Tuesday 6 June 2017

Schools and pools

Today Billy had his first induction at 'Big School' ready for starting in September. For all my concerns about him being less confident and more clingy than Faye was, after a couple of minutes his coat was off and he was getting stuck in!! A couple of kids he knew from pre-school last year are there too and they came over to him which was sweet of them. We made pictures with shells, played in the kitchen, did a puppet show, and went climbing in planks, crates and tyres outside in the rain! He seemed to really enjoy it and asked when he could go back so it looks promising!

Faye's been to athletics after school fir the last two nights and has really enjoyed it. Her teacher has told us she's very good and the best at throwing! She throws Billy around a lot so I guess she has had a fair amount of practice! 😂

After dropping Faye off at guides I made it back to the swimming pool again. Aren't I a good girl!! It was a lot busier to start with but then emptied a bit and, apart from a couple of lads being a couple of lads, it was fairly peaceful and relaxing. Unfortunately, my muscles must have been tired from the effort last night as I only managed half a mile in 45 minutes. Still, better than nothing I suppose. I'll aim at just making it into the pool tomorrow night!!!

Monday 5 June 2017

...and I'm done. In. Completely...😩

At least I did it.  After a fairly long break from the pool I was quietly optimistic of managing my 1k/40 length goal.

But, get me, I'd done that in just under 50 minutes so then faced the dilemma of getting out whilst the going was good and I'd done what I wanted to.......or seeing if I could get another 8 lengths in the last 10 minutes to make it 3/4 of a mile in an hour.

I only went and did it!

Admittedly I am now completely cream crackered and ache everywhere!  But I don't care!  Smug me is back! 😏

Now to see if I can keep it up long enough to make it back there again on Wednesday..........

Fitness regime attempt No. 6875423885.........

So here we go again...... another attempt at regular swimming sessions. I have made it as far as the gym..... in the rain no less! To be fair, getting wet to get to the gym isn't really anything to be pleased with myself for when my goal is the pool!
Unbelievably, my swipe card worked to let me in - I was expecting alarms to go off, lights to flash and a booming voice to yell "Who the hell are you?! Don't you come swanning back here after all this time and expect to just be let straight back in!!!"
Thankfully, that was just the paranoia in my head!
So here I am, ready to go for it. Again. I'll be back with an update. Presuming the shock of exercise doesn't kill me...... 

Tuesday 30 May 2017

Rain, rain go away, come again.... Actually, you know what? Don't bother!

So a typical bank holiday/packing up camp day with rain. And more rain. Lots of rain........

After breakfast we started to get things packed away as much as we could in the dry but as all that got done we were forced to empty the tent and load it all, and the kids into the car and start loading the trailer..

At one point we were also forced to the car by the monsoon type rain, waiting for it to slow enough for us to carry on. In the end we just had to go for it. We were drenched within minutes but it seems you can actually only get so wet....

Our jeans were so wet we were close, on several occasions, of sporting the current half way down your bum look...... Not a pleasant thought!

We finally managed to get everything packed and loaded, all as wet as we were! We need some sun when we get home to dry everything out !

It was our first experience of a CCC rally and we loved it. We were at Merry Weather Farm and the rally was organised by the Coventry DA. The stewards were really friendly and helpful as were all the other campers/caravanners there. We really enjoyed it and I'm sure we will be on another rally soon!

Sunday 28 May 2017

Rollright stones and Cotswold Farm Park

What better to do on a sunny, cloudy, and rainy day than to go and look at a stone circle. I mean, everyone loves a stone circle don't they? No? Just me? Oh well, never mind. I like it so off we went to the Rollright stones!

It was a bit chilly and very windy but the lady, when we got there, chatted and told us some of the history of the stones. She was a volunteer with the Rollright Trust and bless her for turning out in such conditions! We learnt all about the Whispering Knights, the King's Men and the King Stone. There had been a druid wedding in the morning and one of the trees had ribbons and purses tied in it.  It is said that if you count the stones in the circle twice and get the same number both times your wish will be granted. All I can say is, we tried! Several times. Nice of us got the same number twice or even the same number as each other! I guess those wishes are just going to have to wait!

