A busy week!

Well, the clock is ticking and the weekend's drawing nearer.  I keep thinking that everything is now done and prepared for the holiday but then another little item crops up on my 'to do' list!

Cases are at least packed (kind of) but hand luggage is still to do.  I always have a real panic when we go to Cornwall for the week, always thinking there's something I've forgot to pack or do, so as you can imagine a 3 week holiday is a bit of a nightmare for me in the 'panic stakes'!

My quiet week has turn out to be 'not' so quiet.  My work list seems to be getting longer as the week gets shorter.  With risk assessments still to write, emails to send, bookings to deal with and accounts to manage, holiday packing is now becoming less of a priority as we try to tie up all the loose ends with the business before going away.  Who on earth takes a 3 week holiday when they run their own business?............hmmmm we do! Oh well, once we're there I insist that there will be no talk of health and safety (and yes 'P', that involves your overly critical assessment of any Disney attractions and whether they have a safe system of work in place! ;) ).

'S' is off to Baggeridge Country Park tomorrow with school on the Leadership Program.  He's really pleased to have been chosen to take part but as he's a little scared of heights he's also rather worried about the prospective zip wires and abseiling he may have to partake in!  I've already told him that he can use it as a practice run for the stomach churning things Disney and Universal has in store for us!

'A's had a good week with better results in her mental maths tests.  She's had a couple of maths tests to complete at home before we go away but we don't mind seeing as she's missing a bit of time from school.  She's also off to see a Michael Morpurgo play on Friday at the local theatre.

Ear Candling!

'P' and I had a rather different experience last week when we went for a treatment of 'Hopi Ear Candling'.  After 'P's cold and my ear problems whilst flying we thought it might be worth a try as we'd read some great things about it online.  The whole experience was quite pleasant and not at all uncomfortable.  It involves the insertion of a hollow tube or 'candle' just inside the ear and then the top is lit.  As this burns down to a certain point it creates a kind of vacuum which removes blockages from the ear.  Yes, I know it's a bit gross but after the treatment you can even open up the candle to see what has been removed - the results were amazing!  I'm popping back again tomorrow with 'A' to have a second treatment and she's also having hers done to help with flight pain.

School Choir

Music preparation has also been a little busy this week but this has been very productive as we now have some idea of an order for the school concert.  Still a bit of recording to do for the backing CD but at least Jo has some new stuff to be going on with while I'm not there on piano duty :)  After yesterday's rehearsal I don't envy her! Our 56 well behaved choir newbies have now settled in and are starting to push the boundaries a little! I'm sure she will have them eating out of her hand by the time I return though.

Ladies Choir

No worries on the ladies choir front.  It feels like we've been learning the songs for soooooo long now with all the concert postponements that we know them inside out! The only one we were still struggling with was Queen song 'Somebody to Love'.  There is constant 3 part harmony in this throughout the whole song along with Yvonne and I doing solo lines and the whole thing has been a bit of a challenge.  Over the last couple of weeks though, this one has really come together and all that's left to do is a bit of polishing to tidy up the timing and expression.  I've told them I'm expecting great things when I return in 3 weeks :)

Arnold Update - 7 - 8 months

Thought it was about time for an Arnold update seeing as the little fella's nearly 8 months old now!  I really can't believe what a grown up dog he now looks, he's fur's really grown and almost looks like he has a lion's mane.  He still has the same adorable face and it's still hard to deny those big brown puppy eyes.



He's made a new friend in 'Arthur' my friend Jo's Airedale Terrier.  Their personalities are so alike it's untrue but I guess that's the 'terrier' in them!  When let loose in Jo's garden they chase each other around having a good bark and generally play biting and jumping on each other.  It's so comical to watch! :)

Behaviour wise, he's such a good boy on the whole.  When I'm at home with him during the day he's just so loving and follows me around from room to room or curls up by my feet while I'm working on the computer.  He still has a long way to go with his walk training and his behaviour towards other dogs, but we're working on it.  Looking at him now I can't believe how far he's come since the days of hanging onto our legs with his teeth till he drew blood!



Arnold's off on his hols next weekend when he goes to stay with Mom-in-law for 3 weeks while we're away at Disney.  We've been 'acclimatising' him over the last month by taking him to stay once a week for 1 or 2 nights.  He absolutely loves it now, Mom-in-Law takes him on loads of walks and he is great company for her too.  She said she loves the way he curls up next to her on his blanket, leans on her feet and looks up at her with those loving eyes :)

We shall miss him soooo much while we're away and I just hope he hasn't forgotten us when we get back.  One things for sure, Mom-in-law will certainly miss him after having him there for 3 weeks.

Tuesday's Treasures - Baby Memories

Tuesday's Treasures - Baby Memories

Whilst sorting the bedroom during the week I got a little sidetracked and started sifting through some of the books and photo albums on our bookshelf.

We have two lovely 'Baby Record Books' from when 'S' and 'A' were born and I adore looking through these and reminiscing.  Along with photo's and baby details we kept copies of newspaper cuttings and other announcements, cards, locks of hair and gift tags.  I could spend hours looking back through these especially reading about all their 'firsts' and how we felt when they said their first word took their first steps etc.  It all seems like such a long time ago now they're 14 and 10!

I'm so glad we took the time to keep these books updated now as 'A' very often loves to also have a read through and asks questions about what she did when she was little.  They really are something we'll always treasure.

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If you'd like to take part in Tuesday's Treasures please feel free to copy the image above and post to your blog with your picture for this week, with a link in the comments below.

