Things I'm loving...

 

 

This week kicked off with Sunday lunch at my brother's.

 

I can think of much worse ways to start the week than this fabulous chocolate meringue stack that my sister in law made for pudding!

 

 

 

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Back in June 2012 James had 'train track' braces fitted to fix his crazily squint teeth.

 

 

 

 

This week he was so pleased to finally get them off.

 

Look how perfect those teeth are now!

 

 

Those two photos also show how much he has changed over the last 18 months too.

 

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We fished the Bumbo out of the loft for Fraser this week. He's still a bit too small for it and prefers his bouncy chair but he did rather like his first wee shot in it...

 

 

 

 

 

...even when someone decided he needed a weapon to protect himself in it!

 

 

 

Different people say that Fraser looks like different boys. One person will say, 'he looks so like Alasdair' and then the next will say, 'oh he looks so like David' I suppose it's because they do all look alike anyway but here is Alasdair at a similar age, also in the Bumbo, and you can decide for yourselves!

 

 

 

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Sticking with Fraser, his eczema is still pretty bad. One day I think it looks like it's improving and then the next it's worse and weeping again.

 

Poor little man, his face is always so sore and when I undress him for bath time he claws away at his chest and the top of his legs. During the day I try and keep him distracted from scratching his face as he can still make it bleed even with mitts on.

 

 

 

Despite how bad his skin looks, he still has the most content little personality and continues to enchant us all with his smiles and little 'conversations'.

 

 

 

 

 

 

You see what others are loving this week over at Meghan's blog here.

 

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Happy 90th Birthday Granny!

Yesterday was my granny's 90th birthday.

This was taken in autumn 2011.

 

Although she has been largely housebound since around the time the photo above was taken, she is blessed to still be able to live in her own home. My mum and one of her sisters both live nearby and are always popping in, and granny has a team of carers who also call in at various times of the day to help her out. She also has some great neighbours in the village.

 

I asked my mum to send me a photo of her wearing the blanket I made her and here it is...

 

 

 

 

My mum and her sisters organised dinner out in a hotel to celebrate the milestone.

 

 

Mum made a special cake to bring along (dad did the writing, must give him credit where it's due)

 

 

 

 

When granny heard that they were having a get-together for her birthday she asked would there be photos on Facebook! I don't think she really knows what Facebook is but she's heard everyone talking about seeing photos of various events on Facebook!

 

So my dad posted some photos of the night on Facebook for her and I have pinched them from there. Now someone needs to explain to her what a blog is and tell her that she made it on here too!

 

 

 

 

And remember my year long crochet blanket project? I've been making basic granny squares for ordinary days and am planning to mark special days with special squares. I'll share my progress in a post next week, but here is the square I made to commemorate Granny's special birthday....

 

 

It's the first time I've tried making an African Flower square and I'm really pleased with how it looks.

 

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Burns Night 2014

On Saturday it was Burns' Night and, as has been the tradition for many years now, my hubs' sister hosted a traditional Burns Supper.

On the menu was, of course, haggis....

...but because she always invites a few folk of other nationalities who may be a little squeamish about the real thing, she always has a vegetarian option too.

It is tradition for the haggis to be piped in to the table before it is 'addressed'. Since Aunty Anna doesn't know a piper, James usually plays his chanter instead. Actually, the chanter he is playing below belonged to his great grandfather who was a great piper.

Addressing the haggis is just someone reciting Burns' poem 'Ode to a Haggis' before it is sliced open and served.

Here is one little man waiting patiently for his haggis.

Our boys all love haggis so we eat it much more often than just Burns' Night and St Andrew's Day.

Accompanying your haggis with Irn Bru is optional. If you're reading from Canada, I hear this has just been banned over there!

The boys had their kilts on again (except James who doesn't have one that fits, or Fraser!) but I need to teach them how to sit properly in a skirt!

Fraser was in great form, despite the crowd of people in a strange house. He always gets a bit unsettled and itchy at dinner time but then is all soothed after his bath, creams and bandages so I did all that before we left. He spent the evening watching the goings on with his big curious eyes. And smiling at all the ladies!

James might not have had his kilt on but he did get to wear his new, and very much loved, Captain America t-shirt.

After the haggis, neeps and tatties there was plenty of choice of pudding.

Oh look, there's that same little man peeking over the table again!

