Well, we are starting to get a little social life between us, you know and it’s rather nice! Last weekend we took a drive up into the Perth Hills. It’s very beautiful up there and the houses are large and sprawling. It reminded us of Tewin Wood. Apparently though it gets VERY hot in the summer there as they don’t benefit from the sea breeze that we get every afternoon. We came across a track with a car park and rest facilities and took some pictures of the kids at a view point. The view was fantastic and at points very similar to UK woodland. The best bit there was an open fire that you could build yourself with a hot plate over where you could heat your own coffee in a billy can, or cook eggs and bacon over a real fire. There was a family there that we got chatting to and they just take a saw with them, gather some wood, get the fire going and in no time at all, they’ve got coffee and lunch. It looked great fun and we’re definitely going back one day to try it for ourselves.

Delaney kids 'go bush'

They also had some very strange toilets! They were just like any other public toilets; in a little cubical, very clean. But when you looked down the toilet, there was no water and you could see down about 5 metres to all the ‘waste’ at the bottom! It was an environmental/biological toilet. Frightened the pants off of Darcie, who desperately needed a wee, but didn’t fancy falling down into the black hole of crap! I had to hang onto her for dear life (like in aeroplane toilets, when she is convinced she is going to be sucked from the aircraft with every noisy, super-suction flush!) while she watered the compost! They tell everyone that was the highlight of their day – the ‘funny’ toilet. It really didn’t smell though – very clever!

Adam and Darcie enjoy the view in a headlock

We also stopped off at a Vineyard and did a very small amount of wine tasting. We’d love to do it in the summer on a guided tour, where you just hop off and on the minibus that takes you round all the vineyards, getting more and more sloshed and poorer as you go. We bought a really lovely bottle of sparkly white from a local grower/fermenter/bottler for less than a tenner. Although I must admit you do feel pressurised to buy a little when it looks as though the lady manning the ‘shed’ hasn’t seen hide nor hair of another person for three weeks. What can you do? Have a slurp and then say ‘no thanks – not for me’. I don’t think I could stand the look of disappointment on her face. We weren’t however THAT bothered as we only bought the one bottle! Plus, you do feel a little begrudging as you can buy really great wine from the drive through bottle shop for about 4 quid! We can’t buy alcohol in the supermarkets. We have to go to a bottle shop, although you can just do a drive through where you wind down you car window, slur at them what you want, pop the boot and copious amounts of booze are then shoved into the car to be transported home. Good idea, but less hassle just to pop a bottle into your trolley whilst at the supermarket.

This week it’s been the first week of the school hols and on Monday I took the kids to a shopping centre as recommended by a friend. How fab! It was like a proper shopping centre! If you squinted and spun round a bit, it could almost have been the Harlequin in Watford, or part of Milton Keynes! It was great and the kids enjoyed spending some of the holiday money that Nanny B had sent them over for being good and working so hard during the term. Sam bought and devoured a foot long roll from Subway. He ordered it all himself and the guy behind the counter was chatting away. He said to Sam, ‘is this all for you mate, you’ll never manage all this’. Quick as a flash, Sam’s index finger shot up into the air (the same way my Dad used to try and grab a waiter’s attention ‘…….I say……..’) and said to all the people behind the counter, ‘you obviously don’t know me very well, do you?’ Err, no. How could they? They work at Subway and have never met you before and therefore could have no inclination that you are a champion muncher who could give Mr Greedy a run for his money! For the record, Sam ate his foot long meatball sub with extra sauce (and FWIW said he was still a little hungry and could have eaten seconds!)

Adam is now completely obsessed by Bob the Builder characters, so his money went on Scoop, Muck, Roley and Lofty! He takes them everywhere with him……along with Thomas, Henry, Percy et al! He’s going to need one of those shopping bags on wheels soon, just to carry all his essentials round with him when he goes out! He’s such a little old man! He’s really chatty now though and really competes with the older kids. We play a game in the car where we ask questions and have to ‘buzz’ in with our own buzzer sound when you know the answer - kind of like 'Ask the Family' for a dysfunctional family! Today, Adam buzzed in! He didn’t have the answer, but made something up, or repeated Darcie’s last answer, but he knew to buzz in at the right time! Whenever Sam goes to do something now, Adam shouts out ‘ME TOO!’ He’s very funny.

Adam and his mates!

Tuesday was a quiet day and the weather was a bit pants and Paul had to go into Perth, so we just bummed around the house and watched some DVDs.