The following day forecast a dry sunny day so we booked tickets for Adam Henson's Cotswold Farm Park. It was really good! Faye and Billy tried their hands at milking fake cows, we had a tractor and trailer ride around the sight learning about the rare breeds, then went to the barn where the kids could hold chicks, which were very sweet. However, they weren't as cute as the ducklings, which were adorable! Forget the kids, I wanted a duckling so asked and, like the kids, I was told to sit down and was handed a duckling...... My duckling was the cutest thing ever with his (or hers) big clumsy webbed feet, although it was a lively little thing! I really didn't want to hand it back told Jay I wanted a duck for our 'pond'. Unsurprisingly he rolled his eyes and said "she's worse than the kids.."  I'm guessing no duck then 🙁

We went round and fed the animals before going back to queue to feed the lambs and kids (OK, yes, me again....) . After half an hour we were duly given a bottle each to feed whichever animal fought, pushed and nuzzled it's way to the teet first, which was empty in about 2 seconds flat!

After that we went on the wildlife walk, saw the beehive (I was slightly more cautious and observant in this area due to my apparent allergy!), climbed over some logs and made our way to the play area. The whole day was really enjoyable and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a day out in the area, with or with hour kids! It was well run, well organised and the staff were all really pleasant, helpful and genuinely seemed to enjoy what they were doing. We had ice creams and visited the shop before making our way back to camp.

Faye's new friend was at the rent door almost before we got through it! We had a BBQ then new friend's grandparents brought their chairs and drink up, the neighbours joined us and we watched the kids' show as the sun set behind the trees.....

A very enjoyable and relaxing weekend!

Saturday 27 May 2017

Cotswolds, camping and curfews...

It was such a gorgeous day to start our camping weekend, if a bit hot for travelling. Considering it was bank holiday Friday, we had a really good journey and reached the campsite by 6.30.  The weather was perfect for getting set up and because it was so nice, we had no idea of the time. Until I went off in search of a chippy.

Chipping Norton is only a couple of miles from the campsite and is bigger than I thought it would be. I parked up and had a walk around, found lots of pubs and bars (and yes I was tempted but thought I should maybe feed the kids first!), but no chippy and all the takeaways were shut. P Went back to the car and tried good old Google. 2 minutes later I was outside the chippy. Which we shut. Probably because it was 10.45! Plan B, I'd passed a garage. So it was meal deals all round!

Got back to the campsite and the was shut. But if a nuisance but no biggy. Got out to unlatch it, but no. It wasn't just shut, it was padlocked! I then saw the sign stating the gate closed at 11pm. It was 11.04. Aaarrgggghhhhh!! We still had stuff in the car, like our clothes, the cool box and another bag with some drink and food bits in...... A slightly panicked phone call to Jay and he met me with the kids to get the clothes and 'dinner'. Then went back for the wine (priorities!). So no chips, locked out and car dumped. Not a bad start...........

Wednesday 24 May 2017

Red sky at night, Shepherd's delight...

.... and although there aren't many Shepherd's around here, plus I'm not that keen on lamb, I have enjoyed the sun making an appearance as the saying promises!

It first came out on Saturday morning and Faye was happy as she had a hot tub party in the afternoon. We went to Asda in the sunshine (no coats needed today!) and came out to black skies and a monsoon-like downpour! By the time we got back to the car we were soaked!! It kept alternating between sunshine and torrential rain for the rest of the day.

Faye and Billy had been wanting to watch Star Wars so on Friday night, as a treat, they were allowed the sofa bed out downstairs with me and we watched A New Hope (no arguments from me!). Billy made it as far as the Cantina band scene before flaking out but Faye watched the whole thing and loved it! :) Saturday night turned into another Star Wars night with the Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Billy missed it again but Faye enjoyed them, apart from when Han and Leia kissed, which she watched in horror, pulled a face and said "eeeeewwww that's disgusting!!" 😂

Sunday was so nice we spent the day in the garden, mainly weeding but at least we were outside enjoying the sunshine. The trampoline is back up so the kids were happy too!  Most importantly, I finally got all the washing done and dried (oh how you must all envy the rock 'n' roll lifestyle I lead! 😂)

We also sorted out camping for the bank holiday weekend - we're off to Chipping Norton! Sounds a bit posh for us but never mind! The rollright stones are nearby and I do love a good stone circle! I just hope the weather stays like these. The memories of packing up in torrential lane at the end of our last camping holiday are still lurking in the back of my mind and not something I'm in a hurry to repeat!

