Less decluttering, more relocating

Sitting here at the moment watching Dr Who. Cameron wanted to watch this one as quite a few kids in his class watch it but knowing it was about the weeping angels (creepy!) and that it was Amy and Rorys last episode (sad!) managed to convince him to wait until next year when it starts again. We are trying to get him to watch more grown up tv as currently its mainly Lilo and stitch, Mr bean and Peppa pig (caitlins mainly the instigator of that one)and the kids at his school seem to be watching The spiderman movies and the new batman film :s I personally think they're a bit young but obviously don't want Cam to feel left out so agreed I'd watch the dr whos first then let him see them the next day if not too bad. Its hard to get the balance really and hes only 5! Dreading when hes older and wanting £90 trainers because everyone else has them. Well todays been pretty productive, as I've said before I've seriously got to cut down loads of craft stuff to make room, but thats seriously easier said than done. I've used loads, chucked and sold but for the space I had I'd basically have to get rid of all my punches, dies, inks, paints the lot, and just keep a few kits and papers. Um, NOT going to happen! So decided to box it all up and put it in the garage while keeping all the papers inside. Problem there is needing to go through boxes and boxes to see if I have something to go with the layout I'm doing. So finally found a use for this :)

One of my many notebooks I buy because I like it and then never put anything in it, lol. So today I spent punching paper, listing stickles and paints and running dies through my cuttlebug, which Caitlin seriously enjoyed helping with lol.

So as a result I've now got 4 boxes packed away with easy acsess and managed to put a whole shelving unit in there too and out of the livingroom. Just need to get a wire to move the tv and computer to the other side of the room now!!! :)

Respite weekend

Well this weekend is my respite, once a year Mark mates take him away for the weekend giving me a break, which I love and hate in pretty much equal measure. I love Mark obviously but being a carer 24/7 for not just the kids but him too is hard work. I can put the kids on the naughty step if they don't do as they're told, not so easy with him. So I love the break, but I also hate being apart. Worrying if his mates are taking care of him (they always have done but thats not the point lol) and feeling guilty that I'm relaxing without him. But it is what it is, and I know if I sit about doing nothing I'll regret it when he comes home, so I've managed to stuff as much as possible into today lol. This morning was a proud Mummy morning :) Cameron got a certificate in assembly for always doing his best and being so well behaved :) Was glad that timing allowed Mark to go too. :)

After that was home to clean, pack Marks bits, then dropping Mark off at the train station to meet his mates. Town, shopping, bank and coffee with mum (MUCH needed at that point!) Then home to pick up kids, do dinner and planned to relax. Yeah that didnt happen! For some reason whenever Marks away I decide now is the time to get some big job done. I get too restless without a million things to do I think. So with Camerno at my Mums, me and Caitlin decided to put on MTV and start painting the living room :)

She actually loved it, lol, she was gutted when it was done lol. Well as much as we could do was done, I wasn't about to start pulling out the PC and all that with caitin at my ankles! Thats a job for when shes at school I think lol. Would like to do it tomorrow but mums coming round tomorrow night for pizza and games with the kids so will be gutting the house for that visit! Think she worries about me being on my own, typical mum I guess. :) Right well I've got to finish putting the livingroom back together and then off to bed!

Really should be doing something productive.....

Well its 2:40 and I'm sitting on my laptop with dickensons real deal on the tv. To be honest no idea why as the remotes next to me and by god it's dull but there you go lol. Had a very productive morning and think thats my motivation for the day gone lol. Crafting is going well :)Finished the Christmas box and Christmas notebook for some swaps I'm in and punched out most of the boarders for the bunting for my mum. Quite enjoying doing crafting but think I'm going to try and do some layouts too, seriously got to cut down on my stash which while a bit depressing on one hand I'm so looking forward to having my livingroom sorted I can make do. Most of my dies and punches are going to have to be relocated to the garage so got to make a list of what I have so I can look without having to go out there each time I want to do something lol. On the topic of lists they seem to dominate my life at the moment, lol. I'm starting to get everything planned for Christmas which seriously seems to take longer each year. This year more so than others as with all the DIY housewise and homemade gifts theres sooooooo much to keep track of, still enjoying it though, I think I thrive under pressure lol, get too complacent when everythings all calm. Speaking of calm though Caitlin went into school today all by herself. :) Was so proud of her. She wasnt going to do it but when I was talking to her another Mum suggested her daughter walk in with caitlin as she was a little worried too. Funnily enough both girls had the exact same water cup, both with broken lids in the exact same place lol. Very odd coincidence but was enough to strike up a comradary between them and they walked in quite happy together. :) That said when Caitlin went into the classroom, i was waving and giving thumbs up to say well done, and though she smiled at me there was certainly a 'I'm not impressed with you' look behind her smile. lol. Think I might pay for it later.

