Look Up - A Mantra I Live By

I find it fascinating to people watch, to wonder where people are rushing to or what they are doing.  I also find it fascinating to look skyward.  Whether it be the colours in the sky, the shape of clouds, wildlife fluttering by or even architectural interest... it all inspires me.  Ever since childhood I've enjoyed a good view and historical shapes in buildings.

Increasingly, largely due to portable technology the mantra of "Looking Up" applies ever more in all situations.  I find this spoken word by Gary Turk so powerful - if you haven't heard it before, please do have a listen...

Whilst I was observing a whole number of things in London, I noticed how much people were looking down.  Especially from a wheelchair this was a real issue - people walking would only notice that they were about to walk into me in the chair once they were literally on top of me - largely because they wore earphones and were looking at devices whilst walking down a busy London pavement!  

Whilst we were looking up though we could enjoy the amazingly beautiful architecture on the fronts of many of the shop facades.  Glorious.

One thing I would like to encourage in my children as they grow is the joy to be found in Looking Up.  To appreciate all the beauty in the world and engage with our environment.  Having experienced post natal depression and pain related anxiety, I have become more mindful of what helps to have a positive impact on my mental health.  Looking up, being grateful & appreciating the simple things and crafting to find that 'flow' state of mind are the most powerful lessons I have learnt.  Do you have any lessons you have learnt to help with your happiness?  What do you want your lasting message to your children or loved ones to be?  Please share - I'm always happy to learn more!

Take care until next time,

J9 x

May Half Term Round Up

During the week long break, we took the opportunity to holiday in London for 3 nights.  This took a bit of meticulous planning on my front, as I can assure you that traversing London Underground in a wheelchair is extremely challenging.  In fact, I came to learn that doing most things in London in a wheelchair was challenging.

We stayed this Premier Inn in Kensington, which worked really well.  We had a lovely big room, fantastic breakfasts - wonderfully friendly staff and a quiet space - which meant we all slept really well despite being in a shared room.

We had a few must do's on the list:

• Buckingham Palace
• Experience the Underground
• Natural History Museum
• Science Museum
• Harrods, and a
• Touristy Bus Tour

We had been visiting family in Buckinghamshire so we travelled from Milton Keynes to Euston on a fast track virgin train - which the children absolutely LoVED!!!  It was so fast it literally tilted on the rails and got us there in 25mins another exciting experience for the Littlie's.

When we arrived we headed straight for the hotel to leave our luggage and then headed straight back out to the Natural History Museum.

This is my favourite museum in London.  It was a different experience in a wheelchair again... and it was less busy because the sun was shining and the Queen was opening up the new Government and so many tourists were lining the streets elsewhere to catch sight of her.

After this we moved on to the Science Museum.  I have to say this suited my children so well - interactive displays, experiments to complete and lots of large scale exhibitions on view.

They absolutely loved it.  So much so that we returned on our last day instead of going to Hamleys!!!  Now that must mean success on the Science front.

For the second day I had booked a Hop on Hop off Bus Tour by Golden Tours.

This worked well for us with the wheelchair - although on occasion we double backed a few times on different routes, but we were sat down so it didn't really matter.  This was a fab way to see all the top tourist spots in London if you are unable to walk.  We could see it all from a great vantage point and I'd really encourage you to book one if you were doing this for the first time with children.

We had a GrEAT time and on quite a small budget.  I had booked the room as a deal months in advance, booked the Bus Tour and we were given a complimentary extra day free and a boat cruise, the kids ate for free at breakfast if one adult had a full English and we gathered for 'floor picnics' in the room from the local Wagamama each evening whilst watching the Britains Got Talent Finals. The days were tiring and full; the children's bedtime was a little later and our bedtime came a bit earlier so we all went to sleep at the same time.

We really felt like we weren't scrimping despite the London prices.  I had packed a load of snacks and drinks... The last day I really wanted the Littlie's to experience a bit of Harrods (we went to go and have tea in a cafe and found out that a slice of cake was £9 each!) So we settled for purchasing some cookies from the food hall and eating them in the picnic area of the Science Museum!!

All in all we had a wonderful experience during our few days in London.   I'm super glad that we did it and that the children got to witness our capital city.  We feel so remote from the city life that an insight into it can be really positive.  The Littlie's loved it... the memories are banked and a good holiday was had.

