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 🙂

Mew! 26 :'( (by sarah)

Eeeek!!!!!

I am officially MEGA OLD!!! More than a quarter century what happened?

Still according to the patented Sarah formular of age I am currently a whole 4yrs of age 🙂

Whats that you want to know the formular?

Well you see if you have ever dreamed of Neverland then you cant grow up unless you want too, the age of adulthood in the uk is official 16 therefore if you dont want to grow up you cannot age over 15 but it wouldnt make scense for nothing to happen on your 16th year of existance would it?

Then if you notice university students are a lot more immature than many refered to as youth so the answer obvious, no?

Thats right you start again backwards! This makes the average finial yr student 9 yrs old - explains a lot beleive me!

Me BORED!!! HYPER HYPER HYPER!! See I'm definatly 4!

This age is doubly applicable as you are supposed to act your shoe size well I'm a 3-4 so - watch out world here I come!!!!

The Mischevious Adventures of Jean (by sarah)

Jean has been up to lots of things 🙂

For a start thanks to our visit to a wiggly of babies she now says shoosh and points to her shoes, or as shes taking them off! We where in the car and she started repeating it over and over agian, Al said, 'Jeans talking about her shoes then,' just as there was a sound of velcro and the thud of the shoe hitting the floor!

She also knows that shes not allowed to throw her food on the floor so what does she do? She looks at you grinning mischeviously whilst slowely moving her hand containing food out over the edge of th highchair. She also says no and shakes her head if you say its bed time and she doesnt want to go!

I'm afraid she is a bit fluffy blonde girly - she cries when you take her shoes off her for bed and if you take them of to change her she screams the house down unless shes allowed to hug them (or at least she does when its daddy changing her but then I cuaght him giving in and putting her to bed in her shoes!!!).

Having to do the eye treatment on both Alaric and Jean has prooven interesting to! I did Jeans treatment first which she really really hates then I made the mistake of putting her on the floor to play and moving straight on to do Daddys eyes. She saw what I was doing and went mental - she hit me and everything whilst crying and saying da da da repeatedly. She got really distressed - got up onto his lap and wouldnt let go of him - I was definatly bad perant - not only had I annoyed her by doing her eyes but here I was trying to do the same to Daddy! Al explained he was there volunteerally but she still looked at me darkly.

Still its sweet (especially if your Alaric and not Sarah).

She has also definatly got an imagination these days - she talks to her toys, she hugs her cuddlies lots and lots and has favourites - she also hates dolls with a vengence - even though she has now started calling them baba. She is either scared or angry at them or both - either way she throws them away violently if you put one in a confined space with her - otherwise she just cries and looks at them suspicously but only whislt being securely hugged by a trusted adult. Bizar reaction really :/

Appart from that she loves the wooden toys best it seems she is currently shunning everything other than wooden toys or cuddlies!?

Still I am quiet proud of her - she typed mum and sent it to a freind of mine on MSN - dont beleive me? Well I've copied and pasted it in!

.//../.....l/],,k.kjkj[ll.l hkb n o o ,l k jmmjjhjmjm j jhii8hmj9u9 s s nhjjjbsjhssssjhjhhjgumum.,.l/,kjlliklk,nnnmmjnnnn

See! ok ok so its in the middle but we know what she ment!

She also had Ella confussed with algabra!

3W1±W3± MV,

Ella thought she was still talking to me for a good ten minuts - I was hoovering at the time and had stupidly left the laptop on the chair!