...smiley faces, Granny Jean and a trip to London

A lot has happened since I last wrote, although it has only been a month it feels much longer. Jessica and I are both doing well and are getting to know each others little quirks. I can't say that the first 6 weeks were tough cause I think Jessica is a pretty good baby but the first smile is so wonderful. Her little face lights up when she smiles and you know it's not just wind!! We are finding our routine and managing to get out of the house most days to visit friends, go to mum's and tots, go to postnatal group and have walks into town when it's not raining! At the moment my days seem so filled with getting out and about, feeding, changing and burping that I find little time for anything else. Housework is a slow process with clothes washing and cooking taking priority.

Granny Jean (Phil's mum) came for a visit a few weeks ago to meet Jessica. As we had predicted she had Jessica smiling within 30secs! It was lovely to have Jean in our home again and to watch her interact with her 4th grandchild.

My brother made a surprise visit (U.Michael I) to see Jessica for a few days. It was lovely to have some company during the day.

Last weekend we finally made it to London to introduce Jessica to her cousins (and A.Ali and U.Michael II). Lottie was so excited to meet Jessica. She had recently told a teacher that she had two sisters, Hannah and Jessica but Jessica lived with A.Helen and U.Phil because they couldn't look after her. Lottie spent most of the weekend saying how cute Jessica was and how much she loved her. This was interspersed with conversations about 'when Jessica is a big girl tomorrow she will be able to sleep in my room'!! We had a lovely relaxed weekend away from home.

Lottie and Jessica

All the cousins

Christmas seems to have crept up on us and finding time to think about presents let alone buy them was proving difficult. However in the last few days I have managed to make my Christmas cards, put most of my present in my Amazon basket and write the Christmas newsletter. I'm now looking forward to a relaxing Christmas and plan to put the tree up this weekend :)

...sleepless nights and endless feeds

I know it's been far too long since I last posted but lets be honest I've just had a baby, I have an excuse. Also my laptop has died so I'm having to use Phil's comp and I don't really like it! But I did promise Ione that I would post some more pictures since she's not on facebook. So here are a few that my Brother-in-law took after I got out of hospital.

... baby Jessica Eve Brumby

I know it's been a while since I last posted, but I've been off having a baby. This is just a very short post to let those of you who haven't heard that Phil and I are now the proud parents of Jessica Eve Brumby. Born on Monday 13th October at 5.37am, weighting 7lbs 15oz. Although the labour didn't quite go as planned both mum and baby are recovering well.

... the last few weeks of the bump

I thought a few photos of the bump before it goes were in order. Not the best photos but it certainly gives you an idea of the size of the bump!!

The last of the tomatoes come off the plant at 38 weeks

My stomach takes on some strange shapes now there is so little room inside!

Me looking huge!!

... the waiting game

So I'm now only 4 days away from my due date and I really can't wait to meet our little baby. Everyone says that the last few weeks are the worst and I would tend to agree. Not because I'm not enjoying pregnancy but because everything is that bit more difficult now than it was before. Little things like putting socks on, washing dishes, picking up things that I have dropped have become mammoth tasks that where possible I am avoiding. Also most of my clothes are now too small even though they are maternity clothes. I wish I'd bought a big smock dress!! Speaking of clothes a very good friend sent me a lovely parcel this week containing 2 feeding tops and a feeding night dress, all are lovely and I was really touched by the pressie. She also bought me my favourite crisps that can't be bought in England. TAYTO cheese and onion. She bought me a whole box and even bought Phil a box of bikers!!

I also took delivery of a gorgeous feeding chair that my Auntie kindly bought for me, sadly it's in bits and needs to be built by Phil when he gets home form work tonight. I've already tried but I've decided it's best to wait.

I'm trying to stay busy so that the days don't drag, I'm catching up with friends when I can and still trying to sort out the house. Let's hope we don't have to wait too much longer and that the next post contains some baby pictures :)

... a private cinema visit

On Saturday Phil and I decided to go to Cheshire Oaks to meet his brother and do some shopping. Shopping and me don't agree at the best of times so with only 2 weeks to go until this little ones makes an appearance I was definitely not looking froward to it. Wonderfully 'The boy in the Stripped Pyjamas' was being shown at the cinema and they had an early morning showing, so all problems were resolved by me going to the cinema whilst the boys shopped :) The film was brilliant, but as always not as good as the book and the Germans having English accents was particularly strange. I had the cinema pretty much to myself, there was me and 2 other people so it just felt like I was curled up in my living room watching the film.

