Summer is here, well temporarily, this being the UK of course. The weekend was filled with the sounds of squealing children as they dipped in and out of paddling pools, the smell of barbecues and the sound of lawnmowers. We were no exception. We called the barbecue into service for the first time this year and Mr T declared, quite rightly that the lawn needed mowing.
It is getting mown more regularly at the moment, this is partly due to the fact that Mr T has recently purchased a shiny red lawn mower, petrol is now on the premises and when it starts you'd think there was a motorbike roaring around in the garden due to the excitement it causes in the children.
It was all going so well, the top of the garden was neat, Mr T had even cleared the rather huge weeds that had taken over underneath the children's picnic table. Then it came to the last bit and try as he might Mr T just couldn't get the mower to start. Petrol was put in but still nothing happened.
'Is your lawn mower broken?' was the constant refrain from Matthew much to the mounting displeasure of Mr T. Apart came the lawn mower and various prodding and muttering, a few consultations to the instruction booklet and soon the lawn mower was being pieced together. We all held out breath and were relieved when Mr T's hard work was rewarded with a throaty roar and a huge puff of smoke as the lawn mower decided to work again.
Over dinner Mr T said how pleased he was to have found the root of the problem;
'I could see there was something blocking it starting,' he said ' and when I pulled the handle up it moved, and then I remembered that you're meant to pull the handle up when you start it.' Still at least he had fun.
To balance the post however I should comment on Mr T's achievement of the weekend. He has produced a great cake for our son's third birthday, Matthew is a fan of Roary the racing car and one thing we have liked to do is bake the cakes for the children ( I am pencilled in to produce a fairy castle for Heather in August!) We bought a book telling us how to produce the various cakes and following the racing car model and adapting it for Roary's shape Mr T had made a cake that is the same colour and shape as him and I know Matthew will be delighted.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Battle of the sexes
So, like a fair amount of the population I settled down to watch the Britain's got Talent final. As a treat we allowed Heather to stay up and watch the first part as we had recorded and edited the heats for her. She curled up and passed comment on the acts, like it, loved it and NO! She loves Amanda because she is so beautiful and absolutely refused to enjoy anything that didn't have a girl in it. Despite the jaw dropping talent showcased by Flawless and the eventual winners Diversity she rejected them because there wasn't a girl in their ranks.
Her top three went like this; Hollie, Susan and 2 Grand. She doesn't know the results yet as she was in bed before they were broadcast. When she dismissed them so instantly because they were smelly boys I asked her if she would like it if people ignored her just because she was a girl.
'Well I wouldn't mind' she says, 'because they're smelly boys and I don't know want them to like me!'
Well she has me there, I have to admit defeat but I can't help wondering when it all changed, she is affectionate towards her brother and Daddy and other male relatives and seems to get on with the boys in her class, bit more and more she plays girly games with girls!
hmmm... the question is now do I let her watch the results or just let it quietly fade away.
Congratulations to the winners, an act that lives up to its name and I hope will inspire other young people to work together and work hard rather than hang about on street corners!
In other news we bought Matthew his very first bike today, it his birthday on Thursday and I cannot believe he is going to be three. He spent ages in the shop and looked very proud to have his very own bike and helmet. We let him ride it back to the car and then we handed it over to the birthday fairy! It was odd to see him pedalling around the shop, proud as punch and really rather pleased with everything.
Her top three went like this; Hollie, Susan and 2 Grand. She doesn't know the results yet as she was in bed before they were broadcast. When she dismissed them so instantly because they were smelly boys I asked her if she would like it if people ignored her just because she was a girl.
'Well I wouldn't mind' she says, 'because they're smelly boys and I don't know want them to like me!'
Well she has me there, I have to admit defeat but I can't help wondering when it all changed, she is affectionate towards her brother and Daddy and other male relatives and seems to get on with the boys in her class, bit more and more she plays girly games with girls!
hmmm... the question is now do I let her watch the results or just let it quietly fade away.
