Our Day in San Francisco

The Hultgrens

Belinda & Ellen

Pier 39 - Snowman The Boys - Bubba Gumps Saks Fifth Ave Christmas Windows

Thanksgiving pictures

Happy Thanksgiving

Bruce and the Bird

The Thanksgiving Table Smile and be Thankful Conner & his Turkey Leg

Jamieson & his Turkey Leg Our First Thanksgiving Miss Belinda & Miss Paula

From November 18th, 2006

Saturday Well, we were all up at around 7.00 starting our busy weekend. Jamieson was up and straight into his basketball uniform. I have to say, it’s kind of a relief, and we are all a bit over ‘it’s my first game with the Spurs’. We were all up and around knowing what the day had in store. I was in the car and at the store getting presents and groceries, then back to the house by 9.00, unloading having a very quick tidy and we were all out the door for Jamieson’s game at 10.00am. The game went as expected, they dominated, to say the least. Jamieson surprised all of us, Bruce just looked at me at one stage with the “DAMN” face, very impressed with his son’s game and athleticism. The great thing is that most of the kids scored which was great for them all, and most of them now have a pretty good idea the game. They are going to dominate again…. help me lord, Jamieson spent the rest of the day talking about it. We got into the car and came home to change and get some lunch, then the boys went off to Jackari’s birthday party, Bruce went to my office to do some more copying for Billy Bounce and Mum cleaned for me & I started on dinner. I made up all of dinner and had a shower, all ready for our dinner guests. The boys all arrived home at around 4.45pm and Mum and I jumped into the car and went to Conner’s game. Not as much joy, poor Conner lucked out again. The team was ok, they got pumped but on the up side Conner’s game is getting really great. He has improved as well, which is so great for him. The team improved as the game went on, but they are not going get a lot of wins. Bruce had a chat to Conner after the game about his improvement and he seems ok with it now. We got home around 7.00 (late) and the Charles’ were waiting for us. They came in and the kids went off to play while I put dinner together. We all caught up on the week in the kitchen (cause it’s big enough) and the kids say at the kid’s table and the adults at the adult’s table (YEAY!!) We all finished our dinner and the kids went off to play & the adults chatted. The Charles’ left around 10.00pm and we went off to bed after tidying up. It was a nice end to a busy day. Sunday We all woke up and Bruce off to Wackford to do the coach the coaches for Billy Bounce. We potted around in the morning and got ready for our day out in San Francisco. We had some lunch and when Bruce got home and changed we were on the road at 1.00pm. It wasn’t a very picturesque day, lots of clouds in the sky and we were driving in the car I was really worried about whether we would actually see the bridge or not. San Francisco is known for its fog. We got there and it was a perfect day for it, the sun was out and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. We arrived at the bridge and did the usual photo’s etc although there was still a little fog over the water so seeing Alcatraz was a little bit difficult. Anyway, we got some nice pictures and went for a walk on the bridge then jumped into the car and made our way to Pier 39. We parked the car and walked down along the street, mum got some REAL clam chowder from the stinky, fishy smelling vendors and it was beautiful. We walked around Pier 39, all the Christmas decorations were up and a huge tree, it was really gorgeous. We checked out the stores and some buskers then made our way to Bubba Gump’s for dinner. Unfortunately it was disappointing, but it didn’t dampen the great afternoon that we’d had. Most importantly, Mum had a fantastic time. We were back in the car and driving through downtown looking for trolley cars and just the city in general. We drove through the middle of town and saw the Macys and Saks Fifth Ave Christmas windows, which were magnificent in Union Square, to say the least. We were all just sitting in the car going WOW!!! We stopped at some traffic lights and managed to get a couple of shots, which turned out really nice. I will post them for you all. By the time we got home it was after 10.00, but we all had a great time and were EXHAUSTED!!! Fell straight into bed and out for the count. The end of another long but adventurous day for the Hultgren’s and one Korostin. Monday Bruce went off to work early in the morning as per usual. I didn’t go into work; I realized that I had bought my entire work home with me so there would be no point in going in. I didn’t get any done, instead I tidied up the house and did a few minor things that I would have done if I wasn’t working every day, like hanging posters and cleaning up the office a little. There are things in the house that I’m not sure where they are, and you can imagine how well that would sit with me. I’m still getting there, the kids being off track with me being home hopefully I will get all that done. Bruce got home from work around lunchtime and mum and I went out to get some groceries. Bruce picked the kids up from school and we got home not long after. I started on dinner, lasagna. Jamieson had basketball practice at 5.00, so they all left for that and left me alone to do dinner in the peace and quiet. It was heaven!!! They arrived home from basketball did showers etc and we sat down to dinner. Paula arrived later; Bruce couldn’t stay up any longer (tired) and went off to bed around 9.00pm. Paula stayed for a little while longer and we chatted for a while. She left, I went off to bed and mum stayed up to chat to home and watched some TV. Tuesday Went into work for a couple of hours to organize computer, came home late morning. The kids had a minimum day today, last day of school. Mum, Bruce and I walked over to pick them up and we all walked home with Millie and Lexie who came over for a visit. They stayed for a little while, and then we just chilled out for the rest of the day. The boys just played around the house and I got onto he computer and did some work and sent some emails. The usual things, I did manage to reply to some, which was good because the guilt was starting to get to me for not emailing back. Spent a quiet night in, Bruce was at a meeting on the other side of town and got back around 8.30. We chilled out then off to bed around 10.30. Wednesday Another nice day, all just lounged out of bed around 7.30. Bruce went off to work, I started