One good turn...............

Hi everybody, hope you've all had a good weekend. I'm hoping to get some time this week to catch up with all the latest in blogland. Where does all the time go? There just don't seem to be enough hours in the day to do everything and I can't cope with staying up after 10pm - one of the downsides to having small children!

I just had to share a story with you which once again restored my faith in humanity. Two weeks ago Ian did a 72 mile bike ride to raise money for Macmillan nurses. The day before he went I took Jack to the barbers where Ian has been going for years. Upon hearing what Ian was doing a man who I'd never met before turned and gave me £5 to donate, and then the barber told me that Jack's haircut was for free and to donate the cost to the charity. It's the little things like this that make you realise that the world isn't such a bad place and just how many decent people are out there - you lot being amongst the top of course!

Needless to say wonderdaddy completed the 72 miles no problem! How he does it I've no idea, the mere hint of a slight incline when I'm out on my bike and I'm feeling breathless!

We're well and truly back into the old school routine, Jack is enjoying being in juniors and tonight started drama after school. He really enjoyed it and is already looking forward to next weeks lesson.

On Sunday we decided to have a day of excitement and had a trip to London. We had an amazing day. We drove into Kensington in less than two hours and parked for free about 5 mins from the Natural History museum. What a place, the kids loved it, although I wouldn't recommend the food, unless you have a particular craving for cold pizza! We then drove to Buckingham Palace to show the children where the Queen lives. We could not believe how easy it was to get around London by car, and even better everything was free. The children saw all the landmarks and we got to drive around Notting Hill and fantasize about having squillions of pounds. After having a lovely supper in Windsor we came home tired but very happy, it was nice to visit but I couldn't cope with it full-time!

I love this time of year, the smell of the air and the chill in the mornings as we walk to school. I've ordered the logs, bought the kindling and I can't wait to light the fire. Everything about autumn makes me happy, I think I'm just a cold weather person, I love the long dark evenings, not having to shave my legs, wearing scarves and gloves and generally starting to hibernate!

Roll on October! I'll finish with my usual gratuitous house shot, some of the first things I ever collected, byeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!

Resolved......................phew!

Here are the pics that should have been on the previous post, thank goodness it seems to be ok again (fingers crossed). I have no idea what I did to rectify apart from "cache" and "cookie" clearing - what?????

Help!

I seem to have lost my photo uploader on the new post page and cannot work out how to get it back. Has this happened to anyone out there and if so how did you resolve it? Any suugestions will be gratefully received since I'm about to chuck the b***** computer out of the window!

Celebrations...........

How come I think of a million (ok,slight exaggeration!) interesting things to write about then promptly sit down and forget them all? I know, I know, write them down you shout, but really my mind should be able to contain at least two things at once without having to list them!

Anyway, the kids are tucked up and the night is no longer young because I've just whiled away a couple of hours catching up - how does that happen? After a pretty stressful day of haircuts, tantrums and Beano confiscations I'm back in Blogland and it feels good! I'll have to make do with pasta for tea because I forgot to take the tuna out of the freezer, but otherwise all's well.

I have a query, can someone explain Flickr to me? I was very pleased with myself when I managed to add it to the side of my blog but what do I do with it now? It's just sort of sitting there looking pretty but I'm too overwhelmed with all this technology to actually do anything with it. Do I have to or can I just leave it there and pretend it doesn't exist??!!

Last weekend was a cause for great celebration in this family. My mum turned 60 so we had a party here for her. Great excuse to bring out the bunting and all the old napkins, plates etc I've collected over the years. My uncle played the piano (finally someone's used it!) until the wee hours and a great time was had by all!

I just have to say "Happy Birthday" Mum. She really is the best mother we could wish for, if a little eccentric at times (she knows what we mean). I'll have to show her this post next time I visit. She's not a big fan of blogs, what with all her conspiracy theories. I blame the "Daily Mail" !

Finally I thought I'd finish with a gem from my seven year old :

"Mum"

"Yes Jack"

"You're not fat"

"Thank-you darling" Preening myself, waiting for the compliment which is sure to follow.

"You're stout!"

Hmmmmmmmmmmm.........

I'm nice, apparently!..........

