The Gallery: Outside my front door...

Oh I do like to live beside the seaside... well, not quite. I used to live right on the seafront, but the Mr & I moved a little out of town before the Little Dude was born, so now the seaside is actually a 15 minute walk away, but it's still pretty lovely.

For The Gallery this week, Tara wants to see where we live.
(Is she planning a bloggy-world tour? Who knows.)

Anyway, here's where we live:

Officialy, we live in the West End of town, see:

Like i said, not quite the seaside, we're all about the funky old town houses and lots of trees round these parts. I like it. It's quiet, but close enough to town to not feel isolated.

Take a stroll down this road though, and...

Voila. Le Seaside :)

Sadly, we got no sand. Just pebbles, and a whole lot of these:

but I do love it. The Little Dude & The Dog & I have racked up many miles walking up & down the front in all weathers, and it's very therapeutic to just sit on the pebbles and watch the waves crash.

Don't head down there too early if you're looking for peaceful meditation though, the fishermen will have beaten you to it:

From my days of living right on the front, I know all too well that they are early birds, and speaking of feathered friends - they don't half excite the seagulls. A hundred seagulls shouting their beaks off at 5.30am is NOT a fun way to wake up! (good practice for having a baby though I suppose)

That said, the fishermen do leave some interesting stuff lying around from a photo taking point of view:

Other than that, it's not the most exciting stretch of 'beach' ever - though it does have one claim to fame. Remember that story a couple of years ago, about loads of wood mysteriously washing up on the South coast? Well, that was us, see:

and yep, you bet I was one of the geeks down there taking photos of it!

Of course if you walk further along the promenade, there's The Pier, and The Pavillion & The shops, but I think I'll call it a day for now & maybe show you those another time.

So there you are. That's where I live.

Don't forget to go check out the rest of The Gallery too - it's getting bigger & bigger every week, loads of good stuff to look at.

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The Gallery: Me!

Have I mentioned that I love, love, LOVE The Gallery?
I do, I really do.

This week, Tara's prompt is... 'Me.'
originally, I thought about taking new pictures of things that are important to me, and make me who I am (my sketchbook, my iPod, the Little Dude & The Mr & The Dog...) but, as is normal, time got away from me, so instead, I went through my old photos, picked some favourites, and you get this:

From left to right, Me =  a fiancee, a mummy, a friend to many, a lover of fashion (that's me lusting over Karen Millen pretties in Bournemouth), an arty crafty chick (not really evident in this pic, but it's the one I use on my columnist bio at ArtFire, so sort of makes sense), a girlie girl (feeling the hello kitty love in Leicester Square), a boozy floozy (though also a complete light weight since making a baby), a music lover (that's me at Hyde Park waiting for Blur to rock the bejeesus out of the place.), and a domestic goddess. Well, trying to be.

So there you are, that's me.

Who are you?

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The Gallery: Colour

Week three of The Gallery already? Is it just me, or is each week evaporating faster than the last lately?

Anyway, this week's title, is 'Colour'.
I thought about showing you a photo of my favourite colour (purple), or maybe my most favourite dress (blue), my eyes? (green, in case you were wondering), the little dude's eyes? (biggest blues you ever did see, gets 'em from his daddy)... but in the end, I thought why not show you ALL the colours? Or quite a lot of them at least.

So, voila:

Prettyful, no?!
This is a scene from a game The Little Dude & I have invented, whereby we line up all his stacking cups & fill them up with smaller toys of the same colour.

Mummy over enthusiastically names all the colours, Little Dude plops the GREEN marracca in the green cup, mummy gets all over excited and convinces herself she's raising a child genius.
(Yes, yes, I know, it's highly likely to be more luck than judgement when he gets it right, I'm not completely deluded ...honest.)

Anyway, it's an easy way to keep the little man amused. He loves it. And it holds his attention a lot longer than just sorting the shapes into the sorter.

And it's certainly colourful.
Don't forget to visit Tara's blog for the links to lots more pretty pictures too - there have been some amazing photos to look at the last couple of weeks, I'm sure this week will be the same.

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Mother's Day: I like!

So yesterday, was my first official Mother's Day :)
(I just missed out last year - though I did get a card & bunch of flowers from the bump, which was super sweet.)
I must say, I approve!

