112 /366 - Copying Big Sister

This was the girls just before Poppy's ballet lesson this morning. Little Rosie was due to stay at home with Daddy today and whilst still in her pj's rushed off to get herself a tutu and copy her Sisters moves. Very sweet!

Karen x

107/366 - A New Game

Today Poppy decided to teach Rosie how to play and match up the dominoes. She was very patient with her and Rosie did pretty well too.

Karen x

102/366 - Being Good

I really needed to get on and do some ironing today as the pile was falling out of the basket. Recently I have been too tired to do it when the girls are in bed so today I just bit the bullet and did it.

The girls were very well behaved and played really nicely (whilst eating snacks) and I took a minute to take this picture. of them

Karen x

100/366 - Egg and Spoon Race

Wow my 100th photo for the year! I feel it should be a really good one but it isn't...it is a fun one though!

The girls were getting fidgety this morning, so carrying on the Easter theme...we had an egg and spoon race in the hall:

The eggs might look real...but they weren't. They had great fun though. Poppy was brilliant and really proud of herself as you can see, whilst Rosie kept dropping it and shouting "smash, smash, smash". Oh well, she had fun running up and down the hall anyway.

They also have at least two hair bows in each after I came downstairs with a handful of them from the bathroom. They insisted they put them all in and I couldn't say no!

Karen x

99/366 - Easter Egg Hunt

The girls went on a treasure hunt today and found some lovely little eggs and an Easter Bunny. They thought they were the luckiest girls in the Whole Wide World.

This was pretty much the only time Little miss Rosie smiled all day though - she has been teething and grumpy with it!

Karen x

88/366 - Who Do They Love More?

My Dad has come to stay for a week and the girls adore him. However, they also love his ipad which has even more games on for them than Daddy's does.  This was them this afternoon:

They love their Gramps so I am sure we will have lots more photos to post!

Karen x

My Week That Was...

Another week has gone and Spring is officially here. The weather has improved and we have all been enjoying it.

Monday - was a bit of a quiet one. Usual day at home with Rosie but also started to sort through some of the baby stuff...very exciting!

Tuesday - Toddler group at the School. It is working really well with Poppy staying for lunch, everyone is happier and a little less tired.

Wednesday - Was supposed to be going to a toddler group but Husband had the car so couldn't go ;-(. the weather was lovely though so Rosie got to play outside.

Thursday - a trip to Sainsburys this morning reminded me why I usually have it delivered. I seemed to run round all day and it was a busy hectic one.

Friday - Usual music group this morning and then this afternoon my friend from uni came to stay :-).  I haven't seen her in years and she had not yet met the girls so it was lovely. Husband came home from work early so whilst he looked after the girls I took her her out for a quick walk around to show her around the village.  The girls took to her straight away, especially as she brought them some gorgeous presents.

Saturday - The weather was lovely so after Poppy's ballet lesson we headed off to the beach for a picnic! It was great to be out in the fresh air and the girls really enjoyed splashing around. They loved having Nics to stay, especially Poppy who got so wet chasing her around, she stripped off to her knickers! Luckily Nics had a spare top so we made it into a dress for her. I got a bit burnt on one arm but it had faded by the next day. I also enjoyed the 99 ice cream we had in the park!

Sunday - Nicky had to go home today and we were all sorry to see her go. To cheer ourselves up we headed off to the pool which was great fun. It was then a quick lunch stop before we had to get home because Husband had to go to work. We won't see him until Tuesday now :-(

Here's our week in pictures:

Hope you all enjoyed a lovely week too.

Karen x

85/366 - Going Swimming

We had to say goodbye to Nicky today and as we were up and out we decided to go swimming. Here's the girls as I was getting them ready at home:

They are lucky enough to be trialling these gorgeous new swimsuits and I think they look adorable.

Karen x

Fun With Friends

This weekend Nicky, one of my very old friends and house mate from Uni came to stay. We haven't seen each other since just before I went to live in Canada almost five years ago but have kept in touch via the phone and emails. 

Obviously since then, a lot has changed, the biggest thing being I am a Mummy now.

Nicky has never met my girls before but they were really excited about meeting her and took to her straight away. She was brilliant with them. Since she has left they have been asking about her non-stop.

We were really lucky the weather was so good, so headed to the beach where we enjoyed a lovely picnic.  Poppy especially loved splashing around in the water and even ended up in her knickers as everything got so wet! Lucky enough Nics had been wearing layers so she leant Poppy her T-shirt which we tied in a knot at the back and I had a pair of clean tights in my bag so she didn't get cold.

