...and the last few....

a few photos I'd missed over the summer....

change of plan...

Because of the snow on Anglesey again we will try driving up on Boxing day instead. Last day of school and the boys are getting extremely excited.



The school Christmas Fayre was great but I am so glad it's over now. Better start on the summer fayre. Both boys were brilliant in their nativity plays. Sam was a sheep and Toby a donkey. The pre school had a skeleton Inn Keeper and Joseph was Buzz Lightyear. It all started to go wrong when Buzz decided he wanted to shoot Mary and Toby got on all fours and left the stage going "eeee ore".... funniest thing I've seen in years.

Finally.....

I have finally managed to get back into my blog after being locked out for months.....

We all had a brilliant summer and Boots the puppy has settled in well. The boys are very excited about Christmas and they and Boots have almost destroyed the tree. We've had lots of snow which was lovely - apart from we had to cancel the school Christmas Fayre - all that hard work....Chaotic week with parties, pantomimes & Fayres coming up. Off to see Father Christmas at Marwell Zoo at the the weekend then off to Anglesey until Christmas Eve.

smells lovely

The boys have been baking again - chocolate brownies. A recipe I stole from one of the ladies who made some for our village hall tea party. I just hope these turn out as well. They are smelling delicious....

3 weeks

Here's Boots at 3 weeks - check out those blue eyes.

Toby is on toilet training now with some success. More success than not so hopefully we will sort it this time. No more nappies in this house no matter what. Just as we get sorted we'll have a puppy to toilet train.....

Puppy

Here's the first photo of our puppy - he's going to be called "Boots" - although the boys want to call him "toilet water"...mmmmmmmmmmmmm....

New addition to the family....

We were all out for a walk on Butser Hill this morning and bumped into a couple with the most gorgeous dog. Got chatting and the dog is a Cockapoo. Anyway we got the details of the breeder as he was so good with the boys and such a lovely dog we thought we'd found the perfect breed. We've been trying to decide what to get for a family pet for a while. Anyway - we went to see the breeder and have put a deposit on a beautiful 2 week old pup.

Spuds!

The boys are very pleased with themselves for growing their first lot of potatoes - and so they should be!



I have now agreed to Chair the Denmead Children's Centre Partnership Board - should keep me busy. Already hard to keep up with the village hall bookings & committee as well as the toddler group & friends of the school. I might have to leave the OU course till Feb time. The Festival of Speed was brilliant. We got there nice and early and had seen the lot by 11:30 when it started to get really busy. There's a sickness bug going around at the moment and we've all had it - lovely. I need to get a dress....off to a cocktail party on HMS Dauntless in 2 weeks - oh what to wear?

Proud Mummy...

Sam had his first sports day at school today. All the children had a wonderful time and we had the perfect weather. Sam also won his first race which he's really chuffed about - quite right too.

things....

The weather is gorgeous at the moment. Been busy with the organisation of the school fayre which is on tomorrow - should be a great day. I've just won tickets to the Goodwood Festival of Speed in a week which will be great - the boys will love it.

After a long drive down to Swanage, Toby and I managed to fit in sandcastles, paddling, swings, ice cream, steam trains, walk around town, back on the ferry, home to make mud pies and now off to get Sam who has a play date at a friends house. The boys are not amused the birds have had a good go at their strawberries. The spuds, pumpkin & courgettes are doing great.

Birthday Boy!

Toby is 3 today. He had some friends over for a teddy bears picnic. Lovely weather and a good time was had by all. Pass the parcel was hysterical, treasure hunt was a laugh and the bears behaved.

My little monkeys......

We've all been out & about enjoying some lovely weather. The boys' 1/2 sister (Laura) decided to come & visit us for the first time which was lovely. The lads got on great with her and I think she enjoyed meeting them as well.

School, preschool, toddler groups, coffee mornings, visiting friends & trips out are keeping us all busy.

more den building...

We have been having some gorgeous weather lately. Went up to Granny & Granddads on Anglesey for the weekend. The usual den building ensued....

Where does the time go?

My little baby boy is 5 today!

The big party!

We survived the manic 5th birthday party without too many headaches. The boys had a great time although a bit tired & grouchy this evening. We managed a few hours in the garden this afternoon which was lovely. Nice to smell freshly cut grass again. We definitely need somewhere with a larger garden though.

the earth's atmosphere has a lot to answer for....

.....the state of Sam's space shuttle cake for one. I'm just hoping it's still in one piece for the party tomorrow.

Birthday treats...