I got to sleep in until half past eight, at which point I was woken with fresh coffee & nutella croissants. Well done Little Dude's Daddy, very well done.
Next up, got a free pass to shower & pretty-fy self in peace with no distractions, while the daddy got the little man breakfast-ed & dressed.
Post shower, there was more coffee waiting, plus a beautifully dressed little baby boy clutching a (slightly chewed) card & a 'best mummy' bear. I admit, I teared up a tiny bit.
Then there were flowers.  And chocolate.  Hat trick!  (And a little tear.)
We went out for a walk along the seafront in the sunshine, came home via the park, then I was ordered to chill out on the sofa, where I was brought a cuppa & the biggest cupcake I ever did see.
In the evening, I had a bubble bath (complete with a glass of Baileys - booze in bath! That's glamour right there!) while The Mr cooked scrummy dinner, served with too much wine. (I forget what a complete light weight I am these days. Three glasses nearly finished me off!).

A perfect, dreamy day.
I ♥ my boys & I love Mother's Day - roll on next year!

Hope all my mummy friends out there in blogland had a super day too xx

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Under (Self Inflicted) Pressure & The Gallery: Three

As the song goes, Three, is a magic number. I heartily agree.
This week's photo for The Gallery, features the three biggest loves of my life. The baby boy, watching The Daddy & The Puppy* having a run around in the park. 
It's not the best photo in the world, but I love it because it captures one of those perfect moments in a perfect day where I really understand the word family.  And it makes me happy.

I'm going to multi-task here, and mention Josie's writing workshop, where one of the prompts this week is 'What is making you feel under pressure right now'.  The answer to that, is me. 
I am my own worst critic, always have been. 
I'm also a neurotic loony with a tendency to overthink things and get all caught up in my own head.
I have a compulsive need to be super duper organised, always ready, always prepared, always ahead of the game.  Turns out, all that stuff is not so easy to accomplish with a little person who needs all of your attention all of the time on the scene. 

In turn, I beat myself up because the to do list never gets any shorter. 
I exhaust myself trying to squeeze as much productivity as possible into every single day. 
I want to get on with the hundred bits of decorating that need doing, I want to focus on & make a real go of my own business, I want to be the best mummy ever and take LD to allsorts of wonderful baby activities, I want to make lots of new mummy friends so that he has lots of little play mates, I want to de-clutter my wardrobe, I want to be a perfect little housewife & put a delicious feast on the table every night, I want to get rid of the last little bit of wobbly mummy tummy, I want to start painting again - I want to be able to chill out & relax while the little man naps without mentally listing the million and one things I still need to do.  
I have a boat load of dreams and ambitions and goals, and the trouble is, I want it all now, if not sooner.  I never was very good at patience.

But I'm learning. Being a mummy is definitely making me stop, or at least pause, and re-assess what's really important.
Yes, it does my head in that we're living in an un-finished mess of a house, but the little dude doesn't care. He has somewhere warm to sleep, food in his belly, and a mummy and daddy who love him to pieces. (And a stupid amount of toys.)  He's happy.

And I am too.  Because I am incredibly lucky.  I just need to remind myself now and again.  And I need to spend less time putting pressure on myself & fretting about what needs to be done, and more time at the park with my THREE favourites - my Man, my Baby, and my Dog.  My family.

(*The Puppy, is actually 4, but she's little, and bouncy, so we still call her The Puppy.)

Don't forget to go check out the rest of The Gallery at Tara's blog, and the rest of the Writing Workshop at Josie's.

Oooh, and while we're talking about family, a quick shout out to Bec over at Beetroot & Gherkins, whose gorgeous family is going to be getting bigger in the very near future - wishing you lots of love & luck miss - and sending *superfastandeasylabour* thoughts a go-go :) xxx

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The Gallery: Beauty

Tara, over at Sticky Fingers has had a rather brilliant idea for all of us snap-happy bloggers - The Gallery. Basically, she's posting weekly prompts to inspire photo-taking - anyone can take part, regardless of skills or experience - photos can be new or old, anything goes! Click here to visit Tara's blog & find out more.

This week's prompt is 'Beauty', so of course I thought of sharing a photo of The Little Dude, but figured that was a bit of a given, so instead, you get a shot a shot of my beautiful Daffodils.


(Which The Little Dude bought for me- with a little help from The Daddy & the good people at Marks & Spencer.)

