Lifestyle - Birthday Fun

If you hadn't noticed, it was my birthday this week. Friday the 11th, specifically. I had a genuinely lovely day and I got to spend time with some of my favourite people. Always a good day when that happens.

First up, friend H came up to stay for a couple of nights on the Thursday which meant we got to spend a decent amount of time whilst madam was at school actually doing big girl things. Though mainly we did a lot of eating...

Friday started well, I got brought a mug of hot chocolate in bed (madam had insisted this is what H should make for us all!) and then we had cake for breakfast. So much more exciting than toast! We dropped madam off at school and then headed into town for a coffee. 

I then had my nails done. I went for a bit of birthday glitter, so basically a different shade on each nail! It looks amazing! Both hands match, I didn't get that carried away. Poor H sat and read her book whilst this was happening and it took longer than I thought it would, oops!

Most sparkly nails ever!

After nails we had a bit of time before meeting L for lunch. Time for more coffee then. Obviously. Also H managed a sneaky phone charge whilst we were in the cafe. Good skills.

Lunch was amazing. We went to a place in Beverley called Rebels Smoke House which is an American style diner that specialises in slow cooked local pork. And oh, it was good! I have wanted to go since it opened last year and the girls were in total agreement once I sent them the menus over! 

Our main issue was how on earth we were going to narrow down what we were going to have. We each had at least three different things we really wanted to try. And then they gave us a specials menu! We ignored that in the end and made some strict choices with ourselves. L and I ended up with the Pulled Pork Sandwich and H had the Sliders (3 mini burgers). She had a side of skin on fries with hers and I had onion rings with mine. Oh, and H had some of the most amazing crackling too. She rather generously let us share it with her. 

Best sandwich I think I have ever eaten. I wish I could have had more! The people on the table next to us had something called a Waffle Tower burger which was just a ridiculously large plateful of food!

Pulled Pork Sandwich, Onion Rings, Mississpi Mud Pie and shake, L with both our shakes :)

After eating our mains we turned our attention to the desserts. Both L and I were determined to have a milkshake because they just sounded so tasty. I did manage to talk myself out of the booze infused one I had my eye on. I shall go back just to have one on it's own. It would do it more justice.

We both had the Peanut Butter and Salted Caramel shakes. I had Mississippi Mud Pie, L had Pecan Pie and H had a Brownie Heaven Sundae. 

Afterward we were incredibly full! But so happy. L and I got take-away cups for the last bit of our milkshakes and we went on our merry way. We hit The Works, Lakeland and Boyes before having to part ways so L could make it back to her car and we could collect madam. 

Having collected madam from school, seen another friend E for a quick chat and been to collect a few final things we headed in to Hull for our overnight stay at the Travelodge in the centre. Yeah, not awfully scenic, but near enough to most things in Hull that we could walk wherever we were going. 

The original plan had been dinner and then cinema, but H and I still being really quite full coupled with an early film time made it a no-no. We ended up deciding to have a later meal and just enjoy that and then go for a Kids Club cinema showing on the Saturday morning.

Friday nights tea was had at Nando's. Mainly because we knew madam would definitely eat something and I wanted somewhere that would do a good salad! I had a Mediterranean Salad with Halloumi and Avacado extra. It was delicious and so refreshing after all that meat earlier! Madam had veggie fingers and chips and H had half a chicken with rice and salad. 

Mediterranean Salad with Halloumi and Avacado

Mummy and madam do duck face!

We walked back to the hotel and tried to persuade madam that it was bedtime. It didn't go awfully well, but eventually tiredness overtook her and she fell asleep. As did H, which left me watching All About Steve (possibly the worst film ever? What where you thinking Sandra Bullock?!) whilst drinking the last of my cider. Sounds sad and lonely, but I couldn't have been happier! Such a peaceful end to the day, really.

We had booked breakfast in with our room so went downstairs and had a massive cooked feast before packing up to check out before heading to the cinema. Having made a slight (ok, quite big) balls up over booking tickets we ended up going to see Frozen again! 

