half way through..

hey!
so, its official.. i have been here for six months! six whole months. and in six more months i will be home!
well today - the kids had another day off school, 'teacher in-service day' is what they call it, so a pupil free day. its amazing how much you can go from loving them only one year ago to absolutely hating them.
but it wasn't so bad. the kids slept until 8:30 then we got ready to go into town to pick out balloons, flowers, chocolates and a card for their grandma for her birthday.
took us a good half an hour for everyone to agree on everything, and quite a few tantrums, but we did it.
so we went to their grandmas and stayed there for a while so they could hang out and then we came home and had a quick lunch before their dad picked them up.
and that was around 12, so i have been off since then!
watched 90210, debated with myself on going for a jog, decided against it and that a nap would be wayyyy nicer.
then i tried to fix my hair, met lauren and alex at friendlys for a $5 dinner off the "hi 5 you're at friendlys" menu, i had a chicken wrap and chips.. bargain.
that is where we were trying to decide what to do tomorrow. still deliberating, but i'm sure whatever it is will be nice.
i got home, right before the storm started, skyped with mum, and poppy, and then had a shower.
meanwhile the storm is still going strong and i am freaking out that the power will go off right when i start to shave my legs or something completely unfortunate like that.
but dont worry, i did make it, with all the lights still on.
did a quick load of washing - after god knows how long since i washed my jeans i decided it was time.
you know how some people don't like washing their jeans? yeah, well i am one of those people.
reason one - if you are in a rush and they are wet you can't put them in the dryer, they shrink and become ankle freezers.. so attractive.
reason two - the more you wash them, the more faded they become, and i quite like the colour of my jeans.
reason three - after you wash them they are stiff, and take a good couple of wears to get back into the "comfy zone"
and those are my three reasons for very rarely washing my jeans.
oh another thing i want to ask.. when you get a hot coffee at gloria jeans and they ask if you want whipped cream, what do you say?
no? good. and this is why you should say no..
the coffee is hot, the cream is cold, the cream will melt anyway.
you cant taste the cream when its melted.
and there is a lid on the top anyway, so how on eart are we supposed to eat it? that is if we get to it BEFORE it melts.
its a just insane i think lol i mean all those extra calories, for nothing!
so anyway, now i am watching 90210 and trying not to listen to the creepy noises my mind makes up when i am home alone..
goodnight! x

kids day off..

hey!
well today is the jewish new year (i am fairly sure) so the kids didn't have to go to school.
so we all slept in, got up and ready for the day. we were supposed to go to the playground for G's scouts meeting but it was pouring down rain, so we didnt go, i assumed it was cancelled.
instead, we watched tv until lunch time and then we went and got the kids grandma and cousin and went to nomads, which is a huge games arcade, bowling, laser tag, jumping castle place.
so we drive about half an hour to get there and then notice that the car park is practically empty - turns out it doesnt open until 4pm on a weekday.. sooo back half an hour we go.
went and got a movie and ice cream for the kids, and had a movie afternoon at their grandmas instead.
then we dropped harrison at tae kwon do, gave the kids dinner, picked harrison up and then i was finished and i came upstairs to skype with mumma bear.
and then steph peters - caught up on all the goss.
and then watched  vampire diaries, greys anatomy and now jersey shore. thursday nights are the best.
oh and fall is here! everywhere i go the leaves are gold and orange and falling from the trees. its so pretty.
hope you all have a good weekend. x

90210 marathon..

hello australia!
i miss you all. alot.
this morning after the kids left i decided to just watch 90210 all day, so apart from clenaing and washing, thats what i did. i am up to season three now, and absolutely loving it! still amazed at how australia could take it off the air.
the kids got home and we played some lego board game until G got really upset because he was losing.
so we played hangman instead.
then i made beef stirfry for dinner, gave the kids icecream and then back to my room to watch 90210.
except now americas next top model is on, so i'm watching that instead.
oh by the way - my nails are going great. they look so nice again!
and you know how in american movies they never say goodbye before they end a phone call? well they actually don't. and if they do, its very rare.
okay, well i'm off.
goodnight! x

rested..

hey!
well after yesterdays efforts i decided i would rest for today..
so i got the kids off to school, i had to drive them because they missed the bus.
eating breakfast takes them about 20 good whole minutes.
sat in the car drop off line up for around ten minutes, then finally came home and went back to bed.
i already tidyed up and cleaned while they were getting ready for school, because i am just THAT good lol
slept for another couple of hours, watched gossip girl season five episode that i missed last night and then more 90210 - almost finished season two.
then i had a shower and waited for the kids to come home.
they played outside with their dad for an hour or so, i made an early dinner, then we went to tae kwon do and the boys went to soccer.
got home at seven, freshened up and then i went to dinner with lauren so she could tell me all about her two week vacation that she has been on. sounded amazing!
stopped at starbucks for a chit chat with the other girls and now i am home, ready for 90210.
goodnight! x

can not wait to sleep.