We came back happy but exhausted and had a really lazy weekend before the return to school and work on the Monday...

Due to my inflammatory flare this post has taken ages for me to write but even though we are about to say goodbye to June I've enjoyed looking back at our end of May!!!  I hope you have too.
Take care until next time,

J9 x

Oh, I do like to be beside the Seaside...

I mentioned here that I had visited my lovely mother in my home county of Cornwall the weekend before the Easter holidays.  The past few weeks have been a busy time and so I didn't get round to record this lovely visit earlier.  Now it is wet and cold outside I thought I'd take us back to a month ago when the sun was shining and the sky was blue!!!

The journey down was hideous - over four hours for a two and half hour journey.  I forget how much difference the tourist trade makes to the volume of vehicles on the road!  This was why we didn't go over the Easter holidays as we've previously done that and been stuck for hours.  We arrived safe and sound though so always thankful for that.








Anyhow, the weather was completely glorious.  We were so treated by the spring fairies and felt obliged to make the most of the sunshine with a very necessary trip to the sea.  Oh bluey turqouise waves... how I miss thee.









The kiddies played in fleeces and wellies in the sand.  Happy and content for the day.  It was bliss.

My mother and I enjoyed a seat at the top of the beach, drinking in the view and a flask of yummy hot chocolate.

Sporadically, the call for more shells, water or pebbles resulted in different combinations of our little group slowly combing the sands for longed for treasures.

I'm always so inspired by the seashore.  It completely replenishes my soul and I literally drink it in.

After some hard core sandcastle making and hot chocolate drinking there was some very enjoyable kite flying!  This is normally one of the busiest beaches (Fistral in Newquay) but apart from a number of local surfers we were the only family unit on the beach.  This always shocks me but it meant that the Littlie's could fly the kite without the fear of decapitating someone ;0)

The remainder of the days were spent playing at my Mum's house.  We didn't even make it to the park this time.  The Littlie's were content to play in her garden and actually spent most of their time building K'nex vehicles and racing them down the slope below.

This occasion was a very lovely and relaxed visit.  The Hubby had stayed behind for a boys weekend with his Uni buddies - and we were happy to be by the sea.  Positive stuff all round for our well-being!

Thank you all so much for the lovely comments many of you have left over the past few weeks.  I am so grateful for so many of your bloggy friendships.  I have lost a few followers over the past month so am sorry if my Journalling seems boring or repetitive.  I recognise that much of my blog has been family focused recently and that this won't appeal to everyone.  That is mainly the purpose of my little blog and so that won't change in the future.  I have a number of crafty endeavours underway but my health really prevents my days being ultra productive.  Again, this will not change in the future.  Please do bear with me - or if this space doesn't suit you then so be it.  

I appreciate the lovely bloggy friendships I have developed since joining this blogging community and on some days other than my family, these are the only communications I am able to enjoy.  So thank you for being such special people.

J9 x

A Glance Back

I find it amazing how far technology has progressed over the past decade. I was looking through some photo albums from our time before children, which were of course taken with cameras using film.  Whilst there are less pictures of those moments, these camera types did mean that you always had a real photo once they were developed. I completely adore digital cameras but do find it a shame that partly due to the volume of photos you take and partly due to leaving them in their digital form we often do not get a tangible photo to reflect on. I'm going to change that this year/ whether through scrapbooking or through traditional albums.  I'm determined to make this happen!  I had been collecting things for years to collate into a series of scrapbooks.  Then the lovely CJ of Above the River shared her album scrapbooks and I was so inspired I felt I simply had to make this change.

This thinking led me to look at some of our kiddie photos that were taken pre blog.  I love that I now have this space to journal some of our family fun.  So I thought it would be fun to share some of my favourite pictures as I was making some collages to print out for the scrapbooks.

::  Our happy boy who smiled readily despite all his challenges, Taking turns in the IKEA box on wheels day after day, an Uncle's wedding day...

::  Action shots: first trampolining experience, Marine Lake inflatables, Admiring the view from     Brean Down, Surfer dudes in Cornwall...

::  A photo shoot (Little Lady was cuddling him and saying Ahhh), Easter Egg Hunting, Playing in Granny's garden after the Fete (Little Man was a monkey with such character from the beginning!), Bridesmaid and Page boy at another Uncle's wedding...

