Bit of a conundrum, really.
We need to move house, I'm desperate to move really, we're running out of space. I mean, we've been running out of space since we moved in to this cottage but with Benjamin's arrival and all the associated paraphernalia, we're SERIOUSLY short of space. To move around in the front room, we need to put the playmat away. The buggy base now lives permanently in the boot of the car. I've been putting the playmat/babygym out on the bed upstairs with the squeaker-com on, just so I can get some work done.
Anyway.
We've seen a couple of houses to rent in Worthing, in the area we want to move to, but we each don't like some aspects of one of the houses.
Steve doesn't like the fact that the hot water tank is in the main bedroom in the property that I like, and I see his point - he can't stand a hot bedroom, it stops him sleeping well (and me by default as it makes his snoring a lot worse!).
The other property is really close to a level crossing, and has very limited parking - one side of the street is off-limits during the day Monday to Friday. The level crossing beeps VERY frequently and would drive me nuts.
So, do we go for a short-term let? Bearing in mind there are very few of them in the right area as well.
The other things I have to put into consideration are that I'm still trying to get my milk supply back up as I want to continue breastfeeding Ben for as long as possible - I've been doing a little bit of research and realised that to make a good go of it I really need a few weeks straight where we can just let all routine go to pot and just concentrate on demand and supply. So would moving house interfere with this? Probably...
Then there's ..... well, that's it really. I suppose sleep training is another thing that we need to take into consideration, and as our newly discovered free evenings (which have come about by giving Ben another bottle of formula which basically knocks him out) are going to go by the wayside anyway we might as well go all the way and attempt this sleep training thing.
So we are going to be knackered anyway. And trying to move house as well..... well, maybe it is a bit stupid to try and do that right now.
But I so desperately want to move.... I need space, I want to be able to move about freely in my house, I want everything to have its place AND BE IN IT, and for everything to be easily accessible. I want warm rooms that aren't draughty, that I don't have to wrap Ben up like a penguin before leaving him under his babygym. I want to be able to invite friends round and for there to be space for them AND us to sit down - and space for babies and toddlers to not get into too much mischief.
Basically,
I want it all....
And I want it NOW.
So:
Do we stay or do we go? Do we stay and wait, and hope that a better offer turns up? Or do we move and put up with the little things that annoy us, so we are closer to our friends and have a little space to stretch out in?
Answers and thoughts on a postcard, please. Or in a comment if you prefer.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
I must be mad...
That's the second time that thought has invaded.
I want to be pregnant again, I want another little one...
The first time was at Jamie and Debs' wedding, just before Christmas. We'd left Ben with his grandparents while we took the photographs and, during the day, being somewhat distracted, I was absolutely fine. There was no chance to miss him! But at the reception, at the Wedding Breakfast, we were able to relax. And there were so many bumps, and so many babies, and I started missing my baby. And then, out of the blue, I starting thinking - I want another one!
This first time the thought was VERY quickly followed by another stream of thoughts yelling STOP THINKING THAT are you inSANE? STOP STOP STOP STOP SHUTUPSHUTUPSHUTUP.....
And so the thought slunk away into a corner, biding its time.
Last night it reappeared. I don't know why - perhaps it was because my world was asleep, Stephen and Ben upstairs all tucked up, me on clean up and tidy up and express duties, looking at photographs of the beautiful and pregnant Hazel H, and my hormones decided to start getting all broody again.
Now let's face it, I didn't have the greatest of pregnancies, I didn't have the nicest of birth experiences, but Ben, when he smiles at me, when he smiles at that other baby in the mirror, when he gets all shy and buries his face in my shoulder, it makes it all worth it. And I'd do it all again without reservation.
Just not yet.
I want to be pregnant again, I want another little one...
The first time was at Jamie and Debs' wedding, just before Christmas. We'd left Ben with his grandparents while we took the photographs and, during the day, being somewhat distracted, I was absolutely fine. There was no chance to miss him! But at the reception, at the Wedding Breakfast, we were able to relax. And there were so many bumps, and so many babies, and I started missing my baby. And then, out of the blue, I starting thinking - I want another one!
This first time the thought was VERY quickly followed by another stream of thoughts yelling STOP THINKING THAT are you inSANE? STOP STOP STOP STOP SHUTUPSHUTUPSHUTUP.....
And so the thought slunk away into a corner, biding its time.
Last night it reappeared. I don't know why - perhaps it was because my world was asleep, Stephen and Ben upstairs all tucked up, me on clean up and tidy up and express duties, looking at photographs of the beautiful and pregnant Hazel H, and my hormones decided to start getting all broody again.
Now let's face it, I didn't have the greatest of pregnancies, I didn't have the nicest of birth experiences, but Ben, when he smiles at me, when he smiles at that other baby in the mirror, when he gets all shy and buries his face in my shoulder, it makes it all worth it. And I'd do it all again without reservation.
Just not yet.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
My Prayer
I am so grateful for those moments when my whole world seems to be at peace - or holding its breath, waiting for something to happen. I stood, looking out of my kitchen window, at a frost-bitten world, holding a sleepy Ben in my arms, waiting for him to start the process of crying himself to sleep, enjoying the peacefulness of the moment and the beauty of what I was holding and what I was looking at. I thank God for moments like this.
I started thinking about my wishlist for what I'd like our next house to have, and realised there are more important things to wish for in a house!
I pray for a house that we can grow into, somewhere we can put down roots at last, somewhere Ben can grow up in. I pray that our house is close by to our friends, that we can easily be in and out of each others' houses - without the need for a car journey. I pray that our home becomes part of the community, that people - friends and strangers alike - are comfortable in our home, that they find a welcome rest from the hustle and bustle of everyday life.
And now my little boy is asleep in my arms, my husband is asleep in bed, there's coffee in the pot - peace reigns again. If I could reach I'd take this opportunity to cut Ben's nails!
I started thinking about my wishlist for what I'd like our next house to have, and realised there are more important things to wish for in a house!
I pray for a house that we can grow into, somewhere we can put down roots at last, somewhere Ben can grow up in. I pray that our house is close by to our friends, that we can easily be in and out of each others' houses - without the need for a car journey. I pray that our home becomes part of the community, that people - friends and strangers alike - are comfortable in our home, that they find a welcome rest from the hustle and bustle of everyday life.
And now my little boy is asleep in my arms, my husband is asleep in bed, there's coffee in the pot - peace reigns again. If I could reach I'd take this opportunity to cut Ben's nails!
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
Christmas Chaos
Have I really not blogged for that long??! Shame on me.
Well, where to begin...
