News from the mad house

New Blog

2009-02-11T14:21:00.002Z

For various reasons I have moved!! My new blog is http://nikkimitch.wordpress.com
not much there yet but hope to update soon :)

wrong order again - grrrrrr

2009-02-01T22:03:00.002Z

Just when I think I know what I am doing with blogger it all goes pearshapd. I cant get photos in the right order at all - the previous post has all the wrong info with the wrong photos so this time I am not even going to try you can just play a mix and match game and work out which photo I am talking about :)

This week Meg has decided she can manage steps - I keep finding her halfway up the stone steps to the garden room - she is fast too! and next minute she will be at the bottom of the main stairs standing and only holding on with one hand - she is growing up too quickly. She and ben had fun with an empty cardboard box - free toys are always the best. Ben got very excited when i said it was time to go to his dance class - he was getting his own black ballet shoes and couldnt wait. Meg and Sophie had fun at a party yesterday - Meg cleaned the village hall floor and Sophie stuffed a teddy. I tried to nick a sandwich from the party tea but Meg took it out of my hand and ate it.

The children love a 'sharing tray' for lunch and/or tea - saves on waste as they can pick what they want - was impressed at how relatively healthy this one was - Sophie made it.

Catch up

2009-02-01T21:53:00.003Z

Phew what a week - had the children off school Mon/Tues and told Mum not to come so she didnt catch it as she is away this weekend and I didn't want her to miss out by being poorly. Not too disorganised considering I didn't have her help but absolutely exhausted :) Sophie and I had fun with the new candy floss machine I have bought to use at the playgroup spring fair - can safley say it was a hit with Sophie.
Sophie helped me make Yorkshire puddings on Sunday - John was away at the races all day so when we got back from church I rushed around trying to get a roast together - Sophie is so helpful and great company too.
Thomas was really proud of this lego model - he wanted his picture taken to send to the lego magazine - but when he saw it he didn't like how he looked so made me take it again without him in it - no matter how many times I say how fantastic he is he still has low self esteem.

Sophie helped in the kitchen again on Monday - she made everyone's lunch - tuna sandwichs - and yes she is wearinbg a nightie cos she was off school sick - Thomas was worse but as she wasn't 100% and the weather was awful she stayed off too.

Guess what?

2009-01-26T09:40:00.004Z

I scrapped!!! don't know how I found time this week but I did and really enjoyed it too. For some reason Blogger is listing them without pics so no idea what order these are going in but the one of Meg is especially for Louise to show I have finally scrapped some pics before her first birthday.

Grrrr no idea what is going on with Blogger - cant get these in the right order at all - and they are naff pics too with poor crops but hey I enjoyed doing the layouts and that's all that matters right now :) Had all 4 children poorly today with coughs and colds - Meg is full of snot and coughing like a 40 a day smoker - heading for a rough night so planning an early one :)

Daily pictures 17-20th Jan

2009-01-21T20:11:00.002Z

For some reason these are in the wrong order? Firstly a terrible pic of Meg where she looks positively drunk :) followed by the one I was after - one showing her 'fangs' - she has 4 teeth now but has got the top side teeth before the middle ones so really has fangs when she smiles.

The cutest picture of Ben spontaneously kissing Meg - was so glad I had my camera in my hand to catch that one. Sophie busy scrapping at Mum's at the weekend and lastly Megan about to dive on Ben's head - she rocks forward onto her feet and almost stands already - she loves pulling Ben's hair and he doesn't seem to mind - hours of free fun to be had playing with your big brother's hair!

Don't worry it isn't real!!

2009-01-21T20:07:00.001Z

It's really hard being an orthopod's daughter - we don't have proper toys and teething rings Meg has to gnaw on a fake femur :)

Daily photos

2009-01-17T15:02:00.000Z

Next lot of daily pictures - think it'll be so much easier to see what I took if I keep up to date with collages - still trying to print daily pictures from last year and only got as far as July! Again a lot of Meg and Sophie - must try to take more pictures of the boys - so taking daily photos has already helped me see where I can change things. Sophie got her first glasses yesterday and I was worried she would no longer want her photo taken but she is happy to pose :)

Sophie's new look

2009-01-16T17:00:00.000Z

Unbelievably after the paddy on Monday when Sophie had her eyes tested and found she needed glasses she was absolutely fine when we went to pick them up today and has hardly taken them off since. She looks incredibly grown up and I am so proud of her for getting over this hurdle.

2009-01-12T11:16:00.001Z

Following a link from Jems blog here is a map of the world showing where I have been so far - thinking I was quite well travelled am dismayed to find I have only visited 8% - must get the children passports and get travelling :)

visited 19 states (8.44%)

9 on the 9th

2009-01-10T11:24:00.000Z

These are the pictures I have chosen to represent my 9 on the ninth for yesterday. A typical weekday with recycling, pumping the cellar and feeding children. The current book I am reading - a trashy novel and the time I went to bed. Sophie had some new clothes from NEXT to try on. Tom wasnt cooperating so doesnt appear :)

photo a day .........again!!

2009-01-09T13:00:00.002Z

Happy New Year everyone :)

Really enjoyed taking daily photos last year but having accidentally missed a day in September it wasnt the same and I missed several other days after that too so decided to try again this year. I also havent done anything with last year's photos yet - with all my 'ordinary' photos there are just too many and the task feels overwhelming. So this year I am going to collage every week or so and scrap that - reducing the number of photos and also chosing and numbering as I go. So far so good - first nine done. This way also helps me see I have rather a lot of pics of Megan and little of anything else - must change that! Megan is crawling at speed now so much less easy a photo subject.

Mum and I are also doing 9 photos on the 9th as it is 2009 - these will hopefully be blogged tomorrow.

Photo fun!!

2008-12-13T16:09:00.002Z

Following on from the success?? of the WI photo I decided to have a play at home with my studio lights with less than fantastic results. I was asked by the local WI to take their yearly group photo this week - one of the most frightening experiences of my life - 36 middle aged and elderly women with one very scary 'boss' - 35 copies have been ordered though so must have done something right! Not a business woman though so charged peanuts and giving any profit to playgroup - I'll never make a business out of this.

Decided to try to take a photo of my 4 - Meg was surprisingly cooperative having just woken from arefreshing sleep, Thomas was great, Sophie was moody and sensitive having fallen at ballet this morning and knocked her front teeeth - one will be out very soon. Benjamin was a typical 4 year old and in the only half decent shot he is staring at the TV screen behind my shoulder - they were not up for trying anymore :( The set up was not ideal either - there just is not enough room with all our stuff and people kept tripping over wires etc when I tried to set up while Meg was asleep so I had to move it and try again with her awake. Might try again tomorrow - but here are 2 I quite like - even managed a bit of editing :)

Journal Your Christmas

2008-11-26T13:44:00.002Z

Have signed up for Shimelle's Journal Christmas online class.....WHY??....HOW??? do I think I am going to find time and energy to do this?? - last night I was woken at 1,3 and 5 by Meg - she refuses a bottle and just wants to feed feed feed from me - Sophie has been poorly and is more sensitive that usual, Benjamin is full of beans and questions from the moment he wakes until bed - he woke this morning with the statement "Remember Mummy operation is rubbish" after we got rid of the game because it really is rubbish!! Thomas is..........................Thomas :) But I felt especially at this busy time of year it is important to give myself ME time - just a little every day to keep a smile on my face and this seemed the perfect way to do it. I may not keep up, I may not even finish it but I am going to have FUN - and that is why I am doing it :)

7 already!!!

2008-11-23T20:50:00.004Z

Went for a lovely family walk last weekend before everyone got poorly :( - Tom enjoyed finding the deepest muddiest puddle he could and jumped in it repeatedly then wondered why he had wet feet ! The night before his birthday - the traditional sleeping picture - in his new bedroom but still with his old covers as I hadnt Ben 10 decorated it yet - did that while he was at school on his birthday - think he was pleased - he was certainly happy to see the floral lightshade go.

Tom didn't want a cake - he asked for a Vienetta with candles - easy and tasty with no leftovers - perfect!

Feeding Meg would be easier and less messy if she didn't put her thumb in after every mouthful.

We had a Pinata yesterday as part of the 'party' Tom had invited 2 friends for the afternoon - they all enjoyed beating the living daylights out of the cardboard model until the sweets spilled out - Sophie was the hardest hitter - Ben sort of tickled it :)

Solids

2008-11-16T18:57:00.003Z

Had forgotten how messy feeding is when first starting solids!! so far we have had banana, apple, pear, carrot and butternut squash - the last two got everywhere and stained but she seemed to enjoy them. We are feeding with two spoons as she insists on grabbing one!

Back from hols!!

2008-11-02T16:36:00.004Z

For some reason Blogger has mixed up the order of the photos I uploaded - not helped by me trying to do it quickly with meg screaming and Tom watching ben 10 on youtube loudly beside me!! First Ben very cold in a park in Aberdeen Then the three older ones listening carefully to a presentation in the rock pools at Deep Sea World - we had great fun there and Tom was very animated and enjoyed it - great to see :)

Some very cold sheep outside james and Lynsey's house - we had a lovely lunch there when we finally made it out of the car - the wind was so strong it was difficult to get the doors open. James and Lynsey have made such a fantastic job decorating their house it is unrecognisable - especially love the living room wallpaper - soooo cool - they have great taste :)

This is the park we visited - notice noone else was mad enough to brave the cold despite the great play equipment it was empty :)

Sophie wrapped up warm and still smiling

Even the birds were cold

We got snow the next day which made Tom's holiday - he and Sophie had fun - Ben wasnt so sure it was too cold

Mum wanted a picture with all her grandchildren - this is the best I could manage - lewis was straight in from school but happily got changed - posed without moving a muscle :) shame some others weren't quite so cooperative but not bad

Wrong order again - Meg had her first solids today - she wasnt that thrilled - her thumb was more interesting but she managed about a teaspoon full

Poor car died at Gretna - had to be towed home :( waiting til Monday to get it into the garage to see if it can be fixed or if the damage is terminal

Happy halloween in Perth - we managed a couple of houses but as they were old friends by the time we had stopped for a chat Sophie fell asleep - still they looked good in their costumes and Tom said it was 'the best halloween ever' - easily pleased

And the cousins - Ben is scowling cos he didnt get to hold Megan

Weekly update!