I love Daffodils. They're cheerful, simple, sunshiney, and they renew my faith that spring actually is on the way. That's a thing of beauty right there.

The Mr & The Little Dude got these for me at the weekend & they make me smile every time I catch them out the corner of my eye.

Over to you.
What's your idea of beauty?

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Happy Valentines Day!

Two posts in one day??!  I know, I spoil you.  But it is Valentine's day after all ;)
Assuming you're all stuffed full of heart shaped chocolates and pink fizzy stuff (or is that just me?), you will be in need of some reading matter while you digest, so, may I suggest you head over to The Good, The Bad & The Ugly, where Claire has brought together a fabulous selection of posts for your perusal in her Valentine's Carnival.

Also, and I am a little scared to do this, because frankly the other entries are amazing, but what the hey.  English Mum is hosting a Valentine-cupcake-bake-off-deelie, and as I made these for my boys last night anyway, I figured I may as well throw my hat (wooden spoon?) in the ring!
Seriously though, go look at the other entries - outstanding - I'm bookmarking it for future inspiration!

These are vanilla cupcakes, with butercream icing, topped with foiled chocolate hearts & edible glitter.
And they taste pretty damn good if I do say so myself!

Hope you've all had a wonderful cupid day - I've been spoiled with lovely cards & flowers, but my best bit was the card I got from the Little Dude in which he declared (in writing which looked suspiciously like the Mr's - I think he may have got him to transcribe)

"I love you mummy, more than Makka Pakka loves stones, which is a lot."

Totally made my day :) ♥

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Shiny Happy People

I've been a little bit down in the dumps the last few days.

Nothing awful, just a bit fed up, lots of little bits conspiring & ganging up & getting me down. I hate that. I am, as a rule, a chirpy, upbeat, cheerful sort of chick, and I annoy myself when I get in a funk. I've also completely lost my blogging mojo of late - lots of posts I want to do, but no time and/or motivation to make them happen.  I think it may be a case of too much going on + lack of focus + ongoing run down-ness = big chunk of Bleh. But I'm on it, I am.

So, thank goodness for the Shiny Happy People meme that's doing the rounds. It was started by the lovely Rosie Scribble, and I'm sure I've been tagged, but can't entirely remember who by, so I'll just get on with it...

The rules go:  Name a song that makes you happy – a song you would listen to if you needed a sudden injection of happiness. Post an image that makes you smile, it can be anything – a silly photo, an image taken from the internet, anything at all that puts a smile on your face (and isn’t too rude!)

So, first up, the song.  Oh this was hard.  Music is one of the big loves of my life, and I have A LOT of go-to songs for when I need cheering up. After much deliberation, I opted for this little beauty:



That's right, the eternally-awesome work of The Electric Light Orchestra.  I challenge anyone to listen to this GEM and not smile or tap a toe. If you don't, I fear you might be made at least partially of STONE!  ELO are  a favourite of the Little Dude too - I had a bit of a revival during my pregnancy, and now whenever he hears them, his eyes light up :) (same goes for the Guillemotts, The Arctic Monkeys, MGMT & Elbow - who would ALL get a place if I was allowed to pick my top TEN happy tunes.)  (Actually, I might add that to the list of posts I want to do.)

And a happy picture? Of course I could choose a photo of the little dude, or the daddy - those all make me smile, but instead, I'm opting for a favourite Loldog. (People are often surprised that icanhascheezburger is firmly in my favourites - presumably because I am a grammar snob and HATE txt spk {urg, felt dirty typing that :P}, but throw it together with insanely cute dogs & cats, and I freaking LOVE it.  Call it a guilty pleasure.)

So, Tah Da!:



How could anyone not catch the happy from this little mutt?!

Okay sure, it helps that I'm gaga for dogs in general, but really, the sheer joy in those eyes - the cheesey grin, the big wet nose - isn't he brilliant?!

This one was a close contender too:

I have a weakness for the shaggy cuteness of a little gremlin-like shih-tzu, being that it is my own mutt of choice.  She makes me smile too... most of the time.  She's actually in the proverbial dog house after contributing to the not so very fun parts of the last few days, but that's another story.  For the most part, I love my little hair ball, and she is mostly happy-enducing.  (And she is ever so good with the little dude, can't fault her for that.)

Highly reccomend a cheezburger visit to anyone feeling a bit blue - and if you're not a four-legged fan, there are funny people pictures too :)

As for the tagging - I think most people have done this already, but if you haven't, do!