So after a lovely day I got the kids in the bath whole Jay cooked dinner..... and that's when if hit...... I'd either done too much gardening or had too much sun as I suddenly felt rubbish! Nothing specific just generally crap! So once I'd got the kids settled, Iwent to bed myself!

I was fine in the morning and, after taking one look in the mirror, decided it was definitely the sun that made me bad. Glowing is an underestimate.... Warning beacon is closer, I was red. Very red. Some might say 'blazing' red (you know who you are!!) and ever so slightly sore!

Work has been work..... Enough said! Although after a pretty rubbish morning, someone dropped by the office for a chat to tell me it makes their day to see me when he goes by the office and it's never the same when I'm not there! Awwww how sweet! I do think he maybe got the wrong office........

Faye decided it was too hot to go gym tonight, until I gave her the alternative of helping me tidy - she soon changed her mind!! 😂 As it happens, she really hurt her hands on the bars with deep broken blisters, so she would have been better off tidying!!

The most exciting thing was getting home to a big box in the porch with our new portable toilet (basically a posh bucket with a seat) and toilet tent. Woohoo!! My sister did suggest I could lock myself in and hide when the kids are driving me nuts...... I should probably take some wine in with me too.....

Only one more day to get through..........

Sunday 14 May 2017

Ging Gang Goolie Goolie Goolie Goolie wat...cha step Mrs!!

This weekend was a big weekend for Faye - her first time camping with the guides! I was probably more nervous about it than she was!! After spending Thursday night naming everything and cramming it into her rucksack she was ready. It turns out the rucksack was almost as big as her, How she managed to carry it I'll never know!
I was probably a bit older than her when I first went camping, but similar weekends working up to Charnwood 85. Did anyone reading this go there? There were loads of different activities but I remember archery was very popular with the guides. Which I am pretty sure, in fact certain, had absolutely nothing whatsoever at all to do with the rather gorgeous scout doing it!
As it happens, and possibly for the better, I wasnt able to take her as I had a prior engagement after work. At The Parcelyard. I did ring her though and she was very excited!
Whilst sitting in the Parcelyard waiting for a couple more work friends to arrive we heard a noise behind us and turned to see a woman on the floor, having fallen on the stairs, her, we assumed boyfriend, coming back down the stairs to her. We all did the very British thing of 'don't look at the drunk lady' and pretended nothing had happened. Until one of our group said "Hey isn't that our lady from work?". On re-checking, it turned out it wasn't a drunk lady falling over, leaving with her boyfriend, but was in fact our sober friend falling down the stairs on her way to meet us, helped by a gentleman who had been leaving whilst we all ignored her!! But fair play to her, what an entrance!!  I blame it on the fact that she hadn't got her pram with her to use for balance.  At this point, I would like to point out (particularly if my friend is reading this!), that most of my amusement at this situation was purely due to the fact that that is exactly the sort of thing that usually happens to me!
It was the usual chores Saturday, food shopping etc., but went shopping with Amez in the afternoon which was nice. The weekend was slightly strange though without Faye. And quiet! Especially Eurovision Saturday night which Faye loves. Billy had his flags to wave though and stayed awake for a lot of it.
Faye came back this afternoon and seemed to have enjoyed herself! Within a short space of time, her and Billy were arguing and falling out. 
I couldn't help a little happy smile to myself...... Yep, Faye’s home, normality has resumed and life is back to normal 

Wednesday 10 May 2017

The Good Old Days

After a friend from primary school asked if I had any photos of us, I popped round to mum and dad's to pick something up..... And a couple of hours later was still looking through photo albums!!