2008-10-19T19:33:00.003+01:00

What an exhausting week :) or two :) When we went to Mum's for tea a couple of weeks ago Meg was still in her pyjamas - luckily she doesnt mind as she was cosy and nobody knew as she had a snowsuit on top as it was soooo cold. She loves being chatted too and does her fair share of chatting back now - giving Granny Pat lovely smiles and me plenty of photo opportunities.

Her skin has been worse than ever and really disturbing her sleep - BUT we saw a fantastic doctor who prescribed the perfect cream and it is dramatically better and she is a happier baby for it - this was a bad day ....... before the cream.... Tom decided to be brave and try having his stabilizers removed - he needs a new bike his legs are getting too long - all the bigger bikes cant have stabilizers fitted so he really needs to get to grips with riding - he tries really hard but just doesnt have strong legs and finds coordinating movement difficult - he perserveres though......

Sophie agreed to have one stabilizer removed for the moment - she is pretty wobbly but was determined to do it.....

Ben and I had great fun making a rocket and some aliens. The rocket started as a house and we were going to make a road and several houses for his toy cars - then it became a science museum and finally a rocket. We had fun making potato aliens and flying the rocket round the garden. Then we made a papier mache moon surface which 6 days later is still sodden because I left Ben unattended while i dealt with the Tescos delivery and he got carried away with the wallpapaer paste!! had fun though :)

Sophie had her Promise Party at Rainbows - unfortunately her uniform did not arrive util the following day so she was the only one in 'normal' clothes but she coped well with that, she remebered her promise perfectly and had a beaming smile on her face throughout. Ben loves these glasses of granny pats she bought them when she was teaching and needed old sunglasss etc for a project - he has to be persuaded not to wear them out of the house he loves them so much!!

Unfortunately ben was poorly for Meg's Christening and so not cooperative but hopefully our photographer (James!!) got a couple of shots.

I enjoyed taking a few of Meg with her beautiful skin (thanks again Eileen!!) and took advantage of James having her set up with Lynsey holding a reflector - I am sure James version will be much more professional but I like the few snaps I got of the day.

Tom was on top form enjoying mucking around in the leaves - didnt manage to get a decent shot of Sophie - she wasnt cooperative and has been poorly today so now I know why.

Playgroup

2008-10-12T17:47:00.001+01:00

At Ben's playgroup now they have individual learning journey books for staff to complete with what they ahve done and learnt - a way to keep parents up to date with their child's development. Parents are encouraged to put photos in from home too but I didn't want to fill the book up with photos so created this collage of Ben from the last 6 weeks - he was thrilled with the result and we will be sticking it in his book tomorrow :)

young artist!!

2008-09-28T18:05:00.002+01:00

Thomas often doesnt get his school work finished and when he does it is full of crossing out, scribbles and mess - the ideas are there but he struggles to get them down on paper. This week they have been looking at the Funnybones books and he has had to write his own Funnybones story and make a book cover - I was amazed at what he managed to do and made sure he knew how impressed I was with his art work - Ben has asked for a copy for his wall!! sweet!

Photos and family fun!

2008-09-26T14:29:00.003+01:00

Having fun doing another of CJ's creative photography courses - really find them good for giving me inspiration and an excuse to ask the children to let me take even more pics. Ben needed bribing with painting but had fun taking shots while he worked.

Trying to get all three to cooperate at the same time was less than easy but still got a couple of shots I enjoy even if I did miss the course deadline for uploading - the second made CJ smile :)

Went into the boys bedroom in the morning to find Sophie reading to Ben - so sweet - and Tom is now regularly doing Ben's bedtime story and really enjoying reading to him.
Ben and I did some baking - he wasn't sure about cracking the eggs and it ended up in his hair, on the walls, floor and cooker but the cakes were delicious so that is ok!

Molly obliged with a well timed yawn !

Sat in the front garden with Sophie and Meg hoping to take pics of passers by for the course - hoping maybe someone on horseback - nobody walked by :( had fun taking shots of the girls instead and some insects :)

We have been playing a lot of board games recently as the children have been unwell adn the weather pants - Splashy the Whale is a big hit !!

Ben provided the perfect excuse to sit on a bench and people watch in harrogate yesterday - I was able to get the three photos I needed for the course without looking too conspicious.

Sophie kindly posed for the candid shots - she is eating the first apple picked from her tree - the tree is called FIFI - forget-you-not!
She enjoyed holding Meg in the sling for a walk round the garden - Sophie is surprisingly strong for a 5 year old!!
At playgroup today Ben spotted his best friend who has left playgroup to go to school - they waved at each other and shouted messages from their repective playgrounds - sad :( I know Ben misses him but he is making new friends now thank goodness and really having fun at playgroup - I was Mummyhelper today and he used Megan for show and tell and delighted in telling his friends that she does 'smelly poos!!'

holiday highlights

2008-09-08T15:11:00.003+01:00

Grandma is getting withdrawal symptoms from my lack of blogging - havent taken many pictures since we got back as life has been too hectic - so here are a few holiday highlights to keep her going :) Had planned to have some carefully edited photos to show but just not enough hours in the day so these are all - bar the last - straight from the camera - some taken by mum - ie the ones I am in or my camera is :)

Ben enjoyed borrowing my camera - he also used Sophie's so we have lots of pictures of the ground and people's bottoms - just because they are at his head height I think?? Mum took this one of him zooming in on the grass :)

A little reminder for Grandma of the ride she enjoyed so much at Paulton's park - a great day out was had by all even if she spent the rest of it looking a little green :)

The 4 rascals in the forest - took the same shot at the same spot last year so tried again including Meg - Ben didnt cooperate as well this year no matter how hard mum and I tried but we still managed to get this shot :)

Took loads of closeups of Sophie looking gorgeous.

Had great fun on a windy day at milford onsea - Mum sheltered with Meg while the rest of us braved the beach to throw stones. Tom enjoyed a game of chicken with the sea - Ben copies everything Tom does so he tried too but forgot to run from the waves and got very wet - being a photographer I took pictures rather than try to save him!

Meg having a nap at Grandma's after a tiring time watching the olympics.

Hatchet Pond (2nd visit mum :))

Tom on the rare occasion he let me take a picture without a silly face.

Sophie posing again.

Didnt manage to get any decent pictures of the girls at the wedding as was busy feeding Meg and sorting out Ben so luckily Sophie agreed to pose in the cottage garden for me.

And a couple of pictures from home - Ben being lovely with Meg.

And finally the 'ugly baby' picture - long story not worth repeating - I am really pleased with this shot and think megan is gorgeous - but I may be a little biased :)

Natalie's wedding

2008-08-24T14:14:00.005+01:00

It was my cousin Natalie's wedding last weekend. Once Meg had finished feeding I enjoyed taking some photos as the bride, bridesmaids etc looked beautiful. I was quite pleased with some of the photos and planned to spend some time in photoshop improving them until I saw what James had taken - his photos are just FANTASTIC and make mine snapshots in comparison http://www.jameslp.com/Blog/ - BUT - I also know why James is able to take such great photos and I cant and also I got a shot he didnt :). He didn't have 4 children to take care of at the wedding, he didnt have a baby to feed, he has a fantastic new lens, he has time to spend editing his photos, he knows what he is doing in Photoshop because he has had time to
learn ........................................................................and he also has TALENT by the bucketload. He is hoping to use photography as a new career and if the photos from this wedding are anything to go by I think he'll make a great success of it. Wonder if he does Christenings???
A few of my snaps anyway - first the bride.
The pageboys in conference.

Josie looking gorgeous.
Cute pageboy - Ben thought he was hilarious and hasn't stopped talking about him yet.
Building with Jenga bricks on the lawn.

Bride and groom walking towards the photographer.
The Herricks.

And finally the shot James cant get no matter how good he is!!!!

I have loads of other holiday photos to share but they will have to wait as Meg has woken - again (or rather Ben has woken her :()

WHY???????

2008-08-01T15:32:00.002+01:00

Seemed like a really good idea at the time - splatter painting outside then wsh it off in the paddling pool. Tom and Sophie didnt want to join in so I just got things ready for Ben - then they changed their minds - all joined in - got very carried away and got covered in paint!! had fun though and all the clothes are already washed and luckily all the paint came off - phew!!!

Grandparents visit

2008-08-01T15:19:00.003+01:00

Had a brilliant weekend with the three grandparents. john bought the most enormous pool - too big to be called a paddling pool - it took all day to fill but it was soooo worth it the children and a fantastic time and Sophie could even swim it was so deep. Once the children were out and it was a bit safer the adults had a paddle too as it was so hot.

Meg had several outfits on today - this was one of my favourites.

Tom and John camped in the garden - before they went to bed they toasted marshmallows - Tom got burnt twice but was very brave. They lasted most of the night in the tent but came in around 530am as the ground was too hard!!
Meg modelling one of her many hats!

Tescos sent us a '5-a-day' chart which Sophie took very seriously for the first few days. She and Tom eat a lot of fruit anyway (Ben doesnt ) but she made a point of having her 5 different colours within about half an hour of getting up each day so she could put her stickers on the chart - the novelty has already worn off!
Meg in my favourite outfit again - made a bit of a mess of uploading the photos so they are not in the right order - ooops

Meg having a cuddle in the shade with Granny Pat.

Ben paddling in the sandpit/paddling pool - we didnt realise until we took the cover off quite how much water can get in.
Meg in her first outfit of the day - a cute little number from GAP. have just been through some more of Sophie's clothes as Meg is growing so fast (despite not gaining weight) - so many of the clothes are looking old and worn - many were secondhand for Sophie - so unfortunately I will need to shop for new stuff - what a hardship :)

The children soaked John several times over the weekend - it wasnt always safe to try to catch it on camera as I got soaked too.

