This week’s picture was taken on Sunday when we had roast dinner. Poor Chris doesn’t look great but its a picture of the girls so nevermind!
Camping trip number 2 – Chichester
Last weekend we headed off on a very last minute camping trip down to Chichester. We were loaned a brand new tent (a Vango Airbeam Evoque) my friends got at a wall tent shop, which we needed to pick up on the way and didn’t arrive until 10pm. We had huge amounts of fun, putting up this brand new tent, in the pitch black, with only my car headbeams to light the way. However the tent is awesome – did you know you could get fully inflatable tents that don’t require poles?!
Anyway after pretty much arriving and going to sleep (it was midnight by then mind you), we woke around 7am the next morning and got ready for a day at Chichester Marina. The girls grandparents have a boat there and they had invited us all down for the day. We just had to change the boat batteries and then it’s ready for an adventure.
I have to admit I always feel at home with Bob and Andrea (the grandparents) even though I’m separated from their son. After nipping out to the nearby village and getting some cash out (to pay for camping), we arranged to travel to the marina and meet Bob and Andrea. We parked the car and boarded the boat for the day. We saw many used pontoons at Chichester Marina.
The day was beautiful and the water was really calm, at least until we got out of the main marina area. We spent quite a few hours just “driving” around, before mooring up and having some lunch. Andrea made a fab spread and I was given a glass of prosecco and wine too. It was so relaxing. Next we moved the boat slightly and the girls went crabbing off a dock. Lily wasn’t really sure she was up for the idea but I persuaded her into it and both of them seemed to enjoy themselves. After what seemed like ages, Megan finally caught a crab and Lily freaked out and refused to fish for them after that. It was pretty funny. We named the crab Kevin and fed him bacon lardons, while trying to catch some more. However we were unsuccessful and in the end just placed Kevin back in the water.
Finally we headed back towards the marina to dock the boat and go for dinner. The girls both had a go at steering, as did Chris. However when we got near to the marina, Bob took over. Sadly there is a lock that you need to go through and there was a queue, so we ended up delayed for about an hour. In the end we moored up and headed to a place called The Boat House Cafe. Bob and Andrea had already told us it was there treat so it was lovely to enjoy a nice meal out. Chris, Lily and I all had burgers, while Megan had BBQ chicken breast. There was lots of wine flowing and it was such a pleasant evening. Lily ended up playing Pokemon on my phone, while Megan drew on the serviette. It was just very relaxing. Click here to check out more details about boats
We headed back the campsite and relaxed for a while before grabbing an early night. The next morning we were up early again but this time we needed to pack up the tent and head home. It took quite a lot longer than we expected so it was around 10am when we set off. We stopped for food on the way home, but ultimately we were getting back for my sister’s house warming party so we didn’t have much time to spare.
It was a very rushed trip and a long way to go for the weekend but we had a great time. I’d love to go again next summer, but maybe for a week so we can see more of the south coast.
June Round-up
Watching: Fringe (I started back at Season 1 and I’m up to 4), Orphan Black (catching up on Season 4), Orange is the New Black (had to wait till after Paris but then binged Season 4), re-watched Season 5 of OUAT with Nat before we went to the convention, The Great British Sewing Bee, of course Game of Thrones (last episodes!!), the usual Casualty, Holby City, Flash, Arrow, Legends of Tomorrow etc. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Just Go With It, Zootropolis, Twilight, Olympus has Fallen, Deadpool,
Reading: Wait for Me, Kingdom Keepers: Disney at Dawn, Cinder.
Sewing & Making (for Closet Geek): Ears!! It’s still been all about the ears. I announced the last day of £6 ears and my social media blew up. In total I think I took orders of over 50 sets in the end. Other than that there was a Woody dress, a Jessie dress, a Belle dress and apron, a Baymax dress and jacket, a custom Sleeping Beauty fabric dress, some custom pencil cases, plus the usual bows and jewellery orders.