cleaning the house, and we all just chilled out for the most part of the day. Paula called and came to get me and we went grocery shopping for tomorrow. Mum took the kids to the park for a couple of hours, they had a really nice time, the kids did their running for running club and mum did some walking. Paula came over for dinner, and then we just chilled out and made up the Cranberry jelly fruit salad. Let the new tastes begin. Poor Paula was going through some of the dishes and Mum and I were sitting there with funny looks on our faces. Like pumpkin/ sweet potato thing with marshmallows on the top. I think we made her very nervous, we will see. Thursday Happy Thanksgiving – (or Gobble Gobble Day, as Paula calls it.) Bruce and I woke up at 7.00 (as per usual) caught up on the last couple of weeks, not a lot of time to ourselves to do that, so that was nice. I walked over to Paula’s to do turkey and stuffing at 9.00, the turkey was still frozen in the middle so we had a good time trying to defrost, it all makes for a good Thanksgiving story. We got the turkey in the oven at around 10.30 then it had to cook for at least 4 hours. We chatted for a while and I left to come home to get some of the other stuff ready. Bruce & mum took the boys over to the park and I stayed and did up the table and tidied up a little. They got back an hour or so later and the kids went out to play, Bruce went into the office to do some work and I fluffed around the way we all do when company is coming over, cleaning etc. Paula arrived with the bird around 3.00 and it smelled YUMMY!!! I had all the vegetables ready to go and then we just had to heat up or brown all the other stuff. We all sat down to Thanksgiving at around 4.00pm. We sat at the table with the following in front of us. Turkey, Turkey gravy, hot bread rolls, cranberry sauce, cranberry fruit salad, sweet potato with pecans and marshmallows on the top, stuffing, mashed potatoes, honey carrots, and garlic beans. Apart from the beans (which Paula agreed) were yuk, it was all beautiful!!! I said to Paula,” I take back all the faces I made last night, she was very relieved.” Mum did too; she has even bought the recipes for most of the dishes home, so the Korostin’s should expect a couple on the table with the turkey Christmas day I would imagine. We sat around chatting while we ate, apart from the boys playing with their VERY LARGE legs, which they thought was hysterical, it was really a great meal. Bruce was sitting there making all the YUMMY noises and said, “Now I understand Thanksgiving”, all day he’d been saying he didn’t get it it’s just a meal. But sitting there with family and friends over a beautiful meal and lots of it, you could really understand why it is such a family day. We heated up the pies (Pumpkin and Apple) and sat down to our dessert at around 6.00. They were beautiful, even the pumpkin one, pumpkin over here is sweeter than at home, so I can understand why they can use it for a sweet. I did have the displeasure of tasting Cool Whip. I told Paula I would try everything. It tasted like whipped sugar but worse. Paula laughed and made the comment of the day. She looked my straight in the eye with a straight face, for a second and said, “You can eat it but it tastes like shit”. Well, we were all just about on the floor in stitches. She usually quotes Bruce but Paul Hogan we didn’t see coming. We finished dinner and rounded onto the couches. Paula got to choose the movie, we got out the projector and watched What Women Want on the wall, the room is perfect for it, it was like we were at the movies, and I even did popcorn. It was the perfect end to the night. Paula left around 11.30; they also watched Pricilla Queen of the Desert, Mum’s choice. Another, Australian learning experience for Miss Paula from Texas. Friday We are really living in America – are you ready for this? We were up at 4.30 (the stores open for the thanksgiving sales at 5.00am) When I said sales I’m not kidding though. There were a couple of things that were on sale for the kids for Christmas, and Bruce wanted to have another experience. So the alarm went off at 4.30 and Bruce and mum were off to go shopping in the dark. He called 10 mins later laughing his butt off, they were walking to the end of the line at the other end of the shopping car park. They got home around 5.30 with goodies in hand. The boys got portable DVD players from mum for Xmas ($70 off) and she also got a fantabulous new digital camera and 2gb memory card. Very flash, she is in picture taking heaven. We went back to bed and woke up around 9.00, the boys were up none the wiser. I woke up mum and we were dressed and out of the house to get some Thanksgiving Day shopping in by 9.30am. You should have seen the people, they were everywhere, boxing day shopping everywhere, we did manage to get some good bargains, we went back to Best Buy to see if there were some things that they saw in the catalogue when they got home, NOT!! All the huge bargains were gone. We did manage to get some other bargain, I bought mum a 1GB MP3 player for her birthday and we got some CD’s for $6.00 each. I then took her to Wal-Mart for that experience, and she got some really great stuff for herself, which was really nice to see. She is loving the whole ladies shoes go up to a size 11 here and making the most of it. Then we went to Target and had some more shopping fun, got a few more Christmas presents. Before we knew it, it was 3.00pm; we looked through another couple of stores, got a couple more pressies and then got home around 4.30. Got back to the house… looking like I hadn’t been home since the early morning, no beds made, food all over the kitchen as usual. The boys were running around, cause their father let them have their Halloween candy and wasn’t watching how much they had, so of course they had HEAPS!! Bruce was sitting at the desk and hadn’t really moved all day, but did get a lot of work done so that was a bonus. Paula arrived with her boys at around 5.00 for leftovers. We made up dinner and all sat down around 6.00; it was still as yummy as the night before. After dinner everyone jumped onto the couches for a movie. Bruce put Will Smith on so we all had a bit of a dance before settling down to watch Shark Tales on the big screen. I chatted with Elise on messenger, which was nice, it’s been a few days so it was good to get all the gossip. Paula and the kids left at around 10.00 and the kids went to bed and we followed not long after. Another big weekend is coming up, lots of plans. I hope everyone is well.

