A DAY OF REST

Since coming back from New Orleans I have spent my time catching up on my sleep, now exhaustion has set in. All I want to do is take to my bed and rest, no sleep just rest. I wish-Beauty has made sure that hasn't happened. All she wants is to be in the living room watching DVDs, thankfully she has now learned to press the play button. Small Blessings.

SCHOOL IS SUCH A BLESSING

I love Beauty very much and I will be happy to see her after school this afternoon but I am grateful that she is in school today as I am still very weary(Yes, that means tired Fiona).
It seems that Beauty has been eating pasta in school so that is something else to try. And does this sound familiar Anastasia? Yesterday in school Beauty was printing with vegetables, she picked up a piece of broccoli and said,'trees' and took a bite! When Anastasia was 5 she went to tea at a neighbours house and they fed her broccoli, Anastasia came home complaining that they had fed her trees.! Years may pass but children stay the same. I love my girls.





It is pouring with rain today so I am going to have a bit of a problem with my feet, they are still in a bad way so I am still wearing slippers which are fabric but have rubber soles. I can see me tumble drying them a few times.
When I am out people are either too polite to stare or say anything about me wearing slippers or they just don't notice and they think I am just wearing shoes. Fiona however is convinced that they totally look like slippers and I am of course embarrassing myself and her.
It must be my age but I don't really care if people think I look like a bag lady.........like I said,'When I am old I shall wear purple'

HOME AT LAST!

We got home lunch time yesterday from New Orleans and I am still 'cream-crackered'. I slept yesterday afternoon, yesterday night and this afternoon so hopefully by tomorrow I will have recovered. When Beauty got home from school yesterday, she rubbed my face and lay down next to me and cuddled me so I know that she missed me.It will be a long time before I leave her like that again. My feet are in pieces because of badly fitting shoes so my feet are covered in plasters and I am wearing mens slippers. This evening I took Beauty, Fiona and Runningman to Asda for tea. We had fish and chips and Fiona had sausage and chips. I also bought some albums for the wedding photos and I checked out the prices of developing and enargements. I am going to get an 8x10 album and put enlargements in it.
When Beauty finishes watching her Winnie the Pooh DVD we will be going to bed.
Night, Night
xxx

A WEDDING IN NEW ORLEANS

I LOVE NEW ORLEANS
Belle and Beau got married in Artillery Park, in New Orleans at 3:30pm on Saturday 23rd September 2006. I am so glad I was able to get to the wedding.
























THURSDAY
We left Cardiff on thursday morning and caught the bus to Heathrow where we flew to Newark airport in New Jersey. Security was increased due to the gel and liquid bomb scares but I didn't feel it was a problem and everybody was friendly and helpful. When we flew to Spain the January after 9/11 the security was a lot more visible with police with machine guns, the airports we flew through seemed to mostly be protected with security guards with the odd Policeman. In the US airports a number of americans got a bit shirty with the customs over make-up etc and the customs officers got shirty back. I was very good, I followed all the rules, carried only what I was meant to carry and was very polite-I do not get stroppy with people who carry guns or rubber gloves! We arrived in Newark at 21:50 on thursday but our connecting flight to New Orleans wasn't until 7:05 am so we napped overnight in the airport, there was no real point in getting a room for the night as we would have had to be back in the airport by 4am to book in and register. Poor Fiona was very tired and wanted to nap but couldn't, she would happily have gone home to her bed. Having worked nights I have no problem putting my head on a table and falling asleep. There were lots of night staff milling around so it was very safe, we spent most of the night in the food court where other people were waiting for connecting flights.


FRIDAY
The plane was about 30 minutes late taking off but I didn't
notice as I slept through it. We arrived at New Orleans at 9:30am , the weather was beautiful and sunny. We met Beau's parents in the foyer, Beau's dad was wearing a welsh t shirt. We waited about half an hour for Belle and Beau to arrive, they had spent the night in Hattiesburg having driven from Florida. Going out of the air conditioned airport to the car park was a shock, the air was so hot and thick it felt strange swallowing such thick air. I started perspring-profusely!
Beau's parents drove us to La Quinta hotel on Camp Street in their truck.
The hotel room was lovely with two double beds and the bathroom was quite a good size and a nice big tv to keep Fiona happy.














After a quick shower and a change of clothes Beau's parents, Beau and Belle, Fiona and myself and 'Yuh Dad'(not yuh Mum thank you Ariel) went for a walk in to the French Quarter and we went shopping and then for lunch. We also had a look at the cathedral and the park opposite and the park where the wedding was to take place.









Here is is a view from Artilery Park where Belle and Beau got married, we did think about a buggy ride but they were way too expensive.




This view of the cathedral reminds me of cinderella's castle with all the carriages waiting outside.








