A-Z Challenge: R

R is for Rescue Remedy!


If you've never heard of this stuff and suffer with nerves, anxiety or just bouts of being a bit more worried than usual then I really recommend Rescue Remedy!

I suffer with Social and General Anxiety disorder. I take a low dose of medication but time and time again I come back to Rescue Remedy, especially when it comes to my nerves! It's a herbal remedy with brandy which can taste pretty strong to someone like me who doesn't drink at all!

Rescue Remedy gets dropped in my drink when I go out and am facing an appointment I'm a bit nervous about. If I'm at home and have an out of a blue anxiety attack I'll drop a few drops under my tongue which will help calm me down in 10 minutes or so.

It's horrible living with a very sensitive nervous system and anxiety can just be awfully crippling. I'd always recommend this stuff to anyone. Maybe it doesn't work at all but I'm sure it does!

CupcakeMumma

A-Z Challenge: E

Easter Holiday so Far

We're not even half way through and already we've done some fun holiday activities. There's been cookie baking and mixing marshmallow with rice crispies to make the most delicious crispie squares that are gluten free:

We found Easter eggs that mysteriously popped up on Easter Sunday outside our bedroom doors (which were soon devoured for breakfast!) It's okay it's Easter, I'm cool with eating chocolate on Easter morning. Christmas morning I find is also acceptable too...

We've seen the Grandparents and had a lovely roast dinner, Midge has been to the seaside to rock climb with her Auntie who is visiting from university for 3 weeks (yey!) and we've also squeezed in a friend coming to visit along with a trip to a soft play area with a fellow Mum and school friend.

Midge has had her little best buddy over again and next week we'll be meeting up with my (one and only) Mummy friend who has an adorable new baby for me to cuddle (and then hand back of course). I'm planning to build another indoor tent with the Little Ones and also do some marble painting, glop making and probably more baking!

Little A will more than likely be found on the sofa stuffing his face with whatever food he can find until further notice though..

Hope you're all having a fun Easter holiday!

CupcakeMumma

Dear March.....#A-ZChallenge

Dear March,

I usually title these posts something like '10 Things I loved in...' but as it's the a-z challenge I thought I'd write a thank you for all the things we got up to during the lovely month that was March 2015. We welcomed spring with some lovely walks, seeing the beginning of beautiful flowers in the nearby neighbourhood green...

I had some wonderful hot chocolate dates with my Little Man before nursery. I consumed a lot of medium sized caramel hot chocolates in March and Little A had a number of baby hot chocolates himself. Sometimes we went wild and added cherry bakewells into the mix...

At the end of the month we had the Easter bonnet parade where both my children made me feel incredibly proud. Midge was walking with her friend even giving her a high five at the end of the cat walk whilst Little A, who only last Christmas was a crying wreck during a Christmas choir of sorts with the rest of his nursery buddies, strutted down the cat walk, hand in hand with another little girl, waving a grinning from ear to ear. I may have cried...

March brought me lots of little things like an opportunity to squirrel away a few pounds for Christmas, lots of happy mail from my pen pals and swap partners and the introduction of Sky TV which means I can watch Friends until I'm sick of it. Thanks March...okay, and everyone else involved.

We enjoyed several lovely walks and I helped Little A climb some trees for the first time...

I also had a wonderful Mothering Sunday...

Thank-you March, for a wonderful month.

Cupcake Mumma

Very Delicious Gluten Free Milk Free Cookies

I had this recipe from a fellow Twitter friend some time ago now and it's my 'go to' cookie recipe I think it's originally from an Annabel Karmel book but where ever it's from it really is delicious!

For this recipe, which makes roughly 20 cookies, you will need:

• 100g softened unsalted butter
• 100g golden caster sugar
• 100g light muscavado sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 175g plain flour
• half a teaspoon of baking powder
• pinch of salt
• 100g chocolate chips or shamed up chocolate buttons

Preheat the oven to 190 C. 

Beat the sugars and butter together until creamy. Add the egg and vanilla essence and mix. 

