There is no such thing as bad weather

There’s no such thing as bad weather

by with 14 Comments QuotesUncategorized
We went out for a blast of fresh air this afternoon, and it was seriously a BLAST of fresh air!  We drove down to the seafront and tried to go for a walk on the beach but it was so windy Nerys and I had to turn back.

You know the kind of wind that, when you try and talk into it, it just takes your breath away?  It was like that.  But with sand.  So not ideal for a tired 2 year old.

Instead we headed to the little park across the road from the beach which was a bit more sheltered and the kids had a great time running around.  I was glad I’d wrapped everyone up though, because it was still pretty damn cold out.

And the thing is, it’s easy to fall into the trap of complaining about it.

Where’s Spring?!

It got warmer the other day, why is so cold again now?!

Seriously though, where’s Spring?

My husband gets really annoyed by people complaining that the weather is rubbish.  He really believes that there is no such thing as bad weather, there are just different kinds of weather.  And as long as you’re prepared and dressed appropriately, it’s all good!

While leads me to this quote:

There is no such thing as bad weather 

I have to say I’m inclined to agree.  I mean, sometimes the weather doesn’t quite suit the activities we might have planned for that day, but does that make it bad weather?

Some people will talk about rain as if it’s ‘bad weather’.  Well, I personally love the rain.  I love the sound of it falling, I love the smell of a rainfall after a really hot, dry spell.  I love the cosiness of being inside during a rainstorm.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t relish doing the school-run in the rain, mainly because it makes juggling a child, a toddler and all their stuff that little bit harder.

But then I see Nerys taking her time getting back to the car after we’ve dropped Rhys off,  and there’s a big smile on her face as the rain falls on her hood and adds to the big puddles she’s having a blast jumping in.  And I’m reminded of that quote.  As long as she’s dressed appropriately, it’s all good!

Maybe I’m in the minority here, but I think I would get really bored if I lived in a country that had hot, sunny weather year-round.

I love the changing seasons here.

I love all the weather that comes with that.  I mean, I love hot, sunny days in the middle of summer when we can spend our time out in the parks and beaches.  But by the start of September I’m ready for it to cool off a bit.  I’m ready for the cosiness of Autumn and Winter.  And by the time April rolls round, I’m ready for the sun to come out a bit more again and to be to pack away the hats and gloves.

Hmm, maybe I’m fickle?  Maybe I’m just British, I don’t know!

What do you think?  Do you agree that there’s really no such thing as bad weather?  Or do you dispair at the cold and rain and long to emigrate to somewhere hot?!

 

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Cuddle Fairy
Easy lemon fairy cake recipe lemon curd

Easy lemon fairy cakes (with a lemony surprise in the middle)

by with 8 Comments RecipesUncategorized
I’ve been having a bit of a lemon moment recently.

Normally I’ll reach for something chocolatey when I’m in the mood for something sweet, but lately I’ve been really fancying lemon.  Lemon cheesecake, lemon slices, lemon puff biscuits (these come with the added bonus of reminding me of my Nan!).  Anything goes really, as long as it’s lemon.

So after baking chocolate fairy cakes with the kids yesterday I took advantage of all the ingredients and equipment being out and whipped up a batch of lemon fairy cakes, with a yummy lemony surprise in the middle!

Easy lemon fairy cake recipe lemon curd 

The recipe is a basic fairy cake recipe that has never failed me, but with the addition of some lemon juice in the mixture for a bit of zing and a nice dollop of lemon curd in the middle which adds that little extra lemon-y-ness – yum!

So, here we go, my easy lemon fairy cake recipe, with a tasty lemon curd filling.

What you need:

  • 2 eggs
  • 4oz (110g) self raising flour
  • 4oz (110g) caster sugar
  • 4oz (110g) butter
  • Juice of two lemons
  • Some lemon curd

What you do:

  • Preheat the oven to 180 degrees
  • Pop about 13 cake cases onto a baking tray
  • Cream together the butter and sugar
  • Mix in the eggs and then stir in the flour
  • Stir in the lemon juice
  • Put about a teaspoonful of mixture in each cake case
  • Add about a third of a teaspoon of lemon curd
  • Cover the lemon curd with another teaspoon of cake mixture.
  • Bake the cakes for about 12-15 minutes, until they spring back slightly when you press them
  • Leave to cool and then sprinkle some icing sugar over the top to pretty them up!

Enjoy!

 

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#showyouwerethere

A month of photos (#showyouwerethere)

by with 39 Comments PersonalPhotographyUncategorized

I apologise in advance for this being a photo-heavy post.  There are 31 photos to get through and they all feature me, so I’m sorry if you’re a bit tired of looking at me by the end!

I’ve written a few times about how important I feel it is for us, as parents, to get in enough photos.  We’re so often there, capturing memories for our children, but we seem to forget to include ourselves in those memories.

Sue Bryce says it best, “One day your children will look for photographs of you. What will they have?“

I for one want to make sure that my children will have enough photos of me when they go looking for them.  I want them to find photos of me with them, at all the stages of their lives.  I want them to have those reminders of the person I was when they were little, along with all the hundreds of photos of them!

So for the last 2 years I’ve spent the month of March making an effort to get in a photo every single day.

I’ve mixed it up this year, with some candid shots, some posed shots, some self-portraits, some detail shots.

And here are the results.

#showyouwerethere

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#showyouwerethere

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So, how did my month of daily photos go this year?

It was fun, and I absolutely love the end results.  I love the variety in the photos, and the story they all come together to tell about our lives right now.

