Happy Easter! The kids get crafty...

Wow! This year is just flying! It can't be Easter already???

I wanted to do something different for Easter gifts this year and the girls love painting and gluing and sticking so these beautiful little plant pots seemed like the perfect Easter gift for Grandparents (and us of course, they were just too cute not to).

I first got the idea wandering around Tesco, I saw the terracotta plant pots which were on buy two get one free so I got 9 for £5 which I thought was reasonable enough. My original idea was to plant Sunflower seeds and let the girls free style the decoration but I saw the hand print pads in Hobby Craft and that's how the handprint idea came about.

After spending a gazzillion pound in Hobby Craft we had enough paint and stickers to do some serious decorating.

First we painted the pots white, then we added the handprints. On the grandparents pots they did a hand each, then we spray lacquered them so hopefully the paint will be weather proofed and once thoroughly dried the girls added the stickers.

 Painted white

 

Giving them a helping "Drying" hand

HANDPRINTS!!!

Having a freestyle break

All painted, ready for stickers

Princess Amelia doing some serious sticking

All Done!

                                             

The Finished Product

It was great fun, the girls had a wonderfully messy time and the grandparents loved them.

I Love This Picture!

This picture sums up my little girl to a T!

She is funny, quirky, extremely loving and a total adorable little devil, whose favourite sayings are

Mummy, Duddle (cuddle)

and

Your a pain!

P.M.A. My New Motto...

After having a few tough weeks, I have adopted this as my new motto...

Positive     Mental     Attitude

P.M.A.

No more grumps

Be grateful for what I have

Thank you

Sunday Catch Up

After another week of single parentdom my memory is fried as I can't remember what we did this week, so just give me a minute...

Ah Funday Monday, we went to soft play and then McDondalds for dinner. A bit of an easy Funday Monday for me but given the fact that neither of the girls are sleeping very well and hubby is working away I am too shattered for anything too adventurous.

Tuesday is nursery and Gymnastics, with a visit to Pets at Home slotted in as the girls love going to look at the animals, a free way to pass an hour that they really enjoy :)

Thursday I treated myself to a bit of retail therapy, I am in desperate need for some new clothes but I seem to have lost my fashion way over the last few years. I got a few bits but I am planning a "fashion" overhaul in the next few weeks so I will let you know how I get on. (I really need to befriend Gok Wan for a bit).

I did get myself a great pair of boyfriend jeans from Next which I am very pleased with and I ordered some Ash Wedges (eek) which pleased me no end! 

Friday we renamed grump day, we were all grumpy and tired. We took Kit Kat out for a what was supposed to be a nice walk in the snow turned into a whiney, crying walk in a freezing cold blizzard (come on spring where are you??). It was so windy and cold, the windier it got the slower the girls walked it was a nightmare.

But of course we still had time for a bit of dress up, in between the grumpiness  :)

The wandering husband returned on Saturday afternoon (woo hoo) so I immediately dumped the kids on him and took the dog out for a long bracing walk. After being cooped up with the girls for a week it was lovely to get out in the peace and quiet, just me and the dog (snow and wind). 

And Kitty also had his first hair cut!

He went from being a Teddy Bear, full of fluff, who I thought was a bit chunky to a skinny little rat! 

He is still super cute though :)

Puppy Training

My cute and cuddly little teddy bear has turned into Cujo!

His favourite past time is chasing small girls around, he bites them whilst they scream.

Now he is only 13 weeks old so I know nipping and mouthing is all normal but after having a very unruly dog for 15 years I really don't want to make the same mistakes so puppy training it is. I also want the girls to be able to control him and to learn how to act around dogs.

Last night was our first class and it was bedlam!

I don't really know what I was expecting but it was a bit nerve racking at times with all these puppies running around wrestling each other. It's not so bad with puppies the same size as yours but some of them are BIG! Lots and lots of Staffordshire Bull Terriers, a very stout Bull Dog, a leggy Doberman and then a mixture of little terrier types. A recipe for chaos! (and lots of poo)

Poor Kit Kat didn't know if he was coming or going, one minute he was fearing for his life and then the next he is having a great time trying to hump a little terrier.

