Thursday 31 October 2013

Breakfast in the Crummy House



Pippin:  What about Breakfast?
Aragorn: You already had it!
Pippin: We’ve had one, yes.  What about Second Breakfast?
Merry: I don’t think he knows about Second Breakfast, Pip….

The Fellowship of the Ring (Lord of the Rings Trilogy)



It’s safe to say that Miss Bags and The WilburBeast LOVE their food.  Especially breakfast!  Sometimes I do wonder if I have spawned a tribe of wee hobbits (without the hairy feet!) instead of children.

Take this half-term for example…. Now maybe it’s because we are more relaxed in the mornings, and don’t have the “we-MUST-leave-by-08:30-or-we’ll-be-LATE” pandemonium that the school run brings, (or maybe they are just laying down extra fat stores for winter…) but the weans have been EATING.  And then some.

Lately breakfast has consisted of:

Miss Bags:  Innocent Fruit Smoothie, Cheerios, Toast with Jam (and butter Mummy!), Dippy Egg and soldiers…. All on the SAME DAY. (she then went on to eat Roast Chicken for lunch!)  She also is partial to pancakes and crumpets.  All after cereal of course…!

The Wilburbeast:  Milk, Cheerios, Toast, then anything else he can get his hands on (usually Daddy’s breakfast – or he will con “bis-quits” out of whichever one of us is less likely to argue)

Despite having such big breakfasts – they begin clamouring for lunch at 11am – or should that be elevenses?
 

Wednesday 30 October 2013

The MADNESS of clothes sizing....

Ok, I know I've said this before. I don't even know why I'm surprised.....

Today I am wearing:

Leggings. M&S. Size 10.
Skirt. White Stuff. Size 12.
Vest Top. M&S. Size 12.
Cardi. H&M. Medium
Knickers. M&S. Size 14.
Coat. Joules. Size 14.

IT ALL FITS! Madness. Utter madness.  Anyone else feel like this????

Rant over.  As you were......

Monday 28 October 2013

Lovely Yarn-y Things!


I do have to feel sorry for Crummy Hubby at times. I have a huge pile of unfinished craft projects (mostly involving yarn, or thread) and I flit from unfinished project to unfinished project, not really making any tangible progress on any of them!  Like my shoe collection, the yarn is taking over the house!

So far I have:

A half finished Happy Happy House Sampler (from the April 2012(!) issue of Cross Stitcher magazine.




An unfinished patchwork quilt – started in September 2012.  It’s all sewn together, just needs quilting (if you see what I mean!)

Many unfinished cross stitch designs – one of which I started before Miss Bags was born in 2008!

Granny Squares that need to be sewn together.




My take on the Attic24 Christmas Wreath (all my bits need sewing on – think I should maybe get on with that!)

Infinity Scarf from Issue 11 of Simply Crochet

And totally not yarn-y at all – Decopatch Christmas Baubles and Paint Your Own Ceramic Decorations (bought to do with Miss Bags – again think I might be up against it with that one!)

Now the weather has closed in and the nights are darker, I’m looking forward to making concrete progress with all of these projects, cosied up in front of the fire after the weans are in bed!

♥♥♥♥

Sunday 27 October 2013

Batten Down The Hatches

Here on the South Coast, we are no stranger to inclement weather; think the Great Storm of 1987, the Selsey tornadoes, all that snow and more recently the tornado that hit Hayling Island on 20th October.

Here in the Crummy Household we have our fair share of weather experience, from heavy snowfall, ice storms, tornadoes, hurricanes, electrical storms, heavy rainfall, thunderstorms and glorious sunshine - because not all weather is bad weather!

Today we are currently under a Met Office Amber Weather Warning for wind; and we are watching the forecast with mild apprehension to see where this storm will hit, and how bad it might be.

It's being called the St Jude's Day storm, because it will hit tomorrow, St Jude's Day.

