Holidays. #WotW

This week my Word of the Week is:

I have had a lovely week.....Stu has been off work, using his holidays up before the end of the month and the new working year starts. As much as he has been here I hardly saw him for the first part of the week. He was busy decorating Becky's bedroom. I have a whole blog post next week about it but she loves it and I am struggling to get her out of her bedroom now....Eek. 

We are also on the countdown to the Easter holidays. My girls start their holidays a week today and we are ready for the break from school....We don't have much planned but I am sure we will find plenty to do. I have heard it is supposed to be the hottest Easter ever....Hooray! I think it might be. As I am writing this it is grey and it keeps raining but it seems so warm....

Next week is a busy week at school for Ellie.....Well it starts today. She is playing her trombone in a music festival and singing in the choir today. There are awards and trophies to be won. Then next week we have the Easter concert, her parents evening, a trip to a church, she's making Easter bonnets and who knows what else. Poor Becky doesn't have much planned at school....It really is more fun at primary school when it comes to special occasions.

In other news.....

We were supposed to be at the hospital next week for the girls heart check up....I was meant to rearrange it again. They do insist on sending us appointments for 9am which would be fine but it takes us at least two hours to get there which would mean leaving the house at 7am and being up for about 5am. No, no, no. They were quick to send new appointments out....The next one they have with 2 appointments on the same day is the middle of August. Eek! At least the girls won't have to miss any school but it just goes to show how common heart problems are in children....

Today we are getting new gas & electric meters fitted.....I don't know if I've mentioned it but our gas meter is broken. It turns out it has been stuck on the same numbers since August. Eek! We only realised this when we got the winter bill and we were only charged twenty something pounds for 3 months....I felt a right wally ringing up saying "I don't think you are charging me enough". lol We're also getting a fancy new smart meter. Stu can deal with the engineer....I'm going to meet my friends for a catch up so I can stay out of the way... hehehe

What I loved in March.

I know there's a couple of days left in March but if I don't write and post this it will be the middle of next week before I do....Hmmf.

I thought February flew over but March seems to have gone even faster.....

Imperial Leather Cherry Bakewell bath products.

I saw the Shower Cream a few weeks ago in Tesco and had to give it a try....We are already onto our second bottle. My girls and I love it....At the weekend I noticed the bath soak and had to try that too! They both smell just like Cherry Bakewell Tarts. Now we come out of the bath and shower craving something sweet to eat.

Sunshine.

It hasn't been a bad month weather wise. There was some gloomy, wet days and we had a bit of hailstones but for the most part the sun has been shining....

I have been so pleased to get the washing on the line and the girls have been able to get outside more to play....At the weekend when they were playing out they came back in and got changed into summer tops it was that warm. 

Light Bulbs.

This may seem a strange love but I have found the best light bulbs. Our house seems to hate normal glass light bulbs....They last a month before they blow. 

Stu was in Wilko's and came across their 10w LED Classic daylight dimmable light bulb. At £5 for one they seem a little expensive but they are amazing and are also said to last 25 years!! They are so bright. It took me a couple of days to get used to it.

Broadchurch. Series 3.

On a Tuesday morning I can be found sat shouting at the TV when I catch up with Broadchurch. (I watch The Walking Dead on a Monday evening)

I am not usually into crime drama's but I really like this TV show....Everyone seems like a suspect but I don't think it's the taxi driver. lol That is too obvious. It's great to see familiar faces from the previous series. I will be sad to see it end.

Homework. 

Becky has had a lot over the past month....I think the school is preparing her for when she starts her GCSE's later this year.....I have blogged about her efforts and I am really enjoying helping her research and complete it.

She has wrote essays, done mindmaps, made tweets as characters from An Inspector Calls and was rewarded for her efforts with a homework pass which means if she doesn't like the look of a homework task, she can skip it!

What have you loved over the past month?

Life on the farm....The Vehicles.

This is the second post to the series I am doing about the fun I had as a child when living on a farm....You can my first post about moving to the farm.....

It may seem strange me writing about the vehicles that were on the farm considering I was legally too young to drive any of them but I did....

The first thing I remember driving was my dads Fergie tractor when I was about 3 or 4 which looked a lot like this....Just a little more rusted....I of course I was sat on his knee and just steering but that was the start of it....

