I have been MIA when it comes to blogging and social media and just the internet in general really. January has been a rather difficult month for my family. I don't really know where to begin. The word stressful isn't enough to sum it up. So in a nutshell... I thought it would be easier to just share the best and worst moments lately and hopefully I'll have more time on my hands for my blog and the lovely blog community.



Negatives:

• My Grandad was taken into hospital with pneumonia. He is alright, he's his usual chatty self. Still doesn't stop me worrying though. I really hope and pray that he will be allowed home soon. 
• My mum is going through a very hard time right now and I'm trying to help and support her where and when I can. There's way to much to go into. 
• The IIH (headaches/visual problems and everything that comes with it) has not been great lately and I haven't really been able to sit at a computer or really do very much at all. The IIH seems to have calmed down (knock on wood) the past couple of days though. Thank goodness. 
• My Nan is staying with my mum whilst my grandad is in hospital. She worries me because she's old and can't really do much for herself, plus she has her own health problems and what not. I wish I could do more to help, I really do. 

The word that would sum up how I'm feeling today is HELPLESS. I feel helpless that I can't help and support my mum more and I feel helpless that there's very little I can do for my Nanna because she can't get about, if she would just accept that she needs some assistance!! I do what I can though. (I do wish she would accept a carer and some support). 

Positives: 

• My grandad IS on the mend and he IS in the right place. He's in a lovely hospital and they're really looking after him. That of course is very reassuring. I just hope he's home soon. 
• Charlie achieved 100% attendance last term, yay! He's doing great at school. I am truly very proud of Charlie, he really enjoys high school now.
• Ellie has settled into the school routine with her new teacher, who she really likes. So happy about that because she wasn't too keen on the idea of a new teacher at the start of this term. Very proud of her! 
• Harry has gone up a set in English and Maths, he has worked very hard to achieve going up a set. Also very proud of him. 
• The weather has been beautiful. Cold but beautifully sunny and blue skies which always helps my mood!  
• I actually had a chance to blitz my house properly yesterday! It's a good feeling knowing my house is clean and tidy! I also managed to get in almost 16k steps yesterday! YAS! 

I am really hoping I'll have more time to blog now. I have A LOT of catching up to do. A few review posts coming up and some family posts, updates on the kids (I am so very proud of them!) and lots of photographs too! I do think blogging will help take my mind off of everything that's going (I will elaborate more in future posts)..

How has your January been so far?

Sarah xXx

I'm finding it really difficult to find the positives this week. It's not even been THAT bad of a week. I'm just not sure many positive things have happened... I think I'll start with the negatives and work my way through.



Negatives: 

• This is one of those negatives and positives. Ellie will have to have a brace. Her top two teeth are biting down on her bottom teeth which is causing problems. She's only nine years old. Although this is also a positive because it's being sorted out sooner rather than later so it isn't really a bad thing. Except she's terrified of the thought and I feel for her. I really do.  
• Ellie has also been poorly with a cold and sore throat and running a temperature but she seems to have improved so fingers crossed she can go to school tomorrow!  
• Harry has broken his bed. No idea how he's managed it but perhaps it's fixable! I hope so because he's only had the bed 18 months! 

Positives:

• My headache is much better! Thank goodness and touch wood. I suffer with a brain disease "IIH". I've also had some severe numbness in my hands and arms, especially the left side of my body but that seems to have improved. 
• I've recently finished reading "Behind Closed Doors". Very good book! Although it does touch on some very difficult topics it is a great read if you like thrillers! (Book review here if anyone is interested)
• We were lucky enough to be sent some lovely bath and skin care products for children to review! The kids LOVED them. You can read our review here

• I saw my mum briefly last week, which was lovely. She works a lot so I don't often get to see her so when I do see her, we have a really good catch up and chat. Always makes me smile, hehe. 
• The kids are all doing well at school. Charlie especially has been making a really good effort with keeping on top of his homework. He was struggling to begin with. High school is so much harder than primary school but he's getting the hang of it now.

 Things to look forward to:

• The upcoming parents evenings. 
• All the Christmas festivities which seem to be starting early this year! 
• Doing more Christmas shopping this week! I really NEED to be organised this year. 

There seem to be more positives that I first thought and I'm feeling much more positive after writing them all down! The positives out weigh the negatives again, hoorah!
What are your best and worst moments this week? Or what are you most looking forward to?

