Well Done Joe

Joe came home recently and asked if he could have a Buff which was £17.99! We explained that we thought this was a lot of money to be spending on a scarf and that we didn't think we could justify such an expense but that if he could save his pocket money and work harder around the house then he could earn enough money to buy it himself. A few weeks later (after a couple of visits from the tooth fairy, extra work around the house and foregoing his usual Saturday morning trip down to get a sweetie from the paper shop with Dad) he had earned enough money to buy it himself. When we ordered it they sent the wrong one so I phoned to explain and they said they'd send him the right one and he could keep the one they'd sent by mistake so he was doubly thrilled! We're so proud of him, Joe's a hard worker and when he sets his mind to it nothing can stop him.

I made this!

I recently attended a creative textile embroidery course here in Ullapool where I spent 6 evenings learning new techniques and different ways of using my very basic and old sewing machine to make out of the ordinary designs. I was totally out of my confort zone but loved it and felt inspired to nourish my creative side more often, although the sewing machine hasn't moved since! Here's the first of many products which I hope to create.

Valentine's Day

We thought you'd like to see the lovely cards and biscuits that were made on Valentine's Day for us. The kids had each made me a card and Dave and I had each bought a card, I was treated to breakfast in bed which resulted in orange juice on the duvet and Fin made these lovely heart shaped biscuits at nursery in the morning. The family all came home for lunch together and in the evening Dave resisted the temptation of playing footie for 2 hours so he could woo me with a romantic comedy and some Ben & Jerry's ice cream. It was a lovely sunny day and we all had a great time.

Birthday Baking

I couldn't resist taking these pictures of Fin helping clean up after making a chocolate birthday cake for a friend's birthday this week...I think he's inherited Dave's ideas of tidying!

Sledging smiles

We had our first snow fall of the season so took the kids sledging for the first time this year. Here's a few snaps of the family.

January

Most of January saw the usual miserable weather here, but we managed to wrap up and get out between the showers once or twice.

- Achmelvich Beach -

- Ullapool Hill -

Merry Christmas!

Here's a few snaps of our Christmas morning at home with the kids. We thought we were in for our first very early Christmas morning with the kids when Joe appeared at 11pm on Christmas Eve to ask if it was time to go and see if Santa had been yet! After a disturbed night with several visits from Mhairi and Joe we went down stairs around 7am to start the day. All Fin wanted was a new Doc Hudson to replace the other 3 he had lost but once he got into the swing of it his list kept growing. By the time Christmas morning had come he'd opened several presents so was thrilled to actually be allowed to open them as I struggled to keep up with the notebook and pen madly trying to make a note of who got what from whom.

- Joe with his new guitar -

- Mhairi, Joe and Fin with blankets made by Auntie Missy and Auntie Katie -

- Joe and Fin enjoying the wrapping as much as the presents -

It was nice to be able to catch up with family on the phone in the evening and spend some quality time with my mum and dad over the festive season, we just wish we could be together more often. We miss you all very much.

Barcelona

Dave and I managed to get away for a long weekend to Barcelona. We left on Thursday for three nights. We visited Montjuic, see picture above, took a trip on a few cable cars and went to see the fountains at night. Dave had to attend a Spanish teachers conference on Friday and Saturday while I relaxed and stepped out of my comfort zone.

We had been there two years ago and I had done all the touristy sights then so this time I decided to visit Montserrat, a spectacularly beautiful Benedictine monastery/mountain retreat about one hour North West of Barcelona by train.

It was fantastic and felt good to be able to get there and back without my handsome Spanish speaking guide by my side although I did feel a bit lonely at times. I'd forgotten what a nice treat it is to have a few days together without the children.

What a dummy mummy

After putting off the visit from the dummy fairy for way too long fearing she might have to return it to the original owner we finally had a visit from her last week. I was dreading it as Fin had held on to his dummy for more than a year longer than Mhairi or Joe ever got to and he was really attached to it. However, my fears were all for nothing as he moved on without it...he never even asked for it for about a week. The dummy fairy left a wee note along with a new Lightning McQueen and a Harry book telling him that his dummy would be given to a baby who needed it. All we need now is a visit from the I can sleep through the night...IN MY OWN BED fairy!

Flying Visit from Dodo & Tiff

Dodo and Tiff arrived on Friday afternoon after a long haul flight from America for a week long whistle stop tour of Scotland. They came straight up after getting off the plane so they could spend as much time as possible with the kids over the weekend. It was great to see them again and share many happy memories, past and present, and for them to meet the whole family. Unfortunately it didn't stop raining much the whole time they were here but they enjoyed themselves regardless.

Saturday morning Dave cooked pancakes before we took a wee tour of our village to show them where we live. In the afternoon we tried to get Tiff to keep up the family tradition of taking a dook in the ocean as a intiation into the family but she was having none of it, so Dodo took her place.

