Awaiting the arrival of a child

Today I feel much like Merrin, awaiting the safe arrival of a child to hold in my arms.Of course, it is 23 years since my child was in the womb and the squeezes I am experiencing are around my heart!I can feel her getting closer. The psychic bond is strengthening. My body seems extra sensory. I am not sure what time she left NZ or what time she arrives in Qld. I know she will arrive in Melbourne at 1.30pm and we will be there to greet her. It has been nearly two years since she left on June 15th 2005. Much here at home has changed. She has experienced so much without us.My full set of children will be together again.

I WON again!!

You are not going to believe this, but I have won another competition and this prize is pretty darn great – On my fav Gold FM, I have won a new computer!!!!!!!!! I will collect it tomorrow, it is a Dell Dimension desktop. It was a Microsoft comp to promote windows vista – all hail Bill Gates!!!!You want the irony? On Monday, my brand new Dell laptop will be delivered! Bought by the branch for my office, to allow me to work at home as well as onsite without having to duplicate everything or be caught without it!!!!!!!So our family dinosaur will be retired with a nice new replacement and my poor old branch laptop will retire with a nice new replacement and JULIE is getting my nice office desktop!!!!!!!Pinching myself!!!!!

My ANZAC

A while back we were talking about family history and I mentioned my grandad who jumped ship in Australia.I have followed up my research and have got his military details, through the wonders of the internet. Given the timing, I thought you might like to share my findings.Archer Clive Jenkins was born in Liverpool in 1889. I am still unclear of the how and when, but he found himself in Australia and joined the 18th Field Artillery on September 23rd 1915. (coincidently, this was to be the birthday of his son, my father, in 1928!) Dvr (Driver) A.C. Jenkins was in the AIF for 1 year and 68 days, which included 330 days service abroad: this would have been in Egypt and Gallipoli. He was discharged on 23rd November 1916 as medically unfit. I have his original discharge certificate and WW1 medals.At some point he returned to England and brought his bride-to-be (Lilian) Grace Fenn back to Melbourne. They married on their arrival in Melbourne on 26th February 1926 and Grace had the dubious pleasure of departing on her birthday the following day to their bark humpy in the Mallee. They settled in the Mildura area near his sister, Annie and her husband Wil (Grace’s brother) and their two young children: all were featured in The Sun News Pictorial on Wednesday October 26th 1927. This included a photo of Arch and says he was formerly of the Royal Navy: will need to investigate that!My father Les was born in September 1928, swiftly following his sister Dorothy born the previous August. Dot will turn 80 this year and is the aunty I am making a scrapbook for. Dad passed on in 2003.Military life returned with WW2. After the Great Depression which saw him leaving the family to find work as a shearer’s cook and losing the family farm, Archer joined the Australian Army Catering Corps on October 15th and served at home until 16th September 1947, reaching the rank of Sergeant. At some stage the family relocated to Noble Park in Melbourne. Granny and Grandad retired to Rosebud and then later Chelsea.I was lucky to have grandad come to live with us for his final years after Granny died in 1972. He passed away at home in 1977. Sadly, teenagers in the 1970s weren’t terribly interested in the origins of ANZAC Day and the *boring* tales of their grandfather. I am now trying to gather the threads of his story together.

Frustrating morning

As instructed, I had Kieran and his toe at the doctor’s between 9am – 1am: about 10.20 actually. I was assured an appointment was not needed, he was just to see Sister and have the dressing changed.Sorry says receptionist, Doctor has three other dressings to see and won’t have time, you will need to go to the medicentre at the hospital.‘Scuse me? Checks with Doctor again, nope sorry he can’t fit us in, go to medicentre.Grumble, grumble, back in car, drive back to Frankston from Langwarrin. Park at hospital, pay $1 for privilege, hike over to entrance: can’t get into medicentre, entry is blocked off.Go to reception to enquire: not open til 12pm! Sorry.Back to car, wasted $1 and all. Drive back to Langwarrin to get load of stuff from storage unit (conveniently located not far from bloody doctors!)Drive home, unload stuff. Unpack boxes. Fill in hour. Back in car, back to hospital, another $1 parking, into medicentre at 12.02: we are number four in queue to queue! Finally see lovely nurse, lovely doctor, dressing changed and back in car at 1.20pm! Drive back to storage, refill car, back home. Eat lunch. Rain descends. Umpteen trips to car and back with boxes in the rain, without help. Kieran has foot. Kaitlyn overdid it at gym. Ash resting. Rod too busy preparing to go to Sydney tomorrow for two weeks.Yeah – now 3pm, rain has set in. No point going back to storage in rain.ARGH!!!!!!