And then madam insisted she needed a McDonalds for lunch. So we did that and then headed home to let the cats out. H had to head home and I rather hoped madam would want a nap. Wrong. 

I napped for a bit whilst she bounced around watching CBeebies. We voted for fishfingers for tea. And then we watched Britain's Got Talent until it was time to pick the parents up from the airport. The glamour. 

I had such a lovely couple of days and my friend V's dad popped round to drop me off some fab prezzies from her. The only bad thing has been madam managing to break the screen on my laptop! Not good. But as you can tell from the fact I'm still blogging, it is still working, just a bit hard to see everything I'm doing!

I hope you've been having a good weekend.

Love, Pearl.

Lifestyle - My Week on Instagram #3

This week featured my parents Ruby Wedding and my birthday. There were a lot of food photos! :)

My week looked like this:

1. Madam in her cape.

2. Madam gave her uncle a pretty new hairdo.

3. Waiting for my Parents Evening appointment.

4. Pretty rainbow.

5. Glittery nails.

6. Big girls pouting faces.

7. Pudding from birthday lunch with friends. 

What did you get up to this week? Hope it was as fun as mine!

Love, Pearl.

Lifestyle - 40/40 pt 2

Yesterday I told you that my birthday is coming up and I have decided to make a list of things to aim for before the big 4-0 coming up in 4 years. I shared half my list yesterday so today I best tell you the other half!

40 before 40 - part the second.

21. Visit Paris for a day.

Basically, I want to go somewhere on the Eurostar and this seems the best place to pick as I've never been to Paris!

22. Take madam to Disneyland.

I have wanted to visit Disney with madam for a couple of years. She is such a fan and if we make it there before she turns 8 it'll be sooooo much cheaper!

23. Write the first draft of a novel.

Because I have started so many books that I have never quite finished...

24. Have a full body massage.

I have never had one. I think I need to remedy this. Possibly whilst also being at some form of spa...

25. Dye my hair a bright colour.

I have wanted blue hair since I was about 14. I have several friends who have blue hair at the moment and I am hideously jealous of them. I've just never quite been brave enough to take the plunge and I know my parents would hate it...

26. Own a diamond!

I'm an April baby which means diamond is actually my birthstone. I think it's about time I owned one in some way. 

27. Give away one thing each month.

Because I think it would be good for me to try and be less selfish. 

28. Always have a notebook with me and keep them when full.
I've usually got a notebook on me somewhere, but I want to underline how important that has started to become for me. I think keeping my notebooks to look back on will help me to see my growth as well.

Finally finished my clouds notebook and moved on to my new one the other week...

29. Keep a folder for madam's schoolwork.

I want to remember all those rubbish pictures that she's done. Because she's getting better all the time and I sort of miss them!

30. Get a good photo of madam and I together :)
I don't have one! So many pictures of madam, none of us together :(

31. Learn to make a selection of cocktails.
Everyone should be able to make a few cocktails, surely!

32. Walk along the whole of Hadrian's wall.
This has been a dream of mine since I was quite young. I've always fancied a walking holiday and this seems a good place to start.

33. Teach madam to knit or crochet.
These skills have come to mean so much to me and I think part of the joy I have in them is that I share them with most of the females in my family. They unite generations and they have a wonderful community around them. Plus they're both such great ways to help find inner peace.

some of my latest crochet projects...

34. Learn to use a camera properly.

Rather than my "point and shoot and hope for the best" technique!

35. Visit the Natural History Museum.
Another place I've always wanted to visit. Really want a major museum binge in London at some point the Natural History museum is just top of that list.

36. Have breakfast in bed!
That someone else has made for me. Just once would be nice...

37. Grow my own food.
Um, because things taste better when you grow them yourself. 

38. Sort out the DVD collection.
As we have no TV we watch endless DVDs. They have a habit of migrating from where they are supposed to be and getting into the wrong boxes. It drives me insane. Must sort them out properly!

