Reasons to be Cheerful: Hero Worship and Energetic Fun #R2BC

 
I am a day late once again to join in with Michelle! Life is so hectic at this time of the year so we have decided that there will no official link up again now until January when I will be back hosting. Meanwhile here are my reasons to be cheerful this week:
1) Hero Worship
As a teenager I avidly watched our wonderful middle distance runners as they dominated the world of athletics. To actually meet one of my heroes whilst at the Liverpool Cross Country, put a huge smile on my face. (I did have to explain to my 12 year old why I was so excited!

2) Energetic Fun
On Friday I went country dancing with my mum and the U3A. Boy can those retired folks show us young 'uns a thing or too! So much fun.
Then on Sunday my mum persuaded me to go for a short hike up Cunswick Scar. A lovely day for blowing out the cobwebs:

3) Feeling Christmassy

We acquired a mini Christmas tree at Ikea on our way home from Liverpool. We haven't had a real tree for years even if its smaller than our fake tree:

Reasons to be Cheerful: Festive Fun #R2BC

We have reached that point of the Festive celebrations when you can't remember what day of the week it is! So can I blame that for not posting on the Thursday but waiting until the Friday? Any way it has allowed for an extra bit of festive fun to creep in. I hope that you have all had lots of happy moments to share with our other linkers? Next week hosting goes back to Michelle for January so thank you all for putting up with me in December. Meanwhile here are my festive reasons to be cheerful:
1) Festive parkrun
For the first time since 2014 we actually had our Fell Foot Christmas parkrun. Plenty of Santas, elves, reindeer and other Christmas characters running or walking round the 5 km. I have already posted a link to a video of the event.  

2) Christmas part one

We had an early Christmas meal with my parents to kick start the celebrations. It was lovely to have a properly laid out table with candles and decorations:

After dinner we then played board games and had a chilled out evening.

3) The Last Jedi

Merry Christmas with Baileys Cheesecake Recipe

Before I sign off for Christmas here are a couple of festive things to share with my lovely readers! First up our Christmas parkrun at Fell Foot yesterday:

The photos can be seen here but here are a few of the best:

And as final festive gift here is how I made Bailey's Cheesecake:

Reasons to be Cheerful: A week of cheer! #R2BC

Are we really almost half way through December already? I can't believe in less than a fortnight it will be Christmas Day! At least there are plenty of festive frolics to make me cheerful now. I am also watching season 2 of the Crown as I type which I am thoroughly enjoying! Here are my 7 main reasons to be cheerful this week:
1) Community Coffee Morning 

We had a Christmas coffee morning as a community as we had Big Lottery fund money left over from our playground opening in the summer. One of our residents is a professional cook and she made all these wonderful goodies for us to enjoy:

2) Magical Kendal

Whilst out to scope out shots for our latest Fell running video I saw how magical Fletcher Park was looking in the wintry light:

3) Fabulous Frost

Reasons to be Cheerful: School, Views, Sofa and more! #R2BC

It's December so that means I am back to hosting the linky to give Michelle a well earned rest! Please join in to share your happy moments from the last week. Then visit the other linkers and comment on their blogs. Let us all share the love!

1) Forest Fun

I had a great first day teaching forest school and its a real mood boost to be out in the great outdoors with enthusiastic children:

2) Filming on the Helm

We had a fabulous afternoon up on this hill to create our first Fell Running film. How could this view not make you smile:

3) Free Sofa

We were very lucky to be given a free preloved sofa that fits in our limited space. I have had to rearrange a lot of furniture but its worth it to have a place that we can be cosy whilst watching TV:

SportsDirect.com Christmas for a Fiver Challenge #sdfiverchallenge

Sponsored Post

I was challenged by BritMums to find Christmas gifts for £5 or less from SportsDirect.com. Being a sporty family this was a perfect challenge for me! There are plenty of gifts listed in their Gifts Under £5 section but there are always plenty of items around the site that were £5 or less too.

