Kind resolutions

I must admit, I'm not one for making New Year resolutions. Up until a couple of years ago I'd set the same ones each year (lose weight, try harder, be tidier, have more friends.....). I'd never stick at them, and feel even more rubbish than I felt to begin with. I found an old diary when we moved this year from when I was only 9 years old with a couple of pages filled in. I had one of those moments of clarity when I read it and felt really bad for my younger me. I was so horrible to her. I'd basically written that I was fat and needed to be tidier and less clumsy. I also felt sad that I wasn't given the help I needed and was criticised for things that were entirely out of my control and made to feel that I wasn't good enough.

We put so much pressure on ourselves to be 'better' people, to be different people, that we don't always take the time to appreciate and love who we really are. Do I wish that I found things a little easier sometimes? Sure. Do I wish I wasn't so clumsy, or bothered so much by noise? Hell yes! As I've gotten older though I've learnt to appreciate my good qualities and my uniqueness too. Dyspraxia makes life hard enough at times as it is without beating yourself up over it. It doesn't feel great when other people make fun or are mean to you so why on earth do it to yourself? Madness!

So my resolution this year is simply to continue to embrace my uniqueness as much as possible and to be more kind to myself. Whether you're one for making resolutions or not I'd love for all of you to share this one with me. I also resolve to raise awareness of dyspraxia (hell the spell checker on my computer doesn't even recognise it as a word!) so that each and every one of you gets the support you deserve and that you all believe how awesome you really are.

Hope you guys have a great time bringing the New Year in tomorrow whatever you are up to. I shall no doubt be spilling my drink down me and tripping over my own feet but luckily for me everyone else will no doubt have had one too many and will be joining me for once. See you in 2015.

xxx

Love that #4

Monkey it to me. How ace would these look on a night ride and anything that makes you more visible on your bike gets the thumbs up from me.

MonkeyLectric

Without keeping my ears covered up half the year I get instant earache. I've got a fluff lined headband similar to this cute one that I wear all winter. Great for keeping your ears covered without your head getting too hot.

Fat Face

Amazing tape for space lovers.

Fox & Star

I really should wear more yellow and more skirts

H & M

Ooh I have a thing for pretty bikes. Meet the Bobbin Birdie. 

Bobbin Bicycles

Hope you guys have a great weekend xxx

Magical family time at Chester Zoo's Lantern Magic

One of the first things we did when we moved to Chester was get ourselves a family membership to the Chester Zoo. Growing up not far from here I have so many happy childhood memories of visiting and I wanted the little man to have the same. Besides, I think the zoo does amazing work and I want to support that work.

We spent so many weekends visiting the animals and having picnics there that when our subscription ran out a few months back and we didn't have the spare cash to renew (boo to the cost of buying a house in the UK!) we've kinda been having withdrawal symptoms from the place.

Each Christmas we usually treat ourselves to a family outing so when we saw that the zoo was holding 'Latern Magic' we booked our tickets right away and we're so glad we did.

All of the kids got to 'make' their own lantern (pour some sand in a paper cup and stick some stickers on it) which even at the age of 10 our little man enjoyed.

The big kids got given a big lantern on a stick to carry around. It was really cool seeing all the different colours all lit up in the dark bobbing around the zoo.

This was right before we went into the bat cave. Whilst most of the animals were tucked away all snug in their beds the bat cave was kept open (which we were excited about as it's one of our favourite bits of the zoo). They'd just been fed them so they were going pretty crazy in there. By the time we came out it was pretty dark and a whole lot colder.

We all got given these awesome glasses that looked like those paper 3D glasses you get but instead they turned all the lights into bats! I love bats!

Not the best picture, I know, but I just wanted to show you how awesome the costumes were that the staff were wearing. (I missed out on getting a picture of the cool elf that was wearing batman leggings!!) This lady was handing out 'wish' stars that the kids got to hang up on a special tree. There were elves and Christmas music everywhere. Super magical.

Right before we got to see the main man we followed a trail of animal lanterns. This is only a small selection of what was there as my camera just wasn't playing ball with the low light.

There was an elf flying this guy around so I'm pretty pleased to have got this picture!

We had an amazing time and it was a new experience to have my photo taken with Santa listening to a lion roaring only a few feet away! On the way round we were given hot chocolate and we paid extra when we booked the tickets to get the hot supper (we found you could also just buy this on the night). There were a few options to choose from but we went for the pork and stuffing bap which was pretty darn tasty and it was as big as my face!

All in all this was money well spent and I'd highly recommend it if you have kids and live locally. The little man said it was epic and I'm so grateful to make some more amazing Christmas memories with my boys.

xxx

Dyspraxia means.......

