Pet Rocks

Last night, in an attempt to declutter our house, we were discussing what could be removed from the living room and the two rocks sitting on our hearth got mentioned. I suggested that maybe we could move our pet rocks to the garden, Andrew looked agast and said he was rather fond of his. I replied that I was also rather fond of mine.

When I began to think about it I realised I had had my pet rock for over 10 years. It went London with me, for my gap year, and then spent four years with me at university before coming to live on the hearth here. I even remember when I found it, I was walking with some friends through Broadlands (I think) in Carrick heading to the Doherty's house for a Holiday Bible Club planing meeting.

Its stange the things we pick up on life's journey and just don't want to put down.

Bad decision Tuesday # 3 denim

You may wonder how denim can be a bad decision - but take a look at the photo, this much denim is a very bad decision.

- Stonewash jeans
- Stonewash levi jacket
- and a stonewash bag made from an old pair of stonewash jeans

Are you spotting a theme here?

The redeeming decisions in the photo include my necklace and that I'm not the person wearing the huge summer mission t-shirt.

I'm not even sure my white crop top is a bad decision (although I wouldn't wear it now) I had a very flat tummy back in 1997, and it shows that my skin has a hint of colour and is not pure white after 2.5 weeks in France.

A photo-story for Monday

Christmas Spirit

I have been seriously lacking in the Christmas spirit this year, but it has been gradually returning with the help of a carol service with Lucy and her friends, listening to carols on Songs of Praise (yes I am officially old) and finally with the watching of Miracle on 34th Street. It tugged on the heart strings when Santa Claus started to sign to the little deaf girl, and how the little girl ended the film believing in santa.

I think the Christmas spirit has finally returned to me.

Classics

Recently I have started to feel like my reading is becoming a bit bleugh (I use bleugh because I can't think of an appropriate word).

I think I should read some classics, but I need some suggestions.

My Little Pudding

This morning I spent the day with an adorable, cuddlable little Christmas Pudding. I don't like Christmas puddings but this one was lovely.

life imitating art

Yesterday evening reminded me of a Calvin and Hobbes cartoon, but on the off chance that Bill Waterson reads my blog I decided that I wouldn't photograph the strip to put on my blog and would just describe it.

Calvin : I'm thinking of a number between one and seven hundred billion. Try to guess it.
Hobbes : Eleven
Calvin : Nope. Guess again.
Hobbes : Six million and four.
Calvin : Nope. Guess again.

Hobbes looks unimpressed

Calvin : What's the matter, don't you like games??


I was quite glad to find it on page 416 of my Calvin and Hobbes collection, and I didn''t have to look through all 1453 pages of cartoons.

Woo Hoo

I'm very excited because on the 3rd of July I will be seeing Blur in Hyde Park.

Woo Hoo

Bad Decision Tuesday # 2

Well this one is so bad I can't even think of a way to describe it succintly for the title. It is the annual photo my nana took of me every summer and I'm not quite sure when the picture was taken, but I would guess summer 1993 or 1994 (which would make me 12 or 13). I base this guess on the length of my hair, the thickness of my fringe and the glasses.

Well I think the entire ensemble is a catalogue of bad decisions, the flowery dungarees and the white body (yes it is a body - you know a leotard type thing that has poppers under the crotch) are both from Tammy Girl (I know its just called Tammy, but back then it was Tammy Girl) Strangely the dungarees give me enormous hips which I'm pretty sure I didn't have back then, I don't appear to have done anything with my hair and the fringe is attrocious, prior to that I had a really thick fringe but when I started grammar school I grew out half of it to make it a thinner fringe which is what you can see in the picture. In 1995 I made a good decision which was to get rid of the fringe completely. Even now when I go to the hairdressers I always say I don't want a fringe.