From 11th November

Saturday Got up at the usual time, no later even though it was the weekend. It was raining all day. Paula picked me up at around 7.30 and I dropped them off at the airport. I came home and everyone was up, they were all having their breakfast. Around 11.00am Mum and I went out to do some shopping. We checked out some of the stores, not as many as we thought, we spent more time in each store than we thought. We got home around 6.00pm. Bruce and I went to the office to do some printing for the Billy Bounce presentations in New York. We were gone longer than we thought. We finally got home around 8.00 and had some dinner. We chatted to Trudy and the kids on Skype and just chilled out for the evening. Bruce packed for his trip to New York. Sunday Got up far to early, I dropped Bruce off at the airport at 5am. I got back to the house and we spent the rest of the day just chilling out around the house. We went out to get some stuff at the supermarket and dropped into a store and Mum got the kids some runners. It was a very uneventful day really; I was exhausted and was in bed at 8.30. I’m a real party animal hey! Monday We woke to the start of another week, and did the usual. I dropped the boys off at school and went off to work. I spent the first couple of hours of the morning trying to figure out some work forms, dealing with government agencies is just a hoot!! They girls and I had a good day, I worked until later in the afternoon, mum went and picked the boys up from school and they all went home and did homework. I spoke to Bruce and he had a really good day in New York, it sounds like it was a very successful trip. He was making his way from different meetings and was very upbeat. I got home from work told Jamieson to get changed and we went off to basketball practice. They had a good practice. I think they will do ok as a team, and the parents are really nice too, so it should be a good season for all. I made the mistake of telling Conner that I would check his homework in the morning, then we sat down to some dinner. The boys went off to bed and mum and I just chilled out until bedtime around 10.30. Tuesday Another typical Tuesday, woke up too early, Conner and I checked through his homework and he had to try and fix it before school. So of course we were running late. We went off to school to do parent helping. I had to stay for 2.5 hours, which would happen when I wanted to get to work. I couldn’t find the car keys and I got to work around 10.30 and started the day. The rest of the day was fairly typical, I spoke to Bruce and he was making his way to the next part of his trip, next stop, North Carolina. I got home from work around 6.00, having has to stop off and grab a couple of things for dinner, and naturally (sarcastic) I had to go to more than one supermarket to find the stuff that I needed. I arrived home to find that there was no Internet or phone, oh what a day. Bruce was on the phone and I was yelling, Comcast couldn’t help until the next day. You can imagine my mood. For everyone’s safety I ended up going to bed around 9.30, exhausted and not happy. What a day!!! Wednesday Happy Birthday Grandma!!! We woke up and the kids jumped into bed with me. We wrapped the little present that I bought her and started the day. We were all ready to go when she woke up and so we did the school thing. I came back from school and fixed up the internet phone situation and we got organized and jumped into Paula’s car and went to pick them up. It turned out to be a nice sunny morning so I drove mum around Sacramento for a look; we went to Old Sac, Government House and the beautiful old houses. She got some nice pics so she was happy. We picked them up at the airport and were back in Elk Grove at around midday. I took mum out for lunch to Pete’s, had the best tomato bisque soup and could only eat half the turkey sandwiches, so we bought them home. After that we hit a couple of shops for a quick look and to get a couple of things that he needed for a project. We got back and picked the kids up from school, they did their homework and went out for a play. Then around 6.00 we went out for dinner to celebrate the birth of Ellen. Back to Pete’s we went, and had