“Man is harder than iron, stronger than stone and more fragile than a rose.”

Growing Communities photo

Having sorted out the need for new medications I have spent the last few days feeling really good but today the exhaustion hit me again.I haven't done anything different so I have decided that perhaps diet might be a contributing factor(suggestion from my IT man,thank you) so I have bought some spinach and tomorrow I am going to make lasagne with plenty of legumes and cheese and of course spinach which are all good sources of iron.



Remember how SnoWhite and Griff both had a fascination with penguin stuffed toys when they were little? Especially with sucking the labels on them......well Beauty has now taken quite a fancy to sucking the label on her new Linny the Guinny toy.It is quite funny to see because the label is attached to Linny's butt!



Have some people got nothing to do but make silly complaints?

Duffy ad safety claims rejected

Duffy cycles through a supermarket in the TV advertisement

A TV advert which showed pop singer Duffy cycling through a supermarket has been cleared by an advertising watchdog after health and safety complaints.

Eighteen viewers complained the singer, from Nefyn, Gwynedd, was not wearing reflective clothing and her bicycle had no lights in the Diet Coke commercial.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) also said four viewers worried children could copy her behaviour.

Coca-Cola argued the ad was supposed to reflect "Duffy's fantasy".

The commercial shows the singer coming offstage before sipping from a can of the cola and cycling through dark streets and into the store, before returning to her concert in time to perform an encore.

Coca-Cola argued the commercial depicted Duffy's escape from the pressures of stardom and was "far removed from the real world".

Highway Code

The company also said they had gone through a "vigorous" production process to ensure they met the Highway Code criteria for riding a bicycle on public roads.

With the regulations recommending cyclists wear reflective clothing in the dark, Coca-Cola pointed out Duffy wore a black and white sparkly top that stood out, while her bicycle had lights on the front and rear in each shot.

After investigating, the ASA did not uphold the complaints, noting the "fantasy context" and deciding that older children would understand cycling round a supermarket was not a realistic situation.

A Brit Award winner, Duffy is best known for her number one hit Mercy and her album Rockferry.

LIFE OF GRIME

I think it was a TV show called LIFE OF GRIME but I could be wrong.
I watched a programmme about about the rubbish collectors in London and they were told on their first day DON'T LOOK BACK!
This was because the rubbish would have accumulated AGAIN by the time they looked around!
Well that is my life........well the cleaning anyway!
Anna decided to bake a cake last night at gone midnight so I had to empty the dishwasher and fill it again with her dirty dishes.
I emptied a wash and put it on the line and then filled the machine again with another wash.
Then I sorted and bagged washed, winter bedding to go in the attic.
Sorted the ironing.
Sorted the recycling.
Litter picked from the ground floor of the house due to Anna and Sali having spent the night.
And now I am on to watering the plants and feeding the piggies and the rabbits.
And all this AFTER getting Niamh up and washing her, dressing her, feeding her and getting her to school AND after washing and dressing and feeding myself!
Yep it certainly feels like

What would you do if you were stuck in one place and every day was exactly the same, and nothing that you did mattered?
That about sums it up for me.

Change girl for guy and I would be happy with the following too

Phil: I was in the Virgin Islands once. I met a girl. We ate lobster, drank piña coladas. At sunset, we made love like sea otters.
[Ralph and Gus snort]
Phil: *That* was a pretty good day. Why couldn't I get *that* day over, and over, and over..


But no ........I get the piggy poop DAY!

FLOWER POWER

I LOVE THIS

Beauty has gone out with the childminder so I have some 'ME' time and strangely I don't feel the need to sleep!

I have been in the garden this morning and I am definitely impressed with the growth of the plants even though I know their growth is not down to me but the constant rain!

With all the bedding plants growing so well my garden is starting to look like a nursery.

I may not have the energy for an allotement but I have friends gardens to plant them in.

LEAPS AND BOUNDS!

