It's Christmas Time

Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells... Things are suddenly all go, with Christmas songs being a daily essential! It seems like I've not got a spare minute to pee, never mind blog at the moment, between marzipan-ing mini Christmas cakes, putting together the hampers for our Home Made Christmas, working all the hours I have childcare & trying to keep the house in a reasonable state of affairs. And when I thought I had plenty of time for the usual Christmas prep, we're suddenly just hours away! (Breathe, Amy, breathe...)

Between the madness of life, we have managed to embrace some of the Christmas cheer. From Christmas jumper day, to the boys nursery party and festive bedtime stories, we're definitely feeling a little bit jolly in our household. We actually put our tree up on the 30th of November and despite the fact the bottom of it is permanently bare, it has remained standing - some sort of miracle with two toddlers! John is particularly excited by the thought of putting the lights on in the morning, as well as getting his advent calender chocolates.

Things have been quite obviously quiet here on Diddle Diddle Dumpling due to the festivities but I've big plans for this little blog in 2015. For now though, I expect we'll remain a little quiet as we spend Christmas together as a family but I'll no doubt be back in a week or so with plenty of photos & stories to tell.

Happy Christmas, everyone!

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Christmas Jumper Day 2014

Ho ho ho! I do love me a Christmas Jumper, particularly when it comes to the boys. Today is Christmas Jumper Day, with Save The Children. The boys actually wore their jumpers for nursery yesterday, as they were running the occasion over two days and John & David are at home with me on Friday. Nonetheless, they loved putting on their festive jumpers which Granny & Papa kindly got them from Asda earlier this week. I think they'll even be making a return for the nursery Christmas party and Christmas day itself. Now to convince Iain that we should totally get Christmas Jumpers for ourselves too...

John & David both do look incredibly cute in them (even if the only way to get John to pose for photos is to bribe him with Jazzles...) but one thing's for sure, these jumpers have nothing on the Snowman jumpers knitted by my Granny that me and my sisters used to wear! REMEMBER, KIRSTY & HOLLY! I wish we still had them for the boys to wear when they're a bit bigger...

Christmas jumpers: Love them or loathe them?

You can donate to the Save The Children Christmas Jumper Day via the Save The Children website too!

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This Is Halloween!

Happy Halloween! Today was pretty much like any other day, aside from John's hour-long Halloween party at nursery & taking the time to snap some photos are our moderately decorated door. Both boys are still a bit young to really grasp the concept of Halloween and as we live in a flat [& are the only kids in the block] it's not like we even have any guisers stopping by either. That being said, I love any excuse to dress up the boys and get a few photos! Even if John still couldn't decide which of his ever-growing costume selection he actually wanted to wear when we had to leave for his party. He even swayed towards his Spider costume from last year before settling on the Gruffalo, which was a generous gift from my friend Hannah.

As for the pumpkins, when a 2 year old asks you for a Thomas The Tank Engine pumpkin, you make him a Thomas The Tank Engine pumpkin! And I promise you this, I won't ever make another Thomas The Tank Engine pumpkin again. What a faff! Also, how fab is the door hanger that my little sister bought the boys from Ivy Cottage Designs? Perfectly accurate for these two little Monsters!

Treat or Treat!

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Living Arrows 36/52.

So we all know that David enjoys stealing John's cars. But surprisingly, John isn't too keen on the idea. His solution? Play with them right back on the sofa where David can't reach him. And regardless of that fact, scream and shout at David if he even so much as glances at a car. At least he'll throw a less desirable toy at David in an attempt to distract him... Not quite what I meant by "sharing with your little brother" though, son.

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Living Arrows 35/52.

Generally, John is a great big brother. He sings to David, he cuddles him, he feeds him ice cream & sweeties... But one thing he isn't so great at is sharing his toys, in particular, his cars. Which is a shame as David appears to be following in his big brothers foot steps and falling in lovely with anything that has wheels.

