Day 151 - Disaster

What an absolutely rotten day today turned out to be. I finally finished digging out the Garden under Maddie's window so it is ready for the concrete pad and a fairy garden, unfortunately while I was attempting to replant the one thing in the garden that I wanted to keep Maddie had a fall on some of the left over scaffolding and cut herself.

We took Maddie to the hospital because of the location of the cut, and then had an awful couple of hours while the Doctors did an x-ray to check for fractures and talked to another hospital to get advice on how to proceed with us. While they don't suspect abuse, they had to record the injury and really suss out how the accident happened. I can not imagine feeling much worse than I do right now, knowing that it has been recorded and for a while the Doctor wasn't sure if he believed how it happened. It doesn't help that we did over react and there is nothing wrong with Maddie, but I have to wonder how hurt kids have to get to be taken to the hospital by abusive parents, and whether in future I will second guess whether to take Maddie to be checked if she hurts anywhere. I certainly have learnt my lesson and will never leave the back gate open again.

Day 150 - Sushi Obsession

Wow does this photo need some editing! I think I will have to find something cute to stick over that bottom white corner so that I can actually use this photo. While we were away Maddie renewed her obsession with Sushi, eating more of Bianca's snack than Bianca herself. Today while we were in DFO Maddie demolished close to two of Canberra's best sushi rolls. Gosh I miss my Sunday lunch breaks in the DFO, purely for my sushi fix that is.

Day 149 - Hunting

It is our first day back after Nathan's 'third major operation' today so we dragged ourselves out to look at potential fairy garden plants. I think that this hunting is going to be a lot harder than I thought as so many plants have massive root structures and will need massive pots. I still love the idea of having a fairy garden but I suspect it may need more thought than I have given it so far.

Day 148 - Bed Hog

I got to share a bed with Maddie last night, I forget how much room she takes up, as when she isn't laying in the middle of the bed, she is laying sideways with her feet in my side. Last night she kept flexing her toes in her sleep which was super uncomfortable. This photo was actually taken last night before I went to bed, as I was too busy driving all day to take a photo for the day.

Apparently Nathan's eyes are on the right track and the doctor couldn't see anything wrong with them today, so he must not have damaged them on Saturday. We were told he doesn't need any more pain killers or sedatives after today, just new yucky creams to keep his eyes lubricated and to help the scar tissue heal.

Day 147 - Manly

How pretty is this beach? This is right across the road from our hotel so Maddie was super excited and happy to be able to go out there and roam a little bit ahead of me. This asserting her independence thing is interesting, especially while we are away. I always forget about the random storms that seem to blow in over the ocean, so I was shocked that a beautiful afternoon could turn into such an awful rainy night so quickly.

Nathan's eyes still aren't great so I will have to drive us to his appointment and then home tomorrow. It will be the longest amount of driving I have done since before I had Maddie. Hopefully we all get some sleep tonight so I am not over tired tomorrow and can concentrate on the roads.

Day 146 - Sexy!

Check out this spunk and his latest fashion accessory. After being out in the light all day yesterday Nathan can hardly take any amount of light and has needed to be kept drugged all day today. I was hoping that he would be able to drive us to Manly tomorrow as I am super nervous about having to do the driving through the city. Other than going for a supermarket run, we stayed at Nathans Aunt's all day and just chilled out. God I love the Sushi Bar in the Woolies supermarket here, so does Maddie, she cant seem to get enough of it.

Day 145 - View From Our Room

Check out the view from our room, it is awesome and last night we were able to watch the light show that was being projected onto the Maritime Museum roof. Maddie and I watched it for a fair while and I made sure to film some of it for Nathan to watch tomorrow, assuming he can see by then anyway.

Foolishly Nathan decided to come to Woolongong shopping today, which meant a full day out in the light. By the time we got to our destination, Nathan was exhausted and in a lot of pain, so while we shopped I sedated him and drugged him up as much as I could so that he could sleep in the car. Hopefully he hasn't done irreparable damage to his eyes.

Day 144 - Surgery Day

We made it to Sydney late last night in preparation for Nathan's Laser Eye Surgery today. The procedure appears to have gone smoothly and Nathan is as high as a kite on drugs, having taken a Zanax and 3 Valium before surgery, and another zZanax and another 3 Valium after the surgery, as well as some Digesic for any pain.
Ohmigod getting a taxi after the surgery was an awful, awful experience. We assumed we would need a car seat for Maddie and in all honesty would have preferred it, but after a two hour wait for a taxi that supposedly turned up and left again, we flagged down a normal taxi. We had the most awesome taxi driver after that, who started to make up for the the drama of waiting for hours. He told us a few things that we should do, and let us know that right near the hotel we are staying in there is a convience store and a whole heap of restaurants.
After getting Nathan settled Maddie and I went for a wander on the Harbour and grabbed a few groceries and the best tasting subway ever. We kept Nathan sedated all night so he missed a message late from the bank letting him know that the cards were trying to be used in an unusual way. It turns out, while shopping the next day that our cards were cancelled and a quick call to the bank told us someone tried to spend over $1000 at a Super IGA. Unbelievable!!!

