Circus Sunday

Sunday! Sunday! Sunday!

I know for most Monday is the worst day of the week but for me it has to be Sunday.

I hate, hate, hate, Sunday's with a passion. I find myself running around doing all the jobs I've put off through the week and the ones I was saving for Saturday, are generally pushed over to Sunday. I hate the mad rush to get the school uniform washed, dried and ironed ready for Monday morning. I am always too unorganised to think about doing it Saturday or even Friday night.

Sunday mornings generally start with a mad rush to get Zak to his swimming lesson on time, we always get up late and he moves at snail pace, but this is nothing new he moves at snail pace every day of the week, he's definitely not a morning person. Swimming takes us up to lunchtime then home to prepare lunch and the dreaded two hours of I HATE DOING HOMEWORK, the tantrums last throughout the whole homework process. This will definitely need a full post in the future I hate the homework process as much as he does.

This Sunday however was different no swimming.....no homework...no uniforms....no preparation for the week ahead....RESULT!!!!!

I decided we should turn this Sunday into a fun day, there was no rush to eat breakfast so we sat and had what Zak calls a Big Breakfast....veggie fingers.....veggie sausage....hash browns...beans...and a fried egg!!! He wanted to add potato waffles and fish fingers but I had to draw the line at the last two, I know he says big breakfast but I wasn't signing him up for 'Zak vs Food' even though he tackles every plate of food as a personal foodie challenge.

We decided to would be a trip to the circus. Planet Circus was in town, after a quick Google search I discovered it was there final day!!! So our next task was to get showered, dressed and out the door by 12:20pm...IMPOSSIBLE with the snail pace. 

In the car by 12:40pm the bleeding petrol light is flashing and I need a cash machine. Was quickly beginning to look like the usual mad Sunday rush had arrived!!!!!



We arrived at the circus just in time for the starting act, there was a good mixture of acts some were brilliant and quite terrifying to watch like the five stunt bikers in the cage all at one time whilst the cage split in two!! 

The acrobatic act was an interesting one The lady was brilliant, flexible and daring. It all turned a little provocative when the tank of water was revealed to which she splashed around, whipped her head back and forth, in what I suppose I can reluctantly describe as a bikini (not too sure though). My favourite act was the flame throwers real sense of danger there.....


Our two worst acts was the jugglers (is that still a talent) which got worse and worse as they went on it finished with them throwing what looked like paper plates back and forth to each other. 

There was also a frozen act in which Olaf stood at the side of the ring while a poorly dressed Elsa hula hooped in the centre to 'Let it Go'. I didn't manage to take many photos they were really strict with this and I didn't want a telling off.

Apart from a few disappointing acts Planet Circus was worth a Sunday afternoon trip. I unforunatley didn't have any discount vouchers which most people seemed to have. But the nice lady in boxoffice allowed us the discount without the vouchers which saved us over £18.00. It cost me £17.00 for the two of us, I was more than happy to pay for the 90 minute entertainment.

Overall it was a good alternative to the usual Sunday afternoon homework tantrum!!!

How old is too old???? Co-Sleeping!!!

How Old is too old??

This is an issue which I have and still am struggling with. I don't remember all those years ago when I was pregnant co-sleeping been a buzz word of the day.....I do remember been told "oh no don't let him sleep with you, you'll never get him out". Zak always had his own cot and did happily go down to sleep in it every night from a very early age. However if he did wake during the night or become unsettled he would be lifted in to bed with me and I had no doubt in my mind that this was the best option for us both. He would happily snuggle up to me and drift off back to sleep, which allowed me too to get an adequate amount of sleep. Returning to work once he reached 9 months meant I needed at least six good hours of sleep each night to allow me to continue functioning on a daily basis.

'Co-sleeping' has definitely worked for us over the years and kept us both happy. Zak has always had his own bed and room until very recently, however at 7 years old he is still opting to climb in to bed with me every night. I've done the whole new bed, new room, and decorating his room in  a theme of his choice. I even splashed out at one point and bought him a mid sleeper with a slide thinking that would do the trick, who wouldn't love a bed with its own slide!!!!

He did love the slide and the bed and the newly decorated room. He would even climb in to bed on an evening and settle down to go to sleep, but it wouldn't be long before he would be climbing in at the side of me. Which I would very rarely complain about!!!

I'm pretty sure been a single parent massively impacted on my choices when allowing him to 'co-sleep' with me every night, there was plenty of room and I do love having him close.

However at 7 years old now and he's not a small 7 year old either!!! He can take up a substantial amount of room and he is a massive wriggler. The look of shock horror when I disclose to other parents that I still allow Zak to sleep with me every night, well if I had a pound for every look I got I would be a very happy mummy.


So our once more convenient routine which allowed us both the best nights sleep is not so convenient, well not for me anyway.

 

I decided to do a little research to see if I could find a definitive answer..........

"Certainly children four and six years of age are not too old to sleep with parents. In many cultures throughout the world, children sleep with their parents until they are nine or ten. As a very general guide, around eight years of age is when most children naturally want their own sleeping quarters" (Dr Sears).

Which obviously I could not..... there are pages and pages of posts in which parents discuss their own personal solutions and antidote's to addressing the issue of co-sleeping.