Some photos had people in that I couldn't even remember and yet others brought back memories of people I hadn't thought about in years. Some of them for good reason!! 😂

Thankfully some other friends were able to help out where my memory failed, and vice versa!

Our school performance of 'Hip Hip Horatio' (about the life of Horatio Nelson in case you were wondering) was a far cry from the fairytales the top class usually put on, and I do remember being really peeved about that at the time! There were more people in my class than I remembered and as all the boys appeared to have beards for the production, my ability to recognise any of them was pretty much zero! I only recognised the one that all the girls liked as I recall!!

My old school photo was also spookily similar to Faye's, although I think she was probably more disturbed by that than me! 😂

And who can forget that luuuurvely Brownie uniform, complete with woolly hat?!

Times moved on to Cala Gran in Fleetwood where I spent a happy 8 months as a barmaid with my sister and temporary illusionist's assistant after we jacked in our jobs at the Alliance and Leicester, much to the shock of my manager at the time!! We had many 'theme' nights which had me dressed up as Hilda Ogden, a flapper girl, St. Trinians, a French maid, a clown amongst many...... I was so (rather cruelly I thought) 'advertised' as a 'cheap night out - one bottle of Max and she's anybody' 's!' To clarify, it would have taken at least two bottles. And food. 😊 Max, for anyone who doesn't know, was a strong bottled cider, the Northern version of Diamond White. I never really used to drink much prior to Fleetwood as I had generally been the designated driver so it is true that after one bottle of Max I was likely to be asleep...... It was good fun though, even when we did have to thaw caravan pipes out with a hairdryer in the winter just to be able to make a cuppa!! We made friends for life during that short stint and my life is all the richer for it.

It's so nice to be able to look back and relive old memories, remember people you thought you'd forgotten and wonder where their lives have taken them...

"It's not like the good old days" always seemed a bit of a cliché, but it's true. Or maybe I'm just getting old! Either way, we had lots of fun and I'm grateful for those friends and experiences.

Good times!!

Friday 5 May 2017

Election Day - Round 1

So everything started well.

I'd spent Wednesday night baking goodies to see us through the long day ahead, got everything ready, even did my nails! I'd never been so organised! My plan was to get up at 5am, pack my bag, go to Asda to pick up a couple of bits for Faye's imminent camping trip, get diesel and be at the polling station for 6.15/6.30. That was the plan. I set my alarm and snuggled down for a decent hours' sleep.

As the saying goes, the best laid plans.......

I woke up at 4.20, great still half an hour until I have to get up 😊 then I heard Jay get up.... Strange for him to be up do early....

I looked at the clock, then double checked, blinking back at my was the worst start to my day...... 6.05.....

NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! 😕😕😕

My polling station is a good 20 to 30 minute drive away and I was meant to be there for 6.30, ready to open the doors to voters at 7am. Jay got everything ready for me as I got ready and I was out if the door at 6.20. I tried ringing the Presiding Officer, 4 times, without success. Considering I'm normally early and the first there, it was reassuring that it got to 6.40, as I was pulling in to the car park, before he rang back. I could have been in a ditch somewhere! 😂

Once there I calmed down and the day went fairly smoothly. I got asked if I was married which, if it had come from some gorgeous hunk of a man, would have been flattering. Unfortunately the gentleman was in his 70's/80's and didn't even appear to know which election he was there for........ So not exactly flattered!!

Still out team had a good day, it was a nice change and actually quite relaxing spending the day just having to write down numbers, hand out ballot papers, eat and read! I did manage to read an entire book through the day/night!

We were out by 10.20 pm and made our way back to Harborough for the verification count. At which point my diesel light started flashing.........

Verification went well and by 1.30 am we were done. After several conversations to locate the nearest 24 hour petrol station (slightly concerned about this as I was pretty sure I wouldn't make it home!), someone came along and confirmed the one on my way home WAS 24 hours. It was. Feeling more than a little relieved, I filled the tank and got home around 2am.

By that time I was wide awake so took ages to get to sleep, then up got ready, briefly saw Jay and the kids before coming back for the count!

