Hawthorne Park

Another park, this was Friday morning, we had to let someone into the Gala hut to get cones for staining gala, so after we had a cycle to Hawthorne Park. Its near the shop we ran and we used to come here a lot, its a really lovely park and it is another one that is good for little kids as well as big kids

Alex is in his element with his freedom to roam!

A a quiet sleepy afternoon for me!!

Great memory making xx

Another busy day

So being a happy content domestic goddess ended about 20 minutes after i posted last night. Here was me thinking i have been so busy lets sit down and blog while the kids are watching a bit of pre-bed wind down tv. So i popped my head round the door and asked if they could just pick up the toys they had out before bed and all hell broke loose.. can't even say what happened really, but  Molly was in tears and Ewan was shouting, downstairs looked like a disaster zone and Ali ended up in the kitchen eating and spilling cereal everywhere! still the calm was nice while it lasted.

Today though i knew was going to be busy, Fred was at nursery this morning, then i had booed them on a forest school at Stanah. So we cycled to my mums for a visit then on to collect Fred then on to Stanah. Fred refused to join in this week, but i will try him again as Molly loved it and while she was busy with that Fred and Ali played on the park. Its great there, just the right size for Alex and he enjoyed it

Stanah was so busy today, it was great to see it like that, Grandparents picnicking and holiday clubs, and groups of dog walkers, its such a lovely setting as well.

Afterwards we cycled home, at this point we had done over two hours of cycling, yes i hurt! I have had the bike trailer for over a week now and have used it for most days for at least an hour a time so i don't understand why its only today i hurt, its a weird pain above my knee caps, will have to google it, but i decided that as we had to go out again, this time to a birthday party at the YMCA's new bowling ally for one of Ewans friends, we would walk, ( bus there and walk back!)

Apart from a quick look, while looking for the loos on gala day i had not been in the YMCA Sports Centre since its Million pound re-vamp, strange really as i have spent hours their over the last 5 years watching the kids participate in various activity's, Judo, Gymnastics, but these all got stopped or moved to new venues when the work started and have not yet gone back, but to be honest a lot of them will not be able to go back as they have converted one of the sports halls into a Bowling ally and the other a skate park.

But it does look great and the bowling was glow in the dark. As i was knackerd from cycling i decided to treat the kids to tea out, to save going home and coming back.

So while we were waiting i decide to photograph the many faces of Fred!!!

Yes he is a character!!! that's putting it mildly!!!

Mollys just cool!

We walked home (limped home!) but a glass or two of bacardi and a hot tub were my carrot and goal at the end of another full day.

It is satisfying to see the kids flat out in bed sleeping, i know they have had a great day!

Now where to tomorrow????

Bye for now, my bed is calling me!!!

xxx

Domestic Goddess for the Day

The sun has been out today after a couple of non stop rainy days, yesterday wasn't to bad and i put my washing out in the morning with my fingers crossed as we would be out all day, only to have it rain just before i got home! typical, half an hour earlier and i would have had two loads of nice dry washing. So due to a large washing basket and another pile equally as big next to it, today, a glorious sunny day has had to be spent at home. Its not a major issue as we have only spent one other full day at home in the holidays so far and lets face it housework has to be done, even if it is on minimum levels in the holidays. Those of you with a few kids will understand the minimum level bit. Basically when the kids are at school i can have a generally clean and tidy house for a few precious hours a day, but weekends and when they are off,  well its another story, for example, i mop they kitchen floor they come in covered in sand from the sand pit and within 30 minutes that was a wasted task, so i act accordingly, i don't spend all day picking up there toys, i let them get on with it and if we have the paddling pool or sandpit out the floor doesn't get mopped that day, that type of thing really. everything gets done just not as well or as frequently and as we are out most days its not so bad.

 Today however i do feel like a domestic goddess!, ( Most of the time it just feels like drudgery!) i have cut the grass, front and back, weeded and trimmed the hedge, done five loads of washing, ironed four, tided downstairs and cleaned upstairs and made a yummy smelling tea! and still had time for starting Paul's Christmas Jumper, which is knitted on circulars which i have never done before! and working on a poncho for me! Plus we have sat outside and had the paddling pool out. So now the house is in an ok ish state i am ready for tomorrows outing, which will be a like ride to Stanah for the Forest School i have booked Fred and Molly on for the next 6 weeks. Unfortunately Ewan is to old, but i am sure we will find something to do.

Yesterday we went on a bike ride to my Mums and on the way we stopped at the duck pond. The first thing i heard from Fred was "Its a chicken!" no Fred its not, but to be honest wasn't sure what it was. Turns out to be a goose

Then last night we went out, all of us. We have done this a few times now, we go out to a place where its family orientated entertainment, the kids love it and to be honest so do we. We are lucky to live near Blackpool, that's geared towards this, so there are lots of things to do and even just a walk down the piers and a go in the arcades is good.

Okay so this next picture is a bot random, but we were in MacDonalds at the weekend and the cleaner came up and put a cone right in between us!! yes we were sat at the same table so it just made us laugh so much!!! Maybe we were getting a bit close!

Enough for now, just going to clean the kitchen, now they have finished tea, then off to bed for them and some knitting for me xx

A couple of Fairy's

I am totally in love with our new spa!!! Paul and i have just had a long soak till it has gone dark! we deserve it though after a long day at Staining and Normoss Gala, which is the last one of the season. Oh no! what will we do with our weekends now!  Our last 8 Saturdays have been taken up with galas, not that we are complaining as we love going o them and it has been nice that Paul has had every other weekend off so he come too.