I am now beginning to wonder whether or not it is actually an issue...... ok so maybe I am not currently getting the best nights sleep but I'm sure it is the better option of two evils!!!! I know that forcing Zak to sleep alone would result in a very unhappy unsettled little man.



 
 











The worst thing we can do is compare our own living solutions and family routines with those of others, what works for us will not work for everybody else.

I would for you to share your experiences, solutions and battles with 'co-sleeping'.
 

My First 24hrs of Blogging!!!!

Not sure if I can refer to the first 24 hours as blogging!!!

I followed no method, there was no rhyme or reasoning to the format or process I took...... as per usual I just jumped straight in head first. This is a regular occurrence in my world, I think about something for days, weeks, months and then one day that's it the thought process is abandoned and before I know it it's done, always done with very little regret maybe just the thought that I could have maybe took a much easier approach.

 I have considered starting a blog numerous times over the last year, then pushed the thought to the back of my mind as everything else in life as seemed so much more important.

So Thursday evening I was sat in front of my laptop creeping through the usual most popular social networking sites, boring myself and complaining about the pointless posts I subject myself to on a daily basis and found myself googling blogging sites. Blogger was the first site found so I went with it.

I gave very little thought to choosing the most appropriate blog name and just went with the one I use on my tumblr page, luckily I was able to use it and it slotted straight in. Not sure I could have come up with a better one, my imagination would have probably just stretched to a suitable name with my son's name slotted in somewhere which would have been so much more inappropriate and totally irrelevant.

Been an eager beaver I wanted to post immediately so I started by posting about what I had done that day, it was just lucky that we had actually spent that day doing a few different activities. Where's Wally in the morning, an afternoon in park on the new Flickr scooter and then toasting marshmallows (if we can stretch to calling it marshmallow toasting) in the kitchen.

I then gave it some thought and decided I should maybe ensure all my social media accounts need the name Lady Tan. It wasn't rocket science was it..... quick and simple name changes on Twitter, Instagram and produced a Facebook page instead of using and changing my personal account.

So that was my Thursday evening pretty straight forward..........Friday morning I decided make use of my twitter account and search #blog #bloggers #bloggerswanted #bloggersrequired. To my absolute surprise I discovered a few tweets requesting bloggers to review products, so I responded explained I was a newbie and would love to start my blogging reviews with there products!!!

I'm awaiting health products......make up......a children's book...and a new product for skin problems.. but all will be revealed in the reviews to follow.

I am finding the key to increasing my followers and RT are good relevant #hashtags on both Twitter and Instagram. I have increased my Instagram followers by 5% in 24hrs and received an additional 20 Twitter followers. Not a huge amount I know but 'If You Build It They Will Come'.

There you have it my first 24hrs of blogging, you have probably laughed your way through this post in utter shock at my lack of organisation, planning and research, but if I don't try I will never know.

All comments, feedback and pointers will be taken on board and very much appreciated I promise.


Getting Organised

Depop!!!!!

Finally!!!

I have decided to clear out my wardrobe, since moving back into the family home my wardrobe space is soooo limited. I don't ever remember having next to nothing in relation to my clothing storage....how depressing!! Not just my space either the boys wardrobe is tiny and my obsession with keeping him stocked in excessive amounts of jeans and t-shirts is not helping the situation.

I have already taken an excessive amount of clothing and shoes to the local charity shop and a few bags have gone in the local clothing bin. I have found many items though which seem in too good a condition to donate just yet (having barely been worn).

So having finally got my act together I have began posting items on Depop, although I haven't successfully managed to sell an item as of yet. I'm finding the whole process rather addictive, it has to be one of if not the simplest selling sites at the moment. The app is easy to navigate, uploading items is easy and simple and the percentage paid in selling fees is more than reasonable. Plus an instant link to your paypal account for the added sellers security.

So far I have managed to upload several of both mine and the boys items, I have so much more to upload shoes, dresses and bundles of boys t shirts.

I can be found Tan Sez..........Oh and one last point pick your user name wisely because unfortunately it can not be CHANGED once added.

 

Summer Fun......

Day 4 of Summer Fun!!

Well another day of summer fun. Today’s activities included an early morning hunt for Wally, an afternoon in Lister Park and toasting mini marshmallows.

How much fun are Where's Wally books, brought back some fond memories of fighting to find that one book in the school library, opening the book to the disappointment of Wally been circled on every page... we can all relate to that scenario. Well gone are those days, this morning I was expected to hunt out Wally, Waldo, Woof and the Wizard. These tasks turned into very competitive searches with some sneaky tactics from a sneaky seven year old. Admittedly it was great fun and passed the morning by keeping us in bed until well after 10:30am.





The new Flicker scooter (great fun) I’m like a big kid. Little man loves it and if it includes him getting exercise then it is an all round winner!!!! We had a great afternoon even though the weather wasn’t great we still managed to spend a few hours 'flicking around', As per usual the sun made an appearance once we got back home so I had the wonderful job of keeping the boy company Again!!!! Why? Why? Why? are we finding that our days are getting brighter around tea time every evening.

Once I was allowed to eventually return indoors, Zak decided it would be a great idea to toast marshmallows (this boy never stops) and seem as though we only had my mini ones I save for hot chocolates he made his way through the bag………
























Day 4 of summer fun complete.