Journeys Are My Diary

Life, Adventures, Entertainment and more - A little bit of everything blog!

Week 43 – Monday Round-up

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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.

Thursday I was sewing again plus getting ready for a little mini market at my mum’s. I made bow boards out of my noticeboard and organised all my jewellery. When I picked up the girls we went out for dinner and then called at mum’s to drop my things off. We didn’t stay long before heading home though and I spent the evening watching Chris and Jon play X-Wing and then the three of us played Betrayal at the House on Haunted Hill.

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 42 – Monday Round-up

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Another round up post, but again not much going on. The girls were off school Monday-Wednesday as they’d been ill, but were back at school Thursday and Friday (though Lily wasn’t 100%). There was parent’s evening on Wednesday night, whereby the girls both did great, and Thursday evening Megan and I filled in her Secondary School applications. Chris was at work all week but off at the weekend, he’s on regular shifts for four weeks so that’s really nice.

The rest of the week, was just normal to be honest. I felt pretty rough myself still on Monday and yet I still had loads of orders to complete and finish. In fact they still flooded in all week. I worked out today that since the beginning of September I’ve had 56 orders through Closet Geek and 35 of those have been handmade dresses. Majority of those have been in the last two weeks as well so it’s been really busy. Anyway I got the orders all completed, along with two adult dresses I had to do as well.

Our monthly delivery of Tsum Tsums

As well as all those things, I’ve been watching a series called Switched at Birth, which I’ve now watched up to date (almost 4 series). I also caught up on all my British TV on my iPad via various apps, OUAT as well. I’m looking forward to a calmer week this coming week so I can catch up with TV with Chris – including Arrow, The Flash and The Walking Dead.

Week 41 – Monday Round-up

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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!

Week 40 – Monday Round-up

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Only another 12 weeks and then I’m knocking this round up business on the head! I knew my close friends enjoy reading it but I find it such a bind and I’m sure its completely boring to the majority of my readers! Not to mention on a busy week it just feels like such a hassle and yet again I’m writing a very quick post today!

Monday-Friday was school as usual for the kids and work for Chris. Monday I started a new diet with DW Fitness and since its a 12 week challenge it will take me right up to Christmas! This first week I’ve lost 2lb and so I’m feeling fairly positive about it so far! The whole week I have been working hard on Closet Geek orders. I’m so completely busy that every moment of every day seems to be dedicated to it! I had a total of 13 orders over the weekend, 11 of which were handmade dresses and so as you can imagine it’s keeping me busy. Tuesday though I made a dress for Megan and I was really pleased with how it turned out. She even wore it over the weekend so that assures me she likes it!

Um what else? Girls were with their Dad on Monday night and stayed at my mum’s on Thursday. Oh that’s because I went to a Bloggers Event at HomeSense on Thursday night and that was really nice to get out for a change. Nat came around one day too. Think that might have been Thursday daytime! I’ve been updating the school website in what little spare time I have, plus making sure I attend the kids events at school. I went in to help school with the website on Friday afternoon too. Watched The Descendants movie with the girls at the weekend – wasn’t really what I expected but it was good in the usual Disney manner. I would say Mean Girls meets High School Musical really.

Think that about sums up my week! Got to go make 9 of the same dress now so update again when I can!

Week 39 – Monday Round-up

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I know I always say this but I really have to make this a quick one this week. I have like 100 sewing projects going on, 10 or so of which are actually orders. Monday to Friday were school for the girls and work for Chris. I barely updated my instagram all week so I can’t even remember for the most part what we got up to!

Nat came around on Wednesday for the day time, I do remember that. And Thursday I spent the afternoon with Megan and Lily, at their Harvest Festival, then going to mum’s for dinner and finally to an open evening at one of Megan’s options for secondary school next year. The rest of the week is just a blur of sewing, blogging and trying to keep it together! It’s been more than a busy week this week, more like a chaotic one.

I got some new items listed in my shop this week, Amy’s Wendy dress got its outing at MNSSHP and I finished the Back to the Future prom dress that I’ve been working on. However like I said I have to make this short as I’m knee deep in a Cinderella dress and loads of other projects too!

Week 38 – Monday Round-up

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This Monday Round-up is definitely starting to become the bane of my life! I was unsure about doing it again at the beginning of this year and now 38 weeks in and I’m almost certain I won’t be doing it again next year! Anyway… another busy week (duh!). Monday to Friday and the kids were at school, though Lily was off sick on Wednesday. Chris was off Tuesday and Wednesday, but otherwise he was working every day and also Saturday at the weekend.

I honestly don’t remember much of the week, as its now a bit of a blur. Monday I think was probably a day spent catching up on blogging and the internet – as it often is. Tuesday I didn’t have to take the kids to school as they were at their dads, so it was lazy to begin with, then a shower and changed for a Secondary School open evening that night. Chris and I went to pick the girls up from school, headed home for dinner and then Megan and I went out to the first of her open evenings, leaving Lily and Chris at home to watch Avatar.