Wednesday there was a little get together for the kids in Darcie’s class at a local park. The kids all took bikes and scooters and they had a little picnic whilst the Mums had a chance to natter, it was fun, if somewhat cold.

Thursday we went to a local wildlife park with Darcie’s best mate Amy and some friends. The kids loved it. There were lots of beautiful parrots and other animals they could get very close to. There was a fab park there too which I think the kids spent almost as long on. Darcie went back to play at Amy’s and ended up sleeping the night – her second sleepover!!! I handled it a lot better this time. I found it was better if I didn’t look in her room and see her little empty bed – that really upset me last time! Paul took the opportunity to do something fun with the ‘boys’, so they did home-made pizzas – yummy!

Friday morning I went for coffee and cake with a nutty mate round the corner. She’s off ‘down south’ on holiday for a week with her family next week to visit the Albany Whaling Station. Boy, she’s so excited - NOT! I asked her to bring me back something in ‘keeping’, so I’ll probably get a bar of Blubber soap or a take away Whale Blubber soup. Yum, can't wait for that one! Sam had a friend in and out to play in the afternoon and then we went off to another friends for drinkies in the evening. They are over on the same visa and have bought a BEAUTIFUL house in the northern suburbs. The kids were fantastic and played brilliantly all evening (Addy didn’t give up until he fell into the car at 11.30pm and he was still really happy and full of beans!). It was a little disheartening for us as they have bought a gorgeous house and are already settled, whereas we are going through the stress of building and won’t have a ‘home’ for at least 18 months, but it’ll all be worth it in the end. We made our decision to buy land and build and I’m sure it’ll work out for us. There were three other families there too all on the same types of visa, so we swapped stories and tales of woe and had a laugh and let our hair down. It was just what the doctor ordered and was great. Nicola and I spent most of the evening trying to persuade Paul to let us have a dog! Nicola was doing a really great job and I thought we were making headway, until Paul woke up this morning with his ‘Practical’ head back on (he’s a bit like Worzel Gummidge – changes his head with the weather!).

Darcie sporting mascara and earrings for a night out - whatever next?

We went out today to look at bedroom suites. We want to get something nice to go in our room where the kids can't wreck it and cover it in chocolate Tim Tam. We saw some really lovely ones, but had an indecisive moment and didn’t buy anything. Paul and Sam stopped off in a music shop and Sam asked about a guitar (that’s number one on his birthday list at the moment; electric guitar and amp!). The guy in the shop gave Sam a ‘Darkness’ poster and he’s rushed home and blue-tacked it to his wall. I ask you – 8 years old and music posters on his wall already (and 'rock' bands as well!! I'm sure Darcie is going to be one of his 'rock chick groupies' too as she came home from Amy's with felt-tip 'tattoos' all over her back and arms and is already pestering to have her ears pierced - as long as that's all she's getting pierced, thank you! She kept on and on at Paul about having her ears pierced and kept questioning me as to whether or not it would hurt! I said yes, it does hurt, but not for long. Eventually Paul was worn down and said 'come on them, in the car now. Let's go and get your ears pierced. Darcie winced and decided to wait until she's more mature - six, she said..... at least :-) Sam’s already informed me that if I don’t let him have a guitar and lessons, I’m ‘hampering his career prospects’ (I kid you not – he used those words!), as he is destined to be a rock star. Failing that, he’ll be (in order), an F1 driver, Premiership footballer or a builder. He asked me if I thought he’d achieve any of those………. I said absolutely (luckily he didn’t ask which one I thought!) How much would Adam love him though if he became the latter? Can he fix it? Yes he can!!

We had a BBQ tonight in the dark (again, adds to the adventure). It was lovely and we ate together and the kids watched a nice film on the TV. I installed the kids electric blankets that we bought for them from 'The Good Guys' - an electrical retailer where you pay less when you pay cash. Also had to buy a new washing machine as my one decided that it enjoyed it's trip in the container - quite liked the sun on it's back in the laundry for a few months, but has now decided Australia isn't for him, thanks very much! So glad I bothered bringing it halfway across the bloody world to break down!!! Mind you, with all his health issues, the washing machine's probably been watching Paul and sees this as 'normal' :-) :-)

We haven’t got as much excitement planned for next week, but Sam wants us all to go to the museum and I’m sure we’ll have a few days out. Oh, P.S if you have a look at the 'Links' to the right hand side and click on 'our Photo Album' I will be updating the pictures there rather than posting individual ones on here. There is a monthly limit on what I can upload, so keep checking back for more pictures of sunny weather (we hope!).