By jove I did it!

NaBloPoMo

30 posts in 30 days. This my friends is Number 30.

No Make It Monday this week because well, I am too busy being happy that I made it to the big 30 posts!

At the beginning I thought that I would go back and read the novel that I wrote a few years ago for NanoWrimo, and that I would have oodles of blogging fodder from that but I didn't get a chance. I have managed to write a post every day, and even managed to cope with the holiday issues and traveling by scheduling a couple of the posts.

It was actually a lot easier than I expected. I have a real mix of posts. The regular Make It Monday's helped. There was a review and a sponsored post thrown into the mix. Other than that, I was really pleased with the fact that I just let go and wrote about some things that I really needed advice and help with. I wish that I had more time to come and thank each and every one of you that have left comments but I wrote this post instead. I even tried my hand at some creative writing. I shared pictures of my home, I wrote about my worries about weaning and routine changes and the fact that Piran freaked out around my family.

I thought I would run out of posting ideas but I actually have a few still left in my brain rattling about. I need to write about my incredible good luck recently when I have been entering competitions. I want to unburden myself, I want to work things out. I want to say thank you for your weaning comments, I know that it is a contentious issue and I am grateful that you all feel able to share your experiences and opinions with me. I want to tell you how much I am looking forward to Christmas, I want to mention my son is 4 months old tomorrow. I want to write my post for the Writing Workshop this week.

That said, I worry that you all could be a little fed up of me appearing in your Google reader (or whatever else you use!). I worry that at times content has been lacking. That I was posting for the sake of posting (on a couple of occasions that is true). This was an experiment and I ending up learning something. That I love to blog. That I think my best posts are the ones where I just start with a rough idea and just write. I am amazed at times where those posts go but I am always happy with the result. I cannot imagine what being a new mum would be like for me without Twitter and blogging. I am sure I would have managed but I feel that these things enrich my life right now.

Why do you love blogging?

Sunday night ramblings

Oh, I am so tired. Last night was meant to be my one night of not having to get up and feed the baby and he decided that he would like two night feeds instead of just the one. Oh well, back to me being in charge as Mr C is back to work tomorrow. Reckon it is over a year since I had a whole nights sleep. Piran is 4 months old on Tuesday and I am wondering if he is starting to need a little more than just milk. Have switched to hungry milk for all feeds not just night ones and we will see. I wasn't planning on starting weaning just yet, but if it helps him sleep at night then I will have to think about it. Did anyone else feel really reluctant to even think about starting? I know that these days they say wait until 6 months, but he weighs 18lb's and seems quite interested when I am eating and well, if he is hungry? I think I need more advice really. Anyone have any suggestions?

Security has been breached round here. My FIL was googling Piran and he came across this post. We went round for Sunday lunch and he bought it up on the internet. I admitted that it was my site but it only seemed that he had read that post but he didn't mention anything else. It was awkward, and I didn't really know what to say. They know that I get things that I write reviews for, it is a bit of a thing with my MIL that I keep getting these things but they never actually ask where the reviews are published. There is nothing on here that they cannot read, although there are some personal posts that maybe tell a lot more about me than they would know. We will see if anything else happens. I would be happy for them to read it and never talk about it!

It is odd being home, I missed my house and my things and my privacy but I now miss the Grandparents who played with the baby as soon as he woke every morning and helped to amuse him between 4 and 6 in the evening when he is always hard work. It will be nice to get back to doing the things that we do each week, visiting Lovely lady and her new baby on a Monday, this week we have Little Dippers on Tuesday and Friday, baby massage on Wednesday, baby clinic on Friday and poor old Piran has his third set of jabs on Thursday. All I will want to do on Saturday is sleep but I am GOING OUT! In the evening. To London. I am excited and scared in equal measures. I may have to snooze on the train to give myself some energy!

Been reading everyone's tweets about the BMB meet up, so sad that we couldn't go. Mind you, we got drenched coming back from the inlaw's 5 minutes away and it was COLD. Don't mind rain in the summer but it was icy. Not impressed. It sounds like everyone had a great time.

Poor Piran is so restless this evening. I am wondering if it is the wind but we have had to calm him down and get him back to sleep once (this very rarely happens) and he makes noises every 20 minutes or so which means that he cannot be sleeping properly. Poor little man.

So, I hope you all had good weekends. Would love any weaning advice.

Red shoes

If you click on the picture it will take you to Josie's fantastic blog, Sleep is for the Weak. This week is week 6 of the Writing Workshop. This is my submission this week, I have chosen the prompt which was to write about shoes that sum up your personality. I am tired and I do not have much energy left but am happy to be able to write without worrying about questions from my parents! So, I give you my shoes:


I am not a high heels kind of girl. I am flat comfortable shoes kind of girl. I have had so many pairs of shoes and trainers and boots in my life but this pair has lasted the longest by far. I bought these on a whim four years ago and I have worn them almost every day.

In their glory I got many nice comments. They had a rainbow stripe which made me smile. They were red. They were suede. They fit my feet like a glove. They were unusual. They were me.

But, in the time I have worn them they have seen me get together with Paul, move house a couple of times. I wore them when he met my parents and I met his. I wore them when I got engaged, I wore them in the morning of my wedding day. They were surplus to requirements at the end of my pregnancy when my feet turned into pasty shaped boats but I celebrated when I could get my feet back in them. They have been on my feet as I run around after my son.

Now however, I have to admit. They are worn and tired and run down. They have a split on the sole that is letting in water. They are scuffed and faded. I should have replaced them two years ago but couldn't find anything that I even vaguely liked.

