The sad demise of the Dishwasher and the Rise of something better (by sarah)

The dishwasher repair man was supposed to be coming yesturday to repair our dishwasher which has been sorely missed these last few months. He was supposed to arrive at some time between 8 am and 1 pm so there we were waiting by 7:30 - he turned up at 2 pm just as we had given up on him coming. But he had got lost and been delayed etc... so we forgave him.

We explained the issue - ie the RCD tripping everytime we put the thing on, he explains that its probably the heating element as that normally cuases this problem. He turned the machine upside and with a lot of screw driver work he got the bottom panel off. He had been jovially chatting away until this point, then his face fell and he started saying things like 'ah...' and 'ooo...'.

The reason?

The inside of our poor dishwasher was a thick red sludgy soup of red rust 🙁 There was so much water in it, it really was unbelievable! Everything was corroded 🙁 Here are some picks after a bit clearing up.

He apologised lots that he couldnt fix it and even if we did replace all the damaged components it would still probably trip the RCD as there would always be something else that we had missed 🙁 Also the cost of all those components including pumps and motors and what not would be more than the cost of a good new dishwasher.

So off he went after giving us a thing to get a discount from his shop as he had still had to charge us call out (he seemed really worried about this as if we would shout at him or something?).

Al had had a trip to IKEA sceduled for a birthday treat but we decided that my budget for that would have to go towards a new dishwasher, then we looked at the looming piles of washing up and I looked at my hands where the sores had just started healin. Al sighed and we checked the balance on the credit cards.

Then we ended up in the shop checking out the dishwashers, we already knew that we wanted a full sized one now we have Jean - effiency and water consumption where important as was price! The January sales were for once at the right time to benifiet us as the one we wanted (durability being important) was a Boshe it cost us just over £200, as always I got grumpy when it came to handing over the money but within an hour we where heading home with a dishwasher.

Our friend Mike had been supposed to visit but had got serverlly deleyed and arrived just after we got home with the machine. He took us out for Pizza Hut as a birthday treat for me - yummy!!! 🙂 Thankyou Mike 🙂

Once back from that the poor sod then ended up helping us to take the old dishwasher out to the van and bring the new one in. He then helped Al set it up with me growing more impatient to use it by the second! The house was in complete dissaray with furniture move hither and thither to let things pass. There was also the obligatory polestrene thought it said it was CFC free and the wooden strutts where untreated wood from stastanable woods etc.... Plus I have uses for the white stuff I've always dispised before!

Here are the photos of Al working out how to install it and make it work.

After a lot of faffing he appeared to have hit on an idea and got down to work.

He then had an eureka moment and looked scarily excited. He promised me he knew how to make it work!

His solution?

To rebuild the polestirene packaging around himself and to pretend to be a dishwasher - this mainly involved miming the actions of washing up and going brrrrrrrr!

Mean while Mike had got hold of the safty travel device in the washing machine - otherwise known as a big yellow foam arrow!

As you can tell the boys where focused and completely mature about all of this! Even Minni jioned in though I think it was more a case of being in the wronge place at the wronge time though she did purr and was happy to pose!

Eventually the Dishwasher was installed! We loaded it and set it going - its so quiet!

Today we dismantled the old dishwasher as a) I wanted photos and b) Al was convinced there had to be some salvagable components that he could keep for future projects!

Part of me wonders what he is planning to make!

Will the Curse Ever go Away? (by sarah)

Today we discovered the wooden cube cabinate had cat urine soaked into it - AGAIN!!!!

We only moved the thing back inot the house just before christmas from last time 🙁 On top of that I had said last time I didnt want it back in the house until it was sanded and varnished so that things couldnt soak into it - but alas this did not happen and we had to bring it back in 🙁

So I spent a huge chunk of today trying to find homes for the things that live on the cabinate and getting a very stressed Al to bring it upstairs for me - it is now in soak in freash water after its disinfectant soak etc... It is most definatly not coming back into the house this time until varnished and its obvious we cant stand it back where it was as this will just keep happening. Also it turns out that Minni has been a very naughty cat - she though female is 'spotting' to mark her teratorry - sigh.

I wasnt very happy with her today.

