March 06 *#* all around the world

[UniS]

sorry couldn;t think of a funny title. but here goes.

Anyone with Dcs born March 06 welcome to come on in and introduce yourselves.

OMG Outlaws for the whole week, without dh! eeeekkkkk

Nothing much happening here this week, just counting the days till I can pack and go!

I don;t mind. The company will stop boy and I killing each other, and he will adore having his big cousins about. SiL BiL and I get on OK tho we have some big areas we do not discuss...at least not if we wish to remain on good terms.

well have a fun week then Uni! I'm going to pin our horde down tomorrow night and ensure that there are no nits present, oh the joys of small children! hopefully then we'll have a nit free holiday.

Evening all,

Uni, hope you survived the out laws...update please!

Friz, are you back from France yet? I would recommend our campsite (L'Atlantique) although I did enjoy staying in a mobile home rather than under canvas - own loo and shower and a bit more room for THREE drizzly days.

Was a bit hectic as went with friends and their 2 girls which meant double the arguing. However we did some lovely bike rides through a nature reserve, a few good runs with no kids and both girls can now swim! Kiah can only swim under water but it's progress.

Had a lovely last evening in St Malo and cycled with tag along, seat and bikes along the prom and then back in the dark at 11pm - what an adventure.

Had a couple of days at my bro's in Somerset before getting home on Sat night at the stroke of midnight.

Off to Brum for work for 2 days early morning so should get packed up and to bed really - have been planning a run along the canal to fit in before the evening meal as need to do some training this week for an 8 miler on Sun.....

Hope for some half term news on my return.

survived. It was quite fun in a hectic kind of way. boy adores his big boy cousins. We did a big day out to nearest city for a cycle race ( as spectators) kids liked being lots of free promotional "stuff" and having a McDs for tea. Also watching the flatland BMX and MTB trials demos. Boy is now trying "stunt riding" on his bike and getting hurt.
Also had a free day out at local paddling hole with slippery rock slides. Mucho playing on bikes and scooters and unicycles in the drive way and visits to the rec. so, yes a good week all round.

Glad you survived french camp site week.
Boy is being a bit of a smug 4 yr old about his cycling, his 2 buddies are just learning and boy is less than gracious about their having stabilisers .

He has now met his reception teacher, tho won;t be doing class room visits till teh sutunm term as he is Jan intake. She seems very plesent and welcoming however when he popped his head round YR door at school kick out time today.

School kick out is a good time to find people you want a word with and a bit of a social thing for the preschool sibs and hangers on. so we are there once or twice a week at teh mo.

LL glad France was nice despite the argiuing and drizzle!

Uni glad you had a nice week with the cousins and your boys bike riding is taking off! DS can ride without stabilisers but not brilliantly - mainly our fault as we rarely take him out to practice (DD hasn't made much progress either in a year...)

Well we don't have half terms here so we plod on for another few weeks until winter holidays which are 2 weeks long.

@ weekends ago we had a church weekend away which went well - I was organising it and was stressed and didn't enjoy it v much, but I think ebveryone else did!

Last weekend we had DD1's 6th birthday! So we went to the pool used for the sydney olympics which has a brilliant water playground and whirppool, with two of her friends, then had dinner in the cafe. On Sunday - her actual birthday - we had a laid back arvo tea with family. The whole thing was SO muich easier that DS's big shebang Dinosaur party back in march! We got her this to counteract the mountain of fairy stuff we (and others) also gave her - can't recomend it highly enough, DS loves it too.

You wont believe if of course, but it is FREEZING here!

Hello we're back! lovely hot and sunny time in france, but boy is food expensive over there at the moment I'd recommend our site too LL www.labaume-lapalmeraie.com/ if anyone is interested! will pop some pics on facebook when I get a second.

LL glad you had a lovely time, It's been ages since I've been to that part of France, although I do remember pre kids getting hideously drunk in St Malo

Uni, hurrah for good times with the outlaws rock pool slides sound interesting I was jibbing dd2 about taking her stabilisers off the other day, but she was having none of it I saw a younglad with a Unicycle and rollerblades on the other day and thought of you

Astro, no you're right I don't believe it ever gets cold in Sydney glad dd1 had a great birthday, happy belated one from us all

Sounds gorgeous Friz - even the expensive french food! Glad you had a nice warm holiday. How long until school goes back for you?