We learnt sit, down, stand and recall, I was very impressed with him he did really well, he will literally do anything for a bit of cheese.

Now we have to practise lots for next week and not that I am competitive or anything but we WILL be top of the class.... Come on Cujo, Sit!

The 30 Day Squat Challenge

I need to get fit.

I used to exercise a lot before I had the girls but I have struggled to find the time or in complete honesty the motivation to do any exercise at all. 

Luckily I am naturally very slim far too skinny, a bit like a pubescent boy, no boobs or bum so weight loss is not the issue, I want to get strong. 

I love strong fit women, if I could choose a body these would be like the one I would get...

But back to reality and my skinny little ass, I saw the 30 day squat challenge today 

and I immediately thought, 

YES! I could do that.

Day one 50 Squats and by Day 30 250 Squats... Ouch (but thighs of steel)

Why Squats?

What is a Squat?

In strength training, the squat is a compound, full body exercise that trains primarily the muscles of the thighs, hips and buttocks, quads (vastus lateralus medialis and intermedius),hamstrings, as well as strengthening the bones, ligaments and insertion of the tendonsthroughout the lower body. Squats are considered a vital exercise for increasing the strength and size of the legs and buttocks, as well as developing core strength. Isometrically, the lower back, the upper back, the abdominals, the trunk muscles, the costal muscles, and the shoulders and arms are all essential to the exercise and thus are trained when squatting with proper form. (Wikipedia)

I am also incorporating matching the squats with crunches and also half the daily amount of press ups (which could be my complete downfall as I have no upper body strength at all) to try and get an overall complete body workout.

Day one today I did 50 squats and yes it was painful but ok

But what surprised me the most was that the crunches was agony! I used to have abs of steel but two pregnancies by two c-sections in 17 months and no exercise has caused me to now have abs of, well when I find my abs I will let you know, they are currently missing in action!

I am already a little sore, so tomorrow will be interesting.

I will update on this regularly, if I have to give you weekly updates that means I HAVE to finish it, otherwise it will just get awkward and embarrassing and I don't want to start deleting posts because I am quitter Ha Ha!

Funday Monday

Is at Jellybeans today, a couple of hours where they can run wild and wear themselves out (hopefully).

A bit of an easy one today in anticipation of painting and decorating 11 plant pots for Easter gifts next Monday, which they will love doing, whilst my inner OCD will be having a nervous breakdown.

Sunday Catch Up

Hubby has been working away this week so it's just been me, myself and I when it comes to the kids. It certainly makes me spare a thought for all those single parents out there, it's a bloody tough job.

Monday Funday was a trip to Tesco.... I know not very fun I am hearing you shout but we went for lunch in the cafe and purchased our plant pots for our Easter gifts and the girls loved it, I sometimes forget its the small pleasures in life that the girls like so much.

Having Fun in Tesco

We spent Wednesday with my mum, who spoils the girls like mad, including cake before lunch!

Little Devil?

Princess Amelia

Just sums my two girls up perfectly.....

Thursday is sewing day and I had a frustrating few hours trying to figure out how to sew a sodding cube! It turned out ok in the end but a bit more research is most definitely needed before the next one.

Laura Ashley Josette Door Stop

And today has been all about muddy puddles, horses, chickens, a boxer dog the size of a donkey, more muddy puddles and drinking lemonade in the pub.

Great Sunday afternoon which resulted in the kids and dog both needing a bath after a very long, wet, muddy and thoroughly enjoyable walk.

Sunday roast is about to be served and I LOVE LOVE LOVE Sundays :))

Sunday Catch Up

Hmmm what did we do this week......?

It's all a bit blurry this week as we are on the 2nd / 3rd ish week of very early wake up calls from either Isobel or blooming Kitty Kat!

More often than not its been Isobel, normal time is about 5.30-6.00 am and she even kindly threw in a 5.20am on Saturday morning, so needless to say we are all a bit tired.

