Party of Five

not sure why I have that song in my head as it's a. old and b. not my thing music wise. I'm also not sure I should admit to liking Natasha Bedingfield, but as her music is on every beauty and cosmetic related advert on tv it's either a love or hate thing really.

We are back in the swing of things with school and gym. It's a bit sad to say that I am quite glad that the boys are back at school, but it has saved my sanity. It must drive them nuts as well being at home all day with boring Mummy and Pip who needs a 2 hour sleep at lunchtime, but I'm sure I am not the only one.

Running wise I'm struggling, but when have I ever done anything else but struggle. Sharon will tell you of the time in 1988 when she ran round the block with me when I was trying to get fit for my RAF medical (I passed medical, but failed Officer interview) when she thought she might have to dial for an ambulance such was my sorry assed state. I was 4 stone lighter then as well. Scarey huh?

I am managing to run for 6min, walk 2, run 5, walk 2, run 5, walk 2, run 2, collapse. I think being so heavy is not helping progression so I am going to stick with run 6, walk 2 three times till I have lost some weight which will be hard given I've eaten badly for much of the week. I am wondering how I can get out of going to WW on Monday, am thinking of feigning diptheria.

I did lose 2.5lb last week bringing the total up to 9.5lb so it's not all bad.

I am feeling more organised than I was, which basically means I've either used some material that has been hanging around for about 28 years, or I have done some crafting, or that I have tidied up. Seeing as you know about the bag and only 1 card has been made then I must have tidied up. Doesn't happen often but I am getting very fed up with clutter and lego. I am sure the kids think lego is a short name for lego as they hear it mostly referred to as 'bloody lego' but I am old and my tolerance is not high. No excuses. Their recklessless mess making drives me crazy, their infringement of Pip's space (his room) and their disregard for their poor aged mothers frayed nerves as they race through the house with swords or balls or knives. Again, I know I am not the only one.

We have had some lovely weekends recently, not least last weekend which was frighteningly civilised and the kids managed not to break anything of note.




When Hubby went to Windsor he actually took some nice 'scrapping' images, I was deeply impressed.






of course, I take better photos...

I am never making cauliflower and broccoli soup again, it is the rankest of the rank. Even ryvita seems attractive after eating that green goo.

Also in other other news I have moved from the couch to 5k running plan to Bob Glovers running plan as it was kinder and 2 weeks longer (I need kindness and those extra 2 weeks believe me).
Last week I ran:-

• warm up 5 min
• run 5 min
• walk 2 min
• run 5 min
• walk 2 min
• run 5 min
• ring 999 and ask for oxygen and defib.

I only managed to get to the gym once this week (Hubby said I needed a break - he doesn't understand what sort of break I need!) but ran 5 min/walk 2-3min repeated 3 times without too much discomfort. On Monday (weigh in day Have lost 8lb so far having missed last weeks session dur to choc fountain in Staffs) the plan is to:

• run 6 min
• walk 90 sec
• repeat twice more (total running 18 mins)

this should put me on 3.5k. It's a tall order though but I am finding a strict routine is working better than listening to my 'body' - my body has been lying to me about needing chocolate for 30 years - it's not going to tell me the real deal with running now after 4 weeks now is it?

just be grateful I am not allowed to take my phone in the gym so I can't take a pic of my beetroot face after all that exertion (maybe if the locker room is quiet i will give it a go on Mon)

Remind me to not touch glue from a hot glue gun. It blisters and removes skin.

The result was worth it though as it helped to transform a black plastic and very cheap (£3) Ikea chair into a still cheap chair that now looks cheerful!

pics later

• 5 min warm up


• 90sec running, 90 sec walking


• 3 min runnung, 3 min walking


• repeat

It's a great programme as it pushes you to just your limit and then lets you walk. Yesterday I could just about do it, I normally jog at 7.2kph (most pple walk faster than that) and I did that bar the last 2 minutes running where my legs felt like jelly, I had to slow to 6.9kph. But I don't feel a failure as I still completed it, albeit slowly. How can it be failure when i am hauling my lardy arse around for 30 minutes? I feel good about it and good about myself doing it - this doesn't happen very often, so pat me on the back when you see me.

Week 4 looks very scarey as I have to run for 5 minutes straight. I may repeat week 3 again if I am not happy on Friday (my last gym session of the week).

