Tuesday 30 November 2021

Some random thoughts that I've had lately. Part Six!

I like to write my random thoughts down, those thoughts that don't fit into a blog post but I want to mention them and share them with you. You can read my previous mind dump here.

Question marks on card

I could kick myself. I was stupid to lend someone a little bit of money, my money not from the household kitty but they made excuses on top of excuses not to pay it back despite being able to afford meals out and takeaways. Grr! It's a lesson learned for me and I have got the money back now.

I miss my friend from Ashington. I've spoken to her a couple of times over the last couple of months and I miss her, the fun we used to have and all the gossip we used to share.

Perfect by Ed Sheeran was a Christmas song?? I had no idea. lol I saw it on a Christmas countdown and had to Google it. It was actually the Christmas number one in 2017.

The postman knocked at the door on a Saturday morning just gone half 10 and I came running downstairs to get my parcel. I opened the door, he handed it to me and said sorry I woke you up. I was all defensive saying "oh no, you didn't, it's OK. Why? Why shouldn't I have a lie in?

I keep getting into bed with my fluffy, fleecy socks on and fall asleep in them then end up waking during the night sweating! I must remember to take them off.

Putting the new fence up is great and has given us more privacy but 2 panels fell down in all of the wind over the weekend.

Becky is obsessed with a new game that she bought a few days ago. Bus Simulator. I chuckled when she told me about it but it does look fun. You drive the bus, plan the route and the timetables.

Despite having most of the presents and lots of the food bought I am still stressing about Christmas. It must be a woman thing, I remember my mother being the same.

Exercising in the summer was great but it's not much fun now it's cold and grey. I am pushing myself though but no sun equals no motivation.

I shouldn't dye my hair and just accept I am getting old or so I have been told. OK... Maybe I dye my hair because it's fun not because I want to look young. If you knew me I have always struggled with looking my age. I got ID'd in a shop a couple of weeks ago, Becky didn't. lol

A friend of my family got bad news about their health. They probably won't make it to Christmas which is so sad. Life is too short for some.

Ellie didn't like the smell of the living room when she came in from school. She said the Christmas tree smelled. I asked what of and she said trees. She was imagining it, it's a fake tree. lol

Apple pie Baileys is not that nice. Hmmf. It is drinkable but not enjoyable like original Baileys.

Ellie has no concept of money. If I give her money to go out with friends she thinks she has to spend it all. There is no need as I always give her more than she needs, I don't want her to go short. It is very frustrating.

The kids have said this year they don't want to make gingerbread houses so I have bought myself one and will make it myself. There will be no sharing it our. I will sit here and eat it all. I bet they want to do one next year. lol

I love putting the Christmas decorations up but hate that we have to move things like the clock. It's too near to me now and the ticking is driving me crazy! It will have to be moved.

It's taken me almost a year to take interest in Ellie's Switch. I've started playing Animal Crossing and I love it. It's such a relaxed game.

I hate the cold weather, love the snow but not the drop in temperature. 

It's nearly Christmas!!!

What random thoughts have you had lately?

Monday 29 November 2021

Our weekly meal plan! 29th Nov - 5th Dec. #MealPlanningMonday

Our weekly meal plan

Last weeks meal plan went well. We did have a couple of changes over the weekend as our plans changed and we went to see the Christmas lights being switched on locally on Friday and didn't bother going to the Scunthorpe one on Saturday as the weather was awful. Rain, sleet and it was ever so cold. We ended up making home made pizzas on Saturday night and of course made too much so there was leftovers for lunch.

Last week I had the food shop delivered on Monday and it really knocked me off with what day it was, at least it felt like a short week. We did get another food shop on Friday and as we only had one a few days earlier we didn't actually need that much so I bought a few more things for Christmas. Asda has an offer on with the wine, if you buy 6 bottles you get 25% off so I got 4 to put away with for Christmas. I also got the Advocaat to make Snowballs and some of the Glitterberry J2O's which the kids love.

I can't believe this week we are into December. This year has flown over! We have nothing on this week which I am glad about as next week we have parents evening for Ellie and a check on her ears at hospital which I am dreading as I didn't get on well with the stand in doctor last year, I really hope it's a different doctor.

