Snowman

We still have plenty of snow left, Max has been out in it again today, and he loves making footprints and throwing snowballs. Here are some photos of him.

View from the back

View from the kitchen window

I love snow, and i'll be really sad when its all gone. It makes everything look clean instead of muddy (I hate the mud!!) We are supposed to be having some more tomorrow so, fingers crossed :O)

My grandparents marriage certificate came today and it was lovely to actually see some documentation of their exsistance. I don't even have a photo of my grandad and i only have one of my grandma (kindly donated to me by my Auntie Olga) I don't know/have any photos of their eldest two children and only knew my dads twin, Uncle Harry and of course my dad. Its funny cos my dad never talked about any of them and i don't think there was any love lost between them all. Its really odd growing up and not knowing one part of your family (even more odd to know you have 2 half sisters and a half brother that you wouldn't recognised if they walked past you in the street). I guess i'll just have to be happy with records and knowing they did actually exsist.

I'm now waiting for the postie to deliver me some marriage certificates for my mothers side of the family. The surname is ''Hindley'' and my mother has a morbid obsession with finding a connection to Myra Hindley, although i have told her that if i find one, i will not be telling her about it. I definately wouldn't be proud to own her! The Christian names are interesting in their own right. They are as follows -

Silas Hindley b 1852

Kezia Hindley b 1854 d 1864

Eubulus Hindley b 1857

Cleophas Hindley b 1858 d 1861

Julius Augustus Hindley b 30 March 1861 (My great grandad)

Keren Happuch Hindley b 1863

Agur Abner Hindley b 1865

Samuel Thomas Justus Hindley b 1869

Aren't they fantastic names? It makes a look up very easy as its not like a ''John Smith'' or a ''John Brown'', when you find one, theres definately no doubt if its correct. I have the marriage certificate for Julius Augustus and he had a catholic marriage so i wonder if this has some significance in their unusual names? I have a normal certificate but last night i found a transcript from the catholic church register and all their names have been changed. Here have a look -

Julius Augustus Hindley Catholic Marriage

Marriage: 17 May 1886
Sacred Heart, Hindsford, Atherton, Lancashire, England
Julius Augustus Hindley - of Tyldesley
Helenam (real name Ellen) Valentine - of Tyldesley
Groom's Father: Thomae (real name Thomas) Hindley
Bride's Father: Thomae (real name Thomas) Valentine
Witness: Eduardo (real name edward) Valentine, of Tyldesley; Maria Eckersley, of Eckersley
Married by: Ricardus (real name Richard) O'Neill Miss. Apost.
Register: Marriages 1869 - 1900, Page 34
Source - www.lan-opc.org.uk

Isn't it weird how they had their names recorded? Is this what normally happens at a catholic wedding?

Anyway i'm off to bed now before Max wakes up. He is being put to bed in his ''Big'' Thomas bed now but he can wake up anywhere between 12am and 5am and then won't go back to bed unless its in our bed. I really want him to be in his bed permantly for when the new baby arrives else its gonna be a nightmare with two of them in our room.

Night night *waves*

What's all this white stuff??

I thought it was about time i did a bit of blogging because its been over a month now and its in need of an update.

I woke up this morning and looked out the window, guess what i saw!

Yep, Snow! Everywhere! and its still coming down as i type.

Life has all gone to pot around us at the moment because of this 'white stuff'. Josh has just been sent home from college as they have decided they should close at lunch time. Dan has just rung home to say his college progress interview at Chesterfield has been cancelled for tonight and my mum had just phoned up to say she won't be bringing Jake home from school and can we fetch him. I wouldn't mind but we haven't even had an inch yet!!! God bless 4x4's is all i can say :O)

I have just realised that i didn't post my 12 week scan picture of Peanut, so here is he/she for all to see.

This scan photo is really out of date now because i'm 18 weeks and going for another scan on 17th February when we should be able to find out if its a Mstr Peanut or a Miss Peanut LOL. I'm still in two minds about asking though so, we'll have to wait and see.

I have started enjoying food again now, but cooking smells can still put me off. At the moment i'm loving corned beef and salad cream sandwiches, KFC, prawn cocktail crisps, apples, fishfinger sandwiches, cherry yoghurts, tomatoes!! but it all seems to change from week to week. I don't seem to be putting any extra weight on, which is unusual for me and at my last midwife checkup i was 2lbs lighter than when i went to book in at 7 weeks. I do have a baby belly though so maybe the baby is eating all my calories and after i give birth i'll be the same weigh as Kate Moss!! PMSL Oh, I know, I can but hope!

We have just got back from taking Max to Dobbie's. It was a special treat promised to him by me last night when i was trying to get him sleep in his Thomas bed at 1am. He loves to go there to look at the tropical fish (they have Nemo and Dorey ones!). He made us laugh on the way there, we were talking about the snow and Nik said 'The snow is very cold' Max corrected him by saying, 'The snow isn't very cold, its just chilly. I like chilly' you had to have been there really as it wasn't just what he said but how he said it.

