Scary weather!

Well todays weather was crazy! Wasn't too bad this morning, then suddenly went really dark and very loud thunder and lightning started. Poor Scamp was freaking out barking at the window which was made worse when the hail started. It must have been a pretty big storm as a couple of my friends who live in nearby towns had it at the same time. So with all that was very much a PJ day today! As the kids didn't want to go out into the wet, horrible weather I took Scamp for his walk. I quite like doing it on my own as its relaxing walking about listening to my Ipod. This time however got to the end of the street and it died *sigh* So stopped into mums and stole hers, got to the end of her street and hers died! So on I walked in silence, talking to Scamp who looked at me like I was crazy lol.
Crazy behaviour aside todays prompt was 'small' I decided to photograph the small individual embellihsments I've sorted so far. With my very limited space for storage I struggle with the more random embellishments that dont fit into kits so trying to find storage for them all. Not working too well so far as still have a large bag which needs either a new home or using up.

Also took this picture of the small crazy people in my house. This is how Cameron watches TV, and Scamp loves to sit on his back and just look around the room. Strange pair. lol

As trying to sort embellishments isnt working too well I'm trying to use as many as possible so threw together a couple of layouts while the kids watched a film today. This was for the Sketch challenge so I'm all caught up now! :) I haven't done the journaling yet but this photo was taken last year at Haven. At night we would go and watch the entertainment in a little hall. The kids tended to sit on the floor at the front while adults sat at tables further back. This year was the first time that Cailtin wanted to go off with the kids rather than sit with us. This was a nightmare for me as there were times I couldn't spot her in the crowd and while there was nowhere really for her to go it still worried me. She was fine though and I had to let her do it and start letting go a bit.

I took this photo of her from our table, a little pigtailed head among all the big kids *sniff sniff* :(

Chilling :)

Today has been a lovely chilled out day :) Mark has another cold bless him, he can't seem to shake them this year, so he was taking it easy. The house was still tidy from yesterday so aside from the HUGE pile of washing I didn't have much to do so between filling and emptying the machine I set about sorting the craft stash I found yesterday. TBH between that and the stuff I already had I didn't know where to start. I have SO little space to store everything its hard to figure out the best way to do it. I ended up setting it out on the floor and making a number of kits which seemed to work best. Still have a bag of random, half finished bits I need to use or find a home for though lol. After sorting what I could I had a bit of time before pick up so quickly threw this one together.

I seem to have loads of chipboard so glad to have used a few bits here :)
As it was Friday we invited my gran up for dinner. We used to go hers on a Friday but she would run around after the kids which wasn't good for her, so if she comes here its more relaxed and the kids have more toys to play with. I didn't tell the kids so they were thrilled when she was there at pick up time. I snapped this photo quick for todays prompt which was Family :) Cameron had his arm around her but typically removed it just as I took this photo

Had a proud Mummy moment today :) Each Friday the dinner ladies give two children (one from each year) a prize for having the nicest manners and listening skills from the week. Picked up a very excited Cameron who had won from his year Then picked up a very excited Caitlin who had won from hers!

Organised chaos :)

Today was crazy busy but fun. :) This morning I spent cleaning and tidying and while I did I found the box of craft stuff I got for Christmas in the back of the wardrobe. Had forgotten about most of it so had a rummage and put it aside to be sorted through tomorrow. My mojo certainly seems to be back though as managed to quickly do a layout before I had to go out this afternoon.
Told you was a quick one :) Had this embossed paper in my scraps box for ages. Dont remember why I embossed it in the first place but whatever reason I did it for must have changed my mind lol. I haven't done the journalling yet but I've left a space in the bottom corner to write about how Cameron, Granny, Mark and I all love puzzles and problem solving, and one of Camerons fave gifts he got that year for his birthday was a Thomas the tank engine puzzle book Granny bought him.

Today was also coffee with my Mum day :) As usual a quick trip to TKmaxx was needed. ;) After my bargains the other day my friend Jess asked me to get a few bits for her so got some washi tape a couple of packs of pegs. Look forward to seeing what she does with them!

We'd promised the kids we would take them back to kids play with the free voucher, after this weekend events Mum really needed a break so she asked if we could take Mollie too. I was pretty wary about taking 3 kids, one of which wasn't even mine, as I'm panicy enough in those places at the best of times, but wanted to help out and it was pretty quiet last time so we agreed. Worked out pretty well in the end. The kids were really well behaved and it was even more quiet than the last time, though the book I took with me was rubbish so was a pretty boring visit on my part! Ended up reading the social services report from the other day which was interesting as shows the new staff they have in Mollies school seem to be pretty on the ball and very aware of whats going on. Fingers crossed it helps the situation! After nearly 3 hours of play treated the kids to a Mcdonalds then took them home to bed. :) Mum was really grateful so glad I did it. Plus now it looks like she'll be having Mollie for the foreseeable future I'd like for her to be closer to my two. Past events have meant a rift between the cousins and while I can't do much about Evie and Lillie can hopefully improve where Mollie is concerned :) Have nothing big planned for tomorrow except my Granny coming to dinner so might do some more scrapping ;)

