Hell yes they should be separate.  Both things are nothing more than a way to control the masses, and since you can't have two chiefs laying down the law one has to butt OUT.  I am American living in Australia and I see some of the problems of not having a true separation of church and state.  Australia has a Governor General, which is the Queens' representative in our government... he is/was (not sure if he's still in the office honestly) a bloody bishop or some such.  If that doesn't scream an agenda, dunno what does.   When I had a child in public schools I had to opt him out of religious education.  And even then the princpal tried to talk me out of it saying 'it's a nondenominational christian course' as if that made it less likely to offend! (um.. I'm not Christian sir.  He really didn't know what to say ;)   AND there are donation buckets everywhere to supplement funding for a school chaplain!  Yikes.

OH MY! lol    A week in the life of us has been pretty busy.  This past week I finally got fed up with Mr. 2yo grabbing handfuls of soil from my veggie patch and throwing them everywhere (usually on his own head *sigh*), so we hit the home improvement warehouse and got sand and a shell sand pit.   I have high hopes that this distraction several metres away from my little veggie seedlings will provide them some relief from the abuses of Qzilla the hun ;)     They have btw, spent HOURS in that sand pit this weekend!

All things are go in the veggie gardening dept... cept a critter ATE the teeny stem of a cucumber seedling as it barely poked it's leaves thru the soil.   Not impressed... Must get some eco oil or something similar to spritz.  The parents told me about something that may solve my rental house veggie gardening woes.  I can't dig great garden beds in.. and I can't build raised beds, since the yard isn't MINE... but mitre 10 has these nifty big bags of garden soil, complete with dynamic lifter already in the soil, that you just lay on the patio/lawn/whatever and cut a big section of the flat side of the bag out and plant straight into it.  This could be just the thing for me so I'll be visiting Mitre 10 this weekend,  wishing they had mentioned this BEFORE the Bunnings trip as I might have come home with some then!

I was all geared up financially to order kiddo's next section of his math from Singapore math, only to find the Aussie vendor is MIA.. the website says account suspended and no email addy's I had for them worked either *sigh*  So I set about searching out a new program to go with..nothing I found was as economical as the Singapore was, but I finally found one I liked and  had kiddo take the placement 'test' (approached  more as math practice, show me what you know!) only to realize that while he was able to do the work in his book at the time..  his retention was very spotty :(   So I'm shelling out pretty big bucks for this new program.. and then find out the next day that there is another Singapore vendor in Aus.  Honestly, I'm glad the first one disappeared or I'd not have realized that it wasn't 'sticking' for him!  I'd MUCH rather pay a bit more, if I get something that really helps it sink in.  I think not 'getting' math in the first few years of exposure to it could have set him up for a lot of frustration down the road.  SO.. my new walking shoes will have to take a miss till next fortnight I guess ;)

So I've spent half the evening figuring out how to actually get a links list going, and make it show up on my journal...and I put a grand total of about 4 links in it after all that work lol.  I put links in to the curriculum we're using now, and one bit we'll be using next year.  We do our school in bits & peices throughout the day.. and it really doesn't LOOK much like school because quite often we'll be out on the patio or on the computer ;)  We don't have a set schedule (no 9-10am is yadda yadda crap for us thanks) but I have a weekly plan I put together using our base curriculum..(Oak Meadow, which has worked out to only cover social studies for us lol as the rest just didn't 'fit') and slot in the math, science etc.  Most weeks we get to tick everything off even. 

This week so far we've done the last addition/subtraction revision, so it's on to new & exciting things like measurements etc.  Kiddo is much looking forward to that and keeps making off with dads tape measure to measure the world. lol   The social studies of this quarter has bored him to tears and seems pitifully light, so there may be some changes coming up sooner rather than later there!  He's reading like a mad man, and  his handwriting is improving a lot (especially if I let him write Diablo II or Luxor.. which he says are his favorite games.. even though he's never played Diablo in his life ;)   Mr.4 is working on basic numbers.. only because he insists he has to have school when brother does ;)  Picked him up a 'big kindergarten workbook' that's just huge.  His eyes lit up when he saw it.. mostly mazes & comparing, some counting & alphabet sheets.  We aren't overly serious though.. he IS just four after all ;)

