Sunny Sunday Surprise…

On Monday Daddy was asked to go to a partnership school in Doncaster instead of his usual school and so we had a slightly different routine. Adding that to a number of rubbish nights with Austins night terrors made for a cracking start to the day, and then when Mummy put the lid on our sippy cups and got covered in milk before breakfast she had nothing else to say except hello to crusty hair and #happyMonday!

After breakfast, Mummy got us dressed and we played for a short while before Great Auntie Lynn and Great Uncle Clarry visited. We had so much fun that Mummy didn’t take any pictures. In fact, we had so much fun that Austin fell asleep before they left and I wasn’t far behind when they left. It was super tiring.

Whilst we were napping in our cot, Mummy made a food diary and some yummy snack for our 11am feed when we woke up. Since we were poorly a few weeks ago, our diet has taken a really rubbish turn, we went right off our food and so we got a taste for super yummy, yet not nutritious food because Mummy and Daddy just gave us anything we would eat – so that we were eating something. Although, if Mummy is super reflective, she would admit that as we were able to go out and about March onwards, she quite often gave us packet food, such as wafers, because they were easy and less mess on the move. We started off so well when Mummy weaned us, we would eat anything. But have managed to become a little picky, preferring things with a rough texture, such as toast, rice cakes, crackers. So the food diary began.

After our snack we went out and called at Auntie Lynns to drop something off and Auntie Joy was there, so we said hello and then off we went for a quick stroll around Hoyland. We went to Staniforths and Co-op. Mummy struggled to get us in Staniforths because the second door was locked and our buggy wouldn’t fit through the single door, Nannies friend Vanessa soon came to our rescue from behind the counter.

We went home to play and had some more dinner. Nannie made a quick visit and then Mummy made tea whilst we played nicely waiting for Daddy to come home.

On Tuesday, our nap time was very productive for Mummy. This time we fell asleep in the car and Mummy managed to nip in the bank and the post office to get her jobs done. She parked up at the back of Nannie & Grandads to use their wifi whilst we slept and she text Nannie to see if she fancied a drive to Fox Valley. We had a lovely time at Fox Valley, although something very funny happened. Well, nannie found it funny, not sure that mummy did.

We went in Peacocks. Mummy found some shoes that she wanted. She was carrying them around and then I needed a suction and so Mummy bent down and opened her rucksack, she suctioned me and then continued with her shopping. She did notice that the shop assistants were watching her, but sometimes Mummy thinks that might be in her head because people are curious about my rucksack and the machine and the noise. Anyway, we went in some other shops, including looking at the rabbits which I love so much, in Pets at Home…..and suddenly, Nannie noticed that Mummy had the shoes on the back of my trike, and she hadn’t paid for them!!!!! She hooked them on to suction me and forgot! She ran back as fast as she could and paid for them! Oh the shame!!!

We called for a cheeky Mcds on the way home (our 4th one to date! so much for the food diary but hey, it could be worse….)

We played again whilst waiting for tea to cook and Daddy to come home! Another day closer to the weekend!

We had another rubbish nights sleep and so our nap times were a little all over the place. Mummy had organised a play-date with the play group mums at our house. Forge Family Foundations did a fantastic job with the baby buddies group, but unfortunately, most of the mums from our group have gone back to work now, and we are all older than 1 (it was for 0-12 months) and so as we all miss it, we decided that we would re-create it at our house…..thats sustainability for you and long term goals eh?! Well done FFF!!

Mummy provided toys and drinks and Jess brought biscuits….it was lovely!

However, prior to their arrival, we were ready for a nap, Mummy took us out in the car, just as they were arriving and as we didn’t go to sleep on the first lap of Hoyland and she didn’t want to leave our friends sat outside waiting, she had to wing and a prayer it and hope we wouldn’t be too grumpy. Austin went to sleep and Mummy took him upstairs and Rory wasn’t far behind. She waved off her mummy friends and our little friends too and Mummy bungled us in the car, with the hope of a nice long cosy nap and some mummy time behind the wheel. No. Sleep. In. Us!

