity. The scooter sure learned a lesson here!  

Daddy's (occasional) boy. 

Tantrum placed on hold for cake candle mesmerisation. 

Very rare photo of me.  Love the mustard jacket 

on bright yellow backdrop. 

At home later, modelling one of his presents. A Power Ranger!

Voltorb disappeared into his room armed with an Oshawott toy and the Happy Birthday balloon, coming back later with this. 

Putting some Trashies to work in the Trash Pack street sweeper.

What was I thinking?! 

 Recycled Oshawott cake for round 2 of Happy Birthday singing.

Oshawott and his posse watching Playschool.  Yeah!  ROCK! 

From left: Birthday Boy Oshawott, talking Oshawott, dirty Oshawott, grumpy Oshawott and steroid Oshawott. Guest appearance: Spotty Pyjamas.

Spoiled much?  eek!

Happy Birthday gorgeous boy!  

Tooth Fairy trap!

There must be something in the water, or the toothpaste perhaps?

Legoman has lost another of his bottom row, and finally the stubborn robo terminator teeth have fallen out!  That's 4 teeth he has lost recently, the last of which came home from school Thursday taped to a piece of cardboard, decorated with a 'Super!' sticker.  It was the popcorn that pushed that one over the edge, so to speak.  Unfortunately, the popcorn was still mashed up inside the tooth!  Now ordinarily I would have made a fuss about how the Tooth Fairy would not approve, yadda yadda, but sadly he no longer believes.  And all because of a trap.  

That's right, the little ratbag set a trap for the Tooth Fairy.  Funnily enough, whist performing the money/tooth swap routine I had a gut feeling something was amiss.  He had made an unusual fuss over where the tooth would be placed you see, but I didn't put much thought into that at the time.  Later when I was fumbling around in the dark, using my iPhone for light, I had to first remove a Star Wars book that he had meticulously (it turns out) placed in such a way to foil an unsuspecting Tooth Fairy.  Because we have talked about this before, it was generally accepted by all that she uses magic to make the swap.  Fairies are way to small and delicate to lug around armfuls of teeth and gold coins from house to house.

As I removed the book, and placed it on his bed, I had a feeling I had been had.  It was too late, I couldn't recall which way around the book had been sitting on top of the empty margarine container.  I guessed.   

Wrongly.

In the morning he was beside himself with delight that his trap had worked.  I tried to cover my tracks, but he wasn't buying it.  He had already been questioning the validity of such a magical fairy, now he had the proof.  Voltorb (who also has his first wobbly tooth) was looking up from what he was doing, so I had to quickly shush Legoman with my most intimidating glare.  Later when it was safe, I had to have the 'talk' with him.  He thinks it's pretty cool to have such an important secret.  So far, he hasn't asked outright if the Easter Bunny and Santa are real, though he has his suspicions.

Taken the day before the last of the two stubborn front teeth fell out at school.  Featuring the self administered war paint, which was later copied by one of his younger brothers.

Using a slightly different medium and much less coordination Oshawott copies his battle ready brother.

The morning that Voltorb discovered he had a wobbly tooth, when I stumbled out of bed, though I wish it was a bed, but in fact Pichu had a bad night and I ended up in the cot again, the first thing I hear was Voltorb. He pounced on me, happily announcing that he had a wobbly tooth, his first one!

Immediately after breakfast he asked for an apple, which we didn't have.  Well that was the wrong answer, I could see his little puffed out chest deflate so I told him I would get some that day for him.  Then I remembered the Charlie and Lola episode we watched oh so many times during one of our Holidays, where Lola's wobbly tooth falls out when she eats an apple.  And who said cartoons couldn't be educational!  

So I did get him some apples, and he ate 3 of them during the afternoon and evening.  He was determined!  But.. that was weeks ago now, and it's still not out, so he has given up on the apples and tells me he is just going to wait for it to fall out on its own.  That's the spirit my little go getter!

Sporting his "must get wobbly tooth out" crazy eyes.

Being acknowledged is really encouraging!

Fellow blogger and Hobartian, Jane, over at Life at Planet Baby, has graciously passed on a Blogger Award to me.  The award is called Liebster, which is a German word that means sweetest, kindest, nicest, dearest, beloved, lovely, kind, pleasant, valued, cute, endearing and welcome.

This award passes throughout the blogging world to help encourage communication between bloggers.  I have had the pleasure of receiving the Kreativ Blogger award in the past, from Rachel at Redcliffe Style, but at the time I was only just starting out and didn't know any other bloggers to pass it onto. 

There are a few rules:

• Each person must post 11 facts about themselves. 
• Answer 11 questions the tagger has given you and provide 11 questions for the people you tag. 
• Choose 11 people and link them to your post (they must have 200 followers or less). 
• Tell the people you have tagged.

Eleven Random Facts About Me

1. I don't like dams.  Actually, most large concrete and water structures freak me out.

2. I once had my arm caught on fire from reaching over a BBQ.

3. I met my husband 15 years ago in an online chat room.  He is American.

4. Missing bin day really ruins my day!  

5. I love snow skiing, but haven't actually been skiing for around 15 years.  

6. I have broken my leg skiing.

7. I worked as a waitress at Pizza Hut when I was 18, back in the day when you could eat in.

8.  I have climbed Uluru.  

9.  I lived in Florida for 3 years.

10.  I go through stages of playing World of Warcraft (an online multiplayer role playing game).

11. My nickname growing up was Moppet.



Here are  the 11 questions Jane asked:


1. What 3 things would you save if your house were burning down?

Assuming the kids are safe? I have a plastic tub by the back door filled with all the important documents and baby memorabilia.  I would grab my laptop and the D7000 so I could take pictures of the house burning down and put them immediately on Facebook.   Kidding!