Dyspraxia Foundation

Wow you guys, I am totally blown away by all the positivity that my post on the Dyspraxia Foundation facebook page got. Earlier this week I told you guys about the charity's campaign to help raise awareness this Christmas (and hopefully some cash!). It took me a couple of days to pluck up the courage to add my photo to their site. I mean, it was a pretty big deal to just put myself out there and I wasn't sure I wanted to expose myself quite like that. I certainly didn't expect it to get shared quite so many times and I'm not sure what it was in particular about my post that was so popular but I'm so pleased that I was brave enough to do it and that it might help to make even just a small difference.

I know when I'm finding things completely overwhelming and everything is getting on top of me it's just nice to know that there are others out there who get how hard it can be sometimes. So this my friends, is for each and every one of you.

Dyspraxia means.......

Being covered in bruises constantly because you literally did walk into a door or opened it into your face.
Sounding like you're drunk when you haven't touched a drop because you leave half the words out or say them all wrong (and not knowing you've done it most the time).
Struggling to stick at anything.
Being obsessive over whatever your latest passion is.
Not having any close friends and being sad about that.

Having a messy house and losing things all the time.
Getting overwhelmingly upset every birthday and Christmas because you hate receiving presents, it fills you with dread.
Trying for years to learn how to knit and not wanting to accept that your bendy fingers are not going to ever let that happen.
Trying to hold it together and eventually burning out.
Having really low self confidence even though if you met met someone like you you'd think they were really cool.

Rerunning conversations you've had over and over again in your head.
Only passing your driving test first time because you got lucky and they didn't ask you to reverse around a corner.
Getting stressed out because the table you sit at in the coffee shop is taken and you'll have to decide which of the other 20 tables to sit at (clue, the answer is non, it stresses you out so much you get a takeout).
Writing down or discussing in your head what you want to say before you speak to someone because otherwise you forget what you wanted to say or can't think of the words to say.
Hearing annoying noises that no one else is bothered by and being woken in the night because your neighbour dared to cough.

Not being able to shut up when you get talking to someone and worrying about it afterwards because they must have been really bored and thought you were stupid.
Having a constant headache because you're really sensitive to light.
Being afraid of doing new things or going to new places because you don't know what will happen or if someone will speak to you, I mean what will you say?
Having to have you hair cut off because you can't judge distances and you sat too close to a candle and set yourself on fire playing Jenga on Boxing day when you were 15.
Feeling stupid in conversations because your brain hasn't taken in half of what the other person has said.

Not buying any decent glasses or plates because you know you are going to smash every single one of them.
Giving yourself concussion because you were determined to go mountain biking with your husband and you rode yourself at high speed straight into a tree.
Getting off the bus a mile from where you live because you were too busy running over in your head the last conversation you had that you missed your stop, and the next one, and the one after that.
Not realising until the age of 26 that the words aren't supposed to jump about all over the page or disappear completely.
Over thinking this post and rewriting it over and over and over......

But dyspraxia also means.....

Going to uni as a 'mature' student and graduating with a 1st even though you haven't done anything since your GCSE's and you've felt stupid your entire life.
Giving your all to everything you do and wanting everything to be perfect for everyone.
Always thinking about other people and being kind to them.
Giving amazing homemade presents to your family at Christmas that you've spent weeks making because your favourite part of the holidays is giving.

Caring. A lot. About everything.



I could go on and write pages and pages of what dyspraxia means to me. I hope that in sharing this it will encourage others to do the same so that we can raise awareness and help future generations. I'd love to hear what dyspraxia means to you. If you'd like to take part in the campaign head over to the Dyspraxia Foundation facebook page and get posting.

xxx

Oh, and on a side note. Whilst I was busy writing the sign and taking the photo for facebook I managed to set the smoke alarms off and totally cremated a couple of poor fish fingers that I'd put under the grill and totally forgotten about. Oh the joys of getting distracted! Just waiting for the day I burn the house down.

Love that #3

Oooh yes please Father Christmas!

Curious Owl

I'm totally obsessed with bees and this clutch is totally on my wish list.

Cire

Woah I totally could do with this planner. If you're like me and like to hand write things then this is a definite.

Fox & Star

Dinosaur, check. Bicycle, check. T-shirt, check.

Dark cycle clothing

Knitting envy. I can't knit for toffee and I love these. I'd totally get the bright pink one.

Plexida

Simply the cutest. I have a bear by Katy and I'm a huge fan. 

