Musings - I know...

I know that it is New Year's Eve and I should be discussing the round up of 2011 and my aspirations for 2012 but I am not going to.

Instead I am going to show you some magic ducks that change colour depending on the water temperature. Aren't they cool?


Tomorrow, now that is when I am going to entice you into my plan of action to collect a whole load of 2012 moments that can become my memoirs :) xx


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Musings - Gone too soon...

I have done it again! Fallen in love with a TV series only to find that it has been cancelled after the first season.


A fantastic show that has reaffirmed my appreciation of Joseph Fiennes, made me view Claire Forlani is a better light and introduced me to Jamie Campbell Bower as a new and exceptional star.

With only two episodes left I am starting to feel a little sad.

So give me some ideas on what I can watch next? :) xx

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Photo - Trend Setter...

Today we are having our second Christmas, the day we have all the trimmings once again when our best friend comes over to celebrate.

This year she brought this hat...


Do you think I could start a new trend? :) xx

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Musings - A lazy afternoon...

Some of my best days growing up were watching a film in my parents living room, the rain outside, the fire inside, and marshmallows and chocolates to hand.

Today we are having one of those afternoons and the film of choice is one that Katharine got in her Christmas stocking.


Have you seen it?

What were your lazy afternoon movies? :) xx


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Photo - Bath time...

When I have a shower I am in and out, no messing, no standing under the water for half an hour... I get in, get wet, get washed, get rinsed, get dry.

My daughter on the other hand has a million (almost) new bath toys, each of which had to be in the bath all at once. So bath time took a WHILE!

Buy at least I had a blue penguin to keep me company. :) xx


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Photo - For another year...

Well, that's it all done for another year. The turkey has been gobbled, the chocolates scoffed and the branded fizzy fruit juices sipped until the bottle is dry.

All that is left is to find somewhere for all the toys to go and recover from all the action.


Next is New Years Eve, the night when you drink too much to welcome in another year in which you will have big plans that never reach their realisation.

Will you stick to your resolutions? :) xx

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Musings - Merry Christmas...

An hour! Our daughter is only eight months old and it took an hour to open all of her presents. She is one spoilt little monster.

This is her in her Christmas dressing gown...


And this is her after all the wrapping paper was torn and the many many toys were scattered around the living room...


Katharine officially loves christmas even if it makes her yawn.

And as such we would all like to wish you a very Merry Christmas and a fantastic New Year. :) xx

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Photo - Starting early...

On Christmas day Katharine has so many presents to open that we thought she could have one early.

Courtesy of Uncle Tim and Auntie Kat. :) xx





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Photo - Dressed to impress...

So far I have dressed Katharine in some lovely little outfits but never any that have been fully complete. Today I mastered it!

Hat, dress and shoes that all matched and are covered in apples. I am unsure whether it's more hilarious than cute... What do you think? :) xx








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Photo - Getting in the spirit...

My Mother and father can't resist a bargain... This cute little Santa hat cost them just 50p at their local supermarket.

Great or what? ;) xx


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Photo - Our family knows...

Our family knows it is Christmas when the mince pies are ready for the oven. :) xx


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Photo - Erm, is that ball yours?...

Poor Rohan, she has to share her toys whether she likes it or not. :) xx


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Photo - One rule for one...

The husband is always telling me not to let Katharine play with my iPhone and for the most part I don't... Sometimes she grabs it before I release but as yet she has only ever managed to ring her Uncle Tim.

Yesterday I managed to snap this photo, Daddy and Daughter playing Tap Zoo on Daddy's iPhone.

Tut! One rule for one and one for another ha ha. They look cute though. :) xx


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Photo - Leaning for a listen...

Yesterday morning we got out a book and sat on the bed for a read. How cute is this? :) xx


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Photo - Fancy a drink?...

I am sat in the pub, having lunch, and this is the photo on the front of the cocktail menu.

It's a shame that the woman isn't a strapping young shirtless fella because for sure I would be ordering an Apple Mojoto. :) xx


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Photo - Poor monkey...

I think the photo tells its own story... :) xx


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Musings - Mama Kat's Workshop (15th December 2011)

If you had to marry a celebrity... who would you choose and why?

What a fantastic question! I decided this week, with such a dilemma, to put some serious thought in to my answer of which celebrity I would marry. I started to consider many things...

* What are they famous for?
* Are they rich? (As a celebrities wife I am going to need some work done ha ha)
* What would being their wife involve?
* Are they interesting (I love Shakespeare but I don't think I could have married him)

Then I realised... I am way too shallow to take this question seriously... it HAS to be about the looks!

So I thought about what I would like a potential celebrity husband to look like (the irony is not lost on me that I love curly hair and my husband in bald)...

* Dark curly hair
* Steady piercing eyes
* The potential for a good beard.

Here are my contenders...

Rupert Young

Angus MacFadyen

Mark Ruffalo

 Eric Bana

Alex O'Loughlin

The only problem I have now is that I can't decide between them! I guess I will have to do an Elizabeth Taylor and marry them all in turn, divorce them all in turn and then start back at the beginning again.

