Friends, The Oscars and a red lip - #little loves

Happy Friday!

This week has been all about friends.  On Saturday I met up with my girl friends for lunch and drinks to celebrate the last of our group's 30th birthdays.  We've been friends since nursery and are really close but are all so busy these days with different stages of our lives (babies, toddlers, weddings, house renovations - we're a busy bunch) that weeks can go by without us seeing each other, so its always exciting when we have a date in the diary to get together and catch up on what we've been missing in each other lives.

Friendship for Lucas at age 4 is really no different to us as adults, its already so important to him.  His excitement this week has been off the scale as he has counted down the days to one of his nursery friend's birthday parties, which is today.

And for Charlotte, after a few weeks of us missing coffee with our antenatal group we managed to make it this week.  Its hard to believe that our group of babies have grown up so quickly.  Gone are the meet ups where we all got to drink our coffee and diet cokes while the babies snoozed in their prams.  Now they are all 8/9 months old and are quite the lively bunch.  It'll be amazing to see them all as they start walking and interacting with each other as they approach their first birthdays.

Anyway, as usual I am rounding up what has been another busy week for us by linking up with Morgana from 'But Why Mummy Why' for my #littleloves of this week...


Read

I've really got into the lovely Charlotte Taylor's blog, 'Write like no one is watching' this week. During one of my binge reads of her blog I came across her post on how she created a chalkboard fireplace in her living room.  I've never seen anything like this before, but what a fab idea.  So much fun and it looks stunning.  I've been trying to figure out where I could fit a chalkboard in our house.  I have my eye on a space in our kitchen...

Watched

I couldn't help but catch some of the Oscars coverage at the start of the week.  I'm not dedicated enough to stay up into the wee small hours to watch the ceremony live, but I'm quite happy to catch up on all the goings ons over my porridge the next morning.
I'm a typical girl and love to see all the dresses from the night.  This year my favourites were Reese Witherspoon and Emma Stone.  Both completely different but equally as stunning and elegant.

Did you see the lego Oscars which were handed out on the night?  It was apparently the Director of The Lego Movie giving two fingers to not making the nominations for 'best animation'.  What a marketing stunt!

Heard

I'm still really enjoying the Rihanna featuring Kanye West and Sir Paul McCartney collaboration - FourFiveSeconds.

I'm usually not a fan of any of them (well maybe Sir Paul McCartney since my hubby is a fellow Scouser), but I really like this.

Made

The Playdoh was out early one morning this week when we had a nothing much on and could stay in our jammies a bit longer.  Lucas is obsessed with the recycling truck when it comes up our street every Tuesday morning and is so disappointed if he misses it.  So when I saw Playdoh had brought out a recycling truck set, it had Lucas' name all over it.  Needless to say he loves it.  It moulds rubbish cans and bottles and then scoops them up and spits them out the back as fish bones and other rubbish as you push it along.

Wore

This week I have been trying out a new red lipstick.  Its amazing how much more pulled together something as simple as a bold red lip can make you feel and I love this one which is Mac's 5-Alarm.  Its quite a sheer red so is an easy to wear, day to day colour.  I'm not the most adventurous when it comes to lip colours but I'm getting better and finding them so fun to wear.

And lastly...

To finish where I started this post, what a true quote...

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My tips for a sleep deprived mum

Charlotte's new wake up time for the last couple of weeks has been 5.25am!! Is it just me or does anything before 6am still feel like the middle of the night? And when I say 5.25am, its this almost ever morning to the button, which seems strange.  But she's not upset or crying, quite the opposite, laughing and gurgling away to herself.  I normally try and leave her for a good 10 or 15 minutes as I lie in bed actually crossing my fingers, hoping she might drift back off to sleep, but this never happens and she just gets louder, so up we get.  I've pretty much ruled out teething being to blame for these sudden early starts because she's so jolly.  Maybe its just another stage in her development, but I'm hopefully its a blip and we'll be back to her old 6.30-7am wake up time soon.  Here's hoping.

