An electrifying first

My list of firsts is going well. I started reading To Kill A Mockingbird on Tuesday. Wednesday i was supposed to watch Star Wars, as i have never ever seen any of them, but we owed about $996 at the video shop, so methinks it is time to join a new video shop.

My first yesterday was an interesting and completely accidental first, in that i got electrocuted. I plugged in my hairdryer as per usual, it made a funny whirring sound, sparked all over me, burst into flames....at which point i threw it on the floor and it went out, thank goodness. I now have a lovely oozing black wound on my arm....it's so pretty!

Anyway. Unsure as to what to do today. I'm going shoppping for stocking fillers which i am greatly excited about. And buy a new hairdryer.

Work is starting to get very busy and looking at my Christmas roster i won't actually see my husband or children the 2 weeks before Christmas. I have a fair few nights where i'll be working until midnight, which really sucks, and don't even get me started on why shops need to stay open that late......it baffles me. I'm really glad we'll be escaping Auckland for Christmas; i've a feelling i'll need to by then.

Hope you're all well in any case, love to all xxxxx

Weekend away

A bit tardy in updating our weekend away, i apologise. have some photos to start with whilst i think of something vaguely interesting to ramble on about..

We had such a fantastic time away and were blessed wwith some beautiful weather. Adrian and the boys caught some Kahawai off the beach on the sunday morning and were very pleased with themselves. Sheryl has allowed me to post a link to her blog where she has a video of Heidi and Haylee singing Twinkle twinkle....check it out :) http://www.nzkuypers.blogspot.com

Other than that, back to normality and enjoying some more lovely weather. We went to the Grey Lynn festival on Saturday with David, Atsuko and Mia and all the kids, who were very well behaved while we sat in the sun, drank alcohol at silly times of the day and all got rather sunburnt. And then of course went home for the obligatory barbeque.

My current project is Trying New Things Before i Turn 27 (the saturday after next). So far, i have.....

• tried New Zealand marmite on toast (verdict - tastes too sweet and a bit beany....i can now say with conviction and from a reasoned viewpoint that i infinitely prefer English marmite)
• tried sushi....albeit teriyaki chicken sushi which i am not altogether sure is proper sushi, but i had to start sommwhere. Tomorrow i may be brave and try actual fishy stuff ( or maybe just prawns...one step at a time!)
• started reading a book i have been meaning to read for ages

And for now, that's it. Tomorroww i am going to try and run round Panmure basin twice, which i have never managed before, but i am suure i can do if i put my mind to it. All suggestions as to new things i can try will be gratefully recieved and i will endeavour to try them as i am feeling exceptionally brave and pro-active at present.

As for plans for my birthday, i am going for a lovely dinner with my lovely girlfriends, and then on the ferry into the city for a bit of mad dancing...that's the night before my birthday. And on the saturday of my actual birthday, Adrian's band and David's band are playing a gig in Ponsonby together, so i am pretending it is a gig in my honour and going to that. Very much looking forward to it all indeed. And not a bit bothered that i am only 3 years off turning 30.

Gulp.

Guy Fawkes

As per family tradition, Saturday night we went up to Cornwall Park to watch the big fireworks display in the city. We took our blankets, hot chocolates and marshmallows and i'm not sure who was more excited; the kids or Leah's godfather, Morph! Fireworks were slightly disappointing this year compared to last year, but still a good night. It was not lost on me that i was wearing a t shirt in the middle of a November night....fireworks night is still associated with hats and gloves and wrapping up warm to me! This was the kids at 10pm once we managed to get home....

Friday night we went out to watch Adrian's band play at The Rising Sun on K Rd. Was really nice to go out for an evening, and we owe Sheryl big time for babysitting overnight for us! Here's me taking myself a lttle too seriously......!

This Friday we are doing our annual trip away with Sheryl and Rex and their kids, and Paddie and Daz and the twins. This year we're going for 3 nights to a place called Matheson Bay, and this is the bach we're staying in. Not far from Auckland, and just so looking forward to relaxing and enjoying time with our friends.

Anyhoo, hope you've all had an enjoyable weekend too. Lotsa love xxxx

A little of my genius

Just found this photo from Heidi's birthday, courtesy of Sheryl. 'tis the Humpty Dumpty cake i made for her party, which was meant to be a simple affair. However, as you can imagine, finding an easter egg in October is not the easiest of tasks, so i had to make one.

It was easy enough, Humpty Dumpty Mark 1 got made without serious incident, but then he fell out of the freezer the night before the party and smashed into a million tiny pieces. He was unsalvageable, so Humpty Dumpty Mark 2 was made by a very grumpy Joanne at approximately 11pm, after a mercy dash to the supermarket for more chocolate. (Of course, when i had made HD#1 and he was a success, i stupidly ate the remainder of that king size chocolate bar, not allowing for any disastrous contingencies.)

HD#2 made, next morning and all i had to do before th guests arrived was ice the cake board and make some green grass out of coconut and green colouring; make chocolate icing for the wall, put the raisins on the wall to make it resemble a wall, and lovingly mould some limbs for poor old Humpty Dumpty out of fondant icing. It was at this point that i realised cake making is not the profession for me, especially not with 6 willing hands in the way trying to 'help'.

