Happy 8th Birthday Lily

Well, we've been quite busy with baseball the last couple of weeks, the team play well but unfortunately manage to lose more often than they win, they scored 10 runs in the 1st innings of a game last week but still ended up losing 19 -17 which was very disappointing for everyone.

I finished my gardening course last week although we are meeting again this Thursday to visit a
very well run greenhouse, should be interesting, and I am still going out to Lanark to help out there on Wednesday mornings. On Friday we went down to Destin for our final family floridian frolic however the weather was against us so it was slightly more of a flop than a frolic. That said, we did have fun and no one got sunburnt! Dorothy and her kids came with us so Friday night was spent catching up and drinking wine until around 1130pm with Saturday night being a more subdued affair (I think we all called it a night by 930pm). Paige & Lily found and adopted 2 hermit crabs which they named Bobby & Sally. They were very keen to bring them home but we finally persuaded them to put them back in the sea.

After a long day at the beach being buffeted by the wind and the excitement of the hermit crabs it was time for the kids to wind down with some munchies and the tv.

On Sunday we went out for breakfast and then drove home, Nick went into work for a few hours while I took Tom to a baseball practice. Then it was home for dinner and to let Lily open her presents a day early as we won't have time to do it on Monday because of school, baton and baseball. Lily gets to stay home this evening and have Nik look after her while I take Tom to another late ball game with team photos first. Our Nick will turn up later and then I have to work the concession stand for the evening so don't even get to watch the game. Hopefully we will be home and have Tom in bed by 10pm.

So poor Lily doesn't get much of a birthday celebration, I did manage to buy a cake today, havent had time to bake a birthday snack for her classmates though, that will be a job for tomorrow.

Happy 10th Birthday Tom

Well, I got to relax on Monday then on Tuesday I was at a seminar about Tomatoes all day, Wednesday I gardened, Thursday I was at class all day and Friday I was helping at school for the sports day - this included manning the cotton candy machine (and getting covered in sticky sugary flossy mess) and helping out with kickball. We had 2 nights out watching Tom play baseball (won on Monday , lost on Thursday) and then Nick & I got to go out properly on Friday night to the theatre to see 'Lettice & Lovage'. Then I was back up at Lanark on Saturday helping out with the plant sale at an open weekend until 3pm before rushing back to the ball field to collect Lily from watching Tom practice baseball so I could take her to Catherine's for a sleepover. Finally I got to go home and relax until Sunday.
The day started early with Tom opening presents around 6.30am, he was very pleased with everything he got especially the above Lego game (Pictionary with Lego instead of pencil and notepad) and his Waterworks science set - we have all now seen how a vortex works! After the vortex demo and a quick game of Creationary I was off out to collect Lily and get some shopping so I could create a culinary masterpiece for Tom's birthday. I had mentioned that my memory of turning 10 was having 2 cakes baked for me by my godmother, Ruth, a 1 and a 0 cake, so obviously I had to try and do the same for Tom (without helpful number shaped cake tins). As you can see, Martha Stewart/Nigella Lawson (delete as applicable depending on US/UK knowledge of tv chef personalities) has nothing to worry about.

It may not have looked good but it certainly tasted good and was all eaten up and enjoyed - at least I didn't see anyone gagging on it.

Before eating the cake Nick took the boys to the cinema to see 'how to train your dragon' and then came back with pizza and 6 crazy boys. They all jumped in the pool and then had a water fight (Tim, Deanna & I had filled round about 200 water balloons while the boys had been away at the cinema).

Nick setting some ground rules for the water fight and the water balloon fight in full swing. It's amazing how quickly 6 boys get through 200 water balloons!

Thankfully, it was soon 5pm and I got to wave goodbye to everyone and sit down and relax for a while before starting another (slightly less crazy) week tomorrow.

A Happy Easter

Baseball season arrived with gusto this week and Tom has played 2 games so far, with another 2 scheduled for this week (along with various practices) , unfortunately his team has lost both games but they have been very exciting and close run things.
Stephanie & Iain made it to Montgomery on Friday for the Easter weekend which was great and Lily & Grace were pleased to see each other again. As it was warm and sunny all the children ended up in the pool for the first time this year (Andrew being the eldest (and most sensible ) was first out and didnt go back in again all weekend!) Grace, Tom & Lily however, were in and out all weekend.
After a relaxed Friday afternoon we did a spot of sightseeing on Saturday morning, due to most of Montgomery being shut we managed to play at the playpark by Old Alabama Town before heading off to the Civil Rights Museum.

Then it was quickly home for Tom to grab a sandwich before heading off to baseball practice and then on to the IO Culture Day at Maxwell AFB to sample some cuisine from around the world.

So another busy day meant a nice relaxing evening at home playing games again. All too soon it was Sunday and after an egg hunt, a mini game of cricket, a splash in the pool for Grace, Tom & Lily and a bite of lunch it was time to say goodbye again until July when we shall meet up in St Andrews.

Now it's Monday and I have a busy week ahead of me with gardening stuff every day this week except Friday when I am at school volunteering at the Sports Day.

