9 years of matrimony and it’s time for a change
9 years ago yesterday Mr Popple and I tied the knot…dah dah dah dah dah dah and all that. It was one of the best days of my life. I said at the time and I maintain to this day that to say it was the best day of my life would signal that there were no better days or days of equal merit to come and then what would be the point?
Anyway, you could be forgiven for thinking that the ‘change’ I am referring to in the blog post title may be a change of husband and let’s be honest girls, we’ve all had days where that has been a consideration but not today. He’s a keeper for now and I say that despite the cheap, (to his own admission he only spent a few quid) copper coloured candle holder that I was presented with yesterday morning. Apparently my dear husband had taken the trouble to consult Wikipedia on what 9 years meant in terms of gifts and for the UK, it said copper. There is a reason we have a ‘no presents and a card will do’ arrangement when it comes to anniversaries. My own research tells me that 9 years is either pottery (I wouldn’t have minded a pottery course – it might have made a good blog post), willow (perhaps a willow basket to tidy our bathroom goods) or leather (a new handbag of course). For my part, I booked a babysitter and a table at our local Indian restaurant Rajmoni’s and yes, it is a tenuous link but we did eat on crockery. So place your votes, who did better?
Wedding Anniversary Dinner
In anticipation of 10 years next year (and I think we should definitely have a year off our no presents policy), I have done a little research of my own. Whilst technically 10 years equates to tin/aluminium, more indepth research has revealed that a modern gift is diamond jewellery – http://mistupid.com/months/anniversary.htm – dearest, take note!
Moving onto the ‘change’. It is time for a mini-makeover! I have been a stay-at-home-Mum for over 2 years now and I think this has definitely taken a toll on my appearance. After 13 months, I am finally back to my pre-pregnancy weight and with my next birthday that will officially make me a mid-30 something just around the corner, it’s time to sort my hair, makeup and wardrobe without spending a fortune! Ideas please! My mini makeover did start a little unexpectedly last weekend when on the spur of the moment I stopped at one of those threading stalls in the middle of a shopping mall. I had tried to persuade my husband that he could take the children and go buy our lunch but no, he insisted on staying and watching the torture for himself. If threading lasted as long as labour, it would definitely win in the pain stakes. Now to find myself a new brand of make up (and someone to show me what to do), a hairdresser that knows how to cut curly hair into an easily maintainable down style (this Mum of two has no time for regular GHD sessions) and maybe a personal shopper. Watch out for future posts on this topic in the coming weeks…
‘I Did It Mummy’ fundraising for BIBS – https://www.justgiving.com/IDidItMummy
I survived the summer holidays!
This is definitely not a phrase I would ever have uttered as a child but it’s amazing how much your perspective of this time changes when you become a parent or more to the point a stay-at-home Mum. The angst that I would have felt as a child starting a new term of school, has been replaced by the delight of the thought of having a little routine back in my life. Don’t get me wrong, I have enjoyed spending more time with both children, honest! We have had a very full and active six weeks, venturing between play dates, planned activities and two weeks of holiday time with ‘Daddy’ but I am more than ready for tomorrow – Ava is back at pre-school and I for one can’t wait! Ava for her part has a new pair of red shoes (one more year until she’ll be forced to have a pair of regulation black shoes), some new Princess Peppa wellie boots and some lovely memories of the summer to take back with her. By midday, I will no doubt miss the constant narrative that only a preschooler can provide.
At the beginning of the summer holidays I set myself a challenge to take at least one photograph of the children a day to capture the essence of what we were doing so I have put together a little montage of our summer holidays which includes a few firsts from the children. Ava has been to cookery class and gymnastics for the first time and has finally learnt how to ride her scooter. She has also gone down a fireman pole on her own and an enclosed slide (she’s always been afraid of the ‘dark’ slides). The achievement she is probably most proud of and is keen to show off at any opportunity, even if it’s in the middle of a supermarket, is being able to hop on one foot. Benjamin has dipped his feet in the sea for the first time, attended his first music and dance class and has acquired a few more teeth (and don’t we know it!). He can also now shake his head to indicate his displeasure at being served the wrong food or being given the wrong toy to play with. I’m sure saying the actual word ‘no’ will not be far behind.
On reflection I don’t remember my summer holidays being this fun. If only I were still the child rather than the one with the responsibility!
Summer Holidays Montage
‘I Did It Mummy’ fundraising for BIBS – https://www.justgiving.com/IDidItMummy
Where’s my sticker?
I have always visited the dentist with a certain amount of trepidation and I think with good reason. My family dentist when I was 12 put me through the torture of having four teeth extracted where I felt every tug and pull, before being left with four gaping holes oozing with blood. A few years later when I needed my first filling, my dentist claimed that the procedure would be so short that it was not worth taking the time to administer the local anaesthetic and yes she did manage to hit my nerve with the drill. And don’t even get me started on the experience of having my wisdom teeth removed, although at least I was knocked out for this procedure.
My dentist that I had been seeing for the last 11 years since moving to Reading was a man of few words. He would always say ‘any problems?’. I would say ‘no’ and he would say ‘see you in a year’. This arrangement worked fine for me but I was beginning to suspect that perhaps he wasn’t being as diligent as he should and that a more family orientated dentist was required. Cue a search for some recommendations on my favourite Facebook page ‘Wokingham Gossip Girls’.
