It's been a while.....

Forgive me father for I have sinned, it's been ages since my last blog post...

Well as you can imagine with 4 tiny tearaways, things have been hectic here. Which is not unusual but I have had to have a little break from writing the blog to get some things in order in the Hardy house. However, I'm back!

Today the Hardy Boys did a sponsored race, which was in aid of pass it on Africa. Www.pioafrica.org.uk and raised £180 in doing so. Danny, Taylor and Sonny who are aged 6, 4 and 1 all ran 500m and the money raised goes to help support education in Africa. There are a few reasons that I like the boys to be aware of these events and where possible, take part.

Although some people believe that Great Britain isn't as great as it used to be (and I'm not going to get into that as we all have our views) I believe that we are lucky to live here. Yes, there aren't as many jobs as we need but there are jobs and those jobs pay relatively fairly. We don't have to scrounge all day through a rubbish tip to earn enough for half a bowl of rice. Yes, education isn't always as great as it could be, but it's an education that our children are deemed entitled to, no matter of their gender or social standing. I want my children to grow up grateful for the opportunities that they get from living in this country and realise that not all people are quite so lucky. I know that some people won't agree with me and that's fine but its how I want my children to be brought up.

Taylor, aged 4 proudly explained to his aunty this morning that the money they raised could buy 35 nets and that means that 35 children wouldn't get bitten by flies and be poorly (his own words).

The race was fantastic, seeing so many people all dressed as heroes. The boys saw the power rangers and teenage mutant ninja turtles and believed they were the real thing and just about managed to stop themselves asking for an autograph. Leigh was the same when we saw Super Ted ;).

Thank you to everyone that sponsored the boys and there is still time to do so even though they have completed the race:

At

Http://Www.justgiving.com/thehardyboys

Or you can text

DTSH99 £5 (or any amount) to 70070

Thank you......

Taking the boys on holiday....

Well we have just returned from the first holiday that we have abandoned. We wanted to take the boys away somewhere with nice beaches but didn't want to try and struggle with the journey of going abroad with 4 children aged under 6. So we chose Newquay. Leigh and I had lots of day trips and short breaks there when we lived in Devon and thought it would be perfect for what we needed.

We came home 2 days early, not too bad you would say but it was only a 5 day holiday. 3 of the 4 boys broke out in chickenpox, not just a few spots but severe Spots and sores (especially in Sonny's nappy area). It was sad and it was hard work. We tried everything, oats in the bath, calamine lotion, piriton.

The holiday park we stayed at was awful, it was dirty, it was noisy and it wasn't very family friendly although it was advertised as being so. Also the weather wasn't on our side, it rained and it was very cold so the decision was made to come home.

Leigh and I did something that we never do on holidays, we exercised. We got up early (thanks to our mini human alarm clocks) and we went for a run!! The days that we were away were lovely and fun filled, so all was not lost.

I haven't done the shred for almost a week so don't really feel I can justify continuing from where I left off. I got to day 15 and I will be starting again from day 1 on Monday.

Much love xx

30 Day Shred - Post Easter Break

Well well well, the voice in my head has had her own way this weekend. "Oh have an Easter egg, you've still got to live a little", oh don't worry about the shred, you need a break with your bad knee", "oh look, Sonny needs help with his 10 Easter eggs" !! You get the picture...

So tonight we have been back on it like a car bonnet!!! 1 slice of toast for breakfast, a kitkat chunky for lunch (not great I know but it's my favourite) and then fish and veg for tea and then, are you ready for it....

We shredded, and then we shredded again!! Yes that's right, I am mental. We shredded level 1 and then we shredded level 2 and now I'm shattered.

Have you all had a good bank holiday weekend? We have, we've had lots of family time (just us, and also with extended family). We have eaten too much but still not anywhere near what we used to indulge in.

So 40 minutes straight working out, sounds loads but then I went from a few twinges to Jack being born in 41 minutes. Maybe the shreds not that bad after all...

Much Love xx

Our Easter Roast...