We spent Christmas in Manchester. We stayed in 4 different places, slept in 5 different beds, battled flu and coughs and colds, spent a day without Ben, took our 1st set of official wedding photographs, unpacked maybe 7 or 8 boxes of the billions that remain in my old bedroom (Rachel Evans be warned, get those boxes unpacked now or you'll regret it 6 months down the line when you've forgotten what's in them), threw away 3 binbags full of junk, 1 tub full of paper to be recycled, repacked 6 boxes half the size with things we actually want to keep and actually took a boxful back down to Sussex with us.
Before heading off to Manchester a few things of note happened. Ben's weight gain wasn't what it should be and I got given orders to start packing away more calories than I had been getting to improve my milk supply; Ben had his first set of immunisations (that was a traumatic day, for both of us) which later caused a bit of feverishness which then developed into a proper cough and cold, just as the Lurgy hit me and Stephen. And, I took my prescription for my insulin in to the chemist, so it would be ready to collect the day we headed off to Manchester. Only I forgot to collect it. So I had to get the lovely Christine Phillips to write me a private prescription for the insulin that I ran out of (stupid me) and discovered JUST how good it is that I get free prescriptions. Even having to pay for prescriptions is better than paying the full price. My word but medication is expensive when you have to pay full price for it - which is what I had to when I discovered my medical exemption certificate was not valid for private prescriptions.....
Ben and I went off to the baby clinic again this morning for the New Year Weigh-In, to find he's gained a full pound in weight (just under half a kilo) and 3cm in length in the past 3 weeks - despite being poorly!! We've been on a demand-feeding diet yesterday and today to get my milk supply back up after my poorliness, and it seems to be working. He also seems to be teething already, so we've got a gummy teether and some gel to try. It's great seeing the smiles become more frequent, the colic getting less, the sleeping getting easier. I guess because he's been poorly the past couple of weeks, everything has seemed much worse - and now he's getting better, it feels like a massive improvement.
We really need a new house. The rent runs out in August and we won't be renewing it - those of you who've seen our cottage will understand! I can't imagine a crawler crawling around in here, it would be madness. There's nowhere to put anything, and trying to make this place baby-proof would be like trying to push treacle up a hill. I love that analogy... But seriously, we need to move house. Neither of us think it will be too hard finding a house we like and could afford, but it might be a bit harder trying to find someone who will give us a mortgage.
What would I like in my next house?
- a decent sized garden at the back
- off-road parking would be a bonus, but I really don't want another house that opens straight onto the road/pavement.
- 3 bedrooms (one for us, one for Ben, one for guests / the photo studio / music room / office)
- kitchen/diner because we enjoy entertaining
- a living room big enough for my keyboard
- ceilings that you can't touch just by standing on tiptoes and reaching up
- doubleglazing, central heating that works, none of these daft spotlights that heat up the room without the need for a radiator
- room for a tumbledrier as well as the usual washing machine and dishwasher
- lots of space for storage, and an easily accessible loft
- now this might sound daft, but a blue front door.
- and finally, it has to be close to our friends' houses, within easy walking distance! And not just to where they live now, but to where they will move to...
Only a small list. But I think it's important to know what you want, and to be specific in your prayer requests. I could be even more specific than that, but that would be getting silly.
I went into the greengrocers today, asked about the Christmas Veg Boxes they did, and Nick told me they hadn't had as many orders as they'd have liked but they broke even. Almost to the pound! That's a relief, at the very least. I might be starting back working there again in a couple of weeks, wrap me and Ben up in the Moby, and go and get the invoices sorted out on a weekly basis. There's also talk of various bits and pieces I can do at home which is great. Hurrah, I'll be back at work soon!
Right I am going to make the most of Ben being asleep, and do the washing up and get everything ready to make dinner - tonight we will be eating chicken curry pie, with buttered carrots, and a bottle of red wine.
Chicken Curry Pie
ingredients
short pastry, made with 8oz flour
2 diced chicken breasts
jar of sainsburys basics curry sauce (7p, can't beat it!!)
method
make pastry, line pie dish, bake blind
cook chicken, add sauce, heat through, tip into half-cooked pastry case, cover with remaining pastry, bake.
Buttered Carrots
peel and slice carrots
melt 1oz butter in a lidded saucepan
add carrots, cook with lid on for 10 minutes on low heat until softening
take lid off, turn up heat and cook, stirring continuously, for about 5 minutes.
That's it really. Mmmmmmmmmm
Well, where to begin...
We spent Christmas in Manchester. We stayed in 4 different places, slept in 5 different beds, battled flu and coughs and colds, spent a day without Ben, took our 1st set of official wedding photographs, unpacked maybe 7 or 8 boxes of the billions that remain in my old bedroom (Rachel Evans be warned, get those boxes unpacked now or you'll regret it 6 months down the line when you've forgotten what's in them), threw away 3 binbags full of junk, 1 tub full of paper to be recycled, repacked 6 boxes half the size with things we actually want to keep and actually took a boxful back down to Sussex with us.
Before heading off to Manchester a few things of note happened. Ben's weight gain wasn't what it should be and I got given orders to start packing away more calories than I had been getting to improve my milk supply; Ben had his first set of immunisations (that was a traumatic day, for both of us) which later caused a bit of feverishness which then developed into a proper cough and cold, just as the Lurgy hit me and Stephen. And, I took my prescription for my insulin in to the chemist, so it would be ready to collect the day we headed off to Manchester. Only I forgot to collect it. So I had to get the lovely Christine Phillips to write me a private prescription for the insulin that I ran out of (stupid me) and discovered JUST how good it is that I get free prescriptions. Even having to pay for prescriptions is better than paying the full price. My word but medication is expensive when you have to pay full price for it - which is what I had to when I discovered my medical exemption certificate was not valid for private prescriptions.....
Ben and I went off to the baby clinic again this morning for the New Year Weigh-In, to find he's gained a full pound in weight (just under half a kilo) and 3cm in length in the past 3 weeks - despite being poorly!! We've been on a demand-feeding diet yesterday and today to get my milk supply back up after my poorliness, and it seems to be working. He also seems to be teething already, so we've got a gummy teether and some gel to try. It's great seeing the smiles become more frequent, the colic getting less, the sleeping getting easier. I guess because he's been poorly the past couple of weeks, everything has seemed much worse - and now he's getting better, it feels like a massive improvement.
We really need a new house. The rent runs out in August and we won't be renewing it - those of you who've seen our cottage will understand! I can't imagine a crawler crawling around in here, it would be madness. There's nowhere to put anything, and trying to make this place baby-proof would be like trying to push treacle up a hill. I love that analogy... But seriously, we need to move house. Neither of us think it will be too hard finding a house we like and could afford, but it might be a bit harder trying to find someone who will give us a mortgage.
What would I like in my next house?
- a decent sized garden at the back
- off-road parking would be a bonus, but I really don't want another house that opens straight onto the road/pavement.