Over the years on the farm I drove all sorts. JCB's with my brother in the bucket at the front.....I think my Grandad nearly had a fit when he saw my brother in the bucket on the front up in the air....I don't think my mother ever did which is probably for the best.....

My brother and I went to the village school which was about a mile away and it was tiny....Coming from a big town school it was so different....In my year group there was about 8 of us.....My class was actually a mixture of 3 year groups. 

People were brought in from the surrounding villages by bus and I remember on a snowy day the car and van we had just couldn't get through all the snow and the school was still open because the main roads the buses took had been gritted.....Obviously the little country lane which led to our house hadn't been so it so my dad took us in the dumper truck just like the one pictured....Yes my brother and I sat in the front....Fun times!

My dad got us a petrol powered go-cart....He made a track in the paddock with traffic cones and we had a fantastic time going round and round.....We would have 4 laps each and I had, had an extra lap....I just wouldn't stop....The rebel in me....When my brother had a go after the 2nd lap my dad started waving him down to stop.....After my extra lap he had no intention of stopping.....Problem was the engine had caught fire.....Oops! My dad did catch him and nothing serious happened....It's scary to think about it now but at the time it was hilarious!

The go-cart never worked again but we found a new use for it.....The dumper truck came in very handy....My brother and I were allowed to drive it around the farm.....Sometimes around the fields just whizzing about.....We had a great idea....We tied the go-cart to the back.....It was fantastic fun especially if the ground was wet....We would be skidding all over.... 

I remember one day someone phoned my dad and said they had seen my brother on the dumper truck driving past their farm about a mile away.....He had gone to buy petrol from the garage for one of the motorbikes....My dad found him on his way back....He was about 9 at the time and knew fine well he was in the wrong....Oops! He was banned from the dumper for a long time and the motorbikes....Eek!

I learned all about Spark plugs and how to change them thanks to the motorbikes we had.....My brother and I may have fallen off a few times but there was no broken bones or major injuries....Helmets were always worn....We honestly wouldn't go that fast.....

We ended up with a moped at one point just like this one but a baby blue colour and a lot more battered....

It could actually carry my brother, my friend and I as well as a whole pile of other things we needed to transport....We had to position ourselves just right.....Heaviest at the front and start off slowly or it would tip.....lol It was actually ridiculous the amount of things we used to carry on it....It was our vehicle of choice on the farm....

My parents weren't reckless or neglectful.....We were brought up with the vehicles and knew what was dangerous and what wasn't. My brother and I were mostly sensible. I think I actually had more injuries from falling off horses than from any of the vehicles I drove/rode....

Fred's Box - Review!

Over the past month or so I have seen various bloggers reviewing a fab subscription box called Fred's Box. We have been sent one to review too! Ellie my 9 year old was very excited about this....

Inside the box you will find different minifigures including anything from TV characters, to Superheroes and even Santa or the Easter Bunny.....

We were sent a girls medium Fred's box which costs £11.50. They are delivered via Royal Mail and the boxes are small enough to fit through the letterbox.....

A Medium Fred's Box gives you 6 custom made minifigures which are compatible with all leading brands of building blocks.

There were a lot of ohh and ahh's when Ellie opened the box. She of course noticed Ariel and Flounder first.....She was very impressed.

I couldn't have asked for a better box.....Ellie loves mermaids and these were just adorable. She has been playing with the figures since we received them and it's true they are compatible with the leading brands of building blocks. (Lego. hehehe)

Fred's box offers 9 different size boxes to cater for all budgets: Small Fred's Box contains 2 minifigures, Standard Fred's Box contains 4 minifigures, Medium Fred's Box contains 6 minifigures, Large Fred's Box contains 10 minifigures and Party Fred's Box contains 15 minifigures.

The prices start from £4.85 for the small box and go up to £25.00 for the large twins box including 20 custom made minifigures....

You can pay upfront for all boxes or pay via Paypal for a subscription order.....Delivery is free for all UK orders and if ordering from abroad you can email for a quote on delivery costs....

These minifigures are not suitable for children under the age of 3 due to small parts.....I have a feeling my fella would love a box of his own....I did notice Star wars and Batman minifigures on the Fred's box website.....