30 Day Shred- Not On Your Nelly!!

I can't shred, my knee is killing me! It's so painful and swollen and keeps giving way :(( so instead I will tell you about the best day ever...

It started off at a breakfast buffet, which as always was delicious! And then we went for a 3 mile walk around the local country park. We looked down rabbit holes and we drew chalk pictures. We threw stones into a lake and we laughed and jumped in muddy puddles. Leigh also convinced the boys that it was where Rebecca and Richard rabbit from peppa pig lived so they convinced themselves that they had spotted them on more than 1 occasion.

Then we came home and planted some seeds, we should hopefully have some lovely fresh veg in time for the summer.

Next, we made cakes. Lots of cakes, butterfly cakes, lemon cakes, carrot cakes and good old fairy cakes!

What makes these things so special you may ask? Well it's the time that we all get to be together. Leigh works very long hours and life is hectic with 4 little ones so its been great just to spend the whole day doing things that we enjoy and doing them together. It really has been Good Friday in our house :)

Right I'm off now to snuggle up to my hubby and watch Skyfall, because nothing beats a quiet night in with Leigh...

....well except Daniel Craig obviously ;)

Much love xx

30 Day Shred - Day 10. I've hurt my knee :((

Yes you read right, I have jumped from day 8 to day 10! After I blogged the other night, we found the DVD and we shredded!! At 2240 may I add so that was Day 9. Nothing too amazing about that except the fact that I had been up since 4 am! After the shred I fed Jack, then to bed for a few hours and then another 4am start! I honestly don't know how I'm doing it. Some days I'm so tired I could honestly eat chocolate all day just to keep going' I didn't shred last night as I went to see a clairvoyant. So Day 10 is done and we are 1/3 of the way through. I'm still swearing at the smug trainer on the DvD but scarily I am actually starting to really enjoy it. Doing the "butt kicks" part tonight I really hurt my knee, and am now sat on the sofa with it up and a bag of frozen peas on it :(

Danny said to me tonight "mummy do you know you're looking very beautiful". Well done doodles, double pocket money for you this week!! Right, I've decided to stop blogging every day of the shred as I don't want to bore you! So will tell you how I am getting on every few days!

Oh, if you do like the blog then feel free to subscribe to get email alerts to let you know when there is a new post, there should be a button somewhere over
<--------- There.....

Much Love xx

30 Day Shred - On Hold....

So today should be day 9 of the shred, however I'm not doing it again!! Last night I fell asleep at 6pm and now we can't find the DVD!! The Hardy boys have a great knack for just leaving things wherever they like so one of them has removed it from the DVD player to watch Brave and it is now lost :((( . We have searched the house and can't find it anywhere. Sonny has probably put it in the bin, he likes doing that! I will search again tomorrow when the boys are awake and I can look properly in their rooms but if it does not appear then I will have to order another copy!

I have to say, I have found it really hard to stay motivated this week. Last week the Boys had diarrhea and vomiting and now Danny (and maybe Sonny) have chickenpox! I have been up since 4am today and the shred was the last thing I wanted to do. So I will pay the boys double pocket money this week for doing me this huge favour ;)

I have all of the boys home a week before their school holidays start and we have been confined to the house as Danny is still contagious and Sonny is too poorly to go out walking in the cold. As you can imagine, cabin fever has well and truly set in. We have done all sorts of cooking and crafts and I will blog a post for that at the end of the week. If you've followed my shred journey then thank you, it will resume ASAP! And I can't believe the amount of people who are starting the 30 day shred after reading the blog!! Go go go!!!

Right, I'm off now to enjoy 20 minutes of peace before going to bed for it to start all over again tomorrow!!

Much love xx (a very frazzled Theresa)

30 Day Shred - Day 8. I can do 100 sit ups

So, I found out tonight I can do 100 sit ups!! Well that's not strictly true, I've always been able to do 100 sit ups but usually over 100 days.

