To all my friends and family who sometimes need reminding just how wonderful you all are - I'm sorry I don't tell you enough....

 

 

Martha is 10 months old today, she can walk with assistance, she can wave hello and goodbye but she still has no teeth!!!  She is struggling now worse than ever and I'm sure I've caught a glimpse of white once or twice over the last few days so think it's just hovering beneath the surface.

 

On Friday we took her to get measured for her first shoes.  She was very well behaved and is a tiny size 2!  I don't know who likes the new shoes more, Lauren or Martha!!

 

Last night I had a brainwave about how I could make the front of the house look less like a building site without using any more containers - build a wall and fill with soil!!!

 

I wasn't sure if in the cold (well, warm) light of morning I would actually carry out the plan but, after our shopping trip to Pateley to buy our BBQ goodies for tomorrows anticipated heatwave, Lauren & I grabbed our wheelbarrows by the handles and cracked on!  We started selected suitable flat rocks and tried to get them all to balance safely.  We then filled about 5 wheelbarrows full of soil (exhausting work as it involves pushing the full barrows uphill) and emptied them all into our new garden area.  I have cautiously planted my sweet peas and nasturtiums - I've grown them all myself from seeds and I don't want them to die after my weeks of hard work getting them to this stage.  Peter's mum gave me some Busy Lizzies before she left which I've planted together with some bulbs that produce lovely blue and white flowers, including gladioli, that Mum gave to me for my birthday.  I'm looking forward to reporting on their progress via my album on here.  The final plantings of the day were Jasmine and Clematis which I've planted one in my new area and the other in a pot until I get another walled area built at the other side.  I've updated the photos here.

 

I'm so glad I've found a hobby at long last !!  Who'd have thought it would be gardening?!?!  I thought it might be ghost hunting or UFO watching or some other wierd interest that I'm probably more familiar with!!

Haven't updated this week.  Had a rough CBT session on Tuesday that has left me feeling down all week.  I think that this was the element of te treatment that I expected and thankfully haven't experienced until now.  I'm trying to think positively about it and that it means things are progressing, unfortunately I can't attend next week as I've no-one to watch Lauren & Martha but hope that a week out won't be too much.

 

I've not felt motivated or energetic enough to do the house this week so as a result the place is horrendous.  I talked to Peter last night about everything that happened on Tuesday and that in itself has made me feel a bit better.  I have decided to make a start on getting the house back on an even keel.  Peter's parents have left for a short trip to Italy so perhaps I could commander their washer to help me get it done quicker!!

 

This weekend is set to be lovely and warm so I hope we can spend most of it outdoors.  We're off this afternoon to see the Financial Advisor at the bank to sort out our mortgage as we're paying far too much, whilst in Ripon, we're going to get Martha measured for her first pair of cruising shoes.  She's standing up everywhere and loves to walk holding Lauren's hand (Lauren going backwards).  I've found Lauren's first shoes and hoped to save us some money as they're virtually brand new but Martha's obviously starting a lot earlier than Lauren and they are far too big!

 

Green Tip of the Day - Sainsbury's are giving away recycled/reusable bags in place of crappy plastic ones, (enough for the shopping you buy today, ie you can't get more than you need!) free rather than the usual 10p charge.

Had a really lazy weekend.  Peter's friend Mark came to stay on Friday night (sporting new facial hair which was a shock!).  They set off early on Saturday morning to support our friend Jason racing in the Northern Masters GP at Croft Circuit.  Jason did brilliantly, starting 3rd on the gird and stomping to a 1st place finish - well done Jason!!  On Saturday afternoon/evening, they took advantage of the calm weather to get the RC helicopters out.  Peter hasn't been flying for ages and I was glad to see the Raptor up and flying really well, but more pleasing was that Peter really enjoyed it.  Poor Mark couldn't get his engine to start properly so sadly didn't take to the skies.  I'll get some photos of both Jason and the heli in action as soon as possible.

 

Lauren and Martha had a nasty accident this afternoon when Lauren decided to climb onto the highchair and balance (unsuccessfully).  Martha decided to copy and the whole thing came down on top of them.  It's a very heavy piece of kit and poor Lauren managed to put her tooth/teeth through her upper lip.  After 20 minutes or so of tears, she calmed down and now appears unaffected by the whole event.  Martha luckily is small enough to have managed to get in the gaps of the chair.