Three weeks ago I admitted defeat and picked a new pair. They are red. They have a little bit of suede. They are relatively comfortable. I am not sold on them yet, and I am not throwing my old pair away.


Perhaps one day I will feel that they suit my personality as well as the old ones.

Through the night

8.47pm
We are driving home from Cornwall, through the dark night. The rain has stopped for now and I can even see a few stars. The counties are passing by, Cornwall, Devon and we are currently in Somerset. I am amusing myself with the unusual place names we have seen so far:

Ventongimps
Broadwoodwidger
Curry Mallet

There were more but my eyes and brain are tired, I have just finished my first shift on the driving. I long for home and my bed but we have a way to go until then.

From my new phone

I was quite unfair in my post yesterday as I neglected to mention that I too have a new iPhone and although I was not using it at that time, I had been using it while we were out. So really we are just as bad as each other.

We go home tomorrow night. It feels like I have been away for ever. I am looking forward to being home but leaving here is always hard. I do want to get home and sit down and write something, anything. I feel like my blog is lacking in content the past couple of weeks, although I have managed to post every day. Keeping this all a secret is hard but ultimately the best thing for me and this blog.

Right now it is time to feed Piran and go to bed. I have a pain in my neck and packing to do in the morning. A day of stresses and strains and planning and saying goodbye. It will not be easy but we are back in just under 4 weeks for Christmas so perhaps it will be easier than usual.

Kelly

Wordless Wednesday: My husband would rather play with his iPhone than talk to me

Simplehuman review - deluxe semi-round recycler

When I was approached to review a Simplehuman product it took me quite a while to pick which one! I am a big fan of shiny kitchen and bathroom bits and pieces and there were quite a few products I could happily lust after! (yes, perhaps I need to get out a little more!)


After serious discussions with Mr C we decided to get choose the deluxe semi-round recycler. I must admit to being very attracted to the shampoo and soap dispensers, something to covet for a while!

Inital thoughts
When the box arrived I was quite nervous, it seemed rather large! I had chosen this bin for two reasons. One, because we do not have any space in our tiny kitchen and two, becauseI wanted somewhere to put the recycling. Once I had put the bin in the space against the side of the fridge I was surprised that it took up so little space. It was not in our way at all. It looked shiny and new and I was impressed.

We Liked
Honestly, we really liked this product. I love the way it quietly closes thanks to the patented lid shox™ technology. It says that it is fingerprint proof and I quickly set to pressing my fingers against the surface to see if I could leave a mark! It passed the test with flying colours! I thought the compartments looked quite small but they hold quite a surprising amount of rubbish. I love that the work surface is now clear of piles of recycling as I have somewhere in the kitchen to put it and I just have to pop out and sort it every couple of days.

We didn't like
We used to use black bin liners in our bin but the rubbish side of the bin, when full only filled half a black sack. I bought some white bin liners instead and they are fine. You can buy liners especially for the bin but that is too much bother for me!  The price is quite a lot for a bin, at £109.99 but it does have a 10 year guarantee so if you think of it over 10 years then perhaps that could be justified.

Overall
A stylish looking bin that does everything I would want! I have actually found that having the recycling in the same place as the bin has made me recycle more, as occasionally I might have been naughty and dropped some paper in the bin and now it just goes in the recycling compartment.

The official blurb!
Our fingerprint-proof semi-round recycler has two colour-coded inner buckets (both 18.5L) to separate rubbish from recyclables. The space-efficient shape is ideal for high-traffic areas, while the slim profile hinge allows the bin to fit snugly against the wall. Our smartbucket® bag change system and patented lid shox™ technology make this innovative bin easy-to-use, and the wide, solid steel platform pedal is easy to reach from many angles.

Disclaimer: We were provided with a bin free of charge for the purpose of this review.

Make it Monday: Hydrangeas

My MIL has two wonderful hydrangea bushes in her front garden and when she told me she was about to cut them back so I could get the pram past I jumped in there quick. After a little research I wanted to try and preserve them using glycerine. This is what I did, and how they turned out!

I seared the stems in boiling water for 30 seconds.

Then left them in water overnight for a good drink.

The next day I made up a solution of 1 part glycerine to 2 parts hot tap water so I had a couple of centimeters in a jam jar and then leave the stems in the mixture until it has all been absorbed or evaporated.

I had mixed results! Some of them worked and the flowers feel smooth and silky.

Some did not work but instead they just seemed to dry out so they are fine and I have used them in a goldfish bowl and in the candelabra on the dining room table for now. I may use them for a wreath for the front door for Christmas or perhaps table decorations.

Sunday night, at last

Today seems to have been a very long day.

I didn't sleep very well last night and today we were due to go to my Dad's for Sunday lunch. I have a large family, Dad and my step-mum live with my step-sister, her partner and their two kids, a boy aged 5 and a girl aged 14 months. Then my step-brother, brother and his fiancee were also there for lunch.

All in all there were 9 adults and 3 children. It is loud and there is a lot going on. Mr C and I live a quiet life and we always find it quite overwhelming when we are with everyone. Piran was not happy all day and spent a lot of his time crying, really screaming and being totally inconsolable. It was so heartbreaking, I thought he could be ill so we gave him some Calpol but it didn't seem to make any difference. I think that he might be starting to teethe because he has had some interesting nappies! However, I do not think that was what was happening today.

We were there all day but left straight after dinner and as soon as we were back in my Mum's house he was sweetness and light and chuckles and giggles. He had his bath and his bottle and went to sleep with no bother at all.