WOYWW

Been aggggggges since I've done one of these. As Christmas is coming up I've started on my Christmas crafts. :) Money is seriously tight this year with one thing or another so will be making a lot of gifts and want to get a head start. My mums also asked me to make bunting for her to decorate the living room. All well and good except I know my mum, theres an image in her head of what she wants and I'm betting what I make won't match it lol. She'll be fine with it anyway but really want her to like it. Her colour scheme is red, black, silver and grey so so far I've cut the flags in those colours.

Fair bit left still to do! House is going well :) Bathroom is finished as my Dad came round yesterday and laid the lino for us. cameron bless him was so excited to have a bath in our 'new bathroom' amazing the difference paint and new flooring can do :) This week it's the kitchen and the hallway getting re-done. New paint, blind put up in kitchen and new decorations in hall. The blind for the kitchen we actually bought nearly 3 years ago but I LOTHE putting up blinds so still havent done it yet! Right well better get on :) Got a lot on the to-do list today lol.

Calmer day?

God I'm hoping its a calmer day today. Kids ended up not going to the party as their behaviour was just dreadful, so had two crying, angry kids in the end. Not started well this morning as Caitlin seems to be in a strop with everyone but ah well. Shes easier than Cameron as he has huge meltdowns, she just sulks. We were planning on having a trip to the park today, but as its freezing and threatening rain the kids wanted to stay home and make a 'fun list'. This is an idea I made up over the holidays to keep kids happy while Mark and I had some time to relax or do jobs. Each of us has a list of things to do with the kids, today mine has 'model making, cooking, painting and computer games' while marks has 'playdough, golf, tv, board game' (nice simple stuff to supervise) we each take it turns to do something with the kids from the list while the other does whatever. My turn was first and Cameron choose cooking, so we made pancakes :) I love pancakes, not to eat granted just to make, lol, they're SO easy and the kids love them. For those who don't know how to make them this is the recipe I use 1 cup plain flour 1 cup milk 2 eggs 1 teaspoon vannila essence mix it all up and pour into frying pan. :) You can add bits like chocolate chips or fruit but mine dont like that (strange kids, Id add chocolate to pretty much everything lol)

Well jobs to be done today! Mainly ironing, dinner, sausage cassarole, is in the slow cooker so just need to make some mash to go with that. Caitlins now out of her sulk and playing on Cams ds so fingers crossed the peace remains!

Is it Monday yet?

Remember my enthuisam yesterday that it was the weekend? Oh I'm so over it now! lol. Children have been driving me mental today! Fighting like mad when together, but when I seperate them crying they want to play together! They have a birthday party this afternoon so going to drop them off and have a bit of a break I think lol. Not managed to get much doen this morning, some ironing and general cleaning inbetween playing referee, which was scarier than the horror film I watched while ironing.

OMG what rubbish! Its shot in 'real time' so one take kinda thing, but its soooooo dull and the ending is just weird. SPOILER ALERT! The star is a girl who goes to her old home to do it up with her dad and uncle. While there a strange man somehow gets into the house, knocks out her dad and chases her about for a bit. Theres a really odd scene with a ghost girl and bottles of blood and all that until at the end you find out its really all her. Her dad and uncle used to abuse her in the house and while she blocked it out returning there made her go mad and shes the one terrorising everyone. yeah I know. lol. Cameron made me laugh this morning, he comes out with some cracking comments, this was todays: Mark - Come her Cam you need your face cleaned. Cameron - Why? Mark - You're covered in chocolate spread, you're more chocolate than face. Cameron - Thats because I eat chocolate I dont eat face! Kids are outside now, taking bets on how long it takes before they start fighting again. 4 minutes, thats how long it took. *sigh*

Weeks ended on a high :)