For his science we've been going along with Oak Meadow.. but honestly we could do the science it contains in about 30mis a week tops.  So we started doing Mr.Q's Classic life science (there's a linky on the left), which is a FREEEE life science program for elementary age (I think 6-9yrs) that is broken up into  36 lessons that are designed to be completed weekly (based on 'doing' science 2-3days a week).  We've only just started it this week, and the topic is living vs. non living things, but so far he's really enjoying it.  The reading isn't boring and textbooky, and the writer adds a little humor which is keeping the kiddo interested.  At dinner he had to inform his dad that living things were ORGANISMS but that you can call them BIOTIC things, if you wanted to lol.  And don't forget that non living things are ABIOTIC dad.  Very important stuff says Mr.6yo!!   And of course he had to share the silly comic bit from the book as well so he could giggle more ;)    SO I think we're going to like it... being free is a total bonus!   It's an ebook that you download & print yourself (or you can just read it on the machine & print out the worksheets for eac chapter.  I went middle of the road & printed the reading & worksheets.. but left out the high colour flash chapter dividers and such.  My printer thanks me to be sure!!

We have also started work on our Spring nature table & calendar wall decorating :D   I can't share pics, as the computer & camera seem to be feuding.   Our Calendar wall is our linen cupboard door  in it's other life... I've covered it with paper so we can sticky tape & gluestick ourselves silly.  So far on it is our September calendar (made by me & Mr.6), butterflies we coloured, a Spring poem called 'I meant to do my work today'  that I printed out from online somewhere.  And we pruned some badly low hanging (dragging the ground  even) branches from our peach tree and they have moved inside to be our Spring Tree!  Looks lovely  if I do say so myself ;)

And why am I annoyed?? Because the three men (hubby & sons) that I live with watched SO much Avatarchapters.com online this past month.. that my connection has been throttled for FOUR DAYS!!  OMG the horror that is dialup!  How on earth did the world ever get on without broadband... I feel a brief technology lesson coming on lol....

Splat!  I'd just written a substantial catch up post since I've been such a slack ass but Lj ATE it!!!!  I am protesting by way of refusing to rewrite and shall just say life is busy and I didn't feel like blogging lol.  I DO feel like blogging now though, so I am going to at least do a weekly 'what's goin on in our world' post. If I remember ;)  

Well, the winter solstice was just over a week ago...and while it's chilly at night (usually around 8c or so, but it did drop to near zero last week once ;)   it's a balmy 22C outside most days!  Sometimes I really miss winter (although the only place I've ever lived with a REAL winter, was Alaska in the late 80's lol) ... but not today  *gryn*  Spent most of the morning outside with the kids pottering in the garden.  Gave the path around the house a sweep, as it was covered with palm fronds & misc debris that falls from the trees and relaxed with an iced coffee on the veranda... ok so technically it probably is a patio.. but veranda just sounds much more appealing ;)   

We've been making an attempt at veggie gardening since early March...so far the only things that are doing ok are the cherry tomatoes (3 plants with heaps that are just starting to ripen.. again I say .. WINTER??? where? lol), one rogue roma (which was in the punnets with the cherry tomatoes, and a few herbs (rosemary, parsely, chives, oregano & thyme).   We had some mixed lettuce in, and it grew really well to start with.. then totally stopped & hasn't grown a mm since mid april ... so today we had fun yanking it out & tossing it.  Then we dug the hell outta the bed to try to get the soil loosened further down, cause I'm thinking it was too compacted (sorta clayish) for the roots to go deep, and put in some seeds for cooler weather type stuff.  We put in some spinach, shallots, bok choi & cos lettuce... so here's hoping they do well!  Eventually I want to have a huge garden so that we can get most of our produce from there instead of paying the absurd prices the supermarkets want, but for now the little veggie shop on the corner is a good alternative ;)

Attempting to add a pic of our little garden (not the most recent pic, but the camera is dead so I shall have to add another after it charges ;)
  Yay, it worked!  That is our little veggie patch as of mid April... the tomato plants (on the right) are now well & truly over the tops of the stakes... must get something sturdy to make a supporting 'cage' out of for them.  The herbs are on the right & in the pots.. to the left of the tomatoes is the lettuce that just stopped growing.. it actually seems to have shrunk between then and now lol.  The rest is the spinach that we harvested for salads & such until buggies ate the remainder *grrr*       To the left you see a beach chair where one of the boys lounged whilst watching mum work int he garden lol. 