another beautiful meal; the kids had some yummy stuff too. Again, we went home with doggy bags, which mum still can’t believe. We got home and mum got online and birthday chatted with everyone, dad even rang which was a great surprise. I think she had a nice birthday. I went to bed around 10.00 and left her up checking emails etc. Thursday I woke up to lots of fog; it’s getting that way every morning now. We walked to school and I did parent helping in Conner’s class. It was only for an hour cause they had a substitute teacher, which was good for me. I got back to the house at around 9.15 and we got ready and took off for the outlet mall. It’s about a 35 min drive, and mum got to some more of Sacramento on the way. It was raining when we arrived but we made out way through the stores. It turns out we are slow shoppers or thorough shoppers, so we had to get picky about which ones we hit. We had to leave to pick the kids up just after 1.30. We got back to the car with lots of bags, so I guess it was a successful trip. I think everyone got a little something. We got home and had out lunch, the boys had running club so mum went across about 3.00, it was fine and sunny by now so running club was on. They got home; with an extra (Jackari) his mum was on her way back from a funeral in San Francisco. She arrived around 4.00 and they left not long after. We checked over homework and the kids went off to play, then we all piled into the car and went to Ikea. Mum bought us some stuff for the house and the boy’s new doona covers. We were there for a couple of hours but were still home by 7.00pm. All the Christmas decorations are out here and there are some gorgeous ones. It’s going to be hard to restrain myself. We got home and the kids showered while we organized dinner. We all had leftovers from the week, to the kids delight. Go Figure!!! I was off to bed at a reasonable hour, which is nice. Friday The end of another week here, and it started out as usual. Except that, I woke up at 5.00am, which I put down to Bruce doing something. Usually if I wake up at a certain time, it usually means something unusual is happening. Not sure why, but more often than not when I remember to ask him, it’s true. Pretty weird, but it’s nice. The boys went off to school and Paula and the boys came over and she drove me to work. We had a pretty constructive day, I’m trying to organize some stuff for while I’m not in. (The boys are going off track, so no work) I spoke to Bruce throughout the day, he was trying to make his way home, airports, planes etc, etc. Mum picked the boys up from school and they just played, there is no homework on Friday’s or the weekend, which is a nice rest for them. They are just packing up the room and all their stuff anyway. I got home around 4.30 and I started to put together the furniture that we got the night before. We had some dinner and the boys watched a movie and I got onto the computer and chatted with Elise then later Rhys came online. Bruce’s flight from Vegas was delayed so was now not getting home until around 2.00am. I was planning to surprise him at the airport so he didn’t have to catch a cab. I spoke to him in Vegas at 12.00 and he still had a wait so I decided to get at least an hour of sleep. I woke up and was out of the house at 1.20, drove in the fog, hoping that the plane wasn’t diverted due to the fog. He arrived at 2.28, helping a girl on crutches with her son and their carry on bags. We waited around for what seemed like forever, what made it longer was finding her bags, cause they were the last ones. We got home and rolled into bed at 4.00am. What an end to the week. For those who are waiting for my emails, I’m really sorry. I will catch up with all of you over the next week, I promise!!!!! We are looking forward to Thanksgiving, although I think it will be just another day for us, just a big meal. No huge plans. The Charles’ are off to Hawaii for a few days and Paula is coming over but the boys are with their dad. EVERYONE HAVE A GREAT WEEK!!!!

Our new Home....

3801 Lake Terrace Drive

Elk Grove, CA, 95758

Front Gate

Front Door

Back Yard

Large TV in Back room

Lounge/ Dining Room

Kitchen

Back Room

Master Bedroom

From 4th November...

