Pre painting...

I was going to first thing this morning start getting ready for the painters on Thursday but of course, since it was a day 1 of 2 days off... I decided to head on down to Sebastian Inlet to take a few happy snaps... to get out in the sun... do something that relaxes me... take photos... when I got home it was time to get more of the wallpaper down from the bathroom and the HUGE mirror that was in there. We have decided that we are going to pull some money from our 'Room Fund' where we have been setting aside some cash for Shauna's room, we are going to buy a much smaller mirror that isn't so heavy and big... one wall in our bedroom is just awful and extremely busy... instead of buying yet another colour of paint, we are going to do the bathroom and our wall the same colour... we have alot of wood in our house so, the green (a nice green not a shocking one) is a nice subtle green colour... I hated putting photos on my wall as it was just SO busy... then we have a room downstairs that is going to be repainted completely and this weekend we are heading out to buy the carpets for the rooms... we aren't starting on Shauna's room just yet... I am going to wait that little longer to really get started on it... I will wait a month or two to see what happens with referrals... I don't want to start getting that carpet laid until we have her room painted... but I am keeping an eye out on sales for the things we need for her room... I get it as time goes one... or if I find a good deal on-line... all our papers are in and just waiting to hear back about that... though they expire in a few days - they are in... that is the main thing. Just when I thought that I was going to sit on my butt tomorrow and relax... ha... I am going to drive to Lowe's to get a few things for our bathroom, Shauna's room etc other then this... not a great deal is going on... I am still at my 'happy place' thinking of that upcoming trip to Vegas... ahhhh... let the good time's roll...

I had my nephew come over the other day and fix up my computer - we bought more memory for it and when he opened up the computer the dust in there was so disgusting... so we cleaned it out and now, it is zipping along. Joey hasn't been able to find work of late so I have been 'hiring' him to fix my computer and speed it up and set up the new laptop... he just got his driver's license and so he needs some gas money somehow...

In ending this post... I leave you with a parting video... yes, you know what it is going to be off... my baby Barack... the mirror I pulled off the wall and he is running around trying to get the 'other' bird... ok... so I spent a few minutes taking a video... and that is me you can see with the camera... The inside of the computer but you can't see the 50 inches of dust, the bathroom that has been stripped of the 20 year old wallpaper - I have been doing this for days... tearing a piece off here and there, then the busy wall of my room that I was talking about... once this is painted, I will happily be able to put the pictures back up and it would look alot nicer...

When it rains... it pours...

Just when we thought that paying for paint and paperwork was the big things I was paying out for... think again.... there I was on day 1 of 3 days off and doing the washing when all of a sudden the washing machine really starts to make a hell of a noise where I thought it was going to explode... some of the machine (don't ask me what) ended up in the tub... oh... you should have seen the bird during this noise. Suffice to say that we had to go out the next day to buy another... we did manage to score a new washing machine from Best Buy - $100 cheaper as it was the floor model... now, floor models do not bother me since all that was done to it was the lid being opened and closed and a tiny scratch on the very bottom of the machine - that you can't even see... who is complaining... but on the day in question... I had a chance to sleep to 9.35am... I remember that since I hadn't done that in a long time... so, I get all the soaking clothes from the washer, put them in the basket, get changed and head up to the Laundromat... (yes, I was a little bored and took a photo of the washing machine)... I spent at least 2 or so hours up there... either rewashing stuff or drying it all... then when I finally finished all that I had to rush off to do Grocery Shopping... oh it is never ending...We did end up going to 'Forever Florida' again, Mike had to go to one of our stores out in St Cloud, Florida... so on our way home we stopped off and had our usual lunch there. I did pass this cute little frog sitting and hiding in a tree...

I did get myself a laptop... even though this is a 2nd hand one... the guy who owned it was really into computers. So, I got it for next to nothing... like it came straight off the showroom floor... with 2 batteries to go with it... so hopefully I can take it to China... I hadn't planned on taking anything to write back from China but well, looks like I will be now... haha... Oh by the way Susan... I know I said I would take a photo of the laptop to show you but forgot... the laptop is black and it is a Compaq.
We were meant to have the painters over today but they had a big job to do and we told them to stick with the big job - we always have these guys doing work at our house so we don't mind they wait until a little later... gives us a little extra time to be doing some 'cleaning' of the rooms that need to be painted... Well, now that I have had 3 days off work - back to work tomorrow... I really think I need to become a lady of luxury... nah... then I would be bored...Not to worry... only about 4 weeks and we are off to Las Vegas... I cannot wait... a bit long in the coming... a huge congrats to Leeanne and family on finally getting Tari Mei...

