Compsognathus, Allosaurus, Baryonyx .......

We were traveling to Cardiff the other day and the kids were pretending we were being chased by dinosaurs. So I asked Ross what dinosaurs were chasing us, fully expecting the usual run of common dino names!! T rex, triceratops etc etc .. you know the ones everyone knows! Well, my dear son came up with some names that I couldn't believe, let alone pronounce - Allosaurus, Baryonyx, Compsognathus and so on and so on. The one name is so long that I won't even attempt to spell it. He not only knows their names but also their characteristics as well! His favourite bedtime story is a dinosaur encyclopedia from which we read about a different dinosaur every night.

On Saturday, Paul played his last home game of professional football so we all went along for moral support. The children were match mascots which made the day even more memorable for "daddy" who is finding this "end of an era" rather emotional and sad. I hope we helped to make his day a special one!!

Today, my baby is 1!! I really can't believe how fast this last year has passed. He had loads of help this morning to open his pressies and then watched while Ross and Madison promptly played with them for him! Poor Geth! He's meant to be having a routine injection today at the baby clinic but I just can't bring myself to take him on his birthday so I think we'll postpone it till next week. He's having a nap at the moment and when he wakes we might take a walk to the park and then later this evening we'll be taking Ross to his first swimming lesson. Maybe, if we're allowed Paul and I will have a fun swim with Gethin and Maddy while we wait for Ross.
The official celebrations are on Saturday when Ross and Gethin are having their party so I'll be able to post lots more birthday pics next week.
xxx

Oops!

Couldn't add the picture of my layout to the previous post so here it is!

Happy Easter!!

I have so many pictures to share this week that I think I'll keep the writing to a minimum! Its been a wonderful long weekend with plenty of sunshine, chocolate and fun!!!
Of course, I also managed to complete my layout for the week! The picture came out quite dark as the background is actually a teal/turquoise blue. Quite a nice one I think!!
The rest of the pics are from the Easter weekend. We took a trip up to Folly Farm yesterday as it was such a nice day. The kids had great fun seeing all the animals, riding the tractor and going on some rides.

We're going potty!

Its been a long time, I know! Things were a bit hectic in the last 2 weeks of school. Paul's parents were looking after the kids so I worked everyday. Goodness, I was exhausted and, Maddy and Gethin were extremely clingy after all that work. Poor Gethin, every time I left the room he thought I was going to leave him again.
In between all that I did the first carboot sale. Its quite an experience I tell you. The minute you park your car you get bombarded by people asking for mobiles and jewellery! I was sure the one lady was going to unpack the car for me. Strange people shop at carboot sales. Anyway, it was worth the effort as I made about £70. Not too bad!
The scrapbooking challenge took a break for that "busy" week and since both Kerry and I didn't manage a lo we called it quits with no fines! Nice when you can make up the rules as you go along!!!

BUT we're back on track this week with our layouts. I've just had a nice little parcel from the USA so I'm quite keen to get scrapping this week.
On the weekend my friend Tanya came to visit from Nottingham. We had a lovely day on Friday with shopping in the morning and then dinner and the theatre in the evening! Paul has done a lot of babysitting lately and seems to manage quite fine - think I may take advantage more often!
Its Easter holidays for the next 2 weeks so I've decided now would be a good time to potty train Maddy since I can stay home and its getting a bit warmer. We're on day 2 now and so far so good. She seems to be quite willing and we've only had a few accidents! Fingers crossed I'll do a better job with her than I did with poor Ross!
I will keep you posted on our progress!
That's all folks - I'm off to have a cup of tea and relax!
xxx

Happy Mother's Day to me

What I nice weekend I've just had. I've been dropping hints for weeks now to my darling husband, in anticipation of the "big event". Needless to say, he still left it to the last minute and come Saturday there was no sign of any goodies or treats. At least he admitted his negligence and we came to an agreement which was very much to my liking! I got to go shopping all by myself on Saturday without any children in tow!!!!! Yes, that's right, NO CHILDREN!!!!!!! YAY!!! It was blissful to stroll around and not have to bribe, placate, scream or shout! And what did I buy you ask? Some lovely new clothes for ME!
On the "real" Mother's Day I was treated to a lie in with a nice cup of coffee (I'm working them up to breakfast in bed)! Ross and Maddy had made lovely cards for me at school which are far better than any shop bought ones. I just have to share my son's beautiful message in his card - I'm so proud of his handwriting! Silly - I know but that's the "teacher" mom in me coming out!