Sift in flour, baking powder and salt and mix again.

Add the chocolate and mix in.

Roll into balls about the size of a walnut and put onto non-stick grease proof paper on a baking tray. Bake for about 12 minutes.

Put the cookies on a wire rack to cool and eat while crispy on the outside and gloopy inside.

CupcakeMumma

A-Z Challenge:G

G is for Gift of the Month 2013.

If you follow this blog then you'll know since January I have been on a mission to bring a smile to someone in need every month. Here are my links for January and February. March was a personal one therefore I did not blog it. 

Usually the title of these posts would be 'A Year in Gifts 2013'  but the challenge mucked that up for me a bit so I had a mini brainstorm and here we are! So, who was my choice for April?

I have a 'Twitter friend,' Hannah, who is a very lovely lady. She was my February gift receiver. This month her beautiful little girl, Bea, is going in for a small operation to make life a lot easier for Hannah and her partner and a lot less painful for Little Bea.

I messaged Hannah to make sure sending another gift would be OK, making it quite clear this was Bea's gift and if she was at all uncomfortable with this I would think of another person for my April gift. I'm so glad she was okay with me sending Bea something because it means a lot to me to be able to send the gift I have in mind to the person I feel called to help.

I set out to find some comfy pajamas for Bea either during her operation (sleep suits with metal poppers cannot be worn in hospital operating theaters so finding a couple of these were high on my list of priorities) I was obviously being guided incredibly well on the day I was thinking about my gift because I came across a very sweet pajama set which I suspect will be quite comfortable for Bea maybe a few days after her operation and a really pretty onesie that I couldn't resist. I noticed it had buttons, hurrah! I bought them straight away and wrapped them up at home.

I also popped in a little note of luck for Hannah and a £5 M&S voucher which isn't a lot when it comes to these stores but I'm sure there will be something for Bea. Maybe a little teddy bear or something for being brave!

I wish Bea all the best for her operation. Since I've been doing this I've had Tweets, a couple of texts and last month an e-mail that brought me to tears. I don't ever expect anything back from doing this but when someone messages me to say 'this came at the right time,' 'thank-you for making me smile,' and so on,I really feel I am making a difference. 

This is the cutest thank-you I've had though!

Make Do And Push 

Do come back next month to see who I want to try and cheer up with a special gift. Why not send one of your own? If you do send care packages, I'd love to know all about it!

CupcakeMumma

A-Z Challenge- L

L is for Little Miss

Also known on this blog as 'Midge. My adorable, stubborn, strong willed drama queen of a 5 year old daughter.

Little Miss and I didn't have a great start to this whole Mother and Daughter business. After she was born I just couldn't bond with my baby girl and it didn't take long to be at the grips of postnatal depression. The depression twisted my thoughts, my heart. It made me think and say things that I just did not truly believe. It made me hand over my week old daughter and beg my now Husband to leave me, take her and never come back.

How glad am I that I grabbed my depression by the throat and threw it out into the night? Incredibly glad. My daughter is exactly like me. She is stubborn, sensitive, prone to shyness and always wanting to be liked. She is a caring member of her class, always helping other children out when they need it, always helping the teacher if they ask. She's a bit of a suck up in some ways (just like me then!)

We both love nature and art. We will be in our element when sat writing or colouring in. We both loved our old house and miss the countryside, so when we visit my Mum and Dad's place I always get moaned at until we venture out to the harbour, see the boats, the sea and maybe grab a sneaky ice cream!

Midge  saved me in many ways. Ways only I will ever know. My baby girl means the world to me.

CupcakeMumma

A-Z Challenge: D

D is for Date Nights

Our lovely cousins across the pond came up with this great idea called 'Date night,' where you and your partner spend some quality time together once a week or once a month. What you both decide to do is entirely your choice and there are so many ideas all over the internet.

My Husband and I are now big fans of date nights. Every Saturday evening we bath, dress and read a story to the children who settle within the hour on a good night. After that, Hubby will run to the local film store and grab a new DVD for us to watch while I prepare our weekly (almost traditional now!) meal of homemade fish and chips.