Well I don't know what to say! Two (yes people, 2!) have nominated me for a "nice matters" award. I'm sure most people who know me would be gobsmacked that the word "nice" has been applied to me in any context, but I'm thrilled to receive it. Thank you so much to Rachel at milesawayinfrance and dottycookie for passing on to me.

The last award I received was in my last year at high school and was the prestigious "skiving off games" award - I kid you not! Many a happy hour was spent sitting on the toilet cistern in the changing rooms just so we didn't have to brave the all weather hockey pitch in temperatures of minus 10 wearing nothing but the shortest gym skirt!

The award was started by Bella Enchanted for the following reasons : "to those that are just nice people, good blog friends and those that inspire good feelings and inspiration! Those that care about others and are there to lend support or those that are just a positive influence in our blogging world"

I now have to nominate others who I think deserve such an award and we all know how difficult that is, but here goes, in no particular order ;

Clare at Elfie and Me who always spends the time to email responses to any comment left

Tracy at cupcakes at home who writes the most glorious blog about her big move "up North"

Louise at lulu lolly legs who makes the most gorgeous things and is lovely into the bargain

Sophie at Sophie Honeysuckle's English decor her blog is pure eye candy and doesn't make me at all envious!

Catherine at Molly cupcakes who leaves the loveliest comments and regales us with tales of her busy life

Kim at Ragged Roses who makes the most amazing things

Marie at Marie Chantal Handmade Skincare who has bravely started a new business but always makes time to leave words of encouragement for others

Suzie of Suzie Sews for her honesty and unbelievable maternal skills

There are so many more I could add.....................

I'll leave you with a little garden picture, a fab Verbena Bonariensis (think that's right!) I planted this summer. It's really come up trumps!

The summer hols so far.................

The children are in bed and I'm contemplating whether to have a glass of wine or a cup of tea. I haven't had my requisite 12 cups today so feel I may have to squeeze one in before the wine flows.

As usual the summer hols are flying by, where does the time go? We've managed three camping trips so far, to the Forest of Dean, Wales and Scotland, each time with a different set of friends. Each of them have been great fun, but the location that stands out has to be Wales. The campsite was a field next to the sea with the most amazing views. Ian took Jack for his first sea fishing experience from the rocky cove at the bottom of the campsite. He caught his first mackerel and it went from the sea into his tum within 30 mins!

We saw dolphins and seals from the cove and had the most spectacular sunsets (see rather blurry pic above) in the evening, it really was one of the best camping trips we've ever had, made even better by spending it with our good friends from Dorset and their children.

Although I've not blogged for a while I have been dipping in and out, and generally lurking, without leaving any comments. Time is such a precious commodity during the hols and I just feel too guilty to spend hours on the computer when the children are here. Instead the housework has been in serious decline and we've been out and about or just lazing around here.

We're still waiting for the basement to dry out, but there is a silver lining - Ian has tentatively agreed that I can take 'his' room for my "studio" - or sewing room - Hurrah!! I have all sort of plans, especially after looking at plump-pudding's newly decorated workroom.

Thought I'd end with a few favourite bits of our house, like these Green Gate enamel containers and matches...........

A patchwork blanket I made for Kitty, using bits of vintage fabric and some of her old dresses...........
Pillowcases blowing on the line yesterday in the sun................yes, I kid you not, actual sunshine, and how ridiculously excited was I to see it?!!.............
And finally just some of our huge book collection, these being Ian's old "Biggles" and boys books which take pride of place on the living room bookshelves..........


Let's hope the sun keeps shining...............

A misunderstanding........

I think I've caused a bit of a misunderstanding. In my last post I copied a piece from toddlerplanet about inflammatory breast cancer and I think, judging from some of the lovely comments I've had, that some of you thought it was me who had been diagnosed. Thankfully it isn't. A fellow blogger, dottycookie, mentioned it on her blog and asked anyone who could to pass the information on. My mother had breast cancer, and survived, nearly 20 years ago and I just wanted to help somebody else avoid the pain and suffering if at all possible.

I hope this clears this up, thanks for all your comments. I've edited the post to hopefully make it a bit clearer!

If you read nothing else, please read this and pass it on......

I heard about this through Dotty Cookie. If you do nothing else today, please look at this and copy and paste so as many women as possible read about it. This was taken from an amazing blog called toddlerplanet, which follows one woman's journey through cancer, it's a humbling read...............

