Well Christmas has gone for another year, it was good, kids got lots of presents under the tree, and we had a good time, new year was Ok we had a lovely free fireworks display due to living on a hill lol.

Little bear has caught a bug so she's not very well at the moment, hope she's Ok for school next week, and for a treat we've promised her for tomorrow but we'll see how it goes.

Happy New Year everyone.

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Its dreaded christmas shopping again

Its that time of year again, when the bear does the Christmas shopping, and gets full of Christmas Crossness lol (a phrase I pinched from a friend). I think the worst thing about going Christmas shopping is knowing what to get once that's sorted its relatively easy apart from paying for it all lol.

Anyway I think now I am about a third of the way through so have made a good start. We have a nice Christmas Market in town which sounds and smells wonderful, I went for a nosey but the prices are a bit on the steep side but its nice though to have a choice of produce from other countries, must go and buy something before they pack up.

Hubby has been making his usual chutneys and stuff which includes a mega super hot one that nearly blows your head off but tastes wonderful, its kind of nice and ouch at the same time lol.

will blog again soon

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Camping

Last weekend bears 1 and 3 and I went camping to Skegness. We stayed at a place called top yard farm camping site and it was a good old fashioned camp site with pub, showers and pot wash facilities and that was your lot.

We had a good time the weather was relatively kind it only rained once and that was on sunday night when it absolutely tipped it down but we was in the tent at the time so it didn't matter too much anyway we spent loads of money as you do but we had fun.

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Some Bike riding photo's

Little bear is really getting into bike riding since she learned to ride it about a month ago, every night its will you take me to the park mum to ride my bike. Good exercise for me though I guess, anyway we have some cool parks, with bike ramps and tracks round here so I thought I would publish some photo's lol.

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after she had been riding for a while she started trying out the little bumps. But some bumps where just a little too big lol.

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been camping

me and little bear went camping over the bank holiday weekend and it rained and rained and rained and rained lol.

Fortunately the tent proved to be fairly waterproof and we had well designed ready beds that even though they got a little wet on the bottom it didn't seep through to the top layer so we were nice and dry.

Anyway we had a good time, got to see some old friends and some old places we knew.

Hubby is being chatted up by someone on the Stroke Association website at the moment, so me thinks me going to have stamp my bear authority soon.

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Bike riding

today little bear learnt to ride a bike for the very first time, of course she fell off a few times before she got the hang of it but now she is really proud of herself having been able to ride from one end of the field to the other.

It was fairly hard work for me at the start having to run up and down holding on to the end of the bike until she got her balance but it has all been worth it.

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Snow men

Snow has finally arrived with some force today after getting a light covering yesterday. So little bear wanted to make a snow man, so at half past eight we were in the garden making one lol.

Here are the pictures.

Hoping its still here tommorrow so we can go placcy baging as we call it up here, basically it means sledging on plastic bags lol.

Bye for now

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Swimming

Today I went swimming to actually go swimming, not to look after kids, only trouble was that after a couple of laps I was well and truely shattered and had to have a rest. Still I didn't do to badly I think I did about twenty to thirty laps which for a first time is not bad. I went with my sister in law who managed to do a few more laps than me but still it was nice to go with company cause it does get a bit boring on your own just swimming up and down.

Only trouble was we got this old fella trying to chat us up for some reason, so we got out after a bit. We were very good we went to the cafe and only had a coffee not food lol.

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Hope Winters not finished

Yesterday we had some brief snow flurries, which really didn't amount to much at all, I was thinking I hope winters not over because tots loves to make snow men and its something she does very rarely. I remember when we were kids we used to get to make snow men every year, even snow caves in the quarry where I grew up. When my other two children were small it used to snow more often though not as often as It did when we were kids but at least they got to make snow men more often. I think tots has only made about two in her entire life and she is nine now lol.

Still its only January maybe we will get some snow in February and March.

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Very stormy weather

Yesterday it was really wheelie weather up here it was that windy that there was loads of wheelie bins lying in the middle of the road. Fences have blown down all around us but ours as stood steadfast this year thanks to hubby building them really strong and making them so that the wind blows through them. I went to a local supermarket and shared a taxi with a friend but it was that windy that two taxis refused to collect us lol. I had a right fight getting out of the taxi with my shopping trolly, I was trying to hold the door with one hand and get the trolly out with the other, whilst trying to disentangle myself from the seatbelt. Then I got out and my hat sailed off bear no 2 had to chase after it for me.

I had a new phone for chrissy so I can now take photos hoping to publish some on my blog soon when hubby shows me how.

Bye for now.

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Christmas week

Not blogged for a while because been busy, but thought I would let you know what we all been up to, in busy bear land.

On Christmas Eve me and the bears went to church to the carol service it was really nice and we had some mince pies and coffee afterwards, then we did some last minute christmas shopping. Afterwards we went home wrapped up pressies and then family members visited us.

Christmas day little bear was up at eight opening her pressies it kept them quiet for about an hour and then they ran out lol. We had christmas dinner late about tea time and that was that.

Anyway wishing everyone happy christmas and happy new year hope you have a good one.

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Christmas Shopping

Finally got some Christmas shopping done with a little help from bear 2. Got most of little bear's pressies, and some for relatives, still loads more to do though lol, but hubby has promissed to go with me later on in the week to finish the rest.

