I'm a complete mess..... And I'm loving it!!

What can I say?

The evening started early with afternoon tea at the Belmont Hotel in Leicester for a friend finishing work on maternity leave.  It was all really nice and the cakes were luurvely! We then made our way to The Lansdowne for cocktails (2 for 1 for NHS staff - it really would be rude not to!). Our party gradually dwindled down then as people started to leave to catch trains.

The sun was setting, it was still warm, a really lovely night. Which was when I made my decision. I was going to walk home.

One friend went into town to catch the bus and the remaining two of set of in the opposite direction. It was just starting to spit with rain but still nice. We walked and chatted  until we reached Queen's Road and decided to stop off in Babelas for a glass of wine. Or two. It was here I embarrassingly forget about the cakes I'd got for the kids in my bag and, as I delved into my bag for my purse, my hand came out with, not my purse, but buttercream covered fingers 😳

It was properly raining when we left. We walked to my friend's house and, after meeting hubby and dog, and turning down the offer of calling a cab, I set off for home. I checked and it was only 2.2 miles. I could do this!

Thankfully there weren't many people about at that time of night. In the rain. Surprising really....... If there had have been, I think I may have been reported as the mad woman laughing to herself, walking in the rain, getting soaked!

This will be hard for many people, who maybe take their health and fitness for granted, to understand but the exhilaration I felt walking home is indescribable.

When you have been in a position of genuinely believing you are going to die, just that simple act of walking home made me feel more alive than I have felt for a very long time. By the time I got up the hill to the top of Welford Road I was grinning from ear to ear, possibly looking slightly manic and scary! The rain got heavier, my clothes were stuck to me, my hair was plastered to my face, my shoes were filling with water and squelching and I was loving it!! As I reached Palmerston Way I was laughing and crying at the same time so pleased with myself! Again I realise this would be no boggy for most people, but for me it was such an accomplishment. I reached home just after midnight, also discovering , contrary to my previous belief , that a lot of our streetlights DO go off at midnight!. I was soaked to the skin but soooo happy! I DID IT!! I walked home.

Some may think I was stupid, stubborn, recklessa.  I may have blisters in the morning, I may feel exhausted, tired, and achy in the morning, but you know what? I DON'T CARE!!!  Because at least I'M ALIVE to grimace at those blisters when I try to put my shoes on, I'M ALIVE to feel tired, I'M ALIVE to feel my bones Aching.  I may wake up and berate myself for being maybe very slightly stupid, but I do not and will not regret a thing. I'm alive and kicking. That's a feeling that nothing else can beat and no-one can take that away from me.

So thank you to my friend for not forcing me to get a cab. Thank you lousy British weather for helping me to feel so alive.Thank you for helping me to feel like me again!

I'M ALIVE AND KICKING!!

My journey has just begun........

Training Day

When I say training, I mean I'm getting the train... to Nottingham.... and I have just  realised that I don't think I have ever caught the train to Nottingham before!

So far so good, got to the station in plenty of time, bought (the right!) ticket and got to the right platform, I even managed to get on the right train! I've not forgotten anything or if I have, I haven't remembered I've forgotten it yet! The sun is shining.....  Also, unlike many previous train journeys, I'm not sat next to, or even near, a nutter!! It's already promising to be a good day!😂 😎

So, what's happened since my last blog? I've been busy, which is why I've not been blogging. Unfortunately I've not been busy with anything particularly interesting!!

We did go out from work last week to celebrate someone finishing her exams, time to relax and enjoy a night out after their hard work studying! We started at The Distillery for cocktails (always a must!). No night out can EVER start right without a porn star martini (or two)! We were booked in at Crafty Burgers to eat, which was entertaining from deciding on burgers, the slightly scary waitress, to setting fire to the table! At this point I feel it is vital to clarify that it was not me who set fire to the table, the fire was just in front of me, and the blame went entirely to the person day opposite me!  I do have to say that he was also completely blameless, but it was just too much to blame him! He is now know as The Firestarter, and The Prodigy was quickly found and played on a phone. Once the fire was out, obviously! It was only a small fire - a paper napkin fell on to a tealight candle. Quite big flames though! The waitress blew it (?!) which obviously just made it worse and blew bits of still-burning napkin at me and someone else! My neighbour chucked water on it and I doused the rest of with another scrunched up, wet napkin. The table was a bit black and wet but otherwise no damage done!! The rest of the evening was quite sedate in comparison!

My train is now arriving at Nottingham, so time to go!

Pamper Day & Treat Weekend!!!

Part of my Christmas present from my lovely other half was vouchers for the beauticians and hairdressers so I could have a pamper day!

We were also given a 'Time Together' voucher by his daughter and her boyfriend so the two have been combined to follow my pamper day with a night away in the Cotswolds tomorrow night (the place we wanted to go to being completely booked every Fri and Sat for the foreseeable future!) It meant having to take Monday off from work, a great shame I know, but what can you do?! 😂

I've been looking forward to this day since booking it and although the snow finally hit us last night, no amount of the white stuff was going to stop me getting here!!  To be honest, we didn't actually have all that much snow and the beautician's and hairdresser are right next to each other. At the bottom of my road! The lovely ladies working there would have had more trouble getting in than me - assuch, I am very grateful that they made it!

My first treatment was for a deluxe facial, an hour of having so many lotions and potions massaged into my face I lost count.... Oh OK, I admit it.... I wasn't counting. I was far too relaxed for that! The only time I was slightly less relaxed was when the steamer was on. Now, I've never had this before so I didn't know what they used and I had pads on my eyes so I couldn't see. It sounded suspiciously like a wallpaper steamer so I was half expecting it to splatter boiling water over me at any given time, hence feeling slightly tense at this point!! I did manage to relax again though, but it was the first thing I looked for when the treatment was over. It wasn't a wallpaper steamer. At least now I know.

I then nipped next door to get my hair done. I'm currently sat looking like some sort of mad alien with could all over my head and the rest of my mad frizzy hair sticking out all over the place. It's not the most attractive look, but necessary!  The hairdressers are annoyed with the bloke in the flat upstairs keep turning his music up REALLY LOUD! I did let to go up and see him as, once I was fully foiled and with no makeup on I would've scared the living daylights out of him! 😂👹

Time to chill...... Be back later.......

