Unseasonably Cold

All anyone can talk about around here (besides the swine flu) is how cold it has been the last few days. I have been loving it.

It all started last weekend with crisp weather. You know, days that are sunny and look like they should be scorching, but they aren't. Instead they have this cool, clean feel to them. And the nights… perfect sleeping weather. Haven't had to have the air on or anything in weeks. It gets quite cool in the house with the wood floors, so bedtime is nice and cozy. Especially now that I have put on the matelasse to add another light layer to the bed. Ahhhh… I could spend all day (and night) in bed now. (Yes, Jim would say that is no different than any other time) but in the autumn I could just live in bed. Reading and snuggling.

When I am talking about how cold it is, that means a high of 14°C (or 58°F) today. I was loving it. I did get chilled (it is damp and rainy today), but I am happy to layer up in sweaters and stuff. Quite happy. And then I love when I get to mouth off to the locals who laugh when I am teased for being all layered up in the cold. They (wrongly) assume that this weather is nothing to a Northern Hemisphere girl. I just laugh and tell them I have thin blood – I was born in the South afterall!

p.s. I have learned one exciting thing since moving here. Almost everyone wears scarves around their necks. I can't remember when people in the Midwest would wear scarves, except during a blizzard. And then just rarely. But I am taken with the idea. You don't need as many layers if you are wearing a scarf around your neck. It really does keep you warm. Who knew???

The countdown has entered its final stages

I can't wait for Jim's parents to get here on Sunday so I can stop the continual – how long till gramma and grampa Rhomberg get here? Guess what… its only X days or XX hours or XXX minutes. Gee whiz kids, give it a rest sometime.

But what has really gotten them involved in the continual asking is, "Do gramma and grampa have the pig flu?" "Why not?" "They live in the US, so they must have it" UGH!!! Try to explain the unexplainable to kids – not very easy. And even more difficult when the swine flu seems to be a common topic at school. All of their friends are insistent that anyone from the US 'must' have it.

Can't wait for gramma and grampa to try to meet their friends at school and everyone runs the other direction.

Oh the joys of international living…

A peak into my son’s ‘mates’

I still have the hardest time thinking of friends as 'mates'. Just seems so wrong, when for the first 34 odd years, mate meant the one you were going to be with for the rest of your life. Like a husband or a wife. Or a male and female animal.

Whereas here in Australia, mate means friend. So if you take it as I did, it seems just so wrong. But then again, it can be so right because if you have a friend for life… that is one of the best things you can have. So I guess mate works that way, too. I just can't wrap my head around calling my friends mates. Just won't happen.

This morning I walked Andrew into class because we were going to look for a 'missing' math book. One that I was sure I had sent to school with him and one he was POSITIVE that he never took to school. As we walked into the classroom, the rain bell rang. So, we hurried to find his book in his tray (we did!!!!!) and I was walking out as he put the book into his backpack to bring home for homework. As a parent, you seem to dissolve into the woodwork when there are other friends around.

I did stay long enough to hear Andrew's friend, Rob, ask his how he went against the Tigers. Or rather – did you beat the Tigers? I had to rack my brain to figure out what he meant. Then it hit me when Andrew sadly said, no. He was asking how his basketball game the previous night went. It was so cute to hear a friend genuinely ask my son how he did in a basketball game that his friend had no relation to. And it seemed like Rob had been chomping at the bit to ask Andrew.

Made me smile as I trudged off into the pouring rain on one of the coldest mornings in April in Sydney. Ever.

Kingpin Bowling - 16 kids + 6 moms

I organized a bowling 'excursion' for all our friends (and their kids) for today, the last day of school holidays. I had promised Sue's daughter, Natalie, that I would since we played LAST autumn holidays in Port Stephens. And now I have finally gotten it to work.
All in all we had 22 people -- 6 moms and 16 kids aged 3-9. WHOA!!! Booked in four lanes and 2 games. Started bowling at 11.30am and didn't finish up until close to 3pm. OMG! Long long games. Kids had a blast. Would say the moms did too -- Nicole emailed me and said it was the highlight of her holidays (poor thing!) But it was definitely fun and all the moms bowled without bumpers. I hit a record 95 (tied with Deb), while assisting the other kids and trying to manage the chaos and food craving of the kids. Not sure if my bowling arm will allow any typing tomorrow seeing as I can feel my hand still cramping from the games. Oh the price I pay for my kids' happiness. Or something like that!
Andrew and Emmalee both did quite well – using the bumpers but not the ramp. The moms were forced to bowl without bumpers (the man told us we couldn’t as adults – load of crap I think!) It only took us a bit over 3 ½ hours to bowl two games (and the mom’s game was finished out by the kids who were already done bowling). Let just say, our scores diminished dramatically by that point.
Must have been just as good for everyone else who attended, not just our kids, since I got multiple thank you emails from friends – AND a request to do it next holidays. I have respectfully passed on the planning to another mom, though since I will be holidaying in the US until the day before the next proposed bowling event!
No complaining from any of the kids -- except when they got hungry. Which is fair enough. I figured we'd be out by 1 and could feed them lunch. Took a bit longer than my plan, but we got sandwiches to split, bags of chips and bowls of fries. They were happy as pigs in mud.
See how happy they were...