It looked freezing but the boys said it was warmer than they expected...We took their word for it! Saturday evening I asked for volunteers to help in Primary as my two cousellers were both away and I was alone in Primary. Tiff volunteered to teach Joe and Dodo took Fin into nursery, I loved having lots of my family at church with me.

Sunday we headed to church and took Tiff sightseeing afterwards. We stopped off at Clava Cairns, Culloden, Loch Ness and Urquhart Castle before heading home for dinner. It was great to see them and we appreciated them sacrificing their time and money to visit us in Scotland. We just wish they lived closer so we could see them more often.

Findhorn with friends

Rachel and her three girls (Eilidh 8, Tasha 6 and Tamsin 3) invited us to go with them to their holiday home in Findhorn for the long weekend. Dave was taking youth to a church convention in Paisley which involved an overnight stay and Gavin, Rachel's husband, was overseas on business and she was going to be home alone too.

We met up on Saturday and stayed for a couple of nights, we were all really excited to go on an adventure together. I had spent a number of years in Forres (5 miles away) when I was younger but don't recall ever having been to Findhorn before. We arrived about 3 o'clock and unloaded the car, I had packed enough food to last a week...Rachel had gone minimalist! The kids had a great time exploring before we took them on a walk round the village and the beach.

They were all pleading for ice cream but we managed to palm them off until we needed something to go with the delicious pumpkin pie Rachel had made for dessert that night. Rachel produced a yummy meal that night. The kids settled down reasonably quickly and Rachel and I were able to have some girly chats before hitting the sack ourselves.

The following morning we went to the Findhorn Foundation , an ecovillage, to look at all the environmentally friendly houses that had been built there.

The kids had a great play at the park and we went home via Gavins old family home to see what work had been done since being sold recently. The kids were so excited to show us all their family memories and walks.

After lunch we headed out armed with buckets and spades to the beach, unfortunately we hadn't packed a towel. Despite the cold the kids wanted to paddle which ended up being more of a swim!

We returned home, Rachel lit the fire while I finished off dinner. After dinner we kept the kids busy with some drawing & spiral art before watching a dvd they'd rented from the local shop. They were all exhausted and fell into bed without much fuss that night. Monday morning dawned and it was time to clean up and head home, we were all a bit sad about having to leave as we'd had such a great time but the kids managed to talk us into taking them out for lunch before heading North to Ullapool for school the following day.

Glider Grins

Joe and Mhairi got lucky when we stopped off at Portmoak Gliding School to watch the gliders and one of the club members let them have a wee seat in his pride and joy, which he was vigourously polishing; the kids thought they were going up in it but it wasn't to be.

Football Crazy, Football Mad

In week 2 of the holidays Joe had footie training in Ullapool every afternoon. It was run by our local professional team, Ross County, who play in Dingwall, 45 miles away. Dave's told him it's ok to support them and regularly reminds Joe he can support who he wants as long as it's not Rangers or Celtic! Last year Joe took part in a similar training programme with Celtic and at the end they were giving out scarves, water bottles and calendars (to brainwash them), Dave was thrilled when Joe marched up to him after he'd received his "goodies" and said at the top of his voice "Dad, it's all I love Celtic stuff...BUT I DON'T"! As you can see from the photo the two coaches, Davie and Tom, were more than happy to get their pictures taken, particularly Tom on the right.

Tattie Holidays

In week 1 we had a wee tour through the north of England with Auntie Grace, highlights of which were a quick trip across the causeway to Holy Island before the tide came in, a swordfighting contest at Alnwick Castle (Millie fluked it), a trot along Hadrian's Wall in the dark, a photo opp at our own wee toon,

- The Royal Family -

- Mhairi's treehouse -

- Oor Toon -

a whirl round Durham cathedral, a tour of York (National Railway Museum was Finlay's fave), an afternoon at Eureka! in Halifax, a day at the temple in Preston, and seven hours of white knuckling at Blackpool.

- Joe's castle -

We stayed a couple of nights in youth hostels (a bit of a disaster as Finlay wouldn't settle for excitement), a couple of nights at the temple with Grandma and Grandad, and a night at Auntie Bessie and Uncle Peter's, which was nice because we got to know Richard and Carol and their kids, Will and Thomas, who are some distant number of cousin.

On the way home we stopped in Edinburgh to take the kids to the theatre for a show called "One Small Step", then had a night at Granny's and a night at Grandma's, which just left enough time for me to get scalped and Christine to get fleeced buying Mhairi a new pair of boots for school (the cause of some minutes of contention, of which I had repented till I saw the toes worn right through after less than a week of school).

- Fin's behaviour scheme -