Grandma and Megan.

Photos of me!!!!!

2008-08-01T15:11:00.003+01:00

Haven't been able to get blogger to work properly recently so huge back log of photos I want to get on!! Tom finally got his good school report present after losing his remote control airplane within 20 minutes. he was much happier with a megablocks dinosaur and gargoyle that he swaps the pieces around with others in his collection - much better present.

While he was at Toysrus John bought 4 new enormous water pistols 9dont ask!!!) Sophie managed but when full of water it was just too heavy for poor Ben!

Sophie and Ben had fun painting in the garden.

We finally planted out the sunflowers the children grew from kits Grandma sent at Easter - bit late so they are pretty tiny - no prizes for tall sunflowers here this year but looks like they may get flowers and the children are happy.

Let ben and Sophie lose with my camera again - quite pleased with Sophie's results - nice to be in the pics for a change :)

Had to post this shot of Thomas - he is just so fantastic with Megan - really brings out his gentle side.

Newby Hall

2008-07-29T19:40:00.002+01:00

The first day of the holidays was a trip to Newby Hall with Granny Pat - we somehow managed to not go here at all last year so it was a real novelty. The boys had fun playing in a ditch while we ate a picnic - they both had muddy bottoms before we even got into the park.
We enjoyed the ride on the train - Ben didnt enjoy waiting and very loudly made sure everyone knew this - he was fine once we were on and enjoyed waving to Granny pat who stayed behind to look after Megan who was a star all day.

Sophie really enjoyed the new fountains - we were sad to see the old paddling pool gone but the fountains were fun too - Ben enjoyed them Tom was less sure.

Thomas devoured his enormous icecream and then ate Ben's leftovers too.
Bit of arm swinging in the long border.
Sophie smelling the flowers but she refused to pose near the beautiful roses as she once fell in our rosebed and has never forgotten being grabbed by so many thorns.

Last day of school

2008-07-29T19:34:00.002+01:00

Aaaarrrggggh the summer holidays are here - we are one week in and I am already tearing my hair out although I was sure I wouldnt. Tom and Sophie are not particularly well so that does not help.
Tom was quite happy on the last day of school but Sophie was shattered and moody as the picture shows.

Tom was determined to get his uniform as dirty as possible - and succeeded! Sophie brightened up after tea and was a different child thank goodness.

funfunfun!!!

2008-07-13T21:31:00.002+01:00

Cant believe it has been so long since I last blogged - sorry Grandma :) Life is pretty chaotic here at the moment so really looking forward to the school holidays. Many parents dread the weeks of having the children at home but despite the inevitable bickering I am looking forward to spending some more relaxed time with them rather than rushing out of the door to school everyday - ask again a week in and see if I still feel the same way :)

Ben is loving spending time with Megan - he sings to her and loves to do 'This little piggy' she really squeals with delight and he loves the fact that she responds now.
Took all the children to Toysrus yesterday to buy 'good school report toys' . And Megan got a 'being a dream baby toy' !! Ben chose a Kungfu panda - he hasnt seen the film and doesnt really know anything about the character but was adamant it was the toy he wanted - i was dubious especially when I saw the price but all 3 children have had a lot of fun and laughter with him already so I suppose it was ok - it certainly made Ben smile. And was better than Tom's toy - the poor boy had a fantastic report - despite his recent stresses he is doing 'above expectaions' or 'significantly above expectations' in all areas except his handwriting which is inline with expectations (better than both parents though :)) - he and John chose a remote controlled airplane - took it to the field in the village to fly it and came back after 20 minutes having lost it over a hedge - will have to buy him something else.

Sophie knew she wanted a scooter she had seen advertised - it has pink lights which flash up the sides - she plans to ride it from the car into school each day - so I get the pleasure of struggling back to the car with it and the pram - she deserves it though as her report was also great although it did describe her as being a quiet child which I felt a little unlikely :)

We spent a lot of today in the garden making the most of the good weather. John is very hungover after the schhol 'summer bash' last night - he insists it was something he ate but as he missed the food because he and a few other dads slipped off to the pub I think that is unlikely. It was the first time I had left Megan for an evening- with Granny Pat so i could relax knowing all would be fine but even so I kept checking the mobile incase she had called as I knew she would need at least one feed while I was gone and I wasnt sure how well she would take the bottle even though it was my milk. Needless to say all was fine and we got back around 1230 to her sleeping soundly - dancing was a little uncomfortable towards the end of the night but apart from that I was able to totally relax knowing all 4 children were being looked after and had a great night - thanks Mum :):).

Tom was fascinated by a beetle he found. Sophie helped me with some gardening - finally getting some veg in way too late but better than nothing - I am amazed how grown up she looks in this photo - not my little girl any more although she still managed a major paddy today :(

It wasnt that warm but the slightest sign of sunshine and they ask for the hose - they had great fun soaking each other but also cleaned the patio for me in preparation for the Pearsons visiting this week.

Tom had a lovley gentle chat with Megan.
Then Sophie decided to pour water down the slide to see if she would go faster - she did!! and shot off the end so fast it was hard to get a decent photo - Ben tried to copy her but let go off the bucket insteand of pouring the water - the bucket hit Sophie and that was the end of the fun!

Smiler :)

2008-06-23T14:47:00.002+01:00

Just taken Megan outside for a few photos before the school run - laid her on a white sheet on the trampoline out of George's way and she loved it really playing to the camera and smiling away - what a star :) changed to black and white as her skin is red and spotty again :( but otherwise not edited as rushing out the door.

100th post!!!!

2008-06-21T08:20:00.003+01:00

Megan is smiling a lot these days so actually managing to get a few pictures :) not the best technically but LOVE the expression :)

And for those nagging for pics of me here's two Ben took for me using my SLR (gulp!!) yesterday.

I had fun playing with dof and Megan's feet in the garden.
Thursday was sports day at the children's school - Tom and Sophie were in the same team as they have teams with children from all classes representing different countries - mine were in Canada - they put so much effort into it - Tom got a ball in the basket and Sophie came second in the running. Their team also came top and so did their house 'Matthew'. Ben tried to join the toddlers race but they started before he was ready which caused a bit of a paddy but thankfully he got over it very quickly. Megan had a quick feed at the beginning then slept once Granny Pat had rocked the pram enough for her - and as Ben managed to find some new friends to play with I was able to leave Granny Pat looking after Megan and concentrate on getting some photos of my 2 and another girl whose mum didn't have a camera. all straight from camera as life is too hectic for editing right now :)

Photo overload!!

2008-06-16T18:35:00.004+01:00

Just returned from a fantastic weekend at Center Parcs - went to the Sherwood Forest one to make the most of the children having Fri and Mon off school for teacher training. Granny Pat came too which was great as with 4 children another pair of hands is always needed and Meg is feeding really frequently again so I was happy to have someone to natter to. John was able to get time off work so could relax and enjoy himself too. First a couple of pics of Meg from last week - thankfully her skin has almost cleared up so I am able to take and share photos again :)

She is always content in Granny Pat's arms - shame she has to go home sometimes to recuperate from the exhaustion of being with my brood!

Sophie and Thomas have improved so much in their swimming especially in their confidence so are able to enjoy the pool so much more. Ben is frighteningly confident - fearless almost which worried John!!

Megan has started to be colicky and unsettled but is also starting to real smile and take note of who is talking to her - she slept really well - all the fresh sir helped - she couldn't go swimming as had no vacs yet but was happy to watch from the side with me feeding or having a cuddle with Granny Pat.

Being in Sherwood Forest Tom was keen to get a bow and arrow - he seemed quite a natural with it which was good as I feared he would get frustrated if he couldn't do it.

We had tea one night at the pancake house - Sophie's was called Chocolate Heaven so Ben named his Milk Heaven - appropriate for him :)

Thomas enjoyed his horrible looking blue drink - tried not to think too much what the effect of all the colourings could be - he was fine of course :)

He is loving the reaction he gets from Meg now - of all the children he is the gentlest with her and she seems quite content when she hears his voice.

Sophie enjoyed getting so close to nature - rabbits, squirrels and loads of birds.

I loved seeing this woodpecker at the nature centre - hoped to get a better photo but the hide was busy and I couldnt change view point - enjoyed seeing the birds though.

Sophie and Granny Pat had a good look, Ben stayed for and while but Thomas didnt go in he was too busy following the rubbings trail.

John enjoyed looking for fish in the various bits of water.

A fantastic weekend leaving us all exhausted but happy and with a mound of washing to be done :)

Gone fishin'

2008-06-08T08:55:00.002+01:00

Had a great day yesterday at a children's trout fishery near Grassington - long drive to get there but through fantastic countryside with magnificent views so that wasn't too much of a problem. The children all really enjoyed the fishing and all caught fish - Ben wasnt keen to hold his but he did catch one. Thomas and Sophie had no problems posing with theirs.

Sophie had quite a conversation with hers !!

Thomas finally persuaded Ben to touch a fish.

We are eating them for lunch today - they all love fish and had some yesterday at the cafe too - good healthy weekend for a change. Sophie must be the only 5 year old who presented with a plate of rainbow trout and chips eats all the fish and leaves the chips!!

I enjoyed the fishing too but also enjoyed the opportunity to take loads of photos (for a change!!) Megan was fantastic - slept peacefully in the fresh air then had a relaxed feed while the children played at the adventure playground. We also had to have enormous icecreams - a lovely day :)

Megan

2008-06-06T17:59:00.002+01:00

Poor Megan - her face became really sensitive at about 2 weeks but then for the last week or so it has also been infected and so sore for her - took her to the GP on Monday and have been using antibiotic cream since and it is improving a lot but she still doesn't look exactly photogenic which is really frustrating as I so want to take lots of photos of her - so have been concentrating on focusing on toys and keeping her face OOF in the background and shots of hands and feet.