Are date nights something you and your partner enjoy doing together? I'd love to know what you plan every week/month whether it's big or small like our Saturday nights in.

Gluten and dairy free homemade battered fish with peas and chips. Absolutely delicious!

CupcakeMumma

A-Z Challenge: Z

Z is for Zero Letters Left.

So there we have it. A whole load of blog posts for every letter of the alphabet. I hope I haven't bored anyone too much? In the beginning I lost 2 followers, but I soon gained 4 new ones and that's not counting Bloglovin so it's not all bad!

I actually really enjoyed myself on this challenge and might even sign up to blog every day in May with a few other fellow bloggers. I'm so pleased I've managed to complete the whole alphabet despite very low days and both of my children coming down with the darn chickenpox!!

Little A is now improving loads and Midge's spots are almost all gone which she is most pleased about! I'm still pretty sleep deprived but I'm pleased to say I've only stayed up way past my bedtime on 2 occasions to finish a blog post, I thought it would be so many more times!

I've since been in touch with some great bloggers who I now follow and will continue to read. I love how many comments I have received and how we have all now connected on other social networking sites too. I've also enjoyed chatting with my little sister who has also been taking on the A-Z Challenge as well. It's been fun!

Thanks for putting up with the everyday posts from me. I'm glad I did this challenge as I've manged to record some memories I might not have done. I've also made some great online friends too.Now to catch up with all the posts from other fab participants!

CupcakeMumma

A-Z Challenge: Y

Y is for Yesterday

Yesterday was a pretty miserable day I'm sorry to report. Little A decided to wake up at 10pm and not sleep at all and I'm not even kidding! I haven't even had a night like that with a newborn baby- horrendous! I did check my Twitter in the morning though and found out many parents had similar problems so there's some sort of comfort in that!

The day before yesterday was Trevithick Day. I was looking forward to this until we were all tired, it was super packed and started raining. In the end I walked Midge to the steam engines, took a few photographs then came home when the moaning started...

I was left a football widow for 3 or 4 hours until half 5 came around and Husband came home. Upon returning he took Midge out to the celebrations before the party goers came out. She spent her £5 from Nanny, went on 4 rides and one 2 prizes, happy at last!

The best bit about my day yesterday though was laying in bed with Midge whilst Little A caught up on some sleep in the morning. I laid there like a beached whale, Husband was downstairs doing his own version on the sofa and Midge was playing on our tablet, not giving a damn about how annoying SpongeBob SquarePants actually is!

Oh, I had a nice dinner too. Mash with homemade dairy and gluten free fish and peas. Y could also be for Yummy!!

A-Z Challenge- W

W is for Waiting

The last few days have been pretty awful. Today we reached breaking point with Little A and his chickenpox and phoned the GP. He is absolutely covered from head to toe in spots, some which look like they may be or may become infected. We tried every cream, lotion,potion and bath suggestion you can think of and nothing has helped my poor baby.

We did a lot of waiting for that phone call today but finally it came. Our wonderful GP gave up the last of her lunch hour to see Little A and give him a good once over. She even had a nice chat with Midge. Now we have some antibiotics and Sudocream seems to be working better than any other cream we've tried. He has quite a bad of case chickenpox so needless to say there has been lots of tears whilst waiting for medicines to kick in and lots of tears from me because I just want to help my baby.

Since this afternoon, Little A has picked up a lot more. Both him and Midge are tucked up in bed and he's already had longer than his usual half an hour stretch. I don't expect a good night, not for a few more days to be honest.

Tomorrow I'll be taking Midge to ballet and I will probably take her to Trevithick Day to see the steam engines before coming home to Jay and my boy. For now, I'm watching some TV, eating some dinner and waiting for my baby alarm to off.

CupcakeMumma

A-Z Challenge: U

U is for Urges

Here are some of the urges I have experienced recently:

I have felt the urge to laugh at my daughter when she pulls that really stupid face before she bursts into a fit of fake tears and tantrums. I don't laugh (okay I do, but only when I'm in the kitchen and she's sat sulking in the lounge..) Seriously, how can you not laugh at a fake crying, tantrum throwing pudgy little face? It's sort of cute no?

