The Science Project.

Ahhh, finally. A couple of hours of peace and quiet. This week the Lady of Leisure (LOL) has not had much time to partake in activities of a leisurely nature. There was Operation-Clean-House which was executed in mad lady style after our big Australia Day party. It takes quite a few hours to get the house straightened out but I don’t mind doing it. Even though it’s a lot of work and preparation, a successful house party is always worth it and visitors really appreciate having our home open to them. I think there is something very Australian about having a big house party and showing hospitality – but done in a really informal and relaxed manner. I think of a house party at home and it’s outside on a deck, in shorts and thongs (errr, flip-flops), swatting away flies or mozzies, drinks at the ready and BBQ burning. Do you know there’s no flies here? In summer, you can sit outside (if you can stand the humidity) and not have to swing at flies! But mosquitoes are pretty bad and we get them sprayed.

And I’ve had more child company than usual this week. Dylan had a couple of early pickup days from school, followed by two school free days. So we have been hanging out at home. We went and did a few little shopping errands and he asked to have his friends over but I need a little recharge time and so his request was denied. I know, I should let him, but after a revolving door of people through the house I just want to stop for a little bit. And Hamish has a months worth of homework to turn in and a science project to create and so I have to get that all in order.

Yes you read right. Hamish, my little preschooler, gets homework! He had sight words on flash cards (which he likes to hide because he thinks he won’t have to do them), and he gets an activity sheet of writing or basic math to complete four days a week. It’s been a slow and painful process, but he’s finally understanding that he has to sit and do his work and then go back to his fun once he’s finished. And now he can write his name, and for a preschooler I think it looks great. I was talking to another mother at our party and she was saying that in our local county, to turn up at kindergarten without any of these skills, your child is at a real disadvantage. It makes me wonder what it must be like for children that cannot afford to go to preschool and certainly there is talk about it in the press this week after Obama delivered his State of the Union speech.

His science project was to make a volcano. I’ve never had to turn in a science project before. It reminds me of watching American sitcoms as a kid, such as Wonder Years and Full House where you’d see American kids making things for the local science fair. I had no idea how to make a volcano. It wasn’t until a couple of months ago that I found out about the whole Mentos in a bottle of Coke phenomena. But I googled “volcano science projects” and we come up with something that looked decent. Luckily there’s plenty of left-over green cups and lots of empty plastic water bottles! Hammie cuts out some lava paper strips to stick on top. We go to get his toy dinosaurs out – he has a million of these things that he’s been given in party bags and as lucky dips from a our local kids hairdressing salon. I am forever treading on them and picking them up, but do you think I can find any of them now that we really need them?  So we make do with other things.

Today brings no words, and no dinosaurs on our volcano. The prehistoric bugs, lobsters, dragonflies and cockroaches will just have to do.

For the Love of Oz.

Australia Day over here is by far the biggest event on our calendar. It is the day that the Aussies show the Americans how to kick back and relax. The Australian wine and beer is flowing. The food is plentiful. Meat pies, sausage rolls, lamb chops and pavalova are just some of the Aussie delicacies that are whipped up. We open our doors for four hours and work colleagues  – Aussies, American, Canadian, British all come around with their families and partners. It gets really crowded and this year we had over two hundred people sharing the fun.

The logistics of a house party in the middle of winter takes a little planning. Lots of coat racks and coat hangers to hang jackets, a designated bar area, food caterers and servers, a dessert table, a children’s area in the basement along with several babysitters and activities to keep them busy. A bit of cricket, rugby and Aussie Rules on the TV is an absolute must. A sea of green and gold decorations, more Australian flag bunting than I have ever seen in my whole life, a blow-up kangaroo and flags, flags, flags. There are some beautiful flower arrangements and the smell of fresh eucalyptus wafts through the house – pure Australia!