39. Make a Christmas tradition just for madam and I.
Because every family needs a Christmas tradition.

40. Create a work of art that I'm proud of and display it in my home.
I've had a plan to make a canvas for a few years and never got around to it as I'm worried it won't be good enough. I need to take the plunge and have some fun. And displaying it will help with my "everything must be perfect" issues!

So that's it! All 40 things I want to aim for in the next 4 years. Do you think I've missed anything? 

Love, Pearl.

Lifestyle - 40/40 pt 1

Friday is going to be a good day. I have got lots of plans with friends and with madam. This is because it's my birthday and I am going to be a whole 36. I feel incredibly conflicted about this. On the one hand I don't really care, age is nothing but a number etc, etc. But on the other I'm pretty sure my 20yr old self would be surprised at where I am in my life.

this is my excited face...

In the tradition of these things I have decided that I should make a list of things I'd like to achieve before I turn forty. Which will give me four years to get them all done. 

It genuinely took me two hours last night, wracking my brains, to come up with a list that I was pretty much happy with. I thought up 40 things; some of which are going to be quite easy, some harder and some possibly impossible! But I'm not going to beat myself up if I don't get them all done. This is just supposed to give me something to help me focus on achieving more with the next few years than I might do otherwise.

As it is a massive long list I shall split it into two posts for ease of reading. I shall do periodic updates to let you know how I'm getting on and what things I may have managed to cross off!

40 before 40

1. Make a dress for me to wear.
Pretty self explanatory...

2. Get control of my diet
As is this!

3. Sort out my divorce.
I have downloaded all the forms, I hope this will be done very soon!

4. Learn to finish one project before I start the next!
I am really bad for having multiple projects on the go at once. But I then never seem to finish any of them. I'm definitely all about the thrill of the new!

5. Make time for reading on a permanent basis.
My reading challenge has shown me how much I have missed regularly reading in my life. I want to carry it on even after my challenge has finished.

6. Give books I won't read again to charity.
This is an attempt to not allow clutter to build up. I know I have a few books on my shelves I genuinely will never read again, so lets make some space for better ones! 

7. Find a job.
Um, yeah, need to do that.

8. Take more photos of actual things.
I take so many photos of madam and food, I want to make more effort to record other things as well.

9. Learn a new craft.
Not sure which one yet though...

10. Remember I am valuable.
Because I forget too often.

11. Learn proper budgeting and stick to it!
You know, like an actual grown up...

There are bicycles, there are canals. Must be Amsterdam!

12. Take madam on a foreign holiday.
Because it'll open up a new world to her. And she's only ever been to Amsterdam when she was tiny! 

13. Take a trip to New York just with friends.
I have always wanted to go to New York and I would really like that first trip to be a selfish one where I get to do grown up things. And drink.

14. Take madam on an overnight trip that isn't to visit friends once a year.
The amount of excitement she has worked up for our overnight in Hull on Friday has shown me I should make more effort to take her places for just us. 

15. Start saving for a deposit on a house.
Because eventually, I want to buy one.

16.Cook a meal for my parents in my home.
They've not had a meal in either of the homes I've lived in in Beverley. This is a sad state of affairs!

17. Do something that scares me.
Meh! I can see that I am going to have to be high up at some point. Terrified already!

18. Get a cat.
Always wanted a cat. A British Blue is my ideal...

19. Have another child (!)
I never planned for madam to be an only child. I am thoroughly aware of the practicalities of that statement!

20. Watch a show in the West End (or on Broadway).
I'm a massive fan of a musical. I'd just love to see one in a big theatre and with an all star cast.

Look out for part 2 coming soon!

What would you put on your list?

Love, Pearl.

Reading Challenge – January Update

First things first, Happy Birthday to this blog! I can't believe it's been up and running for a year already and that I have managed to post over 200 times in the last year! I hope this will continue for a long time to come.