All went well, no recounts and results declared. Went for a break at 1 and dismissed at 1.30! Now home for a rest!! Well, play with the kids at least!!

That's it for 5 weeks until we're back for Round 2 - the General Election.  I gave a feeling that one may take longer......... 😂

Saturday 15 April 2017

What a week! Ubers, Italians and lock-ins!!

Well, it's been a brilliant week!! After my pamper day last Friday, followed by cocktails at the Slug and Lettuce and Hakamou, the weekend was gorgeous so got some gardening done. It was just nice to be able to get outside in the sunshine! Then I just had to survive 2 days at work before my birthday 🀣

I have to say, I was truly spoilt! Breakfast was served, the house was tidied and cleaned, I was made to relax and put my feet up....... There were some concerns raised about my reputation due to the number of bottles of wine I was given by friends at work, but I can't see any problem with that myself! πŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚πŸΎπŸΎπŸ·πŸ·πŸ·πŸ·

I now have a new kindle (paperwhite) which is all loaded up but I haven't had time to use it yet! The kids, typically, had taken ownership of my old one within seconds. The look on their faces when Jay suggested he might be having the old one was one of shock, disbelief, and "You?!" πŸ˜‚. I had so many lovely cards and presents I feel truly blessed to have such wonderful and loving family and friends.  Mum had also 'helped' Faye and Billy make me a birthday cake, which they had done really well!

Yesterday was spent relaxing and playing with the kids whilst Jay was at work. Mum and dad then picked the kids up for me and Jay to have a night out.

I organised this night out during the day. We had thought about going to the cinema, but didn't really fancy anything that's showing, so thought just a nice e meal would be good.

Then I had a brainwave!

We could try an escape room!

I knew there was one in Leicester almost opposite Terracotta so I had it all planned in my head - escape room followed by a Chinese buffet! Perfect! πŸ‘Œ

I got started on Google and in no time I had booked us onto the Bank Job room at Escape Reality for 8pm. I clicked on the directions / map just to double check how far away from Terracotta it was before booking our meal, that's when it hit me.

Now how was I supposed J Fri yet to know there was more than one escape room venue in Leicester?! I mean, they're a fairly new concept aren't they?? Apparently not. In fact there appear to be at least 3 venues in Leicester!
the in the in e tree
Not only had I not booked the correct venue, the one I had booked was on the opposite side of the town!! Nowhere near Terracotta, or any other restaurants that we knew of! After working out how long it would take (me) to walk from the new venue to anywhere we knew to eat, I found out that everywhere would have stopped saving and it quickly became clear that we were going to starve .......

Enter brainwave no. 2 πŸ€”

Ring the venue to see if we could go later, then we could eat first. God I'm clever πŸ˜‚ in fact, scrap that. If I was clever I wouldn't have booked the wrong place in the first place and everything would have been going to plan!!

The man at Escape Reality was really friendly and moved us to the later slot. Phase 1 of Operation Recover-the-situation complete! 😊

Now just to find somewhere not too far away to eat........ Jay did a bit of street map googling and found an Italian nearby.  We checked out the menu online and a phonecall later dinner was sorted! Woohoo!! 🀣

We decided to try Uber for the first time and after my panic that I hadn't actually booked it at all, there it was outside the house! Things were definitely looking up!

We arrived at Altro Mondo, the staff couldn't have been lovelier, the food was gorgeous and there was live singer who blended perfectly. Although I was highly embarrassed when my birthday was announced, Happy birthday sung, and a big square of tiramisu with a candle was brought out, thankfully it was early so not too busy and the tiramisu was beautiful and melted in the mouth! Now I just hoped the escape room was good! We were so full I was glad we had found somewhere nearby as I don't think I would have made it far!

