Category Archives: Events

I’m Going to BritMums

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linkedinprofileName: jo

Blog: Adequate Parent – Mum Friendly – Sweetfoolthemouth – Photos of Trees – Blog Off (plus a few more)

Twitter ID: @MumFriendlyJo (less chatty stuff) @schmindieblogs (chatty stuff) – though having said that I’m always getting them mixed up. I also occasionally post using @dadfriendly but only as I’ve not had a chance to build the site yet (so that points to Mum Friendly)

Height: 5 foot 10 though according to my sister I’m shrinking

Hair: Brown and Grey

Eyes: Four when there’s computers around

Is this your first blogging conference?

Second, I’m including BlogCamp London as my first.

Are you attending both days?

Oh yes.

What are you most looking forward to at BritMums Live 2013?

I’ve got four bloggers (Rachel, Sonya, Lucy and Lynn) staying here on the Friday night, so I think I’m most looking forward to heading there on Saturday and meeting with other bloggers locally (Hannah and Beka) so we’re all in one big group where we all know each other. If you’re heading up from the Croydon/Sutton area and want to meet at Clapham Junction or Waterloo just shout.

What are you wearing?

Probably a Uniqlo t-shirt and some jeans.

What do you hope to gain from BritMums Live 2013?

Confidence, ideas, progression, friends. I’m shy, though you wouldn’t think so, as I don’t shut up. Inside I’m shaking but outside I’m overtalking, usually telling myself to shut up.

Tell us one thing about you that not everyone knows

I am one of those people who have been on Top of the Pops and been tapped on the shoulder and asked to stand in a certain place to be moved even further into the background (I can only assume it must be down to my natural beauty clashing with Jayne Middlemiss or Kate Thornton – I can’t remember who the presenter was). You can see me dance when Cast play ‘Beat Mama’ which fortunately seems to have disappeared from YouTube.

A Psychic Reading

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Last night we went to the Moshi Monsters 5th Birthday Party where I queued for a psychic reading. The lady in question has been on tv and has various celebrity clients, and it’s something I’ve had an interest in for a while now but kind of wanted to disprove as I don’t know how I believe it; a bit like, I want to believe in ghosts but until I see one I can’t believe in them? Does that make sense?

So last night I had a reading. I’m in a good place right now. A Very good place. The reading took 25 minutes and I found it really positive. H is an ‘old soul’ – I think I already knew that.

At one point the lady mentioned H’s full name – I said “hang on, I didn’t say her name, how did you know?” she told me she just knew. Talk of the spirits around me and so on, and I had to ask at the end about my dad. Again, positive and things which I’ve never talked about came up, and I’ve come away feeling much more at peace about things. Things that she can’t have known.

I also mentioned what Shaun and I are doing on our anniversary next month, and she said “oh wonderful” and pretended to know the band we were going to see – I did say “you don’t really know them!!” (as they’re not mainstream) and she admitted she didn’t – but I could tell she was just saying it… she says I’ve a good energy and I felt really comfortable around her too.

So yes, without revealing a thing, it was a pretty incredibly experience. One I’d like to do again. My tarot cards were read and again all positive. She picked up on the rubbish last year and a half we’ve had and how things have picked up massively this year too. I guess that could be general, but it is also true.

Interesting anyway… very interesting.

My Daughter, the Party Pooper

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Oh dear. Our second party for this year and H crashed, wailed, cried. She doesn’t like party games, it would seem. Though to be fair, I felt like they sprung right into it and didn’t explain the game – just a simple ‘ogre, ogre, can I cross your river’ ‘only if you’re wearing (insert colour/pattern and so on), but H didn’t get it, so was ‘got’ very early on. She wasn’t happy, she didn’t understand… and that sort of set the tone.

She spent most of the party on my knee crying.

They did the ‘sit in the hula hoop’ game where a hoop is removed, and slowly she eased back into the party, until HER hoop was taken away, and yet again she was distraught.

More cuddles.

The parachute came out and she eventually joined in when it became funny (helped by her friend J blowing raspberries at her) until they lined up for food and off she trotted, for pizza and chips…

The party finished and the children waited in line to get their party bags, and at H’s turn someone turned away, and again… tears. Heartbroken sad tears, thinking she wasn’t getting a bag (argh… what am I bringing my child up to be? Does she expect them? Argh!) but she got one, sobbing with happiness through her sad sobs, caught up in both emotions but happy.

God, it was hard work. I think she was tired. We’ve not had any more party invites recently… the part of me which found it stressful is feeling quite grateful for this…

We got home and she perked right up of course, bossing us around. Typical.

