School Finally!

Look who finally made it to school!  He was still fairly stressed about the weather and wanted to turn back around again and go home.  I convinced him to go and this was helped by the fact that we met up with his mates Luke and Nate on the way in.  I met his teacher and she seems lovely, and took Levi under her wing and showed him the ropes.  I am hoping that BOM is correct this time.  It is great to have the radar information online as it gives us some warning of oncoming rain.  He will be fine once it all becomes routine again.  They just revision type things so I am not worried about that little man keeping up and getting back on track.  Levi however is happy to worry about it for the both of us.  He is back booked into After School Care for three days a week and we will run with that until there is some indication of when soccer practice will be.

As you can see by the photos, his two front teeth are holding on by the barest strings and really just need to come out! One bottom tooth is also fairly loose and just to be normal for him, there is a 'shark' tooth already growing in from behind! His front teeth don't seem to have shark teeth but I think it is easier to get the teeth out without the ones behind. Soon there will be a few toothless photos! I can't wait for that!

Today I was at the very limit of my car crossing the creek.  The very limit is not anything like the limits of the car, but rather my limits keeping well within my safety guidelines.  I was talking with a friend from USA about the crossing and realized what I see as commonplace is no such thing.  What we are doing is fairly safe.  Crossing any flooded creek should always be seen as a risky exercise and there is a huge ad campaign at the moment on TV trying to stop the random people driving through unfamiliar roads.  Actually it isn't that specific; 'If it's flooded, forget it!'  I think that there is a controlled way though and most people don't do all the smart things first.  Levi has a little litany as we drive toward the creek and it reminds us both:

Seat belt Off

Open the windows

Open the sunroof

Drive slowly
Don't stop
and be able to swim anything you drive into!

I am fairly certain at 0.4m not only could I walk over it (I watched our neighbour walk over it today) but I could definitely swim it and keep Levi alive in the process.  By 0.5m, I would be nervous.  The car could do it but I wouldn't.  By 0.6m there is so much debris in the water it would be completely unsafe to drive as logs would likely hit the car at times!

Wet Weather Activities. Again!

So the week has continued about the same; rain, rain and more rain!  It is incredible!  After going down to let us out for Australia Day, the weather closed back in and stopped us getting out for school for Levi on Friday as well.  He is now fully a week down this term and hasn't met his teachers at all.  He is starting to get quite stressed about it all.  He is worried about going to school now but I think just because he is a bit nervous about going in and getting trapped out without me.  I keep telling him that there are many people who love him who are on 'that side of the creek' so even if he is on a different side, he will always be looked after.

We have been getting our way through activities here now.  I have a few activities still but it won't be long before they are all exhausted.  Today we built a wooden ship.  It was really fun and Levi did a lot of it by himself.  OK, wait; he did the painting and I did most of the gluing.  Levi has also been playing with the slime that he 'won' at Shark Bait Kids.  I have now googled; 'How to get slime out of clothes', 'How to get slime out of hair' and have also soaked a garlic press about two days to try to get the slime out of where it shouldn't be!

So I am really grateful to Pam for giving out the slime! She correctly reminded me that he was the one that picked the slime and as soon as it was out of SBK, it was out of her jurisdiction!  Thanks Pam!  Love you too! 

So that has been the last few days.  If we don't get out soon, things are going to get ugly!  If I run out of activities, it will get ugly faster!

Australia Day and Escape

The last few days have been very internal ones for Levi and I.  It has rained for the last few days and the creek has been swollen and impossible to drive through.  It has meant that I have worked from home and Levi has missed school.  Today is Australia Day and it was the first that the rain wasn't pounding.  In fact most of the day was muggy but dry.  After the creek starts to recede, it leaves a large amount of debris, sand, leaves, sticks, rocks and large amounts of flotsam.  So, after the creek goes down, there is still a large amount of work to be done before it is possible to escape!

 We worked hard this morning, shovelling the debris out into the flow of the stream.  If you wait until the creek has gone down completely, then you have to shovel much more and carry it much further.  Generally there is a large window of time, but still it is certainly better to dig as soon as it is possible, because the creek helps you more.  Levi helped by dragging some of the logs and throwing them out into the stream.  Jo and I shovelled and then the neighbour from across the creek, saw we had cleared enough and brought his 4WD over.  He drove over and back many many times, to wash the debris back into the creek and shortened our task by several hours!  These sorts of days are quite fun actually because you end up digging in the creek with many neighbours, all with a common purpose, to get out and get some groceries!