And in other news…
– We went to see Zootropolis at the cinema and I loved it.
– We spent a whole day looking for a new car for Chris but he ended up with a really nice one and it was totally worth it. We also got ice cream from Blyton on the way home!
– Lily got a short story printed in a book. It’s not technically printed yet but we got a certificate and I had to give my permission for it to be published.
– Megan had her first day at secondary school on a taster day. It didn’t go as well as she’d hoped but she has another in July.
– I helped Nat to pack up all her belongings and load them into my car and hers. She then moved in with us a few days later.
– Nat and I went to Paris for a very long weekend. We saw loads of tourist attractions, plus attended a OUAT convention and spent the day at Disneyland Paris. It was a great trip but it was lovely to be home.
– We got new broadband. Not a major event in itself but its all connected to Chris now having a BT contract so its all good. Also it seems faster which is great.
– Had our first viewing on the house since being on the market since April. It didn’t come to anything but at least it’s a start.
Looking forward to in July:
– Honestly, nothing really. Most of July is busy with school things, like Sports Day, Transition Day, school reports, end of year service, Leavers Party, Leaver assembly etc. but otherwise I have nothing planned myself in July.
My 37th Birthday
On the whole I avoid putting the actual age I am, on my blog. It’s not that it particularly bothers me (turning 30 never did) but I have to admit that inching closer to 40 does somehow make me feel old. However I’m sucking it up this year and trying to embrace it – and I’m going to let you know what a great birthday I had!
For a start, it was a Saturday (May 28th). Amy and Olivia came down to visit for the weekend, Chris was off work and even Amy’s O.H. was coming to spend the day with us! Though technically my birthday had started at midnight where Amy and I were still up and sitting in the dinning room, we soon headed to bed and started again properly in the morning. Chris sadly woke me at 7am when he got up and though I had hoped for a lie-in, it wasn’t to be! I got up and was greeted by many “happy birthday”s and Amy kindly made me a cup of tea! I sat down on the sofa to open cards and gifts from them all, which was really lovely.
The girls got me the Evil Queen from Snow White, in hag form. This is a Disney Tradition that I’ve been after for a while and I’m not sure why as she’s ugly as hell, but I love it regardless! Chris got me Seven Dwarves on a Log – again another Disney Tradition that I have loved for literally as long as I can remember. It was always far too expensive to consider getting but now it’s mine, yay! Finally Amy and Liv got me a box of goodies, including an Ursula decoration, Regina in Pop Funko, an art print of Belle and the Beast and a Tinker Bell scarf (I put it on straight away, so forgot to photograph it). There was also a limited edition print that Amy had found in a charity shop, which is literally amazing!
After this we sat around for a while relaxing, but the kids started to get hungry so I put on some breakfast. We had freshly baked croissants and pain au chocolat, along with margarine, nutella and chocolate/peanut butter spread. We actually didn’t even manage it all which was a surprise between six of us.
Everyone went off their separate ways then, to get dressed, to have another cup of tea etc. My mum arrived around lunch time to give me her gift and then Amy’s O.H. arrived too. After a while we headed out to Nottingham with the plan to play mini-golf but it actually turned out that we went shopping and ate at Five Guys. We headed home, got the girls to bed and then my friend Nat and her O.H. came around. We spent the evening chatting, laughing and drinking wine until about 1am.
While it maybe doesn’t sound like the most spectacular of birthdays, the evening was everything and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Thankfully its a whole year now until the next one but I’m glad this one turned out pretty great.
Our Valentine’s Day
As I mentioned in my Wish List post for Valentine’s Day, February 14th has always been so much more than about couples for me. Ever since Megan was born, I have always bought a gift for her on V Day and when Lily was born, her too. It’s a silly thing really I suppose, but I love them just as much as any partner I’ve had – generally I love them a lot more!