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Hair done, light and bright again, it feels so much better!

Went back to the beautician's for a manicure, which was also lovely and relaxing, especially the part where I had to put my arms in heat pads for a while. Toasty and warm! My only slight disappointment was that it wasn't gel nails, I guess I just sort of assumed they would be. Never mind. Still never than when I do them myself but, typically, still managed to catch one whilst putting my coat on!

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All in all it was a lovely few hours and I feel nice and refreshed now, looking forward to our trip to the Cotswolds 😊

Going A. W. O. L.

I don't know - give a girl a bit of freedom......... and she will find shops!! 😂

So Saturday provided me with the exciting prospect of doing the grocery shopping. On my own!! I also had something to pick something up from town... it seemed sensible to get that first than go and get the shopping. I was under strict instructions to text when I arrived everywhere to confirm I was ok.

I drove into town and parked, the shop I needed was only over the road from the car park so a nice, quick and easy trip. Until I left the car and started to make my way out through the shopping centre.... Then it hit me. I was in town. On my own. No kids. No Jay. Just me........ and oh soooo many shops!!!

Well..... What would you do?!

I decided I'd got enough time to just pop into one shop and have a casual look around without constantly having to turn my head full circle to watch the kids before giving up trying to look at anything, which is what usually happens.

Next I went across the road to collect my parcel from Waterstones... But at the last minute walked straight by Waterstones to have a nice relaxed stroll through the Highcross... Tiger caught my eye so I had to go in, it would have been rude not to! I love that shop!! Then, as I was already halfway there by now anyway, I thought I might as well go and have a look around Paperchase too, another favourite of mine!

I eventually meandered my way back to the only shop I came to town for, picked up my parcel and started to make my way back to the car.

Via TK Maxx 😁.

I did find a better backpack for Faye for school in there though so it was a good job I called in! I did then get a text checking I was ok as I'd been gone for over 2 hours and not text to say I'd  made it to Asda. Oooops! What can I say? Time flies when you're having fun!!

I then had a similar problem in Asda, looking around the aisles I didn't need before realising I'd been there for about 15 mins and not got one thing off the list!! I just whizzed around quickly to get everything, and only went 'off list' a couple of times, which I thought was really good!

I wonder if I'll be allowed to do the shopping again next week......... 🤔

It's soooooooooo exciting!!!

Finally! After 6 loooooooooong months, I'm driving again!!!

I can't even begin to express how happy I am! It felt so good to get in the car and drive the kids to school this morning before driving to work! I thought it would be a bit weird and I would feel nervous but it was like I'd never stopped!!

It was just like old times.... grumbling about other 'drivers' (using the term loosely!) within about 10 minutes of being back behind the wheel! 😂

There'll be no stopping me now! I can go anywhere, anytime, without having to rely on anyone else or put anyone else out. It feels so good!! 😊

I am, once again, Little Miss Independent
and I'm loving it!!!

Only a short blog but I am so excited I just wanted to share it with you!!

🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗

Bus journey #4 - Passenger's Log, busdate 220218.1

I'm so cold!! My hands are freezing so excuse any typos!!

I not-so-merrily watched my bus go driving off as I was stuck in the middle of the road waiting to cross! 😡

Thankfully I didn't have to wait too long for the next one! Just long enough to become a viable study for cryogenics......

You can tell its nearing the end of the week as its very quiet on the bus, apart from one little old lady who's happily telling her friend (and the rest of the bus) the state of another friend's house and health 😂 She does seem to have a better social life than me and her weekend is taking a lot of planning!

Anyway my bus journeys may be short lived. Last night I got home to a letter from the DVLA saying they were renewing my licence, which should arrive within 14 days!  Today I got home to my licence!! 😁

It might take me a few trips to brave it on my own but it's only been 6 months.... What could go wrong??!

Bus journey #3 - Passenger's Log, busdate 210218.1

What timing! I'm getting the knack of this now! Although it's still far too early in my opinion, and only necessary because I have a course today . Hopefully I won't injure anyone on this one like I almost did on the last one which, ironically, was a first aider course! That, however, is an entirely different story!

Got to the bus stop as the bus came down the road and got straight on. To be fair I wasn't sure if it was my bus at first as I couldn't see the number, and I didn't want to stop it if it wasn't. Luckily another lady arrived just before the ideal 'stick your arm out to stop the bus' time, but she didn't make any move to stop the bus. Panicking so I ended up having  to ask her! I really should remember my glasses, it makes the whole waiting-to-see-what-number-the-bus-is-without-jumping-out-infront-of-it  far less stressful! Catching the bus at the end of the day, however, holds the risk of jumping in front of it for an entirely different reason, depending on how crap the day has been!

I've decided my bus journeys are in fact really boring! Or maybe it's just too early for the characters to be out and about!

Short and sweet but I'm now arriving at work so logging off......

Bus journey #2 - Passenger's Log, busdate 200218.1

Well that started well! Maybe it wasn't the best idea to start a bus log on my last bus journey before half term!

Well the good news is that I caught an even earlier bus than I intended to, AND I've treated myself to a yummy breakfast for my efforts. The bad news is the lady in sainsbury doesn't like me anymore!

But why?! I hear you ask. It appears I am perfectly capable of upsetting people before I've even had my first cup of coffee (but counting my family of course)!

Basically I didn't have any change for the bus and I can't use my pass before 9.30. So I didn't have any choice! Sainsbury's it was to buy something to get some change. The first thing I saw was a maple and pecan plait. Mmmmm mmmmm. My favourite! Off I went to Mrs Grumpy Pants on the till with, what I thought was, a suitably apologetic expression and grimace when I handed her my £10 for my 80p year with a "I'm really sorry, it's all I have" (which was true, apart from a 2p). Needless to say, she wasn't impressed as she huffed, puffed and grumbled due to me presumably emptying her till of the entire float for my change which, for the record, consisted of one note and three coins! So I thanked her, flashed her my best smile, and left. Quickly. Just in time to see my bus making its way down the road 😊

It was one of my favourite friendly drivers so things started to look up! It was surprisingly full for the time of morning, most of the passengers getting off with me at the hospital, which just shows how much earlier than me most people here start work, even when I think I'm really early!

