Camping and Monster Jam

This weekend we went camping.  We discovered a couple of weeks ago that Monster Jam were coming to Cardiff on their world tour.  Sebastian loves Monster Jam, the other two like it a lot also.  We looked into tickets.  It was at the Principality Stadium (formally the Millennium Stadium).  Having seen Monster Jam in Greenville, we knew what to expect.  Given the size of the stadium in Wales, we were hoping they would really cut loose and go wild.....

We left mid morning on Friday.  The weather was not looking too great for the saturday, but we would be in Cardiff all day, so not have to worry about being bored around a tent.  The roads were pretty busy, but we reached the Severn Crossing in good time. Six pounds sixty it cost to enter Wales via bridge.  Thats about 4 dollars.......

We had booked a pitch at Heritage Coast Campsite, about a 45 minute drive from Cardiff.  The campsite was fairly quiet when we arrived, though it did start to fill up.  In the states we invested in a lot of camping gear.  We had a nice little set up.

Once we were set up, we took a little walk to the coast.  This area is in the Vale of Glamorgan, and has part of the path we took on the Wales Coast Path .  The lady in the reception at the campsite was very knowledgable, and gave good directions to get to the coast. 

Along the way we went past this derelict house.  We can only imagine it was a mill or something, as it was right next to a stream.

We kept going.  Can't remember the last time I went over so many styes.  It was the boys first experience of them  They were made of stone / slate too.  Good job no one took a tumble....

A stunning view awaited us once we had passed through the woods.

The foot path was pretty muddy, which the boys loved. The beach was stunning to look at, but very impractical.  All the same, beautiful.  The tide was on its way in, so we stopped for a bit and threw some massive rocks. 

We headed back to the campsite and had some dinner.  Spaghetti Bolognese, pre made at home, reheated on the stove, with garlic bread slices, cooked on a toaster rack.  It was yummy.  The boys even made friends with the boys next door, playing football until it got dark.

We awoke on Saturday morning to a beautiful sunset, early.  The boys thought 6am was a good wake up.  Think the rest of the campsite would have disagreed....... The sunshine didn't last either.  By 9am it was raining on and off, so we decided to head to Cardiff.

We took a little drive through Barry on the way.  Home of Gavin and Stacy (popular BBC comedy), it would have been rude not to!  Nice looking seaside town, would definitely like to come back once the weather is better......

Cardiff traffic was bad, but not as bad as I was expecting it to be. We manages to find somewhere to park right in the centre.  We were getting hungry, but were a little early for lunch.  We found a Harvester in the centre of time, and decided to sit it out until lunch service began.  The restaurant started to fill up, mainly with families who had been to Party in the Pits at Monster Jam.  

We enjoyed lunch, but had to take a walk round, as we were still to early to get in the stadium.  It was really raining by now.  We got into the stadium as soon as the doors opened.  It certainly was something.  Huge, much bigger than the one in Greenville. 

There were 12 trucks taking part in the spectacle.  The boys loved it.  Personally, I found the racing bit a little boring.  The Extreme Motocross riders in the intermission were awesome.  Then there was a wheelie competition.  Again, a little boring. The freestyles were good.  2 of the trucks did back flips and wrecked themselves in the process!

All in, the Principality Stadium is awesome.  Prices for refreshments reasonable.  The Monster Jam was a little under whelming to me.  But this wasn't for me, it was for the kids.  They loved it.  I can understand why.  I think the TV coverage and commentators really hype it up, but when you see it in real life, its just not the same...... It seems Monster Jam come to the UK every 4 years or so.  If they come again, we will probably end up going! 

Getting out of Cardiff was not to tricky.  We stopped for some fast food at the nearest big town before heading back to the campsite.  It was windy and wet when we arrived.  It was not a pretty sight..... Water had got through the tent and we had a swimming pool in the tent.  It would have been great, except all the bedding, clothing even the towels and food were soaked.  We weighed up out options, as it continued to rain.  We had no dry bedding or clothing, so we decided to cut our losses and pack up and head for home.  The kids were pretty upset, more about their wet teddies than the fact we were heading home.  We managed to get everything packed and in the car in under an hour.  

We arrived back home just before midnight.  It was a long old day.  The weather has been dry and windy here today, so we have dried out all the equipment.  We are all really tired after a super long day yesterday! 

We will give camping another go, but possibly get out other tent back from the inlaws.  Its a lot bigger, and hopefully more water proof........