We were back around 9pm and so Megan and Lily headed straight to bed. We enjoyed the open evening though and LCHS is Megan’s first choice for next year. Wednesday as I mentioned, Lily was off. Nat also came around for the day and Chris was off work so we were a full house! Nat and I however headed out to Scunthorpe for fabric and then obviously later that afternoon I went out to get Megan from school. That evening was spent making a start on a custom Cinderella dress and then researching and ordering a few bits and pieces.

Thursday everyone was gone again – Chris back to work and the girls both at school. I spent the day working on a variety of sewing projects, popping into town and really just getting on top of things. I picked the girls up from school and then headed to mums where we would have dinner before heading out to another open evening. This time mum and Lily came too but not till towards the end and it was only really to meet us and make getting home a little faster. The girls went to bed not long after we got back and I started on Lily’s Harley Quinn dress. I spent pretty much all day Friday working on Lily’s dress and by the end of the day (with picking them up from school and dinner etc.) the dress was done. Lily had a friend to stay overnight Friday as well, which made things a little stressful but I still got plenty done.

I then spent Saturday morning making some bows for Lily and tidying up Megan’s Belle dress. Lily’s friend went home midday and at that point I was back to working on my other projects, putting a zip in a different dress, working on new ideas etc.

Sunday was Geeks in Lincoln, a sort of mini-comic con. The girls got dressed up but Chris and I just wore geeky t-shirts. Left the house not long after 10am and met up with Nat and her son Josh around 11am. The convention was really busy but it was small so only took an hour or so to look around. The girls enjoyed themselves and I have to admit I did too – despite it being small. We also bumped into Rhiannon who I haven’t seen in ages! We headed to KFC for lunch and then to my mums. After that we all headed home and just chilled out for the rest of the day – making time for homework and baths too though.

Another busy week coming this week but what’s new! Hope everyone is okay and having a good week too.

Week 37 – Monday Round-up

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Yes, it’s Monday and I’m actually making my round up post on time, woohoo! So what has happened this week? Sadly it’s a little same old when the kids go back to school. Megan and Lily were at school every day and Chris was at work all but Wednesday (even the weekend too). Monday and Tuesday, Chris was at work from 2.30pm until 11pm which was weird to say the least (he hasn’t worked that late since Ladbrokes). I spent both days sewing, getting on with both a Briar Rose dress and Snow White rags dress. On Tuesday I also finished off Amy’s Wendy Cosplay, after a quick visit to the market for ribbon that morning. I also cleaned my oven Monday/Tuesday… that was fun. Though Tuesday I did get a new phone and that WAS fun.

On Wednesday Nat came over for the day. It was Chris’ day off too but he spent most of the day upstairs on his computer. Nat and I spent the day working on some of my Closet Geek project – she helps cut out material and even just bounce ideas with. I got Amy’s package ready, with the four dresses I had already made (Woody, Briar Rose, Snow White rags and Wendy) but I also made a surprise Minnie Mouse dress too. I then made a few bows and added it all to her parcel before picking up the kids from school and dropping it off at the parcel shop.

Thursday I worked on both of my current custom orders. I cut out the pattern for one and printed out the pattern for the next. It felt good knowing Amy’s dress was out of the way and I could get on with other things. Chris was working till 11pm again so in the evening I let myself relax, watch some TV, but also do some research on nearby fabric stores.

Friday I spent the day sorting out the pattern I’d printed out. It was 62 sheets that I had to lay together, stick down and then cut out, all to get the 6 pattern pieces I needed. After I’d done that I was able to work out how much fabric I would need and order that too.

In the evening I cut out the fabric for the prom dress I would be working on over the weekend. I think I mentioned it in another post, the Back to the Future prom dress from the first movie. Anyway I cut out the fabric and the organza, ready to work on the following day. I also finally got time to watch more Grimm, after 2-3 days of not doing so!

Saturday and Sunday were fairly similar. I worked on the school website on Saturday but then did some sewing in the afternoon and into the evening. Sunday I sewed on and off most of the day, though mum came around from lunchtime onwards. She helped the kids do their homework too so that was great and time saving for me too. By the end of the night I’d got the dress to a good point and I was happy to leave it there. And that, pretty much, sums up my week!

Week 36 – Monday Round-up

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I am so behind on everything right now that I’ve realised its Wednesday and I still haven’t rounded up last week! To be truthful it was the usual mix of nothing some days and loads the next, but I will try to recap as best I can remember!

