We bought a Bundy house.

I know right, the title of this blog totally gets you in suspense .. you're all like .. "i wonder what this ones about" .. well let me tell you, it's titled "We bought a Bundy house" because ..

WE BOUGHT A BUNDY HOUSEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!
Forgive me for busting out with the caps lock, bold, italic writting AND the underline all at once, but i do feel it was necessary. We are SO fricken excited right now that  it's hard to process what's actually happened. So, im going to start somewhere near the beginning ..

(although, if you want to read the short version and then head back to your egg nog .. we bought a house and we are excited. Thanks. Merry Christmas, now go and enjoy your egg nog) 

This will be the 3rd house which Gregg and i have bought together. The first house was before we had any children, it was 6 bed, 4 living areas, 3 bathrooms etc .. although it was called a house, it was probably more like a hotel! 6 bedrooms?!?! I mean, C'mon, wtf were we thinking?!?! We lived here for about 4 years and in that time we had 2 beautiful children, we got married, and we renovated the house, LOTS! .. it was a fair money maker in the end as we had bought it as a run down shack (albeit a HUGE shack) and sold it years later as a huge, renovated and modern house. In this 4 years, although we had our 2 beautiful children enter our lives, we both worked pretty much full time as the mortgage was too big for Gregg to cover alone. I did have some time off as each child was born, but it certainly wasn't enough time off to stop me feeling like i was missing out. At the end of the day the mortgage was huge, and we had to cover it.

Once that house sold, we came up to Bundaberg and tried to purchase a house to start our new life. It wasn't to be that time so we headed back to Melbourne and purchased another house. This was probably what i would have called my 'dream house' at the time. After our 'renovaators delight' we had a house which we didn't need to do any work to it, the kitchen was modern and gorgeous, the bathrooms were modern and didn't need work .. everything was complete in this house. And again, we both needed to work pretty much full time to pay this mortgage.

It was a daily struggle, although i was lucky enough to work in the childrens services field and i was 'taking my kids to work with me' .. it still didn't feel like we had enough quality time together. It was the daily struggle of coming home from work, with 2 grumpy and tired kids in the car, putting them in front of the telly so i could cook some dinner and get some housework done, we would eat (at different times as Gregg would be home late) and we would then go to bed early as we were all so exhausted. Only to get up and do it all again the next day. The weekends were used to get things organised for the next working week, like the food shopping, all the housework etc. It was a never ending battle to keep up with things and i was never happy with the little amount of time i had to give my most important things in my life - the kids.

There were a few times where i would finish up work, or cut down my days, but we couldn't make ends meet and the credit cards would start getting full so back to work it was. After about 1 year in this perfectly, modern and beautiful house we decided this life wasn't for us. We were going to sell up and make Bundaberg our home. The wish list was miles long .. although we would be leaving behind everyone and everything we ever knew, we were doing it all for the right reasons. We didn't need the perfect kitchen anymore, nor the modern bathrooms. We didn't need the perfectly spotless house. We needed a liveable house, with a great big old garden where we can have chickens, dogs and birds. We needed more family time together. I needed to feel like i had all the time in the world to be a Mum and a wife. We needed a more relaxed life. We needed a vegetable garden so we could teach the kids where the food all comes from. We needed a market stall where we could sell our fresh fruit and veg. We needed a little country school where the kids could get an education. We needed SO much more than the perfectly modern home with the suitably priced mortgage.

So .. to Bundaberg it was (to a rental first while we organised everything else)

When we first arrived here in August this year, we set a few of our goals into action. We chose the perfect little country school for Heath. We started making some new friends. We got the puppies and we started looking for houses. I said goodbye to things like my bleached hair, my acrylic nails. Gregg cut back on his smokes (well, that's debatable, he SAYS he's cut back!) .. i shop at Aldi, we don't have Foxtel, I don't cook the perfectly perfect meals anymore because let's face it, my kids don't appreciate 3 course meals, as long as they have some meat and veg, they're happy. We aren't foodies. I save my money wherever i can .. because at the end of the day, all these little savings mean we can live on the one wage and i can concentrate on being a Mum and wife.

