birthday parties :-)

This weekend has been full of busy with Shorty's birthday party yesterday and then a trip out to her friends party today.  As of 1.56 pm on Wednesday Shorty is six years old, I'm wondering if she needs a change of name given she's really not short now and Tiny is going to need a promotion at some point, I'm not sure what's smaller that Tiny so I need to give the name thing some thought.

Anyway Shorty's birthday party was just family, my side of the family.  The ex's side came on Wednesday for an hour, I got that out of the way as quickly as I could and then I could get on with having fun with the kids and my family :-)

We had dinner of roast potatoes, fish fingers, vegy fingers, sausages, sprouts, carrots and sweetcorn because they are all Shorty's favourites and then they played out in the yard with the paddling pool and hose pipe.  I don't know why granddad agreed to supervise the waterfight after he got so wet during the one at Tiny's party but it seems he'll do anything to avoid the washing up and he didn't get quite so wet this time :-)

There was a treasure hunt to find party bags and at one point the kids all disappeared to play upstairs leaving the adults time for a rest and a chinwag so a very nice afternoon was had although by the time people went home at about 1030 I was pretty much ready to collapse into bed.  First guests arrived at 1, well actually first guest arrived at 1030am but without her help with the cooking and furniture moving we'd never have had any dinner so I don't count that as party time really, so it was a very long day for a someone who is now very used to being on her own with her children all day every day!

Today we went to Shorty's friends party and I felt really sorry for the guy who was there to 'entertain' the kids and for the birthday girl.  Some of the older kids really needed a good talking to about not ruining the magic at a little girls party :-(

Tiny held her own amongst the big kids and was very pleased to be allowed to go to the party even though it was a big kids party.  lets be honest most kids are big kids when you're only 2 ;-)

So Shorty is another year older and I have no idea where the time has gone but I do know that all three of us are a whole lot happier than we were when she turned five.

today has been amazing, first of many I hope :-)

We've had a stand off all week about tidying the kids bedroom, I'm finally fed up of them making a mess playing in a morning and me then spending my morning tidying up so I told them they had to do it.  Days ticked by and it wasn't done, they even tried to get the ex to do it when he was putting them to bed on Wednesday but his idea of tidy wasn't close to mine so that didn't help them much.

Last night I told them that if they wanted to go out today then when they woke up they needed to tidy up rather than make a mess, I can't say I went to bed all that hopeful but to my surprise when they woke me up this morning at about 7 they proudly declared that they'd tidied their room and to a very great level they had.  Proud mummy moment :-) 

I helped finish the tidying and took the opportunity to change the beds, they love new sheets so that was one reward for the tidying, and then we had a lovely leisurely breakfast.

Over the course of today Shorty wanted to go to visit a farm, Tiny wanted to have a picnic and I wanted to watch the cup final.  For once we achieved all three :-)

The farm was full of strange animals that you don't normally see on a farm, there were alpaca's, a tortoise, snowy owls and reindeer as well as geese, wallabies and some very angry chickens.  The highlight of Tiny's day, although not at the time it happened, was getting her bottom pecked by a chicken!! she hasn't stopped talking about it since.

There were two big play areas, one with a hamster run of tunnels and a windmill to play in and the other with swings and balance beams and a picnic area. 

By 1230 Shorty had been to see animals on the farm and Tiny had had her picnic and I was left to hope and pray they would be good to their word and let me watch the cup final.  I have to say that I didn't really hold out much hope BUT having had an early tea and having been promised supper and cartoons after the match they both sat and cuddled up to watch the match :-)

Tiny missed the goal because she fell asleep but Shorty jumped off the sofa in excitement when the ball went in. I'd been explaining to her all afternoon that Wigan really weren't going to win because Manchester City were so much higher in the league and she was overjoyed to see the little team win. I think that bodes well for a lifetime of supporting my team.

So yes today was an amazing day when all three of us got what we wanted and no one cried (except for when the chicken pecked Tiny of course) :-D

2012

At the start of 2012 I sat down and looked at my life and made some new year's resolutions, they were based on the knowledge I had of myself at that time so they were the general things, lose weight, get a job, take the kids on an adventure, you know the kind of thing.  I am please to say I have achieved almost none of them :-)

Christmas time is here apparently

IT'S ONLY A MONTH UNTIL CHRISTMAS MUM, WE NEED TO WRITE LETTERS!

So that's what I woke up to this morning, Shorty shouted at the top of her voice while Tiny managed 'Time a get up mammy' at almost the same volume.

She is of course right and Christmas is very much on its way so we spent the morning making cards for Santa and writing letters asking him for presents.  Six things was all they were allowed, anything else they will just have to wait and see if Santa has them left over but now I have some idea of what they'd like.