We enjoyed a lovely weekend with her which went way to quickly so I wanted to share some photos:

I think Nicky will tell you I haven't changed that much, I might be  a bit older but i'm  just as dizzy. I demonstrated this by showing how:

• Having sun tan lotion in bag is not good enough, you have to remember to put it on
• Mums still need to carry wet wipes even when  children are toilet trained, especially at the beach
• Children need either layers or clean outfits for such trips

It was a good practice run to prepare for a Summer at the Beach.

Now five years is obviously far too long so we have promised not to leave it so long next time.

Karen x

84/366 - Fun At The Beach

We are loving the gorgeous weather today and headed off to the beach to enjoy it.:

We have my old friend from Uni staying with us this weekend so it was really good to be able to get out and enjoy the fresh air.

Karen x

80/366 - My Girls

This was the girls arriving home this afternoon. These days the School run is so much more pleasurable now Rosie is walking again...but she needs a big rest when she gets home.

Karen x

79/366 - Winding Down....Honestly!

Usually after their bath, the girls are relaxed and ready to cuddle up quietly for story time....not tonight though. They were full of beans:

Trying to get a photo of them was almost impossible, they wouldn't sit still. Luckily they are both in bed, fast asleep now though.

Karen x

76/366 Sisters Are Made For Bouncing On

The girls are always playing and giggling together. Lately Rosie has started to jump on her Sister and bounce up and down. Luckily Poppy doesn't mind and actually thinks its funny.

Karen x

74/366 - Eyes Closed Tight

Its so difficult getting good pictures of the girls together. there is always one who decides they don't want their photo taken, closes their eyes, runs off, etc. I took this one today though and after about 10 attempts I decided it was the best I was going to get:

Quite cute really!

Karen x

73/366 - Bath Time Toys

Cheeky Rosie was busy in the bath tonight, making sure all the animals were lined up right. Poppy was to busy to even notice.

Karen x

Pretty Little Things - Favourite Toy

My girls love soft toys and have millions of the things. Both of them like to fill their bed/cot with as many as they can:

Poppy went through a stage of taking this Winnie the Pooh with her everywhere and fondly called him Yellow Ted,  although these days is not attached to him at all:

Whilst Rosie will not go to bed without her beloved baby Annabel:

However there is one toy that both girls have had since birth and love.  He is very cute and very  soft and fluffy

My Nana and Grandad brought this gorgeous soft rabbit for Poppy when I was pregnant with her. She took him to bed every night until Rosie came along and then kindly handed him over to Rosie when she was born. Now Rosie has taken him to bed every night since she was born. I wonder if she will pass him onto the next one!

For more pretty little things, then head on over to Mummy, Daddy and Me Makes Three or Dear Beautiful Boy:

Karen x

Dear Girls....

Its been a while since I wrote you both a letter and you are growing up so quickly, I thought I had better do it before I forget all the little things you are doing. I think it will be lovely for you to look back on these when you are older and see how much you are loved:

Poppy,  you are turning into a gorgeous little girl who can be very kind natured.  You sing, dance and talk non-stop which can be quite exhausting to watch but I love it. You are still really enjoying your ballet lessons and we read ballerina stories every night. You always tell me you need to practise really hard to be good but you want to be good.

Your imagination seems to be really going wild recently and you always want to play games with us where you can use it. This can be Doctors, Dentists, Hotels, Princesses, bus rides or almost anything. You remind me of me when I was little.

You love your Preschool and your Teachers and seem to be thriving. I have been told that you like to help the little ones a lot. You are also pretty good with Rosie, trying to teach her new things when you can be bothered!

You love being outside in the fresh air but have also recently started to like my laptop. It amazes me how well you can use the mouse and play different games already. I don't like you to be on there all the time so will distract you by letting you out on the tramperline or taking you out on your bike.

You have really got into baking and cooking recently and love making surprises for Daddy. You are getting quite independent and like me to let you get on with it.

Although you do have your moments (and your tantrums,) you are generally pretty good! You are also really looking forward to having a new Brother or Sister.

Rosie, You are changing so much and growing up so quickly, its unbelievable.

At just 20 months you are a gorgeous , cheeky little monkey. Your personality is starting to really shine through and your speech and language are amazing. You have a vocabulary of about 60 words+ and can link two or three words together to make short sentences.  You also understand everything!