We had to eat inside the restaurant because it was way to hot outside, I had a seafood platter.
When you think of BABY SQUID you think of this baby toy, I can't eat a BABY squid. I had to leave about 10 on my plate, they looked more like baby octopus. I'm sorry, even in batter they had what looked like faces and I DON'T eat things with faces. I know I'm going to have to stop eating fish altogether.
The platter was huge so I had to take the rest of my food home in a box and I had it for supper(minus the baby squid of course).
After lunch we went shoppoing and looked at all the Mardi Gras beads and Masks, they were brilliant.








We even found a ZOLTAR MACHINE in one of the gift shops.
Belle and Fiona both had their fortunes told-Fiona is going to marry an Ogre and live in a swamp(just kidding) AND Belle is going to marry a handsome prince and live in Far, Far Away(Well there you go!).









Then the best part of the day, we went back to the hotel and I had a lovely sleep. I was exhausted.












AND THEN IT RAINED!


SOMETHING WHICH HAPPENED A FEW TIMES EVERY DAY OVER THE NEXT THREE DAYS............BUT AS QUICKLY AS IT CAME IT WAS GONE(UNLIKE HOME).TAKE NOTE WELSH WEATHER.





At 6pm we had a wedding shower for Belle. Beau's parents provided snacks and drinks and party favours and I decorated the room with wedding bells and cards. As is the tradition with a wedding shower The Bride-to-Be put all the bows and ribbons from the presents in her hair and Belle also wore a hen night veil and L plate and then we MADE her go for a walk in the street all dressed up. We went to another hotel and had a drink in the lounge bar. Then we went back to the hotel and passed out.

SATURDAY
We got up about 9am on saturday morning and went down to breakfast, it was the best continental breakfast I have ever had in an hotel. Lots of breads, cakes and pastries and fruit and cereals. Sausage and eggs and lots of juices and even a waffle maker which Fiona tried out.
Then Belle, myself,Fiona and Beau's mum went shopping for flowers and cake-chauffeured by Beau's Dad of course. We found some lovely white roses and lilies in a flower shop not far away in the business district, after buying them we took them back to the hotel to put in water to keep them fresh for the afternoon. We then went to look for a cake shop but many had not re-opened after Katrina and after buying drinks and pastries in a boulangerie(but no cake) in the French Quarter we went to Walmart and bought one. We did have a bit of a problem with the cake as the one chosen by Belle was slightly broken by the shop assistant when she opened it to ice Belle&Beau's name on it and the names were also badly done, Belle complained to a manager who told us to choose another one and we had it done again. It was perfect.
Whilst in Walmart I bought some Winnie-the-Pooh scrubs, they are so cute and a pair of size 12 jeans that fitted me-I told you the Mother-of-the-Bride had to be a size 12 or less.
Then back to the hotel to get ready for the big event.
Whilst Belle had her shower and did her makeup I made the bouquets and the buttonholes for the weddding, the white roses and lilies were beautiful. Little bit of a problem-Belle wanted her hair in curls and down but because of the difference in electricity we couldn't get the curling tongs to heat up properly so I did her hair up and I think it went perfectly with the veil and the dress, I was still making the veil in the hotel the night before. We looked at veils in Cardiff and the ones we saw were quite plain and started at £120 so I told Belle I would make her one, I sewed white crystal beads all along the bottom. We bought the beads and material in a shop on City Road and it cost about £10 to make.



Belle threw a coin into the hotel fountain on the way to the wedding and made a wish.











When Belle was ready Beau's Dad drove Belle, myself and Belles Dad in his truck to Artillery Park

























The earlier rain storm had passed over and the weather was stunningly beautiful.
In fact it was stunningly warm, the wedding was very beautiful and very simple. I of course had to take lots of photographs to remember the wonderful day. When they finished exchanging their vows lots of people who had been watching cheered and clapped. After the wedding vows we walked over to the park in front of the cathedral and took lots more photographs. We encountered a' jobs worth' who told us we couldn't marry there, we told him it was too late and Belle and Beau were already married and we were just taking photographs and he told us that was ok then.WHATEVER!
Photographs of every combination were taken including photographs with rosary, horseshoes,garter etc. We then visited the cathedral and we all lit candles and I bought Belle a wooden wrist rosary. Progress to the restaurant was quite slow due to all the locals wanting to congratulate Belle and Beau and Belle and Beau enjoyed every minute of it. We ate in the back room of the restaurant so there weren't too many people, there were Mardi Gras costumes on all the walls. The meal was really nice, Belle and Beau fed each other wedding cake(sorry cancel that-they fed each other alligator-well they did marry in New Orleans!). Belle and I went to the restrooms(!) and we chatted to a lady who was very friendly, when we left we saw her later she beeped her car horn at us, her police car horn! Belle is sure she must have stolen the car but I think she was probably just some out of town police in for the Saints first match after Katrina.
After the meal we walked the streets again to the sound of Congratulations and then we went back to the hotel. Beau carried Belle over the threshold and then they cut the wedding cake. Belle sang us a song and it brought tears to my eyes and it also made Beau's mother cry. A perfect end to a perfect day.