A pretty uneventful journey!!

Bus journey #1 - Passenger's Log, busdate 090218.1

Hmmmmm so how do I do this?!

My bus journey only lasts 10-15 minutes and is usually relatively boring....

So I could start with the boring stuff, like whether the bus was on time or not, afterall this is likely to affect my mood and could colour my perception of the rest of the journey! The bus drivers obviously vary too from happy and friendly, through uninterested to downright grumpy and rude. The same also applies to passengers of course!

To kick-start, for my first logged journey, the bus was 5 mins late. "What?! No way!!" I hear you all cry in shock and horror. I know, I know, unbelievable as it is, it's true! Now, this was an early bus for me so, having dragged myself out of bed, in what to me felt like the middle of the night, to get showered, ready for work and run out of the house (ok, slight exaggeration, everyone knows I don't run. Ever. 😂) with just enough time to make it to the bus stop, I have to admit I was slightly irked that it was late. It couldn't even blame the traffic, there wasn't any, it was too damn early!!

Anyway, as I never dry my hair, unless I have the urge to spend the day looking like Crystal Tips, or have a couple of free hours to straighten it only to walk out of the door and end up with the same result within 5 mins of being outside, by the time the bus arrived my still-wet hair had frozen. I'm talking icicles! If I'd spun around quickly I could have accidentally decapitated at least three people with it! In my defence, they shouldn't have been standing so close, I mean 'personal space' people, come on!!!

I digress, so...... the bus driver was a youngish pleasant man so that was a good start. I settled into my seat, as did other passengers, then I heard the most vigorous page turning of a newspaper I think I've ever heard! To begin with I thought the pages were being ripped out but no, the man in question was just flicking through the paper. He didn't look to be grumpy, maybe he just didn't like the articles.... This continued for most of the journey, occasionally drowning out the conversation of the couple behind him, one of whom appeared to have recently found out that someone they both knew had died, leading to a lengthy discussion about, and breakdown of, the deceased acquaintance's smoking habits. Not in a sense of whether it was bad for him or contributed to his demise, but very specific details of when and where he smoked and even down to how much he would smoke of a cigarette, depending on the previous two factors. Oh how they laughed!! 😕

By that time I had reached work and paper destroying man was confirmed to not be at all grumpy as the bus came to a stop and he gave me a lovely smile, indicating for me to get off first.....

Marks out of 10? That's up to you, let me know what you think!!

Back in the blog

So I haven't blogged since my op.... I keep wanting to but struggling to get back into it! Now I'm back on the bus to or from work most days I'm thinking of starting a bus journey Blog to get me started again 🤔#buspeoplewatching

And so it begins.............

So far, so good!

Got here early, was admitted to the day ward and tagged (not electronically....). Being given 3 tags confused me but I have since found out that once you're in theatre, they take one off your arm and put it around the tube down your throat so they can check ID as they can't (easily) see your wristbands. I'm glad that one's sorted at least. Another thing I don't be worried about walking myself up for to ask halfway through the op!! 😂

I had the lovely 6 minute walk test, looking stupid again (no different to usual then... Yeah yeah I know.....), chest xray, ECG and bloods, forms, forms, more forms etc. etc. etc......

We had an afternoon of cards and puzzles, then were told they were closing the ward so I'd have to go to a different ward to sleep then come back up again in the morning. Before any of that happened, however, the fire alarm went off. Rumour has it someone burnt toast on level 1......it was just like being back at work!! 😂. The anaesthetist came to see me so we missed the evacuation and the drama was over by the time he'd finished. As he left the surgical doctor who's going to be helping tomorrow came to see us to go through everything and by the time he left everyone had gone!

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Now on Duchess Ward with a cup of coffee, crackers and cheese. Waiting for my towels and lurvely antiseptic wash for my shower.....

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Oh I'm being so spoiled!! Not only do I now have towels and Octenisan (mmmmm, a lovely antiseptic scent....), I have also been given my backless gown, paper knickers, special red socks, AND I've been measured for a pair of those gorgeous, highly sought after, surgical stockings. Can my day get any better???!

I fear the actual op tomorrow is going to be a compete anticlimax after such excitement!! 😂 😂 😂

Let's just hope the shower is a power shower now to complete the night!!

I have to say, every member of staff I have had any contact with has been really lovely and helpful, I couldn't ask for any better care and am, surprisingly, feeling very calm and ok about it all. Although I could still be in denial...... 😂

It's almost time for 'The Op'......

Soooo, my last weekend of freedom for a couple of weeks! I'm off to Papworth on Monday so this is also likely to be my last blog for a while, until I'm back in the land of the living after my op!

It was very strange finishing work on Wednesday. Afterall, you don't usually have pre-warning of bring off sick. Particularly when you don't actually feel 'ill' as such!

Anyway since it is went out for drinks after work and my big Sis joined us as well which was lovely. It was a good night in great company. I will miss everyone!

Yesterday morning it felt wrong not going in but I was kept busy with the kids. The end of year church service for the year 6 leavers was really emotional, the kids were crying, we were crying..... our kids aren't even leaving until next year! Not sure I'll be able to cope with that service!! 😢😢😢. Faye was surprisingly fine, until we'd been home for a bit. She went to get changed and came down sobbing her heart out, bless her! 🙁

I distracted her with the mermaid tail blanket a friend from work had given me for hospital (knowing first hand how much I hate being cold!!).

They wanted McDonald's so we went there on the way to my friend's. It was nice for all the kids to play together as they don't really get to see each other apart from in the holidays.  My friend gave me a beautiful Hot Diamonds guardian angel charm, which is definitely coming with me to Papworth!

Today I didn't do bad being of add the kids were off anyway. We got clothes ready to pack for their 'holiday' and sorted some stuff off myself. I decided to treat them to the cinema so we went to see Despicable Me 3 which they really enjoyed. It was nice to just spend the day with them.