Congratulations to the winners, an act that lives up to its name and I hope will inspire other young people to work together and work hard rather than hang about on street corners!
In other news we bought Matthew his very first bike today, it his birthday on Thursday and I cannot believe he is going to be three. He spent ages in the shop and looked very proud to have his very own bike and helmet. We let him ride it back to the car and then we handed it over to the birthday fairy! It was odd to see him pedalling around the shop, proud as punch and really rather pleased with everything.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Is it really only 10:00?
So today is the first day proper of half term, bank holidays don't really count as the excitement of having Daddy at home usually helps. Of course, it is raining, a lot, and has been overnight as well, bang go the prospects of visiting the zoo/farm/park as three children in wet weather gear is, if I am honest far from appealing!
I should have realised when Matthew woke me at 215am that it was not going to be an auspicious start to the holiday! From the realisation that he had no nappy on and hadn't for the last seven hours to constant demands for drinks, sleep was the last thing I came to on the menu. When Mr T arose to prepare for his day at work the magic of TV kicked in temporarily.
I did managed to sneak in 10 pages of book reading but was then interrupted by Heather with her latest creation, Matthew in his attempts to beat her to the stairs had fallen down two of them and was howling like a wounded dog at the bottom, when he eventually appeared looking rather sorry for himself he explained he had hurt his tummy. Upon examination I was able to reassure him that there were no marks and his food would stay on the inside, of course to recover from his trauma he wanted a biscuit and a drink, he got the drink. Next task, get Lucy dressed, not always an easy task as she is in the wriggling stage, still today was good and in no time she was happily smearing cheerios and milk over herself and any surrounding objects as she attempted to feed herself.
Distantly I heard ABBA and realised Heather was already tuned into her ipod, she was wearing her current most treasured possessions, shoes with a small heel emblazoned with Ariel. She clip clops around the place sounding rather like the horses she loves so much but is gradually getting used to them, soon she will be more proficient than me. Feeling confident that the two bigger ones were occupied and that Lucy couldn't escape from her chair I turned to the paper to see what the latest scandals regarding MP's.
The screaming began almost instantaneously! One bout followed another for the next ten minutes until a distraction was provided by me deciding to hoover, this then resulted in a clamour for biscuits and drinks. I have since then constructed Matthew a train track from his huge Thomas set, refiled the books that Lucy has pulled off of Heathers bookshelves - twice. Really shouted at Matthew for pushing Lucy over, hitting Lucy and being generally obnoxious. All I can say is thank goodness the iron tablets are beginning to work and I am able to keep my eyes open for a whole day now, and that the weather forecast is for the weather to get better later in the week!
We did have a good weekend though, fairly relaxed. Heather and I went shopping and we had a really nice girly day,trying clothes on, looking for baking stuff and having lunch together, it is just a shame that her fashion sense seems to be better than mine! Lucy continues to resist most of our attempts to get her to walk, my writing is still at ground zero as the kids monoplise my time but as the old song goes, 'things can only get better!'
I should have realised when Matthew woke me at 215am that it was not going to be an auspicious start to the holiday! From the realisation that he had no nappy on and hadn't for the last seven hours to constant demands for drinks, sleep was the last thing I came to on the menu. When Mr T arose to prepare for his day at work the magic of TV kicked in temporarily.
I did managed to sneak in 10 pages of book reading but was then interrupted by Heather with her latest creation, Matthew in his attempts to beat her to the stairs had fallen down two of them and was howling like a wounded dog at the bottom, when he eventually appeared looking rather sorry for himself he explained he had hurt his tummy. Upon examination I was able to reassure him that there were no marks and his food would stay on the inside, of course to recover from his trauma he wanted a biscuit and a drink, he got the drink. Next task, get Lucy dressed, not always an easy task as she is in the wriggling stage, still today was good and in no time she was happily smearing cheerios and milk over herself and any surrounding objects as she attempted to feed herself.
