Take two

The phone rang at about 0315 this morning and it was GM, nice day in Perth apparently.  It now transpires that we are flying via Bangkok with Thai Airways.  We leave tomorrow morning (Anna was a little worried when I said 'This' morning and began a mild panic to get to the airport in a little over 2 hours), from Manchester again at 0710.  Rather early but we can now start getting excited and ready for the flights again.

Here we go again :)

So close yet...

We were set to go and then a phone call alerted us to the fact that all Qantas flights are grounded.  We couldn't beleive it when we saw what was happening.  Talk about being crestfallen.  We were all geared up and ready to go and then...nothing. 

We sent a long time trying to get through to the customer contact number and got no joy so a phone call to Perth and GM and disturbed her afternoon.  She has been brilliant though, keeping us informed of what the news in Oz was saying.  We packed up ready to go and orhanised to hear from her when she got up in the morning and saw what was happening.  So 0130 I was texting her and we decided that there was no point in going to the airport and subsequently we had it confoirmed that flights to Singapore and Perth were, indeed, cancelled.

The latest we have heard is that no flights will be in the air with qantas till early monday morning (GMT).  However we are skeptical of that.  GM is going to rebook flights for as early as she can get them so we shall see. 

Meanwhile we just have to sit with no furniture and wait and wonder.  Not a good situation for any of us but at least it gives Anna and Marcus a chance to get over their colds.

So keep your eyes peeled here for more details.

All systems go

Well, what a week.  After getting our visa through we really began to believe that this whole adventure was happening.  We were told that our flights would likely be around Tuesday 1st November.  A week away, not so bad.  A lovely weekend was had and a birthday party fro Grandma Tibby was held and Caroline, Steven, Oliver and Amy came up which was nice opportunity to see them again and to allow Grandma to see all the kids playing together, especially as Marcus is now up and walking properly. 

Me thinks we will be walking most of the way Perth!  Lucy, Bren, Amy and Anna also came up so a garden full of playing kids (and adults) was brilliant to see. 

Then Monday morning we got an email and asked if we could fly on Sunday the 30th!  well it gets us into Perth on Monday as opposed to Wednesday and so we get an extra two days to get used to things and find our feet.  So we leave Manchester at 0820 on Sunday 30th October 2011.  It all feels very real now.

Pickfords have come to pack up our stuff.  They have worked so quickly that some stuff we would like to have taken with us have been packed and taken away before we had a chance to say no.  Rather annoying but not a lot we can do about it now.  The house feels very bear now and very big.  No beds or tables, chairs or sofas.  Which made cooking and sleeping a challenge but hey ho who doesn't like a challenge?

We took the boys down to Nursery this morning as they would only want to 'help' or prove to be a mobile trip hazard for the movers.  When we went through the gates there was a huge sign saying Good luck to the Headons on their Ozzie Move.  Both Anna and I were in tears.  Finley went dressed as a Witch and Marcus as a Vampire as they will miss the Halloween party on Monday. 

It means so much to us that the people who have watched our boys grow and develop care so much about them that they go the extra mile and make it so special for us and the boys.  Finley was telling everyone that we were going on a plane and the beds were going on the ship.  We know that the staff and other kids will miss Finley and Marcus, we just wish them all our love and hope that they can follow the boys as they grow and will still be there when we come back to visit and they can see how much the boys have grown.

WOOHOO..........

GOOD NEWS.  Our Visa's came through this morning so the Aussie's are letting us into their country.  Rather silly of them I feel!!!!

Glynis and John called me this morning and we had a quick chat.  John wants me over as quickly as possible as the office is very busy but they recognise that we need to have our stuff packed and settle in a bit.  To that end we have the movers packed for the 25/26th October and we will likely be flying the week after, on the 1/2nd November.  We should be flying from Manchester which is good for us. We are going to opt for as short a stay over as possible, get the long haul over and done with as quickly as possible! 

I think we are both SO relieved that the visa has been granted.  It is all properly happening now, which means we can properly put energy into packing and getting everything organised for on the plane.  I think the hard work really starts now!!!

Anna can finally start applying for jobs and looking for somewhere for us to rent, which in turn will determine nursery places ect, all very exciting!  So if you want to see us for one last time in Blightly (well for a while), give us a call and we'll try to sort something out.

Fun time down south

First of all some good news.  We sold the Fiesta, with only a little hassle (we were asked to prove the mileage so we had to provide the mot certs thank goodness for the DVLA website)

But to the main point of this.  A huge thank you to our friends Nancy, Stu, Freya and Erin and bump.  After a fairly quiet journey down we arrived mid afternoon and Finley immediately found the swings, so that was basically him sorted for the next 24 hours! oh and the pond with frogs and newts in.  The boys also discovered the joys of classical music...

Nancy was looking well, albeit tired but being 8 months pregnant generally does that.  We are so happy for all of their family that they will have a baby boy to add mayhem to the mix.  They are fantastic parents and we know they will bring up a lovely young man.  Watching Stu sitting in the semi dark watching our boys sleep it was easy to see what a caring, loving and wonderful dad and husband he is.  I just wish I had had more time get to know him better.

It was such a nice evening with Nancy and hearing about her plans for the hypno-birthing business she is starting, such a passion and want to help others through one of the most wonderful moments in life speaks volumes about the sort of person Nancy is.  Anna and Nancy had a wonderful time swapping stories (I was a little at a loss but still it was really good to see Anna relax and spend time with her friends).