- 3 bedrooms (one for us, one for Ben, one for guests / the photo studio / music room / office)
- kitchen/diner because we enjoy entertaining
- a living room big enough for my keyboard
- ceilings that you can't touch just by standing on tiptoes and reaching up
- doubleglazing, central heating that works, none of these daft spotlights that heat up the room without the need for a radiator
- room for a tumbledrier as well as the usual washing machine and dishwasher
- lots of space for storage, and an easily accessible loft
- now this might sound daft, but a blue front door.
- and finally, it has to be close to our friends' houses, within easy walking distance! And not just to where they live now, but to where they will move to...
Only a small list. But I think it's important to know what you want, and to be specific in your prayer requests. I could be even more specific than that, but that would be getting silly.
I went into the greengrocers today, asked about the Christmas Veg Boxes they did, and Nick told me they hadn't had as many orders as they'd have liked but they broke even. Almost to the pound! That's a relief, at the very least. I might be starting back working there again in a couple of weeks, wrap me and Ben up in the Moby, and go and get the invoices sorted out on a weekly basis. There's also talk of various bits and pieces I can do at home which is great. Hurrah, I'll be back at work soon!
Right I am going to make the most of Ben being asleep, and do the washing up and get everything ready to make dinner - tonight we will be eating chicken curry pie, with buttered carrots, and a bottle of red wine.
Chicken Curry Pie
ingredients
short pastry, made with 8oz flour
2 diced chicken breasts
jar of sainsburys basics curry sauce (7p, can't beat it!!)
method
make pastry, line pie dish, bake blind
cook chicken, add sauce, heat through, tip into half-cooked pastry case, cover with remaining pastry, bake.
Buttered Carrots
peel and slice carrots
melt 1oz butter in a lidded saucepan
add carrots, cook with lid on for 10 minutes on low heat until softening
take lid off, turn up heat and cook, stirring continuously, for about 5 minutes.
That's it really. Mmmmmmmmmm
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Most of the Story - part two
Thought I'd start off by saying I still think epidurals are the way forward :) They certainly have their place. I spent nearly 12 hours just on entonox and TENS, and not dilating particularly quickly. Once I'd got past 6cm the midwife was happy for me to go for an epidural because I just wasn't getting any further dilated, and was reaching the end of what I could endure with the contractions. The consultant came and checked and decided we needed to progress the labour and the only way for that was the oxytocin drip - which would cause contractions far stronger than I could cope with without an epidural.
I was the 1 in 100 case that suffered a double tap during the epidural. This is when the epidural needle punctures the spinal space as well as the epidural space and causes problems. The symptoms are incapacitating headaches - I understand what migraine sufferers go through now. These headaches started the friday morning when I tried to get up and couldn't. They would hit me instantly when I sat up or tried to stand up, and would go away fairly quickly when I lay down again. I managed to go and see Ben in Special Care (SCBU) once, but couldn't hold him because the headaches were crippling me.
Ben was out of SCBU after 24 hours, and on Friday morning the midwife came along just before breakfast and told me Ben was crying for me and that he needed feeding (they'd been feeding him through a tube). I almost cried because of the thought of trying to stand up to go and see him and feed him through the headache was awful. Then they came back trundling him in his little cot and said they thought it was unfair to expect me to get up and come through so they brought him to me :) and THEN they said that I could keep him as he was being discharged from SCBU!
I'd still go for it even knowing what I've been through since. Tell you what though - the best thing has been the caffeine therapy. It's been hilarious. I had 3 cans of coke in quick succession yesterday morning, and not much breakfast, and had caffeine overdose - major shaking, chatterbox, hyper - brilliant!! So once the headaches have finally gone, which we're expecting to take around 5-6 weeks (they do go gradually) I'll have to be treated for caffeine addiction ;)
Small price to pay eh!
We finally got home last night, and today my major achievement has been to get downstairs. It's amazing how much strength in your legs you lose through a week of being pretty much confined to bed.
Ben on the other hand is doing fabulously, he has no problems latching on for breastfeeding, he knows exactly what he wants and how to get it, I'm hardly having to do anything. He's alert and beautiful and only has screaming fits when we change him. Oh and he's a sneaky wee-er. None of this fountain effect that baby boys are supposed to have. Oh no. He waits until you turn your back and just lets it flow all over himself and his clothes and the changing mat and you don't realise until you pick him up and wonder why everything's wet.
Midwife came and checked us both this morning and she's happy with how everything is progressing - she checked through our postnatal notes and apart from being slightly concerned that someone had appeared to have written that I'd lost 7500ml blood during the blood (that's 14 pints, and would have seen me in intensive care.....) - until she realised that actually what they'd written was >500ml. Handwriting. Dangerous thing - especially in the medical profession.....
Anyway apart from all that I'm still smiling, we had a laugh today which nearly went critical - I got stuck on the bed desperate for a wee, and Steve was stuck under the cot trying to plug an extension lead in but his head and shoulders are bigger than the space under the cot and it was going up and down as he was breathing and so he couldn't come and help me and then we both started laughing... and laughing when you are stuck and need of a wee is REALLY not what you want to be doing!!!!
I'll try and update more again tomorrow, but I think that'll do for now. Time for chocolate pudding and changing bottoms and feeding and bedtime.....
Made it home!
We finally made it home last night, and I've just made it back down the stairs after spending ALL DAY feeding a hungry little monkey. Ok so I've not been feeding ALL day but it feels like that.
Ben is now a WHOLE WEEK old and if it weren't for me we'd have been home ages ago!
I'm still a bit sore down below but the midwife assures me that this will be the peak of the discomfort from the stitches and they'll have dissolved by this time next week.
There's loads and loads of pictures on facebook, here's the link to the album:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=58782&l=08305&id=614291355
Monday, October 13, 2008
The Peace of God that surpasses all understanding.
Today we begin trying to evict baby in earnest. If he doesn't come out willingly by himself this week, the bailiffs are being sent in next Tuesday :) - I'll be induced, what joy.
Been thinking a lot about this whole induction thing. Last Thursday evening's NCT class was mainly on induction, what they do, how it works, pros and cons etc. Painted a pretty grim picture really, not something I'd willingly go for. But on the way home I realised that actually, my baby's health is far more important to me than my comfort or discomfort, I'd rather have baby out and healthy.
Then, Saturday evening we went on the hospital tour and I was fine until they showed us the maternity theatre. Knowing that if I do end up being induced there's a fair possibility of me ending up having a c-section, I got a bit scared at that point. I hadn't realised that for 20 minutes I was going to be on my own while they prepped me and Steve got changed into his scrubs. I think out of the whole process, that was the bit that scared me the most - the thought of being separated from Steve.
