seasidesparkles

Sometimes your heart breaks when you’re a mum …..

Published on September 14, 2017September 16, 2017 by seasidesparklesLeave a comment

img_6991-1

Artwork by Little Man

This is a different post to my normal entries. Writing has also been a release so today I’m writing how I feel about our amazing little boy. Sadly I had one of my most heart breaking moments with him this morning and I’m still trying to make sense of it.

Our little man has always loved school, learning, playing and just being with his friends. Today, for the first time ever he cried and said he didn’t want to go to school, however not only did he say he didn’t want to go to school he also took his school uniform off. After much comforting and cuddles our little man explained that he didn’t want to go to school because for some of his learning he is separated from his friends and has to do other work. He wants to sit at the big table and not his little table, play on the interactive whiteboard and not his iPad and get to do 3 digit numbers and not 2 digit numbers. In Year 3 we are beginning to see what we have always been worried about the widening academic gap between him and his peers.

From the moment we adopted him, we knew Little Man’s future could be uncertain. He was a one year old but could barely crawl and was developmentally delayed in many areas. However with hard work and perseverance from little Man and lots of professionals he has made amazing progress and physically and socially is on a level with his peers. I think this is the difficulty for him he loves his friends and wants to be able to do his work with them rather than his 1:1 TA. However his learning difficulties mean he needs the extra support and help, particularly in maths and literacy.

I’m being irrational today, so angry with his BM for drinking heavily and how much it affects our little boy, one of his diagnoses is probable FASD. I’m also raging against an education system where academic work is so strong for 7 and 8 year olds, he’s said he’s missing his play this year and he learnt so much through play in KS1, why stop a successful strategy? I’m just so sad too that I can’t protect him from the reality of his world where he will always be judged on the things he can’t do not what he can. I know how brilliant he is at making his Lego models, solving jigsaws, remembering details about his school topics, how well he can kick a ball or hit a ball in cricket, my little boy is amazing but there’s no academic levels for these achievements.

The school is outstanding in its support. Little Man has had 1:1 support from his first day and his TA is superb with him, he has made so much progress with her hard work. We went into school today to hand over our morning and speak to her and I think she was as upset as us that our bright, sociable and fun boy was feeling so sad about going to school. We’ve agreed some quick fixes so he gets to sit on the big table and try some simple 3 digit numbers but I think we all know this is simply the beginning and we need to work together closely to make school an inclusive experience for him. I’m also going back in to see the class teacher today and discuss more strategies with her.

Sometimes it’s heart breaking being a mum and trying to protect your children. Little Man has been in my thoughts all day today and I really need to see him and just hug him. Tomorrow is their ‘fun’ day with their favourite teacher in the morning and then forest school in the afternoon. Fortunately the forest school is somewhere he will thrive and not be the special needs child so that will get me through tomorrow. I think this is going to be a tough year but I just hope Little Man is secure and confident that he has family and a school team all rooting for him.

A Lazerquest Party

Published on September 12, 2017September 27, 2017 by seasidesparklesLeave a comment

This year we held Little Man’s party before the school holidays. We have discovered that when you have a birthday in the holidays it’s quite difficult to get all your pals together on the day itself, so we tend to plan his birthday celebrations for the weekend before the end of term and celebrate as a family on his special day.

This birthday was an easy one to organise, a morning at Lazerquest followed by lunch at McDonalds. Sometimes it’s the simplest ideas which are the most fun for all. We took both our cars and had our two children and four guests in our party. I made the party invitations, with the Lazerquest logo and using the Typorama app and laminated to finish them off nicely.

Lazerquest hold a 2 hour children’s session on a Sunday morning, teaching the children how to play and then playing lots of different games. it’s very much aimed at younger children so was perfect for our little group, no teenagers playing roughly and lots of helpers on hand. We booked in advance to guarantee our places but it was a quiet morning when we went. The session is very well organised with a game, a short break to look at scores, have a drink which is provided and then back to a new game. We played four games in total and in the second break we had the birthday cake. Lazerquest are really amenable to parties and were fine with us bringing in a cake.

As Little Man loves his cricket I had made a cricket pitch cake complete with him as the little cricketer. The grass was simply dyed desiccated coconut on a green buttercream base and the wickets were made from candy sticks ‘glued’ with icing. I got the figure on the internet with the colours matching those of his cricket club.