Hubby is making candles at the moment so the whole house smells of delicious scented candle wax, very chrissmassy, but unfortunately no snow yet, which is a shame because it wont feel like christmas until it snows. I was wondering will we ever see a time, when we stop getting snow men on Christmas cards and wrapping paper, because it snows so infrequently in britain at christmas time that its a bit of a waste of time having snow men on the wrapping paper lol.

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Decorating the tree

Finally we put up the tree last week after a full week of little bear bugging us, we still have the lights to put round the window, but hubby has decided he wants to buy some new ones so will have to wait till we get some. Hoping to go to town tommorrow to do the dreaded Christmas shopping so will have a look at the lights tommorrow if their is anything left.

Anyway the tree looks nice, white tree with purple and silver decorations and white lights, little bear is getting excited for Christmas and being a right royal pain at the moment annoying everyone. Cant wait to get her in bed lol.

will blog more tommorrow.

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Christmas Biscuits

Today me and Little Bear made some Christmas Biscuits. Years ago I bought a Christmas cookie set from bettaware, its just four Christmas Shape cutters, There is a Father Christmas, snow man, Christmas tree, and some bells. We made a basic biscuit mix and then to make them more Christmasy we sprinkled them with ginger and cinaman and cooked them for fifteen minutes.


Then Little bear iced them with some white icing and they looked for all the world like they were covered in snow, they taste delicious too.


Guess we will be making some more before Christmas because they have nearly all gone. Still not done the dreaded Christmas shopping though yet.

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House full of delicious smells

For the past few days hubby has been making Christmas cake and green tomato chutney so the house has been full of lovely delicious cooking smells. I love the preparations for Christmas with the cooking and the pickling. Also we like to make scented Christmas candles which smell of orange and cinomann which smells lovely, need to go and find some more candle moulds though because at the moment we only have one which is a bit of a faff because you have to make one and let it cool before you can make another.

Still will have to start the dreaded Christmas shopping next week not bought a single thing yet, so definitely need to start.

Bfn

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Sad News

On 16th October my brother in law passed away suddenly he was aged 41, he had a partner and two children aged 15 and 10. I had known him for over twenty years so it was one hell of a shock. So consequently have been feeling very out of it for the last week hence no blog entries.

He died peacefully in his sleep so he didn't suffer at all which is cool. But its upsetting because he was so young.

Anyway love for now.

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simple pleasures

I was thinking yesterday, how privelaged we are to be parents, I was walking home with little bear from school and it was raining, so little bear was having a great time splashing in the puddles with the simple innocence that only children have. It occurs to me when you are a parent you get a chance to witness childhood again and take part in its simple pleasures through sharing in your child's enjoyment of rain and puddles.

I am feeling a little better at the moment and the kids seem to have recovered from there bug so that's good. Autumn has arrived with avengence up here the air is frosty in the morning and evening, and all around there is a wonderful kaladascope of colours.

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Feeling Yuk

Everyone in our house seems to have gone down with the dreaded lurg, or bug, generally everyone has a sore throat and feels hot and cold, and generally miserable. Son of ours hasn't been to uni for two weeks now because of it, and little bear has been off school. So of course they have infected hubby and I as well, but we have to carry on because we are parents lol.

The only one who seems to be unaffected so far is eldest daughter who is carrying on as usual, so if I don't blog you will know why its because I am asleep, or at least trying to be asleep, without someone shouting mum........

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The last laugh

On Saturday I was working in the garden with my dad cutting hedges and painting the fence, just touching it up to make it ready for winter. Anyway I noticed that the garden bench and table was getting in need of a coat of paint as well, and has it happened I had some left over from before in the hut. So I thought why not its a nice day.

So I painted the garden bench and table its a combined circular thing that hubby made its really nice, I painted the top purple and the bench blue, it looked quite good.

Later that evening, I was upstairs getting little bear to bed when hubby says to me, oh bear 2 has gone on the back garden with a load of mates to sit on the garden bench, but he neglected to tell her I had just painted it lol. Anyway I debated whether to go and tell them but I thought its too late now they will have already got it allover themselves.

So when my nephew came the next day his jacket had streaks of blue paint on it, we got lots of Aah naw, me mums gonna kill me from the teenagers which was kind of funny lol.

But it wasn't on purpose mc honest anyway, thought it might amuse you, I am sure it will wash off eventually.

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I hate hospitals

Bear 2's best friends, boyfriend her baby's father is in hospital with menigitus, so the baby is having tests done at the moment, so pray for the little might, and his dad.

Bear no 1 has been poorley for a few days with headaches and stomach cramps, and yesterday night blow me if he didn't start with a rash as well, anyway in light of the above circumstances, I decided to phone the docs, but it was out of hours so it transferred me to an emergency no. After he talked to the doc on the phone he suggested I take him to casualty, which was all very well but it was about eleven oclock at night, not a good time to go to casualty round here.

So we waited and waited, an hour went past then two, nearly three hours later he was seen by the doctor, who examined him, and said that he had a bacterial infection, and a viral infection, but he didn't think he had menigitus, so that was good. Anyway he has taken some antibiotics today and he seems a bit better so he was probably right, but bear 1 was megga naffed off he had to wait for three hours lol. We finally got back at about three oclock this morning, so I am rather tired today.

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