Monday we were still in London and I posted about that day here. Since we were actually back by Tuesday, life pretty much returned to normal. The girls went to their dad’s house and Chris was at work so I had a day of sewing, blogging and watching TV (not necessarily in that order!). I made some decisions about the month (that sadly haven’t really happened yet) and tried to take a determined approach to life since it was September 1st!

In the evening I sat down to make loads of hair bows and watch Grimm. It was actually pretty awesome ;)

In the morning I got up and headed out for the girls, about the same time as Chris headed out to work. I picked them up and we headed to Asda Living to pick out some school uniform for Megan and a few last minute bits and pieces they needed. Afterwards we went home and while the girls sat and played on their computers (and Disney Infinity on the Xbox), I made more bows and watched Grimm… right up till bedtime. Other than that there was the odd bit of getting ready for school etc. but that was pretty much it.

On Thursday the girls were back at school and we had the usual mad rush in the morning. After dropping the girls off I came home and started to sew. Nat came around for the day and although we mostly sat and chatted, she helped me cut out pattern pieces etc. until we both needed to pick up the kids from school. After school we all just flaked in front of the TV and computers, recovering from a busy day! Friday was fairly similar, except that I dropped the kids off at school and went on a ribbon hunt in Lincoln. I realised Nat was off so called her to meet up for coffee and we spent the morning chatting and drinking coffee/hot chocolate. I headed home as I needed to go to the post office and get a few bits done. However it wasn’t long before I was back out to get the girls. That evening I spent sewing, getting both a Woody dress done and also working on a Wendy cosplay.

Saturday morning and it was the weekend. The girls had no school and Chris had no work, so it should have been heaven – except I felt awful! I had a headache all day long and this resulted in me crying on and off through frustration. However I managed to get some work done in the end and my headache finally cleared by about 7pm. Sunday was another day of sewing and another day of everyone being off. We spent the day doing our own thing but sat down to a family dinner of fajitas in the evening.

It was a lovely week but as always, highs and lows. This week is fairly crazy so far but I’m beginning to think that’s the new norm!

Week 35 – Monday Round-up (on Tuesday)

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Trying to keep on top of my week this week, as it’s a bank holiday weekend and then the kids will be back to school and I don’t want to get too far behind! This week started off really great! Monday the girls had been overnight at their Grandma’s and then went on to their dad’s so I still didn’t see them. Chris was off work though so it was nice to spend the day together (well sort of). I spent the morning working on orders, to make sure I could get them sent off that day. I then grabbed a shower and Chris and I went out for lunch. Since we ate at NYC Bar and Grill (again), we ended up going for a wander around Bawtry at the same time. It was lovely having a walk around somewhere new and the weather was good too.

On the way back to Gainsborough, Chris’ car started playing up and that was a worry. We came in and I started sewing, but he had to call the garage and get it checked out. Luckily it didn’t seem like it was anything to worry about so I spent the rest of the day sewing, answering emails and working on my orders. Chris and I headed to bed around 11pm though as we were both tired.

Tuesday was another day off for Chris but we had a lot planned. I was out the door at 8.30am as I needed to pop to market before heading over to my mum’s. Chris was coming too but decided he would take his own car and give it a run. Luckily it was fine though we still popped into the garage to make an appointment, just for it to have the once over. We then headed on to my mum’s, where I worked on the Saxilby School website with her and Chris fixed an issue with her computer/printer, while causing one with her internet! However we couldn’t stay and fix it as I needed to get the girls from their dad and then head over to Louth. I picked the girls up and then we all headed over to see my Auntie Pat. She had her grandchildren around so it was sort of a playdate, but it was nice to see Pat and catch up. We had a lovely lunch and the kids played nicely. I almost felt bad that we had to leave. Chris headed back to my mum’s to fix the wifi he’d broken earlier and the girls and I went to Scunthorpe so I could scout out a Fabric Warehouse I’d found online.

The girls and I had a wander around the fabric store and I did buy a few bits. We then went to The Range where we spent a bit more! Finally we headed to Costa and grabbed coffee before we all headed back. Chris was already home by then but we were all pretty worn out so we did our own thing. The girls weren’t hungry (I think from the coffee) and neither was I. We postponed dinner for a while and I worked on Amy’s cosplay outfit. Finally we had dinner and as the girls were finishing I realised it was 9pm! I have no idea how it got that late but after letting them have a few minutes for their food to go down, I soon packed them off to bed – with Megan having a while longer for iPad time. I spent the evening sewing until eventually Chris and I went to bed as well.

On Wednesday Chris was back to work and on an early shift too. This meant that I got a lie in till 9am which was really nice. When I got up, I realised I had quite a bit of blogging to do so caught up on that (and started this). The girls played happily on their computers. I spent the morning working on Amy’s cosplay costume, working out a custom order with a possible customer and browsing the net for ideas/supplies. To be honest I don’t really know where the day disappeared to, but I got quite a lot done!