Things that make you happy

With everything I woke up feeling pretty down today. By some stroke of luck a friend of mine had a book delivered called 'The little book of happy' or something along those lines. Its a really simple book with simple ideas on how to ift your mood, like doodling, having a junk food day, going shopping for a few small items you want without feeling guilty etc. So I decided to pop into town and see if Tkmaxx had any good storage bargains. They didn't but I did find these :) The pretty flower swirls on the washi worked well with todays prompt which was 'swirl' too, so two birds one stone ;)

Well tonight after dropping Cait off at dancing I've got a meeting at Camerons school about his SATs. I must admit I'm not a huge fan of kids at this age doing exams but not much I can do about it. Personally I'm dreadful at exams. Give me a practical, where I get marks on what I do to show what I've learned and I'm great. Sit me down in front of a sheet of questions and ask me to answer them and I'm lucky I can remember my own name. Cameron is a bit the same. Maths for example he is very gifted at. Will do sums till the cows come home. Ask him to write down his working however he has no clue, 'I just know the answer' is what he says and he just cannot work out how to put down the process he uses to get to it. *sigh* sure he'll be fine. And just think, next year I get to go through all of this again with Caitlin! lol

Ugh

Well today has been a rough day :( But first a catch up, Yesterdays prompt for the photo a day was 'cosy' so I took this photo of Scamp all cosy in his bed :) The green and white jumper used to be mine but it was on the radiator one day and before I knew it he had pulled it off and ripped it. So I let him have it in his bed. Lucky hes so cute ;)

Todays prompt was lying around. I wasn't sure what to do but slipped on the diet a bit tonight and had some chocolates which have been lying around since Christmas. So that counts ;)

Well today wasn't too bad until tonight when my Mum rung me to confirm that my sister was pregnant. Yep the one who can't really take care of the THREE she already has, is having a forth. The dad is apprently the same Dad as the youngest but he doesnt want the baby either and is pushing for a termination. Sister is having none of it though, Ugh that girl just keeps getting worse!!!!!
FX for a better day tomorrow ;)

Monday maddness!!

Well today was hectic lol. We drove the kids to school as we had lots of errands to run, first to Tesco to pick up a parcel I ordered, then Next to return some stuff my Mum bought, The Range for puppy pads and thats where it went wrong. Got in the car, drove to Asda and then the car wouldnt lock. It locked fine if I pressed the button in the car so figured it was the key. Drove back to Halfords, which was right next to The range and got a new battery, still wouldnt work, tried another one, nope. At this point the guy in Halfords shrugged and said nothing more he could do and walked off. Which surprised me as every other time I've been there the staff couldnt do enough for me, but suppose theres always one. Anyway I decided at this point to try the method known around the world when you need to find out something, I googled it. :) Turned out the key needed recoding to the car which was easily done, so followed the instructions and yey! locked car :) So off to Asda for a big fortnightly shop. Ended up spending £125 which was more than I intended but thats us fully stocked up now. Always feel better when the cupboards are full. Think its because when I was little money was tight, my sister and I never went without, Mum would never have let us, but I was aware Mum did so we could eat which always worried me. Anyway after unpacking all the shopping and tidying up from the morning I had time to down a quick cup of tea before taking Mark to his doctors appointment at 3, then going to get the kids. Whew! Poor Marks wiped out now so hes had his dinner and off to bed while the kids watch a bit of TV before their bedtime. :)
Well with everyone quiet and calm might as well show the other layouts I did. I love this photo of Mark. :) We went to a place called the blue lagoon in Olu denez in turkey. It was a smallish cove and the water was so warm it was like bath water. It was great as unless you went right to the back it wasn't deep at all so we could let the kids run wild. We had visited a market that morning and bought them some water guns so they had a brilliant time :) Marks not the best in water, he can't swim and panics if hes in too deep so was ideal for him too. love this photo as was such a peaceful day.

This is another from Turkey. We went on a kiddie cruise where the adults sunbathed on the top deck while inside the boat there was a kids club to keep them entertained. While we were at a swimming stop the kids suddenly came sprinting upstairs telling us they needed to hide as they were playing hide and seek....on a boat.....in the middle of nowhere......fair enough. lol.

I seem to be scrapping more now it's upstairs. Since we got Scamp obviously I can't leave it on the rug anymore and while I use the desk sometimes Mark sits there most of the time as its better for his back so I can't leave anything there either. Bedroom however nobody ever goes in so nobody cares how much craft stuff I leave lying about lol.