Well had some bad luck this week, the cars started acting up, the PC has got a virus and my extra work hours have got MUCH harder. Caitlins also been struggling to adapt to school. She seems fine once shes dropped off but the drop off is full of tears and begging to go home :( Today however seems to have turned a corner :) Caitlin went into her class all on her own with NO tears, Marks mate has managed to find the problem in the pc and is trying to fix it as I type, and work has agreed to move me to another department, yey! We've also finished painting the bathroom and aim to get the kitchen and hallway done this week. Fingers crossed anyway lol. Im loving getting all this done in the house, want it all done by Chritmas which yes is a seriously tall order but I'm confident i can get it done lol. Also have a looooooong list of crafting to get done as everyones putting in their christmas orders now lol. With everything this year with the car breaking down so much, benifits being stopped/reduced and Turkey Christmas is going to be a lean one this year so everyone is getting a little bought gift and lots of homemade ones :) Not managed much crafting this week as been fighting a cold so most night have been under the blanket and cross stitching but intend to get stuck in over the weekend. Feeling good about everything right now :) hope it lasts!

Stash busting!

Well I'm kinda kicking myself lol. The past week or so I've been working non stop on an album for my friend who lost her baby, it was difficult and many tears where shed while doing it but at least felt like I was doing something for her iykwim. Was SO worried she wouldn't like it as scrapbooking is such a personal thing but she loved it. I completely forgot to take any photos though so cant share it at the moment *rolls eyes* Doing it did seem to kick start my mojo though so I did some scrapbooking last night. :)
This is a layout of Cameron and Caitlin at a place called Stanwick Lakes near us, there are loads of pools of water and other water play there but they were NOT interested in any of it, lol, think they paddled but that was about it.

Love these little buttons, seem to be using buttons more and more lately which is good as I have plenty of them. Really have to use up a LOT of my stash as in November we get our new couches and will be losing most of my storage :( At the moment the desk is under the stairs and has a large hutch on it with more stuff stacked on top. However when the couches come the desk is being moved to the other end of the room out in the open, so no hutch and no stacking. TBH NO idea where half my stuff is going to go but i LOVE my new couches so will have to make do lol. In the meantime now my kits have ended I'm trying to use up as much as possible.

Lazy day today :) Well I say lazy still have washing, ironing, cleaning and roast dinner to do but really thats lazy to me lol.

Weekend!!!!!

Dont think I've ever been so excited for it to be a weekend before lol but by god its been a long and draining week. Between the funeral, waving Caitlin off to school and taking on more challenging work at Homestart it feels like its lasted a month rather than just a week! Last night I made a nice dinner, bottle of wine, dvds, just relaxed a bit and feel so much better this morning. Do admit breakfast this morning didnt hurt either lol. Fresh pastries with coffee and homemade jam :) Had lost another 2lb this week but think thats going back on lol. Only 5lb away from my target weight though so tbh not too bothered.

Well on a good note for this week Caitlins still loving school. Had a minor setback Thursday morning bless her, when she goes into school she has to hang up her coat in the hall, then go into her class; well she insisted she didnt want me to go in with her so against my better judgement I let her go in alone. Was watching at the window waiting for her to come into the class, and waited, and waited. Go in to look for her and find her red eyed with another teacher, poor lamb had got lost :( She went into class fine after that but I went in with her Friday lol. She wasn't impressed with the fact Cameron got homework and she didnt though.

First day of school

This morning was my baby girls first day at school. :) I was a lot better with her than I was with Cameron (no tears here) but she was just SO excited it kinda rubbed off lol. She woke up this morning with a huge grin on her face, didnt even want breakfast as just wanted to go school! Every second sentence is 'Am I going to school yet?' Hopefully she'll have a great day and be just as excited tomorrow. :)

Look how proud she looks! Well in the assumption I'd be a wreck I planned a busy day lol. Got work this morning, then need shopping, then need to make a quick pizza dinner as Caitlin has dancing tonight too. I've almost finished the craft project I've been working on almost non stop for the past 2 weeks so hopefully going to do a few bits on that too. Better run!