And now, on to what you really want to hear about, reading:

I have set about my challenge with the gusto of the newly converted. I have never forgotten the pleasure I have always found in reading but I have rediscovered the thrill of making time for it.

This has been in part helped by the fact my phone is basically nothing more than a fancy bit of plastic and components at the moment and I have been unable to use it for anything even vaguely diverting for most of this month just gone.

I have had my evenings given back to me in a way. I have, of course, still been watching DVDs like they’re going out of fashion, but I have always sort of used them as background noise. I have also spent some time actually watching some of those DVDs and getting much more out of them than I do when I am also plugged in to Twitter at the same time!

But what about the books, I hear you say. There have been more than I really thought even I would get through. I’m not a slow reader but I am only really reading in the evenings and at weekends. I have also slotted some in on my commute to the course the jobcentre have insisted I complete.

The first book from the list I created was I Capture The Castle by Dodie Smith (who also wrote 101 Dalmatians, did ya know?). I enjoyed the book and found it absorbing with plenty to think about to keep me interested in what is, after all, a fairly standard love story.

The book is written from the point of view of Cassandra Mortmain and takes place over six months in which many changes happen to her family. Cassandra and her bored older sister Rose, younger brother Thomas, stepmother Topaz and her father – a once famous author now gone to ruin through a crippling case of writers block.

Everything changes when the Cottons arrive to take over the running of Scoatney Hall. The Cottons bring with them all sorts of glamour and an injection of company the family is not used to.

Most importantly the new owner of Scoatney Hall and his brother are young and handsome (this is the bit that I said was standard).

But the book is more than just a love story. The rehabilitation of the family from abject poverty to a new beginning is beautifully told and I read it long into the small hours to find out what would happen next.

The book is written in journal style which lends it a pleasing conversational style, allowing you in to Cassandra’s innermost thoughts. She is a spirited and amusing storyteller.

My main disappointment was in the ending of the book. I had successfully paired everyone off previous to the last couple of chapters but was left with an unfinished feeling about Cassandra’s own story.

I quite wish there was a sequel.

I have managed to read my first full Georgette Heyer novel as well. And did enjoy it greatly, my mum knows me well enough to have suggested the perfect book to get me going.

The full list of books I read in January looks like this:

1.  I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith – 31/12/13 ~ 4/1/14
2.  A Tale of Time City by Diana Wynne-Jones – 4/1/14 ~ 5/1/14
3.  The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey – 5/1/14 ~ 8/1/14
4.  The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer – 5/1/14 ~ 12/1/14
5.  Stardust by Neil Gaiman – 8/1/14 ~ 11/1/14
6.  Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte – 11/1/14 ~ 27/1/14
7.  Lone Wolf by Jodi Picoult – 13/1/14 ~ 16/1/14
8.  Is It Just Me? By Miranda Hart – 17/1/14 ~ 23/1/14
9.  Reckless by Cornelia Funke – 24/1/14 ~ 26/1/14
10.The Long Earth by Terry Pratchett & Stephen Baxter – 27/1/14 ~ 31/1/14

(Just squeaked that last one in by finishing it off at lunchtime today!)

Pretty impressive, I thought. You know, for someone who probably read less than that many books in the whole of last year…

I have lined up my first book for next month and have to say thank you to my lovely friend L for posting me her copy. I have now also got hold of copies of two other books on my list and will have to decide which month I am going to assign them to.

I mentioned that in the last month I have been doing this course from the jobcentre, I have to say that it has proved much more helpful than I initially thought it was going to be and I have found that the days have passed incredibly quickly with something to occupy myself with.

I have also had mother in to help me get the house sorted out properly. We have junked so much stuff that I should be surprised there is anything left. But I am not as I knew I had an excess of everything, which was making staying on top of things just so hard.

But the house is properly tidy at the moment. And I am keeping on top of the cleaning. I have been making sure that madam has been eating breakfast and we have been slightly less rushed in the mornings. I feel a lot more in control than I have done for an incredibly long time.