Distantly I heard ABBA and realised Heather was already tuned into her ipod, she was wearing her current most treasured possessions, shoes with a small heel emblazoned with Ariel. She clip clops around the place sounding rather like the horses she loves so much but is gradually getting used to them, soon she will be more proficient than me. Feeling confident that the two bigger ones were occupied and that Lucy couldn't escape from her chair I turned to the paper to see what the latest scandals regarding MP's.
The screaming began almost instantaneously! One bout followed another for the next ten minutes until a distraction was provided by me deciding to hoover, this then resulted in a clamour for biscuits and drinks. I have since then constructed Matthew a train track from his huge Thomas set, refiled the books that Lucy has pulled off of Heathers bookshelves - twice. Really shouted at Matthew for pushing Lucy over, hitting Lucy and being generally obnoxious. All I can say is thank goodness the iron tablets are beginning to work and I am able to keep my eyes open for a whole day now, and that the weather forecast is for the weather to get better later in the week!
We did have a good weekend though, fairly relaxed. Heather and I went shopping and we had a really nice girly day,trying clothes on, looking for baking stuff and having lunch together, it is just a shame that her fashion sense seems to be better than mine! Lucy continues to resist most of our attempts to get her to walk, my writing is still at ground zero as the kids monoplise my time but as the old song goes, 'things can only get better!'
Thursday, May 21, 2009
2 Doctors visits and a blood test
Being as my children seem to have had a relatively quiet couple of weeks I thought I had better do something interesting...
Last week I finally gave in, I have been feeling tired, no make that exhausted, well make that cannot stand up for another moment, feeling shaky and my eyes closing as soon as I sit down knackered! So I went to see the doc. When I explained the problem and added to it that I felt shaky, a bit nauseous and irritable he asked me if I could be pregnant.
'Not unless God's been at it again!' was my response, 'I have three under five already!' I explained realising it was a little rude!
He wrote out a blood test form and said it was probably just the hectic pace of life catching up with me but best to have a blood test, just to be on the safe side.
So I did, no drama there, no screaming, missed veins or blood spattering the walls.
I didn't expect to hear much about it and had convinced myself that I was just being a wimp and would have to do better. On the way to Heather's dancing on Saturday I grabbed the post, on Saturday I generally get a whole 45 minute session to myself in Starbucks, usually I write but I knew I would have less time this week as I had to run a couple of errands. Heather tapping and first postioning away, errands ran I turned to the mail. There was one from the docs, 48 hours after the test, couldn't be good.
I opened it, 'need a face to face consultation' were the words that jumped out at me, followed by this is NOT urgent! Not urgent! Not flipping urgent I thought, 48 hours after I had the test and now I need an appoinment.
I spent the four days until the appointment the following Wednesday convinceing myself I was ill, very ill. I tried to work out what it could be even putting my symptoms into search engines and self-diagnosis tool - please don't try that at home, not to be advised, definitely bad for your health and sanity!
Anyway in a packed surgery the doctor I was seeing passed by, on her way back she looked at me and said 'Melanie.' I just nodded, the fact that she knew my first name must be bad I thought, she was trying to put me at my ease before she delivered the bad news! After manouvering Lucy's buggy around the other patients I sat in her room and she looked at me blankly. I ended up explaining the whole thing again and then she found her results on the computer and started to study them. Maybe it would be OK after all, maybe she only remembered my name from a home visit she had once done, reluctantly!
'Aha, your bilirubin's a bit high' she said, I nodded having expected that and explained for the hundreth time that I have Gilbert's syndrome that causes excess bilirubin, isn't it about time they put it on my notes? She tapped away again and as she sat there all I could think was if you don't tell me in a minute I am going to be sick all over your carpet!
'Aha' she said triumphantly and then looked me in the eye, bad I thought. Very bad!
'I'm surprised you're standing up' she said. Alarm bells were now ringing.
'Your iron levels are very low, no wonder you're tired you're anemic, very easy to sort out though' she added.
She told me about the tablets she would prescribing and the rather charmless side effects I could experience, the blood tests I would have to have and that I should be more like my normal self in about a week!
