Triangle faced monkey

Huffle and the boys started on a pancake breakfast without me while I was having a shower. Unfortunately my recipe card said 'half if only for us four' but what they didn't know was that I don't halve the recipe, I 2/3 the recipe as it is impossible to halve 3 eggs but I didn't have that written down. Small laid the table, Huffle prepared fruit and Smallest measured ingredients. Who knows how much of what was used in the end before I intervened but they tasted good and we still had some left over for the boys for tomorrow's breakfast.

We left the kids for a couple of hours this morning/early afternoon to go bathroom shopping again. They played on their tablets, watched the Blue Jays and took their clothes up from the laundry. We bought some spot lights and met a very nice little Chinese man who was extremely helpful. He was like our very own Dobby the HouseElf and we wished we could bring him home. We asked him to measure a bath that was once again attached on the ceiling (it's a space thing) but after climbing up some steps he said he couldn't see the hole (to be fair he was only four foot tall) Huffle asked if he could climb up and look and he said "yes but please don't stay too long". In our next shop we purchased more lights for the side of the mirror and chose a countertop we liked but didn't buy it as we weren't sure of the sizing. In the next shop I was hungry and couldn't make any decisions and I was annoyed with people not understanding me so we quickly bought a box of floor and wall tiles to see if we really did want them, discounted a countertop from there and came home for lunch.

We like this countertop

The boys had made their own lunch and were watching the baseball. We had lunch and then we all went out to the cinema to see Guardians of the Galaxy II. Smallest held my hand and snuggled up to me through the whole film. He really is not right. It was a good film though I can't remember the first one so I need to see that one now. Unfortunately there was a man a couple of rows in front of us that kept looking at his phone and texting. It was really annoying and at the end I told one of the staff who said they normally send people in to check things like that and that I should have come out and told them.

On the way home we stopped for fish and chips and then came home. Smallest had a relaxing bath and went to bed. Huffle and I laid out the floor tiles and we really like them. Small, Huffle and I played a game of online Catan and then he had a shower and went to bed.

Huffle and I are very very very tired but we managed to watch The Durrells before bed. Lovely Sunday night viewing.

Our first tulips this year

 

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Birch, Ash and his trousers*

Smallest slept well last night and instead of getting up too early and reading, he went back to sleep. We can tell he's really struggling at the moment because he gets upset over the silliest things. For example when we were in a DIY shop today, him and Small were playing with a bouncy ball and it got lost in between boxes. When he tried to get it back he hurt his knee on some wood! He was not happy and almost burst into tears. Bless him. The pollen count isn't too bad at the moment either so we think tiredress, feeling under the weather etc has all got the better of him.

After breakfast we all split up for football watching. Me upstairs watching my team win wahoooo. All the boys downstairs watching their team draw. I also continued crocheting my tea cosy which I am now happy about and it is almost finished.

Later we went out for dinner and played Monopoly Deal. During the ordering process I was asked if I wanted gravy on my fries. I screwed my face up and our waitress said "oh I remember you all now... the gravy thing.... right I won't ask ask the rest of you!"

Small needed new Football Boots so our next stop was the sports shop where we found him a huge pair of boats. Both boys have grown out of their jeans so next stop was a Jeans shop. Small has gone down in waist but up in height and Smallest is now in an age 8. His clothes range from age 7-11 which is crazy!

Next we went bath shopping to a place where we could actually climb into the baths to test their depth and comfort. We got some good ideas and found a shower screen we liked and found it was called a tub door here. We took our findings to a DIY shop where we found a bath that was hanging from the ceiling so Huffle asked if we could get it down. After much confusion, the shop assistant opened a new box and we climbed in. It was perfect for what we can fit in the space. There was no way we could get it into car so we decided to leave it and order it when we got home after checking other websites first. We got some help from the plumbing department and picked out our drainage which in fact is the plug attached to a pipe attached to the overflow thingy. Plus we had to buy a Pea Catcher which is not to catch peas (that you might be eating in the bath) but to stop the smell of sewerage coming back up the pipe. Ummm nice.

Bath we like

Shower door we like

Silly boys hiding in amongst the boxes

Bath in a box!

Back home we had a conversation with MrBasement who is coming to do the work in about three weeks time. He gave us advice and said he would collect the bath saving us another $55 for delivery. Tomorrow Huffle and I are looking at more bathroom stuff.