I don't want to sound conceited (although I am a bit) but I am really proud of us, we have pushed on every evening (i missed 1 but leigh didn't) and found the motivation through poorly boys and long days and we are seeing results. I bought a new top today in a size smaller than my usual and it fits perfectly. We have been changing our ways with food for 7 weeks now as have lost almost a stone each. The 2 bigger boys were still up when we shredded tonight and Taylor kept saying "you're doing so good, keep going you're my heroes". How can you not try your hardest when you have that type of encouragement??. Day 8 done and 22 more to go.

Much love xx

Our yummy tea today...

30 Day Shred - Day 7. I will do this...

Well tonight was hard but not as hard as it has been. I'm shattered as usual, but feel good!! Had a chilling day with the boys whilst Leigh did some work so was actually looking forward to the shred today. (I know, I'm crazy). I can see some differences already and am very excited for the next 23 days.

My fitness Pal says that I have lost 33lbs but that is since having Taylor. I can't wait to post my final "after" photos.

Danny was watching the Hannah Montana film so I asked him if he wouldn't mind watching it in his room so I could put the shred DVD on. How hilarious that half an hour later I was still watching Hannah Montana ;)

This was our "Treat" dinner for doing so well all week...



Much Love xx

30 Day Shred - Day 6. Is it possible to fracture your vagina??

All I have to say is ....

..... OOOOOOOUUUUCCCCCCHHHHH

Competitive Theresa is an idiot, what is my fecking problem?? Week 1 on level 1 i said, so why on earth did I decide tonight "oh, I think I will try level 2"

Let me give you some background, for the last 2 days three of the four Hardy Boys have been poorly, I'm talking vomiting, temperatures and diarrhea!! (Don't be jealous of my glamorous life will you??). I've had 5 hours sleep in 2 nights and I have been washing, cleaning, bathing, nappy changing and generally nursing my poorly babies constantly so I was shattered before I started. Level 2 is HARD!!

Yesterday was an awful day, and the emotional eater in me reared her ugly head. I ate 400 calories more than my target but still 1800 which is under the Recommended daily limit of 2000. Today I've been back on track but feel full which is always nice.

I'm a pain in the ass, I want nice legs and abs and I want them now. I mean the first time I put the DVD on I expected to have a personal trainers body by the end of the 20 minute workout but no, apparently you have to do it more than once! I've literally just finished level 2 and I look like a beetroot. Hopefully my body temperature will return to normal just in time to start all over again tomorrow ;)

Much love xx

30 Day Shred - Day 5

We are now into Day 5 of the shred. It was ok tonight. We tried to get it done earlier as we had been waiting until the boys were in bed, doing the shred, showering then making bottles and not having any time to sit down at all (which is hardly unusual in this house really). We "shredded" as soon as Leigh got in from work but had to stop 15 minutes in as Jack was really unsettled! I did however follow the hardcore girl this evening so feel like I've compensated for the extra 5 minutes.
It's funny because now people know that I'm dieting hard and doing the shred I've noticed people "body checking me" you know that quick look up and down your body but I don't know if they're doing it because they notice a difference or if they don't!!
By the way, why is it when you lose weight you always notice the difference in your bust first? I love my huge "ladies" but they're not so huge anymore. However they are still big enough to give me black eyes when doing star jumps...

Anyone got a recommendation for a good inexpensive sports bra?

See you tomorrow......

30 Day Shred - Day 4. I want cake...

It's Day 4, it's not funny anymore! I'm no longer thinking of every swear word under the sun to call the woman on the DVD. I'm too busy focusing on staying alive by breathing out of my arse!
I'm not joking, it's only day 4 and I am knackered. I can't stop thinking to myself, I've got 26 more days to go and every muscle in my body is burning.

As for eating well, I'm well and truly pissed off with it today, I don't want to eat fish and vegetables! I'm not a cat for fucks sake! I want cake, Easter egg, more cake and then if I can squeeze it in, another Easter egg! However that lairy bitch in my head is taunting me as she always does "giving up already are we loser, it's only day 4" .

I am remaining focused by telling myself that I've worked out solidly for 1 hour and 20 minutes this week and no word of a lie I honestly think that's more than I've done in the last year!!

