Christmas Planning

Yes I mentioned the "C" word and its only September!!  But as we are still on a very tight budget, I've been trying to think of ideas to save money this year.  And, probably due to my Pinterest addiction, I've decided to try and make as many presents as I can this year!!  I've got LOTS of ideas and plans, and just need to stop procrastinating and get on with it!!

I know I put things off because of a lack of confidence, but I really am going to try and get over this and GET STARTED!!

Quiet Day

Princess Lollipop still isn't feeling well and she isn't up to doing very much, so we are snuggled on the sofa watching DVDs.  We've already watched The Incredibles, which she said was "Wicked" and now we are about to watch "Chicken Little" mostly because she's been learning the song "Chick Chick Chick Chick Chicken" at school.  Hopefully she won't be disappointed that they don't sing that!!

Its a sunny(ish!) day so Little Prince is playing out with his friends at the local park.  He has been warned NOT to repeat last weeks mischief!!  I can't remember if I told you about that??  Well he came home from playing out dripping in black gooey mud, with one shoe and mumbling about a bully!!  He was marched straight to the shower, fully clothed, and while in there I got the truth out of him - he'd jumped into a farm drainage ditch, there was no bully!!  Fingers crossed that he manages to remember NOT to jump into any more ditches!!!  I'm not holding my breath...

Poorly Princess

Princess Lollipop has been very restless for the past couple of nights, and very easily upset (mega upset) during the evenings.  She was obviously not herself, and today she woke up feeling hot, with a barking cough and feeling wobbly, telling me "I can't walk properly my legs are wobbling."

I rang school to let them know she wouldn't be there today, much to Princess Lollipop's disgust, she kept trying to show me she was better, followed by a coughing fit!!  She ended up having a huge nap in the afternoon, so its a good job I didn't send her to school.  Although she wants to eat and asks for things, she loses interest and hasn't eaten much at all today.  I think its going to be an early night for her tonight, and I'm not taking bets on how long it will be before she ends up in our bed again!

Raincoat Weather

One of the things  Drama Teen wanted to do while she was at home, was buy a raincoat as it has rained every day she's been at Uni so far, and her current coat isn't waterproof, so she's been getting soaked every day :-(  We arranged it so that I could take her and LMS out shopping this morning, and it was very nice to spend time with my Big Girls, although they bicker almost as much as the Littlies do!!

I was absolutely shocked that Drama Teen found a coat in the very first shop we visited!!  Not only did she find a coat, she found a waterproof and eminently practical one!!!  I don't know if I can cope with all these shocks at the same time lol.  My little Drama Teen who is renowned for putting style over substance, is growing up - either that or she is sick and tired of getting so wet every day!!

Both girls wanted to be dropped off back at OUR shop with Mr Messy, who was convinced we hadn't even been shopping we were back so quickly lol.  Drama Teen needed to visit the Bank to ask for a new cheque book to be sent to her, so that she can pay her Student Accommodation Fees, and LMS had interrupted various jobs she was doing for Mr Messy to come out shopping, so she wanted to finish those off.  I warned them all NOT to be late home tonight, as Drama Teen is returning to Uni and the Littlies will want the chance to see her before she has to leave - fingers crossed they will remember!!

Craft Class

I have joined a local Craft Class, well its mostly card making, but the techniques will transfer to scrapbooking so I'm enjoying it.  Its actually the second Class I joined, but the first one (where I did some English Paper Piecing Patchwork) didn't have enough students and was closed.  I transferred to the second Class, and enjoyed it much more, the other students (mostly retirees) were welcoming and chatty and willing to help me out with various techniques.

We made an opening box, which the teacher said could be added to the front of a greetings card.  However, when I got home and showed Mr Messy he asked if I could make more "stand alone boxes" in his "Corporate Colours" to use as packaging for Gift Vouchers, which are a good seller on the run up to Christmas.  I have been thinking over the design and think I know what to do to make it work as a stand alone box, I just need to get on with making some now :-)

When Princess Lollipop arrived home from school to find I wasn't there she asked where I was, when told "Craft Class/School" she marched off upstairs to look in my Craft Room and came stomping back down declaring "Mummy is NOT in her Craft Room!!"  She was slightly mollified after further explanations of where I was, but five minutes later said sadly "Mummy's not her.  She's probably dead!"  That could explain the rapturous greeting I got when I finally did arrive home, and obviously wasn't dead!!

