Birthday Girls

(image via pinterest)

Cass, welcome to the birthday club. Seems to be ok so far.


It was only this morning that I put two and two together and realised it was Lisa Marie's birthday too. Somehow I'd managed to separate the two in my head.


Happy birthday to you both

Blog Birthday 2

(from pinterest but etsy originally)

I've made it through another year!

My sisters and my "real life" friends have moaned about not having the opportunity to make new friends. How it is hard to meet like minded people and start conversations with them.

Inside I'm screaming at them, start a blog, start a blog. You meet the most amazing people and if you are lucky they become truly wonderful friends.

Rawr

Happy Anniversary my Dinosaur

If you want to relive it all check out my recaps

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Wedding bells

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Wishing the lovely littlewifelittlemama an amazing wedding day.

All the happiness in the world on your wonderful day.

If you don't already go and read littlewifelittlemama's blog and follow on twitter.

Tumble update

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So I promised that I would do an update on #2 after her fall. Shortly after I first posted about her fall, #2 went to the doctor and was signed off work until January. During the last 3 months, #2 has slowly started to recover.

She had train track braces put on to bring her jaw back into alignment ensuring that she could bite correctly. She had root canal on her front three teeth as the nerves in them have died. Her broken teeth have been repaired so that her smile is normal - she isn't completely happy with it but has spent so much time in the dentist's chair that she can't bear to go back yet. 

The stimulus overload took a long time to get past but she was eventually able to go out alone. As she explained when you walk down a busy high-street there is so much going on. Traffic, weather, music from shops, and hundreds of fellow shoppers having hundreds of different conversations. When feeling 'normal' you filter all of this out, you focus on the shop you are trying to reach, sometimes tuning into a particularly interesting conversation or piece of gossip. #2 couldn't filter any of it, she experienced all of it bombarding all of her senses. Slowly she has been more and more able to filter to the point where she can now drive on her on - you need to be able to filter and focus all at the same time when driving. 

Her work were incredibly good as part of their health benefits she was entitled to a counselling service which meant she had someone to talk through her issues and frustrations with - who wasn't one of the family. She began on a very slow staggered return to work, luckily she is able to work from home. She started doing an hour or so at home to spending some time in the office to spending full days at the office. 

She never did receive a report from the police about what happened the day of the accident. Simply a letter that there would be no legal proceedings as a result of the accident. 

When we visited at New Year you could tell that she was on the mend. However a couple of weeks ago we got emailed a photo from #2's boyfriend which was her on a bike ride! The first time she had been back on a bike since her accident and a sure sign that she is fixed!

Family Camper Van

My Mum-in-law gave me this tin of shortbread for Christmas. Only she cut up pictures of my family and stuck them to the windows so I didn't miss my family on Christmas day too much.

We had a fantastic Christmas, hope you all did too. 

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Anna & Bean

Today is the day!

Lovely Anna is marrying lovely Bean

In true Anna style

eeekkkaaabbbllleeesss

(image 1, image 2, image 3)

Tumble

There is nothing like your best friend telling you your blog doesn’t look chipper at the moment to kick start you into activity. Chipper is not exactly a word I would use to describe my mood or my life at present (or my blog - sorry).

Those of you that don’t follow me on twitter (why not?) won’t have heard that just over two weeks ago #2 (middle sister) took a tumble off her bicycle as she was on her way to work. That Monday O and I were driving home from our weekend with his parents. When we got home at about 4pm there was a missed call on my mobile with a voicemail from my Mum. “You’re probably still driving but give me a call.” There was no “asap” no “immediately” but from her tone of voice, I knew there was something wrong. I phoned and heard that #2 had come off her bike, no one is sure what happened but she was in hospital with cuts and bruises, about seven stitches to her lip, a broken cheekbone and four smashed teeth. Her CT scan was all clear and they were expecting to release her that evening – they kept her in. Her boyfriend and #1 (eldest sister) had been with her for the day and a wee while later I spoke with #1 to hear her side of the story. The theory is that #2 had swerved to avoid something (not sure what) and had hit the back of a van. She was taken to hospital on a full trauma call (team of doctors, strapped to the board, head in brace – have watched too many episodes of ER). However by the time her boyfriend got to the hospital (he works outside London) and by the time #1 got to the hospital (the one day a week she car shares) the police had left. No one could tell them what had happened. #2 cannot remember and is missing about 3 hours of the morning – she can remember cycling along and then being in the hospital and her boyfriend arriving, but none of the activity at the scene, none of the ambulance journey and nothing in the trauma room. Although she was apparently alert and conscious the entire time meaning, she must have answered all their questions correctly even if she cannot remember any of those conversations.

She will eventually receive a copy of the police incident report and have to deal with the repercussions if she was at fault and caused the accident – I had thought that if the only person she has hurt is herself then where is the blame to assign? However, if she has caused damage to another vehicle she will need to pay. Equally if she is not at fault, she is currently off work unpaid and has new teeth to buy (she has just started a new job and is not currently eligible for sick pay).

