Toddler Painting!

Because we still live in Mansfield, but commute every week to church in Derby, Katie and Dan kindly had us over for dinner after church so that we could attend the Music fireside that Dan was hosting!

Eli and Amy had tonnes of fun together AGAIN, this time they painted as well as played. Here are a few pics of their fun!

Eli looking dapper in his painting gettup

The creativity begins

painting 'cool circles'!!

Charlie bears eyes have finally cleared up, and don't they look all gorgeous for it?!

Amy's 2nd Party!

Eli was lucky enough to have been invited to his friend Amy's 2nd Birthday Party this last Saturday.

The Birthday Girl herself looking quite the lady!

They all had such a lovely time, I always am chuckling away to the things Eli gets up to he just has a really fun loving way about him. They played musical bumps and he enjoyed it so much he wanted another game with Mummy and Daddy on their bed before he went off to bed!

Here's the boy himself with his treasure after the 'sweetie hunt'!...

RESULT!
Get a t-shirt like Eli's from http://www.etsy.com/shop/joynevadalittleones

Pass the Parcel in full swing

LOVE this pic of Eli leaping around chasing the bubbles!

Do I spy E-li trying to blow out a sneaky candle or two?!

Charlie loving cuddles with Gemma!

'look how high mummy!'

Hiiiiiike!

The Roses had some friends visiting the other weekend and we spent the Saturday all together (minus Adam, as he was working).

After a big yummy fry up, the activity for the afternoon was a nice walk - I had the double pushchair in-case Eli got tired, and Ashley also had her pushchair for Eleanor so we couldn't off road too much but we got a nice 6 miles done in the end which conveniently ended at the Carvery for our dinners!

Taking a stop to pet the gorgeous horses

Poppy fields are the BEST for photos!

Eli feeling like a true rambler with his 'stiiiick', thanks to his fellow stick-man Andy! He LOVEs his stick and keeps using it though gets muddled and puts his finger where his thumb is supposed to go!

The two Eli's!
I got Eli out of his pushchair and turned around to find him sitting like this with Elliot, it was too cute!

Playin'

Poor Charlie looking a bit 'special' with his conjunctivitis eyes!

The crew!

Ultimate dating!

So I admitted I had blog fever and in the next breath i don't add another post for at least a couple of weeks - its just not good enough is it?! BUT my intentions have been more than there as I have started to carry my compact camera with me everywhere we go again just in case there is something 'blog worthy' to photograph!!

The night of our epic first family bike ride, my parents came down to the Roses abode to come pick Eli up for a couple of days with the intention that Adam and myself can crack on with some of our personal work as well as going together to work on our house in Derby. Charlie also got babysat so on the Monday evening Adam and myself were actually able to go on a date! How rare, so we definitely made the most of it and went all old skool and decided to go bowling!







Could our night be any more random - our car broke down on the way there, the clutch pinged (ouchie for our bank balance) so we had to leave it at a car valeting place whilst Adams mum picked us up (how teenage!) so we could borrow a car for the night.






The night ended up being a complete laugh a min... it was quite surreal, we used to go bowling quite regularly when we were 'courting' and haven't really gone since then so was really nice to just go out and flirt a lil again!

Can you believe how packed this place is?!

Ball heads

Adam getting his creative camera skillz on

Awww young love!!



The Tuesday (day after our date night) was set aside for working on our house, only we were snookered as we had no car anymore to get there...

...we were without Eli and Charlie was getting looked after for us again, so with a little encouragement from Adam, we set out to complete our journey to our Derby house by train and BIKE!!!

In the lift at Nottingham train station - me complete with conjunctivitis eyes (thanks Charlie!)

It actually felt like a fun adventure, quite impulsive and liberating without the children (as much as we LOVE them to bits and pieces, its so important to also spend time on yourself to make sure you are the best for them!) and completed 16 miles in total over the course of the day.
It was broken up into 5 parts - (with a couple of train journeys and a Costco stop for a jacket potato!) which meant that it was much more manageable for me and I actually have been looking forward to another bike ride ever since, particularly as I didn't really ache from it - the family ride must have broken me in nicely! Though it was just another stroll in the park for Adam he was quite the motivator up the hills when I needed it!!

Looking like an old pro

Adam doing a spot of emailing

The train back - by then we had completely lost it

The riding was a success, but our house is a slow old process...

First Family Bike Ride with Charlie!

Welcome to our new family blog!

I have been wanting to create a family blog for some time but, as is with most things in life with 2 young children, I hadn't yet got around to it!

I have recently been called at church to keep the ward history, so decided to document it primarily in blog format. I didn't realise quite how easy it was, and now have BLOG FEVER and have been itching to get ours on the go!

Using this format seems the most logical thing to do, as both Adam and myself have become so rubbish at keeping our journals since being married!!

So our first post is from our first family bike ride with Charlie yesterday afternoon!!

We are living with Adams parents still in Pleasley Vale, while our house is being finished renovated (bought it May 2010) in Derby, so decided to go for a little loop in the fields around their house. We have been here 15 months and I didn't even realise what was on the other side of the hedge - gorgeous little lakes and fields galore!
So hopefully we will be doing it again soon provided the weather holds up!

We did 4.2 miles of cycling, not even a little stroll in Adams standard, but we all enjoyed our little outing never-the-less (despite me always having to ask how to use my gears)!!




Charlie (3 months) snoozed most of the way and Eli (2 years, 5 months), after having enough of playing with the stone he found, kicked back and chilled out with the wind in his hair!!

Adams view down!


Chilling on one of our pit-stops!

Adam has had plenty of practice looking hot in a helmet, moi not so much - lol!