10/05/201502/07/2015 by jo

Project 365 Week 19

Sunday 3rd May. After the hectic Saturday it was a rainy Sunday so we decided to have an easy one. So we went to Ikea then on to Carshalton Park afterwards for a bit of calm. H was wearing her Nirvana t-shirt and some denim, plus an oversized check shirt and she was in an absolute stinker of a mood – a proper emo-child. We decided it must be her chosen outfit which sent her a bit doolally, as she’s never normally as grumpy as she was.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on May 3, 2015 at 7:37am PDT

Monday 4th May. We went to Hatchlands Park, primarily to spend some money which would benefit Clandon Park, but also because the bluebells are out in force right now. It was packed – so much so that we gave up on eating there and decided to go to Winkworth Arboretum which isn’t just up the road, but isn’t that far away. They didn’t have much food there though, but we had enough – plus got to see more bluebells and the azalea steps. Anyway, Winkworth had one of the new ’50 Things to do Before You’re 11 3/4′ books so H got a new one.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on May 4, 2015 at 8:24am PDT

Tuesday 5th May. If I don’t take a photo of anything, I’ll take it of my food. So here’s my soup as made in the Morphy Richards Soup Maker (Butternut squash, red pepper and broccoli), and some bread from the breadmaker. I like having machines that do all the hard work for me.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on May 5, 2015 at 12:25pm PDT

Wednesday 6th May. I am not vegan, but I do eat vegan food, what with having been a vegetarian since around 1983. Fry’s foods are my favourite – their curry pies are amazing. I discovered the coconut oil spray in Tesco so thought I’d give it a try – the two go well together as well!

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on May 6, 2015 at 10:18am PDT

Thursday 7th May. Yeah, that. We did it. H said “you ONLY have to put a cross on a piece of paper?!”

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on May 7, 2015 at 9:09am PDT

Friday 8th May. Finally after several months of trying and H getting angry and frustrated, she showed me how to tie a bow on her school dress. She worked it out at school and I’m relieved – she got so cross with herself when she couldn’t do it straight away.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on May 8, 2015 at 7:43am PDT

Saturday 9th May. We took H to Carshalton Athletic this morning after recommendations for football groups you don’t have to commit to. It’s really close to our house so walkable, but for her first week we drove, mainly as I was sure it was going to rain anyway – it did, but nothing to get wet with! H was paired up with another girl and really got stuck in. When she did Crystal Palace lessons she would often get frustrated by things, but today she was so much happier and confident, and got on with it. She was put in the older kids group too – and her coach said she has good skills, we just need to work on her thinking which was encouraging! The best bit of all? Girls go free. How awesome is that? So we have no excuse not to go.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on May 9, 2015 at 2:48am PDT

03/05/201501/01/2019 by jo

Project 365 – Week 18

Sunday 26th April. Disney on Ice. H and her pal F from school had tickets for Disney On Ice – and they both loved it. I wish I’d had blinkers to put on H when we entered Wembley Arena with all the merchandise on offer – my girl has expensive tastes… but we kept it simple thank goodness. It was a great show, and we headed to the South Bank afterwards for food and to have a run around – plus we wanted to show them the two Shaun the Sheep statues there – a busy day and loads of fun. Our next planned trip is to see Matilda the Musical!

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 26, 2015 at 6:44am PDT

Monday 27th April. I got the Call of Dooom from school. H was feeling dizzy and had a temperature. She didn’t actually have a temperature once I took it when we got home, but was dizzy. This is a random picture of a flower basket we bought at the weekend which H chose. It matches our purple wall planter thingummy well.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 27, 2015 at 9:40am PDT

Tuesday 28th April. Still not right. Took her to the doctors later that day and she has an ear infection in BOTH ears. Her immune system is good, which meant she had no pain, just the dizziness which is a relief. Previous ear infections have been painful for her. It was an early night. I took a photo of H in bed, but I don’t need to post it here – it’s just my girl sleeping.

