Good morning. How is it in your town/city? Raining?
I'm praying it's raining here!
This is our forecast:
ABOVE: I hope it's accurate!
ABOVE: These two are coming over today, for a swim, if it's not raining! Though, as it's still damn hot, I would happily swim in the rain.
ABOVE: Mike and Joyce have a new family member. Meet Bojangles, Bo for short.
He's a Blue Merle Border Collie. One year old. A Rescue Dog. They have their work cut out for them, training him. He's just a bit gorgeous!
So today.... if it's raining, I'm gunna dance in it!
Yep. It will be our first real rain in weeks on end.
Apart from that, no plans. We are taking a break from the back yard today.
9.30 am: it was a real struggle getting out of bed today. Did not sleep well at all. It was just too damn hot over night.
ANYWAY.... we are up. And it IS RAINING. But just a drizzle really. Maybe it will get heavier later, or just continue to drizzle on and off all day?
Stew needs a haircut, so we are going to Chartwell soon. I might have a wander around, it's bound to be dead quiet there, so you feel slightly safer out and about.
ABOVE: There's some new bread out. Vege bread. It's got 20% vegetable in it.
We got all three 'flavours' to try.
ABOVE: The taste tester liked them all!
I couldn't really taste the vege content at all.
Everyone else said they could.
ABOVE: I got two new pair of tights while out, from Taking Shape. One pair was on sale for over half price, the other pair was 30% off, so a good buy.
Lacy took the photos.
It took me half an hour, make up on and three different tops before we got a decent photo of either pair of tights (oh, and me). 😂😏
ABOVE: Of course, she took a selfie and looks perfect straight away. Pffffft.
Lacy and Keera left.
Then Steve, Bex and the boys arrived for a swim.
Rain? Nope. Bit of drizzle here and there.
SO NICE to hear that others are getting lots of RAIN.
NONE HERE. Maybe later, or tomorrow we will?
9.53 pm: Well it's finally raining. Not a huge amount, but steady. Thank God. I don't have to water the gardens.
And it has cooled down a bit. We will probably get a better night's sleep.
Coco has had an ongoing ear infection for about two years.
I've had her on antibiotics, steroids and ointments for her left ear for all that time.
NOT once did the Vet suggest cutting all her ear hair off, to give it a chance to ventilate and breathe.
Since her last groom, when I got the groomer to cut off ALL her long ear hair... guess what?
ABOVE: Her ear is almost 100% better! The left ear's skin, right out to the outer most part of her ear was a deep red colour, now? Almost the same as her right ear. I'm so relieved. And she's not in any pain now.
I'm quite annoyed that Coco has had to endure so much pain for so long, when it was an easy fix. Stew reckons the Vet just liked charging us continually for all the medications. 💩😒
Today Stew and I will be working on the back yard again. We hope to get a big load of rubbish to the dump as well.
But first, Stew is going to Mitre 10 for some new work boots... for working in the garden.
Then I get to crack the whip... but not really cos I can't find me bloody whip. 😂😅😊
Stew bought me one as a JOKE present many years ago... don't know when I last saw it. Many moves ago no doubt.
ABOVE: Just something that I read and liked.
11 am: Well we haven't accomplished much so far today.
Stew has new work boots, they look like walking boots! Very nice... almost too nice for working in the garden.
I also got a couple of things, just new knickers and a swim top.
Now that we are home it's time to do some proper work. At least until the heat gets too much.
We are supposed to get a high of 32 degrees C today. Add the humidity to that and it's actually unbearable.
12 noon: I just finished doing something I vowed I would NOT do.
ABOVE: I got down on my hands and knees with a chisel, and I hacked off all the ragged asphalt at the front door, and I cleaned the tar off the tiles with petrol.
Friggin 'K' should have done that, AT LEAST 2 months ago. I'm really angry now.
But at least it's not looking so awful right now. Wish I'd done it sooner, but I really thought he would have done it, instead of just leaving it looking so horrible.