Thing I will miss about South Carolina

I have been meaning to do this post for a while.  Given we are 2 weeks away from the house getting packed, this would seem like a good time.

This is a list of things I am going to miss.  Some of them are relevant to just this area or state, and some are relevant to the whole country.  Some are just for me, and some are as a family.

Some will be couple of words, others will be paragraphs.  As we conclude our lives here, this list will be added to.  It is also something for me to look back on fondly (hopefully).

So in no particular order.......

1.   The weather.  It is going to be over 90 degrees this weekend.  Winter lasts about 3 months tops.  Snow dissipates quickly.  The kids live in shorts from March- November.  But it does get too hot.  But I don't mind.

2.  The mountains.  I have never really lived near mountains before.  As you drive up the interstate 385 from Simpsonville into Greenville, just after the mall turning, you get an awesome view of the mountains. 

                                     

    

You can also see them from other places around Simpsonville. Although we don't utilize them much, I shall miss having them near.

3.  The Y.  The gym.  We have had a family membership since the end of 2014.  Should have got one sooner.  I love taking Zumba, Cardio Dance Blast and TRX at the gym. The 2 younger ones had swimming lessons there. Oliver honed his basketball kills. They all love running the indoor track.  I love it, and shall miss it terribly.

4.  My Zumba family.  The Zumba instructor network in this area is awesome.  From the instructors at the Y to the Free community Zumba at the Kroc Centre, to the various churches and individual studios that host Zumba classes.  I have met a LOT of Zumba instructors.  And everyone is so nice!!! I am so glad I got my Zumba licences here, under Loretta Bates, Ali Ramirez and Renee Pickett.  They are brilliant ZES, and have taught me well.  I have even taught my first class here, subbing for a friend.  I love my Zumba buddies!

5.  The craft stores..... Micheals, Jo-Ann Fabric, A.C. Moore and Panda's Crossing.  My introduction to crafting then beading has been in large parts thanks to these stores.  I will particularly miss Panda's Crossing, and the lovely ladies who host the classes.

6.  The wild life.  Turkey vultures, blue tailed skinks, even the snakes....  

7.  The coast.  Ok, we are a good 3 hours from the coast, and are hoping to move nearer the coast in the UK.  But the east coast here is wonderful.  Dolphins, sea turtles, fish.  We love it.  

8.  The darn convenience of the restrooms.  Every store has a restroom for public use.  Every park and outside area has at least one toilet block.  Exceptionally good when you have small children.

9.  Eating out.  We eat out.  A lot.  we look for kids set free / cheap, and use these as much as possible.  I shall miss the variety, and the (generally) good service.

February so far....

Woo hoo!!! 2 weeks in to february and I am doing a blog.  Admittedly, i have had to tear myself ways from my crafting......

It was my birthday last week, 21 again!!! Paul took the kids out to get my presents, and they all did well.  They all get really excited over birthdays, particularly Sebastian, especially now he understands what is happening! 

I had a pretty good haul.  The tool check is awesome for my crafting bits / beads. Only the toblerone remains of the food.  I have not built Wall-E yet, but I will.....

Paul took the day off on my birthday, and we went for a nice breakfast at Stax Omega up in Greenville.  It was yummy.  We then headed to the mall to do some shopping.  And I got some glasses.....

I knew they were coming from my diabetic eye exam.  All is fine regarding retinopathy, but my long distance vision is going, so I need to wear glasses most of the time.  These are nice, and you can probably guess how much I wear them. 

We have had a fair amount of rubbish weather.  2 ice storms, and a couple of delayed school starts.  Takes a lot to halt Sebastians school, here he is in the ice / snow.  This all melted away a couple hours later....

The weather has not been all bad.  We have been out to a couple of parks with bikes and scooters when we can.  We have also spent quite a few weekends completely at home.  We are trying to avoid spending too much money before we go on holiday next month (more on that next time)

The weather is supposed to start getting a bit warmer soon, so the kids will start playing out side a bit more.  It will be good for them.  We have recently removed the TV from the play room. They were getting a bit DVR happy.  Recording the same thing and watching it over, and over again (TOP GEAR). Now they watch Tv in the main living room.  On school days they are only allowed to watch between 5-6.30.  At the weekends the TV is of between 10-2pm.  It is going ok.  We are adjusting to them being in our space a lot more.  If no one is watching anything the tv goes off. It is a bit trial and error but we are getting there.  When we move back to the UK it is unlikely they will have a playroom, so we need to get used to coexisting again.... It is working ok, so far......