Shorty wrote every word herself while tiny drew a nice picture around what I wrote for her but we had good and rather messy fun :-)

I was made to write a list, because how would Santa know what I would like if I didn't, but apparently its not ok to put Rupert Graves on the list I have to make do with a DVD of something he's in ;-)

HAPPY ONE MONTH UNTIL CHRISTMAS EVERYONE :-)

Hard to do.

This blogging everyday thing is really quite hard to do but it does make you think a bit more about what's going on in your life and that can't really be a bad thing. 

Being a blog that hardly anyone knows exists this is quite an easy place to write anything I want but it would be interesting to know if anyone at all was reading it so please feel free to say hi if you drop by, anon or not everyone welcome :-)

A Funny day

My beautiful short people stayed in bed this morning until 730, which is considered a lie in at the minute so I woke up feeling like I'd actually been to bed :-) 

Granny took them shopping with her, Its strange that going shopping is a treat when Granny takes them and the worst thing in the world when I take them but a couple of hours with no kids and no housework to do because I'm in someone else's house was a great treat.  I spent the time writing and finishing an exchange fic so panic averted for now.

Football is Saturday afternoon's entertainment although it was more annoyance than entertainment today, the match will be remembered long into the season but only because of the most incompetent ref I've ever seen.

Its been a funny day but sleep and a real rest have made it quite a smiley one.

I can't believe I actually went to 'the game is on'

lots behind here about the Q&A and fandom friends

My murderous intentions

So last night I really would have taken any help in finding a way to get away with murder but I've calmed down now and really just think its very sad.

Personal moaning rubbish below do not feel you have to click read more.

To praise or not to praise?

An interesting discussion last night has had me wondering how you possibly bring up children and don’t screw them up somehow. 

Too much time with mum or too little time with mum

Too much independence or too little independence

Too much education or not enough

Too much praise, praise for the wrong things, or not enough praise of any form

Not enough encouragement of interest or so much that you are a ‘helicopter’ parent

The advantage of every day

The real advantage of trying to post every day is that it makes you think about things, I've spent months trying not to think about a lot of different things so its nice, in a way, to be pushed into it. Yesterday's thought was about where I should be living and it got lost in late night football but its kind of important so I'm going to write it down now.

I need to make a home for me, Shorty and Tiny that feels safe for all of us and in which I can actually sleep and I don't think its possible to do that in this house so I need to find a way to move.  The idea of moving house always excites me but the thought of doing it just me and the kids is also quite scary.  I know that I could very easily have thought about it and than stopped thinking about it so I booked some viewings and took myself off on my lonesome to have a look at what there is around. 

I've decided that I'm going to look for something that needs work so that I have something physical to do to make it our house and that I can afford resonably easily so they won't be in the best area or the biggest places but in the end it will be ours which is the important thing.

I've often wondered what makes a house a home and hopefully I am going to find out the secret in the next few months.

look a motorbike

We had a strange day today because Granny and Granddad were ill this morning meaning we had to leave many hours before we normally do, Granddad normally cooks Sunday lunch while we sit around talking and distracting him and making him late for getting it ready in time for all the other guests.  Today though we did something I have never done before and we had lunch at McDonald's, it was supposed to be a treat for Tiny and Shorty for being good but in reality it came a very poor second to being sat in the car park when this parked up beside us.

Nothing will ever beat a motorbike for interesting as far as my kids are concerned and every time they fall in love with one it brings me one step nearer to buying one, I have been looking at learning to ride and I am really considering putting it in my 2013 plan for making a bloody good single life!

As days go by and I find more and more things no one is around to tell me not to do life becomes more and more exciting.

I think I would go for black or red if I bought myself a bike but I'm not sure, I'll have to do some research.

Trains, Football and friends (day 3 I'll give up soon I'm sure)

Tiny and Shorty spent their morning with Granddad playing with the largest train set in the world at a 'come and play' exhibition, the result is I now have to find a way of setting them up a train set at home because it is apparently the most fun EVER.  I used the time they were busy to do something I have never ever done before!  I find real people really hard to talk to, once I know people its not a problem but that first meeting normally scares the life out of me but today I met someone I have never met in person before and somehow it didn't feel at all weird or at all hard.  She was really lovely and I think meeting new people might be something I try and do more often :-)

The last few days have been a check-in, check-out routine with the little people really because I was back out for the afternoon, this time off to football to see Sean Dyche take charge of his first match at the Turf, If we play like we did every match I'll be smiling by the end of the season even if we are bobbing around mid table not really achieving anything because it was great fun to see the team look like they were having fun.

A good day of fun experiences, on to tomorrow and more fun I hope. :-)