Do I Need A Child???

Yes, I think I do need to nuture something... poor little Barack has to climb the stairs... I don't make him do it all the time... need I say more... I am proud of my little bird...

Happy Valentine's Everyone

Not a great deal to tell but wanted to say Happy Valentine's... I ended up working today from 6am to 4pm... you would swear it was Christmas... anyway... most of my time was spent putting flowers out and Valentine's balloons all day... it isn't as fun as it sounds.Mike had a vase of flowers and a card waiting for me when I get home... so sweet... then later on we went out for a Chinese Take Out at our fave place and took it to the foreshore of the Indian River to watch the sun go down... hey, what can I say... I am a cheap date... a few shots from our little day out. The photo that is 'round' was taken through one of those viewfinder things where you can look to buildings far away, this photo was of the Melbourne Causeway during the sunset... it was fun to be able to take some photos at the same time... the one thing that was so amazing - or a sign was when we only had one fortune cookie with our meal... though we asked for two... maybe it was meant to be... the little fortune read "A small gift can bring joy to the whole family"... now, I think that is Shauna being our small gift... hey, my fortune cookie so it will be mean anything I want... So just wanted to say Happy Valentine's Day... more later - off to work again tomorrow...

Bushfires and Floods

First of all.... my thoughts go out to the families in Australia... I have a friend back in Victoria - the state where the awful fires are... luckily she and her family is ok... I figured they would be ok just the thought of all those families going through that... from what I hear the heat was very high, then you have the winds blowing the way they were and to top it all off and I know it won't help that all those Eucalyptus Trees have leaves that are full of oil... not only do you have this - you have up in the state of Queensland the floods they are experiencing and from what I read that the Cattle Industry will be devastated... I want to thank everyone who sent me emails etc to see if my family were ok... they are fine... the fires are in SE Victoria and the floods are up in North Queensland... my family is between these two places in the state of New South Wales. So, thank you for the concerns... very much appreciated...

Well, actually I have a day off work and oh how nice it was to be able to sleep in... I had gone out to do a few errands and while I was up in the little town where I live - well, quiet a few people had been asking me what the town looked like that I lived in... well, here are just a few shots... I spent an hour or so just chilling out in town and enjoying the sunny days we have been having... people have wondered (when looking at some photos I had taken) about how I could get photos of the beach and the river so easily... well, I actually live on a Barrier Island... and it is about a 10 - 15 min walk from one side of the island to the other... to get into the main town of Melbourne we have to go over a Causeway...

As always I know I haven't been around as much but I am trying to stay busy with work and looking forward to my trip to Vegas and after that off to Denver... as well as getting our bathroom painted... my bedroom painted... a guest room painted and as soon as all those are done we will get Shauna's room painted... we need one room free for the 50,000 boxes we have packed up from the rooms that are being painted... slowly but surely we are getting things done... all we need now is a huge batch of referrals to be done...

A day of relaxation!

Not only did I book a vacation to Las Vegas in March but just booked another today... July we are again heading off to Denver, Colorado (thank you flying miles). This is one state that I have really fallen in love with... I think that this time we are going to just hang around the city... we are even going to see if there is a baseball game being played... what exactly we are going to do is another thing... then again we were even thinking of the town of Vail... not 100% as yet...