The Day We Went to the Cinema

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The plumber came to fix our water this morning, “hurrah!” we exclaimed dreaming of the elusive hot bath you always want when you can’t have. It wasn’t to be, as the water didn’t heat up. Fortunately plumber man came back and realised he’d set some internal thermostat to zero, and fixed it. Voila, water of warm again. Oh how I missed thee.

So we headed out to the Vue on Purley Way in Croydon as while it’s been nice to be at home, just the three of us for the longest time ever (probably since H was born, or since we went on holiday last year), it’s nice to get out and with us not buying travelcards for two weeks we’re also saving something like £100 a week, so treats are do-able.

Good job really, as two adult tickets plus one child one still came in around £25. Gulp.

Anyway, we saw the Tinker Bell film (not Tinkerbell). I need to find out why she has two names these days, but anyway it was charming, H stayed fairly transfixed to it (and the popcorn) and was really well behaved. The trailers beforehand worried her a bit (Yeah, well done, Monsters Inc 3D. You couldn’t make it up… she recoiled to the back of her seat when that appeared. Argh.) but actually the funniest bit (for me) was when the silent adverts went off and the programmes kicked in – there was a loud kind of BOOOOMMMMMM! Which if you’re not three is nothing, but if you’re three you jump in your seat and go “AAAAAAAAAAAARRRGGGHHHH!” really loudly which was kind of funny in a sort of I-shouldn’t-laugh-at-this way while comforting H and feeling bad for laughing. It was a bit too loud though.

But it was funny. Sorry H.

(It reminds me of being at school in Mrs Woodmancey’s class when she told us about going to see Jaws with her husband, on one attack she was the only one in the cinema to scream, and it was loud too and she felt terribly embarrassed, and yes, that was pretty funny too 34 years ago)

Anyway, Shaun apparently fell asleep, I watched the lot while keeping an eye on H (she was laughing through the film and only flinched at the animals that came onto the screen). Now I’m trying to think of something to do next… bowling, maybe? That will appeal to her competitive nature… ha.

‘Twas The Night Before Christmas

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so we baked, and made, and baked some more, and made even more. My back hurts. We wrote a letter to Santa, we dealt with another drama queen tantrum from H, then a visit from next door which is always good.

We have a cup of milk, a carrot, a mincemeat swirl, four star biscuits and a letter for Santa from H (dictated to me, signed by H), and all we’ve got to do is get her to sleep. Her presents are all upstairs, her bike is in the loft, and part of me wants to play the tormentor and leave just the helmet out (when she’s been misbehaving today I told her Santa would only leave a helmet and no bike) but hide the bike outside or under the table, and the other part just wants the morning to come so I can see her reaction (which will be good, as she’s getting almost everything she’s asked for thanks to me cleverly making sure she sees what we’ve bought her and made her see what a good idea it is).

We’ve got wine, we’ve got mulled wine sachets, we’ve got fizz, we’re ready. Well, if we’re not now we never will be…

Here’s hoping she’ll sleep well tonight… she’s pretty tired. I’d hate for her to wake up just as her bike is being brought down from the loft….

A Perfectly Adequate Christmas Tree

 

House Bling!

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One part of Christmas I really like is when all our drab dreary houses start to burst into a load of colour. The first time I ever saw houses with outdoor lights was back when we went to Dana Point in California at Christmas 1998. Everyone had such pride in their house, it may have looked all bright and tacky, but it was a well done bright and tacky. I grew to love the icicle lights on the edge of the rooves, and as for dancing Santa”s – hilarious! I’d only ever seen things like that on the front of shops.

These days house decorations are everywhere. We have a road near Morden Park where it’s almost compulsory to have your house decorated, and mid-way there’s someone doing the charity collection too. It’s great – especially when you’re three.

Actually, one small point. H sulked on Saturday before we went. She claimed Shaun and I hadn’t given her a turn to spot any housebling, and she announced she didn’t want to go. Luckily we turned the sulk around, picked up Jos from the station and then let her spot whatever she happened to fancy. Actually, hearing her exclaim amazement at things was like listening to a three year old going on thirty three. “ooh! What a beautiful snowflake! AH! A Blue fish!” and so on…

The houses around here are a bit lacking in bling – they used to be really good on the streets of Carshalton as you head towards St Helier Hospital, but no more. But it’s okay, as we have our Lower Morden Lane lights. They’ve even got their own Facebook page (though there’s not much going on there) but fortunately there’s others.

Painshill Santa 2012

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Was fantastic, as expected. It all went too quickly, it rained but stopped when we got there so it was muddy, but we had torches. We asked for an older present for H, so she got fairy wings which she’s beyond happy about which is great – and a Winnie the Pooh activity book which she loves too.