Wednesday 29th April. I took the day off work as she was on antibiotics and still dizzy. Except she seemed to run around with a hula hoop around her ankles. Definitely getting better…

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 29, 2015 at 2:06am PDT

Thursday 30th April. I was SO stressed about today for reasons I can’t go into here. Luckily my ‘Montage of Heck’ DVD turned up at home, so while Shaun was out watching ‘Have I Got News For You’ being filmed, I curled up on the settee to watch the documentary. It was good, and interesting how it portrays Kurt Cobain. I did get a bit tired watching it, so a second viewing is happening sometime soon… (edited to add, we watched it again, I fell asleep again!)

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 30, 2015 at 9:01am PDT

Friday 1st May. My copy of Hans Christian Andersen on DVD arrived! There are so many films, musicals which never get shown on tv any more (even Grease hasn’t been on for years), and I know H will love this as she knows a few of the songs already. I used to love it when I was young, so I have high hopes. Another DVD for the collection…

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on May 1, 2015 at 6:53am PDT

Saturday 2nd May. Something awoke in H today – we were invited to Petts Wood FC for a training session with Casey Stoney the Arsenal and England footballer to launch McDonalds Football Mum of the Year. We left home with H grumpy and not wanting to join in, to us leaving and her demanding another run around the fields. She even went with Shaun to the park for a game for the first time in ages. I feel slightly emotional that something as simple as a training session which she ‘gets’ could be all that restarts the love of football, and I really hope we keep it up. I love this picture – she had to run to Casey and give her a high five!

25/04/201524/06/2018 by jo

Project 365 Week 17

Sunday 19th April. Well I had plans for today! H was tired as she didn’t get to bed until 10pm, and Shaun was tired as he was hungover. So it was an extremely lazy day. I went into the loft for the first time ever! There is SO much of my stuff up there – it really needs to go. Interestingly, we found more of H’s baby toys and I’ve sold quite a few locally now which is good. After a while we realised she was being really quiet – to the point we didn’t know what she was up to. Seems she’d found a new book to read, and was on the section ‘how are babies made’. She was a bit embarrassed about being caught reading it, which makes me think she’s read something and it has blown her mind. She’s not ready to talk about what she has read yet. At least she knows Mummy and Daddy both don’t know what they’re doing either?

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 19, 2015 at 8:49am PDT

Monday 20th April. Back to work, back to Rainbows and back to chaos. I like the chaos – we’re working for three badges this time at Rainbows too – crikey. One of the girls who left last term came back with some biscuits for all the leaders, so I got some absolutely delicious ‘blisscuits’ – yum!

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 20, 2015 at 10:43am PDT

Tuesday 21st April – I made soup and blogged about it. This is about all I can remember about today – that and scheduling loads of blog posts which have appeared in the last few days – I found a lot in draft from last November when my back went again, so I’ve been updating and publishing. Whoops!

Wednesday 22nd April – I picked H up for the first time in ages and took this picture of our reflection in the window – not the greatest photo but not the worst either.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 22, 2015 at 9:28am PDT

Thursday 23rd April – The latest Guy Fox book was delivered to us, and H is really enjoying reading about the Magna Carta. I really love the Guy Fox books – if you sign up to receive their newsletters you are sent free copies of their books, so we’ve one on how our Legal System works and one on the Economy already – they’re a charity and they’re awesome. You can find them here.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 23, 2015 at 10:31am PDT

Friday 24th April. The calm after the storm. H had her first playdate without me after school, with four of her friends. I am enjoying the peace of sitting catching up on blog posts and life, and counting down the minutes until I go to pick her up. She bumped her head on Thursday but was fine at school on Friday – thank goodness. We got some Annie goodies which H thinks are the best thing ever – her Sandy dog is her new most loved thing.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 24, 2015 at 9:48am PDT

Saturday 25th April – so we were meant to go to Great Fosters on Thursday for Afternoon Tea, which didn’t happen as we got the call from school saying H had a bump on the head. This resulted in a trip to A&E for the first time for H, where she was given the all clear. We rescheduled for Saturday, but would have to up the numbers to three as H would be joining us. We spent two hours eating and easily another hour and a half wandering around the grounds – if I have the time it’ll be a Country Kids post.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 25, 2015 at 8:41am PDT

19/04/201501/01/2019 by jo

Project 365 – Week 16

Sunday 12th April. We bought a new table and chairs for outside, and spent a bit of time finishing off H’s box garden for her home learning – the cress is growing really well. It looks bright and summery, and a week in still nice and bright – Shaun gave it a sneaky water at school yesterday!