The only down point is the enormous damp patch that has sprung up in madam’s room. The guttering has things growing in it and is leaking quite badly just by her window coupled with the fact the pointing around the same part of the window has crumbled. This is not good for her at all, the agency are now getting on top of it, but I really rather wish it was already done.

Oh, and I have got my new washing machine sorted! Things are really on the up around here… 

My reading challenge was inspired by essbeevee and her Books are Amazing posts (latest post on that link).

fudge making and other stuffs

Today I 1) feel like I look in this flattering photo and 2) wish I was still at home in my amazing warm dressing gown!

 

 

I have set up madam's outfit blog, you can find the first post at this link: A Dizzy Fashion Story: Skele-fun. As she has birthday in 3 sleeps (the countdown of sleeps is literally the first thing she says to me when she wakes up!) this weekend's post will probably be her party outfit. I have bought her a body glitter stick, which, thinking about it, might have been a foolish plan!

 

I made fudge with my dad yesterday, this is because, despite having attempted to make it twice, it has failed both times. I found a recipe on this lovely blog and it had really good, clear instructions. Now, my dad is a chemist, he is trained to follow instructions precisely, how he has failed twice is beyond me!

 

So, I put myself in charge and followed the steps as laid out on the blog. My dad had to help with the final step, my arm was starting to drop off after so much beating of the cooling mixture! But we got something that looked a lot like fudge at the end of it. And, it had actually set mostly by the time I left to go to the gym! Given his last batch didn't even set up when mum shoved it in the freezer I think we can call it a success.

 

By the way, just how do you achieve that? It wouldn't even freeze?! I will admit that I don't think this version is perfect. Even though I thought I had melted it all down properly when we were beating it I noticed it was still a bit grainy, like not all the sugar had properly dissolved. I'm pretty sure it will taste okay, even so...

 

I also finally got rid of madam's old bed yesterday. It broke ages ago and then my dad took it all apart the other week whilst H and I had fun with the We Watch Film guys and watching Labyrinth. The pieces have been stacked up in madam's room ever since. Along with all the packaging for the new bed. But now it's all gone and no-one has to negotiate large cardboard box in the hallway! Result. 

 

I *didn't* get any more crochet done though, which I had planned on doing yesterday evening. I mainly messed about on Fruit Ninja whilst sort of watching Batman Begins and Casino Royale. The latter made me extremely late to bed and I had to really force myself out of bed this morning. Although, madam still beat me on the not wanting to get up stakes. And she went to bed at 8pm!

 

I might try sending her a bit earlier tonight as I am having so much trouble getting her going in the morning. We were actually late for school this morning. Despite living about a 10 min walk from the school gates. We didn't leave the house until 8.45, which is the moment when her class usually goes in with their teacher! I am a stickler for punctuality and her being late winds me up no end. And I have no idea how to improve it. I can't dress her, she's too old. I can't make her hurry up, she doesn't seem to care. I have tried threatening to send her in the nude, but she knows that's an empty threat as she has to be in uniform... What do I do? I can only try making her get up earlier so that she has more time to get ready. But then *I* have to blooming get up too. Urgh :(

 

I might actually have to go to bed at a reasonable hour myself! Ha ha!

 

Today I am mainly spending doing blogging and some research for a future post (I know, so not like me!) also I need to order my tickets for this months Classic Movie Tuesday (Ghostbusters, FTW!). I need to get maps from the Tourist Information centre so that I can start planning out a route for the Guide treasure hunt thing. Also, need to think up a prize for them... At some point I might even do some more crochet. Madam is proving far too big for the pattern I have and I keep having to increase things! I did buy an extra ball of yarn, so it's not too much of a problem. Though I have realised the colour is pretty much the same as her school uniform! Oops. Good job she likes burgundy...