Granny Pat enjoyed having a play with my SLR to help me get this shot - will have a play in photoshop to change the crop slightly and may change to black and white when I get the chance but really pleased with the initial photo - so glad mum 'gets' scrapbooking and photography too as it is great to get some baby shots with me in them as well :)

Megan is really focusing now and seems to respond to voices especially mine and Granny Pat's - we sound so alike I bet it is a bit confusing for her at times when the same voice seems to be coming from 2 directions :)

Lotherton Hall

2008-05-30T18:20:00.005+01:00

Had a great day out at Lotherton Hall with Granny Pat - Sophie enjoyed a lolly.

absolutely loved the flying fox despite a couple of accidents :)

Megan was a star and slept most of the time but fed well too.

Granny Pat bought Sophie the biggest icecream ever!! - she didnt finish it but Thomas helped out.

Ben had a couple of turns on the flying fox too - he was fine when I ran along beside so decided to try and get a photo - this was just before he fell off - oooops!! - he was fine thank goodness and seemed to bounce.

Ben and Sophie had fun with the funny mirror.

Thomas on the flying fox.
At the end we went to the little fair and Thomas bravely climbed the huge bouncy slide - when Sophie and ben saw how much fun he was having they wanted to do it too - took a lot of persuasion to get them off.

Some of the birds were a bit scabby and uncared for looking which was sad - this was one of the more attractive ones but even it decided to preen it's tail feathers when I tried to take a picture - had to wait ages for it to lift it's head away from it's bottom :)

Bank Holiday Fun!!!

2008-05-27T15:19:00.004+01:00

Wow - exhausted after a fun packed weekend with the Grandparents :) - Sophie was busy cleaning pigeon poo off the climbing frame - she is such a great helper - wish the boys would copy her there would be no housework left for me to do!!

Next she got the hose out and cleaned all the sticky sap and leaves etc off Granny Pat's car so she could see to drive today.

Ben had fun jumping with Grandad and wore him out as he has too much energy and wanted to go on forever.
Grandad then showed his skills in hair plaiting but it didnt meet Sophie's high standards - she is getting sooo fussy!! and has started putting her own bunches in.

Tom enjoyed cuddles and chats with Grandma.

We set the wigwam up and after a disastrous snack time when George demolished the wigwam and ate all the snack while noone was looking we solved the problem with snack in boxes - the wind picked up and blew the wigwam over but they still had fun.

Daddy made the mistake of lying in the grass for a rest so the children jumped on him - without any prompting from me (honest !!)

Megan was just adorable all weekend - fed, slept, pooed and then smiled for the first time - such a star :) she also slept so well at night - 10-2am and 3am-7am last night - fantastic !!

She had her first bottle of expressed milk at the end of last week and took it from Granny Pat without a moment's hesitation - just need to find time to express again before she forgets how easy it is.

She had a 'Sendall' weekend wearing the dress that Hilary and Alan sent her on Saturday and the one they sent Sophie when she was born on Sunday - she looked soooo cute in both - I am loving letting Sophie chose her clothes and it makes a change putting her in nonpink outfits too :)

My 2 girls looking gorgeous - how lucky am I ???

Big catch up!!

2008-05-09T18:44:00.002+01:00

Been a bit busy recently (lol) so not blogged for ages. Sophie got a certificate in house point assembly this time - for 'always being ready to answer a question' think that is a polite way of saying she talks a lot :)
Megan Elizabeth finally decided to be born - she weighed a whopping 10lb 8 oz and looks just like Sophie!
This photo was taken on the ward at 12 hours old - unfortunately the ones on labour ward need a lot of photoshopping as John forgot to use the flash in the heat of the moment.

She is soo strong and already holding her head herself.

Pretty good during the day but liking to party all night and HATES the moses basket despite the lovely pink bedding. She has such long feet and toes.

Planned a photoshoot today - she cooperated for a few minutes then wanted feeding again - fun though so will try again next week.

Got some gorgeous flowers from Joy and Mitch today - love being so spoilt :)

before things get too manic!!!

2008-04-29T11:46:00.002+01:00

Quick blog update before things hopefully get manic round here - seeing midwife at 2pm tomorrow and hoping she'll work her magic and kick start labour :):) Ben is still spotty - well in himself and sleeping at last but not keen to go to playgroup or do much other than watch TV - did manage to get him to do some painting today but he is still saying 'be careful with me cos I'm poorly' - sweet!!

Thomas made me a very proud Mummy by being presented with a certificate during Housepoint Assembly - for 'great attitude to all he does' Sophie was very proud of him and I think even he realised what a big thing it was :)
Sophie went to her idea of a dream party on Sunday - 10 girls at a pamper parlour - she had a foot spa - nails painted, hair done and makeup followed by a chocolate fountain - heaven !!

The tiny caterpillars that arrived a few weeks ago grew HUGE and finally appeared from their chrysalis as beautiful butterflies - we kept them for a few days to watch them and then enjoyed releasing them in the garden - have seen a painted lady butterfly in the garden this morning - wonder if it is one of ours??

Perfectly Pink!!

2008-04-22T19:29:00.002+01:00

We had a very pink day today celebrating Sophie's birthday - she was well enough to go back to school to share a bag of lollipops then came home to presents, birthday tea and My Little Pony cake (shop bought again cos I just dont have the enrgy!) Thankfully Buttercup has so far decided not to share her sister's birthday - tomorrow would be fine though if you are listening!

Update for Grandma :)

2008-04-03T19:50:00.002+01:00

Tom loves his new top - it has already been worn washed and back in the wardrobe a few times and is definitely a hit :)
Sophie decided not to have her haircut with us this time - she wants to grow out her fringe so is alternating between wearing it clipped back or falling right over her face or a cross between the two - I am looking forward to it being long enough to tuck behind her ears :)

Bump is getting enormous yet I can still reach to paint my toenails so cant be too bad - doc at the hospital last week was certainly happy that it is an average sized baby thank goodness. Had great fun doing a couple of seminaked arty photoshoots - not ready to share those yet though lol :)

Easter fun!!

2008-03-26T15:15:00.002Z

Easter was slightly different this year with a lovely snow fall to play in. The children had great fun pelting John and called him the SNOW MONSTER as an excuse to really get him!!

The snow bunny still managed to visit but left the eggs in a pile complete with footprints in the snow rather than hiding them :)

Proud Mummy Moment

2008-03-15T11:41:00.003Z

Being pretty rubbish at updating my blog recently - sorry!! - still managing daily pictures but today have decided to blog some of Tom's school work. It was parents evening on Thursday and he and Sophie are doing fantastically while at the same time managing to enjoy being children :)

Tom's teacher said she had to rush into the staffroom to show the other teachers this bit of writing she was so pleased with it - apparently when Tom showed her he said it was the first series! He is getting such pleasure out of reading and writing it is wonderful to see.

Ben's face

2008-02-25T19:29:00.002Z

Today's smile is easy - playing with Ben taking photos asked him to make certain faces - here's what he came up with :)

ANGRY CONFUSED
HAPPY
SAD
EXCITED

Made me smile and him too when he looked at the photos. Will catch up on the rest of the missed days tomorrow when it is light as we have lost light in the study again and typing is tricky

Smile catchup

2008-02-20T13:35:00.003Z

Been a few days but still smiling :) On Friday we did some baking - to save arguments the children had a tray each so we ended up with 36 cupcakes. We had great fun decorating them until Ben and Tom discovered the shortcut of squeezing the icing directly into their mouths bypassing the cake completely - much quicker but very messy!!

On Saturday Mum and I took them to the cinema to give John some peace to get a presentation ready although judging by the few lines he had written when we got back I am pretty sure he watched sport for 3 hours - the funny thing is he thinks I dont know :):) We saw The Water Horse - which all 3 really enjoyed - it was Ben's first visit to the cinema so he asked lots of loud questions :)

On Sunday we had fun with glue and made spoon monsters from a kit Ben had got for his birthday - great fun adn as there were 4 spoons in the pack I got to make one too.

Think the feathers tickled Sophie's nose :)

Ben is still a milkaholic - makes me smile the pleasure he gets out of a simple cup of milk :)

In an attempt to get Ben to even put a carrot stick in his mouth I encouraged Tom and Sophie to pretend to be Sabre Tooth Tigers - they had great fun and it worked - for a split second there was a raw vegetable in Ben's mouth - he didnt bite it and it wasn't there long enough even for a photo but he did try :):)

Finally completed the longest tag ever!!

2008-02-15T11:39:00.001Z

Where were you born? Hythe, New Forest
Middle name: Anne
How old will you be this year? 37
Nicknames: Faggot – from my brothers when I was a child – hated it then hate it now
Are you taller than your mother or father? Taller than my mum – isn’t everyone??
Do you cry often during movies? only when pregnant
What is your biggest pet peeve? waste – wasted food, wasted money, wasted time
Favorite colour: navy blue
Favorite foods: chocolate and at the moment lemon curd
Favorite restaurants: don’t get out much L Crab and Lobster in Asenby is pretty good tho
Favorite beverage: kenco white coffee
Favorite cold cereal: oats and more almond
Favorite smells: freshly baked bread
Favorite time of day: NOT mornings or 4.30 – 6.30 – any other time!!
What brand of shampoo/conditioner do you use? whatever is on offer
Favorite make-up products? moisturizer – don’t use much else
How many pillows do you sleep with? 2 usually but 3 at the moment as heartburn is crap
Do you play an instrument? violin, viola, piano
Have you ever been skinny dipping?yes but now I chunky dunk
Did you do any sports in High School? not if I could help it – hockey and netball oh and curling!!
What was the last movie you saw in the theater? cant remember – it’s been so long
What is your favorite article of clothing? my black furry coat
What is your dream vacation? Northumberland – with the children
What was your first impression of your spouse? cute bum!
If you were an animal what would you be? anything that hibernates
What is your favorite "me- time" activity? Scrapping and photography
Favorite TV shows: Eastenders, casualty, Mistresses
What is your dream car? one that runs on free fuel
What is one of your weaknesses?anything sweet
What do you fix for dinner when there's nothing to fix? pancakes
If you could live in a different decade/era which one would it be? 1850 but with money
What is the emotion you feel the most? happiness
Do you consider yourself outgoing? no
What is something you are constantly working on? staying calm
Any hidden talents? probably not
What is a word or phrase you overuse? NO
What was the hardest thing that happened to you this past year? anytime the children are ill
What is the best thing that happened to you this past year? getting pregnant again
What is one thing you hope to accomplish this year? peace in this household at least
The best piece of advice you learned this past year? SLOW DOWN

not planning to tag anyone as everyone has been 'done' Lynsey - Louise tagged you on her blog :)

