Another sign that spring is just around the corner. #MySundayPhoto

I have noticed so many signs of spring over the last week or so. It's warmer, sunnier, daffodils are growing in my garden, I've got clothes out on the line to dry, every day, the clothes airers have been put away hopefully until October time and when we went for a walk we saw some little lambs!

Week 8 of #Project365. 20th - 26th February. A photo every day for a year!

We have had a good week. I wasn't excited about the governments announcement, the roadmap but I am coming around to the idea now that the kids are getting excited about going back to school and college. Ellie has her first lateral flow test next week, preparing for the return to school. I haven't told her yet, I don't want her worrying all weekend. It's later in the week so we have plenty of time for her to come around to the idea. She really doesn't want the test but at the same times knows she should. I think once she's at school to have the test she will be fine.

The sun has been shining lots and it has felt like spring. We have been out in the garden clearing and digging it getting ready to plant things. I love how the sun shining puts me into such a good mood.

Now for a photo everyday!

51/365 - 20th February

Takeaway! Yum, yum! There was leftovers to eat on Sunday too.

52/365 - 21st February

The gardening supplies that I ordered arrived. 

53/365 - 22nd February

Back to the home learning after half term. It wasn't that bad. We finally have got into the swing of things and then Boris announces the kids are going back to school.

54/365 - 23rd February

Design and Technology work to do for Ellie. She is loving the festival project and this weeks work was to design some merchandise.

55/365 - 24th February

It was a day where I needed an extra coffee thanks to being woken up early by the birds.

56/365 - 25th February

I cleared some of the garden and dug it up. There is still plenty of work to do out there which will keep me busy for the next couple of weeks.

57/365 - 26th February

I planted some tomato seeds. I am keeping them inside at the moment.

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This week my Word of the Week is: Plans! #WotW

This week my Word of the Week is:

So on Monday Boris announced the government’s roadmap to ease lockdown restrictions. I want to get excited about the plans but my thinking is that the kids will go back to school and cases will rise again and all the dates will be pushed back. I am not holding out hope of seeing family and friends anytime soon. 

Ellie's school are in full planning mode and said testing will begin next week before they actually go back then do more tests after they have returned on the 8th of March. Eek! Ellie is less than happy about this. At the moment she is saying she's not having it done but I am sure when she see's everyone else getting a test she will be fine with it. I hope anyway. 

We also heard the news about the kids all having to wear masks all day and that is going to be interesting for Ellie. She is deaf in one ear and if there is a lot of background noise she struggles to hear and does rely on lipreading to a point. If everyone has a mask on I think she is going to struggle but I know how helpful the Special Educational Needs woman is. I am sure she will do all she can to make sure Ellie isn't struggling that much.

The plan is that the kids will be in the same classroom for all their lessons and the teachers will move around the school which is better than the kids moving from class to class. The school also said because the kids have their masks on all day they are shortening the lessons and giving the kids and extra 10 minutes between lessons to go outside and get some fresh air. I think this is such a great idea, I just hope the kids don't take the mick and end up late back to lessons and ruin it for everyone. 

I feel better about this return to school than I did about the return in September. I feel that the school are doing more to keep the kids safe. I am of course still going to worry but I don't think I will be as stressed because at least I won't have home learning to help with. hehehe

Becky hasn't heard much about her return to college. All she knows is that she will be returning later than the schools. She can't wait though, she is looking forward to seeing her friends and getting out of the house. Her and her girlfriend are already making plans about when they can see each other. I have said we'll see. Technically they could see each other on the 8th of March at the park but they have decided against that to see what happens which I think is really sensible and mature of them. They are going to wait until at least the 29th of March when "A" can come here and they can meet in our garden.

I have been making plans about what we're going to do with the garden this year. I am no gardening expert but have started planning. I made an order of seeds and a few gardening bits from Wilko's and it was delivered during the week. This year we're growing tomatoes and strawberries again and we're going to try carrots, pumpkins, mint and cucumbers too. I made a start on clearing the weeds and the digging yesterday and got about a 3rd done. I stopped because my arms felt like jelly. It was a bit of a shock to my body doing some physical work after having the winter not doing much at all.

We of course have no plans for the weekend apart from watching TV, playing on computers and eating yummy food. We fancied another Chinese takeaway but takeout 3 weeks in a row is not good for us or our bank balance so we're having a fakeaway. Chinese food is ordered from Iceland and I can't wait for it!