hey!
well this morning i got the kids ready for school, still half asleep..
once they were gone i started the cleaning. and it took almost five hours. and a whole lot of sweat.
then i thought i deserved a break so i watched 90210 and rested a little.
by then harrison got home, i made tomorrows lunches and then the rest got home.
didn't do homework tonight, because this week is only three days, so they have none.
then i sent them downstairs to clean the basement - by themselves. and they did pretty well.
i made fettacini with chicken and brocolli for dinner and now i am waiting for the 'family' meeting, shall be interesting lol
well i am off, kids need to get into their pj's.
goodnight! x

home from my weekend away!

hello!
woke up in boston this morning.. hoping i didn't get lice and/or fleas from the motel.
we packed up our horribley messy room - which we weren't even in for more then 12 hours.
caught the subway to fenway park and went on a tour!
side note - while we were on the subway, it was packed so we were standing, then when people got off three seats became free so there is this lady, a spare seat, robyn and then linnea. i go to sit down and i say to the lady 'do you mind if i sit there' and she says nothing, doesnt even look at me and then gets up and walked away. how strange is that? i was like, okkkkaaayyyy then.
anyway - even though i'm not a baseball fan, it was super cool.
we got the history of fenway and got to go down on the field and take photos..
and i brought a fenway shot glass. because did i tell you i am collecting shot glasses? well i am.
so far i have new york city, boston city, fenway/red sox and harvard.
 and i will continue getting them from each place i visit in my year. feel free to come around to my house when i am home and test them out ;)
so then we went back into the city and went shopping, i brought a shirt from american outfitters, but thats all because i NEED to save my money for my real vacation and travel month.
we had lunch at the food markets, which have around fifty different types of food to choose from, so i had indian which was delicious, and then linnea and i got this huge arse cookie, it was absolutely massive.
oh and i met a lady from gosford in new south wales while i was standing in line to buy my shirt too.
and the performer out the front was from sydney. so that was cool.
then it was getting late and we still had to drive home so we left and went back to where the car was, stopped to get petrol and coffee, got home, skyped with mum, unpacked and had a shower and now i am going to watch 90210.
goodnight! x

boston baby!

hey!
this morning i woke up at 7:15.. it was horrible.
but it was okay because i was up getting ready for boston!
had a shower and packed my bags and then robyn, emma and linnea picked me up and we stopped to get coffee at maccas, then went back to my house because i forgot my jacket.. and THEN we were on our way.
so we got to our stingy motel - too early so we did the paperwork and got the keys and then went to the subway to go into the city.
first we went to harvard! it was sooooo awesome.
took photos at the famous library steps! scoped out hotties, bought a harvard t-shirt and shot glass, had lunch at a college cafe.. it was so good.
had to use the toilet, couldn't find a public one, went to starbucks to use theirs but to use it you had to buy something and then enter the code on the receipt into the code thing to get into the elevator that took you to the toilet. how much of bloody hassle just to pee!
then we went to boston city and got on a upper deck tour bus that lets you get on and off whenever and wherever you want for two days, so that was good.
we saw fenway park - home of the boston red sox, went on a 'big splash' duck tour..
then we went to quincy markets, which is a huge open marketplace, with foods and other little nick nacks.
so then we picked up wi-fi and used 'yelp' to fins somewhere to eat, went to find some italian place and it was closed - on a saturday! what the hell? - and so we found a thai place and it was a little gross looking.. by this time we were about seven blocks from where we started and started the trek back.
found a place called ubermuma and it was delicious, but our waiter was really un friendly and short with us so we didn't tip.
i face timed with chloe and chelsea and then we went for a walk to look at all the food markets.
got on the wrong subway and then finally found our way back to the right colour track.
so then we get back to the motel, go to room number 29 - like our key says - and we unlock the door and there was a random old man in there with his shirt off! hahahahahahaha
the people who run the place mixed it up and so we had to go back and get another room. god it was funny.
now we are hanging out, decided what to do tomorrow.
by the way - boston is really nice!
goodnight! x

forgotten lunch..

hey!
its friday! and i am finished work! and i am relaxed. and soooo ready for this weekend!
got the kids off to school, realised harrison left without his lunch box, so i dropped that off, went to redbox to hire 'thor' for the kids, came home and went for a jog and as soon as i came in the door afterwards it started pouring rain.. lucky me.
so i ahd a shower and i actually straightened it! which is a huge deal now, because i always leave it curly.
but i need to check on the growth situation every now and then.. its getting there.
speaking of things growing.. i have stopped biting my nails, again, and they also, are coming along quite nicely. looking forward to a mani-pedi in a few weeks.
then i watched revenge and vampire diaries that i missed this week, and more of 90210 - which i am loving.
the kids came home and they ate, then we went to get harrison's glasses adjusted, where the lady asked if the kids were mine. all four of them were with me too! ha! my response - 'ahh i'm only eighteen'.
then we came home and watched thor. wasn't as good as i had hoped.
then i dropped G and matty to a sleepover, which was only like five houses down but it was pouring rain, s i drove them.
came home and hung out, got some tips on 'things to do whilst in boston' from skip - very handy, packed my bag for boston! had a quick skype sesh with rach! and now i am watching 90210.
going to make a cuppa. night x

dentist..