Any how we finally did our Monday Funday and made Gruffalo Crumble which was good fun, even though Amelia did say its not real Gruffalo Crumble as its flat and hasn't got eyes!  

www.jules-home.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/funday-monday.html

Tuesday was nursery and Gymnastics for Amelia and torture for poor Isobel who is desperate to join in with Amelia... Only another 9 months to go Baba!

Wednesday we took the dog on THE longest but shortest walk in the history of man. It took us half an hour to walk literally about 800 meters. Walking a 12 week old puppy and two toddlers along a road, lined with driveways is not for the feint hearted.

Thursday is sewing day, the girls are at nursery all day (woo hoo) which means I am chained to the sewing machine all day, not that I am complaining as I love it. I am also super busy which is great but I do need to find a bit of time for learning some new skills, I've had my first order for a door stop so that's my new project for next week. 

Thursday was also tainted with a bit of sadness as a fellow blogger recently lost her baby to cot death and it was the funeral. The out pouring of support on Twitter was very moving and a lot of money was raised for Bliss which was wonderful.

If you can spare a little please go to:

www.bliss.tributefunds.com/fund/Matilda+Mae/showFund

Saturday is ballet day, even though at the moment neither of them are that keen on doing it so its a bit of a chore but I'm hoping its just one of those phases kids go through and they will be back to loving it in no time. 

Amelia has been mithering to go to McDonalds for ages and we have a relatively big one with a play centre not too far from us so Saturday I caved in and we went. They had a marvellous time, running round with what felt like a million other kids , a good way to tire them out for bed :)

And then lastly it's Mothers Day!

I am writing this in bed, I've had lovely flowers, some plants for the garden, something that looks like Gin in a Tin but its not (unfortunately Ha Ha ) it's some sort of plant and lovely cards and they bought me a cup of tea in bed. It does sound like bedlam downstairs at the minute so I may hide in bed for a little bit longer, it is Mother's Day after all!

Left Over Chicken Pie

This is a blog I never thought I'd write.... A food post... Me?? Thats laughable, as I am terrible in the kitchen!

I either burn things as I get distracted or I under cook it in the fear of burning it (you get the picture)

But I am determined to start cooking more things from scratch and this brilliant (and very easy) recipe was given to me by my sister (thanks Jo)

I was a bit dubious as I'm not keen on left overs but I gave it a go and it is delicious. If you are anything like us we always have a ridiculous amount of chicken left over after our Sunday roast, which makes it economical in these hard times as well, bonus.

Ingredients

Left over chicken
mushrooms
a tin of sweetcorn
carrots (cooked or tinned)
2 tins of condensed mushroom soup
Short crust pastry

Directions

Heat the soup, chicken, carrots and mushrooms in a pan
when hot add the sweetcorn
Put contents into your pie dish and leave to cool for 30 minutes

Roll pastry and add to pie dish
Brush with egg

Cook for approx 30 - 40 minutes until pastry is thoroughly cooked

and viola a hearty delicious chicken pie

World Book Day, Our (My) Favourite Book... We're Going on a Bear Hunt

Oh how I love this book, it is by far my favourite children's book. It was bought as a Christmas present for Amelia when she was 17 months old and she loved it as much as I did.

We're going on a Bear hunt.

We're going to catch a big one!

What a Beautiful Day!

We're not scared.

Oh No! Grass. Long, wavy grass.

We can't go over it

We can't go under it

Oh No!

We've got to go THROUGH IT!

Swishy Swashy

Swishy Swashy

Swishy Swashy

We're going on a Bear hunt.

We're going to catch a big one!

What a Beautiful Day!

We're not scared.

Oh No! A river. A deep, cold river.

We can't go over it

We can't go under it

Oh No!

We've got to go THROUGH IT!

Splash Splosh

Splash Spolsh

Splash Splosh

We're going on a Bear hunt.

We're going to catch a big one!

What a Beautiful Day!

We're not scared.

Oh No! Mud. Tick, oozy mud.

We can't go over it

We can't go under it

Oh No!

We've got to go THROUGH IT!

Squelch Squerch

Squelch Squerch

Squelch Squerch

We're going on a Bear hunt.

