Reasons to be Cheerful: Me Time #R2BC

I have enjoyed a few days without my children before getting back together with them. Its so important for me to be able to a) unwind b) catch up on things without children needing adult intervention! So here are my first half of half term reasons to be cheerful:

1) Harry Potter Marathon

We are having a whole school Harry Potter themed World Book Day so I had an excuse to binge watch our entire collection (although the last movie is missing!!):

2) Furry Family

My daughter has decided that as she neglects the guinea pigs that they would be better off being mine. I am actually very happy to be responsible for the little cuties:

3) Overdue Hair Do:

Teaching Life Skills

As a parent I know I need to teach my children various life skills to equip them for their later lives. Of course I have to ensure that they are capable of them before letting them loose! The purchase of a flat pack guinea pig run on Saturday was a great opportunity for my daughter to hone her assembling and screw driving skills:

First of all following the instructions and putting things in the right place:

At this point she pointed out that I had omitted to screw the first panel on to the triangles and she set to screwing them together:

The reward for her labours? A mug of soup in the cold garden whilst watching the guinea pigs have their first experience of grass:

As for her little brother who is a little young for flat pack furniture he was getting in some valuable practice at washing up:

What essential life skills are you teaching your children for independent living when they grow up?

Small Steps to Tidyness

I sometimes feel like I'm fighting a losing battle when it comes to trying to get a neat and tidy house. The three of us seem to spread our belongings over a wider area as possible! Whenever I tackle one corner or room the children are trashing somewhere else. It becomes a bit of a vicious circle but one I'm determined to break!


This half term my mum volunteered to help sort out the sitting room which really ought to be a place I can be happy to invite people into. It's an awkward room as it has the hall opening into it at one end, the kitchen coming out the other and the stairs going up the side. There is also a fireplace on one wall with a fake fire in it which we have never used. The way we originally put in the furniture was dictated by these constraints and the large traditional TV we have been lent.


There was little option as to where to put the Ladderax storage as only one corner had enough room. However we ended up with first of all the sofa and then the children's chairs in front of the shelves as there was no where else to put them. This made the storage quite hard to use and manage it ended up looking like this:

Not a very inviting looking bit of storage! My mum on Monday helped me to shift furniture round so that nothing was in front of the shelves any more. I then found that where I sit was directly opposite all that mess... So on Saturday with no trips out I decided to knuckle down and do something about it. 

New term, new....

Tomorrow is the first day of day of the new school term up here in Cumbria. After a long wet summer holiday my daughter will be heading into year 3 and my son starting in Reception. It will be a whole new experience for all of us.


New to Junior School


My daughter may find it a shock to the system moving to the more formal schooling of juniors. We are going to have to get use to the joys of proper homework so guess I need to start as I mean to go with ensuring she gets it done. This is her second year at this school so I hope it goes at lot smoother than last year. I hope that she learns to control her temper and emotions better so she can settle and make stronger friendships.


New to School


My son will be part time at big school for the first 2 weeks. The transition from nursery school to Reception is designed to make it as smooth as possible for the children. He is very excited about going and I'm sure he will be perfectly happy. I think its going to be harder for him to have to wait until the afternoon to go in wearing his new uniform (which I've spent too much time labelling!):

New mummy

I'm going to be on my own for most of the day 5 days a week from the end of the month. This opens to many opportunities for me:

• sorting out the house and getting a proper housework routine (FlyLady here I come!)
• expanding my existing Usborne book business
• getting going with the family history business
• finding a part time paid job to fit into school hours (not an easy thing to do)
• getting into shape with Rosemary Conley (school holidays not good for my weight!)

It will be interesting to see how it goes for all of us so watch this space....

Hope's for the week ahead

Well all my plans for the year so far have just about to come to nothing thanks to the snow and in fact somethings have got worse so I need to knuckle down and start over and really get cracking. So I will put down what I need to, what I would like to do and what I can save for the future...

I need to

Get at least the home blessing hour done and keep up with the housework.

Complete my tax return

Get kids to all their clubs & medical appointments

Do 2nd last week of my day job

Sort out the laundry backlog and get it all away..

Get closer to the 5 fruit & veg a day into both myself & kids

Recycle the 3 month back log of glass!

Keep the habit of having a clear kitchen at bedtime


I would like to

Get the sitting room company ready so I can have people over

Help kids get their room somewhere approaching a space they can play in

Have the bedtime routine sorted so I stop having issues of bed returns & arguments


On hold for the future

Clearing dining room

Sorting out the soon to be ex's abandoned stuff into bin it, sell it, use it


Let's see how I actually get on!