Lastly if I was going to give up, my lovely 4 year old Taylor said to me today: mum you're not even fat, you're just bigger than everyone else! So needless to say his pocket money has gone in my new (smaller) clothes fund ;)

See you tomorrow for more whinging. Swearing and fabulousness xx

30 day shred-day 3. I want to cry

So today has been really hard, I didn't want to do the shred. I've got a poorly toddler, and he has been up all hours of the night :( I have eaten 2 small chocolate bars today although still eaten under 1400 calories which is my daily target.

I told Leigh I wasn't doing it, he said ok. I took that as a challenge, that Lairy bitch in my head was all like "oh day 3 and you've given up already, hahaha I knew I'd win you big fat fatty" so I gave that bitch a chocolate bar to keep her quiet and I did the shred. I'm shattered now and off to bed to prepare for another unsettled night with the babies. I needed motivation today so I went through some old photo albums. I've lost just over 2 stone since these photos and have 2 more to go!!

30 day shred- day 2... F*ck me I'm going to die!!

Well the title says its all really, I woke up this morning and walked down the stairs looking like I had pooped myself! My legs were stiff, my abdomen was stiff and my shoulders were stiff! Ouch is the only word for it. I've felt the burn all day, lifting Sonny and Jack has been more challenging than usual although only uncomfortable as opposed to painful or impossible. So 7pm, all boys in bed and asleep, so out comes the DVD!!!

I started off well, gave it my all and literally felt so positive I could have run the London marathon... And then the warm up was over. You have to keep telling yourself it's only 20 minutes, you won't die and you will be pleased with the results and that's what I had to do. This time though most of the swearing was in my head, I literally had just about enough breath to live let alone swear at the TV. Leigh on the other hand had plenty of breath, enough so to say to the TV, is that all you've got you skinny bitch hahaha!! (See, we are the perfect couple really)!

The overall workout was harder but I pushed myself more
Day 1- 16 press ups and 30 sit ups
Day 2 - 24 press ups and 40 sit ups

I don't intend to increase it by that much each day but I do have a very annoying competitive voice in my head shouting at me "come on fatty, if you want it you need to push it" oh how I hate that bitch!!

Tonight was harder but seemed to be over quicker thank goodness. 2 days down, 28 more to go!!

30 Day Shred - Day 1 (Contains Excessive Swearing)

So going on from my Big Fat Fatty post, the 30 day shred DVD has arrived. It came this morning and i wanted to get started as soon as the boys were settled for the night. I watched it through this morning to see what i had in store and honestly thought "20 minutes of this, piece of piss"!!

If you search 30 day shred on the Internet you can find out the basics, it's a 20 minute workout from Jillian Michaels (shes a trainer from the programme Biggest Loser US) i have to say that i did go a bit gay when i saw the 3 girls on the workout and also had extreme ab envy.

So for those of you that don't know me personally, I'm very competitive, competitive to the point that the children cant beat me in a race. You know, most decent parents would let them win but i couldn't possibly as that means i would lose. Anyway i digress...

So at the start of the 20 minutes i actually said out loud to the DVD, come on then you fat slag bring it on!!

Then we started and it was hard!! I have realised that i am very unfit, i have no muscles and i am a big fat wimp. Jillian says on the DVD: "there are no breaks, if you want to only work out for 20 minutes then you work out for the whole 20 minutes" i took this as a personal challenge and refused to stop and kept pace with the easy girl (not easy in the sleep around sense, you're told to follow her for the gentler workout) there is also a hardcore girl going full pelt on every exercise.

 My Plan is :

Week 1: Follow the easy girl on stage 1
Week 2 :Follow the hardcore girl on stage 1
Week 3 :Follow the hardcore girl on stage 2
Week 4 :Follow the hardcore girl on stage 3
Week 5: Acquire a modelling contract from an international modelling agency

I swore a bit more, felt a bit wobbly and lightheaded and stretched muscles i honestly had forgotten i had. So now i'm 1 day down and 29 more to go. I plan to tell you all about it every day but maybe with less swearing (or maybe not)...

Big fat, big fat fatty!!

That's me I'm talking about. Not you!!