Well DSIL had her baby last night, little Annabel. She is very cute, I went and had a cuddle today. She had an epidural and then eventually forceps, but doesn't seem to be bothered so hurrah for them all! Feeding is going well so far, very sweet to see DB cooing and clucking over his little daughter.

Public holiday monday here today (I don't even know why - maybe the Queens birthday?) and we had nieces 3rd birthday at a local park where lots of fun was had in the sunshiny playground

Awww yay for your new niece Astro I spotted a pic I think on facebookfeed!

School went back last week, we kept dd1 and ss out for an extra week (naughty us) and thus she went back today very happy to see her friends again. Dd2 however didn't as she was poorly last night and got me up every half hour until 7am roughly when dh took over.....temp of 102 and lots of crying out, poor mite, she's been sofa bound all day, but perked up at tea time, and her temp is right down now, so could have been just one of those 24 hour things?

Oh poor DD Friz! I do hope she is on the mend.

If I lived on France's doorstep I'd sneak the kids out of school for a holiday too ;)

Astro, congrats on new baby - bet you'll get all broody again now .

Friz, hope DD2 is better and back at school in the morning.

Everything in France is expensive apart from the beer I thought!

DP out the front setting up our FreeSat dish so we can get a picture on our new big screen and projector....didn't work for the England match but we did watch Dr Who on iplayer and it was pretty good.

Quick hello from Cambodia.

Dh is off to his grad ceremony mid-July and his parents will join him for the celebrations... It turns out that the LSE only allows students to purchase two tickets. That, and the fact that it would be outrageously expensive for all of to go, means that we will sit this one out. I look forward to the photos and just knowing that it is all done and dusted.

Astro: I cannot believe that it has been cold there. The heat here is oppressive and no sign of the rainy season most days. (It should have started mid-May.) Happy belated b-day to your dd

LL: I hope the free-sat dish works out but that it doesn't mean you are subjected to endless football and vuvuzelas.

Friz: France sounds great. I do know what you mean about the price of food though. I would imagine that this would be even more obvious with the GPB suffering. I hope your dd is on the mend. Sickness is no fun at all.

Uni: Glad you survived the relative invasion and actually managed to enjoy yourself! I can't even imagine Char in reception. She seems so much younger than my older three. Thank goodness kindy doesn't start until next year for her in our current reality. She has recently started to read but I don't think she could manage the full days like her big sister (also a March baby) did so effortlessly.

We are starting to find our feet. 3 of our 4 have found friends and are being invited round to play/hang out on a regular basis. I just have to locate some 8 year old boys. I am sure that there must be some kind ones out there somewhere... Maybe next week's sports camp will unearth some?

Novel over. Back to R.L. where I am currently trying to avoid newborns. No desire to feel broody or think about what could have been...

Awww Caddy. Give those gorgeous kids of yours plenty of hugs instead.

Hope you capture some delightful 8 year olds at camp - Kiah is off to a friend's tomorrow for the afternoon which she'll love.

We are planning a BBQ (never had one before I don't think!) tomorrow before the footie...even 'allowing' people to bring meat - radical. I'm sure we can christen the deck with some ketchup and grease!

My work is going a bit mad at present - my Lottery groups have developed crazy problems a week from their deadline....grrrr......

Life seems a bit mad - send calm tales please!

Would love to send you calming tales, but can't think of any at the moment

{{{Hugs}}} for you caddy, you sound like you need them, but well done on finding the kids a pile of friends, I'm sure you're 8 year old will make buddies at camp How about you? have you found any people with similar interests close by?

LL, bah for those lottery groups! hope you've gotten the dish installed ok

to see the footage of what's happened in France on the news (floods in case anyones missed it) in Frejus, where we were last week missed it by a few days, phew...I don't think our campsite was affected, as it wasn't on the river, but most of the other ones were, France24 says they've not even started checking through the campsites yet , in most the vans are washed into heaps apparently.....