New recipes from Fruit Bowl by Theo Michaels - Chimichangas!

I am always on the hunt for new meals to feed my family. We sometimes get stuck in a rut and eat the same sort of things week in and week out.

Leading UK children’s fruit snacking company Fruit Bowl, has partnered with BBC’s MasterChef semi finalist and cookbook author Theo Michaels to create 5 new family friendly, easy peasy recipes which you can see over on the Fruit Bowl website. Designed by Theo using his own parenting experience and specifically designed with little tummies in mind, provides children with at least two of their five a day every day.

Chimichangas!

All children love these! Chimichangas are crispy burritos, meaning you can add whatever you like to this and still end up with a crispy tortilla packed with tasty goodness! These are chicken Chimichangas but you can use fish, large roasted vegetables like cauliflower or mushrooms for a vegetarian version, or even mincemeat.

Recipe Information:

Serves: 4.

Prep time: 20 minutes.

Cook time: 18 minutes.

Difficulty: Easy.

Equipment:

Pre-heated oven 200FAN/220c

Hot Grill

Baking Tray

Ingredients:

15ml olive oil

400g chicken breast, sliced thin

1 yellow bell pepper, sliced

1 tbsp ground cumin

1 tbsp smoked paprika

A quarter of a white cabbage, shredded

150g spinach

1 tin black beans drained, rinsed

2 tbsp ketchup

150g cheddar cheese, grated

2 tbsp butter, melted

4 large tortillas

Recipe Steps:

Dust the chicken with the spices, salt, pepper and half the olive oil.

Lay the seasoned chicken and sliced pepper onto a parchment lined baking tray in one layer.

Bake the chicken and peppers in a pre-heated oven for about 10 minutes, or until chicken is cooked then remove.

Meanwhile, drain and rinse black beans and stir through the ketchup.

Mix together the shredded cabbage and spinach.

Assemble chimichangas; line a tortilla with a quarter of the beans, chicken pieces, peppers, spinach and cabbage and finally a generous portion of grated cheese.

Fold over half the tortilla, then fold each side and roll to create a sealed package; lay tortilla seal side down onto baking tray. Repeat for all four tortillas.

Brush with melted butter and place under a hot grill for a few minutes each side until golden and serve!

Recipe created for the Fruit Bowl #5in5Challenge by Theo Michaels in partnership with FiveDinners.

(Ad - Gifted) Beautiful Affirmation Cards from Natalie Trice!

We all need a bit of positivity in our lives at the moment and today I am sharing some Beautiful Affirmation Cards created by life coach, Natalie Trice, aka The Visibility Duchess which are perfect for giving you a bit of a boost and some positivity in your life!

After reading Untamed by Glennon Doyle, Natalie Trice made a series of life changing decisions that, months on, continue to cause ripple effects. Natalie listened to the New York bestseller on her walks during lockdown two, and the Devon based business and career coach today launched a set of positive affirmation cards on her Visibility Store. Created with her sister, The Hambridge Artist, each card shows a powerful, inspiring message as well as a striking, bespoke image of the cheetah that features so strongly in Doyle's writing. 

The Visibility Duchess deck comes with 31 beautifully illustrated, confidence boosting affirmations that Natalie hopes people will use to help encourage a positive mindset for the day ahead, something that can be tricky to muster at the moment but it is possible. 

Two blank cards have been added for personal, thoughtful affirmations to be added so that further calm, clarity, and visibility can come into the lives of those who use the cards.  The cards come in a smooth satin finish, with beautiful illustrations, and there are both boxed, and unboxed options available. 

These really are beautiful cards and reading through them I found myself smiling and feeling like I could take on the world. I didn't get to keep them for long because my 13 year old thought she needed them in her life and I was happy for her to take them. She now has them dotted around her bedroom soaking the positivity in!

The cards are available to buy now from the Natalie Trice website for only £9.99 and I think they would make a lovely treat for yourself a fantastic gift for someone who needs a little positivity in their life. There are also prints, mugs, and clothing all in the pipeline for The Visibility Duchess which I will be keeping an eye out for.

I was sent the Visibility Affirmation Cards free of charge in exchange for this blog post.

Why I want my girls to learn to drive.