I have felt the urge to punch the living hell out my husband for snoring in my ear hole several times this week already. He snores like a train and that is no exaggeration! I will say though that instead of performing some violent act on him he got moved to the sofa instead *insert big grin*

I have felt the urge to shove scooters and bicycle bells up places that don't see any sunshine. I despise the constant ringing of bells (stationary can I just add) being rung by teens hanging out on street corners and the juniors speeding by on their scooters running over feet and seemingly not even noticing...

* I am in a good mood today I promise*

I have also had the urge to throw things at my TV during Jeremy Kyle, This Morning and yet another episode of Max and bloody Ruby (Little A loves it so who am I to stop him watching it? Besides, he's poorly so wins all battles at the moment!)

I think that's enough urges for today. Have you had any 'urges' to do, go, see anything recently?

CupcakeMumma

A-Z Challenge: T

T is for The Simple Woman's Daybook April

FOR TODAY

Outside my window...

It has turned rather chilly now but for most of the day the sun has shone, which has been nice. Right now though it's cold and the sun hasn't quite gone down therefore completely convincing the children it's not bedtime yet. Thanks clock change...

I am thinking...

About what I'll do tomorrow, what I'll blog, if I'll have another fight to get Midge to school(even though she loves it when she gets there) I'm thinking, am I going to get a good sleep tonight? and how long will Little A suffer with the pox!?

I am thankful...

For my home, my family, my health. For my amazing osteopath, for good dairy free chocolate and lovely, thick duvets to snuggle up in when I can't turn the heating on.

In the kitchen...

My dryer is busy whirring around making all sorts of noise. My washing machine is waiting expectantly for Hubby to come home with his horribly muddy football kit. All the dishes are piled to be put away and my 'to do' list is still blank..not for long.

I am wearing...

A jumper (that isn't thick enough) but is rather comfy, some PJ bottoms (my instant go-to once the school run is over) and some new pink nails! 

I am creating...

A funny monster thing from my craft box for Midge and I'm writing lots of letters which means I'm creating happiness for mail boxes!!

I am going...

To post more letters tomorrow, bake something and snuggle with my chickenpox boy! 

I am wondering...

Will there ever be a day of good news? The continuous bad news and negativity is so disheartening.

I am reading...

Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire...Again! In between my blog reading of course.

I am hoping...

For sun this Saturday as it's a local celebration day which I'm really looking forward to.

I am looking forward to...

This weekend! Trevithick Day, candyfloss, steam engines, Mum and Dad over for the day and morning ballet with Midge.

I am learning..

To manage my diet properly in order to feel better. It's all about making new habits- which isn't easy!

Around the house...

Some things are getting sorted but upstairs is a total mess with a whole bedroom to re decorate. It will have to wait though, poorly babies and all!

A favorite quote for today...

'"If you don't help yourself, no one else can"

One of my favorite things...

Cuddles

A few plans for the rest of the week:

School runs, post office trips, blogging and looking forward to Saturday. There's lots of housework to be done too!

A peek into my day...

Hope you like my different take on the letter 'T' today.

CupcakeMumma

A-Z Challenge: S

S is for School Memories

With all the talk about changing the education system for the better (read worse) it got me thinking back to my days in primary school. I enjoyed learning, I had a great education and I also had so much fun! It is possible!

Here's what I remember of my wonderful time at school:

• We did sponsored car washes for charity fund raisers. My Mum always drove her car in and we all had fun washing the cars for a couple of pounds in the school playground. I haven't seen a school do that in ages!

• I used to practice my handstands with all the other girls. We lined up and performed handstands with challenges thrown in such as 'the scissors' (where you moved your legs in a scissor movement in the air) or 'the ballerina' where you had to keep one leg pointed and bend the other. I had pretty good balance back then! 

• We sat in circles in our summer dresses making daisy chains, then laying down making pictures out of the clouds.