On the menu this week we have:

Monday - Mince, dumplings, mash and veg.
WednesdaySausage, egg and chips. 
Friday - Pizza.
Saturday - Fake KFC. Chicken bits, fries, coleslaw, garlic bread and salad.
Sunday - Pulled pork in buns.

What are you eating this week?

I am linking up with Karen over at Cat's, Kids, Chaos who is now hosting the meal planning linky.

Sunday 28 November 2021

Baking Christmas cakes. #MySundaySnapshot

I have been thinking of my great Aunt over the past week. She passed away earlier this year. She used to make 3 Christmas cakes every year. One for her daughter, one for my dad and one for me. Last year because of Covid was the first year that she didn't and she joked that I would have to learn to make one for myself and I did last year, she was so proud of me despite me ringing her a few times and asking loads of questions. Early this year when she was unwell she said I had to take over making my dad a Christmas cake and I have taken up the challenge.

 During the week I baked a couple of Christmas cakes. I just used a kit, I wouldn't know where to start with making them from scratch and they turned out pretty well. They probably aren't as tall as they should be but once I've added the marzipan and the royal icing they'll be great.

Christmas cake

My Sunday Snapshot linky

Saturday 27 November 2021

Week 47 of #Project365. 20th - 26th November. A photo every day for a year!

 We have had a good week, a really good week. It was my birthday on Sunday and I had a weekend of treats and celebrations. Now we're going into Christmas mode. I have just about all of the presents bought, I have wrapping paper to start wrapping them, we went to see the Christmas lights being switched on last night and the decorations and tree are out, ready to be put up over the weekend. We are starting to feel very festive!

Now for a photo every day!

Harry Potter Pjs and drinks
Animal Crossing on the Switch and pans on the cooker
Youngest doing homework & a letter from hearing support
Wrapping paper

324/365 - 20th November
New pj's for my birthday, an early present. This is the 3rd year that I have got Harry Potter one's. It's a shame but these are my least favourite. The top is a cropped one and is really short on me. I have to pull the bottoms right up. lol They are so comfy though. I think they came from Primark.

325/365 - 21st November
My birthday and I had a brilliant day. Stu and I went out for a couple of drinks on the afternoon and it was such fun just to chat and play a few games of pool.

326/365 - 22nd November
This week I have finally got around to playing Animal Crossing on Ellie's Nintendo Switch. I'm hooked now. It is such a relaxing game. 

327/365 - 23rd November 
The start of making Bolognese for tea.

328/365 - 24th November
Despite the dining room table being clear and Ellie having a desk as well she still chooses to do her homework in the most awkward of places. I suppose she is at least doing her homework.

329/365 - 25th November
We received a letter from the hearing support worker who goes and see's Ellie at school every few months. (Ellie is deaf in one ear) It was all positive, a big change from the last letter where Ellie was struggling to understand people because they were wearing masks. Ellie doesn't rely on lip reading but it helps. Now things are getting back to normal she is doing so much better. The school have been amazing, she has been put in smaller classes and all of the teachers know to make sure she has heard everything they've said.

330/365 - 26th November
The wrapping paper is bought. I am hoping I have enough. I think I got a bargain with a few. 10 meters for £1 where everywhere else seems to be selling 4m for £1.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Friday 26 November 2021

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

This week my Word of the Week is:

Festive

I don't know what to write about this week because after the excitement of my birthday weekend the last few days have felt a bit flat. I have been trying to find my Christmas spirit and finally I am starting to feel a little festive.

I ordered the last of the kids Christmas presents (again). Last week I said I had just about finished my Christmas shopping but I changed my mind and ordered the girls a couple of more presents each, my dad another and his partner another present too. I have ordered wrapping paper to come with the food shop today. I did laugh at myself, I spent a good 10 minutes choosing the wrapping paper. Why? No one cares but me. lol I will start wrapping the presents next week. I can't wait. I do it over 2 afternoons and will watch Avengers: Infinity War one day and Avengers: Endgame the next like I have for the last couple of years. I know, they are not Christmas films but they are the right length for me to do the wrapping. hehehe

On Wednesday I made the Christmas cakes, one for us and one for my dad. I cheated and used a Christmas cake baking kit but it doesn't matter. The house smelled lovely but Ellie was not impressed. She came in from school looking thinking it was a scented candle all set to blow it out. lol There was no getting rid of the Christmas cake smell and I was happy about that. hehehe Becky came in from college and one of the cakes was still cooling and asked for a slice, she was very annoyed when I said no. 