Saturday Moving Day!!! Up at 5.30, getting everything ready for the day. Pretty much all of the packing was done, just putting all the other stuff together. Bruce made a couple of phone calls about a fridge while I made up a Lasagna (to use up some of the stuff out of the fridge) and everyone was up and we were out of the house and off to get the truck at 9.00. Grabbed that then made our way back to go to the house to sign the lease. Packed the van for the 1st load and it started. Alfie came over to help Bruce with all the heavy lifting. Then, one truckload and a couple of van loads later. Paula came over in the afternoon and helped me. By 5.00 we were out and in again. Paula left to get ready for our girls night and I did the same. The boys did pizza for dinner and the girls were off at 7.00. We ended up at Logan’s for dinner and then into Old Sac to a comedy club. There were 3 comedians, 2 were funny, and the other wasn’t really. It was a fun night; just to get out and be girls is always a good time. We got home around 12.30 and off to bed. Very Tired as you can imagine!!! Sunday Woke up at 6.00am, and started with the unpacking that I usually due the night we move. I did the kitchen before everyone got up at around 7.30 then finished the rest by 10.30. We were out to take the truck back at around midday. Then we dropped in at home and picked up some lunch and headed back to the apartment to clean. 3 hours later it was all done. We wiped down everything, from the skirting boards to the blinds, it looked brand new. We packed up the rest of the stuff, little bits and pieces and were out there by 5.00. Off home we went to have some dinner. After dinner Paula dropped in to give us moving in gifts, wine glasses, Yeay!!! And the boys got fridge magnet games, for when we get a fridge. She went off to meet some friends to watch Sunday night football and we did the same then not long after, got ready for bed. What a weekend, it’s all over now. I can’t remember the last time I was this tired, oh yeah, when I didn’t sleep on the plane coming over. Monday It started like all the others, not really. The boys got up and just ran around the house for a while, cause they could. Paula bought the boys over to see the house, then we all walked to school together and Paula and I headed off to work. Renee was starting today, so that was a bit exciting for me. I can actually get back to the work I should be doing. I got there and we went through all the stuff she needed to know. I spent a couple of hours at the office then Bruce picked me up and we went home to get organized to pick mum up from the airport. We picked the boys up from school at 2.00 and headed out, the plane was on time and she came down the escalators (crying) a mixture of tired and happy. Big hugs for everyone and then we grabbed her bags and jumped into the car to head home. We stopped on the way to show her the apartment before we gave the keys etc back. Then, we were off to the new house. She loves it just like we do, yes, pictures are coming. We got home and got into the usual routine, the kids still had homework to do, and I cooked my lasagna. Jamieson had basketball training so they all went out to that which was nice and peaceful. We sat down and had dinner, then Paula dropped in and I made her eat (otherwise she wouldn’t) then I gave her the leftover pieces, I have no fridge or freezer. She took them and went off to the office to get some work done. Mum bought the lolly’s out, (****Jamieson’s watch) Oh My Goodness, you would not believe it, good thing we took a photo. Yummy Mummy got good business out of her that day. We now have enough for the next 6 months & I am not kidding. We also got some Christmas lolly tree lollies, so yeah!!!! The kids got sugared up and then we made them go to bed. We stayed up talking for a while, but were in bed at around 11.00, which wasn’t too bad. Tuesday (Happy Birthday to Kristy!!!!!) Got up and ready for school and work. Paula bought the kids round cause Conner asked her too. We walked over to school then Paula and I went to work. I stayed for the training on the new phone system then late morning came home to see mum. She was not long up, so that was good timing. We just spent the rest of the day pottering around, putting stuff away and rearranging stuff. The school called around 1.00 to say that Jamieson wasn’t feeling well. I went and picked him up and we walked home, he went to bed for a lay down for around 30 mins then of course he was feeling better. I went to pick Conner up from school and we came home and did homework. Bruce came home from work; we had some turkey burgers and veggies, very yummy. Mum chatted on Skype and sent some emails to everyone. I nearly fell asleep on the couch, so off to bed I went at 9.30. Out for the count, it finally caught up to me. Mum stayed up and chatted to Dad on the phone and not sure what time she headed down. I didn’t move!!!! Wednesday Well, another Wednesday rolls around, the usual. Paula dropped the boys off stayed for a quick chat and went off to her meeting. Then we all walked to school together. It was a cloudy day, but not cold. Haven’t figured out the weather yet. It’s been cloudy but not too cold, or nice and sunny. Ed was right; if it’s not raining then it’s usually a beautiful sunny day. Mum wasn’t up when we left, still adjusting to the time difference, plus she goes to bed later than us. We are early birds now. It was a pretty usual workday; Paula is planning on expending the offices to the one underneath us as well. Bruce called in the morning to tell me that he was putting the car in for a service, something was telling him too. Cool, then called back later in the afternoon to tell me that, amongst other things, the front wheel was about to fall off. SO, we were both just on the phone, blown away. He was in a hire car and would be home later. That was a close one, gutt feelings are true and you should always listen to them. This now proves it!!! Mum picked the boys up from school for me so I could get another couple of hours work in, which was weird