hey!
well this morning i only had to get one kid rady for school! yay!
harrison gets himself ready every morning because he leaves early, and the twins both had morning dentist apponitments so i just keep them home instead of sending them for an hour and a bit of class.
so once matt was gone the twins and i hung out, got ready and went to the dentist.
which on the way a button on the front of my jacket popped off, i was driving and it literally just fell off.. strange.
so when we picked up their grandma on the way i grabbed a needle and thread and then sewed it back on in the waiting room while i was waiting for the kids to be done :)
then i took the twins back to school, which is where todays exercise took place..
first i sign them in, they walk me about 1000 steps down the corridors to their classrooms, they are both empty. they hung up their bags and G thought they might be at lunch so they got their lunch boxes and we walked back in the same direction we came, past the main office, to the cafeteria.. they weren't there.
back to the classroom to put their lunch boxes back. then back in the same direction to check the gymnasium. nothing. finally a teacher asks if we need help and then tells us they were all at outdoor recess adn will be back in their rooms in about five minutes. back to the classroom. and finally, the class turned up.
exercise complete haha
i then went to meet robyn at panera bread (where i had the most delicious mango smoothie ever!), and we booked a motel for this weekend in boston! anndddd in my PEOPLE magazines, i have seen alot of 'snap shots' of celebs just casually hanging out there! wooo!
came home and finshed season one of 90210, started season two.
kids got home and we did homework, played outside, harrison went to tae kwon do, i made dinner, took the boys to scouts, dropped books off at the library, cleaned and vacuumed the car, got petrol and milk, picked up the boys, came home and started showers and then i was finished.
now i am watching the season premiere of greys anatomy season eight! and it is sooooo good!
goodnight! x
p.s in america tiny teddies are called teddy grahams. weird.

up and at em'

hello!
well the kids went off to school, i started the monster load of washing and then went for a quick jog.
came home and showered, went to an appointment, posted my rego form to silver bay, stopped at at&t to ask how to set up voicemail on my phone (because i am a spastic and couldn't figure it out myself) and then came home to watch 90210!
i truely am addicted, i can't stop watching it. i really don't understand why they axed it in australia.
so the kids got home and homework took forever, as usual, but rach was seriously doing it from when she walked in the door until dinner was ready.
then we had dinner, showers and the kids then played "speed bullets" down the stairs in their feetie pj's. they are the ones that have the feet attached with long sleeves.
then we played 'put the grapes in our mouths, take photos and then suck them in to eat them lol
then it was almost 8 so we got ready for bed and now i am watching americas next top model.
oh before i go, just know that if you ever live in america and subscribe to any magazine, expect to get hundreds of letters from other magazines trying to get you to subscribe to them as well. super annoying.
night! x

stupid post office..

hey!
well lets start with the strange occurance last night while i was sleeping.
i was half asleep half awake and i could here some sort of like hissing/growling/screaming coming from outside. now at first i am freaking out thinking a person was out there but then realised i knew the sound from somewhere.. yep, you guessed it, the racoon with rabies. it was making the exact same noise.
so i listened to it for a while figuring someone else in the neighbourhood had heard it and called animal control (are they even 24/7? who knows) and that they would come and deal with it.
so i was half expecting to hear a shot, and then silence... buttt it never came. and i guess i went back to sleep.
all of this that i just told you, i am only 50% sure actually happened. so i may have just told you what happened in my dream.
anywho, back to everything that i know for sure happened -
the kids were slow pokes again, but didn't miss the bus! yay!
i finished tidying up, and then went back to sleep.
no i am not lazy, i had very well planned to go for a jog as soon as they were gone, but it started raining.. whats a girl to do?
woke up and did my workout downstairs, showered, watched more 90210, read a PEOPLE magazine and then the kids were home, and the busyness started.
we rushed through homework, had a super early first half of dinner, got harrison ready for tae kwon do, the boys ready for soccer, went to the library to print my silver bay rego form (i will explain later) because the computer downstairs attached to the printer wouldn't open the document, dropped harrison off, went to the post office - it was closed, handy - went to soccer, left soccer and picked up harrison 45 minutes later, back to soccer, sat there in the cold humid buggy weather, came home, made the second half of their dinner and then i was done. phew.
then i was off to starbucks, went to shoprite (like coles) and brought sushi for lunch tomorrow and now i am home and ready to watch more 90210.
silver bay is a weekend course that i need to do twice to get six credits as a part of my requirements for my visa. (you can also take classes at collage but none of the qualifications you get are acknowledged in australia and i already know english so there is no point.)
and you have to send away a form a month before the date of the course or you get charged a late fee, the last day i can do it would be tomorrow. i will go during opening hours to the post office :)
okay, goodnight x

congratulations!

