Another sunny day....!

It is always a good start to the day when a customer asks about a product I stock:-)

The day hasn't pannd out how I would have liked, but c'est la vie!

Oskar is still enjoing time with pappa and the sledge. Now the snow has receeded further back. Only a few more days and we'll be snow free-hurray!

I've signed up for more classes - must be a need to keep myself engulfed in projects! Check out Design Collective

Busy, busy, busy.....!

Well, I think I've been busy over the past couple of days...! (Monday & Tuesday)

Monday, I took Oskar to play with the Girlies (Anette and Anne Karine). The weather was warm again and they played in the sunshine. We only stayed for an hour as the 1-3pm time slot doesn't fit in with all the different naptimes. Oskar had already had his nap before the visit, so was fine, but the others are used to sleeping in the afternoon, whereas Oskar is a 12-2 napper (usually)!

After the social activities, it was time for a spot of shopping and Oskar saw Tante Torill! In between all of this I was making stock and food for Oskar's meals. I made a batch of pasta and some was eaten for dinner and the rest is in ice-cube sized portions in the freezer.

Bedtime was a nightmare, just as I thought things were improving.....! I had plans for an evening in my craftroom - no such luck!

Tuesday was far better. I managed to get a bit of crafting done - hurray! Oskar was on top form too. He ate well and settled much easier in the evening:-) Hope for more of this:-)

Making the most of the weather....!

The garden may be still half covered with snow, but signs of Spring are still present. We have two flowering crocus and the catkins are out on the Pussy Willow Tree! As the snow is receding daily, Nils and Oskar took advantage of this and got the sledge out again. Oskar loved been pulled around the garden! As a bonus, it was also a warm 15 degrees celsuis! No snow suits needed!

Getting back to normal!

Is it really two weeks since I updated the blog? - Shameful, I know;-)

Well, we are over the jetlag and getting back to normal. The weather here has been kind and mild since our return from Australia and made our re-habilitation easier to deal with! Oskar is doing well and very content. However, he doesn't like settling at nightime any more, so this has been tricky. We are hoping that this is just a phase. After all, he was fine before we took him half-way around the world and back! Plus he's been teething since January and getting used to solid food too! Phew, no wonder he is a bit confused! I hope that he will eventually get back into his proper bedtime routine, so that I can get something done in the evening!

I've loads of scrapping ideas and no-time to devote to them, never mind anything else. I've signed up for another Shimelle course. But, as I haven't time to do either of the other two I sign-up for, then I think I am saving them for my retirement - LOL!

6th March - long day!

Happy Birthday Mum! (Irene in UK)
The day begins at 5am at Dubai Airport..........! We are so glad that Emirates got us there 40 minutes early!!! As the airport wasn't too busy at that time, we had a good look at the shopping area. We didn't buy anything apart from something to eat (although the gold was tempting..) Oskar was on top form, flirting with anyone and everyone, including an Emirates staff member having a drink with colleagues! So many people were drawn to is white skin, red hair and smile! As Oskar was so good on the first flight, we did worry a little that he would become unsettled, as we boarded our flight to Manchester. But we worried for nothing - he was on top form again, enjoying the inflight entertainment (Cars and JoJo's Circus). One steward was really taken with Oskar and said "I could bit him!" - a term of endearment? Anyway, Oskar made an impression and the same steward shouted goodbye to Oskar from the opposite side of the plane as we disembarked. For Nils and I, fatigue was starting to kick in. The first thing we did on clearing Customs, was to check-in for the next two flights with KLM. We were so happy that we could get rid of our luggage so quickly. I then bought some paracetamol for my headache and a couple for bottles of water to cure my dehydration. So that we could have somewhere to sit whilst drinking the water (can't take through to airside due to new regulations), we had a coffee and cake to pass the time too. It also allowed us to relax a bit! Once airside, I called Mum to wish her "Happy Birthday", whilst Nils and Oskar had a snooze!
Oskar was a little upset when we boarded the flight to Amsterdam, but soon settled, when fed. 50 minutes later, we were in Amsterdam and waiting for our last flight back to Norway. Again this was a short flight and we arrived after 10pm. A quick shop in the dutyfree shop and collected all our luggage. I was pushing Oskar ahead of Nils, as we walked through the Customs area, so needless to say, Nils drew attention to an Officer as he pushed the laiden trolley through. He was asked questions about everything we were carrying, but when he told them, he was with his wife, they let him go........the prospect of disturbing a sleeping Oskar just wasn't tempting for them - thank goodness! We arrive home, tired and weary at midnight......we had been travelling for 34 hours.....!