woops, might not end well. lol

Well at the moment I'm currently 'updateing itunes' i am rubbish with this kind of thing, seriously I miss cds. last time I 'updated' it it wiped everything on my phone, so will see how it turns out this time. Just wanted a new album but apprently thats too difficuilt lol.
Well tomorrow is Caitlins first day of school :) Today is a day of prepwork lol, doing ironing, making sure she has everything and her name is in it etc. Im working tomorrow and Thursday then need to go buy paint friday so not much time elsewhere. Shes still excited about it so hopefully wont be too bad, can never predict her though :s
Ohhhh just found this photo, was something I ment to blog over the holidays but as usual time got away from me. I'm a huge Pintrest fan, wasting hours on it while waiting in queues, or watching something boring with the kids. A lot of the things on there though I think are those ideas which are good in theory but in reality never work out. Over the holidays I did do a couple though which worked out well, dirt cake was one of them :)
The name is deciving its not actually with dirt lol, though looking at the picture you can see where it came from.

Its actually layers of crushed oreos and dream whip. You're supposed to use jelly worms on top but we didnt have any so used cherrys lol. Caitlin loved making it as it was really so simple she did most of it herself and I just supervised. Was also really yum and went down great at the bbq we took it to, :)

Saying goodbye

Today was a very difficuilt day. As I mentioned before a friend of mine had her baby girl over the holidays but she unfortuntly passed at only two weeks old. Today we laid her to rest and said our goodbyes.

As sad as it was it was a really beautiful send off. Her big sisters both did a reading at the service which to be honest I was amazed at as both are only young and so brave. The image of her poor daddy carrying such a tiny coffin into the church will stay with me for a while though. There were lots of people there to support them and say goodbye to lacey-mae. We also released balloons, 4 in the shape of flamingos (she was on flamingo ward in hospital) so bet we confused a few people! lol. Hope we gave her some giggles looking down on us :)

Not a happy boy :(

Think poor Cam got a bit of a shock yesterday when he went into his new class bless him, not only has the routine changed but a lot of his friends were in a different class. As a result we had a LOT of tears this morning. :( Felt like the worst mum in the world with him crying 'But I love you Mummy I'll miss you, I just want to go home!' and I'm carrying him into school. I'm sure he'll be fine once he's settled down and made some new friends but was still hard. Speaking of hard, the craft book I'm working on is a difficult subject as got to me a bit last night, so did a very quick happier layout with an old kit. :) I'm a bit iffy about using kits now I'm not getting anymore but when we rearrange the living room in November I'm losing most of my crafting space, so really should use them up lol.
This was a really super simple one but I loved the wood effect overlay so wanted that and the photo to be the main focus. This was a scraplift from Cathys layout in the booklet but hers had a bit more detail than mine :)

I thought this was ideal really as the log the kids are sitting on is the same place my cousins and I used to play when we were younger lol.

Well more housework today :) Not much though which really is amazing me lol. I don't think I realised how much time entertaining two hyper kids took up. Caitlins more laid back and happy to play alone or just watch tv. Saying that will still be much more quiet next week when she starts school too. Think shes more ready for it than I am lol.

And life returns to normal :)

This morning was Camerons first day back and school. :) He LOVED it, no joke he ran into the school, lol, had to follow him and check he got into class ok as he just sprinted off. Must admit I couldn't believe how much I managed to get done with just the one child at home too, Shopping, cleaning, gutting both kids rooms, also took Caitlin to a new dance class tonight which she really enjoyed. Its smaller than the one she went to before so think it will work better for her.
As great as it is being able to get things done again it was a very eventful 6 weeks holiday, admittedly were as many downs as ups but focusing on the good first we went to theme parks, scavenger hunts, out to dinner and cinema loads and went camping for the first time. The kids loved every moment of that, building fires, roasting marshmallows, nature walks, will be doing it again next year for sure.
On the downs a friend of mine lost her baby at two weeks old, :( We knew she was poorly before she was born but had hoped she would be ok. My granddads cancer was also found to have returned but he had an op this morning and seems to be doing well.
I have managed to do some scrapping but can't show much of it. I did do a couple using up scraps I can share though
This was me and Caitlin at Peppa pig world, tried to use lots of photos and scraps on this one lol.

This is mark and Cameron playing computer games. Whenever Caitlin stays at my mums they have a boys night eating junk and playing games and I get banished upstairs (not that i mind, its very relaxing lol)

We've also ordered the new couch for the living room (thanks to my Dad for getting it for us on credit lol) and got some paint and wallpaper too, once Caitlin starts next week thats what I'll be working on. Probably best I keep busy with both my babies starting school!!!