And then .. we bought a house. This house is nothing to look at. It's not horrible, it's not even close to horrible, but it's certainly not what we used to want in a house. It's liveable. I love that the kitchen is missing some handles, i love that the bathroom isn't modern. I love that the yard is over an acre big, there's plenty of space to ride motorbikes, get a pony, have the chickens and put some birds in the aviary. It's everything that we wanted in this change. In the front garden, in the middle of an asphalt driveway we have a little grass roundabout, this is where im going to plant a vegetable patch and make up some street sign posts like 'carrot lane' .. 'alfalfa village' .. and 'potato drive' .. !! So people walk past and say .. "How unusual!" .. we are all about unusual. I say to people "this house is EVERYTHING we wanted in this move" .. im sure they just think .. "a house is a house!" but it's not to us, it's so much more than that. It's a house that lets us have more family time together. It's a house thats far from perfect. The only thing which is perfect about this house is the price. This house makes it all worthwhile leaving everyone and everything we knew back in Melbourne. It makes the past 5 years of full time work worth it because it has helped us to appreciate what we have now.

This house is our little piece of paradise. I don't care that the toilet seat is stained, we can replace it, one day. Whenever we get around to it. It's not a rush .. because nothing is. Not in this new life in Bundy.

So, bottoms up, let's have a drink to a new lease in life. An easier, more family friendly life. A life where the postie is one of your best mates because she helps you source stolen drive way ramps (probably a blog in it's own though) ..

Cheers Bundaberg, thanks for letting us call you home.

Your opinions stinks like ass.

Quite frankly my dear, your opinion is smelling like ass. Opinions have been 'doing my head in lately' .. i'm all for people expressing opinions, but im OVER people who think that they're general opinion is not just their own voice, it's actually some kind of bible which god has autographed. Meh.

Example - the person who believes that Christmas is only about religion etc and children should not get more than one toy. (people have actually stopped me, mid shopping, looked at my trolley of toys and commented!)

I go overboard at Christmas, i want my  kids to have everything they ever wanted. Although i am the one who does the choosing and the shopping, i know that Gregg feels the same. I also know that we bring our kids up to appreciate the things they are given, to look after the things they are given and to always be thankful for what they were given. Another thing i have always told my kids, is about the families who don't have any money and they don't do Christmas and this is why we are CONSTANTLY going through the house from top to bottom and donating things to others. My kids have become great givers, they often come to me with a toy and say they are ready to give it to someone else. Maybe it's a sign that they have too much? I do not care, this makes us happy. We get joy from knowing that the kids have everything they have ever wanted. (well, aside from the pony which Roxiee wants, while we don't have the yard for it now, we are seriously hoping to get her a pony next Christmas if she asks again and if we have the land)

And before another judgemental one says .. "Oh, you are replacing family time with objects" .. no, this is not what we are doing. I emphasise on family time, we are all about family time! Sundays is our 'family day' .. no work gets done on a Sunday, we either go out somewhere, or we spend the entire day playing together. During the week when the kids are at school/kinder i get all my work done so after i pick them up, i am free to help with homework, play, talk, listen etc.

We have rules in our house, we yell in this house (although that IS against a rule!) .. we play together, we laugh together, we fight toghether, we get angry, we get over it .. and then we generally go shopping to buy the kids another toy. So what? .. don't be wafting your ass scented opinion this way!

 I actually called the very first 'family meeting' a week ago as Heath was really playing up, we all sat at the table talking about what makes us sad and it was decided that this house is a 'no smacking and no yelling house" .. (it always has been but the kids since starting school/kinder have been smacking eachother etc) .. so really, we are much like any other family!! We aren't exactly posting our kids expensive presents while we are holidaying in Peru and the kids are with their french nanny. We aren't using presents to replace quality time, we aren't 'spoling' our kids, and we aren't appreciating all the 'opinions' on what we should do for Christmas.

To the people who buy/make one present only - who gives a rats arse? I do not care. I am not sticking my nose into the way you do Christmas. I do mine different, i couldn't care less how you do yours, and im certainly not judging your ability to 'provide' for your children. I am sure that one handmade gift is more than enonugh to suffice in YOUR household, but it is not how i wish to do things in mine. I am not religious, we do not talk about the real meaning of Christmas simply because i do not fully understand the full meaning of Christmas. When the time comes i WILL be allowing my children to do religious education in school and if it's a path they wish to follow i will gladly encourage them. I will also encourage them to not follow if this is their wish.

Basically, i express my opinion as an opinion, i do not think i do things the right way, or the wrong way. I do not think YOU do things the right or wrong way. I think we each do things our OWN way and by doing such it makes it right for our own families, not everyone elses families.