We collected Beau from Nannies house, Mummy took her there for the morning in case the other babies weren’t keen on having her around, but also, because of our rubbish, unsettled night, she might have needed a rest, and so when we picked her up, and there was still no sleep in us, Mummy’s desperation reached a whole new level….she put ben and holly on her phone, put her phone on the dash in the car, and let us watch for ten minutes whilst she just had a minutes peace!

We had a lovely play and then Daddy came home. We all had an early night, including Mummy, whilst Daddy played football!

Somehow, inbetween all of that, Mummy bottomed all 3 washing baskets. Perhaps it was the little helpers…

Thursday was a funny one, the deal cut with Nannie and Auntie Mandy & Auntie Chloe is that Nannie will have one of us each thursday, all day and night, and then on one of the two Thursdays that Nannie has me, Austin can have a sleepover at Auntie Mandys house. That was this Thursday! Last Thursday Mummy and me had some really cool Rory time at the farm, and Mummy wanted to do the same with austin, except Nannie came too and so all four of us went. I was glad I got to go again because I love animals, I thought the pigs were really funny and I loved stroking the horses!

We went to visit Grandma Jean, Austin spotted Grandad Hardy on Mummys wedding pictures, and couldn’t stop staring and smiling at the picture. It was so cute.

On the way home from the farm, we fell to sleep and napped for ages. The plan was to drop me off with Nannie, but instead Mummy took us both home and left us sleeping on the drive. Auntie Nat Nat came to visit and she waited ages with Mummy for us to wake up, they kept spying on us, waiting for us to wake. We played for a bit with Auntie Nat Nat and then Mummy bungled us back in the car to drop me off at Nannies for a sleepover, before dropping Austin off at Auntie Mandys house, just as Auntie Chloe was coming back from work. Perfect!

Some cute pics from Thursday…

(Mummy saved this lovely wooden safari set from Christmas until we were old enough to appreciate it, she let Austin have it in their One to one time and mummy played safari with him – thanks Auntie Mandy)

We had lunch at the farm with Nannie!
Mummy managed to tidy all through the house, get a nice hot shower and get ready for a nice meal out for Daddys birthday on Saturday. Couldn’t waste an opportunity for a birthday meal without us, could they! So off they went to Eccy Road before an early night for some much needed sleep!

We had a really messy tea with Nannie and auntie mandy & auntie Chloe…

We had a really good nights sleep (typical) with only one night terror that was easily solved when Austin got in bed with Auntie Mandy. 

Here I am having breakfast at Nannies….

Mummy gave the house a blitz before collecting Austin at 9 and me at half past.

Mummy had shiny eyes because we were so pleased to see each other, we were rolling around giggling together…

 

We had a lovely sleep in the car before Becky and Louie visited for a play date, we had lots of fun playing and Mummy learned lots about how difficult it can be trying to find food that doesn’t have milk in it……hats off to all the mummys with children who have dietary allergies.

After a mammoth nap in the car (Mummy practically evicted Becky & Louie because we were getting tired so she bundled us into the car) Mummy decided to brave the food shop!

Deep. Breath!

Mummy decided to take us to Aldi, because it is small and wouldn’t take as long, and hopefully wouldn’t be as painful. However, Aldi don’t (despite Mums suggestions) have twin trolleys, and so Mummy had no choice than to sit one of us in the seat and one of us in the trolley. It worked ok at first, until Mummy put food in the trolley and it was either stood on, sat on, thrown out of the trolley….

Everyone that saw Mummy felt for her, she was super calm and doing the ‘sit down please, good boy’ routine, when really she wanted to just sit me down and pile food on me so that i couldn’t move……eventually there literally wasn’t enough room for me and the food in the trolley and so mummy had to carry me and push the trolley with austin in, with one hand.

We were on the last aisle, and mummy was literally saying to herself, and her muscles which were shaking from repetitive strain….’one more aisle, one more aisle’…..and an older gentleman who could see Mummy had her hands full, started chatting to Austin to entertain him as he was getting quite vocal because he couldn’t have any more shopping to hold in an attempt to entertain him because mummy was sick of bending down to pick it up, or running over it with the trolley. Mummy saw this as an opportunity, left the trolley parked up with the old guy and legged it up and down the freezer section chucking everything in that we needed.