Saying bye was really hard.  Again it is often months or years between seeing them but it never feels like we have been away.  As Nancy and Stu have been large parts of Anna's life over the years role playing and moving so far, it brings it home how hard it might be to make friendships so strong.
A cuddly Koala will soon be winging it's way back to Blighty for new baby with all our Love and Best Wishes.

Scotland Road Trip

What a tiring few days.  We left 0900 on Thursday (29/9/11) morning and got back about 1730 on Saturday (2/10/11) afternoon.

The drive up wasn't to bad at all.  Marcus and Finley both slept at times which was great and we only listened to Room on the Broom a few times, which is always a bonus for the parents.  We arrived at Elsie's and she had put on a good spread of sandwiches and cake and lots of tea a most welcome end to the journey.

Elsie was on good form and it was lovely to see her.  We go far to long without talking to her but she is such a lovely person that when we do see her it is like we never left her.  Saying good bye was difficult.

We saw Great grandma Headon and although the boys won't really remember her while we are in Oz I was really pleased that She managed to see them both and have a cuddle with them.  It is a shame that we don't see her more often but we tend to so busy (not a great excuse I know) at a weekend that we never seem to have the time.  She was ok and pleased to see Finley again and to meet Marcus for the first time.

Dinner on Thursday was much fun.  Some good friends came down from Polmont and joined us and the boys for a meal.  Regaling us with stories of cats hiding under floorboards and talking about fun times at school and uni passed a few hours until the boys were well beyond tired and in desperate need of sleep.

Friday saw us traveling to Dollar to visit my school.  How things have changed in the 9 years since I left.  Twas a very odd feeling when I realised it was approaching a decade since I left.  It was sponsored walk day at School where they were hoping to raise in excess of £60K! A lovely day for a walk in the Ochills behind the school but we weren't kitted out properly for walking and I don't think Finley would have made a 10+mile walk...let alone us!

Seeing Craig was great, as per usual he was uber busy with the pipe band and generally running all things CCF.  The signallers were having issues receiving messages from the wandering radios.  Even though he was busy seeing him in his normal arena really took me back to be 18 and working alongside him to work through whatever had gone wrong and learning how to deal with problems and how to get the best out of people you work with.  Looking back I learnt an awful lot from him.  I just hope that I can pass on everything I know to the boys.

Heading up Dollar Beg was strange.  The number of times I had done it is the past had never really prepared me for thinking it may be the last time I ever saw the tree covered hill that conceals Castle Campbell or cross the River Devon in the flood plain at the bottom.  Dollar will always be a huge part of my life and leaving it behind really hit me.

On to Linlithgow to see Gail.  Unfortunately she was busy developing a new exhibition so we had a lovely walk around the Loch and ran Finley ragged.  Marcus was so excited by the ducks and swans (once he woke up anyway).

A fun afternoon by the Loch lead to us heading into to Edinburgh to have a wander through Princes Street and try to find some jitter balls for nursery.  The wander was good but the jitter balls were no where to be found.  We did however find some sunglasses for life in Perth, decent ones that I will try my best not to scratch!  As it was such a lovely day we had ice creams in the park and after I got mint choc chip for myself, Finley decided that he would rather that than the chocolate I had got for him.  So with grumblings I gave it up (the sacrifices we make for our children) until my Wonderful Lady managed to do a three way swap and got me my mint choc chip :) I Love her so much.

After ice cream we ran around bare footed with the boys.  Finley with Anna and Marcus with me.  Cue scene from some cheesy romcom.  Finley throws ball and it lands at the feet of a good looking guy reading in the shadow of his bike, he looks up and see's Anna looking sheepish and raises and enquiring eyebrow.  She smiles coyly and indicates Marcus and I.  Who I hasten to add were doing our best to block the walkway on Princes Street Gardens by walking and sitting down on the path and I was giving my best lines to a trio of 80+ ladies.  Who got the better deal? I'll let you decide that!

a short walk took us the pub where we were meeting some friends for a drink.  Vinca and Becky managed to make it and Vinca was a star in keeping Marcus amused and seeing Becky was great.  Hadn't seen her properly for a long time.  Was really sad to leave them.  However we had to as both boys were shattered and needed sleep.  Saying bye was hard.  We will really miss them and I will try and keep in touch better.

Another bad nights sleep led to Saturday morning and we headed to Linlithgow once more to see Gail. Again she was busy with the exhibition but still to see her was good and both Anna and I were in tears at saying goodbye.  Both Gail and Elisabet have been really good friends and have always given sound and unbiased advice and looked out for us and our Family.  Good friends are hard to find and we are lucky to count these two amazing ladies as ours.

The journey down wasn't to bad.  We had a lovely couple of hours with Gwen and Ernest who were really pleased to see us and meet the boys.  They had made a lovely snack lunch and found Janey's old toys for the boys to play with.  Both Finley and Marcus played really well and behaved themselves.  So proud of them.  I had always got on well with Gwen and Ernest, I spent many a happy hour sailing at South Shields and hope one day that I can show the boys my skill (or lack thereof) with RC yachts.  Again saying bye was very strange, I hadn't seen them properly for over 4 years and even though both Janey and I are now married to other people we felt welcomed and loved.  Driving away with a tear in my eye made the drive home hard.

And finally home it was that we come.  For the first time in, well ever, it really did feel like 'Home'.