So the minute John is away, sleeping or his back is turned, David is into the car box like a shot. He hauls each car out, one at a time, spinning the wheels & chatting away to himself. Baby is in his element. Hopefully once David gets some new cars for himself at his birthday & Christmas, John will be more keen to play with the cars as a twosome. Either that or David's car will suddenly become John's too...

Until next week,

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Living Arrows 34/52.

Gah. These two. Even when I feel like poop & can't speak (thank you, tonsillitis...), they still make me smile. Around this time last year I was hitting the worrisome stage of pregnancy - the part where I wonder if having another baby was actually the best thing for John. Did he really want a baby brother? Did he really want someone to share his Mummy & his cars with? Did he really want someone taking the spotlight away from him?

A year on, I know the answer; Worrying about such things was 100%, without a doubt, completely pointless. A year on and we - especially John - cannot imagine our lives as a family of 3. We're 4 - we've always meant to have been 4. John was always meant to be a big brother and he's taken that role in his stride.

And David, he is the doting little brother. He quite literally hates it when John's not around. God forbid he wakes up from naptime before John, otherwise we're subject to a cranky, moany baby, doing everything in his power to get into his big brothers room. And don't even get me started on those days that John's at nursery without him!

Then, on the week when I'm parenting with no voice, David starts pulling himself up on his cot, ready to greet John in the morning. John of course, is happy to see David so eagerly awaiting him, starting another day as a family of 4, with a kiss & a cuddle. As if my motherly heart could take any more!

Until next week,

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Living Arrows 33/52.

This picture pretty much sums up David at present. My usually happy chappy is currently a complete grump! I think it's teething but it could also be to do with the fact his sleep has been rubbish & his nose has not stopped running! Basically, he's just not himself of late.

It's not all bad though! He's now mastered pulling himself up & is starting to take some side-steps towards cruising. It does mean that nothing is safe now but John is very impressed by the fact his little brother is now upright. I'll be more impressed about it when David's happy about it too. And when he's not up every hour of the night. It is Monday, right?

Until next week,

P.S. I'm having some issues replying to blog comments at the moment but I am reading & mentally replying to all! Hopefully I'll figure out the problem ASAP & have it fixed sooner rather than later.

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Living Arrows 32/52

This kid, he's a whirlwind. From the moment he wakes to the moment he goes back to bed, he literally does not stop. His energy is endless & his charm is ever present. So when his temperature rises & the cuddles commence, you know something isn't right with him.

Of course, despite the fact he's barely had a sniffle this year, he was feeling pretty sorry for himself the week I return to work. It started with the heavy eyes & trailing feet on Wednesday and then the temperature rising and not wanting to go to nursery on Thursday. By Thursday night it was game over - kid was well & truly ill.

He was like a hot water bottle, with a temperature that even Calpol couldn't touch. As he snuggled into me & lay across me for the entire night, not managing more than 30 minute stretches at time... Occasionally crying out and talking in his sleep ("no - no, Panda...", "John draw pictures..."), looking for comfort & reassurance each time he woke... It was just like when he was a little baby, snuggled in to his Mummy & Daddy; the only thing that would really make him feel better & bring him back to his whirlwind self.

Until next week,

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Siblings #8.

I love this photo. It's from a series of similar photos of David smiling at the camera & John scowling or looking in a obscure direction. This one however, despite John's face being covered, is the best of the bunch. Why? Well because it looks like David is casually sitting beside the Cookie Monster!

But really, this photo is pretty relevant to these two boys. One smiling, contented, always-chilled-out baby, who'll happily sit in front of his snap-happy Mummy for as long as she wants. One bored, distracted, not-at-all-interested toddler, who'd much rather be chasing birds or picking flowers for his little brother to eat.

Of course, I'd rather have two little boys that enthusiastically embrace their mamarazzi Mum, but I don't. And this photo captures the reality of that perfectly. (Plus there's the fact John's hat covers his pasta covered face that I didn't wipe beforehand, knowing there'd be no chance of any photos if I did! Again, reality...).

See our Siblings in...
January. // February. // March. // April. // May. // June. // July.

Until next month,

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Living Arrows 31/52.

