N~space

Like I said, only little things, but they seem huge when you're standing amidst boxes feeling overwhelmed. I'm feeling better now though. Our brother in law crawled into the roof and discovered that Mr Antenna had indeed put a signal amplifier in but the guy had taken the external powerpoint for it (assuming it was the entire thing). But he brought it back when Dave asked, and turned out to be a nice normal sporty guy maybe 10 years older than us and not at all the mad old rip-off merchant I'd been picturing. We had a nice chat. Dave asked him some questions and I of course did my usual overly friendly thing and sucked up re the house, which went over as well as it ever does, but anyway. Afterwards we felt so much better, and then Dave listened to my meltdown over how when you buy a house you get all this other stuff you don't want (like the tunnel o' spiders and the unfenced spa) and pointed out, gently, that it was ours now and we could do what we want. Which, you know, I hadn't thought about.
So anyway, the past week or so has been all about settling in. I thought we were doing really well with the unpacking until I counted the boxes and there are 56 left. We started with 74, so we've only unpacked 18 boxes. What the hell? What's in all those boxes? And where's it all supposed to go?
It's a nice house though, despite the cobwebs. Even the budgie likes it.

Oh my goodness, I did not mean to let, what, four months go past without writing an entry. That's forever in blogtime! Is anyone even still out there?

So since I last wrote (I had to go read), my project at work was put on hold, and shortly afterwards I was sunk in a morass of confusion and despair over my job. Ok, so that's a bit of an exaggeration. But everything was up in the air and I didn't know what role I'd have or even if they wanted me to have a role, me and my obsolete skills, and it was pretty depressing. I even ended up bursting into tears over it in the office, definitely my lowest point. So, I didn't write. Then things started perking up and I wanted to write but it's hard to start the habit again, you know? And then things got really busy and I had lots to write about but no time at all. I mean, even Cabbie's been too busy to tweet and he does bugger all all day.

So there.

So this is just a quick entry to say hello and I'm still alive and give a quick update on what's been going on. For verily there is lots.

• Work has got better. I'm now in a development team learning to program in Java. It's interesting but also daunting; it's been a long time since I haven't been very very good at what I do so I find it scary. Before I started I did a short "introduction to Java programming" course which I aced and got all confident about my move, and then I looked at real code and ohmygoodness it was terrifying. But, I'm getting there (slowly). I just feel bad because I'm not naturally good at asking people questions so I feel a bit lost, and also because I'm not really concentrating on work at the moment (see below). I feel like I could do a better job, but my focus just isn't here right now.
   
• We bought a new house. It's a little bit bigger and a little bit further out than where we live now and we hope it'll suit us for many years. We settle this Friday and move on Monday. We ended up keeping our current place as renting it out was far less faff than decluttering and prepping to sell and hoping to get it all sorted by time the new place settled (not to mention a much better idea wealthwise), so I close my eyes and pretend not to see our total mortgage amounts or the predictions of interest rate rises. Luckily we are >thisclose< to signing a tenant, so once they're in the majority of the finance stress will go away.

I need to spend less time worrying and more time visualising positive outcomes to situations!

• And... (and this is the big one) we're having a baby. I'm due on 27th of March next year, which makes me 18 weeks along now. So far the stress for this is limited to the usual ohshitohshitwhathavewedone? but I expect that will change soon. Especially since I found out the other day that I should already be on lists for daycare if I expect to get any in 2011! Gah.

So yes, lots has been going on. So much to write about! And yet, I haven't. I suck. But I will now. Promise.

So this past Monday was Queen's Birthday here in Aus, meaning we got a long weekend, and the Thursday before was Dave's Birthday, so we took that day and Friday off and had a really long weekend.

I was so excited about his birthday, I always am more than my own because I love to treat him, but even more so this time because I'd got him his Present to End All Presents, the Lego Millennium Falcon, which has over 5000 pieces and something like 3 foot long when it's done.

I know what you're thinking. You're thinking, "What the?" and "OMFG that's expensive," and "why on earth would she buy THAT?" and I understand because I thought exactly the same things for years - years! - while he went on and on about it. In the end I bought it for him because it's his 35th birthday so he should get something special, and on our wedding day he surprised me with an absolutely gorgeous pair of diamond earrings, which are shiny and beautiful and I love love love them. So I bought it for him. And yes, it is expensive, and completely blew our gift budget, but he paid for the earrings out of his personal spending money, so I've done the same here.

(The answers to your other questions, in no particular order, are: On the coffee table, apparantly; No, he only makes it once and then admires it in perpetuity (on the fricking coffee table); and no, there is no point to his life once he's finished this, his life's goal, so I guess he will be dying shortly. And the way I know what your questions are without asking is because I've been asking the exact same ones as well. For months.)

