Planning our road trip this year

Austria 2009

Every year , we go on a road trip.
We have done so for over 24 years now, although there have been years this has not been possible.
Road trips are fairly common place for larger families for obvious reasons, no expensive flights! although given this current climate of large families being filmed everywhere they go, one would be lead to believe road trips have just been invented! (the cynic in me feels publicising such events maybe a good way to pay for them!)

France 2005

We are planning a big once in a life time road trip in a couple of years so need to save more. This years road trip needs to be low budget so over Christmas I set about trying to find some cheaper accommodation.This was actually easier than I thought.
For us, it means staying a little more 'off the beaten track' than usual but I am sure life will as always be fascinating and the children will enjoy the change.
To take children on holiday, takes courage. I have some friends who freely admit they didn't even bother going to the beach till their children were three.

France 2005

To take lots of children away for weeks on end takes lots of courage! as well as planning meticulously  with the teachers rule of thumb 'what can go wrong will go wrong'. Planning for every eventuality really helps and gives a peace of mind. Thankfully, for us this has never happened, but knowing where the local Dr and hospital are, is always a good idea!
I use the word 'holiday' in the broadest sense, as I can never really relax, especially when the children were all very little and you had to keep your wits about you 24/7. However I still enjoyed the break from the routines and sight seeing!
For the last year or so I have been working with an agent on the framework for a book about living and working and holidaying overseas. Putting together 25 years of tips, tales and experiences has been fun. Hearing others tales has been equally amusing. We are no where near finishing it any time soon, but there's no rush, as each year passes more will be added!!!
For now, I will again, blow the cobwebs off my trusty holiday planner, that I add items too each year, and start to plan our list for this year. The beauty of being teachers is, although we have to take our holidays at the most expensive time of the year, we can at least go away for a good month or so, as we have found when you get there, you can actually live on the same budget, or even less than at home!

Prague 2007

 We like to go to the non-tourist spots, we live with the locals, shop in the local shop, chat to them and join in their festivals and celebrations much to the children's amusement /bemusement! It is a great learning experience to live in a totally different part of the world for a few weeks and absorb the culture.
Like wise to have the privilege  as we have of living somewhere very different is just wonderful, and a memory the older children hold dear forever.
And so, amidst yet another dreadful bout of sickness and diahorrea twin style, we hold fast to our great summer escape and the adventures we will have together.

Why babies are a blessing for handling teenagers!

The birthday season is on us once again.
Three in January and four in March and April.
February give us time to recover slightly.
Martha's 15th party is this weekend.
She is very excited.
At 15 , this broadly consists of her group of friends coming over, playing dance games on the wii and xbox, chatting and having a nice meal, before some leave and others stay for a 'wake over' as I call them, as no one generally sleeps!
We were talking about this years forthcoming event in the car today.
Martha: My friends cant wait to come over!
Me: why?
Martha: because they LOVEEEE Dad's cooking and your ice cream
Me: That's great
Martha: and they cant wait to see the babies again, in fact I think they are more excited about seeing the babies than seeing me mum. They were all arguing who was going to look after who and play the game 'pass the Caleb' that they all found so funny.
Me :Really?
Martha is one of only two or three of her friends to have babies still. I am the oldest mother to reproduce as well! All her friends have photos of the babies, constantly ask how they are and await the latest tales and updates.
It is all so sweet, and Martha enjoys talking about their latest achievements and antics with a captive audience.
Her instagram holds endless pictures of them both, and her tweets are about then as well, as are the other teens internet postings as well.
They love the babies with all their hearts. No matter what their day has been like or the moods they are in they always have time for them and give them endless love and affection. I can honestly see nothing but positives of having these two little people in their lives.
I know their friends all feel the same!

Changes to this blog.

I am increasingly feeling uncomfortable about making this blog open to anyone to read.
Locally I am not sure I want everyone to know what I am doing and when, and likewise when I did a few google searches I felt my children's identities and photos were not as private as I had hoped.
I really enjoy writing the blog but am increasingly feeling I want to cypher who reads it.
Untill I decide what to do, if anything I will remain writing a few things here.
I have really enjoyed getting to know some of you, but have never felt that comfortable writing in such a fashion where everything is so very open.
Fiona

The digital photo frame

Not this Christmas just gone, but last Christmas, my husband bought me a digital photo frame.
It has sat in a box for a year.
I am no good with technology and had not a moment to work out what on earth to do with it, and to be honest thought it was a waste of money.
My husband has nagged me for a year. Never sick, he has been off work for a week with the dreadful never ending virus that has now plagued our home for 5 weeks.
Feeling too ill to do work, he took it upon himself to put the photos onto my frame.
Little did he know how many I take.
Serial digital photo downloader here!
About 11,000 photos and a week later, and quite a lot of muttering and cursing....it has been completed.
It has 1,400 images right back to 2003 when we first bought a digital camera, to take photos of Joshua's brief little life.
Plugged in, on our mantle piece, I have to admit I love it, and often glance up at the images flashing by.
All the happy times, the places we visited, our dear friends, school events,general large family living, the children as babies, toddlers and juniors. It has cataloged the last ten years of our lives.
Everyone loves it, although the teenagers groan at their "gawky' phases and awful dress sense!
What a blessing that little frame is and I now look forward to adding too it each year.