We made it to Escape Reality and again the man was very friendly, helpful, explained everything, although, put on the spot, the best team name we could come up with was TJs44! We were given the background story to the room we had chosen (Bank Job), gave us our first clue of where to start, then locked us in with 60 minutes on the clock to get the diamond out of the safe....... We were so pleased with ourselves when we solved the first clue and the next door opened!! We thought we'd solved the next clue but got stuck in the next room so went back in ourselves to have another go. After a while the man came in to tell us we had already solved that part, otherwise the last door wouldn't have opened. Oh yeah, doh!! He gave us a bit of help to find the next clue we were struggling with then left us to it. We solved the next bit and found the secret door to the vault. There was a cipher to deactivate the vault and although we were OK with the code we ran out of time and it turned out we were using the wrong word with the code. I have never known an hour go so quickly!!! We both loved it, it was really well set out and organised, we just wanted to go back in and have another go!! We will definitely be going back! (we might even let the kids come!).  Within 5 minutes of leaving we were in our second uber cab of the night on our way home.  It was a fantastic night!!

The week was ended perfectly with a visit from the big kids, who took us all out for lunch at the Horse and Hounds, which was also really good service and food.

All in all, a brilliant week!!

Tuesday 11 April 2017

Skinny tanned again!

The lovely people @SkinnyTanHQ sent me some goodies including their primer and new express mousse1 hour tan.

I have to admit, I was slightly nervous about this one! It is recommended to leave it on for 1 hour for a light tan, 2-3 hours for a medium tan, or overnight for a deep tan......

The primer was really good a d I also used the exfoliating mitt for good measure! Then it was tanning time 🤣

As I have mentioned before, I am white. Milk bottle white. Now the tan and tone oil gives me quite a deep tan (a month in the Bahamas type of tan - at a guess as I've never actually been to the Bahamas, or anywhere for a month for thay matter! )  So, the mousse was applied and it was easy to get it even as it is tinted so you can see where you've been 😀

Then the waiting started and the nerves kicked in. How long should I leave it on for?? 1 hour may not look that tanned on me but 3 hours may go really dark 😕 and overnight wasn't even in the thought process!!  In the end I decided on the mid-point, 2 hours.

I jumped in the shower and watched my legs turn.... cream. Not white but the colour I would go with a natural light tan and, as is also usual for me, the rest of me did look slightly more tanned than my legs! As the sun was shining and the garden was beckoning, I quickly put some skinny tan oil on my arms and legs and with a couple of hours I had a nice healthy glow!  Whether there was any reaction between the mousse and oil, or whether the self-tan in the mousse was still working I don't know,  but after using the oil this time I think my tan is darker than it was the first time I used it.

I did like the mousse and, now I know how it reacts with me, I won't be so nervous about how long to Ieave it on next time.  Even overnight has now entered the realms of possibility!

Friday 7 April 2017

Pamper Heaven!

The sky is blue, the sun is shining and I'm looking at it, not from my desk at work, but through the window of the hairdressers!

What a lovely day it's been! It started well with the postman bringing me a box of goods from Skinny Tan (which I can't wait to try. In the daylight. With minimal help to reduce the risk of another Oompa Loompa moment!), dropped everyone at school and did a bit of shopping before going for my first pamper session of the day!

Jay bought me vouchers for a facial and massage at the Beauty Boutique for Christmas and I finally got round to booking in. What can I say?! It was lovely!! It was sooooo relaxing! I was asked what my current skin regime was and I desperately tried to make something up that sounded impressive, or at least plausible, but I failed miserably and ended up mumbling 'make up wipes'. In fairness, if she was appalled, she did a good job of not showing it, then again she'd probably figured I have no 'regime' the minute she saw me! Nevertheless my face was treated to a 'proper' regime of cleansing, toning, exfoliating (which in reality I would never have time to do!) a shoulder, face and head massage and a face mask....... This was followed by an arm and hand massage whilst the mask dried. It was bliss!!

When I finally dragged myself out (I could happily have stayed there all day), Jay came along and had to stop for me to cross the road - perfect timing! We picked up Billy and I dropped them off at Muddy Boots and had a quick tour of the allotment before grabbing a quick shower (at home, not the allotment!) and it was off to church for Faye's school service!  They all did really well and it finished in time for me to get to the hairdressers for pamper session 2, ready for my night out with work 😊

Bring on the weekend! 🍷🍹🍷🍸