In other news dd2 had her trial day at big school and hated being away from me, played up rotten, they had to fetch me into the class room, that also contained her big sister (buddy system) and her big sisters mates, one of whom is dd2's buddy, so really no need for playing up (dd2's best mate in there too, wondering why she was crying)

Oh Friz... That is exactly the kind of stunt that my dd2 would pull. I wanted to register her for a morning summer-school/camp at a fabulous nursery where she already attends a music class but I just knew that she wouldn't stay. It would be a waste of time, effort and money.

I hope that you dd2 has a big change of heart before August. It is very stressful, this whole school business.

The floods look absolutely awful. Thank heavens you were safely back home by the time they hit.

LL: Sending you relaxing, all-will-be-well vibes. No real calm tales though, I'm afraid... BBQ's are fabulous. I am most impressed with your BYOM. That is jumping off into the deep end. I hope it goes brilliantly.

Thanks for the virtual hugs and moral support. I just need a kick up the backside. It is funny how just when things seem to be falling into place something comes along to knock the wind out of me. I am slightly dreading dh going off to London (and mighty p-od that his parents seem to see it as a chore) but I will manage. Then yesterday, dh casually mentions at dinner that the whole 'battle-order' at work has changed and that New York would like to send him to Afghanistan. How convenient... I was talked into this post because it was meant to be a safe family duty station with short working hours and NO travel. The worst part is that the suspicious part of me thinks that dh might be behind some of the re-organisation himself. He is a consummate procrastinator when it comes to his own life and a total workaholic at the office. I am sick to death of the whole thing. Once again, I find myself wondering where I even fit into this picture. I figure that I could easily be replaced by a nanny and a housekeeper (especially here where the wages are deplorable). Maybe a lovely private school for the dcs should be throw in there as well?

Wow! That was quite a rant. Rather the opposite of calm tales. Sorry, LL.

Hi All.

Oh caddy, tales of woe and dispair... get thy self wrapped around wine and chocolate. Fingers crossed DH will realise he's being atwit and send some bright young thing to far flung places instead.

We are with out vistors this weekend, just got to wait for DH to get home from Leeds, train is running very late and he will now miss last bus. not sure when he will get here, looks like it will be after an expensive taxi ride.

We do however have village open gardens and I'm helping out on the plant sale! I keep telling the "boss" that I know nothing but I'm good and fetch and carry. Dhs choir are giving a free concert so I'll take boyto that and then we should be able to spend a while nosing in other peoples gardens and eating cream tea.

Oh no Caddy, I'm really hoping for your sake that he doesn't have to go to Afghanistan at the suggestion even, why would anyone want to go there? (in the state it's in now) I'm guessing that you guys have sat down and talked about things? totally agree with Uni's suggestion of choc and wine {{{Big Hugs}}}
check our girls out on Meridians dh's work blog! www.fieldphotographic.blogspot.com/ these photos arrived as our Xmas prezzie last year! (although the pr says otherwise!)

Uni, your day of gardens and cream teas sounds idyllic althought the fetching and carrying bit not quite so!

Fathers Day tomorrow here, are we all set?

Those pictures are just beautiful Friz! Bother DD2 playing up hey - my DS does that sort of trick too - doesn't like to be left and turns 'shy', when really he is confident and socialble. grrrr.

Uni, hope the cream teas were delish. We can't get clotted cream here (sob!) and its just not the same.

LL, have things settled down/sorted out with work? How was the BBQ?

Now to you Caddy...so sorry to hear DH is being a jerk, and horrified to hear about Afganistan possibility But hopefully it wont come to that? How is sports camp going for DS?

Of course you couldn't be replaced by a nanny and housekeeper - your DC would certainly not agree that you could be! Not envying you with settling in to somethwre new - we are still not settled here and its technically 'home' for us, so I can only imagine its even harder with the cultural differences too.

Sorry to have made you think of newborns

If you need to escape the heat you need to get out of the tropics! It really has been icy here. Apparently we have the same climate (similar latitude) as south of spain.

Calming story: we spent the weekend in the Blue Mountains where is was very cold (but no snow unfortunately), had lots of roaring fires and hot drinks and some nice bush walks to take in the views of the mountains and cliffs. Some friends joined us for Saturday night and we had deliious lasagne made by my friend, and then mocha panna cott and watch Jeeves and Wooster The kids bickered and whacked each other all the way home. Can't win 'em all hey?

