Recipe for a successful Tuesday

Listen carefully...

When it's a random Tuesday and you don't really have any plans, here is what to do.

1). Pick up one friend.

2). Take said friend to the home of another friend.

3). Gently force one of the friends to try sushi for the first time. 

It might be a bit scary at first, but its worth it. I promise.

4). While you wait for other friends to arrive, make banana bread.

5). Whilst the banana bread is cooking, dress up one of your friends in a snuggie.

You have to get them to put it on backwards, because then it looks like they're rocking a cloak.

Harry Potter stylee.

6). Get another friend to pretend to be Dobby the house elf (you can choose a different elf if you'd prefer) and take a photo.

 7). Once you have the photo, send the boys in the group to Asda to get supplies.

Whilst they're gone, make and eat sandwiches.

I would personally recommend cheese salad with hummus on brown bread.

8). Whilst your still waiting for the boys to get back, play the piano and have some sort of group sing-a-long.

 9). When the boys get back, jump into the hot tub and eat at least three ice lollies each.

One Vimto lolly, one Refresher lolly and one vanilla/toffee cone.

10). During your time in the hot tub encourage the entire group to speak in 'special' voices and use lots of hand gestures.

11). When it's time to go make sure that you have lots of good songs to play while you drive home.

Sing quite loudly to said songs throughout the journey.

12). Pick up your hubs from work/

call in at Costco/

drop one friend off at her house/

go home and make tomato risotto.

 13). Go to the driving range with your hubs.

13b). Take lots of photos of him.

14). Go home and sleep for at least eight hours.

PERFECT DAY.

Birthday part 2

So my actual birthday was on Saturday. 

Ross and my Mom & Pops did a pretty excellent job of spoiling me the entire day.

Seriously, I was so, so spoilt. 

I don't think that I've ever had so many cards, presents, balloons, cakes, birthday wishes or flowers on any other birthday. 

Thank you to all involved.

All of these pictures are ones taken on my birthday.

Only about half of them are birthday related, but they were all taken using one of my birthday presents.

Ross bought me a new lens for my camera, which I absolutely lurve.

Anyway, I didn't want to overload you with pictures, but enjoy...

The birth of my apparent adulthood

When it's your birthday, there's a rule that you get to do whatever you want. 

Well, it was my birthday this last weekend, so I did. 

My birthday was actually on Saturday, but the celebrations started on Friday.

Just because I've used the word celebration, don't conjure up some kind of grand image.

I'm not one for going out and partying, so doing what I want basically involved my very best friends, pizza,  posh drinks, making lemonade, skittles and playing silly games. 

Please observe.

I read somewhere once that birthdays are natures way of telling us to eat more cake. 

Well, I don't love cake that much, so I had a birthday pizza.

A Costco pizza naturally.

These last two photos are kind of special.

Special as in precious because they're of me and my very best friends

 and special as in...special.

PYO

Let me tell you a little something about me and Chloe.

Chloe and I?

Me and Chloe?

Whatevs.

Me & Chlo lived together in our first year as students in Leeds.

Actually, we were the very first ones to move into our student house.

We'd never met one another before and we didn't really know each other, but on that first night away from our families, in our own house, we both ended up sleeping in my room.

We said that it was because we'd just painted Chlo's room and the paint fumes were still really strong, but really we were both just a little bit scared.

So on the first day that we met one another, 

we ended up both going to sleep in my bed that very same night.

That first day of knowing one another has pretty much set the tone for our entire friendship.

Completely comfortable.

Which is why on days when I have a lot of free time, like today, 

I text Chlo, jump in the car and go and do something a bit random.

Like strawberry picking. 

I don't know if the strawberries were actually nicer strawberries, 

or if there's just some psychological stigma attached to picking your own that makes them taste better, 

but honestly, the strawberries I picked today were the nicest strawberries I've ever eaten. 

Ever.

You'll have to take my word for it.

Plus, I got an entire punnet for less than two quid, 

which actually makes the whole situation even sweeter.

Anyway, picking strawberries today with Chlo was the bomb.

Pretty much the perfect way to spend a mildly sunny/mildly cloudy/mildly rainy afternoon.

We might even go again on Friday.

Would that be too soon?

There's a snake in my boot

When I don't know what to write about, I take a look through my photo albums until something jumps out at me.

Well, it doesn't literally jump out, but.....

Anyway, today is such a day, which is way I'm going to write about a snake.

I vaguely remember having a snake draped around my shoulders when I was just a wee one. 

Maybe on holiday or in a pet shop.

I don't remember.

Actually, when I really think about it I'm not sure if either of those things ever happened.

It might be a made up memory.

Or maybe a dream that I had a very long time ago that I've confused as a memory.

Anyways, so seeing as I don't really remember it, 

when I was asked last week if I'd ever touched a snake, I said errrrm no.

Then I went right ahead and touched one.

It was...unexpected.

It was warm and not at all slimey or slippery.