In the last few weeks Beauty has gone through another developmental leap as far as language and understanding and speech is concerned.
This was confirmed yesterday when Beauty got upset with SnoWhite for not letting her do something and Beauty turned around and gave SnoWhite one almighty punch.
Beauty turned around and slugged her!
It was quite a shock but not such a surprise that SnoWhite immediately PUNCHED(well a forceful push really) her back!
Sisters being sisters they all fight sometimes(well some more than others!) but I have for years been telling Ariel not to pick on Fiona as she will turn around and punch her back but Ariel was all blase OH NO, I COULD BEAT FIONA IN A FIGHT!
Until, I think it was just before Christmas,Ariel said something very unkind to Fiona and it was the straw the broke the camels back!
Fiona lamped Ariel and Ariel was left crying,more with shock than pain!
Well answer me this, if you are only 5ft 9in are you really going to p..off someone who is over 6 feet tall EVEN IF they are younger than you? Not a wise move there Ariel!
Heck she scares me!
Well back to the developmental leap.
Now when Beauty is told it is time to go to bed she says Not bed and Not bed now and No bed!
And when she asks for a drink she says Drink Please, red juice not orange juice!
I can also get her to help me tidy away her toys and when she asks for cereal, I can get her to get the cereal,milk and sprinkles(sugar) and put them all away afterwards.
However,her ingenuity as an escapologist increases daily!
She has escaped the front window, heck I can't even open that!
She has escaped through the back gate a number of times to dance in the street!!!!! don't even go there! which has made me lock the back gate whenever we are in the house!
And she knows when we are out if she runs off her Mobility Challenged Mother(you can call me a cripple!) will have difficulty keeping up with her!

Beauty on our visit to Roath Park

The other day Runningman and myself took Beauty for a walk around Roath Park lake and at one point Beauty ran off and I had to walk fast to grab her and I wasn't pleased as it hurt.....A LOT!
So I turned to Runningman and said
LET'S MAKE THIS CLEAR,YOU ARE CALLED RUNNINGMAN FOR A REASON.........IT'S BECAUSE YOU RUN!
SO WHEN BEAUTY RUNS OFF YOU RUN AFTER HER!
He was not a happy bunny!
Yesterday Ariel arrived in Florida and fell exhausted into a bed and Woody fell asleep next to her.......well Belle took a photo and posted it on Facebook and when Beauty saw it she said
HELLO S___ HELLO PUPPY!
Also yesterday the IT man visited and Beauty is usually in school when he calls but a few months ago he called when she was off school ill and she was thrilled that he had brought his dog with him.Well he showed up yesterday straight from work so no dog in tow and when she saw him she immediately pushed passed him into the study and said DOG(I have a basket there for the dog)?
She was very disappointed to find no dog.
And Beauty has discovered something on the internet called STARFALL CAMP.
This is a brilliant website for teaching your child to read and Beauty found it all by herself and before I had never known how much Beauty could read and from this site I can tell she knows A LOT.Her reading is probably a lot better than other children her age.
As yet she hasn't made the connection that with all this reading knowledge she can read books on her own.
Do you know that even at my advanced age and not being able to remember things that happened yesterday,I can remember the first time I was able to read at home a book that wasn't a school reading book.......it was a surprise, a delightful surprise.I remember being thrilled at what I could do and the thought now of a life without words and books and reading would not be a life at all.
I can remember the book now,not the story just the book.
I was a childs story book and it was a thin,blue paperback book.

I DEFINITELY MUST BE RABBIT!

“It's snowing still," said Eeyore gloomily. "So it is." "And freezing." "Is it?" "Yes," said Eeyore. "However," he said, brightening up a little, "we haven't had an earthquake lately.”

Some days I think if I were a character from Winnie the Poo I would be Eeyore but other days I think that I am Piglet

“"When you wake up in the morning, Pooh," said Piglet at last, "what's the first thing you say to yourself?"
"What's for breakfast?" said Pooh. "What do you say, Piglet?"
"I say, I wonder what's going to happen exciting today?" said Piglet.
Pooh nodded thoughtfully.
"It's the same thing," he said.”

