Sunday Morning

I have not had the text saying "I am still alive" and it is nearly 11am. I guess it was a good party last night. However, on the coldest night of the year so far, I am taxi-ing Steffi dressed as Jesse from the Toy story, only wearing short shorts, to her party with her boyfriend and his friend.
There are lots of things wrong there.
First of all I thought Girls took their friends along
Second of all, I should have been saying, "you can not go out dressed like that, you''ll catch your death..." instead I was thinking " I wish I had legs as long as that"
Thirdly... oh well I will not go into that.

Mum is out of hospital now, but weak and forgetful. popped in last night and went back this morning. My Aunt was also there so it was nice to see them all. I have been to pick Steff up this morning and the countryside was so pretty, Bright brilliant sunshine but so cold. There is frost on the ground and some of the fields are white and crispy. The others are bright green from the wet dew. The trees are all bare now too. Such a lovely sight. The tired 16yr old that hobbled into my car was not such a pretty sight. LOL lack of sleep and a lovely bright blue bruise on her knee, and a mark around her neck where the cowboy hat had been.

I am cooking again tonight, that will make it Four nights in a row and FIVE times this week!

No matter how pretty the scenery is today, I am not going out again.... am even considering putting my PJs back on.

Domesticated ...Me?

Not that I don't know what has to be done, it is just every time I start to do something or even complete it, someone comes around and mucks it all up. Very demoralising I must say. Hence training to be a teacher, where BTW I have a reputation for cleaning cupboards out and throwing junk away!

So imagine Hubby's surprise when today started off with me prepping the beef and Guinness stew whilst still wearing my PJ's at 9:00am. Oh and the fact he caught me emptying the last two tins of Guinness in to the pot HAHAHAHA.

This afternoon I prepped a cabbage (savoy if you will) and THEN ...... I know this will knock your socks off, I made cherry crumble using ground almonds in the crumble mix as well!!!

I played around with a recipe!!!

I hope it tastes OK.

Ohhhhhh I have actually gone through all my shoes (to make room for new ones obviously, shhhhhhhh you did not hear that thought). I was actually smiling as I looked at each pair. What is it with shoes?

I have done all my washing but can not hang it up to dry, as I dry it all indoors and Matty has a friend around who is Muslim and I do not think it is a good idea to hang racks of underwear around the place! A lovely lad, so courteous too, he actually offers to help me unload the car without me having to threaten my kids with a bedroom invasion, black bin style if they do not help!

I am supposed to be sewing Xmas cards. HAHA whose idea was that?
Only 13 left to go..... THIRTEEN , yeah righ like that is going to happen.
Righty off to stir a stew.

Just found an internet site on "How to breed Guppy Fishes"
Why?
Just bung 'em in to the tank together et voila!*

* impressed Jo?

What I want to know is, a part from putting the hair greying son on sentry duty to tap the glass everytime they get amourous, can you STOP them bonking?

Is there a fish equivalent of a contraceptive you can put in the water?

Can I continue to ramble..Please??

• Grrr son still off school glued to the loo!
• Fish had MORE pigging babies, it will be exactly on week tomorrow when we bought FIVE guppy fish and in those 6 days we now have at least 15... FIFTEEN fishes.
• Eating cake for breakfast - not bothered if that sounds disgusting or not.
• THe hallmark channel has thrown a dippy fit on my box this morning and not working, even on the new station it is moving too, that has buggered up my cleaning schedule.
• Had to use antifreeze for the first time this morning. Did not know what to do, grumpy "I hate mornings" Hubby huffed and puffed spraying it everywhere. I then drove about 50m down the road and the whole windscreen misted over, ended up on the kerb! Now have new routine for cold morning driving.

1. Count fish in the morning.
2. Do not make jokes about flushing new babies down the loo to the "I hate mornings" grumpy hubby.
3. Do not sit in the car looking useless wondering if that is ice or not. Just spray the deicer.
4. Wait for the mist to clear before trying to drive.