Becky has been waiting to learn to drive for what seems like forever but it's only a year and about 5 months since she turned 17. She faffed around getting her photos signed for her provisional licence and then it was put on the back burner when the first lockdown happened. When Becky was nearly 18 she needed some photo ID to take the money out of her Child Trust Fund. Becky finally got her provisional licence just before her 18th birthday and withdrew the money from her Child Trust Fund and that is sat in her bank waiting to start driving lessons. Obviously at the moment driving lessons are not possible until the lockdown restrictions are lifted but she is itching to get started.

Over the years Becky has realised how important it is to learn to drive. Neither Stu or I drive and because of that we miss out on so much. Public transport can only get us so far and takes such a long time compared to taking a trip in a car. Where we live is pretty rural compared to when we lived in Northumberland. There is one bus into Scunthorpe or one going the other way to Hull every half hour and even the simplest trips out to places like McDonalds or a big supermarket takes 2 buses. We can't just have an unplanned day out as we have to rely on public transport and it really has been no fun during lockdown. I certainly haven't fancied getting on a bus with goodness knows who coughing all over me.

One of my biggest regrets in life is not passing my driving test. As a child I lived on a farm and drove tractors, dumper trucks and motorbikes so it's not like I didn't know the basics. My dad bought me a car when I was 17 and I drove lots with my dad supervising but I just didn't have the confidence. If there were no other cars on the road I would have been fine but I don't think that was ever going to happen.

When I met Stu he didn't drive but did have some lessons then the girls got diagnosed with their heart problems and all the spare money went on bus fares too and from the hospital. He was going to start his lessons again then we moved house in Northumberland and that ate up all our savings. Then something else has came up over and over again. I'm not just making excuses, we just don't have the money.

I don't think I will ever learn to drive. I get road rage just sitting in a passenger seat of a car. I swear some people just think indicators are there for decoration. I was crossing the road the other day with the girls and I got ranty about a car which slowed right down when we were waiting to cross. He wasn't going fast to start with but slowed to a snails pace, I'm sure he was just being over cautious but we had to stand there for longer. Ellie turned to me and said calm down, imagine if you were driving, you'd have total road rage! Oops. lol

Becky has realised that she needs to drive and I am so glad about that. At the moment all she is thinking about is driving to see her girlfriend, shopping trips and going on road trips but I know in the long run it will make her life easier. Getting to and from college and then in a couple of years to work and back. We live in a small town and jobs are limited and I don't think there will be any for Becky when she finishes college. Relying on public transport isn't fun so a car would open so many doors for her.

Ellie has a few years before she can think about learning to drive but she is all for it. She even has a car picked out already. lol I do hope my girls learn to drive and maybe then they can take me shopping and to McDonalds. hehehe

Do you drive or did you never learn?

Our weekly meal plan! 22nd - 28th February. #MealPlanningMonday

Last weeks meal plan went well, mostly. The slow cooked pork belly hog roast with apple sauce, herby baby potatoes, sweetcorn and honey roasted carrots was a huge hit despite my family not liking the sound of it. I have a feeling they might refuse carrots in future if they are not coated in honey. The chicken and chorizo rice dish did not go down well. My fella mentioned it tasted spicy and the kids followed suit and whinged all the way through eating it. They did eat it but NEVER want it again. lol You win some, you lose some. I wasn't keen either to be honest.

The kids were gutted on Friday evening when I said they weren't having pizza, we were having homemade fish & chips instead. They were looking forward to the pizza and were gutted but I said to them we were having a takeaway on Saturday instead, they soon got over it. We had burgers, pizza, garlic bread and chips. It was so good and there was leftovers for Sunday so all we had on Sunday evening were toasties. 

On the menu this week we have:

Monday - Meatballs and spaghetti. I think I will cook the meatballs in the slow cooker.

Tuesday - I'm cooking extra meatballs and we're having them in rolls with cheese on.

Wednesday - Bacon, squash and sweet potato stew.

Thursday - Pasta and baked beans. It's a recipe that I saw on A Mummy too and it looks so simple but has hidden veg.

Friday - Pizza.

A Saturday Night Takeaway! #MySundayPhoto

We have had a couple of weeks of foodie treats. A Valentine's day meal deal the week before valentine's day, an afternoon tea, a Chinese takeaway, pancakes, delicious pork and honey roasted carrots during the week and last night we had more treats, another takeaway! 

I fancied a night off cooking and with Ant and Dec back on TV it was a reason to celebrate with a takeaway. I treated my family to pizza, garlic bread, chips and burgers. There are leftovers for today too.