We have made plans for Christmas day. My dad and his partner are having a Christmas at home. A couple of years ago they went away and didn't have a great time. They think it was then they first caught Covid and last year didn't really celebrate Christmas as they were both still not feeling great after having Covid for a 2nd time. Their house is like a Christmas wonderland, there are decorations everywhere and it is so unlike my dad who isn't usually the biggest lover of Christmas but this year he is going all out. So it's just us for Christmas and at the moment Becky will be on her night shift finishing at 8am on Christmas day morning which is perfect. She can come home, we'll open presents and then she can go to bed while I get on with making the dinner and Ellie and Stu hopefully tidy up and mess around with their presents.

We are getting the Christmas decorations out, it's a job Stu doesn't know he'll be doing today but will. hehehe They will be going up over the weekend. Ellie was laughing and saying that there is no room for Christmas decorations in here, she needn't worry. I put all of every day ornaments and picture frames away to make room. 

Tonight we are off to see the Christmas lights being switched on and carol singing around the tree. There is food stalls and things like that so it should be fun. Becky is coming with Stu and I and Ellie is going off with her friends. We will only probably see her when she wants money to buy something. Eesh. We might be going to see the big lights being switched on in Scunthorpe tomorrow too but we'll see what the weather is like.

I hope you have all had a good week.

Word of the week linky

Thursday 25 November 2021

(Ad - Gifted) Island Bakery Orange, Cranberry & Pecan Shortbread Tin - Review!

Shortbread is something which features heavily in our Christmas celebrations. We eat boxes and packets of the stuff and I always buy some as gifts for people. Shortbread is available all year around but sometimes it seems a little bit more special over the festive season. Recently I was sent a tasty treat from Natures Healthbox to try out, shortbread of course!

Island Bakery Orange, cranberry & pecan shortbread tin

I was sent a tin of the Island Bakery Orange, Cranberry & Pecan Shortbread Tin to have a look at and try.

Island Bakery is a brand I haven't heard of before but I did like the sound of it. The Island Bakery offer an extensive selection of hand-baked organic Biscuits and Shortbread based treats. The Island Bakery believe great biscuits come in many shapes, sizes and guises and are not the sort of people that get excited by timid tastes, ridiculously regimented uniformity or overtly flouncy formats. Therefore when choosing the Island Bakery biscuits you can rest assured that the Food you consume will never contain any preservatives, palm oils, GMO’s or artificial colours & flavours. These Scottish-baked treats should be savoured slowly, not nonchalantly nibbled or idly scoffed.

Orange, cranberry & pecan shortbread

I remember when I was a kid shortbread it was just butter shortbread, it wasn't flavoured like it is now. They are such a treat and there was plenty of different flavours to choose from but as Christmas is coming the cranberry in these shortbread really stood out to me.

The Island Bakery Orange, Cranberry & Pecan Shortbread Tin contains a tray of delightful fruit and nut all-butter shortbread treats.

A bright and lively Orange taste underpins the contrasting textures of soft, chewy cranberries, gently yielding Pecan Nuts, and light, crisp, all-butter shortbread. The tart Cranberry lends a piquant counterpoint to the creamy pecans and butteriness of the biscuit. The orange flavour comes from the natural oil extracted from the zest of the fruit.

Just opening the packet which was in the tin had my mouth watering. The smell was amazing. Stu walked into the kitchen just as I was putting the lid on the tin and could even smell them and was impressed.

Orange, cranberry & pecan shortbread from Island Bakery

These really were a treat. With every mouthful I could taste each flavour. There was plenty of pecans and cranberry pieces in the shortbread, they really are something special. I have hidden these away from the kids so I can enjoy them as a treat, they are that good.

The tin is 215g and in it you get about 12 biscuits so they need to be savoured. I am tempted to buy a few more tins as a special treat for me and one for my dad as he would love them. This particular tin cost £8.95 which might seem expensive for some biscuits but they are amazing and you get the gorgeous tin which is no doubt going to come in useful for something.