But in the meantime, I thought I'd share some things I do when I'm feeling pretty sleep deprived that make me feel better and keep me going.  For those days when everything begins that bit earlier meaning you have a long day a head of entertaining a baby and a 4 year old when you wish you could just crawl back under the covers.  These are the days when teatime and your other half walking through the door seems a long way off.  So here's my tips...

1. Get up, get showered and put some make-up on.  As tempting as it is to lounge about in your jammies when you've had a rough night or early morning with your little one I always feel like I can face the day a bit better once I've had a hot shower with a zingy shower gel, got dressed (even if its only into joggers and a hoodie) and put on some make-up to cover the dark circles and feel a bit more like me.

2. Make yourself a coffee.  On days where its been an especially early morning, make sure its the good stuff, the kind that makes the whole house smell amazing.

3. Get yourself out of the house.  Lazing on the sofa can feel like all you have the energy for, but getting out of the house for some fresh air, even if its only a walk round the block, or to the shop or park (if you have another little one to entertain too) makes me feel so much better.

4. When your little one naps and if by some miracle this coincides with your other little one being off to nursery for a couple of hours, forget the housework, that pile of ironing that needs put away and just  put your feet up and relax  Even if you don't go for a nap yourself, just watch some rubbish on telly, catch up on some of your favourite blogs or do whatever it is that makes you feel chilled out -ultimately just give yourself a break to recharge, ready for that last slog.

5. Once the little ones are tucked up in bed for the night reward yourself  for surviving a LONG day. Whether that's with a cheeky glass of wine and some chocolate or a nice relaxing bath and a few chapters of your book.  But then get yourself  to bed and get some sleep.  As tempting as it is to make the most of every minute of those golden hours when they are fast asleep, you'll regret that last hour you spent browsing Pinterest, when you could have been catching up on your sleep, when your little one is wide awake again at 5.25am!!

For those of you reading this through bleary eyes, I hope something here helps make your day that little bit more manageable.  Don't worry it'll be bedtime soon.  Keep going.

E

xx

Twins, Bake-Off and winter jumpers #little loves

Happy Friday everyone!

Wow, what a busy week we've had.  Half term has been jam packed for us.  Lots of play dates for Lucas and catching up with friends for me.  I also went to visit my cousin's twin girls for the first time.  They are only a couple of months old and are absolutely gorgeous.  I was completely bowled over by how amazing their mummy was with them.  I watched in awe as she saw to both of them and held them both at the same time.  Hats off to all you mummies of multiples.  While we were visiting it completely took me by surprise when Charlotte absolutely broke her heart crying when I held one of the babies.  I have never seen this kind of sob from her as she threw her arms out to me for a cuddle.  At 8 months old it didn't even cross my mind that this would bother her, I thought for sure she was too young, but obviously not.
Anyway, although its been a  great week I am quite glad that the weekends in sight, when hopefully the pace can slow down a bit.

But what else has made up my week...

Read

I bought Jessica Alba's book, 'The Honest Life' a while ago, but have dipped back into it this week.  Its a lovely book, with some great photos, giving an insight to how she tries to provide a healthy, non-toxic lifestyle for her and her family.  It covers beauty, household cleaning, arts and crafts for kids, food etc.  I'm trying to be a bit healthier this year and her approach to healthy living not only being about food and exercise, but also thinking about what you use in your home, really interests me.  There's also a really handy list in the book called the 'Dirty Dozen', which is a list of fruit and veg to try and buy organic.  We couldn't afford to buy all organic, so this is quite nice to know which to prioritise if you want to buy some.

Watched

I have been loving the Great Comic Relief Bake Off.  I'm a fan of the normal series but the Comic Relief special is so much more fun.  I especially loved the celebs on this week's show - Abbey Clancy, Zoella, Jonathan Ross and Gok Wan.

When I'm watching the show it really makes me wish I was better in the kitchen.  I loved Abbey's rainbow cupcakes, they looked so pretty and super fun.  I might try giving them a go as I know Lucas would be amazed by them.  Jonathan Ross had me in stitches throughout the show, his profiteroles were hilarious!