Week 7 of #Project365. 13th - 19th February. A photo every day for a year!

Half term has flown over. I knew it would but we have had a nice, relaxed week just like I'd planned. It was brilliant to have a break from the home learning and as of writing this Ellie still has a little homework to do which we've not even looked at. We're not stressing, it's not like they can give a detention if it's late. 

Yesterday my Word of the Week was food and it was only when I came to writing this blog post I realised that the week really was dominated by food and a little bit of drink. hehehe

Now for a photo every day!

44/365 - 13th February

I was sent a Cocktail tasting pack from Cocktail hour to review. The White Russian cocktails were very good and the chocolate was so tasty.

45/365 - 14th February

We had a Chinese takeaway on Valentine's day. It seemed ages since we had a Chinese takeaway so it was enjoyed by us all and there was leftovers for the next day for lunch.

46/365 - 15th February

Becky has wanted an undercut cut into her hair for about a year but we haven't been too sure about it but on Monday we gave in and Stu cut it. She loves it and it has really thinned her hair out. She did have really thick hair. 

47/365 - 16th February

Pancake day! I had fun making them and the kids had lots of fun with all the toppings and eating them. 

48/365 - 17th February

Our tea on Wednesday! Pork belly, herby potatoes, sweetcorn and honey roasted carrots which my family have decided they love.

49/365 - 18th February

I don't know how this happened but I got to have one of the good yoghurts. Usually the kids have eaten them all before I get a look in.

50/365 - 19th February

I treated myself to a fancy bottle of wine! I read about Kylie Minogue's brand of wine last year and had forgotten about it until I was looking for something different to drink over the weekend. It was on offer in Morrisons, down from £9 to £7.

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This week my Word of the Week is: Food! #WotW

This week my Word of the Week is:

There have been many days this week where I've woken up and the first thing on my mind has been food. We eat well every week but this past week seems to have had a few extra treats which we have really enjoyed. 

We had a Chinese takeaway on Sunday evening. We always buy about 5 different dishes and share them out between us so we all get a bit of everything. Chicken sweet & sour balls, chicken chow mein, beef & tomatoes, sausage, onion and gravy with chips and special egg fried rice plus prawn crackers and spring rolls. It was so good and there were some leftovers for lunch the next day which seemed like a real treat.

I saw that the hot cross buns were on offer and got a couple of packets and every year the girls totally forget about them and forget how much they love them. I was going to toast myself a couple and then Ellie asked for some and then Becky. The whole grill tray was full. lol They thought it was such a treat and have begged for more to be added to the shopping list for this week.

Tuesday was pancake day which the girls were so excited about. I had got a pancake day deal from Iceland a few weeks ago with a pan, lemon juice, pancake mix and some Frylight spray for £5 and I am so glad I got it, just for the pan. It is the best pancake pan I've ever had. 

Usually the first pancake cooked is never amazing but I put the batter in the pan and the kids started arguing saying they didn't want the first one cooked, that was until I flipped it over and it looked pretty amazing. Then they started arguing about who wanted the first one. lol Every pancake came out perfectly and there was enough batter to make pancakes for lunch on Wednesday too! 

On Wednesday evening I was trying something new. The slow cooked pork belly hog roast with apple sauce, herby baby potatoes, sweetcorn and honey roasted carrots. The pork was ready made and just needed popping in the oven but I made the carrots from scratch. My family wasn't convinced about any of this meal, they thought I was going too fancy but once it was cooked, plated up and they tried it, they loved it! Honey roasted carrots are now their favourite thing and Ellie even went looking for leftovers, there wasn't any and said I need to make them again.

I again left it too late to get a food shop with Tesco, Asda and Sainsburys. I found myself looking at Ocado and they had slots but I really wasn't keen on their prices. I am used to everything a lot cheaper not M&S prices so it seems I am shopping with Morrisons again. It would have been Iceland but our freezer is still pretty full. 

I hope you have all had a good week?

10 Reasons why I prefer shopping online.

 Even before Coronavirus was a thing and all the essential shops were shut I always preferred to do my shopping online. I hate going out to real shops, people get in my way, I can never find exactly what I want and it just stresses me out. I just can't understand it when people just go to the shops for a look around. Stu, my fella loves to do that. I couldn't think of anything worse. It isn't my idea of fun.

Now that Coronavirus has shut the shops people are online shopping more. I know this because most weeks I struggle to get an online food shop and in the first lockdown the delivery times for normal shops like George at Asda and Wilkos were crazy.