 

I also, at some point, need to wrap madam's presents (including the ones from V and her dad) and on Thursday I'm cake baking/decorating! I have bought some really pretty candles which are supposed to burn with coloured flames, so we shall see :)

        

a Sunday summary

I have been having a busy week, hence the lack of any blog posts from me. Have been utterly skint and incapable of getting to my usual source of free wifi (Caffe Nero, I love you). Then, when I did have funds my time was taken up with more planning for other stuff.

 

Also I spent a lovely morning with friend V doing birthday present prospecting, yarn shopping and lunching with friend L and her littlies. I had a fabulous time and I had the selfish delight of having V to myself for a couple of hours which never happens any more!

 

I have now acquired everything I want for madam's bday on Friday (18th). I have gone with a new outfit, a fleece onesie thing with penguins all over it, and the Lalaloopsy doll that she saw and fell in love with. The doll proved the hardest thing to track down as all the shops were out of stock of that particular one. I eventually ordered it from Amazon as even Tesco, who were advertising it, didn't actually have one when I tried ordering it.

 

It is a special one as it was created for National Cat Day which happens to be October 29th and as madam is an October baby and mad on anything feline, it was the logical choice :) Her name is Whisker's Lion Roar which is preposterous, but madam loves these dolls. If you feel like having a gander the link is here.

 

She is meant to be arriving on Tuesday, I *really* hope she isn't late or I shall start to panic. I was looking at a few on ebay, but they are nearly all the same price as in the shops or more, and then ludicrous amounts in P&P because they're heavy. I gave up on that in the end.

 

Now I just have to make a birthday cake and wrap everything up...

 

I did weather charts and rain gauges with the Guides on Friday as further badge work. Next week we're doing a wide game that involves clues so that we'll be ready for the treasure/scavenger hunt around town the week after! I also handed in my application form for midday supervisor at one school and picked up an application for the same at madam's school. I have just seen an advert in town for a coffee shop too. That's a shop that sells coffee, not a café as I first thought it was.

 

I have been wondering about setting up another blog which will be about madam's fashion choices as she keeps me endlessly amused with what she wears and has the ability to make most things look good. The idea comes from one of my favourite Pinterest boards. The My Imaginary Well Dressed Toddler Daughter board is full of child modelling photos with added captions. It makes me giggle, a lot. 

 

But it started me thinking about the whole child modelling thing and madam's love of posing and dressing up. It would probably be a once a week post and I was thinking of making it a proper fashion blog and breaking her outfits down. It might be quite funny. Sadly, I will have to miss out some of these gems...

 

 

 

and just wait for her personality to shine on through. For example, today she has spent dressed up as a skeleton. No, it's not Halloween for another few weeks, but that is not going to stop her!

 

When I have it up and running I shall let you all know :)   

Guides, Rainbows and Birthdays

I'm feeling a little sorry for myself this morning. I have the start of a cold coming with it's annoying runny nose/watery eyes/fuzzy head fun. I should be used to it by now. Every time madam starts a new term at school she brings home a new cold. But it sucks.

 

I have been doing very little with myself in this new free time I now have (technically today is the first time I have *new* free time). But I have got back into doing some proper cooking. I love cooking but loathe doing it just for a small number of people. I have tried to combat this by using a bit of planning.

 

This week I bought a whole chicken and roasted it off yesterday. So we had a nice chicken dinner last night and I have half a carcass (well, plus a wing) left for today. And then I shall make stock with the leftovers :)

 

Now, this isn't exactly revolutionary. But usually I make extra helpings of things and then never really fancy eating the rest of it so it languishes in my freezer. Not really *actually* a money saver. But this technique means I will get 3 completely different meals out of what I bought! Genius. It's something I've been meaning to do for ages and then never quite getting around to it.

 

So tonight I will take the other half a chicken (possibly just the breast) and turn it into a chicken and mushroom pasta bake-type thing. Then I could make chicken soup. Which we can have on Saturday as mum makes tea for us on Fridays.

 

This Friday is the first one back at guides for this term. I'm excited to be going back, though worried there will be no guides left! I need to think of an activity to do with everyone that will be easy to do with a small (miniscule) number of people.