Noice!

Some Vic people had a meeting at Southland today …… better known to some of you as the location for Fountain Gate on Kath & Kim.When I parked my car, I saw all the production support vehicles and assumed they were filming today.I had barely entered the building when a familiar face caught my eye and returned my smile – KATH, sans frizzy perm!!!After the meeting, walking back to the car, I walked past House. They were filming Prue and Trude! The doubles were standing outside the shop and the REAL ones were inside recording.I was so axcited!

Melissa's Room

Well, the floorboards are sanded and Rod will begin coating them when he gets home from work today.Once they can be walked on, I will paint the trim – needs to be done, may as well do it while it is accessible.After that is all done, time to move in her new bed, return her other furniture and put everything back in place. Guess what I’m doing next weekend????? And I get to organise it all for her!!!!Then hopefully poor Merry will relax; of course she doesn’t know we are doing all this so her mum can come home, she just thinks we have gone mad and taken away all the cosy spots in HER room!!!!

Shopping

Our simple outing to do the big shop took a turn for the interesting. We had barely begun and were looking for our usual choice of laundry powder – Planet Ark or Aware, because of the grey water thing. Only Coles didn’t have it any more. While Kaitlyn continued shopping, I went to the service desk to *complain* and that was when the fun began!The lady at the desk called for the department manager – let’s call him TRENT BEAN – and I went with him to confirm they were not on the shelves. I explained that they are the only two recommended for use when you are diverting the wash water to the garden and that was when he turned on me! Who told me that? It was rubbish! He used these and they were fine. Were my plants dead? See not a problem ….. and on it went. I was speechless – being told off by a supermarket guy! I went back to the desk and said I wished to make two complaints: one about the lack of laundry powder and two about Trent! The lovely lady (who wears a badge noting 15 years service) walked me back down to check and agreed he had been arrogant and gave me two complaint forms. I asked to speak with the store manager and she called to him as he passed. He didn’t hear her, but Trent did and came storming over to the two of us. He was then rude about me to her and to me and then, when I said calmly I was waiting to speak to the store manager, he told her quite strongly that he wanted to see her in the manager’s office and stormed off! She looked at me dumbstruck and I was stunned! We walked up to the desk where she called for the store manager and then – amazingly – back came Trent for another round! Ignoring me and referring to me as She, he told the lady and another young female staff member that he had tried to help me. I said excuse me, these two ladies are now witness to how you have treated me and he turned and said “get your things and get out or I’ll call security” and stomped off again! The other two staff just looked at me stunned and I said it’s okay, it is him there is a problem with, not them or the store.Then the duty manager finally arrived and I explained the whole thing. I pointed to kaitlyn who was walking past with an overflowing trolley and said that’s my normal shopping, you don’t really want to lose a customer over this. I said I have worked in retail management and there was no way his behaviour was acceptable. He could only agree! I made him take my details and he is passing it on to the store manager. When I got back to Kaitlyn, there was an announcement for Trent to go to the manager’s office immediately, so hopefully his head would roll. When we were at the checkout, I went back to the young woman at the desk and gave her my name and number and said if the other lady had any fall-out she was to call me.This guy is probably about Melissa’s age, if not younger and is 2IC and in management training! Kaitlyn, with her Macca’s experience agreed with me that the customer is always right – even when they are wrong – and there is no way one of their staff could get away with treating a customer that way.So we paid for the $250 worth of groceries and went on our merry way. Ironically, when we got to the fruit and veg shop, they were in the midst of celebrations, having just been awarded the Best in Melbourne!!!