Trip to Bolton Abbey

2008-02-14T15:51:00.002Z

Yesterday we had a fantastic day at one of my favourite places - Bolton Abbey. We started with the woodland walk - another on Tom's 'to-do-in-half-term-list' The children took their cameras too so we all had fun taking photos of each other :)
Tom found a big stick and wanted to measure it so we found a stick about 10cm long and he counted in 10s - all my children seem to love numbers :)

Granny Pat took one of her infamous 'no children' pictures - her camera has quite a delay so often by the time it actually takes the shot the children have run on and the photos is of trees and nothing else - this has happened quite a few times now and still makes the children laugh :)

We managed to get a couple of half decent shots of the 3 together before Tom started pulling silly faces

Once the annoying duck frightening boy had left we enjoyed feeding the ducks, seagulls and crows while we had a nice picnic. We didnt manage to get a picnis table as despite being February it was such a nice day the place was packed ! so we sat in the boot of the car instead and the children sat on the boxes of books that I luckily hadn't got around to unpacking yet.

Sophie enjoyed splashing me :(

Tom decided to throw boulders in and was enjoying himself until he fell in :)

But even though the water was freezing he wouldnt get out and carried on playing for ages. Didnt think I would need a change of clothes for him so he had to go back to Granny Pat's in his pants - Ben fell in too but was able to change - Sophie managed to stay surprisingly dry.

Back at granny pat's house the boys warmed up by eating ice lollies - Tom had 5 before he was satisfied - oh well it is the holidays :):)

Treasure hunt and spiders

2008-02-14T15:46:00.002Z

Another 'must do' on Tom's list was a treasure hunt so I quickly put one together - the prizes were chocolate money some how left from Christmas and 3 rubber band balls - which they were thrilled with - strange children easily pleased :)
Tuesday - finally smiled after we had all been to the dentist and been told our teeth are perfect - even Granny Pat was brave enough - Time Machine soft play place after was noisy but fun then the older two had their swimming lesson - they got stickers for trying so hard and really do seem to be making progress at last. They both managed to swim a few strokes on their backs without any bouyancy aids - very impressed!! The spider's web just cried out to be photographed so I did :)

Weekend smiles

2008-02-14T15:40:00.002Z

Managing to take the photos everyday and doing well and finding something to smile about even though I feel as big as a whale and am exhausted with the children on half term :) Saturday after Sophie's ballet class was spent in the garden enjoying the sunshine. Ben found a feather which, by the time I got the camera was a rolled up ball of fluff but he still wanted a photo :) We went swimming in the afternoon as well so my halo is well and truely shining :) Tom finally figured out how to throw a frisbee and had great fun - Sophie is still getting frustrated with it :)

On Sunday after church - Ben's first Sunday trip - he did reallly well and din't ask too many loud questions - we went to Mum's for lunch and ona freezing February day my children decided to play in the waterbut - madness :):)

few more pictures for Grandma :)

2008-02-08T12:32:00.000Z

We had great fun in the garden yesterday after school - didn't let the children in the house - straight from the car to the garden for an hour - really loving the milder lighter afternoons - long may it last :)

Louise havent forgotten the tag - nearly done :)

3 more smiles

2008-02-08T12:27:00.000Z

Tuesday's smile was simple - collecting the children from school without Ben in the car as he stayed at home with Mum I was able to have the radio on and sing along without being shouted at - bliss :)
Wednesday was Ash Wednewsday so mum and I braved taking Ben to church for the first time in ages - he was great - really well behaved and joined in with the singing etc - he was very unimpressed with having ashes put on his forehead and wanted to know - ina very loud voice - 'what is him doing?' when the priest tried to bless him :)

Thursday was haircut day for George - he always looks ridiculous when first clipped but is so much more comfortable.

Not blogging but still smiling :)

2008-02-08T12:19:00.000Z

Computer has been playing up so havent been able to blog but still have a daily smile so while it is behaving I will try to get them up :) Sunday's smile was the first signs of Spring - flowers and children playing in the garden - makes such a difference to be able to get them outside for longer periods of time.

Every Monday the Tescos van brings me a smile along with my shopping - the annoying stupid substitutions seem to be getting less frequent and compared to dragging children round a supermarcket having it delivered to the door is definitely something to smile about :)

Ben spent half an hour playing with two empty milk containers - simple pleasures :)

Then a complete nonsmile - Tom made a ?not sure what out of an odd sock I found while sorting baby clothes - he covered it it glitter glue and filled it with glitter then left it where ben would find it - Ben then obediently tipped it upside down and spread glitter all over the lounge carpet - despite several goes with the hoover we are still finding it and it has spread through the rest of the house too :(

recent layouts

2008-02-02T16:38:00.000Z

Managed a few layouts recently - first not thrilled with - is from a mojoholder's sketch.
And another - enjoyed this one - doing a lot of blocked layouts at the moment to sum up days out with loads of photos but not one special one.

Then a pencillines sketch - might reuse this one - it worked well for 3 photos and liked grouping them.

And this was a sketch too but cant remember where from - hoping to get some more done later :)

Thomas and the inflatable puffy pants

2008-02-02T16:32:00.000Z

Yesterday's smile was simply Ben enjoying being creative again - he specifically wanted chalks and black paper and happily made picture after picture :) I also got a night out to a good friend's house - she had invited 21 friends and really pushed the boat out with champagne and caterers for a slap up meal because her husband is away skiing - didnt get home til nearly 1am so feeling jaded today but it was soo worth it getting the chance to catch up with people I havent seen for ages plus meeting some new people too.

Today's smile comes from Tom finally overcoming his fear of jumping into the swimming pool - he finally did it and was so thrilled that his shorts had filled with air and blew bubbles when he squeezed them he wanted to do it again and again and really got the hang of it - which will surpirse his swimming teacher :) - he named himself Thomas and the inflatable puffy pants and was in hysterics! - Sophie also managed it - with much less hilarity :)

SMILE catch up!

2008-02-01T10:14:00.000Z

I may not have been blogging but have still been smiling. Tuesday's main smile was finally having BT vision successfully installed - cant decide if it will make me waste more or less time on TV but at least I can stop stressing about John watching Top Gear when I want to watch something :) - I also went out - after dark!!! only a playgroup committee meeting but still it was a very successful one so definitely worth a smile :)

On Wednesday Ben and I met up with friends at Henshaws - an arts and crafts centre with a sensory garden. It was freezing cold but bright and beautiful and we had great fun - decided to let Ben take the pictures today - this is what he came up with :)

Ben had a lovely time at playgroup yesterday and came home with a rocket he had made with his new best friend - playassistant Natalie - he had great fun zooming it around the room and stood still just long enough for me to snap a picture.

Will be back later with today's smile :)

Please let me take photos :(

2008-01-28T18:50:00.000Z

My only daytime midweek model is Ben and today he decided he didnt want his picture taken anymore :( - didnt listen to him of course which really wound him up.
He was quickly ok again with the excitement of posting letters then we went for a walk down the lane again but the cows were not there today. Instead we saw squirrels and a horse - major excitement :)

I got a chance to play with dof taking pictures of barbed wire - it doesnt shout 'NO' at me !!

Then the major excitement of the day and definitely my SMILE for the day - Sophie lost her first tooth while eating tea - she took it upstairs to leave for the toothfairy and lost it again :( luckily I found it just hope the tooth fairy remembers to come now :)

Muddles

2008-01-27T19:45:00.000Z

Lots to smile about today despite John being in a grump again :) - went for a family walk with George - Ben had great fun jumping in muddy puddles or 'muddles' as he decided to call them!

He also liked his new (to him anyway) jumper so much he refused to wear a coat and it was quite mild - I promise - so I let him off.

Sophie enjoyed controlling George again - Tom didnt even want to try today. Ben and Sophie were fascinated by the cows especially when they seemed to speak back mooing loudly when they said 'hello'

Big SMILE cos Ben ate some lunch!! he didn't come to the table willingly - I gave up and Tom bribed him with a game of Scooby Doo haunted house - then tried to get out of the deal after lunch but Ben had remembered. He only really ate the sweet potato but did eat plenty of that so better than often.
Tom and Sophie 'helped' John continue painting the garden room - a task which seems to be taking on Forth Rail Bridge proportions - I quickly had to remove them because the stress levels were getting too high which wasn't fun for anyone :)

Managed to get Tom out of his PJ day by suggesting he play fetch with George in the garden - George had been having fun with me earlier and I must have worn him out because Tom could hardly persuade him to move!

Tom was fascinated by the snowdrops!!

Then claimed to be the first to have climbed to the top of Small Mountain and put his stick flag in - that had to be the cause of the biggest smile today - he is hilarious sometimes!! you had to be there :):)

Tagged by Lynsey

2008-01-26T19:53:00.000Z

I was recently tagged by my sisinlaw Lynsey to blog about 5 pieces of music that mean something to me. Well having given it a bit of thought here goes ......

Orinocho Flow by ENYA - when pregnant with Thomas I went to sleep every night listening to this cd with the idea that he would hear it in the womb and when he was born he had to it to fall asleep to - every night until finally at the age of about three when he could make himself understood he told me he never wanted to listen to that awful music again - ooopsss - didnt try the same technique with any of the others.

