Tag Archives: Birthday

2 Sleeps To Go…A Very Lucky Girl…

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I’ve begun my birthday treat-to-self 4-day-weekend today. I went down the road for breakfast at A’s early-ish (before she and her Mum jetted of to Rome) and have been doing a few odd admin chores, watching Loose Women and generally pottering about with the aim of getting ‘stuff’ done so that I can indulge myself whole-heartedly in the next 3 days.  

So I sat down to do another favourite thing of mine (blogging ah yes, how do I love thee! counting the ways shall burst forth another time…) and I felt like a bit of an empty vessel, having no idea what to write.

Then out of the corner of my eye, I saw movement. I looked up from my keyboard and out of the window – and there was a woman standing there with these…

…and I smiled and cried all at the same time. 
It made me think of all the cards and birthday wishes (including the glittery Happy Birthday sprinkles that threatened to fall out of one envelope) and the pretty-to-look-at and completely scrumptious birthday cake that accompanied yesterday’s singing in the office.
It’s not my birthday yet (only two sleeps to go…where did the time go?) and already I feel a very lucky girl.
Thanks Mum (and Alan)…the flowers arrived just when I needed them.

7 Sleeps To Go…Delusions of Grandeur

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Oil on canvasImage via Wikipedia

I was flicking through a free magazine – one of those you get inside one of the daily newspapers over here – on my bus ride home on Friday night when an article called Star Syndrome caught my eye.  

The line under the heading read:

‘Big rewards for minimum effort and the endless self-obsession encouraged by Facebook have left the younger generation at the mercy of their own egos’.

Hmmm I thought.  I quite like Facebook…it fills the long bus trip home (besides reading blogs of course) and the games are cute/addict-able…my curiosity piqued, I read on.

‘it is ironic that young people are suffering from delusions of grandeur when graduates are finding it almost impossible to get jobs.’

So Facebook has become the harbinger of doom and the cause of rising unemployment amongst those poor, poor youngsters? Is this for real, I thought…but apparently this ‘syndrome’ has a name – Narcissistic Personality Disorder (or NPD for those that love an acronym).  And the next quote I read was the kicker:

‘Will the new generation of NPD children eventually fall on their faces or will the world simply continue to keep the truth from them?’

So I say this… quaking a little at the response I might get and cloaked in that self-doubt unique to those of us who have children in our lives by association rather than as parents…I think they might have a point!

I think you will probably agree with me that you can’t ‘teach’ resilience and it’s only through life’s lessons that any of us develop our own coping mechanisms and inner ‘toughness’. 

So then how on earth do parents, or society at large for that matter, prepare children for the hardest lesson of all?  Life doesn’t always feel good – and it’s how we bounce back and deal with life’s ‘stuff’ that’s important rather than railing against the world’s unfairness in not recognising what we are truly entitled to.

What do you think?  Just how much self-esteem is too much?
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ps…there are only 7 sleeps to go ’til the Big Birthday Plus 1. I’m sure that must entitle me to something…after all, one of the ‘signs’ of the Narcissism is having one’s own blog…

8 sleeps to go…I want a pony

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My lil’ sister (fondly known as Chicky) has had a tough week and it’s one of the times that living over here feels especially far away.  So in an effort to make her smile and to honour our special ‘Big-Chicky-to-Lil-Chicky’ relationship, this post captures some more of those defining moments from my childhood but in an ‘advice from a big sister’ kind of way:

I know you’re not sure what the cake with the little crib on it is all about…but smile anyway!

I know it’s your first birthday…but it’s good to share!

This Marching Girls caper is pretty easy…but you are supposed to be looking straight ahead, not chatting!

Oops…an elbow in the cake…don’t worry, it won’t be the first time.

I know it’s a birthday but should we be having THIS much fun in matching dresses?

And here’s the most important piece of advice of all…

Sisters always look out for each other

BTW, the Chicky-and-Husband parcel arrived last night and quite apart from the anticipation of opening my present on the 1st (strict family rule not to open one’s present until the birthday day itself), the card (family rule does not apply), as quite possibly the most appropriate card ever given to me, simply demonstrates how well she knows me…

8 sleeps to go people, 8 sleeps…can’t wait to ride my pony!