And finally the glasses, what can I say, everyone who is short sighted must have had the same problem. You get your eyes tested and then you choose new glasses but because you can't see you have to trust the opinion of your mum and the optician trying to sell the frames. Two weeks later when the glasses are ready you try them on and you actually see what you look like, but by that time its too late. (I now always wear my contacts when choosing new glasses.)

Pampered

Today I have been pampered and it was lovely.

Andrew and Lucy bought me a gift voucher for a spa as my birthday present and today I cashed it in. I had a Thalgo Thalgomince LC24 Contouring Wrap.

I got exfoliated and massaged and wrapped up in foil. I even had a head massage while I was wrapped in foil.

The massage was very vigorous and I do wonder if I'll have any bruises tomorrow (it was slightly strange to pay someone to beat me up.

The only thing that ruined it slightly was I didn't put enough money on the parking in the car and to prevent getting a ticket I had to ask the girl massaging me to pass me my phone so I could text andrew. I then left the spa and started sprinting to get to the car before a traffic warden.

To Blame

I feel I may be to blame for the snowy weather we had last week. About two weeks ago I announced that I wanted to emmigrate to somewhere with proper seasons - hot summer and cold winter not English bleugh.

One week later we suddenly have snow and quite a lot of it.

Exhausted

I'm tired

That Christmas Feeling

Andrew announced a few weeks ago that it now felt like Christmas because he had seen the coke advert.

Then a week later he announced that it now felt like Christmas now he had heard Fairy tale in New York.

(I kindly pointed out after the second comment that it had already felt like Christmas when he had seen the coke advert)

However I haven't really had that Christmas feeling yet, our tree is being put up, I've been singing carols for weeks, and the Christmas shopping is done, but somehow it doesn't really feel Christmasy yet. Maybe its time for me to remember the true meaning of this time of year rather than the commercial and secular trappings that are associated with it.

Snowy Day

Its been very snowy lately, most days we have woken up to find a thin layer of snow that then quickly melted during the morning, however today snow was falling when I got up at 7 and didn't stop till after lunch. This snow falling on top of the compacted snow from the previous day made driving quite difficult, luckily I didn't have to go out this morning but tomorrow I do so if it snows again tonight or the ridges of snow and gullies of slush in the road has frozen I think I will be getting the bus.

Random Giraffe Facts

As the newest addition to our household is Hopscotch the giraffe I found a fun website specially for him - random giraffe facts - so today's random giraffe fact is

When giraffes were first brought to Rome in 46 B.C., they were thought to be as big as a camel, with spots like a leopard. Although we've long since learned the giraffe is not a combination of these animals, the name scientific name camelopardalis stuck.

Bad Decision Tuesday # 1 How to ruin a nice dress

I have decided to do a bad decision tuesday a la Nothing But Bonfires. I may come to regret this decision but I thought I would start with a gentle one.



In case you aren't sure I am the second girl from the left. This picture was taken December 1998, when I was 17. We are all dressed up with sparkles and feather boas for our school formal. You may look at the photo and wonder what the problem is, well I was so self concious in my pretty dress (a nice bias cut midnight blue velvet dress from whistles) that we bought on a shopping trip to London so that no-one had a dress like mine - I know there is a whistles in Belfast now but there wasn't in 1998 - that I hid it behind a large royalish blue scarf that I had borrowed from a friend (thank you Catherine). So the result in this photo (and many others from the night) is that I look like a really skinny girl in quite a boring royalish blue dress rather than how I should have looked which can be seen in the photo below.

Month 5 Newsletter

Dear Lucy

Now you are 5 months old, and you seem to be growing up so so fast. You have started to reach and grab at things, but your lack of balance means you still need to be held.

You have also started to take a big interest in what we are eating and drinking, you watch us so carefully that I think you are plotting and one day will reach out and grab the chocolate / biscotti / coffee that we are just about to put in our mouths and gobble it up. Or possibly you're just watching us so you know what to do when I decide you are ready for something more interesting than milk.

While your daddy was away in London you worked out how to roll from your back to your front and then about a week later managed to roll the other way (although you still don't do it very often) now I regularly have to roll you back to your back when you get frustrated at being on your front.