Clear, cold and bright

I love days like today. Was freezing cold outside but the sky was clear and blue and there wasn't too much of a wind. We were planning to take the ids to east carlton park but as usual it didn't go to plan! The kids decided to get out the huge amount of Hamma beads Caitlin got for Christmas and were so engrosed at making things with those that they didn't want to go out at all. Left them to it which gave me a chance to sort out yet more washing then decided to make the most of the weather and drag them over to the park. Turned out to be a lovely afternoon :) My dad and Mollie came out with Poppy so the pups ran around together and I bumped into some old friends who I hadn't seen in ages. Was lovely catching up while the kids played :) Stayed until 3 when we had to go as we still had homework/dinner/baths to do. Stopped off at the libary on the way who were selling off some books for 25p and got a couple for the kids. They love their books and I'm happy to encorage it :) Went a bit wrong though as Caitlin was so busy looking at hers she missed a curb coming up and went flying :( Poor baby, she is so graceful when dancing and so clumsy the rest of the time! Scamp walked right next to her the rest of the way home, hes so protective of them when we're out. If they go off a head hes running off after them straining at his lead to catch up.
Well we got home and warmed up with a hot drink and as soon as the kids had finished their dinner and homework they were back upstairs making things with the beads. Mark was tired out from the walk so he went to bed and I cuddled up with a sleepy Scamp and the book I got for myself. Time went on and it was so peaceful I decided to be a bad Mummy and let them go without a bath, one night wont kill them ;)
Well todays prompt was favourite thing to wear; this was supposed to be a photo of me in Marks dressing gown. I do have my own but his is bigger and comfier than mine I stole it so much he asked for a new one for Christmas so he could wear one too lol. When taking the photo however my crazy kids decided to jump on me. Both are wearing their fave things, their onesies so thought I'd include them too :)

Managed to find my alphas so here are two of the layouts I did the other day :) This is a double layout of photos from the kids birthday party 2 years ago, well nearly 3 now! Caitlin is wearing a mask to play pin the tail on the donkey. All the kids did really well which surprised us until they all admitted they could see! Sneaky little beggers lol.

I loved this cake I got them. The party was a simple thing with only family so I splashed out on the gifts and cake. Got this made just for them with the sugarpaste figures of what they loved at the time. Dora, Peppa and Timmy for Caitlin, Thomas, Percy and Lightning Mcqueen for Cameron. The bottom was chocolate and top vanilla and strawberry. Was nicer than our wedding cake lol.

Mini bit of mojo back :)

This morning Mum took Caitlin to Kids play and Cameron was happily building things on Minecraft so I decided to spend some time working on layouts. Todays prompt was 'today' so this is how my little desk looked today :)

Need to find some numbers and some blue alphas for the titles but managed to finish 3 layouts before Caitlin got home, then was dinner and bedtime before I knew it! Feels like today has sped by!

Feels weird Friday

Todays prompt was 'inspiration' so I knew exactly what photo I wanted to take. I won't bore you all with the story of Marks illness and the kids births and all that but simply put the fact that my family is even here with me today is an inspiration that miracles do happen.

Yes Mark is in a onesie ;) At the start of winter 2012 I offered to buy him one as he often moans he's cold, 'No way I will NEVER wear one of those!!' was the shocked and very indignant answer I got. Fast forward to January 2013 where there was a foot of snow everywhere 'Do you think I could get a onesie next time we go shopping?' Um NO! They're sold out EVERYWHERE! Men, *sigh* So this year I didn't even ask. As soon as they were in the shops I bought him a wolf one, then in the Next midseason sale I bought him this one which was supposed to be £40 but reduced to £17. I almost passed out when I saw the price, £40 for a onesie! Its nuts! But it is very thick and warm and does the job great. Wouldn't have paid £40 but was well worth the £17 I did pay :) Can't get him out of the things now :)
Anyway off onesies lol. Today has been a very productive day :) Our house is tiny, seriously tiny, and everyones hobbies seem to take up a LOT of space! As a result I'm often trying to spring clean, or rearrange things to make more space. In fact back in a while ago I got into a routine where once a week I would pick a room and GUT it. Get rid of anything not needed, move anything not used in a while and give it a really good deep clean. With Christmas and everything as much as I've tried to stay on top of it all but things end up getting shoved away until later. So today I decided to tackle the kitchen and the outhouse. Well we call it an outhouse, no idea why as thats usually the name for an outdoor toilet and its really big cupboard/tiny room we keep the freezer, coats and some shelves in. But my Mum always called our room like that an outhouse so thats what I call mine lol. Took the whole day to clean out the cupboards, get rid of some herbs that went out of date a LONG time ago and clean the oven/microwave etc. Looks so much better and more organised now though so happy with it :) Might do the kids rooms next week!
Tonight Cameron started Beavers and he loved it :) The people running it still didn't get back to me so we just took him down there on the off chance they would let him start tonight and they did. There were loads of kids there and he knew most of them so he ran off as soon as we were in the door. He loved it and wants to go back next week. :) More time I'll be spending sitting in the car then, roll on summer! It's been a good night all round for Cameron because as well as Beavers, Caitlin is sleeping over at my Mums so he gets a boys night with Mark. Translation, Cameron plays computer games and they both eat junk food. Feels really quiet without Caitlin in the house but think I'll curl up in bed with my kindle and enjoy the peace :)