After a successful morning at Lazerquest we walked to McDonalds for lunch. The boys all loved their food which were simply Happy Meals of their own choices.

The games had tired the boys so it was a quiet journey home in the car. I did get to hear all the gossip about school so it was highly amusing!

As a thank you I made cards from two of my favourite photos of the day, dressed up in Lazerquest gear and then dabbing in McDonald’s. It’s a simple thing to do but a lovely momento. It’s also a really reasonable idea, costing the price of a photo print.

I was really pleased with the Lazerquest party, simple but fun. Now all I have to do is think of an original idea for next year.

A water party

Published on September 11, 2017June 23, 2017 by seasidesparklesLeave a comment

My apologies if you’re reading this post about a hot, sunny day if its a cold and miserable Thursday afternoon and its been raining for days. This is the random post which I write on the day after the birthday party but then post on an unrelated date so birth dates cannot be deduced. These are some of the problems adoptive parents have online, its not just names and photos but key information such as dates of birth which need to remain secret. This party was for my daughter’s birthday, we celebrated her birthday with a family treat at the weekend and then we held a tea party for 6 of her friends after school.

I love the planning and preparation of a party but as the years have progressed the themes have become more difficult to think of as we have done each one, Hello Kitty, Princesses, Ballet, Butterflies, Mermaids just to name a few. It was really difficult to think of an original plan this year, we’re reading Harry Potter but we were hoping to have a water party and it was difficult to link the two. After much thought, I realised that every night after we’ve read our story together, Little Miss always takes a Beano annual or comic to bed and with a few pranks and water pistols I could entwine the two ideas. I did wonder how the guests would enjoy the theme, it wasn’t a very pink party but they loved it and their party bags of tricks, a whoppee cushion, magic putty, water balloons, stretchy toys etc.. went down brilliantly.

For the invitations I produced a Minnie the Minx design and then laminated them.

I was using primary colours as I didn’t want a red and black theme which features prominently in some of the party ware available. I only used red and black stripy napkins and bunting and used the bright colours elsewhere. The birthday cakes ( yep plural because they were a bit smaller than I anticipated) were iced white and then I decorated them with personalised cake toppers.

I continued the Beano theme with a timetable of events to let everyone know what was happening.

We started with cocktails on our return from school, I did two jugs one tropical and one summer berry, the girls loved the ice, fruit and decorations. The nibbles were crisps, breadstick, crudites and dips, simple and tasty. As it was a boiling hot day the girls were really keen to cool down in the pool and I let them just splash around for half an hour, I had a basket full of water pistols, so they could all have a water fight. After all cooling down we started some water games from ideas I had from Pinterest. The first was the bucket game, the teams had to pass a cup of water over their heads down the line and place the water in a pail, the catch was there was a hole in each cup and they had to do it as quickly as possible, a fun game. Next we played water balloon bullseye, I drew three circles within each other and put a score in each circle, the girls had two balloons each and threw them to get their score. The final game was a surprise hit, I placed marbles in a bowl of water and the girls needed to remove them from the bowl using their toes, feet fishing, the focus and concentration was intense and it was highly competitive against the clock. After the games the girls played in the pool again whilst I prepared tea.

I wanted to enjoy the party so kept the food very simple, an assortment of pizzas and a salad bar which they could help themselves to. We were able to sit on the grass and enjoy the food. The make your own ice cream sundae was great, my ingredients included mini meringues, marshmallows, berries, strawberry sauce and there were lots of second helpings. As well as the birthday cake I also added our family tradition of top hats, they are marshmallows, topped with melted chocolate and a smartie and have been a feature of every party menu since I was a little girl, its not a party without a top hat!

After the food, we relaxed with a party playlist and the girls danced in and around the pool, impressing me with their singing and dancing, it was lovely to see and showed the rites of passage that we’ve all gone through. The party then came to an end as parents arrived for 6pm.

I think this has been one of my favourite parties to organise and host, the Beano theme was fun and it was a brightly decorated party. The water games were perfect on such a hot and sunny day and the mix of structured games and play worked well, the time flew by.