5th March - in Nils' words........!

We are going back home :-( It has been a very nice holiday here in Australia, but the weather today was too warm – 40 degrees... It will be good to come home to cooler temperatures, and it will also be good to see how the cats are doing at home. Last of all – it will be fantastic to sleep in our own bed again! Our guest bed has been too narrow when Oskar was sleeping between us. Lynn managed to get him into the routine of sleeping the first part of the night in his travel cot, however he insisted on sleeping with us when he woke up at night. Most of the day was used for packing. Eventually all the bags were filled to the brim, and we were worried if we had managed to get the hand luggage under 7 kilos. It turned out that we were under the weight limit, even though we thought we would be over! We went to Sizzlers to have dinner. Derek had to take us in two batches in the white car. After that, he brought us to the airport, which also took two rounds to get everything with us, including Lisa, Derek, Drew and Elise. We had an emotional goodbye, before we went on the plane. Nils managed to forget the PC in the security check, and had to go back to fetch it, when we realised it was not in our luggage. Luckily the security officers had taken good care of it, however they wondered if I had had a blackout when I managed to forget the PC. Strange things like this happen when you deal with the logistics and stress of getting tired children through the security check, whilst at the same time trying to pay attention to what the security offices asked us to do. Now we are on the plane back to Dubai. Lynn is resting, and Oskar is asleep on her lap. He fell asleep during takeoff, so he must have been tired! We did not put him in the bassinette yet, since he easily wakes up, and he did not enjoy the bassinette so much on the flights to Perth. It is night now, we are over the Indian Ocean and have only got 8 hours to go to Dubai... Oskar has become a true “jet setter”, and has experienced travel by train, boat and plane!

4th March - in Nils' words.....

Lynn started packing, and Lisa and Derek organised a picnic in Kings Park. The weather was hot, and the CAT buses went less frequently than they did on a working day, so it took some time to get to Kings Park. Drew and Elise were playing together, and Oskar was sleeping most of the time, whilst we had picnic and then relaxed. We went back around 1600 to have cake to celebrate Oskars 8^th month birthday! Before the cake eating, Lynn and I took Oskar in his backpack up to the top of Turner Road and into the bush for a walk. We had hoped to see some kangeroo, but they were hiding! We did see a bandicoot (briefly!) thought. Drew and Elise had baked another delicious chocolate cake.

3rd March - Stash buying again......!!

Nils, Oskar and I were upo early, but everyone else had a lye in (lucky them!!)

Not a lot happened in the morning, but by early afternoon, I was chomping at the bit, to visit another scrapping store. This was StampIt, in Victoria Park. It was another lovely shop, which was child friendly, so Oskar was happy! More purchases were made and we headed off back home, armed with late lunch too! Today was a lot warmer than it was been in nearly a week. The sunshine is back!

2nd March - My Birthday!

WooHoo 40 Today!

The day started with a visit to Lisa's friend Kelly's for a cuppa! Kelly has family and friends in Mabelthorpe and Hull! After that, we went to Scrapbook Secrets in Maddington for a little stash shopping! It was a big shop and I was spoilt for choice! Oskar found the whole thing boring, but began enjoying himself, when Nils took him over to the play area in the shop - perfect.

After the purchases were made, including a Rusty Pickle map of how Yorkshire looked in the 19th century!, we headed to Rolley on the Ridge for lunch. The food was excellent. Nils and I had macadamia crusted chicken on herbed polenta with roast veggies and Lisa has mushroom risotto balls, stuffed with mozzarella! Before we knew it, there was a little time for a quick wizz around the supermarket for BBQ food, before picking Elise up from school. I then prepared the pork and made a pasta salad! At this point, I still hadn't opened any of my cards or presents because I was waiting for Drew to get home from school - great willpower;-)

I began opening my presents, whilst chatting to Mum and Dad on the phone. Oskar was sat on my knee too and was really noisy and chatty! i could hardly hear the conversation at times. I received some beautiful gifts and lovely cards.