I have spent the majority of my adult life on a diet and its been bloody miserable. After years of excess (food and alcohol) I am trying to finally take control and get the body that I've always wanted!! Don't get me wrong, I look great and I feel it haha. That's where things have changed for me, since I've "grown up" I've come to realise that there are more important things than body shape and clothes size. Since this realisation, I have become more successful at living a healthier lifestyle. I am very much an emotional eater, there's not a problem that you can throw at me that a Kit Kat chunky or 10 can't solve! Over the last 4 years I have lost 29lbs (that's with 3 pregnancies in the same space of time) and dropped almost 3 dress sizes. I feel better than I ever have and I really like myself (probably slightly more than I should, but oh well).
I'm hoping to lose a further 28lbs and drop 2 more dress sizes but am taking it 1lb at a time. I have been doing Zumba for the wii, have you ever tried it? I'm sure that the whole object of it is to make you trip over your own feet, or is that just me?. So, I've also ordered a DVD called 30 day shred!! Lets see how that goes. I'm so focused this time, that I haven't even finished my 3 weeks early giant Easter egg yet!! (Only the 3 kit Kat chunky's that came with it). If I make it to my final goal weight, I won't become a better person, a better mum or a solver of world peace but I might be healthier and fitter but let's see!!

On a seperate note, if anyone wants to send me a kit Kat chunky in support then feel free :)

What's your favourite treat???

My best friend is a celebrity.....

Not really, but here it is...

Why are celebrities so important to us? Why do we look up to them? Why does it make our birthday so much better if we are wished a 'happy birthday' by one of them?

Since I joined twitter I've made it a bit of a mission to get a celebrity to reply to my tweets, well not just a celebrity but any of them.

Ant and Dec: I stalked them through the medium of social media for the entire series of "I'm a celebrity 2011" until I received the "what is boobest and fanniest anyway?" Tweet from Dec. That one takes a lot of explaining but basically culminated from me tweeting them a picture of me topless!! (Ok it was a bronze, airbrushed to within an inch of their life version of what I should look like but I claimed it was me) .

Boy George: I asked him to send my mum a tweet to wish her a happy 50th birthday as a) he had recently turned 50 and b) my mum is basically in love with him! He replied with a lovely birthday message and made her day and then proceeded to follow her on twitter (but not me, even though I literally danced my socks off at one of his gigs whilst 8 and a half months pregnant)!! Haha

Peter James: Literally the best author. I share a lot of my reading material with the aforementioned mother and she told me she had read a good book by Peter James and that I should give it a go. Well 8 books later I am completely hooked. I have sent Mr James various tweets about my appreciation for his writing style and also that his books had kept me company through the last few weeks of a difficult pregnancy (see previous post RE: stroke). I have had a reply to every single tweet and it makes you feel that he actually values his readers opinions.

Martin Lewis: This man is actually a guru! I subscribed to his Money Saving expert email (and recommend that everybody do the same) and have saved hundreds of pounds following his advice. Cheaper energy bills, reusing leftover food, shopping around etc etc. We live a very comfortable life seeing as there are 6 of us in this house living on my lovely hubby's wage and I honestly believe that it's because we follow the very savvy advice of Martin Lewis. Anyway I digress, I tweeted the man himself to express gratitude and he replied with a thank you!

Kym Lomas (Marsh): one of her children share a birthday with my son, so she tweeted me to wish him a happy birthday. A lovely tweet from a lovely lady, however my son was none the wiser.

Alex Winters: This one gave me celebrity status amongst the Hardy boys for about 3 hours!! I shared a small conversation comparing hangovers (of all things) and the boys thought it was amazing that I was talking to "their Alex from cbeebies"

I recently went to be in the audience for britains got talent, and what did I enjoy the most? The quality time I got to spend with already mentioned twice mother? NO. Seeing the raw talent of some amazing performers? NO. Meeting Simon Cowell and David Walliams was the highlight of my day.

I know that all of this makes me very shallow and there are more important things in life but for some reason I know that I will continue to pursue a reply from a celebrity every so often, and then go on and on and on about it all day to people that couldn't give 2 sh*ts !!

