:)

I love you

Goodbye Len

To my flat-packers...

Thank you both so much x x x

Ikea and living the retail park dream

Today we bit the flat pack bullet and got our bad selves over to Morley to the blue and yellow palace of the lost...

This mission of mercy was a necessary evil as we needed some more storage for all Little b's things while he is in our room. Ikea is a bit of a marathon at the best of times, but 30+ weeks pregnant on a Saturday is a bit like the steeplechase, full of obstacles and utterly knackering. We got there though. Codes noted for the warehouse and some other bits and pieces for B and the nursery collected on the way.

a stripey rattle...

patterned muslin squares

and one of the bigger items...a shelving unit (we also got some rattan boxes to go in this)

Loaded up and self-check-outed we had enormous fun in the loading area which most people had decided to use as a parking place. From here we decided to brave the rest of the retail park...when in Birstall and all that.

Babies r us is a hole...it's part of Toys r us which is based on a dare and it's name is such bad grammar that I want to poke my eyes out whenever I see it...but, I can't fault the products and we love their 'favourite things' range so we dragged our heels through aisles of toys to get to the baby section. I assume this layout is to force those with a child and one on the way to succumb to placatory toys...If we ever get to this situation I think I'll order online.

Anyway, find this we did... (a changing mat for the uninitiated)

then onto the tranquil (and expensive) shores of Mamas and Papas we sailed...and this we found, perfect for the handle of the car seat....

What you can't see from this photo is that a lot of it is purple and reminiscent of Jon's trousers in a former life and the hanging items rattle and squeak and jiggle and it seemed rather lovely. What made it even lovelier was using our complimentary £5 off voucher which came with the autumn/winter catalogue and the fact that it was part of their bank holiday discount, meaning we got it for half price.

Finally, from here we went to TGI Fridays - somewhere we'd never ever been before and not our typical kind of place, but they were so lovely - incredibly kind and solicitous of my being pregnant - and just attentive and helpful without being a pain... the food is what you would expect but after walking round the world and back I thought we deserved a bit of a treat and the endless refills on the drinks were fantastic.

Золотая свадьба

Tonight we attended the Golden Wedding celebration of Janette and Richard Pollock, special family friends of ours and previously of my late parents. The get together was held at the Normanhurst in Sale and champagne and canapes were served in the gardens. The venue also held a special resonance with me as it's where my Mum used to work, long ago, when the hotel was run by a character called Len Profitt.

The celebration was both important and poignant due to Janette's illness (something I have touched upon previously in these blog pages) and whilst it wasn't a big affair I felt incredibly touched that we should be asked to be there. Here are Mr+Mrs P surrounded by daughters, son and grandsons.

And why, you might ask, is this blog post title in Russian? Because that is where they met, as fluent Russian speakers, travelling on the train to Moscow on the way to the University there. And Mr P? Well, he went on to be rather famous in his field, In the mid-eighties you'd have seen him frequently on the news and in the papers, as translator for Mrs Thatcher in her meetings with Mikhail Gorbachev.

Best Friends

What would I do without you?

Last night a washer saved my life...

This beautiful piece of machinery is now our very own....the Samsung WD8704RJD is now happily installed in the kitchen and we have a fully functioning washer dryer ~our 3 year old reconditioned Indesit has been tripping the light fantastic (aka the electricity) and refusing to 'dry' meaning Jon had to take it apart and drain it every single time we did a wash~ for the first time in more than 6 months.

My sincere and genuine thanks go to Mum and Dad B (Jon's parents) for this incredible gift - our very first brand new washing machine is wonderfully quiet, economical and has given us soft, bendable clothes for the first time.

It might seem like a very simple thing to most people, but it means the world to both of us.

Thirty weeks today!

I am exactly thirty weeks pregnant today and have about 70 days left to go...

I had a midday appointment at the hospital which included a growth scan and it was wonderful to see Little b. He is growing perfectly and measures bang in the middle on the growth chart (what I believe they call the 50th percentile) for his dates. He also has his head down, which explains why I keep needing a wee all the time (!) and he very nicely stuck his bum out somewhere around my bellybutton while the sonographer was trying to do her measurements :) :) :) after the scan we saw the consultant midwife Sue and I had the usual checks done, all of which were good and healthy. Sue seemed pleased with the way thing are going and I will be having another meeting with her at the end of September to discuss options and write my birth plan.