So I guess it was all too much for him at my Dad's with all of the people and the noise and the heat. I understand that, Mr C and I feel that way often! But it worries me as we are going to be there for Christmas Day and I don't want another day like today if at all possible.

Still, he is in bed now and we are sat watching tv and drinking wine. The long day is finally at an end. Worries about Christmas can wait for another day.

I'm completely shattered!

Early evening walk

Yesterday Piran and I went for a nice long walk in the afternoon around Hayle. I am still in Cornwall and this town is where I grew up. I took some pictures as we went.

Hayle Harbour, North Quay

The mouth of Hayle Estuary

Lelant Church on the hill

Back towards Hayle

Hayle Viaduct

Lelant Church across the Estuary
St Ives in the distance

Hayle Estuary

Sand dunes on the cliff above North Quay

Porth Kidney Sands

The start of Hayle's '3 miles of Golden Sands towards Godrevy (the lighthouse is there in the haze!)

The pushchair!

My favourite person in my favourite place!

Hayle Estuary inland from King George's Walk

Looking back along the walk, the sun has almost gone!

Making our own Christmas Traditions

This is a sponsored post.

I am so very, very excited about Christmas this year. To be honest I am always very excited about Christmas but this year is special for two reasons. Firstly, it is Piran's first ever Christmas. Secondly, it is the first Christmas in 4 years that I will share at home with my family. All of us together. It is going to be insane and crazy and LOUD. That is the way they roll.

Now we have Piran I have thought quite a bit about Christmas and traditions that I have with my family and the traditions that I would like to have with our little family. Part of me is happy that we will be in Cornwall this year because that means when Piran is almost 18 months old next year we will have our first Christmas together in our house when he knows more about what is actually happening!

So, when I received an email on behalf of John Lewis asking for Rules for a Great Christmas I couldn't resist! These are a work in progress but I give you a New Mum's Suggestions for a Family Christmas:

Children:
Christmas is all about the children. It will be fun filled and memorable!
Letters to Santa will be written every year.
Treats will be made by the children for Santa and the Reindeers and left out on Christmas Eve.
Children will wake up to find a stocking at the end of their bed on Christmas morning.
Christmas day outfits are optional but encouraged.
Stockings and small presents will be opened in the morning.
The rest of the presents will be distributed by the children from under the tree after lunch has been eaten and cleared away.

Food:
Breakfast will be cooked and will include a glass of bucks fizz for the adults!
A traditional lunch will all the trimmings will be served at 2pm (it does not have to be Turkey but must be a bird of some description!).
You must eat too much chocolate later in the day.
The Strawberry Cremes are mine.

The in-laws:
Are welcome as long as they do things our way!

Entertainment:
Bad jokes are obligatory.
Family games will be played late afternoon /early evening on Christmas day after the adults have had a snooze.

Decorations:
Will be put up on 1st December and taken down at Twelfth Night (reluctantly)
Sitting in the dark with just the tree lights on is positively encouraged.
If in Cornwall a trip to see the Mousehole lights is highly recommended.

Oh, there are so many more traditions that I cannot wait to start but this will do us for now.

What are your family traditions?

Look out! Chickens!

I had a weird dream about a chicken last night.

I will not recount it here because, well some of you think I am relatively normal and I would like to keep it that way!

Anyway, I have a feeling that it could be because I have been very bad at passing on awards recently. I have been given the following award by Sandy and Clare. I think perhaps the chickens have started to haunt me so I am passing it on right now!

“The blogger who receives this award believes in the Tao of the zombie chicken – excellence, grace and persistence in all situations, even in the midst of a zombie apocalypse. These amazing bloggers regularly produce content so remarkable that their readers would brave a raving pack of zombie chickens just to be able to read their inspiring words. As a recipient of this world-renowned award, you now have the task of passing it on to at least 5 other worthy bloggers. Do not risk the wrath of the zombie chickens by choosing unwisely or not choosing at all.”

So, to save my sanity I am passing this on right now to:

Make Do Mum
Life with a Little Dude
Insomniac Mummy
Sleep is for the Weak
Snaffles Mummy

Enjoy!

My greatest fear

If you click on the picture it will take you to Josie's fantastic blog, Sleep is for the Weak. This week is week 5 of the Writing Workshop. It is making a triumphant return after a week off last week. This is my submission this week, I have chosen the last prompt, to write about your biggest fear. I just started writing this, I knew what the first two paragraphs would say and the rest I just wrote and wrote. It didn't turn out to be what I had expected but I am very happy with it:

I just spent 30 minutes trying to find a post on my old blog. I know it is there somewhere but I cannot find it right now. It was me answering a list of questions and the reason I was looking was because the last question was "What is your greatest fear".

I had answered that my greatest fear was that I would never be able to have children. There was no rhyme or reason to this, I just knew that I had always wanted to have children one day and that after spending half of my life taking the pill and being so very careful not to get pregnant finding out that I couldn't have children would have broken my heart.

It is funny, when we started to try for a baby we were so blessed and lucky that I fell pregnant the very first time we tried. Quite literally I think. I was convinced in my mind that it would take me at least 2 years to get pregnant. That positive test result was quite a shock!

Since I picked this prompt when I read Josie's post on Monday I have been thinking about this and wondering that now this fear has been shown to be completely unfounded do I have a greatest fear? I certainly have worries and concerns but fear? I am not sure that I do. I cannot think of one thing that is too scary and frightening to even think about or contemplate.