Where's the canoe??...............

I can't believe it's been 2 weeks since my last post, but what a 2 weeks it's been! Firstly I've been unable to get to the computer because we've had 3 teenage guests to stay, namely my stepdaughter and 2 of her friends, all of them 14 and a bit. They sleep in the room where we have the computer, and boy do they sleep!! I think the record was 5.30 pm one day, most other days they crawled out into the light, blinking like moles and yawning profusely, at about 3-4pm!

So I must apologise for my lack of contact, I have been cut off from my new hobby for 2 whole weeks and I've been suffering from severe withdrawal symptoms!

The second major upheaval in this house has been the weather. Thursday night last week brought the most tremendous thunderstorm and rain like I have never seen in my life! Throughout Friday it never stopped and after a nine hour journey back from work (it normally takes 50 mins) Ian arrived at 2am to be informed by our nocturnal teenies that water was appearing from under the walls in the basement rooms they sleep in. After 2 hours of unsuccesfully trying to bale out we gave in and went to bed, and woke up to 2 inches of water in every room down there.



So we are officially flooded for the first time in our lives, but we are much luckier than so many more nearby (although we are the only ones in this street - how did that happen?). Watching the news some people have lost almost everything and won't be able to go home for months. We use our basement rooms for guests and Ian's "playroom" (ie. bike store!) so we can manage without them, and another positive is that I can finally get rid of the horrible carpet!

To add insult to injury we have been told that our water will probably be turned off at some point tonight for maybe 3 days. I suppose we could at least go down stairs and ladle a bit up if we're desperate!

I must also say a big thank you to friends who offered help when we needed it, times like these show you who your true friends are!

On a lighter note, this is what we do in this house on rainy days, we make "nests". Kitty made this one on Friday morning and snuggled in there for ages...........

This is my nest, just for you, sophie. How I look forward to falling into it at the end of the day. Notice the stripy pillowcases, bought after a very kind tip from Sophie's blog.

Like many other bloggers my visits over the next few weeks are likely to be sporadic. Summer hols are upon us and, foolhardy as we are, many camping trips are planned. Well we have got to use that new tent, you know!...........

.....................and I would walk 500 more!

Were we lucky or what?? We went to the Cornbury festival on Saturday and managed to get a whole day of glorious sunshine amongst weeks of rain and clouds! The sky was blue, the music was great, the food was fabulous and even the toilets were clean(ish)!

The Proclaimers, The Waterboys and David Gray were among the bands on offer and all of them were brilliant. After an initial hiccup in behaviour (from both mother and son, over a trampoline!) our children were angels and it was great to see them all dancing to music we love. I would highly recommend it to everyone as a great festival to visit with (or without) kids.

Needless to say, brainless moron that I am I forgot the camera so this is all I can offer.................

Now feast your eyes on this little lot - does everyone else have drawers like this, in every room, drawers that you daren't open unless you're looking hopefully (and in vain) for that last AA battery or a plaster? I'm sure if I count up on my death bed I'll have wasted about 4 1/2 years of my life looking through drawers, under sofas, behind beds etc.! How I envy those organised people who open their drawers and have only one or two items laid out neatly and in a logical order, who possess sock dividers and who never ever forget a birthday, anniversary or to MOT the car! Chaos rules in this house, every morning I can be heard screeching down the street to "Get your shoes on , where are your shoes, where did you last see them, oh b....... we're late!!!"

Finally a little picture of the aftermath of a session with scissors and tissue paper with Kitty, note the Barbie scooter for quick exit before Mummy makes her tidy up..........

....................too late!! They have to earn their keep you know!

I would walk 500 miles..............

It's going to be an exciting weekend, can't tell you why but there's a clue in the title.......I'll update you in my next post.

Back to real life and taking a leaf out of ali's and angelgem's book I thought I'd post a couple of pictures of the bits of my otherwise untidy and chaotic house that make me smile and happy to be here.........

Because I find it difficult to part with anything I couldn't bear to get rid of the childrens' baby shoes, so I nailed them to the cupboard on the landing - the shoes NOT the children! They remind me of those little baby feet!