Forget your troubles, get happy. You'll feel loads better for it. I do :)

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I love my boys...

So my lovely tweet-come-blog-come now actual real life friend Bec over at Beetroot and Gherkins (which if you don't read, you should, because it is brilliant), tagged me with the "Share your favourite photo" meme, and I've been procrastinating over it, because frankly, it's HARD!

I am a complete photo loony.  I LOVE them.  I always have a camera on me, I have a silly amount of pictures stashed on my laptop, several dozen cds, and many more albums. And I'm supposed to pick just ONE from the whole of all of time?? *brainmelt!*

But, I have done it. I have picked. Although I am going to add the disclaimer that it's *one* of my favourites. So as to not upset all it's little kodak friends.

So here is the lucky winner:



Most of you know I had a pretty horrible birth experience.  This picture was taken about an hour after I came round from the GA I had my c-section under. In all honestly, I barely remember taking it. (I'd been in labour for 14 hours and was under the influence of A LOT of drugs. I could have photographed an african elephant that morning and forgotten about it). The first time I really remember seeing it, LD was I think 4 days old, and I grabbed 5 minutes between feeds to download the pictures off my camera.  Soon as I saw this one, I promptly welled up & sat with a big goofy smile on my face, with big fat tears rolling down cheeks.  Hormonal tears.  Exhausted, sleep deprived tears.  Super proud new mummy tears.  Happy tears.  And not the resentful 'why didn't things go the way they should have done?' tears I'd been shedding here and there up until then. Because looking at this picture, all the details and the drama, just didn't seem to matter.  I had a beautiful baby boy, and an amazing man who'd been there with me every step of the way.  I had a family.

I still struggle with the memories of my labour & all that came with it.  I probably always will.  But this picture, and the real life versions of the boys in it, make it much, much easier to deal with.

I love those boys to pieces. I am super lucky, and super grateful to have them.  And I love this photo :)

As for tagging, you all know I'm rubish at that - I always pick people who've already done it, so I'll say Emma Jane, Josie, Claire, Nat & Sian, because I don't *think* they have, and anyone else who wants to share a favourite kodak moment - go right ahead! xx

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Hello Twenty Ten!

(Yes, I'm one of those hip & trendy young things who think twothousandandten is a bit of a mouthful. Humour me.)

First: The Little Dude & I would like to wish you all a very happy, if a little belated new year - hope 2010 is full of good times for one & all. Second: The mummy would like to apologise for December's distinct lack of activity - I totally underestimated the things to do : time needed to do them ratio, and ended up all over the place, making internet playtime intermittent at best. (Next year, I will be organised. You just watch me!!)

Festivities all over for another year though, normal service should hopefully be resumed as of... now.

Well, as much as possible, now that the LD is into everything having learned to pull himself up on the sofa (already?!), and gaining semi-crawling speed daily. Safe to say, he's keeping me on my toes! This last month, he seems to have been developing so quickly - first there was the finding of his feet - literally turned round one day to find him stood up holding onto the couch - I squealed in excitement. Then the next day came his first proper da da da, I welled up a little.  Then the next, he properly stacked 3 blocks on top of eachother - more luck than judgement maybe, but clearly I'm now convinced he's a child genius.

I've had a few of those emotional mummy moments over the festive period. Filling up his Christmas stocking, watching him rip open his presents (and of course pay much more attention to the paper than the gifts). Seeing him sat at the table waiting for turkey.  Looking all grown up. Sob!

The worst though, was Christmas night, after our guests had left, and the baby was sleeping (exhausted after a non-stop day!), the Daddy & I were cuddled up on the sofa, chilling wth a glass of vino, and I suddenly thought, 'This time last year, I was still a preggopot. That gorgeous little monster who'd been in at everything all day, was only half cooked!'  And I admit, I shed a little tear, sappy moo that I am.  It was a happy tear though. We had a fabulous time, and I can honestly say, I've never enjoyed a Christmas so much.

And it happened again on New Years - we stayed in, for the first time I can remember, and it was actually lovely!  The daddy & I have a geekish tradition of taking an at-arms-length-self-portrait at midnight (you know the ones, 2x half heads where you're grinning like loonies, eyes half shut because of the flash :P), and 2010 was no different, except this time, there were three faces filling the frame - all ready for a new year and all the goodies it has to offer.  Yep, there was another little happy mummy tear then.