I am a nervous person and a worrier by nature but having a child has flicked some sort of switch in me. Like, if I have done this, I can do anything. I attribute a lot of that to my wonderful husband. That man seriously has my back. I have posted here recently about my issues with breastfeeding and how that made me feel. I have had bad weeks and turned to you all for advice. I have thanked you all profusely. However, I haven't thanked the one man in my life that makes my life easier and better and fills my life with light. Well, that is not strictly true. I am very good at thanking him and appreciating him in real life but he doesn't often get too much of a mention here. I don't think I can do him justice other than to say, Piran aside, this man is my LIFE.

So I think that my greatest fear these days is for something to happen or something to change that would mean that he and I were not side by side any more. That would be the hardest thing in my life. I can do anything with him by my side. He is away for a few days this week and I long to have him here with me. On a normal week I miss him when he goes to work. Maternity leave has been strange for us as we worked together, traveled to work together, had lunch together, came home together every day when I was still working. I am never fed up of his company. I miss him when he leaves the room. He is my "favourite". He is my life.

I picked this poem to be read at our wedding and it sums up how I feel so completely.

Tin Wedding Whistle - Ogden Nash

Though you know it anyhow
Listen to me, darling, now,

Proving what I need not prove
How I know I love you, love.

Near and far, near and far,
I am happy where you are;

Likewise I have never larnt
How to be it where you aren't.

Far and wide, far and wide,
I can walk with you beside;

Furthermore, I tell you what,
I sit and sulk where you are not.

Visitors remark my frown
Where you're upstairs and I am down,

Yes, and I'm afraid I pout
When I'm indoors and you are out;

But how contentedly I view
Any room containing you.

In fact I care not where you be,
Just as long as it's with me.

In all your absences I glimpse
Fire and flood and trolls and imps.

Is your train a minute slothful?
I goad the stationmaster wrothful.

When with friends to bridge you drive
I never know if you're alive,

And when you linger late in shops
I long to telephone the cops.

Yet how worth the waiting for,
To see you coming through the door.

Somehow, I can be complacent
Never but with you adjacent.

Near and far, near and far,
I am happy where you are;

Likewise I have never larnt
How to be it where you aren't.

Then grudge me not my fond endeavor,
To hold you in my sight forever;

Let none, not even you, disparage
Such a valid reason for a marriage.

I love you Mr C x

A whole lot of random

It is Tuesday night and my parents have gone out so I am home alone. At last I can get the computer out and write a blog post without a hundred versions of "what are you doing". Without a doubt, not telling them about this blog is the right thing to do but it makes posting very hard. I usually have a hour in the morning of sitting in bed, playing with Piran and then me blogging as he naps but the moment we wake up my mum is in the room like a shot, desperate to get her hands on her grandson.

Anyway, it is lovely to be here and although I miss Mr C like crazy (he flew back home on Monday to work - back Friday and then he has a week off and we will have a week together here) it is great to be with my family and letting the baby meet his uncles and aunties and get to know his cousins and the grandparents.

I am shattered and my brain is all over the place so I feel the need for some sort of organisation. So I give you what is happening in my world right now, through the medium of bullet points.

• Those of you that follow me on twitter will have seen that I have been listing a number of things that my very strange parents do. Dinners are the worst, so far this week I have been dished up lasagne and sprouts together, and tonight we had lamb chops in the hole. Seriously, I couldn't make this up. Does anyone else's parents do weird stuff like mine?
• I had a lovely surprise this morning when a parcel turned up addressed to me. It was from Louise at Sew Scrumptious who had made me a couple presents. This completely awesome bib as modeled by Piran, and a tree decoration for Christmas:
  
• I had an hour to myself this afternoon so nipped to the shops to see if I could find myself some trousers. Of course I ended up with nothing for me but I did get Piran some little boots to keep his tootsies warm in winter.
• I took Piran for a walk around the village yesterday and down the lane to where my best friend lived when I was younger. It was very strange, I kinda still feel the same inside as I did then and it was almost like I was a stroppy teenager pushing a pram around.
• Does anyone else regress around their parents? I guess it is just because they know how to push my buttons. Actually, thinking about it I think it could be because they still sort of treat me like a child so I end up acting like one. Anyway, it is crazy. I have a child of my own now.
• The first day or so of being here and around my family was hard. There is a lot of them and they are loud and hectic. Mr C and I live a quiet, sedate life and it is always a shock to the system when we come down here and see them all. I have no idea what Piran made of it all!
• My sister is in full on "I've got two kids and therefore know better than you" mode. I am probably being over sensitive but she is constantly commenting on the things I have, what I do with Piran, how I make his bottles, the fact that I have not yet started weaning him.
• The weaning thing is ridiculous. Piran is not yet 4 months old. I know that he was a big baby and still is but milk is just fine at the moment. You should not give babies food before 4 months. She started to wean her daughter before 3 months and in my opinion that is wrong. I do not say this however, I keep my opinions to myself. I wish she would do the same. I just said that because Piran was poorly with his tummy when he was born I am not rushing things. Hopefully that will stop the comments.
• My mum also has an opinion on most things that I do but I am quite comfortable telling her that I want things done my way. The only time we have butted heads was last night when Piran was in bed and she was upstairs yelling a conversation with us downstairs. I asked her to be quieter so close to where the baby was sleeping and she started going on about how babies should learn to sleep through noise. I understand that it is good that he doesn't wake at the slightest noise but he is a real person with feelings and as I tried to explain to her, how would she like it if at 3am I start shouting outside of her bedroom. I still don't think she understands what I am saying but I will persevere!
• Piran went the longest between feeds that he ever has yesterday - eight and a half hours. Unfortunately he ate at 3.30, went to bed at 6 and work for a feed at midnight so I was awake for most of that time. Now, if only I can move it to the middle of the night that would be amazing.
• It is day 17 of NaBloPoMo and I have managed so far to post everyday. Am I boring you yet? I must write my post for this week's Writing Workshop.
  