Why I prefer shopping online.

It's easier to find what you want.

Sometimes when I want to buy something I won't know the specific name for it and where to buy it. Putting a thing to unblock sinks or even something as simple as yellow paint will bring up a whole host of results.

There's more variety online.

There is so much more choice online and it makes it easier to find most things at a lower price than on the high street. I don't think I have ever looked for something online and not being able to find it. 

There is no pressure.

When you visit physical stores the sales assistants try to lure you into buying more items and I am one of those people who feel bad saying no! 

It is quicker, sort of.

For example, for me to go to Argos and buy a microwave I would have to get 2 buses which would take about an hour and a half then either carry it back or get a taxi which in total would take about 3 hours at least but on the other hand I could order online taking about 10 minutes at the most, carry on with my day and wait for delivery. If I order early enough in the day I could even get it delivered the same day.

No aching arms.

With a big shopping trip you will get aching arms from carrying all of the bags with online shopping it is all delivered to your home.

It's discreet.

There are certain things I hate shopping for in shops. I am not going to say what, let your imagination go wild. lol It is so much easier having those things delivered, coming in a plain box so even the delivery driver doesn't know where it's came from.

You can do it in little bursts - so you don't have to go on a long shopping trip.

Oh yes, I do this for the girls birthday and at Christmas. I would rather buy a few things every week than buy everything in one trip which seems impossible to do, there is always something that I can't get at the shops.

It's easier to track spending.

I really have found this. When I am out shopping I will never stick to a budget as it is so hard to keep track of what I am spending. Even with bags full of things I will always feel like I need to buy more.

You can read reviews.

In the shops you will see something you have been dying to buy but then realise that there are no reviews and you don't know whether it's the right brand or even a brand that can be trusted. Buying online means you can read millions of reviews, ensuring the item of your dreams is the one you actually want. 

It makes it more exciting when you wait for a parcel.

I love waiting for parcels, well not the waiting the but receiving of the parcels especially if I have waited a while for them to be delivered and I've forgotten about what I have ordered.

Do you prefer to shop online or in real shops?

(Ad - Gifted) The ultimate no fuss evening in with Cocktail Hour!

This time last year we could meet up with friends, have a few drinks and have a fabulous night out. Coronavirus and lockdowns have changed that. Now the only time we can meet up with friends is over video chats. Hmmf! The one thing I miss about nights out is the cocktails. Most of us are not expert mixologists. I know I can buy all the ingredients but they never taste the same as what I can get in a bar and that's where Cocktail Hour comes in!

Cocktail Hour is a new business and in 2020 they started a quest to create a stylish, flavoursome yet simple to serve substitute to our usual evening out. The experience of a premium cocktail bar for cocktail lovers who want the ultimate no fuss evening in.

Cocktail Hour offers beautiful subscription boxes containing timeless authentic premium cocktails, pairing experience with playlists and recipe ideas delivered direct to your door and a selection of one off boxes for all tastes!

I was lucky enough to be sent The Sweet Tasting Pack to try out and what a treat it was!

Included in the Sweet Tasting Pack there is two bottles of Buveur cocktails. You get to choose which type you want from: Espresso Martini, Negroni, an Old fashioned or a White Russian as well as two 90g bars of Winter Spice dark chocolate.

I have not had a White Russian cocktail in years so decided to go for that. Did you know it was invented in 1949 by Gustave Tops at the Hotel Metropole. If you happen to be in Brussels then the Metropole is still the best place to treat yourself to a white Russian but if you are anything like us you want that experience but in the comfort of your own home.

All you need to do is add ice to a glass an pour the cocktail, there is no mixing and faffing. It makes it such a simple treat and the White Russian cocktail tastes so good. It's a balanced butterscotch and caramel taste mixed with a perfect trinity of flavours; dark chocolate, coffee and cream! It was strong but very enjoyable.

The Winter Spice chocolate is delicious too! It smells like you would imagine winter and Christmas to smell like and I am so glad the kids didn't want to try it so get to keep it all for myself. hehehe 

As well as the Sweet Tasting Pack there is a Savoury one and instead of the chocolate there is a fancy bag of popcorn.

Either would make a fantastic gift for a friend or loved one or just a treat for yourself. You can have it delivered straight to your door for £19.95 which includes UK mainland postage and cocktail hour packaging which is all recyclable which is an added bonus.