I am also in the middle of doing a Teaching English as a Foreign Language course Coursera with Arizona State University.  I am just starting my 3rd module of a 4 module course.  It is going well.  I am hoping to maybe be able to use it when we return to England.  I also have a Zumba Toning training this weaken, which I am super excited about!!!!  I have certainly been pushing myself since living here regarding my professional development.  Lets hope I am able to do something with all these courses and experience...

And not forgetting my beading and crafting.  I feel like I have found my passion.  I love beading.  I love repurposing things.  I could bore you to tears with beads.  Luckily I have a good local shop for beads, so I talk to them instead...... 

No more waffling, chat later.....

General update/ photo drop

Oh my gosh, how long has it been since I did one of these?!?!  

About 6 weeks. I seem to be writing more on topics than general ramblings.  Better change that quick smart.  Try and keep up, while I bombard you with photos of our lives.  I apologize if I repeat myself in any way shape or form.

So a couple weekends ago we went to Lake Conastee Nature Park.  We have been to Conastee Park before, they have loads of play equipment and plenty of baseball pitches.  This is the other side of the Lake.  It is more of a bird watching / nature reserve place.  It was a beautiful day, and we had lots of fun walking / running on the paths.  They form part of the Swamp Rabbit Trail, which they are constantly updating and maintaining here in Greenville.

This is an adorable picture of two of my favorite people. They both look so happy here.  Notice the garden furniture is out?  It is finally getting warm here.  Although it is rainy today, it is still 76 degrees......

We recently took a trip to Helen in Georgia.  You can read more about that here.

Th boys had a great time hunting for eggs on Easter Sunday.  Even if they were in their pajamas still

Sebastian was more inclined to eat what he found straight away, rather than hunt for more.....

I have been doing a shed load of baking.  We have stopped buying bread, as it just wasn't very nice.  I am now making a loaf a day to keep up with what we all eat.  At least this way we know the majority of what goes into our food.

I am also making a batch of about 40 cookies each week.  I found an awesome recipe on the choc chip pack from Costco.  A slight tweak on the time and temperature, and they make awesome snacks.  Not sure I have bought any packs of cookies or biscuits for about 6 weeks.  I am also making my own rice crispie treats, with decorations, which the boys love.  Next up is fruit jelly snacks.  I have tried one recipe, but they end up as jelly blocks, rather that gummy sweets.  Again, a slight tweak on the ingredients will probably do it, but we have to eat what we have first!

Isaacs behavior had been better for 6 weeks.  Until yesterday.  Funny, he started eating a certain snack type yogurt over the weekend, after not having it for six weeks.  We introduce it, and boom, email home about behavior.  Think we will be knocking them on the head for good.

Do you like my painting?  I went out on a Friday night with some ladies form a local Facebook group to Corks and Colours at Southern Galleries in Simpsonville.  It was a bring your own bottle painting evening.  It was great. I am really pleased with my picture!

Cocktail Friday is still going strong.  Don't forget to check back here every friday to see what concoctions we have been drinking recently!

This is a screen shot of a photo I pasted on Instagram.  See those likes???  They are all Monster Jam drivers!!!!!  If only they could know how truly OBSESSED Sebastian is with monster jam. We have a few recorded, and that is all he wants to watch.  He plays with the monster trucks when he is not watching them.  He thinks he is a monster truck and uses the sofa as his course.... 

This is my friend Amber.  She is another Zumba instructor.  We recently got together and choreographed 'Chica Practica'.  You can check it out here on her YouTube Chanel.

Check out the flower on my strawberry plant!  I got these in the ground too late last year to fruit, though they did send off tones of runners.  I have so many flowers this year it is ridiculous.  There are load of little strawberries coming along.  Yaaaaayyyyyy!!!  Think I will do a full post on my veggies patch soon, it is certainly coming along.

And in case you missed it, Oliver had the titanium plates laced in his ear recently.  You can read more about it here.

I did my Zumba Gold training this weekend.  It was awesome.  Ali the trainer was really good, I had a lot of fun, and learnt a few more rhythms.  