On top of that the ADSL was down which lead to a slightly annoyed Sarah (who had planned to get loads of stuff done online whilst bobble was in nursery) and a very stressed Al indeed 🙁

Still I did get a nice birthday suprise of a great book arrive today so its not that bad - even if I did find a kitten mess in the stable by slipping on it - whilst trying to see if we needed to clean the litter tray - sigh.

Oh and I am desperate for the Dishwasher repair person to be able to fix the dishwasher tomorrow - my hands are a mass of red sores and bumps cuased by washing up and wearing gloves makes it worse (grrr! silly x-mar) - this means that I havent been able to do the washing up for the last week as its too painful. We therefore have a kitchen full of stuff waiting to be washed up 🙁

My Day (by sarah)

Recently this has been my day - I need to sechele things differently next year as I'm not getting time to do as much physio and stuff....

I wake up at anytime between 5 and 9 am - Insomiac - remember.

Get up, wait for the coughing to pass.

Put the kettle on.

Riddle the fire and put more coal on it.

Pour hot water into the tea pot for tea.

Feed cats their brekki.

Make sure Jeans highchair is ready for her (this is if she hasnt insisted on getting up already).

Get Jean up - which involves nappy change, wash and dressing.

Feed Jean whilst drinking my tea and trying to sort out a website or two or read stuff that needs to be read.

Make sure that Al is fed and watered - especially if he's had to help get JEan up cos I'm too ill other wise he will just work without food.

Play with Jean and clean up the mess she made at Breakfast including trying to catch kittens covered in weatabix!

Suddenly realise that I'm being grumpy at 11:30 as I've forgotten to eat and take pain killers.

This is all whilst boiling the kettle to fill the sink with hot water to do the washing up that I didnt have the energy to do the night before. (Dishwasher why hast thall died? Hot water were hast thall gone?). Not to mention the stuff from breakfast.

Nappy change needed - I keep failing to notice for the potty to come out 🙁

Al comes down and tells me off for rushing around trying to do stuff and makes lunch - if he remembers - normal I will fed Jean lunch then remind him nicely that he needs to take breaks.

See how hungry the cats are acting and maybe feed them lunch.

Jean may or may not need another wash.

Play a bit with her.

She goes to sleep at 3 for about 2 hours

May have to sleep cos all energies gone but more lickily - swear as just found a kitten egg which involves the carpet cleaner coming out - normally leading to definate sitdown as get to o shaky.

If hand still working may try to do more web stuff or maybe writting or drawing if not read. Get Jean up - Al does the nappy change due to hefting baby issues with weak arm by this point in the day.

Jean may or may not be content to play by herself in her room for an hour - attempt to tidy downstairs.

Feed Jean whilst dealing with the fire again.

Play with Jean - demand Al comes down at 7 so he can play with her as she starts pointing at the stairs and going dahdahdah and trying to get up the things!

Have tea (everning meal) whilst Jean plays on the floor.

Try to remeber to rotate luandary.

Put Jean to bed - this may or may not require another wash but definatly requires nappy change and teeth brushing!

Tidy up.

Feed cats.

Go see waily Jean and put her back to bed.

Desperatly try to do all the web stuff etc... I havent managed to do doing the day and writ an article or two!

Prize Al from the computer at 11 get really insistant at 11:30 then panic as we both realise we need to do the luandary we've forgotten about and the washing up, whilst still trying to be inbed by 12.

Have huge coughing fit when go to do the laundary (as I have to go outside to get to it and temperature changes are bad!) and another whilst changing for bed - be peed off.

Get back out of bed to clean teeth and get glass of water.

Check on Jean - smile as you watch her fingers feeling the teddy bear whilst she sleeps.

Go into bedroom and confiscate laptop from Al - who then get annoyed when he realises I'm trying to writ something on mine and so confiscates that!

Try to sleep.

There will be a few other nappy changes or other things fitting in that lot!

Dont get me wronge - the sedule should be handilable but not with my health state at the moment - Mondays when I'm out for appointments and meetings tends to be my only time to actually get any work done! Somehow the days Jeans in nursery tend to be taken up with meetings and stuff :/

Still we both survived doing the writtening course which has lead to several business oppertunities and means we now know some more people in this area. Still the extra evening next term will be a relief!