• We drank milk out of square cartons in the classroom at break time whilst laughing and chatting with our peers. 

• We climbed the trees at the top of the field. This was a part of the field that was pretty far from any sight of the teachers but it was never abused, not like in secondary school. We would go up to this part because it was shaded thanks to 4 huge trees. Some people played 'kiss chase' up here, some climbed the big trees without getting told off. Try doing that now!

There are so many more memories from school I'm sure. I had such a good childhood and my education was messy, fun, exciting. Children need this, it's how they learn! I hope our government can see that we're not all born academics. Some of us like getting stuck in!

CupcakeMumma

A-Z Challenge: Q

Q is for Quality Moments

You know you have those moments in life where you just don't want them to end? Or want to never forget? That's why I love the beauty of the camera. That piece of technology which allows us to capture those memories which we could very well forget otherwise. Here are some of my quality moments.

There was nothing I looked forward to more than seeing my baby's scan at my midwife appointments and hearing their little hearts beating so fast. I am so grateful I have 2 healthy babies. Thinking about the labour was scary, dwelling on all the problems I had during my pregnancy was depressing so the scans were always something to look forward to. I had 3 with Little A and 2 with Midge.

Little A only a few days old. I couldn't take my eyes off of my beautiful son and the love I felt was instant and amazing. I loved my daughter to pieces but the shadow of depression really hurt our bonding. Still, isn't he so sweet!?

Thursday 18th April. My Sister in law and her children met Gary Barlow in Cornwall. Can't get a more quality moment than that can you? I'm so happy for them because it's not everyday you meet someone whose so blooming famous!!

Our wedding was a quality moment that I pray I never forget. The vows, the guests, the dancing and laughter it was all just so magical to me! Here is a very rare moment indeed where all the family were squeezed together for a group photo.

Last year we introduced Midge to theme parks! She couldn't get enough of the log flume which she made her Dad get on well over 10 times! As you can see it was such a laugh and they got soaked!

I love this photo of Midge. She was gobsmacked that someone would need pants so big!! If you're ever having a bad day please do feel free to look at this photo! Maybe I'll pin in!

Another Midge classic. We had been face painting a little earlier and when I went to sort Little A out I thought that things were a little quiet. Any parent knows this is usually pretty bad but on this occasion it was hilarious. In bounded the Midge with a huge smile announcing 'Look Mummy, I'm a Tardis!!!' You 'Whovians' can be all proud of my parenting skills right about now.

Obviously, I have so many more quality moments. This blog is home to many of them which I'm glad about considering my laptop has died taking everything with it *sobs*. Until tomorrow!

CupcakeMumma

A-Z Challenge: P

P is for Positivity

Reasons to be Cheerful is a great round up of the week so far which leaves me feeling positive even though some parts may have been tough. This week Midge has been off school with her chickenpox and Little A has been less than willing to sleep. I discovered the other day that he has a back tooth coming through so lets all wish that to come through quick please!!

1) Today I went to the Osteopaths in town. I have been suffering with a bad back for quite some time. My Osteopath is a really, really lovely man who took me completely seriously and made me feel listened to which can be so rare today. He got the spot straight away and found other areas which cause me pain. I even got some good back cracks out of it which was a-mazing (I'm odd, I love my back being cracked and used to get my sister to walk on it!) I'm feeling good and positive about my next appointment.

2) I saw my dentist this week and have been told my teeth are very nice and my gums are great. How's that for making you feel good? I also have a 'brilliant' spine in case you were wondering...

3) We all had a lovely day today. I went out for some lunch, did some food shopping and bought the children some clothes for our holiday to Cambridge in June. Our train tickets arrived on Monday which was incredibly quick so all we need now is a big suitcase and some tips on keeping 2 young children happy on a 7-8 hour train!

Hope you have some Reasons to be Cheerful this week to.

CupcakeMumma 

A-Z Challenge- N

N is for Need for Change

I'm going through this phase at the moment where it feels like the walls are closing in on me, that nothing is simple or tidy or in its place. That everything is a mess (not just in the home) I feel I'm not being the best Mother, the best wife. All those stupid things we feel. I don't think I'm rubbish at anything I do, I just don't believe right now I'm giving it my all.

