My year that was 2013.

It was just another ordinary year, 2013, pretty much like any other in my life. It has had its highs and its lows. But I do not believe when I wake up tomorrow morning I will feel any different, I will not look any different, .and I dont suppose for one minute this horrible irritating cough will have gone.  I wont be any richer or any poorer, I don't have any inclination to celebrate a new year, and I plan on being tucked up in my bed before the bells ring at midnight same as I am any other night of the week. 

So what has been happening this year? Well its nice to see the three girls happy and settled. Daughter No1 got engaged earlier in the year, No2 got herself a new job in a new area with an new man and got herself engaged as well last week. and Daughter No3 has just celebrated her first anniversary with her boyfriend. It  is nice to see them all settled and happy, after all that is all any of us parents wish for our children. 

Sadly its been a bad year for Son No1 and due to circumstances beyond his control he could not be with us for Christmas. Another seat at the table so to speak was also empty as another year has passed without seeing or hearing from Son No2. We know he is getting on ok as we speak to his girlfriends parents when ever we bump into them. Happy new year to each and every one of the children and their partners. May 2014 be even happier than 2013 was. 

Have had rather a rough time health wise with OH, but he is adapting to the necessary changes and taking his medication voluntarily, so here is hoping he keeps improving. 

Of course on top of that Daughter No1 has blessed us with not one baby but two, she always liked a bargain. 

My life is still pretty much the same, work, blog, comp, and enjoy my family. We enjoyed a holiday this year that we won. I am quite proud that I have just completed my second Project 365 and its lovely to look back on the changes in the grandchildren. We moved house over the summer, and with us being just around the corner now from the grandchildren is a huge help to my daughter. It is also nice to be able to see the little changes in the twins as the other two lived two hours away when thy were small so we only ever saw them three or four times a year. 

I don't do new years resolutions,and I don't do sentimentality but I would like to raise a glass to everybody that has read my blog and supported me through the year. Thank you for being there. 

All the best for 2014 to each and every one of you. Cheers!!

The traditions of Christmas, old and not so old.

Years ago when my own children were young we always made mince pies for Santa, he much preferred the fact we made the effort to make them for him and this is a tradition that we have carried on with since the year my daughter moved up here from down south. Fifi turned five that Christmas and she clearly remembers coming to Auntie T's house and as well as making mince pies for Santa we made pizzas for tea that night along with Uncle S.

So a few days before Christmas the children came over and made mince pies and melting snowman biscuits.

Bob using my new food processor 

adding faces to his biscuits

Fifi making mince pies

Once they have finished baking we made some Christmas crackers to put on the table for Christmas.

making crackers

here are the crackers we made

We started with another tradition the following year and decided we all enjoyed it that much we would carry it on. This started because my daughter had moved into  rather a small flat and there wasn't room for everybody and she wanted to spend her first Christmas in her new house and not somewhere else. So we decided that rather than taking the children's presents to them on Christmas Day we would see them on Christmas Day spend some time with them but bring them to our house the following day and do Christmas all over again with presents from our family with us all there.

So we have carried on with this tradition. The children get the best of both worlds this way, my daughter also gets a break from them and they have another day of fun.

So as usual we popped over on Christmas Day and spent some time with them.

playing with their mountain of presents

Fifi with Minky in his Christmas outfit

Granny Nan and Dinky

Granddad and Xander

So we left them to the rest of their day and we went home to the peace and quiet to normality.

On Boxing Day we went round to pick them up and bring them over. We sat and waited on Auntie H and her OH coming over. 

waiting patiently

 So Bob wanted to use his new camera, so he took one

yes we are a touch mad, but happy

and then granddad took one

its Chhhrrriiiisssstttmaaaasss

Once the other visitors arrived we started with the present unwrapping.

jigsaw puzzles

 and then we all had fun putting the puzzle back together. It took the five of us a while but it was educational fun.

assembling the map jigsaw

We pulled the home made crackers at lunch time, and we all wore our hats. 

lunch time

As Auntie T could not make it down for Boxing Day the children had a third day of fun, on the friday. 

When Auntie T came down the children, all four of them, along with mum and dad came 

over.

Bob on his scooter from Auntie T

G and Minky

Auntie T and Dinky

playing with a keyboard app on their tablets and phones

So three days of fun was had, three days of memories, memories I want to log on my blog for everybody to look back on one day.

Hope everybody else had a nice Christmas. 

Project 365 - the final ten pictures

Well folks, I have done it, shared my life in 365 pictures with you for the second year running. The ups and downs, the laughs and the tears, the fun and the grandchildren. They had doubled in number this year with the twins coming along six weeks ago. I have done an update on them that you can see here, just some cute pictures.

So here we have the final ten pictures.

22nd Dec

I had "borrowed" the babies one at a time the other week when they were over and smuggled them up the stairs. I stripped them off and put green paint on their feet and made footprints of each of them. I colour copied the foot prints so that we had enough for everybody. I printed a holly pattern as a border round the paper and then added the twins names. I wrote Mistletoes on it and the date under that. I then lightly stuck down the feet and laminated the sheet to preserve them forever. I then made this into part of everybody's Christmas. I did manage to somehow get green paint on Xanders face so daughter knew I was up to something, but the older two were sworn to secrecy, and surprisingly enough they managed to keep the secret.

