Saturday 14/2/2014 – Valentine’s Day

Tags

2014, 365, children, photoaday, photography, photos, postaday, snowtubing

Watched Sx play football this morning and then went straight off to “snowtubing” in the afternoon. In the evening we celebrated Valentines Day by getting an Indian Takeaway – something neither Matt or had done since we split up two years ago. (We were so full afterwards though we weren’t able to manage any of the selection of desserts we had bought!!)
Sx
Made a fuss about having to go out straight from football and was so angry when he thought we were doing something he didn’t want to do. He cheered up a bit when he heard what we were doing – but has no concept of sometimes needing to do things because other people enjoy it.

Gx
Also wasnt keen to go snowtubing – but was won over when we got there

Lx
Was a little nervous to start with but then was really wanting to get spun round and go as fast as she could

Dx
Kep going till the very end and loved it. He is usually the nervous one but he was fine and really enjoyed it.

 

   

Sat 27th December 2014 – Fri 2nd Jan 2015

Tags

2014, 365, christmas, family, home, photoaday, photography, photos, postaday

This was one of the most difficult weeks of my life. So forgive me if I don’t go into details but some of it is too personal and most of it is too painful to share.

There were good bits (a trip to the cinema with the children to see Nativity 3, a day at the spa, a lovely night out for New Years Eve with friends…) but generally it was an incredibly difficult week and even writing this has brought me to tears remembering how I felt.

There was shock, immense sadness, hurt like you wouldn’t believe, endless tears and that sick feeling 2 seconds after you wake up that then sits like a block of lead in your stomach and doesn’t go away all day. (On a positive note I barely ate all week so am hoping at some point this will mean my post Christmas diet got a kick start and I will emerge sylphlike and radiant!)

Before you get too despondant and consider calling the Samaritans for me I should tell you the week had a happy ending. Those of you who are long term readers of my blog will know that my husband Matt and I separated 2 years ago. Well after the week from hell – we decided to give it another try and are going to get back together. We have a lot of work to do, a lot of talking to do and there are no current plans for him to move back home. But we have decided it is what we both want and that we both will try our hardest to make it work.

If anything could make the past week worthwhile – it would be us succeeding.

To give you an idea of how bad things were… I didn’t take a single photo for 7 days. And I didn’t even care.

Thursday 18/12/2014 – Christmas Jumper Day

Tags

2014, 365, christmas, photoaday, photography, photos, postaday

The children#s primary school announced on Monday that today would be Christmas jumper day. Great if you happen to have one. Or can go and buy one the next day. BUt not great when you only started to get organised for Christmas this week, have three children and only one Christmas jumper.

 

So I decided I needed to improvise. I bought a couple of big bows in a set from the £1 shop and sewed one to a black jumper and put one in Lx’s hair. Gx taped some gift bows to a red jumper and Dx had a Christmas jumper anyway…

…except at the last minute I couldn’t find it. I turned his room upside down but no sign of it. I have no idea whether he actually grew out of it last Christmas and I got rid of it but I was not popular with him. I ended up convincing him to wear the red jumper and a santa hat – but he took them off and stuffed them in his bag as soon as he got to school!

He was also upset because it was Christmas dinner at school today. Last year he had it and said “never again” – and when I asked him this year he said he didn’t want it. So I didn’t order it – and made him a packed lunch today. So this morning he changed his mind – when it was too late.

So I was “Worst Mother in the World” by the time he got to school and he was the grumpiest boy in the playground!! (See his expression!!)

Strangely Lx had decided she DID want Christmas dinner so we had excitedly ordered it – her first time of having school dinners! Her helper went with her to explin to the cooks not to give her anything she didnt want. She took turkey, sauasge and roast potatoes…but just ate the turkey. And the chocolate cake dessert. But it is a huge step for her – and she really enjoyed doing it and is currently keen to try out more school dinners next term!

After school, in order to earn some computer time (as he is on a week long ban for sneaking his ipod up to bed)…Sx helped with Dx’s homework. When he is in the right mood he is lovely and so helpful with the younger ones.

