There's No Business like Snow Business.

Yesterday was a snow day for us as it was for most of the North West. Luckily I was due to work in a school that was kind enough to phone me before I set out on the journey ahead and as K and L were not due back until Wednesday I could cancel their scheduled childcare and keep them at home. I think S had maybe anticipated some housework and looked slightly bemused by the mess when he came home because we.....

Played outside, helped build an igloo, went on a snow walk, "sledged" on a tea tray. Had hot chocolate when we got in and watched The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe. Ate sausages and beans and toast before going out again for more sledging, checked on our neighbours, another snow walk, a snow ball fight and a nosey in all the empty just built houses near ours.

It was interesting to see how the people we checked were okay were so surprised we'd even thought to check. I even gave our phone number out so people could phone me if they needed something. I think its really sad that this kind of behaviour is so uncommon now and that communities have become so alienated from each other so......go on, check on your neighbours today and one day, when you need it, they might just check on you.

(Play, relationships)

A snow day 10/10, truly lovely day.

Any finally.... since December I have been in contact with CBIT (Child Brain Injury Trust) in a work related capacity. The lady I have been dealing with has bent over backwards to provide me with helpful information as well as finding out specifics about the case so she could offer the best possible advice. She has been honest enough to say when she isn't sure but has always endevoured to get back to me about a question or topic. I have been truly inspired by this ladies attitude and cannot speak more highly for this charity and the advice it is able to provide.

CBIT's advice service - 15/10. Amazing!

A Cheesy Nightmare and Back to Work Blues...and how God can hoover you up.

Well I can honestly say I am a super grump today. We have taken the Christmas Decorations down which normally makes me really quite content (its that feeling of space and tidiness I think) but not today and its mainly due to the back to work blues. Now I do really quite like my job and it is in fact the realisation that I have to get organised and do some work now to be ready to go back to work on Monday thats annoying me. Its a load of planning and fiddly paperwork and there is nothing more guaranteed to make me grumpy than paperwork at anytime of the year. Added to that, my obsession with list writing has come to the fore, resulting in two lists of "work things to be done" which instead of motivating me has just made me grumpier still. I'm tempted to just throw them away and only do what people ask from me (I really won't do this, I'm far too much of a control freak!)

(Intellect)

Back to Work Blues - 2 out of 10. (grump, grump)

Adding to my general grumpiness I have realised I may be allergic to cheese. Two encounters with the cheese board over the holidays have resulted in chronic tummy ache - no fun at all. Interestingly L is not so long out of his lactose intolerance so maybe we have it all wrong about food intolerances, maybe they move from host to host like some sort of parasite - or maybe not. Boo, I love cheese too (although my hips could do with a break from it)

(Physical)

Possible Lactose intolerance -1 out of 10

And finally .... K and L were engaged in a lively theological debate this morning following the hoovering up of the pine needles after the Christmas tree was banished to the garden.

K: " Watch out L, you'll get sucked up by the hoover".

L: " No K, I'm too big to get sucked up into the hoover ...... maybe when I'm deaded".

K: "When your dead?" (hysterical giggling)

L: "Yep God whooshes you up to heaven with a big hoover, like Augustus Gloop in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory"

K: "Who told you that?"

L: " I just know"

K: "Hmmm. I think I know that too"

(Relationships)

Joy at the pure brilliance of this string of thought - 9 out of 10

The laundry, the lunch and the wardrobe ..oh and The Wire

A day finally with no trips or required visiting, so laundry had to be done. As the first change of the year I have changed my fabric conditioner (woohoo don't I know how to live the high life!). K has suffered with patches of eczema in the past so we have always stuck to fairy which we know her skin can tolerate, today however I have used comfort tropical which smells divine. Just hope it doesn't make K itch, I don't have the time or motivation to separate our clothes from the childrens so we all go tropical or nothing!
(Physical and Environment).


Happiness rating for tropical smells - 7 out of 10.


Lunch today was due to be a roast ham with roast potatoes, vegetables and all the trimmings however motivation was lacking and so I ended up roasting my ham but having it with oven chips (McCain crinkle cut) and eggs. Certainly cut down on the prep! Twas lovely and simple and a veritable feast. K and L even got to eat theirs in front of the telly as a special treat.

Happiness rating for ham egg and chips - 6 out of 10

Today I finally got round to ordering some wardrobes for our bedroom. We moved in September and were promised wardrobes from a friend of my parents - they have not been forthcoming. Military houses always have fitted wardrobes and so we had never needed any before. As a result our bedroom looks like a jumble sale with cases and temporary hanging rails and its driving me crazy!! So I have bought the above wardrobes in the sale in B & Q. I have got walnut cabinets with black gloss doors though which will match in with my cast iron bed. The £800 they (and the matching bedside tables) cost me had better be worth it, but as I am really poor at the moment the purchase has made me a bit anxious.
(Physical and Environment,Material Possessions).


Happiness rating for getting the wardrobe situation sorted out - 9 out of 10




And finally ...... I bought the entire box set of The Wire on DVD for my husband for Christmas expecting many months of episode watching. Last night (despite complaining all day he was tired and being generally grumpy because of it) he watched 5 episodes back to back meaning he wasn't in bed till well after 2am! He has also taken to speaking in American street slang which sounds ridiculous coming out of his mouth (this is a man who had to watch 8 Mile with subtitles on to be able to understand it). Just hope this addiction isn't going to result in baggy jeans with his pants showing and super bling trainers. He's just too... middle classed for all that!

Hello and welcome!

Hello and welcome!





Let me tell you a bit about myself, my reasons for starting the blog and my plans for 2010.





I'm a 30 year old mummy to 2 gorgeous full of life children. K is 5 (6 in the new year) and L is 4 1/2. I have been married to my husband for 8 years and known him since I was 17. Our married life has mainly been smooth sailing but this past year has been turbulent to say the least. My husband (S) has been in the military for 11 years but left late last year for a more "normal" family life. This year we managed to finally get on the property ladder and bought our first ever house (now as poor a church mice!)


I work full time as a Speech Therapist with children and teens with emotional behavioural difficulties which I love but it is definately hard work! Its an unusual area for a speech therapist to work in and I still have loads to learn about it. Ideally I'd prefer to work part-time but finances dictate otherwise.



With things being so difficult over the past year I have come to realise I don't know myself very well anymore. I married young and then had the kids, was an army wife and let my life be dictated by my husbands job and lifestyle. Now that has all changed I have realised I have little idea of what motivates me or brings me joy and this past year I have felt quite lost in many ways as well as being pretty unhappy. So.. I'm on a quest to find out more about myself and also find a good balance between work and home and rediscover some joy in life.

In preparation I have read "The Rough Guide to Happiness" by Dr Nick Bayliss which was a very balanced guide and a great starting point. As a result I intend to label my experiences under the following headings:

1 - Intellect. Learning continues to give me a buzz be it related to work or play.

2 - Play. Having fun, pure and simple!

3 - Creative. Inventing, making, creating. Seeing a project from start to finish.

4 - Relationships. With my husband, children, family, friends, work collegues.

5 - Physical and environment. Exercise (not high on my joy factor), the great outdoors, my home and garden.

6 - Material possessions. Does my shopping habit make me happy or do I shop because I'm looking for happiness?

I will then rate how happy my daily experiences make me out of 10 with 10 being fantastically ecstatic and 1 being far from happy.

I look forward to hearing your comments and ideas. Paula xx