It is scary how fast it's all going though. Eight and a half months, gone in the blink of an eye. If I hadn't taken so many photos, I'd wonder what we did with it.

My 'baby' is ONE in a few months. (Oh you know tears will be shed that day!)  Goodness only know what new skills & tricks he'll learn between now and then, or what He'll get into to make me fly across the room to run interference.  All I do know, is that I am loving this crazy ride, and can't wait to see what happens next.

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Children's Birthday Parties are *hard!*

And it wasn't even my little monster's birthday!

Today we've been to a friend's little boy's 3rd birthday party - the LD's fourth proper party, first of the fancy dress variety, and also the first one that Mummy has done solo as Daddy was at work.

It was lovely, and my chum had put in SO much effort - there were tables for colouring, sticking & play doh-ing, (all a bit advanced for the LD, but the older kids were having a ball!), plus music, loads of toys and books, and some great baby-friendly party food.  The little dude (dressed as an alien from toy story - he has been chosen - the claw is his master, oh yes!), had lots of fun, being admired and cooed over by all the grown ups, chasing balloons, commando-crawling under chairs & tables, munching tasty noms - and he was good as gold, didn't cry once!

The mummy on the other hand, spent the whole 2 hours getting increasingly frazzled - making small talk with other mummys (who all have older children, and all want to have the 'oh, when {insert their child's name here} was that age...' conversation, which is nice the first couple of times, but the novelty soon wears off whn you're distractd by trying to make sure your own little monster isn't getting into something he shouldn't be!), running interference between balloons and newly aquired teeth for fear of LD being left with a crippling fear of loud bangs, untangling him from chair legs and other people's legs, and trying to teach him it's not polite to grab mini sausage rolls off other people's plates.  Phew. 

Plus, solo party-going means no Daddy to take a turn at baby-entertaining while mummy scoffs a plate of party food & some pop- so not only was I exhausted when we left, I was starving too!

Other than that though, it really was a lovely party.  I love watching the LD learn to interact with other little people - he & the birthday boy's little sister are good chums, so they enjoyed a bit of quality time too :)

Shattered now though - and the LD is crashed out next to me too. Dread to think how tired we'll be when it's his turn for a birthday. Less than 5 months till we find out. Eek!

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Wordless Wednesday: Let's go to the PARK!

Last week, while the sun was still shining (seems like a distant memory now!) the daddy & I took the LD for his first jaunt to the park.
think it's safe to say it won't be the last! (not sure who enjoyed the swings more- the daddy or the little dude!)
And more importantly, there's just something immensely satisfying about being out as a proper little family, you know? Love it. 
*promise* i'll get round to a more substantial post (and all the tags i've had) very soon!! :) ♥

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What a week!

Somehow, it appears to be Monday again - which means I've spent another week neglecting my poor little blog.
But I have excuses! Lots of them!

Firstly: I had a birthday. yes, I am officially 29. And 12 months. Gulp.
(not to worry though, promise I won't be going in for any of that 'proper grown up' stuff.)
Anyway, those of you who follow my twittery nonsense, will know that my Mr had the week off, and was cooking up a surprise for Saturday night... turned out to be a VERY big surprise, in the shape of a party! Had a fantastic time, still have no idea how he managed to keep it under wraps so long... sneaky little monkey.
AND, he even took care of the LD & let me sleep in till 10am the next day, and I escaped hangover free! Good Times :)

(some of my birthday loveliness :D)

Secondly: The rest of the week was spent enjoying some quality Daddy time :) We went on a few mini-day trips, Daddy came to his first baby clinic (LD now weighing in at 16 1/2 lb!!), and we went to the teddy bear's picnic at the childrens centre (so cute :D), we went out for an awesome lunch on my birthday, and even squeezed in not one, but TWO mummy & daddy jaunts to the pub! So yes, safe to say, it was a good week.

Thirdly: The Daddy went back to work Saturday, but to cheer us up, the LD and I went to lunch with Kelly & Piran, and Mrs OMG - yay! The lovely Kelly had scored us a free feed at Pizza Express, so Three Ladies, Two Babies & A Bump, had a thoroughly pleasant time, and will hopefully be doing it again sometime soon :)

And todaaay, my poor little man had his third appointment with the nurse for a dose of evil pointy needles :( He was a very brave little monster though, and now it's all over till he's one, hooray :)

So yes, that lot, is why I've been such a rubbish blogger.
Hopefully things will be back to what passes for normal now, and I can start catching up - I have a bunch of lovey awards to say thank you for, and my google reader is bursting at the seams... who do I see about getting an extra hour in the day?