Just a few of the things hanging around the kitchen. I like to be surrounded by "stuff" and once the kitchen was finished I couldn't wait to fill it. But I did make a pact with myself that it should be stuff that I use on a regular basis, and I'm trying to keep to that! I even use the little enamel pan to make a tiny portion of gravy for my chips from the chippy - I am Northern you know, and they don't do gravy down here!

Finally the nicest part of our bathroom, the reason we bought the house! Don't look at the unpainted panelling behind the basin, just another job which will never be done! We weren't looking to move, having just finished the last house, but I love looking on property websites and saw a picture of this bathroom. It's a huge room because it used to be a bedroom so it can accommodate a roll top bath and an enormous airing cupboard as well as this lovely old basin. The taps are ancient and drippy, there's huge cracks in the basin and loo and actually the bath is too big to lie in comfortably unless you're 7' tall, but I still love the room. In fact when we exchanged contracts the first thing I did was rush out and buy a triple sorter laundry basket - Yippeee.......................I know how to celebrate!!!!

Have a lovely and SUNNY weekend everyone...............

21 again !!...............

Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me!

37 today, one step closer to the big four-o and the huge party I'll be having! I've had a fantastic day, the sun shone for a bit of it (expectations have been lowered when it comes to summer weather!) and Ian and I had a day without children, which is rarer than a total eclipse. My great friend Andrea had Kitty for the day and we skipped off to Nailsworth for a day of relaxation.

Inevitably we had to go into a couple of the shops, just for a look you understand! And look what my darling hubby (not married, but it sounds so much better than partner, boyfriend etc!!) got me..............

Now, I know to some people this would be an insult as a birthday present, but I LOVE it, and I love that Ian understands my madness and bought it for me. I'm not some closet ironing fanatic but it's old and worn and goes so well in the kitchen I figure I'll just want to iron - will it work, do you think??

We had a great lunch without being distracted, and had the luxury of sitting and drinking coffee without having to gulp it down before child one attempts to kill child two. All in all a fab day, worth being 37 for!

I've had some gorgeous gifts, maybe I'll post some piccies at a later date, but I must say thanks to all my friends who read this blog (you know who you are!) for their thoughtful presents, very gratefully received!

Kitty enjoyed her day, thank you for all the kind wishes. I'm now wondering how we can fit all these extra toys in the house! We decorated the kitchen with bunting because a garden party was out of the question, seeing as we're in the middle of monsoon season. She partied with 4 of her friends, ate far too much junk food, screamed around the house and flaked out at about 6pm in her "bestest present" - the Barbie sleeping bag -Thank-you Andrea!

I have to say the rag doll and patchwork quilt I sat up until the wee hours slaving over did not receive as ecstatic a response! Barbie rules methinks! The patchwork party bags were well received - little did they know that halfway through making them I questioned my own sanity and wondered why I didn't just buy plastic ones!

Lastly I must apologise for being a bad blogger - I will be catching up on all your news later this week - promise!

A special day...........

Three years ago today at 4.30 in the morning, five weeks earlier than expected, our gorgeous little girl was born. Weighing in at 6lb 3 oz she amazed doctors by needing no special care other than being wrapped up in about twenty blankets to keep her warm. From that moment on she has delighted us every day, and driven us mad at times!! She's a great little sister to her big brother and she brings so much joy into our lives. Her constant smile, energy, and sense of fun make her a delight to be around and it's a great privilege to be her mummy.

Happy birthday Kitty, we love you more and more as each day passes.

ps............back to normal tomorrow, hopefully I'll get up to date with blogging!

Bad Hair Day

How come some days you feel like this...........

(ok, ok, slight exaggeration!!)

and then the rest of the time you feel like this????..............

Having a VERY BAD HAIR day!!!!!! I'll be back when I'm feeling less like Norah!

Spot the difference.............

There's a battle going on in this house at the moment! It involves the cushions on the sofa. I have a certain way I like to place them and every night before we go to bed I plump them all up so they look nice in the morning. I know, I know it's very sad but it's one of my "things" - I also can't leave the house unless all the beds are made, maybe I need to get therapy or perhaps a life??

Back to the cushions, I like them like this.........

But Kitty likes them like this.................