ABOVE: In front of the garage door... I'd LOVE to chip it back, and tidy it up. But it will be a cold day in hell before I do it!
As we are 100% certain we want it all ripped up and done again, I think we will leave that for him to do.
ABOVE: We had a humongous pile of rubbish around the back to take to the dump. Stew has packed it into the trailer so expertly, it looks like we will only have one load! He's just got some old timber to lay on the top and he's good to go.
Excellent work darling.
ABOVE: 3 wooden posts, 1 metal post and a shit load of stones to remove, then it will be ready to have some topsoil on, then grass seed.
Maybe in a month or so?
It is now 2.10 pm, down tools time. Not that I've done much today! But I have done all I want to do.
Soon it will be POOL TIME. 8.37 pm: Whoops, forgot to update all afternoon.
Stew got all the rubbish to the dump in one go.
Steve, Bex and the boys arrived for a swim.
Then Stew and I also had a swim. It was so necessary to cool down.
Virtually NO SUN today, but still stinking hot.
We are supposed to get rain tomorrow, then for the next week! Gosh I hope so.
I've had a sick headache this afternoon... Stew cooked our dinner this evening. What a man.
Now we are just relaxing, heading off to bed early tonight. My headache is not really budging sadly. It's totally due to the heat for sure.
Sorry to keep you all waiting to see the new lounge suite... here ya go:
ABOVE: One of the delivery guys getting the electric cords out from under a chair. There are 4 electric recliners, one on either end of the corner suite, and two single chairs.
ABOVE: Well, there it is.
What do you think of it?
Worth the wait. We absolutely love it.
I have slathered it in Leather Protector stuff, so hopefully it's good to go.
The biggest thing will be keeping the dogs off it.
Last thing we want is scratches from their claws.
They will just have to learn fast.
ABOVE: Steve, Bex and the boys came over last night to see the new suite. I think they loved it as much as we do.
ABOVE: The boys had a blast jumping into all the packaging. I will make a start on getting it all out of the house today.
Bex is going to come over and give me a hand.
I expect Lacy later on too.
ABOVE: For now though, I might just sit and enjoy the new view.
Heading into another long weekend. Mike and Joyce can't come up after all. Work commitments come first.
Stew and I will continue working on our back yard, with maybe a day trip on Sunday or Monday.
And that is me for now. Catch ya later.
ABOVE: Lacy trying throws on the couch. Nothing looked good, it looks perfect without a throw.
ABOVE: We took all the packaging out and then Lacy vacuumed all the polystyrene bits up for me.
Now.... Bex and the boys are here visiting.
ABOVE: Yes, I totally chose the colour of the lounge suite to match the painting! Everyone would do that eh?
ABOVE: woo hoo... got the girls to hang out the washing for me. Yeah, I bleeped out me knickers! No one wants to see me knickers. 😋😊
ABOVE: Lacy leaving. Yeah Nah, not happening. Coco wasn't that impressed either.
ABOVE: My next visitor. Jacqui from Tauranga popped in. She'd been over for work.
She loves the lounge suite too.
LOL... are we sick to seeing it yet? I mean the lounge suite, not the visitors of course. 😂😅😉
I've been in the pool... half the afternoon at least.
It's just so hot today, there was no other way to cool down but jump in the pool.
It's now 4.45 pm, and Bex and the boys are here too. Bex has been in the pool, the boys are waiting to swim with Steve, once he gets here after work.
I have no doubt Stew will also be getting in the pool when he gets home.
Dinner tonight is ... anything I don't have to cook!
Ice cream sounds good... but probably won't happen! lol
7.50 pm: We ended up piling into our cars and going to Chartwell Square's food court for dinner.
Adults had Indian, and the Dante and Archer had McDonalds.
Great idea, we left the mess there.
We are now home and looking forward to a quiet evening, just the two of us.
Lacy left her succulent plants here while she was moving.
I put them out the back among my mint plants.
Yesterday Lacy went and checked on them and found them looking a little bit worse for wear.