We went to legoland on Sunday with Harvey's family. Everyone had a great time. I was really surprised how much Sam liked the roller coasters. Toby got a bit upset though as he wasn't tall enough for a lot of the rides. This Sunday is Sam, Harvey & Zach's joint 5th birthday party. We've hired the village hall, (for which I am now the booking secretary) , and there are 40 4-5 year old's coming - chaos will ensue!

This 'n' that

The boys and Daddy treated me to a lovely mothers day - I got some lovely cards, gorgeous earrings and we all went to Petworth Park and relished in the unseasonably warm sunny weather. A perfect day!

Sam had a strange dream last night. He was crying out for his Dad and when he went in he asked for him to rescue one of his teddies off the ceiling. When Dad mentioned the bear was in bed with him he just said "oh he must have flown back down" and went back to sleep. Talk about bear out of body experiences....

baking...

Sam has made some Blueberry muffins...and they really are yummy.

He was in tears after school today. He wanted to go to the after school animal club but it seems all the places have gone :-( Must be a waiting list as his was the third form handed in. Maybe next time.

Daddy has a new motorbike which the boys were keen to get on.

a decent walking speed...

After dropping Toby at preschool and Sam at school I decided to enjoy a decent long walk and for once faster than toddler pace. I love my boys dearly but its nice to get some me time in the daylight hours and enjoy some peace and quiet.

Things...

Well we got absolutely nowhere with the toilet training. Toby just refuses to go near a potty or toilet and insists on having a nappy...boys! Will try again in the summer hols.

We all decided to go on one of our big adventures to Dorset and ended up at Weymouth. Had a lovely but windy time at the lighthouse at Portland Bill, tea & cakes at the Heights hotel admiring the view, headed off to play in the sand on the beach, a few rides on the fun fair followed by ice cream. On the way home we sat in the car at Poole Quay in the pouring rain stuffing fish and chips - really lovely. A great day out!

My latest Open University course (Understanding Human Nutrition) is fascinating - I just wish they did a course at a higher level in this subject.

Here we go....

As it's Feb half term we are attempting toilet training again......oh the joy!

I had my pamper day on Saturday which was bliss. Billy had the boys and ended up in casualty with Sam as he cracked his head on the stair door. Both boys now have a nasty hospital bug so the washing machine is on full speed and the place is in chaos.

Bring on the summer :0)

Just thought I'd add this photo of Toby - what a cutie.

...missing Dorset...

We decided to drive over to Dorset today as the weather was so lovely. Ended up at Kimmeridge Bay which was amazing as usual. The waves were huge so all the surfers were out. The boys had a great rummage in the rocks & pools and came home with treasure. I really miss living in Dorset :-( Hope to end up there again one day....

Happy Birthday to me!!!!!!

Not going to say how old but it's the wrong side of 40. I don't care as I still feel the same as when I was 19 and have absolutely no plans to grow up.

I am extremely proud of Toby at the moment. We went with some of his pals to an indoor play area yesterday. (the only one I've come across which is clean, not too busy & serves healthy food). Anyway this other Mum went out of her way to find me to say how lovely and polite Toby was. He got stuck in the ball pool and asked her "can you help me out please" then said "thank you for helping me". Not bad for 2yrs old - well done Toby :0)

I've just dropped Toby off at pre school, Sam off at Big school and gone for a lovely long walk in the rain around the country lanes around Hambledon - lovely!

Heading for trouble...

It's going to be my birthday on Thursday and Sam insists I have a cake. The plan is to leave out all the ingredients and Sam (4) and Toby (2) are going to teach their Daddy to make a cake - should be fun.

Exploring...

We've had a lovely weekend. The boys have been angels. We went on the Watercress Line steam train for a lovely trip in the pouring rain. The boys thought it was a wonderful adventure and were convinced it was the Polar Express.

My lovely neighbour Jen babysat last night while Billy & I escaped to our local (The Vine), for a few glasses of red.

This morning we all went for a long walk at Pagham Harbour. Very impressed with Toby lasting for 3 miles+ at the age of 2 with no complaints.We stopped at a lovely pub for a coffee at Sidlesham Quay. The boys managed to get extremely muddy jumping in all the puddles - quite right!

Now back home with a roast in the oven ready to snuggle by the fire with a good film for the rest of the day.....

Pre-school...no more babies in this house :-(

Toby has had his second day at preschool and again didn't look back. He had a brilliant time and I'm sure if I let him he'd go every day.

Enough...

OK the snow was great fun to start with and is stunning to look at but GO AWAY NOW! Schools still closed, can't get the car out & I haven't been able to go running for nearly a week...oh and we're rapidly running out of logs.