SUNDAY
Fiona and I went shopping and Fiona found a shop that sold wonderful Hello Kitty things and we got back to the hotel in time to say goodbye to Beau's parents. They were off home via Slidell and a night's stop over at a casino. More shopping in the afternoon and a take-away from Wendy's. I also took my camera memory cards to Walgreens a chemist and got my photo's developed and put onto disc. I gave Belle and Beau a copy of the disk.
We visited THE BUBBA GUMP shop and what a brilliant place, there were lots of costumes like the ones in the film. I bought a smiley badge with STUPID IS AS STUPID DOES on it.
We also went for a walk with Belle and Beau and went along the LEVEE and into the FRENCH MARKET and stopped for a drink at a pavement cafe.





MONDAY
Belle and Beau's final day, whilst Beau packed Belle, Fiona and their DAD and I went to look at the Confederate Museum and the WWII museum But they were both shut. Belle and her Dad also went into the local Federal Building to buy stamps at the post office. I stayed in the park outside with Fiona and took photo's an chatted to a dog calle Buddy. There are views of this building in the film JFK and of the park.
When we got back to the hotel we helped to pack up the truck, took lots of photos and waved goodbye to the happy couple. The truck was festooned with balloons, JUST MARRIED Banner and Belle and Beau's names on the window.
We had only just been talking about THE RUNNAWAY BRIDE when what should show up but a FED EX van, perfect photo-op.


Later we went for a walk to see the LaFayette Cemetary, after 20 minutes walk Fiona and her Dad decided it was too far to walk so they went back on the bus. 5 minutes later I came across 2 missionaries, Elder Whiley and Elder Miles(but it could have been Mills) from Provo and Salt lake(aren't they all?) who showed me the way to the cemetary.Wierd place, like a town in itself.
Very 'Supernatural'-SnoWhite you would have loved it. I was in the Garden District which is very beautiful with very expensive houses(I would love a house like that).





Very Spanish























City of the Dead













Later that evening Fiona and I went for our last walk around the French Quarter and we picked up a take-away from the shop next to Artillery Park

TUESDAY

TO BE CONTINUED.........................

I AM THEREFORE I SCREECH

BAD NEWS-THE BEAUTY BED IS BROKEN...................................

The main support bar has snapped so we will have to get a new bed. Last night Beauty slept on the sette, at some unearthly hour I opened my eyes to see Beauty hurtling towards me, thank goodness I opened my eyes in time and was able to move or I would have had a broken nose. She went back to sleep straight away, warm and snug next to me. Beauty then woke about 6:30am screeching for a drink, I don't ask much just a nice,'can I have a drink please?' would do first thing in the morning rather than assaulting my ears with screeching.
I AM THEREFORE I SCREECH
With a screech like that Beauty will definitely be well enough to go back to school tomorrow.

I don't know if it is because she has been unwell but Beauty has been very sweet and very lovely lately, she has been a lot more smiley and cuddly. Today my back has been really bad and I spent all afternoon on the day bed as my back has been swollen where the damage is. I lie down and the pain goes and the swelling goes down but after 5 minutes of getting up the pain is back. At one point Beauty came next to me and lay down and cuddled me. She kissed my cheeks and my eyes and my nose and I thought she was being so sweet and then I realised she was doing it because she wanted something. She wanted me to press the DVD button for her so I said,'Don't ask me, shout for Fiona', and she did, right in my ear! I am so impressed that she understood that being nice to someone got you what you wanted and she understood to shout for Fiona when I told her to( though not quite as loud!).
Oh and it has been really difficult for me to walk today due to the pain in my back and my hips and Fiona says it makes me look as if I have peed my pants..... Don't you just love kids?
Personally I think it makes me look like a cool old lady.

LET THE WOMEN SORT IT OUT-YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO.

ANOTHER STAY AT HOME DAY FOR BEAUTY
Beauty is still unwell, she appears very exhausted and her eyes look very grey and heavy. She is still only eating things like toast and cake but she is drinking lots, this one has hit her really badly. Every winter term she seems to be constantly ill but this one has been worse than usual, she looks so much smaller and frailer than a week ago. She is getting lots of enjoyment from her video's and DVD's, her books and her toys but she spends most of her day sat on the floor, in a chair or in her bed. She is even quieter than normal, she still chats and sings but nowhere near as much as usual.
I WILL be glad when she is back to normal, even with the constant noise and activity.
Other Beauty News.
On saturday Runningman said to Beauty,'Hello' and Beauty said,'Hello, how are you?'.WOW, I'm impressed. I know it is only learned behaviour but it is so encouraging. Yesterday Beauty was messing with the DVD and I asked her if everything was ok and she put her thumb out to me in an ok sign, moments like this are so frustrating as they make you think, DID SHE REALLY MEAN THAT?