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 12, 2015 at 9:12am PDT

Monday 13th April. Back to school, and H was super excited to be back with her friends again. My Souper Boosters arrived from the Covent Garden Soup Co – they had a Facebook offer which I went for. Interesting!

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 13, 2015 at 8:34am PDT

Tuesday 14th April. School, work and so on. Back to swimming. No pilates for me for another week or two, and Shaun was still working from home while they mend Central London. We sat outside in the sun after school eating Fruit Pasti-lollies and reading school books.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 14, 2015 at 7:55am PDT

Wednesday 15th April. A beautiful sunny day. Washed H’s two smaller school dresses, the ones we got from Matalan to review last year and they were dry by the evening. Good days are measured by washloads and how many are done in a day in my life – thus making this a very good day indeed. The dresses are lasting well and I’m happy with the quality of them.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 15, 2015 at 8:35am PDT

Thursday 16th April. I popped into The Entertainer on my lunch break and bought H her first two wheel scooter (a bargain in the sale for £11). She said to me with the most worried face how much she wasn’t sure she’d enjoy it. Got on the scooter, and immediately scooted everywhere without a problem. She’s been trying it out in the back yard now and is loving it.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 16, 2015 at 9:30am PDT

Friday 17th April. I do believe I forgot to take a photo. My friend took one of H and her oldest friend, but to protect his privacy I won’t put it here. It doesn’t need documenting on here. They played so nicely and both children played so well together – considering they don’t see each other as much it’s like they never spend time apart – and it was good for me to catch up with my friend too.

Saturday 18th April. NCT summer meet up for all my oldest parenting friends. We don’t see each other very often – indeed, the last time we were together was New Year. It was a lovely sunny day so the kids got outside to play while we all caught up with each other. By the end of the evening all the kids were inside a playhouse under a duvet with glowsticks. I had to obscure the child’s face with some careful picmonkey editing, but I did like this one.

12/04/201501/01/2019 by jo

Project 365 Week 15

Sunday 5th April. We headed to Hatchlands Park near Guildford to do their Easter Egg trail as we’ve done most of the National Trust properties near here and wanted to do a different one. Every time we go to Hatchlands or Clandon Park we end up taking a stupidly long route which is brilliant – but we almost always forget it’s just up the road from Polesden Lacey. So I’m hoping if we type this we’ll remember when we go back to see their bluebell wood. Anyway, it was loads of fun and had a Robin Hood theme, ending with H bouncing on a space hopper on their front lawn. They even had archery and pony trekking for the Easter weekend, as well as a craft area to make your own arrow – loads of fun and it even cheered up Shaun and I after the rubbish news the day before.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 5, 2015 at 8:05am PDT

Monday 6th April. H was unwell overnight – the bug Shaun and I had, so it was an easy day – a 2am wake up and looking after her the following morning meant our plans to go to Legoland were put on hold. It did mean we could work on her box garden for her home learning at school, which looks pretty ace! There’s cress growing in the middle!!

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 6, 2015 at 8:20am PDT

Tuesday 7th April. 48 hour exclusion applies, and so I worked remotely looking after H. There was quite a lot of work to do and I got most of it done which was a relief. I’m lucky that I’m able to do that with my job – especially when you’re dealing with a slightly bored five year old who can’t go to holiday club.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 7, 2015 at 12:49pm PDT

Wednesday 8th April. Back to work, back to Holiday Club, H had a trip to Battersea Park Zoo today which she enjoyed. I got a delivery of Mr Kipling’s cakes from Britmums which cheered my day up – THEN I realised it was Mum Friendly’s fourth birthday. So Happy Birthday to me.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 8, 2015 at 10:21am PDT

Thursday 9th April. Just work, holiday club and being happy as Shaun is working in Croydon at the moment so gets home nice and early every night for a change! Having said that, we’re tired out – so it was nice to settle with potato wedges and a Fry’s Curry Pie (and they’re delicious and vegan too) after H had gone to bed. I’m so glad I bought an Actifry at Christmas as I’m finding it really handy for making meals quickly and healthily.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 9, 2015 at 11:22am PDT