Absence

Sorry I have not been around much, but once again we both caught 'the bug' and have been ill for over two weeks.
Someof the children re caught it too.
It has now been going round our house for 5 weeks and shows no signs of apeezement.
We have started back at school and work, and I have over 70 students to observe in their school placements as well as a masters assignment to write, and three birthdays.
There are only so many hours in the day, and I think I am using them all up.
I will be back, but right now other things must come first.

Bootcamp is going to be replaced this year by.....

The great learn to run for the northern run!
Given I am absolutely the worst runner in the entire universe of running this will be quite a challenge.
My husband, a runner, fell around laughing at the mere proposal, so what did I do, well of course I applied for the ballot for the Northern Run.
13.1 miles around Newcastle and Sunderland.
Hmm
I can run for about a minute before falling to the ground in a heap.
So, I have my new training app, curtesy of the Northern run website.
It guarantees I will, if I follow it, be able to run for a whole 20 mins in 8 weeks.
I cannot wait!
It will be nothing short of a miracle.
So tonight, we got the babies to sleep, watched the news headlines and then at 10.20 in the wind and cold, braced the outdoors for my first, 20 min fast walk.
Thankful we live by the sea and at least even in the dark it's scenic at least.
The other plus is I can do this with Simon instead of leaving him to look after the children whilst I go to the gym.
The other plus is it's cheap! Very cheap. This is good!
So next time its the 1 min run one 1 min .
Oh dear, the running starts.
Watch this space.

The memories that clothing evokes

9.5 years ago when Jono was just 2 and Susie was 9.

As I laid away all the Christmas Decorations in the attic, a job I had been putting off for months could no longer be avoided.

I went through the attic and found all the next years clothing for the twins, substantial as there are boxes of girls and boys clothing.

I still have to sort and pack away their present clothing, another odious task, but at least I have found the next sizes for both of them, thus saving a lot of trudging around shops and wasted money.

It is always so very bitter sweet laying away each stage of clothing, as it marks, sadly the passing of that stage of babyhood, and as at my age, each child is an amazing blessing, I am very much aware with the twins it is probably, the last time we will see this stage (but you never know!!!)

Something really sad hit me today as I took out all Jono's clothing and washed and dried this.

It has lasted perfectly in the attic for nine years, as our house has a large weight towards girls, rather than boys.

The clothing was packed away when Jono was two, when I was pregnant with Joshua, and the photos I have of Jono holding Joshua, are the clothes I am now laundering for Caleb to wear, as Joshua never had the chance to grow so big.

Jono cuddling Joshua

As I folded them, I remembered all the times Jono had worn them. Above is a photo of him in some of these with Susie. It's a good job little boys clothes are fairly timeless, as Caleb now has a huge new selection.

The strange thing is that Caleb looks a little like Joshua did, It is strange to see Joshua's very distinctive and different features on him, and how he is growing and developing gives me little flashes as too what Joshua may have looked like too.

Caleb Joshua

Perhaps it is a little ironic that in the year we celebrate Joshua's 10th Birthday, Caleb will be wearing those clothes. It is also comforting as well. They will defiantly be kept long after he has grown out of them, as precious memories of my sweet little boys.

What a disaster!

Anya feeling far from happy-I am with you there my girl!

It's fair to say this Christmas has rated as one of my worst.
Why?
Because of this blessed virus that has swept around our house with a vengeance, try as we might it does not want to go away.
Before Christmas the twins had it, and screamed the place down every night for over a week.I have never felt so deranged going into Christmas, then the other kids got it, then Simon got it and was ill for well over a week, I have never seen him that ill for years. This put paid to Christmas week, he managed the dinner, a supreme effort given how lousy he was feeling. Just as he recovered and we planned to do a few things with the children it struck me with a passion, and the twins once again!
I have felt grim.
So grim I have been unable to do very much at all, other than be a snuggler for movies and in my brighter moments a little more , other than the usual stuff that has to be done, that is!
I feel we have not done all the lovely things that we do, that the children have not been out as much as I had hoped and that it has well and truly spoilt some of the magic.
Stupid virus!
Bah humbug!