A day in my life …

Published on September 10, 2017September 11, 2017 by seasidesparklesLeave a comment

When we were doing our adoption home study, one of the activities was to write a day in our lives. I think the aim was for us to think about how our daily lives would change with a child in our house. There were quite a few activities like this during the home study and our patience was tested a little, however it became another activity to complete to satisfy our social worker that we were ready to welcome a child. I was thinking about this activity a few days ago and whilst my original isn’t to hand to compare with, I decided to blog a day in my life to look back on in the years to come. I chose yesterday, Saturday, it was a very ordinary but typically busy day in the Sparkles’ family.

6.30 am, I am woken by Little Man stirring at 6.30am, no matter what time he goes to bed he is always up, bright as a button at 6.30am. He’s really good, he pops to the toilet and then plays with his toys in his bedroom. When Mr S gets up 10 minutes later to make a cup of tea to bring back to bed, Little Man potters down with him and I can hear them chat away in the kitchen.

6.45am, Tea in bed, courtesy of Mr S and the three of us awake talk about the day’s plans.

7.00am, Up and dressed for a run. I’ve tried to run at different times of day, but this works best for me. 7 – 8am is my hour on Saturdays and Sundays and I run off road through the local country park, it’s one of my favourite times of the week, great views, great music and just me.

7.15am – As I leave for my run, Little Miss wakes up and asks if she can join me. I agree to run past the house at 8am and if she’s ready she can do the last mile or so with me.

8am – Little Miss is dressed and keen to run with me so we head off for the last part of the run together. She’s a good running partner and we chat away whilst running.

8.30am – Back home and Mr S is making breakfast. We all sit down together to eat.

9am – Shower, dress and apply some simple make up.

9.30 -10.30am – Household jobs, laundry, tidying etc.. I try not to do much housework on a Saturday but this hour gives me time to do the daily jobs and keep on top of things.

10.30 – 11.30am – Little Miss and Mr S pop out to visit a friend and Little Man and I walk into town for our normal Saturday routine, the children return and choose books in the library, we go to the bakers for fresh bread for lunch and WHSmith for the Times, (I buy it for the excellent column by Caitlin Moran, Nadiyah Hussain’s bakes and the weddings page!) We might pop into a café, but today Mr S phones to say they are now at the festival field and we go to meet them and pick up a takeaway coffee here. In our town there are festivals and fairs most weekends in the summer, but this is the last and a really popular one for locals, our good bye to the season.

11.30am – We meet up with Mr S and Little Miss and there’s a great atmosphere in the field, we bump into lots of friends and acquaintances and its lovely to catch up and potter around the stalls. There’s also live music and story telling for the children in the late morning sun.

1pm – Back home and lunch is a little later today than normal after our trip out. In the autumn and winter its always fresh soup and bread for lunch at weekends. My lovely Father-in-law bought me a fantastic soup maker so 25 minutes later we sit down for lunch.

1.45pm – I have a cup of tea and read Caitlin Moran’s column and Nadiyah’s recipe in the Times magazine.

2pm – Normally I wouldn’t do homework on Saturday but the weather forecast for tomorrow is awful and we need to do a nature walk to collect examples of seeds and fruits in our local environment. I did a little reccie on my run this morning, so I return to the country park and the children enjoy finding the seeds and berries and burn off a bit more energy running around and climbing trees.

3.00pm – There’s a craft fayre in town today, again the last of the season, so Little Miss and I head down to look around, whilst the boys stay at home to do some Lego. The fayre is excellent, definitely the best of the season and I buy a necklace and some greeting cards. We may have sampled the fresh fudge too!

4.00pm – Back home and I’m preparing dinner in the kitchen. I love my kitchen and Saturday is the day to try new recipes or make more special dinners. I have Zoe Ball on the radio and it’s another of my happy times and places. After a busy day, it’s a simple tea, I’m making a potato gratin, with fresh veg and gammon steaks. Normally I have a helper but both children are busy playing a new game on Wii U.

4.30 – 5pm – Tea prepped I’m watching the football scores come through with Mr S as the children continue to play. There’s a late winner for Bristol City so I’m happy with the day’s results.

5- 5.30pm – Back to the kitchen to cook tea and set the table etc..