After all the food is finished there is always a sing along of Scottish songs. Calum accompanied some of them on his accordion.

It was a fun night that everyone enjoyed.

Every year as we leave the supper my sister in law snaps a photo of us all. It's fun to see the changes in even just a few years.

This is us this year....

...and only 3 years ago!

I'm not sure which boy has changed the most in that time!

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Make it Monday - on a Tuesday, again.

This make had to be finished off last night so that I could give it to my mum, who was down for a few days, to take back home with her today! That's why it wasn't posted last night - I was too busy finishing it off!

 

Tomorrow is my granny's birthday. And it's a special one as she turns 90!

 

I've been working on this blanket for her since a couple of weeks before Fraser was born and really wanted to have it done in time to give her for her birthday.

 

 

 

Here it is!

 

 

 

It's more of a day blanket than a bed sized one, just the right size to keep her legs warm when she is sitting in the living room.

 

Calum & Fraser decided to try it out as a lap blanket just to see what it was like!

 

 

 

I chose the colours to be quite neutral, to match the decor in my granny's living room. They remind me of a cappuccino, or a slice of coffee cake, or a piece of tiramisu!

 

 

 

Just to finish it off and make it a bit fancier I added a wee scalloped border.

 

 

I'm glad I got it finished in time for her birthday and am looking forward to seeing her with it!

 

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Things I'm loving...

 

 

It's been quite a while since I joined in with Things I'm Loving posts over at Meghan's lovely MandMs Adventures blog. Too long really.

 

So here are a few of the things I was loving in our house this week.

 

 

One of the presents the birthday boy received was this very cool Marvel Monopoly game.

 

 

The three oldest boys were loving it so much that they had a game going on for three days! When David (8) had to go to football training this afternoon his cousin took over his position!

 

 

 

 

I love the way this cute little man sits himself down in various places to 'read' books. Here he is in Fraser's car seat.

 

 

 

We enjoyed seeing my dad briefly this week as he was down for some meetings. It gave me an excuse to make this retro pudding that my mum used to make when we were wee.

 

 

 

 

I'm not really loving all the hospital appointments just now - dermatology last week for Alasdair & Fraser, dermatology again this week for Fraser and then allergy clinic for Calum (11) - however, I am thankful that we have a good hospital and specialists nearby.

 

So even though we had a LONG morning at the allergy clinic this week....

 

 

 

 

... I did manage to squeeze in a bit of crochet on my mood blanket while we were there. Once Fraser had gone to sleep that is!

 

 

 

Alasdair (4) loved these big Valentines teddies we saw at the supermarket this week.

 

 

 

 

Finally, the boys dug out their kilts for the Burns supper at Boys' Brigade tonight. They have all grown out of their previous size and into the next boy up's. Calum now has James' old one and David has Calum's. James tried on my hubs' kilt but it's still just a tiny bit loose in the waist. It almost fits though!

 

Calum and David were very proud to be wearing their 'new' kilts...

 

 

 

 

...and because the other boys had their kilts out, Alasdair wanted to wear his too...

 

....over his Jammies, with his new snow boots and a super hero mask too. What else?!

 

Have a great weekend!

 

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Birthday Boy.

Here's a challenge.

 

Any idea which of my boys this is, aged about 5 months?

 

I think they all look quite similar, but also quite different, as babies.

 

The biggest clue in the photo above is probably how young I am!

 

Here is that same boy on his first birthday, with a little Teletubby cake.

 

 

 

That same boy celebrated his birthday at the weekend.

 

His 14th! {how is that even possible?!}

 

Yes, it was our oldest boy, James, in the photos above.

 

Moving on from his love of the Teletubbies then to his love of Marvel this year for his cake...

 

 

 

All he wanted to do to celebrate his birthday was to have his cousins {and Uncle & Aunt} round for a homemade steak pie dinner....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

...and for the oldest of his cousins, who he considers as one of his best friends {and is also an equally huge Marvel fan} to stay for a sleepover.

 

 

 

 

Back in the days of those first couple of photos I could never have pictured that sweet cuddly baby 14 years later, as tall as me {although I think I still have an inch or so over him} and in an Army Cadet uniform. Nor could I have imagined what a crazy sense of humour he would have and that he would be such a good older brother to his four younger brothers.

 

 

Happy Birthday James!

 

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