Actually, I will leave the decision up to you... who would you pick for me? :) xx

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Musings - Becoming our parents...

Have I ever mentioned that my parents are crazy? Daft as a brush? Mad as a box of frogs? Yeah well they are... And here is an example...

A few years ago my mother bought a little snowman with a hat on to sit on the top of the sofa at Christmas. The year after she bought a penguin to be his friend. But the penguin was naked...

And my mother being the funny nutty woman that she is thought the penguin might be sad that the snowman had an outfit...

So she made one. :)





Is that the silliest but cutest thing you have ever seen?

The worse thing is... that is so something I would do too! :) xx

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Musings - All those toys...

Those of you that have kids will know what I mean when I say that toys cost a fortune and somehow the house gets full of them.

Katharine is only eight months old but she too has an abundance of primary coloured singing plastic goodies. And after Christmas she will no doubt have a ton more.

So even though she is not short of things to play with... Why is my slipper so fascinating!? :) xx


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Photo - Free Sample...

Don't you just love companies and their free samples... Look what we got today! :) xx


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Photo - Breakfast with the King...

Apparently Katharine has reached the age where we can give her some well cooked egg.

So as we watch King Arthur and Merlin strut their stuff on the television we will be eating some scrambled egg and buttery toast cubes. :) xx


(from a Little Miss Naughty plate)


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Photo - Let it snow, let it snow...

I just had to tell you... we are sat in the car singing at the top of our lungs! :) xx


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Photos - Glamming it up...

I love Christmas, the snow, the singing, the presents, the love... And the decorations!

Here is a little glimpse of what our house looks like this year... :) xx

The Fireplace.

A tiny bit of the tree.

Musings - Mama Kat's Workshop (8th December 2011)

Blast from the past: What were you writing about this time last year? What has changed since last year...

This time last year I hadn't updated my blog for a while. I was finally pregnant!

And during the first four or five months of my pregnancy I was really superstitious. Every time I came to write about it, I couldn't and then I found that I went months without visiting Memoirs of Existence because I felt that leaving out my big news was a kin to lying about what was happening in my life... and that just felt weird.

So I avoided blogging, until Christmas when I summed up the year! :)

So as you can imagine, and due to the fact that I post every day now, this time this year has completely changed from last. So let me sum it up... :)

* I FINALLY HAVE A BABY!
* We aren't snowed in yet, just a few flurries of snow that have not stuck.
* I am off work on maturnity leave so am able to watch all the day time Christmas movies.

* We have a pile of presents (ready to send to Santa of course) for Katharine.
* I am enjoying life for what feels like the first time in four years.
* I am taking part in an excellent workshop.

And...
* I now have a little someone I can sing Christmas Carols to who can't as yet tell me to shut up! :) xx

So come on... join in and tell us about your Christmas... http://www.mamakatslosinit.com/

Photo - Patiently waiting...

Say the phrases 'who is coming' or 'go to the window' and our pooch will run and dive up on to the window sill.

Today, and I feel guilty about it, I said 'father Christmas is coming soon' but all Rohan heard was the word coming and off she went... That was over an hour ago and even though it is now getting dark she won't leave her post.

I don't have the heart to tell her she is gonna be sat there another two weeks. :) xx


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Photo - Snow on the hill...

We live on a hill which means that while the rest of the village gets sunshine we can be covered in snow.

Like this morning for instance, my Mother who lives half a mile down the road has green grass but us lot higher up have a good inch of the White stuff. :) xx


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Musings - Curling...

Okay, so today I had the big idea that I wanted to make my hair a little curly. It's naturally wavy but where is the fun in that ha ha.

I bought a hair wand, that is what I am trying to tell you.


And I have no idea how to use it.

I thought it would be easy but a mad crazy mop on my head and two burns screams otherwise. Sob.

I guess this blog post is a cry for help... I need a curling wand Yoda... Wanna be it? :) xx

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Photo - Lights, my camera...

I mentioned last week that the town centre had switched on its Christmas lights. Yesterday was the first time I had been shopping long enough for it to get so dark I could appreciate them.

So here is a photo of just a little section to make you feel all festive. :) xx


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Musings - Three today...

Anyone who has a dog knows that they are part of the family. And anyone with this additional family member knows that a furry birthday just has to be celebrated. :)

Today our little Rohan Galadriel (kennel name Sweet Little Tinkerbell) turned three. Presents filled with things that squeaked and things that are chewable currently litter the master bed where we are having an early morning birthday cuddle before a birthday walk and a birthday trip to the grandparents.

So HAPPY BIRTHDAY ROHAN!!!! I hope that Katharine lets go of your new toys long enough for you to get a play in. :) xxxxxxxx


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Photo - Facial changes...

Finally she is starting to look a little like me! Not that I don't love her looking like Kieran, I do, I just wanted to see a bit of me on there...