Friday 10th April. Shaun didn’t need to go in to work today so worked remotely from home, and didn’t bother taking H into Holiday Club for her last day – so he worked and played until I got home from work, and H seemed happy enough playing outside and watching Annie. We did our walk down to the Honeywood Museum and around Carshalton and felt happy and lucky to be living where we do.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 10, 2015 at 9:19am PDT

Saturday 11th April. Legoland! It was pouring with rain in the morning, but I’d checked forecasts and it was meant to be very warm and sunny by 10am, but with a breeze. We got to Legoland by 11am, and most rides had a 15 minute queue which meant we did loads! Afterwards we headed into Windsor, parking by the Thames for free (hurrah!) and right by the castle, trying to find somewhere to eat. We found a lovely local family-run restaurant Viva L’Italia where we got some pizza and pasta which was WAY cheaper than all the chain restaurants nearby. Yum! Afterwards we watched it get darker as Windsor Castle lit up and the Jubilee Fountain got pretty.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Apr 11, 2015 at 12:07pm PDT

05/04/201505/04/2015 by jo

Project 365 Week 14

Sunday 29th March. We had a lazy Sunday as the weather was rubbish and we didn’t want to go out, thinking the coming Easter weekend would be nicer. Well, it is, but it’s still not great! H built a den and left us this sign. “Private – only children. Please do not disturb or punishment” – her handwriting looks pretty bad as this is a pen where the nib moves in when you write which quite frankly, I can’t write with at all.

Monday 30th March. She has grown again. As we rent we can’t really keep much of a log of H’s height which will stay with us forever, etched into a wall somewhere. We can still make pencil lines in a doorframe though, they’re easy enough to paint over or rub out. 127cm. She’s only just five and a half. Sigh.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 30, 2015 at 11:00am PDT

Tuesday 31st March. Every time we go to my friend Jos’s house for a party she has these amazing cheese balls – and this time I took a photo of the packaging, found them at Ocado, ordered them and made them myself. Added bonus they’re Gluten Free – and if you add dairy free cheese then it should be good for people with those issues too (read : Shaun). So I made some for H and my girly night in on Tuesday night. Shaun was busy working late as it was the Accounts Year End.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 31, 2015 at 10:16am PDT

Wednesday 1st April. I had today booked off work, and was envisaging a lie-in, but H was having other ideas. Our main plan was going to see The Sound of Music in Wimbledon. The play was wonderful. H was so well behaved, considering the first half is an hour and a half long – and she really enjoyed it too. Her first proper musical on stage!

Thursday 2nd April. I was up through the night being sick so didn’t go into work. I had felt a bit weird at The Sound of Music so whatever it was decided to let me know we weren’t agreeing. We’re starting to get leaflets in from all the local councillors and I couldn’t help but notice the irony in this one. Sorry to get political. As a Facebook friend pointed out, there are enough people who didn’t bother to vote, who if they voted Labour here (assuming they’re not bothering as they’re being told not to) would actually mean Labour win. Which of course is a big assumption, but food for thought. Also, this is the same tactic used here five years ago, and look what happened then. SIGH!

Friday 3rd April. Good Friday. We were lazy, I was eating again, we watched a couple of films – the first Harry Potter and the first Freaky Friday. We painted some corks to make some bees for H’s home learning project for school.

Saturday 4th April. A trip into London. We decided to go to the London Transport Museum as we’ve never been – so headed up to Victoria and walked there via the Shaun the Sheep trail which is on at the moment. We spotted seven of them and walked from St James’s Park up to Trafalgar Square, on to the Museum then over Waterloo Bridge, finishing at the London Eye (and fortunately we’d taken our Merlin Passes with us so went on there to have a sit down). This is my favourite picture of H, I’m getting a print of it as she looks so happy.

29/03/201529/03/2015 by jo

Project 365 Week 13

Sunday 22nd March. We’d set aside today to go to Limpsfield Common as it’s not far and the National Trust Surrey Hills Facebook group had posted a picture the previous week of a new trail. It didn’t disappoint. H loved Peter Rabbit’s Post Office and I liked being outside where I could breathe. She left a letter for Peter Rabbit to say she liked his house and a few coins in his postbox so hopefully the volunteers can make some more!