hey!
i am going to start by saying congratulations to my cousin jess, on the arrival of her second daughter, charlotte may larson. she is beautiful.. as expected :) can not wait to meet her.
and jess - nice work with pushing out a ten pounder! my respect for you is extrordinary.
this morning, after i found out the baby news, i got the kids ready for school, although they took their sweet time to do everything and missed the bus.
well matt was ready and waiting outside so he caught it, but the twins weren't even nearly ready.
after i dropped them to school i came and did the housework and the checked my e-mails...
where i had one from the farmington library telling me i could pick up my holds - 90210!
i am starting from season one again (because they axed it in australia) and season four just started on tv again so i need to catch up.
speaking of series that i am watching, want to know how many? well here they are -
gossip girl, lying game, heart of dixie, new girl, revenge, vampire diaries, secret circle, jersey shore, charlies angels and greys anatomy. and that is just on tv! plus 90210 on dvd.
can you actually believe it?! but they are all so addictive!
anyway, back to my day. so i went to pick up my hold from the library, got milk, came home and ate lunch and then had to go and get rach from school because she was coughing non stop.
we came home and watched tv, and then the other kids got home and we did homework, i made tomorrows lunches and then cooked dinner.
now i am watching 90210 waiting for the lying game at 9pm.
also there is a bread in america and the brand name is 'BIMBO' hahahahahaha bimbo bread.
okay, well goodnight! x
p.s i got a really nice yankee candle from the basement and it is honey melon scented or something like that and it smells delicious!

love betuccis.

hello!
lazy sunday, again.
i woke up at 10:30 and had a shower to wash my hair because all i could smell was smoke from last nights mishap at the mansion.
then i chatted to grandma, and hung out in my room all day.
oh and i finished season four of gossip girl today. i realised that i hadn't finished watching the last six episodes or so, and season five is about to start on tv.
then i got dressed and julia and i went to the movies to see 'i don't know how she does it' which was as great as expected it to be.
and then we went to betuccis for dinner, scrumptious as always.
and you get these little steaming hot bread rolls while you're waiting for the meal and they give you a plate of oil with herbs and chili in it for dipping, they are the best bread rolls i have EVER had!
then i came home and put my pj's on and now i am watching special victims unit.
going to make a cup of nescafe now..
night xxxxx

quiet day..

hello!
saturday morning.. so i slept in, until about 11. it was lovely.
then even when i was awake, i was doing nothing. just watching the home improvement shows on tv.
and jamie durie was on one of the gardening ones, which was great. it is amazing how much you love hearing other australians talk when you listen to americans all day every day.
i skyped with mum this arvo, wondered around the empty house, doing nothing.
then i got dressed, in layers upon layers because its so bloody cold, only 10 degrees right now, and i went over to robyn's before we went to the drive in movies.
so i get to the mansion and she decides to light the fire. okay, all is going fine, the fire is lit, but then the house starts filling with smoke, and more smoke and more smoke.. hahaha
and i am like, uhmm i am fairly sure that the shoot to the chimmney isn't open because in my fire lighting experiences (maybe two) it shouldnt be doing that. so we ended up carrying half lit pieces of wood outside into a bucket of water (so they didnt smoke up the house any more) and then tipped water of the little bits of lit newpaper. then we had to stand there waving towels frantically around the place to try and get all the smoke out the windows.. quite the work out.
then we went to pick up kfc for everyone (all her host family) and the girl who served us must have been new, because she had no idea what she was doing, she was all frantic and misplacing orders, and it was like watching a plane crash.. so horrible.
we went to the drive in, where the 'women with sticks a fair way up their arses' took our money and we parked, after she yelled at us to turn our lights off. some people really need a chill pill.
then i realised that the radio in the car i took doesn't work. and you need to tune into a specific radio station to hear the movie. good one danielle, good one.
it was okay though because we sat outside the car with blankets wrapped around us and listened to her host mums radio with her windows down.
we watched crazy, stupid, love and it was better then i thought it would be.
ryan gosling without a shirt on, damn boy.
and then her host family left and we were going to stay and watch the second movie 'don't be afraid of the dark' but i decided that wasn't the best idea because am home alone tonight.
so we went to maccas instead to get a hot chocolate and have a chat.
side note - kids in america do not work at maccas. like none. unlike australia where the place is practically run by teenagers.
then i dropped robyn home and now i am about to have a steaming hot shower, because i can't actually feel my toes at this moment in time, and then go to bed.
goodnight! miss you xx

On my iPod...

Hey!
Well Rachel still had a slight fever this morning, and the rule is that you have to be fever free for twenty four hours before going back to school, even though she felt fine.
So I did the washing and cleaning while she watched tv and then I decided it would be good for her to get out of the house.
So we went to stop and shop then to the library so she could get a couple of books and movies to keep her occupied for the day.
Then we decided a coffee date at dunkin' donuts was in order.. So we went and got a hot chocolate and a donut and read our books for a while.
Oh I didn't mention the coldness today! At 10am it was still only 9 degrees Celsius! Freezing my arse off. God help me in winter, it's only the start of autumn :O
We were both rugged up.
Then we went home and both had a little nap then watched chicken run.
So then the other kids got home and played outside until their cousins came over to play. So the eight of us played a friendly game of soccer, I called the pizza place to get dinner delivered. Kids ate and got in their jammies and we hung out until they went to bed.
Got to skype with mum and stephyg too which was good.
Now I am reading my book and watching fast and furious five.
Goodnight!
p.s it is soooooooo cold!

yay thursday!