But then I think again that I surely must be Winnie

“If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day so I never have to live without you.”

and used to believe in forever, but forever is too good to be true.”
And then I think NO I must be Christopher Robin
“If ever there is tomorrow when we're not together.. there is something you must always remember. you are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. but the most important thing is, even if we're apart.. i'll always be with you.”
But in fact I really must be Owl
"The atmospheric conditions have been very unfavourable lately," said Owl.
"The what?"
"It has been raining," explained Owl.
"Yes," said Christopher Robin. "It has."
"The flood-level has reached an unprecedented height."
"The who?"
"There's a lot of water about," explained Owl.
But in the end I know I am most like rabbit.
"Spelling isn't everything.
There are days when spelling Tuesday simply doesn't count."

SHOPPING.....WHAT'S TO LIKE?

This morning I was very grateful that Beauty went with the childminder......I needed time out after she smashed all the eggs she could find in the fridge!
And you know the phrase I'M GOING TO KNOCK YOUR LIGHTS OUT?
Well she literally just did that, she punched the light shade in the lounge and knocked all the lights in the house out.Thankfully they had only tripped!
So now she has gone to bed.

Today Beauty and I went shopping and contrary to popular belief.......I HATE SHOPPING!
First let me make this clear, I go shopping about twice a year to town and that is twice too much!I have to really want something to go to town for it.
I prefer to shop in small local shops or places where it is easy to park.
But that being said I hate shopping at ASDA Pontprennau which is not only local but easy to park in.
And why don't I like it there?
Well the list is endless but here is to mention a few.
-Supply and demand is a non-existent concept to ASDA, they can run out of staple food products for days!
-Clothes may come into the shop in say 2 of each size and when they are sold they get no more stock.
-One disabled shopping trolley was broken for 6 months and I reported it broken 3 times.
-The car park is full of pot-holes
and that is without mentioning customer service!
BUT THEY DO SELL LOTS OF EGGS!
I go to SHAWS the drapers in Llanrumney for bedding and linens and wool because it is easy to park and close to home,about 5 minutes drive.
I buy pig and rabbit food at the ironmongers at Rhydypennau because it is close to home and easy to park and just further up is the fruit and vegetable shop. But I am going to try the farm shop in the Lisvane lanes this week to see what it is like, we tried the one near Marshfield but it was rubbish.
Art supplies in The Range on Newport Road and also at WHAT! again because of parking.
Blooms the nursery......I could go on but I am sure I am boring you!
I may come across as a precious ECO Princess but I promise my choices are purely because I hate large shops.
But one large shop I do like is the pumping station at the bottom of Penarth Road which is full of small antique shops and give me a car boot sale where I can look for books and linens and paintings and I am totally happy.
Beauty loves the boot sales too as she gets to buy new toys!!!!!
But today our shopping was confined to nails from Wilkinson's on Colchester Avenue, canvas artboard fromDunhelms on Newport road and fabric and bags and lunch with Sali at IKEA.


Oh and last thing we went to B&Q for cup hooks.
And that's without me getting started on the joys of internet shopping!
Beauty was especially affectionate today and inisted we dance around B&Q, I think she was trying to teach me to Salsa!She held me very close indeed!

I CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW......

I have just returned from taking Beauty to school and I look like a drowned rat.
Where has all the beautiful sunshine gone?

see.......it was sunny here.

and this was only a few days ago.
Today I am going to have to use my tumble dryer........not a very eco-princess today I am afraid!
I guess having acrylic nails will not help me to get that award either but my theory is that the nails are temporary until mine grow underneath and I seem to have no desire to chew the acrylic ones so perhaps it is working.
It is so strange having nails after so long!
And being able to use nail polish is amazing.


Anastasia and Dimitri are off to Cairo this weekend and I would so love to go.
That would be my trip of a lifetime, I want to cruise up the Nile and see all the sights.
I have wanted to since 1972 when the Tutankhaman exhibition came to London and sadly I missed it.
I saw an exhibition last year in the O2 but it was such a disappointment.
I didn't recognise any of the artifacts.

THREE CLIFFS BAY

PENNARD CASTLE

So was this the place Don?

Lyrics | Johnny Nash - I Can See Clearly Now lyrics