• The domesticateness that I have been feeling for a while, is slowly ebbing away.
• The enthusiasm for the fish has Ebbed!

rambling

• Talking to Matty by MSN even though he is sat behind me.
• Doing Hallmark cleaning..... (watching hallmark programmes and clean at a furious pace in the long advert breaks.
• So far have 4 fish babies.... only bought the fish on Saturday! This is my Hubby's new hobby, I take the blame as I arranged the second hand tank as an early Xmas pressie. I never thought they would have babies. Hubby meanwhile, is already planning the next Bigger tank and how to remodel the lounge to fit it in, Geeeeze it is not even Xmas yet!
• Have wrapped all the pressies I have in the house now.
• When Hubby was in his last school one of the Teachers, who has a love of all things Christmas, bought Hubby and his colleague an advent calendar on Dec!st , then every school day til the end of term gave them a Xmas related pressie. Now he is in his new school I am trying to arrange this for him and his new colleague. However, I have a pressie from this other Teacher, that she sneaked into the house the other day!
• Does that all make sense?
• I got a pressie too! I am being a good girl and NOT opening it!
• Need to sweep the garden.
• Need to make dinner,
• Mum getting better, but hospital desperate to release her too early, Dad refused.
• Bad hospital, Bad hospital!
• What is a gestation period of a guppy?
• Still making Xmas cards
• Son still off school
• It is sunny this morning
• Need to clean my windows too----- dam sun!
• I have quite enjoyed being a housewife this week..... very weird.
• paying not so "poorly sick" son for every odd sock he finds in his room (aka pit)
• OOH advert break ... got to go!

Grumpy post - The Festive post is below.

Wake up- turn on TV -See a snake (phobia)
Check e-mail - Have not been paid - bank balance of 88pence.
7:15 ring agency - COMPLAIN.
7;30 HG son, comes down stairs... ILL
Ring agency - call in sick
Ring school apologise, only to be told that my servic es would not be needed for the rest of the week as the jury service I was covering had finished.
ALL THAT BY 8:30
Through the day I....
Rang the agency as periodic intervals with increasing levels of anxiety/ anger, listened to excuses and refused to accept blame for them chaning thier payroll system and expecting the royal mail to play ball!
Looked after poorly sick son.
Stressed relieved with some FRANITC housework (an unheard of event)
OOOo the fish had babies!!
I am a MUM of quads! (we only bought them on Saturday)
Told off by Dad for not visiting Mum in hospital!
4:35pm Agency refuse to advance money
%pm pick hubby up after work - his colleague has taken him to the pub so he agrees we would take him home (when was I consulted?)
Took him home
Went home
No food
No Money
Poorly sick son
Daughter gone to boyfriends
Rang in-laws
Went over, where kindly they lent us some money
Took poorly sick son home
Mercy trip to ASDA for dinner
Went to pick Daughter from boyfriend's
Ended up giving boyfriend a lift to his mate's house.
Came home
Had dinner
Hubby went ot bed shattered
I stayed up for another hour watching CSI
What was the episode about?
A frigging snake!

I would read the post below if I were you

Baking Christmas Cakes The Fizzy Way (8 at a time)

Take one large plastic washing up bowl.
Weigh out 12 lbs of mixed dried fruit.

Pour on two bottles of cooking brandy

Cover with tin foil and leave for about 48 hours

Meanwhile, collect the above items and a selection of cake tins.

Draw and cut out a piece of grease proof paper, the size and shape of the tin.

Cut strips of greasproof paper as above.

Brush oil all over the inside of the cake tin.

Line the tin as above.

Only reapeat for 8 tins. ( I hate that part!)

Weigh out all the dry ingrediants into one bowl.

Place the butter and syrup in the same pan.


Crack 24 LARGE eggs into another bowl (or in this case a pan) with the milk.

Whisk!

Melt the butter and syrup over the a low heat.

