Thirty-four weeks into pregnancy number one I was so ready for W's arrival. Match-ready you might say. The nursery was freshly painted, cot assembled, drawers filled with clean and neatly ironed baby-grows and blankets. I had bottles and breast-pumps at the ready, hospital bag packed and the delivery suite number on speed-dial. Thirty-four weeks into pregnancy number two is an entirely different story. The 'nursery' is currently a wasteland of old and new mattresses piled in a massive mattress mountain atop a partly dis-assembled bed. A mountain randomly strewn with leaflets issued ...
101-ish Simple Ways To Save Money #thriftytips
I have got to be honest, I am not the world's greatest money saver. My willpower tends to vary between being very little to non-existent, however, with baby number two on the way, it is probably time I gave this some more thought. I am also hoping to win some Amazon vouchers from the lovely Jane who is celebrating the launch of her brand-spanking new blog, From Spending to Saving. My trouble is I spend far too much time listening to the bad fairy on my left shoulder, the one with the penchant for nice shoes, Chanel and fancy cheese, and not enough time listening to the good fairy on my ...
Apple Care? What a joke.
This morning has not been a great morning due entirely to the sheer lack of customer care shown by Apple. I recently purchased an i-phone 5, one feature of which is Apples i-cloud. I had hoped to use this in conjunction with my macbook in order to back-up all my photos, and free up some space on the laptop, only to find that the software on my macbook was not compatible. Fair enough. We have had it a long time. Time for an upgrade. Having travelled out to the Apple store in Cribbs Causeway Bristol I was informed by a staff member last month that they couldn't help. I needed to ...
Ranty Friday: How HSBC Left Me and My Son Out in the Cold
Today I am upset. REALLY upset. You can perhaps feel the fury from there. Those little vapours of warm, red mist emanating from your laptop screen...that would be the anger. Why am I upset? HSBC and their telephone banking would be why. W and I headed out at 9am this morning in order to get a few essentials from Tescos and some groceries from Aldi for his lunch. For those of you who also may have ventured out this morning in Bristol you will know that today just happens to be freezing cold. Bone-chillingly cold infact. Just to add to the delight my two year old son also ...
Ranty Friday: Mister Make it Myself
I am joining in with Ranty Friday over at Her Magnificence Mummy Barrow's blog today. I am not sure of the rules? Are there rules? I think it is perhaps just a good excuse for us all to collectively have a bit of a rant. That I can do. Having just spent half of the morning in front of C-Beebies, unsurprisingly perhaps, my ranty levels are at an all time high. So here you have it. My first Ranty Friday. My subject matter.......kids TV presenters. Let me start with Mister Maker. For the uninitiated amongst us, (Oh, how I envy you.) Mister Maker is a ...
This Old House…
"What was that?" Mr B enquires. "Mmm." "No really Jen what was that noise?" "Just next door I expect." I reply whilst unable to tear myself away from a fabulous new discovery on Pinterest. "I'll go and look." Now I feel bad as, to be fair, he has been at work all day while W and I have had a great time making cakes and rolling about on the lounge floor playing trains and laughing at with Mr Maker. I follow. We look about the kitchen as if it is an alien landscape. He reaches for the cupboard door, looking nervously back over his shoulder at me first. I nod in what I ...
“Denial ain’t just a river in Egypt” -Mark Twain
Tonight I made a bit of a prat of myself. That in itself is not that unusual but tonight I did it on facebook. Ouch. A friend, a very dear one at that, had expressed her concern about getting home tonight due to a protest at Falls Balls. My, idiotic, response... "There is a place called Falls Balls? *Giggles*." Mr B, who does still somehow manage to read the paper every day, then informed me that there have been some horribly serious protests in this part of Belfast since Saturday with reports of shots being fired, bricks hurled and water cannons used to control crowds. Ouch ...
Out with the old…
I had intended to spend this rather lovely bit of me-time writing a brief summary of my highs and lows in 2012. I am an extremely lucky lady this evening as the boy is safely tucked away in bed, snoring loudly through the monitor, and Mr B is currently slaving over a hot stove making what I am sure will be a delicious steak dinner. There have undoubtedly been many highs this past year, the biggest of which being W learning to walk and talk and becoming a proper little boy, full of fun, excitement and mischief. There have also been lows with the loss of both close friends and family ...
Why I love the NHS…
" Now I don't want you to panic but..." The one phrase virtually guaranteed to evoke the exact opposite of the requested outcome. Two weeks ago I was on the receiving end of this phrase. Many moons ago I was the deliverer. I remember it well. I was in my final year at university. I was in the middle of the road at 8am. In my pyjamas. Phoning my dad. Watching our house burn and smoulder. I am nothing if not resourceful in an emergency though. On my way out of the inferno I did manage to grab BOTH my mobile and my Marlboro Lights....and even my lighter! I was an ardent ...
Reader Appreciation Award
I have been tagged in this extremely delightful award by one of my most favourite bloggers Bibsey Mama. I heart her verily, though will from now on aim to stay up-wind of her since her flatulently-honest-truths-of-late, which I love her all the more for. Apparently she has come to regard the nonsense I clog up her comment boxes with as charming and has thus bestowed on me this award. *Curtseys* That's not enough? No? Ok, if you insist... the RULES, PEOPLE THE RULES state I MUST answer the following. Strap yourselves in and do remember some of my answers might just be a lie...or ...