If I could have a conversation with anybody famous I would love it to be Martin Luther King or Winston Churchill. Who would you choose??

REVIEW: KIDS TSHIRTS

So a fab Company called KIDS TSHIRTS www.kidstshirts.biz sent me 4 tshirts,

one for each of the boys so that i could review them:

 

 

 

 

The Tshirts looked lovely as you can see from the above picture, the blue tshirts were very vibrant and eye catching. All of the sizes were a good fit and i had asked for sizes that were relevant to their age group. The older 2 boys came in sizes small and extra small so i was sightly worried that they wouldn't be a good fit but they looked great!

 

 

 

 

 

Danny had a dark red with a mustard coloured lightening bolt, he loved it as he said it was just like his favourite boy wizard would wear!!

 

 

 

 Taylor loved his penguin print one and insisted on walking around like a penguin for an hour after putting it on!

 

 Jack did exactly as he was told with his, fell asleep and gave cuddles!

 

Sonny wasn't in the best of moods for picture taking due to teething but he looked lovely in his 'Keep Calm and Rock On' print tshirt.

 

 

 

 

The designs that are printed on the tshirts are great quality as are the actual tshirts, and they are brilliant value for money and are in the sale for £7.99 each at the moment with free uk delivery.

 

I have a bit of a 'thing' for anything in the keep calm print so these tshirts were always going to be a bit of a winner but i can honestly say they really are fab quality and great value. As a mum that bins t-shirts on a daily basis due to stains and general wear and tear i was very pleased that these washed/dried and ironed well and still looked brand new! Well Done www.kidstshirts.biz

 

 

 

 

School Run Etiquette...

Hello again,

Lets talk about school run etiquette because frankly, i have none.

In the space of time since Danny started in reception last September i have gone from full hair and make up, best clothes only to pyjamas, slippers and hair net. Alright not quite that drastic but give it time, he's only in year 1.

So here it is, these days i have to choose which is more important:

*Giving the boys the breakfast they choose  VERSUS  Straightening my hair

*Feeding the baby VERSUS finding a well matched outfit

*Making and drinking a desperately needed coffee VERSUS applying make up

* Convincing the boys they need to wear coats in the hammering rain VERSUS brushing my teeth

I know, sounds drastic doesn't it, but let me tell you that it should be an Olympic event getting 4 boys (2 babies and the other 2 completely unwilling) Fed, washed, dressed and to school on time. OK, i probably manage the on time bit about twice a week although we are never so late that the school day has started.

It doesn't help that i don't have a set breakfast routine, I would rather feed the boys what they want for breakfast (within reason) and know that they will not be hungry, than try and get them to eat what i want them to and then they be hungry during the day. This results in me making cheese on toast for breakfast more than once a week. Whilst we are on the breakfast subject, who made the rule that the 2 boys that are old enough to choose must never have the same breakfast. I mean if one of them accidentally wants the same as their brother, they will go out of their way to change their minds so that Mummy  (who clearly has too easy a time in the morning) has to make separate breakfasts every single day.

Lets make a confession, once whilst i was 8 months pregnant with Sonny (number 3) i wore my pyjamas with a tracksuit over the top on the school run just because it meant approximately 68 seconds less time taken to get back into bed once i got home.

Only last week i wore my husbands clothes for the school run because Jack threw up over me around 3 seconds before we were due to leave. Picture this, Men's jeans, a men's jacket and body warmer with hair scraped back into a greasy ponytail. I came straight home, showered and changed but the mums at the school gates wouldn't have known that.

So basically the moral of the story is, If you see a mum at the school gates who possibly doesn't look their best, don't judge. They could have been literally running around like a mad woman all morning and not had time for themselves. Trust me, its not down to laziness that i look like a tramp most mornings and i know that some of you will say to get up earlier (but then that would be those of you that don't have a 3 month old baby)

I used to be really hung up on looking my best for the school run but as long as Taylor chooses cheese on toast then i choose a greasy ponytail!!!


Yummy or Slummy  Which one are you?...

I have never known guilt like it...