::  Little Man not liking the cold (his first snow fall), Little Lady at Euro Disney, Traditional 'How you've grown' photo, Jubilee

 ::  Home face painting..just because, How long am I?, Little Man's fourth birthday party, Brean Down hike...

::  My first day home from hospital after the accident and the birth - reunited with my treasures; Tiny Man at 6 weeks at Bristol Kite Festival, Little Lady enjoying her first decent snow fall, Boys together...

::  Young Man's First birthday celebration, Girls together, Little Lady at Granny's house, Loving his birthday cake...

::  Young Man's First Birthday; Little Lady's first day of school x 2; Milo puppy at 9 weeks.

It may be perceived as gratuitous gushing about my children but I'd like it here as a record and some of you lovely readers may enjoy seeing them.  I think it would be fun to see yours! Have you got some favourite pre blogging pictures? Please share!!!

Sometimes it's such a positive experience to glance back.  It gave me a warm glow.  Go on… please share!!!

J9 x

Easter Holiday Memories: Part II

Hello LoVELY People,

The children have returned to school.  I shared some of my favourite memories here and thought I would share another post on the rest of the holiday period.

The second week of the holidays the Hubby had to return to work but this gave us chance to catch up with friends that go to different schools whom we only see in holiday periods.







I've mentioned before in this space that the Hubby and my birthdays are only two days apart.  Over the last couple years the children have named this day "Club Day" because it is sandwiched between our birthdays.  This essentially requires a menu of Club Sandwiches for lunch that day!  Little Man always chooses meat - this time: ham, chicken and salad whilst Little Lady chose marmite, cheese and crisps!  Hmmm.  The only rule is they get to choose their sandwich fillings and they get to have 3 slices of bread.  It's one day a year so I feel it's OK.  They're easily pleased!

On my Birthday a dear friend had organised a Harry Potter day for the children and her Littlie's.  My kiddies had been so disappointed to not dress up for World Book Day this year (the school didn't dress up for the first time since they joined).  They had chosen their outfits and were so excited and the disappointment they felt (when this didn't happen) was palpable.  Anyhow, my friend knew this and so chose the theme of our meet to please them (and therefore me).  In the days prior, I kept walking in to different rooms and finding a trail of cuttings and sticky stuff....

Little Lady had been adding to her costume with Homemade Spell Books (bottom middle) and some painted cardboard wands with added golden string embellishments:

My friend had got a cake to add to the celebration and we all had a great time - the larger children spent most of the time outside in her garden making potions and playing out various Harry Potter scenes, whilst us adults and her lush 8 month old watched from an adjoining sun room. Bliss!

My sister came and stayed locally with her family too and it was a joy to watch all the cousins playing alongside each other.

At the end of the holidays, the Littlie's treat for being such superb company and fabulous siblings was to have a turn on the new attraction on the sea front named Pirate Adventureland.  For months we had watched this pirate fort being created and wondered what was planned.  Once completed a couple of months ago it was their treat of choice when a special moment brought the occasion.  The last day of the holidays was such an occasion.

Little Lady adored it.  Little Man.... well.  The expression on his face shows his distress.

He gained confidence through the course but it is fair to say he was completely terrified at first.  But the photo below shows how elated they were to have completed it.

Plus an ice cream helped to convince him he'd had a good time ;0)

Yes, this holiday time had many special moments which I shall treasure forever.  I don't want to wish time away but I really look forward to the next school break!!!  They have returned to school, happy and refreshed.  Little Man in shorts (hurrah it's currently warm enough) and looks oh so cute in them. They have really flourished this spring.  He is such a happy, caring and funny little boy.  Little Lady has hit a milestone in maturing in that she is becoming more conscious of how her hair is looking and which clothes to put together.  Not in a superficial way...  it is just a natural progression as she starts to realise what her own style may be.  It is a wonderfully warm feeling to watch this Little Lady emerge, although I often wish I could just freeze them.  But I've said that sporadically for years, "It's just perfect now, if only I could freeze them at that stage".  If that was possible, I wouldn't know how wonderful the next stages would be and that would be something sad indeed.

I am looking forward to sharing with you my March Pretty Me ~ Make Me plans soon.  I'm off to make a cup of black decaf coffee - who knew I could adjust so easily!?!

J9 x

Easter Holiday Memories: Part I

Our family was all so ready for the Easter break this year.  The children were tired after a relatively long term and were fighting off viral infections.  We were ready to rest, recover and relish this time.  Really wanting to enjoy some precious moments together.

