My 37 I's....

Taking some lovely inspiration from an even lovelier young ladies post here I thought I would like to share some of my I's too. I like to find out a little about a person behind a blog, and so here for you are my 37 I's....

1. I am a young 37....
2. I am passionate....
3. I am untidy....
4. I love my husband....
5. I can be very tidy when I want to be....
6. I love my children with all my heart....
7. I am learning to be grateful for all I have, not what I haven't....
8. I love to roller skate....
9. I like reading poetry....
10. I like writing poetry....
11. I go to bed far too late....
12. I get up far too late....
13. I am lazy....
14. I am scared of the dark....
15. I value my friendships by their quality not quantity....
16. I love handmaking pretty things....
17. I hate bad manners....
18. I need at least one big hug a day....
19. I still have a dream to join the Royal Shakespeare Company....
20. I love to dress up....
21. I love to dress down....
22. I love my sweet foods....
23. I have lots of unanswered questions....
24. I am always cold....
25. I aim to please, maybe too much....
26. I love to disco dance....
27. I love blogging....
28. I am nosey....
29. I send far too much money on things I don't really need....
30. I am learning to understand why I spend far too much money on things I don't really need....
31. I worry about what others think of me....
32. I love the colour pink....
33. I love pretty photographs....
34. I am noisy...
35. I overthink....
36. I shall always have a thing for charity shops....
37. I appreciate you for taking the time out of your day for reading my 37 I's.

Being a lover of pretty photographs, thought I would sneak a little one in, some scented doorstops I have been making for the fairs I have coming up.

X

Are You And Money At One....

Can I ask you a personal question?

Well, what could be more personal than talking about money and finances, and what your relationship is like with money. Do you work well together ? Do you get on, are you good at saving your pennies.

For me, money goes through my hands like water, I should appreciate it much more. I know deep down I should be popping my spare pennies in a little money pot and look forward to watching those pennies grow and prosper, to be spent on a rainy day. Though I am very much a live for the day kind of girl, retirement and having funds to spend when I am old and grey seems such a long, long way away. Though know it shall be here before I know it. So, for me I spend for the now, I shop to my hearts content ( though not my husband's) and I would certainly have me down as somewhat of a shopoholic. I think credit cards can have their place, if used carefully, wisely and with the respect they deserve. When I worked as cabin crew, I ended up being grounded, along with other crew members in Tenerife, one of the aircraft tyre's needed repairing and we ended up in Tenerife for a couple of days whilst the aeroplane was being fixed. My trusty credit card came in useful when stuck abroad, with no cash so to speak of. Amongst my own local supermarket, when one can get lots of lovely local produce, I like to shop with Tesco, and they even have their own Tesco Credit Card and I think as long as one goes in with ones eyes wide open, and a good financial head on ones shoulders, credit cards can be used wisely.

As for me....well I could have the shopping personality to get myself in a little trouble ;0) I mean look at this photograph of my kitchen table with some of my shopping on, not all bought in one go, I must say.

And how many Cath Kidston crush mugs do I really need....

There are more in cupboards, *embarrassed icon*

Blogging I have found to be very influential, and perhaps some of us shopping fans can be quite influenced by each other's pretty buys, I know I can be, I may even be saving money in my own way if I didn't read so many pretty blogs where shopping is shared, I am sooooooo easily led, and I lOVE pretty things in my home.

So would you own up, are you good with money. I am a nosy olde sort and would love to know if any of you are as norty as I am with those pretty pieces of paper one can hand over at something called a till point, and in exchange get something ever so pretty handed over in return....

X

Nearly Christmas And Pretty Lights....

Whilst I have been busy making pretties for Christmas fairs I have coming up, here is a teeny tiny peek....

And inbetween doing those, some customer orders.... again a little peeky

Well, whilst making up these little delights, I have had not one chance to sit down and think about Christmas, I really haven't. I shall probably be the one looking very stressed on Christmas Eve with about 101 Christmas presents yet to get. I have no idea of our plans, of what to buy people or anything really. It has really creeped up on me, I am normally so organised *sigh*

  My husband's lovely Mother is in hospital with pneumonia, and to be honest all I want for Christmas is everyone in our family to be healthy and happy, so really, getting stressed that I have not yet made plans/bought not one jot, really shouldn't stress me. Christmas, I keep trying to remind myself isnt about gifts, material treasures ( though we all like pretty parcels ) but about people, bringing families together, spending quality time together whilst munching on quality street. So, I know I shall be way behind with my organisation of Christmas, but hey, you know what, if we wake up on Christmas morn, with only a couple of tangerines in Christmas stockings, and only a Christmas pudding to eat, well so be it, life is what you make it, and we shall certainly do our best to have fun.

I really do enjoy my little role reviewing  items here on my blog, and it was so very lovely to try out these Christmas lights and has really helped me get in the mood for Christmas. They were sent by Dobbies a beautiful gardening blog, with stunning photography and wonderful articles. These are the stunning lights that came my way for me to try out.

They are a pack of 10 solar powered path lights, with energy efficient LED bulbs to last longer. Suitable for outdoor use only and really are the prettiest things. Lovely that no electricity is required, just the daylight that powers these, and then twinkle at night time, leading one up the path. They have two settings, twinkling and static, of course, we have ours on twinkling. As we have no grass at the front of our house, and didn't want to put them in the back where no one could see, thought we would be a little imaginative and placed each star within the pretty hedge that lines our path. 

The little solar plate was popped in a place that would receive the most sunlight....

Of course none of this is seen at night, just the pretty twinkling stars, though I think they look sweet too even in the daylight....

And then when night comes, I have a twinkly Christmas star lit hedge, delightful!