My fun and kids fun

Todays prompt was 'fun', which worked out great as I took the kids to Kids play after school as a treat. :) Its usually my idea of hell as its HUGE with lots of areas where I can't see the kids. Its usually super busy so lots of screaming, crying and general madness going on. As it was after school however it was empty! I think there were 30 kids there tops and that was only because there was a birthday party going on. As it was so quiet I felt comforatable letting the kids run off and play while I relaxed with my kindle and a cup of coffee. Much more my idea of fun :)

The crazy children in the background spinning on the swing are mine in case you were wondering lol. It was actually a really nice night :) As we had bought the tickets for half price online, and with their January offer we get to come back again for free next week I didn't mind splashing out a little and bought them dinner there. I slipped on the diet a bit and had the leftover chips but it was worth it! By the time we got home it was pretty much bedtime so a quick wash and kids were fast asleep. Time for me to finish my book :)

Boring Wednesday

Todays prompt for the photo of a day was 'drink' so I took a photo of my coffee cup resting in my cars drink holder.

I suspect I will be seeing a lot more of this as Caitlin now does Rainbows on Tuesday, dancing Wednesday and Cameron has beavers on Friday so I spend a lot of my time sitting in a cold car waiting for groups to finish! It's not too bad in summer as I can take a book and chill out but obviously with it being pitch black and FREEZING its not quite so relaxing. Worth it though as the Caitlin loves her groups and sure Cameron will love beavers when he starts :)
Honestly not done much at all so super short post today lol

Selfish

Today has been an odd day, at my weigh in last night I lost 7lb, yey!!!! Not bad for my first week ;) mum and I agreed when we started we'd do something nice each time we lost half a stone so as we also had a 50% off voucher we went to beefeater for lunch. It was nice to do something different and sit and have a chat for a while. I took a picture of my lunch (burger with onion rings, bbq sauce and spicy chips) for the photo prompt 'ordinary' as I really wish this was my ordinary lunch!

But like I said its been an odd day, really nice morning, not so nice afternoon but I'll choose to ignor it. In fact tonight I was thinking, a lot of my friends are doing a 'word for a year' thing where they pick a word and live their life by that word for 2014, such as 'resolve' or 'finish'. Well I've decided to pick 'selfish'. Ok so it sounds weird but last year I was stressed pretty much 99% of the time, and a lot of that I recognise as pressure I put on myself. If I have spare time during the day i feel guilty sitting down with a cup of tea and relaxing because I feel like I should be doing something productive for the kids or Mark. I'm not saying I'm a martyr, obviously not, but if I did something for me, JUST for me I would feel guilty as hell about it afterwards. Last year was a perfect example, I got £100 for my birthday, and what did I spend it on, Christmas gifts for the kids because I felt bad buying things for myself. Even with scrapbooking I justify that because its something they will hopefully treasure when they are older, particualy with Marks health being what it is. Well this year I'm going to give myself a break and try and not feel guilty so often. Yesterday was a great example, I had an hour before I picked the kids up from school, dinner was in the slow cooker, Mark was cuddled up on the couch watching tv with Scamp, the house was pretty much tidy and all I needed to finish was to scrub Caitlin rug from her room and hoover up. But I wanted to finish a layout I was working on the night before. So I did. I sat down with a cup of tea, watched a bit of TV and finished the layout. And I loved it :) I really enjoyed just doing something random because I felt like it. When I picked the kids up I was in a better mood than if I had rushed about all day and Caitlin could really care less if her rug was cleaned or not. Ok so most people reading this would think 'So what you sat down for a bit' but to me it was a big deal. Usually any time for me is after the kids are in bed, everyone is fed, washed, cleaning done, prep for following day done and everyone else is sorted then if I'm awake enough I get some time, during which I usually still feel guilty if I haven't used enough scraps, done an old photo which needs doing etc etc. With everything in the family, plus the kids and Marks needs being so much greater than mine I do lose myself a bit so I'm going to try and get that back and hopefully be less stressed this year :) With that in mind this is where I will be tonight. After I've picked kids up, done dinner, took Caitlin rainbows, Cameron to get his hair cut, done the shoppng, baths, bed routine of course ;)

Bag photo :)

I don't know about you guys but in our house I think more gets done in the first couple of hours in the day than the rest of the day altogether lol. This morning even more so as for some reason the alarm didn't go off so we slept in. Between 7:30 and 8:45 the kids were up, washed, dressed, fed, dog fed, brushed, dressed, ironing done, washing collected and on, dry washing collected and dumped in bedroom, dishes done, forms filled out, dog walked and kids dropped off at school. Whew!
Not much to do today, Marks still in bed and as he has a doctors appointment this afternoon he has to go to I'm just leaving him to it. Kids are going to my grans for dinner which they are very excited about :) Will be hard for me though as Grans house is always full of yummy treats and leftovers and I have my first weigh in tonight so must resist!!!! Have managed to stick to the diet all week though so fingers crossed for a decent loss. :) With it being my first week I'm hoping to lose at least 3lb, haven't weighed myself at home as if I do and I've lost 3lb, then go there and their scales say I've only lost 1 or 2 I won't go back, so trying to resist!
Todays prompt was 'bag' so I picked Caitlin's craft tote she got from Santa :) She was so pleased to get a big girl craft bag and spent ages putting all her new craft bits into it :)