We had a 'staycation' this Easter.  We spent the weekend before the holidays with my Mum in Cornwall and so were simply planning to go with the flow and see how the days took us.  The first week the Hubby was on holiday with us and it is always great to be united as a four.

Bike rides are the thing of the moment in our home.  The Hubby took up cycling this year (after he ruptured his achilles last summer) and the Littlie's have grown in confidence to cycle on the roads.  On many of the days, if the sun was shining they'd pack up a picnic and cycle to the park.  This is a new stage for our family and one which they are embracing.  I am hoping to buy a scooter shortly to enable me to go out on these rides with them.

On one occasion, I hired one from the mobility centre and we travelled the length of the seafront. From the far side of Weston promenade, right past the pier and stopped for a treat at Dr Fox cafe.

This was my favourite day of the holidays.  A prized day to treasure - it was to celebrate our birthdays and we were all out enjoying being together.  I really felt included in their cycling fun and reaffirmed my commitment to myself that the investment in a scooter would be worth every penny.  I just can't keep up in my wheelchair!  Dear doggy Milo took full advantage of the comfy seat of the scooter whilst we stopped for our naughty treat (by the way - I stuck to my anti-inflammatory diet; this girl is on a mission).

After a fuel 'top up' we rode on past to Anchor Head where the children climbed and played happily on the rocks.  This is always a quieter area of the seafront.  Many of the tourists don't walk on this far and as an added bonus, this little cove was completely sheltered from the wind.  They climbed and created games of castles and forts, dividing up the rock faces as their own territory to be conquered.

Other than cycling and climbing there were many active moments throughout their days.  Water play, trampolining, gardening... such busy people.  Even more positively, I am feeling the positive health effects of my new meds and the elimination diet and so had more energy to be around rather than watching from my bed.  Being able to be fully present and engaged had such a good effect on my well-being I think this new energy and my mood combined gave me a real boost.

The Easter Bunny was generous this year too.  He had managed to hide the eggs well above ground level on Easter Sunday and the hunt was a high energy search for their rewards - in onesies.  Wonderful innocence.  Little Lady is 9 while Little Man is 7.  The Easter Bunny is very much alive and part of our tradition.

The Easter holidays each year have been my favourite since becoming a parent.  Spring brings so much more potential I think.  The weather improves and whilst temperatures aren't high it's warm enough to encourage lots of outdoor play which makes for very happy family times.  I will post the second part of my Easter Memory Journalling later this week to avoid either post becoming a novel!

Thank you all for your wonderfully kind comments about my Pretty Me ~ Make Me post.  Bloggers are such a lovely community and I really appreciate all of your encouraging comments & for taking the time to read my little bit of cybler space.  'Til next time,

J9 x

Half Term Happies

This half term has passed quietly and far too quickly.  I love these days of unscheduled activity where we can do whatever the heart pleases.  My Littlie's are growing noticeably at present - physically and emotionally.  These treasured days together are good for the soul and we tried to balance rest, purposeful activity and catching up with loved ones.

::  Pancake day and Baking naughtiness...

::  A couple days in Cornwall staying with my Mum...

A visit to the Hubby's biggest bro and family in Devon...  Normal family time in the interim moments.  Moments of chaos, calm or creativity.  All so very precious in the fabric of our lives.  It's a pleasure to reflect on these snippets of our simple life and to share them here with you.

I know you lovely people will enjoy the next photos.  This spot which edges a country road in my childhood village is always beautiful for spring flowers.  Initially the snow drops are abundant and later, the daffodils flower in wonderful tones of yellow which are followed in turn by primroses in cream.  I was completely adoring these stunning swathes of snowdrops...

I hope you had a wonderful half term / fabby week whatever you have been doing.  I'm looking forward to showing you my Ta Dah for the Painted Roses Blanket later this week.

Happy Monday Folks,

J9 x

Slimbridge Sunday

Though we love living in Somerset, the major downside is that we don't have family living within less than a two hour drive away.  To maintain relationships we often plan trips which are partway between each others' homes.  That way, we only drive an hour each way and a family meet up is much more do-able in a day.