 These lights get the thumbs up from me, and I think work wonderfully as either lights in the ground, or indeed, as we have done, trailed them along the hedge. So, I may not have the presents, I may not have the desire in me, or indeed have the organisational skills quite yet, to organise Christmas, but these lights are certainly helping get me in the Christmas mood.

X

Lovely Maileg Christmas Pixie Advent Calender Competition....

Thank you for your comments on Master P. He thankfully is on the way up, having had two different antibiotics, the steroids ( which are a last resort for me ) many a puff on his puffer and a dose or two of calpol. As for sleep, well, I think the day I became a mummy, sleep went outta the window. Maybe when the little ones have both flown the nest I shall get a full nights sleep, perhaps. Hmmmm though thinking about it, maybe I shall get less, what with worrying about what they are up to, who they are with, wanting to know that even at 35, they are tucked up in bed, safe and sound.

So, I am hearing many a mention of Christmas and of course Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without a good old fashioned advent calender. Myself and the children really enjoy our role reviewing toys over at The Great Toy Guide and enjoyed reviewing this lovely Advent Calendar and reading the great reviews for these advent calendars too. Please feel free to pop over, and if you do, you shall also see the fabulous competition where....

You Could Win Your Own Maileg Christmas Pixie Advent Calendar!

The Great Toy Guide is offering one of its readers the chance to win this magnificent Maileg Christmas Pixie advent calendar. Designed in Denmark, this festive pixie stands at more than 1.5 metres tall and I would love one. I am not sure if it may be within the rules for me to go in the hat, must find out ;0) All you have to do is leave a comment on this post, and a winner shall be picked at random on November 25th, the Maileg Pixie calendar shall shipped in time for December 1st, to a UK entrant only.

Good luck if you do enter. It really is lovely.

X

Love Hate Time Of Year....

Do you ever have that newborn tiredness feeling....

I call it newborn as it feels like the tiredness I felt when having a newborn baby at home. A little out of sorts, clumsy, snappy, maybe even a little teary. Well I am that tired.

I love what this time of year brings with it. Lovely family birthdays and wedding anniversaries. I love, love the beautiful and moving scenery the autumn brings, I love Christmas, I love snow on the ground and jingle bells in the back ground.

But, sometimes I really do not like this time of year, and wish for the sunshine, the spring. I do not like what this time of year does to my precious Master Poppins. The clocks going back or is it forward ( I can never remember , blame the tiredness )  that cold snap coming in, hats and scarves. What this time of year does, is make my Master P one very poorly little boy. Yet again another 4am visit to hospital, with his chest.

You may know he was born 11 weeks early, weighting 3lbs 1oz, he was ventilated ( albeit for a very short 8 or so hours ) and so rightly or wrongly I often wonder whether his prematurity, makes him a little weaker at this time of year.

After waking up after being put to sleep for my cesarean, I was handed a polaroid photograph of my baby, the very first time I saw him, hours after he had been born and all I had to prove that thank goodness he was born alive.  I thank the lord every day he was sent for me to keep. This slightly out of focus shot that one of the nurses took of him, is possibly one of my treasured things. This is how I saw my baby for the very first time.

 So normally a photograph of pretties, is now a photograph that looks more like a medicine cabinet.

I wonder if maybe as he grows bigger, he shall also grow stronger. I hope so. Do your little ones cope well health wise at this time of year. Maybe it is not Master P's prematurity at all, maybe it is just him. How he is made up, but I so wish one year we could see this time of year through, without any hospital visits. He copes so well, bless him....

Hopefully whilst he sleeps, he is getting better, the only time he doesn't cough is when those sweet blue eyes of his are resting....

As for me, I shall aim to catch 40 winks....probably even now ZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz ;0)

X

Happy Birthday Miss. Poppins!....

Remember remember the 5th of November....

Happy Birthday to my precious sweet pea, 9 today!
My teeny tiny 5lb 11 ozs baby girl born on the 5th of the 11th.

(Photograph curtesy of Urban Angels )

Takes after her Mummy with the silly faces....

Mummy, Daddy, Master Poppins and all the family love you so very much, you make us proud ( mostly) each and every day. I hope mummy can control herself and not take a peeky at some of your presents or take a nibble on one of your adorable Daisy cupcakes....

Hmmm, maybe a little bite....

X

Giveway Winner....

Well done to Catch A Dragonfly who has won the tickets, I really hope you enjoy yourself and look forward to hearing all about it.

Look forward to possibly being able to hand them over to you in person too, how nice :0)

X

GIVEAWAY: A Pair Of Guest Invitation Tickets To....

How would you like to go the Spirit Of Christmas Fair at Olympia, London. Well I have two free guest invitation tickets on offer which have kindly come my way via Dotcomgiftshop.com and were for me to use. Alas, working out my logistics, and some soul searching cannot make it. It is also the birthday weekend of Miss. Poppins and she is having a party. Ideally I would have loved to have made a weekend of it in London. *sigh* It is so up my pretty street and I would loved to have gone.

So after a little chat with dotcomgiftshop.com, I suggested that I offer them up here, to one of you, my lovely readers. Ideally you would have a blog or if you don't would be willing to do a little guest post on my blog, as I want to know what it was like and if you enjoyed it. Also what lovely pretties dot.comgiftshop.com had at their stand (D9). So, if you want to go in the hat, I shall be drawing a winner at around 4.30 pm, and you would need to be available to email me your address details so I can get your tickets in the post and hopefully you get them asap. The tickets are valid from 3rd - 7th november, 2010. Appreciate it is short notice but if you think you could make it this week or indeed at the weekend, then all you have to do is leave a comment on this post and I shall be back around 4.30  with a winners name.

Good luck, the event looks like a real goodun'....

X