                                          

I am so enjoying my Zumba at the moment, and am looking out for a subbing opportunity very soon.  I am leading a song at a Zumbathon this weekend.  It is a charity event for the Make a Wish SC, so if you are in the area, please come along

Thats all for now! 

Back in to routine

It has been so nice to be home.....

Monday, Isaac was back at school. Oliver and I took Seb to Gymboree, as Mondays usual routine.  It got very cold on Monday, to the point that Greenville school district put a delay on schools starting 2 hours later on the Tuesday.  Oliver's wise headmaster sent an email Monday afternoon saying that school would begin as usual on Tuesday.  The school district encompasses such a large area......Isaac's however decided to start 3 hours later on the Tuesday.  Monday night the temperature went down to -13 centigrade.  It was cold, very cold.  The water in the boys water table froze solid, 3 inches thick

Tuesday, I took Oliver to school.  It was most noticeably icy on the roads near the house, but once you go on to the main highways it wasn't too bad.  Traffic was fairly light, and he got to school early.  Isaac, Seb and I returned home and played till it was time to take Isaac to school.  If Isaac had not been doing lunch and learn, he would not have been going in.  It was cold again on Tuesday night, but only about -7....

Wednesday Oliver had an ENT appointment at Greenville Hospital.  This is the first time we have been to one of the main hospital buildings, and it went well.  We were seen fairly quickly by Dr Cooter. Turns out he has 3 kids in the upper school of Oliver's school, he recognized the uniform straight away.  He took a swab from Oliver's recurring ear infection to send away to be cultured.  He then proceeded to vacuum Oliver's ear.  All is can say is yuck, there were some big chunks of disgustingness coming out. How it has not been causing him pain, I do not know. He has been given drops and an oral antibiotic (it tastes disgusting), to try and fight the infection. Dr Cooter wanted Oliver to get his hearing checked ASAP, but we were only able to get an appointment over in Greer next week.  We also have to see Dr Cooter again in 10 days time.  I dropped Oliver back at school, and headed home.  The afternoon was spent with Isaac not really knowing what to do with himself....

Thursday morning, I went and looked at a preschool for Seb.  I have spent the week sending emails and arranging visits to local day care/ preschools.  I started with a list of about 8, whittled it down to about 5 using their websites.  Only 3 got back to me, 1 I called and left a message, the other I called and arranged a visit for Monday.  One didn't do a half day program for Sebs age.  

So the first one I saw on Thursday I quite liked.  It is convenient, the room is nice and spacious, they have a good out door area and water play area.  Seb freaked when he first went in, but settled eventually.  We took a little tour to the gym, where Soccer Shots was taking place.  Seb went and joined in, with no instruction from anyone.  He loved it!!!  I took him back to what would be his room, and he was fine, and even went off to play.  We spent longer than anticipated here, and were late for a meet up group.  We met at Acrosmiths Gymnastics.  This is a cheerleading/gym place where they had a big springy mat, a running trampoline, beams and lots of other equipment laid out for kids to play.  Seb loved it.  It was good fun, and there were loads of mums with kids all different ages.  I spoke to lots of different people, which was nice.

Friday I checked out another day care.  This one is located on Woodruff Road, so a little further than I would like to travel.  It was laid out quite similar to the preschool the boys went to in England.  The rooms are all open, and they also have a play area, half of which Sebs age is not allowed on.  They make all their meals on site, and there were plenty of staff.  But it just didn't feel right......  From there we went to Rachel's house.  So nice to catch up with a good friend, while the kids played nicely.  

As it was the second Friday of the month, it was Free Community Zumba at the Kroc Centre in Greenville.  I was supposed to be meeting some friends, but I was the only one from our group who showed up.  Didn't matter, I love these sessions, it is a good work out and lots of fun, just how zumba should be.

Today we did the costco shop (ouch), then went to the mall for some lunch, and to return some Christmas presents.   The rest of the day had been spent at home relaxing, and enjoying our time together.

I have decided to take January off from drinking.  I had my last alcohol on Sunday night, and have not touched a drop since.  I am proud of myself.  My drinking was not out of hand, but after a heavy trip back to England, and the run up to Christmas, I think my body needed a break.  So far so good.  One thing I am noticing is how tired I am, but I am putting this down to recovering from travelling, and sorting out things here.  I feel like I have done so much paper work and general family up keep this week.  I have also made a start on my course, which doesn't start till next month.

So that's the catch up..... Sorry for the lack of photos, but we have not taken any this week!  