I am in need of change. I need to change how I think about things. I have to change how I deal with situations that arise in the family home. Why add more shouting to the bickering? Why hold a grudge just because Husband didn't cook you a meal? Why upset the atmosphere for something so stupid?

I need to change my diet. My health is not going so great at the moment. I know what's wrong with me, I have digestive 'issues' which cause me grief sometimes for a whole 2 weeks! I need to find a good diet, a healthy one but not too healthy because that actually causes me more problems! I need to cut down on the junk, go back to baking. Exercise! Dammit, how hard is it to do a quick  workout?

I need to have more time for me. I haven't been on a charity scavenger hunt in ages. I have only tonight managed to paint my nails a lovely colour of pink and it's taken me a month! So at this rate it'll be another month before I get to tame these eyebrows of mine! 

I'm the only one who can sort these things. I wish I had more support but do you know what? I can paint a room and put up photos and you never know, I may even risk everything by watching a few 'DIY how to drill' you tube videos! I'm the only who can put the right food in my mouth and get up to work out.

I have an eye test appointment this week to see if I need new glasses and to find out if there's anything going on 'behind the scenes' because they've been a bit weird lately! I'm enduring the dentist on Wednesday which is awful but ultimately a good thing, get a check up, fill a filling and go home pain free *Hurrah!* Lastly, I have finally booked an appointment with a local Osteopath to sort this back of mine out because in all honesty it is really, really hurting and I'm getting fed up of late nights, pain killers and hot water bottles.

Do you need to change anything? Are you putting it off?

CupcakeMumma

A-Z Challenge- K

K is for Kisses

I'm more of a hugger than a kisser but there are a few moments when a kiss is the only thing that will do. I like to see a kiss that shows real love. Here are a few of mine.

Little A not even 24 hours old being held by his big sister who adored him the minute he came through the door. They have their moments but I can see how close they could become in the future.

Summer of 2012 at Grandma and Pop's house. Once again showing affection towards her younger brother. I've noticed that as they get older although close, I'm not catching as many kissing photos already!

This is a typical reaction by Little A if he's just not in a kissing mood!

Sealed with a kiss. Just after our wedding day last year we had a quick smooch in the back of the car before heading off to our venue. I love this photo, it's one of my favourites from our wedding day and will always be important to me.

Sometimes kissing is reserved for your family, for your partner and yes, even some people enjoy a good smooch with the pet but me? I like to go out on the pull every now and then:

We'll never speak of this again though right?

Who do you like a good smooch with?

CupcakeMumma

A-Z Challenge- J

J is for Jason

Jason is my very wonderful husband. We have been together for 6 years and in August it will be our first wedding anniversary which we are both looking forward to. In our time together we have had many ups and downs. We have battled depression, job loss, unemployment for over 2 years, family troubles. We have been there for each other on so many occasions and I can only pray that that will remain the case for many, many years to come.

I met Jason when we started college. We were inseparable from that moment. Even though we were very close, we didn't get together for at least 6 months. We found ourselves facing parenthood at the tender age of 17. That was terrifying if I'm honest but we got through it. I will always be thankful to him for his amazing support after the birth of our daughter.

We had our beautiful son just 3 years later at 21 years old. Jason managed to get a job after a long time and lots of disappointment. He is proud to provide for his family and is a hard worker and an amazing Daddy to our children.

He snores like a train (I have evidence), he has been known to book holiday for football (don't get me started) and can be an awful lad when he wants to be. But if I changed him in any way, he wouldn't be my Jason. My Husband.

So there you go. J is for Jason. My one and only.

CupcakeMumma

A-Z Challenge I - I'm Not Perfect!

Yes, I'm not perfect.

I wanted to share with you all a few reasons why I am not perfect. Not at all. Not in the slightest despite the pink, the prettiness, the crafty posts and all those family outings. I like not being perfect, I like being normal I just don't blog it because if I did well, you'd all be bored!