Mix the dry ingrediants

Disgard the spoon and mix the dry ingrediants with the fruit.
*Note to self... Next time remove Engagement ring first.
** Hubby walked in at this point and saw me mixing with one hand and taking photos with my right, who says women can not multi task!

Hubby took over the photography now.
Add all wet ingrediants now.
Mix well.
It is very wet and very sloppy and rather disgusting
BUT the smell is WONDERFUL!

Use a mug to pour the mixture into the cake tins.
Place in the oven
Bake for about 2 hours (depending on the size of the cakes)
Cool

Wrap in tin foil and keep until nearer Christmas before decorating.

PHEWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW

Round Up

• Worked 4.5 days this week Yeah
• Got a contract in another school for two weeks
• Supposed to be planning right now!
• Hubby got his Xmas present early - a second hand fish tank... is now acting like a two year old... it is set up in the lounge, it is arranged nicely and he is treating the water ready for getting the fish during the week.
• We told Steffi there were fish in the tank but they were shy... although logically she knew we were fibbing she kept checking a lot of times.
• Matty did not get his legs waxed - all in a good cause. The stupid boy called the bluff of a some giggly girls who thought it would be funny to ask him. After he agreed to do it for the charity he began to realise that this could actually hurt!
• Got the car washed. First time we got it washed since we bought it ..... in July!!!! Amazingly I can see more than just blurred shapes in my mirrors! I thought I needed an eye test. I can actually see the whites of the eyes of the drivers behind me!
• On Friday night in Rush hour traffic I was behind a lorry with a sign that says " if you can not see my wing mirrors you are too close" so I dropped back until I could see his mirrors leaving a gap big enough for TWO cars to then over take me and get in between me and the lorry!
• I have been treated to breakfast in bed two days in a row!!
• The bad side of not having any money is that when you do, you end up spending nearly £200 in ASDA filling the cupboards again
• Diet gone out of the window.
• Mum in hospital again, she is away with the fairies, last night told me that she had stood on and crushed 7 rats, that there were fleas on her face, that her picture was on the front page of the evening post, because she got stuck in a lift. However, she did not recognise herself in the picture! Apparently this morning, when my sister rang to see how she was, the nurses informed her that Mum had just landed at Manchester Airport!
• Hubby is mortified that he was asked to leave a pub last night. Apparently one of his friends put their head on the table cos he was tired and the bar staff felt he was now fit to be served so ALL THREE of them were asked to leave!
• Having my hair cut and coloured at 8am next Saturday morning... I CAN NOT WAIT!
• Matty is having his mop cut on Wednesday evening ....I CAN NOT WAIT!

Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen

Today is Steph's 16th!

BOY that has flown by!

one minute I am holding this little 3lb 15oz baby..... on life support because she was born 9 weeks early

NEXT I am discussing Boys, exams, part time jobs !

PHEW ..... 16 years!

Happy Birthday Steph.

Love you Loads

XxXx

Christmas Cards

I decided that to cut down on the xmas expensive (the credit crunch/no job/ blah blah) I would have to cut down on some of the pressies I give out. That, of course, does not mean I do not think any less of those people I just can not run to all those pressies. So I decided I would cross stitch some cards and send those instead.
I have quite enjoyed doing them, but found that the thought of sending them quite hard!
*Stupid I know*

So when my Hubby bought me a camera for my birthday I have been taking pictures of them.

This is a celtic design, and really not a Christmas card, but I think the colours make it very Christmassy. I am giving it to my lovely in-laws.....shhhhhhh do not tell them.

This mousey design was a freebie kit from a magazine.

A Jolly Snowman, really simple, I am supposed to embroider snowflakes around him in silver thread but as I have done it on sparkly fabric I do not need to.

OOOOO I love this little Robin.

I like this design, but not sure it is are clear as some of the others.

This is a Art Nouveau design and I really like it, but not too sure what I want to do with it. it is too small for a picture and yet too large for a card or coaster.