I was busy with work last week and whilst I wanted to see her, I didn’t really understand how I could help other than look at her and be there (plus she had a house full already) – I didn’t really understand her injuries at that point. Then I caught a cold and was told to stay away. The last thing she needed was a cold, plus she was under strict doctor’s orders not to blow her nose or she could put her cheekbone out of alignment. Feeling much better and a lot less contagious on Friday morning I boarded the plane to London, I was spending the weekend as my parent’s were going home to have a break and her boyfriend was flying to New York to run the marathon – which he did in 3 hrs 42 mins 58 secs – uhmazing!

I did not realise or I would have been there sooner.

(although not sure how I’d have dealt with the cold).

Externally she looks ok, her cuts and bruises had more or less gone, quite a few of the stitches in her lip came out while I was there and the swelling was going down. Her teeth still look terrible but it will take time for her jaw to stop aching (think she hit the ground, jaw first, with quite a clatter) she is fed up of mashed potatoes.

What I had not appreciated and had not been fully explained to me (trying not to worry me) is that she is constantly exhausted – I thought this was because of the bruises and the aching but actually, her brain is just tired, it took a big jolt.
She struggles to cope with more than one conversation at a time and found my parents and me chatting around her exhausting because she could not follow the numerous threads. She hasn’t managed to watch the TV although we did try watching Strictly Come Dancing – the movement of the screen, the bright lights and the noise made her incredibly tense, she frowned at the TV and tried to back away into the sofa. She struggles to use the computer for long periods because the flickering screen makes her head hurt. She doesn’t like going into the kitchen because the fridge is noisy, as is the dishwasher and washing machine and the clatter of the dishes. She is a wreck whenever she leaves the house, being in cars is extremely scary and even walking along the pavement because she feels everything is so unpredictable. We did go out for some walks and she is trying to go out more as she feels rather trapped inside – but it is taking small steps and she is a quivering wreck if a cyclist passes her.

Mum has been with her practically since it happened, leaving this weekend to have a break and only because she knew I was there – she is coming back on Thursday. Thankfully, Mum is a clinical psychologist with forty years experience so she has seen many, many victims of road traffic accidents and is putting all her skills to good use trying to build up #2’s confidence.

Having to leave her yesterday was just heart breaking as it was the first time she had been left alone since the accident, it was just for a couple of hours as her friend came in to make her food but she was in floods of tears. Trying hard to be strong but not really managing it. She is also feeling guilty that she cannot just snap out of it and get on with stuff.

It is obviously going to take time for her to recover and we will need to see whether she gets any memories back. Being the baby sister I am not used to having to be the strong one – not sure I like it much. Looking forward to having her fit and well again, no matter how long that might take.

This morning

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*Sound of O’s alarm buzzing*
O: *grunt*
*Pause*
O: huh?
Me: *turns over attempts to get head inside pillow*
O: huh? Am I supposed to be getting up at 5:51?
Me: huh? I don’t think so.
O: then why does the alarm think I should?
Me: I don’t care switch it off and go back to sleep.
*5:56 sound of O’s alarm buzzing*
O: huh?
Me: *SIGH*

Dreams of lace

(image 1, image 2, image 3, image 4)

The amazing, fantastic, wonderful Rebecca is getting married today. I can't put into words how excited I am for her and James.

Wishing you both a day and future full of happiness

Enjoy your honeymoon but come back quick and tell me all about it. 

I'm going to miss you!

Details: Internet friends are amazing

Not only did Rebecca from Daydreams in Lace make me this amazing hair slide

She also gave me a hanky embroidered with my name

and allowed me to keep hold of her beautiful pearl necklace while I hummed and hawed for MONTHS about what jewellery to wear and then I didn't even wear it!

(photo by Rebecca I presume

hope you don't mind me posting it)

Rebecca has less than a month to go until her wedding. I'm so excited for her and James and seeing all their details come together. I just wish I was able to repay her kindness.


scheduled post

Blog Birthday

(Image from here)

Oh my goodness! I can't believe I've kept this blog going for a whole year.

and people actually read it

Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you

I really couldn't have done it without you all

I'm planning on sticking around but it might take me a moment or so to work out which direction to go next.

after I've finished with the recaps of course

Wellies!!!!!!!!

Wellies and her boy are getting married today. I'm so excited for them!

(photo credits 1. Lillian and Leonard 2. Wellies and Vogue 3. Here via here 4. Here via here)

A year ago

A year ago today my boy wrote magical words in the sand

Today we have been married for eight days

*image by me

7 year stint

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This day 7 years ago a shy girl and a very shy boy went shopping for records – yes it was only 7 years ago, O had found an old record player and wanted something to play on it. I can’t actually remember whether we bought any records. I do remember he bought me sandwich for my lunch which we went back to his student room to eat. In that freezing cold room a shy girl and a very shy boy shared their first kiss.

7 years later I’m in London on a course for work – boo.