In my first ever post I mentioned that fact that I had verged on Post Natal Depression. That was the first that a lot of my friends and family knew about it, and for that I want to say sorry. I didn't really want to talk about things much (I know, unusual for me)!! I felt that if I admitted it, if i said it out loud then that would be admitting failure. I felt the most immense guilt at the fact that I was struggling, I mean I have desperately wanted children for as long as I can remember, so I was obviously failing at being a good mum because I was struggling, right??

How wrong I was. Looking back now I know that and understand how I came to get so low so here are my tips;

Do Not: Undertake major construction work on your home during pregnancy (particularly in the last trimester)

Do Not: After being admitted to hospital after suffering from a suspected stroke (see previous post), try to continue like nothing has happened. It was obviously a warning that I was running on empty.

Do: Talk, Talk, Talk. Admit how you are feeling, to your Dr, Health visitor, Partner, mum, family, friends: anyone that you feel comfortable talking to. Saying it out loud helps you to realise what is realistic and what isn't.

Do: Trust your instinct. I will go into this more at a later date but Jack was very poorly and I let a Dr's opinion (although I knew it was wrong) affect the way I made decisions and knocked my confidence in my ability to do the best for my children.

And a few, here's to you's..... I want to say thank you to all of the people that kept me from going under, from completely losing the plot and feeling like a complete failure.

To You: The man who stands by my side, for better or worse. You are the best Daddy and Husband that a family could wish for. I know that if you had not been by my side for the last 6 months then I would not be feeling as fantastic as I am today- Thank You

To You- The little boys who have the brightest eyes, the cheekiest smiles and the most beautiful hearts. You make my life everything I've ever dreamed of- Thank You

To You: The person who was at the end of a phone, night and day. Who cooked for us and cleaned for us. Was by my side for most of my lowest moments and has loved me unconditionally for the last 31 years- Thank You

To You- The 3 who looked after the boys in the run up to Christmas so I could catch up with everything needed for the boys to have a fab time, who came with me to the Dr's to fight for help for Jack when I felt I was losing the fight.- Thank You

To You- Who helped ease the financial burden of complications caused by the construction work.- Thank You

To You- Who did all of my Christmas food shopping the week before Xmas when Jack was in hospital and we didn't know if he would be out in time for us to have a christmas. For running here there and everywhere to help look after the other boys- Thank You

To You- my Plymouth friend that sent me the pink card with a poodle on, you literally made so much difference in 2 sentences- Thank You

To all of you: that have helped clean, paint and decorate and get our house straight after all of the work had been done, so that we could have a peaceful family home again, who have looked after the boys or even offered to- Thank You

To You: who picked the boys up from my house and took them to school and the same the other way round at the end of the day. Who was always there at the end of the phone/text/whatsapp/fb/twitter-Thank you

And Lastly: To anyone who said I was doing a good job, who asked how I was, who realised that something wasn't 100% and cared- Thank You

I am truly blessed to have you all in mine and my family's lives. If you feel that I have missed you out in this post then you are wrong, I know what you have all done for me and I will never forget it.

If you see that someone is struggling, are concerned that someone isn't their usual self or think that something may be up Please do not ignore them or judge. offer a helping hand, an ear or even a cake! You will never know how much of a difference you could make!!!

38 Weeks Pregnant, They Thought I'd Had A Stroke!!

So, my 3rd pregnancy was a bit of a surprise. Sonny was only 7 months old and although we were trying to decide whether to have a 4th child some time in the future it seemed that the decision had already been made! It took me almost a month to come to terms with the fact that i was pregnant again for the 3rd time in 4 years and that in less than a year we would be parents to 4 children aged 5 and under.

Fast forward to 38 weeks of a very straightforward pregnancy and a Sunday morning. I woke up feeling fabulous and full of energy and started on a mission to cook lots of meals to freeze ready for Leigh's paternity leave period.