 

Before we broke up for summer we spent an evening making recycling boxes. We had the tables in a horseshoe for this activity. Usually each patrol sits around their own table. But I noticed how much better everyone was when they were closer together and, whilst we are so small, I wonder if we should keep the arrangement. We can always send them off to different areas if they need to work separately.

 

But I get the impression trying to break with tradition might not go down well! I'm also trying to persuade my mum to come in as a unit helper. She could just come once a month even. It would just be nice to have someone who knows how much effort I put in and comes from the same standpoint as me. Not that I'm saying I feel underappreciated, more that I feel impotent.

 

I'm always trying to ramp the guides up, but they tend to look at me as if I have three heads. I also think we need to do some proper planning and have ideas for what we're going to do over consecutive weeks. I know that we seem to have given up letting the patrols organise themselves as they just don't. Or more accurately, some of them do it. But not all. And not every week. There is *always* a patrol with nothing to do. It drives me insane.

 

We also always seem to be a last resort. You know, they have nothing else to do this week so they'll come to Guides. I was under the impression they were meant to come every week... But there is no point in my frustration.

 

They don't come every week as they're not inspired. So to an extent it's my fault. I just wish I could find the thing that does inspire them. I don't want our unit to fold. But at the rate it's going it'll be gone by Christmas. And then where will I be :( Because I have that unit in my heart. I guess I'd have to move to Toll Gavel. 

 

Madam will be at Toll Gavel for Rainbows soon enough! I can't believe she'll be 5 in 5 weeks time... Plans for her birthday party are starting to have to be set into action. We have the play centre booked for her and a few friends. I guess I need to think about what I'm even going to get her for her birthday! 

 

I have younger brother hunting for The Little Mermaid on DVD for her. But I want to get her something more. She doesn't need any more toys. Or clothes. What do I get her then? I guess I'll have to ask if there is anything she wants... Perhaps she'd have Rainbow uniform as a present...

 

This is her birthday last year...

 

new coat, new pushchair, new clothes!

princess cake...

 

And the year before...

 

it was all about pirates when she was 3

yup, that is a snowsuit she's wearing...

 

And when she was two...

 

hello kitty *everything*

 

There's no cake shot from when she was two... I don't even remember what I made!

 

For some reason there are no pictures of her first birthday. There was this though...

   

madam with her one true love: baby

elephants and pigs

Ah, Sunday... I do love a good Sunday. I spend most of them with my parents and we try very hard not to watch any TV at least until late afternoon when madam can't cope any longer! (She only really has it as background noise, she doesn't watch it intently for long.)

 

There is a ban on kids TV channels so it'll only go on if there is something good we all want to watch. Last week we lasted until Deadly 60 (or one of it's incarnations) and then we have to watch whatever my dad chooses...

 

I used to spend most of my afternoon either reading all the magazines and supplements from the 2 Sunday papers my dad always gets. But now I have a laptop and can sit in the living room and still be unsociable by being welded to the internet, but remain in the same room as everyone else! :) Brillbobs...

 

I have made another top for madam, with the beautiful elephant fabric. It was just big enough to make a cute little sun top and madam spent Thursday wearing it whilst we went to the cinema to watch Despicable Me 2. And she enjoyed it almost as much as I did... Only minimal fidgeting involved!

 

The top was pretty easy to construct, I chose to make it harder as I didn't want the elephants marching on their sides. They are on the straps, but there was no way to avoid that... I cut a front and a back, stitched them up the sides and turned down a bit to make a channel for the elastic at the top.

 

I made two folds of fabric for the straps, and threaded elastic through them so they have a cute gathered look and it's really easy for madam to get the top off and on. I sort of followed a pattern I'd come across on Pinterest, but mainly so I got the dimensions, I was going to make it reversible, like the pattern says but couldn't decide on a fabric for the reverse.

 

 

 

I think I made it harder by not though, because I then had to make the specific elastic channel, and I couldn't just trap the straps between the layers to secure them. None-the-less, I'm really pleased with how well it turned out. And so was madam, despite this facial expression! 

