Our weekend #4

If I had to describe this past weekend in one word it would probably be "blah". Not because the weekend was blah, far from it, it was just how I felt. You see I hadn't been feeling well since Wednesday afternoon. It was one of those viruses you don't see coming, one minute you are absolutely fine and then BANG...horrible feverish cold. By Friday it had well and truly got hold of me and I was sent home early from work. Normally I would treasure these extra few hours of weekend and get a head start on chores and washing, but not this time. I basically spent the rest of the day curled up under a blanket.
Normally I'm the first one awake on Saturday mornings, but when I came down Dylan was already up and had made himself breakfast and a drink. He's such a good boy. Simon had to go to work so it was just me and the kids for the day. I had a long list of chores in my head but not the energy to match. By late morning I actually did manage to polish and tidy up a little bit. Emily did crafts for most of the day, she watched a video on you tube where someone made a house for their littlest pet shop toys and she wanted to make on of her own. We rummaged around a bit and found a decent sized cardboard box and some craft bits. 

 She did quite a good job so far I think.  Dylan played wiiU in his room, and every now and then he came down to check if I was OK. He kept asking me if I needed a drink or something to eat and I felt really cared for. I had made myself comfortable on the sofa with a blanket and a book, it was all I had energy for.

Emily was actually quite excited all day because she had a sleepover to go to. We packed her bag with everything she needed and wanted to take and when Simon got back from work he surprised her with some cute new pyjamas.  She was one happy girl.

 When evening came I started feeling better and I thought I'd actually turned a corner. I hadn't.  Sunday I felt even worse and on top of that I'd lost my voice!  My husband joked it was going to be a quiet day. Dylan got up early again, he'd made plans with a few friends to for a bug out.  Basically they spend the day outside in the woods behind his friends house doing camping and scouting and they always have a great time.  We picked Emily up by lunchtime and found out the girls only fell asleep around two in the morning! Naturally she was a bit tired in the afternoon, early bedtime it will be. The afternoon has been quiet.  We watched a movie and ate cookies.  I really didn't have the energy for anything more. Right now there's a chicken in the oven and I really need to start prepping the vegetables and potatoes.  Dylan is back home and all played out. Emily is getting more inspiration for her littlest pet shop house by watching another video.  She should really do her homework instead! Simon is watching some super hero movie. the cat is asleep....I feel I should be too.

Our weekend #2

I cannot believe it's already Monday. This weekend has just flown by. I'm sure I just left work on Friday, blinked, and now I'm writing this! Anyway... Saturday started out with croissants. We love croissants in our family, especially Emily, it's her favorite breakfast. I had mine with butter and jam...and boy was it good.  

  We had our breakfast while watching cartoons, which seems to be the norm around here on the weekend. I could have sat there all morning but unfortunately I had quite a few chores to do and errands to run. We all got ready quite quickly and even Simon commented when we were in the car at how early we were all out for a Saturday. I really wanted to go the the Range to buy a new diary, I can't believe we're nearly half way through January and I still haven't got one. I didn't quite find what I was looking for but we did pick up a few other bits and pieces and Dylan and Emily had one of those pick and mix sweets cups which they love. We also found Minion Tic Tacs!

We also hit the supermarket and as we were in the neighborhood we decided to pop around Simon's sister house and have lunch together. It was lovely to have a catch up and Emily loves playing with their dog Rocky. She kept putting a blanket on him and pretended he was wearing a cape, it was really funny the watch. They also had a little tug of war with one of his toys.  

  Their living room was so cosy with that little log burner, It made ours feel quite cool when we got back home. We gave Milo a little toy we'd picked up earlier in the day and he became quite obsessed with it, it must be all the catnip inside of it. He's such a crazy cat.  

The rest of the day was spend pottering around the house, you know, polishing, hoovering, folding clothes away, preparing dinner and we are all happy just doing our little things. Simon was trying to fix something on the computer, Dylan was playing on the Wii U and Emily had made a whole set up in her room and was playing an adventure with her Littlest Pet Shop animals.
The evening came quick and the kids asked for movie night so we watched Inside Out. While we were watching it Emily got out her crayons and drew all the characters but as cats, she "catified" them as she calls it! Her drawing is really brilliant.
Sunday morning was a lazy one and no of us was in the mood to move or do anything for a long time. We had chocolate bread for breakfast and it was just divine. That kind of breakfast is right up my street! Must be the Belgian in me.

This is a shop bought one (Aldi in case you were wondering), but I have a recipe ready that I might just try out one of these following weekends. 
We did eventually get up from the sofa and Simon took Emily swimming while Dylan and I went to into town. I had a gift voucher to spend and I knew just what to get with it.  

  I have been a Soap & Glory fan for quite some time now and only just used up all my bit and pieces from last years box. Bath time will be amazing once again. We still had some time left before swimming was over so we went into Starbucks and it was just so lovely to have Dylan all to myself. He told me all about a game he'd been playing and all the rules and he was so passionate about it. He really is growing up before my eyes. He's such a sweet boy as well and when we went to his parents evening a few months ago his teachers were full of praise and it made my heart swell with pride.   