Tuesday 16/12/2014 – Meeting Santa

Tags

2014, 365, christmas, family, photography, photos, postaday

Tonight Santa came round the local streets to make sure he knew which children were around and where they live so that he is all organised for Christmas eve. Gx had already left for football training so we aren’t sure he will get any presents!!

Sunday 14/12/2014 – Elf Wrapping

Tags

2014, christmas, elf on the shelf, family, party, photoaday, photography, photos, postaday, rugby

At home – Bobby the elf continues to cause chaos…

Off to watch Dx play rugby this morning while the others enjoyed a lie in at Matt’s. Dx wasnt sure he WANTED to play rugby this morning but brightened up when he heard they were going to start doing some contact rugby and they got a chance to push each other over. I am amazed for a little boy who is a bit of a wimp about a lot of thing – that he seems more keen on contact rugby at present than tag rugby. We will see if it lasts!!

In the evening he went to his rugby Christmas party. Matt dropped him off and I went to pick him up two hours later – only to discover the organisers had been trying to ring me for an hour and a half to say Dx was really upset. It turned out Matt had told him I would “be there shortly” which he had taken literally – and then got himself into a state when I didn’t arrive.

It really upset me – that he had been there worried and sad for so long AND that it could of course been so much worse and been an even more important message might have got lost. When I got home after reading the older boys the riot act it turned out the volume had been turned down on my phone for them to play on it. My password has now been changed and they are banned from using my phone as it is too too important for me to be contactable.

Saturday 13/12/2014 – London Lights

Tags

2014, 365, christmas, family, lights, london, photoaday, photography, photos, postaday

Today we went up to London at lunchtime to meet up with Matt’s side of the family for lunch at an Italian restaurant. I had organised it myself to try and ensure that they all got together and so that my children could see their cousins as they havent seen them since last Christmas (or in Gx’s case Christmas 2012).

Afterwards Matt and I took the children into central London to go and see the lights. We wandered up Regent St with a quick look round the “video games” section of Hamleys toy shop (which was packed!) and then went down Oxford St to Selfridges windows.

Then we managed to catch a bus from round the corner to go and visit Harrods. Dx was very tired by this time and so we bought some food there to eat on the way home on the bus.

Picadilly Circus

  Regent St

Hamleys Toy Shop

Oxford St

Selfridges Christmas Windows

Harrods

 

Friday 12/12/2014 – More Elf Antics

Tags

2014, 365, christmas, elf on the shelf, photoaday, photography, photos, postaday

Thursday 11/12/2014 – Face Painting

Tags

2014, 365, christmas, facepinat, family, photoaday, photography, photos, postaday

The posts will be all over hte place over the next few days (weeks?) as I try to catch up so apologies for the random order!

While I relaxed at the spa and dreamed of DVDs still to be burnt of the school plays…the children had their faces painted at school. (They didn’t get round to Gx so he will have his done another day instead)

 

Wednesday 10/12/2014 – Tree Dressing

Tags

2014, 365, christmas, family, fracture, photoaday, photos, postaday, tree

Back up to the fracture clinic with Sx this morning. They are pleased with how his thumb is healing but don’t want him to overdo it. At first they said no rugby until it is 6 weeks from the date of the injury. But when he got quite upset and I explained he has an important match on Jan 4th…they relented and said he can play in it. The hardest part of him playing rugby for me aas his Mum isnt the injuries – it is trying to get him to STOP playing while they heal!

Then off to school for the “thank you” lunch they put on for all the parents who help throughout the year – lots of nice words were said about the photos i have taken of the children’s school nativities.

The afternoon was spent burning DVDs until I thought I was going to burn my laptop it was getting so warm from overuse!!

In the evening at last we got round to decorating the tree – and trying to remember which decorations are which for each year! Each child gets one each year and its getting hard to keep track!

 

Tuesday 9/12/2014 – Elf Dressing

Tags

2014, 365, christmas, elf on the shelf, family, photoaday, photography, photos, postaday

We are a little late this year decorating the tree due to so much going on! The tree went up yesterday but we didn’t have time to decorate it – so this morning we came down to find Bobby the elf had decorated it for us with Lx and Dx’s pants!!

We had to make sure they were taken down before Dx had his friend Isaak round for tea!

Meanwhile Sx’s pizza he made at school went down well with both him and Gx