G'day, folks.
Sharon/LDM, enjoy your warm weather, but do be careful while it's changeable. Do what we're doing at the moment - dose yourself with Vitamin C!
Shari, I hope you get your dryer fixed. In the meantime - enjoy the fragrance of sun-dried clothing.
Sharon/WO, sounds like a busy day with weird weather. I hope you get difficult child's health sorted out, I hope it's not too serious.
butterfly, some of our kids love the hot weather; others can't stand it. difficult child 3 loves going to the beach in summer, easy child 2/difficult child 2 hates the cold but also avoids sunlight. A bit of a problem there...
Trish, I was wondering how you were coping with the dust storm. Don't blame me for it - it came from the Red Centre. And go carefull with the dusting, don't work too hard. They say there's more dust storms on the way. I'm wondering if our fevers and sore throats here are connected to the dust storm. We had vicious coldwinds yesterday too, my ears were aching from it all. Coming after the dust storm it was the last straw.
I've picked up a low-grade fever from somewhere, it's running amok through the household and also easy child 2/difficult child 2. We really could do without this right now.
However, we had a productive day. husband is off for the next two weeks. easy child 2/difficult child 2 had planned to take this week off anyway before the wedding (her leave had been approved long before they dismissed her, one of the reasons being "maybe you asked for too much leave" which they didn't have to approve), I think BF2 has this week off also. As well, of course, the next two weeks for their honeymoon!
We had an early start - I drove husband to the mainland to collect his car (which is also the bridal car for the wedding on Friday, it as in for service). husband's plans were then to collect some boxes from a major store (mother in law had ordered it for the kids' wedding present) and also to do some shopping for mother in law and us. I had a presentation to go to, I had a speech to give too. Meanwhile easy child 2/difficult child 2 had arranged to meet with bridesmaid 4 at my friend's place to finish off her dress. I'm a bit miffed with bridesmaid 4's father (also BF2's father) because HIS car is needed to get his daughter to the fittings and she also wants to do some shopping with her brother. But she can't do the shopping until after her welfare cheque comes in (tomorrow). My friend was unable to do the fitting tomorrow or Wednesday, and by THursday the bridesmaids and bride are travelling to the wedding town to begin final preparations. So the fitting had to be today, or not at all. It was late anyway, because the girl only had a baby two weeks ago.
And her father begrudged the cost of petrol to get his daughter to the (free) fitting! This is the same family who were going to pay someone living in their area (someone, somewhere, that didn't know who to ask) to make the dress. We didn't want to take the risk with an unknown tailor when easy child 2/difficult child 2 knows this dress pattern so well now.
The fitting took about half an hour. I wasn't there, easy child 2/difficult child 2 was and worked with my friend to get the job done. Now bridesmaid 4 can organise her shopping trip with her brother whenever she wants - but when you have someone doing you a HUGE favour at the last minute, you don't ask them to rearrange their busy schedule just because Dad doesn't want to spend $5 on petrol! It was coming very close to her needing to give up on being a bridesmaid... not her fault though, but it would have been her father's. He was even asking his wife to take a day off work (which would have meant losing a day's pay, and wife is the breadwinner) in order to save $5 of petrol.
My speech went off OK. Towards the end of proceedings I got a (silent) text message from easy child 2/difficult child 2 - they had finished, should she wait at home for us or come out to meet up with us? I checked (by phone) with husband, he was almost finished shopping but had a car load of perishables which had to be taken home. So we set it up for him to swing past the hall where the formal part of our proceedings was done, collect alovely floral arrangement they'd given me and take it home (it's native flowers, we'll need to hide it from the budgies, they would love to tear it to pieces after the nectar).
So husband headed home, put perishables in the fridge and got a lift back out with easy child 2/difficult child 2.
By this stage my presentation thingie had broken up so I drove to easy child 2/difficult child 2's flat (shared with BF2) and waited outside, catnapping in the shade of a camphor laurel tree by the creek. I really felt I needed that catnap!
About an hour later husband rang me - they had arrived. So I headed on up and we spent the rest of the afternoon working with easy child 2/difficult child 2 on her government claim for wrongful dismissal. This involved another 2 hours of phone calls, the paperwork is tricky because her boss gave her nothing in writing and we don't have an official reason for the dismissal. We have 2 weeks to get the application in.
By this stage easy child 2/difficult child 2 & I were feeling ghastly. BF2 was at the same time working on table seating and guest names for the wedding (the reception place wants these emailed urgently) so we were often talking at cross purposes. So easy child 2/difficult child 2 & I retired to the bedroom to work on her forms with the question, "Why do you believe you have been unfairly dismissed?" and checking our temperatures. She was reluctant to share the thermometer with me and there was nothing we could use to disinfect it, until I found a bottle of "Bundy" rum.
We got the paperwork done (apart from some figures we had in our files at home) and then left. husband & I both feeling yuk, easy child 2/difficult child 2 not much better.
Tonight difficult child 3 complained to me about feeling achey all day and asked if he could take paracetamol. He NEVER asks to take anything like this!
So he's bnow put himself to bed. husband has left the computer paperwork for the dismissal case online, we'l leave the computer on and work on it in the morning when we're both awake (and can call the government office for help filling it in, if we need to).
Tomorrow we leave late morning to pick the kids up at noon. By then the paperwork for the dismissal should be filed and we can put it behind us for a few weeks. Timie to focus on the wedding. Our first destination is a wholesale fabric store for fashion designers that my friend (the one who is finishing off bridesmaid 4's dress) told me about. easy child 2/difficult child 2 is looking for bands of wide lace that she can use to attach to the bodice of her dress as shoulder straps/cap sleeves.
From there we head out to the appointment with marriage celebrant (also my oldest friend). Other side of Sydney, a 2 hour drive each way.
After that we head back to drop them off at home (probably having dinner somewhere on the way if we have time, which we should). Then husband & I drive to the airport and wait for sis-in-law's plane to come in. She's bringing her two girls who are also dancing at the wedding.
We'll probably be home just before midnight.
Wednesday - I cook. easy child 2/difficult child 2 will sew (if she finds the lace she wants). And pack for the honeymoon. Final plans falling into place. Enlarged family dinner on Wednesday night and on Thursday things REALLY begin to heat up!
So much hinged on today, and hinges on the outcome of our trip to the fabric shop tomorrow. If she doesn't find what she wants, she will just have to wear her gown as strapless. It still looks lovely.
The more we talked to various government officials today about easy child 2/difficult child 2's dismissal, the more we are realising that they have been very unfair to her and are trying to be tricky. I'm glad BF2 was there to witness what we were doing and how we were working to cut through the red tape and get some action. It's just a matter of sticking to the main issues and not letting yourself get sidetracked. While his mother is a Warrior Mum, she's a firecracker rather than a bulldozer and he's not seen this sort of thing before, it's always been an attitude of, "They're too big for us to fight," and simply walking away in frustration.
For so many reasons, I want this to work. And we were ALL working on this as a team. It shows it can be done, even when you're up to your eyebrows in other things.
Enjoy your Monday.
Marg