hey!
rach still has a fever, so she stayed home again today.
i got the boys ready for school and they didn't miss the bus! hurray!
came inside and tidyed up, got rach comfortable, and then started a new book. read for a couple of hours, watched tv with rachel, we both fell asleep for a while, had lunch (well i did, rach wasn't hungry) and then we just chilled out for the afternoon.
and it was a rainy, cold, miserable day anyway so we didn't mind being cooped up inside.
hmm, well then the other kids got home, did the usual afternoon stuff, harrison went to tae kwon do, the boys cub scouts was cancelled, i made dinner, which the kids then decided to not eat, play with, chew with their mouths open etc.. it was a fun dinner to say the least.
well now i am in my room, the kids are in bed, vampire diaries season three started tonight, then the circle (a brand new show) is on, then jersey shore babbyyyy!
night! x
p.s sorry if my blogs are getting boring again!

sick little girl..

good morning!
well rachel woke up at 2am this morning with a fever, so she stayed home with me.
i got the other kids ready for school, garrett wouldn't brush his teeth, they missed the bus, and i had to drive them to school.
i came home and did the washing and cleaning while rachel watched spongebob.
then we just chilled out in the lounge room, she watched tv, i read my book, and we literally sat in the same spots for about two hours.
then she went to have a nap, but because she had the chills while sitting in her undies watching tv, she had her dressing gown on, and then slept in it.
so when she woke up her temperature was almost 41 celcius.
so i put her in a cold shower, layed her on the bed with a wet cloth on her nack and face, while i am making her drink iced water, with a fan on... it was extreme lol
but i did get her temp back to just above normal.
so karen came home early and took her to the doctors, while i waited for the other kids off the bus.
we did snacks and homework and then we played outside.
i made chicken and corn in pasta for dinner.
now i am watching some stupid show on tv and drinking a cappucino courtesy of grandma.
well goodnight! x

super stressed afternoon..

hey!
well the kids went to school and i did all the cleaning up, washed everyones sheets and towels and then went for a jog.
came home and changed, went to get harrison's slip signed at the doctors, dropped some stuff off at goodwill, went to harrison's school to drop off his epi-pen, came home and watched the lying game from last night and by then harrison was home.
so we just read our books together until the little ones got home.
did sancks, and homework - which took almost an hour and a half!
then harrison was supposed to be picked up to go to tae kwon do, but that didn't end up happening so i had to rush him there in the middle of getting the boys dressed for soccer and cooking dinner.
came home, the kids scoffed down their food and we rushed to soccer practice - which i had no idea where the actual field was! so i pulled over to ask a couple of jogging ladys.
then at soccer a little boy trode on rachels foot with his cleats on, so she was bawling her eyes out, and the mozzies were attacking us even though we had spray on!
and it ran over time by fifteen minutes so we didn't get home until 7:30.
had to give them more dinner (because they had eaten so early) and showered teeth brushed and in bed. now i am about to turn their lights out and relax.
well hope you are all have a less stressful day!
bye! xxxxxx

lovely day for a stroll..

hey!
well this morning i got four very tired and grumpy kids off to school - G was so upset that he had to go, poor thing.
then i started the cleaning process of every monday.
got all the housework done and the washing by 11, so i did a hlaf hour work out and then decided i would go for a jog around where i live to see what there is to see.
got home and died for a couple of minutes, had a shower, watched the season finale of true blood (which was epic!) and just lazed around for a little while until harrison got home.
oh and the other day i brought three of those packet face masks and i was looking at them last night when i realised - whilst reading the back directions - that it said apply evenly to cleansed and shaven face, so i was like what the hell!? and i turned it back over and it said 'for men' in big letters on it and to top it off, it had a picture of an actual man on the front. stupid danielle lol. i'm gunna use it anyway.
so we did homework and snacks and then the kids and i played outside until i made dinner.
and now i am finished and about to leave to go to an au pair meeting - a chat about chemical safety, yay.
well goodnight! xxxxx

tenth anniversary..

hello!
today is the tenth anniversary of the twin tower terror attacks, a very sad day. may all those who died rest in peace.
so last night we watched all of our movies and went to bed at around 2am.
i woke up at 10 and went downstairs to chill until everyone else woke up. then we had coffee and bagels for breakfast and at 11 i went to pick up clara and her two friends from home to take them to the bus station in hartford to go to new york city before flying back to austria.
i didn't exactly plan for their luggage and so i was int he little car and i didn't clean it out or anything, so it was a very tight squeeze.
then clara tells me to go some way there that wasn't on the highway - worst decision ever! about 500 traffic lights later we finally arrived, 3 minutes before the bus did. so i took the highway home - a much more appropriate way.
got petrol, and then i went back to the mansion to hang for the day.
but because the weather wasn't as nice as yesterday we just hung out and watched movies until about 5.
then i went to drop julia home, but her host parents weren't there and didn't leave her a key, so she was locked out. so i brought her back to my place and we watched tv until about 7, dropped her home when there was actually someone there and then i came home and had laurens left over pasta from betuccis oon friday night, which i will mention comes in an awesome take away container. it is microwaveable, dish washer safe and reusable. how convienient right?
so now i am catching up on true blood that i missed last sunday and didn't even realise and then showering and sleeping. i am so tired! and its not even 9 yet!
well goodnight australia! i miss you all alot!
xxxxx

super great awesome day!

