Like a scene from a Hitchcock Movie

Here I was minding my own business (ok, surfing the web - or skyping mom or something I think) and I hear this horrible squawking noise. Not five minutes after mom had just commented on how she could hear the birds chirping in the background. And I had said, "Yes, that's because I have the door to the back open because it's so nice out." Oh and the front door too to get a nice cross breeze. (And that's because we don't have screens)
So back to the squawking, then there's this panicked fluttering and thumping sound, so I look out of the corner of my eye and see not one but TWO myna birds in my bay kitchen window. Trying unsuccessfully to fly out. Very unsuccessfully. I very casually walk over to the sliding doors and open them even wider, hoping to not get them spooked and  try to find something to shooo them out of the kitchen with.
Dumb birds. They would rather keep flying into the window then go to the fresh wide open airway I have now made for them. Smart little birdy makes a break for it and flies out the patio door to freedom. His pal just keeps flying into the bay window. Flutter, thump thump. Flutter, thump thump. He gets out of his daze enough to fly to the CLOSED kitchen window. You know, the one with BARS ON IT. No little birdy, no getting out that way. So, he hops to the floor and starts walking around. I am waving papers at him to direct him out. Not taking directions to well... Finally dumb bird two makes his way to the FRONT DOOR and leaves. Good riddance.
Could have been worse though...

Now back to our regularly scheduled programming

Its been a few months since my last real posting. Many things have happened.

Hmmm… Haven’t really posted anything since July. Not that there wasn’t anything to post. Just many things going on. Travelling to the states. Moving to a new house. Kids going to school. Too many activities to keep up with.

When we moved here, I expected to be here 18 months to 2 years. Come December (in 6 weeks) it will be four years! I never expected it to be that long. Time has flown by, but there are times I have hit the writing wall. 18 to 24 months of writing was easy to do. But 48 months, that’s a whole different ballgame. I think I just needed a break.

I get these postings in my head, but the energy just isn't there. Finally uploaded photos, so I now I just need to catch up.

Bear with  me as I try to catch up… and take it day by day. We are still here, still busy.

Might try different things too. Who knows.

Friday Flouro Disco

The band hosted a disco Friday night to raise money for new instruments and to help pay for the Senior band’s country band trip at the end of November.

From 5.30-7.30 the kids get to have a sausage sizzle and get their hair sprayed with fluoro hair spray, nails painted, faces painted, buy glo-bands and dance their feet off.

Andrew loved having his fingernails painted orange, yellow, red and purple. Had to get a double spray of hairspray (he can thank his mommy for that).

Sister came home with fingernails painted, face painted (to match Serena) , glo-bands and sparkle hair spray.

Non-traditional birthday

This year I turned 38. I am now in the same age number as Jim (finally!!).

This is the 3rd birthday I get to celebrate in Australia. The day started out with a birthday song and signs from the kids. Then off to school as usual.

As I opened the door to take Emmalee to school, a box dropped in on me. I opened it to find a dozen beautiful fresh cut long stem roses from Jim.

Tuesday is scripture day, so I had to teach year 2 & 3 right away at school. First off was my year 2’s. One of my students has the same birthday, so while the teacher was telling him happy birthday I told him it was the best day ever to have a birthday. Which led her to figure out that it was my birthday. So,  my 2nd grade class sang happy birthday and then I got to blow out my first birthday candle of the day. Then my lovely son mentioned it to the year 3 teacher, so I got my 3rd graders to sing to me, too.

Off to coffee I go. Nick, the coffee guy surprises me with a special coffee top.

Then Jim comes home from his work meeting early enough that he offered to pick up the kids from school so I even got a birthday nap. – I had to set a timer for him to make sure he remembered to leave in time to pick up the kids, and to make sure that I could fall asleep and not worry. But it always scores daddy points for Jim when he shows up to pick up  the kids.

After the clarinet and flute lessons we headed over to Borruso’s for a non-cooking dinner for me. Then off to the house for birthday cake that Jim ‘brought home’ from the work meeting and birthday songs.

Unfortunately the birthday celebrations had to come to an end. Jim had to go to the Netherlands for work. The airlines had a car coming to pick him up at 7.45 and we would be left behind. Lucky for me the kids were great about his leaving and went to bed well. I was left to enjoy the rest of the evening on the couch with my pint of Ben and Jerry’s Caramel Swirl Ice Cream that I found at Woolies. YUMMY!!!