Hamish is extra guarded with his kangaroo this year. Last year it was stolen as  a prank and just before the party started this year he went and put it in his bedroom and would not let it come out at all. Then at one stage he brought it out but was not very happy as one kid was trying to feed it pineapple. He went into his room very indignant over the whole affair and when I went to check on him, he’d fallen asleep. At least I didn’t have to worry about him for a couple of hours!

I am lost for words when it comes to how much time and effort all our Aussie friends put into this event. It seems that when you are away from your country, your patriotism seems to swell and abound ten fold. Everyone attends to all the little details and it makes it a really great day. One that is highly regarded as a social event around Fletch’s Organization. I enjoy telling Americans the Australia Day traditions. BBQ sausages scorched crisp (you cannot find readily available beef sausages here!), listening to tunes from the Tripple J Hottest 100, attending free public concerts with all Australian performers, soaking in a kiddie’s wading pool or going to the beach to escape the heat.

An Aussie bar.

Aussie Aussie Aussie!

Eskies full of snow and drinks.

Aussie desserts are a hit.

Isn’t this the most amazing cheesecake?

Kiddie cup cakes in all the right colors.

Yummo.

Welcome!

A sea of gold and green.

Get the game going!

Today brings no words, just thoughts of a more traditional Australia Day next year. But for now it’s beach balls in snow instead of snags and sandcastles!

The Mystery Trip Revealed.

What? Didn’t they just go away last month. I know what you are thinking. See, we had promised Dylan that instead of a birthday party he could go back to Great Wolf Lodge (an indoor waterpark) and have a weekend there. But upon looking at prices, it was quite expensive and so we shopped around and decided that we should go somewhere that we haven’t been before. We got a good deal for Universal Studios in Orlando, where you stay onsite, kids eat free, a two day ticket with a third day thrown in for free and express passes so that you bypass the lengthy ride lines. Sometimes the rides had wait times of over 90 minutes! So these passes were absolutely brilliant.

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There are two parks at Universal Studios and so we spent a full day at each park and then on the third day went back and did all our favorite rides again. After the 2nd day at Universal, we went to Legoland. It was especially exciting for Hamish as he could ride everything and we didn’t need to split up or double around on rides. It was his day to just tell us what he wanted to do and we followed him.

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On this trip Fletch seemed to lose everything:

1. Dylans jacket on the airplane on Friday night.

2. Room keys on the way to breakfast. He even accuses the kids of taking them. They were in one of his million pocketed cargo pants.

3. Oldest son. The first thing we did after walking in the park doors was go to the nearest giftshop to purchase Dylan a new jacket as it was cold. He and Dylan go off in search of jackets and the next thing I know Fletch can’t find him. Staff had found Dylan and taken him to guest services and so we pick him up and all calm down.

4. His wallet.  It must have fallen out of his pocket while he and Hamish had been riding a roller coaster. Thankfully, staff find it and hand it in to security, otherwise that could have been a very bad start to the day.

5. Map, after map, after  freaking map. They just disappeared. After unpacking though they have all seemed to materialize again so I’ve been throwing out map, after map, after freaking map!

We joked that maybe he’d get us all lost on the drive to Legoland. (And no we did not get lost.)

Today brings no words, and nothing lost that could not be replaced or gained!

A ticket to somewhere awesome.

Good evening Ladies and Gentlemen, Fletcher Holidays invites you to board your flight to Awesomeville, departing from Birthday Gate 8 in several minutes time. All children and adults interested in having a totally fantastic fun break away should get ready to disembark. We trust that you will enjoy your trip and hope you enjoy the surprise.

Today brings no words, and I’m sorry but you’ll just have to wait and see where this weeks adventure is taking us!

Birthday boy.

There are two birthdays just after Christmas in our house, which means that the holiday fun doesn’t really end after Christmas. As a child your birthday is the most exciting thing ever! The focus is all about you and it’s your day to do things that are centered around…YOU! But when I became a mother, I finally understood the celebration from a new perspective, just as exciting and special, but with a completely different focus. It is the day that life as I knew it changed and would add a whole other role to my life.