Ok.. so here I sit at quarter to midnight with heinous heartburn and unable to sleep and I flip through writers block for something entertaining.. and I find CHEESE!   Cheese goes on toast, and in toasted sammiches, and on salads (phht to the naysayer who said veggies + cheese = weird!), and on all other manner of veggies.. although on asparagus it might be odd.. and maybe not artichokes either, but this is no problem since I do not eat the latter :)   Cheese definitely goes on anything mexican or tomatoey (like that word? made it up just now :D) 

Mozzarella cheese is one cheese that just has to be cooked no matter what it goes on, otherwise it tastes sorta like a shoe smells.  But once you melt/cook it,  is pure heaven on almost anything.. especially if that anything resembles a pizza of course. 

Cheese does not go on .. asparagus or artichokes (see above), cookies, anything sweet cause that's just freakish (ok, cream cheese does not count as it is clearly the food of the gods and thus not *really* cheese).  Meat (as in cooked meat itself, not a casserole type thing) is just not the place for cheese at all,  I mean who puts cheese on a steak or a chicken breast?!  An exception is made for hamburgers obviously.   Unless those hamburgers are the cute little square, nearly bite size jobbies from Krystal's back in Georgia.. those should never have cheese because they are steamed.. and thats' just not cool with cheese as it gets all sweaty and nasty.  Prawns.. nope no shrimp & cheese *shudders*    Rice, no cheese.. unless it's a risotto then it can sneak in   ;)   And if you get cheese near my sushi I may go all samurai and get medieval on your buttocks...    

I think that just about covers it... I'm oddly in the mood for some cheesey toast now..

New bitch, new post!   It seems as if half the world isn't capable of doing what they say they do, at least when it comes to corporations.   Tonight, it's Woolworths supermarket I'm pissed at.  They call themselves 'the fresh food people'  MY ASS.   I have purchased SO many things from the local Woolies stores that were not only NOT fresh,  but were actually rancid and moldy.  This time my complaint is homebrand tortilla's.. tortilla's have a ridiculous shelf life and should be fine much longer than the 4days these were in my pantry; but despite that.. AFTER we had our butter chicken burrito's tonight my dearest sent my 6yo to hand me a tortilla as I ran their bath.. the fucker was MOLDY!  It was one of the 3left, so I, and my whole family, ate an entire meal of contaminated tortilla's before realizing it.  I am not naive or stupid enough to think that just because there was no *visible* mold on the others, that there was NO mold on them.   The duty manager at the shop I bought them from copped an earful, and in the morning the store manager will as well.. and there will be paperwork this time, whereas in the past I've been content to get a refund.    Yes, I said in the past.. would you like to see a list of all the questionable food products I've bought from the two Woolworths' stores near my home?  (HB is for Homebrand, woolies quality guaranteed budget range)

*tonights Homebrand tortilla's
*HB tinned fruit WITH MOLD INSIDE
*capsicum that was just FULL of Mold
*bagged salad mix that was way off.. the smell near knocked me down when I opened it
*HB eggs... that were absolutely ROTTEN, I cracked them open into a bowl and they were literally black.. I wish I'd taken a photo .. might have if I weren't so busy puking... OH.. this happened two weeks in a row btw
*kangaroo steaks... froze them, thawed them out and they absolutely REEKED when I opened them.. I've since noticed several packages where the shrink wrap on top is actually distended from the gasses produced as the meat goes off,  still on display in the stores!
*moldy cereal bars (not HB this time)
*freezer burnt ice cream that tasted like the gods only know what
*pasta with weevils IN the cellophane wrap on the shelf
*shredded mozzarella cheese with mold in it
*moldy HB bread (seeing a pattern here with the HB products???)