Monday 23rd March. At Rainbows all the girls had to find some Easter Egg prints outside in the grounds around the church. Once they’d all found two each they could exchange them for one of these. H was pretty happy with that!

Tuesday 24th March. Back to normal. Our last swimming lesson for this term before H’s class changes. She was awarded her Water Skills 2 badge which she was delighted to get – she had the happiest smiliest face. Her lesson had them doing relay races at the end, and she did half a length of front crawl without any bother – I knew she could, but with the pool being a bit deeper she has panicked a bit in the past. This all bodes well for her getting her Stage 3, although I think it’s still a bit of a way off yet.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 24, 2015 at 10:47am PDT

Wednesday 25th March. Borrowed the Spandau Ballet DVD ‘Soul Boys of the Western World’ from Craig at work – it was excellent. The amount of old footage when the band first got together with commentaries from bandmembers from the start makes it a really good retrospective – and they don’t skip the court case either which is good. I was never a massive fan (I was more of a Durannie) but I could really appreciate them and where they came from with this. Recommended.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 25, 2015 at 3:36am PDT

Thursday 26th March. Popped into Tiger Stores at lunchtime and they have glitter glue for glue guns, so I had to buy some. Pretty!

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 26, 2015 at 6:37am PDT

Friday 27th March. End of term. Had to leave early to get to H’s school, and as usual my train was stupidly delayed, getting in at almost sixteen minutes late. School closed at 1.30 and the train pulled in at 1.29. Annoying. Southern Trains have been awful lately. I booked us tickets to see Frozen Fever & Cinderella, then we followed that with tea at Pizza Express. H designed a pizza for their latest competition and was very pleased with it.

Saturday 28th March. We spent the day cleaning and clearing things. Nearly all of H’s baby clothes have gone to the local Cash for Clothes place, all the money is being put towards a trampoline for H this summer. We made £25 which I’m pleased with! But I don’t actually remember taking a photo. Having said that, there wasn’t really anything to take a photo of, so I’ll leave this day blank and edit if I find one.

22/03/2015 by jo

Project 365 – Week 12

Sunday 15th March. Mother’s Day. Which is absolutely fine, but any chance of a lie-in and relaxing wasn’t going to happen as H had her Rainbows parade and I was helping. She enjoyed it, in fact all her group were brilliant as they had to sit on the floor for the entire service. Afterwards we went to the Honeywood Museum by Carshalton Ponds, somewhere we haven’t been since it got done up, and somewhere H enjoyed while learning about the history of Carshalton. Shaun met up with us after that so we headed to Costa for a drink and some cake. Yum! It was a nice calm day, much needed after the hectic day before.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 15, 2015 at 6:41am PDT

Monday 16th March. Back to work, back to Rainbows, and another badge for H. So that’s more sewing and then I spotted them – TWO stains on the shirt. One was fairly easily removed, the other may need a bit more sun on it to bleach it out. At least it’s not warm enough to wear just the shirt, so it doesn’t matter too much.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 16, 2015 at 1:57pm PDT

Tuesday 17th March. H’s home learning has been to take in 30p in 10p pieces which you would think would be easy, what with having a penny jar. EXCEPT. Every single penny is a 1p, 2p or 5p. I managed to find three 10p pieces but next week I’ve got to remember to get some change as we have nothing now. Uuuh!!

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 17, 2015 at 3:50pm PDT

Wednesday 18th March. Went to the gym tonight, and on getting back, H had grabbed around fifteen toys, and held on tightly to them as she slept. She was like this for hours! I eventually managed to prise them away, but did find it rather cute she had them all snuggled up with her.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 18, 2015 at 2:45pm PDT

Thursday 19th March. I went out this evening, to a friends house with some other friends. It was great to get out. We chatted away until gone 11pm, I got home and realised I hadn’t taken a photo, so this one is called ‘dirty stop out’ even though I don’t go out very often!