Other than the nutty personality of course. :) xx


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Musings - Mama Kats Workshop (1st December 2011)

Wanna have some writing fun? Check out www.mamakatslosinit.com!

Today Mama Kat is asking us about ourselves, asking for a list of this and that and those and them. So here goes...

5 Things you don't know about me...
* I have a new celebrity crush every other week.
* My favourite flower is anything shaped like a daisy.
* I got married in an ivory dress but wore pink shoes. :)
* As a teenager I had so many posters on my  bedroom walls that there was not an inch of wallpaper visible.
* I write with my left hand but do everything else with my right.

5 Things I am knowledgeable about...
* How to make the perfect Mocha Coffee without the use of a fancy machine.
* The art of reading even in the most distracting of places.
* Film trivia... who starred in what and the nonsence and what not.
* Okay... I am struggling with this one?
* And this one! I will no doubt think of something in the wee hours and think darn it! :)

5 Things I know nothing about...
* The art of fly fishing.
* Tuning a guitar even though I claim to play one.
* Politics (and I am not even going to try).
* The appeal of Brad Pitt. I just dont get it!
* The engine of my car, I have a husband for that... right?

5 Things I believe...
* Our lives are merely following a pre-determined path.
* That while I grew my baby, the Angel Gabriel nurtured her soul.
* The egg came before the chicken.
* I am a reincarnated soul and I have been 'here' many times before.
* That Great Britian is sadly going to the dogs.


So that's me... :) xx

Observation - Let's talk about sex...

A couple of days ago I overheard a conversation between two women, I'd say they were in their mid-thirties. It went like this...

Woman 1: Sex with my husband is like being the only adult at a children's party?
Woman 2: Oh, why?
Woman 1: I am never there to have fun and just end up cleaning up the mess afterwards.

Needless to say I was roaring with laughter but in that silent way where you pray you won't get caught. :) xx

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Photo - With a little help

Okay, so I stood her up but the point is that she stayed stood up all on her own. :) xx


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Photo - Christmas wrapping...

I made a start today... On all the presents that I have to wrap in time for Christmas. Well, in time for this weekend when they need to be delivered to the in laws.

I love the wrapping part with all the ribbon and the bows.

So what do you think? Good job so far? :) xx


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Musings - Not something you see...

Over the last couple of weeks I have been doing my
Christmas shopping, mostly in the high street with a little online for the specifically personalised gifts. I love it, the whole hustle and bustle of it.

Yesterday Halifax turned on it's Christmas lights. We didn't see it, it was too cold and rainy to hang around for the mystery guest who turned out to be a soap star who just happens to live up the road (coughs, cop out). But we did get to see the mini Santa parade.

Have you ever seen Bad Santa? Well this year Halifax was trying to give Billy Bob Thornton a run for his money. A skinny Santa in a tired part missing costume is not that festive!

He was pulled on a sleigh though, by two beautiful Reindeer. Such amazing soulful eyes.


Now in our sleepy Yorkshire town, that is not something you see every day. :) xx

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Photo - Grey Day in Yorkshire...

Did I ever tell you that my favourite colour is grey? I love grey eyes, my new grey car and stormy clouds. This morning I am sat in the supermarket car park and I just had to share this view with you. :) xx


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MOTW - Keanu Reeves...

It's been a LONG time since I logged a Man Of The Week on the blog. And it isn't that there haven't been any MOTW, there has. I guess I am just lazy.

But yesterday I watched 'The Lake House' with Sandra Bullock and Keanu Reeves. He definitely needs a mention.


I have decided to list for you my top six (I struggled to get it down to five) Keanu examples of great viewing pleasure.

In no particular order...
*The Matrix - For that leather jacket.
*Much Ado About Nothing - He really suits a beard.
*Speed - Who doesn't want to be rescued?
*Point Break - Wet Keanu... No explanation needed.
*Constantine - White shirt and black tie combo wins every time.
*The Lake House - Because Keanu all cuddly gets my vote. :) xx

So is he worthy of MOTW status? And what films of his do you love? :) xx

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Musings - Mama Kat's Workshop (24th November 2011)

THANKSGIVING.

This week all the prompts at Mama Kat's Writing Workshop are about Thanksgiving. I'm British. My entire knowledge of Thanksgiving is from watching it in the movies.

Family members get together, even though they don't want to, in order to eat stupid amounts of food, saying what they are thankful for, before an argument breaks out and everyone storms off home in the bad weather... surely that's just Christmas? Or every Sunday family meal?

Trust you Americans to get in another celebration! :) But fair play to you, I think it's great to think about what we are thankful for.

So even though I am a Brit I am going to join in... I am drinking coffee and stuffing myself with toast as I type, so I am trying to get into the spirit of things and here is what I am thankful for this year.

* My wonderful family
* My new daughter
* My Virgin Media TV package :)
* My health (though I could be healthier)
*My Amazon iPhone app for buying all my books
and...
* Mama Kat's workshop for inspiring me. :)

I hope I did that right? I am a beginner afterall.

So to all you thanks givers out there...

HAPPY HOLIDAYS

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