She took me to task about it.
So I said "You dropped off babies and I didn't kill them... don't expect me to keep ya plants alive! I don't do plants!
We had a right laugh over it! Brylee I swear, nearly wet her pants.
SQUEALS!!!
Today our new lounge suite arrives.
It took me several phone calls to Nick Scali before nailing them down to delivering it today.
They were trying to say it was coming down from Auckland to Hamilton today, but not delivered to our home until next week 'sometime'.
Fuck that! I wanted it delivered HERE today.
And I got them to do it.
So... I fully expect a phone call from the delivery man sometime this morning with a ETA for TODAY.
So excited. I am 100% positive this will be our LAST lounge suite.
From memory, we have had ... about TEN lounge suites over the past 35 years!
And most of them have been given to family members over the years.
And let's not even try to remember how many single lounge chairs we have given away, plus homeware, beds, drawers, kitchenware, linen etc etc etc.
So. This morning I'm going into Nick Scali to get some Leather protector stuff. I don't think we got any when we ordered the lounge suite. And that should be put on before use I'm sure.
I also want to get a Swiss Ball... to do squats at home against a wall. I DESPERATELY need to strengthen my legs and knees.
And lastly, some more of this stuff:
ABOVE: My FBG friend Christine H gave it to me. It's AMAZING! I had very dry feet and cracked heels. Since using this cream, my feet and heels are soft and smooth again, and no cracks on my heels! I am never going to stop using it.
ABOVE: Bex finally got around to cutting the boys hair. They were looking like sheep. I know how it feels 'having' to do kids hair. I did my 8 kids plus Stew's for YEARS.
Not that Bex can't take them to the hair salon/barber of course. They just choose to do it themselves. She was just putting it off as long as she could.
OK, it's time to get a move on. Catch ya later.
11 am: I just can't get moving today!
No energy, yet I slept well all night.
I've done some ironing.
Watching After Life on Netflix. It's bloody slow as f*#k.
Does it ever get interesting? Or should I stop watching it now?
I will go out soon to get those things on me list.
The furniture isn't due till 'sometime' this afternoon. 😕😖 Why can't anyone give you even an approximate time?
Like, we all love just sitting around the house waiting for 'sometime' to happen right.
Actually, I feel crabby as f*#k today. No idea why. Sorry.
ABOVE: Got a ball. Got the cream. The leather protector stuff in coming with the lounge suite.
So is my receipt of payment, which I've been asking for since last Saturday. I find that weird, you cough up thousands of dollars and they don't give you a receipt straight away?
Just another thing to bug me I suppose.
Have you ever heard of SAD? Seasonal Affective Disorder? I think I have it in reverse. Look it up, I can't be bothered explaining it.
I just want cooler weather NOW. I felt like passing out in Farmers just before, I was suffocating with my mask on. And it's not even a super hot day today. wtf
3.50 pm:
ABOVE: Can YOU see new lounge furniture?
Yeah.
Me neither.
Starting to wonder if it will arrive today?
ABOVE: SIX THRITY!!!! It finally arrived at 6.30 pm. Those poor men had been working since 6.30 this morning, and they had three more deliveries to make this evening before they could return to Auckland!
ABOVE: Unpacking...
ABOVE: All the packaging we have to take to the dump!
Now, I would show you the new suite, I know you too have been waiting all damn day!
But... I'm gunna be a right tart and show you.... TOMORROW!
Today the meeting takes place between 'K' the asphalt guy, and Stew.
Today we should find out what he's going to do about our driveway... his big balls up.
The way he was talking to Stew on the phone last week, it sounded like he was still insisting there was nothing wrong with it, apart from where the plumbers spilt the petrol, causing stains all over it.
So I can't wait till he sees how badly it has deteriorated in the past 5 weeks or so! Let's see him talk his way out of THAT.
I am going to 'attend' the meeting, but not say a word (if that's humanly possible!). I will be recording every word too.