Anyway....the finished product, if you will!

Ah...can't get the picture any bigger thann this sadly, but you get the drift. In the event, Heidi hated all the attention and was traumatised by everyone singing Happy Birthday to her. Sigh.

Payola

Well, i was a bit mean in my last post. I feel a bit guilty, because i went on to get the stomach bug and it was actually the worst stomach bug i've ever had, and apparently dysentery has been going round and it sounds like that's what we all had. Sorry Adrian.

Anyway, all better now and loking forward to the weekend. Already. It's only Tuesday however. Adrian is playing a gig on K Road on Friday with his band, and pending a babysitter i am going along too, huzzah! Here is the link to their new video to the song 'Oscillator', from the album 'Dirt and Stars'...look out for Adrian on the drums :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iyEA2Bb8_b4

Plus they have actually made a new website, all proper like, so check them out at www.payola.co.nz

Right. Off to make some dinner and then off for a run as it is such a lovely evening and i am very thankful to be feeling healthy again!

Man Sickness

see, this is what has been bugging me about blogging. I'm about to moan abpout sick men and i KNOW for a fact that i have moaned about it before. It all comes full circle eventually.

So anyway. Adrian is Sick. He may not Make It through the night. He has Man Sickness. Different from Man Flu by way of physical symptoms, but generally exactly the same. Except this time i have to deal with his bodily fluids because he is Too Sick to deal with them himself.

However.

Upon producing a bar of Cadbury's Coconut Rough, all Man Sickness magically disappears and i am expected to SHARE said bar of chocolate.....my one reward for dealing with the sick husband and sick child all day, and the associated 16 loads of washing that accompany such illnesses. Who would like to bet $10 that tomorrow i will procure said vomiting bug and nobody will look after me??

AND i still don't have a kettle. It's been nearly a whole week since i drank a cup of tea at home. Thank goodness for going to work, where they have a non-ant-infested kettle.

I didn't mean to keep you all in suspense about my news, especially as it's really not that exciting to anyone but me! Have reached the monumental decision that we will stay here in New Zealand for the present and i will pursue my dream of becoming a midwife and apply to Auckland University next year. I'm nervous, excited, sad i'm doing it away from home but pleased to have the opportunity to study in a country that in pioneering in it's midwifery services. 'Twill be all change in the Bergman household for sure.

I can hear dramatic moaning from the sofa now.....and if you read this later Adrian i'm not having a pop at you darling....just all men in general :) Here's a piccy of us recently before the dreaded man-sickness hit......xxxxxx

blogging avec pictures again!

hello peeps....not going to bother with the usual apology - you've all heard it before! I have a new digital camera at last so i can punctuate my ramblings with some nice photos again. We also have a new computer as our old one, which admittedly was 6 yearsold, died on us. So i am sitting here listening to Southern FM all the way over there in Sussex whilst i eat my marmite toast. The wonder of the internet, eh? I also have a very touch sensitive keyboard so excuse any spelling mistakes!

Had a hair ordeal at the weekend. Decided to visit a new hair salon as my old hairdresser has gone away to work on a cruise ship. In short, i asked for a trim, and the woman completely changed my hair. i now have a fringe for the first time since 1986, and it takes a lot of maintenance. It also dawned on me throughout the week that i was looking decideldy lop-sided, and i realised that i actually had one side of my hair approximately an inch loonger than the other side. So i went back to said hair salon and complained to the manager, who was shocked with the state of my hair and fixed it all up for me and gave me a voucher for a free hair cut next time. So i should think, though, especially as it cost me $110 JUST for a cut. Sooooo....new hair pic....

And from the front with the fringe....

This was us at the weekend with Atsuko, Sam, Jenna and baby Mia at a bit of a family barbeque thing.

And....shock news.....i am without a kettle! After the bbq on sunddy, feeling a bit worse for wear we only did a very quick tidy up, and SOMEONE (admittedly myself) didn't wipe down the counter, and in the morning we woke up to find approximately two billion ants had invaded the kitchen. Adrian bravely fought them all and cleaned it all up, and i thought it might be safe to make a cup of tea. However, in the place of my beautiful crystal clear Auckland water, was the watery grave of about a thousand ants. It was thick black ant sludge, and despite all my scrubbing of the kettle, i have been adamant that it has a funny smell and the water tastes funny. Adrian thinks it has all been in my head and that i am imagining it. But yesterday i found out that actully i am not going crazy; ants actually secrete something called Formic Acid and leave behind a horrible taste, and actually my kettle will never be the same again. So there. But it does mean i am tea-less until i can afford a new kettle. Sob.

And Heidi has turned 2 a couple of weeks ago....that's gone quickly. She's still very much the baby though and keeps us all entertained. At present her favourite phrase is "I'm Heidi Bourbon [Bergman!]" This was her with the big two at the weekend....

Anyway, that's enough from me for a morning. Hope you're all well, if indeed anyone is still reading; i have been most neglectful of you all. Lots of love xxxx