Mamma Mia

Well, I didn't wilt after my first boot camp and I have been to my 4th session this morning and am still going.
Last Wednesday it finally warmed up for my gardening but now I don't want it to as all the bees and wasps were out, we were working near not one but two swarms of bees and I could feel the adrenalin coursing through my body, and now the snakes are going to start coming out of hiding too, oh and let's not forget about the mosquitoes. So on reflection I think being cold is preferable to the potential for all the stings and bites I may be getting soon.
On Saturday Nick and I had two parties to go to in the evening, both very different from each other, the first one was very demure and genteel and required a nice dress to be worn. We left there around 9pm and I got changed in the car while Nick drove and then we arrived at Christine's for the 70's party...
You may remember Christine, Dorothy and I ordering outfits for this party after going to see Mamma Mia at the theatre. I quite liked being a blonde for the night. We had great fun and everones costumes were brilliant.
After a late night we had a quiet day on Sunday including lunch round at Tim & Deanna's followed by some board games. We played Sorry and Balderdash which is 'Call My Bluff' in board game format, very funny.

Park City, Utah

After dropping Lesley at the airport it was home to tidy up the house and pack for our trip to Utah. Just in case there are any Weather Channel aficionados reading this, I saw Jim Cantorre at Atlanta Airport!
We arrived in Salt Lake City on Saturday afternoon just in time for a snowstorm to start.
Once we were checked in we discovered we had been given an upgrade and had a fantastic apartment that slept 6. We had a huge king size bed, the kids had a bed each, there was a very well equipped kitchen and lounge along with not 1 but 2 bathrooms. What a result.

On Sunday it was time to hit the slopes, Tom & Lily were in ski school and both had Scottish instructors, Nick and I went off and skied greens and blue runs all day before returning to collect the children at 3pm. All tired but happy it was home (to our huge apartment) for showers and then out to dinner and a mooch around the shops. More of the same on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday although I was just skiing for half days as that's about as much as I can take. Nick carried on in the afternoons on his home so was able to do some more challenging stuff, or perhaps just go faster since I wasn't there slowing him down!

Thursday finally arrived and it was family (and final) day on the slopes. It started off badly with Lily following Tom and doing an unintentional jump and hurting her wrist, so there were tears aplenty. Lily and I took a time out while the boys got in an extra run. Then it was Tom's turn, he decided he was up for a black run called Combustion. It was steep and full of moguls so Lily and I took the easy option and met Tom in a crumpled heap at the bottom of the black run with a slightly smashed up face and black eye. Now it was Tom's turn to cry :( After renaming the black Canbust Tom and retrieving his ski's from half way up the slope we sorted him out and went for a well deserved hot chocolate and a rest.

Lily and I finished up at lunchtime and went for a manicure (lily) and pedicure (me) before hitting the shops for a few souvenirs. The boys had better fun with no injuries in the afternoon so everyone was happy. Then it was time to pack up and get ready for returning home on Friday.

Saturday was of course Nick's 40th so after opening presents including the rather natty pasta necklace that Lily insisted he wear all day we went off to Baseball for a practice game before the real games start. Nick also got to watch Wolves play Villa live on tv which was apparently the best present, yes, even better than the pasta necklace!

On returning home we got a call from Sian inviting us round for a bbq at their house to watch the England France rugby match, Olivier & Amelie were also going as it was Olivier's birthday too. So we had a lovely day with friends celebrating Nick's birthday, this was really appreciated by me as I hadn't organised anything and was feeling a little bit guilty.

Yesterday we had a nice relaxing day and I took Tom & Lily to see Alice in Wonderland, which is brilliant, we all really enjoyed it, while Nick stayed at home and caught up with paperwork.

I also signed up for boot camp so was up at 5.15 this morning to be at the YMCA for 5.30am. Still feeling very smug and energised but am expecting to wilt some time after lunch.

Nana's Visit

Lesley arrived safely on Friday evening for a short visit. On Saturday she got to see Tom at his baseball practice and then we had Tim, Deanna and the kids over for the afternoon and some dinner.
Then on Sunday we drove up to Horseshoe Bend National Park which is about an hour and a half drive from here and it tied in nicely with Tom's Alabama history lessons at school as it is the setting for a battle between Gen Andrew Jackson and the Creek Indians. So we spent a pleasant few hours strolling around the countryside and having a picnic. As you can see it was a beautiful day.
Monday came round all too quickly and the children were back to school and Nick was back at work so Lesley & I went for a mooch around the garden centres and bought some flowers for the borders and some replacement ferns for the ones that died. We got them all planted up on Tuesday before all the rain came on Wednesday...and Thursday!
Then this morning we went to see Lily in her school play before heading off to the airport for Lesley to catch her flight home :(

Tuesday Update

Well, I was right, the house viewers didn't show up last Tuesday, so that was very annoying. Then last Wednesday I spent yet another 3 hours outside freezing to death gardening up at Lanark, I think tomorrow should be the last of the cold weather, finally.
I came down with a bit of a cold after that so my 7 mile run on Friday was hard work.
Tom is taking a break from football and decided to try baseball again for the last season before we return to the UK so he had his tryout on Saturday and did very well so after that we went out for lunch before returning home to a warm fire and a relaxing afternoon.
On Sunday the Arnolds came round for lunch along with Sian and the boys, Tom was busy working so missed lunch but arrived around 6pm to collect Sian, only to find us all still sitting at the table...
All of us that is except for Sian who could be found sneakily nibbling lamb in the kitchen...

We finally left the table around 7pm so I guess we had a fun lunch...unfortunately around 9pm Nick started being sick, then Tom joined in around 1130pm..Oh dear, have I given everyone food poisoning?

Thanfully no, after phoning around in the morning I found out it was just Nick & Tom that were poorly (apart from Neil & I suffering from self induced hangovers) so they both stayed home while I played nursemaid (well my equivalent of nursemaid anyway) to them both. I obviously did a good job because they are both recovered and back at school/work today.