One such meeting took place last Sunday - fortunately a beautifully sunny, crisp winters day, at Slimbridge Wildfowl Centre.  In my former life I spent a few months employed assisting the Swanherd at Abbotsbury Swannery and knew lots about different wild fowl.  I am still very passionate about conservation and wildlife; although I had not visited Slimbridge myself I had heard good things about it so we were all really looking forward to spending the day there.  The children donned their borrowed binoculars and joined a whole host of 'twitchers' excited about what they could spot.

We met the Hubby's folks there, I hired a scooter (by donation - a fantastic option for mobility impaired people) and we set off to explore and witness as many different breeds of birds as we could.  We were certainly not disappointed.

Unfortunately, I have forgotten so much of my former knowledge - I simply couldn't mentally access the names of birds that seemed so familiar.  So frustrating!!  On the flip side, we all enjoyed looking them up in our bird books when we got home.  I loved that.  It extended the fun and the learning for us all.  Although... I think we could all spot these pink fellas - beautiful flamingos!!  There were actually three different types of flamingo there and we sat for some time watching their interesting antics.  They really did have personality!

I was really impressed by the accessibility of the site.  So much of wild terrain is beyond my access now and yes, if you wished there were more wild areas to visit; you could go further 'off road' or out towards the wetlands.  However, the main path accessed all the key areas of the reserve, were well maintained and it was a delight to share this completely as a family.  Some of the ducks and geese were tame enough to be fed by hand much to the Littlie's delight.  There were also a couple of play areas and trees to climb to burn off excess energy when needed - perfect.

The sheer diversity of birds and wildlife at the reserve was awesome.  I love the abundance of creatures in our world and the idea that just a fraction of the total are sheltering in this reserve.  I find it a very spiritual experience to witness so much beauty surrounding me.  There were a whole range of wildfowl (some of which are pictured above), three different types of Swans...

otters...

...and even some harvest mice!!

A very interesting, inspiring and wonderful day.  It was a brilliant way to enjoy a rare blue skied, crisp winters day and we enjoyed the whole day there.  We all left with lovely memories to treasure of time spent with family and I was reminded of natures beauty and abundance.  Happy Days.

Happy weekend folks, 

J9 x

Happy Holidays

Hello Dear Readers... please indulge me and allow me to share some Christmas time images despite it being early January!  I do struggle to find the time to blog during school holidays with so many demands on a finite amount of time.  Regular readers will know how I share a quick catch up post simply to create a record here and hence this is my 2014 Christmas post!!

We spent our first Christmas Eve (since the Baby years) away from home this year, staying with the Hubby's brother and family and we all enjoyed it immensely.  The Littlie's had cousins to share the excitement with and we could all enjoy the magic of Christmas together.

On the home front, I decorated three trees this year:

a large one in the Living Room:

...a medium one in the Conservatory...

and... a small one in the kitchen.

Each had a different theme.  The first was BRIGHT and BOLD.  The second was RED and WHITE and the third had a WOODLAND theme.

It is the first year I've used all the trees we've collected over the years AND it was the first year I'd actually themed a Christmas tree.  Normally I load the big tree with my favourite decorations.  It is true that I have a slight obsession with Christmas decorations.  I always joke that it is my main legacy of 'things' to be left in a Will.  'Pre' children I had a real obsession - a time when finances were less stretched - but it has meant that I now have a varied collection that I adore.  It is also lovely to see my children share in the delight... to recognise different much loved decorations as they unwrap them after them being stored for a year.  Some which they have made over the years... a few from travels to New Zealand... many gifts from friends and family who know of my LoVE of decorations plus many more bought and treasured over the years.

We decorated on the 30th November this year and really enjoyed the decs until the last few days.  During the first week of January I did begin to crave the space.  I took them down yesterday and vowed I wouldn't put up so many next year.  Although Little Lady did say, "But it looked so lovely Mummy".  

Oh, in that case, give me a few months and I'll have forgotten how long it took me to pack them away ;0)

We returned home on Boxing Day and my mum arrived the next day to stay until New Years Eve. Then the first few days of January were spent relaxing, looming, crafting, playing cards and board games, reading, watching movies, eating too many sweet things, enjoying gifts and generally being together.  Happy times.  

I hope you all had some happy times together over the festive period.  I am completely behind on reading and commenting on your lovely blogs but am so looking forward to Thursday when I've 'scheduled' a mammoth catch up in Blog Land with a very large cup of coffee!!  I can't wait to see what you've been up to and next time I'll share my plan for 2015!!

J9 x