but good, I got a big chunk done. Got home around 4.30, just as it was starting to get dark. The kids did well with Mum, all their homework was done and they were playing in the playroom. Made some dinner, sat down and had our meal and chatted about the day, the boys did their reading and went off to bed. Bruce went in to do some prep work for his trip. He leaves for New York on Sunday morning (early) and gets home late (very) on Friday night from North Carolina. He’s going to try and get to UNC to see Cecil & Desiree Exum University Territory, which he is looking forward to. We were in bed at the usual 10.30; Mum was still up chilling out and catching up with back home. Thursday Woke up, it’s getting earlier every day. I can’t remember the last time my alarm actually woke me up. It was about 6.30, I got up and did the usual, the boys surfaced around 7.00am, they are getting used to the routine as well. We did the breakfast, dressing etc thing. Paula and the boys arrived around 7.30, as per usual. I dropped all the boys off at school then walked back to the apartments to meet Bruce and do some laundry at Paula’s place. Bruce dropped me off at work and headed into the office. We had a staff meeting and organized the next couple of weeks. Paula is away next week, going to Idaho with the boys to visit her Mum. She also told us that we now have possession of the offices underneath, so we are moving again, some of the stuff is anyway. Actually most of the stuff is. That’s another job to be done, we’ve given ourselves until mid December. Which is plenty, once it’s wired for networking and phones we are good to go. Then I think we will just have a working bee and it’ll be all done in a day. Bruce called, to let me know who much the car was, lets just say, we were gutted for the rest of the day, the girls were offering me chocolate at work. Then he had to go out and buy a fridge and washing machine, so that made the day a “money down the drain day”. It needed to be done, and we move on. I didn’t get home until 5.00pm, I was waiting for Bruce to drive through and pick me up, the boys had running club after school and Mum we and watched them and of course took pictures. Just to make the day even better, we get home and our cable is out, which means we also have no Internet and no phone. What a joyful day it’s been. NOT HAPPY JAN!!! Would have to be an understatement. I jumped back into the car and went to Paula’s to grab the laundry and then to supermarket to get some Drano to see if we could fix this water pipe situation. I got back and whipped up a quick whatever they wanted dinner, Conner had basketball training at 7.00pm. We have the cable guy and the fridge and washer being delivered between 1.00-5.00 tomorrow, which would be fine except that’s when we had plans to meet Kristin & the boys and I am having Paula’s boys until she is done with her meeting at the park for the afternoon. Bruce has asked them to ring first, delivery guys will, cable guy not so sure. We’ll see, they were supposed to be here on Tuesday and weren’t, so I’m not holding my breath on the whole going out of their way thing. They all left around 6.40 and I had some peace until 8.15, when they all came bounding back in. No school tomorrow for Veterans Day so the boys stayed up and we all sat down in the Lounge room and watched “The Pacifier’, great movie. That finished around 10.00 and we were all off to bed, except for Mum who stayed up and watched Harry Potter, I think. Another week is coming to an end and we are all exhausted, life over here is very hectic & we are just not used to it yet. Friday Bruce was up at around 6.00 and of course I was too. Everyone was sleeping so I got up and did some stuff on the computer. Jamieson woke up around 7.00 and cuddled into the couch with a blanket watching a movie. I pottered around the house organizing a few things and the boys chilled out all morning. Paula called around 11.00 to see if she could drop the boys off a little earlier, which was fine. They arrived around 11.30 as the plumber was here to fix the garbage disposal. When he opened it up it was full of shrimp, YUK, I nearly gagged. So he fixed that up & I packed up some stuff for lunch and we were off, while Mum stayed back until the fridge and washer were delivered. Alfie dropped over about 2.00 to pick up Cooper and take him home to bed, the big boys were still playing and didn’t want to come home yet. Mum arrived at the park around 2.30 and we stayed until around 3.30. Kristin and the boys came over to check things out, they stayed for a little while then made their way back home to feed Cooper. The fridge and washer were there, yeay, but not cable man yet. Not holding my breath!!!! Paula arrived around 5.30 to pickup the boys after a long day at work. We chatted for a while then Paula wanted to go out for dinner & asked us to come. The boys were watching the NAB Cup Grand Final (Geelong) and Justin wanted to see the end. So that finished and all the boys went in our car and the girls went in Paula’s car. We arrived at Logan’s a got a table straight away, which was great for a Friday night. The boys did their coloring and we all chatted, dinner was yummy as per usual, and we were out of there at 8.30. The kids wanted to go to Best Buy (games stuff) and so we went and checked out cameras for mum, then mum and I went up to Old Navy to check things out. Got a few good bargains and the boys were waiting out the front in the car when we were done. Home around 9.30, watched a bit of friends and went off to bed. That has been out first week in our new home. It’s had it’s ups and down’s, still no Internet, so if there was any emails and you haven’t heard from me then SORRY!!! But we are all still here, and Mum even likes it here, I think. I hope everyone had a great week, the weather is warming up and those beautiful spring days are better than ever. We are actually enjoying the cooler weather here, after not really having many since June 2005. I am acclimatizing surprisingly well, a big fluffy robe and Ugg’s makes all the difference.