The cinema trip was made complete by a visit to my favourite restaurant, 'Nandos' and then a trip to one of my favourite shops, 'The Paper Mill Shop'. It was a fun Saturday :)

Sunday was a little sadder, the tomato plant that has been dominating our living window all summer was finally cut into little pieces and given a new home in the compost bin. We have had a bumper crop of tomatoes and loved watching the crazy plant grow, but next year Phil will have to buy me a green house before I consider buying any more tomato plants...it was just too big.

I'm now sat waiting for my good friend Sarah from home to arrive. She is hopefully going to look after me this week whilst Phil's away with work. Lets hope the baby doesn't decide to make an appearance whilst Phil's in London!!

... maternity leave

I'm now fully embracing maternity leave. I went to Mums and Tots on Monday, met a friend for coffee on Tuesday, saw the midwife on Wednesday, went to Funsters today and tomorrow I plan to get my hair cut and meet a friend for lunch. I'm now starting to think that I don't really have time for a baby. How will I ever fit them into my busy schedule.

I love being at home, getting the house ready for it's new arrival, cooking for my hard working and wonderful husband and generally meeting up with friends for a chat (one of my favourite activities). I still feel pretty unprepared for the babies arrival. I need to pack my hospital bag, sort out the nursery and unpack all the stuff we have bought or been given. I'm sure it'll all come together in time. Only 4 weeks to go, not that I'm counting!!

....Funsters

A few ladies in the church regularly meet up with their children at a local soft play area called Funsters. You don;t have to have children to come along, but you do need to not be at work on a Thursday. This Thursday was my first visit to Funsters, maternity leave is lovely. It was great to finally get along and chat to a great group of ladies from the church and their friends. I'm looking forward to many more lazy mornings drinking coffee, eating chocolate and chatting with friends. :)

... appreciate the award

It's always lovely to be appreciated, not sure why Ione nominated me for this award since my blogging is not very frequent, but thanks anyway.




The rules of the award are:

1. The winner can put the logo on his/her blog.
2. Link the person you received your award from.
3. Nominate at least seven other blogs.
4. Put links of those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message on the blogs that you’ve nominated.

So here's my seven.... (in no particular order)

Dancing Nic (old school friend who I randomly found in the blogging world, it's been great to be back in touch)
Wittering (a fun church friend who makes me smile when I read about her beautiful family and their action packed days)
Olga's Blog (one of the best bloggers out there who records all events with photos and blogs)
Liz Griffen (a friend who lives in France and is preparing to do great things)
Girl Talk (an amazing blog by a mum and three daughters, I have learnt so much here about being a Godly women...I'm hoping to put it into practice some day soon)
Grizzy's world (a fab friend who makes me smile, laugh and always welcome)

Sorry could only find 6 that were important enough to make the cut. Thanks to all of you who brighten up my day, there are a few more that I check now and again but these are the 6 most regular bloggers.

... a few more busy weeks before maternity leave starts

Since my last post Phil and i have been pretty busy. We have had family and friends staying with us mid week and we have been up in Scotland for a wedding. Phil's cousin got married a few weeks ago just outside Edinburgh so we travelled north for the weekend. Our good friends Cheryl and James looked after us and totally pampered me (I wasn't complaining). We headed over to Edinburgh for the day on Sat for the wedding and to catch up with the rest of the family who had managed to make it. It was a really fabulous day and everyone really enjoyed it...I even managed to find something to wear over the ever growing bump!

Phil and I before the wedding

The lovely bride and groom with Phil's Aunt and Uncle in the background

Johnny and Angelina with their cute little son Lois

Our final visitors of the summer before I put a ban on all future visitors before the baby comes were Phil's sister and her family. We absolutely love it when the Patersons come to visit, cause we have lots of fun, good food and great chats. Also they brought their 3 adorable children who really brought the house to life. The Patersons were here for a week and we had so many great times that I can't mention them all but here's a few photos from the week.

The local park!!!

Cute Sam trying to crawl

Lottie and Hannah discover the joys of Wheelock Farm

We enjoy the delights of the cafe!

I am man, I make fire!