We went on mass to our first visit at the new dentist and were welcomed into one of their dental suites, decked out with a comfy leather sofa and television. I was told the television could cater for the younger audience, with cbeebies being available for longer appointments. Being our first visit to a new dentist, Andy and I had to have X-rays done and with one particularly inquisitive 3 year old watching every move, we had to put on our poker faces as we tried not to gag on the sharp plates that were inserted into our mouths. Final assessments in and I was told I had an impacted tooth that had started to decay and would require a FILLING.
The word ‘FILLING’ has always ‘filled me’ with dread (see what I did there…moving on swiftly…note to self not to try stand up comedy). On the day of my appointment, I was fortunate to be able to leave the kids at home so no overexciteable Mr Tumble in the background to distract me. Those of you with pre-schoolers will know exactly who I’m talking about and if you know who I’m talking about but don’t have children, then seriously I think you need to talk to someone! When I walked into the dental suite, I immediately informed my dentist that I was a little nervous and would be requiring the pretty filling today (that’s the one that costs £150 rather than the free metal one and presumably is how an NHS dentist affords to furnish their dental suites). I told him at full speed about my previous dental history and he was quick to reassure me. The injection for the anaesthetic would be a little uncomfortable and it was (nothing compared to having an epidural administered between contractions) but to my pleasant surprise the rest was well, painless and I actually lay back, closed my eyes, thought of England (oh wait that was a different experience) but I did lay back, close my eyes and listen to some soothing music and within 20 minutes, the procedure was done. I did it Mummy, I braved the dentist! Now where’s my sticker?
‘I Did It Mummy’ fundraising for BIBS – https://www.justgiving.com/IDidItMummy
The reveal
It would seem that my little cheeky footnote on my post entitled ‘Does artistic talent run in the family?’ has done the trick and thanks to the generosity of family and friends, my fundraising pot for ‘Babies in Buscot Support’ now stands at £90, which has exceeded the £75 target I set for revealing my final painting.
Anyway for those of you that have been waiting to see the final painting, here it is, ta-da:
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- Photograph v Painting
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- The Artist
Please note, the matching attire was totally unintentional and can only be explained by the fact that I was told to wear something old that I didn’t mind getting a little paint on!
I am now on the hunt for inspiration for more new things to try out – any ideas?
I am of course hoping to raise a little more than £90, so if you haven’t yet had a chance to click on the link, here it is again! https://www.justgiving.com/IDidItMummy I might add that I have now had 796 page views on this blog which I’m pretty impressed with…imagine if this were translated into donations for BIBS…
Does artistic talent run in the family?
If you ask my primary or even secondary school art teachers whether artistic talent runs in the family, then the answer is a firm no. I should probably say for those readers that don’t know, my mother is a professional artist and in her opinion I have always showed some promise but then when does a mother, who is usually your greatest fan ever say you can’t do something? Actually mine has. She made it quite clear from an early age (as did many others) that I couldn’t sing (I still mime when singing hymns at church weddings), dance (does swaying side to side count as a dance move?) or play a musical instrument (the flute saga when I was nine is one that will go down in family history), so maybe, just maybe there is a hidden talent.
It has taken me 33 years and two children later to decide to explore whether any talent exists and perhaps my desire to find out was more driven by my need to have some ‘me time’ and escape the Stay-at-home-Mum tag but whatever the reason, the ‘Living Social’ deal for a 5 hour art workshop popped into my inbox and I booked it.
I was relieved to discover that I could paint whatever I wanted to. I was never one to create something brilliant from a bowl of fruit and I’m not sure how I would fair with a nude model, even if it were David Beckham or George Clooney. So armed with my photograph of Half Dome at Yosemite (dating back to my 2007 road trip we took with my brother and his girlfriend) and my roll of paper towel (this is the equivalent of taking an apple in for your favourite teacher at art class, in that you automatically score bonus points for not using more of her supplies!), I embarked on my little adventure.
First step was to find the studio. I was assured there would be a balloon outside to point me in the right direction but hey this wasn’t a children’s birthday party and there was no balloon. I got the right building but there was clearly no health and safety assessment carried out in this house. I proceeded to open the wrong door and almost tripped down a flight of stairs into the basement. Thankfully nobody noticed my error and I entered the studio (cue picture).
My workspace
The art teacher began by saying ‘anyone can paint and at the end of 5 hours you will have something brilliant’. Those that know me well, will know that I’m not the world’s greatest optimist so approached this task with my usually degree of pessimistic optimism in the hope that maybe I would produce something brilliant but wouldn’t be too disappointed if I didn’t. It turns out I haven’t changed that much since my student/work days – I still ask a ridiculous amount of questions acting as a thorn in the side of many a great teacher/manager. This teacher certainly nailed my character from the start and within about half an hour was encouraging me to throw caution to the wind and just paint. Three hours in and I had untensed my shoulders a little – afterall this was supposed to be fun. After 5 hours I could hardly call myself an expert but I am now familiar with blending and stippling as two techniques that I can use when painting with acrylics and I now know why ‘magic’ water, a hair dryer and masking tape are essential tools in the toolbox of an acrylic artist.
Skyline
Mountains
I’m not sure exactly what Andy was expecting when I got home and he isn’t one for dishing out the compliments in a situation like this but his first words were ‘wow, did you just stick the picture on the canvas?’. It has to be said I’m pretty chuffed with my achievement and much like when I first got my engagement ring on my finger, I spent the next few hours just looking at my painting and admiring it.
You may have noticed that the final artwork is missing from this post but I thought I would be a little cheeky! Part of my reason for writing this blog is to raise some money for BIBS so when I have got to £75 in donations, I’ll add a new post with the final painting! Here’s the link if you’d like to donate to this worthy cause – https://www.justgiving.com/IDidItMummy
I Did It Mummy 