Sarah xXx

I really like seeing what's in peoples bags, I know, I'm probably a little bit nosy (but in a good way!) so I thought I would share what I have in my bag. I recently swapped my bags over, which means it's actually not full of shopkins, Lego and other random kids belongings. For some reason they seem to think my bag is walking toy box, haha. Good luck fitting toys in this bag, it's not big enough, which is a good thing. The kids will have to carry them themselves (Horah!)


 I got this bag for my Birthday back in March. It's my favourite Birthday gift and I really DID need a new bag. The bag is from River Island (I love River Island bags! Seriously, this is one of the best gifts I've ever received! My fella knows me well!)  I've just started using it because it's perfect for Spring. Firstly I really love the colour. It's a navy blue but not too dark! It's light and comfortable to carry on my shoulder and has soft swede texture. It's not -what I call- a big bag but it's perfect for what I need it for. It has a long shoulder strap and a shorter handle too, which is perfect for me. Both straps are quite slim and very comfortable on my shoulder. I also love the little gold chain and the gold hoops which hold the straps on the bag. I also love the inside of the bag, too. It fastens with a press stud button/clasp, which is also gold.



Enough about the bag now, I think you can all tell that I love it a lot!What's inside my bag? Lets have a look.



I bought these prodcuts with my own money or received them as a gift from friends/family)

• I have my purse which is also from River Island that I got as a Christmas gift.
• The current book I'm reading - The Childs Secret by Amanda Brooke.

• My phone (because I can't live without that!) I wrote about some of my favourite apps.

• A note book and a pen with me because I am so forgetful. I also jot down my lists & blogging ideas when I'm on the bus. The floral notepad was a gift, I don't know where it was from, I wish I did as I love stationary (may have a slight obsession).

• Soap & Glory antibacterial hand gel
• Simple cleansing wipes
• Nivea deodorant. 
• -Keys are not pictured but they're usually in my bag-

The hand gel, hand wipes and deodorant are travel sized and I believe they were 3 for 2 in boots. I love the travel sized products because they fit perfectly into my bag and much lighter to carry around! They're also much cheaper.

So that's what's in my bag at the moment. 

What's in your bag?


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I haven't blogged for ten days!! That's a long time for me to go without blogging.
You see, I've not been very well. I suffer with a rare brain disease called intracranial idiopathic hypertension. It's where the pressure/fluid around my brain builds up and causes horrendous, chronic headaches and pain in my head and eyes. My vision goes all blurry when it flares up and makes very, very sick. The left side of my body goes numb and I suffer horrendously with pins and needles, right up my arms and legs. That could be a side effect from the meds though. It also effects my ears, like my ears feel blocked when the IIH flares up. The symptoms are similar to those of a brain tumor. In fact, when I first started suffering with headaches, that is what the doctors thought it was. Thankfully it isn't a brain tumor and I am SO grateful for that. (See it could be so much worse!) When the IIH flares up, I literally can not do anything. It's horrible. It is so hard to put into words how poorly I was, it's hard to explain. There is no cure. I know that I need another lumbar puncture (spinal tap) to drain the extra fluid from around my brain, I need my doctor to contact the neurologist and refer me. Again. I've suffered with this since 2010, which is when I was diagnosed. I don't want to go on about it but I knew I needed to mention it because I haven't been blogging for the above reason.
My head isn't as bad now, although I always have a constant headache and dull ache behind my eyes, it has calmed down compared to what it was like. It can flare up at anytime without warning which makes it hard to plan things. Anxiety has been pretty bad too. But that's a whole other story and I don't want to go into it now. Thinking about it makes me even more anxious!


I'd like to be able to say we had a good half term. Except, I was ill for 85% of it. The kids had fun though, we just hung out at home, playing board games, watching movies and netflix and what not. They did go to the park with there friends and played out the front on there scooters and bikes. My family visisted and they had a fab Easter and got soooo many Easter eggs! We had a couple of afternoons with lovely warm weather which we spent in the garden (When my headache wasn't too bad). They've now all settled back into the school routine and my head is slowly getting better. I'm glad we managed to make the most of the weather and get out before I was poorly. We enjoyed a really lovely spring walk on Good Friday.


