Toby was good this morning, although he really wanted to sleep in. He stayed up far too late last night - I think he is still on Brisbane time a bit, or he's becoming a night owl or something. I was clearing up in the kitchen around 9:30pm and as I came out of the lounge this grey blur streaked past at waist height, which gave me a huge fright. It took me a second or two to figure out that it was in fact Toby running as fast as he could, back to bed to avoid getting into trouble.
So harsh, rigid 7am wakeups for Toby from now on I reckon. If I can get myself out of bed to do it, that is. He thinks he'll be in trouble with his teacher for being sleepy, so hopefully that'll help sort him out.
We were off to school right on time in the end though. I drove in since it's Keas night and that means we need the car to make everything work. I picked up Nancy - Evan's mum - on the way through because she'd just missed the 8:32am bus, that was early as it is wont to do. All good!
Monday, May 31, 2010
Good morning on Mon, May 31
Hi,
Another month bites the dust. Whew - the year is flying by now. Our weekend was great fun despite the wintry conditions. Friday night Toby and I watched a movie (let's see... what was it? Oh yeah - Alvin and the Chipmunks, the Squeakwel) and fell into a deep, deep sleep. So deep that when Mike got home around midnight and took photos of me and Toby fast asleep, we never woke up. I think Mike was taking evidence that there was no room for him in the bed because he went down to sleep with the cat in Toby's bed. Heheheh. When I woke at 6am, Mike heard me and came to bed with us. But Toby and I had woken up at 5am, and Toby said "Daddy isn't here yet" and rolled over and went back to sleep - like me. So Toby was surprised to see his Dad in the morning.
Saturday swimming was good fun. It was cold and wet and Toby needed some convincing to head off to swimming, but once he was there he enjoyed it. It is warm in the swimming pool.
After that we went home for lunch and waited for Mike to turn up from his planning adventures with the tramping club. Mike was the agenda - or at least agenda item 2. It's all about the tramping club website and Mike is in it up to his wee eyeballs.
Saturday night Chelsea and Brennan came for a sleepover and Toby had a ball. They were up late but they were playing together very well. And they did get a reasonable sleep-in.
The kids played for most of Sunday together. The other Sampsons were running around in the horrible conditions and seemed very sensible to leave the younger Sampsons with us: nice and warm. Mike was off early to have some tramping club van driving practice. He is getting involved, isn't he? I got dinner ready (slow cooker meal to feed 11 or 12 people) and tidied up. Then I relaxed in the afternoon reading while Mike got the tramping website revitalisation project underway with a new machine to compile it and emails sent off to build up the project team around him. Yikes! My book was way more fun than that prospect. I am reading "Last Child in the Woods" about nature deficit disorder. Although I think the 400 pages are re-iterating the opening two pages over and over again, the author has made a few new assertions. The main idea is that children no longer get to experience nature and this results in many of society's recent woes. I think it certainly is an idea to entertain - we've evolved to appreciate nature. If we cut off that appreciation, it might be damaging to innate feelings. Who knows? It can't be a bad approach to fixing some messes in society...
Wally and Lesley came for a cup of tea and collected Chelsea and Brennan. We will book in Jessica for a sleepover in the next few weekends.
Dinner was great fun. The slow cooker cooked up a storm and fed the masses. Sally and Andrew brought dessert and Marion and Ma brought biscuits for tea. Dad turned up with impeccable timing - his plate had just been dished up to be put aside for him. There was fine conversation and we nearly squashed everyone in around the table (Marion and Toby ate at Toby's wee table and Marion impressed on him the idea of table manners).
That's about it. I fancy Yum Cha next weekend. It's a long weekend for us and if the weather is ok, I might get some gardening in. It's so easy to pull out weeds with all this rain we've had.
Have a great week!
Love,
Angela
Another month bites the dust. Whew - the year is flying by now. Our weekend was great fun despite the wintry conditions. Friday night Toby and I watched a movie (let's see... what was it? Oh yeah - Alvin and the Chipmunks, the Squeakwel) and fell into a deep, deep sleep. So deep that when Mike got home around midnight and took photos of me and Toby fast asleep, we never woke up. I think Mike was taking evidence that there was no room for him in the bed because he went down to sleep with the cat in Toby's bed. Heheheh. When I woke at 6am, Mike heard me and came to bed with us. But Toby and I had woken up at 5am, and Toby said "Daddy isn't here yet" and rolled over and went back to sleep - like me. So Toby was surprised to see his Dad in the morning.
Saturday swimming was good fun. It was cold and wet and Toby needed some convincing to head off to swimming, but once he was there he enjoyed it. It is warm in the swimming pool.