Cursed

On Monday this week I told the kids I would take them to Kids play the next day as a treat. Caitlin then spent all of Monday night throwing up. Yesterday I told the kids I would take them Kids play today and Cameron was up all night being sick. Decided kids play is cursed, really wish I hadn't booked their birthday party there now!
He seemed a lot better today though so hopefully thats it out of his system. Was going to take him for a walk with Scamp to get him out but when I mentioned it he burst into tears and he didn't know why so decided against that idea! Mark was having a good day so took Caitlin and Scamp round the block to give me a chance to clean the floors which seriously needed it. Did give him some money to pick up some chips on the way home but that was shut so that was another idea squashed! Safe to say today hasn't quite gone to plan! All over now though, kids bathed and ready for bed and hopefully I'll soon be settling down to scrap and watch TV :)
Todays prompt for photo was Up, so thought I'd use the new shelves we just put up in Camerons room. He got so many skylanders got Christmas we didn't know where to put them all. His door storage was full and didnt take giant ones anyway so I bought some plain ones from Wilkinsons and painted them red. Look quite nice I think :)

Altered candle holder :)

At the start of 2013 I took part in a PIF on facebook. My friend Lesley made me a beautiful chocolate bouquet so I wanted ot make something special in return. With that in mind, way back in February I bought a candle holder with Next with the idea to alter it. I forgot to take a picture before I started but it was red with a wire handle and plastic 'windows' in the side.
Very similar to this but heart shaped windows.

I started by taking off the handle and sanding down the sides and panting them white. I did ask Lesley what colour her craft room was but the photo she sent me to was of her desk so couldn't really tell wall colour from that lol. Wanted to keep it a secret so thought white was a safe bet. Now I'm ashamed to say that I painted it back in April time, then put it away to finish later and well, didn't lol. I'd never altered anything before and the stuff Lesley does was so good, and the gifts other were making her were SO good I was really intimidated! I put it out of my mind until December when I thought I'd better move my butt as was supposed to be a 2013 swap not 2014! SO with renewed vigor I started decorating it. Still wasn't sure of colours so picked some photos from her facebook page to give me some ideas. I loved this one of her daughter Imogen so decided to use teal and cream to go with it.

Photos picked I got started :) I had everything I needed to hand except a thin teal ribbon I wanted for the bottom, and some teal buttons for another side I was planning. Was a good excuse to put in a Stampin up order with a friend, and there again things hit a standstill lol. Christmas happened and nothing got done until my order arrived a couple of weeks ago with my final bits so I put the finishing touches on it and sent it off, crossing my fingers she would like it.

I love how Lesley and her husband Nick seem to be looking around the corner on this side......

over to Imogen on this side :)

Was really nervous sending it but Lesley seemed to love it so was very pleased with myself lol. Not bad for my first altered item!
Well last night I built the new furniture for the bedroom. Built one bedside cabinet, opened the other and suddenly thought 'hey that was a bit bigger than I expected' I checked and the measurements were WAY off what the website said! Was almost 20cm wider! No way could I fit two in so I've put one on Marks side and Ive got a small set of drawers on mine. Will have to return the other cabinet which is annoying but £50 back into my bank I guess! Pleased with how it looks though :) Just need a new bed and carpet now lol.
Todays photo prompt was 'carry' which I forgot all about until I logged onto facebook tonight. Wasn't sure what to do until a very poorly boy came downstairs, no doubt from the germs his poorly sister carried to him the other day. A bit of a stretch but there you go ;)

Sketchy scrappers

To help with our scrapping mojo my friend Jess started a group on Facebook ages ago called the sketchy scrappers. Each month someone posts a sketch we all do a layout based on. November was my turn to post a sketch and I picked this one.

As I was the one to post the sketch its really bad that I've actually only done the layout now lol.
Title should say 'not the best meal' but I cant find my tiny letters so it doesnt yet lol. When we were in Turkey we visited a oriental resturant on site. It was dreadful! The chef was screaming at his staff, the starters took ages and Caitlin was really poorly after we think an overdose of sun. I left after the starters and took Caitlin back to the room for a nap. 20 minutes later everyone else came back saying they had given up waiting for their mains. After a nap Caitlin seemed much better so we all hit the buffet :)

Todays photo prompt was 'Look out your window' This is the view outside out livingroom window. How depressing! Cost us a fortune to get the grass laid but every time it rains it turns into a swamp and the grass dies. We've put down countless amounts of grass seed, only to have it grow, look nice then die again. This year we've decided to bite the bullet and get that fake grass instead.

