Friday 29 July 2011

Some Thoughts

Yesterday we had a play date with the most perfect family, another one! I know!
But it was cut short as T took her second tumble of the week and landed on the same knee and although its not broken it is busted.
Bloody Scooters

This is her this morning cleaning the wound.
That is a Liberty Print Lacoste Dress that was a gift from her uncles and P has one too. Super Cute.




It took a life time to get the plaster off and she was being a real woos about the whole thing but she cleaned it up herself and really impressed herself at her capabilities in the end.

So yesterday when it came to cleaning the knee she wouldn't let anyone near it and tried everything in her spell book to distract us. Anyway I lost it BIG TIME and administered first aid using the sink the kitchen table and finally the sofa where she yelled I hate you.
As the afternoon dragged on and I could see all the cracks in my parenting it pretty much worked out to be one of those days where everything is rubbish.
Thankfully G made dinner or that could have been the icing on the cake.

This last week or so I have walked round with a cloth bag from a shop that I am to fat to shop in, there was no first aid kit packed when I really needed it. I always thought I would be prepared with the most excellent stuff to make any situation better.

In fact the last time I saw the plasters was when they were all attached to the legs of the dinning room table after T asked me if she could have one for her bear and in fact couldn't control herself and opened them all. I suppose at the time I wasn't that bothered because I had bought them when she was born and we never really needed them.
That time has now changed and I feel like crap.
Because I feel disorganised.
I think about times I have felt rubbish as a teenager through till now and its because I have been unable to organise my self and then I have tripped up.

So I am having a bit of a mope which of course I know will do nothing so in about half an hour I will pull myself together. Grab the reins, saddle the horse get my gun what ever. Probably buy a really lovely expensive saddle bag to carry stuff and get on with it.

I took these of the poopster last week. she is learning body parts.








She is pushing four painful teeth at the moment and enjoying making noise about it.

I think that is enough talk of children for a while.

Yesterday marked one year until the London Olympics and I thought of writing a list and seeing how much I could achieve to change in my habits/daily living by the time I reach the opening ceremony. Eddie Izzard was on the radio this morning saying we could all achieve more this coming year.
He probably meant something a whole lot more than the route I will be taking but it's a thought anyway!

Off to get pen and paper
CM

Wednesday 27 July 2011

A Quick Trip Out

Try to get out every day and trying not to make that outing a trip to the bakers for gingerbread men everyday. Also want to watch the pennies.

Here is what it looked like this morning. Lovely.






What these don't show is the £1:50 for an hour parking, £2.20 for the smallest pot of home made ice cream and the most amazing tumble and scrapped knee from a scooter. 
Which resulted in IronMama carrying one nearly 5 year old on a hip whilst lean-pulling the toddler on the scooter for quite some distance.

I told T that if she kept her knee bent then she would turn into a flamingo.

Whenever T has fallen and banged something I always give her the biggest set of cuddles and love you could possible imagine but has this stopped the stiff upper lip brave gal she could have grown into?
Its a coin toss over which one you want them to become no half measures.

This year I started to tell her that she would have to start finding her own ways to deal with the hurt because if she stumbles at big school the teachers might not be able to do all the stuff that mummy does to make it better. She seems to be on board maybe she deal with it on the day, probably knowing her.

She said thank you for the carry to the car which made me melt a bit

Its cloudy but still warm might try for some gardening this afternoon
CM

Tuesday 26 July 2011

Huurah! We Can Play!

Play date done.

I decided to make an activity for the girls to do so I printed off the templates that feature in this film and cut some twigs got all the pencils and colours out.

This is a really nice tutorial, don't just think that it is for kids these would look lovely in any neat and tidy home!




The girls looked at the craft set up, lasted the time that it takes to get a pen lid off before running upstairs playing with everything and dressing up squealing.
They couldn't even chew at lunch they were so busy.

But I made one in rather loud colours not something that I would usually favour.



I realised when they were playing that Truly didn't want to get a particular toy down and share maybe I hadn't done enough pre play prep, so I freaked for a minute but actually it all worked out fine.
They took care of themselves because they already know each other well from preschool and I could just stand back and watch what they had learned to do over the past year which was play very nicely together.
G took P swimming which was great because although T did really well I think she probably would have had a melt down with P here.

This was our first play date with a child who's mother I wasn't already friends with and that's why I was nervous. T has been on a couple of play dates with older children so she clearly has taken on board the etiquette.
But I am still going to go off and have a panic attack about it all!

Yesterday I took these photos and I think they are great.





I have friends in the North who are having a new baby soon so I thought I might make a little something so I tried out a tiny toy for small hands.

 

This is really too small to make without cursing or giving myself an eye headache also the soft white pillowcase that I cut to make the body is too vintage and pulled apart when P put the ear in her mouth and gruesomely tore through it with her teeth.
Back to the drawing board for something more sturdy.

But in the mean time its jacket potato and salad for dinner.
And a peppermint tea to keep away the panic of today

CM

Monday 25 July 2011

Playdate Preperation

We have a PLAYDATE!
That makes T sound a bit difficult to be around and that no one wants to play with her.
Its not true at all.




