Happy New Year!!

So here we are with another New Year...2014!! I have so many goals and aspirations for 2014 but I'll begin by summing up 2013.

2013 was the year I got my life back. 2012 was the worst year I've ever had bar none!! I suffered with severe stress and anxiety, so much so that I was signed off sick from work for months. I never want to experience another year like 2012, but I accept that it happened and view it as a lesson learnt.

2013 was the year I fixed my well-being, I let go of all the grudges, all the anger and I've never felt so happy or settled. I spent a lot of time making memories with my children, there were a few minor changes made, but the rewards we reaped as a result were amazing.

We ended the year together as a family, just the 3 of us. I definitely wouldn't be where I am now if it wasn't for the love of my children, they make me want to be a better person.

Now onto 2014, this is the year I want to change my image. I've worn the same clothes and had the same haircut for so many years, I desperately need a change plus I think it'll be the best way to carry on another amazing year. I'd like to finally shift the weight this year, so I'm thinking that an image overhaul may be the catalyst needed for me to stay motivated in my weight-loss journey.

My other goals for 2014 is to carry on creating memories with my children, decorate my house from top to bottom and become more organised (that's a long sorry story but needs to be addressed). I want to reconnect with my family, I've pushed them aside for so long, and while they have always been there for me, I feel I haven't appreciated it. There are other goals but these are the main ones I want to achieve.

So all that's left is to wish everyone a Happy 2014!!

Erin turns 6

This year she wanted a party..in fact she left it until the last minute to tell me she wanted a party, so my organisational-self went into over-drive.

She invited a few select friends to the house, I had put on some snacks to eat, along with a cake decorating station, which all the girls loved.

We had a disco area in the living room where the girls could dance along to One Direction...cue much screaming from them when a song came on.

They all had lots of fun and each girl left with either a necklace or a bracelet, a stationery set and a big slab of cake (along with the many cupcakes they decorated) I pleaded with the parents to take extra cakes so I wouldn't have to eat them myself bin them!

Erin talked about her party for days after, she certainly had a lot of fun and I must admit, I had lots of fun too, I will always look back fondly remembering a room full of girls dancing wildly to Gangnam Style.

Last year I started a birthday tradition where I asked Erin 20 Question to do with her favourite things. Every year I'll ask the same 20 questions and see which answers change and which stay the same.

You can see last year's answer's here.

This year's answers are:

1.      What is your favourite colour? Pink

2.      What is your favourite toy? Littlest Pet Shop cat

3.      What is your favourite fruit? Berries

4.      What is your favourite TV Show? Adventure Time

5.      What is your favourite snack? Sausage Rolls

6.      What is your favourite animal? Cat

7.      What is your favourite song? Dynamite by Taio Cruz

8.      What is your favourite book? Ballet

9.      Who is your best friend? Evie and Abbie and Morgan

10.  What is your favourite thing to do outside? Play tig

11.  What is your favourite drink? Orange juice

12.  Which is your favourite holiday? Christmas

13.  Who is your favourite person in the world? Mummy and Damian

14.   What do you want to be when you grow up? Hairdresser

15.  What is your favourite thing to do at school? Literacy

16.  Who is your favourite cartoon character? Ben and Holly

17.  Give 3 words to describe you brother? Funny, Loving, Nice

18.  Give 3 words to describe your family? Loving, Nice, Awesome

19.  If you could be invisible for a day, what would you do? Draw lots of pictures

20.  Give 3 words to describe yourself? Funny, Nice, Good

 The picture on the left is from her 5th birthday, the picture on the right was taken on her 6th birthday...I can see a little difference, she's losing her babyish features.

 

Happy Birthday my little munchkin!!

Being prepared in the case of an emergency...

Whether it be a national food shortage, power cuts, contaminated water supply, we all have a responsibility to ourselves and our family to be prepared for the worst.

It was upon reading a particular thread on the Money Saving Expert forum that got me thinking about starting a store cupboard and gathering equipment in the event of an emergency. Living in this day and age, we never think of anything bad happening...we don't really suffer with catastrophic weather, our homes are fully equipped to receive gas, water and electric. But, what if the worst did happen, how long would we be able to stay comfortable inside our own homes??

I've already starting writing a list of things I need to buy:

• Camp stove and extra gas cannisters
• Battery-operated radio
• Batteries
• Candles/matches
• Extra blankets
• Torches

Along with supplies I can pick up as extra along with my weekly shopping to start a store cupboard:

• Long life milk
• Tinned goods
• Bottled water
• Tea-bags and sugar
• First Aid items
• Paper plates and cups (easy to throw out after use instead of using valuable water to wash)
• Rice/pasta
• Biscuits
• Squash

 Any item from the above list costs a few pence alongside your normal weekly shop and is well worth investing in to stock up.