Some of the cheeky things you have come out with recently are "Rosie's ready" when I tell you your dinner is not yet ready, it  needs to cool down a bit. and the other day you wanted to play with your little slide and I said in a minute. Instead of waiting you came right up to me, gave me the cutest smile ever and said "pretty please". You were so adorable I let you play with it straight away.

You are also now toilet trained and have even amazed me with how well you have done with it. I would say it took about 2 weeks and you have never had an accident since, even when out. You also take great delight in flushing the toilet and washing your hands. All the other Mums are amazed. You are a clever little girl.

I think you are starting to realise something is going on with me being pregnant. You have become much more clingy and when anyone mentions the word baby you look up your top which is quite cute.  I am finding it quite difficult carrying you though, as you are getting to be a big girl now. You have just had a huge growth spurt and have shot up even taller.  I am going to get some baby books to help explain what is happening.

Talking about books, you love them. At the moment your favourite ones are The Very Hungry Caterpillar and The Gruffalo. You make me read them again and again but you also enjoy pointing out all the things you recognise like the different types of  food, the woods, woodpecker etc.. You are such a clever girl already!

I am so proud of you both and the little people you are turning into. I am having so much fun watching you grow up. I am also enjoying the bond that is developing between you both and love watching you play together. It is very special and I hope you will always continue to be close.

I love you both very much

Hugs and kisses

Mummy xx

My Week That Was...

Another week has flown by and what a lovely week it has been.

Monday was another usual Monday. Poppy went to School and Rosie and I stayed home. The weather was good so we played outside for a while and then when she napped I went right through cleaning. When Poppy got back from School we played out a bit more and it was a pretty good but quiet day.

Tuesday was a bit mixed. I had a serious wobble in the morning where I was getting really fed up and sore of carrying an increasingly clingy Rosie to School and back. It improved when we went to our usual toddler group in the afternoon though. It was lovely to see the other Mums and have a chat and Rosie was more confident today, joining in with her Sisters activities.

Wednesday, nothing much happened. Poppy went to School, Rosie napped and I actually rested and blogged instead of running around tidying and cleaning. It was lovely.

Thursday - Poppy went to School this morning dressed as a ballerina for World Book Day and then we enjoyed a lovely afternoon at home. We took her balance bike out, then we painted a little clay pot she made with her Daddy at the weekend. We even did some baking.

Friday - Was a lovely day. First we headed off to do our usual music group. One of Poppy's friends from School came for the first time and really enjoyed it. Our really good friends who moved away in the Summer also came which was lovely. Afterwards we went to lunch where we caught up on all the gossip and let the kids run wild before heading off to the park. Great fun. We all really miss them so it was great to catch up.

Saturday - We started the day with a lovely leisurely breakfast in bed. Not quite the same as it would have been pre children but lovely nevertheless:

Then Poppy had her usual ballet lesson. I took both girls and Husband stayed home to tackle the huge ironing pile, he managed to get quite a bit done. This afternoon I had some serious pampering...a pedicure and a back, neck & shoulder massage. Bliss. I was exhausted after that though so had a long bath and early night.

Sunday - I woke up feeling dreadful. We were supposed to be taking the girls to a farm today but it was raining this morning so we decided to go next weekend. Instead we had a very lazy day at home instead with a roast dinner, DVDs and all the toys out.

My week in pictures:

Hope you've all had a good week.

Karen x

62/366 - Good Friends and Lunch Out

Today we enjoyed a really lovely day catching up with friends we have not seen in months.

They came to our music group like the old days before moving away, we enjoyed a lovely lunch out and then we went to the park. The girls all had great fun and so did we.

I didn't take many photos but I did get this one:

Its been a good day!

Karen x

Pretty Little Things - Denim

Another week and another chance to showcase some of the pretty little things we have in this house.

So this weeks topic is denim! Anyone who knows me or this blog will know that my little girls never wear trousers so would never be seen in jeans - there is plenty of time for that. They do however, have several lovely denim dresses and skirts.

This is one of my favourite skirts.

Its was brought for Poppy a few years ago from Mamas and Papas. Despite being worn to death it has worn and washed really well and still looks like new.  I love it

A very girly version of denim: comfortable, durable but ever so pretty too. It can be dressed up and dressed down and I think my girls look fab in it:

For more pretty little things head over to Dear Beautiful Boy and Mummy Daddy and Me Makes Three:

Karen x