Ali, Phil and I enjoy the late summer evenings with the help of the chiminea and a big bowl of crisps

It's been a busy but wonderful few weeks, I am now officially on maternity leave. This has come a few weeks earlier than I'd hoped, but I'm happy to listen to the doctor and I'd only be working for the money...who needs that anyway. So depending on when this little baby comes the next 4/5 weeks are for me to get the house, my head and Phil ready for the arrival....I can't wait :)

...a busy few weeks

Over the last few weeks we have had the pleasure of having lots of visitors. I love when people come to visit us, mostly cause I don;t have to pack or miss Church. A few weeks ago my parents stopped off in Sandbach on their return from Paris. It was a really lovely relaxing weekend and we even managed to squeeze in some baby shopping. New grandparents to be are very generous :) We spent most of the weekend catching up, chillin' out and drinking tea.

After they left I have a few days to get the house ready for my annual girlie weekend. Every year 4 of us from Uni get together to chat, chat and chat. We also eat and drink and chat. We all love these weekends and normally head to London and take in a show. However this year the girls took pity on me and my current circumstances and came to Sandbach instead. It was a fab weekend and we enjoyed a day in Knustford followed by a yummy meal out. In fact we all loved it so much that we have decided to ditch London and just meet in someones house each year. Next year we're off the Belfast :)

The Girlies left on Sunday afternoon and Phil's Mum and Aunties arrived that evening for a stop over before their flight from Manchester (at a silly time in the morning, I'm glad it was Phil's mum) to Turkey. It was great to see Mo and Jean again and join in with their madness!!

Thursday night we had some more visitors. Friends from Uni who stopped off on their way to a wedding in Cheltenham. It was really great to see them and their adorable little boy.

Jean and Mo return tonight before heading back to Whitby on Tuesday so no doubt tonight will be a very funny night filled with all their mad holiday stories. I can't wait.

We have only one mad weekend and one mad week of visitors left before I put my foot down and say NO MORE PEOPLE until the baby is born. I'm feeling the need to now get semi-prepared for the new arrival and need a few weekends at home with Phil to do this. Let's hope the baby doesn't arrive early!

... emotional overload

I'm normally a quite rational person, which is good since Phil can't stand irrational women. My emotions are usually in check and don't fluctuate wildly once a month like some women's do. However, the last few weeks have been a completely different story. I've had days at work were I've swung between wanting to crawl under my desk and cry and wanting to kill the next person who speaks to me. But I've stayed calm for the sake of my co-workers (I don't want them to think I'm totally mental). Sadly Phil hasn't escaped so lightly. I have taken to crying for no reason, for example, last night when he mentioned that he was going to go on his computer I broke down into a fit of tears and cried for a good 10 mins....he didn't go on his computer after that!! I'm hoping it's just the crazy pregnancy hormones and that they don't last for the next three months, cause crying is hard work and tiring! Apart from that I'm completely fine and loving being pregnant :)

... a 40th and a triple baptism

Last weekend Phil and I went to London to help Ali get ready for her 40th birthday bash. It was really just an excuse for me to play with the kids all day so I was happy. Phil, Ali and Michael did all the party prep work. It was a really great day getting ready and the party was a lot of fun, Happy Birthday Ali!!

Lottie giving big baby cousin a kiss

The weekend was a double celebration. Ali and Michael took the opportuniy of having all the Aunts and Uncle's in the one place to get thier three children baptised on Sunday morning. It was a priviledge to be asked to be Godmother to Hannah and to take part in the service. We love each of the children very much and pray for them and Ali and Michael as they are raised in a loving Christian home.

Lottie, Hannah and Sam

The Paterson Family

Phil and I with our niece/Godchild

... some birthday photos

Two very special people lighting the candles

My cake

Some of my friends chillin' out after a wild

night with a cup of tea and a piece of cake!!

....a birthday party in Belfast

Last weekend Phil and I flew home for some much needed family time. I hadn't seen my parents and big bro since January and my little sis and bro since this time last year so it was fab to catch up with everyone. They had all gathered in Belfast to celebrate my 30th birthday and some of my friends who live in N. Ireland also came to the party. It was so lovely to see everyone and show off my big baby bump. It was the last weekend that I could fly before this little baby arrives so I made the most of it and saw as many people as possible.