I wonder how many households would be in serious trouble if anything happened? I know mine would be! But I'm on track to being fully prepared.

Here are a few links if anyone is interested:

http://www.ready.gov/build-a-kit
http://www.redcross.org.uk/What-we-do/Preparing-for-disasters/How-to-prepare-for-emergencies/Ready-for-winter/Prepare-your-emergency-kit

Plus here is the link to the MSE thread for those that are interested.

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=4065593

Our Elf On The Shelf

Mr Jingles came to us on the morning of Friday 6th December and became an instant hit with both kids. Not surprising since he came bearing gifts.

Erin received a letter from Santa explaining why Mr Jingles was staying with us and he included a little report card for Erin to fill out on how Mr Jingles was behaving. He even had his own little passport, how cute is that!!

On Saturday, Mr Jingles let his mischievous side out and hung Erin's underwear on the Christmas Tree, Damian and Erin thought it was hilarious and couldn't stop talking about it all day.

On Sunday, he brought Donuts for us to eat for breakfast...I guess he was making up for being mischievous yesterday.

On Monday, Mr Jingles and Mr Bear were playing Noughts & Crosses.

On Tuesday, he made himself comfortable in the doll's house.

On Wednesday, he read a story with his friend Santa.

And today, Mr Jingles brought Damian and Erin some new Christmas dishes along with a note asking them to be nice to their teacher and friends.

He has only been here for a week, but he has definitely settled in and is an additional member of our little family. There was even murmurs from Damian and Erin that they will be sad to see him go on Christmas Eve!!

Happy Halloween

All week I've had my kids asking if it's Halloween yet....All.Week!!! Thankfully it's finally here and yes the kids are still very excited. Unfortunately, I have to work tonight so will be unable to take them Trick or Treating *insert sad face* however, my sister has volunteered to take them out, what a fab auntie she is to my 2. I hope they have plenty of fun and fill their bags with treats.

Saturday is caption day

I love nothing more than to snap pictures of my kids when they're caught off-guard, it looks much more natural than a posed picture. I took this picture of Erin while we were waiting for Damian to catch up, I'd love to hear your captions.

I'm linking up with Mammasaurus for her 'Saturday is Caption Day' Blog Hop.

Why not pop over and caption other wonderful pictures.

Four Adventure-Inspired Birthday Themes

Every great birthday party starts with a great theme. When you choose something fun for your little one, it helps tie everything together and makes the party even more memorable. Looking for ideas? Adventure-inspired themes are perfect for active and imaginative kids, and will keep everyone entertained. Here are some great action-packed birthday party themes to inspire your party planning:  

The Pirate 

Create a swash-buckling theme with pirate hats, chocolate gold coins, a map cake, and some sea-faring games. You can play Pin the Patch on the Pirate (printouts available here) or create a treasure hunt for the little pirates using hand-drawn maps on brown paper bags. At each “stop” along the hunt, you can place little treats or treasures for them to find. Be as creative as you like, and don’t forget to incorporate a Jolly Roger pirate flag in your decorations! 

The Explorer 

Create a backyard expedition where your little explorers can take a tour of the backyard jungle on a quest for safari creatures! To enhance the experience, give them each a safari hat and a pair of little binoculars to carry along their journey. An explorer birthday party theme can also have a fun archeological twist. Let your guests make their own fossils using clay and plastic dinosaurs. There’s a great tutorial here. A globe-shaped piñata, decorations inspired by Indiana Jones, and jungle animal cupcakes will put the finishing touches on this adventurous theme. 

The Pilot 

For a memorable aviation-themed party, begin with a fun activity. Set up several tables decorated as famous locations in the world, and let the little ones “travel” the world. You can give them personalized blank books (easily made from construction paper) that will serve as their passports, and have them collect a stamp in the book for each place they visit. Spice this up by adding small snacks to each destination table that reflects the theme. You can also have your guests make mini airplanes to take home with them. Instructions can be found here. At the end of the party, offer your little pilots take home goodie bags from a table labeled “Baggage Claim.” Include themed party favors and sugar cookies frosted or shaped like airplanes.  

The Cowboy 

Howdy partner! A cowboy or western themed birthday is perfect for young adventurers. Provide kid-sized cowboy hats for each of your guests to get the party started. You can also outfit your little ones in bandanas and handmade sheriff badges with their names written in felt marker. For a fun activity, set up the kiddie pool with sand and water and let the kids pan for gold. Complete your cowboy party with a horse piñata and a cowboy hat shaped cake. Don’t forget to send thank you cards after the party! Snap a few photos of the party and your guests, and create personalized digital eCards for all the little adventurers! 

Stephanie is the Director of Marketing at Punchbowl, Inc. She blogs about celebrations, party planning, and free digital greeting cards.

*This is a guest post*