Next week will be spent seeing friends, getting Oliver's hearing tested (the culture grew a bacterial infection, just in case you were wondering), and doing at least 2 maybe even 3 Zumba sessions.....

Typical British weather

Ok, so we are pretty much over the sleep deprivation

After the falafel the night before, The boys slept till 8.30 on Sunday morning.  Grandad came back about 9.30am, and we made a plan for the day.  By the time we were all ready to go, it was 12.30!  We gave the boys a big snack and headed to meet dad's friend.  

We drove down past Farnham and on to Alice Holt forest.  I had not been there since I was about Oliver's age, and it has changed a lot.  There is a lovely little cafe, if it had not been too cold, we would have chosen to eat there.  Instead we did a short trail which had a few pieces of play equipment.  There was a big wooden house, which the boys had great fun playing in.  Then there was a balancing area, where Oliver managed to donk his head.  We headed back to the main play area, where the boys had fun playing.

We were initially gong to stop at a pub we have been to before, right near Birdworld.  Unfortunately they were busy, and quite unaccomadating.  We decided to drive in to Farnham and head to Pizza Express.  The boys were most disgusted about having to park the car and walk to a restaurant rather than park right out the front.  Pizza Express were very accommodating, and quickly set us up a table, providing a high chair for Seb and a table that was suitable for all 7 of us.

The service was prompt and professional, even from the Northern waiter.  Paul and dad both went with the hottest pizza they could find, I had a delightful pesto and basil pizza.  Not my usual choice.  The boys had 2 pizzas between them, and finished the lot, even Isaac.  Oliver had some Helens, and all the plates were clean.  We haven't done Pizza Express before, but think it is definetley one we will do again.  We had forgotten how pretty Farnham is.  The buildings are so eclectic, and it has a very oldy worldly feel, with out being too busy or over commercialized.

We got back to the house about 5, gave the boys a big snack dinner consisting of donuts, biscuits and crisps (bad mummy), and started the rigmarole of bedtime.  By staggering their bedtimes (Seb had 20 minutes sleep in the car all day), they were all in bed and asleep by 8.30.  I finished off wrapping presents, and we got a fairly early night.

Oliver and Isaac were awake at 7.45 this morning.  Paul got up with them, allowing Seb and I to sleep. We awoke at 10.30!  Very lazy....  But we obviously needed it.  We packed up our stuff, and were on the road for our first mini road trip by 12.30.

First stop.....Tesco Extra at the Meadows, Camberley.  I have been pinning for a trip to Tesco for a while.  Man it was busy... Took us ages to get a parking space.  We had lunch in their cafe.  It was very nice, and pretty reasonable...

I managed to get most of what I wanted, but it was too busy to have a proper look at their clothes.  I did pick up the underwear bits I wanted for the boys, which is awesome.  Seb has his first pack of pants, eeekkkkk....

We drove on to my mums.  The weather is atrocious, with gale force winds and flood warnings across most of southern England.  En route, we drove past a rather large branch hanging from a tree, blocking up the other side of the road.  As we drove past it, we were about 20 meters down the road when it fell, and landed across both lanes of the road.  Scary, if we had been 20 seconds later, it may have landed on us.....Delightful weather.

It was lovely to arrive at my mums, see the old cat.  The boys got straight in playing the iPad, iPod and wii.  Seb had his first experience of the wii, he loved it though Paul had to help a lot...

We even managed to get a kebab delivered.  Saved us having to go out, or anyone cooking.  We have said to the people that we are staying with that we want to spend time with them, so take aways and eating out is how we want to play it..... It was soooooo good.  The boys ate plenty of their nuggets before having a staggered bedtime.  Again, they were all in bed by 9.  Currently sitting here enjoying a beer.

We were planning  on heading out for a walk tomorrow.  Though it is not due to rain, the gale force winds are enough to put anyone off.....  Soft play centre here we come....

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You guys are the best!!! Thanks to your comments, I had the most popular blog out of all the expats in America on Expat Blog.  Thank you so much. Ok, I didn't win any money, but my blog is now top of the list of USA blogs on the site.  Hopefully this will give me more traffic to this delightful little hobby.

Thank you for your support, and I hope you continue readin and enjoying this blog xxxx

Thoughts a month in

This is not going to be a normal blog, Paul is going to help.  I will do a catch up one in a few days time.  This is going to be a post on what we have noticed so far.....