Its me that is the problem.
I don't know what to do with other peoples children.
I am an only child and I freeze when it comes to interacting with 5 years olds or any one under 16 actually.
What happens if they are bored or they are completely different personality and it all falls apart.
Until now we have done all our playing off campus
But not tomorrow

So I am going to chill out and let it all unravel but before that happens its going to be activity prep, clean house, make a cake, get another ulcer.

It's going to be like getting ready for Christmas only condensed into twenty four hours.

Here we go!
CM

Saturday 23 July 2011

Friday and Saturday

We went for a day out at the Zoo/Playpark on Friday we were meant to go last Friday but were invited to somewhere that I thought we should go to instead. So yesterday we went to Drusilla's.

I love the colours of these so worn out and knackered mini attractions. The duck is a bin in the park the other stuff is en route to the car park.
P was as excited by the bin as she would have been if I had offered her ice cream she kept hugging the filthy thing.










If you look really closely at the left edge of the picture of the wooden dog rocker you will see hands and feet on the grass. Hands above feet, a full 180. That's P hitting the moving roundabout.
Now that's what you call a mama not paying attention

Animal wise, not much could keep my girls from running past the glass. Really there could have been cardboard cut outs they were that interested.





This on the other hand will be the set up we will have if my girls EVER convince me to have rodents as pets. By that I mean mice and hamsters. They had stairs and everything!
You could build different sets for them TV studio, imagine! hamster hairdressers!

If we get the class hamster for the weekend it's going to be in for a mini surprise.

T loves a penguin especially the surfing animated type. These kept her still for all of 30 seconds




I knew that owls weren't small but I didn't realise how big they were. This owl is the same size as I imagine a koala to be. HUGE.



I had a really good day but G struggled still not sure what set us off but pistols were drawn when we got back in the early evening, the white flags came out this afternoon.

I think I am pretty tired by it all and I discreetly lost it with the wicker basket that I bought with F**MH (a follower) on our first trip to the Braderie de Lille its the same basket that I blogged about having wood worm which explains why my foot went through it so easily.
Even so this basket got trapped on the outside of the Lille metro train whilst my body was on the inside and for some reason I couldn't let go of my purchase.
It must have taken a good 15 seconds for the double automated doors to make up its mind whether or not to leave the station and it did this by repeatedly opening and shutting the doors on my fore arm, basket still outside. I looked quizzed.
It was the longest 15 seconds of my life much to the hilarity of my traveling companion who couldn't look at me for hours afterwards without crying.
It was so hot.

Anyway I am laughing as I type that and I was laughing when I threw it in the big bin at the end of the street, it was a big basket.

I am off to have a bath and to think about those poor families in Oslo who must be broken this evening.

Have a nice rest of the weekend CM

Wednesday 20 July 2011

Home

So picked her up and it was all pretty fast so I had no time for hysterical tears but I couldn't speak to anyone other then to say thank you or I would have blubbed. I managed a hug though.
Was misty eyed rather.

Either way she came home wolfed her gingerbread man, downed her milk thanked me for the books and is playing with the balloon.
Despite the weather she has ditched her clothes in favour of a vest which is not unusual.

She is completely fine.



I am exhausted!
CM

Last Day at Preschool - Prior to Pick Up

I bought her three books as a present to say well done you did it you finished!!




 She is animal crazy and likes penguins more than ever at the moment.

Then I dug out some work and pictures that she has done over the past couple of years and there are also some photos so she can see how much she has grown.

I'll get her a balloon
Fish bowl
Park Layout
Digger
Pregnant Cats with Wings
Grumpy Aliens

I have taken the sausages out of the freezer ready for dinner and we might make some frozen yogurt too.
I am looking forward to picking her up I am going to have a medative couple of hours before I get her, not really to reflect but to brace myself for six weeks of us, together, no respite!

Getting take away sandwiches for lunch will clear away the toys in the lounge.
Ready for anything
CM

Tuesday 19 July 2011

Trip Round the Jardin









I finally hung a load out this morning as the weather was bright. The flora looked so lovely I am sure is wasn't past 7:30 so it was quiet too. By the time I got back down with a camera it didn't feel as dewey or I am not good enough to capture it on film or what ever you call digital.


This is going to be my ye olde oak tree one day will probably need a bigger pot. All this I planted myself and its great reward to see it do so well

The weather was so nice I asked G to look after P whilst I walked T to preschool so this could be the last time as I will probably take the car if it rains tomorrow. It was great we played all our usual games - don't tread on the cracks, shout CHOCOLATE CAKE under the viaduct, touch all the letter T's on route, race you to the door and my favourite run! jump! i love you!

Quite a lot of action for the ankle quite surprised I made it home.


Ready for sleep tonight have a funny crampy tummy, think that I have eaten too much raisin and nut mix this week.
Digestion is all over the place.

Better that than the brain which seems focused since Monday
CM