Australian Vacation

We are on the countdown now, only a few more weeks to go until we try the AMC Flight out of Hickam and into Sydney! Wish us luck, the flights leave once a week, so if we miss it, we'll be waiting another week to catch the next one.

I did complain to the right people about Ted's leave but didn't get anywhere, so it'll be 15 days and we'll make the most of it... BUGGER! It still makes my blood boil... 

We have some friends in town from Alaska (we were stationed together in Key West Florida) and it's been great catching up with them and showing them the island and just hanging out (like old times but with babies) tonight is their last night in town and we're going to spend it downtown watching the sunset before they head back to rainy Alaska... The Soultz's will be missed but hopefully you get orders here or to San Francisco or New York or Boston, cause you know The Szynski's will be coming to visit! ;)

It's finally nap time, so I must get some laundry done, make lunch, and clean up a little... 

Advice for new parents... mostly us Mums that love to shop!

Today I purchased my fourth stroller/pram... four strollers you say? yes I know... it's been a learning curve since I was pregnant, so now as a sort of experienced stroller buyer I want to pass on what I've learned... 

The first stroller we bought was a huge Graco Travel Stroller with the infant car seat was about $250 which we used until my car was stolen (which at the time we needed to upgrade to a convertible car seat, so the timing was good, but wish I had the infant car seat to sell with the stroller now but that's another story) So I wanted a jogging stroller to use for walks and for runs, so bought an Instep for about $130 (but that too was in the car when it was stolen) so we then purchased a Jeep jogging stroller which is a beast! that cost $160 but used a 20% off coupon, so ended up paying $130. It's great for big days out as it has the storage to hold a cooler of food and water and things for the beach! Now that we are planning to go to Australia, I didn't want to have to carry the Jeep stroller (as it doesn't fold quite in half because of the wheels) I wanted something that would recline all the way, be able to use for walks, fold in half and be light... that is where the Baby Jogger City Mini Comes in... brand new this stroller costs $230 and I was able to get a second hand one for $150 on craiglist.com. 

Baby Jogger City Mini

So I wish I knew what I wanted to buy when I was pregnant, cause if I had've known more people with kids and asked the right questions or did more research, I think I would've ended up with the City Mini, it has all the features I need and will fit into a car, a truck or SUV. So I still have the Jeep and will probably keep it for those beach days or big days out and use the City Mini for those quick trips to the shops, traveling and everyday use. 

Now that I've gotten that off my chest... my next bit of advice is CRAIGSLIST! www.craigslist.com it's the best place to buy anything second hand. Whether you're on a budget or not, it's a great place to sell your stuff and to also buy any baby toys, clothes (I bought clothes for Connor the other day for 18 months, 2T, 3T, 4T and 5T for $50, I would say there was at least 20 pieces of clothing per year) not bad hey? Now I know that craigslist is huge in the states, but when I checked Brisbane, there wasn't much available... so where do Aussies advertise to buy/sell their stuff? (ok I know I am Australian, but I haven't lived there in about 8 years, so help me out!) 

Busy as can be...

Well the last few days have been busy as can be! Yesterday we hit the swap meet and got a couple of gifts for our trip to Australia, then it was lunch at Schooner's Restaurant with Jackie and her family then off to Fabric Mart to pick up some, well... fabric! and then a big commissary run! all that from 10am til 5pm... Connor was super great all day!

It's nice having the car on Ted's duty days, so thank you Jackie for the idea and thank you Ted for going along with it! Today we spent our time cleaning the house, doing some laundry and ran some errands, nothing too exciting I promise! now we are just waiting for Ted to call so that we can go pick him up... so I sit here thinking, should I start preparing dinner? or maybe start on one of my crafting projects? I know that as soon as I do, he'll call! it's always the way! hahaha, so I'll just blog instead...

This weekend is Labor Day Weekend, what is everyone up to? we were trying to organize a bbq for Saturday, but it looks like everyone's got plans... So maybe we'll head to the beach, it'll be Connor's first time... I'll see what Ted thinks of that...

So I finally got the study the way I want it, my crafting/sewing table is in place and ready for action... after breaking the computer table (and Ted ever so wonderfully nailing it back together) I now don't have room for this damn papasan in the office, so I really want to put it upstairs, but it's covered, and I mean covered in Spartacus fur... so I need to wash it, in some mega sized washing machine... any ideas? I'd hate to have to buy another one, Pier 1 here in Hawaii is so damn expensive! I think it might be cheaper buying one from Pier 1 on the mainland and have them ship it to me...

Well I could quite possibly write a novel, so I will end my blog here and go ahead and start on a crafting project... photos upon completion! wish me luck!