Right, I need to have a shower and do some stuff, I cannot sit here blogging all night ;)

Make it Monday: Tarte Tatin

There are many reasons why I love autumn, but one of the main ones is that we start to bake and make yummy puddings. Gone are the fruit salads of summer replaced with crumbles and pies and this little beauty. Serve with cream, clotted if you can, double if not! I got this recipe from Good Food and I love making it.

Tarte Tatin

Ingredients:
120g butter
120g sugar
6 firm dessert apples
Sheet of ready made puff pastry.

Method:

• Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas 4.
• Spread the butter in an even layer over the bottom of a 20-25cm diameter, heavy-based, ovenproof pan.
• Sprinkle over the sugar then arrange the apple halves neatly on top, cut-side up.
• Cut a circle of puff pastry slightly larger than the pan and lay it on top of the apples, tucking it in around the edges like a blanket. Prick a small hole in the centre of the pastry to allow any steam to escape during cooking.
• Place the pan over a medium heat and cook gently for 5-10 minutes until a golden-brown caramel forms around the edges of the pan.
• Transfer the pan to the oven and bake for 1 hour, or until the pastry is completely cooked through, crisp and golden brown.

To serve, place a serving dish over the pan and carefully flip it over so the tarte tatin is served apple-side up. Serve in slices with generous spoonfuls of chilled clotted cream.

Delicious!

What I enjoyed reading lately

This is a scheduled post so this is what I have been reading this week up until Friday!

I am having serious deja vu about this, did I link earlier in the week? Anyway, even if I did, it deserves another one! The BMB Carnival is up at Mummytips with a birth / birthday / rebirth theme. If a group of posts is too much then just read her own story. It is one of those posts that has stayed with me all week.

It is Thrifty Christmas over at Violet Posy. I have got some great ideas. Now all I need is some time!

Finally, the Tots 100 is up at Who's The Mummy. I am shocked that I have gone from 94 to 34 but the way it has been worked out has changed a little. I do not care about ratings and the like but I do love a good blog. Need some new reading material? Well there are 100 shiny blogs there for your delight.

Well, I hope as you are reading this I am happily ensconced in my mum's house with her happily looking after her grandson and me putting my feet up with a cuppa. I am going to take it easy, rest, get lots of fresh air (weather permitting) and soak up the love of family and old friends. Oh and learn to crochet!

I would love your recommendations for posts to read too :)

A letter from Santa

Bit of a cop out post wise this is as I am afraid that due to messed up plans etc etc I have no time to post today. However, I was going to write a post about this next week and despite the fact that I have blatantly just copied a press release I still think that this is a fantastic idea for a fantastic cause and I have already ordered Piran's first ever letter from Santa for his scrapbook.

Please take a moment to read and really consider supporting this cause, and getting something exciting for your children in return.

Santa Claus is coming to town! But before he does, he has a personalised letter for every child excitedly waiting for his annual visit.

The NSPCC’s Letter from Santa fundraising initiative gives parents, grandparents and anyone else the chance to nominate someone special to receive a magical letter from Santa for a suggested donation of £5. The letter is personalised with the child’s name and age and is sure to confirm that Santa will be making his usual stop in the child’s home town to wish everyone a merry Christmas. The letter is written in a hand script font and is beautifully illustrated on quality colourful paper. The envelope shows that it’s been safely delivered through ‘express Rudolph Mail’.

Fundraiser Binita Patel said: “Letter from Santa is a brilliant way to put an extra twinkle into Christmas this year and make a child feel extra special. The appeal also helps us to raise money to support children who are perhaps not as fortunate.“

“It is important to remember that Christmas is not a time of celebration for every child. Over the 12 days of festive cheer last year, ChildLine – a service provided by the NSPCC - counselled over 3,500 children who were in danger or distress and had nowhere else to turn. By supporting this appeal you will be helping to provide support, advice and protection for these children who are in desperate need of help.”

Also on offer is a Baby’s First Christmas letter from Santa, which is the perfect keepsake for newborns celebrating their first festive season.

To order a letter from Santa for a child you know, visit http://www.nspccwishes.org.uk/ or call 0845 839 9304. Alternatively look out for a Letter from Santa order postcard in your local Debenhams, SPAR, Thorntons or Bhs store.

Thanks for reading :)

Friday 13th

I am quite upset right now because all plans to go to Cornwall are on hold for 24 hours while the stupid weather does its stupid whatever. I am all packed and we are ready to go and now I just have to sit here and wait another day. For crying out loud will I get a bloody break this week?

I just want to say that I know I am acting like a petulant child, I know that driving with a 3 month old and two slightly sleep deprived parents at night in this weather would just be stupid, I know that we have made the right decision.

BUT I cannot tell you how long I have been planning this trip, how much I want to be there already. How much I miss my mum and what it means for me to get down there and show off my little boy. This week has been horrible, really bloody horrible and I needed cheering up. We were meant to be taking my mum to Fifteen tomorrow for lunch, we had it all arranged. There were surprises and I was so excited.

The worst part is that the sun is shining right now. Makes it all feel so futile.