So for all you single peeps out there, I know. It can feel lonely. And maybe I don’t hold a lot of credibility because I am happily married, how could I possibly understand? but I do. I really do. But if you do have a couple, Valentine’s Day is one of the trickiest holidays because it isn’t easy to whip up a thoughtful gift at the last minute. Still, whether your significant other spends the majority of their time in the office or taking care of the kids, he or she deserves to be recognized for everything they do for you and your family! You probably have a few sentimental gift ideas in mind, but nothing says ‘I Love You’ like taking the time to pick out a gift to complement his or her wardrobe, check these Matching Underwear For Couples – His and Hers Mr and Mrs Undies Sets and get something from their online catalogue.
This year, my mum – my go to babysitter – is away in New Zealand and so I knew there would be no me and Chris time anyway. To be honest, we find our own time to spend together – usually Monday nights or the odd trip away. In fact tonight we might be heading out to see Deadpool! Anyway, when I knew that the day would be spent as a family, I decided it would be nice to really spend it as a family and spread the love around amoungst us.
About two weeks ago, we decided that for Valentine’s Day, we would each buy each other a gift. So I would get for Chris, Megan and the girls (as I would anyway), but they would each buy a gift for each person too. Megan has her own bank account now so this was really exciting for her. She picked out Lily and Chris’ gift all by herself, then her and Lily chipped together (though Megan purchased it) for mine. I helped Lily pick out something for Megan and she was cheeky with Chris’ and pinched something from a Nerd Block we received, knowing it was something he’d like. Chris got it easy – already knowing he would buy for me, he picked up a box of chocolates for the girls (at my suggestion) and so really he didn’t have to use much brain power! To be fair, I know he struggles enough for mine.
On Valentine’s Day morning, we got up at normal (relaxed) time as part of the enjoyment of the day was not to feel rushed. We opened our gifts from each other and said thank you of course!
I bought Chris a pair of Star Wars pj bottoms, but also a new copy of Burgle Bros (a game he’d bought on Kickstarter and I’d accidentally split my tea on an ruined half the cards). Megan bought Chris a Star Wars Deathstar ice cube maker and Lily got Chris the White Walker figure from Game of Thrones.
Chris got the girls Ferrero Rocher as I mentioned before and he got me a photo frame and a really cute Me to You bear that’s a) a bee (I love bees, being nicknamed Bee by close friends) b) a blue nose friend and Chris has always bought me those and c) it says Bee Mine on it (lame pun but I still love it).
For Megan I got her a Pop Funko figure of Disgust (I think Megan pulls some similar faces!) and Lily bought her a Ravenclaw coaster and some Ravenclaw socks. For Lily I got her a Mulan Pop Funko (apparently her new favourite Princess) and Megan got her some Lego (Wyldestyle) since she seems to be into this again! The girls together bought me a really awesome Mickey Mouse Disney Tradition, which is funny because the Minnie was on my wish list last week!
There were nice cards, plenty of hugs and kisses and it was really lovely! Next up came breakfast – well more like brunch! We had all our favourite things, including; turkey rashers, croissants, pain au chocolat, cheese topped baguettes, real butter, chocolate crepes and prosecco (the girls had chocolate milk). The croissants and pain au chocolat were freshly made and they were amazing!
After brunch we played board games. First was Chris’ new copy of Burgle Bros – we played twice and lost both times. Next was “Say Anything”, a game that Megan has been dying to play for years and it was pretty fun. Afterwards we headed into the lounge and watched Tron Legacy. This was “boys” pick for movies and although Chris and I had seen it before, the girls both surprised themselves by enjoying it too.
After the movie it was actually dinner time. None of us were especially hungry but we knew we needed to fit it in, as we had plans for another movie after dinner. We had planned a three course meal, earlier in the week, and each taken responsibility for a course. Megan picked to do garlic bread slices topped with cheese, while I made Beef Stroganoff and Lily chose chocolate fondue for dessert. Chris was in charge of drinks so he bought us a bottle of rosé and the girls were allowed some strawberry and lime cider.