With Christmas coming this would make an ideal gift for a lover of fine food and luxury. Island Bakery have other flavours of shortbread and yummy looking biscuits to choose from if you are not a fan of orange, cranberry & pecan.

I was sent the Island Bakery Orange, Cranberry & Pecan Shortbread Tin free of charge in exchange for this blog post.

Wednesday 24 November 2021

A brilliant birthday for me!

It was my birthday on Sunday and I had the best day and few days beforehand. I was spoilt rotten and I enjoyed every single moment! I used to hate it when my birthday fell on a Sunday but now it's just an excuse to celebrate beforehand. hehehe

My birthday officially started last Tuesday when Becky took me to town and bought me breakfast as an early birthday treat. She had ulterior motives, she wanted me to help carry the bags while she finished her Christmas shopping. It was a lovely day out. It seems ages since we spent some quality time together as she is either at college, with her girlfriend, working or sleeping.

A cooked breakfast

On Saturday Stu and I had a day out shopping. I feel like that is all I have done for the past few weeks, shop. This time it was mostly window shopping though, I think I have bought everything that I need or want in town. lol We still managed to pick a few bits up, we went to Lidl and I always forget how much I love that shop, there is so many bargains to be had. I got a couple of the Cadbury selection boxes for a few pounds when everywhere else they're about £5. 
I had planned to have a Christmas dinner but the pub we went to was only doing them if we had pre-booked which was a shame. We ended up going to Wetherspoons and not having a Christmas dinner and had pizza instead.

Me ready to go shopping
Harry Potter pyjamas

A few years ago I seemed to have started a tradition of getting Harry Potter pj's the night before my birthday and this year was no different. They came from Primark and as much as I love the bottoms and I am not that keen on the top as it is a cropped one and it's really short. Oh well. I will still wear it, just under a pj jumper top when it is really cold.

I had a lovely lie in on Sunday and was woken with a cup of tea and a chocolate croissant. What a treat! I didn't open my birthday presents until gone 2pm which is a record for me to wait so long. I wanted to wait until Becky got out of bed, she wasn't being lazy she had done a night shift.

My birthday presents

I was spoilt rotten. I got a gorgeous necklace, trainers, bath stuff, Funko figures, Apple Pie Baileys which I have been dying to try, bath stuff, make up and chocolates.

I had decided that I wanted to go to the pub for a couple of drinks and be like a proper grown up. The kids are at an age now where we can leave them at home alone for a couple of hours and I wanted to make the most of it being my birthday. Stu and I had a little pub crawl around our town. We visited both pubs. lol I have decided now which one I prefer. Do you remember the TV show The League of Gentlemen and the bit where they used to say "this is a local shop for local people", that's how I felt walking into one of the pubs. I didn't feel comfortable there so we had a quick drink and went to the other one which is now my favourite. The landlord is really welcoming, I think it's because he isn't from around here either. 

Pool table

We had a couple more drinks and had a few games of pool. Stu popped over to the Chinese takeaway and ordered our food and then came back to the pub to finish our drinks. We picked the Chinese up and headed home. The kids had tidied up and had been in the bath so I had no nagging to do. We watched Doctor Who, the Adele concert and the new series of I'm a Celebrity. We never got around to having cake until about half nine as we were so full from the Chinese takeaway.

It really was the perfect day. I couldn't have asked for more. Thank you to everyone who wished me a happy birthday. I felt so loved.

What did you do for your last birthday?

Tuesday 23 November 2021

(Ad - Gifted) The Mega Spin Saturn - A great little stocking filler!

Can you remember what was all the craze in the school playground when you were a kid? I remember yo-yo's being a big thing! I can remember everyone trying to learn the tricks and trying to have the fanciest looking yo-yo. Ahh, the memories.

Now they’re back, and things have moved on since ‘Walk the Dog’ and ‘Rock the Baby’! Yo-yoing is set to make a comeback and the brand new Wicked Mega Spin Saturn will take your skills to another planet!