I was really surprised when Jay gave me a bag of lovely goodies from one of his work colleagues! I was so touched at such a thoughtful gesture. With all the bad things happening in the world it does restore faith that the majority of people are good, caring people.

I feel so lucky to have such loving family and friends who are always there for me and I will always be there for them, no matter how near or far, or how much or little we see each other.

I love you all with all my heart 💖💖💖

Old friends, new old friends, sunshine and relaxation

What a fantastic few days!!

It all started with a day of pampering at Beauty Boutique in Wigston, a pedicure and massage, toe and finger nails manicured and painted, and lashes lifted and tinted (will save the need for mascara in hospital!). I was out just in time to get to Base hairdressers for a trim and highlights to brighten me up for the summer. Bliss!

I packed the following morning and went on my way to Teddington for the weekend to see a friend I haven't seen for a couple of years, leaving early to miss the traffic. It was a lovely day and it was great to park up and wander down to the river. It always has a real holiday feel to me, especially when the sun is shining 🌞

It turns out that another old friend lives there too, who I haven't seen for (cough, cough) years. We agreed to meet at Tide End Cottage for a drink and, although I felt a bit nervous meeting someone from so long ago, it was actually really easy and the time flew by. Well, it did for me anyway! For all I know I could have been chatting far too much and bored them to tears! I hope not though!

As they needed to leave, my other friends arrived and we made our way to the Fallow Deer for cocktails and then almost next door for an Italian (food, not person...). Overall, a very enjoyable day with delicious food, refreshing drinks and, most importantly, great company!

I awoke Saturday morning to another lovely day which we decided to start off with a game of crazy golf, much to my friend's partner's horror! Not just crazy golf though, Pirate crazy golf! It was really busy, and yes mainly with kids, but did we care??! Well, two of us didn't! 😂 We had to pull ourselves across the water in rafts, play inside a pirate ship in the dark, it was fun!! There was another small group of adults only behind us who were taking it all much too seriously! I had to bite my tongue to not point out it was a crazy golf course, mainly aimed at kids and not grown men...... We really didn't take it seriously, I mean, my first hit of the ball and it went straight in the water!! You could almost see their agitation growing with each of the 9 attempts it took my to complete hole no. 1!!

We recovered from the effort with some lunch at The Anchor at Wisley, watching the boats go through the lock, going back to the Flying Cloud at Teddington for a cuppa and cake back by the river, again watching all the boats go by as we made several (fairly unsuccessful) attempts at taking a selfie!

Another beautiful evening made our decision to go to a now favourite haunt of mine, Comptoir Libanais, by Kingston Bridge. We managed to upset the waitress by wanting to sit at a different (and nicer) table than the one she initially offered us, leading her to very grumpy and almost throwing chairs about before telling us we'd have to wait while she seated someone else at 'our' table! Ooops! Another waitress then came to seat us, who was very happy and pleasant! We had a lovely meal watching the sun set. Our cocktail reminded me slightly of Benilyn (although you got used to it after a while!) and the 'tea' my friend ordered looked vaguely as though she had been pond dipping, although she quite liked it, until my pond dipping comment at least........

Sunday wasn't meant to be so nice but it was another gorgeous, hot and sunny day! We ambled around a classic car show in Hampton before shopping for picnic bits and making our way to Strawberry Hill House for their fun day and music festival. We went around the house which was like nothing I had ever seen before. Very gothic in style and seemingly completely random! Lots of the windows had original panes of 17th century painted glass from Flanders which were fantastic. We then relaxed in the sunshine with our picnic, listening to the different bands until early evening.

It was a really chilled out weekend and I had such a lovely time, just what I needed before hospital calls!!

Flashing knickers!! 😖

So I probably experienced one of the most embarrassing, mortifying and traumatic moments of my life yesterday. I still shudder just thinking about it!!

I finished work and collected Faye, had tea, did some work whilst Faye got ready for gym. All fine. Took her to gym and sorted out Billy going for a trial next week (bless him!). Decided not to bother going home so just say in the car, rang mum and dad and spoke to Billy. Still all good so far.  Got out of the car to go a different fetch Faye, and my nightmare began.

It was still warm and I was happily walking past the cars to the gym when I lady following me down the hill called 'excuse me'. I turned and realised she was calling to me so stopped. Her next words sent a chill right through me.

'Sorry, but I thought I should tell you your dress is split all down the back.'

'Is it bad?`

`Well it's all the way down you the hem. You can see your pants and everything. I thought it was shorts to start with but then realised. I'm really sorry but if it says me I'd want someone to tell me...'

I was mortified!!!  I had no coat. Nothing. And I just stood there like an idiot with no idea what to do!! Then there was the horror of wondering how long it had been split without me noticing? Surely someone at work would have said. Wouldn't they?? Or at school when I picked Faye up? And what about when I dropped Faye off at gym and spent a while at reception with kids and parents everywhere?? Had I been flashing my knickers to all and sundry?! They weren't even a decent pair!! The thought was paralysing!!

I held the back of my dress together the best I could, probably looking like I'd had an accident as I scuttled into the waiting room clutching my bum and clamped myself to the nearest wall! Faye was first out which, to start with I thought was good, as that meant I could get away quick. In reality I soon realised that just meant that everyone else was behind me......

'Faye walk behind me!'

'why?'

'just do it?!'

'why?'

I told her about my predicament and she promptly went into hysterics! Not that I could blame her, no doubt I'd have done the same. She did walk behind me though. Encouraging me as we went. Not.

'Mum you look weird, just let go of it'

'I can't. You can see my knickers'

'it'll be better than you look now'

'Thanks. But it really wouldn't. And stop laughing!'

'I can't, it's funny'

At this point I noticed a car with one of the dad's I know say in it. We always say hello, but on this occasion I thought it would be better to focus ahead and pretend I hadn't noticed him.

'It is NOT funny. At all'

I'm sure there was an amused look on 'dad's' face as I passed the car.....

'let go'

'no'

'well you're going to have to let go of it in a minute to get in the car!'

'yes. Thank you. I'm well aware of that!'