The party was alot of fun, sadly I have no photos yet, I'm waiting for friends to send me some. My lovely family thought it would be fun to put hideous pictures of me all through the house and even my birthday cake had a picture of me on the top!!

I don't feel 30 so that's cool and I'm looking forward to my next trip home at Christmas time when God willing we will have our little baby with us :)

... a babymoon, bala and a birthday

I've had a few comments about the lack of posts recently but Phil and I were on a well deserved holiday abroad. Possibly our last for a few years, definitely our last when I can lie all day and read. We jetted off to Lanzarote and spent a relaxing week by the pool reading and sleeping. Phil got involved with the crazy pool side activities and when he discovered that you won medals he became very interested/competitive. The week away was really relaxing and just what the doctor ordered. I was worried about the heat but had absolutely no probs, even managed to get a bit of tan in the shade :)

After our long week away we then had a week at home. We had thought about going away for a few days but in the end we were thrilled to be able to help out some friends and look after their cute little boy whilst they had another baby!! Very well planned on their part I thought.

I finished the week off with a fabulous weekend away with some of the ladies from Church. I'd missed the weekend last year much to my disappointment, but I made up for it this year and had a really great time chatting to people I already know and getting to know new people. Can't wait for next year :)

Oh nearly forgot to mention that in the middle of all our holiday madness I turned 30. Big party this weekend for family and a few friends. Still feel 25, let's hope that lasts.

... a baby scan

Yesterday Phil and I went for our second scan of the baby at the hospital. We were fairly relaxed about the whole thing and very excited about seeing the little baby again. Apart from the 30mins wait the scan was brilliant. Seeing our little baby wriggling about, sucking and what looked like scratching her head was amazing. The sonographer was also pleased cause it was a very well behaved baby, lets hope that continues after birth!! All the measurements were in the correct zone and the heart was beating away. We are so thankful and continue to pray for the safety of this precious little person. I've attached a photo (Phil thinks the baby has its mummy's big fat tummy!!)

... LOTR risk

Bank holidays are meant to be lazy days spent doing stuff that you want to do, not stuff you have to do. So Phil and I started the day off lounging on the sofa in our PJ's, that was until the door bell rang and Phil's friend Kentin was at the door. Since it was already 12.00 we thought we should get dressed and spend the day entertaining Kentin. After lunch the boys went off to the driving range and I went back to lounging about....but then the worst imaginable thing happened. The electricity went OFF!! So our evening of Wii playing and DVD watching was out, couldn't go on the Internet, couldn't watch TV!! There was nothing left but to search through our large stash of board games and Lord of the Rings Risk won the day. We sat down at 4.00pm to begin had 30min break for tea (electricity was back by this point) then returned to the game only for Phil to take victory at 10.00pm. A slight consolation was that I didn't come last!! It was a fun bank holiday and a rematch is being planned as I write. :)

...10 thoughts I had yesterday

Ione has tagged me but since I only got out of bed 30mins ago and my only thought so far today has been 'do I really have to get up?' I'll list my 10 thoughts from yesterday. Thanks Ione!!

1. I wonder what the traffic will be like this morning through Birmingham
2. Why doesn't the client listen to me, am I not scary enough on site?
3. Can I get away without stopping to get a sarnie for lunch and just have crisps and an apple instead.
4. This wriggling baby can be quite distracting whilst I'm driving.
5. Why does H take soooo long to reply to text messages.
6. Have I told everyone that I've changed the date of my Birthday Party?
7. Why do boys feel the need to watch football even if they don't like either of the teams.
8. When is Phil going to book me a holiday, I need a week away reading my books.
9. Can I get through all of Thursday without finding out who was fired from the Apprentice before I watch it tonight...I'm thinking no!!
10. Why is it so important to sleep on your left hand side when your pregnant...it just feels wrong.

... a visit from her favourite mum-in-law

Last weekend, we had a fab time with Phil's mum. We always love it when she comes to visit cause she does the dishes, and shes great fun to spend time with. On Saturday we had a full day of shopping. Firstly we went to look at cars for Jean and then we headed over to Cheshire Oaks for a bit of a mooch in the shops. Didn't buy much but it was nice to window shop. Sunday was a lovely day, introducing Jean to our many friends and she had a chance to catch up with some old friends also. We're looking forward to her next visit in July.

