Opps! (by sarah)

I think I have lost or gained a week or something and mixed up the back dating of some posts - so I would ignore the chronoligy of the blog for a while if I were you!

Plus I want to post more stuff that I've written ages ago but havent got round to posting!

Another Hectic Week (by sarah)

Yep another one!

This week Jean had a bit of a stomache bug resulting in me getting covered in puke at three in the morning. Lack of sleep then led me to get us to an appointment that happens to be in Febuary!

Then Wednesday was the Beavers, and a training course we managed to be over an hour late for :(. Thursday saw the Cubs and Scouts doing archery and Friday a client turned up unexpectadly. Saturday ended up being a business day what with said client being about but we also had to go the tip to drop of the dishwasher as we didnt want to drive all the way to Petersfield with it in the back the next day!

It was supposed to be the Swimming stage one badge for all three sections but some one was ill in the pool so it was canceled and we had to phone everyone! We also had to do a panicked arranging of the football team for the Sunday as we werent going to be there - though we still do not know how that went!

Sunday saw us visiting family 3 hrs away in Petersfield which was great fun 🙂 Baby Jean was much appricieated by Harry and Annabelle - I have a few pics but am currently too tired to upload them so you'll have to wait for the cuteness I'm afraid!

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 🙁

Bent As can Be! (by sarah)

Here is Alaric modelling the very Bent french stick we bought in Tescos for, wait for it.. - 4p!!!! thats right Four Whole Pennys!!!!! It where freashly baked and everything!!!

I think it was worth it just for the humour value!!!!

Temptation begain to kick in by this point and he started insinuating I was being rude! I was shocked I tell you shocked!

He then started threatening me with said bent loaf - but I thought it made him look like mosses with the staff that turns into a serpant (I think thats the story anyway!).

I think much fun was had from the simple pressance of a long bent thing and the French stick was lovely we had it as part of my Birthday Dinner 🙂