Thankfully the car next to me dad empty so I was able to take refund between the two cars.

'let's have a look then'

I let go.

'[gasp] oh m that is really bad! I mean REALLY bad!!`

I have never been so pleased and relieved to get in my car!!

And I've never known 10 minutes to be do traumatic it felt like 10 hours!!!

At least Faye reassured me that my dress was fine when I dropped her off so that was at least some relief!

All I need to do now is find the receipt...... and a disguise to wear to all future trips to gym........... 😐

Iiiiiiiiiiit's RANT TIME!!!!!

OK, so maybe I'm just not in the best of moods today. Or maybe, just maybe, it's been a day full of idiots conspiring to annoy me............ On the bright side, they only partially succeeded 

It started with a kamikaze cyclist  on the school run. Now I know cyclists have just as much right to be on the road as cars, and I am generally very considerate of them,  but surely they should comply with the rules of the road too?? So if their traffic lights are on red, STOP! Don't just carry on and cycle straight across in front of me, when my lights are on green, and just expect me to stop! I did, but one day you might not be so lucky......

I then had a stereotypical white van man cut me up, twice, coz he was in so much of a hurry as he obviously felt he was much more important than everyone else trying to get to work. Still it worked out well for him, he managed to get 1 vehicle ahead of where he started (behind me) all the way in to town, shaving milliseconds off his time,  so Woohoo!! Well done Mr Van driver! You must be sooooo proud of your achievement!! 

So that was all before I actually got in to work.......

As far as work goes, there are a few things I consider important...
1. Work hard and you will be rewarded (OK maybe that one is a bit out of date and optimistic.....)
2. Be humble and don't run ramshod over other people to get where you want /get the recognition you want, whether you deserve it or not.
3. Don't ask anyone to do anything you aren't prepared to do yourself
4. If something needs doing and there's no one else available, do it yourself!

..... But maybe I'm just old skool

Why people can't do something that, OK, might not be their job, but would only take them approximately 1 minute at the most to do is beyond me. Especially when not doing it can causes delays of a day or so. I guess some people must think certain tasks are beneath them......

Still, however irritating, it's not such a biggy I guess and I can at least be glad that I'm not like that.

I had half a day's annual leave to take Billy for another visit to big school, this time we left them and they went on their own. He was full of it when he came back and loved it! I was so pleased and feel happier that he isn't going to be really clingy when he starts  We got Faye and came home to get changed and go straight into the paddling pool. It was soooo nice! We had a pack of water balloons and had an hour or so messing about in the pool and staying cool! . We had a great time and all was well with the world again!

For a bit ....

Tonight I dropped Faye off at guides and went swimming.  It was a busy but lovely and cool. There were a few lads being lads but there were also the annoying chatters. I know people go with their friends and have a bit of a natter, I know I used to. But we swim in lanes and I still have to stop every two lengths to, well, breathe! It's therefore pretty annoying to not be able to stop at the end coz of people chatting. I don't mean a few minutes chit chat while they have a breather, I'm talking 10/15 minutes of not moving! In the 10 lengths or so I managed whilst they were chatting, I learnt more about their dog's habits, behaviour in the park, what they had for dinner blah blah blah than I really needed, or wanted, to know! Then one of them complained about how busy it was and that they hadn't even got out of breath yet! I was so close to pointing out that that wasn't exactly surprising seeing as they hadn't moved for ages, although the amount of yapping she was doing should have rendered her breathless!  Unfortunately this didn't happen and I had to suffer overhearing their inane conversations......

Hopefully, seeing as it was far too busy for them, they won't be there when I go again. It would be much safer for them, probably more than they could ever imagine.....!!

Wet chairs and water fights 💦

Well it's been a funny old week! This time last week I was sat at home after a long day at the polling station watching the first of the results come in. It seems much longer than a week ago!

It was lovely to get out in the garden and get some planting done after all the rain last week and I'm happy to say my cucamelon plants are looking good! I can't wait for them to grow and fruit..... They are going to be soooo cute!!

Work has been a bit stressful to the point where I'm not sure if I even speak English or people can't actually hear me.... But then something will happen that makes turning up worthwhile.....

For instance, as I got into work on Tuesday I found boxes of files on my desk that needed to go to the lab. I grabbed a couple of boxes and was on my way when a colleague came out of a nearby office and called me in, saying I needed to look at her chair because she didn't know what to do. She explained someone had been in her office, sitting in her chair, and her chair was now marked.... Sure enough I looked at the chair and there was, what I can only describe as, a wet, oddly shaped streak on the seat. I shared her horror with an exclamation of "what is that?!". She replied that she didn't know, we really didn't want to know, but she didn't know what to do because she couldn't bring herself to sit on it. I didn't blame her but at that point I started laughing uncontrollably until I was crying!  Just thinking about it again now whilst I'm writing this is making me giggle! When I'd calmed down enough to be able to speak, I reasoned that we must have something in the department or lab to clean/disinfect it with, and we had a spare chair in our office she could use.  We did find some Flash (with Febreze I might add!) in the tea room, so I gave it a good scrub and left it to dry....... All's well that ends well 😂

Yesterday was sunny and hot, promoting one of the managers to bring a lead of jubbleys into work. And a number of water pistols. What could go wrong?! Well, maybe giving one to me for a start! It was nice to temporarily revert to being a kid again though!!

Last night Faye was in an interschool athletics competition involving all the local schools, about a dozen altogether. As you can imagine, it was organised chaos but I think the teachers and everyone involved did a really good job sorting so many kids out! I didn't any even one bit! Everyone did well and seemed to enjoy it anyway.

Today the water pistols are forgotten about. For most of the day. Then all hell let loose in the office! In hindsight I should have known better than to shoot one of the Consultants. At the time I didn't know better but son learnt my lesson when he came back at me with a fairly powerful water bottle. I got soaked. As did the carpet, my chair, my desk....... Squirt two had me running out of the office to escape another drenching. And to dry out!