But again, on the way home, I really felt the peace of God reminding me that I would never be on my own. I am just amazed at how peaceful I actually feel about all this. We have been praying with good friends that I'll have a natural birth and baby will come out this week, we have stood together and agreed and said Amen, and now - well, it's not that I don't have faith for that, or that I don't want it to be a natural labour, it's just it's not such a big deal any more. What happens happens. As long as baby is safe and healthy, that is the biggest priority. Everything else is kind of irrelevant now.
I guess if it does come down to going into theatre the best thing I can do is trust the people that are looking after me. If I trust them, I'm not going to panic. I have to trust them. And, as Steve said, if I don't feel able to trust them, then I can trust God because He is my Rock and Saviour, my Strong Tower, my Comforter.
I get to meet my baby soon.
Saturday, October 11, 2008
A Grand Day Out
Today has been what I wanted last Saturday to be - a day out, a date day, a day for me and Steve to spend together enjoying each others' company.
We started by going to another NCT nearly-new sale in Worthing and picking up a bag full of funky baby clothes for next to nothing prices; had coffee and then lunch with Julian and Libby and Nathaniel; and then headed in to Worthing to buy a couple of bits for baby like sunscreens for the car windows and also to have a look in the camera shop for flashguns and tripods. Not intending to actually buy anything this time round, just to look.
Ended up buying me a camera like Steve's (except because the camera is a year old and two more models have been brought out since, it was half the price he paid for his last year), a camera bag, a tripod and some spare batteries. I feel like I've come of age, I finally have a grown-up camera of my own. Feels quite weird.
We then had our lovely hospital tour for when baby does decide to make his appearance, and decided on the way home afterwards that instead of getting a takeaway for dinner we'd actually eat out. I can't remember the last time we ate out, just the two of us. It was lovely. An indian meal in a decent restaurant, no rushing, no cooking, just nice food :)
What a grand day it has been.
Thank you God.
We started by going to another NCT nearly-new sale in Worthing and picking up a bag full of funky baby clothes for next to nothing prices; had coffee and then lunch with Julian and Libby and Nathaniel; and then headed in to Worthing to buy a couple of bits for baby like sunscreens for the car windows and also to have a look in the camera shop for flashguns and tripods. Not intending to actually buy anything this time round, just to look.
Ended up buying me a camera like Steve's (except because the camera is a year old and two more models have been brought out since, it was half the price he paid for his last year), a camera bag, a tripod and some spare batteries. I feel like I've come of age, I finally have a grown-up camera of my own. Feels quite weird.
We then had our lovely hospital tour for when baby does decide to make his appearance, and decided on the way home afterwards that instead of getting a takeaway for dinner we'd actually eat out. I can't remember the last time we ate out, just the two of us. It was lovely. An indian meal in a decent restaurant, no rushing, no cooking, just nice food :)
What a grand day it has been.
Thank you God.
Friday, October 10, 2008
Eviction Notice served to Bump-E.
We went for our final antenatal/diabetic clinic and 36wk growth scan today. It appears that whilst I have been feeling like I've been struggling with eating, baby has not been struggling at all. They've put his current estimated weight at 3 kilos. Can't work that out exactly (brain tired) but it's about 6.5 - 7 lbs already. He is "growing well" according to the grinning sonographer. A "good size baby".
Hmm.
Following that, we served Bump-E with his eviction notice. If he doesn't make an appearance by himself by the 21st October we'll be sending in the bailiffs...... (aka I'll be induced.)
We're going to be parents in 11 days' time!!
Hmm.
Following that, we served Bump-E with his eviction notice. If he doesn't make an appearance by himself by the 21st October we'll be sending in the bailiffs...... (aka I'll be induced.)
We're going to be parents in 11 days' time!!
Thursday, October 09, 2008
Like a child in a sweet shop.
Thursday morning 9am. A text from Nick. "Jeni, can you come in at 10ish and take some pictures of the shop?" Such a beautiful day, and perfect timing - I wanted the afternoon off to meet Libby and Nathaniel, and was planning on going to the shop in the morning anyway to do some work.
I love my job. As well as doing the accounts and processing payments, I get to design various bits of marketing for the shop, take photographs for use in said marketing, and I'll be sorting out their website in the new year some time.
So Thursday morning I took Steve's camera in with me and I felt like a child in a sweet shop - I love taking photographs, and to be paid to do it, to have a purpose to the photos I was taking, was just brilliant! All the fruit and veg just looked so delicious in the morning sunshine, and I had a ball taking pictures and seeing if I could get the photos to do them justice.
After a bit of admin work it was time to go and pick up Libby and Nathaniel for an afternoon relaxing at the tea rooms in Steyning. I think we must have spent a good 2-3 hours in there, eating sandwiches and cake and drinking tea in the sunshine. Nathaniel occupied himself by trying to pick up the knots in the wooden table and then hitting the table repeatedly because it made a nice big noise.
After that it was back to the cottage, to see if we could find anything to feed Nathaniel with, as Julian was going to be quite late picking them up. We discovered that Somerfield baked beans evidently don't taste as good as Asda baked beans, and we also discovered that feeding Nathaniel cheese when he's not very well produces a lot of puke. Poor Libby had put a nice top on for coming out to play, and Nathaniel had already rubbed a big piece of gummed rusk onto her top. The puke finished it off. Good job we're about the same size although my brain was not up to speed and I went rushing off upstairs trying to find something for Nathaniel to be changed into rather than a clean top for Libby! Silly Jeni.
I love my job. As well as doing the accounts and processing payments, I get to design various bits of marketing for the shop, take photographs for use in said marketing, and I'll be sorting out their website in the new year some time.
So Thursday morning I took Steve's camera in with me and I felt like a child in a sweet shop - I love taking photographs, and to be paid to do it, to have a purpose to the photos I was taking, was just brilliant! All the fruit and veg just looked so delicious in the morning sunshine, and I had a ball taking pictures and seeing if I could get the photos to do them justice.
After a bit of admin work it was time to go and pick up Libby and Nathaniel for an afternoon relaxing at the tea rooms in Steyning. I think we must have spent a good 2-3 hours in there, eating sandwiches and cake and drinking tea in the sunshine. Nathaniel occupied himself by trying to pick up the knots in the wooden table and then hitting the table repeatedly because it made a nice big noise.
After that it was back to the cottage, to see if we could find anything to feed Nathaniel with, as Julian was going to be quite late picking them up. We discovered that Somerfield baked beans evidently don't taste as good as Asda baked beans, and we also discovered that feeding Nathaniel cheese when he's not very well produces a lot of puke. Poor Libby had put a nice top on for coming out to play, and Nathaniel had already rubbed a big piece of gummed rusk onto her top. The puke finished it off. Good job we're about the same size although my brain was not up to speed and I went rushing off upstairs trying to find something for Nathaniel to be changed into rather than a clean top for Libby! Silly Jeni.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Distraction...