Katy Pillinger Designs

Hope you guys have a fab weekend x

Keeping tidy with dyspraxia

So I'm pretty sure that many of you out there have trouble staying organised and tidy for whatever reason. My biggest battle is dyspraxia. For those of you that haven't heard of it or are unsure of what it is then I'd recommend taking a squiz at the Dyspraxia Foundation website. They've got tons of info and advice. Basically for me though it means amongst many other things I'm messy as hell!!

Now put someone with messy issues in charge of a house that also contains a little person with the same issues and you've got yourself one big messy nightmare! I wanted to share with you today a few of the things that work for me. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not suddenly not messy, my house in no way resembles a show home, it's just a bit less messy and my husband has a little less to complain about.

So here you go:

1. Ten minute tidy

This is what is really working for us in our house. Instead of writing down all the jobs that need doing and then getting nothing done I just tidy for a set time. That way I always achieve something and don't feel bad for not getting things done. You'll be amazed how much you can get done in ten minutes and this is seriously how I do everything around our house. I'm forever getting distracted from whatever I'm doing and feeling crap afterwards for not getting anything done. This way I have no set expectations other than things will be tidier than when I started!

The ten minute tidy also works great for kids. Sending my son to tidy his room never works, but if I tell him to go tidy it for just ten minutes once a week then he gets most of it done and it is relatively tidy most of the time.

Set a timer on your phone or oven for ten minutes. Keep tidying until the beeper goes off and then step back and see what you've achieved. Do this everyday for a week and by the end of the week you'll be amazed at how much easier it is to keep a tidier house.


2. Regular routine

Like the ten minute tidy this is something I do everyday. Once you get into a routine of doing something it makes it so much easier to do and harder to forget! Every morning I do the same thing - empty the dishwasher, load it back up, put a load of washing on, and do a ten minute tidy of the house. And I do all this before I do anything else, no arguments, no excuses. I know if it doesn't get done then, then it won't get done at all.

Ask yourself what needs doing on a daily basis as a bare minimum and make yourself do those tasks at the same time each day until they become habit. It's really important not to overwhelm yourself though so start off with just maybe 2 or 3 small tasks, you can always add more once these become habit.


3. Everything in it's place

Having a set place for everything is a must if you're going to have a tidy house.
When we moved into our new house earlier this year we put our coat rack out of the way in a hallway behind a door because who wants to look at that ugly thing. In reality we use the back door the most and all our coats ended up being piled onto the furniture next to it. We just put a second rack up right next to the back door so all the coats get hung up there now and we can see the furniture again. Simple things like that just make life so much easier.

Think practical. It's no good trying to create a pretty home like you see on pinterest. I can guarantee that most of those houses don't look like that day-to-day.


4. Let go of the guilt

Go easy on yourself. These things are hard for a lot of people and I for one will wave my hand in the air and admit that I'm messy as hell. I've spent years beating myself up over being untidy and disorganised but it's just not worth it. I am who I am and if someone doesn't like that then screw them! It doesn't mean I'm not going to try real hard to be tidier (I won't say 'tidy' because who am I kidding?!) It just means I'm not going to beat myself up over the fact that my house looks, erm, we'll just say 'well lived in'.

Stop stressing over what you haven't done and focus on what you have achieved each day.


5. Less is more

Now I've put this one last because it's one I'm not afraid to admit I'm stuck on. The theory being that the less stuff there is in the house, the less there is to keep tidy right? I'm certainly a lot more ruthless than I used to be when it comes to getting rid of stuff. My Dad took great pleasure in announcing to a room full of people during his speech at our wedding about the time we found a dead slug in my wardrobe that I'd collected as a pet and forgotten about.

If anyone has any tips for us hoarder types on having less 'stuff' please please do share!



I hope those tips will work for you guys and help with the mess that living with something like dyspraxia can bring. If you're going to try any of the tips here I'd totally recommend doing a ten minute tidy today and do let me know in the comments section how you get.

Oh, and if you're reading this because you have dyspraxia remember how awesome you are!

x

Edited to say that the Dyspraxia Foundation are currently running a campaign to raise awareness. To take part just take a selfie wearing a hat with what dyspraxia means to you and post it on their facebook page. To donate text 'HATS02 £2' to 70070.

Love that #2

Now I'm at risk of jinxing myself here, but shhhh, *whispers* I've never had a puncture. Well that's not strictly true because I got one once when I went out for a leisure ride with the boys and we didn't spot it until we got home so it was a pretty slow one. But it's one of things when you ride everywhere - you know it's gotta happen at some point, and it will most likely be when you've really gotta be somewhere, or it's peeing it down, or you're feeling grotty. Sooo the best you can do is be prepared right and how sweet is this set? Up until now all my cycling gear (including my bike) is practical and not so pretty but I've been wanting to make the transition to a prettier set up and I think this little set from the guys at Full Windsor hits the spot.

