Where has the time gone?

I know it is a long time since I last blogged ( how many times do people say that!) but I have a really good excuse.....WE MOVED HOUSE!!!!. After 13 years at our old place we finally up'd sticks and moved to a bigger place. It has been a really exciting time we finally took the plunge as with all things we do which is very last minute. I cannot believe that we had all this stuff crammed into our 2 bedroom flat. Packing was a nightmare as we had nowhere to put things when they were packed apart from into the rooms we were living in.

 

How much more stuff can we cram in?

 

 

Poor Alex had no where to sit let alone sleep!

So we have gone from this .......................to this!!!!

Mid move from old 2 new..

and finally to this......

So much space................

and it really does feel like home now. We even have a garage for the boys to play in so they are in seventh heaven.

Boys playground!

We have had the family round and they think it is GREAT. Can't wait for the summer to get here so we can make full use of the conservatory and garden. Have even bought a lawnmower and anyone who knows me knows I do not do gardening :)

Here is 2012

Here is 2012 and it snuck in quietly for us.Just Kim and I at home with a couple of drinks and Jools Holland on the telly. Not very exciting but at least I didn't lose a day which has been know in the past. Must be a sign of getting older and wiser.

We went over to Charlotte and Scotts and whilst there Frankie got out the scrapbook albums that I made when she was first born. I can't believe that was in 2004 and I was amazed how good they looked with her baby photos in. I have not done any scrapping for the last 3 years but that made me want itch to get back into it. I have a wonderful book by Sue Roddis that my good friends Anne, Carol and Angela bought me for my 50th that has lots of albums to make. Maybe it's about time to dust my stuff off and get going again. I know the kids really liked the ones I did in the past so maybe now is the time.

I'm not sure if the weekends have less hours in them but boy do they fly by. Kim and I have been back at work for 4 days and it has felt like a very long week. We went out for a walk today part of the New Year get fit campaign. Walked all along Warsash seashore past the Academy and onto Hook Park . There were surprisingly a lot of people about and I did pop off a couple of snaps of Kim and him of me. I am sure the camera lies as he does make me look somewhat attractive although the windswept look is not so good.

Kim

Me

Days leading up to 2012

 
We had a brilliant break over the Chrtistmas period with family visiting and going to visit family. We had Audrey around on Christmas Day and had a great time. She seemed to enjoy it and went off with her hamper of goodies for her to dive into when she needed a fix.

Kim and Mum Audrey

 I took this photo of Alex whilst we were waiting for Kim to arrive back and Alex took this one of me.

Alex

Me

We had a brilliant Christmas with all the troops on the 29th and I can't believe that another year has passed. It it traditional to have a family photo and this year it had to be inside. There is always much hilarity over the camera timer switch and will I make it into the photo in time. This year sadly Alex was missing for most of it as he had to work but he arrived back in time for adult present opening and the kids welcomed him with open arms.

All the Troops except the boy.

Another Day and a Step Closer

Well it is the 2nd day of the kitchen make over. Here is a picture after the paint had been applied. What a difference that made to the whole feel of it. The colour we used was a soft almond from Dulux.

We then added a new light after getting rid of the 1970s strip light. So passe...... here is the next stage. I am really pleased with how it looks which is all down to my hard working other half. Thanks babe xx

What a Difference a Day Makes

Today was the start of decorating the kitchen. It must be at least 5 years since it was last done so today was the day. We had to get rid of the dark blue that so long ago was very trendy so Kim started off covering it with white. I decided to use my fisheye type lens so I could get it all in. It is looking better already and tomorrow we go for the final colour.

Very blue

Very white

Family Day Out

What a great day out we had today. All of us went to the Longdown Dairy Farm for a great family get together unfortunately Mark was at work so missed out. The weather report was not good but luckily it held off until the last minute. Got some really good shots of the troops a couple of which I will share with you. I am always amazed at how accommodating they are when I point the camera and they go into photoshoot mode. What a great family I have and so much fun to be around.

Charlotte, Scott and Family

Philippa and Family

Kim my long suffering husband

Alex our very long suffering son

Picture Workshops

My husband Kim and I went on a one day workshop back in April with Ross Hoddinott and Mark Bauer from Dawn 2 Dusk Photography. I have finally had a chance to sort out some pictures from that day and wanted to share with you a couple. What a great day we had and as both these amazing gents are so experienced we certainly learnt a lot. Thanks guys!

Kimmeridge Bay by Julie

Kimmeridge Bay by Kim