Tiddly is in biggo trouble, he logged into an online kids chat room that he is addicted to but as one of his friends. He typed out a swear word and got his friend banned for an hour. This is not good and he had been punished, but it is getting harder and harder to make him care. How do you make them care? he simply could not give a hoot. Maybe he likes the attention? who knows. I know that 8 year old boys are a tricky bunch to fathom and I'm going to have to do it twice more!! Munch is a peanut and actually saught out a maths book to complete yesterday, Tiddly used to run as far as he could from them, but little Munch, the boy who struggles to be understood, who can take a beating from a friend or brother and not moan about it, who struggles with his core words all the time who forgets them as soon as he's seen them, he actually loves numbers. Pip is a little pip, learning from his brothers, getting into all sorts of scarey scrapes considering he's only just 1 and not yet walking - his favourite being getting into places where Mummy can't reach him. Fun game that, usually played near electrical sockets during dinner preparation when I am at my most hassled. Pip loves to be read to, particularly a little book given to us by the Health Visitor which in this early reading book sheme. It's called 'I love it when...' and inside describes a few scenarios with penguin illustrations. Ok it's cute the first time, but not so much the 101st time.

Tiddly was a Lion in his class assembly - he's wearing Munchers t-shirt, much to his chagrin!

I have been going to the gym and trying to run on the treadmill whilst maintaining my eating frenzy at home, I came to the unedifying realisation that nothing is going to change unless I take drastic action. Normally I shy away from drastic action as it's all too much like hard work, but I know what has to be done I just have to knuckle down and do it.

So last night I went back to WW, a horrifying weigh in that was treated with tact and discretion and the company of a very good friend made it ok. I hate having to plan food like it was a military operation, but my problem is I eat and eat and eat, I forget what I've had and eat some more. Token efforts down the gym aren't gonna fix this Big Momma, no siree Bob.


Other triggers for action are:-

• had to take a self portrait for a online photo course I am taking and could not get one decent one, even after copious rearrangements of my form


• my niece is getting married in 10 weeks, if I want to enjoy myself without feeling like a fat bird in a fat birds dress I have to get my groove on and stop eating so much.

Hubby is supportive but busy with lots of other things, kids couldn't give a monkeys what I look like and I've run out of people to moan to.

So, here's to Day 1 of taking myself in hand.

I also plan to run 5k around our school playing field to raise money for charity, not run fast or anything but run without stopping, obviously it's an organised thing, even I do not have the chutzpah required woblle along on my own.

At the gym today I went onto week 2 of the couch-to-5k plan (I sort of did week 1 during the last 2 weeks):

• run for 90 seconds walk for 2 minutes for 20 minutes.

Sound easy? not on your life! maybe it's the bulk I am having to run with but I really suffered. The good thing is that it made me realise that I work best working to goals - lose weight for the wedding/run the 5k at school etc etc. It would have been really easy to give up or to take it really easy, but no-one ever said that running was easy, especially at the start and I am now one determined lady.

In other news....

We are back. A little more tanned (or red & freckled in my case), a little more worn out and a little more of a closer family than before. The boys love spending time with their Daddy on holiday, I am usually left to do the cooking, cleaning and bathtimes! It makes me realise how little time he gets to spend with them during the week, so I don't mind too much, it's been a long time since it's been the 'me, me, me' show and I like it that way.

Congratulations to Marja and Kirk on the birth of their very cute little girl, Noemie, on the 11th April, I hope all are doing well. Even though Pip is only 1 (well 14 months in 2 days) I couldn't go back to newborn again, not anymore, not with my advanced years. You forget about how tiny and fragile and needy newborn babies are, how exhausting just exisiting can be but also how thrilling.

We have 381 photos of our trip to Eastbourne, home of the Old Dots, many will be discarded in the dustheap that is the 20,000 photos on my hard drive (that I really need to get an external hard drive for) but I am sure that I have some real peaches.

There is so much washing and stuff to do here I must go do it before the baby gets up and Hubby gets back from wherever he went.

oh the wonder of paper crafting! (Roman soldiers costume made from construction paper and foil) - this is all paper honestly!

Munch went to his first proper birthday party whilst being at big school, he had a blast. He also got to take Mr Dog home for the weekend which was fun, although the responsibility got a bit much at times.

so why am i on here?

I have been goofing off for a whole hour, I am an expert in the field of goofing off or as we Brits like to say 'an expert slacker' - it's a field that I perfected whilst working and have successfully carried it over into my non-working life. I could represent my country in it and I am training my oldest son to be an expert as well (he goofs off on Club Penguin and Neopets, whilst I am a successfull craft website slacker).

I now have these (unused but in-waiting)

and I have some of these babies too as an early mothers day present (plus one is a bday pressie for a friend), they look so pretty I could not resist forcing Hubby into buying them from here.

I went to Stamperama this weekend with my friend Ruth, although it catered very much to the cardmakers & stampers of this world there was more than enough there to keep me interested.

the baby is asleeeeeeeep!