So here we are, I...

1) I spend at least 2 days a week in my PJ pants. If I have nothing to do and no where to go then I have no one to dress for. I will quite happily chill out with my boy while Midge is at school and relax! Alright so I have to clean up and cook, do all the usual stuff but I don't need jeans for that! The postman is used to my attire too so I don't even have to care about him!

2) Sometimes I let my baps run wild on the school run. I don't have a large chest which makes me happy. Now, I don't walk around bra-less in a t-shirt but under a good hoody and/or a coat I'm good to go. I hate bras alright? *burns bra*

3) I swear. A lot. It's a nasty habit that I really need to break! I actually think a girl who swears is pretty unattractive to be honest...Good job there's no one to attract anymore!! No seriously, I am trying but it's very hard. I owe the swear jar over £10. That's mainly to pay it back though to be honest. I liked that bag I saw...

4) I don't make homemade meals every night. Lots of people don't but they don't admit it do they? I'm not talking about take outs because not many people have a problem admitting they have a good old take out perhaps every week. We actually honestly don't do take outs but we do do chips and chicken nuggets or fish fingers. The biggest dinner in our house? The one which gets the children real excited? Cereal dinner night!

A big bowl of chosen cereal, a plate of toast, a drink of choice and a nice big banana, maybe some pudding too. A seriously yummy dinner although perhaps not very filling I don't know. My children enjoy the meal and they don't complain of hunger at 3am so I'm not about to feel bad about my weekly 'lazy tea.'

5) My children don't sleep. OK one does (finally, after 3 years of not) but one doesn't. I'm tired a lot of the time which means I'm not always the nicest Wife or Mother. I feel bad about that of course I do but again, I'm not perfect, I'm not a robot and I'm also allergic to lack of sleep* 

So there you go. My blog would drive me nuts if I wrote about how low I often felt, how fed up I am of Max and bloody Ruby at 12am. No one would want to read it trust me. I write my blog so I can look back and remember those cakes I baked with Midge and that mess my children made with big smiles on their faces. If that makes people think I'm a perfect little housewife then that's fine. Just so you know though, I'm not (no matter how much I wish I was!)

*may be an exaggeration

An 'I'm not perfect' cake fail (and it's a microwave cake which we all know is just lazy)

CupcakeMumma

A-Z Challenge: F

F is for: Football, Fun and Family!

I'll be honest. Two of those 'F's' are my loves but the first one definitely is more to do with my Husband and children! Every Saturday is football day for the Husband and boy does he love it. He'll prepare his kit when he gets home late from work, he'll grab spares for his team mates and generally act like a small kid. The reason he gets so excited is because football is his 'me time' and we all need that don't we?

As he leaves early I tend to just sort the house out and get the children ready. I won't watch him play if it's really raining but on a nice day it's a really good activity to do with Midge and Little A. They both love watching Daddy in goal (and he is good so of course I'm very proud!) they love playing with the spare footballs the team leave laying around and the best thing is, when they're bored of watching Dad play they can go to the park instead! 

Playing nicely together (for 5 minutes)

Daddy in goal. Go Dad!!

Usually when the game is over we manage to have some family time before it's bath and bed for the Little Ones and dinner prep for us! As we live in Cornwall a good Cornish pasty is never far away and both Daddy and Little A are fond of them. If Dad forgets to share though this is what happens:

Chilling with Midge after grabbing Daddy's pasty from the bag! He's good this one!

Because my Husband works late and often there's school we don't get much family time during the week. Like most families we try and aim for some quality fun time at the weekends and football is one way of getting this time together to have fun and relax.

The best thing about weekends though is that Husband doesn't work at all. I really love this because it means I'm not alone to do the bedtime stories and Midge can chat about her day with both of us and not just me. Bedtime is usually pretty stressful in this household no matter what we do but there is 10 minutes or so of total peace and calm before the laughing and messing around starts. With those 10 minutes we just lay there reading a bedtime story and doing this:

I flipping love my family!

CupcakeMumma