hey!
so this morning - 4am start. it was horrible. it started with lauren busting into my room, waking me from my peaceful sleep, and then informing me that she set her alarm wrong and it was 4:15 and she was going to miss her flight blah blah blah...
she rushed off to get ready while i just put my phone in my bag and i was ready to go.
so last night we had forgotten to put petrol in the car but had decided that it was okay because we could get it in the morning on the way to the airport. how stupid of us to think that america would actually have 24/7 petrol stations... could not find one for the life of us. and the tank was almost on empty.
we were running late and lauren was trying to check in over the phone but they wouldn't let her so we were freaking out that she would miss check in. then we thought she left her phone at home - turns out she actually didn't. so we are both stressing out.
finally get to the airport 10 minutes before check in closed and then i found a petrol station, thank the lord.
so i got home and got back into my nice comfy warm bed, and slept until 11:30.
woke up and had breakfast, got ready and then came to robyn's house, the mansion.
stopped to get some snacks on the way and when i was trying to go in the automatic door it wouldn't open for me, so i was the idiot walking back and forward in front of the door trying to make it open, and it wouldn't! so embarrassing!
so i had to use a different door.
then i came to the mansion and we relaxed all afternoon! it was soooooo nice!
made hamburgers for lunch, read my book while sunbaking, floated in the pool on blow up beds....
god it was relaxing.
then more girls came over, so it was me, robyn, izabell, linnea and julia.
and we ordered pizza for dinner, watched step up 3, ate icecream, skyped with mum, and now we are watching some horror movie - yet again.
well i am off. hope you have a good afternoon!
bye! xxxxxx

busy day...

hello!
well the kids went off to school and i started the washing - there was alot because i didn't do it for three days - and then i went to post a present (the same one from yesterday), picked up THE FINAL BOOK IN THE 'PRIVATE' SERIES! can't even descibe how excited i was. it is the big conclusion, soooo pumped to read it. then i went over to karen's mums and we did more sorting, and her office is almost complete! i really should be a personal organiser.
i was planning on working out and going for a run this afternoon but by the time i left joanne's, stopped at kohls to buy a black singlet and got home it was three and harrison gets home at twenty past.. sooo i couldn't. i folded washing instead.
then harrison and rachel went with their dad and matt, G and i played basketball. well really just shot hoops, and you should have seen my three pointers! i was pretty damn good. although i would have to say it was a major fluke.
then then kids were hot and got bored so we came inside and watched rio. such a great kids movie! and there is a cockatoo who is crazy evil - of course they make the australian bird the mean one.
then i came upstairs once karen was home to get ready for dinner, but daddy was online, so i skyped with him for an hour which was great!
got ready, went and picked up lauren, and we went over to clar's so that they could say goodbye (clara is going back to austria on wednesday and lauren leaves for vacation in the morning) then we went to betuccis for dinner. i had the most delicious chicken, steak, mashed potato and asparagus ever! god it was good.
made a stop at walgreens (they are 24 hour) and then came home.
now i ahve less then four hours to sleep because being the amazing friend that i am, is getting up at 4am to take lauren to the airport. killll meeeeeeeee.
at least i can sleep when i get home :)
goodnight! x

a little mishap..

hey!
it has been raining almost non stop for about three days now, so when i woke up this morning the front yard resembled a little stream...
and some road had been cut off by flooding, so the buses were running late.
so i got the kids ready for school and then sropped them off and came home to skype with mum.
then i went and posted some things at the post office, asked the lady how much the parcel i have would be to post and she said only $17 so i decided i would send it (i thought it would be around the $50 mark) but because i hadn't sealed the box, hoping to maybe get a plastic post bag instead of a box - which they didn't sell - she wouldn't tape it for me and told me i had to buy a roll. ha' what a crock of ....
so i shall go back tomorrow to post it, now that it is sealed with tape from home.
then i went to stop and shop and brought nutella! because who doesn't love nutella on toast!?
got some petrol, had a little mishap that i won't go into detail about, dropped books off at the library then came home and watched 'strike for christmas'...
had a teeny tiny nap, then the kids were home.
did all the usual afternoon stuff, but i vaccumed because the upstairs was looking a little "fluffy" lol
then i made dinner, forgot to seperate some pasta for rach before i put the sauce on, so of course all hell broke loose.. so i ended up giving up the fight and making her oatmeal.
then i got the kids showered and in bed by 8. perfect.
now i am going to watch another movie until jersey shore! wooooo! love thursday nights!
goodnight! xxxxxx

unproductive.