Full Windsor

This print sure does make me smile.

Rachel Ignotofsky

After writing a 4 hour paper about bees for my degree I'm kinda fond of the little things. My collection is growing and this t-shirt needs to be on me! The fact it's printed using eco friendly paints on organic cotton makes it even more lovely.

Naturwrk

When I'm looking for a new bag it's usually the colour that catches my eye first and then the shape. I love the splash of colour on these bags by Wooly Bison.

Wooly Bison

I'm in love. Cutest bracelet I've seen in a long time. How tiny is that dino?!

Dear Dotty

Dance little bears, dance. Pj bottoms on a cold night snuggled up on the sofa with a hot chocolate. Perfect. It's become a bit of a tradition in our house to buy each other new PJ bottoms for Christmas and these cute bear ones from White Stuff are top of my wishlist.

White Stuff

Hope you have a great weekend x

My manifesto

Taking a positive outlook on life isn't always easy but something we should always strive for and I guess it's something we all need to be reminded about sometimes. After watching Gala Darling talk about self love here it got me thinking about what my manifesto would be right now and this is what I came up with: 

Be kind to people, you don't know what they are going through. 

Always smile, it costs nothing and may brighten someone's day. 

Money is not everything; it may help but will not buy you happiness.

Don't sweat the small stuff. 

Grab every opportunity offered to you, you never know where it may lead.

The best things are often those which aren't planned. 

Step out of your comfort zone and do something scary every day.

Nothing lasts forever. Make the most of the time you have. 

Stop comparing yourself to others. Strive to be unique and a perfect you. 

Love yourself. 

What would your manifesto be?

x

 

Photo-a-day

This morning I made myself take my camera out on the school run. I've got loads of ideas I want to share with you guys but the thing that keeps stopping me is getting good photos. You wouldn't think this would be a problem for someone who once did a photography course (well a year of one) and photographed a wedding a few years back! In fact that's how I came to have my camera, a Nikon D40X. I got in a major tiz a couple of days before I was shooting the wedding about my crappy camera not being up to the job and my fab husband (then boyfriend) turned up at my work the next day with a new camera for me. Cute.



And I've figured out why I have such a fear of the damn thing now. If I don't take any photos then they can't be bad right? I've pretty much forgotten most of what I learnt and what I did learn was mainly about developing film. I think one of my biggest obstacles is learning how to edit them properly. I mean I don't even know where to start.



Soo this challenge is perfect for me. I'm going to make myself take photos - every single day, for a whole year to be exact! Surely this way with a butt load of practice things will only get better and by the end of this challenge my pictures will be all pretty and whatnot. Sorted.



So I'm putting myself out there, this is what I got. All bare and naked and unedited.

I'm already looking forward to sharing with you what I capture over the next week.
Do you have any tips for me? I'd be super grateful x

Bye bye November!

Aw we had such a fab family day yesterday. Hot chocolate stop, Ice skating, another hot chocolate stop, and then finished the day off putting the tree up and watching Home Alone 2 (we watched the 1st one last weekend - best Christmas film EVER!).

This was only the second time the little guy had been skating, and hats off to him he kept going regardless of how many times he fell over (it was a lot!).

After our second hot chocolate stop we quickly went into a couple of shops to pick up a couple of presents and hubby treated me to this gorgeous pop-up advent calendar!

It's by Eric Carle, the same guy that wrote The Hungry Caterpillar and I loved that book as a kid. Each day you get a new decoration to add to the tree and today was an ickle bitty santa. How cool!

It's such a fun alternative to a chocolate one. I love the colours.

I can't believe it's December already! I love Christmas so much and we have a bucket load of fun stuff planned for the next few weeks.

Hope you had a fun weekend x

Love that #1

This t-shirt! Years ago I saw a big cat opposite my parents house and everyone thought I'd lost it. There were several reports over the following couple of weeks from local farmers that had seen something similar. Seeing is believing! I still believe.

Maiden Voyage Clothing

How cute are these earrings?! Tiny baby cacti.

Kate Rowland

These are my all time favourite socks. I have a thing for nice socks - my socks need to be bright and fun. I mean, if you're having a bad day all you gotta do is lift up your jeans and a flash of something fun down there is enough to put a smile back on your face. Oh and these are the softest socks ever. Fact.

Seasalt

Dinosaurs and plants! Hmm I wonder if I can get the little man to part with his dinos....

String N Things

This ring is sweet. Makes me think of fircones.

Glenda Lopez

Have a great weekend x