5.30 – 6pm – Tea around the table in the kitchen. I am a stickler for all the family around the table for meals. Whilst we have had a healthy menu today, we do have treats too, last night was pizza!

6- 7pm – Whilst Mr S does showers and pyjamas I tidy the kitchen before sitting down with a cup of tea to read. My current read on my Kindle is Amy Poehler’s Yes Please.

7pm – Strictly time. I LOVE Strictly Come Dancing and it’s my time that nobody dares to interrupt. Fortunately the children love it (and secretly Mr S too) so its family time around the television. Mr S takes Little Man to bed around 7.30pm for a story and Little Miss and I cuddle up to watch the rest of SCD.

8.40pm – As Little Miss watched Strictly with me she managed to get a later bedtime, it’s a quicker bedtime routine and the promise that she’ll go straight to sleep. She’s really good tonight, but I think she’s hoping that if she’s good this first week, she’ll be able to stay up late in the weeks to come.

9pm – Mr S and I sit down together. I get out my laptop and finish the Little Loves post I’ve been writing since Thursday, it’s been a busy week. There’s nothing much on the tv and we end up watching sport and chatting before bed.

11pm – Bedtime. On my way to bed, I always go into the children to check on them and to tell them I love them, I want the last thing they hear everyday to be something reassuring and loving. When I’m in bed, I rarely read but prefer to listen to music and often play a game of scrabble on my phone before sleeping. I’m lucky in that I never have any problem falling asleep and will sleep straight through to 6.30am

Back to school, coconut bakes and new projects #littleloves

Published on September 7, 2017September 9, 2017 by seasidesparklesLeave a comment

And so just like that, it’s back to school and the start of a new school year. With the turn in weather too, it feels that autumn has arrived. Whilst I love summer, its time to embrace the new season, so it’s been autumn inspired menus this week, cosy knits and tights.

As we start a new school year, I love to read the children Dr Seuss’ The Places You Will Go. I only discovered Dr Seuss as a SEN teacher but his books are brilliant and well worth a read as an adult for their sage advice and humour. This book is inspiring and a smart message for the children going into their new classes to work hard, take opportunities and learn that whilst things get tricky with a good attitude and hard work you will succeed. I love this book so much that I’ll continue to read and quote it to the children until at least their college days!

The autumn schedules have started and I’m so looking forward to my favourite series Cold Feet later tonight. Continuing on the education theme I’ve been watching Education Manchester on Channel 4. Whilst I have worked in a special needs school for the last 12 years, the first half of my career was in inner city comprehensive schools so I can relate a lot to the schools in the series and have nothing but admiration for the amazing professionals. This series is introducing some tough themes and the mental health aspect was key in this week’s programme. Sadly, mental health is a huge issue in special needs ed too and so much more needs to be done to support our young people.

Last weekend the children went blackberry picking so we used the fruit in a blackberry crumble with a few extra ingredients. I used some coconut in the topping with a bit of orange zest, delicious. As I still had coconut left I added it to a bread and butter pudding too, again it gave a nice touch. I also made our first vegetable casserole and dumplings of the season, simple but one of my favourite meals and the perfect tea on a cold and wet evening.

Rain macs and winter knits, please can we have an Indian summer.

As I’ve written before Little Miss is always on my Spotify account and adding music. This week she is loving 1000 years by Christina Perri, it is a beautiful song and it does give me a warm, fuzzy feeling when I hear her singing and humming it around the house.

It’s nice to get the first week of school done, the children have had a really good week back and my working week has been positive too. At home the decorating has been finished and I’m now planning the final touches, cushions and throws and planning a possible furniture project too. It’s a new season and new plans….

Thank you to Morgana for hosting #littleloves

Beach days, school reading books and family visits #littleloves

Published on August 31, 2017September 1, 2017 by seasidesparkles14 Comments

It’s been a wonderful final week of the holidays, the sun has (finally) shone brightly and our little seaside town has been packed with happy day trippers and holiday makers, especially on bank holiday weekend. Our town needs these busy weekends to thrive and survive so we’re grateful for sunny days! We have been on the beach most days this week, determined to eek out every bit of summer fun that we can. We’ve also had family down this week and having lunch al fresco in a delightful sea front cafe was just gorgeous. Somehow in between the beach visits, we’ve also managed to squeeze in school shoe shopping and school haircuts, so we’re ready to go back to school next week.

