They What?

Yesterday we had an appointment with our midwife. As this is the first appointment since we have known that we're having the baby here we went armed with a loooong list of questions for her.

Andrew's most pressing question was what happens in an emergency as we're having a homebirth and we want to make sure that everything is in place to give our kid the safest possible arrival. We found out about getting to the hospital, where it is, when to go by taxi and when to go by ambulance.

Andrew also asked what happens if I can't get down our 5 flights of stairs. He said that he could probably get me down the first 4 but as the last flight are more ladder-like than stair-like he said that this may be a problem. Our midwife then told us that they call the fire department and they take me out the window. I'd be hoping for this kind of exit if it didn't mean that either me or the kid were not doing so well!

No Hot Date

This is may appear to be an ad for unwashed hair. It isn't.

It may appear to be advertising the need for cotton ear buds. It's not that either.

Or perhaps we're trying to sell our landlords oh-so-fab plaid couch. Wrong.

Instead, this shows what a girl does when her hot lunch date cancels on her. She doesn't wash the unwashed hair and instead makes pretty things for it in the hopes that it will distract from the unwashed mess.

This is on my list of 28 things to do before I turn 29, make pretty hair things. The house is a mess, the laundry is mountainous and I have a pretty hair things.
Thanks to cakies for the inspiration and much better photos!

Wowee

I may be a little biased but I do believe that we have the best small group in all the world. Last night we were presented with a gift for the next uninvited member of the small group, little Moo. Rebecca had packaged up all little bits and pieces that are needed for babies and wrapped it magnificently (she's SO good at stuff like this). She had also made a little instruction guide for the new parents:Everyone wrote a little note on the back of each card.

Awesome huh? I love our small group.

A Cat's Tale

Cats cough up or poo out fur balls.
Some can have very long hair. Some can have no hair at all.
Cats eat meat and fish and birds.....cat food is also meat. They eat that too!
That is all today because I am a little bit tired after my Irish Jigging!

Post Poned

Guest Blogger Asleep after BIG day out at FBI (Fun Brain Institute) and then an unexpected trip to the Circus tonight care of some free tickets from neighbours up the street.
Regular scheduling will be back tomorrow. Hold on tight to them there hats as the next installment of CKENZI"S CRAZY CRITTERS hits the blog.

Sold

Since we got back from Oz I've had 2 chances to offload my goodies. The first time was Queen's Day and I was in a frenzy trying to get stuff done as we only got back to Amsterdam a few weeks before the big day. The usual cast of characters set up stall FAR too early for my liking (although I did sneak back to the house for a little nap in the morning) and we had a hoot of a day even though it was ch-ch-chilly. People loved our stuff and it was so nice to hear so many compliments, and to have repeat customers from last year who specifically came looking for us!
The second opportunity was a benefit concert last Friday night. A friend of mine was selling some of her stuff and at the last minute asked me to come along and sell my stuff too. I scrounged around and found enough stuff left from Queen's Day and a few other unfinished things that I could quickly finish and I set up shop. It was a great night chatting with people, listening to the awesome musicians and just generally hanging out. And it was also cool that I could sell my stuff, make a little money for me and give a big chunk to support Love for Kids - Russia.

Yay, I love being creative!

Bump Diddly Ump

It's been so long since I've posted on the blog I figured that it's about time that I gave a little bump update. Or rather, a big bump update!

These are various photos taken while we were in Greece so I was between 31 and 32 weeks.I found out in Greece that it's pretty difficult to float on my back with a baby attached to my front. Andrew wanted some floating bump pictures so we spent awhile trying to get the bump up without me drowning, I'm pretty sure the other hoteliers enjoyed the entertainment!
This was at some natural thermal pools (I'll get around to posting about that at some stage). As you can see, I have good, sturdy Macdonald legs to hold up my bump!The sideways, orange bump, just about to go for a ride.The snoozing bump. My rascally boy snapped a few of these while I was having my afternoon nap (a daily occurrence in Greece and soooooo good).'It's about this big.' Rubbing the aches away whilst hanging out on our balcony. Behind me you can see the African wrap that Kt Mac got me in Kenya (I think?), I've never realised how handy a simple square of fabric can be (a dress in various ways, a skirt, a towel, a sun cover, a picnic blanket and the list goes on...) especially as it can expand with my belly!