Wednesdays is obviously the Scouts which is quiet frankly a relief from the work - especially for Al - It also means he spends one whole evening away from a keyboard and pooter screen which can only be healthy! The only issue we have with it at the moment is that we need more helpers and some storage so that poor Al doesnt have to keep hefting that HUGE box!

Boxing Day Madness (by sarah)

This morning Al couldnt open his eyes, not suprising as they where gummed last night. Jeans had conjuntavitis for the last few days and Al knew he was coming down with it but we where hoping - it appears that they both have a slight avertion to the soot that the smokeless coal makes 🙁

Anyway I spent a good half an hour cleaning his eyes out with salt water this morning - Poor babe has a phobia about things touching his eyes which dint help! Once he could see again we found the duty phramacist and headed out. In boots whilst he looked at things I pushed Jean in her pushchair - this was my fatal mistake - the cold and effort stuck and bam! My pelvis seized in a very painful way. Still Al got a special eye ointment and we lurked to the nearest coffee/place I could sit down. Fortunatly the place was warm enough to take coats etc... off - this helped muchly with the pain and stiffness though it did mean we missed the shops to buy certian supplies like - orange juice and parsnips 🙁

Back at home I had to attempt to put the ointment in Als eye! This was near impossible and had him physically fighting me at some points. It was worse when I did his bad eye than when I put the gunk in the good eye. The other problem was that I started doing my 'mothering' voice which had him cracking up with laughter. in the end I had to get him singing rude versions of christmas carols whist I did a fast in and squirt jobby!

Of course he then couldnt see so I wrapped him up warm on the setee and cats came and saw him!

Unfortunatly one of the kittens descided that they would climb the christmas tree that we've put on the window seal (the window sills in this house being like half a meter deep etc...) Becuase it had to fit in a short space we had to not use the bottom teir which ment we couldnt use the stand - so it was standing in a Farleys Follow on Milk tin, full of marbles - this had worked really well but the kittens weight was too much.

I saw it start to go and shouted NO! Ran too it and caught it but not before the marbles had tipped - of course poor Al could only hear what was going on and was calling 'Sarah Sarah are you all right?' I was trying to answer whilst wrestling a tress and having a coughing fit. Still I sorted it out but then my hands wouldnt work proberlly and my pelvis decided to kick in - so we still havent had our lunch - bar Jean who we fed before doing the eye treatment!

Still it all turned out ok in the end - Al is currently sleeping underrnieth two cats! Jean is sleeping too - I'm going to reheat left overs including Leopard Pie! as soon as Al wakes up. We have Christmas music playing and well there are 12 days of Christmas so....

The cats at least are getting inot the spirit!

And I had a pyro moment when I found our candy cains where a bit demented! Burn, burn, MELT - evil Genius laugh.

Merry Christmas! (by sarah)

Our day has been fun even if we all have colds from hell - and we've just finsihed our dinner which was seduled for 2 pm due to an unfortunate incident of us not remembering to get the pastry out for defrosting the night before!

Still the cats loved their special Turkey meals we made them and Jean loves stuffing balls and chocolate - which we found made her strangly hyper and naughty in a way we raely see - it seemed to corrasponde with the choc and not the exciting presant opening so we is gonna keep an eye on that one!

Little baby definatly had fun! - Here she is with her stocking!

Unfortunatly Santa had bought her a water pistol which she spepnt ages hugging - she got this presant about a month ago when she went to see him in his grotto!

She then climbed off of the setee and aimed it right at our Santa cushion! Karma?

Fortunatly he also brought her this cool Xylophone which to my amazement she actually cuaght onto how to 'play' it!

This is her seconded favourite presant - her first favourite is a wooden Noahs ark! That Barbara has given her - she spent ages taking all the animals out and putting them back in again - unfortuantly she managed to catch me with the horn of one animal - giving me a minute cut under the eye - said animal has been removed and will be returned when she is a bit bigger! She also fell over and clouted herself on it resulting in a bit of a shiner! But its still her favourite reguardless of the injuries incurred!

Hope everybodoy else is having a fab time 🙂

oh and shiner = black eye.