We won't know exactly when the meeting will take place, until Stew hears from 'K', and can organise a time that fits in with Stew's appointments today.
So, it's going to be a 'sit on the edge of me seat' day. Eeeeek. Still feeling the upset and anger from the last time I spoke with 'K' to be honest.
At least this time Stew will be doing all the talking... I'd like to see 'K' talk down to him!
Yesterday I repaired a garden ornament that had fallen to bits.
ABOVE: This lovely garden pole had several blue glass pieces in the cut outs. All but one fell out over time.
Luckily I kept them ...
ABOVE: I used Araldite Glue to stick them back in. That should hold them!
ABOVE: There was a crystal suspended in the top 'gap'. Could not find that, so I have put a cute little blue beaded bracelet in there instead.
I'm sure it will look wonderful once it's upright and in the garden again.
ABOVE: The 'pond/not pond' after me dumping 6 loads of stones in it. I don't think the stones from around the back will all fit in the rockery... but let's wait and see.
I will do a few more loads this morning, at least until I get tired, or the MEETING happens!
Catch ya later.
11.25 pm: And the meeting is over.
No one lost their temper.
It was all calm, polite and friendly dare I say?
K finally admitted that the asphalt mix he got for our job was defective, too course for the job etc.
He still insists the driveway will 'wear in' over time and be OK!
But, he is aware we (The Customers), are not happy with it, so he is going to fix it.
OPTION ONE: Rip it all up, and do it all again. He's not keen on this option, as he tried to tell us that we will end up with a 'thin' driveway that won't be as good as option two.
OPTION TWO: He will get in a specialist who does PAVE COTE, who will pour Pave Cote over the entire driveway, sealing it all up. No more lose stones, we won't see the joins bla bla bla.
Option One will cost HIM upwards of $20,000, of which we would still have to pay him the balance of the original quote.
Option Two would cost HIM about $4,000, and he would not expect us to pay another cent.
Hmmmmmm. It's obvious which way he wants us to go. $20,000 vs. $4,000 (for him).
He wants us to look at some driveways that have had Pave Cote put on top of them.
Our biggest concern with that option is that Pave Cote over shit asphalt does not solve the fundamental problem.
The asphalt is defective. There will still be soft spots where car tyres will sink into it.
But, we are prepared to go and look at the Pave Coted driveways. And talk to the Pave Cote Installer.
*sigh* So, no fireworks for now.
I am 90% convinced we won't be going with Pave Cote though.
It is just like a thick paint poured on your driveway. How is that going to 'fix' anything?
Option Three (concrete) ... Steve shot it down in flames. Way too expensive to do, on top of having the asphalt removed.
My head hurts. Way too much stress for one day. Oh and thinking about it all night didn't help. 😔😕
ABOVE: Liam looking very excited for his first day back at school today. He will have two days at school, then three days off as we are heading into another long weekend. (Monday off).
I hope he is having a fantastic day.
ABOVE: The repaired garden post back in place.
I did a little boo boo with that repair job. The glue ran down onto the kitchen table! Forgot it might do that. So now I have to sand it off without wrecking the table top. Whoops.
IN FACT... if I do 'wreck' the table top... I can paint it white! YEAH!!! Been thinking of doing that for ages and ages
But Stew. Well Stew. Liked the table in it's original state. Rimu and all that. Meh. It's been 'original' for 25 years. Might be time for a change.
I've had Lacy and Brylee here half the afternoon.
So, I put them to work. Brylee did some vacuuming and unloaded the dishwasher.
ABOVE:
Then Lacy and Brylee moved couches around...
We swapped the one in the family room with the one in the sewing room (fitted better), and the girls brought the one from the sewing room into the sun room. What a fiasco that was!
There was a bit of swearing, screaming, arm flapping and so on, but they got it done.
They have now both left, probably so I can't find something else for them to do! 😂😅😋
It's now 4.30 pm. A bit early yet to be bothered with sorting out dinner. I might just sit here and relax for a mo.
Today is what I'm calling the 'calm before the storm'.