Todays blood test went ok. Didnt take as long as we thought so that was good. Still no luck on getting someone from the beavers group to phone us back but on a good note my bedroom furniture came :) We did order some from Very but they customer service is dreadful! So canceled that and ordered from Argos instead. :) Looking forward to putting that up and having a nice bedroom again :)

Doctors

Well today we had a doctors appointment for Mark. He's been having really bad headaches for a while now and did take him before and his blood pressure was high so better safe than sorry. This time round the dr suggested an eye test and a CT scan just to be safe. First though we need a blood test to check his kidneys work ok as they put some funny dye through them. He got a letter form his Birmingham dr the other day and one from his Kettering dr so thats now 3 blood tests in all he needs tomorrow. Think he might be a bit woozy after lol.
Todays photo promt was Face. I wasnt sure what I wanted to do with this one as someone face seemed a bit easy. Then someone else did a clock and it made me think of this one :)

We bought this clock in Turkey as it had a pretty face and matched my livingroom. a while ago it decided to start running backwards and now flits between running backwards and forwards so never tells the right time. I would get rid of it but its still pretty so just leave it there
Not done much else so thought I'd share more of the layouts I did the other night :) Love these photos of kids at Turkey, shows their personality differences anyway! You couldn't get Caitlin out of the pool she loved it, while Cameron would play for 5 minutes, then return to the shade to either eat, play his ds or take a nap.

Super simple one using up some scraps and an old half finished sheet of stickers. When we were at great yarmouth a while ago the girls dug a big hole in the ground, which obviously the only thing to do after that was to bury Cameron in it ;)

So tomorrow morning will be full of needles, shopping and trying to find out how Cameorn can join his local Beavers group as he keeps asking but nobody is ringing us back!

WOYWW

Well kids are back at school today :) Was a bit worried Caitlin wouldn't make it but touch wood since her really bad night the other night she's been back to normal :) So back to normality around here!
As it's Wednesday I thought I'd start joining in with Whats on your workdesk Wednesday. I've been doign it on and off for a while but never linked up with everyone else so thought I'd give that a go this year :) So if you feel like joining in too head over to Julias and add yours!
So whats on my workdesk this morning? A dog. Yes you read right lol. The prompt for todays photo a day is white, and I wanted to get a picture of the little white beard Scamp has on his chin so was sitting him here to take a picture. He was far more interested in what else was on the desk than the camera though.

Managed to get a photo in the end :)

On a craftier note this was what was on my desk last night. My friend Jess gave me a sketch a while ago (sorry!) to do a layout form and finally managed to get one done :) The journaling reads:
'While staying at a Holiday inn on the way back from Peppa pig world, you adopted the desk and you even made us call you big man!' I still have no idea where that came from lol.

Well my big man certainly is getting big with one more tooth gone :) Was a bit of a shock though, he came over to me and said his tooth hurt so I checked and it was a bit wobbly. Cam asked me to pull it out and though I told him it wasn't ready yet he insisted. Thinking it was still in there pretty good I yanked on it to prove a point and it came out! Don't know who was more shocked, me or Cam!

Problem was as it was unexpected I had no change in the house and I wasn't about to give him £10 for a tooth, luckily it was Marks night to go to Erics house so Eric took him to the shops and got me some change. :) UNluckily Mark asked if he could be the one to play tooth fairy when he got home and I said yes. This morning Cameron came in and asked if he could see what the tooth fairy brought:
Me - Sure. *cam runs out the room, I turn to mark* where did you put the tooth by the way?
Mark *eyes widen* - What tooth?
Cameron *runs back in* - Mummy I got a pound AND the tooth fairy left my tooth!
Whats the phrase? 'If you want something done.......... lol.

Clouds, crafting and Cailtin

Well today we were supposed to be going to kids play as a treat before kids go back to school, but last was before Caitlin was up all night being ill :( My heart broke for her as she kept throwing up but as she hadn't eaten it was only bile which obviously was hurting as she did it. :( Scared the life out of me as she was being sick into a bowl and asked why it was yellow. I explained thats what the stuff in her tummy looks like. She carries on and I'm rubbing her back so I can't see and she suddenly asks 'Why is it red now?' OMG in the split second it took for me to have a look everything went through my head, I'd run through ringing my Mum to watch Caitlin, get dressed, get in the car and I was mentally in the hospital in A&E by the time I got a look. Upon investigating though it was only a little bit of blood which I think was because she was heaving so hard. :( Woke me up though and I kept a watch the rest of the night for any more signs it was worse than I thought.
I think thats one of the hardest things about being a Mum. When your kids are sick you have to be all calm and comforting on the outside, while on the inside you're screaming OMG OMG OMG!
Last night seems to have been the worst of it though, we both slept until 12 today and she seems much better. She's asked for food and had some toast with no issues so going to take it easy today and see how she is on a short walk later with Scamp. Think he knows she's poorly as he hasnt left her side past couple of days.