UPDATE ON THE POPE THING
According to the latest report on the BBC website there have been attacks on at least 7 churches in Palestinian controlled areas and there is also concern that the killing of an Italian nun in Mogidishu in Somalia was in retaliation for the comments made. Turkey State Minister Mehmet Aydin said that the Pope appeared to be saying sorry for the outrage caused but not necessarily for the remarks themselves. The Egyptian Brotherhood, the Egyptian Opposition Group also welcomed what it called the Pope's 'retraction' but later warned that it did not amount to a definitive apology and would not be enough to satisfy all Muslims. A spokesman for Hamas which controls the Palestinian Parliament said,'We do not view the statement attributed to the Pope as an apology'.
The President of the General Assembly at the UN in New York has called on religious leaders to promote reconcilliation. She has said that religious forces could advance dialogue, reconciliation and peace and help people embrace difference.
And my opinion on the situation is
LISTEN TO THE WOMAN-SHE IS TALKING SENSE

BEAUTY BEING BEAUTY

Beauty being Beauty she will not take her medicine to bring down her temperature. So in the day she seems better but in the evening her temperature soars again and she gets all poorly and sad and takes to her bed. At the moment she is watching Justin on Something Special and digging deep into her basket of toys and getting them ALL out. Don't get me wrong, I think Justin is the best children's presenter on tv but after an early wake-up call even his smiley voice is enough to make you want to follow in the footsteps of Elvis and annihilate the tv. Sorry Justin, we still love you and think you are brilliant as Jake in the Tweenies, Jake is our favourite Tweenie. We love Milo too, but Fizzy is too squeaky and Bella too bossy.
Yesterday was the big clean-up day, Beauty seemed better so I put Beauty's bed back in her bedroom , spring cleaned the living room and put back all the washed and dried throws back on the chairs and sofa. But later on Beauty's temperature rose again and Moaning Myrtle returned and back out came the bed. Now the living room looks like a war zone, complete with Beauty's soldiers. Sometimes I am so tired I despair of ever getting a proper sleep again. The second day of Beauty's illness I left Beauty asleep in the living room with Fiona watching her, I went to bed for a nap and took one of the house phones with me. Well I literally passed out and slept for about 2 hours( a long sleep for me), when I came downstairs Fiona told me the phone had rung and she gave me a message. I was shocked, the phone had been next to my head and I hadn't heard a thing! I find that scarey because of Beauty's desire to emulate Houdini I have to be watchful 24/7 and I mean 24/7. After Beauty's two escape attempts I am terrified something might happen if she gets out a third time.Leaving Beauty for even a second is tempting fate, the other evening she was in the kitchen with people aroud her and she got into the fridge and smashed 6 eggs onto the floor. Thankfully she hasn't learnt to take off lids yet!




HOW TO TELL YOUR LOVED!
To wake up in the morning to find your kitchen filled with dirty dishes, dirty cutlery, dirty glasses and rubbish and the dishwasher empty and ready for filling. Sorry Princess but even Shrek would have been unhappy with that mess.






As the saying goes,
' MADNESS IS SOMETHING YOU INHERIT FROM YOUR CHILDREN'
Whilst writing my blog this morning I realised that the YouTube song I had been listening to had finished ages ago and I had been enjoying the dulled sense of reality by shutting out the world through a pair of earphones.A few minutes later Beauty insisted that I wear my sunglasses to help put her toys away. The answer to an early morning wake-up call, earphones and sunglasses, heavenly.

WE ALL LIVE IN A GLOBAL VILLAGE- SO PLAY NICE!

THE RETURN OF MOANING MYRTLE
Yesterday evening Beauty's temperature went up again and she started puking again, she took to her bed and went to sleep again, thankfully I was able to see all the signs and catch any mess in a towel so no more sheets or bedspreads or clothes to wash( I still haven't finished all the washing and drying yet from yesterday). We were wiping her face with a damp cloth and each time we did it she was coming out with a 'woo, woo' noise. 4:30am wake up call-mainly 'waa,waa' Moaning Myrtle noises but apart from that she doesn't seem too bad. It is good having her in her little bed as I can have her right next to my bed. We live in such a global village, Belle phoned from Florida where Beau is working to check on Beauty, Ariel had told her that Beauty was unwell.



















Autumn is definitely upon us as the mornings are now pretty nippy, for the last week it has been quite sunny during the day but it does take a while to warm up. I really would like to live abroad during the winter and live in the UK in the summer. I think it would be nice for Beauty.