With Easter coming up this would make such a great gift and the Party box would be perfect for an Easter egg hunt.

What I found lovely was they have a Happy Customer Reward System....If you send a photo of either your children or you with your Fred's Box every other month they will chose their favourite photo and will send you either 4 minifigures in your next subscription box or 2 minifigures if your subscription has ended. You can either email us your photo or tag us on social media.

At the moment Ellie is filling up a reward chart and I think when it is filled I will be paying for and ordering another box....

We were sent a Fred's box free of charge in exchange for our honest review....This is it!

Our Weekly Meal Plan!! - #mealplanningmonday

Last weeks meal plan went pretty well until it got to the weekend.....We decided to get pizza from Domino's on Saturday night as a treat....For Mothers day I had a McDonalds breakfast. A bacon roll and pancakes!

 That saw me through until tea time and then I had the leftover pizza....Not quite a fancy Mother's day meal but I was very happy with it! 

I was spoilt rotten yesterday....The girls bought me some very thoughtful, useful gifts including a chalkboard which will help me keep on track with the meal planning.

Stu is off work this week....He had a week left of holidays to take before the end of March so he has just managed to fit it in before April begins....Stu will be helping with the cooking this week which will be great!

This week on the menu we have:

Monday - Sausage sandwiches....

Tuesday - A pork dinner with mash & veg....

Wednesday - Tuna pasta salad....

Thursday - Corned beef pie, mash & baked beans....

Friday - Pizza....

Saturday - American fried chicken & fries....

Sunday - Cottage pie....

What are you eating this week?

Rewarded for their hard work. #MySundayPhoto

I usually only post one photo for my, My Sunday Photo post but this week I couldn't post one photo without the other....My girls always try hard at school but over the last month they have been really knuckling down.....I am so proud of them.

Ellie got speller of the week and was rewarded with a dictionary. 

Becky got a homework pass for the homework that she did a week or so ago. Writing tweets as a character from an Inspector calls.

A photo everyday for a year - Week 13 #Project365

Another week another Project 365 post....A photo for everyday. I didn't think I had taken many photos this week but looking through my phone I had taken way more than I thought....

77/365 - 18th March

I suck at french plaits....

78/365 - 19th March

Ice creams from the Ice-cream van.

79/365 - 20th March

I have finally found a lightbulb which actually lights our living room up! Hooray!

80/365 - 21st March

The last of the Mother's day cake from The Co-Op.

81/365 - 22nd March

Ellie doing her reading after school.

82/365 - 23rd March

I got the girls their red noses....Becky was very happy with her's....

83/365 - 24th March

Jaffa Cake ice cream is a thing! Of course I had to order some with the shopping.

Two trips to the dentist. #WotW

This week my Word of the Week is:

We have had a quiet week....Again just plodding along with life. We have been thinking about teeth a lot though and there has been a lot of extra brushing.

Earlier this week Becky went for a check up on her braces. She's had them on since September 2015 so now every appointment seems to be getting closer to her having them removed....

Last time she was at the dentist's the man said she may get them off at her next appointment which was on Tuesday.....She was very excited about this. She ended up seeing someone different and the woman said she at at least another 3 months with them.....Ugh. I am not saying the man isn't doing his job properly but the woman seems like more of a perfectionist.

Becky was very disappointed....For the last year and half or so she Becky has been brilliant making sure to avoid foods she shouldn't eat like popcorn and chewing gum. Now she just want's to bite down onto a full apple instead of having to chop it in bits.....

Her teeth do look amazing compared to what they were.....I really hope for her that the braces come off at the next appointment....

Yesterday we were at our normal dentist's for the regular 6 month check up....I do love our dentist. A few years ago when he was new he wasn't so good with kids but now he is brilliant....My girls love going to see him for their chats and I find it hard not to laugh all the way through the appointment.

Becky was up first and her teeth are looking amazing....The dentist can't wait to get to them when the braces are removed and give them a polish. He doesn't mean they are dirty she is doing very well with the brushing but they will just need an extra clean....

Ellie was up next and her teeth are fine....She could do with brushing more but the dentist did notice the left hand side was perfect and the right not so good.....My theory is by the time she gets to the right hand side she loses interest....So the dentist gave her a lesson in brushing by giving her one of the purple dying tablets to chew on....Her face when she saw her purple teeth was hilarious. She showed the dentist how she brushed and she did pretty well. She only needed a couple of pointers....