I was relieved, partly because it isn't serious and there is an easy cure and also because I wasn't imagining it, I am not a wimp there is a biological cause! A day and a bit in and I am feeling a little brighter, probbaly the placebo effect but I haven't fallen asleep yet today.
NEWSFLASH: This is a new section at the end of the blog to record the family achievements; Matthew can now count to 20, Heather got a swimming certificate for being able to do a whole width on her own, Lucy still isn't walking but can say; Heather, Matthew, Mummy, Daddy, Hello and duck! Mr T has laid the turf in the garden, the dogs have watered it!
Last week I finally gave in, I have been feeling tired, no make that exhausted, well make that cannot stand up for another moment, feeling shaky and my eyes closing as soon as I sit down knackered! So I went to see the doc. When I explained the problem and added to it that I felt shaky, a bit nauseous and irritable he asked me if I could be pregnant.
'Not unless God's been at it again!' was my response, 'I have three under five already!' I explained realising it was a little rude!
He wrote out a blood test form and said it was probably just the hectic pace of life catching up with me but best to have a blood test, just to be on the safe side.
So I did, no drama there, no screaming, missed veins or blood spattering the walls.
I didn't expect to hear much about it and had convinced myself that I was just being a wimp and would have to do better. On the way to Heather's dancing on Saturday I grabbed the post, on Saturday I generally get a whole 45 minute session to myself in Starbucks, usually I write but I knew I would have less time this week as I had to run a couple of errands. Heather tapping and first postioning away, errands ran I turned to the mail. There was one from the docs, 48 hours after the test, couldn't be good.
I opened it, 'need a face to face consultation' were the words that jumped out at me, followed by this is NOT urgent! Not urgent! Not flipping urgent I thought, 48 hours after I had the test and now I need an appoinment.
I spent the four days until the appointment the following Wednesday convinceing myself I was ill, very ill. I tried to work out what it could be even putting my symptoms into search engines and self-diagnosis tool - please don't try that at home, not to be advised, definitely bad for your health and sanity!
Anyway in a packed surgery the doctor I was seeing passed by, on her way back she looked at me and said 'Melanie.' I just nodded, the fact that she knew my first name must be bad I thought, she was trying to put me at my ease before she delivered the bad news! After manouvering Lucy's buggy around the other patients I sat in her room and she looked at me blankly. I ended up explaining the whole thing again and then she found her results on the computer and started to study them. Maybe it would be OK after all, maybe she only remembered my name from a home visit she had once done, reluctantly!
'Aha, your bilirubin's a bit high' she said, I nodded having expected that and explained for the hundreth time that I have Gilbert's syndrome that causes excess bilirubin, isn't it about time they put it on my notes? She tapped away again and as she sat there all I could think was if you don't tell me in a minute I am going to be sick all over your carpet!
'Aha' she said triumphantly and then looked me in the eye, bad I thought. Very bad!
'I'm surprised you're standing up' she said. Alarm bells were now ringing.
'Your iron levels are very low, no wonder you're tired you're anemic, very easy to sort out though' she added.
She told me about the tablets she would prescribing and the rather charmless side effects I could experience, the blood tests I would have to have and that I should be more like my normal self in about a week!
I was relieved, partly because it isn't serious and there is an easy cure and also because I wasn't imagining it, I am not a wimp there is a biological cause! A day and a bit in and I am feeling a little brighter, probbaly the placebo effect but I haven't fallen asleep yet today.
NEWSFLASH: This is a new section at the end of the blog to record the family achievements; Matthew can now count to 20, Heather got a swimming certificate for being able to do a whole width on her own, Lucy still isn't walking but can say; Heather, Matthew, Mummy, Daddy, Hello and duck! Mr T has laid the turf in the garden, the dogs have watered it!
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Disney Fever has hit Essex
Never mind Swine flu, bird flu or even mouse flu, Disney fever has hit our house. Eight weeks and counting until we depart to the kingdom of mouse and suddenly the house is filled with talk of princesses, fairies and aeroplanes. The catalyst for all of this seemed to be a guide book dropping though the letterbox. We have already, thanks to a tip off booked the princess lunch in the magic castle but failed to book the fireworks dinner party!
