CharlieBeth's "My Life As Mumma Walker"

Last week Jack brought home a plant pot from Beavers. In it was some soil, and a bean which he had planted himself. We have been charged with caring for this bean and helping it to grow. This will go towards his Gardening Activity badge. He also needs to take photos of his bean growing, which will contribute to his Photographer Activity badge. If the Beavers manage to successfully grow their beans (they are Broad Beans so fingers crossed they will grow well) they will then harvest them and cook them! Guess which badge that will be part of... The Cook Activity ! So given how many badges this little pot of dirt is worth it has become a very precious little pot of dirt. Jack, being Jack, has needed reminding to check on his bean on a daily basis. A plant pot with nothing showing isn't very interesting to a 7 year old with a short attention span. Me and Hubby have kept a close eye on it. I've been scared that it wouldn't grow (I don't have a good track record with p

Our Scout group isn't linked to a church, so we don't get to do the various parades that I remember doing years and years ago as a Brownie, and I admit I am a bit sad about that. I remember feeling pride in being part of a parade, wearing full uniform and carrying our group's flag (although I never got to carry it myself). So when we got a letter on Monday about the St. George's Day Parade today I was thrilled! Obviously St. George's Day itself has been and gone on Thursday but this is the nearest Sunday so it was all done for today. The whole of the Lonsdale District met up by the Town Hall in Morecambe and then marched to The Winter Gardens , where some of the older Scouts / Leaders had organised a show explaining the story of St. George (with volunteers from the audience and much pantomime style fun) and why St. George is so important to the Scouting movement... He is the Patron Saint of Scouting ! News to me! It was loads of fun, it was just a shame there se

Well the boys have reached the end of another block of swimming lessons. I'm starting to think that I am expecting too much of these lessons though.... During the Easter Holidays I took Jack to the sports centre's inflatable fun day in the pool and I was suddenly very very glad I only took Jack and not Tom as well because despite having allegedly completed his Ducklings badges and doing his Stage 1 he clearly cannot swim and freaks out of he is out of his depth. I would have struggled to keep two of them going. I'm a tad annoyed that when they got their badges this time that Jack didn't get his Stage 1 badge - but only because last week I was told to pay for his Stage 2 lessons. Has he passed Stage 1 or not? And Tom got his Duckings 3 badge... for the second time! Why has he got it twice? We were out of the pool, the kids all but dressed, and the teacher was with her next class before I realised that the badges were not what we expected. Frankly I was just impress

It's been a busy day today! As well as swimming this morning, my Mum came over to visit. It's been a beautiful day so we walked the kids to their promised trip to The Zone soft play, via one of their favourite playgrounds. They had a good long play on the way to The Zone, played while there were there, and then at the playground again on the way back! Not counting the actual playing they walked a good 3 miles. I was determined to wear them out! And then it was Tom's night out, a day late because things just didn't work out on Friday this week. This month Tom wanted me to take him to the cinema. He was really torn between Home and SpongeBob, but in the end SpongeBob won out. (We walked there and back too!) It was pretty good! OK, so you probably have to be a SpongeBob fan (so sorry to you parents who aren't) and I have to admit that for me the film was just about long enough. And while the kids will want this on DVD when it comes out, I might find myse

You know how you get attached to a hairdresser? Finding one who does your hair just the way you like is tricky to find. For years I went to the one same lady and I loved loved LOVED what she did with my hair! But when she started a family of her own she also started up on her own as a mobile stylist. I very much wanted to keep on seeing her (we're still FB friends) but my home is not really a great place to have my hair done. That bathroom still isn't finished (2 years on), every inch of space in my home is taken up either with the kids toys and games, or the Hubby's DIY stuff. It's a shed, 24/7, 365. Frankly.... I am ashamed of it. And I don't like people seeing how we live. I long since gave up the constant up-hill struggle WAR to make this house look anything other that an episode of Hoarders (that will all change Summer 2016, but that's for another post). Add to my total and utter shame of my house; for me getting my hair done is more than just a cut and

It's been a week since the Easter Bunny (i.e. me and the Daddy) took a stand on the Boys behaviour and withheld most of the Easter Eggs and such. A week where their behaviour has been hugely improved! I'm not saying they have been angels. But they have at least stopped being little demons! And that was all we were asking for! So this morning they came trotting downstairs to find the rest of their Easter Eggs waiting for them. Oh the joy on their little faces! And today we went out on George's choice of a day trip - a session at Giggles soft play. Daddy came too. Even though he hates play areas. They have free wifi.... he took his Kindle! Easily pacified Husband. The masses of kids playing turns into white noise when you have Minecraft to play. Although Jack thought it was quite unfair that I wouldn't let him bring his Kindle too. We hardly saw the bigger three lads while we were there. Zip... Zoom... Whoosh... They were off and playing, burning off some of that ch

Today Georgie is THREE!!!! He seems so much older than 3 already though, he wants to be just like Jack and Tom, and tries (with considerable success) to do everything they do. This years birthday is all about Peppa Pig! For weeks we have been asking George what he wants for his birthday and the answer has always been the same: "Peppa Pig Toys, more Peppa, dinosaurs, and a Peppa Cake!" So we've got him a ton of cuddly toys, some more plastic figures, and picked out a Lego style Peppa Pig building blocks house to buy with the birthday money my Dad sent over for him. And a bucket of dinosaurs! The sad thing is that for the last two days he has been sick. He was sick in the night on Thursday and he's still not 100% better yet. He really wants to go to Giggles soft play for his birthday treat but I can't take him if he's been sick (schools etc have the 48 hour vomit rule for a reason) so we're going to go tomorrow instead. That will be better really thoug

My Mum came to visit today so we gave my Hubs the day off and took the Boys out to Docker Park Farm. They have been itching to get back here since it closed for the winter and almost exploded when I told them it was open again now the Easter Holidays had started. This is the first time that Freddie has been big enough to play properly while we've been visiting. OK... He's a bit little for the tractors and the hay barn, but the lovely padded floor of the Under 5's play barn was just perfect for him, and really well kitted out with toys and games. He had an awesome time. So much fun that all three of his big brothers just HAD to come and join him (even though Jack is technically too old for that bit of the play barn). The bigger lads had an absolute blast in the big kids barn, the hay bales, the new giant sand pit... they even took time to check out the animals. Personally I was very impressed by the Mummy Pig feeding 7 chubby piglets (it's knackering enough feeding o

Whew! We've made it to Easter Sunday! It's been touch and go with the kids these last few days. To say they have been acting up would be a massive understatement. They were told that if their behaviour didn't improve then the Easter Bunny would not be paying them a visit - which would mean no chocolate eggs other than the small one we had bought them (coz they knew about that - although they were a whisker away from losing that too), no egg hunt etc. They didn't believe us. They didn't behave. Only Freddie had a visit from the Easter Bunny! Three sad boys on Easter morning. We have stashed the other eggs. If their behaviour goes back to how it should be then they can have them NEXT Sunday. But we haven't told them that. I've hated hold back on the half-a-carrot-and-pile-of-jelly-beans-outside-their-bedroom routine like we've done in previous years, and not filling little plastic eggs with treats for them to fine around the house, the mountains of cho