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You know you're a mummy when...

...you lose the ability to frivolously spend money.

Yes, it's true. I've lost my senseless spending spree gene. Where did it go? I don't know. Will it ever come back? Only time will tell.

Let me explain...
last weekend, The Daddy and I decided to take The little Dude on his first trip to Brighton. (That's code for mummy has dropped some baby weight so deserves a little Primarni-based treat.)
The Daddy had just got a little bonus at work, and since we'd been super frugal for a few months (and did I mention, dropped a little baby weight?), he offered to treat me to a wee fashion splurge. (Yes, I love that man.)
So we jumped on the train and off we went.

First stop, Primark. Always fills me with excitable giddiness. Generally, on hitting Primark, I'll spend around £50 & come away with 2 big brown bags full of loveliness. I have a specific route I always follow so as not to miss a single rail of bargainous fashion - you may call it sad, I call it efficient. It's a big store. Basket in hand, Daddy pushing pram behind, off I went.
Forty minutes later (told you, it's a big place, and I'm very thorough), in my basket was a top, a bag, a brooch, and a necklace. Total cost: £10. Pathetic.
Upstairs to bambino goodies - picked up a few bits, but still not terribly impressed.
Queued and paid, left a little disappointed, but still hopeful that H&M would yield better results. (especially as there are now TWO branches - deep joy!).

After a Starbucks vanilla latte to energise & regroup, we hit store number one.
Come on Hennes & Mauritz, lay your couture goodness on me.
Or just three pretty dresses in the whole place, all in stupid little tiny size sixes.
FAIL.
We're down, but not out. There's still the original H&M in Churchill Square. Where an emo-punk-princess bomb appears to have gone off.
DOUBLE FAIL.
Okay then, H&M Kids.
NOW we're talking.
Pretty much my whole splurge budget goes bye-bye on tiny clothes covered in robots and monsters and such.
And that's when it hits me.
I actually don't mind.
Sure, I'm gutted to not be strutting home clutching bags of new pretties, but I can't wait to see my little man in all his new goodies :)
It's official, I'm a mummy.

My 'haul' for the day looked like this:


The Little Dude's, looked like this:


That's the way to do it!

Of course I'm not saying that I'm done with my wayward shopping spree ways altogether, but it seems that without me even noticing, my priorities have really changed. Which is probably a good thing, if a little disconcerting at first.
I even find myself reconsidering SALE bargains - 'sure, it's only a fiver, but that fiver would buy a week's worth of nappies' - that is scary stuff.

Got me thinking though, I'm only 4 and a bit months in - what other madness is going to creep up on me out of nowhere? So, my lovely friends, do tell- what have been your defining 'OMG I'm a mummy' moments so far?
(And somebody, please, tell me I'm not likely to suddenly stop loving loud noisy guitar based music & discover a penchant for Ronan Keating. Please?!)

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Wordless Wednesday: Best Chums :)

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Wordless Wednesday: I ♥ my boys :)

p.s. theres a giveaway over at my other bog :)

happy wednesday!
(visit wordless wednesday for more great photos.)

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Proper little mummy...

As a rule, I hate stereotypes, of any kind.
But now that I'm a mummy, there are a few I actually quite like.

Let me explain...

We're going to a party tomorrow - my friend's little girl is one, it'll be the little dude's first party - exciting :D

So today, we went to town to buy a present (cute denim dress, a hand puppet, and a gorgeous touchy-feeley book), and when we got back, I wrapped it all up, and finished off the birthday card I'd been making (which you can see on my crafty blog if you like).

My friend had asked if the grown up guests could bring an offering for the buffet, so I whipped up a batch of cupcakes and left them to cool. (My baking skills are limited, but I make YUMMY cupcakes.)