Is this something you would fancy?

I was sent the Sweet Tasting Pack from Cocktail hour free of charge in exchange for this blog post.

What I am looking forward to when life goes back to normal - part 2.

 Last year I wrote a blog post about what I am looking forward to when life goes back to normal. What is normal? The normal life we had before Coronavirus seems like a distant memory and when I wrote that blog post I really did think we would be back to some sort of normal by now. 

I remember the first lockdown when it was said it would only last three weeks. hahaha I feel so naive, here we are nearly a year later from that first lockdown and things got worse, beyond belief. I think we all know someone who has had Covid and sadly many of us know people who have been killed by the awful virus. It really has changed our lives.

It seems ages since I last saw my dad. Thankfully he has fully recovered from Coronavirus when he caught it in November and I am still patiently waiting to give him a hug. We have seen each other briefly a handful of times when he has dropped things off here but I miss going to his home and business.

The vaccine is giving me hope at the moment, my dad has his last week and Stu, Becky and I are patiently waiting for our turn. At the moment everyone being vaccinated is a way out of this nightmare we've all been living. I never thought I would be looking forward to having an injection but I am.

I am missing time alone. I don't think I have been home alone since September. Stu worked part time then was furloughed again, the kids spent time self isolating, Ellie once and Becky a couple of times. Then the Christmas holidays came and the schools and colleges closed. I love my family to bits but there are times when I just want to be in the house alone.

It's the kids I am feeling sorry for. They haven't seen their friends since before Christmas. The last time Ellie saw her best friend was the end of November as her friend had to isolate. We still have her Christmas presents here for her and will be adding a birthday present to the bag as it's going to be at least March until she see's her again and that is if the the school reopens. Becky hasn't seen her girlfriend since Christmas and that was just a social distanced chat and an exchange of presents. They've missed seeing each other on their first anniversary and Valentines day. They are of course still video chatting every day and messaging each other. I can't wait until they get to see each other properly and spend some time together.

Becky is happy learning from home but the novelty has well and truly worn off for Ellie. She has said I am stricter than a teacher and make her work more. I don't, she just does the work that is given but I make her do it straight away and properly. She has came up with many reasons why she can't do her school work but they don't wash with me. hehehe I am looking forward to not having to think about French verbs, algebra, stem cells and volcanos.

I am looking forward to not worrying as much! Back in March my Word of the Week was Worry. I don't think I have stopped worrying and stressing since then. My reasons have changed though. I am less worried about myself or my catching Coronavirus now. My dad has had Covid and has now been vaccinated and so has my great aunt but now I am worried about Ellie falling behind at school even though the school are doing all they can to educate the kids. She should be picking her GCSE options anytime soon and I am thinking ahead worrying about Ellie taking her GCSE's.

By now I thought things would have calmed down with the online grocery shopping but nothing much has changed with Tesco, I still have to book a delivery about a month in advance. Thankfully Sainsburys and Morrisons always seem to have plenty of slots. I am used to shopping for everything else online and discovered that Tu Clothing from Sainsburys is pretty amazing. I only went on to buy some new knickers, all mine seemed to be falling to bits and decided to treat myself to some new jumpers and pj's. I am very impressed. I am still missing going to Primark but at the moment it does seem like I could happily live without it.

What are you looking forward to if like ever gets back to normal?

Our weekly meal plan! 15th - 21st February. #MealPlanningMonday

Last weeks meal plan went well. We swapped a couple of meals around but everything was eaten.

Over the weekend we had chicken fajitas on Saturday, it's my go to meal when I don't know what to cook and we had a Chinese takeaway on Sunday. It was so good. I know we probably shouldn't save the leftovers but we have them to have for lunch today. What a treat.

This week is half term and we have no plans at all. We are going to enjoy the break from the home schooling and take each day as it comes. This week will probably involve lots of lazing about, watching films and playing on Fortnite.

On the menu this week we have:

Monday - Jacket potato with cheese and baked beans.

Tuesday - Pancakes!

Wednesday - Roast pork, some sort of potatoes and veg.

Thursday - One Pot Chicken And Chorizo Rice.

Friday - Pizza.

What are you eating this week?

Happy in the snow. #MySundayPhoto

 We have had snow for the last week. I think yesterday was the first day that it didn't actually snow. It has given us the boost we needed to get through the last week of home learning before half term. It was just the excitement we needed.