Todays prompt was 'clouds' so everyone was doing the obvious. Wanting to be different I picked this. My Dad got me some Costa glasses and I love how when you add the milk it swirls around like clouds in the glass. Hard to get a picture of it though.

For the past couple of nights Marks been either in bed or lying on the couch, so I've been on the PC watching Netflix and crafting. I don't often get the desk so been making the most of it and managed quite a few layouts, only photographed one so far though lol. This is a really old photo from Caitlins second birthday, I rented a bouncy castle and put on a big party, and all the kids played in my Mums bed. Typical *rolls eyes* I'm trying to use up my scraps as really its the only thing I'm having trouble storing, so expect lots of scrappy looking layouts in the future!

Right before they go back to school......

and Caitlin gets poorly :( I knew something was coming as shes been really clingy and weepy but this morning she came into our bedroom at about 4:30 saying she was hot. Being half asleep I told her to just take her pjs off, then she put her hand on my face. Honestly thought she had been holding onto the radiator and then put it there. Took her temp and was 40 was gave her some neruophen and put her in with us. Today she seems pretty much the same, very high temps, sleeping lots and not wanting to eat. Giving her meds and lots of water and hoping she'll be ok for school on Wednesday :(

Bless them the boys are all for making Caitlin feel better. In this photo she's cuddled up on the couch on the right while Scamp snuggles next to her and Cameron picking some more tv on Netflix for her to watch.

Well todays prompt was 'straght'. I was going to take a picture of the weight watchers books I got tonight when I rejoined (2 stone to lose, wish me luck!) but then Scamp decided to go out and find the biggest, muddies puddle he could and jump in it. So he went STRAIGHT into the bath when he got back!

Hoping for a healthier Caitlin tomorrow as promised to take the kids to a indoor play center and she'll be gutted if she can't go, fingers crossed!

Need more days like today

Today has been a lovely day :) Started off waking up late, again, need to get these kids back into routine soon, but anyway, nice lie in then pancakes for breakfast, followed by a nice long walk with Scamp. It was freezing but we were wrapped up warm and kids had wellies on for all the mud so we didn't mind :) I love it when its cold and clear and you can feel the cold air in your lungs iykwim. As usual we went to my Mums as she wanted me to sort though some toys my Gran had left there to see what could be chucked and what I could sell on. Poppy and Scamp were running about like nutters together in the garden so the kids went out to play with them while the adults had a coffee :)
After everyone was tired out it was hometime to get snuggled into pjs (as we were all muddy and wet) and do some crafting :) Caitlin wanted to use some of the bits Santa brought her while Cameron wanted to play Minecraft. I took a photo to use for today promt 'touch' as each child was creating things with their own unique touch :)

Must say I don't understand that Minecraft game so far, he needs to build a plank before he can smash it and make it into sticks? and he keeps being attacked by cows and zombies. Hes enjoying it though lol.
Comments from Cameron today:
- Daddy cant have my chocolate, im going to hide it in my mouth!
- Look Mummy I have feet!
- I'm glad I have eyes, it makes it easier to see

Coffee, hugs and crafting

The pan for today was to get up early, go return some things to the shops for my Mum then come home to relax and potter about the house. Didnt happen that way. First kids slept in (so we slept in) until 10am, 10am! So early shopping was obviously out, then Mum rung me and said she wanted to get out for a bit could she come too. So after sorting Mark and the kids I ended up picking up Mum about 12 who got into the car and promptly burst into tears :( Poor Mum and Bri have had so much on their plate this year, with my sister and my Granddad and Bri being told he's being made redundant in April it's getting to them both and they ended up rowing. They NEVER row. So took Mum for a coffee in Tescos and we chatted, moaned and complained and she seemed to feel a bit better by the end of it :) As we were in Tescos anyway thought we would have a look about as Mum needed soap powder and I needed cleaning spray. Ended up spending £40 on clearance items between us (Mum and Marks birthday gifts included lol) but no washing powder or cleaning spray, *sigh*
Next stop was Matalan to return some bits Mum bought but changed her mind about, I was good and spent nothing but Mum got some clothes for my Dad. Then The Range, then Next, Poundland, Asda (another £15, still no washing powder but got the spray lol) B&M where I got a mirror for my bathroom and then Morrisons. By this point it was gone 5 and the husbands were ringing us asking where we were, weren't we just going to one shop?! Dont they know us at all?! lol.
So all in all was a much longer, pricier day than I had planned but think my Mum needed it so thats the main thing :)
Todays prompt for photo a day was 'One' I couldn't think of anything for One so did 'First' and this is my first craft parcel of the year. :) I actually ordered this stuff from my friend who does Stampin up before Christmas but with the Christmas rush and everything I forgot about it until yesterday. Perfect timing as I used the buttons to finish off another project I've been working on for months, but can't share it with you yet as its a gift and I know the recipient reads this blog ;)