We spent the weekend collecting all the last bits and pieces for baby, like cots and buggys and nappies. God came with us, although it didn't feel like it at the time... when we finally made it to Ikea on Saturday evening, the cot we'd decided we wanted wasn't in stock! Grrr. So we had to choose a different one, and then we had to choose a different changing table as a result.
But, yesterday, when we were (well, Steve was) building the stuff, we realised that if we'd bought the cot and dresser that we originally wanted it would have fitted in the space available but wouldn't have been very practical as it had drawers which would have been particularly awkward to open.
Good job that cot wasn't in stock...
So yet again our bedroom is a bit of a squeeze. It's possible to get round everywhere, which is pretty amazing really, but there's no room now for being messy. (Just you watch though, we'll find a way to be messy.)
I think all the rushing round and the lurgy and various other things over the past few weeks finally caught up with me yesterday afternoon. I had a few horrible moments: fighting off panic about the reality of nearly being a parent, and then wondering if baby would love me. And in the evening, after a beautifully relaxing afternoon in the teashop, I found myself panicking again - baby will be here in 3 weeks' time. We're going to be parents. I nearly cried. I can't imagine what it's going to be like. I feel like the not being prepared materially has been masking the horrible feeling of not being at all prepared mentally - but now we've got all the material paraphernalia, there's no hiding any more from the realisation that with every moment, we get a moment closer to being parents. Will we be good parents? Will we "bond" with baby? What will baby be like, will he be a screamer or a giggler? Just how exhausted are we going to be? Panic....
You can prepare as much as you like, materially; but there's no amount of preparation can prepare you mentally and psychologically for the reality of becoming a parent for the first time. Steve and I have been married a month and a half shy of 8 years, and with the 2 years that we were dating before that makes nearly a decade of it just being the two of us. We've had great fun: we've lived, we've learnt, we've loved - we've enjoyed life together. And all of a sudden, it's going to be 3. Ok so baby's technically here already - he's wriggling around in my belly making his presence known, but within a month he's going to be announcing his presence to the world wherever we go. Our whole world is going to change. I was talking to my dad last week, he remembers when I was born - their whole world changed, turned upside down, everything revolved around me instead of around themselves.
That's quite a big change, especially if you've spent the last 10 years just the two of you.
But then, thinking about it, maybe sometimes our brains are wired up for this kind of thing. For the first 3rd of my life, my life was about me and it took time to learn that it wasn't just about me. The second 3rd of my life was about how I fitted in to the rest of my little world, and discovering boys. Relationships became important, I didn't want to be just me, I wanted to be part of a relationship. This last 3rd of my life so far has been in the context of an amazing relationship with the man I love, my life has been shared.
I can't imagine what it's going to be like to share my life with a little man as well...
I guess we'll just have to wait and see.
But, yesterday, when we were (well, Steve was) building the stuff, we realised that if we'd bought the cot and dresser that we originally wanted it would have fitted in the space available but wouldn't have been very practical as it had drawers which would have been particularly awkward to open.
Good job that cot wasn't in stock...
So yet again our bedroom is a bit of a squeeze. It's possible to get round everywhere, which is pretty amazing really, but there's no room now for being messy. (Just you watch though, we'll find a way to be messy.)
I think all the rushing round and the lurgy and various other things over the past few weeks finally caught up with me yesterday afternoon. I had a few horrible moments: fighting off panic about the reality of nearly being a parent, and then wondering if baby would love me. And in the evening, after a beautifully relaxing afternoon in the teashop, I found myself panicking again - baby will be here in 3 weeks' time. We're going to be parents. I nearly cried. I can't imagine what it's going to be like. I feel like the not being prepared materially has been masking the horrible feeling of not being at all prepared mentally - but now we've got all the material paraphernalia, there's no hiding any more from the realisation that with every moment, we get a moment closer to being parents. Will we be good parents? Will we "bond" with baby? What will baby be like, will he be a screamer or a giggler? Just how exhausted are we going to be? Panic....
You can prepare as much as you like, materially; but there's no amount of preparation can prepare you mentally and psychologically for the reality of becoming a parent for the first time. Steve and I have been married a month and a half shy of 8 years, and with the 2 years that we were dating before that makes nearly a decade of it just being the two of us. We've had great fun: we've lived, we've learnt, we've loved - we've enjoyed life together. And all of a sudden, it's going to be 3. Ok so baby's technically here already - he's wriggling around in my belly making his presence known, but within a month he's going to be announcing his presence to the world wherever we go. Our whole world is going to change. I was talking to my dad last week, he remembers when I was born - their whole world changed, turned upside down, everything revolved around me instead of around themselves.
That's quite a big change, especially if you've spent the last 10 years just the two of you.
But then, thinking about it, maybe sometimes our brains are wired up for this kind of thing. For the first 3rd of my life, my life was about me and it took time to learn that it wasn't just about me. The second 3rd of my life was about how I fitted in to the rest of my little world, and discovering boys. Relationships became important, I didn't want to be just me, I wanted to be part of a relationship. This last 3rd of my life so far has been in the context of an amazing relationship with the man I love, my life has been shared.
I can't imagine what it's going to be like to share my life with a little man as well...
I guess we'll just have to wait and see.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Blessed be Your Name
"Blessed be Your Name, when the sun's shining down on me,
When the world's all as it should be,
Blessed be Your Name.
Blessed be Your Name, on the road marked with suffering,
When there's pain in the offering,
Blessed be Your Name.
EVERY blessing You pour out I'll turn back to praise,
When the darkness closes in, Lord, still I will say
Blessed be the Name of the Lord....."
So often there's a whole lot more emphasis put on the second half of the song, the bits about still praising God even though things are difficult and I think it's almost like people wear suffering as a badge of honour - it shouldn't be like that.
God is good, all the time. ALL the time.
That includes when He's, well, good!
So often we forget to give God thanks and praise for the good things that He has done, almost as if it were going to upset people that God has actually been nice to us for a change.
God certainly does bring us through tough times (note: He doesn't cause, but brings us through) in order that our faith may be made stronger, our characters developed and matured.
But God also knows how to give good things to His children!
I really believe that as a people of God we've got to learn to not be shy about publicly giving thanks to God for the good things that He's done - for the blatantly obvious good things that He's done, not just the obliquely good things that He's done through our suffering.
Right now, I am thankful for...
This cottage that we live in
A bed that doesn't bounce every time one of us rolls over
A healthy bump
An amazing antenatal care team
Good friends and a new family here in the South
Being planted
Breakfast!
When the world's all as it should be,
Blessed be Your Name.
Blessed be Your Name, on the road marked with suffering,
When there's pain in the offering,
Blessed be Your Name.
EVERY blessing You pour out I'll turn back to praise,
When the darkness closes in, Lord, still I will say
Blessed be the Name of the Lord....."