But, honestly, it was also a real challenge.

I’m still getting my head around all the reasons why it’s so hard to do it, and to come up with ways to get past those obstacles and in front of the camera.  I’m working on it though.  Because this is important.  It really is, and not just for me.

This is important for all you parents out there. So watch this space; I have several ideas for posts to help us all get in more photos, and would love to get an Instagram community up and running for everyone to get involved with.

I’m already using #showyouwerethere for photos that I’ve taken of me for my children, so please do start using that if you’d like

Cuddle Fairy
Living arrows Swansea photography

Living arrows – 14/52

by with 16 Comments PersonalPhotographyUncategorized
Sometimes I look at Nerys and she seems so old, so grown up already.  I think maybe because she so badly wants to be like her big brother she’s picked up words, and expressions, and habits that make her seem a little older than she is.

But then she has her moments when my baby girl is still there.  Normally when she’s tired and can’t get her words out clearly, and the scribble talk comes back, and her legs can’t keep going and she just wants to be carried.

This photo of her resting her head on her Daddy’s shoulder is a real mix of the two for me.  A tired toddler, just wanting to be held, but who, moments later, was back in the thick of it, wanting to run with her brother.  

​My little/big girl.   

Living arrows Swansea photography

“You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth”

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Living Arrows
I need caffeine. Gilmore girls quote

I need caffeine.

by with 8 Comments QuotesUncategorized
We’ve had a rough couple of nights.

Both the children are poorly (again!), with snotty noses and high temperatures.  Which means that they’re both waking in night.

Needing comforting.  Needing attention.  Needing us.

So we’ve been there.  Playing musical beds to try and get as much sleep as we can.  But it’s not quite enough sleep.  So today’s post is short and sweet, and dedicated to my good friend caffeine who is helping me make it through the day!

I give you a quote from one of my all time favourite shows, Gilmore Girls.

I need caffeine. Gilmore girls quote 

Anyone else have this kind of relationship with caffeine?!  I’m not sure it’s an entirely healthy relationship, but, it is what it is some days!

 

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Cuddle Fairy
Picture

Glorious Gower

by with 14 Comments PersonalPhotographyUncategorized
We got lucky last week, and had some glorious sunshine on one of Steve’s days off from work.  So we packed up a quick picnic and headed out for a little trip to the Gower.

Now, I love Swansea bay, I really do.  The beach is fab for the children to run around on, and I love the view out towards Mumbles.

But there is something extra special about the beaches on Gower.  I’m always filled with a child-like sense of excitement when we drive out and suddenly get that first glimpse of the sea.

For our first trip of the year, we went to Horton, which Steve’s got a real soft spot for.  It tends to be quieter than some of the other beaches, and it is so, so pretty.  And Rhys had an absolute blast exploring the rock pools, and playing pirates.

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With the sun shining, you can almost believe that Spring is actually on its way!

Oh, and now I feel really awful for ever taking any of this for granted!

 

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OneDad3Girls
What Katy Said
Cheerz photo review

A really fun delivery  (Cheerz review)

by with 8 Comments PhotographyReviewsUncategorized

Some days, the postman comes up to our front door and, to be honest, leaves me slightly disappointed when all he delivers is a few flyers and a bank statement.  Although, those days are better than the days I watch him walk right past our house without even dropping a pizza menu through the door!

Some days though, he delivers.  Figuratively and literally.  He’ll bring me a letter from my Mum, or a little something we’ve ordered from Amazon.  Or something really fun, like this parcel from Cheerz that arrived the other day.

I was pretty impressed that it arrived as quickly as it did, as the order was coming from France where they’re based.  And I had so much fun opening it up and discovering everything that was inside.

Cheerz photo review

Cheerz are a print company who offer a great range of products – so much more fun than your standard 7×6 prints!  I spent ages browsing their website before opting for la boîte à photos.

Ordering was really easy.  I used their website and it was as simple as uploading my photos, selecting the ones I wanted to use, adding a little white border, and then done!  They’ve got an app as well, which makes ordering from your phone really simple, and you can get your photos from Facebook etc which makes things even easier.

Inside la boîte a photos was my photos (of course!), some pretty blue string and teeny wooden pegs to hang up the photos, some lovely washi tape and some photo corners.  This gave me so many options and ideas for what to do with my prints!

The first thing I did was use the photo corners and some of the tape to make some thank you cards for Nerys’ birthday presents.  I love how they came out, and hope people will forgive me for taking so long to send them when they see how cute the cards look!

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Next I hung some of the string across our lounge window and used some of the cute little pegs to hang up some of the prints.  The kids loved this and Nerys spent ages pointing out who was in the photos!

My brain is now buzzing with ideas for displaying the rest of my prints (which are such good quality, I’m really impressed with them).  I’m thinking of hanging up a few lines of string on the landing maybe, and pegging up some more photos there so we can look at them on the way to bed each night, and I’m toying with the idea of creating a fun photo wall in the children’s room using the washi tape!

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If you’re like me and have hundreds (ok, thousands) of photos on your computer and are looking for something a little different to do with them, I highly recommend Cheerz.  The print quality is lovely, and the products are a mix of simply fun items like fridge magnets (which I’m seriously considering getting!) and keepsake items like photo albums.

You can find them at www.cheerz.com.

So, tell me, when did you last get any of your photos printed?

 

Disclosure – I was gifted my boîte à photos in exchange for an honest review.  All opinions are my own.
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