... a little bit bigger

This photo was taken just a week ago. It's not the best photo in the world, but for those of you who haven't seen me for a while it gives you and idea of how crazily large my bump is getting. I'm feeling thoroughly massive at the moment so who knows what I'll feel like in 20 weeks. I've had two big pregnancy excitements this week. Firstly, I've reached the half way mark. I have my second scan in 2 weeks which is really exciting and Phil and I have started looking at baby stuff (although all hand me downs are greatly appreciated)!! Secondly, I have had an exciting week of feeling the baby move. It feels a bit like bubbles popping in my tummy, really weird but strangely nice. Sadly Phil can't feel it yet so he's feeling a bit left out, but I'm sure it won't be long until baby Brumby is performing some kung-fu moves that Phil can feel! All is well with Mummy and Baby, please pray that this will continue.

... Malvern Spring Garden Show

I'm not really a gardener although I do fancy growing some veg. I have started but Phil says they are all dead, I'm holding out hope for a revival!! This week I had a opportunity to see the professionals at work. The school where I'm working had entered a garden in the Malvern Spring Garden Show and our company had sponsored them. So I was asked to attend as a rep from our office. After my site visits on Thursday I popped down to the show to see the Show Garden that we had sponsored...it had won Gold (whatever that means). It was still pretty cool, it featured plants and boring stuff but at it's focus was the schools miniature steam train. It was a fun afternoon in the sun.

... London with family

Last weekend Phil and I headed down to Lonodn for the May Bank Holiday weekend. We expected awful traffic on the Friday but I was ok :) We had a fab weekend with the Paterson family, it's great to see the kids growing and the girls are now hilarious, chatting away. Little Sam is also cute especially when he laughs and blows bubbles. Phil sadly wasn't feeling great, he's been poorly now for about 2 weeks. I think he is now starting to come out the other side. I don't really mind him being sick (since he is quite often) but this time it's been super annoying cause he's half deaf and I have to remember to shout at him or else repeat myself!! But we still managed to have a fab weekend.

The Paterson Clan

Phil and Lottie

Lottie and Hannah snoozing after playing hard

Me and ickle Sam

Pirate Lottie and Pirate Sam

Hannah chasing bubbles in the garden

...some rapid heart beating

Last Thursday I had my 16 week midwife check up. It was nice to finally meet my midwife and chat over any concerns. My biggest concern was that I hadn't put on any weight despite the fact that I already have a rather large bump. The midwife laughed and said don't worry you will!! Apart from the midwife taking far too much blood for my liking the best bit about the visit was getting to hear the heartbeat for the first time. It's nice to be re-assured that Baby Brumby is growing inside. I'm looking forward to the next scan in about 4 weeks. So far the pregnancy has been good and I've not had too many of those awful pregnancy symptoms. Lets hope it continues!! :)

... a weekend with friends from Uni

This weekend we had some lovely friends come to visit who we have known since Dundee days. Ruth came over from Nottingham on the Saturday with her new husband Giles and Nicola came up from London with her not so new husband Ian. It was great to meet Giles for the first time and get to know Ian a little bit better.

We had a super day on Saturday catching up on old times and seeing what everyone is up to know. We took them all for a walk along the canal and finished with a large coke in Lock 57. Nicola and Ian stayed for the whole weekend and we chilled out on sat night with some great food and chat. Sadly they have all left now but we're hoping to see each other a bit more often than we have up to now.

This morning at Church was also a Baptism service for 6 people, it was such a moving and wonderful service and I felt privileged to be there and to share it with them all.

...book club

I was at book club again last night. We meet every month to discuss a different book. Last night we were looking at 'Stepping Heavenwards' by Elizabeth Prentiss. It wasn't my favourite book but there was so much to take from it that I couldn't dislike it. I enjoy book club mostly cause I get to meet up every month with a great group of ladies and chat about books, God and anything else we think of. Sadly I have to lead a month next year which means choosing a book. I'm a bit stumped as to what to choose, so if anyone has any ideas please let me know. Most of my time these days is taken up with reading Book Club books, and the books I like may not appeal to the wider audience. I have a few ideas up my sleeve so we'll see what falls out!! I've started the next book for next month already, lets hope it's a good one :)

....wish that other bloggers would add an RSS feed to their blogs

I do wish that all my blogging friends, not to mention anyone in particular - Ione, Olga, Liz, Nic, would add an RSS feed to their blogs so that I don't have to continually check if they have been updated. RSS Feeds are great, they link to your email account and everytime you check your emails it gives you all the blog updates.