First of all for my son, who is growing rapidly, I first of all found some bargain shorts (£5) for all the sport he likes to do:

Then as he often has incredibly muddy football or fell running shoes I bought him a proper sports shoe bag which had been reduced to £4.99:

Reasons to be Cheerful: Back to routine #R2BC

The lovely Michelle is hosting again this month as she enjoys reading all our happy posts, please pop over and see why she is cheerful this week. Meanwhile here are my reasons this week:

1) Simple fun

On the way home from town my son met a couple of friends in the park and kicked a football around with them for a bit before heading into the playground:

2) Happy Herdwick

How could this smile not be infectious:

Reasons to be cheerful: Festive edition #R2BC

I am so excited that its Christmas tomorrow and I will be with some of my closest family. For me this is a lovely time of year which fills me with many reasons to be cheerful:
1) Strange goings on
We were Christmas shopping on Friday and Kendal town centre was buzzing with the Cumbrian market and intriguing folk like this magical lady:

2) Proud Mummy

My son did his first junior Parkrun whilst we were down south and he was 8th out of 88! He was the first boy in the 10 and under category and smashed his PBs for 1 km (by 30 seconds) and 1 mile (by 1 minute):

3) Family and Friends

We had a 580 mile road trip this weekend on our annual pre Christmas catch up. Seeing as many as possible of our close family and friends. Sunday was with my four friends from high school plus our families. Monday we caught up with my beautiful step daughter who turned 18 on Saturday:

Wishing all my readers a Happy Christmas! Why are you smiling this week? Please link your posts and grab the badge...

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Reasons to be Cheerful: The Force Awakens #R2BC

Can you tell I am excited about a certain film that is out today and I'm off to see with my son later? We've had some bad things this week such as tummy bugs and a broken nose but also all this to be cheerful about:
1) Christmas is coming
The great thing about having a child at primary school is having all the fun events in the run up to Christmas. My son was the Innkeeper in his school play one night this week and did really well. Then 3 generations of us went to the parish church for carols and music which really put is in the mood for the season ahead (the fact that there was no heating due to the floods made it seem even more Christmassy as it was fffffrreeezing):

2) Running

After a cancelled event the previous week I was so happy to be able to run around Grizedale forest in the dark and snow this weekend! This was my relieved face at making it round 10k on a tough course with 16 people after me:

3) Happy mummy

Both my children have made me proud this week. My son got his club colours for 24 races this year and my daughter helped out at a tea party for senior citizens at her school. Love these two so much:

4) The simple things

We have been digging out some board games to escape from watching too much TV. This one Coronation Railway Game (affiliate link) is so simple but includes our local train stations:

Why are you smiling this week? Please link your posts and grab the badge...

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Reasons to be Cheerful: Starting 2015 with a smile #R2BC

Thank you Jo for hosting the linky for this week as I was on holiday! Hopefully people will find plenty of reasons to be cheerful in this festive season! Let's try to carry on the positive thinking into 2015. I hope its a healthy and happy year for all the linkers:

1) Relaxed Christmas

We were with my parents and some other close family from Christmas Eve until Boxing Day and enjoyed good company, good food and lovely presents! I was dead chuffed with my first ever pavlova:

2) Single Parent break

We have just got back from a lovely single parent break at Stratford upon Avon Youth Hostel:

There were around 90 of us with exclusive use of the hostel for 2 nights which included day trips out and New Year's Eve party:

I will be writing about our days out separately!

3) Meeting family

Our family is quite a big one and we are good at staying in touch with lots of cousins. Today I introduced my children to my second cousin and her mum as we were passing close enough to their home to visit. They got to meet some of the gorgeous Rhodesian Ridgebacks that my cousin has (for my son's sake from behind a gate!):

Really hope we can see more of the family in 2015.

