It's funny how life seems to work against your best intentions. I would be the first to admit that my love for all things shiny and new does little to help our bank account or mortgage, but I've honestly been trying over the last few months to keep the gadgetry purchases to a minimum. Sure, it hasn't been that hard given that most of my luxury time has been spent on playing just
one game but I reckon I deserve points for effort.
Of course this would be the month that threw us some mandatory roof repairs, a financial screw up where I transferred a significant amount of dosh to the wrong account, a car that refused to start, obstetrician bills, a large dentist bill for a crown to replace my fractured molar and to top it off... our Topfield Set Top Box decided to break. Granted not the most financially damaging event by comparison but I'll put up with practically anything except for a threat to my personal entertainment.
My view on extended warranties has centered around the philosophy that defective products would likely break in the first year, which means that it's a fairly rare case where I pick up the extra two years offered at the check out. Kinda ironic then that the two big purchases that I opted to buy into the extended warranty have both broken down, one of which thankfully was the latest Topfield blow up. There was a moment of panic when I couldn't find the receipt from the Good Guys but I eventually pulled it out of a completely unrelated folder in our filing cabinet (perhaps it's time to get a new system). The warranty company took their sweet time processing the request which meant that we had to cope with the horror of unpausable live TV or recording ability for a good three weeks (gasp). This weekend however they finally came through and we were asked to pop down to the local store to pick up a replacement, not a Topfield but what I hope to be a far more reliable
Beyonwiz DP-Lite
The system will take some getting used to but so far it seems to be doing the job. I certainly like the improvements to the EPG and a bump to the amount of storage from 320GB to 500GB is welcome. Hopefully history won't repeat itself but I once again grabbed an extended two year warranty so we'll see if this turns into a self fulfilling prophecy.
Our other purchases this weekend have all been for the bub, and it's kind of scary how much we've gathered in a short afternoon. A colleague of Alsie's has been desperate to offload the majority of her baby gear now that her two sons have no need for rattles and wraps, so we took a drive out to their house to have a peek at what was available. In the end we pretty much picked up the whole lot for a very reasonable price, which means that our place is now filled to the brim with a subset of work tools for parenthood. These include:
- Cot
- Four wheeled super transforming stroller
- Nappy bag
- Diaper dispenser
- Baby bottle sanitiser
- Assorted colourful toys to keep Daddy and Baby entertained
I'm sure there's a good reason for it but surely there must be an easier way to design a stroller. We unfolded it when we got back home and it took the next ten minutes of straining, pushing and twisting to get the darn thing to collapse again. It was a nostalgic moment for me as I thought of my childhood Transformers (tm) toys that required a degree in Mechanical Engineering to work out.
Most of the goodies have been tucked away in the study now, but one acquisition that's made me take stock of this experience was setting up the cot in the back room. We now have a nursery, along with stuff toys that I've had for years to be passed on. It's the first of what I'm sure will be many new bits of furniture and decorations the baby's room and I can already feel the house changing into a family home.
Mum's flying in on Wednesday and this will be the first time she's seen the house since the renovations and changes. Boy is it going to seem different.