Change of Plan

My Dad, Ian, died on Sunday morning. He was an avid collector of heart conditions and he finally acquired the full set.


Suffice to say, Mum did not arrive today. She has postponed her trip for a fortnight. Owian and I might make it over for the funeral next week but the new baby is due on the 12th so it's all a bit touch and go.

Thanks to everyone who's got in touch already to send their regards. It's sad that he won't be meeting the next little McFarlane - especially after he got on so well with grandson#1:


At least he got to see England win The Ashes this year.

Rome wasn't build in a day...

...and when it was, they couldn't balance an elephant on top of it.


Yes, I've finally managed to upload the contents of the camera and this is the result.

With a tight budget and an even tighter husband, Heather has taken to scouring craigslist and consignment stores. She's even ended her moratorium on garage sales. Here's some of the furniture that's 'new to us':


and hence Owain's new-found interest in dinosaurs and Lego:


My mum will be arriving on Monday evening to help out when the baby arrives. We bought her a bed to sleep on and are planning our trip to the liquor store. So far, there are two alarm clock radios in her bedroom. Don't ask why. With two babies in the house, I doubt they'll come in very hand. And radios here don't even play Radio 4 which makes them almost entirely useless - especially when there's a brand new series of That Michell and Webb Sound to listen to.

Settling In

Not much to report on account of refusing to become a house bore. But got some great pictures of the boy today so had to do an upload.

20090800 New House

Heather is spending what little money we have left on furniture to turn our big spacious living area into an obstacle course. We went to Ikea last weekend to get baby a new high chair and spent $200 and forgot the high chair. Damn you retail-savy Swedes!

And we have ants squatting in our kitchen. The ants here are social little fellas unlike the fire ants they have in Arizona. But alas, I am charged with their eviction by order of the landlady. Talcum powder, vinegar and a kettle of boiling water. Poor guys.

BTW, you're all invited to come and visit. BYOB (bring your own bed).

Moved

We are now in our new house Hooray! We moved on Wednesday July 29 which just happened to be the hottest day EVER IN SEATTLE. That made things interesting but the move still proceeded smoothly. Now its all about the unpacking and me trying to not go out and buy all new furniture. Combining the nesting instinct of late third trimester pregnancy and moving is highly dangerous to the budget. I have already fitted the bathroom with new fixtures. Last night I was drilling holes in the walls wearing my sunglasses as safety goggles. I love being a homeowner!

New House!

We officially own a house now! Or, we are officially in serious debt now! On Friday the closing papers were recorded and the title was transferred into our name. We just had the oak floors in the living and dining room refinished and we move in on Wednesday. I can't tell you haw excited we are, especially myself as this has been a dream of mine for a long time. Finally a back yard for Owain and his soon to be little brother to run around in. Here are some pictures of our new digs.

PEPS Baby Shower + Randomness

On Sunday July 12 we had a baby shower for all the pregos in our PEPS group. Diana threw it at her house and it was such fun! We played a few games which brought out my competitive nature as Kristen can attest to. My worst moment came during a game where we each had a clothespin clipped to our shirt and whenever we caught someone saying the word "baby" we could take their pin. At the end of the shower the winner has the most pins. We were all sitting around the room chatting when I overheard Kristen say something about a babysitter and without really thinking about it I lunged out of my seat and hurled my giant pregnant body in her general direction. I nearly fell on top of her (she is pregnant as well). I ripped the pin off her shirt and gave a big "woo hoo!" in victory. Now the moment replays in slow momtion in my mind. How embarassing! That aside, the shower was a great success. Every member of our group attended.

Teresa due 7/24-Jill due 10/14-Kristen due 9/27-and me due 9/12

Kristen and Teresa

Cari and Thao

Owain at the Pacific Science Center last weekend

Owain just delivered by Amazon Fresh

John in the middle of a transitional shave

Hot Here Too

Quick roundup. Sorry, no pictures. But here's a map:

View Larger Map

This was my first proper journey cycling with the baby, going to the wading pool (paddling pool) at Green Lake Park on Saturday. He spent a couple of hours splashing around and stealing toys from all the other children and has a whale of a time.

One bizarre thing I discovered when I got to the park was the path circling the lake: for cyclists, it's one-way only! To begin with, I couldn't understand the signs, which basically say: "you can't go on the left and the right is for walkers only". After getting enough dirty looks (and not prepared to go almost three miles out of my way for such a short stretch), I tried to find another route. All I could find was a thin, gravel track next to a busy dual carriageway which was pretty scary all round.

The house hunting is going pretty well... or so Heather informs me. It looks like we've settled on a price for a place but I won't jinx things by going into detail. All I'll say is that the reason I overshot on the journey home from the lake was to ride by and take another look.

Last Sunday and again today, the boy and I went for swimming lessons nearby. He's pretty cool about being held in the water and likes to splash around and play with all the toys. Sometimes he gets panicked and clings to me like a baby monkey. The first thing he needs to learn is to blow bubbles in the water. At the moment, he just drinks it instead. Between this new-found love of the chlorine and his constant attempts to nab my beer, I'm starting to suspect that he's destined to be the father jack of the family.