I’m in the back to work groove this week and have been doing some professional reading. To counter this serious reading I’ve really appreciated ‘Spectacles’ by Sue Perkins, we’re a similar age so lots of the cultural references and experiences are similar to my own, whilst the family tales are ones we can all relate to. The memoir is written in an amusing style that keeps you reading and smiling.

I also read a lovely article about women in their 40s and 50s and how we’re now described as perennials. Once you’ve looked past the initial glossy photos of unbelievably glamorous, stylish and young looking women in their 40s it’s an excellent and inspiring read.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/life/women-40-50-new-ageless-generation/amp/

6c5e03af-f2b3-458a-94f0-b456c24b074b-3659-000002c4b79bf856_

I’ve watched our living room and hallways being transformed this week as we are having them redecorated. We had hoped to move but in a quiet housing market, we’ve decided to improve our house, not for a future sale but for us. Whilst we’re in the middle of the project, there’s no new pictures yet but I’m excited with the progress. The decorators are the neatest I’ve ever known, I’m sure my house is tidier than when they began!

I’ve made lots of sand castles this week and helped the children create their seaside cafe with sand food sculptures. It’s amazing how imaginative the children can be with their games on the beach.

Shorts, swimming costumes, sunglasses and sun tan lotion yippee! It’s going to be a shock returning to work clothes next week. However on my lightning trip to big town (the journey was longer than our shopping trip) I did pick up this new dress for work from Fat Face to be styled with leggings and pumps, it’ll make me feel confident on our first day back. It’s also one of those dresses which looks a lot better on than in the photo below and best of all it has pockets, essential for pens, keys etc.. and all the other accessories a teacher carries around.

c457fad8-c831-47fb-a012-8df81aded88a-1

Town has been buzzing this week and there really has been that happy hum all around, the giggles on the beach, the sound of Punch and Judy, the call of the sea gulls, squeals as the first toes feel the water etc.. It’s such a lovely sound, happy people.

So that’s it now, the summer holidays are over. Whilst I like the fresh start and excitement of a new school year, I’ll miss the relaxed, family days we’ve shared this holiday. At this time of year, more than at any other, I feel the passing of time but try to see it positively and to look forward to new adventures.

Many thanks to Morgana for this lovely linkie and all those who write and inspire.

Diana

Published on August 26, 2017September 1, 2017 by seasidesparklesLeave a comment

This is a postcard I bought many years ago in the National Portrait Gallery, having seen the original photograph by Snowdon on display. Along with the Mario Testino photos, its one of my favourite images of Diana.

This week sees the 20^th anniversary of the death of Diana, Princess of Wales. It seems strange to write a post on the Royal family, I have respect for their role, but am not an ardent royalist, however Diana was different and was part of my growing up. It was the day after my 8^th birthday when Diana married Prince Charles and I remember the excitement of the extra bank holiday, getting up early for the build up to the day, the anticipation of her dress, the ceremony, a tad boring for an 8 year old and then the street parties which followed in the afternoon. I was at the age of believing in a fairy tale princess and this continued when I got to see Diana at a polo match in Windsor Great park. As Girl Guides we were camping in the park and were allowed to attend the game. Charles was playing but memories of him are blurred, however I remember Diana so clearly, wearing a stunning black and white dress and smiling. She was all we had hoped for.

As the years progressed, the fairy tale princess became an anachronism, however Diana changed and away from the soap opera of her personal life exaggerated in tabloids, I respected the work she did with ‘unfashionable’ charities, landmines, AIDs, homeless charities. I also loved her style. When Diana died when I was 24, she was a woman whose values, grace and work I admired.

Diana’s death is the ‘where were you ..’ moment of my generation. I was in a large London hotel celebrating my cousin’s wedding. As we went to bed, following the reception, in the early hours of the morning we learnt that there had been a serious accident in Paris and when we awoke her death was confirmed. The morning at breakfast was one of the most surreal times, a huge, busy hotel stunned into silence, it felt like everyone was too shocked to talk. The radio was sombre with classical music playing, the tv was the news and reactions, it was the strangest and saddest day to be followed by a similar week. By chance, we were due to be away visiting family on the day of Diana’s funeral. My uncle had been in the army and Diana had been his regiment’s royal. We watched the funeral in their home with photos, signed notes and cards from Diana to my uncle on display, I remember everything about that period feeling so unreal. The funeral was highly emotional, her sons behind the coffin, Candle in the Wind being sung by Elton John and all the flowers being thrown at the car. Once it ended, like many in the country we all headed to the nearest pub for a much needed drink.

