Nee Narrr Neee Narrrrrr!!!

Later on at the park

The Training Tower

Luke was in his equivalent of Disneyland today, the local Fire Station held their first Open Day for 10 years!! He has had a passion for Fire Engines and Fire Fighters since his was about 2 and every time we go to the local "Big Park" he asks me to drive around the back of the fire station so that he can see the huge Practice Tower and the Engines parked up. He's sat in numerous Engines over the past few years and the local Fire Fighters always wave at him when they drive past as they have started to recognise him as the little boy that asks them numerous questions about the equipment and what it does. He's actually become really quite knowledgeable about it all now.

So, Richard and I took him along today and it was really enjoyable also all the money raised went to their charity so it was all in a good cause too. Fabulous stuff!!

Later this afternoon, we went to the park and Luke decided to don his fireman outfit ....

Home Alone??

Lukey Sam is poorly at the moment, been peekly for a few days, knew that he was coming down with something as he has been very tetchy and tired also picking at his food. Consequently, I couldn't let him go to his school Link club on Wednesday as he was really wheezy and had a bit of a temperature. Mum offered to come to the house to look after him while I was at work in the morning, so great of her as even though he is sick he is still somehow able to play Power Rangers/Star Wars/Spiderman and various other superhero games which is very tiring after an hour. Told mum I was going to call the doctor from work and get an appointment for him, so off I went.

Of course, trying to get through to the surgery is like trying to get an audience with the Pope, finally got through and all the appointments for that day were taken, told the receptionist it was for Luke and that he is asthmatic so really could do with seeing someone. "We'll get the Duty Doc to call your house this afternoon" she said. Rang mum to tell her that someone will be calling.

Got home from work that afternoon, mum was looking slightly stressed. "What's up?" I asked. Turns out, Luke had come wandering through talking on the phone to the kitchen where she was making a cuppa.

"no, mummy's at work" he told the person on the phone "me, I'm watching tv, no I'm alright, I've been playing with my toys and just had a bagel"

At this point mum worked out he wasn't just playing with the handset and was actually talking to someone as she could hear a high pitched anxious sounding voice

"no, I just said you can't talk to mummy she's at work"

Mum managed to grab the phone, of course it was the doctor who by now was convinced he'd been abandoned at home while I was at work. She reasssured her that all was ok.

When I took him to see said doctor that evening, while she was examining him and telling me that he had a chest infection and could do with penicillin he told her in a very hoity toity voice

"I did say that I wasn't well a couple of days ago and that I could do with seeing the doctor" . Ok, he is telling the truth but really didn't need it just at that moment. Bless him (through gritted teeth).

We took him to Victoria Park this afternoon for a bit of fresh air, had a good time as you can see ....

The Project!

Can't believe Luke is due to start his new school year next week, been running around town picking up his new uniform and dreading the bit where I have to sit inking and pressing his name and class into every single bit of it (HATE THAT JOB). S'funny really, when he was a baby (last month, surely?) I used to sit daydreaming about when he was at school and how I would lovingly iron every bit of his uniform and handstitch his name into all the little bits and pieces .... yeah right, now I drip dry stuff so that I don't have to iron it and attack all the individual items with a laundry marker before sealing the ink with the iron. !!!! So slack, but in my defence you speak to all the other mums in the playground, even the ones that look sooooo together and we all do the same thing.

And another thing, he was given a project to do this summer by his new teacher (lovely lady), I say he was given a project but really I think I was given a project as it was a scrapbook which he had to fill with all the fun stuff he was doing over the summer holidays, oh yes, he could stick pictures, leaflets, photos and write descriptions/diary entries about what he was doing!!! EXCUSE ME!!!! this is a just turned 5 year old we are talking about, it takes him 5 minutes to write his entire name and that is if he is in the mood for it. Yep, strangely enough sitting writing detailed descriptions/diary entries about his day and sticking stuff in a book is not high in Luke's order of priority at the moment, in fact it probably is right there between taking a bath and taking his antihistimine medicine. Consequently, I have been stressed about this since oooh day one of the summer hols. Didn't really help that Rich and myself only had one week off work with him and the rest of the time he has been at his school Link club. So, we had a day out at Knowsley Safari Park (very very good) and some days at the beach (he nearly drowned at West Kirkby!). Also, we didn't have a digital camera either, so we couldn't pad it out with loads of photos either (until now of course).

So, I have now stuck my leaflets, drawing that Luke did, collage that we both did of a beach scene and other assorted items in the scrap book while Luke watched, fascinated by the amount of PVA glue that I got in my hair and on my hands. I have taken a few pictures on the digital camera that we had to buy in order to pad the book out and am now waiting to catch Luke in the right mood so that he can write a few bits about what a great time he had.

By the way, in case anyone is interested, scrunched up rice crispies glued to paper make great fake sand.

The photo is of Luke at the Big Park in Runcorn, he learnt how to swing himself this summer, there you go another thing for my scrapbook!!

Snap Shot

Here it, is a pic of Luke taken before bed tonight, ok it's very grainy, but hey at least it's a picture of the little tyke. I know he looks a bit shall we say unimpressed but I've posted it anyway. Note to Em, do you recognise anyone asleep on the bed? Yes, it's Jonas, he loves that little guy.

More soon.

I'm Loving It!