The Mega Spin Saturn

Gone are the days of fixed axles the Saturn features a super smooth ball-bearing axle providing ultra-long spin times so you’ll yo-yo like a pro in no time! Want more? How about super bright colour changing LED lights to really make your tricks light up the room!

This is perfect for performing anything from basic to more advanced tricks and of course and you don't have to be a child to use it. I've had it out of the box and had a go and I must say it is a lot better than the wooden one's that I had as child and very easy to use, it's so smooth.

Mega Spin Saturn

It has been put away for now and it's going to be a surprise for Becky. She has been wanting something to pass the time when she is on night shift at work and is on her break. She's actually got sick of messing about on her phone and something like this is more productive than looking at TikTok. lol

The Mega Spin Saturn comes in either blue or red and costs £10.00. In each box there is a replacement string and as a bonus there is no plastic packaging to throw away as the cardboard presentation box can be fully recycled!

The yo-yo is a timeless toy, their compact size and their low price make them a perfect stocking filler come Christmas morning.

I was sent The Mega Spin Saturn free of charge in exchange for this blog post.

Monday 22 November 2021

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

Our weekly meal plan

Last weeks meal plan went well. The kids ate everything just Stu and I had slightly different and changed things up. The doner kebab meat from Iceland was rank. The slices were far too thick and there wasn't much taste to it. I was quite glad that I got something from town but the kids ate it.

I am writing this on Saturday after a fantastic day of food. I went into town mainly to have a Christmas dinner which I never ended up getting because it turns out you had to book which wasn't very clear on their website. A lot of other people thought the same too and they lost so many customers which is a shame. We ended up in Wetherspoons and I had a BBQ pizza. I also bought some cranberry and sausage rolls from Cooplands and they were so good and some doughnuts from Lidl. They're bakery section is not talked about enough, I always forget it is there and everything from it is so good.

Yesterday was my birthday. There was pastries for breakfast, not much for lunch as we got up late, a cheeky pint at the pub, a Chinese takeaway for tea and of course cake!! I had a lovely day and was spoilt rotten.

We don't have much on this week, not much that I can think of anyway. We are planning on going into town again on Saturday to see the Christmas lights been switched on which should be a fun afternoon out.

On the menu this week we have:

MondayOmelettes to use up leftovers in the fridge.
TuesdaySpaghetti bolognese and garlic bread.
WednesdayLeftover bolognese in wraps. 
ThursdayPork & apple casserole with mash.
Friday - Pizza fries.
Saturday - We'll get something to eat while we're out seeing the Christmas lights being switched on. 
Sunday - Pie, mash & veg.

What are you eating this week?

I am linking up with Karen over at Cat's, Kids, Chaos who is now hosting the meal planning linky.

Sunday 21 November 2021

Not a Christmas dinner. #MySundayPhoto

Yesterday I had planned to have a Christmas dinner as a pre birthday treat but when we got to the pub it turns out you had to book. Hmmf. I could have had any other meal but not a Christmas dinner with all of the trimmings. I did tell them that they should have made that clearer on their website and the man behind the man agreed as about 10 groups of people came in for a Christmas dinner before us and left when they found out they couldn't have one. We ended up leaving and going to Wetherspoons because while the pub was cheap for their Christmas dinner it was expensive for any other meal.

I ended up with a BBQ chicken pizza and onion rings and it was delicious but not as nice as a Christmas dinner would be. hehehe

BBQ chicken pizza and onion rings

My Sunday snapshot

Saturday 20 November 2021

Week 46 of #Project365. 13th - 19th November. A photo every day for a year!

I seem to have had a busy week. I sorted the Christmas presents out and now I have a fair idea how many the kids have and what everyone else has too. I had a day out shopping with Becky while she finished her Christmas shopping, my blog turned 9 years old, I'm off out again today shopping and for a meal with Stu and it's my birthday tomorrow. Stu has been working in the garden faffing with the new fence and adding another. It has been a good week.

Now for a photo every day.

Xmas pj's and a book
A bath bomb and Tesco xmas delivery booking
A new fence in the back garden
The top of a xmas tree and my new hair

310/365 - 13th November
Our Christmas pj's arrived. We have all got matching and we will be wearing them on Christmas eve. I got them from Studio, £10 each for mine and my girls and £12 for Stu's which I think was a decent price. We don't just wear Christmas pj's for Christmas, we wear them all year. Some of my favourite pj's are actually Christmas one's.