While we were there he asked if she had recently lost a baby tooth....I said no. Ellie said yes, she forgot. She lost one at school on Wednesday.....I can't believe she forgot. She is usually so excited about the tooth fairy visiting. Hopefully this morning the tooth fairy will have left some money. hehehe

They are both booked in for their next appointment in 6 months and Becky gets to have an extra one as soon as her braces are off. Hooray. hehehe

A girl and her Monkey....

Ellie my 9 year old has a fantastic memory for dates and she mentioned that a couple of weeks ago it has been a year since she got her Monkey.....

In case you didn't know Monkey is Ellie's favourite toy ever.....Looking at him you might think he doesn't look like a monkey. You're right, he isn't. He's a lion....lol

When we were looking around the charity shops last year Ellie spotted a monkey she wanted. As it was the first of the many charity shops on our high street we said wait and see if there's anything else you want in any of the other shops. She didn't see anything else and when we went back to buy the monkey he had gone and there was a lion in his place.....She bought that and named him Monkey.

Since that day Monkey has slept with Ellie every night, has been there in all the important moments in her life over the last year like birthdays and Christmasses and he really is part of the family now.....

Monkey has been on most of the days out we have had....To the park, beach, shopping and he even rode in the limo when we went to see Disney on Ice. Of course he met Anna and Elsa too!

Monkey has been bought Halloween outfits, Christmas outfits and presents and we buy banana things especially for him....We even go shopping in charity shops for every day outfits....Stu and I have often said we must be mad treating Monkey like he is a real person to but Ellie he is.....

So far we have never lost Monkey....We have had moments where he went missing for a short period but I really hope that day never comes....I think Ellie would be lost without Monkey....Be assured if you can't see Monkey in a photo he is nearby....hehehe

Now that it's a year since we've had Monkey and he is such a big part of our family Ellie want's to have a birthday party for him....I said we will see....lol

Our Beauty and the Beast Wishlist....

My girls and I are quite keen to see the new Beauty and the Beast film which has recently hit the cinemas....During half term we went for a day out to Newcastle and ended up in the Disney Store....

We were quite taken with all the Beauty and the Beast merchandise. There was something for everyone of all ages......I wanted it all!

Beauty And The Beast Ladies' Grey Sweatshirt - £24.99

Beauty and the Beast Journal - £14.99

Beauty and the Beast Film Mug - £9.99

English Ladies Co. Bone China Cogsworth Figure, Beauty And The Beast - £75.00

Beauty And The Beast Reusable Shopper Bag - £3.00

Arribas Glass Collection, Beauty and the Beast Glass Dome Ornament - £32.00

Beauty and the Beast Water Bottle - £8.99

Belle Costume Shoes For Kids - £17.99

Belle and Gaston Doll Set, Beauty and the Beast Film Collection - £55.99

Belle Tote Bag - £9.99

Beauty And The Beast Figurine Set - £12.99

Beast Medium Soft Toy - £23.99

Belle Premium Gold Costume Dress For Kids - £40.99

Is there anything you fancy? Are you planning on seeing Beauty and the Beast or have you already?

Ten Ways I Am Rocking Motherhood!

The lovely Louise at Little Hearts, Big Love tagged me in the Why I’m Rocking Motherhood tag way back in January....I am so late with this tag.

I often feel like I am not doing a good enough job at this parenting lark.....Then I look at my kids and think hang on. I am a good mother.....

Rocking Motherhood is a fabulous tag created by Pat at White Camellias. It’s all about finding and sharing ten ways in which we have this crazy journey called parenthood nailed and kicking mummy guilt well and truly up the backside.

#1. I am cool!

I can dab. I can bottle flip. I know how to use Snapchat. I think I am doing well at keeping up with the latest teenage trends....My teen thinks I am so cool when she comes home talking about the latest "in thing" and I know all about it.....I bluff my way through it mostly. It's a good job I watch all the cool kids on YouTube or I wouldn't have a clue. lol

#2. I help with homework even when I don't understand it.