On Thursday, Nat came around. I spent majority of the time sewing, though we did go out into Gainsborough for a while and treated the girls to Subway while we were out. I bought some things I needed for Amy’s dress and continued to work on that. When I ran out of the things I needed, I stopped to order them online instead. I spent the evening working on yet another custom order idea, now having two in the pipeline!

Friday we were up early and out to take Chris and his car to the garage. Luckily it didn’t need much doing and so we headed into Lincoln and got the girls their school shoes. After this we met up with Nat and her kids, wandering around town, doing various bits of shopping. Chris went off to work and we took the kids to McDonalds for lunch. Afterwards we headed up to Lincoln Castle and had a lovely afternoon there. Finally we dropped Nat and the kids back off at her car and went to grab Starbucks. We then headed home and collapsed. Before bed we needed to pack as we were off to London the next day, but we managed that without too much fuss!

Saturday and Sunday were spent down in London, but I documented them separately and there is no point me doing it again! This was yet another lovely week and I can’t believe the kids are back at school soon!

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Week 34 – Monday Round-up (well actually it’s Wednesday!)

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Well this week I am super late in making my round up post! I’m almost half the way through the next week in fact. It’s been a really great week though, with high and lows of course but mostly good! The kids are still off for Summer Holidays of course, though it won’t be for much longer now! We still haven’t really “done” an awful lot, but everyone seems okay with that and we still have our weekend in London coming up!

The beginning of the week, we didn’t do an awful lot to be honest! The girls went to their dad’s on Monday and had to wait at my mum’s while my car had it’s MOT. It wasn’t finished until almost 3pm (after the work needed was carried out) and after it was done I needed to get new tyres as well. So I headed to Tanvic, waited while my tyres were done and then made a random decision to try to Hobbycraft in Nottingham. It was nice to walk around but fairly fruitless, I had Burger King for dinner and then headed home. Tuesday I went over to pick the girls up from their dad and we came straight home. I used the day to catch up on TV and work on my new shop website – as it was due to open at the weekend. I also booked my train tickets to see Amy on that Friday, a decision I had been toying with a little over the week before. Wednesday and Thursday were both working on my Closet Geek venture, either on the website, taking photos or actually sewing. Nat came over for the daytime on Thursday but we just sat chatting while I sewed so I was still able to get plenty of work done.

On Friday morning the girls and I got up and ready, Chris took us to Retford station. However our train to York was cancelled and this began an interesting day of catching replacement and delayed trains. In the end we got to Amy’s about an hour and a half late and after catching the bus to her house and having a cup of tea, the girls had their photoshoot – the main reason we’d traveled over.

Andy's Coming Inside Out Emotions

The rest of the day was spent with the girls on their iPads while Amy worked on photos and I worked on listings for my site. We stopped for us all to eat pizza takeaway and then one by one the kids went to bed. Amy and I ended up staying up till past midnight, getting my site ready but by the time I went to bed, it was all ready to go. The girls and I then played a sort of musical chairs with the beds overnight, each of us taking time in a different spot in a bed. We managed to find one that worked for us all and finally got some sleep!

In the morning we were up at 8am, the kids had breakfast and I had tea. We packed up all our stuff ready as Amy’s dad was taking us to the station and I checked to make sure all the trains were on time. We got to Berwick station around 9.45am which was plenty of time. The girls got some sweets and I got a sandwich, then we waited for the train to come along at 10.13am.

On the first train we had plenty of space so the girls sat together and I sat over the aisle. When we swapped at Newcastle, we had about 30 minutes to wait so we all grabbed a coffee and waited patiently. The next train we decided to all sit together, even though technically we had the extra space again. I knew I needed to open my store and the girls wanted to sit with me.

At 12pm I opened my store,  the newsletter sent out automatically (as planned) and Amy and I pushed the opening on Instagram! There were loads of hits and plenty of positive feedback so that was great! Orders came in during the afternoon and that was great too. By the time the girls and I got home I was far too exhausted to tackle anything. We’d had Subway for lunch and had takeaway for dinner – but it was pretty great doing nothing! Once the girls went to bed I watched TV but I shopped and browsed for fabric, bows and even replied to someone about a custom order!

Finally it was Sunday and though I should have been making orders and promoting my site, for the most part I was just lying around watching TV. The girls went off with their Grandma to the beach for the day so it was nice just to grab some me time. I did spend most of the day on my iPad looking for fabric, charms and ideas for my stock generally. I placed a few orders and worked on some ideas. Chris came home and we spent the evening watching TV and snuggled up on the sofa.

So that was my week! It was exhausting but it was brilliant. Not to mention my site is now officially open! If you get a minute, please go check it out. You can find it at www.ClosetGeek.co.uk – not only that but you can follow on FB, Instagram and Twitter, all at @closetgeeksite