311/365 - 14th November
I took some photos of a book I was sent to have a look at. Goodnight Stories for Rebel Girls: 100 Real Life Tales of Black Magic.

312/365 - 15th November
I treated myself to a soak in the bath with a bath bomb. This one was the Orange Pop from Lush. I loved it. It smelled amazing and made my skin feel amazing too.

313/365 - 16th November
I was up early to get my Christmas delivery slot with Tesco. I logged in online and on the app on my phone to hedge my bets. I checked the delivery slots at two minutes to six just on the app and they were there, a whole 2 minutes early. I booked the slot I wanted and had checked out by 6am when the slots were supposed to be released. It seemed so unfair to others who queued for ages but I got mine straight away.

314/365 - 17th November
Stu added another fence to the top of the garden and we swapped the table and chairs with the wheelie bins and now we have a cosier seating area. It really does block a lot of the wind and fingers crossed we might have some nicer chairs and a new table if my dad's gets some we're spotted in the auction. I've asked him to bid for me.

315/365 - 18th November
My dad isn't usually one for decorating at Christmas but this year he is going all out. I think last year when he was ill with Covid and didn't really celebrate Christmas has shown him what he's been missing out on. He has a huge Christmas tree outside and it is decorated beautifully.

316/365 - 19th November
New hair! Well pretty similar to what I've had before but shorter. I got Stu to cut it for me like he usually does and it looked pretty straight until I washed and dried it and then I realised it was a good half an inch shorter on one side. Oops. He levelled it out and all was good. 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Friday 19 November 2021

(Ad - Gifted) The VEX Gift Card for when you are not sure what to gift someone.

There is always someone in our life that we struggle to buy a present for. For me it is my nephew. I have always been useless when it comes to buying presents for boys and now that he is not a child I have always gone with putting money into a card but it always seems like the easy option. I have thought about giving him a gift card but picking one has always had me struggling too, there is just too much choice out there but this is where the VEX Gift Card comes in handy!

VEX Gift Card

 The VEX Gift Card is a multi choice gift card. It's the ideal present for those situations where you're not 100% sure what to gift someone but don't want to tie down a budget to a single store they might not like for example I remember a few years ago someone gave me a Morrisons gift card for Christmas which was lovely of them but our nearest one was miles away and not much use to me. 

You buy the VEX Gift Card which is available in values a low as £10 all the way to £250 and whoever you give it to can choose which gift card to exchange it. They have a choice of over 150 Gift Cards and eGift Cards featured on Voucher Express which is home to some of the biggest retail brands in Britain. There are a multitude of spending options, from Fashion & Home to Experience Days. For food lovers, fashion enthusiasts, thrill seekers and grocery shoppers, they're guaranteed to find a brand they love.

Where to spend the VEX Gift Card

There really is a huge selection of vouchers to choose from and it is easy for the receiver to spend their VEX Gift Card. They just click on one of the many banners on the Voucher Express website, enter the code which is on the back of the card and then choose from the wide range of Gift Cards and eGift Cards and then have it delivered to them either by post or an email if the voucher is to use online.

The VEX Gift card is valid for 3 years and it must be redeemed within this time frame. The gift card value does not have to be used in one spend or against one brand. For example say you had a VEX gift card for £50 you can exchange it for a £20 Primark card, £20 Argos and a £10 Costa gift card. I think this is a fantastic bonus.

Have you heard of the The VEX Gift Card before? Do you know someone who would like one?

I was sent a VEX Gift Card with £50 on in exchange for this blog post.

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

This week my Word of the Week is:

Birthday

There is two exciting birthdays this week. My blog turned 9 on Tuesday! Time really has flown. When I started my blog I never expected to be still blogging now but it is something that I love. I was curious to when I first joined in with Word of the Week and it was way back in February 2014 with the word television. I think I have joined in most weeks since, that is a lot of words but a great way to record the normal, every day moments.