Then, I went to make dinner (veggie lasagne incase you're curious!), and while that was cooking, I iced the cupcakes, voila:


I went back into the lounge where Daddy & Little Dude were engrossed in the very hungry caterpillar, and put the tin of cakes next to the birthday girl's present & card. Chatting to myself, I was all
...presents wrapped? check. card written? check. cakes done? check. dinner in the oven? check...
(yes, slight obsessive compulsive tendancies at work there, it keeps me sane :P)

and that's when the daddy (having finished telling LD all about the very hungry caterpillar) said,
"aww, look at you, you're a proper little mummy! :D"

And d'you know what? I think I am. And I think I like it.
Don't get me wrong, I'll never let myself become nothing but 'the little woman', the daddy will *always* be expected to do his share, and the feisty opinionated chick with the passions for loud music & heated debate will always be part of me, but I guess there's a little domestic goddess in there too, and that's not such a bad thing :D

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Quality Mummy & Baby Time

Is it a tiny bit selfish that I really enjoy the days the little dude & i spend at home, just the two of us?

Because I do.

Days when I don't have to share him with anyone.

Days when we don't really 'do' a whole lot - we haven't got clinic, or a group, or a class, or a playdate, or a coffee shop meetup, or shopping for neccessities...

In fact all that is on the to-do list, is staying home & making eachother smile :)

That's what we've been doing today.

We had a lovely nap together this morning after breakfast, we've had 3 readings of 'where's that monkey?' (D's current favourite), dozens of rounds of peek-a-boo (he all of a sudden 'gets' peekaboo - or it makes him laugh at least), we've danced about the living room, sang some songs, had a bath, *and*, we finished our first mother & son craft project, voila! :



what do you think? :)
I reckon we make quite the artistic team! Though it did take 5 attempts for the little dude to realise he wasn't supposed to be just squishing the clay at random.
And we thought it looked a bit blah with just the prints, so we blinged it up with some buttons - and we didn't like the look of the beige chalk that came in the kit, so we substituted mummy's blue eyeshadow - because it's all about the artistic license ;)

I love days like today, I really do.

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Busy Busy Week...

I am one tired mummy!

Partly because I did indeed jinx the little man's sleeping through the night, which has been on again off again since (ah well, we're making progress at least!), and partly because I basically haven't stopped all week!

Weigh-day (little monster is a whopping 12lb 9oz now - over double the 6lb he dropped down to when he was poorly - yay!), mother & baby group, visit to Auntie's (my little sister - can't get enough of the little man :D), meeting up with new mummy friends, essential nappy-based shopping trips, and last night, a mummy & daddy trip to the pub while nannie looked after the baby. (Yeah, okay, that bit was self-inflicted tiredness ;) - fun though, and I'm getting better at leaving the noodle for more than two minutes at a time!)

Plus of course all the usual nappy changing, bundles of washing, rounds of peek-a-boo, and all the other fun that comes with a new tiny person!

So yes, I don't feel at all guilty about being a lazy bum today, we deserve it!
And as the little man is *finally* down for his nap (third time lucky), mummy gets a chance to blog & catch up with google reader :)

AND, a chance to share a rather lovely special offer with all you lovely mummies :)



Do you have hundreds of photos on your computer that you keep meaning to print but never get round to?
Have you ever used Photobox? If not, now is a great time to try them, because, not only do new customers get 40 free prints anyway, but until 2pm Monday, they can also order up to 50 more prints for just 1p each!
Or in other words, you can print 90 photos for 50p plus p&p (which is a very reasonable £1.49).
As a new mummy, I've taken quite literally hundreds of photos since the little dude arrived, and I always use photobox to print them - they are great quality, excellent value, & they deliver really quickly - can't recommend them enough.
Click here to judge for yourself.

And now, as the daddy has kindly offered to see to the little man's next feed, the mummy is off for a long soak in the bath... bliss :)

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Proudest Mummy Ever :)

So not only has my little man mastered the art of pushing himself up off his tummy, but he's also slept through to a reasonably respectable 6am for the last two nights!!

not bad for a day short of 12 weeks I think you'll agree? :D

I always promised my friends I wouldn't become one of those mummys who goes completely over the top about every tiny achievement her baby makes, but do you know what, it's impossible, and I make no apology!
I love my little man. He amazes me daily & I'm pretty sure I'll never ever get bored of beaming proudly about all his new found skills :)
(probably a good thing I started this blog really, or I may end up on a slippery slope to no-friends-ville :P)

That said, here's hoping I haven't just well & truly jinxed the whole sleeping thing so that he decides 20 minutes will do nicely tonight.
Nah. That won't happen. Right?

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