(* Photo courtesy of the Great Comic Relief Bake Off Facebook page)


Heard

Maroon 5'S new song, Sugar.  I don't think the songs anything special, so I'm cheating here a bit, but I love the music video.  Its basically Maroon 5 driving round LA crashing weddings as wedding singers.  The happy couples' reactions when a white sheet falls to reveal the band at each wedding are amazing! The cynical part of me Googled the video after watching it to see whether it was real or not. It turns out the majority of them are in fact real weddings, but a couple were staged.  I think you can tell the genuine ones.  Have a look and see what you think.  The video made me smile anyway.

Made

My mum's Carrot and Coriander soup.  This is a favourite in our house and is really quick and easy to make which is an added bonus.  It was such miserable weather when we woke up on Sunday morning.  A really grey, drizzly day when proper winter food like soup and crusty bread is all you crave, so I decided to make this for our lunch.  I don't think Lucas has twigged yet that there's carrots in it and as a little boy who's not the best at eating his veg that makes this lunch even better - a way of getting vitamins into him with no fuss.  The icing on the cake this weekend was that even Charlotte ate the soup!  I just substituted normal stock cubes for the low salt variety and it was transformed into a baby friendly meal and plenty left over to stock up the freezer.

Wore

Although we've had some nice bright, sunny days its definitely not quite Spring, so I've not said goodbye to the winter jumpers yet.  I love this cable knit one from Oasis which is so easy to throw on with some skinny jeans.

And lastly...

So what did you think about the big reveal on Eastenders last night?  Did you guess right?  I didn't have clue.  I haven't been a fan of Eastenders recently but I thought this weeks run of episodes have been done really cleverly.  I'm looking forward to watching the full live episode tonight.

Have a great weekend everyone.

E
xx

The world of imagination

Isn't it funny how something that comes completely out of nowhere and just by chance can end up being the best 10 minutes of your week.

Bath time in our house is usually pretty chaotic.  Lucas and Charlotte go from being all smiles and  laughter, to tears of tiredness in the space of seconds.  The witching hour is most definitely a regular occurrence in our home, followed by two huge sighs of relief from hubby and I once they're both tucked up in bed .  But one night this week this changed and I had the most lovely (and relaxed) little while with Lucas.  We'd decided to skip his bath and so while Mark bathed Charlotte, Lucas and I snuggled on my bed and got lost in a land of make believe for 10 minutes.

Lucas asked me to make up a bedtime story for him.  This is very unlike Lucas, who is a little boy that loves order and routine, and for things to make perfect sense, so its usually a book which he's familiar with that he likes.  His request therefore took me by surprise, but I grabbed the opportunity with two hands and dived right in with my best attempt at a Lucas super hero story, plucked from my imagination.  On finishing my tale Lucas decided I had to pretend to go to sleep while he told me a story.  I lay there with my eyes closed listening to every word as it tumbled out of his mouth without him having to think or take a breath, all while he was giving me the biggest cuddle.

His story went something like this...Once upon a time there was a mummy called mummy.  Mummy and Lucas drove to the big shop (Lucas language for Tesco) but there was a monster who stopped us getting in.  The monster chased after us, faster and faster until he fell over and hurt his elbow.  He had to go to hospital and then once he was all better he drove home smoothly.  The end.

I love getting these small glimpses into his world.  Its fascinating.  He told the story with so much love and expression.  Lucas is usually pretty frantic and its difficult to hold his concentration, but for these few minutes he was completely focused.  At the end he gave me one last big squeezy cuddle and then hopped out of the bed and off he went shouting "I need to tell Daddy something", leaving me lying there wondering what else goes on in his imagination.

These snatched moments that are over in a flash and are so simple leave me realising just how lucky I am to have such a special, quirky little boy who adds such colour to our lives and who looks at life in such a different way.  This, to me, really is one of the ordinary moments which makes life not so ordinary.

Here are some of my favourite photos of Lucas...

On his first holiday with his 'Very hungry caterpillar' which never left his side

Enjoying his bath - can't believe how much Charlotte looks like him in this pic only with brown eyes

Like father like son, on our camping trip

 Exploring our second home, Liverpool

Enjoying his favourite DVDs on a long car journey


Hope you've had a lovely weekend with you and yours, with plenty of your own  'Ordinary Moments'.

