BUSY TIMES.......

Lots of babies and lots of my own babies to deal with so have been too busy to sit and write....

Lots of lovely newborns, all doing well, a set of twins, breast feeding pretty well though have tongue ties , the non pooing baby also has a tongue tie, though that has been snipped and both Mum and baby doing well. Another new baby today also with a tongue tie, certainly am getting some experience with that breast feeding problem at the moment!

Anxious times as Charlie off to Australia on Saturday for 4 months , back in July... very exciting for him but with anxieties for him and us, I must say I really don't like the build up to these farewells, I am ok when its over and they are on their way but I am not good at goodbyes and I am feeling somewhat teaful already. I had to say goodbye to his girlfriend earlier today and started to well up then!! poor girl is taking him to the airport. When Becca was away ,for 10 months) she had a compression fracture of her spine there and was airlifted in a helicopter.... that was NOT a good call to receive ...!!!


The east wind is STILL blowing and its FREEZING....... and apparently will be below average temp for the next 30 days!!! There was some sunshine today but just for a little time, some daffodils are trying to come up but it still looks and feels very much like winter. Off to the Isle of Wight for easter for some sea air and dog walks on the beach.

I also have a husband with Man Flu, great timing....
I really am not the most sympathetic person, actually lets rephrase that.... I am not at all sympathetic for colds and after 25 yrs together he has realised that there is No point at all making an attempt to get sympathy from me! Its all those years of nursing and looking after REALLY sick people. All my nursing friends are the same!!

I found this picture on my phone.... two boys and Sid







Have a lovely Easter break and see you after the Isle of Wight

WHY???

Is there anyone who can tell me why I woke at 6am this morning??? Joseph is off school with a fever , Ian is away, my bed is warm and cosy and its relatively quiet. I remembered to turn off the alarm and yet I was wide awake and nowhere near going back to sleep. Every single morning this week my alarm has woken me from a deep , deep sleep at 6.45. I'm not feeling tired so I guess its that I didnt need any more sleep..... most annoying though!!


One of the reasons I was lying awake could have been that i was thinking about my Red Nose breakfast. that has just finished. Last night I made lovely granola, sourdough bread, raspberry jam and then this morning a whole group of ladies came over for breakfast and coffee and leave a donation for a charity called Red Nose Day, which is a nationwide event, happening always around this time of year, highly supported by celebs who do all sorts of challenges for which the general public sponsor them. No celebs for breakfast but just my mates and quite a success I think. We raised £120 and everyone was having a great time, sadly I was stuck by the coffee machine, everytime I got my bottom anywhere near the  chair to join in, the door bell rang again!!


Sorry but I am just going to have to mention the weather AGAIN...... What the hell is going on??? its bloody freezing again, grey and with an icy bitter wind. The weekend is getting even colder with no real sign of any improvement. Am busily taking my Vit D tablets to try and kid my body into thinking its not midwinter still, I feel as though I am living in Narnia, with everlasting winter!!


Busy weekend ahead, a day trip to a friend in the country for lunch and then 13 for lunch here on Sunday. Becca home this afternoon so the whole brood together for a few days before Charlie leaves for Oz!!!!

Meant to take some photos of the breakfast but was chained to the coffee machine and forgot.....

TIRED

Sorry to give such a depressing title, I rarely "do" tired but I have good reason today... Sam home from Glasgow last night, arriving at Euston 11.45. Even before he left there were train delays.... turned into a TOTAL nightmare, with cancellations, changing trains, even a fatality and he eventually arrived at 3am.
I had stayed up late as I was really worried that he would be stranded in Preston or somewhere en route. So I wasn't able to settle until I was sure he was on the move to London. I then woke at 2.30 and he was nearly in london so I got up and dressed and drove to get him..... Thats what i call dedication!, especially as I had to get up at 6.45 and have a full long day at work.....
Anyway got him safely home so I could relax and sleep, even for a short while.


Just in case anyone is waiting to hear about the non pooing baby... good news ! pooing like a belter now. Baby has a posterior tongue tie  so poor Mum is in agony at each feed so waiting to get it snipped on friday.
Fingers crossed that will sort it!

Oh I made this.... another snood!!!

HEAVEN ON EARTH

March is disappearing so fast, big ones home from Uni just next week, Charlie off to Australia 2 wks today....... AHHHHHH

Anyway, back to the heading!!
On Thursday an old friend, by that i mean that we have been friends for 33 yrs( can you believe that Debbie??) went to the knit and stitch show. What a delight that is, we were both in heaven.Almost without fail EVERY SINGLE stall had something to make you stop and look. It was such a friendly atmosphere, pretty much ALL women, everyone chatting and interested, I had a glancing thought.... this is what the world would be like if it was ruled by women..... or maybe I should change that to ruled by knitters!!??

The wool was spectacular , so much that it was almost overwhelming and I only bought 1 ball with which i made this.....

What I always find very amusing is the types that go to these shows, of which i am one of course!! we were in some confusion as to what train, station etc, etc to go to. As I was talking to Debbie and looking at the train map I realised the entire coach was full of women , all carrying homemade bags, funky scarves, maybe with groovy coloured hair and i knew I was on the right train!

In keeping with my Lenten resolve I didn't buy too much, mainly patterns, so now I just need to get going.