You really enjoy being taken out for walks in your pram now as we changed it from the carrycot to the pushchair. I was supposed to wait till you are 6 months but after walking up 2 mornings in a row to find snow on the ground I decided it was time to get you all snug in the fleecy footmuff of the pushchair and you love it. You can see all round you and talk to me as we go out for walks and you can even sit with us in starbucks as we enjoy our drinks.

Two weeks ago a new friend arrived, and he goes everywhere with us. Where lucy goes so does hopsotch. Our cute yellow giraffe.

Love Mummy

xxx

My new game

Today while driving home from baby sign I came up with a new car game which is far better than pub cricket (useless on motorways) and the game my parents and I played where you try to think of a word that contains the last 3 letters on an English registration in the order they appear (and preferably without other letters inbetween them) - can you tell that my parents are teachers. This game doesnt really work with Northern Irish registations which often contain a Z.

So my new game (which still needs a name) is far more fun, and its really simple, you can play it on your own although I'm sure it would be far more fun with other people in the car as Lucy doesn't really say much and is staring out the back window because she is too young to be forward facing. Ok so its simple you are driving along and you see the name of a company on the side (or back) of a lorry or van and you have to come up with what the company does based on its name.

Today I was driving behind Safe Strip UK.

I think it sells health and safety equipment to strippers!! things like non-slip stillettos, poles with good grip etc.

And one I regularly see on the motorways - Christian Salvesen - I think it supplies Christian Slaves.

See its a fun game, I'll have to try it out when I have company other than Lucy in the car. Let me know what companies you see on your travels.

Month 4 Newsletter

Dear Lucy

You are now four months old! Woo Hoo we've survived another month!!

You have spent the past month trying to roll from your back onto your front, but you still haven't quite got there. About a week ago your daddy charged the video camera and left it sitting near your playmat so I could video you rolling if you rolled while he was at work, but we're still waiting and the video camera isn't there any more, looks like it got bored waiting.

We've been going to baby sign for a few weeks now and you love it, I'm not sure you're picking up any of the signs yet but you love the singing. So now I spend most of my days singing with you, and you seem to be joining in more and more. Its just slightly unfortunate for me that you like Christmas carols, its only October and we've been singing Hark the Herald Angels and Once in Royal David's City together on a daily basis.

Earlier this month you noticed the cats, and you laughed at them, you laughed at them so much you cried, a quick cuddle sorted that. Luckily the cats didn't take it personally that you were laughing at them and one of them will still patrol outside the bedroom door keeping you safe at night.

Each day I enjoy getting up early to see you smile (previously nothing but an early morning flight would get me out of bed before 7) but its nice to see your smiles in the morning, and I hope I will see more of them as you get older.

Love Mummy xxxx

Dear Gok

I usually like your programmes however last night your new Gok's Miss Naked Beauty was atrocious.

Where did you find your collection of weird girls who are so insecure they can't look at themselves in a mirror without their make-up on, although I do wonder how they manage to put their make-up on in the first place. And it seems a tad daft to send a fully made up Mylene to talk to a girl who is in tears because someone might see them without make-up. I think it would be a great improvement to the show to have Mylene make-up-less as well.

I'm also a bit confused as to what you are looking for because your girls seem to be a bit of a mixture.

Is it someone very insecure who you can convince they are beautiful without their make-up?
Or is it someone who is already happy with their appearance whether they have make-up on or not?

You chucked out anyone who had had plastic surgery, then you made everyone remove their make-up, get rid of their piercings, but you didn't send home the girls who have coloured their hair.

Really if you want natural beauty you need to find someone who doesn't wear make-up, doesn't cut, colour or style their hair, and doesn't shave, but is happy with their appearance. But I don't think they would make a terribly good cover girl and with the prize being a years contract with a model agency I don't really think that person will win.

Best Wishes

K x