Halloween pics...

'THE GANG CHECKING OUT THIER STASH!!

THE BOYS ON THE WAY OUT THE DOOR JAMIESON & CONNER

(INCASE YOU DIDN'T KNOW WHO IT WAS.)

October 28th

Saturday Another weekend begins with the usual, getting up and the kids watched a bit of TV, I made some pancake mix and started on the washing while made the pancakes for the kids for breakfast. I did tidying, washing, dishes and made the birthday cake so it could cool while we were out. We were out of the house at 10.00am, to basketball practice for Jamieson. It was a good session, all the parents are really nice and I think the kids will do well, which is a good thing. We went and grabbed some bread rolls etc at the supermarket in between practice sessions. Back at the stadium at 12.00 for Conner’s practice, again the parents all seem nice, there is really only a couple that drop their boys off, so that is nice to see as well. They trained really well, and Bruce gave them some homework to practice and some good instruction, I think they all learnt something or now know what they need to practice on. We were out of there at around 2.00pm, so half the day had gone already, and there was still lots to do before our pumpkin carving at the Charles’s at 5.30. We got Bruce some new shoes for work, Alfie’s birthday present and were home around 3.00pm. I did more washing and tidied up a bit more, the boys went outside to play thank goodness. I made the mousse for the frosting on the cake and let that set, did shower and hair washing, spoke to Paula on the phone. Bruce took the boys out to grab a couple of pumpkins. Around 4.00 I started on Alfie’s birthday card, (there’s a story that is just too long to tell), and then finished up with the washing. It was around 5.00 and Bruce got up and he and the boys did showers and got ready, I was still in my robe with wet hair. Bruce comes out and says Elise is online and wants to have a chat, (sorry Elise) I was elbow deep in 6 things to get done before we had to go. They were all ready to go at 5.20 and I was still finishing the card. I got that done, the 3 boys sat down and watched TV while I frosted the cake and washed the dishes, wrapped the present and wrote on the card. Then I went and dried my hair and got dressed, so I was ready at around 6.15. Bruce was not happy. Don’t get me started on that, and you can imagine how well that went down with me. We got there around 6.30 and the story of my day gave everyone a laugh so that was a bit of fun. Alfie offered me a drink and I took it, yes, you can imagine their faces when I said YES!! Everyone was sitting down to dinner, yummy as per usual. We caught up on the week; both Bruce and Alfie had been on trips so they had stories to tell. We finished up with dinner and cleaned up and started on the pumpkin hollowing. Alfie got out the tools and Bruce did it fine, I was worried about the whole pumpkin making him sick thing, he wouldn’t be able to, but he was fine. It took a while but finally the kids got started on the pumpkin carving. Conner got stuck right into it. He traced his drawing that he had done at home and did the whole thing himself, got the cutting tools and he did a great job. All the others, the kids got pretty bored of watching the adults use the cutting tools and took off to play. They all turned out really great, especially when we put them outside in the dark with the candles. The boys all sat down and watched a movie and the adults went into the lounge room and chatted, until around 10.00 when we all piled into the car and went home. We got home, put the pumpkins on the balcony and all went to bed. A big, long day. Sunday We woke up and checked our watches, daylight savings had finished so all the clocks had to go back an hour. Which made it 7.00am, Conner was up watching some TV and Jamieson woke up not long after. They chilled out for the morning; I moved them into our room so I could clean the house. Bruce and Jamieson went over to the park for a quick play before Bruce had to leave to go to work for a couple of hours. He left around 11.30 and the boys went outside to play, I finished up the cleaning and made the boys some lunch. Paula called around 2.00 just as my cookies were cooking, so we went over a little after that and headed off to the park. The boys ran and played until around 4.00. We came home and the boys cleaned up from the park, got changed and Paula and the kids came over the watch a movie, something quiet so they will chill out. They left to have dinner at 6.15 and we did the same. Spent the rest of the night, doing nothing, quietly. What a weekend, another busy one and it’s over so we can now relax and do school and work. Monday Another week begins with the sunshine and the cool air. Bruce went off to work and the boys and I went to school and work. Work was usual and school was the same for the boys. Bruce was going to pick me up from work but got caught in a meeting. So I picked them up, they went to the oval to do their running for running club and then we went to the lost and found to look for Conner’s lunch box. Nothing. Conner and Jamieson walked home and I went to After School care to pick up Justin and Jeremy. They were coming over for the afternoon and then I was making dinner for Paula’s birthday. We did homework, and then the kids played and I did dinner and cake. Paula arrived around 6.45, the boys had done bath. We