Rainy day , Park fun !

A spot of reading

My daughter loves reading her books  :-) she's a real book worm .
 We found this tipi when she was a baby at a nearly new sale for  £15  , it sorta at my mums ever since . Coming out a occasionally .

 I decided upon finding it again this week to set it up in little misses bedroom .

I've  put a rug , blanket and a couple of toys and books in there . Hoping she uses it more as time goes on .

 But it does look pretty :-).

Chores made fun :-)

I'm not sure if its because when I was a kid ,I was always had to help my mum with the house chores and found it quite fun .
 Or because I'm parent her Alone and need her to help to get things done . But my little miss helps me with the household chores . She has done since she was about 18 months .


Now don't get me wrong , when I say help I mean if I'm dusting she has a duster too . If I'm hoovering she has her toy Hoover too . And when a out the recycling out she it's the bottles in the bin .
I don't expect her to do them off her own back but encourage her to join in .

 The other day we brought a new second hand pushchair of a Facebook site . It needed a clean and as she will be using it I asked her to help .

 The excitement was unreal , she couldn't wait to help !

 She knew exactly what to do and was happy to have her own cloth :-).

15 minutes later on clean pushchair , on soaked little miss and a chore checked of the list :-)! 

Often in out house you can hear the Disney tunes on the iPod and use jumping around like frogs doing the household chores ! Never a dull moment :-) 

Some autumn craft at 6 am

My daughter likes to get up early.  I like to wear her out so she sleeps longer .

A bit of leaf rubbing . She found this quite hard but the again she's only two . 

Glue the leaves . Mummy must not help me !! 

Lots and lots of glue 

Finished :-)!  

Mummy got a but carried away with the leaf rubbing , but I don't mind I got to glue :-)! 

These leaves were collected from are Sunday afternoon walk in the forest. 

Love my little crafter in the making !  

Before you judge me

Your a single mum , you parent alone . The buck stops with you .

It dosent matter that this wasn't he way it should be , this is how it is .

You cook every dinner , if you forget the food that your fault .

You don't have enough money left for bills , that's your fault .

Your flat is a little untidy, not dirty , untidy that's your fault .

Some other person somewhere in the country made a bad name for single parents , that's your fault .

Your marriage /boyfriend left you on your own , it's your fault .

Your friends don't know how to deal with the fact your on you own , it's your fault .

I could go on and on forever !!!

Were not looking for someone to put the blame on , we are not looking for an easy life , we are not looking for sympathy and were not looking for hand outs .

We are also not looking to be judged , classed as in poverty , we don't want are kids labelled , we don't want limits placed on us , we don't need your advice all the time .

We want some respect , to be treated the same as anyone else .

We aren't scourgners , we aren't begging , we don't sit around watching telly all day , not all of us smoke , not all of us drink , some of us only eat one meal a day so our kids can eat well .

We get tired , we get sad , we miss our friends , we want to achieve our dreams , we want for a lot the same as you .

Don't form a judgement in us based on what you think you know , take a moment , talk to us .

I can't put all 2 parent families in the same category nor can I single parent families .

But what I can do is treat any 2 parent family/single parent family with respect , I can ask questions look under the surface and keep myself from judgment .

One day those who have judged us may walk in our shoes , I hope they will never be labelled as scourgners and lazy . I hope people treat them with the respect they deserve .

A little spot of cake baking

Monday we made cakes , well I say we . My mum and little miss made the actually cakes . I can never seem to get them quite how she does . Must be her years as a cook , not my poor baking skills ;-)! 

 So dairy free , gluten free cakes made . Time to decorate :-). 

 

I thought thought the floor would be great place as , little miss can reach .  She struggles to sit still and gets very excited . Tends to fall of chairs !!!!! 

Icing at the ready , sprinkles at the ready . I brushed of little miss idea if using glue , not sure it would taste nice . 

1,2,3 go !!!!!!!

Being the independent little lady she is mummy isn't allowed to help !  She went for the tube writing icing . Blue seems to be the on she managed to squeeze out the tube !!!!! 

Of course when the decorating is done its time to eat ! Well once you've scrapped the blue icing you don't like off!!! 

Not the icing on clothes . I make aprons as gifts , have given to my friends for there toddlers , why I forget to place the one I made on my toddler , I never know . 

It's such a simple activity . One I have fond memory's if doing with my nan every time she visited . One I hope little miss has find memories if in the future too . 

Well done baby girl . 

A little post about a bathtub :-)!

You may be think I've lost the plot posting a photo of a bubble bath !

I'm often asked how I cope , how I'm so strong , how can I just brush things of ? Or turn negatives into positives ?!


Well quite simply , when you have a little person to look after and none coming to help . No magic paintbrush or quick fixes . Those are the only things you can do !

Now the bath tub !!!!

My daughter has always been a terrible sleeper , it was over a year before I had a bath to myself again .  Can't say I minded love sharing baths with my baby :-).

My daughter went though a phrase of going to bed at 6 pm not long after my marriage broke down .  I was living in my mum and dads house  and often felt  the need to escape . Find a place I could just be .
 Whether that be sad , be tired , be happy , just a place for me !

I would run the bath after my daughter had gone to bed and , stay there for asking as I neede.

The bubbles and hot water helping heal wounds that couldn't be seen , I didn't need to answer anyone in the bath ,mi didn't need to remember .

It was the one place in that house I didn't have memory's of our marriage .

It was also a happy place , I would quite often get disturbed by my daughter who wouldn't settle . For the days I didn't feel that super strong to return her to her bed a 20 times. I'd let her join me :-).

A place to sing , share story's , listen to music and steal sneaky hugs !

Of course it was full of toys and bottles . I would get the knee in the belly , water in my eye . But I didn't care .

I think that bathtub help me do a lot of healing and as I had my last bath in there yesterday ( mum and dad are moving). I felt like saying a slient thank you for all those quiet times :-).