WEDNESDAY, 23rd SEPTEMBER 2009! SECOND (or third) DAY OF SPRING!

So yeah... the seasons here start around the 21th and 22nd of the month they fall on.... Which I think is technically correct... as the 22st of December is supposed to be the time when the "crux" dies, and rises 3 days later on the 25th, which is why we celebrate Christmas... or so the Internet tells me. And hey... that sounds good enough for me... except that it's so F---ING (freezing) cold on the 23rd of December I'm surprised anyone bothered to go outside to watch the stars to ever find out.

Mum and Jude got here Friday night... and they've done an excellent job catching up with the time zone! They haven't slept during the day OR felt so sick they think they're dying... which was me when I came over... for about 2 weeks. As I expected... They think the houses are beautiful, and squirrels are hilarious, and Kim is an Angel that I do not deserve to have as a bride! They're right of course.... but don't tell Kim that until after she says "I DO" then it's too late baby HHAHAHAHAH!

Trip to the Mall on Saturday to do a little shopping, bought some fancy flavoured tea, and some slippers for Mum. Judy got a bag which I think was nice and cheap. One lucky thing here is that the cheap low quality stuff is often pretty good quality! Not so in Australia.... low price stuff is worth it's low price usually. The flip side is that some items are just plain expensive for no apparent reason! I guess that's true back home too!

Sunday was a slow day... and I can't remember what we did at all... so hopefully someone can fill me in there...

Mandy and Paul got here Monday evening at 6...ISH. Again... They've done an excellent job catching up with the timezone... and they're looking bright and cheerful... Even more so than me... I think I'm taking on some kind of jetlag sympathy pains and suffering on their behalf... But sleeping on a sofabed without pillows will do that to you... especially with Adzo wanting hugs at regular intervals during the night. Love you addie... but... go to sleep kitten!

Dinner has been fantastic with Kim's preparations! Lovely meals with us all sitting around the dining room table listening to me make bad jokes at Amanda's expense. Poor love :( Thankfully she takes it like a champ and doesn't get offended by the jokes either :D Been hanging out to crack open the Rockband with everyone but we've just been spending too much time with incidentals to do that kind of thing... We kind of knew that time would be of the essence but it's still frustrating to want to do everything at once with everyone at once.

Tim hortons is a hit! But at these prices anything will do. They don't get stomach pains from the cream either... which just confirms I'm slightly lactose intolerant! I also can't spell lactose or intolerant without a spell checker.

House is holding up fantastic. 6 People and 2 cats in a 3x1 and it hasn't quit once! This is probably due to Kim's efforts to make sure the house is spick and span before everyone came, and then her ongoing efforts to make sure everyone is happy and fed and sleeping well... and Mum and Judy getting done anything at all that they have a chance to get at (which isn't much cause Kim doesn't give them much chance... due to her awesome determination and time management). I've only got two jobs at the moment, and that is to be nice and fix the BBQ. I'm working on both at the moment... and I'm not entirely sure either I'm very good at either of them.

This morning we hired a minivan (fantastic minivan at that! only 2000km on the clock and has all the mod cons) 7 seater which will get us all to Niagara falls and back. Should also be useful during the wedding. Today Kim is taking the crew to Peelee island which is here, and we have the video camera charged and ready to go and new batteries in the digicam, so we should get some nice touristy footage by tonight. Best of the best to be put online for all and sundry (whatever that means).

Kim's Mum get's here Friday!! It's probably good that she isn't here sooner just because we're a mad house as it is... now when she does get here, our household will be as settled as it's going to be, and we'll make the most of having Kim's Mum around! Why can't everyone just stay?? No one will mind!

Kim has a lot planned out for the next 2 weeks... and as much as I try to squeeze things in the spare moments we have... we don't really have any spare moments! They're being used for uncomfortable kitten interrupted sleep. Hmmm... which makes me wonder if that is a good use of the time at all?? Kim's planning is pretty tight, and she hasn't left much to chance, so there isn't really anything I can add to improve things... which is a little sucky because that's pretty much all I'm good for! ...adding a little icing on top of an otherwise decent cake.

Speaking of cake... Kim made another batch of Blueberry Oma muffins and they're delicious! She's a crazy crazy lovely girl that works her fingers to the bone (Literally... she has a wound where the knife went down to the bone) to make sure everyone else is having the best possible time they can. All things considered, this last week could not have been any better even if we were millionaires and we rented out Disneyland for a private function. Touch wood.

Countdown!!

So we're 25 days out from our wedding! And today... Tuesday the 15th of September, it only just hits me that we have little to no time left to prepare! There is a lot that we have to do around the house just to host the people we're going to... and if anything had to be done "well in advance"... well then we're out of luck because we're now in the "last minute" realm! I know Kim has been here for the last... 9 months... and I've only just caught on! But that's me... Always slow to catch on...

The big shock is that it's Tuesday... and Mum arrives Friday! In the back of my mind I'm still thinking that "Mum gets here a few weeks from now"... but no! It's in a few days!

So... Love ya Mum! Hope the trip is easy on you! If I can give any advice... I'd say stretch every chance you can (This gives relief from aches and pains that will catch up with you when you land in Canada), bring little ear buds (The foam ones from hardware stores), and even maybe something to cover your eyes (Tacky little sleeping masks are perfect) and sleep any chance you get! If Cousin Judy sleeps too... you can put a little notice on the chair in front of you to "Wake me for meals" so you don't miss out on food. To really help you sleep, bring a light sheet or blanket. A combination of earplugs, sleepmask and a sheet will make all the difference between getting some sleep and being awake for 36hours straight! I have a sheet that folds up in to a wallet size package that is perfect for this reason. OR maybe bring some sleeping tablets or sudafed (Any anti-histamine that makes you drowsy... cold and flu night tablets) which will keep your sinus clear AND help you sleep! This probably seems like a lot of fuss... but the better you feel when you land, the quicker you can start enjoying yourself after a long flight and jetlag!

Warm Clothes for the Aussies!

Hi everyone! Kim and my Mum came up with a good strategy for helping Australians deal with the Canadian cold.

When choosing daily wear, choose clothes that are warmer than others. Jeans instead of pants, cotton instead of nylon (or vice versa, whichever is warmer, I don't actually know), long sleeves and shirts that can be tucked in to pants for added insulation.

Instead of packing Jumpers and Jackets, carry one with you on the flight, and put some cash aside to buy extra Jumpers/Jackets in Canada. The designs here are just as cheap as in Australian stores, but they're a lot better in the cold, with more insulation and better wind resistance.

You will mostly need jumper/jackets when sight seeing, as anywhere indoors will be toasty warm, and you will most often take your Jacket off when entering a house. (Actually I find people get offended if you don't take your jacket off, even if you're an Australian who is currently chilled to the bone)

Another reason to wait until Canada to buy warm clothing is that I'm told the mild Summer we've just had is a sign that Autumn/Winter will be mild too. If that's true, you may find you don't need warmer clothes at all, and you've just saved yourself some potential excess luggage fees!