Anyway, doesn't Nathan look pretty all kitted up for surgery, wearing his glasses for the last time.

Day 143 - Weird Kid

Today we went to check out the Sam's closing down sale, where Maddie spotted this hat and absolutely had to have it. She sure does love it, and has been running around all afternoon yelling 'Yee-Ha, Ride-em Cowboy.' I have tried to explain that as she is a girl she should be singing Ride-em Cowgirl, but she thinks that cowboys are way cooler.

Day 142 - Dinner In A New Place

Tonight we went to the Royal Hotel for dinner to try something different. The meal was OK, the steak a little grisly, but the atmosphere was awesome it was such a relaxing dinner. The girls are hilarious together at the moment, they were happy to sit on the couch and stayed still once Nathan joined them on the couch and after they swapped iPads.

Day 141 - Teddy Bear Tea Party

Maddie was unusually quiet for a little while today so I thought I had better go see what she was doing that she shouldn't be getting into. Turns out I had jumped to conclusions way too early, as she was painstakingly laying out all of this and trying to sit up her teddies. It was so cute watching her play tea parties with them and hilarious watching her toss Woody to the side as he wouldn't sit up properly.

Day 140 - Cockington Green

Today Maddie and I went out to Gold Creek to check out Cockington Green and their little fairy garden. I have to say that the fairy garden was a little bit disappointing as it is just a bunch of fairies sat on the ground under a tree. There are a few plants struggling to grow in the area, but they are sparsely planted and not at all what I expected of a fairy garden. Maddie adored the train, and didn't want to leave the little park area that they have, and she thought it was pretty cool being able to walk around without being forced to hold hands all the time.

Day 139 - Supervisor

While Mark and Nathan were putting up parts of the Fascia today Maddie decided that she needed a 'cup of tea.' She particularly liked being able to have it outside in the chair as she supervised the work that was happening. Unfortunately it is so cold, and at the moment as soon as Maddie gets into her Sandpit she takes her shoes off, it is driving me nuts and my feet are cold just looking at the photo. Hopefully her need to have bare feet all the time outside doesnt make her get sick easier, I guess we will have to go shopping for some shoes that she can not get off herself.

Day 138 - 1 Small Step

Check it out! Finally I did some work and finished painting the cladding around Maddie's window. The colour looks so blue, I am totally freaking out about it, blue or not though, it does look fresh and clean and I am loving it. Cant wait to have the window done and the guttering and fascia so I can see how the colours go together and to work out what colour to do the carport.

I really should do work on the house more often, it is so rewarding and exciting seeing it get done.

Day 137 - Hard Work

Today I laid 14 rolls of turf, and if that wasn't enough, I also put in about the same amount of bags of dirt to get the turf to the level that I wanted it. Far out it was hard heavy work and my back hurts already, can not imagine how bad it is going to feel tomorrow. I have to say though, I am pretty happy with the outcome and how even something so minor, is helping to make the yard look a little bit tidier. Now all I have to learn to do, is tidy up the hoses, and we have to deal with the building materials, oh and the rest of the yard needs landscaping too.

Day 136 - Dance Class

Maddie is definitely a performer, and this has always worried me as I suspect that she will end up being the class clown, she is so confident and extroverted that she always surprises me with how social she is. Dance class is giving me hope though, that she will learn to be a bit quieter when it comes to time to go to school, as Maddie absolutely has to sit at the front of the mat, as close to the dance instructor as she can.

Maddie loves her dance class still and idolises her teacher Cass, so much so that she cries the whole way home that she wants to see Cass, and then asks to go to dance for the rest of the week. I wish we had of found this class sooner!

Day 135 - Swimming Day

Swimming again today, Maddie was much better behaved thankfully and this level seems to be much better for her, at least it is challenging her, but she is so much younger than the rest of the class and really needs to work on her listening skills still.

Day 134 - Longest Balloon Ever

We have had this balloon for weeks that just wont deflate. I am getting to be a little over getting caught in it as Maddie sets us up most days I am sure. Good value for money though, a balloon that lasts weeks on end.

Day 133 - More Fairy Garden

I found another picture of a cool fairy garden on Pinterest today, how cute it the little chair, and I love the idea of making one in a bird bath. I think that Nathan might be coming around to the idea of having one at our place.

Day 132 - Mother's Day

Mother's Day today, Nathan spoilt me rotten with a Flight Centre gift voucher and the cutest necklace that breaks in two, one for the mother and one for the daughter. Maddie is pretty impressed with her half, and surprisingly was gentle with it. We also finally pulled out Maddie's sandpit and filled it for her. She is in love with it and didn't want to hop out of it, although she didn't like that she kept getting sand on her party dress.

