The door is on :)

The cubby now has the door on it. It has since been oiled too. :) Getting there, getting there :)

Cheers Damaris

Cubby update...

Getting the angle right :)

Frame going down on the base...

Back wall nearly finished...

One side down...

Well this was the weekend for things to start really to move... We got the frame outside and it has now been screwed together and down onto the frame. Last weekend, Russell had concreted most of the posts into the ground so that there was no way for it to move. We get some pretty awesome gusts of wind here on the hill so didn't want it going anywhere :)

Yesterday afternoon we had some spare time so Russell wanted us all outside again so that we could do the back wall... Was so good to get that done. Makes a huge difference.

Yes we still have a long, long way to go but this next weekend we are spending the whole weekend on it as well so hope to have a huge chunk of it done by the end of it. Here is hoping the weather behaves and we can then really get into it... :)

Cheers Damaris

Cubby update...

So much for accurate precut wood...

Well today Russell had a day off and we ventured out into the shed... More work has been done :) Yay, gotta be happy with that... Soon we will be out of the shed and putting it together in its final spot... Soon can't come quickly enough for me. Am getting very, very impatient. This has taken a year now.

I realise that it doesn't help that Russell is only home on the weekend, that most of the last few weeks it has rained, that there is always something else that seems more important and that his back and my leg have been playing up for longer than we care to remember... We are getting there, slowly but surely. :)

Cheers Damaris

Update on The Cubby...

The base is completely done. :)

Back frame and most of front frame done. Window assembly checked out...

This last weekend Russell and I spent chunks of it in the shed. Saturday and Sunday as well... Here is the end results so far. :)

Cheers Damaris

Retreat time...

The en suite I accidentally scored. hehe

Mother of a TV

Lovely Kitchen...

The view from my private balcony...

Beautiful details...

Toowoomba at night...

Have just come back from a three day, two night retreat in Toowoomba. We ended up staying in the Hotel across from the Town Hall... We were in two Penthouses and I loved accidentally getting one room with an en suite... I was half unpacked before realising it was even there. hehe

For me it was not so much a retreat as we didn't really have allot of down time. I tried Bowen Therapy for the first time and was really happy to find that even after just 15 minutes of manipulation that I was able to sleep the last two nights without pain for two hours before falling asleep. The patella is very worn behind my left knee so have allot of pain when I first try to fall asleep... Last night I slept like a baby. First night, not so much... The noise, sirens, lights all got to me. I love my country quiet that is for sure... The sessions on reflection were nice and it was wonderful to see how far people had come from their P.A.T.H. and family plans from when they did them to now. I loved re reading mine. :)

This was the retreat to finalise things for the 2 year Pilot Project that I have been on. It was for the Family Collective which is apart of Carers Queensland and was funded by Disability Services. I must say in allot of ways it will be sad to not see everyone anymore on a monthly basis... On the other hand, I am rather exhausted right now and am glad it is over for now.

There are a few that I will continue to stay in contact with but am not interested in going to Toowoomba once a month or even once every couple of months just for this. I have gained allot of knowledge from some very knowledgeable people within the group and was glad that I was able to learn about new disabilities at the same time. Most of the families were associated with Asperger's Syndrome but there were others as well.

Now it is time for a new Family Collective that will be run for three years this time. I wish them all luck and hope they get out of it the good bits that I got out of ours. :)

Cheers Damaris

A new month... new challenges...

New month, new challenges...

Today is the first of the month... of June. :) Where on earth has this year gone to I wonder...

All week and most of last we have had overcast and wet days here... Not much to write about as most of it is spent indoors or I have been busy being out. Last week was a nightmare, this week is not much better. Tomorrow is my only day at home and even then after picking up Timothy from the bus I have to go to Brisbane for an appointment. Timothy is having a mole frozen off... It is on his leg and will be a pain. I can tell. He loves wearing his long pants so hopefully will be able to adequately wrap it up.

Thursday I am off for three days and two nights... I am off to Toowoomba for the Carer's Qld Family Collective Respite getaway. Lots of loose ends to tie up and at this retreat we also decide as a group whether we keep meeting even though funding will have ceased. Will be a good time to get even closer to the families that we have spent nearly two years with on a monthly basis.