We are only missing one child in the photo. Alex (Minty’s brother) was completely wiped out, whereas the Mattani’s were full of energy (as you can see in the green shirts). They are the three youngest kids that bowled.

Another bit the dust

After two days of tummy aches and nauseatingly wobbly and hanging by only a root, Andrew's tooth finally succumbed to the pressure and was forced to be taken out. At least this time I didn't have to do it -- he pulled it himself. Not that it needed any pulling, it was soooooooooooooooooo ready to go.

Here is the little man with a weight lifted off his 'gums'. And then his choppers with the new air hole. And finally the tooth all safely in a takeaway condiment cup so we don't lose it before we get it home.

Silly thing (or cute thing) -- he has placed the takeaway cup AND tooth under his pillow and won't sleep on the pillow in case he smooshes it. AWWWWWWWWWWWWWW

Abracadabra

Emmalee has been really into magic. Ever since she and her cousin Alex started doing a magic show in Dubuque whenever each summer when we have gone back. She has been working on a disappearing coin trick and pretty much has it down pat.
So, when we went to the mall to get a few things at IKEA, we happened past a book store that had books on clearance. Andrew found one of Australian origami and Emmalee asked if they had any magic books. One appeared right before her eyes and it was exactly what she wanted PLUS a magic wand. OH BOY!!

She spent the whole car ride home studying the book and trying to decide what tricks to learn first.
Watch out Alex, this magician might have a few NEW tricks up her sleeves for the 2009 Dubuque magic show at the Rhombergs!

School Holidays Day 5

Today is day five of school holidays and day three since we have come back from Canberra. (TB Posted Later)

This will be known as the holiday of playdates. Wednesday it was coffee, then playing at the Fords then the Ford/Rhomberg switch-off. I brought Anthea home with Emmalee and then Andrew chose to stay at Teesh's to play boy stuff at the Fords. Not 4 minutes after I reversed the switch and sent MY kids to the car was there fighting, screaming, pushing and more. Teesh said she had never heard my kids fight. WHAT?????

Today we started with coffee with the Cassis' and the Evans. We then offered to take Alex home. Ran to the grocery store to get toothbrushes for Emmalee. Ran into Sue and the kids. So, picked up another boy and then traded Emmalee off for a couple of hours.

The boys were SOOOOOOOO LOUD. Unbelievably loud. But they had fun. Returned the boys, picked up Emmalee and then headed off to another playdate for her with Minty.

Just about to leave Minty's house for a quiet afternoon with Andrew. BUT...wait for it... Alex, Minty's brother, jumped into Lucinda's arms and slipped and split his head open on their tile stairs. So, we convinced Lucinda to take Alex to the GP to get the gash checked out. And I got a reverse playdate -- Minty and Harriet came home with me.

Luckily, Alex is fine. Now is sporting a lovely superglue spot on the back of his head, but didn't seem too worse for the wear when I returned his sisters.

And now five days into the holidays, the kids are worn out. Both fell asleep on the way back from the city (dropping daddy off for a daddy's play-date of dinner and bowling and beers). Guess they are worn out!

Not unlike their mommy.

Sounds like we are in the clear

Went to see Dr. Taplin today to have Andrew's 16 month check-up on his ear tubes. Its officially been 3 whole months he has gone without an infection or illness. I think this has got to be a record.

Anyway, Dr. Taplin checked his nose (looked perfect), throat (still no tonsils or adenoids – YIPEE!) and then his ears. He removed the grommet from his right ear that had been dangling around since January. Andrew got that as a take-home prize and to show for news some day at school. Then Dr. Taplin said that if someone were to look at Andrew's right ear, they'd be hard pressed to guess that he had been tubed/grommetted since the age of 9 months, over and over again. His ear looked healthy and NORMAL! The left ear still has the tube, but its functioning properly, especially if Andrew feels pressure building up and then releasing on its own. He figures when we come back in October he won't have the tube anymore or it will be ready to fall out.