23rd December

There are some traditions that just cannot be broken. One of these traditions is making Mince pies for Santa and allergy free biscuits for the elves. We have shared a post on the allergy free melted snowman biscuits here. So here are the mince pies that Fifi and I made.

24th December

I received some dairy free chocolate gingers and a card through the post as a thank you for being part of  The Dream Team. I don't like ginger but OH says they were very nice.

25th December

Well as it is Christmas Day we had to go round and see the children. The were inundated with parcels, but we managed to get a picture of them all in their Christmas outfits.

26th December

We have another tradition, that the children do not get their presents off of our side of the family on Christmas day. Instead they come round to one of our houses and get a second Christmas Day with Aunts and Uncles and grandparents and get spoiled all over again.

This year sadly daughter No2 was not going to be here but No3 and her OH could make it. We all had a great day playing with the children's toys, watching daft tv programmes and eating nice food.

This year they got pj', dressing gowns and slippers. Arts and crafts stuff, books and jigsaw puzzles as well as a Blue ray amongst their presents. One of the jigsaws we got Bob was a wooden map of the UK with all the counties written on. Not only fun but educational as well.

27th December

Daughter No 2 came down to join us all today and brought with her the children's presents. Bob got (amongst other things) a scooter that lights up and flashes different colours. Have to say it was a bit like pandemonium with 3 daughters and their OH's, 4 grandchildren, us and the dog, but it is nice to get together. A lot of reminiscing and laughing goes on. Shame the two sons were not with us, maybe one year we will get all five of them together.

28th December

Whilst daughter No2 took Fifi out today to buy her a jacket we got left with the dog. Here he is trying to get hubby's attention.

29th

Another tradition that the children started many may years ago, that has been taken over by the grandchildren is - Grandma must get a tube of Jelly tots for her Christmas, and so here are said jelly tots. I am easy to please and cheap to buy for.

30th

Fifi and all her class mates have drawn a picture of themselves, that the school have then made into a calender. We got a copy of this as part of our Christmas. I had been sent an A3 laminator a while back to review, so we ordered up some A3 laminates and laminated it to keep it good and make it use able. I love this sort of present.

31st

Both hubby and I made Dr's appointments as this horrible cough is just not shifting. I have had it over two weeks now and it seems to want to be settling on my chest, so we both got antibiotics for it. While we were in the town I went into Boots to look at the sale items as I had been given a Boots voucher as well as money to spend for my Christmas, and so I decided to treat myself to some nice things.

Minky and Dinky - a photographic update

I have been asked for more and more pictures of the new babies. They are doing well, still not great sleepers and both tend to be cluster feeders overnight. . Minky is up to 6lb 15 at his last weight in and Dinky is at 7lb 1. Mum and dad are both quite tired but have had a great help with Fifi being off school as she is happy to sit with them during the day and they are quite happy to fall asleep lying on top of her.

So here are some pictures that I have. Will come back and fill in the missing dates when I go and raid my daughter's/SIL's photos that they have  taken. A lot of these have been taken by Bob who is trying most days to get me pictures. But whenever we are in I take some myself. Also some were taken by Granny Nan.

I got to bath Minky when I was in today, first time I have bathed either of them. Bob was going to take a photograph of this but took a video instead but it was too dark for it to come out.


So here we have one a day with what I have.


21st November

the very first photo at the very first meeting

22nd Nov

Dinky's foot

 23rd

they are home

 24th

cuddles from big sister

25th

aaaahhhhh so cute

26th

Minky with a friends daughter

27th

Dinky asleep

28th

meeting the cat

29th

Minky with jaundice

30th

on the play mat

December

1st

one snoozy Minky

2nd

Grranddad and Minky

 3rd

Fifi stroking Dinky

4th

Dinky in the bath

6th

Mummy and Minky

7th

Daddy and Dinky

9th

Dinky on granddad's knee

10th

one unhappy boy out of his bath

11th

in their pram

12th

and again, well they dont do much!!

13th

in the pushchair

14th

Fifi and Minky

15th

Dinky in her chair

16th

Minky in the swinging chair

17th

Dinky says "put the camera away"

20th

Dinky in the swing

22nd

Minky in a suit Auntie Tweeze bought him

24th

Minky and K

25th

Fifi amusing Minky

26th

Fifi snuggled with Dinky

27th

Auntie Tweeze and Dinky

28th

Fifi with both asleep

29th

Minky in the car

30th 

Granddad and Fifi, twins have just been bathed

31st 

going shopping

an update-The health visitor was into them on Friday 3rd Jan and Minky now weights 8lb 8 a massive increase from his birth weight of 5lb 9oz, thats a 3lb gain in six weeks, not bad for a breast fed baby and for the first time he is heavier than his sister. She weighs in at 7lb 15 ( from her 6lb 3). Not sure where he has put it because he still looks smaller than her, and he still has his new born look, where as she has lost it. 

Have also added more to a google + album that I will keep updating as well. 

https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/+ElaineLivingstone/albums/5964065668221333633