2016 – its a wrap.
2016 has been a mixed bag for our family; some hits and some misses but we are steadily putting one foot in front of the other and moving forward together. Mr Point Five has been off with hand surgery and other worries for part of this year, so not the best year for him as he hates being on the sidelines and much prefers to be in the thick of his policing so to speak. 2017 is going to be a better year for him professionally I hope. The boys have had a wonderful year at school; they are so...
Keeping up with the Jones’
One of the big downsides to being a country Police Family and moving all the freaking time is the fact that we don’t just “fit in” to every new town. It takes time to get to know people and for them to know you. It takes time for them to work out if you are joking or if you are just really rude and missed the sarcasm 😉 We don’t have traditions. I mean, we do to a certain extent; I try really hard to maintain some sort of continuum, but when the Christmas tree has been in a...
Why I am a Helicopter Mum
Something I have been thinking about lately is the fact that Mr Point Five and I are helicopter parents. For better or worse we tend to wrap our boys in cotton wool and be over cautious with them and what they do. Despite other neighbourhood kids doing the same, our boys have not ridden their bikes down our street without me standing/sitting at the bottom of our drive to watch their every move. I accompany them to the skate park. I refuse to let them go on the school bus with the other kids to the next town up...
He is only five….five towns, five houses.
This is our Master J last week. He is Five years old. This is his fifth town and fifth house he has lived in. Sometimes I forget that, and everything it entails. Tonight Mr Point Five and I are relaxing, watching The Americans with a beer and a glass of wine. Master J was up and down like a frog in a sock from bedtime on. “I cant sleep. My foot is itchy. I miss my dummy. I need a glass of #8221; All of these were met with a sigh of exasperation and eventually, an hour and a half after...
Living starts NOW!
We are here! Due to Master J’s perfectly awful stress hives/bedwetting regression/unsettled behaviour from the past three months of upheaval and uncertainty, the boys and I left Mr Point Five up in our old town to sort out the packers whilst we drove 650km to Perth three days early with a trailer and a screaming cat. Half way down when we stopped for fuel, I received a call on my messagebank from the cattery which was left two hours earlier, wondering what time we were arriving as they were about to close. After a flurry of messages to, and...
The House that keeps on giving – part TWO
Guess what?? We are moving town AGAIN! Yes, this will be our 6th town/7th complete house move in just over 8 years. INSANE. Following my last blog post and a few “well placed emails” last Sunday, and after 5 weeks of suitcase living, within 48 hours we were offered 4 options for our future. One was not really a viable option and the other two involved us doing a complete house move within town, with no option to move back into our beautiful heritage home much before Easter, if at all. The fourth option, after only 12 months of living here, was...
Our Afternoon at Lake Nallan and Milly Soak
Here are some pics from our second day trip this afternoon. Milly Soak is about 20km up and 5km off the highway from town. If you scroll down, you can read about it 🙂 Just a few flies about. Luckily none up the nose today 🙂 There are about 5 large rock arrows directing you towards the old grave site for when the path peters off a bit… Below are the three original graves; over 120 years old, victims of the typhoid outbreak in town. Only about 1km up on the other side of highway is Lake Nallan...
Day trip to Walga Rock and my Backyard
Our Mothers Day plans were to go to Walga Rock. Mr Point Five had the day off, it was 24C, not a cloud to be seen or a breeze to be felt. We are all packed ready for a picnic out bush. Mr Point Five calls the neighbouring station to say he will be out on his FIRST family day since we moved to town, and that he would have the satellite phone if they needed to contact him. They pick up the phone and say “Hey, we were just about to call you; we need you for a...
Housework – swings and roundabouts.
We have had electricians through our house every day for the past 2-3 weeks and asbestos removers for the few weeks before that. At first I was like Shit, we need to clean up when the workmen get here cos you, know, mess. And at first I did; made sure the loo was pristine in case they needed to use it, cleared and wiped the dining table after every meal, made sure the laundry door was closed because you know, mess, religiously did the dishes after every meal, tidied up toys every mofo day and generally tried to make...
Diagnosis? STRESS.
The decision to move to our new town was made in less than ten minutes. Mr Point Five rang me at work to tell me there was a position vacant; we had to apply within ten minutes or it would be an opportunity lost. I knew the town by reputation only and said no way in hell are we moving there. He outlined the benefits, both financial and promotional. It would only be for two years. I made one phone call to the school and another to the town CRC; despite what I had heard, both were very positive...