And it's off to school we go!

I know I complain, but that WAS a fast summer! And only five weeks until the next two-week holiday (I wish I went to school in Scotland....sheese!)

One Last Day!!

Oh my god- I swear I have tried. Last night was nightmare Tuesday. Mae ALWAYS has a nightmare on a Tuesday, no exeption. And this morning she came into the room crying that she doesn't want to go to her childminders she just wants to stay with me. So now we are ready to go out the door and she wants to sleep over there. If it's emotional warfare she is winning. I am already exhausted and now it's work time!!

On the other hand and on a lighter note, we went to the Cocobean Company yesterday with friends. We have been before and blogged it before but they have new premises with two giant dinosaurs, a pirate ship and GOLD PANNING!! We got 5 pieces and it was TOTALLY addictive! Plus the fact you come home with chocolate never hurts...

WwwwwwwwwwwwwwwIPEOUT!

Mae doesn't often wipeout, and thank god she did this at her childminders, as I can't cope easily with this kind of thing AT ALL! (Don't think I could cope with Henry, Dana!!). But Mae was really brave, no problems at bedtime and even let me cut off the skin hanging off her hand.
And last night I got given a stone she picked out of her knee. That's a keeper.

Le cousins

I've kinda got these next three posts back to front, as the wedding and holiday are below this one, but these next few pictures happened the last week of our fantastic summer holiday 2010!

We went to the skate park in Halifax and besides sliding and biking around the humps and bowls, we saw a guy get arrested by about 6 cops.

Mae had the best time with Sean and Brianna, and they got on so well we barely saw them from week two of the holiday.

They were pretty excited by the wedding and Sean danced all night. Mae lasted till about 12:30 and they recovered well with a breakfast at Smitty's the next morning. Sean vomited halfway through breakfast (I blame the chocolate milk; Chris blames mum), but that didn't deter him from packing the rest of it away!

Brianna always had a ready, cheeky smile. The last time we saw them was two years ago (terrible, I know!), and she was so much less shy, and I love her to death! I hope it doesn't have to be another 2 years before we see them again.

le wedding

It was the best wedding I think I have ever been to! The candy bar had a lot to do with it, but Sandra and Andrew mixed the best of zany with the best of touching with a lot of romance thrown in! Obviously a very happy couple!!

The readings were well done, by Sandra's aunt Flo, and myself! I cracked a couple of times but made it through, with no help from my older brother....

They also had a hand binding ceremony which was lovely. The minister doing that bit is Sandra's friend Jen and how she made it through I don't know. But she did, and they did.

The best man speech by Andrew's friend Chipman was brilliant, and I don't have a picture of it yet but Jachim's drum solo was astounding!!

This was my favourite part though..all the guests could get their photos done with frames and moustaches, by another of Sandra's friends. Too cool. Lots of zany combos, it will make for a brilliant keepsake for them!

My little brother. sniff! But I have a new, fabulous sister in law! Cool!!!

le holiday

These pictures seem so old now! Thanks for giving me a gentle (..if rude) shove, Sharon, to get these up. Geoff, me and Mae had a great day out in lovely Halifax, where I will buy my waterfront condo when I win the lottery.

We saw this cool busker who did some fabulous tricks.

We walked on the jetty.

We ate bagels and chilled out.

And for your earlier rude email, Mrs Reid......

I'm not even going to explain this picture!!!

Jobs

Some jobs are good, some jobs are good but hard and some jobs are just crap.

Not sure that our jobs are crap, just really busy and relentless. It feels like we haven't had a proper holiday in ages. I was worried before we moved to this house that the garden would be too big a job, but the summer so far has been glorious so my favourite job is deadheading roses. I might have to keep some just to deadhead them. Every night I have to do about 30 minutes around the garden just deadheading.

I also like discovering new things. We have two great mock oranges, one is hidden behind a lilac and a buddleia, which will be chopped down to make it stand out more. We also have a fruiting cherry tree!! And alstromeira, which I really like.

The cherry tree is the giant red tree right at the back between the cypress trees. (this picture was taken at 10:30pm on the solstice. Thank god that's over, couldn't sleep at all!)
And the alstromeria are growing below all those tall trees in the shade...

I'm not saying that if it was raining everyday I would enjoy it as much, but I still think I would enjoy it a bit.

Happy Birthday Sharon!!!!

The Agony and the Ecstacy

So you have an arch. It's got some kind of rose climbing on it, so you treat it well (well, as a rose deserves), you prune it and tend to it, waiting for showy, blowsy roses to appear and knock you out with their beauty and scent.

The you get this stupid crappy specimen, looks like it belongs in a hedge by the side of a motorway, now it looks like the gateway to a prison yard rather than a utopia. Stupid bloody roses. Sayonara.


But! There's a weird bush growing near the house, no idea what it is, thought it might be some kind of dogwood, not sure but there are LOADS of blooms coming and then a guy who came in to help with the garden said he wasn't sure maybe it was a Philodelphus? Might smell nice.

Nice? It smells like a candy shop, it is absolutely lovely and look at the millions of blooms on it!! When it fully flowers I am just going to sit under it and bask in the scent. Me and the bees. Fab.

.....fading......fast.....

I need a holiday.

Finally!

Mae has been desperate, since seeing Dana's post from last year, to see a Monster Truck. Well, last night, dressed for the occasion in her dino pyjamas, she finally got the chance.

Unfortunately, she also saw a human canonball. Who was a woman.

I think I have lost my daughter to the circus.

Nanny McPhee

I have finally yanked out this tooth for Mae- I think it shocked her but it sure was fun! She got us back by saying the tooth fairy left twice as much as she actually did. Must be inflation.

We went to an Open Day at the local Agricultural College last weekend, and didn't do much as we promised one of Geoff's workmates that we would go see her husbands art for the Spring Fling, the annual open doors art weekend. His stuff is amazing, something to save for. And where they live is idyllic. Their cat also recently had 6 kittens (a week ago) and Mae got to hold one. Fab. But we did have time to see a very unhappy sheep get sheared. It didn't take long and I am sure she felt better after, but I think Mae may be a vegetarian in the making. Either that or a butcher. She knows happy animals make yummy meat. Although like me no baby animals pass our lips. Ew.

Fee Fie Fo Fum

A lot of people think Dumfries is a boring little burgh, and maybe if you are a teenager it can get a bit lifeless, but show me a teenager who isn't bored? In fact, I think Dumfries does loads of great things, and festival season is starting. There are town festivals, loads of parades, world oceans week, good nychburris, Scott Mays Daredevil Stunt Show, The Dumfries Show, the Spring Fling is just finishing, etc, etc.


But the coolest thing I have seen in a long time is Big Man Walking. Nuts. He was in the town centre and met a girlfriend that was ade for him here, walked around the whole town where various people gave him gifts, danced for him, recited some Burns, went to Moat Brae house where JM Barried lived as a child and met Nana from Peter Pan.

We followed him most of the way. I think he was sung back to sleep at Dock Park at the end of the day, but we were soaked and I was frozen so we only lasted 4 hours. Brrrr.