Today Mike and I went to see 'Gran Torino'... oh my... it has been a while since I have been to a really good movie but this one... everyone has been telling me how great it was so finally (and Mike wanted to see it) I decided to shout Mike to the movies... I am not going to give any of it away but suffice to say... if you are thinking about seeing it... stop thinking and go... if you need to get a babysitter - get one... though word of warning... there are quiet a few swear words in it.
Before the movies we went looking for a cache (Geo-cache) and went to a walking trail... it wasn't long until we found the cache (you can only hide them in parks if you get permission) there was a small area where they had a baby Alligator... though he was in a big tank... sweet little thing he was. The area you walk through is all the Palmettos... it was a nice day out...Yesterday I picked up the curtains for Shauna's room... right now they are hanging over a coathanger and covered up. I don't plan on putting those up right up until the last minute... they will be nice for when I can open the blinds in the room but leave the curtains shut so that still light will go into Shauna's room and the painter is finally coming in 2 weeks to get her room and a few others painted... the ball is slowly rolling... I even got the other day one of those 'soft' little photo albums where you can put in 6 photos to put in Shauna's care package... I saw one and just had to have it... all quiet exciting...

Vacation needed...

Well, yeah ok... so the vacation is set... hotel booked, car booked, flight booked... about 6 more weeks to go until Vegas... can I wait that long???
I know I don't drop by to visit people as much as I use to... I try to but I end up having so much to do I sit down, get on the computer then get obsessed with my photos and start playing around with them, yeah, I owe a few emails etc I am sorry... I promise, I am trying!!! Ha..
This afternoon (after work) Mike and I headed down to an Antique Fair... oh there were SO many things I could have bought but there was no where to put them all... I did buy some really pretty doves made out of metal drums and they were made in Haiti... sad that they probably get paid a few pennies most likely so I can have a metal dove... hope they realized that I love it and it is going to hang of my metal plant hanger... oh and I bought an Air Plant and am putting that in the bathroom when it is finished... since they are hardy and like humidity...
My little bird is doing well, really getting use to everyone... finding his freedom that he can walk in and out of his cage when he wants... flies around the room - well, about as far as he can fly since his wings are clipped... I am not fussed on this but we have the ceiling fans and he goes out onto the porch and don't want him to fly away, otherwise he would get eaten by the Vultures etc but he is the king of the house... gets his millet treats, loves shiny stuff and at night before going to bed he will put his head onto my hand and he will move his head around for me to rub the back of his head and he chirps away when I do it. He does love to jump on the keyboard and run all over it and if I move the cursor on the monitor, he will chase it around and try to grab it... so funny...
Work is going like crazy - as usual... though hours have been cut drastically... I am now working less hours but at least I have a job - even if it is giving me Shingles... yes, you heard right... between this and stressing over paperwork etc I got a mild case of the Shingles but it was enough to drive me insane... they are now pretty much gone... my boss... what a nut case... mood swings and all... I think she is going through a mid life crisis... then again I think that she is always going through it. I try to work as far as I can away from her... she does love to Micro Manage... which she done to me today and it drove me so nuts cause she was questioning me about a job I have been doing for 6 years and could do it with my eyes shut... oh I can't wait till they transfer her (they like to transfer managers often) but she drove me so nuts my head tingled and when that happens... I know I am getting aggravated... as far as I know she was still talking to me and I just walked away... I am to old for that BS but like I said... at least I have a job... when the time comes and we go and come home from China I will be taking 12 weeks 'unpaid' off work... ahhh... another thing to look forward to :) I will survive though...
We are getting our bathroom upstairs painted in 2 weeks and a wall in our room (you have to understand it is a 'busy' wall that whoever built this house put it in)... then we are having what we call the 'Green Room' (ugly green carpet in there) well, my mother-in-law sleeps in there and we are paying to get some new carpet and paint the room... we need to get this room done before we can start on Shauna's though we will get the room painted soon but aren't laying the carpet until we near the date - I don't want the carpet ruined before Shauna gets here... what can I say... I am anal... but most of the stuff will be done so that the carpet would go down and then we will have everything we need in the room and just set it all up...
We had our cold snap the other day... ok... I have never had 'ice' on my van and this is what I woke up... a film of ice on the roof of my van and on the windshield... ok... so it is like nothign up north... what can I say :)
Sitting here watching the SuperBowl... I kinda want the Arizona Cardinals to win... from what I am lead to believe they have never won... and besides, the bird the Cardinal is so sweet... sorry but I like the Patriots... so, since they aren't in there I am for the underdog... the score isn't looking to promising right now...
So, there you have it... my exciting life for now... not that a great deal is going on... except that right now, I am ready to pluck this little bird Barack of mine cause he is walking all over my arms and shoulders with his sharp little claws and squawking in my ear... gotta love him....