The funny thing was I ordered it at the start of April, and then a couple of weeks later he spontaneously started talking about how much he wanted it. I think it was because we had drinks with some new friends and he found out that she bought him some other amazing lego set for Christmas a few years ago, and I think this reminded Dave how much he wanted this. I was worried that I'd dropped some clues about it and I didn't want him to work it out, so I ended up just going along with it and teasing him, hoping he wouldn't realise the truth. And he claims to have been surprised, so that's good. Just as long as he doesn't think nagging works now.

Anyway, so he started making it on Thursday and is getting close to halfway through. Oh, and he's set up the camera on a tripod and is taking a photo of it at each stage, so I'm guessing there'll be a little video of the construction coming up for all to enjoy.

Apart from the construction, it was a lovely weekend. We went to the Food and Wine show on Friday (before the Gordon Ramsay brouhaha broke) and sampled many many chutneys and jams and things in jars, and bought most of them. Then we went into the wine bit and got smashed on the samples in record time. Then we hoisted our backpacks and staggered home on the train, then proceded to fall asleep by 9pm.

Saturday, Sunday, Monday - not a lot happened, which was nice. One of Dave's friends came round, I managed to make it to the gym once, we fetched groceries and I made a huge pot of soup. Other than that we just mooched around home, sleeping in and playing with the budgie. It's funny though, once again I completely overestimated what I could do in the five days. This time it wasn't going to be all chores, I was also going to finally pull out my sewing machine to play with, and do a jigsaw and go for bushwalks and cook masses of food... and yet the time just disappeared. Where does it go? What do I need to do to get all this free time I've heard other people have? What are your secrets? Tell me, or I'll have to win the lottery just to be able to stay home.

Good weekend

So did everyone have a good easter break? I'd been looking forward to it since we came back to work, as a chance to hide away from the world with my boy and get a few things done round the house. For a change I was trying to be less ambitious than usual and told myself the only things on my task list were:

1. mend umbrella
2. wash and iron all my winter work clothes
3. organise the butchers block and get Dave to cut a bit off both sides so it would fit where we wanted to put it
4. tidy study

but secretly I also had

1. go to the gym or walk every day
2. reorganise wardrobe
3. organise kitchen pantry and the cupboard under the sink
4. balance accounts
5. shine shoes
6. do jigsaw (I got a jigsaw for Christmas and have been saving it)
7. get out fabric and start making those pyjamas
8. decide on photos for wedding album
9. snuggle with boy
10. read book

Now, a lot of those on the second list are just fun things, but there is still far too much for one person to do in four days. Needless to say I pretty much failed on all counts, but we did have a brilliant weekend anyway.

On Friday we did sort out the butcher's block, cutting 6cm from either side so it's now possible to squeeze past it to the dining table, then pulled out all the junk shoved in its shelves and shoved it back in much more neatly. Then we spent the rest of the day cooking a yummy meal of roast lamb marinated in cumin and garlic, vegetable tagine and chocolate mousse. A couple of friends came round in the evening to help us eat it, and verily it was great. Except the mousse, which I put in the coldest bit of the fridge without realising it, and it went all hard and grainy.

On Saturday we went to the gym (tick!), did washing (tick!), pottered around and then went out for dinner and a movie. We also discovered it is not possible to mend my umbrella and I might have to shell out more than $5 for the next one. I also spent a large chunk of time wandering past the butcher's block and admiring its new neatness.

On Sunday afternoon, a girlfriend came over for lunch (shepherd's pie from the leftover lamb) and a chat, then in the evening I watched The Devil Wears Prada and pretended to do the accounts (tick!). And Monday was consumed by the family easter celebration. The rest of the time we snuggled (tick!), pottered, and ate chocolate. Lots of chocolate.

So not much organising got done, but sometimes there are more important things. Not that you heard that from me.

So as part of our Getting Our Life Organised plan, we figured it was about time we had an actual spare sofabed rather than an inflatable mattress, and we are thinking of getting an Ikea Beddinge, because it is easier to set up than a traditional futon and isn't bulked out by the arms and sofa-shape of a 'normal' sofa bed so therefore won't take up too much space. Also it is Ikea, and I find it hard to go past Ikea.

But while choosing mattresses, I noticed the following care instructions on the one we'd want:

• machine wash 60*C
• do not bleach
• do not tumble dry
• iron, medium temperature
• do not dryclean
• hang freely to dry

Um, what?

ETA: asjenipurr  points out, if I would just READ IT PROPERLY there is a washable cover. Well dammit. Now I feel stupider than normal. Although I prefer it my way with the crazy swedes and their enormous washing machines.