We went to church where the children sang songs for the Mothers with Sunday School. Maddy made her first stage appearance complete with her Peppa pig backpack. I spent the whole time waiting for her to fall off the stage as she teetered precariously close to the edge! After Church we went to Paul's sister for coffee and cake and then it was home for a nice relaxing afternoon and a steak dinner!!
All in all a very nice weekend! No time for Internet as I'm having too much fun doing other stuff.

Gethin has suddenly changed from a quiet, relaxed baby to a noisy, loud, wriggly worm. He wants to see everything, touch everything and go wherever he pleases. I'm not looking forward to the journey to Oz as I'm sure he's going to be all over the place!
That's all folks!
xxx

Busy busy!

Is it just me or are the weeks just flying by? We're half way through March already!
Challenge Internet is still going well after a week. The longer it goes on for, the less I actually miss "surfing the web" and when I do go online I'm bored after half an hour. So its all good.
Paul's parents have made a surprise visit to the UK which is very handy as they've offered to look after the children while I work.
We've had a busy weekend and haven't been home much so its a good thing that I managed 2 layouts last week as I haven't done any scrapping this week. The photo on this layout is from the photo shoot we had done of the kids while we were on holiday in January. We've got 6 different shots of them and they're so lovely. I can't wait to get them framed but that will have to wait until Australia so in the mean time I've settled for scrapping just one.
Its extremely late and I have to work tomorrow so I'll be off to get my "beauty sleep". I'm sporting a bit of a black eye at the moment, courtesy of Gethin. He flicked his head back so hard onto my cheek bone that I now have a big black bruise under my eye. So I need all the beauty sleep I can get! Goodnight and have a good week. xxx

New challenge!!!

I think its Lent right now and people are meant to give up something precious. Which brings me to my new challenge!!
I seem to spend an awful lot of unnecessary time on the internet lately. I try and keep it to a minimum when the children are around but it doesn't always work out that way - 5 minutes becomes 10 which becomes 15 and so on and so on ....
I think you could safely say I'm an internet addict! Bad girl!
Somedays (when I'm home with the kids) the internet is my only sanity as I can chat with my mom or my friend, Kerry. It would be no good to restrict myself to a couple of minutes a day as I know it would be futile so I'm "going for broke"!!
This is the rule!
No going on the computer before 8pm unless all children are at school or sleeping.
There's no chance all my children will be at school together for a very long time and it would be a miracle if all 3 children took a nap at the same time! So, I will probably only be around in the evenings after 8pm or on a Wednesday and Friday morning when Maddy and Ross have school and Gethin takes a nap!
I feel a bit like an addict and when I started yesterday, I had some serious withdrawal symptoms - thinking every few minutes "I'll just go and check that online". Bad habits are hard to break!
Today was a bit easier as Paul was home and we went out for a nice, long lunch to Swansea.
I'm hoping this will mean my house is cleaner and I spend more quality time with the children. Somehow I doubt the house will be cleaner but I will make a big effort on the latter statement.

The original challenge is still going well as you can see. I'm not sure if Kerry has done hers as I'm not allowed on the computer in the day but I think she has as her status on MSN said "scrapping".

Not much "big move" news to report. The next few months are going to be pretty busy for us with lots of exciting activities coming up. Paul is finishing off his last season as a professional footballer so we're hoping to make his last home game a memorable one. I'm hoping a few friends will join the children and I at the game with a small celebration dinner out afterwards.
Then it will be Gethin and Ross' birthdays. I promised Ross a big party this year as it will be his last one in Wales with his friends from school. Gethin is going to party crash and celebrate his 1st birthday with his big brother. A joint party will make things a lot easier for Mom.

Thats all folks! I have to work tomorrow and Tuesday so I'll be signing off now.
xxx
PS. I just noticed that the time on here says it was posted at 14:51. I can assure you that it is actually 22:40 and I have not already broken "The Rule".