What a Find!

Brodie was putting his boots on so that he & I could go out to shops. He put one of them on but something didn't feel quite right so he took it off & emptied it onto the floor in the hallway. When he examined it a little more closely he noticed that it was a frog! I thought he had squished it when he told me but he hadn't because it started hopping down the hallway.

Too bad I forgot to take a photo of it before it was taken outside & released in the backyard! Oh well.

Phone Calls

We've had made three reasonably important phone calls made today. Firstly, I made a call for Mark for an appointment at the radiologists we go to for his Facet Joint Injections (ouch). I managed to get an appointment for him for next Thursday. Thank goodness most of the cost is covered by medicare & we only have to pay the gap of $229.10

Secondly, I made a call to my GP's surgery to talk to the practice nurse so I could get the results of my Glucose Tolerance Test. I don't know if I am happy about the results or not. Perhaps you could say I am mildly happy. I am what is called pre-diabetic. My fasting Blood Sugar Level (BSL) was 6.1 and my BSL two hours after the sugary drink was 10.8. The results weren't that good but at least she didn't say I was a diabetic. I'll go into this more later on in another post.

Finally, Mark made a phone call to the cardiologist we saw a few weeks back to get the results of the scan he had. Good new on this front at least. There is nothing wrong with Mark's heart! Thank goodness. So the chest pains he has been getting are not heart related. Its a relief to know that that its not his heart but still a puzzle as to why he gets them. Something else for the GP to check out I guess.

Watching the Clock

For the past two weeks (maybe longer) I've been feeling awfully light headed. I was wondering if it was the fact that I might not be wearing my glasses as often as I should. I mean I don't wear them for reading or anything just for distance. So I wore them more. No big change there. I forgot to mention it last week when I saw Dr. F. Oh well perhaps I will remember to mention it next time I see him.

I've been watching the clock today, waiting patiently (or impatiently I haven't decided) so that I can phone the doctors surgery to get the results from that Glucose Tolerance Test I had done on Wednesday. They said the results should be ready for today. I'm crossing my fingers that everything comes back okay. Roll on 1:30pm so I can find out ....

Good News Postcard

Brodie's school is trialling a new positive behaviour program called PBS Good News Postcards. I'm not sure what the PBS stands for but basically they send a postcard home to you (the student) for doing something positive at school. Something that fits in with what is expected of the kids behaviour wise at school.

Today Brodie received a postcard in the mail. It's his third one. This one was sent home because he helped two of his classmates with a play that was part of their major assessment task for English. His teacher was obviously pretty pleased with what B had done.
Of course when I asked Brodie what he had done he said he played a kid & was just playing some games. He didn't think being in the play was such a big deal. Either way it was pretty good for him to receive one of the postcards. I am sure he liked the acknowledgement.

Smile

One of my current favourite songs .. Smile by Uncle Kracker

Older Drivers

I phoned my Dad up the other day & had a nice chat with him. He was telling me about his 'girl' friend whom he likes to take out for lunch (& sometimes dinner at the RSL club he goes to). I think its really nice that he has someone he can spend some time with after all Mum has been gone for almost 10 years now. That's an awful long time to be on your own.

Dad was telling me how his friend suggested that she catch a taxi to the restaurant they wanted to eat at. Dad got highly offended. Dad told me that he wasn't going to go out to lunch with his friend any more if she didn't think he was good enough to pick her up & drive her there. I can understand where he is coming from. He's 82 years old and of that generation who did the noble thing and picked up your date when you went out.

I can also see it from his friends point of view too. As I mentioned Dad is 82 now. His driving skills are NOT what they used to be. When we were in Adelaide visiting him last year he took us to Salisbury one day for lunch. I nearly had a fit when he began driving down the middle of a two lane road. Granted it was for traffic going in the same direction but he was driving down the middle of it leaving no room for anyone who might have wished to overtake us & we were heading towards a roundabout making me think he wasn't going to be able to stop & give-way. He seemed like he was off with the pixies and not concentrating as much as he should have. I didn't point it out to him at the time. I didn't want to upset him. However I am thinking that perhaps I should have. So I totally understand why his friend wants to catch a taxi.

Dad ranted on a little bit on how he gets his approval from the doctor each year so that he is allowed to renew his license. Well that is all well and good but I am thinking that he needs to have a yearly road driving test. Sorry Dad I love you to bits but you are NO longer a safe driver!!

Next time I talk with either of my sisters I might mention his driving and let them deal with things. They might be able to handle him better than I can considering they at least live in the same state as he does.

Brodie's NEW Plectrum

You have to LOVE this! It's Brodie's new plectrum for his Air Guitar! It's a present from his integration aide at school that he got for his birthday. I know I am a little late in sharing this but Brodie only brought it (back) home from school yesterday.

More Badges

I love shopping on ebay! Like I said in an earlier post - its great to be able to buy something & have it delivered to your front door! This time Brodie bought these badges but he's giving a couple to me when they finally arrive. I definitely want the Timey Wimey Detector one after all its a reference from my favourite Doctor Who episode Blink (tardis wiki). Possibly the Weeping Angel ones too also from the same episode.