Following the funeral a friend asked me to visit London with her to see the flowers at the palaces and although I hadn’t really thought about doing it, it is something that I am so pleased I did. It was an amazing sight, the waves of flowers are unforgettable, beautiful in colour, smell and volume. We also signed the book of condolence and pottered along Kensington High Street for shopping and an Italian lunch, it was a memorable day.

As the anniversary of her death occurs, I still like Diana, yes she was flawed but she in her own way was a role model, she embraced her charity work and used her position to help others, she held strong family values and was determining what the life of a modern woman looked like. She took my generation from believing in fairy tale princesses to something a little more realistic.

This is a photo I took on the day we visited Kensington Palace, it was an unforgettable and beautiful scene.

Postscript

Following the media coverage of the anniversary I’m a little perplexed that future generations will believe we were all emotional wrecks crying and mourning Diana’s death. It was a surreal time, questions were raised about the role of paparazzi and the need for privacy and respect and we all felt sad for her family. However we weren’t all crying but just trying to make sense of a terrible accident.

Cornwall 2017

Published on August 26, 2017August 27, 2017 by seasidesparklesLeave a comment

ec34c999-b60e-4d04-bdec-eae1e017f109

When we were planning our summer holiday for this year, we decided we wanted to explore our country . We have a beautiful country and need to celebrate and share our culture. (Reading back I should like to stress that I’m still mourning Brexit, you can love our country and the world around us!) We chose Cornwall quite simply because I wanted to go back to the Eden project. I loved it when we visited in 2005 and have wanted to return since, 12 years and two children later, I finally got my wish this summer and it didn’t disappoint. We picked the south of Cornwall as Mr S and I had a lovely holiday in St Ives in 2000 so were keen to be in this area for this holiday, with its beautiful beaches, little shops, art galleries and lovely little restaurants. Of course I was remembering a holiday pre children and I didn’t get much opportunity to mooch around the shops and art galleries this time. However, I would like to plan a child free weekend to appreciate these things again.

We stayed at a Haven caravan park, Riviere Sands. Its location was ideal, right on the beach and we had a sea view from our caravan. The beach was beautiful, miles and miles of soft sand. I ran several mornings and it was wonderful to run on the wet sand for miles and appreciate the views of Caris Bay and St Ives. The location of the caravan park means its a quiet beach as its quite difficult to get to apart from via the park. The day we were on the beach at St Ives it was much busier. The facilities at the caravan park were good, it had an indoor and outdoor pool and outdoor water slide, crazy golf, go karts and a variety of activities, water and land based organised in the leisure hub. There was also evening entertainment, we tended to stay just for the children’s show and disco but one of the highlights of the holiday was winning music bingo on the first night. We won so many prizes, a huge toy tiger who took up a seat in the car, hoodies, bubble machines, magic straws, bubble magic, light toys, the children were ecstatic and couldn’t believe their prizes. I couldn’t believe we won, I don’t think I’ve ever won a game of bingo before! We did a number of activities on site, crazy golf was fun and despite Mr S’ disbelief and checking my adding up, I won. The children both did some activities in the pool, aqua jets and gliders which they loved, they were £8 and £4 respectively but well worth the money. The pool was really nice to swim in, heated to a comfortable temperature and well supervised, we swam everyday both inside and out.

img_6836-2

Our caravan was so kitsch, I loved it, from the lollipop curtains, Twister lolly cushions it just screamed holidays. Our rooms had bed linen with seaside scenes and all furnishings were colourful and bright. It had a clean, good sized bathroom and the kitchen had everything we might need. I really liked our little base, it felt like a holiday and also showed how little you need to have a good time.