There's some days with kids that are pretty bloody tough. Days when nothing out the ordinary happens but when the daily grind takes it's toll on all of you. Last week started off this way. John was having tantrum after tantrum, David was moaning for unbeknown reasons & I was shouting more than usual from pure frustration of the whole situation. The solution? Nursery Park.

It's a lovely wee park just around the corner from the boys nursery, one which John has recently become obsessed with. Generally, it's pretty quiet but often we'll arrive to find the nursery is already there, taking advantage of the park on their doorstep. John loves it when this happens, although he'll never stray far my side to play with the other kids. Maybe because he thinks I might leave him...? But I like to think it's because he doesn't want his little brother to be left playing on his own.

Until next week,

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Living Arrows 30/52

That damned bike, it has been sitting in my kitchen for the past few months. Many times I've stubbed my toe on it, many times I've had a handle bar in the ribs. But John (& Daddy, obviously) loves it. Kid is quickly seeing the same magic in downhill mountain biking that his Daddy also sees. From "fixing Daddy's bike" and wanting to try on "Daddy's bike hat", too insisting on having a shot of riding it too - although not yet down a hill! Without a doubt, we'll be those parents that spend the day at the bottom of the hill, praying our boys come down in one piece.
Oh, and hurrah for Jayfest now passing & the bike being stored away! A great day out though; you can see some of Iain's photos from the day on the Innerleithen Downhill Facebook page.

Until next week,

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Photography Workshop in Glasgow.

"Some Edinburgh people think they'll be stabbed in Glasgow." And everyone laughed. That was me. I'm one of those Edinburgh folk that thinks they'll be stabbed in Glasgow. I don't even know why I think that - I've spent plenty time there over the years, working & occasionally shopping, but I still have this irrational fear that Glasgow is a scary place! That being said, when I received an email from Joe Blogs Network asking if I'd like to attend a Photography Workshop with Millennium Hotel a few weeks ago, right on Glasgow's George Square, I left my Weegie-land fear at home in Edinburgh.

At the beginning of 2014, I vowed to improve my photography and as part of that, I became obsessed with learning how to use my DSLR. I can proudly say since then, I've not reverted back to the Auto Settings. Do I know what I'm actually doing? Not even slightly! I treat my camera a lot like I did Tekken - press various buttons, in various sequences & hope for the best! Sometimes it works, often it doesn't... So a day with the knowledgeable Stuart Dreghorn (& his lovely assistant, Hamish) couldn't have come at a better time.

So on the Saturday morning, once we finally convinced John to put trousers on(...), Iain dropped me at Waverley Station & I headed west to Glasgow Queen Street. After a Grande Strawberries & Cream Frappucino (that I didn't need to share!) and a quick pumping session in the train station loos (#mumlife), I went in search of the Millennium Hotel, only to find it was right on the Queen Street Station door step; so for the first time in two years I was not only on time, but early!

The workshop itself was fantastic. We went spent the morning going over the basics of moving away from using Auto and I actually surprised myself with how much I already knew - great reassurance that my self-teaching ways aren't heading in the completely wrong direction, even if it does involve a lot of button pressing. The entire workshop was really hands on, taking time to explore the Millennium Hotel & practise some portraiture photography on other bloggers, as well as seeing the affects of different shutter speeds thanks to a remote controlled helicopter. At lunchtime we had a break in the Millennium Hotel brassiere with a lovely Scottish inspired lunch and I got to talk about blogging with real human people! (Y'know, because I've actually wondered if other bloggers are real people or something else...). Then in the afternoon we headed out, cameras in hand.

We started in George Square, where the Commonwealth Games sculpture is currently stood, then headed around to Royal Exchange Square to get some photos of The Duke of Wellington statue, complete with his cone on-head. Finally we wandered around to jam-packed shopping central that is Buchanan Street. And thankfully, despite taking umbrellas as a precaution, the rain held off. I'm really quite pleased with the photos I got and I now realise Glasgow is actually quite a nice city, filled with great people - although I do still think I'm going to be stabbed...