So often there's a whole lot more emphasis put on the second half of the song, the bits about still praising God even though things are difficult and I think it's almost like people wear suffering as a badge of honour - it shouldn't be like that.
God is good, all the time. ALL the time.
That includes when He's, well, good!
So often we forget to give God thanks and praise for the good things that He has done, almost as if it were going to upset people that God has actually been nice to us for a change.
God certainly does bring us through tough times (note: He doesn't cause, but brings us through) in order that our faith may be made stronger, our characters developed and matured.
But God also knows how to give good things to His children!
I really believe that as a people of God we've got to learn to not be shy about publicly giving thanks to God for the good things that He's done - for the blatantly obvious good things that He's done, not just the obliquely good things that He's done through our suffering.
Right now, I am thankful for...
This cottage that we live in
A bed that doesn't bounce every time one of us rolls over
A healthy bump
An amazing antenatal care team
Good friends and a new family here in the South
Being planted
Breakfast!
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
It's 4am and yet again...
... I am downstairs with a bowl of cereal.
I have to have this bowl of cereal at this time of night, to stop myself from having a mild hypo during the night. Something to do with the current amount of slow-release insulin I'm on. Needs adjusting. Again. At least I'm doing enough blood sugar testing to be able to talk to the nurse with some useful figures, so we can adjust the dose accordingly.
It's not as if it's difficult to wake up either - all I need to do is have a drink before I go to bed and hey presto I wake up at 3.30am needing the loo.
Bit fed up.
Another I'm fed up about is that I've just stocked up on chocolatey cereal, this having been my staple food for the past 6 months, only to have - within a matter of days - my tastebuds change again. Hurrah that I'm back on healthy cereal again but now what am I going to do with all these boxes of chocolatey rubbish? They're far too sweet all of a sudden.
And finally. I appear to be developing a cough.
Could do with some of that healing blessing really.
Failing that, a hug would be nice.
xx
I have to have this bowl of cereal at this time of night, to stop myself from having a mild hypo during the night. Something to do with the current amount of slow-release insulin I'm on. Needs adjusting. Again. At least I'm doing enough blood sugar testing to be able to talk to the nurse with some useful figures, so we can adjust the dose accordingly.
It's not as if it's difficult to wake up either - all I need to do is have a drink before I go to bed and hey presto I wake up at 3.30am needing the loo.
Bit fed up.
Another I'm fed up about is that I've just stocked up on chocolatey cereal, this having been my staple food for the past 6 months, only to have - within a matter of days - my tastebuds change again. Hurrah that I'm back on healthy cereal again but now what am I going to do with all these boxes of chocolatey rubbish? They're far too sweet all of a sudden.
And finally. I appear to be developing a cough.
Could do with some of that healing blessing really.
Failing that, a hug would be nice.
xx
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Praying for an early baby
At the last antenatal appointment I raised the issue of being induced and what my chances of it happening were.
In a nutshell, diabetic pregnancies, if left to go full term, have a much higher risk of stillbirth and the team understandably would rather not put me or baby at risk.
So...
If baby doesn't decide he wants out early, we'll be induced at probably 38 weeks although the actual "date" will be decided at our final appointment at 36 weeks.
And, as these things go, if we're induced we set off down the slippery slope of medical intervention and the possibility of ending up with a c-section goes up to 50%.
So here's the prayer request - that baby decides that he wants out at 37 weeks!
I want to be able to see the team during and after a normal birth and say that the reason baby is so perfect and healthy and hasn't had to be induced is because God's been involved all the way through. So I've not had the pleasantest of pregnancies but baby doesn't seem to have noticed.
I know that "in all things God works for the good of those who love Him" and I know that God uses our circumstances to bring about good things.
I've had the best care out of all the pregnant women I'm currently in contact with, mainly because I'm diabetic. But I don't believe that God would just stop there. There's so much opportunity for Him to show His power and grace and love through these circumstances... and I just hope that He decides that a natural birth would be the best way for this!
In a nutshell, diabetic pregnancies, if left to go full term, have a much higher risk of stillbirth and the team understandably would rather not put me or baby at risk.
So...
If baby doesn't decide he wants out early, we'll be induced at probably 38 weeks although the actual "date" will be decided at our final appointment at 36 weeks.
And, as these things go, if we're induced we set off down the slippery slope of medical intervention and the possibility of ending up with a c-section goes up to 50%.
So here's the prayer request - that baby decides that he wants out at 37 weeks!
I want to be able to see the team during and after a normal birth and say that the reason baby is so perfect and healthy and hasn't had to be induced is because God's been involved all the way through. So I've not had the pleasantest of pregnancies but baby doesn't seem to have noticed.
I know that "in all things God works for the good of those who love Him" and I know that God uses our circumstances to bring about good things.
I've had the best care out of all the pregnant women I'm currently in contact with, mainly because I'm diabetic. But I don't believe that God would just stop there. There's so much opportunity for Him to show His power and grace and love through these circumstances... and I just hope that He decides that a natural birth would be the best way for this!
Monday, September 08, 2008
Travel Systems Are Go!
We bought a travel system at the weekend. It's not red, to match the car - upon serious reflection we decided that red could get quite wearing. So we've gone for a sensible black and grey combination. I think it may well be the first time we've been sensible in a long time.
Saturday, September 06, 2008
I still can't believe it's....
...September. Where has this year gone to?! I'm also quite amazed at how Autumn arrived with the first of the month. It's so definitely autumn now, isn't it. Colder. The leaves on the conker tree outside the window are turning.
My head is chock full of baby stuff at the moment, spilling over from yesterday's expedition to the first antenatal class. Hopefully it'll all have dissipated by next Thursday so I can learn it all again. It's amazing what you can cover quickly in 5 hours. Yes, five hours. Thankfully only this first session was a long one, the rest are all 2 hour sessions in the evenings which might be a bit more manageable. Only thing was, yesterday, Stephen wasn't able to come with me. Apart from really being short on holidays (antenatal appointments at various hospitals have been eating away at them) an amp they were testing at work blew up on Thursday so he had no choice in the matter - he had to stay at work Friday. All the other partners had come along though... I felt a little bit lonely, to say the least. Only cried once though, was quite proud of myself for keeping my composure that long.
Anyway. Now officially on admin duties at work and, although I never ever thought I'd ever say this, I am LOVING it. Brain is being tested, all the old information I'd learnt years ago is being dragged out and used again, and the best bit is that I'm creating systems from scratch rather than just sitting there putting garbage in and getting garbage out.
Lovin' it.
Even the "filing", what there is of it. 2 folders. VAT and non-VAT. I can cope with that I think.