THE POPE SITUATION
The Vatican it seems believes that the upset over what the Pope said will blow over very soon...........in their dreams. If the Vatican is under full alert because of possible acts of aggression then they really don't believe that everything will blow over quickly. I don't think this will be over anytime soon as anything to do with religion is so personal to people that things like this are seen as personal insults.The Pope needs for the sake of everybody in the world to say he is sorry for any hurt he caused and to invite Islamic people from around the world to come talk with him and for them all to discuss their differences and put the situation to rest.
Yes I may be an armchair liberal and want world peace but this is getting too personal, I may not be a religious person myself but believe it or not Anastasia, Belle , SnoWhite and Ariel all have boyfriends who are catholic. Catholics do not have blue skin or wear distinctive clothes or wear badges which say, 'I'm a Catholic' which means that we are all at risk whatever the colour of our skin and whatever we wear .
I have just been searching the teachings of Islam on the internet and the way the are instructed to act towards each other is to show respect, love and care the same as in Christianity. Bad things happen all around us everyday and involve all the peoples of the world. Surely the bad things that happen are a lack of control of that dark space in the hearts of all mankind. When people succumb to that dark space they use religion to explain their actions, look at Jim Jones of The Peoples Temple and what happened in Jonestown, David Koresh and Waco and more recently Warren Jeffs.




Like I said yesterday, PLAY NICE.
My global village is a very small place and I don't want anyone getting hurt, especially my family and those I love.













2:30pm
SORRY?
So it seems that the Pope is sorry for causing 'offence' BUT he 'hoped that muslims would understand the true sense of his words'. I have read the full speech and it says,' whoever would lead someone to faith needs the ability to speak well and to reason properly, without violence and threats.....to convince a reasonable soul, one does not need a strong arm or weapons of any kind, or any other means of threatening a person with death...'.
ooooooooh! POT, KETTLE, BLACK. I am sure that as Prefect Ratzinger the Pope learned a lot about the history of the church.
I read the speech and there seemed to be no mention of 'violence and threats 'coming from christianity or the Catholic church. The Pope also described the emperor he was quoting as ERUDITE. I understand why the Muslim people are not happy. I see this escalating, they so need to sort this out now.

Amazing recovery with Beauty, lots better. Both Moaning Myrtle and Vomiting Veronica seem to have left us and Beauty has had a few baby cakes and two slices of dry toast. She is stil very weary but definitely in a better mood. I am so pleased. Happily watching CBEEBIES and playing with her toys. She has had a little wander around the house but she is staying mostly in the living room, sat in the chair with her toys.

PAPAL INFALLIBILITY

COME ON BOYS, PLAY NICE.

So Pope Benedict XVI gave a speech about the concept of Holy War and in it he quoted a 14 century christian emperor who said, 'Muhammad had brought the world only evil and inhuman things', before I go any further I would like to say that personally I think the contents of that statement is a load of b*ll*cks and don't get me started on the, 'evil and inhuman things' done by other major religions of the world. The question here has to be WHO was talking when this statement was made? Who as in was this a statement by the POPE or was it a statement by Joseph Ratzinger the man. The difference being if the POPE said the whole' evil and inhuman' thing then the POPE lied(as Islam does not seek to bring 'evil and inhuman things') and so the Catholic Church must be a lie as the POPE is meant to make infallible statements- as the POPE. So, by my deduction, the statement must have been made by Joseph Ratzinger the man and not the Pope. Joseph Ratzinger must make an apology and say that these were his own personal opinions and not the opinions of the Pope and the church, he must also admit that within the catholic church terrible things have also been done since the 14 century i.e the Borgia's, The Inquisition and Sexual Abuse Scandals involving Priests and Nuns, BUT these were the products of men not the church(many would say even covering up of sin was the product of men).
Cardinal Ratzinger was Prefect of The Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith which is the historical remnant of the Inquisition, before he was Pope, so he should be fully aware of what the catholic church would authorise a Pope to say and do. I am sure that God, the Church and the Pope would want Joseph Ratinger to apologise in his role as a man and a Pope for the hurt that was caused . He should also use this time to converse and to seek unity and understanding, free from mud-slinging. Much good can be achieved.
My message to Pope Benedict XVI is to use this situation wisely and for good.
And remember, I am not a scholar or academic, I am just a housewife with 6 children and this is how I see the situation. I am sure an academic could debate the subject with me and make everything I say look silly but the things I have said are just my opinions on how people who have a million times more clout than me should get off their butts and start talking.
As Winston churchill said.' to jaw jaw is better than to war war'.

09:19 am
Vomiting Veronica has a friend to stay,Moaning Myrtle.
Poor Beauty. when she isn't sleeping she is vomiting or moaning-with her head under the bed. At the moment she is asleep(in the bed) so I shall have a nap as Beauty was awake a lot during the night.