And even though memories fade of what it is like to be pregnant and give birth, the complete disarray and chaos life becomes for those first years of having a baby, there are certain memories that you can remember. Things that stay with you long after the baby grows and turns into a now, very capable 8 year old.

I love telling Dylan and Hamish little things about when they were born. Being adopted, there are certain facts I do not have when it comes to my birthday. I don’t know what time exactly I was born or what I weighed, even what hospital I was born in. It’s not a big issue, it’s just one of those things we all grow up knowing, and I as a mother relish telling them little stories and details.

Things I remember about Dylan – well let’s go back a little further, just before Dylan was born, being heavily pregnant in  Summer, we got air conditioning installed in the house. In the meantime, I spent a lot of time in the Belconnen mall and I can even remember the last film I saw pre children – King Kong for the record! It was very early on a Saturday morning when I started having labour pains. About 4.00am I got up and started pottering around. I woke Fletch, who was very helpful, saying, “but he’s not due for another two weeks,” and went back to sleep. Fletch had organized a boys night for that Saturday and I always joke with Dylan that he wanted to come out early so he could hang out with them. Instead, Fletch’s best friend was up at the Hospital with a footlong Subway sandwich for him, as he hadn’t eaten all day and nearly every glossy women’s magazine under the sun, as I barked from the birthing suite that something to read between contractions would be nice. For the life of me I don’t know why I thought it would be a good idea as I was lying on my side in a bathtub, but I’m sure it made sense at the time.

It’s funny hearing Fletch’s memories too, how I twisted his arm backwards, in a manner that arms are not really meant to bend, how I swatted him away when he tried to massage my back through the contractions. I still wonder why they do that? Is it because they saw it on the video that the hospital makes you sit though. Oh yes, who can forget the birthing classes. I remember them taking us through the birthing suite and forewarning  that there will be “noises”. Fletch and I could hear our obstetrician calmly  but loudly talking someone through the process and we felt a bit more confident that we’d chosen someone who was on the job! Funnily enough, my obstetrician was not there for either of my boy’s births – all in the timing as they say.

At the end of the night after Dylan was born, I remember being Hungry. Like I’d run a marathon. Man, talk about exercise! I ate, and then, as they did not have a double bed, Fletch went home and I was there, alone with Dylan. I did not feel tired, or anywhere near ready to sleep, so I just sat there by a dim hospital bed lamp looking at my baby in that funny plastic cot with those mini flannel hospital gowns and baby blankets. How strange, exciting and a little daunting all at once. Me in my solitude, and yet not alone, ever again.

Even though we’d only just finished off Fletchs red velvet birthday cake, Dylan insists on having it again as well as his favorite meal of birthday skettie. I also go up to school and have lunch with him. When I first heard of this open lunch invitation,  I thought being allowed to sit with your child for lunch was a little strange and I was against it. It is their time to relax and socially engage with other peers. But according to Dylan, other parents come in, sometimes several times a week – they even bring in McDonalds and other fast food for the kids lunch! I treat him to a mini can of Sprite Zero to have with his homemade cold pizza and I sit there with two other little mates of his and listen and chat with interest about all things that seven and eight year old boys talk about – whether Skylanders Swapforce is better than Disney Infinity, the merits of particular superheroes. Any and all things boys that age talk about really. I quite enjoy getting a glimpse of the American school lunch scene. I may even do it again and slip Dylan a dollar so I can go into the cafeteria room to see what they offer for lunches! Dylan always takes his lunch. He’s never asked to buy his lunch at all. And although I’ve tried to get him to just take in some money and ask the lunch ladies how it works, he’s never really wanted to.

Lunch with Mum and mates.

Today brings no words, just a happy little eight year old and thoughts on a significant life transforming process also know as the “birthday”.