hey!
so today it was raining againm which makes me in the mood to do nothing. luckily i didn't have enought clothes to do washing, and the house was clean, so i didn't do anything. besides tidy up blah blah.
the kids went to school, i had porridge then went back to bed, had lunch, watched khloe and kourtney take on miami all afternoon, packaged a present...
then harrison got home, so i sat with him while he did his homework and read my book.
the other kids got home and we did homework, i made tomorrows lunches, we played in the basement and on the computer, and then i cooked dinner.
three toilet breaks each, a cup of spilt milk, talking with mash potato in their mouths and not listening to a word i say, later, dinner was done.
it has been a loooonnnnngggggggg afternoon though. so glad to be alone right now again.
so i don't think i have told you about the movie ratings here. they arn't the same as in australia.
pretty much every adult movie is rated 'R' and our 'M' movies are their 'PG'... its super weird. i have no idea what their pornos would be rated if 'R' is already taken.
also when the kids and i drive in the car we plug my ipod in and each take a turn in choosing a song. and whenever 'dynamite' is on, they know all the words as well, so i turn it up super loud and we all sing, and i wish i could video it, because its so super cute.
well i am going to shower, eat and relax now.
night xxxxx

rainy day.

hey!
so today it rained.. and rained and rained...
and it was only about seventeen degrees, so a little chilly.
i was up and doing everything at 7:15, made lunches and breakfast, packed bags, made beds, put on a load of washing, took the kids to the bus stop and then all i had to do for the rest of the day was fold the washing and sweep the floor. good thing i'm so speedy.
so i read some of my book, went back to sleep for a little while, had yogurt and granola for lunch, showered and washed my gross hair and then the kids were home.
so they did their homework and i made them snacks and then two of them went to ava's across the road and harrison was writing an essay, so i revised G's spelling words with him, and it was hilarious. i can't even explain what he was doing, but i could not stop laughing at him.
and then we dropped harrison at tae kwon doe, came home and i started dinner, went and picked him up, we had dinner, rachel was being naughty and throwing bits of chicken at matt.. and so i was relieved when they were done.
then they all had showers, and desert, and then we played monopoly, brushed teeth, and now they are all in bed reading their books. and karen just got home, so now i might catch up on the lying game that i missed last night.
oh and americans like to eat whipped cream on ice cream.. is it just me, or is that strange?
night x

happy labor day!

hey!
well today is labor day in america, which means everyone gets the day off work, including me! because the kids stayed with their dad until late this afternoon. sweeeeeet!
so keisha and i slept until about 11am, got up and had smoothies for breakfast, then got ready to go shopping.. because we figured there would be labor day sales on.
we went to west farms mall - it was packed - and it took us a good fifteen minutes to get a park.
and this is what i brought -
a super soft cream coloured "sweater" and a navy blue with horizontal stripes and a little top pocket t-shirt from american eagle, because the whole store was 40% off! bargain.
a baggy t-shirt with a nice kind of tribal pattern at the top from macys
a pair of pink patterned highish waisted material shorts from H&M
a new pair of havianas, silver/gray ones from nordstroms.. the ONLY place we could find that sells them
and an awesome something that i can't tell you, because its a present, and its just awesome, so it must remain a suprise :)
and that is all. considering i wasn't going to spend a cent, i think i did reasonably well haha
so after our shopping adventure, i took keisha to the airport, drove home and unpacked my stuff and then i watched 'hes just not that into you' which i still ahve to finish the end of because then lauren picked me up and we went to dinner at betuccis an italian resteraunt for dinner. then to frozen yogurt for desert.
lauren and i also went to the drive thru bank on our way home.
speaking of, she thinks it hilarious when i say scrumdidilyumptious, so we say it often, and it just cracks me up the way she laughs...
yeah so, now i am home, and showered and ready to finish my movie and sleep.
goodnight xxxx
p.s i didn't tell you about the one spot in grand central station where the acoustics work so that if you are whispering in one corner about thirty feet away from someone else in the other corner, they can hear you. its super cool. (this is the reason the picture of me on facebook looks like i am talking to a wall)

six flags and sushi.

hello!
well the scary movies we watched last night - insidious, scary as ever, i was actually screaming and almost crying, forget me not, lame and not worth it.
so we went to bed at about 4am, i had a half dream half awakeness thing where i saw some demon thing hovering over lauren (who was in the same bed as me) and i was screaming at her to watch out, although apparently she doesn't remember it happening at all.
and we woke up at 11am, robyn made us bacon and eggs and bagels with coffee for breakfast which was lovely then we went home.
all got ready for six flags, and we were off.
which is when i saw my first deer! he was dead. on the side of the road. looked just like bambi. so sad.
then google maps - the unreliable piece of rubbish that it is - got us lost on the way. it took us some stupid back way instead of the way normal people go.
so by the time we got there it was just past three and the weather was pretty shitty, it looked like it was going to rain all day, and even though it was busy, we still got to go on all the rides we wanted too because the lines weren't that long.
so we left at about 7:30 and decided we would go to black back square in west hartford and have sushi for dinner... wellllllllll we got lost. of course. in the ghetto. of course.
stopped for directions at roughly five different petrol stations, because everyone was you know, useless and had no idea what they were talking about.
then just as we were about to give up and find the highway to go home, we found it!
along the way we noticed that where we were lost, we had been lost before. the exact same spot.
and we saw a street called 'hooker lane'.. interesting... i wonder what happens down there.
so we have our delicious sushi - so worth the stress of finding it - and i tried to teach keisha and lauren hw to use chopsticks, lauren did well, even though she used them to eat her meal and not sushi.
then we got some cheesecake to take home, came home and showered.
skyped with stephyg while she was on her iphone, with her earphones plugged in, whilst walking around coles, looking like she was talking to herself haha
and now i am going to sleep i think.
goodnight. xxxxxx
p.s the fathers day in america is a different date, hence the reason i MAY have forgotten about it. but...
p.p.s HAPPY FATHERS DAY DAD! you are the best dad ever. i couldn't have asked for a more amazing father. i love you. and i hope you had a fantastic day. also to my grandfathers and uncles, i love you guys too.
oh and i forgot to tell you - GRAND CENTRAL STATION IS AMAZING! absolutely amazing. and i have been there :) be jealous. also i have added photos to 'lets hear it for new york' and 'america, two' on facebook.