We finally got to the till and Mummy realised she had no chance of loading the conveyor belt with one hand, fast enough for the aldi checkout operators who are super speedy and DO NOT WAIT for anyone!! She couldn’t put me in the trolley again as there was no room and she certainly was not putting me on the floor to run off. She rang Daddy, perhaps (as he was at the partnership school again) he might just be getting off the motorway and be able to reroute here and help, mummy could stand on the spot 15 minutes if she had to, it would be much easier than attempting this on her own! NOPE! Daddy had just set off and was 45 minutes away!

Crack on Mummy! You have no choice!

Mummy began to load the till with one hand whilst entertaining Austin who continued to pull things back off the conveyor belt and holding me in the other hand, until there was enough room in the trolley for me to stand. All the while, Mummys button had popped on her shirt and she was trying to not move her arms too much as to flash too much booby to the entire world of ALDI. Mummys hands were shaking that much that she couldn’t actually fasten the button anyway and so as she was beyond rescue, she just thought ‘sod it’ and began speed-piling the food onto the till, and then speed-chucking it all back in the trolley AGAIN, to then fight with us one more time, to put it in bags at the side of the shop, before loading the car. When Mummy got back in the car, with us strapped in at the back, she literally could have cried. Although I think she was also chuffed that she did it! Mummy never passed up on a challenge and even though she said she would never attempt the food shop again, you and me both know she would, until she mastered it! Always next time then eh?

Although……on the way out, the ALDI man said that twin trolleys were on order. We will look forward to that, although Mummy isn’t sure whats best, carrying one of us round, or sitting on of us in the trolley with the food, or having a twin trolley so that we are so close we can headbut and bite eachother. WINNER!

Mummy just got us home, carried everything in, bags as well, and Grandad and Daddy arrived.

Welcome to the weekend! Household chores complete…..Mummy done in!

Mummy went out on a secret adventure Saturday morning but when she came back, we all went in the car to collect a foot measurer from Clarks at Cortonwood. Because of the meltdown we had last time we had our feet measured, Mummy decided to buy a measuring device and let it live in our toybox so that we got used to it, that way mummy would also know when we were ready for new shoes and not feel like she needs to revisit the shop over and over when there is no need.

We were fast asleep in the car still and so Mummy and Daddy had a sneaky pit stop at Manvers for a pastry and a drink and they made the decision to take us to Barnsley for our next pair of shoes. Mummy was so thankful that daddy was with us this time because last time was eventful.

We got to Barnsley and Mummy and Daddy took us straight to Mozarellas Cafe, they had a lovely cuppa whilst we had our 11am snack (salmon and cheese rice cakes) and they used the new measurer to measure our feet. Lots of lovely old ladies were coo-ing over Daddy as he measured our feet. We didn’t let Mummy do it, Daddy is our fave! We took note of the size we needed, packed up and went on our way to the shoe shop.

As we walked through the door Mummy smiled as we saw Sharon again, but it was a different lady who served us this time. She was very patient and showed Mummy two pairs of boots that they had in our size. Mummy had seen a new pair that they hadn’t had in stock the last time she came, when she collected our measurer from clarks at Cortonwood. She really really wanted us to have them, but the lady who served us, Sharon and Daddy, all preferred the tan boots which Mummy had previously wanted, before she saw the super cute new ones. We tried both on did a little toddle around the shop before Mummy decided that the new style boots were much more exciting for little boys and so we went for it and bought them. Yippee!!

We were very pleasant, calm and charming, nothing at all like the little monkeys that Mummy took the week before. Mummy had explained to the lady that because of our journey so far, strangers touching our feet usually means blood gas for oxygen levels, and for a large part of our life that has been on an hourly basis and so there is no wonder we didn’t like shoe shopping when people wanted to measure our feet, but at least now we have our own measurer, Mummy can get us used to it.

We left the shoe shop full of smiles and took Daddy to Frankie & Bennys for a birthday treat. We were full of life and enjoyed chicken, garlic bread and fries before making a huge mess with fudge cake and ice cream dessert. Yummy!

When we got home Mummy and Daddy got Beau and took us to Elsecar Park. We parked at Uncle Craigs house because we had to drop him something off and so we walked the super short distance (a field) to the park. Daddy took us on the swings whilse Mummy sat with Beau and then we got some duck food and went to feed the ducks before making our way back to the car and going home for a play time before bed.

