It's Official!! My First Baby....

....is now a fraction of an inch taller than me!!:

Excuse the quality, low light!!

How did that happen? H is almost 13 and 1/2 and grows out of clothes in a few weeks - the meerkat t-shirt was bought in the summer hols, it's a man's medium and was a bit big when we got it.

He's a typical teenager, thinks he knows everything and that me and Mr G are fools and just here to make life difficult for him. He's very clever and wants to be a games designer (don't they all these days? Is that the new astronaut?!!) 

He and W still call us Mummy and Daddy - I refuse to answer to "mum" (although I will when they have friends round) when we are alone or with family it's Mummy. My Mum always called her dad "Daddy" and I hope my boys will do the same. 

In other news, I've been having a battle with Cath Kidston - my sister bought me a set of their "Crush" mugs for Christmas, when she received them one was broken and after she complained (twice) they sent two in replacement so I ended up with a set of seven.

Soon after we started using them they began to get hairline cracks and over the months they have broken or started to leak. So I decided to complain.

It took CK customer services almost a month to get back to me and they have said they are almost a year old so basically (not in so many words) tough. They also claim mine is the first complaint of this nature they have received - despite their being at least four reviews on the CK website to the contrary!!

I am not happy with them, it's so disappointing that a company whose products I love so much is so cavalier when it comes to customer service, not least in the time it takes to respond to emails.

The thing is I can't even boycott them because I love the products so much - they have me over a barrel!!

Hope you've all had a lovely weekend? I've spent today painting furniture - a lovely Regency sideboard and a demi lune table - will have pics for you later in the week....

hugs,

S x

Where Has This Week Gone?

Hello, my lovelies - hope you've had a good week? Hasn't it just f-l-o-w-n by? 


It's Mr G's 40th birthday next week so we are feeling a bit old at the moment!! It really is quite scary how as you get older the time seems to go quicker and quicker.

I haven't really got a whole lot to report, been doing a bit of this and that. Went out with my Sis, had a day at a friends and what not.


I am still enjoying my dahlias (I am shamelessly copying Vanessa over at one of my fave blogs Coco Rose Diaries and using the fab Hipstamatic iPhone app for the pics):

It has been my first time growing dahlias and the bulbs (tubers?) cost £1 each from Wilkinsons - I started them on the windowsill and they went out following the last frost and the four plants have given me a jam jar of flowers constantly from July until now!! All for £4!!

So my sweet peas may have let me down this year but my dahlias have made me smile for weeks and weeks.

Another thing that has made me smile is that I managed to persuade Mr G to buy me a fancy schmancy new sewing machine for Christmas, so I am chuffed - although I couldn't persuade him to let me have it early!!

What's been making you smile?

hugs,

S x

October Mosaics....

S x

Zombie Alert!!!!

Zombie H:

Zombie W:

Scary, eh?!!

The boys had a friend each over for trick or treating and I set about turning three of them into zombies - face-paints of course, fake blood made of honey, syrup and red food colouring (it looked soooooo real!!) and scabs made of aforementioned fake blood and oats!!

It was a case of loosening the aprons strings a little too as for the first time they went out without me or Mr G accompanying them - we figured at 13 1/2 H and his friend M were old enough to ensure the younger boys were OK.

I always agonise over these decisions, I remember the first time I let them walk to the corner shop on their own was a big milestone!! I can't begin to imagine what'll be like in a few years when they are off out and I have no idea where they will be. 

With my anxiety I find it all a bit stressful - my sister has let my nephew out with friends during the day for ages now, but I'm still not keen!!

I have been busy today working on a few pieces of furniture I have in to do, including my first commission!! 

We picked up a gorgeous Regency style sideboard, a little dresser top which I have painted Wedgewood blue and a French style demi-lune table. No pics yet but watch this space!!

hugs,

S x

It's All Gone A Bit Quiet....

Hello there - hope you all OK? 


I've noticed it's gone a bit quiet on the comment front but I do hope you are all still reading? I have been really busy of late and have not had much time for leaving comments myself so I hope that is the reason things are quiet here and not because I am becoming boring!!

It's half term here and so I have been enjoying have the boys off school - on Sunday we went to Port Solent and had lunch at a fab new American diner:

We'd had a bit of a hooha before we came out as H didn't want to come - he was playing on the Xbox while talking to his friend and I was all for making him come out and have time as a family but Mr G said we shouldn't force him as he would be a big misery and it would cost more!! 

I reluctantly agreed and H stayed behind but when we got there I realised it was a mistake as I felt sad H was missing out (even if he would have moaned) and so in future I think I will put my foot down and insist he leave the blasted Xbox behind - at 13yrs old it's too young to be left out of family outings I feel, complaints or not!!