After that we went home for lunch and waited for Mike to turn up from his planning adventures with the tramping club. Mike was the agenda - or at least agenda item 2. It's all about the tramping club website and Mike is in it up to his wee eyeballs.
Saturday night Chelsea and Brennan came for a sleepover and Toby had a ball. They were up late but they were playing together very well. And they did get a reasonable sleep-in.
The kids played for most of Sunday together. The other Sampsons were running around in the horrible conditions and seemed very sensible to leave the younger Sampsons with us: nice and warm. Mike was off early to have some tramping club van driving practice. He is getting involved, isn't he? I got dinner ready (slow cooker meal to feed 11 or 12 people) and tidied up. Then I relaxed in the afternoon reading while Mike got the tramping website revitalisation project underway with a new machine to compile it and emails sent off to build up the project team around him. Yikes! My book was way more fun than that prospect. I am reading "Last Child in the Woods" about nature deficit disorder. Although I think the 400 pages are re-iterating the opening two pages over and over again, the author has made a few new assertions. The main idea is that children no longer get to experience nature and this results in many of society's recent woes. I think it certainly is an idea to entertain - we've evolved to appreciate nature. If we cut off that appreciation, it might be damaging to innate feelings. Who knows? It can't be a bad approach to fixing some messes in society...
Wally and Lesley came for a cup of tea and collected Chelsea and Brennan. We will book in Jessica for a sleepover in the next few weekends.
Dinner was great fun. The slow cooker cooked up a storm and fed the masses. Sally and Andrew brought dessert and Marion and Ma brought biscuits for tea. Dad turned up with impeccable timing - his plate had just been dished up to be put aside for him. There was fine conversation and we nearly squashed everyone in around the table (Marion and Toby ate at Toby's wee table and Marion impressed on him the idea of table manners).
That's about it. I fancy Yum Cha next weekend. It's a long weekend for us and if the weather is ok, I might get some gardening in. It's so easy to pull out weeds with all this rain we've had.
Have a great week!
Love,
Angela
Friday, May 28, 2010
Good morning on Fri, May 28
Hi,
I have discovered a pattern in my bike riding - or is that my lack of bike riding? If it is raining when I wake up, in those crucial 10 or 15 minutes where I lie awake and listen to stupid DJs on the dumb radio station we listen to, then it is very hard for me to get into bike gear. Something just doesn't work. This morning I had my shower and got into work gear and aimed for the 7.30am bus.
Made lunches - made Mike get up and have breakfast with me. Then wandered out to the bus - which didn't come. Not at all. Other patrons left with other options. I went back home and folded sheets with Mike.
Anyhow - I did get on a bus later. And it is very wet. I feel ok about it, sitting here warm and dry at my desk.
Table tennis was great fun. Hardly anyone turned up as we had the coldest, wettest night this season so far. So I played for ages. Good.
That's about it. Already looking forward to the weekend with Friday night movie and babysitting the Sampson children tomorrow night. Swimming as usual and the Bichan dinner at our house on Sunday evening (come along!).
Have a great weekend!
Love,
Angela
I have discovered a pattern in my bike riding - or is that my lack of bike riding? If it is raining when I wake up, in those crucial 10 or 15 minutes where I lie awake and listen to stupid DJs on the dumb radio station we listen to, then it is very hard for me to get into bike gear. Something just doesn't work. This morning I had my shower and got into work gear and aimed for the 7.30am bus.
Made lunches - made Mike get up and have breakfast with me. Then wandered out to the bus - which didn't come. Not at all. Other patrons left with other options. I went back home and folded sheets with Mike.
Anyhow - I did get on a bus later. And it is very wet. I feel ok about it, sitting here warm and dry at my desk.
Table tennis was great fun. Hardly anyone turned up as we had the coldest, wettest night this season so far. So I played for ages. Good.
That's about it. Already looking forward to the weekend with Friday night movie and babysitting the Sampson children tomorrow night. Swimming as usual and the Bichan dinner at our house on Sunday evening (come along!).
Have a great weekend!
Love,
Angela
Thursday, May 27, 2010
And good morning from me
I didn't ride.
I didn't even bus.
I drove.
It was a bit of a disaster morning really, with Toby sleeping in to 8:00am. That gave us 20 mins to get ready. It was a bit startling when Toby said, 'Oh, it's lunch order day, isn't it? That means I need to do my homework right now before we go to school'. Oops. I assumed he'd have missed this week's homework because he was away. So he's going to tell his teacher that it was his fault for not doing his homework at after-school care or telling us it needed doing last night, and that he'll get it done this evening before doing anything fun. Promise.
I was still a little bit late because the off-ramp was broken. Took me 15 min to drive the last 700m or so to work. Oh well.