The Pink Eyed Guinea Pig

Guest blogger today is Kenzi....she will be joining us all week to tell us about interesting pets and how to look after them.
THE PINK EYED GUINEA PIG.
The pink eyed Guinea pig is in fact a type of Guinea Pig. The eyes of a pink eyed guinea pig I am guessing, are pink. They eat fresh grass and vegie scraps. They cannot eat potato or cakes.
If the guinea pigs are pregnant they need vitamin C. I will tell you how to get the vitamin C. The best way is fresh grass!
They need lots of room. The bottom of their cages cannot be wire. You cannot fill up all the space with toys and food. They need some space to play and run around in.
You cannot put males together because they will fight.
See you next time for more information about animals...cats or dogs or any other type of pets.

Check it OUt!

Connor recently went on a school excursion to the Powerhouse Museum and the Maritime Museum. He was allowed to borrow Kenzi's camera for the occasion. And now, while a lot of the photos were of insides of Submarines I wanted to show you my favourites and Connor's all time favourite. I just want to say that I have the sweetest boy in the world. What other 9 year old would be looking out for things that his Mummy would like.
The print on the back of the bus seat.
A house he saw out of the bus window.
The pattern of the clouds in the sky.
Like I said very sweet kidlet.
And then, this one, the one that Connor loved and talked about above all else. His very favourite. His most appreciated. This one had the wow factor. Hang all the inventions he saw or the fact that he was in an actual submarine. The thing that caught his attention........the gigantic tin of Milo in the submarine kitchen!

Not to be OUtdone

Do you know that I have never been on the roof at the farm. There are somethings that are just not for me.....I know I am pitiful.
Thanks Mum and Dad for the fab weekend. We are still smiling. The farm is our happy place.

Roof Warriors...or Grandpa's Little Shadow?

Broom..broom

Fun on the farm once again starts and ends with curbside pickup stuff.
This time we enjoyed an afternoon of zooming around in this little car that Dad hooked up to a super fast battery! Actually it only went at walking pace and that was if you were going down hill.....but it was all very good fun. As you can see the kids did not get much of a turn. The adults were way to interested in showing how far they could get without the wheels spinning. I think Mum won the day with a mammoth effort around the lavender garden and up past the lemon tree. Beep Beep who would like to come curbside collecting on Friday???

Special Guest Blog: Stoned in the 'Dam

Today, for one blog only, we are introducing a special guest blogger because Calli has not posted anything recently "for medical reasons"...

So, we have all heard the news about Calli. Although now a law degree completing, well-raised, good Christian pregnant mother-to-be, the youngest of this merry band of Four Sisters has gone and got herself stoned. Yes, after three relatively sober years living in Amsterdam, she's fallen off the wagon.

It seems that a day out with friends at, ahem, "the beach", turned into a night spent in great pain, hurling vomit around the room, using up all the hot water in the building, and keeping everyone awake, including that long-suffering husband of hers. What a charmer.

So now we're going to have to embark on a stone-hunting mission to get the lady back on the wagon. This blog is about how to hunt these stones passing though Calli like little salty pinballs in a giant human pin-ball machine.

First up, we need three litres of fluid. Per day.


Our patient has to drink her way through these three bottles each and everyday, with the intention of getting a good two litres of urine out per diem. Yes, we must turn Calli into a pee fountain, gushing forth with waterfalls of clear, pure, glorious flushing pee. Nice.

Next, we need a pee strainer.



This is to filter all that lovely clear urine for the little stones currently bumping and grinding her way through her urinary tract. I'm told that it is quite difficult to get the aim right when you can't actually see where you are peeing because there is a foetus in the way. Well, she should have thought of that before getting stoned, shouldn't she? Tsk tsk.

And finally, after a few sessions of apparently quite excrutiating pain, the final goal is one of these little gems, all ready for mounting on a ring, or perhaps as a pendant to remind her of the good old days, spent "on a beach" in Amsterdam...




So, don't get stoned, stay hydrated, and never, ever drink loose-leaf tea when you visit Calli in Amsterdam.

Lots of Love,
Guest Blogger "Dr. Drew"

P.S. Actually, secretly, this guest blogger is very relieved that it wasn't her appendix, premature labour, or some other mother-and-child-threatening event. But I've got to get my own back for all the sleep I lost...