Things calmed down, he left for home and I went to collect my printing. On returning to the office I walked through the door and got soaked again.... and almost had a heart attack as he was hiding behind the wall as I came in! Apparently he'd forgotten his phone and thought it to perfect an opportunity to miss! I can't say I blame him, I would most likely have done the same thing myself. I did get him back with the water bottle on his way out though 😂

Best of all, it's nearly the weekend again!! It's meant to be a lovely one too! I can see paddling pools, hose pipes and water bombs on the horizon........

So a Happy Father's Day to all of you Dad's out there and I hope you all get spoiled!! Xxx

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!!!

...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...... 

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!

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!

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...........

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..........

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 

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!!

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......... 😂

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! 😂😂😂🍾🍾🍷🍷🍷🍷

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?!" 😂. 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! 👌

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 🤔

Ring the venue to see if we could go later, then we could eat first. God I'm clever 😂 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!!

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!

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! 🍷🍹🍷🍸

Oompa Loompas, Surgeons, and Music!!

What a busy few days!!

(Another) night out from work to celebrate a colleague passing her Masters. It was a good night and I also bumped into two customers from my barmaid days so it was nice to catch up. Quite an early night too as I was home by 9.15 to a silent house as everyone was asleep. Well they were asleep until I realised I hadn't taken my keys with me....... Ooops! 😕

Saturday disappeared in a flurry of chores and ended with me deciding to top up the tan.

In hindsight, these things are probably better done in the morning.

In daylight.

When you can actually see what you're doing.

And with very strict instructions to anyone you get to help.

Otherwise there is a very slight chance that you may end up resembling an Oompa Loompa........ 😂 😂 😂

Hindsight is a great thing!

Now, as I have mentioned in a previous post, the skinny tan oil gives a lovely natural colour, used properly, and you only need a very small amount.

It appears I didn't emphasise this enough when requesting help......

Yep, by the morning I looked vaguely like I'd been tangoed or, as referred to above, like an Oompa Loompa! I also must have caught my hands at some point during the night as my palms are now also wonderfully tanned!

On the plus side, skinny tan does last well and doesn't wash off....... 😂

So that was how Mother's day started! I had lovely cards and presents from Jay, Faye, Billy, Amy & Kie, was brought breakfast in bed and then had dinner and tea at mum and dad's with Big sis and clan. It was a really lovely, family day!

The Wizard of Oz was made reference to on numerous occasions (you can go off people, mentioning no nieces in particular ....) and it was also mentioned that maybe when I got to hospital the following day there would be a sudden panic to take bloods to check my renal function as I looked jaundiced - sister's can be so cruel!!

As it was, jaundice seemed to be the least anyone was bothered about at hospital, although I did start laughing when I was asked I'd I had any skin complaints!! The nurse reassured me she wasn't going to laugh as she'd once used a product that claimed to just give a 'glow', so didn't use gloves and ended up with hands like mine.

The op was discussed in lots of detail and by the end we got the message that it is quite a big deal, based on the number of times the words 'huge', 'major', and 'massive' were used! 😂

It was all good though and the surgeon seemed confident that he could remove all the clots/scar tissue. As for himself, I observed that he was able to walk independently, wasn't wearing really thick glasses (although I have just realised that he could have been wearing contacts 😕), had a good, firm handshake, and had no apparent shaking. So I stayed in the room, agreed to the op and signed my life away - hopefully not literally! (The surgeon didn't seem to find that little 'joke' as amusing as I did! I do hope I haven't upset him.....!)

Tonight it was the Leicestershire Schools Music Service at De Montfort Hall and Faye's primary school had joined with two others to do their African drumming.  The last time they did this concert it was, well, noisy........

As such, I had prepared myself for the worst and had sweets etc in my bag to distract/bribe Billy, but in fact didn't really need them. The whole concert was brilliant! Most of the children taking part this time, apart from Faye's group, we're secondary school age and they were all really good. Billy was really good and even when he got tired and a snuggled in, as soon as someone finished he sat bolt upright to clap and was bouncing and dancing on my knee to the steel drums at the end. He was very loyal though and said Faye's drumming was the best! They did do very well and I'm very proud of her 😊 (although I have to admit, I'm still glad they don't bring the drums home to practice!)

So that's my round up of the last few days...... See you soon!!

Another night out?? Bad Mummy!!!

Yes, twice in two weeks (shock horror) I am deserting my family for a night out with work!!  Last week it was a girly night out with cocktails at Fat Cats, a gorgeous meal at Casa Romana, and more cocktails at the Terrace Bar.  This week It's to celebrate a colleague passing her Masters, a very well deserved celebration for her! I have no idea where we're going and, to be honest, I'm not really bothered!!

Not only that but I'll be out again in a couple of weeks for birthday drinks! It would be rude not to!!

It's been an up and down week and I'm actually surprised I haven't started lunchtime drinking...... Yet (although a suggestion has been made 😂😂😂)!

I have been good in other ways though😇 I've still managed to get to the pool twice this week, even though it's been later.  Last night (known as Sardine night last week) was great. There was still staff training in two lanes but only three other people in the pool in two lanes and the slow lane was empty and all mine! As the night progressed the other swimmers disappeared and the lane separaters gradually hit put away until, by the end I had three quarters of the pool all to myself! It was bliss! I obviously felt the pressure that they were about to kick me out at any time though as I managed to shave five minutes off my 1k time to forty five minutes 😀

That's my exercise for the week complete so bring on the weekend! Woohoo!!!

😁🍹😁🍷😁🍹😁🍷

Bones knitted - time for cast off!!

After many weeks, the time has finally come!!!

It's cast off day for Billy!! 😀

He was very excited and was chatting away to a couple in the waiting room before he was called in. He was as good as gold whilst his cast was sawn off then it was over to x-ray, which he's obviously got used to now as he was happy to sit on his own, instead of on my lap, to have the x-ray taken!

All is well, new bone is forming and he was happily moving his arm around, although did say it hurt a bit when he straightened it so was still walking around with it bent for a while.