This evening we watched Britains Got Talent (errr no I don't think it has based on that episode) and Robot Wars before we sent Smallest off to bed. Small, Huffle and I played an online game of Catan before Small went to bed.

We have snow forecast overnight (ridiculous) and so we put a tarpaulin over the lettuces just in case.

*when checking the local Pollen Count it said that Pollen was low. I said out loud "Birch and Ash are low" and Smallest looked out of the window, saw a boy with trousers slung low below his bum, and he said "......and his trousers!" Funny!

 

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Bit of room for growth

Neither Huffle nor I slept well. It rained all through the night but was still quite warm. Huffle had to get up early and go into the office to sort through a box that was delivered there. I thought that sounded exciting but he assured me it wasn't. He managed to get it all done and was home in time for lunch, though we didn't see much of him for the rest of the day.

It was a PA day today and so the boys stayed at home. We thought about going to the cinema to see Guardians of the Galaxy as it came out today but Smallest was struggling with his hay fever and looked so tired that we chose instead to stay in. Both boys played on their tablets together before Smallest decided to make Gingerbread. He did most of it on his own but I had to help knead, roll and put in the oven. Afterwards he decorated them and I helped with that too. They were delicious.

After lunch all together, Small made Vienna Biscuits with his new piping set. It was supposed to make 20 biscuits but the dough was quite stiff and hard to get through the bag and we ended up with 12 possibly bigger than they should have been, he has made these before and they were very crumbly. Impossible to turn, Impossible to dip in chocolate but very very melt in the mouth. Afterwards the boys and I played UPSET. I lost terribly and Smallest somehow won.

The kids played on FIFA while I crocheted and washed and dried and emptied the never ending dishwasher and then made a soup for dinner.

After dinner we all played Carcassonne and I lost again. Huffle won easily. Blue Jays before bed for the boys. Small has a sore, smelly throat and Smallest has a sore throats and just looks shattered. Both of his legs hurt from running but his groin is feeling better.

 

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Pucker Up!

I woke up to Huffle jiggling the bed which normally means I am snoring and it's his way of stopping me kindly, however he said I wasn't and he had no recollection of him doing it. Bloomin' idiot woke up up too early!

The boys went to school. Today was the rescheduled Track and Field but just before they left there was a telephone call from the school (one of those awful automated ones) to say that Track and Field would be this morning and not the afternoon due to the imminent rain. Well this scuppered our first plan where Small was going to escort ExerciseNic's MissK home at lunchtime as she wasn't participating. Instead he collected her from her house and took her to school. Good big tall responsible MrSmall. Well done Small it was a nice thing to do for a little girl who didn't want to walk alone and whose Mum was busy looking after a load of pre-schoolers. She did pay him which she didn't need to do but I know he was very appreciative.

In Track and Field, Smallest won a 1st in shotput (shotput?) and lots of 2nds in various running races (he can run without it hurting his groin). Smallest goes on to area finals (we think). Small won a 3rd in a 3-man 400m and a 4th in the 100m. Well done boys.

Mid morning I left Huffle working and cutting my last piece of wood for BlindNo3 which I haven't even touched yet and went off to meet Angel and her gorgeous little baby for a coffee. We met at a local cafe and stayed there for a couple of hours. I got to hold a squirming little monkey for ages but all she really wanted to do was to climb over the chairs and run away. She is lovely though. We chatted about the upcoming football, the upcoming football dinner we have to go to in a place we don't like with food we hate! We had a good catch up and left at lunchtime to do our own thing.

Huffle and I had lunch and watched a bit of Gotham. This afternoon I attempted BlindNo2. I sewed the end and measured and pinned the top. That is all I managed before the kids came home because I seem to be out a little in the measurements. Maybe I'll have a look tomorrow.

I made two lasagnes for dinner which were sloppy but nice. After dinner all the boys played FIFA and I watched TV and crocheted. I am trying to make a tea cosy without a pattern. I almost finished one but don't like it so pulled it all out. I am now a quarter way through another one which isn't going so well either. I'm not in a hurry and it keeps my hands busy when watching TV.

The camp for the boys at the weekend has been postponed due to the ridiculous amount of rain we have had and are due plus there is talk of snow this weekend. SNOW! NO!