During the time that we were stuck in, I managed to break the kettle and lose the iPhone charger!  It meant that my phone was behaving badly and generally operating at about 10% battery life.  So Levi and I went out and restocked the pantry and made our fruit salad and then went to the greatest Australia Day BBQ that was possible!  Levi was so happy!  He had four boys all about his age to play wild games with.  He played wild games in the pool, wild games running around and wild games with the soccer ball.  Consequently he was so tired tonight, that I had to wash him in the shower and he struggled to get to sleep.  I think that he is also a little nervous about his return to school tomorrow and keeps asking to stay at home with me tomorrow, even though we will be able to get there.  I talk about how exciting it will be to meet his new teacher, but he isn't fooled anymore and I think just loves the security and the routine of the home.  He loves school and soon it will be the routine again!  Then he will be happy again!

Diving Boy

 I am stuck at home at the moment.  It gives me a chance to multitask in both the work and home arena.  When I am waiting on a picture to open I can do some blogging.  Levi is playing happily.  This last weekend we went to the Gold Coast to do the big final dives for Shark Bait Kids.  It means that we were staying at the Marriott, which is a pretty big step up for our normal holiday lodging!  The Marriott have a 5m deep salt water pool that they stock with coral fish and feed once a day.  They are brilliant.  It is a slower day than the Sea World day and there are big gaps in the diving.  This means that Levi and I can go for a bit of a dive together in the gap times and go and look at the fish in a controlled environment!

So Levi patiently waited for me and helped out at the top (mostly by entertaining himself and not getting in the way) and when I was able to have a break, he joined me in the water!  He is getting to be a pretty good little diver too.  Only 7 more years before he can get his ticket!

I was diving with the little man and suddenly felt that I was having trouble moving my left leg!  I looked down and saw that Levi had locked his legs around it and was stabilizing himself from there.  I thought it was really funny!  So did Mary, the other diver and she took a picture!

Then on Monday we went to Sea World.  We dived in their 'Shark Bay' lagoon and the kids had a fabulous time.  Then in an even better turn of events, Levi stayed at Sea World with Mim, Patrick and Janet, while Pam and I came home.  It meant that I had a whole afternoon of alone time, which was great because after that the rain started and I haven't been able to get out of the house since!  Levi was dropped off later that night and right around then the rain hammered down!  And since then it hasn't really stopped.  Levi will likely miss the whole first week of school.

Junk Art and Cupcakes

 Junk art is what this is and a beautiful example!  Levi made it when he was helping at Shark Bait kids.  He loves putting things together and creating things.  He joined in with all the kids and siblings at Shark Bait Kids and was very happy.  The junk art was just a part of it.  He loves interacting with all the kids and helps out quite well.  At least he isn't high needs!  He pretty much looks after himself and joins the activities.  He also is a big help, collecting things, running messages and those sorts of things.  It is lovely to watch his with the kids in power chairs.  He understands the limitation of the kids but he also respects the chair's power and remains fairly watchful, getting out of the way when necessary.  It is a good lesson.  The chairs weigh about 125 kg and hurt lots running over your foot!  Trust me I know!

We have been continuing to do all Shark Bait Kids, all the time and now that it is finished, I think we are all grateful.  Happy but grateful!

More Shark Bait Levi

More and More Underwater

Shark Bait kids camp one has finished and tomorrow, camp two starts.  We had a 'break day' today and yet there was little real rest in it.  I am tired and I am sure it has to do with the amount of work.  Levi is still being a champion and following me around, being a really good helper with all the kids and (mostly) not being too needy when I have to pay attention elsewhere.  Generally he swims and plays in the water for about four hours and then gets out and has lunch before going and helping (playing) with the other activities! 

He will be happier with this second camp because he knows the kids better and frankly they all know him better (and dote on him).  It means that he ends the day completely exhausted and as I am generally trashed as well, it is a pretty good fit.  The next four days are camp two and then we go to the coast for the big dives. 