I had started up the computer to write a quick post about going away and saying that I would be back online as soon as I can convince my step dad to give me the password to his wifi. Instead I had a 5 minute conversation with my mum where she cried and begged me not to come just yet. Nothing like a bit of emotional blackmail. I was planning on just starting out and if it all got too much we would stop in a travel lodge but we will just wait and go tomorrow afternoon instead. This post is boring and whiney, sorry. Will get up and dust myself off in a couple hours but for now I am just going to feel sorry for myself and eat cake.

Friday 13th, unlucky for me.

Update: I have pulled myself together and now I am in my PJ's and I have eaten oat and raisin cookies and had 2 fried eggs with my dinner I feel much happier. I know we made the right decision. I think writing this earlier helped me to perk up a bit.

We will try again tomorrow.

The fog is clearing. I hope.

Thursday? Already?

I have lost the majority of this week in a fog of pain. I have been on autopilot for most of it. I have either a tooth or sinus infection (cannot decide which, as both hurt like hell) and finally managed to get some antibiotics from the doctor yesterday. I feel a bit better this morning but will not go counting those proverbial chickens just yet. I have carried on with everything this week, including a tweet-meet with lovely ladies and babies and bumps and toddlers which brightened my Tuesday. But this week has been HARD.

This could not have happened at a worse time really. My much anticipated trip to Cornwall is tomorrow and I had visions of a week spent washing and cleaning and tidying so that for once it would not be a mad rush of hastily packed clothes the night before invariably ending up with me only having one actual outfit to wear when I am there because nothing goes together. The added stress of having to pack everything for Piran for the first time ever and well, I feel so stressed out for NO REASON. Mr C just keeps reminding me that if we forget something we can just go and buy it, or borrow it from my sister who let's face it has 2 kids so will have practically everything we need.

I know that deep down that actually, what this is all about is the fact that I want to go down and see them and show them that I am coping okay and that I can do this, just as well as my sister and look how well I am doing and how organised I am etc etc tra la la la la. STUPID. Not sure why I feel like that? Perhaps because being a mum was the thing that she did first. Why am I comparing myself to her? I think this probably requires me to have a long hard look at myself and work out what the devil is going on there but for now, luckily I guess, I do not have the time.

I need to be fairly set to go 24 hours from now. So I must do laundry, clean up this place, make plans, make lists, cross things off lists, take the library books back, decide what Piran really needs me to pack, try and work out how to get it all into my little Punto. I have to sort the kitchen and rebottle the poached pears. I have an appointment with a Cranial Osteopath about my sinus problem and I have to go and sign my will.

But now, a small cheeky chappie is making grunting noises for my attention so I must go and lay on the bed and blow raspberries on his neck to make him giggle because I have not been able to all week.

A year ago today

One year to go from this:


to this:


A year ago today I did a test, and we were rather surprised by the result!

Can you spare a little time?

Can you spare a minute?

I am sure everyone can spare just one minute to watch this video.



Someone out there knows what happened to Madeleine McCann. There's a new appeal for social networkers worldwide to post this video that shows what she would have looked like at age six. If you are a blogger, please help spread this message and post this video on your site. Or tweet, or put it on facebook.

Can you spare an hour?

The go an dget a cuppa and a biscuit or two and pop over to Mummytips for the most recent BMB carnival. Posts of births and rebirths and birthdays. Some wonderful posts to read.

Can you spare an afternoon?

It is not too late to do something wonderful for a child this Christmas. Go and watch this video and find out about Operation Christmas Child. Then dig out a shoe box and make a child that happy. Collection points are accepting shoe boxes until the 18th November so you have time.

Thank you.

Make it Monday: Soft Christmas Trees

Oh, it is here already! Thrifty Christmas! Do go and visit Violet Posy and see the brilliant ideas.

A few weeks ago I found this website that had a pattern for these soft trees. I love the internet. I thought that this would be a good idea for Christmas so this weekend I set to making some. The first one I made was the black and red spotty one and then I tried with green fleece and they were just perfect little Christmas trees. The fleece is a blanket from Ikea that cost about £3 and I could have got at least 50 of these trees out of the one blanket. The beads I used were from a jar full that used to be my Grandma's.

If I get chance I am going to try some with ribbon sewn on and buttons as well. Also, if I can find a photocopier I am going to enlarge and reduce the pattern so that I can have trees of different sizes. The three green decorated ones are going to my Mum as a present to say thanks for letting us stay for the rest of the month!




Also, I am thinking that with a different colour fabric and a bit of embellishment (including a tail) this could be a mouse!



Edited to add (2011): The link to the template doesn't work anymore! Leave me a comment or email me via my profile or contact me page and I will email you a pdf template.

What I enjoyed reading lately

Yep, I really am up at 2.30am. I was up feeding Piran and he quickly went back to sleep but as I get more sleep now on occasions I find it hard to get back to sleep. This morning I have toothache and the painkillers had worn off so I got bored of laying there in pain so got up to have a cup of tea and read blogs.

It is very strange being up at this time of the morning without Piran. This used to happen a lot, but the last time was those last few days of pregnancy where sleep was illusive and every twinge had me hoping that this was finally it. Hours of resting on my big yellow ball playing games on the DS. I don't think I have even turned it on in the three months since Piran was born!

Anyway, to the matter in hand. It has been a couple weeks since I did this but here are some posts you might like to read. I know I enjoyed them.

Amy at And one more means four (or five!) is putting people straight about her pregnancy. The idea of handing out a FAQ sheet made me laugh.

Over at The Mad House there is a new weekly series of posts about Crafting with Children. I am bookmarking these for the years to come but I love reading about what they have made.

I have a sweet tooth (ha! surprised I am up with toothache anyone?) and these look just delicious. Mmmm Very Special Rice Crispie Cakes.