Fairground Attraction PERFECT - as used in Jems CJ - this was a kind of anthem while I was at university when I agonised over life not being perfect until I grew up and realised that it didn't have to be - near perfect is quite good enough.

WETWETWET Love is all around - had to include this - it was Number 1 from the day I started going out with Andy the farmer until we split up - a relationship doomed to failure from the start but which got me through my finals as I was sooooo obsessed with him I forgot to get stressed.

EDITH PIAF - Je ne regret rein - speaks for itself really :)

KAISER CHIEFS - Ruby - may well be the proper name for Buttercup when she is born - John certainly likes it and I love the song.

There we go - not as insightful as Lynsey's but a mix bag all the same - and now I tag Jen, Lou and Jems to do the same :):)

SMILE!!

2008-01-26T19:46:00.000Z

My first SMILE picture is of a miniboden catalogue which I mistakenly gave to Sophie with the instructions to 'flick through and see if there is anything you like' she handed it back with practically every page turned over - the only ones left were boys clothes and even some of those she had chosen for her brothers -:)

HS:MS prompts recently have included THREE - so I found the snowstorms my 3 created this Christmas - although officially Christmas decorations they are too cute to put away just yet.

and OVERFLOW - this is what happens to our patio when the cellar pump is turned on - Ben is loving the puddles!!

A second smile for today has to be this picture of Buttercup - although she wasnt exactly cooperative we did get a couple of half decent pics of her cute face - I think she looks a lot like Sophie.

Still wet here!!

2008-01-22T18:43:00.000Z

So much rain!!! cellar is full, roads closed - not a lot of fun :(

Sophie is already great at DIY and helped me put together a Tardis wardrobe for the boys - took hours to do but thrilled with the end result :)

Ben and Sophie actually enjoy having their hairwashed now - strange children :)

Ben has enjoyed the rain and spent a happy half hour jumping in the puddle on the patio - mainly caused by the water pumped out of the cellar :) - he only got moody when i suggested he come in as it was really cold!

Done my A page for my A-Z album - quite pleased - just got to think of a B now

Been tagged by Lynsey!! 5 pieces of music that mean something to me - was going to do it now but children fighting so will come back to it later - but will do it I promise :)

HS:MS indulge

2008-01-17T11:34:00.000Z

Yesterday's HS:MS prompt was indulge - I had fun trying to get a decent picture of a halfeaten creme egg - knew what I wanted to achieve but just couldnt get it to look right - didnt help that the 'yolk' was tiny and hardly visible so had to have a second to practise on too - in the end I ate them ( a real hardship) and headed outside in the rain to 'indulge' in a half hour of childfree photography using my macro lens - was particulalry taken with these droplets and had fun trying different camera angles and settings - nothing spectacular came of it but it was fun!!

Another wet one!!

2008-01-17T11:21:00.000Z

Ben had fun yesterday painting with his favourite colour - BROWN!! and I had fun taking pictures from different angles while he was sat still - standing on a chair made him laugh especially when I struggled to get down!

He then had a fun half hour washing the pots - he loves water play and likes to have the tap running and the plug out so he can watch the water swirl down the drain - I just have to try to forget we are on a water meter.

Let me tell you about my morning and give you an image to cheer you - My stupid car with it's onboard computer thinks it knows better than me and told me today to STOP TYRE PUNCTURE!!! - it fills the display and flashes not letting you see anything else eg mileage etc - has been happeneing off and on for a while and I had been ignoring it (as I do!!) but today it was constant - looked at the offending tyre - not flat but flatter than the others - decided I shouldnt risk driving on it incase there was something embedded in the tyre (as has been the case before) so drove to the garage and did the 'pathetic- pregnant- woman' act to get them to look at it there and then.They looked - it's a sensor fault - not urgent and has been booked in for repair. Just as the relief sank in I turned round to see Ben peeing in the middle of the showroom!!!! such a HUGE puddle - dont know where it all came from. Of course being the disorganised Mum I am I had no change of clothes for him despite him being out of nappies for less than a month - I stripped him off, cleaned the floor and left with him walking in wellies and a bare bum - got some very strange looks - took him straight to playgroup as I knew I had left a change there so he is fine now!! Think the showroom staff were more embarrassed than me - helps to get quick service in there - I have breastfed in there before now and my car was finished in 20 minutes rather than the hour they had stated - wonder how fast the tyres will get sorted next week??

A wet weekend at home

2008-01-13T17:22:00.000Z

My photo a day album could end up being an album of Sophie as she is the only one who cooperates when I need a quick snap!! must start looking around me for inanimate objects to photograph as well - really wanted to get out and about this weekend but it is soooo cold and wet I didn't fancy it. Sophie started a new ballet class yesterday which she really enjoyed - 5 pupils instead of 25 - much more civilised!! Thomas went to a horseriding party - John took him otherwise that could have been a great photo opportunity. He apparently had a really major wobble regarding the height of the horse but overcame it and had a really good time.

Yesterday caught Thomas spontaneously reading a book aloud to ben - gorgeous!!

Meanwhile Sophie was having a cuddly toys tea party in her bedroom - when i went to check why it was so quiet upstairs (always a suspicious occurnece!) she was showing them a menu of different cats for them to chose which they would like to eat!! what an imagination!

Sophie, Ben and I took a couple of toys out in buggies on a short walk to the sweet shop - which was shut :( so we had to come home and get the car to drive to the garage and stock up there instead!

And to finish another photo of Sophie - glad I have someone to practise on - need all the practise I can get :)

test on Lynsey's blog

2008-01-12T17:37:00.001Z

Really enjoyed doing this test after following a link from Lynsey's blog - some of the questions were tricky to answer but think the results about sum me up!! - will be back with today's photos later if I get a chance after all the supporting and protecting !!

COLD

2008-01-11T17:29:00.000Z

Yesterday's prompt for the 365 day challenge was the quote 'The eyes are the window of the soul' - Anna's photo is of her beuatifully made up eye - initially I was going to put some makeup on and take a nice shot then realised it should really represent what my tired eyes look like - bags and all! so this is what I ended up with :)

Bought Tom some new socks yesterday - he was really excited - what a strange boy!!

The HS:MS prompt today is COLD - Ben and I went swimming and boy was that cold - in the pool, getting changed and walking to the car with damp hair!! - couldnt take pics at the pool but Ben was happy to pose with his goggles at home complete with silly face - blurry shot though as he wouldnt stand still! This also fits for the 365 prompt today - 'families are like fudge .....mostly sweet, with a few nuts'!!!!

camera fun!

2008-01-07T17:15:00.000Z

First HS:MS for the day - prompt was fold - happened to have a HUGE pile of clothes in the hall waiting to be taken to the ironing angel tomorrow - they are kind of folded!!
Next an abstract shot of the gnarled branches of our old apple tree - not thrilled with the shot feel the focus could be in a better part of the shot and without the long straighter branch - think I'll try this one again tho as love the appearance

Ben and I had fun in the garden just mucking around - he refused to wear a coat and was very bossy!! - very out of character.
Not a great photo technically but love the expression!

Ben then decided he wanted to us the camera - wish I had antoerh one with me to record how funny he looked with my huge camera round his neck - he struggled at first to get me in the frame .......
but eventually managed - and I actually have a picture of me I quite like - not least becasue of who took it.
With Tom and Sophie back at school can see a lot of photos of Ben coming up :)

Mad children!!

2008-01-06T19:52:00.000Z

First my poor photo from yesterday of a very dejected Christmas tree thrown out and abandoned :(:(
Then my mad children who decided to have a pyjama day - fair enough it is the last day of the holidays - but then they decided to play in the garden - IN JANUARY!! without coats - Sophie and Ben did at least agree to put boots on while Tom ran round barefoot - maniac - he decided to go back in quite quickly!! but the others had a good play!

And another attempt at a bump photo - quite pleased except it just confirms to me how HUGE I am looking! dread to think how big it is going to get!!

bad photo day :(

2008-01-04T20:43:00.000Z

Despite having friends to play really didn't get any decent photo opportunities today - didn't even manage HS:MS perfume as by the time chaos had settled it was dark so will that tomorrow in the light - can't have a day with no photos at all tho (not already!!) so tried and failed to take a picture of my enormous bump!! the out of focus feet really put it into perspective - not a great picture but it is a start and I hope to have better bump pictures to share as the weeks go on :)

SNOW!!!!!

2008-01-03T16:02:00.000Z

Fantastic snowy day today - children didn't need any encouragement to get dressed. Prompt for 365 day challenge today is a quote by Ali Edwards ' Life is too short and too amazing to spend time worrying about imperfections' - the following photo of ben in the snow today fits that prompt for me - I had forgotten to alter the ISO on my camera so it was at 1600 and Ben closed his eyes - and yet still I love this shot! of his first time playing in the snow.

John came home for a quick play but made a hasty retreat when he realised the children were actually quite good shots and he was getting wet!

Tom got a bit thirsty - luckily he is not tempted to try any yellow snow!! only freshly falling stuff.

George had a fantastic time - running around like a lunatic ears flapping - he ate quite a bit of snow too and wasn't quite as discerning as Tom!

HS:MS is back with the prompt WHITE - plenty of white stuff around but decided to take a pic of my favourite garden ornament - a majestic lion that is finally hanging on the back wall and looks great with the virginia creeper growing round it but also looks good in the snow!

Just a few more snowy pics for Grandma!! - Ben with his eyes open this time!

And Sophie looking cute in her lovely red coat.

And finally Bloblet the Snome - although we had quite a lot of snow today there wasn't enough (or enough patience !!) to build a snowman so we built a Snow Gnome instead and Tom called in Bloblet the Snome !

Another day at home

2008-01-02T16:17:00.000Z

Why do children especially boys have to make so much loud noise?? My head feels like it is going to explode. Only managed to get out of the house once today - to the garage to put out the recycling :( - had planned another nice walk with George as the sun was shining and it was a nice crisp day but at no point today was everybody dressed - they were either ill or saying in a minute so in the end I gave up. Hence today's less than inspiring pics - we did bake bread and I realise now I could have taken some lovely arty shots of the freshly baked loaf but it got hacked into and eaten before it had even cooled so not much chance of that. We bough k-nex for Ben for Christmas as his present from Grandma and Grandad - Tom already has some - Tom has rediscovered his love for it and played with it all day creating some amazing monsters.