Alternatively, for Facebookers and Twitterers just post your 'treasure' pic along with a link in the comments below.

Hoping you will join in the fun and can’t wait to see your weekly offerings!

The 2011 mission to get fit - Update 1

Thought you might like to know how my 2011 'mission to get fit' was going, so here is a brief post to update.

I went into 2011 knowing we were going away to Florida in Feb and potentially away again for a second time in the Summer for P's 40th birthday.  The prospect of walking, walking and more walking around the Orlando theme parks and having to wear a bikini had me a little worried.  I'm certainly not overweight by any means but my fitness levels are, well.......*blows raspberry* and I really do have far too much flab hanging round the old tummy and hips.

Since January the 1st I have been keeping a food diary with the aid of Nutracheck (which I find extremely helpful) and limiting my food intake to 1500 calories and 52 fat grams per day (as Nutracheck suggest for my size and weight).  In addition to this I am now visiting the gym 2 - 3 times per week along with running, walking or kinect on the other days.  Obviously, I occasionally have bad days where my calorie and fat intake goes over what I'm allowed (yesterday being one of these days...whoops! ) but as long as I don't let it happen too often and keep up the exercise then everything is fine and dandy.

I am 5ft 3 and when I started out with my 2011 healthy life plan on Jan 1st I was 9 stone 5.  In the first couple of weeks I lost 6lbs taking me down to 8st 13 but this was probably mostly due to water retention and just basically getting rid of the initial crap out of my body.  I was a little disappointed to have not lost any weight over the last  couple of weeks but upon measuring myself I have now lost 1.5in from my hips and bust and 1in from my waist so my body is now adapting muscle wise to all the exercise I'm doing.  Losing weight isn't so much a priority for me but more so toning up, although I know I need to lose just a few more lbs for any muscle to start showing definition.

I am planning to let go with the old food diary while we're away (yes, I will be sampling the american cheesecake!) but hopefully the constant walking will help me maintain my current size and weight.  Will keep you posted!

RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch 2011

Just finished a lovely leisurely hour sitting in the kitchen with a nice cuppa, completing the RSPB's annual 'Big Garden Birdwatch'.  'A' and I did this for the first time last year but were a little disappointed - as you might know, the second we sat down to complete our hours 'twitching' hardly any birds visited our usually busy garden!  This year, however, was a different story and it was quite nice to be able to actually record something on the RSPB survey.

The RSPB 'Big Garden Birdwatch' takes place once a year normally towards the end of January.  By visiting the RSPB website it's possible to print off a bird ID sheet to mark down your sitings.  The basis of the birdwatch is to spend one hour noting down the maximum number at any one time, of a particular kind of bird seen in your garden and then submit your results on the RSPB website.  By completing the birdwatch we are able to give the RSPB an overall view of bird numbers in the UK, and specifically from different regions.  They are then able to see which birds are in decline or species that have increased in numbers.

Here's a look at our results for this year:

Blackbird - 2

Blue Tit - 1

Goldfinch - 5

Greenfinch - 1

Robin - 2

Starling - 2

Woodpigeon - 1

Wren - 1

Holiday Countdown

It is now 2 weeks until we set off to sunny Florida for a holiday of a lifetime and I can't begin to tell you how excited I am!  It's not just our imminent Disney encounter but for me it's the whole experience.  This will be the first time we've experienced a long-haul holiday as the furthest we've travelled before is Tenerife or Majorca.  Although I'm a little nervous at the whole 7 - 9 hour flight thing, I think 3 weeks in the sunshine state (and a few glasses of vino before the flight) will make up for any anxiousness.

We've hired a villa in the city of Davenport and we're flying over with Virgin atlantic.  We have 14 day ultimate tickets to Disney and Universal with extra tickets to Sea World and the Kennedy Space Centre.  I think though, the absolute pinnacle for us will be the visit we have planned to Discovery Cove on 4th March where we have booked to swim with dolphins.  'A's favourite creature is the stingray so she is over the moon at the prospect of being able to experience these lovely fish while we're there.

As we're visiting for 3 weeks we're hoping to also slot in a visit to one of the beautiful beaches and will maybe combine this with our trip over to Kenndy.  Our Sea World and Kennedy passes also include a free return visit so hopefully we'll get to visit more than once.

I can't believe it's now only 2 weeks till we go as I feel like we've been planning this holiday forever!  I feel like my life currently consists of list upon list, checking and double checking that we've done, bought and thought of everything we need to.  We're actually off to P's brother and sister-in-laws tomorrow night for a full on disney 'heads up' as they've done the trip twice before.

There are so many things I'm looking forward to, one of which will be the new Harry Potter world at Universal Islands of Adventure.  I have to say, I've never been a good 'rides' person but believe me, I will be making sure I experience everything there is to offer while we're there, with or without sick bag!

The Gallery - Mother Nature

This week's theme over at 'Sticky Fingers' is.........Mother Nature.

For this theme I thought I'd show you some of my favourite sunset pictures that were taken at Pershore, near Worcestershire.  When the children were little we used to spend many a weekend down at P's mom and dad's caravan.  It was always a lovely relaxing time when the children would play outside, ride there bikes and we'd end the day with a lovely stroll by the river.

The theme Mother Nature for me made me think of the many beautiful scenes we see everyday and as our river walk was one of these it was only right to include it.  I loved the way that Mother Nature can paint the same scene in so many different shades and colours to make it look like a completely different display each time.  I hope you can see this reflected in the pictures below.  I have to say though, the first picture is definitely my favourite with the whole landscape bathed in a beautiful orange glow.