But hopefully we won't have a storm.
TOMORROW the asphalt guy is coming here to talk with Stew.
We've just heard that he's a real HOT HEAD. No shit Sherlock. I've already seen that for myself.
So, tomorrow might be stormy.
But then, 'K' ain't met my Stew yet! lol
Stew is back at work today. He's in Rotorua today. It might be his last visit to the Rotorua office for a while.
His business team is splitting into two, so there's always half the team at work, and half working from home. That way if anyone gets the bloody 'rona', the office can still stay open.
So, it will be back to having Stew working from home on a bi-weekly basis soon. It's just until Omicron has done it's worst, and life gets back to some sort of 'normal'.
My biggest fear is we get another variant of Covid-19 after Omicron! This might never end.
Some kids start back at school today, Keera is one of them. Dante and Archer start next Tuesday. Bex is hanging out for that day I can tell ya!
I'm looking forward to this weekend. Mike and Joyce are expected for the long weekend (Yes, another long weekend!), and we will have Miss Muppet visiting too.
We just love it when we get more family visiting.
Much as we love Steve 'n' Bex, it is nice to see others too.
ABOVE: THIS. Made me laugh, cos I've actually done it.
Have you?
Right, time to get a move on, I want to get outside before it gets too hot.
9.45 am: Three loads of stones are now in the pond. I've finally decided it's no longer going to be a pond.
It's just going to be part of the rockery.
No more water.
We have had some drizzle! Very nice I must say.
Taking a break for now. I will go out again later and do some more.
The fake nails were becoming a pain in the arse.
Getting too long to type. Hindering me day to day, like how the hell do ya pick up pins with fake nails?
So, I cut them right back and they are workable again.
I'm not getting them back filled either. I'm growing them out.
So they don't look hideous as they grow out, I did this:
ABOVE: Slightly less hideous! Just regular nail polish on the grown out bits, made to look like drips. Works for me. I'm hoping as they grow out the existing splits in my nails will grow out too.
I just fed the two goldfish I have in the big fish bowl.
The girls finally noticed them!
ABOVE: Coco was like, MEH... it's just fish.
Marley? OMG so inquisitive.
ABOVE: She's really intrigued by them. Came and sat by me, but kept looking back at the fish... as if to say, what the hell are those?
So damn cute.
I'm gunna have to keep an eye on her till she gets used to them now. She keeps going back and looking at them.
ABOVE: And.... before I forget again... HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Liam. Nine today. Getting BIG!
OMG, I am being so lazy! Sitting here watching Netflix, just started watching 'The Woman In the House Across The Street From The Girl In The Window'. It's a bloody mouthful eh?
I'm already at Episode 3. Might be binge watching it now.
3.30 pm: Brylee and our cousin Danielle came over for a swim. Put their feet in and squealed like girls (just joking), but yeah. Too cold for them!!!
Crazy girls. It's still hot outside.
I decided to make myself a 'WORDLE' HELP SET. You can probably buy them? I don't need to obviously.
ABOVE: This works for me so much better than scribbling possible words down on paper!
I got today's word in 3 tries. I'm very proud of myself, it's the best I've done so far.
I've only played 4 times so far, but I do believe it's going to become an obsession!
4.50 pm: And gosh I'm having an excellent day!
I've now taken 6 loads of stones and dumped them in the NOT POND, now rockery.
I've done a grocery shop.
And I've fixed a garden ornament.
I'll show you that tomorrow, once the glue has dried and it can go back up.
Dinner is going to be Beef Schnitzel and baked potatoes, with coleslaw.
8.55 pm: Dinner is done, it was yum! Time to wind down for the day.
Parents to several adult kids, and 14 Grandkids (Grandkids aged 2 years old to 25 years old).
WHERE I LIVE:
New Zealand, it's in the South Pacific... and it's NOT a part of Australia! We are home of the All Blacks rugby team, the Kiwi (bird, but can't fly) and lots of bloody neat people!