Photo a day

2008-01-01T20:35:00.000Z

As I am going to have so much free time this year (NOT!!) had decided to try to take at least one photo a day to document our lives - have also now signed up for the 365 photo and journalling challenge so hope to combine the two. Took a few photos today of Sophie and Ben painting.

The prompt for today was a quote by Charlie Chaplain - 'a day without laughter is a day wasted' well watching Ben concentrate with his tongue poked out always makes me chuckle.

And as for the 'Mr Independent' I can go to the toilet by myself and so what if you refuse to put my trousers on without my pants (Mum will understand this row!! it happens a lot) then I can manage myself - just a shame they were inside out and rolled over at the top - he looked hilarious and must have been so uncomfortable but he still insisted he wouldnt wear pants so I couldnt help him - :)

Cabin Fever

2007-12-31T15:46:00.000Z

Finally managed to get the children out of the house today now that they and I am well enough. We managed an hour's gardening this morning - didnt achieve a great deal but the fresh air was lovely. They all enjoyed hacking at the lavendar and I am sure it will recover in the spring! This afternoon we took George for a walk - this treat is normally reserved for John as George pulls so much I worry he will pull me or the children over. Decided though that Tom may be old enough to try taking a bit more responsiblilty for him and he really enjoyed being in charge of the lead.
To start with George ran off with Tom dragged behind him crying until he finally gave up and let go of the lead - Sophie caught George (good old Sophie!!) and we calmed Tom down and he tried again trying to be calmer this time and reminding George not to pull - worked a bit better.

Then Sophie decided to have a try and she did brilliantly - really calm and in control so George responded the same - she even managed to let ben have a go and helped him control George. We met some nice people walking dogs and a toddler in a buggy who loved George oh and a miserable old man on a bike who nearly knocked us down and didnt even say thanks when I got everyone out of the way for him - it is a narrow country lane with no pavements and loads of dog poo on the verges so quite where he expected us to walk I don't know.

I even got a chance to have a play with the camera in preparation for my daily photos this year - all in all a great walk but the moment we got back in the bickering started again - aaaaarrrrggghhhh!

Christmas chaos!!

2007-12-28T13:27:00.000Z

The chaos started on Christmas eve with the arrival of the inlaws - my mum was already here. I went into town for the last few bits and as I went at 8 got parked and finished shopping before 930 when the hoardes arrived! Sophie and I had great fun making a cookie tree she especially enjoyed dribbling the icing 'snow' - not much left now - glad I remembered to take a pic even if it is a bit blurry !
Christmas morning pics are pretty crap as I was half asleep having been awake most of the night and the night before with a vomiting Thomas :( - Santa had managed to leave 3 huge sacks of pressies with some more that wouldnt fit - Sophie and Tom did well ripping them open Ben got fed up after a while and kept going back for more as the morning went on.

Christmas lunch seemed to take forever to cook - I was really glad to have Mum's help and to be honest she did most of it as Buttercup was making me tired - at least we remembered the sprouts and sweetcorn!!

We had party poppers as well as crackers and the children had great fun with them - several streamers ended up in food and drink but it was still a laugh - we are still finding bits round the house too!

Splashy the Whale was a big hit until Sophie got tired and decided she didnt like getting squirted!

recent layouts

2007-12-18T14:15:00.001Z

Done quite a few layouts recently but havent had time to share them so here they are :)
First a scraplift from Jennie - this is decorating the tree in 2005 - determined to get through the pile of older pics before the memories fade.

A recent center parcs holiday where Sophie used some fantastic wrong words - she was very annoyed when she saw this layout but I like it :)

Some photos from the summer and a trip to Wonderland a theme park for littlies but even there the rides were too high and scary for Thomas :(

Same Center Parcs trip and a huge amount of journalling explaining how much especailly the older two have come on in their swimming since starting lessons - very busy layout but tells the story and wanted to include all the photos but didnt feel they deserved loads of layouts so piled them all onto one. used glossy accents to look like water and quite pleased with the end result.

This summer exploring the garden of our holiday cottage - loving using blocks of small photos to tell a memory with photos that are not necessarily great but added together have impact.

Abd last a CZ scraplift with a funny pic of Ben - have several pics of the day but one was really enough to tell the story - pleased with this one.

HS:MS

2007-12-18T14:07:00.000Z

Not great pics but at least I am uptodate - yesterday was drawer - couldnt resist Sophie's pink fairy ones :)
and today - glass - finished decorating the tree when suddenly remembered the lovely glass decs MIL bought me a few years ago that havent been out of their packaging yet as look like they would break without being touched - thought I had better risk them this year tho as they are coming for Christmas - I put them on rather than letting the children and have tried to make sure they are safe!

copycat time

2007-12-18T11:38:00.000Z

Fancied starting anew collection (as we dont have enough junk in the castle!!) saw a LO by Cheryl I think where she showed off her latest snow globe and said she bought a new one every year - found this one in a local garden centre and loved it but talked myself out of the unnecessary expense then got a lovely surprise a few days later when my mum arrived at my house with one for me as a present - it plays music and the little train goes round - very kitsch but I love it!!

As if one new copied collection wasnt enough I then read about Jen's new santa hunt - and decided I too would buy a new santa every year and make it a tradition - fell in love with this wooden one when we went to see Santa at the farm shop last week - he has pride of place in the new kitchen and am looking forward to providing him with friends each year.

Christmas treats

2007-12-15T15:26:00.000Z

For the last ballet class before the end of each term we are allowed to watch which is great fun - photos dont come out very well as the hall is quite dark adn the little darlings move around too much but got some great videoing - Sophie wasnt keen to go today as she is soooo tired but she eventually agreed and really seemed to enjoy herself.
Finally got the tree - we dont get it until after Ben's birthday anyway but then the house was such a pit I wouldnt let John get it until I was straight - we had great fun decorating and love the hotch potch very pink result!! - just need to get some decent pics now :)

HS:MS

2007-12-13T16:24:00.000Z

Finally caught up - first was moonlight - had to wait for the moon for this one :)
Then Laces - these old boots have been without laces for so long am glad to see them happy again
Then teddy - this was Sophie's first when she was a baby - she has said she wants our new baby girl to have it - found out from the scan today that we are having another pink one :)

2007-12-12T16:34:00.000Z

Playgroup nativity yesterday was lovely - Ben cooperated really well with the rehersal and I got one good picture of him and lots of lovely ones of the other children which we then sell for playgroup funds. Glad I got a picture of Ben in the rehersal as after that he refused to wear his costume then left the stage - then he wanted to sit on my lap so couldnt take any other photos either - second year running I havent had anyone on the stage for the performance!
Fantastic day today - we went to The Farmer's Cart just outside York as a playgroup outing - 26 children with mums and grannies!! to see Santa! We rode ona sleigh pulled by an orange tractor. Ben was very patient as we had to go in groups - 3 groups went and returned with pressies then the last sleigh was filling up fast - everyone got on except us there just wasnt room - Ben was really upset but the driver was lovely and assured him he'd come back for him. He came back really quickly and 2 other children decided to have an extra turn . When we got to santa instead of squashing in as a group of 10 children there were only 3 of them and it was fantastic - Santa spent ages with Ben as he knew he had been upset - Ben had a great time.

We also fed some very hungry goats and a meany bully shetland pony and had a fantastic lunch - a great day!!

HS:MS a day late

2007-12-11T14:17:00.000Z

A day late so broken my resolution to keep up to date already but just couldnt think of anything yesterday. This morning opened the front door to a frosty scene but late for school - managed to snatch a minute to take a picture of the frosty windscreen though complete with temp guage reading -4 - brrrrrr - not as cold as jems and kathy I know but for us cold cold cold.

Today's prompt is moonlight - hmmm maybe later :)

My other baby is 3!!!!

2007-12-08T08:47:00.001Z

Another birthday in the family - this time Big Boy Benjamin - cant believe he is 3 already - he only had one pressie from us as it was a biggie combined set of the planet protector figures from ELC - he was thrilled. Even more pleased with his pressie from Tom and Sophie tho - a scooby doo dressing up outfit that he has been wearing (without a nappy!!!) since he unwrapped it nearly 2 hours ago - oooops!
Small party yesterday with a few friends from playgroup - didnt realise 8 small children could trash a house so effectively in 2 hours - Off to the Christmas Fair at school today to man the secondhand toy stall but I am sure John will have it all tidied by the time I get back!!

Ben is loving his Scooby Doo outfit - he got some fantastic presents from family and friends - books we dont have (and we have quite a library at the castle) space related toys which are a big hit, a fridge magnet game, hungry caterpillar game, teletubby playset etc etc - now to find space to store it all before the Christmas pile!!

Proud Mummy Moment !!

2007-12-06T14:28:00.000Z

From Grandma and Grandad (chosen by me but paid for by them :) ) for Tom's birthday he got an elctronics kit - he was soooo proud of himself when he made a circuit to switch on a lightbulb - something so simple which gave him - and me - such pleasure it had to be captured in a photo!

My baby is 6!!!!

2007-11-23T12:41:00.000Z

Can't believe my baby is 6 all ready - he has been soooo looking forward to his birthday and has made a calendar to count down the days - thought I would have a problem getting him to bed the night before but he went out like a light!
Next day however he was up bright and early - too early - 5am asking if it was morning yet? managed to keep him going until 6.30 then had to give in and let him open his presents.

Bit of a battle with Sophie trying to stop her opening them all - Tom was kind and let her do a couple but she was just ripping the paper off and moving onto the next one before he had a chance to see what he had got so I had to stop her - she'll get plenty at Christmas!

He seemed pleased with his biker mice - weird things but made him happy!