15 Sleeps To Go…It’s all About Me…

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In a burst of nostalgia this morning, I have been trawling through some old photos (some pre-digital and painstakingly scanned to capture their posterity forever)…and found some rather cracking pics that I didn’t know about.  (How do mothers do that?  Do they sneak around with camera in hand ready to catch every moment?….I can hear mother’s reading this everywhere shouting a resounding “YES!” right now)

Given the looming of The Big Birthday – Plus 1 in 15 sleeps (yes, only 15 peeps!), I thought I’d share some of the most defining of these pictorial moments with you.  Yes these pictures of my formative years go a long way towards explaining the following:

1. My fixation with line-dried washing (it just smells and feels so good!)…
2.  My passion for bears (Mum has A LOT to answer for here!)…
3. My obsession with food…
4.  My need to help (for those that don’t know, this is me helping Opa roll the gravel driveway…and is one of my fave pics of the two of us)…

and 5. My love of birthdays!

Oh and did I mention there were only 15 sleeps until my birthday…that’s more cake and candles for me…Wheeee!

ps…speaking of birthdays, my itinerant old man (his words, not mine!) and erstwhile wifely companion, Bev, win this year’s Birthday Derby with their card arriving last Wednesday 14th July…that’s pretty impressive planning guys…

22 Sleeps To Go…Objects of My Desire…

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Let’s all take a little respite from World Cup mania for a moment and chat about a couple of very exciting occurrences in the GiddayfromtheUK house today:
Firstly, I have FINALLY upgraded my mobile phone (after my G1 was stolen in March and the contract ran out in May etc).  
Eeeeeeeeeeee!!! (that was a squeal of delight escaping) 
Sitting beside my blogging-elbow is a sleek and sexy HTC Desire – aptly named as it has just become the object of my Desire…I may be in love….sigh!!!  Is it wrong to want to sit and play with it to the exclusion of the glorious day outside?
And that brings us to a nice segue to exciting occurrence number two – the glorious day outside.  It’s hot peeps, gorgeously and gloriously, sunshine-y, top-down and heat-on-my-face hot…enough for me to have finally taken the fan I bought 2 years ago out of its box last night and assembled it (tapping into my IKEA skills from way back only sans allan key).  I am now enjoying its soft background whirr after much pondering about whether it would actually work…
…which segues beautifully into a long-awaited News From The Patch announcement (speaking of wondering about things)… the strawberries are coming!  Yes, a couple of tender green berries have appeared amongst the greenery – we are checking on them daily like a couple of proud parents, largely to try to avoid a repeat of last year’s berry-napping incident, but also because we are saddos and can’t help ourselves!

And although not part of The Patch as such, the other exciting news is that the mini-jet rose bush that J gave me 4 years ago (on our first Valentine’s Day together), after blooming marvellously in Year 1 and then stubbornly refusing to be bloomin’ anything since, has graced us with two luscious, velvety-red blooms.  Could this be a sign, I wonder…persistence, patience and a bit of tough love overcoming the odds to glory in the end?
We could do with a bit of that here!
A REMINDER A LITTLE LESS GENTLE THAN THE LAST ONE:
There are now only 22 sleeps to go people – that’s 21 days if you are here in the UK or in Australia – to what I have come to call with considerable affection, ‘The Big Birthday – Plus 1’.  I have already arranged my first birthday present to myself too – taking a four day weekend!  I love weekend birthdays…

An Enterprising Young Bear….

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I was reading some of my recent blogs and it occurred to me that a) they are all a bit serious of late, especially when you read them one after the other like I did and b) it has been some time since we caught up with the light of my life, young Alfie Bear.

(Yes I know J is the light of my life but shhhh! We mustn’t let Alfie hear…it’s all about him you know!)
Anyway, Alfie has been mooching around and generally presuming that all of life revolves around him.  He still loves watching the squirrels scurrying about outside from his comfy window position but doesn’t get to do this so much now that the blind is closed during the weekdays when I am at work.  He gets bored quickly and likes to keep busy and it would appear that he’s been putting this time to some use.  We recently discovered a little project of his…it would appear that he’s been quite an enterprising young bear and has joined the ranks of celebrity (or should that be celebratory?) brands with his very own gin & tonic – he told me that I gave him the idea as I always seemed to enjoy a Gin & Tonic with Daddy so much!  
Alfie also loves to ‘participate’ and he takes great joy in being the centre of attention. During the unwrapping of my 40th birthday presents, he took quite a liking to one of my sister’s gifts – a pair of bedsocks with cows heads on them – and took it upon himself to demonstrate how much better they looked on him!  The photo says it all really….
Anyway, that’s enough about Alfie for now…too much attention will go to his head, things will just become impossible and I might just have to have a few stern words with him…or give him THE LOOK (you know, the one ALL mother’s have that manages to silence …well…everything really)…but he has such a cute face and how could I possibly stay cross…
Sigh….
What’s that you say?  He’s not real?
Bite your tongue!

