We have finished the babysteps - cautiously moving into toddler sized steps now.

[Carrotsandcelery]

You are all going to be so disappointed. My hobby is horse riding. Ta da!! I really wasn't trying to be coy. I didn't realise you were all so nosey took such an interest in fellow thread members I am totally mortified that it is not hang gliding or rally racing or anything a bit more adventurous

Our school is walkable. It is quite a long walk (the dcs about 100 yards from us are eligible for the bus) but it is walkable. Our little shop is too so I can avoid driving if I need to for a day or two. Then it gets tricky. I still love snow though

It doesn't look like it will come to much for now but it is pretty

We just have rain, which I'm actually quite pleased about as I have to drive out into the sticks for DD1s swimming lesson tomorrow!

We have just had a bit of sleet. Some of the cars look like they have a thin layer of icing sugar on top. Tis more rain than anything else now though!

We just have a very thin layer. The grass on the front lawn is still poking through although the street is totally white.

Please nag remind me to check our oil in the morning as this is when we tend to run out and have to wait 3 weeks for more

No interesting weather here.

Carrots, remember to check your oil.

Plenty to do here - need to tidy a bit after the weekend plus lots of washing to put away.

Mondays are always funny as DH has a study day, so I can't do too many jobs upstairs or we disturb him. Swimming has finished for the term but we're out at a birthday party this afternoon.

Main aims for today:
Go to bed early
Tidy kitchen
Do some laundry
Order some more Christmas presents
Take DS out for some exercise
Try to stay off MN.

Morning all, I like your Christmassy name Angel.
I too can't do much upstairs as DH is in bed (night shift again)

We have no snow this morning just a very cold wind.

Our Christmas tree is up and decorated so that is one Christmas job I can tick on the list.

To do:
Start writing Christmas cards
Wash up/dry up
Clean of and dust mantle piece so it's ready for Christmassy ornaments.
Decide whether to go out or not.
Tidy welsh dresser
Put up a Christmas card holder (We have 4 cards already)
I'm sure I will think of plenty more jobs as the day goes along so I think I will have to use my timer a lot today to stay focused

Parsnips Have you checked your oil?

Angels love the name change.

Thank you - I had totally forgotten about the oil.

I will nip out now

Thanks once again Angels. We have just under a third of a tank and when it gets this cold it doesn't last long. I have phoned for a full top up. Yikes! Dh will have to pay for that one.

I have been wrapping the dcs stockings and have realised that we have a biggish gift for dd's stocking and not a biggish one for ds's. I try to keep them roughly even eg craft set each, fact book each, item of clothing each, bundle of novels each etc. Dd has a big Playmobil box with floors for her dolls house and ds doesn't What sort of a mother am I?

I am finding the stocking much harder now they are bigger. I can't write a list as they can read it and I can't have one on the laptop as they can work that now too. I need to get dh to show me how to password protect a list on the lap top.

Dh is off for his birthday on Wed and we are going to the cinema so I think we will also be picking up a big Lego set or similar.

I feel like I am making progress today.
I haven't completed any jobs but have done a bit on some of them and I can see what I have done.

First Christmas card arrived today. :) We don't aim to put up decorations till the week before Christmas, but in practice it's usually Christmas Eve!

We put ours up early cause DS was asking for them --and I am a big kid--

Our dcs are itching to put ours up. We wait until after dh's birthday though. It think their anticipation of them is quite good fun actually anyway. We do have lights draped over the mantelpiece in the lounge though. That wasn't planned. They were bought for something else but didn't work so rather than put them away and take them out again we draped them artfully over the mantelpiece. I have to say they look nice twinkling away with the sparkly snow outside.

I have been doing more wrapping. I have stopped for today though as I am scunnered with it for now.

I have started writing the Christmas cards today. I have to start early cause we have to send a lot via the postman hundreds of miles away.
Still no snow here but we did have another sleet shower earlier.
It must look really nice Parsnips (the snow and the lights).

We have our first visit to nursery tomorrow. I hope DD will be o.k. although I think I stay with her the first two times she goes.

