me and mine {may}

Daddy is loving

* feeling the baby kick for the first time.

* heading 'up north' for a few days.

* seeing the beautiful girl's face on the In The Night Garden ride in CBeebies Land.

* finding out Flump's gender.

* taking the beautiful boy on the big flumes at Splash Landings.

Mummy is loving

* seeing Flump again at our 20 week scan and finding out the gender (big reveal coming soon!)

* sunshiny days at the seaside, RHS gardens and the bluebell woods.

* maternity jeans... how did I cope without them in previous pregnancies?

* a lovely mini break to Alton Towers with our besties.

* finally feeling some little baby wiggles. 

The beautiful boy is loving

* absolutely anything to do with space.

* the Octonauts ride at Alton Towers.

* white chocolate spread sandwiches.

* watching Miles From Tomorrow on Disney Jr.

* reading his books from preschool (and everything else for that matter.)

The beautiful girl is loving

* reading BabyLit's Pride and Prejudice over and over again.

* wearing flower head bands and acting like a hippy.

* stealing Mummy's chocolate pillows at breakfast time.

* the In The Night Garden boat ride.

* eating strawberries.

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him and her {week twenty-two}

he seems to be growing like a weed in the sunshine

and is suddenly all arms and legs,

but would still have us believe sometimes that he's a baby

who doesn't know how to dress himself.

she is little miss independent,

desperate to go off and do her own things all the time, 

but at the same time is just about the cuddliest kid ever,

and will grab your hand to drag you to see new things.

1

she

It's funny to think back now, to our pre-children days and the plans that we made. Because we were  so sure back then that we had a future full of boys. I liked the idea of a daughter, but just didn't see it in our future really, and both Rich and I pictured a life full of boisterous play, football training and cute little boys becoming handsome young men.

13

him and her {week twenty-one}

he really is the best big brother in the world ever,

always looking out for his little sis and talking to baby Flump,

I'm not sure when he got so big and grown up

but my goodness does he make me so proud he's mine.

she is my very own little wild one;

crazy, messy, loud and absolutely the sunshine of our days,

obsessed with collecting flowers, looking for fairies,

and generally being a mini hippy.

7

rhs hyde hall {52 adventures}

I am going to start this post by saying that, if I were to right a list of the top things I love about living where we do; Hyde Hall would be one of them. It really genuinely is one of my favourite places to visit, it's just beautiful. But despite a few visits last year, I was still yet to drag Rich along to this little piece of heaven nestled in the Essex countryside. Until this particular adventure...

2

in amongst the bluebells

Bluebells are something of an annual adventure for us. We've made a trip out to the woods to visit those beautiful purple flowers every single Spring, and it's always one of my favourite adventures. This year was definitely the best yet, with two bright and inquisitive little people searching for wildlife among the flowers, talking about bears and Gruffalos that may be hiding, and generally making the whole event into an even bigger adventure. 

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him and her {week twenty}

he loved adventures in the woods,

although was very careful to avoid bears that might eat him,

and is obsessed with chocolate fingers.

she is so totally and utterly fearless,

went completely off in her own little world at the woods,

in search of fairies and more pink periwinkles.

6

siblings {may}

It seems appropriate to me some how that the majority of my photos of this brother-sister duo, are of the backs of their heads this month. They are always off adventuring together; making up a game... or more than likely making some mischief together. And while it often leaves poor old Mummy out in the cold, I wouldn't have it any other way.

The gift I wanted my children to have in a sibling was a companion. And I think around the time my daughter was born I used the words "I love that they will always have some to go out and explore the big wide world with". And that is exactly what they have in one another. There is nothing they would rather be doing that "explorering" together, and nothing makes me prouder than to witness it.

They are so alike in many ways; with their matching fair locks and big brown eyes. Their voices sound increasingly similar, and they share the same infectious laughter. They are so often mistaken for twins, and I can really see why. They are just so close, all the time. 

But in other ways they are so incredibly different; where one likes to bend the rules (her) the other likes to follow them to the letter (him), where one tends to be outgoing and friendly (him) the other is more reserved (her), and where one tends to be brave, the other will be more cautious (but they take it in turns on this one). 

Their differences set them apart from one another, define them as individuals, define the ways we treat them, and the way they will be as they grow. But at the same time their differences seem to compliment one another so well. And they learn so much from the other's strengths and weakness... seemingly without realising. She encourages him to push boundaries, take risks and find adventures, and he stops her from going too far and keeps her safe. 

Their personalities may be different, but they are shaping each other all the time. As parents we like to think that we are forming these little people into the grown ups that they will one day be, but lately I've been struck by how much credit these two will be able to take for the kind of adult that the other becomes. Because the beauty of the friendship they share, is that they are having a part in raising each other, and that couldn't make me prouder.

40

{flump} the pregnancy diaries - four months

I decided in a moment of craziness (I'm blaming the hormones) to keep a video diary of my monthly Flump updates with this pregnancy. I thought it will be nice to look back on in years to come, and will hopefully make it a bit different from the updates I did last time around when I was pregnant with Splodge. It feels very cringey to be talking to the camera when I am so used to hiding behind it, but I'm being brave and hopefully I won't regret it too much. This month I'm talking about first trimester v. second trimester, secret dues dates, finding out the gender, and baby movements.

29

a 55th birthday party {52 adventures}

In my grown up years, pre-children, birthdays became a bit flat. They seem to lose their sparkle a little bit as you grow older and birthdays no longer include lots of wrapping paper, copious cake and a party. But now that we have children, birthdays have come back on our agenda in a big way... because birthdays are a big deal, they are a celebration, and my children are massively partial to birthday celebrations that include cake and Nanny's rice krispie crunch.

0

him and her {week nineteen}

he thinks it simply isn't a birthday without a party and cake,

is loving having harder reading books from preschool,

and definitely wants a baby sister this week.

she seems to be growing up oh-so-fast at the moment,

with suddenly long limbs and a massive loss of puppy fat,

and just about the funniest little sense of humour ever.

1

{flump} the dating scan

I think that the dating scan is one of those really exciting and scary moments in a pregnancy; it marks a milestone moment where I think it all really starts to become real that you are growing a tiny human inside your tummy. I know that for me it has always been a day that I excitedly look forward to... until the time when the day arrives and I turn into a big bag of nerves. And I was no different this time around. There was the busy usual grind of a Tuesday morning; preschool drop offs, babyballet class, preschool pick up... and then all of a sudden I was guzzling loads of water to fill my bladder to capacity and in the car on the way to the hospital.

29

him and her {week eighteen}

he is obsessed with lego,

especially the lego he earned by getting himself undressed and dressed every day,

and is still so excited about getting a new brother or sister.

she won't go to bed at night unless she's said good night to the cats,

loves stealing mummy's french fries,

and

3

climbing, balancing, learning {52 adventures}

Sometimes the best little adventures are the surprise ones... the ones you didn't plan, or planned differently, and they end up being amazing fun. For our adventure this week, we found ourselves with an hour to spare on a weekday afternoon, and itchy feet to get out and do something. A brief check of the list of local spots we want to visit this year, and we hopped in the car headed for a nearby country park. Only half way there the traffic ground to a halt, and suddenly it looked like we might waste our adventure time sitting in the car. Some quick thinking, a quick u-turn and a change of direction later and we found ourselves on a whole different adventure.

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