Because the floral one on the left has been claimed as her cushion it just has to go on her side of the sofa, but it doesn't look right! So we are having a very quiet battle, every time I go into the living room the cushion fairy has visited and the cushion has moved so I put it back, and so it goes on. Pathetic and a complete waste of time to some people I'm sure, but it's what goes on in this house, and she's only 2, what have I created??

Visited a couple of charity shops recently and picked up this lovely sheet, it's too small for our bed, and I can't bring myself to cut it up so I think it will become a tablecloth for our garden table. I hung it out on the line in the glimpse of sunshine we had yesterday and had that great "washing on the line" feeling, can't explain that one but hopefully you know what I mean!

Finally, I treated myself to some cherries yesterday, how expensive are they? £2.37 for this little lot, but boy were they worth it! There's no better taste in summer, although I always think the spitting out of the stones somewhat spoils the moment!

The post with no name...........

This blog is a tribute to the two dads in my life............ Here's the first one.......

Don't panic, that's not his real hair (and he's not Pat Sharp's love child!!), we just have a bit of a thing with wigs in this family, any excuse and we'll stick one on! This is my lovely dad, with a selection box growing out of his ear, no wonder his hearing's going! He's had a few hard years but has remained optimistic throughout and will always be a great inspiration to me. I can't imagine a better father (even if he doesn't see the point of blogging!)

And here's to the other daddy in my life........the father of my children, Ian.......

This photo captures the true essence of him, he's a great dad (although I don't tell him enough), patient, understanding and always there for his children. They love him to bits and the feeling is mutual. Ian, we love you and always will.

So, the weekend was spent picking strawberries from Pop's veg plot, and then eating them with meringues and cream, YUM!

On Saturday we went on a tiny ferry from Knott End to Fleetwood and then caught a tram down to Cleveley's. We had a fantastic time, the children loved being with their grandparents and as an added bonus my grandmother came with us too! Four generations of the same family on a Knott End ferry, bet that doesn't happen often!

Thought I'd end this post with a couple of kitchen shots for all those of you like me who like photos of other peoples' houses. I'm going to have to start sewing again soon to have some more interesting bits to show!
This is the top of my old kitchen dresser, filled with all my car boot/charity shop finds, apart from the little choir boy who belongs to Ian (one of the few ornaments he will lay claim to).

And finally my sideboard full of gorgeous old plates and serving dishes, and yes that is the sun you can see shining through, it finally came out this afternoon! My mum spotted this old table in a junk shop, it was painted a dark green. A couple of coats of Farrow and Ball "String" and it fits in perfectly I think. It's one of my favourite pieces of furniture and so useful, it can hold loads, a very important requirement in the house of an unrepentant hoarder!

Just time for a quickie!.................

Come on everybody, cleanse those dirty minds. I'm talking about a new post. It's nearly midnight, my eyebags are the size of suitcases, my back's hurting from sitting at the computer and my vision's gone blurry - too long gazing at other peoples' blogs methinks! Ian has become a blog widower, poor bloke, maybe it'll persuade him to buy me a laptop so at least he can look at other people's houses with me - unlikely!



This is the front of our house, I suppose the number painted on is a bit of a giveaway there! It's funny but people know our house from that painted number. It's something I copied from the big, posh townhouses round here, and when I tell people where we live they often mention the painted number and how much they like it. You can just see Kitty's pyjama'd legs in the doorway, she was wondering why I was taking photos. One of her favourite questions is "What you doin' Mummy?" with a sound of bewilderment in her voice!



This is one of my favourite spots in the house, it's our little family gallery on the stairs. Before I go to bed each night and every morning when I get up these are the things I see. Most of them are simply blown up on ordinary printer paper from the computer and framed. I love black and white prints, so much more flattering and kind as the years advance I think! The hall in our house was painted bottle green when we moved in, it was so dark the removal men kept bumping into one another! It's also covered in textured wallpaper that I would love to get rid of, but finances do not allow that so I'll make do with camouflaging it with family pics.



Finally, I know, I know, I've been sucked into the croc trap (these are Jack's), but I have to admit we love them! They are so comfortable and I have the excuse that we've bought them for camping. No more standing in other peoples' hair in the showers, and they are great for the garden, beach etc. That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!

Have a fantastic weekend everyone!