For those who want to know .. this is what my children are getting this year :

Roxiee :

1 huge, wooden, princess dolls house with loads of wooden furniture/dolls
3 colouring books

a Charlie bear

a snokel set with flippers etc

a calender to write all her important dates on

a pool noodle

4 sets of squinkies

a zhu zhu pet

a zhu carrier

some zhu clothes

a convertable barbie car

3 new barbies

2 x squinkie house/activity centres

a barbie pool

a Hairy McLairy reading book set

Heath :

3 colouring books

a snorkel set with flippers etc

a set of 10 reading books

a calender to write all his important dates on

a pool noodle

a big boys trike with large wooden trailor to take to the markets and help carry the fruit/veg

4 x set of beanz

1 leap pad map

a beanz race track

a large desk top world globe

a remote control tarantula

3 x sets of ninjago or star wars lego

1 talking transformer

2 x hot wheels race track connector kits

1 surfer van (he requested a van with moving doors?!?!)

a beanz container and show case

Plus, they have already received gift vouchers etc from family/friends in Melbourne which i will take them shopping with and they will choose what they want.

So, in the days leading up to Christmas, i can truely relax knowing that we have got our children everything they wanted, knowing that they will appreciate and cherish all their belongings, and the time which we spend playing with them together. And you are probably feeling that your child will cherish their toy and their religious side of Christmas ... well kudo's to you .. you enjoy it your way and i will enjoy it mine. I didn't try and project my opinion down your throat, and the same respect would be greatly appreciated from your side.




















P.S : My way is right, your way is wrong. You are an ass monkey ;-)

Christmas Fucking WHAT!?!?!

So .. i had an altercation with a cockroach the other day, can't remember if i blogged it or not, but i certainly facebooked it! Long story short = i hunted the roach down, i squeeled, i hunted it, i squeeled some more .. i threw a container over it, i squeeled, i threw a dining chair over the container which was over the roach, i squeeled some more. I then removed the dining chair as i realised it WAS ridiculous, even for me. I replaced the chair with a spiderman suitcase and i awaited my husband to come home and get rid of it all. The end.

Lastnight, gregg was out the front having a smoke and he shouts to me through the window that theres about a dozen cockroaches on the outside windows.. im inside, i do not care. I do not want to know. Im still seeking counselling for the one roach which i hunted and squeeled, and hunted and squeeled .. but let's not go there again. Gregg - i do not need to know about the dozen roaches outside! Thanks!

Today while chatting with a friend she mentioned the crazy Christmas Beetles which were flying at her the night before, i mentioned that Gregg was having a sook about roaches lastnight and she advises me that it was probably Christmas beetles .. now, call me crazy, but Christmas beetles back in Melbourne were bright green, and for bugs, they were fairly attractive!! I mean .. i wouldn't freak out about them. I remember being at my old work, in the toddler yard during December and we would find Christmas beetles daily, we would play with them and they just weren't gross. They were walking, bright, Christmas trees!! Rather cute!

Tonight when i bought my dogs in they really didn't want to come inside, they were enjoying something outside. I walked out to investigate what was happening as if it was toads, then Greggs services would be required to come remove them .. but, what i encountered was much, MUCH worse. It was like, a trillion (maybe 5 actually, to be honest) Christmas Beetles. Now, these 'Christmas beetles' are not like the Melbourne ones, would you believe the bergians have their own "christmas-fucking-bergian-beetles" .. these things are huge for starters, and they aren't crawling along the ground being all fluro green and cute. These guys are like large peanuts, flying at my fucking head!! No, really .. they were flying at my head. And they are loud, they were like, buzzing at me, and flying at my head!!! Did i mention they were flying AT MY FUCKING HEADDDDD?!?!?! .. so, naturally, i make a dash to get inside, i run along the path swinging my arms in front of me as im very aware that as long as i am screaming, a 'bergian christmas bug' is going to launch itself into my opened, screaming mouth. As im running these things are still launching themselves at me, and they are also dive bombing the back door. They have split up into 2 groups to try and confuse me i think, there is Osamas first group who are dive bombing the door, and then there are the loud, buzzing, peanuts which are trying to crack my skull open.