I seem to have caught the family history bug with a vengence again at the moment. I think its all due to the release of the 1911 census returns. I think i have finally managed to find my father's parents (living seperately as they were too young to be married then). Using http://www.freebmd.org.uk/ i have managed to find a reference for their marriage and have sent off for the certificate. I have also found two brothers of my father, that i have never heard of and which sadly died in childhood. My father and his brother (born on 11 July 1926) also had a elder half sister, and an elder full sister (i have references for both births now) who was two years older than him! There is just a mystery about what happened to my father's mother's first husband now but, as the disappearance of him was in time period of WW1 i suspect he was a casualty of war, leaving her a widow with a daughter. I have also found the death reference for my father's mother who i know died when they were two but found out that she was also buried on their 2nd birthday. It seems like his mother was born and bred in Whaley Thorns (my fathers birthplace) as she is living there with her family in 1911 stating it also as her place of birth and i know she is buried there too. Finally, at last! i have some information on a family i never knew, as both my grandparents on my fathers side died before i was born. I only ever knew my father and my Uncle Harry (his twin) and my father knew next to nothing about his family apart from having a sister and a half sister, but not knowing any details about them. I can't wait for the postie to slip it through my letter box so i'll know for sure!

Speaking of the postie, he delivered me a package the other day, and i was all excited when i saw the handwriting belonged to my bestest friend in the whole world - Vanda! On opening it, i found to my delight a slow cooker recipe book. Thank you Vanda and Andrew, i'll definately be trying some of the recipes out :O) Did Gemma recieve her sunglasses parcel?

I'm really loving the Sunday night tv at the moment. Dancing on Ice followed by Wild At Heart. There's not much else to be doing while my backs bad and the nights are dark. Dancing on Ice is fantastic and i love this years celebrities. Although i do think its terrible how Todd Carty is still in after each of his terrible weekly performances. The bloke can hardly stand on the ice in his skates, let alone skate to music. I felt he would be voted off this week for sure after his terrible atempt at swimming on the ice was viewed by millions of people, but what can i say? He wasn't even in the flipping skate off!!!!! Poor Michael Underwood ended up being booted off and he was far better than Todd and not the worst skater in the line up at all. Oh well, all i can do is hope for his kicking off in next weeks show. My favourite to win is the very cute and squishable Ray, who is totally fantastic and seems to have a natural flair (must be down to his ballroom dancing) for ice dancing and has much more content in each of his performances than any of the others.

Anyway, thats it for now folks, i'll try and update again soon - Bye *waves*

Delivering Presents

We have been helping Santa out this weekend delivering presents. We finally took the last ones this afternoon to Rebecca & Lloyd. It was great to see all the family again. Grandad was also there when we arrived. Max loved bossing the kids around and they were great with him. He ended up coming home with some more out grown toys. A big stuffed cockerel and a Shrek helmet LOL

Nik took me out for Sunday pub lunch today and it was lovely. I had a roast beef dinner and ate every bit, Nik had a steak and ale pie and that look yummy too. Max was a pain in the bum and hates sitting still. He thought it was like Ikea and was upset that there were no toys to play with, how can you explain why to a 2 year old?

Anyway as promised here is a photo of my Christmas cake. Hope it tastes as good as it looks.

Going to bed now so i can get another sleep out of the way before Santa can come PMSL...Bye xx

OMG! What A Day!!

Its been a totally flippin horrible day today :O(

I got up early to pack Nik some food for his trip to Liverpool (to take a car). Got Jake sorted for his last day of school and sent Dan off to work.

Half an hour after Dan had gone to work Nik came in looking odd. He told me that Dan had just rung him to say he'd just reversed into a car in the petrol station. So, before Nik could set off on his trip he had to calm down the man and explain that Dan would pay for the damage done to the mans car without going through the insurance company. He also explained he worked for a accident repair company and that it would be sorted to a high standard. So, after all that he set off on his trip.

At 9am i took Josh to college. It was his last day too and only had half a day to do. I just managed to get home and unload Max from the car and take his shoes and coat off when the phone rang again. It was Josh asking to be picked up because no one else had turned up ARGHHH! So, i put Max's coat and shoes back on, trudged through the mud and juggled him back in the car. I was about to set off when the phone rang again. It was Josh, saying he was ok now as some of the lads had turned up!! I could have strangled him. So, back in the house i went and took everything off again. Poor Max didn't know if he was coming or going.

Josh went to work with Reg and Knocker at their yard when college had finished. He has started helping them out and he does stuff like helping Knocker build his new trialer and gives Reg a hand repairing things(Reg is Knocker's dad). Its all good stuff to be learning when your a lad (or so i'm told by Nik, who did all his training there when he was a lad and Reg was 30 years younger and Knocker was just a nipper LOL)

The rest of the day was spent trying to keep Max entertained which was hard because he was having a 'pain in the bum day' and was being a little devil. At one point he took some papers out of the cupboard in the living room and i took them off him and put them back but, before my hand was out of the way he slammed the door and trapped my finger in it.