We Finally Made it to Church Today

I finally got Brodie to go to Church today. Not an easy feat I can assure you. I would loved to have had Angus go along with us but I let him have a sleep over at a friends house.

It felt really good to go today. I just had a feeling that we needed to be there. I'm glad we did. Brodie said that he really wanted to speak to the Bishop today but he got a bit of a shock when we arrived found out that we had a new Bishop. Thankfully it is someone that he already knows and that he feels comfortable talking with. We all know (well at home at least) how much Brodie dislikes changes (aspies LOVE routine & for things to remain the same) & for our 'old' Bishop to be sitting among the congregation kind of threw him.

Brodie has a small assignment or I should say a little project/task to do this week & to let the Bishop know how he went. So I know that at least we will be going next week. It's good that he knows in advance what to expect.

While we were at the Chapel today I met someone from the Tacoma Ward & got chatting with her. I was telling her that Brodie's Ma & Pa from the Trek were from there. Funnily enough Ma turned out to be her sister. Of course I had to tell Brodie because I know how much he loves his Ma & Pa. He still keeps in contact with them. So of course when we got home today he phoned them up to say who we had met.

Brodie asked when would be a good time to come & visit Ma & Pa in their ward. So I promised that we would go there in two weeks time. Something else for him to look forward to & anything to keep him active is a good thing by me.

Now I just need to work on Angus ....

Another Bear

What can I say I am on a roll with these teddy bears. This is one I made yesterday.

My Health

It seems I'm not as good as I thought I was health wise. I had some blood tests done recently. Check out my psoriasis blog to find out more.

Aspie Badges

I love shopping on ebay. Thanks to Mark I am getting more & more hooked on it. I love the fact that you can buy stuff online & have it sent right to your front door!

My latest purchase are these neat & cute little Aspie badges. Of course when I opened up my little parcel I had to put on the I {heart} Aspies badge on straight away!

I'm giving the Your Read My Badge one to Marks brother. I gave the Einstein one to Mark. I'll let Angus choose from what's left. Not that there is much that's really appropriate for him so I guess whichever he decides he wants he can have. The rest would pretty much be for Brodie.

Aspergers awareness is a great thing & if these badges helps us to teach others then its a VERY good thing.

The lady that sells these also had some Doctor Who badges for sale. I'm wondering if I should tell Brodie ...

Visitors

We had Mark's sister & her two children come & visit with us today. They flew in from Perth early this morning. It was really nice seeing them.

I was even able to make another little teddy last night & I finished it this morning. I gave it & the other little teddy to Mark's nephew & niece.

Mark's brother, who lives in town, also came over. We even went out to for lunch. I think we had a pretty good day. And considering the two little ones hadn't slept they were really well behaved, especially for an overtired 3 & 4 year old.

They've now headed off to Ballarat to visit Grandma & some other family (whom I've not met yet - well I have met some of them). Then on the weekend they're off to Mt Buller for a snow holiday! Half their luck. We live here & I've never been to the snow. Maybe one day.

Anyway we've had a good day & I'm bushed.

Knitted Teddy Bear

I whipped this little teddy up over two days. The pattern came from the book Knitted Bears All Dressed Up that I bought on ebay the other week.

The bears are so cute & tiny. I think I need some more practise making them though as I just cannot seem to get the face to look like they do in the book.

Practise makes perfect right? Anyway I am sure that there will be someone out there who will love it.

Totally Random

Brodie: "Mum I have a big secret to tell you but you aren't allowed to tell anyone, okay?"
Mum: "Okay."
Brodie: "Underneath these clothes I'm naked!"
Mum: "I know."
Brodie: "Oh, then its no secret."

I just love some of the random things he comes up with!

Sure Mum We Cleaned Our Room!

The boys said that their bedroom was clean ... here's some photos to show you what THEY call clean! Pffftt Teenagers!! Aren't they delightful!?!?!

Maybe I need to decrapify their room like Tina says she does with her home (& kids rooms) over on her blog.

To Market, To Market

I didn't buy a fat pig but I certainly got some bargains at the local market yesterday.



The photo doesn't do this yarn any justice. I guess I could've turned off the flash. The yarn is a very pretty pastel yellow. I feel something babyish might be in order for this lot.



A couple of cute little bags to give to my great-nieces for Christmas.



Not only did I get the yarn but I got two sets of size 9 needles & a knitting pattern for $5. The needles alone would cost me more than that in the shop brand new!
Of course I wasn't going to complete the pattern so I spent s little time yesterday undoing the knitting. I might make a scarf or even a shawl with it. I haven't made up my mind yet.

I got some more stuff but I didn't bother with pics for those. You don't necessarily want to see what veggies & other food I bought.

Finished Objects

Some of the beanies above are the ones I made while waiting for Mark the other day when we were at Monash Heart getting his scan done.

The ones in the plastic bags are beanies & bootees in matching pairs.