Yes my girls homework usually baffles me.....I would like to say it is Becky's my teen's homework that confuses me but no it's Ellie's my 9 year old's.....She brings home maths homework every Friday. I can work out the answer but she has to show the working out and they do it differently to what I was taught.....

#3. My girls love Music.

I have brought my girls to love all types of music.....They love all styles of music. Ellie is a huge fan of musicals, Irish folk music and Katy Perry and Becky loves a bit of Queen, Ed Sheeran and Kylie! I honestly think Ellie knows more songs than I did when I was her age....

#4. I have open chats with my girls.

My girls and I can talk about anything and we do.....Becky my teen came home from school last week and was talking about homosexuality....We had a good chat about that. Nothing is out of bounds. When the kids want to know something I do my best to answer them honestly.

#5. I make my girls help around the house.

It may seem mean that my girls have chores to do but as I child I didn't. I had my mother do everything for me and I feel like she shouldn't have.....My girls are learning life skills. They are learning to wash dishes, tidy their rooms, use the washing machine, cook and look after themselves....

#6. I spoil them.

It may not seem like a good thing but I don't do it all the time.....My girls don't get random toys and gifts throughout the year but when it comes to their birthday's and Christmas they do. I go all out and buy them as much as I can and so much of what they have asked for. That does not include an iPhone for my teen though. We will not be going over to the darkside. hehehe

#7. I mop up after them when they are sick.

I have a huge aversion to vomit. Most people do but when I see my girls vomit I vomit too....I gag when I see them being sick and in the past they have been brilliant and used the sick bowl and I have been the one who has vomited on the floor just so I can stay with them.....

#8 I do messy play.

I do crafts, baking, painting and things which involve a mess because I know my girls will love it and I know it's good for them.....I grin and bear it. I hate mess. When the normal amount of mess is created Ellie will go and and create even more mess. Grr! 

#9 I will fight for my girls.

We have had issues with bullying, school and other things.....I will never stop fighting for my girls. I will always be in their corner. I will go crazy mama bear on you if anyone messes with them.

#10. I love them.

I will love my girls no matter what.....I may not like them all of the time like when they are being naughty but I will never stop loving them.

How are you rocking motherhood?

Our Weekly Meal Plan!! - #mealplanningmonday

Some weeks our meal plans go great....Some weeks we swap and few meals around or miss a few then we have last week which was a complete disaster....lol

We ate Monday's and on Tuesday I had more time than I thought I did so I made a shepherds pie which wasn't on the plan. On Wednesday we didn't have the sausage casserole. Ellie was over tired from being up late at the school production of Joseph and just wanted something quick. We all felt the same and Thursday there was no baked bean lasagne....By the time I thought about cooking it, it was a little too late....The pizza went to plan on Friday only I had it for lunch....lol The kids had it for tea. On Saturday we had Prawn cocktail salad and I forgot to order the pork for yesterday and ordered chicken instead. Doh! lol

I'm hoping this week goes more to plan....I am giving the baked bean lasagne another try and I'm making it earlier in the week while I'm feeling more productive....

This week on the menu we have:

Monday - Chicken fried rice....

Tuesday - Baked bean lasagne....

Wednesday - Ham salad....

Thursday - Hawaiian style Couscous....

Friday - Pizza....

Saturday - Slow Cooker Donner Kebabs....

Sunday - Chicken casserole, mash and veg....

What are you eating this week?

I can't see these lasting until Easter. #MySundayPhoto

A photo everyday for a year - Week 11 #Project365

This past week has been a good one....We went to see my youngest perform in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, I had a few fab deliveries and our boiler broke and then was fixed within 24 hours.....Phew!

70/365 - 11th March

Homework.

71/365 - 12th March

Ellie and Monkey.

72/365 - 13th March

More homework for my teen. She wrote tweets about An Inspector Calls.

73/365 - 14th March

We went to see the school production on Joseph.

74/365 - 15th March

The boiler was fixed and we had the gas safety check too....The man checking the gas fire always jokes that the only time we switch it on is for the safety check. He's right.

75/365 - 16th March

Baylis & Harding goodies for Mother's Day which I reviewed.

76/365 - 17th March

I was sent a lovely cake from The Co-op. It arrived a bit squished but cake is cake and it still tasted good!