I needed to go to the supermarket for a few supplies and got ready to leave when i started to feel unwell, my left eye couldn't focus and i could feel the start of a headache so Leigh offered to go to the supermarket. Once Leigh had gone i started to feel a lot worse and knew that something wasn't quite right. I got pins and needles in my face and a numbness of my hands and fingers, all of which was only of the left side of my body.  I felt very unwell and began to panic so i called my mum and she told me to call Leigh and tell him to come home. Leigh arrived home and i tried to explain to him what had been happening and he had a very confused look on his face. Leigh was insistent on dialling 999 and i couldn't understand why but to be honest i wasn't really aware of what was going on at this point. I would later learn that my speech was very slurred, although i wasn't aware of it at the time. An ambulance arrived at the same time as the emergency paramedic vehicle, so i had 2 paramedics dealing with me whilst the 3rd helped Leigh get our other boys into the dining room and away from the situation. I had to do a lot of exercises like touching my own nose and following finger movements with my eyes and these were repeated numerous times over the next few days. I had my blood pressure taken and when it was through the roof the decision was taken to get me into hospital. I spent the next few hours with various Dr's, neurological and obstetric and at around 2pm i started having labour pains. I was sent for a CT scan (hilarious having contractions in a lift full of people and then whilst having to lay still under the CT Scanner) but thankfully the scan came back clear. I was then admitted to the maternity ward where it seemed that the baby may be on his way. 9 hours later when the pains were no closer together and only marginally stronger i convinced my mum and Leigh that they should go home, they would need some sleep should things progress and that the boys would need to see their daddy having watched mummy being taken away in an ambulance. Once they had gone home the Dr decided that we needed to see if i was going to be having a baby anytime soon, and found that i wasn't dilated at all. I decided to take some painkillers and try to get some sleep. I woke the next morning and everything had stopped although i had convinced myself that after 12 hours of pains that the baby wouldn't stay where he was for more than another few days (little did i know that he wouldn't make his grand entrance for almost another 4 weeks).

I was discharged the following morning to the care of the Stroke Team at the hospital as an outpatient. I have to say that the care i received was amazing, even if i did hold the Dr that told me i wasn't in labour personally responsible haha...
The stroke team arranged an MRI scan of my brain and thankfully they found one! but on a serious note they didn't find any bleeding or signs of abnormality. The Dr decided that i was possibly suffering from a type of migraine that mimics the symptoms of a stroke and that although very scary didn't cause any lasting damage. I have had a few episodes since but painkillers, a lay down and sometimes sleep help the symptoms ease quickly. I think its very important to recognise the signs of a stroke using the F.A.S.T rule:

FACIAL weakness: Can the person smile? Has their mouth or eye drooped?
ARM weakness: Can the person raise both arms?
SPEECH problems: Can the person speak clearly and understand what you say?
TIME to call 999.

for further info see http://www.stroke.org.uk/

Hello and welcome to my very first blog post. This one is a bit of an introduction and if it bores you to death then this blog probably isnt for you! I am going to give you a quick run over our family history to bring you up to speed and then we will go from there, so here goes;

1999: Joined the Royal Navy
2000: Met Leigh (My fantastic, all enduring husband)
2002: Married Him!
2003: Diagnosed with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome and told probably infertile. (Also left Royal Navy)
2007: Adopted my 1st Son
2008: Gave birth to 2nd Son (and also moved across the country)
2011: Gave Birth to 3rd Son
2012: Gave Birth to 4th Son and verged on the edge of postnatal depression for a bit, not 100% sure that im fully recovered but working on it

2013: Decided to start a blog and here we are.....

Obviously lots of things happened in the months and years between these key dates but these are the things that have shaped my life so thought it only fair that they get their own post for now.

I am a stay at home mum and i love almost every minute of it, some minutes of it seem longer than others but i get through on a wing and a prayer! I have been called many things along the way, mental, crazy and a baby machine (rich really, seeing as i thought my machinery was bust).

Do Not Ask me if we will keep trying for a girl, it makes it sound as if my boys are 2nd prize and they are aything but!!

Going to leave it there for now.

oh, i intended for this blog to be a bit funny so let me tell you what son 2 said to me today. Mum, how come your belly is still fat even though the baby came out ages ago!! heee'bloody'larious