We're going to catch a big one!

What a Beautiful Day!

We're not scared.

Oh No! A forest. A big, dark forest.

We can't go over it

We can't go under it

Oh No!

We've got to go THROUGH IT!

Stumble Trip

Stumble Trip

Stumble Trip

We're going on a Bear hunt.

We're going to catch a big one!

What a Beautiful Day!

We're not scared.

Oh No! A snowstorm. A swirling whirling snowstorm.

We can't go over it

We can't go under it

Oh No!

We've got to go THROUGH IT!

Oooh Woooh

Oooh Woooh

Oooh Woooh

We're going on a Bear hunt.

We're going to catch a big one!

What a Beautiful Day!

We're not scared.

Oh No! A cave. A narrow, gloomy cave.

We can't go over it

We can't go under it

Oh No!

We've got to go THROUGH IT!

Tip toe

Tip toe

Tip toe

What’s that?!

One shiny wet nose

Two big fury ears

Two big goggly eyes

It’s a bear!

Quick, back through the cave

Tip toe

Tip toe

Tip toe

Back through the snowstorm

Ooooh Woooh

Ooooh Woooh

Ooooh Woooh

Back through the forest

Stumble trip

Stumble trip

Stumble trip

Back through the mud

Squelch squerch

Squelch squerch

Squelch squerch

Back through the river

Splish splosh

Splish splosh

Splish splosh

Back through the grass

Swishy swashy

Swishy swashy

Swishy swashy

Into our front door

Open the door

Up the stairs

Oh No!

We forgot to shut the door!

Back downstairs

Shut the door

Back upstairs

Into the bedroom

Into bed

Under the covers

WE’RE NOT GOING ON A BEAR HUNT AGAIN!

Funday Monday... Making Gruffalo Crumble

Funday Monday was still a bit low key due to the girls still not being a 100% but a vast improvement on last Mondays trip to A&E!

We made Gruffalo Crumble...

Well it was apple crumble but the girls got me this delightful Gruffalo Crumble set for Christmas, which included the oversized mug for mixing, a Gruffalo wooden spoon and the crumble mix.

We just needed to add the fruit to the tin sprinkle the crumble on the top and cook for 25 minutes, easy as pie...

So we had to pad the time out a bit with squashing fruit and mixing crumble otherwise it would of been done in about five minutes but the girls had a thoroughly enjoyable time.

Now for the really fun part... Gruffalo Crumble and Custard anyone?

Sunday Catch Up

Gosh is it Sunday again already???

Well we have had yet more illness as Amelia came down with a nasty bout of croup on Monday (as per my earlier post) and she also has an ear infection, with Isobel also having some sort of virus, it's been a tiring week. They are both on antibiotics so here's hoping they help a bit. Hubby and I also haven't been 100%, I think we need a holiday November seems like an awful long time ago :(

Kit Kat has been booked on his puppy training course and Amelia is going to take him with me, which she is extremely excited about. Even though he still isn't great we have seen some improvement on the biting front (hallelujah) and he went for his first walk today which he loved! We go to a fab little pub on the Mersey called the Ferry Tavern, lovely walks, great fish and chips and dogs are welcome. The girls love going and having a drink of lemonade after splashing in puddles and feeding the swans. It really doesn't get much better, fresh air, happy girls and a good pub.

It's been an outdoorsy weekend, making the most of the sun for a change. We have planted our strawberries and sunflower seeds, ready for the girls to replant in their pots that they will paint and varnish in the next couple of weeks, which make lovely easter gifts for grandparents (post to follow on that one). I even hung some washing on the line, which I got ridiculously excited about (how sad is my life now Ha Ha)

Next week we are hoping to make Gruffalo Crumble on our Funday Monday, the usual rounds of gymnastics, swimming, ballet and nursery and I am attempting to make left over chicken pie tomorrow which should be interesting with my culinary skills!

See you on the other side...

Planting seeds, spring is in the air :)

Kit Kats first walk along the canal

Beautiful Amelia

My little cheeky monkey chops