I started on the cards too BlackCat. Many of ours go a long way too. Everybody is so spread out. I only did about 20 though as I write a wee note in most of them. I realised how little I actually write these days, with a pen and paper.

Good luck with Nursery. I am sure BlackKitten will have a great time. How long are her sessions? Are they shorter to begin with?

I have just been to our local supermarket to do a small food shop. From there you can see the lake district mountains and they are covered in snow. It looks really pretty!

Do you still have snow?Parsnips

The nursery session will be a little shorter than the normal times.
I am just having a break before I get busy.

Hi everyone! Where has bessie got to?

BlackCat we still have the sprinkling of snow we had but no new snow. It is absolutely freezing though.

I have a stonking sinus headache which I have had since last night and I can't shift it. I have taken all sorts of drugs but nothing is touching it. It is making me feel sick.

I have been making cakes, wrapping and writing cards today. It seems to be endless.

Dh and I have a day out together tomorrow though so that will be a good break from it (and the house).

I'm still here, I've just been busy! I'm not sure where I've got the energy from but I've done most of my house blessing (couldn't bring myself to get the mop out), have moved a load of stuff from the dining room up to hide in DD2s room - (I need to get the dining room clear ready for xmas dinner) & have been sorting some toys out as I go (some for the loft & some to be hidden for a few months) I've also done 4 loads of laundry, and done a bit of tidying in the garden

I've got an hour until DD1 gets back from her GPs, so I need to go pack her bag for pre-school tomorrow & play with DD2 (although she seems quite content banging her rattle on my kneecap ) & then get their tea ready.

black hope she enjoys her pre-school sessions. Has she ever been before? I found it quite hard to leave DD1 there the first few times, especially if she cried, but she was always fine when I peeked around the corner 30seconds later!

I ordered a load of stuff online last night, DH has been instructed to buy as many presents as possible this week for all his cousins kids so we should have most of the pressies ready for wrapping at the weekend along with decorating the tree.

I still haven't got anything for DH, and the cooker still isn't fixed

oh, and I haven't written ANY cards yet, but I have at least found the list & bought the cards which is more organised than I normally am!

Yay! Hi bessie You have been busy!

Finding the Christmas card list is the thing most likely to put me right off doing them. I stumbled across ours by accident and took it as a sign that it had to be done. I have decided just to do one here and one there and see how it goes. I got about 10 done today without realising it so it seems to be working. We could work them in like our hotspots - set the timer and go for a set period and you get to stop when time is up!

Hot-spotting the Xmas cards sounds like a fantastic idea!

To do this evening:

Order / look for Christmas presents 15 mins
Put away dry washing
Hang out wet washing
5 mins tidy kitchen
Make DH lunch
Go to bed early

Dh is out at a fancy restaurant with some colleagues he has to entertain and I seem to be decluttering the box of after eights. If I eat any more I will have to buy another box and eat some of them just to hide my shame.

It is a bit worrying as they were one of my "pregnancy" foods That really would be a Christmas gift I didn't expect!!!

I have written some more cards though.

The house needs a good hoover but it is too late to do it today as the dcs are in bed. I do feel it is time to sit and chill for a while in the hopes of managing to sleep tonight. I suspect I will be jumpy until I know dh is home though as it is very cold and icy here now.

After eights are lovely! I am munching my way through the biscuit tin.

Nursery went well. I think DD likes it there so I just hope she will like it when I have to leave her. We get another chance to go next week too then that will be it till January. It looked like a nice place and they had lots of things there to keep her busy.
Today was her first time there.

I have been writing a few more cards this evening but no where near finished.

I am glad it went well BlackCat. I think we generally find it harder than the wee ones do. Even if they kick up a fuss when we leave they are usually happy within about 20 seconds.

How many time will she get to go a week? Do you get the full 5 2 1/2 hour sessions?

I remember my ddad thinking I would have all the time in the world when ds started nursery. He didn't factor in the time to drop off and pick up.

It does still give you a little time to breathe in the day though, and be recharged for them when they reappear.

I have written a few more cards and packed up some parcels (don't know what came over me) and am toying with the idea of going to bed now, even though dh isn't home.

I should write his birthday card first though I suppose.