The cake was bought (shock horror!!) cos I was feeling poorly - I'll make him one for his party at the weekend - seeing as the rest is catered for at a soft play place the least I can do is make the cake he has requested - LEGO!

updating blog

2007-11-18T09:53:00.000Z

I only tend to update my blog when I have a photo or layout to share. As I haven't done a single layout so far this month and my camera hasn't been out of it's case for over a week (unheard of!!) I have nothing to post :( I decided to restart the HS:MS prompts as a way of getting back into photo taking but now have the stinkiest cold ever and feel like crap :(
Give me a few days and I'll be back in action and hope to have some photos to share :)

Halloween

2007-11-04T11:52:00.000Z

Finally have a Halloween picture to post! - we didnt go out on the night as the children are still a bit young and I didnt fancy tripping over in the dark in my 'condition' so we let the trick or treaters come to us - 13 groups in all - it was great fun. Sophie dressed up, Ben did but then wet himself so went to the door exposing all, Tom half dressed then got too hot and went to the door in his school uniform - all in all not great photo opportunities. Yesterday however Playgroup hosted a 'Room on the Broom' party and I had an excuse to try out our new face paints - ben and Sophie were really pleased with their finished look - Tom wasnt interested but did wear a taratula Tshirt and let me spike his hair so at least he looked like he had made some effort!! -

Tom really enjoyed the apple bobbing at the party and wouldnt stop until he got one - he was soaked but happy. Sophie decorated a hat and won the school age children category so that made her day and Ben was just happy bopping around to the music and playing with his friends. I was official photographer - managed a few decent shots despite the hall being in darkness to add to the atmosphere!

Introducing baby 4!

2007-10-23T10:36:00.000+01:00

Scan went well last week - all looks fine baby was moving lots more than I have ever seen - head of heels so was hard to get a good picture. Thankfully only one - got a bit worried after discovering a history of natural triplets in the family!! Have told the children who are all thrilled and keep talking to my tummy - have managed to persuade Ben he can do this without lifting my top and exposing my fat belly to the world!!

Home! exhausted!!!

2007-10-23T10:30:00.001+01:00

Back from an exhausting but great fun weekend at Center Parcs - the children all slept until 8.30 this morning which is unheard of in this house! maybe we need to spend every day playing football, riding horses, walking MILES and eating an icecream bigger than Ben!
Tom was a bit unsure about joining in the soccer training but once he got started he really enjoyed it and did really well.

No Ben didnt manage to finish this enormous icecream but as Center parcs were paying for it (long story!!) it didn't matter!

Ben really enjoyed his first pony ride and so did Sophie - Tom's fear of heights made the start a bit wobbly but he eventually settled down and enjoyed it.

Got a scan date!!

2007-10-15T11:29:00.000+01:00

WooHoo!! after another frustrating morning on the phone to local hospital who had decided in their wisdom that I didnt need a routine 12 week antenatal scan!! have finally been given an appointment for this Thursday at 11.40 - will have to cancel a couple of things and move things round - drop Ben off at Mum's - sooooo looking forward to it - will finally seem real and I can tell the children!

2007-10-08T17:46:00.000+01:00

I've been tagged!!! by Louise - here goes

4 places I have worked
Toy shop called Scotch corner in Perth as a Saturday job while at school - general dogsbody but fun! Derriford Hospital Plymouth Accident and Emergency - high stress high adrenalin (like Casualty Louise!!) and great fun - social life was pretty amazing too adn that is where I met dh. Harrogate District Hospital A&E - one of the worse 6 months of my life crap hours crap staff. Tadcaster Medical Centre - as a longterm GP locum - my last job which on a bad day as a sahm I still miss

4 places I have visited
Prechildren I got about a bit and have been to San Fransico, Cape Town, Redang Island Malaysia and Bucharest.

4 favourite foods
chocolate, peanuts, hot buttered toast and at the moment the pregnancy craving - Caesar salad!

4 places I would rather be
In bed, at an all day crop with my cyberbuddies, on holiday with dh, mum and the children, in an American scrapbooking store with an unlimited credit card and luggage allowance!

off to tag the lovely Lynsey :)

2007-09-23T16:49:00.000+01:00

Having the weekend from hell with poorly children and very little sleep have managed 4 layouts!! - obviously I function better with less sleep so should do well for team points come the Spring :) - despite the return of the mojo still didn't manage Jems CJ tho - really must tackle that. The first layout is a complete scraplift from one by teamie Jen - don't know how to add links in here but her blog is linked on the right to see the original which she posted today and I liked so much I had to lift straight away (did ask first :) ) thanks Jen really enjoyed this one and even Sophie liked the finished result - she is very critical of my 'work'.

Sophie decided she wanted to make a card today and as John's aunt has been in hospital in Corfu for a week with chest pain while on holiday thought it would be great to make one for her - hope she likes it - Sophie had great fun making it :)

Question for the day......

2007-09-21T09:50:00.001+01:00

Why are pooey nappies and toast alike?
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they both fall wet side down when thrown on the floor by a stroppy toddler - aaaarrrrggghhhhh!!!

2007-09-17T10:55:00.001+01:00

Had a lovely weekend with the inlaws - the children really enjoy having their Grandparents around - Thomas especially thrives on all the information grandad knows - he was telling Tom about how they made paper years ago and later they used the bark to make pictures - great memories.

The next photo is especially for my uks friends who I know love spiders sooooo much - this littel beauty (and it is little compared to some we have) has taken up residence above my monitor in the study - cute isnt he??

AAAAAAAARRRRRRGGGGHHHHHHH

2007-09-13T17:40:00.000+01:00

When are my children going to start eating!! - made a lovely shepherd's pie which Tom thankfully tucked into but Ben and Sophie both had a fit and threw it at me refusing even to try it - tried coaxing tried anger just ended up wearing their tea - I give up :(:(:(

mojo is back!!

2007-09-12T18:36:00.001+01:00

Think my mojo might have finally returned - managed 3 layouts today - 2 of them from a recent pencillines sketch that I loved the moment I saw it and yet still couldn't get a layout to work round. Have had such fun today can't wait to get another chance but with the inlaws coming the day after tomorrow cant see much scrapping being done this weekend :(

2007-09-10T14:16:00.000+01:00

Sophie has started school and looked sooo cute in her uniform this morning especially as she asked for her hair to be in bunches. She is halftime at the moment so I collected her at lunchtime - she seems to have had a great time and already has a partyt invitation!

Back to school

2007-09-09T07:01:00.000+01:00

Tom went back to school last Tuesday then had Wednesday off sick with a high temp and cough! He looked very smart in his new uniform and I love the new shiny shoes! Took some first day photos and looking at them he looks so sad - didnt realise at the time he was coming down with a bug. Ben went happily back to playgroup and was really pleased to see his friends - I broke the news to the staff about the addition to our family - I am Chair of the management committee and had agreed to do that until I got pregnant again - shortest position ever didnt even make it until the start of term - but ....noone else to take over and an Ofsted inspection imminent so will have to stick at it but made them understand the baby comes first and if I get preeclampsia again will not be able to do any playgroup work as will need to rest - we should manage.

Sophie starts school tomorrow - she has had a bad week - spent one night in A&E with a croupy cough and she is still very sensitive and finding sleep difficult - she was awake from 11.30-1.30 last night and kept mum awake too so both are still sleeping now.

2007-09-02T19:36:00.000+01:00

Well after ...... tests I finally believe it - I am PREGNANT - want to shout it from the rooftops and feel like it is tattooed across my forehead and everyone can tell just by looking at me - never been one to keep these things a secret (if it all goes horribly wrong as it has twice I would rather people knew why I was grumpier than usual) - just got 8 months to go!!!

Trying to chose 2 group photos from recent holiday to go in the frames in the kitchen to replace some professional ones I dont like anymore!! - think these two might be the winners - have ordered them from photobox and will see how they look - the frames are near the sink to give me something to smile about in the hours I spend there!

Louise's Challenge

2007-08-27T10:23:00.000+01:00

Before I went on holiday Louise set us the challenge of using doodling on a layout - I had also set myself the challenge of doing my first minibook so decided to combine the two and had such fun!! It took just over an hour and was soooo satisfying. Sophie helped with the doodling and we filled a 12x12 sheet then cut it up - the photos are from the last year and really sum up what a big character Benjamin is. Think I am hooked on doodling and minibooks so thanks Louise!!

More photos!!

2007-08-26T19:17:00.001+01:00

Loved the Otter and Owl Sanctuary - Ben spent ages watching the otters play in the water.

Ben got very cross!! can't remember why!!

He discovered his shadow for the first time and had a long incomprehensible conversation with it!!

Then Sophie got angry - can't remember why!!

The Mitchells on holiday!!!

2007-08-26T19:12:00.000+01:00

Had a fantastic holiday in Sussex then the New Forest - took far too many pics as usual - the rapid burst function does make me snap happy but at least I get a chance of some classic shots of the children having fun!!

Oh and a cute toad!!

2007-08-09T18:04:00.000+01:00

I've been tagged!! by Jems - who said some really nice things about me on her blog - think someone better check her temperature?? Now I have to find someone to tag back and since my teamies are the only blogs I follow and they are all done will look at some new inspiration and talent!!

2007-08-07T21:34:00.000+01:00

First my attempt at last week's TT - did do this at the crop last Wednesday but taken until tonight for me to be able to find it again to take photo!- the challenge was to lift a fab LO by teamie Monika - I pretty much copied her sketch but used 4 photos instead of 3 and made a girlie page - thanks for the inspiration Monika. Next another story telling layout from last summer hols - was determined to get last year's photos finished before we go again but not looking likely! Wasn't happy with how this layout was progressing and was getting sick of looking at the same pics and just moving stuff around so stuck it down to get on with the next - now quite pleased!

and finally HS:MS prompt today was 'eyes' - Louise did a fab sandpit photo so I decided to think laterally and saw the cotton reel and needle on the desk and attempted a pic of the eye of the needle - tricky especially in bad light and when knacekered - but anyway here we have 'eye'