This is a celtic design of a Salmon, it going to be a birthday card for my lovely Father in Law. I think it is quite a jolly fish! Usually fish mouths go down :(

This was another free kit from a magazine and I really like it. I may do it again and agin with different colours.

Grumpy Duck

It is miserly out side. Quite bright now
There is barely any light. Ditto
We are running out of money fast. Went shopping so that feling has intensified- it was a cheap shop too
Only worked 1 day this week! Have hounded the agency and got TWO days so far for next week

SO in an attempt to NOT sink into despair....
Today I will:

• Finish writing my xmas cards- not done so far
• Sew some more xmas cards- LOOKED at my project
• Put more washing on (Matty discovered his washing pile after denying he had any for two days!) DONE
• See my parents. Done- nice to see them came away with their recycling my car now looks like I am the alcoholic! - going to the tip as soon as I have done this.

I went to parents consultations last night and out of 8 teachers that I needed to see, only FOUR were there!!!! that means I did a 30 mile round trip to see FOUR teachers! I found the form teacher and make my opinion clear. GRRRRRRRRRRRR. NOBODY has e-mailed me to apologise yet!

Righty better go and get dressed, it is cold as well. If I put the fire on I will never leave the house! Well I got dressed went out came home, put the fire on and now I do not want to leave to ge HUbby from work!

The day after bonfire night.
How come I am the only one that did not drink (as driving) and yet I am the one that slipped on the wet grass, and paving stones, twisted my knee on my left leg and trying trying ot steady myself braced my right leg before lying flat on my arse on the ground?
If I had had a drink it would not have happened, but then I would not have been able to drive.
No work today, so the excitment of the day so far has been seeign hte bottom of my laundry basket and going out to top up the gas and electricity cards!
There is further excitment to come, as I now have to go to Steffi's parents consultation evening. Being that it is her big exam year I am already unimpressed that one Teacher has a more important engagement, one teacher is not coming as only been there two weeks, and one teacher is ill today!
Maybe I am just in a grumpy mood!
Matty is grating cheese!!!!
*note to self* count how many fingers he has left before eating dinner!

Rounding Up - (AKA a snapshot of my mind)

It is Bonfire night.... it is cold.... I am expceted to go "ooooo" and "Ahhhhhh" without letting the shivering make my voice all wobbly!
Hubby sulked all the way to school this morning because he caught Matty eating his Cocoa Pops. Matty even let him drink the chocolately milk out of the bowl!
I went on a course today but will be unable to use the new information until January. Will I remember it then?
I am missing my old job ... LOTS . Working as a Supply/temp teacher is not fun anymore. Just how do you personify a black bin bag and make it interesting for 11 year old children?
I only got lost three times getting to the supply school yesterday :)
I only told Hubby I got lost once going to the supply school yesterday :) :)
Having a car after 15 years is brill. Filling the car with FOUR teenagers can get smelly.
Having both children in the car can be fun. Having Steffi sit behind Matty can get violent.
And noisy.
Note to self-> investigate car seats for Teenagers!
What are you supposed to arrange for a nearly 16 year old's 16th birthday when she will not tell you what she wants to do? She does not want to go out for a meal. She does not want a party, she does not want to have friends over. She will not tell you what she wants for a presant.... she will not comit to anything. So I have got her a lovely presant - a silver bangle. and have this sneaky suspicion that in later years she will feel we have let her down!!
Have written half of my xmas cards
Have wrapped all the presants that I have in stock in the house
Have written a list of things to get and make for Xmas presants, cakes, etc
Have wondered if I have a problem as I have colour coded my Xmas to do list!
Have lost my diary.
Back to Bonfire night..... only three of us going to my Lovely IN-Laws and the nearly 16 year old has other plans with her friends.
It is cold
Matty is excited and driving me potty with his silly antics!
Just discovered how to sell books on Amazon.
Thought for the day, can you enter in to the spirit of Bonfire night by watching through firmly CLOSED double glazed doors and windows?


P.S. Note to self, find the dam recorder and take it away from Matty, may be I could mail it to someone!