Caddy - sort out that DH!! You'd need more than a nanny and housekeeper to replace you -a hooker for an start and they don't some cheap...well maybe in Cam! Sending big hugs {{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}

Friz, the pics are absolutely gorgeous! Even with the chinbooboo.

Uni...cream teas are lovely eh? Very jealous. You'd be proud of us today as we cycled into Manchester for lunch and a parade. Kiah in seat and me with Tilly on tag along...just mapped it at 24 miles.

The day was good apart from T having a complete melt down in Pizza Hut. Had to carry her out of the place.

All forgotton by the time we'd cycled home and my mum and dad came round and did bath and bed. My dad was actually on laptop with DP plotting his 65 mile walk for his 65th burthday in a couple of weeks....going to jog a few miles with him.

We got DP and my dad a taster session in the velodrome which they'll do in a few weeks. It follows the Team GB training so we might spot some Olympic hopefuls.

Astro, missed you out there, sorry. Your post made DP and I remember our visit to the Blue Mountains...we camped and woke up to a covering of snow...freezing!!! Those were the days before bickering kids too...bliss.

LL congrats on your big bike ride. Most impressive. Don't think I've taken boy that far on the tandem. 12 miles is about our biggest trip so far. Hoping to get a bit further this summer.

Velo taster session... I'm jealous. No velodrome for hours and hours in the car from here.

Waves to all, I'm off out to teh garden again soon, in middle of building a compost bay out of scrap.

Ello all gorgeous day here, have relocated some of the garden today, some bushes were growning too big and inhibiting others, so I've done a spot of jiggling and space creation, whilst throwing two self seeded tree saplings out! (which seems a shame, if I had a car this coming weekend I'd have potted them and car booted them, but I haven't so I can't) managed to combat too! plus loads of washing, I love summer! Just found out that dd2 has another settling session on her own (gibber) at school this wed.... and we're attempting dry night training again (i.e. we're dry at night, but can't be arsed to get out of bed in am) am trying points make prizes, see if that works?

Caddy have you sorted out that dh of yours yet?

Astro, your weekend sounded lovely bar the bickering of course!

LL, HOW FAR! you nutter seriously well done, that's fab, I'm going to attempt to get both of mine to cycle to Meridians on saturday, with me cycling too in a mother duck fashion behind them, once we're over the main road it may be ok, depends on dd2 melting down or not.....should I risk it?

Go for it Friz. If they are dreadfull you send up walking... It will all come out in teh wash and they will calm down eventully.

My Compost corner is a thing of beauty and joy. All wombled up from scrap found in the garden and shed so not a penny spent. DHs clipping of teh bay tree and cotoneaster hedge has half filled it, with a little help from the tardis I dug out and found contained some rather stinky not yet fully rotted kitchen waste.

I've sown a 2nd set of cut and come again lettuce and rocket as the first lot is ready to use now. We are having more and more garden produce in dinners now. Tonight we had the first courgette with some salmon and spaghetti.

Uni and Friz, I'm very impressed with your gardening expolits - especially Uni growing salmon and spaghetti!

I sowed some salad and carrots as I got some free Dig-it seeds from the BBC...just in time as deck is now big enough to accomodate a wooden box planter....still waiting for 8 planks to finish it though from shitty internet company.

DP put up a rope ladder, monkey bar ladder, trapeze and a swing today...then a hammock in which we had bedtime stories. Very happy kids!

Just had a phone call from a local mum who is buying a lovely terraced house that DP and I did up before Tilly was born. We can go round for a nosy and reminisce when she moves in....

at your hammock LL, I so want one!
at house reminiscing!

Uni, well done with the growing, I'm getting about 7 strawbs a day out of our patch this week if we chop them in half, they just about stretch around me and the girls my lettuce aren't ready yet, but they're on their way!
Well done with the compost heap, I just about managed to empty ours onto some of the garden earlier this year, so it's virtally empty again! woot!

Well last nights, night training failed.....try again tonight!