Before we knew it, it was 6 o'clock and Myra, Pim, Abbie and Stella arrived for the little "PARTY" I deliberately chose this option, rather than going to a restaurant because of Oskar. It is much easier to deal with him(teething) in familiar surroundings, rather than a busy restaurant! The food was great, so was the wine too! I also had a chocolate birthday cake, but only 2 candles!!

Later in the evening, Kelly and her daughter Cassie popped in for a drink, before we called it a night. It was the end of a special day, which was made possible by Nils, Osakr, Lisa, Derek, Drew and Elise - Thank you xx

1st March, the day before...........Aaagh!

Went to Carousel to get rid of Lynns “shopping cravings”! Lynn and Nils bought some clothes from Target and Oskar got some nice clothes from Pumpkin Patch! When we got back, we took a photo of another resident in the garden! Oskar was a bit wingy all day and hardly slept. However, he went to bed like a dream! Looks like more teeth are on the way!

28th February...

It is raining in Perth! We tried a couple of times to get out in the morning (rain & no coats!) For lunch, Lynn made cheese, ham and Branston pickle sandwiches, which Oskar also enjoyed. Wont be buying anymore Heinz or Nestle food for him, when he likes our food so much. Mind you, I'm sure there are people who must be cringing at the thought of a nearly 8 month old baby liking branston Pickle! Must be his Yorkshire genes! In the afternoon, we went shopping with Jackie and Lisa to the Armadale Centre. Jackie thought the weather was freezing, even though Lynn and I did not find it particularly cold! It was really funny hearing everyone complaining about the “cold”, when it was still about 24 degrees celsius! In the evening, Lisa went out wearing a scarf!

27th February - a day at Rottnest Island.

We got up early (0600) to go to Rottnest. We had a tight schedule and Lynn was anxious that we would not reach the ferry in time, and had a short fuse! However we got on the train, and got the tickets organised in Fremantle ½ hour before the ferry came. Oskar fell asleep, and slept through the first part of his boat trip, but woke up and enjoyed the last part of the trip. The weather was quite grey in Perth and Fremantle, but it brightened up at Rottnest. We bought some bread rolls at the bakery and had lunch there. Lynn checked out the souvernir shop, and bought a couple of items. Then we went along the old prison buildings, which now are holiday homes . After that, we went to the second lighthouse, went past the old Chapel, and went around in Thomson Bay for a while, until we had a bite to eat at Dome. At Dome we got several pictures of a half-tame Quokka that wandered around in the outdoor cafe area. Oskar dipped his toes in the sea in Thomson Bay as well, because the water is very calm there. The water was warm, so Oskar enjoyed it, and chipped like a bird! We went back with the ferry at 1600, and came back to Kelmscott at 1830. Derek had made Ravioli for dinner and Oskar actually enjoyed this! He ate more than 3 filled raviolis cut into small pieces! So he does enjoy his savoury food after all, as long as it is not baby food!

26th February - in Nils' words....

Lynn went to Cath's to have a haircut, to look even better for her 40^th birthday and Nils looked after Oskar in the mean time. Lynn decided to walk back, but was surprised by the worst thunderstorm that had been in the area for several years, and she was frightened and wet through when she came back. It was a magnificent view when the lightening was in the distance, but it was not so fun when lightening struck down all around you. We lost electricity for around ½ hour, and some of the thunder was so close to the house that I jumped from the bang. Lynn thought it must have hit a metal roof close by. In the afternoon, Lisa took us to Pioneer Village to go shopping in some “Lynn shops”. One of the shops was a craft shop with a decent stock of Scrapbooking stash. In another shop she bought a calendar. In the evening, Lynn made another batch of “Veiled Country Lass” (Tilslørte bondepiker).