Wow. What a relief. So, we headed out of there with a happy child, a happy mother, a grommet in a tube and a new prescription for Nasonex to keep the breathing clear at night. Ahhhhh....

Amazing How Music Affects a Person

This afternoon we were in the car on the way to Andrew's ENT check-up and the song, "Bad Day" by Daniel Powter was playing. Immediately Emmalee says, this song reminds me of an old friend of mine. I immediately said, Brianna, since she is the one Emmalee is always thinking of her. But E said no – this person sang the song ALL THE TIME. Then Andrew chimes in – I know who – Maddie Chadwick!

It got me thinking about how certain songs will always strike a chord (so to speak) in our memories. That song will remind the kids of Maddie – even if we are on the other side of the planet and she is sleeping away, it causes them (and now me) to think about her for a bit longer at that time.

I can remember the first record (LP) that I got. I had gotten a new stereo for Christmas, complete with a turntable and I absolutely loved the song, Land Down Under (about the vegemite sandwich). Whenever I hear that song, I can picture the stereo set up in my bedroom and replaying that and Eye of the Tiger over and over and over again.

Just hearing the BoDeans reminds me of Leah and college and always Summerfest. Hootie and the Blowfish and Counting Crows can cause me to reminisce about dating Jim. Matchbox 20/Rob Thomas and Tim McGraw remind me of dates with Jim before kids – and then after.

Whenever I hear songs from Wicked or listen to Idina Menzel I think of Emmalee and how she is just star struck with WICKED and loves musicals.

When I hear songs from Annie Get Your Gun or Mary, Gentle Woman – I think of Jim's dad singing. Songs from Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Coat remind me of mom and dad.

Jimmy Buffet just screams summer or muddy rainstorms. Bon Jovi is summer in a stadium. Then there is Lyle Lovett who has mixed memories – both Austin and Ravinia. Closing Time by Semisonic reminds me of driving thru Honolulu in a convertible on our honeymoon.

Sad thing is I can't really think of a particular song that is reminiscent of my time here in Sydney. Not sure if that means there are too many... or I just haven't run across the right one yet. But until then, I know I need to stay to find one.

Time is really messing with me

This weekend the time change happened. And we totally forgot about it.
Falling Back is one of my favorite 'holidays'. When else do you get a free hour of sleep. Unfortunately due to the fact that we have been internet-less since Thursday, that fact conveniently slipped my mind.
That is until I got up at what I thought was 7.45, hopped in the shower to get ready for church. And just as the water hit me, Jim informed me that it was really 6.45 and I should go back to bed if I wanted.
We totally forgot. And at that point it was way too late to bother. So we got ready, had breakfast and went to Maggio's BEFORE church for a coffee.
I think its mostly because of the change in seasons here. Everything is upside down to my brain. Autumn in April? No, the clocks should go back Halloween weekend. UGH!

I feel like a college kid again

Remember when you would bring home roommates or friends from college? I didn't do much of it, but figure I would have if I had been a bit more 'into' college.
Well, this year on our home leave trip, I am bringing a friend home with me. Well, not actually bringing her with -- she will get there 5 days after I arrive, but one of my good friends here is visiting the Chicago area for the first time this June.
I had said it would be great for her to visit me in the States sometime. Didn't think she would take me up on it so soon, but its great. Deb couldn't have picked a better time to go than when she chose -- she will be there during Summerfest, Taste of Chicago and over the 4th of July. The only crappy thing is that there is no one decent playing at Ravinia. Except an ABBA cover band. Not sure if that is really up our alley.
I will go to Iowa with the family and then Tuesday night go and get her from the airport in Chicago. Then Deb and I will be two single girls hanging out until the family arrives Friday or Saturday (just as long as they are in time for the fireworks!)
So, she and I are making our list of places to eat, (OK, I am making that list) and all the shopping she can cram into her suitcases. She has heard all about the bargains that can be had near us, so I am hoping to go on some mega shopping trips!
Watch out malls -- here we come!!!!

Sydney Thunderbolts

Today was Andrew's most anticipated basketball game. It was against the girls in his class and his teammates' sisters -- the Shooting Stars.
They played a really good game and in the end the boys' team came out on top. Andrew had a great game -- Jim was there to watch Andrew make a few baskets and good plays.
And it wasn't even an April Fools Day joke. They did great. One more game to go this term and then they start over.