 

Went to see our friend Kath on Sunday morning, as usual we spent a lovely hour or so in her company.  She is undergoing a bit of a garden makeover (her gardens are always beautiful anyway!) and as such she had 4 massive plastic terracota pots going spare which I gratefully accepted.  Not sure if I'm too late, but I'd love to plant some hyacinths as they smell divine!  I've repaid her kindness by giving her some of my parsley from the "herb windowbox" to plant in her herb tub.

 

I attended the Dr today and left very upset when he didn't really offer any treatment for my ongoing pain, other than to say it is chronic pain and "I've done remarkably well coping so far".  These words were all I needed to push me over the emotional edge and I just feel so helpless.  Thankfully my CBT Consultant is wonderful and has given my details to Back Care and Expert Patient Program so I hope he has the power to do something.  He is writing to the solicitor to see about getting a thorough pain assessment at Bupa in York,  I hope this happens.

 

My loving thoughts and some positive vibes are being transmitted to Jan, I hope you get them and they are of use XXX

Lauren returned to playgroup this week after Easter break.  Lauren was very excited and perhaps this was the reason why she hardly slept on Monday night.  I drove her down on Tuesday whilst Peter took care of Martha at home.  I parked the car and went around to get Lauren out when I was greeted by a beaming face screaming "I'm so excited!", she then skipped all the way into playgroup.  Any anxieties I had about Lauren going to playgroup have gone and I'm thinking about increasing her sessions!

 

Martha seems to be developing at a phenomenal rate at the moment, she is crawling faster than ever and can climb on top of things now too - namely the wipe box, nappy box and Lauren's Fisher Price Learning Chair (see photos!)

 

My windowboxes are now all full, mainly with plants/herbs and two are full of compost waiting for the rain to stop so I can sow some Night Scented Stock seeds.  They have made such a difference to the house and it's starting to feel more homely rather than a building site!

 

I've now had 3 CBT sessions and they are going really well.  My consultant is a lovely person to be with and is assisting me getting help to sort out my back/joint pains I've had since the crash.  He's brought me forward so far mentally in the short time I've been seeing him, we now need to get my body in better shape so I can move forward even more.  I've another appointment on Monday with the GP then my consultant on Tuesday, it just feels good to get things moving.

Woweee!  I must have been exhausted, Peter got up to look after the girls this morning and I slept until 0930 - this surely must be a record for me! 

 

The beautifully warm weather we've been having has come to a break, drizzle and grey skies greeted me this morning but I am thankful as it's been about 2 weeks since we've had any kind of rain to speak of and my new plants will be grateful for the drink (rainwater is suppposed to be so much better than tap water from the watering can).  Lauren's seedlings in her 4 troughs seem to have doubled in size overnight, I will take a photograph tomorrow so you can see their progress.  I'm sure when Julie & Brad see the photo, they'll be amazed at the speed they've grown since they left yesterday.

 

Peter is working on an out of hours job this evening with his manager who travelled up from the office this morning.  It was lovely to all go out to enjoy lunch with him at The Wellington Inn.  Martha had mashed potatoes and gravy (plus a taste of what we all had - at her request not ours!!!), Lauren & Peter both had fish and home-made chunky chips, Stewart (Peter's Manager) had a sausage and caramelised onion toasted sandwich and I had a ham and applewood smoked cheese toasted sandwich together with a portion of the yummy chunky chips.

 

Lauren & Martha seemed to have moved their relationship on a bit this afternoon and were actually playing together (under my instruction, prompting and discreetly watchful eyes) with their dolls and Martha's sleeping bag.

It has been a glorious few days, hence why I haven't updated my blog, it's also been my birthday and I've tried to spend some time doing things I like with my family.  I have planted 3 windowboxes, replanted 3 hanging baskets, taken my seedlings out of the propogation unit and transplanted them into larger pots which are now in the greenhouse.  For my birthday, I received lots of wonderful plants from Mum together with empty hanging baskets, compost, secateurs, gardening gloves and a brilliant gardening book.  From Jan and family, I received another wonderful book that has made me feel so good and a beautiful hand-made papier mache bowl that has made my windowsill look so good!  Peter and Lauren made me a birthday cake.  Other things I received were a Marguerite, gardening tools, necklace, perfume and money.  It has been a good birthday.

 

 

 

We've had a lovely couple of days welcoming Julie, Brad, Hollie and Hannah into our home.  It was wonderful to see our new nieces in the flesh for the first time.  Lauren and Martha (mainly Lauren!) were smitten with their new cousins and Lauren helped in everyway she could, putting dummies in, holding bottles, passing things whilst Martha spent her time taking the dummies out and rubbing their heads!  They left this afternoon to embark on the Scottish leg of their tour and will be returning to us on Friday evening to stay again to break their long journey home to South Wales.