Surprise Surprise!!!

On Tuesday evening I got a FABULOUS surprise :-)  Drama Teen arrived home for a quick visit :-)  Apparently Mr Messy and LMS knew all about this, but had decided not to tell me!!  So when Drama Teen walked into the lounge I was totally shocked and VERY happy :-)  I'm not kidding myself though, she was here mainly to help her boyfriend pack for Uni as he leaves today (Thurs)!!  I don't care what the reason was, my little Drama Teen came home and I got to see her :-)  Although I know I'm going to be sad again tonight as she has to go back to Uni for lectures tomorrow :-(

Urgh yet another catch up post!!

I really want to get back into the habit of blogging a little each day, and I keep intending to!  Then I think "urgh" I'll have to catch up first and it keeps putting me off!!  But it can't be put off any longer, so here goes!!

The last half of the Summer Hols were a bit of a poorly blur, for both me and Princess Lollipop :-(  And due to a weirdo hanging round the local villages, Little Prince wasn't able to play out unsupervised, and I was in no fit state to supervise him, so he didn't have the best time :-(  I feel really guilty, as he was having the kind of Summer I remember from my childhood - full of sunny days playing with friends.  It wasn't a total loss as some good friends invited Little Prince round to play at their houses, and I managed to have some friends over here without tiring myself out completely.

At the end of the holidays we visited a Children's Activity Museum, where they have a scheme to help families with special needs children have an easier time.   We were allocated a "helper" who planned where to go in the Museum and accompanied us around and helped Little Prince interact with the exhibits.  He had a great time, the "helper" was so good with him, and was full of energy to keep going :-)  Princess Lollipop didn't have such a great time as she was starting with an ear infection, she had seemed fine with Calpol at first, but deteriorated throughout our time at the Museum.  By the end of our visit it was obvious she was quite ill, and very unhappy.  As it was weekend we had to visit the Out of Hours GP Service at our local hospital.  The Doctor was great, he quickly diagnosed Princess Lollipop's ear infection and that her pneumonia hadn't cleared up completely and prescribed her some much needed antibiotics.

Little Prince apprehensively started back at school, with his new teacher.  He was boosted by a lovely good luck message from his old teacher, and the fact that his Teaching Assistant has stayed the same.  He has been subdued and quiet at school, and either very quiet or very grumpy in the evenings at home.  Despite the fact that he likes his new teacher and reports that she is "nice and kind" I think he is struggling with the change, and will take some time to settle down.

Princess Lollipop had an extra week off school to recover and build her back up a little, she was NOT a happy little girl that her big brother was back at school and she wasn't.  She was overjoyed when she finally returned and could see her teacher and friends, she had missed them all.  She settled straight back in as though she had never left, apart from complaints that her "older nursery" friends were now in "Ception" and she wanted to be there too.  She tried standing on the sofa with her hands reaching over her head to demonstrate that she was "big nuff for 'ception" she hasn't managed to convince either me or her teacher yet!!

LMS has returned from her Camp Summer in America, very tanned, very bouncy and full of ideas and energy :-)  She started applying for jobs before she even landed back here, and had an interview only a couple of days after she landed!!  She is looking for jobs working as a live-in House Parent at a Private School, which is more or less doing what she did at Camp all summer, but with a nice room and more pay!!

Despite me being in denial ALL Summer Drama Teen has actually left home for University :-(  And is already a "real" student as she's missed her first few lectures as she didn't know they'd stated already!!  Only Drama Teen could manage this!!!  She's only been gone a day and I'm missing her like mad :-(  Yesterday I was explaining that I couldn't bear to even look in her room when Mr Messy laughed saying "She's only at University, she's not dead!!"  Although he is right, I don't think he understands quite how I'm feeling right now :-(

I am loving having my afternoons back to myself :-)  Although I need to stop wasting so much time on Pinterest, and actually USE my time!!  I need to sort the house out after neglecting it while I was ill, and I have so many craft projects I'm dying to start on.  So no more messing on the internet until I've actually achieved something round here first :-)