Like I said, unexpected.

At least that's one thing I can tick off my bucket list now.

That was a lie.

I don't even have a bucket list.

And even if I did I don't think touching a snake would be on there.

Peel offs

Sometimes we like to do face masks.

Well, let me be clear about this.

 I like to do face masks and so I force Ross to do one with me.

Even though I have to force him a little bit, once he has one on, he takes it very seriously.

He talks through his teeth and if you make him laugh he gets very, very cross.

On a slight side note, when it's drying, don't you think that he looks like a mannequin?

Also, don't you think that our friend Jamie looks like Vin Diesel?

On a completely unrelated side note, it's my birthday this week.

Saturday, if you were wondering.

♥

I'm free(eeeeeeee)

This morning, I didn't wake up thinking about my lesson plans, 

or the resources that I need to make, 

or the photocopying that I need to do, 

or the lunch that I need to quickly make before I have to leave for school, 

or the googley eyes that I need to buy for my art lessons, 

or if the interactive whiteboard would be my friend today and do everything that I wanted to it, 

or any other thing relating to placement, 

or university, 

or generally any kind of work.

No, this morning I woke up at half past eight instead of half past six 

and probably didn't think of anything for a good thirty seconds.

It was glorious.

Today, even though today is a Saturday, marks the official start of my summer break.

REJOICE.

I'm serious, rejoice.

So after my thirty seconds of no thinking, 

just breathing, 

I decided that I wanted to have a sausage sandwich for breakfast.

Then I started thinking about which book I wanted to start reading next, 

the places I want to go to and things that I want to photograph to try and teach myself how to be a better photo taker. 

(I use photo taker instead of photographer, because photographer makes me sound like a professional. 

Which, I am quite clearly not.)

I thought of the little place in Tong that I want to go to that sells the beautiful ice cream, 

and the number of times that I can go now that I'm free(eeeeee).

I thought about all the little trips I can take with the Mister, 

and all of the other little trips I can take with my friends whilst the Mister is at work.

I thought about all of the writing that I can do, 

and then in my head I started to sing "FREEDOM!"

You know, the George Michael song.

Summer break, welcome to my life.

I think your going to be good to me.

Balls

Tonight I'm busy getting ready for my lessons tomorrow.

And then when I'm done getting busy, I'm going to see X-men.

Also, before I was getting busy, I was procrastinating on youtube, and reminded myself how much love this Sony advert.

It makes me happy and boggles my mind.

In equal measure probably.

Enjoy.

Lemon-aid

When I was a little chiddler, my Mom didn't really let me watch lots and lots of TV.

But it must have been enough for me to one day conjure up the idea that I wanted to sell lemonade from a little stall out on my street. 

I'm blaming this idea on watching TV, specifically American TV, because selling lemonade is something that a little English girl would have never thought of all by herself.

So yeah, one day I hauled my red plastic table out onto the driveway with my lemonade sign and set up shop.

Just for your mental picture, when I say that I was on the driveway, I mean that I was stood on the driveway but behind a closed gate because my Momma wouldn't let me go out onto the street by myself.

Also, for your mental picture, incase your imagining some big icy glass jug of traditional lemonade with real lemons in it and everything, all I had was a 2 litre bottle of fizzy lemonade from the shop.

I must have looked like a right idiot.

Me stood behind a closed gate with a bottle of lemonade asking every-single-person-that-passed if they wanted to buy a glass of lemonade off me.

Someone did though. 

Some kind and/or strange soul bought a glass of lemonade off me.

For 50p.

What a joke!

I don't know why I remembered this today, but when I did I laughed out loud and decided to share.

I think I must have been quite a peculiar child.

If this little memoir wasn't enough, this picture surely proves it.

Simples

Well, my last post was all about me moaning/complaining/being a professional negative Nancy.

Well, today was a much better day, so combat all of the negative energy I put out into the world, I'm going to counterbalance it with a little list of simple happys.

1. Blueberries that are perfectly chilled from the fridge.

2. Coming home from school today with five kiddie-made cards that all said "Mrs Kerr I love you." 

Or variations of that at least. 

One said I really like you and one said I like your hair. 

For me, that basically equates to love.

3. Walking around the park in the cool evening sun with lots of lovely sisters.

4. Chip shop chips with lots of vinegar.

5. Opening my lunch box at school and seeing that Ross has individually wrapped each half of my sandwich in more tin foil than I would ever think was necessary.

6. Having got the car back a day earlier than we first thought.

7. Tron. Ross is watching this film & LOVING it.

8. Almost being half way through my placement.

9. Wearing a dress and lipstick and feeling like a real lady.

10. The orchid that Ross bought for me.

Although, he says that the orchid is a representation of my love for him, so I feel kinda pressured not to let it die....

The one where I feel like a chick flick stereotype

I felt like I was living in a scene from a chick flick today.

I was basically the epitome of the girl-having-a-bad-day stereotype.