The other birthday this week is mine which is on Sunday. I have already started my birthday celebrations, well Becky did she took me into town and bought me breakfast as a treat. She had ulterior motives though. She wanted to finish her Christmas shopping and wanted me to help carrying the bags. lol. I didn't mind, I picked up some more presents too, quite a few actually. I think I have just about finished my Christmas shopping, I have got everything that I need to get so everything else that I buy for people is a bonus.

I almost stumbled across my birthday presents during the week that Stu has hidden away. I was on with sorting out the kids Christmas presents, putting everything into piles to see how much they had and to make sure the piles were near enough the same and I was rummaging around in the wardrobe. He came running upstairs and told me not to look in the top cupboard, there's nothing for me to see up there. lol

I don't have any massive plans for my birthday. Stu and I are going into town tomorrow. I am desperate to have a Christmas dinner and I have found a pub which do them. I'm planning on having the full works. A prawn cocktail, a turkey dinner and then Christmas pudding. Then on Sunday I will have a lie in, open my presents and then do very little until it's time for tea. I think I have decided on getting a Chinese takeaway which my family is very happy about and there will of course be cake.

I hope you have all had a good week?

Word of the week linky

Thursday 18 November 2021

My favourite blog posts from my 8th year of blogging.

Earlier this week my blog turned 9 years old. I know, where has the time gone. Each year I like to share my favourite blog post from the previous year and these are them. They may not be my most viewed posts but they are the one's that bring back happy memories and one's that I like the most. I blog daily so that is a lot of blog posts to choose from.


These are my favourite blog posts, one per month from the last year:


My birthday presents

This really is a bittersweet blog post looking back on it. What a difference a year makes. My dad was just getting over Covid after being really ill and this was the last time I saw my friend, Ellie's best friends mum who passed away a less than 2 weeks later. I did have the best birthday even though it is tinged with sadness now.


My girls opening their xmas presents

It took me a while to get into the Christmas spirit but it hit me on xmas eve and we had a wonderful Christmas time. Up until last year Stu and I never bought each other big presents but that was the year I got a coffee machine. Stu said I better use it lots and I have, every day at least once. hehehe


Fortnite

After writing a blog post saying how Fortnite was not a game for me I got a new laptop which would run Fortnite and realised it was a game for me. hehehe I have been playing off and on all year and at the moment I am loving it. It really depends on what's going on in the game. 


Building a snowman

We were in the middle of a few months of home learning so when a snow day happened it caused much excitement. It was just what we needed to boost our moods and it was nice to do something different.


Lockdown

March marked a whole year since we went into the first lockdown and I am sure the year taught us all a lot. I still haven't got out of the habit of wearing leggings around the house. I wouldn't dream of sitting around in jeans now and I fear the school saying they're going back to home learning. We don't want to do that again!


Vaccine

Ellie has had her first vaccine now, the rest of us have all been double vaccinated, my dad has had his booster and Becky is waiting to get hers. The 2nd vaccine was easier than the first and I feel a lot safer for having it.


A little paddling pool

This post was brought about by bad customer service from a fast food place and I ended up talking about complaining about other shops and services. The little paddling pool always makes me chuckle when I think about it.


Woman with her hands over her mouth

There is no such thing as a perfect parent. As much as we would like to be one it just doesn't happen. We all mess up at parenting sometimes and it's normal. We learn from our mistakes and our children forgive us. That's the way it goes.


My girls on their laptops

It was the strangest school year. Self isolating, home learning, new classes, me getting to learn more about what Ellie was learning due to all the Zoom lessons, GCSE options and lateral flow tests. We survived and it was definitely a learning experience for us all.


Laid in bed

My girls got lazy in the summer holidays and it was so frustrating, I felt like they were wasting their time off school, especially Becky who was having her last proper summer holidays. When she finishes college this year she will be going into full time work.


Fish

We visited The Deep, an aquarium in Hull. We had a fantastic day out and will be going back again soon as it's one of those places where you pay once and can go back anytime over the next year.


Scales

I have been getting fitter and losing a bit of weight over the past few months. I wrote about my motivation and how I got started. It is so much easier to exercise when the weather is warm but I am still going.

Thank you for reading! Thank you as well to anyone who leaves a comment, likes a Facebook post, retweets a Tweet, hearts and Instagram photo or give a thumbs up to my rubbish YouTube videos. I appreciate you all!