My girls are not unhappy, far from it but life has become a bit boring lately and getting out and playing in the snow made them so happy. It's the most they've laughed and giggled in ages!

Week 6 of #Project365. 6th - 12th February. A photo every day for a year!

Hooray for the weekend and the start of half term. We have a break from Zoom lessons for over a week and we are really looking forward to it. Ellie still has a few things to work on, her Design and Technology project, the festival one but it's something she enjoys so it's no hardship for her. 

We have had a good week, a really good week with plenty of excitement about the snow, my dad has had his vaccine and I have already been spoilt rotten for Valentine's day.

Now for a photo every day!

37/365 - 6th February

I ordered myself some new clothes and they arrived. I love this "Friends" jumper.

38/365 - 7th February

Instead of Ellie getting her school bag ready on a Sunday evening she now gets all the books and papers she needs for Monday and puts them next to her laptop. It's the only time she's organised, every other day she's hunting for the right exercise book as the Zoom lesson is starting.

39/365 - 8th February

The girls had great fun in the snow! It really has given the week some excitement. 

40/365 - 9th February

Cakes! Yum! Yum! We got an afternoon tea delivered and apart from the cream for the scones missing it was amazing! I am already thinking about ordering another, just as a treat. 

41/365 - 10th February

After having a snow day with no Zoom lessons on Tuesday Ellie was reluctant to do any school work on Wednesday. It was quite a challenge to get her sat looking at her laptop.

42/365 - 11th February

This chocolate and candle bouquet arrived, for me from my fella for Valentine's day! It was a total surprise and I love it. I was going to eat one of the Lindor chocolates but was told by the kids I have to wait until Valentine's day. 

43/365 - 12th February

The card I bought for my fella from Love Layla arrived, well it was one of them, the other I can't show on here as it really isn't PG. hehehe

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This week my Word of the Week is: Snow! #WotW

This week my Word of the Week is:

It has to be, we've had snow nearly all of the week! Usually I would complain about the snow and how it was disrupting our lives but this time there isn't much to disrupt it's not like we're going out anywhere.

Last time we had proper snow was back in 2018, the Beast from the East so it seemed very exciting and something a bit different from the boring life we have been having during lockdown.

On Monday Ellie had to finish her online lessons before she could go out in the snow. I felt sorry that her maths teacher was poorly and cancelled a lesson but it did mean Ellie got to finish at lunchtime and then we got to go outside and play. We all went out and a bit of fun in the snow. A snowman was built and we had just about used up all of the snow in the back garden.

We needn't have worried, it kept snowing and there was a new layer by Tuesday morning. Hooray! I was starting to think that it was unfair and how the kids were missing out. If the kids were at school chances are they would have had a snow day where the school would be closed for a day or two and I was thinking that wasn't going to happen.

The headteacher of the school emailed everyone on Tuesday morning and said all the Zoom lessons were cancelled and to go out and enjoy the snow. Of course a couple of teachers set work which was snow related. English was to write a poem about the snow. Ellie is getting quite good at poetry and said it's easier at home, she can go on Google and find words that rhyme with other words. hehehe Science was about freezing and igloos and part of the work was to build one for extra credit. Ellie loves to go that bit extra and dragged Stu out to help her.

Stu had came back in after the igloo was built and I heard screeching and laughing coming from the back garden, I looked out of the window and Ellie and the lad from next door were having a snowball fight. They were having the best time. It was so lovely to see especially since they've never had anything to do with each other. The smiles on their faces really did make me smile.

Wednesday was back to work and the Zoom lessons which was not welcomed by Ellie but thankfully it had some of her favourite lessons and the work was easy. We did somehow manage to miss an English lesson. It's the only subject which seems to get moved around and it is hard to keep track of. She soon caught on yesterday despite the teacher supposedly having tech issues. Lots of the kids were complaining that the teacher was pausing and they couldn't hear her. The kids said it wasn't their internet so must have been hers. I think they were having her on as Ellie didn't have any problems seeing or hearing the lesson.

Yesterday the snow stopped falling and what was left on the ground had started melting. It was fun while it lasted and gave us a bit of excitement which we needed. Stu was very glad that he isn't at work at the moment. He works outside most of the time so he would have been slightly frozen.

Next week is half term which will give us a break from the home learning. Of course we don't have any plans apart from being super lazy, probably spending far too much time playing Fortnite and watching films. I can't wait!!