Although it does mean that I'm not on the shop floor talking to all the lovely old ladies and eating fruit all afternoon. Next week I'll have to remember to tear myself away from the computer a couple of times.
Steve's gone out on his bike with Julian this morning in the sogginess - there's another one who'll need hosing down before he comes anywhere near the house - so some peace and quiet and bubblebath time for me until he gets back. And then - joy of joys - travelsystem shopping. Can you believe my DAD corrected me after I called them prams. But it's not all bad - Steve's parents have sent us a little financial gift for said travelsystem, which should more than cover the cost...!
Travelsystem.
And it's got to be red, to match the car.
Of course.
My head is chock full of baby stuff at the moment, spilling over from yesterday's expedition to the first antenatal class. Hopefully it'll all have dissipated by next Thursday so I can learn it all again. It's amazing what you can cover quickly in 5 hours. Yes, five hours. Thankfully only this first session was a long one, the rest are all 2 hour sessions in the evenings which might be a bit more manageable. Only thing was, yesterday, Stephen wasn't able to come with me. Apart from really being short on holidays (antenatal appointments at various hospitals have been eating away at them) an amp they were testing at work blew up on Thursday so he had no choice in the matter - he had to stay at work Friday. All the other partners had come along though... I felt a little bit lonely, to say the least. Only cried once though, was quite proud of myself for keeping my composure that long.
Anyway. Now officially on admin duties at work and, although I never ever thought I'd ever say this, I am LOVING it. Brain is being tested, all the old information I'd learnt years ago is being dragged out and used again, and the best bit is that I'm creating systems from scratch rather than just sitting there putting garbage in and getting garbage out.
Lovin' it.
Even the "filing", what there is of it. 2 folders. VAT and non-VAT. I can cope with that I think.
Although it does mean that I'm not on the shop floor talking to all the lovely old ladies and eating fruit all afternoon. Next week I'll have to remember to tear myself away from the computer a couple of times.
Steve's gone out on his bike with Julian this morning in the sogginess - there's another one who'll need hosing down before he comes anywhere near the house - so some peace and quiet and bubblebath time for me until he gets back. And then - joy of joys - travelsystem shopping. Can you believe my DAD corrected me after I called them prams. But it's not all bad - Steve's parents have sent us a little financial gift for said travelsystem, which should more than cover the cost...!
Travelsystem.
And it's got to be red, to match the car.
Of course.
Monday, September 01, 2008
This Weekend...
... has been amazing. Incredible. We are so blessed to have found an amazing family here in Sussex! We got home quite late Friday night from Wales, and all the plans for tidying up and sorting things out went out of the window. So, when Libby phoned and asked if there was anything they could do preparation-wise as Nathaniel had a really bad cough and they wouldn't be going to the airshow, the sense of relief was huge! Saturday morning came along with trauma as we had no milk (and therefore I couldn't have my weetos) and my stomach decided it didn't like anything else I tried to feed it with. But as it turned out this meant that I had the house to myself for an hour and a half, to have a bath and write out the destructions for what needed preparing for the barbecue. And Libby and Julian outdid themselves - when we got back after the airshow, the Gardener and Chef Wray had done EVERYTHING - and we all had a brilliant evening barbecue followed by a waterfight, courtesy of some incredibly small yet powerful water pistols I'd bought for partybags!
A selection of photos at the end of this blog.
The airshow itself was brilliant, I was so absorbed watching the planes and enjoying the sunshine that I forgot to take any pictures, so hopefully Steve will let me put some of his on here later! At the end of the show we decided that we wanted to buy a remote-controlled helicopter (I had mentioned that I'd wanted to buy one for Steve for his birthday, but didn't know which one to buy and would rather he chose it himself) so we have bought Airwolf as a joint birthday present between us. It's finally working - Steve had fiddled and fixed and made it work, and yesterday the boys were playing with the helicopter and the Wii while us girls had tea on the lawn - the rain stopped long enough for us to have our cucumber sandwiches and scones and jam and cream and cupcakes and jelly babies and strawberries and tea in pots and posh cutlery and crockery outside on the lawn! What a perfect weekend. And we'd bought so much meat and vegetables for Saturday's barbecue that there was still enough left for a second (indoor) barbecue on Sunday after the baby shower / helicopter playingness.
What a weekend. And the presents people have given baby - Steve and I have been so touched by peoples' generosity and thoughtfulness but of particular overwhelmingness was the gifts from mum Entwistle's work colleagues. It's evidence of how much they love HER that they put together this enormous cellophane-wrapped parcel of baby bits and pieces for her son and daughter-in-law that they hardly know! I was so overwhelmed that I started crying and had to go and compose myself before heading off to the Shower proper.
Anyway, here's a selection of photographs from the weekend.
First - the airshow. More photos will be added later once they've been retrieved from the camera.
These guys are the RAF parachute display team. They freefall from so many miles up, and stay in such close co-ordination, performing twists and turns and all sorts, and land within meters of each other at the end of it.
I took many photographs of these guys and then become so absorbed in the rest of the show that I forgot to take any more pictures! I used Steve's camera a couple of times though, we'll see how those photos come out.
And the baby shower...
Cucumber sandwiches, scones and jam and cream, and strawberries....
I had to put these next three in together. How many attempts does it take to get 6 people to all not pull silly faces at the same time?!
Is my tiara on straight?
The enormous wrapped parcel from the girls at St Anns Hospice where Steve's mum works.
And some of the presents. I was gnashing my teeth at the thought of teething.
This one had me worried. I am still at the point where the thing I am least looking forward to over the next two months is the prospect of someone else having to cut my toenails for me. Labour - not a worry, yet anyway. Toenails - freaking out slightly. So the realisation that I'm going to have to cut my baby's nails REALLY has me worried...
A selection of photos at the end of this blog.
The airshow itself was brilliant, I was so absorbed watching the planes and enjoying the sunshine that I forgot to take any pictures, so hopefully Steve will let me put some of his on here later! At the end of the show we decided that we wanted to buy a remote-controlled helicopter (I had mentioned that I'd wanted to buy one for Steve for his birthday, but didn't know which one to buy and would rather he chose it himself) so we have bought Airwolf as a joint birthday present between us. It's finally working - Steve had fiddled and fixed and made it work, and yesterday the boys were playing with the helicopter and the Wii while us girls had tea on the lawn - the rain stopped long enough for us to have our cucumber sandwiches and scones and jam and cream and cupcakes and jelly babies and strawberries and tea in pots and posh cutlery and crockery outside on the lawn! What a perfect weekend. And we'd bought so much meat and vegetables for Saturday's barbecue that there was still enough left for a second (indoor) barbecue on Sunday after the baby shower / helicopter playingness.