Feb 14th

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We don’t celebrate Valentine’s Day, we never have done. I’m glad I’m not the only one, blog land is full of love but it is for real people not plastic hearts. There are those that do embrace Valentine's and I'm happy for you if it works.

I think our reluctance towards Valentine's might have something to do with the fact that by the time our first Valentine’s came round we had been together for almost a year and the romance was already over (how jaded do I sound). Seriously we are just not a very romantic couple. We went to see the Magdalene Sisters for our first official date! There is nothing like a nun film to ruin the romance in any relationship. We express our love for each other in ways that aren’t red! Or chocolate – although O absolutely adores chocolate and would probably shove me out the way to eat them all first.

I hope you have a lovely time with your special someone whether it is today or any other day of the year that you decide to chose to celebrate your love.

Love Stories - My Grandparents

(From here via We heart it)

One of my biggest regrets is not paying enough attention to the stories my grandparents’ told. However there are some special things I do remember which make me smile.

For my big* Nana and Granddad (my Dad's parents) their fourth date was actually their wedding day (we'll be getting married on what would have been their wedding anniversary). They met during the war and somehow managed to keep their fledgling romance going while my Granddad was deployed on service, only seeing each other while my Granddad was on leave. I can’t imagine marrying someone I’d only met three times previously.

With my little* Nana and Granddad (Mum’s parents) my favourite story was my Granddad’s chat up line the first time they met (so typical of him, he was a huge flirt). My Granddad was walking his Alsatian, Flash, in the nearby park, he walked past my Nana (a woman he’d never met previously) and Flash barked and went to sniff at my Nana. My Granddad pulled the dog back saying “Down Flash you’ve already had your breakfast”. He went home and told his Mum that he’d met the girl he was going to marry. From that brief encounter he knew – must have been love at first sight.

*we distinguished between our grandparents by height.

Love in the modern era

O and I have been together for 6 ½ years and in that time we have seen some pretty big leaps in technological advancements. I went to University 10 years ago and took with me my very first mobile phone – which I mainly used for phone calls to my parents. I don’t think I sent my first email until I was at University either.
O and I would not have got together without the assistance of text messages. I got horribly drunk and made a fool of myself, using this as an excuse, I got O’s number from a mutual friend and text an apology which sparked a text conversation which led to a date and the rest as they say is history. If we had got it together a year later we would have probably communicated via Bebo before graduating to Facebook and then Twitter.

When we’d only been together for 5 months I left him with his studies and I spent two months travelling across Canada. We communicated and kept our relationship going through email and the occasional text, we literally didn’t physically speak for two months. When we started going out we didn’t talk on the phone very often at all. O still is scared of the phone – he hates talking to people he doesn’t know very well on the phone. He says it is because he can’t see their facial expressions so never know what they are really thinking.

I didn’t date much in high school and I was thinking the other day how difficult it used to be to talk to boys! Because you literally had to ‘talk’ to them, you couldn’t just text, poke or tweet them. You had to endure the awkward pauses in conversation where you desperately tried to come up with something witty. It took O and I a long time to get together and without text messages it would have probably taken much longer. What would we have done while I was in Canada?

Don’t get me wrong I love receiving letters through the mail (especially those that aren’t from the bank). I’ve still got all the letters that my family sent me during my first year at University. But now life is all about text messages, emails and for me blog posting. I still send O at least 2 texts a day and if he worked at a computer it would be a lot more emails. It is the instant thoughts that I want to tell him about and don’t have the patience to wait until I get home (plus I forget). Life is about instant communication, but also about thought through communication, you can take your time when responding to an email or text to make sure you really are letting your wit and brilliance shine through. Rather than in telephone conversations with boys where you just had to go with the first thing that came into your head. I’m glad I don’t have to worry about these things anymore.

Cuddles

I love cuddles

I love cuddles from O where I snuggle into his neck and breathe him in. I love when he squeezes me tight and I feel protected from everything.

I love cuddles

I love cuddles from my Mum. I listen to her heart beat - it still has the power to soothe me like when I was a baby.

I love cuddles

My Dad doesn't do cuddles. He does short sweet hugs a quick squeeze that says I love you daughter.

(image from here via here)

A good cry

(image from here via wehearit)

I've had a bad day, last night I went and upgraded my mobile phone contract with a deal which sounded too good to be true - and guess what it was!
I couldn't get to sleep. O isn't here which always disrupts my sleep. I couldn't stop beating myself up for being so stupid - I should probably clarify that it was mainly my fault with some clever wording from the salesman thrown in.
I was outside the shop at 8:30 this morning (I discovered they didn't open until 10) trying to cancel - I can't

I came home from work to a dark empty house, I phoned my Mum who poured unconditional love on me and I started to cry.

Yes I cried because I got conned by a mobile phone sales man! (I think there might be some hormones going on in there.)

I cried for my own stupidity, because I thought I was cleverer than that.

But you know what I feel SO much better now - you can not beat a good cry, I would thoroughly recommend it. I'm off to get some food and run myself a bath.