Back at the car he decided it would be a good idea to start rubbing the dry skin off his arm........ Then collected a pile and shouted me. When I looked he threw it in the air and said "Look! It's snowing!" 🤢

We met Jay at lunch and went to a gelato cafe for ice cream (and warm chocolate muffin for me 😊 mmmmmm it was yummy!!). He had a red power ranger toy and blaster for his treat and spent the afternoon shooting me (and Faye when she was home from school)! 😂

He's now happily playing in the bath, without his waterproof arm, telling me how nice it is!

Happy days!!

Skinny Tan!!

My new favourite!

Now, I have the type of complexion that needs fake tan. I am the type of white you want your paint to be when decorating.... BRILLIANT WHITE. Pale and pastey, that's me. I don't tan. Well, actually I do tan, eventually, it's just that I'm so pale to start with my 'tan' just colours my skin to a sort of beige.... Everyone else's normal colour.

As such, I have used many different tanning products over the years in an attempt to achieve a healthy 'sun-kissed glow'. Hmmmmm. Many of these attempts have ended in me looking like a strange disease-ridden Tiger 🐯 or an OompaLoompa. OK, so maybe not quite that bad, but you get the idea. And then there's that unique distinct fake tan smell! (what is that smell?!)

Until now.

I came across Skinny Tan on Facebook and the reviews were good, they had a good offer on so I decided to give it a try.  I've only used it once so far and.... I love it!! 😍

I got 2 bottles of the oil and an exfoliating /correcting mitt with my deal and got a tanning mitt and face mitt from ebay. The exfoliating mitt is fab - one side to exfoliate and the other to correct any excess tan. I've never been overly impressed with exfoliating mitts /gloves as most of them remind me of those plastic-type scourers you get for non-stick saucepans, which don't work on your pans any more than the 'exfoliators' work on your body!  However, this exfoliating mitt really works and does leave your skin feeling smooth 😊

The spray oil is easy to apply and a little goes a long way. It smells coconuty which reminds me of Hawaiian Tropic sun oils and Malibu (other favourites too so, to be honest, this was always on track to be a winner from the start!).  It absorbed quickly and by early evening I was tanned. Even my other half was impressed and gave a good endorsement of the product with his comment "you actually look brown, not that orangey colour you usually go"! 😂

I've only used it the once and I'm not sure if or how the 'skinny' part of the product will work but, in all honesty, I don't really care! I feel so much better for just having a bit of colour, that looks natural, doesn't smell, and is still there after a week which also included 2 swimming sessions! It also felt much better turning up at the pool looking 'normal' instead of like a glow-in-the-dark milk bottle!!

I love you skinny tan!!

Sardines!

Well my second night of swimming - and I'm moaning already!

The pool is usually divided into 3; slow, medium and fast. Each area being 2 lanes wide, enough to allow two people to pass comfortably on a 'circuit'.

Tonight,the pool was split into 6 individual lanes, 3 for swim school and 3 for public swimming, so only 1 lane wide for each of the slow, medium, and fast lanes. Not all that easy if there was more than one of you in a lane!  I was quite happy as I was the only one in the slow lane for a while, there were a couple in the fast lane, and when it got to about 4 or 5 in the medium lane, they started moving over to join me.  Ok, so slightly more crowded but still ok.

Until half an hour had gone by.  Then they had staff training too so our 3 lanes became 2 lanes - medium disappeared and we had slow and fast. Hmmmm.......... not the best plan ever.  It created a fast lane with 3 or 4 people in it and a slow lane with around a dozen people - talk about sardines!  (although I realise sardine are much more streamline in the water than we were!). It was a nightmare!  You couldn't swim properly, and I ended up doing about 2 strokes of breaststroke and the rest almost doggy paddle to avoid hitting someone else or the wall!

It wasn't great but I managed my 1 km in 50 minutes so I was happy with that, and even happier to get out of the pool!

Just to end the session nicely, as I was getting changed, I could hear one of the 'medium' swimmers complaining about how she had had to tread water several times because of the 'slow' swimmers.  Whoever she was talking to obviously told her she should have gone in the fast lane then as she snorted indignantly "I couldn't go in the fast lane because I'm not a fast swimmer!".  Well newsflash lady, the majority of us weren't 'medium' swimmers but, as there was only a slow lane or fast lane, we were in the right place - we definitely couldn't go in the fast lane but as far as I can see you could have chosen either so either quit moaning or do one!

It wasn't pleasant for any of us and I can't say that I particularly enjoyed it tonight, but at least most of us just got in with it the best we could.  I guess there's always one and I do hope I don't accidentally drown her if I have the misfortune of being in the same lane as her again...........!

Swimming is back on!!! 🏊🏊🏊

Woohoo! It's been 6 months but I've finally made it back to the pool!

I have to admit that I was quite nervous and self-conscious about getting the cozzie back out but with the help of Skinny Tan (more about that later) I had enough colour to not dazzle everyone else in the pool with my bright white legs!

I checked the timetable several times, half of me willing the times on it to change so that I had an excuse to back out! They didn't. Damn!

After scanning my card to get in (it took 3 attempts, surely that was a sign that this was a bad idea?) I made my way to the changing rooms, feeling quite sick at this point......

5 minutes later and I'd done it! I was IN THE POOL!!!

Now, before I started I knew I couldn't stay in for my usual hour as I had to pick Faye up do I decided not to count lengths (I used to do 40 in an hour so didn't want to put myself under pressure!). That lasted all of... Oh, let me see.... Errrr...... 2 lengths! 

So I counted. I also worked out completely pointless facts in my head whilst trying to distract myself from counting lengths. It didn't work. I just counted lengths And made a mental list of rubbish. Still, who doesn't like a good list?! I Iike lists. My list was a something like this:

1. The pool is 25m long (OK, OK, so I didn't work that one out, I already knew that)

2. If I timed my swimming strokes right, I did an average of 1m per stroke (weirdly this was mainly 23/24 strokes on odd lengths and 25/26 on even lengths. Nope, I couldn't work that one out either. Believe me, I tried!

3. One of my legs is wonky. It's true. I do breast stroke and my left leg did what it was supposed to. My right leg on the other hand (or I suppose that should be foot) did this weird downward, diagonal thing.

4. If I consciously made my right leg for what it was supposed to, my left leg and the rest if me went wonky and I was likely to drown.