W really enjoyed it - he had a Texas BBQ Hot Dog:

And a a Chocolate Brownie Sensation Sundae (which we shared):

He then got a cooks hat and had his photo taken by the jukebox:

On Monday I had my niece and nephew as my sister has started Uni - she is doing a health science degree two days a week as she wants to be a cardiac physiologist (she originally wanted to be a doctor, but met her husband at 16 and it went by the wayside) while we went to local play centre she was prodding at a real human heart complete with torso *shudder* and admiring the medical students (who she says are hot!!)

Yesterday, pumpkin picking with Grandma and Granddad was a washout and so the boys went to see "Johnny English" at the pictures instead while I had a day of peace and spent it sewing - I've started a dress from the book "Sew Serendipity" (love that word!!) and if it looks OK when it's done I'll show you!!

Today, I saw my friend L - she and I have been going ceramics painting, you go and have a natter and a coffee and paint some blank china and then it gets glazed & fired for you to collect the following week - I didn't go this week but she had collected my dog bowl (do bare in mind I got an "F" for art GCSE!!):

I painted it with CK Stanley's!!

I had previously done a teapot:

Excuse the blurredy-ness - W took the pics!!

Even though I am not good at painting and the results are a little primitive, I love doing it so much!! It's very therapeutic and I have plans for Christmas plates for us all and all sorts!!

Anyway, that's about all I have to report for now so I will love you and leave you....

hugs,

S x

Hello all - hope you are having a nice weekend?


I have a cold  - W had one last week and I thought the rest of us had escaped but it appears not :0( - I gave hay to the horses for the first time in ages and thought (hoped) the snotty nose was because of that but alas it was not.


This week I made over a wardrobe for Mr G. He has not had a wardrobe for months - since I took over the spare room as my girl cave and his sorry Ikea flat pack affair fell apart. So when I was offered a solid pine gentlemans wardrobe for £20 I couldn't say no.


I should have taken before pics (I always forget!!), it was a rather garish hot pink and cream complete with Disney knobs but now it's looking a bit more shabby chic!!:

We got rid of a chest of drawers and the TV (which we rarely used anyway) to fit it in and at first I hated the "wall of wardrobes" effect, but it's growing on me:

See all the cuddly's on top of my wardrobe? All bought for me by H & W....

Mr G is chuffed to bits to have a wardrobe for his clothes and not have to make do with drawers crammed full.

I have a book recomendation for you - a few weeks ago we saw Gwyneth Paltrow on Graham Norton promoting her new cookery book. Now this made me snort with derision as I was under the impression that she only ate macrobiotic i.e rabbit food, bleurgh!!

However, she seemed very down to earth and is no longer eating strictly macrobiotically and so I decided to order a copy from the library. 

It's a lovely, lovely book. It has some gorgeous recipes and Gwyneth shares genuine, heartfelt tales about her father (whom she adored) I confess I cried (I know, crying at a recipe book is soppy even by my standards!!)

We're hooked on one of the recipes - "Best Stir Fried Chicken with Rice & Kale":

It has only a few ingredients and tastes completely authentic - yummy!! (If you Google "Gwyneth Paltrow Best Stir Fry Chicken" you'll find the recipe, but the book is definitely worth buying).

As I said my copy came from the library and I intended to buy it, but this is now a must as whilst making the above dish this week I, ahem, set fire to the library book!!!!! 


Setting fire to tea towels is a regular occurrence in our house, but I've never before managed to char the corner of a recipe book, let alone one from the library!! So now I have to get a copy from Amazon to take sheepishly back and I shall keep the crispy library book!!


Whooooops!! 


hugs,


S x

More Furniture and Other Bits....

Hello my lovelies!!


I've been a wee bit absent of late as I have had several bits of furniture I have been working on.


A couple of bathroom cabinets:

A set of nesting tables:

A little dinky table:

And a cupboard that was once an orange pine Hi-Fi cabinet:

I've sold the nest tables and one of the bathroom cabinets already, which is lovely because it means I have enough money for Mr G's 40th birthday present (which is in 3 weeks) - and he doesn't have to buy it himself!!

In the evenings, in front of the telly I have been making some quilted hexagon fabric which I am going to use to upholster the French chair in our room:

It's my first attempt at piecing a quilt but hand and I'm finding it very therapeutic!!

Mr G has a school reunion on Friday - we've decided not to go. We decided it would just be people you don't really want to see and depressing to see how old everyone looks!! 

I said "The only reason a person should go is if they want to try and get off with their school crush" and Mr G replied "Well, I married my school crush" - awwwwww bless!! Maybe I'll forgive him for leaving his pants on the landing after all!!

Tomorrow I am meant to be riding for the first time in months. I have my four horses and get as much pleasure from looking after them as I do from riding so I've never been that fussed - plus I am a nervous rider since losing my confidence when I had a very naughty horse years ago so the less I ride the less I want to. My friend thinks we should try and ease me back into it (and she wants to ride too) and so we are going for a short pootle - wish me luck?!!

hugs,

S x