I also had my twelve month house check (because this house was a new build when I moved in, the builders had to come back to check all was well) which went perfectly, I can finally start decorating and hang pictures and put shelves up! I am SO excited about that! I need to start saving. I invested in a steam mop and oh my goodness, how did I ever cope without one? It's the best thing ever, haha.

Charlie got into the high school, I had to appeal but thankfully a space become available so I no longer need to appeal! That's a HUGE relief. He is super excited! Not so excited for the SATS exams that are coming up though... I know he'll do his absolute best and I'm already very proud!
The boys both have new, smart hair cuts, there hair grows SO fast! It'll need cutting again in a couple of weeks. Thankfully we have a barbers bear by who are very, very good! Just as well because I can not cut hair, haha.


Ellie has signed up for choir which I am certain she will enjoy. I received a letter about Ellie's dental referral, I need to schedule that appointment tomorrow.

Harry is doing great at school. There's not much to report really. Harry has some kind of something wrong with his finger and finger nail so I need to make him an appointment for that. It looks quite painful. No idea what he's done, he doesn't know either. Personally I think it's where he's been biting his nails! I tell him not to but it's a habit that is hard to break. We're working on that. If anyone has any tips on how to stop biting nails, I'm all ears :) 

Well, this is a pretty good summary of what's been going on. I am hoping I can catch up on blogging this week, depending on how I feel.

What have you been up to lately? I hope you're all well and had a great Easter!

Sarah xXx

My anxiety has seriously been through the roof the last couple of weeks. I don't know why, I just know that it's been bad. I know that I over think and I know not getting enough sleep doesn't help but it's so just so hard to deal with! I also have been finding it difficult to get motivated. So I thought I'd do what I did last time my anxiety was this bad and try to focus on the positives, things to be happy about and not dwell on the negatives.

I have been super organised! I've cleaned out the boys room and cupboard properly, thrown away a lot of stuff and sorted through there clothes. They have both had growth spurts and have grown out of lots of clothes but it's great they're growing and healthy! I shall probably pop to ASDA and pick them up a few pairs of shorts and T.shirts. It isn't worth spending mega amounts of money (which I don't have anyway) because they seriously grow SO fast! Especially Harry. Can you believe he's 12 years old and tall as me? (5ft3) Crazy. I also did the same with Ellie's room and clothes! It feels good to get rid of the things we don't need or use any more. I'm sure the charity shop will appreciate them. 

Writing lists - This really helps me get motivated. I wrote a huge list of things to do today. And I've almost achieved it ALL. I am feeling very satisfied and so much better knowing that my house is clean and tidy. I've really pushed myself to get motivated today and it worked!



Charlie didn't get into the high school we choose (The one Harry - my eldest- attends) which is a HUGE worry and a massive negative and honestly has not helped with my anxiety. He'll be the only kid from his school not going. I'm not happy about this. HOWEVER, Charlie is the first one on the waiting list. I have also sent my appeal off already! These are both positive things and the right steps to get him into the school. So fingers crossed and positive thoughts!!! (Charlie doesn't know any of this of course, I don't want to worry him because I DO think he will get in before he's due to start in September).
EDIT: I received a letter of acceptance, Charlie got into the chosen high school. I can't even tell you how relieved I am! I am SO happy for him. YESSSS!!! 



Also the weather has been very lovely lately. Sunny and mild! And it's officially spring. The kids and I are super excited about the nicer weather, it means we can explore and play outside more. 

I've quit drinking coca cola. Which is a HUGE step for me! I do have the odd diet coke though, diet is better than full fat (in moderation!). Still, I am very proud of myself.

I've been reading SO much lately. I've read 9 or even 10 books this year so far. This is huge for me too, I think making time for myself to read really helps improve my mood.

I spotted two alpacas the other day when I was walking to my local shops! They made my entire day. I stood there for ages watching them. They're in a farm sanctuary and I totally was not expecting to see such unique creatures. I checked the farms website when I got home as I wasn't 100% certain is they were llamas or alpacas, they are indeed alpacas! Awww. SO CUTE!

ITS ALMOST EASTER!!!! YAY!! The Easter holiday's are more than welcome here. A nice break from school routine is always welcome and I know the kids are super excited, hehe. We'e enjoyed some really cool Easter arts & crafts which baker ross sent us to review.


Overall I am feeling rather positive right now and focusing on the good things and the positive things really help!

What's made you happy recently?