From Halifax we went to Hebden for a brief visit and I took a couple a couple of shots of the canal looking beautiful...

and from there we went on to Stubbings for a late lunch

We sat out the front in the glorious sunshine next to the river and Jon had a nice pint of Black Sheep and me a soda water (adore this fizzy loveliness) and we had tomato, mozzarella and pesto ciabatta which were absolutely lovely. Home by 3 and a gloriously long nap.

Rose Red

We have just watched Rose Red again, for I think the third time and I still love it. The scares get more obvious as the film draws to a conclusion but it's still very very good.

Dr. Joyce Reardon, a psychology professor, leads a team of psychics into the decrepit mansion known as Rose Red. Her efforts unleash the spirit of former owner Ellen Rimbauer and uncover the horrifying secrets of those who lived and died there.

V day

The boys behaved impeccably for their first trip to the vets. They had vaccinations and worming tablets and didn't even flinch. They are now also fully pet insured and covered for the future. After all this excitement it was time for a little sleep on the windowsill.

Wednesday Moaning....

I wake up with a cold, my knees are aching and the cats are going batshit crazy...there is only one thing for it, I have to order these from pumpkin patch...

It's not so bad...they have 25% off and I have a free delivery code, and then Jon brings me tea and toast :)

All Cosi like...

This is a big moment for us...we have just ordered possibly *the* most essential piece of baby kit (so essential they won't let you leave the hospital without one of these) a Maxi Cosi Cabriofix car seat. This little beauty fits most travel systems and more specifically the My4 that we have decided to go for (of this more hereafter) and the best bit? with the current sale AND a 15% off voucher we have just saved £45, paying £75 instead of £120. Thanks Mothercare, relief abounds.

Our growing boys

Jasper and Boo - 5 months old.x x x

Police and Thieves

Shame on you Manchester

Straight to hell

Hell on the streets of London

London's Burning

David fiddles while London burns

Accrington Stanley....'Ooo are theyyyy?

Today was Todstock, and so it followed fairly obviously that we went to Accrington for at least a large chunk of the day :) There we picked up another preloved bargain from a lady in Church (this is an area within Accy, she wasn't the Vicar's wife or anything) of this fantastic Fisher Price rainforest baby mobile

It moves around and the leaves sort of flap and it plays soothing rainforest sounds (or Bach, Beethoven or Mozart) no disrespect to the classics but I like the rainforest sounds best :) anyway, I'm sure Little b will love it and we saved £30 on the price of it new from Mothercare.

From here we went down the road to Oswaldtwistle Mills which is possible the weirdest place I have ever been in. Part museum/part garden centre/part low-fi department store...it had a chiropodist next door to a psychic....???! We bought some blue and white stripey towels for the b and wandered round in bumbling disbelief, Jon appeared to be the only tall person in the mill and spent some time helping the more stumpy end of the population get their rubberised sandals with flashing heels (don't even try and comprehend....I was there and I struggled). We then called into an Asda by a lake (interesting feature) and collected the free huggies newborn pack I'd been sent vouchers for and came home in a huge downpour.

Once home I made some quick flatbreads to go with the carrot and cumin soup I made last night and then some simple focaccia with the rest of the dough. We also had our first stab at hot cross buns sans white crosses and they turned out brilliantly; as with the flatbreads I got the recipe from the River Cottage bread handbook again (my current favourite) and can very much recommend it, though next time I would certainly add much more spice and zest as I like my buns spicy ;) we also made up a bolognese sauce with extra pepper, mushroom and celery and then I had a wee rest while Jon did his magic with the bechamel and made a wonderful lasagne.

Mine

Well I *was* checking for bargains on the jo jo maman bebe site....but Boo had other ideas.....(!)

Stripeycat

I think I might have found Little b's first toy...

***Update - Jon has just bought him :) ***

Lunch

This afternoon I had a visit from my oldest friend Ellie. I saw her and her lovely Mum last week and this time we had a l o n g lunch spent in the gloriously sunny beer garden at The Ram Inn.