I didn't even bus.
I drove.
It was a bit of a disaster morning really, with Toby sleeping in to 8:00am. That gave us 20 mins to get ready. It was a bit startling when Toby said, 'Oh, it's lunch order day, isn't it? That means I need to do my homework right now before we go to school'. Oops. I assumed he'd have missed this week's homework because he was away. So he's going to tell his teacher that it was his fault for not doing his homework at after-school care or telling us it needed doing last night, and that he'll get it done this evening before doing anything fun. Promise.
I was still a little bit late because the off-ramp was broken. Took me 15 min to drive the last 700m or so to work. Oh well.
Good morning on Thurs, May 27
Hi,
What a gloomy looking day out there - and a high of 9 forecast. 9! Brrrr. I stubbornly rode my bike this morning to work. Our house avoids a lot of the southerly blast, so I thought I might get to work relatively dry. But when I got up to the garage, I could tell that the mist that shrouded Mount KauKau was actually rain. Cold rain. So I dragged my bike out of the garage, and hopped on. As always, I tested my brakes at the top of our hill. Hmmmm. Wet already and not a lot of stopping power. So it was a cautious ride down the hill. But, oddly, I wasn't too wet really. And only the tips of my fingers were cold and sore as they started to defrost in the lift at work.
But here I am, smug and superior in my cycling endeavours. And almost as dry as any work colleague. Heheheh.
Yesterday was karate day and we had tea at Mum and Dad's place afterwards. I took the 43 bus straight there after work. Nice dinner of family pie and mash (Toby wanted half a plate of mash he said) and then home to bed.
Tonight is table tennis night - I'm looking forward to that. But after the 4 day weekend, I am looking forward to Friday already. Phew!
Have a marvellous day. Stay dry wherever you are.
Love,
Angela
What a gloomy looking day out there - and a high of 9 forecast. 9! Brrrr. I stubbornly rode my bike this morning to work. Our house avoids a lot of the southerly blast, so I thought I might get to work relatively dry. But when I got up to the garage, I could tell that the mist that shrouded Mount KauKau was actually rain. Cold rain. So I dragged my bike out of the garage, and hopped on. As always, I tested my brakes at the top of our hill. Hmmmm. Wet already and not a lot of stopping power. So it was a cautious ride down the hill. But, oddly, I wasn't too wet really. And only the tips of my fingers were cold and sore as they started to defrost in the lift at work.
But here I am, smug and superior in my cycling endeavours. And almost as dry as any work colleague. Heheheh.
Yesterday was karate day and we had tea at Mum and Dad's place afterwards. I took the 43 bus straight there after work. Nice dinner of family pie and mash (Toby wanted half a plate of mash he said) and then home to bed.
Tonight is table tennis night - I'm looking forward to that. But after the 4 day weekend, I am looking forward to Friday already. Phew!
Have a marvellous day. Stay dry wherever you are.
Love,
Angela
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Good morning on Wed, May 26
Hi,
The forecast said it was going to rain all day and that the rain will get harder with gale southerlies. Hence, I hardly contemplated riding my bike, despite optimistically getting my bike gear ready last night. I had a good morning with Toby and we walked to school and he came down to the bus stop with me. Then I sat in the brilliant sunshine, with no wind, waiting for the bus. Stupid weather forecast.
Anyhow - last night went well. I had a user group session to run once more but probably won't need to be as involved over the next month or so as the main leader is back from annual leave. Cool!
Mike and Toby collected me from there at 7.30pm. I was home nice and early and Toby went to bed really well after his day recovering at home.
He has some photos from the weekend to take to school today for news. I hope he remembers them.
That's about it. Karate day (and tennis, if it's not teeming with rain with those promised gale southerlies) - Mike will head home for karate and hopefully we'll see Ma and Dad.
Have a great day!
Love,
Angela
The forecast said it was going to rain all day and that the rain will get harder with gale southerlies. Hence, I hardly contemplated riding my bike, despite optimistically getting my bike gear ready last night. I had a good morning with Toby and we walked to school and he came down to the bus stop with me. Then I sat in the brilliant sunshine, with no wind, waiting for the bus. Stupid weather forecast.
Anyhow - last night went well. I had a user group session to run once more but probably won't need to be as involved over the next month or so as the main leader is back from annual leave. Cool!
Mike and Toby collected me from there at 7.30pm. I was home nice and early and Toby went to bed really well after his day recovering at home.
He has some photos from the weekend to take to school today for news. I hope he remembers them.
That's about it. Karate day (and tennis, if it's not teeming with rain with those promised gale southerlies) - Mike will head home for karate and hopefully we'll see Ma and Dad.
Have a great day!
Love,
Angela
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
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