05/11/2021
Ding dong (actually our doorbell is even crazier than our one in Adelaide), another week and another birthday present for Eloise. This is the birthday that keeps on giving with more packages arriving from family in Adelaide. Lachlan even lucked out with gifts. Eloise made sure to add to her expanding card collection. During the day Eloise worked on her creative side with some painting. After Liam had finished work he took the kids for a quick walk/ jog around the local Loch. It was a nice day and they were in such a rush to leave he forgot Eloise’s shoes and Lachlan’s beanie. C’mon Dad!
Today was also the start of COP26 conference in Glasgow with ironically a large number of interesting aircraft flying in. Greta also arrived creating quite the scene at Glasgow Central Station and the protests had begun. The Greenpeace Rainbow Warrior ship with environmental activists from around the world arrived, narrowly sailing under the Erskine Bridge on its way to the climate summit.
On Tuesday the protests were gathering momentum with cops blocking bridges over the M8. However, in more local news, Lachlan had officially claimed a spot on the couch next to his big sister ready for lunch.
In the afternoon Eloise got another injection. She was up to date with the Australian vaccine program, the UK must include an additional one. Eloise took this one like a champ. She did get stuck in one of her loops saying “hurt arm, arm hurt” but that was understandable. She made sure to share her stickers with Lachlan as soon as she got back to the car.
Just before dinner on day 16 of no induction hob a descendent from Heaven appeared and it finally got fixed. This was good news for everyone: Lachlan could start trying new foods, Eloise discovered she had an appetite for Lachlan’s food, Liam could return to his diet consisting of an unhealthy quantity of pasta and Sophie was just glad she could cook what she wanted, when she wanted. Well done slow cooker, you served us well.
Tuesday also marks 100 days since we set off on this crazy adventure. The quest has been incredible so far, we are thankful we have met so many amazing people. We have tried to make the most of every opportunity, all while working out this double child thing and adapting to a completely different lifestyle. Eloise is becoming a chatty confident wee girl and can hold a conversation over the phone, always amusing. Lachlan is taking it all in and has started growing his winter coat (hair). It still feels like we flew out yesterday and we are pinching ourselves that we are actually doing this. We have found our groove and finally feel at home. It is getting darker but we are hoping the novelty of the different climate will get us through a few winters. A little someone is particularly keen for the snow.
Across the UK COVID-19 cases are still pushing 40k to 50k a day, although mostly vaccinated cases now. We try and stay alert and be as ‘COVID-19 safe’ as possible while living our normal lives. Although we have become more relaxed and somewhat desensitised by the situation, not necessarily a good thing. The way the media presents the pandemic certainly has a powerful effect on the people. It has been interesting to experience the difference over the past 100 days. It seems crazy to think we were looking up daily COVID-19 case numbers the months prior to flying out while trying to calculate the risk.
On Wednesday, Jennine came over for morning tea. This also meant more cuddles for Lachlan and someone else for Eloise to use as a climbing frame. When she was leaving Eloise made sure to shout “play again”.
Eloise has also developed a bad habit of biting poor little Lachlan. We will all be happy, relaxed, sitting about playing games and then she will randomly go up to him and give him a cheeky chomp, leaving him with a number of bruises. This is the parental challenge for this month.
On Wednesday, Nessie got arrested, damn, we were looking forward to trying to find it. In the evening the “world leaders [flew] home from COP26 summit as Joe Biden bid farewell to Scotland”. It took us 16 days to fix our induction hob but hopefully they managed to save the world in those two days.
Thursday was much of the same. Sophie and the kids arrived early for the pirate-themed Gymboree session, Eloise made sure she did not touch any of the equipment before her bestie arrived. The moment she did, Eloise grabbed her by the hand and they were off.
Meanwhile, protesters were getting creative.
In the afternoon we were walking around the local loch again, yes, we know we walk around this loch a lot. Turns out there is a secret playground we have been walking past. Eloise heard the sounds of kids and wanted to explore, she was happy to find the local slide.
This afternoon we tried the pram walk to see if Eloise would have a nap. However, “Houston, we’ve had a problem…”, Eloise’s new favourite game is trying to catch falling leaves. With leaves falling literally everywhere in Scotland, she was never going to nap.
This afternoon “more than 10,000 people, including schoolchildren, are taking part in the Fridays for Future protest”. Including “Australians [who travelled] to Glasgow to join Greta Thunberg” with “global momentum to tackle China Climate Change”.
Over these couple of weeks, the airspace restrictions are pretty tight which has upset Darryl. We figured it would be a good weekend to get away and explore Scotland. The afternoon was spent packing the car and trying to convince Eloise to only take five of her babies not six, seven, …
Over the past few weeks, we noticed that you could buy fireworks in supermarkets. Every now and then you would hear the odd one go off. This afternoon we were confused why the lines to buy fireworks were longer than usual. Turns out tonight is Guy Fawkes Night. We had heard murmurs about it, but not thought too much and had underestimated it.
Guy Fawkes Night, also known as Guy Fawkes Day, Bonfire Night and Fireworks Night, is an annual commemoration observed on 5 November, primarily in the United Kingdom. Its history begins with the events of 5 November 1605 O.S., when Guy Fawkes, a member of the Gunpowder Plot, was arrested while guarding explosives the plotters had placed beneath the House of Lords. Celebrating the fact that King James I had survived the attempt on his life, people lit bonfires around London; and months later, the introduction of the Observance of 5th November Act enforced an annual public day of thanksgiving for the plot’s failure.
Fireworks were going off in backyards from 18:00 and are expected until 23:00, except ours as we were not prepared. We decided we would have a picnic for dinner in the living room so Eloise could see the display out the window. The next challenge was putting Eloise to sleep. Eloise not napping today was a blessing in disguise, she was out for the count and luckily not bothered by the noise. It is only 20:00 at the moment, but they have been going off non-stop since 18:00 and by the sounds of it, there are a few more hours left. Bad night for a “major gas leak”.
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