The Happiest Place blah blah…THE RIDES!!!!!!

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Badge lovingly hand-crafted by J for me to wear…all day…

Returning to my big 40th birthday Disney extravaganza (yep it’s still all about me on this blog!) this one is all about….
THE RIDES
So hang on tight people…
It all began with a gentle tour around the Disney Park aboard the Disneyland Railroad…

x
…followed by a visit to Phantom Manor

…dropping in to Indiana Jones’ Temple of Peril and cruising past the underground Blue Lagoon restaurant with the Pirates of the Carribean.

The thrills really started inside Space Mountain: Mission 2…

before levelling off again with an annoyingly uni-lingual flight with Star Tours (commentary all in French!!!!) and a cheese-y sojourn through It’s a Small World.

And that was day one…

Day two was in the Disney Studios Park with even more thrills and spills…there was the Studio Tram Tour…

followed by the Armageddon Special effects experience, the Motors Action Stunt Show Spectacular (not really a ride as such but just as thrilling – more on this later) and then the ultimate thriller…

The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror…

Our final day saw us start with the Rock n Roller Coaster (and a few choice phrases directed at ‘the big man upstairs’ – after all it was a Sunday!)…

followed by a few tamer experiences…Flying Carpets of Agrabah

Snow White and the Seven Dwarves and The Adventures of Pinocchio…
and last, but not least, the giant teacups (or in its more official capacity, the Mad Hatter’s Tea Cups).
Turning 40 really was one hell of a ride…….

5 Sleeps To Go…Success Is

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It’s only 5 sleeps to go until my 39-ness comes to an end and I embark on the journey into my forties. Not that I particularly believe that one birthday (or day for that matter) should mean more than any other but somehow turning 40 has become a milestone with some significance…

There is no party planned…rather the celebrations are developing more out of quiet joy and thankfulness as opposed to any huge ‘whooping it up’ and while the big day is yet to arrive (and the presents are still to be opened!), I find myself feeling so very grateful…

…for my wonderful man and our extraordinarily special relationship…

…for being blessed to know and love his kids and be accepted by them…

…for my family who miss me hugely and support my life across the other side of the world anyway…

…for my friends who lean and are leaned on…you know who you are…

…for discovering life’s simple pleasures – in nature, laughter, tears and home…

and

…for having the courage to find ‘myself’ and to believe I can make a difference, everyday.


There is a poem by Ralph Waldo Emerson called Success Is – Mum always had this stuck on the back of the toilet door and I am still struck by its poignancy.
So I’d like to pass this on to you for all your moments of quiet contemplation…

29 Sleeps To Go…A Cool Grey Day

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Today is a cool grey day…

…and it rained last night. It’s not cold at all but the temperature is nowhere near the scorching levels of the last few days – a lovely respite from feeling constantly like a sweaty puddle of lethargy in un-airconditioned, not-built-for-any-heat UK.

There have already been a couple of little updates on the countdown to the big 4-0 too:

– My first present has arrived – courtesy of Mum and the ever-efficient Amazon Wishlist dispatched to my family last weekend as a bit of a fab-gift-for-Kym thought starter. However, J says I am not allowed to have it yet…boo hoo!

– J has organised my present (a landmark event in itself!) I…yes me…am going to Disneyland Paris for my birthday. YAY! WOOHOO!

What better way to celebrate 40 (or forty – which way looks better/more fun/less threatening? I am not sure – perhaps we could do a poll?) than to rush about behaving like a huge child with Mickey & co. You all should be VERY envious…

And I might just go on about it for…mmm…I dunno…maybe the next 29 days or so…

I love it when it’s all about me…

The Countdown Begins…

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For those of you who live under a rock or have been avoiding me for sometime, today is the today that I remind you that in exactly ONE MONTH, I will be turning 40.

That’s 31 shopping days…

(although if you live across the other side of the world – aka Australia – this probably means only 21 shopping days as it takes about 10 days for post to get here)

That’s also 31 sleeps…

The countdown begins…