11:53 am
Wow what a difference a nap makes! Moaning Myrtle seems to have gone home and Beauty is sat on the floor watching CBEEBIES whilst playing with her armies. She is still very quiet but hopefully the departure of Moaning Myrtle means no more tummy or head pains, poor little love. I think a nice warm bath for Beauty this afternoon will make her feel lots better.









Today is MAKE A HAT DAY-why? I don't know or for those among us who are more religious it is The Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows. She is the Patron saint of Mississippi( as well as other places).









Our Lady of Sorrows

WELCOME TO VOMITING VERONICA!

Vomiting Veronica is paying us a visit! Beauty started vomiting last night about 8pm and is still going strong. I am now washing bedspread number 3 and Beauty is happy to lie on the floor in the living room watching Victoria Principal's Beauty Secrets, so she must be ill! She is also merrily singing to herself. Beauty has quite a temperature but everytime I give her medicine and juice-she pukes! So no school for Beauty today but when she is like this she doesn't stray far from her bed, she is quite happy to take to her bed and be sick and be cared for. Sounds familiar!

I have moved Beauty's small bed into the living room so she can stay in bed and watch tv and play with her toys. She has a pile of soft toys that she is enjoying playing with, she is playing with the Hoobs, Jesse from Toy Story and Shrek and Puss in Boots. She wakes up for an hour or so, has some sips of juice and then sleeps for another hour or so. It is difficult when Beauty is sick because when she moans or cries you don't know why she is moaning and crying.

10:57 AM- VOMITING VERONICA UPDATE
I left Beauty for the length of time it takes to take a bedspread out of the washing machine and hang it over a door(it's raining!) to find her with her head under the bed puking again, over one of my Welsh waffle blankets which I can only wool wash! I am washing everything as fast as I can and spraying everything with fabric conditioner but with my lack of sense of smell I really don't know if the the smell is lingering. Thankfully I only have to contend with juice and what a blessing a laminate floor is. I have an old plastic tablecloth so I have put that over the mattress and then put old sheets on top, as well as bedspreads I am washing towels, sheets and t sirts.
So Anastasia, Belle, SnoWhite, Ariel and Fiona this is what you have to look forward to with motherhood and even if you do not have children SnoWhite it comes with aunty-hood.

BLOGGING THROUGH THE MAYHEM

My life has been turned upside down and back again and all since sunday. Belle will be getting married a week saturday and Fiona(she seems excited!) and I will be flying out to New Orleans to witness the joyful event. We will be flying from Heathrow a week thursday. Anastasia has just started a new job and is unable to come, Sno White will be returning to Uni at that time so she can't come and Ariel will be in Spain doing her Gold Duke of Edinburgh expedition. I don't think Beauty could cope with such a long trip so she will stay home and send Sno White nuts(well, maybe a little more nuts anyway). Between getting a new passport for Fiona, booking tickets, looking for something to wear and 1001 other must do's before we leave, I feel like a Whirling Dervish.
I have bought 6 stems of fabric daffodils to take with me to give to Belle so she can use them as a bouquet (just for photographs, not the real bouquet of course) and we can tie them up with coloured ribbons, red, green and white or maybe yellow and green so as to give the photographs a Welsh feel. Any ideas?
Sleep beckons after a very tiring day

GREETINGS, HWYL, SERVUS

Yesterday was not a good day. New next-door- neighbours went out at about mid-day and it seemed as if the entire population of children from the estate descended on their garden. It seems that they are not keeping the cat and the kittens in the house but in a dog kennel in the garden. I had to go in and retrieve a dead kitten as the children would not leave them alone. One family even complained to the PDSA and they said they would collect them monday. When they returned I explained the advice given by the PDSA about keeping them indoors and keeping them warm and changing them daily . I explained that the kittens were not safe because of the cold , foxes and crows. It seems that this is the third litter for the cat but the cat doesn't seem very capable or defensive. Oh well, we will have to see what monday brings.

SUPERIOR TEMPORAL SULCUS

Or to you and me, the site in the brain where the teenage hissy-fit originates.
Last night was a quiet evening as the house was empty of all teenagers so all Superior Temporal Sulcus sites were out of action. The article that I read said that young people are unable to fully appreciate the feelings of others until they are 20>30 and that is why they hissy-fit. Nice to know it has a name. Next time Fiona starts blaspheming and shouting and paddying I shall say,' Stop your sulcus', and feed her some more energy drinks! Fiona and Ariel are at Youth convention and their Church leaders are nothing like Meredith's(Dooce's niece) leaders who are supposed to be 'cute', 'hot' or 'total babes'. I think Meredith used the term 'cute' to describe the President! Yes, I think I agree with cute, in a sweet grand-fatherly way, Brigham Young wouldn't have liked the term 'cute' but hey as they say, 'times they are a changing'.