The dogs are just sitting on the grass, watching, probably in horror. I safely make it indoors, i jump about like a nutter for a few seconds, smacking at my arms, face, chest etc making sure there are not any flying peanuts stuck to my person. Phew, i give myself the all clear and i take a breath.

The dogs are now actually eating the bergian christmas bugs which seem to have concussed themselves from dive bombing my door.

Im emotionaly exhausted, and slightly scared to sleep tonight. These things are blimmin gross.

Please, browse the pictures below. The first picture is an actual Christmas beetle which is found in Brisbane, and the 2nd picture is a little masterpiece of my own which i created in Paint. I feel it displays THE REAL creature.

Puddlin'

So It occured to me a few weeks ago while getting the Christmas tree ready, that this Christmas was going to be very different. Back in Melb we would be struggling to fit in all the family that we needed to see for the festive season, this year would be our first away from all the family. Naturally i felt a little sad about this, so i made a mental note to myself that we would start some new 'family traditions' to replace the older ones which we did in Melbourne. Bundaberg never seems to be short of some kind of festival or similar community get together shindig. I kid you not - they have scarecrow judging contests!! Im just waiting to get dressed in 'mah spurs ta go n watch a tracter pullin shaw' .. That'd be maddddd fucking intense!!

Anywho .. A pageant of the lights .. The name put me off to be honest, you see bergians are very simple people so i imagined they were inviting us to a beauty type pageant where light globes were judged by the public. Yeah okay, im dumb! .. Turns out a pageant of the lights is actually a Christmas festival with the major turning on the towns Christmas lights. All 24 of them!! .. Also turns out to be a great family event which earnt its title as our first new family tradition. Well done Bundy, although, maybe just call it a Christmas festival?

The 2nd tradition has not yet been agreed to, gregg is fighting it. Its Christmas carols. I really want to take the kids, i WILL take the kids!! If i could find carols in a pub, gregg would be all over that shit like white to rice!!

And many more Bundy Christmas traditions will be born i'm sure.

Today, by accident we found another tradition which im SO excited about!! It's not a tradition entirely about Christmas, but it will happen through the wet season so it IS close to Christmas!

So .. The kids and i had to walk the dogs, it was raining so we all put on rain jackets and hoodies. We get about 4 houses down and theres HUGE puddles everywhere. One look from Roxiees face tells me that she's about to jump, and im about to get wet!! I notice she's wearing her brand new frilly, pink shoes and i talk her out of jumping in the muddy puddle. My attention then turns to Heath who is 'pretending' to not notice that he is just about to step into an equally huge puddle, with his equally new Ben 10 shoes. I tell him he's not allowed and we keep walking. The kids don't protest, but i can tell they are dissapointed. They have to walk, in the rain, to give the dogs exercise and they aren't even allowed to have fun while doing it!! Meh, i could punch myself for being such a stiffler, but instead, i promise them that we will return to the muddy puddles after school/kinder.

.. And we did. After eating a nice roast chicken and veg, i get the dogs ready, i help the kids put their jackets on and their sandals and then off we go in the rain!! Its not pouring down, just drizzling really but the drainage is crap and the muddy puddles are everywhere.

The walk around our block is probably 7 minutes?? In this time the kids jump and go crazy in countless amounts of deep, muddy puddles. Roxiee has fallen into about 3 puddles and the back of her shorts look as if shes literally had the shit scared out of her. Heaths not really sure if he's allowed to do it and he seeks assurance before EVERY single puddle .. "mum, are you sure about this?" .. Me : "yes, im sure. Go crazy, get muddy. Have fun and i'll clean it all up when we get home"

I don't have a splash myself as im holding the 2 dogs who don't really appreciate the mud flying about everywhere. Thats my little poofter puppies for ya!

When they find the REALLY big puddles they both jump in together. I watch as the mud flies up onto their faces snd runs down their bodies. they are having THE BEST time!! Im waiting for some opinionated jackass to come out and tell me that they're gunna catch a cold .. To which my response wouldn't be very polite!!

Im glad that i noticed how dissapointed they were thismorning when i said they couldn't splash, and im proud of me for keeping my promise and taking them out to do it tonight. I have a feeling this will become a very regular thing, i also have a feeling that i won't be taking the dogs next time as i will want to have a splash too!!

So, cheers to new traditions, and cheers to puddlin'

(i didnt have my camera with me as it was too wet but managed a few puddlin pics of the kids puddlin in our driveway as we got back home)