Peggy is home alone thanks to her wonderful husband. Checking in with us at 12pm and 9.35pm.

Finally, Josie at Sleep is for the weak has written a beautiful post for Remembrance Sunday.

Please, if you have the time pick one or two or all of these to read, and perhaps leave a comment. If you have read something recently (or written something) that you think I might like please leave me a comment.

Goodnight x

Thank you

I have spent a lot of time thinking this week about how lucky I am to have people that read this blog and comment and really make a difference. This week has been by far the hardest since the fog of the first six weeks and without blogging it would have been a lot worse. You comments helped me, gave me hope and positivity and meant that I was able to carry on with less of a load on my shoulders.

I wanted to say thank you so I have decided to make my very own little award and to pass it on. Thank you to the incredibly talented Liz @ Violet Posy for designing a badge for me.


Shining Light: The blogger that receives this award has left a comment or written a post that has helped light the way for the blogger who presents them with the award.

Please take this award in the spirit that it is meant and adorn your blogs with it as you see fit. You can keep it, you can pass it on today, you can hold on and pass it on when someone really helps you. You do not need to be on this list to give this award to another blogger, if there is someone that you feel deserves it please just take it. No rules, no meme, just a special way of acknowledging how we help each other. I am sure I will have occasion to pass this on to others in the future.

So with no further ado I give you the bloggers who have helped light my way this week:

Amy
Hot Cross Mum
Emma
Bec
Rebel Mother
Sew Scrumptious
The Mad House
April
Mum with carrot in her hair
Insomniac Mummy
Then there were three
Tasha
Gaelikaa
Laura
Fraught Mummy

Enjoy x

Nightswimming

If you click on the picture it will take you to Josie's fantastic blog, Sleep is for the Weak. This week is week 4 of the Writing Workshop. This is my submission this week, Josie kindly included one of my prompts. This has been a difficult week, and this is a work of fiction which is a new one for me, so please be kind:

The evening is warm and soft on my skin and the air is fragrant from the pine trees that surround the lake. It is September, the end of the summer and we are making the most of the extended good weather to have one last camping trip to the lake. It has been a summer of growth, of change and of new beginnings. I am alone and feel open and free as I walk slowly through the trees. The pine needles prickle on the soles of my feet and the water shines silver between the trees. It is completely flat, not a ripple in sight and is reflecting the moon and trees like a mirror.

I wander to the water's edge and dip a toe into the water. The silence envelopes me and I know that here, in this moment I am completely alone and the freedom of that though overtakes me as I quickly shrug all of my clothes to the ground and stand naked for a brief second at the edge of the water before gently walking in and submerging myself as silently as possible, not wanting to draw attention to myself. The water feels cool and soft against my skin and I am filled with a feeling of recklessness. I am a mermaid, I am anything I want to be. I am strong and fearless and can do anything I want to do. I feel sexy and alive and free. The fear that I could get caught here, completely naked, makes each and every feeling a million times more intense.

The moon is low over the trees and after a while I tire and swim lazily to the edge and after reassuring myself that I am still alone, I slip from the water and use my shirt as a towel to roughly dry my skin, feeling my circulation come alive and start to warm me. I hang the shirt from a tree branch and leave it at the water's edge. It will be easy to collect it in the morning. I wander back and join my friends at the campfire, their faces animated by the flickering flames, sharing jokes and stories.

Two days later, when back at home and real life was in full force again I received an envelope in the post. All that was inside was a photograph. Of me swimming in the lake, my head just silhouetted against the bright white moon reflected off the water. There was no note, no indication of who had seen me, what they saw and why they sent me the photo.

I have kept that photo for years. On the dashboard in my car, to remind me that once I felt so alive and so free.

This was inspired by one of those perfect iPod shuffle moments last week - I was walking alone through the autumn leaves and had just dropped Piran off at his Nanny & Grandad's and I had a few blissful hours to myself. I was feeling free and Nightswimming by REM is a favourite song that I had not heard in a long time and it was just really uplifting.

A bright new day

Gosh, what a week. Thank you all so much for your amazing comments yesterday, they REALLY helped and I am feeling a lot more positive this morning. I am taking the very good advice and letting Piran tell me what he wants and when and so far he didn't actually want his bottle until 7.30 (he used to have it at 6) and he was tired at 9 (usually about 10). I am off to the doctors in a bit, so letting him tell me what he wants and when may be tricky but I am fairly confident he will want a bottle at about 10.30 so we should make it!

I cannot believe how much better I feel. That is the power of this blog for me and why I write it. I cannot imagine life as a new mum without the internet. If I didn't have it I think I would be sat here forever thinking I was a failure as a parent and that everyone else is coping just fine. The reality is something else entirely. I have much respect for my mum, she did it all with one book and her wits. Mind you, apparently I was a dream baby. MIL says Piran takes after Mr C who was a handful at the best of times. Crikey!

I have decided to use this week until we go to Cornwall as an investigation week, just seeing what the little man really wants and have realised that too strict a routine would be detrimental in Cornwall because we will not be at home and we will be out and about and seeing people, stopping for dinner, getting home later than usual and if Piran is too used to a certain routine we could have no end of bother. So my little man is in charge for a while.

Right, better get a move on, I am a lady wot lunches today and have to get to the doctors first! Plus, I am sure he will wake up pretty soon. Thanks again people. You really are THE BEST.