Finally, completely stuffed after dinner we headed back to the lounge again and this time it was “girls” pick. Though Lily wasn’t convinced, Megan and I chose Moulin Rouge and though no one but me had seen it, I think it went down fairly well. Of course its a bit of a strange movie but its also amazing too. Both girls cried at the end (like me) so I think that’s generally a hit!
After this it was Lily’s bed time and so she headed up while the rest of us just relaxed. Megan went to bed an hour later and we weren’t long after that either. All in all it was a really lovely day and something I would definitely consider doing again.
Tomorrow I’m planning a belated Galentine’s Day for all my favourite girlies and I’m really excited for that too. February is turning out to be so much better than January and at least the year feels like it’s off to a good start!
Brewers Fayre – Half Term Fun
During half term its always nice to find an excuse to get out for the day, even if it’s just for dinner. We heard that Brewers Fayre were offering some extra activities this coming February half term and so last week we decided to go and visit, so we could get a feel for the place. Our nearest Brewers Fayre is in Lincoln, a pub called Gateway Park. We’d been a few times before, especially for kids parties, but it had been a while. Since mum was going away for the whole of February, we decided to meet up with her too and enjoy lunch as a family.
When we arrived, the car park was really full and we actually couldn’t find anywhere to park there. We headed back out and managed to park further into the estate, luckily not too far. As we headed into the pub, we were greeted and seated within a few minutes, despite the fact it was busy. We all decided what to eat and Chris and I headed to the bar to order. We were served by a really lovely guy, who was great to deal with and friendly too.
Our food arrived within maybe 15-20 minutes, but it felt even quicker than that. The service was lovely and the food was great. We genuinely had no complaints. Despite struggling to finish, I let the girls have dessert and I had a coffee. We all had a lovely lunch and will definitely be heading back. The kids menu was great value at £3.99 with only an extra 50p for a starter or 50p for a dessert.
Brewers Fayre has a built in play area, that you can let the kids play in and view from the outside. It’s a good place to relax while still letting the kids play. During half term, Brewers Fayre nationwide are offering extra activities including colouring, puzzles and activity sheets. The theme is Beano (like the play area and menu) and kids will even get to leave Beano balloon.
For extra entertainment during Half Term, Brewers Fayre will be featuring fun discos on both Friday 19th and Saturday 20th February at selected Brewers Fayres. The Toddlers disco will run from 9.30am – 3pm while the Kids will run from 3.30- 7.30pm at a cost of £3 per child.
So if you have a Brewers Fayre somewhere local to you, why not give it a try? They offer good value for money, great food and somewhere to let both you and the kids unwind.
Week 43 – Monday Round-up
Another hectic week this week, leaving little time to blog. Right now I’m actually sat on my sofa, with a cup of tea, updating from my phone!
So last week was a fairly regular week. Girls at school and Chris at work. Monday I had a super lazy day. I did do some work in my computer but as of taking the girls to school, I really just sat on my butt watching tv all day. It was so great after weeks of working endlessly on orders! Tuesday I went into town and what should have been a quick pop in turned into a wander around but that was nice too and I picked up some bits and pieces for Christmas. That evening, after school, the girls and I played Hey That’s My Fish, which was a lot of fun and nice to do something together.
On Wednesday it was mine and Chris’ anniversary. We’re not married but we have been together 3 years so we celebrated with a few small gifts, dinner and some TV. Sadly he was at work during the day but Nat kept me company instead, most of which was planning her birthday party next month.
In the morning mum sent a picture of my mini market and I was pretty pleased with how it looked. Sadly not many people turned up to her coffee morning but I did make three sales. I spent the day printing out all the sheets for Nat’s murder mystery and then went on to sewing Christmas stockings. Sunday was similar to Saturday, in that I sewed most of the day. We had Charlie (my brother’s, girlfriend’s son) around for some of the day but he just played with the girls on DS and Xbox etc. Chris bought us Chinese takeaway for dinner and it was the end of a very pleasant week
Week 41 – Monday Round-up
As you maybe know, I’m knocking this round up nonsense on the head, come the end of the year. I would stop it now, but I feel like that would be a shame with only 11 weeks of the year left. However I do hate doing it, so those 11 weeks can’t come soon enough.