We have battened down our hatches..... all garden pots, furniture, toys and things have been safely stowed.  We have candles in case the power goes out, we've set the fire ready - and all we can do now is wait it out and hope its not as bad as the Met Office are predicting.

I shall try to resist the temptation to hide in the cupboard under the stairs - a too close for comfort experience with a tornado when I lived in Charlotte, NC has left me terrified of the wind  - and I sincerely hope everyone here on the South Coast stays safe.... ♥♥♥




The calm before the storm......


Wednesday 23 October 2013

October Celebrations

What a lovely month we’ve had in the Crummy Household….

 

We’ve had birthdays and an anniversary.  Miss Bags made a cake for her Nonna and Pops’ birthdays.



 

We took Nonna and Pops out for a birthday dinner, and Pops had the BIGGEST mixed grill you have EVER seen!  I think he had to lie flat, VERY flat when we got home!



It was our 7th wedding anniversary, I got some lovely flowers and we had a wee bottle to celebrate!



 

It’s Hallowe’en next week and Miss Bags has a spooky school disco, and a party to go to, and then we are off to the Haunted Castle for some spooky fun!

 

As the weather turns, and sunny days are few and far between, I was treated to a lovely October rainbow while out walking…. It made getting caught in the rain worth it!



Sunday 13 October 2013

First Tooth…..

Miss Bags has lost her first tooth!   She is so pleased and can’t wait to show everyone!
This meant the Tooth Fairy had to visit!  How do children find out about the Tooth Fairy anyway?  I am sure Miss Bags informed me that she would be getting a visit from the Tooth Fairy when she lost her tooth, long before we had ever mentioned it!  Peppa Pig has a lot to answer for!

Once her tooth was definitely loose (and before it fell out)  I canvassed opinion amongst my friends.  What is the going rate for teeth, and indeed the First Tooth?

Some of their answers left me recoiling in horror - £10, £20???  Some were more sensible…. £1, £2…..  I am of the generation where you received 10p!  Crummy Hubby and I settled for two 50 pence pieces…. Miss Bags is still of the age where she thinks more coins  = more value! We also decided that for the First Tooth, we would get her a toy of her choice, from US not the Tooth Fairy.

Given my propensity to “Believe” (Father Christmas, Elf on the Shelf, Easter Bunny etc)  I wanted to make the Tooth Fairy experience “real” for Miss Bags.  I did some searching on the internet and I found this great Tooth Fairy Pillow and this great Tooth Fairy Stationery!

So I set to work.  I made a pillow – its not quite as good – but it does the job. And I printed out and laminated a tooth fairy note.

Well, Miss Bags loved it.  And I love the way we have a record of her teeth coming out.

Tuesday 8 October 2013

My dream house…. Is MY house….

As we drift into October, and the last days of summer really are leaving us, an amazing fact dawned on me one evening.



I was in the kitchen, back doors wide open, food cooking, wine poured, glorious sunset, kids in the garden and then it hit me….





My dream house is actually MY house.  Here.  Right here. With my wee family.

It’s our home, our safe haven, our port in a storm and is generally filled with love, laughter and happiness (but sometimes we all fight and the kids get told off and it’s a huge MESS, but if that didn’t happen it would be WEIRD)

Here are my top 10 things I LOVE about our house:

1 – Who I share it with
2 – Our kitchen is big enough for dancing
3- Our garden is big enough for bike riding, hula hooping and basketball (though not all at once) and its not overlooked
4 – After YEARS of on road parking, damaged wing mirrors and musical cars we have a DRIVEWAY!
5 – We have a front garden complete with fairy ring (well almost!)


6 – Did I mention the bi-folds?!


7 – Our lounge is a family space that quickly becomes a grown-up sanctuary in the evening and is cosy cosy in the winter with the wood burner.
8 – We have an en-suite – no falling over toys in the shower, or Miss Bags stealing my lotions and potions!
9 – The playroom/kids room  - a place they can play and make messes
10 – The kitchen island and wine fridge!

Hoping your home is your sanctuary too......