2. What is your favourite song?

I don't have a favourite, I just seem to go through phases of liking whatever is on the radio.


3. Do you speak any foreign languages and if so, which ones?

I speak Scream, and can interpret tantrum poses.  Pichu has taken it upon himself to ensure I have mastered it.


4. Have you ever met any royalty and if so, whom, when and where?

No.  But, my ancestor was Franz Ferdinand (WWI), his wife's name was Sophie!

(Franz Ferdinand (1863-1914) was born in Graz, Austria. As the heir to the Austro-Hungarian empire his assassination on 28 June 1914 sparked the First World War.)

5. What is your favourite flower?

Tulip


6. Are you a beach person or not?

Only when the set "Will Sophie enjoy the beach today?" criteria are met.


7. What 3 adjectives would you like listed on your gravestone?

Thoughtful, generous, bossy (because it would be my kids organising it afterall)


8. What magical power do you wish you had?

I want a wand that cleans the house, and puts things exactly where they belong.


9. Which bloggy skill would you like to master?

I am trying to figure out if Twitter is help or hindrance.


10. To Facebook or not to Facebook?

Yes for sure.


11. What is your favourite dessert?

I don't have just one favourite, I like a few different types.  Chocolate moose, caramel dumplings, pavlova.


My questions are:

1.  What did you want to be when you were growing up?
2.  Most memorable moment?
3.  Favourite holiday destination?
4.  What would be your most used phrase?
5.  If there was a Autobiography about you, what would it be called?
6 . Favourite movie?
7.  Dog, cat or chickens?
8.  How do you handle stress?
9.  Are you a tea or coffee person?
10.Most embarrassing moment?
11.What is your earliest memory?



The people I am tagging: 

1. Kelly at Homemade Tears and Triumphs
2. Sim at Mummy Chaos
3. Lisa at Pearl Meringue
4. Sophie Modern Day Mummying
5. Rebecca at Wholly Listening


That's it sorry, I just don't know anyone else's blog well enough (that have under 200 followers and haven't already had the award passed to them).  

Anyone else that reads this, please feel free to answer some or all of my questions in a comment.  Yes, even you (*points*)!

More sickness? Really?!

So because we haven't had enough drama lately Voltorb decided Saturday to come down with some leaking eye problem.  Ok, so it wasn't his choosing.  Most definitely not.  He is the worst of all 4 of them for tolerating medicine, basically he just doesn't.  

Today is Wednesday.  3 weeks ago today was when I first noticed Oshawott's rash.  It's been 21 days, and out of that 21 days, only 4 days of that have been Doctor free days.  

Voltorb asked me why he kept having a tear on Saturday, just from one eye.  I didn't think much of it at the time, just that he might have gotten some dust in it during his soccer game that morning.  Tears around here are certainly not an unusual occurrence.  Coder often jokes about when the day will come that we will have a crying free day.  8 and a half years and counting so far...

On Sunday Oshawott had his party (which I will write about soon), and Voltorb's eye was still leaking and now was red underneath.  Apart from being annoyed at needing to constantly wipe his eye with a tissue it didn't bother him at all.  Later that day we visited the chemist for some advice.  He thought it looked possibly like an allergic reaction, yet it was odd that it was only affecting one eye.  That'd be right I thought, we seem to often have odd things in this family when we get sick.  Whooping cough, Scarlet Fever, Pneumonia 3 times, infection in newborn (another story for another day).

His eye was a bit red and had a small amount of yukkiness so we also considered conjunctivitis and took home some drops.  Just in case it was conjunctivitis he stayed home from school Monday and we went off to the Doctor.  He just thought it was viral and said to continue with the drops.  

By Tuesday afternoon the redness was still there, his eye was slightly swollen, his appetite was poor and his temperature was 40!  I rang Health Direct and went through the symptoms with them, they suggested taking him to the after hours Doctor, or the ER.  Fun fun fun.  I quickly finished making a delicious risotto (tickets on myself? why yes!) and off we went to the Doctor.  

In the waiting room, worried because hates medicine.

Doc was very thorough, checking out all possible causes, and asking alot of questions.  I had a little bit of trouble understanding the explanation, but in layman's terms, he got a 'bug' and it decided to infect his eye and the skin around it.

Voltorb is now taking anti-biotics and we have to keep the fever down, so that means paracetamol and nurofen 24/7.  Three different kinds of medicine? Voltorb's worse nightmare.  Four times a day I have to mix each medicine in nesquik-laced milk, so much so, now I worry about diabetes!

He has opted to lie down with a face washer on his head rather then have the other medicine.  Luckily this has worked, otherwise mean Mummy would re-surface and administer pain via sugary drink.  

He also has to have 2 more days home from school, which he is not happy about either!  So overall, a pretty terrible week for him. 

Related:
Scarlet Fever, part 1
Scarlet Fever, part 2
Scarlet Fever, part 3
Scarlet Fever, part 4
Scarlet Fever, conclusion