Another early wake-up call, Beauty up about six and she watched Madagascar ON REWIND, again. So I gave her a new copy of Rapunzel that I had bought and Madagascar and Mr Chew have gone on holiday, Beauty is now sat happily watching Rapunzel, Ofal Gofal,Hobie the rabbit, Penelope the dragon and the Pansy Prince(in a MetroSexual man way), the Prince struts around like he has a pine cone in his pants. I'm lovi'n it!

Wierd kind of weather day, one moment it is overcast and then it is sunny again, I blame the government! Why? Like the goats, because I can! However it is warm enough so it can't be all bad. Warm weather and no teenagers(or men, dogs, cats) in the house, my own private Idaho.
I will definitely grow old with no men, pets or any other kind of clutter, just me and Beauty until she becomes rich and famous and flies the nest.

THE GOAT QUESTION

Did you hear the one about the Swiss guy in Canada who said he was speeding because he could and why? Because there were no goats on the roads in the same way as there were at home in Switzerland so he just wanted to see what it was like to drive fast. Well on my short trip to Switzerland I did not see any goats but then my trip was very short but how about you Anastasia and the continental family? I would have thought that here in Wales we had more of a problem with sheep than Switzerland would with goats! It is nice to see that the Swiss are as mad as the rest of us.




Early wake up call with Beauty watching Madagascar, ON REWIND!
There is a bit in the film about a psychotic poodle called Mr Chew, Mr Chew's mission is to EAT one of the penguins from the zoo. Mr Chew is more wild and scary than any of the zoo animals.



Sweet Mr Chew!














For the last week Beauty has played almost constantly with her Army Men, all I can say is that if I step on another one in the dark they have to go. Beauty is constantly drilling them and wherever you look there are rows of them. At the moment the table in her bedroom seems to be the parade ground.

Donovan - Catch the Wind

'I MAY AS WELL TRY AND CATCH THE WIND'
'HELP ME LEAVE ALL MY BLUES BEHIND'

FROM NEWBURY WITH LOVE

Last night I read about the book FROM NEWBURY WITH LOVE on the Amnesty International UK website. It is about a 15 year corespondence between a Russian fanily and a family from Newbury in Berkshire during the cold war and started because of an Amnesty letter writing campaign. It was a heart moving story and made more real because we had lived in Newbury.
Because of it, I also wept for a man I have never met and never will. Over the years I have written hundreds of letters and sent many Christmas cards through Amnesty campaigns and getting any response is a very rare occurrence. Two years ago I sent a card to a prisoner in an African jail. it was returned with Prisoner Not Known stamped on it. The prisoner was reported to have been sent to that particular jail but then disappeared and no trace of him was found. The reality of FROM NEWBURY WITH LOVE hit home and it was as if I saw the PRISONER NOT KNOWN as a real person, I could imagine I could see his face, and I suddenly knew he was dead.
And I wept.
Not for me but for his wife, his children, his parents, his family and his friends and all those who loved him.
I also wept for the dark space that existed in the hearts of those who had killed him and denied him his life.
The work that people do for Amnesty at times can be a thankless one and the effects are sometimes a long time in coming or never. If I were to write every hour of every day I feel that I would be barely scraping the surface of the problem.
I know that the program Lost is a shallow thing in comparison to the lives that I learnt about through Amnesty but two characters in Lost have confirmed my belief that there is good in the hearts of most people no matter how deep it lies. Eco and Sayid both have pasts that show them as being not such nice people but they reached the bad place in their lives slowly and were able to change. The Amnesty letter writing campaigns are there to reach people so they can know there are other ways to do things. And Amnesty is a good thing because history shows it does reach people.

HEALTHY EATING UPDATE
I am now 11st 9lbs and I have a BMI of 23, Weight Watchers say that the lowest I can be in my healthy range is 9st 13lbs so that is my goal. I need a goal to work around, when I get to my target I will still check my weight to make sure that I don't lose or gain too much.
I plan on being slim again-like I said , the Mother-of-the-Bride has to be a size 12 or less.
Wish me luck!

Whats That Coming Over The Hill?- POTC

IS IT A MONSTER?

On one of Beauty's Barney videos is a story where the small dinosaur called BJ(I tell no lie, his name is BJ) gets upset because Barney and his mates keep telling him to be careful. He thinks they are trying to stop him having fun but they tell him it is because they care about him. So Anastasia, when I tell you that my computer shows you haven't blogged for days even though you have( my pile of poo machine to blame) I say it because I was worried you might be dead in some European ditch and I am glad you are not. Well Vienna isn't the safest place in the world, all things considered!