Travel - EVERYONE has a car, you need a car, but there are some sorry excuses for cars on the road.....  Loads of people use mobiles while driving, but there is a big advertising push to try and stop this.  You can turn right on red lights at most junctions.  We are yet to take our South Carolina driving tests, we still have 2 months in which we can drive on our UK driving licences.  Some of the roads are a state.  Overtaking on the inside is allowed.  The interstates when they are busy are BUSY.  General driving standards are very poor, lots of running reds, you have to look when you come out of a junction on green.  Big rigs, are BIG.

T.V - too many adverts, same with the radio.  I have found a few good tv channels, abc, NBC.  There are only 4 kids tv channels with our provider (Charter).  No Cbeebies, although some programmes are available on Nickalodeon and Disney.  Lots of on demand programmes and films, so the boys can watch many of their favourites often.  They have Lego cartoons, which the boys love.  They are being influenced by adverts though......  Different networks have different political agendas.  Watching football in the morning is different, we get at least one Premier League game on a Saturday.  Haven't found the cooking channels yet, but haven't really looked.  In the adverts, they would rather show the bad points of their competitors than show their own products.  It is best to watch on playback, so you can skip the adverts.

Food - we are eating out at least once a week, was more frequent to begin, but have reigned it in.  Paul regularly eats out for lunch.  Cooking is interesting, trying to find ingredients that were everyday back home are very hard to find.  We have found a few places that sell products from home, so we have Yorkshire tea and Bisto gravy.  Everything tasted so sweet, because they add sugar to pretty much everything.  I must get more baking utensils, so I can start making cookies and cakes again.  I wouldn't mind a bread maker, as their loaves are much smaller. Loving the coffee machine though.....but missing squash.  We have found a beer, Pabst Blue Ribbon, which is fairly nice.  Imported beer is expensive, as you can imagine.

Weather - so far so good!!!  Just starting to get cold, having a cold snap at the moment, temperatures are meant to improve next week.  Previously it had been in the low 20's in the day still.  Not much rain, but when it comes down it really rains....

Shopping - probably deserves a post of its own!!!!  After the mammoth task of stocking our house, we are done with most of the big things, mainly thanks to ikea.  Most rooms are sorted, we are just picking up bits and pieces when we see them.  Food shopping is interesting, I have tried Walmart, Publix and Bi-Lo so far.  Bi-Lo is very local, and probably a bit like Sainsburys.  Publix is a more upmarket version of Tesco, and Walmart is Asda.  Only really do Walmart if I need extras, not just food.  Going to try and do big shops at Publix, it seems a tiny bit cheaper the Bi-Lo.  The boys like Bi-Lo as it has the car trolleys, so they are always well behaved when we go shopping there.  The mall is interesting, some of the shops are quite expensive, but some are very good.  I need to go there with just me and Seb, so I can take it all in a bit better.  I have a trip there planned for next week, spotted some good Christmas presents on JCPenneys at the weekend.  Best Buy is a big electrical store, we have spent far too much money in there.  Toys r us is just like at home.  World Market is fab, if a little pricey.  They sell lots of home ware and 'world' food.  K-Mart is ok, a bit like a department store, as is Target. Costco is a big wholesale merchant. We have paid for membership, they have many bargains, especially on toys. Am going tomorrow to stock up on many different things

Medical - having a bit of a hate/hate relationship with this.  They love to keep you waiting.  The receptionists at our doctors are just as useless as at Westcourtt.  The boys are registered, and their immunisation records have already gone to school.  When I registered they did my blood sugars, and they were high, so I need to see the endocrinologist, and have a physical and lots of tests done.  This is going to take at least an hour.  Luckily the doctor is available till 8pm, so that is my fun in a few weeks time.  I am preparing myself for a lecture.

General - everyone has massive drinks cups with them, most drink refills are free. Our road seems really nice, even if no one knows where it is. Wearer loving our house, but there is still lots of reverb, the boys are sending is deaf.... I am up and out of the house within an hour, not loving the getting up at 6.30am. Loving my car and its sat-nav, and the rice of fuel.....cat is happy, Kees getting shut in kitchen cupboards. Skype is great, though the time difference is not. Loving the tumble dryer....enjoying meeting lots of people from lots of different back grounds.

As time goes on, we will have more of these, so we will try and do an observations post every couple of months.

Hope all is ok with everyone reading x