 

 

 

 

Yesterday was spent trying to sort out a birthday party for madam. Her birthday is still two months away but I wanted to know I had somewhere booked. Her birthday is on a Friday this year, which also makes it harder. I started off looking at church halls as then we'd just be able to do the invite everyone in the class thing and let them run riot.

 

However, it was so hard to even find out how much the halls were charging. I only found two that listed their hourly rates. The rest just gave me a phone number to call. (We remember how I feel about phonecalls...) I really can't see the point of dedicating a whole section of your website to Hall Hire if it just then says: For all enquiries phone... Useless.

 

I tried the local leisure centre as they do hire too. Again, no rates given. But my mum then asked about their party package and I pointed out it'd be a minimum number of kids and that we would end up paying quite a bit. She pointed out that, judging from the prices we had found, if you added that plus the food and all the hassle, it might be easier to pay for a party.

 

So then we checked the local soft play centre (parent hell, kiddie heaven). Here we found an actual list of prices and a detailed description of what their parties entailed. Finally! And we realised if we booked there we would be able to get it actually on her birthday, too. We'd sort of been looking at the Sat/Sun for hall hire.

 

So I rang up (I know all the people there, so not that hard) and we managed to get after school on her birthday pencilled in. Then mum said she'd pay the deposit so we could secure it. Bonus :) So that's it. We have to invite at least 10 kids at £8 each, but they get two hours playing and food. Normal entry is £5, so it's not bad to get them all the food and save me the hassle.

 

Just need to make a cake and sort out party bags and I'm done :) I have made a pinterest board for party ideas as madam had asked for a piggy party. Might have to find/make her a piggy costume...   





A day full of events

Today is special for many reasons. It's the first day of May, it might not be blazing sunshine, but it is quite definitely Spring at last. Today is also my uncles birthday, he's 60 this year and my mum (his big sister) made me hunt down a copy of his favourite childhood book for him!

 

In the end we (I) managed to find a first edition of Noddy and the Magic Rubber. Hopefully, it has now arrived safely at his house and is still in the almost pristine condition it was in when it left us.

Also my lovely friend H has set off on her Pedals for Pounds 4 tour of Yorkshire. She is cycling an impressive 80 miles today and madam and I are getting ready to go and wave and cheer when she arrives in Hull later today. My parents are also coming and have planned to have tea at lunchtime so that they can hang about and wait if poor H is a straggler! (such confidence in her skills)

I'm so proud of her for taking on this monumental task. If you think that someone cycling 240 miles in aid of charity is something you'd like to get behind then you can sponsor H (and her dad P) on her Just Giving page they're looking to raise a total of £2000. So go on, bung 'em a fiver, they deserve it!

 

And the number 80 is also significant to me today as I am up to my 80th post! I started this little blog as a bit of an experiment on the 31st January and I genuinely wasn't thinking that I would have the willpower to keep it going after the first novelties wore off. But here I am after 3 solid months of blogging almost every day.

 

I'm quite impressed with myself. Also, I'm over 3000 pageviews and last month I broke the 1000+ pageviews in a month mark! Thank you so much for reading. It's so nice to know that what I say amuses and/or entertains enough to keep you checking in. I don't think I'm going to be one of these people who get to blog for a living, or even part-time. But I hope that I can keep plugging away.

I hope that by trying to be honest with myself and admit to the things that frighten me, that hold me back, that inspire me, that make me smile I can carry on giving a voice to the people who haven't learned how to speak up yet. That I can inspire anyone to just go and ask. It isn't the end of the world.

 

You are not a failure.

 

You can get better.

 

I can get better.

 

It's just a marathon not a sprint. And sometimes you have to stop for a breather. But you'll get there, same as I will.

 

So thank you again for reading. Thank you for supporting me when I needed it most. Thank you for still being here even though I spout sentimental guff every now and again!

 

Love you all :)