Sarah xXx

It's been a hectic week or so. I'll start with the worst moments.

• The kids and I have been sick. Again. Some kind of tummy bug. I got a phone call from the school last Thursday from the school asking me to pick Ellie up as she was unwell and had been sick at school. Bless her. From there, we ALL came down with it over the space of the weekend! It was awful. Thankfully we're better now. 
• I managed to burn myself on the oven while taking out the pasta bake! It's really sore and quite large. I've put burn cream on. I'm sure it'll heal soon. 
• I've also had a bad headache on and off.. Its the brain disease playing up. My vision also hasn't been great. 
• Stressing about money. Again. Money sucks. There's so much I want to do in those house but I just don't have the funds. I need to save, save, save! 

The best bits:

Yes, my cat just had to get in the photo, haha.

• My Birthday was last Tuesday. I didn't really do much but I did receive some lovely presents and cards. I saw my family and fella too! I love the new bag the kids got me and also my lovely little light box with letters that can be changed! My mum bought me some new PJs - I LOVE PJ's, I have an obsession! I also received some very lovely other its including a fitness band to track my steps & sleep, a new pair of trainers ready for when I start jogging again, some photography stuff (which is just a hobby! I'm kind of teaching myself). I'm very thankful for my presents :)

My light box, I love it!

• I also enjoyed a really nice mothers day with the kids. In the afternoon a bunch of flowers were delivered for me, awww. ♥ I love them. (These are mixed in with flowers I received for my Birthday!) I feel truly blessed & very lucky.
• The kids parents evenings went very well! Charlie & Ellie are both doing great. I am super proud of them. I'm sure I'll have Harry's parents evening soon!  
• World book day was a success (minus Ellie coming down poorly). Charlie and Ellie's school had a pirate theme. They love dressing up! 
• Charlie passed his level 2 bikability at school which is awesome! Very proud of him. 

So those are our best and worst moments from the last week or two. What have been your best and worst moments? what's been the highlight for you?

Sarah xXx

This week has been a busy one! And full of proud mummy moments.
Monday I had Charlie's parents evening. I'm really pleased to say he is doing superb about school and preparing for the SATS which are coming up next term. He's also preparing for high school, too. He's doing brilliant in English, Maths and Science. He enjoys arts and reading, too. He's so good at cursive hand writing and knows up to his 14 times table! He's better at maths than I am (I'm not even kidding!). All our practicing at home has paid off. Charlie has just completed his level 2 bikeability course at school. It's where professional (instructors?) go into the school and take the kids out on there bikes and prepare them for cycling on the road and teach them how to be safe on there bikes etc. I believe only year 5 & 6 take part. Charlie passed that. With flying colours, as I knew he would. He's more confident riding his bike now. He very proudly showed me his certificate and badge to say he'd passed!
I am VERY proud of him.


Ellie's parents evening was Tuesday. Again, she is doing great in all subjects, her reading is advanced for her age (She's trying to get through her current book (which has 56 pages), so she can start reading goosebumps!) We DO need to work on her counting past 100 in tens, which I know she can do but I just don't think she's interested, still though, we will work out that. Also sounding out long words she seems to rush and pronounces the word wrong but if she takes her time, she can do it. She is only eight years old though, I'm not at all worried because I know she'll get there :)
She received a certificate for helping people and being very friendly. She left her certificate at school though. She was going to bring it home today but she's been ever so poorly and didn't go to school today. 
I'm VERY proud of her, too!

It was also world book day on Thursday. The theme was 'Pirates' so both Charlie & Ellie dressed up as pirates. Charlie was like "This eye patch irritates my eye, I AM NOT WEARING IT" And "It makes my eyes itch"Bless him. And Ellie was like "I LOVE my pirate on my shoulder" haha. They were very excited though! And excited for the fun activity afternoon. Poor Ellie was poorly at school in the afternoon though and I got the call asking me to come collect her, which I didn't mind at all but I felt so bad for her and her missing out on all the book day fun. Never mind. At least she was alright for the morning! Charlie had a fantastic day. I can't believe it's his last year dressing up at primary school. Madness how fast the time goes!


Did your children/nieces/nephews etc celebrate world book day? Have you had any proud moments recently?

Sarah xXx

Linked up with:
Magic moments 

Phew! Thank goodness January is over. It was a stressful month. I always find January a bit depressing but not usually stressful. I'm going to focus on the proud moments of January and there were a few of those!