Our Day

After waking at 6.30am and not being able to go back to sleep, I got up and uploaded some more photos to my new Google web page that will hopefully replace the photo bucket.Then went back to bed at about 8 and got some sleep. Got up around 10 and found Rod and Kieran up. Had brekky, did emails etc. Starting banging on Kaitlyn and Ash’s door at 11am. Took them 15 mins to appear, better than average!Packing taped the latest lot of flattened boxes from Maccas, got dressed sans shower (no point) and took deep breath and entered Melissa’s room. Managed to co opt all of them to help in varying degrees. Last box moved out around 1pm. Rod then decides to mosey out and see if he could hire a floor sander. After saying it couldn’t be done this weekend as he is working tomorrow!)I vacced the carpet – the less dirt when he pulls it up the better! While he was out I took down all the LOTR posters and declared my work here done! Am experiencing strong urge to paint trim in room, will see how time pans out.Uploading more photos and listening to Leo Sayer, even though Media Player is convinced this library CD is actually Elton John!Kaitlyn and Ash lying on couch watching Foxtel, Kieran setting up his files on the new desktop, Rod removing doors, skirting boards etc.Lounge room full of boxes – I am told the storage unit is *full*. It will rain, as furniture is outside. Have been pricing double mattress to go with base but now wonder If a bed with space underneath for stashing stuff might be more practical.Maybe some lunch …. Except there is a door blocking the pantry and another blocking the path into the kitchen – thanks, Ash!!!!! Maybe shower? Definitely take away for tea.

My Day

I have had a quiet afternoon on roster, only two calls. I have spent my time continuing to transfer files from my old laptop and the old family PC to my new laptop. I was able to handover the old office pc to Julie yesterday after copying everything from it. My eyes are feeling the strain, but the light is at the end of the tunnel!Rod and Kaitlyn have just headed off to the Red Hot Chilli Peppers concert! He was given two free tickets! Ash is with his family today so it is just Kieran and I for tea – not that I feel inclined! He might get to make spag bol again – it has become his signature dish!!Have been summonsed to The Outlaws for lunch on Monday, hopefully I can get Rod to finish removing Melissa’s loft bed when we get home, so we can keep working on her room when he is back at work. We are starting her off with a double bed (climbing into a bunk loses its appeal after two years of back packing!) We have spare base in the storage unit, so I just need to buy a mattress. And doona. Good thing it is payday next weekend!!I can’t see the carpet getting pulled up/floor sanded as Rod is unmotivated  so I guess that will have to wait. At this stage I just want to get her room organised and set up before time disappears. Rod is off to Sydney for two weeks (including when Melissa returns) and we have a branch retreat on the weekend before she does. And now she is coming Monday April 30 instead of Tuesday May 1, so that means needing to be all sorted the weekend before, really. So, that’s my day. Bunny did not survive – mysteriously vanished leaving only torn purple/silver paper. Sad but yummy!!!!

Update from NZ

Just MSNed with Melissa. First, her sad news: the father of her friend from uni has passed away. Not sure how atm, but he also had MS, but much worse than I. She is feeling a bit helpless being so far away.But not for much longer. She will leave Taupo around April 13th as previously advised and after visiting Rotarua, Auckland and a couple of other places, expects to arrive home mid May. I gently said but not on the 11th please – Mother’s Play and she laughed and said she was thinking sometime that week! ARGH! I urged a bit earlier or later – but if she comes earlier she can come to MP! She thinks that is a good idea too!So now must get her room ready. I will confine Rodney to barracks over Easter to take apart and remove her loft bed so we can replace it with a double bed at ground level. Have to get her a new doona too as Ash has pinched her’s. Would still like to pull up carpet and do floor boards while I still have a chance, so next weekend is the window! Then will bring her books and clothes back from storage. We agreed to start her off with basics and she can get stuff out of storage as she wishes. Probably will take off traveling in Australia at a later date after accruing some $$$$! I think she would stay home until after Christmas at least. Or long enough to work with me Scrapbooking her journey. And I am sure she and Kaitlyn will both be helpers at hot milk (the can stay at a backpackers!) and be babysitters, salespeople, gophers etc!So my full house will soon burst at the seams! Thank goodness for our domestic angel Debbie! She is itching to get into Melissa’s room, so that will help!Kaitlyn and Ash are away til Wednesday over at Queenscliff (where I went by ferry a couple of weeks ago) So just Kieran and I here atm as Rod is off cycling somewhere!