new york city baby..

hello everyone!
so we woke up this morning, not too worse for wear, waited what seemed like a million years for chris (the guys house we were at) to wake up so we could get showered and start doing something.
got ready and then decided we would pop on down to new york city for the day.
got on the train, and about an hour later we were at the city that never sleeps.
went shopping and just strolled around pretty much.
went to go to do a tour at the national library, buttttt we couldn't find the door to get in. there were doors all the way around the giant building but they all seemed to be fake lol
and we went to forever 21, after trekking around the four floors, we went to get some lunch.
so i ordered a burger. and it was MASSIVE! the tomato was clearly on steroids as it was as round as the actual burger bun. i took photos so you can all see it.
and it had two big onion rings on the side - which are gross. do not try.
and we saw ten tonne of characters walking around. elmo, cookie monster, dora, shrek sponge bob, mickey mouse...
and this one huge creepy crazy tall thing, that i got a photo with, it was freaky as.
and we went to a souvenir shop and i got all these postcards and magnets, and i love new york pj pants, and presents that i can't mention.
oh and all the sleeping people in new york! i am not entirely sure if they are homeless or not but there are people just sleeping anywhere and everywhere. on the ground, on a bench...
and we saw the naked cowboy!
and people getting money to buy weed.
there is no amount of photos i could take, or words i could use to describe just how amazing new york city really is. you all HAVE to go there once in your life.
i love it there.
so then we caught the train back, drove home to connecticut and now we are at the mansion! hurrah!
going to watch scary movies and eat popcorn now.
goodnight! xxxxx

heading to new york..

hello!
so i did alot of washing today whent he kids left for school.
washed all five bed sheets and everyones towels and clothes, so all is nice and fresh now :)
then i watched 17 again, just because its so funny.
disinfected the kitchen - because we have awesome cleaning wipes, so i gave them a go.
and then the kids got home and we played in the basement...
gave them an early dinner because we had to go to the airport to pick up keisha - an australian friend from training school in new york when i first got here.
so i get the kids snacks and books and entertainment for the car trip (only about 40 minutes worth) and then as soon as i got them all buckled in, karen pulled up early and so they stayed with her instead.
stopped at dunkin' donuts - after asking for a caramel mocha twice to the speaker box, then i get to the window and he still didn't know what i was saying, so i repeated it AGAIN and then he hands over some chocolatey drink, which was not right. so i just gave up. geeeez.
so i had my google directions wrriten down of how to get there - and they were wrong. so i had to stop and ask twice how to get there.
get to the airport and i couldn't see her, so i had to do a loop, then i stopped in the 'no parking' to wait and the security guard made me do another loop because no one was "actively getting in or out of the car" so another three loops later, keisha was finally there and so we were off.
and we made it home without getting lost. yay!
so now we are waiting for lauren to pick us up and we are going to new york.. the state not the city.
for a little "get together".
i will let you know if we end up going to the city tomorrow.
night. xxxxx

seeya' summer.

hey!
so today is the first day of 'fall' for us. no more stinkin' hot, humid, gross days. hopefully.
the kids went to school and i did the usual morning chores, then ran some errands..
went to the charity store and the consignment to drop stuff off, went to the library - i have started on a new author, hailey abbott, because she has an awesome last name, obviously :)
and then i came home and watched 'black swan' for the second time, just because it is such a good movie.
then the kids came home. rachel lost her tooth at school so she ahd it in the little tooth shaped container that teh school nurse gives you.
so anyway i went upstairs to get something then i hear rachel crying, so i run downstairs and this is what happened -
me - whats wrong? why are you crying?
rach - he made me loose my tooth (pointing at matt)
me - how and why did you do that?
rach -  he punched me twice and my tooth flew out of my hand somewhere
me - matt why did you punch her?
matt - BECAUSE SHE STUCK HER HAND IN MY GLASS OF MILK!
hahahaha (not that i was laughing whilst taking to them)
so that was the end of that conversation.
i did find her tooth though.
but she lost it again anyway. because she was swining around the tooth thing it was in, and it opened and the tooth flew across the room somewhere. so that will be an interesting find when i am sweeping one day...
then i made dinner, we put the radio on while we ate, which seems to keep the quieter then the normal zoo level noises they make, and they actually stayed sitting in their chair. woo!
then i went to have frozen yogurt with robyn and lauren.
came home and showered ready for JERSEY SHORE!
its so great. best show ever made.. well reality anyways.
its still on now. so i'm off.
goodnight! xxxxxx