E

xx

I'm linking up with the lovely Katie from Mummy Daddy and Me for 'The Ordinary Moments'.

Cupcakes, sunny days and my first award #littleloves

What a lovely week we've had.  After a few weeks of pretty miserable weather and feeling a bit down, this week surprised us with some gorgeous sunny days and would you believe it even some milder temperatures (14 degrees in February in Aberdeenshire!!!!).  I've just realised that I start this weekly round-up post each week with a weather update (sorry),but it really does seem to affect my week in one way or another.  This week for instance, what a difference a bit of sunshine made to my overall mood.  I've felt much happier and more motivated than I have for a while, which I'm fully embracing.

So enough about the weather,  what else have I been loving this week...

Read

An email popped into my inbox this week which made me squeal with excitement. It was my 'Springtime Surprise Project' details from Capture by Lucy. I am so in love with the idea of this project which is basically just doing something nice for someone else.  You sign up to the project and are then matched with a postal partner to send a small gift to.  It could be anything you like - just something to brighten up the person's day, based on a few small details about the person you're given. The email this week was letting me know who I'd been partnered with along with a few snippets of information about the person to help you decide on their gift.  On Lucy's blog she describes it as a 'happy project' - such a simple idea but how ace is it.  I'm having so much fun coming up with what to get my person and am so excited to receive my Springtime Surprise too.  I'll keep you posted.

Watched

Without a doubt the best thing I've watched this week (and perhaps in a while on TV) has been The Secret Life of  4 year olds'.  I had this Sky plus'd ever since I saw the ad a few weeks ago and had been looking forward to it - it didn't disappoint.  What a hilarious and a fascinating insight into a group of four years olds' at nursery.  As a mum of a four year old I was so intrigued by it and the next day when I dropped Lucas off at his nursery, I must admit I looked at his class a bit differently and wondered who the Skyla, or Jessica or Christian of his class were.  If you didn't catch it I'd definitely recommend looking it up on 4 On Demand.


Heard

This week I have been loving 'Like I can' by Sam Smith.  Its been stuck in my head all week.  One of those that you find yourself singing while you're in the shower, doing the dishes, changing your baby's nappy, you get the idea.  I caught a clip of his acceptance speech from the Grammys on Good Morning Britain, which I thought was great.  He said something along the lines of how when he first started out he tried looking and sounding a certain way just to get people to like him and listen to his music, which he said was actually really bad music at the time.  It wasn't until he stopped and just started being himself that he was a success.

Made

Lucas and I made chocolate cupcakes at the weekend.  He'd been asking to make some for a while, so on Sunday we decided we would while Charlotte had her nap.  But best laid plans and all that...Charlotte decided not to nap.  We ploughed on anyway, grumpy baby and all.  Charlotte was popped in her highchair and I kept everything crossed that she would stay amused long enough for us to make the cakes (she did, phew!).  They turned out really well and were pretty delicious (if I do say so myself).  Lucas was chief sprinkles shaker and really went to town!!  His proud little face when we'd finished making them was the best!

Wore

This week I dug out my trainers and workout clothes and went to my first exercise class since having Charlotte.  I've put off exercising for a while, using all the usual excuses, but this week I just felt much more motivated, as I mentioned earlier.  Once Charlotte and Lucas were in bed I dashed out to catch a pilates/ yoga mix class at my local sports centre and was surprised at how much I enjoyed myself, even though it was hardwork.  I had really bad stomach muscle separation when I was pregnant with Charlotte and so a physio advised me to start off with something like pilates to try and repair the damage.  My poor muscles didn't know what was happening to them at the class and I was definitely a bit achey for the next day or two.  I quite like that feeling though, when you know you've done something.  I've signed up for next week's class already.

And lastly...

This week I was nominated by the lovely Mummy G from The Giggles Family for a Liebster Award.  For those of you unfamiliar with this, its something passed on by bloggers to new blogs they think are worth a read.  I've only been doing my blog for a couple of months and am just fumbling my way through so this was such a lovely surprise.  Watch out for my Liebster award blog post including 11 random facts about me coming soon.

Have a great weekend everyone

E

xx