had dinner and blew out the candles then the boys chilled out watching a movie, Bruce did the dishes and Paula and I sat at the table with our birthday drink and all chatted. They left around 9.00 and we were in bed not long after, an early night, which we needed. Tuesday Happy Halloween Well, it was a beautiful day, sunny all day. We did the usual things, Bruce was home working for the morning and I took the kids to school and did parent helping. I got back from school and Bruce dropped me off at work on his way to the office. The usual day for everyone, I picked the boys up from school and came home to get homework etc done before the BIG night. The boys got all their work done and even had time to go outside and play. I called them in around 5.00 to do showers and costumes. Bruce arrived home and we helped the boys get dressed. We left early, no trick or treaters at our place. We arrived at the Charles’s at around 6.00 pm, all the kids were ready to go, even Super Cooper, literally. There are photos for everyone to see. All the kids looked great, at around 6.16 all the boys went out to walk around the neighborhood, while Kristin and I stayed at the house to give out the candy. They bought Cooper back about 30 mins later and off they went again. They all got back around 7.00, which was great timing cause Paula and her boys arrived to show off their costumes. All the kids sat down and checked out their stashes. (Reminds me of us after coming home for the show and emptying out our show bags onto the floor.) I have a photo of that too, of course, my mother would be so proud. We were home by 9.00, so it wasn’t as late as we had anticipated so that was a bonus, even if they were all sugared up. They had a great time and we saw some really cool costumes. It’s just a fun night all round. We got home, chilled out for a while and then off to bed at around 10.30, and that was our first Halloween. Wednesday The weather has finally changed, I think. We woke up to an overcast day. The boys and I got up and went off to school and work, Bruce left early again. I worked until about 12.30 when Bruce picked my up to go and see the house that we wanted to move into. Chatted to Pete on messenger, he was on the morning show on channel 9; I hope you all saw it. It’s online if you haven’t. The house was beautiful; it’s got lots of light, and good window coverings. It has 2 living areas, and a yard for the kids to play as well as a garage too. The garden is landscaped and we’ll have to keep it up. It is just what we were waiting for. We rushed out of there; Bruce had to go to catch a plane to New Orleans. We drove to the airport on cloud 9, big smiles. We have a house!!!!! I drove back and picked the kids up from school. We came home and did the homework thing, and then they went outside to play. I went out to get them just after 6.00, it was dark already, not used to the winter dark yet, it’s been a long time. We had some dinner and Jamieson went off to bed. Conner conned me to stay up until 8.30, then 9.00 by the time he actually went. Bruce called from Denver then Louisiana then Baton Rouge. He arrived safely, and very tired. I stayed up, the usual not sleeping when Bruce is away, chatted with Elise on messenger at around 11.00, turned off the computer at around midnight, but not sleeping until around 1.00. A late night, better get used to it cause Bruce is away a lot over the next couple of months. Thursday Did the usual for a Thursday. The boys and I went to school and I did parent helping in Conner’s class until around 9.30 then off to work. I’m working through a Development Agreement Application at the moment, which, yes, is as boring as it sounds. It does make the day a drag I have to say. I went and picked the kids up from school, we had running club, but not for me today, I didn’t have time to change. The weather was blah anyway and they only lasted 30 mins until it was over. Then we jumped into the car and went to look for raincoats for the kids. No Joy!!!! We arrived home and had some dinner. Just a quiet night, my packing starts tomorrow, probably leaving it a bit late but oh well. Friday Got up and dropped the kids off at school and headed off to work. Paula was out at meetings for the day, I continued on with the Agreement and also did the weekly wrap up etc. Our new admin lady is starting on Monday so I did some prep for Monday morning. I am going in for an hour or so to go through everything with her, then taking off and tying up loose ends before we get the kids from school and head to the airport to pick up mum. Picked the kids up from school, came home and started packing at 3.00, stopped to cook the kids some dinner and continued on until around 10.00 when I sat down for the evening. Everything was pretty much done, packing wise. Paula dropped in to chat, I was staying up to pick Bruce up from the airport, 11.15pm. We caught up on the day, organized the weekend. Paula is helping with the move Saturday. I left for the airport at around 11.00 and Paula stayed with the kids so I didn’t have to wake them up. We got home from the airport around 12.00, just after and pretty much said good night to Paula and went to bed. TIRED!!!!!! What a week. Another busy weekend coming up, moving YEAH!!!!! Photo’s of the house are coming & Halloween, stay tuned…. Have a great week everyone, from not so warm Northern California.