Work is really great, am so enjoying it and feel very fortunate, it is so wonderful to not be doing something and finding myself clock watching. The time goes really fast as well, sometimes I don't even realise that it has gone 2.30 and should be on my way home to pick Luke up from school. Of course, it helps that the people I work with are lovely (not just talking about the husband here). Our department are moving upstairs to next week so I will be working on the same floor as Richard which will be a tad strange as I often forget that we are in the same building but, it is all good ... oh and my contract has been extended until September (at least) so I must be doing something right.

Talking of Richard, he has been off work ill with Pneumonia (eek), he hasn't been well for a couple of months and has kept on pushing himself at work, so consequently the doctor ordered him to take time off to rest and consume huge quantities of strong antibiotics. He looks as though he is picking up now though and is hoping to return to work next week.

Luke seems to have decided to become a troublesome little monkey at the moment, he is being really cheeky and stubborn (think it is the prospect of becoming 5 in a few months). He is an angel at school and then as soon as I collect him at 3.00 (feeling knackered and not best equipped to handle a stroppy sproglet) he decides to turn into the child from hell. Still, he knows that he is being a little sod, as when he drives me to point of near screaming and tearing hair out in utter frustration he then turns to me and says "mummy I'm being horrible aren't I, do you still love me?" Aaargh!! So, I go all forgiving and mushy (grateful that he has returned to something akin to a human child again) and then, .... he becomes a little git again. Talk about a bloody rollercoster of emotion.

Still, at least I get to wear heels during the day.

Sleeeeeeepppp!!!

Am chucking a sickie today, am soooooo tired, couldn't sleep a wink last night, was lying in bed looking at the clock which appeared to be mocking me, 2.00am it glowed at me, oh no, only 4 hours until I have to get up, 4.00am it beamed, 2 hours before I have to get up and so on ..... So, Rich insisted I stay home, he is going to let them know that I would be a complete liability if they let me in work, I would probably suggest that a pharmacist go on a cycling proficiency course or something of that ilk so, I will stay home and feel totally guily instead. Am going to say awake though, apparantly if I succumb to the sleep monster it will render me incapable of sleeping tonight so I will just put up with the hot gritty sand feeling in my eyes, the welling of nausea in my tum and potter around the house scowling at the cats (who are currently asleep upside down in their beds). I did email my cousin Emily in New York to let her know but her Out Of Office Reply just flashed up, I look at the clock and realise that Emily is currently snuggled under her duvet sound asleep .......... grrrrrrrrr, I mean, how lovely for her (carefully replacing the phone and deciding against calling her to let her know).

Work is going really well (apart from my unexpected asbsence today), am enjoying the whole learning experience, finding it very interesting and love the dressing up in girl clothes bit. Very funny though how the mums and teachers at school doubletake when they see me sometimes. I drop Luke off in my usual comfy stuff and then pick him up in smart office clothes, they sort off blink and go "oooh look at you", or rather it was funny the first couple of times now I just think "do I really look so crap normally?"

Luke is doing really well and loves his school, he is growing up so quickly now though, and it panics me a bit, can't quite get my head around the fact that he isn't a baby anymore. "I would love a brother or sister" he announced yesterday, "really?" I replied getting all emotional/hormonal/excited, "yeah, but if it went into my room, I'd pick it up and just chuck it onto the landing" he said. "It's not a cat, it's a baby" I calmy informed him, "What's with all this 'it's' " he said looking at me closely, "you're not pregnant are you?" "nooooo" I sighed. He enjoys looking at the blogs of my cousins too, I often find him peering at pictures of their children and he loves playing the videos that are sometimes posted. In fact, the other day he said "now mummy see Graham, that is his sister Stephanie," "no Luke that is his mummy" "but she is pretty, how can she be his mummy?" Rightyoh then .....

The Office!

The reason for my lack of blogginess lately has been due to the fact that I've been working (outside the home). It was pretty much sprung on me by Richard, his boss suggested that he call me regarding a 3 month position that had become available downstairs in the Training and Recruitment department, they would consider part time hours (9.30 - 2.30) so within 48 hours I had been interviewed and then started work. It was pretty good actually that it happened so quickly as I didn't really have time to get nervous, although, it didn't really help much that when I got out of the car for the interview Rich, his boss and the rest of the Locum Board (it's a pharmaceutical company) were waving enthusiastically at me from their windows.

So here I am, typing this on Sunday whilst tea is cooking, Rich is playing with Luke upstairs whilst I try to update you on the recent happenings.

Got to say though, I really am enjoying being back at work, there is loads to learn (mostly about training qualifications for pharmacy staff and the paperwork that goes with it), the people are really friendly, the offices are soooooo posh, and I am choosing to ignore the fact that there is a rather handsome bloke who works on the Locum Board upstairs for fear of getting too distracted!

Of course, the rather attractive salary comes in useful too, for all those new essentials that I now require i.e. GIRL CLOTHES!!!!

It is really hard though to get used to not having any time during the day for housework etc., as I drop Luke at school, go to work, finish work and then collect him, also Luke is absolutely shattered when he comes home so I can't really drag him out to do chores like bill paying so will have to rethink the old schedule a bit. Luke likes me collecting him from school in my work suits as well, he calls them my "uniforms", think it's a novely at the moment for him.

I know this post is a tad sketchy but will try and be bit more detailed next time (can hear Luke singing "shake it like a polaroid picture" at the moment - very funny!).