Sunday was Daddys birthday, Mummy had told Daddy to decide what he wanted to do, Mummy & Daddy had been to Eccy Road for a lovely grown up Birthday tea on Thursday, they had been for a family lunch with us at F&B and now Daddy had to choose what he wanted to do on his ACTUAL birthday. As soon as Mummy opened her eyes he announced that he wanted to go to Cleethorpes. Now, me and Austin have spent lots of time at the seaside, but we have never been to Cleethorpes. The Sun had got his hat on and we were going out to play!

We helped Daddy to open his cards in the morning, had our breakfast and set off for 9am!

Mummy had asked Uncle Craig if he would collect Beau mid-morning, she wasn’t feeling to good and her fur felt funny, usually a sign that she has either had a fit in the night, or one was on its way. Mummy & Daddy decided to leave her at home and then Uncle Craig would look after her until we got back. We were coming back for 2pm so that we didn’t sleep in the car and end up with a late bed time and Daddy wanted an afternoon with Beau at the park and so we weren’t leaving her for very long.

We slept all the way there. Mummy and Daddy had some very strange conversations. Mummy asked Daddy, if he was any tool in a tool box, what would he be and why. Daddy laughed. She gave him two minutes to think about it and answer…..as they drove down the motorway, Daddy, with a huge grin on his face said….’a tape measure – because i’m handy to have around and everybody needs a tape measure’ they burst into laughter and Daddy fired the same question back to Mummy. Mummy said she would be a torch. Daddy said you don’t usually find a torch in tool boxes, Mummy said that we have a torch right by our tool box, so Daddy accepted her answer but asked why she would be a torch, Mummy said because she shines light in dark situations. Daddy rolled his eyes! They are a right pair!

We arrived in Cleethorpes, put up our trikes and went for a stroll….

We found ourselves having tea and cake by the sea whilst we had our 11am snack…

And then, after a stroll down the sea front….

Mummy and Daddy took us on the donkeys. It was amazing! I really really like animals. We both held on really tight and smiled with amazement as we plodded along the sand. Daddy loved watching us so much, he got his camera out, and he never does that. It is always Mummy taking the photos, and Mummy was enjoying watching us so much, that she didn’t even have her camera out. It was just a really wonderful moment. And when Paddy & Benny stopped, I did my sign for more. There were some shiny eyes I tell ya! Anyone who knows me, knows my little nodding, shaking gesture for more (Sara & Rich in wales also know this very well because it meant I wanted Rich to stick his tongue out again) and that is exactly what I did, I enjoyed my £3, 30 second donkey plod across Cleethorpes beach so much, that I wanted to go again!

Daddy said that it was up there with one of the best birthday moments, ever!

We went on lots of rides on the sea front, mummy anti-bac’d our hands, the handles etc to be safe. It’s September now and there are lots of bugs around. Better to be safe than sorry!

We even had fish and chips in the park, before heading back home for another snooze in the car and an afternoon at the park with Beau.

We collected Beau from Uncle Craigs on the way home, and the big black cloud that we had driven through in DOncaster (was a really wild rain, thunder and lightning storm) was on its way and so we just went to the park at the bottom of our hill and Daddy threw the ball around the field for Beau. Lovely ending to the day.

When we got home, Mummy rang Nannie to see if she wanted to come round to play because Daddy wanted to watch the football, except Nannie told us some bad news…..she was poorly. SHe had gotten a cold and her and Grandad had spent all weekend tucked up in the caravan.

Mummy was already facing a battle of bug control. Then Daddy announced that his nose was sniffly and Mummy just accepted that she has a long week ahead where she will be mostly hiding from germs, at home, with us, with no Nannie, and probably a Daddy in quarentine!

So we played with mummy and daddy and watched football on the iPad in the playroom….

(Using our Clarke’s measure as a telephone)
All made better when we went to bed in our batman PJS and Daddy in his matching new ones that Nannie & Grandad Hardy bought him for his birthday. ‘If you wake up and i’m gone, i’ll be fighting Crime’ he said to Mummy as he closed his eyes. Mummy would be happy if he just fought off the bugs for now!

Welcome back into our lives little green anti-bac, and goodbye freedom! Hello September!