These blue baby beanies are from a new pattern I got. Well the smaller one I just used the pattern for the edging. It made them look rather pretty. As pretty as I could for a boy at least without it looking to feminine.

Leaving The Nest

I often wonder what it will be like once the boys leave home. Not just for how I would feel once they have left the nest but I wonder how they will feel & how they will cope being out on their own.

I remember what it was like once I finally left Mum & Dad's place. I had just finished college & had been out in the workplace for a year. I always said that I have it so good at home that I never want to leave. Then one day Mum said, "You're moving out by the time you're 24!" I thought NOOOO! But once I thought about a little more seriously I came to realise hey I can do it.

Mum & I had been collecting things for years for when I move out of home. You know the old 'glory' box that a girl is meant to collect & keep things in. I had a lot of household things that I needed for my own home. Once I made up my mind & with the help of my girlfriend, Denise, I bought a few more things to stash in Mum & Dad's garage.

A month or so after my 22nd birthday and with my new "P" plates & car I moved out of home. Now most kids, I assume, when they move out only got a few suburbs or so away from their parents but not me. I moved 400 km away to Whyalla. Not the best place in the world but I had family there (my niece, an Auntie & Uncle & my cousins) & the prospect of working in the schools there was good in my books. Even the possibility of permanent work was tempting enough. Not many people would willingly move there. Well I never thought that they would but I moved so...

I lived with my Auntie Ce & Uncle Ivor for about a month while I waited for my Housing Trust application & a home of my own. Once I got my 'house' Mum, Dad & my sister Vicki's boyfriend brought my gear up from Adelaide. I think Dad was very grateful to get his garage back!

Even though I moved so far away I think in some ways it brought me closer to Mum. I was often on the phone to her asking all sorts of stuff. Like the first time I cooked my a roast lamb. I had no idea how to make the roast potatoes as crispy as she did. You know come to think of it my phone bills were pretty big for a while & she got a lot of letters from me too. We certainly kept the postie busy.

I wonder if the boys will keep in contact with me as much as I did with my Mum. I'm kind of hoping they will.

Part of a Family History Challenge from DesignZ by DeDe

Cat People

I've noticed that a lot of the blogs I follow, well the crafty, knitty, crochet blogs have pictures of pet cats. Does that mean all crafty people own cats? Either that or it just happens to be the ones I read the most do.

Monash Heart

Yesterday I took Mark to Monash Medical Centre for a Cardiac CT scan @ Monash Heart.
Boy was it a super long day! We left around 8am so that we could drop Brodie off at his bus stop. Angus walked to school so that was a big help.

No one warned us that there was roadworks from Garfield to Nar Nar Goon, they were putting up cheese cutters (road barriers to protect you from hitting trees in the middle of the median strips or on the side of the roads). I had to slow down three times for that. I don't know why they didn't have the same speed limit for the whole lot instead of letting you think oh thats the end of this & you can go back to 100kph.

Traffic went to a crawl a few times near the Narre Warren exits. I guess that is pretty normal for peak hour traffic, not that I ever really travel into the city at that time of day very often.
After 90 minutes we finally made it to the hospital.

We were 30 minutes early, we were told to be there 15 minutes early. I don't know why we were. Mark's appointment was at 10am but he didn't get called in until 10:30. They use this super duper Aquilion One 320-slice CT scanner to perform this particular test. They need to slow your heart rate down and inject you with iodine so that they can 'see' things better.

Of course Mark being the one in a million person that he is caused things to go a little differently than planned. You see they couldn't get his hear rate down enough. In the end he was given beta blockers or something like that to help.

All I know is that after three and a half hours, two crocheted beanies & a magazine later we were able to leave the hospital. I was worried for a little while there thinking that we may have to come back another day. Thankfully everything went okay in the end.

Mark should be able to phone the cardiologist to find out the results. Oh and we found out that the specialist he saw the other week in Warragul is THE HEAD Doctor at Monash Heart. And the people in the emergency department at Warragul didn't even know who he was. Oh well.

I am crossing my fingers that everything will be okay & its not Mark's heart that is causing all the chest pains. Although considering who the specialist is that he has seen I don't think I would worry too much if it was his heart. Especially since he is the top guy in Victoria.

Happy Birthday Mr.17!!

I cannot believe that Brodie is now 17 years old. I am a Mum of an 'almost' adult! How can that be when I tell everyone who asks my age that I am only 29!

Brodie said he's had a great day so far. He was embarrassed when he walked into English class and they started singing Happy Birthday to him. He was later embarrassed when he got onto the school bus to come home & the driver stood up & told everyone it was his birthday. All good because I am sure that he would've secretly loved it!

Where has the year gone?

I just realised that today is the 1st of July. Where has the year gone? My goodness time flies when you are having fun!

Knitted Bears

I just bought myself a new knitting book on ebay. A bargain too (less than $12AU). It has all these cute little knitted bears in it. The only problem I can see is that the book is being posted from the UK and that it may take up to 10 days to receive it. I guess it could be worse if it was posted via surface mail rather than airmail.

I can't wait to get my hands on it and make up a bear or two.