A beautiful daffodil from one year ago.

 

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Pooh Sticks

Apparently, the moment my head hit the pillow I fell asleep and was heard to be muttering 'perfect, perfect people, perfect things'. Huffle said he was chuckling. He said I seemed very pleased with my mumbling. Ummmmm! He, however didn't sleep so well.

When I woke up my trapped nerve was healed but I did get another swelling on my weird achenbach thumb. It soon went down. Early evening when I was making dinner emptying the dishwasher and trying to clean the kitchen, I walked straight into the open door of the dishwasher and fell with a thud on the floor (possibly proclaiming words the kids shouldn't repeat). Smallest came to my rescue and brought me a wet flannel to apply to my bleeding, bruised shin. I hit it so hard I thought I had smashed the bone but after a couple of hours and a shower, it felt much better. Probably going to be a bit bruised though. What is it with me and injuries lately?

The boys went to school and the new bus did come despite the telephone call saying it definitely would not happen today. At least it comes later (by about five minutes) and the driver waits to see if anyone is running towards the bus unlike the other one who goes past if no one is standing waiting. They came home about five minutes earlier today. The school gets knocked down this weekend. Smallest is still having problems with his groin but managed a run today and said it didn't hurt at all. He just does not want to rest! Yesterday Small qualified for the High Jump (he probably just stepped over it the big giant).

This morning I went to aerobics and did even more arm work and weights plus some legs, abs etc. My shoulders are killing me as I haven't recovered from Monday's class yet. Oh well, a bit of a break now till next Monday! I went for a walk with ExerciseNic and her dog afterwards. It was dry today but a cool 4* with a feels like of 1*.

Huffle was waiting fro me when I got back and we planted Dahlias, Cannas and Crocosmia which we had dug up and stored from last year and Iris and Foxtail Lillies which we brought as bulbs/tubers. Then we went into the veg garden and planted carrot, parsnip, swede and radish seeds and weeded a coupe of beds ready for warmer weather.

This afternoon I got Blind No2 out and unpicked two seams whilst Facetiming Moo. We had a good chat and laugh and I got my unpicking done. I sewed one side and ironed it all. This one I have made slightly wider as No1 let's the sun in just a little bit. I stopped not long after the kids came home.

After dinner, Huffle and Small went to basketballl and Smallest and I finished watching a film we started last week and did lots of silly snapchats. Small worked very hard tonight.

Smallest's eyes were really bad this evening and we had to give him extra drops plus a warm flannel for soothing them. He also went to bed with a warm elephant wheaty for his groin.

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Beeves, Meeses, Nerves and Vessels

I woke up too early and the boys were surprised they didn't need to wake me. For ages now I have been suffering with burst blood vessels in my fingers and toes. My Mum, Moo has it and I just thought it was one of those things that happened. Well today I had a really bad one on my thumb and it bruised and swelled and was really painful. Much later I looked it up and it seems I have Acenbach Syndrome and there is nothing you can do. It also said that it was prevalent in over 50's but I've had it all my adult life, if not before. I also trapped a nerve in my neck whilst at work this morning. The first thing I did was to help Jan carry a trolley up three steps and I had the light end too. It scuppered the rest of my mornings work though I did carry on planting and weeding. Everyone was very sympathetic and I sat with a heat pad on it when I got home.

The boys went off to school this morning, unbeknownst to them that it was their last day on the school bus driven by Maurice. Tomorrow they get Gladys back again and the long bus where Small will claim his Grade 8 back seat status. At least he gets it for a couple of months before he moves up to the High School and is then relegated to whatever seat is left as a newbie.

Huffle worked in and around the house and filled in holes and painted a small wall in the Sun Room. I went to work, trapped my nerve, planted carrots, beetroots, Brussels, cabbage, radicchio and lettuce. For coffee break we had a delightful coffee flavoured brownie with white chocolate. I never make coffee flavoured things because only I like them but these were deeeelicccious. I came home with a Pagoda Dog Wood Tree, cabbages and radicchio and some wild garlic. Lovely. Of course, today was a Tuesday and on Tuesdays it rains. It rained hard all day again and it was cold. It felt like Winter today.