5. From the poolside I must look like a duck with a dodgy leg.......

6. I should stop making random lists.

7. I really should stop my brain from thinking sometimes. For my own sanity.

Anyway, with random list making and all, I managed half a mile (32 lengths) in 37 minutes so on my calculations, and yes I worked this out whilst swimming too, if I'd stayed in for an hour, I would have made my kilometer (40 lengths) easily!!

Basically I'm pleased with myself and I actually feel pretty good! I was even almost half an hour early to get Faye! Hence having time to write this blog!

Reading and blogging!!

Well this is a rare opportunity! Two hours on my own to blog, read (We were on a break by Lindsey Kelk if anyone's interested!) , and freeze......... 😂

Jay is running the Adidas Silverstone Half Marathon today so we were up bright and early, we'll maybe not so bright, it was raining! Nevertheless we were up, even the kids got up!

How do kids manage to do that by the way?? On weekdays, when they have to get up at 7.30, I'm shaking them, pulling the covers off them, turning the lights on full and STILL have to physically drag them out of bed. Yet on a weekend, usually when we actually want a lie-in (with the exception of today), they're out of bed and running around full of beans at the crack of dawn!!

Anyway we were all packed up and ready to go when Amy and Kie arrived to babysit for the day. Made good time and we're here in plenty of time. I have to say, and I know it sounds really obvious, but Silverstone is huge!! It's also full of vans selling burgers, hog toasts, doughnuts, waffles.... Yummy........ Think I'd better just stay in my seat and blog/read away!!!

My biggest mistake so far is that I forgot my glasses so can't see a damp thing (or anyone), although it is very colourful!! I just filmed everyone start, then filmed again around the time I figured Jay should be passing again, and I think I did actually see him that time!  Another 40 mins and I think he should be passing again round the other side. I've picked a nice front corner seat in the grandstand so I can see all round. Purely by accident as I didn't even realise they came the other way til I checked the course map!

The sun is starting to break through now thankfully so it might start warming up a bit so I can eat my very healthy picnic (🙁) and carry on reading - only just started it but I've loved all of Lindsey Kelk's other books so I'm sure I'll enjoy this one too!! 📚📖

Running for Papworth 🏃🏃🏃

Not me, obviously!!

My amazing Fiancé has just told me that he has been in contact with the Papworth Hospital Charity for a little while now to arrange fundraising for them through all the running events he is taking part in this year.

This is a fantastic hospital and all of  the staff have always been lovely, helpful, and reassuring and so he is hoping to raise some money so we can give something back to help them continue to offer their specialist treatments to others.

If you are in a position to help in any way, please click on the link to his JustGiving page to make a donation. Thank you Xx

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jason-Tyler-1968

Stuff the diet!! Times like this call for chocolate, and lots of it!

Well the time has finally arrived for our childminder to leave us for pastures new!

I obviously wish her all the very best in her new life (miles away!) but we will miss her! She has been an almost daily presence in our lives for nearly 4 years, first looking after the kids when Faye was 7 and Billy was just 9 months old!

Faye made a memories folder - she added a couple of really sweet poems and also researched their new home to put an info section on places to go (I haven't had the heart to tell her they already know the area really well!). I've been through and added some bits for Billy along with some photos. It's been quite emotional! Seeeee, I'm big softie really!

We'd already shared a tear when I picked the kids up tonight as she'd given Billy the "nee-nah racing car" he'd made out of Duplo when he was about 2!

Not only has she been a great childminder, she's been a great friend too. We've had lots of laughs, lots of moans, and done lots of plotting! :)

Tomorrow is her last working day, well today actually (I've just noticed the time!) and it's going to be very sad. We're going to miss her!

I guess the diet will have to wait til tomorrow.....

Well I've just watched the darts and a bit of Dave ja view and managed to demolish the remainder of a box of M&Ms! Ooops!

It was worth it though! The diet and swimming plan will still happen..... There's always tomorrow!! 😂

Room makover complete!!

So, after lots of (nice) interruptions, Faye's bedroom has finally been finished! After 10 years the Humphry's Corner lemon walls and curtains and the blue/red/taupe/lemon patchwork wardrobes and door panels have gone! 😭With some sadness I have to admit! It seems like of yesterday we were decorating it and getting it all ready as a nursery. Me and bump happily sitting with all the wardrobe doors around me on the floor painting them in the 2 weeks between finishing work and Faye finally putting in an appearance!

The walls are now amethyst (purple to most of us normal people!) and the wardrobe/door panels are Bubblegum (bright pink). No more curtains, instead she has an aubergine (Errr..... Purple again!) blackout blind (Yaaaay no more moaning about it being too light to sleep in the summer! Yes, I did plan this one!) and, to make it a bit more 'grown up', fuschia (you've got it, bright pink!) voiles with some pretty crocheted/beaded tie backs. The only snag being the tie back hooks were too small to go over the tie back holders. Nothing a couple of hair bobbles couldn't fix!!

Her old TV unit has been replaced with a chest of drawers and her drawers/bits'n'bobs unit has been replaced with a desk and pink chair. Unbelievably, the chair was just 'pink'! Not fuschia or Bubblegum or rose or blush etc. Just pink!  We need to get handles for the drawers to match her wardrobes and they're done.

We went internet shopping for Faye to pick out her lampshade, desk lamp plus some other bits and jobs and I think it's fair to say she loves her new room!

The only other thing left to do is to pick up and fit a new radiator as hers had corroded and was leaking.

In the meantime, Billy has been running around dressed as Captain America but being "the red power ranger, what's his name again Mummy?"  "Troy"  "Yes. The red one RRAAAAAAA HA YA!". Cue running, karate kick, falling and cracking the cast on his already broken arm on the floor/the table/me...... Ouch! He has had some calmer moments. He proudly showed me the picture he'd drawn of himself weeing in the toilet! 😂 😂 😂

With all the decorating and work, the house is a complete tip. . Even more so than usual which, to be perfectly honest, I didn't think was possible. Apparently it is!!! 😱

For now though, it's time to snuggle down under our 'teal' duvet! Night night everyone! 😴😴😴