Our car broke down on my way to placement today.

So I had to call up and tell them that I wouldn't be in today. 

And it was only my second day.

So I had to turn round and very, very slowly try to make my way home.

Well, I made it home, but once I got back, I realised I needed to have the car towed to a garage.

So, I eventually made that happen and dropped the car off at the mechanics.

The car won't be ready until Thursday evening at least.

Great.

So then I walked the two miles home whilst playing a montage of all the things that had gone wrong today in my head.

Let me share a small selection of some of my moaning...

I complained to myself about the drizzle as I was walking, the stupid sandals that I was wearing, the £300 we'll have to pay to fix the car, how inconveniently timed this all was, how early I'll have to get up tomorrow to get a train or bus to my placement school in Dewsbury, how much I don't want to have to make up the day that I've missed in school today, what a lame excuse it is to say "oh sorry, I can't come in today, my car's broken" and other general negative, moan-y, whiney thoughts.

Then I got home, changed into my pjs, buried myself under my duvet and ate far too much ice cream.

Because that's what happens in girly films isn't it?

They have a bad day, where everything little thing goes wrong, then they come home and eat ice cream.

The only thing that could have possibly made it feel like I was living in a film even more, would have been if on my way home, I'd crossed a road, got the heel of my shoe stuck in some kind of grate whilst a massive lorry is hurtling towards me, only to be saved at the very last possible second by Matthew McConaughey or Gerard Butler.

Actually, that might have made my day significantly better. 

Every teardrop is a waterfall

Me & Ross aren't native Leeds folk. 

I think they call those kinds of people Loiners.

You know, like Mancunian, Scouser and Brummie.

The Leeds version is Loiner.

Or so google tells me.

Anyway, I'm from Sheffield and Ross is from Cleethorpes, so when we moved here we had to somehow learn to navigate our way around. 

I came to Leeds as a student.

So I did it by memorising where all my friends lived and then trying to figure out everything in between.

Because of Ross' job he learnt to navigate Leeds by churches, cemeteries and crematoria. 

So today when we didn't know how to spend our Saturday, we got into the car and just drove.

With Ross driving, we naturally ended up in a graveyard.

It might seem like a very morbid way to spend a mildly sunny Saturday morning/afternoon, but I loved it.

I loved seeing all the neat, well-kept graves that had flowers planted all around them.

I loved reading all of the heart felt words that were inscribed onto the stones as eternal dedications of how their loved ones felt about them. All of the 'treasured memories', 'eternal loves' and 'beloveds' made me a little bit weepy.

I loved seeing some of the crazy old-school graves that have massive angels stood on top of them. Granted, some of the them gave me the creeps. Especially this woman in the next photo, with her freaky glazed over eyes. But most of them were beautiful.

I loved seeing all of the white graves of the brave men that had died during the war. I love that they had written on them their regiment and rank. Just that little bit of extra information made it feel so much more personal.

I loved seeing the small white graves that were in the shape of teddybears, but the thought of what they marked broke my heart. I actually shed a little tear as we walked past a man, woman and little girl tending to the grave of two twin boys that had been born asleep. My mind and heart can't comprehend such love and loss.

And finally, I loved this... "Is life a dash between two dates? I think not."

I think not.

One Day

Midnight of last night saw me quietly crying into the darkness.

Just a few sneaky tears that silently rolled down my face whilst I laid in bed trying to get to sleep.

Nothing too dramatic.

And I was only crying because I'd just finished the book that I was reading.

It's called 'One Day'.

You've probably heard of it.

I always hate getting to the end of a book.

Most of the time I just want the stories to carry on forever.

So when I get to the end I always take a bit of a dive into melancholy.

And it didn't help that this book didn't have the happy ending that I'd really been hoping for.

Not really anyway.

So, as I laid quietly crying and listening to the stuffy breathing of Ross as he laid next to me, deeply asleep, I reached out for his hand, woke him up a little bit and made him make me a promise.

A promise that realistically he can never keep and one that he probably has no recollection of even making this morning, because he was pretty out of it, but nonetheless a promise was made.

And then I let him roll over and go back to sleep, whilst still lightly clutching his hand.

Then melancholy took a swift upturn to deep gratitude.

Gratitude for being alive, for having Ross, for us both being healthy, for our life circumstances and our future prospects and for just generally being happy with how things are going. 

I'd had the book One Day recommended to me by quite a few different people.

Three at least.

So I had high expectations for it.

To be honest, when I first started reading it I was a little bit let down.

As soon as the characters are introduced I straight away thought that I knew how the book would play out.

I thought that I had the ending pinned down pretty accurately, so I very nearly stopped reading.

I didn't.

And I'm glad I didn't, because it was the ending, which didn't turn out to be a cliched Disney happy ever after, that really got to me.

And any book that I get to the end of that makes me feel true and deep gratitude for life and more specifically a life with love, for me is worth it.