Guess who!

Ross found these little gems the other day and despite the low quality snap I took on my phone I couldn't resist sharing them..firstly there's Zac looking more comfortable on a body board than I think he would today!

And Zac again on a little motorbike, I think he's about 4 years old in this picture. When he looked at it he laughed as he could see the ratchet where Col had to lower the height of the seat because his legs wouldn't reach the floor! Big ahhh..

And, not to be outdone by the pesky boys, here's a one of Lisa in a little buggy affair.. I have loads of these action girl pics, everything from helicopter rides to mtorbikes, she's done a few things you know!

Spooky...?

..isn't it when you're going away and you get to sorting out all the odd jobs, loose ends and get all the washing & ironing up to date like never before! That's how it is here.. everyone has a clean bed, clean clothes and the windows even got cleaned last weekend.. so in my sad organised , guilt ridden head, I'm allowed to have a holiday now!

...except Zac & Jordan have just come home from a wet and rainy day's paintballing and my clean porch (ala Ross) is full of muddy clothes, including a 'blood splattered' white coat which Zac wore as the fearsome Dr Jones!

 Amongst the sorting out I found a box of scrapbooking papers and the layouts I finished earlier this month.  It was Linda's jigsaw idea and used up lots of little images which in their own right were probably not due a layout on their own. (And dear Lilly she seemed to turn away every time I went click!)

I used the toadstool paper I had been harbouring since I began scrapping almost 3 years ago, and I used up so many oddments but true to jigsaws it seemed to come together in the same chaos which a day with Lilly is!

 

Autumn lull..

.. in the chat on the blogs I follow. But I'm just as bad. There seems to be lots going on but the dreaded bloggers-block has set in for a week or two. I've not been any better on the scrapbooking front either, must get myself organised as there will be black holes appearing in my general existence as depicted by blog and camera this autumn!

Last scrapbooking session was a social event and I finished off an old layout, just didn't come home with the same feeling of achievement as I do when Linda teaches us a new technique!  I have a joke with her.. I don't like the new method, then I try it, then I like it, and I leave saying... 'this is good, think I'd like to do it again!'... and I joke that I say the same to Col in the dark!

Col & I are heading off for my birthday holiday next week, it's doubling up as our long overdue honeymoon (19 yrs later!)... well it's the first proper holiday we've had on our own, where we've booked it and flown away long enough to enjoy the stay before we have to consider coming home.

(Oriental Sweetlips, my favourite underwater buddy awaits>>>>)

Kate is trying to put us on a guilt trip about leaving them behind, but to be honest they are great kids and do understand that it will be nice for us to do our own thing after all these years.  Col is used to leaving home without us but for me it is slightly odd, but I know I'll be fine once I get to the next village!.. airport!

We went to Plymouth last weekend too, to see Jason Manford, such a good comedian. We stayed over and headed home via Truro, a little retail therapy there, and got home just in time to order Indian for supper..the house was in one piece and despite sending a text to Jordan's silent phone, they didn't expect us and there was no quick shuffling of wine bottles into the bin or stain removal from the carpet.. which bodes well for our trip away!

There has also been much talk in these parts about getting a pony.. perhaps.. maybe..something of a hobby for Kate, but I think we'll all reluctantly admit to enjoying it if and when we get one.  We're trying to do the sensible thing and debate / consider all the options, but watch this space... I've also managed to get her a slot to do some gym again on saturdays, she seems keen especially as she knows how to do all those contortionist type things now she's been the acro for 3 or 4 years!

Oh, and Zac's put the brakes on applying to University for a while, he feels like he's on the education treadmill and wants to really consider the options rather than doing the next expected thing... Half term and he's working for us getting to grips with stock taking and if he can do this at his own instigation I'm sure there's a great business mind in there waiting to bloom!

Cuties..

<<.. the Ladybird wings we found in Matalan

the other week.. couldn't resist them and it was worth it. Lilly almost wore them to bed!

And Kate's hair all French Plaited before her dance show last weekend. She was doing the real teenager thing, avoiding the camera, so I had to be happy with the hair view! >>>

It was a great show, Sparkellez Goes to the Movies, all your favourite songs and so good to see the kids with their tap, cheer and acrobatics routines..

Nostalgia queen..

...We were talking about addictions in the office the other day and the only one I could come up with was my addiction to all things 'nostalgic' for me.

Two things which set the senses on overload this weekend.. my first satsuma of the year, accompanied by oooos and ahhhhs about the wonders of childhood Christmases....and then a Lyons Chocolate CupCake..not quite as chocolatey as in the 60's and no big brother at hand to challenge me for the last one, but still makes me eat the second one at least!

Luckily the kids don't seem to get the cup cake one, so I got more than my fair share!

Tenth!

.. of the tenth and I haven't written a word in October yet.. how bad am I?

It's been a busy few days so far and quite emotional at times, a bit of soul searching going on in these parts, for me more than most, but then I'm a soul searcher even on my own.. haha, and I can do guilt enough for the whole family! (I wonder if that whole Methodist thing was really a cover and all the time I was being raised a guilt ridden Catholic?)

I realise sometimes that I can't always bring to mind specific things and conversations my own mum told me, either as a kid or as an adult...(yes, okay, I can hear you thinking, maybe I should have drawn breath long enough to hear her..), but I'm always touched by how often I say or feel like I'm doing in our family exactly what she did to me.  Even things like folding the baby's clothes or buttoning up her cardi, just 'like granny used to do.' 

All I know is that it's sad how you're jogging along nicely, thinking everythings going fine, then a song, a moment, a situation arises and all you really want to do is call next door and moan to your mum.. the one who never says your wrong, never says 'I told you so' and always says just enough to make you feel better.. oh, and always, always has nicer cakes in her tin that you'll ever have!

Hopefully as I get older I'll become a better listener too, and be remembered not for being chatty Kathi all the time and sometimes as the person who was 'there' and listened just when someone wanted to offload.  So, maybe the rubbish days will make us all better people when we come out the other side.. eh?