Wish it were a nightcap!

What a week it's been.

I think I blogged most of the journey midway through the week. And it was good to see people I haven't seen for ages.

The amount of time that had passed between visits was staggering. You don't think of it until you step back and take stock. The last time we had seen most people was Uncle D's 60th birthday. Approximately 10 years ago.

One of the cousins that the Elder had played with at that time now seems to have kids of his own. *they breed 'em young out there* Kids who were teenagers then now have multiple kids of their own. I don't know who is who anymore. And this time, I felt like I was an outsider; all of them know each other and all the young ones keep in touch.

I had also made sure I spent money on getting mobile internet for my laptop. There were three of us going to be using it so I thought Yes. I would finally do it. It was $149 upfront, including $10 worth of credit. I recharged for an extra $60 for 750MB. That lasts 30 days and I thought it might do for all of us while we were away. Especially the Teen. You know how they get when they can't be in constant contact with the world. I had checked and our carrier did not do anything except telephony out there.

And you know, we didn't even use up the $10 credit. MOTH was on for a couple minutes before bedtime, and so was the Teen. I used it the most. And even then, not much.

Friday was spent catching up on the housework that didn't get done earlier in the week. Washing. Mountains of it. Dusting. The usual. And as I stood looking at the floor I thought, This is it. I am definitely going to buy myself a new mop.

Saturday morning I did it. Yes. I dragged MOTH to Bunnings. Anyone who knows me knows that this is a HUGE deal. I do NOT do hardware stores. Ever. Well ... usually. But they were bound to have a better range than the supermarket.

And I found something. A sabco broom that doubles as a mop. It has static furry stuff for the sweeping and microfibre for the mopping. Damp mopping and wet mopping. I haven't tried that side yet. Saturday I tried the dry sweeping. It picks up most stuff - dirt and hair - but solid heavy stuff still needs the dustpan. But I think that's ok.

While I was there we wandered around the gardening section. I stopped to buy a couple of herbs. I have a spot picked out in the garden, cleared it of weeds but not bought herbs to put in there. So this time, I did. Italian parsley and basil. And a new plant for the front garden. Something spikey with coloured foilage. I can't remember what it is, but it is shaped like one of those old fashioned Happy Plants, but doesn't grow tall like that. It has silver and green 'stripes' on the leaves.

Saturday night was the engagement party of an old neighbour. He is wheelchair bound and has finally met the girl for him. She is also on wheels. She seems very capable. Pretty, feminine but definitely with a sharp edge! The cake was lovely. A mud cake with fondant icing. It was shaped like a ring box, with a blue satin cusion and a large ring on top. The satin was also icing.

It was good to catch up with his parents. Since we've moved, we don't get to see them very often. Also attending were some old neighbours from further up the street and the Spanish couple who really held our end of the street together socially. They are a whole pot of fun. *yes, that is pot, not lot. or should i say wine bottle?*

Sunday I was up early and checking out the things I had planted. Wha?? Looks like SOMETHING had a party on my parsley! There weren't very many leaves left of the poor little things. Plenty of stalks though. The basil, on the other hand, looked just fine.

Off to Bunnings again for more plants. Oh, and a sausage inna slice of bread. This time I came home with a couple of strawberry plants, two azaleas, some lavender, chives and an african daisy. My gardens don't get a lot of sun so it's hard to choose something that will work. The herbs are in the second sunniest spot. I think. The lavender and the daisy are in the very front garden. It gets the afternoon sun, and I think it's the patch exposed to the sun the longest. The strawberries and the azaleas are around the back. The Teen wanted something pretty to look at out her back window. That area gets limited sun; mostly late morning.

Fingers crossed everybody. Cause heaven knows, I don't got green thumbs and they're going to need all the help they can get....