When Nik finally came home i got him to have Max while i had a shower, to give me a break. I got out the shower feeling loads better and started making dinner. I put it out at the usual time but the only diners were Nik, Max and myself. After we had finished our food i phoned everyone up and told them about dinner. Dan had forgot to tell me he wouldn't be home till 8.30 and he was picking Jake up from granny's house and Josh was working late at the yard. I was so cross with them cos they never think to give me a quick ring and its been happening a lot just lately. Does this only happen to me or is it what i've got to expect now?

Anyway at 8pm Nik went out down Clowne with all the lads from P&D trialing club for a Christmas pub crawl, so as i type i'm sat with the cordless right next to me so when he rings for his ride home i can grab the phone asap without it waking Max up.

At 9pm i heated up the dried out dinners for the three boys and couldn't care less what it tasted like. I hope it was horrible, serves them right LOL maybe they'll learn now. I guess i can live in hope.

Now its all peaceful and i thought i'd do a spot of blogging. I wanted to put a photo of my Christmas cake on here but i went to take the piccy, only to find my camera battery is dead and wants charging. I think i ought to go to bed before it can get any worse. There's one good thing (two if you count not feeling sick today) and that is, tomorrow can't possibly be any worse. Although we do have to go see the man that Dan reversed into to make repair arrangements.

My Catch Up Blog

OMG I am getting so excited about Christmas this week. Only seven sleeps left!!!

I thought i would put a few photos on my blog because its ages since i have, so here is our Christmas tree.

Here is Max with Santa. I thought this year the photo would be better (no screaming child). After we had cleaned him up, dressed him in nice clothes etc. all our efforts were wasted when he fell flat on his face in the car park on the way. He bust his lip and grazed his head (he looked a right mess) but we still had to have the photo.

At least this year he did manage a smile, even if it was forced (but we did bribe him with 50p which he has in his hand for a ride on Bertie The Bus).

We have had some guests to stay for a week. Ann's dogs, Jack and Duke. They were no trouble but they did make the kitchen smelly and the floor hairy. If ever i say i want a dog, will someone please slap me! The favour will be returned though as Ann always has Boo dog if we go away anywhere so we didn't mind.

Here are some photos of our guests LOL (Jack is the black one and Duke is brown).

Here are the Three Amigos waiting for a biscuit LOL

I'm Still Here!

OMG! I've not blogged for forever have i?

I've felt really tired and sick for the last week and haven't done anything with the computer. We have been having a nightmare with Max and his bedtime. We can't get him to sleep in the Thomas bed, he won't stay in his cot and keeps wanting to get in with us around 12-1am every morning. I can't sleep with him in our bed cos i've been having trouble sleeping too. I must get up ten times a night to use the loo and i can't seem to get comfy in bed no matter what position i sleep in and when Max is in its just an impossibility so, i've been sleeping on the sofa or on a mattress on the floor in Max's room.

So what have i been up to since i last blogged? Not much really. We fetched a Christmas tree yesterday from Sherwood Pines forrestry commission and we trimmed it up last night. It looks lovely and smells fantastic :O) I love the smell of pine trees. It was a fab smell to come downstairs to this morning.

Jake, Max and me went to the hairdressers this afternoon for a tidy up, Max having the most off. It was starting to get a nightmare to wash and comb so, i decided a good trim was the only answer. He actually sat still for Karen as she cut it, which was definately a first. He looks lovely now and was quite proud of himself for having it done.

Nik, Josh and Dan are off trialing tomorrow, They tell me its somewhere near Melton Mowbray. It'll be the first time Nik will have competed in his new trialer and Josh is gonna be his 'co-pilot'. I have packed them up a fab lunch to keep them going, so hopefully they will do well. Jake, Max and me arre staying at home. The weathers far too cold for us but we'll be keeping the home fire burning to warm them up when they get back LOL.

Jake has finally got an appointment through for the hospital. Its the 20th January, so not too long to wait. I have my scan booked for the 23rd December, and we all think its a girl this time because of how sick i'm feeling (never been this bad before) and everyone keeps saying its always bad when your having a girl so, i may have to ask the sex when i go for it LOL Its still undecided but i think i might :O) I can't stop eating clementines at the moment. Its the only thing i'm craving. I still can't eat puddings, cakes and sweets which is a bit of a bugger cos i've made a Christmas cake this year and i don't fancy it at all. I really can't cook because everything smells so disgusting, its unbelievable. I can't eat my dinner most nights as it makes me heave. The only thing keeping me alive is salad sandwiches and clementines. Fingers crossed for it to pass soon.

I'm really missing IACGMOOH as tonight is the first night without it and i need my jungle fix. I was really happy with Joe winning and i think i predicted it at the very beginning. I got to like Martina, which i never though i would and George kept making me smile. I don't think that man has a bad bone in his body. He always seemed calm and got along with everyone (good or bad) in the jungle, and for 70 something he did fantastic in his last two trials.

Gonna go to bed now and try and get a couple of hours before Max decides its time to create havoc. Night night xxx