I generally feel more and more like I am drowning at the moment, but I'm hoping that by the end of the next two weeks and with the workload slacking off, even slightly, I will be able to peek my nose above the water again for a while.  I am making myself feel better by researching flights to and from USA in June and thinking and planning about that vacation. 

It Starts!

Today was the start of Shark Bait Kids.  For obvious reasons, I can't show you the myriad of happy smiling faces of the clients on my blog.  Trust me they are there!  We started today's camp this morning at 8am and finished after debrief at about 4.30.  Other than the debrief at the end, I was in the pool helping the kids dive!  I am trashed tonight and will go to bed really early, as I have more than a week of this to go!  I have to organize, edit and name photos as well.  As these are all kids born into the computer generated instant gratification generation, they will be checking the facebook site for Shark Bait Kids as I 'waste' my time writing here!

Levi gets to come with me to work during Shark Bait Kids and he swam the entire time that I did!  We played underwater Uno and Levi helped out by playing as an opponent to the kids and collecting the cards afterwards.  He loves it!  He is also turning into a very comfortable diver.  As you can see in the photos, basically he swims around with a snorkel and then when he needs to be down there longer, he grabs an occy (Octopus line) and breathes off some random tank!  The divers are all very tolerant!

Today after we were all done, I found a text from a friend.  It made me feel so loved and it renewed my faith in humanity.  She sent a text saying that, because she knew that I was completely slammed for the next few weeks and would never get home on time, she had made me a few meals that were frozen.  Did I want to pick them up on the way home?  So incredibly thoughtful!  So I stopped by and had a cup of tea and picked up the three meals.  Levi played in the pool with her kids for another hour.  Yes, you read that correctly!  Levi played forever in a pool after playing forever in a pool!  Anyway I am going to bed.  I need to get up early! 

Smiles

Today I got a crystal with Frankie's smiling face!  I had ordered it when an online store made them on special, because there is no way I could buy them full price.  I absolutely love it.  The 3D is amazing and if you look from the side, it looks as if you are looking at him from the side!  Now I have Frankie smiling at me during the day at work.

Stories

I have been working longer hours this week and Levi has been mostly at Vacation Care.  We have a fabulous Vacation Care though.  Samford State school owns part of the local pool and it is right next door.  They are allowed to use the pool for up to two hours during the day in Vacation Care and Levi is loving it!  One day they had a man come in with all sorts of animals to play with; snakes, lizards, little paddymelons, quolls, bandicoots and even a baby crocodile (with it's mouth taped shut!).  Tomorrow Levi goes on an excursion with them into town to see GOMA and play in the park there.  He has more fun there than at home!

Levi has been writing stories at night instead of having me reading him a story.  They are little happy stories:

The house of Mr Scary

Mr Scary was the scariest person in the world and in his house everyone just went Arrrgggghhh!  But Mr Scary was lonely.  Everyone didn't like him because they would get scared of him.So Mr Scary had a shower and washed his hair and teeth.  He wasn't scary anymore and for once in his whole life, he had friends.

The End

The Only Town Made By Humans

Step 1: Get bottles (drink bottles), oil cans, boxes and long pieces of cardboard.  Also get see through cardboard

Step 2:  Get the see through cardboard and make shapes of windows on it with felt pen

Step 3:  After the felt pen has dried, cut the outside line of every window

Step 4:  Draw straight down the windows and across

Step 5:  Connect the lids under all of the bottles that you sticked on the windows

Step 6:  Get your bottles with the windows on them

Step 7:  If you have a big painting anywhere, stick it behind your city

Step 8:  Make little wooden humans and stick them in your city

The End

There are two of the stories that he wrote.  Actually, he dictated them and I wrote them as he said them.  He is able to write his own stories but it is still a little slow for him, making him lose track of the stories direction before he gets it all down.  This way he and I both get the story and we have some fun time together before bed.

Levi continues to sleep in the tent, even though summer has finally arrived, making it super hot in there at times.  Two nights ago, on the hottest night, he was still awake at 9.30pm, a full hour and a half post bedtime.  I went in and he was under his sleeping bag, drenched in sweat.  He said that he needed to sleep under something and that he couldn't get to sleep because he was too hot.  I explained to him that I could get him a sheet rather than a 20 below sleeping bag.  After making him drink a ton, and getting him a sheet to replace the sleeping bag, he was sound asleep in minutes.  I am encouraging the tent sleeping.  I think that the longer it goes, the more likely Levi will sleep in a separate room after returning inside.  At least I can hope for that!