   Our afternoon was very quiet. Nothing beats a lazy Sunday afternoon really. We watched a movie, the kids played and Simon fell asleep and had quite a long nap. The most eventful thing that happened was roast dinner. It was a good one too.  Even if I did burn the Yorkshire puddings ever so slightly!  

Our weekend #1

 

Oh hi there, remember me...the one who's neglected this blog for over a year? Seems I found my way back. I'll mainly be documenting our weekends for now. I did after all start this blog, so many years ago, as a way of holding on to family moments and memories and I can just image laughing and reminiscing with the kids in years to come when we look back at moments long forgotten, and although these weekend posts might not mean much to you, they mean the world to me.   Saturday started of slow. I really do like when the kids are on school holidays because the mornings are so uncomplicated. No rushed breakfasts, no looking for misplaced homework, no nagging because they are getting dressed too slowly, no nothing. This Saturday we all seemed to take even more advantage of that, knowing the madness would start again on Monday. I was awake quite early, I say early but I really do consider 7.30 a lie in. I made myself a cup of coffee and enjoyed the quiet for a bit. Slowly but surely my little gang came down. Emily first and she immediately claimed the warm snuggly blanket and Dylan came down shortly after. The morning consisted of Spongebob cartoons and snuggles.  

   At around 9 Simon came down. He'd just received a message from his dad inviting us all out for an early birthday breakfast/brunch for his brother. We were all quite excited and looking forward to a good breakfast instead of toast to be honest! We ended up going to Frankie and Benny's and the food was delicious. Dylan had ordered a breakfast pizza and it was the best thing ever! It was nice for the family to be together again, Simons dad and younger brother travel a lot for their work, and with everybody being so busy over the festive period it was nice to all sit together and catch up on things.

Afterwards we took a quick trip to the shopping center to buy Dylan some new school shoes. It was so busy! I would have loved a walk around but it was way too crowded so off home we went.
As the afternoon went on it just got darker and darker until eventually the heavens opened and it rained for the rest of the weekend!
When we got home I decided to do a bit of a clear out in Emily's room. She's a real bookworm and we are forever buying her new books. She recently got into this book series called Warrior Cats and she's hooked! Good thing Santa brought her a few more. She read her first Warrior cat book back in September and she's now on the third series. Not bad if you consider that each series has SIX books! Anyway, all these new books meant she was running out of space on her bookshelf. She still had so many of her baby and early reader books, and I was taken back in time for a moment, remembering first flicking through them and hearing her read her first words when she was tiny. Sentimental as they might be they had to be packed away....second hand books anyone?! We kept some of her favorites though but her little shelf looks so much better now, and it even has space for my Harry Potter books, which since going to the Harry Potter studio's two weeks ago, she's also crazy about! Bookworm, I told you.  

  After all that sorting it was time for a bit of Trivial Pursuit. Is it just in my family the dad cheats?  It was good fun but Dylan did find the questions quite hard.

Sunday was a quiet one! I did a bit of tidying, sorting out and just pottered about getting things ready for Monday morning. I think Emily was a bit jealous because Dylan has an extra day off school, yay, which means I'm home too on this rainy Monday, double yay! In the afternoon I cleaned out the hamster cage and it's so funny watching her afterwards as she's all confused and trying the figure out where to hide her food this time around. It probably took her 20 minutes, with cheeks stuffed full of food, to decide where to store it all. We also quickly popped around Simon's brother for a cup of tea, some cake and a chat and then home for dinner which was a delicious macaroni ham and cheese. The evening came fast and before we knew it it was time for bed. New work/school week...we are ready for you!

Oh and the cat...all he did this weekend was sleep. Lazy boy!

The weekend

This weekend has been a quiet one, but nevertheless a good one. You see, Simon was admitted to hospital last week with kidney stones and while he's waiting to pass them we didn't venture out too much  Saturday morning we just pottered around the house and I noticed how many little chili peppers we have on our plant, I really should start using them. It was quite sunny during the morning so perfect to spend some time in the garden and read my book. I'm really enjoying "the night circus" and would definitely recommend it. The kids played some games, although this was really Dylan playing on his DS and Emily nearly sitting on him to watch him, much to Dylans annoyance of course! Simon kept himself quiet inside and our cat was more than happy to keep him company. In the afternoon we went to Simon's brother for a BBQ and Emily and her cousins loved playing  ice cream shop in uncle Stuarts garden house. Their ice creams were a pit pricey though, £10 for a single cone! We started our Sunday off with a delicious cooked breakfast and it really must have been delicious since both my kids finished their plates, not too unusual for Dylan but very much so for Emily! Later that day Simon's brother came to our house and we cooked a delicious roast dinner together. In between there was a lot of colouring, playing games and watching movies and Dylan made some lovely drawings with his little cousin. I can't wait to see what this new week brings but I am hoping Simon's kidney stones will pass soon! Have a great week everyone.