...some building work

Ok so the title seems to imply that I have building, which isn't technically correct, but Phil has been building on my behalf. Last summer we tried to buy some garden furniture in the summer sales but couldn't find anything we liked. So this year we just grabbed the bull by the horns and bought some garden furniture. It's not exactly what we were looking for last year, but times have changed, priorities have changed and bank balances are going to be alot smaller in the future. Below is a picture of me working at the table this afternoon when I came home from my site visit. It was great to be out in the garden and the wireless Internet seems to work even if it is a little slower.

The other thing Phil has been building is the gas BBQ that we bought last year for a great price on the Internet. However Phil has now discovered why it was such a good price...it's ridiculously difficult to built. The instructions are very complicated and the diagram is not much help. But he's great at stuff like this so hopefully it'll be finished by the weekend when we have friends coming to visit and we can have our first BBQ of the year.

....a few things for the first time!

This weekend Phil and I had the pleasure of going to Barcelona for my very good friend Cheryl's 30th Birthday. Barcelona is an amazing city with loads to see and do. We arrived on Friday morning after a stupidly early start!! This meant we had the rest of the day to explore. We dumped our bags at the hotel and headed off to the Olympic village area, about 5 mins from the hotel. We both had different reasons for going here, Phil wanted to see what it was like without 5million computer geeks (this was where his conference was at the end of Feb) and I wanted to visit the German Expo pavilion designed by the legendary Mies van de Rohe. I LOVED it, Phil wasn't quite so excited.

Friday night we met up with Cheryl and James for dinner. Cheryl was very shocked to see us in Barcelona but thrilled, we haven't seen each other in ages so it was great to catch up.

The Birthday Girl is the attractive one in the middle!

Saturday was a full day of Architectural sight seeing, Phil wasn't sure about this but by the end of the day was well impressed. Gaudi is a famous Architect in Barcelona so we went to see a variety of his masterpieces. One of the most spectacular was Sagrada Familia (the unfinished cathedral), and I think I'm now in the camp that says it should never have been finished. We got a lift to the top of the towers and had great views over the city, then had to walk back down a really narrow stairwell. Very scary!!

Next I took Phil off to Parc Gruell which if I'm honest I wanted to see because S Club 7 come here in their movie (I know I'm sad but S Club are fab) :) Apart from the monster climb up to the park it was a super afternoon, the sun was shining and we had a picnic on the curvy seats. Then Sat night was the big get together for all of cheryls family, 17 of us piled into a very busy restaurant and picked random things to eat (the menu was in Spanish and all waiters spoke Spanish). It was really lovely to kick back and chat to loads of lovely people that I haven't seen since there wedding day.

Sunday had a slow start to the day due the previous late night. I thought I should really let Phil see something he is actually interested in so we went to Camp Nou for a tour of the stadium and the museum. I have to admit that it was quite spectacular, especially sitting in the directors chair and pretending to be a footy commentator!!



We spent the reat of the day wandering around La Rambla area before we flew home. We will definately go back to Barcelona, but who knows when.

In the midst of all that excitement I have decided to take up knitting. The reasons for this will become clear as you read, but inspired by an old friend from school I bought a book, needles and some yarn. I'm currently a quarter of the way through a Debbie Bliss Buggy Blanket. It is lots of squares of different colours with a lovely blue external trim.



I'm enjoying knitting at night whilst I'm relaxing, but sadly my reading is suffering at the moment. I never was very good at balancing things.

Really the biggest news is that Phil and I are, God willing, having a baby in October. I am now 13 weeks pregnant and we are both very excited. So far I have been very lucky and haven't really had morning sickness. I have been a little sleepier than normal but nothing too drastic. But now that I'm moving into the second trimester I am hoping all signs of nausea and tiredness will be a thing of the past. Although we are absolutely thrilled with our liitle bump it was a bit of a surprise so finacially we aren't as prepared as we had hoped, but good friends and family are already coming out of the wood work and offering clothes, baby things, etc so this should help alot. I'll keep you posted as time progesses but for now here is the first scan images of the baby.