Over the week, as expected for a British holiday, the weather was mixed, with some lovely weather and some cloudy, damp days. The worst were the day we arrived and the day before we left, on the first day we just went swimming, did the food shopping and entertained ourselves inside the caravan whilst on the Sunday, we went to a nearby town to watch a film and then did swimming in the afternoon by which time the rain had passed. We wanted to make the most of our location on the beach so most days were spent on the beach and in the pool, we had two days out in St Ives and the Eden project.

We last went to the Eden project in April 2005 (the week Pope John Paul died, its surprising what you remember!) I loved it, not simply the content, but the philosophy and ethos behind the project, its one of the few millennium projects which has a lasting legacy. I really wanted the children to experience it and understand the importance of sustainability, conservation and protecting our planet, pretty tough aims for an 8 and 9 year old. However they loved it and learnt so much from it, I’ve been pleasantly surprised how they have discussed what they saw, especially in the ‘rain jungle’ dome. There was also a space theme to the project this summer and there was a terrific trip around the solar system in the arena, you got to be on every planet and it was so well done. There were lots of space activities all over the site which were enjoyed by us all. I was amazed at how the site has developed over the years, I got the children to pose in the same spot where Mr S and I had photos taken on our original visit and where the bare land is now full of gardens and colour, without the domes the photos would have been incomparable. I cannot wait to return to Eden and as the tickets last a year I’m hoping we may be able to fit in a weekend away in the next 12 months to appreciate it again (and make more use of our £71 ticket!)

Whilst St Ives was as lovely as I remembered, it was busy, busy, busy on the day we went. We split into girls and boys to do a little shopping trip but the crowds made this a little uncomfortable, you were queuing to get in and out of some shops. However I did get to visit Poppy Treffy an online gift shop which I love and have bought a number of items from, it was so nice to be in the shop and see everything, I may have bought one or two Christmas presents here, its never too early to start. We spent most of our time in St Ives on the beach, it was a lovely day and with a sea rescue display from the coastguards and RNLI there was plenty to see. We also enjoyed some Cornish pasties for lunch, when in Cornwall..

Cornwall was a great holiday destination, the weather was as expected but I loved returning to Eden and enjoying the beautiful, golden beaches. We made lots of happy, family memories. So that’s Cornwall ticked off our places to visit in Britain, where next?

Hoodies, the Eden project and Dirty Dancing – #littleloves the Cornish edit!

Published on August 25, 2017August 25, 2017 by seasidesparkles2 Comments

I’m now at the stage of the summer holidays when I’m trying to work out what day of the week it is, Mr S is at home too so there’s no work days at present and each day simply merges into another. Living in a holiday resort its holidays all round, so no real definer of time here either. In the period since my last #litteloves post we’ve been on our summer holiday to Cornwall. Normally we go abroad but this year we wanted to show the children how beautiful our country is and share some of the special places. We had a caravan on the beach near St Ives and explored Cornwall, the Eden project was the highlight but we all enjoyed the beaches and surf.

Normally I read lots on holiday, especially around the swimming pool but this year I found myself in the pool as it was a bit nippy to be sat around it or watching the children in the sea from the beach, thus reducing reading opportunities. Therefore I’ve only been reading magazines, guidebooks or puzzle books, all fun and light but I’m looking forward to starting a book tonight and working my way through my to read list.

On holiday I watched the children carefully, the sea was more tidal than we’re used to and I always had them in my sight if Mr S or I weren’t in the sea with them. Our two are beach dudes and had their body boards in the sea and tried out aqua gliders and jets at the caravan park. On one afternoon, Lifeboat day in St Ives, we watched a mock rescue display by the lifeboat and coastguard in the sea, highly impressive and I have so much respect to those who volunteer to help others.

We had a wet and miserable morning on holiday and went to the cinema to see ‘Diary of a Wimpy Kid – The Long Haul’ I really liked this film despite some poor reviews, it’s exactly what you expect a funny, family film with lots of slapstick. I did think the dynamics of the family were so well observed and I could identify so much with mum, her part was superb.

In our little caravan, CBBC was a popular choice for viewing by the children. Little Miss and I were inspired by Tilly Ramsey’s cookery programme Matilda and the Ramsey bunch. This is a great programme, I loved it, Tilly is bright, funny and passionate about food and such a positive role model, whilst her family are just lovely. Since watching the programme, Little Miss has been helping me to make dinner each night, preparing vegetables, cooking some ingredients etc.. She’s not only been helping but learning too and has listened carefully to instructions and explanations. I let Little Miss make her first cake independently this week, simply being present in the kitchen ready to answer any questions and take the cake out of the oven. She made a lime and coconut loaf and it was amazing. I’m looking forward to tasting more of her cakes and bakes.