Huffle and I planted the stuff out and then had lunch and watched a bit of Gotham. He went back to work and I went and shopped for things I couldn't get at Costco yeasterday. I also bought some things for the camping trip this weekend with the Cubs. I bought Smallest a sleeping mat, some cutlery and a cup, mug and plate set. Now he has the same as Small.

Our garden at the front starting to spring into life

The boys came home early again, without notice. Smallest dropped his full water bottle all over the kitchen floor and the silly pair mopped up the mess. They emptied the dishwasher for me before going on their tablets. Once Huffle finished work, we all went out for some bathroom shopping. Smallest said "how are you going to buy a bathroom? Err hello I'd like to buy a bathroom please". He wanted to know how we would get a whole bathroom in our car! The traffic was horrendous so we ditched PlanA and went for dinner instead. By the time we got out the traffic had dispersed and we carried on with our plan.

It wasn't easy as we weren't in a place that had lovely bathrooms all fitted out, instead there was a bath attached to the ceiling and a different department for tiles, taps etc. Anyway we managed to buy some taps and fittings like toilet roll holder, towel holder and hooks all in a similar style. We picked out a big wall tile (kind of Matt white with grey flourishes) and then a floor tile which looked planky woodlike in a whitewashed distressed grey. We pickup several samples of worktop from where the sink sits but are still not sure about that. We looked at baths and found that 17" depth was a good soaky bath but didn't find any that would fit in an alcove. We may go bath shopping at the weekend when the boys are away. We are thinking about led spots for the lights too. And that's it for now.

We got home. Smallest put his Beano bunting up in his room and went to sleep. His groin appears to be better and he wants to do Track and Field tomorrow but Huffle doesn't think he should. He has a seal cough again and we can tell he is not 100% well. He is very sensitive, cuddly and grumpy - normal sign of illness on the way. This is possibly the worst time for him to go camping this weekend, especially if it stays cold and wet. How can we stop him going now though? He is soooo excited.

Huffle and I entertained ourselves this evening with GBBOCreme de la Creme. Not as entertaining as last week but still very good.

 

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Half a fapefrur please

Pinch punch first day of the month. No Bank Holiday for us here (UK enjoying one I know, well I hope you got better weather than we did).

It rained all day. Extremely heavy wet cold rain too though it did warm up a bit this afternoon with temperatures around 18*. Early evening we had a storm with massive strikes of lightning and huge roaring claps of thunders. Huffle was seen to be running down the stairs from the loft into the basement with Smallest following close behind.

Today should have been Track and Field but was cancelled due to the rain. We sent Smallest off with a note to say he couldn't run due to his groin injury. Luckily football practice is off for a week while we change from the Spring season to Summer season. That will give him a chance to recover I hope before he starts playing games again. Despite the note though he did admit to playing Dodgeball in gym!!!!!

Huffle worked mainly in the loft though I found him at the kitchen table a few times and obviously in the basement during the storm. I went to Costco but not before I watched the last episode of Line of Duty. Ooooh gripping!

In our house, when we run out of things or need food etc, we write it on the chalk board. This means when I go shopping I just take a photo of the board and there is my list. It also means that all of us have a hand in writing on it. Today my list had stuff on that Smallest had written. This is what I thought something said fapefrur and I had no idea what it was. It was grapefruit of course. Smallest's decided he wanted to try one.

Before I started my journey to Costco, we had a weather statement saying there was a fog advisory warning in effect with zero visibility, it wasn't too bad but the amount of rain we had definitely made visibility bad. The puddles at the side of the road made for interesting driving too.

Huffle and I had lunch together before I went again for my exercise class. OUCH as usual. Too many planks, lots of weights, a bit of yoga and ab work plus the usual funny stories and silliness.

This afternoon I divided all the meat and bread products up for the freezer and made a start on dinner. Fish cakes, salad and cous cous. Nice. The boys came home dripping wet. No outside recess today.

MrsPiano came late and the boys had their lessons. Smallest is playing "Those were the days" and Small is playing "house of the rising sun". MrsPiano is a wannabe 70's hippy. They are tying to choose songs for their recital in June.

After dinner the boys played on their tablets and Huffle and I made a list of things we need to buy for our new bathroom. We need to get a move on as we asked MrBasement to do the work in May. Whoops!

 

 

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