Monday 27 October 2014

hApPy bIrThDaY Me

 Yes, it is my birthday today. I awoke this morning with the sound of rapid fire feet running along the landing, our bedroom door swung open and Lj launched into the 'Happy Birthday to you' song! M and MJ already beside me responded with 'Oh yes' as the realisation dawned on them!


Lj has spent the morning in full party planning mode, creating a number of cards and insisting that we have banners, birthday cake and pass the parcel. I have just taken the pumpkin cake out of the oven so that just needs to cool and be iced with cream cheese frosting. The pass the parcel has been wrapped and the birthday bunting has been hung. Thankfully we have some friends coming over to play so it won't be such a lonely affair with just three of us.

Lj has just come running inside from playing with her friends on the street to say that we need some decorations around the front door...I better get to it, my coffee has gone cold anyway...this is turning out to be a busy birthday!

Sunday 26 October 2014

Home Sweet Home

After a week of sleeping in 4 different beds, travelling south then to north and back to centre, emotional highs and lows we are back home. Lj made me stop and consider it when she produced her drawing this morning which is the view (with artistic license) from our dinning room window.

  I will fill you in on the detail...as with modern Art, it helps to know what you are looking at! The black parallel lines are the side edges, or reveals of the window. Either side are pumpkins sitting on the window cill. The purple and green is our Roman blind (which is actually yellow!) and through the window are our neighbours and a tree between them...you know what...I think it would be easier to compare and contrast with a photo of the view!



 The beginning of our week is well reflected in this picture by Lj. M and I had a night together in London. We drank alot of coffee and ate out alot but also squeezed in some shopping (trainers for me, whiskey for M), Ronnie Scott's Jazz club, National Portrait Gallery and the Ballet at the Royal Opera House. It is always great to spend some quality time together. Meanwhile the kids were being looked after by M's parents.

Following our trip to London we headed up to Birmingham to be with family as we said our final farewells to M's Grandfather. It was a bitter sweet time as we remembered Ron's life, his dedication to his family and his love of community. It was sweet in that we got to spend time with M's extended family who we don't get to see so often.

Finally on Friday we stopped off at Cadbury World for a look around and left stocked up on chocolate!

Now we are having a quiet weekend before we start the travelling all over again on Wednesday!

Wednesday 15 October 2014

Back to blogging!

 Half term is almost upon us and I haven't been on my blog since before the new school year started...a whole 6 weeks or so ago. I have embarked on a new life stage, that of having both kids at full time school! A number of people have commented that they had never seen me without children before...that was a bizarre but true thought. We moved to this town when MJ was only 4 months and so in the 6.5 yrs that we have been here I haven't had a weekday without children around. I was looking forward to the new stage and have enjoyed it so far...apart from feeling a little broody for a few weeks when my little niece was just born.

Lj is loving school and seems to believe that she is next in command to the teacher...in fact I believe she would willing teach the class if ever her teacher was absent. Her new career aspiration is of course to be a teacher and she has turned her tiny bedroom into a classroom, kitted out with clock, behaviour rocket, story time and lots of pupils (aka soft toys).

MJ has taken on the responsibility of watching out for Lj at school and giving her the 'low down' on how things work. He loves to tell me where he saw her and what she has been doing. He is a proud big brother indeed.

As the weather has remained mild the kids continue to play outside on the street with their neighbours each evening. What a joy it is to watch as they play together, kicking football, riding their bikes, setting up shop and playing all manner of games. Tonight I wish I had taken a photo of them running around in the rain with their umbrellas as the sun was going down.

And me...I have been mixing work and pleasure with golf lessons, running, Architecture and the usual...


Present making

 Kids birthday parties

 Crochet

 Teaching Women to sew

and tonight I finished another Architecture sketch.