Day 131 - Frustrating

When I upload the photos that I take on my phone to the PC they never look this fuzzy, so why is it when I put them onto Blogger they are all pixelated? Drives me batty!

Photo is of Maddie watching Rio, in her Rio pyjama's from Elsie, it was a nice quiet cozy day today.

Day 130 - Colour!

Another shot of the house colour, clearly I had nothing else to do today other than look at the house.
Taubman's Grey Castle, looked pretty good when it was just a row, but now when it is a big block it looks quite purple. Nathan wanted to go a darker colour, but I couldn't get my head around it, I suspect he only went with my suggestion as it means that if the colour is no good, it is my fault.
Oh and can you see my new powerpoint? It went in last night ready for when we move Maddie's A/C unit.

Day 129 - Pinterest Strikes Again

Maddie is into fairies, dancing and gardening at the moment so I was trying to think of ways to develop her interests. She now has a little hot house and a few plants and I have decided that I am going to make her a fairy garden. There are some really cute ideas on Pinterest, and I love the colours, now I just have to convince Nathan that it is a good idea.

Day 128 - It Has Arrived

I checked my E-mails this morning and it said that my Blog was not only in Australia but it was dispatched onto a truck from Fyshwick this morning. Ohmigoodness am I excited about it being delivered, and nervous too. After I spent so long working on it and formatting it I was a little terrified that I was going to be disappointed in the end product. I was also a little anxious about the cover that I choose as rather than going plain black as I went with an image wrap. So from about 2pm until it was delivered a bit after 3 Maddie and I pretty much stayed in the dining room looking out the window waiting for the Fed-Ex truck to arrive.

After scanning through it I noticed that two pictures aren't framed and there are a few bits and pieces that aren't 100%, but I love it, especially having documented Maddie growing up and the works on the House and Yard. I will have to do my best to stick with it again this year so I can have another year in print.

Oh and does me having had my Blog printed make me a published writer?

Day 127 - Maddie's room

Grabbed Maddie's new blind today, it looks OK but it was a challenge for Nathan to put up as it seems like the window frame isn't square. I am pretty happy with how her room is turning out, I really should get to work on putting the finishing touches on it. Maybe next week, if I cant find anything else to do that sounds better.

Day 126 - Curtain hunting

Looking at curtains and blinds again today, I was hoping to get a blind that Spotlight have on sale at the moment, but it turns out that they are on clearance and there is none left in the size we need anywhere. Looks like I will have to go back tomorrow for the cheaper version that I don't think is nearly as nice. When Nathan looked in a curtain shop near his work he mentioned that they had pink netting curtains that might look nice over the top of the blind, so I thought I would check out what Spotlight have on offer. I am definitely not sold on the pink, nor on the idea of having the netting over the top, but I am at least considering it.

Day 125 - Disappointment

I finally put the trundle together today, it was HARD work! there were more parts to this part than there was the whole bed. I was super disappointed when it came time to lay out the slats and discovered this huge split in the wood. Luckily, Harvey Norman havent managed to get in our replacement tall boy yet, so now they have to chase this up too. It is a shame when you spend that amount on furniture to discover two things wrong with it. Certainly puts buying new stuff very off putting.

Day 124 - Colour Chosen, Check!

We have picked a colour for the house finally, although now we are putting it on the house over a large area, I am so not sold on it. I was going to say bye, bye rainbow wall, but there are still 4 different colours on it, and considering there were 5 before I started painting I guess there really isn't all that much difference.

Day 123 - Starlight Party

We went to visit Miss Gem today in the hospital, where Maddie was surprisingly well behaved for a good couple of hours. She was particularly impressed when a 'Starlight' lady offered her a lolly while we were waiting for Gemma to come up from having a scan. Turns out that there was a party being held in the wards playroom to celebrate the Starlight foundations birthday. Maddie was super excited by Lucy's party hat, which she really didn't like taking off, and ended up wearing it for most of the day. Thankfully she did take it off to get in and out of the car so it wouldn't get bent out of shape if I bumped it into the roof.

Day 122 - First Dance Class

Maddie had her first dance class this afternoon and she absolutely loved it. She loved it so much that she didnt want to leave afterwards and cried all the way home that she wanted to stay with her dance teacher, Cass. I can not believe how much she seems to idolise the dance teacher, and how quickly she decided that she liked her. I love this shot of Maddie jumping up in the air with her pom-poms, I think it was her second favourite part of the lesson, after the musical instruments, it looks like dance sure is a hit.

Day 121 - Levelling Up In Swimming

Maddie had her first swimming lesson in a K3 class today, it was pretty nerve racking not being in the pool with her, especially as they aren't supposed to level up until they are 3. Today's class was a trial to see how she would go and if she was able to skip the K1/2 class. Provided Maddie learns to listen to her instructor she can stay in the class, but she looks so small in comparison to the other kids, and her listening skills are atrocious. Fingers crossed she adapts quickly as she has the skill to move up and I am pretty sure that she loved the independence of not being in the pool with me.