A busy weekend

Happy Monday everyone! The kids are back at school and life is back to normal. I have to say, the half term has just flown by. We've been really busy, so busy even that yesterday evening I HAD to go to bed at 9, I just couldn't stay awake any longer. I told my boss this morning I needed a weekend to recover from my weekend (and half term) but he didn't seem convinced enough to let me have two days off, haha.
So last week the kids went on a computer / minecraft course which they both absolutely loved. Emily was crying when she had to come meet us for lunch on the second day. My dad and brother had travelled over from Belgium for the day so we thought it would be fun the pick the kids up during their break to have lunch with us...little miss got very upset she had to leave, such a drama queen! Both her and Dylan then wolfed down their lunch so they could rush back. Never seen two kids so enthusiastic to go and learn!
I'm so glad the weather stayed dry for half term, and not only that...the sun came out as well! No way was I going to let the kids sit inside in front of the TV.
Saturday we went to town to do some quick shopping. I also promised the kids to take them to their favourite play park near the beach. It's a bit of a treat for them if we go there on the cliff lift. They LOVE it!

It takes us straight to the park entrance and then they just run all the way to get to the actual play park.
It's so beautiful out there and some of the views are spectacular.

Emily quickly made some new friends and played pirates while Dylan went straight for the zip wire.

They had so much fun! When they were ready to go back home we took them back the beach way, it's always fun to throw pebbles into the water.

No surprise when I say Dylan got wet feet. He somehow always ends up getting wet when we're on the beach! 
Sunday we met up with family and after we went to the country park. The kids ran straight to the little play park where Dylan dominated the roundabout and Emily the swings. We then continued on for a walk around the lake in search for the ducks.  On of the kids favourite things to do is race sticks down the waterfall. Such a fun game.

The rest of the day was spent at my brother in law's where we had an amazing Sunday roast dinner. Tired we got home, bathed the kids, put them to bed and then fell asleep on the sofa at 8. See, I do need a weekend to recover!

Blue...

Top, cardigan, jeans: Next. Shoes: New look

I have hardly worn this blue top.

I think I bought it about a year and a half ago, wore it once and then

pushed it to the back of my wardrobe.

When we were packing up for the move I was re-acquainted with it and decided

to wear it again as soon as possible, paired with a blue cardigan.

I think the reason I haven't worn it is because it's sleeveless,

and I really don't have the right arms to go sleeveless.

Serious case of bingo wings and general flabbiness if you know what I mean.

Anyway,

So glad I decided to wear this again!

You know what else I'm glad about?

It's Friday....weekend...yay!

We haven't really made plans yet but if the weather stays nice

there will be some walking along the beach, maybe some fossil hunting and perhaps

even a BBQ.

Oh, and cake...there has to be cake.

Have a great weekend my friends!

 

Our weekend in a nutshell

                                                  I can't believe how fast the weekend has gone by.
                                                                 We've had a really good time.

On Saturday Emily started a new dance class. She's been asking for a while now if she can go dancing. One of her friends goes on a Saturday so I asked her mum if we could go with them and check it out. She absolutely loved it and the fact her little friend goes made it even better. They learnt a little routine and at the end they performed it for the mums and dads, nothing big, just a few moves, but she did excellent!

Saturday evening she went to the Rainbows masquerade ball. We dressed her up in her princess dress and she wanted to wear her cat mask.

didn't she look pretty!

She was so excited about dressing up for the ball, and of course

she had an amazing time at the party.

While she was at the ball we had Dylan all to ourselves so we asked

him what he wanted to do.

We all played a game on the Wii together. (no surprise there)

Dylan LOVES the Wii!

After the game we had an amazing dinner made by Simon.

Roasted butternut squash with a red onion relish (yummy!),

salad and roast chicken.

It was sooooo good.

(Simon, just so you know, I will be expecting this EVERY Saturday now!)

Today we took a little excursion to the play park

by the beach.

It was a little cold but the kids were too

busy running around to notice.

We met up with a friend and had a hot chocolate.

It was so nice to be out!

Before going home we went for a walk on the beach and

threw some pebbles in the water.

there were loads of people on the beach, most of them

playing with their kids or dogs, or just sitting

reading a book.

There was a guy on a jet ski doing crazy things

and some windsurfers in the distance.

All in all busy for January!

I invited my friend and her kiddies back to our

house and we made some chocolate chips

cookies that were to die for!

Seriously, I'm talking cookie heaven here!

After that the kids played with their friends and had a

great time....until it was time for them to go.

Emily wasn't happy, let's just keep it at that.

kiddies are now in bed, sound asleep smelling of

soap and watermelon shampoo.

Ready for school in the morning.

Think I might go and kiss their little heads.