The weather was mixed on holiday, some stunning days but some damp and cooler days too. My most worn outfit was my swimming costume, I was in the water everyday either in the pool or sea and then spent most of my time in shorts and a hoodie or t-shirt depending on the temperature. I love the hoodie and shorts combie, it’s cosy and warm with a hint of summer.

2f131a1c-badb-4415-99e9-44c4a228dbf6

I was surprised to hear that the film, Dirty Dancing was released 30 years ago this week, how can it be that old? It was the coming of age film for me and my friends and is still one of my favourite films of all time. I downloaded the soundtrack onto Spotify this week and enjoyed listening to it on my runs. I also had a bit of a tidy up this week and found my original CD from 30 years ago, in the sleeve there are all the lyrics and I remember singing along as a teenager. I love the Dirty Dancing soundtrack and it still is as good as I remember.

We have few plans for the bank holiday weekend, if its sunny it’ll be the beach or a walk or if its mixed we’ve a few house jobs on a list to be done. Next week is school shoe shopping and the final bits of uniform, I’m already psyching myself up! We will then finish the last holiday week with a visit from family, before its back to school. The summer holiday seems to have gone so quickly and there are signs of autumn creeping through our days now. I’m determined to enjoy these last days of summer.

Many thanks to Morgana and all her lovely contributors to #littleloves, I’ve missed the posts and inspirations.

Stopping Time, children playing and a radio drama #littleloves

Published on August 12, 2017 by seasidesparklesLeave a comment

The summer holiday is plodding along, the weather is still rubbish but we’re trying to make it fun. Mum and Dad came down at the start of the week so we went through to the neighbouring town and walked along the river and quay for a rare warm and pleasant few hours! I also introduced mum to a lovely little artisan courtyard which she enjoyed browsing around as I do. There was nothing outstanding this week it was just finding joy in the ordinary, play dates, meet ups and that wonderful dry little walk along the beach after a wet day stuck in the house.

I’ve been reading Matt Haig’s How to Stop Time this week. With his books it’s not simply about the plot but the beauty and poignancy of his language. This book has been a great read and I’m looking forward to finishing it on holiday next week.

I’ve enjoyed watching the children play this week. We had a lovely fun day at the cricket club on Sunday where the children received their medals and certificates for the season and then enjoyed all the activities set up, especially the soft play gladiators. After seeing the weather forecast for Wednesday and another wet day indoors, I decided to host some play dates, Little Man had a friend in the morning, Little Miss in the afternoon and two of my friends came around in the evening. Mr S was away this week so we chatted around the kitchen table rather than the in a pub, I think I won then over with my nibbles! It made for a really nice day sometimes I think it’s easier with friends than just my two together who alternate between being best friends and irritating each other.

This week I’ve been playing on Movie Maker creating some short films in preparation for a work project. I rarely take video footage of us but may try to take a few clips on holiday and create a little film of memories. Given our family’s need for privacy the short films will never make it to You tube and I won’t be launching as a vlogger but it’s a nice little project to undertake.

When I was in John Lewis a few weeks ago I was given a sample of a new face mask by Clarins. I’m never going to make it as a beauty blogger but I loved the smell of the mango butter and my skin did feel lovely and soft after the mask. I received some Boots vouchers for my birthday and think I will treat myself to a little tube, isn’t the tube a lovely colour too!

I was in the car on Monday lunchtime and caught a radio drama by Michael Morpugho on child migration to Australia post WW 2. It was a really good drama and I’ve listened to all the episodes this week in bed. Whilst this was a drama, the policy was real and one that makes you think of the child migrants of today and the need to keep them safe.

It’s holidays for us next week as we swap one popular British seaside town where we live for another, St Ives in Cornwall. We have a list of things which we hope to do The Eden project and St Michael’s Mount top our list and then it’s time to relax on the beaches or at our caravan park. Fingers crossed for dry weather, a little sunshine would be perfect.