For this last gala some of the committee and some of the parents decided to dress up and enter as a group of Fairy's. I don't have that many pictures as i forgot to charge my phone and it went off after a few minutes, but everyone looked great, we even had some male fairy's, including my Paul....
Well, lets go back a week  to the BBQ " we have decided to all dress as fairy's" i say " i m not dressing as a fairy, a bottle of fairy maybe.." says Paul"ok that sounds good" me. So after a few chats, i think hold on , get someone else to do it and ......

This is what we ended up with " A couple of Fairy's"

I made the basic tube costume and Paul stayed up till 1.30am to paint them and make the "lids". I love it they look great.

Molly won first dressed as a fairy for key stage 1

Fred came 1st for pre school

and thats retired Queen Caitlin

Not the most flattering pic of mt taken by Ewan, but i dressed as a fairy

When the parade started the car with the VIPS wouldn't start, so the "Pauls" asked if they needed a push... i got my camera ready for it.. and that's when the battery died!!!!!

It was a great day unfortunately the Fairy's came second to the WI so we think it was a fix ... of course!

this was the last gala of the season, after we went on the fair, then out for a meal.

Later on Paul and i hopped it the hot tub till after it went dark, which was the perfect ending the an amazing day

Bye for now xxx

First day of the Summer Holidays!

Most people seem to be dreading the summer holidays, but me, i have been looking forward to it. Its not just the not having to get ready and dash to school in the morning because we get up early anyway. I love planning little days out and going to fun places and by fun i don't mean they have to cost a lot of money. most of our favorite places are free!

So yesterday when the kids were finishing early for the holidays i felt super excited and ready for it. Now the kids are getting that bit older we can do so much together, like we love messing round and doing party dancing after tea, or Molly and i spend time doing our hair and nails etc or Ewan and me watch documentary's and have deep discussions about history or we all love making things and i will organize crafts for the two older ones when the littleys go to bed or that we can play board games without me having to try to lose. Its strange really as i always dread they day that they are all at school and i have no pram and no baby's to look after, but now some are starting to get more independent, that's good too. Its hard really to decide when is the right time to stop having babies and move on to the next stage.

So today is the first day of the holidays, and my first task was to get Molly riding her bike without stabilizers, you might remember we tried this a while ago, but she just cried all the way through. This time was different thought as i had just bought a bike trailer for the two little ones. The idea came a few weeks ago when for some unknown reason i started taking bike rides, but only on the weekend when Paul was not working so he could look after the baby's. Sometimes i went on my own and sometimes with Ewan. I really  enjoyed it and its a lot quicker than walking. Also i am sure its helping my weight loss, as after a few stagnant months i am back on the diet train and doing  quiet well. Its not doing my back/hip good though and i have been back to the doctor's a couple of times and that's an on going issue, but i have never let the pain stop me and always just pushed through it.  Anyway Molly got the hang of it within  minutes (amazing what she can do when she wants too!) so this afternoon when had our first ride to Cleveleys and i have to say she did really well and get there and on the way back you would have thought she had been cycling for years, she was that good.

Apart from the last pictures, these were taken the day before when the trailer arrived and i had a go of it and we visited my mum and the ducks.

This was so cute, they fell asleep on each other, as i took the pic Ali opened his eyes

This is us just arrived home after our first outing of the holidays!

Tomorrow is a visit to sign up  for the summer reading challenge at the library and then costume making for Staining and Normoss Gala on Saturday 

Till next time xx

Tram Sunday & Hot Tub Heaven

Sunday, after a really lazy morning and then taking forever to get out of the house, (getting four kids ready to go anywhere can be a nightmare sometimes!) we finally managed to get to Tram Sunday. For those who don't know Tram Sunday is an annual event that is for vintage vehicles, trams, buses, cars etc, but over the years they have incorporated lots of stalls and entertainment. Its a great day out. Its things like this that mark the year out for us, different events that we go to every year, its nice really to have these traditions. Recently i saw an advert for the annual Fireworks Championships that are held every year in Blackpool in September and immediately i felt a little shiver of anticipation, for a brief moment i could smell the autumn air and feel that chill in the air as we sit to watch them. I love all the seasons for various reasons and its usually the events i look forward to.

Sooo anyway Tram Sunday, this year was better than previous years and they had a company called Left Coast provide entertainment, well performance art is what you would call it, they had an amazing parade of what can only be described as alternative instruments.. for example a milk van covered in milk bottles and a musician playing them and making music.

A VW camper van, yes we would love one, but the van we have is the same in New Zealand as what a vw is to us in uk, that's a google fact for you!  so we are going to "pimp it up" at some point so its a proper day camper, like this. I took a pic of the inside ( didn't come out well), it was all quite vintage, floral and polka dot.

You can't really see but Molly has what we call " her disco" clothes on. Molly and i decided that we would wear what makes us happy on our Sunday out, so i wore a Collectif  dress with a full circle skirt, not a great idea when it was quite windy, so i had to walk round holding my skirt down!

I was glad to get home after walking round for hours and we are lucky as we have a new addition to our garden.....

Yay.. a Hot Tub Spa

Even Paul is enjoying it

Yes many happy nights will be spent in our tub now!

The kids also loving it

Molly, takes after me and is happy it sit in it for hours. I have been in it every evening since we got it ( apart from tonight, as i have over chlorinated it and will have to wait till tomorrow).

That all for now x