 

When they left, Lauren, Martha and I took full advantage of the wonderful warm weather and I planted the plants that Mum & Alan gave me for my birthday.  I have planted my first windowbox and am so happy with the results.  I also planted the alpines they bought in a underused planter to develop whilst I try to get my rockery underway - this is a bigger project that I first anticipated!  The final project of the day was planting a lovely hanging basket my late friend and neighbour gave me, I hope it will do her justice when it comes into full bloom in the next few months.

Started the day with good intentions and definate plan - to get the rockery started by leveling off the sections and laying the boundary rocks.  Result:  Managed to barrow 2 loads up the hill from soil heap to rockery site until I realised that if I carry on with many more, I'd collapse!!  It was like trying to fill a swimming pool with split peas! I then decided to make the boundary walls but couldn't get the spade (or rather me!) to dig deep enough to bed the rocks for the boundary wall!  Made an executive decision to use the tractor and Peter over the weekend and took the girls up to our valley "viewing platform" and we all enjoyed watching the world go by for an hour - Martha fell asleep it was so peaceful.

Still feeling invigorating by this weekends' hive of horiticultural activity, I replanted the displaced daffodils before lunch and re-potted my 2 roses, that I've had for years, in nice plastic frost proof pots.

 

Lauren made me smile all day today.  She woke at 0630 and what seems to have become habit, came into our room, sat on the floor and requested television be switched on to watch Balamory.  I dozed back off and stirred when I heard "my mummy, my mummy" accompanied by my hair being stroked.  I opened my eyes to be greeted by a beaming Lauren staring intently at me, she then said "love you Mummy".  It was such a nice way to wake up and it made me smile all day.

 

We went to our favourite shop in Pateley (probably anywhere!), Elliots, in the morning.  He has just undergone a massive remodelling of his shop which has at least doubled it in size and made it feel so fresh, light and airy - I can't believe we could love it even more!!  Lauren was a bit overwhelmed by all the changes and was spoilt for choice with his increased selection.

 

It has been a glorious day here today and driving into Pateley this morning, I felt very emotional looking at our beautiful surroundings, and thinking about my lovely husband, daughters, sisters and friends and how lucky we are to be here to just be able to enjoy it.  I wouldn't change things for anything.

Lauren has been particularly demanding and hardwork today, coupled with being up from 0330 with Martha having a bad night with her teeth and eventually falling asleep in my arms - I am surprisingly awake whilst writing this!

 

We took a trip to Focus DIY this afternoon to stock up on things for the garden.  We purchased:-

 

I am writing my blog a bit early tonight so I can enjoy the lovely lighter evenings and get to bed at a reasonable time (after doing an online grocery shop!)

 

I hope to post some photos of our garden being transformed but the camera's run out of batteries!  REMINDER TO SELF:  BUY BATTERIES!

 

 

We have had the most productive weekend ever!  We hired the services of our friend Baz and his CAT digger to excavate land for our new parking area and he used it to clear all the building rubble, soil heaps etc that have accumulated around our house during the building works.  It is great to finally get tackling the outside area and it's finally starting to feel more like a home rather than a building site.  Peter's mum and I dug out what appeared to be a large, square hole which she remembered used to be a seating area when Peter's grandparents used to have a holiday caravan on the site where our house now stands.  It was wonderful to discover this sunken hideaway which is a wonderful suntrap and windbreak!

 

Being an old quarry, you can imagine the amount of huge rocks that are around the place.  Several of these have been used over the weekend to create walled borders and stepping stones through the woods.  The biggest one we've dealt with must have weighed at least a ton and was shaped like a quadrant from a circle (what's the name for that?  e-mail me!!), this was moved after a lot of debate (well argument really) about whether it was worth the time, effort and safety risks between Peter and his father and myself and Baz - Peter and his dad won.  It does look very nice, however I'm sure it would have looked nice anyway it was placed and could have been finished an hour sooner!

 

I now have an abundance of displaced daffodils that require new homes, which will be my task for the beginning of the week.  Lauren planted some flower seeds coming up the lane on either side using old stone troughs and sinks which will look lovely when they bloom in the Summer.

 

The highlight of the whole, wonderful weekend has been seeing Martha take her first steps whilst pushing Lauren's car.  It was brilliant that Peter, Lauren and myself could witness such a momentous event together.

 

The lowlight of the day was getting a very, very big rock dropped on the top of my foot by accident.  Oh well, such are the risks - seeing the work we've managed to achieve in one weekend makes up for the pain!