And of course, the obligatory group bloggers photo. Courtesy of Joe Blogs Network.

You can also see what the hosts, Millennium Hotels have to say about the day by clicking here.

Happy snapping,

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Hello Summer.

Things have been a little bit quiet here on Diddle Diddle Dumpling. Life has gotten a bit mad recently and at the end of the day, I've been too exhausted to entertain the idea of sitting in front of a computer screen and instead have been trying to catch up on house work & spending some time in front of the TV with Iain. But despite not having much to say, life has been by no means quiet. In fact, lots has been going on...

Lets start with John. The all singing, all dancing, refusing to nap at all, toddler. He can now count to 10 although he's still a little young to really understand what a number is. He often disappears to play in his room where you'll then hear a chorus of, "ba-ba back sheep, shedder wool." (I know, I know - but he's only 2...) Other songs include Twinkle Twinkle, Incy Wincy Spider & the Fireman Sam theme tune.
He's also completely potty trained now, only wearing nappies at night time and he's even dry for naps. However, his naps have become non-existent of late, much to my dismay...
In typical toddler fashion, he's also starting to push boundaries - majorly! After a bit of consideration we've decided to implement "Time Out" à la Supernanny Naughty Step (we're in a flat & don't have steps). At the moment it's being used in situations such as biting, hitting, upsetting David (he's developed this high pitched screech which he uses to make David cry when he doesn't want him to do something...) & refusing to help tidy up. And so far it's been pretty positive! He has grasped the concept and even remembers certain things will lead to Time Out; like picking the neighbours flowers. (NB. These aren't our neighbours flowers - this was the park!).

Then there's David - the biggest thing in David's life right now is starting nursery! He's still doing his settling in days but so far he seems to be enjoying it. I was a little worried as despite him being the happiest, most laid back baby in existence, he's never really spent any time away from me but thankfully he's taken it in his stride.
He's now mastered the sniper crawl and gets around our house with ease but hopefully seeing the other babies at nursery crawling will be enough to be him up onto his knees. He's also loving solid food - particular favourites being nectarines, sausages, pizza & ice cream (thanks, Granny...). And he has two teeth now to help him discover even more foodie delights. David's also taken to babbling away to himself, telling some great wee stories - he particularly loves when John repeats them back to him.
Sleep however? What is 'sleep'? Naps are great for David - he has at least 3 decent ones a day but he's still up at least 3 times a night. Thankfully he settles right after a quick breastfeed but it doesn't make it any less exhausting. He have taken the plunge and pop him right into his cot & ended full-time co-sleeping. But he won't be joining John in the other room until he starts sleeping a little better.

As for me? Well, I've been feeling a little lost lately; not sure who I am, other than "Mummy". It has come at a practical time however, as I'll be heading back to the world of work in a few weeks time, meaning I can have my 'days off' from being Mum and spend some time being Amy; talking to actual adults, who don't bite & who talk about things other than Fireman Sam (because no matter how great Sam is, sometimes I've just got to talk about something else...).

To try & help with my rut I've decided to start buying myself some new pieces of clothing and I've also been trying to give my straighteners a rest & embrace my natural hair. I've discovered the Curly Girl Method and I'm slowly having some success with it, although it's still very much trial & error. My skin on the other hand is absolutely atrocious. I have horrendous cystic acne that is not only affecting my confidence in my appearance but is agony too. It's getting me so down that I've made an appointment with the doctor later this week in hopes that they'll be able to help somehow, although I'm not holding my breath as I don't think there's much hope as long as I'm breastfeeding. 
And I finally finished the Couch to 5K a couple of weeks ago! (Whoop!) I'm now aiming to run at least 5k, a minimum of least twice a week, with hopefully upping the ante once this heat wave passes. Oh and it was my birthday on Tuesday! We celebrated with a trip to the park for a picnic & to feed the ducks, camera in hand to practice some new skills I've recently learnt (more on that later...). So here we are & Hello to 24.

So now you know what's been going on with us... How're you?

Happy summertime,

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