This week has mostly been one of illness. I began to feel ill on Monday, it peaked on Saturday and then began to die off. As I write this, I’m still ill but I think I’ve over the worst of it. Not only that but Chris came down ill a few days behind me, Megan had stomach ache Saturday and Lily had my sore throat the whole weekend. Other than that, its been a week filled mostly with sewing – of course. Tuesday I walked with Lily’s class to church and back, plus dragged the kids a long way for a fabric run! Chris had a friend called Jon around Monday night and I had Nat around on Tuesday night. On Wednesday the girls and I went to mum’s house for dinner. And on Friday, mum picked up the girls from school for me as I wasn’t feeling well. Honestly, other than that, there wasn’t a whole lot else going on!
Sad to say, it was a boring week. It should have been filled with Run or Dye too, but unfortunately we had to bail out on that. So this is it. Sewing and ill. My life this week, haha!
41/52
A cheat like last week I’m afraid! Still haven’t taken pictures of the girls, especially with us all being ill this weekend. The only other pics were with Nat and also on the polaroid, but the girls were separate. Instead I picked this one (also on our fridge like the other one) but honestly taken this week and not last! Everyone is loving the polaroid camera right now!
Is it cool or uncool to wear glasses?
When I was at school, around thirty years ago (yikes!) it was definitely uncool to wear glasses. Words such as dork, nerd and so forth are often associated with people in glasses, not to mention the more meaner four-eyes or specky. People like Clark Kent never really helped this image, even if he was technically Superman (after all, Superman didn’t wear glasses, just his alias!) If you’re tired of wearing glasses as well, why not find out more on how to restore your vision.
Over the years however, certain celebrities have definitely tried to make wearing glasses cool or at least fashionable. Let’s face it, some people consider it straight out sexy for members of the opposite sex to wear glasses! Specsavers Opticians actually run a Spectacle Wearer of the Year competition. It’s not just for celebrities either, just your regular Joe can participate too! So why is it then, that some people still choose to hide the fact they wear glasses?
My mum and dad were both every day glasses wearers. My brother and sister also wore specs as kids, though neither of them are very good at remembering to wear them these days. I was always quite proud of the fact I didn’t need oakley lead glasses, even though secretly I wanted to have to wear them – so that when I was in my teens I could have this beautiful reveal where I went from super nerdy to super beautiful!
Even now, I don’t really need glasses though I was once given a pair of prescription glasses, to help with the headaches when I’m using my computer a lot. I’m terrible at actually remembering to wear them and honestly I feel a little self conscious in them too. It’s funny really because I’m the first to throw on a pair of glasses when it comes to dressing up. When it comes to fixing your glasses frames there is always a shop near glad to help.
Each person is different I guess – even my two best friends. Amy wears her glasses with pride, while Nat will wear hers if she has to (but prefers contacts) and confesses to not feeling herself when wearing glasses. My partner Chris uses both contact lenses and glasses – originally because he couldn’t wear his glasses when riding his motorbike. It’s a good thing that there are now fashionable glasses and contact lenses that you can order from an optical boutique in your area including Gucci glasses.
I guess for people who really don’t get along with glasses, there will always be other options, such as laser eye surgery. If this is something you’re considering, look for licensed eye surgeons to do the surgery. Companies like Optical Express offer these treatments, if you’re brave enough to have them! For me personally, I don’t know how I would feel if I absolutely had to wear glasses, all of the time. A part of me feels like it shouldn’t be about vanity (though you can also look great wearing glasses) and a part of it is about the hassle of remembering to wear them. I’m not really good with hats, earrings or even my handbag – so I don’t know how I would feel about having to wear glasses day in and day out!