We have decided to book Lucy a seat of her own on the aeroplane, after much discussion we decided neither of us wanted the eight hour wrestling match when there would be two other children to contend with. Then we had to (gulp!) pay the balance of the holiday itself, so we are going now, nothing can stop us, I seem to have spent the equivalent of a day shopping for clothes for me and the children, making sure all the labels are cut off and that they are hidden away from them all. Swimming bags, sunglasses and sun hats have all been checked and thanks to a very good deal from Sainsburys stocks of sun protection are at an all time high.
We then had to decide how much baggage to take, bearing in mind we have to get it and three children though the journey without losing anything or anyone, Heather was insisting that she could fit her entire wardrobe into her beautiful Ariel suitcase, we have now convinced her to take it as hand luggage and agreed to buy a case for the kids. She wanted pink, she's getting black - it's cheaper!
Excitement was compounded when the doorbell rang and a courier delivered two passports, I breathed a sigh of relief that the slightly dodgy photos of Matthew and Lucy has passed the scrutiny of the moderators and that we didn't have to go through it all again. Heather had a panic as her new passport hasn't arrived although her old one has been returned and the fee has disappeared from our bank account so I am expecting it to turn up any day...
Heather has already delved into the book and declared that the first place we are visiting is Ariel's Grotto... I have a feeling that she thinks Mickey Mouse himself will be greeting us from the plane, how disappointed she will be when she is greeted by a surly customs officer and a luggage carousel, followed by a hike to the car rental place! Not to mention an hour in the car before we even get to the hotel, still come Sunday the magic will begin and the excitement will take over. My worst fear is that the reality after the build up Heather has given it will be a let down!
Heather has been talking to friends who have been and so seems to know more than we do, having been once BC (Before children) I can imagine this visit to Florida will be more sedate, involve less bars and roller-coasters and more playgrounds, theatre shows and character chasing autograph book in hand. Still the countdown starts now...
We have decided to book Lucy a seat of her own on the aeroplane, after much discussion we decided neither of us wanted the eight hour wrestling match when there would be two other children to contend with. Then we had to (gulp!) pay the balance of the holiday itself, so we are going now, nothing can stop us, I seem to have spent the equivalent of a day shopping for clothes for me and the children, making sure all the labels are cut off and that they are hidden away from them all. Swimming bags, sunglasses and sun hats have all been checked and thanks to a very good deal from Sainsburys stocks of sun protection are at an all time high.
We then had to decide how much baggage to take, bearing in mind we have to get it and three children though the journey without losing anything or anyone, Heather was insisting that she could fit her entire wardrobe into her beautiful Ariel suitcase, we have now convinced her to take it as hand luggage and agreed to buy a case for the kids. She wanted pink, she's getting black - it's cheaper!
Excitement was compounded when the doorbell rang and a courier delivered two passports, I breathed a sigh of relief that the slightly dodgy photos of Matthew and Lucy has passed the scrutiny of the moderators and that we didn't have to go through it all again. Heather had a panic as her new passport hasn't arrived although her old one has been returned and the fee has disappeared from our bank account so I am expecting it to turn up any day...
Heather has already delved into the book and declared that the first place we are visiting is Ariel's Grotto... I have a feeling that she thinks Mickey Mouse himself will be greeting us from the plane, how disappointed she will be when she is greeted by a surly customs officer and a luggage carousel, followed by a hike to the car rental place! Not to mention an hour in the car before we even get to the hotel, still come Sunday the magic will begin and the excitement will take over. My worst fear is that the reality after the build up Heather has given it will be a let down!
Heather has been talking to friends who have been and so seems to know more than we do, having been once BC (Before children) I can imagine this visit to Florida will be more sedate, involve less bars and roller-coasters and more playgrounds, theatre shows and character chasing autograph book in hand. Still the countdown starts now...
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