Friday 20th March. Ah, the eclipse. Or rather, the anticlimax in London, as it was so cloudy. At the point of the eclipse, four of us were stood outside, it happened, came and went and you couldn’t really tell thanks to the cloud. Anyway, it was a good excuse to get one of my workmates to take a photo of me in a similar spot to where I was stood during the 1999 eclipse. That is not coffee in my cup – it’s hot water – much needed as it was SO chilly.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 20, 2015 at 2:36am PDT

Saturday 21st March. My old friend Jos had a party – and we love going as we get to catch up with loads of lovely people. Add to that the parties are always child-friendly so H always enjoys herself and we had a great time. The journey to West Hampstead is an easy one as we get the one train all the way, however the home leg wasn’t so good as someone had been hit by a train further up the line, leading to cancellations. We eventually got the 10pm train home, and H did brilliantly given how late it was, sleeping on my knee for most of the journey home! She was pleased as there were other kids there to play Hide and Seek with, as well as Jos’s fine selection of children’s books which she enjoyed reading.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 21, 2015 at 9:30am PDT

15/03/201527/05/2018 by jo

Project 365 – Week 11

We’ve had a busy week, and it has been great – although it has flown by.

Sunday 8th March. We went to Thorpe Park. Our Christmas present from Shaun’s mum and dad were Merlin Passes, and they had their annual Merlin weekend. We got our tickets and arrived just after 10am, got on a few rides, met with friends and had a brilliant time. I was surprised at how much there was for younger children as Thorpe Park has always been billed as something for older kids – and H got to be properly scared for the first time in her life, finally understanding that grown ups are weird (we enjoy being scared like that), and that rollercoasters are tons of fun!

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 8, 2015 at 3:18am PDT

Monday 9th March. Back to work, and so on and so on. I was sent the Blue Peter book awards finalists books, all of which are wonderful and I know we’re going to end up buying more by some of the authors. I picked up Chris Riddell’s Goth Girl book for World Book Day for H at the end of the week.

Tuesday 10th March. After school H and I had dentists appointments, though the best part of that was the nice weather and a run to the park where the old Air Raid Shelter is all grassed over and filled in, the perfect hill to go down on a sledge (it just hasn’t snowed properly here for at least two years – since I bought my sledge, in fact).

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 10, 2015 at 9:15am PDT

Wednesday 11th March. The Book Trust want us to take a photo of our bookshelves, to help promote their #shareyourshelfie campaign – plus it’s really easy to donate. This is H’s bedside shelf which is packed full of books that have been read many times, or that she’s mid-way through. I donated £3 to them by texting ‘BOOK10 £3’ to 70070.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 11, 2015 at 1:16pm PDT

Thursday 12th March. Last Friday H had Book Character Day at school, where all the teachers dressed as Hogwarts teachers. This got H a bit more curious about Harry Potter which we’ve chatted about a few times and I’ve pre-warned her could be scary. I gave away my copy of the first book so bought it again (had to make sure the covers match my other ones) and she’s enjoying it so far. So I guess this means we may need to look into the Hogwarts Tour at some point when she’s finished it.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 12, 2015 at 9:54am PDT

Friday 13th March. I have new purple shoes. I got over my fear of colours and wore them for work on Friday. They have little holes in the front which air gets into, almost like I’ve got air conditioned holes in there. It’s lovely!

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 13, 2015 at 12:27am PDT

Saturday 14th March. Chessington. The second Merlin passholders preview weekend and a chance to properly discover the area – plus we’re only 30 minutes up the road. We got on tons of rides and had a brilliant time. It was so quiet most rides had a 15 minute maximum queue – or in Sea Storm’s case, you could get straight back on it. It was great for getting on the more popular rides quickly as I’m sure once it gets sunny some will have an hour’s wait. I think we’ve nearly made back the money on the Merlin Passes too – just a trip to Legoland and I think we’ll be in credit! Shaun and H are pictured on Sea Storm – a simple little ride but loads of fun. The best thing about Chessington was it didn’t aggravate my back on the rides, so we all had a brilliant time and I got involved – in fact, a few times all three of us were on the rides. Fantastic.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 14, 2015 at 5:55am PDT

08/03/201501/01/2019 by jo

Project 365 Week 10

Almost a fifth of the way through the year, and there’s plenty to write about.