Picture of cute monster used to protect the innocent(Ariel's monster)














Ariels first day at her new school and she seems happy, happy, happy.
She will be doing French, History, English and Politics and she insists she is going to work really very hard. She is off to see her new young man, Monster, who lives in Neath this evening.

As the poo keeps hitting the fan so Tom Cruise pulls out all the stops to get people to like him again. So what has he done now? Rolled out the baby for the sympathy vote! Hey to me it looks like Katie Holmes' ex, with a wig on! I wonder what the ex thinks? Britney claimed for as long time that she was a virgin and Katie Holmes was meant to be saving herself for her wedding day, yet with in days of dumping her ex she is pregnant with someone elses baby, oh yeh! Of course we all believe you, what do the aliens think?

WHEN I AM OLD I SHALL WEAR PURPLE

So what happened yesterday?
Well I didn't write because I felt off colour all day and I didn't know why but this morning I woke up with symptoms of an ear infection......so hopefully that is the answer for not feeling to good and normal service will be resumed.
Yesterday we found out that Steve Irwin The Crocodile Hunter had died, hey I never knew the guy but his dying was such a shock. I feel so sorry for his wife and babies and my heart goes out to them, definitely a life cut way too short. The comic Charlie Williams has also died at the age of 78, I know he was 78 but in this day and age even 78 seems too young, he deserved to enjoy a gentle old age. When I am old I will definitely wear purple and buy gloves but I don't know about the butter!

Early wake-up call. Beauty is watching Little Clifford and bouncing on her trampoline whilst wearing the dark blue velvet trilby.I am so too old for this.

'NO MATTER HOW MUCH CATS FIGHT THERE ARE ALWAYS PLENTY OF KITTENS'

COOL CAT QUOTES


'DOGS COME WHEN THEY ARE CALLED,
CATS TAKE A MESSAGE AND GET BACK TO YOU'



'IF A CAT COULD TALK TO YOU THEY WOULD LIE TO YOU'

'CATS ARE SMARTER THAN DOGS, YOU CAN'T GET EIGHT CATS TO PULL A SLED THROUGH SNOW'

'IN THE BEGINNING GOD CREATED MAN BUT SEEING HIM SO FEEBLE SHE GAVE HIM THE CAT'





It was raining last night, a positive downpour! So what did Puss the cat from next door decide to do in Beauty's house in the garden? GIVE BIRTH! For days the cat has been trying to get into my house and I had felt it was looking for somewhere to give birth. I grew up in a house with many cats so I have a little knowledge of cats and cat behaviour. I remember one cat giving birth in the airing cupboard, they look for somewhere safe and dark and warm. So that poor cat lucked out on Beauty's house, well at least they were dry. AND it gave birth on Beauty's beige and pink trilby.....I shall boil wash it but I think it is no more. Oh well! It had a good and useful life. Puss from next door had one marmalade coloured kitten like herself and 3 browney black
kittens. Fiona now wants a kitten, I told her she has Simba but that did not impress her.















Beauty slept last night from 10pm until 2.30pm. I however was still awake at 2.30pm unable to
sleep because of pain. At 5.30pm I turned the tv off and refused to allow Barney to return(I insisted Barney slept too), I insisted that Beauty get into bed with me and sleep and by 6am she was . At 10.30am she awoke YODELING.........thankfully she missed the arrival of the kittens. I would love to be able to ask my mother if I had done daft things like wake up yodeling when I was 5.

MOTHER OF THE BRIDE

SO NOT LIKE THIS!











My scales are lying again, they say I am 11st 12lbs............piece of poo!
However, I find it easier to cope with a 11st 12lbs lie than when they tell me I am 18st plus, like I said........piece of poo! I intend to go to weight watchers next wednesday, a little bit of public back slapping never did anyone any harm. Like I said, mother of the bride has to be at the least a size 12. If I am to be the mother of the bride it will not be in a sack!






Something more like this.
















Remember how Tom Cruise 'lost' his contract with his film company? Well now he has said sorry to Brooke Shields because of the things he said about her when she admitted to taking anti-depressants when she had post-natal depression. Anybody else wondering about the timing? You know,world hates me, lost my job, best lie a bit so people like me again!



















Well Brooke if it were me(but you are not and you are a lady) I would say,'Thank you vey much for the apology but I don't need it, so now s*d off you little sh*t'.
Drugs for mental health conditions are a blessing, it is a pity that not everybody realises this but if certain people went and took the meds they so obviously needed then it would stop them being nasty, spiteful and hurtful to other people.


OOPS I DID IT AGAIN!


I thought the kitcken was too crowded so I put the shelves in the back part of the kitchen. The old bench is now in the front of the kitchen and it makes the kitchen table more of a sitting area.






















Here they are, where the old bench used to be.

















View from the back of the kitchen to the back door.
















Sorry Fiona, she hates it when I change things around without her permission.