Comments from Cameron today:
- Daddy cant have my chocolate, im going to hide it in my mouth!
- Look Mummy I have feet!
- I'm glad I have eyes, it makes it easier to see

Ice

Today the prompt was 'Ice' I really struggled with this as its actually quite nice out, so decided to photograph my new washi tape with all its icy colours and themes :)

Well today Mark was supposed to be going to a hospital appointment but has woke up with another headache :( told him as soon as kids go back on Wednesday hes getting an appointment. They're usually due to a build up of his meds but they used to be once or twice a month and usually were when he has over excerted himself or something, now they're at least once a week and just seem to be random, do admit it worries me but then everything with Marks health does.
So with him in bed will be a more sedate day again today. kids are still working their way through their Christmas gifts and I have this pile to sort out lol. While I promised myself I wouldnt get any new photos developed until I had scrapped all my other ones I got an email last week offering 50% off at Snapfish. Couldnt pass that up could I! So got over 400 photos developed for £18 including delivery. Not bad :) This is all my photos since November 2012, quite a bit to do!

Funny comment from Cameron today:
Kids playing upstairs
Caitlin - you're just talking nonsense and I'm leaving!
Cameron - I'm not trying to talk nonsense I'm trying to make you happy!
I feel so bad for my son sometimes lol

The big shop

Yesterday we ran out of milk, on further inspection I found we were pretty much out of bread too so decided it was time for our big monthly shop. With Marks health being unpredicatble on a day to day basis I try and keep us stocked up in case I can't get out but the cupboards have been so full with Christmas and party food that I haven't had room to keep a stockpile. First though I had to ring Npower to get the energy onto a new tariff as ours ends at the end of the month. No joke it took 4 hours of going back and forth as everyone we spoke to gave a different price, it was nuts! I always seem to get the dreadful customer service. Felt dreadful as kids kept asking if we could go to the park but had to be done. Finally got it sorted, though it's gone up an extra £30 a month *sigh* so we canceled the movie channels to even it all out :( Onto the next boring part of the day. Kids were NOT happy at having to go shopping but oh well life is hard lol. Made a list and went round with my fingers crossed it would come in under or on budget as like most other people January is very much about paying off December around here! Managed to get it all done and a couple of quid under budget so yey :)
As the kids had had such a rubbish day we decided to take Scamp on a walk to the park. Kids donned their wellies, bundled Scamp into his coat and off we went. It was the best bit of the day :) Scamps starting to love his walks now and goes mad when he sees his lead :) Still loves sniffing at everything so takes a lot longer but its much more fun than when we had to drag him. By the time we got to the park it was pitch black so we went to my Mums instead. It was the first time Poppy and Scamp met and omg it was funny, Poppy is about twice the size of Scamp but she was terrified! Scamp seems to have great instincts when it comes to humans but NONE when it comes to animals and insists on trying to be friends even when its clear they dont want to. Poor Poppy was hiding under the table while Scamp was trying to get to her, tag wagging like mad. After a little while though she came out and they started sniffing each other and running around each other :) Made us laugh as Scamp went near Poppys bed and Poppy ran over and lay down in it, Mum says its the first time shes ever been in it lol. Puppys are just like kids in SO many ways I think ;)
While the pups were playing Mollie decided to put make-up on Caitlin which was great for todays 'photo a day' prompt which was colourful. You can't see it in the picture very well but she has purple eyes and brown eyeliner on too.

Too me ages to get off lol.

Happy new year!

Happy new year! To be honest I'm really not a new year person but happy new year anyway lol. I always think January is depressing after the big build up of Christmas and all the lights and gifts goes into horrible weather, being skint (my own fault I know) and nothing big to look forward to. This year more than most as my dad is losing his job soon, my Grans birthday is end of this month (first without Granddad) Mark has a big check up coming in a couple weeks and his benifits are being reassesed too which always scares me with the state of this country. But oh well it's not all bad :) We're not going on holiday this year as we agreed we can't afford it, but we're hopefully going to take the kids on a few day trips to London and other places, plus hopefully doing something nice for my 30th in July, preferably getting VERY drunk!

So onto new years resolutions!
1 - Join in with the 'photo a day' challenge on Facebook. Is exactly what it sounds like lol. Every day theres a promt on what to take a picture of and you can post it onto the group for everyone else to see. Todays promt was 'hope' so I picked this book as I hope to do more reading this year :)
2 - Read more
3 - Finish the cross stitch I've been working on for 6 years
4 - Get up to date with photo scrapping
5 - Go to Harry potter in London
6 - Eat at one of Jamies resturants
7 - Go for more picnics and walks
8 - Lose weight! (come on its got to be in there lol)
9 - Try a new recipe each week
10 - Be in more photos. I did this last year and I think I was in more than usual (not hard to me more than none lol) but no spur of the moment ones iykwim. Its hard as I'm the one with the camera but goign to encorage Mark to take more with his phone :)
Wish me luck!