I think there may be a few more, but it's late and that's what my cold, tired brain is coming up with at the moment.  Things I've SEEN but NOT purchased... produce with fuzz growing on it, meat that was reduced to clear that was so nasty looking it wouldn't be fit for animals, meat on display with packaging ripped all to hell with freezer burn and nastiness all over it,  deli cases with flies zipping about.  Oh and those quality guaranteed HB tortillas?  apparently it's not unusual.. a very close source to me worked night fill for them and they used to see them come in so bad that you could see the colour of the mold thru the opaque white plastic packaging (hm... interesting to note that at least part of old el paso's tortilla packing is see thru... not the Homebrand, they're obviously hiding something there).

Know what really shits me off about this?  The majority of packaged products I have  had problems with have been HOMEBRAND.. products that are designed for people with already limited finances and who have to scrimp to buy groceries for their families and dont' have much choice but to buy the cheaper brand... WHY should they be forced to either pay more than they can afford, or eat food of such poor quality that it's actually DANGEROUS to their health??? 

There will be paperwork,  someone WILL contact me to let me know what actions will be taken in a timely manner, or I WILL take myself to Coles and spend my 200bucks a week THERE instead... at least until they piss me off as well. 

Gods could they GET any more hopeless???  Since May 28th, when I posted here, I have made TWO payments to the incompetant bastards and I have now gotten ONE voicemail message on my mobile, as WELL as two letters stating that you have an overdue account, call us to make payment arrangements OR this may adversely affect your credit record and result in termination of your electrical service.   So I ring them up only to be told the usual BS, it's automated & there is nothing we can do about it blah blah, just disregard it.  I told them make a note, I will be sending every piece of correspondence they send STRAIGHT into the circular file without even opening it to read the harassment within, as I have already made a damn payment arrangement AND been sticking to it!   I swear one more damn msg on my mobile & I'm ringing the ombudsman to give them a hard time again... HAD IT.

So it's been a week since I put an entry in here and things were going along uneventfully until Tuesday night.  Last weekend was my birthday... I am now close to 40 than I am to 35 *sigh*    Not that it really bothers me much,  I still look pretty young.. if you don't look TOO closely ;)   Unloaded the kidlets on the grandparents for a while & went out for sushi & an iced coffee and just generally acted like newlyweds hehehe.   Scored some pretty cool pressies, can't complain about that!  

Pretty quiet till Tuesday night,   when as I mentioned above, all hell seemed to break lose.  Well not REALLY, since I'm not a believer in hell ;)  but it certainly seemed like the forces of evil had  been unleashed on us!  I woke up EARLY Wednesday morning.. like 430am early... to hear my Dear Hubby's mobile phone screaming out its' very UNtranquil ringtone  followed by him telling the party on the other end that yeah, he got home ok.. there were only a few stitches and the ER was just deserted so no waiting.  *PERK*  WTF?  I get up to find out he nearly sliced the end of his finger off and bled all over the place and got a few stitches to hold it together... as the ER couldn't find the 'glue' (the nurse said it grows legs and walks off.. why on EARTH someone would steal wound glue is beyond me though?)   So he's pretty pathetic most of the morning and of course the environment conspires against him and he knocks that particular finger on anything & everything that gets near it lol.  Typical. 

I decided that since his whingyness was home, I'd do the grocery shopping, because he obviously wouldn't be going to work that night and could stay up to watch the boys.  Off I went to the shop  (where I had an iced coffee & won 7bucks on a cross word scratchie WOOT!)  After I got home, unloaded everything into the pantry etc... I went into our room for something..and on the way out I damn near took the door jamb off the wall with my little toe :S   (really really need a head exploding smilie for that moment) OMFG Childbirth was painful... but at least you work up to that... I might as well have been hit by a mac truck for all I knew.   The shades of purple & grey that my toe turned were pretty spectacular and the swelling left me with a little sausage where my toe belonged.   I went off to the doc today (ok I was taken since no way was I driving lol) and one look from the MD confirmed that an xray wasn't required because it was most assuredly broken *sigh*  Unfortunately the only treatment?  tape it up and stay off it!  HA... with three small boys that should be interesting.

Here is the savagery inflicted upon my person by my evil bedroom door!