WEATHER

in keeping with the British tradition I am going to have to talk about weather. About 10 days ago it was Spring, then Winter returned with  a vengeance and it was the coldest day for something like 30yrs. It was cold but blue sky and sunny, and the sun felt warm. Then friday... well what an awful day..... freezing wind , driving rain. It blew a gale all night and continued into the morning, I just couldn't face walking the dogs. When is Spring going to arrive? We are on the Isle of Wight for easter and some reasonable weather would be gratefully received.


WORK

Had a bit of a sleepless night last night worrying about a new arrival ,now 48hrs old who hadn't done a poo since birth.  Baby looked good when i saw her during the day but doing the most stinky farts.... It is very unusual for a baby not to pass that meconium very quickly after birth as colostrum is a laxative. I then started to worry that the pooey smell was coming for the babies mouth, meaning that the baby had a bowel obstruction. I have looked after the mother with her previous baby and knew she was a sensible woman so we talked about how the baby might behave if she became ill. I spent the night worrying that I had done the wrong thing and should have sent her to A and E, but you do not want to go to Kings A and E on a friday night, its madness, lots of drunks, stabbings , all sorts. Anyhow I was very pleased to hear that she did a poo at 6 this morning. Who would have thought that a dirty nappy could bring soooo much joy!!



Come on England in the  6 Nations, lets get the GRand Slam

WEEKEND......

Well, another weekend passing in a flash and i realise I haven't written for quite a while.

Becca came home for the weekend and arrived sporting a heavy cold, so that was a shame as she hadn't seen Joe, her boyfriend, for quite a while and spent most of the weekend feeling dreadful.
Lots of rugby on this weekend and so we spent all day Saturday in front of the TV. Could have been worse, the weather has been FREEZING.... the coldest all winter I think with a bitter, bitter wind. It is sunny today but no warmer. This time last march we were having a heat wave and sunbathing... all looked soooo promising for a hot summer but instead turned into the wettest summer in living history. Surely its time we are due a long hot summer???

Mothers day last Sunday, I was given some lovely cards with sweet words which made me cry... Joseph gave me £5 as he hadn't bought me a present which was quite amusing. We had a mothers day brunch as we were off to Twickenham to see England play, so no roast that day. Sam joined us on Skype and we perched him on top of a cereal packet and kept moving him around so he could see everyone!!

Then off to the rugby.....  huge stadium and 82,000 there. I must say it was very stirring standing and singing the National Anthem with 82,000 people, it bought a tear to my eye!!! The match was VERY dull and England played very poorly and really didn't deserve to win. None the less it was quite a spectacle and we did have a cornish pasty after the match, i had a veggie one!!

RECENT PROJECTS

I can't stop knitting snoods, there is actually another one too, a nice red and white, I can knock one up in a couple of days and they are quite satisfying , I also LOVE wearing them, especially in this weather.

REEEEEESULT....!!!!

I am afriad I am going to have to tell you a longish a rather boring story.. bear with me as I am REALLY pleased with the ending......


At the beginning of Dec , at a HUGE expense we had a wood burner fitted in what we call the Winchester, a little Snug" off the kitchen. Had to have the chimney lined and scaffolding put up to do that so it was not a cheap exercise. We have a wood burner in the front room which has been brilliant, so warm and efficient., so I had high hopes for this one.
Right from the beginning I was not happy with it as I felt it didn't give out as much heat as it should be. No one believed me or took much notice of my whinging so I began to doubt myself. In Jan some friends were over and I began whingeing to them about the stove and my friend who also has a wood burner agreed with me and suggested that I ring the stove fitter which I did the next day. He also didn't believe me and told me to fiddle with a few knobs etc as I wasn't closing it all down. I did this with very little change. I called him again and he said he was going on holiday so to ring back after if i was still having problems. So I did . We arranged an appointment for him to come and have a look. He didn't turn up. I was beginning to doubt there was a problem myself but while we were away in Morocco convinced myself to get it sorted. I called him when we got home and this time he came and guess what .....there was a HUGE part missing. I can't remember what it is called now but it is basically a plate that stops all the heat going up the chimney. Of course the stove fitter guy felt rather sheepish and couldn't do enough to sort it out. To be fair it wasn't really his fault as it should have come completed.
After another hiccup of the original company forgetting to send the part till he phoned again and then yesterday when he arrived it looked like the piece was the wrong size, we finally got the whole fire completed.

Last night in the Winchester it got soooo warm and cosy that I had to take my jumper off.... now thats what I call a RESULT.

WOOL........

Say no more really...... A complete day off today... hoooraaah! although I don't work very much most often I do an hour or 2 most days, certainly weekdays and so a WHOLE day off is quite rare, so to put off hoovering and washing I decided to sort through my wool stash.

As you can see I have plenty of wool and what a pleasant hour or 2 passes whilst fiddling around looking at what has been forgotten at the bottom of the basket!!  I need to spend some time on Ravelery to find some more patterns.

Here is a new project I have on the go.....

It is going to be a blanket for Charlie to take  to Uni in Sept. I seem to have started a tradition of making each child a knitted blanket to take with them as a reminder of home. Charlies is the biggest so far! poor Becca has the worst deal so far as I made her a rather shabby looking thing i made when I was rediscovering knitting a few years ago. I have promised to make her a GIANT one when she gets married !!

This is the wool that I will use, its all funny old bits and pieces and I am just pulling them out at random , not really trying to match colours.