Today was a very rewarding day. I went to the monthly ASD Parent Support Meeting in Warwick and we had a guest with us today. She is working in the Education Department and is the person you seek out when you have trouble dealing with things at school. Very lovely lady and had spoken to her on one other occasion before. Glad I don't need to yak in her ear but good to know her face all the same. :) Quite a few parents were able to have their worries heard and will be followed up on which is so good to hear. Was a fantastic meeting. :)

Last night I made up a long list of things that I need to still declutter and this list will be my main challenge this month. I will be working through them as I need the clutter gone out of my house and life. Started this morning and gave a huge bag of wooden plain and painted blocks to a friend who has two littlies that will appreciate them. They are always playing with them when they visit so could not think of a better home for them to go to.

Best start on my list, after making dinner that is. :)

Cheers Damaris

Busy, busy, busy week...

Russell's creation for dinner last night. Oh it was GOOOOOD...

This week has been full on... From vet appointments to shopping and going to Toowoomba for the Family Collective meeting to collecting a family portrait that we sat for for $10... Baking in between as well as seeing Timothy at High School so he could show me one of his current projects that he is doing in Music. Very impressive too by the way. :) Boy am I happy that it is Saturday today. Even got to sleep in. Russell got up and got the boys' breakfast and I got to have some time to myself. :)

So it was soooo nice to come home and not have to worry about making dinner last night. I could spend the time with the boys and do a little bit of 'surfin' the net'. Was wonderful...

Russell's creation this time was a Chicken Cottage Pie. I had some left over mashed potato from the morning as some of it went into lunch for Joshua. They were having tuckshop at school and seeing it is not failsafe, his teacher let me bring something in for him instead so he is included as well. :)

It was divine, not only because I didn't have to make it, which off course always helps but because I love Russell's creations. He uses whatever is on hand and makes the most amazing meals out of them. :)

Cheers Damaris

Quick update on the Cubbyhouse...

The Two Russells working hard...

On Saturday, in between shifts with the Rural Fire Brigade, our good friend Russ helped my Russell do some work on the Boys' Cubbyhouse. The two Russells ended up finishing the floor and put on three legs before Russ had to go back to fighting the fire across the Highway.

Here is a photo of them working on it. :)

There is progress. I love it. Hopefully by Christmas it will be done. The Family Collective that funded this project is meeting again in January after having a break over Christmas and the School Holidays so I want to ensure that I have pictures of the finished product for our first meeting. We are on target I think...

Cheers Damaris

Finally a start on our Boys' Cubbyhouse...

Support for the Cubby Floorboards...
Nailing down the boards...35 boards x 10 nails each...

The boys have been very patient. First there was the problem of where to put it together. All the shed room was taken up with hay. Then there was my hand operation which has left me incapable to helping very much at all.

The hay problem is gone. My hand problem not so much but we have the room and that was the main thing. Russell did a great job clearing 1/3 of the shed as the cubby is rather on the large side.

The photos that I have here are only the start, it was all we could get done in a few hours on Saturday. Sunday I really wanted to get back out there but Russell was busily working on a Position Description for a job he was going for in Warwick. He will be home during the week if this job comes through which we are all hoping and praying for.

As Russell is not home during the week, we will be working on the cubby as much as we possibly can but it will take a while I think. So much gets squashed into our weekends already and it only gets harder to do things once the heat comes as well...

The dimensions are 2.4 x 2.4 metres square. There is a little porch area on the front of it. It is elevated 400mm off the ground and the cubby has a patio area also which is 2.4 x 2.4 metres square. So as you can tell by now it will be a while.

I can't wait till it is done though as I envisage a herb garden near by as well as some of Timothy's larger rocks displayed...

Cheers Damaris

The Cubby House has Arrived...

Wood, wood and more wood...

Well in one million pieces or so anyway... We have a DVD with instructions and a massive amount of slats of wood, nails and screws just to keep things interesting.

Russell is working on a job application this weekend so will not be looked at till this Friday when he is home again from working away from home during the week. We really still need to find a site... One that requires as little digging as possible as the black soil is very hard when dry...

I am thinking that we will have to have a few "Putting the Cubby together" BBQ's. Oh no can't do that as the BBQ is stuck behind around 45 bales of hay in the shed... Next idea???

Again wanted to say Thank you to Annette and Robert for getting the cubby pieces for us in their float (from Brisbane) and getting it to us. This is our Cubby from the Family Collective which makes it all the more special that Annette who is the Link Worker on the Project was there for the 'unveiling'. Also loved it that they enjoyed the Soggy Cake I made...

Now I wonder how long it will take to put up... hmmmmm

Cheers Damaris