Boo and Nanoo - school holiday fun

During the recent school holidays, Nanoo took Buster on a little trip down to Sydney.  They saw some famous landmarks, went to the aquarium and Sydney tower.  They even managed to have lunch with my brother.  It was a long day for the little man but he loved his special outing and from the photos Nanoo took, he looked like he was having fun.

Buster - our meal ticket

He might be pint sized, but our little man has taken an interest in a new sporting hobby - golf. 

Michael has dusted off his irons and realised they were rusty and brittle, invested in some new clubs and completed a few rounds on some local golf courses.  It had been about 15 years since he'd swung a club, so he was pretty pleased with himself when he shot a 7 over on a recent outing.

Michael's love of golf has got Buster interested in the game.  A couple of pointers from Dad and some promising form in the backyard, saw Buster receive an early birthday present - his own set of clubs, just his size.

Both he and Michael have been out to the driving range a couple of times and Michael thinks Buster's swing is relaxed and natural.  He could soon be on his way to winning tournaments and bringing in the big bucks so Mum and Dad can retire.

Wrist update

Well I'm far behind on blog updates.  I won't got in to detail on the blunders of the outpatient service and their practitioners to get this cast on.  All I will say is, I'm glad he only had a fractured wrist and not anything more serious.  I'm also glad English is my first language and I'm not afraid to speak up when something isn't right in terms of health care.

Anyway..... moving on......

Mister got his proper fibreglass cast and decided on a blue one.  He had to wear it for three weeks and by the end of that time he said it smelled like cheese.  I declined all offers to take a whiff.  He's a boy who likes cheese, who am I to question the functioning of one of his primary senses and his sniffing abilities.

When it came time to return to the outpatient centre for the removal of the cast, we were a little nervous when the cast removal implements were being placed on the bed ready for use.  We had joked with Mister that they would use a chainsaw, so our eyes widened when we saw the handsaw.

Mister took it well and said he was only a tiny bit nervous when they sawed of the cast.  He was glad to have it off and there was still some bruising around the wrist and dead dry skin.  He's still banned from sporting activities for a month or two.

Broken Mister

So this happened on Wednesday.

I get a mid morning call from Mister's school.

School:  This is just a duty of care call to let you know during sport your son hurt his left wrist and we've applied an ice pack to it.

Me:  Okay.  Thanks for letting me know.

School:  No.  You need to come and collect him.

Me:  Oh.  Okay.  I'm on my way.

So, I'm driving to the school and thinking it's only his left wrist, he's right handed.  He can still participate at school.  It's only a sprain.

I arrive at the school and Mister is sitting outside the office, with ice pack, and he looks fine and gives me a wry smile.  He tells me his class were playing AFL for sport and he had the ball and got pushed and fell.  The teacher asked him if he was alright and he said yes.  Then it was assembly, then recess and then his wrist pain really started to hurt so he went to the office.  Ice pack employed, call to mum made.

On the drive home Mister is very quiet.  He's a man of few words anyway but his silence is deafening.  He can make a fist, he can wiggle his fingers, it is painful to try and rotate, and it does look slightly swollen.  Since we live near the hospital I made the decision to swing by and have it looked at in the Emergency Department (ED) rather than call my GP and wait days for an appointment.  It's probably just a bad sprain anyway but intuition made me face the horrible hospital parking stations where you're lucky to find a car spot.  Thankfully we found a car spot straight away and headed up to the ED, where we almost got run over by a taxi that failed to stop while we were on the pedestrian crossing.   I mean, honestly!

The ED wasn't too busy, triage saw us within 10 minutes and we waited about another 15 minutes before a nurse gave him some pain relief.  We ditched his ice pack from school because his hand and fingers were starting to turn blue from the cold.  Another 10 minutes later and someone came to get us for an x-ray.   

Hello wrist fracture.  

Or for those who like the official medical terminology diagnosis - tortus fracture of the left distal radius and ulna with dorsal angulation.

We then headed back out to the ED waiting room to stay until we were called again for treatment.  Another 10 minutes and a nurse collects us.

Nurse:  What happened?  Can you do this?  Can you do that?  blah blah blah

Me:  It's a fractured wrist.

Nurse:  How do you know that?

Me:  Because we just had an x-ray and they told us.

Nurse:  Where was the x-ray done.

Me:  Here, about 10 minutes ago.

Nurse:  Great.  I'll go and have a look.

He comes back and let's us know it's a buckle fracture and explains how they happen.  Basically, the bone buckles or crushes on itself.  Which makes sense, as Mister was falling he stretched out his arm to stop the fall and his weight compressed on his wrist.  The nurse said it was nothing serious and won't impact growth plates.  Then he set about putting Mister's wrist in a cast.

This cast is just a temporary one.  We need to see the Fracture Clinic next week, where they will remove the cast, x-ray his wrist again and then fit a new fibreglass cast.  Apparently, they come in many colours.  Mister has already decided he'd like a gold or yellow coloured one so he can turn his cast into the Infinity Gauntlet from the comic books and movie The Avengers.

Finally we get home and he's still very quiet.  Nurse Minnie to the rescue.  He had Thursday off school but went back today.  He says it doesn't hurt too much.

The shame of it all is the timing.  His soccer team are playing in their first Grand Final in just over a week.  He won't be able to strap on his boots and hit the field.  Instead he'll have to sit on the bench and watch.

Will keep you updated.

Milly's room makeover

Our daughter is a hoarder.  During these past school holidays, under the guise of "let's give your room a makeover", we were really just trying to sort out all the rubbish and mess she had accumulated over the past year.  Lots of things missing were found and she culled a lot of her toys and clothes.  We splurged on some new bed linen and a desk.  She's gone from her little girl's room to a tween room.

She enjoyed the process of redesigning her room and rearranging the furniture.  Of course, the shopping for new bed sheets was her highlight.

Girl Day

Every now and then Milly requests a "girl day".  A day where she and I head out and spend time together, doing whatever (within reason) Milly wants to do.  On this particular "girl day" she wanted to go for a drive, look for whales, go to a cafe for morning tea, and visit the bookstore to purchase a book.

First on her list was curling her hair for the day.

We then drove to the beach to walk along the headland looking for whales or dolphins.  Instead we noticed a section of beach exposed due to low tide.  We'd never seen this part of the beach uncovered before so took the chance on an adventure and exploration expedition.

There were lots of rocks to climb over, rockpools to peer in, and artists setting up their easels to capture a glorious day.

Rock climbing and adventuring is thirsty work and we tried a new cafe for some donuts and drinks.

Then it was off to the bookstore for some new reading material.  Milly chose Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, and I managed to find Amelia Westlake by Erin Gough.

School photos

Farewell Fiji

It's now been one month since our Fijian holiday and all I'd like to say is "take me back".

Take me back to the blue skies, hot days and palm trees.

Take me back to the sunsets.

Take me back to the family time making memories.

Take me back to the food.

Mud crab

Tequila and Lime Prawn Fajitas

The Beach Shack restaurant

Take me back to the cocktails and mocktails.

But this holiday wouldn't have been possible without the generosity of my Dad and Tracey, who invited us to holiday with them.  Big thank you.

Our last hours were spent staring out to sea and wishing we weren't heading home to reality.  But isn't that the sign of a good holiday, not wanting to leave.  Especially the paradise we had spent a week in.  The wonderful thing to come from the holiday was it sparked an interest in travel in the kids, who are all now keen for another holiday adventure overseas.  Now we just need to win Lotto.