Reasons to be Cheerful: It's the end of term! #R2BC

Thanks once again to Jo for hosting the linky for December. Hopefully people will find plenty of reasons to be cheerful in this festive season! I am actually on the right day this week:

1) Teaching

Got my formal report and in every area I have improved and in most have moved up a grade which is great to know. I have plenty to work on in January with my new keystage but ended on a good note. Lots of lovely cards and pressies from the children with I think 4 variations on the spelling of my surname... Best comment:

Thank you for teaching us about Islam I've really enjoyed it.

I have agreed to run a French club next half term which is really exciting too.

2) Christmas Service

Term ended on a beautiful note with the Christmas service at church. It was very traditional and included solo singing, musical instruments and readings. Obviously I can't share photos of the actual event so you will have to make do with the beautiful advent ring:

3) The Hobbit

We are big Tolkien fans in this house so just had to see the latest and last Hobbit on the first weekend it was out! A family vote meant that we saw the 3D version and we were all dead excited waiting to get in:

It was amazing piece of cinema with scary bits, great fight scenes and reasons to cry! Wonder what Peter Jackson will do next...

Getting into the Christmas spirit

After last week's school Christmas plays we really started getting into the Christmas spirit. At the weekend we helped decorate the church Christmas tree:

Then we went into Kendal to check out the Christmas market and buy presents for the family:

My daughter spent a lot of last night wrapping them up! Its useful having an older child who can take away some of the work at Christmas...

Tonight we have assembled our gingerbread house. Cheating due to lack of time and bought a kit:

Reasons to be Cheerful: Feeling festive #R2BC

Thank you Jo for hosting the linky for December. Hopefully people will find plenty of reasons to be cheerful in this festive season! Here are mine for this week:

1) Teaching

Things are starting to come together with my teaching now. Its hard to get it alright every time with planning an effective lesson for pupils to learn with good differentiation whist being creative! I don't get it all right all the time but things are improving and I am certainly improving on making my lessons exciting and different.. I managed to combine World War Two with gymnastics this week..

My best subject so far is French and I am looking forward to teaching the little ones next term. I was even told that I sounded French by a child who is half French themselves! 

2) Christmas Plays

My children are both rehearsing hard for their production next week whilst I am doing my bit to help at my school. So much work behind the scenes to create props and today I helped to paint the backdrop:

3) Family Fun

Its all a bit manic at the moment but we all had a great time at a disco in Staveley on Friday night. My daughter was invited by her friend and we all went along! There was a table of parents so I got plenty of adult conversation, my daughter danced the night away and my son was mucking about with the younger boys:

Reasons to be Cheerful: A Happy Christmas

I really can't top Jo's post for cheerfulness but we had such a wonderful Christmas I have many reasons to be cheerful. I am also back hosting in January so watch this space!

1) Remote Family & Friends

The one thing about having spent 25 years living in the home counties is that most of my family and school friends are still down there. So a bit like the wise men the weekend before Christmas we pack up Christmas gifts and make the trek down south. 

My son and I exceeded our record for numbers seen in the weekend this year with a total of 20! Catching up with my brother and his family, my step daughter and my children's cousins was lovely if brief. Then a Sunday lunch with 16 of us based on friendships going back 30 years.

Check out my place name!

2) A Family Christmas

There were 11 of us for the main event on Christmas Day with extended family staying altogether. It was so relaxed being with everyone and my children had plenty of attention as everyone else was grown up. My daughter was put in charge of handing out the presents:

3) The joy of children

One of the greatest joys about being a parent is watching your child's face when they open up their gifts. My children were so excited by receiving the Lego they had asked for:

Plus a few surprises:

4) Festive Family Fun

I have already written about our lovely Boxing Day walk which all added to a very Happy Christmas. It was topped off by a trip to see Hansel and Gretel at the Brewery. Going to the Christmas production there has been a tradition for the last 6 years! This year it was an international theatre company New International Encounter and the production was partly in Norwegian. Here is a snippet:

5) Operation Tween Bedroom

Now we are back its all systems go to try and get my daughter's bedroom fully up to tween mode! We are using to Christmas money to complete the furnishings and fittings and its great to see books coming back down from the loft to compliment the new ones she was given for Christmas:

So why are you smiling?