What a weekend. And the presents people have given baby - Steve and I have been so touched by peoples' generosity and thoughtfulness but of particular overwhelmingness was the gifts from mum Entwistle's work colleagues. It's evidence of how much they love HER that they put together this enormous cellophane-wrapped parcel of baby bits and pieces for her son and daughter-in-law that they hardly know! I was so overwhelmed that I started crying and had to go and compose myself before heading off to the Shower proper.
Anyway, here's a selection of photographs from the weekend.
First - the airshow. More photos will be added later once they've been retrieved from the camera.
These guys are the RAF parachute display team. They freefall from so many miles up, and stay in such close co-ordination, performing twists and turns and all sorts, and land within meters of each other at the end of it.
I took many photographs of these guys and then become so absorbed in the rest of the show that I forgot to take any more pictures! I used Steve's camera a couple of times though, we'll see how those photos come out.
And the baby shower...
Cucumber sandwiches, scones and jam and cream, and strawberries....
I had to put these next three in together. How many attempts does it take to get 6 people to all not pull silly faces at the same time?!
Is my tiara on straight?
The enormous wrapped parcel from the girls at St Anns Hospice where Steve's mum works.
And some of the presents. I was gnashing my teeth at the thought of teething.
This one had me worried. I am still at the point where the thing I am least looking forward to over the next two months is the prospect of someone else having to cut my toenails for me. Labour - not a worry, yet anyway. Toenails - freaking out slightly. So the realisation that I'm going to have to cut my baby's nails REALLY has me worried...
On Holiday with the Batty Fatty
That's Steve's new nickname for me for the duration. I think he's decided that I'm more batty than he realised, or maybe he's just not seen the extent of the battiness for some time and this past week has just allowed him to see it again...
And of course the fatty bit relates to the obvious protrusion which he swears grows by the day. It probably does. We measured me again last night but according to the tape measure I've not grown for 2 weeks. Steve doesn't trust the tape measure.
We have had the most lovely relaxing holiday in South Wales. The weather wasn't great, we only had sunshine on the Sunday, but to be able to relax and spend time together and talk and laugh and snuggle and just chill out was so much needed.
We walked on the beach and got sand in our toes and dipped our feet in the sea, we went for walks along the promenade at Mumbles, talking about everything and nothing and laughing until we (well mainly I) thought I was going to embarrass myself, we explored Oystermouth Castle, we drove to the Worm's Head and I chickened out from walking a way up to the Head because there was a BBC camera crew filming pieces about the erosion of the coastline (and laughed so much in the process of chickening out that I nearly embarrassed myself again), Steve went on a bike ride and came home three hours later with the bottom half of his bike completely caked in mud, we went out for (second) breakfast and I had hash browns in a cafe/shop called Treasure, we people-watched from the safety (and warmth) of the beach-side cafe, we played boules on the beach and didn't want to come home.
Photos
Our chalet
First day at the beach
The train along the promenade at Mumbles
Oystermouth Castle
Satisfying cravings...
Boules on the beach
And of course the fatty bit relates to the obvious protrusion which he swears grows by the day. It probably does. We measured me again last night but according to the tape measure I've not grown for 2 weeks. Steve doesn't trust the tape measure.
We have had the most lovely relaxing holiday in South Wales. The weather wasn't great, we only had sunshine on the Sunday, but to be able to relax and spend time together and talk and laugh and snuggle and just chill out was so much needed.
We walked on the beach and got sand in our toes and dipped our feet in the sea, we went for walks along the promenade at Mumbles, talking about everything and nothing and laughing until we (well mainly I) thought I was going to embarrass myself, we explored Oystermouth Castle, we drove to the Worm's Head and I chickened out from walking a way up to the Head because there was a BBC camera crew filming pieces about the erosion of the coastline (and laughed so much in the process of chickening out that I nearly embarrassed myself again), Steve went on a bike ride and came home three hours later with the bottom half of his bike completely caked in mud, we went out for (second) breakfast and I had hash browns in a cafe/shop called Treasure, we people-watched from the safety (and warmth) of the beach-side cafe, we played boules on the beach and didn't want to come home.
Photos
Our chalet
First day at the beach
The train along the promenade at Mumbles
Oystermouth Castle
Satisfying cravings...
Boules on the beach
Friday, August 22, 2008
Memories :)
Was trying to think of a "pie tune" for Stuart Maconie as he sat in for Chris Evans this week on the R2 drivetime show and I think Steve had reminded me of Joe Satriani the previous day so he was on my mind. Decided to see if I could find an MP3 of "friends" on the internet to see if it sounded like I remember. Can you believe I've not listened to it for over seven years!
I walked up the aisle to this tune. What memories listening to it again brought flooding back, to such an extent that I have had to buy the album it is on, and it has just arrived in the post. I am currently thoroughly enjoying listening to it playing lovely and loud in the cottage. The CD will be on full blast in the car tomorrow as we travel to South Wales for our holiday. What bliss!
Here's the tune. Enjoy.
I walked up the aisle to this tune. What memories listening to it again brought flooding back, to such an extent that I have had to buy the album it is on, and it has just arrived in the post. I am currently thoroughly enjoying listening to it playing lovely and loud in the cottage. The CD will be on full blast in the car tomorrow as we travel to South Wales for our holiday. What bliss!
Here's the tune. Enjoy.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Singin' and a playin'
I played piano / led worship at small group last night. I think it's the first time I have EVER led by actually playing an instrument rather than selecting some songs off a CD to sing along to. I spent all day (well, apart from sleeping for an hour and a half in the morning when I realised my eyes were actually closing of their own accord) practising and trying to decide which songs to play. I think I might actually be getting better at playing and singing at the same time. I never used to be any good at that, I'm not particularly good at multitasking. Too much information and too little RAM in my brain to hold it all at the same time.
But incredibly I didn't make many mistakes (well, too many) and we have even left the keyboard at our friends' house so she can have a play of it while we're on holiday next week. They are thinking of getting the same keyboard so having a play and getting an idea of how enormous it is will be a good thing.
As we took it round to theirs, we needed to buy a roof-rack for the boy-racer. Roof-racks on boy-racers look silly. But now it's all there - I have keyboard, custom full-flight case, and roof rack - have keyboard, will travel.
Now... off to do housework and get some photos off the cameras and have a bath and then it's off to work for my one afternoon per week of sociability.
But incredibly I didn't make many mistakes (well, too many) and we have even left the keyboard at our friends' house so she can have a play of it while we're on holiday next week. They are thinking of getting the same keyboard so having a play and getting an idea of how enormous it is will be a good thing.
As we took it round to theirs, we needed to buy a roof-rack for the boy-racer. Roof-racks on boy-racers look silly. But now it's all there - I have keyboard, custom full-flight case, and roof rack - have keyboard, will travel.
Now... off to do housework and get some photos off the cameras and have a bath and then it's off to work for my one afternoon per week of sociability.
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