Junior Picasso

Today was a cleaning day for me.  I am trying to get this house looking good again, but more than just looking good.  I am tired of not being able to find anything!  So this afternoon, Levi went to Ty's house and I cleaned.  I cleaned through the toys and culled out the too young ones and took them to the recycle house at the dump.  We have a shed at the dump that you can leave stuff that other people can use.  Levi has a bike that is the next size up waiting for him that we got from there!  Anyway I cleaned and cleaned and I'm still not done!

This morning I read a story to Levi about Picasso.  By 10am, Levi wanted to paint plates the way Picasso did like this.  He wanted to paint plates but settled for paper plates.  Then he wrote on the plate where they were to go.  One for home for me, one for work for me and one for Jo. 

Climbing back

 We are back at the beginning of the year and starting the routine of work.  It was the first week back for me and has tired me out more than I thought it would especially because it was a pretty quiet week.  Many people are still on vacation and this week was more of an organizational one. 

After the wild day yesterday, I had hoped that Levi may sleep in.  I got that wish!  Levi slept in until about 5.35am instead of the 5.30am that he usually sleeps to.  He is still in the tent so I am guessing that the sun has a lot to do with that waking hour at the moment.  However, as he was waking at the same time in the curtain darkened room, perhaps I am just deluding myself. 

So today after dragging myself out of bed this morning we did actually have some fun!  Well we had some fun, after I spent the morning doing more yard work!  If you thought that I am getting tired of how fast the grass grows, I am.  All I can do is just keeping cutting it.  Well, cutting it and complaining about it here!  We went climbing.  We went for hours and hours actually.  The kids just didn't want to stop and they are getting really comfortable up there on the wall. 

 Actually you can see from this photo, just how comfortable he is now!  He was chatting to Shannon half way up when this was taken.  Levi has taken the three points of contact rule to heart and feels four points of contact is excessive.  He also fairly regularly doing the time honored "Look Mum, No hands!"  He stands on two of the grips and then happily lets go.  I am thinking he is starting to trust in the ropes perhaps a little much!  We went to a new indoor climbing place today and although Levi took a while to warm up to it, he went and went.  He prefers the other place because it has a whole mat that he can climb over and fall all without mats.  Still he found out that he could 'boulder' meaning that he could climb sideways at the bottom level.  That became his passion!



Wedding

Today Levi and I got all dressed up and went to my sister-in-law's wedding.  Now I am sure that it isn't very often that this sort of connection occurs because normally families split in a conflict.  Janine was Bill's wife.  Bill died in 1995 and she was getting married again (to a widower).  So in this wedding with complicated connections, there was actually four separate families all happy and excited about this wedding!  What a way to start!



Levi in a tie, suddenly looked about twenty years older.  He looked just as I imagine he will when he is grown.  He was adorable as well.  I took many photos.  Levi took many photos as well and a few self portraits (see below).  We ate fancy food, danced and laughed.  It was great!

This week has been back to normal and not very noteworthy.  I have been thinking up underwater games to play with the kids at Shark Bait Kids next week.  I have this weekend free and then we all start the camps.  I am very excited about them but am a bit nervous about the grueling schedule, not just for me but for the rest of the team as well.  It is wonderful how well we all work together and it makes work fun. 



Happy New Year

Happy New Year!  I have started work again and it has been harder than I thought!  I think that I had settled into a routine of lazy mornings and days without routine or schedule.  Levi has been used to having Mum home all the time.  I am back to working full time!  

Still Levi is now sleeping in the tent most nights and stays there all night.  I can get a bit of stuff done at night before I also go to bed.  I was thinking that I will try to transition him to a different bed when he is done with the tent.  The tent looks as though it might be up all summer holidays though!  Today Levi played at a friend's house while I went to work.  After School Care doesn't work this week so I finding myself scrabbling to find care during the day.  He had a blast today and swam, played on the water slide and rode his bike all day!   Tonight, one very tired little man.  He goes to a different friend on Thursday.  Tomorrow I am taking him to his old daycare.  He can be there because they don't close over this week like the school one does.  I am not sure what regular parents do.  Perhaps what I am doing!!  Relying on friends.