Sunday 1st March. We had a gloriously sunny day, so headed out to Ham House, stopping by Teddington Lock on the way home, as it was just up the road. My Great Aunt and Uncle lived in Teddington, and throughout the seventies and eighties we’d stay with them when we visited London – and a walk to the lock was always a part of it. It was nice to introduce H to another part of my childhood. Weirdly, we never went to Ham House, something we’ve only done a couple of times in the last four or five years. We were also going out as we couldn’t watch the League Cup Final on tv, what with not owning any Sky channels. Probably for the best, considering the result.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 1, 2015 at 10:52am PST

Monday 2nd March. A good post day. I had a bit of a dilemma, as we wanted to see Big Hero 6 at the cinema, though most tickets worked out around £30 which is way too much for a film. Then I realised it was being released on DVD in the US a day or so later. We ended up going, spending £24 and another tenner on snacks. Honestly, I love going to the cinema and seeing the latest films, but I really resent paying so much money on it all. I still bought the DVD, which is hidden under the stairs for our next Movie Night.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 2, 2015 at 7:34am PST

Tuesday 3rd March. Stupidly busy day. I had a meeting at Google first thing, which meant I got to see some of London’s sights, as well as getting off at the new Tottenham Court Road station. That made me a bit sad though. As I headed down the second escalator to the tube, I was almost certain I was going through the old stage of the Astoria 2, which was underneath the Astoria. Two great London venues gone, with the 12 Bar soon to follow. I resent London and the way it’s taking away important parts of my past, leaving crappy venues (like Koko – why won’t someone take that one down? Awful place.). Anyway, I also saw Battersea Power Station with just the three chimneys.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 3, 2015 at 4:51am PST

Wednesday 4th March. Part of letting go of the fact you know you’ll never have another child is getting rid of things. We’ve sold the buggy and I didn’t cry. Now we’ve got the clothes down from the loft. It’s a horribly blurry picture, but you get the idea of how much there is. To think the money spent on all these clothes and they’re used for such a short time. So I’m working through batches, selling and giving them away. She’s only five and a half. I’ve already given away one bag of clothes, with two more that I’m getting ready. We’re going to keep anything which means something (like H’s Joy Division babygro and her skeleton one), and the rest needs to go. We need the space. I want to sell things to raise enough to buy a small trampoline for our back yard.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 4, 2015 at 12:52pm PST

Thursday 5th March. It is no secret my favourite film is The Sound of Music. I have seen it on the stage more times than I can remember, and I’ve watched the film (and the German ones) even more times. We went to Salzburg for our first wedding anniversary. It’s a huge part of my life and something I’ve grown up with. Obviously I’m passing that obsession on to H. (though so far it has been “oh! It’s the music from that advert!”) It’s the 50th Anniversary this year, and I asked a favour of a friend whose husband works for Sony. He came up trumps! I’m hoping for lots of Sound of Music related birthday gifts (and I don’t care if I get them months later), as I obviously need a 50th Anniversary DVD – I’ve got the 35th, 40th and 45th, got to keep it going, right?

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 5, 2015 at 11:02am PST

Friday 6th March. Book Character Day. Our school never tends to do the dress up on World Book Day which is fine as it gives me a day more to panic. Luckily this year we had two definite ideas – Annie and Shrinking Violet. In the end Shrinking Violet wasn’t practical – I was going to have H take a Lottie Doll into school with her, dressed similarly. However, I bought her an Annie style dress in the Next Sale. We have a Party shop near work which sells Annie costumes, but no wig seperately. The closest I could get was the bright orange one she’s wearing. Luckily she loved it, though became really self-conscious of it on the way in to school. By the parade at the end of the day she had it on again, and did us both proud. So here’s Little Orphan Annie. Next year I’m going to keep it simple and she can be Hermione from Harry Potter – she’s got the hair for it.

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on Mar 6, 2015 at 7:24am PST

Saturday 7th March. A gloriously sunny day! Washing on the line and tidying up around the house. Starting to go through more baby things and maternity things and get rid. When we needed to play the Hungry Caterpillar Outdoor Chalks came out and we drew a little town in our yard. H was happy enough – she could drive around wherever she needed to. Simple outdoor play when you don’t want to go far but need to get outside anyway.

Mum Friendly

the things we do, the things we like

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