Happy Bonfire night x

Topsy turvy

I am not having a very good week if I am honest with you. Those that follow me on Twitter may have noticed some exasperated tweets about the fact that Piran will not nap but it is more than that. I am not sure if it is since the clocks changed or since his second set of jabs last week but everything seems to have changed. We had a lovely routine, I knew that he would go 3 hours between each bottle during the day and 4 at night. I was coping with getting up at night. We were starting to have regular naps and I was getting good at judging how long he would be asleep for and what I could manage in that time. Going out was a doddle.

But now I have no idea. He cries and cries during the day. Sometimes he is hungry after two hours, other times he will go 3 and a half. This makes going out much harder. Sometimes he wants to sleep but refuses to nap unless he has screamed the house down for the best part of an hour first. I do not seem to be able to soothe him at all. He cries in the car, in his pushchair, in town. He has given up his dummy and just pokes it straight out of his mouth if I even try to offer it to him.

I stood in the living room holding him in my arms yesterday and cried my heart out because I just do not understand him anymore. I was meant to go to the dentist but I would have had to drop off a difficult baby with my MIL at her work and it was raining so hard and I just couldn't do it. So now my appointment is next Monday and I cannot take him with me so I have to work something out. I have mouth ulcers which are agony because I am run down and constant toothache.

I just don't know where I have gone wrong, I just don't know how to get back on track. We are going to Cornwall in 9 sleeps and my worst nightmare is him being like this when I am there, I have 4 nights without Mr C there, and if I am having trouble with Piran how will I cope? I was so excited to go and now I am dreading it. I am a good mum and I want my family to see that.

Is this usual for 3 months?

Any suggestions?

3 months

Dear Piran,

Before you were born I wrote you this letter. You were happily resting in my tummy and little did I know that I would actually have to wait another two weeks to meet you. Those were possibly the longest two weeks of my life. In contrast to that, the three months since you arrived have been a whirlwind. I am not sure where they have gone. You were born in the summer, when we could spend lots of time outdoors. It is autumn now, and the days are shorter and colder but I love the fact that for the first time in a long time I get to fully experience the season instead of being stuck in an office I am walking around the countryside with you for company. Next year you will be able to share it with me more, I look forward to that.

We had a bit of a rocky start you and I. You were a bit poorly when you were born and the doctors had to make you better before we could bring you home. Five days after you were born your Dad and I took the strangest car journey of our life, with you looking so small and cute in your car seat. I just stared at you as you slept the entire drive home.

Those clothes look so big on you but you were actually a big baby when you were born - 10lb 2oz and you continue to grow so fast. You look so different now than you did then. When we visit your Grandma next week she will hardly recognise you. You are heavy and I find it hard to lift you for too long but I love our cuddles together.

We go swimming once a week and you even swim on your own under water (well bob up bottom first at the moment, we are working on the kicking!) You seem to love the water which is great. I cannot wait to take you for a walk on the beach in Cornwall for the first time ever. It is your Dad's and my favourite place to be. There is just 10 sleeps until we go to Cornwall. Your mum is so very homesick and desperate to go and show you off to her family. You have met your Grandparents but not your Auntys and Uncles and your cousins are very excited to see you.

You are growing up so fast - you are so alert and aware all of the time my sweetheart, you get so frustrated when I put you down these days as you want to be up and looking around all of the time. You are not very well today and you are sleeping in your chair by my feet as I type this. You sleep very well at night at the moment and get really fed up if we keep you up past 6pm, crying to be put in your cot and left alone. You still have to eat every 4 hours though, waking enough to scoff a bottle and then slipping back into dream land. You are usually a very quiet sleeper and it worries your Dad. Occasionally you will do a big fart though, so we know you are okay!

You smile and laugh, and you make us smile and laugh. You love waving your legs in the air and farting, and rolling onto your side. You can hold your head and chest up off the floor when on your front and love bouncing away in your door bouncer, dribbling all over the floor. You scream the house down when you are hungry and have a great appetite. People keep asking me when it will be time to wean you, but I am nowhere near ready for that yet, I want to hang onto these baby days a while longer. You chat constantly to yourself all the time, and moan yourself to sleep, which gives your Dad and I the giggles some nights as you are in the cot in our room. It can be very distracting when we try to sleep. You have started to grab things and like to left your left trouser leg and show us your knee. The only toy you seem to pay attention to at the moment is your Whoozit, but I think you would be just as happy with a muslin.

People say you have a cute face. I agree, although I am biased. You have a cheeky grin that melts my heart and when you cling on to my hand as I feed you my heart overflows with love for you. You frustrate me too, when you will not nap during the day and you get upset and cry and cry and will not let me soothe you. Whatever we do you cry for most of the last hour before bed, but occasionally we can get a smile.

This picture is you today. You are my world and I cannot wait to find out how you will change over the next three months. We love you very much. So much that some times we look at you, or hold you and we cry because you have made our family complete.

Mum x

Make it Monday: Christmas Tree Decorations

This week I have been making Christmas Tree decorations. I saw something similar in the shops (I know, already!) and I thought I would have a go at making them myself. The felt cost me 90p a sheet and I can get 6 decorations from a sheet so definitely one on the Thrifty side! The buttons and thread I already had.

First I made a template of a Christmas Tree from a cereal packet.



Then I cut two of the tree shapes from the felt:


I embroidered a pattern on each piece, and on the top of one I added a ribbon loop (this ribbon came from a top - they are the ribbons that are sewn in to help them stay on hangers!)



Then I put the two wrong sides together and then blanket stitch all round the outside (this is so annoying but I cannot get the picture the right way up). This was my first one. My sewing is a bit pants!


I have made 5 so far. Some with hand sewing, some using the machine. I used buttons as the tree topper for some of them.