The kids went back to school and settled back into routine perfectly. Charlie was a little grumpy and miserable the first week back to school because he missed Christmas, bless him. He soon cheered up though!


He earned himself a certificate for doing well in drama. I am super proud of him for that. He always tries very hard at school and he aims to please others, he's also very helpful apparently!


Ellie had to have a tooth pulled out unfortunately. Her big tooth was pushing down on the baby tooth and causing her some discomfort. It was ready to come out anyway but just needed a little extra help. She was SO brave. She didn't cry nor make a fuss about it after it was done. I'm very proud of her! She did better than I do at the dentist (and I'm serious when I say that!)


Harry's been picked for the school football team, I am super proud of him. He's also participated in rugby a few times since starting high school, too. He's so sporty and active! (I do wish he'd let me take his photo more often though, haha.)


What are you proud of lately? How have your little ones settled back into routine after the madness we call the Christmas holidays?

Sarah xXx

I have got SO much to do before Christmas, I really need to write a list and set myself some goals. I find that when I set myself a list of things to achieve, things actually do get done and a lot faster, too. So here's my list of things to get done before Christmas.


1) Finish Christmas shopping
2) Wrap all presents.
3) Plan our Christmas meal plan.
4) Catch up with laundry (I don't wanna be doing more than I need to over Xmas!)
5) Blitz the front room and kitchen ready for Christmas.
6) Take photos of the kids infront of the Xmas tree.
7) Blitz the kids rooms and make space ready for Christmas.
8) Order the last couple of things.
9) Send out Christmas cards (I am slacking!)
10) Do some Christmas baking with the kids.

...and I'm probably missing a few...

So those are my goals and things to achieve this week. All focused on Christmas and the Holidays (Which are fast approaching!). What;s on your list this week?

Sarah xXx

 Gosh, December is flying by so fast. Too fast! I am still not ready for Christmas. Nowhere even near. I have so many gifts to buy still. I know it'll all work out in the end and Christmas isn't just about gifts and what not but even so, it's stressful! I'll start off with the 'not so great' things that have been going on lately.

Firstly, we've all been poorly with one thing or another. We just start getting better and then one of the kids come home from school with yet another bug or virus. I think the kids have had two stomach bugs since October! Harry last week was vomiting and then this weekend, Ellie came down with it and now, Monday morning... Charlie is puking. It just seems never ending. I'm certain it's this time of year and being ill comes with the colder weather, also Harry starting high school and a lot of new bugs and germs are going around but shesh. It's just been one illness after another, quite literally! Time to get the Detol and cleaning products out again. (I feel like I'm constantly cleaning and the amount of disinfectant I've gone through, trying to prevent these bugs! I guess my mums theory is right "If you're gonna get ill, you'll get it regardless! Still no harm in trying to prevent it though, right?) Hopefully all will be over with by the time Christmas rolls around. Which is eleven days away! EEK!
I've still got that wrapper lodged in my throat. I need to go back to the hospital for a scan but with the kids being ill and I've been ill, it hasn't been possible. It's not causing me any distress, it's just annoying. I can barely even feel it today so perhaps it's making it's way down (touch wood and pray!)

Anyway. Onto better things.


We've put our Christmas tree up and it looks lovely, I do need to get some gold ribbon though, just to finish it off. I've decorated the tree in a theme this year, silver, rose gold and gold with a tiny bit of black (because the baubles are SO sparkly, I HAD to use them lol). I wasn't quite sure how it would look but it looks really nice, the pictures do it no justice. I'm avoiding tinsel this year as my cats like to try and eat it and I certainly don't want it causing them any injuries or health problems. I've also put the Christmas lights up around the window and the look lovely. I think I'll be more into the Christmas spirit once the Xmas shopping is complete.
Ellie and I took a trip to the local garden centre which was so festive and lovely. We had a great time.

Oh and Santa came around our street on his sleigh (raising money) which was amazing!! Truly, I was amazed as were the kids. What a festive way to get people into the Christmas spirit! We stood and waved and Ellie even went up to the sleigh and said hello and wishes everyone a merry Christmas. I wish I had of taken better photos but I was just stood there in amazement, haha. That really made mine and the kids week last week :)

How has your week been? Are you all set for Christmas?

Sarah xXx