I’m tired and have so much to write about, but for now here’s a picture photoshopped in the hope it’ll look somewhere near acceptable. I need a new camera which takes good photos in the dark… on a budget.

Painshill Park Santa 2012

Christmas Songs

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H the Christmas Tree

So this afternoon was H’s nursery Christmas songs presentation – our first and last one – except Shaun couldn’t go. His work are installing a new system which he’s leading, so he couldn’t get away from work. I’ve videoed the lot in the hope it’s some consolation, but damn you work for getting in the way – it’s not like you get a second chance at this kind of thing.

My work were great about it, and I got there with ten minutes to spare, for the record.

H was a Christmas Tree. She got to stand up when the songs involved a tree which was great, as we received a Christmas Tree costume yesterday to review – and I have to say, while her nursery one was good, the one we’re reviewing is much much better. She loves it too which is good, as there’s an even more gorgeous tree dress but it was out of stock. More on that over at Mum Friendly soon…

Anyway, they sung six or seven songs, were all very cute, none of them were too shy and I was really pleased I didn’t burst into tears like I thought I would. H is currently rejecting my cuddles though, I’m SO proud of her, but she’s very much “mummy, leave me alone!” right now. Sob!

Another Party Over…

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but still there’s more next weekend.

Ha, oh yes, presents. I lost the carefully written out list of what everyone had given H for her birthday a few days ago – I have thankyou cards ready but no reminder of who gave what – and when you’ve almost 30 presents to thank people for and a memory like mine (also suffering a bit from the cold and lack of proper sleep), that’s not a good thing.

So I did what any normal person would do and had a tidy up. Everything was tidied, put back into its place until the room looked a bit like it did in mid-July but no, no list.

So I started checking the tops of cupboards (as that’s an obvious not-obvious place to put something of great importance when you can’t think straight any more) and sure enough the list found its way back to me. Lord only knows why I put it up there, but for some unknown reason I did. I probably even thought to myself at the time it’d be a good different place to put it so I wouldn’t forget it was there. Yeah, well done me.

Still, this means the thank-you cards can commence… fun. But I have my lovely new Cross pen to write them with so that’s a good thing.

Anyway, another party has gone today – which ended up in the room we did pilates back in January in, and had around twenty-two or so three and almost-three year olds pushing large exercise balls around the room while screaming in a sugared up kind of chaos. It was great! Add to that Shaun and another dad friend of ours had a race on the indoor running track (Shaun won) which finally ended up with all our kids racing each other like crazy working off that sugar. Does anyone anywhere host parties on indoor running tracks? Maybe I should start a business up…. imagine it; egg and spoon race, run to the birthday cake, first to the chocolate fountain.

Hmmmm…..


image stolen shamelessly without permission from here because that’s where we were today. Though maybe a chocolate fountain might get messy… hmm. It’s a fabulous track for running on though.

Lavender and Stonehenge Part 2

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Yes, I got around to this. I’ve been tired and busy, and I’m sorry. So we left Sacrilege, being told it wouldn’t open again until at least 1.30 – we were hungry and cold so decided to come home and get some food.

Shaun then spent the next however long studying Will It Rain Today while Jos and I studied Twitter and Facebook for updates from the Sacrilege 2012 accounts. After a while we saw the weather had cleared, though no updates on the site – so decided to head up to Mayfield Lavender. Thanks to the joys of Twitter and Jos’s phone being better than mine, a message that Sacrilege was open again meant a quick detour – Mayfield can wait – and we got to our bouncy Stonehenge with just enough time to spare.

We had to wait, as they were only allowing a few people on at a time as it was wet, so a bit slippery. That wasn’t too long a way though, and eventually we were on, though I stayed to the side looking after our bags and cameras while Jos, Shaun and H jumped around – and oh my, it was brilliant – the smiles, the laughter – everyone was smiling and laughing – even though the rain had started again.

Sacrilege 2012 in Cheam Park - taken by Jos

Sacrilege 2012 in Cheam Park – taken by Jos

I even had a go. This is me with my bad back – so I was sensible and didn’t overdo it – and I can now see why trampolining is good for the pelvic floor… there are photos of me jumping, there’s photos of us all jumping. It was completely and utterly brilliant, so we were sad to get the countdown to get off.

Our friends arrived just as we’d got off, and managed to get on and start bouncing – and we saw anyone could get on, so H and Shaun went on for more while we watched under big umbrellas – until it was cut short – the rain was too heavy, and actually they were about 30 minutes from closing anyway, so that was that.

A group decision was made to come back to ours for coffee, the girls played really nicely together and we all got to bask in our good mood, finished with some lovely bangers and mash for tea. It was a damn fine day.